ã€ŠSummoner Sovereignã€‹


 1 Chapter 1: Brand New World

    Screams filled the air, the voices filled with agony and fear.

    Amidst the broken rubble of what used to be sturdy buildings and majestic skyscrapers, terrifying shapes stalked through them. They seemed neither organic nor natural, their bodies encased in what appeared to be gleaming metal. Despite their mechanical appearance, they were the shape of bugs. Arachnid limbs crunched concrete and punctured the broken husks of vehicles as ten-meter high monsters hunted through the remnants of the city.

    That very moment, I woke up.

    "¡­this is¡­?"

    Raising both my hands up, I saw that they were a lot smaller than before. My head hurt, and I could feel blood trickling down my body. Inspecting myself, I found that I was a lot different from what I remembered. It wasn''t just the various injuries that spread through my body, which included a patchwork of bruises, an array of cuts and abrasions.

    I was much younger than I remembered.

    A nearby flash caught my attention. Staggering to my feet, I turned and caught my reflection in the broken glass of a fallen window.

    "¡­this is me?"

    How was this possible? I looked like a damned twelve-year-old. I looked like myself over twenty years ago.

    "Ugh!"

    I winced, clutching my head. Memories were pouring into my mind right now. Memories of my past life. That was right. I was a graduate student in my mid-thirties, yet to graduate from my PhD program and stuck in thesis hell, unable to write my grant proposals and research proposals, never mind my damned dissertation.

    Did I kill myself from the stress? I certainly hope not.

    No¡­I didn''t. Now I remembered. When I was returning home, I caught sight of a young boy playing near a construction site. Then the crane nearby malfunctioned, and a pile of steel girders slipped off its carriage, crashing down onto where the kid was.

    I had no idea why the boy was there ¨C obviously kids should have not been allowed such a dangerous area. But reasons aside, the first thing I did was dive and pushed the kid out of the way. He yelped in surprise as he was roughly thrown aside, but at least he reached safety. Getting up to his feet, he glared at me and was about to curse me when everything vanished.

    The steel girders landed on me that instant, blocking my view of the kid. I felt red-hot agonizing, my vision turned black and I knew nothing.

    And now, I was in this devastated city with giant bugs and monsters, with no clue what was going on. One of the monstrous creatures squirmed by, a worm-like monstrosity that was different from its spider-like brethren. Its maw yawned open, revealing a ring of razor-sharp teeth dripping with what seemed like a cross between lubricant and drool.

    "What the fuck?" I muttered under my breath, completely unable to comprehend what I was seeing.

    "Uwaaah!"

    "AAAAH!"

    I turned around when I heard the screams. A couple were hollering in fear as they cowered before the worm-like creature. If it hadn''t spotted them before (though how it could see without eyes, I had no idea ¨C the creature didn''t seem to have any eyes at all, or any visual sensory organs), it certainly had now.

    Idiots.

    I wasn''t sure what I could do. Just like the time with the young boy, I had the urge to be a hero and save them, but while I could save the boy''s life by sacrificing my own and pushing him out of the way, I saw no method of which I could help the couple.

    That monster, which was at least ten meters long, wasn''t something any human could fight. At least not without the appropriate weapons. If I had a rocket launcher¡­or even one of those automatic carbines I used during my days in the two-year mandatory military service back in my home country, I might be able to, but in a twelve-year-old kid''s body? No way.

    "HELP!"

    The couple''s screams were growing louder now, the two of them trembling from fright as they embraced each other while the mechanical worm-thing reared up above them. Its jaws opened wider, its ring of razor-sharp teeth seeming to spin slowly like a grinder.

    Then it descended upon them.

    "Damn it!"

    Cursing under my breath in a very un-twelve-year-old manner, I rushed forward without thinking. Grabbing a piece of rubble that my painfully young body could carry, I hurled it as forcefully as I could. It struck the seemingly metallic plating of the worm before clanging off harmlessly.

    "Over here!" I shouted as loudly as I could. "Pick on someone your own size!"

    Even though my rock had no effect, I seemed to have succeeded in drawing the gigantic worm''s attention. Or perhaps it had heard me, but again I had no idea how it accomplished that without any ears or auditory sensory organs.

    The worm turned toward me, crushing debris underneath is bulk, and crawling inexorably toward me. The couple stared at me, their eyes wide in fear, but they weren''t able to do or say anything.

    Adults needing a kid like me to save their asses. How pathetic. Then again, to be fair, I wasn''t exactly a kid. I was a mid-thirty failure of an adult trapped inside a kid''s body. Now that I thought about it, it was very likely that the kid had died during the xenos'' assault, and my wandering soul that had just left my original dead body must have entered his and revived it.

    The so-called transmigration or reincarnation trope, huh?

    Unfortunately, now wasn''t the time to think about such frivolous things. I had just potentially squandered my second chance at life by yelling at the worm to save two pathetic adults from near-certain death. Even if readers mocked me for being stupid for risking my lives for strangers I didn''t know, at least my character was consistent.

    I turned and ran as quickly as I could with my unbearably short legs. Damn it, I forgot how it was like to run like a child. If I was back in my thirty-something body, I would have lasted a lot longer and covered a greater distance within a shorter time, but my current body felt clumsy, almost weak. Perhaps it was due to the injuries I had sustained. I didn''t know.

    I probably wouldn''t find out.

    With an uncharacteristic, almost mechanical roar, the worm lunged at me. Seeing its shadow fall upon me rapidly, I couldn''t help but risk a glance back and saw that it was closing on me much faster than I could escape.

    The bloody monster would swallow me whole in the next five seconds. And even if I tried to dive away, I would still be struck by something with the mass of several buses and killed from the physical impact.

    Fuck! Was this how my life in another world was going to end? In less than five minutes of transmigrating into a new body?!

    Whoosh!

    "?!"

    I threw myself to the side instinctively as something hot and bright flashed past me, scorching my back. Rolling across the broken debris, I got up and watched in awe as the monstrous worm was enveloped in an inferno, screeching helplessly as it was incinerated into ash.

    "That was a very brave thing you did, kid."

    A man in his late twenties or early thirties landed in front of me. I gaped at him, more surprised by his lame fashion sense than his appearance. He had a Meiji-era cap perched atop his head, and his almost military-styled uniform was clad underneath a cloak. Someone ought to tell him that those military uniforms went out of fashion once the Meiji period ended. At most, the Japanese stopped wearing them after World War II.

    The man glanced derisively at the couple, who were still holding each other up and shivering fearfully.

    "Are you proud of yourselves? Being saved by a kid?" he asked callously. The young man and young woman merely stared at him, too shocked to answer.

    A growl reverberated from elsewhere, and the young man turned to watch the spider-like mechanical arachnids tromping toward him. His lips curled into a playful sneer. Glancing up, he waved at a brilliant figure hovering in the air.

    "Angelica, I''ll leave those bugs to you as well."

    "Yes, Master."

    To my utter shock, the figure floating in the air was an angel. Her long, crimson hair ran down her back, contrasting with golden, feathery wings that spread out on either side of her, keeping her aloft as they flapped gently. Golden, flaming feathers drifted down from the graceful action, bursting into flames the moment they touched the bugs, which recoiled in horror.

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    Without her wings, the angel seemed more like a beautiful young lady, dressed in a simple white dress that outlined her curves. Her bare feet floated several dozen meters above the ground, her gorgeous body suspended in midair. Raising a hand, she swung it down.

    Nine gigantic fireballs materialized in the air, blazing ferociously. Even on the ground, so far beneath the fireballs, I could feel the intense heat scorching my face and scalding my lungs. The young man with the cape and cap didn''t seem affected, though, merely beaming happily as he sat back to watch the carnage.

    The bugs tried to withdraw, but the young man snorted.

    "You want to escape? Too late for that now."

    The angel seemed to respond to his intent, swinging down her delicate-looking hand. The nine fireballs rained down on the fleeing arachnids, engulfing them in a fiery death and incinerating them into nothingness. The resulting explosions were so vicious they actually carved craters into the ground.

    "Great job, Angelica." The young man clapped in delight. The angel merely inclined her head in acknowledgement, but continued to hover where she was. Her master then turned toward me with that bright smile of his. "All right, kid. You did well, but it''s time to bring you to safety."

    "Where''s that?" I blurted out without thinking.

    "The shelter, of course." The caped man arched an eyebrow, as if wondering why I was asking such a stupid question.

    "I mean, where is the shelter?" Realizing how foolish I sounded, I amended my words and straightened myself. Rubbing my head for emphasis. "Sorry, I seem to have lost my memory, so I''m not sure what''s going on or where is where."

    "Oh¡­" the young man studied me for a moment before grinning. "You don''t have to worry about that. This great me is going to escort you all there."

    He was glancing at the couple, who were still in shock, but were slowly recovering enough to move a little.

    Sweeping his cape behind him, he then turned toward another direction. "Follow me."

    I obeyed, and shortly after that, the couple did as well. The young man chuckled as he sent a gaze in my direction, even as Angelica descended to hover next to him.

    "What an interesting young kid," he whispered to her. And then he focused his eyes forward and suppressed a groan. "Not again."

    A new pack of monsters ¨C this time, they resembled wolves rather than bugs ¨C had emerged from a broken building, and were bounding toward our direction.

    I stared at them in dismay. Looked like I had transmigrated into one hell of a world.

 2 Chapter 2: Magic

    Unfortunately for me, even though I took over the body of the kid, I had completely no memories of his life. it wasn''t like the usual transmigration novels where my memories merged with my host body''s and I suddenly knew what kind of world I was in, who my current parents were, or what sort of family background (and the usual, inevitable betrayals, backstabbing and conspiracies that seem to follow all these types of novels too often) I had. It was as if I had translated into a blank canvas, a blank slate with no background, no scheming siblings or cousins ready to betray me for my position or inheritance, no parents who hated me for no reason other than the plot demanded it, no family politics where uncles and aunts abused me or tried to kill me, etc.

    Yay, I guess?

    Without memories, I couldn''t be reunited with my family, assuming they had survived the destruction. I didn''t even know my name, for Christ''s sake. So off I was, ready to be bundled off to the orphanage, until the man with the cape and cap came in.

    "This boy''s interesting," he told the befuddled clerk who was managing the evacuation and reassignment of homes to the increasing flow of refugees fleeing from the mangled city I had just escaped from. "Mind if you give him to me?"

    "People are not objects, Mr. Huang Shun Yin," the clerk told him strictly. "They are not things to be given away. If you''re not his guardian, then you can''t take him."

    "Then I''ll be his guardian. Let me adopt him."

    That surprised the clerk, who gaped at him for a full five seconds before she finally shut her mouth. She squeezed her eyes shut, rubbed the bridge of her nose, and exhaled.

    "That''s rare. For you to take an interest in a kid to the extent where you would adopt him."

    "This kid has the makings of a hero. I''ll raise him to be one! Didn''t I tell you earlier? He actually saved a couple of adults from being Myrwurm chowder. Drew its attention away, risking his life just to save a couple of strangers he had never met before. Have you ever met a kid like him before?"

    "Can''t say I have." The clerk sighed. "But in times of crisis, new heroes are always emerging, so I''m not surprised either." She looked at me pitifully. "I wonder what experiences this boy must have gone through to mature that quickly."

    Well, to be honest, I was actually in my mid-thirties and had plenty of life experiences, but if I mentioned that I would packed off into the nearest mental institution faster than Shun Yin could sign the adoptive papers. So I kept quiet.

    "So¡­what''s the deal with this world?" I asked Shun Yin once he had all the paperwork done. He frowned.

    "Call me papa."

    "Yes, Dad."

    "¡­" Shun Yin raised an eyebrow, but looked satisfied that I obeyed him. In a way, anyway. Then he smiled. "What do you mean, what''s the deal with this world?"

    "I lost my memories, so I don''t remember anything. Like¡­why are there monsters? And where is Angelica? How did you do that?"

    "Do what? Summon Angelica?" Shun Yin burst out laughing. "I''m a summoner, of course!"

    Uh, right¡­like that explained everything.

    Fortunately, it didn''t take long before Shun Yin began explaining everything to me. Combined with the books in his home (which were unsurprisingly few), I managed to piece together a picture of what kind of world I was now in.

    For one thing, it was extremely possible that I wasn''t transported to another world. No, it was highly likely that this was my original world¡­except that I had somehow been propelled into the far future at the time of my death.

    The year was now 2900 exactly. I had been thrown almost nine hundred years into the future. It was an era where magic was commonplace. Shun Yin''s ability to summon the Angel of Fire, Angelica, was also a magic spell.

    When I asked my new father about this, he chuckled. Shun Yin seemed delighted that I was taking an interest in magic at my age.

    "You mean this?" Shun Yin asked as he lazily waved his hand. Angelica materialized before him in a small explosion of flames, and frowned when she saw no monsters nearby.

    "Why did you summon me, Master?" she asked Shun Yin, annoyed.

    "Teaching my new son magic," Shun Yin replied airily. "Help him too, Angelica. I''m sure he''ll make a promising summoner."

    "Ah¡­you are right." For some reason, Angelica had a sinister smile on her face. "The best way to teach your son magic is a demonstration."

    "Eh?" Shun Yin''s face changed. "Angelica, what are you doing? Wait! No! Don''t! I''m your master, you know?! UGH!"

    I watched helplessly as Angelica raised a hand and bathed him in a torrent of flames. Shun Yin shrieked and ran across the living room, set ablaze. Cursing under his breath, he did some gesture with his hands, and the flames went out. A golden light suffused him, healing his burns.

    "Can you be more gentle?" he whined, even as the reddened patches on his skin disappeared as the gentle light soaked into them. I watched in awe as he cast his healing spell on himself. Angelica, on the other hand, smiled in satisfaction.

    "There you go. Another demonstration of magic." She turned to me. "I hope you understand now, Young Master?"

    That was right. This was the phenomenon called magic.

    It probably was hard to believe. Just what exactly is magic?

    At some point in our history, magic came into existence.

    Everything changed with the advent of the technology called "magic".

    It might seem surprising, but as Arthur Clarke once said, any sufficiently advanced technology is completely indistinguishable from magic. The reason why most people didn''t see computers, cars, cell phones and other hi-tech daily items as magic was because they were gradual. Computers started out slow before developing at a relatively slow pace of a few decades into what we had today. Mobile phones started out as large, bulky objects that eventually evolved into very accessible ones that finally allowed Internet access and a large variety of other applications.

    As for magic, it literally happened overnight.

    There was a science fiction writer, Vernor Vinge, who coined the term "technological singularity". Basically, it meant that sometime in the future, there would emerge technology so advanced it surpassed human understanding.

    That future just came sooner than we expected. Magic was something so advanced, so incomprehensible that even the brightest scientists, philosophers and thinkers still could not explain how it worked. As someone put it, "what is magic? It is what it is. If you could explain how magic works, it will cease to become magic."

    That didn''t stop people from trying to explain it. Well, I guess you could argue that the stubbornness and curiosity was part of human nature. We were always trying to explain everything from natural phenomenon to supernatural events. It just changed from "oh, that lightning bolt was thanks to an angry god throwing a tantrum" to "electrical discharge caused by certain atmospheric conditions" or some stupid thing like that.

    On the flip side, along with the emergence of magic, monsters and demons began to appear in our world as well. Scientists and experts gathered that the appearance of monsters was somehow related to us gaining the ability to use magic. What was known was that these demons and monsters frequently appear from another dimension to cause trouble in our world, and our magic probably came from that other dimension.

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    There were plenty of theories that constructed conjectures on the origins of monsters and whatnot, but so far there was no agreement, save that they came from another dimension. Scientists had observed rifts, the weakening in the fabric of time-space between the material world and the other dimension, during instances of "Emergence" ¨C when monsters emerged from their dimension and into our world. How and why they happened, no one had a clue yet.

    I wasn''t a scientist, so I didn''t know. Nor did I care ¨C for now, anyway. My priority was to learn magic.

    "Can you teach me how to use magic?" I asked Shun Yin.

    "Sure. That''s the whole point of me adopting you. I need a successor." Shun Yin grinned at me, as if excited.

    Angelica, on the other hand, looked annoyed. "You adopted him just so you can teach him magic and to be a magician like you?"

    "Anything wrong with that?" Shun Yin glanced at her, his good humor disappearing. That was rare. Most of the time, Shun Yin was always good-natured and happy. "It''s only natural to want a successor. We humans are not immortal, unlike you. We won''t live forever." He lowered his gaze slightly. "I''m not asking you to inherit you, Angelica. Don''t worry. I plan on still being around for quite a bit."

    Uh¡­what was with this atmosphere?

    "But first!" Shun Yin had a broad grin on his face again. "Before magic, we need to decide something more important."

    "What could be more important than magic?" I asked dryly. Shun Yin and Angelica exchanged a confused look.

    "Is he really twelve?"

    "I dunno. He looks young, but the things he says don''t match his age¡­"

    Probably because I was a thirty-something year old in a kid''s body. I realized I should start acting more my age, or I would arouse unwanted suspicion.

    "Um¡­"

    Noticing me fidgeting somewhat anxiously, Shun Yin smiled again and raised a finger.

    "It''s to decide your name, of course!"

    "My name?" I stared at him blankly.

    "Of course. You don''t have a name, do you? Or have you remembered anything?"

    Now that I thought about it¡­no. I couldn''t remember the name of the young boy whose body I was now occupying. I couldn''t even recall a single shred of his life before I forcibly took over. No matter how hard I searched, nothing came to me.

    So I shook my head.

    "Good. I''ve thought long and hard, and I''ve decided that this is the best name for you." Shun Yin pointed at me dramatically. "You shall henceforth be named Inyou!"

    Angelica smacked the back of his head, sending him sprawling a bit. "Be serious, would you?!"

    "Eh?! But I am serious!"

    "Stop lying! Why would you name him after a character from a manga and anime series? You''ve been watching too much Gunjou no Magmel!"

    "Aw¡­busted." Shun Yin then turned to me. "Then what about you, son? What kind of name would you like?"

    "As long as it''s not a stupid name, I don''t care. Oh, and Wang Zhong is out too."

    This wasn''t meant to be a rip-off of Battle Frenzy, no matter what readers claimed. There would be no clowns named Simba, no Fate Roulette or whatever. And I wasn''t some Mary Sue who was top at theory and could fight with every single weapon in existence.

    "Right." Shun Yin obviously hadn''t read Battle Frenzy before. He glanced at Angelica. "What do you think?"

    "You''re his dad, you tell me." Angelica shrugged.

    "And you''re his mom," Shun Yin retorted. Angelica''s face turned red, and flames began rising around her. Shun Yin raised his hands in panic. "Okay! I''m sorry! Bad joke!"

    "That was a joke?!" Angelica screeched.

    "UGH! What do you want?!"

    Even if Angelica was a summoned familiar, it didn''t change the fact that a woman''s heart was so complex¡­

    After a few scorched cinders, Shun Yin finally came to a decision.

    "I''ll just call you Richard then!"

    "That''s the only sensible thing I heard come from your mouth today." Angelica folded her arms in satisfaction.

    I cocked my head to the side, not sure if I should be relieved that it wasn''t some fancy, weird name. "I have no objections."

    Both of them stared at me again, wondering if I really was a twelve-year-old. I really had to stop doing that.

    Anyway, that was how I ended up being named Richard Huang.

 3 Chapter 3: Five years later

    "Do you seriously think you can defeat me?"

    My opponent scoffed as he punched me. I blocked his fist as best as I could, but his strength was overwhelming. Despite my best efforts, I was sent hurtling several meters back, slamming into the ground with a cough.

    "Ugh¡­"

    Wiping the blood from my mouth, I climbed to my feet and narrowed my eyes behind my glasses. Good thing that punch didn''t knock my glasses off my face, or I would have been blinded. And in a fierce battle like this, losing my vision (or having it blurred to near blindness, thanks to my horrible eyesight) would cost me the match.

    My opponent leered, already thinking that he won. And he had every reason to. In terms of parameters, Tie Quan''s stats were above mine except in magic. But I hadn''t been able to cast a single spell.

    "Give up," Tie Quan sneered as he stepped toward me. I merely dropped to a crouch and got ready to cast the only spell I knew.

    I was confident that if I succeeded in casting it, I would win the battle.

    Unfortunately¡­

    "You think I''m stupid enough to let you cast your summoning spell?!"

    Tie Quan suddenly appeared in front of me, hammering my midriff and interrupting my spell. I doubled over, blood bubbling from my mouth. He them smashed an elbow into my face, knocking my glasses askew and reddening my vision. As I sprawled on the ground, he stomped on my spine, causing me to shriek in pain.

    "The match is over." Teacher Ruff Fielding quickly interceded and stepped in to separate Tie Quan from me. He gave my opponent a stern stare. "You''ve already defeated your opponent. There is no need to go overboard."

    "Hmph. It''s that trash''s fault for not giving up."

    Tie Quan gave me a baleful stare before leaving the arena. The gigantic holographic billboard above us announced his victory, and showed how many points were allocated. Tie Quan snorted when he saw that he only earned two points.

    As for me, I normally would have points deducted from my Matchmaking Rating, but right now my MMR was zero.

    The ninety-ninth loss in a row, huh? I thought bitterly to myself as I tried to crawl to my feet. Teacher Fielding offered me a hand and I gratefully took it.

    "It''s not too late to change your class, you know." Teacher Fielding looked at me in concern. "The summoner class may be powerful in the late-game, but right now the meta revolves around fast, early-game aggression. Your opponents are not going to give you the time or chance to cast your summoning spell."

    "¡­I know."

    I merely nodded as I accepted Teacher Fielding''s assistance to get to my feet. If I had mastered a few summoning spells, perhaps it would have worked out better. Generally, the more powerful the summoned beast, the longer the time and the more magical energy it required to summon it. I had learned extremely advanced summoning spells, but the summoned beasts I had dominion over took too long to summon. Three minutes at least ¨C more than enough time for my opponent to pummel me to a pulp.

    Just like how Tie Quan obliterated me earlier. And not just him ¨C I had been losing miserably for the last ninety-nine matches.

    Before I could summon my magical beast, I was completely helpless and vulnerable. Summoners could be powerful when allowed to complete their casting, but opponents knew that and often exploited the window in which they were weakest, taking them out before they could summon their familiars. the current meta relied on brutal, swift assaults that took out the opponent in under a minute, or at least defensive magic that helped to mitigate that and turn it into a battle of attrition in the wielder''s favor. Unfortunately, summoning as a class of magic fell out of favor of most people and became unpopular because of its tremendous weakness and the impractical time window it required for the caster to finish his spell.

    The reason was simple.

    The monsters in the real world weren''t going to obediently wait three minutes just because you asked them to. And neither were your opponents obligated to do nothing and wait for you to cast your spell either.

    I now understood that Angelica was a special case. I didn''t know how Dad ¨C Shun Yin ¨C did it, but he was able to summon Angelica near instantaneously. Yet Angelica was extremely powerful. Was it because she was a human-type spirit? An Angel? Or was there something different about their contract? I wasn''t sure. Dad told me that Angelica was different, was special, and Angelica told me that Dad was an extraordinary summoner, but that wasn''t helping me in my own summoning.

    Right now, I was crushed one-sidedly by every student in my school.

    "You should head to the infirmary," Teacher Fielding instructed. I nodded wearily, and trudged in the direction of the infirmary.

    While walking along the corridor of Jing Tian Magic Academy, I could feel the stares from my fellow schoolmates weighing down on me.

    "Look, it''s that Richard Huang again."

    "He''s in quite the miserable condition. He probably lost again."

    "How many times has he lost now?"

    "About a hundred?"

    "Why does he insist on using summoning?"

    "How would I know? Maybe something is wrong with his brain."

    "Or he''s just stubborn."

    Vicious gossip floated around me. I gritted my teeth, but ignored them all.

    Five years. I had spent five years looking up to Dad and adoring him. I respected him and wanted to be a powerful summoner like him. That was why I pored over all the summoning tomes, learned magic as best as I could, and even succeeded in mastering the most powerful and advanced summoned beasts that I could.

    If only I was given a chance to summon them¡­then I could show everybody just how powerful I was!

    Unfortunately, reality was harsh, as I had personally experienced for myself. In my inexperience and naivety of the way magic worked in this new world, I didn''t expect there to be such a huge time gap between fighting and summoning. After all, Dad always summoned Angelica immediately without any delay. I had naturally assumed that I could do the same.

    It was only after I had spent four years learning summoning magic and entering Jing Tian Magic Academy that I realized the truth. Power came with a price. Summoning wasn''t something that could be cast instantaneously. And my opponents weren''t going to wait for me to flashily summon my ultimate familiar to lose to it. They were smart enough to take me out.

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    That was the harsh lesson I learned in my single year in Jing Tian Magic Academy. I wished Dad told me about the risks and weaknesses of learning summoning magic when he taught me. Then again, given his carefree nature, it probably didn''t even occur to him. And when I came back complaining about it, he merely laughed it off, telling me it was tough love, and that I had to find a way to figure it out on my own.

    How irresponsible.

    The spots in magic academies were highly competitive. Most students didn''t mess around, nor could they afford to lose. In magic academies, ranking determined everything. Fame, status, even money. If I didn''t have Dad supporting me financially, I would have been kicked out of the academy long ago. Thanks to me being last placed, my scholarship funding was severely cut.

    Our school funding was proportional to our rank, after all.

    "Ugh¡­what do I have to do?"

    I honestly couldn''t afford to change my classes, as Teacher Fielding suggested. I had no background in any of the other magic. Dad only taught me summoning magic. Asking me to switch to elemental magic, or learn close combat now was ridiculous¡­

    Wait, Dad did teach me military combat techniques, but they were useless against close combat mages like Tie Quan. I remembered how Tie Quan conjured magic to harden his defenses and boost his offense. There was no way I could challenge him in close combat, not when I had only skimmed the surface of it.

    Plus I had dedicated too much time and effort into summoning to give it up. I wanted to make it work, no matter what.

    "There has to be a way¡­how?"

    Sighing heavily, I stepped into the infirmary. Teacher Mary Cure lifted her head and spotted me as I entered.

    "Oh, it''s you again." she paused for a moment. "Another loss?"

    "¡­" my shoulders deflated, and I nodded with a sigh. There was no way I could trust myself to speak.

    "Still using summoning magic?" Teacher Cure smirked. "You''re quite the stubborn one, aren''t you? Most people would have given up by now."

    "I''m not most people," I replied flatly, not caring that she was a teacher. Teacher Cure didn''t care about such things, anyway. Having been a regular visitor of her infirmary over the past year, I had gotten to know her pretty well.

    "I''m sure," Teacher Cure agreed cheerfully, and then she turned serious. "But there''s the matter of your scholarship. If you remain at the bottom of the rankings, sooner or later you''ll be kicked out of school."

    "That''s fine by me." I was too tired to care. Jing Tian Academy used to be prestigious ¨C Dad often talked proudly of his alma mater, and the heights of glory that it used to achieve, but that was over ten years ago. Things had changed since then, and Jing Tian Magic Academy fell into a decline since Dad''s generation graduated. The school had slipped in the national rankings, and was currently ranked eighty-second.

    A pretty far cry from the powerhouse who used to bulldoze its way into the top ten.

    In any case, I couldn''t care less if I was expelled because of poor results. There was nowhere else to go. I might as well transfer into an ordinary school and live a normal life. I was sick of losing, sick of being humiliated, sick of people talking behind my back like those readers on Discord criticizing and making fun of how trashy my stories were, and how I should delete them.

    Teacher Cure looked at me sympathetically, but knew from long experience that she wouldn''t be able to convince me. She sighed, and then gestured for me to take one of the empty beds. Her skills were top notch. I knew it wouldn''t take more than half an hour for her to fully heal my injuries.

    "All right, let''s start the treatment," Teacher Cure said as she rolled up her sleeves and began casting the healing spell. "Are you ready?"

    "As long as it''s not The Wrong Way to use Healing Magic," I replied, and earned a smack on my head. Damn, wasn''t she supposed to be the infirmary teacher? Why resort to violence? It wasn''t as if she was Teacher Rose¡­

    Oh¡­looks like my Dad''s otaku influence was rubbing off on me¡­if only I had learned as much summoning from him as I did about manga and anime¡­

 4 Chapter 4: Library

    After having my injuries healed by Teacher Cure, I headed straight to the library. In the past, I had spent a lot of time here ¨C especially over the past year I was enrolled in Jing Tian Magic Academy ¨C studying and reading up on summoning. That was how I managed to progress so far with summoning magic. Dad could only teach me so much, but it was in the dark recesses of the library where I truly shaped the first concrete figures of what were now my summoned beasts.

    Unfortunately, thanks to the current meta, I had no way of unleashing them on my opponents. I needed to find a way to summon them faster, or if failing that, find a way to survive until I was able to summon them. Aware of the limitations imposed upon summoning magic, I knew the latter was a lot more realistic.

    "Man, I really want to become the strongest Anti-Meta," I moaned under my breath as I flipped through the pages of a summoning tome. As I expected, there were no shortcuts to summoning magic, not unless I established a contract with an extremely powerful dimensional existence on the same level of Angelica.

    I wondered how Dad met Angelica, and how he convinced her to make a contract with him. It was completely different from the summoning magic I was learning.

    Oh, right. I should probably explain. There were two types of summoning magic. First, the extremely rare and almost impossible one was the one Dad practiced ¨C establishing a contract with an interdimensional magical existence that was so far beyond both humans and the monsters that emerged from another dimension. These existences were often referred to as spirits, and they were completely different from the monsters and demons that plagued us during an Emergence Event. Most people wouldn''t be able to encounter a spirit. Dad was one of the lucky ones, but otherwise the probability of meeting a spirit was on the order of 0.0099%.

    And that didn''t even factor in the chances of making a contract with the spirit¡­

    The second type of summoning magic, which I had learned, was shaping creatures with my own magical energy and a good amount of imagination. Of course there were rules and restrictions, and you couldn''t just summon anything you wanted, but you had to mold the shape, characteristics and abilities of your summoned beast through your imagination and build it with your magical energy. It was possible to summon an extremely powerful summoned beast, but if you didn''t have the magical energy to supply or sustain it, obviously you would fail before you even began.

    That was why I focused so much on ensuring I had a solid foundation of magical energy. Unfortunately, that amount of magical energy was useless when the only spells I could cast were summoning spells, and these spells took far too much time to complete casting.

    Additionally, that was the reason why I learned more about summoning from the academy library than from my Dad¡­because the types of summoning magic we practiced were completely different. Unless I was as lucky as Dad to encounter a spirit, I was stuck with the second type. Not that I was complaining. I was completely satisfied with the summoned beasts that I had molded and designed personally.

    The only thing I wasn''t satisfied with was the amount of time I needed to summon them. If only I could summon them instantly!

    "Ugh¡­"

    Therein lies the problem. If I couldn''t speed up the summoning, then I needed to do other things. One, fight and defend myself while summoning. While that should have been obvious from the start before I lost ninety-nine matches in a row, I had already been doing that. The problem wasn''t that I simply stood there and let them beat me up before I finished summoning ¨C like I said, I had learned a few military combat techniques from Dad. The problem was simply that I was too weak to defend myself from the magically enhanced attacks from my opponents.

    Normal close combat techniques weren''t effective against a punch that hit with the force of a truck, or speed that allowed its user to disappear like the wind. Nor was it sufficient to render my body sturdy and durable enough to withstand sledgehammer blows from an Iron Fist spell or magic-infused weapons that everyone liked to use.

    Ah¡­exactly. That was the problem. You see, in order to learn these close combat magic spells or defensive spells and to earn the privilege to wield a magic weapon ¨C also known as Divine Armament or Divine Device ¨C you had to enroll in specific courses. The classes I enrolled in specialized in summoning (and often I was the only student in the class). I hadn''t registered for any of the close combat or defensive or elemental or miscellaneous magic classes during my first year, just the ones that trained me in increasing my magical energy foundation, and overly focused on summoning, monster biology, and weirdly enough, history.

    I needed to learn the history of this new world I was in ¨C or rather, the history of the future, to know what exactly I had gotten into.

    That choice of classes had backfired on me, and now I was an overly specialized summoner rooted to the bottom of the rankings.

    "I guess I have no choice but to pick a different class in my second year."

    Fortunately, the second year had just begun, and we hadn''t confirmed our classes yet. Theoretically I could start afresh and choose new classes. That would present a new kind of headache ¨C what class should I switch to? Elemental magic? Close combat magic? Control magic? Defense magic? Mind magic (which included illusions)? Long-ranged destruction magic? What weapon should I start training in? Dad taught me a bit of swordsmanship, so that shouldn''t be a problem. I should have enough of a foundation to learn magic swordsmanship, which probably meant I could go to close combat magic. However, one could also combine swordsmanship with elemental magic.

    Ugh, so many choices!

    But that wasn''t the real problem. The main issue I had with that direction was that I would have essentially wasted a year of education. I would have to take the first-year classes for elemental magic or close combat magic or swordsmanship, and start anew. Essentially I would be holding myself back a year and taking classes with the new batch of first year students who would be joining us within the week or so.

    That was so aggrieving. And I would prefer to avoid that option if I could help it. Besides, I wanted to move on to the advanced, second-year summoning classes. There was no way I was going to give up on summoning magic.

    "Damn it¡­if I can''t shorten the summoning spells for my magical beasts, and if I don''t want to learn a new class of magic, then what should I do?"

    Grumbling under my breath, I flipped through the summoning tome, hoping to find answers. However, there was nothing I already didn''t know. Shutting the tome in frustration, I reached for another book, only to catch sight of a single history book.

    "A History of War," I murmured. Something was forming in my head, especially when I saw the magicians fighting against the bug-like monsters on the cover. An image from my previous life, before I was hurtled across into the far future.

    Ah, that was right. One of my favorite games. A real-time strategy game in the far future, which pitted humans against an insect-type alien race capable of hyper-evolution, and the technologically advanced psychic aliens with a golden armada.

    ¡­when I played that game, my favorite strategy was to tech up to the most powerful units. I wasn''t a fan of infantry, or what they called biological units, often going straight to mechanical units ¨C especially the most powerful Tier 3 gigantic robots with awesome firepower and high health. Or building a massive fleet of battlecruisers that were basically floating fortresses raining death from above. Obviously the main flaw in this strategy was that my opponent normally killed me up while I was hiding in my base, teching up and trying to reach that critical mass of high-tier, extremely powerful units. They always killed me swiftly before I could build my invincible army.

    Wasn''t that the same exact problem I was facing here?

    In the end, the best strategy was to build up enough low-tier units for defense ¨C even if it was just a few biological infantry units ¨C to hold the line until I was able to tech up and build that critical mass of extremely powerful units. Every single tier was important to the game ¨C skipping them would prove to be my undoing, especially if the opponent was aggressive and went for an early attack.

    "If I were to put it in summoning terms¡­" I muttered excitedly to myself as I reached for the summoning tome again.

    Yeah¡­that was right. I should learn to create a few weaker magical beasts that I could summon almost instantaneously to defend myself. Even if they couldn''t win a fight, they should be capable of buying me enough time to defend myself until I could properly summon my ultimate magical beasts. They would distract my opponent until I complete my casting.

    Feeling renewed vigor, I began looking for the basic summoning spells. The lowest-level summoned beasts that required the shortest amount of time to summon. To my delight, I learned that even though I did things the other way around (increasing my magical energy pool first and skipping straight to the most advanced and powerful summoned beasts instead of beginning from the most basic and weakest), my current tremendous amount of magical energy allowed me to summon a large army of weak magical beasts.

    Now the main obstacle was imagining them and shaping them. It was a process that required time. Sure, it was dependent on my imagination, but it wasn''t as simple as just imagining a shape and then summoning it immediately. I had to slowly and meticulously crafted it and instill my own rules and logic over them, as well as give them a theme.

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    "All right! It''s decided!"

    I shut the book eagerly, ready to start actual practice instead of merely indulging in theory. As I lowered the book, I was shocked to see someone sitting opposite me.

    "Student Richard Huang, right?"

    The beautiful girl who had taken the seat opposite me while I was engrossed in reading raised a hand in a friendly manner.

    "Sorry for startling you. But you were so occupied in reading that I felt bad to interrupt you." she smiled brightly, and my heart skipped a beat. "You really are diligent and dedicated."

    "Nah," I waved her praise away, embarrassed. "I just focus all my attentions in the wrong thing."

    The girl glanced at the summoning tome, obviously already aware of the topic of the book I was reading. "I don''t think so. I actually admire your tenacity and dedication to stick to a magic that everyone else derides and thinks is impractical. If anyone can make it work, I''m sure it''ll be you."

    "T¡­thank you." I stuttered, completely caught off guard. The girl beamed brightly.

    "I''m Alicia Violet," she introduced herself. "I''m the president of Black Rose Society."

    I nodded, already knowing who she was. The beautiful girl with long, light purple hair and grateful temperament was a legendary figure throughout Jing Tian Magic Academy. Her charisma and beauty captivated everyone regardless of genders, but the guys in particular worshipped her as a goddess. I remembered her nickname ¨C Artemis, the Divine Huntress.

    If I wasn''t mistaken, Alicia was also the daughter of the academy director, or so the rumors went. She was the prodigy of the long-ranged magic department, and was the ultimate archer in our academy. Not only that, she was a member of Black Rose Society, which was one of the four most powerful societies in Jing Tian Magic Academy.

    Alicia had already been bestowed the position of vice-president of Black Rose Society during her first year, and now that the previous president had graduated, she had taken over as the current president. Her leadership only improved its reputation and ranking.

    Furthermore, Black Rose Society was the most popular societies among students, with most people clamoring to join it. However, the competition for places within Black Rose Society was extremely fierce, so a lot of the prospective members were left disappointed. There were only so many students a society could accept, after all.

    But that didn''t matter to me. I was more intrigued by the fact that the goddess of Jing Tian Magic Academy had approached me for an idle conversation. She was looking at me with a curious smile as she played with her fingers on the table.

    "Student Richard¡­you''re currently not in any society, are you?" she asked, her eyes gleaming. "Do you have any interest in joining Black Rose?"

 5 Chapter 5: Black Rose

    The library was usually silent, which made it easy for people to overhear hushed conversations even from one corner of the library.

    That was why the moment Alicia Violet made the offer, all the students in the library were in an uproar. Several of them even jumped to their feet and stared in our direction, outraged.

    Everyone knew that the Black Rose Society treated their members extremely well. Not only that, it was filled with many beautiful female students. It also was one of the strictest societies in terms of entry requirements, and not just anybody could join the society. Every single member of the Black Roses was an influential figure in their classes.

    Yet Alicia actually invited a loser like me, who had lost ninety-nine matches in a row, and hadn''t even won a single match in the past year?

    "President, I object to this!"

    To my surprise, the vice-president of Black Rose Society, Miranda Miriam, had suddenly appeared as well. She was a tall girl, even taller than me because she was slightly over 170cm, and similar to me, she wore a pair of black-framed glasses. But the rim of her glasses was circular compared to my rectangular ones, and her lenses were much thinner because my eyesight was a lot worse. We would have looked like siblings, except that her hair was a pale brown in contrast to the unruly mop of black hair atop my head.

    She also emitted the aura of someone who was inflexible and overly serious, and because of her earnest and diligent (not to mention fussy) attitude, everyone jokingly referred to her as the Mother of Black Roses, or Mother Rosario.

    "This guy is the shame of our academy! Have you seen his match records? Ninety-nine losses! Not a single win! It won''t be long before he''s expelled from school! We definitely can''t accept him!"

    Ouch. Miranda was certainly brutal. Was there a bloody need to announce my atrocious record in front of everybody? Seriously?

    Despite this being a library, the students within began whispering and gossiping to each other, much to the chagrin of the librarian. When several of them learned of my situation, they looked at me in pity. Everyone knew the difficulties a summoner faced, and they had a slight trace of admiration for stubbornly sticking to such an impossible path in the face of such a ruthless meta where speed and attack were everything.

    If this was Magic: The Gathering, the meta would be 4-turn kills using either super-aggressive aggro decks, which often combine hordes with burn spells, control decks that slowly milled your opponent to death or through other win conditions while denying your opponents'' casting and locking down their creatures, spells or abilities, or combo decks that sought to quickly destroy the opponent with a combination of cheap, basic spells that produced a lethal effect that was more than the sum of their parts within the first few turns (or first few minutes in the case of our academy). My "deck", if you wanted to call it that, relied heavily on summoning massive creatures to beat down the enemy to death with Trample or Flying or just overwhelming damage with their immense power and toughness. Unfortunately, they were expensive to cast, which meant I would only have enough mana to cast them by turn 5 or 6, even if I relied on mana ramp spells and abilities, and by that time my opponent would either have burned me to death or had lots of control spells in place to deny my casting.

    I was going to have to explore the horde option as a summoner, but creature destruction spells, board wipe, burn cards that damage all creatures in play were so common that nobody bothered with summoning these days. Fortunately, my massive creatures were Indestructible, so they could resist lethal damage and destroy effects, but they were just too expensive to cast.

    Of course, the current circumstances were a lot more complex than equating it with Magic: The Gathering, and there were a few other problems involved, such as creature summoning being a lot more energy-draining and inefficient than other spells. Not to mention, the production of mana worked differently from laying out a single land per turn, and it wasn''t an I-go-you-go turn-based match either. The combat situation was a lot more fluid, and spells distinct from the card game, but I guess it was sufficient as an analogy.

    Even so, there were a few people who admired my tenacity for trying to make it work, just like how Gumiho was popular for developing strategies for making Terran mech work in Starcraft 2, even against Protoss. So I did have more than a fair share of supporters who were cheering for me in online forums.

    "Miranda, please." Alicia raised a hand. "Allow me to speak to him." She turned back to me with that goddess smile that could melt the heart of every man present. "I know what you are trying to achieve, and it is quite the insurmountable task. But if you succeed, you will definitely bring glory to the academy. Black Rose Society has all the resources you need to help you develop a working strategy. We can even allow you to take special accelerated programs to turn you into a hybrid class, so that you will be able to both fight and defend yourself long enough to summon your magical beasts. How about it? Please consider."

    Contrary to expectations, I simply responded with a polite smile and shook my head.

    "Thank you very much, President Alicia. I honestly appreciate the offer, but I think it will be wasted on me. Right now, I do not believe I am worthy enough to join any societies. I would like to focus on developing my magic to work in reality and actual combat first. As promising as summoning might seem, results are after all the most important thing in this academy¡­or even this world. I do not think it is right for me to take advantage of your offer without proving myself first."

    Miranda snorted coldly. "Good thing he responded tactfully. If he had been bold enough to accept the offer, or rude in rejecting it, then he would be as good as dead."

    Alicia nodded regretfully. Despite her position as the president of the Black Roses, she couldn''t do much to oppose Miranda. Furthermore, she recognized that she couldn''t just force the issue on me when I had politely rejected her offer.

    "If you change your mind, you can come talk to me anytime."

    Smiling, she rose to her feet and offered me her hand, I shook it politely, trying not to flinch at one of the rare instances where I established physical contact with someone of the opposite sex. I was fine speaking to them from a distance, but physical contact was another thing altogether even though I was mentally over thirty.

    "I really appreciate the offer," I repeated. "But I wish to prove myself first."

    "I understand." Alicia nodded. She realized in retrospect that people would spread rumors and resent me if I so easily joined the Black Roses. Many people had to work so hard to pass the requirements and produce the appropriate results to prove themselves, yet someone like me who had nothing but losses on my record could just step inside its core with a single word from the president. What would that be, if not corruption?

    Not only that, it would also affect Alicia''s reputation. People would whisper that she was involved in me somehow, or that I somehow had a hold of her weaknesses and blackmailed her into allowing me to join. All sort of nonsense that I had no time to bother with.

    I watched the goddesses leave, and feeling the students'' gaze on me in the aftermath of what had just happened, I couldn''t help but feel overly anxious and self-conscious. It was pretty uncomfortable being in the center of attention of all that.

    So I quickly returned the books to the shelf after borrowing a few relevant ones, and hurried out of the library to escape their gaze.

    *

    Hurrying home, I found Dad lying on the couch and watching television. The television was actually just a single holographic screen that shimmered in vivid detail and actual color in front of a blank wall. Technology had progressed to the point where we no longer needed monitors to project such a clear, sharp holographic image for viewing entertainment.

    Like I said, technology was basically magic to someone like me from the twenty-first century.

    "Hey, Dad."

    "Oh, Richard! You''re finally home!" Dad jumped to his feet and clicked the television off. "Good timing. I was getting bored. What do you say about sparring?"

    I scratched my head. I wanted to read up on summoning, but at the same time I felt that it would useful to learn fighting techniques from Dad. He was an experienced summoner-mage, after all, and might have a few tips.

    Except that his lessons hadn''t helped me much during my past year in the academy. Even so, I continued to look up to him.

    "Do you know any combat techniques that would allow me to fight on par with magicians? Or at least last 3 minutes against them?" I asked. Dad guffawed at that.

    "If you want to learn those techniques, you''ve to master the basics first."

    "You''ve been drilling the basics into me for the last five years," I pointed out grumpily. "And I''ve been getting my ass kicked despite trying to use them. They''re still not good enough to fight on par with combat mages."

    "Well, of course. They are not magic combat techniques. They are just normal military combat techniques that don''t require the use of magic. If you want to learn those, you might as well become a proper combat mage." Dad gave me a strange stare. "Don''t you have classes in your school for that? I remember during my time, they used to be the most popular classes for students of my generation. The most powerful mages were produced from the combat mage classes, both in long-range and short-range."

    He then grinned.

    "Don''t worry. You''ve already developed a solid foundation in the basics. All you need to do is apply them to whatever magic you learn later on."

    My shoulders slumped. "I should have taken a class on combat magic¡­"

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    "Oh, I never said anything about combat magic." Dad''s grin grew. "I said whatever magic you learn. Don''t restrict yourself to combat magic. Let your imagination grow. I''m the one who raised you, I know you''re more capable than that."

    "Thank you, Dad." First, Alicia and now Dad. It seemed that there were still quite a few people who had belief in my abilities despite my lack of results. I needed to prove to everyone that their faith in me was justified. Clutching the library books I had borrowed, I smiled. "I''ll start working on mastering that magic as soon as possible."

    "Sure¡­but first, sparring." Dad cracked his knuckles, and I groaned inwardly when I recalled how grueling these sparring sessions were. "I won''t allow you to make an excuse to worm out of it!"

 6 Chapter 6: Sparring

    "What were you thinking?" Miranda asked as both she and Alicia walked home. Actually, they weren''t walking home, but heading toward a long limousine instead. Being the typical young rich mistresses of wealthy households, Alicia and Miranda didn''t have to use their legs and travel through the coarse roads like the rest of us commoners. Indeed, Miranda''s attention was focused on one commoner right now. "Inviting someone like him to join the Black Roses?"

    "I think he has potential," Alicia replied carefully. "If he learns how to protect himself¡­maybe if he picks up defensive and control spells, he should be able to survive long enough to summon whatever he wants to summon."

    Miranda snorted. "If he''s going to become a defensive or control mage, he might as well just focus on those. Why even bother with summoning at all?"

    "¡­that''s true. But I''m sure that with the right resources, he''ll make it work."

    Miranda scowled as she studied Alicia, who was still smiling gently for some reason. Something occurred to her.

    "Alicia, don''t tell me guys like him are your type?"

    "Huh?" Alicia looked a little taken aback, and then she giggled. "No, what are you thinking? I do think he''s nice, but I simply admire him for his tenacity and determination." Her expression turned a bit dreamy. "Over the past year, I''ve noticed that he''s always the first in the library, and almost the last one out. Even though he has lost every single battle, he has not requested a chance in class, and continues to study summoning. Don''t you think that sort of dedication is impressive?"

    "I think it borders on moronic," Miranda said with a huff. Alicia raised an eyebrow, but didn''t take the bait.

    "I disagree. With that amount of devotion, he''ll definitely succeed in the end."

    "If only he puts that dedication into other things." Miranda sighed. "I''ve studied his records ¨C he doesn''t seem to have much affinity with elemental magic, and his combat skills are mediocre. He does seem to have learned basic fighting techniques, but without infusing them with magic, there is no way he can compete with specialized combat mages."

    "Hmm¡­so it will be easy for him to transfer over to the combat mages classes?" Alicia looked a little pleased. "That''s where I am. Perhaps if he doesn''t mind, I can guide him through those classes."

    Miranda stared at her. "Why are you giving this loser so much of your attention? I''m pretty sure there are other classmates who are worthier of your time."

    "I do. It''s just that Richard is the one we ran into today." Alicia placed a finger on her lips and pondered. "Speaking of which, what do you think of Troy? It appears that he is moving up the ranks. He''ll be due a promotion soon."

    "Ah¡­yes. Troy is very promising. I''m not sure what he did, but he has massively improved over the last three months. I''m glad you had the foresight to invite him to join us." Miranda smiled. "He was always strong, but a little¡­unfriendly. I''m surprised he opened up to you."

    "After what he experienced in New Texas, it was pretty hard for him to trust anyone." Alicia had a sympathetic look in her eyes. Then she smirked. "But I was right about Troy, wasn''t I? So do you think I will be correct about Richard?"

    "You!" Miranda seemed like she had a headache, massaging her forehead after Alicia''s sudden riposte. "Are you secretly in love with Richard or something?"

    "Even if I am, I don''t think anyone has the right to complain about who I choose to love?" Alicia smiled mysteriously. Miranda could only gape at her for a moment before she shook her head.

    "Sometimes I don''t know if you''re a genius or just insane."

    *

    I followed Dad to the dojo that took up the back of our house.

    "All right, let''s get ready." Dad took up a single bamboo sword that was propped up in a rack at the corner of a wall. "Your turn."

    I glanced around the dojo, reveling in the familiar surroundings. I had spent the last five years here, being beaten up by Dad everyday. The walls were slightly falling apart, and the floor was basically tatami mats because Dad was an otaku obsessed with Japanese culture and wanted to replicate a Japanese dojo for some reason. Along one wall was a rack of bamboo swords, and along another wall was a row of targets for archery. The bows for archery were also placed in a second rack next to the one with bamboo swords.

    Dad was the one who trained me in swordsmanship and a bit of archery. It was very different from combat magic or the "mystical martial arts" that combat mages learned in the academy (or in their respective clans).

    "These combat skills have been passed down for thousands of years!" Dad had told me proudly when we first began five years ago. "The swordsmanship has been passed down from the era of Miyamoto Musashi!"

    I later found out that he was deceived. The swordsmanship he learned was not from the Miyamoto School, but rather had a mix of Chinese and Japanese origin. It was only natural. So many centuries had passed, so all the different martial arts that were passed down for countless generations were created, lost, recreated, restored and transformed greatly from their original iterations.

    One thing stood out though ¨C unlike modern combat magic or mystical martial arts, these traditional martial arts did not make use of magic. They were just physical techniques that relied on honing the body, instincts and reflexes, but did not generate magical barriers or unleash those flashy magic or elemental blasts that modern magicians used regularly in actual combat.

    Why am I even bothering to learn this? I wondered grumpily, my mind still half-absorbed in the summoning books I had just borrowed.

    "Don''t lose focus!"

    "!"

    I immediately jumped back when Dad''s bamboo sword swung through the space where my head had been. Good thing I moved on instinct, or I would have suffered a painful bump on the top of my head.

    "What are you doing?" I complained, retreating a few steps.

    "I should be asking you that!" Dad retorted as he rested his bamboo sword on his shoulder. "Why are you daydreaming? The sparring started a while ago! Hurry up and pick your weapon!"

    "Ah¡­"

    I looked a little sheepish. Striding over to the rack, I picked up a pair of short bamboo swords and then turned to face Dad. Raising them in a defensive stance, I got ready.

    Dad grinned. "Good!"

    He then dashed forward, swinging his longer shinai. I intercepted his strike with the short bamboo sword in my left hand and delivered a thrust with the sword in my right.

    "Na?ve!"

    Dad stepped back and avoided the thrust with a spin, and then twisted his sword to almost knock mine out of my hand. Realizing the danger, I intuitively withdrew and avoided a crack to my temple from Dad''s vicious strike.

    "Very good! You''ve improved!"

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    Dad closed in again, swinging with precise, controlled strikes. I parried and blocked with both my swords, sometimes crossing them to endure a particularly powerful hit, but most of the times I deflected and exchanged blows with my father. He pushed me all the way back to the wall, his bamboo sword pummeling me with what seemed like the force of a nature.

    I briefly wondered how Dad would fare against combat mages. I was under the impression that even without magic, or even without summoning Angelica, he could still overpower them with just his swordsmanship alone.

    However, I was far from done myself!

    I delivered a feint to an opening that Dad deliberately revealed, and just as I expected, he countered with a backward swing to where my head would be. Fortunately, I had already anticipated that and using my footwork, I spun to his side where he seemed most vulnerable.

    Today was the day I finally got to land a hit on Dad for the very first time!

    However, before I could finish thrusting my sword, my instincts screamed danger. I was under the impression that a ferocious beast was glaring at me with bloodthirsty eyes. My surroundings seemed to melt away, swallowed up by an immense shadow.

    Within just a single instance, my Dad seemed to embody the essence of death itself.

    "!!!!"

    I quickly aborted my attack and retreated, crossing my swords in reflex. And a good thing I did too, for Dad''s bamboo sword clattered against my crossed wooden blades with such force I was actually hurled backward and smashed into the opposite wall.

    "Gah!"

    The wind was knocked out of me and I almost blacked out from the immense pain. Sliding down the cracked wall, I landed in a heap on the ground.

    "Oh my God! Richard! Sorry!"

    Dad hurried over to my side, abandoning his sword and checking on me with a concerned look on his face.

    "I''m¡­all right."

    Wheezing, I assured him. Dad grimaced and patted my head.

    "Sorry about that. I acted subconsciously and accidentally used too much strength."

    Bloody hell. Used too much strength? Was he a monster? And this was without using magic too! How the hell did he pull that off?!

    No wonder he could establish a contract with an existence as otherworldly and powerful as Angelica.

    "But man, you really improved!"

    Dad looked extremely delighted as he helped me to my feet.

    "That was an excellent move! You actually forced me to counter on reflex! That''s the first time you made me lose a bit of my control!"

    "A bit of your control?" I repeated incredulously. That was only a bit of his control?

    "Ah ha ha ha, yeah¡­" Dad scratched his head sheepishly and patted me in the back. "Good job. I guess that''s enough for today?"

    Enough swordsmanship, that was for sure. Grimacing, I realized that I had landed next to the rack with bows and arrows.

    Shaking my head, I returned the two wooden swords I had taken, and proceeded to retrieve a bow and a quiver of arrows.

    "Mind if I practice a few shots before I retire for today?"

    "No, of course not!" on the contrary, Dad looked pretty happy. He nodded in approval. "I''ll stay and watch."

    I was grateful to him for doing so. Dad often helped to appraise my archery and offer advice on how to improve my accuracy or my stance.

    "Thanks."

    Taking a deep breath, I made the necessary preparations, stood in front of the target that was a hundred meters away, and then fitted an arrow to my bow. Pulling the string back, I took aim, peering at the target through my glasses.

    Then I released the arrow.

 7 Chapter 7: Visitors

    "Hmm? Why is there such a huge commotion?"

    It had been a week or so since I had received the offer from Alicia Violet in the library, and rejected it, but things went on as usual. I still had yet to shape my basic summoned beasts, which kind of sucked, but was understandable.

    It took me four years of home-study and a further year of intense studying in Jing Tian Magic Academy before I finally mastered the advanced summoned beasts that I currently possessed. Normally it would take me maybe two or three years to get the basic, weakest summoned beasts done, but now that I already had the experience and skill to master summoning magic ¨C particularly having achieved the advanced ones ¨C it should take me a little less time. Six months at most¡­if I was intelligent enough, I could even cut it down to three months.

    But a week was obviously too much to ask for.

    Nonetheless, I wasn''t worried. It was all right to take it slow. Rushing through one''s training would result in careless mistakes and backfire. I didn''t want to waste a few months crafting my next summoned beasts, only for them to emerge¡­not all right.

    In the meantime, I was going to just attend school as per normal. This time, I made sure to enroll in a combat magic class. Even though it had only been a week or so, it appeared that Dad was correct in ensuring that I had a solid foundation in combat techniques. All I needed to do was apply the right moves to the relevant spell and I should be able to¡­

    "Whoa!"

    "Who''s that?"

    Right¡­the commotion. I needed to stop drifting off into my own world and take note of what was happening in the real world. While I entered through the front gates, I caught sight of a strange but magnificent procession.

    An expensive-looking coach was trucking through the front gates, with an exquisite emblem emblazoned over its luxurious frame. Rolling to a stop, the doors unfolded and several steps descended to the ground.

    Bloody hell, the inside of the bus, as well as those mechanical steps, was all carpeted in a rich layer of silk-like fabric!

    The students of Jing Tian Magic Academy gaped in awe as the passengers disembarked from the luxurious coach. They appeared to be the same age as us, but they were all dressed in a different uniform. Unlike the gray and black school uniform of Jing Tian Magic Academy, the students were dressed in white and gold uniforms, with black pants and skirts.

    "That''s¡­"

    "Who are they?"

    "Amazing¡­"

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    The students all gave off an imposing air as they strode majestically and somewhat arrogant down the path leading to the main building of our school.

    "I recognize that school badge and uniform! They are from the Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy!"

    "Ah! Isn''t that the well-known academy that''s ranked within the top ten of the Federation?"

    "That''s right!"

    "My goodness¡­that''s the Invincible Goddess of War, Cecilia Stuart!"

    "Cecilia Stuart? The Invincible Goddess of War? She''s so strong that no one in her generation can defeat her. I remember she said that the first boy in our generation who can defeat her will be the only one worthy enough to be her fianc¨¦!"

    Whoa¡­what arrogance. I did hear about that before, though. Apparently countless guys had challenged her in order to win her heart, but not a single one had defeated her¡­yet. Honestly, that wasn''t my idea of romance, but it had nothing to do with me. I couldn''t even defeat anyone in my school, let alone the legendary Invincible Goddess of War (who came up with that dumb nickname anyway?).

    "Isn''t that Hal Gunther? What is he doing here?"

    "Oh my God¡­that Gunther? The Phantom Hunter? He''s terrifying¡­!"

    "Whoa¡­the Great Wall, Chang Cheng! I didn''t think we would get to see such legends here!"

    Honestly, the names meant nothing to me, but I was vaguely aware of what a big deal it was to be within the top ten of the Global Federation. As I said, our Jing Tian Magic Academy was currently ranked eighty-second. These dudes were at least seventy places above us. That meant there was quite a significant gap in power.

    Fortunately, I didn''t give a fuck about school rankings and competition. I couldn''t afford to. even in my relatively lowly-ranked school (but at least we were still among the top hundred in the Global Federation, so it wasn''t all that bad), I was ranked dead last. So never mind academy ranking, I had to worry about my own damned ranking first, especially if I wanted to stay here.

    "¡­hah¡­"

    Suddenly feeling tired, I decided to avoid the unexpected visitors and take the longer route to my classroom.

    Taking up an unoccupied seat in the corner of the classroom, I slumped over my desk. The first class of today was combat magic ¨C like I said, I made sure to sign up for it this time. On the other hand, I felt isolated. I was one of the very few second-year students taking the basic combat magic course ¨C the majority of the other students were all first-year students who hadn''t been around for more than a week at most.

    The first-year students were wise enough to avoid us second-year students, mostly because we were perceived as the "failures" ¨C usually only those who dropped out of the class halfway, or failed the course last year would retake it. Some, like me, had opted to take it in our second year, but obviously the age gap would set us apart from the other students.

    Those in the last group, like me, usually belonged to the misfits or the socially inactive students who weren''t in any cliques and therefore didn''t participate in the class with a pre-established circle of friends and thus we weren''t familiar with anyone in the class. That led us to keeping mostly to ourselves while every other classmates gathered in their friendly little circle.

    Fine by me. I wasn''t here to make friends anyway. I was here to learn combat magic and find a way to make up for my weaknesses in specializing in summoning magic.

    Unfortunately, even the usual classes didn''t seem to go my way today. The moment the homeroom teacher, Teacher Fielding, stepped into the classroom, he waved at us grumpily to dismiss us.

    "There won''t be class today," he announced somewhat unhappily. The students all glanced at each other, somewhat caught off guard by the sudden declaration. Teacher Fielding''s combat magic classes were pretty popular, and thankfully I had the fortune of being a second year student, and thus I was able to book the class in advance of all the first year students. Needless to say, everyone was looking forward to the class and getting some action before the more¡­boring classes that tended to be less hands-on.

    "Eh?"

    "Really?"

    "¡­no way¡­"

    "As you''ve probably already heard, we have a few visitors coming over from Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy today. A sort of a student exchange. They are here on a field trip to see how other academies run their training programs." Teacher Fielding continued as if he didn''t hear the moans from his students. I knew him well enough to detect the bitterness in his voice. Evidently he wasn''t pleased with these field trips from such prestigious schools. No doubt they were conducted to show these elite students from these stuck-up academies how not to run training programs, and so that they could return and share how we were doing everything wrong.

    That piqued some of the students'' interest. They were all straightening up and staring at Teacher Fielding curiously.

    "They also want to experience the skills of our students," Teacher Fielding continued heavily.

    "Eh?! But aren''t they in the top ten academies of the Federation?"

    "Why would they want to experience our skills?"

    "To pick on us and laugh at us, of course!" one of the most astute students growled angrily. Everyone fell silent.

    Teacher Fielding didn''t refute that. Instead, he merely shook his head and sighed.

    "The academy director has issued instructions ¨C all students are to proceed to the main hall immediately. There will be no classes today. We will be engaging in a¡­cultural discussion with these elite students, and hopefully we can learn something from them."

    From the way he said it, he obviously didn''t believe it himself. He was aware that these elite students were here to show off by crushing the students here. I recalled a similar exchange taking place last year. Our seniors were all destroyed by just two students from an elite academy¡­if I recalled, it was also this Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy. Yeah¡­the uniforms were identical, but it took place quite a while ago, so I had forgotten their school badge and the name of their academy ¨C especially since it had nothing to do with me.

    I later learned from the seniors that it was a tradition. The first-year students were still unaware of what was happening, but the second-year students and repeat students still had fresh memories of the humiliation we suffered last year.

    Was this some sort of annual tradition for those Crowley students or something?

    "Anyway, let''s not waste time. Gather in the main hall. Up you go." Teacher Fielding clapped his hands impatiently, and the students obeyed, the first-year students still mostly dazed from the unexpected activity.

    We filed into the corridor, joining the flow of other students in Jing Tian Magic Academy, streaming ceaselessly into the main hall. The main hall also served as some sort of arena ¨C the biggest arena of our school, actually. In the center of the main hall, which resembled a stadium, was a massive platform that doubled as a stage and coliseum. Thousands of seats ringed the rectangular stage in a 360 degree fashion, and the stage itself was two hundred meters long and a hundred meters wide.

    Already the academy director was present with a few of the staff, and they were speaking to the teacher-in-charge. At first I didn''t recognize him, but I caught the badge that was pinned to his white breast pocket. The teacher was wearing a white suit with a pink shirt inside, which contrasted nicely with the white and gold uniforms of his students, and all the more emphasizing the badge that was an identical capture of the Crowley school emblem.

    He was currently speaking to the teachers from our school, who had strained smiles on their faces. In contrast, the teacher had a mocking smile and an oily attitude. I couldn''t hear their conversation from this distance, but I could tell that he was trying to make jokes¡­probably at our poor teachers'' expense.

    Seated in the center of the large stage were the entourage from Crowley. A single beautiful girl stood out from the other students, her long black hair flowing slightly in the artificial wind generated by the air purifiers in the main hall. Her beauty rivaled even that of Alicia Violet, and I could see why people labeled her as a Goddess.

    But this was no Goddess of Beauty. She was the Invincible Goddess of War, Cecilia Stuart, heiress to the wealthy Stuart Clan who owned multi-trillionaire corporations across the Global Federation.

    Beside her was a group of male and female students of varying statures, but every single one of them emanated an imposing aura. Even though I kept mostly to myself, I recognized a few of them because they had appeared on the Internet before. These were the representatives of Crowley Grand Arcane Academy, selected from among the most elite of elites, the cream of the crop who fought on behalf of their school in the annual national tournament of young mages.

    The academy director, Vincent Violet, cleared his throat after all the students and staff of Jing Tian Magic Academy took their seats around the stage. A gigantic hologram appeared above him, magnifying his image so that everyone could take a good look at him.

    "Thank you all for coming, everyone." Director Violet forced a smile. "Today, we have the honor of receiving guests from the esteemed Crowley Grand Arcane Academy."

 8 Chapter 8: Crowley Grand Arcane Academy

    There was polite applause from the audience, the most enthusiastic of which originated from the still na?ve and ignorant first-year students. Many of them were simply overawed by the presence of such legendary student mages, and didn''t think there was anything sinister behind the elite academy''s visit to our school.

    I couldn''t blame them. A year ago, I was in their exact same shoes. I had lost about a couple of matches, so I hadn''t really earned my notorious reputation as a loser then, but even back then I wasn''t deluded enough to think that I would become a representative of Jing Tian Magic Academy. Speaking of which, back then it was our representatives who accepted the challenge, and it took just two of the opposing teams'' members to wipe the floor with our supposedly best and brightest.

    That was quite the irreparable humiliation our academy had suffered.

    The teacher in charge of the Crowley team stood up arrogantly and took over Director Violet''s speech before the latter could back down. Director Violet looked stunned at his impudence, but he couldn''t say anything and merely backed down with a scowl. Not because he didn''t have the balls to reprimand the teacher for his rudeness, but because he was giving the guy some face as a guest and he was mature enough not to quibble over trivial matters.

    "It is our honor to be here," he said pretentiously, spreading his arms in an exaggerated manner. "I am very grateful to Director Violet for inviting us here."

    "If I recall, it was you guys who submitted the request to us, asking if you can come over." This time, Director Violet didn''t stay silent. He looked amused when the teacher''s face turned purple. Before the outraged man could say anything, Director Violet quickly cut in. "Students, may I present to you Teacher Aaron Gance."

    Gance quickly adopted a smile and nodded as he turned back to meet what he thought were the adoring gazes of the students.

    "It is a pleasure to be before you all today." He then stepped back. "But the guests of honor, of course, are my students. They have traveled a long way to visit you, and are eager to sit in your classes and watch how you learn¡­"

    "Cut the crap," one of the Crowley students interrupted rudely. He was a guy with longish hair reaching to his shoulders, the strands dyed dark blond, and a bandanna wrapped around his head. He grinned, revealing what seemed like razor-sharp teeth. I shuddered when I saw him ¨C he reminded me of a predator. "Let''s get straight to the point. I want to battle already."

    "Ah, yes." Gance didn''t seem very put off by his student''s insolence. If anything, his smile grew widely. "As tradition demands, the representatives from our school would like to exchange a few pointers with the representatives of your esteemed school."

    There was a short silence, before Director Violet spoke up.

    "We haven''t actually selected our representatives for this year. Not yet, anyway."

    "Oh? That''s surprising." Gance raised an eyebrow. "I would have thought that an academy of your reputation and former glory would take the annual national tournament of mages a little more seriously."

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    The words former glory were clearly meant to sting, but Director Violet merely smiled good-naturedly.

    "Oh, we are definitely taking the tournament very seriously. That''s why we didn''t rush the selection process. We want to make sure we are choosing the very best and most suitable students to represent us this year, rather than just reusing representatives from last year. Not only did a good number of representatives already graduated, we also want to extend the chance of participation to new blood and other students."

    He rubbed his beard and winked at the audience.

    "I''m sure there are crouching tigers and hidden dragons concealed within the many students of our academy. I want to ensure each and every one of them will get a fair chance. Wouldn''t you agree, Teacher Gance?"

    "That¡­that is¡­" Gance stammered, completely caught off guard by Director Violet''s riposte. He tried to straighten himself and recover, clearing his throat audibly. "You are right, of course. That is a very wise decision. But don''t you think it''s a bit slow?"

    "It''s only the beginning of the academic year, and the first year students have only just settled in. The tournament might be just six months away¡­" Director Violet emphasized on the "six months" pretty clearly, causing Gance to flush slightly. "But I believe it is ample time to assess the students'' abilities and make the selection carefully. We wouldn''t want to rush the process when there is absolutely no need to and choose the wrong people to represent our school, do we?"

    "That is true, but¡­"

    "Eh?!" the yankee-like guy with longish blond hair rocked back in his chair, scowling. "So that means we won''t be having a battle? Even after coming all the way here? How boring."

    Director Violet raised an eyebrow at his rude intrusion into the conversation, but decided to let it pass.

    "That might not be the case."

    "Then hurry up and send someone to fight us! This is getting lame!"

    "Stand down, Hal." To everyone''s surprise, it was Cecilia Stuart who spoke up. Her voice was quiet, but full of authority, and it somehow reached everyone in the main hall. "Stop making a ruckus. You have gone too far. Don''t forget that we are guests here."

    The delinquent named Hal seemed to want to open his mouth in protest, but he caught the look on Cecilia''s beautiful face and sat back down in a huff.

    "Don''t you think there is a problem with the way you are making a request?" Director Violet''s voice grew sharp. Evidently he didn''t think Cecilia Stuart''s reprimand was sufficient. "If you aren''t happy with the way things are done here, you''re welcome to leave."

    There was an ominous air behind his words, which caused even the insolent delinquent to turn pale and shut up.

    Director Violet then turned toward Gance. "Did your academy not teach your students any manners? I was under the impression that Crowley Grand Arcane Academy is an elite school among the elites. Does that not apply to their attitudes when talking to their seniors?"

    "I¡­I apologize¡­" Gance shot a furious glare at the defiant delinquent, but the gangly kid wisely did not mouth off. "Student Hal has some problems with anger management. We have been too lax with him lately, it seems. I will be sure to punish him when we return."

    So that guy was the infamous Hal Gunther. I had vaguely heard of him before, but I wasn''t very clear on the details. If I wasn''t mistaken, he was quite the terrifying mage with a notorious reputation of toying around with his opponents and slowly, painfully torturing them instead of finishing them off quickly. Most students hated his fighting style and methods, and many of his opponents surrendered swiftly in favor of subjecting themselves to humiliating agony.

    Well¡­it was none of my business.

    "Anyway, you mentioned that you still intend to have your students exchange several pointers with the representatives of our school?" Gance pressed, trying to return to the topic at hand. The spectators were watching the exchange, bemused, and already more than a few were murmuring darkly at Hal Gunther''s rude behavior. The guy was unnecessarily making himself enemies, but then again, he was so skilled that he was practically fearless and thus didn''t care what people of his generation thought about him.

    "Yes." Director Violet smiled and turned toward the spectators. "This year, I think I would like to change things up. As I said, I want to provide my students a chance to prove themselves. Therefore, I will be asking for volunteers."

    There was a buzz from the crowd.

    "A team of volunteers," Director Violet elaborated, his voice drowning out the murmurs in the crowd spanning 360 degrees around him. "Perhaps the representatives from one of the societies." He looked knowingly in his daughter''s direction, where the Black Rose Society had gathered, and also shifted his gaze to include the other three Great Societies that dominated Jing Tian Magic Academy. "Or from anyone in general." He turned his glance to the rest of the students. "Anyone who puts on an impressive performance in this mock duel will of course have a much higher chance of becoming a representative of our academy this year."

    Everyone began clamoring excitedly, whispering to each other.

    "Did you hear that?"

    "This is my chance!"

    "Awesome!"

    "I want to try!"

    Around Alicia Violet, her members gathered to speak and discuss on who they should sent out. Surprisingly, Troy King wasn''t present today. That guy was mysterious as ever.

    "Excellent! Now we are talking!"

    Hal Gunther was unable to contain his excitement and he jumped out of his seat, rubbing his palms. The spectators all fell silent when they saw him. Pointedly ignoring us, he turned to the rest of his team.

    "I want to go first. Any objections?"

    "None," said a thickset, burly guy who was almost two meters tall and looked like a mountain.

    "Nope." A girl with short, shoulder-length hair shook her head.

    "Go ahead," a handsome guy with short blond hair and blue eyes replied with a gentle smile.

    "Don''t trip over yourself," a dark-haired guy with thin eyes sneered as he folded his arms.

    Cecilia Stuart regarded Hal Gunther for a moment, and then nodded in what seemed like resignation.

    "You can start, Hal," she consented. Quite clearly she was the leader of the team, for everyone turned to look at her the moment she spoke. Hal Gunther himself had turned to stare at her from the very beginning, as if her opinion was the only one that matter. "But don''t you dare bring shame to our Crowley Academy."

    "Against this bunch of trash?" Hal Gunther burst out laughing. "I''ll team-wipe them by myself. This, I promise you."

    He then turned toward the spectators, waving his hand expectantly.

    "So which of you fools want to be the first to challenge this great me?"

    A long silence greeted him.

    "No way in hell," someone nearby whispered. "There''s no way I want to fight Hal Gunther."

    "You''ve got to be crazy to challenge that guy."

    "He''s the cruelest combat mage in our generation. I watched a few of his matches. The sadistic bastard enjoys torturing his opponents slowly."

    "I shudder just from watching his matches¡­that fucker is sick in the head¡­"

    Evidently Hal Gunther had quite the notorious reputation, possessing a terrifying penchant for toying around his opponents and slowly flaying them layer by agonizing layer until they passed out or surrender in pain and despair. Even the elite mages in the four Great Societies of our school hesitated to step into the ring.

    "Nobody?" Hal Gunther sounded mockingly disappointed. "Are all of you cowards?"

    I caught sight of Alicia Violet frowning and taking offense to that. Just as she was about to raise her hand and stand up, Miranda Miriam hurriedly caught her and forced her to sit down. Her vice-president was aware of how dangerous Hal Gunther was.

    Everyone else just looked away.

    Sighing, I shook my head.

    "Come on!" Hal Gunther taunted. "How are you guys going to compete in the national tournament if you''re afraid of just a single person like me?"

    "I will do it."

    Everyone turned their heads in shock. I stood from my seat, my hand raised.

 9 Chapter 9: Challenge

    Everyone stared at me, their jaws dropping. Most of them knew my reputation, and were utterly shocked that I took the initiative to accept the challenge.

    "I will do it," I repeated, keeping my hand aloft. "I''ll fight in the first match."

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Hal Gunther burst out laughing. "So there is someone with backbone after all! Hurry up then!"

    I nodded and began making my way toward the stage. As I descended the stairs, Teacher Fielding stepped forward.

    "Are you sure?" he asked. "I don''t mean to criticize you, but¡­you don''t exactly have a good record. And Hal Gunther is pretty notorious¡­"

    "That''s exactly why I don''t mind going up," I replied with an easy smile. "I have nothing to lose. My record is zero wins and ninety-nine losses. What''s one more defeat? Besides¡­" I turned serious. "While he''s beating me up, maybe someone else will muster up the courage and challenge him. And hopefully find a counter."

    "You don''t have to do this for the academy, you know." Teacher Fielding seemed to misunderstand me.

    "Oh, that''s not the reason. I''m just pissed off. Not just at him taunting the school, but at the rest of my schoolmates for not having the courage to face him. Then I realized¡­what right do I have to be angry at others if I myself don''t have the courage to challenge that bastard?" I smiled again. "Maybe they will get a wake-up call when they see the weakest and bottom-ranked mage in school having the courage to challenge that arrogant bastard."

    "¡­" Teacher Fielding nodded and stepped back. "Good luck. And don''t force yourself. If you can''t do it, then surrender immediately."

    I didn''t respond, mostly because I had no intention of surrendering so easily to the egotistical bastard.

    "This will follow the national academy tournament format¡­meaning a team of five versus a team of five. At the end of every match, you have the option to swap out the fighter in stage¡­and as long as he or she has not been eliminated, he or she can return in a later match. The battle ends when all the fighters in one team are eliminated."

    As per protocol, Director Violet stipulated the rules clearly. I barely nodded in acknowledgement, having known them for as long as I had been enrolled in the academy. Director Violet smiled encouragingly at me, but his eyes did not register any recognition. It was only natural. In an academy where over a thousand students enrolled at any given year, there was no way he would remember every single student.

    He probably remembered only my name as the last-ranked mage in his school, but that was all he knew of me, really. Just a name. He wouldn''t know how I looked like, for he had probably never personally met me before. Someone as busy as the director wouldn''t have the chance to memorize and meet each and every student in his school.

    Hal Gunther snorted when I stepped up into the stage. His team had retreated to the seats below the stage, watching the match from below (or through the gigantic hologram above), as did Director Violet and Gance.

    "You the best they got?" he sneered.

    "No," I replied honestly. "I''m the worst, actually."

    Nervous laughter rippled through the spectators, because the majority of them knew I was telling the truth. Hal Gunther, unfortunately, didn''t get the joke because he was an outsider. He scowled, thinking I was messing with him.

    "Huh? What the fuck are you on about?"

    "I''m dead last in the rankings," I explained flatly. That wasn''t something to take pride in, but it did have the effect of pouring on Hal Gunther''s parade. Especially because he was looking forward to wiping the floor with the best students in the academy.

    "You bastard¡­!" Hal Gunther flared up when he realized the slight. He then clamped down on his fury and grinned malevolently. "Idiot. You think that will convince me to take pity on you? I don''t care if you''re last or first¡­I''m still not going to show you any mercy." He laughed. "I''ll enjoy torturing you and taking you apart."

    I shrugged. "I could always just surrender. It''s not as if it would embellish my horrible record."

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    "Fucker¡­" Hal Gunther was growing more furious. "I will ensure you won''t have a quick, easy death. You will beg for death, this I swear."

    The moron was speaking figuratively, of course. Students were not allowed to kill each other in matches. And in any case, there was a protective enchantment now being cast over the arena, which converted our bodies into soul manifestations. Simply put, as long as we remained within the vicinity of the coliseum, we would never die.

    We would still take damage, suffer pain and pass out, but¡­to put it in game terms, our HP would never go zero. we would probably hit a minimum of one HP, pass out, and then be ferried to the infirmary for Teacher Cure to heal us with her miraculous healing spells. There was no danger of death. Ever since this enchantment had been invented, nobody had died from a match.

    A pity it couldn''t be used in actual battlefields, for monsters and demons would just rip the enchantment apart with their sheer presences.

    Ignoring Hal, I took my place in the opposite end of the arena. Fuming, Hal did the same. We both turned to face each other.

    "Fighters, take your stance!"

    As usual, Teacher Fielding served at the referee. He had followed me down the stairs shortly after I had stepped into the arena. Staying outside the enchantment (to ensure nobody rushes out to destroy it), he raised a hand.

    Hal Gunther grinned cruelly as he drew his bow. It was an exquisite, hi-tech Divine Device, glowing ethereally in several areas as he gathered his magical energy into it.

    "?"

    He stared at me when I merely stood there motionlessly, doing nothing but raising my hands in a defensive stance.

    "Where is your Divine Device?" he demanded.

    "What makes you think I have one?" I retorted.

    Hal Gunther snorted and shook his head. Already he was thinking how lame and boring this match would be, and was clearly plotting to make me suffer as much as possible for wasting his time.

    "Ready¡­"

    Teacher Fielding didn''t seem to bother with what was transpiring in the arena. He held his hand steady in the air and glanced at both of us. Then he swung it down.

    "Fight!"

    Hal Gunther immediately launched several energy arrows at me, the blinding projectiles speeding toward me.

    I stepped to the side, easily evading them. At the same time, several thoughts ran through my head as I studied him.

    Hal Gunther was clearly an archer-type combat mage who specialized in long-range offensive magic. Those arrows were fast, but they seemed to lack power. He must be the type who relied on speed instead of strength.

    For a moment, Hal Gunther confirmed my guess by launching several more arrows in succession. Fortunately, I had been sparring with Dad long enough to be able to detect the trajectories of his arrows and was able to dodge them.

    "??"

    Something wasn''t right. Hal Gunther was supposed to be an elite mage from a top-ten magic academy, wasn''t he? Yet for some reason I was evading his arrows more easily than I was against all the other opponents I had fought against in my own school.

    Had I gotten stronger and faster over the past week while training nonstop with my Dad?

    "!!!"

    A foolish mistake. Another blazing arrow whizzed past my face, grazing my cheek and drawing a line of blood. Any higher and it would have knocked my glasses off, obliterating them.

    That was faster and more powerful than before!

    Even though my original intent was to close in and engage Hal Gunther in close combat ¨C an archer was usually more vulnerable in close combat, where I could negate his advantage at range ¨C I was forced to withdraw when another volley of arrows bombarded my positon. Skidding backward, I glanced at a grinning Hal.

    He already had a new batch of energy arrows summoned and notched.

    Whizz!

    "Ugh!"

    I jumped back, but a couple of the arrows lanced through my forearm, causing blood to splatter on the ground. I staggered back, red-hot pain exploding through my arm and almost causing me to black out.

    A series of groans reverberated across the crowd.

    "It''s over."

    "I knew that loser couldn''t do it."

    "Was that ever in doubt?"

    "This is going to be fast."

    At least that was what I thought too, but I overheard a conversation taking place nearby.

    "No, it won''t. The Phantom Hunter never lets his matches end too quickly. He enjoys toying around with his opponents and torturing them into submission."

    "Oh, right. I once watched a match where he caused his female opponent to cry after hitting her with over a hundred arrows. He was slowly cutting off her clothes with his arrows one at a time."

    "What a sick bastard¡­"

    Then it hit me. I had been horribly wrong this entire time.

    It wasn''t that Hal Gunther was weaker than my other opponents, or that his arrows were weak, or that I was easily dodging his arrows.

    My opponent had been holding back this entire time, slowly gauging my strength and making sure he didn''t knock me out too early.

    "¡­"

    "What''s the matter?" Hal Gunther sneered as he loosed another volley of arrows. I managed to just barely dodge this time, rolling to the side as several of the energy projectiles stabbed into the reinforced ground.

    He grinned as he watched me jump back to my feet and produced a few new arrows.

    "Don''t surrender just yet, trash," he sniggered derisively. "I want to savor this match and your pain for as long as I can."

 10 Chapter 10: Phantom Hunter

    "!!!"

    I winced as several more arrows pierced through me, causing to hit the ground. Rolling to my feet while desperately dodging a few more energy arrows, I glanced around the open arena and realized that there was nothing for me to seek cover under.

    The terrain was overwhelmingly advantageous to someone with ranged abilities. No wonder they called the current edition the shooting edition. Currently the meta favored a shooting list, and those mages who relied on melee were at a slight disadvantage.

    A very slight disadvantage, for such weaknesses could easily be circumvented by focusing on defensive enchantments to endure the barrage of spells or shots, or specializing in speed. Indeed, many combat mages used super speed to almost teleport next to their opponent and engage them in close combat. Since ranged mages specialized in ranged attacks, they were pretty terrible at melee combat. Mostly. So they would get wrecked if they allowed their opponents to get close.

    It all depended on who was fighting.

    Unfortunately, I had neither speed nor defense. If melee combatants were at a disadvantage against ranged mages, then summoners were totally weak against both melee and ranged, for such opponents could quickly take down the summoner before he or she could finish casting the spell. Unlike ranged spells, summoning spells took a lot longer to cast, and consumed much more energy. After all, we weren''t just throwing a temporary fireball that existed long enough to hit the foe. We were actually bringing an actual, living existence capable of casting its own spells and launching physical attacks into the material plane. Of course it would be a much more complex spell.

    Taking a deep breath, I reached out and grabbed an arrow before it struck me. The energy projectile detonated in my hand, causing me to stagger back. Good thing it did ¨C while I stumbled, the following volley of arrows sailed above my head.

    "Hmph. Lucky bastard."

    I stared at Hal Gunther, who continued to maintain a good distance from me. "Not really. I''m more curious as to why you haven''t finished me off already."

    Hal Gunther had plenty of opportunities to hit my vital points and knock me out for good, but he had been aiming for my limbs, or non-vital areas in my body. Probably to show off how accurate he was, and to prolong the battle needlessly. I felt blood trickling down numerous wounds, and grimaced. At this rate I might pass out from the blood loss before he finally delivered the finishing blow.

    "Are you kidding me?" Hal Gunther snorted. "It won''t be fun if I win so easily. Come on, entertain me more! Where''s your spells? Are you sure you don''t have a Divine Device? This is so one-sided that it''s boring!"

    Indeed it was. Not just from him, but also for the spectators. The Crowley Academy students were staring at me impassively, as if wondering if I was just wasting their time. My schoolmates were watching me sympathetically, put in their eyes. Many of them were probably thinking they were vindicated in their decision not to volunteer, after seeing the sorry state I was in.

    However, I shrugged. "So what? It''s not my job to entertain you or make your fights fun."

    Hal Gunther glared at me, and then loosed several arrows. I quickly hit the ground to avoid them, silently noting that I was gradually getting used to the pattern and speed of his attacks. It was subtle, but I was getting better at dodging them.

    Unfortunately, I was aware that Hal Gunther was still holding back, and he hadn''t really unleashed his true power yet.

    "I''ve to admit, I''m impressed, though."

    Suddenly, Hal Gunther caught me off guard with a compliment. I stopped dodging and narrowed my eyes.

    "After watching me put on such a miserable performance? Are you being sarcastic?"

    "No. I genuinely am impressed." Hal Gunther grinned, revealing sharp teeth that resembled a shark''s maw. "Even after taking so many of my hits, you still haven''t given up yet. I thought you would surrender by now, or beg me to end this."

    "Who would be so stupid to beg you to end a match by delivering the finishing blow when I can just painlessly surrender?" I asked with a roll of my eyes.

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    "See? That''s what I mean." Hal Gunther pointed at me. "You know that you have the option to surrender, yet even with those wounds you still haven''t given up yet. You''re still fighting me."

    "These wounds?" I glanced down at my current injuries, and cracked a derisive smile. "Are you kidding me? My Dad beats me up more badly than this on a daily basis. Never mind my Dad, even my schoolmates deal much worse injuries to me. Do you really expect me to give up just because of a few cuts and scratches?"

    Hal Gunther glowered at me, his expression contorting in fury. If I could spare the breath, I would have done a Star Wars imitation and said something to the effect of "good, let the hate flow through you." unfortunately, I wasn''t some Sith Emperor who could shoot lightning from his hands.

    "Idiot. I was only going easy on you. I''ll teach you true terror!"

    Throwing his hand into the air, he summoned a gigantic forest out of nowhere. In an instance, the entire stage was covered in greenery, with grass and trees sprouting and growing from what seemed like soil.

    "It took me quite a bit of time to cast this spell, but it''s worth it!"

    Unseen, Hal Gunther was chuckling in the midst of the woods. Even though I could hear him laugh, I couldn''t pinpoint the direction where his voice was coming from. It seemed to echo everywhere and nowhere.

    "This is my ultimate spell, Hunter''s Forest! Welcome to my world!"

    "Heh¡­cool. So you''re actually capable of creating your own Artificial Reality."

    I knew what kind of spell this was. It was a large-scale spell that allowed the caster to manifest his own imagined world onto the material plane. Artificial Reality was a complex enchantment on the same level as summoning spells ¨C in a way, it was a summoning spell. A talented mage would be able to alter reality and impose his own imagination upon it, creating his own Artificial Reality where he could impose his restricted set of rules.

    Of course, it was not almighty. The timeframe Hal Gunther took to cast it was pretty short, meaning that it wasn''t a very powerful Artificial Reality. In other words, I didn''t have to worry about otherworldly rules that locked down my magical energy entirely or controlled my attacks. There were those complex, powerful Artificial Realities where the enemies caught within them had every spell they cast immediately nullified, but this was obviously not one of those.

    Rather, it seemed like an Artificial Reality very suited to Hal Gunther''s style. As a predatory hunter, he lurked in the forest, ambushing unwary opponents and shooting from unseen positions. All the while he remained safe from retaliation.

    There was a horrified gasp from the crowd. Many of them had no doubt witnessed Hal Gunther''s ultimate spell before, and knew the fate that had befallen on all those who had fallen prey to it.

    Several arrows came out of nowhere, seemingly from different directions. I dove to the side, but a couple of them struck me, knocking me off my trajectory in midair and hurling me into the ground. While I rolled on the ground, a new barrage of arrows arced up before descending upon me, puncturing all over my body.

    "Gah!"

    Blood gushed out of my mouth and wounds as I jerked up, even as the energy projectiles slowly dissipated, leaving horrendous injuries behind. Slowly sitting up, I leaned against a tree. As I suspected, Artificial Reality was really a high-level magic that allowed one''s imagination to become reality. The tree felt tangible and physical.

    "Are you sure you can afford to rest?" Hal Gunther scoffed from nowhere. I instinctively threw myself into the ground before over a dozen arrows embedded themselves deeply into the trunk. Rolling to my feet, I grimaced from the pain, only for another three arrows to catch me in the back, sending me tumbling forward from the impact.

    Even though red-hot pain exploded through my skull, I found that I was still conscious. The bastard had deliberately missed my vitals and held back so that I wouldn''t pass out. Or the battle would be over long ago.

    "Don''t surrender yet! At least try to find me!" Hal Gunther taunted mockingly, his voice echoing across his artificial forest.

    "The Phantom Hunter indeed¡­" one of the audience murmured in awe. Even though the forest had blocked most of my line of sight, I could still overhear the whispers and comments from the stupid crowd. "Whenever he uses his Hunter''s Forest, he becomes practically invisible and untraceable. It''s impossible to detect him, not unless you have a very advanced spiritual sense!"

    "It''s over. There''s no way Huang can find him now."

    "The forest is his playground. He enjoys toying around with his opponents in it!"

    "Seriously? Can you guys just shut up?" I was feeling a bit irritated. If they weren''t going to help me, the least they could do was stop trash-talking me. Sometimes it felt as if the stupid crowd existed solely to trash-talk the protagonist while hype the antagonist up with sickening praises and compliments. They were literally kissing his ass and rudely writing off the protagonist, just so he could slap their faces when he prove them wrong later by crushing his opponent.

    Unfortunately, it wasn''t going to be that easy for me. I wasn''t an overpowered Mary Sue protagonist, after all.

    Another arrow slammed into me, sticking out of my shoulder and drawing my blood. Gasping, I fell to my knee.

    "What''s the matter? Why aren''t you moving? If you don''t find me, I''ll turn you into a human pincushion, you know?"

    I shook my head and snorted. "What''s the use? I know I won''t be able to find you. There''s no point trying to seriously fight someone who''s ripping off a retarded character from Rakudai Kishi no Chivalry."

    "Huh? What the fuck are you on about?" a few more arrows struck me from several directions, forcing me into a dodge. Even so, I still couldn''t duck completely and was sent staggering as a couple of them pierced my torso. Again, the sick bastard had avoided my vital points, most likely intending to bleed me out.

    Sprawling on the ground, I shut my eyes and sighed heavily.

    "I am not Kurogane Ikki. I''m not going to use Sword Steal and suddenly locate you ¨C hell, I don''t have a sword. I''m not Wang Zhong either. I don''t have an ultimate Mind''s Eye or Clairvoyance that can detect you."

    "Like I said, what the fuck are you on about?!"

    "Nothing. Only that you should have finished me off when you had the chance. Now you''re going to regret not ending the match early."

    "Shut up!"

    Despite being furious by my neutral critique, Hal Gunther was still taking me lightly, loosing a few more arrows that pierced my limbs rather than my heart or head. Until the very end, he still intended on making me suffer.

    Shaking my head, I smiled and opened my eyes. "Well¡­it''s too late."

    As soon as those words left my mouth, I completed my summoning spell for the first time ever in a hundred matches.

 11 Chapter 11: Summoning

    "?!"

    If I could have seen Hal Gunther, I would have spotted him jumping back in fear when the whole world transformed.

    "What¡­what the hell is this?!"

    "You never bothered to find out what kind of mage I am, did you?" I asked, even as his Hunter''s Forest caught fire. The entire Artificial Reality was enveloped in an inferno, with the trees and grass instantly rendered into ash and flaking away, revealing the sterile ground of the stage.

    "What''s this?"

    "I have no idea¡­"

    "This is the first time Student Richard Huang has ever completed his summoning spell¡­"

    "Yeah, I''ve never seen it before¡­"

    The spectators were whispering to each other again, in that irritating manner that pissed me off. But I couldn''t attack them, not when I was locked inside the boundary field of the stage ¨C the same boundary field that would keep me alive no matter what kind of damage I sustained in the arena. So I chose to ignore them.

    "Fucker!"

    Roaring in fury, Hal Gunther unleashed a volley of arrows, but a wall of fire burst out in front of me and incinerated them.

    "!!!!"

    Hal Gunther skidded backward. When his Artificial Reality had been wiped out, when his Hunter''s Forest had been razed to the ground by the inferno, he had reverted to visibility. He was pale and perspiring profusely, and not just from the intense heat of the flames.

    "Answer me!" he hollered, his voice almost cracking from fear. "What the hell is this?! What spell did you just cast?!"

    I merely smiled at him. "I have no obligation to tell you."

    Even though I remained cryptic about my magic, there actually was no use in keeping it a secret. Everyone could see the gigantic phoenix that was emerging from the blazing ground, almost as if the burning floor had turned into an interdimensional gateway.

    "That''s¡­a Phoenix."

    "Holy Molly! Richard Huang is actually a master of a Phoenix?!"

    "Isn''t that a legendary beast?! How did he¡­?!"

    "No wonder his summoning spells take so long to cast. This isn''t something you can summon in a couple of minutes!"

    The spectators were gasping in awe and fright. Once again, I ignored their annoying side comments and focused on the battle before me.

    By the way, they were wrong. I didn''t summon just any Phoenix.

    I had summoned the Vermillion Bird (apparently that was the official translation and not Red Phoenix, but who knows why Wee Tian Beng and TCZ Studio translated Zhu Que into Red Phoenix instead of Vermillion Bird?). Well, Vermillion Bird sounds a little silly, so I''ll just leave it as Vermillion Phoenix. The celestial guardian of the south.

    The Vermillion Phoenix spread its wings as it emerged from the ground, its wingspan almost twenty meters in length. The size of a house, it took to the air, raining down fiery feathers upon the scorched earth.

    "What the hell is that thing!?" Hal Gunther wailed, almost on the verge of breaking down. He realized that I was right ¨C he should never have toyed with me, should have finished me off when he had the chance.

    But no, he had to savor my suffering, prolong my agony and bully me. Thanks to his idiocy, he had given me all the time I needed to summon my Vermillion Phoenix.

    "As long as I finish off the summoner, the summoned beast will disappear as well!"

    Even though he was a despicable bully, Hal Gunther was still a competent combat mage. He knew how summoning spells worked. Once again, he notched multiple energy arrows to his bow and fired upon me.

    However, another wall of fire erupted between us, incinerating all of those arrows into nothingness.

    "!!!"

    "What''s the matter?" I asked snidely. "Are you no longer able to give your best shot?"

    "UGH!" roaring, Hal Gunther shifted his aim. "I don''t believe I can''t shoot down that gigantic bird of yours!"

    Conjuring multiple arrows, he bombarded the hovering Vermillion Phoenix with a barrage of energy arrows.

    The Vermillion Phoenix didn''t even bother to defend itself with a barrier of flames as it did to protect me. Instead, it merely held its position and allowed the arrows to slam into it.

    However, the moment the energy arrows made physical contact with its crimson body, they spontaneously combusted and faded harmlessly against its fiery feathers.

    "No way¡­"

    Hal Gunther fell to his knees. The Vermillion Phoenix fixed him with a ferocious stare, causing his body to lock up and tremble violently in fear.

    Instinctively, Hal Gunther knew he was no match for the majestic, godlike existence before him. Raising his hand, he opened his mouth, which had gone dry.

    "I give¡­"

    The Vermillion Phoenix didn''t give him the chance to finish his sentence. Spreading its wings, it unleashed a massive wave of flames that washed over him. Hal Gunther''s words were cut off in an agonizing scream as his whole body blackened, his clothes scorched into ash instantly. He crashed onto the ground, fuming.

    Taken down in one shot. Hal Gunther couldn''t even withstand a single attack.

    "¡­"

    A hushed silence fell over the spectators as they watched the unbelievable sight. No one felt any pity for Hal Gunther, mostly because they were aware of his notorious reputation for being a sadistic bully. More than a few actually thought he deserved it.

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    By the way, he wasn''t dead. As I said, the boundary field that enveloped the arena ensured that nobody was dead. Even if Hal Gunther was burned to within a millimeter of his life, he could still be fully healed by a healer mage like Teacher Cure. It would take quite some time for him to recover, but he was in no danger of losing his life.

    "¡­whoa¡­"

    "Scary¡­"

    "I''m so glad I knocked Richard out before he could summon that monster¡­"

    "The fuck?! The bottom-ranked student was hiding such a trump card?!"

    "No wonder he never finished casting his summoning spell¡­it''s such a terrifying monster!"

    One day, I had to request that they make the arena soundproof. It was so irritating listening to all these comments and remarks from the spectators.

    "Student Hal Gunther is unable to battle!" Teacher Ruff Fielding announced, having jumped onto the arena a few seconds earlier to check on him. Satisfied that he was still alive, and the boundary field was still working, he straightened and gestured toward me. "Student Richard Huang is the winner!"

    There was polite applause and wild cheering from my schoolmates. Not because I was popular, but because they enjoyed watching me take down these arrogant elitist students down a peg after all their bragging. These bastards had come to our school to mock and humiliate us, but they got thrashed pretty badly instead.

    I had to admit, it was pretty satisfying.

    While my schoolmates were cheering, there was some movement in the Crowley Academy area.

    "That asshole¡­" the guy with dark hair and narrow eyes moaned. "That fucking idiot chose to play around, and now he ended up embarrassing our school! If only he finished the match early! But no, he just had to toy with his opponent and give him the chance to summon that crazy monster of his¡­that fucking idiot!"

    "I always knew he would end up like this sooner or later," the massive, thickset guy murmured as he folded his arms and shook his head with a stern expression. "Hal was always underestimating his opponents. He paid the price for it."

    Cecilia Stuart''s brow furrowed, but she maintained that calm expression of hers. "I will have to strongly reconsider Hal''s position in the team."

    "Yeah! Kick him out already!" the girl with shoulder-length hair huffed. "I''m sick of seeing his face. I never understand why you put up with him, Captain!"

    "Results," the handsome guy replied seriously. "Even though Hal is like this, his skill is the real deal."

    Cecilia nodded in agreement, but didn''t elaborate any more than that.

    "Well¡­I''ll be the next opponent."

    The burly, thickset guy stood up and glanced at Cecilia for approval. She nodded.

    "I''ll be counting on you then, Chang Cheng."

    As Crowley Academy sent out their next representative, Teacher Fielding approached me in concern.

    "Before the next match begins, would you like to swap out for a team member?"

    I could already see Alicia Violet rising from her seat and proceeding down, most likely to help me. There were quite a few students, heartened by my display, and wanting to volunteer as well. Given my injuries, they expected me to tag out.

    But I didn''t. Instead, I shook my head and grinned.

    "Team member? I''m not a member of any team." Scratching my head, I exhaled lightly. "I''ll continue fighting."

    "Are you sure?" Teacher Fielding asked skeptically, and also out of worry. "You''re badly hurt."

    He was right. I was bleeding all over from the numerous wounds that Hal Gunther had dealt me. However¡­

    "That''s fine." I grinned and gestured toward my Vermillion Phoenix. "I''m not going to be the one fighting, after all."

 12 Chapter 12: The Great Wall

    Teacher Fielding regarded me for a moment, and then he nodded.

    "If you''re sure you can still fight."

    "I''ll be fine," I assured him, still sitting on the ground. My injuries were so debilitating that I could hardly stand, so I gave up after a while. Fortunately, it appeared that the bleeding had stopped, so I wasn''t in any danger of passing out from massive blood loss.

    It would be great if I could join the unconscious (and horribly burned) Hal Gunther in getting treatment from Teacher Cure, but that would disqualify me from further participation. Now that I had finally summoned Vermillion Phoenix, I wasn''t going to be satisfied until I had my fill of fighting.

    Teacher Fielding gave me one last glance before he jumped off the stage. I suddenly realized that he had been completely unaffected by the flames. Sucking in a deep breath, I glanced at Vermillion Phoenix.

    My summoned beast met my gaze with its crimson eyes, and with a flap of its wings, the entire arena reverted back to normal, all the flames extinguished. The heat dissipated slightly, but the surroundings remained warm.

    "Thank you."

    The huge, burly guy who was almost two meters tall stepped onto the stage. He bowed his head slightly.

    "I am Chang Cheng of Crowley Grand Arcane Academy, and a representative. Right now, I am a second-year student. I specialize in defensive magic."

    At least he had manners, unlike Hal Gunther.

    Offering him a frail smile, I returned his polite greeting with an introduction of my own. However, I remained seated, not because I was arrogant but because I currently did not possess the ability to stand. Not with these injuries.

    "Richard Huang, Jing Tian Magic Academy. I''m also a second-year student. I''m afraid I''m not a representative, though. I''m merely the bottom-ranked student in my school."

    Fortunately, Chang Cheng didn''t seem to mind my lack of manners. He merely smiled good-naturedly.

    "That''s hard to believe."

    "It''s the truth, though." I shrugged. "If you don''t believe me, you can check the school records, or go online and search for my name. The official school ranking should be available online. You''ll see that I''m ranked at the bottom."

    "I''ll just take your word for it."

    Chang Cheng didn''t elaborate more. Unlike Hal Gunther, he wasn''t going to underestimate me, or it would result in another humiliating defeat. Already Hal Gunther''s defeat had been broadcasted to the Federation. The holographic screen that displayed our match to the spectators in the main hall also doubled as a recording device, and from what I knew, all matches and recordings were usually broadcasted live to the rest of the Global Federation and made available online through video streaming websites such as YouTube.

    Yes, YouTube still existed in the 30th century. I''m not kidding. It evolved and underwent a lot of transformations throughout the years, but it continued to serve as the premier online video streaming or viewing platform for the masses.

    In other words, Hal Gunther''s shameful match had been screened live to the rest of the Federation, and even those who didn''t managed to catch the real-time broadcast could easily view it at a later time because the video was available in YouTube and other viewing platforms. Yay, I guess?

    "Are you sure you''ll be okay?"

    Chang Cheng seemed the type to have a conscience, for he was looking at me in concern. I nodded.

    "Yeah. Sorry for not being able to stand up, but as you can see, I am a summoner. So I don''t really need to be in peak physical condition to fight."

    "Good point," Chang Cheng said dryly, and then he turned to Teacher Fielding. The teacher-referee glanced from me to Chang Cheng, and then sighed. He raised his hand.

    "Both fighters, take your stances!"

    I remained seated, closing my eyes briefly in an attempt to block out the sharp pain that continued to stab my body from all over.

    Opposite me, Chang Cheng planted both feet firmly into the ground and raised his hands in a defensive posture. I could feel a mountainous amount of magical energy swirling inside him, threatening to erupt.

    Fortunately, I was the same. I could feel the superheated magical energy coiled up within my Vermillion Phoenix above, ready to explode catastrophically at my command.

    "Ready¡­" Teacher Fielding swung his hand down. "Begin!"

    Both Chang Cheng and I began at the same time.

    Immediately, the arena burst into flames, the Vermillion Phoenix unleashing a destructive inferno across the stage and bathing it in a sea of fire.

    Simultaneously, Chang Cheng cast his ultimate defensive spell. Several translucent layers made out of dense, solid magical energy materialized in front of him, taking the form of a fortress. They resembled thick, armored walls, curling over him and rapidly accumulating one atop another in a protective network.

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    The Great Wall. This was the supreme defensive spell that earned Chang Cheng his nickname. Running across the entire stage was a snake-like wall that brought to mind the ancient Great Wall of the past, an eternal structure that was acknowledged as one of the top wonders of the world (at least during my time).

    Some even claimed that the Great Wall was the only manmade structure that could be seen from outer space. Of course that was an exaggeration, but these myths were often based upon how majestic and titanic the actual Great Wall was.

    Chang Cheng wasn''t replicating the ancient Great Wall that existed in China for millennia. Instead, he was constructing his own Artificial Reality and imposing upon the material world his own ideals of what a defensive wall was.

    Layers upon armored layers formed up around him, transforming into a formidable fortress that was proof against any attack.

    "¡­"

    I studied him, even as my Vermillion Phoenix''s flames lashed out and scorched the pearly white walls that stood between me and my opponent. Chang Cheng didn''t have time to cast a complete defensive spell, so his fortress was currently incomplete. However, his way of casting was pretty unique ¨C instead of taking the required time to cast a full spell at once, like I did with my summoning spell, he was casting bits and pieces of his spell at a time.

    He focused first on erecting the most powerful defenses to protect himself. Once he had constructed the Great Walls to render himself impervious from his enemy''s attacks, then only would he begin assembling the remainder of his spell. Probably cannons on battle emplacements to bombard his opponents from safety.

    Fortunately, that would take a bit more time.

    "You can attack me, you know."

    Chang Cheng sounded confident, even though he was hidden behind his fortress. All this while, I had been allowing him to cast his defensive spell uninterrupted, and he was gradually strengthening his defenses by adding more layers. The more time I gave him, the more formidable his defenses became. In that respect, he resembled me.

    He seemed to have misunderstood something. I wasn''t like Hal Gunther, who stupidly gave his opponent time to complete his ultimate spell. It was just that I was aware of how formidable Chang Cheng''s defenses were. Crowley Grand Arcane Academy was pretty famous, and their representatives even more so. I had seen Chang Cheng''s defensive spell take on what seemed like apocalyptic blasts without suffering a scratch.

    So if I wanted to penetrate his defenses, I needed an even more powerful spell of my own. Taking a deep breath, I nodded at Vermillion Phoenix.

    It wasn''t as if my Vermillion Phoenix had been idle all this time either. It had been preparing an attack of its own.

    With a shrill cry, it spread out its wings and unleashed an enormous torrent of flames upon the Great Wall before it. The spectators and even I myself were blinded by the searing flash of light almost as bright as the sun as the Vermillion Phoenix launched its ferocious flames and bathed the durable fortress beneath it.

    The Great Wall didn''t even last ten seconds.

    Boom!

    "Impossible!"

    That was the last word from Chang Cheng before his Great Wall was completely incinerated. The inferno rolled over the armored walls, scorching it and disintegrating it into ash. One by one, Chang Cheng''s complex network of defensive buffers and walls fell, disappearing at an alarming rate as the ravenous inferno consumed them.

    And then Chang Cheng found himself engulfed by flames. He shrieked before vanishing in the middle of the fireball.

    "No way! How did those flames break through my Great Wall so quickly?!"

    I didn''t answer. I merely watched as the raging inferno expanded outward from where the ferocious stream of flames had struck Chang Cheng.

    Vermillion Phoenix''s attack was almost akin to a plasma blast, harnessing the power of a caged star and launching it in a single superheated blast that reached temperatures comparable or exceeding those of the sun itself. No manmade structure was going to withstand that. Not unless Chang Cheng possessed divine protection from the heavens themselves.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me¡­"

    The handsome guy gripped the armrests of his chair and stiffened his back as he gawked at the incredible sight.

    "It appears¡­that thanks to Hal''s blunder, we are in for a very hard fight."

    Cecilia''s expression was extremely grim.

    "It''s not over yet!" the girl with shoulder-length hair cried out. "Chang Cheng hasn''t lost yet!"

    After what seemed like an eternity, the flames stopped. A burly figure staggered out of the inferno, singed and charred. Fortunately, unlike Hal Gunther, Chang Cheng''s uniform was still somewhat intact. A good thing his Great Wall absorbed the majority of the damage or he would have ended up like Hal Gunther.

    Even so, Chang Cheng had reached his limit. He looked at me, his face scorched and blackened, and nodded once.

    "Your summoned beast is very strong," he murmured.

    Then he collapsed.

 13 Chapter 13: Assassin

    I watched as Chang Cheng was carried away, feeling a little better. Even though I didn''t have any healing spells cast upon me (that would disqualify me), I was slowly recovering. My injuries weren''t disappearing, of course, but the blood had clotted and dried, and the bleeding had stopped. Furthermore, I hadn''t taken any physical damage in the last battle, so that helped a lot too.

    I was finally able to stand. Teacher Fielding glanced at me.

    "Um, so you still intend to fight."

    "Yeah, that''s right." I grinned as I swung an arm to test it. Good, it was working. Then again, that bastard Hal Gunther didn''t do any serious wounds because he was trying to toy around with me, so that went in my favor as well. "I feel a bit better already."

    "Okay then." Teacher Fielding then glanced at the Crowley Academy section, where the students were shifting restlessly.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me¡­" the girl with shoulder-length hair muttered. "How are we supposed to go up against that?"

    "I assume you don''t want to, Elena?" Cecilia glanced at her, but the girl shook her head. The captain then turned toward a few other guys. "Nick? Louis?"

    The two guys she turned to also shook their heads.

    "Did you see that gigantic phoenix thing? If I go in there, I''ll be roasted in seconds."

    "Sorry, I''ll pass."

    "Doug? What do you think?" Cecilia turned to the handsome guy with blond hair. He frowned and nodded.

    "I don''t mind giving it a shot if no one else wants to¡­"

    "Wait."

    It was the guy with dark hair and narrow eyes. Everyone turned to him.

    "You want to try, Albert?" Cecilia asked. The guy named Albert nodded.

    "I have a plan. Correct me if I''m mistaken, but as long as I take down the summoner, his summoned beast will naturally be defeated as well, right?"

    "That is correct." Cecilia nodded. "Do you have a way to target the summoner?"

    "Of course." Albert smiled darkly. "Don''t forget, I''m an assassin. I specialize in these sort of things."

    Cecilia studied him for a second, and then nodded. "All right. I''ll be counting on you then."

    Albert stood up and strode to the stage. As usual, I made sure to extinguish the flames out of courtesy and protocol. It would be unfair to start burning my opponents even before the match began. On the other hand, the rules allowed me to continue maintaining my summoned beast as long as I remained in the ring.

    Which was why I refused to step out. After going through so much time and trouble to summon my Vermillion Phoenix, I wasn''t going to dismiss it like that. As a side note, the rule applied to all enchantments, summoned beasts and Artificial Realities. So if Chang Cheng had won the last battle, as long as he remained on stage, he would be allowed to leave his Great Wall in the material plane until he was eliminated, or swapped out for a team member.

    "I''m Albert Alain. Third year in Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy. My class is Assassin." Albert''s eyes were narrowed as he stared at me. I nodded. Since I already offered an introduction of myself earlier, there was no need to do it again.

    "Nice to meet you."

    Honestly, it wasn''t. I was aware of Albert Alain''s reputation. He was known as the Ashura Killer, a skilled assassin who honed his skills in extreme speed and dual daggers. Already he was drawing his infamous twin daggers, Light and Shadow, and dropping into a stance. I could see the muscles coiling in his legs as he got ready to lunge.

    Teacher Fielding glanced from him to me, and then raised his hand.

    "Fighters, take your stances," he began. "Ready¡­fight!"

    Albert Alain immediately charged at me. His speed was so fast that he literally disappeared from my vision, turning into a blur.

    At the same time, my Vermillion Phoenix bathed the entire space in flames.

    "Tch!"

    Clicking his tongue, Albert quickly dodged the first wave of flames, hurling himself to the side.

    I tried to track his movements, but Albert was too fast. He was already disappearing into a blur. The next thing I knew, he appeared behind me, his twin daggers slicing down for a lethal strike. Before they could reach me, a wall of flames erupted and forced him back.

    Albert quickly retreated, and then began sprinting along the edge of the arena as my Vermillion Phoenix hurled tremendous torrents of fire at him. Despite their fearsome firepower, all that destructive force was for naught if none of them landed a direct hit on him.

    No wonder Albert volunteered for this match. He was confident in his speed, and relied on swift, elegant movements to completely evade my powerful but slow attacks. Actually, they were Vermillion Phoenix''s attacks, but you know what I mean.

    Albert danced across the flames that were ravaging the arena, almost dismissing them. He was right to do so. Even though the inferno that bathed the coliseum was a terrifying sight to behold, the flames that blazed atop the ground were merely "baby" fire spells. Most competent mages were able to hold their heat and damaging effects at bay with their innate magical aura. Even I was protected from my own flames by my own protective magical aura without needing to cast a proper spell. These were the most basic of flames ¨C their purpose was not to defeat the opponent with fire, but to slowly wear them down, to exhaust their energy (in maintaining that protective aura) and also through gradual dehydration and heal exhaustion.

    My opponent was currently perspiring profusely, huge rivulets of sweat rolling off his skin and evaporating instantly they came into contact with the flames. However, Albert was a well-trained assassin with impeccable discipline. He wasn''t going to let the surrounding basic flames distract him from his current mission.

    Once again, he swept toward me from a blind spot, but I instinctively turned around. Vermillion Phoenix, who had a bird''s eye view from its position above, was able to react quickly, conjuring another wall of flames to deflect Albert''s fatal attack.

    However, I had the sense that Albert was growing faster and faster. He was actually leaving afterimages right now ¨C probably because he had finally finished casting a more advanced speed enhancement spell. Or perhaps it was an illusion spell. In any case, he was attempting to confuse me with multiple copies of himself.

    With every single copy of Albert moving at supersonic speeds and striking from my blind spots, I was slowly beginning to be overwhelmed. If Vermillion Phoenix hadn''t launched massive attacks from above to try and incinerate Albert, which forced both him and his afterimages to keep a safe distance ¨C many times I saw one of his afterimages vaporized by a torrent of flames when it was too slow to escape ¨C I would have been cut to death several times over.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    Albert''s arm was scorched ¨C I could tell that he was the real one, because his afterimages were too fragile, often shattering upon a single hit. Grimacing, Albert pulled back, and disappeared into the flames again, weaving through Vermillion Phoenix''s relentless attacks before he suddenly appeared to slash at me again.

    Throwing a hand up, I linked my will to Vermillion Phoenix and tapped into its repertoire of fire spells, conjuring yet another fiery barrier that almost incinerated Albert, had he not pulled back in time. His reflexes were nothing short of remarkable.

    "Heh, not bad¡­but you can''t keep this up for long, can you?"

    Albert was practically dancing a circle around me, darting in and trying to land a vital strike, only for a suddenly erupting barrier of flames to force him back. We repeated the series of maneuver, almost as if we had fallen into some weird dancing ritual or game of tag where he was supposed to tag me with his daggers and I had to protect myself. Despite getting a little dizzy from constantly revolving around to try and keep my eye on the swiftly disappearing Albert, I gritted my teeth and held my ground, refusing to let him out of my sight.

    Not that I succeeded. The guy was just too fast.

    "Your magical energy is not unlimited." Albert sounded like he was analyzing my skills right now. He grinned. "There are lots of openings¡­even though you can easily defend against my attacks with those walls of fire, you won''t be able to keep them up. Those spells are draining a lot of your magical energy, aren''t they?"

    Actually, they weren''t. The defensive fire spells were being cast by my Vermillion Phoenix, and it had a separate pool of magical energy from mine. I could top its magical energy pool (let''s call it MP for the sake of convenience) with my own, but the Vermillion Phoenix had a monstrous amount of MP to begin with. Right now, it hadn''t even expended half of its MP, and it regained a significant amount every time we stopped for the opposing team to swap out their members.

    In game terms, my Vermillion Phoenix was probably one of those final boss monsters in the secret areas of the most difficult dungeons.

    But I had no obligation to inform my enemy of that.

    "I want to see how long more you can keep this up!" Albert shouted before disappearing. He reappeared from my left, striking from below at what he thought was my blind spot. Yet another fiery barrier flared up, causing him to retreat. Before he landed, Vermillion Phoenix hurled another massive torrent of flames at him.

    To Albert''s credit, he flipped himself in midair, almost as if he was kicking off a flake of ash or something, and vanished. The stream of hellish fire washed over where he had been, but achieved nothing other than scorching the ground.

    "That was close!"

    Albert skidded backward after reappearing, and he divided into several afterimages again, launching himself at me.

    "Your defense is not impenetrable!" he declared confidently as his many copies flickered and flashed around me, striking from countless angles. Looked like he had completed yet another spell as well. Multiple walls of fire erupted and forced the copies back before fading back into the ground in cinders, only for Albert to strike again. "If you really are impervious to all attacks, then you should be able to keep up a permanent wall of fire around yourself, like Chang Cheng, instead of allowing them to dissipate and fade away after deflecting just one of my attacks! Most likely the magical energy expenditure is too large for you to keep it up! Not that it matters. As long as I can surpass your speed at conjuring barriers...!"

    He dashed at me again, vanishing as his speed kicked up yet another notch. His daggers slashed at my back, and despite just barely managing to deflect his attack with another fiery defense, I vaguely registered that he had been much, much closer than before.

    Albert was accelerating increasingly, and the longer the battle went on, the faster he got. Most likely because of his speed assassin spells. He was repeatedly casting his acceleration spells over and over again to stack their effects, and thus the longer the match went on, the faster he would become. Theoretically there was no limit to how much he could accelerate himself, but the drawback was that he obviously couldn''t multi-cast the same spell at the same time to stack them immediately. He had to cast the spell individually, one by one, to stack its effects slowly in order to amplify his speed exponentially with each successful cast.

    "As long as you aren''t able to touch me, I will be able to win eventually!"

    Crowing, Albert slashed at me again, and Vermillion Phoenix hastened to protect me. This time, I could actually see the gleaming blades slice through the air just millimeters away from my face. That was dangerous.

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    However¡­

    "You talk too much."

    However confident Albert was, we were still in the middle of a battle. I couldn''t believe he was spending most of his time yammering away. On the bright side, I was distracted by his dialogue to the point I no longer paid any attention to the clich¨¦ commentary by the stupid crowd.

    Additionally, I had finally finished casting my spell. Or to be more accurate, Vermillion Phoenix did.

    "It''s over!"

    Albert triumphantly stabbed at me with his twin daggers, but before the blades could score a hit, the entire area around me erupted in flames. This wasn''t the simple wall of fires that I had been relying on before.

    It was literally a volcanic eruption.

    "No way!"

    Albert''s triumphant yell transformed into a scream of agony as he was consumed by the hellish flames that swept across the entire arena. And this time, there was nowhere for him to run to.

    I watched impassively as his charred form hit the ground, and sighed a breath of relief when his shrieks ended.

    "Finally¡­he finally shut up."

 14 Chapter 14: White Knigh

    "Ah¡­Albert lost."

    The guy named Nick groaned and slapped his forehead.

    "Bloody hell, how do you avoid something like that?" Louis complained. "He literally just engulfed the whole stage in fire!"

    Cecilia watched as the staff carried Albert''s charred body off the stage on a stretcher so that he could receive treatment. They would ferry him all the way to the infirmary where Teacher Cure was waiting. Chang Cheng had already recovered somewhat, and returned to his seat with bandages and gauzes wrapped over his wounds and burns. Apparently he had elected not to wait for Teacher Cure to complete her healing spell before returning.

    That was fine. Defensive mages such as Chang Cheng had rapid regeneration. Now that he had received the basic healing spells from Teacher Cure, it would only take him the rest of the day to fully recover.

    On the other hand, Hal Gunther was conspicuous by his absence. The guy was so much more injured than Chang Cheng that it would require Teacher Cure''s full attention to heal him back to normal. Probably one of the reasons why Chang Cheng demurred on spending too much time in the infirmary. His teammate needed the treatment more than he did.

    "What do we do now?" the burly guy directed the question toward his leader. Cecilia Stuart was folding her arms and pursing her lips as she considered her options.

    After a moment of pondering, she turned to the handsome guy.

    "Doug, do you think you can handle him?"

    "If you so order it, I''ll give it a shot, but no promises."

    The good-looking, blond guy shrugged casually, a smile touching his lips. Cecilia glanced at him seriously.

    "How do you rate your chances?"

    "About 60-40, I suppose?"

    "Oh!" Elena brightened up. "As expected of you, Doug. You have a 60% chance of winning? That''s better than the rest of us, save the Captain."

    "I think you misunderstand me." Doug''s eyes gleamed mischievously. He tilted his head toward the Vermilion Phoenix. "I have a 40% chance of winning against a monster like that."

    Elena''s jaw dropped. "Even you aren''t confident that you''ll be able to fight on par, Doug?"

    "Like I said, I can give it a shot." He glanced at Cecilia, who nodded almost imperceptibly. "It''ll be a good experience anyhow."

    Having gotten his leader''s permission, he jumped to his feet and began stretching himself. Then he strode toward the stage. As he did so, all the girls in the spectators squealed and screamed, much to the guys'' dismay.

    "Sir Doug!"

    "How handsome!"

    "I love you, Doug!"

    "Marry me!"

    The guys looked at each other in dismay, but didn''t say anything. There was nothing for them to say at all. Doug was quite the looker, much better looking than me. Even the girls from my school rooted for him over me.

    Evidently this Doug dude had female fans all over the Federation.

    "Get him, Richard!"

    "Teach that pretty boy a lesson!"

    "Burn him to ash!"

    On the other hand, all the guys ended up cheering for me instead. United in their hatred against the handsome Doug, and jealous of him because of all the affection and attention the girls were fawning upon him, the guys in my school jumped onto my side. They appeared to relish the prospect of the pretty boy getting toasted by my Vermillion Phoenix. If his features were blackened to ash, would the girls still be infatuated with him?

    I honestly didn''t care. I had better things to do than to be jealous over a handsome guy or vie for the girls'' attention. Previously, I had been a thirty-plus uncle before I reincarnated into my current young body, so I was subject to the same teenage hormonal tendencies as my schoolmates.

    "Doug Daniels. You already know that I''m from Crowley." Doug chuckled good-naturedly and extended a hand toward me. I accepted it. His grip was firm, but he didn''t resort to that bullshit tactic of crushing my hand to show off his strength. "You''ve put on an impressive display this far and humbled my school. Please keep that up! I look forward to exchanging a few pointers with you. Let''s have a good fight, okay?"

    "I''ll do my best," I replied non-committedly.

    From what I knew, Doug Daniels was known as the White Knight of Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy. It wasn''t solely because he was handsome, chivalrous and popular with the girls. I had seen a few of his fights, and he was a superlative swordsman.

    And right now that Doug Daniels was drawing a sword from nowhere.

    "Fighters, take your stance!" Teacher Fielding announced.

    Doug held his sword in both hands. From first impression, he appeared to be relaxed, adopting an easy, casual offensive stance.

    Yet¡­

    What is with this pressure?

    All my instincts were screaming at me. I could intuitively sense how dangerous Doug was. He was still smiling at me in a friendly manner, but I was breaking out in cold sweat just from seeing him hold his sword and settle into a standard stance.

    "Ready¡­"

    A gigantic knight in white armor appeared behind Doug. Within the visor, a single red light blazed demonically. No one else could see the behemoth. All the girls were cheering as they were fixated upon Doug''s handsome features while the guys were hurling abuse at him and telling me to wipe the floor with him. None of them had noticed the behemoth knight in silver, gleaming armor that held a gigantic lance and shield, towering over Doug''s lean figure.

    What the hell is this!?

    Swallowing, I took a step back. I instinctively understood that this match would be decided in an instant. If I allowed Doug to attack, no matter what sort of defensive firewall I conjured with Vermillion Phoenix, he would just smash through it with a single sword strike and lay me low. This match would definitely end in just one strike.

    This guy was¡­a dragon slayer. Or a monster slayer. No, he was a monster in human form.

    "Fight!"

    Teacher Fielding swung his hand down.

    Doug immediately lunged at me, almost as if he had exploded off his feet. Surging toward me like a rocket, he swung his sword mercilessly.

    Behind him, the shimmering white knight also seemed to swing its sword, but it wasn''t real. It was merely an illusion generated by the potent killing intent that Doug was emanating. His form was perfect, his sword strike so precise that I wouldn''t be surprised if it cut down to the nanometer. There were no wasted movements, no trash-talking, nothing.

    Just pure action.

    At the same time, Vermillion Phoenix immediately conjured a firewall, but just as I suspected, Doug obliterated it with a swing of his sword immediately, slicing through the torrent of flames and dispersing them effortlessly.

    Then his blade swung at my neck.

    "!!!"

    The sword slashed through empty air.

    Doug''s eyes widened in shock when he realized that I had dodged it by a literal hair''s breadth. As it was, a few strands of my hair were considerably shortened as his keen blade cut through them. A millisecond slower and I might actually have a bald patch on my head.

    Without even thinking, I slammed my palm into his chest in reflex, driving him back. Using the extremely basic palm strike that I had just learned in close combat class just this week, I forced him back. Doug staggered backward before skidding to a stop, and he shook his head.

    "You actually dodged that?"

    "Damn it¡­"

    I realized how little effect my palm strike had on him. My arm throbbed ¨C it felt as if I was the one who got hit instead of him. In contrast, Doug didn''t seem hurt at all. He was a lot more astonished than injured. He didn''t even bother to clutch at his chest, probably because I didn''t even leave a single injury.

    However¡­

    Vermillion Phoenix spread its wings as it prepared to launch a torrent of flames at Doug. However, before it did, Doug dropped his sword and raised both hands.

    "I surrender."

    "¡­eh?"

    Being tied to my mental state, Vermillion Phoenix also halted its attack. Around us, the spectators gaped at Doug''s motionless figure.

    "Are you sure?" Teacher Fielding asked.

    "Yeah. I lost this." Doug nodded and flashed me a grin. "That was a good match. Thanks for indulging me."

    While I honestly couldn''t care if he threw the match or not, his teammates were less than impressed.

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    "What is Doug playing at?!" Elena howled. "Why did he suddenly forfeit the match?!"

    Nick''s brow furrowed. "Isn''t he still unscathed? Even if the opponent managed to land a single strike on him, that shouldn''t be enough to hurt Doug."

    "In fact, Doug was lucky that the opponent wasn''t capable of more than the most basic of palm strikes." Louis shook his head. "If the opponent had launched a more advanced combat technique in his counterattack, it would have been over. But he didn''t¡­"

    "No. Doug lost."

    Everyone turned to look at Cecilia in surprise. She was studying the stage where Doug and I were still on as we conversed. She was frowning, but she had an inkling of what happened.

    "Doug staked everything on the first attack. The moment he failed to take out his opponent with his sword at the very first second, he lost. The palm strike wasn''t what defeated him. Doug knows that the real counterattack is beginning." She gestured toward the Vermillion Phoenix who was hovering high above the stage. "He knows that he has absolutely no defense against that monster''s attack, and so wisely forfeited before he got hit by it. He''s smart enough to avoid taking unnecessary injuries if he doesn''t have to, especially since this is a friendly match."

    "Even Doug has lost¡­" Elena slumped in her seat. "What should we do now?"

    "We''re down to our last member," Nick added tersely. "This is unprecedented. This is impossible. We''re on the verge of getting wiped out by a single student from a no-name school?!"

    "That might not be the case." Cecilia paused as she scrutinized the Vermillion Phoenix. "That monster may be formidable, but it''s not invincible."

 15 Chapter 15: The Captain makes her move

    The students from Crowley Academy continued to stare in my direction while discussing what they had just witnessed.

    "So the issue is still that Vermillion Phoenix, after all. If we can just get rid of the Vermillion Phoenix, then we should be able to win."

    Elena shared her conclusion with her teammates. Nick and Louis listened closely, while Chang Cheng remained aloof as he sat with his arms crossed, having already been eliminated earlier. Doug merely listened with a neutral smile, but he didn''t say anything.

    The short-haired girl paid no attention to him, and instead proceeded toward the only thing that mattered.

    "The question is¡­who should face him next?"

    "I don''t think I can defeat that monster," Nick confessed. "I don''t have the skills or firepower to take done a creature of that strength and size."

    "Neither do I." Louis stared at Elena. "You want to give it a shot, Elena?"

    Elena made a face. "Me? Are you kidding? You call yourselves men, but you ask a young girl like me to put herself in danger before you? Where is your pride?"

    "So you advocate gender equality whenever you stand to benefit from it, but when you want to avoid something, you resort to using your gender as an excuse." Nick shook his head in disgust. "Right. You''re not going to convince anyone."

    "But then who''s going to fight that guy?" Louis asked nervously.

    "Maybe the three of you should draw straws," Doug suggested with an amused smile. "Or we could always forfeit the last match."

    "Don''t even joke like that!" Elena snapped at him. Doug merely grinned at her, not at all offended.

    "Then are you volunteering?"

    "I¡­" Elena trailed off, but it was clear that she was reluctant to face my Vermillion Phoenix. She huffed and shrank back into her seat.

    Cecilia, who had been silent this entire time, suddenly stood up, causing her teammates to look at her.

    "I will do it."

    "Really? Captain, you''re making your move?" Elena gaped at her.

    "Do you think this is a good idea?" Nick asked skeptically. "You''re the captain! You shouldn''t have to lower yourself to take part in this farce."

    According to the remaining three students of Crowley Academy,

    "It''s just a friendly match, there''s no need to get all serious about this," Louis added hastily, but shrank back when Cecilia turned toward him.

    "We''ve already embarrassed ourselves enough." Cecilia''s expression remained unchanged as she spoke. "I will turn this around by myself if I have to. We cannot allow ourselves to shame Crowley any more than we already have."

    Chang Cheng, Elena and the rest, with the exception of Doug, grimaced when they heard her ruthless words.

    Doug stared at her, finally turning serious. "Do you think you''ll be able to defeat that summoned beast, Captain Cecilia?"

    "I have every confidence that I can," Cecilia replied simply, as if she was stating nothing more than a fact. "Admittedly, it will be very difficult, but as I said, that summoned beast is not invincible. It can be defeated."

    "You''re probably the only one who can defeat a monster like that, Captain," Nick muttered. Cecilia fixed her gaze upon him.

    "If we can''t even defeat an obstacle like this, then how do you think we will fare in the national tournaments for mages this year?" She narrowed her eyes. "And don''t forget¡­this person is supposedly the last-ranked student of Jing Tian Academy. Do you not feel ashamed to be on the verge of being team-wiped by him?"

    None of her teammates could answer her.

    "So have you decided who your last member will be?" Teacher Fielding asked rhetorically, but only because he saw that they had come to a decision. Cecilia Stuart nodded and strode onto the stage in a dignified manner.

    "I will be the last member," she declared.

    There was a furor in the crowd.

    "Oh my goodness¡­the Invincible Goddess of War herself is taking the stage!"

    "Amazing! I never thought I would actually get to watch Cecilia Stuart fight with my very own eyes!"

    "You''ve got to be kidding me!"

    "The Invincible Goddess of War is actually participating in a friendly match?!"

    "We''re really lucky!"

    There were cheers and whistles from 360 degrees. Initially, it seemed as if the gender roles had reversed, with the guys cheering for Cecilia Stuart, but when I listened, I overheard the girls gushing over her as well. Cecilia Stuart was clearly a national idol, loved by both guys and girls alike ¨C the former infatuated with her beauty and elegance and the latter admiring her strength and dignity.

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    I belonged to neither category. I mean, I did watch her matches, but I wasn''t that invested in the professional scene. For me, mages were a career choice that would lead me to fighting against the monsters from Emergence. Nothing more than that. I honestly didn''t give a fuck about all these rankings and professional mages.

    "Cecilia Stuart, second-year in Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy. I specialize in combat magic and elemental wood magic."

    As Cecilia spoke, I could see thousands of flower petals drifting about her, as if spring had arrived and the trees were in full bloom. Except that there were no trees inside the main hall, so I had no idea where the petals came from.

    This was the same kind of illusion that Doug Daniels used earlier, to conjure the image of an armored White Knight. It wasn''t real, but merely a terrifying aura designed to intimidate the opponent and sap their will to fight. It was an effective method of psychological warfare, already cowing them into submission even before the match began.

    However, I refused to lose.

    An illusion of flames emanated from behind me as Vermillion Phoenix flapped its wings, a low rumble emitting from its throat.

    "I look forward to exchanging a few pointers with you," Cecilia continued indifferently, as if she didn''t care about the illusionary exchange. If anything, it seemed as if the number of petals had actually increased in response to the illusionary inferno blazing around me.

    "Same here," I responded.

    Teacher Fielding glanced from me to her, and then raised his hand.

    "Fighters, take your stance!"

    Cecilia drew a sword. It was a simple blade, but elegant, with intricate, flowery designs engraved across its guard. She took up what seemed like a fencing position. Her sword was lean and gave off a graceful air, just like her.

    Several of the petals actually drifted along her blade, almost as if whirling around it.

    "Ready¡­"

    Cecilia dropped into a crouch. I outwardly maintained my stance, but inwardly I readied myself for an attack. Conjuring a firewall, anything¡­

    "¡­fight!"

    Cecilia propelled herself toward me. Flowery petals burst into life around her, dancing elegantly like butterflies. The razor-sharp petals flitted around me before descending upon my position like a storm of blades.

    Whoosh!

    A ferocious inferno erupted around me, incinerating the approaching flowery petals while simultaneously forming a firewall that discouraged Cecilia from attacking me.

    However, Cecilia''s aim wasn''t me. She didn''t even seem to care that her attack had failed, and was already moving in a different direction while blatantly ignoring me.

    "!!!"

    I realized that her assault on me was merely a diversion. Her true aim was actually¡­

    "Scree¡­!"

    My Vermillion Phoenix spread its wings and launched a torrent of flames at Cecilia. She skidded to a stop and swung her sword up to form a wooden barrier. Vines and wood manifested into existence, bearing the full brunt of the fiery stream for a few seconds before disintegrating.

    But a few seconds were all Cecilia needed.

    She sprang at the Vermillion Phoenix, conjuring a fresh batch of razor-sharp petals. My Vermillion Phoenix appeared stunned by her bold attack, but responded instantly by surrounding itself in a halo of flames that burned all the petals into ash.

    Then Cecilia struck with her sword, a flawless thrust at Vermillion Phoenix''s chest.

    My summoned beast seemed amused by her audacity, but it wasn''t stupid enough to underestimate the enemy. Spinning around in midair, it batted her away with its wing. Or tried to, but Cecilia suddenly arrested her charge in midair and retreated. Hopping from the myriad of petals floating all over the stage and using them as platforms to gain a foothold, she expertly weaved through Vermillion Phoenix''s hail of fire.

    Then she bounced off and struck at Vermillion Phoenix again. My summoned beast swatted at her with a wing, only for Cecilia to flip herself in midair. Pushing her foot against a floating petal, she launched herself above Vermillion Phoenix before diving at it like a rocket, her sword flashing forward in a deadly thrust.

    Vermillion Phoenix also twisted in midair with a grace that belied its massive size, and slashed at her with its claws. Cecilia parried the gigantic claws with her sword, and was hurled away by its superior strength.

    However, she was far from helpless. Spinning around in midair, she kicked out and found a petal with her foot. Turning a full hundred and eighty degrees, she slung herself around and shot toward Vermillion Phoenix like a bullet.

    The majestic beast got ready to obliterate her with another fire spell, but Cecilia was far from helpless. Already she was casting a new spell, surrounding herself with a whirlwind of razor-sharp petals that served as both offense and defense.

    Unimpressed, Vermillion Phoenix unleashed its flame attack, engulfing both Cecilia and her storm of flowers in flames. There was a huge explosion, and the captain of Crowley Academy''s representatives vanished in a hellish inferno.

    For a moment I thought it was over, but Cecilia then emerged from the explosion unscathed, and her sword still pointed lethally at Vermilion Phoenix. New petals materialized and traced her attack path as she streaked forward like a meteor.

    Boom!

    Even though Vermillion Phoenix crossed its huge wings to parry the attack, the massive and majestic celestial beast was actually pushed back by Cecilia''s powerful attack, the petals mercilessly bombarding its enormous form. The majority of the petals burned up immediately, unable to withstand the intense heat flaring from Vermillion Phoenix''s fiery feathers, but enough got through to draw some blood.

    My jaw dropped. Vermilion Phoenix actually got injured from that?

    Cecilia landed on a floating mass of petals some distance away, which conveniently formed a platform for her to stand on. Lowering her sword, she pointed it defiantly at the Vermillion Phoenix. Her gamble had paid off, and even though she suffered several burns this time, she had succeeded in drawing blood from the legendary monster for the first time.

    "What are you so surprised about?" she asked, her voice filled with scorn. "The battle''s only just beginning."

 16 Chapter 16: Defea

    Damn right it was. I was aware of Cecilia''s legendary reputation ¨C her reputation as the Invincible Goddess of War wasn''t for nothing ¨C but having a firsthand experience of fighting her up close was another story altogether.

    "Your summoned beasts may be powerful, but they are not invincible," Cecilia declared, her eyes flashing fiercely and defiantly. "I''ll show you that it can be defeated."

    "I don''t doubt that," I muttered. "But my Vermillion Phoenix not going to make it easy for you."

    "Go all out. I don''t care. The result won''t change." Cecilia tightened her grip on her sword and conjured more petals around her blade. "I will still defeat your summoned beast."

    Vermillion Phoenix evidently understood her sentence, for it reacted furiously. Summoning a massive amount of flames, it unleashed torrent after torrent of fire at Cecilia. Within seconds, the entire space above the stage was bathed in a sea of fire. If I hadn''t been protected by Vermillion Phoenix''s enchantment, even by just breathing the scorching air, I would have scalded my lungs and destroyed myself.

    The blistering environment must be much worse for Cecilia, yet she endured it stoically, her expression not changing at all. Her protective magical aura must be really potent, to be able to withstand such a lethal environment.

    Right now she was dodging Vermillion Phoenix''s attacks skillfully, jumping from one petal to another. Her movements weren''t perfect ¨C she might be extremely close to Albert Alain''s speed, but she was just slightly slower than him. Several streams of flames caught her and burned away her protective aura before she could reform it, leaving terrifying burns on her usually pale flesh.

    Despite visibly suffering such horrendous injuries, Cecilia''s expression never changed. It was almost as if she couldn''t feel pain. I knew better ¨C Cecilia twitched or winced ever so slightly whenever she was caught by the flames, but it was testament to her self-control and iron discipline that she never shrieked in pain or devolved into a full grimace.

    However, Cecilia remained undaunted. She launched another of those powerful flower attacks that she did earlier. Having worked previously, Cecilia had no reason to not try it again. Unfortunately for her, Vermillion Phoenix had wised up to her attacks.

    This time, instead of countering her strike with another huge inferno, Vermillion Phoenix chose to avoid a direct clash and flew above to evade her. As Cecilia shot past where Vermillion Phoenix was hovering seconds ago, my summoned beast whirled around in midair and blasted her from behind with a ferocious torrent of flames.

    "Ugh!"

    This was the first time I heard a cry of pain. Cecilia actually stumbled as she was engulfed in the furious flames, and she forcibly cut her way out. Despite breaking out of the attack, she fell to her knees upon a gathering cloud of petals, her body smoldering.

    Even so, she did not falter. Gritting her teeth, she stabbed her sword into her cloud of petals and cast a new spell when Vermillion Phoenix doubled back and exploited the opportunity to attack her when she was down.

    "Wooden Willow Wall!"

    A wall of wood sprang to life between Cecilia and Vermillion Phoenix, breaking up the wave of fire that washed toward her. It didn''t last very long, with the flames ravenously consuming it and reducing it to ash, but that was more than enough time for Cecilia to evade and dodge elsewhere.

    "Bamboo Cage!"

    Swinging her sword, Cecilia released a new technique. A gigantic wooden cage materialized around Vermilion Phoenix, trapping it from all sides. It almost resembled a giant birdcage, which was kind of fitting given how Vermillion Phoenix was¡­you know, a gigantic bird.

    However, such a flimsy cage couldn''t entrap Vermilion Phoenix for long. Flexing its wings, Vermillion Phoenix burst into flames and burned the cage into cinders. Smacking the bits of blazing wood away, Vermillion Phoenix sought to fly once more.

    But Cecilia never aimed to trap Vermillion Phoenix for long. She only intended to delay it long enough for her to cast her next spell.

    "Splinter Cannon!"

    Like the notorious Dark Eldar, or Drukhari as they called themselves now, Cecilia now wielded a massive rotary cannon that spun rapidly. I didn''t know if she transformed her sword into that new Splinter Cannon or not, but in any case it didn''t matter. Lifting it up, Cecilia aimed her current weapon at Vermillion Phoenix, rotating barrels spitting a hail of deadly splinter rounds at hypersonic speeds with a terrifying shriek.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me," I muttered under my breath.

    With the barbed projectiles moving at such incredible speeds, even Vermillion Phoenix was not able to avoid them. Of course, it didn''t try and instead conjured an enormous firewall that incinerated the majority of the deadly rounds.

    Unfortunately enough of them got through to deal excruciating agony to the majestic beast. The Vermillion Phoenix screeched as the splinter rounds burrowed their way past its fiery feathers, latching on and injecting potent toxins into its system.

    Fortunately, as a celestial guardian beast, Vermillion Phoenix''s system was far too advanced for such toxins to take effect. Even so, such toxins mattered as they slowed its movements down a notch and caused its magical energy to be sluggish, making it more difficult for the summoned monster to cast its fire spells.

    As insignificant as these toxins may seem at first, they had a snowball effect that could swing the battle in Cecilia''s favor.

    Acknowledging the threat that Cecilia posed, the enraged Vermillion Phoenix swiftly retaliated, baking the entire space with what seemed like plasma. Cecilia quickly reacted by enclosing herself within a Willow Wood Fortification, but even that sturdy-looking defense didn''t last very long against Vermillion Phoenix''s fury.

    The Crowley Academy representatives'' captain crashed down from her blazing fortification, her body fuming. She hit the ground and coughed once, but she forced herself to her feet. I watched from a distance, admiring her tenacity and sheer grit.

    She truly was the strongest opponent I had ever faced. Even though I had basically fought in a hundred and three matches, I could say for sure that she was more powerful than any of the previous students.

    With the exception of Doug Daniels. For some reason, I could intuitively tell that Doug was hiding his true strength. It was entirely possible that Doug was one of the rare geniuses who could fight on par with Cecilia, but I had heard that he already lost to her, or she would have already declared him as her boyfriend as per her vow.

    And it was clear that she would defeat me if I didn''t do something quick to reverse the situation.

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    Cecilia glanced at me as she struggled to stand, and I half-expected her to charge at me. Taking out the summoner was a valid strategy, after all. If I fell, my Vermilion Phoenix would automatically vanish and it would be her victory.

    So I tensed, waiting for her attack to come.

    However, Cecilia didn''t spare me a second glance. She was already jumping from petal to petal to engage Vermillion Phoenix in battle.

    Elena also noticed her leader''s choice and she frowned in disapproval.

    "Why didn''t Captain Cecilia just attack the summoner?" she asked. "If she knocked him out, it would have been her victory."

    "That guy¡­Richard Huang, he''s not as simple as he looks."

    "Huh?" Elena stared at Doug, who had offered his opinion. He shrugged and returned her inquisitive gaze with a smile.

    "While initially it may seem that Richard is weak in close combat, and isn''t capable of anything other than summoning, the truth is that he seems pretty experienced in hand-to-hand melee. When I attacked him earlier, he dodged my strike."

    "So what?" Elena demanded. "Were you expecting him to just stand there and let you hit him?"

    "That''s not what Doug means," Nick interrupted, irritated. "You know how fast and powerful Doug is. No ordinary person could have dodged that."

    "For him to accomplish that¡­he''s definitely no amateur," Doug agreed, his eyes gleaming mischievously. "He definitely has received some training in martial arts. Not the combat magic we are used to, but the old, ancient martial arts¡­"

    "Huh? What are those?" Elena sounded confused. As she should be ¨C with the advent magic, stuff like martial arts fell out of favor long ago. They had become obsolete, not when you could just strengthen your body with magic, or cast spells to attack.

    "Never mind," Nick muttered impatiently.

    "You just need to know that Cecilia is aware of that boy''s fighting instincts. She knows that he''ll be able to dodge at least her first attack, which would then leave her open to a devastating counterattack from his summoned beast." Doug then began to muse to himself. "It isn''t perfect, but the beginning of the mind''s eye is there. If he trains hard, he''ll eventually become a terrifying opponent. A pity he isn''t there yet, otherwise his ranking wouldn''t be so low."

    "He has to rely on someone to screw up and give him enough time to summon his magical beast in order to win," Louis agreed dryly as he glared in the direction of the infirmary where Hal Gunther lay. "Once people know his real strength, they won''t give him the opportunity to summon his monster."

    "Too bad it''s too late for us."

    Cecilia was dashing toward my Vermillion Phoenix again, and this time gigantic trees were rising from the ground. It was very different from Hal Gunther''s Hunter Forest, and it was more of an enchantment than an actual Artificial Reality. Nonetheless, it was no less potent. I could see all the trees dissolving into millions of petals, which drowned the flames out in an ocean of flowers. They seemed to absorb the flames before shattering into yet more petals.

    "Dance of the Spring Blossoms."

    Cecilia swung her sword and directed the countless flowers at Vermillion Phoenix. Despite unleashing a vicious torrent of flames to burn away the petals, it watched in horror as the flowers sucked away the raging fires and fed upon them, only to split up into numerous petals and multiplying endlessly in this manner.

    Then Cecilia directed the dense cloud of rainbow-colored flowers at Vermillion Phoenix, and this time it was the enormous monster''s turn to be engulfed. A massive explosion rocked the stage, the petals scattering across the ground like falling snow and leaving marks in the ground. If I hadn''t increased my protective magical aura, I would have been cut in several places too.

    Vermillion Phoenix crashed heavily onto the stage, cut in thousands of places and bleeding profusely. Its crash caused a slight tremor, jolting not just me but also the spectators, who gaped at the fall of the majestic celestial guardian in shock. Vermillion Phoenix squawked weakly for one last time before it faded away.

    Heaving heavily, Cecilia also landed on the ground. Straightening herself up, she pointed her sword at me, even though she was exhausted and terribly hurt.

    "I told you I will defeat your summoned beast. You have lost."

    "I have lost?" hearing that, I couldn''t help but burst out laughing.

    Cecilia narrowed her eyes. "What''s so funny?"

    "You," I replied. Suddenly, the space around me was filled with intense lightning, the devastating electricity scorching the ground and causing everyone within the space to feel numb. Grinning at the dumb look on Cecilia''s face, I shrugged. "I never said that the Vermillion Phoenix was my only summoned beast."

 17 Chapter 17: An electrifying end

    For the first time ever, Cecilia''s impassive fa?ade cracked as she lost her calm and stared with her mouth wide open at the lightning storm unfolding before her.

    Several white arcs of electricity whipped across and struck her, forcing her into the defensive. She staggered, rubbing her arms, which were turning numb from the devastating current that ran through them.

    An immense white tiger emerged from a gigantic arcane circle made from lightning, roaring bestially as it set its inky black eyes upon Cecilia''s trembling form.

    "No way¡­impossible¡­"

    Cecilia''s eyes were bulging as she watched my White Tiger lope toward her with a feline grace. She shook her head in denial, her lips opening and closing like a goldfish. Brandishing her sword in front of her, she attempted to cast another spell.

    However, she had been severely injured and expended most of her magical energy during the fight earlier against Vermilion phoenix. While she had been busy, I had made use of the time to cast a second summoning spell.

    I wasn''t the type to underestimate my foes, after all. Hal Gunther had provided a very good lesson on the consequences of that.

    Lighting lashed out and burned the petals that were slowly swirling around Cecilia. Before she could swing her sword, White Tiger pounced on her, swatting her aside with an immense paw. Even though she parried the blow, Cecilia was almost thrown off the stage.

    "Ugh!"

    Hitting the ground, she tried to roll back to her feet, but White Tiger was already upon her before she could fully get up.

    Lighting Claws.

    White Tiger unleashed its signature attack, slashing with its gigantic claws. Three jagged bolts of lightning descended from the heavens (or to be more precise, the ceiling of the main hall) and crashed into Cecilia.

    She shrieked, her iron will and discipline finally shattering from the shock and excruciating agony, and the Invincible Goddess of War slumped down onto the ground, unconscious. Her body continued to jerk and convulsed as electricity continued to run through her body, but it was clear she wouldn''t be rising to her feet anytime soon.

    A hushed silence fell upon the crowd.

    "The match is over!" Teacher Fielding quickly announced, regaining his senses. "The winner is Richard Huang!"

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    The silence continued for a few more seconds, until Doug broke it with polite applause. Everyone turned to stare at him, and he merely shrugged before continuing to clap, unabated. His teammates gaped at him, but he ignored them.

    Then my schoolmates joined in. And within a few minutes, the entire main hall erupted in thunderous applause.

    Dismissing White Tiger, I fell to my knees. I realized just how violently my legs had been shaking the entire time. Not from injuries, not from shock, but from sheer nervousness. I was so anxious that I felt like throwing up, but fortunately I could hold the nausea back.

    Taking a deep breath, I watched as the staff ferried the unconscious Cecilia off the stage, and then slowly disappeared during the confusion, not wanting to remain in the limelight for even a second longer.

    *

    "Phew¡­"

    I gagged and held my mouth, trying my best not to throw up.

    Five matches. That was the first time I had fought five matches in a row. Some of the throbbing from my injuries returned, now that the adrenaline had worn off, but they were nothing compared to the turbulence that was churning in my mind.

    At that moment, the news were spreading not just across my school but throughout the entire Federation. People were posting the matches on social media, making comments and offering video analyses of it. I had practically become a celebrity overnight, especially since I had just pulled off the unprecedented achievement of team-killing Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy''s representatives. And not just any representatives.

    I had even defeated the previously undefeated Crowley representative team''s captain, Cecilia Stuart. The Invincible Goddess of War.

    None of this felt real. I wouldn''t be surprised if I woke up in my bed later, only to find out that it was all a dream. Reality was harsh like that.

    "Richard? Student Richard Huang? Where are you?"

    There were voices. Either from teachers or my fellow schoolmates. I didn''t know who, and I didn''t care. Right now I didn''t want to see anybody.

    Swallowing as my mouth went dry, I slipped out of there as quickly as I could. Good thing I did, for after I left the area, the students from the Jing Tian Magazine Society showed up, wielding their smartphones. They had switched on the recording and microphone functions (smartphones these days could literally do everything) in hopes of interviewing me, obviously to publish an article in their online weekly magazine.

    I was in no mood to participate.

    "The first person ever to team-kill the representatives from Crowley Academy!" one of them was muttering. "I''ve to interview him at all costs!"

    "How did he do it?"

    "Didn''t you watch the match? By summoning, obviously."

    "Heh, and he''s supposed to be the last-ranked mage in our school. I can''t believe he lost ninety-nine of his matches prior to this."

    "Those idiots from Crowley underestimated him and allowed him to summon his monsters. We''re smarter ¨C we know just how potent summoned beasts are, which is why we always quickly take him out before he can summon them."

    "Still, that doesn''t change the result! Student Richard Huang still won against all five of them! By himself!"

    "Ha ha ha ha ha! I don''t think Crowley Academy will have any face left after this! They came here to bully and mock us, but ended up getting humiliated instead! Did you see their faces after the matches? Priceless!"

    Apparently it wasn''t just the people from the magazine society. A mix of other students had also left the coliseum and were heading this way as well. Later, I learned that as an act of mercy, Director Violet had dismissed all the students after the matches, to allow the Crowley students to hide their embarrassment after suffering such an ignominious defeat at the hands of the last-ranked student in Jing Tian Academy.

    "Student Richard, are you all right?"

    I almost jumped in fright when a familiar voice cut in right behind me. Turning around, I saw Teacher Fielding staring at me inquisitively.

    "Um¡­yeah."

    Damn it, the teachers were on another level. Their capabilities were far above those of the students. If they want to track down the students, there was no way we could evade them. So I resigned myself to fate and relaxed.

    "You should get those injuries checked," Teacher Fielding told me. The bleeding had dried long ago, and there was faint throbbing, but all things considered, I had gotten off pretty lightly. Not to mention the bastard Hal Gunther was going super-easy on me and had avoided anything vital just so he could continue to play around and torture me.

    Thanks to that, I was able to summon Vermillion Phoenix¡­

    Whatever the case, it didn''t seem like I had suffered any serious injuries. Furthermore, I had another reason why I didn''t want to go to the infirmary.

    "Teacher Cure is preoccupied with treating the injuries of all the Crowley Academy students. It''s best if she just focuses on our guests instead."

    "At least get a basic healing spell cast on you, like Chang Cheng did." Teacher Fielding frowned. "Your injuries are not light."

    "They''re not heavy either." Another reason why I didn''t want to go to the infirmary was because the magazine society and a bunch of schoolmates would be sure to check there for my whereabouts, especially if they intended to talk to the present patients interred within there. Not only did I want to avoid the students from Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy, I also wanted to avoid contact with my schoolmates if possible.

    "Is there anything else? Otherwise, can I go home for today?"

    Teacher Fielding looked at me, and then sighed.

    "Yeah. Director Violet dismissed school just now. He''ll probably want to talk to you sooner or later so be prepared to be called to the office. But for now, you can go home. Make sure to rest up."

    "Yes, Teacher Fielding."I did a sort of mock salute, and then proceeded to the classroom to grab my bag. Along the way, I had to dodge my schoolmates and classmates. Knowing that several of my classmates were waiting in the classroom to ambush me, I steeled myself.

    Fortunately, everyone was still talking in the corridors, so I reached the classroom faster than anyone else. Grabbing my bag, I was about to leave when I heard the voices of my classmates approaching the classroom.

    Damn, I was a minute too slow.

    Good thing there was an alternative exit. I quickly headed toward the direction of the windows, which were several rows away from my seat. Opening them, I then jumped down from what was the third story.

    I wasn''t stupid enough to make the jump in a single bound. Instead, relying on the martial arts that Dad trained me in, I jumped to the nearest tree first, and then hopped from branch to branch in a smooth series of maneuvers. My injuries stung from the exertion, but as I said they were light enough to ignore.

    Landing at the base of the tree, I then snuck along the bushes and hurried toward the gates, all the while remaining unseen from the students who now roamed the courtyard and outer compound of the school, most likely so that they could relax after being dismissed for the day, and also to discuss what they were talking about.

    Buzz!

    I almost jumped when my smartphone beeped and vibrated for a bit. Having left the damned thing in my bag, I had almost forgotten about it. Retrieving it from the top pocket of my bag, I swiped the screen, which proceeded to project a hologram directly to my eyes. anyone looking at me from a different direction would only perceived the shielded hologram as black or invisible, for the contemporary smartphones made use of esoteric technology and certain spectrums of light to ensure that the contents of the screen were visible only to the user. This was to protect their privacy. I had chosen the invisibility option, so I didn''t have to worry about my schoolmates spotting a black light or hologram emanating from the bushes.

    There already was a furious debate online, but I couldn''t be bothered about that. Glancing at my smartphone, I saw that I had just received a few hundred Friend Requests on social media.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me."

    Swiping the notifications away in an impatient manner, I cursed and stealthily departed from the academy before anyone could detect me.

 18 Chapter 18: Newfound Fame

    "Hey, Richie, you''re back!"

    Dad was sitting on the couch, as usual, when I got home. Usually, when he was not out on a mission, he had nothing better to do except to watch anime and read light novels. He was a stay-at-home Dad in that sense, who left on a mission for days at a time. Some of the longer missions took him months, especially if they happened to be overseas.

    Otherwise he would stick around at home.

    "Hey, Dad."

    "Oh? You didn''t get those injuries treated?" Dad sat up and stared at me, taken aback by my battered condition. He knew that students in the academy were required to participate in duels, so injuries were inevitable. But he was also aware of the top medical facilities and healers available to us, so he usually wasn''t that worried.

    "They''re pretty light. My injuries will heal on their own by tonight."

    I wasn''t exaggerating or trying to assure Dad for the sake of it. Thanks to modern magic and technology, the arcane energies that flowed through our bodies sped up our regeneration, so most minor wounds wound heal within hours. This was so unlike my original period, where it would take days for the same injuries to heal.

    Modern magic and technology were really amazing.

    Dad frowned in disapproval. "You should take care of yourself more."

    "Yeah, I will." I headed straight to my room. "I''ll go rest now."

    "Good idea." Dad nodded, probably because there was nothing he could do. He wasn''t a healer, after all. Angelica was an offensive summoned spirit, so she couldn''t cast healing spells either, so there was little point in summoning her. As I moved to open the door, he grinned. "Great job, by the way. You showed everyone!"

    That took me by surprise. I gaped at him for a moment, not comprehending.

    "Huh? What are you talking about?"

    "Your matches today, of course! You showed everyone the true power of summoning!" Dad laughed in delight. "Weren''t your schoolmates always mocking you for choosing to be a summoner like your old man? Hah! You proved them wrong today! That was a great performance! Not only that, the opponents you beat were ranked among the top in the Federation! You''ve practically become a celebrity overnight!"

    "I was just lucky. My first opponent underestimated me."

    For some reason, it felt embarrassing talking to my Dad about my school life or achievements. I had felt the same back in my past life, whenever my original Dad asked me about my daily activities or what I did in school. There was some joy at how my parents took pride in my non-academic achievements, especially since Dad personally trained me in combat, but there was still some awkwardness.

    Dad chuckled. "That he did. And you exploited it, so give yourself more credit than that. If you didn''t have the strength and ability to make use of the opportunity, your opponent would just walk over you."

    "That''s true," I admitted, still feeling a bit embarrassed. Trying to hide it, I stepped into my room. "I''ll be going to rest for today. Do you mind if I skip the usual training session today?"

    "Hah! You''ve fought more than enough for today. Five matches in a row! Even I rarely do something like that." Dad waved me away. "Go get some rest. We''ll resume training tomorrow."

    "Gotcha."

    Feeling relieved, I then shut the door. However, I didn''t flop down on my bed. Instead, I took my seat at my personal desk and switched on my personal computer.

    Unlike computers of the past, modern computers didn''t have a monitor. They were a tiny terminal, which projected a gigantic holographic screen to display my browsers, documents and whatever, and a small holographic screen that served as a touchpad. I wasn''t sure how it worked, but basically we could just touch the corresponding buttons in the holographic light and they would respond appropriately, whether it''s typing or whatever.

    The moment I opened my Internet browsers to check my email, I was immediately bombarded by a few hundred messages.

    "What the?!"

    I gaped at the massive influx of private messages. It wasn''t just my email, my social media inbox was also flooded with them, especially from people throwing friend requests at me. Good thing I only had a single social media account. Some people used Twitter and Instagram and stuff, but I wasn''t on those. No doubt, if I had accounts there too, they would be flooded with messages as well.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me," I muttered. There was no way I was going through all those messages.

    I noticed that several of the private messages were from my friends, a few of them congratulating me and all that. Good thing the system was able to differentiate between friend requests plus random messages from total strangers and private messages from those who were already "friends" with me on social media. Of course, the meaning behind the word "friend" was a lot more ambiguous here, but at least they were people I already knew.

    Otherwise, I wouldn''t even bother with the messages and just delete my account. Unsurprisingly, a lot of the random messages included insults, threats and challenges. There were a significant number of people who wanted a match with me after that performance, no doubt divining the weakness of my summoning spell and wanting to defeat me to earn undeserved fame.

    I was under no obligation to accept them.

    Still, the insults and abuses were unexpected. Though I could just move them to my spam folder and blocked the idiots, I didn''t bother. I only saw the threats when skimming through the multi-window function of private messages, mixed together with congratulations and challenges, and decided to delete all of them at one shot without looking at the rest. Even so, I wondered why random people would attack me when they had no reason to hold a grudge against me. Even if I won against the people they idolized, I wasn''t the only one who defeated them.

    Cecilia Stuart was the only one who had never lost before, but even so, wasn''t it overly exaggerated to threaten or abuse me just because I was the first guy to defeat her?

    Sighing, I shook my head, and was about to check an anime-streaming website to watch anime, only to catch sight of a post in my newsfeed. Apparently someone had taken the time to write up an analysis on his Facebook account.

    "The hell is this?"

    I read it grimly, and sighed. The guy was right. I had gotten lucky with my first match, and won an entire series of matches by exploiting the rules to my advantage. He was spot-on with my weaknesses, and he appeared to be a schoolmate from Jing Tian Magic Academy. No wonder he was familiar with how I fought.

    In conclusion, the best way to defeat me was to take me out before I could summon my beasts, something that Hal Gunther failed to do because he was stupid enough to toy around with me, and that was the only reason the Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy''s representatives got team-killed by me. In other words, I wasn''t a big deal or a prodigy who was previously unheard of. I won, not because of my own strengths, but because of my opponent''s initial folly.

    One of the comments below, however, pointed out that if I didn''t have the ability, even if my opponents were stupid enough to toy around with me, I still wouldn''t have won. Just like my Dad, he argued that I deserve a bit more credit than that.

    There was a long thread of comments, the posters verbally sparring. I was too tired to scroll through all of them, so I just closed the window.

    It had only been a few hours since the matches, and I was already sick of all this.

    Sighing, I flopped down on my bed, staring at the ceiling. Well, I probably didn''t have to worry about this. The news would lose value over time, and people would forget about me when I returned to my losing ways. Already even random posters on the Internet were highly aware of my weaknesses, and I doubted any of my future opponents would make the same mistake. Cecilia too ¨C in future, she wasn''t going to give me the chance to summon a second monster¡­except that she would be too busily distracted by the first to stop me. So there was that.

    Of course, I wasn''t delusional to think that I would get the chance to summon my first monster against her ¨C she would end the battle in an instant. The next time she challenged me, it would most likely be a one-on-one match, and not a representative team mock battle.

    "Damn it."

    I sighed. That was the real issue here. Before this whole farce with Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy, I had been researching for ways to shore up my weakness, either by summoning weaker beasts that required less time and energy to summon, or by becoming a hybrid summoner-combat mage. That was why I was learning combat magic this semester, in an attempt to find a way to survive until I could complete my summoning spell.

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    However, no matter how many times I replayed the match in my head, I realized that none of those strategies would work against Cecilia Stuart. Hell, never mind Cecilia Stuart, I wouldn''t be able to defeat Doug Daniels or even the assassin, Albert Alain. Their hand-to-hand fighting and close combat skills were top notch.

    No wonder they were ranked among the top in the Federation, and made it to the top eight last year.

    How do I fight against monsters like them, if it was a one-on-one battle?

    Weaker summoned beasts would die instantly against them. Perhaps learning combat magic would allow me to stand a better chance against them. Closing my eyes, I recalled the Divine Devices my opponents had wielded. High-grade, hi-tech magic weapons that channeled the wielders'' energy into them with devastating effect.

    If only I had a Divine Device of my own¡­

    No. That isn''t the problem¡­

    As I fantasized, I suddenly realized there was no way I could catch up to them in terms of combat magic. They had specialized in combat magic since years ago and honed their skills to perfection while I spent the last five years focusing only on summoning. Their level of weapon mastery or swordsmanship wasn''t something I could match by training tirelessly over the next year. Yeah, I had some basic foundation thanks to Dad''s grueling lessons, but even so I wasn''t confident of winning against them based on combat magic alone.

    But I didn''t have to. I only needed to survive long enough until I summoned my magical beasts.

    That''s it!

    I suddenly sat up in my bed as an idea formed in my mind. Maybe this might just work¡­

 19 Chapter 19: Invitations

    It was unfortunate, but the moment I stepped out of my house, I was immediately mobbed by people from the mass media.

    Okay, that was an exaggeration. There was an enchantment that kept intruders out, so unless they could survive flames that went up in excess of a thousand degrees Celsius, they wouldn''t be able to directly barge into our house. It might sound pretty far-fetched that Dad would set up such a dangerous barrier, but given his reputation and vocation, they were necessary precautions. More than once, enemies had tried to sneak into our home or break into our house, only to trigger the enchantment''s fiery wrath and get incinerated.

    There were even a few who tried to kidnap me to use me as a hostage to ransom Dad, but as usual they got burned when they stupidly attempted to abduct me. They probably tried to kidnap me on my way to school and back home, but Dad had trained me well enough to detect people stalking me, and to escape them.

    Worst case scenario, there was a police station nearby, and I could just run toward the authorities for help. So I didn''t have to worry about that. Why do you think my stealth skills were maxed? That was the reason why I was able to avoid my schoolmates yesterday. I was used to avoiding people and escaping.

    Now, if only I could apply that to matches, but being in an enclosed ring without cover was an entire matter altogether¡­

    "There''s quite the furor out there," Dad remarked as he glanced outside. I sighed and nodded when I saw what was waiting for me outside the window. Dad seemed to realize what the reporters were here for, and he snickered. "I told you that you''ve become quite the celebrity."

    "Damn it." I shook my head in resignation. "Looks like I''ll have to take the long route today."

    "Good luck!"

    "Why don''t you just burn all of those guys for trespassing on our property?" I asked Dad half-seriously. Dad grimaced.

    "I would love to, but your old man will get locked up for homicide. This isn''t America, you can''t shoot people just because they step into your backyard. Besides, they can''t take a single step in, or they''ll get incinerated by the enchantment."

    Already the fiery barrier had flared to life, keeping the horrified reporters at bay. A few of them realized their folly, and were retreating.

    "Can I be a hikkikomori for the rest of the week?" I asked reluctantly. I had a near-perfect attendance record, and I didn''t want to miss class over something as stupid as this. Not to mention that I needed to catch up in combat magic classes.

    "I don''t care, but I know you aren''t the type to skip classes." Dad gave me a knowing stare.

    Damn it. He was right. Steeling myself for the ordeal ahead, I went toward the backyard in an attempt to leave by a secret, alternate route.

    *

    It didn''t take me very long to reach school. I managed to give the reporters the slip and get onto the bus. Fortunately, my fellow passengers didn''t seem to recognize me. Not everyone paid attention to social media or the national tournament of mages. Many of the adults didn''t seem to care about who was the strongest student mage in the country, nor did they watch the matches.

    That was only natural. Even back during my era, while soccer stars or eSports celebrities were extremely popular, they usually only found a niche audience. Chances are, your friendly neighborhood grocer hadn''t heard of Maru, Innovation or Gumiho of Starcraft 2 fame, or the salaryman wouldn''t know any soccer stars if that wasn''t his interest. Hell, my neighbors next door probably didn''t even know about my achievements.

    Dad only happened to know because he did keep regular tabs on promising new mages and students from the Federation, as part of his job. When he went on missions to eliminate monsters or track down rogue mages, he usually recruited teams. And many of the teammates he approached were graduates from these top schools.

    Otherwise he wouldn''t have paid much attention to something as niche as battle mages'' tournaments, particularly at the school level.

    However, the obscurity I enjoyed in the public space was immediately shattered the moment I set foot into school. Though I tried to be discreet as possible, I was almost instantly mobbed by my schoolmates, the majority of whom wanted to enjoy being in the company of a short-lived star. No doubt the moment I returned to my losing ways and maintained my last rank, everyone would drop me like a hot coal and I would return to being a loser.

    Already I could see scornful looks and disdainful expressions from a significant number of the student population who kept their distance and watched me from afar. However, my view of them was blocked by a group of classmates.

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    "Hey, Richard! That was a great match yesterday!"

    "I didn''t know you had such a powerful summoned beast! Two of them, even! How long have you gotten them for?"

    "Did you always have them, or are they recent additions?"

    "Since last year," I mumbled, trying to find a way out of the crowd. A few of them snickered, though I could tell it was mocking laughter.

    "Good thing I smashed him before he summoned them then."

    "Yeah¡­I can''t imagine what would happen if I allowed him to summon even one of those summoned beasts."

    "I would have been blown away, no doubt."

    "No wonder it always takes him so long to summon them. With creatures possessing power of that magnitude, there''s no way he could bring them into our material plane right away."

    So a good number of them approached to make fun of me. They were aware that despite my victory over the representatives from Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy yesterday, I was still ranked at the bottom. With such a glaring weakness, there was no way I could be considered a real powerhouse or high ranker. As long as they could pummel me before I summoned my celestial guardians, they would win easily.

    The feeling of being mocked was pretty terrible, and I suppressed a flare of anger. Pushing past them, I headed toward my classroom.

    "Well, I''ve to get to class. See you guys later."

    They must have heard the hostility in my voice, for many of the surrounding members sniggered. But at least they kept their distance. I could still feel their condescending gazes on my back.

    Despite their scorn, they weren''t the only ones who approached me. There were a few who genuinely admired me, especially those who were also ranked near the bottom. I recognized a guy who was just three or four positions above me.

    "Hey! Student Richard! You have a moment?"

    "Um¡­" I paused and studied him. Even though I knew who he was, his name eluded my memory at the moment. Fortunately, he realized that and laughed sheepishly.

    "I''m Dong Fang Yue Chu. We had a match before."

    "Oh, right. Yeah, I remember."

    I wasn''t lying. I remembered the match ¨C it was pretty close, particularly because Dong Fang Yue Chun took almost three minutes to lie me flat on my back, and I was so close to summoning Vermillion Phoenix that time. If I hadn''t slipped up at the last second and allowed him to land that last attack, the result would have been very different, and I would have gotten my first and only win.

    Unfortunately, reality wasn''t created from "what-ifs" but existed from the web of choices and results produced from our actions. As much as I wanted to, there was no magic or technology that would allow me to reverse the flow of time and return to that pivotal moment to change the outcome of the match.

    A good thing, too, because I bet Hal Gunther would love to go back in time and make up for his stupidity yesterday. As much as I abhorred the attention this little victory garnered me, it did feel good burning his arrogant ass into a crisp.

    "I''m forming a society, and I''m hoping you''ll join it! How about it?" he laughed. "We low rankers ought to stick with each other¡­but I know you have promise! If you join us, you''ll definitely be the ace in our team. I''ll get you the resources you need to rise to the top!"

    As tempting at that sounded, I was all too aware of how prevalent false promises and scams were, even in this day and age of heightened security. But I wasn''t blunt enough to refuse him outright, so I merely nodded.

    "I''ll think about it."

    "Great! Please add me as a friend!" Dong Fang Yue Chu was fumbling for his smartphone, wanting to exchange contacts. I hesitated a little, but since it would be rude and overly blatant to reject him, I went and swapped numbers with him.

    Sighing, I waved goodbye to him and proceeded to my classroom. Just like yesterday, the first lesson today would be combat magic, and I wanted to arrive early to get a front seat. Teacher Fielding should be taking charge again¡­

    Unfortunately, I found myself mobbed by my classmates, especially those who were in the same class as me.

    "Oh! You''re finally here!"

    "That was a great show yesterday!"

    "You''re a summoner, aren''t you? What are you doing in this class?"

    "Isn''t he a second year student? Did you miss out on this basic combat magic class last year?"

    "Um¡­" I was taken aback by the flurry of questions as my classmates swarmed me. They didn''t even give me a chance to answer one question at a time, rattling the inquiries off like a bloody machine gun.

    "Student Richard?"

    I turned at the familiar voice. To my surprise, Alicia Violet was waving at me from around the corridor. All my classmates went still when they spotted her.

    "President Alicia!"

    "My idol¡­"

    "What has she come for?"

    "Idiot! She just called out to Richard, didn''t she?"

    "You have a moment?" Alicia asked. I hesitated, but when my classmates pulled back and opened up a path for me, I seized upon it.

    "I guess so." I proceeded to where she was, and we disappeared down the corridor, distancing ourselves from my curious classmates and staying out of earshot. "Thank you."

    Alicia giggled. "You seem to have become pretty popular since yesterday."

    "It won''t last for too long," I muttered. "They''ll all forget about me by next week."

    "I doubt that." Alicia smiled. She had a pretty smile, and I found myself dazzled for a moment. Blinking, I bowed my head.

    "Anyway, you saved me. I honestly didn''t know how to get out of situations like that."

    "Hmm¡­I''m glad I could help you." Alicia raised a hand to her mouth and chuckled softly. "But that wasn''t the only reason why I called out to you."

    "Eh? Do you need me for something?" I looked at her in bewilderment. If Alicia needed a favor, she could approach her members in the Black Rose Society for help. She didn''t need to approach me in particular.

    "Yes." Alicia nodded, her smile still bewitching as ever. "Do you remember the offer I made to you the other day? An invitation to join the Black Rose Society?"

    "Uh, yeah¡­" I suddenly had a feeling where this might lead.

    "The offer still stands. Student Richard, would you like to join our Black Rose Society?"

 20 Chapter 20: Declaration

    I lowered my head slightly and shook it.

    "Sorry, but my answer hasn''t changed. I still do not believe I am worthy of joining the Black Roses. I need to focus on developing my magic further."

    Alicia looked a little disappointed. "If it''s about proving yourself, you more than displayed your true strength yesterday. Even Miranda wouldn''t be able to object after seeing such an excellent performance. You single-handedly team-killed the representatives from Crowley''s Academy, you know? That''s not something just anyone can do."

    "I was lucky. You know as well as I do that was a gigantic fluke." I frowned, doubting Alicia''s words. Miranda definitely wouldn''t accept this ¨C she was also aware of my massive weakness. "If Hal Gunther hadn''t gone easy on me and toyed with me, I would never have been able to summon my magical beast. Furthermore, I exploited the rules. If it wasn''t for the rule that allowed us to maintain our summoned beasts or Artificial Reality or enchantments as long as we remained in the ring, I would surely have lost all the other matches as well."

    I was under no illusions that if I was forced to reset my summoning spell each time we began a new match, the rest of the Crowley representative team would murder me before I could complete my casting.

    "Making use of the rules to your advantage is also a perfectly viable form of strategy," Alicia countered. "The fact that you knew about the loophole and how to exploit them is proof of your astute decision-making. Furthermore, not many would have the magical ability to exploit that rules in the first place. You succeeded in casting your summoning spell, which is normally difficult and time-consuming. No one should complain that you could maintain it for the rest of the time you stayed in the ring." Her rosy lips curled into a smile. "In a real battlefield, your opponent is not going to be so gracious to terminate his spell and reset every time he faces a new enemy."

    "Fair enough." I shrugged. "But that doesn''t solve the root problem. My current skills and strategies aren''t viable. I need to develop them further before I join any society."

    "That shouldn''t be a problem. With our resources, I''m sure you''ll be able to grow stronger at a much faster rate."

    "Sorry, but I won''t be handle the consequences of that. That''s just showing favoritism." I shook my head wearily. "I''m aware of all the politics that goes on in a society. The moment you give me preferential treatment, all the other members will complain."

    "My Black Roses aren''t that petty¡­" Alicia began.

    "All the more I shouldn''t take advantage of them." I shook my head. "The Black Rose Society isn''t just your average school society. You guys have a long history and high status, and you need have high standards to maintain. All members have to prove their worth or have some sort of pedigree before joining a great society like Black Roses. Why should I be any different?"

    "You already proven yourself yesterday," Alicia repeated. I laughed bitterly.

    "A fluke? I know what people are saying. They say that once my secret is out, there''s no way I''ll be able to replicate that sort of success. They will take me down before I complete my summoning, just as they always have in the past two years. Nothing will change. Tomorrow, or by next week, I would have fallen back into the bottom again." I narrowed my eyes. "Senior Miranda and the other members of your Black Roses should know about that."

    As counterproductive as it sounded to reject the offer, I didn''t want to join a great society and incur the wrath and resentment from the other members. Perhaps Alicia would be as good as her word and deliver me the resources I needed, but no doubt the other members would make my life difficult after holding a grudge against me for receiving special treatment and whatnot.

    I honestly didn''t want to experience a living hell, trapped by the boundaries of the society, and eventually forced to leave. It had happened to me in my previous life, where I was hounded out of online communities just because a story I wrote was unexpectedly popular, and other writers resented me for that because according to them, I resorted to clich¨¦s, my grammar was atrocious, my vocabulary was limited, and my terrible writing style lowered the standard of the writing site. I had people spam 0.5 ratings on my story and harass me with messages telling me to delete the story or get the fuck out of the site. In the end, I just deleted my account and left the writing community altogether.

    And the crowning irony was that they claimed they hated me because I was being "toxic." Sure, I was being a whiny bastard who wallowed in self-pity, and I knew more than everyone else how annoying and imperfect I was, but even so they had gone too far in their harassment. Funnily enough, while labeling me as toxic, they hurled poisonous words and harassed me venomously.

    When I first came to this far future, I held a glimmer of hope that things might have changed, only to witness firsthand how Dad was hounded and exiled from the summoners community. All because he was one of the very few summoners with a spirit, who could summon such a powerful entity in an instant, unlike most summoners. While this brought its fair share of bootlickers and people wanting to befriend such an acclaimed warrior, it also brought about a significant number of jealous and resentful rivals and opponents who wanted to bring about his downfall.

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    What, did you think I was joking when I said people attempted to break into our house, or when rivals and enemies tried to kidnap me to ransom my Dad? I was being serious. A good number of them stemmed from these jealous bastards.

    The world never changed, no matter what time period it was. And I wasn''t obligated to put up with all that bullshit.

    Alicia saw that she couldn''t change my mind, so she sighed.

    "If you change your mind, feel free to approach me at any time. I''ll always welcome you to the Black Roses." She suddenly smiled. "Perhaps I can''t speak for Miranda and the others, but Troy has always spoken highly of you. If you join, I''m sure he''ll be happy."

    "Yeah, he''s a great pal." I wasn''t delusional and edgy enough to adopt the "whole world hates me" attitude. That wasn''t true. I wasn''t antisocial or stupid to the extent where I made enemies no matter where I went. Hell, it was because I knew how to avoid conflict and prevent resentment and jealousy that I was able to live a comfortably peaceful life without needing to look over my shoulder to check for enemies harboring grudges. As a result, I made quite a few friends.

    Troy was one of them. Speaking of which, I ought to catch up with him soon.

    "Anyway, I have class, so I''ll talk to you next time. Sorry." I made a show of glancing at my smartphone, and smoothly exited the conversation.

    Alicia nodded in understanding. "I''ll talk to you again soon."

    No, she wouldn''t. She had absolutely no reason to. But I wasn''t without manners, so I merely smiled and waved, before returning to the classroom.

    I hadn''t gotten very far when a new group of students mobbed me again. This time, they weren''t my classmates ¨C I couldn''t remember if they were the same people who approached me when I first stepped into school, or a completely different group, but it didn''t matter.

    They didn''t approach me to ask stupid questions this time.

    "Hey! Richard! The students from Crowley are looking for you!"

    "I don''t know if they''re looking for a rematch!"

    "I just saw them going this way!"

    "They were asking you to meet them in the courtyard!"

    I felt a headache coming as my schoolmates swarmed me, bombarding me with information. I honestly couldn''t give a fuck about the students from Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy. We had a good match yesterday, and that was that. It was unlikely that I would ever meet them again, and I doubted I would accept a challenge from them in future.

    Not that I cared ¨C like I said, my 100% loss record wouldn''t be affected if I lost to them. Maybe I should just put up with whatever revenge they had in store for me, take the beating, and then they could get lost and do whatever it was they came here to do. Then people would stop bothering me, I would lose this dumb, undeserved fame and fade back into obscurity once more.

    However¡­

    "Can''t it wait? I have a class soon." I glanced at the time. Lessons were going to begin in five minutes. And I honestly wasn''t in the mood to be challenged and mocked right now. It was only morning, but it already felt like a bloody long day.

    Having to avoid the press, getting mobbed by schoolmates, dealing with condescending stares and scorn, looking for ways to gently reject those who genuinely admired me¡­all this in the space of a single morning. I wouldn''t be surprised if less than an hour had passed since I had left home, yet so many things had happened within this space of time.

    Unfortunately, Fate wasn''t done having fun with me. Before I could escape into the classroom, a familiar silhouette emerged. All the girls began squealing, peeling off from around me to approach the newcomer.

    "Doug!"

    "Sir Doug!"

    "Ah¡­how handsome¡­"

    I was grateful for the opening this gave me, and was about to slip away, but Doug Daniels spotted me and gave me a friendly wave.

    "Hey, Richard! I''m glad I found you!"

    "Um¡­hello?"

    I wasn''t sure how to respond to that. Of all the students from Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy, Doug was the only one who treated me decently. He was one of the rare few who actually respected me as a person and a fellow mage, and didn''t look down on me or viewed me condescendingly. He was a genuine nice guy.

    Frankly speaking, if it had been Hal Gunther, Albert Alain or any of the others, I would have just flipped them off and headed straight to my classroom without a single word. But since it was Doug, I couldn''t muster any resentment.

    "Our captain is searching for you. Got a minute?"

    For some reason, he looked amused.

    "Can it wait? I have class in three minutes." I made a show of glancing at my smartphone, but Doug wasn''t buying it.

    "We''ll be leaving soon, so this might be the last chance for her to speak to you." he shrugged. "It shouldn''t take too long, and you can just tell your teacher that you''re sending us off. Given how we had such a great match yesterday, he should understand."

    "Fine." it was difficult not to be persuaded by Doug''s affable manner, so I followed him. Apparently, the Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy students had all gathered on the courtyard outside the main building, waiting for the luxurious bus to come.

    They really were leaving.

    "Captain Cecilia! I brought him!"

    Doug waved at his team. There was only Cecilia and Elena present for some reason. Most probably because the rest of the Crowley''s representatives had dispersed to look for me (something I found out later) and hadn''t returned. They probably were on their way back at this time, after receiving Doug''s message. I could see Chang Cheng, Nick and Louis emerging from a building nearby.

    "Thank you, Doug." Cecilia flashed a bright smile at him, and then she turned to me.

    Was it my imagination, or was she fidgeting a little?

    "Sorry for calling you out here on short notice, but this is probably the last time I''ll get to see you in a while. As you can see, we''ll be leaving shortly."

    "Yeah." I nodded, still not knowing what was going on. Cecilia took a deep breath, still fiddling with her fingers.

    "Well¡­uh¡­I guess I''ll get straight to the point." She met my gaze evenly, her cheeks a little flushed. Taking a second deep breath, she then uttered a declaration. "As the first guy in my generation to defeat me, you have the right to be my boyfriend."

 21 Chapter 21: Evasion

    "Then I would like to exercise my right to refuse that right," I replied automatically.

    Everyone stared at me. I shrugged. What? Was there anything wrong with what I said? Only Doug Daniels looked amused, but everyone else seemed to be staring at me as if I had grown an extra head or something.

    "You''re refusing me?" Cecilia Stuart asked incredulously.

    "If you asking me to be your boyfriend, then yeah. I refuse." I nodded judiciously, wondering if I could leave now. This was a complete waste of time. I wanted to go to class already. Getting involved in all this romance bullshit and teenage angst and drama was not worth my time at all. I had much better things to do.

    "You''re kidding me!"

    "Is he serious?"

    "I didn''t hear him wrong, did I?"

    The students gathered in the courtyard were whispering and murmuring to each other in disbelief. Either a lot of people had decided to skip class to watch the Crowley Academy students leave, or they didn''t have any lessons scheduled for the morning. Not that I cared. What they did with their own time or timetable was none of my business.

    Furthermore, I was too tired to deal this bullshit. It had been an unnaturally long morning for me, with so many things happening all at once. Ironically, this felt more exhausting than yesterday, when I practically singlehandedly blasted through five consecutive matches.

    "Is he gay?"

    "How can he refuse such a beautiful girl?"

    "What an idiot¡­I would jump at the chance if I were him!"

    This was getting stupid. I was not obligated to date a girl just because she was beautiful. Even though I had heard of Cecilia Stuart before, I was not familiar with her at all. Hell, this was the first time I had actually met her face-to-face. And what I saw didn''t give me a favorable impression. She was cold, and arrogant.

    Beauty was useless if her personality was ugly. While I admittedly found her physically attractive, her condescending attitude turned me off. If the other guys want to go out with her, they were more than welcome to.

    Cecilia studied me for a moment. "You do know that I''m from the Stuart family, right?"

    "Yeah."

    "And you still refuse me?"

    "Yeah."

    "Even though I''m from the Stuart family?"

    "So what?" I was getting irritated. Using her family to intimidate me now, was it? Or did she I was somehow obligated to go along with whatever she said and be her boyfriend just because she was from one of the top ten families who served as the pillar of the Federation? What kind of logic was that? I didn''t care if she was a princess or a goddess. Her attitude and arrogance pissed me off, and that was all that mattered.

    Cecilia seemed as if she didn''t know if she should be impressed or outraged. She sighed and shook her head. "You''ll regret this."

    "I''m already regretting volunteering for the matches yesterday," I muttered as I shut my eyes, feeling a headache pounding through my temples.

    "Don''t say that." Doug looked a little hurt, though I could tell that he was joking. "I had a great duel with you yesterday."

    "Yeah, but it is more trouble than it''s worth." I sighed wearily. "I''m having a bad day, and it looks like it''s going to get worse."

    Cecilia narrowed her eyes. "That''s not an excuse."

    "Excuse?" I met her gaze evenly. "I''m not offering any excuses. I just don''t want to deal with your nonsense. I already said no, and that''s that. If you have a problem with it, that''s too bad. I''m not obligated to cater to your every whim just because you''re from the Stuart family. I''m not your slave."

    "Fair enough." Cecilia folded her arms. "Then what are your conditions?"

    I gaped at her for a moment, not comprehending. What was this girl on about? "Conditions? What do you mean, conditions?"

    "What do you want in return for being in a relationship with me?" Cecilia was pondering on the matter. "Money? Status? I can give you the resources you need for developing your magic. I heard that you''re having some trouble with your current ranking. If you enter the Stuart family, I can provide you with everything you need."

    I stared at her, astonished. Was this girl serious? Just what did she view other people as? Did she think I was trying to ransom her?

    "You misunderstand. I don''t want anything. I don''t want to be in a relationship with you. It''s that simple."

    Cecilia''s frown deepened, as if she couldn''t comprehend the possibility that a guy would reject a beautiful girl of her stature.

    "I find that hard to believe. I don''t mean to boast, but I''m pretty confident in my appearance, and my background¡­"

    "Captain¡­" Doug began, smiling politely. "I don''t think that''s the issue here. And I don''t think it''s productive to force the issue. If Richard doesn''t want to, then don''t press him."

    Thank heavens. I had an ally here. At least there was one person who saw some sense.

    However¡­

    "You cocky brat! Don''t get too full of yourself! Who do you think you are, rejecting Cecilia''s confession?"

    Hal Gunther was glaring at me. Teacher Cure must have healed him completely yesterday, for he seemed fine right now. Somehow I wished she didn''t heal him fully. The bastard deserved to be bedridden for a few more days.

    "Just because you won against our team by yourself doesn''t mean you can get all high and mighty!" Elena added angrily. "How dare you reject our captain''s kindhearted offer?!"

    Kindhearted offer? Me being cocky and full of myself? Were these idiots listening to the rubbish they were spouting?

    And they wondered why I was refusing this farce.

    "Now, now." Doug raised his hands. "There''s no need to intimidate Richard. You guys are just proving his point for him."

    "What point?!"

    "Whose side are you on?!"

    While Hal and Elena turned on me, Albert Alain raised a hand.

    "At least tell us why."

    "Why what?" I asked, bewildered. Just what did I need to say to get my message into their thick skulls?

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    "Why you refused."

    "Why should I accept?" I countered, getting irritated. "Your notions of romance or relationships have nothing to do with me."

    "It''s not exactly romance, but¡­" Cecilia sighed. "I made a vow. I promised that the first male in my generation who defeated me will have the right to go out with me. I can''t very well go back on my word now."

    "¡­why did you make that vow?" I was trying to suppress my impatience. Honestly, I didn''t give a fuck. Whatever vows Cecilia made had absolutely nothing to do with me. Except that I was the first guy in our generation to beat her, apparently, but I had no obligation to go along with something she went and swore on her own.

    "Ever since I was young, I have been courted by many suitors. As you know¡­my family is one of the top ten clans of the Global Federation¡­one of the most powerful, influential, wealthiest¡­"

    Now she was just showing off.

    "So there is no shortage of suitors. But many of them were just aiming for my family¡­to marry into the Stuart Clan, for our wealth, or resources. Or they were only interested in my beauty." Cecilia sighed, her eyes taking a distant, weary look. "It became exhausting to reject them all. So¡­I challenged all of them."

    Her eyes hardened as she focused on me.

    "I swore that I will only accept a man stronger than me as my lover. I challenged them all, and beat them down. And soon no one dared to court me." She smiled bitterly. "The promise spread far and wide over the entire Federation. Many young men would challenge me, but I would defeat them all. It helped me build up a reputation, and soon I became known as invincible."

    The legend of the Invincible Goddess of War. So that was how it came about.

    "But you¡­broke the myth of my invincibility." Cecilia shrugged. "Not that it matters. What matters is that a lady of the Stuart family must keep her word. I will not break a vow that I made myself."

    "Well, good luck with that." I wasn''t sympathetic with her at all. She made her own bed, and now she had to sleep in it. I wasn''t going to take responsibility for her careless promises. She got overconfident on her own, so now she had to clean up her own mess. If her reputation or principles got destroyed, then too bad.

    It had nothing to do with me. I had no obligation to indulge her selfishness or whims.

    "Fucker! Still acting as if this has nothing to do with you!" Hal howled.

    "Our captain has already poured her heart out to you! How heartless can you be?!" Elena shrieked.

    "Now, now¡­" Doug tried to placate them. "I''m sure Richard has his own reasons. Let''s not press him." He turned back to me. "Sorry about all this, Richard. I''m sure we''ll meet again."

    "Yeah. I''m sure." Even as those words left my mouth, I secretly thought to myself that we would never encounter each other throughout the rest of our lives. They would go their way, and I would go my way. They were the top eight academies in the Federation. My school was ranked above eighty. So our paths would most likely never cross again.

    Good riddance.

    "I''ll excuse myself then."

    "Wait." Cecilia''s voice was frosty. "We''re not done yet¡­"

    "Richard!"

    Everyone turned in surprise when a familiar voice drifted through the courtyard. Alicia Violet was strolling toward me with a friendly wave. She nodded politely to Cecilia and the Crowley''s Academy students before turning back to me.

    "Teacher Fielding was looking for you. Class has started long ago. What are you doing?"

    She grabbed my arm and began pulling me away. Wrapping her arms around my arm, she pressed herself somewhat intimately against my side as she led me back toward the building.

    "Er¡­" I began, but Alicia cut me off with a whisper that only I could hear.

    "Just play along."

    Then I understood what she was trying to do. Feeling an immense wave of relief wash over me, I nodded.

    Everyone watched, stunned, as Alicia and I went right back into the main campus building. For their benefit, I made sure to express my gratitude loudly.

    "Oh, right. Thanks, Alicia."

    Only Alicia knew what I was really thanking her for.

 22 Chapter 22: Relationships

    After taking a few steps into the corridor and disappearing from the sight of the students outside, Alicia immediately let go of my hand and distanced herself a little.

    "Sorry about that," she apologized. I shook my head.

    "No, I should be thanking you. You saved me."

    Breathing a sigh of relief, I glared in the direction of the Crowley''s Academy students. Alicia must have caught my expression, for she lowered her head a little.

    "Please don''t think too badly of Cecilia. She really isn''t a bad person. It''s just that¡­she''s a bit awkward." Alicia rubbed at her head, looking a little troubled. "She has been brought up like a princess, sheltered and isolated from most people. That''s why she isn''t used to talking to people¡­properly. She''s used to everything going her way."

    Yeah, well¡­she was the young mistress of the Stuart Family, which was one of the top ten most powerful, influential and wealthiest families in the Global Federation. They had some history behind them, apparently being the ones who took over vital economic restructuring and restoring the manufacturing infrastructures of the Federation during humanity''s recovery after suffering such a violent assault from monsters and Emergence.

    With such pedigree and status, obviously no one would dare to refuse her. Except me, but I was from the ancient past, so I wasn''t as overawed by the Stuart family as everyone else. Not to mention my Dad''s devil-may-care attitude rubbed off on me. He was practically fearless, and I saw no reason to fear a spoilt princess.

    However, I wasn''t tactless either, and I knew Alicia had good intentions at heart. So I merely nodded in understanding.

    "I see."

    "Cecilia might seem arrogant, but that''s because she has no choice." Alicia turned toward me, her beautiful face grave. "She has grown up fending off suitors and she had to be strong, in order to refuse their advances. She made a promise, and in order to make sure she didn''t have to fulfil her promise, she worked extremely hard and developed her magical abilities to the best extent possible. She never stopped working had."

    She smiled slightly, glancing back out with a faraway look.

    "And as you can see, she has succeeded. She has defeated every male opponent who challenges her. Even female opponents too. She has established a reputation for invincibility. Her name is known throughout the Federation."

    In other words, Cecilia had earned the right to be arrogant. She worked hard to achieve her current strength and impeccable record (my victory didn''t count ¨C if it had been a regular match instead of a team-match, I would have 100% lost). As much as I abhorred to admit it, she had earned the right to display that kind of attitude.

    Not to mention, she had to be condescending if she wanted to reject all those annoying guys who approached her and proposed to her. It was a fa?ade to discourage them, to make her seem unapproachable, so that she didn''t have to deal with an endless line of suitors trying to persuade her why she should choose them as a romantic partner.

    Ironically, I wasn''t one of them, but somehow I ended up defeating her and triggering that vow. Again, I insisted that it shouldn''t count, but since when will anybody listen to my opinion? Whatever the case, I had a greater understanding of Cecilia''s character, and empathized with her situation. If she went back on her word, all the reputation she had built up until now would be shattered, and her hard work would have gone to waste.

    Unfortunately for her, that was her problem. I was not obligated to play along with her narrative or whatever promises she made to other people.

    "Good for her," I said instead. "Sorry, but I don''t think I''ll be able to help."

    "You don''t have to." Alicia sighed and lowered her head again. She closed her eyes and thought for a moment. "I''ll figure out a way to talk to her."

    "I''ll leave it to you then."

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    "Don''t worry." Alicia then smiled. "But after seeing that, I believe Cecilia will no longer push the matter."

    "That''s good then." I realized that we were nearing my classroom. From the noise inside, it sounded like the lesson had already begun. "Thanks again."

    "No, it''s nothing." Alicia paused for a moment. "Before you go, there''s something I have for you." she took out her smartphone. A few seconds later, I received a message.

    "This is¡­?"

    "A training room." Alicia smiled. "I know it''s nothing much, but the Black Roses have a few spares and I think you''ll benefit from it."

    "This¡­" I read the contents of the email and noted the location of the room. It was secluded, but even so it belonged to the Black Roses. "I can''t accept this¡­shouldn''t this be reserved for your Black Roses members?"

    Alicia giggled. "We have too many rooms, and not that many members."

    That might sound counterintuitive, given how the Black Roses Society was one of the four great societies and the most popular club in Jing Tian Magic Academy, but it was precisely because it was the top, elite society that membership was limited only to a few. Not everyone could join the club. It was probably limited to a hundred or so members. No doubt the numbers would swell to five times that if they accepted every application, but they wanted to ensure they could invest large amounts of resources into the core members.

    "And if you change your mind, you can just become an official member. I''m sure no one will complain."

    "Oh, they definitely will." I could imagine Miranda throwing a fit if I were to become a member of Black Roses. Not to mention all the other ninety-nine members resenting me for receiving preferential treatment from their president.

    "We were going to let go of the training room anyway, so I thought I might as well assign it to a non-member. If that''s the case, the paperwork should all work out."

    "Right." I nodded. "Thank you."

    If she put it that way, and the room would no longer be under the Black Roses, then I didn''t mind accepting it. It was extremely advantageous to have a single training room set aside solely for me, especially now that I wanted to try new methods and magic.

    "I''ll take you up on your offer then."

    "That will be great." Alicia looked delighted. "I''ll get the necessary paperwork done, so you''ll be able to begin using the room today, after school."

    "Thanks again."

    I watched as Alicia left, and then sighed before opening the door to my classroom. To my surprise, there weren''t many students in there today. Right¡­I saw many of my classmates crowding around the courtyard to watch the departure of the Crowley Academy students.

    "Ah, there you are, Richard." Teacher Fielding looked up from inspecting a couple of students who were exchanging techniques. "I assume the students from Crowley''s Academy have already left our campus?"

    "Not yet, I think." Teacher Fielding was obviously wondering when the other students in his class would return. "I managed to escape."

    "Ah, right. The promise." Cecilia was such a high-profile celebrity that practically everyone in the field knew of her declaration. Teacher Fielding certainly was aware of it. He grinned at me mischievously. "Escaped, did you? Then I assume you rejected her outright."

    "Yeah." I shuddered. "I would rather not get involved with her or the Stuart family."

    "Wise choice." Teacher Fielding nodded. "Now, go get paired up with somebody. We''ll be doing a bit of light sparring today."

    "Yes, sir."

    I hurried to obey, searching out for a group with three people in it and joining them. With me evening out the numbers, we could split into pairs.

    The rest of the lesson resumed without incident¡­and in the end, none of the absent classmates showed up for the lesson. Their loss.

    *

    "Captain Cecilia, are you just going to let them go like that?" Nick asked, astonished, when his leader said nothing and merely watched Alicia Violet and I leave the scene.

    "What do you mean?" Cecilia asked indifferently. "Are you saying I should stop them or something?"

    "Uh¡­" Nick was caught off guard by the question, and spluttered wordlessly.

    "How dare he humiliate you?!" Hal Gunther was seething. "I''ve never seen a person so thick-skinned and arrogant!"

    Wow¡­the idiot just didn''t realize the irony of his own statement, did he?

    "That''s enough." Cecilia''s voice was sharp. She then softened her otherwise glacial expression. "At least I somewhat understand the situation now."

    "¡­that he''s already in a relationship with someone else?" Doug Daniels offered, just in case his denser teammates didn''t get the hint. He probably knew Alicia was faking it, but he decided to help me out this time.

    "So what?" Elena sneered. "Who does that girl think she is? What''s a small little family like the Violet clan compared to the Stuart Clan? There''s no way she can compete against Cecilia!"

    "That''s enough, Elena." Cecilia''s voice had grown so frosty that Elena actually jolted and shrank back in fear, shivering nervously. "Alicia is a friend of mine. I will not allow you to speak that way about her."

    "S¡­sorry¡­" Elena had collapsed to her knees and was weeping. "I didn''t mean to¡­"

    Chang Cheng stepped in and helped her to her feet, while keeping his gaze on Cecilia. "What will you do now, Captain?"

    "Nothing." Cecilia stared at her teammates blankly. "What exactly are you asking me to do?"

    "Ugh¡­this will cause quite the outrage online, you know?" Louis groaned as he glanced at his smartphone. "The public will accuse you of breaking your promise and going back on your word. Already they are wondering why you didn''t just straight up declare him as your lover yesterday."

    Mostly because Cecilia was unconscious and in the infirmary for most of the time¡­but nobody cared about logic. They just wanted an excuse to go on a witch-hunt and burn people at stake.

    "What do they expect me to do?" Cecilia demanded, genuinely bewildered. "Force him to break up with his current girlfriend just to go out with me?"

    "Well¡­as the young mistress of the Stuart Clan, you have every right to break them up¡­" Elena whimpered softly, only to fall silent when Cecilia glared coldly at her.

    "Then I will exercise my right to refuse that right." Turning away, Cecilia proceeded toward the luxurious bus that was awaiting them. "This topic is closed. I don''t want to hear anything more about it."

    "Yes, Captain."

    Complying obediently, the rest of the Crowley''s Academy students joined her aboard the bus.

 23 Chapter 23: Training

    The moment school was over, I headed for the training room that Alicia promised me. The email had indicated the location, and as I said, it was secluded, located in a dark, dinghy corner at one of the campus buildings at the back. Inevitably it took me some time to find it, given how my sense of direction was not the best.

    "Here it is."

    I stood in front of the door, staring at a holographic panel that projected a blue-tinted keypad into the air, and then punched in the access codes that I was given. While waiting for the system to assess my codes, I looked around.

    The area was pretty¡­sad, to be honest. The room was right at the furthest end of the corridor, tucked in right behind a set of staircases. The lights here seemed dimmer than the more accessible segments of the academy, and the atmosphere felt gloomy. There wasn''t a single student in the corridor ¨C not many people came to this building, evidently.

    No wonder the Black Roses Society was willing to let this training room go. None of their members were willing to make the trek through such a sorry part of the campus to train here, not when they clearly had many better rooms to choose from. Keeping this on their roster would be a continued drain of resources and allocations, and they would rather get something in return.

    Alicia, realizing that I could use this room, kindly requested for the ownership to be transferred to me. That didn''t mean I was an owner in the technical sense of the word, but that I was just assigned responsibility over making sure this room was being used, or it would be demolished by the academy, or used for some other things such as storage.

    While I was brooding, there was a click, and the door slowly swung inward. I stepped into the training room, and blinked as my eyes tried to adjust to the sudden brightness.

    To my surprise, the training room was not as dank and gloomy as the corridor outside. It was the same hi-tech, state-of-the-art training room as every other training room under Jing Tian Academy''s jurisdiction. There was a boundary field to ensure that sparring partners did not get accidentally killed, and also to restore the room''s interior after our techniques and spells inevitably damaged the surroundings.

    In other words, it had everything I could ask for, and more.

    "All right then." Grinning, I rolled up my sleeves and got ready for my training session. "Let''s begin."

    *

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    And just like that, a week passed since my infamous victory over the Crowley Academy students. I hadn''t really checked social media and all that, focusing on my training instead. There were a lot of things I wanted to experiment with and try out, and I had no time to deal with gossip, forums and all the other stuff.

    To be sure, there were people who challenged me, but because I practically received hundreds of challenges from not just students in the academy, but also from students from other cities and academies, I ignored them all. Many of my challengers were aware of my atrocious record and my glaring weakness, and wished to exploit that so they could climb upon my fame and boast about how they were better than me, who was supposedly better than the Crowley Academy students. More so, they could boost their own reputation and fame with what they perceived would be an easy win.

    There were also rumors about me and Alicia, but neither of us paid any attention to those. Even more so, because I hadn''t had a chance to meet Alicia again over the past week. I made sure to send her an email of gratitude, though, and she responded to that, but that was the only contact we had. If people were expecting something juicy, they wouldn''t get anything from watching us.

    Even better, I had to use my skills to dodge people as best as I could. Because of my newfound fame, people tended to swarm me. I wanted to avoid challenges and awkward questions, so I immediately escaped right after class, making good use of cover or taking alternative routes, going the long way to keep my distance from my stalkers.

    Fortunately, after a week, when I hadn''t participated in any new duels or matches, the furor over me died out. Social media was moving on to the next big news, people were gradually losing interest in me as they found new things to gossip about.

    Great.

    After avoiding a group of bulky-looking schoolmates who were screaming threats and bellowing challenges after I left the classroom, I made my way toward my personal training room. Alicia might not have done it on purpose, but the location was perfect for my purposes. Nobody would think to find me here. Not in one of the most remote campus buildings at the back of the academy, hidden away in some dark, obscure corridor.

    I had essentially lucked out.

    "Okay, this is good¡­"

    Over the next few hours, I had managed to polish my new summoning skills and combined them with the combat lessons I had learned from both Dad and Teacher Fielding. They still weren''t perfect, but given what I started with, I had gone a long way in the space of a week.

    "Maybe now I can begin accepting some of the challenges."

    Not that I was a glutton for punishment, but simply because I needed to test out my new skills in an actual match. There was no point improving and developing new techniques if I wasn''t going to use them in actual combat.

    "I''ll look into that tomorrow, though."

    For today, I was tired and just wanted to go home. Perhaps I would spar with my Dad, but other than that I was done for the day. Developing and improving magic techniques took quite a lot from me.

    I snuck out of the campus building, still making sure to avoid the stray groups of students wandering around for me. Their numbers had lessened considerably over the week, but there still remained a few persistent enough to use me as a stepping block to boost their own statuses. They would be in for a surprise tomorrow, but I just didn''t want to deal with them today.

    Reaching the road, I began to take my usual route home. While watching out for my zealous schoolmate, I carefully made my way toward the bus stop.

    Perhaps it was this caution that saved me.

    "¡­who?"

    Before I reached the bus stop, I caught sight of an unfamiliar group of people. Initially they didn''t seem out of place, dressed casually and all that, but their movements raised my hackles. Intuitively, I could tell that they were moving in a familiar pattern.

    A pattern that Dad warned me about.

    Not this bullshit again¡­

    As I said before, there were quite a huge number of people who resented my Dad or held a grudge against him, or just wanted stuff from him, and one of the ways they tried to get back at him was by targeting me. No doubt they intended to kidnap me, probably to ransom my Dad, or to blackmail him. This wasn''t the first time, but it had been a while since the last one.

    Good thing I was on the alert for my schoolmates, or I might have missed them. Damn, I had let down my guard and become a little sloppy.

    While keeping an eye on them, I immediately altered my route and turned down a corner. As I suspected, the people tailing me immediately hastened their pace a notch, trying to ensure that I stayed within their sight.

    Unfortunately for them, I had way too much experience dealing with them.

    The moment they lost sight of me, I slipped into a crowd heading toward the bus stop and simply disappeared amongst them. My pursuers cursed when they could no longer locate me, and wasted precious seconds gathering to discuss among themselves what to do.

    While they did so, my bus arrived and I joined the throng of students in boarding it. One good thing about uniforms ¨C while many claimed that it destroyed individuality and should not be forced upon students, it allowed me to blend in with my fellow schoolmates and escape the suspicious group of people trying to shadow me.

    Unfortunately, they were intelligent enough to realize that something was amiss. When one of them spotted the bus at the bus stop, and having known my route well enough because they evidently did their homework, they realized that I had just taken them for a ride.

    "Follow that bus!" their leader snarled. Turning to another couple of members, he singled them out. "You, you, and you! Stick around here and continue to search, just in case he isn''t on that bus and is hiding somewhere around here."

    "Yes, sir!"

    They split up immediately, the majority of them filing into a car.

    By then, the bus had already launched off. I took a seat by the window and took note of the car that zoomed after us. The stalkers, whoever they were, were professionals. They didn''t tail the bus too closely, remaining just a few cars behind. Otherwise they might have alerted the bus driver.

    There were a few times they actually disappeared from sight, only to reappear again just when I thought I had successfully shaken them off. They were good¡­I had to give them that.

    I considered not alighting at my stop, but they would just follow the bus a bit further, all the way until the terminal. Then I would be in trouble as I would be too far from anywhere for help. On the other hand, if I got off, I could sprint toward my house and get under the barrier before they reached me. Furthermore, I had other countermeasures in place¡­

    Additionally, their car was quite some distance away, so I chose to gamble on the chance that I would make it before they catch me.

    With that decided, I got off my stop. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the car suddenly accelerating. Trying not to glance at them, I began sprinting toward my house. A good thing Dad trained me daily, or I wouldn''t have the stamina or speed.

    "Huff¡­"

    Normally, it was just a three to four minutes'' walk from the bus stop to my house. A minute if I ran. But right now it seemed like forever. My house, which was normally just a stone''s throw away, felt like it was kilometers away.

    I could hear the tires screaming as the car behind sped after me. But I was almost there. I could see my house coming into view now. Another minute¡­no, thirty seconds¡­!

    Then a second car cut in right in front of me, almost running me over. The doors banged open, and a group of adults emerged quickly, moving toward me.

    "Grab him!" the leader commanded, a cold smile curling across his face. "Once we get him, we''ll be able to threaten Huang Shun Yin! We''ll finally be able to kill him!"

    "Let''s see if he prizes his own son more, or his own life more!"

    "That boy should be his weakness!"

    I knew it. These bastards were trying to abduct me to get back at my Dad, to blackmail him. As fucking usual.

    However, I was far from helpless. I hadn''t spent all that time sitting in the bus waiting for them to abduct me. Having finished the casting of my spell long ago, I then unleashed it.

    Boom!

    Within a few moments, the entire space was engulfed in an inferno. My would-be kidnappers sprang back cautiously as they sought to avoid being burned.

    With a shrill cry, Vermillion Phoenix emerged from the blazing earth and flapped its massive wings before fixing its eyes on the puny humans before it.

 24 Chapter 24: Fight or Fligh

    Even as Vermillion Phoenix graced the material world with its presence, I was already running and making for my house.

    When Cecilia Stuart said that my summoned beasts weren''t invincible, she as more right than she knew. Not in the way she imagined, though.

    As Vermillion Phoenix unleashed its flames, the passengers who had just disembarked from the car immediately erected barriers to defend themselves. Fire washed over their golden, glowing spheres, but did not break through them as it did against Chang Cheng''s Fortress spell.

    Of course it wouldn''t. These were professionals. They had way more combat experience and strength than a mere student. Already, a few of them were retaliating. One of them had produced a sword-type Divine Device and was slashing at Vermillion Phoenix. My summoned beast guarded against the strike with its huge wings, but it was sent staggering from the impact.

    A second assailant produced a magical bow and sent arrows of light screaming toward Vermillion Phoenix, who unleashed fiery feathers in return to counter the volley. Explosions rocked through the air, the collision of the projectiles causing them to detonate violently.

    Even though my Vermillion Phoenix was having a bit of difficulty dealing with these kidnappers, it didn''t necessarily mean that I would lose. My summoned beast was still a top-notch monster with tremendous power. Just one careless mistake would be enough to see them incinerated into a crisp, and there was no boundary field to guarantee their lives this time.

    "Ugh!"

    One of them finally succumbed to the overwhelming flames and was incinerated into a crisp.

    "Horie!" one of the guys shrieked. "Damn you, fucking brat!"

    "Kill him!"

    "Wait, don''t kill him! We need him alive!"

    Yeah, I mean, what was the point of kidnapping me and holding Dad to ransom if you ended up killing me? More like you would end up incurring his wrath as he hunted every single one of your organization down and destroyed you to the last man.

    "He''s getting close to the barrier!"

    "Stop him!"

    They suddenly realized that while my Vermillion Phoenix was distracting them, I had already gotten within a millimeter of my own home. The kidnapper closest to me launched an arrow, but I was already ducking.

    My Vermillion Phoenix conjured a firewall and incinerated the arrow¡­or tried to, but the powerful projectile burst through the firewall without much effort. Good thing I instinctively dodged, or I would have been hit.

    I thought they weren''t supposed to kill me?

    In any case, my assailants were breaking away from my Vermillion Phoenix and literally hurling themselves at me. A couple of them were incinerated by my Vermillion Phoenix ¨C but evidently they didn''t care about sacrificing their lives as long as they achieved their objective. In a way, they were a lot scarier than the usual abductors.

    This wasn''t the first time, however. I was already used to such fanatics. Rarely did I have to directly combat them, though, but it wasn''t unprecedented. That was why I already knew how to deal with the situation.

    "No!"

    "Don''t let him get away!"

    I dove under a swinging sword and slid right through the front yard. My pursuers made to follow, but the guy in the lead suddenly screamed. There was a sharp crack and he spontaneously combusted, hellish flames devouring him.

    Slowly getting to my feet, I dismissed my Vermilion Phoenix, which was slowly getting weighed down by dozens of attacks. Even though I said it wouldn''t necessarily lose, there was only one of it, and several of the enemies. There was no sense subjecting it to an unnecessary battle and allowing the poor guy to get hurt.

    "Fuck!"

    "That kid got away!"

    "We were too slow!"

    The kidnappers were swearing and cursing as they watched me from behind the barrier. If I was a little more childish, I would give them the finger and taunt them, but I was too tired to deal with their bullshit. So I decided to just go home. I should inform my Dad.

    Before I could reach the door, however, it burst open and Dad stood there, having been alerted when someone got incinerated by the fiery barrier he had set up around our home. He looked at me, and then glanced at the now silent group outside the house. Within a few seconds, everything clicked and he understood what had just happened.

    "I see you''ve been taking good care of my son." Crossing his arms, he strode across the lawn while putting himself between me and the interlopers in a protective manner. With a snap of his fingers, he summoned Angelica.

    "The Angel of Fire!"

    "Run!"

    The kidnappers scrambled back to their cars, trying to evade Angelica''s flames. A couple of them were too slow, and screamed as they were caught by her fireballs and spontaneously combusted into ashes.

    "Angelica, don''t let them get away."

    "Understood."

    The divine spirit rose to the air and launched a few fireballs at the cars, destroying them in short order. The first couple of dudes who made it into the car immediately perished, their bodies charred black and leaving nothing but scorched bones.

    The rest froze.

    "Leave a couple of them alive, so that we can interrogate them," Dad instructed Angelica while he walked through the barrier. Raising his hand, he activated his Divine Device, a golden sword whose blade immediately blazed into life.

    The abductors shuddered when they saw him slowly approaching them, and tried to leave, but Angelica swung her hands down and unleashed several torrents of flames that was not unlike Vermillion Phoenix''s inferno, creating a ring of fire that trapped them.

    With no way out, the lot of them were gradually incinerated by Angelica, or cut down by Dad. They tried to fight back, but their attacks had no effect on Angelica, and Dad was too fast. He evaded their strikes easily and slashed them into pieces. The golden flames on his sword burst into life and consumed his victims, turning them into screaming, aflame skeletons.

    "I thought you said to leave some alive!" Angelica called out from above.

    "They''re not all dead yet," Dad pointed out as he closed in on the sole survivor. The poor guy shrieked and fell back on his rump, desperately trying to scuttle away, only to find himself trapped by the flames.

    "P¡­please¡­!" he begged, openly weeping.

    "Would you have let my son go if he asked?" Dad asked. The guy gaped at him, his mouth opening and closing, but he couldn''t answer. Dad smiled grimly and shook his head in mock disappointment. "I thought so."

    With a single slash, he cut off the guy''s arm, causing him to howl in pain. Fortunately, the guy didn''t get incinerated, with Dad''s attack leaving a cauterized stump. As he rolled on the ground, clutching at his shoulder and shrieking, Dad mercilessly grabbed him by the collar and hauled him up.

    "If you don''t want to lose your other arms, you will answer my questions honestly and accurately. Is that understood?"

    The guy wept, tears streaming down his pale cheeks, but he managed to nod.

    "Don''t you want to leave him alive?" Angelica asked, bewildered.

    "He''s still alive, isn''t he?" Dad pointed out gruffly, and began dragging the poor guy back into the house.

    All around us, the flames continued to blaze about, but none of the neighbors poked their heads out to check out the commotion. They were used to this happening on a weekly or monthly basis. This wasn''t exactly a dangerous neighborhood, but everyone knew Dad was a dangerous fella, and were wise enough to keep their heads down whenever the shooting began.

    I opened the door to allow Dad and our "guest" to step in. Dad nodded at me, and then began hauling the poor guy toward the study room. I made to follow, but Dad raised a hand and gestured for me to stay where I am.

    "Trust me, you don''t want to see this."

    I swallowed and nodded, aware of the darker details of Dad''s work. I stepped back and watched as he dragged our "guest" into the study and shut the door.

    "I wonder who it is this time." Angelica folded her arms as she practically hovered through the door. I briefly wondered why she just didn''t walk. It wasn''t as if our house was big enough for her to float a few meters above the ground. But I didn''t ask, and just nodded. Angelica continued to ponder. "The Night Devil Cult? The Syndicate? The Rufus Corporation? The Triad? The Underground?"

    "¡­"

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    I tried not to roll my eyes as Angelica listed the list of potential culprits off. Damn, but Dad really made a long list of enemies. Not that he had a choice. I recognized each and every one of them as criminal organizations who indulged in human trafficking, murder, illegal experimentations (creating demonic creatures and performing monstrous surgeries on human guinea pigs for their own medical or military products), and drug smuggling.

    Needless to say, Dad had clashed with them time and time again, rescuing their victims and busting their illegal operations. I shuddered to think what would happened if I had ended up in their hands. No doubt they would conduct terrifying experiments on me and turn me into some sort of monster. I would rather die if that happened.

    Granted, I already died once and somehow ended up in this person''s body, but that wasn''t me trivializing death. The experiments they conducted and transformations they wrought were really worse than death.

    Glancing at the study room, I shook my head and turned toward my room. Whatever the case, I was sure Dad would take care of it, as he had always done since the last five years I had been with him.

 25 Chapter 25: Bullying

    It didn''t take more than a few hours for Dad to get whatever answers he needed. He emerged from the study at evening, presumably for dinner¡­or so I thought, but he indicated that he had already gotten whatever answers he needed.

    "Richie, I''ll be leaving tomorrow," he told me shortly.

    "Another mission?" I asked, already used to this sort of thing. Dad nodded.

    "Yeah. I''ve found out who''s behind this attack." He narrowed his eyes. "The Syndicate. I''ll be heading to their headquarters to destroy them." he glanced back at the study. "I had better move fast before they realize I''m onto them, and evacuate their base."

    "Understood. What do we do about our ''guest''?"

    "Hmm? He''s already been disposed of. Don''t worry about him. Just sweep the floor and clean up the room after I leave tomorrow."

    "¡­"

    Dad could be ruthless when he had to. I almost felt sorry for the Syndicate, and for the fella inside the study. Almost. The bastard tried to kidnap me earlier, so that he and his group could threaten my Dad and kill him.

    They deserved death.

    That was the problem with bullies. They only knew how to pick on the weak. They couldn''t beat the strong, like Dad, so they aimed for the weak like me. They obviously didn''t expect me to be able to fight back. It felt so satisfying incinerating them with my Vermillion Phoenix. Honestly, I was still a long way from matching Dad''s power, but I could hold my own against relatively small numbers.

    Still, those professionals were powerful to conjure defensive barriers that were capable of withstanding Vermillion Phoenix''s firepower. They were no ordinary foes. Even ordinary adult mages wouldn''t be able to take a hit.

    I had developed my summoning magic to be able to conjure the Celestial Guardians for a reason.

    "All right. I''ll watch the house while you''re away." I did a mock salute, which elicited a laugh from Dad. He placed a hand on my head.

    "I know you will. I''ll be counting on you then."

    Dad then turned and headed toward his room, getting ready to pack for his trip. I closed my eyes briefly, wondering how long he would be gone for this time, and then went to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

    The least I could do was ensure Dad had a decent meal before he left.

    *

    The next day, I went to school as usual. This time, there were no suspicious adults tailing me in an attempt to abduct me. Before I left for school, Dad departed, presumably to catch his flight. He had booked his flight yesterday, after extracting the necessary information from his victim, and packing his luggage. He didn''t carry much, as usual.

    With a farewell, I had watched him take a cab and disappear down the road. No one was stupid enough to attack the infamous Huang Shun Yin directly, not unless they had a death wish. So I wasn''t worried about that.

    After such a close brush with abduction yesterday, I continued to be cautious on my way to school. Fortunately, as I said, there were no kidnappers this time, and I reached the campus grounds without incident.

    "Hah¡­"

    Feeling exhausted, I sprawled myself over the desk as I waited for Teacher Fielding to arrive for the first class. Which, as usual, was combat magic.

    None of my classmates approached me. I wasn''t very approachable, often keeping to myself, but that wasn''t the only reason. Most of my classmates were first year students, so there was a generation gap between us. Okay, maybe "generation" was the wrong word, but you get what I meant. The younger students were intimidated by the prospect of coming up to talk to me.

    As for the second year students¡­well, I had a reputation of being a loser since the last year. Even though I somewhat surprised everybody by team killing Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy''s representatives last week, everyone knew my weaknesses and the truth. Furthermore, I had not accepted any new challenges since then, and avoided having any matches. My acquaintances clearly viewed this as me "quitting while I was ahead" and weren''t pleased with that. Either way, they didn''t want to associate with me.

    That was fine with me. I wasn''t antisocial or scary to the extent where I couldn''t find anyone to pair up with, and I could always rely on the first years, who weren''t as acquainted or aware of my loser reputation. If anything, the first year students seemed to hold me in high regard and admired me because of what I achieved last week.

    "All right, everyone!" Teacher Fielding strode in, and clapped his hands. "Pair up! Light sparring again today. We''ll be going through the new techniques I just taught you yesterday! I hope you still remember them!"

    I certainly did, having combined several of the new techniques with my summoning magic yesterday, during my personal training session in the room Alicia secured for me. That was exhausting, which was why I went straight home instead of wanting to test them out immediately after. It was always both physically and mentally draining to experiment and try out newly created skills and spells again and again, especially since I experienced such a high failure rate and often had to start from scratch each time.

    I ended up facing a first year student named Harvey Deng. He looked at me curiously as we exchanged a few blows. Like me, he had chosen to use a sword.

    "Senior, I heard that you''ve been avoiding matches for the past week or so?"

    "Yeah." There was no point hiding anything from him. Everyone could obtain the information online, or heard rumors about it.

    "Why? You''re ranked at the bottom, aren''t you? Shouldn''t you try to raise your rank?"

    The poor junior thought I had only recently obtained my summoned beasts just before the match against the Crowley Academy students, and believed that I would embark on a winning streak if I started accepting all the challenges and participating in matches.

    "There were some problems with my techniques that I wanted to iron out first before I start dueling other students," I replied honestly. It was the truth.

    "Oh!" Harvey seemed like he couldn''t imagine what sort of problems I could possibly have with summoned beasts as powerful as Vermillion Phoenix or White Tiger, but I wasn''t obligated to tell them. Nor was I stupid enough to share my weaknesses with others. He beamed, displaying how he was a fan of mine. "I look forward to seeing you fight again soon!"

    "Uh¡­thanks?" I blocked a sword strike from him, and then easily twisted it out of his hand. My duel partner was not focusing on training, which slightly annoyed me. Not to mention, being first years who had no experience in fighting, they were a far cry from the second and third years I usually dueled against.

    Let''s be honest¡­if I were to participate in matches now, I could still easily climb the rankings by preying on vulnerable, inexperienced first year students. In fact, many schoolmates in my year, or my seniors did exactly that, challenging a huge number of the new students in order to boost their own rankings.

    However, I was not despicable enough to take advantage of that and exploit the new students. I had been a victim of that last year, which contributed to a significant fraction of my ninety-nine losses. It was damaging to the self-esteem, but I tried to deal with it by mastering advanced summoning spells in hopes of getting revenge. Obviously that didn''t turn out as I hoped.

    Pausing, I gestured for my opponent to pick up his fallen sword and waited patiently. Harvey snatched it up and readjusted his stance before lunging at me. I easily parried his strike and tripped him up.

    "Whoa!"

    Harvey stumbled, but I didn''t seize the opportunity to finish him off by hitting his back. This was training, after all, not a life-and-death duel, or a ranking match.

    "By the way, Senior¡­"

    As Harvey righted himself up, he turned to face me.

    "Which society are you in? We''ve been asking around, but it doesn''t seem like you''re in any of the clubs."

    "I''m not," I confirmed.

    "Eh? Oh¡­" Harvey''s face fell. I knew why he was asking. Like I said, I somehow had a group of fans after my impressive performance last week, and he wasn''t the first one to ask me about it. There were quite a few first year students who adored me and wanted to join the society I was in, even though they didn''t really know me that well, or the truth.

    I tried to return his attention to the duel by slashing at him, but Harvey only blocked it half-heartedly.

    "The recruitment for the societies will be soon, though. All the societies will start organizing booths and stuff to recruit first year students over the next few days." Harvey stared at me. "Are you sure you aren''t¡­?"

    "Nah. I am not worthy enough to be in a club."

    I knew what he was talking about. I had seen the other second and third year students begin to set up booths for their societies, such as Black Roses. Dong Fang Yue Chu had also tried to ask me again, but I rebuffed him.

    I wondered briefly if he would ever succeed in recruiting any members into his society.

    Oh well¡­it wasn''t my problem. For now, I had my own things to worry about.

    *

    Probably because of all the societies setting up booths to recruit the first year students, I didn''t receive any challenges today. So I decided to head to my personal training room to polish my raw skills, and review the lessons I had learned from both combat magic and summoning. I was hoping to become a combat summoner.

    After my self-training, I left my room and headed home. As Harvey mentioned, all the seniors were setting up booths along the campus courtyard. I could see them constructing tents, moving props and banners, and basically doing everything. Several were plain and simple, many were colorful and extravagant. The bigger the club, the larger their budget, and the more capable they were in putting together the materials for recruitment.

    Not that it was any of my business.

    While thinking that, I headed for the school gates. Before I could reach them, though, I heard a loud crash.

    "H¡­hey!"

    A familiar voice cried out in protest. I turned around and caught sight of Dong Fang Yue Chu sprawled over the broken remains of a tiny booth, and surrounded by several burly guys. I recognized them as being from the Iron Fist Society.

    "Get your ass out of here, loser!" one of them snarled, his meaty hands on his hips.

    "But¡­but this slot has been allocated to me¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu''s lips were quivering. One of the Iron Fist Society guys kicked him.

    "So? Who cares? It''s not like your society officially exists, anyway. You''ll be disbanded by next week."

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    "No, we won''t!"

    "Stop lying!" Another of the Iron Fist Society guys stepped forward and backhanded him. "You need at least five members to form a society. You have only one. And there''s no way any first year student will be stupid to join your trash society. You might as well give your slot to us."

    "Shoo. Go away." A fourth guy chased him away with a dismissal wave of his hand. Dong Fang Yue Chu bit his lip, but didn''t move.

    "You want us to bodily throw you out?" one of them reached out to grab him. But before he could touch Dong Fang Yue Chu, I grabbed his arm. All five members turned to gawk at me in shock.

    "That''s enough," I told them firmly. "The Iron Fist Society, right? I remember you guys sending me a challenge. I''ll take all of you on right now."

 26 Chapter 26: Iron Fis

    "Huh? What are you talking about?!" the first guy snarled.

    "Wait¡­isn''t this Richard Huang?" the second guy was beginning to grin when he recognized me. "Yeah, we''ve been looking for you for a while now. Why has it taken you this long to respond to our challenge?"

    I shrugged. "Honestly? Because I received hundreds of challenges everyday. I just thought you weren''t worth my time."

    "What?!" the third guy roared and threw a punch at me. I stepped to the side, ducking it, and then slammed my elbow into his stomach. He doubled over with a grunt.

    "How pathetic. Picking on someone even though you''re this weak. Or is the Iron Fist Club nothing but a group of bullies?"

    "You¡­!" the fourth guy bellowed. The remaining members closed in to surround me, but I merely stood there indifferently. If they wanted a fight¡­

    "What is going on here?"

    Alicia Violet had seen what was going on, and she quickly stepped in to intervene. The Iron Fist Society members, upon recognizing her, quickly stepped back.

    "Nothing!"

    "We''re just¡­messing around!"

    They weren''t fooling anyone. Alicia caught sight of poor Dong Fang Yue Chu, his stall demolished and the guy beaten up. She turned her angry gaze on the Iron Fist Society members.

    "What do you think you are doing? Picking on the members of other societies?"

    "This loser doesn''t even have an official society! He''s the only member!" one of the Iron Fist Society guys protested.

    "We have provided Student Dong Fang the opportunity to recruit from the first year students and establish his own society. If he fails to recruit the required amount of members, then naturally the school will ask him to disband. But whatever the case, you are not allowed to take matters into your own hands and bully others like this!"

    The Iron Fist Society members grumbled under their breaths, but did not say anything else. Alicia glared at them.

    "Now return to your booth. I don''t want to hear about this again, or I''ll be submitting a report about your behavior."

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    The five of them trudged toward the partially set up booth next to Dong Fang Yue Chu''s one. The first guy turned around.

    "But a big society like ours need more than this space." He pointed at Dong Fang Yue Chu rudely. "Is it possible to move this loser''s booth somewhere else? We could really use the extra space here."

    "Each society has been allocated their space appropriate to their club''s size and status," Alicia told them sternly. "No more, no less."

    "Can''t you do anything about this, President Alicia?" the second guy pleaded. Wow, these guys were so shameless.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu looked so pitiful that I ended up helping him. Picking up the pieces of his booth, I tried to fit them back together, to no avail. The Iron Fist Society bastards had really done quite the job on his space.

    "Thanks," he said meekly as I propped up a piece of painted wood that was snapped cleanly in half. Seeing his pathetic state, I couldn''t help but feel a stab of anger.

    "President Alicia," I addressed her, much to her surprise. "It is possible to make concessions based on the outcome of duels, correct?"

    "If both parties are willing." She nodded, looking at me uncertainly. Someone as intelligent as her probably already knew what I intended to do, but she still thought of me as the same summoner with that glaring weakness, and was worried that I would seriously challenge the Iron Fist Society to a duel.

    "Good." I turned toward the Iron Fist Society members. "Remember what I said earlier about accepting your challenge? Let''s make a bet."

    "Oh?" the five members turned toward me curiously, ugly grins covering their burly faces. Their leader stepped forward and cracked his knuckles. "Sounds interesting."

    "What kind of bet?" the second guy asked.

    "A bet on the booth space here." I indicated the place where Dong Fang Yue Chu was attempting to salvage his booth. "If you win, you can have this space. We''ll have Dong Fang Yue Chu quietly disband his society and you can set up your booth here as well."

    "Deal." The leader didn''t hesitate. "Let''s do this!"

    "We''ll set up the stage immediately," the third guy added gleefully.

    "A free win!" the fourth guy snickered.

    "Let me finish my sentence." Wow, these guys were just so rude and arrogant. They were already assuming that they would win, so they couldn''t be bothered to hear the rest of the terms. "If I win, you''ll have to give your booth space to us."

    "Huh?!" the five Iron Fist Society members burst out laughing. "Are you sure?!"

    "What a joke!"

    "This punk actually thinks he can win!"

    "He let his victory over Crowley''s Academy get into his head!"

    As I said, they knew my weaknesses, and unlike Hal Gunther, they weren''t going to wait for me to summon my Celestial Guardian before attempting to defeat me. From previous experience, they were going to pummel me before I get a chance to finish my summoning spell. Having defeated me before, they had every right to be confident.

    But this was a chance for me to test my new skills, and see if I could overcome that weakness somehow.

    "Sure," the leader promised, snickering. "We''ll go with that then."

    They obviously thought I had no chance of winning, otherwise they wouldn''t have agreed to this so easily.

    "Do you mind being the witness?" I asked Alicia. She hesitated.

    "Are you sure about this?"

    "Yeah." I nodded, and then smiled. "At least allow me to look cool."

    Alicia returned the smile uncertainly, and then nodded. "All right. I''ll make the arrangements."

    "¡­why¡­why are you helping me? What benefits do you get from this?" Dong Fang Yue Chu was staring at me, stunned. "Why are you going through such lengths to help me?"

    "I assume Richard is going to join your society," Alicia suggested with a shrug. Dong Fang Yue Chu''s eyes widened and jumped to his feet.

    "Really? You''re really going to join my club?!"

    "Honestly, I''m only doing this because those guys pissed me off." I jabbed my thumb at the Iron Fist Society. An idea began to form in my mind as I saw several ways I could use this to my advantage. "And don''t get me wrong. I''m not joining your society. You''re joining mine."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu continued to gape at me, but then he quickly nodded.

    "Whatever you say, President! I''ll follow you to the ends of the world!"

    "Nah, I''ll just be the vice-president." I honestly didn''t want the responsibility of heading the club. Dong Fang Yue Chu could take care of all the paperwork and duties that being a president entailed. "I just want to make a statement. Starting with these guys."

    Turning to the Iron Fist Society, I cocked my head toward the main building, where the arena was located.

    "Let''s begin then."

    "You had better not regret this," the Iron Fist Society president said with a feral grin. I merely smiled back.

    "No, I won''t. What''s the worst that can happen? You guys get the booth space. I go back to being without a society. Nothing changes for me."

    Without waiting for a reply, I then proceeded toward the main hall, with Alicia and Dong Fang Yue Chu following me.

    *

    "Did you hear? Richard Huang is finally fighting a match!"

    "It''s only been a week. What''s the big deal?"

    "Are you kidding?! Of course it''s a big deal! Let''s see if his team kill of Crowley Academy''s representatives was only a fluke! Or does he have something up his sleeve? He has to, otherwise he wouldn''t be so confident to challenge the Iron Fist Society!"

    "Senior Richard is fighting!"

    "This I have to see!"

    "Awesome!"

    Word flew around, and a good number of students abandoned the setting up of booths, or after-school activities to flock toward the main hall. As I expected, the first year students who proclaimed to be my fans turned out in force, eagerly watching the match.

    If I actually won these matches, I might actually be able to recruit enough first year students into my newly formed society. They had been pestering me about it for long enough, and I decided to answer their expectations on a whim.

    Normally, I wouldn''t be bothered ¨C I was not obligated to fulfil their expectations or requests. It really was just a whim, and honestly, it didn''t feel bad to have people cheering me on and admiring me.

    Of course, I had to win first. If I lost, then everything would collapse and the first year students would realize what a fraud I was. I would lose all my fans.

    Given what I had been through over the past year, that honestly wasn''t as bad as it sounded. It would just mean I returned to normal, and I could return to being obscure and being by myself again. For someone like me, returning to square one wasn''t the end of the world.

    "All right. You''ll get the honor of fighting against me, the president of the Iron Fist Society, Tie Quan. Usual one-on-one format, ends when one of us surrenders or is unable to battle. I trust you are all right with that?"

    The president of the Iron Fist Society, Tie Quan, proudly puffed his chest out and strode onto the stage.

    "It appears that you''ve misunderstood something."

    "Hmm? You want to face one of the other members instead?" Tie Quan tilted his head curiously. "Well, it''s fine. The result won''t change either way."

    "No, you can stay on stage. I want to face you. But not just you." I took a deep breath and loudly proclaimed. "I want ten!"

    Everyone stared at me, and then they began roaring in laughter. With the exception of my fans, who believed that I was truly intending on repeating the feat that made me a legend.

    "You want to fight ten of my members? Are you serious?"

    "Yeah." I nodded.

    "That''s not possible." Alicia sighed. "The most we can do is a team format, where five members fight five members. You''re not allowed to do ten consecutive matches."

    I shrugged. "Let''s do that then."

    "You''re serious?!" Tie Quan exclaimed mockingly. "You think we''re like Crowley Academy? We know your skills very well. We''re not stupid enough to give you time to summon your spirit beast."

    "I know." I smiled mysteriously. "But it''s more fun this way. Or are you afraid? My team only has me and Dong Fang Yue Chu. You can easily provide five members."

    "You had best not regret this¡­" Tie Quan clenched his fists tightly. "I''ll pound that arrogance and delusions out of you!"

    Good. The idiot had taken the bait. Now all I needed to do was survive until I could summon one of my Celestial Guardians.

    The only question was whether the new skills I had developed were enough to help me withstand Tie Quan''s ferocious onslaught until then.

 27 Chapter 27: Vicious Duel

    "Ready¡­fight!"

    Teacher Fielding had appeared to also serve as another witness, and to referee the match. Before it began, though, he had nodded at me.

    "I hope my lessons will be useful."

    "They will be," I had assured him.

    He seemed to have bought that, and started the match without any further ado. The moment he swung his hand down, Tie Quan exploded into action and lunged at me, his fist barreling out. It was obvious he intended to end the match in this single move.

    Even as he charged, I could see the changes taking change all over his body. Like me, he would need more time to cast complex spells, so for now he merely cast a basic spell that transformed his arms into metal, but leaving the rest of his body flesh and blood.

    Good.

    I stepped to the side, allowing him to barrel past me. Then I rammed a knee into his gut, causing him to double over. Tie Quan bellowed in rage and swung his iron-encrusted arm back in retaliation, but thanks to my martial arts training, I managed duck under his arm and kicked at his knee, causing his leg to buckle.

    Tie Quan dropped to one knee, but he stubbornly lashed out, causing me to retreat a couple of steps. Getting to his feet, he cracked his neck from side to side as he completed his next spell. I could see his face turning silver as the metal covered all of his body.

    "Iron Spirit!"

    With a triumphant bellow, he completed his spell, reveling in the feel as his body turned completely metal.

    "Hah! Now you won''t be able to defeat me!"

    In the past, he would be correct. I was still a long way off summoning Vermillion Phoenix. Probably another two and a half minutes, at least. Whereas Tie Quan already cast a powerful spell that was sufficient to beat me up. Even with my martial arts training, I had no spells that could enhance my defense, speed or attack power, so I would never be able to break through that Iron Spirit spell that Tie Quan had cast over his body.

    There was nothing I could do, and I wasn''t able to dodge forever.

    "!"

    Tie Quan burst forward at a much faster speed than before, his Iron Spirit granting him a bonus to not just his durability and strength, but also his agility. This time, I wasn''t able to dodge his iron fist, which came crashing down on me.

    Usually that would signal the end of the fight. With no defensive spell, nothing I could use to protect myself, I would be unable to avoid the strike and be laid low. And then the merciless beat-down would begin, until I lost consciousness.

    Even though I had learned martial arts from Dad, they were useless without magic. Normal martial arts just didn''t have the power to punch through magical defenses and protective auras. They may lay a solid foundation for reflexes and techniques, but they were knives compared to the guns that were magic.

    That was how I lost every match previously. It wasn''t that I couldn''t fight back, but I didn''t have the magical durability against their magically enhanced strengths and spells, nor the power to hurt them.

    At the side, Teacher Fielding smiled, taking note that I had cast the basic defense spell to augment my durability, a spell that I learned from his class. It would not block a hundred percent of the damage, and I would still suffer injuries, but at least I wouldn''t be knocked out instantly.

    However, precisely because of that, it wasn''t the ideal solution. With that in mind, I completed the casting of a second spell.

    Twin lights colored black and white flashed into existence right before Tie Quan reached me. His fist collided with twin blades before he staggered back in confusion and puzzlement.

    "Gemini," I muttered as I swung my twin swords at him. One bore a black blade, and the other sported a white blade, but otherwise they were identical. Gemini''s astrological symbol was inscribed right into their guards.

    "You¡­you¡­" Tie Quan spluttered as he stumbled backward, fending my swords off with his Iron Spirit. "Since when can you summon weapons?"

    They weren''t just any ordinary weapons. They were Constellation weapons. Long story short, the theme of my magic was Constellations. The four Stellar Guardians were based off Chinese constellations, after all. But they took too long to summon, and required a lot of magical energy.

    In order to keep in line with my Constellation theme, yet find a spell that takes less time and costs less magical energy, I looked toward alternative constellations for a solution. And this was the answer I found ¨C Greek constellations.

    Tie Quan roared in frustration and hurled himself at me again, but I deflected his punches with my twin swords. He then threw up a knee that would have broken my ribs if I hadn''t dodged, and I used the hilt of Castor to stop it from proceeding any further. At the same time, I thrust Pollux at him, but Tie Quan crossed his arms to stop the white blade from piercing his chest.

    Not that it would have, since his chest was covered in metal right now, but reflexes and training were hard to get rid of.

    As if realizing that he had gotten humiliated, Tie Quan snarled and punched forward. I parried his iron fist with Pollux and slashed at him with Castor, but he fended off the black blade with his other arm, and then twisted around to kick me.

    Jumping up, I landed on his leg, and then bounced up and above him before he could react. Twisting around in midair, I slashed the crown of his head, my twin blades shrieking as they scratched against metal.

    Sparks flew, and Tie Quan tried to smack me away, but I had already retreated to a safe distance. He shook his head, and then grinned mockingly.

    "Heh! It''s useless. It doesn''t matter if you summon weapons or not. You won''t be able to pierce through my Iron Spirit!"

    "Really?" I pushed my glasses up nose, despite still holding a sword in my hand (pretty dangerous, but I was confident that I wouldn''t hurt myself).

    "Of course!" Tie Quan was about to say something else, but then he felt something wet drip down his face.

    Reaching up, he wiped the fluid and glanced at it. It was red. Never mind that, he could feel a stinging sensation on his scalp that told him that his defenses had been breached.

    "Blood¡­I''m bleeding?!"

    Tie Quan''s jaw dropped in disbelief. He couldn''t believe that I had actually succeeded in cutting through his defenses.

    "You bastard!" he hollered, clutching his bleeding head. "You cut me! You actually cut me!"

    "¡­uh, dude, you do realize we''re in a middle of a duel, right?" I asked incredulously. "Did you seriously expect to get out of this unscathed?"

    "¡­"

    "¡­"

    Yeah, he did. Seemed like he had accepted my challenge while being under the illusion that it would be another easy win for him. He had never expected me to be able to fight back, and thought he could knock me out before I summoned my big guns.

    Well, I was a living, breathing human who would undergo character development and changes. In other words, I wasn''t going to be the same guy I was a year ago. I would learn new spells, master new skills, and adapt my fighting style.

    A concept that most people didn''t seem to be familiar with. Their loss.

    Tie Quan shook his anger off, focusing on the fight. Growling, he lunged at me again, forcing me back into the defensive. I deflected his barrage of punches with my twin swords, trying my best not to sustain a direct hit.

    If I got hit even once by those fists, I wouldn''t just get away with a light injury. Broken bones, internal hemorrhaging and all that¡­and I still had four opponents to face after this. Well, never mind those four opponents, I had to focus on defeating the guy in front of me first.

    Ducking under a punch, I kicked him, but as I expected, his Iron Spirit absorbed most of the blow. That wasn''t why I kicked him, though. I used the force to propel me some distance away, keeping myself out of reach of his fists.

    "Coward!" Tie Quan snarled, advancing upon me. He realized that the clock was ticking, and that any time soon I would be able to summon Vermillion Phoenix. If he didn''t finish me off before then, he would stand no chance of victory.

    But I had yet another surprise up my sleeve.

    Completing my summoning spell, I conjured a few spirits that required a lot less time to summon. A pack of hunting hounds, and a few teddy bears materialized around me, almost like an army of stuffed animals.

    Tie Quan goggled at me, and then burst out laughing.

    "Are you seriously trying to fight me with those pathetic-looking stuffed animals? What are they supposed to do, cuddle me to death?"

    He was right about one thing, though. The Constellation spirits I had just summoned were much weaker than the four Stellar Guardians from the Chinese constellations. But in exchange, they were a lot quicker to summon, and I could call forth much larger numbers.

    "Canis Minor, Ursa Minor, go!"

    Not paying attention to my opponent''s taunts, I commanded them to attack. They moved out quickly, spreading out in an offensive formation to encircle and surround the enemy.

    Tie Quan snickered and he punched toward the first Canis Minor who lunged at him. However, the rest of them had also pounced on him, and they all clamped their jaws tightly over his metallic arms, dragging him down and slowing his motions. Thanks to that, his fist missed and my first Canis Minor was able to bite his face.

    "Fuck! Get off me!"

    Tie Quan flailed about wildly, trying to dislodge them. With a bellow, he stomped the ground and unleashed a shockwave that knocked them all back. A few of them disappeared, unable to endure the devastating blast, but the majority of them flipped over in midair and landed on their haunches, curling their lips back for a feral snarl.

    "Irritating buggers!"

    The next wave then came before he could finish cursing. The Ursa Minor, fewer in number than the Canis Minor, came at him from seven different directions. Tie Quan snorted in derision as they came forward, confident in his Iron Spirit to protect him.

    Bam!

    "Gah!"

    The first punch into his gut sent him doubling over. The next strike from a second Ursa Minor sent him toppling to his knees. His eyes widening in shock, he tried to roll away, avoiding the attack from the third Ursa Minor.

    His paw slammed into the ground, pulverizing concrete and leaving a crater.

    "Holy fuck¡­how?!"

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    Tie Quan spluttered in shock, his eyes bulging when he saw the actual damage and immense power from the Ursa Minor''s strike. They might resemble teddy bears, but their cute forms belied a fearsome strength.

    Scrambling away, Tie Quan was forced to block the punch from the fifth Ursa Minor, which sent him hurtling several meters away.

    "Gah!"

    Rolling to his feet, Tie Quan tried to distance himself away from my pack of terrifying teddy bears, but he had completely forgotten about me.

    Shin!

    "!!!"

    Blood spurted into the air as Tie Quan staggered, my twin swords cutting into his back. He twisted around and retaliated with a swing of his arm, but I danced out of his reach.

    "Despicable bastard! Attacking me from behind!"

    "Oh, the worst has yet to come," I assured him, and then got ready for yet another summoning spell.

 28 Chapter 28: Team Kill

    "You!"

    Tie Quan hollered madly as he tried to punch me. I retreated a few steps, but my Canis Minor and Ursa Minor took over to overwhelm him, pouncing on him and burying him under a pile of bodies. Tie Quan yelped and flailed about, but he was slowly being grinded down by the sheer weight of numbers.

    To be honest, I could have won even if I just left Tie Quan to my little Constellation spirits, but as my opponents had learned the hard way before, it never paid to underestimate the enemy. I wasn''t going to give Tie Quan the chance to recover or fight back ¨C he might have some hidden trump card or get-out-of-jail spell, like me.

    So while Tie Quan was distracted by my Constellation spirits, I completed my summoning spell and called Vermillion Phoenix into being.

    "Everyone, retreat!" I ordered. I needn''t have to, to be honest, since at my mental command, the whole pack of Canis Minor and Ursa Minor disappeared from existence. Tie Quan got up, dazed but also relieved that the onslaught was over.

    I hadn''t really done much damage to him, even with my Constellation spirits. His Iron Spirit remained mostly intact, but he was slowly being worn down by the constant attacks. Furthermore, even if the Ursa Minor''s claws couldn''t cut through his Iron Spirit, the tremendous impact behind their blows were dealing heavy internal damage.

    As it was, Tie Quan could barely get up. Not that I was going to let him.

    "No way¡­"

    Tie Quan''s eyes widened when he caught sight of my Vermillion Phoenix spreading its wings. With a single flap, it unleashed a torrent of flames and incinerated him.

    "Okay, stop!" Teacher Fielding shouted. "The match is over! Student Richard Huang has won!"

    I gently pulled my Vermillion Phoenix back with a mental tug, and the gigantic summoned beast responded by ceasing its attack. It proudly soared to the air and remained hovering there, casting its eyes toward the Iron Fist Society members in an intimidating manner.

    A few medics had to rush onto the stage and ferry Tie Quan''s charred body out of there. Even his Iron Spirit could not withstand the superheated flames¡­then again, it shouldn''t. Metal element was weak against fire element. Never mind that the difference in power was too great, but in fact it was probably overkill because of the elemental interactions.

    Fire beats Metal. Metal beats Wood. Wood beats Earth. Earth beats Water. Water beats Fire. This was the elemental interactions that governed the conflicts between types. If the level gap was high enough, you could obviously overcome the elemental weakness against a less skilled opponent, but generally the elemental type would confer upon you an advantage and disadvantage.

    Smiling, I turned toward the rest of the Iron Fist Society members.

    "Who''s next?"

    They all glanced at each other in dismay, not knowing how to respond. None of them seemed eager to go up against the majestic Vermillion Phoenix.

    "Team kill! Team kill! Team kill!"

    Apparently my fans were going wild over the sight of my summoning spell, and they were chanting excitedly. The first year students who worshipped me were anticipating yet another massacre. They were licking their chops as they slavered at the thought of another team-kill moment.

    Only now did the Iron Fist Society and the other second and third year students realized that my challenge to their entire team wasn''t a boast. I could really do it. Especially since I had the Celestial Guardians on my side.

    "Who''s next?" Teacher Fielding repeated, turning to the Iron Fist Society. "If you don''t decide soon, I''ll consider your decision as forfeiting the matches."

    "You go."

    "No, you go."

    "I¡­I have a stomachache. I can''t fight today."

    "Coward!"

    "Then what about you? Why don''t you go, since you''re so brave?"

    "I¡­well¡­I''m not at my peak condition today."

    "See? You''re also making excuses!"

    There seemed to be internal strife in the Iron Fist Society as they tried to pass the buck around.

    "I''ll give you a minute. If you still haven''t decided who will be the next duelist, then I''ll consider this as you forfeiting the rest of the matches." Teacher Fielding was getting impatient at their indecision, infighting and lack of courage.

    "Don''t forget. This means that your booth space will now belong to Dong Fang Yue Chu''s Great Eastern Society!" Alicia reminded them with a smile. I made a mental note to myself to change the name later¡­assuming that I won, of course.

    Even though it seemed like none of the remaining Iron Fist Society members had any confidence of beating a monster like my Vermillion Phoenix, I wasn''t going to take anything for granted. Lucky accidents could still happen.

    "Cowards!"

    "Hurry up and choose!"

    "What a pathetic society you are!"

    The audience began hurling abuses at the hesitating Iron Fist Society members. A good number of my fans were also taunting them, which made me feel a bit embarrassed. Damn, but I honestly didn''t want people to use my name to insult others.

    Also, I was beginning to feel sorry for the beleaguered Iron Fist Society members. Plus this was a pretty boring way to end the matches. I didn''t want to win by technicality. I wanted to roast them alive, after all the insults they put me through.

    "Why don''t you draw straws?" I suggested.

    "¡­good idea."

    "Let''s do that then."

    "While at it, we might as well draw for the remaining three members as well."

    The Iron Fist Society members were all nodding in agreement, pouncing on my suggestion and capitalizing on it. One of them began tearing a few pieces of paper apart, scribbled something into them, then rolled them up and stuck them in his fist.

    With that, the order of the next four fighters was decided.

    *

    "WOOHOO!"

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    "Another team-kill!"

    "Senior Richard is the best!"

    Less than fifteen minutes later, all four matches ended. Predictably, they ended in my favor, with my Vermillion Phoenix utterly destroying them with its humongous flames. The last member was lying on the ground, blackened to a crisp, while medics hurried onto the stage to cart him off. Again, if it wasn''t for the boundary field, they wouldn''t be alive.

    Most of the audience were dead silent, with the second and third years having unpleasant expressions on their faces. On the other hand, the first year students were whooping, screaming and cheering. Was it my imagination, or did the group where my "fans" were situation grow larger again? I could have sworn there weren''t that many of them at the start of the match¡­

    "Winner¡­Student Richard Huang!" Teacher Fielding announced, his voice neutral. He wasn''t allowed to take sides, so his voice wasn''t filled with as much gusto or enthusiasm as the first year students.

    "The Iron Fist Society''s booth space will be given to the Great Eastern Society, as per the agreement." Alicia also added to confirm. She nodded toward me with a bright smile. "Congratulations, Student Richard."

    "Thank you."

    I wasn''t able to exchange any more words because Dong Fang Yue Chu practically threw himself at me. I dodged on reflex, and watched in shock as he ended up sprawled on the ground before my feet.

    "Thank you very much!" he blubbered. The guy had actually been crying. "Thank you so much! You''ve saved me!"

    "Yeah¡­anyway, we ought to change the name of our society, if you don''t mind."

    "Anything! Anything for you, buddy!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was openly weeping. Feeling a little awkward, I helped him to his feet and offered him a few pieces of tissue. He wiped at his tears and blew his nose.

    "I owe you so much!"

    "Okay, okay. Anyway, let''s put that aside for now and start prepping our booth. We''ve quite the huge amount of space to cover."

    With the matches over, everyone was beginning to disperse. There was nothing more to watch, other than the sorry figures of the Iron Fist Society that I had just team-killed all by myself. Teacher Fielding was departing, having fulfilled his duties.

    "I''ll be going too," Alicia told me. "I also have to prepare for the Black Roses Society''s booth." She beamed. "You''re always welcome to drop by and say hello."

    "Oh, okay. Thanks."

    "Do come and say hi. Troy probably wants to talk to you as well." Alicia giggled. "No doubt he''ll want to challenge you to a duel soon enough."

    I gulped. Spare me. Troy King was probably the one person I didn''t want to face. That guy was a monster. I had no doubt he had a way to tear apart all of my summoned beasts with terrifying ease, even the four Celestial Guardians.

    After watching Alicia leave, I then accompanied Dong Fang Yue Chu to the remains of his booth. The fans who were cheering for me were approaching, but I had to tell them to return the next day, because we had nothing to show them.

    "Can''t we help?" Harvey Deng asked.

    "Nah, there''s nothing much to help." I glanced at the Iron Fist Society''s booth. "That''s their stuff. If they''re going to leave it here, then we''ll use it. Otherwise we''ll have to wait for them to take it away. Either way, there''s not much else we can do until that''s settled."

    "Oh, leave that to me," Dong Fang Yue Chu brightened. "I''ll make sure to handle the negotiations! I''ll pull in Black Roses Society as a mediator if necessary."

    "Okay. I''ll be counting on you then." I really didn''t want to deal with those sort of stuff, and I was glad Dong Fang Yue Chu was around to settle those affairs. Turning to the expectant first year students, I smiled. "It''ll help us more if you visit our booth tomorrow."

    "Yes, Senior Richard!"

    The first year students then dispersed. I watched them go, and then returned to repairing the broken pieces that the Iron Fist Society left in their wake earlier. Honestly, we only needed this amount of space, what with only two of us running the booth. On the bright side, I had eliminated an annoying neighbor that would be sure to harass us, or cause trouble.

    "All right, let''s get started¡­"

    "By the way, Richard." Dong Fang Yue Chu glanced at me while he was helping with the hasty repairs. "You said something about changing the name of our society. You don''t like the Great Eastern Society?"

    "Uh, well¡­not really."

    "Fair enough." Since I had helped him so much, Dong Fang Yue Chu took no offense. He was more grateful than annoyed. "Do you already have another name in mind, then?"

    "I actually do." I grinned conspiratorially. "It''s¡­"

 29 Chapter 29: Ultimate Outcas

    "What?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked impatiently, hating the prospect of being held in suspense. I grinned at him, and with an imaginary drum roll, made my declaration.

    "Ultimate Outcast."

    "¡­"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu stared at me silently. I began to regret the moment I let slip the name from my mouth. Whoops¡­I should have known. What kind of stupid name was Ultimate Outcast? Was I suffering from second middle school syndrome or something? Ah, damn¡­this was so embarrassing. I couldn''t believe that I allowed my inner child to take over for a moment. I was so ashamed of myself.

    "Sorry. Forget it. Let''s think of a better name¡­"

    "That''s amazing!" Dong Fang Yue Chu yelled, cutting me off before I could finish my sentence. I gaped at him, not believing what I was hearing. Before I could react, Dong Fang Yue Chu was grabbing my shoulders and shaking me excitedly. "That''s a great idea!"

    "Uh¡­really? I thought it was cheesy¡­"

    "Are you kidding? No, that''s an awesome name! That''s so much better than Great Eastern Society!" Dong Fang Yue Chu was practically drooling. "Ultimate Outcast Society. Oh, wow¡­the name is giving me shivers! It has so much more impact! It makes us sound so cool and strong! Just the name itself will get us a lot of new members tomorrow!"

    "I don''t know about that," I muttered under my breath. It dawned on me that Dong Fang Yue Chu was buying into this name precisely because he was a teenager. Of course they would love cool and strong-sounding names. It was the perfect wish-fulfilment title that allowed him to enjoy the illusion of power and coolness.

    "We''ll go with that!" Dong Fang Yue Chu was no longer listening to me. "I''ll make sure we get the name officially changed by today! From now onward, we''re the Ultimate Outcast!"

    Because I wore glasses, and used to be bullied? Now I needed to look for a master to teach me martial arts and hang out with his beautiful niece. Except that Dad already taught me martial arts, so there was no need for me to learn them from another person. Especially a dude who wanted eighty percent of my earnings.

    I watched Dong Fang Yue Chu run off toward the staff''s office, presumably to render the name change official. Then I began picking apart the broken pieces and setting up whatever I could. Hmm, the booth looked a little plain.

    Pushing my glasses up, I studied the sorry-looking booth for a moment, and an idea came to my head.

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    After sending Dong Fang Yue Chu a message by smartphone, I headed straight home, grabbed a pencil, an eraser and a sketchbook, and began scribbling something¡­

    *

    The next day, I posted my drawings all over the booth. They sucked, and were entirely in pencil ¨C no color, no inking, nothing ¨C but nonetheless I still put them up. It was better than nothing, otherwise our booth would look too plain.

    There was no time to bring them to a store, get a professional artist to color them, and print them out on canvas. So I just tore out the sketchbook pages and pasted them all over the booth.

    "You can draw manga stuff?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked as he gaped at my hastily hand-drawn pictures. "Since when?"

    "Have you seen the cover illustration for this story?" I asked, rolling my eyes. "I know my drawing skills are bad, but we''ve always been relying on manga art."

    "Hmm¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu observed the sketches, and then shrugged. "I guess this will do. People will go crazy over these if they realize you are the one who drew them."

    "Huh? Why would they?" I snorted. "Wouldn''t they be disappointed that my drawing skills suck?"

    "Never underestimate the passion of fans," Dong Fang Yue Chu told me sagely. "In fact, I bet someone would take them and color them for you."

    "Oh, really?" I wasn''t sure about that. After all, nobody bothered to color my cover illustrations on whatever writing websites I posted on, and everyone hated my art. Then again, I didn''t have fans, unlike the super-popular Bai Si Wa, who had a fanbase of thousands willing to support him on *******.

    I would be lucky if people don''t demand that I pay them to read my stories, never mind getting people to donate, Spirit Stones or otherwise. My writing was that bad. I lacked the talent to write a decent story, my grammar was atrocious, I was utterly incapable of character development, I resorted to clich¨¦ storylines and my plot was non-existent, my vocabulary was laughably limited, and I brought shame to the websites. That was what readers told me over and over again, either through reviews, comments, private messages or Discord.

    It got so bad that I was forced to delete my Discord account because readers would flood my channel with insults, abuse and threats, telling me to get rid of all my stories and leave the sites, or else. They probably had nothing better to do.

    "Yeah! Not only did you pull off two team-kills in a row, your ranking has jumped a bit!"

    "Oh, you''re right."

    I was checking my smartphone, and it appeared that Dong Fang Yue Chu was correct. After defeating five Iron Fist Society members yesterday, my ranking had rose by a couple of hundred places, and now I was in the nine hundreds. Obviously the friendly match against the Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy representatives didn''t count, which was why my ranking didn''t change even after I won against them, but the Iron Fist Society was most definitely part of our academy. Thus defeating them would earn me points for my matchmaking rating and propel me up the rankings.

    "At this rate, you''ll be the rising star of our Ultimate Outcast Society! All the first year students who adore you will definitely join us!"

    "Well, not all of them." I was under no illusions that the vast majority of them would consider their futures seriously and join one of the better societies. After all, the Ultimate Outcast Society was a newly formed club, and as such we didn''t have the prestige, standing and resources that the other societies had. It was only natural to join a society where you could develop your talent and skills, regardless of which society your idol was in.

    Besides, I knew I was just a fad. Once the initial excitement had died down, people would forget about me. Hell, most of them had already forgotten about me over the past week when I was inactive. It was only when I team-killed the Iron Fist Society that interest in me reignited again. And I doubted I would be doing that again.

    Let''s be honest. The Iron Fist Society was a mid-ranked club at best. If my opponent had been one of the four Great Societies, or perhaps even the vast majority of the mid-ranked societies, I would never have been so bold to challenge their entire team. Plus I just wanted to emulate Ip Man, which was the only reason why I asked for ten opponents.

    "In any case, the society will be relying on you to draw in members!" Dong Fang Yue Chu patted me in the back.

    "Sure." Even though I knew that the vast majority of the first year students wouldn''t allow my temporary ascension to blind them to the realities of training and combat, I was confident that several of my self-proclaimed fans would be delusional enough to join me. As mean as that sounded, I couldn''t afford to have qualms exploiting them, or our society would disband.

    Besides, it wasn''t as if they would suffer. Now that I was committed the Ultimate Outcasts Society, I was going to make sure we rise to the top and displace the four Great Societies.

    "Hello? Richard?" Dong Fang Yue Chu waved a hand in front of me. "Are you all right?"

    "Sorry. Getting distracted for a minute." I shook my head and forced myself to focus on the present. "What were you saying?"

    "It''s about to begin. The first year students are coming. Stay sharp!"

    Oh, right. For the next two days, lessons were cancelled so that the various societies in Jing Tian Magic Academy could recruit first year students, and so that the first year students could explore and find out about the myriad of societies in their new school.

    Choosing a society was an important decision, for it determined your prestige and the resources you would receive. The greater the society, the more resources it would receive, which it would split between its members. Obviously societies such as Black Roses Society and the Holy Saints Society would receive the bulk of monetary funding and other facilities from the academy.

    New societies like our Ultimate Outcasts Society would only receive a meager helping of the leftovers, but given how small our society was, and how little members we would potentially get, that was fine.

    Obviously, school funding wasn''t the only resources we received. Many societies relied on sponsors. Hence my statement earlier about why the status, prestige and standing of the society mattered a lot. If we wanted a good, generous sponsor, we needed to prove that they weren''t wasting their money on a bunch of braggarts. We needed to show results and rack up achievements. Interschool society tournaments, the individual rankings of the members, the missions we undertook and accomplished ¨C all these contributed to the prestige of our ranking. If we impressed people enough, they would be able to fund us as a sponsor, so we wouldn''t be overly reliant on the academy to provide us with the money we needed for training.

    "We need a clubroom," Dong Fang Yue Chu was murmuring to himself while he sat behind the booth, already drawing out a plan for the future. "A place where our society can meet up and train. Assuming we get about twenty recruits¡­we''ll need a big room."

    Wow, twenty was on the optimistic side. Realistically speaking, I predicted that we would only get three to four recruits at most. Just barely enough to stop our society from getting disbanded. That was a good number of first-year students who asked me which society I was in, but I doubted they would stupidly join the Ultimate Outcasts just because I was in there. Most likely they were assuming I was already in a prestigious society like the Black Roses. Probably because of the rumors regarding me and its president, Alicia Violet.

    Too bad they were going to be disappointed¡­

    "Don''t worry about the club room. I already have one we can use."

    Good thing Alicia provided me a personal training room, but I didn''t mind sharing it with the members of my society. It was getting a bit lonely training by myself, and I figured I would benefit a lot more by having someone to spar with daily, or to discuss magic spells and combat tactics. There was only so much a person could do on his own. I wasn''t the typical Lone Wolf protagonist, after all. I needed some help.

    "Really?"

    "Yeah, I''ll bring you to it after today''s recruitment stuff ends."

    "Okay!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu looked delighted and excited. His flurry of activities behind the counter increased even as the first wave of first year students began approaching the booths that were spread out all over the academy courtyard.

    "Here they come!" Dong Fang Yue Chu exclaimed, rubbing his hands in delight. I nodded and watched as the first year students dispersed, looking around and approaching the booths of the societies they were interested in. More and more, an increasing number of first year students flooded into the courtyard, chattering excitedly to themselves.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu watched them enthusiastically, only for his energy to slowly die down. An hour passed. Two hours passed. Then three.

    "¡­is it my imagination, or is no one visiting our booth?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked, despair creeping into his voice.

    "Maybe they''re just looking at other societies for now?" I guessed with a shrug, though I felt the same gloomy pessimism descend over me as the clock began to slowly wind down.

 30 Chapter 30: Fans

    Our darkest hour was near. Our society, which officially changed its name yesterday, was on the verge of being disbanded. We might still have one day left to recruit first year students, but from the look of things, the majority of first year students had already found a society they wanted to join. In other words, the chances of anyone wanting to join our society were decreasing¡­

    So much for asking me which society I was in. As I figured, they were expecting me to already be in a prestigious society, not in a new, struggling one.

    "We''re doomed!" Dong Fang Yue Chu wailed, clutching his head. He also realized that our chances of recruiting members would drop significantly the next day, especially since most of the students would already sign up for whatever societies they were interested in today. "We''re going to get disbanded!"

    With one guy whining, I felt obligated to be the optimistic one. "There''s still tomorrow," I reminded him, trying to suppress the panic in my heart. Forcing a smile, I glanced at the first year students who had gathered around the Holy Saints Society''s booth. And there was an even larger crowd around the Black Roses Society.

    I felt some pity for a lot of them. It wasn''t easy to get into the great societies. They were very stringent with their selection, and at the end of the day, the vast majority of them would be rejected. With the limited spots in the great societies, probably only a quarter of that number would get their wish. The rest would have to lower their standards a little.

    Turning to Dong Fang Yue Chu, I attempted a joke.

    "Hey, Yue Chu. You wouldn''t happen to have a loli cousin from your Assassin clan who would love to join our society, would you?"

    "Huh? What are you talking about?" Dong Fang Yue Chu gaped at me, not comprehending. Evidently he hadn''t been reading Battle Frenzy. "What loli cousin? And I''m not from the Assassin clan. Actually, what the hell is the Assassin clan? A clan full of assassins?"

    "¡­good question. I guess so."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu continued to stare at me blankly, and when I was unable to provide a sufficient answer, he snorted.

    "Never heard of them. To begin with, if they really are a clan of assassins, why would they show up in the open? Wouldn''t they¡­you know, hide under the shadows and away from the eyes of the public, or something?"

    "You''re right." That was the kind of vocation they were in, after all. That said, the term assassin was used these days to refer to a mage class that relied on stealth spells, and high-damage spells that would deliver an almost certain kill. Just like Albert Alain. "You sure you don''t have a cousin called Amelia or something?"

    "Are you all right?" Dong Fang Yue Chu was narrowing his eyes now. "You seem to have gotten delirious from our lack of success."

    "¡­never mind." I should have known we wouldn''t conveniently get a promising new member just like that. Reality wouldn''t distort and bend just to conveniently provide the protagonist with whatever he needs. I had to actually work for what I wanted. "I''ll go walk around and see if I can pull a few of the first year students in."

    There were a couple of clueless-looking first year students who seemed undecided. I might as well draw them over and hoped that they would find the idea of being an underdog society romantic and challenging. It wasn''t as if I could rely on a scenario where a super-powerful first year prodigy who was the top of his year would show up and join us. A particularly handsome one whose name was Grayson. Yeah, I wish.

    Unfortunately, before I could reach them, members from other societies reached the first year students and guided them to their booths, sharing with them passionately the details and history of their society.

    We don''t have any history, I realized. That was why we couldn''t draw anyone in. We were far too unknown, too precarious and risky. Not for ambitious, realistic first year students.

    Even so, I couldn''t give up. Not yet.

    I was about to venture out further in hopes of finding more stray first year students when I suddenly spotted Harvey Deng leading a couple of guys toward our booth. I stopped and waved at him, and he grinned and waved back.

    "Senior Richard!" he called out as he arrived at the booth. He glanced around, looking a little confused. "Where''s everybody?"

    "Everybody?" I echoed, confused. "Who is everybody? Ah¡­if you mean members, Dong Fang Yue Chu and I are the only members so far."

    "Oh, that''s not what I meant." Harvey was blinking as he looked around again. "I thought there would be more people visiting your booth."

    "I thought so too, but¡­eh, well¡­it is what it is."

    I shrugged flippantly, not daring to hope that we had just received the solution to our problem. After all, if Harvey really wanted to join my society, he wouldn''t come this late.

    As if he had read my mind, Harvey lowered his head sheepishly.

    "Sorry, we got sidetracked looking at all the other booths. There''s so many societies in Jing Tian Academy that we lost track of time. Before we knew it, it is already this late."

    Yeah, I already figured that out. The first year students were free to visit whatever booth they wanted. They had no obligation to look for me just because they proclaimed themselves to be my fans. I honestly didn''t care about that. Instead, I nodded and smiled.

    "So, have you already decided which society to join?"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu''s expression twisted a little when he heard my question, but he wisely didn''t say anything. He couldn''t. He knew as well as I did that we couldn''t just strong-arm first year students into joining us. Not only was it unethical, it would also give us a bad reputation.

    "Yeah!" Harvey beamed as he studied all my badly drawn sketches. "Oh wow¡­this is quite interesting. You''re a fan of manga and anime, Senior Richard?"

    "Yeah." There was no point hiding it. Dad''s influence had rubbed off on me, and now I was part of the inner circle of otaku fandom. "A big fan of Serizawa Shiro''s manga, as well as Aoki Aoi''s anime."

    The names obviously meant nothing to Harvey, but he just nodded. Behind him, his friends exchanged a glance. One of them grinned.

    "Me too! I love that recent anime that Aoki directed!"

    "Ah, Arinoah Zero? I like that too."

    "Yeah! The mecha designs were so cool!"

    "I should watch it too." Harvey was nodding. "I heard a lot of good things about it, but I''m more of a detective manga fan. Konan has been running for decades now."

    Behind the counter, Dong Fang Yue Chu''s jaw had dropped and he was watching us. He scowled.

    "Hey! The Great Middle Nation is also producing their own animation recently! Have you not watched anything from Tencents?"

    "Ah, I did. I''m a big fan of Spirit Fox Matchmaker." I nodded. "And also Yaoguai Mingdan."

    "Oh, wow! I watched those too!"

    "I''m more of a fan of the martial arts manhua on Tencents, though." Harvey smiled. "And the webnovels on Qidian."

    The third guy cleared his throat. "Um, so¡­I guess that means we should sign up?"

    "Oh, right!" Harvey broke out of his rambling and nodded excitedly. "Yeah, that''s what we''re here for. Don''t mind if we join?"

    "Of course not! By all means!" Dong Fang Yue Chu enthusiastically brought out his tablet and passed it to them, activating a holographic touch-screen that displayed the registry for our society. "You''ll be our very first members!"

    "I feel honored," the third guy murmured.

    "Hey, this is awesome. I didn''t think there would be a manga and anime society in Jing Tian Academy!" the second guy was practically drooling.

    "The ''Ultimate Outcasts'' ¨C that''s a really cool name!" Harvey was gaping at me. Then he frowned and stared at me. "Isn''t that the title of a martial arts webcomic?"

    "Oh, you''ve read it too?" I nodded. "I thought the name was awesome, so I took it. If they complain about copyright, then we''ll just change it to the Strongest Outcast, or the Greatest Outcast. Just swap one of the word and we should be fine."

    "Great. Oh, I should introduce my friends."

    I sort of knew them from the combat magic class ¨C I had seen the both of them. Even so, I still hadn''t memorized all of their names, so I was grateful for Harvey''s initiative. He was probably doing it for Dong Fang Yue Chu''s benefit, though.

    "This is Wang Fei." He gestured toward the second guy. "As you can see, he''s also a big fan of manga and anime."

    "I''m more of the sci-fi type, but lately I''ve been looking at isekai. Oh, and the youkai and yaoguai stuff too."

    Wang Fei bowed a little exaggeratedly. He was a bit on the plump side, and wore round-rimmed glasses. Mine were rectangular, so we had both shapes covered when it came to spectacles, which would make for a spectacle.

    "And the serious one is Stanley Lee."

    Harvey beckoned toward the third guy, who was the tall, handsome type. Not as good looking as Grayson, or as Mary Sue as him, but definitely better than average, especially when compared to the chubby Wang Fei and the plain me. No doubt Stanley would be very popular with girls.

    "You can just call me Stan." He offered us a hand and a bright smile. "I also enjoy manga, but not as much as Wang Fei¡­or you."

    "That''s fine. Everyone has their hobbies."

    "That''s true." Stan chuckled and leaned a bit closer, his eyes narrowing a bit. "I''m more interested in your ability, Senior Richard. I hope you''ll be able to offer me advice on summoning and combat."

    This guy¡­he was the competitive and ambitious type. It befuddled me why he would choose our little society over the other more well-renowned ones.

    "Uh¡­I hope you won''t be too disappointed. I really am not as good as they make me out to be. I''ve been mostly lucky for this year."

    "Heh." Stan clearly didn''t buy it. "Luck doesn''t win you ten matches in a row and get you two team-kills. Have more confidence in yourself, Senior. You''ll be fine."

    "Thanks¡­but I''ll just be honest." I didn''t want to lie to him, only for him to find out our society wasn''t all it was made out to be, and that my reputation was a lie. "If you really want to improve your combat or summoning spells, you''re actually better off joining one of the great societies¡­"

    "He tried," Harvey interrupted with an amused grin. "They rejected him."

    "¡­oh." I tried to cover up the awkward silence with a smile. "Don''t worry about it. We won''t reject you."

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    "Yeah! We''ll welcome all members, regardless of their rankings!" Dong Fang Yue Chu spread his hands dramatically. "We''re a haven for the outcasts!"

    "That we are," I agreed, without a trace of irony. "That we are."

 31 Chapter 31: Prestige

    Unsurprisingly, we didn''t get any new recruits the next day. Okay, that was an exaggeration. About three more first year students showed up near the end of the second day, begging us to let them join.

    The reason was pretty obvious. They had been rejected by the other societies, mostly because they were viewed as having no potential or talent, and thus not worthy of membership. In this way, our Ultimate Outcast Society literally became a society for the outcasts¡­the castaways, the exiled, and the rejects.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu didn''t seem to care about that, however, and was only too happy to accept the new members. To him, as long as we met the quota and had the minimum of five members, our club wouldn''t be disbanded. That was more than enough reason for him to accept anyone who wanted to join us.

    "We''re safe!" he exclaimed in joy. I forced a smile, not feeling as much enthusiasm. While I had no reason to reject the new members, I was a little worried about the future of our society. I wasn''t looking down on our new members, and I was sure they could prove the others wrong, but I was under no illusion as to what a difficult task that was.

    Honestly speaking, I couldn''t handle that. We needed to find a proper mentor, someone who could help us teach the new members how to fight. Hell, I needed a mentor as well¡­on the other hand, I had my Dad, so I wasn''t that worried about myself.

    "All students¡­the society exhibition has ended. All students are dismissed. Societies, please pack up your booths and make sure to clean up the area."

    "You heard them." getting into his role as the president, Dong Fang Yue Chu was happily directing our new first year students and getting them to dismantle and pack the booths. Of course I helped as well.

    It would set a bad precedent to slack off and leave the jobs to the first year students. As their senior and a founding member of our society, I had to do my part.

    The booths and materials for the society exhibition were provided by the school, so we just needed to return them to the staff, who directed us to a storage space in one of the back buildings. After we put away all the stuff in storage, I raised a hand.

    "Before you all go home, I should show you where our clubroom is."

    "Oh!" Dong Fang Yue Chu was looking really hyper. "At long last!"

    "Awesome!" Harvey was also staring at me in admiration, mistakenly believing that I had somehow secured the room by myself. Actually, it was given to me by Alicia when the Black Roses were sorting out their inventory.

    "Interesting." Stanley Lee nodded thoughtfully. "I assume it has training facilities?"

    "Yeah. I train there everyday. You''ll see."

    I led the strange procession of outcasts into the back building. When they saw where I was heading toward, they exchanged looks of trepidation. Except Harvey, of course, who remained shining with excitement.

    "Cool!" he exclaimed. "This seems like a secret base!"

    "Secret base my ass," Stan muttered. "More like a room nobody else wanted. We really are nothing but outcasts, are we?"

    "Why do you think our society is named as such?" I asked dryly. "But Harvey is correct. We will rarely be bothered by anyone, because hardly anybody comes here. We basically have almost the whole level to ourselves."

    In the past week of training, I realized that the building was practically deserted. Nobody came to this building, or even if they did, they didn''t head to the level we were at.

    Climbing the stairs, I reached the level where my personal training room was at. As I thought, it was deserted, but then again it had been a busy two days for the societies, and hardly anyone was going back to their clubroom after such a strenuous event. As I said, though, during the past week I was training here, I hadn''t seen anyone.

    Taking a mental note of that, I turned to Dong Fang Yue Chu.

    "If possible, we should ask the staff if we can make use of the entire level as our society''s clubroom."

    "Eh? Okay, leave it to me!"

    That wasn''t strange, to be honest. The great societies such as the Black Roses and Holy Saints had entire buildings to themselves. The larger societies that were just under them in the hierarchy had several entire levels dedicated to their club activities. Even the smaller ones could afford to have a level or several rooms for their training and other purposes.

    However, for a club just starting out like ours¡­

    "This is better than I expected."

    Stan''s voice cut through my thoughts as he entered the room I had been using alone for the past week. Harvey and Wang Fei gaped at the state-of-the-art training facilities and elegant interior that stood out in contrast against the gloomy exterior.

    "Amazing¡­"

    "Whoa! This really is a secret base!"

    "I guess you can call it that," I agreed with a laugh. Then I turned to face the whole society, which currently consisted of eight members. "Now that you know where our clubroom is, you can start reporting for club activities here, from tomorrow onward!"

    *

    After what seemed like a promising start, I was brought back down to earth the next day when Dong Fang Yue Chu approached me with bad news.

    I was in the middle of sparring with Stan. Unlike Harvey, who was a swordsman, Stan was a gunslinger. He was wielding dual pistols and firing off energy projectiles at me. I dodged them as quickly as I could, summoning my Gemini twin swords to deflect them.

    "Tch!"

    Stan clicked his tongue and fired off a rapid series of shots. His guns were blazing faster now, apparently because he had finally finished casting an acceleration spell.

    I sprinted across the ring, staying just a couple of steps ahead of Stan''s shots, and then wove through his firing pattern. Suddenly I feinted to the left, luring Stan to shift his aim. His shots went wild, especially when I abruptly changed direction and dashed from the right, taking him by surprise.

    "Gah!"

    Stan threw down his pistols and grabbed a gatling gun. Its rotary barrels spun around rapidly, getting ready to fire an unending stream of high-velocity energy projectiles that would tear me apart if I allowed them to hit me.

    Unfortunately, Stan made a fatal error. He had hoped to lure me in so that he wouldn''t miss with his most powerful gun, but he had underestimated the time needed to charge and fire it. Even if he didn''t, I could have easily dodged it anyway.

    As it was, before he could fire off a single shot with his big gun, I kicked the barrel away. Stan staggered, caught off guard, and I pressed Castor''s black blade to his throat.

    "Good job," I told him. "But that was a fatal mistake. The gatling gun is too slow. If you want to use it at close range, you need to have it already charged up. You would have done better if you stuck to your pistols."

    "I still couldn''t hit you!" Stan complained, his frustration evident on his slightly handsome features.

    "Yeah¡­another thing you might want to learn against a moving target is anticipation. Don''t just shoot at where you see him. Try to predict my movements, where I would go to, and fire at that spot ahead of time."

    "¡­oh!" Stan''s eyes widened and he nodded. "Thank you. Shall we try again?"

    Before I could agree, Dong Fang Yue Chu stepped into the training room, looking aghast.

    "Bad news," he told me grimly. "I couldn''t get the level booked for our Ultimate Outcasts Society."

    "Why?" I was genuinely curious. "Are they already claimed by other societies?"

    That would make sense, given how this room originally belonged to the Black Roses Society. I wouldn''t be surprised if the rest of the rooms on this level were still under the ownership of the Black Roses Society.

    "No, they are free. But that isn''t the problem." Dong Fang Yue Chu gritted his teeth. "The problem is that we don''t have enough prestige."

    "Prestige?" Harvey parroted as he came over with Wang Fei, the two of them training at another corner of the room. "What''s that?"

    "You know, like how the Black Roses Society is one of the four Great Societies?"

    The six first-year students nodded, all of them gathering around Dong Fang Yue Chu. He sighed heavily.

    "Prestige is like¡­a currency, I guess? The greater the standing or rank or status of our society, the more prestige we have. Right now, we''re considered a new, beginner club, so we don''t have the same privileges that other societies with a longer history and more achievements do."

    "How do we earn prestige?" Stan questioned, to the point as ever.

    "Ranking battles." Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded. "Your Senior Richard over there already helped us gain a bunch of prestige points after he team-killed the Iron Fist Society. So we''re actually doing very well for a newly started society. However¡­" he swept his gaze across the six first-year students gathered in front of him.

    They stared at him expectantly.

    "¡­you should be seeing how ruthless this school can be. Once the Protection Period is over, all the seniors will target you first-year students. Unless you can win, you''ll most likely lose to them and lose the prestige points we''ve accumulated so far."

    Right. I had mentioned this before, having been a victim of this last year. The second and third years often resorted to targeting the freshly enrolled first year students before they had any measure of combat experience and beat them up in order to improve their own rankings. Of course, this wouldn''t just affect the individuals'' rankings but also the prestige of the society they were in.

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    Fortunately there was a Protection Period where none of the second or third year students were allowed to challenge the first year students during the first month of their first semester. However, about a week had passed since school started, which meant there was only three weeks of the Protection Period left.

    This was not looking good. Especially if the seniors of Jing Tian Academy began their newbie-hunting once it turned February, it was very possible that we would lose a bunch of prestige points after a series of defeats.

    However¡­

    "Don''t worry. Leave the earning of prestige points to me. The rest of you should just focus on training, and do your best if you get challenged next month. Don''t worry about the results, just learn from each battle. Winning or losing isn''t important. What''s important is you learning from those fights and making use of them to become stronger."

    Again, those admiring gazes. Bloody hell, were they taking my word as the Gospel or something?

    "What do you intend to do?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked a little hesitantly. "Are you going to challenge all the other second and third years, and defeat them to earn as much prestige points as possible over the next three weeks?"

    "Oh, no." I shook my head and grinned slyly. "There are other ways of earning prestige points, and I''m thinking of trying them out."

 32 Chapter 32: Mission

    "Are you sure about this?"

    The administrative clerk stared at me incredulously. I shrugged and nodded.

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    "Yeah, I am. I want to take this mission."

    The clerk sighed and shook her head as she read through the mission details on her tablet, and compared it against my record. She then looked up and fixed me with a stern stare. "This is your first time taking a mission, correct?"

    "Yeah." I nodded, wondering what the holdup was. I had deliberately selected the lowest-ranked combat mission available, but it seemed that the school administrative clerk was still dissatisfied with my application.

    Well, it was only natural. Even the lowest-ranked combat missions were extremely dangerous. Unlike controlled environments such as arenas, where an active boundary field kept the duelists alive no matter what sort of serious injuries they sustained, we had no luxury in the real world. There were many cases of students overextending themselves and getting killed in the battlefield, especially those reckless and complacent students who thought monster hunting was a game.

    Consequently, the type of combat missions available to us were highly restricted. I didn''t choose the lowest ranked one solely because I wanted to, but also, quite frankly, I wasn''t allowed to take any other combat missions. Students were very limited as to what kind of combat missions they can apply for, especially those who were taking them for the very first time.

    However, as mages who were being trained to fight monsters, the academy couldn''t possibly bar us from taking combat missions. We needed to get experience from somewhere. To minimize deaths and casualties, the magic academies tended to leave only the lowest-ranked combat missions open to us. After all, there was no shortage of monsters. Often an Emergence event would open up somewhere and unload a bunch of monsters. Many of them were weak enough for amateur mages to deal with on their own, as the professional or graduated mages would have their hands full fighting the stronger types of monsters.

    That was why I thought I wouldn''t have any problem having my request accepted.

    "Uh, is there a problem? I mean, this is an E-rank mission, right?"

    Fortunately, even the lowest-ranked combat missions provided a tremendous amount of prestige points and rewards ¨C more than enough to get us the entire level, plus some cash on the side. Obviously I would be keeping the monetary reward for myself, since the prestige points would secure us additional funding.

    Obviously, the high amount of rewards entailed the huge risk involved. If I wasn''t careful, I might end up dead in the battlefield. Needless to say, that wasn''t going to help anybody. Dad would get some compensation, but he definitely would prefer me alive.

    The administrative clerk shook her head.

    "No, there is no problem. It''s just that¡­" she glanced at the space behind me. "You''re the only one?"

    "Yeah."

    "¡­against a swarm of monsters? I know they are classed as the weakest monsters, but even so, you''re going on this mission alone?"

    "Yeah."

    I now understood the administrative clerk''s hesitation. Most amateur mages would participate in parties. There was strength in numbers, and in case anything happened to me or I got injured, I would have allies who could cover for me and pull me out of combat before I died. Not only that, a team working together would cover for the individuals'' weaknesses and synergize to amplify their strengths beyond the sum of the members'' power. By several times.

    For an amateur like me, who was participating in a combat mission for the very first time, going at this alone was the height of recklessness. Perhaps, if I was more experienced, and had already accomplished several combat missions, it would be normal for me to be confident on taking a mission like this on my own.

    However¡­

    "¡­well, I couldn''t find any appropriate party members."

    That was true, at least. None of the first year students were allowed to participate in combat missions, or I would already have done so last year. And they weren''t ready yet, in any case, not with only a couple of weeks'' worth of training. The only person who could participate in this mission, theoretically, was Dong Fang Yue Chu, but for obvious reasons I couldn''t rely on him. He wasn''t the combat type.

    "I''m a summoner anyway, so I''ll summon my own party members."

    The look on the clerk''s face told me that the reason wouldn''t fly. She sighed and consulted her holographic screen again.

    "I''ll assign you to a party." She paused as she scrolled down the touchable holographic screen with her fingers. Then she nodded when she found what she was looking for, and stopped there. "There is another party who wants to take this mission. I''ll group you together. Give me a second, I''ll email you their details and contact information."

    "Yes, ma''am."

    I glanced at my smartphone, which then projected a holographic screen to display the recently received email. Skimming through the names, I thought I recognized them. They were all from the Black Roses Society. Two girls, one named Lavender Ling and the other Daisy Dallas. Two guys, Bei Pan Zhe, and Dan Xiao Gui.

    "¡­"

    Just looking at the names of the two guys already gave me a bad feeling. But Ultimate Outcast Society needed the prestige points, so I had to bear with it. The monetary rewards, on the other hand, would be lessened since it would be divided equally among the group, or so I thought, until the clerk passed me a device.

    "This is your mission logging device." She gestured toward my glasses. "Attach it to your glasses and it''ll record the mission so that it will automatically submit a report."

    "Understood." I placed the device on my glasses, and it immediately melted, turning into countless nanobots that sank into the frame of my glasses and reconstructed it. Immediately, a head''s up display materialized on my lenses, along with a myriad of sensors, optical enhancement features and other functions.

    Wow¡­as I said modern technology was literally magic to someone like me, who originated from the twenty-first century.

    "Thanks."

    "Don''t thank me yet." The clerk waved me away dismissively. "Go meet your new party." She consulted her screen. "They should be here any moment now."

    As it turned out, I had to wait about fifteen minutes before they showed up. None of them seemed pleased to see me, but academy rules stipulated that they couldn''t just kick me out without a valid reason. And "not liking him" was not a valid excuse to expel me from their party. Normally I would just find an excuse and quit, but I really needed the prestige points, so I decided to patiently bear with them.

    "Isn''t that the guy¡­the one President Alicia likes?"

    "I don''t understand why she likes him¡­he looks like a total loser."

    "Well¡­he did team-kill both the Crowley Academy''s representatives and the Iron Fist Society within a week¡­"

    "The first one was a fluke, and the Iron Fist Society are a bunch of weaklings. But I''ve seen him fight. He should be useful."

    The girls, in particular, seemed to hate me with a passion. Evidently they were upset about Alicia Violet paying some attention to me. As I said, there were quite a few unpleasant rumors floating around regarding Alicia''s relationship with me, most of them completely untrue. That didn''t stop the girls from hating me because of it.

    The guys seemed more amicable, especially since they witnessed my match against two teams, where I went solo and still team-killed them both. Dan Xiao Gui extended a hand to me. I shook it politely.

    "You know what the mission is, right?" Bei Pan Zhe asked, taking command. I nodded, but he went on to explain anyway. "We''ve been asked to rescue a group of refugees from a pack of monsters north of Jing Tian City. They are refugees from Bi Nan Village, but an Emergence event occurred right outside their village, and now they are fleeing and seeking shelter from our city."

    Evidently he was the leader, especially from the way the others kept quiet and listened to him. I wisely did the same and watched as he drew a deep breath.

    "And since there are children among the refugees, we have been asked to minimize any danger that would result from our rescue. I am aware that this is a combat mission, but the request stipulates that we avoid the pack of monsters as much as possible."

    I nodded silently. That was one of the reasons why I picked this mission. Without a party of my own, and being forced to go solo, I had thought it best to participate in a "combat" mission where the conditions were to avoid combat with monsters as much as possible. If the mission had required me to hunt down all the monsters, I would most likely have refrained from applying for it.

    "Unfortunately, the pack of monsters are roaming around the route between Bi Nan Village and Jing Tian City, and their numbers are enormous. So we have no way of avoiding them, unless¡­"

    He trailed off, and exchanged a few glances with his group. Especially the girls, who looked at him meaningfully. I caught the exchange, but I didn''t understand the meaning behind it. Rather, I was more focused on the mission at hand.

    "You need someone to cause a diversion," I guessed uncertainly. "So while half of the group distracts the monsters, the other half will lead the refugees to safety."

    "No, not half." Bei Pan Zhe leaned closer. "Only you."

    "¡­huh? Only me? To do what?" my mind churned as I tried to digest what I had just heard. "To cause the diversion?"

    "That''s right." Bei Pan Zhe glanced at the two girls, who were smiling for some reason. "I need you to act as bait to lure the monsters away¡­I mean, to cause a diversion, as you said. Do you have a problem with that?"

    "Hey, wait a second." Dan Xiao Gui raised a hand. "You''re asking Richard to lure the monsters away on his own?"

    "Against a number of monsters from a pack of that size, we''ll need everybody we can get to protect and escort the refugees. We''re already stretched pretty thin, and we can''t afford to provide more support, not unless we want to weaken our defense." Bei Pan Zhe raised an eyebrow. "Unless you''re volunteering to be part of the diversion alongside Student Richard?"

    "Uh¡­no¡­" True to his name, Dan Xiao Gui turned pale and shook his head fearfully. "I''m not good with monsters."

    Then why was he participating in this mission? I glanced at him, but he refused to meet my gaze.

    "How many monsters are there, exactly? The mission packet didn''t state the exact number, but do you have an idea?" My question was valid. Bei Pan Zhe seemed to be talking as if he already had a rough estimation in mind.

    "It''s¡­quite large."

    I rolled my eyes at his flimsy attempt at evading my question. "Do you have a rough estimate?"

    "A¡­about¡­"

    "Doesn''t matter, does it?" Lavender cut in suddenly. She glared at me. "Your job is to lure them away. We''ll come back you up once we''ve safely escorted the refugees to Jing Tian City."

    "Really?"

    "We are? Oh yeah! Of course we are!" Bei Pan Zhe forced out a laugh. I stared at him intently, worried by his reaction.

    "We''re wasting time here," Daisy added. "Every second we dawdle around, the refugees will be in greater danger. Let''s go."

    "You''re right. If there are no other questions, we leave immediately." Bei Pan Zhe turned away and led the way.

    I actually had a whole list of burning questions in my mind, but it appeared that I wouldn''t be getting the answers, not from these guys anyway.

 33 Chapter 33: Diversion

    Being a third-year student, Bei Pan Zhe actually had a license. He was able to drive us there in a car. The five of us had ample space in his vehicle, and it didn''t take us long before we reached the convoy of refugees. It would have been faster, had Bei Pan Zhe not needed to make a detour. With the pack of monsters being between us and the refugees, he had taken the long way around and swung about once he was sure we were out of sight and hearing of the monstrous horde, approaching the convoy from the opposite direction.

    Most of them were on foot, having come from a relatively poor village where they couldn''t afford cars and the like. I could see lines of terrified children being protectively shepherded by their worried parents, who were frequently glancing over their shoulders to ensure that the monsters hadn''t caught up to them yet.

    "They''re close," Daisy informed us after casting a reconnaissance spell. Having taken up position in the passenger seat at the front, she had entered her meditative state ever since we had left the relative safety of Jing Tian City. She was keeping her eyes closed as she radiated a trace amount of magical energy, extending her senses to cover several miles. "The pack of monsters are about two kilometers south of us, and closing in. I don''t think they have picked up the refugees'' scent yet, but they will inevitably find them at this rate."

    While Bei Pan Zhe kept his eyes on the road, Dan Xiao Gui and Lavender exchanged glances. I wasn''t sure what passed between them, but my intuition was insisting that something was amiss. I had to focus on the mission first, though.

    "We''ll be counting on you then, Student Richard." Bei Pan Zhe braked and hauled his car to a stop. I nodded and pushed the door open, filing out with the rest.

    "That way." Daisy opened her eyes, and stepped out of the passenger seat to point me toward the right direction.

    "Okay." I sucked a deep breath into my lungs. Forcing a calm I didn''t feel, I queried. "How long do you need to evacuate the refugees?"

    "¡­"

    "¡­"

    None of them answered me. None of them could meet my gaze.

    "Thirty minutes? An hour?" I glanced in the direction of the city. The great walls and magical barrier were within sight, so it shouldn''t take that long. That said, we had children and the elderly here, many of whom were moving on foot, so I should probably be generous with my estimate.

    "Uh¡­"

    "Who cares?!" Lavender snapped angrily. "Quit wasting time and go already! Or do you want the monsters to find us?!"

    "You do realize that you''re asking me to risk my life for an extremely dangerous task by myself, right?" I countered, keeping my voice level. "Why don''t you be the diversion instead? I don''t mind dropping out of the mission and forfeiting the rewards if that lets me do things my way."

    Furthermore, my glasses had a recording device that helped to log the mission. Everything would be recorded and submitted to the academy for evaluation later. I could later argue that my teammates were treating me unfairly.

    "You¡­!"

    "Now, now." Bei Pan Zhe raised his hands. "Junior Richard has a point." He turned to me. "Once the refugees are safely in the city, I''ll let you know."

    "All right." I made sure to get his number before I turned to leave. "Take care of the refugees. Please leave the monsters to me."

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    I was trying not to let my anxiety show, but my voice trembled ever so slightly. If they had noticed it, they didn''t say anything.

    Two kilometers south. I jogged toward the south, the lenses in my glasses having an inbuilt compass that showed me the way. I was still feeling slightly apprehensive about the task, but the lives of so many refugees were dependent on me. I could count at least a couple hundred of non-combatants evacuating from Bi Nan Village.

    Even so, to ask me to lure such a large number of monsters away all by myself¡­not to mention, I still didn''t know the exact number and disposition of the monsters.

    It''ll be all right, I told myself.

    I didn''t need to slay all the monsters. I just needed to attract their attention and divert them away. The stronger seniors could get rid of the monsters later. My team, theoretically, should return and assist me in completing the mission after ensuring the safety of the refugees.

    All I needed to do was keep running and stay in contact. I had my smartphone and I told Bei Pan Zhe to leave the GPS function on. They should be able to track me down once they were done with their task. And since I was on foot and they had a car, they should be able to catch up to wherever I was in short order.

    Continuing down the path Daisy had directed me, I moved down through a trail between the trees, trekking through the forest and eventually finding myself climbing up a cliff. I had yet to run into any monsters thus far, but I was sure it wouldn''t be long until now.

    The counter in my glasses read two kilometers and twenty-three meters. About fifteen minutes had passed since I separated from the group. I had been going south this entire time, so unless my glasses were malfunctioning, I should be¡­

    While thinking that, I reached the edge of the cliff and cautiously peered below.

    I froze.

    I understood now why Bei Pan Zhe had hesitated to tell me the estimated number of monsters. I also understood why Lavender didn''t let him tell me.

    There were at least a few hundred F-rank monsters and a few dozen E-rank monsters. The weaker F-rank monsters were Phantoms, humanoid monsters without a definite shape. Their intangible forms seemed to swirl and shift, never solidifying. Soulless and eternally hungry, they would scrounge the area they emerged in for victims to gorge on. Taking on the appearance of the stereotypical gray, faceless and featureless ghosts that would look at home in haunted houses, these seemingly insubstantial monsters were far from human. From what I had read, individually, they did not pose much of a danger.

    However, Phantoms never move alone. They were always in packs, and in an enormous pack like this, they were more than a challenge.

    The E-rank monsters were much stronger than F-rank monsters, and I recognized the rabid wolf-like beasts with razor-sharp claws and teeth from holographic illustrations. They were called Ravagers, and for good reason. Patches of red, raw muscles contrasted with the thick, black fur that covered their muscular bodies, and their abdominally strong jaws snapped repeatedly like steel traps, drool flying from them. They were extremely strong and fast, probably much faster even when compared to wolves from centuries ago, and a thousand times deadlier. Their gleaming, metallic claws, were capable of ravaging a centimeter-thick sheet of steel, which was what gave them their names. They were often seen tearing apart the shells of abandoned vehicles like a can opener. In fact, the dozens-strong pack of Ravagers was far deadlier than the hundreds of Phantoms that surrounded them.

    Fortunately for me, these were the two weakest rank of monsters, as classified by humans. As always, the classification and categorizations of humans were always arbitrary, and reality was a lot more complex than that. An F-rank monster didn''t necessarily mean it would lose to an E-rank monster ¨C some of them were faster than their E-rank counterparts, even if they lacked the brute force. There were many cases of monsters flitting in and out of both ranks. But they were still somewhat useful to help me assess the rank of my enemies.

    Right now, the classification was useless to me. It didn''t matter that they were F-rank or E-rank, it didn''t matter if that they were the two weakest ranks ¨C right now there were so many of them that it was impossible for me to take them all down by myself.

    "I''ll just have to wait and survive until backup arrives," I grumbled. If backup ever arrives. Frowning, I pushed that ominous thought out of my head. Why wouldn''t backup arrive? Bei Pan Zhe gave me his word. There was no reason to distrust him and the rest of my party. Even though I had only met them for the first time today, they were still my schoolmates. We were all from the same academy. There was no reason not to suspect them. Furthermore, our mission was being recorded and logged. They wouldn''t be stupid enough to pull a stunt like betrayal off, right?

    They will come for me once they brought the refugees to safety. I had to believe in them.

    Speaking of refugees, the monsters were clearly moving in the direction of the refugees, and at a greater speed than the slow, almost strolling children and elderly who were exhausted. The monsters clearly had more stamina, and would intercept the convoy before they could reach Jing Tian City. I couldn''t allow that to happen.

    It wasn''t just for humanitarian reasons, though I had to admit that I like being a hero.

    This is also for the prestige points, I reminded myself. We only had two or three weeks left before the Protection Period ended, and the prestige points would plummet the moment the second and third years began picking on our first year members. I needed the prestige points to reserve the whole level in that back building for my new Ultimate Outcast Society.

    For that reason, I was going to put up with this, and take the plunge.

    Taking a deep breath, I raised my hands and began waving at them.

    "Hey, ugly!" I yelled at the top of my voice. The Phantoms and Ravagers stopped their moaning, growling and pacing to turn in my direction. "Yeah, that''s right! I''m talking to all of you!"

    The Ravagers began growling at me, their lips peeling back to reveal their dagger-like teeth. The Phantoms'' moaning intensified and they glided restlessly in my direction.

    "That''s right!" I beckoned them toward me. "Over here! You''re hungry, aren''t you?!"

    This should distract them for a bit. Already the monsters had stopped, altering their trajectory toward the convoy to turn and growl at me. I smiled, feeling a bit relieved. Every second I bought counted. And the cliff was affording me some advantage. As long as I stayed up here, the creatures below couldn''t possibly¡­

    My jaw dropped when the monsters began scaling the cliff. The Phantoms floated along the wall of the cliff, unaffected by gravity, while the Ravagers bounded up the steep slope with a dexterity that defied all natural laws. I swallowed hard as I watched the menacing sight sweep toward me like a rolling, writhing carpet of living nightmares.

    Breathing deeply, I slowly backed away from the dreadful scene, making sure I remained within their sight for as long as possible. Steeling my resolve, I calmed my breathing and turned around.

    Then I took off as fast as I could, sprinting away from the cliff as if a thousand demons were chasing me¡­well, they were, actually.

 34 Chapter 34: Monster Hunter

    I didn''t stop running until a single Ravager finally caught up, pouncing on and knocking me to the ground.

    "Kuh!"

    Grunting as I twisted around to grapple with the Ravager, I desperately fought to keep its snapping jaws from reaching me. The Ravager ferociously pressed in, its slavering jaws trying to take a bite out of my face, its hot, foul breath causing me to gag. I grimaced when several drops of drool splattered onto my cheek.

    "That''s disgusting!" I cried and kicked the Ravager with such force that it was flung off. It sailed through the air for a moment before crashing into several of its brethren and unfortunate Phantoms that happened to be leading the rest of the pack.

    I wiped my face with the sleeve of my uniform jacket before glancing at the advancing horde. As I did so, I caught a glimpse of the chronometer at the edge of my glasses'' lenses. Apparently I had been running for about an hour.

    Wait¡­what? An hour?!

    Shaking my head, I double-checked the time briefly, but the numbers did not change. I must have lost track of time while running. Thanks to Dad''s training, I had great stamina, so I could run for an hour without slowing down. I was still breathless and tired, though, so I seized the chance to recover my breath before the monsters lunged at me again.

    Those guys had been running for an hour as well, so they were just as exhausted as me. Fortunately for me, they had also paused to catch their breath, or to recover after I had kicked their leader right back at them, breaking their lines.

    Instinctively, I reached for my smartphone. My GPS was still activated, and I was sure that Bei Pan Zhe and the rest should have escorted the refugees to safety by now. Yet, when I thumbed the speakerphone and dialed his number, the call refused to connect. There seemed to be a signal, so the problem was most likely on the other end.

    "Why isn''t he picking up?" I murmured to myself, feeling frustrated. I was relying on them for backup, and if they didn''t arrive soon, I would be torn apart by the huge numbers of monsters. I could probably run for a few more minutes at most, my stamina having been depleted by my hour-long run earlier. I probably couldn''t escape any further.

    I had no choice but to make my stand here.

    Craning my neck, I peered behind the horde of monsters, my glasses automatically magnifying images in the distance. Try as much, I could see no sign of any backup coming. My GPS was still active, broadcasting my location, but my calls weren''t getting true. It was as if Bei Pan Zhe was deliberately hanging up on me.

    What''s going on?

    "Gr¡­"

    The Ravager''s growl brought me back to the present. In front of me, the Ravager I had just kicked, and the rest of its brethren that I had knocked over like bowling pins, were rising to their feet, having completely recovered.

    "¡­fuck." I tried to force my rising panic down. Taking a deep breath, I gritted my teeth. "Looks like I''m on my own."

    The Ravagers howled, their voices filled with violent bloodlust, as they began sprinting toward me. The Phantoms glided closer, reaching out with their formless hands, as if to grab me. I involuntarily took a step back, but steeled myself for the coming conflict.

    "Gemini," I intoned. Twin flashes of light burst through the clearing before intensifying onto my fingers. Twin swords instantly materialized in my hands, one black and one white. Adopting a defensive stance, I pointed Castor and Pollux toward the approaching Ravagers and Phantoms while the adrenaline rushing through my system overrode my fear.

    Without waiting, I began dashing toward the demons the same moment they lunged at me. Swinging my twin swords, I cut a swathe of destruction through the howling and moaning monsters, thinning the horde. Four Phantoms went down, their formless figures cut apart into ribbon-like wisps. A single Ravager fell, whining as blood spurted from a huge gash that separated its body into two. Spinning around, I sliced through another Ravager and a few other Phantoms, my short but razor-sharp twin swords whirling around like a deadly tornado and dissecting their victims with deadly precision.

    I shouldn''t have run for so long. Normally three minutes were more than enough for me to summon Vermillion Phoenix or one of the other Celestial Guardians, but I had been too busily running. Furthermore, I had to remain within the same area to complete the casting. Since I had been running nonstop for about an hour, I had constantly moved out of whatever effective range of the area where I could complete the interdimensional gate used to call forth the Celestial Guardians into existence.

    Simply put, if I wanted to summon a creature, I had to make sure I remained within about a hundred or so meters from the location where I began casting the summoning spell. In an arena, that wasn''t a problem because it was a small, restricted area, and there wasn''t any chance I could wander out of the boundaries set by the summoning spell, not unless I was thrown out of the ring (which would mean my defeat in any case).

    When I was coming home from school the other day, I had begun casting my summoning spell the moment the bus reached within a hundred meters of my house. That was why I didn''t immediately summon Vermillion Phoenix immediately when I alighted. I had to complete the summoning spell while running toward my house, and it was a pretty close shave. If I had been just ten seconds slower, and the timing had been off, I would have been caught by those kidnappers.

    Out here, in the wild, however, it didn''t matter. My running had meant that I covered a few kilometers of distance, and so I was never in one place to complete my summoning spell. I could only begin right now.

    So before I brought out my big guns, I had to make do with my Constellation magic. Which, to be fair, was more than holding its own against the pack of monsters.

    I danced a deadly tango with dozens of different partners, all of whom ended in pieces after a brief exchange. Dancing to a tune only I could hear, I weaved through my surrounding posse of overly enthusiastic audience, my swords darting out to a mysterious beat and plucking the life-strings from the monsters'' hearts. More of them fell at my feet, blood flowing freely from grievous wounds as they paid for witnessing my performance with their lives.

    However, as the battle dragged on, I was beginning to tire. I was already slightly exhausted from running for about an hour earlier, so my stamina was not at its peak. Panting, I channeled magical energy into both swords and swung them both in opposite arcs.

    "Castor! Pollux!"

    Twin waves of energy, one black and one white, blasted out in a 360 degree circle around me and decimated nearby monsters. The rest of the horde was blown back by the impact, which earned me a small reprieve.

    "Huff."

    I heaved as I knelt down from exhaustion. Despite taking down dozens of monsters, there were still hundreds of them lurking in the shadows, ready to pounce on me. Right now, while I was winded, they were emerging into the open, taking advantage of my current moment of vulnerability.

    Fortunately, I had finally finished my summoning spell that I had begun ever since I stopped in this clearing. To counter this almost endless tide of monsters, I had to call forth an army of my own.

    Closing my eyes, I concentrated and channeled my magical energy into a single summoning spell to complete it.

    "Canis Minor! Ursa Minor! Corvus!"

    All around me, a dozen hunting hounds, seven teddy bears and an entire flock of black crows materialized. The dogs growled ferociously, baring their immense teeth at the Ravagers and Phantoms. The teddy bears marched forward, their cute, furry forms belying their incredible strength. The crows soared above, screeching deafeningly as they streaked toward their targets.

    Just in time too.Any later, and I would be overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of monsters. Even though my army of Constellation spirits were still somewhat outnumbered, I had succeeded in evening the odds.

    They would buy me enough time to summon a bigger summoned monster, at the very least. If necessary.

    I charged into the fray, assaulting the disarrayed and beleaguered monsters along with my aggressive canine and cuddly army. While I cut into a crumbling line of Phantoms and Ravagers with my Gemini twin swords, the Canis Minor and Ursa Minor tore into the majority of the horde, ripping them into shreds with their claws and teeth, or pulverizing them with their superior strength. A Canis Minor tore the throat out of a nearby Ravager, its teeth clamping down and severing the vital blood vessels in the monster''s neck, while an Ursa Minor pounded another Ravager into oblivion by smashing its skull into the ground with brute force. A Corvus sailed past me with a screech, its clawed talons slicing deeply into a Phantom''s non-existent face and taking its head off cleanly.

    Within seconds, the hunters turned into the hunted, and the clearing was bathed in the blood of monsters.

    "Oh, wow."

    Even I was surprised by how effective and powerful my Constellation spirits were. It seemed that I had vastly underestimated them, despite being the one who conceived of and summoned them. Often people had told me to have more confidence in myself, but triple that number mocked me and called me a useless failure, and insisted that I would never amount to anything (telling me to delete my stories and to leave writing websites, for example)

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    I honestly never knew which group to believe, but obviously it was easier to assume that the vast majority was correct.

    "¡­?"

    I didn''t have much time to savor my relief at turning the tides. The surrounding Ravagers who had yet to join the fray suddenly jerked up, sniffing the air as if they had caught some peculiar scent. Growling, they bounded away, the remaining Phantoms trailing behind them. The latter was too slow, the stragglers being picked off by my aggressive Constellation Spirits who stubbornly dogged their trail.

    Frowning at their sudden change in behavior, I made to pursue them. The primary objective of this mission was to escort the refugees safely to Jing Tian City, but the secondary objective was to exterminate the monsters. I couldn''t let them get away. At first I thought they were turning tail and running after seeing their brethren slaughtered before their very eyes, but I remembered their unusual action of sniffing the air, as if catching the scent of something.

    Did they perhaps find some easier prey to hunt, especially now that they had found me too formidable a foe?

    ¡­it couldn''t be the refugees from Bi Nan Village, could it? I was pretty sure I lured them extremely far away from the convoy¡­

    Then I realized it might be the backup. So Bei Pan Zhe and the rest had returned for me, after all. I felt stupid for doubting them¡­

    "Help!"

    ¡­until I heard an unfamiliar voice screaming for help. Then I realized that I was mistaken.

    This particular horde of monsters wasn''t breaking off to face fresh reinforcements. They had found a weaker, helpless target!

 35 Chapter 35: Rescue

    Panic stabbed me in the heart when I realized that the monsters had found another target. A helpless target at that, judging from the desperate cry for help. Sprinting after the retreating monsters, I left the rest of the horde still lingering in the clearing to my small army of hunting hounds, teddy bears and crows.

    It didn''t take me long to pursue the monsters into another clearing, which was thankfully less than a hundred meters away. I could see a wall of wood keeping the Phantoms and Ravagers at bay, but judging from its rapidly crumbling exterior as the latter gouged huge chunks out of it, I knew it wouldn''t hold them off for long.

    "Taurus!" I yelled. A gigantic metallic bull materialized from the heavens and smashed down onto the entire pack of monsters with the force of a meteor crushing and vaporizing a good number of them. I had been holding the stronger Taurus in reserve when I realized that I didn''t need him to deal with the F-rank and E-rank monsters, but I was glad that I had completed casting his summoning spell a few seconds ago.

    Diving in after him, I proceeded to finish off the few stragglers that were fortunate enough to not be in the vicinity of the crash. Backing toward the disintegrating wall of wood while fighting off a couple of Ravagers and a few Phantoms, I risked a glance over my shoulder and called out. "Are you okay?"

    "Y¡­yeah. Thanks."

    A shaky voice spoke up nervously. After slashing through a persistent Ravager with my Gemini twin swords, nearly beheading it, I whirled around and spotted the last of the wooden wall disappearing. I was surprised to see the young kid standing behind his fading barrier, looking no older than twelve. He had wavy black hair over a babyish face, and was dressed in a red sweater over blue jeans. The poor kid was trembling from fear and shock.

    "Don''t worry, kid," I assured him as I cut apart a couple of Phantoms, dispersing their mist-like bodies. "I''ll get you out of here."

    I swung my swords and unleashed another blast of Castor and Pollux to annihilate any enemy still lurking nearby. Gesturing to the kid, I issued a terse instruction.

    "Stay close."

    I then executed a standard fighting retreat, slowly moving out of the reach of the monsters while escorting the kid to safety.

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    "Taurus! Buy me some time!" I commanded the giant bull that was busily stomping around and head-butting the pesky little monsters who could do little more than irritate him.

    Taurus grunted in reply before tossing a whole cluster of Phantoms and a single Ravager high into the air. He rose on his hind legs before falling onto a crushing stomp that obliterated a few other monsters that were unfortunate enough to be beneath him.

    "Follow me," I told the kid. He obeyed quietly, his eyes still wide. At least he wasn''t panicking and breaking away. He would be able to preserve his life as long as he listened to me.

    Then I mentally ordered my army of Canis Minor, Ursa Minor and Corvus to return to me. I had made sure there was a safe distance between me and the melee between emerged monsters and summoned monsters, my cute little critters leading the surviving interdimensional creatures of the pack toward me as I commanded.

    Good. The Phantoms and Ravagers still hadn''t noticed anything amiss. They had stupidly followed my retreating army of Constellation spirits back toward my location.

    Dismissing Gemini twin swords, I raised my hands to summon a new Constellation weapon.

    "Sagittarius," I intoned softly. A huge black bow materialized in my left hand. "Alnasl." A flaming arrow appeared in my right hand. I lifted the blazing arrow and fitted it to my black bow, the pulled the string as far back as I could. Aiming at the advancing pack of monsters, I waited until they came within range before I smiled.

    "Thanks, guys. You''ve done more than enough."

    I nodded my head gratefully, and my entire army of corporeal animal spirits disappeared instantly, as if they had never existed in the first place. I then took a deep breath and released the bowstring.

    Alnasl ¨C the star that formed the arrow tip of the constellation of Sagittarius, and the astrological sign of Sagittarius bore the element of fire. Accordingly, the arrow carried the bright, blazing flame that best represented it in the night sky.

    As well as the destructive power of a star.

    I watched as the flaming arrow streaked forward like a comet before exploding upon impact, the inferno washing across the entire clearing and enveloping the entire pack of monsters in flames that not even these denizens from a hellish dimension could survive. I watched as they burned away into nothing more than black, charred bodies and dying gray cinders. I watched as the inferno began to consume the surrounding trees ravenously, licking up their trunks and reducing them into ash instantly.

    "Phew¡­"

    As the bow disappeared from my hands, I allowed myself to relax for the first time in what seemed like an eternity, the tension dissipating from my sagging shoulders. A quick, cursory glance, combined with the hi-tech sensors installed in my glasses (they came with the recording device) confirmed what I had expected.

    That all the monsters were dead.

    Hell, my glasses even recorded the tally of monsters slain. 536 Phantoms and 102 Ravagers. That was insane. Apparently it also counted the ones that my summoned beasts had massacred. What an incredible recording device.

    "Amazing."

    The kid was ogling at me as if I was some kind of god.

    "Not really." I waved my hand dismissively, embarrassed. "I''ve seen far more impressive spells. Anyway, how did you end up here? Did you get separated from the convoy?"

    "¡­convoy?" the kid asked blankly.

    "You''re not from Bi Nan Village?" I asked. Evidently he wasn''t part of the line of refugees fleeing from the Ravagers and Phantoms. Come to think of it, he seemed a little too well-dressed for that.

    "No, I''m not." Looked like I was right. The kid surprised me, however, with his answer. "I''m from Southampton City."

    "Southampton City?!" it was my turn to gape at him. Wasn''t Southampton City one of the wealthiest and biggest metropolises in the Global Federation? It was a commercial hub for countless conglomerates, and home to expatriates and billionaires. "Isn''t that pretty far from here?"

    Even as the question left my mouth, I knew how much of an understatement it was. To get from Southampton City to Jing Tian City, you''ll either need to take a one-hour flight, or three hours through the high-speed super railway.

    "Uh, yeah," the kid admitted. "I was traveling to Jing Tian City to visit a relative when I got separated from my family. I ended up getting lost in the forest while¡­um¡­trying to find my way there."

    There was something he wasn''t telling me, especially with the evasive manner in which he mentioned his family. I realized I wasn''t going to get a straight answer from him, so I merely nodded.

    "Okay. Well, I''ll bring you to Jing Tian City, and we can find your family from there. For now, you might want to contact them."

    "¡­"

    "¡­"

    The kid stared at me reluctantly. I frowned and was about to ask him what he was waiting for when he shook his head.

    "I, uh, lost my smartphone."

    "¡­I see." I offered him my smartphone. "You can use mine. There''s still a signal, so call them so that your parents won''t be worried."

    "I rely on the contacts function to remember my family''s numbers, so I don''t remember what they are."

    This guy was clearly giving excuses. I didn''t press him, and instead just shook my head. Fine, if he wanted to do it that way, then I''ll just bring him back to Jing Tian City and palm him off to the authorities so that he could be someone else''s problem.

    "Fine." I sighed. The kid brightened up when he realized I wasn''t going to pursue the matter.

    "I''m Adrian Stuart," he introduced himself brightly. "Are you from Jing Tian City?" he then blinked and studied my uniform. "Oh¡­you''re from Jing Tian Magic Academy!"

    "Yeah." I wasn''t interested in conversing with him. If he didn''t want to tell me the truth about his family circumstances, then I wasn''t going to share with him my name and background. He mentioned that he was from the Stuart family, though, and that hinted of the complex circumstances surrounding one of the wealthiest and most famous families in the Federation ¨C as usual, I didn''t want to get involved in any of that. Instead, I dialed Bei Pan Zhe''s number. "Okay, Adrian, I''m going to see if I can get us a ride."

    Predictably enough, the call disconnected. I glared at my smartphone in frustration.

    "What the hell? Did something happen?" I should have lured all the monsters away. Hell, I defeated hundreds of those damned monsters by myself. There were four of those guys escorting the convoy. They shouldn''t have any trouble taking care of any of stragglers. Or were they and the convoy assailed by a group of even more powerful monsters on their way back?

    "What''s the matter? They''re not answering your call?" Adrian asked innocently. I gritted my teeth, but knowing that it wasn''t his fault, nodded.

    "Yeah." I sighed angrily. "I don''t get it. Did something happen to them? Why can''t I establish contact at all?"

    "Here, try this." Adrian offered me his smartphone. "Call them using a different number."

    "¡­" I stared at him, a vein popping in my temple. "I thought you lost your smartphone."

    "Eh? Uh¡­yeah. Sorry. Uh, this is a different phone. I lost the smartphone with all my contacts in it. This is my gaming phone, it has no contacts because I only use it to play games." Adrian forced a sheepish laugh.

    I didn''t buy it, but obviously I wasn''t going to get a straight answer from Adrian, so I didn''t bother pressing him. He probably had his own circumstances and didn''t want to contact his family for whatever reason, even though his life was at extreme risk.

    Using Adrian''s "gaming" smartphone, I dialed Bei Pan Zhe''s number. As usual, the call got through, but I half-expected it to disconnect like all the other times.

    "Hello?"

    Bei Pan Zhe''s voice came over. I felt an immense wave of relief, followed by a tsunami of rage. Bloody hell, there was nothing wrong with him, after all!

    "Finally!" I snapped. "I''ve been trying to contact you all this while! Why didn''t you answer your phone?!"

    "Eh?" Bei Pan Zhe''s voice was filled with shock and belief. Then¡­

    Click.

    The line went dead.

    "Bloody motherfucker," I swore, resisting the urge to dash the phone to the ground. Especially since it did not belong to me. Gritting my teeth, I returned it to a stunned Adrian.

    "Wow¡­what did you do to that guy?" he asked.

    "Me?! What did I do to him?! More like what he and his fucking teammates did to me!"

    All along, the pieces were all falling to place as I had an inkling that I knew the reason why backup never came at all. And now, Bei Pan Zhe''s refusal to answer my call had just proven what I suspected all along.

    From the very beginning, those bastards had always intended to abandon me to the monsters!

 36 Chapter 36: Mission Log

    Uploaded by Recording Device Serial Number ASC2003487E, regarding Mission Serial Number REE201F.

    Presented as evidence of betrayal of team member Richard Huang by team leader Bei Pan Zhe, and team members Lavender Ling, Daisy Dallas and Dan Xiao Gui.

    Recorded, Year 2905, Month February, Day 2, Time 1124 hours.

    Beginning playback¡­

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    "We have a new member," Bei Pan Zhe announced. The rest of the team looked up and watched him expectantly as he scrolled through his holographic screen to finish reading the email he had just received from the administrative clerk, Allison Anderson. "Hmm¡­Richard Huang. A second year."

    Lavender''s face darkened. "That guy who''s always clinging onto President Alicia?"

    "The one President Alicia is always talking about?" Daisy said at the same time, her tone just as bitter.

    "Yeah. The one who just team-killed the representatives from Crowley Academy and the Iron Fist Society a couple of weeks ago."

    "Oh!" Dan Xiao Gui looked delighted. "That''s good. I''ve seen his fights. He''ll be a good addition to the team, especially if we buy him enough time to finish summoning."

    Both girls glared at him. He blinked and shrank back timidly under the intensity of their stares.

    "What?"

    "Are you seriously going to just let him join our team?"

    "Why not?" Dan Xiao Gui was genuinely confused. "With his summoning abilities, there should be no problems, right? You''ve all seen what he can do?" Then he brightened up and activated his tablet, searching for a video. "If you haven''t, I can show you."

    "We don''t need you to show us," Daisy interrupted him frostily. "We''ve also seen his so-called skills for ourselves."

    "Then what''s the problem?"

    The girls seemed unwilling to answer, so Bei Pan Zhe replied on their behalves.

    "This Richard guy¡­he''s getting too close to President Alicia."

    "So?" Dan Xiao Gui still didn''t understood the issue here, staring blankly at his three teammates. "President Alicia recognizes his value. That''s why she''s trying to recruit him, isn''t she? Shouldn''t we help convince him?"

    "Are you an idiot?!" Lavender snapped at him. "President Alicia seems to have a crush on that failure! We can''t allow such a loser to get close to our beloved President! He¡­he will taint her! If she refuses to recognize the truth, then it''s our jobs as her subordinates to clean the trash around her! We''ve to get rid of him!"

    "I concur. This Richard Huang is not worth the affections of our president at all. He should just disappear." Daisy nodded in full agreement.

    Dan Xiao Gui gaped at them. "Are you guys all right?" He turned to Bei Pan Zhe. "Are you of the same opinion as well?"

    Bei Pan Zhe clenched his fists, his face burning red. "I¡­I won''t allow any other man to get close to President Alicia."

    It was obvious that he was infatuated with Alicia, and was jealous of me for some reason. Just because Alicia paid a little attention to me, and not to him.

    "We can''t allow losers and trash to hang around our goddess."

    "It''s our duty to protect our goddess from such rubbish!"

    Dan Xiao Gui thought differently, but he was too timid to protest, so he fell silent and merely shook his head.

    "So what do you intend to do? Reject him?" he asked instead.

    "We''re not allowed to reject an application from a new party member without a valid reason," Bei Pan Zhe began, but he was cut off by Lavender.

    "Just cite gross incompetence. Richard being a loser and trash should be more than enough as legitimate grounds to reject him."

    "I think you''ll be hard-pressed to prove that statement, especially in light of his recent performances in the arena," Bei Pan Zhe pointed out dryly.

    "Those were just flukes!" Daisy snorted coldly.

    "Yeah!" Lavender agreed. "The Crowley Academy representatives were stupid enough to let him summon his strongest beast, otherwise they would never have lost! And the Iron Fist Society is a trash society, so of course they would lose to other trash!"

    "Uh, don''t you think you''re giving them too little credit?" Dan Xiao Gui asked. "And besides, this isn''t a duel in the arena. It''s a combat mission. We''re working as a party ¨C that would mitigate the weaknesses for summoners ¨C as long as we protect him, he''ll be able to summon a beast powerful enough to eradicate the monsters in our mission. You''ve all seen the Celestial Guardians he is capable of summoning, haven''t you? There''s no denying his power."

    "We''re not accepting any stinking summoners in our party," Daisy sneered, her voice full of disdain.

    This might sound weird, but the prejudice against summoners stemmed from more practical reasons. Apparently summoners were often viewed as parasites, leeching off from parties and benefiting from the hard work and risks the others took. They frequently hid at the back, cowering from the monsters while relying on their stronger, more resilient comrades to protect them, and took their time casting complex and powerful spells. Long-range and support mages were different because their spells didn''t require that much time to cast, not unless they were casting an advanced, devastating area-of-effect spell that could nuke the entire site, but summoners tended to take more time to cast their spells if they wanted to summon any monster powerful enough to fight the enemies (and not just fodder).

    Often, the battle would end and the other combat mages would have slain the monsters before the summoners could finish summoning their magical beasts. This increased the stigma of them as being perceived as slackers who merely came along for the credit and rewards while contributing next to nothing to the battle.

    That was why most people were biased against summoners, and had a very terrible impression of them.

    "Not like we have a choice." Bei Pan Zhe shook his head. "Besides, even if we did and reject him, this guy is obviously hunting for prestige points. Didn''t he just create a new society last week? That was the reason why he fought Iron Fist Society in the first place."

    "Delusional." Daisy huffed scornfully. "A summoner, trying to create a society of his own? It won''t last a month."

    "Getting the prestige points will go a long way in helping him." Bei Pan Zhe looked a little bitter. "If only there''s a way to stop him¡­"

    "There might be."

    Everyone turned to stare at Lavender. She smiled.

    "Accidents happen during combat missions, don''t they?"

    "Uh, yeah?" Dan Xiao Gui shuddered. "Combat missions always involve a certain amount of risk."

    That was why he was more than happy to hide behind my summoned beasts if I came along. It would mitigate the danger he faced.

    However, Bei Pan Zhe and Daisy seemed to have caught on to her meaning.

    "It wouldn''t be held against us if a trash trying to cling onto our goddess¡­has a mishap during the mission. It''s not strange at all, given how awful his magic and combat skills are." Daisy was smiling ominously.

    "Er¡­you do realize that his magic and combat skills aren''t awful, right?" Dan Xiao Gui was getting exasperated. "What is this, a stupid Chinese web novel where the protagonists are always labeled as trash no matter what he does, and no matter how many times he proves other people wrong?"

    "He''s not trash," Bei Pan Zhe agreed. "I acknowledge his combat skills. He is a very formidable opponent." He then lowered his voice. "But that''s exactly why we must eliminate him."

    While Lavender and Daisy were trying to get rid of me because they hated the idea of me orbiting around their beloved goddess, Alicia Violet, Bei Pan Zhe''s reason was that I posed a significant threat as a formidable rival vying for the affections of his romance target. Even though their reasons differed, their goals were the same.

    "But that''s why we can''t underestimate him," Bei Pan Zhe continued, fixing a stare on Lavender and Daisy. "You''ve seen his combat skills as well. He won''t be easy to get rid of."

    "He''s a summoner, isn''t he? As long as he doesn''t get the chance to summon his beasts, he''s nothing more than a normal human." Lavender sounded dismissive. "We just need to make sure he doesn''t have the time or chance to complete his summoning spell."

    Dan Xiao Gui rolled his eyes.

    "What, we just stand around doing nothing while he fights the monsters on his own? And with hundreds of monsters, wouldn''t we get attacked anyway? We''ll still be forced to fight in the end."

    "Who says we need to fight?" Lavender replied with a sly smile.

    Daisy watched her. "I''m listening."

    "It''s simple. The mission this time is escort and protection, right? Exterminating the monsters is merely the secondary objective. The primary objective is to ensure the safety of the refugees. We don''t need to fight the monsters at all."

    Bei Pan Zhe frowned in bewilderment. "Then how do we make the ''accident'' happen? We can''t just murder him and pretend the monsters did it."

    "No, of course not." Lavender stared at him as if he was an idiot. "The monsters will end up encountering the refugees'' convoy if we don''t lure them away. And who better to act as bait and lure the monsters away than a new party member who had just joined us? After all, we''re needed to stay close to the convoy to protect the refugees. And since we''re an established team, we work better together."

    "I see." The light was appearing in Daisy''s eyes and she nodded in enthusiasm.

    "Will¡­will he just accept that, though?" Dan Xiao Gui sounded uncertain. He definitely wouldn''t.

    "We''ll just promise to provide backup once we''ve finished escorting the refugees, and appeal to his sense of heroism. He probably wouldn''t say no to helping the refugees out, would he?" Lavender grinned.

    "But¡­we lost contact in the middle of the mission and are unable to locate him, so we were never able to provide backup at all." Bei Pan Zhe''s grin was widening as well as he hit his palm with his hand. "A death at the hands of the monsters, no blood on our hands. Brilliant!"

    "This way, we can get rid of trash orbiting around our goddess¡­or eliminate our love rivals!" Daisy added when she caught the look on Bei Pan Zhe''s face. "Let''s do it!"

    "Yeah, he''s waiting for us in the admin building. Let''s go meet him." Bei Pan Zhe rubbed his hands, and rose to lead the way.

    End playback. First piece of visual and aural evidence concluded.Awaiting evaluation and review.

    Defense: This is nothing conclusive. They were only planning it out. It''s all just dialogue! There is a possibility they weren''t going to actually do it!

    Prosecution: Objection!

    Judge: Granted.

    Prosecution: As we all already know, the guilty members have carried out this scheme of theirs in reality. I have several pieces of recorded evidence that further establish their heinous betrayal. Your honor, with your permission¡­?

    Judge: Permission granted.

    ¡­enacting playback of second piece of evidence¡­

    (Recording of the conversation in the admin building¡­)

 37 Chapter 37: Second Mission

    "Well, there goes our ride," Adrian Stuart remarked. He looked remarkably calm for a twelve-year-old who got lost in a forest, got attacked by monsters, and was now facing the prospect that we had to exit the forest on foot.

    I guess the people of the Stuart family were truly an entire breed apart from the others.

    "Not necessarily." I was slightly disappointed to see that Adrian wasn''t shocked or fazed by my rebuttal. "Give me a minute."

    I began casting a summoning spell. This one would take me a minute or so ¨C it wasn''t as powerful as Vermillion Phoenix, but the Constellation spirit I had in mind would be more complex than the little ones I had summoned earlier. He wasn''t necessarily more "powerful" because he was not meant for combat, but he had more flexible abilities that required more magical energy consumption on my part.

    While I did so, my smartphone rang. My eyebrow rose when I saw the number was from Allison Anne, the administrative clerk who helped me with the registration of this current mission. Swiping the green button, I brought my phone to my ear.

    "Hello?"

    "Richard Huang?" Allison''s voice was terse. "What''s your current condition?"

    "Um¡­mission complete, I guess?" I glanced around and rechecked the tally at the top corner of my glasses. It seemed that I had racked up an impressive number of kills. "I don''t know about the refugees, but I assume they have been safely escorted to the city. And the rank F and rank E monsters have been exterminated."

    I wasn''t the type to snitch on my teammates, and whining about their betrayal in the middle of the forest wasn''t going to be productive. Furthermore, I was aware of these administrative types. If I wanted to file a complaint or an accusation, I would need evidence. So I decided to hold off from complaining for now.

    And judging from Bei Pan Zhe answering my call earlier (though he hung up almost immediately), I could safely assume that the refugees had been escorted to the city. Otherwise he wouldn''t be picking up the call from a stranger''s phone or deliberately avoiding mine.

    "That''s not what I mean." Allison sounded relieved for some reason. "The supervisors informed me that you had been betrayed and abandoned by your party members. I was asking if you''re injured. Though it sounds like you''re fine."

    "What?" I was stunned. "How did they know?"

    "The recording devices handed out to every student on a mission," Allison explained. I remembered the nanobots she handed to me earlier, before sending me on this particular mission. I had thought it was only a recording device, but apparently it had a broadcasting function as well? So they were broadcasting our actions live? "We just received the recording devices from your party. They reported you dead, but when I submitted to the committee for evaluation, they found out the truth, and what had happened. We are currently arresting your party members and bringing charges of dereliction of duty, conspiracy and attempted murder against them."

    Oh, so they weren''t broadcasting our actions live. They were analyzing the mission log stored in the recording device. That was fast, though.

    That meant those bastards had escorted the refugees safely to Jing Tian City a long time ago¡­

    Fuckers, I thought. They never intended to provide me backup from the very start! They wanted the monsters to kill me, and then report my death as a mishap!

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    But why? I never did anything to them. I wasn''t familiar with them. Why did they hate me so much that they wanted me dead?

    "Where are you right now?"

    "In the forest south of Jing Tian City," I replied. Glancing at Adrian, I continued. "I succeeded in exterminating the monsters, but I ran into a kid who somehow got lost in the forest."

    "WAH!" Adrian shouted, shaking his hands and head. He quickly mouthed, "Don''t tell anybody who I am!"

    I managed to stop myself from mentioning his name, and instead continued.

    "I''ll be bringing him back to Jing Tian City. I think we''re fine, and I should be back before an hour or so."

    "You''re fine? And you exterminated all the monsters?" Allison''s voice was dripping with disbelief. "How did you¡­? Never mind."

    Then someone in the background spoke up, and Allison paused to talk with the person. I could catch a couple of vague sentences, but couldn''t make out their words. Fortunately, I didn''t have to wait long, for Allison returned a few seconds later.

    "I know you''ve just completed a mission, so I''m very sorry to ask this of you right now. But it''s an emergency. You said you''re in Nan Tian Forest, right? The forest south of Jing Tian City?"

    "That''s right," I confirmed.

    Allison sighed. "Can you assist a party that''s about eight miles of your position? As it stands, you''re the closest unit we have to them, and they are in trouble. They are currently being besieged by a pack of rank D monsters, and they are in dire need of reinforcements." Her voice grew stern. "Don''t be reckless, though. I just want you to offer support, not to charge in and fight the monsters. The priority should be your survival. If you''re unable to save them, or if they have all been wiped out, then immediately retreat. Just by yourself ¨C the most important is that you return alive. Understand?"

    "¡­I''ll do my best." Rank D monsters, huh? That meant they were more powerful than the Rank-F Phantoms and Rank-E Ravagers I had just massacred. I wasn''t sure how much stronger they were, but I couldn''t afford to underestimate them. "Who''s in the party?"

    "Black Roses Society members¡­currently led by their president, Alicia Violet."

    I felt a chill run down my back. Alicia was one of the few schoolmates who treated me decently and a person I could definitely count as a friend. "I''ll go immediately," I said without hesitation. "Where is President Alicia and her party?"

    "I''ll send you the coordinates shortly. Get there as soon as possible, save as many as you can, and get out of there. We''ve already dispatched teachers and Federation soldiers, but they''ll only reach there in an hour or two. You''re the closest unit we have right now." Allison paused. "We''ll assign this to you as a mission, so you''ll earn the corresponding prestige points and monetary rewards for it. I''ll discuss the details with you later."

    "Roger that." I then hung up and shrugged as I turned to Adrian. "Sorry about that, but it seems our return to Jing Tian City will have to be postponed for a bit."

    Adrian nodded, seeming to have caught snippets of my conversation with Allison. "That''s fine," he assured me. "Go be a hero!"

    I frowned. "I''m not a hero."

    Then I received the coordinates on my smartphone. And just in time too. With a deep breath, I completed my summoning spell.

    A bright flash of light appeared in the scorched clearing (the fires having died out by now), and when it disappeared, it was replaced by the massive figure of a white swan.

    "Whoa! That''s¡­that''s¡­!" Adrian was gaping at the sight of my elegant Constellation spirit that was the size of a small plane.

    "Cygnus," I replied shortly and jumped onto his back. Turning around, I held out a hand to help Adrian climb aboard. "We''ll be taking a short flight."

    "Amazing!" Adrian grabbed the clean, pristine feathers as Cygnus suddenly lurched and took off, soaring high into the air. He turned to stare at me in wonder. "Big Brother, you are a summoner, right? In the battle earlier as well, you also summoned spirits."

    "Yeah, that''s right." I wasn''t sure I was comfortable with the term, as it sounded pretty confusing to me as well. "My Dad is a summoner as well, but he summons a real spirit. As in, he made a contract with an actual spirit, rather than create them in his sea of consciousness."

    Speaking of which, I didn''t know what sort of beasts Dad summoned before he met Angelica and made a contract with her. I did see him summon that flaming sword of his, which he christened Ifrit. Perhaps Ifrit had a true form?

    "Real spirits?" Adrian stared at me blankly for a moment, and then he understood. "Ah! I know what you mean. Interdimensional entities that come from a different dimension from monsters."

    I was surprised. "You know about them?"

    "Yeah! I read a lot!" Adrian proudly puffed out his chest. I guess he had to, being a member of the Stuart family. They would provide him with the best education in the Federation. "There are currently two types of interdimensional creatures ¨C the monsters that appear through Emergence, and these appear more frequently with the sole purpose of killing and destruction. They appear to be the antithesis of humans, and attempt to terraform Earth into their own dimension while wiping out the indigenous life in order to reduce competition and stake out their own territory."

    "That''s right." Despite myself, I was impressed. The kid was just twelve, but he knew his stuff.

    "The second type is spirits, but they are less violent and destructive. They are also extremely rare, and it is unknown how they ''emerge'' into our dimension. They don''t seem to appear in Emergence, and their magic seems to differ from the ''demonic'' essence of monsters. In fact, they seem much closer to us humans. The real question is how to summon more of them into our dimension, for they are different from most summoned beasts¡­the only way to summon them into our dimension is by establishing a contract with them."

    "Yeah." I had no idea how Dad pulled it off. He wasn''t willing to share with me the details of how he first met Angelica and seal a contract with her, claiming that it was too dangerous for me to know. He also joked that it was an adult thing, and he would only tell me when I was older.

    Now that I thought about it, whenever I asked Dad about him, he would have this extremely sad look. And after avoiding the topic, he would tell me never to attempt to bring a spirit to our dimension, as if he knew that was the reason why I asked him.

    I wondered why. Perhaps Dad would tell me eventually. Until then, I would just listen to him.

    "My summoning beasts are not real spirits. I created them in my sea of consciousness through my imagination, and then learned the spells to manifest them in reality."

    "That''s awesome." Adrian was gushing. He thought for a bit. "But doesn''t summoning take quite a lot of time and magical energy? How do you cast them when you get attacked? Don''t you need teammates to protect you?"

    He was probably asking that because he saw that I was alone. I merely shrugged with a smile.

    "You''ll see soon enough."

    ¡­and here we were.

    Cygnus swooped low, almost skimming the canopy, and my glasses picked up the magical signatures of humans in fierce combat. I referenced the coordinates displayed in my glasses to the ones sent to my smartphone, and saw that they were close. Probably the combatants shifted a little as they fought, but otherwise they were definitely the ones Allison requested me to reinforce.

    Is President Alicia all right? I thought worriedly as I urged Cygnus a little faster. The swan nodded silently and glided toward the coordinates at an increased pace. And the sight of my schoolmates finally came within range.

    My blood turned cold. There was so much blood and death that even I was horrified. Schoolmates wearing the same uniform as I were sprawled over the ground, several of them in pieces. There were hardly any humans left standing.

    I was too late.

 38 Chapter 38: Crying Wolf

    Originally, there were twelve members in Alicia Violet''s party, including her. They had accepted a mission to eradicate a pack of Rank E monsters in the vicinity.

    They didn''t expect to run into Rank D monsters. The Rank E monsters had been a trap, distracting them long enough before they were ambushed by the more powerful Rank D monsters, who proceeded to tear them apart.

    Right now, hardly four of them were left. The others were lying on the ground, most likely dead. A good number of them were in pieces, mauled beyond recognition, so I somehow counted more than eight corpses. The sight of such gruesome deaths made me gag.

    In the center of them all, Alicia was rallying the surviving members of her party, and they were somehow stemming the tide. Alicia was wielding a bow and firing a volley of arrows at dark shapes who were prowling along the edge of the clearing. They jumped back, but a good number of them were speared. Howling, they limped away, but Alicia''s bombardment left at least two of them dead, their skulls pierced through by her volley.

    "Black Roses! Rally to me!" Alicia shouted, determined to prolong the lives of her party for as long as possible. "Reinforcements should be arriving soon! We just need to hold out until then!"

    "P¡­President! They are coming back!" one of her subordinates exclaimed in panic, the other three hiding behind her back. Alicia bit her lip, but raised her bow. Violet energy condensed in the fingers of her right hand and she took aim with those magical arrows.

    "Keep fighting!" she ordered.

    "There''s too many of them!"

    High above, I watched helplessly as the monsters reemerged from the forest and into the clearing again, growling. Their long, lupine bodies loped gracefully from behind the trees, their spiky black fur bristling in an intimidating manner. They advanced on two legs each, their canine scouts seeming to sniff the air.

    "Lycanthropes," I whispered, recognizing the Rank D monsters.

    "Lycanthropes?" Adrian repeated anxiously. I could detect the terror in his quivering voice, so I smiled reassuringly.

    "Stay here. I''ll take care of them."

    "Eh? Big Brother, what are you¡­?"

    I didn''t answer him. Instead, I jumped off Cygnus''s back and plummeted feet first toward the clearing.

    Boom!

    Landing heavily, I actually crushed a single Lycanthrope underneath my feet, its skull and upper body flattened into a bloody pulp from the impact. I didn''t even glance down at the carcass, already moving the moment the creature hit the ground.

    "R¡­Richard?!" Alicia cried out when she recognized me. "How did you¡­?"

    I didn''t answer, and instead focused my attention on the approaching Lycanthropes.

    "Gemini!"

    The moment Castor and Pollux materialized in my hands, I threw the both of them into the air. Spinning rapidly, the black and white swords flew in a wide arc, cutting through any unfortunate Lycanthrope that stood in their paths.

    The remaining Lycanthropes pounced on me, thinking that I was vulnerable without any weapons.

    "Richard!" Alicia cried, also believing the same thing. She immediately unleashed a second volley of arrows, cutting down the first row of lunging Lycanthropes. "Watch out!"

    "Don''t worry about me," I assured her. "Stand back."

    "Eh?"

    Raising my hand, I summoned Aquarius. A blue broadsword materialized in my hand instantly and I swung it, cutting several approaching Lycanthropes in half. Grinding my right foot against the ground, I swung the Water Bearer in a broad arc, releasing a giant tidal wave of water that washed the remaining werewolves away from my location.

    "¡­eh?" Alicia repeated dumbly as she watched the Lycanthropes get swept away by the little tsunami. Her surviving subordinates also drew closer, staring at me in disbelief.

    "Is that really that Richard? The summoner guy?"

    "I didn''t know he could do that! I''ve never seen him summon those weapons before!"

    "Well, now you have," I told them dryly before glancing at the wet and sprawled Lycanthropes. At this rate I could finish them up before the reinforcements arrived.

    This was weird. If they were this weak, how were Alicia and her party unable to take care of them by themselves? Surely I wasn''t stronger than a party of twelve. Not to mention, these guys didn''t feel that much stronger than Ravagers. They were different from what I had read about.

    "We''re supposed to exterminate these Lycanthropes, right?" I asked Alicia. To my surprise, she shook her head.

    "We can''t." she glanced nervously in the direction of the forest. "Let''s get out of here before it comes back! Otherwise we''ll all die!"

    "Huh?" I gaped at her, bewildered. "Before what comes back?"

    As if in reply, the clearing began to shake as if there was an earthquake. As I tried to balance myself despite the tremors beneath my feet, cold dread gripped my spine.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me," I muttered under my breath.

    "What on earth¡­?" Adrian muttered ironically, because he was still high in the sky and riding on Cygnus. But he had also observed the trembling of the earth as something massive and incredibly heavy stomped toward us. Trees were shaking with each step, and a flock of birds burst out from the canopy in panic.

    An enormous Lycanthrope burst into the clearing, shaking the earth with its violent landing. Easily about four to five times the size of the other Lycanthropes, the newcomer towered over the entire pack. It snarled and growled at the fallen Lycanthropes who had been blasted by my little tsunami earlier. As expected, the surviving Lycanthropes cowered before their newly arrived leader and obediently retreated.

    "That''s the Alpha of the pack," Alicia explained, the color draining from her face.

    "Damn it," I hissed through gritted teeth. Now I understood why Lycanthrope packs were ranked D. It wasn''t because of the smaller wolf-like monsters. It was because of their Alpha.

    "¡­what happened to Tao Zhou?" one of the other Black Roses stammered timidly. He stared at the red blood dripping from the Lycanthrope Alpha''s claws, and turned even paler. "Don''t tell me she has¡­?"

    "Tao Zhou?" I asked, not recognizing the name.

    "One of our party members," Alicia explained, her voice tense. "She¡­broke down and ran away earlier. The Alpha pursued her."

    "She deserved what she got, that coward," another Black Rose growled. "Leaving us to fight the Lycanthropes by ourselves. Serves her right!"

    "Hey!" the last Black Rose chided him. "It wasn''t her fault! And if she didn''t lure the Alpha away, we wouldn''t have survived against it!"

    "Well, does it look like we''re going to survive now?" the third Black Rose snorted. "And you know as well as I did that she never intended to lure the Alpha away. She ran away screaming with her tail tucked between her legs!"

    "Enough!" Alicia silenced them. "Let''s focus on the issue at hand! Elliot, you''re our tank. Use your shield and serve as the vanguard. Nicholas, your job is to take care of surrounding Lycanthropes. Jin Hao and I will provide fire support."

    "President Alicia¡­" the guy named Elliot was shaking from fear. "Please¡­I won''t be able to withstand a single blow from that thing!"

    "If you don''t, all of us will die!" Jin Hao bellowed.

    "Then why don''t you be the vanguard?!"

    "I''m not the one with the shield!"

    "Guys!" Alicia called out desperately, but none of them was listening to her. While they squabbled, the Alpha was advancing closer.

    "All of you, stay back," I ordered. They all shut up and gazed at me in astonishment. I ignored them and took a step forward, conjuring a new wave of tsunami. The tidal wave washed over the Alpha, causing it to stagger, but other than being drenched, it didn''t seem to hurt it.

    That was fine. I never expected a burst of water to injure the Lycanthrope. Taking a deep breath, I charged at the Lycanthrope and swung Aquarius.

    If Allison saw me, she would have scolded me. After all, I had literally ignored her instructions and had recklessly plunged into the fray. However, I never had any intention of abandoning my schoolmates from the start, especially when I had learned that Alicia was one of them.

    "Run!" I ordered them. "I''ll hold them off for as long as I can!"

    The blue broadsword bit deeply into the Alpha''s flanks, and it threw its head back and howled in enraged pain. It dislodged my blade with a shake of its leg and tried to stomp me into oblivion, but I dove out of the way of the descending, giant clawed foot.

    However, before I could get back to my feet, the Alpha''s other foot struck me. I took the full brunt of the kick before being thrown several meters away.

    "Richard!" Alicia screamed, but even before her usually gentle voice left her throat, she unleashed several volleys of arrows at the Alpha. The massive monster grunted as the energy projectiles embedded themselves deeply within its fur before vanishing, but was little more than irritated.

    "OOF!"

    I let out a muffled cry of pain as I slammed into solid ground. Rolling to reduce the impact, I used the momentum to spring back to my feet.

    Even though the Alpha was partially distracted by Alicia''s arrows, when it saw me stand back up, it turned its feral gaze toward me, its eyes blazing red-hot with murderous intent. I felt a chill run down my spine, but I refused to back down.

    "Big brother!" I heard Adrian holler from above. I shook my head and held up a hand to reassure him, but inwardly I knew I had just taken a ton of damage. That single kick had probably broken several of my ribs and caused internal hemorrhaging. Clutching Aquarius with both hands, I managed to fend off the Alpha''s next attempt to slash me by parrying its claws. Unfortunately, the sheer strength of its strike, coupled with the incredible weight of the Water Bearer, was enough to force the broadsword from my grip. I could only watch helplessly as Aquarius spun away and disappeared.

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    "Richard!" Alicia yelled, peppering the Lycanthrope Alpha''s face with her arrows, but the enormous beast would not be stopped.

    "I''m all right!" I called back, and was about to summon an alternative weapon. Unfortunately, before I could finish casting my spell, the massive Alpha caught me in its grasp, its giant claws digging into my side and drawing blood.

    "Oh, shit¡­"

    The Lycanthrope pulled its gnarled lips back into a wicked grin before moving its head forward to presumably take a huge bite out of me.

    I grinned back. "Just kidding."

    Castor and Pollux spun back like boomerangs, slashing the Alpha''s flanks. The Alpha roared in pain and staggered from shock. The Gemini twin swords spun back toward my hands as if I was a homing beacon. Grabbing hold of them, I then slashed the wrist of the claws that were holding me, ignoring the geysers of blood that splattered me as I worked to free myself.

    However, the Alpha''s grip tightened further, squeezing the breath out of me.

    "What¡­?"

    Now this was beyond my calculations. Unable to escape, my consciousness slowly blacked out as my lungs were being crushed under the contracting claws¡­

 39 Chapter 39: Alpha Male versus Beta Male

    Normally, slashing open the wrist of a person would be considered a fatal blow.

    Evidently, the Lycanthrope Alpha''s physical makeup was different from a human''s. Its grip did not loosen at all, but instead it was tightening. I struggled to breathe as the increasing pressure crushed my already broken ribs and caused them to puncture my lungs. I was beginning to drown in my own blood. I flailed wildly, my attempts to escape ending in abject failure. The Lycanthrope Alpha responded by raising me to its jaws. I could only watch helplessly as two rows of glistening white giant teeth grew larger and filled my vision.

    "Big Brother!" Adrian yelled.

    "Richard!" Alicia was forced to divert her arrows, not only because I was too close to the Alpha''s face for her to risk firing at the enemy, but also because the surviving Lycanthropes had closed in on the four surviving Black Roses, forming a ring of claws and fangs. They were battling desperately to keep them at bay, reducing the horde of werewolves at a drastic rate and thinning them out, but there were still so many.

    "Don''t worry about me!" I snapped. "Focus on staying alive!"

    The Lycanthrope Alpha seemed to sneer, and then snapped its jaws shut to bite my head off.

    Before the glistening fangs could sever my head from my neck, however, I completed my summoning spell.

    "Taurus!" I yelled.

    An enormous bull materialized in the sky and crashed into the Alpha with devastating force. Impaling the screaming gigantic Lycanthrope with his horns, Taurus smashed it down onto the ground and stomped on it with his front legs, crushing both giant wolf and earth beneath him.

    The Alpha could no longer hold onto me. The moment its grip weakened, I tore out of its claws and leaped to safety. Unfortunately, the moment my legs hit the ground, red-hot agony tore through my body. Wheezing, I clutched my chest and staggered backward.

    Honestly, I would have summoned Vermillion Phoenix, White Tiger or one of the other Celestial Guardians if I could, but they took more time. Taurus was not as powerful as them, but he didn''t require as much time. And time was a commodity I was extremely short on. Fortunately, it seemed that Taurus might be able to overpower the Lycanthrope Alpha.

    The Alpha struggled to its feet and tried to break away from the rampaging Taurus, flecks of blood and drool flying from its maimed jaw. It desperately fought off the giant bull that was goring it and made a last-ditch lunge for me.

    "Smart move," I remarked calmly as I watched the pouncing Lycanthrope. "You can''t beat Taurus, so you aim for me instead, knowing that he will disappear if you manage to kill me. Too bad you''re forgetting something."

    The Alpha had been grappling with Taurus for quite some time now, which gave me enough time to cast yet another spell. After all, if I could summon a Constellation spirit, then I probably had more Constellation spirits in store in my sea of consciousness.

    Before the Alpha could reach me, a huge wall of earth burst out of the ground and struck the Alpha right in its chin. With a pained yelp, the giant Lycanthrope fell on its back, clutching its ruined jaws.

    "Thanks, Capricorn," I said as an enormous Sea Goat emerged from the earth. He nodded and closed in on the fallen Lycanthrope Alpha, ready to finish the job. "Leave the Alpha to Taurus. I need you for another job."

    Ignoring the burning pain in my chest, I hurried toward Alicia''s position. The four of them were still alive, but bloodied and slowly overwhelmed by the sheer numbers. Brandishing Gemini twin swords, I cut a path through them. Capricorn bounded behind me, trampling over the smaller Lycanthropes or knocking them away with his huge horns.

    "Richard?!" Alicia was staring at me, surprised. "How¡­?"

    "No time. Follow me! All of you!"

    The four Black Roses didn''t question me. Capricorn stampeded through the lines of the Lycanthropes, opening a bloody route for us to run through. My schoolmates gratefully followed the huge Constellation spirit, who was leaving blood and death in his wake.

    "Richard?"

    Alicia spun around when she realized I hadn''t followed. I was still standing in the center of the prowling Lycanthropes, all alone.

    "What are you doing?!"

    "Finishing what you''ve started," I replied wearily. To be honest, I was at my limit. My broken ribs were grinding against my chest, and I couldn''t breathe. My vision was growing hazy and my body was gradually refusing to respond to my mind''s commands. "You were on an extermination mission, weren''t you?"

    "Are you crazy?!" Elliot bellowed. "Don''t try to be a hero, you idiot!"

    "Stay where you are," I ordered icily. The four Black Roses hesitated, hearing the steel in my voice. Dismissing my Gemini twin swords, I looked at the pack.

    All around me, the remaining Lycanthropes began to circle me cautiously. They had seen what I could do, but they also wanted revenge for their leader, who was being slowly taken apart by Taurus. As a side note, I remembered that all Alphas of a Lycanthrope were males. Meaning this fella was literally the alpha male of the pack.

    In contrast, I was what readers would label a "beta male". I have no idea what that term meant. Probably had something to do with me being spineless or passive, and lacking confidence. Honestly, the whole "beta male" term was something I suspected to be invented by alpha males with fragile egos, who needed a punching bag so that they could feel superior, and an insult they could use to label any guy who did not conform to their distorted, misogynistic and chauvinistic views of what masculinity should be, or how a guy should act.

    Just because I wasn''t actively trying to get laid or jumping at every girl who showed the slightest interest in me (despite the possibility that it could be a misunderstanding on my part, and she was just talking to me in a social manner, and not because she was genuinely interested in me romantically), they decided to label me a beta male. To them, all men must actively go around chasing women and have sex with them, never mind that such behavior was extremely irresponsible in reality.

    Whatever the case, I was about to display how "beta males" were really superior to alpha males in reality. Just because we were quiet, non-confrontational, and did not show off or try to actively fuck every single women we meet, didn''t mean we were spineless pussies. Push us over the edge, and we will slaughter you. In the manner you least expect.

    Hell, the Lycanthropes seemed to have detected the danger. They hadn''t pounced on me yet, despite me spreading both my hands out and showing that I was currently unarmed. The pack was not stupid enough to fall for that deceptive appearance. The Lycanthropes continued to prowl restlessly around me, keeping their distance despite their eyes being focused and vengeful. Several of them snarled at me, others leaned on their haunches, ready to launch themselves at me if I so much as fell over.

    Judging from my blood-covered and trembling appearance, I guess I did look as if I was going to fall over anytime soon. And I definitely felt like it too. The Lycanthropes knew that, and they were waiting for that moment.

    "All of you, come at me." I beckoned them over. I wanted to finish this off before my body gave out. "I''ll take all of you on."

    Every single Lycanthropes bristled at my bold challenge. It seemed that they understood what I was saying, or at least understood my body language or the killing intent that was rolling off me in waves. Either way, I got what I wanted.

    Just a little push¡­

    I seemed to stumble, almost as if the burning pain in my chest had overwhelmed me, or my legs had given out under me. The entire pack, upon seeing that single moment, immediately pounced on me.

    I smiled. Scraping my foot against the ground, I suddenly righted my balance and raised my left hand, completing my summoning spell.

    "Lyra."

    A beautiful and slender golden harp materialized in my hand. As the Lycanthropes advanced toward me, I ran the fingers of my right hand across the strings, plucking them and causing a melodious note to float over the clearing.

    The music came with a deadly price.

    Thousands of invisible, thin metal wires blasted out of Lyra and covered the battlefield, ensnaring the bounding Lycanthropes and cutting them into pieces. Blood, limbs, heads and segments of monstrous bodies flew all over the clearing as the thin but sharp wires cut through the entire pack like hot burning knives through butter. Mercilessly, I manipulated the wires on the golden harp to slice and butcher the screaming and howling wolves, ensuring that not even one of them escaped.

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    "You''ve got to be kidding me," Jin Hao muttered, his eyes wide.

    "Since when did Richard Huang become this powerful?!" Nicholas demanded, his voice trembling.

    I ignored them and turned when I heard an enraged whine. The Alpha, barely alive from its tussle with Taurus, was struggling to its feet. Glaring at me with eyes full of hatred, the gigantic Lycanthrope limped toward me, snarling and growling ferociously. I couldn''t blame it. It must want revenge for its slaughtered pack. Digging its claws into the ground, it swayed unsteadily on its hind legs as it approached.

    Taurus got ready to charge at it, but at a mental command, I bade him to retreat. The enormous bull lowered his head and disappeared. Not because I got overconfident, but because I didn''t want him to get swept up in collateral damage.

    "Richard, are you all right?" Alicia asked, concerned, trying to approach me through the scene of carnage. I nodded and held up my right hand to stop her.

    "Stay back," I told her. As the Alpha trudged toward me slowly, I infused magical energy into Lyra. Slowly, the beautiful, golden harp began to change its shape. It lengthened and curved more sharply, while all but one of its wires disappeared. The single remaining wire tightened and turned into a bowstring, which I plucked backward with the fingers of my right hand. I closed my eyes and muttered a single word. "Vega."

    A golden arrow materialized in my hand, emanating an immensely strong glow that rivaled even the sun. All around me, powerful gusts of winds blew and thrashed about, throwing the leaves and body parts into the air, as if they had been swept up by a tornado. The ground beneath my feet began to shatter from the force emitted from the luminous arrow.

    Alicia stopped, recognizing an ultimate attack.

    Opening my eyes, I released the arrow at my target.

 40 Chapter 40: Mission End

    The glowing arrow streaked from my bow and toward the advancing Lycanthrope Alpha.

    Boom!

    The entire clearing vanished in a golden flash of light. A roaring fireball consumed not just the dying Alpha, but the whole clearing, incinerating the surrounding trees and carving a crater into the earth. A blazing cloud swept upward, almost resembling a mushroom cloud from a thermonuclear explosion, letting out a deafening roar of destruction.

    "Big Brother! Are you all right?!" Adrian called from Cygnus, who was still hovering above. He might have been shouting since the explosion, but I couldn''t hear him because of the incredible noise. Either way, it didn''t matter.

    "Yeah."

    "You''re severely hurt!" Alicia rushed over and helped me up when I faltered. I tried to shake her off, only to realize that I no longer had any strength left. My consciousness was rapidly fading away.

    "So this is the strength of a rank D monster, huh?" I muttered quietly. It seemed like I was a long way from being a top mage like Dad.

    "Thank you for saving us." Alicia was clutching me tightly. I couldn''t tell if she was weeping, and frankly, I was in too much pain to care. I just wanted to roll over and lose consciousness. It was getting increasingly difficult to breathe.

    "Sorry, Adrian, I''ll have to set you down for a bit."

    If I lost consciousness, my Constellation spirits would disappear. And poor Adrian would be sent crashing back down. He wouldn''t survive a fall from that height.

    "That''s fine." Adrian shook his head even as Cygnus descended to let him disembark. He hurried toward me. "I''m more worried about you, Big Brother!"

    "Eh? You have a younger brother, Richard?" Alicia looked surprised.

    "Ha ha, no, I''m not his real brother. It''s just that, he saved me as well." Adrian laughed sheepishly. "If it wasn''t for Big Brother, I would have been killed by monsters."

    "You''ve been busy, haven''t you?" Nicholas commented dryly. He glanced at Alicia. "I see now why you wanted to recruit this guy, President."

    "I always thought highly of him," Alicia replied with a gentle smile. "It''s just that most people were unable to see his strengths."

    "And thanks to that, we ended up creating a formidable rival." Nicholas sighed. "If only Vice-President Miranda thought the same as you¡­"

    "What about the others?" Elliot asked as he came up, surveying the scene wearily. He looked haunted, especially as his gaze lingered over the remains of his party members. I didn''t blame him. Out of the twelve who had originally set out on this mission, only four of them had survived. It was a great loss for their society, not to mention the school and the deceased''s families.

    "I found Tao Zhou''s body," Jin Hao reported as he emerged from the trees. Apparently, at some point after I had slaughtered all of the Lycanthropes, he had broken off from the group to track down their runaway comrade. He shook his head. "She didn''t survive. Looks like she had been eviscerated by the Alpha."

    "Serves her right," Elliot growled. "Abandoning us and running away by herself. That coward deserves whatever she got."

    Says the guy who was reluctant to serve as the vanguard despite bearing a shield, because he wasn''t able to withstand an attack from the Alpha. On the other hand, he did deserve a bit of credit for not fleeing and leaving his comrades behind, so he was at least better than the late Tao Zhou in that aspect.

    But I understood how he felt. I myself was pissed off at the betrayal of my original party members, what with Bei Pan Zhe and the rest deserting me and leaving me to fight hundreds of monsters on my own. Good thing they were only rank F and rank E monsters, or I would have been torn apart a long time ago.

    "Allison told me that the teachers and a military team from the Federation would be arriving soon," I informed them as I wheezed, my injuries hampering my ability to speak. "We just need to sit tight and hang I there until they come." I consulted the chronometer in my glasses. "They should be here in another thirty minutes."

    I wondered if I would be able to survive until then. My injuries were not light. I tried not to think if they were fatal, and if I would die before help arrived.

    "You''ve done a lot." Alicia set me down. "Leave the rest to us. You should just rest for now."

    "Yeah, there shouldn''t be anything more dangerous than that damned Lycanthrope Alpha," Elliot agreed.

    The guy just had to tempt fate, didn''t he?

    "On second thought, we should leave the area," I suggested, trying to get back to my feet. Alicia hurriedly helped me. "Our fierce battle earlier might have drawn the attention of other monsters¡­"

    An earth-shattering roar drowned out the rest of my sentence.

    "¡­too late," I muttered as I turned to glance at the owner of the roar with trepidation. I raised my left hand and gathered magical energy into my right hand, readying Lyra for another shot.

    A massive winged serpent slammed down on the crater I had just created, just a few dozen meters away from us. Unfurling its long body upon a scorched, battered boulder, the wyvern reared back and let out another deafening roar. Its glittering azure scales gave off a beautiful shine, and its ornately shaped claws crushed the rock it was gripping into powder.

    "What the hell is that?" Adrian gaped at it, horrified. "Is that¡­a Frost Wyvern?"

    "A Rank C monster¡­" Jin Hao murmured, fear gripping his voice. "We''re doomed."

    "Just our fucking luck!" Elliot swore furiously. "Just thirty minutes more and we''ll be out of here! These bloody bastards just keep coming!"

    "What do we do now?" Nicholas asked, shivering from fright as he turned toward his trembling President.

    Then I realized that I was shivering too. Glancing around, I saw that the surroundings were beginning to freeze. Ice was spreading all across the blasted earth and the temperature was plummeting rapidly.

    "Frost Wyvern¡­it has the ability to manipulate ice," I muttered as my memory dredged up some detail about it from some book I had read years ago.

    That was right. I suddenly recalled the categorization of monster ranks. Rank C monsters were so classified because the creatures within that group had grown powerful enough to develop the ability to control and manipulate elemental magic. That was it was ranked above the dead Lycanthrope Alpha, despite being smaller in size.

    Size wasn''t everything.

    "What do you mean, what do we do now?" Elliot demanded. "The Frost Wyvern is a rank C monster! It''s stronger than the gigantic Lycanthrope Alpha we had just fought! We''re not going to survive against an enemy like that!"

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    "Don''t panic!" Alicia ordered. "Everyone, into formation! If we can defend from its attacks, we should be able to buy enough time until the teachers and reinforcements arrive! We''ve survived this long until now¡­I don''t believe we''ll die here!"

    "Everyone, please stand back."

    I was about to step forward, but I broke into a sudden fit of coughing. Holding up my hand, I stared dumbly at the blood that was beginning to freeze over in my palm. It looked like I didn''t have much time left.

    Then I shouldn''t be wasting it.

    "Vega."

    My right hand began glowing golden as I channeled magical energy into materializing another arrow. However, a soft, gentle hand clamped firmly but tenderly on my right shoulder, stopping me from lifting my arm.

    "That won''t be necessary," a cool, familiar voice declared. I blinked in surprise and turned around.

    "Big¡­Big Sister?!" Adrian staggered back when he saw her. Cecilia Stuart glared at him, but didn''t say anything. As for me, I gaped at her in shock.

    When did she get here? I didn''t even feel her presence!

    "Cecilia¡­" Alicia began, just as astonished as I was by her sudden appearance. Cecilia pushed me toward her.

    "Take care of him."

    "Ah¡­yeah."

    As Alicia helped me stay on my feet, I dropped my disappearing Lyra and canceled my spell. With Cecilia Stuart, the Invincible Goddess of War present, there was no longer any need for me to fight. I closed my eyes slightly.

    "Leave the rest to me."

    Cecilia then calmly approached the screeching Frost Wyvern. It lashed out at her, but its razor-sharp tail missed and struck empty ground. Cecilia reappeared in another position, drawing her sword in a single, elegant motion.

    Then she completed her spell. I didn''t know how I knew. Probably because I had fought against her before. But I could sense the completion of her spell somehow.

    At first, nothing seemed to change. But I felt something touch my hand. Gulping involuntarily, I glanced down.

    It was a Sakura petal.

    No. Not just a Sakura petal.

    As I stared at the soft, pink petal, I suddenly became aware that our surroundings were now filled with Sakura petals. The sky turned pink for a moment as innumerable Sakura petals filled the air, blotting out the sunlight.

    Cecilia was now in front of the Frost Wyvern. Even the rank C monster was shrinking back from her.

    It reminded me of Dad. The first time I encountered Dad, the monsters had been afraid of him too. Cecilia was just like Dad, having reached the pinnacle of humanity and able to intimidate these interdimensional monsters with just her aura alone.

    I never saw the attack coming. One moment Cecilia was staring down the Frost Wyvern, and the next the serpentine monster was lying on the ground, blood spurting from an incredible amount of wounds all over its body. Its beautiful azure scales were beginning to turn red with blood. Letting out a final croak, the Frost Wyvern closed its eyes and breathed its last.

    "Incredible¡­" Elliot breathed.

    "That''s the Invincible War Goddess for you," Nicholas added, amazed.

    Alone among us, Adrian looked slightly sick from fright. He was trying to inch away, only to freeze when Cecilia turned her cold gaze toward him.

    "Thank you for saving us, Cecilia!" Alicia bowed her head gratefully. "How did you get here? Are you part of the reinforcements?"

    "Ah, no."

    Cecilia was sheathing her sword. I caught a glimpse of the exquisitely crafted katana before it was completely hidden. The shiny, pristine blade remained free of blood. That was most definitely a top quality Divine Device ¨C the same one she used against my Vermillion Phoenix during the duel a couple of weeks ago.

    She turned to glare at Adrian, who shrank further.

    "I received a report that my wayward cousin ran away while on a trip to Jing Tian City, and immediately set out to look for him." She softened her gaze as she turned to Alicia. "It was only a coincidence that I found you guys too."

    "I hope you have a ride back," Elliot said dryly. He glanced at me worriedly. "Richard won''t last much longer at this rate."

    "Reckless as ever, I see." Cecilia studied me. "He looks like he''s in pretty bad shape."

    "Richard! Are you all right?" Alicia panicked when she felt me bleeding all over her. "My goodness! He''s losing too much blood!"

    I didn''t reply. I could hear everyone talking, asking questions, but I could no longer see any of them. My vision had gone completely black and my eyes refused to open. Slowly, my hearing also began to fail me, and their voices grew softer and softer until they disappeared completely.

    Then I fell into the warm, comfortable embrace of darkness, and knew nothing more.

 41 Chapter 41: Society in trouble

    "Ugh¡­"

    Groaning, I opened my eyes and stared at the white, sterilized ceiling above me. My body ached like hell, and I winced when I tried to sit up. Pain lanced through me and I sank back into the mattress, reluctant to move any part of my hurting body. Relaxing my muscles, I closed my eyes and gently allowed myself to drift back to sleep¡­

    "Richie! Are you finally awake?!"

    For a moment, I thought I was imagining things. Dad went overseas to carry out a mission of vengeance against the Syndicate. There was no way he would be here¡­

    "Mr. Huang, it might be best to let your son sleep a bit more." a nurse''s strict voice spoke up from somewhere just beyond my vision.

    "Oh, sorry."

    Nope, not my imagination.

    "Dad?" I sat up, grimacing as red-hot agony lanced through my body. Putting on my glasses, I stared at him in confusion. "Weren''t you hunting down the Syndicate? What are you doing here?"

    "Ah, ha ha¡­I rushed back immediately when I heard that you got severely hurt." Dad scratched his head sheepishly. "Don''t worry, I already took care of the Syndicate. They won''t be bothering us ever again."

    "I see. That''s good then."

    Was there going to be any other outcome now that Dad had taken to the field himself? I had never doubted that Dad would succeed in his mission. If he wanted something dead, it would dead no matter that it had an immortal body or had lived for millennia.

    "Sorry to worry you, but I''m all right." I creaked my neck from left to right to ensure that it was working properly. Then again, it wasn''t my neck that the Lycanthrope Alpha broke. It was my damned ribs. At least I was breathing properly again.

    "Oh, I''m not worried. Your school has one of the best healers in the Federation." Dad was smiling. "Mary Cure, right? She used to be a colleague of mine. I always knew that you''re in good hands."

    "Eh? Teacher Cure used to be your colleague?" I gaped at him. Dad nodded.

    "We used to be in the same party when we were a lot younger. But now that she''s got a family and kids to look after, she retired from the mage scene and became a teacher."

    Wow, I so did not know that. Then again, this was Dad''s alma mater. It seemed that Teacher Cure used to be a student here as well. So it wasn''t strange that they knew each other. Fate had a weird way of coming full circle.

    "I heard everything, though! How you got hurt¡­you''re a hero!" Dad winked at me. "Rushing over to save your girlfriend¡­little Richie has grown up now!"

    "Huh? Girlfriend?" I stared at him blankly. Dad blinked and began to look uncertain.

    "That beautiful girl isn''t your girlfriend? Alicia Violet, wasn''t she? I was sure you were going out with her¡­"

    I shook my head. However, anything I was about to say was cut off when someone entered the room.

    "Student Richard! You''re finally awake!"

    Alicia Violet looked like she was going to cry. She approached me and clasped both my hands, forcing a smile.

    "Thank you for saving my party members. I was so worried when you didn''t wake up. Teacher Cure has been treating you, but¡­"

    "¡­eh? How long have I been out for?"

    I glanced around and realized that I wasn''t in the infirmary, but a hospital. That meant I had been transferred from Teacher Cure''s care to public healthcare facilities. Well, that made sense. A hospital would have better medical facilities.

    "A week, from what I''ve heard." Dad shrugged. "Mary healed your fatal injuries and stabilized your condition, but you were pretty banged up. So it''s normal for you to fall into a coma." He turned to Alicia. "Come on, Daughter-in-law, Richie''s all right now. You can stop crying."

    ¡­daughter-in-law?

    Did he just call her Daughter-in-law?

    Alicia nodded, but didn''t protest at the term of address. Okay, this was just creeping me out.

    "What happened while I was out cold?" I asked.

    "Hmm? Nothing much, I supposed. I unpacked my stuff, settled the administrative matters regarding the Syndicate ¨C we''re getting a huge influx of cash for that one." Dad grinned. "Oh, and I''ll have to write a couple of reports. They''re still not done yet."

    That wasn''t what I was asking about, but okay. Whatever.

    "What about Adrian?" I asked, changing the subject. I was responsible for his safety, after all. "Did he find his family?"

    "Cecilia''s taking care of him right now." This time it was Alicia who answered. She smiled and wiped her eyes. "She asked me to express her thanks to you on her behalf. Adrian too¡­he was worried. I''ll let him know that you''ve finally woken up."

    "That''s good." I wasn''t sure what else to say. This was feeling pretty awkward. At least Adrian was all right. I always suspected that he was from the Stuart clan, but the fact that Cecilia was taking care of him and called him her cousin had confirmed it. Now that Adrian was with Cecilia, he was no longer my problem. I focused on Alicia, my hazy memory solidifying in my mind. "How are the rest of your party? Are they all right?"

    "None of them were hurt. You saved us. Nicholas, Elliot and Jin Hao are all doing fine. They would visit, but none of us knew when you would wake up." Alicia continued to smile. "They also want to thank you personally."

    "I wasn''t able to save all the members of your party," I pointed out, still remembering the corpses in the clearing, along with Tao Zhou''s death.

    "You did more than enough, son." Dad placed a hand on my shoulder. "At the very least, you prevented their party from being annihilated."

    "¡­right."

    The two of them lingered for a bit longer, before leaving. I had just woken up, after all, and they wanted to let me rest. According to the doctor, it would take a couple of days before I fully recovered. Even with healing magic, my injuries had been pretty severe.

    On the other hand, I could feel my body adapting and strengthening from the experience of this battle. The next time I fought a rank D monster, I was going to be a lot more prepared.

    *

    "Richard!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu and the rest of my society members showed up the next day.

    "You are all right!"

    "Why are you talking as if he was going to die?" Stanley Lee asked, rolling his eyes. "The doctors already said that he just needed a few days of rest before he fully heals. That''s what the coma was doing ¨C helping his body heal from the damage he sustained."

    "Still, it''s so good to see Senior Richard up and recovered." Harvey Deng was looking immensely relieved. "We really need him back!"

    "No, you don''t," I replied in reflex. "You have President Yue Chu to take care of you guys."

    Everyone, including Dong Fang Yue Chu, shuffled their feet and avoided my gaze. I frowned, detecting some sort of unease.

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    "What happened?"

    "Nothing much." Wang Fei looked uncomfortable. "It''s just that the Protection Period is ending soon."

    "Right, I almost forgot about that." I turned to Dong Fang Yue Chu. "I hope you didn''t have trouble while I was out. Did the prestige points go through? Did they allow you to register the entire level under Ultimate Outcast Society, or did they require me to do something before they recognized the prestige points as under our society?"

    Prestige points were useless for the individual, after all. They were meant for the society, not the individual. For individual achievements, we had rankings. The missions did not add to my ranking, but they certainly helped me in terms of monetary rewards and unlocking higher-ranked missions for me to take in future.

    "No, there was no problems with the admin stuff. Who do you think I am?" Dong Fang Yue Chu puffed his chest out. "I can handle all the paperwork. In fact, I already took care of that. As per your instructions, the whole level in the Rear Building is ours. Our society has expanded!"

    "That''s great." I didn''t understand why they were so glum then. "I hope you guys are putting the facility to good use."

    "Yeah." Stan nodded. "We sure are. Thanks for helping us secure them."

    "Um¡­should we tell Vice-President Richard, though?" Wang Fei was looking very uncomfortable.

    "Best not to," Dong Fang Yue Chu whispered. "He''s only just recovered. No point making him worry.

    "Tell me what?" I asked, causing everyone to jolt. Now that I looked at them, there were only four of them. The other three first-year students who joined our society the other time were conspicuously absent.

    "Our society was challenged a few times while you were out," Harvey explained. "Not the first-year students, because of the protection period, but¡­"

    "I tried to hold them off, to stall them, but I couldn''t reject all of them. You know the school rules. We need to at accept at least one or two challenges a week. We are not allowed to refuse them all." Dong Fang Yue Chu scratched his head. "And since I''m the only one who''s valid to accept a challenge¡­"

    "It was only a couple of losses, so we didn''t lose that many prestige points," Wang Fei assured me. "But¡­"

    Stan sighed. "We''ve another couple of challenges to face next week. Right after the protection period ends."

    "From the Thunder Hammer Society and the Crimson Spear Society." Harvey counted them off. "President managed to get rid of the rest, but we still have to accept at least a couple. And they are asking for a team battle."

    That didn''t sound good. At least not for my juniors. They were looking pretty nervous.

    "We need to get stronger," Stan declared fiercely. "We can''t let those bastards keep looking down on us!"

    "But how?" Wang Fei asked timidly. "The challenge from Thunder Hammer Society and Crimson Spear Society is in the next few days. We won''t be able to prepare ourselves in time...we''re still so weak. And they''re sending all their second-year and third-year students against us!"

    I recognized the tactic. Often, the not-so-strong societies would look for new, weaker societies who still hadn''t developed a good team, who comprised mostly of first-year students, and targeted them. Mostly because victory would gain them much-needed prestige points.

    "If we lose too many battles, we would lose the rooms you worked so hard to obtain for us." Dong Fang Yue Chu''s shoulders slumped. "Worse¡­if we lost too many prestige points, we''ll be forced to disband."

    Our members would be poached off by other societies, and our rooms taken away from us. That was the worst thing that could happen to us.

    "Thanks to Senior Richard''s efforts and accomplishments, we should still be safe on prestige points." Harvey smiled reassuringly. I felt bad. My junior somehow thought with me around, we would be able to solve everything. I hated to tell him that I wasn''t a god.

    "Until President Dong Fang lost those matches and a bit of prestige points." Stan sounded bitter. "A few of the members also quit after that because they got scared of being targeted. At this rate, we''re going to lose all those prestige points that you earned in less than a month."

    I straightened my back, my mind churning as I thought of several solutions. Biting my lip, I made my decision.

    "Don''t worry about it," I told them as I put on a false fa?ade of confidence. "I''ll take care of them. The team battles, the challenges¡­I''ll take care of all of them."

 42 Chapter 42: Discharge

    A few days later, I was finally discharged from the hospital and allowed to return to school. Once again I was reminded of the difference between reality and controlled environments. The boundary field in the school''s arenas ensured that we would be kept alive no matter what, and no injury would be fatal. I wasn''t sure how the enchantment, but no matter how serious the injuries, the people who suffered severe wounds within the boundary field would always recover in the matter of hours.

    The boundary field seemed to have a special effect on containing and restricting the types of injuries the people within sustained.

    In contrast, reality did not have such safety devices. There was no boundary field to limit the types of injuries we suffered and prevent it from becoming fatal, and as such, life-threatening injuries sustained outside would require more time to heal than those acquired in the boundary field. I honestly wasn''t sure how it worked, but hey, let''s just ascribe it to magic.

    The moment I returned to school, Alicia was the first to greet me.

    "I''m very sorry!"

    "Eh? Why are you apologizing?" I was caught off guard by her apology. Alicia bit her lip, and lowered her head.

    "My society members have caused you a lot of trouble."

    "Huh? No, they didn''t. I was the one who decided to save you guys."

    "Ah¡­no, I''m not talking about Elliot, Nicholas and Jin Hao." Alicia realized I had no idea what she was talking about. "I was referring to Bei Pan Zhe, Lavender, Daisy and Dan Xiao Gui. The party you originally set out for the rescue mission."

    "Oh, that reminds me." I had completely forgotten about that. A week spent in a coma would do that to you. "How are the refugees? Are they all right? I hope they made it to Jing Tian City safely."

    "They are definitely all right. The four of them did their job properly. Even so¡­what they did to you was inexcusable!"

    Now the memory of what happened was coming back to me. I frowned when I remembered the last conversation I had with them, what with Bei Pan Zhe rudely hanging up on me when I called him with Adrian''s phone.

    "What happened? They were supposed to back me up, but they never came. And when I tried to contact them, they cut me off."

    "That''s¡­" Alicia looked glum. "They abandoned you."

    Where did I hear that from? Oh, right. Allison told me that when she called me right after the mission, before she requested me to reinforce Alicia''s party.

    I later learned from Alicia, as well as Dong Fang Yue Chu, about the charges brought against them (now I remembered Allison mentioning those to me), and their motives. They even recorded their dialogue with the device and used that as evidence against them in court. I wondered why they were stupid enough to openly discuss their plans when they should have known that they received a recording device.

    Speaking of recording devices, I learned that Allison had retrieved mine from my glasses while I was hospitalized, to acquire the mission logs and other stuff in it. A good chunk of it was also used as evidence against my original party members, and to tally my kills. Apparently I also earned cash for each monster I killed, and with over hundreds of monsters to my name, I was practically a rich man. If only I could convert those into prestige points¡­

    "It happens," I muttered after getting the story from Alicia. I couldn''t believe what I was hearing. They tried to murder me because they were jealous? The girls didn''t want me to get near Alicia, and Bei Pan Zhe was envious of me attracting her attention? What kind of logic was that?

    "I''m sorry! I''ll keep an eye on my members and make sure they don''t do something as horrible as this again!" Alicia promised, bowing frantically.

    "No, no. It''s not your fault. It''s not as if you can control them like puppets." I waved my hand dismissively. "I appreciate the thought, though."

    After assuring her a few times, I headed for my classroom, where Harvey waved at me.

    "Vice-President Richard!"

    "Don''t call me that," I told him as I approached him.

    "Yes, Senior Richard." I didn''t complain about that, so he continued. "The protection period is over this week."

    "Don''t worry about it," I assured him with a grin. "I already have an arrangement with Thunder Hammer Society."

    After I was discharged, with Dong Fang Yue Chu''s help, I was able to contact Thunder Hammer Society. The moment I told them I would be accepting their challenge, they immediately changed their format to a one-on-one, as opposed to a team battle.

    I understood why they changed their minds. They were aware of my reputation of team-killing the other party, and didn''t want to risk it. After all, just like the Iron Fist Society, they would lose a ton of prestige points by getting team-killed. About five times as much, but obviously it varied depending on the opponent. I received more prestige points and went higher up in ranking if my opponent was stronger, and less if he or she wasn''t that strong.

    That didn''t stop people from "grinding" by picking on a ton of first-year students or weaker societies since you can accumulate prestige points and matchmaking rating, so the more you challenge, the more points you could gather.

    Originally that was the reason why Thunder Hammer Society proposed a team battle. But now that I was back, they didn''t want to risk it. They couldn''t just withdraw their challenge as that would be unethical (and against the rules), and if they won, that would still benefit them. So they decided to just go for it while mitigating the possible damage that would be incurred if things didn''t go their way.

    "But will you really be all right, Senior Richard?" Harvey asked worriedly. "You only just got discharged yesterday."

    "I''m fully recovered," I reassured him, stretching my arms. There were no longer aches and my body was finally moving the way I wanted it to. "I need to work out, to get back into shape. And Jing Tian Hospital did a good job of restoring my strength."

    No, I was actually eager to fight. Now that I had tasted success from two consecutive missions, I wanted to get stuck back in, after over a week of inactivity. I wanted to exchange blows with a proper opponent, to test out my magic and see how it would fare against human opponents. And I was also pretty eager to improve my rank.

    Even though I had succeeded in moving my rank up from dead last to 900+ after defeating the Iron Fist Society, that didn''t mean I was safe. One of my eventual goals was to get into Stellar Nebula University, the one my Dad went to before breaking out as a legendary summoner. Being one of the seven elite universities, the only way I could enroll in it was to be within the top 100 of my school. And even then, that wasn''t a guarantee, given how all the different schools from the Federation would be applying from it. It was possible that even top ten in Jing Tian Magic Academy wouldn''t guarantee me a spot there.

    And I hadn''t even mentioned the exam yet. To qualify for the university entrance examinations, I needed to be among the top 100 of Jing Tian Magic Academy. That was why I said it wasn''t a guarantee. Not only that, I had to achieve a good rank in the university entrance exam, or the elite universities wouldn''t even consider me.

    I might have two years to climb up the ranks, but that sounded deceptively long. Honestly, it was actually a very short time. If I wanted to climb up the ranks, especially now that I was in my second year, I had to accept as many challenges and offer just as many of my own as possible, or I would never be able to break into the top 100.

    Fortunately, one way of going up in ranks was taking missions too. Having succeeded in both missions saw me move up by over forty tanks, and now I was 904th. Just 5 more positions and I would be in the top 900, and become among the 800s.

    I intended to do that by defeating Thunder Hammer Society. It was a pity that they didn''t go through with their promise of a team battle, but that was fine. Taking one step forward was infinitely better than taking no steps at all.

    "Just watch me!" I told Harvey confidently. "I''ll show you how it''s done!"

    Harvey watched me in wonder, having the same hero-worship expression ever since he witnessed me defeating the representatives from Crowley Academy. He nodded enthusiastically. "All right! Go get them!"

    After classes, we gathered in an arena in a building adjacent to the main hall. Since there were literally dozens, if over a hundred matches everyday, not everyone could use the main arena and stadium. That was reserved for formal events, such as the interschool tournament, or to decide representatives and stuff. A minor duel between Ultimate Outcast Society and Thunder Hammer Society could be settled in any of the training rooms.

    As a middling society, Thunder Hammer Society had a big training room that often doubled as an arena. We agreed to allow Thunder Hammer Society host the duel there. All we needed was a referee, and Teacher Fielding was on hand to referee the match. This time, he was a virtual figure, having use magic to make a digital clone of himself to oversee the match.

    He had no choice but to do that because there were over a hundred matches, and not enough teachers to referee all of them.

    "So a one-on-one match, huh? Are you sure?"

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    Dong Fang Yue Chu was going through the details with the members of the Thunder Hammer Society.

    "That''s right." The president of Thunder Hammer Society, Theodore Hammond, nodded. He straightened up and pulled his broad shoulders back. "We thought it would be more¡­appropriate."

    Like hell you did. You were just afraid of getting team-killed, weren''t you?

    Of course I didn''t say that and merely nodded in understanding. Behind me, Harvey, Stan and Wang Fei stood, facing off with the numerous members of Thunder Hammer Society. They weren''t as big as one of the four Great Societies such as Black Rose Society, but they still had quite a decent number. About thirty, by a rough estimate.

    "From our side, we''ll send Richard. I trust you have no problems with that?" Dong Fang Yue Chu maintained his polite smile. Theodore shook his head.

    "No, I''m looking forward to it, in fact." He grinned.

    "Who will be fighting from your end?" Dong Fang Yue Chu questioned, refusing to be sidetracked.

    "Me, of course." Rearing up to his full height, which was massive, Theodore Hammond towered over our average-height president in an intimidating manner. Before Dong Fang Yue Chu could topple over, Theodore marched toward me and offered a hand. "Let''s both do our best."

    "Yeah." I accepted the handshake and winced as the big guy crushed my hand. Already playing these stupid games before the match, huh? I could see the smirk in Theodore''s expression. But he knew better to underestimate me, so he nodded respectfully before withdrawing.

    "If both parties are ready, then we can begin right away." It was Teacher Fielding. His holographic image flickered, and the both of us nodded. Proceeding to the opposite ends of the arena, we then made our final preparations before facing each other.

    "Ready¡­fight!"

    The match began.

 43 Chapter 43: Thunder Hammer Society

    The moment Teacher Fielding signaled for the match to begin, Theodore Hammond immediately whipped out his Divine Device.

    Transforming into a gigantic Thunder Hammer ¨C the trademark weapon of the society that bore the same name, it crackled with incredible power. Silver-white lightning swarmed over the massive head of the hammer, wreathing it in a destructive power field.

    "Let''s see if I can finish you off before you summon any of your beasts!" Theodore roared as he charged at me. Swinging his hammer in a wide arc, he smashed it down in my direction, forcing me to jump back. The Thunder Hammer gouged a huge chunk of concrete out of the training room floor, sending a spray of debris in all directions.

    Theodore took no notice. The boundary field didn''t just apply to human combatants, who could be healed immediately no matter what sort of injuries they sustained inside. The moment they switched off the boundary field, the arena would be restored back to normal, with all damage gone. That was what happened in the main arena inside the school stadium after my battle against the representatives from Crowley''s Academy.

    While retreating, I summoned my Gemini twin swords. Not that I was planning on exchanging direct blows with Theodore or parrying his hammer strikes. With such tremendous power behind his swings, he would shatter both of my swords immediately.

    No, if I wanted to win this, I needed to rely on speed.

    Skidding to a stop, I suddenly switched directions and weaved through the destructive barrage that Theodore threw at me. He hurtled through the flying debris determinedly, his hammer raised high. With a speed that belied his massive size and the immense weight of his weapon, Theodore attempted to pummel me to oblivion, his hammer pulverizing the ground mercilessly and carving a deep crater into the concrete.

    All while I weaved and dodged through the destructive pattern, barely staying just one step ahead of him. Damn, but the combat magic techniques I learned in Teacher Fielding''s class were making a big difference here.

    Not only that, the foundation had already been laid by Dad teaching me martial arts and footwork. I could just combine the footwork with the physical enhancement spells that Teacher Fielding imparted to us students in his class and accelerated my speed beyond what was possible for me in the past.

    That was correct. In the past, I would never be capable of such high-speed actions. Dad didn''t teach me magic because he wanted me to develop a solid foundation in martial arts instead of being overly reliant on magic. Otherwise I would end up with bad habits when learning combat magic later. He trusted the teachers in my school to teach me properly.

    That was where Teacher Fielding and his classes came in. Once I had already established a firm foundation in martial arts, it was easy for me to combine them with Teacher Fielding''s lessons in combat magic (particularly physical enhancement).

    Consequently, I was enacting movements and maneuvers that were taking my opponent by surprise. Theodore had attempted to predict my path by striking at where he thought I would go to, but I relied on my reflexes to pull me out of danger. Skidding to a stop before Theodore''s hammer struck the ground where I would end up in a few seconds, or diving to the right as Theodore''s hammer swung to the left.

    I could literally field the intense electricity emanating from the Thunder Hammer as it swung toward me, narrowly missing me by a hair''s breadth. Those were some really close shaves, which would have resulted in my loss if they connected. It also meant that my mastery of martial arts and attempts to combine them with combat magic were far from perfect. I hadn''t reached the same level as my Dad. Not yet.

    Theodore suddenly changed his movements. Instead of smashing down with his hammer, he dropped it and instead kicked at me. I jumped above his leg, only for him to shoulder-charge me.

    "!"

    I slashed down with my twin swords, forcing him to back off. Now that Theodore was unarmed, I sought to press my advantage, stepping forward and thrusting my swords forward. Relying on the training I received from Dad, I enacted a series of sword attacks, cutting, slicing, slashing and thrusting. Theodore backed off, avoiding each and every one of them. A thrust to his chest was swatted away by his arm. A slash to his shoulder was avoided by a hair''s breadth when he sidestepped my attack.

    Blood spurted when my blades cut through his flesh, but Theodore didn''t even wince. He threw a punch at me after I missed a cut, whirling about to avoid my blade while counterattacking. Having seen a similar movement from Dad, I had anticipated his feint and was able to pull back in time. His fist soared above my face as I jerked my head back, and I hacked away at his arm, the blades catching upon his meaty muscle and doing nothing more than flay his flesh.

    I couldn''t even cut to the bone!

    With a roar, Theodore swung his arm, dislodging his swords and causing me to stagger. He kicked at me, and I managed to block with my arms, just barely. Good thing I did, or his foot would have cracked my skull. Even so, the force behind his kick was so huge that I was sent hurtling off my feet and crashing several meters away.

    "Ugh!"

    I flipped myself in midair and landed clumsily on my feet. As I stood up, I caught sight of Theodore already picking up his Thunder Hammer. He reactivated it, causing lightning to run along its length and culminate in a raging storm at the head.

    "Hu¡­"

    I exhaled as I raised both my Gemini twin swords. From what I remembered, a Thunder Hammer doubled its user''s strength and had a high armor penetration value. It also did massive damage, dealing at least several wounds per hit. I had best avoid getting hit by that damned thing.

    But how?

    "Hah!"

    With a bellow, Theodore charged at me again. Lightning exploded from his Thunder Hammer, saturating the area with intense electricity. Even though I had tried to gather my magical energy to form a protective aura around myself, I couldn''t withstand such an electrifying environment. Gritting my teeth, I backed off, only to find my back pressed against the wall.

    Swoosh!

    Ducking under Theodore''s Thunder Hammer, which smashed a chunk of the wall into powder, I dove to the side and rolled away as I tried to avoid his kick. Theodore continued to hammer where I was rolling and I was forced to call my next option.

    "Taurus!"

    The gigantic bull materialized and rammed into Theodore. He grunted as he parried Taurus''s charge with his Thunder Hammer, but found himself driven back despite his prodigious strength. Taurus grunted and jerked up his head, his horns locking with the Thunder Hammer and lifting Theodore off his feet, throwing him helplessly into the air.

    Theodore then flipped himself up and swung his hammer down on Taurus''s heavily armored back, which was covered with metallic plating. Taurus reared up and kicked him, his hooves meeting the hammer. There was an explosion of lightning, and Taurus staggered, slightly electrocuted. Theodore, on the other hand, was sent flying across the arena.

    Seizing the opportunity, I threw my Gemini twin swords. Spinning in a vicious arc, they intersected where Theodore was falling. The president of the Thunder Hammer Society reacted quickly, though, swinging his hammer to smash Pollux away while twisting his body to avoid Castor. The black blade did score a huge cut on his back as it slashed past, drawing a line of blood.

    "Kuh!"

    He landed on his feet unsteadily, but I had already caught both Gemini twin swords and was descending upon him with a graceful slash. Gritting his teeth, Theodore swung his Thunder Hammer up to meet me.

    There was a deafening crack, followed by an explosion of electricity. Both Gemini twin swords shattered instantly and I was blown across the arena. Slamming into the ground, I skidded for several meters before coming to a stop. My body convulsed as lightning electrocuted me mercilessly, and I gritted my teeth to endure it, slamming my hands onto the ground and discharging the electricity in my body to earth it.

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    "Oh, wow¡­you''re capable of that?" Theodore was amazed. I grinned back.

    "I learned that from my Dad." I had seen him fight a lightning mage before, and quite honestly, electric spells were annoying to deal with. They could disrupt one''s magical energy and make it much more difficult to cast spells. Dad showed me that the best way to deal with it was to quickly discharge it into the earth before it could disrupt anything further.

    "I see. Still, it''s over."

    Theodore approached me, getting ready to deliver the finishing blow. I gaped at him, unable to believe that he blatantly went and forgot about something.

    But I wasn''t going to remind him. Before Theodore could swing his Thunder Hammer down, Taurus slammed into him, knocking him off his feet and hurling him into the wall. There was a deafening crack as Theodore collided with the concrete, causing a cobweb of cracks and a crater, before he dropped onto the ground, unmoving.

    "Thanks, Taurus." I slowly rose to my feet, heaving. Just as planned. I had thought to distract Theodore for a moment so that Taurus could attack him from behind while his guard was down, but I couldn''t believe my opponent had completely forgotten about my Constellation spirit. Oh well. His loss.

    I glanced in the direction of Teacher Fielding, expecting him to declare the end of the match, but he remained as impassive as ever.

    Uh oh¡­that couldn''t be good.

    "Taurus!" I yelled. My Constellation spirit responded, twisting around and charging at the sprawled Theodore. While it seemed despicable to attack a fallen enemy before he got up, from the fact that Teacher Fielding hadn''t declared it my victory, I could tell that the match was far from over. Theodore still wasn''t down yet.

    And I wasn''t stupid enough to underestimate him. I had to finish him off quickly before he got up, or I might end up like my opponents who often underestimated me. Just like Hal Gunther.

    Boom!

    I was too late. Lightning exploded from Theodore''s body and blasted Taurus off his feet. The enormous bull cried out before he disappeared, disintegrated by the tremendous amount of electricity.

    Crackling with devastating energies, Theodore slowly rose to his feet, gripping his hammer tightly. His eyes had gone entirely white, smothered with silvery white lightning. The electricity rolling off his body was so intense that even though I was standing so far away, I began to feel numb.

    "¡­Theodore Hammond is a berserker," Harvey Deng murmured outside the ring, his voice dripping with wonder. "He is in the berserker class."

    "Damn it," I muttered, realizing that I had just flipped his switch and forced him into berserk mode. As I suspected, the match was far from over.

    It was only just beginning.

 44 Chapter 44: Berserk Lightning

    With a bestial roar, Theodore Hammond charged at me, swinging his hammer. Even though it didn''t come into contact with anything (except air), his swing unleashed an arc of destructive lightning in all directions.

    "Gah!"

    I was hurled back by the terrifying stream of energies, my body shuddering. Gritting my teeth, I threw my hand up and summoned another Constellation weapon before Theodore could land on me with his massive Thunder Hammer.

    "Scutum Sobiescianum!"

    The Constellation shield materialized above me, partially blocking out the ferocious lightning. Undeterred, Theodore smashed his hammer against my Scutum Sobiescianum.

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    Meant to be sturdier than Gemini, Scutum Sobiescianum held for a moment, cracking a little. However, Theodore continue to pummel the crumbling shield, bellowing incoherently in an enraged voice. His mind had gone blank, replaced by nothing but rage and violence.

    The very definition of a berserker.

    Getting up, I gathered magical energy into my hands and summoned Sagittarius. Hurriedly summoning Alnasl, I pulled it back and aimed the flaming arrow at the rampaging Theodore.

    By now Theodore had finally smashed Scutum Sobeiscianum into smithereens and was proceeding in my direction. Standing my ground, I adjusted my aim and fired my arrow directly at him.

    Fire against lightning. The flaming Alnasl streaked through the short space between us in a red-hot light and collided with the bellowing Theodore before exploding. Theodore was hurled across the arena, immolated by the arrow''s destructive power, but even now his lightning remained unabated as he crashed onto the ground.

    To my astonishment, he stood back up, shrieking in an inhuman manner.

    "Can he not feel any pain?!" I growled in frustration. Stupid question. Of course he couldn''t ¨C that was the very definition of a berserker.

    In a way, he was much more of a troublesome and dangerous opponent than the hordes of low-ranked monsters I had faced. In fact, I highly suspected that he would be able to decimate all those creatures by himself as long as he went into berserk mode. Even that Lycanthrope Alpha would be smashed into a pulp by him.

    Now that I thought about it, wasn''t Theodore Hammond ranked among the top 100? He truly was deserving of his status as a society president, and one of the elite students in Jing Tian Magic Academy. No doubt he would be able to participate in the university entrance examinations¡­

    "UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    With another bestial roar, Theodore leaped at me. He crossed the huge distance between us in a single bound, swinging his Thunder Hammer down while discharging a fatal web of lightning all around me to block all my escape routes.

    "Huff¡­"

    I immediately dismissed Sagittarius and jumped away before Theodore could obliterate me. I had to dive and weave through the web of lighting by the narrowest hair''s breadth, diving through a tiny crack, rolling between sporadic flashes of electricity, and then twisting away before I could get struck by a stray bolt or two. Even as I tried to widen the distance between us, the impact from Theodore''s landing sent tremors through the arena and caused me to stumble momentarily.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    I hit the ground again, and then rolled up, trying to ignore the stray bolts of lightning that lashed out at me. Theodore straightened up and turned toward me, his body still wreathed in a terrifying storm of electricity.

    There was no way I could penetrate those defenses!

    However, I wasn''t going to give up.

    "Capricorn!"

    The gigantic goat materialized and rammed into Theodore, knocking him away as he pursued me. Despite the electricity crackling around him, Capricorn was of the earth element, so he was able to ground the electricity more efficiently. He interposed himself between me and Theodore, and charged the berserker again.

    "Gr¡­"

    Theodore growled and swung his Thunder Hammer again. Capricorn wisely stopped short and stayed out of reach, falling back with a bray. The berserker continued hammering away at Capricorn, who continued to retreat.

    The first swing almost caught Capricorn by surprise, but the gigantic goat raised both his front legs to avoid getting them broken by Theodore''s Thunder Hammer. He then retaliated with a stomp that seemed to smash Theodore''s shoulder, but the Thunder Hammer Society president shrugged it off, and rammed Capricorn off balance with his shoulder.

    As Capricorn staggered, Theodore then reversed his grip on his Thunder Hammer and smacked it right against his horns, cracking it. Capricorn brayed in pain as he fell back, but thankfully he hadn''t dissipated yet.

    Yet.

    Theodore rose up and brought his Thunder Hammer down to deal the finishing blow.

    "Ophiuchus!"

    By now I had finished casting yet another spell. A whip appeared in my hand, and I lashed out almost hastily. The flexible Constellation weapon curled around Theodore before whipping around him and tying him up, immobilizing his movements. He grunted and struggled, but Ophiuchus held firm, locking his arms to his sides and disallowing him from lifting his Thunder Hammer.

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    With a berserk roar, Theodore unleashed a devastating lightning spell that flowed along the whip and struck me. Fortunately, Ophiuchus was insulated and I didn''t receive a direct blast. But the sheer heat almost caused me to let go of my Constellation whip.

    "Ugh!"

    Ignoring the burns on my palm and fingers as my flesh sizzled from the sheer heat, I sent a mental command to Capricorn. My goat nodded and then rammed into Theodore. The impact was so strong that it forced the whip out of my hand, but Theodore was flung across the ring and collided against the wall with a sickening crack.

    "Huff¡­"

    I shook my hand, gingerly clutching it from the pain. However, my relief was terminated when Theodore rose back to his feet. With a snarl, he ripped Ophiuchus away from him, causing the whip to disappear.

    Picking up his Thunder Hammer, he charged at me again.

    Capricorn intercepted his charge by slamming into him with his horns again, but Theodore withstood the attack. He dug his feet in and ground to a stop in an impressive display of strength. With another bellow, he swung his Thunder Hammer down and pulverized Capricorn''s head and neck. Lightning exploded, and the Constellation spirit vanished.

    "Argh¡­!"

    I fell back, panting. Already Theodore had obliterated two of my more powerful Constellation spirits and still he would not be stopped. If anything, he seemed to be growing stronger by the minute. The berserker would not halt his rampage until he had destroyed his enemy.

    However, I couldn''t fall here!

    "Aries!"

    Summoning a third Constellation spirit, I directed the manifesting ram to ram against Theodore. There was another explosion of lightning, but Aries''s horns were sturdy enough to meet Theodore''s hammer. Though not as strong as Taurus nor as fast as Capricorn, Aries was a blend of speed and power, somewhere in between. Perhaps he might succeed where his two compatriots failed.

    Or he would not. Either way, I didn''t have a choice.

    Summoning Gemini again, I sprinted forward and to the side, even as Theodore engaged Aries in battle. The berserker swung his Thunder Hammer, but Aries stayed out of range before ramming him with his horns and throwing him off balance. Theodore growled furiously, but stood his ground, gripping his hammer as he readied for another blow.

    Then I struck from the flanks.

    Coming from his blind spot, I slashed at Theodore''s side, hoping to deal a fatal blow. However, even though my twin swords pierced his sides and into his lungs ¨C similar to the injuries I suffered when fighting the Lycanthrope Alpha ¨C he didn''t flinch. Instead, he yelled ferociously and blasted both me and Aries away with lightning.

    "Kuh!"

    I hit the ground and rolled away. Theodore spun around vengefully, bringing his hammer down to pulverize me to the ground.

    Before it could descend, Aries rammed into him, knocking him off balance and hurling him across the ring. This time, Theodore was more prepared. Or perhaps he had grown stronger. Either way, he was able to rotate his body in midair and land on his feet. Without pausing, he leaped forward without any hesitation, smashing down with his Thunder Hammer once again.

    Aries met him in the middle of the coliseum, and lightning exploded as they collided. I was sent reeling away from the tremendous impact, unable to do anything but watch helplessly as Aries faded away into nothingness.

    Breathing heavily, Theodore slammed his hammer against the ground and forcibly straightened himself. His strength seemingly undiminished, and the lightning around him intensifying, he took several steps toward me.

    Gritting my teeth, I hurled both Gemini twin swords at him. Theodore ignored them, even as they cut deeply into his flesh. This time, my Gemini twin swords didn''t return to me. The lightning whipping around Theodore obliterated them into spiritual fragments, and they scattered into the ground before disappearing fully.

    "¡­"

    Feeling exhausted, I slumped against the ground. Shaking my head at Theodore''s sheer tenacity, I forced myself to my feet.

    The fight was far from over. I couldn''t give up yet.

    No¡­instead, I should be celebrating. Theodore Hammond was a worthy foe. This was a great battle. I could feel my blood boiling from excitement. Only by fighting against such strong opponents would I be able to temper myself further and become stronger.

    "Let''s finish this," I declared as I confronted the advancing Theodore. He didn''t reply, and only continued his slow but steady approach, lightning flaring up violently from his body with each step. Wow, he still hadn''t run out of magical energy yet?

    What a monster.

    Catching a glimpse of the worried expressions of my juniors and Dong Fang Yue Chu, I steeled my resolve. Only Harvey Deng didn''t look concerned, my "fan" still believing in me, thinking that I had this well in hand.

    Well, I shouldn''t disappoint him then. Not to mention, I finally bought all the time I needed for my ultimate summoning spell.

    "Gr¡­!"

    Growling, Theodore hurled himself at me.

    He never reached me.

    Instead, a new storm of lightning billowed from under him, knocking him off his feet and siphoning away his lightning. A magical circle materialized in the ground, and an enormous White Tiger emerged from it, roaring ferociously.

    I had finally summoned White Tiger.

 45 Chapter 45: White Lightning

    White Tiger roared ferociously before bounding toward the rampaging Theodore Hammond. The berserker swung his Thunder Hammer, undeterred by the fearsome sight of the gigantic Celestial Guardian charging at him, meeting him squarely in the center of the arena.

    Wreathed in lightning, White Tiger swung his electrified claws, which collided against Theodore''s Thunder Hammer in an explosion of electricity. Sparks flew throughout the arena, stray bolts of lightning violently pounding the ground and leaving scorched marks. I was forced to stay back, even with White Tiger''s protective enchantment shimmering over me.

    The Celestial Guardian swung his claws again with another bellow, only for Theodore to parry them with his Thunder Hammer. More sparks rained down, scattering like pyrotechnics. Theodore then counterattacked with a fierce swing, attempting to club White Tiger in the skull, but the divine beast leaped back to avoid the attack.

    Bristling, White Tiger unleashed a storm of lightning that nearly blasted Theodore off his feet, but the berserker merely blocked the bolts with his Thunder Hammer.

    "Amazing," I muttered as I watched the two fought in awe. "Theodore Hammond is actually holding his own against White Tiger."

    With a growl, Theodore swung his Thunder Hammer to release his own web of destructive lightning, the arcing bolts scorching the ground and incinerating whatever they touched. White Tiger merely stood his ground, digging his claws deep into the concrete, as he watched the enormous web of lightning lash out at him.

    For a moment, everyone thought that White Tiger had given up.

    Then White Tiger absorbed the lightning. The silvery bolts that Theodore had discharged flowed and blended into the aura of white lightning that surrounded White Tiger, and he seemed to swell, becoming more powerful. Being his summoner and linked to him telepathically, I understood what he was trying to do.

    White Tiger was supercharging himself by feeding off Theodore''s lightning.

    As soon as Theodore halted his spell, White Tiger instantly lunged at him with a roar, swiping at him with his supercharged Lightning Claws. Theodore stood his ground firmly again, swinging his Thunder Hammer to deflect the strike, but this time he was engulfed by an enormous explosion the moment the two deadly weapons met!

    Boom!

    White Tiger''s attack had smashed a crater into the ground and nearly incinerated Theodore from the sheer force. Even with his protection against lightning, Theodore was scorched from the sheer heat and overwhelming power. He staggered, his eyes still glowing silver from his berserk mode, but gripped his Thunder Hammer tightly.

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    The berserker really couldn''t feel any pain!

    Bellowing defiantly, the president of the Thunder Hammer Society leaped forward, attempting to brain White Tiger. He would never stop, not until he destroyed all of his enemies.

    However, White Tiger wasn''t a pushover either.

    Gracefully loping to the side with an agility that belied his immense size, White Tiger evaded the first strike, and then smacked Theodore with his Lightning Claws, knocking him off his feet. Theodore stumbled, but twisted around and adjusted his aim. Snarling, he hammered away at White Tiger, but the latter ripped the Thunder Hammer out of his hands with another ferocious swipe. While Theodore was still trying to regain his balance, the Celestial Guardian moved forward and pinned him down with his other claws.

    Bam!

    "Kuh!"

    Theodore grunted as he was slammed into the ground. He struggled valiantly, but was unable to break out of White Tiger''s grip. Lightning crackled around him as he cast a spell to blast White Tiger off with brute force, but the Celestial Guardian merely absorbed the silver electric energies to supercharge himself once again.

    With a triumphant roar, White Tiger unleashed another bolt of supercharged white lightning onto his victim, crushing him and blowing a colossal crater into the arena.

    "Ugh!"

    Buffeted by the tremendous shockwaves, I stumbled back, almost swept off my feet.

    For a moment, I was blinded, unable to see anything. My ears were filled with the screeching howl of the explosion, my skin tingling numbly from the intense voltage of the electricity that saturated the air. Huffing, I fought to remain standing, and peered through my glasses to see what was happening.

    I could see nothing until the white lightning faded away. White Tiger threw his head back and roared victoriously. Even though all I could see was smoke fuming from the charred crater, through my telepathic link with White Tiger, I could see through his senses Theodore''s blackened body.

    He was definitely not going to get up from that.

    Teacher Fielding evidently thought the same, for his holographic image drifted forward and down, as if to study Theodore''s fallen figure for a few more seconds. After deliberating (and after Theodore didn''t stir), he raised his hand.

    "The match is over! The winner is Richard Huang of Ultimate Outcast Society!"

    I slumped to my knees, exhausted, my ears ringing with White Tiger''s triumphant bellows and the excited cheers of my juniors and society members.

    "Anyone wants to challenge him next?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked jokingly as he turned toward the silent Thunder Hammer Society.

    No one rose to the bait.

    *

    "Great job!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu slapped me in the back. I shrugged, and watched respectfully as the medics stretchered the unconscious Theodore off to the infirmary.

    "That was a tough battle," I admitted. "For a moment I thought he would actually be able to fight on par with my White Tiger."

    "Hah! Come on, Theodore Hammond might be ranked among the top 100 of our school, but he is no Cecilia Stuart. He''s not that strong."

    I didn''t share Dong Fang Yue Chu''s mirth. I wasn''t one to underestimate my opponents, and even more so I had gained a newfound respect for Theodore. No wonder he was the president of Thunder Hammer Society. He truly was a worthy opponent.

    Turning to the subdued Thunder Hammer Society members, I bowed my head slightly.

    "It was a hard-fought battle. Your president is truly strong."

    They nodded.

    "Thank you," the vice-president said. "I''m sure the president will be glad to hear that."

    "That was intense," another member admitted. "I almost thought the president had a chance there."

    "He did," I confessed honestly. "He pushed both me and my summoned beasts to their limits. He is that strong."

    The Thunder Hammer Society seemed to straighten and grow taller, looking a little prouder of their president and their society.

    "I''m sure President Theodore will challenge you again sometime," the vice-president told me. "Not as a society battle, but as an individual duel. I think he enjoyed the fight, and will be eager for a rematch." He smiled. "That''s the kind of person the president is."

    "I''ll welcome his challenge anytime," I told him honestly. There was no reason for me to shirk from Theodore''s challenge. The only way to truly become stronger was to fight against strong opponents such as him.

    That reminded me¡­Theodore might be among the top 100, but he was ranked maybe 80 or 70 something. I wondered if the top 100 spots were all filled with monsters like him. It seemed that it was going to be an uphill battle if I wanted to claw my way and snatch the rank from any of them. On the bright side, I had shown that I was at least equal to, if not superior to someone ranked among the top 100. Of course, this single victory wasn''t enough to catapult me all the way to the top 100 in one go. I needed to be more consistent in winning.

    This was only the beginning of my ascension.

    After leaving the Thunder Hammer Society to their own devices, I rejoined my group. Dong Fang Yue Chu glanced up from his smartphone and grinned at me excitedly.

    "Your ranking jumped to the seven hundreds after this victory!" he told me, elated. As if he was the one who rose in rank. "You''re now at the 742nd position!"

    "And our prestige points have increased too!" Harvey added in delight. As usual, he was giving me that hero-worship gaze. "Thunder Hammer Society is quite a prestigious society! Defeating someone from there netted us quite a haul!"

    "Not as much as if we won a team battle, but hey, I will take it." Stan nodded toward the retreating Thunder Hammer Society members, who were probably heading to the infirmary to check on their president. "They probably expected this result too, which was why they changed the format from team battle to individual, to minimize their loss of prestige points. Smart move."

    "Now there''s the challenge from Crimson Spear Society," Wang Fei said. He grinned. "I wonder if they want to stick to a team battle¡­"

    "Hah! It would be great if they did! Then Vice-President Richard can team-kill them!"

    "Come on, guys. Don''t put too much faith in me. I''m not God, you know." I raised both my hands. "You can''t always rely on me team-killing the opponent. You''ve to contribute and do your part as well."

    "Yeah! Don''t push everything to your vice-president!" Dong Fang Yue Chu agreed. "We''re a society! We should shoulder the burden together!"

    "Says the guy who lost two matches when the president was out," Stan muttered. Dong Fang Yue Chu blanched at that.

    "H¡­hey! I did my best, you know!"

    "I know what you mean, but right now we''re still so weak." Wang Fei looked anxious. "Did you see the original lineup for Thunder Hammer Society? They were full of second year and third year students. I''m sure Crimson Spear Society will be the same. We won''t be any match for them!"

    "That''s true. Right now we lack the experience and skills." Harvey also looked pretty downcast.

    "Damn them¡­taking advantage of us first year students when we''re still weak!" Stan growled in frustration. "The protection period''s over too. They think we''re so easy to bully!"

    "Don''t worry about that," I assured them, straightening up. "I''ll take care of all that. For now, you guys focus on becoming stronger. I''ll make sure to chase away all these challengers and protect the society." I smiled. "You guys are the future of the society. That''s why I''ll do everything within my power to protect you. For now, you can leave everything to me. That''s what your seniors are for!"

    "If only that applies to the president too," Stan muttered, which brought out a laugh from everyone else.

 46 Chapter 46: Crimson Spear Society

    A couple of days after the victory over Thunder Hammer Society, we met Crimson Spear Society in their training rooms.

    Unlike Thunder Hammer Society, Crimson Spear Society decided to maintain the format of team battle, and we were expected to submit a formal list of our members. With exactly five members in our society, we just wrote the names of our members and submitted that.

    "Heh, so they stuck to team battle format after all." Stanley Lee was grinning. "That will be a good haul of prestige points."

    "Hey, no underestimating the enemy," I reminded him sternly. "Don''t assume that we''ll automatically win."

    "Is there anyone in this school who can beat you?" Harvey Deng asked seriously. I shrugged.

    "I''m sure there''s plenty of people who can. Like those ranked in the top 100. Definitely those ranked in the top 50."

    "You give yourself too little credit, Vice-President Richard." Harvey laughed. "You should have more confidence in yourself!"

    "I''m grateful for your faith in me, but remember, pride comes before a fall. And underestimating your enemy is the worst thing you can do. Our biggest enemy is complacency, not the opponents we are facing in combat."

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    "Wise words, as always, Vice-President!"

    I couldn''t tell if Harvey was genuinely hanging onto my every word, or if he was just sucking up. Well, whatever. I will find out eventually.

    Whatever the case, we had a match to worry about, and I took a deep breath to calm myself down.

    "We''re here!" Dong Fang Yue Chu announced when we reached the room that Crimson Spear Society sent us. He knocked on the door, and it automatically slid open, revealing the massive training room within.

    "You''re finally here."

    My first impression of Crimson Spear Society was that of delinquents. They were all dressed somewhat outrageously, in a manner that flouted school rules. That is, leaving their jackets hanging open, their ties missing, baggy pants, piercings and chains, sunglasses and black boots instead of proper shoes.

    All of them already had their spears out, resting casually against their shoulders or leaning on the walls next to them. They leered at us in an intimidating manner that caused Harvey and Wang Fei to shrink back, but Stan as usual glared back at them defiantly.

    "Sorry to keep you waiting," Dong Fang Yue Chu forced a laugh, his voice trembling a little.

    "No, I''m glad you didn''t run at all!" the leader, a guy with black, spiky hair and a piercing in his ear, rose to his feet, his crimson spear still resting on his shoulder. His subordinates snickered behind him. "We thought you weren''t coming."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu swallowed, but didn''t back down. "We''re having a team battle today, correct?"

    "That''s right." The leader grinned as he slammed a black boot on top of a nearby training stool, leaning forward. "What, did you think your vice-president can team-kill us or something? We''re not pussies like Thunder Hammer Society."

    "Hah! You''ll get what is coming to you¡­" Stan began, but I glared at him, and he shut up immediately.

    "No, I don''t think I can team-kill you guys, and Thunder Hammer Society aren''t pussies. Their president gave a good fight." I took a deep breath as I sized the leader up. I knew him, of course. Crimson Spear Society was one of the more famous societies in Jing Tian Academy, even if they weren''t among the four great societies. Their president, Craig Carlson, was among the top 50, and his skills with the spear were top notch. As I had been telling my members, it was not prudent to underestimate the foe.

    Even so, I knew the fate of my society was hanging on me. None of the other members could stand up to the other members in Crimson Spear Society. Everything depended on me pulling off another team-kill.

    So regardless of whether I was confident of wiping out the team from Crimson Spear Society or not, I simply had no choice. Not if I wanted to protect my society and earn the prestige points we needed to survive. Any other alternatives didn''t bear consideration. For now, I decided to focus on one match at a time, and worry about the others when they came.

    Otherwise, there was no point thinking about them if I couldn''t even beat the first opponent.

    "Oh?" Craig Carlson grinned, and his sinister expression sent a chill up my spine. "At least your vice-president is humble. I like that." he cocked his head to study Stan and the other first years. "You should learn from him."

    Stan bristled, but said nothing. Good. He was learning to keep his mouth shut.

    "All right, let''s get started then." Craig Carlson went straight to the point. He proceeded to the center of the training room, which was a fairly big arena. Hopping over the strings, he jumped into the ring and brandished his crimson spear. "Who''s first?"

    I glanced at the others, and they nodded encouragingly. Harvey looked like he believed in me no matter what, while Dong Fang Yue Chu, Stan and Wang Fei appeared confident that I could handle this. I took a deep breath, and hauled myself over the strings that made the perimeter and landed at the edge of the ring.

    The holographic image of Teacher Fielding shimmered to life. As always, he was busy with refereeing a bunch of matches, so he had his digital clone oversee this particular match. There weren''t as many matches today, thankfully, probably fifty or so. That meant Teacher Fielding would have an easier time today.

    "All right, the both of you may begin whenever you''re ready."

    "I''m ready." Craig grinned at me as he lowered his spear, pointing it at me. "How about you?"

    "Yeah."

    "Then let''s begin!"

    Teacher Fielding glanced from me to Craig, and then nodded. Raising his hand, he swung it down.

    "Ready¡­fight!"

    Without waiting for me to summon anything or draw a weapon, Craig Carlson kicked off the ground and surged toward me in a single burst. His crimson spear lanced forward in a deadly manner, almost spearing through my heart.

    Clang!

    It never reached me. Raising my right hand, I summoned Castor and deflected it. The force blew me away, though, and I was sent stumbling backward. Craig Carlson seized the chance to slash at me with his spear, the sharp blade blurring into a crimson streak, but I parried it with Castor. Despite holding my black sword with both hands, I was thrown back helplessly.

    Landing on my feet, I skidded a few meters backward, but I didn''t pause. Lowering my sword, I got ready to fend off an attack.

    "Your reflexes are good, at least." Craig leisurely rested his spear on his shoulder. He cocked his head to the side, studying me. "You''ve improved. In the past, you would have been taken out immediately by that."

    I didn''t say anything, and merely crouched into a defensive stance, waiting for him to launch another attack. Craig merely laughed.

    "Relax. I''m not going to finish you off yet. It''d be boring." He narrowed his eyes. "I know you''re a summoner. I''m at least polite enough to wait for you to summon your magical beasts." He snickered. "Of course, I''m not crazy enough to wait for you to summon your big guys, but I heard you''ve some new summoned beasts. Call them out at least."

    "Make me," I replied defiantly. The guy clearly intended to show off. He wanted to display to everybody how he could destroy my Constellation spirits, but at the same time he knew it would all be over if he allowed me to summon any one of my Celestial Guardians. Did he really think he could have it one way and not the other? I understood that he was wary of my formidable Celestial Guardians, but¡­

    Even so, it pissed me off that I was still being underestimated somewhat, so I showed him the finger with my left hand.

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Unoffended, Craig burst out laughing. "Now that''s the kind of attitude I like! Looks like this will be a fun match!"

    The both of us continued to watch each other, the tension in the air tightening. The audience spectated with bated breath, not daring to blink, in case they missed something.

    They almost did. The both of us vanished from sight, and then reappeared in the middle of the ring with our weapons crashing against each other.

    Craig slashed at me, but I deflected his spear away with Castor, and then countered with a thrust. Twirling his spear, Craig fended off that attack and retaliated with a riposte that I ducked by twisting my body to the side. Whirling about, I slashed at him with my sword, but Craig parried my blade with the thick shaft of his spear. Spinning about, he cut through my defenses and attempted to impale me, but I knocked his deadly blade to the side.

    Dust billowed about us as our weapons forcibly collided, sparks scattering from the tremendous impact. We almost seemed to be dancing, our bodies locked in violent combat, matching each other step for step and trading blows. Blade crashed against shaft, and the barbed tip was knocked away by a hair''s breadth. We both whirled about and rammed our weapons against each other again before breaking apart in combat.

    Then I kicked off the ground and leaped high up. With a yell, I grabbed Castor with both hands and swung it down. Realizing the danger, Craig brought his spear up with both hands to parry the blow, the metal screaming as they kissed and sparks flying violently as my blade dragged against his shaft. Infusing magical energy into my strike in the same manner that Teacher Fielding taught me during combat magic class, I unleashed basic offensive spell called sword blast at pointblank range, the aggressive energies detonating against Craig and sending him flying across the ring to slam into the strings that made up the border.

    Boom!

    The training room shook from tremors caused by the impact, and the strings actually snapped. The ground itself shattered, with pieces of concrete debris raining all over the poor spearman. However, before anyone could say anything, a particularly colossal chunk of debris was hurled in my direction. I calmly stood my ground as the damned thing missed me entirely, breaking apart as it collided against the ground behind me.

    Craig was just showing off. He never intended to hit me with that attack. He would find that extremely boring.

    "Heh!"

    To my complete lack of surprise, Craig was completely unscathed. He emerged from the cloud of dust and debris without a single scratch, a broad smile spreading across his face. Lowering his spear, he then shot out and thrust his deadly weapon at me at an incredible speed.

    My reflexes were barely able to save me. I just about managed to block Craig''s strike, but the tremendous force behind his attack smashed Castor out of my hands and shattered the Constellation sword.

    "Idiot. This is what you get for showing off!"

    Craig''s lips curled into a sneer and he stabbed me with his spear. With me completely disarmed at the moment, there was nothing I could do except helplessly watch his lethal weapon pierce toward my chest¡­

 47 Chapter 47: Killer Moves

    "Vice-president!"

    "Richard!"

    The members of my society yelled in fear when they saw me getting knocked back and helpless against Craig''s thrusting spear.

    However, I merely muttered something under my breath.

    "Gemini."

    "?!"

    I deflected the approaching spear with a newly summoned Castor and slashed at Craig with Pollux. The white blade almost cut his face apart, but Craig''s reflexes saved him. He barely withdrew his spear in time to parry Pollux, the force sending him skidding back a meter or two.

    Grunting, he raised his head to glare at me. I was now holding a pair of twin swords, one black and one white.

    "Dual swords user, huh?" Craig sneered as he lowered his spear at me. I merely raised both my swords in a defensive stance. Grinding his feet against the ground, Craig prepared to launch himself at me, but not before spitting an insult. "A summoner trying to be a swordsman? Don''t make me laugh!"

    He thrust his spear forward angrily, only for me to cross my blades and parry the strike. Deflecting a second slash, I countered by cleaving toward his side where his guard was lowered, but Craig spun the shaft of his spear around to knock it aside.

    Craig''s attacks intensified as the battle dragged on, and he smashed Pollux to bits with an aggressive strike with his spear. I retreated a couple of steps, only to summon a new white short sword in my hand to parry his follow-up attack. He obliterated Castor next with a heavy blow from the blunt end of his spear, but again I summoned a new black short sword to take its place.

    Growling in frustration, Craig sped up his attacks, forcing me back and almost catching me of guard. It was all I could do to keep up, dodging and parrying, but Craig''s blows were fierce and brutal. Another precise and powerful strike saw Pollux spinning out of my left hand, crushed into pieces, and the second chain of attacks disintegrated Castor. I was blown back a few steps, but regained my balance quickly, summoning yet another pair of twin swords.

    "Why isn''t the vice-president summoning any of his Constellation spirits?" Stan asked impatiently as the battle wore on. "Why is he relying entirely on swordsmanship?"

    "I''m sure Vice-President knows what he''s doing!" Harvey replied dismissively.

    "That he does," Dong Fang Yue Chu agreed as he analyzed the battle. "There are two possible reasons. One, he''s conserving his strength and magical energy for the other matches. He might be trying to achieve another team-kill here. The second reason is that he knows that his Constellation spirits are useless against an opponent of Craig Carlson''s caliber."

    "What do you mean?" Wang Fei asked nervously. "President Craig is too powerful?"

    "Yeah." Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded thoughtfully. "I''m sure Richard has done his research prior to this match, and is aware of President Craig''s killer move."

    "Killer move?" Stanley asked. Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded again.

    "The Demonic Spear, Craig Carlson¡­the Cursed Crimson Spear that penetrates any defenses, no matter how powerful." Dong Fang Yue Chu sighed. "He''ll just destroy whatever Constellation spirits Richard summons."

    "Why isn''t he using that move yet?" Stan asked suspiciously.

    "Because it consumes a lot of magical energy and takes a while to cast. I''m sure Richard intends to finish Craig Carlson off before he can execute the move, but President Craig is capable of casting smaller versions of it. Not as powerful, but still strong enough to destroy Richard''s weaker Constellation spirits."

    "That''s not good¡­" Wang Fei shuddered. "If Vice-President loses here, then none of us will stand a chance!"

    "Vice-President Richard won''t lose!" Harvey insisted.

    As much as I appreciated the vote of confidence, the battle was not going my way. Dong Fang Yue Chu was correct. I didn''t summon any of my Constellation spirits because I was aware of the killer move Craig Carlson had up his sleeve. One careless mistake and he would obliterate the Constellation spirit I spent so much time and magical energy to cast in an instant.

    No, instead I focused everything on summoning a Celestial Guardian as quickly as possible.

    Clang!

    Craig Carlson''s next strike shattered Pollux and I staggered back, only to summon another short sword.

    "¡­"

    Suddenly, Craig stopped. He kept his spear lowered and pointed at me, ready to attack at any time, but he paused for now, studying me. Fury glittered in his eyes.

    "Twenty-seven times," he said. I blinked, bewildered.

    "Excuse me?"

    "Twenty-seven times," Craig repeated. "That''s the number of times I have disarmed you and destroyed those swords of yours, yet you have more in reserve. How many times can you summon those twin swords? Just what exactly is your specialization?"

    "Whoa¡­" I shook my head in disbelief. "You were actually keeping count? I don''t know whether to be impressed by your diligence, or amazed by your stupidity at keeping track something as trivial as that."

    Honestly, I didn''t bother counting, but Craig Carlson evidently had been counting the exact number of times. For what purpose, I didn''t know. Maybe he was going to the online forums later to analyze our match? I heard there was an online forum dedicated to the matches between student mages in the Global Federation academies, but since there were literally thousands of matches taking place everyday, nobody was going to pay any attention to the match of an insignificant person like me or Craig. I mean, Craig wasn''t someone insignificant, but come one¡­no one was going to pay any attention to the students of a lowly ranked academy like Jing Tian. They would be more interested in Crowley''s Academy or the other schools in the top twenty, or even just the top eight.

    Craig didn''t rise to the bait. He continued to glare at me.

    "Just who the hell are you? I''ve never heard of summoning magic that works like this. Normally, people summon spirit beasts or soul beasts, not weapons. And how did your swordsmanship improve dramatically in just the space of a few weeks?"

    "I took Teacher Fielding''s class," I replied flippantly. "He taught me a lot on combat magic."

    "Don''t screw around with me! If that''s the case, all the first year students would be just as proficient at combat magic as you! What did you do?!"

    Honestly? It was only because Dad taught me martial arts, which helped greatly to pave a solid foundation. Now I realized how accurate Dad was when he told me I should master martial arts first before going on to learn combat magic. I could finally comfortably combine the two together and hold my ground against a seasoned veteran of Craig''s caliber.

    This was something I wasn''t able to do about a year ago. No¡­even a few months ago, I was nowhere capable of this.

    No wonder Dad told me to focus on mastering physical martial arts first. I had trusted him then, but I began to have doubts when none of them worked, and I lost ceaselessly against every opponent. Physical martial arts just could not stand up against combat magic. No matter how much I honed my reflexes, I couldn''t beat someone who magically increased their speed or strength with spells.

    But now, I could integrate combat magic with martial arts to improve my own reflexes. Otherwise Craig would have cut me up several hundred ways before I could fight back.

    However, I didn''t tell Craig any of that. I merely smiled mysteriously.

    "I have no obligation to give my opponent all the information he needs to counter my techniques." Gripping my twin swords tightly, I shrugged. "What''s the matter, President Craig? Where did all your enthusiasm from earlier go? If you won''t attack, then I will."

    Springing forward, I slashed at Craig with my Gemini twin swords, taking him by surprise and forcing him onto the defensive. Craig cursed and brought his spear up to deflect my attacks. Twirling his long weapon, he hit out in an effort to force me back, but I dropped to a crouch and slashed upward, hoping to get under his guard.

    Craig twisted his body away from my blades, and then kicked at me. I blocked his foot with my forearm, but was still sent spinning several meters away. Landing in a crouch, I bounded back to my feet just in time to parry a strike from Craig.

    My swords shattered again, but I summoned new ones. Dropping to a knee, I kicked Craig in the midriff, but he arched his back to lessen the impact. With a grunt, he folded back, only to bring his spear down in an impaling thrust. I whirled away before the spear could pierce through me, and sliced almost blindly, forcing Craig to block.

    "Huff¡­"

    Panting, I rolled away before Craig delivered his riposte, his spear gouging out a huge chunk of concrete from sheer brute force, and jumped back to put as much distance between us as possible. While I stumbled backward, Craig bent his knees, getting ready to launch himself forward once again.

    I didn''t let him. Throwing my Gemini twin swords into the air, I watched as they intersected toward him in a beautiful arc. Craig moved in reflex, lashing out with his spear twice in two different directions. His weapon destroyed both of my spinning twin swords in succession, their broken pieces raining down on either side of him and fading into nothingness.

    Without wasting any time, Craig kicked off the ground and stabbed his spear toward me.

    I didn''t dodge. Instead, I raised both hands. This time, I summoned Aquarius. Swinging the broadsword downward, I met Craig steely in the middle of the arena, the ground shattering beneath our feet from the impact. With a yell, I swung the blue broadsword with both hands, trying to force my opponent back with the massive weight of Aquarius, but Craig was able to agilely jump back.

    The spearman then retaliated with a quick strike, hoping to take advantage of my slowed movements ¨C now that I was slowed down considerably by the Water Bearer''s greater weight ¨C but I blocked his attack. The sharp spear left a crack in Aquarius''s blade, but because of his greater mass the broadsword still remained intact.

    Not that I needed him to. Bellowing, I swung Aquarius down and unleashed a tidal wave that washed Craig away, sweeping him off his feet and tossing him several meters back. Gritting his teeth, Craig sliced through the mini-tsunami, cleaving the water apart and dispersing it into puddles of water in the arena.

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    Growling, he struck at me with his spear, and this time he succeeded in shattering Aquarius. I ducked backward from the thrust of his spear and retaliated with a kick that he blocked with his forearm. He lashed out with both spear and hand, only for me to flip over and skid a good distance away. Correcting his stance, Craig got ready for a new attack.

    But before he could, a stream of flames erupted between him and me.

    "Too late." I smiled as Vermillion Phoenix rose from a colossal magical circle between us. "I''ve finally summoned my big guns."

 48 Chapter 48: Mutual Destruction

    Craig Carlson narrowed his eyes as he stared at my Vermillion Phoenix. I didn''t waste any time, mentally sending a command for an attack. A stream of flames erupted and rushed toward Craig, scorching the ground.

    "!"

    Craig had expected the attack, but despite his mental readiness even he was unprepared for how powerful it would be. Gritting his teeth, he slashed the incoming flames, allowing them to wash past him on either side. Coughing, he lifted his spear.

    "It''s over, President Craig!" I told him. "I have the high ground."

    Craig''s expression twisted into a sneer. "You underestimate my power."

    "Don''t do it, Craig!"

    The spearman ignored my warning and jumped at me, only for me to slice his left hand and both legs off. Craig then landed onto the ground, screaming in pain before Vermillion Phoenix turned to him and blasted him with flames.

    Immolated, Craig writhed and shrieked¡­

    "¡­you''ve been watching too much Star Wars¡­and you just had to watch the damned prequels, didn''t you?"

    Blinking, I returned to reality. Even though he was heavily singed, Craig was still unscathed. He glowered at me, lowering his spear as if to attack.

    Be careful, Vermillion Phoenix, I told my summoned beast. The Celestial Guardian nodded and kept his distance, flapping his huge wings to unleash another torrent of flames.

    "Hah!" Craig cleaved through the flames again, despite being slightly burned from the intense heat. As if he read his mind, he sneered scornfully. "I''m not stupid enough to attack your summoned beast."

    My eyes widened when he suddenly charged at me. That was right. As long as he eliminated me, the summoner, Vermillion Phoenix would disappear as well. There was no need for him to defeat my summoned beast when he could just take me out!

    Thanks to our mental connection, Vermillion Phoenix was well aware of my dilemma and he quickly bombarded the dashing Craig with fiery feathers. The elite spearman weaved through the flaming rain of destruction, evading them with an incredible speed that I couldn''t follow. His body had vanished into a crimson and gray blur.

    Before he could reach me, a firewall sprang up between us. To my complete astonishment, Craig unceasingly crashed into the firewall and forced his way with sheer grit, not caring that his entire body was immolated.

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    With a roar, he thrust his spear at me. I quickly summoned a new pair of Gemini twin swords and parried his strike, but even so I found myself getting pushed back, my feet skidding against the ground. Craig continued, undeterred, despite being ravaged by the inferno around us. I had a measure of protection from the flames because of Vermillion Phoenix''s enchantment, but my opponent didn''t, and he was slowly being incinerated.

    However, he didn''t care about the extreme amount of damage he was taking. He was literally staking his life on this attack.

    "Break for me!"

    Bellowing, Craig smashed my Gemini twin swords into smithereens and I crashed back. I managed to somehow regain my balance, but Craig was expecting that too.

    "!!!"

    I could sense a tremendous amount of magical energy swirling into Craig''s spear. It was so massive that I actually felt nauseous just from being in close proximity to the intense maelstrom of energy. The accumulation of so much mana was actually causing the space around Craig''s crimson spear to distort, making the demonic weapon appear even more sinister than before.

    My instincts began screaming danger, and I desperately attempted to escape, only to realize that I had no place to run. My back was up against the wall ¨C or strings of the ring ¨C and Craig literally had me cornered.

    Gritting my teeth, I raised my hand defiantly and mentally linked to Vermillion Phoenix. I was going to finish Craig off before he could complete his technique!

    Whoosh!

    Flames washed and engulfed Craig, but he continued to stand his ground, even as he vanished in the inferno. He continued to grip his spear and infuse it with more magical energy, and I could see the fires distort around the demonic blade of his long, crimson weapon.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me!"

    My instincts were telling me to evade, and I obeyed them. Not wanting to remain in such close proximity, I dove to the side.

    At the same moment, Craig completed his technique.

    "Cursed Strike of the Demonic Spear!" he yelled.

    That was one hell of a long name, and who shouted out loud the name of their techniques just before they attacked?

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    Unfortunately, I had no time to think about that. I was devoting every ounce of energy and focus into escaping. Diving to the side as quickly as possible, I rolled up to my feet and continued to run, but I could detect the surge of mana behind me.

    Then, as quickly as it begun, it ended.

    Pierce!

    "Ugh!"

    I had no idea what happened. Even though I should have avoided the attack, Craig''s cursed spear lanced through my chest, penetrating me from behind and exiting from the front. I dangled helplessly a few centimeters above the ground, staring dumbly at the spear protruding from my chest. Turning my head, I looked at a triumphant Craig Carlson, his hands still clutching his spear.

    "¡­how?"

    The answer was simple. This wasn''t just any ordinary spear strike. It was a curse. Craig had been casting this spell ever since the beginning.

    I wasn''t the only one with a killer move¡­

    As my consciousness threatened to black out, I analyzed what just happened, particularly based on the traces of mana. At that time, I didn''t know what had happened, but I found out through later analysis when watching the replay of this match as well as putting together an analysis of Craig''s skills and techniques from other videos and matches.

    Craig Carlson had in essence reversed causality and effect. Normally, Craig would thrust the spear, and if it hit, it would cause his opponent to be injured. Obviously, to achieve this effect of mortally wounding his opponent, Craig would need to attack by stabbing with his spear.

    That was what would happen in a normal situation. The effect of injuring one''s opponent was caused by attacking him.

    However, Craig''s cursed reversed the order of causality. To put it simply, the opponent was already mortally injured. That lethal wound then brought about his attack. In other words, Craig''s thrusting of the spear was caused by me already being injured. It was a curse that distorted the laws of temporality, reversing cause and effect. Originally, the effect of me being injured was caused by Craig attacking me. This curse switched it around, and now my being injured caused Craig to thrust his spear at me.

    Okay, that sounded pretty dumb, but that was essentially the curse that happened. Something that defied the laws of physics and temporality, at least to someone who came from the twentieth-first century like me. To everyone living in the twenty-ninth century, this was just technology.

    "¡­ugh¡­"

    I gripped the spear, trying to pry myself out of it, with little success. Craig helped me a lot by ripping his spear out in a slashing motion that tore my injury wider. I spilled onto the ground, bleeding even more profusely.

    "It''s over," Craig declared.

    "Damn right it is," I growled. As if in response to my defiance, Vermillion Phoenix bathed the triumphant Craig in flames.

    Craig didn''t even bother to evade the attack, and merely stood there as he was incinerated. I watched as he burned in shock.

    "Are you crazy?"

    "Maybe," Craig admitted with a grin. "But I achieved my aim. I always knew that I wouldn''t be able to beat you¡­so I had always intended to bring you down with me. Mutual destruction. If I die, you''ll die with me."

    "What''s the point of that?" I demanded, clutching my chest.

    "Huh? Have you already forgotten?" Craig''s grin grew wider. "This is a team battle. Even if I lose, my teammates will pick up the slack and fight in my place. How about you, hmm? I heard that Ultimate Outcast Society is entirely reliant on you. If you fall, will your other members be able to take your place?"

    To my horror, I realized that he was right. I had told everyone to leave this to me. Even though I put on a modest fa?ade and strictly reminded my juniors not to be arrogant, not to be complacent, and not to underestimate our opponents, inwardly I had always intended to team-kill the opposing societies. I had always sought to solve this crisis all by myself.

    And now, on the verge of mutual defeat, I found that I did not have the heart to place my faith in my teammates to salvage anything from this. I was the vanguard, and even if Craig went down with me, I would have only defeated just one member from the opposing team. There was still four opponents left, against the four remaining members of my society.

    "¡­damn it¡­"

    Gritting my teeth, I bit my lip and forced myself to stay conscious. To no avail ¨C the damage was far too extensive, and I was losing too much blood. The boundary field would ensure that I stayed alive no matter how fatal my injury was, but it wouldn''t heal me or keep me conscious and fighting fit. I was only staving off the inevitable.

    I can''t fall here. I promised everyone¡­! I told them to leave this to me! I can''t let the society down! I still have to fight four more opponents¡­!

    "Hah!" Despite being scorched black by Vermillion Phoenix''s flames, Craig cracked a smile when he saw my bitter expression. "Did you really think you could continue team-killing every society who challenged you? This is a team battle. You''re not some hero, or some Mary Sue protagonist from a wish-fulfillment, power fantasy web novel who is invincible and defeats every character in the story! If you don''t have a team, you''ll lose eventually. Only fools try to be a hero and take on everything themselves."

    With those words, he collapsed. I tried to stand, only for red-hot agony to lance through my chest. Toppling over, I felt the darkness creep over the edges of my consciousness and consume my vision. I could vaguely hear Teacher Fielding''s voice from so far away, but not make out the words.

    Despite doing my best to stay awake for even the second match, I succumbed to the inexorable advance of unconsciousness.

 49 Chapter 49: Devastating Defea

    "Ugh¡­"

    Stirring, I blinked and stared at the white ceiling above me. This time I recognized the ceiling ¨C it was the infirmary where I had spent a good chunk of my first year in.

    Come to think of it, I hadn''t been in here for a while.

    "Damn it¡­" I struggled to sit up. Reaching out for my glasses, which were conveniently placed on a side table, I put them on and glanced around.

    "So you''re finally awake."

    I almost jumped out of my skin at the disembodied voice. Turning around, I caught sight of Craig Carlson. He grinned at me.

    "That was a great battle. We should do that again. One on one." He studied me, his eyes gleaming excitedly. "I''m sure you''ll be summoning a lot more stuff."

    "I''ll try not to get cornered again like I did the last time." At that time, I still wasn''t aware of Craig''s cursed technique, but later I found out that the words I jokingly said were literally the solution. There was a restrictive range of Craig''s cursed technique. As long as I hastily backed away the moment he activated it and stayed out of range, it wouldn''t be able to hit me.

    "We''ll see about that." Craig smirked. It wasn''t an unfriendly smirk, but an expression that told me that he had found a worthy rival. "How the heck did you lose all your matches last year? Your skills aren''t bad at all."

    "I put too much focus on summoning and didn''t train in combat magic at all," I replied wearily. I really didn''t want to be reminded of my stupidity, but such was life. We all did something incredibly stupid and embarrassing at one point or another. Trying to change the subject, I looked around. "Where is everyone? Are we the only ones brought to the infirmary?"

    "Yeah," Craig confirmed with a shrug. "None of the others are here. My society just dropped by about fifteen minutes before you woke up."

    "¡­my society lost, didn''t they?" the words that left my mouth were bitter. No one liked to lose. I thought I had gotten used to defeat after that ninety-nine losing streak, but my recent victories had buoyed me back to the very same complacency I warned my teammates about. It seemed that I needed more training.

    Craig shrugged indifferently. "It''s best if you hear from your own society."

    As if on cue, Dong Fang Yue Chu and the rest tromped in.

    "Vice-President, you''re awake!"

    "Vice-President Richard, are you all right?"

    "Yeah." I tested my limbs, and got out of bed. "Seems like Teacher Cure''s healing spells are as effective as ever. I''m fully healed."

    "That''s good to hear." Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded with a smile. I glanced at him, and swept my gaze across the relived expressions of my juniors.

    Just¡­relief. No joy, no delight, no excitement. There was also a sullen weariness that hung over them.

    "¡­did we lose?"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu lowered his head. "Yeah. Utter defeat. We maybe took out another of their members, but the rest of us got wiped out. Five defeats to their two."

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    "At least none of you are hurt." I studied them. There wasn''t even a scratch on them, though with current technology and magic, the modern human body could heal from a simple scratch or bruise under an hour.

    "Hurt?" Stan snorted. "The Crimson Spear Society went easy on us! We were so utterly outmatched that they were practically toying with us! President Dong Fang only beat Howard because he underestimated him, but once the other members realized what a threat he was, they took him out almost instantly!"

    "¡­we lost quite a bit of prestige points this time," Wang Fei added quietly, unable to meet my gaze.

    "It was a complete massacre," Stan continued bitterly.

    I stared at them in silence for a moment, guilt churning in my chest. This was my fault. I made a promise, told them to leave this to me, and I failed them. I was supposed to beat Crimson Spear Society, but I went and lost consciousness in the first match.

    "I''m sorry."

    Everyone turned to look at me. I lowered my head.

    "It''s all my fault. Even though I told you guys to leave this to me¡­even though I promised you guys that I''ll handle this, I went and lost the first match. I ended up dragging you guys into this. I was too weak."

    "Hey, what are you talking about?" Dong Fang Yue Chu clamped a hand on my shoulder. "You didn''t drag us into anything. If anything, I was the one who dragged you into this mess in the first place!"

    "That''s right!" Harvey added. "If anything, it''s our fault for being too weak and dragging you down! At least you and President Dong Fang took down an opponent each! The rest of us couldn''t even do a single thing!"

    "Y¡­yeah. Sorry. I didn''t mean to sound like I''m blaming you, Vice-President." Stan sounded flustered. "I''m more frustrated at myself for being so weak. I have no right to criticize you at all, especially since you''re the one who contributed most to our prestige points and are the strongest among us."

    "Even so¡­it''s my duty as your senior to protect you guys. The protection period is barely over and they''re targeting you."

    "So what? We''ve to learn to protect ourselves. We''re not babies. You don''t have to take responsibility for us outside of society matches." Stan glared at me. "Learn to have more faith in us!" he then grimaced. "I mean, yeah, right now we are in no position to ask you to have faith in us, but I swear we''ll definitely grow stronger!"

    "We''ll do our best, Vice-President!" Wang Fei agreed enthusiastically. "We''ll learn from your example and not let you down!"

    "That''s right." Dong Fang Yue Chu gave me a stern stare. "Richard, stop shouldering all the burden by yourself. Leave everything to you? You''re not God. You''re not a hero. You''re not some Mary Sue overpowered protagonist from a Chinese or Japanese web novel who can crush every opponent stupid enough to think he can stand in your way. Learn to rely on us more. We''re a team. We''re a society! What''s the point of being part of a society if you try to do everything yourself? Work with us! We should all be aiming to become strong together, not just push everything onto a single person!"

    "I think Vice-President is a hero, though!" Harvey, as usual continued to worship me for some reason, despite my pathetic display earlier. I could only shake my head and smile bitterly.

    "You''re right. Sorry about that."

    As much as I hated to admit it, everyone was correct. I was too arrogant to think I could handle all of this by myself. There was a reason why I was in a society. No man was an island, and I certainly wasn''t a god of war or one-man army who could raze the opposition by myself. My teammates and juniors weren''t here for show, either.

    This was reality. In a perfect world where everything bent to fulfil my wishes and I could fantasize about being powerful, I probably could breeze through the rest of my school years undefeated and godlike, stomping all opposition to the dirt while getting praised to high heaven by my juniors, and getting swarmed by an ever-growing harem of girls. Perhaps, for some reason, everyone will treat me as trash and insult me for no reason, no matter how many times I prove myself, only to get slapped in the faces when I proved them wrong over and over again, and start to praise me like the fair-weather crowd that I was. Probably just so I could assuage my gradually inflating ego.

    However, as I said, this was reality, so no such thing would conveniently happen to me. I was going to suffer setbacks, I was going to lose more than my fair share of matches, and people weren''t going to bother to praise me or call me trash because they had more important thing to do than to crowd around watching fights. There were so many duels all over campus, there was no reason for them to come watch mine, anyway.

    It wasn''t as if I was the almighty All-Mouthy King or something, who could master every single weapon in existence, copy everyone''s technique and beat them at their own specialization. If only such Mary Sue protagonists exist in reality¡­

    Raising my hand, I clenched it into a fist.

    "Yeah, let''s grow stronger together."

    "¡­but how?"

    Everyone turned to Stan. He shrugged, not at all ashamed by his outburst. Well, it was indeed a valid question.

    If we were going to leave the first year students to their own devices, they were going to proceed slowly like all other first year students. That was fine in its own way, for many first-year students faced the same problem. However, a good number of first-year students, particularly those in the great societies like Black Rose Society and Holy Saints Society, or even those in Crimson Spear Society and Thunder Hammer Society did receive a modicum of protection. No second or third year students would carelessly challenge the first-year students in those societies for fear that they would receive retaliation from the latter''s seniors.

    This was one of the reason why choosing a good society was so important, and also why so few first-year students were willing to join a new, unknown society like our Ultimate Outcast Society. The amount of protection we offered was meager, especially when I was the only recognized combatant in the society. Worse, prior to my meteoric rise about a month ago, I was ranked dead last after losing ninety-nine matches in a row, so there was still a significant number of students who didn''t take me seriously.

    Furthermore, the great societies had more resources for their first-year students. While theoretically everyone underwent the same curriculum (with slight differences, since we could choose our classes), those first-year students in the great societies possessed a huge advantage in that they had access to better Divine Devices, more training rooms, and closer guidance from their seniors or specialized teachers who were assigned to the societies as advisors. It was practically a mirror of society ¨C the superrich mega-corporations always had an advantage over small, home-owned businesses, with vast resources, great wealth and greater manpower to call upon. It was but a simple matter for the former to crush any competition from the latter.

    The creation of societies in schools was supposed to educate the students about the harsh reality of life outside the academies, and to prepare us for a cruel, highly competitive future. Was it fair? Probably not, but that was the whole point. Life wasn''t fair. Reality was cruel. We had to find ways to survive on our own. The talented, strong and rich would only grow more powerful and wealthier, while the poor and weak would get increasingly oppressed.

    But this system also served to unearth the rough gems, allowing the hardiest and most tenacious to survive every cruelty reality threw at them, and rise to the top as polished diamonds if they survived and succeeded.

    And I had every intention of ensuring my society was among those rough gems. The problem now is how to polish them¡­

    "Are you guys willing to do anything to get stronger?" I asked.

    "Yeah!" Harvey immediately replied.

    "Of course!" Stan growled determinedly.

    "I want to," Wang Fei said somewhat timidly.

    I glanced at Dong Fang Yue Chu, and he nodded resolutely. "I''m not going to drag you guys down any further," he declared fiercely. "I created this society because I have a dream. I''m not going to give up on that dream!"

    "Good." I regarded all of them with a guarded expression, and then nodded. "Starting tomorrow onward, make sure your evenings are free. After our usual training in the Rear Building, you''ll follow me."

    "What for?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked, puzzled.

    A grin spread across my face. "For a special menu of intensive training."

 50 Chapter 50: Special Training

    "Sorry. I should have told you before I asked them to come over."

    It was later that night, and I had just arrived home. As usual, Dad was on the couch watching anime. Something about a hero with a shield being discriminated against and bullied by the whole kingdom even though they were the ones who arbitrarily summoned him (apparently all they wanted was the other three heroes, and the shield hero was just an unneeded extra). Anyway, Dad raised his head to stare at me after I informed him about my society.

    "Let me get this straight. You want me to help train your society members?"

    "Yeah¡­is that all right?"

    Dad raised an eye brow. "Well, I don''t mind, but why?"

    "Because you''re the only person I can think of. It''s thanks to you that I managed to develop my magic and combat skills to how they are today. If you could teach my friends the same thing¡­"

    I thought for a bit, reflecting on what Dad drilled into me for the past five years.

    "You mentioned something about building a solid foundation. The majority of the members in my society are first year students, so I think now''s the best time as any to help them develop a strong foundation."

    "That''s correct. They won''t be good as you because you have about four more years of training in martial arts than them, but they might have a slight advantage over their peers." Dad thought for a while. "But don''t misunderstand. They are not going to grow strong overnight. There is no such thing as instant success. They''re going to need to train for a long time, so if your goal is to build a society of strong members to challenge the other societies, this is not going to work."

    Dad was familiar with how the society system worked, having enrolled in Jing Tian Magic Academy when he was a student. He was aware of the intense competition between the sects, and the advantages of being in a great sect as well as the disadvantages of being in a small sect. him shook his head sadly.

    "This is more of a long-term measure. Your friends are still not going to be able to fend for themselves and start winning a bunch of matches in the first six months. I''m not sure if your society will survive for that long."

    "I''ll handle that." no, I wasn''t intending on team-killing the opponents. I decided to choose an alternative route ¨C taking more missions. They were much more dangerous, but the return was higher. Thanks to accomplishing two missions in a row, we still had a surplus of prestige points, though they were much lower now that we had just lost to Crimson Spear Society. And Dong Fang Yue Chu''s losses while I was unconscious, though I recouped half of that by beating Theodore Hammond from Thunder Hammer Society.

    "How?" Dad watched me, but being an alumni he knew how the system worked, so he merely sighed when he remembered the other way. "Don''t do anything too reckless or dangerous, okay? As you are right now, rank D monsters are your limit."

    "I understand." I bowed my head slightly. "Back to the topic, I think that is fine. I don''t want instant success. I am building a society, and I need to look toward the future. The members will not be here forever, but the society will remain even after we graduate. I want to leave behind a strong society where members can join without being harassed or bullied. I want my juniors to be able to fend for themselves and become powerful in their own right even after I graduate. I don''t need them to win immediately. I want them to establish a firm foundation so that they can strike out on their own, especially for their own futures."

    Dad grinned. "That''s actually pretty mature and thoughtful of you. Excellent! True leaders think of their members, and place the welfare of their subordinates above all else. What is a society without its members? Only with a strong, loyal core of members would a society survive and prosper. For that, we need to build a solid foundation from which they can build upon and fortify on their own later. I like that!"

    "Actually, I''m just the vice-president," I informed Dad. He cocked his head to the side, and then shrugged.

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    "Still a leadership position. You''re still responsible for taking care of your subordinates."

    I wasn''t comfortable with calling my juniors subordinates, but whatever. Now that I had obtained Dad''s permission, I was going to lead them here tomorrow.

    "Thanks. I''ll bring them to the dojo tomorrow evening. You''ll be home, right?"

    "Sure!" Dad grinned. "Looking forward to it!"

    *

    Dad wasn''t kidding when he said he was looking forward to it. When I had my members assemble in the dojo the next day, he was practically rubbing his hands in glee.

    "It''s been a while since my dojo has been this crowded!" he exclaimed in delight. He wiped tears of joy from his eyes. "The Huang dojo has finally been resuscitated!"

    Stan and Wang Fei turned to stare at me.

    "Uh¡­" Stan began uncertainly.

    "This is my Dad," I introduced him. "He''s the one who taught me how to fight. I know this may seem unorthodox, but I''ve asked him to teach you guys as well."

    "You¡­you are¡­!" Dong Fang Yue Chu, on the other hand, was ogling Dad. "Aren''t you Huang Shun Yin?! The Angel of Fire?! That legendary summoner who wiped out the Syndicate just last week?! As well as the one who took out a horde of Rank B monsters in the Chao Zhou Valley?!"

    "Ahem¡­yeah, that''s me." Dad scratched his head and laughed sheepishly.

    "Amazing! I knew Vice-President Richard is awesome, but I didn''t expect his background to be this amazing too!" Harvey was nearly weeping from the magnificence of it all. Dad just stared at him, not sure what to say.

    Then he turned to me and whispered, "Hey, Richard¡­is it my imagination, or is your society full of guys? Where are the girls?"

    "We don''t have any female members in our society. They didn''t want to join us."

    "Not even one?"

    "Not even one."

    "What about your girlfriend? I thought she''s in your society."

    "She''s not my girlfriend, and she''s from another society."

    "Um¡­" Stan began, and Dad quickly straightened up and coughed.

    "Ahem, okay. Let''s begin." He swept a glance across them. "I know you''ll probably have your doubts about my training, but trust me when I say it''ll benefit you in the long term."

    The first year students exchanged glances, with Harvey being the most enthusiastic one out of them.

    "First things first. No magic in the dojo. If you''re caught using magic during training, I''ll triple your regimen. Is that understood?"

    "No magic?" Stan blurted out. Dad grinned.

    "Yeah. No magic. Is there a problem?"

    "But if we don''t use magic, how are we going to become stronger?"

    "Oh, you don''t get it, do you?" Dad shook his head. "It''s precisely because you''re too reliant on magic that you won''t be able to get very far. Everything stems from having a solid foundation. Magic is just a tool¡­a weapon ¨C if you haven''t achieved a proper base or form, then all the magic in the world is useless to you."

    "Huh? How is that¡­?"

    "You don''t believe me?" Dad squinted at him. "What''s your name?"

    "Stan."

    "Okay, Stan. Come and attack me. Use whatever magic you have. Your Divine Device too, if you want."

    Stan frowned, but he obeyed. Moving to the front, he drew his guns and took aim. Squeezing the trigger, he unleashed several bolts of energy.

    Dad simply vanished. The next moment, he appeared in front of a startled Stan. The first year tried to adjust his aim, but Dad simply flicked his forehead.

    "Whoa!"

    Stan was so taken aback that he toppled over and fell.

    Dad shrugged. "I didn''t even use magic. That was just pure martial arts."

    "Hey, that''s not fair!" I protested. "I''ve been practicing martial arts for years and I still haven''t achieved that level of movement! We can''t use pure martial arts against mages! We don''t stand a chance without magic!"

    "You''ve only been practicing for five years, and you started late. I''ve been practicing for over two decades, and I''ve been doing so ever since I was a kid. Don''t be impatient."

    He then turned back to Stan and helped him back to his feet.

    "But that''s not the point. Your reflexes¡­your form¡­your accuracy and the way you aim¡­your stance¡­all these stem from a solid martial foundation. They don''t need magic. Often mages use magic and spells as a crutch, and they tend to ignore all these important basic techniques." Dad smiled sinisterly. "If you follow my training, you''ll have an advantage over them, because your intrinsic form and reflexes will always be better than them. Magic is a weapon you use on top of those techniques, form and movements, not a crutch to aid those techniques. Think of it as a house. A house with a solid foundation won''t crumble even when battered by a hurricane, but a house with all these fancy decorations and paint would be instantly demolished if it doesn''t have a firm foundation. Don''t mistake the means for the ends. Magic is a weapon, not a crutch."

    Harvey''s eyes were shining as he hung on to every word that Dad said.

    "Yes, sir!"

    "Okay, let''s begin then." Dad reared up to his full height. "All of you, to the mat! Get ready! I''ll be teaching you a few basic forms!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    "And remember, no magic!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    And thus our non-magic, intensive martial arts training began.

 51 Chapter 51: Out of City Invitation

    About a month passed since I brought my society to Dad''s dojo. As a side note, we classified that as society training, and whatever little resources we earned from our prestige points were diverted to Dad''s dojo as "training fees." Normally dojos would require a stipulated amount, but since the dojo master was my Dad, he gave us a one-year discount.

    The idea was to build up our foundation this year, and by the time the second year came by, we were able to accrue prestige points and more resources for our society, and thus pay the proper amount once the discount expired. We couldn''t keep getting free lunches forever, after all, and it served as a motivation to become stronger.

    Of course, as Dad pointed out, his training wasn''t going to produce instant results. Even though I won quite a few matches (and lost a coupe as well), our prestige points were increasing at an incredibly slow rate. Probably because, as I had feared, the older students and bigger societies would target the first year students in our society and crush them. They won a few, but they also lost a lot. At least they were putting up a good fight, from what I could see.

    Consequently, even though we were earning a net profit of prestige points, they were nowhere near the margin for healthy growth.

    "We can''t go on like this!" Stan growled one day, before we left the Rear Building for our usual evening training in Dad''s dojo. "At this rate¡­"

    "Slow but steady growth," I reminded him. "It''s only been one month. Have you forgotten what my Dad told you? No instant success. Be patient. You''ll see the fruits of your training in another three to five months."

    "Will we be able to survive that long?" Stan asked.

    "Well¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu checked his smartphone and made several calculations. "Actually, we''ll just barely scrape by, but yeah, we''ll survive. However, we''ll need to up our game in the second half of the year. We just need to follow the training program that Richard''s Dad planned for us."

    Dad had already prepared a schedule, and according to him, we should be able to challenge the upper ranks in the second half of this year, and get a consistent win-rate. Not a perfect win ratio (hell, even I still lost quite a few of my matches), but enough to see us steadily climb the ranks and accumulate a healthy amount of prestige points to grow our society.

    We were really lucky to have an alumni training us. I knew this was probably different from what people expected ¨C a rags-to-riches story based entirely on hard work alone, but sometimes a little bit of luck went a long way into making our lives a lot easier. Since I wasn''t a good teacher and I didn''t have good connections, I needed to outsource. It just so happened that my Dad was an amazing martial arts teacher.

    "Just be patient. I promise you, my Dad''s training methods are effective. They are meant for the long-term. The important thing isn''t to win or to gain prestige points ¨C it''s to establish a solid foundation." I glanced over my juniors. "Even if the society is disbanded, you guys will build a strong enough foundation to be able to survive no matter where you are, which society you''re in, or what scenario you''re in. This isn''t just about Ultimate Outcast Society, but also for your own futures as well. And your own individual rankings."

    "Yeah!" Harvey nodded in total agreement, buying whatever I said. Damn it¡­while I was encouraged by his total faith in me, he should develop his ow mind. Stan was too cynical and impatient, while Harvey was too na?ve and trusting. Wang Fei was a good in-between, but he lacked the motivation of Stan and the diligence of Harvey.

    Shaping them into a cohesive unit with strong combat magic skills was going to be quite the difficult task, even with Dad''s help.

    "You guys know my record, right?" I suppressed a sigh. "It took me over a year just to reach the level where I can compete with the other second and third year students. You guys are going to accomplish that in half that amount of time, so already you guys are better than me in that aspect. Don''t be too impatient and expect instant success. Think about the future, the long term. What is most important isn''t the society itself, but the members who comprise it. I want you guys to be able to handle the future without relying on me ¨C once I graduate, you''ll be the ones running the society. That''s why a solid, strong foundation is important."

    "Yes, Vice-President!" Harvey said enthusiastically. "We''ll do our best!"

    I sighed.

    Did he even understand what I was saying? Well, one thing was for sure. Harvey might be the last member remaining even if everyone else left. Or he would follow me to whatever society I joined if the society was disbanded. If we did manage to preserve the society and I graduated, I was sure Harvey would end up being the future president.

    He was the only one with the passion, motivation and enthusiasm for it.

    "Okay, let''s go."

    There was no point talking so much. Dad was waiting, and we needed to train. By now we had gotten used to his Spartan training regimen, and we often emerged from the session bruised and scraped. Again, magic was useful in that we healed from those injuries in under an hour, but at least we could feel ourselves getting stronger.

    That was probably an illusion, admittedly. A single month was too short to display any sort of visible results. And our improvement, if any, was too miniscule to have any significant effect in our matches. Of course, if we closely analyzed our performances, we would see instances where our reflexes gotten us out of attacks that would have hit us before, we would have seen slight improvements in areas of attack and defenses, and a developing comprehension of tactics, but still not enough to tilt the favor of our matches in our favor.

    But that was why you train for months, and not just a single month.

    While we were passing through the campus''s front courtyard to exit through the gates, a familiar voice called out to me.

    "Student Richard!"

    "Hmm?" I turned around and caught sight of Alicia Violet jogging toward me. She waved, and then nodded at my members as she came to a stop.

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    "Are you¡­having a society activity?" she asked, recognizing Dong Fang Yue Chu and the juniors. I nodded.

    "Regular training for our society, as always."

    "Ah, I see." Alicia smiled. "That explains your improving performances."

    "Still not good enough," Stan muttered darkly, still sore over his last defeat. I raised an eyebrow at him, and he wisely fell silent. Not that he was scared of me ¨C I was the lenient, easygoing guy (especially compared to Dad or Dong Fang Yue Chu) who got along with everyone, but because he realized he would be making a fool out of himself by ignoring everything I said earlier.

    "Do you need us for something?" I asked, turning back to Alicia. She nodded.

    "A moment, Richard, if you don''t mind."

    "No, I don''t."

    Alicia bowed apologetically to my society members, and then strode to a spot some distance away, where we were out of earshot of my friends. I followed her, guessing that this was a private matter.

    I was right.

    "Are you free this weekend?" Alicia asked, catching me off guard. I ogled at her for a moment, then shut my mouth in a manner similar to Stan a few seconds ago. Was Alicia Violet, the goddess of our Jing Tian Magic Academy, asking me out on a date?

    "Um¡­yeah." Weekends were generally free for me. There was no society training during the weekends. As punishing Dad''s regimen was, he let us off during the weekends. According to him, we were still students, and we should have fun during our precious years of youth. I sometimes trained for a couple of hours during the weekends, but otherwise my schedule was flexible. "Do you need me for something?"

    "Yes." Alicia nodded. "If you don''t mind¡­I need an escort to Southampton City this weekend. I was hoping you could fulfil the role."

    "Huh? Escort?" I stared at Alicia blankly. So it wasn''t a date. I couldn''t say I wasn''t disappointed, but I did half-expect that. there was no way the goddess of our school would ask me out on a date, no matter how many signs she showed. Actually, I was pretty sure she displayed the same positive, friendly signs to everyone, such as Troy. I heard she was also very friendly with Theodore Hammond and Craig Carlson as well.

    I was just overthinking it.

    "Okay. So what does an escort do?" I understood the word as a verb, but the term was unfamiliar. "Bodyguard duties?"

    "Ah, that''s right. You''re not very familiar with the way the great families operate." Alicia looked a little guilty. "Basically I''ve been invited to the Stuart family''s opening of one of their hotels. It''s a formal event, and I''m going on behalf of my father. Usually, those invited have to bring an escort. It''s sort of a ball, so there will be dances and a banquet."

    "You''re asking the wrong guy," I said bluntly. "I can''t dance, and I''m not good with formal events."

    Alicia giggled. "I sort of expected you to say that. But I''m not asking you because I want a dance partner. Cecilia will be there too. She''s the one who invited me, actually."

    I cocked my head to the side silently. I would prefer to avoid Cecilia if I could. Having seen her take out both my Vermillion Phoenix and a rank C Frost Wyvern, I thought of her as an extremely scary person.

    "I don''t believe Cecilia specifically asked you to invite me along as your escort, did she?" It had better not be anything to do with that bullshit declaration she made about the first guy in her generation who defeated her having the right to be her boyfriend. She hadn''t bothered me in the couple of months since then, so I doubted she would suddenly bring that up again.

    "No, actually it was Adrian who asked if I could bring you along. Cecilia passed the message on, and told me that Adrian would really like to meet you again and express his thanks for helping him. She would also like to express her gratitude to you as well, for saving her cousin and bringing him to safety."

    "I didn''t do much." I scratched my head uncomfortably. But if Adrian and Cecilia were putting it that way, then it would be rude to reject them. Not to mention, if there was a banquet, I would get free food ¨C ridiculously expensive and delicious delicacies usually available only to the upper class. Might as well take advantage of that. "Okay, I''ll go with you then."

    "Excellent!" Alicia beamed in delight. "I''ll send you the details through email then!"

    "Yeah." While watching her, I was reminded that Alicia wasn''t asking me to be her escort necessarily because I was her first choice. She only approached me because Cecilia and Adrian specifically requested for me. Why didn''t they just directly invite me, though? Oh, because Dad and I weren''t from a high-class, wealthy family.

    The rich, upper-class people had their weird etiquettes, ceremonies and rules, which were convoluted and excessive, to say the least. I was so glad I wasn''t among them.

    "I''ll see you on Saturday then!" Alicia waved before she turned to return to wherever she came from. Most likely the Black Roses training rooms. I nodded and watched her for a bit before returning to the waiting Ultimate Outcast Society.

    "What was all that about?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked with a knowing grin. Not liking his expression, I merely scowled.

    "President Alicia asked me for a favor." Before he could press me for details, I strode to the front. "Okay, let''s go. Sorry for the holdup, but we had better hurry before my Dad punishes us with an extra set for being late!"

    That got everyone running as quickly as possible toward the direction of my house.

 52 Chapter 52: Out of City Ceremony

    "Ugh¡­this feels awkward."

    Grumbling to myself, I tried to hide behind a banquet table full of food and gorge on the delicacies they had there. Balancing on one hand a plate of seafood, which ranged from succulent prawns, fresh fish and tasty cockles topped with sauce, and trying to shove them into my mouth on the other, I kept an eye out for curious "nobles" and upper-class people who wondered what a peasant like me was doing in their midst.

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    Fortunately, I had an old dark blue suit with a light blue shirt for the occasion, so if anything I looked the part even if I didn''t feel like it. Not to mention I was actually sporting a tacky penguin tie. A black tie with dozens of dancing penguins painted onto the silky fabric. If anyone looked closely, they would be laughing at how ridiculous my tie was, but fortunately I was keeping my distance. I wasn''t sure how the proper etiquette for a formal ceremony was supposed to be like, so it was best if I distanced myself from the high-class dudes before they figured out that I didn''t belong here. As you would expect from a Chinese-themed story, they would more often than not be arrogant young masters looking to bully people they deemed inferior to them. Bonus points if they attacked me, I defeated them, and then they began to send assassins to kill me all because I "offended" them.

    Fortunately, this was reality and I ran into no such clich¨¦ antagonists. Most of the upper-class people were subtler than bluntly bulldozing their way in front of a lower-class person and insulting them openly for not kneeling to them. Let''s be honest ¨C most of the xianxia writers (whether it was in the modern setting or in an ancient fantasy setting or the future) had no idea how upper-class people really behaved. Particularly in contemporary times and in futuristic settings, these upper-class people waged wars cleverly with words, not bluntly bludgeon their victims with verbal abuse and arrogance. Yeah, they were arrogant, but they weren''t blunt and stupid. If they wanted to insult somebody, they would do it out of earshot, or at least not directly to the person''s faces. And they were smart enough to veil their criticisms in statements that didn''t sound like one, but at the same time still somehow held a tone condescending mockery.

    There was a reason why they were upper-class people. They were often more educated and less confrontational than their lower-class counterparts. Unfortunately, many xianxia writers did not realize this and they tended to just blindly assume that upper class arrogant young masters behaved exactly like street gangsters and low-class hoodlums, swaggering around and demanding that everyone respect them or kneel to them just because they were from this gang or had this backer.

    No, that was not how the educated elites worked. They relied on verbal subterfuge, quietly stabbing your back with veiled insults and criticisms, and not giving you the chance to accuse them of mocking you because of their carefully constructed statements that sounded almost as if they were stating a fact.

    Like now, for example. I could a couple of rich-looking guys whispering to their gaudily dressed female consorts as they glanced covertly in my direction. I almost couldn''t tell that they were looking at me ¨C so surreptitious were their gazes that I almost missed them. Yet I couldn''t mistake the condescending giggles of the girls, who quickly avoided their eyes when I glanced at them. They evidently didn''t have the same practice as their male beaus, who were conversing with a more practiced, easy air.

    They were all carrying wine-glasses instead of plates of food, and were laughing as they enjoyed sips from their glasses. Actually, I was one of the few who were indulging in the feast. Most of the guests left the food untouched. That was probably why that group of youngsters (around my age) regarded me with derision.

    I ignored them and focused on my food. If they didn''t want to eat the awesome seafood here, then it was their loss.

    "Big brother! You came!"

    I glanced up at the familiar voice. Adrian was bouncing toward me, accompanied by Alicia and Cecilia. Both girls were dressed in luxurious evening gowns that accentuated their figures, and their hair were tied up fashionably into elegant buns. Alicia was dressed in a light lavender gown that matched her dark purple hair, while Cecilia chose a midnight black dress that matched her long, dark hair. I tried not to ogle at them, despite being aware that the majority of the male population in the banquet hall had their gazes instinctively drawn to them. They were practically goddesses of beauty descended from the heavens to grace us mortals.

    In comparison, Adrian was dressed in a maroon suit with a crimson tie and white shirt. We looked like rivals, come to think of it, blue and red. I would have preferred a black suit, but Dad reprimanded me for having a wardrobe full of black clothing, and forced me to choose other colors.

    "Yeah, I heard from Alicia that you asked for me." After speaking to Adrian, I turned and nodded toward the girls in way of greeting. I had separated from Alicia when she told me that she had to go greet some familiar faces, and I didn''t want to make things awkward for her, so I decided to hide at the banquet table. "You guys want some food?"

    "Hmm¡­" Cecilia muttered a negative, while Adrian nodded happily and skipped toward the banquet table before I could stop him, unaware of the amused gazes the other upper-class elites were sending him. Ah¡­to be young.

    "I''ve got a plate for you too¡­" I gave a second plate that I had placed on a nearby table to Alicia, who graciously accepted it.

    "Thank you. I was just getting hungry." whether it was from politeness or she honestly was looking forward to a meal, Alicia took the fork I gave her and began gracefully placing small chunks of seafood into her mouth.

    While she did so, Cecilia turned toward me and bowed.

    "I would like to thank you for the other day. I didn''t get a chance to do so, and I apologize for leaving it until so late¡­but I''m glad you can make it here today." Cecilia straightened up, and for the first time I caught a smile on her face. "Thank you very much for helping my cousin."

    "No, it''s nothing." I shook my head. "I should be the one thanking you for helping me against the Frost Wyvern."

    "You would have been able to handle that yourself even if I wasn''t there." Cecilia turned to Alicia and shrugged. "Did you see his arrow technique?"

    "Yeah¡­that was pretty powerful." Alicia giggled. "I told you Richard was gifted."

    "I did believe you. As expected of the man who defeated me." Cecilia was gracious enough not to mention that it was a fluke. When Adrian returned, she turned toward him sternly. "Don''t forget to thank Richard for helping you." she then straightened up and bowed to me and Alicia. "You''ll have to excuse me. I''ll need to go greet some of my relatives."

    "Her uncle is the one opening this hotel," Alicia explained helpfully as Cecilia left. That made sense. I remembered this was the opening ceremony of Stuart Hotel, and apparently Cecilia''s uncle ran the subsidiary of Stuart Corporations that handled hotel amenities and services. Alicia then pointed out a man in a gray suit. "There he is."

    "I see." I nodded vaguely and concentrated on eating. Beside me, Adrian chimed in.

    "Thanks, Big Brother!"

    "Hmm?" I glanced at him, a little surprised.

    "For saving me back then," Adrian explained as he tucked into his meal. "I never got the chance to thank you properly."

    "It''s nothing. I was only doing what anyone else would have done."

    "Heh¡­your magic is amazing, though. I don''t think anyone would be able to fight a horde of monsters on their own!"

    "Technically, I wasn''t alone. I had my Constellation spirits with me."

    As we sparred verbally, soft, soothing music began to drift into the hall. A number of couples began waltzing into the stage in the middle, swaying gently to the beat.

    "Shall we?" Alicia asked, putting down her plate and holding out her hand. I stared at her dumbly.

    "You do know I don''t dance, right?"

    "There''s always a first time. Come on."

    She grabbed my hand and pulled me gently but firmly. Resigned, I decided to go along with her, leaving my plate with a grinning Adrian (I really wanted to punch the smirk off that kid) and awkwardly placing my hand around her waist as she directed.

    "This dance is pretty easy," Alicia assured me. "Just follow my lead and you''ll be fine."

    "Uh¡­if you say so¡­"

    While we were slowly spinning across the dance floor, Cecilia had already strode up to her uncle and greeted him with a respectful bow.

    "Congratulations on opening a new hotel, Uncle Stewart," she said.

    Stewart Stuart beamed brightly as he took in the beautiful image of his niece. A middle-aged man in his early forties, he was dressed in an elegant brown suit with a matching tie.

    "Thank you, Cecilia. It''s good to see you again." he smiled, genuinely pleased. He then lifted his gaze to watch me and Alicia, and frowned. "Isn''t that young man the guy who defeated you a couple of months ago?"

    "¡­indeed." Cecilia maintained a neutral tone, but there was a flicker in her eyes.

    "Ha ha!" Stewart chuckled. "I thought you would take him for yourself? Didn''t you declare that you will take the first man your age who can defeat you as your lover? What happened to that?"

    "As you can see, he has already been taken," Cecilia replied calmly with a shrug. "I''m not the kind of despicable woman who steals the boyfriend of someone else. And Alicia is a good friend."

    "Really?" The middle-aged man assessed Alicia, who was smiling and leading me in a simple waltz. He nodded, impressed by her beauty and elegance. "Yes, that young lady from the Violet family will be a formidable opponent. But since when does that stop you from taking what you want?" he lowered his voice. "You''re the young mistress of our Stuart family. If you just will it, he will be yours. The Violet family is nothing compared to us."

    "You know that is not how I do things," Cecilia said stiffly, narrowing her eyes. "And disregarding my declaration, there are plenty of other suitable candidates. I do not see why I must be fixated on Richard Huang alone."

    "Wasn''t he the one who exterminated an entire horde of rank F and rank E monsters on his own, and slew a rank D monster by himself? Quite an impressive feat for someone his age." Stewart was pondering as he rubbed his bearded chin. "While I''m sure that there are quite a few young men his age capable of similar feats, don''t forget that he is the adopted son of Huang Shun Yin, the Angel of Fire."

    "So what? It''s not like he''s directly descended from Huang Shun Yin. He''s not even a pure-blooded summoner. Besides, I want to choose who I love."

    "And that young man is not someone you''ve chosen."

    "¡­no." Cecilia closed her eyes. Then she opened them and watched Alicia and me slowly twirling around. "He has already made his choice, and I will respect it."

    "¡­I see." Stewart nodded thoughtfully and then sighed in resignation. "If that is your decision, then I will say nothing more regarding this matter. Just make sure you don''t regret it."

    "Oh¡­" Cecilia smiled coldly. Stewart actually shivered a little when he saw the iciness in her glacial eyes. "I''m sure I''ll regret it more if I force the issue, destroy my friendship with Alicia, and unreasonably push him into having a loveless relationship with me."

 53 Chapter 53: Visi

    The formal ceremony took the whole night, but when it finally ended, I breathed a sigh of relief.

    I shouldn''t complain, actually. I got a free meal ¨C free delicacies that were normally exorbitantly expensive and available only to the upper class, which was probably worth the few hours standing around awkwardly waiting for the damned thing to end.

    I couldn''t remember exactly what happened ¨C my lack of interest meant that everything flew by so fast. All I remembered was the meal, and the dance with Alicia, and squabbling with Adrian over trivial stuff (he was teasing me about Alicia and asking me whether she truly was better than his cousin). Other than that, everything just passed in a blur, and the next thing I knew, we were dismissed.

    "Shall we go?" Alicia asked with a smile. I nodded.

    "See you around, Adrian," I told the kid. Despite our verbal spar, we had actually become quite good friends. I had a lot more in common with Adrian than I realized.

    "Make sure you come again!" Adrian said brightly. I grinned and shrugged noncommittedly.

    "We''ll see."

    "Goodbye, Adrian."

    "Bye, Big Sister Alicia!"

    After waving farewell, the two of us stepped out of the hotel lobby, only for Cecilia to catch up.

    "I''ll send you both back to Jing Tian City," she offered. Flanked by a group of bodyguards, she gestured toward them. One of them nodded and made a call, and within the next minute, a limousine pulled up.

    "No, we can''t put you through so much trouble," Alicia protested, but Cecilia shook her head.

    "I was the one who invited you. I won''t be able to sleep well tonight if I don''t make sure the both of you reach home safely."

    Alicia and I exchanged glances, and then I bowed.

    "Thank you very much. We''ll take you up on your offer then."

    With that settled, the three of us climbed into the long, black limousine. Her bodyguards followed, sitting in a different compartment. We gave our addresses to the driver, who then input it in his Global Positioning System fixed to the dashboard of his car.

    "Do you two mind if we drop by somewhere first?" Cecilia asked as the limousine began to move. The both of us glanced at each other, and then shook our heads in unison.

    "You''re doing us a favor, so of course we don''t mind." Alicia smiled.

    "Please go ahead," I added.

    "Thank you." Cecilia then leaned forward to speak to her driver. Sliding the window shut, she then leaned back in the rich, leather seats that made up the compartment of the limousine. "This won''t take up too much time."

    "Where are we going?" I asked curiously. Cecilia merely smiled mysteriously.

    "Just going to pay a short visit."

    Since she didn''t elaborate, I didn''t press her for details and simply nodded. She was doing Alicia and me a favor, so we really didn''t have the right to complain.

    The limousine traveled through the brightly illuminated road, which was surprisingly still bustling with traffic at this time of the night. A big city like Southampton was certainly different from a small one like Jing Tian City. The population here, and the nightlife were on another level.

    At least that was what I thought until the limousine took a side route and drove into a less crowded road. There were a lot less cars here, and the further along we drove, the more deserted it became. Evidently we were heading to a remote part of the city, which was less populated and less busy.

    The streetlamps also thinned out, making this part of the city look darker and gloomier. I caught a glimpse of mountains. So we were heading toward the edge of Southampton City. That made sense. Jing Tian City was outside Southampton, several dozen kilometers north of it, to be exact. To get there, we had to exit the city and go into the highway.

    Most likely Cecilia planned to visit a stop along the way, a place that was on the outskirts of Southampton and just before the highway.

    "It''s a beautiful city, isn''t it?" Cecilia asked suddenly, breaking the serene silence. I didn''t know if Alicia had dozed off, but she abruptly sat up straight and nodded with a smile.

    "Yes. It''s so huge¡­" Alicia''s voice was full of wonder. "No matter how many times I come here, I''m always amazed by how magnificent Southampton is."

    Cecilia giggled. "If you live here long enough, you''ll get used to it. In fact¡­" her eyes took on a distant gaze. "I kind of prefer how simple your Jing Tian City is."

    The grass was greener on the other side, as they always said. Not that I cared. One city was the same to me, especially since I had lived in a variety of cities prior to my death, and eventually ended up in Jing Tian City after coming to this far future. I wouldn''t say I had seen everything, but I was aware that each city had its own beauty and ugliness.

    "We''re here, Mistress."

    The limousine slowed down and pulled to a stop. Cecilia nodded as she glanced at the window that had been slid open for the driver to inform her of the news.

    "Thank you." she then pushed the door open. "You two can wait here."

    "Do you mind if we come along?" Alicia asked curiously, glancing outside. It was pretty dark and we could hardly make anything out. Evidently she wasn''t comfortable with letting Cecilia walk around on her own in such an environment. The glance she sent me confirmed that I was right about her opinion regarding that.

    "Sure, but it''s nothing much." Cecilia looked surprised. Again, evidently, she didn''t think she needed anyone''s protection. And from what I had seen of her combat abilities, I was inclined to agree. Rather, anyone who attempted to assault her was going to need protection from her. "And it shouldn''t take too much time."

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    "All the better." Alicia smiled reassuringly, and then climbed out after her friend after the latter pushed the door open and disembarked. I reluctantly followed, quenching the desire to just lie on the rich, leather seats and doze off.

    To be honest, I was curious as to where we were taken to, so it wasn''t all too bad. I looked around curiously as my leather shoes crunched against gravel. It seemed that we were at the foot of a mountain. There was a vast, wide park to the left of the limousine, just opposite of where we disembarked. On the right, there was a row of metallic gates and an exquisitely crafted entrance. Its architectural shape reminded me of Gothic design.

    "Where is this place?" Alicia asked as she followed Cecilia through the gates. I hastily strode after them, not wanting to be left behind. The Black Rose Society president''s question was answered, not by Cecilia, but by the contents of the space behind those black iron gates.

    We were in a graveyard.

    Countless tombstones rose over the quiet, gloomy garden, often sporting crosses, angels or some other design. It had the distinct appearance of a Christian cemetery, but I wasn''t sure if Christianity remained a cohesive religion this far in the future. Even so, I was aware that elements of the great religion had lingered and been coopted into many customs. No matter the age, there was always a significant portion of people who needed God to pray to.

    I was no exception, to be honest, but I tended to keep my faith to myself. Not because I was afraid people would mock me for my beliefs, but simply because I personally thought it was wrong to force my beliefs on others.

    "¡­eh?"

    Alicia now sounded uncertain, and she slowed down. I stepped up to her side and reached out to hold her hand in a reassuring grip. She was so tense, but upon feeling her hand in mine, she relaxed and glanced at me thankfully, a slight blush on her pretty face.

    "Don''t worry. I''m just here for a short visit, as I said."

    "¡­to who?" Alicia asked softly.

    "A relative, perhaps?" I offered. Cecilia paused for a fraction of a second before she nodded.

    "That''s right," she replied quietly before she continued walking deeper into the graveyard. "My mother."

    Both Alicia and I stared at her, dumbfounded, and then hurriedly moved to catch up.

    Cecilia finally stopped in front of one of the graves, a single one with a huge benevolent angel gazing down gently at the mound below. Upon the surface of the tombstone the angel was perched on, I could make out the words "Clara Stuart, beloved wife and mother." Apparently she had passed away on 2902, about three years ago.

    "It''s good to see you again, Mother," Cecilia whispered as she bowed her head, and then lapsed into a respectful silence. Both Alicia and I also lowered our heads quietly, not saying a single word. Several minutes passed, and Cecilia finally straightened up. She smiled and gestured toward us. "These are my friends. Alicia Violet and Richard Huang. I''m sure you''ll be happy to meet them."

    Both Alicia and I kept our heads respectfully inclined.

    "Mother was a hero, you know?" Cecilia turned around to face us proudly. "She was a combat mage, who also graduated from Crowley''s Academy. I always wanted to follow in her footsteps."

    "That''s amazing," Alicia said. Cecilia nodded and turned back to gaze at her mother''s tombstone.

    "It is," she agreed. "She was there, in the Cohen Disaster. She single-handedly held off an army of rank A and rank B monsters so that a shipload of evacuees could successfully escape." She then closed her eyes, which were glittering a little with tears. "By the time Father and his team arrived, there wasn''t much of her left to bury."

    She then held her head up high.

    "But she slew over a dozen rank A monsters and thirty rank B monsters. All by herself. Their corpses were lying around her and her Divine Device. She fought to her last breath."

    I nodded, not sure what to say. "I see" would be too¡­stupid. So I could only murmur, "Yeah, she''s a hero."

    "Mother is a hero," Cecilia repeated. She then smiled and giggled as she gazed fondly at her mother''s grave, sweeping her sapphire eyes across the angel. "Do you know how she met Father?"

    Alicia and I glanced at each other, and then shook our heads silently.

    "It''s a funny story." The Stuart family''s young mistress continued to observe her mother''s grave. "She was once the most powerful mage of her own generation. Father only successfully wooed her by defeating her in combat. He met her in a training room in Crowley''s Academy, and it was love at first sight for him. Mother told him that only men stronger than her will be worthy enough to be her boyfriend, and he challenged her immediately." She giggled. "Mother was probably joking, just to chase Father away. But Father took it seriously, and they dueled. He won, just barely¡­and then he pushed her down and stole her first kiss."

    And then they got married. Wait, why did this sound like some cheesy scene from a certain web novel I had read somewhere before? One that involved a godlike Mary Sue protagonist who could wield every single weapon in existence?

    "¡­so that''s why¡­you were following your mother''s footsteps¡­"

    Alicia nodded in understanding. Cecilia grinned at her, and nodded.

    "That''s right."

    "¡­" Alicia seemed to want to say something, but a loud crash interrupted her. Then there was a massive explosion. As the three of us spun around, we could see a colossal conflagration blossoming toward the sky, just outside the gates of the cemetery. Night momentarily turned into day, illuminated by the blinding flames that rose up like some funeral pyre reaching reverently to the heavens.

    "What happened?!" Cecilia demanded, and she began running toward the entrance. Alicia and I urgently followed without another word, our minds spinning as we tried to absorb what was happening.

    The three of us skidded to a stop once we burst out of the exit. To the side, the limousine was lying upside down, in flames. The gigantic fireball we saw from earlier had emerged from it, and even now it continued to burn furiously.

    Scattered across the ground were the bodies of Cecilia''s suited bodyguards. None of them were moving, and all of them were lying in slowly expanding pools of blood. Several of them were in pieces, and quite a few looked as if parts of their bodies had been obliterated or crushed into fleshy pulp.

    "Ah¡­there you are, Miss Stuart."

    Standing in the middle of the carnage and destruction was a young woman, swaying gently as she turned to face us with a broad smile. Towering behind her was a demonic black giant who looked as if he had been chiseled from iron.

    The young lady smiled at Cecilia, her sinister expression sending chills down my spine despite not being directed at me.

    "You saved me the trouble of looking for you."

 54 Chapter 54: The Grim Reaper

    My first reaction upon seeing that young woman was¡­

    "¡­who?"

    "Alicia. Richard."

    Cecilia Stuart''s tone was tense all of a sudden. She was staring at the young lady with an impassive expression, but I could almost see the cracks that were beginning to appear all over her calm fa?ade.

    Alicia realized it too, but she was frozen to the spot, her eyes riveted to the impossible figure.

    "Good evening, everyone."

    The young woman was dressed in a tight, black bodysuit that accentuated her feminine curves and matched her dark hair and ruby eyes. She was beautiful, the kind of girl who would no doubt catch the attention of any guys who were around to see her, but at the same time she was emanating a dark, malicious aura that would scare them off just as quickly.

    She smiled as she bowed politely, placing a hand on her well-endowed chest, which was being emphasized by her black, leather bodysuit. However, despite her gorgeous figure and deadly beauty, she wasn''t the one who caught my eye.

    A giant lumbered behind her, a dark-skinned goliath that towered over three meters. Like the young woman, he had red eyes that flashed demonically against the shadows, and his muscular stature seemed to be something that was sculpted from an uncompromising mountain of black iron, and his skin chiseled from solid granite. Blood-red tattoos adorned his dark gray skin, twisting and melding into strange, disturbing patterns similar to magic runes. Leather armor hung over his waist, but he was otherwise free of cumbersome clothing. In his right hand he held a massive scythe that curved cruelly, its silver surface reflecting the faint moonlight and giving an impression of a sharp, earthbound crescent ready to reap the souls of its unfortunate victims.

    The grim reaper. The giant was the grim reaper himself. That was the first thought that came to my numb mind as I struggled to process the terrifying scene before me. Not only did the giant strike an intimidating figure, he was emanating so much demonic energy that I was suffocated just by being in his presence.

    "¡­ugh¡­"

    This goliath¡­his killing intent was so raw, so overwhelming that I felt as if I was facing a force of nature itself. A calamity that had manifested in human form. Death incarnate. This giant was a berserk tsunami of sheer strength caged within a body of flesh and blood, a killing machine without a safety switch, bereft of any remorse, emotion or mercy.

    A demonic knight who had been completely stripped of his humanity.

    There was no way we could fight that thing. We had to run. Every instinct in me was telling me to escape.

    "Cecilia," Alicia whispered, her voice taut. She was staring at the two figures in fear and disbelief. "They are¡­"

    "They are assassins," Cecilia replied quietly. "Sent after the members of the Stuart family."

    I gulped and subconsciously took a step back, faltering from the tremendous amount of demonic energy the goliath was emanating.

    "Good evening," the girl in the bodysuit greeted me and Alicia as she stepped forward with a deceptively friendly smile. I instinctively shrank back. "This is the first time we''ve met, isn''t it?"

    "¡­I guess." Despite my fear, I shrugged. "Uh, who are you?"

    "Ah¡­forgive my manners." The girl smiled brightly as she swept a few strands of her long, black hair from her face. Her right hand was clad in a black leather glove that was synonymous with the tight bodysuit that hugged her curves. I suspected her left hand was as well. "I''m Selina Wright. As Miss Cecilia accurately pointed out, I''m an assassin."

    "Not a very professional one," I observed dryly. "Standing around and introducing yourself to your targets openly instead of¡­you know, killing us."

    "Oh, you misunderstand me. The both of you are not my targets." Selina waved dismissively at me and Alicia. Then she pointed a gloved finger at Cecilia. "My only target is her. The both of you can leave. As long as you don''t get in the way, I''m not going to hurt you."

    Well, that figured. Wait, what was that? I heard some existences beyond the fourth wall expressing their surprise and screaming out their questions. Wasn''t the assassin here to kill me? But why would she want to kill me? Selina didn''t know who I was, and she had absolutely no reason to target me. In contrast, Cecilia was the first daughter of the highly influential and wealthy Stuart Clan. They had no shortage of political rivals and economic enemies.

    Huh? What? Because I was the protagonist? Or because of some stupid reason like some arrogant young master or the goddess''s fanboys were jealous of me getting close to the goddess and they wanted to kill me because "how dare this trash blah, blah, blah¡­"? Are you serious? Since when did that sort of bullshit happen in reality? Of course no one was going to target me for assassination. I was an insignificant, unknown person who honestly didn''t stand out. Nobody was insane enough to waste time, money and resources hiring assassins to kill me over some extremely petty grudge like "he doesn''t know his place" or "he offended me (an arrogant young master)!" or "we must kill this trash for getting near our goddess!"

    Seriously, since when did such bullshit happen in real life? This was not a xianxia story or a Chinese web novel about arrogant young masters and face-slapping. Such ridiculous, contrived and unbelievable scenarios just didn''t occur in reality.

    Alicia and I exchanged glances, and then we stayed where we were.

    "Cecilia is our friend," Alicia declared, despite her voice shaking ever so slightly. "We can''t allow you to hurt her."

    "Yeah, I''ll feel bad if we just leave her and run away by ourselves," I agreed.

    Selina shrugged, but she didn''t look all that bothered. "Fine by me. If you want to die with her, then so be it. It makes no difference to me." she then glanced at the iron-like giant standing behind her and giggled. "But Hades will be so happy."

    The black giant said nothing. He didn''t even move a single muscle, merely waiting for an order from his master. I had a feeling that he wasn''t human. He couldn''t possibly be human. Swallowing, I regarded the silent goliath with trepidation.

    This guy¡­he''s a spirit. On the same level as Angelica. That must mean that Selina was a summoner like Dad.

    "Stand back, the both of you," Cecilia ordered as she drew her sword out. I didn''t see her take out her divine device, but she must have it on her gown, for she activated it and it expanded into a glowing blade. Cecilia calmly adopted a defensive stance, raising her sword in front of her. Her expression was resolute, and she showed no fear in front of such a formidable opponent.

    Impressive.

    In response to her incredible fighting spirit, the goliath named Hades growled and advanced a single huge step forward. The demonic energy billowed from his body and almost solidified into something tangible. The killing intent pouring from his massive body was so thick that I felt as if I was suffocating.

    "I''m shocked," Alicia whispered quietly as she cast an optical spell on her eyes, her purple pupils shimmering as she analyzed Hades. "In terms of raw ability, that thing is above Cecilia."

    "That can''t be good." I gulped in dread as I attempted to calm my trembling hands. I had seen Cecilia''s combat skills firsthand, even tasted near-defeat at her hands when she took down Vermillion Phoenix. And now we were facing an enemy that was above her in terms of physical ability? Didn''t that mean we were basically screwed?

    "This isn''t an opponent we can overpower with brute force," Alicia remarked. She sounded calm, but I could hear the strain in her voice. "Richard, you should keep your distance. Back me up with long-range spells, and then summon whatever you can. Cecilia will hold him off for you to complete your summoning spells, but when necessary, offer long-range support."

    Alicia probably remembered how I summoned Lyra as a bow and used Vega. However, I shook my head and protested.

    "I''m a guy. I can''t just leave a girl like Cecilia to fight that giant in melee combat by herself."

    "Just do what Alicia tells you to!" Cecilia snapped, her voice harsh. "I''ll be fine. I can handle the melee combat. You''ll only be in the way."

    Ouch. The truth hurt, but I knew she was right.

    "You too, Alicia. You specialize in long-range combat anyway, so stay back. Don''t get too close."

    "I understand." By now Alicia had drawn her divine devices. I was surprised to see that this time she had chosen to wield a pair of hi-tech energy guns that shot magical projectiles made from condensed energy. She wasn''t using her bow this time, huh?

    "Is your discussion over?" Selina asked sweetly. "Then I''ll begin, okay?"

    Cecilia tensed, but she did not rise to the assassin''s provocation. Not that Selina cared. She shook her head in amusement, and then swung her hand down with a smile of anticipation.

    "Do it, Hades."

    Hades'' gigantic muscles bulged as arcane blood-red energy rippled through his massive body, the tattoos glowing brilliantly in the dark. Then he literally disappeared.

    The next thing I knew, Hades had cleared the distance of almost a hundred meters in a single bound, and was swinging his massive scythe down with a ferocious roar.

    "Gemini!"

    Twin swords, one black and one white, materialized in my hands as I prepared to defend myself. Apparently Hades was targeting me first ¨C which, admittedly was a sound tactical decision. Of the three of us, I was probably the weakest. Eliminate me first, and he would effectively cut our fighting strength by a third.

    "Richard!"

    Alicia whirled around in panic, realizing Hades'' intent, but she was too late. Even as she raised her dual guns and let loose a volley of bolts, they dispersed harmlessly against Hades'' solid back. Fortunately, I was more than capable of defending myself, and I parried Hades'' blow by crossing my twin swords¡­

    ¡­only to have Castor and Pollux shatter instantly. Blood spouted from my arms as I was sent hurtling several dozen meters back, the sheer force propelling my body into the ground and leaving a trail of broken rocks and earth.

    "Gah¡­!"

    This guy was strong¡­incredibly strong. I had never met anyone who could fling me across such great distances with just a normal swing. Even without casting any spells or using any special techniques, Hades'' attack packed so much raw power that it felt as if I had been struck by a truck.

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    And he still wasn''t done yet.

    Aware that I was still alive, Hades bent his knees and sprang forward to end my life, his scythe slashing down to behead me¡­

 55 Chapter 55: Dance with Death

    In the background, I could see Cecilia lunging toward Hades, but she wouldn''t make it in time. She was far too slow. Alicia was still firing her guns, but her low-caliber rounds seemed to be completely ineffective against the monster''s ironbound hide.

    Basically I was screwed if I decided to wait and rely on other people to save me.

    "Orion!"

    I hastily summoned a bow and let loose Orion''s Belt. Despite me fumbling around as I struggled to my feet, Hades was too large a target for me to miss. However, even as the triple arrows slammed into Hades, they dissipated with little effect, leaving little more than smoke.

    Just as ineffective as Alicia''s guns, huh?

    "No way¡­! They have no effect?!"

    Alicia was exclaiming in shock when she saw that both my arrows and her magic bullets did absolutely nothing against the iron goliath. However, I continued to fire another volley of arrows, more out of sheer desperation than because I believed they would work.

    The giant actually paused for a moment as he was riddled with arrows. By now I had infused more of my magical energy into my arrows and they were hitting with the force of a tank round. Projectiles that had the power to raze entire houses to debris struck Hades with greater effect, rocking him backward and causing him to stagger for a second.

    Only a second.

    With a bellow, Hades began to shrug my arrows off and advanced slowly but surely toward me, not even bothering to defend himself from them. It was as if he didn''t consider them as anything more than minor annoyances.

    Hades was more focused on finishing me off.

    However, my ceaseless volley of Orion''s Belt had bought me a precious few seconds to complete my summoning spells that I had begun ever since I had first seen Selina and her iron giant.

    "Taurus! Aries! Capricorn!"

    Three gigantic Constellation spirits materialized and descended from the heavens to slam into Hades just as he lunged at me, knocking him off his trajectory and throwing him into the dirt. Hades slammed into the ground and rolled about before leaping to his feet with an agility that belied his massive frame and leaving a massive crater. Growling fiercely, the berserk spirit straightened and faced the charging Constellation spirits, and swung his scythe, cleaving Taurus cleanly in half.

    Aries and Capricorn had wisely attacked Hades from the flanks, but he merely endured the hits without taking any visible damage. Grabbing Aries by the horns with his left hand, he smashed the ram''s head into the ground, burying the braying Constellation spirit underground. Kicking Capricorn aside, he sliced the goat''s belly with his scythe, disposing of him in one attack. While Aries struggled to pull his head out of the ground, Hades viciously stomped on his neck, breaking it and causing the ram to disperse into magical energy.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me."

    In less than thirty seconds, Hades had eliminated three of my more powerful Constellation spirits. Powerful summoned beasts that took me minutes to cast.

    Growling triumphantly, Hades turned to me, ready to finish me off before I could summon anything else.

    "Your opponent is me."

    The goliath was forced to turn around and deflect Cecilia''s thrust. Cecilia whirled around gracefully before slashing at Hades with her sword, but the giant quickly dodged the glowing blade, and lashed out with a muscular forearm to force her back.

    "Alicia! Richard! Support!"

    "I understand!"

    "Got it."

    Even though our shots were ineffective, they could at least faze Hades and force him to pause for a second or two. In a battle of life and death between two highly skilled combatants, even a single second could spell the difference between victory and defeat. Both Alicia and I knew that we didn''t necessarily need to hurt Hades, but our shots could at least create an opening or two for Cecilia to exploit.

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    Damn it!

    Despite knowing my role, I still felt a wave of frustration sweep over me.

    Alicia didn''t seem affected, but I was reluctant to leave the physical close combat maneuvers to a girl. However, I was also highly aware that Cecilia''s physical strength, speed and swordsmanship were light years ahead of mine, and from the earlier exchange I knew I was completely no match for Hades'' brute strength. This was no time to be dwelling upon masculine pride and all that gender nonsense.

    Opening up the distance between the two dueling combatants, I began gathering more magical energy into my hand.

    "Orion!"

    Channeling magical energy into the black and brown bow in my left hand, I took aim and readied my shots. Opposite me, Alicia did the same, increasing the power of her shots. We both pointed out weapons at Hades.

    While Cecilia dueled with Hades, the two of them clashing under a shower of sparks that rained from their colliding weapons, I unleashed volleys of triple arrows.

    BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

    My glowing projectiles struck Hades'' skin with little effect. Despite possessing enough firepower to blow up a house, they posed no threat to the iron goliath, achieving little more than angering him.

    "Even this many Orion''s Belts have no effect, huh?"

    Alicia was having a similar problem. Despite her unceasing bombardment, her bullets clanged off Hades'' iron-hard flesh harmlessly, dissipating into sparks that joined the pyrotechnic display produced by Cecilia and Hades'' constantly clashing weapons.

    Gritting my teeth, I slowed down my shots, took aim at what I was sure would be a weak point, and fired with uncanny precision.

    Whoom!

    Even as my latest batch of Orion''s Belt slammed into Hades'' temple, the three arrows stunning the goliath temporarily as they struck what would otherwise be a fatal vulnerability in any other enemy with the force of a tank round. However, to my utter disbelief, Hades recovered a second later, shrugging the damage off and continued to bear down on Cecilia.

    "Guu!"

    Cecilia gritted her teeth as Hades knocked her back with a forceful swing of his scythe. She tried to parry his strikes with her sword, but as expected she was slowly being overpowered. Hades, as if sensing that her defense was about to crumble, slammed her back with another jab from his scythe, sending her flying. As Cecilia gasped, trying to recover, Hades jumped, swinging his scythe down on her.

    "Damn it!"

    I raced forward, raising Orion. Abandoning the triple arrow Orion''s Belt, I condensed all my energy into a single arrow and fired it off. The more powerful projectile actually succeeded in fazing Hades for a second, causing him to stagger.

    Buoyed by my success, I unleashed a second arrow, but Hades merely bellowed and smacked it away with his scythe. He turned to glare at me, but his vision was obscured by a cloud of magic bullets that Alicia fired right into his face. Though far from hurt, Hades was temporarily blinded and he couldn''t see where I was.

    That was all I needed.

    By the time he cleared his vision, I was already high above him. Azure magical energy began swirling around me as I switched arrow techniques again.

    "Betelgeuse!"

    A shower of countless arrows rained down from my bow, slamming into Hades with such force that he fell to his knees. I didn''t care that the enemy was already down. With a determined yell, I continued to unceasingly unleash a bombardment of seemingly infinite arrows, the meteoric rain of magic missiles crashing into the currently immobile Hades and exploding while carving hundreds of pockmarked craters in the earth from the numerous tremendous impacts.

    While Hades was engulfed and overwhelmed by the shower of meteoric arrows, Cecilia seized the chance to withdraw and catch her breath.

    "Thank you¡­"

    Before she could finish her sentence, however, a scythe swung out of the azure flames and scattered the remaining arrows. A smoking Hades tumbled out, persistently pursuing her.

    ¡­only for a single arrow to slam into his head. The explosion engulfed the gargantuan warrior, concealing him from view. Cecilia wheezed as she retreated to a safe distance. Meanwhile, I lowered my smoking bow, panting.

    "That should do it," Alicia muttered as she joined us, refueling her two guns with her magical energy and watching the smoke billow around Hades with grim satisfaction. I grimaced at her clich¨¦ words.

    "Oi, you shouldn''t be tempting fate."

    No sooner were the words out of my mouth when Hades exploded out of the smoke with a thunderous roar. Alicia and I instinctively jumped back, shielding ourselves from the flying debris and shrapnel, while Cecilia merely cut through them with a single swing of her sword. To our amazement, we watched as Hades staggered out, his pockmarked and ravaged skin ¨C which was both torn apart by broken concrete and charred by my arrow ¨C began regenerating right before our eyes.

    "Is that thing immortal?" I demanded angrily, raising my bow in frustration.

    Cecilia shook her head as she took a step forward, remaining calm as she leveled her sword at our enemy. "I don''t think so. If we deal enough damage to him, we should be able to overwhelm his healing ability."

    "That''s right¡­"

    Healing depended on one''s magical energy. As long as we exhausted our opponent''s energy, he wouldn''t be able to regenerate any further.

    "There is still that girl," Alicia muttered darkly, casting a glare in Selina''s direction. That was right. In the fierce battle against Hades, I had almost forgotten about her

    I cast a nervous glance at a carefree Selina, who up till now she hadn''t lifted even a single finger to help her comrade. That alone showed how confident she was in Hades'' strength.

    "¡­if we defeat the summoner, the summoned spirit will also be vanquished," I whispered, remembering one of the most important rules I was taught as a summoner.

    "Do you think she is that easy to defeat? She''s an assassin. I''m sure she has countermeasures of her own." Cecilia frowned.

    Unfortunately, we weren''t given any time to debate the topic. By now Hades had fully recovered and was charging at Cecilia, who met him squarely with her raised sword. The two weapons collided, sparks brilliantly flying as they exchanged powerful blows with each other. Cecilia met Hades blow for blow, her steely eyes following his every movement and allowing her to counter each time.

    Alicia and I continued to fire with our ranged weapons from the flanks in hopes of stunning Hades or creating openings for Cecilia, but as with earlier, the berserk giant ignored them totally, his skin merely smoking slightly from the impact.

    "We need more effective spells," I muttered under my breath.

    "Is it my imagination, or is that giant spirit getting stronger?" Alicia asked, her voice dripping in disbelief. "Our attacks appear to be less effective than before."

    "¡­you''re right!" I couldn''t believe I missed that. Before I could think further on it, Cecilia was blown back by a particularly powerful blow, but she steadied herself and readjusted her stance.

    "This summoned spirit must originate from a legendary hero of unparalleled renown. His combat techniques are flawless."

    I gulped at that. "So how do we defeat him?"

    Cecilia spared me a millisecond''s glance, her eyes cold and resigned. Her words, if possible, were even more chilling.

    "¡­I don''t know if we can."

 56 Chapter 56: Tactical Withdrawal

    Clang! Wham!

    In contrast to Alicia and my fruitless ranged support, Cecilia was actually fighting evenly with Hades, her sword clashing fervently against his scythe. She made use of her smaller stature to weave in and out of Hades'' wide swings and large attacks, dodging his slashes and countering with sharp thrusts and stabs of her own. Hades was skilled enough to see those attacks coming, and would always step back in time to evade them.

    Moreover, his raw strength was giving him the edge in this battle.

    With a bellow, Hades knocked Cecilia off her feet with a powerful slash, causing her to stagger back.

    "Cecilia!" Alicia cried out in panic.

    Fortunately, the Crowley Academy representatives'' captain realized that her situation was pretty grim. Her guard had just been destroyed, and Hades was now bearing down on her, eager to seize the opportunity to scythe her down once and for all.

    Whoosh!

    My Orion''s Belt exploded in Hades'' face, followed by explosive magical bolts from Alicia''s guns. The goliath roared as he stumbled back, blinded by the smoke and steam. With a grateful nod in our direction, Cecilia quickly withdrew to restore her defensive stance.

    We kept up our bombardment, forcing Hades to stay on his toes as we peppered him with our magical projectiles. Cecilia, seizing the opening we bought her, ran through the rain of devastation to strike the faltering enemy. To his credit, Hades shrugged off our onslaught to focus on the immediate threat before him, deflecting Cecilia''s strike and countering with a vicious slash.

    Cecilia whirled around and answered with a riposte that almost tore through Hades'' ribs had he not slide his body out of the way in time. Stomping forward, Hades swung his scythe down like a cudgel, as if to crush Cecilia with its sheer weight and mass, but she sidestepped the attack and allowed the crescent-shaped blade to bury itself in the ground.

    Several more detonations stung Hades'' face and chest as Alicia and I fired at him relentlessly. Hades stumbled, seeming to hesitate for just a second before he began to pull out his scythe ¨C but that single second was more than enough.

    Cecilia jumped atop Hades'' scythe, preventing him from retrieving his weapon, and quickly seized the chance to attack with a lethal thrust toward his heart. If that landed, it didn''t matter how good his regenerative ability was ¨C he would die from that.

    If it landed, that is.

    To our amazement, Hades willingly relinquished his hold on his scythe, letting go of the thick shaft and doing a cartwheel to avoid Cecilia''s sword. Moving with astound agility that belied his massive size, the giant delivered a flurry of kicks and punches that forced Cecilia into the defensive. Despite slamming his fists and feet against Cecilia''s sharp blade, the goliath''s iron-hard skin seemed impervious to metal. His barrage of physical attacks hurled the stunned Cecilia back through sheer force alone, the swordswoman barely able to keep up with his speed.

    "Guuh¡­!"

    Cecilia slid back a few meters, her hands still trembling violently from the impact of parrying those blows with her sword. Panting, she studied Hades, who had now retrieved his scythe now that there was no longer any impediment.

    "He must be based off the legend of a warrior of great renown in the past," Cecilia repeated her speculation from earlier, clearly impressed and astonished. "Even in the grip of madness, his skills have not been blunted."

    "I would say his berserk mode actually gives him mad skillz," I muttered, earning an annoyed glance from Alicia. Sorry, no matter how bleak the situation seemed, I couldn''t resist throwing that joke out. "We should be careful."

    "That''s true," Cecilia conceded reluctantly. "We won''t get away with simply being hurt if we underestimate the enemy."

    Except that you''re the only one underestimating our enemy¡­

    Suppressing the snide remark, I sent another huge arrow into his temple, the missile detonating against the side of his head with the force of a tank shell. Despite the violent explosion, my arrow had no effect at all.

    Hades merely stood there without budging, completely unaffected by the direct hit. Clicking my tongue, I shook my head in disbelief as I watched his unscathed features.

    "He''s almost like an elemental force of nature, the very embodiment of madness itself."

    "Like I said, isn''t he getting stronger?" Alicia''s voice quivered a little. "Our attacks are having less effects as time goes on. It''s like he''s getting immune to our spells."

    "That can''t be good," I muttered as a chill ran down my spine. If what Alicia observed was correct, then our situation was growing increasingly grim.

    "My attacks are still getting through," Cecilia informed us coolly. Oh, there was that, of course. Perhaps Hades'' ability only worked against ranged spells?

    Was it even an ability to begin with?

    "You''re the one who is most familiar with summoned spirits, Richard." Alicia turned to me, her expression anxious. "What do you think?"

    "I don''t know," I replied, a hint of frustration creeping into my voice as I studied Hades. "He''s different from any other summoned spirit I''ve encountered. Unlike Angelica, this Hades guy has been silent the entire time. Usually contracted spirits are sentient, and Hades gives off the vibe that he''s a contracted spirit and not a soul beast."

    "What''s the difference?" Alicia asked, unfamiliar with the subject.

    "Contracted spirits are created by establishing a contract with an already-existing spirit ¨C you probably know the difference between spirits and monsters, and how they are hypothesized to come from different dimensions, right? Soul beasts, in contrast, are aspects of your soul, created and formed entirely from your imagination before you cast a complex spell to manifest them in reality. In contrast, contracted spirits can be summoned immediately as long as you have the contract in place."

    "So you believe this Hades is a contracted spirit," Cecilia noted tersely. "Are there any special characteristics or abilities that I should keep in mind regarding him?"

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    "If you were to put it in human terms, I would classify him as a berserker. Much like Theodore Hammond¡­"

    Cecilia didn''t seem to recognize the name, but Alicia certainly did. She nodded.

    "Yeah, this spirit definitely shares characteristics with the berserker class."

    This might sound like we were stating the obvious, and I could already see the readers screaming about this dialogue being "filler", but it was important, especially as it contributed the strategy we came up with. Obviously, combating a berserker who had lost all sanity and reason would require different methods than if we were fighting a cunning, quiet one.

    "How troublesome." Cecilia grimaced. "Berserkers are extremely difficult to deal with ¨C they are usually entirely unpredictable, they don''t care about their lives or wellbeing. In other words, this Hades will be utterly focused on killing us, undistracted by anything else. We''ll have to stay on our guard. Worse, it''ll take a lot more to kill him because he evidently doesn''t feel any pain, so he''ll be able to shrug off a single lethal injury or two."

    "Can we even hurt him?" Alicia asked timidly. She had a point. Our ranged attacks had thus far proved futile, and Cecilia''s close combat attacks had yet to put a single scratch on him despite her claim that they were getting through. Well, she was forcing him to the defensive and causing him to parry and block her sword with his scythe, so that was an optimistic sign.

    Unfortunately, we no longer had the luxury to engage in strategic debate because Hades once again leaped forward and bore down on her like a hurricane.

    Cecilia found herself shoved back by Hades'' attacks as he renewed his onslaught once again. Gritting her teeth, she parried blow after blow, inevitably giving ground as Hades pressed on with his barrage of slashes and strikes. The guy was amazingly fast for someone his size, and coupled with his raw strength, he was overwhelming even a skilled and talented swordswoman like Cecilia.

    "Alicia! Richard! Please keep up the support!"

    We were probably just wasting magical energy, but neither of us had a choice. I unleashed another volley of arrows that blew up the space around Cecilia and Hades, each projectile possessing enough power to raze a house. But every direct hit against Hades merely dissipated harmlessly against his dark, tattooed skin.

    Alicia was also bombarding him from afar, her magic bullets slamming into his iron-hard flesh and detonating with the force of grenades, but for all her shooting, she might as well be throwing sand at the giant berserker.

    He really can''t feel any pain, can he?

    Cecilia exchanged another furious blow with Hades. She desperately fended off Hades'' slashes and countered with ripostes and strikes of her own, which Hades avoided just barely. Unlike Alicia''s and my projectiles, it seemed that Hades actually feared Cecilia''s melee attacks. Once again, I wondered about the significance of that.

    Is his ability or enchantment specific against ranged spells?

    I let loose another couple of shots, which merely vanished into nothingness against the goliath''s shadowy bulk. I observed my attacks, as well as Alicia''s ¨C her bullets pounding mercilessly against Hades'' face and chest ¨C noting that they were not so much as ineffective as they were being nullified upon contact.

    What the hell was with that monster''s defensive ability?

    I glanced at Selina, but she remained some distance away from us, leaving the murderous task to her summoned spirit. She had no intention of interfering ¨C probably because she no need to.

    "Ah!"

    Cecilia was flung away as Hades overpowered her with a single brutal slash, knocking her sword out of her hands and sending her flying in the direction of the graveyard. He bent his knees, getting ready to jump, but I fired a single bolt of energy, the arrow-shaped destruction detonating against him and actually causing him to stagger for once.

    Not done yet, I covered for Cecilia by jumping in front of her, distracting Hades with more of my arrows. Dancing around to evade his deadly scythe, I lured him away from the prone swordswoman, continuing to hurl more explosive projectiles against the raging berserker. He took the bait and swung his scythe at me, but I quickly dove to the side, maintaining a good distance between us. Hades tried to close the distance with a single bound, but I responded with a leap of my own. Soaring high into the air directly above Hades, I prepared my bow.

    The berserk goliath turned his head up after he landed, almost as if he was watching me curiously.

    I smiled grimly. That''s right, you bastard. Look over here. It''ll be the last thing you''ll ever see.

    "Betelgeuse!"

    I unleashed an azure rain of arrows down below, thousands, no tens of thousands of arrows pouring down from the heavens (or from Orion, to be more accurate) and enveloping Hades in a series of explosions. Even as the gargantuan figure vanished beneath countless azure detonations, I mercilessly continued my bombardment of infinite arrows, the rain of deadly projectiles turning into a blizzard of destruction that razed the entire landscape below.

    The last time I used this technique, it worked. Sort of. I was hoping to replicate the effect, slowly chipping away at Hades'' defenses.

    As my barrage of arrows faded, I landed a distance away from the devastation, panting from the strenuous use of magical energy. However, I was forced to bring Orion up to defend myself when a silver streak of light flashed from inside the smoke, slashing into me and hurtling me away.

    "Gah!"

    I crashed into a tree and felt the trunk break under the impact, falling onto the grass under a shower of splinters and wood. Getting up dizzily, I watched in horror as Hades lumbered out of the smoke, completely unscathed.

    Even with the devastation all around him ¨C the entire landscape resembled a pockmarked surface of the moon, littered with countless craters and broken stone, each hole a deadly consequence of suffering a hit from one of my arrows ¨C Hades didn''t seem to have taken any damage at all.

    And that was after receiving one of my most powerful attacks¡­

    "No way¡­impossible¡­"

    I couldn''t believe my eyes. Grimacing as I tried to get up, I felt a trickle of blood escape my mouth.

    "Ignore the small fries, Hades. Their attacks can''t hurt you anyway." Selina instructed, bored.

    Hades turned and faced Cecilia, who raised her sword determinedly. She lunged forward, forcing the giant to dodge as her sword thrust right at his head. The tip of her blade actually scratched his cheek, drawing blood, and the giant whirled around to swing his scythe in a counterattack that Cecilia dodged. Breathing heavily, Cecilia retaliated with another strike of her own, only for Hades to easily parry it and knock her off. The bigger warrior pursued a retreating Cecilia, who could only focus on defense.

    My eyes widened when I realized that Cecilia was actually running away.

 57 Chapter 57: Targeting the Summoner

    Gritting her teeth, Cecilia seemed to have come to a decision, and she began moving backward. Alicia and I had to run after the dueling pair in order to keep up and continue providing our support ¨C not that any of our spells were having any real impact. Unfortunately, after unleashing Betelgeuse, the intensity of my assault had faltered greatly.

    "Cecilia! Stop! You''re getting too far away!" Alicia cried, but her friend completely ignored her warning.

    Actually, Cecilia was no longer paying any attention to me and Alicia. She was concentrating solely on avoiding getting killed by Hades'' relentless barrage of attacks. But even Cecilia was unable to keep up her impenetrable defense for long ¨C the further she withdrew, the more ragged she seemed, and she finally seemed to slip and fall as Hades bore down on her. There was no way the giant warrior wouldn''t recognize the opportunity, and he closed in on Cecilia''s mistake, swinging his scythe with a triumphant bellow.

    And then Cecilia was flung through the iron-wrought black gates of the cemetery where her mother had been buried.

    With a bestial holler of victory, the berserk Hades jumped in after her, ready to finish Cecilia off once and for all.

    I began to race desperately toward the graveyard.

    "Richard, wait."

    To my surprise, Alicia had stopped moving. She stared in the direction of the cemetery thoughtfully, as if realizing something. She then shook her head and turned to me.

    "Even if we chase after those two, there''s nothing we can do to help Cecilia."

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    "Then what should we do?" I demanded.

    Alicia turned to stare at Selina, who was still idly standing by the edge of the park opposite the graveyard.

    "''¡­if we defeat the summoner, the summoned spirit will also be vanquished,''" she repeated what I had just said, as if something in my statement had occurred to her. I wasn''t an idiot, and I immediately understood. "In other words, if we can defeat that woman, then we shouldn''t have to worry about that gigantic monster."

    "I wouldn''t worry about that if I were you. I''m ready to summon one of my most powerful soul beasts anytime now."

    Cecilia had bought me enough time to finish the casting process for one of my Celestial Guardians, but I had held it back for now because I didn''t want to get her caught up in the destruction. Once Cecilia was a safe distance away, I would summon Vermillion Phoenix or White Tiger and envelop the iron goliath in a gigantic spell of destruction.

    The reason I hesitated was because I knew a contracted spirit wasn''t going to be destroyed by a soul beast so easily¡­

    "Use it against her if you have the chance," Alicia suggested, pointing at Selina. By now, Selina had turned away, bored, and was strolling after her contracted spirit into the graveyard.

    I frowned. I would rather keep my Celestial Guardians as a trump card against Hades, but I couldn''t underestimate Selina either. Not that I wanted to hold back, but she gave me a strange feeling. I instinctively felt that if I revealed my hand too soon, Selina would devise a countermeasure in quick order and neutralize my most powerful soul beasts easily.

    No, I could only summon them when her guard was down and I was confident of finishing her off in a single attack.

    Alicia wasn''t paying any attention to any of my doubts. She was already running after Selina. When she did so, I found that I was in a dilemma. Should I help Alicia in defeating Selina, or should I just summon my Celestial Guardians and assist Cecilia in destroying Hades?

    The choice was clear. Even if we destroyed Hades somehow, Selina as a summoner would have more spells up her sleeve. She was the real danger here. Furthermore, during this whole time she had done absolutely nothing to assist her contracted spirit. In other words, I had no idea what sort of abilities or spells she possessed, and that lack of knowledge would prove fatal.

    Alicia was the one in bigger danger, and we stood a higher chance of ending this whole farce by defeating Selina. The decision couldn''t be any more straightforward.

    I began sprinting in Alicia''s direction.

    While Selina strolled into the forest right next to the cemetery, Alicia pursued her relentlessly. For now, she was tracking her target stealthily, using the trees as cover. When Selina''s back was turned on her, Alicia took aim with her guns and depressed the triggers.

    Two violet beams of ferocious energy streaked forward, blasting toward Selina''s head and heart, but before they could hit her, they dispersed harmlessly against a barrier.

    "Ah, Alicia Violet, right?" Selina smiled as she slowly turned around, cocking her head. "I''ve heard of you."

    "My, I''m honored." Alicia emerged from the trees when she realized that Selina knew exactly where she was. She maintained her aim, both guns pointed at Selina. "I didn''t think you know me."

    Selina shrugged. "I really don''t, to be honest. The Violet family is way too insignificant for me to bother learning about them."

    Alicia narrowed her eyes at that, but she didn''t rise to the bait. Instead, she calmly loosed a couple more shots, but they scattered ineffectually against a shimmering barrier that enveloped Selina.

    "Did you come after me alone? That''s not wise." Selina smirked as she shook her head, brushing her gloved fingers along her long, dark hair. "Or did you think I would be vulnerable without Hades to protect me?"

    Alicia said nothing and merely fired off a couple more shots, which were displaced by Selina''s barrier.

    "How foolish¡­I was a summoner before I made a contract with Hades, you know?"

    "!!!"

    A massive shape loomed out of the trees and struck at Alicia, but she quickly jumped away, cartwheeling in midair and firing off a barrage of high-powered shots at her new assailant. The huge figure staggered, chips of rock peeling away from its chest, but it was otherwise intact.

    "That''s¡­"

    A second massive figure joined the first and they stepped out of the gloom, their huge, vaguely humanoid bodies illuminated by the moonlight. Alicia frowned.

    "Golems."

    Two gigantic stone golems, each about the size of Hades, lumbered forward. Alicia adjusted the settings of her guns while she evaded their attacks. The first golem stomped on her position, but she vaulted away. Infusing her Divine Devices with magical energy, she decapitated the golem with a headshot, her magical bullets obliterating a big chunk of the golem''s head and chest.

    "Impressive. My golems may not be as powerful as Hades, but to think you could still so easily destroy them¡­"

    The second golem swung its beefy hand, trying to smash Alicia to the ground, but she gracefully evaded it. Landing on top of the arm, she then unleashed a second volley of pointblank shots, cratering its chest and breaking off its head. The golem silently twisted around, trying to swat at her with its other arm, but she flipped away and perched on its shoulder while hammering its head with repeated shots from her glowing guns.

    Finally bereft of its head, the golem slumped down. Alicia was about to turn to face Selina, but something small and fast streaked past her face, almost cutting her throat. Alicia managed to spin away and land elegantly some distance away from the doomed golem, a thin line of blood dripping from the snow-white skin of her cheek.

    "Oh, you dodged that. My assassination skills must be getting rusty."

    Selina giggled as she hid her mouth behind her hands. Around her, a flock of silvery birds were flapping their wings. They resembled doves, yet emanated formidable power. Alicia was aware of how dangerous they were, almost having her throat torn out earlier by one.

    "Let''s see if you''re good at shooting down multiple targets."

    The flock of doves streaked toward Alicia at Selina''s command. Alicia gritted her teeth and began to run, firing relentlessly into the flock of doves. Every shot struck with flawless precision, bursting the dove apart into fragments of crystal that rained on the ground, but for every one she slew, two took its place.

    Within a few minutes, the entire space between Selina and Alicia were filled with doves. To make matters worse, a fresh pair of golems advanced from behind the distracted Alicia, lumbering forward to join the fray and catch her in a pincer attack.

    "¡­!"

    Alicia realized that she was cornered¡­

    Screech!

    "?!"

    Selina raised her head and her jaw dropped when a flock of black crows descended upon her horde of doves. My Corvus began tearing the smaller birds apart, their wicked claws and curved beaks hooking into their bodies and ripping into them.

    With the assailants in front suddenly in disarray, Alicia was able to avoid the Golems by diving to the front. Twisting around, she fired upon the closest golem. Her first few shots merely cracked the rock-hard surface of the slow summoned beast, but she gradually infused them with more power and blew out its head.

    Its comrade, on the other hand, was now almost upon her, lifting its arm to crush her. Alicia tensed, getting ready to jump out of the way¡­

    ¡­when an enormous bear smashed the golem to the ground. Bellowing bestially, it rammed its claws into the golem''s head, gouging out a good amount of rock, and tore off its head. The golem went still, the magical forces that animated it fleeing like dispersed smoke.

    "Tch!"

    Selina turned around with a click of her tongue when I arrived. I had thought I succeeded in taking her by surprise, but my arrows detonated against her barrier.

    "!"

    To my bewilderment, Selina actually closed in on me. I tried to shift my aim, but I wasn''t as accurate or skilled as Alicia, and my arrows missed. The next second, Selina was crouching in front of me, lashing out with a kick. I brought my knee up and parried her foot, and then swung my bow at her head. Selina then dropped to the ground and swept her leg at my feet, her tightly corded muscles rippling underneath that tight bodysuit of hers.

    I hopped above her sweeping kick, the reflexes that Dad drilled into me during his martial arts training coming into play. I then countered with a kick of my own, but Selina deflected it with her hands. Her leg then whipped out like a coiled serpent striking, almost catching me off guard, but I brought my elbow down to deflect her foot from my chest.

    "Richard! Break away!"

    I obeyed when I heard Alicia''s shout, and her bullets whizzed into the woods where Selina and I were locked in a deadly duel. In order to engage me in close range, Selina seemed to have deactivated her arcane barrier, and she was forced to dodge this time, diving to the undergrowth and almost disappearing from sight.

    Then the bullets hit home and set the thicket aflame.

    "Did I get her?" Alicia asked as she hurried over to where I was standing. I observed the mild fires, the orange conflagration flickering against the lenses of my glasses, and shook my head.

    "She got away."

    "¡­I see." Alicia looked frustrated, but there was nothing more she could do. Instead, she turned toward the graveyard. "Then I guess we should return to support Cecilia now."

 58 Chapter 58: Battle in the Graveyard

    Even though I obeyed Alicia''s suggestion, as we raced into the cemetery it became evident that offering our support wasn''t going to be easy.

    The moment Hades sent Cecilia flying into the graveyard, he pretty much neutralized whatever supporting fire we could offer. Unlike the open space of the park where we fought earlier, countless tombstones obscured our vision. Even though the noise of battle echoed deafening throughout the cemetery, we could hardly see the two figures locked in combat.

    Worse, the towering tombstones were in the way, blocking our shots and reducing our accuracy and vision. We were much likelier to hit a tombstone than to strike the partially hidden Hades. Despite his immense size, he was still all but concealed by the larger and more numerous tombstones that stood over their burial mounds, like silent sentinels watching over the sleep of the dead.

    A sleep that was about to be broken from the sheer violence and savagery of combat between a high-ranked combat mage and a legendary spirit.

    As Alicia and I made our way deeper in, it occurred to me that the reason why Hades swatted Cecilia into the cemetery was precisely so that we couldn''t assist her with ranged support. In a way, that realization was chilling, as it meant that Hades was far from the mindless berserker we assumed him to be, capable of formulating his own tactics¡­

    I stopped in mid-thought suddenly. No, that made no sense. All this while, Hades had basically ignored Alicia''s and my ranged attacks, treating them as mere nuisances not worthy of his attention. Why would he suddenly seek refuge in the graveyard?

    The answer was right before my eyes. And judging from Alicia''s amazed gasp, it seemed that she had come to the same realization too. As the both of us sprinted into the graveyard in hopes that we would make it in time and be of some assistance, I saw that my worries were completely unfounded.

    Cecilia¡­Cecilia was fighting evenly with Hades in the middle of the cemetery. Hades tried to attack her, but his large frame and huge, unwieldy scythe were impeded by the surrounding tombstones. While he mowed down the gravestones mercilessly and effortlessly with his scythe, rendering them little more than stony fragments that pelted the ground like soft rain, his movements were hampered by the new obstacles, his speed hindered by a second or two by the tombstones that got in the way of each of his strike.

    And those seconds made all the difference in a battle.

    Cecilia was running about, using the tombstones as cover, weaving in and out of Hades'' barrage and capitalizing on the precious seconds the gravestones and stony statues bought her. This time, the tables had turned, and Cecilia had reversed the situation. In this terrain, she had the advantage, her smaller size and greater speed and agility allowing her to traverse the cemetery easily and counterattack at her own pace. For each failed slash, Hades received grievous wounds from Cecilia''s sword, which carved swathes of blood through his black, tattooed body.

    The obsidian giant was being wounded. I felt hope flare up inside me as I watched the amazing battle before my eyes. We could actually win this!

    "I see¡­"

    Beside me, Alicia slowly smiled and nodded, as if she understood something.

    "I always thought it was weird. Why did Cecilia take that last attack deliberately? She could easily dodge them, but she decided to just receive them head-on."

    I glanced at Alicia, and she continued to explain.

    "It wasn''t that Cecilia slowed down or was injured. She was deliberately leading that giant into the cemetery all along!"

    "She probably realized how¡­uh, grave the situation had become," I remarked. Alicia raised an eyebrow, but she giggled a little.

    Then she shook her head and turned serious.

    "I suspected as much. Fighting that monster without cover would be suicide. That was why Cecilia lured him to the graveyard, so that she can take advantage of the terrain to fight him on her terms. Of course, this means that she can''t expect any long-ranged support, but the opponent is a monster that can even nullify our projectiles. Support was meaningless from the start."

    I gnashed my teeth in frustration, feeling the exact same bitterness that I heard in Alicia''s explanation. It didn''t feel good to be useless in battle.

    "¡­"

    Still, I couldn''t help but be awed by the spectacle unfolding before us. Cecilia and Hades clashed furiously, with the former avoiding any direct confrontation with the latter and focused only on whittling his health down with each strike. Of course, Hades'' wounds closed up and healed within a minute, but Cecilia would mark him with more wounds as the battle dragged on, each injury more grievous than the previous one.

    Bam!

    A swing from Hades reduced a single proud, majestic tombstone into rubble. Cecilia disappeared from his view, darting behind a row of gravestones. Growling, Hades spun around to track her movements, but even his keen senses couldn''t keep her within view as she simply blended in with the shadows.

    Despite that, Hades remained undaunted. He was still a superlative warrior with decades of experience. Even centuries, if Cecilia''s speculation about his origins was to be believed.

    "!"

    Hades abruptly swung around when he sensed movement behind him, his scythe smashing apart another tombstone and obliterating it. As debris rained down on the caked soil and grass, Hades slowly turned about and saw that he had missed.

    But his instincts had been spot on. That was indeed an attack launched by Alicia.

    Blood dripped from a gash that Alicia had torn open from his chest to hip. It was deep, the bleeding profuse, but Hades seemed to take notice of it. He didn''t have to, as the bleeding clotted within seconds, and the deep injury began to mend itself. Instead, he was more interested in his opponent.

    Alicia stood some distance away, between two tombstones, her sword raised. Hades snarled, and lunged at her.

    Again, Cecilia darted into the gravestones for cover, rushing between two rows of tombs as Hades'' rampage smashed a devastating path through them. His scythe cleaved through another grave, splitting the rock into debris, but Cecilia made use of the slight delay in his attacks when his monstrous scythe was impeded to alter her trajectory and launch a counterattack. She slashed at him, opening up a cut in his arm.

    Bellowing, the berserk Hades reversed his hold in his scythe and swung at her, but she spun away gracefully. Landing on top of another tombstone, she waited for Hades to approach before leaping away. Hades'' scythe obliterated her former perch, but Cecilia was already rotating in midair to launch a fierce strike that actually sent him staggering from the force.

    Landing at his feet, Cecilia then eviscerated his abdomen, causing another spray of blood. Miraculously, none of the blood actually splattered her.

    "Hu¡­"

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    Exhaling deeply, Hades calmly smacked her with his scythe, but again the tip of his crescent-shaped blade snagged against a tombstone, cutting a thin line through the rock. By the time it reached her, Cecilia was already in position to block it. They exchanged another furious blows, with the nimble swordswoman making use of her superior speed to fend off Hades'' relentless and more powerful barrage.

    The two combatants than sprang away from each other in another clash that left Hades bleeding. Cecilia was relatively unscathed, but her breathing had grown heavier. Even if she was faster and had the edge in this particular terrain, she didn''t have infinite stamina or the raw power of her opponent. I could see that she planned to end this battle as quickly as possible.

    I raised my eyes to Selina, who had reappeared and taken up position in a remote corner of the graveyard. Alicia raised her guns, but didn''t fire. The both of us knew it was meaningless. The tombstones provided her ample cover, and even if we hit her, she had an impenetrable barrier that was proof against ranged attacks. I was beginning to see a pattern here ¨C both summoner and summoned spirit were all but impervious against ranged spells¡­

    I wondered if I should summon Vermillion Phoenix and incinerate both her and Hades, but Cecilia would get caught in the blast. Besides, Cecilia seemed to have the battle well in hand, and she was actually winning. I had a feeling that, despite Selina''s scowl, our enemy still had more tricks up her sleeve. If that was the case, revealing my Celestial Guardians too early would prove to be a mistake. I wanted to see what else Selina had in store ¨C depending on what she did if Cecilia did indeed defeat Hades, it might be more advantageous to summon my Celestial Guardians later.

    Vaguely I wondered about the possibility of converting the power of my Celestial Guardians into my Constellation weapons. What if I transferred all of Vermilion Phoenix''s formidable firepower to a single arrow, for example?

    Pushing that thought to the back of my mind, I still kept toying with the idea while focusing a good portion of my attention on the shifting battlefield that was the graveyard.

    Cecilia and Hades had broken apart from yet another bloody clash, and now the former was pointing her sword at the latter as she assumed a final offensive stance.

    "You''ve been a worthy opponent¡­perhaps the most skilled and strongest enemy I have faced thus far. As such¡­" she took a deep breath, channeling her magical energy into her sword. Thousands of Sakura petals gathered around her, gleaming faintly in the silvery moonlight. They shone vividly as they responded to Cecilia''s call.

    Hades merely growled as he brought his scythe down, ready to parry this new attack. His red eyes followed the trail of pink Sakura petals as they increased rapidly in numbers and formed a dense cloud of fluttering blossoms.

    Where there was death, there was also life. It surprised me to see the epitome and symbol of spring coming to life so forcefully in a place of death, but perhaps it was precisely because of this contrast that made Cecilia''s attack appear more powerful than ever.

    "Stuart Clan Sword Style," she whispered. "Ten Thousand Sakura Blossoms, Divine Blades of Annihilation."

    Narrowing her eyes, Cecilia then kicked off the ground, propelling herself forward to meet her enemy. The Sakura petals surrounding her whirled into a vengeful maelstrom at the tip of her sword, and she surged toward Hades while wreathed in a glowing vortex of pink energy.

    Growling, Hades swung his scythe down at Cecilia, probably intending to cleave her in half before she reached him, but she nimbly altered her trajectory at the last second. She barely evaded Hades'' deadly scythe, the blade slicing into the earth and sending chunks of rock and soil flying. Even so, she received a single graze, a line of blood dripping from her temple into her eye. However, Cecilia continued onward, refusing to be distracted from her goal by pain or injury.

    With a determined yell, Cecilia drove her sword right into Hades'' chest before he could parry with his scythe. Still, in one last-ditch attempt, he caught hold of Cecilia''s sword, his hand bleeding profusely as he barely managed to prevent the blade from reaching his chest.

    Despite that, Cecilia would not be stopped.

    With a shout, she directed the maelstrom of Sakura petals forward. The pink Sakura blossoms actually flayed through Hades like a million blades, cutting through him and slicing through his bone and organs. In a second, blood burst out of Hades from countless injuries as his once unyielding iron body was perforated by the ultimate spell. Hades roared in fury as his body imploded from being cleaved apart by so many tiny blades and he slumped down in an unrecognizable heap of flesh and blood, the red light from his demonic eyes and tattoos fading away upon his death.

    Panting, Cecilia withdrew her sword and stepped away, exhausted and drained by the use of her ultimate technique and the toll the battle had taken away. The Sakura petals vanished, almost as if they had never existed to begin with, and she slumped down. Wiping the blood away from her face, she pressed her left palm against her temple in a vain effort to stem the bleeding.

    "Cecilia did it."

    Alicia was smiling, her expression filled with immense relief. I also relaxed, realizing that I had been holding my breath this entire time. I inhaled quickly and nodded in agreement.

    However, whatever words I was about to say swiftly died in my throat when I noticed something peculiar about Hades. No, even before that, I turned around and caught sight of Selina. She was shaking her head in exasperation rather than despair, looking more annoyed than afraid at Hades'' demise.

    Something was not right.

    I blinked as I studied Hades'' corpse. It was faint, but I could sense some sort of demonic energy flickering to life within it. That was strange. Usually when something died, the energy should be fading away into nothingness, not amplifying exponentially.

    Then it hit me.

    "Cecilia!" I yelled, my voice hoarse with dread. "Get away from that monster! He''s not dead yet!"

    And then the tattoos on Hades'' bleeding body burst into life, shining a demonic red that saturated the graveyard in a sinister light.

 59 Chapter 59: Devastation

    With a screech, Hades reared back, causing Cecilia to back away a few steps instinctively. All three of us watched in horror as the demonic energy raged around Hades, and his perforated body began to regenerate, his countless wounds knitting together and disappearing as he sought to recover from the fatal blow Cecilia dealt him.

    "This is¡­resurrection?" Cecilia gasped, utterly stupefied by the events taking place before her eyes. "No¡­it''s more of a curse, a reversal of time to back when he was still alive?"

    "That monster really is immortal," I murmured bitterly. This scenario reminded me eerily of a scene I watched in one of my favorite anime. That meant I knew what to do next. "Cecilia, Alicia, get as far away from here as possible!"

    "Huh? Why?" Alicia stared at me in bewilderment.

    "Just do it!"

    Cecilia was similarly puzzled, but when she turned to look at me, she jumped back in reflex. Alicia too was already scurrying away, diving out of the graveyard and into the woods for cover, and the Stuart Clan''s first daughter followed her example.

    They had seen me raising Orion, as well as the gargantuan vortex of magical energy that now swirled around me. I was gathering a tremendous amount of magical energy into my right hand and coalescing it into a single arrow.

    "That was a marvelous display," I told a grim Cecilia who was rapidly retreating from the scene. "But it''s not enough."

    She gave me a look that told me that she had watched the same anime as I did, but didn''t want to waste her time commenting on that. Instead, she took my advice and disappeared behind a row of tightly stacked gravestones, her figure blending into the shadows like before.

    As the arrow finally solidified in my hand, I fitted it to Orion and pulled the bowstring back, taking aim at the slowly regenerating Hades. By now, he was almost fully recovered, roaring defiantly as the countless bloody craters in his body filled out with flesh and muscle, his wounds all but vanishing from sight.

    But he wasn''t going to remain in that fully healed condition for long.

    "Rigel!"

    With a shout of vengeance, I released the golden arrow from my hand.

    Rigel soared across the cemetery with unerring accuracy and struck Hades, who had just recently resurrected fully, crashing into his chest with apocalyptic fury.

    In a blinding flash, the night lit up, becoming day in those few seconds as a tremendous explosion roared through the graveyard, engulfing the entire area in flames. Tombstones were immediately obliterated and the concrete, rock and earth upon which the burial mounds were placed disintegrated instantly, incinerated by the superheated conflagration. A mini-nuke, Rigel essentially razed the entire area into a desolate, barren crater of molten rock and black, charred earth, reducing everything ¨C be it grass, soil, corpses, concrete, tombstones, skeletons ¨C in the vicinity to ash. A mushroom cloud billowed into the air, shrouding the devastated graveyard in its deathly grip, while the inferno ravenously swept across the scorched crater, devouring everything and anything that was within reach.

    After a moment of crackling and hissing from the flames, a pall of gloom hung over the razed graveyard, a deathly silence descending upon the scene of utter devastation.

    "Impossible¡­"

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    Alicia''s voice cracked when she saw the incredible sight.

    Right in the middle of the scorched crater, surrounded by destruction, a single black giant stood immobile. He was still in one piece, unaffected by the flames and debris that had rained down on him. He was so still that it was almost difficult to tell him apart from the statues that formerly resided in the now obliterated cemetery.

    "He survived an attack that''s the equivalent of a Rank A Divine Device¡­"

    Alicia''s tone was filled with disbelief and almost wonder. Then she glanced at me, just as amazed by what I had did.

    "How did you¡­?"

    Evidently she had never realized that archer-class mages could be this powerful. This was the first time she had seen an arrow unleash destruction of such scale and magnitude. And to be honest, it was also the first time for me.

    This was the result of me infusing the power of Vermillion Phoenix into a single Constellation weapon.

    Earlier, while Cecilia was fighting against Hades, I was wondering what would happen if I converted the power I used to summon Vermillion Phoenix and fuel its spells into a single, one-use Constellation weapon instead, and if it was possible. Obviously, back then I was quite distracted by the impressive spectacle unfolding in front of my eyes, but since I wasn''t engaged in a life-and-death situation and Cecilia had the matter well in hand, I had taken to toying with the idea at the back of my mind and ran through a couple of simulations.

    Eventually I concluded that it was not just possible but insanely powerful. I was glad to see my hypothesis proven correct in reality.

    Still, it was a close shave. A single mistake and I would have failed. In that case, I would have been at the total mercy of a fully regenerated Hades.

    "¡­"

    Right now, it appeared that I was still at the mercy of a fully healed Hades, but he remained stationary, not moving to retaliate after taking such a horrifying blow. I wondered if he had actually been slain like earlier, when Cecilia slew him, but amidst the crackling inferno, he had regenerated and resurrected for a second time, unseen.

    "Heh¡­marvelous. Very impressive."

    Cecilia, Alicia and I whirled around as Selina approached us, clapping jovially. She peered at the inferno in front of her, unperturbed by the fact that her summoned spirit was still being trapped by its raging flames.

    "You''re not bad at all, brother. I''ve taken quite an interest in you."

    "Um¡­I''m quite the boring person, actually," I assured her. "There is absolutely nothing interesting about me at all."

    Selina ignored me. "I wanted to take care of this boring mission as quickly as possible, but I''ve changed my mind."

    "What, are you running away?" Alicia demanded, astonished by the assassin''s audacity. However, there was a trace of exhaustion in her voice. Even though she kept her guns trained on Selina''s gorgeous figure, she made no move to pull the trigger. She knew it would be pointless. Not only would she be unable to penetrate Selina''s barrier, she recognized that we were at a disadvantage if we were to pursue her or continue the fight.

    "I guess you can put it that way if you want." Selina shrugged flippantly. "I don''t really care about the Stuart family because it''s just another routine job for me, but I''m curious about that guy."

    "Trust me, there is nothing you should know about me. I''m just a regular guy." I raised both hands up to display how pathetically weak I was. Selina laughed, not buying my declaration at all.

    "Still so modest, I see. But you can''t really claim you''re a regular guy after doing something like this, can you?"

    She gestured toward the demolished graveyard, as well as the colossal crater her spirit was standing in.

    "Can I at least have your name?"

    "No," I blurted out in reflex. There was no way in hell I was going to give a terrifying assassin my name.

    "Ah~ you''re hurting my feelings, you know?" Selina clutched her well-endowed chest mockingly, the smooth, tight fabric stretching and emphasizing those well-curved mounds. I tried not to focus my gaze there. Selina was extremely gorgeous, and she knew how to use her feminine wiles to her maximum advantage. As expected of an assassin, I guess. "Well, it''s fine. I''ve other ways of finding out who you are." She studied me, a sly smile touching her lips. "There aren''t many summoners your age capable of unleashing such power."

    "You''ll be surprised."

    "Perhaps. But I think there''s a connection between us, you know? A thread of destiny. Since we''re both summoners, I''m sure our fates will be irrevocably tied together."

    Spare me. I honestly didn''t want to get involved with this femme fatale, not if I could help it. She was more than I could handle.

    "Why don''t you join me? Become a member of the assassins'' guild. You can put your talents to good use."

    "No thank you."

    I had no intention of being an assassin. I was going to be a full-fledged combat mage, fighting to protect the innocent, as well as for the glory of the Global Federation! Okay, maybe not the second part, but I wanted to save lives like Dad, not take them.

    Killing was antithesis to my ideals, and my goal to become a hero. No, not the Hero of the Federation. Who cares about all that propaganda bullshit? It was fine just to become a normal hero.

    "What a waste¡­" Selina shook her head, disappointed. She glanced at the smoldering iron giant in the middle of the crater that my Rigel had gouged out of the earth. For a moment, I thought she was going to order him to attack us again, but Hades obediently and quietly climbed out of the crater in a single bound and stood behind. Tilting her head, as if listening for something, Selina sighed. "Oh, well. Time is up. I really enjoyed playing with you all¡­hopefully we''ll get to meet again."

    Huh? Time was up? Why?

    Selina merely turned away and disappeared into the forest on the outskirts of the razed cemetery, and her massive partner also followed her, his immense size swallowed up by the dark shadows of trees and other flora.

    Then I heard the screeching noises of vehicles braking desperately in front of the black-iron gates that served as the entrance to this burial ground.

    Oh, I see. Clearly reinforcements had arrived. As powerful as Hades was, there was no way he could fight against so many people¡­or perhaps Selina had sensed there was a troublesome opponent among them. Given how he so easily mopped the first contingent of bodyguards who protected Cecilia, I was more inclined to bet it was the latter.

    As if to confirm my suspicions, Cecilia cocked her head toward the entrance, and smiled slightly in relief.

    "Uncle Yuan Dao is here."

    The name didn''t ring a bell in my mind, but I assumed he must be someone extremely powerful if he could force Selina to retreat.

    "The two of you, are you all right?" Cecilia turned to check on me and Alicia. Alicia nodded hesitantly.

    "I''m not injured at all."

    "What about you?" Cecilia asked, glancing in my direction. I grimaced.

    "For now."

    "What do you mean, for now?" Cecilia demanded.

    Chewing my lip nervously, I glanced in the direction where Selina had disappeared to. For some reason, my heart was still being clutched by icy dread.

    "¡­I''ve an ominous feeling I''ll encounter that assassin again in future¡­"

 60 Chapter 60: A Trace of Peace

    The War Wasp shrieked as my arrow pierced it, and it dropped onto the ground in a messy pile of insect guts and ooze. Around me, my flock of Corvus screeched as they tore apart the swarm of War Wasps, leaving little trace of the poor rank F monsters behind.

    "Hmm, that should do it."

    I glanced at Orion, wondering if I should unleash Betelgeuse instead of sending my Corvus to clean up the mess. That technique took up quite a lot of magical energy, so I wasn''t fond of spamming it too many times, but it was also pretty devastating. Plus it made me feel like Ishida Uryuu.

    It had been a couple of weeks since that incident with Selina and Hades. After Cecilia''s reinforcements arrived, half of them sent me and Alicia home to Jing Tian City, while the other half escorted Cecilia safely back to wherever she lived. That was the last I heard of her, though Alicia told me that she was fine.

    Apparently the Stuart Clan was trying to track down the assassin and find out who hired her, but they hadn''t gotten any success thus far. Fortunately for Cecilia, Selina didn''t try to attack her again, or at least I hadn''t heard of any new attacks. Funnily enough, the first assassination attempt ended up on the online news, but Alicia and I only got tangential mentions. Which was fine by me, because I preferred to keep it that way.

    "Hmm¡­"

    I studied Orion, wondering if I could use Rigel. I hadn''t had a chance to replicate that feat, and obviously it was stupid to waste my magical energy nuking part of the forest when the low-ranked monsters didn''t call for such drastic measures. So I hadn''t tried it again in reality, though I did try it inside my training room, and accidentally nuked myself. After a scolding from Dong Fang Yue Chu, I ended up going outside on a mission to beat something up.

    Plus we needed the prestige points for my faltering society. It had only been a few months, and my juniors still weren''t able to fight on par with their seniors yet, so we were balanced precariously above the profit line. Our prestige points were getting dangerously low, and if we lost anymore, we would have to surrender most of our rooms in the Rear Building.

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    That was why I was out here on a mission, to replenish them. But¡­yeah, I seemed to have accomplished it pretty easily.

    Looking at my Orion bow again, I shook my head and dismissed it. Another time, perhaps. Furthermore, there were other skills I needed to practice. Just because I had powerful arrows didn''t mean I should neglect my swordsmanship.

    *

    "Okay, your monetary rewards have been deposited into your account." Allison raised her head from her screen to inform me coolly, and then made another note. "Your society also has their prestige points, so regarding the rooms you own, you''ll be safe for another month. Unless you suddenly lose a bunch of matches."

    "Thank you." my ranking also went up, according to Allison, but I didn''t pay much attention to that. I was just relieved we didn''t have to give up our rooms. "I''ll come again for another mission soon."

    "Don''t overwork yourself," Allison reminded me, and I waved casually before leaving the administrative building and making my way toward the training room.

    "Thanks for the hard work!" Dong Fang Yue Chu said when I strode into the room. He was doing admin stuff for our club ¨C that was his job as the president, after all. "Thanks to you, we managed to replenish our prestige points again!"

    "Sorry for losing them, though." Harvey looked a little glum. The first year students were really struggling against their older opponents.

    "It''s not your fault," I assured him. "It''s those bastards'' fault for thinking you guys are easy prey and picking on you. I do hope you''ve learned something from those matches."

    "Yeah!" Harvey brightened up. "I think we''re getting a lot closer than before¡­still not quite there yet, but¡­"

    "Show me the replay," I instructed. "We''ll go through it later. On second thought, show it to my Dad later when we hit the dojo. I think he''ll have better advice than me."

    "Sure!"

    "Don''t forget about me!" Stan raised his hand wearily. He was slumped inside a ring, evidently working hard at honing his spells. A couple of training dummies lay opposite him, pockmarked by a barrage of shots.

    I was suddenly reminded of Alicia and her dual pistols that night a couple of weeks ago. She would have been a fine mentor to Stan, but evidently he wasn''t qualified to join Black Roses. Oh, well. I could ask her, but that would spark an outrage among members of her club ¨C obviously she would have to prioritize mentoring her juniors in her own society first, and I didn''t want to add to her burdens. As the president of the Black Roses Society, Alicia was extremely busy.

    This was why I didn''t want to be president. Heh. Good thing I palmed the job off to Dong Fang Yue Chu, otherwise I wouldn''t be able to do anything I like.

    "Still, that was fast. You finished the mission in a matter of hours."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu looked up at me in amazement.

    "Hah!" Harvey snorted. "Those are only rank F monsters. They pose no threat to Vice-President Richard at all!"

    I was amazed at the amount of faith he placed on me. I really didn''t have the heart to tell him that I was a fallible, weak human who lost more than I had won. Right now, my win-loss ratio stood at about twenty-six to a hundred and eight. Even though I clawed my way up the rankings with a sizeable amount of wins, I still lost nine matches.

    That was reality. In a wish-fulfilment, power fantasy story, I would never lose again and have a perfect, flawless record, but¡­yeah. Reality was cruel. There was no way I could win every single one of my matches. On the bright side, if I discounted the ninety-nine losses from last year, I actually won twenty-six to nine. Well, twenty-one to nine, if we didn''t count that fluke team-kill against the representatives of Crowley''s Academy, which didn''t contribute to my rankings in any case.

    "Well, get ready to finish up your training." I glanced at the time. I had just barely made it back before six. "Let''s start heading toward the dojo."

    "Yes, Vice-President!"

    Since there wasn''t enough time for me to begin my own training, I decided to hold it off for today. Besides, I was going to be subject to a pretty strict and tough training regimen once I got to the dojo, and the mission had been exhausting and a good experience, so it wasn''t any major loss. Having genuine combat experience was better than any amount of training, but obviously I required sufficient training to survive that dangerous battle in the first place.

    I wasn''t given much choice anyway. Before I could say anything, Dong Fang Yue Chu frowned and glanced at the door when someone knocked on it.

    "Please enter," he said.

    A towering figure of someone over six feet lumbered in, and waved at me.

    "Hey, Richard. It''s been a while. You have really prospered since the last time I saw you."

    My jaw dropped when I saw the huge guy. He wasn''t that big, to be honest, but he was definitely larger than average, packed with muscle. His dark chocolate skin seemed to give off a sheen under the fluorescent lighting of our society room, and like me he wore a pair of glasses. He held up a beefy hand and waved at me.

    "Troy!" I was delighted to see my friend. Even though we were on opposite ends of the school ranking spectrum, we had developed a good friendship. Well, I say that, but Troy''s current ranking was not as impressive as I made it out to be. Currently, he was around rank 400 or 300 something, just a couple of hundred positions above my 500 something.

    Interestingly enough, he had achieved his rank through fulfilling missions like I did. That was why I hadn''t seen him in a while. He had gone overseas for a mission, and no doubt that was what helped him achieve his ranking. He did have his fair share of wins in ranked matches too, and his combat ability was what caught the eye of Alicia, who invited him into the Black Roses.

    "Eh? Is he a friend of yours, Vice-President Richard?" Harvey sounded surprised as he stared at the dark-skinned giant (sort of) who had just entered the room. Troy chuckled as he swiveled his head to stare at me.

    "Vice-president now, is it? You''ve really risen up the ranks, Richie."

    "Uh, well, there were quite a few circumstances." I scratched my head, feeling a little embarrassed at my undeserved rank. I then turned to my awestruck juniors. "This is Troy King. He''s actually from Black Roses Society, but he''s a good friend of mine. We both go way back."

    "Amazing¡­"

    Harvey, in particular, was as usual in his hero-worship mode, no doubt thinking Troy must be some sort of godlike figure if he was friends with me. Well, he wasn''t far from the truth, but as powerful as Troy was, he wasn''t a god. At least not yet.

    "I didn''t know you were friends with Troy King." Dong Fang Yue Chu was also looking pretty astounded. Troy had a reputation for being a loner, especially during the first year, so it was to everyone''s surprise when he accepted Alicia''s invitation to the Black Roses. But he mostly kept to himself, and his notoriety was further exacerbated by his direct and brutal fighting style.

    "Yeah, as I said, we go way back," I repeated with a laugh.

    To be honest, I had no idea how we ended up being friends. If I wasn''t mistaken, it was because of that incident a few years ago, when Troy first showed up in my father''s dojo. He had a keen interest and great passion for martial arts, and he had been going from dojo to dojo to spar with all the dojo masters and their disciples, to learn and experience the pinnacle of martial arts.

    He had coincidentally subscribed to Dad''s position to learn martial arts first and separately from combat magic. That was why he was visiting dojos ¨C to learn "proper" martial arts instead of the hybridized combat techniques that mage academies taught. He was interested in the "pure" essence of martial arts, techniques passed down from an ancient age where magic didn''t exist.

    The next time we met was last year, when we both first enrolled in Jing Tian Magic Academy. Troy had spotted me in the cafeteria and he immediately recognized me as the son of the dojo master who defeated him a year or two ago. He then came over and we ended up discussing martial arts. Troy didn''t care that I was a summoner or that I was at the bottom of the rankings. He was more interested in non-magic martial arts than he was about student rankings and competition.

    And that was basically how we ended up being friends. More often than not Troy would approach me to talk about martial arts, most likely because none of the students here subscribed to such an ancient style of combat that many thought obsolete in the age of magic.

    "We''re actually going to the dojo right now," I informed my friend with a grin. "You''re welcome to join us if you want."

    "How''s Uncle doing?" Troy asked me. He had occasionally dropped by for a visit to my Dad''s dojo over the past year, often to spar with him and exchange pointers. True to their similar philosophies, neither of them used magic in their duels, and Troy held a healthy amount of respect for my old man. That was probably why he befriended me too.

    "All right. I got him to agree to train my society members." I grinned again. "I think he actually enjoys it."

    "A bit too much, if you ask me," Dong Fang Yue Chu muttered under his breath. Dad was harder on him than the others because he apparently saw the potential in Dong Fang Yue Chu¡­well, potential in fire magic. And Dad tended to focus a lot on fire magic, so he was happy to have a student who specialized in fire magic.

    "Hah! Sounds like Uncle all right!" Troy laughed. "I''m in!"

    "Great! Let''s go then!" I turned to my society members. "Are you guys ready?"

    "Yes~" they chorused. Harvey was the only one who sounded enthusiastic while Dong Fang Yue Chu paled. I ignored our poor, trembling president, and pumped my fist to the air.

    "All right! Let''s go!"

 61 Chapter 61: Heated Exchange

    "Ugh¡­!"

    I could hear Dong Fang Yue Chu complaining from his corner in the dojo. Dad had prepared a special training menu for him ¨C one was for him to do non-magic martial arts like the rest of us, but the second portion of his training involved him practicing fire magic. I could see Dong Fang Yue Chu''s crimson flames flickering at the edge of my vision, but I was in no position to worry about him.

    Wham!

    Dad''s sword caught the crown of my head despite my best attempts to block it and I dropped to the ground with a groan.

    "Your defenses are too lax," he told me as he offered me a hand. I accepted it and allowed Dad to pull me back to my feet.

    "Again?" I asked.

    "Well¡­" Dad glanced over at where the rest of my juniors were training. And his eyes stopped on a restless Troy, who was hammering a punching bag to oblivion. "Normally I would like to, but let''s not keep our guest waiting."

    "Oh!"

    I nodded and backed off, waving toward Troy.

    "Okay, all of you can stop your training for today." Dad clapped his hands. Dong Fang Yue Chu looked incredibly relieved as he stopped conjuring his flames, and my three juniors turned to watch their dojo master curiously. Dad smiled and gestured to Troy, who had also come to a stop after a single hammer blow that knocked the poor punching bag off its suspenders and sent it crashing untidily into the ground.

    "Oh?" Harvey looked pretty excited, though that guy was enthusiastic over just about everything. "Are we having a new lesson today?"

    "Sort of." Dad nodded and then cocked his head toward Troy, who couldn''t help but smile and crack his knuckles. "As you''ve probably already noticed, we have a special guest today."

    Originally Troy wanted to spar with Dad immediately, but my father didn''t want to detract from his training schedule, so he asked Troy if he minded waiting until our daily training was over for the day. In return, he gave Troy something to hit, and the latter went to work on it with a vengeance, happily pounding the crap out of the poor punching bag. Right now, the poor thing was rolling around helplessly on the ground, dented and crushed.

    "So are we finally going to duel?" he asked.

    "Yeah." Dad studied him and nodded. "You''ve become a lot stronger since our last exchange." H cocked his head toward me. "Like Richie, you''ve been accumulating quite a lot of combat experience, haven''t you?"

    Troy grinned. "You know it."

    Dad sighed. "Well, looks like this is going to be a tough battle. I''m getting old, so please go easy on me."

    Please¡­Dad was only in his thirties at most. It wasn''t as if he was getting any weaker. In fact, his magic was growing stronger, if I was any judge.

    He turned to look at us. "Watch this battle closely. I''m sure you''ll learn a lot from it. Especially you, Richie."

    "Yeah, okay." I nodded. Let''s be honest, I was probably the worst martial artist to have existed in Dad''s time.

    Troy stretched himself as he jogged into the big space in the center of the dojo, and Dad merely waited with his arms crossed. When Troy dropped to a combative stance, raising both his hands in a standard kata, Dad finally put one foot out and stretched out a single hand as if to beckon his opponent to come at him.

    "You can begin any time you''re ready," he said.

    Troy grinned and sprang forward immediately, throwing a punch. Dad deflected it by smacking the dark-skinned martial artist''s hand to the side, but the latter responded with a hook from his other hand. Dad brought his other hand up to parry the blow ¨C not by blocking his fist head-on, but by swinging his arm inside of Troy''s punch and striking the latter''s forearm to shift the trajectory of the fist. As a result, Troy''s fist merely flew past the side of his head, missing entirely.

    "!"

    Troy''s expression betrayed a glimmer of surprise, but he was quick to recover, bringing his knee up. Dad took a step back, avoiding the knee, and then jerked his head and chest back to avoid a merciless swipe from Troy''s hook. Spinning to the side, he struck the dark-skinned martial artist''s collar bone with a chop. The latter flinched, but he struck Dad''s arms, knocking them away, and then punched him in the chest.

    Again, Dad was able to whirl away to the side to avoid the fist, and then he cut his hand down upon Troy''s elbow, causing the arm to slip aside. With a series of sharp, precise strikes to Troy''s face, neck and chest, he forced his opponent back. Troy managed to raise his guard and defend his face and neck, but he was forced to withdraw.

    Not because Dad''s strikes were powerful. But they were sharp, swift and precise, aiming lethally for Troy''s weak points.

    Despite being beaten back, Troy grinned in feral delight, his eyes gleaming.

    "It''s been a while since I''ve received your Wing Chun!"

    Dad merely smiled and then rammed his elbow against the side of Troy''s head, opening up a wound. Troy staggered backward, blood streaming down his face.

    "Less talking, more fighting," Dad said, and then flicked his hand at his face again. Troy managed to block that strike, but Dad kicked him in the knee, causing him to buckle and fall over. Troy gritted his teeth and pivoted on his other leg, throwing a vicious punch that Dad was forced to sidestep. That bought him more than enough time to launch his counterattack.

    To Dad''s surprise, Troy suddenly switched tactics by abandoning his kata and diving straight at him in a tackle. This time, Troy was using wrestling techniques, trying to grapple with Dad and lock his limbs. Dad managed to avoid him, and he countered with a strike, but Troy showed surprising flexibility, throwing himself up and locking Dad''s arm by wrapping his arms around it. His legs snaked out and hooked over Dad''s shoulder, and with a twist of his body, he brought Dad down to the floor, grabbing Dad''s hand and trying to dislocate his arm from his joint.

    Dad grunted as he hit the tatami mat, but he didn''t struggle and roll about. Instead, he relaxed his arm. Troy didn''t expect this maneuver, only for Dad to suddenly tensed his arm and smack his opponent''s body against the floor. Troy''s head smacked the ground and his hold loosened, allowing Dad to slip his arm out and quickly pull away, distancing himself from the prone black guy.

    As always, Troy was quick to recover and jump up. He had bragged in the past that he had taken a lot of hits in the past and was pretty sturdy after enduring so many beatings, and I could see the truth in that as he straightened up. Flexing his arms, Troy switched his fighting style yet again, stepping forward and kicking Dad from an unexpected angle.

    "¡­"

    Dad managed to block Troy''s kick, but the latter was already spinning around for yet another kick. Dad backed away as Troy delivered roundhouse kick after kick, basically turning into a human tornado.

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    "Amazing¡­" Harvey gasped in awe as he watched the two experts duke it out. "Is this really a duel without magic?"

    "That''s right," I confirmed. Then I grinned. "Now imagine what happens if you have that as your basic foundation, and then combine it with magic."

    "I see¡­" Stan nodded, mesmerized. "Yeah¡­I understand now why your father wants us to learn martial arts."

    "Martial arts can be applicable to any form of combat. Even though he fights like this, Dad is still a summoner." I glanced at Dong Fang Yue Chu. "Who specializes in fire magic and fire summons. Yet he devotes so much time and energy into mastering martial arts."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu blinked and nodded as well. "As expected of the legendary Angel of Fire," he murmured. "He''s on a whole different level."

    Right now, Troy had switched back to punches, and was dancing around Dad while throwing his fists out in rapid-movements, but sometimes switching to locks and holds whenever Dad countered. It reminded me of Krav Maga. As I watched him grab hold of Dad''s arm after the latter tried to strike him, I couldn''t help but be impressed by Troy''s vast knowledge of so many different martial arts. He was a true prodigy at fighting.

    Dad shook his arm free, and then smacked Troy away before kicking him in the leg. Troy was caught off guard by that last kick, falling to his knee, but he was able to block Dad''s next strike and grab hold of his arm, trying yet another lock.

    Dad already saw through that, however.

    Instead of trying to break free of the hold, Dad leaned in and rammed his knee into Troy''s chest, earning an astonished gurgle from his dark-skinned opponent. Troy''s hold naturally loosened, and Dad took advantage of his momentary lapse to strike his face with a barrage of swift, precise blows that snapped his head back.

    But Troy could handle a lot of punishment. Gritting his teeth, he brought his head back up, almost as if to head-butt against Dad''s fists. Dad narrowed his eyes, and instead whirled away, continuing to rain blows on Troy''s neck and shoulders. Troy flipped upward with a kick that almost slammed into Dad''s chin, but the older man deflected his foot with his elbow. Almost as if he was dancing, he caught Troy''s counterattack when the dark-skinned martial artist punched at him, and then bent it.

    This time, it was Dad''s turn to lock Troy''s arm. Pressing the helpless Troy to the ground with his knee, he rained down another barrage of short, swift punches on his arm, all the way to his head. Troy''s eyes lolled about in his head for a second and he lost consciousness.

    Breathing heavily, Dad rose to his feet and backed away from his opponent. The rest of us watched in horror (except me, who already had some expectation of what would happen). Dad shook his bruised fists, grimacing.

    "Can''t hold back against this kid now¡­"

    "Whoa¡­will he be all right?" Dong Fang Yue Chu demanded. "He took quite a lot of damage, didn''t he?"

    "That senior¡­he lost consciousness!" Wang Fei gasped.

    "Should we¡­should we call for an ambulance?" Harvey asked nervously, as if he was witnessing murder in front of his eyes.

    "No need for that. Troy will get up soon." I assured them calmly. Everyone stared at me in disbelief.

    "No way. Not after getting beaten up like that¡­" Stan began, but he was cut off by a cough.

    Blinking, Troy stared at the ceiling of the dojo for a few moments, then slowly stood up. Grimacing as he traced the bruises and scrapes along his face, he turned to Dad sheepishly

    "Looks like I lost again, Uncle?"

    "You were pretty close," Dad conceded with both his hands raised. "You made me panic there for a moment."

    "Aw¡­" Troy shook his head as he stood up. Cracking his head from side to side as if to relax the stiff muscles in his neck, he shrugged. "I''ll try again after some training and missions."

    "You''re welcome to challenge me anytime," Dad replied cheerfully. I didn''t tell Troy that Dad had been training on his own and taking far more dangerous missions than both me and Troy put together. So even if Troy grew stronger, it wasn''t as if Dad was going to stagnate and remain at the same level for him to catch up to.

    "That was amazing!" Harvey exclaimed, his eyes shining. "Will we be able to reach that level one day?"

    "If you continue training everyday, you might." Dad turned to us with a grin. "Now, I hope you guys learned a lot from that exchange!"

 62 Chapter 62: Cool Challenge

    "Oh, wow¡­that was an awesome battle! Tell your dad to wait for me! I''ll be back!"

    The next day, Troy was hounding me. Despite the beating he took, he was still as bright and springy as ever. Evidently all his injuries had healed in under an hour¡­if he had even sustained any at all. Come to think of it, I did see him bleed, so I guessed he did suffer some wounds.

    But looking at him now, you could never tell that he was battered pretty badly last night. Not for the first time I found myself impressed by Troy''s vitality and strength. That was why I said, he wasn''t godlike¡­yet.

    He would eventually become a god, I had no doubt about that.

    "Yeah, he knows. He says you''re welcome to challenge him anytime." I smiled as I returned his greeting. Troy chuckled as he slapped me in the back so hard I almost toppled over. I flinched, but did my best to hide my pain.

    "I look forward to it! Maybe next time I''ll beat your dad, eh?"

    "Maybe," I said vaguely and noncommittedly, but I couldn''t imagine that happening. Dad wasn''t going to sit still and wait for people to catch up with him. If I wasn''t mistaken, he was going on another mission next week, and he had instructed us in the dojo to do our self-training while we were away. When he returned, he would no doubt be stronger and more experienced than before.

    "In the meantime, we should climb the school rankings." Troy frowned as he glanced at his smartphone. "I''ve received a couple of challenges, so I had best get to them done." He looked up at me and grinned. "If we want to get into the elite universities¡­no, if we even want to qualify for their entrance exams, we need to rank among the top 100, don''t we?"

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    "We do," I agreed and then sighed. While I had climbed about over five hundred places in about four months, it was increasingly more difficult to raise my ranks. The reason was because the number of points I earned from beating my opponents would be less, the higher our ranks and the smaller the difference between our positions were. I didn''t know the exact mathematical formula for calculating our matchmaking rating, but let''s just say I earned about a hundred more points if I beat a 100th ranked person when I was ranked 1,000th than I did when I beat the same 100th ranked person and I was ranked about 500th. Or something to that effect. I guess levels and experience points might be an apt analogy, though ranks were obviously different from levels. But you get the picture ¨C if you were only level 1 and you beat a level 10 opponent, you might quickly jump all the way to level 5 or 6 at one go. But if you were at level 5 and you beat a level 10 opponent, you probably would only grow 2 or 3 levels at most, rather than 4 or 5. And the gap would continue to increase.

    "What about you? I heard a lot of crazy rumors about you that happened when I was away. Apparently you took out a top 10 elite academy team of representatives by yourself!" Troy laughed. "Is that true?"

    "Eh, well¡­you know how these things go," I replied ambiguously. "They always tend to be exaggerated."

    "I see." Troy shrugged. "Still, if it''s true, I would love to see the expressions of those representatives when you beat them! Hmm¡­yeah, I should ask for a replay."

    "Nah, it''s not worth your time," I hastily told him.

    "What are you talking about, bro? Of course it is! If you''re that afraid of being embarrassed, at least think of it as me helping you out and giving you advice. I remember you''re still having trouble with your summoning magic, right? Always getting knocked out before you can summon your soul beast or something?"

    "Uh, I found several ways to mitigate that¡­"

    "Oh, you did? That''s awesome! I can''t wait to see that!" Troy nodded thoughtfully. "We should have a match sometime!"

    "Er¡­yeah¡­sometime¡­in the future." Now that was something I wanted to avoid. Troy was a terrifying opponent. I mean, you just saw how he fought on par with my Dad just yesterday, didn''t you? There was no way I could hold up against him if he added magic to his martial arts as well. The guy was an absolute monster.

    I pitied his challengers. With his experience from the mission he just recently accomplished, I had no doubt he would break into the top 100 by the end of this year. In contrast, I would be lucky to reach there by the end of next year, before the university entrance exams. My rank had fallen quite a bit and now I was hovering just above the 600 mark at 598 or 599.

    Scary.

    "Anyway, I''m going for gravitational class. You have combat magic class in the morning, right? I''ll see you later then."

    "Sure." I watched him leave, and then turned away once he disappeared down the corner. Taking a deep breath, I began making my way toward the classroom for combat magic.

    I had only taken a couple of steps before I heard a beep from my smartphone, notifying me of a message. I frowned and took a look at it. Even before opening the message, I already recognized the type from the red light that surrounded it.

    It was a challenge.

    "Oh boy¡­"

    Speak of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao would arrive.

    Barely had I just spoken to Troy about our rankings and him receiving a couple of challenges than I received a single one of my own.

    "Who is it this time?" I wondered as I opened to peer at the contents of the message. To my surprise, it was a rather familiar name.

    Jie Bing.

    "Isn''t he ranked among the top 50?" I murmured, shocked. If I wasn''t mistaken, he was ranked 47th or 48th. I could of course check the official rankings on the school''s online bulletin board, but right now I was too distracted to switch the holographic windows projected from my smartphone.

    Well, this wasn''t the first time I fought against someone from the top 100. I managed to defeat Theodore Hammond, and achieved a draw with Craig Carlson, both of whom were from the top 100. But other than that, I hadn''t faced anyone from the top 100 ever since. I did face a few people who were ranked 100+ or 200+, but I lost to them (that was where the 9 losses came from).

    This challenge was intriguing to say the least.

    "Are you free today?"

    That was the first line of the email. Jie Bing wanted to schedule our match today, if possible. That wasn''t strange ¨C most of the top 100 students maintained their ranking by fighting matches against other students daily. They did not win all their matches ¨C many of them had a 50% win-loss ratio ¨C but the sheer volume of matches allowed them to slowly accrue the points to put them among the top 100. Of course this wasn''t always advisable ¨C losing to a much lower-ranked opponent would cost you a ton of MMR points. Theodore, for example, slipped down about fifty or sixty ranks after his loss to me, and he had to win about another fifteen matches before he reclaimed his spots (which of course wasn''t realistic, given that he wouldn''t win fifteen matches in a row, and would inevitably lose some of them in between).

    That didn''t stop people from trying, though.

    I considered the matter for a few seconds, then made my decision. Typing a swift response, I accepted Jie Bing''s challenge and agreed to his proposed timing.

    The match would take place today, in the afternoon, after all our classes ended.

    *

    What? Were you expecting me to enter the OP (Over-Perfection, or Transcend Perfection, depending on the translation) system or something? I''m not Wang Zhong. And I was not from the cannon fodder division, and Jie Bing wasn''t from the elite division. Never mind there was no mention of hero division. And no, I''m not going to launch into some lengthy info dump about great clans, people lurking and spamming the OP forums or whatever. This wasn''t that kind of story.

    "You came."

    Jie Bing was waiting inside his training room. Even though he was among the top 50, surprisingly enough he didn''t join any of the great societies. Then again, anyone among the top 50 had the right to form their own society, and unlike the pathetic societies formed from the lower dredges of the rankings (like my Ultimate Outcast Society), they would be recognized as one of the most prestigious ones. Jie Bing''s Aurora Society didn''t have many members and thus couldn''t compete with the likes of Black Roses Society or Holy Saints Society, but they received a significant number of resources and funds when compared to the smaller societies like Ultimate Outcast Society. Let''s just say Jie Bing''s rank alone was enough to earn whatever society he joined or founded a godly amount of prestige points.

    Worse, Jie Bing had a victory rate of 80%, which accounted for why he was ranked so highly in our school. He had been growing rapidly since his enrollment last year, and was one of the few first-year students, alongside Alicia Violet, who could actually challenge the seniors and fight on par with them during his first year.

    Compared to them, I was an embarrassment. Which was why I was perturbed about his decision to challenge me.

    "Well, it would be rude to turn down the honor of dueling you," I replied easily, masking my unease with a practiced smile. "You''re such a cool guy."

    Jie Bing raised an eyebrow at that. He probably knew I was trying to be funny. After all, Jie Bing was an ice user. Come on, if Dad and Dong Fang Yue Chu specialized in fire magic, then there was bound to be somebody who focused on ice magic, right?

    Jie Bing was that somebody. And if I recalled correctly after checking up on his profile upon accepting his challenge earlier that morning, he was just coming back off an eleven-win streak. No wonder he was among the top fifty despite only being a second year student. Wow.

    The ice mage regarded me coldly, and decided not to comment on my poor joke. He merely moved on to the main topic indifferently.

    "I''ve always been interested in fighting you at least once," he remarked, his eyes glacial and his tone frosty. "I heard that your magic is somewhat similar to mine."

    "¡­huh?" I gaped at him. "What the hell are you talking about? You do know I''m a summoner, not an elementalist, right?"

    Elementalist was the type of class used to refer to mages like Jie Bing and Dong Fang Yue Chu, who specialized in casting elemental spells. Perhaps they could create and summon elemental spirits, but that relied a lot of magical energy and casting time (because it was basically summoning magic) so the vast majority of them tend not to do it, or reserve it as their trump card or finisher move. Their elemental magic mostly consisted of long-ranged spells or elemental-wreathed close range melee attacks, like Fire Punch or Ice Punch.

    To my knowledge, I knew Jie Bing was not the type who summoned an ice elemental to finish off his opponents. He was known for his brutal fighting style and direct frost techniques. He usually favored close-range techniques, but he was not adverse to freezing his opponent or firing ice projectiles from a distance.

    "You''ll see what I mean," Jie Bing replied indifferently, his wintry tone causing chills to run down my back. He glanced at the holographic projection of Teacher Fielding, who was once again overseeing this match. "Shall we begin then?"

 63 Chapter 63: Glacial Battle

    When Jie Bing glanced at the holographic image of Teacher Fielding, I also turned to look, only to catch sight of a familiar figure at the corner of my eye.

    To my astonishment, Alicia Violet was present, along with a crowd of spectators. For some reason she had joined Harvey and the other members from Ultimate Outcast Society to watch my match. She smiled when our eyes met, and waved at me. I blinked, and then turned my head away, feeling embarrassed.

    "Ahem¡­" Teacher Fielding coughed, bringing me back to reality. "Student Richard, are you ready?"

    "Oh¡­yeah. I am."

    I was still wondering why Alicia was here, but I guess it didn''t matter. I could ask her later. For now I should focus on the match.

    "Ready¡­fight!"

    Teacher Fielding swung his hand down, and began the match. Jie Bing was regarding me from a distance, and he politely signaled me with a hand.

    "Please," he said. I tilted my head to the side, and smiled, before reciprocating the inviting gesture. After all, I was a summoner. I had no business launching the first attack. Besides, the more time I could buy for myself, the more advantageous it was for me. Especially since I would be able to summon my soul beasts soon.

    However, Jie Bing wasted no time. When he saw that I had no intention of attacking, he launched himself forward, kicking off the ground with a thunderous noise. His explosive dash almost took me by surprise, his ferocious momentum carrying him forward and allowing him to cross the relatively huge distance between us in a single bound.

    "Whoa!"

    I dodged Jie Bing''s first punch, spinning to the side and avoiding his fist. However, Jie Bing displayed surprising dexterity by flipping himself over my head, twisting around and smashing his other hand down toward the top of my head.

    "¡­what?!"

    No, that was not from me, Jie Bing or the spectators. That was a cry of shock from the existences beyond the fourth wall. You guys seemed taken aback that I started the duel between Jie Bing and me so soon.

    What? Did you really think I was going to spend three whole chapters on needless exposition, listening to annoying comments and remarks from the "crowd" about my low chances of beating Jie Bing, give cameos to various beautiful girls who had thus far nothing to do with the story, make fun of their jealous male subordinates who were trying to trick their beautiful captains into going on dates with them, as well as drop a gigantic info dump upon the readers detailing the big clans, the duel system politics, boundary field technology or a dossier about how talented my opponent was and how he was going to force his way into Jing Tian Academy''s team of representatives?

    Fuck all that. I wasn''t Skeleton Wizard, and there was no point dragging out exposition and throwing loads of info dump for the sake of it. People claimed it was "world-building" but honestly did you need three whole chapters of exposition, explanations, and crowd reactions before you finally started the actual duel?

    In any case, I wasn''t stupid enough to stand around and block the attack. Instead, I slid to the side, jerking my head away before his hand could land on my skull. Jie Bing landed and rammed his elbow upward, almost cracking my jaw, but like Dad did the other day against Troy, I deflected his strike by hitting the inside of his arm and altering the trajectory of his attack. We broke apart, but Jie Bing was not done yet.

    Whirling around, he sent a roundhouse kick toward my chest.

    "!"

    I managed to cross my arms and parry the kick, but the force behind his attack send me skidding backward a few meters. Heaving, I lowered my trembling arms to study my opponent.

    Amazing¡­and he hasn''t used any magic or spells yet¡­

    This was exactly the kind of training and results my Dad had emphasized. To master martial arts before magic, so that you would have a solid foundation for combat instead of relying too much on magic. This was simple martial arts, and right now Jie Bing was overwhelming through basic techniques alone.

    "Hu¡­"

    I exhaled and shook my shaking arms before reasserting my stance. Tilting my left hand so that my palm faced upward, I gestured him to come at me again.

    Jie Bing wasted no time charging rapidly at me. He punched at me again, but this time I stood my ground. Deflecting his fist to the side, I then hammered a few sharp, rapid blows into his chest while moving my assault up to his face. Jie Bing staggered, but he managed to shield his face. Twisting to the side, he lashed out with a kick, but I blocked his foot with my leg before he could complete his attack, and then forced him backward, causing him to stumble.

    While he was off balance, I seized the opportunity to ram a fist into his midriff, causing him to double over. Jie Bing gritted his teeth and countered with a right book, but I managed to parry it with my forearm. Deflecting his next punch, I then struck, my hand moving like a serpent and weaving through his defenses to flick his head.

    "Gah!"

    Jie Bing blinked as his vision exploded. But as he fell, his leg shot up in a powerful kick that forced me to retreat. I twisted to the side to avoid his foot, and then rammed my knee against his falling body, causing him to hurtle several meters away. Jie Bing hit the ground, but he immediately rolled back up to his feet and restored his stance.

    "¡­"

    Now it was Jie Bing''s turn to take a deep breath. Shaking his head, he sighed.

    "You really are similar to me, aren''t you?"

    "I knew you were a master of close combat techniques, but I didn''t expect you to have mastered martial arts too." I was amazed. First Troy, and now Jie Bing. It seemed that the mages who bought into my Dad''s philosophy weren''t all that rare after all.

    Jie Bing narrowed his eyes, but didn''t say anything anymore. There was nothing more to be said. He would rather fight than talk. You know the old adage ¨C let our fists do the talking. That was the type of mentality that Jie Bing embraced.

    Therefore, he lunged at me again.

    This time, I was more prepared, I dodged his tackle and then slammed my elbow into his back, dropping him. Jie Bing reacted by throwing his hands to the ground and springing himself back up, throwing his leg up for a kick. I stepped back, his feet almost grazing my chin, and then kicked him. Jie Bing crossed his arms to block my foot and was blown away, but he cartwheeled and landed on his feet. Before I knew what was going on, he launched a barrage of punches that forced me into the defensive. While I deflected his punches, he suddenly dropped to a crouch and kicked me in the chest.

    "¡­!"

    Skidding backward, I lowered my hands defensively. Jie Bing got back to his feet, watching me warily for a counterattack, but I merely maintained my defensive stance. Snorting, the ice mage than propelled himself forward again.

    "?!"

    He had been expecting Wing Chun, but this time, I allowed him to get past him, and using an aikido technique that my Dad taught me, I used his momentum against him, grabbing the back of his uniform and tripping him before sending him sprawling headfirst on the ground, dazed. Before he could recover, I kicked him in the face, causing him to almost black out.

    "!!!"

    Before I could finish him off, my instincts screamed a warning. Icy magical energy was surging from Jie Bing''s body and freezing the entire arena. I quickly jumped away from reflex before I could get captured by the ice, almost slipping and falling as the ground beneath my feet was frozen over.

    "¡­so the rumors were true. You really did learn martial arts." Jie Bing was rising to his feet with a cold smile. "Interesting."

    "You''re welcome to my Dad''s dojo anytime," I replied. Jie Bing shrugged nonchalantly, seeming uninterested of which dojo I attended. All he cared about was having a good fight. Now that I studied him, I could see that he was actually enjoying himself.

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    "It''s time to get serious," he muttered as he stretched out his right hand. Silver-blue light coalesced into his palm and took the shape of an ice sword.

    At that moment, all the spectators fell silent. To be honest, I wasn''t even paying attention to them, so I barely noticed, but the silence after the background chatter died down was pretty palpable. For an elementalist to reach the stage of materialization spoke volumes of his potential.

    Of course, weapons materialized using one''s magical energy would be inferior to actual Divine Devices, but they held one advantage. They were a far more superior conduit for magical energy than Divine Devices. They might be more fragile, less durable and could not contain as much power as actual Divine Devices, but they suited the user completely.

    Jie Bing swung his sword, unleashing a howling wind of snow toward me. I merely stood there, allowing the frost to pelt me, knowing that he was merely showing off and not actually attacking. I wasn''t going to allow him to intimidate me with such a display of power. Even as I watched him, Jie Bing''s body was gradually being wreathed in an icy aura. Faint traces of azure magical energy enveloped his figure, its glacial quality emanating a freezing effect that almost caused me to stop cold.

    Whoosh!

    I wasn''t given any time to snap out of my chilled stupor. Jie Bing had suddenly advanced, charging at me with his sword. Watching him, I suddenly recalled what he told me before the match. His reason for challenging me.

    My magic was similar to his? Indeed it was.

    "Gemini."

    Muttering the word under my breath, I cast my spell and my twin swords materialized in my hands. Crossing them, I parried Jie Bing''s attack. His ice sword clashed against my Gemini twin swords, the azure blade sparkling against a conglomeration of black and white. Jie Bing then withdrew his sword before he slashed repeatedly at me. I parried him blow by blow, first deflecting his ice sword with Castor and countering with Pollux. But Jie Bing managed to draw his sword back to defend before he retaliated with a swift stroke.

    Not just a single swift stroke. His thrust that slammed into Castor turned into a barrage, with him executing almost a hundred strikes under a minute. His hands blurred, and his azure ice sword turned into a streak of azure. I was almost unable to follow his movements with my eyes and could only rely completely on instincts to block each and every blow.

    Spinning around, Jie Bing''s movements almost mimicked an elegant waltz, his movements precise and flawless. Each strike aimed at my weak point ¨C my neck, my heart, and my head. At the same time, I was slowly growing used to how predictable they were. If I knew where Jie Bing was aiming for, then it was but a simple matter for me to block them.

    Even so, he was overwhelming me with the sheer speed and brutality of his attacks. Whirling like an ice tornado, Jie Bing was suppressing my every movements and pushing me to a corner. Even though we were both armed with swords, it was clear that Jie Bing''s swordsmanship was superior. Against his icy maelstrom of attacks, I could only defend. I was slowly losing my chance to counter.

    Not only that, Jie Bing''s icy aura was sapping my strength, slowing my movements and causing my responses to be sluggish. More than once I had experienced a close shave where his sword sliced just millimeters away from my neck because his blade slipped through my clumsy defenses.

    Despite holding the advantage, Jie Bing for some reason was growing more frustrated, his expression darkening with each second.

    Apparently he thought he would be able to finish me off within two minutes. But three minutes had passed and he found my defenses impenetrable. He had come agonizing close to delivering a lethal strike, but somehow I just barely managed to stay a single step ahead of him, avoiding a fatal blow.

    Just how was I doing it?

    Glowering at me, Jie Bing intensified his attacks, sending a flurry of sword strikes that took me by surprise and almost overwhelmed me.

 64 Chapter 64: Fire and Ice

    "Huff¡­"

    Gritting my teeth, I deflected another of my opponent''s strikes, his icy blade grazing my cheek and drawing a thin line of frozen blood.

    I could hardly feel the pain. My senses had almost gone completely numb from the cold. I was only reacting on instinct now, fending off the ice mage''s sword as desperately as possible with my Gemini twin swords. Even the black and white blades were becoming increasingly encrusted in shimmering frost, which shattered every time they collided with Jie Bing''s frost sword.

    "Hu¡­"

    My next exhalation was expelled in the form of a thick, dense white mist in front of my face. As I almost failed to parry Jie Bing''s next attack, his blade coming millimeters within my nose and glasses before my Gemini twin swords stopped them cold, I realized how sluggish my movements had become, how slow I was to respond.

    Jie Bing''s chilling frost energy had finally taken effect.

    My opponent seemed to have noticed it as well, for he was taking advantage of my dull movements to launch his next round of attacks. Circling me, he timed his strikes perfectly and thrust his ice sword from my blind angle. This time, it wasn''t his usual slashes, but a lethal killing blow toward my neck!

    At the same time, Jie Bing''s sword glowed brightly as azure magical energy enveloped it, its user infusing it with his soul power. Its firepower increased by over a hundred times, this time if I got grazed by it, it wouldn''t just end with a single shallow scratch!

    I realized once again how terrifying of a genius Jie Bing was. No wonder he made it to the top fifty. At this rate, he would break into the top ten within the next six¡­no, three months!

    That was just speculation on my part and it was irrelevant to me at this point, so I focused on defending. Bringing both my swords up, I crossed them and parried Jie Bing''s lethal strike, just barely, stopping the point from reaching my throat. Slightly shifting my body so that I could put more of my weight behind my defense, I desperately made to shove Jie Bing off.

    The ice mage''s eyes narrowed, his eyebrow raising in astonishment at my successful defense, but he had still somehow prepared for this eventuality. His already bright blade glowed brighter and blasted me at pointblank range.

    "Ugh!"

    I was thrown back from the immense force, hurtling across the arena and crashing into the frozen ground. Coughing out blood, I struggled to crawl to my feet, only to realize that the majority of my body was entombed in rapidly expanding ice. Both my Gemini twin swords had shattered from the impact as well, and I was currently unarmed.

    Not that I could wield a weapon when my hands were frozen in huge blocks of ice.

    Jie Bing advanced toward me silently, but I could read his intentions from his expression. He didn''t need to say a word ¨C as I mentioned before, Jie Bing believed more in talking with our fists ¨C or our weapons in this case ¨C than with words.

    I knew that he was wary of my Vermillion Phoenix, and thus sought to finish me off before I could summon my trump card. He was aware that his current level of power was not strong enough to defeat my Vermillion Phoenix. My soul beast would just turn the entire frozen landscape into an inferno, rendering all of his ice useless, and melt through any defense he could conjure. Therefore he was holding nothing back, giving his all to finish me as soon as possible.

    Kicking off the ground, he dashed toward me and swung his sword down to deliver the finishing blow. With this, he could safely finish me off before I could spring Vermillion Phoenix on him.

    Unfortunately, my Celestial Guardians were no longer the only soul beasts I could summon.

    Crack!

    "?!"

    Jie Bing spun around when his ice shattered and a gigantic serpent darted out of the ground, snaking forward to capture him in his wide open maw. Fangs dripped with corrosive venom, and a forked tongue the size of his arm extended out like a stabbing prong.

    "Serpens!" I shouted. A whip materialized in my hand as I broke free of the ice. "Ophiuchus!"

    However, Jie Bing spun around and threw out his left hand, materializing an ice shield in front of the advancing Serpens. The gargantuan serpent just smashed through the ice shield and made to swallow Jie Bing, but the slight delay in shattering his ice shield meant that he was able to flip about in midair. Using one of the shattered fragments of ice as a foothold, Jie Bing kicked off and streaked toward an opposite direction, completely evading the pursuing Serpens.

    However, my whip uncoiled and snagged him, forcing Jie Bing to cut at it with his sword. Instead, Ophiuchus coiled around his sword, wrapping tightly around his blade and crushing it into frosty fragments. Jie Bing immediately enveloped himself in frost armor as Ophiuchus wrapped around his now armored hand, and clamped down tightly. I pulled, my Jie Bing''s increased mass and weight from his armor made it difficult for me to budge him.

    Jie Bing then materialized a spear while using his own boosted strength and weight to yank me off my feet and drag him toward me. At the same time, he thrust his icy lance toward me.

    Unfortunately for him, I wasn''t going to just let him jerk me around.

    "Rasalhague!" I shouted. Lightning crackled through Ophiuchus and streamed into the heavily armored Jie Bing, who cried out and dropped to his feet, convulsing. His ice cracked and broke under the superheated electric currents, but he managed to hold onto his spear, which remained intact somehow. Don''t ask me how.

    Not that I cared. I saw a chance, and I was going for out.

    "Serpens!" I commanded, and linked to me telepathically, my Constellation spirit was aware of what I wanted. He darted forward again, his maw yawning wide to swallow the kneeling Jie Bing whole. At the same time, I continued to electrocute him with Ophiuchus''s Rasalhague.

    Jie Bing gritted his teeth, but his eyes seemed to glow an ethereal sapphire. Clenching his right hand into a fist, he punched the ground. Immediately super-cold air billowed outward, shimmering in an arcane azure aura. To my amazement, the lightning from Ophiuchus actually stopped cold, almost as if it was literally frozen. A five-meter radius around Jie Bing turned into ice, and Serpens literally froze, his gargantuan form entombed into ice. I was forced to let go of Ophiuchus by reflex and jumped backward, watching in horror as my Constellation weapon froze and shattered into countless fragments.

    If I hadn''t retreated on reflex, I would have been caught by Jie Bing''s spell as well and frozen solid. The match would have been over.

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    Serpens slowly disappeared, his frozen form vaporizing and falling apart into powdery snow. I had recalled him, knowing that he would no longer be able to fight.

    Jie Bing regarded me warily, his breathing a little heavier than before. He frowned in irritation, and I understood why even though he didn''t say anything.

    I had forced him to use his trump card. This was no doubt the legendary Absolute Zero. Jie Bing had been saving it to use against the top fifty¡­no, the top ten mages of our academy, but he was forced to use it against me, a mere 500+ ranked student. He felt a little aggrieved, not to mention remarkably impressed by my display.

    "Hmph."

    He snorted coldly, and then drew his spear back, getting ready to attack me. before I could react, he was suddenly lunging at me, his spear streaking forward in a deadly arc as it sort to pierce my chest.

    "GUOOOOH!"

    Taurus materialized beside Jie Bing and slammed into him with a furious charge. Jie Bing was barely able to respond, twisting around and forming yet another gigantic shield. As his shield cracked and broke, he jumped from one fragment to another, bounding upward and avoiding Taurus''s charge by sailing above him. He directed another blast of Absolute Zero onto Taurus, freezing the gigantic bull, but I didn''t dismiss him as I did the frozen Serpens earlier.

    "Taurus!" I yelled. "Keep fighting!"

    With a bellow, Taurus broke out of the ice, his form glowing crimson, almost as if his body had been immolated. Flames ran around his thick hide, and blazed particularly ferociously at his horns. He turned to growl at a stunned Jie Bing.

    Why was he so surprised? Did he not know that the element of Taurus was fire? Naturally Taurus would have a higher resistance to ice techniques if he enveloped himself in flames. I rarely did it because it expended too much of my magical energy.

    But under this cold, it was pointless to conserve my strength. My energy was gradually getting sapped away by the ice. If that was the case, I might as well heat things up. Like Jie Bing, I didn''t see a point in holding anything back.

    My opponent was already meeting Taurus''s charge, surprisingly meeting his charge head-on and lancing through Taurus''s thick forehead with his spear, only for the weapon to melt. Clicking his tongue, Jie Bing materialized a gigantic hammer, holding the huge weapon with both hands and smashing it into Taurus, causing the giant bull''s head to whip backward.

    Even with the flames wreathing him, the sheer mass of Jie Bing''s hammer was enough to faze Taurus. Jie Bing then transformed the hammer into an axe and cleaved through Taurus. My Constellation spirit was able to avoid getting decapitated by pulling his head back, but the deadly immense blade cleaved through the metallic armor plating on his shoulder.

    Grunting in pain, Taurus kicked out with his hooves, forcing Jie Bing back, even as the latter created an ice shield with his left hand to absorb the blow. Skidding backward, he then hurled an ice spear at Taurus.

    The giant bull snarled and pawed the ground before charging Jie Bing. Like a matador of old, Jie Bing deftly avoided Taurus''s charge, deftly dancing to the side. This time, he had switched his weapon into an ice bow and was launching volley of icicles at him. Most of them shattered against Taurus''s armor plating, but a few got through and peppered his hide, drawing some blood. Those that did hit immediately froze over, expanding rapidly across Taurus as if to try and entomb him in ice.

    Taurus''s movements increasingly grew sluggish, and he dully spun around to try and track the evading Jie Bing.

    "Taurus, Aldebaran!" I ordered. Taurus''s jaws slightly opened and a tremendous torrent of flames washed over the frozen arena, instantly melting all the ice. In an instant, the pseudo tundra had turned into slush water, flowing downward to form a shallow pool that lapped at our heels. Jie Bing''s eyes widened briefly as he tried to raise his shield to defend against Taurus''s sudden attack, but the flames overwhelmed him and incinerated him.

    Or so I thought, but I could briefly detect his sturdy life-signs from behind the inferno.

    "Taurus, finish him off!" I commanded. The giant bull obeyed immediately, kicking off the ground and ramming into Jie Bing''s last known position.

    "!!!"

    "Guh?!"

    Taurus grunted in surprise as a huge ice spear pierced through his chest and exited through his back, the lance possessing enough power to penetrate his armor plating. As the smoke and flames cleared, slowly frozen away by Jie Bing''s second Absolute Zero, I saw how my opponent had achieved the effect.

    He had braced his ice spear against the ground, using the power of the earth to fuel his strike like the hunting African tribes from ancient times, using wooden spears to use the lion''s or leopard''s own pounce against them.

    Taurus disappeared slowly with a grunt. Jie Bing''s ice spear crumbled slightly, turning into a much smaller ice spear, but it somehow still remained intact. He then threw it in my direction. I slightly dodged it, only for Jie Bing to cross the distance between us while I was distracted, freeze a new ice sword in his hands and slash downward. I couldn''t even bring up my newly summoned Gemini twin swords up for a parry.

    Swish!

    My glasses were knocked off my face and blood streamed from my eyes. Blinded, I desperately unleashed Castor and Pollux, the black and white destructive energies blasting Jie Bing backward, but he landed unharmed on the ground some distance away.

    I could feel the blood around my eyes freezing as Jie Bing activated his ice spells again. Without Taurus and his flames, there was no way for me to reverse the environment and heat it up, not unless I summoned another Constellation spirit.

    Even though he was aware of that, Jie Bing couldn''t help but be polite. Raising his ice sword, he pointed it at me.

    "Do you still wish to continue?" he asked. If I didn''t, he would respect my wishes and grant me a dignified loss. If I did, then he would continue to do his best to defeat me.

    I merely smiled warmly despite my forcibly closed eyes, my excitement boiling uncontrollably inside my chest. "Of course. This match isn''t over yet."

 65 Chapter 65: Hot and Cold

    "I see." Jie Bing nodded, but said nothing more. Since I wished to continue, there was nothing more to say. He would rather return to fighting instead.

    Normally he would be somewhat worried about me summoning Vermillion Phoenix, but I had just summoned Serpens, Taurus and used quite a flashy spell. It would delay my summoning spell for Vermillion Phoenix. After all, all of these summoning spells were dependent on a shared pool of magical energy ¨C my reservoir of mana ¨C so if I spent a good amount of energy summoning powerful Constellation spirits, that''s a significant chunk of mana not being directed toward casting the spell that would summon my Celestial Guardians.

    That was why he could afford a few seconds of polite conversation. Now that I had made my decision, he wasted no time and returned to fighting again.

    The spectators watched with bated breath, and I could hear murmurs as they commented on the match, but most of their remarks tended to be extremely irritating so I shut them out and paid no attention. I could guess somewhat the main topic of their discussions. Currently, I was blinded, and for most mages, that would be fatal.

    If it had been any other mage, they would have surrendered upon losing their sight. That was how vital the sense of sight was to a combat mage. Without their vision, they couldn''t see their opponents, they couldn''t track their movements, they couldn''t see the attacks coming, and they couldn''t react in time or launch an offensive of their own.

    ¡­if it had been any other mage.

    Seeing my confidence, Jie Bing had ascertained that I had some other means of fighting without my sight. Unlike Hal Gunther, he refused to underestimate me. He knew the dangers of looking down on an opponent and becoming complacent, of taking it for granted that you were guaranteed to win the fight. As long as I remained conscious and still willing to battle, I would remain a sizable threat.

    That was why he wasn''t holding back.

    With a swing of his ice sword, Jie Bing began to condense his soul power. Since I was blinded and had to wait for him to move before I could react, he had ample time to prepare his assault. He waved his sword and launched a volley of icicles at me.

    Even though I couldn''t see, I could hear the slight wheezing as the frozen projectiles streaked toward me. Instinctively, I conjured Scutum Sobiescianum and the Constellation shield materialized in midair to halt the attacks.

    "?!"

    Jie Bing narrowed his eyes, and thought to himself that it was only natural that I would have more Constellation spirits or weapons to call upon. After all, he was the one who told me that our magic were very similar. Remarkably he was able to tell that I actually heard his attack coming, and he changed tactics.

    Crack!

    All round us, ice came to life, freezing the entire arena once more. As pillars of ice rose, Jie Bing fired a volley of icicles at me. At the same time, he dashed toward me, following his bombardment closely to swing his sword down if I blocked them.

    Jie Bing''s judgement was spot on. I frowned when I could no longer hear the icicles thanks to the thunderous cracking noise that his freezing ice was creating as it froze over the landscape. I gambled on using Scutum Sobiescianum to shield my front, but Jie Bing''s sword slashed from my side. Only my instincts saved me when I felt a sudden shift in the air and I stepped backward, but the front of my chest was slashed open.

    "Gah!"

    Falling backward, with the blood freezing across my wound, I gritted my teeth and fired off a black blast from Castor at my front. To the side that was not covered by Scutum Sobiescianum, I unleashed a white blast from Pollux, just in case Jie Bing had switched directions and was no longer in front of me. Even if I didn''t hit him, I could at least delay him to buy time for my next summon.

    Then¡­it was done.

    "Crow!"

    A flock of Corvus materialized in the skies above, flapping their wings and soaring over the chilly air. Linked telepathically to them, I could use the dozens of pairs of eyes as my own, tracking down Jie Bing''s location and responding immediately.

    "Tch!"

    Jie Bing clicked his tongue when he realized that, staggering backward when my Castor slashed toward his face. He blocked it with his ice sword, but my Pollux came sweeping in from a blind spot that one of my Corvus had spotted for me. He quickly conjured another sword and blocked my white short sword, and then sent a riposte that would have stabbed me in the shoulder had I not ducked. Sweeping under his swords, I then cut into his midriff, only for him to freeze a dense layer of frost armor atop his torso.

    Clang!

    "!!!"

    Wow¡­this Jie Bing was really too cunning and meticulous. My respect for him went up. Ice magic was really one of the most flexible and adaptable magic. Comprising of materialization techniques and embodying near infinite variations, Jie Bing could freeze into existence any tool, weapon, equipment or armament that suited his current circumstances at any time. Already he had blocked several lethal strikes from me using the adaptability of his ice spells to shield himself from certain defeat.

    However¡­he wasn''t the only one!

    With a determined yell, I unleashed Castor and Pollux at pointblank range, overwhelming his frost armor with black and white blasts of destructive energy. My twin swords shattered from the exertion of magic, but I succeeded in blowing Jie Bing back. Fortunately for my opponent, his frost armor had absorbed most of the blasts, and while they crumbled into icy fragments that fell from his body, he didn''t look very hurt.

    Raising his remaining ice sword (with the other one having broken during our earlier exchange when I struck him with energy blasts), Jie Bing cast another Absolute Zero, probably to freeze my flock of Corvus and deny me vision once again.

    "Hmph."

    In response, I threw up a hand and gave an order to my slowly freezing flock of black crows.

    "Corvus, Gienah!"

    All of my Corvus suddenly transformed into black streaks of light that blazed across the arena to strike Jie Bing with the force of a meteor. Even his Absolute Zero was unable to stop the meteoric explosions of kinetic energy produced by the speeding crow-bullets. Force equals mass times acceleration. As tiny as each individual Corvus was, they were accelerating at near the speed of light, and thus the amount of energy unleashed by their collision was almost equal to a nuclear explosion. Well, I probably was exaggerating and they were probably moving at less than half of c, the speed of light, but even so it was still a display of tremendous power.

    Boom! Boom! Boom!

    "Ugh¡­!"

    A cry escaped Jie Bing''s lips as he struggled to hold up his icy shield. This time, he no longer just created a simple ice shield, but instead erected a colossal glacial wall that was several meters thick. They surrounded him like a fortress not unlike Chang Cheng''s Great Wall. It was an all-round, absolute defense that protected him from the ferocious meteoric bombardment of Corvus''s Gienah.

    Bang! Bang! Bang!

    Despite its immense density, the thick ice wall trembled and cracked under the powerful bombardment. No matter how sturdy the enormous glacial barrier was, it couldn''t possibly hold up against an orbital bombardment from rapidly accelerating meteors. At least not forever.

    And then¡­I ran out of power. The last of my Corvus faded away, exploding against Jie Bing''s icy screen with tremendous impact and causing several more tremors that continued to reverberate violently across the arena. Relieved, Jie Bing raised his head to stare at me.

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    But while he was defending against what seemed to be my last-ditch attack, I had gone and summoned yet another Constellation weapon.

    It didn''t matter that I couldn''t see Jie Bing. I had already pinpointed his location through the eyes of my Corvus. While they were bombarding him, I had adjusted my aim and continued to face the direction where he was standing in, unflinchingly withstanding the best I had to throw at him. The reason why I maintained my distance was because my Constellation weapon this time would be a ranged type, not a close combat kind.

    Sagittarius sparked into existence into my hand, the dull black bow initially not eye-catching. But the arrow I had summoned was certainly a beacon of horror and awe, flames flowing into the slowly expanding projectile.

    "Alnasl."

    Before Jie Bing could react, I had already fired the blazing arrow.

    At first, the ice mage didn''t move. The spectators also fell silent. The colossal ice wall he had erected had served as an impregnable fortress that had survived my meteoric bombardment of Gienah. There was no way a single arrow could break it.

    Unfortunately, they had forgotten the element of Sagittarius. Fire ¨C which was super-effective against ice magic and constructs.

    Ka-boom!

    The searing heat of Alnasl simply vaporized the gargantuan ice wall in an instant and detonated against a shocked Jie Bing. To be fair, he couldn''t dodge even if he wanted to ¨C the arrow was traveling too quickly for him to react. A catastrophic conflagration enveloped the entire arena, mushrooming upward in a hellish inferno that cast a grim, crimson glow upon the stunned spectators.

    The scorched body of Jie Bing toppled out of the ravenous flames, smoldering and unconscious. Steam billowed about him, gallons of water vaporized and boiling furiously as the red, bloodthirsty inferno consumed what was remained of Jie Bing''s once formidable frost fortress.

    "Winner¡­Richard Huang!"

    Teacher Fielding wasted no time in declaring me the winner. As the boundary field activated to extinguish the ravenous flames and restore the devastated arena, several medics hurried into the scene to grab hold of the charred Jie Bing to ferry him to the infirmary.

    "Phew¡­"

    Slumping down onto the ground, pain beginning to throb across my body now that the battle was over and my adrenaline wore off, I stayed put because of my eyes. They were still frozen shut¡­but the ice had melted away from the intense heat of my Alnasl. Blinking, I slowly opened them and looked around, only to find that my vision was blurry.

    Fortunately, my discarded glasses were lying a few meters away from me. I scrambled to retrieve them, putting them back on and sighing in relief. I felt vulnerable when I was blinded. Plus summoning took up a lot of magical energy. I couldn''t summon a soul beast or Constellation spirit and keep him in existence forever because he would continue to drain me of my energy if I did so. Moreover, the moment I fell asleep or lost consciousness, they would automatically disappear. It was too exhausting to maintain their existences for an extended period of time. Maybe an hour or two at the longest, before my magical energy ran out.

    I would need a different spell that would create a specially conditioned environment if I wanted to maintain them for extended periods of time, and even then they would have to remain within that artificial spatial field¡­

    While I was thinking to myself, I was suddenly jolted out of my thoughts by an earth-shaking roar from the crowd. Everyone was cheering for some reason. Most of the noise was generated by students from the lower ranks, particularly those over one thousand, as well as a significant number of the first year students. Even after several months since my victory over Crowley''s Academy, I continued to retain a following from the first years. Or so it seemed.

    Alicia was also jumping up and down, to my surprise, her usual elegant dignity forgotten. She was exchanging high fives with an excitedly screaming Harvey and a grinning Wang Fei. Even the usually moody Stan was smiling in delight, recognizing the significance of this victory. Dong Fang Yue Chu was also beaming, looking proud, as if he was the one who had fought and defeated Jie Bing.

    This would definitely make people sit up and notice Ultimate Outcast Society. And my ranking, though I was unaware of it at that time, had just soared up to 428.

    At this rate, I might just make it into the top 100 by the end of next year, before the university exams¡­

 66 Chapter 66: The Schoolâ€™s Idol

    "Great work, Vice-President Richard!" Harvey was yelling when I descended the stage to join my society. "You showed them!"

    "Impressive." Stan was nodding in approval¡­as if I ever needed his approval. "That was a splendid performance."

    "Awesome¡­" Wang Fei''s eyes were shining as well. No wonder Harvey managed to rope him into Ultimate Outcast Society.

    "I knew my brother can do it!" Dong Fang Yue Chu slapped my back in delight, causing me to flinch because of my injuries.

    "Who''s your brother?" I demanded, annoyed. Before Dong Fang Yue Chu could retort, Alicia Violet stepped up, beaming brilliantly. All the guys around us, not just those from Ultimate Outcast Society, were dazzled by the school goddess''s beauty.

    Normally, if this was a clich¨¦ web novel, the existences beyond the fourth wall would expect stupid responses from the male students around me. You know, the usual "jealousy" scene where all the male students would curse me under their breaths or start plotting to kill or bully me all because the school goddess deigned to talk to a "nobody" or "trash" like me. However, this was reality, so there was no glares of hatred, no looks of envy, and nobody cursed me or insulted me. Besides, I had just literally defeated Jie Bing, someone ranked among the top 50, so even if they somehow unrealistically bore a grudge against me over the most inane reason ever (seriously, who the fuck was idiotic enough to resent somebody just because a beautiful girl simply spoke to him? As if she was not supposed to talk to any guy in school except the very best? What kind of bullshit was that?), they had no choice but to suck it up. Hell, they probably would be afraid of me because they knew what I was capable of in the arena.

    "That was an amazing battle, Student Richard," she said, tilting her head slightly. "One of the best I''ve ever seen."

    "Thank you." blinking, I tried not to stammer as I forced my mind to work. Gosh, but Alicia was gorgeous, and I could feel my temperature rising. Realizing that my mouth had gone dry, I swallowed, and continued. "Um¡­I didn''t know you were here¡­"

    Well, I did, but what I actually meant was I didn''t know why Alicia would specifically watch my match. Shouldn''t she be watching Troy''s match, for example? Or the match of someone from Black Rose Society? There was little point in watching a duel between members from other societies.

    "The interschool tournament is coming soon," Alicia informed me, the corners of her lips tugging upward. "Have you forgotten? It''s only a few months away."

    I had, because it had nothing to do with me. Now that I thought about it, participating in the tournament as a representative would earn my society a lot of prestige points, as well as improve my ranking. However, you had to be among the top 20 to participate. As such, I didn''t think it was a realistic goal and never bothered about it.

    But I obviously couldn''t say that so I just shrugged noncommittedly. "Hmm, I see." Then I suddenly frowned. "Wait, what does that have to do with my match?"

    "To be honest, I was watching Student Jie Bing, not you. I was assessing his abilities and skills, to see if he is suitable to be one of our representatives for this year." Alicia''s lovely smile widened. "As you probably already know after experiencing his magic firsthand, Student Jie Bing has one of the most potential in our academy. He might prove to be one of our aces."

    "Yeah, he really is incredible," I agreed, shuddering when I remembered our fierce duel. The match was so close that it really came down to the wire. Just one misstep on my part and I would have been the one defeated. The combination of his ice sword and swordsmanship, as well as his adaptable ability to create whatever weapon that suited the circumstances, was terrifying. "I''ll definitely recommend him as a representative."

    Alicia giggled and nodded. "So noted. But¡­I think you might have a lot of potential too."

    I laughed awkwardly. "Um, you can probably consider me if I ever manage to break into the top 20."

    "Oh, exceptions can be made, and not all of the top 20 want to participate anyway." Alicia turned away, a mischievous finger on her chin. "I''ll make sure to do a fair assessment, but if it comes down to it, I''m sure we can work something out."

    "¡­right." I knew better than to take her word for it. Alicia was definitely reliable and trustworthy, but there was no way the school would just accept her decision to recommend me based on her word alone. I had to show results and fight my way to the top, otherwise no amount of praise on Alicia''s part was going to help me. As I watched her leave, I stumbled a little, pain shooting through my torso and head. Raising a hand, I found that blood was still leaking into my eyes. Now that the ice was gone and the temperature had gone to normal, my blood was no longer frozen and my cuts were bleeding again.

    "You should get to the infirmary," Dong Fang Yue Chu advised when he saw how battered I was. I nodded.

    "Okay."

    *

    While I left the arena, escorted by the members of my Ultimate Outcast Society, Alicia stepped out into the corridor, only for someone to approach her.

    "Brother Hai!" she exclaimed.

    The good-looking guy grinned, leaning back as he brushed a hand through his dark hair. He nodded a greeting and lowered his sunglasses, revealing his honey-brown eyes as he looked at the school goddess. Unlike the students who were dressed in the Jing Tian Academy''s standard gray uniforms, he was wearing a black leather jacket with black jeans, chains hanging from his pockets. A dark fingerless gloves covered his hands, his calloused fingers curled into the pockets of his jeans or jacket.

    "It''s been a while, Alicia."

    "Yes, it has!" Alicia exclaimed in delight. "When did you get back?"

    "Just yesterday." Feng Hai smiled. "It took me a while, but I finally flushed those Night Devils out from their hideouts."

    He actually hunted them down for over two years, along with his mercenary group, the Silver Wolves, but he didn''t say that.

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    "You''ve grown. You look a lot more beautiful than before."

    "Thank you." Alicia blushed a little, fidgeting anxiously. Of course she would ¨C Feng Hai was a real looker whose rugged appearance caused girls'' hearts to melt. Especially teenage girls. He gave off that bad boy vibe, after all.

    "Got a boyfriend yet?"

    "Of¡­of course not!"

    "¡­heh¡­really?" Feng Hai raised his head and glanced in my direction. I was barely visible, surrounded by my society members. "I thought you were pretty interested in that kid." He nodded in approval. "I saw his match. He''s pretty impressive."

    "Stop that! Richard is just a schoolmate. I''m merely assessing both him and Jie Bing for the representative team for Jing Tian Academy."

    "I see, so his name is Richard." Feng Hai smirked.

    Alicia studied him, but she didn''t say anything else to give herself away.

    "They are both good, impressive for their age." Feng Hai smirked. "Not as good as me when I was their age, but¡­they show a lot of promise." He then glanced at the nervous Alicia. "I''m surprised, though. What about that Richard kid attracted you?"

    "Um¡­that''s¡­"

    Alicia recalled the first time she had met me. Apparently it had been inside the library. As you probably know, I spent a lot of time in the library, looking for books and reading. It was during one of those reading sessions that Alicia spotted me. My diligence and focus had caught her attention, and when she saw how I shut everything out to concentrate on reading my book, for some reason she began to develop some curiosity toward me.

    She was aware of my notorious reputation as a loser who hadn''t won any matches, of course. That was why she was drawn toward me. Despite losing so much, I hadn''t given into despair and quit. Instead, I seemed to spend more and more time in the library, reading up on magical tomes and researching on ways to get stronger. Over the next few times she went to the library, she discovered that I was pretty much a fixture there. She had become impressed with my perseverance, my unwillingness to give up despite the odds, and my determination to improve myself and learn new magic skills. She was amazed that I possessed a strong enough will to walk down the path I chose for myself ¨C summoning ¨C despite the mockery and scorn I received from others for my naivety and lack of realism. Alicia found herself drawn to the hope brimming inside my intense gaze as I pored over thick tomes and arcane grimoires.

    "¡­um, Alicia, I meant what about his magic or skills that attracted your attention, not how you ended up falling for him."

    Alicia''s face flushed an extremely deep red when Feng Hai interrupted her. She realized that she had made the mistake of becoming lovestruck.

    "I¡­uh¡­"

    "Oh, well. I''ll find out for myself." Feng Hai waved his hand dismissively, saving her from her embarrassment. "I''ll be seeing him and all the other students tomorrow."

    *

    "Hey! Did you hear who''s coming as a guest instructor today?" Harvey asked as we waited in the classroom for combat magic the next day.

    I shook my head and stared at him blankly. "Nope."

    "A legend! He''s here!"

    "Huh?" I continued to stare at him, bewildered. "Who''s he?"

    I got my answer a few minutes later when the classroom quietened down, everyone''s attention drawn to the stage at the front. When the guest instructor showed up, all the students cheered and clapped excitedly.

    Apparently, in this time period, most of the greatest idols were heroes, particularly those who possessed both strength and beauty.

    The guy who stepped onto the stage definitely had tremendous amounts of the former, but while he obviously couldn''t be called beautiful, he was definitely handsome. A male idol then¡­judging from the way the girls were swooning and screaming as they drooled over him, he was definitely a male idol of Jing Tian Magic Academy.

    What? Did you think that all idols were female? That just because I was a male protagonist, the mysterious new instructor-idol would a beautiful slightly older lady type of character? You''ve been reading way too many harem web novels, dudes. Reality wasn''t that convenient, and the world didn''t just bend over and break its own rules and indulge in implausible improbabilities to surround a guy with beautiful girls that apparently have the potential to be heroines. That was just utter bullshit.

    "That''s the legendary Feng Hai!" Harvey exclaimed. "Don''t tell me you''ve never heard of him? He''s a graduate of Jing Tian Academy and became one of the strongest and most successful mage mercenary ever! He''s the founder of that powerful mercenary group, the Silver Wolves!"

    "Seriously? Feng Hai? Can authors not think of anything original anymore?" I grumbled and shook my head with a sigh. "And let me guess¡­his nickname is Fiend Blade?"

    "Huh?" Harvey gave me a strange stare. "Of course not."

    "Good." I sighed in relief. At least we weren''t blatantly ripping off a character from¡­

    "He''s known as the Hurricane Blade. The Hurricane Blade Feng Hai." Harvey was beaming as he unearthed more of his knowledge regarding the good-looking twenty-something guy on stage. "The pride of Jing Tian Academy! The fastest wind mage¡­his enemies never see his attacks coming! He''s capable of taking on a swarm of B rank monsters by himself!"

    Well, I had heard of the Silver Wolves at least. If this guy was truly the founder of that renowned mercenary group, then he was definitely a veteran with thousands of battles under his belt.

    And right now he was looking at me with a predatory gaze that unsettled me. I blinked, not sure why I would have drawn his attention, but I couldn''t help shuddering under his intense stare.

    This Feng Hai was like a sly wolf, watching me closely as it waited in ambush, ready to lunge if I so much as showed an opening.

    Groaning to myself and burying my face in my palm, I sighed again.

    Why me?

 67 Chapter 67: Invitation

    Fortunately for me, Feng Hai didn''t stare at me for long. He was turning his gaze to the rest of the class, waiting for all the students to settle down. To my complete lack of surprise, there were plenty of students who were not supposed to be in this class, no doubt sneaking in just to attend the personal lecture of their idol.

    After all, Feng Hai was practically a legend of our school. the founder and current leader of the Silver Wolves mercenary group, he had slew countless monsters and built up a glorious reputation as an invincible and ferocious warrior, as well as an honorable hero who saved many lives, often protecting the Global Federation from threats both within and without.

    As the pride of Jing Tian Academy, he was a shining beacon, a bright light of hope and inspiration, a goal that all students here aspired to achieve.

    Feng Hai appeared to be aware of that, so he said nothing even though the classroom was obviously overfilled. Shaking his head with a wry smile, he placed his hands on the podium and finally spoke up.

    "Does anyone know why I chose to take over this class in particular today?" he asked. Everyone was caught off guard by the first question he posed, glancing at each other uncertainly. Nobody had a clue.

    Then again, now that we thought about it, there was no other class Feng Hai would choose, unless it was an elemental class that focused on wind magic. After all, Feng Hai was famous for his combat magic techniques, and his fierce fighting style. He enjoyed getting up close and personal with his targets and slaughtering them with his curved sword.

    However, it was Dong Fang Yue Chu who gave a completely different answer. Like many of the gatecrashers, he wasn''t supposed to be in this class, yet here he was, sitting beside me, Harvey and Stan. I would have called him shameless, but then that also applied to more than half of the people currently residing in this classroom.

    "I heard that Captain Fei is here on a mission, to recruit someone from this class?!"

    Upon hearing his words, the students in class all became very excited, chattering enthusiastically to one another. To be handpicked and personally recruited by Fei Hai was no small matter. One could say if you joined the Silver Wolves mercenaries, you were pretty much set for life. Even if you quit, all other military organizations or mercenary groups would fight desperately to hire you. Such was the reputation of the renowned Silver Wolves that even Dad spoke of them with respect. As a side note, that was where I first heard about the Silver Wolves ¨C from Dad.

    For my part, I merely rolled my eyes. Yeah, right. Why would the Silver Wolves be here to recruit members? We were underage, so we wouldn''t be allowed to join mercenaries anyway. We had to graduate from high school before we could receive a proper license to work for the military or mercenaries. Did everyone forget about that?

    Glancing around, I caught sight of Alicia Violet in the far corner. She had also shown up even though she had taken this class before. I remembered how close she was to Fei Hai, especially when they conversed yesterday. I couldn''t begin to guess what kind of relationship they had, but I recognized the infatuated expression she had when she looked at the older guy. Not that I blamed her. Fei Hai was extremely good looking. They were an excellent match.

    It wasn''t just Alicia. Harrison Reed, the president of Holy Saints Society, was also present, even though he should have taken all the combat magic classes. Obviously he was just as impressed by Fei Hai''s credentials as everyone else. Not to mention, if he had the opportunity to network with such a legend, there was no way he would pass that chance up.

    Fei Hai raised an eyebrow and chortled. Everyone fell silent as they turned to him expectantly. No doubt they were all expecting him to single out the person he had his eye on.

    However, Fei Hai didn''t. He merely snorted.

    "Don''t flatter yourselves. None of you is qualified to join the military, never mind my Silver Wolves." He paused for a moment and nodded. "I know several of you have the experience, and have accomplished several low-ranked missions, but trust me, you won''t last ten seconds in a high-ranked mission."

    A deadly silence settled upon the students and they hung their heads, their faces flushing furiously. I tried not to laugh. What were they expecting? For Fei Hai to single someone out? Maybe if this was a badly written web novel featuring a genius protagonist who could master any type of weapons and write revolutionary theories, then he would point at the guy and admit that he was here because of him. But such Mary Sues did not exist in real life. I had never heard of a high school students publishing academic theories regarding magic or battle tactics before. You needed the right credentials and qualifications to be published in academia ¨C at least a Bachelor''s degree ¨C otherwise nobody would take you seriously.

    "No, no. I''m here for another reason." Fei Hai''s expression changed, and for a moment I had the impression of a monstrous visage looming over his muscular figure. Everyone in the classroom went very still, cold perspiration dripping down their faces. A few were shivering violently from fear as Fei Hai''s aura oppressed and suffocated us. The Silver Wolves leader glowered at every student present. "What the hell is wrong with all of you? Have you seen the ranking of Jing Tian Academy lately, when compared to the rest of the schools in the Federation? This generation is laughably pathetic¡­can''t even get into the top fifty, never mind the top twenty. And you still want to delude yourselves into thinking you''re good enough for me to recruit? Don''t flatter yourselves!"

    His icy voice cut like a wintry wind, and the students flinched. As for me, I couldn''t care less because the school ranking had nothing to do with me. Unless I became a representative, there was absolutely nothing I could do to affect the outcome of our ranking. The earliest I could reach that goal was probably next year, by which time it would be too late.

    Still, I was slightly satisfied to see that I was right. This was more realistic. What kind of author just created a situation just so he could have his protagonist praised and recognized by a school idol in front of everybody, not just so that he could get praised, but also to spark jealousy in obvious rivals who would later try to kill him for no reason other than because he was the protagonist (the "trash" thing was a blatant and ridiculous excuse)?

    "Your principal has been concerned with how the ranking of our once great Jing Tian Academy is slipping dangerously lower and lower. He is dissatisfied with the performance of the students and representatives of your batch. Therefore he called me, an alumnus, back, for one purpose." He swept his terrifying gaze over each and every one of us. "To whip you all into shape. To train you until you vomit blood and teeter on the verge of death. To make sure you become much, much stronger¡­so that you won''t embarrass Jing Tian Academy again this year, and in the following years!"

    Then he hopped off from the stage and gestured forcibly toward us.

    "I''m heartened to see that so many of you have realized the danger, and have taken steps to address it." He smirked. "You made the correct decision to attend my class."

    At present, dismay filled the expressions of all the students who had chosen to crash the class even though they weren''t registered for it.

    "This classroom is too small for this number of people. We''ll be heading to the field. Be prepared." Fei Hai''s grin grew wider. "I''ve promised Principal Violet that I will make you guys significantly stronger, and whip you into shape by whatever means necessary. You might hate me right now, but I guarantee that you''ll thank me once all this is over. Now move it!"

    At his bellow, every student flooded out of the classroom, as if a thousand demons were chasing them.

    *

    "Huff¡­huff¡­huff¡­"

    "I don''t believe it¡­"

    "That guy is a monster¡­Instructor Fei is a monster¡­"

    "We''re not going to survive this!"

    Less than an hour later, over two hundred students (for that included the crashers) lay sprawled upon the vast green training field of Jing Tian Academy. A few of the students were throwing up, gagging and emptying the contents of their stomach. A few were unconscious, lying flat on their backs without moving. More were flushed red and trembling from the extreme exertion they were subjected to.

    "Whoa¡­good thing your dad trained us, or we would be half-dead too."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu had emerged relatively unscathed, compared to the other students. He and the rest of Ultimate Outcast Society had gathered on a corner of the field, forming a small ring. Harvey, Stan and Wang Fei also looked pretty healthy and energetic, compared to the ghastly complexions of our classmates.

    "Looks like Instructor Fei also emphasizes on building a solid physical foundation too!"

    Harvey was staring at me in awe. Dude, you do realize that it was my Dad and Fei Hai who trained us, not me, right?

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    Before I could point that out, I noticed Fei Hai looking in our direction. Uh oh¡­this was bad. I could imagine him coming over and saying something along the lines of "looks like you guys aren''t tired enough from my training¡­seems like you can go through another round right now, right?"

    While we were in pretty good shape compared to the others, that didn''t mean we weren''t exhausted. We had expended quite a bit of energy and our muscles were slightly sore ¨C Fei Hai''s training regimen was that brutal ¨C but we just weren''t as sick and on the verge of collapse like the others.

    So I sprawled on the ground, pretending to be incapacitated and gazed wearily at the blue sky, admiring the soft, fluffy clouds.

    "Okay, training''s over. Go get some rest, and then head for your next class."

    Fei Hai was not a monster, after all. He clapped his hands and issued an instruction, before turning away gleefully and disappearing. Everyone watched him in fear, and some began crawling away.

    "I''m not attending his class ever again."

    "Idiot! It''s too late! What if he remembers us?"

    "We''ll just say we attended the wrong class by mistake! We''re not even registered for this class in the first place!"

    "¡­I think I''m out too¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu muttered as he got up. "I can''t endure this kind of training everyday."

    I gave him a withering stare. "Seriously? You''ve survived my Dad''s training. You can handle this just fine."

    Personally I welcomed this training. It would definitely make me a lot stronger. I would be able to climb the ranks faster and participate in higher-ranked missions. Speaking of which, I should perhaps start looking at the higher-ranked ones for more prestige points. I wouldn''t improve if all I did was hunt rank F and E monsters¡­

    "Student Richard. That was quite the impressive performance you and the Ultimate Outcast Society put on today."

    A clear and serene voice drifted from across the field. Looking up, I saw an exhausted Alicia approaching us, smiling despite her red complexion and trembling limbs. Despite her relationship with Fei Hai, he didn''t let her off¡­no, probably because of their relationship, Alicia refused to slack off and let him down, and did her best to set an example for the others.

    As expected of the president of Black Roses Society.

    "Are you all right, President Alicia?" I asked, standing up to help her before she fell over. She nodded and accepted my help gratefully. For some reason, Dong Fang Yue Chu and my juniors were staring at me in astonishment. I stared back. "What?"

    "Nothing," Dong Fang Yue Chu replied hastily.

    "Wow¡­as expected of Vice-president Richard¡­impressive as always¡­" Harvey muttered under his breath.

    "Thank you." Alicia straightened up and smiled warmly at me. "Actually, I was going to ask you for a favor. Richard, are you available this weekend? I''m hosting a party at my place."

    Upon hearing this, the entire Ultimate Outcast Society gaped at her, our jaws falling so low they hit the ground. Dong Fang Yue Chu was the first to recover, shutting his mouth and nodding excitedly.

    "Sure, there''s no problem! His weekends are very free!"

    "Oi, who are you to answer for me¡­"

    Alicia''s smile widened, and I trailed off. Seeing her so delighted, I would feel bad if I countermanded Dong Fang Yue Chu''s promise, so I just sighed and nodded.

    "Great!" Alicia was overjoyed. "It''ll be on Saturday night, 7pm. I''ll send you the details. I even have a surprise waiting for you."

    "Um¡­can all the Ultimate Outcast Society come along too?" I asked. Alicia nodded without any hesitation.

    "Of course! Everyone, you''re definitely welcome to my party!"

    "Yay~" the three juniors cheered enthusiastically.

    As soon as Alicia left, Dong Fang Yue Chu turned on me, grabbing my collar. "You cunning bastard! Are you still trying to hide your relationship? She clearly has a thing for you! Didn''t you see how she specifically invited you to her party?!"

    I snorted. "Really? Have you seen the way she looks at Instructor Fei?"

    "Eh¡­?"

    I pushed Dong Fang Yue Chu''s hand away. "Obviously I can''t compare to Instructor Fei. He''s a better match for her, so I would appreciate it if you don''t talk nonsense and spread unnecessary rumors that might trouble her."

    "Eh¡­I think you''re a good match for President Alicia, Vice-president Richard," Harvey spoke up. I forced a smile.

    "I''m grateful you think so, but that''s not true. Anyway, we''re all invited, so let''s all do our best." I scratched my chin. "Maybe the surprise is an exhibition duel?"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu tried to smack my head, but I dodged his hand on reflex. "All you think about is battles! Come on, you have such an exemplary beauty personally inviting you! Fight for her heart!"

    "Er¡­" as much as I found Alicia Violet extremely beautiful and attractive, I wasn''t that interested in romance. Probably because I was at heart a man who was over thirty and somehow I just couldn''t reconcile with my current physical age and date a girl who was slightly over half my mental age. I didn''t want the FBI to break down my door and arrest me. At the same time, sometimes I did feel like I was seventeen again, but right now my priority was improving my ranking and earning prestige points to ensure the survival of my society.

    My eventual goal was to become a military mage like my Dad, after all¡­a full-fledged summoner who went around protecting people like a hero, fighting off monsters and demons. To do that, I needed to get into an elite university and successfully graduate from it¡­

    Ignoring the "encouragement" from my fellow society members, I began trudging wearily back toward the main building. Already I was pushing the party out of my mind and thinking about my next mission¡­

 68 Chapter 68: Rank Up

    After the invitation, I almost immediately forgot about it¡­until Dong Fang Yue Chu began asking me about it the next time I entered the clubroom (one of the several we had, at any rate).

    "Richard! What are your plans for the dinner party yet?"

    "Huh? My plans? Isn''t it on Saturday?" I stared at him blankly.

    "Yeah, it''s on Saturday, but¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu buried his face in his palm, looking annoyed. "That''s not what I meant. I''m kind of worried about you¡­I''m aware you don''t have much experience with high-class elite events. The last time you went to the hotel opening ceremony with Alicia, you were in quite a bit of trouble, weren''t you?"

    "I managed to get a suit for the event," I pointed out reasonably. At that time, I had to ask Dong Fang Yue Chu for advice on where to grab the most appropriate clothes for cheap, and he accommodated. However, this time he didn''t seem to think it was enough.

    "You had better not wear that cheap suit this time!"

    "Why not?" I asked, puzzled. "I thought that''s the sort of formal attire required for this kind of event."

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    "NO! That''s not what I meant! Alicia already saw you wearing that the other time! What will she think if she sees you wearing the exact same suit you wore for that other event?!" Dong Fang Yue Chu waved his hands frantically. "It''ll leave a bad impression! You''ll look like a cheapskate! ''Oh, look at me! I only have a total of one suit in my wardrobe!'' I''m sure Alicia is too nice to say anything about that, but you can''t chase a girl with that kind of attitude!"

    "What makes you think I want to chase girls?" I retorted, annoyed.

    "Are you honestly that dense?!" Dong Fang Yue Chu roared. "I''m serious! I''ve attended many mixers like this before! Suddenly inviting an outsider¡­either Alicia has a thing for you, or you are the¡­clown."

    "¡­huh? Clown?" I gaped at my friend blankly. Then I snorted. "Okay. So the suit is fine. I''ll just need white makeup and red lipstick." I began chuckling darkly and mimicked cutting the sides of my mouth with a razor. "Let''s put a smile on that face."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu had gone pale and was trembling violently as he backed away from me. My grin widened as I advanced toward him.

    "T¡­that''s not what I mean!" he shouted in fear. I stopped my Joker imitation and he calmed down. "A¡­anyway, if you end up being the clown, you''ll be mocked and insulted by Alicia, Harrison and Miranda''s group of people."

    "Harrison? You mean Harrison Reed?" that name caught my attention. Harrison Reed was the current president of the Holy Saints Society, which was one of the four great societies of Jing Tian Academy. And one of my eventual goals. I began to grin excitedly. "Hmm, I would really like to challenge him one day."

    Not that I expected to win, but it would still be a great learning experience, dueling one of the top student mages in our school.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was staring at me in disbelief.

    "You¡­all you can think of is fighting?" he finally spluttered. "What are you, a battle maniac?"

    "I aim to join an elite military organization like my Dad someday." I raised my hand up and stared at the ceiling. Right now Dad was a private solo operative from the elite military organization called the Apocalyptic Apostles. Don''t ask me why they had such a chuunibyou name. I suppose the founder thought it sounded cool, but¡­whatever.

    My ambition was to join the ranks of such elite soldiers, fighting on the forefront of humanity against the monsters from the Emergence. Some people might find it weird that the students were more obsessed with their rankings than monsters outside their cities, but the two issues were actually related. After all, the only way you could join a military organization was by performing well in magic academy. Only the top ranked students had the qualifications to join an elite military organization ¨C which was why competition for the elite combat universities were so fierce. Obviously the more prestigious the military organization, the more resources it would have ¨C that meant better weapons (Divine Devices), equipment, vehicles, armaments and even more skilled teammates and parties who could cover your back. The last bit didn''t apply to me because I was delusional enough to aim to be a solo operative like my Dad, but still having the right colleagues mattered.

    Not that I was going to ramble all that to Dong Fang Yue Chu, of course.

    "A¡­anyway, you will just end up making a fool of yourself if you wear the same suit within the space of a few weeks!" Dong Fang Yue Chu told me. "Don''t underestimate the connections these people have. If they want, they can track down all your past and reveal it all to public! I wouldn''t be surprised if they have a video recording of you attending Alicia''s uncle''s hotel ceremony and use it to make fun of you wearing the exact same suit!"

    "Are they seriously going to waste their time with such trivial nonsense?" I asked in disbelief. If they really wanted to waste their time, effort and resources in doing something as inane as that, then I might as well let them.

    "I''m not taking the risk! You''re the face of Ultimate Outcast Society! I can''t let them embarrass you!" Dong Fang Yue Chu frowned. "Look, if it''s about money, I''ll pay for your new suit. I can do that much, at least."

    "No, please don''t. I''ll buy a new suit myself."

    Even as I said that, I was aware of how expensive the blasted thing cost. Glancing through my account, I paled when I saw the tiny amount left. I must have been spending too much money on games and tabletop miniatures recently. Whoops.

    Well, I guess it was about time I go on a mission and earn not just some monetary rewards but also a bunch of prestige points. We were safe for now, but¡­better safe than sorry, right?

    *

    "Hello, Allison. I''m here to take on a mission today."

    The administrative clerk, Allison, glanced up when I approached her desk. She nodded and waved a hand in the air, conjuring a blue-tinted holographic screen.

    "Have you already decided?"

    "Yeah. Another combat mission. I was thinking Mission E012, against Ghastly Goblins."

    Ghastly Goblins were rank F monsters, and relatively easy to dispatch when compared to other monsters. That didn''t mean I could afford to underestimate them. They were cunning, and in certain ways more dangerous than mindless Phantoms. They gathered in tribes, hid in caves and were capable of even setting up traps and using advanced tactics to ambush mages. That was why, even though they were rank F, missions that involved slaying a nest of them were considered rank E. More than once, amateur combat mages took the mission, but their parties were wiped out and the girls raped because they underestimated how dangerous and terrifying these little green monsters could be.

    I recalled there was one high-ranked mercenary who specialized completely in slaying Goblins, and he made a name for himself. Like Dad, he was mostly a solo operative, which was why I remembered him in the first place (okay, and because I read the manga and watched the anime). The thing was, nobody had ever seen his face because he kept it hidden behind a helmet all the time.

    "Hmm¡­" Allison was about to input the details when she noticed something. Her finger hovering over the blue touch-screen that came with the holographic image, she turned back to me. "Speaking of which, do you realize you''ve ranked up?"

    "You mean student rankings? Yeah, after I defeated Jie Bing the other day¡­"

    "I don''t mean that, I mean in terms of mission rankings. You now have access to rank D missions."

    Oh, right. In the past, when I just started, I was only allowed to take rank F and E missions. Such as that escort mission I took for the very first time, which was ranked E. I was never allowed to take rank D missions if I insisted on going solo, even though I technically accomplished a rank D mission when helping out Alicia and her beleaguered party that other time. But that counted as me reinforcing and joining a party, so there was no problems with the administrative details.

    But now I could take a rank D mission solo, as a result of completing a bunch of missions and raising my academic ranking. Sweet.

    "What do you suggest I take?"

    "You can look through the catalogue, though I wouldn''t advise you take the highest-paying rank D missions immediately."

    Even though missions were ranked, within each of these categories was a broad range of difficulties that were represented by the monetary rewards. A rank D mission that paid a thousand dollars was obviously easier and less dangerous than a similarly ranked D mission that paid out ten thousand dollars for the completion of the mission.

    Most of the times students would mitigate the dangers by going in parties, but I was too enamored with my Dad''s decision to go solo all the time that I decided to go solo too. Not that I hated the world or anything, or because I was confident that I could do everything on my own, but I preferred the freedom it afforded me, and the lack of restrictions. I wasn''t arrogant enough to make a remark like I didn''t want anybody to hold me back or get in the way ¨C more likely I would be the one dragging everyone down. But I had my own pace and ways of doing things ¨C methods that I had learned from Dad.

    After looking through the list, I decided to pick a relatively safe one that would give me a thousand bucks. There was no need to risk my life, after all. I mean, of course there would always be an element of risk involved, but there was no necessity to take a more dangerous mission, not when I was determined to go this solo. Plus I just needed enough money to buy a new suit, and a mission short enough to complete before the weekend.

    "Mission D016?" Allison scanned through the details and nodded. "Ah, the Mad Monkeys. Be careful."

    I nodded. "I''ll do my best."

    The Mad Monkeys were similar to Ghastly Goblins in that they were cunning, hunted in packs and favored ambushes. That was precisely because I picked it ¨C because I could employ a similar strategy that I already prepared for the Ghastly Goblins against the Mad Monkeys. There would be differences, and I would have to change it up a little, but nothing too serious.

    Thanking Allison, I then left to embark on my new mission.

 69 Chapter 69: Mad Monkeys

    "Hmm¡­they should be right about¡­here."

    I stopped in the middle of the forest, consulting the holographic map that was beaming out of my smartphone. A red icon marked my location, indicating that I had indeed reached my destination. There were reports from the nearby villagers of a pack of feral Mad Monkeys raiding their homes, abducting children and slaughtering adults, and as such they had sent a request for help.Even though they were too poor to offer a reward, the money was paid by the Federation, so theoretically any combat mage could take the mission.

    I was glad I grabbed it before any of the mercenaries or military organizations did. Then again, there were so many monsters and Emergence events throughout the world that there frequently weren''t enough soldiers or combat mages to handle them all. That was why they outsourced the missions to us students. It also provided the benefit of giving amateurs such as us sufficient combat experience as we went into university and improved our chances of joining a prestigious military unit.

    Honestly, though¡­I just wanted to slay some monkeys.

    "Scree¡­!"

    Frowning, I turned at the sound of the cry and saw a Mad Monkey. They were E rank monsters, but sometimes they had an Alpha, a Berserk Monkey that led the pack, which was a D rank monster. That explained the D ranking of the mission, otherwise normally Mad Monkeys would only stipulate an E ranking.

    Just like the single one that was throwing itself at me right now. Before it could reach me, however, Ursa Major appeared and crushed the poor thing with his claws.

    "Thanks," I told Ursa Major. I had already prepared my summoning spells the moment I reached within 100 meters of this place, just in case I spotted a Mad Monkey. After all, this was the area where villagers reported the most frequent sightings of the Mad Monkeys.

    The trees around me shuffled, and I glanced around, but despite the optical functions in my glasses, I couldn''t see any of them. They had hidden themselves well, using the trees for cover and staying out of sight.

    Like I said, these Mad Monkeys were pretty crafty. They knew how to use complex tactics to ambush their prey. Aware that I had a gigantic bear Constellation spirit protecting me, they kept their distance and were assessing the threat.

    I could still sense them nearby, though. The fact that they hadn''t retreated meant that they were considering me as a prey, or as a threat to be eliminated. They hadn''t fled from fear, after all, and continued to monitor me from the shadows.

    They probably thought they could kill me. However, they were intelligent enough to realize that a careless move would result in their deaths, just like how their reckless comrade met a messy death at the paws of my Ursa Major.

    The huge bear cocked his head to stare at me questioningly, and I shook my head. I could feel his curiosity mentally, but through that same link he caught a glimpse of my plan. He then smiled ¨C as best as a giant bear could smile anyway ¨C and sat back on his haunches, standing sentry over me just in case a Mad Monkey wanted to take its chances.

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    With my back guarded, I could proceed to the next phase of my strategy. See? This was why I didn''t need a party or a team. I could essentially summon my own team or party. I did probably have to serve as a supervisor to my juniors next year, when they started taking missions, to ensure they would be fine, but otherwise I was happy going solo.

    Closing my eyes, I raised my right hand and completed a second summoning. A flock of Corvus materialized and took to the skies, soaring overhead and sweeping the forest with their eyes and keen senses.

    Immediately I could see where all the Mad Monkeys were hidden, their positions embedded deeply inside the canopies of tall trees, the gaps between leaves that exposed their locations from above. The Mad Monkeys still didn''t realize, and watched me oddly. One of them bared its fangs and hissed, and a few of them followed its lead. They darted out of the trees to strike at me, trying to probe my defenses.

    Bam!

    Ursa Major pulverized the lead Mad Monkey before spinning around to swat another into a tree. The poor Mad Monkey collided with the trunk with a sickening crunch, before sliding downward in a slick of blood, every bone in its body broken. A third was stomped underfoot, and a fourth was bitten apart by his fangs. The fifth cowered and frantically retreated, but Ursa Major kicked a boulder, which flew like a railgun projectile and obliterated the fleeing Mad Monkey before it could reach the safety of the trees.

    The rest of the pack went still, clinging into their hiding places.

    Unfortunately, it was too late. I could see them, thanks to my hovering flock of Corvus. Raising my left hand, I summoned Orion.

    "Betelgeuse," I muttered as I aimed at the sky and infused my right hand with magical energy. A torrent of azure mana shrouded my right arm before flowing through Orion.

    The dark gloom of the forest was instantly illuminated as glowing arrows burst out of my bow and streaked upward¡­only for them to arc before they could pierce the heavens, gently curving downward and raining down in a meteoric shower of destruction.

    The Mad Monkeys didn''t know what hit them. They were still keeping their eyes on me, and though some noticed something was amiss when I executed my technique, the arrows were traveling too quickly. Some dismissed my attack, wondering why I was aiming toward the sky. The Mad Monkeys probably thought I went mad or something.

    A few traced the trajectory of my arrows, but the arcane projectiles were moving so fast their eyes couldn''t follow their movements. In the next second, more than a few of these supposedly cautious Mad Monkeys found their skulls or eyes punctured by the blinding arrows, which punched through their heads mercilessly.

    These were the lucky ones.

    The rest didn''t die instantly, the arrows piercing through their bodies in different places and causing them to convulse. They toppled over, shrieking in pain as more arrows continue to stab into them, turning them into pincushions.

    ¡­then merciful silence.

    Taking a deep breath, I then summoned Canis Minor and directed them to flush out whatever Mad Monkeys that remained. The pack of hunting hounds eagerly loped into the forest, sniffing the air. I also maintained my Corvus to keep an aerial vigil over the area, so as not to miss anything, and also to be prepared for any surprises.

    "GGGGGGGGUOOOOOAAAAAAAAAH!"

    The "surprise" came, though I couldn''t say I didn''t expect it. Turning in the direction of the roar, I could already see through Corvus''s eyes the enormous monkey smashing its way toward me. It was uprooting trees or tearing them out of its path, bellowing ferociously when it realized what had happened to its pack.

    The Berserk Monkey. The Alpha of the pack. Easily ten times the size of a normal Mad Monkey, it was swelling with muscles and looked more like an ape than an actual monkey (yes, there is a difference between a monkey and an ape). Its prehensile tail whipped out, splitting huge trees apart, and I could see a flash of silver at its edge. A scorpion-like blade curved from the tip of the Berserk Monkey''s tail, slicing through the trees like laser through diamond (because I know you''re sick of the hot knife through butter similes).

    "Heh," I smirked. "You saved me the trouble of looking for you."

    Initially, I was surprised that the Berserk Monkey wasn''t leading its pack of Mad Monkeys, but come to think of it, it wasn''t all that strange. Just like lions, where the alpha male lion just lazed around at home while the female lionesses in the pride did all the hunting, the Berserk Monkey must have been slacking off at its nest while its underlings did all the work. But now that an unexpected massacre had occurred and the Berserk Monkey lost contact with its subordinates through whatever mystery means of communication they used, it came charging over.

    Perhaps it shared a telepathic link with the Mad Monkeys it reigned over, just like how I shared a mental connection with my Constellation spirits.

    No matter. It was too far away and too slow. By the time it reached the vicinity, I already had another arrow prepared and drawn.

    "Rigel."

    The Berserk Monkey never knew what hit it. My blazing arrow struck it in the chest and detonated, essentially nuking the area.

    Rank D or not, the Berserk Monkey was nothing compared to Hades, the monstrous foe I had faced all those weeks ago. I felt perhaps a little disappointment at the lack of challenge, but this was basically easy money.

    Oh, no¡­I can''t get complacent. I can''t underestimate my enemies.

    The only reason why I won this time was because of ample preparation and planning. The Mad Monkeys had no idea what kind of strategies I would employ against them, and they were completely caught off guard. They were also lower-ranked, so they pretty much weren''t that strong.

    If they were more powerful monsters, they probably would be a lot more dangerous. This wasn''t to say the Mad Monkeys posed no threat to me. On the contrary, I knew that they could easily kill me when given the chance, which was why I made so many preparations in the first place. Looking down on them could prove to be my last, fatal mistake.

    "Thanks, guys," I said when my Canis Minor returned, their jaws and claws bloody. After one last sweep to ensure that all the Mad Monkeys were dead, I then dismissed my Constellation spirits and prepared for my journey back to school. It was too tiring to maintain my Constellation spirits in the physical world for extended periods of time. Yeah, I could maintain them for a couple of hours if I continually fed them my magical energy, but that would be too draining and I might collapse from the exhaustion. Besides, I might need my magical energy for later. You would never know.

    "All right, let''s go."

    Following the highlighted path visible in my lenses, I began on my return journey. Stepping through the broken trail left by the Berserk Monkey and ignoring the charred crater left behind by my Rigel, I cautiously made my way toward the exit¡­

    Boom!

    ¡­only to swivel around at the sudden explosion. Some distance away, I spotted an enormous conflagration blossoming into the sky, the flames blazing hungrily as they consumed whatever unfortunate trees that were within their reach.

    "Hmm¡­" despite knowing it was none of my business, my curiosity got the better of me. The battle with the monster monkeys were pretty unsatisfying, after all. "Maybe I should check that out."

 70 Chapter 70: Aping Ou

    Jogging toward the source of the explosion, I noted the fierce flames that ravaged large parts of the forest as well as the tremendous amount of mana emanating from the area.

    Rank C monster at the very least, I thought to myself with a nod. A combination of dread and excitement curled in my gut, half of me filled with trepidation and the desire to run away, and the other half to challenge my limits and test my skills.

    In any case, I had better start preparing for the battle ahead. Estimating that I was no longer more than a hundred meters away from the dudes, I began casting my summoning spells again. Best to be safe than sorry.

    "!"

    Ka-boom!

    Throwing myself to the side, I watched as an entire grove of trees was incinerated by a massive fireball. Rolling to my feet, I narrowed my eyes and stared in the direction where it came from. Another huge torrent of flames swept toward me, only to terminate a few meters away. Despite the slight distance, I could feel the intense heat from where I was standing.

    This wasn''t good.

    Chewing my lip, I went around the flames, hastening my pace. The monster''s aura seemed to be strengthening, its mana surging as it conjured another bout of flames. I could hear shouts and screams from the other side.

    "Get away!"

    "AAAAAARGH!"

    "Cindy!"

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    "Stay back! It''s too late for her!"

    "WAAAAAH!"

    The cries of humans were drowned out by a fearsome bellow. Picking up the pace, I vaulted over a huge wall of fire and landed on the other side. Glancing up, I saw a group of students wearing the same uniform as me combating an enormous creature that was over three meters tall. Red fur bristled all over its muscular body, and demonic crimson eyes blazed as it raised a hand to summon more flames. The damned monster looked like a giant ape¡­

    Well, it was an ape. I recognized the Fiery Ape from an encyclopedic entry about monsters that I had read before. As expected of a rank C monster, it was capable of elemental magic. Its ability to manipulate fire made it a fearsome foe, one that I couldn''t afford to underestimate. Narrowing my eyes, I channeled my mana and completed my summoning spell.

    "!"

    The Fiery Ape was just about to pulverize one of the poor dudes into a bloody pulp, but I directed my summoned Ursa Major at it, the huge bear barreling into the Fiery Ape and knocking it over. The guy I had just rescued stared at me blankly, as if he didn''t understand what was going on.

    "You¡­" he began, and then his eyes widened in recognition. "You''re Richard!"

    "Yo," I replied with a wave. Before I could turn my attention back to the duel between my Ursa Major and the Fiery Ape, I realized I recognized the guy too. "You''re¡­Elliot?"

    I recalled Elliot being part of Alicia''s party the last time he was out on a mission. Glancing around, I was slightly disappointed to see that she wasn''t here today.

    "Oh, President Alicia is busy with handling matters regarding Instructor Feng Hai''s visit," Elliot explained, as if he had read my mind. I gaped at him, and he shrugged. "You seem to be looking for someone, and I assume it was her."

    By now the rumors about me and Alicia had spread pretty far and wide. I had done my best to steer clear of them, but it seemed that Alicia hadn''t bothered to deny the rumors. Then again, she was helping me out, what with Cecilia throwing that stupid curveball of a declaration. As long as I seemed to be with Alicia, Cecilia wouldn''t bother with me¡­though, honestly, it seemed that the daughter of the Stuart clan had lost all interest in me and I didn''t have to worry about some stupid romantic comedy clich¨¦s. This was reality, after all. I wasn''t the only guy who existed in this world, and no female person was brainless enough to throw herself at me just because I was the protagonist.

    "What about Nicholas and Jin Hao?" I asked, looking around and trying to shift the subject matter before Elliot could make fun of me. To be fair, that was the last thing on his mind. Not when he had a bloody Fiery Ape literally breathing fire on our necks. Honestly, that didn''t cross my mind either.

    Currently, I was focused on Ursa Major wrestling with the Fiery Ape and actually losing. Not in a contest of strength, but because the Fiery Ape was burning my poor Constellation spirit in flames. As sturdy as Ursa Major was, even he wouldn''t survive being roasted like that for extended periods of time.

    Gritting my teeth, I completed yet another second summoning spell as hurriedly as I could. Canis Major leaped up and slammed into the Fiery Ape, knocking it over.

    "Here." Having been granted a brief respite, I risked turning away (then again, my mental connection with my Constellation spirits allowed me to keep an eye on the battle at all time, whether my actual physical body was watching or not). Nicholas was limping toward me and waving. He shook his head with a weary grin. "Looks like you''re to save us again."

    "A mere coincidence, I assure you."

    That probably was a good thing. If Alicia was present, people would start to think I was actually stalking her when they noticed that I always happened to show up whenever she was in trouble.

    "Are you guys all right?" I asked, not caring about those trivial matters right now. Teenage angst was just stupid, if you ask me. More importantly, I was more concerned about the wellbeing of my schoolmates, but some teenage part of my mind that had yet to fully integrated with my thirty-over-something self continued to nag at me annoyingly. I wished it would shut up.

    "We had some casualties¡­would have suffered more if you didn''t show up." Jin Hao was sitting a few meters away, grimacing as he rubbed his bloodied leg. From those serious wounds and torn trousers leg, I doubt he would be standing up anytime soon. At least it wasn''t twisted in an unnatural angle. That would be bad.

    I nodded, noticing a few corpses here and there. Or at least students who were unmoving. As much as I wanted to check on them, the Fiery Ape was occupying my attention at the moment. A torrent of flames washed over Ursa Major, and finally reduced him to cinders. I winced as the gigantic bear disappeared.

    "Canis Major! Unleash Sirius!" I shouted. The gigantic hunting hound obeyed, jumping backward as a golden ball of energy accumulated inside his jaws. In the next few seconds, he released a golden beam of power at the same time as the Fiery Ape, who was launching a fireball. Both ranged attacks collided and exploded.

    I frowned as I studied the battle. From this, I could see that my Constellation spirits were at least on par with a rank C monster. But at the current rate we were going, they would be locked in a stalemate. I debated on whether I should summon another Constellation spirit to help Canis Major, or summon something more powerful.

    The choice was made for me. The Fiery Ape, with surprising tenacity, brushed through the explosion and flames and charged at my stunned Canis Major. Before the huge hound could react, the Fiery Ape grabbed hold of him and smashed his back against its knee.

    Crack!

    An ominous sound echoed across the forest. I watched in horror as the Fiery Ape snapped Canis Major''s back and the hunting hound disappeared with a whine.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me¡­" I muttered. A rank C monster, and already it was overpowering my poor Constellation spirits? Looked like I still had a long way to go. I was aware that the power of my Constellation spirits and soul beasts were completely dependent on my own strength ¨C they weren''t going to be godlike just because I imagined them to be. Obviously if I didn''t possess the mana to supply their existence, then they would only be as powerful as the amount of magical energy I provided to keep them in this physical plane.

    The Fiery Ape turned toward us, holding up a hand that was crackling with flames. Never mind that it had just charged through the flames of its own making. The bastard only escaped with singed fur at worst. I felt a chill run down my back.

    Forget about summoning my big guns. I didn''t have enough time to summon my usual Constellation spirits.

    The Fiery Ape flung a gigantic fireball in our direction. Gritting my teeth, and realizing that there were wounded around me ¨C such as Jin Hao who couldn''t move or dodge ¨C I stood my ground and summoned Aquarius. Swinging the blue broadsword, I unleashed a tidal wave at the incoming torrent of flames, but they vaporized into steam at the instant of contact.

    Aquarius''s water attack wasn''t enough!

    Worse, the Fiery Ape didn''t care about its attack being blocked. It was already charging at us. Bursting through the flames that I was struggling to extinguish, the Fiery Ape smacked me away with a swing from its arm. I blocked its brutal swipe, but its massive hand easily shattered Aquarius and hurled me across the forest.

    "Ugh!"

    Blood spurted from my mouth as I struck and mowed down a tree, the thick trunk toppling over me. Dazed, I struggled to get up, but found myself pinned by the large tree. To my relief, before I could begin channeling mana into my arms to temporarily strengthen myself and toss it off, the heavy tree trunk was lifted off me.

    The Fiery Ape was the one who had "kindly" lifted the trunk off me. And now it was raising it to swing it down and squash me into a pulp. I gritted my teeth and began to quickly summon Scutum Sobiescianum, but wasn''t sure if I would make it in time¡­

    Boom!

    A lightning bolt snaked out of nowhere and struck against the side of the Fiery Ape''s head, detonating. The rank C brute grunted, stunned by the unexpected impact, and swiveled around to see Jin Hao, who had his smoking hand raised.

    "Whoops?" the black-haired guy muttered with a sheepish smile. With his leg wounded, there was no way he could move and evade the Fiery Ape''s attack that was coming. Already it was lumbering toward him with a vengeance.

    Before the Fiery Ape could swat him with its tree trunk, Nicholas suddenly appeared and kicked its face, causing its head to snap backward. Streaking around the Fiery Ape like a meteor, he rained down several kicks on the annoyed beast, but it seemed that the monster was more annoyed than hurt by his attempts.

    "Whoa!"

    Nicholas was forced to dodge under the Fiery Ape''s makeshift club. The beast swung its wooden weapon again, and this time Nicholas was a fraction of a second too slow¡­

    Bam!

    Elliot swung his axe down, forcing the Fiery Ape to turn and face him. Initially, the creature parried Elliot''s axe with its makeshift club, but the powerful weapon reduced the uprooted trunk into splinters. Grunting, the Fiery Ape stumbled backward as Elliot sought to press his advantage, cleaving downward with his glowing axe.

    However, the Fiery Ape still had tricks of its own. The monster gripped his Divine Device with flaming palms, stopping the deadly blade just inches away from its face. With its superior strength, it flung Elliot back, but he flipped around and landed on a tree branch before jumping away as the Fiery Ape smashed the poor tree apart with its flaming fist, reducing it to cinders and ash.

    "You okay?" Nicholas asked me as he danced on the ground, getting ready to kick the Fiery Ape again. Right now its focus was on poor Elliot, but Jin Hao distracted it with another well-aimed lightning bolt. Several of the other survivors were helping him, and I could see icicles, wind blades, earth spikes and razor leaves slamming into the Fiery Ape.

    However, they were pitiful compared to the blazing aura that wreathed the rank C monster protectively. Anything that reached it was incinerated instantly, reduced to dust by the flaming aura.

    "Yeah." I nodded and rose to my feet, wiping the blood from my mouth. I still felt a little shaken from the near-death experience. Studying the carnage before me as the Fiery Ape killed another poor student with its fiery fist because she could escape, I took a deep breath and hardened my resolve. "Can you guys hold that bastard off for three minutes?"

    "Three minutes?" Nicholas stared at me blankly, then his eyes widened when realization dawned on him. "You mean you are going to¡­?"

    "Yeah," I replied grimly. "It''s the only way we''ll stand a chance against that monster."

 71 Chapter 71: On Fire

    Even as I said that, I was calculating the several strategies that could prove useful in our current predicament and dismissed them one by one.

    There was the option to summon Sagittarius or Orion and fire off Alnasl or Rigel, but I dismissed the idea. Firstly, the Fiery Ape clearly had an affinity with fire. Not only would it have a resistance against my fire-based arrows, there was a possibility that I would just inadvertently made it stronger. I doubted that, though. Not unless it was a rank A or S monster with unique abilities. As was the case with a certain game regarding monsters and balls, just because the creature was of the same element type didn''t mean it would be immune to attacks of that elemental type (unless it possessed a unique ability such as Flash Fire, though that got patched pretty quickly in the next generation). It just meant it took about 50% less damage.

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    With how powerful the Fiery Ape was, I couldn''t be sure I could kill it with just 50% of the firepower of my arrows. Best to be safe than sorry.

    It also meant I should avoid summoning Vermillion Phoenix, as his flames would be ineffective against the Fiery Ape. Of course, this went both ways, but my goal now was to destroy the monster before my schoolmates took any casualties, not merely to survive.

    Right now those schoolmates were fighting for their lives to buy me the time I needed to summon the appropriate soul beast.

    Let''s get real. They weren''t fighting for me. Even if I wasn''t here, they would still be doing their best to survive. Before I arrived, they had already been fighting as hard as they possibly could and defying the Fiery Ape''s brutal attempts to slaughter them. The only difference was that they knew my summoned beasts could provide a slim chance of victory and increase the odds of their survival. So they decided to stake everything on me. Not because I was the protagonist, or because I was some important person.

    Merely because I held their biggest hope of getting out of this mess alive.

    "GUOOOH!"

    The Fiery Ape''s head whipped back as Jin Hao''s lightning struck it, but before it could throw a fireball at him, Nicholas kicked its arm aside, throwing off its aim. The Fiery Ape twisted to retaliate, but was forced to raise its arm to block an axe attack from Elliot. While it focused on batting the burly axe-wielder away, several spells detonated against its face as the remaining party members added to their magical onslaught. Thanks to that, Elliot was able to safely withdraw before he got pulverized by the Fiery Ape''s massive arms.

    The ideal image of a party working together, covering each other''s weaknesses and watching each other''s backs. It wasn''t perfect ¨C the corpses and wounded lying sprawled around the area attested to that ¨C but it definitely prolonged Nicholas and Elliot''s lives even as they kept the monster''s attention away from the long-range but vulnerable spellcasters.

    Most of all, they were buying the time I needed.

    "!!"

    The Fiery Ape suddenly erupted from rage, its fiery aura boiling upward in an inferno. Elliot and Nicholas jumped back, but the axe-wielder was weighed down by his weapon and couldn''t escape the flames in time.

    Splash!

    Fortunately, a girl with long blue hair raised her hands and conjured a blast of water that washed over the flames. Like my attempt with Aquarius, the water immediately boiled away into scalding steam. But it was more than enough to buy Elliot the few seconds he needed to withdraw to a safe distance. As he landed right next to her, he nodded gratefully.

    "Thanks, Aoi."

    Mizuno Aoi nodded, but didn''t say anything, instead directing another geyser of water at the bellowing Fiery Ape. The aqueous attack didn''t have much effect, vaporizing before it could reach the monster''s fur, and it turned on her, summoning a colossal fireball in its palm to fling it at her.

    Before it could hurl the fireball at her, a lightning bolt detonated against the side of its head, causing it to stagger and the fireball to dissipate before it could finish forming.

    "Over here, you brute!" Jin Hao shouted. Snarling the Fiery Ape turned toward him, but Nicholas appeared behind him.

    "Nope. Behind you!"

    A kick to the back of the Fiery Ape''s neck sent it stumbling forward, but it was far from down. Growling, it whipped around to swat him away, but already Elliot had renewed his attack and attempting to cleave its arm off.

    Flames erupted along the length of the Fiery Ape''s heavily muscular arm and it succeeded in knocking Elliot back. Even so, a thin line of blood dripped from a deep cut across its matted crimson fur.

    "Hah!" Elliot crowed. "So it can bleed!"

    "If it bleeds, we can kill it," Nicholas declared.

    Spoken too soon. No sooner were the words out of his mouth than the Fiery Ape slammed both its fists against the ground. A supernova of flames expanded out of it in a circle, rushing forward to engulf and incinerate everyone within twenty-five meters of it. Elliot and Nicholas tried to retreat, but they couldn''t get out in time. Neither could the injured ranged casters such as Jin Hao¡­

    And I knew I wouldn''t make it in time either, despite being one of the people furthest away from the Fiery Ape''s apocalyptic fury.

    Shin!

    Fortunately for us, a barrier propped up around not just me, but Nicholas, Elliot and the other mages. Glancing at the party, I saw that a few of them were standing together, linking their magic to cast a combined barrier spell that created a circular forcefield in front of us. The flames collided with the shimmering, translucent screen and stabbed at it, but didn''t cross the line. The three mages were gritting their teeth, perspiration pouring down their pale faces as they struggled to maintain the protective shielding, and fortunately for all of us, it held.

    "Thanks!" Nicholas breathed in immense relief, wiping the sweat from his face. "For a moment I thought we were a goner!"

    "It only worked because the Fiery Ape was casting an area-of-effect spell, so the firepower of its attack was diluted," the only guy of the defensive trio explained, panting heavily. "Otherwise it would have destroyed our barrier easily if it had focused its attack to a single point."

    That made sense. Area of effect spells were able to spread their effects across a larger number of targets, but at the cost of firepower and intensity. Even then, I had to admire the trio for combining their spells into a single defensive barrier. That had to be difficult to maintain too. Ironically, it was easier for them to link up and summon a single gigantic barrier than to try and precisely conjure a barrier at specific locations when the Fiery Ape attacked their vanguard, which was why they didn''t cast the barrier spells for Elliot and Nicholas when they fought close to the monster.

    Nonetheless, I was beginning to realize the importance of having a good party and trustworthy teammates. I had been an arrogant fool to think I could go through this solo just because I could summon my own allies. My summoning spells took too much time and magical energy, and I worked best with people defending me while I stayed at the back to safely complete my summons. Only an utter edge-lord would spout nihilistic bullshit about the world not worth trusting and insisting that I go solo without weighing myself down with "burdens" in the form of teammates. I depended on them to keep me safe just as they relied on me to finish the enemy off with a single powerful technique.

    I was horribly mistaken if I thought I could go through life and survive such grueling combat all by myself. I had gotten complacent and taken my summoning magic for granted. Too in love with the idealistic image of my Dad as a solo operative, I had forgotten that I wasn''t my Dad. I lacked his experience, his skills, his knowledge and a whole variety of other factors that allowed him to work on his own. Furthermore, I was pretending not to acknowledge that Dad more frequently than not worked in teams or parties. I had seen him join parties before, even met several of his colleagues. Just because I hadn''t actually seen Dad at work, I always had this idealistic imagination of him being a cool Mary Sue protagonist completely capable of working alone and winning by himself.

    However, there was no doubt that even during the battle against the Syndicate, Dad definitely enlisted the help of his colleagues from his mercenary group, the Apocalyptic Apostles. There was no way one man could single-handedly destroy an underground organization in such a short time by himself, despite movies that romanticized violence and heroes would have you believe. I never asked or sought the details of Dad''s missions ¨C to be fair, they were highly classified and kept as top secret, so even if I wanted to, there was no way for me to find out the details ¨C and then I went and built up this unrealistic, heroic image on my own.

    Just like how Harvey was hero-worshipping me, I was blindly hero-worshipping my Dad and making all sorts of deluded assumptions. Solely because I had read way too many wish-fulfilment, power fantasy web novels that featured God Mode Mary Sues who could destroy the world on their own.

    "Are you done yet?" Nicholas panted as he kicked the Fiery Ape, who had renewed its assault. He kicked it in the calf, and then jumped up to kick it in the face. The monster turned to block his foot and retaliate with a burst of fire, but Elliot had pounced on it with his axe.

    Snarling, the Fiery Ape batted him away, but to Elliot''s satisfaction, he left an ugly cut on its bleeding forearm.

    "Yeah. I''m not sure how long more we can hold out against this beast!" Elliot growled as he landed a few meters away, heaving.

    "Done," I replied as I finished the last of my casting. "Sorry to keep you waiting, guys. I''ll finish this."

    All around me, fountains of water erupted and surged into the air, almost as if they were piercing the heavens. In a second, it almost seemed as if I had just conjured a gigantic lake. The fires left behind by the Fiery Ape''s elemental spells were immediately extinguished, turning into smoke as water splashed onto them.

    Realizing the imminent threat, the rank C monster whirled around to face me, a ferocious snarl distorting its already brutish face.

    I smiled as a gigantic spirit emerged and materialized behind me, its form shimmering as rivulets of water poured down the sides of its black figure.

 72 Chapter 72: Watery Grave

    "What the hell is that?" one of the Black Roses murmured as they watched the creature behind me manifest in reality, its black form still shimmering.

    "Black Tortoise," I commanded. The majestic Celestial Guardian reared his head up and lumbered forward, its thick legs leaving tremors as they stomped against the ground. "Destroy that Fiery Ape."

    The Fiery Ape instinctively recognized the danger, beating its chest as it roared defiantly in Black Tortoise''s direction. Gathering flames in one hand, it hurled the colossal fireball at the approaching giant tortoise, but a geyser of water sprouted up between them, the curtain of water boiling and steaming as it swallowed the fireball, but this time it successfully extinguished it.

    "Amazing," Elliot muttered, lowering his axe as he watched on in awe.

    "You haven''t seen nothing yet," I muttered under my breath.

    Realizing that it was outmatched in terms of magic spells, the Fiery Ape glanced at us puny humans and quickly came to a decision. I realized that the monster was highly intelligent to the point where it could comprehend that taking out the summoner would mean the demise of Black Tortoise. However, it clearly couldn''t tell which human had summoned the formidable soul beast that was now before it.

    Not that it mattered.

    With a growl, the Fiery Ape hammered the ground with both hands, casting another area of effect spell to incinerate the entire area. The trio of defensive mages from earlier tensed as they began to quickly cast their barrier spell, but before they could complete it, a curtain of water rose in a circle around the Fiery Ape, capturing the expanding flames. Steam clouded our vision, but it was obvious that the area-of-effect spell had been contained and nullified.

    "Grr¡­?!"

    The Fiery Ape growled again, frustrated and bewildered when it saw its technique thwarted. Nearing the end of its rope, it resorted to its baser instincts, abandoning all pretense of casting spells and physically charging at the approaching Black Tortoise. Flames erupted around its massive frame, wreathing it in a fearsome halo of fire.

    My Black Tortoise did not halt his advance. He merely watched coolly, and conjured another magic spell.

    Splash!

    A massive waterfall descended from the heavens and crashed onto the charging Fiery Ape, smashing it into the ground and crushing it under tons of water. Unexpectedly, the tremendous water pressure was able to obliterate a good chunk of the Fiery Ape''s body, squashing bones flat and twisting the poor monster out of shape.

    "GUOOOOH!"

    The Fiery Ape roared in pain, writhing with what was left of its mangled limbs. Fire continued to spark around its head, the majority of it sadly extinguished by the celestial waterfall. In one last display of defiance, it spat flames at Black Tortoise.

    However, it never reached the Celestial Guardian.

    A serpent snaked out from behind Black Tortoise''s enormous shell and bit down on the Fiery Ape''s neck. Its fangs crushed down, causing geysers of blood to fountain out, and with a sickening crunch, it ripped the poor Fiery Ape''s head off.

    The fire in the rank C beast''s eyes died along with its owner, snuffed out as surely as Black Tortoise''s water against the monster''s flames.

    "¡­"

    The surviving Roses stood or sat still, watching the macabre scene with horror or amazement, or both. They still couldn''t believe what had just transpired.

    "That''s crazy!" Elliot blurted out. "All that spells and attacks we did, and we didn''t do much damage to the Fiery Ape. Then your soul beast comes along and takes it out in just a couple of attacks!"

    "It happens?" I responded flippantly with a shrug. Currently I was more preoccupied with dismissing Black Tortoise. My colossal Celestial Guardian was fading away, returning to whatever ethereal dimension he resided in when I wasn''t summoning him.

    "How did this guy not get invited to Black Roses?" Nicholas murmured in disbelief. Jin Hao snorted.

    "President Alicia invited him¡­or tried to, but Vice-President Miranda protested and overruled that."

    Not to mention I also rejected the invitation, but I saw no reason to mention that. I was much too exhausted for small talk.

    "That witch¡­" Nicholas muttered, and I wondered if he was joking. That was Miranda Miriam''s nickname. She always had this motherly air to her, but her fussing about and draconian adherence to rules and protocol turned people away. There were more than a few people who nicknamed her the Witch behind her back, but the title caught on because of her superlative spell casting abilities, and many of the Black Roses embraced that title for their revered vice-president.

    "I''m sure she only intended to do what was best for the Black Roses," I said wearily. Nicholas smiled and shrugged.

    "I have no doubt about that too. But the vice-president isn''t always right."

    "And it''s twice that you''ve saved us now," Elliot added. Looking around at his confused party members, he cleared his throat. "I mean me, Nick and Jin Hao."

    "This time it''s mutual. If you didn''t help me out, I would have died too."

    "You weren''t obligated to step in and assist us," Mizuno Aoi pointed out as she stepped forward. "Yet you did so anyway, risking your life in the process. That alone is deserving of thanks."

    "Nah, I only did what anyone else would have done." I swept my gaze over the beleaguered and battered survivors who were wearing the exact same gray uniform as I was. "We''re all fellow schoolmates from Jing Tian Academy. It''s only natural to help one another."

    "Yeah, if you ever need help, let us know." Elliot patted my shoulder. "We''ll definitely repay you the favor."

    "What favor?" I laughed, and then glanced at the monster''s disembodied head. "You helped me as well. If you guys didn''t distract the Fiery Ape, I would have gotten incinerated by the damned thing a long time ago, before I can summon any soul beast powerful enough to defeat it."

    It was a sobering thought to realize that my Constellation spirits weren''t enough to fight on par with a rank C monster. Well, the difference was that my Constellation spirits had the potential to grow even stronger than they were now ¨C their growth and development were dependently entirely on me. I just had to work harder to improve them. When I became stronger, my Constellation spirits would naturally develop correspondingly.

    The same went for my Celestial Guardians.

    "Again, you didn''t need to step in to help us. If it weren''t for us, you would never have involved yourself in such a dangerous battle in the first place."

    Aoi had a point. Not that I necessarily agreed¡­then again, it was a waste of time arguing. Not while we were standing in the middle of a forest that was known to be a hotspot for Emergence. And unlike games, there wouldn''t just be rank C and lower monsters dwelling in here. While rank B monsters and above were fairly rare, it was not impossible for them to show up. Best to get back to the city where it was relatively a lot safer and guarded by defensive wards and enchantments.

    "You guys all right?" I asked as I approached the wounded. Jin Hao nodded and got up, grimacing as he gingerly leaned away from his hurt leg. The relatively unhurt Black Roses began to help up those who couldn''t walk, and after accounting for everybody, we began to make our way back to the city.

    There would be recovery teams here soon, to reclaim the bodies of the dead. But for students like us, who were half-dead and desperately needed to get the hell out of there, we had no choice but to leave them behind. For now. Good thing our recording devices (mine was merged with my glasses, as usual) had probably transmitted a distress message and reinforcements would be here soon, along with a cleanup crew.

    "We lost about six members," Elliot was muttering as he tallied up the casualties. Given how there were about nine left, I estimated that there were about fifteen in the party, originally.

    "That''s a lot," I remarked, taken aback by the huge number. I was vaguely aware of the unusually large size of the party, of course, but it was only when Elliot actually put it into concrete numbers that I registered how anomalous it was.

    "We were tasked with taking down a pack of rank D Raging Apes," Nicholas explained wearily. "Didn''t expect a Rank C Fiery Ape to show up. If you hadn''t shown up when you did, we might have lost more people."

    "We would probably be wiped out," Jin Hao muttered darkly, leaning on Elliot''s shoulders.

    "You guys aren''t that weak," I assured him. "I''m sure you would have figured something out eventually."

    "Would we?" Elliot snorted. "There''s a reason why we''re banned from taking Rank C missions. The losses this time are unacceptable."

    "You guys are pretty unlucky," I agreed. This was the second time they ended up encountering a monster that was not included in their mission details. While such things happened from time to time, and the standard tactic was an immediate retreat, the circumstances would make it easier said than done. Like Helmuth von Moltke said, no battle plan survives first contact with the enemy. In retrospect, I was lucky that I didn''t run into anything bad.

    On the other hand, precisely because I was going solo, it was much easier for me to run away by myself. There were advantages and disadvantages to taking missions alone, but obviously the risk was higher. If I was hurt, there would be no one to assist me. I would have died, unable to move or escape, as the monster closed in on me.

    Well, there was no need to think about that now. I should worry about more important things. Like returning to the academy safe and sound. Next time I took a mission, I would more seriously consider joining a party.

    But the last time I did that, I got betrayed and was abandoned.

    Speaking of which, didn''t Bei Pan Zhe, Lavender, Daisy and Dan Xiao Gui got expelled because of the stunt they pulled? While I wasn''t na?ve enough to think it would never happen again, I wasn''t paranoid to the extent where I believed every single person in this world was out to betray me. Elliot, Nicholas and Jin Hao certainly didn''t, and the Black Roses I met today certainly did their fair share of work in defending me while I cast my summoning spell.

    In other words, there was no point resorting to extremes and either insist on being solo because I was paranoid about the whole world betraying me, or being overly na?ve and trusting every stranger I met. I needed to be smart about this and find a party I could truly rely on.

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    "Richard?"

    "Hmm?"

    I realized that Elliot was talking to me. Shaking my head, I snapped out of my thoughts and smiled apologetically.

    "Sorry. I wasn''t paying attention. What were you saying?" A word drifted into my mind, thanks to me vaguely listening earlier. "Something about a party? Sure, I don''t mind joining your party next time. Just let me know."

    "Not that kind of party!" Elliot laughed. "If I''m not mistaken, President Alicia invited her party this weekend. The Black Roses will all be there, so I hope to see you on Saturday!"

    "¡­oh." Now that Elliot had mentioned it, I realized I had totally forgotten about that particular party. Which was ironic, given the whole reason why I went out on a mission today was to get money to buy a proper suit for it. Trying to hide my embarrassment, I offered an easy smile. "Yeah, I mean I don''t mind joining that party on Saturday. Just let me know next time."

    The snort from Jin Hao, who was leaning on Elliot, told me that I wasn''t fooling anyone. Oh well. At least I tried.

 73 Chapter 73: Party Preparations

    Saturday morning arrived before I knew it, and after a grueling session of training in the dojo, I returned to my room, only to see that I had several missed calls on my phone.

    "¡­what the hell?"

    Picking my phone up, I studied the screen and was relieved to see that the calls were from Dong Fang Yue Chu. At least it wasn''t some unknown number spamming me with robot calls or scams. You know, like the ones informing you that you had committed a federal offense and telling you to pay up immediately (often asking for your credit card or bank details). That would have been awful.

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    Shaking my head, I hit the call back option and watched the holographic video call materialize in front of me, above my phone. Even though I could have just sent him an email or text message, I was curious as to why he was urgently trying to contact me.

    "Bro!" Dong Fang Yue Chu''s anxious expression showed up on the holographic screen, his brow creased in annoyance. "I''ve been trying to find you for the whole day already! You''re only picking up your phone now! Where have you been?!"

    "The dojo," I replied shortly, frowning in response. "You know I don''t bring my phone with me when I''m training. What''s up?"

    "What do you mean, ''what''s up?''?" Dong Fang Yue Chu yelled, his eyes bulging. "Bro, are you kidding me?! The dinner party! Don''t tell me you''ve completely forgotten about the dinner party!"

    I hadn''t, but I couldn''t help but tease him. Suppressing a grin, I cocked my head to the side and faked a puzzled expression.

    "What dinner party?"

    "ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?!" Dong Fang Yue Chu roared. "The one Alicia personally invited you to, of course!"

    "She invited me to a party?" I repeated, still feigning bewilderment. "Are you sure? When did that happen?"

    "Are you serious?!" My friend looked as if he was going to collapse in tears. I was aware that he had pretty impure motives for coming along with me. One of the reasons why he was looking forward to this dinner party in particular was because of who organized it ¨C the Black Roses. Just the thought of the beautiful girls in Black Roses Society making their appearance in elegant gowns was enough to cause Dong Fang Yue Chu to drool. He was probably praying fervently that I didn''t do anything stupid and cause him to lose any chance of romancing any of those girls.

    For example, by not showing up despite receiving a direct invitation from Alicia herself. That would potentially sour relations with Black Roses Society, and our little club could not afford to offend a great society like the Black Roses. Not that Alicia would be that petty, and I was sure Miranda would actually be happy if we didn''t turn up, but that was still rude. In a way.

    "Where are you? At home? Wait for me, I''m coming." Dong Fang Yue Chu was holding up an expensive-looking suit. "Take a shower and wash yourself up. This is a dinner party attended by elites. Not just any elites but the upper elites, you know! You need to dress for the occasion!"

    "I already bought a new suit," I said, annoyed, forgetting that I was supposed to forget about the party. "You were the one who told me to get a new suit instead of wearing the previous one I used for the hotel ceremony thing."

    "Oh? You really went and bought a new suit?" Dong Fang Yue Chu''s jaw dropped. If I could, I wanted to transport my hand across the other side of the screen and smack him in the face. Well, at least I trolled him hard earlier, so I should be satisfied with that. "When did that happen?"

    "Yesterday, after I got the monetary rewards from my mission."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu stared at me blankly. "I didn''t know that."

    "What, were you expecting me to devote an entire chapter detailing how I went about shopping in G2000 or something, searching for an appropriate suit? The readers will be screaming ''FILLER!'' and raging about how the story is moving too slowly, never mind that I had just accomplished a mission last chapter." I shook my head in disgust. "Seems like most people throw the word ''filler'' around without truly understanding what it means. Filler refers to non-canonical material that isn''t part of the original story, used to fill out the airtimes of an anime when it has caught up to the manga. But now readers are just blindly using it for anything they find boring or don''t like to read. Come on, if every chapter is about nothing but fight scenes, fight scenes and more fight scenes, then the plot will burn out. Linking a bunch of random fight scenes together doesn''t make for a good story. You need to pace it out properly. Not every chapter or scene has to be about combat. Characters need some downtime, some peace and quiet, which can contribute to character development¡­"

    "What the fuck are you talking about, bro?" Dong Fang Yue Chu was glaring at me. "Stop rambling nonsense and get changed! Okay? We''ll be meeting at the front of your house in thirty minutes. Make sure you shower!"

    "Yeah, yeah."

    "Damn it, I originally planned on bringing you to a hair stylist¡­"

    "Don''t waste time and money," I automatically interrupted. For cutting my hair, I was fine with going to a barber and trimming it short. The styling and curling and whatever nonsense was a total waste of time and money, in my opinion. Raising my hand to the red button on the screen, I cocked my head. "If there''s nothing else, then I''ll hang up. See you in thirty."

    With that, I cut off the call and began my preparations for war. Not that kind of physical war, mind you. Social warfare where I had to engage in verbal sparring and maintain a low profile for as long as possible.

    *

    At the same time, Alicia and Miranda were in the former''s room. Or to be more precise, one of the Alicia''s many rooms. The Violet family was a pretty rich clan, after all, and Alicia got to stay in a gigantic mansion. Being an only child, she had a lot of rooms reserved for her own use.

    Good thing I wasn''t there, or I would be rolling my eyes at the ridiculous amount of time they spent on dressing up alone. Time that could be spent on training, fighting or taking missions, but I was probably too much of a guy to understand that. Anyway, Alicia and Miranda were alternating between themselves, with one trying on a dress and the other offering her opinion. An entire trolley filled with dozens of differently colored dinner gowns hung to the side, with the two girls grabbing a few that hung along its endless length and throwing them onto a massive bed big enough to accommodate a whole family, never mind one person.

    Geez¡­that amount of money spent on so many gowns of which most would probably be left untouched, unless Alicia attended several high-class parties every month (and given her family and connections, it was entirely possible)¡­if I were to witness it, I would recoil in horror. Then again, it was not my money, so it really was none of my business what other people decided to spend their savings on. In any case, as a guy, I never understood the interest of many girls. They obviously enjoyed taking their time to dress up and look good.

    A goddess like Alicia was no exception. In fact, she was taking this more seriously than usual because she was the female host for tonight. She had to ensure that there were no slipups, that her attire was appropriate and corresponded to her standing.

    Don''t ask me how, but apparently one''s social status could make or break based on the sort of appearance you put on, or the impression you gave off. I honestly couldn''t care about looking sloppy and untidy, but these upper-class elites evidently had a different opinion regarding that. Protocols and formality and all that nonsense.

    "I think this dress is perfect!" Miranda declared after she studied Alicia, moving her gaze from head to toe. Currently the latter was dressed in a snow-white, low-cut gown with lavender lace and a flowing light purple skirt that covered her legs. If I had been there, I would have agreed with Miranda about how it suited Violet extremely well. The lace hugged the curves of her body, emphasizing her gorgeous figure, and her beautifully rounded chest was partially concealed behind lavender lace. The light color of the silk fabric matched her long, similarly purple-colored hair and pure complexion. Even Miranda, who was also a girl, couldn''t help but be mesmerized by Violet''s goddess-like appearance.

    The Black Roses vice-president giggled and shook her head. "I bet there won''t be a single man tonight capable of tearing his eyes away from you."

    "There''s Troy¡­and Brother Hai is attending too," Alicia reminded her gently with a smile.

    Miranda shrugged, and then she frowned. "Speaking of men, I heard that you personally invited Richard?"

    Alicia chuckled and nodded. "That''s right. Not just Richard, but the rest of Ultimate Outcast Society as well."

    Miranda sighed slightly and shook her head. "I know you admire Richard, and he has been putting on an impressive performance as of late, but it''s still too early to invite him into events like this."

    "What do you mean?" Alicia asked, a little guarded.

    "I mean¡­Richard is not the only one whose performance has improved tremendously these few months. There are other students who are just as impressive, like Jie Bing from Aurora Society, for example. Richard also lost quite a few of his matches, so it''s only natural that there are many people who aren''t convinced by him just yet. There are rumors that you''re showing blatant favoritism toward him¡­you know, because¡­"

    Alicia avoided her gaze. "¡­I do admire Richard, and he''s not a bad person. Senior, I think everyone is underestimating him. You''ve seen his potential. He single-handedly team-killed the representatives of Crowley''s Academy¡­"

    "Only because their first member underestimated him." Miranda narrowed her eyes. She was realistic to admit that the whole thing was a fluke. "If you truly believe that he''ll be able to repeat that in this year''s tournament, then you''re na?ve."

    "Be that as may be," Alicia conceded. "But you''re just as aware as I am about how awful academy ranking was last year. And with Senior Wang and Senior Bryant graduating and leaving, it''ll be even worse this year. I''m willing to bet on Richard." She smiled and shrugged. "We''ve nothing to lose, after all."

    "Oh, we have a lot to lose," Miranda muttered. She was aware of the discussions Alicia had with Feng Hai, and she was confident that their esteemed senior would be able to root out the unqualified ones and put a stop onto this nonsense.

    But if even Feng Hai himself recognized my strength and accepted me into the specially prepared training program, then Miranda didn''t mind holding her hands up and admitting her mistake. After all, she prized the academy over her own pride. If it was for the sake of the academy, then she wouldn''t mind eating her words and being proven wrong.

    Even then, she knew Alicia possessed a keen insight that few people had, and she decided to leave it to her.

    "I''ll trust you then." She took a deep breath and smiled brightly as she picked up a pink gown. "Now¡­it''s your turn to tell me. What do you think of this dress?"

    *

    Shortly after that, the dinner banquet began. Many upper-class elites from Jing Tian Academy were beginning to arrive, showing up in drips and drabs. Most viewed Alicia''s invitation as a great honor, and they flamboyantly displayed their status, either showing up in super-expensive sports cars or branded vehicles, and dressed in luxurious suits or elegant gowns that probably cost more than the money I could earn from a year of doing missions.

    Handsome guys and beautiful girls were strolling through the open gates, many of them linking hands and entering as couples. The scent of sweet perfume or musky deodorant drifted across the vast courtyard that was meticulously groomed trees, carefully trimmed shrubs and marble sculptures occupied.

    "¡­ugh¡­"

    Hunching and trying not to stand out as much as possible, I hid behind my group of juniors, who were fortunately wearing similarly costed suits. At least I wasn''t alone, but we were totally out of place when compared to these rich bastards. We looked like absolute cheapskates when compared to them. To be fair, when viewed from a distance and without a keen eye, it was impossible to tell the difference ¨C we were certainly dressed right for the occasion. But those other elites were wearing attires that were on a completely different pay scale from the likes of us commoners.

    From the scornful looks they were shooting us, I began to have a bad feeling about this. Then again, what else was new?

 74 Chapter 74: Dinner Party

    Fortunately, not many people glanced in our direction. We were practically ants to them. Insignificant, just crawling by ourselves in the background and not worthy of their attention. If we crawled near them, they would notice us and take offense, and just like normal humans, swat us away because they found us annoying. Otherwise, they couldn''t be bothered to deal with the likes of us.

    It felt reassuring in a way. You know, unlike typical Chinese or whatever stories where upper-class elites looked for trouble for no reason other than to create conflict with the protagonist, people in reality tended to mind their own business because they didn''t want trouble. You probably had one or two who looked upon us with distaste, but they weren''t stupid enough to tell that to our faces. These were civilized, educated elites we were talking about here, not unrealistic barbaric martial artists who strut around in town demanding that commoner''s prostate themselves and started picking fights or killing people if they didn''t. Like who does that? Seriously?

    Surrounded by my fellow members of Ultimate Outcast Society, we then proceeded to the food table. By now, more students had arrived, and the main hall of Alicia''s mansion was filled out with what seemed like hundreds of people. If I wasn''t mistaken, the Black Roses alone had about a hundred members (though it had been whittled down after the casualties they had taken during their missions). The other Great Societies such as the Holy Saints Society were here too, thus adding to the numbers present, but it seemed they too had suffered some losses during the months of missions.

    However, far from being somber with grief, the atmosphere of the dinner banquet was surprisingly relaxing and enjoyable. The main hall was decorated with chandeliers, ribbons and accessories, and I could hear gentle, soothing music in the background.

    "Oh!"

    Wang Fei perked up when he caught a whiff of the food. Our five-man gang then proceeded to a super long table filled with various delicacies.

    "That looks great!" Harvey added enthusiastically, his mouth watering.

    "Let''s dig in!" Wang Fei exclaimed in delight.

    "Why hasn''t anyone started eating yet?" Stan asked with a frown. He wasn''t completely accurate ¨C quite a few students had already helped themselves to the food, but they were far and few in between. Most of the participants were more interested in socializing than feeding themselves. Stan seemed puzzled. "The food looks so good!"

    "Yeah!" Harvey agreed, and shrugged. "They seem more interested in talking than eating."

    Which sort of made sense, given how the purpose of this party wasn''t the free food (since they were rich, upper-class elites, they didn''t need to scrimp and save like we poor people did). The hot topic in the party seemed to be this year''s tournament.

    Actually, that was the only thing I heard.

    "I think the representatives this year will mostly be from either Black Roses or Holy Saints. Our academy doesn''t really have many promising candidates, other than Jie Bing from Aurora Society. But Aurora only has him, and it''s more of a team battle."

    "What about Mad Cat? I think they won''t be a bad choice. They have several promising members this year. If Instructor Feng Hai is here to teach us, he''ll probably be able to improve them tremendously as well."

    "What about the Prodigy Society? They aren''t too bad. I heard each of their members have special abilities."

    Black Roses, Holy Saints and Super Power Societies were three of the four Great Societies in Jing Tian Academy, and as such constituted the core of our school. The fourth Great Society belonged to the research types, and as much as research type societies were prestigious because of their importance to the development of an academy''s resources, training programs, equipment, armaments and organization, they fell a bit short when it came to tournaments.

    Furthermore, it seemed that this year, the Global Federation had decided to change things up and emphasize more on team-based matches. Though there still would be solo matches, it wasn''t wise to depend solely on a single individual. Presently, there was a rush through the societies to come up with skilled squads capable of coordination and strategy. Especially since there would be a ton of elites participating this year, the pressure on Jing Tian Academy to perform had increased immensely.

    From what I heard, rumors had it that Feng Hai had proposed a quota, instructing the representatives of the academy to draw up a shortlist containing ten students. While it would be easy to just put the top ten students in the current rankings, the rankings were always in flux, meaning people shifted in and out of the top ten literally everyday. Furthermore, with the focus on team-based matches this year, there was also a strong need to ensure the ten chosen could work well together. Having ten powerful individuals doing their own thing (five of them were substitutes, though) would be detrimental, no matter how strong or talented each of them was.

    Fortunately, not everyone was talking about the tournament. While the topic certainly occupied the attention of the majority of the guests present, a few decided to relax, luxuriating in the soothing atmosphere.

    "Richie! And¡­everyone!"

    Troy King waved at us as he lumbered across the room, with a girl on his hand. I recognized her as Antonia, his girlfriend. In contrast to Troy''s dark skin, she was Hispanic, with olive flesh and curly hair. Today, she was dressed in a white gown rather than the usual gray uniform.

    "Troy!" I greeted him. "I didn''t expect to see you here."

    "Hey, my society''s the one organizing this. Of course I''ll be obligated to attend." Troy pulled a face. "As much as I abhor this getup¡­"

    Antonia scowled and wagged her finger at him. "Come now, Troy. I told you to stop being so antisocial. Mix around with people more often."

    "You know I hate people," Troy complained. When Antonia''s brow furrowed deeper, he hastily added, "with a few exceptions. You know I love you, honey."

    "Then put up with this for my sake, please."

    "¡­okay." Troy swallowed, visibly uncomfortable, then turned to me. "Hey, Richie. I heard you helped out some of my society members the other day."

    "Huh?"

    "He sure did!"

    We turned at the familiar voice, and caught sight of Elliot, Nicholas, Jin Hao, Aoi and a bunch of other Black Roses coming over. I recognized them from being part of the group I assisted against the Fiery Ape a few days ago.

    "Good to see you guys are all right." I nodded at Jin Hao. "How''s the leg?"

    "Fine. Teacher Cure helped heal it." Jin Hao grinned. "Thanks for the help. If it weren''t for you, we would be in trouble."

    "Ha ha!" Troy chuckled, though he was for some reason trying to distance himself from the group. Antonia didn''t look pleased and she had a hand clamped on his arm to prevent him from escaping. "That''s Richie for you!"

    "I did what anyone else would have done," I replied honestly. Now it was my turn to feel uncomfortable because Harvey, Wang Fei and Stan were all staring at me with admiring eyes.

    "We should work together sometime. Both Ultimate Outcasts and Black Roses." Dong Fang Yue Chu''s eyes were shining at the prospect. He glanced at the three first year students. "Hmm, maybe next year. But we can arrange something, I''m sure."

    "I would be happy to work with Richard again," Elliot agreed. He grinned at Dong Fang Yue Chu. "Mind giving him to Black Roses?"

    "Hell, no! He''s our ace!" Dong Fang Yue Chu snapped. "And besides, that witch Miranda doesn''t want him, right?"

    "Ugh¡­" Nicholas grimaced. "I''m sure we can persuade her, though. The vice-president isn''t very stubborn. She''ll come around."

    "Speaking of which, where''s the prez and vice-prez?" Troy asked.

    As if on cue, the lights dimmed and the music suddenly stopped. Everyone glanced up, toward the stairs, and caught sight of a single goddess descending to grace us with her presence.

    Wearing a snow-white dinner gown, Alicia smiled as she approached the stunned guests. Playing every bit the beautiful lady host, she did a curtsy and bowed her head slightly.

    The crowd immediately broke into applause. They were so taken by her divine beauty that their minds had blanked out, especially the guys. But even the girls found themselves mesmerized by her.

    "Thank you all for coming tonight." Alicia swept her gentle gaze across the guests. "I''m very grateful to all of you for accepting my invitation. I hope you will all have a great time tonight. Please don''t hold back and enjoy yourselves! Help yourselves to the food, to the drinks, mingle around. Let us all work hard together and strive to be the best we can be. Our Jing Tian Magic Academy¡­"

    "¡­IS INVINCIBLE!"

    Everyone cheered, cutting off Alicia''s speech. She nodded, not at all offended. In fact, this was pretty much a tradition ¨C the cheer was shouted every year by academy students whenever we held a huge gathering.

    I had to say, nobody seriously believed that unless they were delusional. Jing Tian Academy hadn''t been invincible for years.

    Even so, Alicia wasn''t the type to dampen the spirits. She raised a hand and smiled dazzlingly.

    "That''s right! At least in the hearts of everyone here, Jing Tian Magic Academy will always be invincible! Let the party begin!"

    Then she snapped her fingers. The background was suddenly filled with an energetic sound with fast beats and a quick tempo.

    The dance party had finally begun. Not that I cared. It had absolutely nothing to do with me.

    As the female hostess for the party, Alicia was obligated to lead the first dance. Her dance partner turned out to be Harrison Reed from Holy Saints. The two of them were currently the representatives for the academy, so in the eyes of everyone, they were the perfect match.

    Upon seeing them dance, almost everyone''s hearts were set aflame. Guys and girls twirled into the dance floor, linking hands and spinning in delight. Antonia tugged a reluctant Troy into the middle, but he smiled and relented, placing his hand on her waist. Jin Hao was dragged by Aoi, and the Black Roses around us dispersed, with only Elliot remaining. He shrugged.

    "They don''t know what they''re missing," he said as he piled his plate with food.

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    The five guys of Ultimate Outcast ¨C including me ¨C looked at each other, grinned and nodded. Then we also began stacking up on tons of food. Probably some people, who weren''t too busily dancing, laughed at us, but we didn''t care.

    As long as we had delicious food in our hands and mouths, we were happy.

    *

    "This is pretty good," I remarked to Harvey and Wang Fei while chomping on some succulent shrimp that was tarred with tartar sauce.

    "Oh! I should try that too!"

    "So this is where you were all along."

    I looked up when I heard Alicia''s voice. She was smiling as she sashayed over, having finished her first dance. Naturally, she wouldn''t be short on dance partners, but for some reason she headed straight toward my group.

    Accompanying her was a tall and beautiful lady with her hair pinned up, dressed in a glittery pink evening gown. Even though she wasn''t wearing her glasses, we could still recognize her as Miranda Miriam. She nodded at us, and tilted her head at Elliot.

    "Not going to dance?" she asked. He shrugged.

    "If you don''t mind being my partner, Vice-President Miranda."

    "Oh, no. of course not." Miranda seemed a little taken aback by his bold offer, and the two of them went to the dance floor.

    Alicia continued to smile at me as she sidled up to the table to take a plate of dessert. A pudding, from the looks of it. Maybe I should try it.

    "What a coincidence. I was just getting a little hungry. How''s the food?"

    "Pretty good," I replied, and then narrowed my eyes at her small plate. "Will that be enough? You should take more."

    Alicia giggled, and scooped a small piece of pudding into her mouth. Even when eating, the goddess was still unbelievably graceful, each of her movements elegant and almost precise. She nibbled at her food delicately, but I wondered if she was actually putting on a show, or if she truly ate like this all the time. If it was the latter, then it must be really tiring.

    The three juniors at my side were gaping at her in disbelief, wondering if she was real. They never would have thought they would be this close to Jing Tian Academy''s goddess.

    "Oh, thanks for the invitation." I remembered my manners. Then I approached the table and began getting a new plate, filling it up with seafood. I wasn''t sure how much Alicia ate, so I ensured I didn''t take too much. If she liked the delicacies, she could always take more of them later. For now, I took a little of everything and handed it to her. "These are really good."

    "I appreciate it." Alicia was amazed, but she giggled again and accepted the plate.

    "Nah, you seem busy, so¡­"

    "Yeah, you''ve helped me a lot," Alicia agreed as she took another bite from the plate I had just given her, exuding the same elegant manner as before.

    "President Alicia."

    This time, an unfamiliar voice drifted over. We glanced in the direction of the source and saw a burly guy wading toward us, accompanied by an entourage. I recognized the huge guy in the center who had spoken up. He was Lin Zhan Long, a third year student who was currently the vice-president of Holy Saints. He didn''t even seem to notice Ultimate Outcasts, and just stopped to speak to Alicia as if we didn''t existed.

    "If you don''t mind, my president would like to invite you over to finalize the list of potential candidates."

    "Potential candidates?" Wang Fei repeated.

    "The ones for the international tournament in a few months," Dong Fang Yue Chu explained in a whisper.

    "Sure." Alicia nodded as she lifted her plate higher, intending to bring it along with her. She turned to me. "Richard, please come along."

    "¡­huh?" Lin Zhan Long''s jaw dropped. "Why¡­?"

    Alicia smiled in reply. "Because I intend to recommend Richard for a slot in the reserves, so that he can participate in the tournament."

    Although she wasn''t exactly speaking very loudly, the moment those words left her mouth, the entire main hall fell silent. Almost everyone turned to stare at her. And then¡­

    "NANI!????"

 75 Chapter 75: Favoritism

    As the student with the best overall performance (this did not take into account combat ranking, sadly, but also included academic performance, leadership skills and society activities), Alicia had been chosen to be the captain for this year''s team. Consequently, she now possessed the authority to recommend one person to the list.

    But right now she was using this very precious opportunity to recommend me, of all people.

    Naturally, everyone was surprised.

    "Are you serious?" Lin Zhan Long asked, his jaw dropping. "You''re recommending Richard Huang of all people? Why?"

    "Why not?" Alicia shrugged. "You''ve all seen what he can do. Fluke or not, he did defeat all of Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy''s representatives by himself. If we can build upon his potential, there''s no telling what he can achieve. Furthermore, this year''s tournament has a big team-based component, so don''t you think it''ll be more advantageous to add a summoner?"

    Summoners were usually highly sought after in team-based events, such as missions. It was just that the academy focused too much on combat rankings, so summoners had become an unpopular role. It wasn''t that people looked down on summoners, but they were just disadvantaged when it came to ranking matches.

    But for team-based events such as team matches or missions, summoners were more highly sought after. Unfortunately, very few students participated on missions because of the risk involved. Normally I wouldn''t, but I only went for them because Ultimate Outcast Society needed the prestige points. For societies such as Holy Saints and the bigger ones, they would eschew missions and focus on improving their strength for ranking matches.

    It was a pretty stupid system, if you ask me. I mean, we were graduating from high school to attend combat magic universities, and would eventually join military or mercenary organizations that mostly dealt with monsters and Emergence events. So to be honest, team-based skills and teamwork should be more practical. Unfortunately, the higher-ups focused more on individual rankings and results than team-based experience.

    I guess every era had its stupid things. During my time it was academic results, where people only cared about your examination results and theoretical knowledge instead of actual technical skills and practical application. Even engineering courses or science majors had to take theoretical exams and pass them instead of practical skills. This wasn''t to say theory was important ¨C of course you need a good theoretical foundation or there would be nothing for you to apply. Even then, there was criticism back then about rote learning and overemphasis on paper results, which ignored the fact all the students were all good at different things. Some specialized in sports, some in doing things with their hands, and some at reading. Yet only those who could study benefited from the rigid system.

    Similarly, the same thing was happening right now. Of course, it would be important for someone to possess individual fighting skills as a solid foundation for team combat, but in the end different mages specialized in different kinds of magic. The system only allowed for one type of magic to benefit, which was why summoning ended up neglected. Even so, those who had participated in missions could attest to how powerful summoners were in team combat.

    Evidently, Lin Zhan Long had never participated in a mission, or at least one with a summoner.

    "Impossible," he sneered, glaring at me hatefully. "It would be a waste to give one of the positions to trash like him."

    "Vice-president Lin Zhan Long, this is not for you to decide," Alicia said calmly before Troy or my fellow Ultimate Outcast members could jump in. Even Elliot, Nicholas, Jin Hao, Aoi and the Black Roses who assisted me during our previous mission were approaching, their gazes striking a stunned Lin Zhan Long.

    "I''m all for it," Troy declared.

    "Me too," Elliot added.

    "I can vouch for him," Nicholas agreed.

    "Thank you." Alicia smiled at her fellow Black Roses for support. Harvey and the other juniors were staring at me, dumbstruck, and wondering since when I built such a rapport with the Black Roses. I mentally braced myself for a bunch of questions later.

    "President Alicia, I don''t care if you''re the daughter of the academy director, but you have no right to do whatever you want!" Lin Zhan Long growled.

    "Lin Zhan Long, how dare you. Apologize to Alicia immediately."

    A stern but gentle voice floated over the grand hall. Lin Zhan Long jolted upright, and even though he grimaced reluctantly, he bowed his head.

    "Sorry," he told Alicia through gritted teeth.

    "I''m sorry about that, Alicia." Harrison Reed also lowered his head. "Lin Zhan Long has always been rude and stubborn, but he really has the best intentions. He''s probably thinking about the interschool tournament. If we don''t get a good rank this year, we''re in trouble."

    "That''s right!" Lin Zhan Long nodded fervently.

    "However¡­" Harrison stopped and smiled at me. "I approve of your decision. I think Richard will be able to contribute greatly in the team component."

    Lin Zhan Long paled and shut up.

    "I''ve seen his matches¡­I can''t say I''m impressed with his individual matches, and there are certainly a lot more students who are better than him in that aspect. However, as you said, there is a team-based component this year." Harrison glanced at Elliot and the others, recognition flashing in his eyes. "I''ve seen the mission reports where he''s involved, and his performance against monsters is where I am truly impressed." He smiled at the Black Roses. "You guys were pretty lucky that he was around to help."

    "Richard definitely saved us," Elliot agreed.

    "That last mission too." Jin Hao was nodding. "If we can delay the enemy long enough for him to summon his soul beasts, then it''ll be our victory."

    "Of course¡­" Harrison nodded, but he then frowned thoughtfully. "¡­if the enemy allows you to."

    "What do you mean?" Nicholas asked, noticing the change in tone. Harrison spread both his hands.

    "Well, think about it. Including a summoner in the team¡­wouldn''t it make our strategy too obvious? Our opponents would be sure to find a counter to it. The moment they come up with a way to deny Richard his summoning, and take him out¡­wouldn''t it be to the team''s disadvantage? He would become¡­forgive me, dead weight."

    Everyone fell silent, unable to refute his logic. Certainly, Harrison had an excellent point. The strategy definitely would become too obvious and any competent opponent would certainly take me out at any cost before I can bring in my big guns.

    Wow, what a formidable guy. I wasn''t sure if I was being paranoid, but he essentially got everyone on his side by initially agreeing with Alicia to show that he wasn''t petty or narrow-minded, and then subtly tore apart her decision by pointing out a major flaw in a polite manner that left no room for resentment or complaint. He was pretty mature and reasonable and even I couldn''t find any way to refute him.

    However¡­

    "¡­isn''t that the same for anyone?" Harvey asked, his brow furrowed into a frown. Everyone turned to stare at him, and he shrugged. "I mean, no matter who''s in the team, you''ll have an ace. And the opponent will come up with counterstrategies against the ace. Actually, before the match they would do a lot of research on every representative and come up with counters against them. So it''s not as if Vice-President Richard is the only one with that problem."

    "There''s a huge difference between building your team around one person, and building a team around five flexible, competent members," Harrison replied patiently.

    "But why build the team around Vice-President Richard? You can still have five flexible and competent members ¨C it''s not as if the vice-president can''t fend for himself. His magic recently has been pretty flexible ¨C have you seen the stuff he summoned?"

    As expected of my number one fan. Harvey knew more about me than I did about myself. I felt a little embarrassed.

    "He''s right," Elliot spoke up. "The previous mission was one thing, but the one before that, he basically single-handedly saved us from a pack of Lycanthropes with minimal support."

    "Richard also figured out how to summon weapons to buy himself time, so even if we don''t build a strategy around protecting him so that he can summon his big guys, he''ll still be fine on his own." Nicholas nodded in agreement.

    "That''s right¡­I would argue that Richard is the most flexible mage out of all of us." Jin Hao also added his input.

    "I personally witnessed his summoning magic during a mission, I can vouch for him."

    Alicia refused to back down. Harrison continued to smile, and he conceded with a nod, but I sensed that he wasn''t going to let the argument end there.

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    Before he could open his mouth for another rebuttal, however, loud laughter cut him off.

    "Ha ha ha ha! I''ve forgotten how it is like to be so young and hot-blooded!"

    A familiar figure was descending the stairs, one of his hands raised in a friendly wave. Alicia blanched when she saw him.

    "Brother Hai!"

    All the girls were immediately swooning and gazing at Feng Hai when he appeared. Unlike the last time I saw him, Feng Hai was dressed in a white suit with a purple shirt this time, a golden tie that had been loosened around his collar. Just like how all the guys were enamored with the goddess Alicia earlier when she showed up, all the girls were falling for Feng Hai''s gruff appearance. Even though he graduated long ago, he was still only a few years older than us. Less than ten years, if I wasn''t mistaken. Still young enough to be the object of desire for so many girls.

    I noticed that Alicia was also gazing at him, somewhat infatuated. She shook her head and snapped out of it, though.

    "You''re late!"

    "Ah, forgive me. You know I''m not good with this sort of things." Feng Hai tugged uncomfortably at his tie and unbuttoned his jacket. "Anyway¡­who cares about that?" he swiveled to a stunned Harrison Reed, who was speechless at the presence of such a legend. "I overheard your conversation earlier, and I think everyone has good points." He jerked his head in my direction. "I''ve reviewed and watched the mission videos too, and I''ve to say I understand why the Black Roses want him in the team. He has some skills."

    "You are right, of course." Harrison bowed his head humbly. "I do not discount that, and I agree that Richard brings us options."

    "But you also have a good point. The other teams will also think of counters, and having him will make our strategy transparent."

    "Then¡­" Harrison brightened up.

    "Then the best way to settle this is by a challenge!'' Feng Hai grinned broadly, "Don''t you think results are the best evidence? Have a match. If Richard''s team wins, then it means that they can overcome whatever counterstrategy you might have against them, or that the Black Roses are right about him being flexible and competent. If you win, then it means that building a team around him is indeed a fatal flaw. If we do it this way, no one can complain against the results, correct?"

    "That''s a great idea!" Harrison was beaming in delight. "Let us do as Instructor Feng Hai recommended. We should have a match¡­"

    "Um¡­match?" I was looking confused. "A team match? I''m assuming it will be Ultimate Outcast Society against Holy Saints Society?"

    If that was the case, I might as well just give up now. I couldn''t care less about all this bullshit. To be honest, I had to admit that I was interested in the position of representative. That would be a great point in my resume, and help me out tremendously when applying for universities or a job. Prospective employers would be impressed if they learned that I had been a representative, for to achieve such a position even in a low-ranking academy like Jing Tian was a pretty major feat. After all, it pretty much meant I was chosen ahead of nearly a thousand other students for the position.

    However¡­if it was a team-match between Ultimate Outcast and Holy Saints, then they would win 99% of the time. I was under no illusion of our capability. I wasn''t a pretentious Mary Sue prick who was looking for a bunch of freshmen to take to the top. Unlike Parthdua26, I did not think of my juniors as "losers" ¨C hell, I was pretty offended by his insult. My juniors were not losers.

    But in a clash against Holy Saints, they stood no chance. Even with the training they received from my Dad in the dojo, they wouldn''t be able to catch up to the more experienced and powerful members of Holy Saints, one of the four major societies. Lin Zhan Long was absolutely grinning as he rubbed his hands in glee.

    "Hah! You''ll rue the arrogance you showed today. I''ll teach you the difference in our strengths¡­"

    "Hmm, are you intending for your society members to be representatives as well?" Feng Hai asked, ignoring Lin Zhan Long and interrupting him. The huge guy spluttered, but he obviously didn''t dare to protest against the Silver Wolf leader.

    "Um¡­I don''t think so?" I glanced to Alicia for help. Taking the hint, she stepped forward with a confident smile.

    "No, Brother Hai. I only plan to recommend Richard, not the rest of the Ultimate Outcasts."

    "But they should be given the chance to prove themselves, like their vice-president," Harrison pointed out candidly. He was hammering the nail in our coffin.

    "Fine then." Dong Fang Yue Chu was acting brave, but I could see that he was trembling violently. "If you want a fight, we''ll give you a fight!"

    "¡­seriously?!"

    Harvey, Wang Fei, Stan and I stared at him in despair, but he shrugged.

    "Why? Are you guys afraid?"

    "Who''s afraid?" Stan growled. "Fine! I''ll do it!"

    "Um¡­we can''t win. You know that, right?" Harvey was more realistic.

    "I don''t want to be part of this," Wang Fei grumbled.

    "You guys¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu groaned and shook his head. However, he knew they were right. Even so, his pride wouldn''t allow him to back down. Lin Zhan Long and to a certain extent, Harrison Reed, had insulted me as well as our society. He didn''t want our names rubbed in the dirt.

    But the harsh reality was that we truly were nothing compared to Holy Saints. Particularly right now. I wasn''t some Mary Sue protagonist who could conjure up a victory for my juniors, who were still unprepared for an event as big as this.

    Seeing how troubled we were, Troy stepped forward grimly and raised his hand.

    "I''ll quit Black Roses and join Ultimate Outcast."

    "There''s no need for that!" I told him, annoyed. "I appreciate the sentiment, but please, don''t do this. You''ll make us feel bad."

    Troy was a good friend, and I refused to take advantage of him. He joined Black Roses to get access to resources and other training goodies. I wasn''t selfish enough to use our friendship to solicit his help at his expense. Even we lost, the most that would happen was that I wouldn''t become a representative, and everyone would accept it as natural that Ultimate Outcast was a small society when compared to the Holy Saints. We would have a bruised ego, but that wouldn''t affect us. However, Troy giving up all those resources, funding and Black Roses facilities would have a detrimental effect on his training and development. It wasn''t something he could afford to give up on a whim.

    "That''s right. There is absolutely no need for that."

    Feng Hai spoke up and everyone turned to stare at him in shock. The grizzled instructor grinned at us.

    "I mean, the whole issue is whether a team built around Richard will be viable or not. And since this concerns the representatives, we''re probably thinking about candidates chosen to be representatives, so why must they be from Ultimate Outcast Society? Unless you''re thinking of recommending another Ultimate Outcast to the representative team."

    Feng Hai was staring at Harrison as he said that. After all, like Alicia, Harrison as the other representative of Jing Tian Academy had the right to recommend one person of his choice to the team.

    The handsome guy quickly shook his head.

    "No, of course not. I just thought they deserve a chance."

    "Perhaps, but let''s make it voluntary, shall we?" Feng Hai turned to glance at the Black Roses. "After all, it''s not just the Ultimate Outcast who wants to prove you wrong."

    "Black Roses wish to ally with Ultimate Outcast?" Harrison asked, his brow furrowing.

    "We do have a history of helping each other out," Elliot pointed out boldly, and then shrugged. "Though it''s more like the Black Roses are the ones being helped out by Ultimate Outcast?"

    "Just one member, though," Nicholas pointed out, scratching his head as he glanced at my juniors and Dong Fang Yue Chu. He was wondering how we''re going to form a team, especially since the president of Ultimate Outcast seemed eager to fight.

    I was pretty sure Dong Fang Yue Chu would do fine, so I had no objections to him joining the battle. I was more worried about Stan, though. He still tended to be reckless and impulsive.

    "That''s settled then." Feng Hai smiled, though for some reason I had the impression of a predatory wolf hovering above him like some kind of monstrous aura. "Let''s hold this match next week. I look forward to your performances."

    He was about to turn away and waltz into the dance floor when he suddenly paused and grinned at us.

    "Oh, and one last thing. I''ll be using this to assess who gets to represent the team."

    "¡­eh?"

    Everyone turned to stare at Feng Hai, and he shrugged with a broad grin.

    "Makes sense, right? Isn''t this a great chance to assess your performance and find out who can best represent Jing Tian Academy?"

    "¡­that''s true."

    "Instructor is right¡­"

    Everyone began whispering and murmuring to each other about the scheduled match and chance to represent the team and everything. I left them to their discussion, having no interest in politics and such, and caught up with Feng Hai.

    "Sir¡­" I began. "Why¡­?"

    I didn''t even complete my question. Feng Hai already knew what I was going to ask. He was grinning mischievously as he turned toward me.

    "Because you''re quite the interesting fella. I''m curious to see why Alicia is investing so much attention into you. Plus¡­" he rubbed his chin. "You''re one of the few students qualified to join my Silver Wolves¡­eventually."

 76 Chapter 76: Squad Selection

    "Okay, so who is in?" I asked. In front of me, only Dong Fang Yue Chu and Stan were enthusiastically raising their hands. Harvey and Wang Fei, on the other hand, were looking dismayed and reluctant.

    "Vice-President, you do know how large and powerful the Holy Saints are, right?" Wang Fei asked nervously. "Ever since they were first established until now, the only other society who can compete with them is Black Roses. We don''t stand a chance!"

    "I''m sure Vice-President Richard will figure something out!" Harvey assured him, his faith in me as unshakable as ever. As usual, I found myself wilting under the pressure. I opened my mouth to correct his rose-tinted view of me, to tell him that I wasn''t invincible or some kind of god who could pull off a miraculous win by myself, but Dong Fang Yue Chu cut in before I could.

    "Then are you in?"

    "Um¡­" Harvey turned pale and he shook his head. "I''m sorry, but I have no confidence in myself. I don''t want to drag you guys down and cause the society to lose."

    "That won''t happen," I told him. "You''re not that bad. As long as you believe in yourself, you can do it!"

    "Oi, don''t be so irresponsible. I know you mean well, but giving false hope will have a detrimental effect." Dong Fang Yue Chu glared at me, and I shrank back. The president of Ultimate Outcast paused to consider our options, pursing his lips. "Hmm, even if we allow Stan to participate, it means we''re still short of three members."

    "The Black Roses will be happy to join our team," Harvey spoke up excitedly. That explained why he was holding back. Normally, his indomitable belief in me would lead him to think I could conjure up a sure-win victory no matter who the members in our team were, but right now he was calmly considering other options to increase our odds of victory. "As Wang Fei pointed out, the Black Roses are the only other society who can challenge the Holy Saints. We should accept their help."

    "We will, but it''ll seem pretty lazy of us if we just have one member participating and four members from Black Roses. Not only do I not want to owe them a favor, it''ll also look like we''re taking advantage of them. I would like the backbone of the team to be from Ultimate Outcast, if possible."

    I spoke up with a frown, and both Dong Fang Yue Chu and Stan nodded. The president stepped forward and slapped me in the back.

    "Well said! Exactly! We''re not going to run away from this fight! At least half of us should be from Ultimate Outcast, or they''ll look down on us! It''s not as if the society is built around Richard alone!"

    "Uh, it isn''t?" Harvey asked, confused. Everyone stared at him.

    "Of course not!" Stan snapped. "Each of us has a role to play! We can''t rely on the vice-president to prop the society up on his own forever!"

    "That''s true," Harvey conceded. "I don''t want to drag the vice-prez down. But¡­" he suddenly remembered something. "Speaking of owing favors, don''t the Black Roses owe you a favor, Vice-Prez? You saved them a couple of times."

    "The second time was mutual. But¡­yeah, I think Troy will want to join the fight. The last place can be¡­given to either Elliot, Nicholas or Jin Hao. I''ve worked with them before, so I think it''s easier to group up with them."

    "You''ve worked with Troy before too?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked in disbelief. I nodded.

    "Yeah, ever since middle school. We had¡­similar interests. That''s why he knows my Dad. We''ve sparred and know each other''s ability." I lowered my voice. "He''s a real beast. I''ve not won against him, not even once."

    "Wow¡­" Harvey looked impressed, as if he couldn''t imagine anyone defeating me. Dude, you did see me lose a few matches over the last couple of months, didn''t you?

    "All right. I''ll leave the liaison with Black Roses to you, Richard. I''ll leave the selection to you, since you know them better than we do."

    "Sure."

    We had less than a week left. It was already the day after ¨C two nights ago was when Feng Hai announced the match between Holy Saints and Ultimate Outcast. We didn''t waste any time doing anything else, and our first agenda when we met on Monday was to discuss this serious matter. Sunday was a weekend and people had plans, so I only gathered them together on Monday when everyone was present in school.

    What? Did you think I was going to waste almost fifteen chapters talking about things that had absolutely nothing to do with our current predicament? That I was going to randomly enter the OP system and have a fight with some guy who could conceal his presence? And cover a duel between a fire-using girl with a gatling gun and a heavy tank, despite neither of those characters having anything to do with me or my current situation? Did you want me to talk about the Federation and some king dude who I had never met and would never meet in the next five hundred chapters of this story, and the politics between him and the Stuart Clan? And then waste more time on a class regarding Dimension Beasts and live dissection despite that having absolutely nothing to do with the current story? Or did you guys want info dumps and "world-building" or something?

    As if I had nothing better to do. It wasn''t as if I was trying to drag out the story to earn money. And I was aware of people complaining about how all those were "fillers" and wanting to jump straight to the fight. While I didn''t totally agree with jumping straight to the match in the next chapter, I certainly wasn''t going to waste almost fifteen chapters on irrelevant events and scenes that had nothing to do with the current arc.

    Nope. For the next few chapters I was going to focus entirely on the upcoming team-match against Holy Saints.

    "But Stan, if you really want to participate in this, you''ll have to undergo extra training this week. I''ll talk to Dad." I turned to Dong Fang Yue Chu with a grin. "That applies to both you and me too. We can''t afford to shame Ultimate Outcast."

    "You got that right! Fine! Bring it on! Tell your dad to prepare his worst training! This grandfather will definitely endure whatever is thrown at him!"

    For non-Chinese speakers, basically Dong Fang Yue Chu was literally referring to himself as "this grandfather." Don''t ask me why. It was probably some slang to make yourself seem like someone important and deserving of respect from the other party¡­or something like that.

    "All right. You guys train for a bit first. I''ll settle the stuff with Black Roses, and when I come back, we''ll head to the dojo."

    "Yes, Vice-Prez!"

    Everyone snapped to attention. I nodded, threw a mock salute, and then hastily strode out of the room. Retrieving my smartphone, I began to type a text message to the ever elusive Troy, who was probably working out in one of Black Roses'' exclusive gyms at the moment.

    Knowing him and his aversion to people, he would have booked the entire gym for himself. And he was so key to Black Roses'' strength that Alicia allowed it. No one had any complaints against the ace of the Black Roses.

    That was how terrifying he was.

    As I expected, Troy sent a message back informing me that he was indeed working out in his exclusive gym, so I hurried over. Once there, I found myself barred by a hi-tech door. I had to stop at the security pad beside it, tap it to activate the intercom and wait for Troy to respond.

    The doors automatically slid open after a few seconds. Troy had evidently been waiting for me. Stepping through, I waved at him as he sat up on one of the benches, wiping his perspiration away from his dark skin with a towel.

    "Yo, Richie." He held up a hand in a friendly wave and grinned. "I suspect this visit is with regards to this Saturday''s team match."

    "Yeah. Do you mind¡­?"

    "Of course!" he brightened up¡­only for his smartphone to buzz. Frowning, he checked its glowing screen and grew pale. "Aw¡­shit, man!"

    "W¡­what? What is it?" I blinked, worried at his vehemence.

    Troy grimaced as he turned toward me. "I''m sorry, bro. I really hate to do this to you, but I just got an emergency call." He lowered his voice. "It involves my brother."

    I immediately went still at that. Troy had been tracking down his missing brother for years, and I couldn''t just tell him to give up that one clue he had and stay to help me out. It was also the reason why Troy took so many missions. Many of them were in one form or another related to his missing brother, and he was searching for clues.

    Tyrant King was the only family Troy had, and he would do anything to find him. I wasn''t very sure because Troy kept details of his brother close to his chest, but I heard that Tyrant was responsible for genocide and a host of other crimes. I wasn''t sure if Troy was tracking him down to atone for his brother''s crimes, and vowed to kill him with his very own hands, or if he just wanted to find out the truth. Either way, I had no right to ask him to dismiss the clue and stay in Jing Tian Academy just for my sake alone.

    "I''m really sorry, bro."

    "No." I shook my head and patted his shoulder. "Go take care of your family matters. I can handle this."

    "Thanks." Troy scanned through his phone with a sigh, then turned to me seriously. "But if I''m not going to be around, who can you rely on? I heard from President Alicia that she would be loaning you some of our members."

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    "Yeah." I nodded. Unlike a certain Wang Zhong, I wasn''t going to be pretentious and declare that we wouldn''t lose or that we didn''t need any help from Black Roses. It wasn''t as if we had a pair of talented first year students or something. Of course it would be mighty convenient if the two most talented first year students joined our society for some stupid reason (probably protagonist power), but reality never went the way you wanted it to. "I''ll probably ask Elliot, Nicholas or Jin Hao for help. I''ve worked with the three of them before, so I''m familiar with their techniques and magic."

    Troy gawked at me. "Seriously? I mean, Elliot, Nick and Jin Hao are pretty great guys, and I mean no disrespect, but¡­they''re not the top Black Roses members, you know? They''re among¡­well, the bottom. Since you have the chance, couldn''t you just ask for higher-ranked Black Roses?"

    "The fact that they''re in Black Roses means that they''re pretty skilled, doesn''t it?" I pointed out. "Black Roses just don''t accept anybody. If they''re in, then they definitely have a certain caliber. Besides, the most important thing is that we''ve worked together before. Since this is a team match and we don''t have a lot of time to practice together, I think having synergy and a rapport is more important than looking for members with high individual strength, but aren''t able to work well in a team."

    "That is certainly true." Troy nodded, and then he smiled broadly. "Good luck, Richie. I''m sure you''ll do fine, but I wish you luck all the same."

    I returned the grin. My friend was right, well¡­partly. I definitely needed the luck. I doubted I would do fine, but I wasn''t going to just roll over and hand the victory to those Holy Saint bastards. "I can''t guarantee anything, but we''ll definitely do our best. Holy Saints might think they have this one in the bag, but we''ll give them a good fight."

 77 Chapter 77: Ultimate Outcast Societyâ€™s first battle

    "¡­seriously? This isn''t our first battle."

    I frowned as I stared at the chapter title. Who the hell came up with it? Okay, I knew it was meant to correspond to Battle Frenzy''s "The Prodigy Society''s first battle" but the title was misleading in so many ways. For one thing, Ultimate Outcast Society already had its first battle¡­okay, it involved me team-killing Iron Fist Society, but that should count as the first society battle.

    On the other hand, this was probably our first team battle. So there was that.

    "What are you talking about?"

    I blinked and snapped out of my reminiscing, turning toward Harvey and the rest. He and Wang Fei had stayed back as support, rather than actual fighters, but they were bringing drinks and towels and the usual stuff.

    "Oh, nothing. Just thinking that this is our first team battle."

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    "That''s right." Harvey nodded, his expression that of wonder. "We''ve never participated in a team battle before, have we?"

    "Yeah, that''s right." I stared at him. "You sure you don''t want to participate? This is your great chance, you know?"

    "Nah. I don''t want to drag the Ultimate Outcast down." Harvey shook his head. "Besides, you guys have been working pretty hard over the past week. Stick to that strategy." He lowered his voice. "The Holy Saints are a formidable foe."

    "You got that right." Elliot came up, along with Dong Fang Yue Chu, Stan and Nicholas. He glanced at me. "Are you sure you''re all right with us?"

    Both Elliot and Nicholas were surprised when I approached them for help. As Troy pointed out, they were among the lower-ranked members of Black Roses, so they thought I would use the opportunity to enlist the help of the elite, higher-ranked members. I declined to do so, and explained that we had worked together before and thus it would be easier for us to team up than for us to group with people we were totally unfamiliar with.

    "Yup." I nodded. "I''ll be counting on you guys!"

    "We''ll do our best to not let you down," Nicholas promised, but he was crossing his fingers and swallowing hard.

    "You''ll be fine. We''ll win as a team, and lose as a team. No hard feelings, no blaming no matter what happened." I straightened my spine and squared my shoulders. "But¡­let''s do our best to win this!"

    "Yeah!" everyone shouted and punched the air.

    "All right, let''s go!"

    Then my hastily cobbled together team turned and left the waiting room, stepping into the stage where a huge number of spectators awaited.

    ¡­as well as our opponents from Holy Saints.

    I looked around nervously. Honestly, this wasn''t the first time I had been in an arena, or was being watched by a bunch of spectators, so that wasn''t what bothered me. In fact, the time when I had a match against the team of representatives from Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy, there were a lot more spectators than right now. At that time, the whole school had come to watch. Right now the audience only numbered a fraction of the people present back then.

    Despite that, the arena was still full. This wasn''t the arena in the main hall, but one of the specialized arenas set aside for the use of the various societies. As such, the spectator boxes were packed full of people even before the participants arrived.

    Apparently there was a lot of people interested in the societal group battle between Holy Saints and Ultimate Outcast. Most were wondering if I could pull off a team-kill again. Obviously the chances of that were pretty low, but you know it was with fans and spectators. They enjoyed speculating, betting, talking about crazy stuff. As much as this was for deciding our ranks, the matches also provided a good amount of entertainment for non-participants.

    "Who wants to bet?"

    "Oh?! What are the odds?"

    "4 to 3 for Ultimate Outcast. 3 to 4 for Holy Saints."

    "Oh! That''s surprisingly low odds for Ultimate Outcast."

    "Payout of 10 for another team-kill by Richard Huang!"

    What the f¡­?! Seriously?

    I was flattered that my team-kill legend had become betting odds, but I didn''t want to give false hope. In any event, it was clear that a betting system had cropped up, and many students engaged in it. I had participated at first, but I always lost my bets. After being burned badly, I came to a conclusion that I jinxed whoever I was rooting for and stopped wasting my money on bets. It was fun, especially when you were rooting on your favorite player to win, but it needlessly sucked away too much cash.

    And I wasn''t made of money.

    "Will Captain Harrison Reed be participating in the match?" a love-struck girl demanded from near the front of the crowd. "I would love to see him in action!"

    "Hah! There''s no way Harrison Reed would lower himself to fight Ultimate Outcast! Holy Saints are a great society. They don''t want to be seen bullying newer, less established societies. They''ll only send out their second string instead of their core fighters."

    "Oh, so they''ll have an excuse for when they get team-killed and lose, just like Crowley''s Academy?" one guy, also at the front, sneered acidly.

    "Yeah, even Crowley''s Academy''s representatives lost to Richard. If they don''t send out their best team, wouldn''t they get crushed?"

    "I heard Lin Zhan Long volunteered to personally take charge of this team match. He wanted to teach Richard and the Ultimate Outcast a lesson."

    "Are you sure he won''t be the one who gets his ass kicked?"

    Lin Zhan Long had built up some notoriety despite his status of vice-president of Holy Saints. While his combat capabilities were indeed not weak, he was an arrogant bully who thought too highly of himself, and looked down on those he deemed as weak. As a result, not many people were pleased about being treated condescendingly and abused by someone ¨C especially an individual who bragged loudly, only to get his ass handed to him during last year''s national tournament. His pathetic performance ended up embarrassing Jing Tian Magic Academy.

    Despite his devastating defeat, Lin Zhan Long continued to act arrogant. According to him, he was still better than those who failed to represent Jing Tian Academy at all, and if they wanted to prove him wrong, they were always welcome to challenge him. Unfortunately, reality was pretty harsh, and Lin Zhan Long largely had the ability to back up his boasts. Mostly. The majority of his challengers ended up being pulverized.

    Currently, the vice-president of Holy Saints was slowly making his way to the stage with his group, being the last to appear. They kind of took it for granted that they were the VIPs or something. Right now, the five of them were strolling somewhat arrogantly toward the stage.

    A pretty girl who served as a reporter approached them, a microphone in hand.

    "And here comes Holy Saints! As one of the four great societies of Jing Tian Magic Academy, they have a prestigious history, having won several inter-society tournaments. The last tournament they won was about three years ago, when led by former Captain Harold Samson, they swept aside Black Roses in the finals to clinch the ultimate society trophy!"

    There was some applause.

    I studied their group, and noted that Harrison Reed wasn''t present. Just as I thought. Right now, the leader of the squad was none other than Vice-President Lin Zhan Long, and his faction within the society. Evidently they didn''t view Ultimate Outcast as a threat, even when we received help from Black Roses. They didn''t think much of Elliot and Nicholas either, recognizing them as fourth-string members of Black Roses.

    Apparently if they took us seriously and fought us with all their might, they would still be embarrassed even if they lost face. Though I secretly agreed with the spectators ¨C they just wanted an excuse just in case they lost.

    Puffing his chest out, Lin Zhan Long stared scornfully at everyone in the arena. The spectators began to boo him, but he didn''t care. His mind was currently occupied with the prospect of crushing us Ultimate Outcasts. He had persuaded Harrison Reed to leave this match to him, and was going to seize this opportunity to boost his ego and ranking.

    "Heh." Dong Fang Yue Chu didn''t seem to be aware of that, or even if he did he couldn''t care less and just wanted to exploit the chance to make fun of our rivals. "Where''s Harrison? Is he too afraid to come?"

    Lin Zhan Long burst out laughing, and glared at him with contempt.

    "Why would President Harrison bother coming to face pathetic losers like you? Hell, even I was tempted to give this a miss, but I just thought I should be generous and teach you all a lesson!"

    "We''re so grateful," I replied sarcastically. Then ignoring Lin Zhan Long, I turned to Dong Fang Yue Chu. "Hey, what happened to your Char Aznable cosplay?"

    "Huh? What cosplay?" Dong Fang Yue Chu stared at me blankly.

    "You know¡­a red suit and a cape. Plus a mask. You might want to dye your hair blond too¡­"

    "What the fuck are you babbling about?!" Lin Zhan Long roared impatiently. I merely shrugged.

    "Why should you care? Just Ultimate Outcast business. Nothing to do with you." then I smiled. "But I can tell you if you''re willing to join Ultimate Outcast. We might even give you a special position." I pretended to consider seriously. "We really need a janitor."

    "Shut the fuck up!"

    "Hey, you''re the one who asked."

    To the side, Alicia burst out laughing. She had taken a front row seat as well, and was watching the match with avid interest. Since Elliot and Nicholas were participating, she had an investment in this as well. She was accompanied by a contingent of Black Roses that included Jin Hao, Mizuno Aoi, Miranda Miriam and others. Troy was noticeably absent, because he had to run off and chase after his longlost brother.

    "Now, now." The pretty reporter was bouncing in front of an enraged Lin Zhan Long. Seeing the chance for publicity, he calmed down and allowed her to shove her microphone in front of his face. "Vice-President Lin Zhan Long, what are your plans for this team battle?"

    "Plans? Hah!" Lin Zhan Long scoffed. "You''re overthinking this. We don''t need a plan against rabble like Ultimate Outcast. We''ll just crush them to the ground."

    "Really?" The reporter was astonished. "Your opponent includes Richard Huang, who''s famous for team-killing Iron Fist Society and the representatives from Crowley''s Academy, you know?"

    "So?" Lin Zhan Long sneered. "All we need to do is take him out as soon as possible, stop him from summoning, and we''ll have the win in the bag."

    "So you do have a plan," I remarked. Everyone laughed. Lin Zhan Long''s face flushed red and he turned to holler at me.

    "Shut the fuck up! Nobody asked you!"

    "Now, now, calm down, Vice-President Lin Zhan Long." The reporter raised both hands. "I was going to have to interview both societies anyway."

    "Any interview will have to be conducted later. Let''s not waste time. We''ll begin the match right away."

    Teacher Fielding stepped in. instead of his usual hologram copy, it was the real Teacher Fielding. As this team battle was unofficially sanctioned by Instructor Feng Hai, it was only natural that an actual teacher took charge of refereeing this match, rather than leaving it to a digital clone. As such, everyone recognized how high the stakes were.

    The losers would be shamed and lose most of their chances of becoming a representative, and the winners would be heralded and honored as the brightest hope the academy had. Okay, that was an exaggeration, but you know how spectators love to romanticize this sort of things.

    Stepping forward, Teacher Fielding glanced from one side to the other, studying us. Then he nodded and raised a hand.

    "If both teams are ready, let''s begin!"

 78 Chapter 78: Team Battle

    The moment Teacher Fielding swung his hand down, the arena immediately turned into chaos.

    "Go!"

    Lin Zhan Long sent out an order, and his four other teammates spread out on either side of him. Two on his right, and two on his left. One of them darted ahead in front, charging toward me.

    Pushing up my glasses, I smirked as I watched him approach. Just as I expected, they planned to take me out as soon as the match began, to ensure I didn''t summon anything dangerous.

    "Cody Crosby," the guy introduced himself with a smile as he readied his twin daggers. "I would like to challenge your representative from the Assassin Clan!"

    "..."

    The five members of my team just exchanged puzzled glances. What was this guy babbling about? And who the hell went and introduced himself in the middle of a fight?

    "¡­what Assassin clan?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked with a frown.

    Cody almost braked. "Eh? Where''s Amelia? Isn''t she from the Assassin Clan? The whole reason why I participated was to get a chance to fight against her."

    "WHO THE HELL IS AMELIA?!" I yelled. "Are you sure you''re in the right place and the right story?! You do realize we''re not having a series of one-against-one battles, right? This is a bloody free for all!"

    "He probably read too much Battle Frenzy before the match," Wang Fei muttered from the sidelines.

    "What the fuck are you doing, Cody!?" Lin Zhan Long roared from behind. "Stick to the plan! Take out their trash vice-president before he summons anything!"

    "Oh¡­right." Blinking, Cody nodded, and then he charged toward me, his figure disappearing into a blur.

    Before the match, we had already taken note of who our opponents were, having done our research and strategized accordingly. Cody Crosby was the number one assassin of Jing Tian Academy. That might sound impressive, and it was¡­if you only restricted it to our school. Nonetheless, his speed was formidable, and his skills were topnotch. Even if he lacked firepower, he could easily take down his target with a single strike to a weak point.

    That was why assassins were so terrifying.

    Cody surged through the spaces between us and reappeared behind me, swinging his dagger down to stab the back of my neck. With the boundary field active, it wouldn''t kill me, but it would definitely incapacitate me.

    Bang!

    Before Cody could deliver the killing blow and effectively decapitate me or the team, a bullet whizzed through the space where his head was. Cody clicked his tongue and pulled back, jumping to safety as a barrage of magical bullets streaked after him.

    "You''re mine!" Stan Lee growled as he continued bombarding the assassin with his twin pistols. The muzzles barked and flashes of silver light sped from the barrels, blasting toward the evading Cody like twin meteors.

    "We''ll leave him to you, Stan," I said, and my junior nodded.

    "I''ll do my best to distract him for as long as possible." Then he grinned. "And you don''t mind if I take him out, right?"

    "If you can, do it," I told him with a smile. Stan grinned and broke off from the group to pursue the fleet-footed Cody. Despite his fearsome speed and attack, Cody was basically a paper cannon. His defenses were thin ¨C most assassins eschewed armor and defensive enchantments because they would weigh them down and slow their movements. They preferred to rely on their speed and lightning reflexes to avoid attacks.

    On the other hand, this meant they couldn''t afford to get hit.

    Now¡­the main threat. While the high-speed battle between assassin and marksman (too bad Stan wasn''t a sniper, or that would be cool) was going on, the main force of Holy Saints had closed in our positions.

    Heavy Knights. The next group composed entirely of heavy knights. Equipped with shields, swords or armor, they were pretty¡­well, heavy. Only Terence Taylor wasn''t equipped with anything, instead trusting in his defensive enchantment to protect him. No, he was not the Black Bear, I have no idea where you got that from. He was known as¡­the Tank, because of the amount of punishment he could take. Very little people could break through his insane defenses. He didn''t need armor or weapons because he was that sturdy.

    He was pretty much a lite version of Chang Cheng from Crowley''s Academy.

    The other three, Adam Freeman, was clad in full body armor and armed with a broadsword. Lily Liam was known as the White Valkyrie, what with her long, golden flowing hair and elegant fighting style. Unlike the others, she was armed with a lance instead of a sword, but also sported a shield for defense. If I recalled correctly, she could summon a horse eventually ¨C she had taken the same summoning class as I did, so I knew her relatively well. Unlike me, however, summoning was her tertiary, or secondary magic at best. Something to supplement her already formidable fighting skills, rather than her specialization. Just like Cody, she was part of the core lineup of Holy Saints, and the two of them usually fought under President Harrison Reed instead of Vice-President Lin Zhan Long.

    The only reason why they were fighting today was because they saw a chance to test their skills. More likely they were more interested in testing the skills of the Black Roses members in our lineup, but already that wasn''t going according to plan, not with Stan distracting Cody.

    And now¡­

    "I''ll take care of the White Valkyrie."

    Stepping forward Dong Fang Yue Chu raised a hand, and a curtain of fire blazed through the ranks of the approaching Holy Saints. They were forced to split up and dodge the wall of flames, only to realize that Lily had been split off from the rest. Dong Fang Yue Chu approached her, spreading out his blazing hands.

    "It seems that you''ve upgraded your magic," Lily commented as she watched him with narrowed eyes. "I don''t remember your fire spells being this powerful."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu shrugged. "It''s all thanks to Richard''s Dad giving me special training." He then smiled and extended a hand toward her. "Shall we dance?"

    Lily snorted. "I''m surprised. I thought you would run away and jump out of bounds by yourself when facing me, with the excuse that a man can''t go all out against a woman."

    "¡­uh, what?" Dong Fang Yue Chu stared at her blankly. "You and Cody aren''t confusing Ultimate Outcast with Prodigy Society or something, right?"

    Lily didn''t even bother to waste her breath arguing with him. She was already charging at him with her lance, ready to run him through. Ranked among the top three in Jing Tian Academy, Lily fought aggressively, yet somehow retained an impression of grace and elegance, melding strength and beauty. She was the main warrior that all girls in the academy looked up to. Even the goddess Alicia Violet couldn''t compare against her in terms of brute strength and combat skill, but then again Alicia was a ranged mage, not a frontline soldier.

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    Nonetheless, Dong Fang Yue Chu remained calm. Stretching out his hand, he knocked her lance aside and delivered a crushing palm strike that exploded with flames. Instinctively recognizing the danger, Lily immediately raised her shield and parried the blow. The flames washed over her, weakened slightly by the defensive aura emanated by her shield, but she was forced to retreat.

    "This is¡­?!" She scowled and lowered her singed shield slightly. "Seems like Richard Huang isn''t the only one who rose meteorically through the ranks this year."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu smiled and shrugged again. "Thank you for the compliment."

    On the other side of the flames, the heavily armored Adam was tromping toward us, only for Elliot to hammer his axe against him. Despite the heavy armor protecting him from being cleaved into pieces, Adam was still sent staggering backward. He raised his broadsword and hacked at Elliot, but the axe-wielder had ducked. Spinning to the side, he smashed his axe against the armored joint of Adam''s knee, causing the armored knight to drop to a knee.

    "Ugh!"

    Elliot didn''t relent and swung his axe again, this time at Adam''s helm. But the heavily armored knight held up his broadsword to parry the blow. Even so, he was sent skidding a few centimeters backward.

    "Kuh!"

    "Wow¡­as expected of a Heavy Knight. Your armor is pretty tough to crack." Elliot shook his head. "This is going to take some time."

    "Take as long as you need to!" I called out from the side, but we had already discussed our strategy beforehand. However, circumstances on the battlefield were always evolving and changing.

    I wondered how we would be able to adapt, but I guess we would see. There definitely would occur some events that we wouldn''t be able to foresee.

    Nicholas had already surged forward and smashed a kick into Terence''s belly. The Tank staggered with a grimace, and then threw out both his arms to wrap Nicholas in a bear hug, but Nicholas quickly evaded. Appearing behind Terence, he kicked him in the back, but Terence didn''t fall over. Spinning around, he threw out a hand and smacked Nicholas in the face.

    "Guh!"

    Nicholas landed on the ground, but he quickly rose to his feet. Shaking his head, he adopted a stance, placing one hand in front of the other. Terence slowly lumbered toward him, but Nicholas stood his ground.

    "What are you trying to do? Copy Ip Man? You think you''re the grand master of Wing Chun, is it?" Terence scoffed.

    Nicholas didn''t say anything. Instead, he merely waited for Terence to approach. When the huge guy struck him, he smacked his fist away, deflecting it aside. Deflecting Terence''s heavy punches, he then twisted around and hammered a barrage of short punches into Terence''s face and chest. Despite his impervious defenses, Terence staggered backward, stunned by the sudden vicious. With a growl, he swung his arm out, but Nicholas parried it and was sent skidding backward. Ducking under another punch, his leg snaked out and hooked around Terence''s, and shoved it from under him. Terence toppled over, and then Nicholas quickly stepped in and hammered another series of short punches into his face. Grunting as his head snapped back, Terence retaliated with a hook, but Nicholas calmly slapped his arm away and countered with another strike to his throat.

    Even so, there was no way Terence was going down that easily. Not with that sort of formidable defense. And I had matters of my own to worry about.

    "Hah! With all your teammates tied up, there''s no one left to protect you!" Lin Zhan Long sneered as he charged at me. It was obvious that he fully intended to lay me flat and finish me off right here and right now, and eliminate the greatest threat to his team. The moment I summoned one of my Celestial Guardians, it would be very difficult for his team to prevail.

    However, much to his surprise, I ran straight at him too.

    "You¡­!" he growled. The vice-president of Holy Saints clearly did not expect me to fight a head-on battle right from the beginning. He had assumed that I would try to hide behind my comrades and rely on them to buy me enough time to summon my big guns.

    That would be the wise thing to do, and probably the most optimal strategy. Unfortunately, it also made them very predictable.

    Lin Zhan Long didn''t care about all of that, however. He began laughing when he thought I was recklessly running toward my death. He was aware of my other summoning spells but he was confident that his melee skills were better than mine. So even if I¡­

    "Gemini!"

    ¡­fought him with my Constellation weapons, he was confident that he would still be able to overpower me.

    Lin Zhan Long swung his sword at my head, but I dropped to my knees and skidded underneath his swinging blade while slashing at his legs with my Gemini twin swords. Lin Zhan Long wasn''t able to lower his shield in time, and blood spurted from twin wounds.

    "Ugh!"

    He staggered and glared at me in shock.

    "How?!"

    I merely stood back up and smiled. Twirling my twin swords, I then readied myself for another attack.

    "What are you still standing there for?" I asked as I charged at him again. "The match has already started long ago."

 79 Chapter 79: Cut off the Head

    Clang!

    "Kuh!"

    Lin Zhan Long staggered back as I slashed at him again, raising his shield to defend himself from my Gemini twin swords. He countered with his sword, but I parried it with Pollux before counterattacking with Castor.

    A black energy wave rippled from my black blade and slammed into his shield, causing him to retreat another few steps. Gritting his teeth, he hacked at me again, but I managed to parry his sword with Pollux. This time, a blast of white energy surged from the white blade and scorched his arm, causing him to yelp in pain and drop his sword.

    "I''m actually losing in a sword fight?!" he growled angrily. I was a little surprised too, because Lin Zhan Long should have more experience and skills in swordsmanship than me. Perhaps the foundation in swordsmanship that my Dad built for me had helped tremendously and allowed me to fight on par with the vice-president of Holy Saints.

    It didn''t matter. Li Zhan Long was far from defeated. With a growl, he unleashed a blast of crimson energy that sent me hurtling backward, despite crossing my Gemini twin swords to parry the blow. Heaving, I skidded backward and glanced up as Li Zhan Long drew a new weapon.

    No, he didn''t retrieve his fallen sword. Instead, he was drawing a new Divine Device and activating it. Mana swirled around the gadget before it expanded and transformed into a wicked-looking weapon.

    "Hmph. I can''t believe you''ve forced me into using my Dragon Saber!"

    Originally, the idiot thought he could win against me easily with just a sword, but now he realized that I was quite a handful to deal with. So he had drawn his personal Divine Device, his primary weapon that he used as part of Holy Saints'' core lineup.

    The Dragon Saber. I had done research on my opponents before the team match, so I was somewhat familiar with what kind of weapon it is. It relied on brute force ¨C something Lin Zhan Long was famous for. Apparently forged after a legend that was said to be capable of slaying dragons, the Dragon Saber packed immense power and burst strength. If Lin Zhan Long¡­

    "Hah!"

    The wielder of the Dragon Saber descended upon me, slashing downward with his legendary weapon. I tried to dodge, barely stepping to the side as the blade smashed into the ground and pulverized concrete, but Lin Zhan Ling effortlessly swept his Dragon Saber up in my direction before he straightened himself up.

    "!!"

    I parried his strike with Gemini twin swords, and both of them shattered instantly. I was blasted backward, my hands stinging and numb from the impact. Blood dripped from my arms, but I managed to flip myself to land on my feet.

    "Hah! I knew it! Your summoned weapons are no match for an actual Divine Device!"

    Lin Zhan Long was roaring in triumph, raising his Dragon Saber and readying for another attack. I didn''t bother to summon another pair of Gemini twin swords, and instead focused entirely on evading. Diving to the side, I felt debris splatter against my back as Lin Zhan Long destroyed the ground again. Rolling to my feet, I spotted him coming at me again.

    This guy was relentless.

    "Hu¡­"

    Taking a deep breath, I gathered more magical energy into the core of my body, getting ready to complete my summoning spell. Lin Zhan Long was sharp enough to notice what I intended, and he lunged at me again, his Dragon Saber carving a path of destruction.

    "!!!"

    Bam!

    The ground beneath my feet exploded, a small crater dented into the ground as Lin Zhan Long smashed it apart. I stumbled before rolling away, but blood continued to gush out of fresh wounds as the sharp blade pressure from his divine saber sliced through my shoulder and chest.

    I wasn''t going to last very long at this rate. This was also the reason why I lost most of the times in the past. Without given the chance to complete my summoning, combat mages who specialized in melee weapons or fighting techniques would completely destroy me before I could summon anything.

    Worse, I wasn''t even summoning a Celestial Guardian now, but a simple Constellation spirit. Too weak, and Lin Zhan Long would cleave him apart with his Dragon Saber (like my Canis Minor and Ursa Minor). Too strong, and my opponent would cut me to pieces long before I completed my summoning.

    Fortunately, I had bought more than enough time.

    Spinning to my feet, I brought my hands up to chest level and completed my summoning. Behind me, Canis Major materialized and lunged at Lin Zhan Long.

    The stunned Heavy Knight slashed instinctively, but Canis Major recognized the danger of the extremely powerful Divine Device and bounded above it. Sailing over the serrated blade, he whirled around after landing and lashed out with a claw. Despite his arrogance, Lin Zhan Long proved that he was worthy of being a core lineup for his society, his astounding reflexes kicking in and allowing him to spin around with his shield up.

    Canis Major''s claws smashed against the shield, and Lin Zhan Long staggered back. However, he didn''t waste any time and countered with a strike from his Dragon Saber. The heavy weapon almost cleaved Canis Major in half, but the gigantic hunting hound recoiled and retreated. Even so, the sharp blade pressure from the divine saber managed to nick his furry chest, and blood began dripping. The red droplets dissipated into spiritual energy before they could touch the ground.

    "Hmph. So what if you completed your summoning spell?" Lin Zhan Long sneered. "I know what kind of soul beasts you have. These are the second-rate ones who can''t compare to either your phoenix or tiger!"

    The guy evidently didn''t watch the mission report when I helped out the Black Roses against the Fiery Ape, or he would have seen my Black Tortoise as well. Not that I intended to summon him here, against an opponent like him.

    "This sort of soul beast¡­I''ll be able to kill it easily!"

    With a delighted roar, Lin Zhan Long pounced on Canis Major. He swung his Dragon Saber in a vicious arc, hoping to decapitate my Constellation spirit in one strike. However, Canis Major quickly withdrew with a growl.

    "Heh! Even this stupid soul beast recognizes the danger my Dragon Saber pose! If you can''t summon another soul beast by the time I''m finished with this one, you''re dead!"

    "Nah, I don''t need to summon any other Constellation spirits to deal with the likes of you," I replied. I would rather summon something else, but he didn''t have to know that.

    "Arrogant prick! I''ll teach you the enormous gulf between our strengths¡­and our statuses!" Lin Zhan Long bellowed before he swung around to slash at my approaching Canis Major, forcing him to stay back.

    "Statuses? We''re both vice-presidents of our respective societies," I pointed out.

    "Oh, shut up!"

    Lin Zhan Long stopped attacking and instead drew his Dragon Saber back in an aggressive stance. Crimson mana began to flow along the green-red blade that he held, swirling into a volcanic vortex of flames.

    That was one hell of a spell he was casting. Recognizing that this would be bad, I quickly sent a telepathic signal to my Canis Major.

    "Canis Major, use Sirius attack!"

    Canis Major howled in reply before gathering mana into his jaws. His maw yawned and he unleashed a catastrophic sonic attack that blasted across the arena, slamming into Lin Zhan Long. The Heavy Knight instantly comprehended how bad it would be if he took the attack without defending against it, so he paused the casting of his spell and instead raised his shield to block the enormous sonic wave. He dug his feet into the ground, and his shield vibrated violently as it struggled to endure the vicious sound blast.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    Lin Zhan Long staggered, his ears bleeding. It wasn''t just him. Around us, a few of the Holy Saints had been affected, swaying on their feet as their ears bled. In contrast to them, the Ultimate Outcast and Black Roses alliance was fine, thanks to us already discussing possible strategies beforehand and taking the appropriate countermeasures.

    Thanks to that, we were able to capitalize on our advantage.

    "Don''t fuck with me!"

    However, Lin Zhan Long was far from down. While crouching, he completed his spell and swung his Dragon Saber. Crimson flames erupted from his huge blade and washed over Canis Major, incinerating the Constellation spirit. I winced and took a step back, even as the massive figure of the hunting hound disappeared from the physical dimension.

    "Now you''re doom!" Lin Zhan Long gloated as he charged at me, his glowing Dragon Saber seeming ready to unleash another devastating wave of fire.

    I smiled. Already I had a black bow in hand and was conjuring a fiery arrow of my own.

    "Hah! You think you can defeat me with an arrow?!" Lin Zhan Long burst out laughing, but he didn''t falter and continued charging. "Try it if you can!"

    That proved to me beyond a doubt that Lin Zhan Long had only been watching the school matches I had taken part in, and not any of the mission reports. As I said before, most students eschewed missions and focused entirely on ranking matches. It wasn''t practical, to be honest, but it was the system people were brought up in, and so they stubbornly stuck to it.

    Well, that was to my advantage, so I didn''t complain.

    Before Lin Zhan Long could reach me, I let loose Alnasl. The blazing arrow streaked out like a fireball and collided with him. The Heavy Knight quickly brought up his shield, but Alnasl exploded upon impact.

    The shield, already damaged by Canis Major''s Sirius attack earlier, shattered. An inferno engulfed the screaming Lin Zhan Long, burning him into a crisp. His blackened figure staggered for a few seconds, and then toppled face first into the ground.

    "First blood to Ultimate Outcast!" Teacher Fielding announced with a raise of his hand. Outside the arena, applause and cheers erupted from the spectators, especially all those who had suffered under Lin Zhan Long''s condescending abuse.

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    As much as I would love to join them, the battle was far from over. Even as I was dismissing Sagittarius, Cody was charging straight at me. A dagger flashed out and Stan fell, blood spurting out of his neck.

    "Second blood to Holy Saints!" Teacher Fielding shouted. There were a few cheers from the spectators, because Cody did have some fans among first and second year students aspiring to reach the peak of assassination magic.

    With Stan down, there was no longer anyone to occupy Cody Crosby''s attention. The assassin closed in on me, his dagger flashing down on my neck before I could summon any new Constellation weapons to defend myself with.

 80 Chapter 80: Team Beam

    Of course, at this point, it didn''t matter if they eliminated me or not. I had already shown my hand, and gotten rid of Lin Zhan Long. It was clear that I wouldn''t be summoning any new soul beasts any time soon.

    Even so, I was still a threat, as evidenced by my subjugation of their leader. Now that his own opponent had been defeated, it was natural that Cody would move to assassinate me before I could help any of my allies.

    But let us take a few steps backward to review what was going on before my seemingly inevitable demise.

    A few minutes earlier, Cody had been dueling with Stan, who kept him at bay with his dual pistols. The latter had been keeping up a relentless barrage, but Cody was far more experienced and faster. Dodging his bullets, he streaked past Stan and lashed oout with his daggers.

    "Kuh!"

    Stan dropped to a knee as blood gushed out from wounds on his arm and leg. However, he refused to relinquish his grip on his pistols and continued to raise them, firing off a second barrage. One of the bullets grazed Cody''s cheek, leaving a thin line of blood dripping through his skin.

    "¡­"

    Cody spun around, trying his best to avoid yet another storm of bullets. Raising his daggers, he narrowed his eyes when he realized that he couldn''t afford to take the first year student lightly.

    "I''ll have to finish this quickly. I wanted to save this for the seniors, but¡­"

    He could sense the fiery heat as Dong Fang Yue Chu used his flames to roast Lily Liam. The White Valkyrie was still guarding against his flames with her shield, but both of them could sense something different about his flames.

    It wasn''t just normal fire. It seemed to possess a purifying effect. Cody was aware that if he didn''t wrap this up fast enough, then¡­

    ¡­and then the sonic attack hit.

    Canis Major chose that moment to unleash his Sirius attack, and the Holy Saints all fell over, clutching their ears. Stan had no intention of letting his chance slip by and took aim, firing into Cody''s vitals. Despite being disorientated by the sudden sonic blast, Cody gritted his teeth and deflected the bullets with his daggers.

    "Ugh¡­"

    Shaking his head, he swiftly returned to his feet, and charged straight at the shooting Stan. Stan narrowed his eyes and intensified his barrage, but Cody did not wish to plough straight through the volley of mana projectiles.

    He didn''t have the defensive capability or durability for that kind of punishment. Especially given the high amount of bullets coming his way.

    "Hu¡­"

    Taking a deep breath, Cody cast the spell that he had been saving up this entire time.

    "Shadow Clones!"

    His body suddenly split into five, all five figures dashing toward a stunned Stan. To his credit, Stan didn''t panic and instead shifted his aim, shooting the one in the center. The bullets passed through the clone, which disappeared after taking damage.

    "Not the real one, huh?" he muttered, clicking his tongue. He then shifted his aim to the one at the far right. Letting loose a volley of shots, he tried to shoot Cody down, but he never knew if he had chosen the right target or not.

    Cody was intelligent enough to not waste his clones. All four remaining figures immediately moved and dodged, relying on their high speed to evade the trajectory of Stan''s bullets. Stan cursed as he struggled to keep up, but with four targets flying toward him at incredible speed, there was no way he could hit all of them.

    He had to retreat.

    At the same time, Teacher Fielding''s voice echoed throughout the arena.

    "First Blood to Ultimate Outcast!"

    "?!"

    Both Stan and Cody couldn''t help but turn at the announcement, only to see Lin Zhan Long''s charred body lying spread-eagled on the floor.

    "Lin Zhan Long has¡­!"

    "Vice-President did it!"

    Stan immediately grew giddy. If I could do it, then he could, too! Resolute determination welling up inside him, he spun around and emptied his guns into the four shadow clones that had stopped. Cody, however, had not made it to the top by being careless, and they immediately sprang into action.

    "I''m sorry, but if Zhan Long is down, then I can''t afford to waste any more time on you."

    "??"

    Before Stan could retort, Cody flashed past him, his dagger slicing through his jugular vein. Normally that would have been a fatal injury, but the boundary field ensured that we would all remain alive no matter what kind of injuries we sustained.

    However, it was enough to take out Stan. The poor first year clutched at his throat, trying in vain to stem the spurting blood. Collapsing, he let out a wet gargle and went still.

    "Second Blood to Holy Saints!"

    Skidding to a stop, Cody dismissed his shadow clones, which dissipated after a few seconds. He instead focused his mana into his daggers and lunged at me. Seeing that my back was toward him, he quickly seized the chance to bury his weapons in my neck.

    "?!"

    Before he could reach me, however, a spinning axe cut through the space where he would have been if he had continued plunging toward my neck. Forcing himself to a stop on reflex, he then cartwheeled back and glanced in the direction of Elliot, who had thrown his axe at him.

    "You¡­!" Adam Freeman growled. "Throwing away your weapon to save your leader, do you think so lowly of me?"

    "No," Elliot replied. "It''s just that my role is done."

    "Huh?!"

    "Have you forgotten? This is a team battle, not a one-on-one."

    "Shut up!"

    Bellowing, Adam lumbered toward Elliot. He struck a terrifying posture, what with him being clad in full body armor and all. Raising his broadsword high in the air, he got ready to cleave the axe-user in half.

    Then a torrent of flames washed over him. Adam shrieked in agony as his armor glowed white-hot, smoldering as the purifying fire scorched him. The defensive runes and protective enchantments that adorned the once pristine surface of his silver armor sizzled and burned out, and the poor guy found himself being boiled alive within his own armor, his body trapped within the superheated shell.

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    "T¡­this isn''t a normal fire spell! What the hell is this?!"

    "Pure Yang Flames," Dong Fang Yue Chu replied with a grin. "Passed down to me from my mother, and the ultimate fire spell in the Dong Fang Clan for generations. I could never unleash its full potential, but thanks to Richard''s Dad¡­"

    "Are you ignoring me?" Lily growled as she tried to run him through with her spear, but Dong Fang Yue Chu merely thrust his other hand forward. More flames gushed forward, surging toward her. The White Valkyrie shielded herself, but just like with the now unconscious and singed Adam, the defensive runes on her shield began to burn out. "This¡­?!"

    "Sorry for the interruption, my dear. Let''s resume our dance, shall we?"

    Smiling, Dong Fang Yue Chu turned back toward a pale Lily.

    "¡­"

    Further back, Cody was preparing another surgical strike. He frowned when he noted that his team were down two people. Teacher Fielding didn''t need to announce that, but the holographic scoreboard above displayed how many members were down, and how many were still fighting. The odds were currently in Ultimate Outcast''s favor, four to three.

    He had to even out the odds somehow.

    His eyes darted from me to Elliot. By now Elliot had retrieved his axe and was preparing to help Nicholas against Terence, who was still weathering the Wing Chun martial artist''s blows. Neither of them were down yet, and they still had plenty left in their tanks. As for me¡­

    I was unarmed.

    Cody then made his choice and dove at me. I turned around with a smirk.

    "!!!"

    Cody immediately sensed danger, but he didn''t pull back. He was committed.

    "Black Shadow Clone!"

    Uttering the incantation, Cody split into five clones again, all of them splitting out in different directions. He had seen me take out Lin Zhan Long with a single arrow, he had watched my previous matches (through video recordings) and was aware of the Constellation weapons or Constellation spirits I could summon.

    So he reckoned that if he split up, I would be forced to divide my attention among all five clones. And just like with Stan, he would be able to close in and take me out.

    What Stan and I didn''t know, however, was that Cody didn''t just merely create clones of himself. He could freely swap himself from one of his bodies to another, thus allowing himself to escape even in the twenty percent chance of his opponent guessing correctly and attacking the right "clone." Therefore it was his ace in the hole, an offensive and evasive technique combined into one.

    What Cody didn''t realize, unfortunately, was that it was useless against me.

    "Lyra."

    A golden harp materialized in my hand. Hundreds of wires sprang out and stretched across the small space around me. All five clones of Cody were ensnared.

    "¡­what? T¡­this¡­!"

    Cody froze for a moment. He tried to slice at the wires with his daggers, but he found all four of his limbs bound tightly by the razor-sharp garrote wires. All five copies of himself. Even if he swapped himself out, he would still find himself trapped.

    I smiled, but didn''t waste any time in tightening my wires and slicing Cody into pieces. The boundary field protected him, and Cody was not cut apart into bloody chunks. Blood did flow from countless wounds on his body, however, and he collapsed, completely unconscious.

    Above, the scoreboard changed to reflect the remaining members to 4 for Ultimate Outcasts and 2 for Holy Saints.

    We now outnumbered our opponents two against one.

 81 Chapter 81: The White Valkyrie

    Both Terence and Lily suddenly realized how massively disadvantaged they were. Unfortunately, Terence was unable to act much. Suddenly facing two opponents instead of one, he found himself pushed back.

    Wham!

    Nicholas was able to smack his face before running a series of punches down to his chest, shocking him. Growling in irritation, Terence swatted him away, but Nicholas managed to parry the blow and skidded backward. Spinning around, he made use of his momentum to deliver a kick to the advancing Terence, knocking the guy back a few steps.

    Then Elliot swung his axe, the huge blade cleaving through the back of Terence''s neck. The huge guy toppled over, unconscious. Normally, that would mean his death, a decapitating blow that would have removed his head for sure, but the boundary field had preserved his life, allowing him to retain his head but knocked him out.

    There was only one opponent left.

    Elliot, Nicholas and I didn''t move in, however, because Dong Fang Yue Chu already had the situation well in hand.

    Lily Liam was striking fiercely with her lance, but Dong Fang Yue Chu calmly deflected it away with his bare palms. Perhaps that was inaccurate, for Dong Fang Yue Chu''s hands were blazing with his Pure Yang Fire, which almost melted Lily''s lance into slag while protecting his palms. Knocking the sharp end of the red-hot spear to the side, Dong Fang Yue Chu whirled inside and slammed his fiery palm toward Lily''s well-endowed chest.

    However, Lily raised her shield and managed to block the attack, but just barely. Her shield shattered and she staggered back from the impact with a curse. Twirling her spear around, she forced Dong Fang Yue Chu back, and then retreated.

    "No choice¡­" she muttered, her eyes darting toward where Elliot, Nicholas and I stood. As much as we wanted to join in and finish the match off as quickly as possible, we recognized that this was Dong Fang Yue Chu''s fight.

    It would be impolite for us to intervene. Dong Fang Yue Chu deserved the chance to get into the spotlight for once.

    Lily decided to make use of this chance to summon her own soul beast. A flash of light filled the arena, and the next moment she was riding on top of a winged horse. Gripping the reins, she had her horse charge forward.

    "!!!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu sensed danger and he quickly dove to the side before Lily''s lance could strike him. The heavy weapon gouged a huge trail into the concrete ground, tearing out a slough of the reinforced material and throwing bits into the air.

    "Her destructive power has multiplied by several times!" Nicholas murmured, amazed. Elliot nodded, a frown curling over his face.

    "Should we intervene?"

    "I''m fine. Leave this to me."

    We stopped when Dong Fang Yue Chu raised a hand to stop us. Taking a deep breath, he gathered more flames into himself, and surrounded himself in an inferno.

    "It''s useless. You won''t be able to withstand my charge now."

    Digging her heels in, Lily directed her summoned horse to charge at Dong Fang Yue Chu again. Right now she recognized that she had a low probability of winning, and she was fighting purely for pride now. As long as she could take out at least one other member of our team, she would have achieved a moral victory.

    She was going to fight until the end.

    Before her horse and she could reach Dong Fang Yue Chu, however, the fire mage called up a huge curtain of Pure Yang Flames. Lily wasn''t able to stop her charge in time and ended up barreling right through the thick screen of flames.

    "Ugh!"

    Lily cried out in pain as the purifying flames scorched her. Her horse neighed in agony as the Pure Yang Flames seared through its silver-white body, blackening its once pristine fur and melting the armor and metallic ornaments into slag.

    The horse then toppled over, throwing Lily off, disappearing into wisps of spiritual energy. Lily hit the ground and rolled to her feet, bringing her lance up for a counterattack. However, Dong Fang Yue Chu did not close in on her at all.

    "!!"

    Lily retreated a few steps, watching him warily. Dong Fang Yue Chu merely smiled and shrugged, spreading his hands to show that he was unarmed. Obviously it was a deceptive move, given how he didn''t need weapons.

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    "I didn''t think you would have mastered the legendary Pure Yang Flames," Lily remarked as she wiped soot and perspiration from her face. She glanced at the space where her summoned horse had been a few seconds ago. "The Pure Yang Flames that is said to be able to destroy any monsters and purify them, as well as damage Divine Devices."

    Monsters seemed to have a close relationship with soul beasts, so generally spells and magic that were effective against monsters also tended to be excellent against soul beasts. That was why Lily''s horse was vulnerable to the purifying effects of Dong Fang Yue Chu''s Pure Yang Flames. Of course, elemental affinity helped too. Dong Fang Yue Chu''s Pure Yang Fire wouldn''t be a good match against my fire-type Vermillion Phoenix or water-type Black Tortoise, for example.

    Otherwise Dong Fang Yue Chu would practically become invincible against all monsters. Additionally, power helped too. If the monster was powerful enough, it didn''t matter what kind of elemental disadvantage it was up against. It would survive a blast from Dong Fang Yue Chu''s Pure Yang Flames.

    Fortunately, Lily seemed to be around the same level as Dong Fang Yue Chu, and the two were evenly matched. Thanks to my Dad''s training, Dong Fang Yue Chu was able to hold his own in close combat, using martial arts to fend off Lily''s lance strikes and burn her as and when he needed to.

    To her credit, Lily was far from defeated, even though her shield and horse were incinerated. She was still a formidable warrior, as evidenced by her skill with the spear. Twirling around, she thrust her spear at Dong Fang Yue Chu, forcing him into the defensive. He whirled around, deflecting her lance, but Lily continued to press her advantage, her glowing spear aimed at his vitals with flawless precision. Just one mistake, and Dong Fang Yue Chu would fall.

    Already he was staggering backward, perspiration beading on his face despite his resistance to heat. His breathing was growing heavier too and his movements were slowing. On the other hand, Lily was not slowing down at all. A sudden strike to his right left a graze on his arm, a thin line of blood opening up underneath a torn sleeve. Blood spurted from his left shoulder as her lance pierced through his skin, narrowly missing the bone underneath. The tip of her spear also cut through his side, spinning him, but Dong Fang Yue Chu just barely managed to slap it away before it could penetrate his vitals and bring him down.

    It was clear that Lily was winning the close combat battle.

    As a specialized combat mage, it was only natural that she would be superior to Dong Fang Yue Chu in terms of melee techniques and close combat skills. Dong Fang Yue Chu did learn some combat magic, but it was only recently that he benefited from my Dad''s training. Lily still held the advantage in terms of experience and skills.

    "Will Yue Chu really be all right?" Elliot asked anxiously. "He''s being hard-pressed at the moment."

    "¡­as expected of the White Valkyrie." Nicholas looked grim. "She really is the strongest member in this Holy Saints team."

    That was correct. Currently, Lily Liam was the second-strongest member of Holy Saints, behind only Harrison Reed in terms of strength and skill. She was originally slated to be the next vice-president of Holy Saints, but she wasn''t interested in politics and wanted to devote herself completely to honing her skills. Hence she rejected the position and the role instead fell to the more politically manipulative Lin Zhan Long.

    Lily was similar to me in that aspect. I also didn''t want any position, but I had no choice but to be vice-president because there simply wasn''t any other member to take the position. As a second year, I was not allowed to just palm it off to my juniors in the first year. Otherwise I would have done that long ago and focused solely on cultivating my strength, just like Lily.

    Well, that was the benefit of being in a great society like Holy Saints, which Lily made full use of.

    It wasn''t an exaggeration, therefore, to say that she was the strongest member out of the five. And right now Dong Fang Yue Chu was fighting with her on his own. To be honest, it was already impressive that he could fight on par with the third-ranked student in Jing Tian Academy, given that he was near the bottom of the rankings a couple of months ago.

    "I''m not going to be a burden anymore," Dong Fang Yue Chu muttered under his breath. "As the president of Ultimate Outcast, I''m going to work hard to prove myself¡­to be worthy of such a lofty position!"

    With a yell, he literally exploded. Pure Yang Flames gushed out of him, washing over the entire area and engulfing a stunned Lily.

    "?!"

    The White Valkyrie tried to retreat, but Dong Fang Yue Chu directed another torrent of flames over her. She found herself teetering near the edge of the arena, with nowhere else to go. Cursing, she held her lance up and decided to gamble everything on one last attack. Lowering her spear until it was parallel to the ground, she charged.

    For a moment, it worked. Her lance pierced through the flames and she was able to cut open a path as she charged toward the stalwart Dong Fang Yue Chu. However, the fire mage merely stood his ground and continued to control his flames. The Pure Yang Flames that had been split apart by Lily''s lance suddenly closed around her and surged from behind, swallowing her in an immense inferno.

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    Lily let out a bloodcurdling shriek as she was engulfed by the purifying flames. In a few moments, she fell to her knees, her eyes rolling up in their sockets. The boundary field had protected her from death, but she seemed like she was burned into a crisp before she toppled over.

    Stunned silence filled the coliseum. After a few seconds, Teacher Fielding raised his hand.

    "All of Holy Saints Society''s members have been eliminated! Winner, Ultimate Outcast Society!"

    The spectators continued to watch the arena with disbelieving expressions. There was no way Ultimate Outcast could have won. True, a lot of them were pissed off by Lin Zhan Long''s arrogance and condescending attitude, and were celebrate his early elimination. They were gloating when he was the first to fall.

    But Holy Saints still had Cody Crosby and Lily Liam, two of the strongest members of Holy Saints and part of their core vanguard, their first team lineup. How could they lose to a bunch of third-stringers from Black Roses and a newly started society made up mostly of first year students?

    "YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!"

    Harvey bellowed out a cheer and jumped to his feet, waving his hands in excitement. Wang Fei joined in a second later and the two first year students began hollering their hearts out in joy.

    "WE WON! Ultimate Outcast won! WOOHOO!"

    Beside them, Alicia smiled and broke into applause, as did the rest of the Black Roses watching the match. Jin Hao, Aoi, and the rest. They were all cheering not just for Elliot and Nicholas, but also for the rest of Ultimate Outcast.

    "Heh¡­we did it. We actually did it!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu dropped to a sitting position, exhausted from the match, but delighted with the result. Equally pleased with the outcome, I nodded tiredly.

    "Yup. We sure did."

 82 Chapter 82: Announcemen

    The match was supposedly over. Teacher Fielding was about to step down from the referee box hoisted to the side, where he could supervise us from above without having to interfere with the match, and the spectators were about to leave.

    However¡­

    "Bravo! Bravo!"

    Everyone froze when they heard the familiar voice. The architect of this match, the person who proposed this whole team battle to begin with, Feng Hai, was clapping his hands and making his way toward the arena. He raised his hands and gestured for my team to remain on stage. We glanced at each other, puzzled, but obeyed.

    The unconscious ones were already being ferried away by the medics, but Feng Hai waved them to carry on with their duties. Other than Stan, the only casualty in our team, the whole of Holy Saints Society''s team were whisked away on stretchers.

    "Congratulations on your win!" Feng Hai told us as he clapped his hands, grinning deviously. There was something about his expression that I wasn''t very comfortable with. It was almost as if he was scheming something.

    Even so, I bowed my head, as did the rest of my team.

    "Thank you, sir."

    "Thank you."

    "Thanks."

    "Now, now." Feng Hai waved his hands again. "You deserve credit for pulling off such an awesome performance!"

    Aw¡­he was making us blush. Not that I cared, because I was sure there was a reason behind his blatant flattery.

    Feng Hai wasn''t paying attention to us now. Instead, he was turning toward the audience and spreading his hands wide.

    "Based on today''s performance, I think it''s fair to say this team deserves a shot at becoming the representatives more than those fielded by Holy Saints today, right?"

    There was some murmurs from the crowd, but the Holy Saints who had turned up to watch were unhappy. Even so, they couldn''t say anything because the result was clear. The team they had sent out, even though it was partially second-string, had lost. There was no denying this outcome.

    Even so, I didn''t want to ruin their chances, so I raised a hand.

    "Um, I''m sure more than a few of them have displayed an impressive performance in the match earlier. It would be unfair and overly harsh to dismiss them because of a single loss."

    "That is true. I''ve watched the match, so I can tell who performed well and who didn''t." Feng Hai nodded in agreement. I didn''t know whether to feel relief or not. Lin Zhan Long was one thing, but I didn''t want to earn the enmity from the rest of Holy Saints. Harrison Reed was an opponent I could not afford to offend.

    The relief somewhat abated with Feng Hai''s next announcement, however.

    "Holy Saints will still get a chance to represent the academy. However, in the training camp next month¡­I''ll be giving Vice-President Lin Zhan Long''s quota to Ultimate Outcast."

    "¡­huh?"

    Everyone looked stunned. I was also confused, but for a different reason.

    "Training camp? What training camp?"

    "Oh, I didn''t tell you?" Feng Hai glanced at Alicia, who shook her head. He slapped his forehead mockingly. "Whoops, sorry about that."

    The audience began whispering and murmuring amongst themselves, evidently just as bewildered as I was. Dong Fang Yue Chu glanced at me, and I shrugged. Nicholas and Elliot looked just as clueless.

    "Ahem." Feng Hai cleared his throat and had everyone return their attention to him. He grinned sheepishly. "Um, I am organizing a special training camp for potential candidates who are capable of qualifying for the team to represent our academy at the national tournament this year. Make no mistake, it''ll be tough. But there are limited quotas for each societies, and the quotas are actually dependent on the size of the societies." He shrugged. "That might sound unfair, but obviously the bigger your society, the more quotas you get."

    He then turned toward us.

    "Fortunately, thanks to Vice-President Lin Zhan Long''s pathetic¡­uh, I mean less-than-impressive display today, I think it''s fair if I give one of Holy Saints'' quotas to Ultimate Outcast instead."

    There was an uproar from the Holy Saints corner, the members who had come to watch the match rising to their feet and shouting incoherently in protest.

    "What?" Feng Hai asked with a sly smile. "You have complaints about this? Or would you prefer if I take away all five quotas from Holy Saints, given how five of your members lost today?"

    That shut them up. Obviously losing one slot was infinitely preferable to losing five. Lin Zhan Long was one thing ¨C he was extremely arrogant and ambitious, but no real ability to back his attitude and lofty goals up. Last year, he made several promises to Holy Saints, but ended up getting humiliated in the tournament when our academy achieved one of our lowest rankings in decades. Despite his severe defeat and lack of results, Lin Zhan Long continued to be arrogant and bragged incessantly about his strength while treating other people he perceived to be "weaker" with a condescending attitude. While he did have some measure of strength that allowed him to be elevated to the position of vice-president (though that was more to do with his political clout than actual ability), his attitude ended up alienating a lot of people both inside and outside his society.

    Nobody cared less if Lin Zhan Long lost his slot to represent the academy, not after he failed to live up to expectations and failed to deliver on his promises.

    "Of course, if any of you feel that your vice-president is worthier of the slot than any of your other members selected for the training camp, you can give your slot to him. I''m sure Vice-President Lin Zhan Long will appreciate your kindness and high opinion of him."

    The Holy Saints members present glanced at each other, but none of them said anything.

    "Well, at least it didn''t turn into a situation where Lin Zhan Long lost his quota from making a stupid bet with us," I muttered under my breath. That would be highly unrealistic. As if a student could make these kind of decisions on his own.

    "Originally Ultimate Outcast only has one quota, now they have two, thanks to the generosity of Lin Zhan Long." Feng Hai laughed, his voice sharp and critical. "Perhaps Lin Zhan Long lost on purpose because he sympathized with you guys?"

    Everyone knew that wasn''t possible. Prior to this match, Lin Zhan Long was bragging about how he would crush me and Ultimate Outcast, how he would slowly and painfully teach us the differences between our strengths, and how he would ensure we weaklings knew our place. You know, standard "arrogant young masters" stuff so prevalent in Chinese web novels. Not that I paid any attention to his bragging and claims because I had better things to do.

    Like training, or preparing for this match, for example. Instead of wasting my breath or time talking nonsense, I would rather devote those precious seconds into training and becoming stronger, to improving my summoning magic.

    Well, all that matters is that I won. And then the poor bastard will cease to become relevant. At least, unless he pulls something as incredibly stupid as hiring gangs or mercenaries to try and assassinate me and my Ultimate Outcast society over something as petty as losing both the match and his quota, which was, frankly, utter bullshit and could only be possible in a Chinese web novel. No, seriously¡­what kind of psychotic student who hadn''t even reached adulthood would resort to hiring assassins to fucking murder a bunch of insignificant schoolmates who "offended" him? Like, seriously? We didn''t threaten him, we didn''t really do anything to him other than humiliate him, and for that "crime" he wanted to kill us? To the extent of wasting tremendous resources and spending large sums of money on hiring assassins? For a bloody schoolyard feud?

    What kind of logic was that?

    "Hello?"

    Feng Hai was waving his hand in front of my face. I blinked and immediately returned to reality.

    "Sorry. I was just¡­taken aback."

    "Hah! Yeah, my bad. I should have announced the training camp first. Whoops!" Feng Hai spun around to face the spectators ¨C which was¡­impossible, because they were seated 360 degrees around us. "The training camp this time is not only to improve the students with the most potential and strengthen them greatly, but also to allow me to assess which of the students are best suited to represent the academy. As you know, it''s not as simple as merely picking out the top ten ranked students in the academy. They also need to be gelled into a single, cohesive fighting force, especially for the emphasis on team battles this year."

    He glanced at us with a smirk.

    "As you can see, even though all of Holy Saints are individually ranked higher than Ultimate Outcast and their Black Roses allies, when it comes to a team battle, they fell short. This shows that teamwork and cooperation is more important than individual rankings and ability! Your individual ability might be immense, but if you can''t work with a team, then it''s pointless!"

    Yeah, that was the single biggest flaw of the modern education system. It was too rigid and relied too much on individual rankings. It reminded me of the past, where the Asian education system I was trapped in revolved around rote learning and examination results, rather than practical ability. Sports, arts, hands-on, technical skills were all overlooked for a bunch of grades on a slip of paper. People only cared how well you scored for your theoretical exams, and what prestigious school you attended. The university requirements and employment system also relied heavily on examination results, not practical ability.

    Similarly, now we were facing a similar thing where the education system focused overly on individual rankings without regard for the reality. The higher-ups in the ministry of education had an obvious disconnection with what was required in reality. Obviously in the field, against swarms of monsters from Emergence Events, teamwork was more important than strong individuals. Any strong individual could easily be isolated and taken out one by one. Only when a team stood tall together would they be able to ward off hordes of monsters. You probably already know the story about a single arrow being snapped easily whereas a bunch of arrows being more difficult to break. Similarly, a multi-layered, reinforced fortress wall was harder to demolish than a single wall, no matter what kind of alloy it was made of.

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    Apparently there were a bunch of people complaining about the education system and pointing this out, urging the ministers to change the education policy to favor teamwork and practical application rather than individual rankings and tournament results. Much like back in the distant past where people were disavowing rote learning in favor of creativity, technical skills and the recognition of other talents besides academic ability.

    Hence the emphasis on team battles this year¡­

    There were still some grumbles from the Holy Saints spectators as they tried to figure a way to break the news to their fallen vice-president. Given his notorious temper, Lin Zhan Long definitely would not receive the news well.

    Well, that was their problem, not mine. Glancing at Dong Fang Yue Chu, I intuitively understood that the next step for Ultimate Outcast was to decide who to send to represent our society in the training camp.

    We had two quotas, and frankly, the choice should be obvious. It was just that¡­

    I glanced in the direction of where the medics took Stan, and shook my head. Given how prideful and ambitious Stan was, he would surely want a chance to take part in the training camp¡­

 83 Chapter 83: Condition

    "I can''t accept this!"

    As expected, the moment he learned about his quota being taken away, Lin Zhan Long refused to take it lying down. He immediately approached Feng Hai to lodge a protest, complaining that the instructor had no right to take away his slot for the training camp.

    "You had no right! I never made any such deal!"

    "Deal? What deal?" Feng Hai glared at Lin Zhan Long in an intimidating manner that caused the big guy to shut up. "I made the decision based on your performance. First guy to get taken out, failed to contribute anything meaningful to the match, not performing your role as the captain of the team during the battle¡­" he was raising his fingers one by one, counting the problems with Lin Zhan Long''s display. "Anything else?"

    "¡­"

    Lin Zhan Long lowered his head. "But¡­"

    As the vice-president of Holy Saints Society, Lin Zhan Long was normally guaranteed a slot for the training camp. If I wasn''t mistaken, Holy Saints had about twenty slots, but now it was down to nineteen. Feng Hai had specified that it was Lin Zhan Long''s slot that was given to Ultimate Outcast, not anyone else, unless they personally informed him that they thought Lin Zhan Long was more suitable and worthier than them.

    None of them were willing to do so, and Harrison Reed quickly stepped in to ensure that his errant vice-president didn''t bully or intimidate the other members into giving him their slot. As such, Lin Zhan Long was left with this final resort.

    "I¡­I didn''t mind surrendering my slot." Lin Zhan Long finally ended up lying. He resented it, and wanted his slot back at any cost. "But¡­I can''t accept that it was given to Ultimate Outcast of all societies! They are just a bunch of trash!"

    "If Ultimate Outcast is trash, then what does that make you, who lost so pathetically to them?" Feng Hai retorted. Then he smiled. "But if you''re still unconvinced that they deserve it more than you, then I can arrange another match. Perhaps you would like to challenge Richard Huang again?"

    Lin Zhan Long immediately turned pale when he heard that. He still had traumatic memories of what happened when I blew him up with my Alnasl. He might be an arrogant bastard, but he wasn''t stupid. He was unlikely to go down the route where he would end up getting humiliated again. Of course, it wasn''t a hundred percent chance of defeat, but he was now too keenly aware of the gaps between our strengths to recognize that his chances of winning were under ten percent.

    He didn''t want to get blown up by my arrows again. As a side note, Harrison Reed showed him the video of my battle against Hades alongside Alicia and Cecilia, and how I ended up nuking the graveyard with Rigel.

    Lin Zhan Long didn''t want to be on the receiving end of that attack.

    "If you focused more on training than wasting your time scheming and politicking, perhaps you would be on par with Richard. But you didn''t." Feng Hai shrugged unsympathetically. "So now even I can''t help you."

    "¡­"

    Lin Zhan Long lowered his head, but Feng Hai continued.

    "The national tournament means a lot to our academy, and I really want to raise our ranking to the highest possible. To that end, I don''t care if I ruffle your feathers or alienate the old guard. I don''t intend to play favorites and make deals with rich, spoilt children who think their connections are worth more than shit. I only care about results. If you prove yourself and show the potential and ability, then I''ll train you. If you would rather hide behind a wall of politics and scheme around instead of focusing on becoming stronger, then don''t waste my fucking time."

    Feng Hai dropped his voice to a conspiratorial whisper and placed a hand on Lin Zhan Long''s shoulder, causing the latter to shudder.

    "But the deal is still on. If you succeed in defeating Richard, depending on your performance, I can return your slot to you. I''ll grant you special permission to join the training camp."

    By now, Lin Zhan Long couldn''t care less about the training camp. He realized just how outmatched he was compared to all the other monsters and high-ranking students who would be participating. Instead, he shook his head and tried one last time.

    "It''s not me, sir. As I said, I don''t care if I lose my quota."

    "Yeah, you said that already," Feng Hai nodded uncaringly. "And I''ll be honest. I don''t care what you think either."

    "No, I mean¡­.are you sure Richard and Ultimate Outcast deserve the slot? Their victory is just a fluke. They won against someone like me, sir." Lin Zhan Long smirked as he pounded his chest. "As you said, I''m just a nobody¡­a weakling who spent too much time politicking instead of training. If that''s the case, then how impressive can their victory be, if it was achieved against the likes of me?"

    The guy was really a shrewd politician. I didn''t know how he ended up in Jing Tian Magic Academy. He should have gone and studied political science or something more appropriate than combat and military magic.

    "If you really want to ensure that they are worthy of the slots for your training camp, sir¡­you should give them a sterner challenge. A proper one, to make sure they really deserve it more than all the other talented students in school."

    Lin Zhan Long no longer cared about his quota. Now he just wanted to get back at us in Ultimate Outcast. Mutual destruction, in other words. If he couldn''t get into the training camp, he wanted to ensure that we couldn''t either.

    Feng Hai smiled, recognizing Lin Zhan Long''s intent, but he didn''t object because he agreed partially with his logic.

    "You''re right. I should give Ultimate Outcast another test¡­to ensure they really have the potential." He thought for a while, and then nodded. "If they put on an impressive display even against an opponent of a high caliber, then yeah, they will definitely be worthy of training. Even you will have to be convinced."

    "Uh¡­that is, if they do perform well¡­" Lin Zhan Long stammered, caught off guard. Inwardly, he was delighted. He didn''t think it would be this easy to persuade Feng Hai into carrying out his scheme!

    "So¡­who do you think would be a good enough opponent to test Ultimate Outcast''s worth?" Feng Hai asked casually.

    Lin Zhan Long''s grin grew wider when he thought about the other major rival to his great society. He had already thought of them and was ready to suggest them as a rival, but he couldn''t believe his luck. Feng Hai actually asked him for his opinion.

    "Black Roses," he said.

    Feng Hai grinned as well.

    "Great idea," he agreed.

    *

    "And there you have it."

    Feng Hai was grinning at me. I tilted my head to the side, not at all offended or pissed off. It was a valid reason, after all, and I welcomed the opportunity to test myself in combat. I viewed this as a practice match more than anything.

    And if I ended up falling here and losing my quota, then¡­that was that. It simply meant I could only reach up to this level. Furthermore, from what Feng Hai said, it wasn''t necessary to win. However, I wasn''t gullible enough to think that anything other than a winning performance was enough to convince him.

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    Not only that. If I went in with the mentality that it was okay to lose, then what did it mean for the future, when I was called upon to represent Jing Tian Magic Academy? If my goal was to improve my school''s ranking ¨C which would contribute to my goal of getting into a prestigious university, then I should aim for nothing less than a win.

    So I nodded.

    "I understand. So we''re having another team battle¡­this time against Black Roses?"

    "Oh. You already had the team battle. This time it would be an individual battle." Feng Hai paused to think. "After all, even with the emphasis on team battles this year, there still a very large individual battle component. I would like to assess both Ultimate Outcast and Black Roses on this area." He grinned. "And I''ll eventually evaluate Holy Saints and the rest as well¡­after all, I don''t play favorites. It''s only fair to do so."

    "¡­I understand." I nodded again. "I''ll get ready for it then."

    Turning to my society, I shrugged. Dong Fang Yue Chu and the three first year students were looking a little concerned.

    "Are we really doing this?"

    "Sure. Why not?" seeing their worry, I took a deep breath. "I''ll take responsibility. I need the practice anyway. I''ll represent the society. And if I end up losing the quota, then I''ll be the one who misses out the training camp."

    The rest of the members nodded slowly, accepting my proposal. After all, the whole reason why we were able to secure an extra slot from Holy Saints was largely due to me in the first place. Of course, I was aware that it was a team effort, but nobody complained about me making the decision on my own.

    "You''ll win, Vice-President!" Harvey declared, his eyes shining. Ugh, his indomitable faith in me was really weighing down heavily on my shoulders. I dreaded the day when I finally disappointed him. I was only human, after all.

    "Good. I''ve already informed Black Roses, and they''ll contact you to make the necessary arrangements." Feng Hai turned away with a grin.

    As it turned out, we didn''t have to wait long. The very next day, Alicia approached me.

    "Richard!" she called out, waving at me. Looking up, I crossed over to meet up with her in the middle. If you were expecting jealous male students to glare murderously at me, then be disappointed. Such stupid clich¨¦s didn''t happen in reality. Normal people knew they had no right to decide who Alicia gets to socialize with.

    And if they weren''t happy about it, they could always challenge me, but fewer people were bold enough to do it these days, especially when my ranking shot through the roof. Now I was among the 200s after beating Holy Saints and taking so many missions. I would welcome the challenge, actually.

    Which was why I was looking forward to this match against someone from Black Roses.

    "Brother Hai probably already told you about the match, right?" Alicia asked when we reached each other. I nodded and fell into step beside her as we headed toward class. "Have you decided who will fight?"

    "Me," I replied succinctly. Alicia giggled.

    "I kind of expected that."

    "What about Black Roses?" I asked. "Who''s going to fight?" a thrill ran through me. "Troy?"

    "No, Troy hasn''t returned yet." Alicia shook her head. "He''s still out there somewhere, searching for his brother." She smiled. "I''ll be challenging you in his stead."

    "Oh?" that was a surprise. Alicia was hardly the type to fight in individual matches, but she did prove her strength in many missions and the few matches she participated in. There was a reason why she was known as the goddess of our school. She was one of our top mages¡­not as powerful as the top ten, but she combined her superlative combat skills with excellent leadership. The very same leadership capabilities that allowed her to stand at the top of Black Roses as its president. This would be a fun match. "Great. I look forward to it."

    Alicia laughed slyly. "I know you will. But be careful. I''ll do my best to win!" She then turned a little serious. "¡­and this is a great opportunity for me."

    "Opportunity? For what?"

    "You''ll see." Alicia giggled again, concealing half of her pretty face. She then took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. "How about we make a little bet between ourselves?"

    "A¡­little bet? What do you have in mind?" I pushed my glasses up to study her. Alicia squirmed a little, but maintained her smile.

    "If I win, do you mind if I request a favor from you?"

    "Sure," I consented. Knowing Alicia, she would never make an unreasonable request.

    Alicia watched me for a few seconds, and then she pouted slightly, clasping her hands behind her waist. "What about you? Aren''t you going to ask a favor from me if you win?"

    "I have to win first," I pointed out pragmatically. Alicia laughed at that.

    "Always the practical one, Richard. Sure! But I don''t intend to lose!"

    "I plan to do my best to win too," I promised. Inwardly, I wanted to impress a beautiful goddess like Alicia, and one of the best ways to do so was to show off my strength.

    This was going to be an exciting match.

 84 Chapter 84: Against Alicia

    The coliseum was unsurprisingly packed full with spectators. I had already expected there would be a lot of people turning up to watch the match, given how many fans of the school''s goddess there were in the academy, but to think their numbers exceeded the coliseum''s capacity.

    Furthermore, this was one of the main arenas, the main hall where we hosted the representatives from Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy all those months ago. It was a testament to Alicia Violet''s popularity that so many people showed up. Not only the hundred or so members from Black Roses, but almost a thousand students had arrived to grab seats early.

    I could hear them murmuring amongst themselves. There were many guys who were shooting me scornful or jealous looks, and many girls glaring at me in disgust, as if wondering how I could ever believe myself worthy of being on the same stage as her. I was reminded of that time with Lavender and the others, who hated me so much for associating with Alicia to the point where they actually planned to murder me by abandoning me to a bunch of monsters during a mission.

    Fortunately, I was not without fans of my own. I could see my own society, Ultimate Outcast, holding up banners that spelled my name out. They were not alone. As I said, I had somehow garnered a small following after my lucky display against the representatives of Crowley''s Academy, and then again against the Iron Fist Society. Pulling off two team-kills in succession would get you some fans, no matter who you previously were.

    "Get off stage!"

    "Surrender!"

    "Stay away from our goddess!"

    "You''re not worthy of her!"

    Already I could hear the jeers and sneers from the majority of the crowd. It did make some sense. Alicia was among the top hundred, top twenty even. I was barely at¡­five hundred, or at least that was the last time I remembered. The gap between our ranks and statuses was enormous.

    Then there were those who were just jealous, because they had a crush on Alicia and wanted her for themselves. And I was getting in their way.

    No matter. They had nothing to do with me. If they wanted to challenge me, then I would gladly accept their challenge. Furthermore, whoever Alicia chooses to socialize with was none of their business. She had the right to decide her own friends.

    "Richard!"

    I looked up as Alicia ascended the stage. A deafening roar rose from the crowd when they caught sight of their goddess, the guys going wild and the girls squealing in admiration. Once again I appreciated the enormity of Alicia''s popularity among the student body.

    "Hey, Alicia." I waved toward her. "It''s good to see you."

    Alicia giggled as she approached me. "It''s good to see you too, but I hope you haven''t forgotten that we are here for a duel."

    "How could I forget when everyone''s reminding me constantly?" I gestured to the yelling and shouting spectators. Some were shouting encouragement, some were professing their love for Alicia, and others were jeering at me. There were a few cheering for me, telling me to do my best and win, and I waved toward them. Then I turned back to my opponent and bowed. "I am honored to be able to have a match with you, Goddess."

    "Hey!" Alicia protested hotly, flushing from embarrassment. "Don''t call me that!"

    "That''s what they''re calling you," I pointed out, cocking my head toward the braying crowd who surrounded us on all sides.

    Alicia sulked. "Stop teasing me."

    "Sorry, sorry."

    "Are you two ready?"

    Teacher Fielding stepped forward with a smile, nodding toward the both of us. He had taken good care of me, so he was a teacher I was in friendly relations with, while Alicia was a role model student who was the pride and joy of the teachers in Jing Tian Academy. There was no teacher who wasn''t friendly with her.

    "Yes. How about you, Richard?"

    "I can start any time," I replied with a respectful bow of my head. Teacher Fielding nodded in satisfaction and gestured for us to take our positions.

    "Fighters, get ready!"

    Alicia produced a pair of guns as she stood on her side of the stage, confident and beautiful as ever. The cheers from the crowd intensified.

    "OOOOH! The goddess Alicia is on the stage!"

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    "Go, Goddess Alicia!"

    "Our goddess!"

    "We love you!"

    "Beat that punk!"

    While I listened to the jeers and scorn from my side of the stage, I could also hear a few cheers and encouraging words.

    "Surprise everybody again, Richard!"

    "You can win!"

    "You''re the Ultimate Outcast!"

    ¡­I really regretted choosing that name for my society now¡­then again, admittedly it had a cool ring to it. The Ultimate Outcast. Yeah, that sounded so cool!

    "Alicia, you can do it!" Miranda shouted from her seat. The rest of the Black Roses also added to their cheers. Tracye wasn''t present, or he would have been my opponent. One of these days I had to challenge him.

    But first, I needed to overcome Alicia. Steeling myself for the match ahead, I narrowed my eyes behind my glasses in determination.

    Alicia turned back toward Miranda, raising a pistol confidently. She also didn''t intend to lose. I remember her voicing that out prior to this match. That was good. I would appreciate it if she went all out against me. It would mean that she thought highly of me and treated me as a worthy opponent. Knowing Alicia, she would respect her opponent and treat them well regardless of their rank or status. Even so, she continued to brim with majestic confidence befitting of a goddess.

    "Yeah! Just watch!"

    "Alicia, good luck!" the other Black Roses shouted.

    "Fight!" Teacher Fielding shouted once he saw that Alicia and I were in position, and stepped away. The two of us faced each other, with Alicia raising her guns and aiming at me. She hesitated for a second ¨C being the polite and honorable girl that she was, she wasn''t going to attack me before I summoned a weapon.

    I nodded and summoned Gemini. Swinging Castor down, I gestured for her to begin. Being a gentleman, I wasn''t going to strike a lady before she made a move.

    "Go ahead, Alicia."

    "There''s no need for mercy, Richard!" Alicia replied, and her magical aura intensified. I could see a dense field of blue qi surround her and coalesce around both of her guns.

    "Understood."

    I kicked off the ground and charged forward. If Alicia wasn''t going to attack first, then I might as well make the first move, or the match would never begin.

    As I expected, Alicia didn''t just stand there and wait for me to reach her. She immediately raised both her pistols and unleashed a hail of magical bullets in my direction. The lenses on my glasses glowed and I could track the trajectories of the bullets through the shimmering holographic overlay built into my glasses.

    The only question was whether I had the speed and reflexes to act on what I could see.

    Winding through the barrage of bullets, I tried to dodge them as best as I could, altering my own trajectory and moving out of the paths of the bullets. It was a task easier said than done, though, given the hypersonic speed the bullets were flying at. If I hadn''t taken Teacher Fielding''s combat magic classes and learned how to magically buff my physical speed and reflexes, I would have lost within the first ten seconds, my body riddled with holes from Alicia''s bullets.

    Despite seeing me evade her shots almost effortlessly, Alicia continued to relentlessly pour a rain of fire upon my position, and it almost seemed like she was speeding up her shooting. As I drew closer and reduced the distance between us, it began to become much harder to dodge her bullets. Not only was my buffed speed no longer increasing, the bullets only needed to cover a shorter distance before they reached me.

    Bang! Bang!

    "!!"

    Thanks to my glasses helping me see the trajectory of the shots, I could slice through the bullets. Twirling my Gemini twin swords, I cut through the magical bullets. My twin swords whirled about rapidly, becoming an impenetrable barrier that sliced through Alicia''s projectiles milliseconds before they could reach me. I was playing a dangerous game, of course. A single mistake and I would end up with a bullet in my head or chest.

    Even though the boundary field would protect me from sustaining a fatal injury, it would be enough to put me out of commission and end the match. I couldn''t afford to lose here, or Ultimate Outcast would lose their quota in Hai Feng''s training camp.

    Then I reached Alicia''s position.

    However, the goddess was impressive as ever. She didn''t even panic, and instead weaved through my desperate attempts to slash her, even counterattacking with several shots at pointblank range and forcing me to retreat.

    "?!"

    I quickly dodged backward as several magical projectiles flew through the place where my head had been a millisecond ago. Stepping backward, I found myself pushed further back as another web of bullets smashed through my previous position. I managed to slice a few bullets apart before they embedded themselves inside my body, but I found it impossible to advance. Right now, I was slowly being forced back, and my glasses displayed a holographic interpretation of Alicia''s shots.

    She was creating an energy barrier with her bullets to halt my movements and keep my advance in check. With that incessant barrage, there was no way I could get through to her. In fact, I was forced to summon Scutum Sobiescianum to block several of the shots. Dropping to my feet, I sought refuge behind my constellation shield and waited out the relentless onslaught.

    I wanted to charge forward, with Scutum Sobiescianum covering my advance, but the powerful shots from Alicia, which were striking my constellation shield with the force of a meteor, were actually almost shoving me backward. It was only thanks to Scutum Sobiescianum that the distance between us hadn''t widened significantly.

    "Alicia isn''t holding back at all!" Miranda marveled as she watched from her seat. "She''s creating a perfect barrier that is making it hard for Richard to advance!"

    "I love you, my goddess!" a guy hollered, tears streaking from his eyes.

    The girl beside him shrieked in delight. "You''re the true champion of Jing Tian!!

    A bunch of amateurs. Were they seriously thinking that? True, Alicia''s technique was perfect, but her attacks weren''t enough to finish me off quickly.

    And the longer the duel went on, the more advantageous it was for me.

    Trying not to smirk, because I was sure a competent opponent like Alicia would be prepared for my next move, I began to choose my next Constellation spirit and started the process of summoning him for the next stage of the duel.

 85 Chapter 85: Crush and Crush

    Alicia continued to bombard me with her magical bullets, the devastating projectiles pounding my Scutum Sobiescianum and slowly chipping away at it. Realizing that I couldn''t afford to cower forever, I stepped back and kicked it up.

    The summoning had to wait. For now, I had to go on the counteroffensive, or I would have holes blown in my body before I could summon anything.

    Devising a plan quickly, I kicked my shield up and used my foot to hurl it toward a surprised Alicia. The spinning Constellation shield sailed through her web of bullets, weathering the blows. Even though each powerful projectile chipped away at its surface and tore out small pieces of metal from its body, Scutum Sobiescianum continued inexorably toward Alicia''s position.

    She wasn''t the only one who could fight at range. I could do it too. The only reason why I didn''t summon Orion and resort to a shooting contest with her was because I knew I would lose. Alicia specialized in ranger magic ¨C her aim, accuracy and reflexes in terms of shooting would all be superior to mine.

    "!!"

    The rapidly spinning shield was too fast, reaching Alicia before she could retreat. She instead chose to dodge by bending her spine backward, just barely evading the deadly projectile. As she did so, I seized the opportunity to close the distance, swinging both my Gemini twin swords down to cleave her into three.

    However, Alicia was already prepared for that.

    Even as her back was still bent backward, both of her arms snaked out, a pistol still gripped in each hand. The two guns barked furiously, and a couple of bullets arced toward my position in a graceful curve, homing into my location.

    "Amazing!" Miranda''s eyes widened. Beside her, the Black Roses cheered raucously when they saw the impressive move their goddess pulled off. "Even from that sort of disadvantageous position, Alicia is still able to execute a double arc shot!"

    "Slay him! Long live our goddess!"

    Her fans were shrieking with all their might, throwing their hands high up and jumping to their feet as they cheered. Seated away from them, and inside the VIP spectator''s box, Vincent Violet, Alicia''s father as well as the academy director, watched on in amazement.

    "Alicia has already reached this level?" he gasped in awe.

    As for me, I had no choice. I didn''t have time to charge up my twin swords and cast my ranged spells (Castor and Pollux), so I threw the both of them. The spinning Gemini twin swords also twirled about in a graceful arc and met the incoming bullets, slicing through them.

    "Now! Cancer!"

    At that moment, I finally completed my summoning spell, having bought myself just barely sufficient time to pull it off.

    A gigantic orange and white crab materialized and smashed downward from the heavens, his pincer crashing against Alicia. The leader of the Black Roses quickly dove to the side, rolling away as Cancer pursued her. She brought both her guns up and fired almost pointblank into the enormous crab.

    However, her magical projectiles didn''t possess enough firepower to penetrate Cancer''s sturdy shell. The gigantic crab scuttled about, swinging his pincer to try and grab her. Alicia elegantly jumped atop the swiping pincer, landing gracefully on the balls of her feet, and then flipped above him, still blasting him at close range with both of her guns.

    The magical projectiles pinged off Cancer''s armored shell, but in return for his impervious defense, the gigantic crab was slow. As he tried to turn around, Alicia had already withdrawn to a large distance, and continued to shoot him from afar.

    "This is a new spirit," she remarked with a frown. I shrugged, and then nodded to my Constellation spirit.

    "Cancer, bubble beam!"

    Bubbles¡­well, bubbled out of his mouth, each one as hard as a rock. Like I said, Alicia wasn''t the only one capable of ranged attacks. Instinctively, she dodged the incoming bubbles, her eyes widening slightly when she saw several of them smash tiny craters into the ground. She then glanced at the giant crab warily.

    "What sort of spell is that?!"

    Evidently she hadn''t played Pok¨¦mon before. Her loss.

    "Cancer! Altarf!"

    My version of Crab Hammer, but I would rather name my Constellation spirits'' attacks after the prominent stars in their constellations. Otherwise Taurus would be using flamethrower instead of Aldebaran, which would just be weird.

    The massive pincer smashed the ground to bits, forcing Alicia back. She continued to pummel Cancer with pointblank range shots, but he shrugged them off and continued to pursue them. Clicking her tongue from frustration, Alicia continued to widen the distance between them, retreating to where she thought was a safe location.

    Cancer continued to chase after her, scuttling forward on his spindly legs. Alicia took a deep breath, but she halted her firing. I could sense enormous amounts of mana spiraling around her, coalescing into her twin guns.

    She was getting ready to cast another spell.

    "Crush her with Altarf before she can complete it!" I cried out. Cancer obliged, trying to speed up as quickly as he could. As for me, I was tempted to summon another Constellation spirit, but at that moment I was in the process of casting an ultimate spell of my own and was reluctant to pause that for another less effective summoning spell.

    Well, on the bright side, it wouldn''t exactly be a straight cancel. It was more like a pause, actually. Suspending my current spell to cast a new one. There were disadvantages, of course. Even if the new spell was fast, I still had to cast it from scratch, which meant that it sometimes was more strategic to stick to completing the spell that I was currently casting. The advantage, on the other hand, was that the current spell would merely be paused in favor of prioritizing the new spell, instead of being cancelled outright.

    That meant I could resume the casting process and complete the spell I originally intended to cast after unleashing the new spell, without needing to start the entire process from scratch again. That was why many mages didn''t hesitate to switch spells in the middle of casting. It allowed them to be a lot more flexible.

    Even so, as I mentioned earlier, it was sometimes a lot more strategic to complete the casting of the current spell than to try and fire off a new spell. As the new spell required you to begin from scratch, sometimes the faster casting period still wouldn''t allow you to make it in time for counterattacking or defending yourself.

    A battle was never easy. I might have said that many mages didn''t hesitate to switch spells, but a good fraction of them found out that it was a mistake, and paid for it with injuries or defeats. Some even died in the process. The battlefield was ever-changing, and to survive, a mage had to be flexible and adapt to the current circumstances.

    "Huff¡­"

    Alicia was tiring, but she continued to dodge with impunity. Like me, she decided to withhold any spells in favor of completing the casting of her current one. Cancer advanced toward her, delivering another devastating Altarf attack that gouged a colossal chunk of concrete out of the arena, but Alicia tucked her head in and rolled away. Springing to her feet, even as debris showered her and left a small line of blood trickling down the side of her pretty face, she raised her guns and smiled.

    She had finally completed the casting of her spell.

    "Railgun Maximus!" she shouted. Words contained power, and many mages found it much easier to visualize the products of the spells they cast if they voice out the words and imageries associated with their spells. They amplified the power of their spells by several folds. So it actually made sense for them to be shouting the names of their spells.

    Sometimes, anyway.

    Twin colossal beams of destructive energies lanced out of Alicia''s guns and pierced through even Cancer''s sturdy shell, puncturing massive holes through him. The gigantic crab slumped over, smoking, before he began to dissipate into nothingness.

    Wow, what an amazing spell. To think that Alicia would be able to imbue her guns with the terrifying power of a railgun. She had materialized projectiles and used her elemental spells to charge them with electromagnetic forces before launching them from her guns at astronomical velocities. The result was a pair of deadly projectiles with enough firepower to sink a destroyer-class ship or demolish a building.

    Panting, Alicia raised her guns to aim at me. But I didn''t panic.

    After casting an enormous spell like that, there was no way Alicia could pull it off again in succession. At least not at her current level. She knew that as well as I did, and was already moving, firing off a bombardment that was weak when compared to her earlier railgun spell.

    Even so, her current bullets were more than enough to incapacitate me. I wasn''t a powerful monster like Cancer, clad in impenetrable armor. I was a human with soft flesh. Those normal bullets were sufficient to punch through me and render me unable to battle.

    Even so, I was not without my own techniques of evasion. Having calculated the trajectories of the bullets with my glasses, I dodged them. It was easier to evade from a distance as the bullets would take some time to reach my position.

    "?"

    Alicia noticed that something was amiss. I was maintaining my distance instead of closing the gap like I did earlier. Furthermore, she saw that I was unarmed. Tensing, she glanced around, expecting me to summon something.

    I obliged her.

    "Black Tortoise!"

    The enormous tortoise materialized in the arena, the serpent that served as his tail snaking about and hissing. A tidal wave of water rose and washed away Alicia''s bullets, knocking her aside.

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    However, Alicia was a strong swimmer, and she even had magic to aid her. Bursting out of the tidal wave, she jumped up, magical circles appearing underneath her feet. She ascended, jumping from one spot to another in the air, with only those appearing and disappearing magical circles to serve as a foothold.

    She didn''t just go higher. As a geyser of water surged toward her position, she chose to dive downward instead. Flipping her body around at the last moment, she cast another quick spell and landed on a magical circle before she dropped into the sea of water that now swirled around the arena. Then she switched position, kicking off and landing on a new magical circle before a tidal wave washed over her previous position.

    After a moment of evading, Alicia finally raised both of her guns. While jumping about, she had paused, resumed, paused, resumed, paused and restarted the casting of her ultimate spell. That sounded a lot easier than it was, but the actual process was a lot more complicated and required a lot of skill. Alicia had to calculate down to the smallest second. A single mistake, a single misjudgment, and if she paused the casting of her ultimate spell too early or too late to switch to the magical circles that kept her aloft in the air, she would have plunged straight into the water or miss. Not to mention, she was doing all this while dodging all of Black Tortoise''s hydro attacks simultaneously. Even I wasn''t confident I could pull off that multiple casting with such finesse under such tremendous pressure.

    Yet Alicia was executing it flawlessly, and making it look easy.

    "Railgun Maximus!"

    All the while she was dodging, Alicia had been building up to the second casting of her ultimate spell. Raising her guns, she fired in midair, the two colossal beams of energies hurtling toward Black Tortoise. The recoil was so strong that she found herself plummeting through the air uncontrollably, but she was able to arrest her fall with a magic circle.

    Black Tortoise glanced up before the two enormous beams slammed into him, engulfing him in an immense explosion that incinerated the entire center of the arena.

 86 Chapter 86: Confession of Victory

    A cheer rose up in the coliseum, the spectators screaming celebratory joy when they witnessed their goddess seemingly pulverize one of my most powerful summoned spirits. The Black Roses in particular behaved as if victory had been secured, exchanging high fives and shouting Alicia''s name boisterously.

    "Alicia! Alicia! Alicia!"

    "Long live our goddess!"

    In the VIP seats, Vincent Violet nodded in approval. A smile spread across his weathered face as he observed the duel.

    "You really have gotten very strong, my daughter." He sighed and shook his head, a little sad. "You''ve surpassed me when I was your age."

    "Isn''t that a good thing?" Teacher Fielding asked in an offhand manner. He was still in charge of refereeing the fight, so he wasn''t allowed to take sides, but that didn''t stop him from being impressed by the performance that both sides displayed. He glanced at me. "Both Alicia and Richard represent the brightest hopes of the academy."

    "Yeah." The academy director nodded, his expression thoughtful. "Perhaps we might stand a chance at the tournament this year. With Alicia captaining the team, she might be able to help us rise to unprecedented heights."

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    Unaware of the praises heaped upon her, the person in question continued to fight. That was the reason why Teacher Fielding hadn''t declared the end of the match. The ever-so-impartial teacher was aware that neither of us had been completely incapacitated yet.

    "Huff¡­"

    Breathing heavily, Alicia studied the blossoming smoke as she landed on the still wet ground. At least there was no longer a sea of water filling up the coliseum.

    "Did I do it?"

    "You almost did," I replied with a shrug. Alicia glanced at me, and then turned back to stare at the dissipating smoke in disbelief.

    Black Tortoise was still in one piece, a little singed, but otherwise he survived a direct hit from her ultimate spell. He was staggering, dazed and severely hurt from her railgun spell, though. Credit where it was due. Alicia''s railgun spell was incredibly powerful.

    I couldn''t help but be impressed. Bowing my head slightly, I smiled.

    "That was amazing. If it had been any of my other Stellar Guardians, they would have been obliterated by your railgun spell. Fortunately, Black Tortoise has the highest defense out of all the Stellar Guardians."

    Alicia shook her head, and then shifted her aim to me.

    "But I''ve immobilized him, even if it''s only temporary. As long as I take you out, it doesn''t matter how powerful your summoned spirits are."

    I dodged her attacks, the bullets whizzing above my head as I ducked under them. Smirking, I raised Orion.

    "You''re right," I admitted.

    Except for one thing, but I didn''t tell her that. There was no point bragging and giving my opponent the advantage.

    All this while, when Alicia was engaging Black Tortoise in combat, I hadn''t exactly been idle either. During her evasion and counterattack, I had summoned Orion and began casting an ultimate spell of my own.

    And now it was complete.

    "Rigel!"

    One of the most powerful arrows in my possession streaked out, blazing a destructive path toward Alicia. Realizing that she couldn''t escape in time, Alicia gritted her teeth and raised both her guns, casting an intricate defensive spell.

    Blue light cascaded across her, forming a shimmering barrier. Rigel struck it just a millisecond after she completed it, and exploded.

    This time it was Alicia''s turn to be engulfed in an explosion. The conflagration expanded rapidly, turning into what seemed like a mushroom cloud. Even more powerful than Alicia''s railgun spell, my Rigel spell was almost like a mini-nuke.

    It was the spell I used to take one of Hades'' lives.

    Alicia should know about it. She had witnessed me using this spell firsthand against our common enemy and obliterating the entire cemetery.

    However, most of the spectators had never seen me unleash this spell before.

    "What the fuck?!"

    "How¡­?!"

    "Isn''t Richard a summoner?! How the hell is he capable of unleashing such a powerful spell?!"

    That was combat magic combined with summoning magic. My Constellation weapons were the product of a unique summoning spell that relied on my imagination. Obviously, that didn''t mean my Constellation magic was all-powerful. They were limited to my own strength. If I didn''t possess sufficient mana, I obviously couldn''t nuke anyone. Furthermore, I needed some time to complete the casting of that spell.

    If Black Tortoise didn''t buy me the time I needed, I would never have been able to finish the casting and unleash Rigel on Alicia. Similarly, if Cecilia hadn''t distracted Hades and fought with him evenly, I would never have the time to finish the casting of Rigel and nuke him too. All powerful spells had their drawbacks.

    They were too slow.

    It was sort of like Magic: The Gathering, or Pok¨¦mon Trading Card Game. The more powerful the spell, the more mana or energies you needed to cast them. For example, a spell that did five damage to each creature and player would cost five mana as opposed to Lightning Bolt, which did three damage to a single target at the cost of one red mana. Or a basic Pok¨¦mon''s ember attack would cost only a single fire energy and did 30 damage as opposed to an evolved Pok¨¦mon''s Fire Blast attack, which cost three fire energies and did 130 damage in exchange for discarding a single fire energy attached to that Pok¨¦mon (though you had the Burning Energy card that could circumvent it by having a rule that allows you to reattach it after you discarded it for using it for a fire Pok¨¦mon''s attack¡­if you play Expanded, that is). And you could only play a single land or attach a single energy card per turn. Of course, there were spells or Trainer Cards (which were in the form of spells, artifacts or enchanted gear) that could accelerate mana or energy accumulation, but in essence the principle never changed. The more powerful the attack, the more mana you needed.

    And thus the more time you required to cast it.

    Of course, aggressive mages couldn''t care less about powerful spells. They aimed to finish off the opponent before he could set up his mana acceleration or play his trump card. That was the reason why summoning wasn''t popular in the first place. It left you vulnerable to tons of small, cheap spells that were still capable of killing you quickly. All the powerful spells in the world would be of no use if you died before you could cast such expensive attacks.

    The best, like Alicia, was capable of both cheap, fast attacks and expensive, powerful techniques like her railgun spell. Even so, it was clear that Alicia''s repertoire contained more of the fast and cheap spells than the expensive ultimate technique. In fact, I wouldn''t be surprised if her Railgun Maximus was her only expensive spell. Alicia seemed the type to excel in today''s Meta, which allowed her to rise to her current high rank. She could take down her opponents quickly with a barrage of cheap but numerous shots, overwhelming them with sheer output and accumulated damage. At the same time, she also had defensive spells to allow her to survive counterattacks, like the barrier she had just conjured.

    Unfortunately for her, the barrier was not enough to prevent the devastating damage from an ultimate spell¡­or a technique of Rigel''s caliber.

    "¡­ugh¡­"

    I had deliberately missed Alicia. Not because I underestimated her, but¡­well, yeah. She was a close friend. Okay, she was extremely beautiful, and like most other guys I sort of had a crush on her. There was something about her that just made me reluctant to hurt her. A direct hit would have incinerated her and reduced her to a deathlike state. Even with the boundary field preserving her life, she would require extensive healing spells and arcane treatment to recover, as well as a long period of several days in the infirmary.

    There was no way I could do that to a delicate-looking girl like Alicia. Even though I didn''t buy that goddess bullshit and I didn''t worship her, it was hard to dislike Alicia. She was universally beloved by everyone for a good reason.

    She treated everyone with respect, was a very nice girl and had a great and sociable personality. Her beauty was only the icing on the cake. Even if she wasn''t as beautiful as a princess, she still would have been popular. I was sure of it. I could guarantee that I would still have a crush on her even if she didn''t look like a princess out of some Chinese web novel.

    Her beauty was a little diminished now, with soot covering her singed face and skin. She was sitting on the ground, dazed and scorched. Trivial injuries, compared to what she would have suffered had I landed a direct hit.

    Even though I had deliberately missed her, the explosion from Rigel was still enough to overwhelm her barrier, smash it to smithereens and knocked her over, injuring her enough to incapacitate her from the fight. Just to be sure, I strode forward, three arrows notched and aimed at her. From her current position, she wouldn''t be able to dodge my Orion''s Belt.

    "Do you surrender?" I asked. Alicia looked up groggily, but understanding slowly returned to her eyes. She sighed, and then nodded, raising both her hands.

    "It''s my loss."

    "Battle ends!" Teacher Fielding declared immediately, as if he was waiting for that precise moment. "The winner is Richard Huang!"

    A small bubble of cheers burst out from my side of the arena. My fan club (if you could call it that) were yelling themselves hoarse. Earlier, the Black Roses and almost the entire school were cheering when they thought Alicia won, but now they were deathly silent, with Harvey and the others'' cheers echoing throughout the colossal coliseum.

    "You did it, Senior!"

    "I knew it! I knew Senior Richard would win!"

    "Ha ha ha ha! He''s full of surprises, isn''t he?"

    "Amazing!"

    I tilted my head toward them by way of acknowledgement, and then proceeded toward Alicia. Smiling, I extended a hand toward her in a polite manner.

    "That was a close battle. I almost lost there."

    "I concur. It was really close." Alicia returned the smile and accepted my hand, allowing me to pull her back to her feet. I was about to withdraw my hand when I realized that Alicia refused to let go of it.

    "?"

    Alicia suddenly yanked me forward, catching me off guard. Taken by surprise, I stumbled toward her, only for Alicia to seize my collar. At the same time, she leaned forward to meet my lips with hers.

    Right in front of an amazed and outraged crowd, she kissed me.

 87 Chapter 87: Receiving Acknowledgemen

    "Seriously?!"

    Miranda was grabbing Alicia''s shoulder while resisting the urge to shake her. Her junior grimaced, but managed an innocent look.

    "What are you talking about, Senior Miranda?"

    "What were you thinking?!" Miranda shouted, almost into Alicia''s face. "Kissing Richard in front of the whole school like that!? Even your father was there! And why him?! You have the pick of any guy in school, and you chose a loser?!"

    "You do realize that this ''loser'' defeated me fair and square in a match, didn''t you?" Alicia replied stiffly. "Even if it''s you, Senior Miranda, I won''t forgive you if you continue to talk about Richard in that condescending manner."

    "Well¡­his rank did go up considerably, especially after his victory over you," Miranda admitted with a sigh. "And even Troy views him highly. Even though he''s just a summoner, he has continued to prove himself."

    "Why does everyone have something against summoners?" Alicia frowned, confused. "Richard has shown how summoning magic can be effective. By now, everyone should recognize that his victories aren''t just flukes! I mean, it''s not as if he has a perfect record, but he has done very well in most of his matches so far!"

    "Yeah, he has quite the following, you know? Did you see his fan club? There aren''t many members, but the fact he has one is already impressive enough."

    Elliot joined the conversation, surprising the two girls and causing them to jump. Miranda scowled as she turned on him.

    "It''s rude to eavesdrop on other people!"

    "Then perhaps you might want to have this conversation somewhere less¡­public." Nicholas joined Elliot, along with Jin Hao and Aoi. "We can hear you from way over there."

    "Congratulations, Alicia!" Aoi reached out to grab her hands. "You did it!" she began to gush. "You actually confessed to Richard in front of the whole school! How romantic!" she glanced surreptitiously at Jin Hao, who winced.

    "Ah, ha ha ha¡­was it really a confession, though?"

    "What else could it mean? Unless you don''t mind kissing anybody."

    "No, no! Of course not! I really like him! It''s just that¡­I didn''t actually confess, did I?"

    "I''m sure Richard is bright enough to understand your intentions," Jin Hao replied. "He''s not some stupid dense protagonist from a light novel. And he has no reason to pretend not to notice your feelings."

    "I was sure they were already going out, though," Elliot pointed out, looking puzzled. "There were already rumors about the two of them dating after that match against the representatives from Crowley''s Academy. You know, when Cecilia demanded that Richard go out with her, but Alicia saunters in and drags him off?"

    "Oh, that¡­yeah, I was just helping him out." Alicia looked a little embarrassed. "If I didn''t do that, Cecilia wouldn''t give up easily."

    "Yeah, that''s true," Nicholas conceded as he smiled in a teasing manner. "But it was pretty hot news over the Internet shortly afterward. You''re popular not just in Jing Tian Magic Academy, but also in other schools, you know?"

    "But I guess it is official now?" Jin Hao snickered mischievously. Aoi elbowed him, then turned back to Alicia.

    "I''m a little jealous," she moaned.

    "Don''t be," Jin Hao assured her. Aoi made a face and turned away with a huff.

    Miranda sulked when she realized she had been shoved out of the conversation. Not that I sympathized with her, given how she was talking bad about me behind my back. She had a prejudice against summoners.

    She wasn''t alone, to be honest. Members like Lavender were worse off, openly holding grudges and conspiring to kill me. At least there wasn''t anyone else who made any attempt on my life after Lavender and her group were arrested and exiled.

    Or at least that was what I naively believed.

    *

    "So are you convinced?"

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    Feng Hai was speaking with the members of Holy Saints Society. To be precise, he was speaking to Lin Zhan Long and his cronies.

    Even among Holy Saints Society ¨C or perhaps it was especially because they were such a large society ¨C there were factions, with the members split to several groups. On one side, you had those who followed the president, Harrison Reed, fiercely and loyally. On the other side, you had Lin Zhan Long, who was good at politics and secured himself a high rank in the society through scheming. Part of his plans as the ambitious guy rose to near the top was to recruit subordinates by offering them resources or statuses in return for their fealty.

    And thus it was Lin Zhan Long''s group who found themselves called out by Feng Hai. To be fair, Lin Zhan Long was the one who complained about Ultimate Outcast receiving the quota for the training camp in Holy Saints'' place after their defeat in the team battle, and so Feng Hai proposed the match between me and Alicia to convince him.

    Consequently, my victory over her proved beyond a doubt that I was worthy of the extra slot in training camp. Not that I needed to convince Lin Zhan Long. I suspected Feng Hai had some other intentions in mind when he suggested the duel. Most likely he wanted to see more of my skills and magic spells.

    Well, I hoped he enjoyed the show I put on for him.

    "Since you''re the one who clamored for evidence, you should have no complaints about your slot being handed over to Ultimate Outcast, right?" Feng Hai smiled, but the expression seemed to Lin Zhan Long full of malevolent glee. "I''ve appraised your president, Harrison, and he has already agreed to it. You won''t ask for more evidence this time, would you?"

    "N¡­no. I''m more than convinced." Lin Zhan Long swallowed. Even though he wasn''t among the strongest in Holy Saints, he was still one of the craftiest. He recognized that he would be pushing his luck if he insisted on getting in my way. Furthermore, he understood that Feng Hai was looking for an opportunity to humiliate him further. If the vice-president of Holy Saints wasn''t mistaken, he knew that if he insisted on having more proof, Feng Hai would counter by asking him to provide him evidence of his own strength.

    No, he had to give up here, surrender his slot and eat humble pie. Tactical withdrawal was a necessary move sometimes, to avoid total destruction.

    Besides, he was confident that he would be able to have more opportunities for revenge in future.

    "But only one slot, right?" Lin Zhan Long asked. "Only mine, right? It will be unfair if the other members of Holy Saints are ordered to give up their quota."

    "That''s right." Feng Hai nodded in agreement. "Terence and Adam will have their chances, if that''s what you''re worried about."

    Behind Lin Zhan Long, the two big guys sighed in relief. Both Terence and Adam were part of Lin Zhan Long''s faction. They would be the first casualties if Feng Hai decided to target Holy Saints for culling.

    "But whether they will be able to avoid dropping out and be selected for the team representatives is entirely up to their own efforts."

    With a casual wave, Feng Hai turned and left the three Holy Saints members behind. Lin Zhan Long fumed as he watched the alumnus depart.

    "Arrogant prick," he snarled.

    "What do we do now, boss?" Terence asked worriedly. Lin Zhan Long snorted and glanced at him, his gaze full of scorn.

    "What do you mean, what do we do now?"

    "We''re not going to let Ultimate Outcast get away with this, are we?" this time it was Adam who instigated him. Lin Zhan Long rolled his eyes and suppressed a heavy sigh.

    "And what do you propose we do? Challenge them to another match and have our asses handed to us again?"

    "Uh, no, that''s not¡­"

    "Just go attend the training camp in my place." Lin Zhan Long huffed and spun away. He clenched his fists. "As much as I hate to admit it, I probably wouldn''t be selected for the representative team anyway. I know I''m not that strong."

    For someone with immense pride, it was a bitter pill to swallow.

    However, Lin Zhan Long grinned.

    "That doesn''t mean I intend to let Ultimate Outcast get away with this, however." He chuckled and swept his gaze from Adam and Terence. "When there''s an opportunity, strike."

    Both of his cronies brightened up and nodded fervently.

    "Yes, sir!"

    *

    "You really did it, you scoundrel!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was staring at me in wonder. He threw an arm around my neck, and caused me to almost double over.

    "How did you do it?!"

    "What are you talking about?" I spluttered as I fought to maintain my balance. Dong Fang Yue Chu tightened his grip.

    "Don''t pretend! You know what I''m talking about!" he leaned in closer. "How did you win the goddess''s heart?!"

    "Is it really that surprising?" Harvey asked from a distance, sounding genuinely bewildered. "I thought it was obvious that President Alicia likes Vice-president Richard. There were rumors that they were going out for a long time now."

    "Those rumors are definitely false," I declared somewhat defensively. For some reason, this whole thing was making me feel awkward. I wished they would stop talking about this, but guys apparently enjoyed gossiping about romance as much as girls. Trying to find a way to change the subject, I checked my smartphone. "Hmm¡­by the way, my rank jumped to 300+."

    "That''s impressive¡­to jump over two hundred ranks¡­" Stan thought for a bit. "But that''s to be expected. President Alicia is ranked among the top ten."

    "She definitely was a formidable opponent," I agreed as I remembered being almost cornered by her. If I had just made a single mistake, she would have riddled me with holes. "But she probably went easy on me, if I were to be honest."

    Everyone stared at me. Harvey and Wang Fei shrugged while Dong Fang Yue Chu snorted, as if it was obvious.

    "Weren''t you holding back as well?" Stan pointed out. I scratched my head, not sure how I should answer. The truth was that I still had a bunch of trump cards I kept hidden, but Alicia was by no means a pushover. I couldn''t let my guard down at all.

    "Regardless of holding back or not, the fact remains that Vice-president Richard won!" Harvey insisted. "Does it really matter?"

    "No, I suppose it doesn''t," Wang Fei admitted after pondering for a few seconds.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu rolled his eyes. "You guys¡­"

    "Anyway, shouldn''t we decide who gets to participate in the training camp?" I asked, finding another subject to switch to. "We only have two quotas, but there are five of us¡­"

    The first-year students shifted uncomfortably.

    "Isn''t it obvious?" Harvey replied. "You and the President. You''re the strongest out of the five of us."

    "As much as I hate to admit it, I think President Yue Chu should take the second spot." Stan then narrowed his eyes before I could say anything. "And obviously you should be our first choice. Don''t even think of escaping this. You''re the one who won both the team and individual matches."

    "No, that honestly never crossed my mind," I assured it.

    "It''s decided then!"

    The five of us jumped and spun around, catching sight of Feng Hai striding toward us. He raised a hand in a friendly wave.

    "I''m here to inform you about the details of the training camp." He swept his predatory gaze from me to Dong Fang Yue Chu. "Get ready, you two. We''ll be training in Sen Lin Forest, starting next week."

 88 Chapter 88: Training Camp

    "Oh boy¡­are we really going to do this?"

    Beside me, Dong Fang Yue Chu fidgeted anxiously as he glanced outside the bus window. We were just about to leave the highway and enter wilderness. Only a single road served as a sole reminder that human civilization existed at all.

    "Training in Sen Lin Forest? Does Instructor Feng Hai want us dead or something?!"

    "If he wanted us dead, he has many other ways to kill us. He wouldn''t bother to send us all the way to Sen Lin Forest."

    "I can''t believe you''re still so calm!" Dong Fang Yue Chu exclaimed, banging his fist against the cushioned armrest. "We are going to train in Sen Lin Forest, you know?! Sen Lin Forest!"

    "I heard you the first time. Actually, we already heard that from Instructor Feng Hai." I sighed and sank back in my seat. Fortunately, the other students aboard the bus were chattering pretty nosily. For example, Alicia and Miranda were chatting at the front, discussing something regarding Black Roses. I was slightly disappointed to see that Troy was still absent.

    On the other hand, I wasn''t sure how to face Alicia after our duel. We hadn''t met much after the uh, kiss she gave me. It wasn''t as if I was deliberately avoiding her. We just didn''t have many chances to meet after that.

    Still, it was uncomfortable being the center of attention, with all the other students in the academy giving me curious or envious gazes. Alicia''s fan club, in particular, was more obnoxious than ever, trying to harass or challenge me. Challenges, I was happy with, but getting yelled or cursed at in the corridor was not exactly a pleasant experience.

    Alicia had only given me one glance. I waved at her somewhat timidly, and she returned the greeting with a smile before turning back to discuss with Miranda. After that, we never made any eye contact again.

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    Even I wasn''t sure what exactly our relationship was right now. Were we officially going out? Was she just playing around with me? Nah, Alicia wasn''t that type of person. But it felt unbelievable that someone as godly as her would deign to socialize with me, never mind be in a romantic relationship with the likes of me.

    "What should we do? Run away?"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu''s wheedling brought me brought me back to the present, and I glared at him, annoyed.

    "Why the hell should we run away? It''s just a training camp. Man up, will you?"

    "But it''s Sen Lin Forest!" Dong Fang Yue Chu cried. "Why aren''t you afraid?"

    "Why should I be afraid?" I snorted derisively. "Just because there are monsters in Sen Lin Forest? Because Sen Lin Forest is a hotspot for Emergence events? Because the hunter squads who go there to exterminate monsters has the highest death tolls? Don''t worry. Instructor Feng Hai doesn''t strike me as the reckless and irresponsible sort. He''ll definitely keep us safe. He might crush us hard during training, but I guarantee you he''ll bring us all back alive."

    "That''s right!" Adam growled from somewhere behind us. "Quit your whining, Dong Fang Yue Chu! The only reason you''re here is because you took the spot meant for Vice-president Lin Zhan Long! If you really don''t want to be here, then get lost! Return the slot to Zhan Long!"

    "I have half a mind to¡­"

    "Dude¡­" I glared at Dong Fang Yue Chu in disgust. "Why did you even enroll in Jing Tian Magic Academy to become a mage for in the first place? Isn''t it to become a combat mage and exterminate monsters? Why are you getting cold feet now?"

    "Uh¡­no? I just heard that combat mages get paid a lot, so I¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu scratched his head sheepishly. I gaped at him. Adam snorted with laughter, but from the awkward silence emanating from other students around us, it seemed that Dong Fang Yue Chu wasn''t alone in his sentiment.

    Seriously? You guys planned to join the mage corps just for the money? Without considering the risks and threats to your lives when you work as a combat mage?

    "Pathetic¡­" Adam shook his head. "The only Ultimate Outcast worthy of respect is Richard. The rest of you are just spineless cowards."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu chuckled, not at all offended. "That''s true. But you know what they say. Cowards tend to live longer than heroes."

    I buried my face in my palm, exasperated. "If you really worry about your life, then why even bother becoming a combat mage at all?"

    "Um¡­you never know when an Emergence event might happen. Sometimes it happens inside a city, you know? Better to be prepared when that happens. Then I can protect myself with magic."

    Wow, that was indeed practical. However¡­

    "If that''s the case, then you should appreciate this training camp even more. It''s the only time you get to earn experience fighting monsters under a safe, controlled environment."

    "Richard is correct."

    To my surprise, it was Harrison Reed who spoke up. He smiled at me faintly and nodded.

    "Speaking of which, Richard, your performance last week was impressive. You really took the academy by storm. Congratulations, and welcome to this training camp."

    "Thank you, President Harrison," I replied politely, but inwardly I was caught off guard. I was aware of Harrison''s reputation as a gentleman, but I never expected him to directly congratulate me.

    "Ha ha ha!" a girlish giggle came from the back of the bus. All of us turned around and caught sight of a gorgeous girl with long, blue hair and wide hips.

    I immediately recognized her as Pearl Pang, the president of Super Power Society, the third great society in Jing Tian Magic Academy. She was one of the uh¡­superpowers in our school, also ranking among the top ten. From what I remembered, she was more of a healer than a combatant, though. Since healing magic was prized highly among mages, Pearl was a very valuable asset not just in her society but the whole academy.

    "My goodness. President Harrison is such a magnanimous person. You do realize that Ultimate Outcasts qualified for this training camp by defeating your Holy Saints, right? If it had been me, there''s no way I would be able to say such fake words."

    "I don''t mean to be fake," Harrison replied with a smile. There were sparks between the two, and I couldn''t help but glance from one president to the other. Maybe they had some history between them. Harrison expressed no hostility, however, and remained good-natured. "The objective of this training camp is to select the most skilled and strongest candidates from our school to be our representatives. Since Ultimate Outcast was able to defeat Vice-president Lin Zhan Long and his team, they have proven that they are stronger than him. Richard even defeated Alicia, who''s ranked among the top ten. Dong Fang Yue Chu also defeated Lily Liam, who''s also ranked among the top ten. Don''t you think this is a good thing that the two of them are given a chance to be among our representatives? They will encourage competition amongst themselves, at the very least."

    "That may be true," Pearl conceded, but then she snickered. "But out of all of them, only Lin Zhan Long lost his slot and was forced to drop out of the training camp. As you can see, both Alicia and Lily are still here even though they lost."

    Lily gave her a sharp glare from opposite the aisle, and Pearl sent her an apologetic gaze and shrug.

    "I''m sure Vice-president Lin Zhan Long resents having his slot taken and given away," Harrison admitted, his smile widening. "But I personally agree with Instructor Feng Hai''s decision to oust him from the training camp. Vice-president Lin Zhan Long has become complacent and slacked off on his training over the past two years. He may be overly ambitious, but over the last two years, he has become more concerned with playing with politics than actually improving his magic. I hope this defeat will help him tone down his arrogance and encourage him to be more diligent. I actually am grateful to Ultimate Outcast for bringing him back down to earth and reminding him the consequences of letting his guard down and underestimating his opponents."

    I wasn''t sure if Harrison Reed was putting on a show and delivering a well-crafted speech that was the complete opposite of his honest feelings, but I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. If Harrison really meant what he said, then it spoke volumes about his impressive and open-minded character. This sort of person would surely go far in life and become a great leader in his own right. Then again, he already was a highly competent leader in Holy Saints. That was how he rose to the position of president in the first place.

    Unlike me, however, Pearl sneered dismissively.

    "Hypocrite. Only an idiot will believe you mean what you say."

    Wow¡­she sure wasn''t holding back. Even I was feeling annoyed on Harrison''s behalf. However, the victim himself didn''t look offended. He merely shrugged with a helpless smile.

    "There''s nothing I can do if you don''t believe me."

    "Hah! I''m glad you bothered to go through with the effort!"

    I continued to sweep my gaze from Harrison to Pearl. The way she was heckling him seemed to indicate that she held some sort of deep grudge against him.

    Catching sight of my confused expression, Dong Fang Yue Chu raised an eyebrow.

    "Didn''t you know?" he asked. I stared at him, bemused.

    "Know what?"

    "Harrison and Pearl were a couple in the past. They used to go out with each other¡­until she dumped him. I''m not sure why, but they broke up on amicable terms." He chuckled. "Don''t worry. Pearl doesn''t mean anything by it. She just enjoys teasing Harrison. It''s just banter. That''s why he''s not angry at all. He also enjoys her ribbing."

    That was just¡­stupid, but an "outcast" like me had no right to judge the relationships between other people. So I just nodded and kept quiet. Then I turned my attention back to the view outside. Currently the bus was cruising along a remote highway that was surrounded by forest. Trees stood on either side of us, and I caught glimpses of monsters darting between the shadows.

    Ravagers. Two-tailed Thunder Wolves. Storm Scorpions.

    We were really venturing out into the unknown. For some reason, the monsters ignored the bus. While Dong Fang Yue Chu quailed at the sight of monsters (now I understood why he never participated in any missions along with me), I wasn''t worried. The bus was armored, with enchantments and arcane runes inscribed into its hull. The monsters would find it difficult to pierce through the mystical defenses that shrouded it.

    More likely they would get blasted apart by the turret that was rotating on top of the bus before they got within a hundred meters. Instinctively, they understood that the infantry fighting vehicle was dangerous, and so kept their distance.

    "Eyes sharp, people! We''ll be there soon!"

    Seated at the front, across from Alicia and Miranda, Feng Hai turned back to shout a warning to the rest of us.

    I glanced toward the front and my jaw dropped when I caught sight of the location of our training camp.

    A huge facility surrounded by a high wire fence that pulsed with deadly electricity. At right in the middle of the enormous camp was a single sentry tower. At night, the beacon would flash on and bath the entire premises in powerful light, but right now, during the daytime, there was no need to waste electricity.

    The bus rolled up to the huge, heavily armored gates. Two mage-soldiers in military uniforms stepped forward to speak with the driver. Feng Hai leaned forward to exchange a few words with them, and both soldiers stepped back, holstering their Divine Devices. They gestured to a third, unseen soldier, and the gates began to roll open.

    I felt a chill when the bus drove past the gates. For some reason, I felt as if we were driving straight into the maw of a ravenous beast.

    As if to drive home the point, the gates clanked shut behind us, an ominous sound that reminded us that we were trapped in this camp for the next two weeks.

 89 Chapter 89: Training Camp II

    ¡­what? Were you expecting us to drive past the gates of the city and see mutants or something? Did you want some info dump about the Federation and how they abandoned those poor mutants, who weren''t considered citizens? Were you expecting Adam to insult them or do something terrible, and for me to shout at him to stop?

    Wrong story, dude. Mutants didn''t exist in this world¡­well, not that kind of mutants, anyway. And there was no reason for a student to randomly act like an asshole just so the readers could hate him, and the protagonist could show off his "values" to get praised by the instructor. Feng Hai wasn''t monitoring us, anyway. He couldn''t care less what we did inside the bus.

    "We''re finally here," I marveled as I stared out of the windows and at the inner perimeter of the camp. There were armored vehicles, combat jeeps, main battle tanks and infantry fighting vehicles. This was an infantry and armor regiment camp. In the distance, I could see soldiers running a lap around a massive, grassy field.

    Judging from the nets on opposite sides, it appeared the soldiers here sometimes played soccer to maintain fitness or for fun during their breaks. What, you didn''t think soldiers get breaks? They are humans too.

    "Why is the training held in an army camp?" Terence asked apprehensively, his eyes widening as he took in the sight.

    "I thought we were supposed to train in the forest?" Adam added, puzzled.

    "We could go straight into the forest if you want. I''m sure you kids would love sleeping out in the jungle."

    Feng Hai could hear their questions, even from the front of the bus, and turned back to reply mischievously.

    "Uh, no, sir. I like the army camp."

    "Yeah, this looks like a great place to train!"

    I personally agreed. My goal was to grow stronger¡­to one day become as strong as my dad. To that end, I had to enroll in a prestigious university and learn even more combat magic and summoning magic. And to earn a position in a prestigious university, I had to achieve a high rank ¨C be among the top hundred. Right now I was two hundred ranks away from my goal. Technically I still had over a year to achieve that, but a lot of things could happen over the twenty months or so. I couldn''t afford to let my guard down, and the people in front of me in the rankings weren''t going to stay still and let me overtake them. They would also grow stronger.

    I glanced at Craig Carlson, who I had drawn with earlier this year. He had also been steadily rising through the ranks, and now he was part of the selected candidates for the training camp. Similarly, Theodore Hammond from Thunder Hammer Society was seated at the front, near Alicia and Miranda. Whoops, did I almost call Alicia Scarlet by mistake? Sorry.

    The bus rolled to a stop in front of a building. From what I could see, it resembled a deserted military barracks. No doubt we were expected to share bunks on the levels above. The lights were all off, unlike many of the other buildings, so I figured that Feng Hai reserved the entire building for Jing Tian Academy to use.

    "Okay, everybody! We''re here! Get off the bus! Make sure you don''t leave any of your belongings behind!"

    Rising to his feet, Feng Hai stretched himself and ordered us. He was the first out of the doors, flying between them before they could fully open.

    "Sir! Yes, sir!"

    Standing up, we all dragged our carry-on bags from the overhead compartment, and disembarked in an orderly fashion. Near the base of the bus, the driver had opened an underbelly compartment and was flinging out our luggage one by one. The students quickly moved forward to grab their respective luggage.

    Of course, I followed suit.

    "That was a long trip. I''m sure you''re all exhausted." Feng Hai paused as he swept his gaze across us. "I''ll assign you to your rooms. Go up, unpack, and get some rest. We''ll fall in at 1500 hours."

    I glanced at my smartphone. That was in forty-five minutes. It seemed plenty of time to unpack, but too little time to rest. Not that I was complaining. I wasn''t here to enjoy a vacation. I was here to train. And I couldn''t wait to get into Sen Lin Forest and begin.

    Obviously I didn''t voice those thoughts out loud. I wasn''t the only one here. My fellow schoolmates were here with me, and I didn''t want to drag them along with my selfish desires. They probably needed more rest than I did. Dad threw me into the forest a lot during training, especially when he was teaching me how to avoid professional assassins or kidnappers from criminal organizations. Sometimes humans behaved just like monsters.

    "Yes, sir!" everyone shouted enthusiastically. Feng Hai nodded, and then consulted a list. After glancing through it, he began reading out names and telling us who was assigned to which room and which level.

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    As expected, the guys were separated from the girls. The girls were housed on the third level while the guys were assigned to the fourth level. There was no elevator except a cargo lift for carrying heavy military goods. But we were not allowed access to it. Feng Hai made it very clear that we were to use the stairs when leaving or returning to our rooms. We could only use the elevator if we were ferrying heavy military equipment, and even then we had to get permission from Feng Hai first. Otherwise, we would get punished.

    Luggage, unfortunately, did not count as "military equipment." Not unless, as Feng Hai said, we were willing to "donate" our personal belongings to the military. So we had to carry our luggage up four flight of stairs (the guys, anyway).

    Good thing I didn''t bring much stuff for this training camp. Dad had always taught me how to survive on a minimalist luggage in the wild.

    "Huff¡­huff¡­"

    Panting, the guys staggered into the corridor of the fourth level, and then glanced around for their rooms. Mine was the furthest from the stairs, and I dragged my luggage across. Entering the bunk, I looked inside and cocked my head.

    Just as I thought, a military bunk. It was a pretty Spartan room, with a single table at the back. Ten beds were lined up against the walls, five on each side, and each had a single locker standing beside them.

    While we were assigned to rooms, we could freely choose which bed we wanted. I called dibs on one of the beds closest to the window, pulling my luggage and placing it beside the bunk. Opening the locker, I glanced inside and grimaced as dust spilled out.

    Not ideal, but I could live with it.

    "Man¡­this sucks¡­"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu grumbled as he settled down on the bed beside mine. Opposite me, Craig grabbed the bunk beside the window, while Theodore dropped on the bed beside the president of the Crimson Spear Society.

    "What? Don''t you want to become stronger?" Theodore asked him snidely. Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded.

    "Of course I do¡­"

    "Then suck it up," Craig told him impatiently. "Quit your whining. You think it''s easy to become strong? If it is, then anyone can become strong without working hard." He gestured at the Spartan bunk around us. "Only when we test our limits and overcome them will we truly become strong."

    I swallowed and nodded in agreement while becoming wary inside. As I suspected, while I was climbing the ranks, Craig wasn''t standing still either. He was definitely more formidable than when I fought him a few months ago.

    The same went for Theodore. I could detect a potent energy rippling from him that wasn''t there previously. The berserker probably doubled in strength, at the very least. I wondered if he had become powerful enough to wrestle with one of my Celestial Guardians.

    That was a terrifying thought. I already had enough formidable rivals, and now these guys were snapping at my heels! Speaking of which, I had a draw with Craig, so it wasn''t even as if I was ahead of them in the first place.

    "For now, grab some rest. The real training will begin in thirty minutes."

    Craig lay on the bed, his feet propped up on the metallic railing at the foot of the furniture. Unlike him, I busied myself by unlocking my luggage and unpacking. Since we had a locker, we might as well use it. There were a couple of drawers, several compartments for folded clothing, and a single tall space for hanging uniforms. That was where I hung my school uniform, while I folded home clothing (which would be used for sleeping and hanging out in the bunk) and stuffed them in the compartments. The valuables such as cards, money wallet and smartphone were placed inside the drawer.

    No, dude. I wasn''t talking about Magic Cards or Pok¨¦mon cards. I was referring to ATM debit cards and identity cards. Even in this digital age, we still relied on debit cards and identification cards for a lot of things.

    With that done, I then flopped down on my bed. Even though I felt sleepy, I didn''t manage to doze off. Five minutes prior to 1500, I finally suppressed my reluctance and swung my legs out of bed. Putting on my shoes, I got up.

    "Let''s go."

    "Hmm? Yeah." Dong Fang Yue Chu glanced at me and nodded. Craig and Theodore and the other six guys followed my lead, and we all practically flew down the stairs. We only needed a minute to descend four flights of stairs.

    Feng Hai was already waiting for us there. He nodded at us approvingly, and then raised his head. The girls weren''t here yet, and some of the guys from the other rooms were still milling about in the corridor.

    "Fall in right now!" Feng Hai hollered, his voice so loud that it almost shattered our eardrums. The guys already there in the square clutched at their ears and winced. "I told you 1500, didn''t I? You only have a minute left before time is up!"

    The guys upstairs were visibly hurrying, almost diving down the stairs in single bound. Some of them were actually using magic to enhance their speed. The girls were a little slower, but they were rushing out with a sense of urgency.

    ¡­it was too late.

    "Take your bloody sweet time, eh? What''s the matter with all of you?!"

    By the time the entire group had assembled, it was 1502. Two minutes over. Feng Hai was furious at our tardiness.

    "With an attitude like that, no wonder Jing Tian Academy''s ranking has fallen so much! You''re pathetic! No discipline, no sense of urgency at all! If this was real combat, people would have lost their lives while you''re dilly-dallying! You want to responsible for their deaths?"

    Everyone hang their heads in shame.

    "Hey! I''m asking you a question! Are you deaf?!"

    "No, sir!"

    Feng Hai shook his head in disgust, and then placed his hands on his hips.

    "Looks like I''ll have to whip you maggots into shape." He jerked his head toward the red track that circled the soccer field. "All of you, get to the track. In thirty seconds!"

    This time, everyone ran. Nobody wanted to face the consequences of being late.

    Feng Hai clapped his hands as we all stumbled into the track, panting and red-faced. The distance between the square outside our barracks and the track was several hundred meters. It wasn''t something that could easily be covered in thirty seconds, not unless we used magic. And so we did.

    "Good job. All of you made it. But¡­did I say you can use magic?"

    "Eh? But, sir, you didn''t say we can''t use magic either¡­" Terence protested as he wiped the perspiration from his face.

    "That''s true. That''s my fault." Feng Hai smiled coldly as he admitted his "mistake." "Then I''ll be clear now. You''re not allowed to use magic during training."

    Everyone stared at each other in dismay.

    "So let''s begin. I''m going to whip all of you into physical shape." His grin grew, and I was reminded of a shark somehow. "All of you seem to fall under the mistaken impression that as long as you have powerful magic, you''re invincible. But let me tell you this¡­your physical fitness and strength¡­the condition of your body is also just as important! Your teachers probably already taught you this¡­but their standards are too low. I''m going to whip you all into a satisfactory shape!"

    He swung his hand down. "250 pushups! 250 sit-ups! Then 50 laps around the track!"

    "¡­eh?!"

    Feng Hai glared at all of us when he heard several cries of disbelief. A murderous aura seemed to ooze out of his every pore.

    "Do you need me to repeat myself? If I have to repeat myself, I''ll double the number."

    "Sir, yes, sir!"

    Every single student immediately dropped down without hesitation and began their pushups.

 90 Chapter 90: Attempted Ambush

    If everyone thought the physical training from yesterday was hellish, then they were unprepared for what would come the next day.

    What? Did you think we were forced to eat rats and worms for dinner or something? Wrong story, dudes. I wasn''t going to spend the next ten chapters or so on a training camp. People were going to start screaming about fillers without even understanding the true meaning of fillers. Some readers just labeled whatever they were uninterested in as "filler" instead of understanding that these chapters had a larger role to play in the overall plot of the story. They failed to see the big picture, and because it wasn''t constant fighting, they screamed and whined incessantly about fillers.

    "We''ll be running through this trail today," Feng Hai told us as we gathered at the edge of Sen Lin Forest. We were allowed outside of the military camp, having exited through the heavy gates. Sentries continued to monitor for any intrusions or monsters from Sen Lin Forest, and automated turrets continued revolving around their grids to track down any potential targets. I was relieved to see that there weren''t any monsters nearby. But Feng Hai ended up bringing us through the main highway and into a much narrower trail that cut through the middle of the forest. "The route is uploaded through your smartphones. Check the academy app and it will show you a digital map. Stick to the path and signs on your phone. Don''t stray from the route, or you''ll have to bear the consequences."

    Terence gulped. "What consequences?"

    Feng Hai grinned. "If you want to stray away from the dirt track and go into the forest, don''t blame me or the school if you get killed by a monster."

    The students glanced uneasily at each other. We were all aware that Sen Lin Forest was a hotspot for Emergence events, and countless monsters dwelled in their depths. There was a slight barrier cast on either side of the dirt track, but the defensive enchantment was only capable of protecting against weak monsters. Fortunately, strong monsters rarely left the wilderness, so unless we were extremely unlucky, we shouldn''t encounter any of them if we kept to the edges of civilization.

    "However, you won''t be penalized if you do so." For some reason, Feng Hai''s gaze swept toward me and several of the students. "Fighting against monsters makes for excellent combat training too. In fact, I encourage you to hunt a monster or two if you happen to spot one. That said, you had best know your limits. Don''t hunt a powerful monster if you have no way of defeating it. I don''t want to explain to your parents how you got killed under my watch. Is that understood?"

    "Yes, sir!"

    Feng Hai nodded in approval. Then he grinned again.

    "Another thing. You''re all not allowed to use magic power when running. You''re only allowed to use magic when in combat, if you venture off the path and hunt monsters in the forest. But you''re not allowed to use any spells to enhance your physical prowess or speed for even a millimeter atop the track. The moment I sense you use magic when you''re still on the track, you''ll be disqualified." He then turned toward a truck. "And to make your lives difficult, I have a gift for you."

    After he whistled, a couple of soldiers emerged from the back of the military truck. They began throwing down gigantic backpacks.

    "Each of you, take one. They''re about fifty kilograms each. You''re not allowed to receive assistance from anyone regarding your backpack. Each of you must only carry your own. No helping in sharing the load. The goal is to strengthen your stamina and physical condition."

    Everyone glanced at each other in dismay. Not only were we not allowed to use any magic when running on the track, we still had to carry these insane loads? They might as well shoot us right here and now.

    "Why? Is there a problem?" Feng Hai''s voice was frosty. Everyone shook their heads without hesitation. After yesterday''s training, we realized he wasn''t someone we wanted to piss off.

    "No, sir!"

    "We can do it!"

    "Good. Now get to it!" Feng Hai clapped his hands and gestured for us to start. "The track should run for about fifty miles. There are various obstacles, never mind the monsters. You''re only allowed to eat after you complete your run." He smirked. "Make sure you return before it gets dark. The stronger monsters come out at night, and even the barrier enchantments we set up alongside the track wouldn''t be able to stop them."

    I gulped when I heard that. It was true that the more powerful monsters were more active at night.

    Then we all set off. I regulated my pace, knowing that I couldn''t afford to exhaust all of my strength right from the start. Especially with such a heavy load clinging to my back. Even with training from my dad, it wasn''t as if I had reached superhuman capability.

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    However, even in my previous world, commandoes and marines underwent similar training, so it wasn''t as if this was physically impossible for humans. We needed conditioning and all that, and in order to use magic, our bodies had to withstand the power and potential backlash from casting spells. So we already had some advantage in terms of physical constitutions when compared to ordinary humans.

    At least that was the theory, anyway.

    Ahead, the Holy Saints Society ran forward, led by Harrison Reed. Cody Crosby, Lily Liam, Adam Freeman and Terence Taylor followed him closely, and the five of them surged toward the front before anyone could say anything.

    The rest of us randomly grouped up together and jogged along the track together. Dong Fang Yue Chu stayed close to me, and his stamina was pretty good too. He grinned at me as he jogged slowly at a steady pace.

    "Fifty miles, huh? We probably can finish it in about five hours and reach the camp after noon."

    "Yeah." I nodded. "As long as we maintain this pace, anyway."

    Alicia and Pearl ended up leading the rest of us, and I suspected they slowed down so that we could jog as a group rather than split up. Craig and Theodore were slightly ahead of Dong Fang Yue Chu and me, the pair of them quietly jogging at their own pace. I suspected they were also holding back slightly for the rest of the group, otherwise the distance between us would have widened the longer the run went.

    "Should we hunt monsters?" Craig asked without turning back. I shrugged.

    "Normally I would be happy to, but with fifty kilograms on our back? And wouldn''t we exhaust ourselves too much to complete the rest of the run before dark?"

    "Richard has a point," Theodore conceded. "We can''t afford to be too reckless."

    "Aw¡­you guys are boring," Craig complained, but Alicia sent him a sharp glance.

    "If you want to fight, you are welcome to do so on your own. But please refrain from putting the rest of the group at risk."

    "Yes, ma''am." Craig sighed. "But it''s boring to fight on my own. If only the rest of my members were here¡­"

    The Crimson Spear Society was a small society like Ultimate Outcast, with about twenty members. As such, they only had one slot. Honestly, Ultimate Outcast would only have one slot too, but we stole one from poor Lin Zhan Long and Holy Saints, which was the only reason why we had two members in the training camp.

    And so we continued to run for the next few hours. Before we knew it, the sun had risen to its zenith, signaling that it had reached noon. I glanced up and shielded my eyes as I studied the sky, grimacing at the increasing heat. Even with the trees by the side of the track affording us some shelter, it was still pretty hot.

    At the edges of my peripheral vision, I could see dark shapes darting around the foliage of the forest, or creatures lurking just beyond view. From the nervous expressions of my fellow students, I could tell that they caught sight of the monsters too.

    "I really want to fight them," Craig muttered as he fidgeted restlessly. Dong Fang Yue Chu rolled his eyes.

    "Sure. Go ahead. We''ll leave you behind."

    "Why can''t you join me?"

    "Not all of us have the stamina to fight and run," Alicia explained, her eyes still forward. "I would prefer if we all stay as a group and move together. That way, we can protect and look out for each other."

    Craig grumbled something under his breath, but he didn''t break off. Instead, he continued running with us.

    Just a few hundred meters ahead of us, Adam and Terence had slowed down slightly, unable to keep up with Harrison''s punishing pace. They couldn''t even keep up with the agile Cody and steady Lily. It wasn''t as if they weren''t fit or lacked the stamina. They could still run without pause, but they were the slow types, having built their bodies up with muscles for physical power over speed. They became aware that we were going to catch up with them.

    "Whoa! It''s actually the rest of them!" Adam exclaimed nervously as he glanced over his shoulder. "This is bad! If they overtake us, won''t we be the last!?"

    "How is that possible?!" Terence counted, and to his dismay, he realized that Adam was correct. "There should be stragglers behind. We can''t possibly be the slowest in the training camp!"

    To be honest, they weren''t. There were a few students who were slower than the pair of them, but the both of them had slacked off slightly to take several breaks, allowing us to catch up eventually. If they didn''t pause to sit about, they would have stayed far ahead. They had gotten complacent when they calculated that they would reach the training camp well before dark, and were taking any chance they could get to slack.

    Consequently, they found us hot on their heels.

    "Hmm¡­this is an obstacle course, isn''t it?" Adam began to smirk as an idea occurred to him. "What if we create our own obstacles?"

    "Huh? Isn''t that against the rules? If we get caught¡­"

    "Don''t worry. Do you think Instructor Feng Hai cares about this trivial detail? He''ll probably praise us and tell the others that everyone still has to remain vigilant even during training." Adam was grinning evilly.

    The two of them veered off to the side and jumped into the forest. They made sure the area was clear and empty of monsters before they settled down behind a bush. Each of them took a rock in hand and got ready to throw it.

    The ambush was simple. They hoped to take at least a couple of us by surprise by throwing rocks at us. That might cause us to accidentally use magic to defend ourselves and thus we would end up getting disqualified from this training. If we didn''t counter with magic spells, then we would possibly be knocked out.

    Adam, in particular, was trying to resolve a grudge for his vice-president, Lin Zhan Long. If his vice-president heard about this, he would definitely be delighted. Adam would receive a reward and climb in status within Holy Saints.

    Both Terence and Adam were Lin Zhan Long''s cronies. Even though Lin Zhan Long was barred from the training camp, he was still able to pull some strings to ensure that the both of them could participate in his place. As such, the both of them were extremely grateful to their boss. They were aware of his resentment against Ultimate Outcast, especially since we were the one who ended up eliminating Lin Zhan Long and taking his slot, and thus looked for any opportunity to repay the debt.

    Thus they had already selected their targets from the beginning, and aimed at both me and Dong Fang Yue Chu.

    "!!!"

    Thanks to my training from my dad, I was sensitive to such surprise attacks. I had grown up over the last five years trying to escape kidnappers and professional mercenaries from criminal organizations and those bearing a grudge against my father. Thanks to that, I was able to sniff out a threat from a mile away.

    "Get down!" I told Dong Fang Yue Chu. Scraping my foot on the ground, I whirled around and whipped my leg out, kicking both rocks.

    Wham!

    The rocks were flung back at where they came from, and two miserable screams echoed through the forest as Terence and Adam crashed back, clutching their faces. Blood streamed through their fingers as they groaned and rolled about helplessly on the ground.

    "Richard? What happened?!" Alicia called out from the front, looking back in concern.

    "Nothing," I replied, but Craig cut in with a chuckle.

    "A couple of¡­uh, monsters, ambushed us. But their attacks couldn''t get through the barrier, so they threw rocks at us instead. Richard just tossed them back at them."

    "Monsters, huh?" Theodore muttered with a snicker.

    "Those are definitely not monsters!" Dong Fang Yue Chu growled angrily. "They are¡­!"

    "It doesn''t matter who they are," I interrupted him. "They won''t be coming after us for a while."

    Glancing up, I exchanged a smirk with Craig and Theodore as the group carried on with our run without pause.

 91 Chapter 91: Finishing Together

    No, it wasn''t that kind of "finishing together." Hey, stop having dirty thoughts in your mind! I didn''t mean it like that! Ugh! Okay, maybe it''s my fault for thinking of such a terrible chapter title, but honestly, don''t start looking for innuendos in every little thing!

    Anyway, after that little ambush, we continued to run. The group had slowed down because it was necessary for us to conserve our physical strength. For many of us, if we maintained our original pace, they would not be able to complete the training. Even Craig was perspiring profusely and looking a little pale a couple of hours after noon. He made no more mention of going into the forest and hunting monsters, much to the unspoken relief of everyone else, including me.

    The training was harder than I thought. Honestly, if it weren''t for Dad''s training, I would never have made it this far. I would have collapsed by the track from sheer exhaustion a long time ago. Fortunately, it wasn''t just Dad, but Jing Tian Academy also maintained a strict physical training regimen for its students. What, did you think the teachers were slacking off on their jobs? They were aware that physical fitness and strong bodies were required to cast spells successfully and to become an excellent mage. Having powerful mana reserves and a proficient understanding of magic alone wasn''t sufficient. We needed to be strong both mentally and physically.

    The problem was that Feng Hai''s physical training was on a whole different level. The guy was throwing us high school students into training meant for commandos and marines. Even ordinary infantry soldiers were subjected to such insane Spartan training. At least not from what I remembered from my past life, anyway.

    Then again, comparing this world to my previous world was like comparing apples to oranges. We all called ourselves humans, but the people of this world was clearly built differently from those living almost a millennia ago.

    "Are you guys all right? Can you keep going?"

    At the front, Alicia asked the rest of the group. She was just as exhausted as Craig, her limbs trembling and perspiration pouring down her pretty but pale face. She looked as if she was on the verge of collapse.

    "Yeah!"

    "I''m good!"

    "Don''t push yourself, Alicia!" I called from behind. She gave me a grateful smile.

    "Don''t worry. I can keep going."

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    I wondered about that, but didn''t argue. If Alicia thought she could maintain her pace, then I wasn''t going to argue with her. I just had to make sure I keep an eye on her, just in case she collapsed in the middle.

    Unlike Holy Saints, who ¨C true to their individualistic nature ¨C had all ran in front, Black Roses supported each other. Even though Feng Hai had given strict orders that we were not allowed to help each other carry the fifty-kilogram load, he never said anything about banning us from moving together.

    "Careful! I see an obstacle!"

    Beside Alicia, Pearl shouted out a warning while panting. She was heaving just as much, if not more than Alicia. I was worried that the girls were pushing themselves too much. It wasn''t as if I underestimated them. I knew how tough and competent they were, but they really seemed to be overexerting themselves.

    The goal of the training was to complete it, not to fall apart in the middle.

    "Let me."

    Even though I was just as tired as everyone else, I increased my pace slightly and forced my way to the front. As Pearl noted, there was a huge rock in front of us that blocked our path. We could go around it by going through the forest, but as ever, the monsters were still lurking somewhere behind those trees. Given our current condition, none of us had the energy to fight monsters.

    So I did the only thing I could think of.

    Pausing in front of the boulder, I kicked it. The entire thing crumbled to powder, allowing me to step over it and continue on. I glanced over my shoulder to make sure the others were still following closely.

    Pearl gaped at me. "You didn''t use any magic, did you?"

    "No," I assured her, and then shrugged. "My Dad has been training me in martial arts since I was young."

    "Martial arts allow you to do that?" Theodore asked skeptically as he glanced at the powdered rock he stepped over.

    "Yeah," Dong Fang Yue Chu replied in my stead as he followed the president of Thunder Hammer Society past the broken debris. "You should have seen what Richard''s dad can do without using any magic."

    "Dad is probably not human," I half-joked. I was being partially serious because Dad really did pull off some superhuman feats at time, even for a mage. Which was why I highly respected and looked up to him, and was chasing after his shadow. Wiping the perspiration off my brow, I sighed in satisfaction. "Phew."

    This training camp would really help me become stronger and allow me to catch up with Dad.

    *

    As expected, Harrison Reed was the first to reach the training camp. He smiled somewhat modestly as he passed through the gates. Feng Hai nodded in approval when he saw him, and then glanced at the track.

    "You''re alone?"

    "Yes. I somehow managed to run ahead of the others. Sorry, I got too carried away."

    Harrison tried not to sound smug as he replied. He was first, as he thought he would. This meant that he had proven his physical capabilities and displayed to everyone that he was number one. That he was the strongest, and thus the most qualified to lead the team of Jing Tian representatives as its captain.

    Feng Hai merely gave him a glance, and nodded.

    "You can go get a shower, and eat. That''s all the training for today."

    "Thank you, Instructor Feng." Harrison raised an eyebrow. He thought that Feng Hai would be more impressed with his performance, but his reaction was a little too lukewarm. He had received some acknowledgement, though, so that was probably good enough.

    Lily and Cody were next, after an hour. And three hours after them, at around six and just before dark, Alicia and Pearl brought the majority of the group through the gates. By the time we drew close to the camp, I had dropped back toward the rear, having cleared quite a few of the obstacles. Obviously I wasn''t the only one. Craig, Theodore and Dong Fang Yue Chu stepped forward to help me. The girls also played a part in overcoming obstacles. It wasn''t just rocks. Sometimes it was a bridge that was falling apart, and it required someone''s expertise. Obviously I wasn''t the type to bridge a crumbling bridge. And Craig could jump further than me, so when we reached the edge of a cliff, he jumped over, grabbed a rope and tossed it over for us to tie it, and then we moved along the rope to cross the chasm.

    Stuff like that.

    Working together, we were somehow able to have the whole group make it back to the training camp before it got dark.

    It wasn''t just obstacles. There were a few members who were on the verge of giving up, but we had motivated and encouraged each other. United in spirit, we managed to persevere until the very end, while singing or shouting or even conversing with each other on the most mundane things, to take our minds off the physical exhaustion and pain.

    "Excellent."

    Feng Hai beamed when he caught sight of our whole group limping the last few dozen meters toward the camp. He clapped as we cleared the final distance and nodded enthusiastically, approval and praise shining on his face.

    "All of you finished together! Great job working together and encouraging each other! That''s the kind of team spirit I would like to see in the representatives!"

    "Thank you, sir," Alicia managed as she heaved wearily.

    "All of you, go get a shower, and then grab some chow from the cafeteria. My treat today." Feng Hai grinned. "Again, well done. That''s all the training for today, so you can rest after dinner. Do whatever you want. The lounge is open."

    "Thank you, sir!"

    The lounge was filled with sofas, a pool table, a television, game consoles and various other leisure devices. We rarely earned the privilege to enter the lounge, having been told that the place was off-limits yesterday. As such, we were elated when we heard it was open for use. Though¡­judging from how exhausted and broken we all were, I doubted any of us were in any condition to use it.

    Feng Hai probably knew that, which was why he opened it for our use. Personally, I planned to go to bed immediately after dinner.

    Unfortunately for Adam and Terence, they were the most miserable of the bunch. They only reached the camp at nine in the evening, after the sun had set. Their faces still bore bruises from the rocks I accidentally kicked back at them. While rolling about, injured, they ended up drawing the attention from monsters elsewhere in the forest, and were attacked. They used their magic without reserves, but inadvertently escaped to the track while still using spells when they ended up getting overwhelmed by the sheer number of Ruby Spiders. In the end, while they were able to survive, they were disqualified from today''s training and lost all their points.

    Sucks to be them.

    *

    Over the next two weeks, we underwent nothing but physical training. I had expected Feng Hai to teach us combat techniques or magic spells, but¡­nothing.

    And Dong Fang Yue Chu''s fears proved to be unfounded. Even though we originally thought we would be training in Sen Lin Forest, we never actually went inside the forest. We merely skirted the edges of Sen Lin Forest, but none of us actually went inside it. All we did was run, do pushups, sit-ups and other physical exercises.

    I swear, we were all going to become Saitama at this rate.

    In the end, we didn''t, and the training camp ended. A few students were eliminated, which was only natural. Given there were about thirty students in the training camp, and there could only be ten representatives, including reserves, about twenty students would have to face bitter disappointment. A few from the Super Power Society, a few from other societies, and even one from Holy Saints were eliminated by the end of the two weeks.

    "As for the rest of you, you get a break. Rest well, and we''ll continue the training camp in a week!" Feng Hai was grinning ominously. "This is just the beginning. All the physical training so far is just to give you a taste of hell, but you haven''t gone through true hell yet! The real training begins in a week''s time! The group training in Sen Lin Forest will be the real thing!"

    Everyone glanced at each other uneasily, but no one objected. By now we were familiar with Feng Hai''s temper. He had a short fuse, but he was fair and reasonable. He would never force us into anything that was impossible for us to do. He knew our limits, and while he encouraged us to break them, he didn''t just dump unreasonable objectives that would destroy us. He was also aware of the need to maintain morale and avoided crushing our confidence completely. After all, self-belief was important to improving oneself.

    So none of us complained. We all nodded.

    "Yes, sir!"

    "Thank you, sir!"

    "Oh, don''t thank me yet." Feng Hai''s grin spread across his handsome but scarred face. "You''ll be cursing me during the group training."

 92 Chapter 92: Conspiring over the Break

    "Hey, Dad! I''m home!"

    I crashed through the door of our house excitedly. Even though Dad went for a mission while I was away at training camp, I estimated that he would be back¡­soon.

    As I suspected, Dad was already home, watching an anime series on television. He had a sour look on his face, but it turned into a delighted smile when he raised his head to glance at me.

    "Richie! Good to see you! How was the training camp?" he grinned. "The instructor is Feng Hai, right? I''ve heard a lot about him. Let me guess¡­he worked you guys hard!"

    "Yeah, though nothing we couldn''t handle. Seems like there will be another training camp next week, but for this week they let us return home for a break." I grimaced. "We''ll still have to attend classes in school, though."

    "Of course." Dad gave me a withering stare. "You think they''re just going to let you guys slack off for a week?"

    "No." I glanced at the television set. "What are you watching, by the way? You don''t seem happy with it."

    "Oh¡­it''s the anime adaptation of a web novel about some guy who became the world''s strongest despite having a commonplace job." He scowled angrily. "They complete butchered it. Random flashbacks instead of having the story take place chronologically, no explanations or anything, and the pacing is all over the place. If I didn''t read the original web novel, I would have completely no idea what the fuck the anime was talking about. They completely skipped the summoning sequence and the part that the protagonist was being bullied! Which made the scene where that bastard bully who betrayed and tried to kill him nonsensical!"

    "That sucks," I agreed, making a mental note to give the anime a miss. In the end, I still watched it, but I had to agree with Dad''s assessment. The anime was terrible and butchered the source material entirely. But for now, I thought it prudent to agree with Dad.

    "Anyway, go get some rest. I''m sure you''re exhausted after running around in a training camp for two weeks."

    "Will do. Thanks."

    Waving absent-mindedly, I began to ascend the stairs toward my room while carrying my luggage. After all that physical training, my massive luggage and backpack felt as light as a feather.

    *

    The next day, I attended school as usual. Looking forward to Teacher Fielding''s class, I showed up to learn some new combat magic.

    "Vice-president Richard! You''re back!"

    Harvey waved at me. I nodded as I joined him.

    "How was the training camp?" Stan Lee asked. I shrugged.

    "Pretty harsh. But¡­I think we all became stronger."

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    "That''s good!" Harvey''s eyes were shining in admiration. "I can''t imagine the vice-prez becoming stronger!"

    Please, dude. Stop your hero-worshipping. You''re putting unnecessary pressure on me.

    "I heard quite a few students got eliminated, though," Stan remarked as he placed a finger on his chin. "They seem to have pretty high standards."

    "Well, it''s concerning who gets to represent the academy in the national tournaments," I pointed out. "And after our pathetic performances in the past few years, the school is desperate for us to improve our ranking this year."

    "True." Stan nodded. "I bet only the strongest will get selected!"

    "Seems like it''s not a matter of pure strength," I explained. "They also take into account the representative''s flexibility, intelligence, experience and leadership capabilities. It''s no use being the strongest if nobody respects you and listens to you. There is a strategic component this year, especially since they are emphasizing more on team battles, so it''s no longer purely about strength alone."

    "That sounds complicated," Harvey complained as he held his head.

    "Makes a lot of sense, though." despite seemingly agreeing with me, Stan had a bitter expression. "A real battle takes into consideration so many other factors, not just strength."

    He was evidently reevaluating his notions of strength and how to best climb the rankings, I was sure. Stan was pretty ambitious, after all. He still hadn''t reached the level necessary to compete with the top, but I was sure he would get there eventually.

    "Yeah. That''s why even someone as strong as Adam Freeman got eliminated." I shook my head with a sigh. "It''s unfortunate, but it seems that things aren''t going to be as simple this time."

    *

    Speaking of Adam, there was a scene happening at Holy Saints at the same time.

    Harrison Reed was in the president''s room, one of the many rooms reserved and set aside for Holy Saints Society. He was brewing some tea and drinking it while working on administrative matters. While he had been away at the training camp, a lot of the documents had piled up, and now he was catching up on them.

    Fortunately, most of them were trivial matters. He just needed to read through them, and then signed on the documents to show his approval. There were a few that took up his attention, and he revised them before placing them in a separate tray, to mark them out as documents that were to be returned to the people who submitted them, so that they could finalize the alterations before sending them back to him.

    Bang!

    Harrison looked up irritably as someone rudely barged into the room without knocking. And of course it just had to be none other than his vice-president, Lin Zhan Long.

    "I can''t accept this, President Harrison!"

    "Huh?" Harrison put down his cup of tea and lifted his gaze from the document he was perusing. "What are you talking about? Can''t accept what?"

    "The humiliation to our society, of course! We can''t keep enduring getting humiliated by Instructor Feng Hai like this! We have to file a protest to the academy!"

    "Humiliation? What are you talking about? Can you start from the beginning?"

    Harrison scowled, his brow furrowing in bewilderment. Lin Zhan Long had a glib tongue most of the time, but it was clear that he was driven into a frenzy right now.

    "How did Ultimate Outcast make it through the selection?! Who is this Dong Fang Yue Chu?! Wasn''t he ranked around 1,200 a few months ago?! No matter how you look at it, Adam is much stronger than him, higher in rank, and even his theoretical performance is better! Yet Adam was the one who got eliminated instead!"

    After the first round of training, Adam had been eliminated. Upon hearing the news, Lin Zhan Long flew into a rage.

    Harrison finally understood why he was so worked up, but he remained silent and listened as Lin Zhan Long continued with his tirade, spittle flying violently from his mouth as he continued yammering away.

    "Instructor Feng Hai is obviously biased toward Ultimate Outcast! In the past, it was Holy Saints who get the first priority, who receive the top spots, because we''re the strongest! The most recognized in Jing Tian Academy! Yet, this time we''re getting overlooked for Ultimate Outcast!"

    "¡­uh, no?" Harrison tilted his head as he gave Lin Zhan Long a strange stare. "What are you talking about? Instructor Feng Hai is no less biased toward Ultimate Outcast than he is toward the other societies. Why aren''t you complaining about Black Roses? Or Crimson Spear? Or Thunder Hammer? None of their members got eliminated either, so why are you complaining about Ultimate Outcast alone?"

    "Black Roses is a major society just like ours! And Craig Carlson and Theodore Hammond are established high-rankers! It''s not weird that they passed through the first round of training!"

    "Both Richard and Dong Fang Yue Chu have also risen up the rankings at quite the astronomical pace, if I recall. I''m not surprised that they made it. If anything¡­" Harrison frowned. "I was quite disappointed with Adam''s performance. He had gotten complacent and didn''t put in any effort during the training camp. Instead of concentrating on becoming stronger, he wasted time trying to ambush others and play pranks. His disqualification rests solely on his shoulders. Frankly, I agree with Instructor Feng''s decision to eliminate him. Given the nonsense he pulled during the training camp, even I couldn''t defend him."

    Lin Zhan Long gaped at Harrison. "Adam is one of our people, you know?! He''s a member of Holy Saints!"

    "So?" Harrison replied lightly. "That doesn''t mean he''s above criticism. In fact, as president, I have already reprimanded and told him to buck up. If he doesn''t improve his performances, then he''ll end up disgracing our society further."

    Lin Zhan Long didn''t seem convinced. He slammed his palms against Harrison''s desk, heedless of the documents that ended up scattering because of his impudence.

    "Calm down." Harrison looked grave. He took a second cup and poured tea into it before offering it to Lin Zhan Long. "Have a cup of tea. Hopefully you''ll calm down and look at this whole matter more rationally."

    "Rationally?!" Lin Zhan Long was in no mood to appreciate the tea. Instead, he gulped down the entire contents of the cup without savoring the fragrant liquid. Wiping his mouth, he then glowered at Harrison. "Look, President, I know you''re magnanimous and don''t look down on those of lower status and rank, did you know that while you were away at the training camp for a couple of weeks, we have been receiving a rising number of complaints in the society? Everyone is complaining that Holy Saints is going downhill. At least a dozen members also tried to quit the society¡­I managed to talk some sense into them, but a few of them are still determined to leave."

    "This is a society, not a prison. Everyone has the right to leave for another society if they wish." Harrison gave Lin Zhan Long a hard look. "Other than our core members, who have been benefiting from the society''s resources and thus are obligated to represent our society, the others can go if they want to. There is no need to force them to stay, or you''ll only increase their resentment."

    "But¡­!"

    Lin Zhan Long was growing increasingly worried. During the previous battle between societies, he had been humiliated by me, which completely destroyed his prestige and standing in the academy. He ended up being a laughing stock, and this led him to harbor a grudge against me and Ultimate Outcast. Ever since then, he had been plotting revenge against us.

    However, Harrison refused to be on his side. Lin Zhan Long was aware of Harrison''s upright character, which was why he was president in the first place, but he was hoping to appeal to Harrison''s attachment to their society to sway him.

    "I was actually impressed by both Richard and Dong Fang Yue Chu''s performance during the first phase of the training camp." Harrison sighed. "It was a great mistake not to recruit them into Holy Saints. They would have constituted our core force."

    "Are you kidding me?!"

    "Have you forgotten? They are on par with even our first team members. Dong Fang Yue Chu defeated Lily. And you lost to Richard. Richard even defeated Alicia shortly after. Are you still not convinced by their strength?" Harrison narrowed his eyes. "Maybe one or two victories would be considered a fluke, but they have been winning consistently. I won''t say their record is perfect, but other than Troy, who in this academy can claim that they have a 100% win record?"

    "That''s¡­"

    "Don''t worry. We still have a healthy number of candidates in the training camp. I''m still in, so are Cody, Lily and Terence. As long as we continue to work hard and perform well, we''ll surely get selected for the representatives." Harrison nodded, as if to himself. "I look forward to fighting beside Richard, especially. His summoning spells bring a lot to the table, especially in group battles. If we can cover him while he casts his spells, we might just make it into the top ranks this year¡­"

    "Are you kidding me?!" Lin Zhan Long roared. "Are you seriously considering fighting alongside him as fellow representatives?"

    "Why wouldn''t I?" Harrison sipped some of his tea calmly. "He has proven his strength time and time again. Actually, I''m more puzzled about your behavior. What do you have against Richard? Is it because you lost to him? Put aside your personal feelings. What is important is that we all work together as a team and elevate our academy''s rankings. Don''t let your pride get in the way of that. Look at the bigger picture."

    Lin Zhan Long gawked at Harrison for a moment, and then he spun away and stomped out of the room. Harrison glared after him.

    "Don''t you dare try and do anything stupid!" he called out after the departing vice-president. "This is bigger than you and your ego!"

    While Lin Zhan Long was stomping away, an idea suddenly occurred to him. He still had the bitter aftertaste of tea leaves in his mouth¡­and leaves brought to mind a vision of a forest.

    "Sen Lin Forest¡­"

    He began to smile cruelly.

    "If I''m not mistaken, the next phase of the training involves a group mission to the forest and gaining experience fighting against monsters¡­"

    Hammering a fist into his palm, a light went off in his head. Lin Zhan Long began chuckling to himself as he began to draw up a plan.

    "Since it takes place in Sen Lin Forest¡­since it involves combat against monsters¡­it won''t be strange if ''accidents'' happen, right?"

    Lin Zhan Long''s laughter grew louder as he left the Holy Saints building, his confidence swelling up with every step.

 93 Chapter 93: Socialization

    After school, Dong Fang Yue Chu ran toward me, waving excitedly.

    "Wait, up! Richard! Alicia and the Black Roses want to see us!"

    "Why?" I asked unenthusiastically. I had originally planned to head to our society room to train with our juniors and perhaps even impart some of my experiences during the training camp to them, so that they could improve themselves.

    "Something about gathering up the members involved in the training camp. You should join us too!"

    "Don''t want to."

    "Come on, don''t be like that." Dong Fang Yue Chu scowled at me. Knowing him, he would drag me there if he had to, so I just sighed and raised my hands in surrender. Shaking my head, I followed my president.

    "Ah, you two are here!"

    Alicia and Miranda waved at us when they caught sight of us. Lately, Miranda had stopped being hostile toward us, especially after the second day of the training camp when the other guys and I helped to clear the obstacles for the group during our run through the forest track. She had finally acknowledged that I wasn''t as trashy as she first thought I was.

    "Good to see the both of you," Miranda greeted us with a smile.

    "Same, same." Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded. "You guys called?"

    "That''s right." Alicia nodded. "Richard, Yue Chu, there will be a gathering at 8.30pm. A few of our friends from the training camp will be coming."

    The first people to come to mind were Theodore and Craig. Though I couldn''t exactly call us bosom buddies, we were still comrades who experienced the rigors of the training camp together. I wouldn''t mind hanging out with them.

    "It''s a karaoke session," Alicia added with a giggle. "So get ready to sing."

    I quickly began thinking up excuses to give this a miss. I wasn''t a fan of karaoke, and my singing was terrible. Needless to say, I was tone deaf, and my voice sounded like fingernails scratching on the blackboard.

    "Make sure you come, Richard," Miranda told me. I felt as if I was trapped when I saw her bright and grateful smile. "A few of our Black Rose members want to thank you for taking care of us during the training camp. Me, included."

    Fuck! Why did she choose this moment to be nice to me?! I would rather she treat me as she did in the past and complain to Alicia about inviting "trash" like me.

    "Uh, today is a bad day for me¡­I have training in my dad''s dojo¡­"

    "Don''t worry about it. I''ll talk to your dad for you." Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded toward Miranda and Alicia. "I''ll make sure he comes. I''ll drag him along if I have to."

    TRAITOR! I''ll remember this! You''ll pay for betraying me!

    "I''ll see you tonight then!" Dong Fang Yue Chu waved as he watched Alicia and Miranda go. Behind, I slumped down in despair.

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    "Please spare me¡­I don''t want to go to a karaoke session."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu crouched down and swung both his hands downward. "Just do it!" he ordered sternly. "Don''t ruin the party. Join in and sing a couple of songs."

    "I can''t sing."

    "So what? It doesn''t matter. This isn''t a singing competition or a music exam. The point of the party is to enjoy yourself! Just have fun and sing your favorite songs!" he stared at me. "I''m sure you have favorite songs, right?"

    Yet another reason why I didn''t want to go to the karaoke session. The only music I listened to was anime music. If I were to sing that during the karaoke session and expose myself as an otaku, it would¡­be embarrassing. Then again, most people already knew about my hobbies and interest in Japanese manga and anime, so there was no point hiding it.

    Damn it.

    Sighing, I nodded. "I''ll let my dad know tonight¡­"

    *

    What? Were you expecting me to suddenly spring an info dump on cross wheels and the history behind the person who invented it? Or about people speculating about some random overpowered person in the OP being from the Assassin clan? Nah, I''m not exactly enthusiastic about seeing readers screaming about fillers and whatever in the comments.

    Anyway, we had some time before the gathering at 8.30pm, so I naturally returned to the Ultimate Outcast society room to train and give some advice to my juniors. It didn''t take long before evening drew near. Dong Fang Yue Chu dismissed the juniors, and then dragged me along.

    I would have asked the three first year students to come along, but this was a gathering for students who participated in the training camp. Alicia and Miranda didn''t invite them. As such, it was inappropriate to bring my whole society there, especially since Theodore and Craig probably wouldn''t bring their other members along as well.

    As I suspected, those two guys came by themselves. We ended up running into each other outside the school gates.

    "You guys¡­" Craig waved at us. "Going for the gathering too?"

    "Yeah," Dong Fang Yue Chu replied. "What about you?"

    "Yup."

    "It''s at the Jing Tian Mall, right?" Theodore asked uncertainly, glancing at his phone. However, he couldn''t find the message or email because Alicia had told him verbally instead of over the phone. I wondered why she didn''t just send a mass email to all those who participated in the training camp. Would have been more convenient and saved a lot of time.

    "That''s right." Dong Fang Yue Chu was on top of everything. Since it involved social activities, he was in his element. The president of Ultimate Outcast was the type who enjoyed hanging out with friends and girls. He wasn''t exactly the type desperate for women to the extent where he would attempt to flirt with every girl he met, but¡­well, he was a normal guy. I guess?

    The four of us reached the K-box that Alicia told us to meet up in. None of us knew what to do and ended up waiting outside the K-box, looking lost. From what the receptionist told us, Black Rose hadn''t arrived yet.

    "What should we do?" Theodore asked. Dong Fang Yue Chu rolled his eyes and replied as if it was obvious.

    "We wait."

    Well¡­truthfully, that was pretty obvious. What else were we supposed to do?

    Fortunately, we didn''t have to wait long. About ten minutes later, Alicia and the rest of Black Rose finally arrived. To my complete lack of surprise, they were mostly beautiful girls from Black Roses which included Alicia, Miranda and two more who I had briefly exchanged a few words with during the training camp. Too bad Elliot, Nicholas, Jin Hao and Aoi weren''t present. They were the members of Black Rose who I was familiar with.

    Not that I needed to worry. The two girls kept a respectful distance from me, allowing Alicia to approach me.

    "Sorry. Have you guys been waiting long?"

    "No, we just got here," Dong Fang Yue Chu answered smoothly. Damn, but the guy really knew how to talk.

    "Okay, let''s go! I''ve reserved a room for everyone¡­"

    Just before Alicia could head toward the counter, someone else appeared.

    "Hey! Don''t forget about me!"

    Pearl Pang arrived, sashaying toward the K-box with a wide grin on her pretty face. She waved toward Alicia and Miranda.

    "We didn''t forget about you, Senior Pearl," Alicia assured her with a smile of her own. "We were just about to head to the room first."

    With the group gathered, we registered at the counter, and was led to one of the karaoke rooms. Flooding into the room, we settled into the couches that were laid out and began ordering some drinks. Dong Fang Yue Chu also reached out to activate the television and switched on the karaoke system. Picking out the microphone, he offered it toward the girls from Black Roses.

    "Okay, who wants to go first?"

    "Why don''t you go ahead?" Miranda suggested, but Dong Fang Yue Chu shook his head and revealed a sly grin.

    "Ladies first."

    The guy really knew how to talk.

    Pearl took the initiative and started off on some current pop song I had never heard of before (because I only listened to anime music). Even as she enjoyed herself and a few of the others listened, most of the group chatted among themselves. Alicia had somehow ended up seated beside me, and she tilted her head toward me.

    "Do you go to karaoke often, Richard?"

    "No, not really. Very rarely." I coughed, trying to hide my embarrassment. This atmosphere really didn''t suit me. I wished I was back in my dad''s dojo and training instead of hanging around this weirdly colored room with loud music. Even I didn''t turn my anime music up this loud. I could barely hear Alicia over Pearl''s melodic voice.

    Then something struck me when I glanced around the room to avoid looking directly at Alicia. Scratching my head, I inquired.

    "Where''s the members from Holy Saints?"

    I found it weird that they weren''t present. Harrison, Adam, Terence, Cody and Lily had participated in the training camp as well. While Adam was eliminated, the rest weren''t, and as such they should have received an invitation into this karaoke session as well. I was aware that Black Rose and Holy Saints were rivals, but they should still have good relations with each other.

    "I invited them, but they had a gathering of their own." Alicia frowned. "President Harrison said he was busy, while Vice-president Lin Zhan Long organized their own separate party for Holy Saints. It doesn''t just include those who joined the training camp, apparently."

    "I see."

    "Your turn, Alicia!"

    Just when the conversation ended, Pearl finished her song. Naturally, she extended her microphone toward a stunned Alicia, who shyly took it. Unlike Pearl, Alicia chose a more subdued song, filled with melancholy and romance. The kind of song you would hear at a church, but without the religious elements.

    The rest of the session continued in this fashion, with everyone taking turns to sing. I managed to escape somehow, deferring to the others and pushing the microphone toward someone else. However, Dong Fang Yue Chu eventually thrust the microphone at me and insisted that I joined in.

    "Come on, don''t be so anti-social. You''re the only one who hasn''t sung yet!"

    "Yeah, I''ve sang three songs already! You should get a turn!" Pearl added.

    With a sigh, I resigned myself to humiliation, and picked a song from an anime I had watched recently. Hmm, they really updated the system. To think they had even had anime songs recorded in it.

    The thing about anime songs was that they were sing by official bands and professional singers, so even if they were used as the openings or endings of anime, the official MTV videos for the music were still those of the bands or singers. So no one could tell it was an anime song unless they had watched the anime like I did.

    I was saved. Phew.

    After trying my best to sing along with the music and botching the lyrics, I bowed and hastily returned to my seat. The rest clapped, and Theodore took over. Dong Fang Yue Chu was right. To my immense relief, no one cared about how terrible my singing was. They were caught up in the atmosphere and having fun. The joy was hanging out and socializing, not evaluating each other''s talent in music.

    Just when I was about to relax, someone suddenly kicked the door to our room open. Everyone fell silent and turned to stare at the figure who rudely intruded into our space, bellowing.

    "All of you, shut up! You guys are howling like banshees and making too much noise! Are you looking for trouble?!"

 94 Chapter 94: Conflic

    "¡­Adam Freeman?"

    Craig scowled when he recognized the intruder. He rose to his feet, annoyed.

    "This is a karaoke room. Of course we''ll be singing. What do you think people do in karaoke? Idiot."

    "What did you just call me?!"

    Adam swayed unsteadily on his feet, his breath stinking of beer. It was obvious that he had been drinking, and now he was dead drunk.

    Normally, he would have sobered the moment he saw Alicia and Pearl, but he was currently too depressed about being eliminated from the training camp that he no longer cared that he was in the presence of two of the most beautiful girls he adored. Instead, he turned to gaze at them lecherously.

    "Wow¡­so many great beauties. Why are you hanging out with these losers? Why don''t you come with me? President Lin Zhan Long is the true god."

    Say what? Wasn''t the president of Holy Saints Harrison Reed? Since when did Lin Zhan Long become the president?

    While I was pondering over Adam''s words, the girls shrank back from him, with the exception of Pearl, who gave him the finger.

    "Fuck off," the president of the Super Power Society told him bluntly.

    "You heard her," Craig said. "If you don''t leave, I''ll kick you out."

    "Oh? You think you have the ability to do so?" Adam sneered, still wobbling under the effects of alcohol. He spun around exaggeratedly to leer at Craig. "Try it if you can."

    "Adam, you should leave while we''re still being polite," Pearl warned, her voice low. "If you insist on sticking around, don''t blame us for not holding back."

    As the president of Super Power Society, Pearl''s status was on par with that of Alicia and Harrison. She had every right to kick Adam out, but she didn''t because she was reluctant to cause problems for Harrison.

    "Ha ha! President Pearl, you''re a really feisty one, aren''t you? Our president is the best. Never mind President Lin Zhan Long, even I''ll be better in bed than any of these losers here!"

    Adam wasn''t offended, and instead began to sexually harass Pearl.

    Wham!

    Craig didn''t even wait for another word and hammered his fist into the drink mage''s face. Adam''s nose was caved in and he was sent flying into the corridor, blood spurting from his nostrils and mouth. He groaned as he hit the wall with a loud thud and slumped down.

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    "I warned you," Craig snapped.

    At the loud noise, the people in the next room stormed out, almost in a panic. To our utmost surprise, they were the members of Holy Saints. Led by Lin Zhan Long, they flooded out into the corridor and strode toward the fallen Adam. At one glance, they were able to understand what had transpired.

    "President Craig, you really have guts. Who gave you the right to hit others?"

    Backed by the twenty-plus members of Holy Saints, Lin Zhan Long grabbed his collar and snarled into his face.

    Craig remained stoic and met his gaze evenly.

    "Who gave your lackey the right to disrespect and sexually harass others? Not to mention, he''s the one who intruded into our space first and disrupted our gathering. We warned him, but he refused to listen, and now he''s paying the price for it."

    "How dare you twist logic and justify your violence?!" Lin Zhang Long growled. As the vice-president of the number one society in Jing Tian Academy, he looked down on all the other societies except the great ones. He didn''t care about some Crimson Spear Society or Thunder Hammer Society. To him, they were all equally trash.

    "Shut up and get lost, Lin Zhan Long," Pearl snapped as she rose to her feet as well. "You and your members have been trying my patience. First, your man came in here and started harassing us, spoiling the mood, and refusing to listen to us when we requested him to leave. And now, after we kicked him out, you come here acting all high and mighty, and start intimidating us with your numbers? Aren''t you ashamed of yourself?"

    Lin Zhan Long took a deep breath as he turned to face her. "Be that as it may be, Adam''s behavior certainly was inappropriate, but there''s no need to go so far as to hit other people!"

    "Ha ha ha ha ha!" I burst out laughing. Everyone turned to me, and I shrugged before jabbing a thumb at the sprawled, still drunk Adam who was mumbling incoherently under his breath. "I don''t see a person. I only see a heap of trash."

    The color drained from Lin Zhan Long''s face, but he managed to reel in his anger as he glowered at me.

    "Hold your tongue, Richard Huang," the enraged vice-president sneered. "No one is talking to you."

    "No one''s talking to you or Adam either, yet the both of you just charged in here by yourselves and began forcibly talking to us." I cocked my head to the side. "Or is it that only Holy Saints are allowed to talk to other people."

    "Shut the fuck up!" Lin Zhan Long yelled at me. Calming down, he then issued a warning in a cold voice. "You had better watch out when you return home tonight."

    Was the moron trying to threaten me? Ha ha ha ha! I''m so used to escaping kidnappers and criminals who were trying to take revenge on my dad by abducting me. And this guy thought he could threaten me? Hoodlums and delinquents were the least of my worries on my way home.

    Fortunately, before I could say anything, Pearl was already in Lin Zhan Long''s face.

    "This is your last warning, Lin Zhan Long. Get the hell out of here. I don''t want to see your face again. Otherwise I''ll call security."

    She glanced at Alicia, who nodded and reached for the phone.

    Lin Zhan Long''s expression grew uglier. Even though he thought this conversation was far from over, he couldn''t do anything if we called security. After all, they were the ones intruding into our room. Furthermore, Alicia was present. If she got involved, eventually her father, the academy director, would get pulled in as well. And obviously they were more inclined to listen to Alicia''s account than his. Not to mention, there were camcorders that had recorded what had happened. For all of his biasness, Lin Zhan Long was not stupid. He was aware what kind of character Adam possessed. His surly remarks were most definitely captured on tape.

    If the authorities got involved, then it would be the Holy Saints who suffered.

    "I dare you to call them¡­!"

    In contrast, Terence was so furious that he didn''t care about the consequences. He took a step forward, bristling with the intention to fight. Fortunately, Lin Zhan Long placed a hand on his shoulder and gently held him back.

    "Stop it. President Pearl is right. We''re the ones in the wrong here. And Holy Saints aren''t the type to bully people who are weaker than us."

    I couldn''t help but snort in laughter at that. Craig too was snickering, as well as Dong Fang Yue Chu. We all knew how false that was. Even Pearl was shaking her head in amusement at Lin Zhan Long''s hypocrisy.

    "I apologize for all the trouble we have caused. Everyone, let''s go. We are supposed to be throwing a party. Let''s not allow such trivial matters to spoil our fun and ruin the mood."

    Like the politician he was, Lin Zhan Long possessed a glib tongue and knew when to retreat and compromise. Even though his heart still burned with resentment, he maintained enough self-control to give way.

    We watched as Holy Saints tramped back to their room, slamming their door shut. Craig made a face of disgust before he closed the door as well.

    Unfortunately, that incident had soured the atmosphere, and no one was in any mood to continue the party.

    ¡­until Dong Fang Yue Chu picked up the microphone and smiled cheerfully.

    "Who''s next?" he asked. "If nobody wants to, then allow me to!"

    He picked an upbeat and humorous song, and began singing exaggeratedly. The girls began to giggle at his antics. Within a minute, everyone was clapping and cheering along.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu really knew how to lighten the mood and dissipate the awkwardness. I was glad I had a friend like him.

    *

    After their gathering, Holy Saints dispersed and returned home. Lin Zhan Long, Adam and Terence walked together, since their homes were in the same direction and vicinity.

    By now, Adam had sobered up a little, and was limping after the other two, feeling utterly humiliated. Not to mention he also felt some embarrassment over his own actions. More than shame, he felt rage and resentment.

    "Those bastards, humiliating me like that¡­" Adam wiped the blood from his nose and mouth, and winced from the pain. "I can''t take this lying down! I want to pay them back tenfold for all the humiliation they made me suffer!"

    Not only was he already depressed from being eliminated from the training camp, now he had to put up with being beaten up by other people he deemed weaker than himself. That Craig Carlson¡­who the hell did he think he was?!

    "That''s right, boss." Terence was agreeing with his comrade, his expression grim. "We need to teach them all a lesson! Otherwise everyone will think Holy Saints are a society who is very easy to step on and bully."

    Lin Zhan Long had been silent the entire time, listening to his two lackeys complain. After a while, he finally sighed.

    "Never mind stepping on and bullying us¡­at this rate, the society will lose everything!"

    That was obviously an exaggeration, but the self-centered fools only thought of their own reputation and status. According to their narrow thinking, if they failed to establish a good reputation and status in the academy, then they would have a miserable life after graduating.

    That was completely false. Sure, graduating with good status, ranking and reputation would help us get into a prestigious university, but even if we got into an average university, it wasn''t as if our lives were over. Good mercenaries and mages could still be shaped and nurtured in average and below-average universities. Certainly, while the schools and institutions we attended contributed greatly toward our development, in the end, everything was down to our own efforts and determination. As long as we paved a solid foundation and built on top of what we learned and experienced, even someone who graduated from a below-average university could still reach the top. In fact, there were a few success stories about university drop-outs who overcame all odds to become top mages. Obviously, those were few, and the resources a university provided still mattered a lot, but it wasn''t impossible.

    And it certainly wasn''t the end of the world, like the idiot trio were making it out to be.

    "All the more we can''t forgive them!" Adam snarled. "We can''t just let them off like this! We need to pay them back for humiliating us!"

    "We will have our revenge!" Terence hollered, united with his buddy.

    "¡­there is a way¡­"

    Lin Zhan Long finally spoke up. Even though he still had some hesitation in his heart, after today, he hardened his resolve.

    "But it depends on whether you two have the resolve to pull it off."

    Adam and Terence fell silent and glanced at each other, suddenly timid.

    "Boss, you don''t mean¡­" Adam gulped. "¡­you want to kill them?"

    Lin Zhan Long didn''t reply, which further confirmed the thoughts the two of them had. The air seemed to grow heavier.

    "¡­how?" Terence stared at his leader curiously, despite his doubts. "Boss, are you going to recruit assassins and put a bounty on their heads?"

    Lin Zhan Long glared at his lackey. "Don''t be stupid. Where are we going to find professional assassins? You think they''ll just show up if I post an ad online, is it?"

    "Don''t your family have connections?" Adam asked.

    "What the fuck?! You think my family belongs to some triad or secret society, is it?! Some fucking underground clan, is it?! You''ve been reading way too many web novels!" Lin Zhan Long couldn''t help but clutch his head. "No, we''re not going to hire anybody! Don''t you think it will be too obvious?! If someone murders a bunch of students from Jing Tian Academy, they''ll launch an investigation. Then they''ll trace the transaction back to us. Then never mind our status and reputation, we''ll be sentenced to death for murder! If we''re lucky, then we''ll just receive life imprisonment!"

    "Then how are we supposed to pay them back, boss?" Terence looked confused.

    "Simple. You still have another week of training camp left, right?" Lin Zhan Long turned toward Terence, a sinister smile on his face. "We just need to make it look like an accident. After all, Sen Lin Forest is infested with monsters¡­and accidents frequently occur during training¡­"

 95 Chapter 95: Forest Training

    If you were expecting me to get sidetracked from the main training camp event for over 30 chapters, then you were going to be disappointed. What? did you really want to read about me fighting in some online arena against an opponent or two (or have a random girl nobody cared about fight some random opponent), and have an entire arc dedicated to some random girl from another city coming to visit us and asking me to be her tour guide (and she just so happened to be Miranda''s cousin)?

    Don''t be ridiculous. I wasn''t going to screw up the pacing by sidetracking into all that nonsense. And no girl other than Alicia would take interest in someone as pathetic as me. And seriously, who cares about the reactions of netizens and forum users? Do you really want me to spend several chapters going through the responses, comments and analyses of random forum goers I would never meet in reality? Oh, and how about I throw in a damned lesson out of nowhere to drop a ton of info dump on you guys?

    "What are you rambling about, Richard?"

    I snapped out of it when Dong Fang Yue Chu asked me a question. Glancing around, I saw that we were in the forest. That was right. Instead of wasting a few dozen chapters going all over the place (moving from training camp to OP system to the Ball Queen''s visit), I decided to finish the event at hand. Until I finished the training camp arc, I wasn''t going to move to the next plotline.

    "About how tiring this whole thing was."

    "It''s only the third day." Dong Fang Yue Chu sighed heavily. Even though he agreed with me inwardly, for the purpose of morale, he couldn''t give in to complaining. Otherwise everyone''s mood would worsen.

    "Yeah¡­only two days left! We''ve made it this far, I''m sure we can last the next two days!" taking a deep breath, I looked around the forest vigilantly. Making use of my training under Dad, I tried to stretch out my senses to see if there were any ambushes or traps in store for us. I had to do that to escape kidnappers and gangsters and criminals on my way home sometimes, and now it was paying off in this environment too.

    Already we had avoided walking into the nest of monstrous Horned Hornets, escaped confrontation with a Ghost Bear, ducked away from the view of a soaring Jade Falcon, and evaded the notice of an Ice Hellion.

    It wasn''t just me. Craig also saw the Shadow Leopard before we walked right into it, and quickly diverted the group away. Thanks to that, we were able to avoid unnecessary conflict and survive into the third day unscathed.

    Of course, there were confrontations we couldn''t avoid, but these tended to be the lower-ranked monsters. We managed to dispatch Ravagers, Timber Wolves, Nova Cats and Venom Wasps without much effort. Even Craig stopped pleading for a fight after a while, becoming jaded after expending quite some mana on slaying a Mad Cat.

    No, a Mad Cat is not the same as a Timber Wolf. They were different kind of monsters. Where did you get the idea they were the same thing? What? Monsters have nothing to do with battlemechs and the names had everything to do with me being utterly unoriginal.

    Speaking of group, Feng Hai had told us to split ourselves into five-man groups. Obviously the Holy Saints split up into their own group, with Harrison, Cody, Lily, Terence and one other guy from another society forming a group of their own. Black Roses also had enough members, with Alicia, Miranda and the two girls forming another group, along with a fifth girl from another society. The last group constituted of me, Dong Fang Yue Chu, Craig, Theodore and Pearl.

    By now, half the group had been eliminated, and there were only fifteen candidates left. By the end of the forest training, another five would be eliminated, leaving only ten left. And these ten would become the representatives for Jing Tian Academy in the national tournament.

    Honestly, I was starting to think that becoming a representative wasn''t worth the trouble. I was burned out, exhausted and jaded. I didn''t want to bother with all this nonsense anymore. Right now, my only desire was to survive and finish the training. If I didn''t become a representative, then fine. Whatever. I couldn''t care less.

    I just wanted to go home.

    Some people might call me weak-willed and curse and criticize me, but that was what happened after you worked so hard to the point of burning yourself out. After a certain point, you just stopped caring about achieving whatever you set out to achieve, and just wanted the whole process to be done and over with. Perhaps readers couldn''t relate with me, but at this point I was beyond caring what others thought of me. Fortunately, I was in a group and we were able to motivate and encourage each other, no matter how tough it got.

    That was the only reason I managed to persevere. Now I truly understood the importance of teamwork. A single person couldn''t possibly conquer the world by himself. He needed reliable comrades. People he could trust to watch his back, and friends he could trust and depend on. As they say, no man is an island.

    Alone, we would have been picked off by the wilderness, mentally crumbling and giving in to despair. Together, we were indomitable.

    "Let''s take a break here," Theodore suggested, spotting a clearing. He trudged into it, and was almost surprised by a bunch of Horned Hares. The small monsters lunged at him when he trespassed into their territory, and he responded by swinging his hammer. Lightning crackled and his power field activated, disintegrating the poor Horned Hares and smashing a crater into the earth. Theodore jumped up high into the air and landed in the middle of the clearing, his Thunder Hammer pulverizing both ground and monster, grounding them into nothingness. Even though he was wearing heavy Terminator armor, he was still somehow capable of such acrobatics. Incredible.

    Okay, I lied. He wasn''t wearing Terminator Armor. Just regular power armor¡­okay, okay! He wasn''t wearing much armor at all, just the standard one we students were issued with.

    "Sorry¡­as I was saying, let''s take a break here."

    Standing in the middle of the scorched earth, Theodore could only grin sheepishly. Pearl sighed and rolled her eyes, but she flopped down near the edge and leaned against the artificial wall.

    "Thank you, Theodore."

    Craig also slid down the crater and rested his spear against his shoulder as he took a seat on somewhere without much soot.

    "Phew¡­finally."

    "We still have to maintain vigilance," Dong Fang Yue Chu warned, even as he dropped into the crater.

    "I''ll take first watch," I told him. "The rest of you guys should grab some sleep."

    "I''ll take second watch then." Dong Fang Yue Chu began to prepare a spot for himself to lie down. Similarly, Pearl was already spreading out a cloth-like sheet to lie on. The girls just weren''t used to sleeping in the dirt. "Wake me up."

    "Sure." As much as I wanted to be a hero, I was just too exhausted to do the watch myself. Eventually I would doze off, but I wanted an uninterrupted sleep, which was why I offered to take the first shift. My mind couldn''t last much longer, but a couple more hours should be fine.

    The objective of the training wasn''t to kill as many monsters as possible. Even Feng Hai wasn''t that unreasonable. While we were actively encouraged to slay monsters, our priority was to survive. We were to collect the mission token that had been placed in strategic checkpoints in the forest, which would signify the completion of the training. Our scores would be based on how unscathed we emerged from this ordeal upon obtaining the mission token. Monsters did contribute to the score, but Feng Hai had warned us that there were middle-ranked monsters inhabiting the forest and reminded us not to be too reckless. Even if we failed, we could try again next year, or move on to other goals. It wasn''t the end if we didn''t become representatives for Jing Tian Academy.

    However, if we died, then it would be the end. There was no coming back to life. There was no such thing as resurrection magic, after all. Death was absolute and final. It wasn''t worth the risk to our lives to become representatives, not when we still had a bright future ahead and many second chances.

    Rather than seeing our kill count of monsters, Feng Hai was more interested in evaluating how our groups worked together, and the synergy between its members. Our instructor was looking at the bigger picture ¨C he wasn''t just thinking about the national tournament, but further into the future. All mages and mercenaries worked together in teams to hunt and exterminate monsters. The individual ranking system wasn''t very helpful in this aspect and only encouraged mages to become self-centered. Therefore Feng Hai wanted to correct that mentality and move us toward more group-orientated values and combat styles.

    A single person couldn''t achieve much by himself. An entire group, working in concert, was more than the sum of its parts, and could even metaphorically move the world as long as they cooperated and were in sync.

    Along the way, we had already somewhat split the roles among ourselves. Theodore had the sturdiest build, so the defensive roles often fell to him. Craig was the vanguard, with his speed and skills with the spear, and he could often kill monsters with pinpoint precision and critical hits before they even knew what hit them. Dong Fang Yue Chu provided destructive power and area of effect spells with his flames. If there was a whole swarm or herd of monsters, such as the Venom Wasps from before, he would come in and bathe the whole area in flames, extinguishing the lives of the deadly monsters before they could draw near.

    Pearl was our healer. Even though she was a powerful fighter with excellent combat ability, she was more inclined toward healing spells, and thus formed the rearguard along with me. I was the ranged member of the group, for some reason, because¡­I could summon a Constellation bow and arrows. Don''t ask me why. Despite that, I felt as if I was pretty useless. I didn''t do much except snipe a couple of monsters from afar, but most of the combat fell to Craig, Theodore and Dong Fang Yue Chu. The three guys often charged in to get close with the enemy ¨C can''t blame them, since that was their specialty ¨C which rendered it difficult for me to fire upon my targets. I didn''t want to accidentally hit my teammates instead.

    Then again, my role wasn''t to rack up the kill count, but to provide long-ranged support and snipe whatever monster the trio failed to catch sight of. In the worst case scenario, I could summon my Stellar Guardians, but so far we didn''t need them. Just my regular Constellation spirits were enough to stomp the low-ranked monsters, and since we avoided the mid-ranked monsters, I ended up not summoning my big guys.

    "¡­"

    Lost in my thoughts, I almost didn''t notice the movement to the left. Immediately summoning Orion, I notched a few magical arrows to my Constellation bow and took aim.

    A few tense moments later, a Snow Rabbit poked its head out. It stared at me, and then hid under the bush again. There was some rustling, and then it was gone.

    I released the breath I had been holding the entire time, and then shook my head. It was stupid to jump at shadows.

    "¡­well, I can''t let my guard down."

    Honestly, I doubted there would be a foreign group coming to the forest and trying to assassinate us, either by setting a horde of mutated beasts on us or slitting our throats with their own knives. What, you think Lin Zhan Long was going to hire assassins? Where was he going to get the money from? His parents? Then what was he supposed to tell his parents? "Dad, Mom, I need some cash to hire assassins to kill a few schoolmates!"

    Don''t be ridiculous.

    On the other hand, I was aware that they would try something, which was why I remained vigilant. While they certainly weren''t going to do something as blatant and clich¨¦ as hiring criminals, assassins or murderers, they still held a grudge against us, and would definitely find a way to seek revenge. They definitely couldn''t attack us directly, which meant the only recourse they had was to exploit the opportunity while we were in Sen Lin Forest to provoke high-ranked monsters into our paths to attack us, and make our deaths at its claws look like a training accident.

    That was why I maintained vigilance. Unfortunately, I couldn''t maintain my summoned spirits while I was asleep, or I would have just summoned a Constellation spirit and have him watch our area 24/7. Not only would the Constellation spirit disappear the moment I dozed off, fell asleep or lost consciousness, he would require me to expend a lot of mana just to maintain his existence for an extended period of time. Mana I couldn''t afford to carelessly spend, not when I had to consider the possibility of combat inside Sen Lin Forest.

    So I had to do this the hard way.

    Fortunately, I was able to share the burden with my dependable comrades. Without them, I would never have passed the first day in the forest by myself.

    While thinking that, I suddenly caught sight of something sparkling in the distance. Frowning, I squinted there, but decided not to wake up my friends. I should take note and keep track of the direction in which it was located, and tell them about it the next morning, before we set off.

    Curious, I opened up the map program in my smartphone and triangulated it. The sparkling object seemed to be located in the spot that was marked as the position of the mission token.

    Excitement grew in my chest. This meant we were close to achieving our objective!

    "¡­"

    However, I had to calm down. This was a training exercise. A kind of test. In other words, it wasn''t going to be simple.

    Feng Hai and the other instructors definitely set up traps and obstacles around the mission token. So we couldn''t just charge straight in and grab it. we had to be careful¡­reconnoiter the area, detect whatever traps lay in the location, deactivate or avoid them, and grab the thing, and then escape from whatever traps we had yet to deactivate. Probably there was a monster or two guarding the mission token (no, the instructors didn''t tame or summon the monsters ¨C they just placed the damned token inside the monster''s nest), so combat would be inevitable.

    At this rate, Lin Zhan Long and his cronies didn''t have to do anything¡­

    *

    "So what''s the plan, boss?"

    Unlike Terence, Lin Zhan Long and Adam were left back in the academy while the remaining fifteen students attended the training camp.

    Lin Zhan Long gave Adam a withering stare.

    "What plan?"

    "You know¡­the plan to kill the other students!"

    "SH!" Lin Zhan Long hushed him, and then glanced around worriedly. Glaring at his lackey, he scowled. "Shut up! Don''t talk about that in the open!"

    "Sorry, boss." Adam looked a little abashed. Lin Zhan Long sighed and shook his head.

    "Anyway, I don''t really have a plan. Do you think I''m a murderer or something? I just want to teach those guys a lesson. Maybe get them seriously wounded in an accident. But kill them? What the hell is wrong with you? Are you some antagonist character in a web novel or something? What kind of high school student hires assassins and tries to murder his schoolmates over a trivial schoolyard feud?! Just scare them, beat them up, and they won''t dare to defy us again! Is there a need to kill them?! Are you an idiot?!"

    "¡­sorry, boss. I wasn''t thinking straight." Adam looked ashamed of himself.

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    "Anyway, since we aren''t allowed into the training camp, we can''t do anything there. Terence offered to help, but¡­" he shook his head. "Even for him, there''s nothing much he can do. He has his own training mission to complete, and Harrison is keeping a tight leash on him." Lin Zhan Long looked bitter. "I know you''re impatient to have your revenge, but endure for now. Once they return from the training camp, I''m sure we will have more opportunities."

    That was a complete 180 degrees from what he discussed with his lackeys after the karaoke party a week ago, but at that time the moron was under the influence of alcohol. Now that he had sobered up, he could think through things more rationally and calmly.

    "But make no mistake," Lin Zhan Long growled, giving the depressed Adam assurances. "We will still be having our revenge. It''s just a matter of time." He grinned sinisterly. "All we need to do is an opportunity to create an ''accident'' ¨C and no one will suspect anything."

    "You''re really smart, boss!"

    The two losers began laughing at what they thought was a foolproof, but in actual fact was a pathetic plan of revenge.

 96 Chapter 96: Crimson Spiders

    When I woke up, the first thing I heard were the light snores of Dong Fang Yue Chu close by. He was bundled into his sleeping bag, curled into a ball, and mumbling something under his breath as he slept. Given that he took the second shift after I did, I thought he needed a bit more sleep. Getting up groggily, I climbed out of the tent.

    "Hey, good morning."

    Theodore was just finishing his shift. He was taking the last 2-hour shift, and was sitting by the remains of the campsite, the embers still glowing lightly in the brightening forest. He poked at it with a stick, and then glanced up at me.

    "Are the others up yet?"

    "Dong Fang Yue Chu isn''t. Should I wake him?"

    "Nah, that''s fine."

    "I''ve been up since a while ago."

    The two of us spun around and caught sight of Pearl exiting her tent, which she had all to herself because she was a girl. It was also because of her gender that she didn''t take any watches, and had the benefit of sleeping more than the rest of us guys. Naturally she looked more refreshed and energetic than the rest of us.

    "Thanks for keeping watch, guys." Pearl bowed her head lightly.

    "No problem," I replied, while Theodore waved her gratitude away.

    "Don''t worry about it."

    "So, what''s the plan today?" Pearl stretched herself as she approached us. The two of us glanced away when her uniform pulled tightly over her curved form, but she didn''t seem to notice. Or perhaps she was doing it on purpose. "I assume we''re going to continue looking for the mission token today." She glanced around before retrieving her smartphone and consulting the holographic map beamed from its screen. "The question is, where should we look?"

    I raised a hand. "I actually have an idea."

    "Oh?" Theodore looked at me curiously. "Where?"

    "That way." I pointed toward the direction where I saw the sparkling stuff last night. I had made sure to mark it out on the campsite, scratching an arrow in the dirt. In the bright light of the rising sun, it was less visible, but I could still make out the sparkle. "I caught sight of that sparkling thing last night, and it doesn''t look like any sort of monster."

    "Nice catch!" Pearl beamed as she studied the area I pointed them toward. "That certainly looks like the mission token we are looking for!"

    "That''s what I thought too. Doubtless, Instructor Feng Hai and the other teachers must have placed traps, obstacles or located it right next to a monster''s nest, so we have to be careful when approaching."

    "¡­yeah. I see something moving in that direction." Theodore nodded grimly. "Seems like this task isn''t going to be easy."

    "At least they didn''t move in this direction and attack us at night." Pearl glanced around a little anxiously. To be in such close vicinity to monsters¡­then again, that was the whole point of posting sentries. If a monster came near our camp, we had to wake the others up and prepare for battle. It also helped that we had drawn a defensive formation around our campsite, which produced a barrier that protected us from the attacks of low-ranked monsters. The sentry was supposed to look out for much higher-ranked monsters that had the ability to break through the barrier ¨C otherwise we could all just safely sleep within the barrier without the need for posting sentries. Unfortunately, this was Sen Lin Forest, and high-ranked monsters were known to inhabit this place.

    Sen Lin Forest was a place where Emergence happened frequently, after all.

    "We have a barrier set up," Theodore reminded her. "Those low-ranking monsters can''t sense us inside the barrier. To them, we are completely invisible."

    "The convenience of modern magic," I muttered. Then I pushed up my glasses and turned toward the two tents where Dong Fang Yue Chu and Craig slept in. "Should I wake the other two up?"

    "Good idea." Pearl nodded as she glanced in the direction of the sparkling mission token. "Let''s get this over and done with as soon as possible."

    *

    As I suspected, the mission token was located behind a monster''s nest. The moment we stepped into the vicinity, a ton of Crimson Spiders began to scuttle out from their nest, chittering away. Even though they were relatively small ¨C about the size of Dobermans ¨C in such large numbers, they posed an immense threat.

    "Rank F monsters," Dong Fang Yue Chu remarked in relief. "That''s not so bad."

    "But their numbers are pretty annoying!" Craig grumbled as he slashed a path through the approaching Crimson Spiders. His crimson spear turned into a red blur as he hacked and cut through the scuttling horde, legs and pieces of bodies flying all over the place. Gritting his teeth, he whirled about, turning into a fearsome tornado as he butchered a few dozen Crimson Spiders in under ten seconds. "They just keep coming!"

    "Agreed," Theodore said as he hammered a crater into the dirt, pulverizing scores of Crimson Spiders, but more of them continued to emerge from their nest. Evidently, we seemed to have disturbed an entire colony of them.

    "Guys, step back!" Dong Fang Yue Chu instructed. The two vanguard glanced at him before they obeyed, retreating to a safe distance. Stepping forward, Dong Fang Yue Chu raised his hands and finished casting his fire spell. A huge wave of flames washed over the horde of Crimson Spiders, incinerating a good amount of them. "I''ll take care of all of them in one shot!"

    I had my bow out, but as usual, there was little for me to do except watch. Other than taking potshots at Crimson Spiders that were coming dangerously close to Craig and Theodore''s positions, I didn''t do much. Pearl also hung back ¨C as our healer, she was arguably the most important person in our group. If any of us got seriously injured, then it was her job to begin emergency treatment. Fortunately, it hadn''t come to that¡­yet.

    I watched as the majority of the Crimson Spiders burned, despite their high resistance to flames. However, Dong Fang Yue Chu was too powerful, his flames reaching superheated temperatures that roasted even the heat-resistant Crimson Spiders.

    However, it was precisely because of their high heat tolerance that a good number of them survived. More than what Rank F monsters usually would in the face of Dong Fang Yue Chu''s raging inferno.

    "Careful!" Pearl warned, having remembered the characteristics of Crimson Spiders. "They are fire-type monsters! As such, your fire spells are not very effective against them!"

    "We anticipated that," Craig assured her with a grin. "But Yue Chu has done more than enough! He cleared out at least half of the army! Theodore and I can take it from here!"

    "Wait! Hang on! At least until my fire spell finishes!" Dong Fang Yue Chu shouted hurriedly. Craig raised an eyebrow.

    "We know. Do you think we''re idiots?"

    By now, we had worked together long enough to form a close rapport with each other. Normally I would be teaming up with Elliot and the other Black Roses, but over the past few days I had learned the fighting habits of Craig and Theodore, and thus knew how they would move or react. Similarly, Dong Fang Yue Chu had also gotten familiar with their fighting styles, but he was a little too anxious sometimes. Not that I blamed him. I would have said the same in his position, precisely because we both knew how impulsive and reckless Craig could be.

    Especially since we fought alongside him over the past few days.

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    Honestly, I was aware that neither Dong Fang Yue Chu nor I were without flaws as well, so we didn''t really mind that. Working in a team had its advantages and disadvantages, but the benefits far outweighed the drawbacks. Any one of us would find it extremely difficult to tackle such a large number of Crimson Spiders on our own, but together, we were obliterating them.

    "Yue Chu, burn the entire area sixty degrees to our left. We''ll take care of the right flank!"

    Theodore was much calmer and more composed, giving out instructions. Now that I thought about it, we had four society presidents working together in a single group. Oddly enough, I was the lowest-ranking member, being only a vice-president. Even so, no one complained about having to take orders from the others. Not even the usually proud Craig ¨C the spearman merely followed Theodore''s lead and rushed headlong into the surviving Crimson Spiders.

    The Crimson Spiders'' ruby carapace gleamed from the flames, and their mandibles clacked restlessly. Arcing their back abdomen up, they fired streams of web, but I quickly shot them down with flaming arrows from Sagittarius.

    "Thanks!" Craig called out to me before he sliced through several more Crimson Spiders that were desperately scattering to get out of his way. They failed to escape, and were carved apart by his wicked spear.

    In contrast, Theodore silently bulldozed his way through the swarm of fleeing Crimson Spiders, his crackling Thunder Hammer launching bursts of electricity and frying the rank-F monsters. They might be heat resistant, but they were certainly not insulated. Even so, the main killing power of electricity was the sheer heat it produced, so¡­I wasn''t sure how it worked. It did short out the electric nervous signals transmitted from their brains to the rest of their bodies, so¡­

    At the side, Dong Fang Yue Chu was busily incinerated another batch of Crimson Spiders that had just recently emerged from the nest. They screeched and flailed about as their once ruby bodies were blackened by the superheated flames.

    "Now''s our chance!"

    Pearl began moving toward the center of the nest, now that the monsters were diminished. Theodore and Craig continued to clear a path for her, falling back to escort and protect her. I covered their advance by swapping my bow. Since Sagittarius''s arrows were fire-type, they were not very effective against the Crimson Spiders, which had an affinity with fire. So I instead swapped to a more neutral element bow, Orion.

    Fortunately, despite being fire-type monsters, these Crimson Spiders were only rank F, so they were unable to manipulate fire or cast fire spells like rank C monsters. Rank C monsters were known as Elementals, whereas rank F monsters were usually called Minions. The gulf between their power and magical ability were massive.

    "Betelgeuse!"

    Muttering the name of the star under my breath to help me focus and imagine the technique better, I unleashed a hail of arrows from my bow. Hundreds of arrow streaked through the air and smashed into the nest, pulverizing the emerging or fleeing Crimson Spiders with the force of tank shells. Or artillery. Well, that was my role, after all.

    "Got it!"

    While Dong Fang Yue Chu and I continued to lay covering fire, and Theodore and Craig escorted her, Pearl managed to grab the mission token. Raising it triumphantly, she then quickly placed it in her storage device. The three of them then began fighting their way out. I discouraged any pursuers by bombarding the Crimson Spiders behind them, which meant they were more concerned with trying to stay alive than to chase the insolent humans who dared to intruded upon their nest.

    No doubt, if left alone, these Crimson Spiders would hunt down isolated humans, trapped them in their webs, and then drag their poor victims back to their nests for food. They were known to be carnivorous and we humans were on their menu.

    So it felt good slaughtering them.

    "Just a bit more!" Dong Gang Yue Chu called out in encouragement. Unlike me, he was scorching the front to clear a path for our friends to rush through. Burned and charred Crimson Spiders twitched in their death throes, even as the three of them stomped through them.

    "Hey, why are we running?" Craig demanded with a frown. "We might as well go and eradicate the whole nest once and for all!"

    The rest of us turned to stare at him. Theodore shook his head and sighed.

    "We''ll do that after we''ve escorted Pearl to a safe distance. Then we''ll go back and destroy the rest of the nest."

    "Yeah, we should¡­before these monsters attack any humans in future." Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded in agreement. I also agreed silently, raising my bow in response to continue raining down a hail of arrows upon the diminished numbers of Crimson Spiders.

    There weren''t many left, and it shouldn''t take us too much time to exterminate the whole nest.

    At least that was what I thought, until there was a sudden tremor across the ground.

    "What the hell was that?" Pearl demanded, looking around worriedly. The rest of us shared her concern, having sensed a sudden surge in monstrous energy.

    It was coming from the Crimson Spiders'' nest.

    "Oh¡­" I murmured, remembering something about Crimson Spiders that I read about in what seemed like eons ago. In a monster encyclopedia back in my house. A chill ran down my spine as I groaned. "It''s their boss.

    "Their¡­what?" Craig snapped.

    His question was answered when something enormous burst out of the nest, sending mud, soil and leaves flying all about. A single immense Crimson Spider, about several dozen times bigger than the usual Crimson spiders, emerged, its mandibles clacking in rage as it glared at us with its multiple glowing eyes.

    Flames began to erupt from its carapace, forming an inferno that was on par with the one Dong Fang Yue Chu created to slay its minions. Rank C. An Elemental class monster that lorded over its Minion class monsters.

    "¡­this is not good," I mumbled under my breath.

 97 Chapter 97: Crimson Spider King

    "That''s¡­a level 5 mutated beast!" Pearl shouted.

    Everyone turned to stare at her in bewilderment.

    "What the fuck is a mutated beast?!" Craig growled, annoyed. "Are you in the wrong world or something?"

    "And that''s a Rank C monster, not level 5. We don''t use levels and numbers to categorize monsters." Theodore was calmer, but he still looked just as bewildered as the rest of us. Pearl shrank back sheepishly.

    "Sorry. My mind is not in the right place."

    "I hope you didn''t go into a battle frenzy or something," I muttered. "It''s not as if a group of criminals hired by Lin Zhan Long came and provoked the mutated beasts into attacking us in an attempt to murder us."

    "What does Lin Zhan Long have to do with anything?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked, confused. "He''s not here. And surely even he wouldn''t try something as stupid as that."

    "I won''t be too sure of that. Stupid people exists no matter which world you''re in." Craig shrugged. "But in this case, you''re right. Lin Zhan Long has nothing to do with this. This is just a normal monster. Every Crimson Spider nest has a king. I''m more surprised that he didn''t show up while we were destroying his lackeys earlier."

    "He was probably busy with something else," I suggested with a shrug. "Maybe he was feeding or something."

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    "By the way¡­if there is a Crimson Spider King, is there a Crimson Spider Queen?" Pearl asked, somewhat concerned. "The one that lays all the eggs? Will she come out and attack us too?"

    "No," I assured her. "The smaller Crimson Spiders are the ones who lay the eggs. The king gets to fertilize all of them by itself¡­so he basically has a harem of female Crimson Spiders who serve as both his concubines and servants at the same time."

    "You know an awful lot about monsters," Craig remarked as he dodged a torrent of fire that washed out from the Crimson Spider''s mandibles. Just like Dong Fang Yue Chu''s spell, it scorched the earth and left blackened soil in its wake. "Whoa! That''s pretty hot!"

    "Let me! Firebolt!" mirroring a certain adventurer with white hair and an overpowered ability, Dong Fang Yue Chu raised his hand and unleashed a gigantic blast of flames toward the Crimson Spider. The stream of fire washed over the gigantic monster, but to no avail. Clacking its mandible ferociously, the screeching Crimson Spider King strode out of the flames.

    "It''s a fire-type monster! Your flames aren''t going to work on it!" Craig hollered as he ducked a sharp, spike-like leg that lashed out at him, and countered with his spear. The Crimson Spider King raised another of his eight legs to parry the blow, and with an immense strength that belied his flimsy shape, knocked Craig several steps backward.

    But Craig had bought more than enough time. While the Crimson Spider King''s attention was focused on him, Theodore descended from above, his Thunder Hammer swinging downward to crash against its ruby exoskeleton.

    "Mjolnir!" Theodore roared as he unleashed his most powerful technique. He had already activated his Berserker mode, which further augmented his strength and magic. Lightning stormed around him, bolts of electricity lancing into the flailing Crimson Spider King.

    Even so, the monster survived the onslaught. With a shrill screech, he thrashed about, flames erupting from his back to incinerate Theodore. The berserk mage continued hammering away, heedless of the flames that roasted him, until Craig tackled him to the side.

    "Pearl! Sedate and heal him!" he ordered. Pearl nodded as she ran to the snarling Theodore''s side. He was about to lash out at her, but she raised a hand and cast a soothing spell to quell his mindless fury.

    Kneeling beside the tranquilized Theodore, Pearl began to assess his injuries. She glanced up, her expression grim.

    "These are some severe burns," she reported, her voice fraught with tension. "It''ll take me a while to treat and heal him. Can you guys hold the Crimson Spider King off by yourselves until then?"

    "Do we look like we have a choice?!" Craig hollered as he parried another one of the sharp blade-like legs from the Crimson Spider King. "Just heal him!"

    "We''ll do our best."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was already launching himself at the Crimson Spider King, taking Theodore''s position in the vanguard. Even though his flames weren''t effective against the Crimson Spider King, the reverse was true as well. The Crimson Spider King wouldn''t be able to hurt the fire mage with his fire spells.

    "Fire Punch!"

    His fists wreathed in flames, Dong Fang Yue Chu dodged the sword-like legs and struck the Crimson Spider King from the side. The monster screeched and turned about to face him, flames erupting from his body. But even as the blazing fire washed over Dong Fang Yue Chu, the Ultimate Outcast president didn''t flinch. Instead, his own flames seemed to power up, the fire mage drawing power from his opponent''s fire spells to boost himself.

    "Hah!"

    With a powerful palm strike, he actually sent the Crimson Spider King skidding several steps back.

    "Excellent!"

    Craig charged forward, making use of the opening that Dong Fang Yue Chu had just produced, and thrust his spear forward. It pierced through the ruby exoskeleton, causing the Crimson Spider King to shriek in pain.

    "!!"

    An explosion of flames erupted defensively from the Crimson Spider King, forcing Craig to jump back and distance himself. Dong Fang Yue Chu remained in close combat, continuing to engage the Crimson Spider King, as the flames washed over him. As I thought, he wasn''t affected by the flames too much, and was even using it to fuel his own attacks.

    Unfortunately, the Crimson Spider King possessed a much higher heat tolerance than his Minions and mates, which rendered Dong Fang Yue Chu''s attacks slightly ineffective.

    While the vanguard was occupying the Crimson Spider King''s attention, Pearl set to treating Theodore''s injuries. A blue glow suffused her hands and enveloped the lying Theodore, and his burns began to slowly but surely fade away. His skin mended, knitting over the exposed raw muscles, and regenerating.

    Readers were probably complaining about why Theodore wasn''t fighting while Pearl healed him. Dudes, this isn''t a game, you know? This is reality. It''s not like a game where your character or avatar automatically and immediately heals when a healer casts a recovery spell on you, and you can continue fighting. Healing spells required a lot of time. Even the best ones, performed by the renowned Teacher Mary Cure, took hours to completely restore a patient to full health. Why do you think I spend hours in the infirmary? It wasn''t because Teacher Cure was a lousy healer. It was simply that even the best healing spells require that much time to restore a patient to his best.

    Perspiration poured down Pearl''s face as she cast her healing spells. I stood over her, with my bow drawn, to ensure no monster attacked her while she was in the process of healing. This was basically the mage version of a field medic treating a downed soldier in a battlefield, with bullets whizzing over your head even as you struggled to perform emergency first aid under tremendous pressure. I couldn''t imagine what sort of weight Pearl was currently shouldering.

    I could try and share it by helping to end the battle as quickly as possible, but I was currently casting a big spell of my own. Fortunately, Dong Fang Yue Chu and Craig were distracting the monster for now.

    "This bastard is so tough!" Craig growled as his spear was deflected off his armored exoskeleton. Flames billowed out, causing the agile fighter to quickly dash away before he got burned badly like Theodore. From a short distance, he threw his spear, which pierced through the Crimson Spider King like a drill.

    KREEEEEEEEEEEEE!

    The Crimson Spider King wailed loudly as Craig''s spear penetrated his armored carapace and exited through the other way. Despite the grievous injury, he seemed more incensed than before than dying. Snarling with his mandibles, the Crimson Spider King batted away Dong Fang Yue Chu, who was still pounding him with his fists, and spun toward Craig, who had just retrieved his demonic spear.

    His mandibles yawned and a torrent of flames rushed headlong toward Craig. Despite his speed, even the spearman was barely able to escape. Dashing through the forest, he came away a little scorched.

    "Kuh!"

    Around him, the forest burned. The flames were so thorough and hot they literally incinerated the surroundings to the point where there was nothing but ash and soot left. Thanks to that, there wasn''t a forest fire. The flames died away before they could spread, leaving nothing but blackened soil and gray ash behind.

    "This bastard is really tough!" Craig cursed, coughing as he stumbled out of the flames. Pearl rose to her feet to run toward his position, but the Crimson Spear Society president held out a hand to stop her. "I''m fine. Just a little singed. I can still continue fighting."

    "Same here!" Dong Fang Yue Chu called out as he continued to pummel the Crimson Spider King, only for the latter to retaliated with a swing of a few of his blade-like legs. Dong Fang Yue Chu managed to deflect them away before he could be cut into pieces, but the momentum behind the monster''s assault sent him skidding a way. "We''re chipping away at him bit by bit. Just a few more attacks and we''ll bring him down!"

    "That''s not need for that." I had finally finish casting my spell. My Rigel arrow was already notched to my Orion bow and I was taking aim and steadying my arms in the manner Dad taught me. "The both of you, get clear!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu''s eyes widened when he saw my glowing arrow, and he dove to the side, scrambling to get as far away as he could. The Crimson Spider King mistook his retreat for cowardice, and launched a torrent of flames at what he thought was fleeing prey. Dong Fang Yue Chu dodged that, even though he probably could withstand the heat because of his affinity with fire.

    Better safe than sorry, after all.

    The flames washed over the clearing, scorching the earth, but the Crimson Spider King was so occupied with incinerating Dong Fang Yue Chu (never mind he was failing to do so because of elemental affinity) that he didn''t notice that I had him in my sights.

    Rigel streaked forward like a comet and slammed into the Crimson Spider King, detonating like a nuke. The entire surroundings, already razed by the Crimson King Spider''s flames, was obliterated. My shot had carved a scorched crater into the earth and left little remains but ash and pieces of shredded exoskeleton.

    "Whoa." Craig shook his head as he watched the devastation, then glanced at me. "You''re as crazy as ever."

    "Isn''t that overkill?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked with a scowl. He had been the closest to the site of explosion, and now looked pretty¡­comical, covered in singed mud and blackened soil. I lowered my head in apology.

    "Our opponent was a rank C monster, an Elemental-class. I''m not taking any chances."

    "I agree." Pearl nodded in agreement when she heard my statement. She had continued tending to the severely injured Theodore after checking up on Craig. Fortunately, Craig only suffered light burns, and a simple healing spell was enough to rejuvenate him. "Better safe than sorry."

    "Easy for you to say, you''re not the one fighting on the frontlines." Craig snorted. Pearl shrugged.

    "Even if I was, I still would have asked Richard to nuke the Crimson Spider King. You know how powerful those rank C monsters are."

    "Yeah, we just received a taste." Dong Fang Yue Chu grimaced. "If Richard hadn''t blown him up, we would have taken quite a while to fight that thing."

    "Hey, the only reason why I was able to nuke him was because you guys bought me enough time to finish casting my spell," I pointed out. One did not simply conjure Rigel on the spot and fire it off immediately, after all. Otherwise it would be too overpowered. The casting time for Rigel was relatively long.

    "Not a problem." Craig leaned on his spear as he hobbled back toward us. He glanced at Pearl. "But this battle had better be worth it. Tell me you still have the mission token."

    "Yup." After finishing up her healing spell, Pearl retrieved the mission token and displayed it for all of us to see. "We''ve accomplished the mission. If Instructor Feng Hai was telling the truth during the briefing, then a military team will come to pick us up momentarily."

    "I thought we were supposed to navigate our way out of the forest?" I asked, puzzled by the sudden change in plans.

    "Yeah, we still have to go and meet them." Pearl checked her smartphone. "The closest meeting point should be that way¡­a couple of kilometers southwest of where we are. If we don''t run into any other monsters, then we should reach there in three hours."

    "That long?" Craig asked.

    I rolled my eyes. The guy had forgotten that traversing through a dense forest inhabited by monsters would take up a significant amount of time. Much more than if you were going through a straight, empty road. Even with a compass and a holographic map to lead us, navigating through the thick cluster of trees and vegetation was difficult.

    We had already experienced that over the last few days, but Craig evidently forgot all about the ordeals we went through. Or perhaps he just didn''t want to remember them. I also wasn''t very enthusiastic about recalling what we suffered.

    Taking a deep breath, I forced a smile. Positive thinking. That was what was important right now. I couldn''t afford to lower the morale of our group by complaining. Especially since we should be elated after slaying such a formidable rank C opponent, we should capitalize on that lift in morale and make haste for the endpoint.

    "Well, let''s go," I suggested, and then glanced at Theodore, who was stirring and staggering to his feet. He wasn''t completely healed, but he had recovered just enough to walk. It was unfortunate, but we couldn''t afford to sit around and wait for his injuries to fully recover. "Let''s get the hell out of this goddamned forest."

 98 Chapter 98: Mission Accomplished

    "Good job, you guys." Instructor Feng Hai was applauding when we emerged from the forest, battered and bruised. Even though we tried to exit as quickly as possible, we ended up running into a bunch of Rank E monsters that were led by a single Rank D monster, which hampered our process. Fortunately, our skills were more than sufficient to exterminate them without us suffering any casualties. "You''re the first group to achieve the objective!"

    "¡­we are?" I asked in disbelief. It wasn''t that I didn''t have any confidence in the strength of my group, but I thought the strongest Holy Saints or the renowned Black Rose would accomplish the mission ahead of us.

    "Yeah, you are," Feng Hai assured us with a smile. "Which is quite the surprise, considering that the five of you are from four different societies. Seems like it didn''t really hinder your teamwork. I''m heartened to see you cooperating with each other as if you''re from the same society."

    Craig snorted. "Who cares about societies? Out here, we''re a team. We have to rely on each other and cooperate if we want to survive and achieve the objective. This isn''t the time for petty rivalries and politics."

    "I''m so glad you think that way." There was something about Feng Hai''s tone that bothered me, as if he was critical of the other groups. At least, that was what I concluded when I saw him glance back at the forest, his eyes taking on a faraway look. I was aware that he had been monitoring our progress, using the same surveillance technology that Jing Tian Academy used to watch us while we conducted our missions outside. "However, some people still fall prey to political infighting and backstab each other even though they are from the same society."

    I didn''t know if he was referring to Holy Saints or Black Rose, and it didn''t seem appropriate to ask, but as usual I allowed my curiosity to get the better of me.

    "Who are you talking about?"

    Feng Hai smiled slyly at me. "None of your business."

    "Sorry," I muttered as I shrank back, intimidated by his expression. The graduate and our senior was really terrifying. I knew that he was on a completely different level, when compared to us.

    "But I saw you guys defeat a Rank C monster," Feng Hai said, returning to the topic at hand. "Great job! Even I would have trouble defeating a Rank C monster alone." He glanced at the other instructors. "I would have to work together with my colleagues. That''s how good your teamwork was, covering each other and making use of everyone''s strengths."

    We glanced at each other, not sure what to say. I couldn''t help but feel a sense of pride at the praise, and I was sure the others were experiencing the same thing.

    "Oh, well¡­we did our best."

    Craig rubbed the back of his head as he grinned, but he was evidently taken in by Feng Hai''s flattery.

    "I didn''t do much," Theodore murmured bitterly as he glanced down at his feet. "I only got in the way."

    "No, you didn''t," I assured him. "Your attack helped to crack the Crimson Spider King''s carapace and weakened his defenses. If you didn''t hurt him with your Mjolnir, it would have been a lot more difficult to destroy him."

    "Yeah," Dong Fang Yue Chu agreed whole-heartedly. "I can confirm that the Crimson Spider King''s movements grew a lot more sluggish and slower after both you and Craig delivered a massive amount of damage to him. Otherwise I wouldn''t have been able to dodge all of his attacks."

    "Your team displayed the right amount of aggressiveness, while tempering it with adequate caution," Feng Hai continued with a sagely nod. He had been listening to our exchange, and waited until we were finished before speaking. "Holy Saints was overly aggressive, and focused too much on hunting monsters to raise their score as high as possible to the point they still have yet to achieve the objective. They are close, but they have suffered quite a few casualties and injuries in the process, and thus aren''t quite able to make that final push to grab the mission token¡­yet. In contrast, Black Rose is overly cautious. The group is made almost entirely of girls, which might or might not be a factor, but they overly focused on avoiding combat to the point where their progress has slowed down to a crawl."

    Nodding excitedly, Feng Hai seemed pretty pleased.

    "You guys will definitely get my seal of approval for the upcoming national tournament. I''m sure the five of you will make it into the representative team."

    "Well, we''ve to see how the others perform first," I mumbled, trying to stay modest. Even though Feng Hai''s declaration sent a thrill throughout my spine, I was aware that nothing was set in stone. If the other teams put on a more impressive performance, then they would get selected over us. Our part was done. There was nothing more we could do to improve our score.

    Given how Holy Saints went around hunting monsters, I was certain that they would get pretty high scores, especially when compared to us. In contrast, I was worried about Black Rose. I hoped their members, especially Alicia, were able to get into the team. Alicia, in particular, would be devastated if she didn''t become a representative. And having seen the skills and abilities of everyone in the academy, I felt that it would be a total loss to exclude her from the representative team.

    "Well, you guys can go rest now!" Feng Hai clapped his hands and gestured for us to return to our bunks. We glanced at each other, a little taken aback, and then nodded.

    "Yes, sir!"

    Tramping off, we went to get some rest.

    *

    As it turned out, we were graded as individuals, and not as a team. According to Feng Hai, every member in my team did well, and we were selected as representatives.

    Just as he said we would. Then again, Feng Hai was the one deciding everything, he probably already made his mind up long ago. However, I knew him to be a fair and impartial instructor, so I was sure he gave everyone a chance to impress him.

    Therefore, a good number of Holy Saints made it with us. To my complete lack of surprise, Cody and Lily, and as everyone anticipated, so was Harrison Reed. There was no way the president of Holy Saints wouldn''t be selected. I had seen him fight in the arena before. His ability was the real deal.

    Unfortunately, Feng Hai remarked something about his leadership skills being lacking.

    "I''m sorry. I know you were aiming for the position, but I don''t think you can be the captain for the representatives."

    "Can I know why?" Harrison asked calmly. He didn''t seem offended, but I was sure he was bitterly disappointed inside.

    "The decisions you made in Sen Lin Forest¡­" Feng Hai gave him a hard stare. "I think they are questionable. Sure, you racked up a huge kill tally and scored a lot of points. But in return, your team suffered the most casualties, and you put your members in danger most of the time." He shook his head, not exactly disgusted, but still highly critical of Harrison''s choices. "Tell me, is that what a captain should be doing? Shouldn''t you place the wellbeing and safety of your members and teammates above everything else? What''s the point of scoring the highest if the majority of your team gets killed?"

    "I understand Instructor''s point, and you are right to criticize me about that," Harrison conceded with a nod. "But I would like to raise that my team survived."

    "With horrible injuries. And make no mistake, you didn''t survive on your own abilities." Feng Hai glowered at the Holy Saints president. "Teams of instructors had been following you, to ensure you didn''t get accidentally killed by monsters in the forest. They had to eliminate a few stray monsters that would have gotten in your path while your team''s healer was busily treating your wounded. And speaking of wounded, the injuries your members sustained weren''t light."

    Compared to Theodore''s injuries, the wounds Holy Saints suffered were pretty grim and severe. Theodore survived with a few serious burns, but they weren''t life-threatening, and a healing spell from Pearl allowed him to walk again. Thanks to that, we didn''t spend too much time exiting the forest after claiming the mission token.

    However, the injuries that Holy Saints suffered were often debilitating. While Harrison usually got off lightly because of his natural skill and strength, his other members were not so fortunate. They had to spend hours staying stationary, trying to recover from their frequent, vicious battles, and their poor healer had exhausted herself.

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    Ironically, the healer was from another society, and not from Holy Saints. She was the last member of their group, a survivor from one of the smaller societies who were largely eliminated by now. She still looked pale in the aftermath of the tests. I heard that she botched several of her healing spells in panic during the final test.

    That might explain why she didn''t look so good.

    Harrison glanced at her apologetically, realizing the strain he had placed on her.

    "I''m sorry."

    "Don''t be sorry. Learn from your mistakes." Feng Hai then proceeded to name the final two members. He glanced toward Black Rose.

    Alicia, Miranda and the two other girls in the team, were waiting anxiously. The fifth and last member, a guy (a very lucky one, come to think of it, since he got to spend almost a week with a team of girls), was a little more relaxed.

    "Alicia and Miranda. You''re both in the team."

    Well, can''t say I didn''t expect that. Alicia was too skilled and powerful to exclude, and there was a reason why Miranda attained the rank of vice-president in Black Rose. All in all, there weren''t many surprises.

    "This is unfair!" Terence bellowed. "How did I not get chosen? Why were those losers¡­" he glared viciously in the direction of me and Dong Fang Yue Chu. "¡­selected over me instead?! There must be some mistake!"

    "I assure you, there is no mistake." Feng Hai gave him a stern look. "I originally didn''t intend to say this right here, in front of everybody, but I guess I should. Terence, your performance was the most disappointing by far. Instead of cooperating with the rest of your team, you focused on elevating your own status and succumbed to political backstabbing. Not to mention, it was due to your actions against the Amber Ape that got your teammates hurt. Even though you''re outside, in a dangerous forest, trying to survive against monsters, you still have the cheek to raise dissent and undermine Harrison''s authority. I don''t know what you''re trying to pull, but I guarantee that you won''t be selected for any representative team if you continue to play those games."

    "Ah, that¡­that''s only a misunderstanding¡­"

    Terence turned pale, but he lowered his head and fell silent instead of arguing.

    "And that''s it. Congratulations to all those who have been selected as representatives. For the rest of you, you have worked extremely well and performed well¡­" His glance at Terence seemed to imply, "with exceptions." But he wisely didn''t say that out. "Even if you didn''t get chosen, you should still be proud of yourselves. You survived almost a week in Sen Lin Forest and acquitted yourselves well in the face of adversary. As your instructor, I am very proud of you."

    Everyone, except Terence, puffed their chests out, or looked elated, exchanging delighted looks with each other.

    So the team of representatives was basically comprised of Harrison, Cody, Lily, Alicia, Miranda, Craig, Theodore, Pearl, Dong Fang Yue Chu and me. Yay, I guess?

    "It''s not over yet." Feng Hai grinned at us. "The ten of you, had best prepare for some training from hell. I''m going to whip you into shape for this year''s tournament. But before that¡­"

    He waved his hands to dismiss us.

    "Go get some rest. The training camp is over! You''ve all graduated and can raise your heads high!"

    With that, we stepped into our one-week break after the training camp.

 99 Chapter 99: Campfire Invitation

    "And so Instructor Feng Hai told us that we were selected for the representative team!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu finished off his story to a captivated audience. Harvey watched him in wonder, his eyes shining.

    "Awesome! Vice-president Richard is really awesome!" he turned to me. "You''ve to teach us how to nuke monsters too!"

    "Uh¡­if you''re willing to change your specialization and become an archer, sure." Then again, it wasn''t as if I was purely an archer. I knew swordsmanship as well, because Dad trained me in both archery and swordsmanship. Unfortunately, I sucked at bare-handed combat. Fighting with purely my fists (and kicks) would be to my detriment, especially against a skilled combatant. And obviously I couldn''t handle a spear, staff, axe, hammer or other weapons. I mean, I was not even proficient with a whip (Ophiuchus). Honestly, that was just me randomly flailing around than actually wielding a whip effectively. As long as it worked, I didn''t care.

    "Hmm¡­that will be difficult. I think I should just learn the sword from you."

    "If that''s the case, you''re better off learning from my dad."

    Harvey nodded thoughtfully, conceding the point. After all, I learned everything from Dad. So it was natural that learning from the master himself was the most efficient method to grow stronger.

    Stan seemed to agree.

    "We should head to your dad''s dojo afterward. He''s in today, right?"

    "Yeah." There was a reason why Stan sought confirmation. Dad sometimes left for missions, which normally took several days or even weeks. When that happened, there was no point going to the dojo except for self-training. And we could just do self-training at home. That said, the dojo was still an ideal place to train undisturbed. "My dad is home today."

    "Sounds good. Let''s all go together after this." Dong Fang Yue Chu asserted his position as the president and made the declaration. Everyone nodded their consent, even Wang Fei, who was the least enthusiastic of us.

    "It also sounds like your fire magic has gotten a lot stronger, President," Stan remarked as he returned to the topic at hand. Dong Fang Yue Chu grinned as he puffed his chest out.

    "I know, right?"

    "President Dong Fang, can you nuke monsters like Vice-president Richard?" Harvey asked somewhat innocently. Dong Fang Yue Chu grimaced.

    "I¡­don''t think so. I don''t have a fire spell that massive."

    "¡­oh."

    Harvey sounded disappointed, which annoyed Dong Fang Yue Chu.

    "Hey! Come on! I contributed to the battle too, you know?! It wasn''t as if Richard was the only one fighting and killing monsters!"

    "Yeah, Yue Chu incinerated a lot of those Crimson Spiders, even though they are heat-resistant. You should know how impressive that is." I was trying to cement Dong Fang Yue Chu''s authority. After all, he was the president, and deserved respect. He had clearly earned it. "Without him, I wouldn''t be able to cast Rigel at all."

    "That''s true," Harvey conceded. "I guess that''s why teamwork is so important." He scowled. "The education system places too much emphasis on individual ranking and neglects teamwork and cooperation."

    "It happens." I shook my head bitterly. It wasn''t just in the present. In the long distant past, where I came from, the Asian education systems had tended to emphasize too much on grades and test scores, valuing rote learning and memorization over creativity and flexibility. Sports and other activities were overlooked in favor of academic results. It was the same no matter what time period you were in. "But they''ve realized it and began to change."

    Fortunately, that also happened in the past, where the government realized the changing needs of the present and altered the academic curriculum accordingly, to allow for more flexibility and creativity. After all, not everyone could be a white-collar worker. A nation also relied heavily on blue-collar workers and a vast repertoire of technical skills.

    "Anyway, let''s get ready. My dad is waiting for us."

    Okay, that wasn''t really true. Dad was most likely spending his time watching anime, and would only pause his recordings to train us in the dojo.

    We were in the midst of preparing to leave when there was a knock on the door. Dong Fang Yue Chu glanced up.

    "Come in!" he hollered.

    The door swung open, and Alicia walked in, relief evident on her pretty face.

    "Oh, good. You guys haven''t left yet."

    "What''s up?" I asked, puzzled to see her. The president of Black Rose rarely visited our society room in person.

    "Are you guys available this Saturday?" Alicia asked.

    "Nope," I replied, but the others answered in the affirmative.

    "Yup!"

    "Yeah."

    "I think so."

    "I''m always available!"

    Obviously that last one was from Dong Fang Yue Chu.

    But more than that, everyone turned to stare at me, especially Dong Fang Yue Chu. He scowled at my reply.

    "Make yourself available," he ordered as he pointed at me. I gave him a droll look, but he refused to give in and maintained his fierce glare.

    "Uh¡­" Alicia began somewhat uncertainly. Not wanting to put her in the spot, I sighed and raised both my hands in surrender.

    "Okay, okay. I''ll make myself available. I just wanted to do some training."

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    "Training, training, training¡­is that all you think about?" Dong Fang Yue Chu rolled his eyes, annoyed. "You should go out more often instead of staying cooped up in your dojo, training everyday. Are you a training maniac or something? Even your dad complains about you staying home everyday to train. You know, maybe going out and having a break once in a while might give you some new ideas for your techniques and spells."

    It wasn''t as if I never went out, but I decided not to argue with him. Instead, I turned to Alicia and cocked my head quizzically.

    "What''s happening on Saturday?"

    "We''re planning to have a campfire party on Saturday evening," Alicia explained with a smile. "And I wanted to invite all of you."

    "Campfire party?" I repeated incredulously. That sounded so random. "Why are you organizing a campfire party?"

    "To celebrate the completion of the training camp." Then when she saw the expressions on my juniors, she quickly added, "But everyone is invited. It''s not just you guys. all of Black Rose, Holy Saints, Superpower, Crimson Spear, Thunder Hammer, and more¡­the whole school is invited. Those students who want to come are welcome to join us, regardless of whether they took part in the training camp or not. It''s open to everyone, and so far we''ve received quite the warm response."

    "We''ll be there!" Harvey assured her excitedly.

    "That''s good." Alicia nodded, and then, as if she just remembered something, snapped her fingers. "Oh, and it''s also a combined celebration of Sheng Ri Kuai Le''s birthday. We''re also throwing a birthday party for her while at it." She hastily raised her hands. "Don''t bring any presents, though. It''ll be a nightmare if all hundred plus attendants bring a present. She has no way of bringing all of them home. Just come for the food and enjoy yourselves."

    I personally wasn''t a fan of parties, and preferred to hide at home, but I couldn''t let my friends down. Plus, there was no way in hell I would pass the chance for free food. I was already salivating at the thought of a campfire buffet. The barbeque!

    The feast alone would be worth any trouble and awkwardness I went through in the party.

    The members of Ultimate Outcast were certainly excitedly. Even the usually reticent Wang Fei was smiling as he chatted with Harvey about the prospect of meeting a few cute girls at the campfire party. Stan was bragging about how this would be his hundredth cameo or something, as if someone was capturing him on film. Dong Fang Yue Chu joined Harvey and Wang Fei, particularly because his specialization was flirting with girls¡­or something like that. Alicia was smiling as she watched all of their antics, but she hadn''t left yet.

    I wonder why.

    Then a thought occurred to me while I was watching her beaming at everyone.

    "Wait, where are we having the campfire party again?"

    "Outside Jing Tian City," Alicia replied. "On the outskirts of Jing Tian Forest. There''s a valley at the foot of a couple of hills ¨C it''s a pretty visible landmark. We chose it because it''s easy for everyone to locate."

    Outside Jing Tian City? On the outskirts of Jing Tian Forest? In other words, we were having the campfire party outdoors?

    Yeah, that sounded obvious, but it was precisely the obviousness that allowed realization to dawn upon me.

    "You''re having the party outside the city?" I repeated cautiously. "I don''t mean to be a wet blanket, but isn''t that kid of dangerous? You know there are monsters roaming outside the city, inside Jing Tian Forest."

    "Jing Tian Forest isn''t as dangerous as Sen Lin Forest," Dong Fang Yue Chu assured me. The guy evidently wanted the party to go through, no matter what. Most likely because he wanted to hang out with cute girls. "Even if there are monsters, they will be low ranked at best."

    "That''s right. We are all mages." Stan nodded in agreement. "With a whole group of combat mages, we should be able to handle any low ranked or even mid ranked monster quite easily."

    ¡­while they had a point, I had a feeling they were tempting fate. After all, high ranked monsters emerged when we least expected them to. Certainly, research had shown that monsters were usually territorial. Just like in a certain game where you captured monsters in balls, monsters tended to dwell in a specific habitat.

    That didn''t mean they weren''t open to migration, of course.

    "We''ll be constructing a barrier as a precaution, of course," Alicia assured me. "A high-level barrier that ought to keep most monsters out and render us invisible and undetectable to them. So there''s no need to worry. Everyone''s safety is the top priority here."

    "¡­okay." That sounded a lot more prudent. I would feel a lot safer having a party inside a barrier than being naked in the open. Even so, I still felt as if they were being a little too reckless. On the other hand, I was overthinking it. If we were worried about monsters every time we left the city, then we might as well not leave the city. No one would ever be able to hold campfire parties or travel outside. While we would certainly keep ourselves safe, that would make life a lot¡­boring and meaningless.

    I mean, surviving alone wasn''t the same as living. If you get what I mean. Some people probably wouldn''t, but whatever.

    "We''ll definitely be there!" Dong Fang Yue Chu reassured Alicia, who nodded in delight.

    "Okay! I''ll let Senior Miranda know. I''ll see you guys then!"

    I watched her leave silently, an unsettling feeling still in my heart. I had an ominous premonition about this campfire party. Maybe I should just find an excuse on the day itself and skip it¡­

 100 Chapter 100: Before the Campfire Party

    "Huff¡­huff¡­!"

    I was swinging both my swords, following the pattern that Dad taught me. After so many years of practicing, by now the moves had been so ingrained in my body that they felt like natural reflexes. My wooden blades knocked against the wooden training dummy, again and again, sending splintered chips out.

    After my swordsmanship training, I moved on to summoning. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and gathered my mana about me. The training camp had helped me a lot, and it seemed that I could summon my Constellation spirits slightly faster now. My Celestial Guardians still required quite a lot of time to summon, thanks to their greater power, but that was only logical.

    However, lately I had begun experimenting with my Constellation spirits to see if I could summon much stronger ones that were on par with, or even stronger than my Celestial Guardians. I had been working on conceptualizing and manifesting a few that might possess firepower of a magnitude several times that of say, Vermillion Phoenix or White Tiger.

    So far, I had only succeeded in conceptualizing one. He was still a work in progress, and required a tremendous amount of time to set up, but again, that was only natural. I never expected to succeed in such a short period of time.

    For now, I decided to go through my summoning spells, from the fastest toward the slowest. First, I started off with Gemini, and then practiced a few swings with them. Then Aquarius. Then Sagittarius. Then Orion. Then Canis Minor. Then Ursa Minor. Then Corvus. Followed by Canis Major, and then Ursa Major. Then Taurus. Capricorn. Aries. Just as I was about to summon a few new Constellation spirits that I had recently conceived, Dad walked into the dojo.

    "What are you still doing here?" he did a double take when he saw all of my Constellation spirits glowering down on him, but rather than fear, he felt impressed. "Whoa¡­that''s quite a lot of summoned beasts you have there."

    Then he cleared his throat, especially as I began to dismiss them from our dimension and returned them to whatever soul dimension they resided in when I didn''t summon them.

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    "Never mind that. What are you still doing here?"

    "Training," I replied as I suppressed the urge to add, "Obviously." Dad wasn''t going to take too kindly to me mouthing off.

    Dad sighed as he slapped his forehead. "I know that. What I mean is, why are you still training?! Shouldn''t you be leaving now?"

    "Leaving? Where am I supposed to go?"

    "The campfire party." Dad glared at me, not sure if I was pretending, or if I really forgot. "Don''t tell me you don''t remember. Today''s Saturday, isn''t it? It''s already six. If you don''t move out soon, you''ll be late."

    "Ah¡­that campfire party." Honestly, I didn''t forget about it. I just didn''t want to attend that gathering of normies. The atmosphere was too stifling for me, and I was certain the damned disco music or whatever music they played would be too loud. Those kind of events weren''t for me. I didn''t really like parties.

    "Yeah, your friend Yue Chu knew you would try to give it a slip, so he told me about it. Asked me to ensure you go." Dad glared at me. Inwardly, I seethed. Damn that Dong Fang Yue Chu. He really went through such lengths to ensure I participated. "So go. Don''t stay cooped up at home all day. You need to go out and socialize more often. What are you, a hikkikomori? Hang out with your friends. Live a little. You''re still young, you know? If you don''t take this chance to enjoy your youth, it''ll be over soon. Then it would be too late."

    I honestly didn''t care. I had better things to do with my life than to enjoy my youth.

    "Don''t give me that, and just go." Dad grabbed my shoulder and began herding me out of the dojo. "What are you, some kind of edge lord?"

    "I didn''t go that far and say dumb, nihilistic things. I just have¡­priorities." Which was to get stronger before the university exams¡­next year. Okay, maybe I was rushing too much. But even so, I was impatient to get strong, otherwise readers would complain about what a weakling I was and drop the story. Okay, if that''s the reason why they dropped this stupid story, then so be it. I wasn''t going to pander to their tastes and suddenly become a godlike, overpowered protagonist who could curb-stomp any opponent stupid enough to cross my path.

    "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, just go. That cute girl¡­Alicia, was it? She''s waiting for you in the party. I''m sure of it."

    I raised an eyebrow. "You''re thinking too much about it. Alicia and I are just friends¡­"

    ¡­I trailed off when I realized that wasn''t exactly true. Didn''t she kiss me right in front of everyone after I defeated her in a ranking match? After that, we had the training camp, so we didn''t have many opportunities to meet and talk it out. Consequently, our relationship was still in some kind of limbo. I wasn''t sure what exactly our relationship was any longer. And since Alicia didn''t bring it up, I found it too awkward to approach her to ask her about it.

    There was some sort of fear inside my heart, that Alicia would just laugh it off and say she did it in the heat of the moment. Or an impulse. Then I would back off, embarrassed. Oh, well.

    Eventually, we were going to have to talk about this, but¡­not yet. I guess.

    "Whatever. I don''t care what sort of relationship you have with her, as long as it''s nothing unhealthy. Just don''t get her pregnant¡­"

    "Oi!" I snapped.

    "Sorry. I know you''re not the type to give in to your desires. Anyway, just go already." Dad glanced at the clock hanging high on a wall of the dojo. "Have fun."

    "¡­yeah, yeah."

    Resigned to my fate, I reluctantly headed to my room to change and get ready to depart for the campfire party.

    *

    While I was busily preparing to leave for the campfire party, a trio of students were making preparations of their own. They were seated around a table at a caf¨¦, their cups of coffee left untouched as they schemed and argued in low voices, trying their best not to be overheard by the waitresses in maid uniforms, or other customers.

    "Are you sure this is a good idea, boss?"

    Terence looked around nervously before turning back to Lin Zhan Long. The vice-president of Holy Saints glowered at his lackey.

    "What, don''t tell me you''ve gotten cold feet now?"

    "No, but¡­isn''t it dangerous?" Terence swallowed.

    "Yeah." Adam nodded with a grim smile. "That''s the whole point, isn''t it? Those idiots deserve it!"

    "But¡­luring a high-level demon toward the campfire party¡­what if it ends up killing all of them? I thought you didn''t want to go as far as murder?!"

    "Oh, come on!" Lin Zhan Long snorted. "Are you an idiot? Of course we''re not going to attract a monster that''s too powerful. Otherwise there''s no way we would be able to escape its clutches. Never mind our schoolmates, we would get slaughtered before we could get our revenge."

    "So a mid-ranked monster then?" Adam asked. "Somewhere along the high mid-ranked monsters? A Wyvern, maybe? Or an Infernal Salamander? A rank C monster?"

    "Yeah, rank C is good." Lin Zhan Long nodded. "I was thinking rank D, actually. I mean, where are we going to find a rank C monster in these parts? There''s no way we''ll find high mid-ranking monsters near the city."

    "That''s true," Adam conceded.

    "Hmm, with such a large group, they definitely can handle a rank C or D monster." Terence looked a little more relieved. "They also have a barrier set up, so they will notice when the monster tries to break through the barrier, and they will have ample time to prepare for combat."

    "The aim is not to kill them, but to give them a scare." Lin Zhan Long was grinning as he plotted. "Imagine the shock they will experience when a mid-ranked monster crashes their party! It''ll ruin all their fun and cause all of them to panic! There are some pretty strong students in there, so they''ll take care of the monster eventually, but by then the whole mood would be ruined, and they will call off the party. That will teach them to mess with us!"

    Yeah, that made a lot more sense than mere students trying to scheme the murder of their schoolmates over a classroom feud. Seriously? What were those web novel authors thinking? The whole "schoolmates trying to kill the protagonist for no reason other than he''s trash and they resent him for rising to the top" was so incredibly contrived that I didn''t understand why they continue using that clich¨¦ setting.

    It was just so dumb.

    "Now¡­the problem is, where do we find such a monster?" Lin Zhan Long pondered for a moment, his brow furrowing. "Not in Jing Tian Forest¡­"

    "There definitely are rank D monsters deep inside Jing Tian Forest, boss," Adam assured him. "But it''s dangerous to venture inside the depths of Jing Tian Forest, especially with just the three of us."

    "I still don''t think this is a good idea," Terence muttered. "Maybe we should think of some other plan. Unless you''re willing to risk our live just to take revenge on our schoolmates."

    "¡­ugh¡­" as much as Lin Zhan Long hated to admit it, Terence had a point. Only a reckless idiot would risk his life for something as petty as revenge. There were so many ways to take revenge, so why pick a dangerous method?

    "Like what?" Adam was one such reckless idiot. "Do you have a better plan?"

    "That''s what we should be thinking of right now." Terence shrugged. "I want revenge as much as you do, but I don''t want to risk my life getting chased by a monster. And how do we lure the monster toward the campfire party, anyway?"

    "Ugh. Good point." Lin Zhan Long felt a headache building in his temples. Initially he thought this was a brilliant idea, but now when they were trying to execute it, they were running into all sorts of problems. He was reluctant to call this scheme off, and the campfire party was a perfect opportunity to ruin their schoolmates'' fun, but there had to be¡­

    "Excuse me, but I overheard your conversation."

    The trio jumped when a man approached their table. He looked extremely suspicious, wearing a hat that obscured most of his facial features. Even as he lowered his head to look at them, his eyes were concealed behind a pair of sunglasses. An odd choice of eyewear, considering it was nearing evening and the sun was slowly setting.

    The three of them immediately stiffened and backed away, but the man raised his gloved hands in a nonthreatening manner. His silhouette was cloaked by a long, brown trench coat that hung over his features, despite the sweltering heat of summer. Yeah, he was pretty suspicious, and despite his gesture, the trio remained on guard.

    "I''m not here to discourage you from your prank. In fact, I''ve a piece of advice for you." he smiled mysteriously. "If it''s a monster you want to attract, then you need a lure. That way, you don''t have to go deep into Jing Tian Forest to look for one. Of course¡­" he raised a finger. "Don''t stupidly activate the lure inside the city. Or the authorities will arrest you."

    Lin Zhan Long and his lackeys glanced at each other. They weren''t that stupid.

    "¡­lure?"

    "Yeah. Especially for a powerful monster. Perfect for what you''re thinking." The man slid his hand inside his trench coat before extracting what seemed like a ball. "This way, you can play your prank on the party held by Violet''s daughter."

    "Thank you!" Lin Zhan Long received the lure, staring at the mechanical contraption in wonder. His two cronies leaned closer to gape at it.

    "How does it work?"

    "There''s a switch here. I guess that''s what he means when he said activate it?"

    The three of them turned to look up, but the man was no longer there.

    "Where did he¡­?"

    "Who the hell was he?!"

    Adam and Terence glanced around wildly. Lin Zhan Long shared their alarm, but there was a more discomforting sensation that bothered him, even as he gripped the spherical lure tighter.

    They never mentioned Alicia''s name at all during their conversation, so how did the man know that the party was organized by "Violet''s daughter"?

 101 Chapter 101: Alien

    Lin Zhan Long and his two cronies were perched outside the city, inside Jing Tian Forest. They weren''t so deep inside the forest that they encountered monsters of any significant rank or strength, but they weren''t on the outskirts either. Their schemes required them to remain hidden, and thus they concealed themselves behind a cluster of trees.

    "Are you sure this is a good idea?" Terence asked nervously, glancing around. By now, the sun had dipped over the horizon and plunged the forest into darkness. The three of them were jumping at every shadow, half-expecting a monster to rear out and lunge at them.

    Actually, there already were a few attacks from low-ranked, minor monsters. Brilliant Bugs, Horned Hares and Rogue Raccoons had struck at them while they moved into the forest, but the three of them were strong enough to exterminate the poor monsters unfortunate enough to cross their paths. Their minds were absorbed in the ploy they were about to execute, however, so they didn''t have time to bask in their triumph.

    "Yeah. We''re committed now. For better or for worse."

    Taking a deep breath, Lin Zhan Long hardened his resolve and nodded.

    "We can''t just let them walk over us Holy Saints like this!" Adam added fiercely, his eyes determined. "We have to teach them all a lesson!" he suddenly brightened up as an idea struck him. "In fact, if we pull this off right, we get to play the heroes! While our schoolmates are busily fighting off the monster, we can come in from behind and kill it in a surprise attack! Everyone will be grateful to us for saving them! And the reputation for Holy Saints will be restored!"

    "You''re a genius," Lin Zhan Long said with a grin. He wondered why he didn''t think of that. "That''s an amazing plan!"

    His hesitation gone, the Holy Saints vice-president set the sphere down and flipped the switch.

    Initially, nothing happened. The sphere merely say there on the grass, with no reaction. The trio frowned and glanced at each other, wondering if they had been tricked by the man in the trench coat and a hat.

    "I knew we shouldn''t have trusted him!" Lin Zhan Long growled as he kicked the dirt angrily.

    "It was worth a shot," Adam offered with a shrug. "But I guess we should have known that it was good to be true."

    "Yeah," Terence agreed. "I''ve never heard of a machine that can lure a monster before."

    "What a waste of time," Lin Zhan Long grumbled as he shook his head in disappointment. "Let''s go. We''ll go think of some other way¡­"

    A click drew their attention back to the sphere. The three of them watched in awe as the sphere began to glow, and then imploded.

    "!!!"

    "What''s happening?!"

    While Terence cried out, Lin Zhan Long could barely make out the clearing in front of them, which had seemed to be sucked into something.

    No¡­it wasn''t being sucked. Space itself was being distorted. The three guys watched in amazement as the time-space fabric was forcibly torn open, and the forest was suddenly open to another dimension.

    "T¡­that''s¡­"

    "An Emergence event?!"

    None of them had seen an Emergence event in the flesh before, but the occurrence in front of them remarkably resembled what they saw in holographic recordings and digital reproductions. The space being ripped open, and a brief view into the other dimension.

    A hellish dimension. The trio could feel the infernal heat from unnatural fires spewing out from the gap between dimensions. An eerie, demonic energy swirled out from within, suffocating the three of them. They collapsed to their knees, gagging and heaving.

    "W¡­what the hell?!"

    "How?!"

    "Just what the fuck is that device?!"

    Too late, the three of them realized that they had made a terrible mistake in accepting that device from a total stranger. They never thought it would literally cause an Emergence event right in front of them. Dread suffused their bodies as they tried to back away on their hands and knees.

    "W¡­what do we do!?" Terence cried out as he backed away hastily.

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    "Run away, of course!" Lin Zhan Long snarled. Easier said than done, though. They were all on fours, unable to stand because of the immense demonic pressure that wrapped around them. It was a miracle that nothing had peeked out of the dimension to stare at them yet.

    However, Lin Zhan Long was not eager to stick around and wait for whatever monster that dwelled within those hellish depths to emerge. He didn''t want to see what it was.

    "¡­we''ve made a horrible mistake," Adam murmured, almost to himself. Even though he was the one who wanted revenge the most, even he didn''t expect things to escalate to this level. He never imagined they would artificially trigger an Emergence event. Like Lin Zhan Long, Adam wasn''t willing to stay to see what kind of monster they had summoned.

    At present, the only thing on the trio''s minds was to escape from there.

    "!!!"

    However, just as suddenly as it occurred, the Emergence event died down. The tear in space-time closed up, the fabric mending up as the two dimensions sealed off the rupture.

    "I¡­it''s over¡­" Adam mumbled as he looked up, his eyes wide. Beside him, Lin Zhan Long and Terence crawled back up to their feet, but they remained unsteady.

    "¡­where''s the monster?" Terence suddenly asked. Even though he was grateful that they weren''t attacked yet, there was no Emergence event that occurred without a monster trespassing into our world. That they hadn''t seen any sign of a monster disturbed him.

    "There''s no monster," Lin Zhan Long replied with relieved laughter. "The lure was a dud. It failed to summon anything!"

    Adam and Terence also exchanged expressions of relief¡­only for Adam to suddenly jolt upright, his face contorted in fear.

    "Uh¡­boss¡­what''s that in front of you?"

    "Huh?"

    Blinking, Lin Zhan Long followed Adam''s finger and stared in the direction where his subordinate was pointing. To his shock, there were three oval-like objects a few meters in front of him.

    They seemed to be¡­pulsing. Slime oozed over its scaled surface, and the top seemed to resemble a jaw that was clamped shut. Or a flower that had folded in on itself, refusing to bloom.

    "Those look like¡­eggs." Terence swallowed, dread evident in his voice.

    "Monster eggs?" Adam demanded. "Really?"

    "They must be what emerged this time," Lin Zhan Long explained, trying to suppress his dread. Staring at the eggs, he hardened his resolve. "This is our chance!"

    "Chance?" his two cronies stared at him in bewilderment. Then Adam suddenly understood. Grinning, he nodded.

    "We can drop these eggs inside the campsite. When the baby monsters hatch, they''ll cause everyone to panic!"

    "Exactly!" Lin Zhan Long laughed. "It seems that that suspicious man wasn''t lying to us after all! He really did help us get a monster safely without needing to go deep into the woods!"

    "Uh¡­so how do we carry the eggs?" Terence obviously looked very reluctant to touch those slimy and disgusting things. Lin Zhan Long didn''t care ¨C that was why he was the boss and the other two were his subordinates. They would have to do the dirty work.

    "With your hands."

    Even Adam looked hesitant about that. He and Terence exchanged a reluctant glance, and the both of them proceeded toward the eggs gingerly.

    Then Terence suddenly stopped.

    "¡­something''s inside."

    "Of course there''s something inside, you moron!" Lin Zhan Long growled. "They are monster eggs! Obviously there would be monsters inside!"

    "That''s not what I mean, boss." Terence shook his head. "I think it''s about to hatch."

    "Huh? What are you talking about?" Lin Zhan Long scowled, but his curiosity got the better of him. Pushing past his two lackeys, he peered closely at the egg.

    Terence was right. There was something moving just beneath the translucent layer of the "shell", bathed in mucous fluids while flailing about. It looked like a horseshoe crab with several pairs of long, spidery legs and a tail.

    At least that was all Lin Zhan Long could make out.

    "What the fuck is that?!" he murmured, feeling revulsion. He instinctively backed away, yet for some reason his eyes remained transfixed on the egg.

    It was as if it had caught him spellbound and entranced him to approach. As much as Lin Zhan Long tried to tear his gaze away, his body refused to obey. His mind began screaming when the lips of the egg began to peel back slowly, but his limbs were slow to move. It was almost as if he was drowning underwater.

    "Boss?" Adam asked beside him, but Lin Zhan Long didn''t answer.

    He couldn''t.

    The next moment, something curled from inside the egg, its tail uncoiling, and then it leaped out with a monstrous screech. Lin Zhan Long felt something hit his face and he crashed over with a gurgled scream. Something was wrapping its legs around his head and clamping onto his face. He struggled, only for the dreadful thing to coil its tail around his neck and locked itself in place on his face. Then something shove past his lips and forced itself down his throat.

    Lin Zhan Long''s scream was cut off abruptly.

    "Boss!"

    Both Adam and Terence saw Lin Zhan Long fall, and they rushed over, only to stare in horror as some alien monster lashed itself to his face. Gripping Lin Zhan Long''s face with its spidery legs and wrapping its tail around his neck, it seemed to be doing something.

    "Get off!"

    Adam was about to cast a spell, but Terence stopped him.

    "Wait! You will hit the boss too!"

    "But¡­!" Adam realized Terence was right. It was meaningless to kill the monster if they ended up severely wounding Lin Zhan Long as well. "What do we do?!"

    The both of them tried to physically pry off the monster, but found that it held firm.

    "Fuck!"

    Adam retrieved a dagger and enchanted it before slicing through one of the legs.

    Sizzle!

    "!!!"

    The two of them jumped back when acid splashed onto the ground below. The grass immediately disintegrated, corroded away into noxious fumes by the highly volatile acid.

    "What the fuck is that?!"

    "I don''t know! That thing''s blood?!"

    "How do we get it off without killing the boss?!"

    "How would I know?!"

    Adam calmed down and shook his head. Gritting his teeth, he glanced back in the direction of the city.

    "We should bring him to a hospital. Maybe the healers and doctors would know what to do. They might have heard of such a case before."

    "Good idea. Let''s carry the boss."

    The two of them proceeded to either side of Lin Zhan Long, each taking an arm. As they began to carry him, neither of them noticed that the other two eggs behind them were slowly peeling open, and spidery legs were scrabbling out as the monsters within began to emerge.

    *

    "Whoa!"

    Lin Zhan Long suddenly woke up, his hands flying to his face and running along his cheeks. Blinking, he glanced around.

    He was still in the forest. But there was nothing grabbing his face. Nothing slamming an organic tube down his throat. Nothing¡­

    He was¡­all right.

    "¡­was it a nightmare?"

    Shaking his head, Lin Zhan Long got to his feet groggily. Scratching his head, he looked up at the night sky above the forest.

    "When and how did I doze off?! In the middle of the forest, no less. And why didn''t Adam and Terence wake me up?"

    Even though Jing Tian Forest was not as dangerous as Sen Lin Forest, it was still inhabited by monsters. Only a fool would so boldly lie on the ground and sleep in the open, right in the middle of the forest.

    Those two must have watched over him or something while he slept. That was probably why he was safe.

    "Hmm? Where are they?"

    Blinking, Lin Zhan Long looked around, searching for his two cronies. He was surprised to see that they weren''t present. Where did they go?

    Weren''t they watching over him?

    "Adam! Terence! Where are you guys?!"

    Shouting, Lin Zhan Long began to search for them. He didn''t have to go far. His toe poked into something.

    "¡­eh?"

    Looking down, Lin Zhan Long caught sight of his two lackeys. They were both lying on the ground, seemingly having dozed off.

    However, there was¡­something on their faces.

    "What the hell?!"

    Lin Zhan Long stumbled and fell in shock, fear coursing through his system. That monstrous, horseshoe crab-like monster had latched onto the faces of his lackeys¡­and there was more than one of them.

    "¡­ugh!"

    While backing away, Lin Zhan Long suddenly felt a sharp jolt of agony through his chest. He began going into convulsions, screaming in agony as his body jerked and trembled. He flailed so hard that blood actually began to flow from his mouth and nose, even as his head slammed against the ground again and again.

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

    Wailing, Lin Zhan Long clutched at his chest. A sharp, terrible pain deep inside his chest, as if something was eating its way out of his insides. The pain was so unbearable that he almost went insane. Even though he wanted to black out, his mind refused to.

    Then something burst out of his chest in a spray of blood. Lin Zhan Long collapsed, the life fading from his eyes.

    The last thing he saw was a worm-like, eyeless creature squirming out of his chest, bathed in his blood. Squealing, the relatively small monstrosity''s jaws yawned to reveal rows of razor-sharp teeth as well as a set of secondary, inner jaws.

    And then Lin Zhan Long expired.

 102 Chapter 102: Campfire Party

    The number of attendees surpassed even Alicia''s imagination. She had sent her invitation to the whole school, but she didn''t expect to see over five hundred students attend. They had located a safe clearing just outside the forest, nestled between a couple of cliffs and relatively short mountains. Rather than actually being inside Jing Tian Forest itself, they held the party in a nearby valley, on the edge of the wilderness.

    That way, they didn''t have to worry about monsters. There was no tall grass where monsters would hide, and they were unlikely to venture out of the forest. As a precaution, Alicia and Black Rose had arrived early to set up a barrier around the venue. They were far from professionals, but for students, they were very competent. Even rank D monsters would find it difficult to breach the barrier they had meticulously cast over the site.

    As the sun disappeared over the horizon, the only illumination was provided by both the ferocious crackling of flames from the campfire in the middle of the valley, and the silvery moonlight from above, bolstered by thousands of twinkling stars. Of course, there were a few electric lights set up, projecting bright flashes of illumination while being powered by portable generators, but to maintain the atmosphere, they were far and few in between.

    In the middle was the campfire. Black Rose had earlier brought the wooden logs from the forest and set them up in the middle of the valley, as well as adding fuel and other necessary components for the campfire. Now, the flames danced about in the middle of the party, adding to the festivity and celebratory mood that was floating around.

    "Happy birthday, Sheng Ri Kuai Le!"

    Alicia smiled as she greeted the birthday girl. Sheng Ri Kuai Le was chatting with a few of her close friends, having gathered around a table where they had prepared a birthday cake. Chocolate with raspberry sauce on top, decorated with bright red strawberries.

    "Thank you for organizing this, President Alicia!" Sheng Ri Kuai Le hurriedly got up to bow gratefully. Alicia waved her thanks away.

    "It''s nothing. I was intending to hold a party for the completion of the training camp anyway, so I thought it would be a good excuse to combine the two. I''m so glad you agreed to it! It will make the party a lot more fun, even for those who didn''t participate in the training camp! I''m actually happier that it allowed us to invite more people!"

    The crowd was definitely over a dozen times larger than the number of people who had attended the training camp. Using Sheng Ri Kuai Le''s birthday as an excuse definitely bumped the number up.

    "I hope you''re having fun!"

    "You too, President Alicia! Please enjoy yourself! You worked so hard to make this happen, you should definitely relax a little too!"

    "Of course." Alicia didn''t mention that, as the host, she had to ensure that everyone was enjoying themselves before she could relax. After exchanging a few more words with the birthday girl, she proceeded to check on the other students.

    A group of guys were boisterously laughing and drinking at the drinks table. A whiff of alcohol emanated from them. Alicia raised an eyebrow, wondering if they brought their own drinks. After all, Black Rose didn''t order or bought any beer or wine or alcoholic drinks to the campfire. Well, as long as they didn''t cause trouble, it would be fine.

    Alicia then approached the long stretch of tables, where a buffet of food was laid out. They had planned on having a barbeque, and a few of the Black Rose members were grilling skewered meat and vegetables atop a portable barbeque pit, before placing them on the table. The other party-goers would visit the table whenever they were hungry, and grab whatever food that had already been prepared. Sometimes a few kind souls would take over so that the Black Rose members could eat or enjoy the party. Even so, Alicia and the other Black Rose members usually snacked in between grilling, especially since they literally had the food at hand.

    "How''s it going, Alicia?" Miranda asked as she approached her president. Like Alicia, she had been going around entertaining guests and making sure everyone was having a good time.

    "So far so good," Alicia replied with a gentle smile. "I''m glad everyone is enjoying themselves."

    Miranda laughed. "That''s the point of the party, isn''t it?"

    "Yeah." Alicia accepted a skewer from Elliot, who had just finished grilling a fresh batch of meat and vegetables. "Thank you, Elliot."

    "No problem, President. Here you go, Vice-president." Elliot gave Miranda a second skewer before gesturing to the table. "There''s a lot more food over there, so please help yourselves."

    "Make sure you get some for yourselves," Miranda reminded him as she chewed on the red peppers.

    "Will do." Elliot gave them a wave before heading over to join Nicholas, Jin Hao and Aoi. The four of them chatted and laughed as they grilled the barbequed stuff together. Alicia and Miranda watched them, with smiles on their faces.

    "Even our members are having fun."

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    "Yeah, that''s great."

    The two of them split up again to make the rounds, going around the campsite to check on the other guests. There were literally hundreds of students partying around the gigantic campfire, and not only did Alicia wanted to ensure everyone was enjoying themselves, she also had to ensure nobody was causing any trouble.

    "..."

    Loud, pop music drifted along the air, barely making itself heard over the crackle of the roaring campfire and the combined voice of over five hundred students conversing at once. Alicia found herself near the campfire, where a large cluster of couples had gathered to dance around the huge pile of burning wood. Guys and girls were swaying to the beat of the music, and some of the bolder ones were spinning around stylishly, probably trying to show off or something. The girls were giggling as the guys spun them about, or literally carried them up into the air.

    "Hey, President Alicia! Want to dance?" Craig called out. He was currently dancing with a girl from the Crimson Spear Society. Alicia recalled her name being Sheila, if she wasn''t mistaken. She was a pretty girl with flaming red hair, who was very proficient with a spear.

    "No thanks. I don''t have a partner."

    "That''s easily solved. Anyone want to¡­"

    "No, please don''t. My partner has yet to arrive." Alicia hastily cut in before Craig could call out to the others. He blinked, and when Sheila tugged at him, he suddenly got the hint.

    "Oh. Yeah. Good luck finding him then."

    "Isn''t Alicia¡­you know, with Richard?" Sheila whispered into his ear as she drew close and wrapped her hands around his neck. Craig nodded slightly as he placed his hands on her hips and gyrated to the beat.

    "You''re right. I totally forgot." Craig laughed as he ground his lower waist against Sheila''s, and she couldn''t help but moan. "Sorry."

    Alicia shook her head, blushing a little when she saw their dirty dancing, and turned away. She advanced a little further, and caught sight of a few familiar figures.

    "Dong Fang Yue Chu! Everybody."

    Ultimate Outcasts had gathered together in front of one of the barbeque tables, helping themselves to the food and drinks. They glanced up when they caught sight of Alicia approaching them.

    "Oh! President Alicia!" Harvey greeted her enthusiastically. Stan nodded while Wang Fei shrank back shyly, overawed by the presence of Jing Tian Academy''s goddess.

    "Enjoying yourself?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked as he handed her a skewer. Alicia nodded as she accepted it, and nibbled on the piece of chicken.

    "I should be asking you that. How''s the party?"

    "Great!" Harvey exclaimed excitedly. "I didn''t expect so many people to come!"

    "It''s a bit loud," Wang Fei murmured. That guy was extremely similar to me in so many aspects we could probably pass off as brothers.

    Stan rolled his eyes. "It''s a party. Of course it would be loud. They''re playing music." He smiled. "You have a nice selection."

    "Oh, I wasn''t the one who picked them. I think Vivian was the one who chose the music. She''s over there." Alicia gestured toward the loudspeakers, where a radio had been set up. a girl with medium-length blue hair was bobbing her head up and down as she played with the controls, scanning the screen to pick the next song, because the current one was about to end.

    "Heh¡­that''s really cool." Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded. When he caught sight of Alicia looking around, he suddenly understood why she came over. "If you''re looking for Richard, he''s not here yet."

    "He isn''t coming?" Alicia asked, trying to mask her disappointment.

    "The vice-president doesn''t seem to like these kind of things," Stan murmured.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu struck him in the head, then cleared his throat.

    "No, Richard is definitely coming. I just called him, and he told me he''ll be on his way. I even made sure to contact his dad to confirm. His dad literally chased him out of the house." He chuckled. "Knowing Richard, he probably got lost. That''s why I told him to come early¡­"

    Alicia smiled, unable to conceal her delight. "That''s good. Then I''ll be seeing him later."

    "Yup!" Dong Fang Yue Chu grinned reassuringly. "Don''t worry. If he still doesn''t turn up within the next hour, then yours truly will personally lead a search party to locate him and drag him here if we have to!"

    Alicia giggled at the image, and nodded.

    "Hey, Yue Chu!"

    Lily Liam from Holy Saints was approaching from another direction. Dong Fang Yue Chu had already straightened up when he first saw Alicia, but with the presence of a second, extremely beautiful girl, he somehow managed to stiffen even further. Not just his spine, but some other part of his body as well.

    "Lily? How can I help you?"

    "Most of the Holy Saints members aren''t here," Lily explained as she came over, sulking. "The president had something going on¡­"

    "President Harrison said he had a meeting with the Reed clan," Alicia confirmed, looking a little disappointed. "So he declined the invitation when I extended it to him last week. I wish our schedules didn''t clash."

    "Yeah. And Vice-president Lin Zhan Long, Terence and Adam are nowhere to be found. Those jokers seem to have disappeared somewhere, and they aren''t answering my calls." Lily scowled. As the number one society in Jing Tian Academy, Holy Saints somehow had a poor showing for the party tonight, even though this was a chance for them to build up their relations with the other societies. "I guess that leaves you."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu gaped at her. "Huh? Me? What about me?"

    "I think she''s asking you for a dance," Alicia explained with a giggle. Lily turned red, but she maintained her fierce expression.

    "Since you want to dance with me so badly, I''ll allow it."

    "W¡­what?"

    "Just go, President," Stan urged as he pushed the stunned Dong Fang Yue Chu toward Lily.

    "Yeah! Score!" Harvey whooped. "Score one for the president!"

    Alicia smiled as she watched Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily proceed toward the campfire for a dance. Just in time too, for the next song started. As the couples began to sway toward the new beat, Alicia turned to converse further with the first year students of Ultimate Outcasts before venturing toward the other party-goers.

    She had no idea how much time had passed, but suddenly she felt a dreadful sense of premonition. Blinking, she spun around as a chill ran down her spine. It was extremely faint, but her sensitivity toward mana screamed a warning, that something extremely evil and overwhelming demonic was drawing closer toward the campfire. Even though they had set up a barrier, the fact that she could sense it with the invisible screen between them spoke volumes of the magnitude of its power.

    "This is¡­" she murmured, turning toward the edge of the barrier that Black Rose had set up, her eyes wide with fear. "¡­a high-level monster?!"

 103 Chapter 103: Party Crasher

    Immediately, Alicia rushed to where the speakers were located. Vivian was in the process of selecting a new song, now that the current was about to end, but Alicia quickly stopped her. Heaving, she leaned over and hastily made a request.

    "President Alicia? What''s the matter?"

    "I''ve to make an announcement. It''s an emergency!"

    Vivian remained confused, but she didn''t argue. Nodding, she moved over to allow Alicia full control of the sound system, offering a microphone to her president. Alicia accepted it gratefully and hurriedly thumbed the switch.

    "Everyone! I''m sorry to interrupt you all, but there is an emergency! There is a high ranked monster approaching our position at the moment! Everyone, please prepare for combat!"

    A silence filled the air shortly after Alicia''s announcement. Only the sounds of the crackling flames from the campfire and sizzling barbeque pits could be heard.

    "She''s right." Craig let go of Sheila and glanced toward the edge of the barrier. "I can sense something extremely powerful and demonic heading in our direction."

    "What should we do?" Sheila asked, trying to suppress her panic when she also detected the vague but unmistakably evil aura from a distance.

    "We fight!" Dong Fang Yue Chu declared boldly. At his side, still holding his hand, Lily nodded.

    "That''s what we mages are trained for!"

    "But from the aura, this monster doesn''t seem like something we can handle," one of the other party-goers murmured.

    "Yeah, it''s too strong!"

    "Rank B monster, at least." Elliot had stopped roasting a row of skewered meat to assess the situation. "It is way beyond anything students like us can handle."

    "But there''s so many of us!" another party-goer argued. "There''s no way it can defeat all of us! As long as we all work together, even a rank B monster won''t be able to withstand our combined forces!"

    "Actually, our numbers might not matter." Nicholas was pale as he trembled from fear. "A rank B monster is categorized above Elemental-type monsters because they possess more than enough power to destroy half a city on its own. If I''m not mistaken, rank B monsters are more commonly known as Fiend class monsters."

    Everyone fell silent at that.

    "¡­if it''s so powerful, why didn''t we sense it until it was so close?" someone from Holy Saints asked nervously, hoping there was some sort of mistake.

    "The barrier." Alicia looked grim. "The same barrier that protected us and rendered us invisible to low and mid-ranked monsters also closed off our senses and isolated us inside this space. However, we can sense it now because the barrier is¡­crumbling."

    To their horror, they realized that Alicia was right. The barrier had been steadily weakening ever since the Fiend-class monster made its approach. As it drew closer, the barrier began to dissolve under its mere presence.

    "What the hell?!" Pearl murmured as she stepped away instinctively. She had been dancing with a guy from Super Power Society, and the both of them had to hold each other up to prevent themselves from toppling over. "Did it just destroy our barrier with its demonic aura alone?!"

    "¡­it really is on a different level altogether," Jin Hao muttered in fear. Beside him, Aoi nodded frightfully, her complexion ghastly. The two of them had been dancing when this intrusion occurred. And now no one was in the mood to continue partying.

    Not when there was such a formidable foe approaching.

    "Does it matter?"

    Fortunately, there were some who were still resolute in the face of overwhelming strength. Craig stepped forward with a determined scowl.

    "Either we run, or we fight. There''s no use whimpering around. That monster is getting closer even as we waste time crying and whining. Those who want to run, hurry up and get away. I don''t know how far you''ll get before the Fiend catches up with you, though. Those of you who want to make a last stand with me, let''s begin getting into formation."

    Drawing his crimson spear from his spatial pouch, Craig activated it, allowing it to lengthen and glow fiercely in the gloom of the campfire.

    "That''s right!" Sheila also gained some courage from her president. She also took out a spear and a shield. "We stand and fight!"

    "I''m with you!" Dong Fang Yue Chu agreed as he began casting fire spells. Flames wreathed his fists as he got ready for combat. Seeing their president prepare for battle, the other Ultimate Outcasts joined him.

    "If only the vice-president is here. Do you think his soul beasts are capable of destroying a rank B monster?" despite his fears, Harvey still somehow remembered me. Stan scoffed.

    "I guess we''ll never know. Vice-prez is lucky. If he was here, he might end up getting killed along with us. He probably had the right idea to give this party a miss."

    "Wasn''t he supposed to come?" Wang Fei asked, puzzled. "I thought he was on his way."

    "He better be smart enough to turn tail and run if he senses this monster on his way here," Stan muttered, his voice surprisingly free of resentment. There was little point in having everyone die here together.

    Everyone made their own decisions. Several decided to take their chances and cowardly flee while their schoolmates held the monster off for them. Many resigned themselves to their fate and drew their weapons, getting ready for combat.

    The dreadful, evil presence permeated the entire area, now that the barrier was finally destroyed. The party-goers were glancing around, gripping their weapons tightly as they sought out the location of the monster.

    "¡­I don''t see it."

    "Where is it coming from?"

    "But¡­it feels so near."

    "Yeah, why does it feel like it''s practically on top of us?"

    "But I don''t see anything. Don''t tell me it''s invisible?"

    "Don''t screw with us! How can there be a monster with perfect invisibility?!"

    Despite their training and constant ranking matches in the arena, the vast majority of students did not have practical experience in the field. Relatively few of them took any missions. I mean, in my Ultimate Outcast Society alone, only I ever took to the field. Dong Fang Yue Chu, for all of his training under my dad, never actually took a mission. And first-year students weren''t allowed to participate in missions, for good reason.

    Not that it would actually help much in this case. Even those who regularly took on missions, like Elliot, Nicholas, Jin Hao and many of Black Rose members, knew they were thoroughly outmatched by the approaching monster. They weren''t confident of destroying a rank C monster, never mind rank B monster.

    The only ones who ever had experience defeating a rank C monster were Craig, Dong Fang Yue Chu, Pearl and Theodore. However, Theodore wasn''t present, and the guy who nuked the rank C Crimson Spider King ¨C yours truly ¨C was absent at the moment. And now they were facing a monster that was on a whole different level.

    "¡­?"

    Even as the majority continued to search for the source of the immense demonic aura, a few began to hope that the high ranked monster had overlooked them, and had no intention of attacking them. Perhaps it was just passing by, and they happened to be on its route. The students were probably so insignificant, akin to ants and a human, that the monster probably didn''t even notice them.

    If that was the case, then it would be great. They would be able to preserve their lives.

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    However, Craig and many of the seasoned veterans were not as na?ve. They vigilantly scanned the area, watching the cliffs just in case the monster emerged from there. A good number of them kept an eye on the forested edge that formed a wall against the valley they currently resided in, anticipating the monster to emerge from there. And others watched the skies, just in case the monster was a flying type. It was not unknown for winged monsters to dive down from above to seize unwary prey. And a scant few were glancing at the mountains, trying to ensure there weren''t any caves from which the monster would emerge from and surprise them from behind.

    They were all searching the wrong places.

    Something erupted from the ground beneath them, knocking several mages off their feet and sending them flying like pins in a bowling alley. Hissing, it faced down the panicking teenagers and reared its claws back for an attack.

    "What the hell is that thing?!" someone yelled.

    The monster was¡­in one word, alien. Totally black from head to toe, its head was elongated and shaped like a banana, as well as totally eyeless. Its huge jaws yawned wide, revealing another set of inner jaws embedded inside it, even as droll dripped off from its serrated fangs. A long, giant tail thrashed about, its spiked end leaving deep marks in the ground. Even though it towered over the students, it was only about three meters high at most.

    That wasn''t surprising. Most Fiend-class monsters were much smaller than their Elemental-class counterparts. Apparently, they had reached a level high enough where they attained the ability to compress all of their demonic power into a small, compact form in order to achieve maximum effectiveness in combat.

    Of course, there were exceptions, and as with most matters regarding monsters, they didn''t follow any set of logical rules. Rank A monsters, known as the Behemoth class, were much larger than Fiends, often towering over whole buildings. Sort of like the kaiju in giant monster movies. Such terrifying monsters could raze entire cities with their immense sizes alone, and were practically unstoppable.

    Fiend class monsters were not as huge, but as Nicholas pointed out, they were capable of laying waste to half a city by themselves.

    "I''ve never seen anything like it before!" one of the mages yelled, his nerve failing him as he turned to run. The monster was upon him within seconds, virtually disappearing and reappearing at his position. The guy screamed as the monster''s claws raked his back, sending a spray of blood high into the air. Wailing, the maimed guy toppled over.

    "Bastard!"

    Craig lunged forward with his glowing, crimson spear. Thrusting it at the monster''s chest, he sought to impale its heart.

    The monster turned around and seized his weapon before the tip could reach its black exoskeleton. Almost as if it was grinning, its hideous lips pulled back before the inner jaws shot out and smashed into Craig''s face. The spearman''s reflexes saved his life as he suddenly sensed the danger and skidded to a stop, but even so blood streamed down his face as he pulled back.

    "Fucker!"

    Twirling his spear, he swung it in a vicious slash to cleave the monster apart. The Fiend stepped back to avoid his strike, but Craig still succeeded in grazing it. Yellow-green blood splattered across the ground, some of it hitting the Crimson Spear Society president.

    "Hah!" Craig crowed. "If it bleeds, we can kill it!"

    Sizzle¡­

    Acrid fumes rose from the ground where the potent, acidic blood corroded through it. Craig also began yelling as the monster''s blood burned through his skin, and he collapsed.

    "Craig!"

    Sheila raced forward, with Pearl right behind her. Pearl had been tending the guy who tried to run away from earlier, but it was too late for him. His spine had been torn out, and he was dead by the time she reached him.

    Even if she was a healer, she didn''t possess the ability to bring the dead back to life.

    Fortunately, Craig was still alive. He had lost consciousness from the excruciating pain, and lay collapsed on the ground.

    Screeching in triumph, the monster stomped toward him, but Sheila dashed forward and blocked its claws with her shield. However, the tremendous strength from the monster flung her aside and she crashed over a hundred meters away. Slamming her head on the ground, she lost consciousness, blood dripping from her mouth.

    "Sheila!"

    "Focus, Pearl!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu had also dove in to intervene, his flaming fists striking at the monster, but with little effect. Even so, the monster was still annoyed by his attacks, and spun around to face him.

    "That''s right! Over here!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu finally completed his spell and he unleashed a ferocious torrent of flames that washed over it, engulfing it in destruction.

    "Hah! That should teach you!"

    And then a spiked tail whipped out and struck him, hurling him several meters away. He slumped down, dazed, his eyes glazed over as he clutched at his wound.

    "What the fuck¡­"

    And toppled over.

    "President!" Harvey hurried over to help him. He was relieved to see that Dong Fang Yue Chu was still breathing.

    "Don''t tell me that stinger on its tail is poisoned?" Stan murmured.

    "Or maybe President Yue Chu went into shock?" Wang Fei offered.

    Stepping out of the inferno, the monster screeched furiously. Its black carapace was fuming, smoke pouring off its heated surface, but it seemed otherwise unscathed. Snarling, it turned to face the trembling campers.

    A few other students continued to stand and fight. A coalition of Black Rose and Holy Saints members gathered to blast the monster with spells. Various elemental attacks raced toward it, ranging from ice, fire, lightning, wind, and earth. Alicia and a few magic gunners let loose with their mana bullets, hoping to strike its vulnerable spots.

    The monster disappeared.

    Within moments, the Fiend tore three mages into ribbons before they could fire off a second spell. The others retaliated, launching whatever magical projectiles they could produce, whether they were fireballs, ice shards, vines, lightning, bullets or whatever else they could throw at it.

    They were too slow.

    The monster was already gone before their attacks reached within a foot of its original position. The students couldn''t even follow its movements. They were barely able to catch a glimpse of a black blur before the monster was in their midst, tearing into their ranks. It swiped at a couple of mages with incredible speed. They went down instantly, blood violently spurting from their wounds.

    Spells gave way to screams now. Their nerve broken, the students dispersed and fled. Everyone was panicking and running for their lives, no longer bearing the pretense of courage and determination to fight the monster.

    Even as they ran, the demonic creature threw its head back and let out a monstrous screech of triumph and malevolent delight.

 104 Chapter 104: Massacre

    Alicia tried to cover everyone''s retreat by firing a few shots at the monster, but it did not even falter in its steps. Fortunately for her, as well as the other ranged fighters, they were stationed at the rear of the formation, and thus did not bear the brunt of the attack. Instead, it was the frontline fighters such as Dong Fang Yue Chu and Craig who suffered the most.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was already up, having recovered from the shock. Seemed like the stinger didn''t have that potent a venom, after all.

    "You guys, run!" he ordered Harvey, Stan and Wang Fei, and took off to engage the screeching monster. Currently, the magic gunners were pelting it with shots, but their magical bullets, as well as the other elemental spells fired off by other mages, were having little effect. The Fiend was too fast, and even then those spells that did hit failed to do anything more than annoy it.

    The majority of the mages, however, had given in to their fear and were fleeing for their lives. Alicia and the other ranged mages were desperately trying to cover their retreat, but the monster was too fast. The black demon lunged forward, disappearing into a blur, and the students discovered that they could not outrun it, even with physical enhancement spells or speed buffs. The monster retaliated against the barrage of spells, screeching violently as it slashed another three running teenagers, who collapsed immediately. Several fountains of blood burst into the air like a geyser.

    "Fall back!" Dong Fang Yue Chu shouted as he fought his way to the front. His crackling fist slammed into the side of the monster''s head, causing it to jar a bit, but it lashed out and tore his front. Gurgling, Dong Fang Yue Chu went down in a spray of blood.

    "President!"

    Harvey leaped in, swinging his sword down upon the hellish creature. It swatted him away, and he slammed into the ground with a deafening crunch, and never got up again. Whirling toward him, the monster sought to finish him off, but bullets slammed into its hard carapace. Stan was adding to the Black Roses'' volley of fire and blasting it with his dual guns.

    "Keep shooting!" Alicia shouted. "We''ll slowly wear down its defenses!"

    The monster staggered under the combined onslaught, acidic blood splattering on the ground and sizzling. With a cry, it disappeared from the site of bombardment and reappeared in the gunners'' midst.

    "Watch out!" Stan shouted as he pushed one of the Black Roses'' first year girls away. The monster''s claws raked his midriff and almost tore him in half. His guts spilling out, and his torso bending away and apart unnaturally, Stan toppled over.

    "Stan!" Wang Fei shrieked.

    Unfortunately, Stan wasn''t the only victim. The girl he sacrificed himself to save was next, her head torn off and sent flying. More Black Roses members died, despite Alicia''s best attempts to rally them to a fighting retreat.

    "You¡­!"

    Alicia shot the monster as she ran toward it, her magical bullets slamming into its carapace. Skidding to a stop in order to brace herself for a massive recoil, she quickly took careful aim. She had finally finished the casting for her railgun spell, and she unleashed an extremely powerful shot that would have blown it apart.

    If it hit.

    The monster dodged her railgun shot almost effortlessly and appeared in front of her in a blur. Alicia fired into it at pointblank range, trying desperately to cast another railgun spell, but she was too slow.

    The creature swiped at her.

    "Alicia!"

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    Miranda dove in and hit her, knocking her aside. The claws cleaved Miranda apart, sinking deeply into her torso from shoulder to hip. Split apart, Miranda swayed a little before collapsing, a sea of blood pooling underneath her.

    "Senior Miranda!" Alicia screamed, tears streaming down her eyes. Lifting her guns, her eyes blazing with vengeance, she bombarded the monster with everything she had, but its tail whipped forward and struck her with destructive force, sending her flying. Blood coursed down her face and neck as she crashed against one of the barbeque pits, unconscious.

    With their leader gone, the morale of the remaining defenders instantly collapsed.

    "Run!"

    "Get away!"

    "It''s too strong! We can''t beat it!"

    "Mommy!"

    "Save me!"

    Few people were left to fight now. Wang Fei tried to help the unconscious Harvey up, only to drop his friend when the monster approached. His nerve failing him, he ran, but the monster swiped at him, taking his head clean off his shoulders.

    By now, the monster had advanced right into the tables of food, uncaringly knocking them over and sending skewers of meat and vegetables, as well as containers flying and crushed in its wake. Even with the inadvertent obstacles, its pace wasn''t slowed down at all. Swinging its claws and flailing its tail, it crashed right into a table where the birthday cake was.

    Sheng Ri Kuai Le was cowering under the table, and she screamed when the monster knocked it over, twisting the metal and plastic into scrap. Her birthday cake, which was a giant monstrosity in itself, had been demolished into brown sludge, the red raspberry sauce dribbling onto the ground eerily like blood. The candles bobbed in the crimson pool, their flames extinguished. The monster stomped past the cake knife, crushing the metal under its weight.

    The birthday girl was so petrified that she was frozen with fear. Unable to budge even an inch, she could only watch helplessly, her eyes wide, as the monster approached her. Without any hesitation, the monster plunged its claws deep into her, breaking her out of her stupor. Sheng Ri Kuai Le began screaming in both terror and excruciating agony.

    Nobody bothered to save her. They were either dead, too heavily injured or running away for their lives.

    Mercifully, the monster didn''t prolong her suffering. With a single flick of its claws, it beheaded Sheng Ri Kuai Le. Her head rolled to a stop on top of what remained of her birthday cake, her mouth frozen in a silent scream and her eyes gaping in horror at oblivion. Her blood had splattered across the remains of the chocolate cake, mingling with the red raspberry sauce, the two fluids becoming one and no longer indistinguishable from each other.

    Stepping over Sheng Ri Kuai Le''s headless corpse and crunching it, the monster uncaringly progressed forward. Its inner jaws slowly clicked out, and it disappeared into a blur.

    The scene of fleeing survivors had turned into one of carnage. The monster had caught up with most of the teenage mages and torn them to bits. Many of them lay in pieces. Some were still conscious, screaming from horror or holding their detached limbs in shock. Pearl and the healers were going around, trying to heal whatever wounds they could, or preserve the lives of those in critical conditions, despite the massive risk to their own lives. Currently, the monster paid them no attention. It was more attracted to those students who were running and screaming instead.

    Ironically, the healers'' decision to stay where they were, keep a low profile, and continue healing their severely injured comrades was what saved their lives.

    Pearl looked up, shaken. She had stabilized Craig''s condition, and was now tending to a stunned Alicia. Neither of them had regained consciousness. Lily was helping Dong Fang Yue Chu up, her shield shattered after an engagement. Blood streamed down her face, and she gritted her teeth in frustration. However, a blow from the monster had shattered her spear, and unarmed, she stood no chance against the creature.

    "We should run," she murmured to Pearl. Sheila nodded, as she limped forward while supporting an unconscious Craig.

    "Wait!" Pearl hissed as she tended to Alicia, who was slowly waking up. The Black Rose president looked up, dazed.

    "The¡­the monster," she whispered. Pearl shook her head.

    "We can''t fight it. It''s too strong." She took a deep breath and glanced at the distance. Four more screaming students had just gone down, their corpses resembling victims in a slasher film. "We should go now, when we still have the chance."

    The number of survivors were pitifully low. The healers had done what they could, but the vast majority of the people left in the wake of the monster''s rampage were killed. Dong Fang Yue Chu muttered something as he stared blankly at the corpses of Stan and Wang Fei. Only Harvey had survived, but he was staggering, his mind still numbed from the effects of the blow he had received.

    "What about the others?" Alicia demanded, her voice hoarse and soft. "We can''t just abandon them! We have to¡­"

    "If we try to help them, we''ll all be wiped out," Pearl told her gently. "And there''s nothing we can do. Either we all die together, or some of us escape."

    "And¡­we have too many wounded here," another healer added as he helped up another student. Alicia recalled his name being Usato Ken. He shook his head bitterly. "None of you are in any condition to fight. And it''s our responsibility to bring the injured to safety. We can''t allow you to risk yourselves in a meaningless battle."

    "What he said," Pearl agreed.

    "This isn''t meaningless!" Alicia argued hotly. "There must be something we can do¡­!"

    "If you want to risk your life, that''s your choice," Usato Ken said. He wasn''t trying to sound cold, but he looked resigned, as if he recognized that Alicia wouldn''t change her mind. "But¡­think about the casualties we suffered. If you engage the monster, you''ll draw its attention to the injured here. I ask of you to at least allow the people here to survive."

    Alicia gritted her teeth as she turned to watch the berserk monster, which was advancing in the opposite direction, where there was still a mass of mages left. Ken was right. While Alicia had no compulsions against risking her own life, she had no right to ask the wounded and critically injured to do the same. She had no right to put the healers and other students in life-threatening danger.

    "Go," she said as she rose to her feet and checked her guns. "I''ll hold the monster off and buy you guys some time¡­"

    Her vision swam and she fell over. Pearl quickly caught hold of Alicia before the latter could hit the ground.

    "You''re seriously wounded," the Super Power Society president explained kindly. "You''ve done more than enough. Your job now is to lead the survivors and injured to safety. Can you do that?"

    "I¡­" tears sprang to Alicia''s eyes, especially when she saw the dead. Miranda was gone, her body torn apart. Elliot was lying near the barbeque pit, his body in a pool of blood. Nicholas was nowhere to be seen. Jin Hao and Aoi had survived, just barely, and were helping each other up. It was clear that they were in no condition to fight.

    So many Black Rose members dead. So many injured. Alicia wondered briefly that if Troy''s presence would have made a difference. That man was so strong that he could probably destroy even a rank B monster with astonishing ease.

    There was a reason why he was ranked number one in Jing Tian Academy, above even Holy Saints president, Harrison Reed.

    But he wasn''t here, and they were. Taking a deep, shaky breath, Alicia rose to her feet and nodded.

    "Let''s go," she ordered softly. Everyone complied and began organizing their retreat in an orderly fashion, as opposed to the panic escape of the majority of students in the opposite direction.

    "?!"

    A hiss from behind them drew their attention back to the monster. Their sudden movements had seemed to attract it, and it slowly turned toward them.

    Her face paling, Alicia raised both of her guns in determination and took aim at the approaching demon.

    "Seems like we''ve to fight after all," she murmured quietly.

 105 Chapter 105: Crashing the Party

    "¡­where the fuck am I?"

    Already in a foul mood after being chased out of the house by Dad, I was blindly exploring the cliffs and mountains. According to the electronic invitation on my smartphone the campfire party should be held around here, but I had moved out of satellite range. Even almost a thousand years into the future, they still hadn''t figured out how to maintain satellite signals outside of urban cities.

    Then again, there was no way to build human infrastructures in the wilderness. Not when Emergence events occurred frequently, and monsters reigned over the non-urban spaces. Laying down satellite cables or building towers would be impossible, and even if they were built, the monsters would just wreck them.

    As such, I was wandering around the mountains, lost. A few rank F and rank E monsters were lying in wait to ambush me, but I managed to dispatch them with relative ease while sending the rest packing. Not in the mood to pursue, I left them to flee and resumed my search for the campfire site.

    "I''m still pretty far, I think¡­" I muttered as I glanced around. There was nothing except rock, mountains and trees for miles around. My suspicions that I was nowhere near where I should be were confirmed when I couldn''t see any sign of smoke.

    When there was smoke, there was fire. The inverse was true, and normally I should be able to see the smoke produced by the campfire rising toward the heavens, along with dancing embers. Yet I couldn''t even catch sight of a faint wisp.

    "¡­the mountains are blocking my view," I muttered. Now that I thought about it, no matter how thick the smoke was, and how ferociously it billowed upward from the campfire, by the time it reached the peak of the mountain, it would have dissipated completely. The wonders of diffusion.

    In that case¡­

    "I guess I''ll have to climb the mountain then."

    Getting atop one of those dangerous-looking cliffs would afford me a better view. I did have a fear of heights, unfortunately, even after learning magic, but if I fell off somehow, I should be able to summon Cygnus or a flying Constellation spirit to catch me before I plummeted to my death.

    I hoped.

    The mountains weren''t as steep as I thought they would be. There was a gentle incline that took me a little higher up, and I proceeded toward a small cliff that veered away from the main path. For a natural trail, it was pretty easy to traverse. Even though the terrain was a little too rough and uneven for it to be artificial, it was still surprisingly barren and convenient.

    "Hu¡­"

    Exhaling wearily, I paused to take a break. I had been walking for what seemed like two hours now. While it might seem strange that mages got tired from such a mundane activity, I didn''t cast any physical strengthening spell or bodily enhancement on myself, so I was left to depend on my own natural fitness.

    No matter how young and healthy I was, I was only human. Walking for hours would exhaust me. Not that much, since I could cast a spell to dispel the tiredness, but I would only do that if necessary. For now, I decided to take a break.

    "Phew¡­"

    Finding a rock to sit on, I closed my eyes and summoned Corvus. There was a limit to the range in which my Constellation spirits had to remain within my territory before they disappeared, which was why I didn''t summon my Constellation spirits to scout around. Well, I actually did, but they didn''t get very far before they reached the range limit, and I was left no better off than I was before I summoned them. Probably worse, because of the mana consumption. In any case, it was better than walking around blindly, so I tried again.

    "I should be near," I muttered. Keeping my eyes closed, I linked my senses to Corvus''s telepathically, as I did several times earlier, and scanned the area. Corvus didn''t get very far before he vanished, but thankfully I spotted a nice, safe-looking cliff in the distance. Perhaps if I got there, I might be able to get a better view of my surroundings. Furthermore, I could just summon Corvus and have him fly off from that cliff to get a more optimal surveillance of the area.

    Rising to my feet, I stretched myself before I resumed my journey. It took me about ten to fifteen minutes to reach the edge of the cliff that Corvus had spotted.

    "Kuh!"

    Gasping, I suddenly doubled over as if something had hit my gut. Heaving heavily, I blinked and glanced around, not understanding what had just happened. I had merely gotten halfway to the cliff when I was abruptly overwhelmed by an invisible, suffocating presence. I gasped for air desperately as an extremely evil aura of darkness descended upon me. Even though I couldn''t see it, I could feel it curling around me, strangling me.

    "What the fuck is that?!"

    Wiping the perspiration from my face, I struggled to maintain my calm. Glancing off into the distance, I shuddered. It was so far away, and yet its demonic aura was strong enough to suffocate me. Just what in the world¡­?

    I wasn''t sure I wanted to know. Whatever it was, it was extremely evil and exceedingly powerful. I didn''t want to tangle with it if I could help it. Every instinct in my body screamed at me to turn tail and run back to the city, where it was safe.

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    "The campfire party!"

    Yet I couldn''t. Suppressing my fear, I gulped as I recalled my friends. They were around here somewhere, holding a campfire party, and if I wasn''t mistaken, they were near wherever the demonic presence was. Of course, I still wasn''t sure where the precise location of the campfire party was, but my conscience would never let me live it down if I just ran off by myself without attempting to ensure that my friends were safe.

    The least I could do was transmit a warning.

    "Damn it! There''s no reception!"

    My smartphone was practically useless without any signal. I couldn''t contact anyone. Alicia, Dong Fang Yue Chu, Harvey¡­nobody. My smartphone continued to flash the same holographic message. "Service is unavailable at the moment. We will connect you the moment it becomes available."

    Fuck! What was the point of having a phone if I couldn''t call anyone!?

    Resisting the temptation to hurl my phone down the mountain, I hastily climbed up the trail and toward the cliff. Perhaps I would be able to see them, or the monster. Either way, it was better than sitting around here, doing nothing. Jogging, I quickly covered the remaining distance in about three minutes.

    Clambering over the cliff, I found myself overlooking a huge valley.

    "There it is!"

    I finally caught sight of the smoke produced by the massive campfire that burned in the center of the site. True to her word, Alicia had invited almost the whole school. It was a full-blown party, with hundreds of students dancing, chatting, eating and having fun.

    ¡­except that I was staring at the aftermath.

    "¡­what the hell?!"

    My jaw dropped when I saw the devastated remains of the campfire, and the countless corpses that were strewn across the place. Not only that, even from this high up, I could sense an evil presence. It was steadily growing stronger, to the point where I found myself shivering subconsciously.

    I glanced down at my trembling, sweaty palms. The evil presence was growing stronger and drawing closer the further I went up the cliff. I felt as if it was getting more difficult to breathe with every step I took.

    To my horror, I realized that the evil presence was still right in the middle of the campfire site. Initially, I thought I was too late and was only viewing the aftermath. To my slight relief, I saw that there were still a significant number of survivors. They had split into two groups, heading in opposite directions. One of them was heavily weighed down by the wounded. From up here, I couldn''t see them clearly or make out their features, but they were clearly limping, or supporting or carrying their severely injured friends.

    The monster was in the middle, and it was turning toward the slower group who maintained the tenacity and courage to hold onto their friends and attempt to escape with them instead of abandoning the wounded to flee for themselves. It mercilessly lunged forward.

    "¡­that''s¡­!"

    Swallowing, I recognized the monster. It was a Crastrate, one of the most fearsome monsters known to man. I had read about it in the monster encyclopedia, struck by the similarities between it and some alien monster in a horror movie I had watched during my timeline. It was a true hellspawn that embodied the very essence of darkness, embracing destruction and craving massacres. There was some sort of life cycle that it followed. Unlike most monsters, it didn''t emerge from an Emergence event as an actual creature, but as an egg that held a parasitic larva.

    The parasitic hatchling would emerge from the egg when a potential victim approached, wrap itself around his face and implant a monstrous embryo inside his chest. When the embryo matured slightly after feeding off the nutrients from its host, it would eat its way out of the host body, killing the poor victim in the process¡­in an excruciating manner that was practically unimaginable.

    It then grew up very quickly, especially if it fed on smaller monsters in the wild, and became a fully grown, mature adult in the matter of hours.

    And now it was the terrifying Fiend class, rank B monster that had massacred so many of my schoolmates.

    "¡­fuck!"

    A rank B Crastrate. I honestly didn''t want to fight something as terrifying and powerful as that, but upon seeing how resolute my schoolmates were as they valiantly sought to escape with their wounded friends, I felt ashamed of my terror and cowardice. My schoolmates were so courageous even in the face of certain death, yet here I was hesitating to help them.

    "It''s too late. I''m too far away. There''s nothing I can do. I won''t be able to make a difference."

    All those were just excuses. Of course there was something I could do. There was always something I could do.

    Closing my eyes, I wondered briefly what Dad would do if he was in my position.

    The answer was obvious. Dad never ran away from a fight. He saved me. He was a hero. He would never abandon people in danger. Seeing his courage, his strength and his conviction, I was inspired to follow in his footsteps.

    How could I ever hope to emulate my dad if I continued to make excuses and hesitate to take that first, crucial step to saving people? How could I chase after my dad''s shadow if I continued to lack the courage to defy death and stand between innocents and monsters?

    While I was dithering, someone paid for my hesitation with his life. A mage stood between the Crastrate as it closed in on the other fleeing schoolmates, swinging his weapon as he yelled incoherently. The Crastrate''s claws flashed, and he went down in a spray of blood. Not even bothering to glance at its victim, the Fiend advanced upon the escaping group. A few of the students turned around to fire upon it with magical projectiles.

    I was suddenly reminded of Alicia. She must be in the group, shooting at the Crastrate with her guns. And she probably wasn''t alone. Elliot. Dong Fang Yue Chu. Nicholas. Harvey. Jin Hao. Aoi. Stan. Wang Fei.

    All my friends. Craig definitely dove in at the first chance to engage the monster. If he wasn''t dead then he was among the wounded. And now the monster was closing in on him and the rest, hell-bent on finishing the job.

    Something inside me snapped.

    Taking a deep breath, I backed away, and then sprinted forward. Reaching the edge, I leaped down from the cliff and plunged headfirst toward the Crastrate. Spreading my hands, I directed my descent, gliding toward the Crastrate and the group of wounded students. Diving faster than a speeding bullet, I could feel the wind blasting me, the cold headwind ruffling my hair and clothes. Ignoring it, I did a complete flip just above the Crastrate and swung about to slam my foot into its head, throwing my entire momentum behind the kick.

    The Crastrate was flung off its feet and sent spinning. Smashing into the earth a few yards away and toppling into barbeque pits and tables, it continued sliding further away before it finally came to a stop, leaving a huge tunnel in its wake.

    Turning to my astonished friends, I bowed my head apologetically.

    "Sorry for being late."

 106 Chapter 106: Castrating the Crastrate

    "Richard?!" Alicia was gaping at me, her mouth wide. "When¡­how¡­did you¡­?"

    "I got lost. Sorry." I tilted my head sheepishly, and gestured toward the cliff where I just jumped off from. In the excitement, I had completely forgotten that I used to be afraid of heights. This was one way of getting rid of my acrophobia, which had plagued me since childhood in the other timeline. "I ended up wandering in the mountains for quite a while until I sensed the Crastrate."

    "You bastard!" Dong Fang Yue Chu exclaimed, laughing. "You almost didn''t make it in time!"

    Holding him up, Lily nodded. "If you came a few seconds later, the monster would have torn all of us apart."

    I nodded, keeping an eye on the monster while quickly casting another powerful spell. Earlier, atop the cliff, I was so distracted by my fears and hesitation that I couldn''t concentrate on casting a proper spell. There wasn''t much time to cast a spell anyway, not with the Crastrate advancing so close to my friends. But now that I had bought us some breathing room, I seized the opportunity to begin casting a powerful spell.

    "Are you all right?" I asked. Then I shook my head. "Stupid question. Sorry. Can you guys move?"

    "We''re trying," Jin Hao replied with a grim grin. "None of us want to stick around."

    "Good. Get out of here. I''ll hold the Crastrate off." I glanced at the unconscious people. As I suspected, Craig was one of them, hoisted up by Sheila.

    "Did you kill it?" Harvey asked, wonder in his haunted eyes. I shook my head.

    "Nope. There''s no way it would die from a single kick. It''s a rank B monster, you know. A Fiend-class. Crastrates are very powerful."

    Even as I explained, I suddenly realized something was amiss.

    "Where''s Stan and Wang Fei?"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu lowered his head, while Harvey looked away, unable to meet my eyes. Suddenly understanding, I stared in the direction of the corpses and caught sight of both my juniors among the dead.

    "¡­"

    Dark fury curled up inside me, momentarily surpassing the heavy, immense demonic aura that had been suffocating me this entire time. Clenching my fists, I turned toward the sprawled Crastrate.

    "I''m going to murder that fucker," I hissed. Summoning Sagittarius, I finally completed my spell and cast Alnasl. Fitting my flaming arrow, I took aim at the sprawled Crastrate. While I did so, I issued a command to my stunned friends without even glancing over my shoulder to look in their direction. My attention was completely focused on the monster. "You guys had better hurry before I nuke the entire place to oblivion."

    "Are you sure you can defeat it?" Alicia asked anxiously. "It''s a rank B monster! It''s too powerful for you!"

    "He''s Vice-president Richard!" Harvey said confidently. "Of course he can defeat that monster!"

    "You have too much faith in me," I muttered with a shake of my head. "The most I can do is buy you guys some time and stall the Crastrate."

    "Are you sure you should be fighting that thing alone then?" Jin Hao asked skeptically.

    "All the more you should hurry and get the hell out of here," I replied firmly. "Once I buy you guys enough time, I''ll run away on my own."

    "Hey, you can''t handle that monster alone!" Dong Fang Yue Chu struggled to stand to his feet, gently shrugging off Lily''s assistance. "I''ll stand with you!"

    "In your condition? Sorry to be blunt, but you''ll only get in the way."

    "Richard''s right." Lily tugged at Dong Fang Yue Chu softly. "He can''t afford to protect you and fight that monster at the same time."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu gritted his teeth in frustration, especially as he sank against Lily when his legs gave way. He had been hurt badly. My fury rose another notch when I saw clearly how battered he was.

    "Make sure you don''t die," he commanded me. "President''s orders. I won''t allow you to die here."

    "Just make sure you guys get to safety, and I''ll follow you shortly."

    As friends evacuated the area, I released my flaming arrow at the still form of the Crastrate. It didn''t even get up as my arrow struck it, the whole place exploding into a roaring inferno that turned night into day.

    But I was under no illusions that my Alnasl destroyed such a high ranking monster. If it was so easily killed, then it wouldn''t be ranked this highly.

    "?!"

    A deafening screech filled the air, almost causing me to cover my ears in fright and pain. However, I remained resolute and stayed vigilant. Training my eyes on the dark shape amidst the inferno, I prepared another devastating arrow. However, the dark shape disappeared into the smoke before I could fire off a second arrow. I blinked in surprise. Before I knew what had happened, something sharp and heavy struck me in the abdomen and sent me flying across the valley.

    Coughing out blood, I rolled to my feet and fitted Alnasl to the Sagittarius. Taking aim, I released the flaming arrow toward the snarling, triumphant monster.

    Again, the night seemed to turn into day as Alnasl struck the Crastrate with the force of a star, lighting the entire site up with a blinding explosion. I crashed heavily onto the ground as the shockwaves buffeted me, grimacing as I clutched my wounds. Blood streamed through my fingers while I fought to stem the bleeding.

    "Aw, damn." I gritted my teeth as I weathered the pain from three long, deep gashes on my torso. "What a mess."

    Breathing heavily, I staggered to my feet. All around me, the Jing Tian Academy students were turning around to look at both me and the inferno that resulted from the explosion. The second one was bigger than the first, for some reason. Probably because I unleashed a lot more mana in panic after taking a serious hit.

    Not that I wanted to hold back, but I needed to regulate my mana consumption or I would end up too exhausted to flee after buying time. Actually, I had no intention of escaping. From the very moment I had jumped off the cliff, I had already begun casting a long, powerful, incredibly complex summoning spell, but obviously the Crastrate wasn''t going to wait for me to complete it. If I hadn''t intervened when I did, I wouldn''t have any friends left to save.

    Killing the Crastrate in vengeance was little comfort if all I did was watch it kill my friends in front of my eyes.

    "Stop looking and go!" I roared at my friends. "Hurry up and get out of here! I don''t know how long that thing will need to get back onto its feet!"

    My words shocked them into movement, and they hastened their footsteps to widen the distance between themselves and the campsite. Harvey, in particular, was wearing an expression of disbelief. After all, surely nothing could survive a devastating attack like my Alnasl?

    I wished Alnasl could take the Crastrate out. I really wished it did. It would make my job so much easier. As it was, I could see the Crastrate standing in the center of the explosion, huge fumes of smoke pouring off its body.

    "Shit!" I swore. "It''s already back up on its feet!"

    Dismissing Sagittarius because of its evident lack of effect, I summoned Gemini instead. I held off summoning one of the larger Constellation spirits for now because I wanted to complete my ultimate summoning spell as soon as possible, and didn''t want to interrupt it with a relatively long summoning spell in between.

    That might sound weird, but I guess an analogy was in order. Think of casting spells as something similar to downloading files. I was currently trying to complete the download of an incredibly massive file (a program with all sorts of awesome features and functions), but to deal with a virus attack, I had to pause the download of that file to quickly download a smaller antivirus program to stave off the virus attack. So the downloading process of that massive file gets intermittently paused and resumed every time I ended up downloading another smaller file to deal with the immediacy of a virus attack. Perhaps it was easier if I explained the casting of my summoning spells in this manner.

    However, the Crastrate wasn''t interested in my explanation. It was already rearing up and hissing ferociously.

    "That thing''s truly a monster," I murmured to myself as a chill ran down my spine at the sight of its hideous, eyeless face and inner jaws.

    I was relieved to see that I had at least damaged it, though. A gaping wound had been etched into its body by my fearsome attack, with yellowish green blood spilling from it. I watched as the blood slowly dripped onto the ground.

    As soon as the Crastrate''s blood touched the ground, smoke began hissing as the ground dissolved upon contact.

    Just like Craig before me, I found out that the Crastrate had acid for blood. I couldn''t say I was surprised, though. I had already read about that terrifying feature in the monster encyclopedia at home. And again, it resembled the characteristics of an alien monster from one of my favorite sci-fi horror movies.

    Unfortunately, it took me a second to realize that I had just made a fatal mistake by switching my gaze from the monster to its blood. By the time I glanced back at the Crastrate, it was gone.

    "Shit! Where did it go?!"

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    I sensed a dark blur to my left. Instinctively, I twisted my body and crossed my blades to defend myself. Something of immense power struck and broke through my guard, shattering Castor and Pollux and sending me flying across the air again.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    Before I could even finish crying out in pain, the Crastrate was already above me. Flipping around, it hit me in the gut with a single clawed talon. How it didn''t eviscerate me or cleave me in half, I would never know, but the magic of a protagonist''s plot armor miraculously preserved my life. In any case, I was thrown back to earth, slamming into the ground in a single enormous explosion of dirt and soil. The ground beneath me shattered and I found myself driven deep into a crater. Coughing, I felt red-hot pain shooting across my body as the impact left some cracks on my fragile skeleton.

    Blood began oozing from my mouth and numerous wounds across my body. Coughing both blood and dirt out, I winced in pain and cursed.

    "Fuck! That blow broke my ribs!"

    Tendering rubbing my chest, I slowly got back up to my feet. Swaying unsteadily, I forced myself to summon Gemini again.

    This time, I was ready for it. Once I sensed movement on my right, I immediately swung Castor and unleashed a wave of jet-black energy that blew up the entire territory on that side. Spinning around to face the stunned Crastrate, I swung both swords down for a fatal, bisecting slash ¨C and struck solid metal.

    No, it was not solid metal.

    It was the Crastrate''s head.

    The Crastrate hissed at me, opening its mouth to reveal an inner set of secondary jaws within. I struggled to continue the slash, but both of my twin swords refused to budge.

    "How the hell is this possible?!" I whispered, fear beginning to overwhelm my rationality. The thing was unscathed, even after Castor''s energy strike, even after having two swords stabbing its head. It was totally unhurt, save for the wound I dealt it earlier with Sagittarius. Even if it survived my flaming arrow, Alnasl, it was ridiculous that it could withstand my Castor spell and a direct blow from my Gemini twin swords without sustaining any damage.

    Just what the fuck was this thing?!

    I pulled back on reflex, an action that probably saved my life because the next thing I knew, I was instinctively crossing my twin swords to guard against another attack. The Crastrate''s relatively slender yet ridiculously strong arm smashed Gemini into bits again before slamming into me and throwing me off my feet.

    This time, the Crastrate was no longer as merciful. It tackled me in midflight, slashing me over and over again. Its spiked tail rammed into me, piercing through my abdomen and exiting through my back. Stunned, I clutched at the tail that impaled me, as if trying to yank it out. However, I clearly lacked the strength to do so.

    The creature smashed its inner jaws right into my face, shattering my glasses and spilling blood across my vision. Choking, I lifted my arm weakly to strike it, but it slashed my face with its claws and hurled me off its tail. I spun around in the air like a broken rag doll before hitting the ground, bouncing a few times before I finally came to a stop.

    Weakly, I tried to get up. However, I only succeeded in erupting in a coughing fit of blood. Covering my mouth in a desperate attempt to stem the coughing, I was only vaguely aware of a metallic taste on my tongue. Raising my head weakly, I caught sight of the Crastrate approaching me.

    There was absolutely nothing I could do.

    It gave me a vicious kick that sent me rolling helplessly on the ground. Just as I stopped rolling, I threw up even more blood. Supporting myself with my arms, I made another futile attempt to get up, but the Crastrate gave me a second kick that sent me flat on my back. I lay on the ground, stunned for a moment, but my shock was effectively ended by a crude, abrupt stomp on my abdomen.

    "GAAAAAAAH!"

    I screamed in pain. The Crastrate seemed to study me for a moment, its eyeless, smooth black face boring into mine before pulling its lips back and revealing its inner jaws.

    At this moment, I felt a wave of despair. Simultaneously, I could feel a tsunami of fury and defiance building up in my gut. Especially when I caught sight of the dead ¨C of Stan, Wang Fei, Elliot, Nicholas and so many others.

    "Fuck you!" I snarled through blood-covered lips, and I finally completed my first major summoning spell. "Taurus!"

    The enormous bull appeared out of nowhere and slammed into the Crastrate, knocking it off me. He tackled the Fiend and smashed it into the ground, causing another massive explosion.

    It might seem weird that I took so long to summon my first Constellation spirit, but there was a good reason for the delay. Throughout my battle against the Crastrate, I was forced to repeatedly and continually cast physical reinforcement and enhancement spells. That was the only reason why I survived being clawed, stabbed, slashed, and stomped by the Crastrate while so many others succumbed to its deadly attacks. Plot armor was one thing, but I had an explanation for it. It was unfortunate that the reinforcement spells didn''t stack, but the problem was that the Crastrate constantly shattered and broke through my protective reinforcement spells, forcing me to cast a new one from scratch in order to withstand its barrage of attacks.

    If you remembered my analogy about downloads from earlier, it was pretty much the same. I had to continually pause the summoning spell for my Constellation spirits to repeatedly cast new reinforcement spells to survive the immediacy of the Crastrate''s attacks. As much as I wanted to unleash my Constellation spirits on the creature, it would all be for naught if I died to its attacks. I wasn''t going to risk skipping the constant physical reinforcement spells or I would end up like my late schoolmates.

    Straightening up as best as I could, what with the severe injuries I had sustained despite my physical reinforcement spells, I glared at the downed Crastrate defiantly. Above me, Taurus got ready to charge at the Crastrate again, pawing the ground as he snorted aggressively.

    Being in a similar mood, I grinned with blood-flecked lips.

    "Now my counterattack can finally begin."

 107 Chapter 107: A Summonerâ€™s Counterattack

    The Crastrate snarled at me, its secondary set of inner jaws hurling outward in my direction, but I paid its display of intimidation no heed. Instead, I mentally ordered Taurus to attack.

    "Taurus, charge!"

    My massive Constellation spirit lunged forward, breathing flames. Unleashing his Aldebaran spell, he bathed the Crastrate in fire, but the Fiend-class monster didn''t seem the least affected by it. Other than being singed, it remained totally unscathed.

    That was fine. Taurus never sought to destroy the Crastrate by incinerating it. He was going to smash and stomp the damned creature into oblivion. Grunting, he slammed into the Crastrate with full force, attempting to gore it with his huge horns.

    However, other than skidding a few meters back, the Crastrate endured the blow. Taking the giant bull by the horns, the Crastrate lifted him off his feet and flung him high into the air. Taurus was sent helplessly flailing into the air before I dismissed him.

    "The fuck?! Not even my Constellation spirits stand a chance against this monster?!"

    Then again, my Constellation spirits were usually rank C at best, comparable to an Elemental-class monster. Of course they would be completely outmatched by a Fiend-class monster. My only hope was to delay the Crastrate long enough before I can summon my Celestial Guardians. Perhaps my Stellar Guardians were rank B, though I honestly doubted they were rank A. They were definitely not Behemoth class monsters, that was for sure.

    No wonder no student could defeat my Constellation spirits, unless they were a powerful genius like Cecilia or Troy.

    The Crastrate lunged at me, not waiting for me to summon anything. I had no choice but to give up on delaying long enough to summon White Tiger or Black Tortoise (since flames appeared ineffective against the Crastrate, there was little point in summoning Vermillion Phoenix against a hell spawn like it) and focus on the immediate situation.

    Scuttling away, I could only watch helplessly as the Crastrate loomed over me. I managed to avoid its claws and deadly inner jaws (it would have scored a fatal head bite if I didn''t dodge), but even as I rolled to some distance away, the Crastrate pulled its incredibly long and flexible tail back to stab me. Even at this range, it could reach me.

    "Cancer!" I yelled.

    A colossal crab materialized above the Crastrate. Swinging his gigantic pincer down like a hammer, he crushed the monster to the ground. The earth beneath the pincer shattered into thousands of tiny fragments of rock, showering me with debris.

    Huffing, I rolled to my feet. I could feel blood gushing out from a hundred different places all over my body, where my physical reinforcement spells were repeatedly punched through, but I knew I couldn''t afford to remain lying on the ground.

    An enormous gout of flames burst from beneath Cancer, bathing the colossal crab in an inferno. I could only watch in surprise as he turned from bright orange and white to¡­bright orange and white. Right, he was never gray from the start. Cancer resembled a certain water type pocket monster from a certain game.

    Still, I didn''t want my Constellation spirit to be roasted in such an intense inferno, so I quickly dispelled him. Unfortunately, I didn''t have enough time to complete the casting to summon another Constellation spirit, so I settled for summoning a Constellation weapon instead. Swaying back, I stumbled for a moment before I conjured Aquarius. Fumbling with the heavy broadsword, I ignored my screaming muscles and wound to hoist the blue blade above my head.

    The Crastrate leaped out of the crater that Cancer had hammered it into earlier, its monstrous maw yawning to unleash a second torrent of superheated flames in my direction. Gritting my teeth, I endured the red-hot agony that tore through my beleaguered body, and swung Aquarius down to send a tidal wave to meet the fire. Unfortunately, the mini-tsunami vaporized immediately into steam upon contact with the intense flames. I could only watch in horror as the unstoppable flames swallowed the channel of boiling water, blazing its way toward me.

    "Scutum Sobiescianum!" I called out weakly, barely conjuring Sobieski''s Shield in time to deflect the flames. I cowered behind the Constellation shield as the torrent of fire washed above and around me, but they didn''t reach my physical body. Even so, I could still feel the intense heat scalding my skin. Grimacing in pain, I leaned against my Constellation shield and evaluated my situation.

    It wasn''t surprising that the Crastrate could breathe flames. As I mentioned earlier, Elemental class monsters were those who had evolved or grown powerful enough to wield elemental spells such as fire, water, lightning, wind, earth and more. A Fiend class monster was even more powerful than an Elemental class monster, so it was natural that it was capable of the same thing ¨C in fact, they were much better at manipulating elemental magic.

    That was why they were ranked B over the rank C Elemental class.

    "Fucking monster," I wheezed as I wiped the blood from my mouth. Shaking my head, I growled to myself. "Damn it. There has to be a way to kill it. Come on, think! I managed to hurt it badly, but I know there has to be a way to destroy it completely."

    At this rate, I wasn''t confident that even my Celestial Guardians were capable of obliterating the Fiend-class monster with their attacks. My Sagittarius''s Alnasl should be on par with Vermillion Phoenix''s most powerful fire spells, and yet the Crastrate survived two direct hits from it. Even if I summoned White Tiger, his lightning spells might not succeed in destroying the Crastrate.

    Then what soul beast among my arsenal possessed the capability and sufficient immense firepower to completely annihilate this monster?!

    The answer lay in the Constellation spirit that I had summoned right at the very start of the battle, even before I jumped off the cliff. However, he was still in the midst of casting his spell, which meant I had to buy myself even more time.

    "Which spell or Constellation spirit should I use now¡­?"

    I could try another Alnasl, given how it dealt significant damage to the Crastrate. Or perhaps Lyra and its ultimate arrow, Vega. However, I only succeeded in hitting the monster earlier because I took it by surprise (and the first time was when it was lying down after I kicked it). Given its incredible speed, I knew I wouldn''t be able to land a third hit. It would just evade my shot effortlessly.

    I was going to have to either trap it long enough for me to fire repeated shots until I killed it, or ambush it with surprise attacks. Unfortunately, I wasn''t given enough time to strategize sufficiently.

    My Constellation shield shattered as something struck it forcefully. A thin, black arm blasted through the fragments of my defensive barrier and ensnared my throat with razor-sharp claws. Despite hastily casting a physical reinforcement spell, I choked as the air supply to my lungs was abruptly cut off under the crushing blow. Desperately, I swung Aquarius around to break its grip. Unlike my Gemini twin swords, the heavy broadsword actually succeeded in sinking deeply into the creature''s neck. Screeching in pain, the Crastrate released its grip on my throat, falling back. Encouraged, I stepped forward and flexed my broadsword in an attempt to decapitate the wounded monster.

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    Unfortunately, I noticed the smoke rising from my broadsword as its massive blade struggled to sink deeply into the Fiend''s neck.

    Shit! I panicked. I almost forgot about its acidic blood!

    I watched in horror as the acidic blood corroded and ate away at the once heavy and enormous blade. My hilt snapped away from the ruined blade and I staggered from the momentum, doing my best not to slip into the puddle of acidic blood. As I regained my balance, I turned my glance from the ruined remains of Aquarius back to the Crastrate.

    "Uh oh," I managed to squeak.

    The Crastrate responded by opening its mouth and unleashing a gout of superheated flames at pointblank range. I couldn''t even escape. Perhaps, if it used its inner jaws to deliver a finishing blow, I might have, but the flames were faster. All I could do was shut my eyes and stagger as the ferocious flames washed over me, bathing me in searing pain that melted away my flesh and burned my nerves down to their raw ends.

    I stumbled out of the fire, my entire body burning and fuming. No longer able to maintain my balance, I began to topple over.

    The Crastrate didn''t even allow me to fall. Before my body could hit the ground, it swatted at me with its claws, flinging me backward. Staggering, I couldn''t even defend myself as the Crastrate delivered a vicious uppercut that threw me high into the air.

    My skin was blackened beyond belief, my nerves were burned and frayed, and my body suffered from severe third degree burns. I couldn''t even feel anything except my body jerking up and down in the air. I seemed to fly forever before finally tilting over at an arc and crashing headfirst toward the ground.

    I could feel whatever little blood I had left rushing toward my head. Dizzily, I opened my eyes, expecting to see the ground rushing up to meet me.

    Instead, I saw the leering face of the Crastrate.

    Its inner jaws smashed into my face again, sending me spinning wildly in midflight. Dozens of strikes and slashes hit me before I even knew what was happening, fracturing my skeleton in a hundred different places. I was thrown around like a punching bag, a broken rag doll, receiving hit after hit after hit. Claws ripped my blackened flesh off my muscles, tearing right into the bone. My blood splattered the Crastrate, but it wasn''t enough to sate its bloodlust. Instead, it went into a ferocious frenzy and began hitting me again and again and again.

    I guessed it was a mercy that entire segments of my nerves had been burned away. I couldn''t even feel any pain, just the dull, repeated hammering blows that vibrated through my body. I didn''t even care anymore. I just let the Crastrate vent it out on me. Acidic drops of blood spilled onto my body, corroding parts of my flesh and bone away, yet I couldn''t feel any pain. I wouldn''t even know about them if I didn''t see the blood and smoke.

    After what seemed like an eternity, the Crastrate finished me off with a powerful kick that sent me barreling back to earth. I slammed against the ground, but even the solid dirt wasn''t enough to stop my momentum. I ended up carving a tunnel several meters deep into the earth.

    Coughing out more blood, and also because of the dirt and soil, I struggled to get up, but none of my limbs responded. I wasn''t surprised. Given the vicious beating I had received earlier, it wouldn''t be surprising that I suffered from a broken neck. In fact, it was a miracle that I was still conscious.

    The physical reinforcement spells and strengthening enchantments that Teacher Fielding taught me during combat magic class were the only things keeping me alive. If I hadn''t learned those physical reinforcement spells this year, I would have died. Now I understood the importance of combat magic. It wasn''t enough to be as summoner. I had to survive long enough to complete the casting of my summoning spells.

    And I was so close to finishing them¡­

    "¡­just a bit more¡­" I muttered numbly.

    As if sensing the life within me, the Crastrate''s bloodlust flared up. It landed in the crater that I had created and hauled me up, tossing me out of the crater. I bounced off the ground several times before coming to a stop.

    "¡­ugh¡­" I croaked. "Bloody fucking monster¡­"

    Closing my eyes briefly, I felt the darkness of unconsciousness swim over the edges of my mind. Or was it death? Even the reinforcement spells that Teacher Fielding taught me had their limits. They certainly couldn''t help me survive repeated fatal blows.

    I probably was¡­doomed.

    While I didn''t expect any mercy from the Crastrate, I was hoping to at least complete my ultimate summoning spell and obliterate it before it killed me. Looked like I wasn''t going to have the chance. I still needed a few more minutes at least.

    "Is this the end for me?"

    I could only watched in despair as the Crastrate emerged from the crater, hissing ferociously to intimidate me. With a snarl, it lunged at me, ready to finish the job once and for all.

 108 Chapter 108: In the Depths of Despair

    The Crastrate leered at me with its eyeless, dome-shaped head, and then hissed ferociously. It took another step forward, its tail rising to pierce me. Even though it should be within range, it didn''t strike with its stinger.

    Evidently it planned on finishing me off with its inner jaws. I could see the secondary set of jaws sliding outward, dripping with drool.

    Disgusting son of a bitch (though, given how his host or "father" was Lin Zhan Long, I guess that was to be expected).

    It didn''t get very far.

    Before, it could reach me with its jaws, giant heavy chains descended from the heavens and wrapped themselves around the stunned Fiend-class monster. The Crastrate struggled futilely, but the chains held firm.

    "I might not be able to move my body, but I still can summon Constellation spirits and weapons," I whispered with a sly smile. "Chains of Andromeda."

    As my Constellation summoning magic was based entirely on my imagination and interpretation of myths (as much as I wanted to say it was "anything goes", my summoning magic was not omnipotent, and there were still limits to my power no matter how much I wanted to imagine it to be godlike or whatever), I chose to read the legend of Andromeda in a way that benefited me.

    Normally, I would be wielding the Chains of Andromeda manually with my hands, but at the moment I was paralyzed. However, that didn''t stop me from envisioning my own interpretation of the legend. While the original myth was that Andromeda was chained to an isle in order to prevent her from escaping the sea monster that she was supposed to be a sacrifice to, I had imagined these Chains of Andromeda to be the very restraints used to chain the sea monster itself. Following that characteristic, they should be able to hold down a monster like the Crastrate.

    Unimpressed, the Crastrate screeched in fury, fighting desperately against its bonds. I watched with some satisfaction, until I remembered the Crastrate''s acidic blood was slowly but surely corroding away the sturdy chains.

    Even so, the restraints had bought me more than enough time to finish casting yet another major summoning spell. What, you didn''t think I was just lying down idly and watching my Chains of Andromeda bind the Crastrate, did you? I wasn''t as stupid as a good majority of readers seemed to think I was (just read some of the comments ¨C according to some, I was retarded or an idiot, depending on the insult of the day).

    "Virgo!"

    Just as the Crastrate broke free of the corroded chains, a giant coffin the shape of a woman materialized over the Crastrate.

    "Iron Maiden," I commanded.

    The coffin slammed shut over the Crastrate, entombing it and trapping it within its confines. Inside, dozens of spikes protruded and lanced through the immobilized monster, pinning it further in place. The Crastrate struggled wildly, but only succeeded in splashing more acidic blood over the interior of the trap. Despite its corrosive properties, the blood still needed a huge amount of time to eat through the sturdy deathtrap.

    I knew the acidic blood and the Crastrate''s own demonic power would allow it to break free of Virgo eventually, but that was fine. All I needed at the moment was to buy as much time as possible. Every second was precious. Every moment counted. As long as I could stall the Crastrate for a few more minutes, I could finish up my ultimate summoning spell.

    Time slowly passed, and I took the time to rest and recoup my energies, while preparing yet another summoning spell. Too bad I couldn''t accelerate my ultimate summoning spell, but at least I could devote time to completing it. Just like my analogy, I could allow it to download without interruptions without needing to pause it to download other spells to fight the Crastrate.

    As I expected, though, the Crastrate finally broke free. Angry holes had been bored through its slender body, courtesy of Virgo''s Iron Maiden spell. Acidic blood dripped from its mortal wounds ceaselessly, dissolving the ground beneath it. Yet the Fiend was still not dead yet. It was still capable of moving and attacking.

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    Snarling furiously, it began approaching me, hell-bent on vengeance.

    "I would watch your step if I were you," I said.

    Leo erupted from beneath the Fiend, knocking it high into the air. This time, it was the Crastrate that was sent spinning helplessly in midair, mirroring what it did to me earlier. I couldn''t help but savor the irony.

    But I had more important things to focus on right now than my personal satisfaction.

    As the Crastrate flailed desperately in its descent, I yelled out a single command.

    "Leo, Regulus!"

    A massive golden beam of light flashed from the majestic lion, engulfing the Crastrate in destructive energies. The monster shrieked in agony as it plummeted down, almost vaporized by the devastating magical force that befitted the King of Beasts.

    Boom!

    A huge explosion resounded across the entire area as the Crastrate crashed back down to earth with the force of a meteor. Fortunately, I had dismissed Leo immediately before the creature landed, before he could be struck by the resulting shockwaves. I had to summon Scutum Sobiescianum to protect myself from being buffeted by the blast.

    "That should have done it," I muttered hollowly, even though I knew it was a faint hope.

    A sudden chunk of earth suddenly burst out from the crater, flying over my head and embedding itself deep into the cliff behind me.

    "Really? Fucking really?!" I moaned.

    The Crastrate emerged from the crater, screeching furiously. Its black skin had turned red-hot from the blistering beam of Regulus from earlier, and an insane amount of smoke fumed from its body. Whole segments of its body were either gone or missing. Yet, it was still somehow able to stand. Hell, I didn''t understand how it was still alive.

    "What the fuck are you?!" I yelled, more from fury than fear. I still had my ultimate summoning spell, and was so close to unleashing it. Even then, I was still shocked at the amount of punishment the damned thing could take and still stand.

    Instead of replying, the Crastrate tilted its head and glanced at the side. How it did that without eyes, I had no idea, but there was no point in trying to understand the logic of monsters. They never followed the rules that humans adhered to. Perhaps they had some sort of alternate optical sensory organ that differed from eyes. Or perhaps they "saw" through pheromones.

    I would never know. Nor did I care to know. Well, maybe I did, since I subscribed to the whole "know your enemy" and "knowledge is power" tenets, but at the moment I was more invested in slaying the hideous monster than analyzing how it functioned biologically.

    To my immense horror, two more Crastrates suddenly landed next to it. Fully unscathed, yet possessing the same amount of bloodlust, the newcomers hissed delightedly at me. I could see their inner jaws clicking in and out in anticipation.

    The three of them seemed to be conversing with each other through screeches, clacks and hisses, their heads turning toward each other. I shuddered at the nightmarish display of intelligence and communication.

    These things¡­they were smart. They could function as a single, cohesive unit, like a pack of Ravagers or Dire Wolves. They possessed a brutal cunning that I had never seen before in other monsters, yet also had brute strength and raw power to back up their intelligence. The Crastrates had been holding back their reserves, waiting until their victims were weakened before sending in their remaining forces to drive me into despair.

    But I was not alone.

    "White Tiger!"

    They paid a price for standing around and talking to each other instead of finishing me off immediately. Without hesitation, I summoned my most powerful class of soul beasts ¨C my Celestial Guardians.

    White Tiger materialized in front of me, roaring ferociously as lightning surged outward from his striped body. A violent lightning storm crashed into the trio of Crastrates, knocking them off their feet and electrocuting them. The first one, maybe because of all the accumulated wounds, seemed to have finally succumbed and lay still in the earth, acrid smoke pouring out from its corpses.

    However, the other two rose to their feet, merely singed. Snarling, their inner jaws lashing out, they charged at White Tiger.

    My Celestial Guardian faced them down valiantly, swiping at the first with his claws. Lightning exploded upon contact, the devastating electricity frying the Crastrate. It screeched as it was sent flying, its body going into convulsions. The second one, however, struck from the flank in a surprising show of tactics, and gouged a huge chunk of flesh out from White Tiger''s side.

    Bellowing in rage and pain, White Tiger spun around to swat it away. The Crastrate once again demonstrated its amazing speed and effortlessly evaded his retaliation, its tail plunging deep into White Tiger''s shoulder and sending the huge spirit spinning.

    The other Crastrate had finally recovered from its electrocution, and not wanting to lose to its brethren, disappeared into a blur. White Tiger swatted at it again, but it dodged under his paw and stabbed his chest with its claws.

    The second one pounced on top of the howling White Tiger and rammed its inner jaws deep into his back, sending bits of flesh, bone and blood spraying out in a geyser.

    If it had been any other Constellation spirit, they would have vanish there and then, unable to withstand such a tremendous amount of damage. Fortunately, White Tiger was no ordinary Constellation spirit. He was the highest class of my soul beasts, a Celestial Guardian. Refusing to bow down to his assailants, he generated a lightning storm that blasted the both of them apart. Both smoking Crastrates landed next to the very first one, their bodies crackling with paralyzing electricity.

    "White Tiger! That''s enough! Time to go!" I shouted.

    My Celestial Guardian turned back to me, scowling in disapproval. I understood his reluctance to leave the battlefield. He wanted to personally destroy the Crastrates.

    However, he also knew as well as I did that he probably did not possess the capability or immense firepower required to completely exterminate these foul monsters. It seemed that my Celestial Guardians were not invincible at all.

    Under my mental commands, White Tiger leaped to where I was, and picked me up by the scruff of my neck with his jaws. Flinging me over so that I would land on his back, he immediately bounded away before the Crastrates could recover from the paralyzing electricity that continued to immobilize them and hold them in place.

    There was a reason why I had White Tiger cast that paralysis electric spell, after all.

    Lying on White Tiger''s back, I raised my head to glance up toward the cliff where I jumped off earlier, the place where I first witnessed the massacre of my schoolmates from above. Taking a deep breath, I issued an order.

    "Scorpio, that''s enough. Unleash Antares."

    Scorpio emerged from above the cliff. Purple, red and bluish-white mana had been accumulating at the point of his massive stinger this entire time, ever since the beginning. His casting of Antares had finally come to fruition, accumulating into an enormous ball of energy that had been held and contained at the front of his stinger. At my command, he completed the casting of Antares and released the enormous ball of gathered mana into a single large beam of destructive energy that tore through space itself, causing the very air around it to ionize and distort. Even before the colossal beam touched the earth, it was already leaving a trail of red and black molten lava in its wake.

    The Antares spell slammed right into the three Crastrates before they could move, and then detonated into a pseudo nuclear explosion that engulfed the entire valley in superheated mana, vaporizing everything that was caught within it. It expanded exponentially into a tremendous sphere of annihilation before blossoming into a mushroom cloud.

    White Tiger continued to sprint as fast as he could, doing his best to escape the approaching white-red flames from the devastating explosion that swept toward us. Without my glasses, I could hardly see anything, but all I saw was a wall of flames encroaching toward us. The inferno had covered the entire valley, its range far exceeding my expectations.

    I had set out to create a literal nuke spell, and I had succeeded.

    "No wonder Antares took so long to complete casting," I muttered to myself. It would certainly be overpowered if I could fire one of those off immediately. Even as White Tiger ran ahead of the pursuing fire, I could still feel its intense heat cooking my skin. Then again, I was already suffering from third degree burns and lost all feeling in my body. Whether it was because my neck was broken or my nerves had been literally incinerated, I didn''t know.

    I didn''t care either. Now that I had achieved my objective, I could finally rest in peace.

    Antares had consumed a significant portion of my mana, and I was completely drained. Even now, it was difficult to maintain White Tiger''s existence in the material world. Yet I couldn''t afford to dismiss him just yet. At least not until we were safely out of reach of the expanding ball of superheated plasma.

    It would be the ultimate irony if I nuked myself to death with my very own spell.

    Fortunately, the expanding plasma seemed to slow down. White Tiger took a final bound out of the valley and into the cover of the mountains. I vaguely noticed that he was heading toward the direction of Jing Tian City. I wondered if the residents in the city could see the gigantic mushroom cloud that was unfolding over a thousand meters above ground, shrouding even the mountains.

    It was as if the heavens themselves had split apart.

    My consciousness slowly fading, I closed my eyes. White Tiger''s physical form was also growing more intangible, less corporeal. Aware that I had reached my limits, that he didn''t have much time left in the material world, and that we were at the bare minimum safe distance from the blast zone, he came to a stop. Stretching his head back, he seized me with his jaws and gently set me down on the ground.

    And then he vanished.

    And with White Tiger''s disappearance, my consciousness departed me too and I sank into an infinite darkness, accompanied only by the roaring thunder of the thermonuclear explosion of my own making.

    And then everything went silent.

 109 Chapter 109: Hospitalized

    Beep. Beep. Beep.

    "Oh, cut that out," I growled.

    Beep. Beep. Beep.

    "All right! I''m awake! Now switch that off!"

    "I''m afraid I can''t do that," a gentle, feminine voice spoke up next to me sounding amused. Blinking my eyes open, I jolted upright in bed.

    "Alicia?"

    "Richard." She nodded, wiping tears from her eyes. "You''re finally awake."

    I squinted at her, barely able to make out her features, but Alicia gently helped me up when I grimaced from phantom pain that surged through my body.

    "Easy now. You haven''t fully recovered yet." She then reached out to the table next to my bed and handed me a pair of glasses. I put them on, and my vision sharpened back to comfortable clarity. She smiled and nodded. "Your dad brought you a pair of new glasses. He said you''ll need it."

    "Right." My old pair of glasses had been destroyed during my fight with the Crastrate. It was a good thing I had mastered the mind''s eye, or I wouldn''t be able to fight properly against that rank B monster. Not with my vision obscured by myopia.

    "Your dad left for work. He''s been visiting you everyday, so he''ll be back here tonight."

    I nodded, already aware that Dad couldn''t possibly spend 24/7 by my side. Even though he was usually watching anime or playing games when I got home, I knew that he usually did some work when I was in school. The benefits of being your own boss (a freelance, solo mage-mercenary) was that you decide your own schedule. Obviously, even with that flexibility, Dad still had work to do. I had no doubt he would return in the afternoon¡­

    ¡­speaking of which, I didn''t know what time it was. From the window, I could tell that it was still daytime, though. Late morning, early afternoon, maybe? There was a digital clock that beamed a holographic display of the time. About two in the afternoon, so my estimation was almost right on point. Unfortunately, the clock did not display the date or day, so I had no idea how much time had passed.

    Glancing around, I saw that I had been hooked up to a machine, which was monitoring my vital signs and all that. An IV drip extended from a vein, feeding me fluids. I still felt a little weak, despite the enormous amount of mana spent on advanced healing spells to literally bring me back from the brink of the dead.

    "How long have I been out for?" I asked uncertainly.

    "A week." Alicia looked at me sternly. "You were extremely lucky. Pearl decided to go back when we all saw the gigantic explosion in the valley. She found you lying just outside the mountains. Fortunately, she was able to apply emergency first-aid treatment with healing spells, or you would have died mere seconds later." She held her thumb and finger a millimeter apart. "You were this close to dying, you know."

    Actually, I was surprised that I wasn''t dead. Plot armor for the win. One of the perks of being a web novel protagonist, I guess. Unless the author got bored of this story and decided to kill me off to end it quickly.

    "Is everyone all right?" I asked, as the events of that night suddenly came flooding back. So many of my schoolmates were dead. "Craig¡­he was seriously hurt. Dong Fang Yue Chu too. Jin Hao. And the rest¡­what about Harvey?"

    "I''m all right!"

    As usual, Harvey was his bubbly, excited self, dashing into the room when he overheard Alicia''s conversation with me. He practically bounced to my bedside, his eyes wide in wonder.

    "Vice-president! You''re finally awake!"

    "Yup." I studied him, but he didn''t seem hurt. Neither did Alicia, when I took a good look at her. They must have benefited from some healing spells. The last time I saw them, they were pretty banged up. "I''m glad to see that the both of you are fine. What about the others?"

    Alicia glared at me sternly. "Fancy you worrying about everyone else when you''re the one who suffered the worst injuries."

    "Hey, at least I''m not dead." I suddenly turned pale when I remembered seeing the corpses of Stan, Wang Fei, Elliot, Nicholas, Miranda and the rest. A wave of nausea slammed into my gut like a fist. "Sorry, that was insensitive of me."

    "If anyone deserves to be insensitive, it''s you, Vice-president Richard!" Harvey exclaimed vehemently. The guy really thought that I was a god. "You risked your life and nearly made the ultimate sacrifice to save all the survivors!"

    "No."

    "¡­eh?"

    Harvey turned to look at Alicia. So did I. she was trembling from anger, even though her voice was still calm and level.

    "I won''t allow it. Richard, you must treasure your life more. Even if your father isn''t upset, he was still worried. So was I. so was everyone else." She leaned closer, her expression strict. "Don''t ever do something like that again, please. Don''t put your own life at risk for the sake of others."

    "Tell me honestly," I countered coolly. "Would you have done the same if you were in my shoes?"

    Knowing her personality, I was sure Alicia would have sacrificed her own life to save Black Rose members.

    Alicia lowered her head, knowing that she wouldn''t be able to hide the truth from me. She sighed and shook her head.

    "Just¡­promise me that you won''t go get yourself killed, all right?"

    "I''ll do my best." I frowned. "And neither of you have answered my question yet."

    "Oh! Yeah, everyone''s fine!" Harvey smiled broadly. "President Dong Fang Yue Chu has healed up a few days ago, and Senior Lily is helping him. Same with President Craig, and Senior Sheila is helping him." He shrugged. "And you have President Alicia helping you, so you''ll be fine soon."

    I ignored that last sentence and focused on garnering more information. "How about Jin Hao and Aoi?"

    "They''re all fine," Alicia assured me. "They got healed by Teacher Cure. You''re the only one we weren''t sure about. We all thought you might not make it, even though Teacher Cure tried her best with her most potent healing spells. She barely managed to keep you in medical stasis. Your life was hanging by a thread."

    "You literally pulled off a miracle, though," Harvey added with a grin. "Rarely any student mage would be able to go toe-to-toe with three Crastrates and win, never mind survive." He punched the air. "Boom! You nuked all three of them to oblivion! Hell, I bet that ultimate nuke spell of yours can even destroy a rank A monster!"

    "That''s what it was designed for," I muttered.

    "Why are you designing spells of mass destruction?" Alicia asked with a frown. "Are you preparing to conquer a country or something? You''ve just become a walking weapon of mass destruction. A lot of the mercenary guilds and even the Federation Military are trying to recruit you now. Your dad has been holding them off, but you''ll more than likely be approached by them soon."

    "Wait¡­" something occurred to me. "How did you guys know there were three Crastrates? When you left, there was only one."

    "One of the people who came to the campfire party was from the Newspaper Society. He recorded the whole event with a remote-controlled drone." Alicia giggled a little. "He was upset when your nuke spell ended up destroying his drone along with the Crastrates." Then she turned grim. "But¡­you also ended up destroying the bodies of all the students who were killed. Their parents are¡­upset that they couldn''t even get a body back for burial, but¡­Brother Hai and the Federation Military stepped in to explain that you had no choice. They¡­understand, but they still find it difficult to accept."

    "Instructor Feng Hai shut them up by pointing out that they would be worrying more than just burials and funerals if the Crastrates got into the city and started slaughtering everyone else in here," Harvey added gleefully. Dude, this wasn''t something to laugh about.

    In any case, I wasn''t surprised that Feng Hai had links to the military. I recalled that he was the leader of the Silver Wolves Mercenary group, but mercenary guilds often cooperated and received contracts from the military, so they developed a close relationship. I knew for sure that Dad often accepted jobs from the military, and headed out into the field as a solo operative (as solo as a summoner could be, anyway ¨C he always had Angelica by his side, so technically they could be classed as a two-man team).

    "You''ve become quite a celebrity, you know! A hero! They''re thinking of giving you a medal. And your fame is spreading throughout the Federation as the first student ever able to destroy three rank B monsters on his own!" Harvey continued excitedly.

    "Even Troy hasn''t achieved something of that magnitude," Alicia commented softly.

    "It''s only a matter of time," I assured her. "He''s meant to be the ultimate god mode Mary Sue, after all."

    "¡­what?"

    "Never mind." I shook my head. "Anyway, I''m more interested in finding out how and where the three Crastrates came from."

    This made no sense. High ranking monsters like the Fiend class were rarely ever seen near human civilization, unless an Emergence event occurred right in the middle of a city. Usually they lived in areas of extreme wilderness, deeply hidden away from civilization. I had never heard of a Fiend class monster coming so near to Jing Tian City before, at least not those that didn''t spawn out of an Emergence event.

    "About that¡­"

    The three of us looked up when Dad walked into the room. He grinned and waved at Alicia and Harvey.

    "Oh, Alicia. Harvey. You''re both here as well. Thank you for coming, as always."

    "No, it''s not a problem at all," Alicia told him quickly.

    "It''s only natural!" Harvey proclaimed proudly. I swear, the guy was going to start calling me boss one day.

    "Anyway, about your question¡­the military conducted its own investigation, and we found traces of an artificially triggered Emergence event." Dad retrieved his tablet and projected a holographic image into the air. I gagged when I saw the bloodied corpses of Lin Zhan Long, Adam Freeman and Terence Taylor.

    "What happened to them?!" Alicia gasped, her voice filled with immense shock and horror. Her hands flew to her mouth as her complexion turned frightfully pale.

    "They look like they have been eaten from the inside out¡­" Harvey swallowed, visibly perspiring. "Their chests¡­something burst out of their chests."

    He was right. Their ribs were bent outward, as if something had smashed its way free of the ribcage and chewed its way out of their chests. Thanks to my prior knowledge of the Crastrates and their life cycle, I immediately understood.

    "They were the hosts for the Crastrates."

    "Correct." Dad nodded. "We found the eggs and destroyed them¡­but it was too late. The larval stage of the Crastrates had already implanted their embryos inside these poor bastards'' chests, and spawned as the monsters you fought." He scowled. "Now the question was how did these three get hold of this device?"

    The image flickered, and was replaced by another picture of a spherical thing. It was sizzling, burned out and half-melted, but it was evidently a manmade object.

    "What''s that?" Harvey asked inevitably.

    "Transdimensional Key," Dad replied coldly. "It tears open the space between our two dimensions and artificially induces an Emergence event. A dreadful weapon that has been employed by terrorists and fanatics to summon monsters to wreak havoc on cities. And this particular one¡­is used to summon high ranking monsters."

    The room fell silent.

    "Preliminary investigations show that these three were merely duped and made use of. Yes, they are responsible for bringing a high ranking monster so close to the city, and also for the deaths of so many of your schoolmates. But we''re more interested in who gave them the Transdimensional Key in the first place, and why."

    Dad switched off the holographic display and kept his tablet. I could see his fingers tightening into fists.

    "We''ll track down the culprit and bring him or her to justice. This, I swear."

    "¡­so you''ll be going on another mission again?" I asked, already resigned.

    "Not yet." Dad raised an eyebrow at me. "Don''t worry. I''m not going to leave until you''re all right and discharged from the hospital." He sighed and rubbed his temples. "While you were out cold, a lot of things have happened. Journalists clamoring for interviews. Mercenary guilds and even the military trying to recruit you. The government wanting to conduct their own interrogation and investigation." He shook his head and chuckled. "That spell of yours have caused quite the uproar. While at first you''re revered as a hero, several officials have seen the danger of letting a walking weapon of mass destruction roam freely. They want¡­restraints to be placed on you."

    "¡­the fuck? They want to lock me up?"

    "Don''t worry. The Federation is built on the foundation of universal human rights." Dad snorted as if he didn''t really believe that. "And freedom. They''re not going to lock you up and turn you into a human weapon. If they try anything funny, like brainwashing or indoctrinating you with drugs and whatever, I''ll destroy the damned Federation itself."

    "Let''s hope it doesn''t come to that," I muttered under my breath.

    "There''s so much to tell you¡­a lot of things have happened this week. We''ll slowly help you catch up," Dad continued. "But yeah¡­be careful. Especially when random strangers approach you. They might have their own motives."

    "Understood." I nodded. "I''ll be careful."

    "Oh, and another thing¡­"

    Before Dad could finish speaking, Teacher Cure poked her head into the room, her expression thunderous.

    "WHY DIDN''T ANY OF YOU TELL ME THAT RICHARD''S AWAKE?!"

    "Huh? He was already awake when I came in. I thought you already gave him a checkup." Dad was staring at her blankly. Teacher Cure drew a deep breath and glared at Alicia and Harvey, both of whom quailed under her gaze.

    "I¡­I forgot. Sorry, Teacher Cure."

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    "Sorry! I was so excited that I ended up talking too much to the vice-prez instead of calling you!"

    Shaking her head in disbelief, Teacher Cure sighed and gestured for everyone to leave the room for a few minutes.

    "Okay, everyone¡­out for now! Let me conduct a checkup on the patient!"

 110 Chapter 110: Medal of Honor

    "Thus, for your valor and courage in the face of extreme adversity, I award you the Medal of Violet Nebula."

    The president of the Federation, Thomas Whitmore, pinned the medal on my chest and stepped back to admire his handiwork. Actually, he was studying me, a proud smile on his weathered face. A war veteran, he had fought monsters and crushed Emergence events back when he was in the military before his retirement and subsequent election as the Federation''s current president.

    He was also someone I looked up to, but my hero will always be my dad.

    "Good job, son," Whitmore said as he patted my shoulder. "You do all of us proud with your actions." He lowered his head briefly. "While it is regrettable that so many deaths have occurred, you saved even more lives and prevented the death toll from rising. You risked your own life and sustained grievous wounds in order to save your friends. That alone is admirable."

    I nodded slightly, but didn''t say anything. The whole ceremony was making me uncomfortable. Honestly, I didn''t want to be here. I preferred keeping a low profile and staying away from other people''s attention, but right now I was the focus of so many cameras and a massive audience. To make matters worse, the award ceremony was televised and broadcasted to billions of households all over the Global Federation.

    Unfortunately, when the president of the Global Federation personally asked you to attend an awards ceremony, there was no way you could say no. Dad also told me to go, explaining that it was the highest form of honor.

    "Don''t worry," he assured me. "If there''s anybody in the Global Federation who can be trusted, it''s Whitmore."

    Apparently they went some ways back. A few years ago, Dad had cooperated with Whitmore''s military unit and they had fought alongside each other. As comrades who had saved each other''s lives, they knew the other could be trusted.

    "Your father must be proud of you," Whitmore continued, as if he had read my mind. Smiling, he then turned toward the cameras for our pictures to be taken. I noticed subtly how rigid his posture was. Evidently, Whitmore was not used to this sort of events, just like me.

    It made me relate to him more. A certain president from my previous timeline could learn a lot from him instead of opening his big mouth and spouting nonsense every time he was in front of a camera.

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    Even though neither of us liked to be the center of attention, we put up with it for now. Apparently, it was necessary to maintain the morale of the citizens of the Federation. After suffering such an immense shock and trauma from the death of so many students at the hands of a high ranked monster near a city, the Federation government needed some sort of propaganda to help take the minds of the citizens off the devastating incident. To play my role up as a hero was to demonstrate how the Federation remained powerful. After all, a student at one of its combat academies was capable of destroying three rank B monsters. That was evidence that miracles could happen and heroes existed. The citizens could rest easy, knowing that there would always be someone to show up and save them if a high ranked monster did eventually appear in their midst.

    That wasn''t a lot of help to those parents or families who had lost their children to the Crastrate, but there was little I could do for them. Some of them appreciated my efforts and thanked me for avenging their children, while others resented me and blamed me for surviving while their children died at the hands of the monster. Obviously, it wasn''t my fault, but¡­you know how some people were. Unfortunately, whether I knew the truth or not, it was depressing and spiritually crushing to receive abuse and insults from those people who had lost their kids to the Crastrate.

    Getting blood or paint splattered over the road outside the barrier that surrounded my house, being yelled at by those parents who occasionally showed up on my route home, reading inflammatory remarks made about me online¡­over and over, over and over again, in the end I ended up believing that those parents were right, and that I deserved to die. Not their sons and daughters.

    That was the product of psychological abuse. Whether you knew it to be false or not didn''t matter. Getting told over and over again that you were a loser, that you should die, that you were the spawn of the devil, eventually you would come to believe it. I know some readers would dismiss that and claim that I was mentally weak, and that I should "toughen up."

    But they underestimated the damage psychological abuse can cause. You don''t tell a poor kid who was getting physically beaten up by bullies stronger than him that it was his fault for being weak, and that he should "toughen up" and become stronger, or that he should ignore the bullies as they punch and kick him. So why is it the victim''s fault and the obligation of the victim to "mentally toughen up" instead of the bullies stopping their verbal abuse?

    Verbal abuse was still bullying. Whether the wounds were visible or physical or not, it didn''t matter. In fact, verbal and psychological abuse was more insidious precisely because you can''t see the damage done to the victim. The mental injuries they suffer might accumulate and pile up, and eventually, when their self-esteem break down, when they couldn''t withstand the punishing words the bullies constantly flame and lash out at them, they commit suicide or lose their minds.

    And because it wasn''t physical, the bullies get away with it. They wouldn''t get punished in the same way as they would, if they were the ones who physically injured or murdered the victim.

    Fortunately, either because of Dad, or because the Federation couldn''t afford to allow the public to see one of their heroes being abused (after using this incident to build me up as some sort of teenage hero), the harassment eventually stopped. Those parents abusing me were either arrested on charges of vandalism or disrupting public order, and I never saw them again. I doubted the Federation would do anything as extreme or sinister as eliminating them, but I never bothered to find out. I mean, why would you care about what happened to someone who was bullying and hurling abuse at you everyday ever since you left the hospital?

    And a few weeks after I fully recovered and resumed my training, the invitation from Whitmore came. That was how I ended up here today.

    After enduring the publicity stuff, I gratefully left the stage and descended down the back before the news reporters and journalists could approach me. Using the skills Dad taught me, I disappeared from their sight and vanished into obscurity.

    "Phew¡­"

    "Good work," Dad told me. I wasn''t surprised at his sudden appearance. Dad was the one who taught me these stealth skills. Of course he would know a way around them. He chuckled as he patted my back. "You did great out there."

    "He did indeed." Now that was a surprise. Whitmore showed up as well, probably trying to escape the attention of those journalists. Though I should have expected that, what with him being a seasoned military veteran and all. He nodded toward me with a smile. "I also find the news reporters annoying. They always ask me the stupidest questions, or try to lead you into saying something they want, so that they can publish a sensational headline."

    "It happens," I agreed bitterly. Some of the lesser known tabloids ¨C those not authorized by the Federation, particularly the online ones ¨C were responsible for a good amount of the harassment I suffered, describing me as a villain who held back and waited for so many of my schoolmates to get slaughtered before I intervened. For what insane reason would I do that, and then end up intervening anyway, I had no idea. If I wanted to play the hero, it would have benefited me more to save everyone from the start.

    But you know¡­some people love to create conspiracy theories. Particularly irresponsible journalists who hoped to draw attention to their websites by writing controversial articles. The worst thing was that there were people on the Internet stupid enough to believe them. And those idiots added to the online harassment and abuse, despite having their lack of logic pointed out by some of the more rational participants in social media. It reminded me of the morons who loved to blame everything, even the most unpolitical things or trivial matters, on the government, and the 70% who voted for them (Singapore reference). I mean, seriously, if a neighbor littered on your corridor, what did that have to do with the ruling party or the citizens who voted for them?

    No matter the period, idiots existed everywhere. They were just more visible and noticeable in the present because the Internet made it much easier for them to post their inane views and harass people online without needing to be physically in front of the victim. They could bully people from the comfort of their own home.

    The literal keyboard warriors.

    "Anyway, I''m glad you are all right now. I heard that you were pretty banged up."

    "He was just a micrometer away from death," Dad said grimly with a shake of his head. "Yet I can''t tell him not to do it because¡­"

    "¡­you would have done the exact same thing if you were him," Whitmore finished and grimaced. "Yeah."

    "And his girlfriend''s being telling him that for me, anyway, so me saying it would be excessive."

    "She''s not my girlfriend," I muttered. At least not yet. With all that was going on, we hadn''t actually made our relationship official or discuss on how to go forward with it. Partly it was my fault for being obsessed with training and growing stronger, but while I was rehabilitating and recovering, I just couldn''t find a moment to approach Alicia about it. Worse, not when so many of our schoolmates were dead.

    Right now, an atmosphere of grief and mourning hung over Jing Tian Academy. It wasn''t appropriate to talk about romance at the moment. Perhaps when everyone recovered mentally and spiritually. There were so many empty desks where our schoolmates once sat at. The student population was visibly diminished.

    Eventually we would have to move on, but¡­not so soon. Not right now.

    "Now that Richard''s fully healed, I guess it''s time for me to hunt down the culprits responsible." Dad turned to me, his expression serious. "You can handle yourself just fine now, right, Richard?"

    It had been a few weeks, and I had recuperated completely, reaching back to 100% of my strength. A miracle, considered that my entire skeleton had been shattered, my internal organs had been ruptured, and my flesh and nerves suffered from severe third degree burns. But magic could do almost everything. While there was no spell that could resurrect the dead and bring those who had died back to life, the most advanced healing spells could restore a person and bring him back from the brink of death to full health.

    I was a living example of that miraculous healing spell. Of course, not all healers could pull that off. It was only because Teacher Cure had reached an extremely advanced level in her healing magic that she could restore me back to my prime.

    Otherwise I would still be lying in the hospital for another few months, needing organ transplants, skin grafts, and covered in casts. And I would need another year for rehabilitation.

    "Yeah, I''m counting on you." Whitmore looked just as grim. "Whoever these people are, they are the enemies of our Global Federation. I can''t imagine allowing these guys to rampage freely with these devices. If they set them off in the middle of a major city and summon a high ranked monster, then we would be fucked. The amount of damage suffered would be catastrophic. And hundreds will die." He glanced at me sympathetically. "I know about ninety-eight students died in the attack, but that would be nothing compared to what happens if the owners of these Transdimensional Keys trigger them in the middle of a densely populated urban area.

    "Indeed." Dad nodded. As for me, I didn''t protest. Considering there were about five hundred students who participated in the party, we lost relatively few. Don''t get me wrong, losing about twenty percent of the students present was still a massive blow. But I was glad that we didn''t suffer any more casualties than that.

    "I have already ordered the Global Intelligence Agency to track these bastards down." Whitmore sighed. "But we don''t have much luck so far. Hopefully your unorthodox methods will uncover them."

    Dad made a face. "Unorthodox? Me?"

    "¡­dude." Whitmore rolled his eyes. "Do you know how your operation procedures deviate from any training manual or standard operating procedures we have for our military?"

    "What makes you think I even have operation procedures to begin with?" Dad countered.

    Whitmore spread his hands helplessly. "I rest my case. But one thing I do know is that you will get results." He nodded. "As I said, we''ll be counting on you."

    "Yeah." Dad narrowed his eyes. "Whoever these bastards are, I''ll uncover them, flush them out and annihilate them. They are fools if they can get away with massacring so many students."

    Not for the first time, I felt a chill when I sensed the murderous aura in his eyes. I couldn''t help but feel sorry for whoever was responsible for this incident.

    There would be hell to pay the moment Dad located them. And make no mistake¡­he will find them. And he will kill them.

 111 Chapter 111: Reshuffling

    "I''m very sorry to tell you this after you''ve suffered such tragic losses," Teacher Fielding looked at the three of us sympathetically. "And personally, I would want to give you more time to recover. However, the academy rules state that you need at least five members in your society in order for it to maintain its existence. It''s been a month and you''re still only at three members." He lowered his voice. "To be honest, I think that rule is stupid. Which idiot decided that you only have a month for a grace period when your member count drops to three? Do they think you can recruit new members so far into the academic year? They should at least make exceptions."

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    The three of us glanced at each other wearily. Dong Fang Yue Chu, Harvey and I had been summoned to the staff room to discuss the matters of our society, which had been decimated by the losses of Stan and Wang Fei. None of us talked about how to replace them¡­simply because they couldn''t be replaced.

    More than members of Ultimate Outcast, they were friends. Comrades who trained alongside us, and suffered the same agony and joy as we did, the same rise and fall. "Replacing" them was not an option.

    "So¡­we''re going to be disbanded?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked hollowly. Teacher Fielding hesitated, and then nodded.

    "Unless you can find two more members to replenish your ranks and meet the minimum of five members. Or merge with a similarly decimated society." Teacher Fielding consulted his tablet. "It says here that at least three other societies are in danger of suffering the same." He scowled. "The school board should be more understanding. It''s not as if you lost members because they quit! People actually died!"

    But no, rules were rules, and the school board was insistent. Some fucker had done a monthly review of the academy, and our society popped up in the report as not adhering to the rules. Without caring about the circumstances, the board issued an edict in the same emotionless way they did to whatever pertained to the running of the academy.

    And now we were in trouble.

    "So what will happen to us if Ultimate Outcast gets disbanded?" Harvey asked anxiously.

    Teacher Fielding sighed. "Nothing. You just become someone without a society, and you are free to join another society."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu glanced at me.

    "¡­yeah, I think that might be best. We should just join another society."

    I was surprised. I thought that Dong Fang Yue Chu would protest, and fight long and hard to keep our society in existence. However, I felt similarly. After all, my attachment wasn''t to the society itself, but my friends in the society. I wasn''t pretentious enough to insist on maintaining this society out of some weird pride and desire to raise it to the top from "nothing". I wasn''t a Mary Sue protagonist, nor did I possess genius intellect to pull nonsense like that off.

    Furthermore, the resources in Ultimate Outcast were lacking, especially when compared to those in the great societies. We had been struggling to bring in more funds, and only my constant participation in missions and my earning of prestige points had barely kept us afloat. To make matters worse, those prestige points and stuff dropped severely while I was recuperating in the hospital, and right now our society was in dire straits. It would take a massive undertaking to bring it back once again, and while I was fine with taking missions again, I knew it wasn''t as simple as earning back prestige points through missions.

    And I had just recovered. I couldn''t push myself too hard or I would end up killing myself.

    "¡­you''re right." As disappointed as I was, I didn''t really feel any pain or regret when I said those words. There was some sadness and curiosity for what we could have been if we continued, but life got in the way.

    Part of being an adult and growing up was knowing when and what to give up on. You realize as you grow older that you had to give up on many things. Your dreams. Your aspirations. Some of your hobbies. Your time. Your relationships. Money. And now¡­our society. We knew we were no longer in any condition to maintain our society, and so we had to let it go rather than allow it to suffer a long, agonizing death.

    If this was a web novel where I was a Mary Sue protagonist, this would be an ideal scenario where I would prove my overpowered-ness and genius-level intelligence by overcoming all these crises and demonstrating how Ultimate Outcast can rise from the ashes like a phoenix reborn. Hell, if this was like a certain web novel, nobody would have died from the Crastrate''s attack. Not only would I be a hero for saving everybody and destroying the Crastrates, we would only suffer one casualty. Probably one of my juniors, who survived but had his soul sea destroyed. And once again, being the Mary Sue I would have been, I would repair and restore his soul sea for him, making him much stronger than he was before.

    However, this wasn''t some web novel that indulged in power fantasies and unrealistic scenarios where everything was contrived just so the author could prop him up on a pedestal to show off how godlike he was. I didn''t have the ability to revive a society from disbanding, nor could I bring the dead back to life. And since I never learned healing magic, I certainly couldn''t restore anyone''s soul sea or whatever (soul sea doesn''t exist in this universe anyway). Not that I needed to, given Teacher Cure''s topnotch healing magic.

    "I''ll follow Vice-president Richard to whatever society he joins," Harvey declared. Hey, dude. Have a mind of your own, all right?

    Teacher Fielding studied us seriously. "Are you really fine with this decision?" he asked quietly. He didn''t want to push the matter, but his hands were tied. There was nothing he could do to help us, even if he wanted to. Part of him was relieved that we accepted our fate so easily, without furious protest. It made his job easier.

    But part of him ached when he saw how forlorn and¡­beaten we were. How resigned to oblivion we were. The loss of our comrades had definitely affected us badly. We weren''t able to recover from the deaths of Stan and Wang Fei. Not just in terms of society level, but at the psychological level and our morale.

    We were¡­defeated.

    Teacher Fielding sighed. "I understand. I''ll settle the paperwork. You guys, take it easy for a while." He watched us, concern written all over his face. "If you need to talk to somebody, you can always approach me. And make sure you rely on each other."

    "Yes, sir." We all nodded.

    *

    The next day, I found myself accosted by Alicia just as I was attending combat magic class.

    "Richard! Is it true?!"

    "Is what true?" I asked, somewhat cynically and tiredly.

    "That Ultimate Outcast will be disbanded! Are you really going to¡­leave Ultimate Outcast?" Alicia looked worried.

    "We don''t have the members," I replied sourly. "And¡­it doesn''t really feel fair to the memory of Stan and Wang Fei if we go recruit other members to¡­replace them." the word tasted bitter on my tongue when I spoke it out loud.

    That was right. The society had become a painful place for us¡­a constant reminder of the friends we had lost. Going to the training room everyday and somehow feeling that half the society was missing, that there were comrades we would never see again¡­it was painful. No wonder Dong Fang Yue Chu was resigned to disbanding the society.

    He couldn''t deal with the painful memories either. It was even more visible and sharper for us because we were such a small society. The other societies, they had over a hundred members. Or twenty or several dozen. Losing a couple here or there, or even losing five to ten, as awful as it was, it was just a fraction of their number. Their society rooms wouldn''t feel as empty.

    For Ultimate Outcast, literally half of us was gone. We were a small, tight-knit group. Our losses were more devastating than that of the major societies.

    "It was also increasingly difficult to keep our society afloat," Harvey added, hurrying over and joining us when he spotted us.

    "¡­I see." Alicia looked as if she was suffering our pain for us. She stared downward, her expression incredibly sad. "Then¡­what will you do from here on out?"

    I shrugged. "Probably join another society. We''ll need resources to learn more spells, to get better equipment and armaments. For training, we can always go train in my dad''s dojo, but for everything else, money is king."

    As sad as it was, that was the reality. Without money, we couldn''t do anything.

    I hadn''t even gotten a Divine Device because I spent the money I earned from the missions on my juniors'' Divine Devices. Stan''s guns. Harvey''s sword. Wang Fei''s cross wheels. We were also saving up for gauntlets for Dong Fang Yue Chu, but we never got that far. We had prioritized the juniors first, mostly because we seniors didn''t need the Divine Devices as much as they did. I could summon Constellation weapons while Dong Fang Yue Chu fought with his fists.

    "Then¡­" Alicia paused for a moment, glancing around and hoping that she didn''t sound too conniving. "Why don''t you three join Black Rose? We''ll welcome you."

    I considered the offer. If it had been proposed at the beginning of the year, I would have refused. At that time, my reputation was pretty terrible. People knew me as a loser and a weakling who couldn''t win even a single match. I was aware that even with Alicia''s personal invitation, joining Black Rose would earn me the resentment and ire of the other members, who would accuse Alicia of showing favoritism. They would bully me, alienate me and isolate me. They would attempt to drive me out of the society.

    Hell, that was what happened with Lavender Ling, Daisy Dallas, Bei Pan Zhe and Dan Xiao Gui. Even though I didn''t join Black Rose, they attempted to murder me and abandon me to monsters all because they thought I was getting too close to their goddess, Alicia.

    However, now was a different matter altogether. I had climbed the ranks and reached among the top hundred, especially after the academy factored in my points from killing three Crastrates. I had worked with Elliot, Nicholas, Jin Hao and Aoi. Even though the first two were dead, the latter two were not. I knew more than enough Black Rose members, and even befriended them over the course of participating in missions. I had finally earned the recognition and admiration of everyone, not just in Black Rose, but in the academy.

    Now, I could hold my head proud and join Black Rose without anyone accusing me of exploiting connections or my relationship with Alicia (and her showing favoritism). Even if there were a few who resented me, I was confident I would no longer be isolated. Not when I already had quite a few friends among Black Rose.

    "I will take you up on your offer," I said. Then I glanced at Harvey, who nodded excitedly.

    "Me too! I''ll be happy to join Black Rose too!"

    "Good." Alicia beamed for the first time, a little joy that was slightly tinted with some sadness. "I''ll make the necessary arrangements."

    "I''ll ask Dong Fang Yue Chu if he wants to join as well," I offered.

    "Don''t worry about me." Dong Fang Yue Chu appeared, as if on cue. "I''ll be joining Holy Saints."

    "¡­eh?" both Harvey and I gaped at him. Our former president grinned sheepishly.

    "Well¡­Holy Saints have suffered quite a few losses too. They lost their vice-president, and two of their members. So¡­Lily asked me to help with them."

    "That''s good news!" Far from being offended, Alicia was delighted for him. "You''ll be a good fit! And I''m sure President Harrison and Lily will need your assistance and experience."

    "Well¡­yeah." Dong Fang Yue Chu turned to me and Harvey. "And Black Rose will benefit from your skills. I know, because I was the first to successfully recruit you." he grinned and showed us a thumb''s up. "I guess we''ll be going our separate ways now. We''ll probably be rivals in the future, but that won''t stop us from being friends!"

    "You''re right." I nodded and met his fist with a bump. Returning his smile, I chuckled. "I won''t show you any mercy when we meet in the arena."

 112 Chapter 112: Invitation to Southampton City

    "How is it? Have you gotten used to our training rooms yet?"

    I turned around to face Jin Hao, who was blasting a training dummy with his spells. Over at a distance, Aoi and Harvey were doing their own training as well. The four of us had a single training room all to ourselves ¨C an extravagance possible only because we belonged to Black Rose.

    As a major society, Black Rose had dozens of training rooms, which could be personalized by whoever was using them. While it honestly didn''t feel that much different from back when we were in Ultimate Outcast, largely because five of us shared a single training room, the main difference lay in how vast and spacious this Black Rose training room was in comparison to the one I used previously. The one we used during my time at Ultimate Outcast was the size of a small dojo, but the Black Rose training room was as large as an auditorium.

    There were even seats surrounding the training space, as if to accommodate an audience. From what I knew, the training rooms served as arenas sometimes, when the academy didn''t have enough coliseums for the many duels that occurred weekly, or even daily.

    "Yeah." I nodded as I struck the training dummy with a borrowed sword. True to my martial arts training, I was using a wooden shinai instead of an actual Divine Device like everyone else. Noticing my gear, Jin Hao raised an eyebrow.

    "If you need a Divine Device, you can apply for it," he informed me. "There should be plenty in the Black Rose repository. Or if you can''t find anything you like there, you can apply for funds ¨C we should have more than enough money to buy you something you want."

    That was another major difference between Ultimate Outcast and a great society. They were simply so much richer than we were. In the past, Dong Fang Yue Chu and I were struggling ¨C even with my participation in a few missions ¨C to secure funds for our Divine Devices. And now, Black Rose could freely spend the money allocated to them to purchase Divine Devices for their members. Of course, what went unsaid was that because of the severe loss of members suffered during the Crastrate incident (Elliot and Nicholas being among the casualties), there weren''t many people left to request for those funds. As a result, the budget was left unused.

    However¡­

    "I don''t know what sort of Divine Devices I should get," I explained as I hacked at the training dummy, which dodged and retaliated. Parrying the punch from its mechanical fist, I continued. "I''m used to summoning my own Constellation weapons, and I can switch between swordsman and archer. I don''t want to buy a sword, and then end up using my Constellation bows and providing long-range support instead. It would be a waste of money."

    "It''s not our money," Jin Hao pointed out reasonably.

    "Yeah, but¡­it''s not fair to the Divine Device. You know how each Divine Device houses its own soul, and how it would get upset if it is neglected and left unused."

    "I see¡­so you believe in the Soul Weapon school of thought." Jin Hao pondered thoughtfully. There were quite a few people who subscribed to that philosophy, of treating our weapons as comrades rather than mere tools. I inherited it from Dad, and chose to respect each and every weapon. It was how I forged my bonds with my Constellation spirits. Jin Hao probably didn''t, but he didn''t scoff at it either. He nodded. "In that case, I understand why you''re refraining from it."

    "A Divine Device makes it easier to fight, and increases your combat power." From the other side of the room, Aoi called out. She was wielding a staff type Divine Device, which boosted the attack power of her spells significantly. Jin Hao also used something similar, a scepter with gems encrusted into its head. The jewels glowed with mystical enchantments that increased his casting time. "There probably are Divine Devices for summoners¡­to cut down the amount of time you need for summoning your soul beasts."

    That caught my attention. "There is?" I inquired curiously. I had asked about it before, since it was quite the obvious thing, but no one knew anything about it.

    "¡­I think so." Aoi shrugged. She probably raised the point because of how obvious it was, and didn''t know that I had already searched for such Divine Devices earlier and was unable to find them. Apparently summoning spells were different from the usual elemental or combat spells, and thus a device like Jin Hao''s that accelerated his casting wouldn''t work for my summoning spells.

    That made sense. If such a thing existed, I wouldn''t have lost a hundred matches in a row throughout my first year here at Jing Tian Academy.

    "We couldn''t find anything on it," Harvey spoke up from his corner, where he was engaging a smaller training dummy with his sword. He shrugged when we glanced at him. "Wang Fei and I did some research after watching Senior Richard''s matches, wondering if he was using any Divine Devices, and we found out that there aren''t such devices for summoners."

    "That sucks," I muttered, even though I already knew that.

    "Well, that makes sense," Jin Hao conceded. "Otherwise you would already be using it."

    "Budget allowing," I added cynically. "Ultimate Outcast didn''t have as big a budget as Black Rose. We probably couldn''t afford it even if it existed."

    Jin Hao gave me a disbelieving look. "Even if you couldn''t get it through the academy, I''m sure your dad would have obtained it for you. Or you would have borrowed one of your dad''s old Divine Devices."

    ¡­good point. Speaking of which, Dad used a sword-type Divine Device that enhanced his fire magic. But I had never heard him mention anything about a Divine Device for summoning. Oh well, as I thought.

    Just as I thought, I didn''t run into any harassment this time, when I joined Black Rose. Now that I had established my reputation and ranking, and even saved a good number of them, I had earned their respect and friendship. I was closer to Jin Hao, Aoi and Troy (who was still absent even after so long) than the rest, which was why I spent more time with them, but I no longer felt uncomfortable hanging out with the other members of Black Rose. Vivian and the rest saw me in a different light, especially after I risked my life stalling the Crastrate for them to escape to safety.

    I guess I don''t need to say anything about Alicia. Miranda, on the other hand¡­was one of those who died. She had courageously sacrificed herself to save Alicia. While I wouldn''t pretend to be on good terms with her, I respected her memory and wished we could have met under more¡­normal circumstances.

    It still felt very strange, though. Just a few months ago, I never imagined that my image would transform so greatly in the eyes of my schoolmates, never mind the members of the revered Black Rose. To think I was so afraid of them just a few months ago, aware that they would bully, isolate and alienate me if I accepted Alicia''s offer to join them back them.

    Now, instead of scorn and resentment, I received friendship and respect. I didn''t know if that made them fair-weather, but I didn''t care. The important point lay not in the fickleness of human nature, but that if you really wanted to, you could change how other people perceive you through hard work and perseverance. Even though I had been mocked, looked down on, and abused, I didn''t care and didn''t give up. I continued to work hard, and eventually I overturned everyone''s perception of me.

    As long as one didn''t give up, anything was possible. That was the main lesson here, and one I was humbled to learn. I didn''t even think about it that much, to be honest. It just occurred to me while I was relaxing and thinking about how different people''s attitudes were toward me, when compared to before.

    We continued to train for a few more minutes until evening, then we broke up to leave. Harvey didn''t follow me to the dojo at my home because Dad had gone on a mission to track down the culprits behind the Transdimensional Key, and wasn''t around at the moment. I didn''t know how long he would take this time.

    Anyone who could create something as dangerous as a Transdimensional Key was not a foe that we could afford to underestimate.

    However, before I could leave the Black Rose building, Alicia popped her head out of one of the president''s office while the four of us were passing by. She smiled when she caught sight of us traversing the corridor, relief plastered across her pretty face.

    "Good. You haven''t left yet, Richard. Do you have a moment?"

    "Yeah. What''s up?"

    "I need to ask you something. Come on in." she stepped aside and waved me inside her office. I nodded and then glanced at my friends.

    "Please go on ahead without me."

    "Okay!" Harvey said, as hyper as always. The other two nodded in compliance, and then I stepped through the door.

    "What''s up, Alicia?" I asked. She had returned to sit behind her desk, and was scanning through the holographic screen projected upward after gesturing for me to take a seat in the chair just opposite her huge table.

    "I received an email from Cecilia." She turned the holographic screen around to show an image recording of the Stuart heiress. Instead of playing it, Alicia summed up the message for me. "Basically Cecilia''s father has invited us to attend her engagement ceremony."

    "¡­engagement ceremony?" I blanched at that. That was totally unexpected. I wasn''t sure how I should feel about that. Maybe amusement and the desire to offer my congratulations. "That''s great news. So she finally found a guy good enough to be her fianc¨¦?"

    "Something like that." Cecilia flipped the screen around, opened a text message and read through it. "Shawn Franklin. He is the second guy in our generation to defeat her in combat, after you. And he isn''t committed to a relationship at the moment, so Cecilia decided that he''s the one for her. He''s understandably delighted, or so I hear."

    I could see photographs of the handsome but smug-looking guy in social media. He had wavy, blond hair and a face that would put a supermodel to shame. Underneath his luxurious clothes was a sturdy build and lithe figure that was coiled with power, as if he was about to lunge at a target at any time. Reminded me of a predator.

    "He seems strong." I nodded. Alicia made a face.

    "That''s all you have to say?"

    "Well¡­isn''t Cecilia looking for a strong person to be her fianc¨¦ in the first place?" I shrugged. "He does look the type."

    Alicia studied me, half relieved and half astonished, and then she nodded.

    "Yeah¡­he''s not too bad. A bit on the arrogant and snobbish side, but he has the looks, strength and skills to back it up. He''s also from a wealthy background too. The Franklin family owns a corporation that sells fashion products globally, and are associated with the universal movie industry."

    "That''s quite the catch," I remarked. Then I frowned. "So what does that have to do with me? Why are they inviting me along too?"

    "¡­well¡­it''s because you nuked the three Crastrates and became the center of attention of the media for the last month or so." Alicia giggled. "Cecilia''s father is curious about you, and wants to personally meet you. He regrets not being able to personally talk to you when we first went to Southampton City all those months ago."

    Personally, I preferred if it stayed that way. I wasn''t fond of meeting a middle-aged man I had never seen before. Sure, Cecilia''s father was probably some big shot and extremely famous figure known throughout the Global Federation, but all the more reason I wanted to stay away from him. Thomas Whitmore was intimidating enough, but for someone of his exalted rank, he wasn''t too bad. Especially since he was ex-military.

    I wasn''t sure I could say the same about Stuart¡­

    "He was very impressed by your display, and wonders what could have been if you were the fianc¨¦ instead of Shawn Franklin." Alicia scowled. "But he''s aware of your relationship with me, which is why he invited me along as well."

    Now was a good time as any to approach that topic.

    "¡­what exactly is our relationship?" I asked uncertainly, hoping that Alicia wouldn''t blow up in my face. Even if it sounded like a perfectly reasonable question to me¡­you know how women are. Men just couldn''t understand them.

    Alicia stopped abruptly, staring at me for a moment. Then she smiled sweetly.

    "¡­that''s a good question." she shrugged. "To everyone else, we are a couple."

    I felt more confused. "¡­are we?"

    "What do you think?"

    Fuck. I hated playing these games. "Probably not officially. I mean, we never really discussed what exactly we should do. After our match¡­"

    "Then, shall we make it official?"

    "Uh¡­okay?" I wondered if I was giving the right answer. Alicia seemed pretty pleased with my reply, though. She nodded.

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    "Then I guess our first official date will begin this Saturday. We''ll meet at Jing Tian station in the morning. Don''t train too hard on Friday night ¨C it''ll be a long trip to Southampton City."

 113 Chapter 113: Revisiting Southampton City

    "So where exactly are we supposed to go?" I asked after disembarking from the train that took us all the way to Southampton City. The cities were connected by an international railway network that stretched for thousands of kilometers across the Federation. The high-speed trains allowed for us to cross vast distances in a matter of hours, much like how planes did the job in the early twenty-first century. Otherwise we would have to leave a day or two earlier.

    "The Stuart Corporation Building," Alicia replied as she glanced at the electronic invitation she received in her smartphone. "It should be about thirty minutes from the station by bus."

    The two of us had brought along bags. Mine was a standard backpack, with my formal clothing and shoes neatly folded or inserted inside, while Alicia was carrying a smaller sling bag. I had no doubt she had some sort of formal gown inside there as well. She certainly wasn''t going to attend the engagement party in a simple summer dress and sandals.

    She looked pretty good, I had to say. A sleeveless, light lavender dress that matched her violet hair and exposed her shoulders and slender arms. She would have worn a hat as well, but that wouldn''t be appropriate. I mean, why would you wear a hat inside a train, bus or building?

    I had told her that her dress suited her earlier, when we met up, and she seemed very happy about the praise.

    "It feels as if we are really going out," she giggled. Then she stopped. "Wait, we are going out, aren''t we?"

    "Um¡­if you say so."

    "What''s with that?" Alicia had punched me good-naturedly. Anyway, that was pretty much what happened before we boarded the train, and I basically spent most of the ride dozing off. I wasn''t sure what Alicia was doing, but she was probably reading or watching a video on her smartphone while seated beside me.

    I hoped I wasn''t drooling. Ugh.

    After we left the massive train station, we headed to a bus stop, which, according to Alicia''s smartphone and Google Maps, indicated the prime route to take. Since I didn''t know the way or even our destination, I just followed her without any complaints.

    "We''re here!"

    Before I knew it, Alicia nudged me and we got off the bus. Stepping onto the concrete, I glanced around and saw that we were in a bustling capital district that was packed full of commercial buildings and people in suits and stuff. Even though it was a Saturday, a weekend, there were still many people working here. Engaged in conversation with their smartphones, hurriedly trotting across the pavement, entering or exiting the many shining, silver skyscrapers that dotted the landscape.

    I didn''t have a degree in architecture, but even I could tell that whoever designed this district was opting for an ultra-modern look. The shapes of the commercial skyscrapers were sleek. Some of them were domed, some of them were curved, and others were¡­weirdly shaped.

    "There it is. The Stuart Corporation Building!"

    Tugging at my hand, Alicia led me to one of the tallest skyscrapers in the district. This one looked even crazier than the weird designs I had seen, resembling a castle tower than a proper building. It had to be over two hundred stories high. Painted in a fresh, coat of silver-white paint, the grand, pristine building stood proudly among its brethren of skyscrapers. Lights and golden ornaments accentuated it against the otherwise dull skyline of grayish silver, with gigantic electronic bulletin boards arrogantly showing off the logo of the Stuart Corporation. The clean, bright windows stood out against the white paint, reflecting the sunlight off their translucent surfaces.

    Arches and contours ran around the top of the building, which, as I said earlier, made it resemble a castle tower. Ribbings in the walls gave off the sensation similar to the Ishimura from Dead Space, a Gothic design that inspired a feeling of the sublime and the uncanny (okay, that was the literature student in me speaking absolute nonsense). Did Lionel Stuart, Cecilia''s father, want to project an air of royalty or something? Was that why he had his main corporation building look like a castle? He wanted to pretend to be a king of his commercial domain or something?

    "Impressive, isn''t it?" Alicia asked, giggling at my reaction. She shrugged when I glanced at her. "This isn''t the first time I''ve been here. I accompanied my father to the Stuart Corporation Building about twice or thrice before."

    "Your father isn''t coming today?" I asked. Alicia shook her head.

    "No, he wasn''t invited this time. And he has no interest in Cecilia''s engagement ceremony." She frowned. "He would have refused the invitation anyhow. He has a dinner with the board of directors tonight, concerning the discussion of school policies."

    He was a busy man, if he had to work on a Saturday night. I pitied him, and hoped I didn''t become an academy director in future.

    "Anyway, let''s go in."

    The interior of the building was even more impressive than its exterior. My first impression was that of a first-class hotel, the lobby spread out across the first floor in a vast sprawl. Dozens of lamps decorated the walls and ceilings, illuminating huge, blue sofas that were probably impeccably arranged by professional interior designers. Grand, mahogany coffee tables littered the place, giving the building an air of nobility. I was reminded of the castle design outside again.

    Right at the center of the lobby was a massive counter that was manned by several receptionists, garbed in starched, professional-looking uniforms.

    What an absolute waste of money, I thought sardonically to myself.

    "This way," Alicia said as she motioned toward the elevator. She glanced at her phone. "We''re to meet up in the seventy-fourth floor." She smiled as she turned to me. "It''s the rest area. We can spend the next few hours there while waiting for the engagement party to begin, and then get changed¡­maybe an hour before it starts."

    "Sounds good to me," I agreed as I followed her into the elevator.

    The moment we stepped out into the seventy-fourth floor, I found someone waiting for us there.

    "Brother!"

    Adrian Stuart hurled himself at me, and I deftly dodged him. He almost toppled into the elevator just before the doors shut. Damn. If I had given him a little kick, he would have gone right into the elevator and taken upstairs. And I would be rid of the annoying bugger.

    "How mean!" Adrian whined as he turned toward me. "To avoid my greeting like that!"

    "That''s¡­quite the greeting, Adrian," Alicia remarked, amused. The fourteen-year-old turned toward her.

    "Sister Alicia! It''s so good to see you too!"

    "Same." Alicia nodded politely. "What are you doing here?"

    Like us, Adrian wasn''t dressed for the formal event just yet, still in his usual red hoodie and blue jeans. Then again, the engagement party was hours away, so who the hell would want to get into such an uncomfortable getup with so much time remaining?

    "I heard that Brother Richard and Sister Alicia were coming, so I decided to come say hello!" Adrian knitted his hands behind his head. "It''s so boring being by myself. I haven''t seen you two in ages! You haven''t been visiting!"

    We had no reason to visit, but I wasn''t tactless enough to point out the hard truth. Instead, I merely smiled.

    "Well, we were¡­busy."

    "Right! I heard about the campfire incident! Is it true that you nuked three Crastrates, Brother Richard?!"

    "It''s true!" Alicia laughed when I didn''t reply. "Richard is officially a walking nuke right now! All the different powers in the Federation want to recruit him!"

    "¡­um¡­actually, I think that''s what Uncle Lionel wants to do." Adrian suddenly turned serious and uncomfortable. "I don''t know for sure, but I heard from my father that Uncle Lionel is trying to draw as many talented mages as he can to the Stuart Corporation. That''s why he deliberately sent this invitation to you."

    I exchanged an uneasy look with Alicia. No wonder Alicia''s dad wasn''t invited. He wouldn''t have bothered calling Alicia along if he didn''t know of our relationship. Not that he actually knew the true nature of our relationship, which wasn''t official until just a few days ago.

    "Uncle Lionel will probably want to talk to you later." Adrian was nodding to himself grimly, his lips pursed. "I don''t think Father is happy with that."

    "Where''s your father, by the way?" Alicia inquired, glancing around. Adrian cocked his head to the side.

    "Not here. He''s overseas at the moment. But he entrusted me with a task that only I can do!"

    "What task?" I asked curiously. Adrian shrugged, as if it wasn''t any big deal.

    "Passing on a letter."

    I would have asked to who, but Adrian changed the subject later.

    "Brother, this is your first time here, right? I''ll show you around!" he stopped and turned apologetically to Alicia, as if he just realized that he had forgotten about her. "You can come along too, Sister Alicia."

    "If you''re fine with me tagging along," Alicia replied good-naturedly, not at all offended. Adrian nodded fervently.

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    "Sure! Please do! Sister isn''t available at the moment. She and Brother Shawn are busily organizing the party. There''s a lot of things they have to do, so I don''t think you''ll be able to meet her until the party begins. It''ll be better if you follow us!"

    More like Adrian was the third wheel, but again, I didn''t say anything.

    "There''s a gaming room down that corridor." It soon became clear that Adrian didn''t really intend to show me around the place when he led me down the brightly lit path to a room in the middle, passing by the other rooms without explanation. He grinned. "Are you good with shooter games, Brother?"

    Yup, that was his aim. Literally. He didn''t want to show me around. He just wanted to have fun and play games. Fortunately, I was game.

    "Yeah. I''m a veteran of survival horror. Sci-fi horror shooters, I mean." I patted my chest proudly. "I''ll have you know I''ve survived a spaceship and a space station infested with zombie aliens. Even a whole planet, for that matter! I''ve also fought demons, killed my way through Hell and back to Mars!"

    "Uh¡­"

    Alicia was watching us blankly. Evidently she didn''t play games like we did. In contrast to Adrian, who was nodding excitedly and understanding which games I was referring to, she found herself completely lost.

    Adrian and I didn''t forget about her, though.

    "What kind of games do you play, Sister Alicia?"

    "Um¡­me? I don''t really play games¡­"

    "What about movies? There''s also a TV segment in the gaming room, so if you''d like, I can hook you up and you can choose any movie you like. We have the entire digital collection of Hollywood and Chinese cinema films¡­old Hong Kong classics too, if that''s your thing."

    Shaking my head, I watched in amusement as Adrian sought to ensure that Alicia would be just as entertained over the next few hours as we would be.

 114 Chapter 114: Change

    Adrian and I got so carried away with gaming that we lost track of time. It was only when Alicia came over and rapped us over our shoulders that we realized how close the time was to the start of the engagement party.

    "Oh no!"

    "Holy s¡­!"

    The second sentence came from me, and I realized I wasn''t allowed to swear in front of kids and I trailed off. Especially when Alicia gave me a stern look.

    "Let''s get changed. Adrian, where''s the changing room?"

    "Right here!"

    Adrian led us to another couple of rooms, which was a little smaller than the gaming room. Fortunately, they were split between male and female, so Adrian and I went to the male one while Alicia entered the one reserved for females.

    It didn''t take long for Adrian and me to change out of our casual clothing and into the formal attire that we brought along in our backpacks. I found myself dressed in the blue long-sleeved I wore all those months ago, when I visited the opening ceremony for Stewart Stuart''s hotel. The same dark blue, almost black blazer with a tie decorated with penguins.

    What? I like penguins. They are cute.

    Checking my reflection in the mirror, I raised an eyebrow when I saw how I resembled one of Stuart Corporation''s executives than a participant in a party. Ugh.

    Once I was done, I stepped out of my cubicle and ran headlong into Adrian, who was already dressed in a smart-looking maroon suit with a bright red tie that matched his shiny blond hair. Placing the color of his suit under some scrutiny, I eventually decided not to say anything.

    Adrian reminded me of an apple for some reason. Don''t ask me why.

    "You look good, Brother!" Unaware of my dark thoughts, Adrian remarked on my attire with all the honesty from a fourteen-year-old.

    "Thanks," I responded as I unconsciously straightened my penguin tie. "You look awesome."

    Adrian burst out laughing. "That can''t be good, Brother! You are the one who has to make a good impression!"

    "¡­huh?" I stared at him blankly. "Why do I have to make a good impression on anybody? Who''s going to notice me anyway?"

    "Didn''t I already tell you?" Adrian frowned. "Uncle Lionel wants to recruit you over to his side. That''s why he''s interested in you, especially after your battle with the Crastrates. Apparently your huge nuclear spell outside Jing Tian City impressed him, and he''s hoping that you''ll be among his close circle of executives in future."

    "Huh? Executives? What the hell is that?"

    "People working for the Stuart Corporation." Adrian sighed. "I don''t know. I don''t understand all these political stuff. But Uncle Lionel is seeking to consolidate his power and recruit people he can trust into the ranks of the corporation, to secure his position as the company''s president."

    He frowned, as if trying to wrap his mind around stuff he didn''t really understand.

    "Father said something about factional infighting or splits. I don''t really get it, but apparently there are a lot of people after Uncle Lionel''s position." He shrugged noncommittedly. "To be honest, I think Father also has his sights on the president company. He complains a lot about Uncle Lionel''s decisions and says he could have done better in his place."

    If I wasn''t mistaken, Adrian''s father was the brother of Lionel Stuart, who was Cecilia''s father. That meant Cecilia and Adrian were cousins on their paternal sides. Even siblings seemed to harbor a rivalry against each other instead of¡­you know, standing together in a united front and cooperating to advance the company.

    Absolute power corrupted. It was only human nature to be greedy and lust for the statuses and wealth of others.

    "But it''s not just Father. There are a lot of relatives among the board of directors and the Stuart Clan who are secretly aiming for Uncle Lionel''s position. Father said something about having to be careful of them after he succeeds the position."

    What the fuck was Adrian''s dad doing? Talking about all these conspiracies and sinister schemes within earshot of his son?

    "Well, it''s too complicated for me to understand, so I don''t really care," Adrian continued breezily. "All this family squabbling has nothing to do with me."

    Obviously. He was ten years or perhaps even twenty years too young to worry about fighting for the position of head of the Stuart Clan.

    "Anyway, just be careful. I''m sure you don''t want to get sucked into my family''s politics!" Adrian laughed. I then understood why he was raising all these complicated family matters that he didn''t understand. Even as young as he was, he realized that it was unfair and immoral to involve me in their clan affairs.

    "Yeah, I certainly don''t want to get involved," I agreed whole-heartedly. Sighing, especially when I already began to dread the evening ahead, I tried to push my reluctance out of my mind. "Shall we go, then?"

    "Hold still for a second." A familiar feminine voice spoke up. Alicia stepped into the room, dressed in a light violet evening gown. The smooth, flowing fabric was cut at the waist and back, revealing her pale shoulders. There was also a long slit along her skirt to allow her easier mobility. Her long, purple hair had been tied up in an elegant bun, emphasizing her pretty face. "Let me adjust your tie. It''s a little too long."

    I was too stunned by how gorgeous she looked that I couldn''t muster a reply, and Alicia took the opportunity to untie my tie and tie it again. She pulled a perfect knot all the way to my collar before releasing it and stepping back to admire her handiwork.

    "That''s better."

    "Uh, thanks." I struggled to stop ogling her. Trying to ease the awkwardness that swamped me, I blurted out the first thing that came to mind. "You look great."

    Alicia gave me a small smile. "Thanks." She then turned toward Adrian, confusion clouding her features. "Where is the engagement party held? I checked the invitation letter, but it only told us to come to the seventy-fourth floor."

    "Er¡­good question." Adrian looked just as lost as her. He scratched his head. "Sister didn''t tell me. They were still deciding the exact venue this morning."

    "That is exactly why I''ve been sent here. To escort you to the hundred and ninety-fifth floor."

    The three of us almost jumped out of our skins when a gruff voice spoke up from out of nowhere. Spinning around, we caught sight of the owner of the stern but polite voice. A huge man dressed in a smart military attire stood sharply in the corridor, just outside the door of the changing room, watching our every move attentively. I felt like a virus under an electron microscope.

    Returning his scrutiny, I caught sight of expensive-looking ornaments adorning his uniform, along with shiny, gold buttons (I bet they were authentic gold) decorating the crisp and starched fabric. A golden chain hung from his left pocket, drooping above a metallic tag that neatly spelled the words STUART SECURITY.

    "Uncle Yuan Dao!" Adrian exclaimed excitedly. The military man cocked his head toward the kid in greeting. Meanwhile, I frowned, trying to remember if I had heard the name from somewhere before. It was mentioned once before, I was sure, but where exactly¡­?

    "I am Yuan Dao Yue Guang," the tough-looking security personnel introduced himself with a stiff bow. That still didn''t answer my question, but obviously the guy also seemed to think he had met me for the first time. Yet I was sure I heard his name from somewhere before. Pushing the thought out of my mind, I nodded, and Yuan Dao continued without missing a beat. "I am the chief of Stuart Security. I was instructed to lead you to the venue of the party."

    Security chief¡­wait, I did meet him before. Wasn''t he the huge guy Cecilia was talking to after our clash against Selina Wright in the graveyard?

    "It''s been a while, Uncle Yuan Dao!" Adrian excitedly approached him. He rummaged his suit for something, and a few moments later, he produced a white letter and passed it to the burly security chief. "Father asked me to pass this letter to you."

    "Master Sacha did?" Yuan Dao frowned in puzzlement. He stared at the letter, his head tilted. "He could have just sent me an email instead of going through the trouble of crafting a handwritten letter. What does he need?"

    "I wouldn''t know." Adrian shrugged. Then he brightened. "But he was asking about your family."

    "My thanks to him for his concern. Tell Master Sacha that my wife is doing fine." Yuan Dao nodded, but I noticed that his movements had turned imperceptibly stiff, as if he was reluctantly broaching a subject he didn''t want to talk about. He tucked the letter into his uniform, and turned away from us to make his way toward the elevator. For some reason, I had the impression that he was averting his gaze. "Shall we proceed then?"

    The three of us obediently followed him to the elevator. Yuan Dao stepped aside and waited for us to enter before pressing the button for the hundred and ninety-fifth floor. With a humming sound, the doors slid shut and the elevator jerked before ascending.

    "If you do not mind me asking a question," Yuan Dao began as the elevator slowly rose toward the hundred and ninety-fifth floor.

    "I mind," I retorted, but shrank back when I saw his expression. The security chief was scarier than even my dad during a training session in his dojo. "I was just kidding. Please go ahead."

    Yuan Dao cleared his throat. "Aren''t you the first young man of your generation who defeated Lady Cecilia?"

    "That was a fluke," I muttered under my breath.

    "Begging your pardon, but I hardly think someone capable of nuking an entire valley and obliterating three rank A monsters with a single spell would require a fluke to best Lady Cecilia. That is not to say I look down on her abilities, but¡­"

    "Cecilia is strong," Alicia agreed. "But not that strong."

    Yuan Dao fell silent for a moment before nodding. "Precisely."

    I raised my hands in a helpless shrug. "Well¡­okay? What exactly is your point¡­sir?"

    "¡­no. It''s nothing." Yuan Dao was casting his glance from me to Alicia, and then back to me again. "Your relationship with the young lady of the Violet family is known to Lady Cecilia." He sighed. "It might have been very different otherwise."

    For some reason, Alicia reached out to grip my arm tightly. The gesture was not lost on Yuan Dao, who bowed apologetically.

    "I mean no offense."

    "None taken," Alicia replied sweetly, though for some reason there was an undercurrent in her tone that sent a chill down my spine. Yuan Dao paid it no heed, however, and raised his head to regard the climbing numbers at the top of the elevator.

    "Uncle Yuan Dao, what do you know about this Shawn Franklin?" This time it was Adrian, his tone curious. "I''ve never met him personally before."

    "Hmm¡­" Yuan Dao paused for a moment as he pondered the question. "Just as much as you, I suppose. You probably already heard about how he had defeated Lady Cecilia in a proper duel, haven''t you?"

    "Yeah." Adrian nodded excitedly. "I heard that he''s among the strongest and most talented in our generation!"

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    "That''s correct. This probably isn''t known as much, but also prior and after his duel with Lady Cecilia, Master Shawn also defeated ten students from the elite class of Southampton Academy in a row. His skills with the sword are exceedingly remarkable for someone of his age. Furthermore, he comes from the prestigious Franklin Clan, which is one of the top ten great families along with the Stuart Clan. His pedigree and upbringing alone is impressive."

    Cool, I guess?

    "Heh¡­" On the other hand, Adrian didn''t sound very impressed. Instead, he smiled mischievously. "But is Shawn Franklin a match for Brother Richard?"

    "I think he is obviously stronger than me," I replied, but Yuan Dao didn''t seem to pay any attention to me.

    "To be honest, I''m curious about the answer to that question as well."

    "Didn''t I just answer the question?" I complained, but the rest of my retort was cut off when I suddenly felt an enormous killing intent suffocate me. My hands twitched and my knees buckled as the very air around me distorted.

    What the hell?! Blinking, I suddenly realized that the vast ocean of raw killing intent was emanating from Yuan Dao. Cold perspiration dripped down my spine even as my vision of him warped the security chief into an image of a terrifying demon. Struggling to breathe, I stood my ground. This guy is the real deal!

    All around me, I saw Adrian buckle and pass out. Alicia fell to her knees, gasping for air. I wanted to reach out to her, but I found my body completely paralyzed, refusing to obey my mental commands. Only Yuan Dao was still standing, and his currently demonic visage appeared to swallow up my entire perspective. I could almost see the incredible killing intent radiating from him.

    In fact, it was warping the very air around him, distorting it into what seemed like a mirage. Probably the same effect that made him resemble a monster to me.

    He''s much stronger than anyone I had ever faced before¡­even Hades, even the three Crastrates from a month ago¡­even Dad¡­! What the hell is he?! Some kind of monster?!

    Gritting my teeth, I defiantly stared him down, refusing to submit, refusing to crumble before his formidable might. Even though I had been totally immobilized by the deadly aura that emanated from him in tsunami-like waves, I was determined not to allow him to intimidate me.

    "Not bad. Even Shawn Franklin couldn''t handle this amount of killing intent. Yet you can still stand even after such an onslaught." As if he had hit an off switch, the killing intent completely disappeared in an instant. He nodded thoughtfully. "I am thoroughly convinced that you truly are capable of unleashing a spell of mass destruction and slaying rank A monsters, even at your young age."

    I helped Alicia up to her feet. She was still pale and trembling from the earlier pressure, but it was impressive that she didn''t pass out and managed to maintain her consciousness. Yuan Dao bowed apologetically.

    "I apologize, Lady Alicia. I ended up indulging in my curiosity at your expense."

    "No, it''s okay." Alicia forced a smile, but I could feel her still trembling as I held her hand. She glanced at poor Adrian, who was slumped at his corner of the elevator. "Adrian is worse off than I am."

    Once I was sure she was all right, I let go of her hand and knelt by Adrian''s side to check on him. He had just barely regained consciousness.

    "What the hell was that?" he demanded, breaking out in cold sweat. "I felt as if a giant hand had just crushed me to death."

    "It was the answer to your stupid question," I replied, unable to suppress the irritation in my voice. After all, the kid was responsible for the whole thing when he asked Yuan Dao that dumb question about whether Shawn Franklin was stronger than me.

    Before Adrian could protest, the bell chimed and the elevator jerked to a stop. The doors slid open to reveal the hundred and ninety-fifth floor in all its glory.

    Yuan Dao stepped into the corridor, as if to make sure the coast was clear and it was safe to proceed, and then turned back to us with a smart bow.

    "Shall we?" he asked.

    Well¡­given that the alternative was to stay in the claustrophobic elevator, none of us objected and we followed him into the new level.

 115 Chapter 115: Engagement Party

    I was glad that the hundred and ninety-fifth floor was covered by concrete walls and rooms on all sides, with no sign of windows. Otherwise my acrophobia would act up. Even though I could avoid falling to my death by summoning Cygnus or Aquila, that wasn''t sufficient for me to overcome the trepidation and sheer dread I felt whenever I found myself on a very high place.

    As such, I was allowed to preserve what dignity I had originally without screaming or collapsing whenever I looked out of a window from the height of the 195th level.

    "This way."

    Guan Dao stretched his hand out to gesture us toward the direction of one of the corridors that split off when we reached a fork. We obediently followed him until we came to the end of that new corridor and found ourselves before a massive set of double doors.

    The doors towered above us, probably reaching a height of five meters. They were completely made of metal, probably blast-proof and able to withstand an explosion from a bomb. I snidely wondered if it could withstand my Antares spell or Rigel arrow.

    Yuan Dao stalked toward a small intercom beside the massive frame and flipped the transparent lid open, revealing a tiny number pad. He quickly punched in several numbers before taking a step back and rearing up to stare at something hidden in the wall.

    "Verifying personnel," a woman''s voice spoke softly and coolly. A red laser flickered out and scanned Yuan Dao''s eyes. The crimson light then faded away, and a few seconds later, the voice continued. "Retinal scan completed. Personnel identified: Yuan Dao Yue Guang, Security Chief of the Stuart Security Department. Permitting entry."

    Why the hell did they need such drastic security measures for? I wondered curiously. This is just an engagement party, isn''t it? Do you really need a security chief to escort people in and out of such a massive metal door capable of withstanding bomb explosions and requiring retinal scans and a pass code?

    Then something else occurred to me, even as the doors slowly creaked to life.

    "Uh¡­what happens if we need to leave? Do we have to ask you to open the doors for us?" I asked Yuan Dao.

    "Please do not worry," the security chief replied calmly. "Only specific guests are allowed entry and participation in Lady Cecilia''s engagement party, and there have been¡­assassination attempts. Thus the need for such security measures."

    I suddenly recalled the unprofessional assassin, Selina Wright, who was more interested in playing summoner from a certain anime regarding the Holy Grail War and seven Servants than actually assassinating her target, and nodded subconsciously. I wouldn''t be surprised if that wasn''t the only attempt on the lives of members from the Stuart family.

    "However, the door is easily opened from the inside. You can leave anytime if you wish. However, to return to the interior of the party room, you will have to contact security again and request for them to open the door for you." he regarded me sternly. "As such, I would advise you not to leave the party room too many times. There are restrooms and other accommodations in the party room, so there should not be a need for you to leave unless you wish to return home early."

    I definitely planned to leave the party early and return home before the last train, but any retort I could muster was lost as soon as the double doors fully slid open to allow us inside.

    If I had thought the lobby extravagant, then I hadn''t seen anything yet. An opulent and gleaming room met my sight, blinding me both literally and figuratively. My first impression was that the entire room was plated in gold.

    And I wasn''t mistaken. After my eyes adjusted to the dazzling view ahead of my glasses, I saw that the room really was covered in gold. Talk about a complete waste of money.

    "Please, enjoy yourselves."

    Stepping back, Yuan Dao bowed humbly before withdrawing to some corner of the room to maintain security. Alicia, Adrian and I glanced at each other, and then we wandered toward the side of the room, where the banquet tables were laid out.

    "That''s quite the menu they have," I commented when I saw how extravagant the dishes were. Then again, I didn''t expect anything less. After all, I had already seen a similar but slightly less luxurious buffet during Stewart Stuart''s hotel opening ceremony. As usual, succulent seafood from jumbo shrimps to mussels and oysters to even lobsters were all out on display.

    "They even have an international menu," Alicia remarked as she picked up some sushi and curry. I followed her lead, especially since I love sushi.

    Adrian looked less impressed, probably because he was used to eating such food all the time, and he casually plopped some shrimps and sushi in his plate. I noticed that he favored the eels. I loved them too, so I grabbed some for myself.

    While we dined, Cecilia showed up in the middle of nowhere. Dressed in a black and red gown with flowers, she had left her hair loose to flow down her back, but from several of the curves at the tips, I was pretty sure she got it styled beforehand. I wasn''t a fashion expert, though, so don''t take my word for it.

    "I''m glad you could come, Alicia." She nodded a greeting at me, and I responded with a slight bow.

    "Thanks for inviting me."

    "No problem. My father was really enthusiastic about inviting Richard, and I thought it only natural that you came along."

    "Really?" Adrian teased, but Cecilia pointedly ignored him. She glanced at our plates. "How''s the food?"

    "Good," Alicia told her.

    "Delicious," I agreed whole-heartedly after swallowing a piece of curried chicken and rice.

    Cecilia smiled. "That''s good to hear. Help yourselves. There''s plenty, after all."

    Before she could leave, however, Alicia quickly stepped in with a question. Glancing around curiously, she turned to Cecilia.

    "Where''s your fianc¨¦?"

    "Oh yeah! That''s right!" Adrian also joined in excitedly. "Where''s Shawn Franklin? I haven''t met him before, so I''m not familiar with how he looks like. Even though I have seen pictures of him on social media, I still can''t find him in here¡­"

    "Shawn is over there, speaking with his friends." Cecilia pointed briefly toward our left. There was a handsome blond guy in a white suit and pink shirt chatting boisterously with a group of similarly dressed guys. They were all laughing at something. Cecilia''s expression was a little stiff when she looked at him, her eyes slightly hard.

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    "He''s certainly good looking," Alicia remarked.

    "Yes," Cecilia agreed noncommittedly. "And his skills are the real deal. I have never met a swordsman as excellent and insightful as him."

    That last sentence was spoken with genuine admiration. I had the feeling she was marrying him more for his swordsmanship than him as a person, and it felt a little disturbing. Probably because I was a hopeless romantic.

    Glancing over, I couldn''t help but note Shawn''s expression. His lips were constantly curled into a mocking smile, pride written all over his features and his nose in the air. He reminded me of those typical arrogant young masters I read about in trashy, clich¨¦ wuxia novels. Fortunately, this was the future, so he wouldn''t be using his family''s name to go around killing people from the lower classes. No matter how rich you were, murder was still murder.

    Even Lin Zhan Long didn''t dare to go that far, and was tricked into summoning a high ranking monster at the cost of his life. Poor dude.

    Fortunately for me, Shawn Franklin didn''t cast a glance in our direction. All the better. I didn''t want to catch the attention of such a slimeball if I could help it. Okay, I was probably being unfair because I didn''t know the guy, but that perpetual smirk of scorn on his face automatically triggered my dislike button.

    The best course of action was to minimize contact with such a guy. He was from the esteemed Franklin family, anyway. We were literally worlds apart. Our paths would never cross.

    Cecilia had broken away to speak to some other guest, leaving Alicia, Adrian and me to our own devices. As we had no idea who anyone else in the engagement party was, we didn''t reach out to them. In the same way, they left us well alone.

    In the end, we just indulged in eating the delicious food available as there was literally nothing else to do.

    "Richard Huang, correct?"

    I almost jumped out of my skin when a deep voice boomed out behind me. Alicia, Adrian and I turned around and found ourselves standing before the president of Stuart Corporation, and Cecilia''s father and Adrian''s uncle, Lionel Stuart. Adrian, for his part, waved brightly while his uncle favored him with an indulgent look.

    "Uncle Lionel!"

    "Hey, Adrian. I trust you''ve been well. How''s your father?"

    "He''s busy." Adrian shrugged. "He couldn''t come today, but he sent me to congratulate Sister Cecilia in his place."

    "Ha ha! Sacha''s always busy, isn''t he?" Lionel Stuart laughed. "Well, he has his own division to run." He then glanced at me. "So you''re already acquaintances with Richard?"

    "Brother Richard saved my life a few months ago, remember? Around Jing Tian Forest?"

    "Now that you mentioned it¡­" Lionel Stuart nodded. He then swiveled toward Alicia. "And the daughter of the Violet family, Miss Alicia. It''s so nice to see you here today as well."

    "Same." Alicia bowed politely. "Thank you so much for inviting me here today."

    "Of course, of course." Stuart then turned toward me. "And¡­Richard, was it?"

    "That''s correct." I also bowed as deeply as Alicia. "It''s an honor."

    "The honor''s all mine." Stuart chortled.

    Raising my head, I studied him. Lionel Stuart appeared every bit as impressive as a president of a multi-trillionaire corporation should be. He possessed a massive frame that matched his stature. Behind him, right at the back of the room, was a golden-plated chair that resembled a king''s throne. I could almost imagine him seated atop it, and the vision that swam to mind made him look more like a monarch than a corporation president.

    The whole castle thing and royal wannabe vibes were growing stronger. Did this guy really thought of himself as a king?

    Fortunately, he wasn''t dressed like one. Like everyone else, he was dressed in a suit, a white shirt inside a white blazer and a dark tie that contrasted with his clothes. A single eyeglass hung on a chain atop his nose, more likely for aesthetic purposes than practical reasons, and his jaw was framed by a neatly trimmed beard.

    "It''s a pity that you''re already engaged to Miss Alicia, or I would have pressured Cecilia to form a relationship with you."

    "¡­engaged?" I raised an eyebrow and glanced at Alicia, but she shrugged, apparently just as lost as I was. "Um¡­I see."

    "I''ve heard a lot of good things about you," Stuart continued, as if he didn''t hear me say anything. "And your rise through the school rankings have been nothing short of meteoric."

    "Um¡­meteoric? That''s quite the claim." I murmured nervously. "But I must humbly warn you that whatever you might have heard regarding me, it has most likely been exaggerated."

    Stuart chuckled. "You''re very modest, I see."

    I shook my head in disagreement. "I beg to differ. I''m just being honest."

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Stuart laughed heartily at that. "I suppose the story about you destroying three Crastrates by nuking them with a spell of mass destruction capable of blowing a crater about three kilometers wide and obliterating an entire valley is exaggerated, then?"

    "I probably did destroy the three Crastrates, but the measurements seem off." I pretended to think about it. "Yeah, I think three kilometers wide and an entire valley is definitely an exaggeration."

    "It''s not, though," Adrian muttered under his breath. "They actually measured it."

    "And you did destroy the entire valley," Alicia added in amusement. "The academy has an actual recording of the site."

    Oi. Weren''t you guys supposed to help me, not sabotage me?

    Stuart was unable to suppress a vigorous guffaw. "I like you, kid. I really do." He lowered his voice. "Between you and me, I think Cecilia has made a mistake in choosing him over you." he then turned to Alicia. "You''re very lucky, young lady. You had best treasure this young man."

    Alicia smiled sweetly, the same expression that brought chills to my spine for some reason. I swear, one day, I was going to see a giant hanya mask floating above her head. "I have every intention of doing so."

    "¡­so, you are Richard Huang, huh?"

    All of us turned around, only to see Shawn Franklin swaggering toward us arrogantly.

    I shrank back with a sigh. Seemed like no matter where I went, trouble always knew where to find me.

 116 Chapter 116: Rival

    "That''s correct." I bowed politely as Shawn Franklin stared at me haughtily, scorn dripping off his eyes. I cocked my head as I studied him back, and tried not to smirk. "¡­so, you are Shawn Franklin, huh?"

    Franklin''s expression darkened when he realized I was making fun of him by mimicking him. However, he couldn''t just blow up in front of Stuart, so he held his rage in. Instead, he decided to look for another way to undermine me.

    "You don''t look like much," he commented. "I was expecting someone¡­more impressive."

    I shrugged. "Sorry to disappoint you. But you are correct. I''m not anyone impressive. I''m just a regular guy you can find anywhere."

    "¡­huh?" Franklin stared at me, caught off guard by my humility. If he was trying to provoke a furious response out of me, he had certainly failed.

    "Richard is a very modest person," Stuart explained to him, thoroughly amused.

    "As he should be," Franklin replied, trying to recover from his shock. He stared at me, his eyes full of disdain. "You''re not from any clan, are you?"

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    "No."

    "There you go." Franklin shrugged flippantly. "Without a proper bloodline, or powerful family to back you up, there are limits to how high you can go. The blood of elite mages must be kept pure. Only a noble mage can marry another noble mage. It''s admirable that you know your place."

    "¡­noble?" I repeated incredulously. What was he, someone from the medieval period? I was pretty sure the whole noble thing died out long ago.

    "Shawn is referring to the great families," Stuart explained helpfully. "The rich and the powerful. The upper class." he shook his head. "Many among the great families think that the purity of a mage''s bloodline is of utmost importance, but unfortunately, I don''t subscribe to that school of thought."

    Franklin looked a little chastened. "I didn''t mean anything by it, Lord Stuart."

    "No, I''m sure you didn''t." Stuart didn''t sound offended at all. In fact, he was amused by the whole conversation. "You don''t have to worry. Richard is not your rival. He is already engaged to Miss Alicia here."

    Franklin tilted his head in puzzlement as he turned toward Alicia, evidently not recognizing her. She bowed her head politely, nonetheless.

    "I am Alicia Violet."

    "Ah¡­the young lady of the Violet family." Franklin''s lip curled into a sneer. "One of the smaller clans." He then smirked at me. "You do indeed know your place. Marrying into a smaller clan suits you far more than trying to break into the top nobility."

    "Uh huh." I wasn''t even going to try and argue with him. In fact, I was relieved he wasn''t scolding me for not kneeling before his superior status. Not that he could, right in front of Stuart and all that.

    "My family doesn''t factor into this," Alicia said gently, the dangerous sweet smile still on her face. However, it was lost on Franklin, who paid her no heed. "I like Richard, and regardless of his background, I will still choose to be with him."

    "How admirable. However, you''ll regret marrying someone from the lower class one day."

    "Who cares about class?" I grumbled. "What does class have to do with anything?"

    "Purity of bloodline," Franklin replied arrogantly. "Only the best mages will produce the most talented children. By diluting the mage bloodline, we''ll only breed inferior magicians incapable of surpassing their predecessors¡­"

    "Richard has already proven himself to be a superior mage to me in a number of occasions. Not only has he bested me in combat, he has saved me from several high-ranking monsters." Alicia''s smile was growing more dangerous.

    "Exactly," Stuart agreed. "I do not believe that the quality of a mage has anything to do with one''s bloodline. In fact, prior to you, Richard was the first young man of your generation to defeat Cecilia."

    "¡­right. I''ve heard about that." Franklin was muttering under his breath. He couldn''t openly contradict Stuart, not when he was banking of having the latter be his future father-in-law. He might be arrogant, but he certainly wasn''t a fool. Instead, he shifted the goalposts. "A fluke, no doubt."

    "That''s what I''ve been telling them," I agreed, to his surprise. "I just got lucky that one time. I have no confidence in repeating that again."

    "Yet you''ve consistently saved me from powerful monsters again and again."

    Alicia was looking at me, a little annoyed. I shook my head, wishing she would back me up instead of putting me on a pedestal.

    "That''s right! Brother Richard saved me too!" Adrian piped up. I had almost forgotten that he was still here. He had been so quiet the entire time I thought he had disappeared off to somewhere because he was disinterested in the conversation. He bristled visibly. "I bet he''s stronger than you!"

    "Oh, really?" Franklin''s tone grew ominous.

    "No, not really. I guarantee that you''re definitely stronger than me." I hastily tried to defuse the situation before it blew up in my face, while glaring at Adrian for pouring fuel on the fire. I wished he had stayed silent.

    Now Franklin was pissed off at me instead of Adrian, and I was going to have to suffer the consequences. I honestly couldn''t care less if he trash-talked me, and would be fine after receiving some insults because I knew he would just leave later once Stuart stopped paying attention to me, and we would never have to cross paths again.

    But the moment I earned his ire, I was willing to bet that, following the clich¨¦ template of arrogant young masters, he would either hire killers to assassinate me for no reason other than I "offended" him or send his entire clan after me to teach me a lesson through violence. And since I wasn''t a wuxia protagonist, there was no well in hell I would be able to exterminate his entire clan ¨C especially when it was one of the ten great families of the Global Federation. I didn''t have plot armor or some supreme master''s spirit secretly teaching me overpowered skills.

    By the way, can anyone tell me why people bothered sending assassins after Wang Zhong in Battle Frenzy? That never made any sense to me.

    Fortunately, reality wasn''t that stupid, and as petty as Franklin was, even an arrogant young master such as him wasn''t so free as to bother going to extreme lengths to assassinate somebody he had written off as a nobody. Instead, he was more interested in disproving Adrian''s claim.

    "Ho¡­regardless of whatever the person in question says, it seems that the people around him have quite a lot of faith in his abilities." Franklin regarded me, his eyes full of scorn. But this time, I could read some measure of wariness in his sky-blue pupils. "I really am interested to see which of us is stronger."

    "Then why not do so?"

    "¡­huh?"

    Everyone turned to stare at Adrian. He had raised his hand and was smiling brightly at his own suggestion.

    "The two of you should have a duel. The winner will obviously be the one who''s stronger. Instead of arguing in words, isn''t it more concrete to decide the answer through an actual fight?"

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Stuart burst out laughing as he ruffled the hair of his nephew. "Adrian''s proposal indeed has merit. As everyone knows, I enjoy watching mage battles the most." He swiveled to me. "I have always been interested in your abilities, Richard. I hope you don''t mind indulging this old man and showing some of your skills?"

    "Um¡­I''m afraid you''ll be disappointed, sir." I lowered my head uncertainly. "I lack the skills and ability to put on any sort of entertaining display. It''ll most likely be a one-sided fight in Mr. Franklin''s favor and end under a minute."

    "Stop degrading yourself like that. It''s getting annoying." Stuart scowled. He wasn''t the only one who was irritated. Even the readers were getting riled up, judging from the irate comments at the side. "I get that you''re trying to be modest and avoid conflict, but you''re going way too far. Just fight."

    I glanced at Alicia, and she nodded encouragingly. Adrian was cheering excitedly, confident that I would be able to stomp Franklin to the curb. He was going to be very bitterly disappointed. As was I if I thought either of them was going to help me stop this nonsense.

    Sighing heavily, I nodded.

    "Very well. I will do my best in this fight and give my all."

    "Splendid!" Stuart clapped his hands in undisguised joy. He turned to Franklin, the handsome young man waiting expectantly. "I suppose you are more than eager to participate, Shawn? I hope you will also indulge this greedy old man with another fine display of your skills."

    Franklin flicked his neatly combed golden hair back and smiled cockily.

    "I would be happy to oblige as well," he declared. "But Mr. Richard has a point. It will be boring if the match ends under a minute. Perhaps I should give him a handicap or two? To level the playing field."

    Stuart sighed as he covered his face with his palm.

    "One is too modest to the point of self-depreciation, and the other is too arrogant and looks down on other people. Why can''t the two of you be more balanced?!"

    "Uh, well¡­because pride comes before a fall?" I suggested. Stuart gave me a look.

    "But if you don''t even believe in yourself, how can you succeed?"

    Perhaps what I said wasn''t necessarily what I thought. Even so, I knew how important it was to avoid complacency, but Stuart had a point. I was taking the whole modest act too far. So I decided to put on an admonished expression.

    "Yes, sir."

    On the other hand, Franklin showed no sign of taking Stuart''s advice. He was sneering derisively at me. Stuart paid him no attention.

    "I am really looking forward to this match," he gushed enthusiastically. "I hope you two can begin as soon as possible because I''m itching to see what the both of you are capable of. Even you, Shawn." He nodded at the proud youngster. "I know that despite defeating ten mages in a row, including my daughter, you still haven''t shown the true extent of your power."

    "I definitely won''t disappoint you, Lord Stuart," Franklin promised. Turning to me, he grinned cockily. "Are you sure you don''t want a handicap? I certainly don''t want the match to end in a minute. Perhaps you can get the Miss from the Violet Clan to help you. Two against one doesn''t sound like bad odds. I want to put on an entertaining show for Lord Stuart."

    I felt a twinge of annoyance. Did this punk really think he could beat me if I got serious?

    "Richard doesn''t need my help," Alicia said sweetly, stepping in before I could say anything. "He can defeat someone of your level by himself."

    "That''s right! Brother Richard will definitely kick your ass!" Adrian shouted. Damn it, kid, just shut up already. In some ways, he reminded me of Harvey Deng.

    "Ho¡­then I''ll have to see for myself what he really is capable of." Even though he said that, it was clear that Franklin was scoffing at their words. For the first time, I felt rage. Making fun of me was one thing, but making fun of Alicia and Adrian was another matter altogether. Nobody insulted the people important to me.

    "One question before we begin," I asked, dropping all pretense of modesty. "Are you able to withstand an attack with the power equivalent to two atomic bombs?"

    Franklin made a face. "What kind of stupid question is that?" he spat.

    I grinned evilly. "I''m deciding whether to go easy on you or not."

    His response nearly took me by surprise. An enormous amount of killing intent radiated from his body, causing me to break out in cold sweat.

    This guy is as strong as Yuan Dao said, I thought, impressed. No wonder he was able to defeat ten mages in a row, and even Cecilia.

    Still, after the debacle with Yuan Dao Yue Guang earlier, I wasn''t going to collapse to a killing intent that was over a hundred times smaller than the security chief''s. I merely smiled and pulled my finger across my throat in reply. Franklin looked as if he was going to explode for a moment, but he remembered where he was and reined his temper in.

    I snickered. This guy was really easy to provoke.

    "Shall we decide a date and venue for the duel?" Franklin grated out, trying to remain civil. If you could call his sneering, haughty tone civil. "Make sure you don''t run away."

    "There is no need for that," Stuart cut in as he looked up from his smartphone. He smiled ominously. "The two of you will be having the duel right here, right now."

 117 Chapter 117: Choosing Swords

    "¡­eh?"

    Both Shawn Franklin and I stared blankly at Lionel Stuart, who favored us with his usual indulgent smile.

    "Like I said, there is no need to arrange an alternative date. Let''s have the both of you duel each other right here, right now."

    "¡­here?" I glanced around the massive room. True enough, it was vast enough to serve as a makeshift arena. Now that I was examining it closely, I saw that there indeed was a huge stage in the middle, where a few people were dancing. In addition, there were rows of seats along the walls, just in front of the banquet tables. Already there were quite a few people seated on the cushioned chairs, munching away at their food.

    Yeah, I could see us fighting in the middle of this enormous room, watched by over a hundred or so spectators.

    "I apologize for arbitrarily making the decision on my own, but I hope you two won''t mind fighting right away?"

    Even though his tone sounded gentle and polite, there was an undercurrent of firmness lying beneath it that made it clear that he wasn''t going to take no for an answer.

    Not that Franklin ever planned on objecting. He grinned wolfishly, his handsome features glowing in anticipation.

    "Of course. Like Lord Stuart, I also am impatient to answer the question of which among the two of us is stronger."

    "You are," I replied automatically. "I forfeit this match¡­"

    Stuart scowled at me, and then he blinked, as if suddenly realizing something.

    "Indeed¡­there is no benefit for you to participate in such a duel, other than simple pride and bragging rights. And for someone as practical as you, such intangible benefits aren''t worth getting injured over. Is that correct?"

    "Uh¡­I guess¡­?"

    Honestly, I found the whole thing stupid and troublesome, and was too lazy to fight when there was absolutely no need to. But obviously I couldn''t say that to Stuart''s face.

    "Hmm¡­how about this?" Stuart smiled magnanimously. "I''ll grant the winner a request. Any request that is within my power to fulfil. It can be a position of power in the Stuart Corporation, monetary rewards, a powerful Divine Device, a treasure, Spirit Medicine¡­anything. Just name it, and I will do my best to grant it."

    "That is an excellent idea!" Franklin''s eyes were glowing at the prospect. Evidently, a guy as ambitious as him already had something in mind for the request. "If you do not mind doing so, Lord Stuart."

    "Of course not. I don''t mind paying any price to watch a duel between two highly rated mages." Stuart leaned back with a grin. He glanced at me. "I trust you will have no problems with this arrangement, Richard?"

    Now that he had gone this far, refusing his proposal would only make me look petty and selfish. Yeah, I wasn''t obligated to take part in this stupid duel, but let''s face it. Having any one request granted was extremely tempting. I hadn''t actually considered what I wanted, but I knew how beneficial it would be to have Stuart owe me a favor.

    So I nodded.

    "I apologize for causing you to make such a promise. I will do my best in the duel."

    "Excellent!" Stuart clapped his hands enthusiastically. "I have asked a servant to bring up a couple of swords for you. She''ll be up here in a moment¡­ah, there she is."

    The massive double doors to the vast reception room swung open. A young lady in a maid uniform strode inside, her head humbly lowered as she proceeded toward the center of the party room. She was bearing a large metallic tray, upon which lay a couple of swords. Delicately crossing the room, she bowed before Stuart before gracefully presenting the tray of swords to us.

    "Thank you very much, Claire." Stuart favored her with a paternal smile, and then turned to me and Franklin. "Please go ahead and choose your weapon, the both of you."

    Even though he said that, there really wasn''t much of a selection to choose from. The tray only contained two identical swords. One for Franklin, and the other for me.

    I didn''t point that out, of course. Instead, I graciously allowed Franklin to choose his sword before me, and took the remaining one.

    Franklin studied his sword, scrutinizing its polished blade and jeweled hilt in great detail. He turned it over slowly, carefully studying his pick with undisguised satisfaction.

    "This is an elegantly crafted sword," he commented. "Its weight, balance and design have been thoroughly and perfectly weighed and handled with utmost consideration for its wielder. Its blade has been sharpened and tempered to an incredible extent. It has also clearly been polished and maintained with meticulous care."

    Really? He can tell? I wondered, studying my sword with a raised eyebrow. I couldn''t see anything special about this sword, other than its ridiculously and extravagantly decorated exterior. To be honest, I suspected that this sword would instantly break upon a single clash with one of my Constellation weapons. Even Gemini seemed more durable than this fragile¡­toy? I couldn''t even call it a weapon.

    No doubt Franklin was bullshitting, but I wasn''t tactless enough to call him out on it. Nor did I want to offend Stuart, so I merely bowed to the clan patriarch and forced myself to make a few positive comments.

    "Thank you for the weapon, sir. I must admit that I am not as observant as Franklin, lacking an eye as keen as his." I gestured toward my glasses, which drew some laughter from the watching crowd. "Unfortunate as it is, I also do not possess his ability to appreciate weapons as well. But if there''s one thing to say about this sword¡­it is¡­um¡­pretty."

    Stuart burst out laughing. "Unfortunately for you, Shawn, Tomoyuki here is right. The swords are, like he said, just pretty. They are merely simple designs forged and mass produced in one of my manufacturing factories. They can''t even be considered the most basic Divine Devices. Therefore, it isn''t as elegantly crafted as you think it is. As such, nobody actually gave much thought or consideration to its design or balance for the user. And no one bothered to maintain it either. They are supposed to be used as ceremonial, display pieces, but I had Claire take them out for use in a friendly duel."

    As I thought, I sniggered inwardly. It is merely ornamental.

    "But don''t worry," Stuart assured Franklin. "They should last the entire duel."

    "That is good enough," Franklin replied, his face burning with embarrassment. It took me every ounce of discipline I possessed to keep myself from laughing at him there and then. "I am still grateful to you for handing me such a fine-looking weapon."

    "It''s okay." Despite wearing an amused expression on his face, Stuart motioned for us to take our respective places at either side of the arena. The dancers and party-goers in the area had cleared out, presumably having overheard Stuart''s conversation with us, or more likely, ushered away by the maids and butlers who were guiding them toward the rows of seats at the edge of the room, right in front of the banquet tables. "If there are no objections, I would like for the duel to commence immediately."

    Stuart himself took his place at the golden-plated chair that resembled a king''s throne, relaxing in the huge seat as he propped both hands on the armrests. As I suspected, he looked more like a modern-day monarch than a corporation president. His vanity and desire to play king never ceased to amaze me.

    The old patriarch even had a box of people sitting on either side of him, giving them the appearance of nobles at court with their king. Even though the servants were the ones leading them to their seats, I was sure that the men and women closest to Stuart were most likely high-ranking executives or leaders of other corporations and great families.

    I glanced around and caught sight of Alicia and Adrian seated further back, around the corner of the room. For some reason, Cecilia had opted to join them instead of sitting next to her father. I guess she found the whole display ridiculous as well, and wanted no part of it.

    I didn''t blame her. I would feel embarrassed at this middle school second year syndrome if I were in her shoes.

    Taking a deep breath, I swung my sword to prepare myself, and perhaps ease my nerves. In contrast, Franklin looked completely relaxed.

    "Lord Stuart," he began while leisurely leaning against his side of the arena. "I would like to state my request, if that is fine with you."

    "Hmm?" Stuart raised an eyebrow.

    "You said you''ll grant us any request if we win," Franklin reminded the older man. The patriarch nodded.

    "Indeed I did, but only if you win. The outcome has yet to be decided, and the two of you have yet to fight."

    "I apologize for my impatience, but I hope you don''t mind if I have everyone serve as witnesses to my request. And also, to ensure that I am not asking the impossible." Franklin smiled. I suddenly understood what he was trying to do. If Stuart agreed to his request here and now, there was no way he could take back his word if Franklin won. Not after he made a promise in front of so many people. The cunning bastard''s grin grew. "Plus it will also serve as a huge motivation for me to win the fight."

    Stuart regarded the young man for a moment, and then nodded.

    "Very well," he conceded. "Name your request."

    "If I win, I would like you to name me successor to the Stuart Corporation, and grant me 55% of the company shares."

    Shocked gasps echoed throughout the huge room as the guests and party-goers murmured at the bold request. This wasn''t just a simple wish for monetary rewards. Franklin was seeking to cement his status and wealth as soon as possible and monopolize the Stuart Corporation under his rule. Perhaps he even meant to subordinate the Stuart Clan under his Franklin Clan or merge the two great families. The political implications if this went through would be immense and world-changing.

    "If I win, of course." Franklin quickly qualified, raising his voice to be heard over the outraged whispers and diatribes from the spectators. "If this request is unreasonable, then I do not mind changing it. I understand that I am asking for a lot."

    Stuart considered his words for a few moments, and then finally nodded in consent.

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    "I don''t see why not," he said carefully. "When you marry Cecilia, you will inherit the Stuart Corporation and become its future president anyway. I do not see any harm in giving you a monopoly over the company shares. It will just be sooner rather than later." He smiled. "But that is assuming you do win, of course."

    "Yes, I understand."

    Even as he said that, Franklin''s eyes sparkled confidently and arrogantly. He had no doubt that he was going to win this match. He was already anticipating his prize and making plans for his future reign over the Stuart clan, their wealth and holdings.

    "What about you, Tomoyuki?" Stuart turned to me. "Since Shawn has named his prize, it is only fair that we hear out your request as well."

    "Huh? Uh¡­um¡­"

    Caught off guard, I stammered for a moment until my mind finally kicked itself into gear. Taking a deep breath, I shook my head and blurted out.

    "I am sorry, but I do not believe that I have any requests at the moment. Perhaps if I win, I will think of a request then. It is meaningless to make a request when I haven''t achieved any victory yet. I would prefer to focus on the battle instead."

    "Ha ha! Well said!" Stuart chuckled. "Then I''ll eagerly await your answer after the duel!"

    "Don''t worry," Franklin assured me confidently in a low voice. "You don''t need to trouble yourself with thinking of what sort of request you should make. It won''t matter eventually because I''ll definitely win this match."

    "Gee, thanks," I retorted sarcastically. "I hope your words are sweet, because I''ll make sure you''ll be eating them. Off the floor."

    "What¡­"

    I ignored him and swung my sword, my mana rippling across the blade. As fragile as it was, it would have to do. I had trained with wooden swords in my dad''s dojo. Surely a sword made of metal shouldn''t be that bad¡­

    "Well, then." Stuart''s deep voice boomed across the room, cutting Franklin''s curses and swearing off. "If there aren''t any further problems, then allow us to begin!"

    He glanced at the both of us, and I nodded.

    "I am ready."

    "I am keen to start as well," Franklin said at the same time.

    "Very good! Let the match commence!"

    The president of Stuart Corporation signaled to one of his servants, a tall, dark man in a tuxedo who was standing next to a bell. The butler nodded, picked up a gong and smashed it into the bell with a thunderous clang.

    The match had finally begun.

 118 Chapter 118: The Duel

    I had to say, Lionel Stuart certainly had a flair for the dramatic. Who the fuck ordered a damned bell and metallic gong to be placed inside a party room and use it to signal the start of a match!? The bastard really had much more money than he could spend.

    Unfortunately, I didn''t have the chance to make any sort of retort. As soon as the bell rang, Shawn Franklin immediately sprang into action. Sprinting across the arena, he slashed his sword down with all his strength.

    He sure as hell didn''t waste any time. Watching his movements warily, I managed to parry his attack with relative ease. Despite having successfully defended against his strike, I knew that he wouldn''t be done with only this.

    I was right.

    Franklin initially increased the pressure of his sword, bearing down on me, but I stood my ground firmly. Realizing that he couldn''t overwhelm me with brute force, Franklin swiftly switched tactics. His sword began to glow brightly.

    Without missing a beat, I broke off to disengage and retreat a little, but Franklin continued to bear down on me.

    "Die, you fucking commoner!" Franklin spat as he blasted a white arc of devastating energy toward me at pointblank range.

    Commoner? Really?! What kind of stupid insult was that?

    Unfortunately, I didn''t have the luxury of mustering a retort. I blocked Franklin''s attack with my sword, but the energy blast unsurprisingly detonated upon contact, instantly enveloping me in a white cloud of smoke.

    As much as I wanted to evade that, I simply couldn''t. I suddenly realized why Franklin closed the distance between us and unleashed his attack at pointblank range. He was cutting off my path of retreat and making sure his attack landed!

    Smart fella¡­

    Coughing, I staggered out of the smoke, only to barely see the whistling blade swinging toward me in time.

    Twisting my body, I managed to avoid the tip of the blade by mere millimeters. Jumping away, I quickly raised my sword up to block several consecutive slashes. I managed to force his blade away several times, but he relentlessly resumed his attacks to pressure me further. Eventually I succeeded in throwing him off my tracks and putting a good distance between my opponent and myself.

    However, Franklin mercilessly pressed on, refusing to allow me a breather.

    "Sword Flash!" he yelled as he thrust his sword toward me in a manner reminiscent of a fencer''s strike. At first I wondered why he was executing a thrust so far away from me, but the answer came in the form of a white bolt of energy that streaked out of his sword and hurtled toward me.

    "Yikes!"

    I dove out of the way in time. I could almost feel a buzz of energy as the bolt passed just millimeters above my hair and back, singeing the fabric of my dark blue jacket. The bolt of energy rushed past my dodging body and struck the wall behind me, cracking it a little.

    Rolling to my feet, I glanced at the wall and frowned in puzzlement. "That attack should have done much more damage," I remarked, bewildered.

    "S¡­shut up!" Franklin roared, slashing at me.

    "I meant no offense." I parried his enraged blow rather easily. "What I meant was that, given your strength, you should have been able to destroy the wall completely."

    "What do you know about me?!" Franklin snapped furiously, relentlessly delivering slash after slash, and forcing me into the defensive.

    I sighed. Despite his pure-blooded, upper class lineage that he loved to brag about, his intelligence was obviously inferior to mine. "Perhaps you misunderstood, which I should have expected, given your obvious lack of intelligence, but I am saying that the lack of damage that resulted from your attack was no fault of yours. If I''m not mistaken, it is the low quality of your supposedly ''elegantly crafted'' weapon that is restricting your real power."

    "I don''t need to waste a high quality weapon on a lowly opponent like you!" Franklin spat vehemently, completely missing the point. I could literally see the point of my deduction fly over his head. "Demolition Strike!"

    His sword exploded with energy. Mana poured out of his blade in streams and slammed into me before blowing up. Stumbling backward from the explosion, I did a quick check on my wounds. Just as I suspected, they were very light.

    I was still all right, even after taking a direct hit from Franklin''s technique. It meant that my deductions were correct.

    The ornately designed weapon seemed to be limiting his power. I was merely stunned, but otherwise I was unscathed. What scared me was that if Franklin had been using a better weapon such as a proper Divine Device, I might have died from that attack. Of course, I would have blocked it instead of directly taking the blow just to test my hypothesis, but that was beside the point.

    It dawned on me that Stuart had chosen to give us such horrible weapons for a reason. He didn''t want either of us dead. The old man appeared to harbor at least some affection for the both of us.

    How thoughtful of him, I thought sarcastically. With a sword of such dubious quality, we could be hacking at each other the entire night and neither of us would be wounded. It was sharp enough to cut, of course, but not sharp or strong enough to hack an entire limb off.

    "What''s wrong with you?" Franklin demanded as he leaped down upon me, swinging his sword downward in a vicious arc. I deflected it with my blade and looked at him questioningly. He seethed as he struck again. "You have only been defending yourself from my attacks so far. Why aren''t you attacking back?"

    I shrugged flippantly. "Probably because if I did, the match will end much earlier and we won''t be able to put on an entertaining show for Lord Stuart."

    "Don''t be so arrogant!" Franklin bellowed, repeating his merciless and desperate attacks. I chortled, not wanting to hear that from him of all people.

    "Are you serious? I''m being arrogant? Have you looked in the mirror recently?"

    "Shut up! I will fucking kill you!" Franklin yelled as he slashed his sword down ferociously. I blocked it again and shoved him back.

    "Neither of us is going to get killed today," I said with a weary sigh. "Not while we''re using these weapons, anyway."

    "A weapon is only as good as its user, you fucking idiot!" Franklin shouted defiantly as he closed in for another attack. "I should have known a commoner like you would only know how to babble nonsense!"

    "That''s only true as long as your opponent is nothing but fodder," I corrected. "But the quality of your weapon does matter. Between two equally matched combatants, the one with the superior Divine Device will definitely hold a decisive advantage. And while a master can probably cut down a much weaker enemy with a blade of grass or inferior weapon, if he is too strong, his weapon will crumble under his own power when he fights a sufficiently formidable opponent."

    "What does a lowly commoner like you know about swords?!" Franklin demanded furiously as he struck at me again with an attack that I easily parried. I was getting increasingly annoyed by his fixation with calling me a lowly commoner. Well, he wasn''t wrong, but he was making it sound like it was a bad thing. It wasn''t as if his pure blood and upper class lineage made him stronger or smarter than me. Quite the contrary, actually.

    "To be honest, plenty enough," I grumbled, shuddering at the memories of training in my dad''s dojo. "My dad has been drilling me with swordsmanship techniques everyday for about over three years now."

    That remark caught him off guard. "Who is your father?"

    "Huang Shun Yin." I shrugged. "Dunno if you''ve ever heard of him."

    From Franklin''s initial blank expression, it seemed he hadn''t. He snorted, and then his face contorted in fury.

    "You''ve only been learning swordsmanship from a nobody, and you still dare to lecture me on the sword?" Franklin roared. "Know your place, you filth!"

    "I would like to interject here for a moment." Stuart''s face was grave as he stared hard at the frothing and foaming Franklin. The both of us paused for a moment to turn toward him. "I personally know Huang Shun Yin, and he is a mercenary and reputable magician who is held in very high regard by anyone in the combat profession. Even the military respects his skill. I didn''t think there would exist a mage who remains ignorant of the legendary Angel of Fire, but I will not tolerate any disrespect toward a man who has given everything to serve and defend the Global Federation."

    "My¡­my apologies, Lord Stuart." Franklin looked suitably chastened.

    Inwardly, I scoffed at him. Calling Dad a nobody? He deserved to be called out for it and humiliated in front of everybody. Serves him right. If I could laugh right there and then, I would, but I couldn''t afford to give in to such childish impulses. Not in the middle of a duel, in front of so many adults. They would think I was insane.

    And that would reflect badly on Dad.

    "You may resume fighting." Stuart realized that he had interrupted us in the middle of a match, and he raised his hand to motion for us to continue. His face still burning with shame, Franklin spun toward me, his rage building in his gut.

    "It doesn''t matter if you''ve learned swordsmanship from the Sword Saint himself¡­only three years of practice and you think the likes of you can compare to me, who has been honing my skill with the sword for almost my entire life?"

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    "For looking down on someone who has only learned swordsmanship for three years, you don''t seem able to beat me even after using a few of your magic techniques," I pointed out as I struggled to hide my amusement.

    "Who says I can''t beat you?!" Franklin screamed as he lunged at me again. Typical arrogant young master. And here I thought they only existed in wuxia and xianxia novels. "And I haven''t used all of my magical techniques yet!"

    "Because your sword wouldn''t be able to take it if you did," I remarked offhandedly.

    "SHUT UP!"

    I sighed as I blocked the next blow again. His arrogant attitude was beginning to piss me off. I wanted nothing more than to smash his skull in and force him to eat his words, but despite his arrogant and short fuse, Franklin was remarkably skilled. He had been pressuring me this entire time, not allowing me to use any of my spells.

    Furthermore, I was secretly casting my summoning spells in the background and holding my Constellation spirits in reserve. Since Franklin obviously had the skill to cut my Constellation spirits apart if he wanted to, I couldn''t carelessly summon them to their deaths. I needed a bit more information on his skills and techniques before I committed my spectral allies to the battlefield. I also panned on taking him by surprise with a huge summoning spell, if I ever got the chance.

    Mustering up my strength, I forced Franklin''s blade away vigorously and counterattacked with a thrust that was aimed for his heart.

    Surprised by my sudden change in tactics, Franklin could barely sidestep my attack. It was testament to his skills and reflexes that he was able to safely avoid my counter. Spinning around to evade, he responded with a backhanded riposte that I managed to deflect with my sword.

    "What, you finally got motivated to attack?" he sneered, moving back to track my movements with the lithe, graceful air of a predator. "But it won''t make any difference."

    I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes. "Do you so-called pure-blooded, upper class nobles fight with your mouths or your swords? You''ve been talking nonstop and spewing idiotic insults this entire time. Do you ever shut up? No one ever told you how annoying you are?"

    Then I suddenly realized the obvious.

    "Of course not. You''re the young master of the oh-so-great Franklin clan. Nobody dares to tell you to shut up. Nobody dares to honestly tell you how annoying you are, or how in love with your voice you are. They''re scared that your parents will fire them."

    "Don''t you dare talk about my parents with that foul mouth of yours," Franklin snarled. Blinded by anger, he seemed to falter a little, and I quickly capitalized on his mistake. Stepping in, I opened up with a series of strikes that forced him to fall back. To my surprise, he actually managed to fend every single one of my attacks off, his rage lending him incredible strength and reflexes.

    He really is the guy who defeated 10 elite mages in a row, huh? I thought, impressed.

    "You know nothing about my family! About my parents!"

    Franklin was hollering now, his enraged voice breaking into my thoughts. I had evidently touched a raw nerve. The handsome, blond "noble" was seething with fury at my careless remark and his already massive killing intent had expanded by several notches.

    However, he wasn''t the only one.

    "How rich," I growled, incensed by his sheer hypocrisy. "This coming from a guy who called my dad a nobody. So it''s all right if you insult my father, but it''s not all right if I talk about your parents? Don''t tell me it''s because you''re a pure-blooded, upper class noble and I''m just a lowly, filthy commoner. I''m sick of your bullshit."

    "Just shut the fuck up!" Franklin shrieked furiously. "I don''t want to hear a single word from that vulgar mouth of yours!"

    "Says the guy who refuses to shut up," I retorted defiantly. I enjoyed goading him. The angrier he was, the more prone he was to making mistakes.

    With a screech, Franklin swung his sword and unleashed another Sword Flash. At this distance, I could easily avoid it, but I didn''t. Instead, I casually slashed the energy blast apart with my sword, ignoring the dissipating mana that drifted harmlessly around me like a shower of pyrotechnics.

    Franklin stared at me dumbly, unable to wrap his mind around the fact that a "mere commoner" such as myself could actually fight him evenly.

    "How¡­?"

    "Dude¡­I don''t know if you''ve realized it yet," I reminded him with a smirk. "But I haven''t used any of my real magic spells so far."

 119 Chapter 119: The Duel II

    "That''s because a lowly commoner trash like you doesn''t know any magic spells at all!" Shawn Franklin scoffed. I raised an eyebrow at that. This so-called pure-blooded upper class noble was clearly deluded.

    I closed the distance between us and swung my sword at him in the same manner that Dad taught me. He deflected it easily and answered with a riposte, almost grazing my cheek, but I spun around and countered with a thrust that forced him further back.

    "Hah! To think you had the cheek to boast about learning swordsmanship in your father''s dojo with such a terrible level of skills! What exactly did your father teach you? Are you sure you''re learning correctly? Just randomly swinging a sword is not swordsmanship! It''s stupid violence!"

    He was careful not to directly insult my dad, especially after earning the ire from Lionel Stuart earlier, but his dig was clear.

    Sighing, I deflected his sword and stepped back. However, Franklin continued to press in, delivering several swift thrusts that would have pierced through me if I hadn''t parried all of them.

    "Why even bother fighting with such pathetic swordsmanship? You''re just embarrassing yourself with such a poor display."

    I sighed. "Honestly, I couldn''t be bothered participating in this match. I really am not interested in getting any request granted. If you want to be CEO of the Stuart Corporation and gain the majority of its shares that badly, you can have them. Originally, I thought of just putting up a show for Lord Stuart and letting you win."

    "What¡­?" Franklin blinked and faltered for a few steps, shocked by my revelation. I seized the opportunity to attack, but he brought his sword up and deflected my attack in time. Surprise turned into rage as he glared at me. "Then why the hell are you still putting up a fight for? Just surrender already, you pathetic commoner trash!"

    "You only have yourself to blame," I replied bitterly. "What did you think was going to happen, insulting and verbally abusing me like that? Do you really think I was just going to lie down and take them without fighting back? No." I narrowed my eyes defiantly. "Now that you have looked down on me, I cannot back down from this duel. My pride is on the line."

    "A useless commoner like you doesn''t need any pride!" Franklin screamed furiously. Hopping back, to put some distance between the two of us, he swung his sword in a wide arc. "Franklin Style: Royal Flush!"

    An extremely powerful wave of energy surged from his blade and lashed out at me.

    "What the¡­?" Stunned, I tried to dive out of the way. "That attack is on a completely different level from earlier!"

    The wave was too huge to dodge completely. I quickly rolled back to my feet and faced the oncoming onslaught. Gritting my teeth, I stood my ground and weathered the attack. Raising my sword, I sliced the incoming wave of energy with all my might.

    Kaboom!

    This time, I didn''t escape unscathed from the explosion. Blood dripped from multiple cuts all over my body and face. My blazer and shirt was ripped and tattered from the attack too. Damn, this suit was pretty expensive. Unfortunately, trying to afford a replacement was currently the least of my worries.

    "Royal Impenetrable Fence!" Franklin hollered from above me. Several dozen pillars of light descended heavily around me, surrounding me completely. Initially, I wondered what he was doing, or where he was aiming at.

    Wouldn''t it make more sense if he pulverized me with those pillars of light?

    Then, after a split second, I suddenly realized his intention.

    He was trying to trap me!

    "Divine Judgement!" Franklin bellowed from above as he thrust his sword forward to point the tip of his blade toward me.

    An enormous flash of light lanced toward me, unleashed from the ornamental sword. All around me, the brilliantly glowing Royal Impenetrable Fence began to shine brighter in tandem, reacting to the incoming attack.

    I began looking around and analyzing the situation quickly.

    It seemed that the Royal Impenetrable Fence was no ordinary fence composed from light magic. In addition to trapping an opponent, it most probably served to collect and amplify the offensive power of Franklin''s spells. By trapping the victim in a confined space, any attack within the Fence would result in a devastating explosion several times more powerful than Franklin''s usual attacks.

    I didn''t want to imagine the consequences of being hit by that attack. While it couldn''t possibly be worse than the magnitude of destruction wreaked by my Scorpio''s Antares spell, I wasn''t enthusiastic about spending another few days in the hospital.

    "Guess I have no choice," I muttered under my breath. "It''s a bit earlier than I expected, but I''ll have to summon you. Green Dragon."

    This was the spell I had been casting this entire time, which was why I hadn''t simply unleashed any magic techniques on Franklin, other than the usual physical enforcement spells universal to all combat mages. Unfortunately, I didn''t have time to summon the true Green Dragon, but I had been working on a truncated version that would summon a smaller version.

    A tiny Green Dragon materialized over my shoulder, looking more like a stuffed animal than a legendary, ferocious beast. What? You saw those chibi-looking Celestial Guardians in the cover of my web novel, didn''t you? Did you think they were all for show? Sooner or later I would be summoning them in their chibi forms.

    Green Dragon just happened to be the first one.

    Assuming a familiar stance, I nodded toward Green Dragon, who was drifting above my shoulder. "Please lend me your power."

    The tiny Green Dragon nodded and began transforming into a long wisp of green mana that swirled around my sword. A gigantic illusion of an intangible green dragon''s head materialized behind me as I raised my sword with both hands.

    In this chibi form, Green Dragon didn''t possess his usual potent spells and firepower. Instead, they were meant more to bestow upon me a portion of their powers and abilities. Tapping into Green Dragon''s arsenal of wood-element spells, I found one that suited my current situation.

    "Dance, my Sakura blossoms."

    The green glow suddenly turned into a pink aura, permeating the atmosphere around me. An unnatural wind began to whip across the arena, throwing up my messy hair. Out of nowhere, several thousand Sakura petals began to materialize and float around me, whirling into a pink tornado. Sucking in Franklin''s Divine Judgement, the pink maelstrom of Sakura petals spat the energy back at its owner before exploding into a shower of falling cherry blossoms reminiscent of a scene of spring in Japan.

    "ARGH!"

    Franklin was thrown back. Hit by his own attack (too bad it wasn''t amplified by his Royal Impenetrable Fence), he had no doubt taken substantial damage. He crashed into the wall behind him before plummeting to the ground in an undignified heap.

    I staggered out of the demolished Fence, panting. My sword had cracked from the exponential release of energy, but I still gripped it resolutely to ready myself for the next inevitable round.

    "Damn," I gasped as I breathed heavily. "If I wasn''t careful back then, I would have died."

    "Even if you are careful, I will still be able to kill you," Franklin spat vengefully as he rose to his feet unsteadily, spitting out some blood before wiping his mouth.

    "Says the dude who got hit by his own attack," I shot back, triggering several sniggers from the spectators. "And didn''t you claim that I don''t know any magic spells at all? Hmm? Then what was it that I just used?"

    "Shut up!"

    "Also, if you are able to kill me, how come I''m still alive? Are you going easy on me or something?"

    "I told you to shut up!" Franklin shrieked. "Hiding your magic like that¡­how despicable!"

    "Hiding my magic?" this guy was getting more and more delusional. "You seem to be mistaken. You just didn''t give me any reason to use my spells until that last attack of yours, that''s all."

    Franklin snorted as he slowly assumed a sword stance, holding his weapon in both hands as he glared hatefully at me. "You should never have held back. You should have used whatever spells you possess when you had the chance, because that was your only chance. Now you''ll regret not casting them because I''m not as merciful as you."

    "Neither are you as skillful," I muttered under my breath. If the guy thought I was holding back and didn''t realize I had spent the entire time casting this single spell, then he must really be some kind of idiot.

    "Shut up, you fucking commoner!" Even as he hurled abuse at me, I could see massive amounts of white mana swirling around him as he geared up for what seemed to be his final, ultimate attack.

    "Do upper class people curse and swear as much as you?" I asked sarcastically. "Or is are you an exception, Mr. Self-proclaimed Noble?"

    "Shut your fucking mouth, you filthy commoner! You¡­scum!"

    "You have a very limited vocabulary, it seems," I remarked as I stepped back to assume my own sword stance. Green Dragon''s verdant mana continued to envelop me. "And you do realize that a mere commoner is kicking your ass right now, don''t you?"

    Franklin flushed with fury, but he wisely didn''t take the bait. The first smart thing I had seen him do so far. Instead, he swung his sword and yelled, "Royal Flush: The King''s Ultimate Strike! Four Divine Aces!"

    The enormous amount of white energy congregated and coalesced into a single devastating beam of destruction before directing itself at me.

    "I thought you said there were four Divine Aces?" I commented dryly as I watched the single colossal beam hurtle toward me. Sighing, I stood my ground against my impending destruction. The green mana around me darkened and transformed into a ferocious black aura that whipped around me like a storm, blowing across my surroundings with a determination that was as fierce as mine. Raising my sword, I responded with a spell of my own. "The Hellebore Blooms in Spring."

    A whooshing sound filled the entire room as enormous amounts of black mana solidified into material flowers.

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    Thousands of black petals scattered across the room, obscuring everyone''s view. The petals clashed with the white energy and soaked up the massive amount of raw power.

    Boom!

    The black petals exploded into yet more petals. Despite being reduced in size, the growing numbers of tiny, razor-sharp petals scattered everywhere like small, deadly knives, slicing into anything living or non-living.

    Of course, I took pains to ensure that none of the petals reached Stuart''s throne or the boxes where the spectators were seated.

    Unfortunately for Franklin (and fortunately for me), he wasn''t among the boxes or near the throne.

    "Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!" He wailed in pain as he tried to defend himself from the inescapable onslaught of sharp petals, which mercilessly sliced into his skin and drew huge amounts of blood. If I had been able to use Green Dragon''s technique at full strength, Franklin would have been completely torn apart into unrecognizable ribbons of flesh and blood, but in order to preserve my sword, I had kept my technique in check and limited its output. Furthermore, I was not a murderer. I had no intention of killing the bastard, no matter how arrogant he was.

    No, seriously. I didn''t understand the readers. Do you seriously go around murdering your classmates or colleagues or bosses who insult you or just because they acted arrogantly? What the fuck was wrong with you? I only had one word to describe such homicidal people. Psychopaths. That''s what they were.

    I wasn''t going to risk getting arrested and locked up in prison for the rest of my life just to kill an arrogant idiot for insulting and looking down on me. I had a bright future ahead of me and I wanted to be a mercenary like Dad. Why would I jeopardize all that by indulging in some stupid impulse that readers were demanding for? Just what is wrong with you people? Your edge is making me bleed, like literally.

    Franklin thrashed around desperately, struggling to free himself of the deadly black petals. Falling to the ground on all fours, he gasped in agony and raised his head to glare at me.

    "You¡­you¡­what was that skill?"

    "I wasn''t sure the first time, but now I no longer have any doubts." A surprised voice boomed out from the opposite end of the room. "Isn''t that the Stuart Clan''s wood-element based swordsmanship? Where did you learn it from?"

    "¡­huh?"

    My jaw dropping, I turned to stare at Lionel Stuart in absolute bewilderment.

 120 Chapter 120: Successor to the Stuart Clan

    "Uh¡­no?"

    I was staring at Lionel Stuart in disbelief. What the fuck was the middle-aged patriarch trying to play at?

    "This is my very own magic¡­well, not exactly mine, but it belongs to my Green Dragon."

    The chibi Green Dragon reappeared and floated above me, growling¡­cutely. I mean, his current form looked like it belonged to a stuffed animal. Not exactly very convincing or intimidating.

    Stuart watched me, fascinated. "Really? Those wood-element spells look very similar to the techniques of my clan. The one you just used¡­Spring of Hellebore, and the one from earlier¡­Dance of the Sakura Blossoms, if I''m not mistaken¡­those are extremely advanced wood techniques of the Stuart Clan. Where did you learn them from?"

    "It''s just a coincidence, I assure you," I assured him while trying to suppress my irritation. "The element of my Celestial Guardian, Green Dragon, is wood. And so his spells are wood-based. It just happens to resemble your techniques, but I created them myself. By your logic, every wood magician must have learned their spells from the Stuart Clan."

    "The issue isn''t that you used wood magic. It''s that your techniques are extremely similar to the secret sword techniques passed down our clan." This time, Cecilia had joined in, rising from her seat as she explained. Folding her arms, she stared at me intently. "Forgive me, but it''s very difficult for Father and me to believe that this close resemblance is merely a coincidence."

    I pushed my glasses up my nose as I sighed. "I''m telling the truth. If you don''t believe me, then I don''t know what to say."

    "Where did you learn those techniques from?" Stuart repeated his question firmly. "I must really insist that you tell me."

    "I made them up myself," I replied stubbornly. "I don''t know anything about the Stuart Clan''s wood magic or sword techniques. Not unless either of you admit to teaching me your techniques, but that''s impossible, right?"

    Father and daughter glanced at each other, and then shook their heads.

    "This is the first time we''ve met," Stuart pointed out.

    "Other than that match all those months ago, I have never shown him any of my techniques," Cecilia said as well. "And we never really had a chance to encounter each other. It''s not me."

    "That''s because I didn''t learn it from anybody!" I exploded, a vein bulging in my temple. Just how thick were these people? "I just scraped together whatever skills I learned from school, combined it with whatever wood magic I read from books, and used my imagination to create Green Dragon and his wood spells!"

    "I hardly think Jing Tian Academy has the staff capable of teaching you such advanced wood magic," Cecilia remarked skeptically.

    "What books did you read?" Stuart asked, still not giving up. I paused for a moment, racking my memory.

    "Five Clover Mysteries by Woody Allen, The Essence of Wood Element by Elliot Wood, The Hidden Secrets of Forest Magic by Fred Forrester, and Encyclopedia of Hundred Flowers by Cassandra Flowers."

    "Ah. I personally know Cassandra." Stuart leaned back in his golden throne, nodding as he looked convinced. "Her book is an excellent one, and is certainly not one meant for beginners. But you''ve also read Wood''s Essence of Wood Element, which is the must-have book on basic wood magic for beginners, so I can''t say I''m surprised."

    "You can''t be saying that you seriously believe him, Father," Cecilia protested hotly. "We need to find out how¡­"

    "Are you saying someone from our family taught him, Cecilia?" Stuart asked. She hesitated for a moment, and then nodded.

    "We have to consider that possibility and track down who is leaking our clan''s techniques."

    "Even if there is, no one is leaking them to me," I snapped in annoyance. "I''m telling the truth. You can cast a truth spell on me if you don''t believe me."

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    Stuart raised a hand. "There is no need to go that far. I will take your word for it. You have no reason to lie. If you meant to keep the identity of your teacher a secret, you wouldn''t have displayed it right in front of me and my daughter of all people."

    "¡­that''s true," Cecilia conceded reluctantly.

    "But I must say¡­those wood spells are really impressive. It''s amazing that you can create such spells that resemble my clan''s ancient techniques so closely¡­techniques that have been secretly passed down my family for generations."

    "Bah!" it was Franklin. Apparently, he was agitated that everybody was focusing their attention on me and leaving him in the sidelines. "I hate to interrupt this conversation, but who cares if this lowly commoner has learned some wood magic or not. As long as the winner has yet to be determined, our match isn''t over."

    "Oh, but it does play a critical role," Stuart corrected him. "If Richard has mastered such advanced wood magic, then he has a much greater claim to becoming my successor. His techniques, while impressive, are still raw and flawed. If I personally teach him the Stuart Clan''s sword style, I''m sure he will reach greater heights, especially as a mage."

    Franklin seethed in frustration, but I quickly held up both hands.

    "I appreciate your sentiment, Lord Stuart, but I am unable to become your successor. I wish to follow in my father''s footsteps, and I have my own set of magic I wish to focus on." Green Dragon floated above me, growling silently. "My main theme is constellations, and not wood magic."

    "Ah¡­the ancient Chinese constellations from over millennia ago." Stuart nodded in understanding. "That explains your Green Dragon. And the Vermillion Phoenix and White Tiger you used against my daughter during your match against her."

    "Well, are we going to continue the fight or not?" Franklin demanded impatiently. I could see that he was getting desperate.

    "Oh, yes. I''m sorry for interrupting the both of you. Please go on." Stuart looked as if he had just only remembered that the two of us were in the middle of a duel.

    Franklin bowed in thanks before turning to face me. He grinned. "If all goes well, I''ll settle this match with my next attack."

    "Then do it instead of¡­telling me of your intentions?" I asked, confused. What idiot went and told his opponent what he intended to do or how he was going to attack during a match? Was he trying to get himself killed or something?

    "I don''t need you to tell me that!" Franklin''s face darkened in fury. The idiot really talked too much. Rearing his hand back, he began accumulating a large amount of mana into his sword. Waves of mana began washing across the room like tidal waves and surging toward him. "Franklin Ultimate Style: The King''s Ultimate Royal Requiem."

    He dashed across the room at superhuman speed, thrusting heavily with his sword. White, vicious tongues of energy lanced from his blade, slicing and tearing into everything that was in his path. They headed straight for me, predictably enough.

    "Green Dragon," I called out. My chibi Celestial Guardian nodded once, and then transformed into a serpentine strip of green mana that coiled around me and my blade. Raising my sword high, I then completed the casting of yet another new spell. "Ten Thousand Miles of Peach Blossoms."

    Suddenly, the air was saturated with pink fruits. The green and brown mana coalesced into rows of peach trees that stood on either side of me. Peach blossoms began drifting away from the branches, filling the air with a sweet scent. The white tongues of energy were sucked into the burgeoning peach blossoms, which swelled at a terrifying rate.

    The expanding peach blossoms then drifted toward a stunned Franklin. Try as he might, there was no way he could escape from tens of thousands of peach blossoms that surrounded him on all sides. I caught one last glimpse of his terrified face before the vibrant sea of peach blossoms engulfed both his vicious tongues of energy and their owner like a tidal wave, greedily swallowing them up.

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

    KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

    Franklin''s scream tore across the room as he unleashed every ounce of mana he had in him in order to break free from the sea of peach blossoms. The myriad of pink flowers and fruits were blasted apart and withered away as the force of the explosion ripped them apart.

    "Damn." I sighed in disappointment. "That Ten Thousand Miles of Peach Blossoms didn''t even reach a tenth of its original strength. If I could just use its full power, then he would never be able to overload them like that."

    A loud, splitting sound drew my attention to my sword. A huge chunk of metal had just fallen from the blade. Chipped and cracked everywhere, it seemed that my sword wouldn''t be able to withstand another spell. Despite my caution and apprehension, I was still unable to prevent the poor weapon from falling apart.

    "That was an interesting attack."

    Franklin stumbled out of the smoke and fell to his knees. Thrusting his half-broken sword into the ground, he leaned on it to prevent himself from collapsing. His entire body was red and bloody, with numerous cuts and bruises lining his face and arms. Even his suit was not spared, huge gouges and rips prevalent over the expensive fabric. I doubted that any professional tailor would ever be able to mend it. Despite his beleaguered state, Franklin continued to taunt me defiantly.

    "But is that all you''ve got?"

    Ignoring him, I tossed my ruined sword to the side. It struck the polished, marble floor of the arena and bounced off several times before finally laying still.

    "What is the meaning of this?" Franklin spat breathlessly. Panting, he struggled to his feet and pointed his blade at me. "Don''t tell me you''re giving up? So¡­you''re admitting defeat, aren''t you?"

    Wow¡­this guy was truly delusional, wasn''t he? I shook my head and watched in amusement as he sank back to his knees, unable to remain standing for even a few seconds.

    "Really? Is that what this situation looks like to you?" I tried my best not to laugh. "I''m the one standing while you''re the one on your knees. And you''re in a much worse condition than I am. So which of us do you think will win if this fight goes on?"

    Franklin gnashed his teeth in fury and frustration. "You''ve discarded your weapon. Isn''t that as good as saying you''re giving up? Even if you claim that you''re not giving up, then what the hell are you going to fight with now?"

    I raised both my hands in the air and grinned.

    "My bare hands will be more than enough to deal with the likes of you," I replied as I slowly strolled toward him, keeping my hands raised. "Noble."

    "Why, you¡­! Know your place, scum!" Franklin yelled. With a sudden explosive burst of strength, he jumped to his feet and lunged at me with his sword.

    I calmly waited for him to draw closer. Once he was within range, I reached out and grabbed his blade with my right hand. Squeezing the metal tightly while simultaneously casting a simple physical reinforcement spell, I increased the pressure of my grip¡­

    ¡­and shattered the blade.

    "W¡­what?" Franklin stumbled back, stunned from the impossible sight. "You¡­you¡­how¡­? This can''t be possible!"

    Ignoring the rambling "noble", I turned to Stuart and bowed politely. "If I recall correctly, Lord Stuart, you said that you wish to see our true abilities. Am I right in remembering so?"

    Stuart nodded. "Indeed, I did express my desire to see the true abilities of both of you. And the two of you have not disappointed me in that aspect. This truly has been an entertaining match."

    I smiled darkly and shook my head. "You haven''t seen anything yet. I mean no offense, but if I may make a request¡­"

    "Oh? What sort of request?" Stuart leaned forward, intrigued. I lowered my head respectfully.

    "If you do not mind, I hope you can lend Mr. Franklin a far better sword than the ones you gave us for this match."

 121 Chapter 121: A Proper Sword

    A hushed murmur of disbelief was running through the spectators as they stared at me as if I was an idiot. After all, what kind of moron requested for his opponent to be given a more powerful weapon? Wasn''t I shooting myself in the foot?

    I ignored them and continued to address a stunned Stuart.

    "I mean no offense, but the¡­uh, ornamental sword you gave us earlier wouldn''t do Mr. Franklin here justice. As you have seen, it has crumbled and cracked under his continuous use of magic, and thus he is unable to show us the true extent of his full strength. I would like to beseech you to give Mr. Franklin a sword of much better quality, one that matches his abilities."

    Lionel Stuart watched me curiously, his mind currently buried in deep thought. "That is indeed a bold request you are making. What about yourself? Would you also like a sword that can match your abilities as well?"

    I shook my head and grinned. "That will not be necessary. I presume you have watched a few of my matches prior to this. If so, you should be aware that I generally do not use a Divine Device during battle."

    "Interesting!" Stuart clapped his hands in undisguised interest. "It is true that I have yet to see any of the spells I have heard so much about. You might have impressed me with three wood techniques, but what I really want to see is your much-rumored Constellation magic." His eyes twinkled mischievously. "Just don''t blow my building up. It cost me a bomb to build it." he nodded and favored me with a smile. "Very well then, I''ll accede to your request. Shawn, you don''t have any objections to this, do you?"

    Franklin grinned arrogantly. "If the fool wishes to die facing my real abilities, then I will be more than happy to oblige him."

    "Do you really think you''re capable of killing me?" I snorted.

    Stuart nodded and beckoned Cecilia over. She exited the box and strode toward him.

    "Cecilia, go get an appropriate weapon for Shawn. Oh, and¡­" he beckoned Cecilia closer. She obediently approached him and allowed her father to lean over and whisper several instructions into her ear.

    "Yes, I''ll contact him, Father," Cecilia obliged. "I''ll also get Mr. Shawn an appropriate weapon as well."

    She vanished out of the room, the great doors sliding back and allowing her exit.

    "Do you have a death wish, fool?" Franklin asked me snidely. "If I was using a real sword, you wouldn''t even last one minute."

    I responded with a thin smile. "And how long do you think you''ll last if I was using my real summoning magic?"

    Franklin snorted. "It doesn''t matter what magic you have hidden up your sleeves. You''ll regret this."

    "Actually, I wouldn''t." I was telling the truth. "I''ve got nothing to lose. The worst that could happen is that I get humiliated in front of everybody, but it''s nothing life-threatening. I can live with a broken ego. You, on the other hand, will lose everything if I defeat you."

    "You¡­!" Franklin snarled.

    "How is your father doing?" Stuart took the opportunity to intervene before Franklin and I could squabble further. He was looking at me curiously. "I heard that he was deployed to flush out a terrorist organization that was employing some new weapon to artificially create Emergence events."

    "Dad is still out on the field," I confirmed. "It''s been about three weeks now. But given his abilities and experience, I''m not worried. Sometimes, Dad takes months to complete a mission, but he always succeeds, no matter what kind of objective he is tasked with."

    "That is true." Stuart laughed heartily. "The highly revered Angel of Fire is the stuff of legends. I''ve always wanted to meet him. When your father returns, send my regards to him. I''ve heard so many stories about him. He is one of the Heroes of the Federation."

    That was propaganda bullshit, and something Dad hated, but I tactfully didn''t tell Stuart that. I merely nodded.

    "If I''m not mistaken, in addition to summoning a Fire Angel, he is also a skilled swordsman. You said earlier that you learned your sword techniques from him?"

    "I did," I affirmed.

    "Excellent. Perhaps you will be able to carry on his mantle in future."

    Stuart then turned toward Franklin. "How about you, Shawn? How is your family doing?"

    "Oh, my father¡­"

    Uninterested in their conversation, I glanced at the spectators. Alicia and Adrian were still off to the back, watching me worriedly. Or at least, Alicia looked anxious. Adrian looked as relaxed as ever, as if he believed I would kick Franklin''s ass eventually. That it was only a matter of time before I won. In some respects, he really reminded me of Harvey Deng.

    The two of them should really come together and form an official fan club, except that there was no way I wanted such an abomination to exist, so I vowed never to give them that idea.

    However, Adrian suddenly twitched, and then raised his smartphone to his ear. He seemed to be conversing with someone on the other end of the call, nodding and sighing before hanging up and grimacing. Alicia asked him if he was all right, and he nodded, waving her concerns away with his usual candor. Catching my eye, he grinned and showed me a thumb''s up.

    I nodded and returned my attention to Stuart.

    The patriarch was laughing at something, but before he or Franklin could say anything else, Cecilia chose that moment to return to the room. The grinding gears of sliding doors announced her reentry, the heavy metal clanging noisily against the ground. Cecilia strode in confidently, bearing a long katana.

    I almost fell over from the mere sight of the Divine Device. No¡­it would be more accurate to perhaps label it a Demonic Device. Despite being a fair distance away from the sword, I could feel the immense power radiating from it.

    This sword is the real deal¡­ I thought nervously. Yet, at the same time, I was beginning to feel a twinge of excitement in my gut. The prospect of going up against a sword of such caliber was mouth-watering. I could only hope that Franklin wouldn''t disappoint me with all his bragging of being an elite, upper class swordsman.

    Franklin, too, was stunned for a moment, but he quickly recovered. He began staring at the katana hungrily. "L¡­Lord Stuart, this is¡­"

    "Yes." Stuart nodded. "This is the legendary sword, Ye Mo, fashioned by Ou Ye Zi several centuries ago. I believe this sword will not disappoint your abilities."

    Franklin immediately dropped to his knees and lowered his head to display his gratitude. "T¡­thank you, Lord Stuart. This is beyond anything I can repay you¡­"

    "I''m not the one you should be thanking." Stuart chuckled. "It was Richard here who made this request." He turned to me. "Are you sure you will be fine without a Divine Device of your own? Ye Mo is an extremely powerful and dangerous sword."

    "Forged by Ou Ye Zi, huh?" Apparently the legendary swordsmith hadn''t been forgotten despite the long ravages of history. His near mythical weapons had survived even to this day, in the 30th century. But I had never heard of Ou Ye Zi forging such a demonic sword. Furthermore, the original Ou Ye Zi was supposed to have lived during the Spring and Autumn period millennia ago, yet Stuart said centuries. Perhaps some other guy took on his name? That would make sense.

    The katana didn''t seem like the regular Divine Devices, but more of a prototypical. Yet it was in no way inferior to modern Divine Devices. It was an authentic demonic katana that radiated immense waves of killing intent and bloodlust, a monster that could only have been forged by a violent and insane swordsmith bent only on wreaking violence and unleashing death upon the world.

    Just what sort of person was this new Ou Ye Zi, and why did he even bother taking on the name of the legendary swordsmith from myth?

    However, I suppressed any desire I might have felt for a Divine Device of my own, and bowed deeply.

    "Thank you, Lord Stuart. But my sword has not been broken yet." I pointed at my discarded weapon. It was still lying in the corner of the arena, and remained in one piece despite its cracks and chips. The blade was broken beyond repair due to my overuse of extremely advanced wood spells from Green Dragon, but otherwise it should be able to handle one last technique.

    However, I had no intention of using it. Focusing my mana into my hands, I summoned my Gemini twin swords. Castor and Pollux materialized in a flash of light, solidifying in my grip and shining brightly against the golden background of the reception room.

    "If you''re fine with it, I would like to instead display my summoning spells."

    "Splendid! Splendid!" Stuart applauded, impressed. "Yes, that is exactly what I wish to see." Turning to Cecilia, he asked, "So what did Sir Gan Jiang and Lady Mo Ye say?"

    Cecilia nodded with a small smile. "They agreed to it. They said it will be ready in a few days. They''ll send it over immediately once they''re done."

    "Excellent." Satisfied, Stuart leaned back and turned his attention back to both Franklin and me. "Shall we continue, then?"

    "Yes," Franklin agreed, pointing Ye Mo at me. "Let''s resume the match. With a perfect sword like this, I''ll end the duel within one minute."

    I readied my twin swords in an offensive stance. "Oh, I''m so going to enjoy making you eat your words."

    Franklin''s eyes narrowed, but he didn''t come up with a snide remark this time. Instead, he immediately dashed toward me, his new sword flashing down upon me in a wide, murderous arc. Crossing my swords, I blocked his attack.

    To my immense surprise, both Castor and Pollux buckled and crumbled under the deadly blade. Gritting my teeth, I struggled to force Franklin back, but my Gemini twin swords didn''t seem to be able to withstand the attack any longer.

    "Oh well," I grumbled to myself. "I didn''t expect to use this so soon, but I guess I don''t have a choice. Castor! Pollux!"

    Twin waves of energy, one black and one white, illuminated my blades before leaping out of them and blasting Franklin at pointblank range.

    The "noble" was sent flying several meters away, leaving a trail of blood in the air. He crashed heavily onto the ground before letting out a grunt of pain.

    Groaning from the damage he had taken, Franklin struggled to his feet, blood trickling down his formerly white suit, fresh wounds opened up under the tears of the stained fabric. The remains of his expensive suit had almost completely turned red from his blood. Spitting out another glob of blood, he glared at me in shock.

    "What? Y¡­you! How¡­?"

    "Did you really not expect me to use any spells?" I asked, irritated. "Why do you think I requested a better sword for you in the first place? It wouldn''t be a fair fight otherwise. Especially since I don''t need a Divine Device to cast my summoning spells."

    Franklin continued to splutter in disbelief. "Even so, it''s impossible! You shouldn''t be this powerful!"

    "Says who?" I slowly approached him, twirling my twin swords. "What''s the matter? I thought you said you could end this match within one minute with that sword? Time''s nearly up, you know. Oh, and I also remember you telling me that a sword is only as good as its user. With such a perfect sword, you''re only able to display this much skill?"

    Normally, I wasn''t one to give over to gloating over a fallen opponent, and I should have just finished him off, but his constant insults and verbal abuse had irked me tremendously. I had allowed his arrogant attitude to get under my skin. Seriously, don''t tell me any of you guys wouldn''t gloat after being mocked and looked down upon for an entire night.

    However, that nearly proved to be a fatal mistake.

    "Franklin Style: Binary Thrust!" Franklin roared as he thrust his sword, Ye Mo, toward me. Thanks to me temporarily lowering my guard (to be fair, I had never been insulted and mocked this much before, so forgive me if I indulge in a bit of gloating), I wasn''t able to react in time when twin flashes of light shot out of his blade. I blocked them, but they pierced two holes through Castor and Pollux and penetrated my suit, ripping the skin underneath. I stumbled back, forcing myself to endure the pain and cursing myself for giving over to my childish impulses.

    Franklin''s attack had merely grazed my flesh, but if I had not blocked the attacked and reduced the impact, the twin flashes of light would have driven deeper into my body and cut through my internal organs.

    "That really is a dangerous sword," I remarked, eyeing Ye Mo warily.

    "Ha ha! Regretting it now?" Franklin guffawed in triumph. The idiot thought he had already won. "You should have requested for a better Divine Device too! Look at your current weapons! Just a few hits and they''re almost destroyed!"

    I glanced at the cracked and battered Gemini twin swords. "Well, Gemini was made for speed, maneuverability and offense, as well as ease of summoning. It wasn''t meant to withstand such punishment, so they''re actually the most fragile Constellation weapons I have in my arsenal. Too bad they''re also the lightest and easiest weapons to handle."

    Sighing, I tossed both Gemini twin swords at Franklin. They spun rapidly in an unpredictable arc before homing in onto their target like boomerangs.

    "You won''t beat me with a cheap trick like that!" Franklin yelled, raising Ye Mo to deflect them.

    "Of course not," I admitted.

    "What? When did you¡­?" Franklin was completely caught off guard when he realized I was already right in front of him. He instinctively swung Ye Mo down to slice me in half, but I parried it with Aquarius.

    "While Aquarius is several times stronger and durable, it really is too heavy and unwieldy in combat," I grumbled. "But I guess its power more than makes up for those drawbacks."

    "You¡­!" Franklin pressed down desperately, applying more pressure to force me back.

    "Aren''t you forgetting something?" I asked with a smile.

    "Huh?"

    Castor and Pollux slashed him from behind, drawing two fountains of blood from the screaming, undignified pureblooded noble. I seized the opportunity to hit him with a tidal wave from Aquarius, sending the defenseless, staggering swordsman splashing against the wall.

    Franklin slammed into the wall, completely drenched, before crashing facedown onto the ground.

    Overwhelming victory, even when he''s using such a strong katana.

    To humiliate him in front of his fianc¨¦e and future father-in-law like that, after all that bragging and insolently requesting for over half the Stuart Corporation''s shares, I almost felt sorry for him.

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    Almost.

    I casually stalked toward him, pointing Aquarius at the fallen elite.

    "Argh¡­argh¡­" Franklin was clutching his wounds and moaning in agony. He raised his head to look at me in fear. "Y¡­you¡­just w¡­who the hell are you?"

    "I believe Lord Stuart has already introduced me to you." I bowed curtly. "But I''ll say it again for your benefit. I am Richard Huang from Jing Tian Magic Academy."

 122 Chapter 122: Pride Comes Before a Fall

    "I wasn''t asking for your name or affiliation!" Franklin bellowed in fury.

    "If that''s the case, then why are you asking who I am?" I shot back, irritated.

    Franklin didn''t respond to that. Instead, he staggered to his feet and immediately attacked, taking me by surprise.

    "The Divine Art of the Franklin Clan: the 64 Consecutive Strikes!"

    "What¡­?"

    I wasn''t even given any time to muster a retort. Franklin''s sword flashed from every conceivable angle, penetrating my defenses and piercing into me. His blade cut through my flesh like hot knife through butter, sending several sprays of blood into the air and splattering them over the smooth, marble floor. Yeah, the floor of the arena was made from marble. Go figure.

    I staggered back, hard-pressed to keep up with his blows. As I expected, Aquarius was too heavy and unwieldy to defend adequately against a fast and nimble opponent. Additionally, Franklin wasn''t giving me enough time to even breathe. His attacks mercilessly came one after another in an onslaught of thrusts and slashes that flowed like a violent river.

    "Wow, now this is impressive," I murmured, impressed that Franklin was actually turning the tables on me. "You should have fought like this from the start¡­ouch!"

    Another strike landed, the thrust leaving a scrape on my cheek. I could feel warm blood trickle down my face.

    Yet, I could swear that the blade was so sharp that it was practically cutting me without even touching my flesh.

    However, the omni-directional attacks seemed to fade away after a while. Panting heavily, I staggered backward, only to see Franklin readying for what seemed to be the final strike of his technique. Unlike all the other attacks from earlier, this was a single, heavy blow. Copious amounts of white mana flowed into his blade, illuminating it with blinding holy light.

    Instinctively, I hastily jumped back to put as much distance between us as possible. Unfortunately, I didn''t realize that my action was futile.

    "The 64th Strike: Conclusive Execution!" Franklin bellowed, swinging his glowing sword down in a final, vicious attack.

    "What the¡­?" I choked in surprise as a bright flash of light leaped from his blade and crossed the distance in an instant, catching me full on the chest. His previous attacks had all been up close and personal, so I didn''t expect the final strike of this particular technique to be a long-ranged beam. Not to mention, its ferocious speed far exceeded anything I had anticipated. The tremendous impact knocked the wind out of me and sent me flying, blood spurting from my mouth.

    I finally slammed into the wall behind me, the impact cracking the concrete.

    This single strike is several dozen times more powerful than all the other attacks he used earlier! I realized, recalling every one of Franklin''s techniques that he executed when using the pathetic ornamental sword from before.

    "Kneel," Franklin ordered as he stepped in front of me, his sword flashing toward my throat. "And weep. Weep and beg for mercy, and I may spare your miserable life. You have no chance of winning."

    "Who are you talking to?" I asked as I whirled around behind him, swinging Aquarius for a lethal strike.

    "Wh¡­what?! When did you get behind me?" Franklin demanded as he quickly spun around. Stupid of me. I shouldn''t have spoken up, but given his skills and reflexes, I knew he would have reacted in time anyway, even if I had remained silent. To his credit, he managed to intercept my attack.

    "While you were talking to yourself," I replied, pulling my blade back and jumping several meters away. "The match''s not over yet."

    "Then I''ll finish it!" Franklin screamed defiantly. "Franklin Style: Royal Flash!"

    Before I knew what had just happened, a giant burst of white light blasted from his blade and slammed into me.

    "GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    Yes, that was me.

    I smashed into the wall behind me, which was actually quite far away, so you could probably estimate just how powerful that single attack was.

    "Ugh¡­"

    Forcing myself to my knees, I heaved painfully as blood dripped from my wounds all over my body. Behind me, the golden plaster that layered the wall was falling around me in flakes. We were demolishing the very expensive room in our fight, but right now that was probably the least of my worries.

    "Royal Strike!" Franklin bellowed as he descended upon me, his sword shrieking through the air and crying for blood. Reluctant to oblige the bloodthirsty katana, I rolled away and barely avoided his attack. His deadly blade left a crater in the ground where I was kneeling just seconds ago. I watched the destruction with wide eyes as I hopped backward.

    "Not yet!"

    Franklin twisted around with his sword, relentless in his pursuit. With a determined roar, he swung the katana in my direction even as I desperately retreated.

    "Franklin Style: Divine Judgement!"

    It was the same attack as the one he used earlier, only that this time it was several dozen times more powerful.

    And I couldn''t avoid his attack in time.

    The brilliant burst of white light rammed into me and exploded. Pain and blood burst across my entire body, but I bit down on my tongue to stop myself from howling out.

    I was thrown like a helpless and broken rag doll across the room. Crashing onto the ground heavily, I bounced feebly several times before finally coming to a stop. I lay unmoving, facedown in a pool of my own blood.

    "It''s over." Franklin turned to Stuart and bowed triumphantly. "I have won this match."

    "What are you talking about?" I asked as I got to my feet unsteadily. "I admit that you''re strong, but you still haven''t defeated me yet. Don''t decide things on your own." I sighed reluctantly. "Man, I really didn''t want to use this, but¡­"

    A golden light flashed all across me as golden streams of mana swirled around my body and created a huge whirlwind that swept across the room. I had finally completed my summoning spell that I had been trying to cast while Franklin pummeled me. The reason why I didn''t summon any other Constellation spirits was because I was saving up my mana and casting process for this guy.

    "I can''t believe you''ve forced me to get a little serious," I complained. The strong currents of mana whipped around me, throwing my hair and remnants of my suit into disarray.

    "W¡­what are you doing?" Franklin cried out. Stupid question. Obviously I was summoning something. I could tell that he was beginning to feel scared. Desperately, he assumed another sword stance and pointed his Ye Mo at me. "Franklin''s Full Hand: Royal Flush Deck Out!"

    Who names his techniques? I wondered curiously. However, before I could even begin to consider any possibilities, a massive white burst of mana hurtled across the room toward me, destroying everything in its path.

    Needless to say, another enormous explosion ensued.

    "Hah¡­hah¡­" Franklin panted, staring triumphantly at the devastated and empty scene before him. He began crowing. "I did it! I¡­really did it! I finally won!"

    "Didn''t I already tell you to stop deciding things on your own?" I snapped from behind him.

    "What¡­?" He spun around, completely taken aback. "Impossible! I just killed you! I just killed¡­!"

    "Watch your step," I advised as I pointed downward.

    Leo emerged from under Franklin, tossing him into the air. Franklin fumbled helplessly in the air, wailing and flailing with his sword in futility.

    "Leo," I instructed. The golden, majestic lion nodded at me as he anticipated my next order. "Regulus."

    A golden pillar of light burst out of the king of beasts. It struck the helpless Franklin, who was still spinning in the air, and detonated.

    "GEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

    That must really hurt. I was already wincing just from hearing him shriek in pain.

    To be fair, Leo was the Constellation spirit closest in power to my Celestial Guardians. I would even go so far as to say that he was on par with White Tiger. The two made great rivals. That was why it took me so long to summon Leo.

    Still, it was pathetic, really. I was using less than one-fifth of Leo''s full power so as not to kill Franklin, but he looked as if he was half-dead from that single attack. Again, I was not a psychopath, so I had no intention of murdering him in front of a large crowd. Yes, he was arrogant and got on my nerves, but who the fuck murdered people over such a trivial reason!?

    It wasn''t as if he killed my dad and raped my girlfriend. Seriously, if you guys are so bloodthirsty, go read Martial God Asura or something.

    I watched as Franklin hit the ceiling before plummeting back to the ground. He smashed into the golden marble, throwing up chunks of concrete and stone over himself.

    "You¡­you¡­monster!" Franklin hollered in both fear and fury, holding his face. It turned out that he had taken the full brunt of Regulus there. I sighed in disappointment when I realized I had failed to break his jawbone. It meant that he would still be able to talk for a while. Perhaps I should have used more than one-fifth of Leo''s power when casting Regulus, after all.

    Well, at the very least I seemed to have scarred his pretty face. Not that it mattered. Any basic healing spell would completely remove the scars anyway.

    "DIVINE JUDGEMENT!"

    This time, I faced down the oncoming torrent of light. Holding out my right hand, I intoned, "Scutum Sobiescianum."

    The Shield of Sobieski materialized in front of me. The massive blast of white mana slammed against the shield futilely before dispersing, the attack being rendered useless against its impenetrable defense.

    Franklin stared at me in disbelief. "No way¡­how¡­how¡­this is impossible¡­"

    "Stop spluttering and be a man," I snapped, disgusted by his whimpering. And this was the guy who looked down on me for being a low-class commoner. "If you''re going to panic every time something doesn''t go your way, you''re never going to win. Not that you ever had a chance in the first place."

    I suddenly realized the real reason for insults, gloating, bragging and mockery. Psychological warfare. If I could get under my opponent''s skin, he would inevitably make mistakes that he normally wouldn''t, and I could open up a bigger advantage between us. I wasn''t fond of indulging in such psychological warfare, but if someone used it against me, I had no qualms in using it right back at him.

    "I don''t need you to tell me that!" Franklin bellowed.

    Really? I sneered inwardly. Because you don''t look like you''re able to keep your cool.

    "Franklin Style: Royal Thrust!"

    A strong beam of light lanced from his sword toward me.

    I simply blocked it with Sobieski''s Shield. The light ricocheted off my shield and dispersed harmlessly. Moving Scutum Sobiescianum aside, I began approaching Franklin in a slow and deliberate manner. A smile crept across my face as I closed the distance between us.

    "No¡­no!" Franklin backed away from me, shaking his head in denial. "Don''t come near me! Don''t come near me! Stay away!"

    "What was all that big talk earlier for?" I asked, revolted by his sniveling, cowardly behavior. "Are you really just a bag of hot air?"

    "S¡­shut up!"

    "So, are you giving up?" I asked, taking another step toward him. "Or should I continue attacking?"

    "Fuck you! I¡­I will never lose to a lowly commoner like you!"

    "Then what are you doing right now? You don''t look like you''re winning." Sighing, I shook my head in pity. Then I twitched my hands, and heavy metal chains materialized in them in an instant. "Chains of Andromeda."

    Throwing them at him, I sought to incapacitate him.

    "UWAAAA!" Franklin instinctively raised his sword to defend himself. Exactly as I planned. My Chains of Andromeda wrapped around Ye Mo before whipping across and binding Franklin''s limbs in thick, heavy coils.

    "Argh!"

    With his legs bound, Franklin toppled over in an undignified manner. He struggled desperately, but was unable to break out of his restraints.

    I squeezed the chains in order to apply pressure on the blade. As expected, the demonic sword held strong against the legendary chains that was said to have restrained a gargantuan sea monster.

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    "Ye Mo is a really strong sword," I observed, awestruck. "If it had been a normal Divine Device, the Chains of Andromeda would have snapped it cleanly in half."

    "You¡­you¡­MONSTER!"

    "At least you aren''t calling me commoner now," I taunted as I leaned forward. "What''s the matter? You were so confident before.

    "Fuck you!" Franklin spat. He continued to struggle, to no avail. Shaking my head, I proceeded toward him, backed up by Leo. The majestic Constellation spirit growled in an intimidating manner, which caused him to pale.

    "Do you give up?" I asked, pointing Aquarius at his exposed throat.

    "Who''s going to give up?"! Franklin snarled. I pressed the blade against his neck, drawing blood.

    "Then you''ll die, you know?"

    "That''s enough, Richard." I glanced up at Stuart. He nodded gravely. "You''ve won this fight¡­"

    "NO! NOT YET!"

    "?!"

    An explosion of mana from Franklin caused me to stumble backward. Deadly white mana coalesced around the blade of his Ye Mo and he cut through my Chains of Andromeda within seconds. Another swing of the demonic katana and my Aquarius was cleaved cleanly in half. I jumped backward, accompanied by Leo, as I tried to assess this new threat.

    "This is not over yet!" Franklin howled defiantly as he drew more mana into himself and infused his Demonic Device. "Elite Franklin''s Song: Royal Melody!"

    Ye Mo began glowing and humming with an eerie melody. Without any hesitation, Franklin kicked off the ground and lunged at me with the pure, unadulterated intention to kill.

 123 Chapter 123: Trump Card

    I watched as Shawn Franklin dashed toward me, thrusting his glowing sword at my heart. The bloodthirsty blade sang eerily as it surged forward, pulsing with luminous green mana. It was completely different from all of Franklin''s other attacks.

    I had no intention of allowing myself to get stabbed by that.

    Jumping back, I dismissed my broken Aquarius and summoned Orion. Not wanting Leo to get stabbed by whatever disturbing technique that Franklin was now unleashing, I dismissed him as well. I had a feeling that the so-called noble would simply slice through Regulus even if I had Leo fire it upon him, so I decided to hold him back and try out other summoning spells. For now, I thought it wisest to keep my distance and fight from range.

    The black and brown bow materialized in my left hand, even as I was already fitting three arrows into it and taking aim.

    "Orion''s Belt!" I yelled, releasing the bowstring. Franklin''s sudden speed and ferocity left me little time to cast Betelgeuse or Rigel, so Orion''s Belt was the only spell I could conjure at the moment. The three glowing arrows streaked toward Franklin with deadly precision.

    "Franklin''s Royal Defense: Nine Division Fence!" Franklin shouted, aborting his attack and raising his katana in a defensive stance. He could have sliced through one arrow, maybe two, but with three swerving toward him from different directions, he didn''t want to risk getting hit by even one. Nine massive white shields of light materialized out of thin air and landed around him. The triple Orion''s Belt struck the shields and exploded but other than leaving smoke and black soot, it had little effect.

    Personally, I was amused that he conjured such a massive defensive spell to protect himself from one of my weaker ranged spells. Perhaps I should have just used Leo''s Regulus after all.

    "You know, I''ve been wondering about this for a while," I admitted. "But who names your techniques? Those are some of the lamest names I''ve ever heard."

    "I could say the same to you!" Franklin retorted.

    I just stared at him. "I''m just summoning Constellation spirits and weapons. Their techniques are all named after the stars found in their constellations."

    "Just shut up and die already!" Franklin hollered at me. Gnashing his teeth in frustration, he withdrew to prepare for another attack. "I''m going all out now!" he yelled out a warning. "Final Franklin Style: Dividing the Heavens!"

    He struck the ground, causing a massive tremor that shook even the boxes and the spectators seated within them. A fissure split open the marble floor even as hot steam rose out from it and consolidated into a tsunami of white mana.

    "Betelgeuse!"

    Taking a deep breath, I unleashed a hail of luminous arrows from my bow, thousands of them manifesting in reality. Taking aim, I bombarded the approaching tsunami of mana with a relentless barrage of blue arrows, the magical projectiles clashing ferociously with Franklin''s Dividing the Heavens and blowing up.

    Boom!

    The resulting explosion rocked the building.

    "Whoa." I stumbled around the violently shaking building, struggling to regain my balance. Dismissing Orion, I summoned Aquarius again and thrust the broadsword into the ground, leaning on it to prevent myself from falling.

    However, it appeared that Franklin was not suffering from the same problem.

    "Final Franklin Style: Vanquishing thy Foe with Thyself!" he shouted, rushing toward me. His katana was radiating dangerously dark waves of mana as it began singing a dreadful Perish Song.

    What a cheesy name.

    That was the first thought that came to my mind as I watched him approach. However, I snapped out of my stupor when I realized what Franklin intended to do.

    He was planning to take me down with him!

    "Are you out of your freaking mind?!" I hollered as I yanked Aquarius out of the ground and deflected the currently black sword away from me. Smoke began hissing from my blue blade as the black mana rapidly spread over it, causing it to rot away. Even worse, the corruption was spreading throughout the entire Constellation weapon, forcing me to toss it aside before dismissing it.

    What the hell was this technique?! I had never seen anything like it before!

    Twisting around, Franklin made a motion to stab himself. However, I could tell that his move wasn''t as simple as suicide.

    He was planning to stab me together with him. By spinning around, he had blocked his weapon from prying eyes and obscured my view of where his sword would come from, but he planned on piercing his demonic katana through his body and stabbing me from an unexpected direction.

    "Have you gone fucking nuts?" I snapped at Franklin. Summoning Gemini in an instant, I slashed his left arm, almost severing it at the elbow. Franklin recoiled from the pain and instinctively stepped back. I sighed at relief at being able to force him to stop.

    "I¡­I can''t go back now!" Franklin gasped desperately as he turned to face me. "I''ll take you down with me!"

    In a sick, twisted way, I could understand why he was resorting to this. He had everything to lose. He couldn''t afford to lose this match, or everything that he had worked so hard for would go to waste. Being humiliated in front of his future father-in-law like this, Lionel Stuart might annul the engagement after such a pathetic display. After bragging and boldly requesting for 55% of the corporation shares and being named successor, his name would be driven into the mud after losing so spectacularly. Nobody would ever be able to take him seriously again in the future.

    Too bad. I honestly couldn''t give a fuck about his predicament.

    You can go die by yourself, I thought coldly. I would have let you win if you didn''t insult me. If you didn''t look down on me and mocked me and my dad. Too bad. Now I''ll make you pay by taking everything away from you.

    I was going to savor the feeling and triumph of utterly destroying his reputation. And if his engagement got annulled? Well, serve him right.

    Despite his left arm now bleeding profusely and dangling uselessly by his side, and the agony he must be feeling from the numerous wounds all over his body, Franklin never relaxed his grip on Ye Mo. His face pale and sweaty, he raised his remaining arm for one final attack.

    "Final Franklin Style: The King''s Ultimate and Royal Requeim," he whispered, his voice filled with both determination and pain.

    I recognized similar traces from the move he had used earlier. However, this time, his Royal Requeim was on a completely different scale and level.

    The black, vicious tongues of mana danced wildly, licking up everything unfortunate to get in their paths. I quickly jumped away, but was forced to defend myself from a stray tongue of energy, blocking it with my twin swords.

    I managed to withdraw to a relatively safe distance, but Gemini had been corrupted. Shrinking back in horror, I was forced to discard them. Looking back at Franklin, I watched in horror as a nearby carpet was corrupted. Its rich, red color instantly turned black and its lush material rotted away into nothingness.

    It was the same end for everything else, whether it was concrete rubble, paintings, marble, or furniture.

    At the back of it all, Franklin was barely standing upright. The agony was visible on his face, the attack draining his vitality. It was no wonder. An attack of this magnitude was sure to have a backlash on its user.

    And even though he wasn''t affected yet, it was only a matter of time before the tongues turn on him and devour their owner.

    I had to prevent that from happening. Honestly, while I wasn''t obligated to save his life, if the controller of this spell died, there wouldn''t be anyone capable of controlling and stopping it. This was the sort of spell that would continue to rampage and grow even long after its caster was dead. At least, if I incapacitated Franklin at this early stage, I might still have a chance of halting the devastating spell in its tracks.

    "This has gone too far," I declared. "Is victory really that important to you?"

    "Shut up!" Franklin snapped, but his voice was strained. "What could a commoner like you possibly know about victory and honor?"

    "You shut up!" I retorted, losing my patience. "Look around you and the effects of your fucking spell! Does this look like victory to you? Honor?! Have you ever considered what would happen if your spell goes out of control and attacks the spectators?"

    "Lord Stuart and Sir Yuan Dao will step in to intervene before that happens," Franklin replied confidently. "And you''re in no position to worry about others. You''ll die before anyone else is affected."

    Sure enough, neither Stuart nor Yuan Dao Yue Guang was making any move. If the security chief, whose job was to protect Stuart, didn''t think there was any danger, then there most likely wasn''t. He probably had his own form of countermeasures against a spell of this magnitude, though I couldn''t imagine what it was.

    As for the rest¡­well, Franklin had a point. I would die before the spell reached the others. Glancing at Alicia and Adrian, I saw that they were near the exit. At least they would be able to quickly escape if the Royal Requiem grew out of control.

    "Oh, thanks for the consideration."

    Glaring at Franklin, I forced myself to stay calm. The only option I had left was to defeat him before his ultimate technique went out of control. But using any of my Constellation magic, especially the long-ranged ones, would undoubtedly kill him.

    Perhaps I should consider just killing him, after all, but I knew that wasn''t practical. Murdering someone in front of so many eyewitnesses would ruin my future. I would rather spend my adult years exploring the world and participating in missions to exterminate monsters than serving a life sentence in prison for manslaughter. Sure, I could claim that it was self-defense, but with Franklin''s background, his lawyers would surely accuse me of using excessive force and all that bullshit.

    Looked like I really didn''t have a choice.

    Glancing around, I desperately searched for an alternative, but I couldn''t see anything except for the flicking black tongues. The tongues were creeping toward me now, seeking me out as if I were some helpless prey to be devoured. Pretty soon, they would be able to engulf the whole room, including the boxes of spectators and Stuart himself, before eventually turning on their owner and consuming him. Again, Stuart and the spectators didn''t look troubled, and the security chief was still on standby, so it appeared they thought they had everything under control.

    Not that it was going to help me much.

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    Just when I thought all hope was lost and I was resigning myself to killing Franklin after all, his family lawyers be damned, I spotted my cracked and ruined ornamental sword lying a few meters away from me. The one Stuart originally gave me at the start of my duel with Franklin.

    A sudden idea flared in my head. If I could grab that sword, then there was this technique that I could try. I had just barely managed to learn it in the last couple of days before this engagement party, but I was confident that I would be able to pull it off.

    "Green Dragon!"

    While summoning my fourth Celestial Guardian, I dove toward the sword. Weaving in and out of the whipping black tongues, I carefully made my way toward the sword. Grasping the heavily decorated hilt, I snatched it up and turned to face Franklin.

    "Green Dragon," I repeated, and the chibi Celestial Guardian drifted over my shoulder with a nod. He transformed into a wisp of green mana and shrouded my blade as I raised it and prepared for my ultimate wood technique. "Blossom, Hundred-Colored Flowers."

    The broken blade glowed green before exploding.

    Dozens of vines burst from where the blade used to be, snaking around and shooting across gaps between the black tongues. Surrounding Franklin, they lashed put and curled around him, coiling and binding his entire body and all four of his limbs.

    Shocked, Franklin tried to struggle out of their intense grip, but his attempts were all ultimately futile.

    "What¡­" he gasped, perspiring profusely. "¡­is this?"

    "It''s no use," I replied turning away.

    "Huh?" he desperately looked toward the direction I was facing, befuddled when he saw there was nothing there.

    I jerked my head toward the vines. "Look," I told him.

    What appeared to be thorns on the vines were beginning to grow, enlarging to a familiar bulbous shape.

    "That''s your mana in there," I explained, averting my gaze in an attempt to annoy and frustrate him further. "Those flowers bloom as they steal your mana. Any mana you use will go straight to them."

    The black tongues were fading away, being sucked and drawn into the blossoming flowers on my vines. Hundreds of different flowers, each and every one having a different color were beginning to open up and bloom, their soft petals tasting the delicious air. The space across the room was filled with so many vibrant colors, the huge variety of shades making the scene appear surreal.

    Hence, its name Hundred-Colored.

    "Do you get it?" I asked as I raised my head to finally meet Franklin''s gaze, only to see his incredulous expression. The self-proclaimed noble still didn''t believe what was happening to him. "When those flowers bloom¡­it''ll all be over for you, Shawn Franklin."

    "D¡­" Franklin spluttered as he continued to struggle with even more frustration and frenzy than before, but to no avail. "DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMNIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!"

    I could only turn away again as the myriad of so many different flowers on my vines, each sporting a different color, bloomed completely.

 124 Chapter 124: The Victor

    I watched as Shawn Franklin collapsed, the black mana swirling around him completely drained away into my flowers.

    My vines loosened and curled away, fading back into my sword. The blade shattered completely and fell, peppering the floor with tiny shrapnel. The green mana that wreathed it dissipated and reformed into the chibi Green Dragon, who chose to hover above my shoulder. I nodded at my Celestial Guardian before turning my attention back to my broken sword.

    Looks like this sword has finally reached its limit, I thought to myself. As expected, it could only last long enough for one final technique.

    A single blue flower, a hibiscus, floated along the air, one among many as a rain of vibrant flowers drifted leisurely across the room. The spectators watched in wonder, admiring the scenery. Meanwhile, I stretched my hand and caught the hibiscus, allowing it to fall onto my palm.

    "Now it is truly over," I declared quietly as I absorbed the mana from the flower. "I''ll help myself to a bit of your energy."

    "Y¡­you¡­" Franklin''s weak voice barely reached my ears.

    I turned to look at him.

    "It¡­it isn''t fair," he croaked, still lying on the ground. "That you were hiding something this amazing."

    "That''s¡­that''s the final stage of Stuart Swordsmanship, isn''t it?" Lionel Stuart demanded, his booming voice echoing through the devastated reception room. I could see that he was visibly shocked. "Hundred-Colored Flower Bloom? That''s the ultimate technique of my clan''s Stuart Swordsmanship!"

    I shook my head. "No," I corrected quietly. "This isn''t your Stuart Swordsmanship''s ultimate technique."

    "What are you talking about?" Cecilia shot out of her seat to glare at me. "That is definitely the final and ultimate technique of Stuart Swordsmanship! How did you learn it?!"

    "I already told you, it''s not," I snapped irritably. "I created this technique on my own, in conjunction with Green Dragon''s powers. I was also inspired after reading a manga and watching its anime adaptation. It has nothing to do with the Stuart Clan."

    "Stop lying! You definitely stole our techniques from somewhere!"

    "Now, now." Stuart raised his hands to calm his daughter down. "Now that I look closely and analyze the traces of mana left, I see that Richard is correct. There are quite a lot of differences if you watch closely enough. If I have to say, it''s an imperfect version of our clan''s technique, which is already impressive enough, considering that he created this technique on his own from scratch."

    "You can''t possibly mean to believe him¡­!" Cecilia exclaimed.

    "If he truly learned it from someone from our clan, I do not think there will be this many discrepancies." Stuart frowned. "The execution differs too much for someone to have taught it to him. The mana flow is all wrong. If someone from our clan really taught it to him, they must have botched it¡­but I find it difficult that they would mess it up to such an extent."

    "But¡­"

    "Well then¡­can you think of anyone other than us who have mastered Hundred-Colored Flower Bloom and is capable of teaching it to an outsider? From my knowledge, we are the only ones who have learned Hundred-Colored Flower Bloom."

    Cecilia fell silent, unable to come up with a reply. She lowered her head bitterly.

    "Well, whatever the case¡­" Stuart paused and nodded at me. "It appears that you have emerged the winner, Richard Huang."

    I bowed humbly. "Not at all. It was a terribly difficult fight. Mr. Shawn Franklin has proven himself to be a formidable opponent."

    "Yes, he has," Stuart agreed absent-mindedly, his eyes wandering over to his future son-in-law. "It appears that he won''t be getting the 55% shares of my corporation, after all." He chuckled. "You''ve taught him a well-deserved lesson in humility."

    "Uh¡­that wasn''t my intention."

    "Nonetheless, that was still a splendid display. I thank you for it." he turned to Cecilia. "Call Doctor Yi. Ask her to check on these two''s wounds."

    "Understood." Cecilia was already raising her smartphone to her ear and dialing the relevant number.

    "I don''t need any treatment," Franklin muttered under his breath, still sprawled on the ground.

    "I think his pride is hurt worse than his body," I remarked. Stuart chortled.

    "Indeed. I hope this will serve as a lesson for him to never underestimate or look down on others again."

    Now that the duel had concluded, the spectators were dispersing, leaving their seats in the boxes and returning to the banquet tables. A few of them gingerly avoided the corrupted carpets and furniture that Franklin had destroyed during our match.

    I caught sight of Alicia approaching me. Initially I thought Adrian would accompany her, but he was approaching Yuan Dao Yue Guang for some reason.

    Meanwhile, Stuart was in deep thought, and he seemed to come to a decision.

    "Richard," he spoke up in his usual, deep voice. "You should be the one to marry Cecilia instead."

    "¡­excuse me?" I responded incredulously. Where did this come from, out of nowhere?

    Stuart was nodding fervently, completely ignoring my opinion on the matter. "You''ve proven yourself to be superior to Shawn. Your wood magic, in particular, is extremely close to my clan''s Stuart Swordsmanship. With a bit of teaching, I can polish your techniques and turn you into a fine swordsman. You''ve already surpassed most of my Stuart Clan members. Under my tutelage, you''ll become among the most powerful swordsman in the world. And I can see that you''re exceptionally bright as well. You''ll make a better successor than Shawn."

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    "Hell, no!" I shook my head and argued angrily. "This wasn''t what we agreed on! I am sure that Mr. Shawn Franklin has proven himself more than worthy to marry your daughter. And unlike me, he has the skills and training to succeed the Stuart Corporation. I''m just a regular guy with no financial background whatsoever!"

    Furthermore, I didn''t want to get involved with the Stuart Clan and all its inevitable politics, nor did I want to get trapped by a stupid marriage. My dream was clear. I wanted to be a mercenary like my dad and explore the world. I wanted to go around beating up bad guys and saving the innocents. I wouldn''t go so far as to say I wanted to be an ally of justice or superhero, but I wanted to follow in my dad''s footsteps.

    Running a damned corporation was going to impede my ambition.

    "You can''t be serious, Lord Stuart!" Franklin protested hotly. For once, I was in agreement with him. "You can''t actually be appointing a lowly commoner as your successor, and marrying your daughter to someone without any lineage or pure magician blood!"

    "That whole commoner, blood heritage and lineage thing has been outdated for well over a millennium now." Stuart regarded the fallen "noble" sternly. "I don''t care about his bloodline or class. I only care about results¡­about what I can see in front of me. And despite your boasts about your lineage, pure blood and status, you have clearly shown that you''re inferior to him in every aspect. Tell me, what use is your blood and family background when you have been so convincingly defeated by someone you mocked and looked down upon as a commoner?"

    Franklin found himself speechless.

    "That was just luck," I objected. "The difference between us was paper-thin. If I had made just one mistake, the victor would have been Mr. Franklin, not me. I only won because I took him by surprise and he underestimated me. If Mr. Franklin had been fighting seriously from the start, he would have won ages ago."

    "That''s bullshit and you know it." Stuart smiled thinly. "You''re obviously very talented. You''re smart, and your keen perception of wood magic alone is more than enough for you to lay claim to succeeding me. Not only have you defeated Shawn, you have also claimed victory against my daughter and prevailed over rank A monsters. Yet despite these qualities and achievements, you remain modest and down-to-earth. Do you really think I will let you go just like that? It''ll be difficult to find another heir as suitable and gifted as you. With you following my guidance, I know you will lead the Stuart Clan to greater heights."

    "Begging your pardon." Alicia chose that moment to step forward after finally reaching my side. She glared at Stuart defiantly. "But Richard is my fianc¨¦. You cannot just take him away from me like that."

    "The daughter of the Violet family." Stuart acknowledged with an insincere smile. "I am so sorry for snatching your fianc¨¦ away like this, but I will definitely compensate you for this. I hope you can indulge my selfishness."

    "This isn''t about selfishness, but¡­" Alicia protested hotly, but Stuart cut her off, his grin growing wider.

    "Perhaps I should remind you that the Violet family is nothing compared to the Stuart Clan. I know your family has some measure of prestige, but even so, trampling over the Violet family is as easy as turning a palm over for me. I apologize if I sound excessively ruthless, but please understand. There is no way I will hand over a rare prodigy like Richard to anyone, especially a rival family. Perhaps if you belong to one of the ten great families, I will think twice, but the Violet family is nothing compared to my Stuart Clan."

    This bastard¡­

    I was contemplating the option of fighting my way out, but I knew that even if I weren''t injured, I would still be completely outmatched. Even so, I refused to submit before the indomitable Stuart. Reaching out, I held Alicia''s hand tightly, a gesture that was not lost on Stuart.

    His expression softened as he studied the two of us. "If you really love that young lady of the Violet family, I don''t care if you take her as a mistress." He shrugged flippantly. "With our wealth and influence, it''s easy to keep such matters a secret from the public¡­"

    What the fuck was this megalomaniac talking about?

    Stuart continued smiling at me, and I could sense an immense pressure building from his body, a dense, suffocating aura of menacing mana. I felt Alicia squeeze my hand back even as I tightened my grip on hers.

    "I''m sorry, Richard. My decision is final. You will marry Cecilia whether you like it or not. I cannot afford to let someone of your caliber slip away from my grasp."

    I opened my mouth to argue, but somebody else beat me to it.

    "Lord Stuart, you BASTARD!"

    Alicia and I twisted around, completely taken aback by the sudden outburst.

    It was Yuan Dao Yue Guang.

    "What is the meaning of this?" Yuan Dao roared, his eyes bulging in fury "I''ve served you loyally for so many years¡­how could you betray me?!"

    "What are you talking about?" Stuart demanded. "Explain yourself, Yue Guang! We have important guests here!"

    "Shut up, you lying traitor!" Yuan Dao yelled, his face contorted and twitching in rage. "I¡­I¡­I''ll kill you for touching my wife! I''ll kill you!"

    The entire area around him seemed to shimmer. I stumbled back, completely caught off guard by the enormous amount of killing intent that radiated off him. Beside me, Alicia keeled over and I quickly caught her before she could hit the ground.

    I didn''t ask if she was all right. I couldn''t. At the moment, I was completely paralyzed.

    If I had thought the killing intent he directed at me in the elevator was incredible, I was completely mistaken. It was nothing, nothing compared to the ocean of murderous will he was emanating now. It was like comparing a grain of sand to the sea.

    Yuan Dao Yue Guang was on a completely different level.

    His power dwarfed Cecilia''s, even Instructor Feng Hai. It was much more potent than even my dad, who I had always believed to be the strongest, most powerful person I had ever met in my life. Of course, Dad had never shown me the true extent of his power, but I wouldn''t be surprised if Yuan Dao was on par with him, or even surpassed him.

    I fell back, trembling uncontrollably. Even though I was this far from him, I still couldn''t withstand his killing intent?

    The party attendees in the reception room were all dropping like flies, foaming in the mouth or unconscious, just like Alicia. None of them could even endure a second of Yuan Dao''s wrath.

    Yuan Dao bellowed, a bestial howl that could cause even the most ferocious of monsters to waver. Its very projection destroyed the concrete foundations of the room.

    Bounding across the room, the security chief went straight for his boss, screaming in uncontrollable fury.

    "B¡­bastard¡­" Franklin forced himself between Yuan Dao and Stuart. I was impressed to see that he actually retained his consciousness despite the murderous intent pouring off Yuan Dao in waves. "A filthy commoner like you doesn''t even deserve to stand before Lord Stuart."

    "GET OUT OF THE FUCKING WAY, YOU IDIOT!" I screamed, a fearful voice that tore itself out of my throat. I had never felt so afraid in my life before, and I knew that Franklin was no match for Yuan Dao at all.

    Franklin ignored me. "Final Franklin Style: Royal Apocalypse."

    His whole body glowed with dark, corrupting waves of mana that I had seen earlier. Ye Mo emitted the eerie, deadly waves to devastating effect, lashing out several dozen black barbed tongues at Yuan Dao. I was surprised that he still had the mana to pull off a devastating technique like that, especially after I had sucked all of his mana earlier. To my horror, I realized that he was recklessly burning his own lifeforce to activate the technique, a process that would irreversibly shorten his lifespan.

    The tongues wrapped around Yuan Dao, thrashing and whipping around him as they attempted to devour him.

    They had no effect at all. Those corruptive tongues that caused whatever they touched to rot instantly, were merely deflected off Yuan Dao''s body as if they were nothing more than a minor irritant. Or less than that¡­a breeze that brushed past him ineffectually.

    Bellowing, Yuan Dao struck Franklin aside and barreled past him, his mind focused solely on Stuart.

    Franklin stumbled for a moment before stopping to stupidly stare at the huge hole in his chest.

    "Mr. Franklin!" I shouted, totally shaken by the terrifying sight. He didn''t seem to hear me, didn''t raise his head to look at me, and continued to stare dumbly at the empty hole where his heart and lungs had been.

    Then Shawn Franklin finally toppled over like a broken figurine, his eyes glazing over.

    As much as I disliked him for his arrogance, I felt an immense regret at his death. Unlike me, who was paralyzed by fear, he was capable of pulling off a courageous, heroic act of defiance in his final moments. For all of his faults, he was a good man.

    Meanwhile, amidst the shell-shocked and unconscious guests sprawled across the reception room, Cecilia darted forward at blinding speed. Prying Ye Mo from the dead Franklin''s grasp, she leaped after Yuan Dao and swung her sword down on him.

    "Stuart Style," she pronounced in a deadly tone. "Scattering the Sakura Petals."

    Millions of Sakura petals whirled around Cecilia, enveloping her in a pink cloud. Concentrating all of her strength into a single strike, she directed the devastating cloud of razor-sharp and destructive Sakura blossoms at her security chief.

    This was Cecilia Stuart''s true power. The strength I had always been pursuing, the elegance I could never dream of achieving.

    The difference between her and me was as vast as heaven and earth, as immense as the disparity between the sky and the sea. I realized for the second time that my victory against her had been a fluke, or that she had progressed a great deal in her cultivation of strength within the short months since our match. At the very least, right now she surpassed the current me.

    Cecilia swung her katana down with all the deadly grace and elegance that belonged only to those who had reached the pinnacle of a female swordswoman, bringing forth a deadly rain of petals under her command.

    And just like that, Yuan Dao punched through it all.

    I watched, horrified and disbelieving, as Cecilia, the Invincible Goddess of War reputed throughout the Federation''s academies for being unbeatable, was knocked away in just a single hit.

    "Miss Cecilia!" I yelled, watching helplessly as she sailed across the room, demolishing the first wall she slammed into. She fell, motionless, before being buried by rubble.

    I couldn''t believe it. It just wasn''t possible.

    The Invincible Goddess of War had just been defeated by a single strike.

    Shawn Franklin. Cecilia Stuart. One by one, the young elites of my generation had fallen, defeated by a single hit from a berserk, middle-aged man.

    A monster. That was what he was.

    Gritting my teeth, I conjured whatever mana I had left. Franklin and Cecilia had done their part, and I was all that was left. Some might accuse me of being a pacifist (and they were wrong), but I was definitely not a coward.

    "Taurus!" I hollered, my fear and fury manifesting in the form of a bellowing, gigantic bull.

    The enormous Constellation spirit smashed through the ceiling and charged right at Yuan Dao with the force of a meteor. Grunting and growling, Taurus aimed his horns at Yuan Dao¡­

    ¡­who simply and calmly punched the charging bull.

    Taurus exploded into formless mana.

    "W¡­what the fuck?" My mind was racing. What the fuck just happened?

    Did he just obliterate Taurus with a single punch?

    A single fucking punch?

    No fucking way.

    Roaring, Yuan Dao continued rushing toward his employer, who had been sitting through the entire event, stony-faced and impassive as he remained in his golden throne to await this new impertinent challenger.

    I couldn''t tear my eyes away from the incredible sight. Before me were two masters, both infinitely more powerful than Cecilia and the elites of my generation, perhaps even more so than Instructor Feng Hai, and they were getting ready to clash in a battle that was certain to shake the heavens and the earth.

    Still helping Alicia up, I continued to watch, my mind at a loss at how to continue. Just what Constellation spirit or weapon did I possess in my arsenal that could match these two masters? Nothing short of a nuke would be able to even hurt them.

    And suddenly I felt that it was possible that they would be able to survive even Scorpio''s Antares.

    "¡­Richard¡­"

    "Alicia! Are you all right?"

    I supported Alicia as she struggled to regain consciousness, her teeth gritted from the sheer effort of trying to withstand the massive killing intent that saturated the entire reception room.

    "I''m fine¡­but we have to get away from here." her eyes darted to the trembling ground. "My instincts are telling me that we can''t remain here. We have to leave the building. It''s going to collapse at any time."

    As a magic gunner, Alicia was sensitive to structures and composition of her surroundings, so I trusted her.

    "C¡­Cecilia¡­help her." Alicia dimly caught sight of her friend, buried under the rubble.

    "Understood." Cecilia wasn''t the only one I wanted to help. I grimly looked around for Adrian as well.

    It seemed that I was going to have to ask my young friend a few questions.

 125 Chapter 125: Emergency Escape

    Alicia and I managed to dig Cecilia out of the rubble. The daughter of the Stuart family was unconscious, failing to rouse even when Alicia gently shook her.

    "Cecilia¡­"

    "She''s hurt," I explained. "Yuan Dao hit her really hard."

    "We have to get her out of here!" Alicia was desperately fighting her panic. She looked at me pleadingly, tears in her eyes. "Before the whole building collapses!"

    "I know. Let''s go." Pulling her arm over my shoulder, I began to drag her away from the broken wall. Before we left the reception room, however, I staggered toward a corner of the room. "Alicia, help me a bit."

    "Hmm?" Alicia nodded obediently as I passed Cecilia to her. Bending down, I slapped Adrian as hard as possible.

    "AAAAH!" Adrian jolted upright, regaining consciousness. He broke into cold sweat and began trembling. "W¡­what¡­what happened?"

    His jaw dropped when he saw the battle occurring over my shoulder. Wood had blotted out our view of the two combatants, a dense forest of trees growing rapidly to engulf the vast space of the reception room. Tremors shook the floor as the two masters within the artificially created forest clashed. Occasionally, I caught a glimpse of Yuan Dao smashing his way out of the wood, splinters raining harmlessly on him as he emerged, only for him to punch his way through a solid barrier of trees to get to his employer.

    "The whole building''s going to blow," I informed him as I took over assisting Cecilia from a stunned Alicia, only to wince. Damn, it looked like my own injuries weren''t light either. "It''s not going to survive their fight. We have best get out of here before those two bring the entire building crashing down on top of us."

    "We won''t survive that," Alicia agreed.

    "Sure thing," Adrian mumbled groggily, still in shock from the massive killing intent that Yuan Dao Yue Guang continued to emanate, but he was somehow able to follow us out of the reception room.

    "What the hell did you tell Yuan Dao?" I demanded as we raced down the corridor and toward the elevator.

    "Huh? Mr. Yuan Dao?" Adrian looked confused. "I didn''t tell him anything."

    "Don''t fucking lie to me!" I yelled, my nerves having frayed from the stress that resulted after all that happened. "Do you really expect me to believe that it was a coincidence that Yuan Dao went fucking ballistic right after you talked to him?"

    "You mean that time before he did¡­did that thing?" Adrian shuddered. "I only told him to read the letter my father wrote to him. Earlier, during your match with Shawn Franklin, Father called me to press the issue. He wanted me to tell Mr. Yuan Dao to read the letter as soon as possible, so when I had the chance to approach him, that''s what I told him."

    I remembered Adrian talking on the phone during a pause in my match with Franklin. So that must be what the call was about. So I nodded, relaxing a little.

    "What was in the letter?" Alicia asked curiously. "Do you know?"

    Adrian looked a little guilty. "Well¡­I peeked into it, so¡­"

    At that moment, we managed to reach the elevator. Fortunately for us, the doors were open and the elevator was already waiting for us. Whether by design or pure coincidence, I didn''t know, but I didn''t pause to consider my fortune. Pulling Cecilia in, I waited for the other two to file in before I quickly hit the button for the lobby.

    Placing Cecilia in a comfortable position in the corner of the elevator, I glanced at the lights above, which indicated our slow journey down almost two hundred stories. Exhausted, I slumped down next to Adrian, while Alicia took care of Cecilia.

    "You were saying that you peeked into Yuan Dao''s letter?" I pressed. Adrian looked a little guilty.

    "I couldn''t help it! Father said that the letter had something to do with Mr. Yuan Dao''s wife! That''s what convinced him to read it immediately!"

    "What was in the letter?" Alicia repeated her question, returning her attention back to the guilty-looking kid. As for me, I could already guess what this whole farce was about the moment Adrian mentioned Yuan Dao''s wife.

    "Don''t tell me¡­"

    "Somehow, Father managed to gather evidence that Lord Stuart was having an affair with Mr. Yuan Dao''s wife," Adrian explained sheepishly, his cheeks a little red. "So he placed all those photographs in that envelope, together with a note."

    "An affair?!" Alicia''s hands flew to her mouth, a horrified expression taking over her pretty face.

    "Why am I not surprised?" I muttered, recalling how Stuart actively encouraged me to take Alicia as my mistress even though he was supposedly forcing me to marry his daughter. That guy was absolute scum. Okay, maybe not, but his treatment of women was¡­ugh.

    Speaking of which, didn''t he forcibly kiss Cecilia''s mother before they finally dated and got married? To think that he went after other women after the death of his wife¡­well, I mean, he was free to move on with his life, but come on¡­to go after another man''s woman? Especially if that man was a loyal subordinate who had dedicated so many years of life to serve him? Wow¡­I was speechless with his audacity.

    No wonder Yuan Dao was so mad.

    I couldn''t help but chuckle, despite the grave situation. Both Alicia and Adrian stared at me in surprise.

    "I probably should thank your dad, Adrian." I shook my head in amusement. "Thanks to him, I was able to avoid Stuart''s grasp and a forced marriage. At least we got to see one epic clash between absolute masters before escaping from right under Stuart''s nose! Ha ha ha! I can''t imagine what kind of expression he will have when he finds out that I''m long gone from here!"

    "I wonder who will win." Adrian stared at the ceiling of the elevator, intrigued. "Both of them are so powerful."

    "Well, whatever the case, they''ll be busy for a while." I was grinning gleefully. "By the time they conclude their battle, we will have disappeared to safety."

    After that, we fell silent, allowing the humming of the elevator to take over our conversation. As giddy as I felt from successfully escaping Stuart''s grasp, it still wasn''t over yet.

    *

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    The three of us stumbled out of the Stuart Corporation Building, pulling the unconscious Cecilia along with us. I panted as I heaved her body along. It wasn''t that she was heavy, but I was losing a lot of blood and strength.

    "Are you okay, Brother?" Adrian asked me, concerned. He reached out to help me, but recoiled in shock. "Brother, you''re losing a lot of blood! We''ve to stop the bleeding!"

    "It''s too late for that," I replied dismissively. "I''ll live. Let me get as far away from here as possible, then I''ll check my injuries."

    "Leave Cecilia to me." Alicia gently pushed me away and tightened her grip on Cecilia''s arm, dragging her along. Despite her deceptively frail appearance, Alicia was still a combat mage of the highest rank in our academy. She had a lot of strength to spare, in contrast to me, who practically had one foot in the grave.

    "Yes, ma''am."

    I had no idea where to go, my mind growing dizzier from the loss of blood. I vaguely followed Alicia, who led the way out of the commercial district. Yeah, Alicia was the most clear-headed out of us. She would figure something out. She should know where to go.

    "A¡­Alicia?"

    Cecilia stirred and coughed. Alicia stopped in her tracks and lowered her friend to the ground.

    "Cecilia! You''ve regained consciousness! Are you all right?!"

    "¡­I''ve been better." Cecilia gasped as she clutched her chest. Grimacing, she rubbed her midriff gingerly and groaned. "Damn it¡­I''ve suffered heavy internal injuries. Uncle Yuan Dao is too strong. The only one who can handle him now is Father."

    "They are fighting right now," Alicia informed her grimly.

    "I have to go back." Cecilia tried to get up, but she fell over. Alicia quickly caught her. Behind them, the Stuart Corporation Building shook, an entire segment exploding to bits. "I have to help Father."

    Was she insane?

    "You can''t!" Alicia objected, arriving to the same conclusion as me, but having a lot more tact. "Even if you went back, there''s nothing you can do! You won''t be able to intervene in such a fierce fight between masters!"

    "You''ll only get in the way of your father," I agreed, backing my girlfriend up. "Your father will be distracted, trying to protect you from your Uncle Yuan Dao. That guy has gone berserk. He doesn''t care who you are. As long as you get in his way, he''ll attack you."

    "That''s right!" Alicia nodded. "You should leave that security chief uncle to your father."

    "But¡­" Cecilia gritted her teeth. "I can''t leave Father alone in there!"

    "You are seriously injured," Alicia told her firmly. "What can you do? You can''t even stand up straight. There''s no way you can help your father." She sighed. "You need emergency treatment. I''ll call an ambulance, and¡­"

    "There''s no need for that," Cecilia hissed through gritted teeth. "I don''t want to blow this up any larger than it already is."

    "I think it''s a bit too late for that." I jabbed a thumb toward the violently shuddering building, which was now raining debris down on the ground. "I don''t think anyone is going to fail to notice the destruction of an entire skyscraper."

    "Besides, I already contacted the hospital," Adrian added, lowering his phone. "They''ll be sending an ambulance here in a few minutes."

    Cecilia glared at him. "Don''t do anything unnecessary!"

    "Hey," I snapped when I saw my young friend flinch. "Adrian is only doing the right thing. You have no right to yell at him."

    "Whatever." Cecilia ignored me and struggled to stand. She stumbled, only for Alicia to quickly catch her. Pushing my girlfriend aside, the daughter of the Stuart Clan stubbornly proceeded toward the shaking skyscraper.

    And then she collapsed, falling unconscious into a stunned Alicia''s arms.

    "You¡­" Alicia began when she caught sight of my hand. I had evidently chopped the back of Cecilia''s neck to knock her out.

    "Sorry." I shook my head. "It was the only way. Otherwise she would have literally crawled toward the Stuart Corporation Building if she had to, no matter our objections."

    "I kind of understand how Sister Cecilia feels, though." Adrian looked up at the trembling skyscraper, his eyes worried. "I hope Uncle Lionel will be all right."

    "Yeah, well¡­he can take care of himself. But Cecilia needs emergency treatment, and I need to get the hell out of here."

    A massive noise from behind caused me to turn around. Stunned, I could only watch as the Stuart Corporation Building exploded one final time before collapsing completely. The once proud and grand building was imploding, crumbling away into nothing more than huge chunks of rubble and dust.

    Gulping, I turned back to Adrian and Alicia, both of whom were also watching the amazing spectacle with wide eyes.

    "We have to go," I told them, my voice filled with a sense of urgency.

 126 Chapter 126: Aftermath

    A few days had passed since the Stuart Corporation Building incident. Cecilia, according to Alicia, was recuperating in the hospital. As the hospital was located in Southampton City, I obviously didn''t bother making the trip to visit her.

    We weren''t even that close in the first place.

    Alicia told me that Cecilia had yet to regain consciousness. I wasn''t unfeeling to the point where I would say I couldn''t care less, but there was a sense of detachment. As if what had occurred to Cecilia and her family had nothing to do with me. I felt sorry for her, but that was the extent of my pity. It was like watching the news and lamenting over the deaths of victims who fell to a shooting incident or a terrible accident, but nothing more than that.

    The Stuart Corporation Building had completely collapsed, and the police had formed a cordon around it while conducting investigations. Rescue teams had tried to dig through the rubble in search of survivors, but they didn''t find any. Fortunately, it was a Saturday, so most of the employees were not present during the incident. Unfortunately, there was a tremendous number of casualties among the guests who had attended the party. While some had escaped ahead of my group, or after we left, the majority of them had perished along with the collapsed building.

    The cause of the destruction was clear enough. The Stuart Corporation Building was unable to withstand the overwhelming powers of Lionel Stuart and Yuan Dao Yue Guang, and fell apart at the climax of their battle. Both combatants, surprisingly enough, had disappeared afterward. The police was unable to locate their bodies at all, but there were rumored sightings of at least Stuart shortly after the incident. Apparently, Stuart had survived with little more than a few scratches and bruises.

    Despite expending enough power to demolish a two hundred-story skyscraper¡­

    Adrian was fine. I kept in touch with him, and was relieved to see that he was doing fine. His father had taken over the Stuart Corporation after Lionel Stuart''s disappearance. Sacha Stuart was now the temporary head of the Stuart Clan as well as the acting president of the Stuart Corporation. I wasn''t surprised. I had always suspected that he had orchestrated the entire incident well in advance. He was the one who gathered evidence of Stuart''s affair with Yuan Dao''s wife and instructed Adrian to send it to the security chief. He must have known Yuan Dao would go ballistic upon the revelation¡­no, he counted on it happening.

    And now, after everything unfolding according to his schemes, he now sat at the top of the Stuart Corporation as its new president. Yes, he was acting president for now, but there was no doubt the position would become permanent if his brother never returned.

    I honestly couldn''t care less. The politics and power struggles of the Stuart Clan were none of my business. Rather, it was actually more advantageous for me that Stuart had disappeared and was replaced by a new leader. Sacha wouldn''t force me to marry Cecilia, at least. That bastard Stuart got what he deserved. Obviously I refrained from telling Cecilia that, because she probably wouldn''t take too kindly to me cursing her father.

    And since I was friends with Adrian, I could probably use this connection to get favors in future, but for now I held off that thought and focused on the present.

    Right now, the most important thing for me was to get stronger, and I focused on training daily. After witnessing the god-like powers of Stuart and Yuan Dao, I was determined to one day reach their level.

    Speaking of which¡­

    "Teacher Fielding."

    "Hmm?"

    The combat magic teacher turned to look at me curiously when I approached him after class. We had just finished a grueling session and the majority of my classmates were lying on the ground, heaving from exhaustion.

    "What''s up, Richard?"

    "I have a question¡­it''s not regarding what we learned during class today, but more of a combat magic technique I witnessed elsewhere."

    "That''s fine. If I know anything about it, I''ll do my best to answer." Teacher Ruff Fielding nodded and gestured for me to ask away. I nodded.

    "Does a technique that allows you to literally punch away spells exist? A technique that nullifies your enemies'' spells, and allows you to repel them with just physical attacks?"

    I briefly described what I saw in the Stuart Corporation Building, focusing particularly on Yuan Dao Yue Guang''s techniques and attacks.

    "None of our spells affected him. He just punched them away with a single strike. Even those spells that touched him didn''t affect him at all."

    "Hmm¡­" Teacher Fielding nodded thoughtfully, rubbing his chin. "That sounds a lot like Ba Qi."

    "Ba Qi?" I repeated, puzzled. I had never heard of the term before.

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    "Correct." Teacher Fielding nodded. "Ba Qi is a mysterious type of magic that any mage can use, regardless of their elemental affinity. I guess it''s the most neutral and basic form of magic, but at the same time also the most advanced and powerful magic. Simply put, Ba Qi is a type of magic that allows the user to sense and predict mana and magical energy, as well as use mana as physical reinforcement. Those who master Ba Qi to its ultimate form become capable of dominating and overwhelming others with willpower alone." His expression turned grave. "What you just described is the use of the physical reinforcement spell I taught you to its utmost extreme. That''s the most advanced form of physical reinforcement, also known as Armament Ba Qi."

    The fuck?!

    "What the hell is Armament Ba Qi?!"

    "Armament Ba Qi allows the user to coalesce his mana over his body to form some sort of spirit armor, to protect themselves from attacks and spells, as well as to amplify the potency of their own attacks. That''s probably what you saw." He nodded. "The first one is Divination Ba Qi, which bestows the user a sort of sixth sense, and allow them to sense everything in the world around them. You already know the basic form of Divination Ba Qi. It''s basically your magic senses, or sixth sense."

    I nodded, having relied on my sixth sense to detect enemy presences and all that. So Divination Ba Qi was a more advanced form of that. With it, even blind and deaf mages could accurately perceive their surroundings.

    "Divination Ba Qi and Armament Ba Qi are the two most common techniques that everyone usually learns and masters. You students are actually already learning them in the academy. My physical reinforcement spells are the basic foundation of what will eventually lead to the more advanced Armament Ba Qi. And Teacher Travis''s Divination classes teach you students the basics of magic senses and detection, which is the basic foundation of what will eventually lead to Divination Ba Qi. Of course, the people who use Ba Qi will find that there is one type they are more proficient at than the other, and they will focus on mastering that type of Ba Qi."

    "I see." I nodded in understanding. "And you said something about dominating others as well?"

    "That''s correct." Teacher Fielding looked pleased that I had been paying attention. "The last and rarest type of Ba Qi, only available to the most talented and strongest of mages. It is known as the Tyrant Ba Qi, and it allows the user to overpower others using his willpower alone."

    I suddenly recalled Yuan Dao using his immense murderous intent to almost knock me unconscious and subjugate me. So that was what it was. Yuan Dao was one of those elite masters who had mastered Tyrant Ba Qi!

    Amazing¡­

    "These mages who master Tyrant Ba Qi are known as Conquerors, and are essentially kings in their own rights."

    "Then why did Yuan Dao Yue Guang serve Lionel Stuart as his security chief instead of heading his own¡­uh, kingdom?"

    "Sorry?" Teacher Fielding looked at me blankly. Then he suddenly understood what I was talking about. "Oh, the recent news about the Stuart Clan and their rogue security chief? So that was the person you''re referring to?"

    "Yeah." I nodded.

    "Hmm¡­I wouldn''t know. But if I have to guess, I would say Lionel Stuart probably subjugated him in combat. Even Conquerors are not invincible, and if two meet¡­" Teacher Fielding grinned darkly. "Let''s just say, there can only be one king."

    A chill ran down my spine and I found myself trembling a little at the terrifying prospect. The path to becoming one of the strongest mages like my dad was going to be a difficult one. I wondered why Dad never taught me about this Ba Qi.

    Hell, he never taught me anything about magic. But thinking back now, all of his martial arts training had served to lay a solid foundation for me to learn my sixth sense and physical reinforcement techniques. Without his training, I would never have grasped them so quickly and turned them into my own. It amazed me how farsighted my dad must be to have foreseen all this, and taken the steps to ensure I had a solid foundation instead of jumping straight into such advanced techniques.

    Perhaps he would teach me once I reached a certain level. Of course, I had to attain that level of strength first before I could ask him¡­

    "You know, with all this talk of Ba Qi, maybe we should all quit being mages and start becoming pirates or marines."

    "Why? You intend to find one piece?" Teacher Fielding scoffed. "It doesn''t exist."

    "I''m sure it does!"

    "Dream on, kid. You don''t even have a straw hat."

    "If I''m part of the crew, I''ll be the chef."

    "You don''t even smoke, and your culinary skills are basic."

    "How do you know about my culinary skills?!"

    Teacher Fielding sighed and shook his head. "Never mind. Any other questions?"

    "How do I learn Ba Qi?" I asked. Teacher Fielding raised an eyebrow.

    "That''s something for you to learn in university, not high school. For now, master the physical reinforcement techniques I''m teaching you, as well as the six sense stuff Teacher Travis is teaching first. Learn to walk before you run. Otherwise you''ll just screw it up."

    "Understood." That made sense. No wonder Dad didn''t teach me magic. He taught me martial arts to pave a firm foundation upon which I could develop my own magic techniques on my own. Whoa, I didn''t think he planned so far ahead. "Thank you, sir."

    "No problem." Teacher Fielding waved a hand before he proceeded toward the staff room. As he did so, he nodded a greeting to a hurry Alicia, who paused to bow, before she continued hurrying toward me.

    "Richard!"

    "What''s up?" I asked her. She broke into a smile as she approached me.

    "Cecilia has finally woken up, and her injuries are now fully healed."

    "That''s great news!" I said, relieved.

    "I broke the news to her. She didn''t take it too well¡­her father''s and Yuan Dao''s disappearance. But she''s relieved that they are not confirmed dead, at least." Alicia sighed. "I''m still a bit worried, you know?"

    "Yeah. I know what you mean." Adjusting my glasses, I looked at her. "Any news on the others? The other people who attended the party, and the executives? The staff?"

    Alicia turned grim. "No survivors have been found, and the death toll continues to rise. More bodies have been uncovered and their identities confirmed. Other than the rumored sighting of Lionel Stuart before he disappeared, and Mr. Yuan Dao, there has been no other survivors. At least none that have been found."

    "I see." I shrank back with a sigh. "The funeral for¡­Shawn Franklin. It''s today, isn''t it?"

    Franklin''s corpse was among the first to be found amidst the wreckage. His clan, in particular, had paid a great sum of money to the rescue teams to prioritize the recovery of their heir, and all they received was his body in a body bag. Needless to say, they were furious. But they couldn''t blame anybody. The only thing they could do now was hold a funeral for their beloved son. Thanks to testimony from the few survivors, they knew that Yuan Dao Yue Guang was responsible, and they had placed a massive bounty on his head.

    Good luck trying to assassinate Yuan Dao. That guy was among the strongest mages I had ever met in my life. He was certainly much more powerful than the so-called professionals sent to abduct me on my way home from school.

    "That''s correct." Alicia nodded. She looked at me. "Do you plan to attend?"

    I shook my head. "I don''t know his family, and his family doesn''t know me. That day¡­when we fought, that was the first time I had ever met him. We weren''t even that close. I respect him, especially after what he did in the face of Yuan Dao''s Tyrant Ba Qi, but¡­"

    "Tyrant Ba Qi?" Alicia was bewildered, but I didn''t elaborate on that. Instead, I continued.

    "¡­if I go, it''ll only make things more awkward. They might even resent me for it."

    "That''s not true! I''m sure they''ll be grateful!"

    "They won''t even know who I am, and will probably forget that I even showed up after the funeral ends."

    "That''s¡­" Alicia hesitated, especially when she realized I had a point. She sighed and fell silent.

    The two of us then headed toward the Black Rose room for club activities, but my mind was so distracted that I couldn''t remember what transpired. I faintly recalled Harvey asking me if I was all right, and me nodding, and that was about it.

    Evening arrived, and both Alicia and I returned home together. The rest of Black Rose probably thought they were being considerate, allowing us time alone together, but neither of us was in a romantic mood. We sank into deep silence as we strolled toward the direction of Alicia''s house.

    "Brother Richard! Sister Alicia!"

    "Eh? Adrian? What are you doing here?"

    To our utmost surprise, Adrian Stuart showed up, waving at us excitedly. A limousine had pulled up behind him, its door hanging open. Evidently that was where the kid had emerged from, and he was waving us over.

    "Over here!"

    Alicia and I exchanged a glance, but decided to indulge Adrian.

    I wondered why he was here. Adrian lived in Southampton City, like his cousin Cecilia, and it was quite far from here. Probably an hour or two by limousine, judging from what I remembered the last time Cecilia gave me and Alicia a ride home.

    "I volunteered to come," Adrian explained, answering my question from earlier when Alicia and I reached him. He was beaming brightly, as excitable as ever, despite the losses that his clan had sustained. Then again, he was too young to understand the politics, and Lionel Stuart wasn''t his father, so he wouldn''t grieve as much as Cecilia. Furthermore, it wasn''t as if Stuart was dead. The guy had chosen to go into hiding for some unknown reason.

    Maybe he was trying to avoid getting chased by a vengeful Yuan Dao?

    "Volunteer for what?" Alicia asked gently, bending a little to make eye contact with the enthusiastic teenager.

    "This!"

    He reached toward the cushioned seats of the limousine and produced two long parcels, both wrapped in brown paper. He grimaced as he fumbled with them.

    "Whoa¡­they are really heavy!"

    "Are you all right?" I reached out to help him carry them. "Where should I bring them?"

    "Oh, no. They are for you, Brother!"

    "¡­huh?"

    I cast a glance at Alicia, but she looked just as lost as I was. I turned back to Adrian, expecting an explanation.

    "Oh, well¡­do you remember that night when you were fighting that Shawn Franklin guy?" Adrian asked. I nodded. He continued excitedly. "Uncle Lionel had an idea when you requested for the Franklin guy to get a sword. He thought you needed one of your own, so he asked Sister Cecilia to contact the legendary swordsmiths, Gan Jiang and Mo Ye."

    "Gan Jiang and Mo Ye?" I repeated incredulously. They were a famous swordsmith couple, who were known for forging the highest quality weapons and Divine Devices in the Global Federation. Each of their products were worth millions of credits. "How¡­?"

    "He he! Don''t underestimate the connections of one of the ten great families!" Adrian puffed his chest out proudly.

    I rolled my eyes. It wasn''t as if Adrian was the one with the connections, and he wasn''t the one who called them. "Thank your cousin for me."

    "Will do!" Adrian nodded. "Gan Jiang and Mo Ye agreed to Uncle Lionel''s request immediately, but it took them a few days to forge the swords, and they only just arrived today. Sister is still recovering from the incident, so I volunteered to pass them over to you instead!"

    "I''m surprised she doesn''t mind giving these to me," I remarked in surprise. "I won''t blame her if she puts these aside, what with all the stuff she is going through right now."

    "Sister is not that petty or irresponsible!" Adrian declared, miffed.

    "That''s not what I meant¡­I meant that she has a lot on her mind right now, and is probably busy dealing with all the fallout from the destruction of the Stuart Corporation Building and her father''s disappearance. It would be perfectly understandable if she pushes the unimportant matters to one side."

    "Oh¡­okay." Adrian looked a little relieved. Then he jolted up, as if suddenly remembering something. "She asks you to accept them as an apology for all the trouble her father had caused."

    Cecilia must have remembered her father trying to pressure me into an unwanted marriage.

    "Tell her not to worry about it," I told Adrian. "I don''t really care. I''m actually sorry for her loss, and hope that she finds her father as soon as possible."

    "I''ll tell her that!"

    "Thanks."

    Honestly, I would have accepted the swords regardless, whether they were given to me out of guilt or not. Who the hell would pass over free weapons?! Even though I didn''t really need them, given the nature of my summoning magic, free stuff was still free stuff. I would be an idiot to say no to receiving something so valuable.

    Of course I didn''t tell Adrian that. Slinging the parcels over my shoulder, I thanked him one final time.

    "We''ll meet again!" Adrian called out before diving back into the limousine. I watched as the long, black vehicle drove off.

    "Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. Amazing¡­"

    Beside me, Alicia was staring at the two parcels in wonder.

    "Yeah¡­much as I appreciate the gift¡­I wonder if they are wasted on me."

    "Absolutely not!" Alicia snapped at me. "You had better use them properly!"

    If only I could. If only I could¡­

 127 Chapter 127: Checking in

    "Ugh¡­what a day at school."

    Scooping a spoonful of rice into my mouth, I savored the sweet, tangy taste of Japanese curry and exhaled happily.

    Nothing like a good meal of curry rice to end off the day. Alone at home, I had to take care of my own meals, and thus I found myself cooking simple dishes. It didn''t take much to wash the rice, switch on the rice cooker and microwave a plate of curry before mixing them all together. I enjoyed cooking up simple but delicious meals such as these.

    After my meal, I did my dishes, and for some reason I unconsciously glanced toward the living room. The television was switched off, and the couch was empty.

    Without Dad, the house felt so¡­deserted.

    "He''ll be back soon."

    Dad always came back. I knew he would. There was nothing in this world that could kill him. I was sure of that.

    Even so, I had to admit that it felt a little lonely when I was the only person living in such a huge house. I wasn''t expecting my female homeroom teacher to show up (my homeroom teacher was male, and he was Teacher Fielding, anyway) to freeload at my house, nor was I hoping for a cute junior at my school to visit me everyday to cook me meals and such. I wasn''t some harem protagonist in a visual novel that received so many anime adaptations.

    But sometimes I wished I was one. It probably would feel less lonely.

    Fortunately, that loneliness would end when Dad returned, and we could both watch anime or game together. I was willing to even go through his hellish training sessions again if it meant I didn''t have to spend another quiet, lonely night in the huge house.

    "¡­I''m getting sentimental, huh?" I muttered to myself as I shook my head, washing the detergent off my hands and placing the plate in the tray to drip dry. Wiping my hands on a kitchen towel, I then switched off the light in the kitchen and proceeded upstairs.

    With everything taken of, I headed straight to my room. Striding toward my bed, I caught sight of the two parcels wrapped in brown paper lying on my desk.

    "Ah¡­I still haven''t opened them yet."

    I was busy with school, so I didn''t have time to open them yet. Even though I was curious to see what kind of weapons I had received, I wasn''t in a hurry. After all, I didn''t need Divine Devices or physical weapons. Not when my entire magic skillset revolved around summoning my own Constellation weapons

    But I might as well check them out right now, since I had nothing better to do. Reaching out, I unwrapped the brown paper from the two swords.

    They were a pair of swords, one black and one white, each representing yin and yang respectively. Forged by the famous swordsmith couple Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, I was tempted to just name them as such, but there were already Chinese script engraved into the side of their blades. Studying the pair of swords closely, I was reminded of my own Gemini twin swords, but these were a little longer, a lot sharper and much more durable and stronger.

    "Bai Ri and Hei Yue," I read the names on the swords out loud. The white one was Bai Ri, literally translated as White Sun, while the black one was Hei Yue, which was translated as Black Moon. A fitting name for the pair of them.

    I paused for a moment, frowning in puzzlement. Why were they so similar to my Gemini twin swords? How did Gan Jiang and Mo Ye know that I employed a dual sword style? The resemblance couldn''t be a simple coincidence, could it?

    Strange¡­

    Perhaps they did their research on their client before forging their swords accordingly. Adrian mentioned they took several days, after all. That was more than enough time for them to look up my personal information and particulars, which was freely available online. Especially since so many people uploaded videos of my fights and duels online. My Gemini twin swords were the Constellation weapons I summoned and used the most. Mostly it was because of my familiarity with them, my favoring of the dual sword style, and the ease of summoning and wielding them, since they were light, fast and cost very little mana to summon.

    That inevitably led to the impression that they were my main and favorite weapons. Well, I couldn''t say the impression was false. They were certainly my main weapons, and I favored them a lot. But they weren''t my number one favorite. My favorite weapon was rarely used because it took up too much casting time and consumed too much mana, but it was my favorite because of the immense firepower it unleashed.

    What was it, you ask? Well¡­at this point, it''s a secret. You''ll only find out after I reveal all of my Constellation weapons. I haven''t used all of them yet, so I will leave it to your imagination.

    Whatever the case, right now I wanted to find out how Gan Jiang and Mo Ye knew about my fighting style and the swords I favored. Constellation weapons aside, Gemini was certainly my favorite Constellation sword. The twin swords were my favorite swords if you were looking at a specific type of weapon. So Gan Jiang and Mo Ye weren''t wrong in guessing that. The thing was that, I also frequently used a bow, so why didn''t they forge me a bow?

    Was it because they were a legendary swordsmith couple, and therefore could only forge swords? Were they unable to forge any other kind of weapons?

    Unfortunately, I wasn''t given much time to think about the uncanny resemblance much. My smartphone buzzed and I picked up the call.

    "Dad?"

    "Hey! Checking on you. How are you faring, being alone at home?"

    It was a video call, and I could see Dad''s face in the holographic screen that my smartphone projected upward. In the background, I could see what seemed like a luxurious hotel room from somewhere, but I wasn''t sure where he was currently.

    "Yeah, I''m doing fine. What about you? Where are you right now? Have you completed the mission? Did you find the culprits behind the Transdimensional Key? Did you destroy the organization that created it?"

    "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Dad threw up both hands, taken aback by my flurry of questions. "Asking so many things at the same time¡­one question at a time, son! Relax!"

    "Sorry."

    "No, don''t worry about it." Dad chuckled and shook his head. "Okay, let''s address your questions one by one. First, I''m in a hotel somewhere in the Middle East right now. The United Arab Emirates. That was where one of their major factories and research facilities were located."

    I noted the use of past tense.

    "So you found them and destroyed them."

    "That is correct. So now I''m enjoying a bit of downtime. This place is great!" Dad laughed as he leaned back in a massive bed covered in velvet lining. "Man, I feel like I can live here forever!"

    "At least bring me along if you intend to do so," I complained good-naturedly, knowing that he was joking.

    "Of course! I''ll email you your flight ticket!"

    "I''ll be waiting." I chortled with him, and then turned serious. "So you''ve completed your mission? When are you returning home?"

    "Oh¡­that''s the bad news." Dad also looked grim, leaning forward as he knitted his fingers together to rest his chin upon them. "You see, the facility here in the United Arab Emirates was only one of many."

    I felt cold dread gripping my spine. "There''s¡­more?"

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    "There''s more," Dad confirmed. "So it''ll take me a while to destroy all of them. Looks like I''ll be gone a little longer than I thought. Don''t worry, I''ll make sure to return home in a month or so, once I''ve destroyed the second facility. Like hell am I going to let them work me to the bone without giving me a vacation."

    A month. That sounded like forever. But I had been through such long periods where I survived despite Dad''s absence, so it wasn''t as bad as it seemed.

    "Okay. I''ll be waiting."

    "Speaking of which, what about you? I didn''t contact you for a month or so, and I heard all sorts of rumors. They say you were involved in the destruction of the Stuart Corporation Building? It was such huge news all over the Global Federation I even saw it on the news here."

    I scratched my head sheepishly. "I wouldn''t say I was directly involved. I was there and witnessed the skyscraper getting destroyed, but I didn''t do anything except watch. It was Lionel Stuart and Yuan Dao Yue Guang who demolished the whole building during their fight."

    Dad recognized Lionel Stuart ¨C the man was a celebrity ¨C but he didn''t seem familiar with Yuan Dao. He just nodded.

    "As long as you''re all right." He grinned. "I hope you aren''t too lonely! If you really need company, you can always call your girlfriend¡­Alicia, was it? Yeah, call her to stay over. If her parents don''t mind, I mean."

    "We haven''t gone that far in our relationship," I grumbled. Even if we were officially a couple, we hadn''t done anything romantic or such. Our only date was going to Cecilia''s engagement party together, and we didn''t have anything else planned.

    Come to think of it, it was only less than a week since we clarified our relationship. I wasn''t sure if it was normal to not do much. Perhaps I should call her and arrange a date during this weekend. Not only would it stave off the loneliness, it would help our relationship progress a bit further.

    "Oh, and before I forget, did you get attacked on your way home from school? Anyone trying to kidnap or assault you again?"

    Dad looked a little guilty. Thanks to his vocation, he had made a lot of enemies, and it wasn''t a stretch to imagine that the organization that created the Transdimensional Key had their eyes and ears everywhere. They could very easily have cells located in Jing Tian City, and send their agents after me as retaliation against Dad for destroying one of their facilities.

    After all, they were far from destroyed. And they weren''t going to keep silent after suffering such a huge blow. They would definitely find a way to take revenge, or a method to blackmail Dad into stopping his rampage.

    "No," I assured him. It was the truth. I hadn''t encountered any kidnappers or professional agents in a while. If the organization had cells in Jing Tian City, they were most likely busy doing something else. Perhaps they were keeping an eye on me or monitoring my movements, but I didn''t sense anyone in the distance.

    "I see." Dad looked relieved. Then he narrowed his eyes. "Don''t let your guard down, though. If you do encounter them, don''t fight if you''re no match for them. Get home and stay behind the barrier. Call for help. I might not be able to return, but the military should be able to handle them. You have Feng Hai''s contact, don''t you?"

    "Yeah." I nodded. Instructor Feng Hai was part of the Silver Wolves, which was also a respectable mercenary group in their own right. They were the next best thing after Dad. I wasn''t reckless enough to attempt to fight professional experts and mages on my own. "I will do that if necessary."

    "Good." Dad was relieved, especially he knew my character. I wasn''t the impulsive or reckless kind who stupidly charged the enemy head-on, like so many shounen protagonists loved to do.

    "Stay safe, Dad. I''ll be waiting."

    "You too.Be careful." Dad glanced at the corner of his holographic screen. "Hmm, it''s getting late. I''ll see you next time then. Get some rest, but keep your eyes open."

    "Will do," I said. Dad grinned and gave me a thumb''s up before he cut off the video link from his end. I watched as the holographic screen winked out and disappeared.

    Taking a deep breath, I placed my new swords back on my desk. Perhaps I should get ready to go to bed¡­

    Before I could, however, I heard a thunderous crash outside my house.

 128 Chapter 128: Skirmish

    At first, I froze, wondering if there was an accident outside my house. It there was, then I should hurry and dial the emergency hotline, calling an ambulance in. I wasn''t well-versed in first aid and healing magic, but I should go down and see what I could do.

    "Damn it¡­"

    I barely got the curse off when there was yet another thunderous crash, followed by several explosions.

    ¡­nope. That was no accident. Someone was fighting outside my house and unleashing spells at each other.

    Drawing back the curtains, I peered out of the windows. There was a group of people chasing a single girl for some reason. The girl, for some reason, was dressed all in white. A pristine white dress, a short skirt, and a grand cloak billowing behind her as she ran. Her pursuers were hurling fireballs, icicles, lightning bolts, earth spikes and wooden lances at her as they chased, but she dodged them magnificently. Occasionally, she would spin around and slashed the magical projectiles with a glowing sword, cutting them down before they could hit her.

    As usual, nobody in the neighborhood poked their heads out. They were already used to the constant violence that erupted outside my house, every time I was running away from my own assailants bent on abducting me, and they were wise enough not to interfere. They probably would call the military (since the police weren''t equipped enough to deal with professional combat mages), but that was about as far as their involvement got.

    Nobody was stupid enough to stick their heads out in the middle of a fight between superhuman monsters, after all.

    On the other hand, I wasn''t an ordinary human. I was a mage as well. While the pursuers seemed pretty professional, I couldn''t just leave the poor girl on her own. She was slowly being overwhelmed, her escape route cut off as a new group descended on the opposite of the road, flanking her. More magical projectiles were launched in her direction, forcing her to step back and slice through them.

    "Huff¡­!"

    Perspiration dripped down her beautiful face as she gazed from left to right. Her swordsmanship was peerless, on par with Cecilia or even better. Her moves were minimal, yet elegant, tight and efficient, deadly and impenetrable. I could see her executing a series of slashes that rendered an entire bombardment of fire and lightning harmless.

    With just her sword alone.

    Suddenly, I was reminded of the Armament Ba Qi that Teacher Fielding told me about. Furthermore, her movements seemed very familiar somehow¡­as if I had just fought against someone using the same techniques only recently.

    But¡­where? Who?

    I shook my head. That didn''t matter. What mattered was what I should do. I wasn''t sure if I should get involved. How did I know the girl was the victim? For all I knew, she could be a criminal, being hunted down by agents of the government, and getting arrested. Of course, they didn''t seem intent on arresting her, not with that level of bombardment and spells. They were obviously trying to kill her.

    The point was, regardless of how beautiful the girl was, I couldn''t just jump in and take her side without knowing the actual situation. If she turned out to be some psychopath who had just committed mass murder somewhere, then obviously the authorities would be trying to capture her by force, and bring her down by killing if necessary. This wasn''t some anime where a beautiful bishoujo automatically qualified as the good person and everyone trying to kill her was the villain. I needed to get my facts right before getting involved.

    But I wasn''t going to find out by cowering at home. If the girl did indeed turn out to be a victim, my conscience would never let me live it down if she died right outside my house. Besides, I wasn''t in much danger. I was literally inside an impenetrable flaming barrier set up by Dad. The worst case scenario, I could just dive back in and hide inside while they got incinerated trying to break in. The flame barrier was left active¡­and was even strengthened by Dad before he departed for his overseas mission. Just to be sure.

    Hastily leaving my room, I hurried downstairs and toward the courtyard. Striding toward the front gate, I yelled as loudly as I could, "what the fuck is going on!? Do you have any idea what time it is?! Why are you making such a ruckus?!"

    Okay, I was aware that I was the last person who should be complaining about noise, but that was the best way of getting involved without actually getting involved. I mean, seriously, did you expect me to straight up ask them, "hey, who''s the bad guy and who''s the good guy?"

    Like hell they would reply to that.

    I did get my reply, though. Just not in the form I expected.

    The men in suits and sunglasses (honestly, why the fuck were they wearing sunglasses at night? to look cool? How stupidly impractical) didn''t even say a word, and they immediately flung fireballs, icicles and lightning bolts in my direction. They clearly intended to kill me or silence me, for no other reason than I complained about the noise.

    Okay, at least I knew who the bad guys were.

    The magical projectiles slammed ineffectually against the barrier and fizzled out immediately. I couldn''t help but laugh in glee at the shock written all over their faces when they witnessed their failed murder attempt.

    For that alone, I was going to kill them.

    The girl, on the other hand, was behaving opposite. She glanced at me frantically, her sapphire eyes sparkling worriedly and her long, silver hair flying behind her head.

    "Get back in the house!" she shouted. "They''re after only me! Don''t get involved!"

    "Who are they?" I demanded. "Assassins?"

    "Does it matter!? Just get back in your house!"

    She gritted her teeth as she swung her sword, spinning around to deflect the magical projectiles from both directions. A strand of silver hair drifted away as an icicle came in too close for comfort, but she dodged it splendidly while slicing apart a fireball. The men in suits were closing in on her, and she readied her stance, getting ready to fight them off from both directions.

    "Can''t do that, lady," I replied as I left my house. Several of the men in suits immediately swiveled toward me, launching whatever deadly spells they could, but I conjured Scutum Sobiescianum to knock them away. "This is my neighborhood. No one starts a fight here without my permission."

    Then I completed my summoning spell. I had already started on the casting ever since I witnessed the pursuit from my window, and thankfully I had remained in the vicinity of my house this entire time, so I had all the time in the world to safely cast my summoning spell.

    "White Tiger, wipe them out."

    A lightning storm crackled and blasted across the entire district, knocking scores of men off their feet. Being professionals, however, a good number of them were able to evade, jumping back to avoid the devastating web of electricity. Unfortunately for one side of them, a massive White Tiger had landed in their midst, maiming them and tearing them apart. Screams filled the air as the men in suits scrambled quickly to deal with the new threat.

    On the other side, Aries, Taurus and Capricorn materialized to form a wall of horn and muscle between the girl and the men in suits. As expected of professional mages, they didn''t back down and immediately bombarded the poor trio, bathing them in destructive mana. They wouldn''t last very long, but I didn''t need them to.

    "Follow me," I instructed the girl, grabbing her hand and dragging her toward my house. "And don''t let go of my hand unless you want to be burnt to a crisp."

    "Eh? What? What''s going on?!"

    The girl gaped at me, but we were through the front gate and in my courtyard, safely behind the fiery barrier. At the same time, my trio of Constellation spirits winked out, finally overwhelmed by the professional mages. White Tiger fared a lot better, but with reinforcements arriving behind him, even he wasn''t going to last much longer as well. I quickly dismissed him as well.

    "After them!"

    As one, the men in suits charged into my house, ramming into the barrier and tumbling right into the courtyard. Every single one of them didn''t hesitate, throwing themselves into my dad''s territory in a furious attempt to get the girl.

    "¡­!"

    The girl tried to spin around to face them with her sword, but I kept my grip tightly on her wrist and pulled her back.

    "I told you not go let go of my hand."

    "But¡­!"

    "Just shut up and watch!" I snapped.

    The girl wanted to protest further, but a spark caught her eye. Turning around, her jaw dropped when she saw the entire group of pursuing men in suits catch fire. Shrieking and bellowing, they fell onto the grass, which for some reason didn''t catch fire (because the enchantment recognized them as friendly objects), their bodies ablaze.

    Rolling about for a few seconds, their entire bodies engulfed in roaring flames, they screamed before they were incinerated completely, leaving nothing more than piles of ashes and soot behind.

    "Oh, I''m going to have to clean that mess up," I complained. The girl continued to gape in disbelief and I pulled her gently.

    "Come on. Inside here. Once you''re in the house you''ll be safe."

    Turning toward the door, I spoke to the runes carved into the porch.

    "Recognize this person as a guest, please."

    They glowed, and then I let go of her hand. The girl rubbed her wrist absentmindedly before sheathing her sword. She turned to stare at me.

    "Just who are you?"

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    "Shouldn''t you introduce yourself before asking others for their names?" I replied.

    "Ah¡­my apologies." The girl lowered her head, her silver hair spilling over her shoulders and running toward her back. I noticed a few tears on her formerly pristine white dress, and a few scrapes and bruises. Evidently she didn''t get out of the chase unscathed.

    "Inside," I repeated, jerking my thumb inside. "We''ll get your wounds treated, then you can talk. Maybe tell me why those men were chasing you."

    "Yes." The girl followed me inside the house. After taking a seat on the couch, I brought a first aid kit to tend to her injuries. As I placed plasters on her scrapes, she didn''t even wince. Clearly she had a formidable mental fortitude.

    Taking a deep breath, she bowed her head.

    "Thank you very much for taking care of me." She was about to ask for my name again, but she hesitate, remembering my rebuke from earlier. "I am Kureha Franklin."

    "Richard Huang," I responded. "Nice to meet you, Ms. Kureha."

    Inside, something trembled. Did she say Franklin? Her family name was Franklin? A faint memory of one of my most formidable opponents drifted to the surface of my mind. Shawn Franklin, who had bravely faced down Yuan Dao Yue Guang''s wrath before he was mercilessly killed.

    "Are you¡­perhaps from the Franklin family?"

    "That''s right." Kureha nodded, her face tinged with sorrow. "One of the ten great families, and the bloodline famous for producing the most skilled swordsmen and swordswomen in the Global Federation." She placed a hand on her well-endowed chest. "I am the eighty-ninth inheritress of the venerable title ''Sword Saint''."

 129 Chapter 129: Sword Sain

    "The Sword Saint, huh?" I repeated with a nod. I had heard of the title before. It was granted to the most skilled swordsman or swordswoman of the era. But this girl¡­even though she was undoubtedly skilled with a sword, I had seen far more skilled and superior swordsman.

    She couldn''t even hold a candle to my dad.

    "What''s with that look of disbelief?" Kureha Franklin demanded. "I can show you the certification, you know! I have it somewhere¡­"

    She began rummaging for her smartphone, and then beamed a holographic projection that displayed her certificate that declared her as the eighty-ninth Sword Saint of the Franklin family.

    "I don''t doubt that." I frowned. "But I find it hard to believe that you are the most skilled swordswoman in the Global Federation. Forgive me for being rude, but I have seen swordsmen more proficient than you are"

    "Ah, well¡­" Kureha suddenly blushed a deep red. "I may be the Sword Saint, but I''m not the most skilled swordswoman in the Federation."

    "¡­say what?"

    "It''s just a title. To say that I inherited the Franklin sword style, and completely mastered it. That''s all."

    I was suddenly reminded of all the techniques that Shawn Franklin used, and the cheesy names of those techniques. I imagined Kureha shouting out those names, and couldn''t help but stifle some laughter.

    "What''s so funny?!" Kureha demanded.

    "No, nothing. Sorry." I suppressed a chuckle and tried to look serious. "That''s what the Sword Saint title is for? It''s specific only to the Franklin family?"

    "Well¡­yes." Kureha sulked. "The Franklin sword style is known to be the most beautiful form of swordsmanship in the world. The Franklin family is the strongest house of swordsmen, and one of the ten great families who is feared by the others. We are known by the name, the Sword of the Global Federation. Our lineage has given birth to men and women dedicated only to polishing their swordsmanship. We are the Blade Gods and Goddesses who stand in defense of the Global Federation, ready to cut down any foe who dares bare their fangs at us."

    "¡­uh, okay." That sounded grand and all, but I wasn''t sure if it matched the reality. If this girl was the current Sword Saint of the strongest house of swordsmen in the Federation, then we were pretty much fucked.

    Kureha caught sight of my disbelieving expression, and she looked even more embarrassed, squirming under my gaze.

    "Okay¡­I''m the Sword Saint of my generation. I''m not the only Sword Saint in my family. My mother is also the Sword Saint, and so is my grandmother. It''s just that¡­I succeeded the Sword Saint title ahead of Cousin Shawn, before he was¡­" She trailed away. I didn''t press her. After all, I personally witnessed his death with my own eyes.

    Then she brightened up.

    "But¡­but! I''ve often been told that I''m the greatest genius in the history of the Franklin family! That I will surpass my mother in five years! Give me some time and I''ll prove it on the battlefield!"

    "You already proved your skill earlier," I assured her. "Not many girls your age can fight off so many professional mages singlehandedly. I can tell you that I would never be able to cut down so many magical projectiles with a sword alone."

    That was true, because I wasn''t really a swordsman. I was a summoner, so obviously I wouldn''t be able to polish my swordsmanship to its pinnacle.

    "Speaking of which, why were all those guys after you? They looked like they were trying to kill you." I scowled as I folded my arms. "And they even attacked me when I poked my head out of the door. Are they some kind of criminal organization or something?"

    Kureha turned solemn. "They were sent to assassinate me."

    "Assassins? Those guys?" I burst out laughing. Kureha gave me a look of astonishment. I wiped the tears from my eyes as I chortled. "Sorry, but I''ve seen amateurs who do the job much better than them. They may be professional mages, but they are in no way assassins.If that''s what they''re calling themselves, then they''re insulting the vocation."

    "They''re not professional assassins," Kureha conceded. "But they were still formidable enemies."

    "That I don''t doubt," I admitted, remembering how easily and quickly they overcame Aries, Capricorn and Taurus. Granted, there were a dozen of them, but even then, to obliterate three of my Constellation spirits in such a short time was no mean feat. "Do you have any idea who sent them after you? A rival great family, perhaps?"

    Honestly, it was none of my business, but I allowed my curiosity to get the better of me. Better to know than to remain ignorant. I might even be able to use these politics between the great families to my own advantage.

    "Or perhaps an underground organization? A criminal syndicate?" I continued when Kureha didn''t reply immediately.

    The Franklin family, according to her, was a house of swordsmen, after all. It was inevitable that they would clash against underground organizations and criminal syndicates while carrying out their duties to protect the Global Federation. I had no doubt that they had made plenty of enemies along the way while swinging their swords to cut down foes of the Federation.

    However, Kureha shook her head.

    "No¡­these men¡­they were most likely sent by my own family. Or to be more accurate, my relatives."

    "¡­what?"

    Now I didn''t expect that. I stared at Kureha in surprise.

    "Your relatives?"

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    "There''s fierce competition between the various families in House Franklin," Kureha explained sadly. "If I die, then one of my other cousins will get the Sword Saint title. My uncles and aunts must be aiming for that." she hardened her gaze. "Especially after Cousin Shawn''s death. He was the next in line to get the Sword Saint title after me, so before then, they had not much of a reason to eliminate him. But ever since his death, these¡­attacks began growing more frequent."

    I couldn''t help but be impressed. In other words, this wasn''t the first and only attack. She must have fended them all off, and survived till today by relying on her magnificent and elegant sword skills.

    Then again, it had only been less than a week since that fateful incident in Southampton City, so just how many attempts on her life could she possibly suffer from?

    "But the person I''m most worried about isn''t myself," she confessed. "It''s my family."

    "Didn''t you say your mother and grandmother are the Sword Saints of their generations?" I asked, confused. "I''m sure they can take care of themselves. More so than you, if you don''t mind me saying."

    "Oh, I''m not worried about Mother and Grandmother." Kureha shook her head. "I''m more worried about my sister, Kurenai."

    "¡­huh?"

    I wasn''t aware that she had a sister. And why were they both named with seemingly Japanese names even though their family name was quite clearly non-Japanese? Perhaps one of their parents was of Japanese descent, which meant they were half Asian. However I couldn''t see any Asian features at all, what with her hair being silver instead of black, and her eyes being bright blue.

    Well, it was none of my business and quite clearly it was inappropriate for me to ask about her lineage right now, so I stifled my curiosity and returned to the main point.

    "Well, she should be safe under your mother''s care, right?"

    "¡­that''s the problem." Kureha looked glum. "Mother and Grandmother are currently away on a mission. To eliminate a criminal organization that has been manufacturing these weird tools to artificially trigger Emergence events. They won''t be back for another month or so."

    How coincidental. They were on the exact same mission as Dad. The Global Federation was really mobilizing every resources they had in order to combat this new, terrifying threat. I understood why. I didn''t want terrorists strolling into my city and opening a portal for monsters to flood right in and chew the civilians to bits.

    "I see. That''s bad." I nodded somewhat sagely. "If there''s anything I can do to help, please let me know."

    "No, it''s fine." Kureha smiled. "This is something I have to do by myself. I can''t rely on others to protect my own family for me."

    She lowered her sapphire eyes and gripped her sheathed sword tightly. I noticed her hand trembling ever so slightly.

    "If I can''t even protect my own sister, then how am I supposed to bear the duty of fighting for the Global Federation in future?"

    "Why are you obligated to take upon that duty anyway?"

    "Huh?" Kureha turned to stare at me. I shrugged.

    "What do you want to do, personally? I don''t mean what your family wants you to do, or the Federation. What do you want to do?"

    "That''s¡­" Kureha stammered uncertainly, and then she looked away. "I never really thought about it."

    "Perhaps it''s time for you to find a reason to wield that sword for yourself, instead of being shackled by familial or societal obligations." I was probably bullshitting, but for some reason I felt sad just from looking at her. A girl like her, who was my age, should be enjoying her youth. Socializing. Doing what she wanted. Not risking her life in battle, fending off assassins and worrying about her sister''s safety.

    It was just so¡­wrong.

    "I wield a sword because I want to," Kureha replied simply, holding up her sheathed sword to look at it. "I can''t imagine myself doing anything else."

    "That''s good enough, I guess." I nodded. "As long as that feeling comes straight from your heart and not from anyone else. Not from your parents, grandparents or society. Wield that blade for yourself, and not for anyone else."

    "Thank you." Kureha smiled faintly. "That sounds like great advice. I feel like I might be able to sharpen my swordsmanship further if I synchronize it with my heart and desires."

    I returned the smile. "I hope it helps."

    "Then¡­I''ll take my leave." Kureha rose to her feet. "I need to return to my sister. Unlike me, she doesn''t have much talent in the sword. She probably will not be able to defend herself."

    "Understood. Should I call a taxi?"

    "No. I''ll move on foot. I don''t want to draw any attention." And she cut me off before I could offer. "And there''s no need to escort me. I move faster and stealthier alone."

    "That didn''t help you against those other guys," I muttered, waving toward the piles of ash in my courtyard.

    "They caught me at home and chased me from there to here." Kureha pursed her lips. "If anything, I should leave this place before their reinforcements arrive. I don''t want you to get caught up in this any more than you already are."

    "I think it''s a bit too late for that." I sighed, but I knew there was no arguing with her. "All right then. Be safe."

    "I will."

    And then, Kureha disappeared into the night, a silver blur that hopped from rooftop to rooftop and fading into the distance in mere seconds.

    She really was the Sword Saint of her generation, huh?

 130 Chapter 130: Meeting Again

    The first thing I noticed when I returned to school the next morning was that Troy King was back.

    "Try!"

    "Richard! Good to see you again!"

    Troy smacked me so hard I was sent sprawling on the ground. Damn it, the guy still didn''t realize how strong he was.

    "Sorry, bro," Troy apologized as he helped me up to my feet. "I got too excited."

    "It''s fine," I assured him while wincing. Bloody hell, did he get stronger over the period of time since I saw him? "Did you manage to find your brother?"

    Troy scowled. "No. the bastard escaped. I thought I had him cornered, but he blew up an entire city to throw me off. While I was busily trying to rescue the civilians he dragged into our fight, he made his getaway."

    "Holy fuck!" I swore. Troy''s brother sounded like the worst motherfucker ever. "He WHAT?!"

    "I know, right? He could have killed them, and I''m glad he didn''t. But the reason he didn''t was purely because he knew I would try and save them while letting him go." Troy''s face was thunderous. "He was taunting me the entire time as I rescued a crying family from a collapsing building. I wanted to punch his face, but¡­I had other concerns at that time." He sighed and glared at his tightly clenched fist. "I can''t allow people to die because of me and my brother."

    I was vaguely aware that Troy''s brother as an asshole of the highest order, who abused Troy when he was a child, but I wasn''t sure of the details. And Troy wasn''t forthcoming with them, not unless he was ranting, so I didn''t ask.

    "At least you saved them."

    "No¡­not all of them." Troy''s face was bitter. "After he escaped, he blew up the rest of the city and killed all those people I was unable to reach in time. I can still hear his damned laughter ringing in my ears, saying it''s my fault all those people died."

    "It''s not," I assured him.

    "Really?" Troy rounded on me. "If I hadn''t gone after my brother, do you think they would have died? Would they have been dragged into my conflict with him?"

    "Judging from what you told me regarding your brother¡­yeah. I reckon if you weren''t around, he would have wiped out the entire city. At least you saved some of them."

    "That''s¡­" Troy trailed off. "¡­yeah. You''re right. Sorry. And thanks."

    "No need to thank me." I patted his shoulder. "Anyway, let''s go to class."

    As we both strode down the corridor, Troy suddenly stopped to stare at me, a grin spreading across his face.

    "I heard, you know!"

    "¡­heard what?"

    "Hah!" Troy chortled as he smacked me again, but not as hard this time. "Don''t play dumb with me! I heard that you joined Black Rose! We''re now in the same society!"

    "Oh, right. That." I nodded vaguely.

    "After killing three rank A monsters too! That''s quite the feat! You really got a lot stronger, didn''t you?"

    "¡­not strong enough."

    Troy must have sensed my mood, for he nodded somberly.

    "I''m sorry about your loss. It''s a real tragedy that shouldn''t have happened." He looked away guiltily. "Here I am, complaining about not being able to save a city, while you were there, unable to help your juniors¡­watching them get killed right in front of your eyes. That¡­that''s not something anyone should have to suffer from."

    That wasn''t entirely true. I didn''t witness firsthand Stanley Lee and Wang Fei getting slaughtered by the Crastrates. I arrived too late, way after they were killed, unable to do anything.

    But I didn''t correct Troy. Instead, I simply nodded.

    "¡­yeah."

    "That wasn''t your fault," Troy assured me, mistaking my sullen silence for guilt. Well, he wasn''t mistaken. It was most certainly guilt. "You did what you could. And you succeeded in avenging them. I didn''t."

    "There''s a difference between having the people close to you die and witnessing strangers die. They are both horrible, but¡­there''s a difference."

    "Of course, of course." Troy nodded sagely. "Sorry. I didn''t mean to compare. I was just¡­"

    "¡­trying to make me feel better. I know." I waved his apology away. "Don''t worry about it. I''m just feeling a bit wistful when remembering them. I know it''s already been a month or so¡­"

    "Emotional wounds take a lot longer to heal."

    "¡­yeah."

    We continued down the corridor, toward our respective classrooms in silence. Then Troy stopped and smiled at me.

    "I''ll see you in the training room later."

    I nodded, knowing that he was referring to society activities. I watched as he headed in the opposite direction, and then I went toward combat magic class.

    *

    After lessons ended, I headed toward the Black Rose building as usual, getting ready for society activities. Harvey was following me, skipping cheerfully and humming.

    The guy was always so happy. I needed to ask him what he was smoking. I could use some of that stuff.

    Then he suddenly stopped.

    "Senior Richard¡­that¡­"

    "Hmm?"

    I glanced in the direction he was pointing at. There was a girl lurking outside the school gates, peering inside nervously.

    "What is she doing here?"

    I recognized her immediately, courtesy of her long, silver hair, her sapphire eyes and pristine white dress.

    She was none other than the Sword Saint of our generation, Kureha Franklin of House Franklin.

    "Hey, Richie! What''s up? Heading to the Black Rose building too? Hey, Harvey. It''s been a while, hasn''t it?

    "Senior Troy! Yeah, long time no see!"

    While Harvey turned around to greet the approaching Troy, I continued to stare in Kureha''s direction. Not knowing her or what I was doing, Troy slapped me across the back in his usual friendly manner.

    "What are you spacing out for, Richie?" he then raised his head to look in the direction I was staring at and caught sight of Kureha. "Somebody you know?"

    "I haven''t seen her before," Harvey remarked. Then he frowned, pondering thoughtfully. "No, actually I did. She looks very familiar, but I can''t remember where I have seen her before."

    "On television or the Internet?" I supplied helpfully. Given Kureha''s status and title, as well as her belonging to House Franklin, one of the ten great families, I wouldn''t be surprised if she was a celebrity. Harvey also brightened up.

    "Yeah, you''re right! She''s someone famous, but I can''t remember who!"

    I guessed she rarely shows herself in public. Nonetheless, as funny as it was to watch her squirm abut nervously outside the school gates and attract curious stares from Jing Tian Academy students, a few of whom were approaching her because they recognized her, it didn''t feel right to leave her in the lurch. I quickly cut in ahead of them and waved at her.

    "Kureha. Why are you here? Are you looking for somebody?"

    Kureha looked extremely relieved when she saw me. She nodded as she quickly approached me.

    "Richard! Yeah, I need your help."

    "What kind of help?"

    It was only yesterday that I saw her, so I was very surprised to see her so soon. Didn''t she say that she wanted to check on her sister?

    While I was waiting for a reply, dozens of thoughts running through my mind, Kureha fidgeted anxiously.

    "That''s¡­" She glanced around and looked down nervously. "Can we go somewhere that''s less open?"

    "Sure." I nodded and stepped out of the school gates. Harvey and Troy followed suit, their curiosity overwhelming their manners.

    "Aren''t you the Sword Saint, Kureha Franklin?" Troy exclaimed, his eyes wide. "What are you doing here, all the way in Jing Tian?"

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    "Ah! That''s who she is! I remember now!" Harvey''s head was bobbing up and down excitedly, his expression bright in wonder.

    She stared at them, and then at me. I shrugged.

    "They are my friends."

    "Oh, okay." She nodded. "Then I think it''s fine. You probably will want a party."

    "Party?" I repeated incredulously. "What for?"

    "¡­my request." Kureha refused to be drawn on any further, and I took the hint when she gazed at her surroundings nervously. Lots of Jing Tian students were still watching us. I nodded and took point, leading her away from their intense scrutiny.

    As the Sword Saint, it was natural that she would draw a lot of attention.

    "How''s your sister?" I asked instead as I led her to a nearby caf¨¦. Troy and Harvey followed, and took their seats at the edge of a circular table after waiting for Kureha to sit. Ladies first, after all. I sat beside the Sword Saint, keeping my eyes on her. "Is she safe?"

    "¡­that''s what I need your help for¡­" Kureha''s expression fell, and her fingers twitched. "My sister has been abducted. I need you to help me rescue her." She straightened up formally. "I am prepared to make this an official request and recompense you with the appropriate rewards." She then bowed her head. "Please¡­help me rescue my sister."

 131 Chapter 131: Rescue Reques

    The three of us exchanged glances before returning our gaze on the forlorn Kureha Franklin.

    "Um¡­shouldn''t you be contacting the police over this sort of thing instead of approaching us?" Harvey asked. I nodded in agreement. My junior had raised a very good point. Kidnapping, abduction ¨C such matters were way over our heads. We just weren''t equipped to deal with these sort of things. Maybe the police wasn''t either, but at least call in the military.

    Kureha''s face darkened. "That''s the first thing I did, after I got home and found my sister missing. But they told me that unless she has been confirmed missing for twenty-four hours, they cannot send a search party. Some bullshit about protocols and standard operating procedures." She raised her smartphone. "Even after I showed them this message."

    A holographic email from an unknown sender was projected above the table. The words were written very clearly and simply.

    If you want your sister back safely, kill yourself.

    "What the fuck?" Troy muttered. I was about to say the same thing, but he beat me to it.

    "That''s ridiculous." I frowned. "And the police didn''t say anything?"

    "They claimed that it was most likely a prank call, and there was no proof it had anything to do with my sister. Something about a lack of ransom, or stalkers or something." Kureha folded her arms in irritation. "The police can''t be trusted. I won''t be surprised if my relatives already bought them out, having predicted that I would approach them first."

    "That sucks."

    "Then what do we do now?" Harvey asked, turning to me and Troy. "If Senior Kureha can''t trust the police, then we''re the only ones she can turn to?"

    "Not necessarily." I shook my head and turned to Kureha. "That''s what I want to know. Why are you approaching us of all people?"

    "Didn''t you say yesterday you will help me if it''s within your ability?" Kureha countered.

    "I did, and I will. This is a form of help." I leaned closer. "If you want your sister back, shouldn''t you be approaching professionals? A private investigator to find out where your sister is? Professional mages to rescue her? What do you think a bunch of students can do against adult mages? If we''re not careful, we''ll end up getting ourselves killed without saving your sister."

    Kureha looked glum. "I did consider hiring professional mages¡­but¡­with my pocket money, I simply can''t afford them. I can only afford to hire students from mage academies."

    "Fair enough." I leaned back in my chair and nodded, conceding the point. It was true that we students received a much smaller payout from completing our missions when compared to professional mercenaries and mages. That was why we were issued all those missions to kill low rank monsters. The missions involving high rank monsters, with the appropriately massive amount of rewards, were accordingly issued to professional mages and mercenaries like my dad. They could receive anything from a hundred to a thousand times the amount we received from slaying low ranking monsters. Sometimes the mission fees would reach into the millions, especially if it involved assassinations or hunting down rogue mages.

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    I wasn''t interested in the money, though.

    "If that''s the case, then we should help you!" Troy declared firmly, banging his fist on the table. "We''ll rescue your sister!"

    "Yeah!" Harvey agreed with a cheer. I threw him a withering stare.

    "You''re a first year student. I don''t think you''re allowed to take part in missions, unfortunately. Sorry, Harvey¡­but I think we''ll still need your help in other non-combat matters."

    "Aw¡­" Harrvey looked a little disappointed, but he straightened when he heard my last sentence. "Please leave it to me!"

    Yeah, I had learned to be tactful. I didn''t want poor Harvey to be left out, so I made it feel like he could still contribute, but currently I had no idea how he could. I was sure we would figure something out later.

    For now, we should focus on the matter on hand.

    "Do you know who kidnapped your sister, or where she is being held?" I asked. Kureha shook head bitterly.

    "I wish I did. That''s actually the main reason why I approached you guys for help, and contacted the police earlier. I have no idea where they are or who they are."

    She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists tightly. I saw one of her hands go to the sword that was scabbarded at her side, curling around the hilt.

    "Otherwise I would have gone straight to wherever they are and kill every last one of them."

    "By yourself?" I snorted, remembering the events of last night. "I don''t mean to be rude, but you couldn''t even kill the group of mages pursuing you last night. What makes you think you can storm a kidnapper''s base by yourself?"

    "Last night?" Troy and Harvey stared at me. I sighed, and briefly recounted what had happened last night.

    "Oh. That sucks." Troy made a face and turned toward Kureha. "So you''ve been targeted by assassins¡­"

    "Wannabe assassins," I corrected, and he rolled his eyes at me.

    "¡­and now they''ve targeted your sister because they failed to kill you¡­thanks to Richie over here."

    "I''d say that pretty much sums it up, yeah." Kureha nodded.

    "But you have no idea who they are except that they are most likely hired by your relatives. And you don''t know where they are now."

    "That is correct."

    Troy paused and leaned back in his chair to consider. Drumming his fingers on the table, he sipped his coffee before sighing.

    "We''ll take the request. I''m assuming you''re in too, right, Richie?"

    "Yeah." I glanced at Harvey. "You''ll be in a non-combat role."

    "Understood." Harvey sounded disappointed, but he knew the rationale behind the decision and didn''t argue. The rules were rules, and we risked punishment if we chose to break them. I then turned to Troy.

    "Do we need more members? Alicia, maybe?"

    "Hmm¡­I honestly think we can do it with the three of us." Troy glanced around, and shook his head. "The less of us there are, the easier we can find them and sneak into their hideout. Too large a group and we''ll draw too much attention. The main priority is to rescue this lady''s sister, not to exterminate the kidnappers, correct?"

    "¡­yeah." Kureha sounded reluctant, but she didn''t argue. She knew as well as we did that it would be extremely difficult for three students to exterminate an entire group of professional adult mages by themselves. Even if we could recruit a few members, it probably wouldn''t make any difference. We were still completely outmatched. "Kurenai''s safety must be our utmost priority?"

    "Kurenai?" Harvey asked. "Is that your sister?"

    "Ah, yes. My apologies." Kureha nodded. She faced the three of us. "Please, I ask that you help me save my sister!"

    "On it!" Troy assured her. I nodded as well.

    "Harvey, please return to school and inform President Alicia that Troy and I will be taking a mission for a couple of days."

    "Understood!" Harvey snapped off a smart salute and rose to his feet. Then I turned back to Kureha.

    "Now we''ll have to look for clues. Where and when was the last time you saw Kurenai?"

    "It would be best if you know exactly when and where she was kidnapped," Troy added, rubbing his chin.

    "I might have an idea." Kureha frowned. "I believe they abducted her right from our home. There were some signs of intrusion and a struggle, but¡­" she scowled as she folded her arms. "The police refused to believe me. Said it could just be my sister throwing a tantrum."

    "They really have been bought out by someone," Troy agreed with a snarl. "I''ve never heard so much bullshit before. Or maybe I have, but that''s just¡­"

    "Stupid?" I offered. Troy cocked his head for a moment, and nodded.

    "Yeah. Stupid. If they were trying to cook up excuses to dismiss your report, then they need to try better than that. I''ll report them to the authorities, and flush out the corruption." He smiled grimly. "It''ll take some time, but we might get some clues from there."

    "Won''t it take too long?" I asked. "I don''t know how long these kidnappers will wait before they start¡­uh, harming Kurenai."

    "¡­no, we''re not counting on that. I have another plan."

    Troy rose to his feet and turned to Kureha, who also stood up. I hastily joined them, sensing that we were moving.

    "Do you mind bringing us to your home? I want to examine the scene."

    "Will you be able to tell who the culprit is from there?" I asked, astonished. Troy struck me as a warrior, the strongest mage in Jing Tian Academy, but now he was behaving like a detective. What was he, some sort of Mary Sue who could do anything?

    "Probably." Troy grinned. "Don''t forget. I''ve been trying to track down my brother all this time. Finding a bunch of amateurs will be a breeze."

    Kureha nodded, looking as if she felt a ray of hope for the first time since today.

    "I''ll bring you there."

    *

    As Troy bent down and examined the room closely, I stood to a corner and watched, understanding why the police could so easily use an excuse to throw Kureha''s case out of the damned window.

    Even though there were, like Kureha mentioned, signs of a struggle, they weren''t very visible. A fallen chair here, pillows and stuffed animals on the floor, and¡­a crumpled carpet. No other signs of violence or disturbance. If anything, it looked more like Kurenai left a mess in her room than someone kidnapping her.

    "Was the window open after your sister was gone?" Troy asked as he followed an invisible trail toward the window. He stopped by the glass and glanced at our host. Kureha nodded.

    "Yeah. But I closed it before I left the house." Kureha reached forward and pushed the window open. "It was open about this wide."

    That was pretty wide. She practically opened the windows all the way. I could see why she would believe that someone kidnapped her sister. Most likely the dude escaped through the window after securing his or her hostage.

    Troy scowled in annoyance, but didn''t say anything. Being his friend, I could tell that he was pretty annoyed that Kureha touched and disturbed the evidence. As every good investigator would tell you, never touch anything in the scene. You might mess up the trail or accidentally destroy any traces of evidence or important clues.

    To be fair, Kureha wasn''t trained in investigation or police matters. She was a swordsman. Her only focus was to destroy the enemy with her sword, not to look for clues and sniff out the enemy. On the other hand, I always thought of Troy as someone similar, but it appeared that he had learned a trick or two about investigation.

    He peered out of the window, staring at the wall outside. It wasn''t that much of a drop, since the room was located on the third story, but it wouldn''t have mattered to Troy anyhow. He raised a hand and turned back to us.

    "Both of you, stay where you are and do not touch anything."

    "Huh?"

    "Roger that," I answered for the both of us. Jerking my head toward Kureha, I hissed, "Just listen to him. He''s the expert."

    "¡­right."

    Before she could say anything more, Troy leaped out of the window. Kureha blinked and made to take a step forward, her mouth falling open in shock. Not out of concern, mind you. As a superlative swordswoman herself, she was aware that Troy wouldn''t hurt himself from dropping down three stories. She was just surprised by his sudden actions.

    "Oi. Remember what Troy told us?"

    "Oh, right." Kureha stopped where she was, looking sheepish.

    "Both of you, get down here!" Troy''s voice hissed from outside the window. I exchanged a glance with Kureha, and the both of us obeyed. It took us less than a minute to gather in the garden where he was crouching to study the grass.

    Troy was grinning as he stood up to face the both of us.

    "I''ve got some good news, homies," he proudly declared. "I think I know where the kidnappers went."

 132 Chapter 132: Mountain Trail

    "Are you sure this is the right place?" I asked skeptically. It was only natural. Troy had led us to what looked like a remote mountain range. My dark-skinned friend turned to me with a confident smile, his eyes gleaming with assurance.

    "Trust me. The trail leads here."

    "I believe you. But¡­" I glanced around the mountains. "I just find it weird that the kidnappers would bring their hostage all the way to a place like this."

    The remote area was bereft of anything remotely resembling human civilization. There was nothing but wilderness and rock out here, and we had even run into a few monsters. Fortunately, low ranking monsters were no match for our skills. I didn''t even need to summon anything. Both Troy and Kureha dispatched them effortlessly before I could even blink.

    "Why would they bring Kurenai to the middle of nowhere?" Kureha wondered out loud, just as doubtful as I was. "There''s nothing out here."

    "We can ask them when we find them," Troy replied with a shrug. He gestured toward one of the mountains. "The trail leads up there. Looks like we''ve to climb."

    We stumbled upon what seemed like a manmade path when we reached the foot of the particular mountain he indicated. I held my hand up to stop us.

    "Allow me."

    Summoning a flock of Corvus, I unleashed them upon the mountain, allowing them to fly everywhere for reconnaissance. Unfortunately, the distance they could stay within before they flew out of my summoning range remained at about one hundred meters, but it was still better than nothing. Soaring high into the air, they flew up the mountain to survey what was ahead of us.

    "Nothing." I frowned as I peered through several of my Corvus''s eyes. "I don''t see anything at all. At least not for the first hundred meters. Not even monsters."

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    "What about the peak of the mountain?" Troy asked. I shook my head.

    "My Corvus haven''t reached there yet," I admitted. "They''ll disappear if they fly beyond my summoning range. Shall we proceed? I''ll notify you if my Corvus spot anything."

    And so we proceeded, with my flock of Corvus scouting ahead and relaying information to me. I spotted a few monsters on the way up, mostly Mountain Trolls. Low-mid level humanoid monsters with bulging muscles and lopsided figures, their right arms swelled to several times the size of their left, resembling clubs or hammers more than limbs. They ignored my Corvus as the crows soared above them, seeming to argue and fight among themselves.

    "They are only rank D monsters," Troy declared confidently when I shared the intelligence with my party members. "We can take care of them easily."

    Kureha nodded. "But it makes no sense. If the kidnappers really came through here, how did they get past those Mountain Trolls?"

    "We''ll find out," Troy replied, giving no sign that he was worried about leading us on a wild goose chase. Kureha and I exchanged glances, but I merely continued forward. Troy was a good friend of mine, so I trusted him.

    "They''re close," I warned once we drew nearer to the Mountain Trolls. The monsters had stopped their squabbling and were sniffing the air. They began lumbering in our direction, following the winding mountain trail we were traversing. As this was the only route up the mountain, we had no alternate path to escape to, and no way of avoiding an encounter with them.

    Troy grinned in anticipation as he began generating mana between his hands. The ground beneath his feet trembled as gravity began increasing rapidly from his presence. Dark energy wreathed his hands.

    "Let them come. I''ll destroy them."

    Kureha nodded in agreement as she drew her sword from her scabbard once again.

    However, I shook my head and raised my hand to wave them back. A smile crept across my face as I focused my eyes on the trail. Around the corner, the first of the Mountain Trolls had just came to view.

    "No. You guys have been fighting this entire time. It''s my turn now."

    Ever since my Corvus had spotted the Mountain Trolls, I had already begun casting a summoning spell. As such, the moment we established contact, I was ready to unleash my Constellation spirit upon the poor dudes.

    "Capricorn!"

    The giant sea goat burst from the side of the mountain, sending a shower of rocks flying outward and smacking into the vanguard of the Mountain Trolls. The first three shrieked as the boulders struck them, the impact knocking them off the trail and sending them plummeting down into the valley below. At this height of about two or three hundred meters, even monsters like them wouldn''t be able to survive. Not unless they possessed the ability to fly, and I knew for sure that Mountain Trolls couldn''t.

    Before the rest could react, Capricon was already barreling into the horde of Mountain Trolls and throwing them off the mountain path. His horns slammed into them mercilessly and he grunted as he tossed them off the trail, sending them falling to their deaths below, or pulverizing them into bloody pulp with his majestic horns.

    Once his job was done, I recalled Capricorn. My Constellation spirit nodded at me before he vanished, and I proceeded to the front cautiously while relying on my Corvus above to keep an eye out on the path ahead, to ensure that it was clear.

    "Looks like they''re all gone," I told my comrades.

    "You really have diversified your summoning, haven''t you?" Troy remarked, sounding impressed. "I''ve never heard of someone having as many different soul beasts as you."

    Kureha raised an eyebrow. "Just how many do you have? I remember that goat from earlier. You summoned him along with a bull, a ram and a tiger yesterday, and now you''re also summoning a flock of crows."

    "That''s a secret," I replied mischievously. Then I paused and frowned. Turning to Troy, I chewed my lip nervously. "Are you sure this is the place?"

    "Sure as sure, bro." Troy knelt down and sifted through the earth. "I can guarantee that they came through this way. Their footsteps are fresh."

    "Yeah, well¡­I hope they didn''t get eaten."

    "What''s that supposed to mean?" Kureha demanded. I swallowed and pointed upward nervously.

    "I''ve just caught a glimpse of the top of the mountain. Seems like there''s a dragon''s nest up there."

    "The fuck?! Why the hell did they go to a dragon''s nest?" Troy''s mouth was hanging open in a comical manner.

    "You tell me!" Kureha snapped. "You''re the one who said they came this way!"

    "Yeah, they really did!"

    Taking a deep breath, I ignored the squabbling between my teammates and proceeded upward. Something struck me as odd. The titanic, dark shape of the dragon was soaring away from the peak of the mountain, presumably to hunt for food.

    Dragons were rank A monsters, even more powerful than the Crastrates I had fought over a month ago. They possessed enough power to level whole cities. Even a veteran squad of mages would find it difficult to fight them. Normally, I wouldn''t dare to approach anywhere near them either, but that particular dragon''s presence intrigued me.

    What was a rank A monster doing in this mountain range, which was relatively close to Jing Tian City? Granted, this was quite some distance away from the city, and could count as deep wilderness, but Jing Tian Forest and its surrounding areas were known for being mild in comparison to other areas. It was hard to believe that a rank A monster like a dragon would take up residence here without anyone noticing. The city council would dispatch an army of mages to quickly eliminate the dragon before it could turn its attention toward our city.

    "Hey! Richie! Where are you going?" Troy had noticed that I was going on ahead and hurried after me.

    "To check out the dragon''s nest. I want to know why it''s here. There''s no way a rank A monster would have gotten this close to the city without anyone noticing."

    "We are quite far from the city, though," Troy pointed out. "About twenty miles or so away. Of course¡­"

    He paused, the same thought that had crossed my mind also occurring to him.

    "We should have a surveillance team stationed somewhere here to pick up incidents like this. Why didn''t they¡­?"

    "That''s exactly what I intend to find out," I responded grimly. "Now''s the best chance to do it. The dragon''s leaving its nest."

    As if on cue, the massive shadow of the dragon covered us in darkness.

    "That''s¡­"

    Kureha''s jaw dropped as she saw the legendary monster glide past, its figure a black silhouette against the glare of the sun. And then it was gone, disappearing into the distance as it took off at hypersonic speeds, leaving sonic booms in its wake.

    "We can''t fight something like that¡­!"

    "That''s why we''re going in when it leaves its nest," I replied. Frowning as I considered several possibilities in my mind, I decided to share some of my doubts. "I might be mistaken, but there''s a chance the dragon''s presence has something to do with human intervention. Like the Transdimensional Key they used to artificially trigger an Emergence event."

    "¡­and those people might be the same people who kidnapped Kureha''s sister," Troy continued for me. "After abducting her, they brought her here while carrying out experiments or¡­their mission might be to summon the dragon from the start."

    "Damn it!" Kureha clenched her fists angrily. "Just what are they planning?!"

    "Let''s find out," Troy suggested darkly as he followed me. As for me, I was so absorbed in seeing through Corvus''s eyes that I wasn''t paying much attention to their conversation. Hastening my pace, I tried to reach within hundred meters of the mountaintop as soon as possible, so as to satisfy my curiosity.

    "¡­!"

    I suddenly stopped. Troy grabbed my shoulder in an attempt to prevent himself from colliding into me.

    "What is it?!"

    "You''re right, Troy. They''re there." I pause for a moment, my brow furrowing. "Honestly, I don''t know if they are the same people who kidnapped Kurenai, but there is indeed a base camp set up near the dragon''s nest. It''s hidden inside a cave, but I can see equipment and human silhouettes moving around inside."

    "We need to get closer!" Kureha urged us impatiently.

    "Yeah." I nodded and began formulating a strategy. "It doesn''t seem like they''ve noticed us. I say we take them by surprise."

    "Fine by me." Troy grinned and cracked his knuckles. "I''m going to make them pay dearly for kidnapping innocent children from their homes."

 133 Chapter 133: A Lie and a Trap

    The personnel inside the cave didn''t know what hit them.

    I had posted a few Corvus outside to keep watch on them, and thanks to that, we were able to strike after I confirmed that their guard was down. Using their keen sight and magical senses, my Corvus crows were able to keep track of what was inside the cave, and who were where. Before they realized what had happened, Troy collapsed the interior of the cave with gravity, raining boulders and rock down on the stunned criminal mages.

    "What''s going on?!"

    "A cave in?! Impossible! There shouldn''t be any tectonic instability here¡­!"

    "Out! Evacuate the cave!"

    Kureha was concerned about her sister being caught up in the attack, but using my Corvus, I could assure her that she wasn''t in the frontal area. Troy also selected his target, listening to my descriptions and directions, and avoided crushing the back. We focused on the greatest concentrations of the enemy wiping out the majority of them before they could even begin to fight back.

    Then, as the survivors rushed out, still reeling from the shock of having their base collapse on top of them, Troy and Kureha struck.

    Troy''s attacks were brutal and merciless. His fists hammered into the faces of mages, breaking bone and obliterating skulls. Earth spikes rose about him, piercing any foe who was somehow able to whirl around to face this new intrusion. Gravity spells flickered to life, cruelly bringing opponents down to their hands and knees, unable to stand under the tremendous pressure. Without even looking at them, Troy kicked them or had earth spikes impale them from below, moving on to the next enemy without any hesitation.

    In contrast, Kureha''s strikes were elegant and graceful, each stroke landing with unparalleled precision and control. Her sword darted in quickly and penetrated through defenses. She weaved through the crowd of enemies almost as if she was dancing, her sword flashing up and slicing them apart in an almost artful manner. Several mages rallied and succeeded in casting ranged spells to fling at her, but she spun around daintily on her feet and cut through them, her blade pressure hurtling through the air to cleave them apart along with their futile spells.

    While the two were annihilating what remained of the enemy, I dove into the cave, unseen by anyone except my teammates. Troy had called off his spells, and the cave was no longer trembling violently and collapsing on itself. There weren''t any survivors left, the majority having been crushed by our surprise attack.

    "Where''s Kurenai?"

    That worried me. I was pretty sure that my Corvus informed me that there was no sign of her in this area. Yet, there was nothing else other than ruined equipment and corpses. I studied the corpses, but was relieved to see that Kurenai was not among her.

    Then where was she?

    Frowning, I raised my head and glanced deeper into the cave. There was another tunnel leading off to some other section, and I proceeded with caution. Eventually I came toward a huge metallic gate, which was closed and sealed off from the corridor I had just come from.

    No wonder my Corvus didn''t spot it earlier. It was so deep inside the cave that it was out of their visual range. Never mind the walls and corridors blocking their sight.

    "Is Kurenai here?"

    Kureha and Troy had finally caught up with me, having followed the signs I left behind for them when I began my reconnaissance of the cave.

    "Seems like it." Troy had knelt down to observe the earth. "Her trail leads here¡­or to be more accurate, the trail of her kidnappers."

    "I''ll break the door open," I offered, having already finished casting my spell while waiting for my comrades to arrive. Raising Sagittarius, I fired off an Alnasl and demolished the heavy-duty doors in one shot. The resulting explosion sent tremors across the interior of the cave, causing stone and dust to rain down about us.

    "Hey! Be careful, bro!" Troy complained. I ignored him and proceeded inside the chamber.

    "You¡­! Who are you!?"

    Behind the ruined doors, there was a much larger group of mages coughing and flailing about inside, probably caught off guard by the sudden explosion.

    "I am Death, Destroyer of Worlds," I replied, and they gaped at me, stunned. Then they caught sight of Kureha as she followed suit.

    "You¡­! The Sword Saint!"

    "The daughter of the Franklin family! What is she doing here?!"

    "How did she find us?!"

    "That''s not important," Kureha replied coldly as she pointed her sword at them. "Where is my sister? Return her to me immediately!"

    "Your sister?" one of the mages grinned wickedly. "We already told you. If you want her returned safely, then you have to take your own life."

    "I won''t ask twice," Kureha snapped. "Where is my sister? Return her!"

    "Oh, well¡­" the guy shook his head. "If you insist on being so stubborn, then we have no choice."

    "Unless I see my sister, you have no room to negotiate with me. I''ll destroy you and find her myself." Kureha brandished her sword. "Since I already know she''s here, there is no use in sparing your lives anyway."

    "She''s at the back," Troy informed her as he joined us. He had bent down to press his palm against the ground. "That''s what the signs tell me."

    "I see." Kureha swung her sword, an immense blast of blade pressure washing across the interior of the chamber and cutting apart several of the stunned mages in the room. The majority of them managed to dive away in time to avoid being slaughtered. After having cleared a path, Kureha strode inward, intent on locating her sister.

    Then she dropped to her knees all of a sudden, her sword clattering beside her as she raised her hands to her mouth in horror.

    "No¡­impossible¡­"

    It took me a second or so before I saw what she had seen. Further inside the chamber was the corpse of her sister.

    Kurenai wasn''t just dead. Before her death, she had been ravaged and violated. Naked, bloodied and battered, the poor girl was staring lifelessly up at the ceiling, her eyes hollow and blank. Her bruised chest was no longer rising, her yet to fully mature breasts showing signs of rough molestation. Blood had pooled between her legs and spread to a circle around her hips and thighs. One arm rested at an unnatural angle, most likely broken when she tried to fight back.

    "Whoops¡­you found her." the spokesman from before chuckled as he rose to his feet with an indifferent shrug.

    "Bastards!" Troy roared, fury building up in his voice.

    "You never intended to take her hostage¡­" I whispered, my eyes riveted to the horrifying sight in disbelief. We were too late¡­no, the signs of damage¡­her death didn''t seem all too recent. She was dead long before we arrived. "Didn''t you say you''ll return her safely if Kureha killed herself? How do you intend to do that if she really carried out her part of the deal?"

    "We didn''t," the man responded sinisterly. "Who cares about honoring a deal with a dead person? We lied." He laughed. "She made such a cute plaything for us that we couldn''t resist. Broke her earlier than we expected, which is a shame, but we haven''t had much opportunity to enjoy women for quite a while now."

    I was aghast. The fuckers clearly never intended to let Kurenai live from the start. They would have used her as their plaything, raping her until she died from their cruel captivity. Even if Kureha had killed herself, they were shameless enough to not honor their part of the deal, and continued to hold poor Kurenai captive until she died at their lusty hands.

    From the very beginning, they had lied to Kureha.

    "I''ll fucking kill you!" Troy bellowed.

    "Oh, you can try." Even though Troy cast his gravity spells, a boundary field flickered to life and countered his spell. "There are over a hundred of us and only three of you. What can you do against us?" he chuckled. "Though I have to thank you. I didn''t think the Sword Saint will obediently kill herself, so we were planning an attack and waiting for reinforcements. Hmm, I guess they won''t get here in time, but that''s fine too. Now that you''ve so conveniently delivered yourselves to our doorsteps, we''ll help ourselves and kill you right here and now!"

    An enormous wave of killing intent washed over us, almost causing me to stagger.

    "These guys¡­" Troy felt a bead of perspiration drip down his face. "They''re on a completely different level from those outside¡­!"

    "What? Oh, you mean the researchers? Of course. Those guys aren''t real mages. They are researchers, setting up their gadgets here to study monsters and learn how to control them. Apparently they''re trying to control a dragon." The guy shrugged. "Idiots, if you ask me, but we don''t get paid to question their research."

    "I see. They''re a mercenary group, hired by some organization to protect them while they conduct research. Also hired to assassinate the Franklin daughters."

    "Oh?" The leader of the mercenaries looked at me, impressed. "You know your stuff."

    That was because my dad was a mercenary, but I didn''t tell him that. Instead, I had a more important question in mind.

    "Who hired you? Who wants the Franklin daughters dead? Someone from the organization?"

    "Can''t tell you. Rules of the contract and all that. We have to keep our client''s information confidential." The mercenary leader laughed. "Not that it matters. None of you will be able to leave here alive today!"

    At his order, the hundred or so mercenaries dashed forward, mana crackling around them. Troy and Kureha rose to meet them in combat, but they were quickly overwhelmed. Even though Troy cast gravity spells, their physical reinforcements and Armament Ba Qi allowed them to shrug off the tremendous pressures and allowed them to continue fighting as per normal. And despite Kureha''s superlative skill with the sword, the mercenaries who engaged her were combat veterans who survived countless battles. It would be difficult for a relatively inexperienced swordswoman like her to defeat so many of them.

    The rest of them pounced on me, thinking I was easy prey. Especially since I didn''t charge forward like my comrades and was holding no weapons after having dismissed Sagittarius after I walked through the ruined doors.

    "Lyra."

    "Ha ha ha ha!"

    The vanguard of the enemy mercenaries rushing at me burst out laughing when he saw my Constellation weapon.

    "What do you think you''re doing? A harp? Are you going to bore us to death with your horrible singing and music?"

    "You got the death part correct," I replied icily. With a flick of my hands, I sent thousands of razor-sharp garrote wires flying outward, weaving through the space of the chamber. Several of the mercenaries couldn''t stop themselves in time and continued hurtling forward through my wires. They staggered past, and then their bodies fell apart into numerous bloody pieces.

    "!!!"

    The rest managed to freeze, their eyes wide as they stared at me in horror. A few of them glanced around, trying to spot the near invisible wires, terrified of sharing the same fate as their comrades.

    "It''s a trap!" a vanguard mercenary shouted in warning when one of his teammates accidentally backed into a tangle of wires, only to be carved apart into several bloody pieces. "Everyone, stay still!"

    "Burn, Flaming Inferno!" one of the mercenaries yelled, trying to cast a spell to incinerate my wires around him. Was he an idiot? He was only heating up my wires, which were made of high-tensile carbon fiber. Good luck trying to incinerate them before they cut him apart.

    As it was, his eyes widened when he saw the countless garrote wires highlighted and become clearly visible when they became red-hot from the heat. The entire group found themselves rooted to the spot with fear when they realized they were completely surrounded by a web of wires. Even those with weapons and Divine Devices found their armaments tangled by the wires, and they were having difficulty trying to cut them loose.

    "Stay still! As long as we don''t move, we won''t be sliced apart by the wires!" the mercenary leader warned. Smart advice, but¡­

    It was too late.

    My hand twitched and I tightened the noose, springing the trap upon them. The wires closed in and wrapped around the horrified mercenaries, cutting through their physically reinforced bodies like hot knife through butter. Even the leader, with his maxed out Armament Ba Qi, was split into a hundred bloody chunks, his head cut into pieces before crashing down onto the ground.

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    By the time I recalled my wires and dismissed Lyra, only Troy and Kureha were left in one piece. Well, not just them, but that wasn''t important.

    "Holy shit!" Troy exclaimed, staring at the scene of carnage with wide eyes. "What the fuck did you just do?!"

    "I killed the enemies," I replied simply. I had been setting up a trap while the mercenary leader bragged and talked, slowly casting the spell for Lyra to fill the entire space with garrote wires without the arrogant adults noticing them. Then I glanced at Kureha, who was silently weeping as she crawled toward her ravaged sister and hugging the body to her chest.

    Obviously I had also left Kurenai''s body intact.

    Looking away, I sighed bitterly. We were too late. No¡­the moment Kurenai was abducted, she was doomed. We never had a chance of rescuing her. These bastards had set to satisfy their urges with her the moment they got their filthy paws on her. Even if she survived, she would have been broken mentally beyond repair. But I guess as long as she was alive, there was still hope of recovering.

    But now¡­there was no bringing back. There was no such thing as resurrection magic. Dead people did not conveniently come back to life.

    While I cursed and punched the wall, Troy approached me, his expression grim.

    "While I''m 100% with you that all these fuckers should be slaughtered like the animals they are, maybe you should have left one or two alive for questioning. You were asking about the organization that hired them, right? We''ll need to get some info regarding that¡­"

    "What makes you think I didn''t?"

    "¡­eh?"

    I strolled toward a corner of the chamber, and with a flick of my hand, tossed aside a desk. Underneath it, a single young man was cowering and trembling violently, his hands over his head. He was sobbing, but when he realized that I had just knocked aside his cover, he yelped and backed away in fear.

    "Please don''t kill me¡­please don''t kill me¡­"

    "Whether you live through this or not depends entirely on you," I responded, my voice freezing the stuffy atmosphere of the chamber into ice. "Perhaps you wouldn''t mind answering a few of my questions."

 134 Chapter 134: Over the Edge

    "Please!" the guy begged tearfully. "They''ll kill me if they find out I was the one who told you!"

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    "Then we just have to make sure they don''t find out, right?" I responded flippantly as I watched the guy dangle from the edge of the cliff. "And what makes you think I won''t kill you if you don''t tell me?"

    "No!" the guy pleaded desperately. "Please, don''t! I''ll do anything!"

    "Anything?" I repeated with a raised eyebrow. "Then why won''t you answer my question?"

    I loosened my grip a little and he yelped as he slid down a few centimeters. From his point of view, the vast open space billowed up below him, showing him the full fury of the sheer drop. Almost a kilometer up from sea level, it would take him quite some time to plummet downward before he crashed onto the ground and ended up as little more than a bloody stain.

    Just like the poor Mountain Trolls Capricorn had knocked off the trail earlier.

    "NO! Please!"

    "Feel like talking now?" I asked as I watched him dangle precariously from Canis Major''s mouth. "After all, there''s no use keeping you alive if you can''t give me what I want."

    "Okay! I''ll tell you! Please!" the guy was crying now. "It''s Frank Franklin! He''s the one who hired us! And he''s the one who created the Foundation Research Group! That''s the group those researchers belong to!"

    For a moment I paused, and then I nodded at Canis Major. Without me voicing a word, he obeyed my mental instructions and pulled the poor guy back from over the edge, dropping him down on the cliff roughly. He landed on firm rock, stunned for a moment, then realized how close he was to the edge, and quickly scrambled inward gratefully.

    Troy stood in front of him, barring his way.

    "We didn''t say you can go," he said.

    "But¡­but¡­" the guy spluttered.

    "What? Don''t worry, we aren''t going to take your life. Unlike your boss and friends, we will honor our words." The murderous expression on Troy''s face seemed to say otherwise, but I wisely didn''t mention that. Instead, I tilted my head thoughtfully.

    "Foundation Research Group? Have you heard of that before?"

    "No." Kureha shook her head. "But Frank Franklin is my uncle. My mother''s cousin. I did hear that he wanted his nephew, Fred, to succeed the title of the Sword Saint, but to think that he will go as far as to assassinate me and my sister." She sighed and shook her head. "I didn''t know he established a group outside the Franklin Conglomerate."

    The Franklin Conglomerate was known more for producing arms, weapons and Divine Devices, and not exactly for research. Certainly not research on trying to control rank A monsters such as dragons. At least not from what I had heard about them.

    "Hmm¡­I might have."

    Both of us turned to Troy in surprise. He shrugged.

    "My brother''s part of that group."

    "No shit?" I demanded. Troy nodded.

    "I''m not kidding. I had to infiltrate a facility belonging to this Foundation Research Group to locate him. Apparently he was heading a huge project there." He scowled. "Something to do with weapons of mass destruction."

    "Like Richard''s spells?" Kureha asked sarcastically.

    "Worse than Richie''s spells." Troy looked much grimmer than I had ever seen him be. "Biological weapons. Viruses. Good thing I intervened and stopped him before he finished creating a sample, so he used more conventional weapons to destroy the city."

    I remembered Troy''s frustration when his brother escaped from his fingers. The latter had accomplished that by razing a city and forcing the former to save innocent civilians over capturing him. What a bastard.

    "Good thing you stopped him before he developed those bioweapons," I said with a shudder. I didn''t want to think what Troy''s brother intended to do with those. Probably destroy the world. The lucky ones would be those who died.

    I then turned to the guy, who was trying to crawl away without us noticing. If he thought we wouldn''t realize, he must be more stupid than I thought.

    "Hey."

    "Eek!"

    He shrieked and jolted upright, flipping over to stare at me in fear. I glared at him.

    "So what were the researchers doing? Were they really trying to control a dragon?"

    "¡­yeah." The guy saw no point in denying it, and nodded frantically. "It''s true! We overheard them talking! The boss and everyone thought they were crazy, but they set up all that equipment in the cave to monitor the dragon."

    "I''m surprised the dragon didn''t attack you guys," Troy said, frowning. "You were literally camping out right next to its nest."

    "It''s part of their experiment." The guy''s lips were so loose he was practically rambling now. "The researchers¡­they found a way to affect the dragon''s brainwaves. Not to the extent of controlling it, but at least to hypnotize it into thinking that we aren''t there."

    "Ho¡­they succeeded in hypnotizing a rank A monster?" I found that intriguing. "That''s pretty big news."

    "It''s not practical." The guy was shaking his head. "Boss was impressed at first, and wanted to use the technology. But¡­it only works with all those large, unwieldy equipment." He waved toward the cave and grimaced. "The machines that you destroyed. Even if you only just wrecked one small component instead of the whole thing, the system will fall apart and fail. It''s also impractical to bring along to actual battlefields and missions because of the immense size and amount of power required to run it."

    "Wait a second." Kureha frowned. "That''s the same kind of technology that we use to create the barriers for our cities. That''s how we keep our cities safe from monsters. We construct barriers that not only keep them out, but also to deceive them into thinking we are not there."

    "That''s right." I nodded, finding the technology familiar. It was the exact same type of barrier that Alicia and her friends used during the campfire party. "But the more powerful the barrier, the more energy you require to sustain it. For it to affect a rank A monster means that you need an enormous amount of power from somewhere."

    "The researchers built a large-scale plasma generator at the bottom of the mountain. An underground generator." The guy looked glum. "That was what they were using to power their machines. Not that it matters now, since you''ve wrecked all their equipment."

    A bloody plasma generator. Something that generated enough electricity to feed an entire city. And they built it just for their research. It was chilling how far they would go just to control a monster. To what purposes? What ends?

    "Why do they want to control monsters?" Troy demanded, apparently reaching the same conclusion as I did. "What are they scheming?"

    "I¡­I don''t know! I''m just a grunt! A hired hand! We''re just hired to protect them while they carried out their experiments. We wouldn''t know anything about their motives or plans!" he glanced fearfully at the cliff, as if afraid we would throw him off it. "I swear! I''m telling the truth! We really don''t know anything beyond their experiment here!"

    I believed him. I mean, at this point there was no reason for him to lie. Furthermore, what he said made sense. If I was a researcher, I wasn''t going to spout my company''s goals and secrets to an outsider hired solely to protect my team while I was conducting experiments. I could see how they found out about the attempt to control a dragon since they were literally on the site, but the scientists wouldn''t tell them anything beyond that.

    "Well, now that I know who was behind the ordered hit on me and my sister, I can go confront him." Kureha was scowling as she placed a hand on the hilt of her sword, her fingers curling over it tightly in rage. "Uncle Frank and Cousin Fred, huh? I''ll be paying them a visit."

    "Okay. We''ve to report the presence of a dragon as well, while at it." I nodded in agreement. The city council would organize an army of mages to exterminate it. The dragon might not have bothered the city so far, but I was highly aware that we couldn''t count on it to leave us alone for long. Like all monsters, their instincts were to seek out humans and destroy them.

    Worse, the Foundation Research Group or whoever they were had their own motives for experimenting on the dragon here. If they succeeded in finding a way to control it, there was no mistaking that they would set it upon innocent civilians or cities. After all, this was the same group of people who hired criminal mercenaries to assassinate a girl and abduct her sister. I wouldn''t be surprised if they were aware of what the mercenaries did to poor Kurenai, but turned a blind eye to it because they wanted her dead anyway.

    Frank Franklin had ordered the deaths of both sisters, after all.

    Something occurred to me at that point.

    "You said that this Frank Franklin dude is your mother''s brother?" I asked Kureha. She nodded.

    "Yeah. My father married into the Franklin family." She smiled proudly. "He was a master kendo practitioner from the east. He taught me how to integrate his dojo''s swordsmanship with the Franklin sword style. It''s also one of the reasons why I defeated Cousin Shawn to become the Sword Saint of our generation."

    That made sense. I turned to Troy, who was roughly kicking the poor guy we had captured up and dragging him.

    "W¡­wait! I told you everything! Let me go!"

    "We only promised to let you live. We never said anything about letting you go."

    The guy turned frightfully pale. The poor dude looked as if he was about to wet himself.

    "We''re just handing you over to the authorities. You''ll be safer with them." I shrugged. "Your clients or whoever aren''t going to be able to target or attack you while you''re in the police''s custody. And they shouldn''t be stupid enough to wage war on the police, not unless they want the Federation to hunt them down with armies of mages and mercenaries."

    The guy relaxed a little, but I could tell that he wasn''t pleased with the prospect of being arrested and imprisoned.

    "Did you think you could get away scot-free after raping and murdering a young girl?" Troy snarled. "If I could, I would castrate you right here and right now. In fact, you''re lucky my friends are here to restrain me, or I would have already killed you myself."

    "Hi¡­! No! I didn''t kill her! I swear! I only¡­only¡­"

    The guy squeaked in horror and stagger back, tears forming in his eyes. His voice trailed off, but I knew what he was about to say, even as he broke down and sobbed. How pathetic. He probably acted all high and mighty when taking advantage of Kurenai''s vulnerability and taking part in her ****, but now that he was the one abducted and helpless, he was acting all victimized. I felt my lip curl in disgust. My heart told me to kill him, but if I did that, I would be the same as those murdering bastards.

    Don''t get me wrong. If he attacked me, I would happily kill him in self-defense, but murdering a person without the will to fight in cold blood, while he was helpless? Even if he deserved it, I wasn''t a murderer. I wasn''t going to take the law into my own hands and pass judgement on other people. That was what the city council was for. Heavens willing, the guy would be locked up for the rest of his life, and prevented from committing similar crimes again.

    Speaking of which, even if he did participate in the ****, he might not have been the one who murdered Kurenai. He didn''t look like he had the guts to do something that bold. But from the guilty expression he displayed, and his fear that we would visit vengeance upon him, I could tell that he did indeed **** Kurenai along with the others. The fact that he didn''t bother to deny it further sealed the deal. He only denied murdering her, but the moment he trailed off, as I said, I knew what he was about to say. He "only" raped her.

    As if that let him off the hook.

    "Let''s go," Troy growled, suppressing his rage. "We had better leave before the dragon comes back."

    "¡­that might be a little too late."

    At Kureha''s tense voice, the both of us ¨C along with our prisoner ¨C spun around. A massive shadow suddenly engulfed the entire area, throwing the mountain peak into darkness. Raising my head, I watched in horror as the dragon returned to roost upon its nest, its golden eyes gleaming as it glared at us ravenously.

 135 Chapter 135: Dragon

    "That can''t be good," I muttered under my breath as I inwardly kicked myself for wasting time at the top of a cliff when we should have left much earlier. It seemed like a great idea to dangle our prisoner over the edge earlier, when the dragon wasn''t around, but this was a dragon''s nest after all. Of course the dragon would return here after it was done with whatever it ran off to do earlier.

    "Get behind me!" Troy bellowed when he caught sight of the dragon''s jaws yawning wide open to bathe the area in flames. Glancing upward, I recognized the dragon as a Hellfire Drake, and immediately scrambled behind my good friend as ordered. Kureha also obeyed without question and sought refuge behind him. The prisoner, not wanting to be left in the open on his own, also dove behind Troy.

    The dark-skinned mage slammed both his palms against the ground and conjured an immense wall of earth just before the dragon unleashed a massive jet of flames upon our position. The hellish flames roasted everything in the open, turning them into ash and dust, before colliding with the sturdy earth wall that Troy had created. The rock turned red and began melting, almost unable to deal with the superheated flames.

    "Fuck!"

    Cursing, Troy conjured a fresh wall of earth behind the severely weakened one, which mitigated the heat a little. The Hellfire Drake wheeled about after it flew past the mountain, and let loose another enormous gout of fire at us, but Troy had managed to create yet another two layers of rock walls.

    "Huff¡­"

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    Breathing heavily, Troy dropped to his knees and wiped the perspiration off his face. Looking up grimly, he watched as the dragon did another pass before landing heavily on the ground. Realizing that its flames were not getting through, it evidently decided to personally rip us apart with its claws and teeth.

    Lumbering forward with a speed that belied its huge size, the dragon roared in an intimidating manner.

    "Hell, it''s about time."

    Grinning, Troy dismissed his walls of molten rock and raced forward. Gravity magic fizzled in his hands as he blasted the dragon, attempting to weight it down. The larger it was, the more susceptible it should be to his gravity magic, or so the theory went.

    "Seems like we have no choice," Kureha murmured as she drew her sword. "We''ll have to slay the dragon."

    She also joined Troy in his charge, bounding forward gracefully. The dragon lashed its tail at her, but Kureha managed to jump over the whip-like tail while spinning around to slash at the armored appendage. While she evaded, Troy closed in and hammered the dragon with a single punch that caused the enormous beast to actually stagger back a step.

    Snarling, the Hellfire Drake swatted him away with a claw. Despite crossing his arms to defend himself, Troy was unable to halt his momentum, and was flung across the mountain peak. Flipping up, he landed roughly on his feet, grimacing from the blow as blood dribbled from his lips.

    "My gravity magic isn''t affecting it at all?! Its movements are still so fast and powerful!"

    Fortunately, he had distracted the dragon enough that Kureha could get behind it. Spinning elegantly in the air, she thrust her sword forward at the Hellfire Drake, putting all of her mana and strength behind the blow.

    "Franklin Style: Royal Thrust!"

    White mana swirled around her blade as she stabbed the dragon, only for both light and sword to bounce off the crimson armored skills harmlessly.

    "What¡­?" Kureha cried out in surprise, but she was able to adjust her trajectory in midair, kicking off the dragon''s hide to avoid getting struck by its claws. Its tail whipped about, and this time Kureha wasn''t able to evade. Bringing her sword up, she parried the blow, but the massive momentum behind the strike sent her hurtling across the clearing.

    "Hey! Pick on someone your size!" Troy bellowed as he raced forward, hurling earth spikes and boulders at the enormous dragon. The Hellfire Drake slowly turned around to face him, growling in irritation, even as the destructive rocks shattered ineffectually against its body.

    "The scales are magic resistant!" I yelled out a warning.

    "Then I''ll just punch it to death!" Troy snapped, his voice tense. Jumping over the dragon''s claw that was flicking toward him, he spun about in midair before smashing his glowing fist against the Hellfire Drake''s head.

    For a moment, I thought it worked. The Hellfire Drake seemed dazed for a moment, snarling in pain from the tremendous punch. Then it recovered quickly and tossed Troy off its head before striking him with a sledgehammer blow. Troy was flung several dozen meters into the sky before crashing back down on the mountain, leaving a small crater when he landed.

    "Troy!" I shouted, running to his side. He raised his head weakly, blood trickling from his mouth.

    "The fucker''s too strong," he swore. "And our magic doesn''t seem to work on it¡­"

    Kureha was also slashing at the dragon, but her blade wasn''t getting through. The snarling dragon swatted her away as well, and despite parrying the blow, Kureha was sent skidding across the ground and staggering next to us.

    "Huff¡­" she stared at her hands, which were violently trembling from the blow. "I have never fought anything so powerful before!"

    "Well, it''s a rank A monster." I pointed out dryly.

    "Hiii¡­!"

    The prisoner that we took was making a break for it, especially when he saw that we were completely outmatched. None of us paid him any attention ¨C we were completely focused on the guy right in front of us. I mean, seriously, who cares about a mob character when we were trying our best not to get killed by a freaking dragon?

    Honestly, I didn''t blame the guy. If he thought he stood a better chance of survival by running away while we were distracting the dragon, then all the more power to him. We weren''t going to begrudge him for trying to stay alive. And there wasn''t much he could do to contribute to the battle anyway. To be blunt, he would only get in the way, considering that all he could do was cry and hide while his comrades in the mercenary group were being slaughtered by us three kids.

    The dragon had other plans, however. Raising its head almost lazily, it let loose another stream of flames that incinerated the poor guy. The former mercenary screamed as he was lit ablaze, his body crumbling away into black ash in mere seconds.

    "Holy¡­" Perhaps the idiot wasn''t able to use Physical Reinforcement, or he was as weak as he appeared to be, but for him to be roasted in an instant was still a terrifying sight to behold. Whatever the case, that was one hell of a¡­hellfire spell.

    The dragon then reared its head as it turned toward us, not even blinking at the demise of the poor guy. Not that there was anything left of him to see except a pile of ash, but that was beside the point. Its maw yawned, and another massive jet of fire blasted toward us. Gritting her teeth, Kureha stepped forward to slice the flames apart with her dazzling sword techniques, but I gently shoved her out of the way and stood in front of her.

    "Aquarius."

    Summoning the blue broadsword in an instant, I swung it to unleash an enormous wave of water at the incoming wave of fire. The water immediately vaporized, filling the entire area with boiling steam.

    "Troy, can you stand?"

    "Yeah." Troy winced as he rose shakily to his feet. He clenched his fists, as if to test them, and grinned. "I''m ready for another round!"

    "I''m prepared to fight to the death if necessary," Kureha declared grimly.

    "Nah, we don''t have to do that. We just need to buy enough time for me to nuke the dragon along with the entire mountain."

    "Hah!" Troy snorted in laughter. "Your spells of mass destruction, eh? If there''s anything that can overwhelm those magic-resistant armored scales, it''s your nuke spell."

    "I''m counting on that."

    "Fine. I''m in! How long do you need?"

    "At least five minutes. Possibly ten."

    Kureha stared at the both of us, as if we were insane. "Are you serious?"

    "What other choice do we have?" I gestured to her sword. "Unless you have a sword technique that can slay a dragon?"

    "As if the Franklin sword style possesses anything so convenient!"

    I shook my head with a bitter smile. "I''ve seen mages powerful enough to slay a dragon with their fists alone. If Yuan Dao Yue Guang was here, he would have pummeled this Hellfire Drake to death."

    "But he''s not, and we are."

    "Then what do you propose?" Troy asked impatiently as he conjured another wall of earth to shield us from the Hellfire Drake''s flames again. The stupid dragon wasn''t polite enough to wait for us to finish our conversation. "That we just lie down and let the damned thing stomp over us?"

    "The Hellfire Drake will probably eat us if we submit to it," I muttered.

    "Of course not!"

    "If you''re not confident, you can leave first. Troy and I will handle the Hellfire Drake. We''ll buy time for you to escape."

    "I''m not leaving you two behind to fight the dragon on your own!"

    "Then it''s settled," Troy snapped impatiently as he dismissed his crumbling wall of molten earth. "Let''s kick this fucker''s ass!"

    He launched himself forward, throwing a powerful punch forward. The Hellfire Drake struck him with its tail, but he cartwheeled in the air before landing on the ground. Earth spikes rose up as he sprinted forward, spearing the dragon but unable to penetrate its armored scales. Bellowing in fury, the Hellfire Drake swiped at him with its claws, but Troy threw his glowing fist forward to meet the strike squarely. A shockwave erupted from the collision, sweeping both Kureha and I off our feet.

    "Kuh!"

    Raising Aquarius, I plunged it into the ground to steady myself. Kureha did something similar, but she used her sword to pivot herself before lunging forward in a silver streak. Thrusting her sword forward, she shouted an incantation.

    "Franklin Style: Meteor Burst!"

    The dragon roared as Kureha''s sword actually pierced through its armored hide, sending a geyser of blood spurting upward. Snarling, it swatted at her, but she managed to curl into a ball before landing on top of its arm. Sliding her sword backward, she gathered more mana for another strike, its blade turning silver.

    "Franklin Style: Meteor Slash!"

    The dragon roared in fury as Kureha''s silver blade actually cut open its neck, causing a fountain of blood to erupt. Snarling, it flicked Kureha off, but she gracefully landed on her feet several meters away with her sword still up.

    "That''s the spirit!" Troy shouted as he punched the dragon, but it knocked him away with its front claw, causing him to jump backward, an ugly bruise appearing by the side of his head. "Ow! That monster packs quite a punch!"

    "Done¡­" I muttered as I finished casting my summoning spells after Troy and Kureha distracted the dragon for long enough. Aries, Capricorn and Taurus materialized and rammed into the Hellfire Drake, which was still reeling from Troy''s punch from earlier. Their combined charge actually knocked the dragon off the cliff and sent it plummeting down to the valley below.

    "Hah! You did it!" Troy crowed.

    "Don''t celebrate too early yet¡­" I warned, only for the Hellfire Drake to surge upward. Its massive wings spread and flapping, the monstrous dragon soared above the mountaintop to glare at us. Unleashing another volley of flames, it incinerated my three Constellation spirits that I had spent all this time summoning, in an instant. "Fuck!"

    Noticing that I was hastily trying to cast a new summoning spell and realizing that I might just be the biggest threat among the three, the Hellfire Drake bellowed bestially before launching itself toward me, its humongous jaws wide open as if it intended to swallow me whole.

 136 Chapter 136: Dragon Slayer

    I deflected the humongous jaws with Aquarius, blocking the immense serrated teeth and saving myself from a painful death. However, the force behind the blow threw me off my feet and sent me flying across the mountaintop.

    "Kuh!"

    Skidding across the ground, I managed to somehow flip myself back to my feet and halt my momentum while leaving a trail in the dirt. Huffing, I straightened up, only to receive an immense stream of fire in the face.

    Swinging Aquarius, I managed to counter the fire with a geyser of water that vaporized instantly again upon contact.

    "Oh, the flames aren''t as powerful as I thought they would be," I remarked in surprise. "Even the Crastrate''s flames were much more powerful."

    As if it understood me, the dragon roared furiously in response. The spikes lining its back exploded with red-hot fire. Its eyes glowing crimson, the Hellfire Drake''s maw yawned and superheated flames forcefully erupted from within. The ground melted as the superheated blaze washed through the entire area like an unstoppable river.

    "Me and my big mouth," I grumbled to myself, swinging Aquarius and launching the biggest tidal wave I could muster. In seconds, the tsunami was completely vaporized into steam, leaving no trace of the intimidating wall of water I had just summoned. My eyes widened in disbelief, even though I was already aware of what had just transpired. "Fuck! I knew it! Of course a rank A Hellfire Drake''s flames will be more powerful than a rank B Crastrate!"

    There was no way I could evade the flames in time, having wasted precious seconds conjuring that tsunami that was now boiling steam. Before the flames could reach me, however, Troy bowled right into the dragon, rocking it and slightly altering the trajectory by a few meters.

    "Get the fuck out of there!" Troy roared.

    I snapped out of my stupor and dove out of the way. The dragon swatted Troy away, but he managed to roll to his feet and dodge the superheated flames. Undeterred, the Hellfire Drake twisted its serpentine neck and directed its unrelenting torrent of fire at us, pursuing us mercilessly as it baked the entire mountain peak.

    Exchanging a glance with Troy, I nodded and the both of us split off in different directions. That maneuver was supposed to delay the dragon for just a few seconds as it struggled to decide which one of us to incinerate. However, far from being indecisive as I hoped it would be, the Hellfire Drake didn''t hesitate and chose to roast me, its head instantly turning in my direction and continuing to deliver the terrifying torrent of superheated fire after me.

    "Are you ignoring me, you bastard?!"

    Furious, Kureha thrust her sword at the dragon while its attention was still focused upon me, silver mana gathering around her blade.

    "Meteor Strike!"

    The powerful Franklin Sword Style allowed Kureha to pierce through its armored scales and draw some blood, but the Hellfire Drake was more irritated than hurt. Its tail whipped out in retaliation, forcing Kureha to withdraw.

    Even though they didn''t directly brush against her, the blazing spikes that tipped the entire length of the tail were so hot that blisters began to appear on Kureha''s face and arms, red patches of burns that erupted upon her snow-white skin.

    "Kuh!"

    Credit to the young Sword Saint, Kureha didn''t falter and continued to retreat in a disciplined fashion before readying another attack. The dragon continued to wash the entire mountaintop with its red flames, turning the place into a hellish inferno and melting the earth beneath us. I could feel my feet gradually grow hot to the point where it turned painful.

    "Ouch! Ugh!"

    Glancing down, despite myself, I realized the reason why my feet were hurting even though I was wearing shoes.

    The earth had been transformed into boiling, red-hot and black magma.

    "Aw, jeez!" I moaned as I jumped around in pain. I must have struck a comical sight, but poor Troy and Kureha were suffering from the same problem. Fortunately, Troy had managed to conjure a wall of earth on which he was standing upon while Kureha was literally levitating in the air by brewing a gust of wind.

    Unfortunately, unlike the two of them, I didn''t have such spells to save myself. I couldn''t walk on air like Kureha, nor could I erect a wall of earth to jump on (though I had no idea how Troy was keeping his corner cool).

    Fortunately, the magma had yet to burn its way through my shoes. However, the burning agony was making it difficult for me to run and I had to halt. Focusing my mana, I summoned Scutum Sobiescianum to shield myself from the incoming flames.

    The superheated torrent of fire washed over my Constellation shield and immediately melted it into molten slag.

    "What the hell?!"

    My jaw dropped in disbelief as Scutum Sobiescianum dripped into liquid metal before dissipating, and I could only watch helplessly as the flames rushed toward me. Just the searing heat alone made me sweat buckets and scaled my skin, and that was even before it reached me.

    "You ain''t roasting my bro!" Troy bellowed as he leaped from his raised earth and barreled into the dragon. Raising his fist, he hammered the side of the Hellfire Drake, causing it to stagger to the side. Snarling, the Hellfire Drake whipped its head toward him and bathed him in flames, but Troy was already running to the side and continued to pummel the dragon. It struck out with its claws, trying to swat him away, but Troy was too swift, darting between its massive paws and landing several powerful punches that rocked it to the side.

    "Heh! Not so tough for something of your size, eh?"

    And like me before him, Troy just had to go and tempt fate.

    The rage building up inside the Hellfire Drake had reached boiling point and it erupted in the form of a massive inferno that rippled from its entire body. The first signs were the blazing spikes, which seemed to flicker at first before igniting even more furiously than before. Troy was literally blasted from his feet and sent hurtling several meters to the side, his body smoldering from the sheer heat. Even as he continued to skid across the scorched earth, leaving a deep furrow in the ground, the dragon stomped and let loose a triumphant roar.

    "Fuck you¡­" Troy managed, and he raised a defiant middle finger at it. The Hellfire Drake''s eyes narrowed and it unleashed another superheated volley of fire in his direction.

    "Oh no, you don''t!"

    It was my turn to save Troy. Jumping in front of him, I finally managed to complete my casting. A gigantic shape materialized in front of me, firmly putting himself between us humans and the incensed dragon.

    Black Tortoise had finally arrived.

    An immense barrier of water encased us within a transparent bubble over ten meters in diameter. As usual, the water boiled immediately the moment the superheated flames made contact, but there was so much water it didn''t matter. Nonetheless, I could feel the scalding heat even deep within the core of the protective bubble.

    Not that it mattered. With the help of Black Tortoise, both Troy and I managed to survive the onslaught of the superheated blaze.

    "Thanks," I told Black Tortoise as I placed a hand on his shell. The Celestial Guardian nodded and prepared for his counterattack. A highly pressurized jet of water erupted from the serpent that served as his tail and sliced through the Hellfire Drake''s torrent of fire to wash into its mouth. The stunned dragon was actually knocked backward from the geyser, blood fountaining from its jaw.

    "Hah!" Troy was getting back up to his feet. "That should have taught the bastard!"

    "No, I think I only managed to make it angrier," I remarked as the dragon rose back to its feet with an irritated shake of its head. Growling furiously, it lumbered toward us, both of its wings spreading outward to cast an ominous shadow upon us. Even Black Tortoise cowered under the intimidating sight. However, I was more concerned about something else. Glancing at my injured friend, I asked, "Are you all right? You sure you should be getting up?"

    "I''ll live." Troy winced as he dusted himself off, only to accidentally brush against his third degree burns. "It''ll take more than this to kill me. And I don''t want to be lying around and waiting for that fucker to roast me."

    Troy was really a tough guy. Not for the first time, I found myself impressed by his tenacity. He was so stubborn that even the grim reaper himself would have trouble convincing him to stay in his grave.

    Stomping his feet, Black Tortoise unleashed a tsunami of water at the Hellfire Drake, but the immense dragon merely sliced the huge wave apart with a flick of its tail. All three of us watched dumbly as the Hellfire Drake shook itself dry, and then continued its inexorable advance.

    "Tell me your giant tortoise has some other spell up his sleeve," Troy muttered. I shook my head.

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    "Black Tortoise is known more for his defensive magic than offensive," I admitted with both my hands up. "That was his most powerful spell."

    Troy glanced at the bubble around us. "So we''re safe as long as we stay inside here?"

    "¡­well¡­against a rank A dragon¡­uh, the Hellfire Drake will break through it in five minutes." I brightened up. "But that''s more than enough time for me to summon something else."

    "Hey!" Kureha shouted as she attacked the Hellfire Drake, now that it had stopped roasting the mountaintop in flames. "You don''t seriously intend to wait inside there for five minutes, are you?!"

    With a single slash of her sword, she cut through the dragon''s paw. Blood sprouted like a geyser from its armored paw, and the Hellfire Drake roared in fury and pain. However, it swatted poor Kureha away, knocking her against an outcrop of rock that crumbled and fell over her in rubble. Kureha lay, stunned on the ground, as the Hellfire Drake lumbered toward her.

    "Damn it." I had no way of extending the protective bubble or moving it. Even so, at my mental command, Black Tortoise managed to cast a second water barrier over the immobile Kureha. The dragon''s claw struck the smaller bubble and managed to put a dent in it, but because Black Tortoise''s mana was split between the two spells, it was relatively weaker.

    It wasn''t going to last a minute.

    "The lady''s got a point," Troy remarked as he walked out of the bubble, rubbing his arms. "I ain''t gonna hide in here for five minutes. Not my style."

    With that, he charged at the dragon. The Hellfire Drake noticed his approach, and spun around to swat him away. Troy dodged under the huge claws and punched its forearm with such force I could actually feel the shockwave from a distance. Bellowing, the Hellfire Drake''s tail whipped out in retaliation. Troy tried to dodge it, but it was too fast and it caught him in the chest, throwing him to the side. Even though it was just a graze, he was momentarily stunned.

    The dragon turned toward him, getting ready to stomp him flat with its claws. Now, I was sure that Troy would somehow survive that, but it wasn''t going to be pretty. Regardless, he was my friend and I sure as hell wasn''t going to risk his life on intuition.

    Cartwheeling through the air, I descended in a graceful arc onto the dragon''s head. Aquarius glowed blue as I infused the broadsword with my mana before I stabbed the Hellfire Drake''s crown.

    The azure blade shattered immediately. Grunting in annoyance, the dragon flicked me away with a forceful jerk of its head. I was sent crashing onto the molten ground several meters away, the searing heat burning through my uniform.

    "Argh!"

    Even as I thrashed about, the Hellfire Drake mercilessly turned toward me with a snarl and an upraised claw. It evidently intended to stomp me into oblivion.

    "Black Tortoise!" I yelled. "Take Down attack!"

    My Celestial Guardian slammed into the Hellfire Drake, knocking it off its feet before it could crush me under its paw. Bellowing, the Hellfire Drake grappled with the colossal tortoise, its claws grazing the side of his armored shell. Despite the minimal damage he had sustained, I was under no illusion that my Black Tortoise would be any match for the Hellfire Drake.

    Its tail lashed out and struck Black Tortoise. Even though the Celestial Guardian had withdrawn into his shell, the impact from the attack was enough to send him spinning across the clearing. All four legs emerged from the holes and clamped down tightly on the ground, trying to arrest its momentum.

    Aware that it would take a tedious amount of time to wear down Black Tortoise''s defenses, the Hellfire Drake turned back toward me. After all, if it eliminated the summoner, then my soul beasts would also disappear along with my demise.

    Turning toward me, the Hellfire Drake lunged at me with its jaws wide open, ready to swallow me up.

    "¡­why do I feel as if this has already happened before?" I grumbled as I watched my inevitable demise rush toward me, along with a sensation of d¨¦j¨¤ vu.

 137 Chapter 137: Summoner vs. Dragon

    Even as I rose to my feet, I was barely able to catch sight of the incoming dragon''s jaws. Instinctively, I drew Gan Jiang and Mo Ye to parry the enormous head. The tremendous strength of the Hellfire Drake forced me back, my feet sliding across the scorched earth as I struggled to block its fangs, but fortunately I managed to prevent myself from being flung off my feet this time.

    Suddenly, the Hellfire Drake shrieked in pain and snapped its head back, retreating from me. Stunned by the unexpected development, I could only stare at the dragon, but to my amazement I saw a stream of crimson blood dripping from a couple of long gashes across its face where I had caught it with Gan Jiang and Mo Ye earlier. I glanced at both of my swords and saw the same crimson blood dripping from the lengths of their gleaming blades.

    "Since when did you get yourself a real sword?! And two of them at that?!" Troy hollered from behind me as he struggled to his feet.

    "A gift from the Stuart family," I replied, even as I was unable to conceal my awe. Both of my swords throbbed wildly in my hands, their gleaming blades displaying their terrifying sharpness and latent power. I felt a smile spread across my face as I savored the powerful sensations that poured into me from their hilts. "There is no foe worthier than a dragon for their first battle."

    The Hellfire Drake reared back as its spikes once again exploded with crimson flames, its jaws opening to unleash another torrent of flames.

    "Oh no you don''t!" I snapped as I sheathed both my swords and raised my now empty hands to gather mana into them. "Chains of Andromeda!"

    The long, heavy chains materialized in my hands instantly, and I immediately threw them over the dragon''s jaws, snapping them shut. The Hellfire Drake tried to screech, but only a muffled roar emerged. I swung the entire length of my chain up and around the rest of the dragon''s body, tying up its wings, claws and tail.

    The dragon struggled desperately against its restraints, almost hurling me off my feet. I stood firm, however, clutching the chains and tightening them over the Hellfire Drake''s massive bulk. I could feel my stance slowly crumbling as my feet were slowly dragged off the ground.

    "Hang on, bro."

    Troy joined in, grabbing my chains to ground me while restraining the Hellfire Drake as well. Between the both of us, we succeeded in forcing the dragon down with a tremendous burst of strength, driving its whole body down to the ground. Troy was also muttering an incantation under his breath and I could see the air around the Hellfire Drake distort and twist as gravity increased several times in its vicinity, using its own crushing weight against it.

    However, the dragon''s constant flailing still almost managed to throw the both of us off our feet several times, despite Troy''s immense strength. I had to grit my teeth and dig in hard to keep it chained down, and without Troy''s assistance, I would have failed long ago.

    Unfortunately, I could feel the grip of my chains weakening before long. To my horror, I discovered that the crimson flames that were blazing through the Hellfire Drake''s spikes were melting my Chains of Andromeda. I didn''t have much time left before the dragon broke free of its chains.

    "Troy, can you hold the Hellfire Drake down for ten more seconds?"

    "I can hold it down for thirty if you need me to," Troy replied with a snort.

    "I''m not sure my Chains of Andromeda will last that long, but I appreciate it. Ten seconds are enough." I was already summoning Sagittarius while channeling mana into a flaming arrow. Even as I slowly coaxed the arrow to materialization, I pulled the bowstring back and took aim. Not that I needed to, given how big my target was. Taking a deep breath, I fired off Alnasl, which exploded upon impact.

    "Holy shit!" Troy whistled as he watched the colossal conflagration consume the dragon. "You think that finished it off?"

    "I wish," I muttered, rolling my eyes. Amidst the giant inferno, I could see the dark shape of the Hellfire Drake rising to its feet. Troy stared, blinking, as my molten chains drooped down at his hands, the rest of it melted to slag by the superheated inferno that resulted from the combination of Sagittarius''s and the dragon''s flames.

    Now free of any restraints, the Hellfire Drake opened its jaws and unleashed its crimson flames in our direction. Fortunately, by now, my Black Tortoise had recovered and returned to my side. A barrier of water appeared, turning to steam as it withstood the torrent of superheated flames. Even as my vision was obscured by a boiling fog and I felt uncomfortably warm, I found myself still alive.

    "That thing just refuses to die, huh?" Troy remarked. I nodded, but before I could offer a remark of my own, a familiar voice cut in.

    "Franklin Sword Style: Royal Meteor Bombardment!"

    Descending from the air, Kureha Franklin crashed onto the back of the dragon, her silver sword flashing elegantly. Thousands of blades materialized in the air and slammed into the Hellfire Drake with the force of meteorites, crushing it onto the ground. Blood spurted from the shrieking dragon, but Kureha refused to relent.

    "She''s got it!"

    Smelling blood, Troy also left the protection of Black Tortoise''s bubble to pummel the Hellfire Drake, and between the two of them, the dragon was succumbing to their combined assault.

    Unfortunately, it was far from done. Its spikes exploded and a fiery shockwave erupted from its body. Having seen the attack before, both Troy and Kureha were prepared for it, jumping back to safety, but even so, they were still struck by the blast and sent flying.

    However, it was now my turn.

    "Lyra." Even as the golden harp materialized in my hand, I was already sending out hundreds of near invisible garrote wires to slice the wounded dragon into pieces. Unfortunately, the armored scales of the dragon protected it against the incredibly sharp wires. Even so, I managed to restrain it in similar fashion to my Chains of Andromeda earlier.

    Twisting its head to face me, the Hellfire Drake glared at me with its blazing red eyes. I recognized that as a sign that it was going to start spewing flames again. True enough, the spikes began bursting into flames and melting my sharp but thin wires.

    "Where are you looking at?!"

    "I''m your opponent!"

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    From the sides, both Troy and Kureha attacked, fists and blade crashing lethally into the Hellfire Drake''s flanks and causing it to shudder violently. Even as it lashed out with its tail and claws, forcing my friends to fall back, I used the time they bought me to transform Lyra from a golden harp into a bow. Incredible amounts of golden mana began flowing into my recently summoned arrow, obliterating the ground around me.

    The dragon shook my party members off and turned to face me, instinctively aware that the huge amount of mana around me currently posed the greatest threat. Its jaws yawned wide and a torrent of crimson flames erupted.

    I released my arrow at the same time.

    Vega blasted through the superheated stream of flames, carving a ruthless route through the hellfire before slamming into the dragon''s mouth. The Hellfire Drake teetered back as Vega exploded inside its jaws, screeching in agony and flailing about as destructive golden mana blew up all around it. Blood dripped from its jaws as it fell back on all fours, glaring at me in hatred. It raised its head weakly to glare at me in hatred.

    "Yo," I said, already preparing to release a second Vega.

    The second golden arrow hurtled toward the Hellfire Drake, singing a beautiful melody as its sleek, shiny shaft homed in onto the dragon. A lovely melodious hum suffused the mountaintop before it collided with the Hellfire Drake, disappearing in an explosion that seemed to play out a musical chorus rather than roar thunderously in destruction.

    "What the hell was that?" Troy was gaping at me. "A singing arrow? Now I''ve heard everything."

    "Lyra is originally a harp," I reminded him, but since he was a genius he should already possess that knowledge. "So Vega is the manifestation of the song that Orpheus played, which moved Hades to allow him to bring his wife Eurydice back to the living world. It does bonus damage against undead creatures, but¡­oh well. Pity the Hellfire Drake is not an undead or the battle would long be over."

    As if in reply to my lecture, a crimson tail whipped out of the inferno and struck me from my right. I was sent flying across the air once again before smashing into the ground and creating a tiny crater. Groaning in pain, I tried to roll to my feet, but the dragon swatted at me with its claws.

    "Richie!" Troy hollered as he leaped forward, punching the dragon in the face. Kureha joined him, her sword flashing down in a silver blur as she cut a swathe of blood through its flank. As the dragon swiped at them, forcing them to retreat, my Black Tortoise tackled it in the gut, pushing it further away from me.

    "Thanks," I told all three of them as I stood up unsteadily.

    The dragon was presently quite a horrifying sight to behold. Under the combined attacks from me, Troy and Kureha, it had been hurt grievously. Rivers of blood were streaming from everywhere on its body and several of the crimson scales had been slashed open to reveal the raw muscle beneath. Troy''s fists, Kureha''s sword and my double Vega attack had succeeded in dealing terrible, terrible damage to the poor Hellfire Drake. With my friends now engaging it in combat, I dismissed Lyra, not wanting to get them caught up in its explosive area of effect.

    "Time for a change in strategy," I muttered tiredly. I was a summoner, after all, and I had finally gotten all the time I needed to summon a bunch of soul beasts. "Leo Minor!"

    Dozens of lions materialized in thin air and pounced on the wounded dragon. The Hellfire Drake thrashed about in rage, dislodging a few of the lions before stomping on them. However, its attention had been distracted away from Troy and Kureha, who continued to deal devastating attacks from the side while the dragon struggled with the bigger threats.

    But that wasn''t the biggest threat.

    "White Tiger!" I hollered. The gigantic Celestial Guardian descended from the heavens, with lightning brewing around him. Thunderous bolts struck the shrieking Hellfire Drake, electrocuting and burning it with gratifying effect. Realizing the danger, both Troy and Kureha quickly leaped back, avoiding the deadly web of electricity that now surrounded and wrapped around the screeching Hellfire Drake.

    They didn''t have to. Troy''s earth magic would allow him to ground the electricity, rendering him immune to it. As for Kureha, her sword acted as a lightning rod, conducting the electricity away from her, and her insulated hilt protecting her from the intense currents.

    Whatever the case, they could take care of themselves. I was already summoning yet another Constellation spirit, the leader of the pack of Leo Minor that were tearing away at the Hellfire Drake''s crimson scales.

    "Leo, Regulus!"

    Leo materialized next to me and unleashed the golden zenith of starlight right into the massive underbelly of the dragon. At the same instant, White Tiger released another colossal bolt of lightning at the same spot. The double combo blew the dragon off the mountaintop and literally sent it soaring into the sky.

    "Cetus!" I yelled, knowing that the Hellfire Drake wouldn''t die from that combo attack.

    The massive azure whale materialized in the heavens, soaring through them as he would through the sea. He left a trail of ice behind him as he charged at the helpless Hellfire Drake, slamming into it and freezing it completely. The massive block of ice encasing the Hellfire Drake crashed back down to earth before shattering.

    The dragon burst out of the broken ice and crater, bellowing as it sent deadly ice shards raining across the mountaintop. One of the icicles embedded itself in the ground just centimeters away from my foot, causing me to jump.

    "Hey!" Troy complained as he faced a similar ordeal. "Watch it!"

    In contrast, Kureha was calmly slashing the icicles out of the air with graceful arcs of her sword. Following her example, I drew both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye.

    "All right, guys! Last stretch! Let''s finish the dragon off!"

    "I''m with you on that!" Troy grinned and dashed toward the Hellfire Drake, with Kureha hot on his heels. I was last, as usual. Unlike these warrior-mages who specialized in close physical combat, I wasn''t as fast, fit or strong. I was a summoner, after all.

    And as a summoner, my soul beasts were my weapons.

    "Monoceros!"

    A white unicorn appeared beside me, his hooves already pounding the ground as he galloped toward the crimson enemy. Impaling the dragon with his pristine, silver horn, Monoceros twisted it deeper and incited an intense screech of agony from the Hellfire Drake. It brought its claws up to slash the unicorn, but Troy punched it in the solar plexus, knocking it back. White Tiger pounced on it, tearing into its back with his lightning claws and slightly paralyzing it with the intense electricity that wreathed his attacks. The pack of Leo Minor continued to harass the dragon, biting and hanging onto its arms and hindering its movements. Cetus descended and trapped the Hellfire Drake''s wings in ice, preventing it from taking flight.

    Kureha slashed into the dragon beside White Tiger, her blade alternating with his lightning claws. Not to be outdone, I also sprang in and swung both of my swords. While Troy pummeled the dragon from below, I attacked from above, hopping from limb to limb, up onto the body, while leaving a trail of bloody gashes in my wake. Flipping and cartwheeling up, I twisted around and used one of its swiping claws as a platform to launch myself toward its writhing neck before it could swat me away. I narrowly avoided the spikes and instead stabbed its flesh with my two swords while hoisting myself up to its head. I danced along its spine in a deadly whirlwind of double slashing blades, spinning and twirling my way upward. Once I reached its head, I stabbed both swords into its skull.

    "Where did you learn that swordsmanship from?" Kureha demanded, somewhere nearby as she too left a series of bloody scars in her path.

    "My dad," I replied shortly as I struggled to hang onto the Hellfire Drake''s swinging head. Despite striking through the thick bone and into its brain, I was still unable to kill it. Just what was this bastard made of?!

    "OI!" Troy hollered from below. "Watch out! It''s gonna blow!"

    I reacted a moment too late, even as Kureha and Troy were already withdrawing. The dragon''s body glowed crimson for a moment before it unleashed its deadly shockwave. I was taken by surprise and thrown off the head before crashing heavily onto the ground. I felt the wind knocked out of me as blood spurted from my mouth. My Constellation spirits were similarly too slow and they were all blasted away and sent sprawling in all directions before disappearing. Even my two venerable Celestial Guardians. The ice on the dragon''s wings were completely shattered to pieces. Groaning, I tried to crawl to my feet, but a massive claw stomped on me, pinning me to the ground.

    From the corner of my eye, I saw Troy and Kureha sprinting forward to assist, but I knew they wouldn''t make it in time. I fought with my dual swords, slashing the heavy, scaly feet, but to no avail.

    The dragon snarled at me, bringing its ugly face down to glower. Crimson flames ignited along its spikes and its eyes glowed crimson once more as its jaws open to spit fire at pointblank range. I could only watch helplessly as the crimson flames spark to life within its maw.

    "Fuck you," I spat at the Hellfire Drake. However, my spit vaporized immediately just from the sheer heat alone.

    The superheated crimson flames washed over me, engulfing me in a world of pain that ended in darkness.

 138 Chapter 138: Dragon Dance

    The dragon reared up triumphantly and roared. Swatting the two puny humans who charged at it, it prepared to finish them off. It had eliminated one of them. Soon, the other two would fall as well, and it could return to its nest to lick its wounds.

    Though the three mages had dealt it terrible, terrible damage, it would only take the venerable dragon a few days to fully heal.

    First, it had to eliminate the irritating humans that had trespassed into its nest and hurt it badly. The two it had just swatted away were slowly rising to their feet, stunned from the blow it had delivered to them. The Hellfire Drake had no intention of allowing them to recover, and was mercilessly generating flames along its spikes to power up its superheated flamethrower spell.

    However, before it could unleash its wrath upon the two, something caused it to freeze in its tracks.

    Stunned, the great dragon slowly turned around to stare disbelievingly at the sight behind it.

    "Where are you going?" I asked, standing in the middle of the red, molten crater. "Our battle''s not over yet."

    *

    My skin had been completely burned off, leaving nothing but blackened flesh and angry red blisters. I was completely unrecognizable. Both Troy and Kureha were staring at me with undisguised horror at my grotesque condition. Yet, despite losing most of my skin, I still had a manic grin on my face, or what passed off as a grin, anyway. I had lost most of my cheek muscles and flesh, leaving blackened bones and teeth beneath my burned face.

    "If you thought I died from that, you''re dead wrong," I warned. I was still holding my two swords in my hands. In contrast to my completely smudged and charred body, they were still shiny and clean. "What, you don''t believe me? I admit, I look a little worse for the wear¡­oh, all right. I know I look like a corpse right now, but what do you expect? You were the one who burned me to a crisp."

    The dragon was still staring at me in disbelief. So were Troy and Kureha, whose mouths were practically hitting the ground.

    "How are you still alive?" Troy blurted out. The dragon and Kureha both looked as if they had the same question.

    I rolled my eyes, unable to blink because my eyelids had been incinerated. "Come on now, don''t tell me you have never seen a zombie before?"

    "You''re a zombie?!" Troy exclaimed.

    "Don''t be ridiculous!" Kureha shouted. "How do you expect us to believe that?!"

    The dragon was, incredibly enough, nodding in agreement, as if it understood every word Kureha was saying. You know¡­you could just attack each other instead of staring at me in disbelief. Sometimes, the logic of these people and monsters baffled me. But instead of fighting, all three continued to stare at me intently.

    I stomped my foot impatiently. "Fine! Ah, damn it! And here I was thinking I could fool you with this appearance."

    Green Dragon appeared behind me. Flowers began dancing around us, and in a flash, I transformed back into a totally normal human being, but with plenty of bloodstains, bruises, cuts and burns. It wasn''t a healing spell ¨C there was no way I could learn such advanced magic with my specialization in summoning and foray into combat magic ¨C but more of a camouflage spell that belonged to the wood element. Otherwise I would be healing myself and my friends long ago. Unfortunately, such convenient things didn''t happen, and I was stuck with the wounds I sustained over the long duel with the Hellfire Drake.

    Still, it was at least much better than the charred zombie-like corpse I adopted earlier.

    "How did you survive that?!" Kureha exclaimed in shocked. I glared at her, wondering if she really wanted me to die, and then sighed and shook my head.

    "His tortoise soul beast is still there," Troy pointed out. Black Tortoise raised a paw and waved weakly before grinning. He had conjured a water barrier over me at the last moment before I was swallowed by the flames.

    The dragon was unamused by my prank.

    Roaring, it unleashed a torrent of superheated flames in my direction. Troy and Kureha stepped back inadvertently, shielding themselves from the intense heat. Black Tortoise also made to conjure a fresh barrier of water between me and my assailant, but a mental command from me forestalled his spell. I decided to just dismiss him there and them.

    Instead, I stepped forward and raised Gan Jiang before slashing the flames. Black mana billowed around me as the stream of fire seemed to stop in front of me, as if they had just hit an invisible wall. Instead, they were all blown sky-high. Troy and Kureha watched in awe, reminded of a volcano that had just erupted.

    The dragon could only stare incredulously at me as I deflected the superheated flames upward. I tilted my head and smiled at it, a hint of a sneer on my lips.

    "Honestly¡­I didn''t know Gan Jiang and Mo Ye had this kind of power. If I did, I would have used them long ago, from the start of the battle. Well, it doesn''t matter anyway." Taking a deep breath, I cast my ultimate summoning spell. "Draco!"

    An enormous dragon materialized behind me. Unlike the crimson Hellfire Drake, he was entirely black. Spreading his giant bat-like wings, Draco took to the air and flew toward the stunned Hellfire Drake, slamming into it like a speeding bullet and knocking it off its feet. Draco sank his humongous claws into the smaller dragon, causing the latter to scream pitifully.

    "What the¡­?" Troy sighed and shook his head. "So we were all buying all that time just so you can summon your own damned dragon?"

    I shrugged. "The most powerful summoning spells take the longest. You should know that by now."

    "Yeah, I did, but I certainly did not expect you to summon a dragon!"

    "Is it over?" Kureha asked, scarcely believing what she saw. There was no way the heavily injured and smaller Hellfire Drake could win against my Draco, who was at full health and larger. "Did we win?"

    "Yeah." I scratched my head. "Honestly, I took quite a while to summon Draco because I was casting one of his spells, and we really shouldn''t be here when it goes off."

    "Huh? What did you do, Richie?!" Troy was glaring at me.

    I never got to answer.

    A deafening roar drowned out any reply I might have, and something heavy crashed onto the mountaintop. Spinning around, I caught sight of a second Hellfire Drake ramming my Draco off the first. Like my Draco, it was fully unscathed, but unlike my Constellation spirit, the new dragon was utterly furious.

    "What the hell?!" I hollered, anxiety curling up in my heart. There was no way Draco could take on two Hellfire Drakes at the same time, even if one of them was near death. "Where did that other Hellfire Drake come from?"

    "There are two of them?" Kureha whimpered, despair filling her voice. She gripped her sword tightly, ready to battle to the death, if necessary.

    "Did that stupid thing learn a cloning technique or something?!" Troy demanded.

    Then it hit me, even as I slapped my forehead in exasperation. "Of course! This is the dragon''s nest! That second Hellfire Drake must be the first''s mate!"

    "There may be eggs!" Kureha was trembling. "If they raise a whole brood of dragons¡­"

    "We have to destroy them!" Troy agreed vehemently. "No matter what it takes!"

    "That''s part of the plan. I was planning to nuke the whole mountain." Turning to my Constellation spirit, I issued an order. "You get to unleash the Thuban after all, Draco."

    Draco bellowed as he leaped back, charging the beam of mana in his jaws. However, the second Hellfire Drake rammed into him, knocking him off his feet. Draco crashed heavily onto the ground, the mana in his jaws dispersing at the interruption.

    "Damn it!" I was already casting another summoning spell, even as Troy and Kureha were sprinting toward my fallen Constellation spirit. "Cancer! Provide some backup!"

    A giant crab materialized above the Hellfire Drake and smashed his massive pincer onto its head, driving it right to the ground. At the same time, Kureha pierced it with her sword while Troy grabbed its tail with both hands and swung it around before throwing it right at its mate with his incredible strength. He was only able to do that because the dragon was still stunned from Cancer''s Crab Hammer attack.

    "Both of you! Tactical withdrawal! We have to leave the mountain right now! Get to my position immediately!"

    Even as I dismissed Cancer, I was yelling and waving my friends toward my direction. Thankfully, they obeyed without question.

    "Draco, use Eltanin first!" I hollered. Two huge black beams of mana glowed from the dragon''s jaws and erupted into twin bursts of destructive force that struck both Hellfire Drakes and knocked them into the neighboring mountain. "Now, get ready to fire Thuban!"

    Then I sprinted toward the edge of the mountain and leaped off. Even as I spiraled down to the abyss below, I yelled, "Aquila!"

    The enormous eagle appeared below me. I landed on a bed of feathers before rolling upward to check on the progress of my friends. Troy didn''t hesitate and also followed me off the cliff, as he was familiar with my modus operandi. On the other hand, Kureha was a little apprehensive, but she took off when she saw my hovering Aquila.

    "Gonna give them a parting gift." Turning around, Troy raised a hand and clenched it into a fist. Along the surface of the mountain, huge rocks flowed outward to grasp both Hellfire Drakes. They struggled against their binds, slowly breaking the stone with their immense strength, but it was enough to hold them for the precious few seconds we needed.

    Rising to her feet, Kureha also summoned a thousand swords before bombarding the Hellfire Drakes with the devastating storm of blades. Both dragons screeched as the spirit swords sliced and pierced through their armored scales, blood spraying across the mountainside.

    Aquila soared away at incredible speed, leaving the two shrinking figures of the dragons behind. At the same time, Draco unleashed the Thuban once he was sure we were far enough.

    The black beam of mana slammed into the two dragons before blowing up in a gargantuan mushroom cloud. The black explosion swallowed the entire mountain range, erasing the entire terrain and leveling it, leaving a smoldering crater of colossal proportions. Even the valley below was not spared, disintegrated without a trace.

    "Amazing¡­you did that?" Kureha gasped.

    "You really fucking nuked the entire mountain range!" Troy yelled, his voice filled with delight. "You maniac! You incredible maniac! You''re a fucking, walking and talking nuclear bomb!"

    "I wish I feel like one¡­" my consciousness was slipping. This wasn''t good.

    "Are you all right?" Kureha asked worriedly. "You look extremely pale."

    "¡­yeah. I''ve expended too much mana. I need to land, or I''ll pass out, Aquila will disappear below us, and we''ll fall to our deaths."

    "Not surprising, after casting a spell of that magnitude." Troy was nodding. "No wonder you took so long to summon Draco and cast that spell. Of course it would take an insane amount of time to complete the casting! It''ll also require crazy amounts of mana too!"

    "There''s a military base just a couple of kilometers from here," Kureha was looking around to find it. "Just hang in there¡­"

    "No. land. Right now." Troy placed a hand on my shoulder. I was literally collapsing on top of my Aquila, who was gradually becoming transparent as maintaining his existence in the material became quite the struggle. "I''ll take care of the rest. You''ve done more than enough."

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    "Thanks."

    Exhausted, I had Aquila set down immediately, and then I crashed onto the ground. Troy quickly caught me before my face could hit the dirt.

    The last thing I knew was an inevitable wave of darkness swallowing my consciousness, and then I truly knew nothing.

 139 Chapter 139: Military Base

    Troy and Kureha managed to bring me to the military base to the north. Rather, Troy did. With his prodigious strength, he basically carried me like a duffel bag, tucking my body into his elbow and walking normally.

    Kureha raised an eyebrow at that.

    "You sure you don''t need any help?"

    "Yeah. Richie''s pretty light." He frowned. "I hope he has been eating properly. He feels like he''s underweight."

    What can I say? No matter how much I ate, I never grew fat.

    "Halt!"

    Before the two could approach the military camp any further, the two sentries called out to them. The first one stepped forward, his finger on the trigger guard, but he wisely didn''t aim his rifle at the three of us.

    "This is a restricted area. Civilians are not allowed here."

    "Sorry, but we have an emergency." Troy gestured toward my unconscious form. "One of us got seriously injured when fighting a monster, so we might need some help. You have a doctor or healer in there? Or maybe a transport to bring us back to Jing Tian City?"

    The two sentries glanced at each other, and the first sighed before he nodded. "Wait here. I''ll have to check with my superiors."

    "Hey! I know that kid!" the second sentry blurted out as he studied me. "Isn''t he one of Feng Hai''s students? He came here for the training camp a few months back, didn''t he?"

    "Oh, you''re right!" the first sentry paused to look closely at me. "Now that you''ve mentioned it, he is that student from Jing Tian Academy!" he then turned to regard Troy and Kureha. "What about the two of you? Where are you from?"

    "I''m also from Jing Tian Academy. I was away on a mission during the training camp, so I didn''t take part in it." Troy produced his student ID as evidence.

    "I''m Kureha Franklin. I hired these two Jing Tian Academy students for a mission." Kureha lowered her head. "It''s my fault that they are injured. If you could please help treat our wounds or bring us to a hospital, I''ll find some way to compensate somehow¡­"

    "No need for that," the first sentry assured her. "We''re soldiers. It''s our job to protect civilians."

    "And besides, you guys aren''t exactly civilians," the second sentry added. "Don''t feel guilty, Miss. These students already knew the risks and dangers when they accepted your mission. You should thank them, not apologize."

    "I will." Kureha nodded." She turned to Troy. "Thank you."

    "No problem. Make sure you thank Richie as well."

    The sentries contacted their sergeant, who reported to the Regimental Sergeant Major, who then gave his permission, on the condition that they watched us. After all, they couldn''t just allow outsiders to casually stroll into a highly restricted military camp without supervision. I was unconscious the entire time, so I didn''t know the details, but I was delivered to the medical center and placed in the infirmary. The military doctor or medical officer in charge cast his healing spells on us and then left us to recover.

    Before he did, though, he assured Troy and Kureha that I would be fine.

    "Yes, that boy certainly suffered severe injuries," he acknowledged. "But he''s mostly exhausted. His mana is completely depleted. He''ll probably sleep for a few days before he finally wakes up." he frowned and adjusted his glasses to peer at us. "You said you guys were fighting a dragon? A rank A dragon?"

    "Yeah." Kureha gestured to my glasses, which was lying on the bedside. "You can check the mission recordings if you don''t believe us."

    "No need. But it explains how this young man used up all of his mana. That''s a rare occurrence ¨C most people don''t simply expend all their mana to the point of collapse like this. But against a dragon, I can see why he was forced to go all out."

    He then glanced at Troy and Kureha.

    "But I must say, I''m surprised that the three of you survived an encounter with a dragon. How did you escape?"

    "By nuking the dragons," Troy replied. He jabbed a thumb at me. "Richie''s insane. He has this nuke-level spell¡­"

    "¡­huh?" the doctor raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "You actually slew the dragon?"

    Dragons. Plural. But neither Troy nor Kureha was in the mood to correct him. Instead, Kureha nodded.

    "As I said, if you don''t believe me, you can view the mission logs for yourself."

    "Right." The doctor frowned as he glanced at me, and then he blinked. "Ah, now that I think about it, this young man reminds me of that Jing Tian Academy student who used a large-scale spell to destroy a trio of rank B Crastrates¡­"

    He trailed off when realization dawned on him.

    "Oh¡­so this is the student¡­"

    "Yup, Richie was the one who nuked those Crastrates." For some reason, Troy sounded proud, as if my achievements belonged to him.

    "I see." The doctor nodded and turned away to leave. "Anyway, he''ll require a long period of rest before he wakes up. You two should get some rest too. It''s not as if you got off lightly."

    "Will do, doc!" Troy called out cheerfully after him.

    *

    The next morning, Troy and Kureha were getting ready to depart.

    "What are we going to do about Richard?" Kureha asked. "We can''t afford to wait here for a few days until he wakes up."

    "Yeah¡­" Troy''s expression was hard. "I don''t want to leave Richie by himself, but now that I know that Tyrant might be part of this Research Foundation Group, I can''t waste too much time doing nothing. I need to track him down."

    Tyrant King was Troy''s brother and a notorious mass murderer who often made the headlines for arson-related atrocities. The city that Troy tracked him to just recently had been burned down by his experimental weapon. Even without successfully developing a bioweapon, Tyrant King was still a deadly foe.

    "Me too. Now that I know who is responsible for ordering the hit one me and my sister, I must return to the Franklin family to settle things. I also need to contact my mother and grandmother and warn them."

    Kureha was clenching her fists, vengeful fury burning in her eyes. She couldn''t forgive her uncle for her sister''s horrible death.

    "I will definitely¡­!"

    "Don''t worry."

    The corporal who was assigned to watch over us gave his assurances.

    "You two go ahead and do whatever you need to do. I''ll take care of this kid." He grinned. "He''s safest here, in a highly guarded military base. You don''t have to worry about him. I''ll let him know where you guys go once he wakes up."

    "Thanks. I''ll write him an email and tell him everything." Troy nodded in relief. "I''ll leave him in your hands."

    "No problem."

    The two of them then departed from the base.

    "So where do you intend to start?" Kureha asked Troy. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

    "I plan to return to the city where I found my brother. Tyrant must be working on something there. I won''t be surprised if the facility he was residing in belonged to the Research Foundation Group." he narrowed his eyes. "I should find some clues there¡­assuming he didn''t burn it down completely."

    "Aren''t they rebuilding and reconstructing the city?"

    "Yeah, but it''ll take them some time, and I suspect the facility will be their last priority. Otherwise I''ll try and get hold of the city records." He struck a fist into his palm angrily. "Damn it! I should have investigated the facility more closely! I didn''t think it was important at that time, but if I paid more attention, I would have gotten more clues!"

    Kureha didn''t say anything. Taking a deep breath, Troy calmed down.

    "But now that I know he has links to the Research Foundation Group, it helps me narrow things further. I should be able to locate him more easily." He then stared at Kureha. "What will you do? Return to your home city?"

    "Yes, that''s what I intend to do¡­eventually."

    "Eventually?" Troy repeated incredulously. Kureha nodded.

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    "There are a few things I want to investigate in Jing Tian City. That''s why my sister and I came here in the first place. To check things out."

    The apartment where Kurenai was abducted wasn''t their home, but a place they rented out temporarily. It explained why the security surrounding the Franklin sisters was so sparse. They were moving independently, and actually without permission from the main family. That was why they were so vulnerable and open to attacks.

    However, Kureha had no choice but to take the risk.

    "We heard a rumor that a member of the Franklin family had gone rogue. So my sister and I came to Jing Tian City to investigate that rumor. It had something to do with consorting with criminal organizations and experimenting on monsters¡­but the family elders judged it as preposterous and unfounded. After all, if it was true that a member of the Franklin family had participated in such illegal activities, it will cause a huge scandal, especially given how we''re one of the ten Great Families in the Federation."

    "So they refused to investigate."

    "Correct." Kureha affirmed Troy''s guess. "They closed down all investigations pertaining to the matter and ordered us not to pursue it. But¡­I can''t just let it go, you know? This is a matter of honor¡­of justice. If someone in our family is engaging in such heretical practices, then it is my duty as the newest Sword Saint to arrest and stop him."

    "How did that turn out?"

    "Well¡­you know." Kureha looked glum. Then she brightened up. "But we''ve found out a few things, thanks to you and Richard. Now I know what to look for." She clenched her fist. "The Research Foundation Group, huh¡­knowing my uncle, he must have set it up as a legitimate company, while covering up their illegal experiments with a false front. They must have used Jing Tian City to set up their base. I''ll find them and flush them out." Her fist trembled violently. "Uncle Frank will pay dearly for what he did to my sister."

    "Well, when Richie wakes up, you can ask him for help."

    "No, I can''t trouble the two of you any more than I already have." Kureha lowered her head. "Thank you for everything. Don''t worry¡­for this new mission, I have someone else in mind." She smiled dazzlingly. "But if I need some hired muscle, I''ll contact you and Richard."

    "It''ll be tough for me to show up, but Richie definitely will be there." Troy returned with a grin and raised a fist. "Well then¡­good luck!"

    "You too."

    The two of them then went on their separate ways the moment they returned to Jing Tian City. And with that, our party officially disbanded.

 140 Chapter 140: Investigation

    The first thing Kureha Franklin did when she returned to Jing Tian City was to contact an old friend. The moment she saw that her smartphone had cell reception, she swiped the screen to summon her contacts list and tapped on the name Alicia Violet.

    Alicia and Kureha had been friends for a few years now. Even though the Violet family was not part of the ten great families, it was still a prestigious clan. They had a few connections with the ten great families. Well. Just the Stuart and Franklin clans, though, and even so, just a few members. For example, Alicia didn''t know who Shawn Franklin was, and had no reason to through her limited encounters with the Franklin family.

    However, she did befriend Kureha when they met each other at a social gathering a few years ago, and exchanged contacts. Kureha would sometimes visit her when dropping by Jing Tian City for business. Which was why she was familiar with the city to begin with, despite not living here.

    A video of Alicia appeared in front of her, the blue-tinted holographic image hovering in the air. The Black Rose Society president beamed happily when she saw her friend.

    "Kureha! It''s been a while!"

    "Hi, Alicia. It has, indeed." Kureha nodded somberly. She tried to muster up a weak smile, but found her lips rigidly and unnaturally curving up. Sensitive as she was, Alicia noticed her friend''s mood.

    "What''s the matter, Kureha? Did something happen?"

    "¡­yeah." After the mission¡­after everything, Kureha finally felt a wave of emotions hitting her hard. The loss of her sister¡­witnessing her grisly demise¡­it was just too much. It took her everything she could to hold back her tears. "Alicia¡­I need a favor."

    "Anything, Kureha. Where are you now? Are you outside?" Alicia glanced at the background and saw the buildings and trees behind her friend. "What happened?"

    "A long story." Kureha wiped at her reddening eyes. "I''m¡­um¡­at Jing Tian City right now. Do you mind if I come over for a visit?"

    "Sure! You can even stay over!" as much as Alicia wanted to ask when she arrived, she didn''t pursue the issue. Instead, she rose from her desk, where she had been studying. "Where are you right now? I''ll go over and pick you up."

    "Thanks." Kureha sent the coordinates. Alicia acknowledged them, and then hung up to hastily make her preparations. While waiting for her friend, Kureha sat on a nearby bench.

    Then she cried.

    *

    "You should have told me when you first came to Jing Tian City," Alicia told her gently. "My home may not be as safe as yours, but at least you won''t have to worry about kidnappers here."

    The Violet family was not as rich as the Franklin family, but they still lived in quite the huge mansion. Even though the vast halls seemed empty, there were quite a few security personnel watching the place.

    "I wanted to keep a low profile. Didn''t want to stand out. Also didn''t want to trouble you." Kureha took a deep breath, and accepted the tissue that Alicia offered. She suppressed a sob. "I''m not supposed to be here. If the elders find out, they''ll order me and my sister to return."

    She closed her eyes as the memories of her sister welled up inside her. Gritting her teeth, she clenched her fists and forced herself to calm down.

    Alicia didn''t press for details, having heard the gist of it from Kureha. She had found her friend sobbing on a bench, crying by herself, and quickly bundled her into the back of her father''s car. It wasn''t long before Kureha informed her of the abduction, and Kurenai''s gruesome death at the hands of murderous rapists.

    "Your sister¡­the people who did this to her¡­we''ll definitely hunt them down." Alicia promised determinedly. Kureha shook her head.

    "They''re dead," she replied plainly as she wiped her eyes. "We killed them."

    "¡­eh?"

    "Sorry. When Kurenai was kidnapped, I went and hired a couple of students from your school to help me track her down. We were too late." Kureha took a deep breath, and vengeful wrath flashed in her eyes. "We made them pay."

    "¡­I see." Alicia sighed and nodded. "That''s good then."

    She hesitated for a moment, but her curiosity got the better of her.

    "Who did you hire?"

    "Richard Huang and Troy King. They were extremely helpful." Her face fell. "It''s my fault they both got hurt. We managed to get some treatment, but Richard is still suffering from mana depletion. He needs a little longer to recover¡­hmm?"

    She caught the expression on Alicia''s face and trailed off. Alicia blinked and then closed her mouth.

    "You hired Richard and Troy!?"

    "Yeah¡­oh, that''s right. They mentioned something about being Black Rose. So they are your members, huh?"

    "How''s Richard? Where is he right now?!" Alicia was grabbing Kureha''s shoulders, and the latter could only stare at her, stunned.

    "Um¡­he''s fine. He''s sleeping off his mana exhaustion in a military camp just north of here. He''ll be fine once he recovers his mana."

    Alicia sighed as she let go of her stupefied friend and sat back in her chair, relief written all over her face.

    "That''s good. Jeez, that guy never fails to worry me. At least both he and Troy are all right. I assume Troy has also returned to Jing Tian City?"

    "Yeah¡­we went our separate ways shortly after that. He says he needs to track down his brother after we found out that there is a link between him and the Research Foundation Group." she lowered her voice. "That''s why I need a favor from you, Alicia. I need every information you can find regarding the Research Foundation Group."

    "The¡­Research Foundation Group?" Alicia repeated, puzzled. Kureha nodded.

    "The organization that my uncle Frank founded¡­the same man who ordered the hit on both me and my sister."

    *

    For the rest of the week, Kureha did as she said and launched herself fully into her investigation.

    "Alicia, did you find anything?"

    "Hmm¡­not much, I''m afraid."

    The two girls had chosen to meet up at a caf¨¦ to share their findings. Alicia had several holographic screens open and floating in the air as she read through reports, highlighting the sentences she thought were particularly relevant or important.

    "I''ve gone through the thirty-two scientific organizations here, and none of them seem like they are a cover for this Research Foundation Group. And I can''t find any group under that name listed in the city''s records."

    "How smart of Uncle Frank." Kureha chewed on her lip. "Using a research organization as a cover would be too obvious, huh? Maybe we should look into other organizations."

    "Like what?" Alicia raised an eyebrow. "There are over three thousand and five hundred commercial organizations in Jing Tian City. It''ll be like looking for a needle in a haystack."

    "Ugh¡­" Kureha leaned back in her chair and held her head. This was going nowhere. They had spent an entire week combing through just thirty organizations. She couldn''t imagine going through a hundred times that number. That would take too much time.

    "But you know¡­" Alicia giggled. "When you first approached me for help, I never imagined it would be for something like this."

    "What were you expecting?" Kureha asked distractedly as she flipped through several holograms in hopes of finding a clue they overlooked.

    "Well, you''re the Sword Saint. I thought you were looking for a fight or something. So I would have gotten ready to organize an official duel."

    "If I wanted a duel, I can look for that at home. I don''t have to come all the way to Jing Tian City for that."

    Alicia winced at that. She was aware of the reputation Jing Tian City had when compared to the other cities. There weren''t many strong young mages here, with the exception of Troy the Superman. Most of the times, Jing Tian City was looked down upon as a den of weaklings. The academies in the city had performed poorly in the national tournaments over the past few years, after all. Even Jing Tian Academy, the premier magic school in the city, had fallen so far from grace after the Hurricane Blade Feng Hai graduated.

    In short, if an esteemed mage like Kureha was looking for a strong opponent, Jing Tian City would be the last place she would visit.

    Unaware that she had hurt Alicia''s pride, Kureha continued flicking through the holograms, and she sighed loudly.

    "Ugh¡­I can''t find any clues at all. Really? None of these scientific research organizations look suspicious to you?"

    "We''ve visited and investigated all of them, remember? What do you think?"

    "¡­yeah." Kureha couldn''t help but admit bitterly. "There was nothing amiss about them. They all seemed perfectly normal to me. Only a couple of them are about monsters or anything remotely related to them. And those have been founded decades or centuries ago¡­way before my uncle was born. I hardly think he''ll be able to bring them under his control that easily¡­and that prisoner we interrogated clearly said that Uncle Frank founded the group, which mean it can''t be any of them."

    She glanced at the screen again, eliminating the organizations until a couple were left.

    "Only these two were founded in the last couple of years. Three, if we widen it to ten. But this company manufactures drinks and researches on nutritional value. The other one is astronomy and stargazing. The ten-year-old company focuses on laser technology and lights. None of them are related to monsters."

    "And when we checked them out, we can''t find anything," Alicia agreed. "They looked perfectly normal to us."

    "Yeah." Kureha was frustrated at the dead end they came to. Leaning back in her chair, she took a sip of her iced coffee, her eyes wandering away. "I wonder how Richard is. Do you think he has woken up yet?"

    "I hope so." Alicia pursed her lips angrily. "He''s always so reckless. I know he''s¡­strong, but he always overdoes things and ends up getting himself hurt."

    "That''s my fault. I was the one who got him involved."

    "It''s nobody''s fault." Alicia sighed as she sucked on her straw, emptying her cup. "Except your uncle''s. Anyway, Richard has done more than enough. Let him rest. I don''t want him to get involved and end up hurting himself again. He might be intelligent, but he''s not the kind who''s good at investigating stuff. How do I put it¡­he''s more of a sci-fi person than a mystery or detective person. If it''s just checking out companies, we can handle this on our own. Now let''s go look for more clues."

    "Where should we go next?" Kureha asked as she finished the rest of her drink. "I don''t think there''s any point in checking out these research companies again."

    "No, there isn''t," Alicia agreed, her eyes drifting to the holographic screen. "But we can change directions. Look¡­" she spread her fingers to magnify a screen. "I notice that this first research organization tend to ship the drinks they manufacture into a warehouse. Which is strange, now that I think about it. They are a research company, aren''t they? Not a manufacturing or beverage company. So why are they manufacturing such large quantities of drinks and shipping them? Shouldn''t they be getting samples of drinks and conducting research on them?"

    "¡­which is what they are doing when we visited them." Kureha frowned. "Should we check them out again?"

    "Yes, but not exactly." Alicia tapped the photograph in her holographic screen. "I meant to check out this warehouse that the drinks are being brought to." she leaned closer to read the text beneath the photo. "Hmm¡­just as I suspected. The drinks are brought to this warehouse¡­and left there. Weird."

    "What''s weird about that?" Kureha asked, bewildered. Alicia smiled at her slyly.

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    "Usually you would store the drinks in a warehouse before shipping them out¡­but the drinks never get shipped out. The warehouse receives more and more drinks¡­but, where do the drinks all go? Why are they stockpiling so many drinks? For research? Even if that''s the case, isn''t that¡­too many drinks?"

    "That does sound suspicious," Kureha conceded with a nod. Alicia dismissed her holographic screens and rose to her feet.

    "It''s decided then. Let''s pay the warehouse a visit."

 141 Chapter 141: Warehouse

    Alicia and Kureha approached the warehouse¡­well, warily. Because they had to be wary of the warehouse. Got it? No? Never mind¡­

    Ahem¡­anyway, the two girls cautiously approached the front, but Alicia suddenly raised a hand and called for a halt.

    "Something''s not right," she said as she scrutinized the warehouse from a distance.

    There was a huge truck rumbling through the entrance, crates of bottles jangling in the back. The guards waved it in, and then stood aside. The heavy vehicle proceeded past the checkpoint and toward one of the unloading bays, where a couple of workers emerged. As soon as the truck stopped, they hopped up into the back and began shifting the crates of drinks.

    "I don''t see anything wrong," Kureha remarked, puzzled. "They''re just unloading the drinks."

    "No, not the truck." Alicia was frowning. "The warehouse. It''s too quiet and empty for a warehouse of that size. There are only two workers on a weekday. Where are the others?"

    "That''s true." Kureha understood what Alicia was talking about. Even with her limited senses, she couldn''t detect the presence of any other humans inside the warehouse. Alicia, whose senses had been sharpened because of her role as a ranged gunner, already picked up the unnatural emptiness inside the warehouse. It wasn''t like an x-ray vision or radar, but more of a sixth sense, where she could sense the mana signatures of people.

    "¡­underground." Alicia suddenly straightened her back and stared intensely at the back of the warehouse, on the other side of the loading bay where the truck and workers were. She then glanced back at her smartphone, as if to confirm something. "There''s a tunnel leading underground. Someone has just gone through it recently."

    Kureha shook her head, amazed. She hadn''t sensed or seen anything at all. "How do you know?"

    "Thanks to these," Alicia admitted as she raised a hand. A tiny, ant-size mechanical drone buzzed in the palm of her hand, its metallic wings fluttering as it took flight. She then turned to her smartphone, which was beaming a holographic screen that displayed multiple videos, each recorded by the many drones she had set upon the warehouse. She selected one of the videos and magnified it, indicating to a hatch deep inside the center.

    The drone hovered closer to the hatch, and using its multi-spectrum array, it scanned the interior. An in-built radar showed that it was hollow, and led to a tunnel that gradually sloped downward. Its limited range meant that they couldn''t see anything beyond that, and obviously the tiny mechanical drone had no way of opening the door and flying inside to find out.

    "We''ll have to sneak in."

    "Want me to subdue the workers and driver?" Kureha asked, already drawing her sword. Alicia gave her a dry stare.

    "I said we''re sneaking in, no fighting our way in. We don''t know how many people are in there, or even if this is the right place. If we end up mistaken, I don''t want to draw too much attention to us, get arrested, and then having to explain to my father why I decided to trespass upon private property and assaulted innocent people." She gestured toward the workers. "We don''t know for sure if they''re the enemy. Don''t be hasty. Let''s gather more information first before we start shooting."

    "You got a point there," Kureha admitted sheepishly as she placed her sword back in its sheath. "Sorry."

    The two girls snuck over to the back, and then vaulted over the fence. The barbed wire that was coiled at the top proved to be ineffective in keeping out intruders¡­then again, they were designed to keep out normal humans, and not mages capable of casting basic physical reinforcement spells. There wasn''t even a basic magic barrier to protect the premises.

    That was normal. The warehouse was inside a city, which was itself already protected by a large-scale barrier that kept out low ranking monsters. There was no need for extra precautions against magical foes or monsters, not unless there was something extremely valuable inside. It wasn''t as if mages were desperate enough to steal crates of drinks from a warehouse.

    Taking a deep breath, Alicia then did her best to cast a stealth spell. She wasn''t very good at it, but she had studied the basics as it was part of the class on sniping. Obviously, the best snipers were also the stealthiest, which was why she learned a bit of stealth magic, but she wasn''t as proficient as it as her sniper brethren as she tended to be a frontline gunner rather than an actual sniper. The two girls snuck past the workers and driver, who were completely unaware of their presence at all.

    Stopping by the hatch, Kureha bent down to lift it, but Alicia quickly stopped her.

    "Wait. It''s warded. There''s an enchantment over it." Taking a deep breath, Alicia closed her eyes and placed her hand above it, but not directly touching it. "Allow me to defuse it first."

    Regulating her breathing, Alicia did her best to disengage the enchantment, while Kureha kept watch to ensure that the workers didn''t discover them. Perspiration dripped down her face as Alicia struggled with the complex mechanism of the spell, meticulously dismantling floating runes and symbols of lights that were now hovering above the hatch.

    With a click, the enchantment vanished completely, and Alicia wiped the perspiration from her pale face. Raising her head, she smiled tiredly.

    "It''s done."

    "Let me go in first. In case there''s a trap or ambush."

    Alicia snorted at Kureha''s concern, but she couldn''t argue against the need for caution. Nodding, she stepped back and allowed her friend to enter first. Kureha drew her sword as she descended the slope, scanning the area for any traps, or anything out of place.

    They found nothing.

    "¡­how far does this tunnel go?" Kureha asked impatiently as she swept her gaze across the dimly lit corridor. The tension was getting to her, especially when she found nothing.

    "Just ten more meters." Alicia was studying her smartphone, tracking her drone''s view. Her done spotted nothing, and triggered no traps. The tunnel was practically deserted, but then again¡­of course it would be. Why would anyone hang out in a dark, dreary tunnel? Of course they would go inside the room at the end of the tunnel. "There''s a chamber at the back. I suspect that''s where the people are." She paused and closed her eyes for a moment. "It''s faint, but I can sense a few presences behind that door."

    "Have they detected us yet?" Kureha asked tersely. Alicia shook her head.

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    "No reaction. They''re milling around in the room. I''m not sure what they''re doing¡­I can''t see anything past the door."

    "Let''s hurry then."

    The two of them hastened their pace and reached the door in fairly short order. Coming to a stop just before the huge, metallic door that barred their way, Kureha raised her sword.

    "Mind if I cut it?"

    "Uh¡­"

    "No time for stealth now, unless you have a way of opening the door without alerting them."

    "No, wait! Look out!"

    Alicia suddenly drew her guns and let off a couple of shots. Kureha dodged on instinct as the magical bolts soared above her and struck something.

    Clang!

    Looking up, Kureha watched in horror as two gigantic golems detached themselves from the walls on either side of the metallic gate. About three meters tall and two wide, they lumbered forward like mechanical giants, their single eyes whirling about nosily as they tracked her.

    Bang!

    Alicia fired off a barrage of shots that pelted the Golem on the left, and one of them struck its optical lenses, which fizzled. The Golem staggered, but didn''t fall.

    But that was more than enough for Kureha.

    The Golem on the right continued its inexorable advance, its massive fists swinging toward Kureha. Unable to evade in such tight confines, Kureha instead faced its attack head-on. Dashing forward, she flipped herself above its punch and landed on its gigantic arm. Running along the metallic length, she dove forward and swung her sword. In a single, graceful stroke, she decapitated the Golem. Its head crashed onto the ground, sparks flying violently from severed wires.

    Even so, the Golem refused to die. It continued to swing about wildly, almost dislodging her from its shoulder. Gritting her teeth, Kureha plunged her blade deep into its now open neck and unleashed a white blast of energy that seared through its insides.

    Smoke billowing out of exposed hatches and its hollow neck, the Golem toppled over like a puppet whose strings were abruptly cut. Without any hesitation, Kureha bounced off the fallen Golem and attacked the other. It was currently occupied by Alicia, who was relentlessly bombarding it with countless anti-armor rounds.

    The magical projectiles left craters on the now pockmarked body of the staggering Golem. In truth, Alicia should be able to take it down in another few minutes, but Kureha wasn''t willing to wait.

    Vaulting across the corridor, Kureha stabbed the Golem in the chest, in a cracked crevice where Alicia''s shots had left a small but deep hole. White energy crackled from her blade and erupted inside the stumbling Golem, frying it from the inside. Yanking her sword out, Kureha spun away before the Golem could fall on top of her. The mechanical warrior crashed face first, sparks scattering from its ruined body.

    "No choice. If they didn''t know we were here before, they definitely know now."

    Gathering white mana into her sword, Kureha wasted no time and sliced the door open. Two segments of metal slid down and toppled inward with a thunderous thud. Without waiting for the echoes to die away, Kureha stepped through the entrance she had just forcibly cut open and glared at the occupants.

    Then she froze.

    "¡­Uncle Frank?"

    The man in the center, surrounded by a bunch of hooded mages, slowly turned around. Adjusting his necktie casually, he smiled.

    "Oh, Kureha. You''re still fine, I see." His grin grew. "How is your sister?"

    "You¡­!"

    White mana exploded around Kureha, causing the entire chamber to shake violently. Dust and stones rained down as tremendous tremors coursed through the room, and the hooded mages stumbled as they tried to regain their balance.

    "I''m going to kill you."

    "Oh? Are you sure about that? You can''t afford to be wasting time on me, you know?"

    "What''s that supposed to mean?" Alicia asked as she entered the room behind her friend, keeping her guns trained on Frank Franklin. He shrugged.

    "Ah, I guess it''s best to inform you. At this very moment, there are 3,000 monsters heading toward Jing Tian City from the north. If you go now, you should be able to inform your local military force and rally a combat force in time. You''ll need every second." His eyes gleamed mischievously. "After all, even a city''s barrier is not going to be able to stop an army of 3,000 monsters. There are a few rank B''s in there as well."

    "You¡­what have you done?" Alicia asked, horrified. "How¡­?"

    "That''s our job. As the Research Foundation Group. We conduct research on monsters." He glanced upward. "Those drinks in this warehouse? They act as bait, giving off pheromones that attract monsters. That''s why the barrier that renders the city invisible isn''t going to work. They know you''re here. Oh." He raised a finger. "You can destroy the drinks if you want, but it''s too late. As I said, they already know you''re here. Even if you get rid of the bait, they''re already on an unstoppable path toward this direction."

    "I''ll kill you," Kureha growled, holding her sword in both hands. White mana continued flowing into it. "It won''t be a waste of time. I only need a second to kill you."

    Then she charged forward and stabbed Frank. The middle-aged man looked stunned as he jerked and clutched the blade. White mana continued to erupt from Kureha''s sword, surging through his body and ravaging his insides.

    "Ouch."

    Kureha froze as she stared at her uncle''s face. Frank''s surprised expression vanished, replaced by a smile. He slowly caressed the sword and shook his head.

    "I''m aware of your excellent sword skills, my dear Kureha. As such, do you really think I would be stupid enough to hang around and explain everything to you when you barged in here?"

    "¡­what?"

    Kureha''s jaw dropped when Frank''s figure fizzled and he vanished. The hooded mages around him also flickered and disappeared along with him.

    "The moment you began fighting with our Golems, we had already started evacuating. The illusions were just to distract you, to buy us a bit more time and delay you from pursuing us as we made our escape."

    The voice echoed from everywhere and nowhere. No matter where Kureha looked, she couldn''t find any trace of her uncle. She glanced at Alicia, who shook her head bitterly.

    Even the long-ranged gunner couldn''t sense where the group of mages had escaped to. Her drones were buzzing about, but they met with dead ends and solid walls, unable to locate any alternate escape route.

    "Where did they go?!" Kureha snapped, kicking the table in the middle and sending it flying.

    "Out of here!" Frank''s disembodied voice continued in that taunting manner. "Why, don''t worry, my dear niece. If you survive the onslaught from 3,000 monsters, I''m sure we''ll meet again! But first, you have to survive the invasion! You probably don''t want to waste too much time chasing me¡­the lives of the people in this city depend on your quick, decisive actions!"

    "Damn it!"

    With a scream, Kureha swung her sword and obliterated a good portion of the room, scorching the walls and floor with devastating white mana.

    "I''ll kill you! I swear, I''ll find you, and I''ll kill you!"

    "¡­Kureha."

    The Sword Saint turned to her friend, still trembling with fury. Despite the murderous intent radiating off her, Alicia was not the least intimidated. Instead, she gently reached out and grabbed Kureha''s shoulder.

    "We have to go. We need to inform my father and the city''s militia. If what your uncle said is true, then we don''t have much time left. We must prepare to defend Jing Tian City from the monsters."

    She paused and took a deep breath.

    "¡­can I ask you for your assistance? We are going to need every combat mage we can get."

    "You have my sword," Kureha promised, offering it to Alicia. As the Sword Saint of her generation, she knew she had a duty to protect the citizens of the Federation. Even so, her wrath had yet to be sated. "And once we slaughter all those monsters, I will hunt down my treacherous uncle and bring him to justice. This, I swear."

 142 Chapter 142: The Northern Fortress

    As Frank Franklin and his entourage of mages left the warehouse, one of the hooded men hastened his pace to catch up with him.

    "Father." Pulling his hood down, the mage revealed a handsome, young face. Fred Franklin was looking a little nervous, his pale face slick with perspiration. "Are you sure this is really necessary? Setting 3,000 monsters on a city?"

    "What are you saying, now that we''ve already reached this point?" Fred Franklin laughed, not at all bothered. In fact, he was pretty pleased at giving the girls the slip at the warehouse. He was still amused at their stunned expressions when he revealed that the people in the chamber were all illusions. "Getting cold feet now?"

    "No¡­but¡­I feel that this is a little¡­excessive?"

    "Hmm¡­" Fred grinned. "Not at all. By my calculations, I think our plan will have a 90% chance of succeeding. I think it''s better to prepare for the unexpected, just in case the 10% chance of failure actually happens."

    Then he paused for a moment. His entire entourage also halted behind him, waiting on his every word. Not caring about them, Frank snickered.

    "Well then¡­the monsters should be annihilating the northern fortress right about¡­now."

    He narrowed his eyes, and for the first time, a tinge of seriousness gleamed in those dark amber pupils.

    "The actual battle will take place in the morning. What perfect timing."

    With a chuckle, he and his entourage of mages disappeared into the thick crowds that thronged among the streets of Jing Tian City, the masses still unaware of the tragedy that would befall them shortly.

    *

    The alarms rang shrilly throughout the military camp. Everywhere, soldiers were hurrying about, rushing toward the armory where the personnel in charge were handing out weapons. Not just rifles and ammunition but swords, axes, hammers, bladed weapons and other melee weapons. The quartermasters were also busily giving out supplies, to ensure the soldiers had enough to last them in the battlefield. The military staff themselves were strapping on armor and their gear, beginning the casting of their spells to physically reinforce themselves or boost the destructive power of their weapons.

    I woke up to the shrieks and red lights, dazed from the commotion. Finding myself in an unfamiliar bed, I sat up and rummaged for my glasses.

    "Oh, you''re finally awake."

    A soldier with a white lab coat over his military uniform paused to check on me, a tense smile forming on his face.

    "You''ve been asleep for about a week now. We were thinking you''ll never wake up." he glanced up at the ringing alarms. "I guess the noise was too much."

    "What''s going on? Where am I?"

    "Oh, this is the northern Jing Tian Fortress. You''ve been here before, I believe. A few months ago, students from your school came for a training camp ¨C you were one of them, I recall." The doctor turned grim. "But now''s quite the bad time to wake up. A horde of approximately three thousand monsters are closing in on our position as I speak. All military and combat personnel have been mobilized to fight them. With such huge numbers, however, I don''t know how long we''ll be able to hold out for." He then began striding away. "Sorry, but I''ve to prepare. There will definitely be a lot of wounded, so¡­"

    "I''ll join the fight." I was already getting out of bed, putting on my shoes and grabbing my storage device and other stuff. My two swords, Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, were right beside me, the soldiers having been kind enough to leave them where I could retrieve them immediately.

    "You''re a civilian," the doctor countered sternly. "You should be evacuating from the base with all the other non-combat personnel."

    "I''m a student of Jing Tian Magic Academy and have trained in combat magic. I can''t just leave you guys to fight on your own." I took a deep breath. "How long until the monsters get here?"

    "An hour, maybe less." The doctor scowled. "They''re moving quite rapidly. It''s strange¡­it''s as if someone is directing them. I''ve never seen monsters move together in such large numbers with purpose."

    "¡­"

    There was something about his revelation that struck me as ominous. Monsters being directed? In such large numbers? Moving with purpose? I had never heard anything like that before, even from any of the books I had read. Yeah, this was odd in the extreme.

    However, I didn''t have the time to ponder over that. The monsters were near, and they would hit the fortress before I could consider any possibility with regards to their strange behavior. I should focus on the current predicament for now.

    We had to eradicate the monsters before we sustained too many casualties.

    None of the soldiers paid any attention to me as I hastened down the corridor, looking for any sense of direction. They were all gathering in the plaza in full combat gear, armed with a vast range of weapons. I could see Sergeants bellowing orders as they organized their squads and platoons into neat rows and officers frantically exchanging holographic notes and discussing tactics and countermeasures against such a desperate situation. Even with full attendance of every soldier in the base, they only numbered to about five hundred at most.

    Not very good odds against three thousand monsters. It normally depended on the rank and type of monsters ¨C after all, even a single squad of ten soldiers would be able to exterminate three thousand rank F Minion-class monsters on their own, but from the grim and tense expressions written over every soldier''s face, I could tell that we were facing quite the dangerous enemy.

    Otherwise they wouldn''t be mobilizing an entire base of soldiers.

    "At least three rank B monsters¡­"

    "A thousand rank C monsters¡­"

    "The rest are mostly rank D monsters¡­"

    "With our current forces, we can''t fight against so many rank C monsters and three rank B monsters¡­"

    "If there were only three rank B monsters, maybe we can hold out against them, but¡­"

    "No way can we fight a thousand rank C monsters and two thousand rank D monsters with the forces we have on hand¡­"

    "We''ll have to do our best¡­"

    I caught snippers of dialogue from the heatedly arguing officers as they discussed numbers and disposition of the enemy. Having fought a rank B monster firsthand, I was aware of what a formidable opponent it was. I didn''t want to get smacked around to death by a Crastrate again. Hell, I hoped to never see another Crastate for the rest of my life.

    "Where are they coming from, Sarge?"

    "The north, I heard."

    "One big mass! You can see them stretch for almost a mile!"

    "Hah! Great! I''ll be able to increase my tally to a few hundred this time!"

    "I''ll probably survive longer than you!"

    "Hah! Wanna bet? I''ll probably last an hour more than you!"

    "Game on!"

    The officers weren''t the only ones talking. I could overhear the common rank and file soldiers chatting to each other, trying to ease themselves before the big fight. Even though they knew most of them wouldn''t survive this conflict, they were still trying to keep the atmosphere light-hearted, bantering and bragging to each other.

    What interested me wasn''t the details of their banter, however, but the intelligence I could gather. So the monsters were all coming from the north, and they were clumped up together in a single mass. That sounded pretty¡­

    ¡­good.

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    An idea forming in my head, I hurried toward the northern portion of the base. None of the soldiers were paying any attention to me. Why would they? They dismissed me as a civilian, and one of the sergeants even called out to me as I strode past him.

    "Hey, kid! The evacuation is that way! Hurry up! The transports are leaving!"

    "Sorry, sarge! I forgot something!"

    As he had no authority over me, the sergeant couldn''t order me to leave my stuff behind, and he shook his head with a sigh, relenting. I nodded my thanks and continued toward the northern section of the camp, where several towers stood proudly. Summoning Cygnus, I soared to the highest building and landed on its rooftop, getting a bird''s eye view of the approaching monsters.

    The soldiers were right. A massed horde of monsters clustered together in a single coherent formation, all marching forward toward a particular destination. I didn''t know if the fortress was their goal, but they were certainly headed in our direction.

    And after they took the military camp, they would most likely proceed onward in a straight line. Doing a 180, I saw the familiar silhouette of Jing Tian City in the distance.

    "Don''t tell me their destination is Jing Tian City?"

    Pushing up my glasses as I turned around to study the monsters, I noted that they were still some distance away. At their current speed, they would reach us in forty-five minutes, maybe forty.

    Good. More than enough time.

    "Scorpio."

    Summoning my Constellation spirit, I had him perch on the rooftop. Grinning, I jabbed a finger at the approaching horde of monsters.

    "Start casting Antares. We''re going to give them a nasty surprise."

    Scorpio nodded, and his stinger began gathering massive amounts of mana. Without any monsters to attack me at the moment, I could help Scorpio cast his spell undisturbed, and within fifteen minutes, it was done. Glancing at the immense amount of mana accumulated at the front of his stinger, I nodded in satisfaction.

    "All right, Scorpio! Fire off the Antares! Annihilate that monster horde!"

    Scorpio acknowledged with a cheerful nod, his mental acknowledgement pinging the back of my mind. Shifting around to gain an optimal angle, he pointed his stinger toward the center of the approaching horde of three thousand monsters and unleashed the red, purple and bluish-white ball of mana into a single tremendous torrent of destructive energy that seared through the military camp, leaving a scorched trail in the forest, before slamming into the middle of the monster army.

    The entire horde vanished in a gigantic explosion. A mushroom cloud billowed upward, expanding ravenously as it swallowed up shrieking and roaring monsters, incinerating them instantly. Stretching to about three miles wide in diameter, it mercilessly devoured every trace of the monster horde, wiping them out in a colossal conflagration that left a molten crater in the forest.

    The monster horde as well as the forest they were traversing simply ceased to exist.

    "HOLY FUCK!"

    "What the hell?!"

    "What''s going on!?"

    Below, the soldiers were making a ruckus when they saw the monster horde obliterated from a single spell. Granted, it was a spell of mass destruction that took an ungodly amount of time to cast, but its effects were sure and true. There was no trace of even the three rank B monsters that commanded the army of terrifying creatures bent on invading Jing Tian City and slaughtering it.

    "Did you see that?!"

    "Where did that spell come from?!"

    "Who cast it!?"

    Whoops. Time to go. I was about to turn and jump off the tower and into a waiting Cygnus when someone appeared right in front of me.

    "It was you, huh?"

    He was a military officer. Spotting the star epaulet on his uniform, I could guess that he was a general, the overall commander of the Northern Fortress. A second later, a few colonels and majors joined him, their weapons at the ready, but the general raised his hand and had them lower their weapons.

    "You are¡­that kid from Jing Tian Academy."

    I gulped. "Yes, sir."

    He sighed and scratched his head, turning to survey the massive destruction I had wrought, then turned to me.

    "Don''t get me wrong, kid. I''m grateful to you, but¡­next time you fire off a nuke from the premises of my base, could you at least let me know beforehand?"

    "¡­will do, sir." If there was a next time, that is. I sincerely hoped there wouldn''t. It certainly wasn''t fun to have a horde of thousands of high ranking monsters marching toward your city everyday. "Um¡­do you mind if I leave now?"

    "Hmm¡­"

    The general stared at me intently, stroking his chin. Then he grinned.

    "Before that, do you mind writing a report? I need to submit something to my bosses, after all." He grimaced. "I don''t know if they''re going to just accept that a kid not under my command just nuke an entire army of three thousand monsters into oblivion."

    "¡­right."

    "Colonel Tai, help the kid write his report."

    A colonel standing next to the general snapped off a salute.

    "Yes, sir!" he then turned toward me. "If you don''t mind following me to my office we can get started immediately."

    Left without much of a choice, I followed him.

 143 Chapter 143: Coincidental Encounter

    "What do you mean, they were wiped out before they reached the Northern Fortress?!"

    Frank Franklin slammed his fist onto his desk with such force that the entire right side disintegrated in a shower of splinters. The hooded mage who reported to him cowered, staring nervously at the ominous aura that now emanated from the supposed swordsman.

    "¡­it seemed that someone from the military cast a Strategic-scale spell and annihilated all three thousand monsters before they could reach the fortress."

    "How is that possible!? There is no one in the Northern Fortress capable of casting a Strategic-scale spell!"

    Frank was practically frothing at his mouth from fury as he bellowed. The hooded mage merely shook his head.

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    "I don''t know, my lord. I am merely reporting to you as things are. Our¡­contacts from inside the military should be able to provide some information soon."

    "Soon?" Frank repeated menacingly. "I want the intelligence right away! Tell them that if they don''t get back to me by tonight, I''ll rip off their heads myself."

    "Yes, sir." The hooded mage bowed and hastily left, relieved that he no longer had to bear the brunt of Frank''s anger.

    "Well, looks like this time the plan is a failure."

    Lounging on a couch in his father''s office, Fred commented dryly.

    "So much for ninety percent chance of success, huh?"

    "You shut up!" Frank snapped at his son, in no mood to hear his taunts. "How could this be? Even the most powerful mage at the Northern Fortress, General Jiang Jun, shouldn''t be capable of casting a Strategic-scale spell! There''s just no way¡­!"

    "Perhaps it wasn''t General Jiang who cast it?" Fred suggested. Frank stopped and glared at him threateningly.

    "Do you know something I don''t, Fred?"

    "Not at all, Father." Fred sat up and raised both his hands in surrender. "I''m just stating a possibility, that''s all."

    "Maybe I should put you in charge of the investigation." Frank knitted his hands together as he thought things over. "It''s better than leaving everything to those imbeciles."

    "As you wish, Father." Fred rose to his feet and did a short bow. "I''ll begin immediately."

    Frank watched his son leave his office, his brow still furrowed deeply. As soon as Fred vanished, he let out a snort.

    "Don''t think I don''t know what you''re planning, Son," he growled under his breath. "Be very careful. You''ll find that it won''t be easy for you to take my place."

    He let out a bitter smile.

    "After all, the Dark Church already has several replacements lined up the moment I fall¡­and they have no intention of considering you among them."

    *

    "EH!?"

    Both Alicia and Kureha gaped at Vincent Violet.

    "Really?! The three thousand monsters have already been wiped out?!"

    "Yes. I just received a report regarding the Northern Fortress. The horde of monsters were destroyed before the soldiers in the base could engage them in combat."

    "¡­how?" Kureha gasped. "It''s three thousand monsters!? What could have annihilated them so quickly?"

    "Apparently someone cast a Strategic-scale spell to obliterate them in one fell swoop," Vincent replied, his expression disbelieving. "But General Jiang shouldn''t have such capabilities. None of the soldiers under his command do."

    "Strategic-scale spell¡­" Alicia repeated, blinking. Then she brightened up as she exchanged a glance with Kureha, for whom the pieces were gradually falling in place. "Richard!"

    "That''s not surprising," Kureha agreed. "He literally nuked an entire mountain range into oblivion with his Strategic-scale spell."

    "Richard? You mean Richard Huang?" Vincent frowned in bewilderment. "Ah, yes¡­I seem to recall that he does indeed have a Strategic-scale spell, which he used to destroy those three rank B Crastrates. But what is he doing in the Northern Fortress?"

    "Uh¡­long story¡­" Alicia muttered. "And to be honest, I don''t know the details."

    "It''s my fault." Kureha raised her hand. "I hired him for a mission, and he got hurt. We ended up bringing him to the medical center in the northern military camp, and he has been resting there ever since."

    "Ever since? Ever since when?"

    "About a week ago," Kureha admitted. Vincent tilted his head to the side in confusion.

    "A week? The military personnel just let him stay in the camp for a week? Wouldn''t they normally send him straight to the hospital, with better medical facilities and healers? Why the hell would they keep him in their camp for a week?!"

    Both Alicia and Kureha looked at each other. It had never occurred to them there was something amiss about the situation.

    "Uh¡­for plot purposes?" Alicia asked. That''s my girl. She had gained the ability to break the fourth wall as well.

    Vincent shook his head in disbelief and sighed. "Maybe I''ll ask General Jiang about this¡­"

    As it turned out, it was an oversight, and the doctor didn''t bother to ask the military staff to move me because my injuries weren''t critical and all I needed was sleep. And they kind of forgot all about me because I was asleep the entire time and didn''t make a single sound. Well, that was how it was. Take it or leave it.

    *

    "Finally¡­"

    Sighing in relief, I trudged toward Jing Tian City. Behind me, the military tonner that had given me a ride reversed and went in a different direction, probably to get supplies from elsewhere. Probably food or something.

    It took a couple of hours to get the report done before they finally allowed me to return home. Good thing Dad was away on a mission, or he would have turned the city over and waged war on the underground organizations dwelling beneath our streets to find me. Okay, that was probably an exaggeration, but knowing Dad, that wasn''t beyond is capabilities.

    I also received an email from Troy, telling me of the Research Foundation Group, his brother''s links to it, and his decision to hunt the bastard down. Tyrant had been burning entire cities and massacring civilians for fun, which was why Troy took matters into his own hands and decided to put an end to his atrocities once and for all.

    However, the evil fucker was pretty thorough and cunning, leaving little to no clues behind. Now that Troy had gotten hold of his trail, no matter how intangible it was, he wasn''t going to let go. He was going to track Tyrant down, no matter what, and hopefully find him in one of the Research Foundation Group''s divisions.

    ¡­or something.

    I recalled the words from the late prisoner we captured (before he got roasted by the dragon). Apparently Kureha''s uncle, Frank Franklin, had created some weird Research Foundation Group to experiment on monsters or something. The words of the military doctor haunted me at the same time, reminding me that that horde of three thousand monsters were moving in a united formation toward a clear destination, all with a single purpose in mind. Almost as if they were being directed by someone.

    Could their unnatural movements be related to the Research Foundation Group?

    Gr¡­

    My stomach rumbled. I was hungry. Now that I thought about it, I hadn''t eaten anything in an entire week. I was starving, and too tired to cook. I had a craving for white, fragrant rice. Unable to endure it, I wandered into the nearest restaurant to grab some rice. At first, I wanted tofu, but because I was starving, I just went and ordered the first thing I saw on the menu, which was some chili chicken. Requesting for extra rice, I waited impatiently before attacking the dish ravenously once it arrived.

    "Oh¡­that was a great meal. Haven''t had such a good meal in a while."

    Patting my stomach once I was finished, I then paid for the food and wandered out of the restaurant. As I did so, I almost collided with someone on the way out.

    "Ah, sorry."

    He was a handsome fellow, probably about a few years older than me, with light-colored hair that reached stylishly to his shoulders. The kind of hairstyle that reminded me of Taiwanese idols from the early 2000s. Oh, wow¡­considering that this was the 30th century, that was about nine hundred years ago now.

    "No, it''s my fault."

    The guy apologized with a gentle smile. He glanced at the restaurant behind me. "Is the food there good?"

    "Yeah. It''s Szechuan style, so if you can''t handle spicy food like me, make sure you ask for mild." I grimaced and massaged my stomach. "I made a mistake and even mild is a little much for me. Good thing they provided rice to go with it."

    "Oh, that''s cool." The guy glanced at the restaurant and nodded. "Any dish you would recommend?"

    "Hmm¡­I particularly love the tofu. But they recommended me the chili chicken today. Maybe you should give that a try!"

    "Sounds like a good idea. I''ll keep that in mind. Thank you."

    The handsome young man nodded, and then entered the shop. Turning away, I continued home. I was spent from casting Antares, writing a report, and that hearty meal from earlier made me feel sleepy. I just wanted to crawl into bed or laze around doing nothing (read: watch anime).

    Behind me, Fred Franklin proceeded to a table and raised his hand to call a waiter over to make his order. After he did so, he leaned back in his chair with a smile.

    "Jing Tian Academy, huh?" he mused to himself, remembering my uniform. "According to our spies, it was a Jing Tian Academy student who cast the Strategic-scale spell in the Northern Fortress. Maybe I should check it out tomorrow. It''s a good place to start as any."

    He then chuckled to himself as he glanced toward the entrance, where he nearly collided with me earlier.

    "It''ll be funny if that boy from earlier was the caster¡­"

    Oh, he had no idea how crazily spot on the remark that he had intended as a joke was. He had absolutely no idea.

 144 Chapter 144: Underground Spring

    The next day, when I arrived at school, I was mobbed by Alicia.

    "Richard! You''re finally back! Are you all right?!"

    "Yeah." I managed to hold her off as she barreled into me. Everyone was staring at us, which made me feel awkward. I wasn''t used to public displays of affection. "What''s up?"

    "You''ve been gone for a week! You had me worried!" she clung to me with a cute sulk. "You should have told me!"

    "¡­I would have, if I could¡­"

    I was telling the truth. After all, I had spent the entire week in bed, totally unconscious. Unless I gained the skill to call or email people while I was unconscious, there was no way I could communicate in such a state.

    "Sorry for making you worried, though."

    I placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder and bowed apologetically. Alicia shook her head.

    "No, it''s okay. I heard from Kureha. You did a great job."

    "You know Kureha?"

    I was astonished. At this point, I didn''t know that Kureha and Alicia were friends. She didn''t mention it. Well, I was aware that Alicia had all sort of connections with all the high-ranking or upper class daughters ¨C she was friends with Cecilia, after all ¨C but Kureha didn''t really behave like an upper class noble, so it never occurred to me that she had connections here.

    "Yeah, we''ve been friends for a few years." Alicia nodded. "She told me that you and Troy helped her out¡­"

    Trailing off, she closed her eyes briefly. I stared at her, perplexed, only to understand why she was so emotional when she forced out the next sentence.

    "¡­with the case regarding her sister."

    "¡­yeah."

    Scratching my head awkwardly, I nodded. We weren''t able to save her, but we at least avenged her. Partially, anyway. The main perpetuator who masterminded Kurenai''s death was still at large, or at least that was what I last heard before my week-long coma.

    I should contact Kureha and get up to speed¡­except that I didn''t have Kureha''s number or email. Oh¡­this was bad.

    Well¡­honestly, I wasn''t some hero who went around saving everyone. I couldn''t afford to run to the rescue of every single human in the Federation, not when I had my own affairs to worry about. If Kureha didn''t contact me or ask me for help, I wasn''t going to desperately track her down and offer my assistance. I had better things to do with my time.

    Even so, I was curious as to whether Kureha would eventually track down her uncle and kill that bastard. But there was no way Alicia would know about that, right?

    "Oh, and there''s one more thing¡­"

    Alicia stared at me somewhat sternly.

    "Were you at the Northern Fortress yesterday?"

    "How do you know about that?" I asked, taken aback. Since I was out of commission and unable to contact her, she had no way of knowing where I had been this entire week. Not unless Kureha told her, which was a distinct possibility, given that they evidently met after I was out cold. You know how it is with girls and gossip.

    "That''s not important." Alicia took my question as affirmation, and she nodded thoughtfully. "So it really was you¡­"

    "What do you mean?"

    "Nothing." Alicia giggled as she spun away. I followed her as we headed toward the main campus building. "Just that you like¡­blowing things up on a large scale, as usual!"

    Somehow I had a feeling she was referring to my nuke spell that annihilated three thousand monsters in one shot.

    Eventually, we went our separate ways and attended our individual classes. I headed to Teacher Fielding''s combat magic class, where Harvey was waiting for me.

    "Senior Richard! It''s been a while! Were you on a mission?"

    "Yeah, you can say that." As my unconsciousness was caused by my mana depletion upon accomplishing my mission and slaying a dragon, it was the truth. Speaking of which, I had only just realized that I had scored a lot of prestige points and earned a bit of fortune from nuking the two dragons. That was in the mission log, along with my obliteration of the three thousand monsters. No wonder Alicia knew about that.

    Apparently, the whole school would know about it soon enough, but for now I was happy to be able to maintain a low profile. Or at least that was what I believed until Teacher Fielding waved me over after the class ended.

    "Richard. A minute, if you will."

    I nodded and approached him without any hesitation. Harvey followed me, only for Teacher Fielding to raise any eyebrow.

    "I asked for Richard only, not you, Harvey."

    "Aw¡­"

    Honestly, I didn''t feel sorry for Harvey, but it was always useful to have a fan hanging onto my every word, so I decided to play nice.

    "I''ll tell you about it later, so you can go ahead. I''ll see you in the club room."

    As I expected, Harvey brightened up. He nodded and began skipping happily in the direction of the Black Rose club room.

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    He was just too easy.

    "What is it, Teacher Fielding?" I asked, turning back to my homeroom teacher. He studied me intently, making me feel as if I was some specimen under a microscope. Dude, this wasn''t the biology class. Quit looking at me like that.

    Just when I thought I was wasting my time and Teacher Fielding wasn''t going to answer, he finally spoke up.

    "You raised quite the furor when you nuked the horde of three thousand monsters yesterday."

    "Hmm? Yeah, I suppose I did." not that I cared what other people said about me. Especially since I could easily nuke them into oblivion with a single spell. Of course, I wasn''t that nasty. My goal was to be a hero like my dad, and I wasn''t going to save anyone by nuking them just because they pissed me off. No matter how tempting it might be.

    Teacher Fielding bought my fake modesty, most likely because my acting skills were so good. Then again, nuking a horde of monsters wasn''t something to be proud of. Anyone could do that, as long as they were the protagonist of a badly written web novel. Hell, the last one I read had the protagonist possessing the ability to conquer a nation by himself. I was nothing compared to these godlike protagonists. Just look at the comments. Readers were still calling me "trash MC" or "spineless" or "pathetic" or weak. At least one guy accused me of being a pushover.

    Maybe I should nuke the comments section. Admittedly that was a lot easier than nuking a horde of monsters.

    Teacher Fielding paid no attention to my internal rambling¡­well, mostly because he couldn''t read my mind. Instead, he smiled.

    "After some discussion, Director Violet and the staff have decided to select you for this year''s Holy Spring training."

    "¡­Holy Spring training?"

    I stared at Teacher Fielding with a raised eyebrow. What in holy hell was a Holy Spring?! Don''t just spring this random nonsense on me all of a sudden!

    "That''s right. We''ve decided that you''re the student with the most potential. Even Troy can''t nuke an entire army on his own." He consulted his smartphone, which projected a holographic screen. "Your achievements with the two dragons and three thousand monsters has elevated your rank to fourth in school. And given how fast you''ve climbed the ranks, and your consistent extermination of these monsters, the decision to send you was unequivocal among the board."

    "No, no, no¡­in the first place, what the hell is this Holy Spring?!"

    Utterly confused, I was raising my hands and trying to bring Teacher Fielding to the main point. I couldn''t care less about the politics among the school board. Never mind the readers, who would definitely scream "FILLER!!!!!" if I ever showed a scene about them, I would probably doze off after listening to their opening sentences.

    "Oh, right. You''ve never heard of the Holy Spring under Jing Tian City?"

    "If I did, would I be asking you?" I pointed out reasonably, doing my best to suppress my irritation and failing spectacularly. Teacher Fielding nodded, conceding the point. He began surfing through his holographic screen before magnifying a picture of an underground pool of water.

    "As you can see, it''s an underground Holy Spring. This is one of Jing Tian City''s famous spots of attraction, and also its most highly guarded resource. It''s a pool of water that has gathered under our city over millennia, absorbing mana. Every year, we send a student to train inside the Holy Spring, for him or her to absorb the mana from the saturated waters. It has tremendous benefits for young mages such as yourself. Not only will it improve your cultivation, it will also boost your own mana reserves considerably."

    "¡­cultivation? You''re in the wrong genre, sir." I shook my head. "And this sounds suspiciously familiar. Are you training me to be a Versatile Mage or something?"

    "Uh, what?" Teacher Fielding gave me a strange look. "You''re already pretty versatile."

    "No, that''s not what I mean¡­never mind." I sighed and shook my head. "Can I pass?"

    "I would rather you don''t." Teacher Fielding stared at me sternly. "To be selected to train in the Holy Spring is a huge honor. Plus, why wouldn''t you want to train there? There are lots of benefits, and isn''t it your goal to become stronger?"

    Certainly, that was my goal, but this whole thing sounded like a pain, and frankly, I wasn''t convinced that the Holy Spring was as miraculous as Teacher Fielding made it out to be. Bloody hell, since when do such convenient devices exist in reality? A Holy Spring that boosted one''s cultivation in the magic way (why does that sound so¡­Taoist?)? Such a good thing couldn''t possibly exist, or everyone would be running to it.

    Well, it explained why it was one of Jing Tian Academy''s most highly guarded resource. Probably that was also the reason why it was kept as a secret. If everyone knew about it, they would do anything within their power to grab that resource. Hell, it made no sense that they were giving it to a mere student from Jing Tian Academy every year. Why weren''t the adults using it, if it was as good as Teacher Fielding claimed it was?

    Something didn''t add up.

    Nonetheless, it didn''t hurt to try, so I sighed and nodded.

    "All right. So¡­what do I do?"

    "Now that''s the spirit." Teacher Fielding beamed. "I''ll send you the details through email, but for now, get ready to go underground in a few days'' time." He glanced at his phone. "I would say about Friday. Pack some clothing and necessities. You''ll probably be spending quite a few days cultivating underground."

    "Can you stop using that word?" I snapped, crossed. Not only was it the wrong genre, that word brought about dreadful memories associated with awful writing, flat characters, insufferable harems, Mary Sue protagonists who indulged in **** and murder while hypocritically condemning antagonists for doing the same, and ridiculous villains that traumatized me ever since I first treaded the path of xianxia novels.

    I honestly didn''t want to spend forty millennia cultivating, that was for sure.

    "What word?" Teacher Fielding had no idea what I was talking about. And good thing too. I shuddered to think how traumatized he would be once he got exposed to these trashy xianxia novels about cultivation and whatnot. Sighing, I shook my head.

    "I understand. I''ll get ready on Friday."

    "Good. I''ll send you the details through email." Teacher Fielding grinned encouragingly, but I only felt more discouraged. Something was just not right about this.

    Pushing those ominous feelings away, I departed the classroom and headed toward the Black Rose club rooms.

 145 Chapter 145: Assassination Attemp

    "Whoops¡­it has already gotten this late, huh?"

    I was so engrossed in my training that I hadn''t realized that it was already past evening, and that the sun had set long ago. I vaguely remembered Harvey asking me if I wanted to return home together, but I told him to go ahead because I wanted to continue practicing and honing my summoning spells. Thankfully, he agreed in his usual cheerful manner, and mercifully left me alone.

    Not that I hated his company. It was better than being alone. Perhaps I should have taken him up on his offer, after all. It felt a little lonely walking home by myself¡­then again, I would have to take a bus most of the way, so we would have gone our separate ways after a few minutes of walking from the school gate anyway.

    After putting away the equipment and locking up the training room, I proceeded to the school gate. At this hour, the campus was completely deserted. All the students and most of the staff had already gone home, and I was but a solitary figure traversing the courtyard. The grass and trees were largely cast in shadow, and the leaves rustled as a cool evening breeze blew through them. I shuddered involuntarily.

    "¡­hmm?"

    For some reason, I felt a chill, but I was unable to pinpoint what was causing it. Nonetheless, I was long used to this sort of thing, having been the target of abductions from the enemies my dad inadvertently made over the course of his career.

    In other words, I should just do the usual tactic of shrugging off my pursuers¡­except that I had a strange premonition that this time was different.

    These weren''t professional mages trying to kidnap me. The prickle at the back of my neck told me it was something more ominous.

    "¡­no, not monsters."

    It was impossible for monsters to be within the safe territory of a city, not unless someone let them through a barrier. But the mages in charge of Jing Tian City would locate such monsters and flush them out in short order. Whatever the case, the feeling felt¡­human. And from experience, I knew humans could be just as monstrous as beasts.

    Just look at Troy''s brother, for example. He was nothing short of a monster.

    Stepping through the school gates, I hastened my pace and strode toward the bus stop. At this hour, the bus frequency had slowed down somewhat, which would be slightly detrimental to my escape plans. I had to time it properly. If I missed my bus, I would be left exposed for about twenty minutes to half an hour.

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    And depending on the caliber of my assailants, that might be more than enough time to overpower me. And this time, being abducted to blackmail Dad would be the least of my worries. These people¡­I intuitively sensed that they were different from the usual kidnappers somehow.

    I didn''t have to wait for long.

    "!!!"

    Three dark shadows dropped down from the nearby buildings, diving straight at me. I managed to jump a few meters back, avoiding a lethal strike from the person in the middle. A silver flash sliced through the air in front of me, and I could see several strands of hair drifting away as the blade cut through my fringe.

    "Ugh¡­"

    As I backed away, I took a good look at the three of them. They were dressed entirely in black, their features entirely concealed by hoods and masks. Sort of like ninjas, particularly with such ridiculous getups. That said, I did appreciate the view. I could tell that all three were women, judging from how their tight bodysuits clung to and emphasized their feminine curves and breasts.

    However, it didn''t matter. They were still dangerous, and I wasn''t those kind of guys who looked down on the fairer sex. I would be the first to admit that a girl could kick my ass.

    Just look at Cecilia or Kureha, for example. Even Alicia would give me a hard time, and I couldn''t afford to hold back against someone of her skill.

    "!!"

    The other two assassins came from the sides, flanking me. Their daggers streaked toward me in a deadly arc, aiming right for my throat and chest.

    "Gemini!"

    I managed to summon my twin swords in time and deflected both assassin weapons. Retreating while parrying their slashes and thrusts, I tried to assess what was going on.

    Well, one thing was for sure. These girls certainly weren''t the typical assailants. I was used to people trying to abduct me without taking my life that I didn''t expect assassins to kill me.

    And these three were seriously trying to kill me.

    "Who are you?! Why are you trying to kill me?" I demanded. I honestly didn''t recall pissing off any young master or mistress from some big family or whatever and earning their ire to the point where they would hire assassins to eliminate someone as insignificant as me.

    No, seriously¡­why would anyone waste so much money and invest so much resources into hiring assassins, risking being arrested for premediated murder at the same time, just to "teach me my place" or because I was "trash" or some equally preposterous reason? If I was really that insignificant and "trash" then why would they ever deem it necessary to waste all these resources, money and time into assassinating me?

    Typically, none of the assassins responded. They were good. If they were amateurs, they would spouting all sort of bullshit and giving themselves away unnecessarily, but right now they were totally focused on the job. Not that I ever expected them to. Assassins were supposed to keep their clients'' identity a secret. Professional code of conduct and all that.

    Kind of reminded me of some other so-called assassin who just stood around and did nothing while her contracted spirit did all the fighting, and talked endlessly like a twelve-year-old girl instead of doing her job properly. These professional assassins were worlds apart from her in terms of attitude, even if they lacked her power.

    Silently they struck as one, their daggers and knives flashing toward me again. Their attacks were synchronized perfectly, the three of them moving coherently. They covered each other when I tried to counterattack, one of them parrying Castor, the other deflecting Pollux and the third trying to land a killing blow.

    "Kuh!"

    Flipping backward and avoiding a fatal strike to my throat, I desperately kicked out. The girl in the center managed to twist her body to the side, avoiding my foot, and her fellow assassins intruded with ripostes of their own, forcing me to the defensive.

    "Damn it!"

    I had to get to a distance, where I would have more of an advantage. The three of them attacking as one unit was too tough for me to handle on my own. They covered each other''s weaknesses, and attacked and defended flawlessly. They were making use of their numerical superiority to slowly overwhelm me.

    Clang!

    Parrying another strike from a dagger, I managed to twist around before I could get my carotid artery severed by a knife. Spinning to the side, I kicked out preemptively to halt another lethal attack before it landed, and then withdraw to evade another slash.

    These assassins were good. They were efficiently aiming for my vital spots, and if I allowed just one to hit, I would die immediately. Not only that, I caught a whiff from one of their blades. The girl on my left, the one with emerald eyes ¨C both her blades were coated with poison.

    Of the three, she was the most dangerous.

    "!!!"

    The one in the middle, on the other hand, was the most skilled. No wonder she served as the vanguard. She was the fastest, and given how smooth and impeccable her attacks were, probably the most experienced. It was her dagger that almost sliced within a millimeter of my throat. And her knife almost ended up in my chest if I didn''t whirl away. Deflecting her dagger with Castor, I had to use Pollux to parry the poisoned dagger from the assassin on the left before withdrawing before she could stab me with her knife.

    At the same time, the assassin from the right thrust her short sword at me. Of the three, she had the longest reach, since she possessed the biggest weapon.

    "Huff¡­"

    Perspiration dripped down my face. Outwardly, I wasn''t injured at all, but inwardly I was mentally shaken. The three assassins were superb. As I said, one wrong move and I would die. The reason I was still unscathed wasn''t because they were bad, but simply because I couldn''t afford to allow them to land a hit.

    Once they stabbed me, it would all be over.

    Fortunately, they weren''t the only ones with teammates.

    "Leo! Canis Major!"

    "?!"

    The three assassins jumped back when my two Constellation spirits appeared. Leo swiped at the assassin on the left with his claws, forcing her to evade, while the assassin on the right had to flee from Canis Major''s jaws. The assassin in the middle ignored the plight of her comrades and continued to attack me, but I blocked her dagger and knife with both Castor and Pollux.

    Then I unleashed twin waves of black and white mana at pointblank range. The assassin''s eyes widened, but she was too seasoned a veteran to fall for my trap. She quickly leaped away, blocking my attack with her dagger and knife before vanishing in an explosion. A few seconds later, she landed and skidded a few meters away, her black tight bodysuit smoldering.

    "Canis Major! Sirius attack! Leo! Regulus!"

    While keeping my eyes focused on my opponent, I sent out orders to my Constellation spirits, both of whom obeyed. Canis Major''s jaws yawned and a torrent of destructive mana blasted out and struck the assassin with the short sword, knocking her off her feet despite her attempts to parry the strike, and sending her crashing onto the ground with a grunt. To the side, the assassin with poisoned weapons was rendered unconscious as the full force of the golden, colossal beam collided with her before she could get away in time.

    The central assassin narrowed her eyes, but determinedly surged forward without hesitation. She knew that as long as she eliminated me, my Constellation spirits would naturally disappear along with my demise.

    Smart move.

    I threw both Castor and Pollux at her, the twin swords curving around in an elegant arc before converging on her position. The assassin continued running, and then she flipped herself up and over my twin swords, allowing both of them to pass below her. In fact, she landed on them just as they converged, and then launched from them to lunge at me.

    The assassin with the short sword rolled to her feet, and managed to evade Canis Major''s attempts to pounce on her, and dove at me. The two assassins dashed forward, even as my Constellation spirits slowly turned around. They wouldn''t be able to make it in time before the two girls reached me.

    I didn''t need them to.

    Lyra appeared in my hand, and I unleashed hundreds of near invisible garrote wires across the space in front of me.

    "!!!"

    The more experienced assassin instinctively realized the danger and she braked abruptly, then jumped back to avoid the wires. Her comrade with the short sword, however, failed to notice the trap and she ran headlong into the wires.

    I mercilessly sliced her apart with Lyra''s wires, rendering her body into several bloody chunks of meat. I showed no trace of hesitation. These bastards tried to kill me. Women or not, I had no intention of showing them mercy. What? You think I would spare their lives because they were female, and because I somehow showed them mercy, they would fall for me and join my harem? Only delusional writers who wanted to indulge in wish fulfilment would resort to such stupid clich¨¦s. In reality, it was kill or be killed. If they tried to kill me, why should I show them mercy?

    Realizing that she was the sole survivor (well, technically the assassin with poison was still alive, but she was currently incapacitated and unable to fight), the experienced assassin decided to abort her mission. Not that I was going to let her. Even as she turned to run, I was already transforming Lyra into a bow and aiming a newly summoned Vega at her.

    "¡­"

    The assassin glanced back at me, realizing that she wasn''t going to be able to avoid an arrow traveling at hypersonic speeds. Thrusting her hand into a pocket in her tight bodysuit, she grabbed something and threw it down.

    Boom!

    A smoke bomb! The assassin covered her escape and threw off my aim by obscuring herself entirely in smoke. I didn''t care and released Vega as soon as I finished casting the spell. In exchange for the hypervelocity speed of the arrow that would make it difficult for my opponents to dodge, as well as the immense power it possessed, the casting duration took quite a while. But most of the times, it was worth it.

    The entire smoke was obliterated in a second. A golden conflagration erupted in the distance before fading away. I watched grimly as the smoke and sparks dissipated, revealing nothing but devastation atop the building where I last saw the assassin.

    "¡­she got away, huh?"

    Shaking my head, I turned toward the unconscious assassin, who had been knocked out by Leo''s Regulus. Leo and Canis Major were prowling nearby, watching over her vigilantly and ensuring she stayed down.

    "Now¡­what should I do?"

    It would be distasteful to kill someone who was no longer able to fight back. If she was still trying to kill me, I would kill her without hesitation, but when incapacitated, I had no real reason to take her life. Moreover, she was probably more useful to me alive than dead.

    Remembering Dad''s interrogation methods, I slowly approached her. I was going to get some answers out of her, even if I had to cut off her fingers one by one to attain them.

    "Would you mind entrusting that assassin to us, Richard?"

    I spun around, taken aback by the familiar voice. Feng Hai and a group of mercenaries had finally arrived. Behind them, a helicopter was hovering silently, which explained why I didn''t hear them coming. Some sort of advanced technology or magic enchantment that completely dampened and concealed the noise of the aerial transport.

    "Instructor Feng."

    "Sorry for being late. We rushed over immediately when we heard that a student was being attacked just outside the academy." He glanced at the surrounding buildings. Someone must have contacted the authorities when they saw and heard the commotion. "But clearly, by the time we arrived, you already have the matter well in hand."

    "I was lucky."

    "Luck has nothing to do with it." Feng Hai shook his head, impressed. "You never fail to amaze me, kid." He gestured to his subordinates, who hurried forward to take the female assassin into captivity. His expression hardened as he glared at her. "Don''t worry. Whoever ordered this assassination on you, I''ll make sure to find them and destroy them. Nobody attacks a student of Jing Tian Academy and gets away with it."

    "We''ll squeeze whatever answers we can out of her," one of the subordinates who was carrying the unconscious assassin said.

    "That we will." Feng Hai nodded grimly and then turned to me. "For now, at least allow us to escort you home."

    *

    Some distance away, the solely remaining assassin was limping away. Her entire right side was gone, a bloody ragged hole torn through her body. Her arm had disintegrated, along with a good portion of her shoulder, and even a small chunk of her torso. If it wasn''t for her transhuman physiology, she would have died from that glancing hit from Vega.

    "What terrifying power," she whispered to herself, perspiration dripping down her torn and burnt mask. "That boy is a monster."

    Gritting her teeth, she forced herself to keep moving. An injury of this magnitude was nothing to her. As long as she could return to the base, she could receive treatment. A sufficiently advanced healing spell was enough to fully restore her right arm and ravaged body.

    However, that wasn''t what concerned her right now. Shaking her head, she sighed in frustration and cursed under her breath.

    "Mr. Franklin, it''s not going to be easy to eliminate the target this time¡­"

 146 Chapter 146: Getting Answers

    The assassin woke up, only to find herself completely restrained to a chair. The chains binding her had enchanted runes engraved into them, which enhanced their durability and strength. Even if she cast physical reinforcement, she wouldn''t be able to break them.

    Glancing at her surroundings, she saw that she was in a well-lit room, with some furniture. It wasn''t a prison cell, but more of a comfortable accommodation. If she wasn''t tied up, that is.

    So I''ve been captured, huh? She thought to herself. What a disgrace for an assassin of her caliber. She had no choice, then. Before her captors interrogated her and forced information out of her, she had to execute herself.

    She explored the inside of her mouth, only to find it empty.

    "If you''re looking for that cyanide potassium capsule inside your mouth, we''ve already taken it." a voice caused her to turn her head around. Even though she had scanned the room earlier, like any good assassin would, she didn''t spot anybody. Now she caught sight of the Hurricane Blade, Feng Hai, sitting on a chair a few meters from her. He raised one of her daggers and twirled it. "We also disarmed you. You have quite the collection of poisoned weapons."

    The assassin remained silent, glaring at him defiantly. Feng Hai sighed.

    "Don''t worry. We have no intention of killing you." he watched as she got ready to bite her tongue, and shook his head. "I wouldn''t do that if I were you. The enchantments on your restraints will keep you alive. They are a mini boundary field, the sort that students use in school arenas these days. We can always heal you after you inflict injuries upon yourself. There''s no need for unnecessary pain, right?"

    "It doesn''t matter. My comrades will find me and ensure that I''m dead."

    The assassin''s voice was cold and confident.

    "Will they, now? I''ll just let you know. You''re no longer in Jing Tian City." Feng Hai spread his hands. "You''re in the base of the Silver Wolves, the most secure location in the Federation, if I may say so myself. Any assassin who attempts to infiltrate my base will be captured as well."

    "It doesn''t matter," the assassin replied flatly. "You can bring me all the way to the ends of the world, and they will still find me and hunt me down."

    "Well¡­about that¡­" Feng Hai smiled broadly. "That''s where we come in. I would like to offer you a deal. You see, I know who you are. It''s a waste to kill someone of your caliber. We''ll protect you, and in exchange, I want you to work for us. We could really use your skills."

    The assassin stared at him blankly. Feng Hai shrugged before continuing.

    "There really is no point in being loyal to an organization that cuts off its members the moment they fail or get captured. It''s a complete waste of lives and resources. Failure is what allows us to grow stronger, after all. Moreover, they don''t care about you, so why should you care about them?"

    He hit his chest with a fist.

    "But here, we are different. We''re all comrades. A family. We''ll watch out for each other. You''re worried about the assassins from your guild coming after you? We''ll watch your back ad protect you from them. In return, you protect us from blades from the shadows. After all, you''re the one who''s most knowledgeable about how assassins operate, their modus operandi, and fighting styles."

    "That''s a really tempting offer you''re making," the assassins said with a snort. "But how can you be so sure I won''t sell you out?"

    "Like I said, I know who you are." Feng Hai''s grin widened. "I know your personality. You''re not the kind who would backstab others. Well¡­maybe you do stab people in the back, but you know what I mean. You''re pretty loyal to an organization that''s so ready to dispose of you the moment you slipped up. And guess what? You''ve slipped up. You can betray my Silver Wolves, but you think the assassin guild will care? They didn''t order you to assassinate us. Your assassination target got away and even defeated you. You think they''ll forgive a failure of that magnitude?" he shook his head. "Just as I know who you are, I also know what kind of organization the assassin guild is."

    "¡­"

    The assassin watched him silently, her expression unreadable under the shadow of her hood. She realized that the Silver Wolves had not touched her hood or cloak at all, despite searching her for weapons. They appeared to respect her privacy. Even so, Feng Hai still claimed to know who she was.

    "Don''t worry¡­" Feng Hai spoke her name out loud, and she froze. He smiled, rose from his chair, and headed for the exit. "I''ll give you some time to consider. I hope you''ll come to a decision when I return."

    The assassin watched him leave the room, the door shutting and leaving her in total silence. Not darkness, though. They had kindly left the lights on for her.

    *

    Before I knew it, it was Friday, and I ended up being escorted by Teacher Fielding.

    "Where are we going?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer. My homeroom teacher gave me a stare.

    "The underground Holy Spring, of course."

    "Okay, but¡­do we really need such an escort to get there?"

    There was a convoy of armored vehicles right in front of us, for some reason. Men in suits and sunglasses were milling around, surveying the area outside the school and scaring the students. Some were speaking to their com beads and communicating.

    "It''s the Holy Spring. Of course this level of security is a given."

    "¡­if you say so¡­"

    Teacher Fielding had a point. If this was Jing Tian City''s most closely guarded resource, of course they would dispatch a large contingent of guards to ensure nobody breaks into the underground Holy Spring.

    But what puzzled me was that they should be guarding the entrance or the place where the Holy Spring was located, not wasting their time and resources escorting me. I wasn''t some VIP or whatever, and I didn''t need protection.

    "Oh, they are not protecting you." As if he read my mind, Teacher Fielding turned to grin at me. "They are protecting everyone else from you."

    "¡­the fuck?"

    Teacher Fielding ignored my expletive. "You need more self-awareness, Richard. You do realize that you''re pretty much a walking nuke?"

    All because I chose to create spells of mass destruction. Brilliant. Well, I had no regrets.

    Teacher Fielding handed me off to one of the guys in charge, another guy in a suit with a blocky head and a crew cut. He nodded at me, and silently gestured for me to climb into the largest car in the middle. The interior of the car itself wasn''t very comfortable, and looked as what I expected a military vehicle to be. At least we didn''t get iron seats. I plopped down on the leather couch that lined up against one side of the vehicle, facing the opposite couch, and then obediently buckled my seatbelt. I had half-expected them to put restraints on me, but they didn''t. However, they had at least ten men in suits seated with me, all of them holding weapons. They regarded me silently, their expressions hidden beneath their shades.

    "Seriously, are you guys wearing sunglasses inside a car?" I rolled my eyes. As expected, they didn''t reply. These guys were cold. Or the studio needed an excuse to save on voice actors.

    The car moved on in silence, with the only noise being the engine and the tires grinding against the road. I probably dozed off from boredom, because the next thing I knew, the armored vehicle pulled up beside a huge complex.

    It wasn''t a very tall building, probably because most of the complex was underground, but there was still quite the majestic gate that served as the entrance. The men in suits filed out and formed two rows, as if afraid I would run off somewhere. I tried not to roll my eyes as I disembarked and walked along the path they constructed for me.

    The blocky head guy stood right next to the gate and gestured for me to join him.

    "You''ve been granted the privilege of training next to the Holy Spring for a week," he informed me coolly as he swiped his card. The huge gate rumbled open, revealing more guards inside the complex. "It should help you boost your cultivation¡­"

    "Please, can we stop using that word? It''s not as if I''m going to become a versatile mage or something."

    "Fine. It will help enhance your magic. You''re a summoner, if I recall, and summoning spells consume a lot of mana, as well as require a long casting time. If you train properly, you will be able to increase your mana reserves and cut down your casting time."

    "I''ll do my best." I paused and frowned. "But if this Holy Spring is so miraculous, why use it for students like me? I don''t mean to sound ungrateful, but wouldn''t this benefit you adults more? Like Instructor Feng Hai¡­"

    "Hurricane Blade Feng Hai has used this Holy Spring to train before." The blockhead regarded me grimly. "And you are aware of his reputation, I presume. Perhaps you will become another Hurricane Blade Feng Hai. Or you will fall in the wayside of anonymous mages¡­no, forgive my rudeness. There''s no way you''ll be anonymous after what you''ve achieved."

    He must be referring to my spells of mass destruction.

    "Nonetheless, this might allow you to reach greater heights." The blockhead paused. "And to answer your question, the Holy Spring is most effective on young people between the ages 16 to 20. Once you''re over that age, it''s no longer as effective. Nonetheless, it''s still a valuable resource that contains a lot of natural mana, and many people covet it, regardless of how old they are. It can be used for so many other things, such as to power Strategic-scale spells¡­in fact, Jing Tian City''s barrier is powered by this Holy Spring."

    I nodded slowly. That made sense. A barrier of such a massive scale required a tremendous mana supply. This Holy Spring certainly sounded like it could provide an endless supply of natural mana to maintain such a massive barrier over the city.

    "The Jing Tian City council also ruled that the future of the city lies in the youth. That''s why they set it aside for you youngsters¡­in hopes that you will return the favor and contribute back to the city, or to the Federation in general. Just like Hurricane Blade Feng Hai." For the first time, blockhead smiled. "And since you''ve already contributed so much to the city, I guess they''re repaying the favor. So you can think of this as a reward."

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    "Uh, thanks, I guess?"

    I wasn''t sure how I was supposed to feel about this. I wasn''t even sure I did anything to contribute to the city. When did I ever save Jing Tian City? All I did was indulge in my own activities. Well, for now, I guess gratitude was obvious. Regardless of the reasons, I wasn''t the type to look a gift horse in the mouth. I could really use something that could improve my mana reserves, and as long as it wasn''t something as suspicious as steroids or drugs that had terrible side effects such as shortening my lifespan or whatever, I was all for it. Plus, as blockhead mentioned, one of the weaknesses of summoning magic was its long casting time. If there was anything I could do to shorten it, I would be more than happy to do so.

    "Of course, there''s another reason. The Jing Tian City Council is placing their hopes on you." blockhead glanced at me, his eyes still hidden behind his sunglasses. "You''ve been selected as one of the representatives of Jing Tian Magic Academy. They hope to boost your power to the point where you can compete with the top elite young mages in the Federation. Hopefully, with you in the team, Jing Tian Academy will be able to raise their rank and achieve a respectable position in the national tournament this year."

    "¡­I''ll do my best." I wasn''t stupid enough to make promises I couldn''t keep. I was under no illusions that this Holy Spring will suddenly turn me invincible. Nothing so convenient existed in reality.

    "There''s another thing you might want to take note of before training by the Holy Spring. If you''re lucky, you might receive a gift."

    "A¡­gift?" I stopped and stared at blockhead. At this point, we were walking through the complex and toward a highly guarded checkpoint at the back of the lobby. The huge man nodded.

    "Some people gain an attribute. It can be any kind of attribute¡­increased physical strength, a new type of magic, affinity to an element, resistance to an element, rapid regenerative powers, immunity to certain types of spells¡­anything. It all depends on fate. Feng Hai, for example, gained the Blade Body, which allows him to convert all of his wind magic to swords."

    "Cool."

    Knowing my luck, I probably wouldn''t get anything. Or I would get something useless. I wasn''t being pessimistic, just realistic. What, you think I was going to awake a fourth element or something? I already had summoning magic, I wasn''t going to suddenly have fire, lightning and shadow magic.

    We went through the checkpoint, and after a series of extensive checks to make sure I didn''t bring anything illegal (though I didn''t know what counted as "illegal" ¨C they allowed me to bring Gan Jiang and Mo Ye for some reason), they allowed me toward the elevator at the back.

    "This elevator will bring us to the Holy Spring," blockhead explained as he stopped by the elevator.

    "Okay." The elevator chimed, and the doors slid open. Taking a deep breath, I stepped through the doors. Blockhead followed me, punched in some code, and the elevator doors slammed shut. We then descended in silence for the next few minutes.

    There was a soft jerk, and the elevator came to a stop. The doors slid open to reveal a colossal chamber, a subterranean space that had been occupied and converted by humans. It was clearly underground, yet the walls, floor and ceiling was lined with metal.

    There was a lot more security personnel moving about this area than upstairs, all of them patrolling the space and looking out for intruders. When they saw blockhead with me, they relaxed a little and allowed us to pass by. As we traversed the enormous space, I saw that not all of them were guards. There were some monitoring holographic screens with readings and stuff, administrative staff who were penciling documents, and technicians who were handling the maintenance of equipment. There were even a few cleaning staff who were moping the floor or scrubbing the walls.

    "We''re here."

    Blockhead stopped in front of a gigantic circular blast door made from titanium. At first glance, it looked like a vault, the kind in banks where they store all the money. Blockhead went forward and punched a code in the pad, scanned his ID card, and then received a biometric scan where a red laser light shone through his retina, before the gigantic door began to grate open. As the mechanisms pulled the door open, it revealed a much larger underground chamber within.

    This time, there wasn''t much metal. It was all rock, natural rock. There were several lights in place, and an artificial walkway made of metal and concrete, but otherwise the entire space was left as it originally was.

    And there was a vast lake of gleaming water that gently stirred below the walkway. Much larger than an Olympic swimming pool, it stretched for what seemed like a kilometer.

    "This is¡­"

    "¡­the Holy Spring." Blockhead nodded and gestured for me to enter. He remained outside the door, however. "Good luck with your training, and all the best. We''ll come and pick you up after a week."

    "Thank you, sir." I bowed. Blockhead waved casually, and then the doors slammed shut with a mechanical click.

    Left alone with the Holy Spring, I found myself completely isolated from the rest of the world.

 147 Chapter 147: Training at the Holy Spring

    Even though they told me that the Holy Spring would boost my training (I''m never going to use the C word), I had no idea how to go about it. What exactly was I supposed to do? It wasn''t as if I had a loach necklace that could absorb all the mana from the Holy Spring or something. I didn''t possess such convenient plot devices or cheat items. I was tempted to call that thing a McGuffin, but even though it was a device that was necessary to the plot, it wasn''t exactly unimportant or insignificant because the protagonist used it extensively to improve his magic by absorbing monster essence, other magic items and all that.

    Long story short, I didn''t know how to train beside the Holy Spring. Was I supposed to drink the water or something? Or would I subconsciously absorb the mana from the Holy Spring if I trained normally next to it?

    I realized I made a terrible mistake by not asking blockhead or Teacher Fielding about this. What a failure on my part.

    "Oh, well¡­I guess I''ll try this out then."

    Sitting cross-legged next to the Holy Spring, I closed my eyes and began accumulating mana in my hands. Probably this process would allow me to eventually draw mana from the Holy Spring and into myself. After a while, I stood up and began casting spells and executing my techniques within this enclosed but large space.

    People tended to think that it was enough to sit down and meditate, and your magic would somehow grow more powerful. The same clich¨¦ was used for martial arts in trashy xianxia stories, where the authors made it look so easy. Sit down cross-legged for a few hours and suddenly your internal energy or qi become stronger and you make breakthroughs. The fuck? Since when was becoming stronger so easy? If all you needed to do was sit down and meditate, then anyone could become strong. There wasn''t a need to physically train your body at this rate.

    Reality was harsher and at the same time, simpler and more logical. If you wanted to get stronger, you practice. You practice casting your spells over and over again, and the more you cast your spells, the more proficient you become. It was like any sports or martial arts in the real world. You didn''t get strong in kendo or aikido by sitting down and meditating for hours. You got stronger in kendo by swinging your sword and practicing your swordsmanship over and over and over and over again for hours. The same thing with aikido, soccer, or any kind of sport. Hard work trumped over everything. Reality had always been this practical.

    Hell, never mind sports. Even theory and exams were the same thing. If you wanted to raise your score, you don''t meditate. You practiced past years examination papers over and over again. You studied by reading the same textbook and your notes over and over again. You write your essays several times. Writing was the same thing. You didn''t become an excellent writer on the first go. You practiced over and over and over again, experience frustrating failures and harsh criticisms from readers, but refuse to give up and continue rewriting, editing, and writing new stories until you finally come up with one that everyone enjoyed.

    Everything was practice. Magic was the same thing. If you wanted to master your spells, you practiced them over and over again. You don''t just sit there and "meditate". You think you''ll suddenly become enlightened and comprehend the universe if you just sit there and empty your mind? Or if you circulate your mana around your body aimlessly? Don''t just circulate the mana, convert them into actual spells!

    After a few hours of practicing, I realized something.

    "Oh, wow¡­I''m not exhausted¡­how is this possible?"

    Normally, I would be dead tired after such a grueling session of training, but right now I felt as if I could go on forever. I realized that the principle behind the underground Holy Spring was simple. Training for an hour inside here was equivalent to training nonstop for three days outside, or something like that. In other words, I could accelerate my training pace inside here and make remarkable progress. The clich¨¦ time capsule or whatever they called it. Ah¡­Hyperbolic Time Chamber. Of fucking course.

    "I can''t believe that such a stupid clich¨¦ exists in this world," I muttered under my breath. Then I noticed something.

    My Constellation spirits were gathering around the Holy Spring and drinking from it. Some of them, anyway. Others, like Cetus and Pisces were literally swimming around in the spring and making waves. Serpens was joining them as well, his long body unwinding in the water.

    "You guys¡­"

    I was practicing my summoning magic, which was why they were all running around, but I didn''t expect them to do whatever they liked. Even Black Tortoise was wading through the Holy Springs lazily, while Green Dragon and White Tiger sipped from it. Only Vermillion Phoenix kept his distance, probably because a fire-type spirit like him couldn''t really handle water very well. On the other hand, Taurus and Leo had no problems drinking from the Holy Spring, despite them possessing the fire elemental attribute. I wondered why.

    Cygnus was floating on top of the pool, like the swan he was. Above him, a flock of Corvus soared throughout the vast expanse of the underground cavern. While watching my Constellation spirits prance about, I started to get a headache.

    "Oi, show some restraint, guys!" I complained. "Don''t drink all of the Holy Spring, otherwise I''ll be in huge trouble!"

    Fortunately, it seemed that the Holy Spring was limitless. No matter how much they drank from it, the water didn''t disappear and the volume still remained the same. I was starting to understand why it was a magical pool.

    Then something else hit me.

    "¡­eh? Now that I think about it¡­"

    Scrutinizing my army of Constellation spirits, realization finally dawned upon me. I had been so engrossed in summoning one Constellation spirit after another to practice my summoning spells that I didn''t notice it at first, but I had practically summoned all of my soul beasts at the same time. Not only that, I was able to maintain their existences in the material world for an unusually long time ¨C for a few hours. All of them. At the same time.

    "How the heck¡­?"

    I shook my head in disbelief. The answer was obvious. This was evidently due to the amazing effects of the Holy Spring. I should have known, but even so, I never expected the Holy Spring to be this miraculous.

    "Man, I really should take advantage of this for the next week or so!"

    Drawing Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, I gestured to my Constellation spirits.

    "All right, guys. Break time is over. Time to train! I hope you don''t mind sparring with me for a bit?"

    The chorus of enthusiastic replies was a prelude to the rampaging stampede that rushed toward me.

    "¡­me and my big mouth," I muttered before I disappeared under a mass of hooves, claws, fangs and elemental spells.

    *

    "Kureha, did you find any new clues?"

    Alicia glanced at her friend before returning her gaze toward the dozens of holographic screens that were propped up in front of her.

    The two girls had continued their investigation after the wake of the invasion of the three thousand monsters'' attacks. By the way, people were wondering why I didn''t go into a coma after nuking three thousand monsters, whereas I did after I nuked two dragons. The reason was simple. I only cast one Antares spell with Scorpio during the invasion of three thousand monsters, whereas I was repeatedly summoning over a dozen Constellation spirits and Constellation weapons against the Hellfire Drake, which included at least two of my Celestial Guardians and their massive spells. The accumulated burden from summoning so many Constellation spirits and weapons, as well as the casting of their ultimate techniques, at once, was too much for me to handle.

    Honestly, if I only cast Draco''s ultimate spells to nuke the dragons from the start, I wouldn''t have passed out from just those. Unfortunately, the Hellfire Drake wasn''t going to obediently lie down and wait for me to finish casting those spells. And obviously I didn''t know the dragon was coming back ¨C my plan was to leave the mountaintop before it returned to it nest. That didn''t work out because I got carried away with playing the vigilante and hanging our poor prisoner from the cliff to threaten the information out of him.

    Information that Kureha was now putting to good use. Or trying to put to good use, given that she hadn''t gotten anything new since the raid on the warehouse.

    "Nope, nothing." Kureha shook her head. "After we investigated the warehouse and alerted the authorities, the scientific research company on drinks that they were using as a cover shut down and all of its employees disappeared. The police is still investigating, but they haven''t found any leads. Uncle Frank and Cousin Fred also vanished from the Franklin estate. None of my other relatives have any clue where they have gone."

    She clenched her fists and scowled.

    "Bullshit. They definitely know something. Several of them, anyway. They were in league with Uncle Frank and are conspiring to take the Sword Saint title away from me and my family."

    "What about your mother and grandmother? Are they done with their mission yet?"

    "No, not yet. The organization they''re hunting has gone underground, and they have difficulty locating the second base. After they successfully destroyed the first research facility, the syndicate has become a lot more cautious and hid deeper underground. They have erased their trails completely with magic."

    Alicia sighed as she leaned back in her chair. "They just won''t make it easy for us, will they?"

    "Yeah." Kureha shook her head in frustration. "I''m concerned that Uncle Frank and his Research Foundation Group will launch another attack on Jing Tian City. I don''t think they''ll be able to get another three thousand monsters from nowhere¡­but I didn''t think it was possible to control an entire horde of high-ranking monsters and direct them toward your city in the first place."

    "Yeah. We still haven''t found out how they did it." Alicia grimaced. "While I''m happy that Richard nuked the hell out of the horde, he also destroyed ay traces of spells that the enemy cast on them. All we have is the so-called lure that your uncle claimed the drinks were. We sent the drinks to the magic forensics department, and up till now they still haven''t a clue how they worked. Something to do with pheromones, but just generating pheromones shouldn''t be enough to control the monsters."

    "Perhaps they aren''t controlling the monsters as we believed, but just vaguely directing them into destroying whatever they want. Like a city. I mean¡­if their goal was complete control, then they would be controlling much less monsters and targeting more specific targets rather than a whole city¡­" Kureha shrugged. "I''m just speculating. There''s too much we don''t know."

    "You might have a point. Perhaps there are limits to the enemy''s capability that we aren''t aware of. Even so, we can''t afford to underestimate them¡­" Alicia rose to her feet. "Well, I''ll visit the forensics department again and see if they have any new clues."

    "You do that." Kureha nodded. "I should return to Legnica City and see if I can find any other clues. Perhaps my relatives will be more willing to¡­share information if I show up in person."

    "I''ll be counting on you."

    Alicia smiled brightly and reached out with a hand.

    "Please let me know if you come visit Jing Tian City again. It was great to have you."

    "Same. Thanks for hosting me. You''ve helped me a lot during my stay here." Kureha reached out and hugged Alicia. She then winked mischievously. "Help me bid farewell to Richard once he comes out of the Holy Spring training. I''ll be long gone before I can become a third wheel."

    "I never thought of you as such! Geez!" Alicia pouted. Kureha laughed and squeezed her tightly.

    "I''ll be off then. I''ll see you next time. Stay in touch!"

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    "I will!"

    The two girls then split up, each of them having a specific destination in mind.

 148 Chapter 148: Schemes in the Shadows

    "Mr. Franklin, I''m afraid it''ll be difficult for us to assassinate Richard Huang."

    The hooded assassin lowered her head, her features concealed. Her arm had finally been fully restored, but she walked with a limp, having yet to fully recover from her dreadful injuries. Her movements were stiff. She still needed further rehabilitation before she could finally get used to her newly restored arm.

    "I ask that you wait another week. Once he leaves the underground Holy Spring of Jing Tian, then it will be easier for us to strike. The security in the Holy Spring complex is not to be underestimated. It is near impossible to breach the vault and get to him right now."

    "Oh, that''s fine. You can drop the mission on Richard Huang." Fred Franklin waved his hand dismissively. "My goal was to get him out of the picture, but now that he has conveniently disappeared from public for the time being, it''ll work just as well."

    Shortly after our meeting in the Szechuan restaurant, Fred Franklin had received information that I was the one who nuked the three thousand monsters before they reach the Northern Fortress. Amused and delighted, he had ordered a hit on me, hiring assassins from the guild to do so. That was how I was attacked the moment I left school the following night.

    The assassin hesitated. "Is that really fine?"

    "Yeah."

    This time, it was not Fred but his father who replied. Frank Franklin lumbered into the room, a wine glass in his hand as he slowly sipped from it. He smiled.

    "In fact, it''s best to leave him. With him out of the picture, we should take the chance to speed up our plans."

    "Launching another invasion, Father?" Fred asked. Frank nodded.

    "Yes, but not in the same way as before. We''ve learned from our mistakes. A full, frontal assault is not going to work. Even if this Richard Huang is cooped up underground, isolated from the outside world, Jing Tian City might still have other mages with Strategic-level spells. I should have foreseen that. Of course they aren''t going to wait for the horde to reach their gates. They''ll be on their guard this time and prepare accordingly."

    "How do you intend to destroy Jing Tian City then?"

    "That''s where we come in."

    Both father and son tensed up when a new, unfamiliar voice broke in. A hooded figure, not unlike the assassin, strolled into the room, flanked by an entourage of followers. Unlike the assassin, who was dressed in a tight, black bodysuit with no features other than the emphasis of her feminine curves, these newcomers were dressed in sweeping cloaks that were embroidered with runes, and glowed a dark purple rather than pure black.

    "Apostle," Frank greeted with a bow of his head. The lead hooded figure raised a hand and bade for him to rise.

    "Your Research Foundation Group has proven to be extremely useful to our plans, Sir Franklin. Thanks to that, we were able to advance our campaign much sooner than anticipated."

    "I am glad our research was of great use to you, my lord." Frank smiled. "I am particularly proud of the serum we developed. It should enhance the power of those monsters."

    "Yes. We have been feeding a batch of monsters the drinks you concocted. Or¡­serum, as you put it." The apostle sniggered. "Those in Jing Tian City would never realize that the drinks they confiscated from your warehouse have such an amazing effect on monsters, or they will destroy them right away and hunt you down."

    "They''re already hunting us down," Fred muttered under his breath, which earned him a dark glare from his father.

    "Yes, indeed." The Apostle chuckled. "Your son is correct. But their persecution will be much fiercer and more desperate if they realize the full extent of your research and what it can do to monsters."

    "I am honored, my lord."

    "You''ve earned it." the apostle turned away. "I''ll leave the assault on Jing Tian City to you, Sir Franklin. Don''t let the Dark Church down."

    He disappeared along with his entourage, the entire group seeming to melt away in the shadows. Fred gave them a glare and shuddered.

    "I don''t like them. Those crazy cultists¡­there''s something wrong with their heads."

    "You don''t have to like them," Frank replied icily. "You only have to obey them. With their assistance, we will be able to rule over the Franklin family¡­and you''ll be able to receive the title of Sword Saint."

    Fred''s eyes gleamed greedily, and he fell silent. But then, he couldn''t suppress a caustic remark.

    "But Father¡­what kind of nut-jobs worship monsters?"

    Frank turned toward his son, his expression grim.

    "Despite their name, the Dark Church is in no way religious. They don''t exactly worship monsters, nor do they follow any religious dogma. They¡­like us, have only one goal. One overarching desire." He smiled. "They are humans like us. They only want power¡­power to rule over the world. The monsters and their attempts to control and artificially trigger Emergence events are just a means to their path of domination."

    Fred looked aghast. "Artificially trigger Emergence events? Are you serious?"

    "What, haven''t you heard?" Frank snorted. "They have already succeeded." He then lowered his voice. "They are not someone we want to make enemies of. If we play this right, we can use them, borrow their strength and harness their power¡­and then once we take over, our Franklin family will be able to reign over the entire Global Federation."

    "Right." Fred raised an eyebrow, but he didn''t protest. His ambition was overruling his wariness and apprehension against the Dark Church. "So¡­they said something about leaving the invasion of Jing Tian City to us. How do you plan on doing it this time?"

    "Good question."

    Frank turned toward the assassin, who had kept her head lowered this entire time.

    "You''ve been listening, haven''t you? What are the plans of the assassin guild?"

    "We will remain neutral, as we always have been. Unless you hire us to assassinate target in Jing Tian City, then we will take no part in this operation." The hooded assassin briefly raised her head. "We have, however, already sent out our own operatives to hunt down our captured, in order to silence her, so you do not have to worry about a leak or betrayal."

    "Oh, very thorough as always. I''m impressed." Frank applauded her. "I have no doubt that you''ll eventually track down your comrade and eliminate her, but I''m not worried about that. Hmm¡­I do want to continue hiring you, but I don''t think you''ll be needed in the attack on Jing Tian City itself. We can leave the destruction to the monsters. What if I hire you for¡­strategic advice?"

    "If it''s just consultation, you don''t need to hire me. And I don''t believe we assassins have anything to offer regarding setting monsters on a city. We tend to be more discreet and subtle."

    "Ah, but that''s where you''re wrong." Frank grinned. "You assassins have already given me an idea. If we can''t assault the city head-on, we should¡­infiltrate and strike from the shadows." He then conjured a holographic map, flipping it and turning it over to expose several levels. "Thanks to our underground base at our warehouse, I discovered a network of subterranean tunnels under the city. I believe we can make very good use of them."

    "That''s right!" Fred almost jumped up in excitement. "If the monsters are moving through the underground tunnels, there''s no way for any mage to nuke them with Strategic scale spells!"

    "Exactly. And speaking of which¡­" Frank glanced from Fred to the assassin. "You mentioned something about the underground Holy Spring? That place where your previous target is currently training at?"

    "That is correct." The assassin nodded. Frank''s smile widened.

    "The Holy Spring will be extremely valuable for our research. If we can get our hands on it¡­"

    Fred''s eyes gleamed greedily again. "Father, leave that to me. I definitely want the Holy Spring. It will boost my training and help me improve in my magic tremendously."

    "Of course, I''ll make sure you''ll get your fair share of the reward if you accomplish your mission." Frank nodded with an indulgent grin before turning to the assassin. "Now this is something more suited to your skills. I trust I can hire you for this task?"

    "Yes. But I''ll assign another operative to this mission." The assassin nodded.

    "Of course. You are currently hurt and still recovering from your injuries. It''s only natural that you will not be able to fight at your best. I trust you to delegate this task to your most competent subordinates. I know of your reputation, after all." Frank then raised his hands. "That earlier setback¡­it couldn''t be helped. Your opponent is that student who obliterated 3 rank B monsters and 2 rank A monsters, as well as three thousand monsters with his Strategic-scale spells, after all. If I were you, I will avoid him at all cost."

    "The problem is that he is at the underground Holy Spring right now." Fred folded his arms grumpily. "How are we going to avoid him if we want to obtain the Holy Spring?"

    "That will not be a problem," the assassin spoke up. "No matter how powerful he is, he still has a weakness. In an enclosed space, he will not be able to unleash his Strategic-scale spells, and the number of soul beasts he can summon will be limited if we choose to ambush him in the right terrain. In fact, his being underground right now is the best chance to kill him. If we are astute with our tactics, we will be able to eliminate him and clear the taint on our honor for failing our mission previously."

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    "Killing two birds with one stone. Good. I like it." Frank nodded in approval. "Your points are certainly valid. I''ll leave him and the Holy Spring to you, then."

    "Even so, the security at the underground Holy Spring complex is extremely tight. It will be difficult to infiltrate the complex, eliminate our target and steal the Holy Spring." The assassin''s brow furrowed. "The problem is getting past all that security and into the cavern where the underground Holy Spring is located."

    "That''s it!" Fred struck his palm with his fist, excited. "What if we strike at the same time as the monsters? We have limited control over them¡­we can at least stop them from attacking us. Since the complex is located underground, we can just set the monsters on them. While the security staff are busily dealing with the monsters, we can sneak in during the confusion and get to the vault without anyone noticing!"

    "Good plan!" Frank nodded in approval again, a smile spreading across his weathered face. "As expected of my son!"

    "I will have my operatives coordinate with you accordingly," the assassin promised.

    "I''ll be counting on you." Frank stroked his chin. "But we need time to make the preparations. I suggest that we launch this operation in a week."

    "Good enough for me," the assassin agreed.

    "I can''t wait!" Fred rubbed his hands eagerly, almost drooling at the prospect. "The underground Holy Spring¡­it will be ours!"

    He then shook his head, remembering his encounter with me at the Szechuan restaurant. A bitter smile crossed his face.

    "But¡­is it really necessary to kill him?"

    "What are you saying after coming this far?" Frank scoffed. "Don''t start getting cold feet on me now."

    "No, I mean¡­the goal is the destruction of Jing Tian City and obtaining the Holy Spring, isn''t it? We don''t really have to kill Richard Huang. If we can grab the Holy Spring and avoid him, then we would have fulfilled our objectives."

    "The objectives are tied," Frank said firmly. "This Richard Huang is an unknown variable. Remember, he foiled our plans once before. He has the capability to destroy an entire army of monsters by himself. I do not want to leave him running around unchecked¡­there is a high possibility that he might thwart our plans again and save the city from this batch''s monsters."

    "Not only that¡­our honor is at stake here," the assassin added, her eyes glowing in determination. "We rarely fail to eliminate our targets. The moment you hired us to kill him, we will carry out the mission to the best of our abilities¡­and reclaim our damaged reputation. Otherwise how will we be able to advertise ourselves to our future clients if we can''t even succeed in assassinating a mere boy?"

    "Ah, but he is no mere boy," Frank reminded her. "Perhaps that''s why you failed the first time. Remind your operatives not to underestimate Richard Huang. He may be young, but he''s still extremely dangerous. His ability to destroy thousands of monsters with a single spell has proven that beyond a doubt."

    The assassin''s eyes flashed fiercely, but she merely nodded her acquiesce.

    "Understood, Sir Franklin."

 149 Chapter 149: Red Aler

    The first sign that something was wrong was a slight tremor that rocked the underground complex. It was so miniscule that hardly anyone noticed, what with the vibrations generated from electronic equipment and the mighty buzzing of advanced enchantments that served as protection over the vault-cavern housing the Holy Spring.

    Then the walls began to crack.

    "?!"

    All security personnel were mobilized and brought to high alert. Weapons were drawn. Spells were cast. Non-combat staff began to evacuate to underground shelters built within the complex.

    It was those shelters that were first compromised.

    The tunnels that had served as escape routes for refugees had been burrowed through, and huge creatures emerged, crawling into the shelters and overrunning the non-combat staff who had evacuated there. The combat personnel had no clue what had happened until several of the victims came screaming toward them and pointing toward the shelters.

    And then all hell broke loose.

    "Fall back! I said, fall back!"

    "To the lobby! We''ll create a barricade there!"

    "Where is my fire support?!"

    "Sector 2A! We''re being overrun here! We need reinforcements! Immediately! ARGH!"

    "Man down! Man down! Where is the healer?! UGH!"

    "HELP!"

    "Save me!"

    "Please¡­please¡­please don''t eat me¡­AAAAAAAH!"

    The security staff were experienced and elite mages who graduated from the top academies of Jing Tian City. They gave as good as they got, and wreaked a horrifying toll on the monstrous invaders. Dozens, if not hundreds of monsters were slain in the first hour.

    But the monsters'' numbers seemed limitless. Over a thousand of them were crawling out of the woodwork, and they were high-ranked. Rank D and rank C monsters were creeping out, unleashing lightning or ravaging fleeing mages with massive claws and teeth. Worse, they were stronger than usual, their aura tinged red.

    It was almost as if they were doped¡­enhanced with steroids.

    Slowly but surely, the weight of numbers shifted the advantage toward the monsters and the defenders began to fall. Their morale, already suffering a devastating blow when over a hundred non-combat staff died in the first few minutes, massacred by the rank E Lycanthropes and rank D Dire Wolves that had burrowed through the tunnel, took another hit when scores of elite mages fell to the horde of rank C Thunder Wolves that followed. The combined might of an Elemental class pack was more than enough to electrify the remaining survivors who endured the onslaught from countless Dire Wolves and Lycanthropes from the first wave.

    It took five hours for the two hundred staff in the underground complex to fall.

    Worse, they were not the only ones. All over Jing Tian City, monsters were emerging from the sewers. Rank E Cyclops Rats burst through manholes and scurried about, lunging at screaming civilians and massacring them. In their wake, Lycanthropes and Dire Wolves followed from larger underground tunnels and complexes, emerging in carparks or shopping malls and tearing a swathe of blood and bone through the fleeing masses.

    The entire city became a scene of carnage, eve as mages began to mobilize and fight back. Scattered and caught by surprise, they were unable to form a coherent fighting force, and isolated pockets of resistance were slowly being wiped out one by one, the usually more powerful mages being overwhelmed by sheer numbers and slain after grinding battles of attrition.

    While the city fell, I was still blissfully unaware, training in the underground Holy Spring with my Constellation spirits and new swords.

    *

    "It''s finally been a week, huh? Time is finally up."

    Stretching myself, I dismissed all of my Constellation spirits and sheathed my swords. Creaking my neck to the side and rotating my arms to make sure they were still working, I approached the door of the vault.

    "Okay, I''m done¡­I think."

    I was half-expecting someone to let me out, but nothing happened. No one opened the door to check on me and tell me that time was up. I scowled, wondering if I should just return to training until someone came in and interrupted me.

    Come to think of it, they never told me the exact time when my training session would expire. Perhaps midnight tonight? If that was the case, then I could spend some more time training. It would be a waste not to maximize my chance with the Holy Spring.

    Just when I thought that, the vault door slid open and blockhead staggered in. blood was streaming down his forehead, and he looked half-dead. His entire left side was drenched in blood, and his left arm was dangling uselessly at the side.

    "Sir! Are you all right?"

    "Get back!" he ordered. Stumbling into the cavern, he spun around and slapped his remaining hand on the panel. The door ground close, but not before I heard inhuman howls and terrified screams from outside.

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    "What the hell?!"

    "The complex is under attack by monsters." Blockhead wasted no time and began explaining. "They got in through the underground tunnels normally used as escape routes for the shelters, and began invading en masse. We fought back, but there''s too many of them."

    His expression turned grim as his eyes wandered over to the Holy Spring behind us.

    "We can''t let them get hold of the Holy Spring. If they break through those doors¡­"

    Wham!

    Both of us flinched as something massive slammed into the reinforced doors, denting it. I could hear a horrifying screech as something tore against the metal.

    "We can make our stand here." I gestured toward the Holy Spring. "The Holy Spring provides unlimited amount of mana. I can summon all my Constellation spirits and fight the monsters off here. I should be able to hold out until they get wiped out, or reinforcements arrive."

    "There will be no reinforcements." Blockhead shook his head solemnly. "We received reports from all over. The whole city is under attack. Monsters are emerging from the sewers, from underground, and they are flooding the city. We are on our own."

    Then he glanced back at the door.

    "And while we will benefit from the Holy Spring''s mana, the same goes for the monsters. With their sheer numbers, the moment they get hold of unlimited mana from the Holy Spring, they''ll overwhelm us with their numerical superiority eventually. I don''t suppose you have over a thousand Constellation spirits, do you?"

    "¡­no." At most I could summon three hundred Constellation spirits, but¡­a thousand? There were a thousand monsters invading the underground complex? "Where the fuck did they come from?"

    "¡­the Dark Church." Blockhead stared at me, his mouth set thinly. "They must be behind this."

    "The Dark Church?" I repeated incredulously. "What the fuck are they supposed to be? Why not just call themselves the Black Vatican and ask me to start being a Versatile Mage if you''re going to start ripping off other stories?"

    Blockhead ignored me. "They are a criminal organization that¡­seeks to use monsters and Emergence events as a way to trigger Armageddon. They desire the fall of humanity and the destruction of the world. Their apostles view themselves as the chosen ones, the only humans permitted to survive the Apocalypse and lead the remnants of humanity to a new world."

    That definitely sounded like some dodgy doomsday cult. I guess you would have that in every era.

    "Worst¡­they aren''t religious or anything. If anything, their beliefs are based off scientific principles. The superior biological engineering of monsters. The pollution caused by humans and the mass extinction events we caused. Their desire for power. They wish to tap into the untapped potential of the other dimension and turn themselves into¡­gods, for a lack of a better word."

    As if he had read my mind, blockhead continued elaborating. I honestly couldn''t care less their reasons for founding the cult. I was more interested in stopping them and destroying the bloody organization. I mean, seriously, who the fuck wanted to side with monsters and kill other humans?

    A group of deranged psychopaths, that was for sure.

    "So what do we do? You essentially locked us up in here. It won''t be long before they break through the gates."

    As if to prove my point, the reinforced metal caved in as something massive smashed against it. Another thunderous howl echoed behind the thick layer of metal that served as our sole protection against the monsters outside.

    "I''m sorry to drag you into this¡­but I''ll need your help. You''re probably the only one we can trust at this moment."

    Taking a deep breath, blockhead proceeded toward the Holy Spring, his right hand reaching into his ruined blazer.

    "Don''t tell me you''re going to take out a magical bottle and then suck all of the Holy Spring into it, and then request for me to bring the Holy Spring to safety¡­probably General Jiang Jun from the northern fortress or something?"

    "How the hell do you know all that?!"

    Blockhead stared at me incredulously, even as he retrieved the tiny magical bottle that I accused him of having. His eyes narrowed in suspicion, and then he shook his head.

    "No, if you''re a spy who intended to steal the Holy Spring, you would have done that a long time ago."

    "Why would I steal the Holy Spring in the first place?" I asked, annoyed. Blockhead raised an eyebrow, as if to say I had just asked an incredibly stupid question.

    "You know how valuable this Holy Spring is? How much power it contains? Unlimited mana, you know? Well¡­" he glanced at his bottle. "That unlimited mana and its holy properties will be sealed when contained inside this bottle. You need to let it out into an actual spring for it to actually exert its effects."

    "Good to know," I replied. "So you really want me to bring this to General Jiang?"

    "That is correct." Blockhead was kneeling by the side of the Holy Spring and placing the bottle on the surface. "He is probably the only one we can trust now, and the one safest place. He is extremely powerful, you know."

    "I know¡­I''ve met him."

    "Then you should know why I''m asking you to entrust the Holy Spring to him. The enemy won''t be able to take it from someone as strong as him."

    "Even if you say that¡­how do I get it to him?" I glanced around the cavern, and then winced as something slammed against the metallic door again. The door was slowly being bent out of shape, its creaking hinges (at least I think they were hinges, since it was a mechanical sliding door) almost pried out of the ground. "We''re trapped in here, aren''t we?"

    "Not necessarily," blockhead replied. I watched, not at all surprised when the entire Holy Spring began flowing into the interior of the bottle, like a wet vacuum sucking up a spill. In less than thirty seconds, the Holy Spring was gone, leaving nothing but a damp bed of soil. The security personnel then got to his feet. "Follow me."

    He then dropped onto the damp bed of soil that had served as the bottom of the Holy Spring. I didn''t hesitate and followed him, thinking that this resembled a certain story I had read somewhere before.

    "Let me guess, sir¡­there''s a fucking passage at the bottom of the Holy Spring that leads to the surface."

    Blockhead turned to look at me, amazed. "You really know everything, don''t you? I really wonder if you really are not a spy."

    "I''m not," I assured him. Then something occurred to me. "More importantly, sir, you said that the monsters came from the underground escape tunnels, right? What makes you think there won''t be any monsters waiting for us in that underground passageway you''re suggesting we use?"

    As if on cue, there was a faint scratching on the other side of the solid stone door leading to the hidden passageway.

    For the first time since I had met him, blockhead paled considerably.

    "Oh shit," he muttered under his breath.

 150 Chapter 150: Fighting Retrea

    "Sir, allow me."

    I stepped forward and summoned Sagittarius. Conjuring a flaming arrow in my hand, I jerked my head in the direction of the doorway.

    "Open it, and I''ll clear a path for us."

    "You¡­"

    Blockhead looked at me in amazement and shook his head. A thunderous roar echoed above us as the metal crumpled under the weight of something massive, snapping him out of his disbelieving stupor. Realizing that he didn''t have a choice, he nodded and immediately flicked the switch to open the door.

    The first Lycanthrope burst out, but I released Alnasl. The flaming arrow disintegrated the monster instantly before continuing forward, flooding the entire passageway with superheated flames. Howls of agony filled the corridor as monsters were incinerated by the searing arrow. I watched as the orange illumination disappeared into the distance before erupting into an explosion far, far away. Presumably at the end of the tunnel.

    "Let''s go," I told blockhead, who nodded in amazement. Since he was injured, I went in first, dismissing Sagittarius and summoning Gemini. I wanted to draw Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, but in tight confines like this, their long reach and relatively large blades would only put me at an extreme disadvantage. I would be hitting rock more often than monsters.

    Blockhead sealed the passageway, and not a moment too soon. Above, we heard metal rupture and a deafening roar as whatever it was finally managed to breach the vault''s heavily reinforced doors. Judging from its aura, it was a rank B monster, far more powerful than the rank C Thunder Wolves that blockhead mentioned earlier.

    We moved through the narrow corridor cautiously, stepping over the charred corpses of Lycanthropes. There weren''t any Dire Wolves or Thunder Wolves, fortunately. The extremely narrow confines of the corridor meant that the bigger and higher-ranked monsters wouldn''t be able to fit in. I wasn''t taking anything for granted, though. Many rank B monsters were capable of compressing their immense power into compact forms in order to maximize their combat ability, and if we were to encounter one in this narrow confines, we would probably be doomed. Especially since I wouldn''t be able to summon the vast majority of my Constellation spirits or use a large number of my Constellation weapons in such an enclosed space. They just wouldn''t fit.

    Fortunately, there weren''t any other monsters. I had wiped them out¡­.mostly. And Lycanthropes were pretty much fodder at this point¡­that said, I couldn''t afford to let down my guard. Regardless of them being rank D, all it took was one lucky swing to my vitals and I would die instantly. I was still a squishy human, after all. Well, that was what the physical reinforcement spells were for.

    "Richard, right?" blockhead spoke up after a long moment of silence. We had spent less than thirty minutes traversing the secret tunnel at that point, and I had almost forgotten that he was there. Not really ¨C because of his injuries, I had constantly continued checking back on him to ensure he didn''t pass out in the middle of the narrow passage. I wasn''t going to leave him behind. Unlike edge lord readers who were probably screaming at me in the comments for bringing along "useless baggage", I wasn''t a callous asshole who abandoned people for being injured.

    Look here, if I was the one being injured, I was sure that blockhead or any decent bloke would be helping me through the tunnels. It was only natural to help others. I didn''t know just what nonsense went on in the minds of edge lord readers (they probably read too much trashy xianxia stories and got corrupted by the whole "strong eats the weak" and "strong rules over everything" nonsense), but you just did not abandon others. It was only natural to help other people who needed it. If our positions were reversed, I was confident that blockhead would be the one leading the way and ensuring that I wasn''t left behind. That was what it meant to be an adult. You don''t just abandon helpless children or kids because they were "useless baggage." You take responsibility as a grown-up and ensure their safety, prioritizing their welfare over your own.

    If those edge lord readers want to disagree and continue screaming and ranting at me in the comments, then they could just kindly fuck off. I wasn''t going to bother going to the comments section to argue with such selfish and childish idiots.

    "What is it, sir?" I asked as I glanced back at him.

    Blockhead paused and leaned against the wall to catch his breath.

    "Once we reach the exit, we will go our separate ways. This tunnel should lead toward the mountain just behind your Jing Tian Magic Academy. You should head there, seek refuge with the teachers and students, and evacuate to the emergency shelters in the city from there. Keep your head low, don''t attract too much attention, and wait for the military to rescue you. Once they arrive, ask to see General Jiang immediately and give him the Holy Spring."

    His bleeding had stopped after some hasty first aid treatment from me, but he still looked very pale and weak. He looked like he was going to collapse anytime.

    "What about you, sir?"

    Blockhead shook his head.

    "I''m sure there are spies¡­the Dark Church definitely has eyes on this place. It''s the only way they managed to allow the monsters to infiltrate the underground tunnels. I''ll keep their attention off you. I''ll leave first. You wait in here for about thirty minutes, and then you head straight for your school. They should think that I have the Holy Spring on me, and will pursue me. I''ll divert them away from you for as long as I can."

    "I can''t just leave you to the enemies alone!" I protested hotly. "You should follow me to the school. We''ll be able to fight¡­"

    "No, we will not!" despite his injuries, blockhead managed to grip my shoulder so tightly it hurt. "You don''t understand! These aren''t monsters we''re talking about here! The enemy is the Dark Church! They have many high-ranking, elite mages! Even if they don''t possess the raw power or strength of the monsters, they are much more sinister, cunning and despicable! You of all people should know how much more dangerous an intelligent and ruthless foe is than a powerful one! Our intelligence is the only reason why humans have survived and prospered in the face of such overwhelmingly powerful monsters and their numerical superiority!"

    That was right. Strength wasn''t everything. Intelligence was. The pen was mightier than the sword. A powerful hero could win a battle, but it was the cunning general who win wars. All that strength and power would be useless if they couldn''t be applied and executed to their full potential.

    "We cannot allow the Holy Spring to fall into the hands of the Dark Church! We must not! Do you understand that?! We must keep the Holy Spring out of their hands at all costs! Without it, they were able to unleash an endless horde of monsters to destroy Jing Tian City! What do you think they can further accomplish if they were to obtain the Holy Spring? Then it won''t just be a city, but the entire Federation, no, the whole world that falls prey to their stupid Apocalypse!"

    Once again I was reminded that, for all of the nightmarish power monsters possessed, the true horror was fellow humans and their demented schemes and unparalleled cunning. At least monsters were straightforward. They wouldn''t plot world-spanning conspiracies to end the world and commit genocide. They were just following their instincts and doing what they need to survive and prosper. Humans, on the other hand, possessed a far more horrifying capacity for pure evil. What other species would commit genocide on such a vast scale?

    "Promise me¡­that you''ll keep the Holy Spring out of the hands of the Dark Church at any cost! That you''ll deliver it to safe hands!"

    "Yes, sir."

    I swallowed nervously, and nodded finally. My mouth was dry when I realized that I didn''t have a choice. My ideals weren''t going to work here. I wasn''t going to save anybody if I tried to be a hero and tried to help everybody. Blockhead''s sacrifice would be in vain if I tried to assist him and the Holy Spring fell into the hands of the Dark Church. And who knew what they could do once they obtained it. Perhaps create new monsters?

    Before I knew it, we had reached the exit. Blockhead showed me how to open it, and then commanded me to stay back, to remain hidden for the next half hour or so.

    "I''ll be off then." He glared at me, but I couldn''t see his eyes from behind his cracked sunglasses. "I''ll probably draw the attention of the majority of the Dark Church spies and minions away from you, but it''s highly possible that they will still post a sentry or two to keep watch on the tunnels. At least one or two might stalk you as you make your way toward your school. Be careful."

    "I will, sir. You too. Don''t die."

    Blockhead grinned and shook his head, but didn''t respond directly. He knew as well as I did that this would be a suicide mission. As injured as he was, he would inevitably be captured by the minions of the Dark Church and horribly tortured for information on the Holy Spring. When they discovered he didn''t have it, they would kill him.

    It was definitely a suicide mission. Both of us knew that he wouldn''t survive this.

    Even so, blockhead maintained his smile and reached out to pat my head. Normally I wouldn''t take too kindly to being treated as a kid, but right now I knew that I was a kid. And he was an adult throwing his life away to minimize the danger I would find myself in.

    "Good luck. I''ll be counting on you."

    I hesitated as he stepped away, and then mustered my courage.

    "What''s your name, sir?"

    If anything, I would honor his sacrifice by remembering him. His name. He was not going to die, unknown and forgotten. I would definitely remember him and ensure his name be immortalized if I survived this crisis.

    He waved his hand as he strode toward the exit.

    "Kuai Tou."

    Then he was gone, disappearing behind the door that slammed shut and veiled me in darkness once again.

    *

    Thirty minutes later, I followed Kuai Tou''s instructions and activated the exit. The hidden door rumbled open, and I stepped outside. It was evening outside, the air outside cool and stale. The stars and moon were barely visible through a thick fog. The ground was damp ¨C apparently it had been raining for quite some time.

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    Taking a deep breath, I began to make my way down the mountain. Dismissing Gemini, I drew Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. In a wide open space, I could use them more effectively, and they were more powerful than Gemini. Furthermore, I didn''t need to expend much mana to maintain their physical existences.

    A pack of Lycanthropes loped toward me, having caught my scent. Praying that Kuai Tou didn''t get slaughtered by them earlier, I charged into their fray nonetheless and cut them apart with my two swords. Gan Jiang''s black blade dismembered a howling Lycanthrope before beheading a second one. Mo Ye''s white blade arced gracefully through the air as it eviscerated a Lycanthrope before cleaving another into half. Blood, heads and limbs flew about me, bodies dropping heavily onto the ground, as I essentially danced through the pack, the smooth strokes of my two swords cutting a bloody swathe through their ranks under the pale moonlight.

    Within a few minutes, it was all over. For the Lycanthropes, anyway.

    A Dire Wolf had arrived. About three times bigger than the Lycanthropes, it stalked toward me, its gray snout bristling. Its jaws yawned, revealing two rows of sharp fangs.

    I wasted no time. Summoning the chibi Green Dragon, I infused both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye with wood elemental energy before unleashing a cloud of razor-sharp petals at it. For a moment, the Dire Wolf teetered back, swatting away the petals.

    Then blood spurted out of a few hundred wounds before it toppled over in pieces.

    I didn''t even break a sweat. I had truly grown a lot stronger since the beginning of the year. Hell, I was probably much stronger than I was a week ago.

    Grimly descending down the mountain path, I caught sight of my school. There was a pack of Dire Wolves, led by a trio of Thunder Wolves, racing down toward it. I wasn''t surprised. Judging from what Kuai Tou told me, the entire Jing Tian City was being besieged at this moment. Jing Tian Magic Academy would be no exception.

    I had to hurry. There was safety in numbers, and I doubted I could fight my way to the city shelters through such sheer numbers alone. Additionally, my friends were all there, in Jing Tian Academy. I was not going to abandon them.

    Hurrying my pace, I skidded to a stop when a Thunder Wolf pounced upon my position. Lightning exploded and fried the entire area, scorching the damp ground black. I dove to the side and rolled to my feet as I brought both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye up.

    "Thanks, Green Dragon, but return for now."

    Taking a deep breath, I dismissed the chibi Green Dragon and summoned a chibi Vermillion Phoenix instead. The Thunder Wolf didn''t wait for me to do whatever I wanted, however, and unleashed a massive bolt of lightning with a snarl.

    Clang!

    With a single swing of Mo Ye, I calmly sliced the lightning bolt apart, causing it to dissipate harmlessly. As Vermillion Phoenix appeared to perch on my shoulder, I raised Gan Jiang with my right hand and unleashed a tremendous torrent of flames.

    The Thunder Wolf found itself engulfed in the flames and was incinerated almost immediately. Lightning exploded from its silver-white fur and I was forced to dodge the deadly, crackling web of electricity.

    "As expected of a rank C monster¡­it''s pretty tenacious, huh?"

    The fatally injured Thunder Wolf was still capable of sending out searing bolts of lightning. I dodged through the complex web of lethal lightning, but kept my distance. Gathering more of my mana into both swords, I unleashed a much larger torrent of flames that finally reduced the wounded Thunder Wolf to ash. This much bigger attack would normally be easier to dodge, but the injuries I had dealt the Thunder Wolf with my first attack had essentially incapacitated it. So I wasn''t wasting my mana or using the excuse of "not going all out from the start." Powerful spells took longer to cast and were slower, which meant they were easier to evade. There was a trade-off for everything, otherwise the faster but weaker spells become obsolete.

    Not that the commenters care. They would literally find everything to whine about. At this point, I was done paying any attention to them.

    Panting, I glanced around when I heard more howls in the distance. Without the infinite mana supplied by the Holy Spring, I wouldn''t last long in a battle of attrition.

    Forcing myself up straight, I began to hasten my pace as I hurried toward my school.

 151 Chapter 151: Jing Tian Magic Academy, Besieged

    During the first few hours of the attack, when Director Violet was away, the school fell under the command of the discipline master, Ji Lu Da Shi. He made the decision to have all the students and staff form a defensive perimeter around the school to break the siege of the monsters and hold them off. At first the strategy paid off ¨C with over a thousand students and a hundred magic teachers, they were able to wipe out the first wave of Lycanthropes that assaulted Jing Tian Academy.

    However, that number was deceptive. Less than fifty Lycanthropes attacked, and only a dozen students joined a handful of teachers in fighting. Most of the students never had any experience in fighting monsters, and they would most likely freeze up or hesitate during actual combat. Only those who regularly participated in missions such as Theodore Hammond, Craig Carlson, Dong Fang Yue Chu and a handful of Black Rose members, including Alicia, had the necessary experience and nerves to combat these monsters. The rest ended up cowering in the gymnasium, crying and praying for the ordeal to be over soon.

    Many of them just wanted to go home.

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    Teacher Ruff Fielding had never seen such a pathetic sight in his life. These were the students that the academy was supposed to train for the future of the Federation, to serve as the first line of defense against monsters, and most of them couldn''t even stand up straight. The last time he had seen them was when a group of girls huddled together, sobbing and wailing about wanting to go home. A couple of guys were wandering quite some distance away, looking as if they had pissed their pants. From the stink emanating from them, Fielding was quite sure they did.

    "We can''t continue like this!" he exclaimed when he met the other teachers in the staff room. "We have to evacuate the school immediately! Protocols dictate that if a catastrophic-level crisis like this occurs, when a city is attacked by hordes of monsters, we move the students and staff toward the emergency shelters in the city center! The academy is not built to withstand a siege! We do not have the supplies or manpower to defend the students here! Sooner or later, it will fall!"

    "I concur," Teacher Mary Cure agreed as she raised a hand. "The casualties are mounting. That reckless defensive charge that Teacher Ji Lu led against the second wave of Lycanthropes are leaving the school''s infirmary and healing staff overstretched. At this rate, we will not be able to move the casualties if any more of them increase."

    "Are you saying it''s my fault?" Ji Lu Da Shi growled furiously.

    "No one is blaming anyone," Cure replied sternly. "I''m just giving you the figures and the scenarios. I do not think we''ll be able to hold off another assault."

    "Yeah. Many of the students are too inexperienced," Fielding agreed heavily. "They freeze up I the middle of combat. Most of them have never participated in actual monster extermination missions before. It makes you wonder what they have been learning so far." His lip curled cynically. "The ones who skip classes the most to participate in missions have proven to be the ones most effective in fighting off the monster horde so far."

    In other words, there was an urgent need to revise the curriculum. If he ever survived this crisis, of course.

    "But we held, didn''t we?" Ji Lu argued. "We drove them back and exterminated them! We can keep doing this until reinforcements arrive. The military from the northern fortress¡­they should be here soon!"

    "The military will have to rescue the whole city. We would be low on their list of priorities. Furthermore, the first places they will establish contact with would be the city''s emergency shelters. If you really want to get rescued by the military, we should be heading there."

    "Oh? And how do you propose we do that?" Ji Lu growled as he gestured toward the enclosed walls. There were no windows, probably to keep the teachers'' meeting concealed from prying eyes and eavesdroppers. "Are you suggesting that we lead a thousand plus students through those monster-infested streets and fight our way to the city center? We might as well put lights on us and a sign, ''all you can eat buffet'' if you want to draw their attention!"

    "Yeah, moving through the city is too dangerous right now!" a female teacher agreed vehemently.

    "We can''t! The students probably won''t want to move from here!" another teacher added.

    "Teacher Ji Lu has a point. Moving in such a large group will only attract the monsters to us."

    "No one said that we have to move as a large group," Fielding said impatiently. "I suggest that we split up in squad levels. Maybe class levels. Groups of ten to twenty, each led by a teacher. I will take the first group and serve as a vanguard. We''ll clear a route for the rest of the school to follow. It might take some time, but if we can mark out a path where there are least dangers and we can avoid monsters, the majority of us will be able to make it to the shelters safely."

    "Why can''t we just wait here for help?" another teacher asked. "We still have power here. Our food supplies should last us for another day or two. Surely the Global Federation will send an entire army to respond by then."

    "Will we last that long against this number of monsters, though?" Cure demanded.

    "We''ve been doing very well so far" Ji Lu insisted stubbornly.

    That was when Teacher Lin Dong rushed into the staff room, panting heavily. He had been posted as one of the sentries, keeping an eye out on the outskirts of the school. Ji Lu rose to glare at him.

    "What''s the matter, Teacher Lin?"

    "The monsters! They are coming!" Lin was heaving heavily, his face bright red from exertion and fear. "An entire pack of Dire Wolves over a hundred strong! They''re led by three rank C Thunder Wolves! Elemental class!"

    The faces of most teachers in the room turned pale. Earlier, they had suffered significant casualties just from fighting rank E Lycanthropes, and now an even more powerful and massive wave of monsters were heading straight for them?

    "How long until they get here?" Ji Lu asked, trying his best to stop his trembling.

    "Fifteen minutes¡­maybe less."

    "Fuck!" Ji Lu slammed his fist on the table. Gritting his teeth, he turned to Fielding. "All right, Teacher Fielding. Your plan is on. Gather all the students in the gymnasium and start organizing them into groups. You''ll take point and lead the first group to scout a safe path. The rest of the teachers are to lead their respective groups there. Teacher Cure, you''re in charge of the injured. Do your best to get them to move. If necessary, leave the most injured behind. I''m sorry, but we don''t have a choice. We can''t let them drag down the other students. You''ll be the sixth group after the first five groups make sure it''s safe. Hopefully that''s ample time to prepare."

    "Understood." Cure didn''t like it, but she had no choice. She also understood the hard choice that Ji Lu had to make, even though it sounded extremely callous. It was either some students die or all the students died. She resolved to ensure to make sure even the most severely injured students were healed to the extent of walking wounded, even if she had to expend all of her mana to do so.

    He then turned to several of the male teachers. "Teacher Wu, Teacher Si, Teacher Sha, you''re with me. The four of us will stall the approaching wave of monsters for as long as we can."

    The teachers he singled out paled considerably, but nodded determinedly. None of the other teachers said a single word. They knew the four of them were heading to their deaths. There was no way the four teachers could survive against such a large group of rank D monsters, led by three rank C monsters.

    But even so, they had no choice. They were teachers. They had a responsibility to protect the students at this school.

    "Get moving! We don''t have much time! Let''s head out immediately!"

    Clapping his hands sharply, Ji Lu dismissed all the surviving teachers and immediately set off with his handpicked team toward the mountains.

    *

    Teacher Fielding was rushing along the corridors of the classroom, trying to rally the students to his cause.

    "All of you! Assemble in the gymnasium! Immediately!"

    There was a scream, followed by the shattering of glass. Cursing under his breath, Fielding spun around and caught sight of a Dire Wolf breaking through a window and clawing at one of the female students. Kicking off the ground, he gathered his Ba Qi around himself and punched a bloody hole through the monster''s head.

    The nearly headless Dire Wolf slumped over the edge of the broken window, its corpse pierced by countless glass shards.

    "Are you all right?" Ruff Fielding asked the screaming girl. She nodded, tears streaming from her eyes profusely. Fielding checked her quickly, and when satisfied that she wasn''t hurt, pointed down the corridor. "Get to the gymnasium, now!"

    "Yes, sir." The girl whimpered before scurrying off, still sobbing. Fielding sighed and resumed his mission to ensure that every student in school was gathered in the gymnasium before he could split them off into groups. He was not going to leave even a single student behind.

    But for the Dire Wolf to already be here¡­did Ji Lu and the others fail to stop them? He did not want to think about the grisly fate they had suffered if the monsters had really gotten through them.

    There was another crash downstairs, and Fielding hurried down. Below, Dong Fang Yue Chu was protecting a few of his classmates by incinerating a Dire Wolf with his flames. Beside him, Lily Liam was keeping the wounded monster at bay with her spear so that her boyfriend could finish it off. However, behind them was another couple of Dire Wolves, which were closing in on their wailing classmates. Fielding scowled when he saw the group of guys and girls doing nothing but sob while relying solely on Yue Chu and Lily to protect them.

    The least they could do was try and fight back.

    Buffing his physical strength and speed with reinforcement spells and gathering his Armament Ba Qi about him, Fielding launched at the nearest Dire Wolf and clobbered it. Just one punch smashed its skull into shards of bone and brain matter, and it collapsed.

    The other Dire Wolf ignored him and was just about to pounce on the other classmates. Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily were still distracted by the dying but still barely alive Dire Wolf, and Fielding couldn''t make it in time before it could¡­

    Zoom!

    An azure arrow obliterated the Dire Wolf''s head before it could reach them. The headless carcass toppled onto the bunch of helplessly screaming students, who instinctively backed away as blood splashed onto them.

    "This¡­"

    Fielding turned toward the window. I was climbing through the broken glass, being careful not to cut myself on them (which wouldn''t have done anything since I had cast physical reinforcement spells on myself for the time being). Dismissing my Orion bow, I waved at a stunned crowd, with Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily finally finishing off the Dire Wolf with a combined fire spell and spear strike.

    "Richard! You''re back!" Fielding gaped at me in surprise. I nodded.

    "Yeah." Glancing at the Dire Wolves'' carcasses grimly, I breathed a sigh of relief. When I saw the pack of Dire wolves reach the academy, I had feared the worst, but seeing my homeroom teacher and fellow students still alive, I couldn''t help but feel as if a huge burden had just been lifted off my shoulders. "Looks like I''m not too late."

 152 Chapter 152: Vanguard Squad

    Teacher Ruff Fielding managed to do a sweep of the academy and rounded up all the students hiding in the classroom, storage sheds, library, PA room and clubrooms. Even the society rooms were not spared, with the other teachers joining the search and ensuring that no student was left behind. Along the way, we managed to exterminate the few Dire Wolves that had managed to reach the campus grounds. A few stray students were slain, but we minimized casualties by working together. After that, we all gathered in the gymnasium.

    The teachers gathered at the front, whispering on what to do going forward. Unable to suppress my curiosity, I sat some distance away and eavesdropped on them.

    "Teacher Ji Lu and the others were killed. They succeeded in slaying the three rank C Thunder Wolves and a good portion of the Dire Wolf pack, but at the cost of their lives."

    "Damn it! Who''s in charge now? Who''s going to take responsibility?"

    "Who cares about that? The important thing now is to lead the students to safety. I presume the plan is still the same. I''ll lead a vanguard squad to scout a safe route forward and eliminate whatever monsters we can. If we encounter high-ranked monsters we can''t defeat, we''ll mark an alternative route forward. The rest of you will follow us in groups of tens and twenties."

    Teacher Fielding was impatient to execute the plan, mostly because he was aware that the longer we delayed here, the higher the risk of being attacked by another wave of monsters. There were more descending from the mountains, with stronger monsters joining their ranks each time. If we didn''t move fast, we would just be sitting ducks for the monsters.

    "I concur," Teacher Mary Cure agreed. "There are over a thousand of us. If we all move in one big group, we''ll just attract a lot of attention and draw the monsters to us like moths to a light. However, I''m thinking the vanguard should comprise mostly of teachers. They''ll be handling the most dangerous job and fighting monsters, after all."

    "There aren''t many of us," another teacher argued. "If we split the students into groups of twenty and have a teacher lead each group, then we can''t afford to put too many teachers in the vanguard squad. Otherwise some of the student groups will be left to fend for themselves."

    "That is indeed a problem," a female teacher agreed sullenly. "And not all of us teachers have combat ability too, which will compound the situation."

    "I can defend my group with defensive magic, so you don''t have to worry about me," Teacher Cure assured them.

    "Your group will still be the sixth to move out." Teacher Fielding regarded Teacher Cure gloomily. "We need to get the injured to a safe place as quickly as possible."

    "I''ve ensured that they''ve all healed to the point of mobility. No one will be left behind. They should be able to move fine. The only issue is finding a safe route free of monsters. Obviously none of them will be fit for combat."

    "That will be the job of the first five groups. The vanguard, especially, and the subsequent four groups will clear out any monsters we''ve missed." Teacher Fielding began to turn away. "If we don''t have enough teachers, we''ll just ask for student volunteers. There are quite a few of them with practical combat experience, having regularly participated in monster extermination missions. They are just as good, if not better than many of the teachers in combat. I trained most of them myself."

    "We''ll leave them to you then," a male teacher said. Teacher Fielding nodded and whirled around to face the students.

    "Attention, everyone!"

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    As expected of the chief referee and combat magic instructor, his voice and presence were domineering as ever. The moment he spoke up, everyone turned to face him. Even the whimpering and sobbing students snapped out of their stupor to look at him attentively.

    "I know this is a challenging time for all of you, but even so we have to move forward. We can''t sit still and wait for help¡­in fact, it''s possible that help might not come for a long time."

    Everyone sobered up at that and watched Teacher Fielding intently. He nodded and continued.

    "As you all know¡­not just Jing Tian Magic Academy, but the whole of Jing Tian City is under siege right now. Everyone is under assault by monsters that emerge from underground tunnels below the city. The military will take some time to respond, and even then their priorities will be the civilians in the city and trying to retake it. If we want assistance from them, we should meet up with them at the emergency shelters in the city center."

    He raised his voice.

    "The closest of these emergency shelters are only three kilometers away! If we all work together and traverse a safe route wisely, we should be able to reach the shelter without many casualties. They have powerful barriers there that will keep out the monsters, and supplies to last us for months if necessary. Unlike the school, which is not a shelter, we can better defend ourselves within these shelters and seek refuge there for as long as it is necessary for the Federation military to reach us."

    The students began murmuring to each other, hope flaring up in their chests. Many of us had witnessed fellow classmates slaughtered by Dire Wolves in the corridors of our academy, and some had to walk past grisly scenes of blood, carnage and corpses to get to the gymnasium, so they were highly aware of the threats that Teacher Fielding mentioned. If there was a place safer than the academy, they wanted to get to it.

    "However, these three kilometers are being swarmed by monsters right now. Make no mistake, this will be one of the most dangerous journeys to make. We''ll be more vulnerable outside, we have to remain vigilant for sneak attacks, and there are uncountable monsters roaming about the city. Even so, we can''t stay here forever. As you''ve already seen, there are increasing waves of monsters assaulting the school. We can''t hold out indefinitely. We have to move to a safer place before one of the higher-ranked monsters arrive."

    A single rank B monster was enough to kill a significant number of students during the campfire party incident. Needless to say, everyone was dreading the prospect of being here when a few of them arrived. And they would arrive eventually at this rate.

    "¡­what do we do?"

    "We have to make for the shelters, of course!"

    "But there are more monsters out there!"

    "If we stay here, the monsters will come!"

    While everyone argued, Teacher Fielding clapped loudly to draw their attention back to him. Everyone turned as one, wilting under his stern gaze.

    "What must be done will be done. We will carve a safety route to the shelter by whatever means necessary. Fighting, hiding, fleeing, whatever. Don''t bother with nonsense such as honor or courage or heroism. The priority is to stay alive. We will survive, no matter what. It doesn''t matter if we have to become sniveling cowards ¨C if we can find a safe path past the monsters, we will take that. However, I am under no illusion that we will be able to avoid combat completely. As such, I will have to ask for student volunteers. Remember, this is strictly voluntary. Do not feel pressured to volunteer if you do not think you are ready for combat. This can mean the life and death of the whole team, so consider carefully."

    He took a deep breath.

    "But it is absolutely necessary. As you have already heard, the teachers have also suffered casualties and we don''t have enough people. We need to rely on you students to forge a path of survival for the sake of others." He smiled. "Isn''t that what we''ve been training for?"

    Everyone stared at each other.

    "Allow me to elaborate. I will be leading a vanguard squad of about ten to fifteen student volunteers. As I said, combat is inevitable, so be prepared to fight for your life and the lives of your teammates. It will be extremely dangerous and I cannot guarantee your survival, but our job is to scout ahead, mark out a safe route for the subsequent groups following us, and eradicating any monsters we can to minimize threats to the evacuees. If we encounter high-ranked monsters, we will search for safer, alternative routes to go around them. It might end up being further than three kilometers, but as I said, we will do absolutely anything necessary to survive. No matter the odds."

    He threw a fist up.

    "Now, who is with me?!"

    Silence filled the gymnasium as the vast majority of students glanced uneasily at each other. Then someone raised his hand.

    "I''ll do it."

    Everyone turned to stare at me. I shrugged.

    "What? If it''s slaying monsters, I have some experience in doing so. I''ll join the vanguard squad."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu chuckled and shook his head. Placing a hand on my shoulder, he raised his other hand. "I''m in too."

    "I''ll also volunteer!" Harvey added enthusiastically. The guy really saw me as a hero, and was inspired by what he perceived as my courage but was actually pragmatism. I raised an eyebrow at him. Unlike me and Dong Fang Yue Chu, Harvey had almost no experience fighting monsters. The best I could give him was his encounter with the Crastrate, where he got his ass kicked. At least I knew he wouldn''t freeze up and was capable of running away if necessary, so it wasn''t all bad. Unlike those crazy, unreasonable readers complaining about "useless" characters in the comment section, I was sure that Harvey might have some use. He might spot something we didn''t while the rest of us were busily engaging the monsters in battle.

    A safe route, for example.

    "Oi, oi! If you''re going, so am I." Craig Carlson raised his spear. "My Blood Spear wants a taste of those monsters."

    "I''ll volunteer," Theodore Hammond said simply, slinging his huge hammer behind his back.

    "Me too!" Lily Liam stood beside Dong Fang Yue Chu, firm in her decision. Sheila also joined her president, linking hands with Craig. That was seven of us.

    "The Black Rose will participate," Alicia added. "At least I will."

    Jin Hao and Mizuno Aoi also joined her, which raised our numbers to ten.

    "I hope you don''t mind including me." Harrison Reed also raised his hand, his usual smile back on his face. "I may not have as much combat experience as those other students who participated in missions, but I should be able to contribute somehow."

    "Every person counts," Teacher Fielding declared with a nod.

    Then someone called Bu Fan also raised his hand and volunteered, along with his buddy, Zhang Hou Zi.

    "All right, let''s prepare and then move out in five minutes!"

    "Harvey." I glanced at my junior. As he was the least experienced among us, I couldn''t help but feel worried about him. "Make sure you stay close and don''t wander off."

    "Roger that, Senior Richard!"

    "Looks like we''re going to play hero, eh?" Dong Fang Yue Chu grinned as he slapped my back. Lily scowled at him.

    "This isn''t a game."

    "You''re right, it''s not," I agreed. "But someone has to do it."

    "I didn''t know that Brother Fan is so heroic." In the distance, Zhang Hou Zi was joking. However, Bu Fan remained nonchalant.

    "Going with the main group is more dangerous," he explained. Zhang Hou Zi scrunched up his face in bewilderment.

    "Huh?"

    "Didn''t you see how everyone panicked when just a single Dire Wolf showed up and attacked? The majority of the students are just weaklings. Not only is their fear contagious, it has the effect of magnifying their panic and causing utter chaos when the main group gets attacked. If I''m not mistaken, just a hundred monsters will be sufficient to annihilate the whole group. Furthermore, with such a large group of people walking together, they might as well shine a beacon on themselves and hold up a sign calling all the monsters to a buffet. Hell, the higher-ranked monsters will be attracted to such large numbers. I don''t want to mix myself with such a large group of sheep. Whether they live or die has nothing to do with me. I will be in charge of my own destiny."

    A vein twitched in my temple when I heard his nonsense. I wasn''t some arrogant, self-centered asshole who viewed everyone else as weaklings (was that a mentality of many Chinese writers or something? Maybe they got influenced by the bullshit logic of xianxia stories) or sheep. The guy was a bastard, and I really didn''t want to move out in the same group as a fucking jerk like him only thought of himself. I wasn''t a hero, but I wasn''t an asshole either. I was somewhere in between.

    "Look here, you''re just spouting nonsense."

    "Huh? What was that?" Bu Fan glared at me when I spoke up. I shook my head.

    "Have you been paying attention? What main group? What large group of people walking together? We are moving out in groups of ten to twenty at staggered timings. Thus your whole logic about main group or large group of people makes no sense. There is no main group. There are about fifty to eighty groups of ten to twenty people. We will be minimizing the risk of drawing attention to them. And is it not our job to eliminate monsters in our path so that the others can follow along safely? Why are you acting as if the vanguard squad is an independent group whose purpose is to survive by themselves? Our job is to mark a clear, safe trail for the other groups to follow."

    "If you want to play hero, be my guest. Don''t drag me into this." Bu Fan sneered at me.

    "Don''t drag you into this? You''re the one who volunteered for this vanguard squad duty!"

    "So what? I did it because it gives me the best chance of survival. Wake up, you na?ve fool. This is a cruel world. Reality is harsh. The strong eat the weak. The weak gets culled. Sheep exist to be food for the wolves. That''s all there is to it."

    This whole stupid "strong eat the weak", "survival of the weakest" and "sheep" bullshit again. I was getting tired of this nonsensical logic that plagued the worst written web novels that I had ever read. All the protagonists loved to espouse the same old bullshit and claimed that it was reality when it really wasn''t. This whole "law of the jungle" bullshit was just their distorted values and cynical misunderstanding of the world, and did not conform to reality at all. It was fucking ridiculous how many gullible idiots fell for that absurd "strong eat the weak" line and claim that it was reality when it was just as artificially constructed as any ideal or propaganda. Reality did not work in that fashion. Reality was a lot more complex than "strong versus weak" ¨C hell, reality was so diverse and complicated that you couldn''t just classify people according to "strong" versus "weak" and "wolf" versus "sheep". It just did not work that way.

    "Listen, you¡­" I growled at the stubborn and idiotic Bu Fan. "Everyone has things they are good at, and some people are just not suited for combat. Just because they can''t fight a monster doesn''t mean they are useless. Teacher Cure, for example, is never going to win a championship in the national magic tournaments, but she has the rare and extremely precious ability to heal the wounded. Harvey might be inexperienced, but he has good eyes and excellent observational skills (probably because he spent too much time watching video analyses of my matches). The students of the research society may not be known for their strength, but they are the ones who crafted and forged those hi-tech weapons you are using right now." I jabbed a finger at the advanced hilt of a sword that was hanging from Bu Fan''s waist. "You probably can''t do much without a weapon, can you? Yet you call the people who built you that weapon useless all because they can''t fight?"

    "What the fuck are you¡­?" Bu Fan argued, but I cut him off rudely.

    "You think society can be categorized so neatly into strong and weak? You''re the idiot here. I admit there''s a hierarchy, yeah, and there''s a lot of unfairness in this world. But it''s not as simple as strong eat the weak. Everyone has their own strengths and roles in society. There is no such thing as a useless person, not unless they literally do nothing. Usefulness doesn''t equate strength, power or wealth. That''s just your distorted view of things, you solving everything with violence. No one is a god. There are things that we mages can do that other people can''t. But there are also so many things that we mages can''t do that other people can. We can''t heal people, but healers such as Teacher Cure, doctors, nurses and medics can heal people. They can''t fight, but we can protect them. We can''t build our own weapons or gear, but the blacksmiths of the research societies can. Even if they can''t fight on their own, we can protect them. Everyone has a role to play, and only by working together can we all survive. You think strength is everything? One day, when you find yourself alone and cut off from everyone else, you''ll realize that all the strength in the world is useless. You can''t survive on your own. When you get injured, there will be no one to heal you. When your weapon breaks, there will be no one to repair it for you. When you run out of food, there will be no one to cultivate crops for you. You think you''re a fucking god, and that only you have the right to live simply because you''re strong and can fight? Well, one day, when everyone else dies and you''re truly alone, you''ll find that you won''t be able to survive on your own. That in order to live, you need the people you so callously dismissed as weak¡­the people you insulted as sheep¡­the people you thought useless, but the very same people whose services and products you''ve been living off this entire time and taking them for granted."

    "You¡­you¡­you¡­" Bu Fan spluttered, but I turned my back on him, in no mood to listen to his nonsense.

    "I''m joining the vanguard squad because that''s how I can best contribute and that''s where my strength lies, and also because I wish to do my duty to help all those who have helped me until now. Unlike you, I have not forgotten the people I have lived off on, nor have I taken them for granted. Every time I get injured, they healed me. Every time I need a new weapon, they would issue me one that they just recently built. Every time I need food, I would be able to find a warm, delicious and nutritious meal from the cafeteria rather than just relying on unhealthy cup noodles alone. And all those food come from the farmers who have devoted their lives to backbreaking work just so they can feed the population. Without these, I wouldn''t have become the person I am today. They have done the things they could and contributed their fair share to society¡­to feed and maintain the lifestyles of us mages. Now it''s our turn to contribute and protect them after living off them. But here you are, being self-centered and spouting bullshit about how only the strong deserve to live and the weak should be left to their own fates since it''s their own fault for not being able to fight and being ''useless''."

    I stopped, my rage boiling inside me. I felt like I was going to snap any moment now.

    "You piss me off. If you want to survive, go join the second squad after us. There''s no need to risk your worthless life along with us in the vanguard squad."

    "Fuck you!" Bu Fan roared at me. "You don''t tell me what to do!"

    "That''s correct. But you don''t get to decide who deserves to live and who deserves to die either. You don''t get to decide who is strong and who is weak, or who is useful and who is useless. Not unless you''re an arrogant prick of the highest order."

    With that, I stalked off, leaving Bu Fan snarling in impotent rage.

 153 Chapter 153: Moving Ou

    "Wow, you really tore that Bu Fan a new one," Dong Fang Yue Chu remarked as he glanced at the fuming Bu Fan, who was now being comforted by a frantic Zhang Hou Zi.

    "But Senior Richard was correct. I agree with everything he said. That guy is just being an arrogant asshole." As usual, Harvey was on my side, though I couldn''t tell if he truly believed in my system of values or if just decided to alter his worldview to fit mine. "What kind of jerk writes people off as useless or weak just because they can''t fight? Even if we can''t fight, there are other ways we can contribute."

    Then I understood why. My point had driven close to home for Harvey, who had secretly been self-conscious of his lack of combat ability this entire time. My longwinded speech had inspired him and given him confidence, and he was more determined than ever to ensure that he didn''t let us down. He was very gratified to learn that there were still things he could do even if he couldn''t exactly fight. I just hoped he didn''t get overenthusiastic and put himself at unnecessary risk.

    "All right, everyone. Are you guys ready? Let''s move out."

    Before I knew it, the five minutes were up, and Teacher Fielding was gathering all of us at the entrance. As I expected, Bu Fan and Zhang Hou Zi still showed up, the former still fuming and glaring murderously at me. No doubt he was nursing a grudge after the tongue-lashing I delivered to him, and would most likely find some way to take revenge on me for "offending" him. Only this time he wasn''t the usual arrogant young master.

    He was the typical arrogant asshole protagonist that was so popular in Chinese web novels these days, all acting like big shots and subscribing to the "strength is everything" bullshit. Right now, he was known for his advanced fire and lightning techniques, but according to the laws of Special Snowflakes protagonists, he would probably unlock summoning magic and shadow magic after he survived this crisis and before he applied for university. He truly was a Versatile Mage.

    If he made a move against me, I would die. On the contrary, if I tried to make a move against him, his plot armor would protect him and I would die. Either way, I was doomed. Not that I regretted speaking up against him. Someone had to say that to the faces of all these ruthless, self-centered, arrogant protagonists or readers were going to lap up the same bullshit about strength every single time. Just look at the damned comments if you don''t believe me. There was some idiot on Forty Millenniums of Cultivation who lamented that it was a waste for a couple of cultivators to sacrifice their lives to protect hundreds of civilians, and he claimed that the civilians should die because it was their fault for being weak. Not a character in the story, mind you, but an actual reader commenting on the story. Then there was the reader in Versatile Mage who labeled the teacher Xue Mu Sheng as useless despite the fact that he organized the vanguard squad and saved Zhang Xiao Hou from a magical beast with his light magic, all because¡­I don''t know. He never gave a proper reason as to why he called the teacher incompetent, other than comparing him against Tang Yue. Like what the fuck was he supposed to do? Magically teleport the students into the shelter?

    Man, these readers were just¡­

    When there was no objections, Teacher Fielding led the way out. The rest of the students watched us anxiously as we exited the gymnasium and headed toward the courtyard. After a brief but ferocious battle against the invading Dire Wolves, the compound was relatively empty, save for corpses and broken debris.

    As we headed toward the gate and toward the city center, a sudden howl caused all of us to freeze. Inclining my neck upward, I watched as a colossal monster descended upon the tallest skyscraper in Jing Tian City, nesting in its roof. Its wings spread out, casting a huge shadow on the district below. Silver fur rippled across gigantic muscles, and a massive jaw widened as the gargantuan creature unleashed another earsplitting howl at the moon.

    "That''s¡­a rank A Silver Wing Wolf King¡­" Teacher Fielding murmured, his face pale. "It has power on par with that of a dragon. Other than General Jiang from the northern fortress, there is no one here capable of fighting a creature of that level¡­"

    Harvey automatically turned to me. "Can''t you just nuke the hell out of it, Senior Richard?"

    "That''s a good point." Craig Carlson grinned. "If you use that nuke spell of yours, not only the Silver Wing Wolf King, you''ll also annihilate all the monsters in the city."

    "Uh, well¡­" I absentmindedly scratched my cheek. "I could, but that thing is in the middle of Jing Tian City."

    "So what?" Bu Fan sneered. "You''re not going to say some bullshit about wanting to spare the city from needless destruction, are you?"

    I sighed. "No, I don''t mind obliterating the monster regardless of where it is, but there might still be civilians around. If I nuke the Silver Wing Wolf King, they might get caught up in the destruction. I''m not going to risk involving innocent people in the destruction."

    "That''s a good point," Theodore agreed thoughtfully. "Until we are sure that the city is empty and everyone has safely evacuated, we can''t just thoughtlessly nuke it."

    "Who cares?!" Bu Fan snarled. "It''s their fault for being weak. They''re fated to die anyway. It''s either death at the monsters'' hands, or a quick and painless death from a Strategic-scale spell. If they can''t help themselves, then we have no obligation to save them. I say we should just destroy them, and in the process avenge all those who were killed."

    Everyone stared at him.

    "Imagine if someone told Richard to nuke the school while you''re still in there, giving the same justification as you did." Dong Fang Yue Chu''s voice was dripping with contempt and disgust. "You would be cursing him for murder while your soul burns in hell."

    "We''ll give everyone an equal chance to survive. We are not going with the nuclear option unless absolutely necessary, and even after doing our best to clear the area of humans and civilians." Teacher Fielding''s tone was final and brooked no argument. Bu Fan fell silent at that, still fuming, but he obviously wasn''t convinced.

    Sighing, I spread my hands helplessly. "What reason do I have to kill monsters? Because I''m protecting my fellow humans and civilians from monsters, right? But if I nuke my fellow humans along with the monsters, then it kind of defeats the whole purpose of slaying those monsters in the first place, doesn''t it?"

    "Oh, shut up!" Bu Fan snapped and stalked off. Lily shook her head as she watched him.

    "I''ll keep an eye on him if I were you."

    "Bu Fan might be arrogant, but he should be trustworthy," Alicia assured her. "He will fall in line and follow instructions."

    I had no doubt that Bu Fan wouldn''t try anything stupid. After all, he was the protagonist, not the villain (though sometimes Chinese web novel protagonists were so shameless, arrogant and ruthless that it was virtually impossible to distinguish between the two). He wasn''t going to backstab or betray or murder me over a grudge. He would find some other way to seek revenge. Maybe when I was in trouble or something, he would just leave me to my fate because he had no obligation to save me, or ditch us when we were trying to rescue civilians along the way. But unlike the typical mindless and one-dimensional antagonists, his head wasn''t full of senseless murder and betrayal. It was safe to trust him to do his part¡­for now.

    "Let''s hurry," Teacher Fielding instructed as he kept an eye on the howling Silver Wing Wolf King. The rank A monster was perched so high up that it was unlikely that it would see us moving through the streets. We were practically ants to a monstrous existence like it, far beneath its notice. He took up his smartphone. "We''ll beam the route back to the other groups'' smartphones by marking it with a holographic overlay."

    Watching the blue-tinted screen and three dimensional map that his phone displayed, I was reminded of a game. It should worked. So we were going to scout ahead for the safest and most optimum path, slaying whatever monsters we could, and then relay the route back once the coast was clear. That worked for me.

    As we left the gates, the scene of carnage greeted us. The city looked as if it had just been wrung through a zombie apocalypse. Overturned cars and wrecked vehicles littered the streets. Buildings had collapsed or were torn open by gargantuan creatures that were no longer here. Corpses lay sprawled and abandoned, their bodies either ripped apart or scorched black beyond recognition. Fires burned in several places, casting an ominous illumination in the blacked out streets. Lampposts had been bent or toppled over, and electricity was cut.

    The city was dead.

    There were still pockets of survivors here and there, moving around and trying to stay out of sight. The majority of them had chosen to hide in their houses or flee for the emergency shelters, which had itself caused a chaos of catastrophic proportions. In the disorderly retreat, many of them were hunted down and slaughtered by the invading monsters. Even those who had chosen to hide at home discovered that their supposedly safe refuges were compromised, with Cyclops Rats erupting from their basements to attack them. The flimsy walls of their homes provided no protection against the rank D Dire Wolves, whose claws and bulk easily tore through concrete as if they were nothing more than sheets of paper.

    The unnatural silence and lack of monsters only served to increase the tension. With only the crackling of flames and the soft sounds of our footsteps to bother our ears, we strained our senses to attempt to detect any nearby enemies, to no avail.

    "Zhang Hou Zi, Harvey, the both of you scout ahead. If you see a monster, quickly report back."

    Teacher Fielding knew the abilities of us students well. Zhang Hou Zi was a wind mage, and Harvey specialized in speed. The two of them nodded and went ahead, while the rest of us followed close behind. Teacher Fielding wasted no time organizing us into staggered formations, with at least two members covering each other. The fifteen-man squad were split into two fire teams and a single scout team, and we moved through a military pattern that I recognized. The first fire team would remain in position to cover the second fire team as they moved forward, and then the second fire team would stay in place until the first fire team caught up. In the meantime, the scouts left a trail through the holographic display on our smartphones, occasionally falling back to report directly to Teacher Fielding.

    Evidently Teacher Fielding had some experience in the military, or he had at least received some military training in the past. He was adept at organizing us into formations and deploying our specialist abilities to their optimal level.

    Crunch.

    We eventually made our way to the main street, which was clogged by cars. Obviously, we weren''t walking along the wide, open road, but if we were forced to, we could use the abandoned vehicles as cover. For now, we stuck close to the buildings and the pavement, scanning the area for any sign of the enemy.

    "Where are the monsters?" Craig murmured. "I don''t see any of them."

    "Could they have already left?" Aoi asked hopefully. Jin Hao shook his head.

    "The Silver Wing Wolf King is still up there. If I''m not mistaken, it''s commanding all the monsters in the vicinity. If it''s still around, then its minions should still be lurking around here."

    "I hope we don''t run into any monsters on the way to the shelter. That would be for the best." Alicia was sensible as always, but hopelessly na?ve.

    "I concur, but reality never turns out the way we want it to." Teacher Fielding sounded grim, even as he marked the route on his smartphone to transmit it to the other groups.

    Then Harvey suddenly doubled back breathlessly, weaving through the abandoned cars and using them as cover to block his relatively tiny silhouette.

    "Sir!" he called out in a hushed voice. "There''s a Cyclops Rat at the gas station at our two o''clock. I think it''s¡­it''s¡­"

    He turned pale and bent over, almost as if he was going to throw up.

    "Are you all right?" I asked, hurrying over and helping him up. Behind, Bu Fan snorted, as if to say that he found Harvey pathetic and useless, despite the fact that he had just brought us vital information regarding the enemy''s location.

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    "Yeah¡­" Harvey tried not to gag. He looked up, his eyes tearing. "It was¡­eating something, I think. It was feeding on a¡­person''s body." He closed his eyes and shuddered violently as he recalled the grisly memory. "A¡­young child."

 154 Chapter 154: Ambush

    "Calm down." I gave Harvey a bottle of water and forced him to take a sip. The poor guy looked like he was going to throw up. "Take a deep breath."

    Harvey nodded and obeyed, accepting the bottle and inhaling heavily. He was still pale, but he seemed to be in better shape than before. I recalled that this wasn''t his first time seeing corpses. He was there when the Crastrate killed our former society members. He was no stranger to death, but even so, seeing a young, innocent child being fed upon by a grotesque monster would leave him shaken.

    He swallowed and glanced up determinedly at us. Behind, Bu Fan sneered, obviously thinking of Harvey as useless and weak, but I ignored the arrogant bastard.

    "A single Cyclops Rat at the gas station, right?" Craig already had his spear out. Sheila also had her spear and shield out as well, the two Crimson Spear society members getting ready for battle. "Should be an easy kill. Our job is to clear the route of monsters, right?"

    "Wait." Teacher Fielding raised a hand and turned back to Harvey. "You said you only saw one Cyclops Rat, right?"

    "That''s correct." Harvey nodded, a little calmer now. "I say we nail the bastard."

    "Yeah!" Craig concurred enthusiastically.

    "No." Teacher Fielding straightened his spine. "Cyclops Rats usually move around in swarms. There shouldn''t only be one of them. There should be more lurking about." He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "This is most likely a trap. The other members of the swarm should be lurking nearby. If we attack recklessly, we''ll only walk right into an ambush."

    As expected of a teacher, he really knew his stuff. Even though I had read about Cyclops Rats and knew they always moved in packs, I didn''t anticipate them being cunning enough to set a trap to ambush unwary human attackers.

    "Harvey, you stay back and take up a position. I want you to keep your eyes and ears out, to detect any sign of the other Cyclops Rats. The moment you find them, let us know immediately. Is that understood?"

    "Yes, sir!" Harvey immediately departed, disappearing into one of the buildings.

    "As for the rest of us¡­" Teacher Fielding grinned as he turned toward us. "Let us set up an ambush of our own."

    *

    Craig, the most enthusiastic one out of us, threw his crimson spear forward and nailed the Cyclops Rat. It was so intent on its meal that it didn''t even notice his presence. The spear impaled the shrieking monster and tore a hole through its body. The bloody remnants of its body flopped down, a mist of blood descending upon the splattered ground.

    I tried not to look at the corpse of the poor child. Craig, on the other hand, calmly strode forward to recover his spear. Sheila moved quickly beside him, to give the illusion that he was not alone. The two of them entered the gas station alone.

    "Bastard," Craig muttered as he yanked his spear from the floor, giving the Cyclops Rat''s carcass a glare.

    "They are here." my smartphone crackled to life as Harvey spoke up. "Multiple signals, heading toward the gas station. Nine o''clock position, six o''clock position and four o''clock. About thirty in total. There are another five coming from the manhole about two meters south of the gas station."

    Harvey had really adapted to his role very well. I wasn''t sure what he was using to detect the Cyclops Rats'' movements, but it certainly wasn''t his magic alone. He was generally a swordsman, but it seemed that he learned the basics of Divination Ba Qi. He would made a final Marine if he ever traveled to a world full of pirates.

    However, he shouldn''t have gotten that far yet, so I assumed he must have some equipment that allowed him to detect the monsters. Later, I would learn that they were video analysis software that he usually used for school matches, but modified slightly for use in reality. That guy had always been smart, and like me, he was a nerd. Just with different hobbies.

    "Stay sharp," Teacher Fielding ordered. "Craig, Sheila, the both of you hold your ground. The moment they show up, we''ll strike."

    "Heh! We''ll try to leave a few for you, teach."

    "Don''t come too late or you''ll miss all the fun," Sheila added, infected by her president''s excitement.

    There was a crumpling of metal as one of the Cyclops Rats clambered atop an abandoned school bus. Craig turned toward it, his spear ready, but it was being accompanied by a couple more of its brethren. Beside him, Sheila turned in the opposite direction as another Cyclops Rat smacked a motorcycle out of its path to crawl toward them. Behind it, another five or six black-furred monstrosities, each with a single glowing red eye, were barely visible.

    "They are here."

    "Fire Team A, Fire Team B, go!" Teacher Fielding instructed.

    Alicia, Jin Hao, Aoi and Theodore Hammond appeared to the rear of the first group, with the first three delivering a hail of deadly fire from range. Alicia was firing with her dual pistols, obliterating the lead Cyclops Rat before it could descend from the bus, its corpse folding forward as bloody craters were etched across its body. Its single eye exploded, an armor-piercing round from her guns obliterating it in a single shot.

    The rest of the Cyclops Rats milled about in confusion, twisting and turning around as they struggled to locate the new source of fire. Jin Hao and Aoi sent out their own ranged devastating spells, raining down fireballs and icicles on the beleaguered swarm. Another two Cyclops Rats went down, incinerated or sliced apart by the magical projectiles.

    A fourth Cyclops Rat rallied and charged toward them while the three of them were still firing upon their respective foes. However, Theodore stepped forward and swung his Mjolnir. There was a crackle of electricity as an explosive thunder echoed through the road. The Cyclops Rat was pulverized by his divine hammer, reduced to a smoking pile of meat and blood.

    As for the Cyclops Rats making their way through the motorcycle, they were suddenly bathed by a torrent of flames. Dong Fang Yue Chu was washing the entire in a massive inferno that ignited the vehicles engulfed within it, detonating their fuel tanks and shredding the blazing Cyclops Rats with deadly shrapnel. One of the Cyclops Rats, which had escaped his flames, lunged at him, but Lily Liam stepped in and stabbed it with her sword. In a single stroke, she cleaved the shrieking creature in half, and then smacked it away with her shield.

    From a distance, I summoned Orion and unleashed a volley of arrows that knocked another batch of Cyclops Rats onto their backs. They screeched and flailed about, impaled in a few dozen places. Before I could finish them off, Harrison Reed stepped in, and with a few well-placed kicks, he obliterated their skulls and vital points.

    No, I wasn''t offended that he stole my kills. We had already agreed on this strategy beforehand, in order to conserve our mana as much as possible. After all, we both suspected that the Cyclops Rats wouldn''t be the only monsters infesting our route toward the emergency shelter. So I simply shifted my aim and fired upon another batch of Cyclops Rats, incapacitating them and rendering them vulnerable for Harrison to deliver the finishing blow.

    Even though we had reinforced the position around the gas station and ambushed the Cyclops Rats who thought they could lure us into a trap, Craig and Sheila were far from idle. They were engaging the Cyclops Rats that were emerging from a manhole not far from their position, slicing them apart with their spears and causing the foul-smelling rats to fall back into the sewers with high-pitched screams.

    "Four o''clock position! They''re coming out from the caf¨¦ on your left, Senior Craig and Senior Sheila!"

    Harvey shouted a warning, having remained in his safe perch to monitor the battlefield. The final batch of Cyclops Rats were streaming out through a shattered glass wall that used to overlook the streets, granting the customers a nice view of the city as they slowly sipped their warm cups of coffee in leisure, but the two Crimson Spear Society members were still busily engaging the enemies that were swarming upward from the manhole. Craig stepped forward to take the brunt of the attack while Sheila withdrew to cover his back, getting ready to face the new threat. The two of them were now fighting back-to-back against an endless swarm of monsters.

    Harrison and I moved to reinforce them, but we were having to deal with enemies of our own. At least ten more Cyclops Rats had shown up to engage our group, and while Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily had taken half of them off our hands by confronting them, we still couldn''t back them up in time.

    "Reserve Fire Team, go support Fire Team 0!"

    A torrent of flames blasted through the gas station and set the approaching Cyclops Rats ablaze. Lightning bolts descended, electrocuting the already flailing Cyclops Rats and searing them into ash. Those that survived were promptly torn apart by wind blades as Zhang Hou Zi closed the gap, ruffled by the huge gusts that blew around his levitating body. Below, Bu Fan unleashed fire from one hand and lightning from another, decimating the fresh group of Cyclops Rats. Whatever Cyclops Rat closed in on him were cut apart by Zhang Hou Zi, and Bu Fan casually raised a hand and incinerated a Cyclops Rat that tried to pounce on his buddy from above.

    I had to admit that despite his arrogance, Bu Fan was still a topnotch mage. His spells were powerful, his flames rivaling that of Dong Fang Yue Chu. And he even had lightning magic that was just as destructive as Theodore''s. The bastard was really a cheat character. in any other story, he would be the protagonist, and most likely find out that he could master two more elements when he tried to get into university.

    Chinese web novel protagonists really had it easy.

    A noise drew my attention toward a building. Harvey was forced to evacuate his position as a stray Cyclops Rat stumbled upon him. Fortunately, Harvey managed to detect it before it could eviscerate him, and despite slashing at his assailant with a sword, he only dealt superficial wounds. Before he could finish it off, a second Cyclops Rat joined his brethren and he was forced to retreat.

    I had just incapacitating the five Cyclops Rats that Harrison was currently finishing off, and I swiftly shifted my aim to take down the Cyclops Rats pursuing the fleeing Harvey. However, before I could fire anything, the two Cyclops Rats vanished in explosions of blood and gore.

    Teacher Fielding had pulverized the both of them with a couple of punches.

    "Go! Join the group!" he ordered. Harvey nodded and scrambled toward us. I covered his retreat by shooting down a couple of Cyclops Rats, which Teacher Fielding stomped into oblivion as he slowly made his way toward our position, but there was nothing more for me to do except wait for Harvey to join us. Harrison had completed his grisly task and was also strolling back to us, his eyes cautiously scanning the surrounding area for more threats. Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily were also withdrawing, after having dispatched their foes.

    Alicia and her group were mopping up the last of their foes, and the trickle from the sewers had halted, allowing Craig to join Sheila, Bu Fan and Zhang Hou Zi in destroying the group of Cyclops Rats from the caf¨¦. Just as a cautionary measure, Craig sealed the manhole with a crimson barrier, just in case any more of them decided to emerge from there.

    "Nothing else is in the sewers in the vicinity," Harvey reported, having laid out his device to track movements. "Nothing living, anyway."

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    "Good job, everyone." Teacher Fielding approached us, not even breaking a sweat after destroying the Cyclops Rats. Well, they were mostly rank F monsters, so they were pretty much fodder, especially when compared to a veteran like him. In fact, the majority of us had fought higher-ranked monsters and survived, so this wasn''t much of a surprise. Even so, we couldn''t let our guard down and be complacent. He nodded approvingly as he surveyed our dirtied state to ensure one of us were hurt. "A minute''s break. Drink some water, recover some strength, and then we move on."

    "Yes, sir!"

    Appreciating the chance to take a breather, I dropped to the ground to recover my breath. Glancing at the distance, I saw that the Silver Wing Wolf King was still perched atop the spire of the tallest skyscraper in Jing Tian City. The bastard probably didn''t even notice the small skirmish that had taken place here.

    Someday, I was going to nuke that bastard¡­and then I was going to hunt down those Dark Church fuckers who set these monsters loose in my city, and made them pay dearly for ever thinking they could screw with us and get away with it.

 155 Chapter 155: Silver Skeletal Wolf

    We made good progress as we doubled our pace toward the shelter. Teacher Fielding made sure to mark the route in the holographic map and sent it back to the rest of the school. Along the way, we managed to prevail over a pack of Dire Wolves and a couple of Thunder Wolves. Fortunately, the two types of monsters moved separately, unlike that time with the assault on Jing Tian Academy, and the pack of Dire Wolves was about ten, much less than the previous wave, otherwise we would be in a lot of trouble.

    With our combined might and experience, we were able to slay them. I shuddered to think what would have happened if the pack of Dire Wolves was larger and led by three Thunder Wolves. Some of us might meet the same fate as Teacher Ji Lu Da Shi and his team. At the very least, we would have sustain a few casualties and be slowed down considerably.

    Fortunately, we managed to clear the first two kilometers of monsters. There was no guarantee that no new monsters would arrive and cross the route while the other groups were moving out ¨C especially with so many groups ¨C but we didn''t have a choice. Moving in a large main group was suicidal and would definitely draw the attention of monsters like moths to a light. Each group was going to have to scout its way around and update the holographic map for the other groups that followed. We could only do so much.

    Harvey was moving nimbly above, using his magic to propel himself upward. Unlike the rest of us, he could spare the energy because he was meant to avoid combat. Stopping on one high vantage point, he used both his senses and equipment to scout ahead and track the movements of any monsters that might be nearby.

    "I hope we don''t run into any Thunder Wolves again," Theodore mutter, shaking his hand. Apparently it had gotten numb when he used his arm to parry a strike from a Thunder Wolf earlier. "Those things are vicious."

    "You''re actually saying that!?" Craig complained. Unlike Theodore, he was scorched in several areas and his uniform was slightly tattered. "You have some resistance to lightning magic, being an electric-type mage and all!"

    "It''s just not very effective against me, but that doesn''t mean I''m completely immune to the effects of lightning magic."

    "Quiet, all of you!" Teacher Fielding snapped. "Maintain field discipline!"

    Everyone fell silent. Our combat magic instructor glanced up at Harvey, who was still looking around intently for enemies.

    "Anything?"

    "Not that I can see, sir," Harvey replied before he jumped to another high vantage point ¨C a broken building a block down.

    "Good. Keep moving, everyone. Just one more kilometer and we''ll reach the shelter. Keep your guard up!"

    We proceeded to the next block using the standard fire and movement pattern that Teacher Fielding had drilled into us. One group moved forward while the second group covered them, and then we moved forward while they covered us. Using such military maneuvers, we were able to watch out for any enemies and guard against ambushes.

    It had worked for us so far.

    "There''s a group of mages fighting about five hundred meters to our two o''clock," Harvey reported as he perched atop a shattered balcony of an apartment building that was overlooking a park. At the edge of the park, he could see a row of bungalows, and beyond that, he saw conflagrations and explosions in the distances as pockets of resistance clashed with invading monsters. "Should we reinforce them?"

    "No point." Teacher Fielding shook his head. "Our mission is to secure a safe route for the other students and staff of our school, not rescue other survivors. In any case, they''re too far. By the time we reach there, the outcome will already be decided. We''ll draw too much attention to us if we merge with a larger group and we don''t have unlimited mana to get involved in too many battles either."

    "Understood."

    Harvey was about to move to the next block when he spotted something fearsome rear above and over the roof of one of the bungalow houses ringing the park. Three crimson eyes glowed as they swept across the ruined greenery in search of fresh prey. Its immense jaws yawned open, revealing teeth the size of swords, and the silver bone-like spikes that surrounded its head in a deadly mane gleamed under the moonlight. Judging from how it towered over such a huge three-story bungalow house, Harvey judged that it was almost nine meters in height.

    And the power it exuded¡­its intimidating presence¡­it overpowered even the demonic auras of the Thunder Wolves he witnessed earlier. In fact, he was reminded of the Crastrate that nearly killed him so many months ago.

    His breath caught in his throat, Harvey froze in reflex.

    "Harvey? Are you all right?"

    Harrison noticed that our junior had stopped moving from fear and was staring wide-eyed in a fixed direction, but because our view was blocked by the row of shop houses that shielded us from the park, we couldn''t see the immense wolf monster that had struck so much horror into Harvey''s heart.

    Harvey slowly turned around, his eyes as round as saucers. He kept his head down and carefully crawled toward a corner of the second story of the broken shop house before turning to us and raising a shaking finger to his lips. His fear was visible.

    "What¡­?" Craig was about to ask, but Sheila kicked him in his ankle, causing him to stop and grimace in pain.

    Teacher Fielding, being much more experienced than us, was the next to sense the tremendous, super-heavy demonic aura of the newly appeared monster, and he hastily gestured for all of us to take cover. Without asking any questions, we all obeyed in reflex, diving to whatever cover we could. Behind shattered walls, broken furniture or torn shelves.

    I had taken shelter under a still relatively intact cafeteria table, where an abandoned cup of water still stood on its blemished surface.

    A rattling current of wind blew across the air, along with a foul stink. And then I realized it wasn''t a gust of wind, but the exhalation of some enormous creature.

    Boom.

    Boom.

    In front of my wide eye, the cup of water began shaking. Tremors from the footfalls of something massive and heavy were sending vibrations throughout not just the cup of water but the entire table. I watched as the rattling cup slowly slid toward the edge of the table. And then it fell off.

    I caught it by reflex before it could hit the ground and shatter. Water streamed through my fingers and dripped onto the ground, but at least it didn''t make a noise as a cup would if it had shattered against the concrete. Breathing shallowly in relief, I carefully set the now-empty cup down on the ground and then looked up.

    Then I saw it.

    The enormous wolf head, covered in a mane of silver, skeletal spikes.

    It was still some distance away, yet the fact that I could still see it so clearly and vividly spoke volumes about its immense size.

    "W¡­what the hell is that?!" Zhang Xiao Hou whispered in a trembling voice.

    "Rank B monster¡­a Silver Skeletal Wolf. Like normal wolves, it has extremely sharp senses of hearing and smell, and its body is as hard as steel. It''s known more for its fearsome bone structure ¨C an almost indestructible skeleton, coupled with the ability to fire off bone spikes with the force of a railgun, capable of piercing through several meters of steel plating."

    "There''s no way we can defeat a monster of such rank and power," Theodore murmured, his deep voice tinged with despair.

    "Yes, we can." Craig was staring at me with a grin. Unfortunately, I wasn''t as optimistic as him. On the contrary, the thought of fighting another rank B monster like the damned Crastrate had me quaking in my boots. Well, not literally, but suffice to say I was far from enthusiastic about getting beaten up and hospitalized for another week.

    "I only defeated a rank B Crastrate the other time by nuking it with a Strategic-scale spell. And obviously I can only use that once every few days¡­once a day, if I force it and don''t pass out from the effort. And we already discussed why it''s not a good idea to unleash that spell inside the city."

    "And it''s not a good idea to waste his Strategic-scale spell here. Even if we do succeed in destroying the rank B Silver Skeletal without accidentally killing anyone in the vicinity, such a release of so much mana will draw all the monsters in the city toward our position." Teacher Fielding jabbed a thumb in the vague direction of the skyscraper. "Worst case scenario, we attract the attention of the rank A Silver Wing Wolf King, and then we''ll all die. Especially after using up our trump card. You think he''s going to sit around and watch after seeing an area of what he now thinks of as his territory get blown up by humans?"

    "It''s best to avoid it," Bu Fan agreed ominously, his eyes haunted. "We''ve to conserve our mana as much as possible. Perhaps he military might be able to deal with it. They have much higher-level mages than us students."

    "I''ll have to leave a message to the other groups and inform them there is a rank B monster in the area." Teacher Fielding was already retrieving his smartphone to fabricate the warning. Almost everyone nodded, but Craig seemed displeased.

    "We can''t keep running away like this. The Silver Skeletal Wolf will run into several of our groups eventually and slaughter them." he thought for a while. "My Crimson Spear can pierce through any defense. And even if it can''t, I''m sure that even a rank B monster has a weak point. If we can find it and exploit it, we should be able to slay the Silver Skeletal Wolf with a surprise attack."

    Teacher Fielding considered his suggestion for a moment. "Theoretically, it is possible¡­but it is also extremely risky. If we fail to kill the Silver Skeletal Wolf in a single strike, we''ll be the ones who get annihilated in the ensuing battle."

    "So we risk letting the other groups run into it and getting slaughtered in our place?"

    Everyone glanced at each other. On one hand, we weren''t very enthusiastic about risking our lives and fighting such a dangerous monster, but on the other hand, we couldn''t in our right conscience let it roam freely in the area when we knew it would inevitably stumble across at least a few of the following groups. Furthermore, the sixth group would be the walking wounded led by Teacher Cure. We could try and devise an alternative route that avoided the Silver Skeletal Wolf, but how far could we deviate from our path to the emergency shelter? Given the size and power of the Silver Skeletal Wolf, it would eventually stumble across the groups, no matter how we meticulously planned out a route to avoid it. Perhaps the first few groups could avoid it, but then what about the others when the Silver Skeletal Wolf suddenly decided to move on? If we were lucky, it would move away from our established routes, but what if we were unlucky?

    And could we really leave the fates of others to luck?

    "That''s their problem," Bu Fan replied without hesitation. "We are not obligated to risk our lives for others. We have done everything we can, and did our best to plot a route that''s as safe as possible under the circumstances. We''ve eliminated the majority of monsters in the route. The other groups will have to work their own way around and adjust accordingly with the information they are given, and the circumstances will constantly change. There''s no guarantee no new monsters will not show up in our route a few hours after we''ve cleared them, while the last few groups are moving out. Each group will have to deal with their own crises and manage their own journey to the shelter by themselves. We have already done everything we can to help them out. We are not obligated to throw our lives away in a suicidal attack on a rank B monster. If you want to be a martyr, go ahead and be one yourself. Don''t involve the rest of us in your suicidal heroics."

    "Why, you¡­!" Craig growled, but Teacher Fielding raised a hand to forestall him.

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    "Bu Fan has a point. We have and will achieve the minimum objective of our mission ¨C to plot a safe route toward the shelter and avoid as many monsters as possible. We are not obligated to risk our lives against a monster that''s so much more powerful than us. My obligation is not just to the other students, but also to you all ¨C I intend to ensure that all of you survive the journey to the shelter."

    Craig fell silent, unable to argue.

    "However¡­the moment all of you volunteered for this vanguard mission, you should have known the risks. So yes, we are obligated to risk our lives for others. I already warned you of this when I asked for volunteers." His strict eyes fell on Bu Fan, but credit to the person who would normally be the protagonist, he didn''t argue. "And we are to clear the route of monsters, to the best of our ability. If there is a chance we can eliminate the Silver Skeletal Wolf, then we should consider it. I will weigh the odds of success, and if it''s too much against us, then we''ll reject Craig''s suggestion. But if there is a decent chance of success¡­then I say we go for it. It is too dangerous to allow a Silver Skeletal Wolf to run loose in this area between our school and the nearest shelter, after all."

    He folded his arms.

    "I did warn you of the risks and dangers when I said this will be strictly voluntary, so you shouldn''t have any complaints."

    "None," Bu Fan replied evenly, his expression unreadable. "I''ll go with whatever decision you take, Teacher Fielding."

    I sighed in relief. That was somewhat of a relief. Despite his arrogance and attitude, his ability was undeniable. His lightning and fire magic would undoubtedly make a difference in the battle against the Silver Skeletal Wolf. Even though I hated to rely on someone like him, I was going to take anything I could get against such a formidable foe.

    "Do you know what the weak point of the Silver Skeletal Wolf is, Teacher Fielding?" Alicia asked curiously. We had huddled around him, keeping our voices low so as to not be overheard by the rank B monster. A pointless effort, if you ask me. The senses of a wolf-type monster were extremely acute. If it could hear us, it would, regardless of whether we were whispering or yelling. Moreover, it would probably sniff us out before it caught a single word from us.

    The only saving grace was that it was pretty far from us at the moment.

    Teacher Fielding considered for a moment. "The neck," he finally said. "Craig, you will have to slice open its carotid artery and jugular vein. With your spells, you should be able to hinder its ability to regenerate and heal its wounds, so if you deal it a fatal blow there, it would bleed to death almost immediately."

    "Leave it to me!" Craig said determinedly. Teacher Fielding nodded and glanced toward us.

    "The rest of us will draw its attention so that it won''t be able to see Craig''s attack coming."

    While the others nodded, I was thinking about the vulnerabilities of the Silver Skeletal Wolf. The back of its neck was protected by a mane of near indestructible bony spikes, its heart and lungs were encased in a sturdy ribcage, and most of its vitals were protected by hard bone. It also possessed a relatively high resistance against magic spells as well. Recalling how resilient the Crastrate was, refusing to die until I finally nuked it with Scorpio''s Antares, I began to dread how tough the battle would be if we failed to kill it in a single blow.

    And given the size and raw strength the Silver Skeletal Wolf possessed, it could easily crush us squishy humans with a single strike of its claws.

    Like Teacher Fielding said, we would ended up being the ones annihilated if we failed to slay it in the first strike.

    Gulping, I prayed that we would succeed, but I was sure we had just triggered a mission failure flag somehow.

 156 Chapter 156: Strike the Blood Vessel

    Just as we suspected, it didn''t take long before the Silver Skeletal Wolf approached our position. Had we been one of the other groups instead of the vanguard team, we would surely be in trouble even if we had received the warning. There was no other way except to lay low, hide and pray that the Silver Skeletal Wolf didn''t find them.

    They would be out of luck, however. The Silver Skeletal Wolf was known for its keen sense of smell and could probably sniff out human prey once it was close enough. I had heard that dogs could pick up the scents of everything up to twenty-five meters away, and follow trails up to 130 miles away. So once the Silver Skeletal Wolf got within perhaps thirty meters or so within us, it would definitely sniff us out.

    As the vanguard squad, we were supposed to clear out any monsters in the vicinity anyway, so we might as well do our job. Of course, there was the alternative of locating another safe route that would take us away from the Silver Skeletal Wolf, but if we leave it be, there was no telling it would move its location and stumble upon that new route eventually. And with fifty-odd groups following after us, the chances of that happening were high.

    Honestly, though, I was sure that Craig and the others just wanted to test their skills against a rank B monster and obtain fame and glory. They were still smarting from that defeat against the Crastrate so long ago, and wanted to see if their training had paid off and how much stronger they had become. For my part, I was less enthusiastic precisely because of the thrashing I received before I finally nuked it, but admittedly I did want to see how far I had progressed and if I could finally fight on par with a rank B monster.

    With a group of reliable allies, this was the best chance to grab that achievement without always relying on spells of mass destruction.

    The Silver Skeletal Wolf suddenly stood up rigidly, its glowing red eyes shifting to stare at the buildings we were hiding in. It had clearly picked up our scent and was tracking our locations. There was no longer any point staying concealed.

    "Go, go, go! Fire at will!"

    Teacher Fielding barked out the order, and we sprang into action. Theodore Hammond, the closest mage, leaped forward and smashed his Thunder Hammer into the gut of the Silver Skeletal Wolf, eliciting an enraged howl. The Silver Skeletal Wolf swiped at him, but he ducked and rolled out of the way before those terrifying claws cloud tear him apart. While it was distracted, Alicia fired a few shots that smacked into its head, causing it to stagger.

    Then Dong Fang Yue Chu and Jin Hao launched two torrents of fire that bathed the screeching Silver Skeletal Wolf. The monster bellowed and cut both streams of flames apart with its bone-like claws. The moment it did, a lightning bolt descended and struck it from head to toe, courtesy of Bu Fan, who had spent the time preparing his large-scale spell.

    Despite the devastating spell capable of demolishing an entire building, the Silver Skeletal Wolf emerged from the destructive electricity with little more than a few scorches. Snarling, it fired a volley of bone spikes that forced all of us to jump back. Lily managed to get in front of Dong Fang Yue Chu and Jin Hao, using her shield to deflect the bones, but she was pushed back and fell right into Yue Chu''s waiting arms. On the other side, Sheila covered Alicia and Bu Fan by deflecting the bone spikes with her twirling spear.

    As soon as the bombardment of bones stopped, Mizuno Aoi darted forward and slammed both hands on the ground. Ice expanded outward and trapped the Silver Skeletal Wolf, encasing its legs. Growling, the gargantuan monster broke free of the ice, sending sharp fragments raining down on the concrete.

    She bought enough time for both Theodore and Harrison to launch their attacks. The former slammed his heavy hammer against the gigantic wolf''s knee, while the latter kicked its other leg behind the knee. The monster shrieked as it toppled over, forced to throw up of its arms to stop itself from burying its face into the rubble.

    While the Silver Skeletal Wolf was down and helpless, Aoi quickly froze and encased its four limbs with its ice spell to delay its movements and reflexes. The monster tried to shift, but before it could, Craig launched his attack. Diving from one of the taller buildings, he descended and lashed out with his crimson spear.

    The attack struck true.

    Like a missile homing in on its target, the crimson spear slid between bony plates of armor and slit the relatively soft and vulnerable flesh of the Silver Skeletal Wolf''s throat. Blood spurted out like a fountain as Craig cut open its carotid artery, bathing the entire area in a shower of red. The Silver Skeletal Wolf clutched at its throat as it howled, staggering backward and whining in pain and shock.

    "We did it!" Sheila cheered when she saw her president succeed. Craig hit the ground and rolled to his feet, his spear still at the ready.

    "Take that, you bastard!" he sneered.

    "Watch out!"

    "!!!"

    The Silver Skeletal Wolf retaliated against its would-be killer with a swipe of its claws, a sudden surge of strength allowing it to break free of its frosty restraints. Craig was almost taken by surprise, but before he could defend himself, Teacher Fielding got between him and the wolf monster. Using his Armament Ba Qi, he deflected the claw to one side, and then punched the reeling, bleeding monster in the gut with such force the gargantuan creature was actually thrown off its feet and sent hurtling into a nearby building.

    It vanished underneath falling rubble, a trail of blood from its ruptured carotid artery (or equivalent) leaving a fine spray in the air.

    "Did we¡­do it?" Jin Hao asked.

    "No!" Harvey called out from his perch, where he was supposed to observe the battle and warn us of unexpected developments (such as other monsters coming). "It''s still alive!"

    "But how?" Alicia asked, surprised. "We delivered a fatal blow, didn''t we?"

    No one had an answer. The Silver Skeletal Wolf rose unsteadily to its feet, debris raining down from its massive form. It clamped a claw over its bleeding neck and grunted. Right before our amazed eyes, it sealed the wound by generating a square-like clump of bone and adhering it to its throat. The blood slowed to a trickle before finally stopping.

    "It can do that?!" Craig yelled angrily. "How?!"

    "Does it matter?" Theodore replied calmly. "We just have to improvise our plan and find another way to kill it."

    "Easier said than done," Dong Fang Yue Chu muttered. "We just hit it with everything we got and we barely left a scratch!"

    "Should we retreat?" Bu Fan asked coldly, turning to stare at Teacher Fielding. He obviously thought this plan wasn''t a good idea to begin with, and his expression was full of contempt. At least he didn''t vocalize that in the middle of a battle, where emotions were running high and everyone was heated. As much as he annoyed me, I had to admit that he was intelligent.

    Teacher Fielding considered for a moment, and then shook his head. "We won''t be able to outrun a monster of that level. Besides, now that it has captured our scents, it will pursue us endlessly¡­all the way to the shelter. I don''t know if the military has reached there yet¡­we might end up putting other refugees in danger."

    "So we have no choice but to fight to the death, huh?" Bu Fan turned back to watch the approaching Silver Skeletal Wolf with a grim expression. Zhang Hou Zi swooped down beside him, generating wind currents in his hands.

    "I''ll stand with you, Brother Fan!"

    The Silver Skeletal Wolf''s movements were still sluggish because it had just sustained a fatal injury. Even so, it was sober enough to launch another volley of bones at us.

    "Everyone! Behind me!"

    At that moment, Black Tortoise came into being and covered everyone in a shimmering barrier. While the others were fighting, I had been casting my summoning spells. Actually, I had been casting them ever since I had gotten into position and awaited the arrival of the Silver Skeletal Wolf. The water sphere extended across the perimeter, changing into a ring-shaped torrent of water that enveloped every human in the vicinity. The bones struck the water, which folded and deformed slightly as it absorbed the impact, only to toss them away.

    "Gr¡­"

    The Silver Skeletal Wolf glared at us, revealing its sword-like teeth as it took another step forward. It turned toward Craig as he was the one who had dealt such a lethal strike, and it wasn''t going to let its guard down again. Craig, for his part, grinned as he readied his spear with two hands and got ready to throw it.

    "Bring it on!"

    He then hurled his spear out of the water sphere, his weapon turning into a demonic red streak that sent a sonic boom as it hurtled across the air. The Silver Skeletal Wolf could only throw up its armored arms and crossed it in front of its chest before the spear slammed into it. Tearing through layers of armored bone, Craig''s spear managed to pierce its chest. The barbed tip hit home, drilling through the wolf''s reinforced skeleton in an attempt to destroy its heart.

    Snarling, the Silver Skeletal Wolf grabbed Craig''s spear and hurled it aside. Craig raised his hand, and his crimson weapon automatically returned to him.

    "Damn, all that and I still couldn''t finish it off?"

    The Silver Skeletal Wolf turned on him, but Vermillion Phoenix descended from the heavens with a screech. The great Celestial Guardian unleashed an inferno that turned the surroundings into hell, molten rubble and concrete flowing underneath the howling Silver Skeletal Wolf. Several bone spikes fired off into the air, forcing Vermillion Phoenix to dodge. Even as his fiery barrier melted some of the bones into slag, enough projectiles were able to pierce the veil of fire and almost turned him into a pincushion.

    "Dong Fang Yue Chu! Jin Hao! Cooperate with me!"

    While we were distracting the Silver Skeletal Wolf, with Teacher Fielding, Theodore, Harrison, Sheila and Lily joining Craig in attacking the scorched beast, Bu Fan issued an order to the two elemental mages.

    "What?"

    "Synchronize with me. We''re going to throw a combined inferno spell at that bastard."

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    Bu Fan had noticed the effects of my Vermillion Phoenix''s flames on the Silver Skeletal Wolf, and he had thought of something. Dong Fang Yue Chu and Jin Hao exchanged glances, but they nodded and obeyed. The three of them gathered together and began coalescing their mana.

    Teacher Fielding noticed what they were doing, and the moment their magic reached his peak, he threw out an order.

    "Everyone, fall back! Now!"

    Following his lead, Craig and the others immediately retreated. The Silver Skeletal Wolf growled at us, but hesitated because of our unexpected actions.

    That hesitation proved to be fatal.

    Bu Fan, Dong Fang Yue Chu and Jin Hao launched their combined fire spell, which engulfed the Silver Skeletal Wolf in hellish flames that burned a massive molten crater into the ground. The rank B monster itself was howling in agony as it was incinerated, but incredibly enough, it survived the blast. Fumes smoking from its now blackened bone armor, it snarled as it turned its glowing red eyes in Bu Fan''s direction, hatred visible in its slit pupils.

    "Even that couldn''t kill it?" Bu Fan grumbled through gritted teeth. "Rank B monsters are not to be underestimated."

    That was when I noticed the blood. It was dripping from underneath a scorched, almost melted bony plate that was hanging loosely at the side of the Silver Skeletal Wolf''s throat.

    An idea formed in my mind.

    "Again! It''s been severely weakened! If we can keep this up, we might be able to defeat it!"

    Teacher Fielding was leading the charge again, Theodore, Craig, Sheila, Lily and Harrison following him. The Silver Skeletal Wolf swiped at him, forcing them to keep their distance. Even when so terribly wounded, the beast was still dangerous. A single attack would be enough to kill us. I could still remember the awful strength of the Crastrate. That Fiend was a lot faster than the Silver Skeletal Wolf, but the latter was a lot more powerful.

    Fortunately, its slow and cumbersome attacks were easier to dodge. Thanks to that, nobody had sustained any casualties.

    Yet.

    The Silver Skeletal Wolf was buckling under the combined assault. With an experienced veteran like Teacher Fielding taking command, we weren''t being annihilated as we were back during the campfire party, where a single Crastrate singlehandedly destroyed a hundred students. Admittedly, the twelve of us here were among the best of the best in our school, but having a competent commander taking the lead was allowing us to prevail.

    For now.

    "!!! Everyone get back!"

    Teacher Fielding noticed something abnormal about the Silver Skeletal Wolf. It had hunkered down, almost as if curling into a ball. At first all of us thought it was merely protecting itself from our constant barrage of attacks. After all, in addition to the melee mages assaulting it in close combat, Alicia and Aoi were providing long-ranged fire with their projectile spells. Dong Fang Yue Chu, Jin Hao, Bu Fan and Zhang Hou Zi were also bombarding it with ranged spells whenever they saw an opening, to cover an ally from being struck by stray bones or claws.

    It seemed our teamwork was paying off¡­until then.

    "!?"

    "Get back to Richard''s barrier! Quickly!"

    He was too late. The Silver Skeletal Wolf seemed to explode, lightning surging out of the points of its bony spikes and arcing across the entire area. The devastating electricity caught the unwary students by surprise, electrocuting them. Screams and smoke filled the air, shockwaves rippled across the entire space as people were sent flying.

    By the time the fumes dissipated, we were greeted with a dreadful sight. Only Teacher Fielding remained standing, but the rest of our close combat mages were all down, their bodies convulsing as lethal electricity coursed through them.

 157 Chapter 157: Cut off the Head

    "Everyone, retreat!"

    Teacher Fielding was shouting, but it was too late. All of the close combat fighters were down, and the long range mages weren''t about to abandon their comrades. Bu Fan, Dong Fang Yue Chu and Jin Hao launched another inferno spell that bathed the wounded Silver Skeletal Wolf and sent it staggering again, but was unable to incinerate completely. Meanwhile Aoi and Alicia were covering Zhang Hou Zi as he dashed forward to conjure wind spells to lift the convulsing warrior-mages to safety without touching them and getting electrocuted.

    Right¡­a Fiend-class monster like the Silver Skeletal Wolf would surely be capable of casting elemental spells like its lower-ranked Elemental-class brethren. We were careless¡­or we probably didn''t anticipate that it could fire off high-voltage electricity in addition to its volleys of bone spikes.

    "Damn it¡­if only Senior Pearl was here too¡­" Alicia muttered as she dropped her guns to apply emergency first aid. However, unlike Pearl, she was unable to cast healing spells, and could only perform the most basic treatment.

    "Senior Pearl is with Teacher Cure and the injured," Aoi reminded her, trying to fight off her panic. "They are taking care of the wounded with all the other healing mages. They need every help they can get."

    "Don''t worry¡­they aren''t dead," Teacher Fielding assured them as he crouched beside them to check on their injuries. "They''re fried slightly, but they should recover in fifteen minutes. All of them have strong magical resistance. They just need some time to adapt to the attack and foreign mana invading their bodies."

    "I''m not sure we have that time!" Harvey murmured as he dropped down to join them and offer his assistance at basic first aid.

    "Yeah." Teacher Fielding turned to Zhang Hou Zi. "How fast can you carry all of them away with your wind magic?"

    The wind mage winced. "Not very fast, especially with so many of them. I don''t think I can outrun the Silver Skeletal Wolf while transporting all of them."

    "We''ll buy you the time you need to get them to safety. Harvey, you''re the scout. You''re to go ahead and look for a route without any enemies and locate a safe refuge. Zhang Hou Zi will follow you."

    "Understood!"

    While they were discussing their plans, Dong Fang Yue Chu, Bu Fan and Jin Hao continued their bombardment of flames at the howling Silver Skeletal Wolf. The rank B monster growled and lightning erupted from it, sizzling through the flames and dissipating them harmlessly. Even so, it was clear that it had taken quite some damage.

    "The damned thing just won''t die!" Bu Fan grumbled in frustration.

    "Watch out!" Jin Hao yelled as the Silver Skeletal Wolf retaliated with a barrage of electricity. This time, the water barrier from Black Tortoise protected them from the deadly bolts, forming a ring that surrounded the Silver Skeletal Wolf and blocked off its attacks.

    I would have done the same to protect the close combat mages earlier, but they were too close to the Silver Skeletal Wolf and too far from Black Tortoise''s protective aura for me to have made it in time. In contrast, Dong Fang Yue Chu and the ranged mages were at a distance from the monster and closer to my Black Tortoise, so it was easier for me to protect them.

    "So this is a rank B monster, huh?" Dong Fang Yue Chu shook his head. "It''s just as powerful as the Crastrate from before."

    "That''s because they are both rank B," Jin Hao pointed out impatiently, having also engaged the Crastrate in combat before.

    "On the bright side, we aren''t getting immediately slaughtered like last time, so it seems that we have gotten a lot stronger than before!"

    As expected of the optimistic Dong Fang Yue Chu, he was always looking for the positives.

    "Not that it''s going to help us much," Bu Fan sighed, infuriated. "We''ve to retreat. We can''t beat this monster."

    "Yes, we can!"

    At that moment, I launched myself from one of the scorched buildings, drawing both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. Vermillion Phoenix had shrunk to his chibi form and was flying right next to me as I lunged toward the Silver Skeletal Wolf.

    He then disappeared and transformed into twin torrents of flames that blazed along the black and white blades of Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. The Silver Skeletal Wolf turned toward me with a snarl, but Alicia''s projectiles slammed into its face, causing it to stagger.

    "Cover him!" Bu Fan ordered, realizing what I was about to do. Dong Fang Yue Chu and Jin Hao immediately obeyed, joining him in launching a barrage of fireballs that seared through the bone-white armor that protected the howling wolf monster.

    Hurrying forward, Aoi slammed both hands against the ground and froze the Silver Skeletal Wolf''s legs. The Fiend-class monster growled and swiped at the expanding ice, smashing it, and then tried to shield its face from the relentless hail of magical projectiles from Alicia and the devastating rain of fireballs from the three guys.

    It was forced to turn away from me for a split second.

    That split second was more than enough.

    With a single swing of both of my swords, I slashed at the bleeding part of its throat, where the scorched, weakened armor plating that protected its ruptured carotid artery was. Infusing both my swords with every ounce of mana I could muster, I succeeded in cleaving through the bone. My flaming swords actually sank deeply into soft flesh and cut in before hitting bone. Bolstering my strength with physical reinforcement spells (I still hadn''t gotten to the stage of Ba Qi yet), I yelled desperately as I worked my swords through the tough bone.

    Vermillion Phoenix''s Solar Flare spell must have come through for I managed to melt the bone with the superheated flames running along my blades. In another couple of strokes I actually succeeded in decapitating the Silver Skeletal Wolf.

    Sizzle!

    Blood spurted from the Silver Skeletal Wolf''s severed neck like a geyser. I landed on the ground, rolling to reduce the impact, and stumbled to a crouch while using both swords to support myself. Behind me, the Silver Skeletal Wolf''s disembodied head struck the ground, the glow in its hatred-suffused red eyes fading away along with its life.

    The headless body of the Silver Skeletal Wolf staggered for a moment, as if still trying to absorb the shock of losing its head, and then it toppled over. The massive corpse crashed into a nearby building, the concrete giving way as tons of bone fell against it, but the majority of the structure held firm, propping up the carcass.

    "¡­we did it¡­"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was gaping at me in shock.

    "That bastard actually did it!" Bu Fan muttered, just as amazed as my friend.

    "YES!"

    "Ha ha ha ha!"

    "I knew Senior Richard could do it!"

    Jin Hao was cheering, and Zhang Hou Zi was laughing from sheer relief. Harvey, as usual, was beaming with that knowing grin, as if he had suspected I had planned this all along. No, I didn''t. I just thought I could exploit the weakness that opened up when the three ranged mages incinerated the Silver Skeletal Wolf with their fire spells.

    "I¡­don''t believe it¡­a rank B monster¡­we slew it¡­"

    Aoi collapsed to her knees, her mouth open. Teacher Fielding shook his head with an amused smile as he helped her up.

    "Well, this isn''t the first time Richard took down a rank B monster¡­though admittedly he didn''t need to cast a Strategic-scale spell to do it this time."

    "It''s only because everyone worked together," I pointed out, exhausted. Vermillion Phoenix and Black Tortoise had faded away, the flames dissipating from my two swords before I sheathed them. "There''s no way I could have cut off the Silver Skeletal Wolf''s head if everyone didn''t weaken it at first."

    That was the truth. I didn''t care if readers were calling me weak and pathetic in the comments, but reality was harsh. This wasn''t a world where I could go solo and emerge a hero. If I had tried that same stunt when I was alone, it would have ended up like Craig''s attempt, with the Silver Skeletal Wolf sealing its wound with a bone armor, and then it would proceed to kick my ass just like the Crastrate so long ago.

    I was glad I had reliable comrades who cooperated. Every person had their role, and each spell and attack counted. If Alicia and the rest didn''t distract the Silver Skeletal Wolf when I was trying to deliver that last blow, it would have swatted me out of the sky and slaughtered me mercilessly.

    I had trusted the others to realize what I was going to do, and my faith was not misplaced. Alicia had reacted the quickest, being the first to offer support, while Bu Fan and the other two also helped out. Aoi''s ice magic also made the entire difference, distracting the Silver Skeletal Wolf at the most pivotal moment.

    "Are you all right?"

    Alicia smiled as she approached me. She offered me a hand and I accepted it. She pulled me to my feet before hugging me.

    "That was quite the risk you took. Putting yourself in danger like that¡­you had me worried."

    "Well¡­" I shrugged. "If I didn''t take the risk, we would all be dead."

    "That might be true." Alicia sighed.

    "Oi, stop flirting and help us out," Bu Fan ordered, sounding annoyed. We broke apart, a little embarrassed, but¡­

    "No need for that." Teacher Fielding held out a hand to stop us. "They''ve recovered. Give them some time to rest and we''ll move out again. Everyone, use this chance to get some rest."

    "I''ll stay on the lookout," Harvey offered. He probably felt bad that he couldn''t contribute to the battle at all, but he was the one who spotted the Silver Skeletal Wolf in the first place. If it wasn''t for him, we would have been taken by surprise by the rank B monster the moment its overwhelming aura hit and paralyzed us. By then, the damned monster would have tracked us by scent before we could plan the ambush.

    Hell, the only reason why we stood a chance in the first place was because we ambushed it. Had our roles been reversed, the Silver Skeletal Wolf would have at least slaughtered several of us. It was a miracle that we didn''t sustain any heavy casualties against a monster of such caliber.

    "Ouch. That hit hard."

    Unsurprisingly, Theodore was the first to recover, given his innate resistance to lightning spells because of his affinity with that element. He checked to see if his Thunder Hammer was still around and was relieved to see that it was beside him.

    "I can''t believe I was knocked out by a lightning spell of all things¡­"

    "A spell cast by a rank B monster," Teacher Fielding reminded him. "You''re lucky you didn''t suffer worse damage than this. The others are even luckier to be alive."

    "Ugh¡­"

    Craig was sitting up and rubbing his head. His body still trembled from faint traces of electricity, but otherwise he seemed fine. Beside him, Sheila and Lily rose, still grimacing from the last of the currents still flowing through them.

    "That hit hard."

    "Yeah. A rank B monster''s attack. I''m glad we survived."

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    Harrison was already up on his feet, and shrugging off the effects. By now, Theodore had completely recovered and was swinging his Thunder Hammer around to ensure he wasn''t still affected by the lightning spell.

    "I hope we don''t run into any more of those things," Aoi murmured with a shudder. "I''m not sure we can survive another fight like that."

    "The shelter is just a kilometer away, and I don''t see anything else for now." Harvey took a deep breath as he observed from his vantage point.

    "Great." Jin Hao leaned back and relaxed. Bu Fan and Zhang Hou Zi were exchanging a few words out of earshot, but I doubted they were plotting something behind our back to betray us or something.

    "Everyone should rest for now. We move out in five." Teacher Fielding was already plotting the route in the screen of his smartphone and transmitting it to the other groups. Appended to the holographic map was a warning to keep an eye out for rank B monsters in the vicinity. Surely that wasn''t the only Silver Skeletal Wolf roaming about in the city.

    "Yes, sir."

    Chorusing in relief, everyone did whatever they needed. For now, I contented myself with sitting beside Alicia as we waited to recuperate our strength. Glancing in the distance, I sighed heavily and wondered what other dangers awaited us in the rest of the journey.

 158 Chapter 158: Ambush

    "Phew¡­we''re almost there."

    Zhang Hou Zi sounded relieved as we closed in on the shelter. It was almost within sight now, a massive dome-shaped building that resembled an oyster shell. There were a few lights blinking in the distance, suggesting that it still functioned, but we couldn''t see any sign of people. That made sense ¨C any humans would be seeking refuge inside the building, not wandering outside it.

    "Don''t let your guard down," Teacher Fielding warned harshly. "We still have about 400 meters left."

    After the encounter with the Silver Skeletal Wolf, we ran into a Dire Wolf and three Cyclops Rats on two separate occasions. Having exterminated a rank B monster, the lower-leveled beasts were a breeze in comparison, and we decapitated the former through our combined efforts while incinerating the latter with well-aimed fire spells and a flaming arrow (from my Sagittarius). It didn''t even take more than a minute to bring the low ranking monsters down.

    We proceeded in silence, tension and adrenaline still running high. Even Craig didn''t run his mouth, exhaustion showing on his face. It was only natural. We had a tough fight against the Silver Skeletal Wolf, and as short as three kilometers were, the journey was taking its toll.

    That was when Harvey suddenly perked up.

    "I see it! The shelter!"

    His excited pointing was what led to Zhan Hou Zi''s sigh of relief and Teacher Fielding''s somber reminder. Despite our teacher''s harsh tone, our morale soared buoyantly at the sight of our destination being so close.

    Finally¡­finally we could rest! After all this fighting! And risking our lives!

    As we drew closer, the foul stink of death and other unspeakable stuff drifted into our nostrils, causing us to wince. We were approaching a blackened river, which was filled with bloated corpses and demonic things that we couldn''t identify from the distance. The Cyclops Rats had emerged from there, and we had fried them before they could climb up the river bank fully and ashore into the city proper. Not that we needed to bother ¨C the riverside caf¨¦ that once boasted a lovely view over the river had been demolished, with blood running over ruined tables and corpses half-concealed behind broken chairs and furniture.

    Even though none of us wanted to approach the stinking river, we didn''t have a choice. The shelter was just across a huge, red bridge. Trying not to look too closely at the devastated caf¨¦, we cautiously crossed the bridge. Like the road we had traversed earlier, vehicles lay abandoned, overturned and destroyed over the wide expanse of the road. In some places, fires still burned. Evidently there had been a battle here. A massacre, but the corpses were missing. Most likely a mage had intervened and fought off a bunch of monsters to buy some time for the civilians to get out of their cars and run to safety on foot.

    With the shelter being so close to the bridge, I doubted the civilians required much persuasion to complete the rest of the journey on foot.

    We were barely halfway across the foot when an unfamiliar voice called out to us.

    "Hey! You kids over there! What are you doing here?"

    We all froze when we caught sight of a young man in military uniform descending in front of us, his cloak flapping behind him. He acknowledged Teacher Fielding with a nod, seeming to recognize our teacher.

    "Captain¡­"

    "Drop it. I''m no longer in the military."

    "Ah¡­sorry¡­uh¡­Teacher Fielding, is it now?" the soldier absently rubbed at his cheek, and then turned toward us. "And you kids must be students from Jing Tian Academy."

    "That''s right." Teacher Fielding stepped in and affirmed. "We''re the vanguard team. The rest of the students and teachers will be following behind us in waves. About fifty groups, so it might take them some time to evacuate completely. We scouted ahead for a safe route ¨C they shouldn''t be in danger as long as they follow the route I transmitted back to them."

    The soldier beamed. "That''s good to hear."

    "What are you doing here by yourself, Lieutenant Yang Bai?" it was Teacher Fielding''s turn to ask the questions. "Where''s the rest of the army?"

    "We rushed here as soon as possible from the northern fortress," Yang Bai replied.

    Oh, that was right. Now that he mentioned it, he was one of the soldiers I saw back in the Northern Fortress, with his brown hair and friendly smile. We had met briefly back when I was recovering there, before I nuked the army of three thousand monsters. I didn''t speak to him at all, though, so I didn''t recognize his voice.

    "General Jiang Jun and the other soldiers have assembled at the shelter and are taking care of the civilians. They are still arriving in drips and drapes, and I was assigned to scout ahead to search for any survivors and guide them to the shelter." Yang Bai was smiling brilliantly. "I''m so glad I found you guys! Let''s hurry!"

    "Wait, the other groups¡­" Teacher Fielding began. Yang Bai nodded.

    "I understand. I''ll inform General Jiang immediately. I''m sure he''ll dispatch reinforcements to escort them. I think we can actually ask them to form a convoy and evacuate as one. We should have more than enough soldiers to fend off monsters."

    Yang Bai was already reaching for his smartphone and dialing the general''s number. Whoa, 4G army was so advanced these days, making use of cellphone technology to fight intelligent wars rather than relying on brute force alone.

    After he made his call, he turned back to us with what he probably thought was a reassuring smile.

    "Okay, General Jiang has begun assigning escorts to your Jing Tian Academy. You guys should follow me. The general ordered me to bring you guys to the shelter safe and sound."

    "How do we know we can trust you?" Bu Fan asked skeptically, his eyes darkening with paranoia. Yang Bai paused for a moment, looking unsure.

    "Um¡­"

    "I''ve known Lieutenant Yang ever since he was a cadet," Teacher Fielding replied, stepping in. "I understand your concerns, but we can trust him."

    "Uh¡­is there something I should know?" Yang Bai asked, looking puzzled as he glanced from his former mentor to Bu Fan.

    "We heard that the monster invasion this time is orchestrated by the Dark Church again." Despite Teacher Fielding''s words, Bu Fan didn''t let his guard down.

    "Oh, I''ve heard about that too." Yang Bai nodded vehemently. "We''ll catch those bastards and kill them. Hunt every single one of them down. They will never get away with this."

    For the first time, I heard genuine rage blazing behind his usually cheerful voice. Yang Bai cast a glare at the ruins of the city behind us, clenching his trembling fists. He then took a deep breath and calmed himself down when he remembered his mission.

    "In any case, we should hurry. We don''t want to be talking out here when a monster comes by. You kids look like you''ve been through hell."

    "Where''s your Spirit Wolf?" I blurted out as I stepped to the front to join him when he spun away to lead the way. Yang Bai turned to gape at me.

    "Huh?! Spirit Wolf? What are you talking about?"

    "Aren''t you a summoner as well? I thought you can summon a giant wolf¡­you know, the one with deep blue fur."

    "What the hell are you talking about? I''m a holy magic user, not a summoner. I use white magic, I don''t summon soul beasts."

    Yang Bai looked genuinely confused, but Teacher Fielding interfered by smacking me at the back of my head.

    "Pay my students no attention. They''re always talking nonsense."

    "Well, Bu Fan seems to think that you''ll be a sudden traitor, a double agent working for the Dark Church to steal the Holy Spring."

    "Huh? Holy Spring?" Yang Bai did a double take. "And Dark Church? Me? Working for them?"

    He then glowered at me, his eyes filling with rage. I realized that I had made a horrible mistake. This guy truly hated the Dark Church to the core.

    "Hey, there has to be a limit to your jokes. I don''t care if you''re a student, you''ve gone too far."

    "Sorry. I''ve been reading way too many web novels lately."

    "¡­right." Yang Bai regarded me, and then decided to write off my odd remarks as stress from walking through a devastated city that was infested with monsters. "Anyway, let''s hurry. After I bring you guys back, I still need to go through the area to look for other survivors." His cheerful demeanor returned. "You guys are really lucky."

    "Lucky?" Craig repeated incredulously. "You call this lucky?"

    "I mean, you were lucky to run into me. I''ll be able to protect you and keep you guys safe¡­"

    "Um¡­" Harvey suddenly raised a hand, cutting the young lieutenant off. "Are those guys part of the military too? Are they here to escort the other students from Jing Tian Academy?"

    "Huh?" Yang Bai stopped, and then turned in the direction where Harvey was pointing at. "I don''t see any¡­"

    "Down!"

    Teacher Fielding reacted quicker and shoved Yang Bai to the ground. At his command, all the students immediately went down, diving for the nearest cover. Even though I couldn''t see anything, I vaguely registered a dark flash. Something screeched as it swerved past the space where Yang Bai''s head had been a few seconds ago. Teacher Fielding was back on his feet almost immediately as a dark shape darted forward to deliver a killing blow in place of the first strike.

    A surge of light illuminated the area as the assailant kicked at Yang Bai and Teacher Fielding, but the veteran teacher rose and kicked his foot away. There was a huge bang as their feet collided, and the bright, violent light immediately vanished.

    "Ba Qi, huh?" the newcomer mused. "Impressive as ever, Ruff Fielding."

    Teacher Fielding didn''t respond to the compliment and instead punched a hole through the assailant''s chest. The newcomer crossed his arms and parried the blow, but the force of Teacher Fielding''s fist sent him hurtling through several dented vehicles. He eventually disappeared into a car with an explosion.

    "Ow, ow, ow¡­"

    The assailant slowly rose from the crumpled car he had crashed into and shook his smoking arms. His hood had been thrown back from the blow, revealing a bald head. He grinned as he raised his head to look at a grim Teacher Fielding, revealing perfect, white teeth.

    "You''re the same as ever, Fielding, never holding back. That really hurt!"

    Teacher Fielding''s lip curled. "Rei."

    "¡­who?" Theodore asked blankly.

    "Rei¡­the Assassin." Yang Bai sounded horrified. "He''s one of the most fearsome killers from the shadowy Assassin''s Guild. He''s supposedly specialized in light magic and can attack at the speed of light."

    "Supposedly." Rei grimaced as he rubbed his arms. The black sleeves of his bodysuit were still smoking. "Yet I still can''t take good old Fielding by surprise. How exactly am I attacking at the speed of light when my opponent can react in time to block me?"

    "What are you doing here?" Teacher Fielding''s voice was humorless and cold.

    "Oh¡­let''s make it simple." Rei dusted off his hands calmly. "I''m here for the Holy Spring. Give it to me, and we''ll withdraw."

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    "Holy Spring? What are you talking about?" Teacher Fielding''s face twisted in confusion.

    "Oh? He didn''t tell you?" Rei raised an eyebrow and turned in my direction. "That kid, Richard, is carrying the Holy Spring on him. I''m guessing he plans to deliver it to General Jiang Jun. obviously I can''t let that happen. Even if it''s me, there''s no way I''ll be able to defeat the venerable General Jiang and take the Holy Spring away from him."

    Everyone was turning to me in surprise and disbelief, but I paid them no attention. Instead, I was embroiled in an inner turmoil. My blood ran cold when I heard that. How did he know?

    "I don''t know what you''re talking about," I managed defiantly.

    Rei snorted. Reaching behind him, he extracted something and threw it in my direction. The object thumped wetly against a car and then rolled toward somewhere near my feet, leaving a slick trail of blood.

    I found myself staring into the wide, hollow eyes of Kuai Tou''s disembodied head.

    "You¡­you¡­!"

    "That man was quite the tough nut to crack, you know?" Rei drawled. "Until the very end, he refused to say anything¡­even when I cut off his fingers, toes, and eventually his arms and legs. Fortunately, one of the Dark Church spies who stayed behind saw you emerge from the same tunnel as him about thirty minutes later. Since this guy didn''t have the Holy Spring on him when we searched him, we concluded that it must be on you." he shook his head. "A pity¡­I didn''t want to kill him¡­this man is a true warrior, who preserved his honor until the very end."

    "You¡­you bastard¡­" I growled, my fists trembling from fury.

    "What do you want the underground Holy Spring for?" Bu Fan demanded, his voice a lot calmer than mine.

    "Who knows? That''s up to the Dark Church. You know how it is. Assassin''s honor ¨C we don''t pry into the private details of our client. We just kill whoever they want us to kill, and as long as they pay us, we don''t care why."

    Teacher Fielding was maintaining his aggressive stance, his eyes narrowed in frosty fury.

    "You''re right. I don''t care why either¡­because you won''t be taking the Holy Spring from us. You won''t be laying a single finger on my students."

    "Ah¡­it''s been so long since we last fought, hasn''t it, Fielding?" Rei laughed coarsely as he drew a katana from his back. Cracking his bald head from side to side, he rotated his arms to prepare for battle before holding his katana up. "I look forward to this¡­last time was a tie, wasn''t it?"

    "Do you honestly think you can win against all of us?" Craig asked, already preparing his crimson spear. Beside him, Sheila, Lily and Theodore were also drawing their weapons.

    "Oh, but I''m not alone. Haven''t you been paying attention?" Rei wagged a finger with his free hand. "I said ''we''ll'' withdraw if you do what we want, didn''t I?"

    As if on cue, figures stepped out from the shadows on either side of the bridge, cutting off any escape route. If we wanted to go forward or retreat, we would be forced to fight against them. Like Rei, they were all dressed in black, with hoods over their heads, and armed with katanas.

    "Your students against my disciples, Fielding," Rei continued to drawl in that relaxed manner of his. "Who do you think will win? The outcome will show which of us is the superior teacher."

 159 Chapter 159: Teachers and Students

    From a distance, Fred Franklin observed the battle on the bridge with detached interest. Beside him, a hooded figure remained crouched, one hand resting on her knee. She was still recovering from her injuries, but that wasn''t the reason why she wasn''t participating.

    "Rei and his disciples are among the best in our guild," she informed Fred. "You do not have to worry about them succeeding in their mission."

    "They had best work fast," Fred remarked, glancing at the shelter. "The military might move out any time now to save those kids."

    "Rei and his disciples will eliminate those students and their teacher before military reinforcements will arrive," the female assassin assured her employer''s son. "As I said, they are among the best and most highly trained killers. Even I don''t dare to contend against Rei."

    The bald assassin didn''t take too kindly to other assassins interfering with his missions, and so they stayed out of his affairs, with the exception of his disciples. Only Selina Wright was insane enough to tease Rei, but she had an almost indestructible and unrivaled summoned spirit as her guardian.

    "But are you sure the Holy Spring is with that boy?" the hooded assassin asked, tilting her head up. Her face remained hidden under shadows, so Fred didn''t bother glancing at her.

    "That''s what the Dark Church goons claim. If they turn out to be wrong, then you can go settle your business with them. It''s none of my business."

    "It''s only natural to make mistakes," the assassin replied generously, her head lowered. Fred scoffed at that.

    "For the sake of your assassin guild, I hope your mistakes won''t cause you to fail the Dark Church."

    *

    The battle atop the bridge had gotten pretty fierce and intense by now. An explosion rocked the creaking structure as Teacher Fielding exchanged blows with Rei. As their punches and kicks clashed, shockwaves rippled out and hurled abandoned vehicles into the air, smashing metal and shattering glass. Small fires broke out as the poor vehicles crashed back to the bridge, their fuel igniting from magical sparks and ferocious impacts.

    The students weren''t faring much better. Craig, Sheila and Lily had formed a circle, their spears and sword ringing as they collided with the assassins'' katanas. Elsewhere, Jin Hao and Aoi were back-to-back, elemental magic whipping around them as they fought to keep a couple of assassins at bay. Dong Fang Yue Chu and Harrison Reed had engaged them in close combat, the former''s fiery fists and kicks protecting him from the sharp blades and the latter using superlative skill to deflect the katana before it could cut through him. Theodore and Bu Fan formed an unusual duo, fighting against a couple of assassins with their lightning magic, the former actually able to keep up with their superior speed despite wielding such a heavy hammer. Bu Fan had a few surprises of his own, conjuring a skeletal shield to protect him from being carved apart and unleashing lightning bolts from behind his defensive artifact.

    Above, Zhang Hou Zi soared with his wind magic, hastily conjuring strong barriers of air to blow away katanas before they could sink into our flesh. Harvey had disappeared somewhere, probably laying low and seeking cover under the vehicles. I was glad that he didn''t recklessly try to engage the assassins when he was still relatively inexperienced.

    Yang Bai was clashing with one of the most senior assassins, and their duel was going evenly.

    I had summoned a pack of Canis Minor and unleashed them upon our foes, but they were skilled and smart enough to largely avoid my Constellation spirits and go straight for me. As assassins, they possessed the techniques to take out summoners, being aware that as long as they eliminated me, my soul beasts would disappear along with me. That was why they regarded me as the priority target.

    If that was the case, it wouldn''t be very effective to use summoning magic against them. My Constellation spirits would prove too cumbersome and a mere distraction at best. The assassins were using their incredible speed and stealth to avoid my Constellation spirits, ignoring the powerful creatures as they focused upon me.

    Clang!

    Drawing Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, I parried a katana that was aimed for my neck. Gritting my teeth, I fought as ferociously as I could, exchanging a few blows. The opponent was taken by surprise by my ferocity, and I seized the chance to kick him in the neck the moment I forced an opening by deflecting his katana aside with my swords. Unable to withdraw my swords in time to slash him, I instead launched a kick from below, my foot slamming into his neck and trhwoing him to the ground with a bone-crunching crack.

    However, as expected of the assassin, he survived that blow. With a howl of pain, he rolled away and jumped back up to his feet, but I was already striking at him. He parried Mo Ye with his katana, his movements still graceful, but Gan Jiang came from the other side and cut opened his eyes. He shrieked as he staggered back, blood spurting from his face.

    I wasn''t able to finish him off. Before I could ram Mo Ye into his chest, I was forced to spin around and parry a lethal strike from another assassin. He was trying to plunge his katana into my back, and at a great area too. If he had succeeded, he would have severed my spine. At best, he would have killed me instantly. At worst, he would have paralyzed me.

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    These assassins¡­they were really skilled and trained to kill, their every strike aiming for a vital point.

    I knocked away his katana, but he reversed his grip and followed up with a riposte, pushing me onto the back foot. Even as I slowly adapted to his speed and strikes, Alicia appeared behind him, placing her gun right at the back of his head and pulling the trigger.

    The assassin went down, blood gushing from a hole in his head, and the light fading from his eyes. I spun around and kicked the blinded assassin, who was still able to attack despite his crippling injuries. He grunted as he crashed into a car, and managed to hold up his katana to parry a strike from me ¨C more from instinct than because he saw it coming, what with his eyes blinded and all.

    Unfortunately, he failed to see my second sword coming, and I plunged Mo Ye into his chest, finishing him off.

    "Kusu yarou!" one of the assassins shouted when he saw two of his comrades slain and he dove at me.

    "Temee no hou ga kusu yarou da!" I yelled back, surprising him when he realized that I could also speak Japanese. Basically he was calling us bastards, and I retorted by telling him they were the bastards. He snapped out of his stupor when Alicia fired at him, cutting her bullets apart with his katana, but ignored her as he lunged at me.

    After all, I was the prime target. The one in possession of the Holy Spring at the moment. As long as they took me out and grabbed the Holy Spring, their mission would be achieved. I suspected that wasn''t the only reason why the Dark Church had ordered my assassination, though. They probably held a grudge against me ever since I nuked the three-thousand strong monster army the other time.

    Not that I cared. What bothered me was the fucking Dark Church sending assassins after me and disturbing my quiet life. I just wanted to rise through the ranks of my school and get into a prestigious university, eventually becoming a well-known mage like my dad. They had to screw my life over and make things so much more complicated and deadly.

    At least it wasn''t some great family from above hiring assassins to kill me just to "teach me my place" or some bullshit reason like that. They actually had a genuine reason to kill me because I was a danger to their plans, and not because of some "he''s trash who''s getting too close to our daughter, therefore he must die!"

    "Kisama!" he shouted as he slashed at me, but I parried his blade with both my swords. He pushed me back with sheer strength, but I stood my ground for a few seconds before kneeing him in the crotch. He yelped as he doubled over, and I took the chance to decapitate him. He managed to block Mo Ye, but Gan Jiang sailed over from the opposite side and sliced through his neck, causing his head to fly off in a fountain of blood.

    I then stepped in to hack at the assassin who was currently occupying Alicia''s attentions. He whirled around to parry my swords, only for Alicia to swiftly shoot him in the back. He cried out and staggered forward as Alicia''s rounds opened up bloody craters in his back, and I seized the opportunity to finish him off with a stab.

    Craig and the others were still holding out against the trio of assassins, but just barely. I exchanged a glance with Alicia, and we went to support them. To our far right, Dong Fang Yue Chu managed to blast an assassin away and off the bridge with a torrent of flames, but he had been bloodied. Harrison was holding his own, beautifully deflecting his opponent''s attacks with his bare hands.

    The young lieutenant, Yang Bai, was still holding his own against an assassin, his saber clashing against his opponent''s katana numerous times. Neither of them was getting an advantage, and I was relieved that the soldier was occupying the attention of that senior assassin. His movements were sheer blurs, making it difficult even for me to follow his attacks. Yang Bai''s speed and reflexes matched the senior assassin''s, with holy lights flashing from his saber to pierce the swiftly evading killer. I doubted I would have lasted that long against Rei''s senior disciple.

    Kaboom!

    Theodore smashed his hammer onto the ground, discharging a massive blast of electricity that electrocuted his two opponents and sending them crashing onto the ground in spasms. He then lumbered over to one of them and mercilessly pulverized the guy by slamming the full weight of his hammer against the assassin several times. With his bloody work done, he then moved on to the second fallen assassin to repeat his grim task.

    "Brother Fan, watch out!"

    Zhang Hou Zi managed to conjure a wind barrier to protect Bu Fan from the blade of an assassin. Bu Fan nodded his thanks, and then electrocuted the other guy with chained lightning, the web of electricity wrapping around the stunned assassin and flooding his body with destructive currents. Between the two of them, they took him out.

    Alicia and I reached Craig and the others, but the trio of assassins tormenting them immediately withdrew. Below, the assassin who Dong Fang Yue Chu had blasted off the bridge was crawling into the river bank, coughing and spluttering from the foul water. His katana cleaved a pursuing Cyclops Rat in half, and he dragged himself ashore and jogged away, presumably to meet up with his comrades.

    Boom!

    Behind all of us, an explosion erupted as a glowing Rei''s katana crashed against Teacher Fielding''s reinforced arms. Knocking Rei''s katana aside, Teacher Fielding punched the bald assassin in the solar plexus, but he managed to parry it with his elbow. The crunching blow sent him skidding several meters back, knocking cars off their wheels and sending at least one plummeting into the river below.

    "¡­oh¡­looks like time is up."

    Despite having failed his mission, Rei didn''t seem all that disappointed. He sheathed his katana, but Teacher Fielding wisely didn''t charge at him. The guy was being relaxed for a reason. He cocked his head toward the shelter. His surviving disciples gathered behind him, having also followed their master''s example and disengaging from combat. None of us pursued. We were far too exhausted and drained to continue a pointless battle.

    Besides, we could see a group of soldiers exiting the shelter and heading in our direction.

    "Looks like your reinforcements have arrived. Ah¡­I really wanted to fight a bit longer. Looks like you''ve gotten stronger again, Fielding. I thought you were supposed to be retired from the military."

    Teacher Fielding''s scowl deepened, but he remained silent.

    "Hmm¡­I hate to admit it, but it appears that you''re the better teacher." Rei glanced at his fallen disciples in dismay, but made no move to recover their bodies. "Well, no surprises there. I was always better at killing than I was at mentoring."

    With a shrug, he turned and waved in an almost friendly manner. His disciples were all melting away in the shadows, and at the same time Harvey chose to finally show up, crawling from underneath the wreckage of a car.

    Rei grinned, but his smile was directed more at Teacher Fielding than anyone else.

    "I hope we''ll meet again shortly, Fielding."

    Then he was gone, as if he had never appeared to begin with.

    Teacher Fielding clenched his fists, his teeth gnashing in fury.

    "I certainly hope we won''t¡­but if we do, I''ll definitely kill you next time, you bald bastard."

 160 Chapter 160: Watered Down

    The military reinforcements spread out to secure the bridge, eliminating whatever monsters were lurking nearby and searching for any sign of the assassins. Rei and his disciples were professional killers and highly trained ¨C they had vanished without leaving a single trace.

    The soldiers couldn''t afford to waste too much time chasing shadows, so a small contingent led by Yang Bai accompanied us back to the shelter while the rest proceeded toward Jing Tian Academy to begin escorting the other groups. Later they would reduce the number of groups and waves, having a hundred or so students and teachers moving in several convoys while the military protected them from monsters. It took less than an hour for the whole school to make the three-kilometer journey and safely evacuate to the shelter.

    Within that hour, however, the vanguard team had more important things to worry about. Especially me.

    "Who is Richard Huang?" a man in military uniform and the bars of a captain asked as he approached us. Yang Bai gestured toward me. As for me, I was too exhausted to respond, merely nodding and raising my hand.

    "This boy here. What''s the matter, sir?"

    The captain turned to me. "Please follow me. The general wishes to see you."

    Yang Bai, understanding the situation, nodded and backed off. He went to exchange a few words with Teacher Fielding before he left, presumably to resume his mission of searching for any other survivors in the vicinity.

    I didn''t get to hear the details of the conversation. Instead, I nodded obediently and dragged my feet to follow the captain. I was dead tired and wanted nothing more than to lie down, but circumstances demanded my attention.

    We took the stairs and ascended to the very top of the dome-shaped shelter. The captain led me to the rooftop access and unlocked the door by placing his hand on a device. Once the biometric reader confirmed his identity, the electronic lock beeped and slid open. The door swung wide, revealing the vast, open space beyond.

    Stepping into the rooftop, I found myself buffeted by fierce winds. Already drained from consecutive battles, first against a rank B monster, and then against highly trained, professional assassins, I staggered from the stinging gusts. Gritting my teeth, I fought to maintain a shred of dignity and made my way toward the row of soldiers standing near the edge, unwary despite the complete lack of railings on the roof.

    I recognized the man in the center, with his close cropped gray hair, broad shoulders, muscles and powerful stature.

    General Jiang Jun, the commander of the northern fortress. I had met him briefly after waking up in the medical center there, just in time to nuke the three-thousand strong monster army into oblivion.

    He was accompanied by his command staff, all of whom were majors and colonels. I recognized the tall and lanky Colonel Tai, the middle-aged man looking over the scenery of the devastated city with a weary expression. All of the command staff were tense and uneasy as they watched Jing Tian City get torn apart by monsters, barely able to suppress their rage.

    Only General Jiang seemed indifferent, uncaring even. However, I could sense a subtle buildup of power within him, a storm that was lying latent beneath that calm surface, waiting to be unleashed at any time. A chill ran through me as I watched his rigid figure.

    The captain led me toward him, and saluted.

    "General Jiang, I''ve brought Richard Huang."

    General Jiang Jun didn''t turn his head around, but he nodded curtly in acknowledgement. The captain then withdrew, leaving me alone.

    "I''m glad you''re safe and sound," General Jiang finally said, his hands intertwined behind his back. "We feared the worst when the Underground Holy Spring facility was overrun by monsters, and more so when we received reports of the Dark Church prowling through the premises shortly after all contact with the personnel there was lost."

    "¡­Mr. Kuai Tou and a lot of good people died." I lowered my head and closed my eyes briefly. "The Dark Church will have to pay for their crimes."

    "They will." For a moment, General Jiang''s gaze turned murderous as he glared into the distance. I noted the tightening of his fingers as he gripped his hands more forcefully. "We will hunt them down to the ends of the earth if we have to. This atrocity will not stand." He took a deep breath. "I am assuming that Kuai Tou really passed the underground Holy Spring to you?"

    "Yeah." I nodded, and retrieved the bottle from my uniform jacket. Colonel Tai stepped forward to receive it from me. No, I wasn''t paranoid to the extent where I saw everyone as a potential spy for the Dark Church, so I just passed it to him. I also worked with Colonel Tai in the past to write a report, so I trusted him somewhat.

    Colonel Tai then passed the bottle to General Jiang, who whirled around to stare at me in amazement.

    "What?" I asked, registering his surprise with puzzlement. Did he expect me to lose the Holy Spring or something?

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    "Uh, I expected you to drink the Holy Spring. You know, because you got thirsty from all the stress and terror, so you drank it to prevent it from falling into the hands of the Dark Church¡­"

    "Are you mistaking me for someone?" I quizzed, annoyed. "I''m not some greedy, shameless protagonist of a web novel. I prefer to think of myself as a nice guy with a conscience."

    "Ha ha ha, yeah. You definitely are a good kid. Please don''t become like those greedy, shameless and ruthless protagonists of web novels who act all arrogantly, look down on others and bully antagonists hypocritically because they believe the stupid ''strong eat the weak'' nonsense while stealing or keeping all sorts of treasures, relics and elixirs for themselves."

    General Jiang reached out and ruffled my hair. He then turned to the captain who brought me here and tossed the bottle of Holy Spring to the stunned staff office.

    "Captain Cook, you know where to store that, right? Keep it with all the military top-secret stuff. Guard it with your life. Even if the entirety of the Dark Church attacks you, drink the damned Holy Spring if you have to. Don''t let it fall into their hands."

    "Yes, sir!"

    The captain saluted, and hurried off, his eyes wide in awe and fear. I didn''t blame him. He just got handed one of the heaviest responsibilities ever.

    General Jiang then turned back to me, and waved his hand.

    "You should get some rest, kid. You look like you''ve been through hell."

    "What about you?" I asked, allowing curiosity to get the better of me. "Are you planning to retake the city?"

    "With the forces under my command, I''m afraid we won''t be able to save the city," General Jiang admitted. "But we''ll be getting reinforcements from the northern garrisons. It''ll probably take us a few months to purge the city of monsters, but even then¡­I''m not sure if anyone can live here again."

    He sighed, but his eyes then blazed furiously.

    "But we have a duty to the people. We will continue saving as many civilians as possible, and we will exterminate the monsters." He then turned toward the tallest skyscraper in Jing Tian City. "And we will begin with their leader. Once we eliminate the pack alpha, the rest of the monsters will fall into disarray, and it''ll be easier for reinforcements to clean them up afterward."

    "You mean¡­"

    General Jiang was no longer paying any attention to me. He was affixing his eyes upon the Silver Wing Wolf King that had chosen to perch atop the skyscraper, its jaws wide open as it howled at the heavens.

    "Everyone, prepare for battle!" General Jiang shouted. Immediately, the other nine soldiers of his command staff snapped into attention. The wind seemed to almost stop, time hanging suspended as the strongest warriors of the northern fortress braced themselves for the conflict. I watched them, mesmerized by the sheer power emanating from them.

    They reminded me of Dad.

    "We shall now commence the operation to slay the Silver Wing Wolf King!" General Jiang commanded, his tone murderous. I couldn''t help but feel a chill run down my spine at the sheer amount of killing intent that radiated off his sturdy stature.

    "Yes, sir!"

    General Jiang then shrugged off his military coat and allowed it to fall to the floor. He then stepped over the edge and allowed himself to plummet to the ground below.

    "What the fuck?!"

    My jaw dropped, but before I could make sense of General Jiang''s seeming suicidal move, I saw massive white wings spread out, pristine feathers fluttering downward almost elegantly.

    Flapping his wings, General Jiang then surged forward, unhesitant and determined. Like a speeding bullet¡­he soared toward the Silver Wing Wolf King like an Angel of Death, sent by the Emperor of Man to deliver his decree of death upon the filthy monsters who dared plagued the territory of humankind.

    The other nine soldiers also leaped off the rooftop, but unlike General Jiang, they didn''t conjure beautiful yet deadly wings. Instead, tornado currents whipped about them as a wind mage among the command staff created a pocket of air to grant all of his comrades the ability of flight.

    The men of the northern fortress garrison streaked across the skies, vibrant mana building up and accumulating around them as they began casting destructive spells capable of hurting a rank A monster. I wondered if I should summon Draco and helped them, but decided against it.

    The soldiers of the Global Federation could handle this just fine without my help. I should worry about myself. I had used up so much mana and I was dead on my feet. I was far too exhausted to be of any use in the fight. If General Jiang didn''t ask me for help even though he should be aware of my abilities, then he must be confident that he and his men would be able to destroy the Silver Wing Wolf King.

    I couldn''t help but do a mock salute as I watched the brave men that made up the general''s command staff plunged into battle, before heading downstairs to grab some sleep.

 161 Chapter 161: Strong eat the Weak?

    I had no idea how long I was out for. Probably an hour to an hour and a half. I didn''t keep track of the time, and when I glanced out of the window, the sky was still dark. Dawn hadn''t arrived yet. I could also sense fighting and tremendous mana bursts in the distance ¨C evidently General Jiang Jun and his command staff were still going at it with the Silver Wing Wolf King.

    "Whoa!"

    "Hey! Watch it!"

    "Do you have some space here?"

    "Over here!"

    It also seemed that the whole student population of Jing Tian Academy had been evacuated here as well. The students and staff were squeezing into the vast shelter, trying to find space to sit or sleep. Already crowded by civilians in the area, even the spacious interior of the shelter was barely enough to accommodate everybody.

    And there were still more refugees flooding in. Not the students, but beleaguered survivors who looked haunted, almost as if they were wallowing in despair.

    "Medic!"

    "Help! Chan''s bleeding out! I can''t stop the blood!"

    "Is there a doctor here?!"

    "Over here!"

    "Bring him over here! We''ll treat his wounds!"

    I turned my head at the familiar voices. Teacher Cure and Pearl Pang were taking charge of what looked like a hastily set up medical bay. Wounded soldiers were lying on sheets, blood seeping through improvised bandages. More soldiers were rushing over, bearing stretchers of their severely injured comrades.

    In their mission to search for survivors and escort them to safety, the soldiers had clashed against powerful monsters that had invaded the city. Not all of them were of General Jiang''s level, obviously. They evidently had a difficult time against the enemy. Several of them were already zipped up in black body bags and were being brought to another area to make space for the living.

    It was cruel, but practical. The limited space of the shelter was of no use to the dead, but the living required the place to stay alive.

    "What a waste."

    To my complete lack of surprise, it was Bu Fan. He was shaking his head as he watched Teacher Cure, Pearl and other healing mages work frantically to save the wounded and maimed soldiers. Beside him, Zhang Hou Zi had a quizzical look.

    "What do you mean, Brother Fan?"

    "Sacrificing yourself for the weak is plain silly. This is a dog eat dog world." Bu Fan sighed mockingly. "Each mage is worth a thousand ordinary humans. For a few mages to sacrifice their lives to protect a few hundred normal civilians is a waste. Why must the blood of the strong flow for the weak? Only idiots are stupid enough to become martyrs. It''s not worth sacrificing your life for someone who is weaker, or someone who is normal. In this world, you can only rely on yourself! If you are weak, then you deserve to die! You can''t expect other people to always save you!"

    Several of the soldiers and quite a few civilians glared at him, but Bu Fan sneered at them.

    "What? Don''t like it when I say the truth? That''s the harsh reality of this world. Survival of the fittest. The strong eat the weak. Best if you start dealing with it as soon as possible."

    One of the soldiers began stomping toward him, his face contorted in fury, but several of his comrades grabbed him and hauled him back.

    "It''s not worth it," a stocky soldier told his burly friend, shaking his head.

    "Yeah, we have more important things to do than argue with a self-centered brat."

    "Is it wrong to be self-centered? Why am I in the wrong for wanting to preserve my own life? I''m not obligated to sacrifice myself to save others."

    "No, you''re not," Teacher Fielding said, his tone frosty. "But you have no right to insult and make fun of other people for nobly offering their lives to save others. No one cares if you prioritize your own life over others. It''s human nature to want to live, even if it''s at the expense of others. But you went and insulted those who chose to valiantly put themselves at risk to protect civilians. That''s where you''re wrong."

    "What? You guys just can''t take the truth!"

    "The truth?" I scoffed. "What truth? The nonsense that you self-centered people like to spout about strong eat the weak? I can never understand all that rubbish. Would you constantly whip a horse that you must ride everyday? The horse will either throw you off or die. Just because you''re stronger or you rule over and own a horse doesn''t mean you abuse it. You''re still reliant on the horse. Same with a dog ¨C why should a dog be loyal to an owner who abandons it to the wolves at first sight? It might as well go live on its own, or find a less selfish owner."

    Bu Fan''s lip curled. "Even horses and dogs have their uses. What use are ordinary civilians? They can''t even fight."

    One of the soldiers had enough. Breaking free of his comrades, he strode over, his face a mask of rage.

    "The food I''ve eaten¡­" he jabbed at his stomach, and then began pointing toward several people in the crowd. "¡­was produced by the farmers of the Jing Tian Muncipal Village. Transported by those drivers over there. Sold by those cashiers and logistics personnel running the Mu Biao Supermarket (Mu Biao is translated as Target, by the way) branch. As a soldier, I can focus on my training without having to worry about going hungry because my food is produced and delivered to me in an easy manner."

    He then drew his weapon, causing Bu Fan to flinch. Not caring about the brat''s hesitation, he ran his hand along the smooth blade.

    "This sword was forged by that uncle over there, the head of the Hei Tie Blacksmith Coproration. He''s old now, and he has never fought with any of the swords he produced, but I can tell you now¡­and I''m sure many of my squad mates can tell you as well¡­his weapons have saved our lives. Many times. If it weren''t for the weapons he forged for us, we would have died at the hands of beasts."

    "If it weren''t for this teacher and healing mages, I would have died!" shouted an injured soldier, whose head was still bandaged and bloodied. Evidently he had received treatment from Teacher Cure, Pearl and the others, for his wounds were healing up nicely. "We don''t expect them to fight, but that doesn''t mean they are useless! Imagine if we abandoned them because they are ''weak''! I bet most people would have lost their lives from sustaining fatal injuries!"

    "It''s not just about other people having the ability to save lives. The home I lived in was constructed by those workers of Tian Ling Construction Company. The furniture I bought was from Jiang Xiang. I''ve benefited from electricity produced by Quan Guo Dian Li Corporation. This smartphone was from Xiao Mi. all these things made my life so much easier. I could concentrate on training, on becoming a soldier while living off all these luxuries¡­my salary provided by taxpayers'' money. In exchange, I became a warrior whose job is to fight monsters, to protect civilians. And now you''re saying that after enjoying all these benefits and the fruits of labor of all these people during peacetime, when a crisis comes, I should just abandon all of them, forget about the benefits I reaped from them in terms of food, commodities and taxpayers'' money, and prioritize my own life because I happen to be stronger than them? Because they are ordinary civilians and therefore they don''t deserve to be protected?"

    "You''re underestimating us soldiers, boy!" another soldier, a grizzled sergeant, snapped. "What have they been teaching you in the magic academy? That you can live off government funding, taxpayer money and learn magic to do whatever you want? That you don''t have to do anything in return for the Federation who invested so much resources into nurturing you?"

    "Why would a school and the government waste resources on grooming a talented person into a mage if that person is going to abandon the civilians he''s being trained to protect?"

    "That''s¡­"

    Bu Fan was unable to refute that. He seemed to shrink as everyone glared at him. He tried to splutter, but nothing came out. Zhang Hou Zi grabbed him and pulled him back, shaking his head. Even his loyal lackey was hard-pressed to find anything to defend his boss.

    "What''s going on here?"

    An officer strode in, seeing the soldiers all confronting a kid instead of doing what they were supposed to be doing.

    "Nothing, sir."

    "We''re heading over to the rest area now."

    "Don''t bother the civilians," the officer said dismissively. He glanced at his smartphone. "I''m going to need volunteers. Apparently there has been sightings of survivors in the Ming Jie neighborhood."

    "Did you say Ming Jie?" Bu Fan flared up unexpectedly. Everyone turned to stare at him.

    "Yeah, I did. Why?"

    "No¡­I¡­"

    "Isn''t your sister from Ming Jie High?" Zhang Hou Zi blurted out, and then fell silent when Bu Fan glared at him.

    The officer didn''t pay the students much attention, and was instead turning back toward the soldiers. "As I was saying, I need a squad to volunteer to go to the Ming Jie neighborhood. There are survivors crying for help there, encircled by Cyclops Rats, Lycanthropes and Dire Wolves. There are even a few Thunder Wolves in the area¡­and a single Silver Skeletal Wolf. We need at least one high-level mage in the squad."

    Bu Fan was growing paler with each subsequent revelation.

    "No way¡­"

    "So who wants to go?"

    The huge guy who went over to confront Bu Fan didn''t hesitate. "I will."

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    "Me too," his stocky squad mate joined in.

    "That means my squad will be going," the grizzled sergeant said with a sigh. He cast a sharp look at the soldiers under his command. "You guys better not be regretting this!"

    "No, Sarge!"

    The squad seemed as if they were up for the mission, even though they must be feeling very tired after repeated reconnaissance and escort missions.

    "Do you mind if I volunteer as well?"

    Everyone turned to stare at Bu Fan. After his whole tirade about strong eat the weak, dog eat dog, and how it was nonsensical that the blood of the strong should be spilled for the weak, he was the last person we expected to sign up for this almost suicidal mission.

    The officer, on the other hand, hadn''t been a part of the altercation and didn''t know. So he shook his head immediately.

    "We''re not bringing civilians along. It''s too dangerous. Even if you''re a student of Jing Tian Academy, you''ve not been trained in military operations. Quite frankly, you''ll only get in the way."

    "I promise I won''t get in the way!" Bu Fan begged. "But I really need to go along! Please!"

    "Why?" the officer asked coldly, unmoved. Bu Fan had no choice but to hang his head and confess.

    "My sister is in Ming Jie High. Please¡­I need to save her." he swallowed. "She''s¡­crippled. She can''t move around without a wheelchair. She has healing magic, but she can''t fight at all. She might be lying somewhere, helpless...hiding from those monsters. I¡­"

    Oh, wow¡­the hypocrisy of this bastard amused me. So if it was other people, as long as they were weak he had no compulsions leaving them to fend for themselves because he had no obligation to save them. They deserved what they got for being weak. They couldn''t expect others to save them. But if it was his sister, then he would do everything to save her. It didn''t matter that she couldn''t fight, was "weak" and was wheelchair bound. She could rely on her "brave" big brother to rescue her.

    Double standards indeed. Bu Fan couldn''t care less if "mob" characters and strangers died, because they deserved to for being weak, but it was all right for his sister to be weak and he couldn''t let her die. The same went for every xianxia or cultivator protagonist ever. They would pull the strong eat the weak card, but when their heroines, love interests, family members ¨C most often their sisters, and waifus get threatened, they would hypocritically go against the logic they spouted and do everything to rescue them. Now I wasn''t expecting Bu Fan to be some hero who wanted to save the whole world ¨C I certainly wasn''t some heroic messiah capable of protecting the world and I wasn''t going to try ¨C nor did I care if he wanted to go save his sister or waifus, but he went around spouting all that arrogant bullshit about strong eating the weak, and mocked courageous soldiers who selflessly put their lives in the line for others. No one cared if he couldn''t be bothered to save strangers, and no one was going to label him a coward. No one cared if his sister was the only one he was willing to save, or if his waifus were the only one he wished to save. What we cared about was him insulting people who risked their lives, calling it a waste, and then looking down on the "weak" for being unable to protect themselves. And now he wanted to go save his "weak" sister without retracting his words. He couldn''t have his cake and eat it.

    Society was not made up of warriors and soldiers alone. Warriors and soldiers couldn''t survive in a world alone. The whole strong eat the weak was bullshit. Soldiers still needed farmers to supply them with food, blacksmiths to provide them weapons, doctors and nurses to help them heal from their wounds or diseases and recover. Everyone had a role to play in society. It wasn''t a matter of "strong eat weak" or dog eat dog. A lion might be able to kill a single human, but a group of humans working together can slay even the greatest lion. That was how we rose to dominance over the planet ¨C not by being selfish, but by banding together and cooperating with each other.

    Those xianxia novelists and their absurd "strong eat the weak" bullshit were polluting the minds of young readers, and I intended to put a stop to it with my very own story. Still, it was amusing how Bu Fan so openly displayed his double standards.

    "Imagine if your sister is in another city¡­and the people there have the same attitude as you. The soldiers, instead of rescuing your sister, abandon her because she''s on a wheelchair and unable to fight, and therefore her own weakness is to be blamed for her demise." I shook my head with a bitter smile. "It''s so easy to spout all this BS about strong eat the weak and not being obligated to sacrifice your own life when your family members and loved ones are not the ones in danger. But if they die because soldiers didn''t save them, then you will start blaming the military for not doing their job. Isn''t that ironic?"

    "SHUT UP!" Bu Fan roared at me. He lunged at me, flames kindling in his fists, but Zhang Hou Zi restrained him.

    "It''s not worth it! Ignore that jerk!"

    So I was a jerk now. Well, I was aware that I was a self-righteous, pompous asshole who enjoyed ranting about the flaws and problems of other novels, which was more than I could say for the writers and characters who truly believed the bullshit they spouted. Glancing at the comment section, I sighed and shook my head, already anticipating the hate, flames and abuse. Katherine Gwele would probably accuse me of over-explaining my biased self-righteous views. Yeah, but which xianxia or Chinese protagonist wasn''t biased or self-righteous? I was trying to fight against a sea of bullshit logic espousing the "values" of strong eat the weak and the abandonment of the "weak." Like every historian, I knew how dangerous such values were ¨C Adolf Hitler''s insistence on creating a pure Aryan race while eliminating the Jews was just one example of racial genocide committed in the rise of Fascism during the mid-twentieth century. The Japanese abuse and horrifying oppression of conquered racial "inferiors" during their invasion of Asia was another. These disturbing views would only lead to authoritarian states who oppressed people just because they weren''t mages or cultivators.

    That was the sort of society these xianxia stories were promoting. Tell me, do you really believe in that bullshit? Do you really want to live in a world where people are oppressed just because they are not mages or cultivators? Where, no matter how much contribution you make in agriculture, medicine, science, law, politics, economy, businesses, you are still considered expendable, deprived of protection and left to die or get eaten all because you were "weak"?

    As I said, what idiot whipped a horse he must ride everyday?

    Bu Fan shrugged Zhang Hou Zi off roughly and turned to the officer

    "Please," he implored. "Let me come along. I swear, I won''t get in the way. I just want to find and rescue my sister, no matter the cost."

    The officer considered him for a moment before he finally nodded.

    "Fine. But you must listen to everything Sergeant Apone says. Is that understood?"

    Left with no choice, Bu Fan nodded, but his defiant eyes blazed stubbornly. The guy was surely going to break away the first chance he got and look for his sister on his own.

    ¡­good luck to him, I guess.

 162 Chapter 162: Volunteer

    "Are you not going with them?" Alicia asked me teasingly. I turned to her quizzically.

    "Go with who?"

    "Them." Alicia gestured toward the military squad who was moving out, Bu Fan trailing them sourly. "I thought you would go help save someone."

    "Do you think I''m some sort of hero or something? An ally of justice?" I rolled my eyes. "As much as I would like to, I can''t save the whole world. I would only get in their way."

    "That''s true." Alicia nodded. "I would have stopped you if you did volunteer." She turned serious. "I was worried that you would try and use this chance to follow in your father''s footsteps."

    "You know my dad?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. Alicia pouted.

    "Of course! Who wouldn''t? Huang Shu Yin, the Angel of Fire, one of the greatest mercenaries in the Global Federation. And a hero too." She shrugged. "I thought you were aiming to become a hero like your father."

    "I share the same values, but I know my limits." I sighed. "If I would only get in the way of a military operation, then lives would be saved if I don''t go."

    "Is that really true, though?" Craig scoffed from a distance, resting his spear on his shoulder. Even though we were safely inside the shelter, he had his weapon out for some reason. He probably couldn''t relax, knowing that monsters were running rampant in the city beyond those fortified walls. "You''re someone who has slain a rank A dragon. I daresay you''re on par with those soldiers at the very least."

    "I had help," I pointed out wearily. "Unfortunately, Troy and Kureha aren''t around to help me in fighting a rank A monster this time."

    Alicia gave me a look. "You and Kureha have gotten on pretty friendly terms, haven''t you?"

    "I guess? We were comrades who participated in a life-and-death battle together against a rank A dragon."

    "That''s not what I mean¡­never mind." Alicia took a deep breath as she wrung her hands wistfully. "But it''s true¡­if Kureha had indeed been around right now, she would be able to help us out a lot."

    "Yeah," I agreed, recalling her skill with the sword. She truly deserved her title as the Sword Saint.

    "I hope Brother Fan is able to find his sister," Zhang Hou Zi lamented as he watched his boss depart. "It would be great if Xin Hua is all right."

    That reminded me. I turned to the rest of my friends. "What about you guys? Are your families safe? Are you able to contact them?"

    "My old man and mom reached the shelter near our house," Craig replied with a dismissive wave. "I just called them. They are all right."

    "My family''s safe!" Harvey informed me brightly. "What about you, Senior Richard?"

    "My dad''s not in the city," I explained. He had gone on a mission overseas and still had yet to return. Even if he was still around, I doubted a monster invasion would have faze him. Dad would be out there fighting alongside the military and exterminating the monsters. Hell, his first target would have been the Silver Wing Wolf King.

    "My brothers are safe," Theodore said.

    "Mine too," Sheila added.

    "I don''t have family here," Dong Fang Yue Chu admitted. Everyone turned to look at him sympathetically. I saw Lily squeeze his hand to comfort him.

    "What about you, Alicia?" I asked. She shook her head.

    "Father just told me he is all right. He was at a board meeting with the city council when the invasion happened. They are all safely seeking refuge in an emergency shelter under the town hall right now. They even have a large contingent of bodyguards to protect them. He will be fine. My mother is out of the city right now, but we''ve assured her that we''re all right."

    "That''s good." Dad probably hadn''t heard of the attack on Jing Tian City, or he would have called me. I hoped it stayed that way. He couldn''t afford to get distracted, what with his deadly line of work and all that. Just in case, I had sent him a text message assuring him that I was safe and sound inside a shelter.

    He would probably laugh and tell me not to be a hero.

    "¡­"

    As much as I wanted to be a hero, I knew my limits. I knew I didn''t have the ability to go around saving people. I didn''t have the training. Sure, I had some experience in slaying monsters, but rescuing people and escorting them to safety was a different matter. Moreover, those experiences had left me under no illusion that I couldn''t afford to underestimate high-ranking monsters. I was almost beaten to death by a single rank B Crastrate, and I would have been incinerated or crushed by the Hellfire Drake if Troy and Kureha hadn''t been on hand to offer their support. Draco might be able to fight on par with it, but I would have been slaughtered long before I could summon him, if it weren''t for those two covering my back.

    Unlike Troy and Kureha, I had never worked with these soldiers before, nor had I received any military training. They had their own methods and operandi modus, and my tagging along and trying to be a hero would only slow them down. I was sure of that.

    Our group moved over to help Pearl and Teacher Cure with first aid, but there was a lull right now, with less soldiers being brought in. it seemed that the city was virtually entirely evacuated. The reinforcements had yet to arrive, so the soldiers from the northern fortress were taking care to avoid unnecessary fights with the monsters infesting the streets. Their numbers were slowly depleted as more of them became casualties during escort or reconnaissance missions. There were about a hundred injured by now, and the dead had risen to almost a third of that number. Less soldiers were moving and patrolling around the shelter, with many more squads dispatched to other areas for rescue operations, much like the squad Bu Fan tagged along with.

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    With their numbers steadily dwindling, the soldiers of the northern fortress were being more careful with their engagements and trying their best to avoid combat as much as possible. We would eventually lose if this became a battle of attrition, and what few soldiers who were left were exercising increasing caution.

    They were also awaiting the result of the battle between General Jiang, his command staff and the Silver Wing Wolf King. If the venerable officers succeeded in slaying the rank A monster, the hordes rampaging through the city would lose cohesion and coordination. We could begin to isolate them and destroy them small packs by small packs.

    The rank A Silver Wing Wolf King was living up to its name, though. Without nuking it with a Strategic-scale spell, it would be difficult to obliterate it immediately. Thus General Jiang and his men were having a tough fight.

    "Go rest, Pearl."

    Exhausted, Teacher Cure issued a command. The healer team had finally finished their duties and were taking a short break. Pearl nodded and ventured over to our group.

    "Over here!"

    Alicia had prepared a mat for Pearl to lie on. Too tired to argue, the blue-haired senior nodded before crawling onto the mat and immediately falling asleep.

    "Senior Pearl has been working really hard," Alicia remarked as she reached out and stroked her long, silky hair.

    "Let her rest," Lily suggested as she plopped down nearby, looking just as tired. All of us were. We only caught a couple hours of sleep here and there, not enough to fully recover from our trek through the three kilometer route between our school and the shelter. Unlike the other groups, our vanguard squad had experienced the most combat, surviving not just against a rank B Silver Skeletal Wolf but also a team of highly trained assassins.

    It was no wonder we were so exhausted. Only Bu Fan''s incredible desire to save his sister kept him going. As much as I disliked him for his arrogance and hypocrisy, I had to admire his tenacity and love for his family.

    I pitied any enemy who dared lay a hand on his family, human or monster.

    We must have drifted off, for I couldn''t remember anything after that. My intense weariness had caused me to doze off into a dark, dreamless sleep, and the next thing I knew, there was panicked shouting.

    "Eh?"

    I snapped to full wakefulness at the commotion, springing to my feet. Did the monsters attack the shelter? What was going on?

    "What''s the matter?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes. Beside him, Lily stifled a yawn. Craig and Sheila, on the other hand, were already up on their feet, their weapons drawn. No, they never sheathed their weapons to begin with. At that moment, I thought that their paranoia was well placed and wished I was holding onto Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. But knowing me, I would cut myself on them while sleeping.

    "It''s nothing." Theodore was the calmest out of us all, and he raised a hand. "Something happened at one of the other shelters. Not here, so don''t worry."

    "Phew¡­" Harvey let out a sigh of relief.

    "Do we know which shelter?" Jin Hao asked, concerned. His parents had also sought refuge in a shelter quite some distance away from ours, so I understood his worry.

    "I''m not sure." Theodore frowned and paused to listen.

    "The shelter at town hall is under attack!"

    "What''s the strength of enemy forces?"

    "Unknown! But they are not monsters! They are humans!"

    "What?!"

    "Assassins from the assassin guild! They''re targeting the city council! They plan to decapitate Jing Tian City''s leadership! The bodyguards are holding off for now, but they are urgently requesting for reinforcements!"

    "Then send them!"

    "Trying to! But we don''t have many soldiers left¡­"

    "Ugh¡­"

    While the soliders argued and exchanged shouts, Allison paled visibly.

    "Did they say¡­the shelter at town hall?"

    "That''s what I heard too," Craig said bluntly. Everyone turned to her. Fortunately, I was there to help her as she faltered.

    "Father¡­"

    "How many men do we have?"

    "I can only spare five men."

    "That''s not enough! They''re saying there''s over twenty¡­thirty assassins!"

    "Really? I''m getting conflicting reports. They say there''s only five assassins. But¡­they''re also being assaulted by monsters at the same time."

    "Someone get me actual facts! Not rumors!"

    "That''s what we''re getting over the com, sir!"

    "Fuck! All right, get your five men to move out immediately. I''ll send more reinforcements when I can. Hopefully bravo squad will be returning. They''re supposed to be en route with stragglers, and should be back in fifteen minutes. Thirty, tops."

    Alicia hugged herself tightly, tears welling in her eyes.

    "Father¡­"

    I patted her and then stood up.

    "Senior Richard? Where are you going?" Harvey asked when he noticed my sudden movement. I smiled tiredly.

    "To take a walk."

    "Really? Let me join in."

    Craig realized my intention, for he leisurely strolled toward me. Theodore also followed with a grim expression, his hammer slung on his back.

    "The more the merrier, right?" Dong Fang Yue Chu remarked cheerfully as he joined us. Sheila and Lily also followed.

    "You guys¡­you can''t mean to¡­" Alicia was staring at us, her expression horrified.

    "Yes, we mean to." Harrison was cracking his knuckles and cocking his head from side to side, probably to relax his stiffened neck muscles after having fallen asleep, propped against the wall. "He''s our principal, after all. I would be ashamed if I let my own principal die at the hands of nameless killers."

    "Then I''ll be coming too! He''s my father!" Alicia rose to her feet determinedly, all trace of crying gone.

    "Uh¡­I¡­" Harvey stammered, but I shook my head.

    "You stay put, Harvey. Take care of Senior Pearl. You too, Jin Hao and Aoi. Watch over the shelter while we''re gone."

    "Don''t be too reckless," Aoi told us, her expression scrunched in worry.

    "Reckless?" Craig scoffed. "No, we''re being suicidal!"

    "Then¡­" Jin Hao protested.

    "We have a score to settle with those assassin bastards," Harrison declared, his handsome features more ominous than I had ever seen him. "Letting them escape last time still rankles me. If we can, I would like to capture one of them for interrogation."

    "If they''re really from the assassins'' guild, then I doubt you''ll be able to force any answers out of them, even if we are somehow able to capture one alive." Theodore was as pragmatic as ever.

    "That doesn''t mean we shouldn''t try." Sheila smirked as she twirled her spear and strapped it to her shoulder.

    "That''s right. They will pay for doing this to our city!" Lily agreed fiercely. "And we''re going to force the Dark Church''s location out of them if we have to!"

    "The priority is to save Alicia''s father," I reminded them. "Not to settle our grudges."

    Everyone merely chuckled, as if I had stated the obvious. Of course they knew that. Taking revenge on the assassins was just a small bonus.

    Unlike the high-ranked monsters, we were confident of fighting against fellow humans. Yes, these assassins might be highly trained and professional, but in the end they were still humans.

    We had faced monsters and survived. Prevailed, even. What were mere humans compared to that? Of course, we couldn''t afford to underestimate our foes. Humans could be more dangerous and much more cunning than monsters, after all.

    But they bleed, and they were comparatively fragile. All it took was one clean hit in the right place, and they would die instantly. That was why we were more confident when it came to fighting assassins over monsters. Or perhaps our rage¡­our hatred against the human enemy responsible for this calamity had overridden our fear and caution and made us reckless.

    In the end, it didn''t matter.

    The eight elite students of Jing Tian Magic Academy began marching toward the five-man military squad that was preparing to move out, ready to offer our services.

 163 Chapter 163: Moving Ou

    We ended up riding in infantry fighting vehicle instead of moving out on foot. It was only natural. The town hall was fairly far away from the shelter we currently resided in, and moving on foot would take far too long. By the time we reached there, the battle would be over and there wouldn''t be anybody left to save.

    The five soldiers accepted our help grudgingly, especially when they learned from Yang Bai that we had held our own against trained assassins who were Rei''s disciples and defeated a rank B Silver Skeletal Wolf. They seemed pretty impressed after that and were more than willing to allow us to squeeze into the armored personnel carrier parked outside the shelter. The driver then slammed his foot down and accelerated forward, but we had managed to strap ourselves in before we were sent flying out of our seats.

    We couldn''t see anything beyond the armored hull of the APC, but I could hear the occasional whine of the multi-barreled lasers and heavy machine gun over the roar of the tracks, most likely chewing up a few low ranked monsters and even some mid-ranked monsters. They would have little effect on a high-ranked monster like the Silver Skeletal Wolf or even rank C Thunder Wolves, which were capable of generating electric barriers if necessary, but the APC plowed onward, avoiding battles. The goal now wasn''t to exterminate monsters but to save lives.

    And if we dallied too long, Alicia''s father and the other high-ranking members of the city council would be killed.

    Alicia was gripping her harness extremely tightly, until her knuckles whitened. I reached out and placed a hand over hers, to assure her. She nodded gratefully and closed her eyes, praying wistfully for her father to be safe.

    The APC ground over something as something squealed under us, and I wondered briefly if we had run over a Cyclops Rat. No big loss there.

    Eventually, the APC lurched to a halt, and the compartment opened up for the driver to turn back and shout at us.

    "We''re here!"

    "Okay! Everyone, move!"

    The sergeant in charge of the half-squad gave the order. The soldiers were the first to move. I had heard that they used to be ten men strong, but their squad had been decimated by casualties during rescue operations. Three dead, two heavily injured and currently recovering after Teacher Cure cast healing magic on them. No doubt Bu Fan would make some snide remark about the casualties being a waste of mages when they were sacrificed to save regular civilians, but this was the same guy who ran off with a squad to rescue his sister. Of course it''s a waste, of course regular civilians should die because they were weak as long as they weren''t the protagonist''s family, loved ones or waifus.

    Hypocritical bastard.

    The students followed shortly, eight of us jumping after the soldiers, who were fanning out to cover our disembarkation. We were familiar with cover and movement, and also hurried to cover to support the soldiers'' advance. The sergeant seemed surprised at our discipline and movements, but he was too professional to remark upon it. Instead, he used hand signals to gesture his own men forward before resorting to simple motions to wave us forward.

    As disciplined as we were, we hadn''t learned the military hand signals, after all. Of course we wouldn''t know some random gesture from the sergeant.

    "Help!"

    At the town hall, we caught sight of Cyclops Rats chewing on a few bodies. There was a survivor who managed to escape thus far, and when he caught sight of us, he raced toward us with a scream. The soldiers cursed under their breath when he gave our position away. Now we couldn''t take the Cyclops Rats by surprise.

    Not that we had to. Craig, Sheila, Dong Fan Yue Chu, Lily and Harrison rose to the task, charging forward to slay the Cyclops Rats with spells and weapons. Theodore managed to impose himself between the fleeing man and another Cyclops Rat, braining it with his mighty hammer. Alicia and I remained at the back, preparing to launch long-ranged spells along with the soldiers and their guns and spells. Unlike Alicia, the soldiers were equipped with carbine-type rifles that fired magical bullets. They were obviously more powerful than her twin pistols and provided a sustained rate of devastating fire. But they also cost a lot more mana to use.

    Fortunately, they were adult soldiers who had received military training, and thus they had the mana capacity to wield such weapons. Between the thirteen of us, we managed to wipe out the horde of Cyclops Rats in three minutes.

    Having professional soldiers fight alongside us was making a huge difference. If the five soldiers weren''t here, we would be taking five times as long to clean up the monsters.

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    "You¡­you are here. The military¡­"

    The man was spluttering in immense relief, almost pawing at the sergeant''s uniform. The sergeant gently pushed him away.

    "Stay with the APC. Don''t stray away. We''ll be back."

    "The monsters¡­the monsters! They are¡­!"

    "We know. We got rid of them."

    "There are more downstairs! I don''t know¡­I couldn''t see what was happening, but I saw a few robed people going downstairs! They were controlling the monsters! I don''t know if those monsters were summoned beasts or not, but those people, they were directing the monsters!"

    The man continued to blabber almost senselessly, but his words seemed to ring clearly in our heads. Craig scowled grimly.

    "Those must be the assassins."

    "Shouldn''t we hurry?" Sheila asked nervously.

    "We had better make it in time!" Dong Fang Yue Chu growled.

    The sergeant nodded in agreement, and pointed the man toward the APC again. The man numbly wandered toward the APC, guided by the driver, and the rest of us proceeded into the shattered lobby of the town hall.

    The glass was all broken, and furniture upturned. Evidently there had been a battle here¡­or the Cyclops Rats from before had rampaged through it. Thankfully, there were no more monsters in the interior. Either they had all emerged to hunt for prey, like the Cyclops Rats we had eradicated earlier, or the assassins had brought the monsters down with them toward the shelter.

    But I had never heard of assassins controlling monsters. Well, there were some who were summoners, such as Selina Wright, but summoning magic in general just wasn''t suited for assassination. Assassination was usually stealthy, quiet and dark. Summoning was too overly visible, loud and conspicuous. Unless your form of assassination was kill everything with brute force (like Selina''s Hades), it was unlikely for summoners to be an assassin.

    If that was the case¡­

    "Everyone, be careful. We might not be dealing with assassins here. We might be dealing with agents from the Dark Church itself."

    Everyone turned to stare at me.

    "What gives?" Craig asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

    "The monsters," Harrison answered in my place, having come to the same conclusion as me. Everyone swiveled to stare at him, and he indulged them with an explanation. "Assassins don''t control monsters, and if what we''ve heard about the Dark Church is true, then it fits their modus operandi. Wasn''t the Dark Church the one behind the previous attack on our city, the one with three thousand monsters? Then they must have learned how to control monsters."

    "That makes sense," Lily admitted, disturbed by the scenario that her society president had brought up. "But then¡­what do we do?"

    "The same thing as ever," Craig replied gruffly. "We kill them. We kill them all."

    "Simple enough," Theodore agreed with a chuckle. "I like that plan."

    The elevator was obviously broken, but even so no one in their right mind would take it down to the basement. Not during a catastrophe like this. The enemy could have rigged it, it would have called too much attention, and it was a potential death trap. If the enemy was just outside the elevator, they could easily shoot spells into it when the doors open, and we would have no cover to hide behind.

    So we took the stairs. What? The underground shelter was only a couple of levels down, below the three basement levels. Mages weren''t physically weak, especially since we were all trained for physical combat.

    I wondered if we should have asked Teacher Fielding to come. His presence alone would make a significant difference for our chances. Then I suddenly remembered that he was nowhere to be seen in the shelter. Later, I learned that he had joined the military in helping civilians evacuate toward our shelter. Even though he retired from the military, he was still determined to do his duty to protect everyone.

    We descended the stairs carefully, watching out for any traps or sentries. However, it turned out that our caution was unnecessary. There was nobody keeping watch in the stairs. Even so, we continued to move as stealthily as possible, but even with magic we were unable to mask the noise of our footsteps echoing in the hollow chamber.

    Perhaps we should have asked Zhang Hou Zi to come along. His wind magic would be useful in blocking out any acoustics or sound we generated. I realized that we were all attack or offensive type mages. If Pearl wasn''t exhausted, we would have asked her to come along, for her healing magic would be vital in keeping us alive. Unfortunately, she had overworked herself in healing both injured civilians and soldiers, so we couldn''t possibly drag her along for a mission as dangerous as this.

    Fortunately, I could also function as a defensive type mage. I guess I had no choice but to fulfill that role, since none of the others could. My Black Tortoise and Scutum Sobiescianum were going to see a lot of play here. With that in mind, I began casting the summoning spell for my Black Tortoise the moment we reached the fourth level, and when I was sure I wouldn''t wander beyond the hundred meter range limit of my summoning spell.

    The sergeant stopped by the door, and then wit hand signals, got two of his men to cover him. He gestured for us students to stay back. Even if we had proven ourselves in combat, we were still kids. The adults naturally felt obligated to take the risks, and were reluctant to put us in danger. Appreciating it, we stood back.

    Then the sergeant kicked the door open and charged in, aiming his carbine. His men followed, filing out, and once they were in position, we followed suit.

    Nothing happened. However, once we were out of the stairs chamber, we could hear the noise of battle from a distance. There was still a skirmish occurring inside the shelter, from the sounds of it. We weren''t too late.

    At least if our objective was to save the city council from being wiped out. We couldn''t tell if some of the councilmen had already fallen.

    "Father¡­!"

    Alicia started, but I managed to stop her in time. The sergeant scowled and shook his head, before nodding at me thankfully.

    "We''ve to be careful," I reminded Alicia. "We can''t let the enemy know we''re here. Let''s take advantage of the fact and ambush them. We''ll have a higher chance of saving your father that way."

    "Ah¡­right. Sorry." Alicia clenched her fingers around her guns tightly and swallowed. I could tell that she was worried, and I didn''t blame her for wanting to charge in. even Bu Fan''s attitude changed when he learned that his sister was in danger. There was nobody in this world who could remain calm and undetached when their family was attacked. Okay, maybe there were, but those were in the distant minority. You know what I mean.

    The soldiers advanced carefully, with the students staying close behind. We could see the combatants fighting now. A group of older men in suits were cowering behind a ring of men in suits and sunglasses. Obviously those men in suits were bodyguards, and while they were bloodied and their clothing were tattered, they were barely holding their own against the assailants. A frightening number of them were lying on the ground, many of them in pieces. It was obvious that the majority of the casualties wouldn''t be getting up ever again.

    And their numbers were steadily dwindling.

    Directing the assault were a group of figures in black robes, their features concealed by hoods. But they were standing from a safe distance.

    Instead, it was a horde of over a hundred black beasts who were attacking the city council!

 164 Chapter 164: Black Beasts

    "Okay, who put the exclamation mark up there in the previous chapter? Why make it so dramatic?"

    I mumbled to myself, but fortunately I was so soft that nobody heard me. Otherwise the sergeant would smack me and tell me to shut up. We were supposed to stealthily approach and take the Dark Church dudes by surprise, after all.

    "Get ready," the sergeant whispered, signaling us forward. He was only speaking to us students because we didn''t understand the military hand signals. "Ranged mages, take aim and shoot the Dark Apes. The close combat mages, standby. Once they see us, you can charge in and eliminate the survivors."

    "Yes, Sergeant!"

    We all got into positions. Dong Fang Yue Chu could double as a ranged mage as well, so he began casting his fire spells. Alicia aimed with her guns, as did the soldiers with their carbines. As for me, I summoned Orion.

    The Dark Apes were rank D monsters. Even though they weren''t as powerful as Elemental class monsters, they were still fairly strong and thus we couldn''t afford to eliminate me. They would be quite durable when compared to the rank F Cyclops Rats.

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    "Now!" The Sergeant barked.

    We immediately unleashed a hail of fire, taking care not to hit the bodyguards and city council dudes. As I expected, they were more tenacious, and only five went down in the first wave. The survivors spun around and caught sight of the projectiles coming from our direction.

    "Continue firing!" the Sergeant bellowed, squeezing his trigger and letting his rifle roar on full automatic. The Dark Apes were racing forward now, growling and snarling, but that was where the close combat mages came into play.

    Craig and Theodore were the first ones to reach the approaching line of Dark Apes, the latter''s hammer smashing into the front two rank D monsters and pulverizing them. Craig''s spear darted with impeccable precision, spearing the heart of a Dark Ape before he scythed down a second. Another pounced on him, but Sheila bashed it away with her shield before slicing the stunned monster''s throat. Craig then reached her side, and the two of the fought back-to-back.

    It was clear that the two Crimson Spear Society members were used to working with each other. Their attacks were completely in sync, and they covered each other''s vulnerabilities. Sheila would shield Craig with her shield while Craig would cut down any Dark Ape that was striking at her blind spot. Working together, the two pulled off a flawless and seemingly choreographed display of skill, reaping a huge tally.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily supported either side of Theodore, while Harrison hung a bit back to protect Alicia. The soldiers didn''t need help. The moment the Dark Apes reached them, they lowered their guns, allowing them to hang from their straps. Instead, they drew swords and sabers, stabbing and thrusting at the howling monsters.

    With my comrades dealing with the majority of the Dark Apes, I switched my aim toward the Dark Church dudes. They were hanging back, not actively participating in the battle. We had assumed that they were controlling the Dark Apes, but there was a faint possibility they had summoned them as well. If so, killing them would cause the Dark Apes to disappear.

    At the very least, eliminating them would end their control over the Dark Apes, and we could focus on mopping up the monsters. As deadly as the Dark Apes were, I had a feeling that the humans were even more dangerous.

    Especially since those bastards were the ones who masterminded the massacre.

    Charging up a weaker version of Rigel, I launched it at the Dark Church dudes. They were unable to react in time, my arrow striking the one in the middle before exploding. All the robed figures were consumed by the resultant conflagration, incinerated into dust¡­or so I hoped.

    But the Dark Apes didn''t disappear. Either the summoner survived or these were controlled monsters.

    A trio of the Dark Church dudes stumbled out of the inferno, their robes fuming and the men coughing hoarsely as they struggled to extinguish the flames. One of them shouted something incoherently, and a detachment of Dark Apes broke off to charge at me.

    "Betelgeuse!"

    A volley of countless arrows pierced through the offending Dark Apes and reduced them into bloody craters. I then shifted my aim, but the surviving Dark Church trio were already running and conjuring a defensive barrier. Worse, a few Dark Apes threw themselves in my line of sight, obscuring the fleeing trio.

    "Damn it!"

    I tried to move to the side, but they were persistent. And then the city council guys chose that moment to run as well.

    "Help!"

    Their bodyguards were dwindling fast. Not only that, I saw that the huge group wasn''t just city council dudes, but also a massive population of civilians. The ring of bodyguards had been broken, and the civilians were forced to break up into smaller groups, scattering all over the shelter to prevent themselves from getting mauled.

    "Damn it! What are those guys doing?"

    I knew I couldn''t blame those guys, but the heat and frustration of the moment got to me. The bodyguards had been fighting for goodness knows how long, stretched to breaking point and overtaxed with protecting a group of civilians about ten times their number. Honestly, it was a miracle that they had lasted this long.

    However, the sergeant recognized that we would fail our mission after coming so close if we allowed things to develop as they did. He issued an order, and the soldiers disengaged as quickly as they could. Harrison and Alicia stepped in to cover their retreat, then Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily joined. Abandoning my efforts to assassinate the Dark Church guys controlling the whole thing, I dismissed Orion and drew Gan Jiang and Mo Ye.

    I cleaved the first Dark Ape in half before decapitating a second. Thanks to the efforts of my friends, the ranks of Dark Apes were being thinned. They were tenacious, though. The Dark Ape I had cleaved was scrambling toward me, the upper half of its body dragging itself forward. I was forced to finish it off with a vicious stomp to its head. Alicia wasn''t faring much better. Even though her shots were hitting home, the Dark Apes shrugged them off and advanced toward her. Harrison was probably the worst of us three. Despite pummeling a couple of Dark Apes, they refused to die. He must have delivered what seemed like five separate lethal blows to them, and yet they kept coming. Only when he finally caved in the head of a Dark Ape, smashing its face in and distorting the entire shape, did he score a proper kill.

    "Tenacious little fuckers!" he swore under his breath.

    "That''s rank D for you," Dong Fang Yue Chu complained as he roasted another Dark Ape. One of his victims, despite being charred and blackened, rose to its feet and lunged at him, only for Lily to slice its head off with her sword.

    "They can take a lot of punishment," she remarked, breathing heavily. Her face was already red from the exertion.

    "Almost there!" Alicia assured her as she shot a Dark Ape in the head. It staggered, but that hesitation was more than enough for me to lop its head off. "There aren''t many left now!"

    The soldiers, now free from engaging the Dark Apes in close combat, raised their carbines and let loose several precise shots at the Dark Apes still harassing the civilians. The Dark Apes snarled as they were struck, but only three died in the barrage. The rest turned around, abandoning their attempts on the beleaguered bodyguards.

    And good thing too, for there were about five men in suits and sunglasses (why the fuck were they wearing sunglasses inside an underground shelter?!) remaining. And they looked like they were in pretty bad shape.

    On the other hand, we had managed to thin the number of Dark Apes to about half of their original count. About fifty Dark Apes left. Pretty good odds, if you ask me.

    "Damn, maybe I should have cast Vermillion Phoenix or White Tiger instead. Never mind."

    At that moment, I summoned Black Tortoise. My Celestial Guardian appeared and he immediately conjured whirlpools of water that slammed into the Dark Apes and swept them away. As hardy as they were, even Dark Apes needed to breathe, and the immense water pressure not only crushed them but also drowned them. Just as insurance, I summoned Pisces. The two gigantic sharks sailed through the water that Black Tortoise had created and began tearing the Dark Apes apart with their dagger-like fangs.

    "Over here! Move it!"

    The sergeant was yelling for the civilians to run over to our position. With the Dark Apes out of the way, they would be safest next to us, especially if the Dark Church dudes still had anything up their sleeves.

    Speaking of which¡­where were they? I had lost sight of them when dealing with the Dark Apes, but I was pretty sure they didn''t just disappear somewhere. There was nowhere else to go in this shelter, and my rescue team was guarding the only exit. Not unless they used the elevator at the center, but the space in front of it had always been empty. If they had headed that way, we should have seen them. Unless they used an invisibility spell, but that begged the question of why didn''t they cast it earlier?

    By now I was summoning more and more Constellation spirits to finish off the surviving Dark Apes. Even though the number of bodyguards had been drastically reduced, I could easily reinforce our position with more Constellation spirits. The longer time passed, the more advantageous it would be for us.

    "Canis Minor!"

    I called one of my hunting hounds over and gestured him toward the last place where I saw the Dark Church trio. He nodded and bounded over to sniff the area.

    "Go track them down! I''m counting on you!"

    Canis Minor barked an affirmation and began sniffing out the trail. He began racing toward the civilians. I snorted inwardly. If those idiots thought they could hide within the civilians, then they were dead wrong. My Canis Minor was capable of picking out their scent from everyone else.

    So I was surprised when he ran past the civilians and deeper into the shelter. Cursing under my breath, I followed him.

    "Oh? There''s still more prey?" Craig noticed me jogging toward the opposite end of the shelter, and he joined me. The guy was faster and fitter than I was, and he caught up really easily. They said that spearmen were the fastest mages, and now I finally had a chance to see that they were right.

    Sheila also caught up shortly after. Being weighed down by her shield, she was just a teeny bit slower than her president.

    "What''s going on?"

    "The real enemy," I replied grimly. "We''re not going to let them get away."

    "Oh, the Dark Church! Great idea!"

    With a cheer, Craig increased his speed. Canis Minor ignored him, skidding to a stop near the edge of the wall.

    "¡­what the hell is that?"

    I also paused in my tracks when I caught sight of two gigantic canisters lying against the wall. Between them was the surviving trio from the Dark Church.

    "Who cares?! Kill them! Kill them all!"

    Craig hurled his spear at them in reflex, instinctively understanding that he couldn''t afford to let them do anything. Sheila did the same, but a magical barrier appeared between their targets and their weapons, stopping the spears from piercing through.

    "Man, this was meant to be a last resort. We really don''t want to use this¡­but you kids forced our hand."

    The Dark Church dude in the middle was growling some clich¨¦ line that I had heard a dozen times before. So I didn''t pay attention. The moment Craig had attacked, I had begun casting a summoning spell as well.

    "Taurus!"

    It was futile. The barrier held strong even as Taurus collided against it. Behind the barrier, the Dark Church dudes continued to work on the canisters.

    "You''re too late!" the Dark Church dude in the middle howled triumphantly.

    The moment the words left his mouth, the canisters clicked and flung open, releasing white smog into the air. And then, from each of them, a massive dark figure stepped out, their silhouettes still obscured by the dense smog.

    "What in the world¡­?" I muttered under my breath, but Craig suddenly seized me and Sheila.

    "Get out of here!" he shouted as he began sprinting backward. "Everyone, run! Or we''ll all die!"

    Amidst his panic, I could hear the three Dark Church dudes cackle cruelly as they too were enveloped by the smog.

 165 Chapter 165: Hired Assassins

    "Holy hell¡­what the fuck are those?!" Craig demanded.

    "I¡­I don''t know," Sheila whispered as she unconsciously took a step backward.

    I silently observed them as they stepped out, nothing that they were definitely humanoid in shape. However, the hulking figures were beyond normal human size, with each of them reaching about two and a half meters in height.

    Muscles bulged under their black bodysuit, and their faces were concealed behind skull-like masks, with the optical lenses flaring red. I could see vials of serums on their backs, pumping stimulants into their bodies. Their left hands ended in what seemed like claws, a gauntlet with thin sharp spikes curving out from each finger. In their right hands, they each held a huge gun.

    They leered at us as they stepped out of their smog before letting loose an inhuman howl. They were clearly once human, but that was a long time ago. Man had taken them and operated on them, transforming them from humans into monsters whose minds were clearly drugged to think of nothing except killing.

    "Ha ha ha ha! These are the berserk assassins from the Frenzor Sect! They have been specially engineered and enhanced by experimental surgical procedures, and are trained to wipe out entire populations by themselves! They are utterly ruthless and psychotic, former murderers and criminals mind-wiped and drugged into mindless hatred, to kill everyone and everything in their path!"

    "¡­doesn''t that mean you''ll end up getting killed by them too?" I asked dryly.

    "¡­eh?"

    The Dark Church members realized I was right, especially when the two Frenzor Assassins turned toward them. In a swift stroke, the Assassins swiped at the Dark Church dudes. Despite bringing up their barriers, one of them lost their heads.

    The two Frenzor Assassins began hammering and smashing against the barrier in a frenzied rage, causing the two remaining survivors to cower in fear. The Dark Church dude formerly in the middle was scrambling for his phone now, speaking into it.

    "We need reinforcements! Time for you assassins to earn your pay! And control your berserkers! We don''t want to get killed by them by mistake!"

    Someone responded to him from the other side of the phone, and his eyes widened.

    "Don''t fuck with me¡­"

    He never got to finish his sentence. The barrier cracked from the repeated blows, and the first Frenzor Assassin reached in to seize the silent Dark Church member by the throat with his claws-gauntlet. The guy gagged and clutching desperately, but the Frenzor Assassin began bludgeoning him with his huge gun.

    Just one blow, and the guy''s skull shattered into a spray of blood and brain matter from the sheer force.

    "HIIIIIIIII!"

    The former middle Dark Church dude screamed and backed away, only to find himself facing the grim, almost grinning skull-mask of the second Frenzor Assassin. He impaled the Dark Church employer through the chest and cut the poor guy apart, leaving not much of his body behind.

    "Holy shit¡­" Craig murmured.

    The two Frenzor Assassins began to turn toward us.

    "Taurus!" I shouted.

    The gigantic bull charged at the Frenzor Assassins without any hesitation. The lead Assassin emptied his huge pistol into Taurus, but the bullets merely pinged off the Constellation spirit''s metallic armor. Not at all bothered by the ineffectiveness of his shots, the Assassin tossed his gun aside and took Taurus''s charge head-on. The bull slammed into him, causing the Frenzor Assassin to skid backward. The Frenzor Assassin dug his feet into the ground, leaving a broken trail of concrete, but he eventually succeeded in halting his charge. Gripping Taurus''s horns, he bellowed ferociously as he slammed Taurus''s head down, but the large Constellation spirit remained impassive, the two of them locked in a stalemate.

    "Taurus, Aldebaran!" I instructed. Taurus obeyed, lifting his head and unleashing a gout of flames from his jaws that washed over the Assassin. Despite the fiery hell Taurus bathed him in, the Assassin continued to pummel the giant bull, his system pumped with adrenaline and other combat drugs that boosted his physical strength further.

    With a furious roar, he sliced open Taurus''s neck, the portion not protected by armor plating. Taurus staggered, and the Assassin seized the chance to stab his claws further into Taurus''s neck, digging in. The giant bull snarled and tried to crush him with a stomp, but the Assassin proved to be too agile. Using his lightning reflexes, he flipped himself up and over, avoiding being obliterated by Taurus''s tremendous weight.

    Unsheathing a sword from his back, he spun in the air before landing on top of Taurus. With a feral growl, he stabbed the sword into Taurus''s unprotected neck. Blue mana flared to life, crackling into a destructive power field around the blade as he drove the sword deeper in.

    Taurus bellowed and thrashed about desperately, trying to throw the guy off him. The Assassin hung on through sheer force of will, and then reached out with his clawed gauntlet to pierce another portion of Taurus''s neck. Blood spurted from an arterial rupture, and Taurus slowly toppled over, fading from existence in a gradual manner.

    By then, I had already prepared another soul beast. White Tiger materialized, lightning exploding from his body as he pounced on the offending Assassin. The berserker didn''t even seem fazed by the devastating electricity, and merely parried White Tiger''s crackling claws with his own neuro-gauntlet and sword.

    "Richard! Watch out!"

    I spun around, and just in time too. Craig and Sheila had been sent hurtling to the sides after the Frenzor Assassin barged through them. The both of them were bleeding and suffering serious injuries, but Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily had arrived to reinforce them. Unfortunately, the Frenzor Assassin gad batted them out of the way as well, and was on his way to finish them off¡­except that I happened to be the next closest target now that my friends were all flung to a distance.

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    "!!!"

    I spun around and quickly summoned Gemini twin swords before the Assassin crashed into me, because I didn''t have time to draw Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. The sheer force of his impact shattered my twin swords, and I was lucky not to get eviscerated by his clawed gauntlet.

    Even so, the raw power of his charge seemed to have broken a rib or two, and I was hurled across the shelter space and into the other side of the chamber.

    "Gah!"

    Striking the concrete wall with so much force that I actually left a crater and a cobweb of cracks in it, I then slumped downward. Coughing out some blood, I struggled to my feet, only for a sharp pain to jolt through my chest.

    "Damn it¡­what power¡­!"

    Raising my head, I saw the soldiers and bodyguards in suits rushing in to deal with the Assassin. They were being massacred, with body parts flying all over the place, but they gave their lives to buy time for the civilians and wounded students to retreat.

    "Fall back!" Harrison ordered as he helped Dong Fang Yue Chu to his feet. Alicia was also helping Lily up, while Theodore practically carried Craig and Sheila in each arm and hauled ass. "We''re no match for those monsters!"

    "Alicia!"

    "Father!"

    While helping Lily up, Alicia found herself reunited with her father, who hurried over to help us. He smiled wearily.

    "I''m glad to see you all safe¡­though I must reprimand you later for your recklessness, foolish daughter. You should have left this to the professionals."

    "Hey, they were pretty understaffed. They need all the help they can get!" Craig protested. Vincent Violet merely shook his head with a chuckle.

    "Kids¡­I remember when I was still as young as you¡­" he straightened up. "Anyway, no time to argue. Let''s get the hell out of here while we still can!"

    Nobody was stupid enough to volunteer for the suicidal duty of stalling the Frenzor Assassins. The bodyguards were mostly dead now, slain to a man, but the soldiers were still holding their own, despite being bloodied. Fortunately, I had Black Tortoise and White Tiger moving in to intercept the second Frenzor Assassin, which greatly helped their chances of survival.

    Though how long more they could survive, I had no idea¡­

    The good news was that all the Dark Apes had been slain, and we didn''t have to worry about them. While I was distracted by the Frenzor Assassin, the rest of my comrades had taken care of them.

    Staggering to my feet, I stayed to watch the civilians head to safety. By a stroke of fortune, I ended up being flung all the way to the stairs, but I wasn''t going to be the first to leave. Not because I was trying to be a hero, mind you, but because my Celestial Guardians were still fighting the Frenzor Assassins. If I moved out of range, they would disappear. I needed to be within about a hundred meters of them to maintain their existences.

    Yeah, the commenters were raging about how troublesome and useless my summoning magic was, but that was how it was. Otherwise it would be too overpowered. It was only natural that such limitations existed. Many readers wanted an overpowered protagonist because they wanted to indulge in their self-insert, wish fulfilment activities, and get all pissed off when the protagonist couldn''t steamroll his opponents.

    Since when was reality so easy and convenient?

    The civilians had broken into disparate groups, with the vast majority not caring and racing toward the stairs heedless of others. A couple had stopped to accompany Vincent Violet and my friends, kind souls who offered assistance to the injured students. But such compassionate adults were far and few in between. The rest ignored us and proceeded toward the stairs, prioritizing their own lives over others. Not that I blamed them, mind you. It was only human nature to want to survive.

    But it was also human nature to help others in need, and I was heartened to see my friends receiving support from at least five or so adults in previously expensive but currently tattered suits. Those must be city council members. If the leaders of our city were concerned for the welfare of its children, then perhaps the human race still had hope after all.

    "AAAAAAH!"

    My attention was focused on the Frenzor Assassins and directing my two Celestial Guardians to occupy their attention (and maybe kill them, if possible) that I didn''t notice a new threat heading down the stairs until it was too late. At the gruesome scream, I spun around and caught sight of a newcomer proceeding toward us, leaving the stairs chamber.

    Like the Frenzor Assassins, she was dressed in a tight bodysuit, but she wasn''t as heavily armed or huge as them. Instead, her dark green hair was tied into a ponytail, and in one hand she wielded two short daggers.

    Plunging into the crowd of screaming and fleeing civilians, she slaughtered them indiscriminately with swift, clean strokes. The survivors immediately turned tail and fled back to the shelter, but stopped when they noticed the Frenzor Assassins drawing closer to our position, and the number of soldiers dwindling further. Even my Celestial Guardians were getting battered and almost torn apart.

    "Another Assassin!" Vincent gasped as he threw out a hand to stop the students from advancing toward the stairs. "Everyone, retreat!"

    Another civilian shrieked as she was cut down by the newcomer. Clicking my tongue, I summoned Gemini and dove at the Assassin. Her speed was so fast and blinding that I decided to use Gemini instead of the heavier, bigger and more unwieldy Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. If I had used my actual swords instead, I probably wouldn''t be able to keep up with her movements.

    "Oh?"

    The Assassin turned toward me, a smirk curling her lips. She easily parried my first strike and knocked me back with a kick. I stumbled backward, but managed to just barely deflect her dagger with Pollux.

    Unfortunately, the Assassin was too fast and cunning. She slashed at me with her other dagger, opening up a wound on my forearm. I staggered back and retaliated with a riposte from Castor, but she withdrew with a giggle.

    Panting, I got ready to attack her again, but she merely tilted her head at me with a smile.

    "There''s no point fighting," she told me triumphantly. "My dagger is poisoned. It doesn''t matter if you only suffered the shallowest of wounds or just a simple scratch. My venom has already gotten into your system. In ten seconds, your heart will stop."

 166 Chapter 166: Decision

    At first, panic flared up inside me and I realized that I was going to die.

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    Then cold calculations took over and I lunged forward. Gemini made twin black and white streaks as they arced toward the Assassin''s neck.

    "You¡­!"

    The Assassin who used poison swore as she ducked backward and tried to block my swords with her daggers. She kicked me away, but I dodged by bending backward. Hurling my twin swords at her, I dropped to the ground and used my hands to support myself while I launched a kick toward her neck. She blocked my foot with her forearm before staggering back.

    "Why are you still putting up a fight? You''re going to die in ten seconds! Or less!"

    "Then I''ll do my best to kill you in ten seconds," I replied coldly. "You''ll be accompanying me to hell."

    "Tch!" the Assassin clicked her tongue as I increased the pressure of my kick, but managed to knock my foot away. I whirled about to get back on my feet, and the poison Assassin seized the opportunity to recover.

    She then retaliated with her daggers, but my Gemini twin swords spun toward her neck, forcing her to deflect the deadly twin swords from severing her head from her shoulders.

    While she was distracted, I drew both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye and bisected her at the waist. Or tried to, but credit to the highly trained Assassin, she leaped upward to dodge what would otherwise be my killing strike. Her daggers flashed down in response, but I knocked them away with Gan Jiang and Mo Ye before counterattacking with a riposte that drew blood from her cheek and chest. She staggered back, then widened the distance to retreat.

    As I straightened up and took a deep breath, I noticed that I was still feeling fine. Just in case, I reached up and felt for my pulse. Yup, my heart was still beating normally.

    "Your ten seconds are up," I informed her coolly. "I thought you said my heart is supposed to stop?"

    The ponytail Assassin''s eyes widened. "How is that possible?! My poison should be fast-acting. There''s no way you could have¡­"

    I didn''t reply. I had no idea why her poison didn''t work on me, but I wasn''t going to let this fluke go to waste. I had to kill her before her toxins finally took effect, or before she cut me again.

    The Assassin parried my strike, but found herself being forced into the defensive. As sparks scattered between us while our blades clashed, I pushed her back step by step. Behind me, the civilians retreated further into the shelter, only to stop when they realized that the Frenzor Assassins were still massacring the bodyguards and soldiers.

    Unfortunately for the poison Assassin, she couldn''t rely on her Frenzor pals to come to her aid. I was confident that I could kill her before they reached our position.

    "You¡­!"

    The poison Assassin shrieked at me, but I didn''t pay any attention to her. Instead, I dive to the side in reflex when I heard a voice and sensed an enormous surge of mana behind me.

    "Richard! Duck!"

    Craig''s voice. While I dropped to the ground, a crimson spear streaked across the shelter and hammered into the ponytail Assassin''s chest. She croaked in shock and disbelief, dropping her daggers and clutching the shaft of the demonic weapon. Not that it cared.

    Raising my head, I watched impassively as Craig''s demonic spear pierced through her heart and continued hurtling forward, bringing its target along with it. With a deafening crack, it pinned the Assassin to the wall, stabbing deeply into the reinforced concrete as easily as hot knife through butter. The Assassin slumped and hung over like a puppet whose strings had been abruptly cut, her head and limbs splayed untidily in suspension. Blood trailed the shaft of the spear before dripping down in huge rivulets, along with the steady stream that erupted from her ruptured chest.

    "Sorry for stealing your kill," Craig told me as he raised his hand and recalled his crimson spear. He continued to limp forward, relying on Theodore. "But we don''t have a lot of time."

    I shook my head. "No, it''s fine. If anything, I''m grateful that you caught her off guard. Saved me a lot of trouble."

    "How were you able to resist the poison?" Sheila asked, still leaning on Theodore. "I don''t think that Assassin was lying about her poisons."

    "I don''t know. Maybe she forgot to apply the poison to the dagger?" I scratched my head in bewilderment. I was curious too, but now wasn''t the time to care about it. The Frenzor Assassins were catching up. Vincent and Alicia had split off to join the dwindling soldiers and bodyguards while the civilians were still in a disarray.

    "The Holy Spring!" One of the civilians blurted out. He was next to Vincent Violet, being one of the few who had chosen to remain behind to fight instead of run. To buy the others time to escape by putting his own life at risk. "You went and trained at the underground Holy Spring, didn''t you? That must be the gift you received from the Holy Spring! The attribute that you gained while cultivating next to the Holy Spring...an immunity to poison!"

    "¡­really?"

    Wow, that sounded anticlimactic. I was hoping for an extra elemental magic or something more impressive. You know¡­like¡­maybe regenerative powers, or near immortality, or four different types of magic. Maybe void magic or spatial magic. Maybe the ability to destroy my enemies with one punch. Or dark magic. Something that protagonists received. Something that might be a lot more visible and impactful. But no, I just received a simple immunity to poison.

    That said, it ended up saving my life. If I hadn''t attained that attribute, I would have died from the Assassin''s poison.

    Vincent Violet was giving the man a strange stare, as if he was puzzled by something. Alicia noticed his bewildered expression.

    "What''s the matter, Father?"

    "No¡­I was just wondering how he knew about Richard training next to the Holy Spring. I don''t remember telling him that. Only Teacher Fielding, the Holy Spring facility staff and I should know about it. We didn''t inform the City Council¡­"

    "It''s not unusual for these sort of things to leak out, and the Holy Spring facility has close ties with the City Council," the man replied. "Besides, we have more important matters to worry about."

    Vincent nodded. "Indeed."

    "Let''s go!" Harrison ordered, still helping Dong Fang Yue Chu up. Lily was now able to walk on her own, and she caught up with Theodore, Sheila and Craig, but she was still hobbling.

    "You guys go ahead," I told them. They were far ahead of the civilians, and they were about to turn around and guide them to leave in front of them, but something occurred to me. "You guys might want to scout ahead and make sure the surface is clear. I don''t know if that Assassin brought any friends."

    "Good thinking," Harrison agreed. "We''ll do that then."

    "What about you?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked, glancing at me.

    I gestured to my Celestial Guardians. "I need to stay behind to maintain my soul beasts in the material world, or they would disappear and those Frenzor Assassins will be upon us in a jiffy. Don''t worry, once everyone is out, I''ll follow shortly." I glanced at the stairs. "I''ll try to seal them in after I get out of here."

    "Don''t be too reckless."

    As my friends left, I headed toward the civilians. They were still scattered in various groups. One of the Frenzor Assassins got through the thinning line of soldiers and bodyguards and pounced on one of the groups.

    "Oh no, you don''t!"

    Vincent puched the massive Assassin, but he only succeeded in staggering the guy. The berserk Assassin turned to glare at him through his skull mask, and then raised his neuro-gauntlet to eviscerate him.

    "Father!"

    Alicia fired off a few shots that pinged against the Assassin''s head, but with little effect. Even so, she managed to buy enough time for her father to withdraw to safety.

    At that moment, White Tiger pounced on the Frenzor Assassin. With a roar, he mauled the Assassin with his claws, pinning the huge human to the ground. Lightning seared and blasted the Assassin, but still the guy refused to die.

    But he wasn''t going to remain alive for long.

    At my mental command, White Tiger leaped to the side. Having already summoned Sagittarius, I unleashed an Alnasl arrow at the downed Frenzor Assassin. The flaming arrow slammed into him and detonated.

    "Huff¡­did I do it?"

    Lowering my bow, I tried to peer through the flames, but was horrified to see the Frenzor Assassin rise up. His black, synthetic bodysuit had been burned off in places, and part of his body had been incinerated. There was a gaping hole in the left part of his chest, his shoulder and part of his arm missing.

    Even with such grievous wounds, the guy was still not dead yet. Hell, I didn''t understand how he was able to stand.

    "Watch out!"

    Vincent suddenly shouted. The closest group of civilians were stumbling over and trying to scramble away from the hideous sight, but I doubted that he was warning them. Instead, he knocked Alicia over and shielded her with his own body.

    "Father?!"

    "When a Frenzor Assassin dies, the combat drugs and artificial chemicals inside him will react to cause a bio-meltdown. He will essentially nuke the entire area! Everyone, get down!"

    He glanced at me grimly. "Save as many as you can!"

    I suddenly understood that what he meant. The range of the explosion upon a Frenzor Assassin''s death was so huge it would end up killing a lot of the civilians. Cursing under my breath, I recalled Black Tortoise to form a water barrier while conjuring Scutum Sobiescianum.

    But¡­there were so many civilians, and most of them were out of range of Black Tortoise''s water barrier. How could I protect all of them?

    And then there was Alicia and Vincent, who were right next to the Frenzor Assassin. I couldn''t let them die as well¡­!

    The Frenzor Assassin''s body swelled and I sensed a spike in his mana, a violent surge that was going to erupt in the next two seconds.

    I had no choice. I couldn''t hesitate.

    So I made my decision.

    "Black Tortoise! Scutum Sobiescianum!"

    The Frenzor Assassin exploded. I was struck by acidic chemicals, the vicious stuff burning through my skin and the sheer force of the blast dealing mortal wounds to me. Hitting the heavily reinforced wall, I slumped down, but was relieved to see that I was still alive. Wiping the chemicals away, which burned my skin, I saw that my immunity to poison had saved me once again. I had no doubt that much of these chemical sludge was toxic.

    "Alicia! Principal!"

    I had Black Tortoise surround them with his water barrier. The few civilians who had stayed close to them, including the man who suggested earlier that I had gained immunity to poison, benefited from the protection as well. Another three survived because I shielded them with Scutum Sobiescianum.

    However, five times that number had died in the blast. Simply because I had chosen to protect the tiny group with Alicia and her father in it over them.

    "Richard?!" Alicia was hurrying to me when she saw that I was hurt. In contrast, her father stayed where he was, his face a mask.

    "¡­you shouldn''t have¡­"

    His shoulders slumped down, and he shook his head with a sigh before glancing at the carnage. So many people had died. Their bodies were a corroding, fuming mess, eaten away by the chemicals. Some of them were still alive, screaming and shrieking in pain as their bodies writhed in hellish agony, but without any healing mages, there was nothing we could do for them.

    In the distance, the remaining soldiers and bodyguards were still dealing with the remaining Frenzor Assassin. All of them had been too far away for the suicide bombing to hit.

    Vincent took a deep breath and turned to stare at me.

    "I can''t say I''m not grateful, but¡­you chose to sacrifice the majority for the few. You shouldn''t have¡­since you have the ability, you should have saved as many as you can, not¡­"

    "Father!" Alicia protested. The principal clenched his fists and took a deep breath.

    "Personally¡­as a father, I am very grateful. I would have done the same in your position. I really am thankful to you for choosing to save my daughter over the majority. But as the director of Jing Tian Academy, I¡­I¡­"

    "That''s enough," one of the other civilian survivors cut in. It was a stocky man with a square jaw and an expensive but tattered suit that had bloodstains all over it. Dried blood had caked one side of his face, but he ignored it. Another city council member, no doubt. "He chose to save us. The decision has been made. It''s too late to tell him what he should have or should not have done. He will have to live with the decision from now on. That said¡­" he turned to me. "I am grateful to you for saving our lives."

    "I''m not a hero," I said hollowly, realizing that I had betrayed my dad''s ideals. All that talk about becoming a hero like my dad, and in the end I chickened out and chose to be selfish. "I¡­I wasn''t thinking. I acted on reflex¡­"

    "Because you saw that my daughter was in danger." Vincent nodded. "Like I said, as a father, I am grateful."

    He then glanced down, his eyes hard.

    "But morally wise¡­I know I should not feel happy¡­I should not feel this relieved¡­that so many people died in our place. Sorry¡­I shouldn''t take it out on you. I am probably more frustrated with myself for feeling this way."

    "We will all share this guilt from now on." The stocky man placed a hand on Vincent''s shoulder, and then glanced at me sympathetically. "And I understand¡­that you''ll have to shoulder this burden the most. But remember that we will all share in it."

    "Thank you, I guess."

    Behind us, the other Frenzor Assassin exploded. At long last, the soldiers and bodyguards had managed to subdue him, with great cost. By the time the dust had settled, only three soldiers were left, all sporting severe injuries.

    Not a single bodyguard survived the battle against the Frenzor Assassin.

 167 Chapter 167: Tragic Turn

    "You guys all right?" I asked as I proceeded toward the surviving soldiers. They were limping toward us, the sergeant helping one of his severely wounded comrades who was missing an arm. They had hastily tied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding, but we had to get him to a healer mage as quickly as possible.

    Then only it would be possible to restore his arm.

    "Yeah. We survived. That''s more than we can say for the others."

    The sergeant looked grim and weary. I didn''t blame him. They had just been through hell, after battling against a surgically and combat drug-enhanced killing machine designed for the sole purpose of wiping out entire command hierarchies. I was surprised that they actually won and survived. Even White Tiger had disintegrated from the earlier bio-meltdown, unable to withstand the deadly explosion. I had to dismiss him before the pain got too bad.

    "We''ll have to get him back to the northern shelter," Alicia said urgently, but the soldiers waved her back.

    "We will. But first we''ve to make sure everyone is safe."

    A scream from the civilians from another group near the stairs alerted us to a new danger. A couple of Dark Apes had emerged from somewhere and ambushed them. I was worried about my friends who had already left the shelter and were supposedly scouting ahead upstairs to ensure that there were no other dangers. If the Dark Apes managed to slip past them, then it could mean one of a few things. That they were¡­

    "Go help them," Vincent told me tiredly. He was still wounded from his combat against the Frenzor Assassin and wasn''t in any shape to fight. He gave me an apologetic look. "Sorry, but you''re the only one who''s still in any condition to battle."

    "Ah, right." I snapped out of my stupor. This wasn''t the time for pointless speculation. My friends were either all right, or they were not. Regardless, I would only find out after slaying these Dark Apes and checking on them upstairs. Kicking off the ground, I drew Gan Jiang and Mo Ye before lunging at the Dark Apes. Behind me, Alicia provided long-ranged fire support, but she was hindered by the civilians who were blocking her line of sight from the Dark Apes that were attacking them. The people who we were supposed to save were between us and her targets.

    No wonder Vincent told me to go over to help. Alicia''s long-ranged attacks weren''t going to be of much use here.

    "Kree!"

    The Dark Apes screeched and hooted as they maimed a couple of fleeing civilians. One man went down, screaming as his back was torn open, revealing his spine. A woman''s shriek was cut short as her head was severed from her shoulders, flying across the air and striking the wall like a damp ball before crashing back down with a wet thud.

    Damn it¡­I was too late. There weren''t many civilians left to save. This mission would be largely written off as a failure.

    But at least I had achieved my objective. The priority was to rescue Alicia''s father, and we had achieved that. I might sound callous, but that was the whole reason why I volunteered for this in the first place. That wasn''t to say I wouldn''t feel regret or guilt over the lives lost, and I briefly wondered if there was anything I could have done differently to save more people. I was still a long way from becoming like my dad.

    Dad saved me, a complete stranger. He was selfless, valiant and noble, despite his cavalier attitude. I doubted he prioritized any life over others ¨C if he was here, he would have saved the majority at the expense of the minority without any hesitation. Even if I was in danger ¨C in the end, I was just a boy he adopted at a whim, to train to be his successor. If my death expedited the rescue of countless civilians, he would sacrifice me without a second though.

    Unfortunately, I couldn''t be as selfless and unwavering as him.

    What I could do, however, was save the people right in front of me.

    Cutting in between the Dark Apes and the escaping civilians, I swung both swords out and caught two of the Dark Apes by surprise. The first one went down when my blade cleaved through its throat, almost decapitating it. The second one staggered back, a cut on its chest. It snarled and lashed at me.

    Then Capricorn materialized right above it and stomped it into oblivion with his hooves. The goat then twisted its head around to head-butt a third with his horns, flinging it against the wall.

    I finished it off by beheading it. With my Capricorn standing guard, I began to lead the exodus up the stairs. Without the Frenzor Assassins, there was no reason for me to stay behind and maintain my soul beasts.

    Already feeling the slow burn of exhaustion and mana drain, I had dismissed Black Tortoise earlier, after the messy and explosive death of the second Frenzor Assassin. Alicia and her father seemed safe, and more than willing to take up the rearguard with the soldiers¡­

    "Father, watch out!"

    I spun around at Alicia''s warning. One of the city council members had sprang forward while everyone was distracted by the Dark Apes to plant a sword in the back of Vincent Violet. However, Alicia sensed that something was amiss, and she reacted in time. Pushing her father out of the way, she ended up being stabbed in the chest.

    The assassin''s sword flickered, almost seeming invisible. A phase weapon that could penetrate any magical barrier. Even if Alicia had conjured a defensive spell in time, it would still pass through her mana shield and plunge into her heart.

    "Ah¡­"

    Alicia glanced down dumbly at the sword that protruded from her chest. Blood dribbled from both her lips and the wound on her chest, and she slumped down.

    "Alicia!"

    Vincent punched the assassin furiously, crumpling his face and breaking bone. The man flew across the shelter and slammed into the ground before bouncing several times like a rag doll that had been thrown by a brat in a tantrum.

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    I recognized the man as the guy who mentioned earlier about me gaining an attribute. About me obtaining total immunity to poison because I trained next to the Holy Spring. Even though his face had been bashed beyond recognition, I could still tell that it was him from his clothes and unmistakable figure.

    The stocky guy and Vincent immediately knelt by Alicia''s side, trying to stem the bleeding. The soldiers hurried over, but even though their movements were urgent I could tell from their expressions that it was too late.

    No way¡­

    I sprinted over, ignoring the outraged civilians and abandoning my duty to save them. Fuck them. Alicia was dying over there, and they only cared about their own safety? How many of us had sacrificed ourselves to save them?

    Of course, that was just me spouting raging hyperbole. They probably were just as shocked by the sudden murder as we were. At that moment, I wasn''t thinking clearly, and I was raging at everyone and everybody. The whole world couldn''t be trusted. The whole world was out to get us. Understandably, this was right after a moment when I thought we were safe, that we were among comrades.

    Then this treachery happened.

    "What the fuck are you doing, Rayner?!" the stocky man hollered furiously. "Why the hell did you kill Violet''s girl?!"

    "He wasn''t even aiming for my daughter," Vincent corrected, his voice trembling. "He was aiming for me. Alicia¡­Alicia took the hit in my place. She saved me."

    "F¡­Father¡­"

    Alicia forced a weak smile as she raised a hand to his cheek. Vincent''s hands, bloodied from trying to stop the bleeding in her chest, immediately rose to clasp hers.

    "Don''t speak, darling. We''ll get you healed, I swear¡­"

    "¡­are you all right?"

    "Yes, yes, I''m all right. You will be too, okay? We''ll get a healer¡­just hang in there. Don''t you give up on me, you hear?!"

    I dropped to my knees, unable to control my emotions. For all the magic I had learned, healing was not one of them. If only the damned Holy Spring blessed me with healing magic or something! If only we had thought to bring Pearl along, no matter how exhausted she was! If only¡­if only¡­

    All those speculation was useless in the present.

    The sergeant advanced toward the assassin, his face a mask of rage and his carbine aimed at the fallen man.

    No, not man.

    The assassin was rising to his feet now, his deformed features melting away and reforming into a more feminine face. Her chest was swelling a little and her pants expanded as her hips widened.

    A shapeshifter!

    "An Assassin from the Deceivum Sect." Vincent''s tone was murderous. "So you''ve always been hiding among us."

    "I don''t think I''ve to ask what happened to the real Rayner," the stocky man muttered dryly. I glanced at the both of them, bewildered.

    "The what sect?" one of the soldiers asked.

    "Deceivum. The Assassin Guild is broken into several sects, each with their own specializations. The Frenzor Sect, as you''ve experienced, is a master of terror tactics, unleashing superhuman berserkers enhanced by combat drugs and experimental surgeries to wipe out entire command hierarchies and intimidate organizations into submission. The Veneneum Sect specializes in poison ¨C you saw that female Assassin with the poisoned daggers earlier. The Umbra Sect teaches its followers the art of stealth and swordsmanship, stemming from the shinobi arts of ancient Japan. The Pavlichenko Sect, which specializes in snipers and guns. And the Deceivum Sect, who trains its assassins in shapeshifting magic and infiltration."

    Holy hell¡­then how do we know if any among us wasn''t from the Deceivum Sect?!

    "That is correct," the shapeshifting woman agreed. She shook her head and sighed in disappointment. "Just when I thought you had lowered your guard¡­I didn''t expect your daughter to sense the threat and react in reflex."

    "Who hired you?! And why are you trying to assassinate Director Vincent Violet?" the sergeant demanded as he closed in on her. The lady merely chuckled as she toyed with her phase sword, not at all intimidated. It was clear that she thought she could easily eliminate the sergeant anytime she wanted.

    But the moment she did, the other two soldiers and I would shoot her.

    "I thought the answer would be obvious. Don''t you already know who my employer is?"

    "The Dark Church," the stocky man murmured. "Of course."

    "Exactly. As to why I targeted Director Violet¡­it''s nothing personal, really. My mission was to eliminate the City Council, but he always had his guard up against me. He remains the biggest threat, being the only combatant in the City Council. It was only now that he temporarily lowered his guard, in the lull of battle, that I finally found a chance to strike. But even then, I didn''t expect his daughter¡­"

    "Bitch¡­!" the sergeant snarled. He reached out to apprehend her. "I''m sure the Intelligence Agency will have some questions for you¡­"

    He then suddenly jerked back when the Deceivum Assassin''s phase sword flashed through the front of his face. He raised his carbine in reflex, parrying the block, but the shimmering blade vibrated so rapidly that it was able to cut through partway. Fortunately, the sergeant''s gun was still a magical weapon and it held strong.

    "Why, you¡­"

    The sergeant was about to retaliate, but the Deceivum Assassin kicked him in the gut. The sergeant grunted and stumbled back, doubled over from the blow. However, she continued to hold him close, almost using him as a shield against the ranged weapons of the other two soldiers and me.

    Damn it! I realized that she had planned this all along. The reason why she hadn''t attacked earlier was because she wanted to lure the sergeant in, and then use him to block our line of view, thus neutralizing our ranged firepower!

    "Thank you," she told the staggering sergeant before plunging her phase sword into his collarbone. The two soldiers beside me shouted in impotent anger, and my fingers tightened on my arrow, but I suppressed the desire to release it.

    I wasn''t going to kill an innocent person for the sake of my revenge.

    However, at this rate, the sergeant would die anyway. Even if I didn''t shoot him along with the Assassin, her phase sword would carve him apart in the next two seconds. I might as well¡­

    Her weapon never reached him.

    "¡­eh?"

    The Deceivum Assassin blinked before stupidly staring at her right arm. Or what remained of her right arm. It was nothing more than a bleeding stump, the entire limb torn off right below the elbow.

    She then turned around and spotted Vincent Violet beside her. He casually tossed away the severed hand he had just ripped off ¨C the phase sword still clutched tightly in its grip, and then sank his fist onto her chest. The punch erupted from her back in a shower of blood and bone, and the Deceivum Assassin slumped over.

    "T¡­thanks¡­"

    The sergeant gasped as he straightened up, bowing gratefully. Vincent Violet merely nodded and then callously dumped the shapeshifting assassin''s corpse onto the ground.

    "Shouldn''t you have captured her, to interrogate her?" the stocky City Council member asked as he approached.

    "She killed my daughter," Vincent Violet replied simply, his tone icy.

    "I understand how you feel, but you can better avenge her by finding out where the Dark Church and other Assassins are¡­if there are any more of her kin planted among us¡­"

    "She''s an Assassin. Do you think she will give her secrets up?" Vincent Violet turned to stare at the stocky man, who faltered when he saw his frosty expression. "They are trained to withstand torture, never mind the¡­comparatively mild interrogative methods that the Global Federation employs that align with human rights and whatnot. If anything, she will kill herself before we''ll be able to extract any useful information from her. At worst, she''ll escape, leaving a trail of blood and death behind. And with her shapeshifting abilities, it''ll be near impossible to catch her again."

    "You are right, of course."

    "The Dark Church¡­" Vincent Violet clenched his fist violently, the furious Armament Ba Qi still coating it and visibly manifesting in a near-solid form. "I''ll make sure they pay for this."

 168 Chapter 168: Aftermath

    In the end, we sort of accomplished our mission, which was to save the city council members. At least seven out of the original ten were saved. However, the civilians ¨C the majority of whom were actually staff working in the town hall, or refugees who had fled from nearby buildings when the attack on the city began. Less than a fifth of them remained, most of them killed by the bio-meltdown of the Frenzor Assassin, a few by the Veneneum Assassin, and a couple by the Dark Apes. Of over a hundred civilians who had originally sought shelter in the town hall, just a little over twenty had survived.

    As Vincent said, I had to live with my decision. Not only did I chose to save him and Alicia over the many civilians, Alicia had succumbed to the Deceivum Assassin''s blade. Her father didn''t exactly blame me for her death, but he was barely able to look me in the eyes.

    Actually, he was avoiding eye contact with anyone, choosing to remain by his daughter''s side the whole time, even as we returned to the northern shelter. Alicia''s was the only body we brought back, a small concession to convince Vincent to come with us. In addition to the APC we arrived in, the surviving soldiers rigged a couple of nearby, abandoned cars, hot-wiring them so that the civilians could ride in them. The APC didn''t have enough room for everyone, after all.

    "Alicia is¡­?"

    Lily tailed off when she saw the body. My friends were horrified when they saw that one of our number had died. They wanted to ask what had happened, but after seeing the gloomy expressions on Vincent and my faces, they were wise enough not to approach us.

    I decided to tell them anyway. Trying to keep a firm control of my voice, I filled them in on what had happened in the shelter after they had gone up ahead to scout the place for monsters. In some places, my voice cracked, but I was able to finish my account. Leaning back, I shut my eyes as I felt tears well up in them.

    "¡­that''s my fault. Those Dark Apes¡­I let them get past me." Craig slumped against his seat, looking glum.

    "It wouldn''t have made any difference. I don''t think anyone would have reacted in time. Even if I was next to her, I probably wouldn''t have been able to do anything when that shapeshifter Assassin revealed her true colors."

    "But what do they want?!" Sheila demanded, banging her fist against the steel hull of the APC. "Why are they doing this? What do they achieve by killing so many people, by destroying an entire city? By causing so much suffering?!"

    "They are the Dark Church," Harrison replied somberly. "Their whole purpose for existence is to bring about a monstrous apocalypse and wipe out the human race."

    "Fucking nut-jobs," Dong Fang Yue Chu muttered sourly. Nobody argued with him. We all felt the same.

    The rest of the journey was made in silence, and more grief was met when Pearl and the others saw what had happened.

    "Are you okay, Senior Richard?" Harvey was the only one who was concerned about me, and had stuck close while everyone else was busily sobbing over Alicia''s death or looking absolutely horrified. Jin Hao, Aoi and the Black Roses, in particular, were looking utterly stricken. Alicia had been a super-popular president of Black Roses, and pretty much our school idol/flower, so understandably there was an outpouring of outrage and sadness over her death.

    Vincent ignored all of them and just brought her body straight to Teacher Cure. Unfortunately, for all of her miraculous healing magic, Teacher Mary Cure was simply not capable of resurrecting the dead. After several attempts, she shook her head and turned to Director Violet, her shoulders hanging low. Vincent merely nodded once, his expression stony, then he picked up Alicia''s body and left.

    Nobody knew where he went after that.

    *

    "Richie! Hey!"

    Dad showed up shortly after. It had been about three or four days since the invasion, and we were still stuck in the shelter. More military regiments had been pouring into Jing Tian City, reinforcing the existing mages and they were clearing the monsters one by one. General Jiang Jun and his command staff had defeated and slew the Silver Wing Wolf King, which broke the back of the invasion.

    Now, it was pretty much a cleanup operation. Dad arrived just in time to help out, and his presence would certainly speed up the process. Despite the fall of the Silver Wong Wolf King, there were still hundreds of monsters roaming the streets, particularly Dire Wolves, Thunder Wolves and Silver Skeletal Wolves. The high-ranked monsters, in particular, required mages of certain strength. Even though Jiang Jun had won against the Silver Wing Wolf King, it came at a great cost. About three of his command staff were killed, and he remained in a coma, being tended to by Teacher Cure. He was out of danger, but his body needed time to fully heal and recover, especially after intense mana depletion.

    Yeah, I know I nuked two rank A dragons, but that didn''t mean I was stronger than General Jiang Jun. In a one-on-one fight, he would absolutely crush me before I could nuke him. It was just that I so happened to have an "Ultimate Weapon" in the form of a Strategic-scale spell. That was all. And since I wouldn''t be allowed to unleash Antares or Thuban inside the city, I had nothing that could fight against the Silver Wing Wolf King except Draco himself, and to summon Draco, I needed people to help me distract the monster. I mean, I could summon him from a distance and then fly over to engage the Silver Wing Wolf King, but it would still have been a grueling battle. I doubted Draco could actually destroy the Silver Wing Wolf King if I forbade him from nuking it with Thuban. I would need to expend large amounts of mana and risk death.

    And if the Silver Wing Wolf King defeated Draco, then I was pretty much screwed and out of trump cards.

    Dad had rushed back as soon as possible when he had heard that his city was under attack. He was sort of concerned about me, but it also helped that he had just located and destroyed another facility of the Dark Church. He reckoned that there would be more clues about the Dark Church and their activities because they were clearly involved in the invasion of Jing Tian City, and he took a flight back here yesterday, after he finished up operations there. I mean, he could have rushed back immediately, the moment he received news regarding the attack on Jing Tian City, but he didn''t. He chose to complete his job here.

    Either he was confident that I wouldn''t die, or he prioritized work over family. That said, I was glad he came back at all, though I wondered if he would really return so soon if he hadn''t conveniently completed his job at that moment. His presence would have made a huge difference against the Silver Wing Wolf King. If he had arrived the next day, he might been able to save Jiang Jun from descending into a coma, and between the two of them, they would have slain the rank A Behemoth-class monster fairly easily.

    But he chose to remain to finish his job. Was it because he believed in Jiang Jun''s abilities, or he just prioritized his job, first? I was aware that he would save many more lives by destroying the Dark Church''s facility, if you look at the future. And that Jiang Jun certainly had the task well in hand. but even so, I couldn''t help but wonder¡­

    "Richie? You okay?"

    "Yeah." I realized I hadn''t actually properly responded to Dad''s call, and straightened up. He mistook my gloom for weariness after surviving a few hard days of fighting and running.

    "Don''t worry! Now that I''m here, I''ll wipe out all the monsters and take back the city!"

    "Ah¡­right. Yeah, you will." I nodded absentmindedly. "We''ll be relying on you, Dad."

    Dad frowned, noticing my somber mood. I was glad to see him. I really was, but I still couldn''t hide the grief on my face. Even though he adopted me just five years ago, Dad had raised me long enough to know me well enough to tell that my condition was not good.

    "Did something happen?"

    "Senior Alicia was killed," Harvey told him bluntly, appearing abruptly. He must have seen Dad arrive, and fought his way to approach us. He wasn''t exactly in high spirits, but he had managed to find his family about two days ago, and reunite with them in the shelter, so he was in a better mental condition than I was.

    "¡­oh. I''m sorry to hear that."

    Dad sighed and placed a hand on my shoulder.

    "I''ll go avenge her for you. I swear, I''ll wipe out all the monsters in the city."

    "She has already been avenged." Taking a deep breath, I elaborated on what had transpired during the rescue attempt at the town hall, and how Vincent Violet had already violently murdered the Deceivum Assassin. Dad nodded silently as he listened.

    "¡­it happens." He clapped a hand on my shoulder again. "Well, your old man has a job to do. I''ll see you later, Richie. But for now, take a rest. Leave everything to me."

    Then he was gone.

    A few hours later, the city was declared clear. Stepping out of the shelter, I could see vast areas swathed in a sea of fire.

    Dad might prioritize his job over family, but when he did his job, he really went all out. Watching the flickering embers in the distance, the raging fires still glowing luminously amidst the setting sun and darkening heavens, I felt no small amount of awe.

    He really was the Angel of Fire.

    It took another two days for the military to sweep through the city to ensure there weren''t any traces of monsters lingering behind before we were finally allowed out of the shelters. Even so, there wasn''t many places we could go. Homes had been ruined, shops and businesses had been smashed, and entire areas had been razed by battle. Several districts had been blackened, with water mages requiring a day or two to extinguish the fires that Dad had ignited to incinerate the monsters. The government of the Global Federation had pledged financial aid, and insurance companies were already preparing their payouts, but the process of rebuilding had to be done by the residents ourselves.

    There were debris to clear, buildings and houses to repair, broken furniture to replace¡­a lot of things to do.

    The end of the invasion signaled the beginning of a long, arduous process of restoration and rebuilding.

    "Fortunately, our house wasn''t affected much, eh?"

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    Dad was beaming in amusement as we returned home. The fiery barrier that he erected around our house had protected our home more effectively than anyone had imagined. Any monsters that had tried to sneak in were instantly incinerated into ash. The piles of ash that drifted over the place were indication of how many monsters made the attempt¡­and paid for their stupidity with their lives.

    "We have it easy. Compared to the others, we only need to clean the place up." Dad pondered for a moment. "They restored electricity and water yesterday, so we just need to vacuum or hose the place down. Which do you prefer?"

    "¡­I don''t know. What do you think, Dad?"

    "I''m asking you¡­" Dad sighed and shook his head. He cocked an eyebrow, realizing that I was still out of it. "Never mind. I''ll take care of this. You should go rest and clear your head up. Maybe we''ll watch an episode of From Commonplace Job to Strongest after this."

    "No, I''m fine." I took a deep breath. "I think it''s best to just sweep the area."

    Heading into the house, I grabbed a broom and began the process. Dad gave me a look, but he respected my decision and did the same. We spent the next hour or so sweeping the ash off our garden and pouring them into trash bags.

    "Dad."

    "Hmm? What is it?"

    Dad turned to look at me. I lowered my broom and stared at him with a serious expression.

    "I want to become stronger."

    "Don''t we all?"

    "No, I mean¡­" I took a deep breath. "Can you teach me more¡­techniques?"

    "I''ve already taught you what you want to know. Having more techniques or learning new magic isn''t necessarily going to make you stronger. If anything, you should just focus on practicing the magic and techniques you already have and perfect them."

    My shoulders slumped down, but Dad continued with a smile.

    "However, there is a way."

    "What is it?" I asked, brightening up slightly. Dad grinned.

    "Combat experience. I guarantee you that going through life-and-death struggles in a battlefield will definitely improve your strength." He thought for a moment. "I know you already participated in missions and fought against monsters, so you already have a decent amount of experience. How about we bring that up a notch?"

    "What do you mean?"

    Dad''s grin widened.

    "I''ll bring you along on my next mission. I think you''ll want to participate in it, anyway¡­because it involves hunting down the Dark Church."

 169 Chapter 169: Mission with father

    Since Jing Tian Academy had been devastated during the attack, the students were pretty much given a long, extended holiday. Vincent Violet, the academy director, had returned, but it was clear that his daughter''s death had affected him. Even so, he didn''t allow his grief to affect him and he returned to his usual efficient and calculated manner, ordering the repair of Jing Tian Academy. Until the school was restored, students were told to wait and recover from the entire ordeal. It would take a while, but until then we had nothing to do.

    So I saw this as an opportunity to follow my dad on an extended mission overseas. Shortly after cleaning up our house, we took a flight to one of the Southeast Asian countries, in hopes of locating elements of the Dark Church.

    The Violet family held a private funeral for Alicia, and disallowed any of the students or friends from attending. It was family only, and everyone respected their decision. Before I had left, I had participated in the Black Roses'' memorial for Alicia, where we chose to meet up in a relatively undamaged place and paid our respects. Though we didn''t get to approach Alicia''s coffin or witness her cremation, we substituted it with a holographic photograph of her. Alicia was so popular that everyone agreed unanimously to commemorate her memory, something we didn''t do for any of the other students killed in previous missions or during the invasion.

    Then I left my friends behind temporarily to follow my dad on this mission. My purpose was to grow stronger, and I hoped I could learn and benefit from watching him operate and fight firsthand.

    "We heard that this city might be their target," Dad was telling me as we trekked through the woods. "If we aren''t careful, it might end up like another Jing Tian City."

    "Isn''t the Dark Church trying to hit multiple places at once?" I asked. Even though Jing Tian City was the only city in the Middle Kingdom to suffer an invasion, I had heard that several nations under the aegis of the Global Federation had also been attacked. The Dark Church had struck in several nations, targeting a relatively small city in each.

    From what Dad''s sources told us, it appeared that this was just an experiment. Most of them were attacked in the same manner as the first invasion, where three thousand monsters marched across the forest and into the city, destroying a garrison on the way. Even so, the various cities had ample warning and were able to muster up armies to defend against the monsters. There were many casualties and a lot of damage caused by the clash, as expected when armies of humans and monsters fought fiercely in the deathtrap that was urban warfare, but the humans won in the end.

    Somehow I was sure that everything had been within the calculations of the Dark Church. They never sought to destroy the cities, but were testing both the extent of control over their monsters, as well as probing the Global Federation''s defenses.

    "You''re right," Dad agreed. "But we can only be in one place at a time. We are not gods. Just do the best that you can, and save as many people as you can. That''s all that is expected of us."

    I chewed on my lip and clenched my fists. This stupid Dark Church was making things so difficult for us. If only life was simpler and I could just spend the rest of my days hunting monsters, earning prestige and money. I wouldn''t have to worry about backstabbing human enemies and apocalyptic conspiracies.

    Alicia wouldn''t have to die.

    "The idiots also provoked the Amazerian Empire, but¡­I don''t think they succeeded." Dad chuckled. "The Empire is more ruthless than us. None of the Dark Church agents survived."

    While the Global Federation was technically the ruler of the world, it was but one of three superpowers that shared the current Earth. The Amazerian Empire presently occupied the South American continent and what was formerly Mexico. Then there was the Zurium Empire that ruled over the African continent. The empires were powerful and militaristic, ruled over by royal families and Warrior-Empires who had united the disparate nations in their respective continents through strength and magic. The Global Federation had an edge in terms of technology, but no combat mage in the Federation would ever dare to proclaim himself superior to the fanatical and stalwart warriors of either empires. Obviously, they didn''t operate on that bullshit "strong rule the weak" logic, but their empires were heavily militarized out of necessity ¨C massive areas of their continents had been overrun by forests and jungles, which were in turn inhabited by monsters.

    The soldiers protected the farmers, artisans and other vocations who lived inside fortified cities that sported miles-long walls and shimmering magical barriers generated by defensive runes and powerful enchantments. The population usually stayed behind the walls and rarely ventured outward because of the uncontrollable wilderness that surrounded them, and their skies were ruled by flying monsters and rank A dragons, which made flights into the Empires difficult and hazardous. Consequently, the populations of the two empires remained closed off and isolated from the citizens of the Global Federation.

    Ironically, the large amount of deforestation had somehow allowed the Global Federation to loosely maintain contact with each other and form an alliance. That alliance was weakening year by year as forests and wild habitats continued to grow and overrun human territory, but for now our cities held strong through a combination of magic and technology.

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    "The people in the empires fight monsters everyday, and their walls are impenetrable," I remarked with a scoff. "Did the Dark Church really think their tactics would work against them?"

    "Probably not, but they should have known that. Which is why their seemingly suicidal behavior makes no sense." Dad scratched his head. "We don''t understand what goes on in the minds of these zealots. They probably operate on different wavelengths."

    He raised a hand and a torrent of flames erupted to casually incinerate a Striped Tiger that lunged at us. The rank D monster was reduced to ash instantly. I watched its remains get blown away by the wind, and relaxed for a second, realizing that my hands had gone to Gan Jiang and Mo Ye on reflex.

    Then I spun around and sliced am Amber Leopard in half with my swords, the weapons leaving the scabbards for half a second before returning to their sheaths. If any normal human had seen that, they probably wouldn''t be able to follow the movement of my swords with their eyes.

    "Oh, not bad. You have certainly improved." Dad clapped his hands. Then he glanced at my swords. "Speaking of which, those weapons are new, aren''t they? I don''t remember having seen them before. When did you get them?"

    "While you were away on a mission," I replied with a shrug. "A few things happened, and the Stuart family sent them to me as a gift. Apparently President Lionel Stuart was impressed with my display of swordsmanship and arranged for the renowned swordsmith couple, Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, to forge a couple of swords for me."

    "The Stuart family?!" Dad did a double take at my revelation. "What the hell?! How?! What the hell happened while I was away?!"

    "Uh, it''s a long story¡­"

    As I elaborated, I realized that so much had happened while my dad was away on a mission. We hadn''t talked like this in a while, and I was relieved to be able to speak to Dad without restraint. After the ominous battle where Jing Tian City almost fell, I began to learn to appreciate the things that I still had.

    Now that I thought about it, I would never be able to speak to Alicia again¡­

    A sudden flutter in Corvus''s peripheral vision caught my attention. I had sent a flock of Corvus to scout ahead in a hundred meter radius (as I said, they couldn''t move too far out away from me or they would cease to exist because I couldn''t maintain their existence).

    "I see a village, about three hundred meters¡­in this direction." I vaguely gestured somewhere to my right, where Corvus spotted the village. After all, I didn''t have a compass, so I didn''t know where east or north was. I could take my smartphone out and check, but honestly, it would be pointless. Dad wouldn''t understand where exactly I was referring to if I just said "three hundred meters east of us" unless he checked his compass as well. It would be much simpler and clearer to point in the exact direction. "Pretty small village, from the looks of it. A farming community."

    "Cool." Dad nodded and glanced upward. The sky had darkened, and we heard a howl somewhere in the distance. My Corvus couldn''t see the source, but I wasn''t worried. I had Ursa Major watching our rear in case any monsters snuck up on us, and a ring of Canis Minor foraging ahead to check for ambushes and traps. Even so, neither of us was enthusiastic about camping out in the wilderness at night. "Let''s stop over there for the night. I hope they have an inn or someplace where we can stay."

    "Yeah."

    A growl drew my attention, and I hurried forward, only to see my pack of Canis Minor pouncing on a Horned Antelope in unison. Despite its gentle appearance, the Horned Antelope was an aggressive monster that gored anything it saw with its monstrous horns. It was certainly not herbivorous, and enjoyed preying on poor humans. Fortunately, it was rank F at best, and was no match for my Canis Minor. Behind, I heard a thunderous bellow as Ursa Major struck something that looked like Striped Tiger that tried to pounce on him. With a single blow, he stunned the monster, and he proceeded to lumber forward to finish it off. The Striped Tiger slashed at him, but Ursa Major wisely evaded the first blow, and then caught it in the flank with his claws. As the Striped Tiger thrashed about, Ursa Major began to tear the poor thing apart.

    "How reliable." Dad grinned, amused. "At this rate, I don''t need to call upon Angelica."

    "Please don''t." the last time he summoned Angelica, he ended up setting Jing Tian City ablaze. And that was just last week. "Speaking of which, how is she? I haven''t seen her¡­not even last week, when you summoned her."

    "Same as usual." Dad shrugged. "She''s a summoned spirit, so I''m not sure how I''m supposed to answer your question. Hey, you should be concerned more about your old man. If I bite the dust, Angelica vanishes along with me!"

    "There''s nothing in this world that can kill you, Dad," I replied dismissively. Dad turned serious and shook his head.

    "Oh, you''ll be surprised. There exists monsters in this world that are beyond our imagination. There will always be a taller mountain. The same goes for me."

    "Oi, don''t go setting up death flags already, Dad."

    "Ha ha, yeah. True. I''m still too young to die." Dad chuckled and slapped my shoulder. "Anyway, lead the way! Let''s reach the village before it gets completely dark!"

    I followed the route my Corvus helped me spot earlier and we covered the remaining three hundred meters in about thirty minutes. The forest terrain was pretty hard to traverse, and we had to fight off a couple more monsters, but we managed to reach our destination unscathed.

    "My, my. How rare¡­I wasn''t expecting visitors."

    There was an elderly lady who had just finished harvesting something and was pushing a cart of crops toward a shed. I stepped forward and offered to help.

    "Thank you, young man." The elderly lady stepped back as I took over, and then stretched her back. "Ah¡­my spine hurts. I wouldn''t know what to do without you."

    "I''m sure you will manage just fine. You still look very strong and healthy." Dad offered her a smile. The elderly lady laughed at that.

    "My, what a flatterer! But my age is taking a toll on this frail body. I''m afraid I won''t last much longer." She patted the small of her back. "What brings the both of you here?" she glanced at the ceremonial rope that stretched across the perimeter of the forest, its enchanted runes forming some sort of barrier. "Monster hunting? There hasn''t been any monsters capable of breaking through our barrier for years now."

    "We''re investigating some uh¡­bandits." Dad scratched his head. "Their trail led us here."

    The elderly lady''s expression stiffened for a moment, and she narrowed her eyes.

    "¡­bandits?"

    "I guess you can call them that." Dad shrugged. "A criminal organization, to be more precise. Conducting illegal experiments."

    He didn''t elaborate, but the elderly lady fell into thoughtful silence for a moment.

    "There has been a few newcomers recently, but they often pass through our village and head straight to the mountains." She turned and gestured toward the mountains beyond the village. "I don''t know where exactly they go, but there was a huge convoy a few days ago." She fumed. "Ran through Thaksin''s field and smashed all of his vegetables to pulp. Those bastards¡­Thaksin raged and demanded for compensation, but they just blasted him with a spell. We contacted the authorities, but by the time they arrived, those bastards were gone."

    Dad and I exchanged a glance. Seemed like we were on the right track. If anything, we headed toward this direction precisely because we received a tipoff from the authorities regarding a bunch of suspicious dudes showing up and making a mess of someone''s field in some village in this area.

    "They had all these trucks and heavy vehicles. I bet those illegal experiments you''re talking about are stored inside those trucks. They have to be! Otherwise they wouldn''t be rushing through our village like that."

    "We''ll check them out," Dad promised. "But for now, do you mind if you point us toward an inn where we can stay for the night?"

 170 Chapter 170: Toward the Mountains of Madness

    "Thanks for letting us stay in your house."

    It was the next morning, and both Dad and I bowed gratefully to the elderly lady who had so graciously hosted us in her house.

    "No, it''s nothing. It''s actually beneficial for me to have a couple of young men help me out around my house." The elderly lady, Shinra, chuckled. "There''s no inn in this village, and I will feel bad if we force you both to camp outside even though we have perfectly inhabitable houses in this area. I had spare rooms anyway, and it''s been a while since things were so lively."

    Her husband, Guo Hao, nodded as he hobbled off the porch with a smile. "We''re going to miss the help you two gave us."

    "Nah, you let us stay for free and even treated us to dinner. It''s the least we could do." Dad waved their gratitude away. He had tried to pay them, but being nice people, the elderly couple had refused. "I still feel bad imposing on you."

    "Don''t worry about it. You didn''t impose on us at all. It just gets so lonely because no one comes to this village anymore. It''s been so long since we have visitors¡­we really enjoyed it." Shinra beamed brilliantly. "Make sure to drop by again when you return."

    "Sure!"

    After the farewell, we proceeded toward the mountains, as Shinra informed us yesterday. Before we did, Dad stopped by Thaksin''s ruined field to conduct several investigations. I didn''t know what to look for, so I just stood around and summoned Corvus to scout ahead a hundred meters (more, if you include the fact that each Corvus could see anything within a range of about a kilometer or two clearly). The mountains were too far and secluded to spot anything, and honestly, Shinra''s information was a big help. The area was so vast that we didn''t know where to start searching.

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    The mountain was a good start.

    "Seems like a few AV-100s and at least three six-tonners." Dad straightened up after observing the wheel tracks. "Meaning they probably have to take a solid road, or abandon their vehicles partway."

    "Mrs. Shinra said something about them taking the northern road."

    There were several roads leading to the mountains, and so many mountains, that having a specific road to follow was a great help. Shinra had pointed out the specific road that the vehicle convoy had taken, and that narrowed which mountain the enemy had headed toward.

    "Combined with the traces of monster experiments conducted within the forest¡­" Dad mused.

    The reason why we trekked through the forest instead of simply flying straight to the village on my Constellation spirit was because we were trying to find clues as to what the Dark Church was doing in the forest. Their experiments on monsters and how far they had progressed regarding their goals (to control monsters or manipulate Emergence events) were worrying. The reason why we had dropped down there was to check out reports of an Emergence event being artificially triggered in the forest.

    We found nothing so far, no traces of any artificial Emergence event. Weirdly enough, it seemed that the Dark Church was moving away from that. Dad told me that the protective enchantments that formed a barrier around the city interfered with the technology, making it impossible to trigger an Emergence event within a barrier. If they wanted to use it, they had to trigger the Emergence event outside the city, away from the barrier.

    Just like how Lin Zhan Long and his cronies foolishly did.

    "Did you know?" Dad had told me the other day. "Even though you nuked three thousand monsters at first, the reason why the Dark Church was still able to set so many thousands of monsters on Jing Tian City a week later, was because they fell back on their second plan ¨C to trigger an Emergence event outside the city, and then direct the outpouring monsters into an underground network of caves and tunnels?"

    "But doesn''t the machine only work for a few seconds? A minute at most? I don''t see how they could have gotten thousands of monsters to emerge¡­"

    "Idiot. They didn''t need to summon thousands of monsters from the Emergence event. They only needed to summon one, and it will call the rest."

    Realization dawned on me when I understood what Dad meant.

    "The Silver Wing Wolf King¡­"

    "Correct. Once they summoned that bastard with an Emergence event, all they needed to do was run to one side while that rank A monster howled and called forth countless wolf-type monsters to its territory. As you probably already know, the lower-ranked wolf-type monsters will recognize the Silver Wing Wolf King as their Alpha¡­their King. And¡­you can guess the rest."

    Once he had assembled his pack by calling them from all over the Middle Continent, the Silver Wing Wolf King launched his attack on the city. Most likely the Dark Church had been able to mentally influence and subtly direct its hostile attention toward the city, though we didn''t know what kind of technology they used.

    Most probably it had something to do with the technology the Dark Church used to draw the Hellfire Drake to the mountains just outside Jing Tian City.

    "I wouldn''t be surprised if they are triggering Emergence events in the mountains," Dad suddenly spoke up, drawing me back to the present. I blinked, tearing my eyes away from something one of my Corvus was keenly observing, and turning back to him.

    "That would be bad. Another rank A monster?"

    "Or rank B. but since it''s out here in the wilderness, I think we''ll be fine. I''ll just as you to nuke all of them into oblivion."

    "I could just nuke the entire mountain range with Draco''s Thuban," I pointed out as I gestured vaguely toward the mountains. Dad grimaced.

    "Please don''t do that. If you destroy everything, we won''t be able to find out what they are up to, how far they have advanced, or get some clues as to what their plans are or how far they have progressed with their research. Besides, there are mountain communities out here, with some people living in the mountains. Let''s try to avoid accidentally killing innocent people unless we really have no choice."

    Avoid. Meaning that if there was an army of monsters running down the mountains, Dad would just consign them as collateral damage. Sacrifice the extremely few innocent people living in the mountains in order to save the thousands, if not millions of people living in the nearby city. And the village here as well.

    "Let''s go." By now, Dad had finished collating whatever traces or clues he was searching for, and he turned toward the road.

    "Yes, Dad."

    I summoned a couple of Pegasus, and we hopped onto the winged horses and began riding along the road. It would be too slow and inefficient to proceed across a clear, open road on foot, and we would draw too much attention by flying over on Cygnus or Aquila. Besides, Dad wanted to keep his eyes close to the ground, to ensure that we didn''t accidentally miss out on any clues or trails. If the convoy suddenly veered off at a fork, or took an alternative route (a dirt path along the sparse grass rather than continue along the main road), he wanted to know.

    As such, I didn''t disturb Dad while he was keeping his eyes on the road. Once we were out of the village and beyond the protection of its barrier, a bunch of monsters lurked and stalked us, barely able to keep pace with my Pegasus. I largely ignored them, because if I slaughtered them, a new pack of monsters would just show up, and it just wouldn''t end. I would be wasting too much mana on needless battle.

    On the other hand, if we let them tag along for now, the current pack of monsters would keep other monsters off our backs. Once they were exhausted after trying to keep up with Pegasus, they would be easier to finish off anyway.

    Dad would look up occasionally to tell me which direction to take, especially when the road diverged into a fork, or when the vehicle convoy moved into a different terrain, as expected. I obeyed without question, my mental connection with Pegasus allowing us to veer toward the new route before I needed to vocalize anything.

    "Wow, these Constellation spirits of yours are really convenient," Dad remarked with a grin. "If I was alone, I would have to rent a rover. And sometimes, villages like the one we just left don''t have many vehicles to rent out, so I would have to make the journey on foot. We save money this way, as well as have a backup plan in case we can''t get the resources we need for a mission."

    Now that I thought about it, Dad didn''t actually have any other spirits or soul beasts except Angelica. She was his only summoned spirit. I wondered about that.

    "Dad, don''t you have any other summoned spirits?"

    "No. Angelica is my only one, and will be my only one."

    There was something in Dad''s voice that stopped me from pursuing the topic, and I fell silent. as if to ease the mood, Dad perked up.

    "We''re almost there. I think it''s that mountain."

    The vehicle tracks went up to a certain mountain, which had a road carved along its surface. The convoy then disappeared into what seemed to be a cave at the base of the mountain.

    "Time to get off and move on foot." Dad glanced at the Pegasus he was riding, a look of pity on his face. "Sorry, Richie, but your horses are a bit too conspicuous. You might want to dismiss them. We''re going to hide in the shadows for now."

    "I understand."

    Hopping off, I dismissed both Pegasus, and then joined Dad in disappearing into the shadows. Melting into the darkness of the environment, we stepped into the mountain.

    For the first few minutes, we saw nothing. Not because it was dark ¨C evidently someone had hollowed out and repurposed the interior of the mountain. Concrete and metal replaced rock, and dim lightings hung from the ceiling, providing illumination for whatever vehicle convoys drove through here. Dad kept a lookout for security cameras and cast a fire-type illusionary spell to ensure we were invisible.

    "The place is huge," I murmured in awe. Well, duh. It was a mountain. Even so, it reminded me of some secret base.

    "There''s no mistaking it. This is one of their facilities."

    Dad''s voice was grim. Having already razed two of the enemy''s facilities, he was familiar with the layout and patterns. He strode forward with a purpose, as if he knew where to go, and I hurried to keep up. Glancing around cautiously, I wondered about the lack of people, but this was just the transport tunnel. Of course all the people would be inside the base proper.

    And not a moment too soon. Dad held up a hand and gestured for me to stop, right when a huge, metallic door loomed out in front of us.

    "We''re here."

    My jaw dropped as I studied the massive double doors, which seemed mechanized and made of reinforced titanium. Whatever this place was, the owners certainly did whatever they could to fortify their positions against attacks. I doubted if even my Sagittarius''s Alnasl arrow could pierce through those heavily armored doors.

    No¡­they might have designed the doors that way to keep something inside, to prevent something from escaping from within their facility.

    I shuddered, feeling a sudden chill run down my spine. Gulping, I turned to Dad.

    "So¡­how do we sneak in?"

    "Who says we''re going to sneak in?" Dad replied, grinning as he began casting a fire spell. His hand lit up as a gigantic fireball began expanding exponentially above his palm. "We''re going to blast our way in through the front door."

 171 Chapter 171: At the Mountains of Madness

    "HUH?!" I blurted out, annoyed. "You told me to dismiss Pegasus because they were too conspicuous, and you wanted us to sneak in and meld with the shadows while avoiding security cameras to prevent ourselves from getting caught, but now you want to just bust your way through the front door?! Are you kidding?!"

    "It''s a matter of timing," Dad explained flippantly. "If they saw us that far out and a while ago, they will have plenty of time to ready a defense and start evacuating the facility. But if we strike now, they''ll be caught unawares and completely off guard. So let''s not waste too much time arguing and hit them hard and fast before they know what''s happening."

    He unleashed the torrent of flames that seared through the massive doors, his superheated fire melting the reinforced metal instantly.

    Holy hell¡­Angel of Fire indeed.

    "Let''s go."

    I hurried after him, and we stepped into the vast facility beyond the molten doors, which continued to smolder glow red-hot from the intense heat. Taking care not to step or touch the warped, softening but scalding edges, I peered inside the facility.

    "¡­where''s everyone?"

    There was no sign of panic, nothing. No panicking humans running around at the sudden attack. Not even a single sign of human life.

    "Where did everyone go?" I asked dumbly.

    "Sh!" Dad snapped at me. I fell silent, wondering why he was so on edge despite his usually cavalier attitude.

    And then I sensed them.

    There were things hiding in the shadows, staying just out of sight and lurking on the edge of our peripheral vision. I summoned Corvus and sent them to scout ahead, but something lashed out and smashed one of them into the ground. I instantly recalled the rest, feeling a cold jolt at the demise of the poor crow.

    "What the hell is that?!"

    Then I realized that there was no sign of human life, but¡­there was definitely something alive in here.

    Something alive and overwhelmingly hostile.

    "Stay back!"

    Dad pushed me back as something whipped out from the shadows, piercing through the space where I had been occupying just a millisecond ago. Drawing his flaming sword, Dad cut whatever it was, and it shrieked and recoiled before withdrawing back into the darkness. I saw something drop down, a black appendage, but it disappeared fully before it could hit the ground.

    "Angelica!"

    The angel of fire materialized, illuminating the entire place with blinding crimson fire. I could see inhuman shapes scuttling at the edge of the shadows, where the light of the blazing flames couldn''t quite reach, but the brief glimpse was enough to cause me to back away in horror.

    Gritting my teeth, I immediately drew Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. Summoning a pride of Leo Minor and Leo, I held them back around me, not wanting to commit them just yet. The horrific memory of Corvus getting dashed to the ground, and the chill that jolted through me at the moment of contact¡­

    If anything, Dad had everything well in hand. Angelica was incinerating the creatures in the shadows, her hands spread out as she sang some sort of siren''s song and unleashing torrents of flames in all directions. Inhuman howls and screeches drowned out the roar of the flames, and beyond my vision, things scuttled away in a frenzy. Countless eyes blinked frantically as they stared from black, gelatinous bodies that crept away in a slime-like manner.

    "Shaggrowths," Dad hissed in a deadly tone. "Be careful. If they capture you, they''ll assimilate your biological structure into their own and digest you."

    "Shapeshifters?"

    "Worse than that." Dad grimaced. "They become you, with your memories, personality, abilities, everything¡­and you become part of them. A horrific collective mind of agony where uncountable souls are forcefully melded together."

    His words horrified me.

    "Then the¡­Dark Church people here¡­they all have¡­"

    "Most likely." Dad glanced around, and then turned to Angelica, who was still burning a few of the Shaggrowths into cinders. "Angelica?"

    "I don''t detect any human life in the vicinity."

    "Well, Richie, you get to nuke the mountain, after all. We can''t let these creatures get out, or they''ll completely take over a city."

    I was reminded of an old horror movie from the 1980s about a shapeshifting alien that was found in Antarctica before it wiped out an entire human expedition. Drawing a deep breath, I nodded, and began casting my spell.

    One of the Shaggrowths had crept up behind me, but one of my Leo Minors pounced on it and ripped it apart with his claws. Leo roared as he unleashed a brilliant burst of Regulus that scorched through another horde of Shaggrowths, slaying a few and forcing the others to scamper away. Unfortunately, they fled right into an inferno conjured by Angelica, and were wiped out.

    Dad had rushed toward a computer terminal and switched it on. I gaped at him, puzzled.

    "Dad? What are you doing? I thought you want me to nuke the place?"

    "Yes, but give me some time. You need time to summon your soul beast, anyway, don''t you? In the meantime, I''m going to download whatever data I can from here." he glanced at me sharply. "We need to know what happened¡­I''m guessing the Shaggrowths were summoned through an Emergence event, and they exceeded the Dark Church''s control and slaughtered them. But I want to know why they were summoning such abominations. Their motives¡­and their next target. I also need to know where else they were conducting such experiments. Is this the only facility with Shaggrowths in them, or¡­?"

    The idea that there might be many more places filled with these things filled me with horror. Gulping, I nodded and tried to hurry the casting of Draco as quickly as possible. Another alien screech blasted out behind me as Angelica reduced it to ash, but there were more of those things shuffling in the shadows, and I was pretty sure there were even more of these things populating the rest of the facility beyond.

    "I say we take off and nuke the entire site from heaven. It was the only way to be sure."

    "I agree." Dad shrugged as he plugged in some backing device and began copying all the data and files from the computer terminal into it. "Normally we should be searching for survivors, but I can''t take the risk of allowing these things to roam free. A colony of them wiped out an entire expedition of mages in the Antarctica a few decades ago, and the Federation decided to sterilize the site with a Strategic-scale spell before the assimilated mages could escape to human society and spread beyond number."

    We had our backs to the door, and I had even posted Ursa Major and a pack of Ursa Minor to ensure none of the Shaggrowths escaped through the exit we had just so kindly opened for them. Glancing around, I tried to think of a way to seal the doors before it was too late.

    "Okay, done! Go, go, go!"

    Dad vaulted over the computer desk and landed on the ground, his fiery sword flashing out and searing through a Shaggrowth stupid enough to ambush him. The creature wailed as it toppled over, its entire form combusting.

    "Taurus!" I shouted, summoning the giant bull to clear a path for my dad. As the huge Constellation spirit materialized and trampled on a couple of Shaggrowths, I issued another command. "Aldebaran!"

    An enormous gout of flame erupted from his jaws and washed over the milling Shaggrowths. A good number of them managed to crawl away to safety, but the flamethrower technique incinerated a significant portion of them.

    "Thanks!" Dad cut through another Shaggrowth with his fiery sword before reaching my position. "Angelica, you''re on rearguard duty! Make sure none of them get out!"

    "Roger that," Angelica replied softly as she raised her hands, almost as if in supplication. The entire room disappeared in a raging inferno that continued to expand ferociously toward the exit.

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    I quickly dismissed the majority of my Constellation spirits, leaving only the pack of Ursa Minor and solitary Ursa Major at the door. Dad and I threw ourselves out of the door and hit the ground, rolling to our feet and racing across the artificial concrete road that had been paved in the hollowed out tunnel of the mountain.

    "Draco!" I shouted, summoning the titanic dragon. Hopping onto the Constellation spirit, I waited for Dad to do the same, and then had Draco fly out of there.

    "You can dismiss the rest of your soul beasts," Dad told me, and then he turned around to call out to Angelica. "Create a Firewall!"

    "Already done it."

    The fiery angel soared upon wings of fire, easily catching up with Draco. Behind, I caught sight of an immense inferno erupting over the gates, turning into a blazing barrier that reduced any creature that attempted to pass through it into ash. None of the Shaggrowths were going to escape through those superheated flames.

    I was glad I had managed to recall my Ursa Constellation spirits in time, right when Dad told me to. Otherwise they would have ended up immolated along with the Shaggrowths.

    Now that we were flying upon Draco''s back and not on foot, we were out of the tunnel within a minute. Draco ascended high up into the sky, several magic circles appearing around his jaws as he slowly but surely cast Thuban.

    Flapping his great wings, he whirled around in the air to face the wretched mountain we had just escaped from. Hovering in a fixed place several hundred meters from sea level, he directed his glowing jaws toward the site. In the meantime, Angelica guarded us for a while longer, but when she saw there was no other threats, she waved and vanished from view after Dad nodded at her. It was going to take some more time for him to fully charge the attack, so I waited for him to complete the casting of the spell before pointing dramatically at the mountain.

    "Draco, Thuban attack!" I shouted, behaving like some pocket monster master who had never won a single pocket monster league. Draco obeyed and unleashed the devastating energies from his jaws. The tremendous torrent of black mana surged from him and slammed into the mountain, erasing it and every foul creature inhabiting it from existence. The entire place vanished into a spherical explosion of black and crimson, expanding and billowing upward into a mushroom cloud. Another two mountains that happened to be nearby were also annihilated, disintegrating from the sheer destructive force of Draco''s Thuban spell.

    "Ho¡­"

    Dad whistled, thoroughly impressed. He patted me on the head and snickered.

    "Man, I don''t know what you''ve been doing in order to master a Strategic-scale spell at your age."

    "A hundred losses, lots of training, and lots of learning and research," I replied matter-of-factly. Dad grimaced.

    "That''s not what I meant¡­never mind." Then he noticed that I was breathing laboriously and looking extremely pale. "Oi, Richie, are you all right?"

    "Yeah¡­just that this spell takes a lot out of me. And even before summoning Draco and having him unleash his Thuban spell, I was summoning quite a lot of Constellation spirits. So I''ve expended quite a lot of mana."

    "Okay, set down and dismiss your Constellation spirit then." Dad observed me and nodded. "Yeah, it''s costing you quite a lot of mana just to maintain this dragon''s existence in the material world. The faster you set down and release him, the better. We''ll just make the rest of the journey on foot."

    "Thanks."

    I obeyed and dismissed Draco as soon as we reached the ground. At least I didn''t pass out like the last time I did after nuking the two Hellfire Drakes. I was gratified to see that I had grown stronger. At the very minimum, it was clear that I had increased my mana reserves and stamina.

    We strolled back toward the village on foot in silence, with me staggering as I forced my exhausted body to move. Mana depletion affected the physical body tremendously as well ¨C if you expended a significant amount of mana, you were going to feel physically drained as well. So this was only natural.

    However, Dad, who had been reading the data he had downloaded from the Dark Church''s computer terminal into his hacking device this entire time ¨C having beamed a huge holographic image into the air ¨C suddenly paused.

    "Sorry, Richie. I know this will be hard on you, but I need you to summon one of your flying soul beasts again."

    "What''s the matter?" I asked, feeling unsettled despite my weariness. Dad turned from the holographic images and toward me, looking all serious and furious.

    "We''ve to hurry back to Sakha City. The damned Dark Church has already unleashed a monster army in its direction a few days ago, and if the data reads right¡­they''ll reach there in a matter of hours."

 172 Chapter 172: Cruel Choice

    "I understand."

    Suppressing my exhaustion, I immediately summoned Cygnus. Jumping atop the white, pristine back of the gigantic swan, I waited for Dad to join me before I had him take off. Cygnus flapped his wings and we soared into the air after a slight lurch.

    As tired as I was, I still had some reserves to summon a few Constellation spirits and fight for a bit longer. Unfortunately, I probably couldn''t use a second Strategic-scale spell, at least not for another day or two. I simply did not have the mana to afford such luxuries.

    So no more Antares or Thuban to nuke any monster army. Damn it.

    "We''ve to hurry!" Dad urged me needlessly. I nodded silently, too drained to speak, but urged Cygnus on a little faster. We were flying toward Sakha City as quickly as possible, and Dad craned his neck to look into the distance. His expression turned even more grime than before, and his jaw clenched. "There''s so many of them."

    Despite myself, I glanced below and in the direction Dad was looking in. he was right. There had to be thousands of monsters moving through the forest and toward Sakha City. However, it seemed they had developed some of tactics, or the Dark Church had messed up in their control. The monsters were moving in large, disparate groups rather than being clumped up together in a single mass. That mean that even if I had the ability to nuke them with Scorpio''s Antares or Dracon''s Thuban, I wouldn''t be able to destroy all of them. There would be at least a few separate groups that would escape the blast, and even the smallest of them were sizeable.

    Dad also noticed their new movements and he gritted his teeth.

    "They''re going to hit the city from multiple directions.''

    "That can''t be good." I wasn''t sure what else to say, so I made quite the pointless remark. Dad didn''t seem to be paying attention, though.

    "The bastards¡­the Dark Church really want to destroy this city too. Sakha City is one of the commercial hubs of this country. If they raze it to the ground with monsters, the poor nation''s economy would be crippled, and the other cities would be vulnerable to more of these monster attacks. The Dark Church also plans to make use of the surviving monsters to move on from Sakha City and invade the next. It appears that the nearest city, Rejia City, is next on their target."

    Dad was getting all the information from the holographic screen that was beamed from his hacking device. Apparently the administrative workers of the Dark Church had recorded the minutes of the higher-ups'' discussion and stored them digitally. Good thing the Dark Church ascribed to the bureaucratic bullshit too, or we wouldn''t be able to find out about the attack in time.

    "Sakha City doesn''t have a standing garrison, and few very mages. They are going to need our help."

    I nodded at Dad''s words, even as I tried to conceive of a plan. How could we fight against such overwhelming numbers? Dad probably could, but given the amount of mana I had left, and my inability to use Antares or Thuban over the next day or two until I had fully recovered, I didn''t see how I could make a difference. Perhaps I could save several lives here and there, but there was no way I could kill all the monsters.

    "Don''t worry." Dad must have seen the concern on my face. "We just need to save as many lives as we can, and kill as monsters as we can. The government will respond to this threat soon enough and mobilize their military. In the meantime, we will save as many civilians as we can before the real soldiers arrive."

    "So just do our best, huh?" I muttered.

    "Of course. Keep the monsters occupied until the military comes. At least they''ll be too busy trying to take the city instead of moving on to attack other cities."

    "¡­and villages."

    Something occurred to me, and I turned my head back. My eyes widened in horror. One of the group of monsters were moving toward the village where Dad and I spent the night yesterday.

    Shinra and Guo Hao''s village. I still remembered the kindly elderly couple who offered us a night''s stay in their house, and how they had just literally sent us off this morning. Their village was standing right in the path of a massive group of monsters.

    Even though the village was normally protected by a barrier, the barrier usually worked against only low to mid-level monsters. Each of these groups were led by at least rank C monsters and above. The Elemental-class monsters could tear through the barrier easily and open the way up for the weaker but more numerous monsters to flood into the village.

    That was why the cities, even though they possess stronger barriers, were still vulnerable to such invasions. Even without high-ranked monsters, the sheer numbers and mass of low-ranked monsters were enough to overwhelm the enchanted defenses. Throw enough low-ranked monsters at the barrier for long enough, and it would eventually buckle and break.

    Thousands of low-ranked monsters acting in concert was more than enough to break the barrier.

    "Damn it!"

    "What is it?" Dad turned to me.

    "The village! Mr. Guo Hao and Mrs. Shinra''s village! They are right in the path of one of the monster groups! At this rate, they will be¡­"

    Dad remained silent, but said nothing.

    "We have to help them!"

    I was about to turn Cygnus around, but Dad reached out and stopped me.

    "No. Proceed to Sakha City. Our destination remains unchanged."

    "But¡­!"

    He tightened his grip on my shoulder.

    "I know it''s frustrating and hard, but we don''t have a choice."

    "Of course we do! It''s just a small detour¡­"

    "With that number, we won''t be able to destroy all of them. We''ll spend too much time weeding them out." Dad''s voice grew somewhat cold. "But if the monsters get into Sakha City, more people will die. There are three million people living in Sakha City. There are barely a hundred villagers down there. What do you think our priority should be?"

    To my horror, I understood what Dad was saying. Sacrifice the minority for the majority. Sacrifice the few to save the many. I hated him for that, but I found that I could not fault the logic. Of course it was a given. The lives of the many far outweighed the lives of the few.

    However, my heart was screaming inside my chest, raging against such unfairness. Such cold ruthlessness.

    Even then, I couldn''t¡­

    "Dad, I''ll drop you off at Sakha City first. Then I''ll come back here."

    "No." Dad shook his head coolly. "I need you with me. I can''t protect Sakha City alone."

    "But¡­"

    Dad ignored my protests and retrieved his smartphone. Conjuring a new holographic map, he expanded it so that it filled the space in front of us.

    "As you can see, the monsters have divided them into several groups. They will be attacking here, here, and here."

    He pointed out and marked several points on the map, gates and main roads where it would be easy for the monsters to flood inside.

    "I''ll take this path because the largest concentration of monsters seem to be heading here." as always, Dad was leading from the front. He indicated the biggest gate of Sakha City, and also the location where the majority of the monsters seemed to be heading toward.

    Then he pointed at a new location of the map, a second smaller gate where a few of the other groups were streaming toward.

    "I need you here. And the monsters will be there in under an hour. If you detour to save that village instead, there will be nobody to stop the monsters from getting through here." he took a deep breath and looked at me seriously. "And neither of us will be able to completely eradicate the monsters. But that''s fine. We only need to distract and delay them long enough until the military reinforcements arrive in two or three hours."

    I didn''t say anything.

    "This plan will minimize the number of casualties in Sakha City," Dad continued calmly, his eyes scanning over the holographic map. He then did a few calculations and paused, and I could sense him refraining from saying something. "Three hours. That''s how long you need to delay them. I know it will be difficult for you to do so, given how much mana you have left, but we do not have any other option. Summon as many soul beasts as you can and do your best."

    There was nothing more for him to say. I understood the hidden, underlying meaning in his words. I should do my best to stall the monsters for as long as I could¡­even at the cost of my life. Dad knew there was a chance I wouldn''t survive this. Even so, he had no hesitation ordering me to what might amount to a suicide mission.

    We weren''t blood-related. He adopted me on a whim, and trained me to be able to fight like him. Despite his usually cavalier and relaxed attitude, he hadn''t really seen me as a son.

    To him, I was but a tool to save other people''s lives. I was but one person in the grand scheme of things. Dad was looking at the bigger picture. If he had to throw away my single life to save many others, he wouldn''t hesitate in doing so.

    "The people in the village will die. Mrs. Shinra. Mr. Guo Hao. They won''t be able to survive the onslaught when the monsters rip through the barrier."

    "I won''t deny that." Dad sighed, but his eyes remained detached. "But the people in Sakha City will die too if we don''t help them. I won''t stop you from doing anything you want. It''s your choice. I''m merely explaining the options that will save the most lives. The option that will bring about the least casualties. No matter which path you take, many people will die. It''s inevitable. It comes down to how we can minimize the number of deaths."

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    "Another thing." Dad'' voice was still icy. "If you choose to protect the village, you won''t get any reinforcements. The military will focus on saving Sakha City. They won''t be able to get to the village in time, not until Sakha City is secure. You can sacrifice yourself to kill as many monsters as you want, but eventually you will die and the village will fall. It''s up to you whether you want your death to be meaningful or not."

    Again, with that callous reasoning. Already Dad was already resigned to the fact that I would die, no matter what I did.

    "At least if you''re in Sakha City, it''ll be easier for me to come and reinforce your position once I''m done with cleaning up the front. And I believe there should still be a few mages in Sakha City who will come to our assistance. It''ll maximize your chances of survival."

    In the end, Dad was still concerned about me. Well, we had been through a lot for the past five years or so, and he was still human. There was no way he wouldn''t feel anything if I died.

    Even so, it rankled me that we were forced into making this cruel decision. Glancing at the village, I clenched my fists so tightly that my nails cut into my palms, drawing blood.

    "Damn it¡­damn it!"

    "This is why it''s so important to eradicate the Dark Church," Dad said frostily. "In order to prevent such atrocities from being repeated in future."

 173 Chapter 173: Guarding the Gate

    After dropping Dad off at the main gate of Sakha City, I then began to proceed to the other gate where Dad told me to go.

    "Richie."

    I stopped for a moment to glance back at Dad.

    "I''m sorry. But we can''t be everywhere at once. We are not gods. We can only do so much with the hand we are dealt with. Perhaps you''ll understand it eventually, but¡­"

    "I already understand, Dad."

    Sacrifice the minority for the majority. Choose the many over the few. That was only logical. I hated that decision, but as Dad said, we weren''t gods. We couldn''t split ourselves up and be everywhere at once.

    "¡­sorry."

    "It''s not your fault."

    I made my choice according to Dad''s logic. I was going to have to live with it.

    "We''ll do our best to save as many people in Sakha City as possible."

    Dad grinned, back to his usual self. "Now you get it. Run along now."

    Turning away, I urged Cygnus toward the gate. Dad didn''t notice how forced my demeanor was, how it was so difficult for me to speak. I had always looked up to Dad, always thought of him as a hero and wanted to emulate him.

    However, today I understood for the first time how na?ve I was. Dad wasn''t a god. True, he was a hero, but he was still human. There was no way he could save everyone in the world.

    Did Dad have to live with such hard choices like this all the time? Knowing that he had consigned a few to doom while choosing to save the majority?

    Did I still want to become a hero like him? Was that what it meant to be a hero? To save the many at the expense of the few? To be able to live with that choice? To harden yourself against guilt and move on to the next day, and make the same calculated, ruthless decisions again?

    If that was the case, then I wasn''t cut out to be a hero. I couldn''t make such a decision. Who was I to decide who should live and who should die?

    But¡­if Dad didn''t do that, then everyone would die. If Dad didn''t make that decision, then nobody would be saved. At least in this situation, the people of Sakha City would be saved, even if the village of Shinra and Guo Hao wasn''t.

    "I¡­"

    Perhaps I shouldn''t dwell on this too much. I should just focus on holding the gate for now, and doing my best to survive. Most people would claim that I wasn''t obligated to save others, that I should just run away and think only about myself.

    What nonsense. They wouldn''t be saying that if they were the ones inside the city, the ones who were facing impending doom. It was so easy to be self-centered and selfish when you weren''t the one in danger. Those same self-centered commenters will immediately turn on me and demand that I do my job as a mage-soldier and protect them if they were the ones in the city and seeing the monsters arriving. That I had no right to leave them to die after being provided a military education and taught how to use magic to fight thanks to taxpayers'' money.

    Honestly, if I was an ordinary person living inside the city, I would be looking to the mages to protect me to. I would be outraged if they were derelict in their duty to stand up for us. Just like how any civilian in my previous world would be furious if the soldiers they relied on to defend their country suddenly ran away when in invading army landed upon their shores. What the fuck was the point of raising and maintaining a military, and blowing large amounts of cash on a defense budget, if the soldiers were too cowardly to defend you?

    Great power came with great responsibility. I had lived off other people long enough, now it was time for me to pay my dues.

    "Gr¡­"

    I could almost see the first row of monsters approaching. Taking a deep breath, I summoned a horde of Canis Minor, Ursa Minor and Leo Minor, each pack led by Canis Major, Ursa Major and Leo. I also summoned Aries, Capricorn and Taurus. Whatever I could summon, I did at the moment. Then I drew Gan Jiang and Mo Ye.

    "Ready, guys?"

    They didn''t say anything. They didn''t have to. We were linked mentally, and they would obey my commands without question. Sometimes it felt lonely, and I wondered if it would be better if they each had their own personality traits and whatnot. But it was certainly convenient when it came to combat, especially with soldiers who would never go against my orders.

    Taking a deep breath, I swung Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, unleashing twin waves of black and white mana. The first row of monsters, which were Horned Hares, immediately disintegrated as they were swallowed by the devastating technique.

    The bigger, stronger monsters followed in their wake. Dark Apes. Dire Wolves. Ravagers. Scaled Drakes. Dark Panthers.

    Even so, I stood strong. And then, I unleashed my small army of Constellation spirits upon them.

    "FILLER!"

    Excuse me?!

    I raised my head and saw a few humans tearing the fabric of time-space open. They were raging and jabbing fingers in my direction, their mouths frothing and their eyes bloodshot as they leveled absurd accusations.

    "STOP WITH THIS FILLER!"

    "HOW DARE YOU WRITE FILLERS?!"

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    "I don''t care about some stupid city you never mentioned in the story before!"

    "Are you dumb? Who cares about this city?! I only want to know what happens in Jing Tian City and Jing Tian Academy!"

    "DON''T WASTE A CHAPTER ON FILLERS!"

    I glared at them for a moment, dropped my couple of swords, summoned Orion, and then fired a few arrows at them. The raging commenters shrieked as the azure arrows pierced through them, detonating and reducing them into shreds of skin and blood.

    "This is MY story. I will be the one to dictate what I write. And you have no right to decide what is filler and what is not in MY story. If you don''t want to read this chapter, then skip it. I have a reason for including it, and it''s not my problem if you couldn''t care less about my reason. In which case, why are you reading in the first place?"

    I believe I was the one writing this story, not the readers. If they weren''t satisfied, they can go write their own stories. Constructive criticism was fine and greatly appreciated, by raging flames and nonsensical accusations of "fillers" (when they clearly misunderstand the term) were not. Seriously, fillers referred to non-canonical material that an anime studio made up because they caught up to the manga and needed to create new episodes to continue airing. This story is the canonical, original material. Nowadays, readers just labeled whatever they didn''t want to read as fillers, all because the writer wasn''t writing what they wanted to read, or they were too impatient to appreciate the bigger picture of the story. Readers'' impatience wasn''t a flaw in the story. I could understand if they complained about the pacing of my story, but if it was about "fillers" then there was no way I could take them seriously.

    And for them to die so easily from low-powered arrows of Orion¡­I guess it''s true what they said. Empty vessels made the most noise.

    With the annoying distractions gone, I turned my attention toward the monsters. Taking aim with Orion, I unleashed a volley of arrows that pierced through their ranks. The rank F monsters were obliterated immediately. The higher-ranked monsters were tougher to take down, but even the Dire Wolves found themselves maimed or heavily injured by my numerous arrows. The sheer volume of fire that Orion offered made it almost impossible for them to escape unscathed.

    My Constellation spirits, tied to me mentally, knew exactly where I was aiming at, and which areas to avoid. Instead, they watched out for gaps on my flanks and tore through the monsters that tried to ambush me. They descended in a flurry of claws and fangs, ripping and tearing through the surprised horde of monsters.

    However, there were far too many monsters. If they were a few thousand rank F monsters, I could probably annihilate them, given enough time, but I could see rank D and rank C monsters coming through. Huge Treeants that manipulated vines and leaves that ensnared my Constellation spirits or cut through them. Salamanders that unleashed gouts of flames that incinerated my smaller soul beasts. Shadow Leopards that melted into the darkness and reemerged to spring surprise attacks on my bigger guys. Even Taurus''s armor couldn''t fully protect him from vicious slashes.

    The sheer numbers of monsters meant that I couldn''t kill them all before they reached my position. A Dire Wolf lunged at me, and I was forced to abort summoning an arrow. Picking up Gan Jiang with my right hand, I cleaved the Dire Wolf in half before spinning around and kicking a Dark Ape in its gut. As it staggered, doubling over from my blow, I dismissed Orion and snatched up Mo Ye before decapitating the reeling monster.

    Then a Scaled Drake lashed out at me, forcing me to duck. Even as I lowered my head, my swords came up and eviscerated it, causing it to topple over with a screech. I stomped on its head to finish it off before striking at another Dire Wolf.

    A sudden gout of flames seared through the area and nearly incinerated me. While I hit the ground and tried to roll away, a Shadow Leopard emerged from the shadows and mauled me. I cursed in agony as blood spurted from my back, along with red-hot pain. Spinning around to confront the Shadow Leopard, I suddenly found my movements restricted as vines from a Treeant caught me, wrapping around my arms and hindering my attack.

    Another Shadow Leopard struck and slashed me, causing me to shriek in pain, but I somehow managed to survive its lethal blow. Groaning, I tried to focus on the battle through a crimson haze of agony, only to see flames scorching my surroundings and burning me.

    The damned Salamander again.

    There were too many rank C monsters. They were ganging up on me now, using the advantage that their sheer numbers afforded them, and bashing through my Constellation spirits using brute force. They instinctively knew that as long as they eliminated me, my Constellation spirits would naturally disappear along with me.

    That was why they were bringing the big guns out against me.

    Unfortunately for them, they weren''t the only ones with big guns.

    Lightning exploded around me, searing through the two Shadow Leopards and causing them to recoil in pain. Claws cut through the vines entangling me and I dropped to the ground. Severing the rest of the Treeant''s vines with Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, I left my back to the newly materialized White Tiger, who roared and saturated the entire area with lethal lightning.

    Even then, he wasn''t enough to contend against the sheer number of rank C monsters assaulting my position. The Treeant lumbered over, its branches flailing and smashing through concrete, its attacks leaving small craters on the ground. I wove through its vines and razor leaves, lashing out with my swords when necessary, but careful not to get too close where it could bathe me in acidic sap.

    Then Taurus broke free of a bunch of Ravagers and Dire Wolves to reach my position. With a grunt, he unleashed Aldebaran on the Treeant, incinerating it. The rank C wood element monster whirled around with a screech and smacked the giant bull away.

    Fortunately, Taurus had bought me the time I needed. Above, Vermillion Phoenix burst into being, fiery meteors unleashed as he spread his wings in a majestic manner. The flaming projectiles slammed into a cluster of Treeants, burning the screeching monsters into ash.

    As for the Salamander that was trying to incinerate me, it suddenly found itself hammered down by a gigantic pincer. Cancer slapped it away with 40,000 horsepower, and then unleashed a stream of bubbles that detonated against the flailing Salamander. The water type spell was super-effective, but Cancer''s Altarf was even more effective. His gigantic pincer obliterated the Salamander, leaving nothing but blood and scales on the soil.

    But more were coming. I could see at least three more Salamanders in the distance, crawling toward us and getting ready to launch their ranged fire spells. Even though Vermillion Phoenix was incinerating another cluster of Treeants, I could see another horde lumbering from the back of the monster swarm, accompanied by a pack of Shadow Leopards.

    "Huff¡­"

    Fending off another Shadow Leopard''s claws with my swords, I gritted my teeth. Never mind the current fight, I was slightly tired from summoning Draco and using Thuban earlier. I was actually surprised that I could put up such a fight for this duration. Evidently I had become stronger.

    Whoosh!

    A burst of flames scorched through the ground and incinerated a bunch of my Ursa Major, who were unable to get out of the way in time. Canis Major''s jaws opened and he unleashed a devastating Sirius attack that knocked one of the Salamanders off its feet in revenge, but the other two continued to lumber forward. Several of the Shadow Leopards also diverted their direction to deal with him and his dwindling pack. Leo and his surviving Leo Minor intervened ¨C there were so few Leo Minor left ¨C and his Regulus spell smashed through a couple of Shadow Leopards, destroying them.

    Another blast of flames incinerated Aries as he was trying to trample upon a pack of Ravagers.

    Perhaps I should do something about those Salamanders. Cancer was too slow, and he was busily fending off a bunch of Scaled Drakes at the moment, so I decided to summon Black Tortoise. Hell, I had already begun casting his summoning spell immediately after Vermillion Phoenix. Even though trying to summon and maintain the existences of three Celestial Guardians would be incredibly taxing on me, I had no choice.

    If I didn''t push myself to my very limits, I would die. No doubt about that.

    Fortunately, even as the flames vanished against Black Tortoise''s newly conjured water barrier, I spotted a few golden streaks of light arcing from behind me to slam into the two Salamanders. They vanished in a colossal explosion that also consumed the nearby Treeants and lower ranked monsters, cutting a huge swathe of destruction into the horde.

    "Excellent job holding the line so far, kid."

    Turning around, I spotted a group of adults in armor striding forward, each of them equipped with gleaming, hi-tech weapons. The guy in the lead, someone who looked like a Paladin from some fantasy game, rested his broadsword on his shoulder and grinned at me.

    "You can relax now, kid. The cavalry has arrived."

    Then the new group of adults charged into the monsters and began obliterating the horde.

 174 Chapter 174: The Amazerian Empire

    The hovercraft plunged toward the airport, its thrusters burning as it forcibly slowed its descent the moment it reached within ten meters of the ground. Machinery creaked as thrusters and shafts folded to prepare for landing, the metallic noises drowned out by the scream of the plasma jets. The superheated waves scorched the concrete, but the reinforced material didn''t give way even as the vehicle set down its tremendous bulk upon the platform.

    Even before the engines were fully turned off, the hull opened and clanged downward. Cecilia Stuart strode down the ramp briskly, her beautiful face contorted into a scowl.

    "Ah, Cecilia. It''s been a while. How have you been?"

    At the bottom of the ramp, a safe distance away from the gradually cooling dropship, Sacha Stuart bowed his head slightly as he greeted his niece. Beside him, Adrian Stuart fidgeted nervously, having picked up on his cousin''s foul mood.

    "I''m fine," Cecilia replied curtly. Sacha nodded and smiled, as if her reply pleased him.

    "That''s good. How goes your search for your father?"

    Cecilia clenched her fists in reflex. Even though you were the one who orchestrated his downfall and plotted to kill him? You have some nerve asking me about my father.

    However, she didn''t express her rage. Keeping her fury under control, she instead snapped off a retort.

    "You were the one who requested me to cut short my search and return as soon as possible."

    "Yes, yes. I apologize for that." Sacha lowered his head humbly. "I''m very sorry, I honestly wouldn''t have requested for your return unless it was absolutely necessary, but there was no one else who could handle this task. After all, that man is coming."

    "That man?" Cecilia echoed, but she knew who Sacha was referring to. Her suspicions were confirmed when Sacha continued.

    "Yes. Dignitaries and a super VIP from the Amazerian Empire are coming. They wish to discuss the usual trade deals. And you are the only one who can deal with that man."

    "His excellency." Cecilia nodded, now understanding why her uncle was so desperate to call her back. The crown prince of the Amazerian Empire was definitely not a person just anyone could deal with. He was powerful, persuasive and charismatic. If her uncle attempted the negotiations alone, he would find himself outwitted, cornered and manipulated into agreeing to a deal that was extremely profitable for the Amazerian Empire and very detrimental for the Stuart clan. Even if she was unhappy with her uncle, she couldn''t afford to allow her clan to fall into ruin. Without her father around, it fell to her to handle the negotiations. "I''ll do my best."

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    Sacha provided her with a broad smile. "Thank you very much. I really appreciate it."

    "I''m sure you do. That''s the only reason why you''re keeping me alive instead of trying to kill me like you attempted the assassination of my father. Because I''m still useful to you."

    Sacha lost his smile. "My dear, that''s quite the outrageous accusation. I assure you, I have no such intentions. And why would I wish for the death of my beloved brother?"

    "Says the man who now sits in the throne that formerly belonged to his brother."

    Sacha held up both hands and shook his head. "If you can find your father, I will willingly relinquish that throne back to him."

    Cecilia snorted inwardly. She was 100% sure that her uncle was just bullshitting her, and that he was confident that she would never find her father.

    "You should rest. It has been a long journey, hasn''t it?"

    "I will need to make my preparations," Cecilia countered coolly. "I don''t have much time before his Excellency arrives. He will here in¡­three days?"

    "Two days," Sacha corrected, his head still lowered.

    "Less time than I expected." Cecilia sighed. "The crown prince is a formidable opponent. I must get ready to face him if we''re going to stand a chance."

    "He wants our military technology," Sacha informed her. "I already have the products ready for exhibition. I will send you the catalogue later."

    "Please do." Cecilia''s mind was already racing. The crown prince of Amazerian was a deadly foe, and she hated heading into this battle of wits unprepared. Contrary to popular belief, the Amazerian Empire wasn''t just filled with warriors. Their leaders were crafty and cunning, applying the same ruthlessness they showed against monsters to the battlefield of trade and commerce.

    This was not going to be an easy fight.

    *

    "We''re finally home."

    As much as I wanted to punch the air and cheer, I was much too exhausted. The fight in Sakha City had drained too much of my mana. I had recklessly summoned so many of my Constellation spirits at once that by the time the battle was over, I was running on empty.

    Actually, I probably passed out before the battle ended. After the reinforcements arrived, the adults took over and I was relegated to rearguard duty. There wasn''t much left for me to do, and my mana trickled away after a while. According to the amused adults, I had passed out on my feet.

    Dad had taken care of a good number of monsters from his side, but he also received reinforcements, and together they managed to stem the tide until the military arrived and took over. It took another two days for the soldiers to exterminate the entire horde, but they finally stemmed the tide of demonic beasts and broke them.

    Good thing there wasn''t any rank A monster leading the horde this time, or we and the civilians trapped inside the city would have been screwed.

    However, it wasn''t the fight that rendered me so drained. I was also exhausted mentally, my mind suffused with so many bitter emotions.

    I failed to save the village.

    There was nothing surprising about that. As Dad said, I couldn''t be in two places at once. By the time I woke up and regained consciousness, it was too late. When I rushed there, all I saw were ruins and corpses. The monsters had overrun the village shortly after Dad and I landed in Sakha City, tore open the barrier, and massacred the villagers within.

    With all the villagers being elderly or farmers, they had no way of fighting back. Military intelligence estimated that they took less than fifteen minutes to fall.

    Shinra and Guo Hao''s village wasn''t the only one. Across the countryside outside Sakha City, the story was the same. At least twelve other little villages had been destroyed. There were no survivors. I had held out hope that at least several of the villagers had run to the forest, to flee the approaching monsters, but that was a lost cause.

    After all, the forests were inhabited by monsters as well. There was no safe place for the villagers to run to.

    As the truth dawned on me, I found myself mentally and emotionally drained. The inhabitants of Sakha City might have been grateful to me, but I couldn''t help wondering if the dead villagers were blaming us for their deaths.

    "Stop thinking too much."

    Dad suddenly patted my back, subtly urging me to continue walking. I realized I was standing in the way of the other passengers. We had just alighted from the plane that took us back to the Middle Kingdom. Several passengers were hurrying to catch their transit flights, while many others were heading toward the conveyor belt to collect their luggage. We should be joining them shortly, or so I absently reflected.

    "You did the best you could. Nobody can fault you for that."

    That was because anyone who would do so was dead.

    "You served with distinction. Anyone who says otherwise is just trolling you." Dad paused for a moment. "I know you''re still hung up over being unable to save the villages, but remember, you''ve saved many more lives in Sakha City. If you hadn''t held the monsters off long enough before reinforcements arrived, they would have invaded the city. And thousands would die. Don''t you remember what happened in Jing Tian City?"

    The tragedy of Jing Tian City was still fresh in my mind, especially since I had experienced it firsthand. I had seen people die, had seen corpses of civilians in the street. I failed to save Alicia from an assassin''s blade.

    At the end of it all, at least one-third of Jing Tian City''s population had perished, a significant number of the civilians unable to make it to the shelters before they were caught and mauled by monsters. The soldiers and combat mages had taken a fair amount of casualties too. I had seen my schoolmates slaughtered by mid-ranking monsters right before my eyes when rushing back to school.

    The Dark Church¡­they were really going too far.

    However¡­

    "Isn''t what happened to the villages a tragedy as well?" I asked bitterly.

    "I won''t deny that," Dad affirmed. "But the deaths were limited to hundreds instead of thousands. It was the only way."

    "So now we are just treating people as numbers, huh?" I laughed, my voice dry and mocking. "Just nameless statistics, to be represented by data at the end of each fight? Doesn''t that make our job meaningless?"

    "Perhaps now you understand what it means to be a ''hero,''" Dad said. I turned to look at him sharply, but he was being serious. "There is no such thing as heroes. They are just idealized figures, held to some impossible pedestal through the imaginations of the adoring public. Their images are constructed to make them look infallible, so that civilians will have hope¡­have something to cling to and believe in even in the darkest of times. But as you know, reality is cruel. Life is harsh. We can''t save everybody. There are times when we let those who believe in us down and leave them to die. But the public doesn''t know that. The Federation only publishes our successes. They conceal our failures. After all, heroes cannot be seen as flawed or frail. We must remain a shining beacon of hope, for the whole of the Federation to remain united and not give in to despair."

    He then looked at me.

    "And you brought hope to the people of Sakha. Yeah, you failed to save the villagers. You didn''t save Shinra or Guo Hao. But you saved the people in Sakha City. Remember the waiter who served us spicy cuisine in the hotel lobby? The local guide who tried to give us a tour in the city? The auntie at the souvenir shop? The pilots and air stewardesses at the airport? You saved them all. Do you think they would be alive if you weren''t there to stop the monsters from entering the city?"

    He slapped my shoulder.

    "Hold yourself up proudly. Stop living under the illusion that you''re some kind of hero, or god. Just do your best to save as many people as you can. If others imagine you as a hero, so be it. At least you can hold your head high in the fact that you saved them. As for those you fail to save¡­learn from your mistakes and do your best to prevent more deaths in future. I won''t say it''s always possible, and sometimes you''ll be forced to make hard decisions like in Sakha City, but¡­there are always areas where we can improve. If we moved out faster, we might have been able to detect the horde of monsters earlier and evacuate the villages. I don''t know. But it''s useless to dwell on that for now. What has been done is done, and the only direction to look toward is the future. Move on. Don''t weigh yourself with the guilt and regrets of the past ¨C arm yourself with knowledge of the past and look toward the future."

    He then paused.

    "It''s up to you to take my advice or not, but trust me¡­bearing all that guilt and burden¡­one day, you won''t be able to take it. Your heart just won''t be able to handle that kind of pressure. You''re only human after all."

    "¡­yeah."

    Dad smiled and lowered his voice to a whisper. "I won''t lie to you. There are nights were I can''t sleep, where I''m just as frustrated as you at my own helplessness. I am ashamed to say that it will get easier as it goes on, but absolutely necessary. For if you don''t harden your heart¡­you will just break apart emotionally. And I don''t want that to happen to you."

    "I''ll do my best."

    I nodded, trailing Dad a little as we headed toward the luggage pick-up point.

    Then suddenly I realized someone was following us. Spinning around in alarm, I glared at the stalker.

    "Ah, sorry about that. I didn''t mean to eavesdrop, but your conversation was so interesting."

    "Who¡­?"

    He was a youth in his early twenties, about 1.8 meters tall, with wild hair and a golden headband and earrings. Despite the chilly air conditioning of the airport, he was dressed in quite flimsy clothing, a sleeveless vest that exposed his muscular chest and thick arms, and summer shorts. Tanned, olive skin and dark hair indicated the high possibility that he was a Latin American, or East European, but I couldn''t be sure.

    "My bad, my bad. I''m a tourist from the Amazerian Empire. This is my first time to one of the countries in the Global Federation, and I''m pretty excited. So I''m moving around and exploring." He grinned. "Wow, so you took part in the defense of Sakha City a few days ago? I never would have thought."

    "I didn''t do much," I said. Dad rolled his eyes, but didn''t say anything.

    "I''m sure you did. I thought the mages of the Global Federation weren''t real warriors, but I must revise my opinion of them." he held out a hand, and after staring at it for a few seconds, I took it. His grip was firm and crushing, and I could sense the tremendous amount of power coiled in his arm. However, I didn''t grimace. Not wanting to play the game, I merely exuded just enough mana to protect my fingers from breaking.

    "Not bad, not bad. I didn''t think I would meet mages or your caliber in the Federation. And someone at your age, too. You can''t be any older than twenty, and yet you''re already this level. My eyes have been reopened."

    "My son''s an exception," Dad remarked, amused.

    "Really? We should exchange contact information then. I would like to spar with you someday¡­" He was about to whip out his smartphone when he suddenly blanched. "Uh oh¡­I should go now. Don''t worry, I''ll contact you to arrange a match when I can."

    Then he took off, leaving me to stare at him in puzzlement. Seconds later, right after he disappeared, a large group of men in suits and sunglasses marched into the area, looking around frantically.

    Evidently, the guy was being chased.

    "Let''s go." Dad was grinning for some reason. Not wanting to waste any more time, especially since I was so tired, I nodded and followed him to pick up our luggage.

 175 Chapter 175: VIP Visi

    The hovercraft surged from Jing Tian Airport and toward Southampton City at incredible speeds, sending sonic booms across the forests it soared over. Monsters were knocked off their feet as they were buffeted by powerful shockwaves, their eardrums almost destroyed by the tremendous noise. Several airborne monsters screeched and launched themselves at the hovercraft, but a shimmering forcefield disintegrated them before they could reach even a few meters of it.

    Southampton City was one of the major cities of the Global Federation, located within the Middle Continent. As the headquarters of the esteemed Stuart Clan, it also served as a political, military and commercial hub within the hundreds of Global Federation cities. Currently, it was the destination for the hovercraft.

    "Your excellency, why didn''t we just take a direct flight to Southampton City?" One of the men in suits asked. Seated beside the tanned guy in summer shorts and sleeveless vest, he served as the head of the crown prince''s bodyguards.

    "Because it''s more fun this way. I want to see more of the Global Federation, not just the big cities. I heard that Jing Tian City was one of the cities under attack by the Dark Church, and I was interested to see how much they have rebuilt or restored the city." He nodded, impressed. "They exceeded my imagination. Is this what the wealth and technology of the Global Federation are capable of?"

    "They cannot be underestimated, your excellency," the bodyguard leader reminded him. The crown prince grinned.

    "Damn right they can''t. That boy from earlier¡­have you found any of his information yet?"

    "Yes, your excellency. I''ll email them to you immediately." The bodyguard was consulting his notepad, and with a flick of his finger across the touchscreen, he emailed the information that his subordinates had managed to gather. "We''ve been compiling his data, but there isn''t much of it at this point. Just his combat records and school activities."

    "You''re kidding, right?" the crown prince was laughing boisterously as he read the data. "You call this ''isn''t much''? Are you blind? This guy nuked an entire horde of monsters numbering three thousand on his own!"

    "No, I think you misunderstand me," the bodyguard leader said seriously. "That is exactly what is surprising. His records of note only stretches a year back at most. All of his impressive achievements were done during the last few months. Not unless you count his 100 defeats before his team-kill of Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy at the beginning of the year."

    "Ha ha ha ha! What an interesting fellow. I see here that he participated in the defense of Jing Tian City as well¡­slaying a rank B monster with his comrades and rescuing the city council from assassins. Very interesting!"

    "He also slew three rank B Crastrates by himself, and a rank A dragon during a school mission."

    "With Strategic-scale spells, no less! Ha ha ha! I never thought there would exist such a person in the Federation! See, Brokin? It was worth making the trip to Jing Tian City, after all!"

    Brokin said nothing and merely lowered his head in acquiesce. There was no reaon not to humor the crown prince when he was in such a good mood, after all. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.

    At the same time, Cecilia Stuart was standing inside a large hall. Instead of her usual Crowley''s Academy uniform, she was wearing a white, elegant one-piece dress with flowery lace. The silky fabric clung to her alluring curves in a mesmerizing fashion, with the long skirt accentuating her slender legs. She waited atop a lush, red carpet, her blue eyes staring at the outside sky in anticipation.

    Her uncle, Sacha, and her cousin, Adrian, were nearby, along with distinguished executives and high-ranking leaders who managed the Stuart Corporation. After the deaths of so many executives during the Stuart Corporation Building incident, Sacha worked hard to replace the vacant slots with his own people. Obviously, he was far from stupid and incompetent, so he only placed people who were actually excellent in doing their jobs.

    That was why Cecilia didn''t do anything. She had no reason to countermand her uncle''s decisions, not when these executives had proven themselves. Their only "fault" ¨C if she could label it as such ¨C was their loyalty to her uncle. Other than that, they managed Stuart Corporation more than adequately, and was the only reason why the multi-trillionaire corporation could recover so rapidly after such a calamity.

    Even so, no one challenged her position as the successor and next in line for the Stuart Clan.

    The Stuart Clan waited with bated breaths as the hovercraft landed on the aerial platform provided outside the main hall. The shimmering forcefield made it difficult for any of the non-mage executives to welcome their highly esteemed guests, but from what Cecilia knew, he wouldn''t want them to greet him outside the hovercraft.

    The crown prince of the Amazerian Empire, Roland Rothwell, was demonstrating his might and power ¨C he was showing off the immense power and speed of his personal hovercraft. It was also a warning to any attackers. If they attempted to take a potshot at his venerable vehicle, the turrets lined along its hull would unleash a devastating volley of fire in retaliation. The hovercraft was bristling with exotic weapons.

    That was why they could fly over the forest unscathed, scything down any monster foolish enough to raise a claw against them.

    Despite the blatant show of power, Cecilia was not fooled. The Amazerian Empire and the Global Federation had often dealt with each other closely in the past, mostly in trades. The Global Federation required resources and raw materials, most of which could only be harvested in the untamed wilderness of the forests that made up most of the Empire''s territory. In contrast, the Empire required advanced technology, especially those that was developed behind the safe, undisturbed barriers of the Federation''s highly modern cities.

    Even with the need for raw materials, there were still several factions in the Federation who opposed trade and forming relations with the Amazerian Empire. The Stuart clan was among those who strongly advocated trade and fostering relations with the Empire, and eventually they persuaded the other factions, and headed the effort of negotiating with the emissaries from the Empire.

    As Sacha mentioned before, Cecilia was the only one who could handle the notorious crown prince of the Amazerian Empire, not only because of her intellect, but because she had also earned the respect of Prince Roland. The crown prince had seen her fight a couple of times, and was impressed with her combat record.

    The military was highly regarded in the Amazerian Empire, especially since the majority of the civilian population depended on them for protection. Of course, it was for mutual benefit ¨C not everyone could become warriors, and warriors needed food, shelter, clothing, armaments and equipment too. However, it was inevitable that some were more equal than others, and eventually a hierarchy was formed. In return for offering other citizens protection, the warriors took their responsibilities seriously and developed a culture of honor, courage and valiance. They would fight the monsters to the death to protect helpless civilians.

    That led to the civilians revering and respecting the warriors, rather than revolting and resenting. I mean, seriously¡­if you did that whole "strong eat the weak" and "power is everything" or "survival of the fittest bullshit" where the strong treat the weak like trash and kill them on a whim, then they would eventually reach a breaking point and revolt. Since they were going to die anyway, why should they listen to the strong? Then the whole society would collapse.

    An empire ruled by fear would not last long. The truly wise emperor would strive to earn the respect and loyalty of his subjects rather than intimidate and beat them into submission. As I said before, would you constantly whip a horse that you must ride everyday? The horse will either throw you off or die.

    Cecilia stiffened as she watched the ramp lower, spilling out a small group of people. She surreptitiously glanced at her welcoming committee, which consisted of over a hundred honor guard, equipped with the finest weapons and pristine armor the Stuart clan could supply them with. Outside the building, surrounding the aerial platform and facing outward was a convoy of armored vehicles, as well as hi-tech mana cannons. In addition to the substantial number of staff employed for this event, the common civilians of Southampton City couldn''t help but gravitate toward the main hall to witness such a major event.

    Roland Rothwell was escorted by no more than twenty bodyguards. For some reason, he was dressed casually, in his summer-like clothing, not caring for the formality of the ceremony and all that. Sacha raised an eyebrow, but didn''t say anything. Cecilia, on the other hand, knew of Roland''s reputation and wasn''t surprised.

    Instead, she offered a polite smile as she bowed her head in greeting.

    "Your excellency, Prince Roland. I am honored that you decide to grace Southampton City with your presence. Please allow me to represent the Stuart Clan in welcoming you to our humble residence. For you to take the trouble to make such a long trip here¡­I am glad that you continue to think so highly of our friendship."

    "Ha ha. Cut the bullshit, Cecilia. You know I hate all this fake formality."

    Roland instead gave her a roguish smile and a wink before stepping toward her. Before anyone could react, he threw an arm around her lovely shoulders.

    "It''s been a while since we''ve met. We have some catching up to do." He reached up and twirled a few strands of her long, black hair with his fingers. "You''re still as breathtakingly beautiful as ever."

    "And you''re still as bold and audacious as ever," Cecilia replied evenly while sending a stare to the panicking honor guard to back down. Instead, she tilted her head ever so slightly, and the captain of the guard received the hint. Barking out some orders over the coms, there was a pause before the mana cannons fired. The explosive projectiles sailed high into the air before detonating into brilliant fireworks, producing a scene that had all the civilians staring at the evening sky in awe.

    "I have to, if I want to capture a strong woman''s heart." Roland grinned as he leaned closer. "How about it? Have you reconsidered my offer yet? I really wish you can become my queen."

    Cecilia gently pushed the crown prince away and shook her head.

    "As tempting as your proposal is, and as flattered as I am, I''m afraid I will have to decline. My place is here, in the Global Federation. I need to stay in Southampton City in order to lead my clan. As the successor to the Stuart Clan, I have the responsibility to maintain the image and prestige of my family and corporation, at the very minimum. I hope you understand my position."

    "Of course, of course." Roland nodded sincerely. "I am in a similar position, after all. As the crown prince, I am expected to reign over the Empire one day. I cannot leave my home on a whim and marry whoever I want. And I know firsthand how powerful one''s bond to one''s homeland is. I cannot leave my people behind and selfishly act on my own desires. But¡­" he winked mischievously. "If you ever change your mind, don''t hesitate to let me know."

    "I''m afraid I will never change my mind."

    "Never say never." Roland laughed, and then he smirked. "Speaking of marriage, if there is any man in the Federation worthy of your hand, I believe I''ve met him."

    "How surprising." Cecilia raised an eyebrow, a little taken aback. "If you''re going this far to say that about him, he must be quite the remarkable man."

    "Indeed, he is." Roland nodded fervently. "He is quite the interesting fellow. In fact, I would be surprised if you haven''t heard of him. From what I understand, he has been making quite the news in your Federation for a while now."

    "Ho¡­"

    Cecilia waited patiently for Roland''s revelation. He didn''t disappoint. Flipping his smartphone out from his summer shorts, he swiped the screen and called up a holographic screen.

    "See? This young man here¡­he''s the same age as you, even, but he has already learned and is capable of using Strategic-scale spells. Tell me, how many people of our generation has the ability to destroy entire hordes of monsters with a single spell? Or defeat a rank A dragon and live to tell the tale? Hmm?"

    "That''s¡­" Cecilia trailed off when she recognized my bespectacled face on the holographic screen. She sighed as recognition filled her eyes. "Richard Huang. Yes, I know him. And he has already rejected me."

    "Oh, really? I see. Well, it''s only natural that the daughter and successor to the Stuart clan has extremely high standards, after all. Even if he''s capable of casting Strategic-scale spells, he doesn''t have any background or bloodline¡­eh? What?"

    Roland blinked for a moment, realizing that something was not right.

    "Wait, you didn''t reject him? He was the one who rejected you?"

    "That is correct." Cecilia nodded simply. Roland''s jaw literally hit the ground as he staggered back from shock.

    "EH?!"

 176 Chapter 176: Business Discussion

    After recovering from his initial shock and disbelief, Roland couldn''t help but burst out laughing. Cecilia patiently waited for him to stop, watching as he clutched his sides and doubled over, unable to prevent himself from erupting into guffaws.

    "YOU got rejected?! The stellar princess of the Global Federation? One of the most beautiful women in the world? The most competent, talented, strongest and skillful woman, rejected by a commoner? How in the world¡­?!"

    "He had someone else he loved," Cecilia replied guardedly, but there was a tinge of grief in her eyes. She had heard of Alicia''s death, and was heartbroken by it. More than anyone else, she probably understood the emotional pain I was going through.

    "Ah, I see¡­he must really love that lucky girl a lot, if he was able to resist your charm and beauty to stay true to her. Not many men can do that."

    "Richard is certainly exceptional," Cecilia agreed with a shrug. "And what he has achieved over the last few months are nothing short of impressive. But he''s not the most talented or charismatic. We are not short on competent and powerful young men in the Global Federation." She smiled slyly. "Or the world. You are one such example, even if you''re not part of the Federation."

    "I''m flattered that you think so highly of me."

    "You deserve the praise," Cecilia said mildly. "Now, shall we proceed to business?"

    In actual fact, they didn''t. They ended up first proceeding to a sumptuous dinner that was prepared by the finest chefs in Southampton City. After their meal, Cecilia invited Roland toward her garden, where they slowly strolled across the lawn and into a patio. Maids were already preparing tea and sweet desserts, laying them across the pristine table under the majestic, umbrella-shaped shelter. The two of them took their seats, with Roland lounging back in a relaxed manner while Cecilia sipped her cup of tea in a dignified posture.

    "That was a great meal!" Roland exclaimed, rubbing his stomach and grinning. "The Global Federation really has the most delicious foods in the world!"

    "I am glad that our family chef''s menu was able to suit your palate," Cecilia said with a smile. "I can ask him to pass your chef the recipe if you so desire."

    "Nah, no need for that. My family doesn''t have a chef. My mother¡­the empress, cooks her own meals for us."

    "Oh?" Cecilia raised an eyebrow in surprise. That wasn''t something she expected. She had imagined the imperial family of Amazerian Empire to have their own army of servants, chefs and staff. "She must be an excellent chef."

    "Good enough for me," Roland replied with a grin, and then dropped his voice into a whisper. "Just between you and me, she''s nowhere as good as your family chef."

    "Is that so?" Cecilia maintained her polite smile.

    "Yeah. Anyway, enough about my family. Let''s proceed to the main topic. I want to get this done and over with, so that I can return to exploring the Federation during my limited stay here." Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.

    "I can assign a tour guide," Cecilia began, but Roland shook his head.

    "Nah, I prefer to explore the Federation by myself. It''s more fun and less restrictive that way. I don''t want anyone telling me where I should go."

    "I see. But if there is any place in particular that you want to go to, please let me know."

    Anyone else would be thrown off by Roland''s seemingly random pace and constant sidetracking from the main point, but Cecilia played the political game evenly, entertaining him at every turn and staying absolutely patient.

    Recognizing that he wouldn''t be able to wear down Cecilia''s guard, Roland decided to just tackle her straight-on.

    "All right¡­you probably already know what I want."

    Cecilia nodded, not denying it. Trade and commerce was a warfare on its own. It was vital to gather intelligence on the opponent, review one''s own assets and limits, and conceal one''s hand for as long as possible. Just like in a match, the two participants in a negotiation would circle around each other at first, probing for any gaps in defense, any lapse in attention, before attempting an attack. Even though she couldn''t know for sure what Roland was talking about, Cecilia had to at least put on the appearance that she did, or the opponent would sense a weakness and exploit it. In any case, she had been well prepared and thus she highly suspected that she knew what Roland was looking for.

    "The Empire will definitely pay a good price for it," Roland continued with a brilliant grin. "As we always do."

    "Yes, you have been an outstanding trade partner," Cecilia agreed noncommittedly. "We have no worries regarding that front. I have absolute trust that you will be fair again."

    "Ah, of course."

    The two of them began to spar verbally, and obviously I wasn''t going to launch into the details. What, you want me to waste an entire chapter on trade negotiations? Why should I care if Roland wanted the mana cannons or whatever technology that the Federation possessed? It had absolutely nothing to do with me or the story, not unless I was dragged into some stupid global conspiracy later, and even then it mattered not whether the Empire bought the technology from the Federation or not. Instead of wasting the readers'' time on boring dialogue, I was going to use my protagonist''s privilege to skip straight to the actual plot.

    "Thank you for indulging my selfish request."

    Roland was saying that almost an hour later, after the two conducted a lengthy negotiation regarding trade of technology in return for raw materials and resources. Cecilia shook her head, meeting his gaze evenly.

    "Not at all. I think it''s very reasonable. I will talk to my uncle and make the arrangements as soon as possible. We should be able to ship the cannons in less than a week."

    "Amazing. As expected of the Stuart clan¡­you really are fast and efficient." Roland grinned in a charming fashion. "Even in the Empire, we''ve heard legends of your beauty, Cecilia. But now that I''ve personally met you, I think your intelligence is even more impressive than your appearance. Frankly, I''ve never met an outstanding woman like you."

    "Surely you jest," Cecilia giggled, certain that Roland was exaggerating. Even so, she was inwardly delighted. She was honestly sick of people complimenting her on nothing but her beauty, and it was refreshing when someone held one of her other characteristics in high regard. "But I''m happy to hear your praise all the same."

    "Just saying the truth." Roland was also satisfied, especially since he had achieved the objective that he came here for. Not that he ever doubted for a second that he wouldn''t. Roland was an experienced politician, if anything.

    Cecilia nodded before she smoothly diverted the attention away from herself.

    "You are also pretty amazing yourself, your excellency." She studied him. "I see that you''re a warrior, and the power you exude is extremely potent. I presume that your Excellency also practices some form of martial arts? Perhaps we should exchange a few pointers. I hope that I''ll be able to learn something from the Amazerian Empire''s combat style."

    "I''m afraid there''s nothing that we can teach you." Roland laughed. "Even from so far away, we of the Empire have heard of the reputation of the Stuart Clan. The Franklin family is number one in swordsmanship, the Solomon Clan is number one in magic, but the Stuart Clan combines the best of both worlds. Many of our warriors are envious of your legendary Stuart Sword style that combines wood magic with deadly blade work. It is us who have to learn from you."

    "Not at all."

    Cecilia lowered her head humbly, but Roland was not buying it. Instead he turned toward his men, who were shadowing him from a distance away.

    "Alas, as much as I wish to fight, I don''t think it''s appropriate." Inwardly, he didn''t want to be responsible for injuring the princess and successor of the Stuart clan, which would cause all sorts of political and diplomatic trouble, so he found an excellent way of deflecting it while still allowing both parties to save face as well as display the combat skills that he wanted to see. "Among my bodyguards, Elem is the best at close combat. If possible, I would like you to personally offer him some pointers."

    Before Cecilia could reply, one of her subordinates spoke up. A middle-aged man who had served as one of the Stuart Security agency''s guards, formerly a subordinate of the currently missing Yuan Dao Yue Guang, rose to his feet.

    "If I may¡­"

    Cecilia nodded to show her consent. The man bowed gratefully before continuing.

    "I might not be the strongest among Miss Cecilia''s subordinates, but I have a little experience with the sword. If you do not mind, I wish to receive several pointers from the best of the Amazerian Empire."

    Cecilia originally intended on trying to find out how strong the Empire was, an intention that was dashed when Roland rejected her request. The crown prince had seen through her thinly veiled intentions and refused to play the game with her. Even if they were trusted trade partners, they weren''t exactly buddies. Therefore it would be stupid to show one''s hand and demonstrate the full extent of one''s military might before an outsider.

    Still, the chance to witness the prowess of one of Roland''s elite bodyguards would still be beneficial. No doubt this Elem was among the best that they had, and witnessing his might would enable a relatively accurate estimation of the Empire''s strength. After all, surely the Empire wouldn''t send their weakest warriors to protect their crown prince in a foreign land.

    Therefore Cecilia nodded in agreement.

    As everyone was already in the garden, there were no objections to holding the match in the courtyard. Cecilia and Roland remained where they were, in the garden patio, while their subordinates spread out and created a large space for the match to be held in.

    Daniel Edwards took a deep breath as he stepped forward, loosening his tie and shrugging off his business jacket. He reached for his device and activated it, transforming the originally tiny machine into a massive sword that was almost as long as he was tall. Despite its sheer bulk and immense weight, Daniel held it aloft effortlessly, as if it weighed no more than a feather. Rolling his shoulders back, Daniel eased the tension in his body and raised his head to study his opponent.

    Elem was also wearing a suit like him, but unlike Daniel, he had disregarded the use of a tie, having left the top button of his white shirt unbuttoned and his jacket hanging wildly on his shoulders. It figured. With a prince who dressed in little more than casual summer clothing frequently seen on a tropical island rather than a formal business conference, the bodyguards were pretty relaxed with their attire as well.

    Unlike Daniel, Elem didn''t have such a hi-tech device. Instead, he possessed a slender sword that was about half his height. Compared to the grizzled appearance of an experienced veteran like Daniel, Elem resembled a child, looking no older than twenty. An innocent smile was plastered into his face as he scrutinized his much larger opponent excitedly.

    ¡­no need to read the next chapter. We already all know who was going to win this fight. And surely some reader was going to complain about me using a common and frankly lazy trope in this sort of stories.

    Why do I even bother?

 177 Chapter 177: Duel

    Despite his opponent''s youthful appearance, the middle-aged veteran refused to lower his guard. His many years of experience on the battlefield warned him that there was something amiss with the young man before him. Even though he couldn''t put his finger on what was wrong, he understood that the air about his opponent was strange.

    Adun felt a chill run down his spine¡­

    ¡­wait, what?!

    "SINCE WHEN DID MY NAME CHANGE TO ADUN?!"

    Blowing a fuse, the middle-aged man bellowed at the heavens.

    "My name is Daniel Edwards, damn it! You introduced my full name literally just last chapter! And now you''ve forgotten my name, you''ve come up with some random nickname called Adun?! What the hell?! Have you been playing too much Starcraft or something?!"

    "Don''t ask me," I replied, annoyed. "Ask Skeleton Wizard or Radiant Translations. They are the ones who made the mistake."

    "Fuck this bullshit! Change my name back!"

    "All right, all right." I waved my hand. "Done. Happy?"

    Daniel regarded me suspiciously, but when he saw that he was referred to in the third person by his real name, he relaxed.

    "Thank you."

    Then he turned back to a stunned Elem and the rest of the people in the courtyard, bowing apologetically.

    "We can continue."

    "¡­huh?"

    Everyone was gaping at him, not understanding his sudden outburst. Obviously no one had heard his exchange with me. How could they? It wasn''t as if they were reading this scene from above somewhere. All they could get on was what they could see right in front of them.

    And all they saw was Daniel throwing a fit and howling at the heavens.

    Anyway, Daniel returned his attention back to the kid, and everyone naturally forgot about his abrupt outburst and focused on the match.

    Cecilia also studied the kid, her eyes flickering inevitably to Rothwell. The crown prince looked relaxed, which indicated his absolute confidence in his man. Elem himself didn''t seem to care too much, not at all intimidated by Daniel''s imposing figure and massive sword. He didn''t even draw his sword or adopt a defensive or offensive stance. It almost looked as if he was strolling around casually in the garden.

    Yet there was an air about the kid that disturbed her. Like Daniel, Cecilia couldn''t quite put her finger on it¡­until she suddenly realized why that creepy feeling felt so familiar.

    Elem reminded her of a cat. A cat that was leisurely watching its prey in a playful manner, toying with it, but when required, would suddenly spring to life and pounce. An abrupt burst of murderous intent in a single second.

    "Daniel, be careful," she warned.

    "Roger that, Miss."

    Daniel nodded tersely, having come to the same conclusion. He held his sword tightly in both hands and awaited the signal.

    Bang!

    As soon as the whistle went off (or gun), Daniel charged forward. Casting physical reinforcement on himself ¨C he hadn''t reached the level where he could active Ba Qi like Yuan Dao Yue Guang or Teacher Ruff Fielding ¨C he lurched toward the unmoving Elem. His gigantic broadsword glowing as he infused it with tremendous amounts of mana, Daniel swung it with all of his might.

    Elem''s eyes narrowed, and his hand finally moved toward the hilt of his sword.

    "!!!"

    Daniel instantly realized the danger and withdrew his attack. As he did so, a slender blade scythed through the air where his right arm had been, cutting through nothingness. Even though Daniel had evaded in time, a trickle of blood dripped down from his shoulder, trickling toward his elbow.

    "Tch." Daniel clicked his tongue. "So this is what happens even after I dodged it, huh? And it''s sharp enough to pierce through my physical reinforcement spell too¡­"

    "Ho¡­"

    Elem looked impressed. He cocked his head to the side, studying Daniel with narrowed eyes, and then swung his sword.

    "!!!"

    Daniel just barely managed to block the sword pressure that hurtled out of Elem''s blade, the sharp mana dissipating against his broadsword. Heaving heavily, he kicked off the ground and cleaved through Elem''s position.

    The younger man leaped up, deftly dodging Daniel''s huge attack, and landed on the latter''s broadsword. Striding forward across the length of the huge blade, he prepared to decapitate his opponent with his slender sword.

    However, Daniel had a few tricks of his own. He dropped his sword of his own volition, causing Elem to stumble for a second. Gathering mana in his fist, he punched Elem while his target was still unsteady, and before he could bring his sword to bear.

    "Hmm¡­"

    "What?"

    Elem had caught Daniel''s fist with his free hand, stopping the powerful punch in its tracks. Despite his timely block, he found himself slowly being driven back across the falling broadsword. Without wasting any time, he brought his sword forward in a vicious counter.

    "Kuh!"

    Daniel quickly flipped himself backward, doing a cartwheel. Even as Elem''s sword sliced through the space where his head had been, he countered with a powerful kick that sent the smaller warrior staggering backward.

    Elem might be more agile and faster, but Daniel was more massive and stronger. He could overwhelm Elem easily in a head-on fight.

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    Realizing that he couldn''t afford to play around, Elem began casting a spell. Golden mana swirled around his sword as he prepared for an overwhelming strike.

    Daniel wasn''t going to be outdone, however. Springing forward, he retrieved his broadsword. Muttering an incantation under his breath, he drew large amounts of blue mana into the gigantic blade. The two swordsmen then swung their swords and unleashed massive amounts of power against each other.

    "Excalibur!"

    "Balmung!"

    ¡­seriously?! Since when did they get their hands on such legendary Noble Phantasms?! Are both of them trying to act as Saber or something?

    The two tremendous waves of mana collided, engulfing almost the entire courtyard in a colossal explosion that devoured and devastated the meticulously groomed plants and grass. Ladies screamed and gentlemen yelled as they were buffeted by the immense shockwaves, knocked off their feet or battered to submission. Only the garden patio remained unaffected for some arcane reason, with both Cecilia and Roland sitting calmly throughout the whole fight.

    Indeed, Roland was applauding excitedly.

    "Brilliant! What a brilliant fight!"

    "You took the words out of my mouth." Cecilia shook her head, utterly awestruck. "Your subordinate¡­Elem, was he? He is really powerful."

    "Your subordinate too¡­he clearly has experienced through countless battlefields, or he wouldn''t be fighting so evenly against Elem."

    "Evenly?" Cecilia chuckled. "Thank you for being tactful, but I''m afraid the match is nowhere near even."

    As the smoke cleared, Daniel was lying on the ground, his body scorched. He was still alive, his chest rising and falling as he breathed deeply, but it was clear that he had been greatly injured.

    In contrast, Elem was standing on both feet, totally unscathed. He looked a little disappointed, especially after getting so hyped up earlier.

    "Eh? That''s it? It''s already over?" he sulked. "I haven''t had enough!"

    "Calm down, Elem. Behave yourself." Roland gave his elite bodyguard a strict stare. Then he turned apologetically to Cecilia. "My sincerest apologies. He''s still very young and has yet to learn his manners."

    "Not at all." Cecilia was gracious in her response even as she directed people to help Daniel.

    While Daniel was being stretchered off to the infirmary, Elem continued to whine and pester his prince.

    "Come on, your highness. I haven''t had my fill yet. I want more! That guy earlier was pretty good, but the fight ended too soon! Can''t we challenge another Federation soldier to a match?"

    "I''m afraid we don''t have anyone strong enough to contest against someone of your level at the moment," Cecilia told Elem politely, but there was a hidden meaning behind her words. She would have volunteered to challenge him, but it would seem unsightly and needlessly petty. People would think she was trying to take revenge for her subordinate.

    However, Cecilia was above that.

    "Eh?! How boring!"

    Elem was swinging his sword restlessly, sulking. Roland continued to frown at his subordinate when he suddenly had an epiphany.

    "Wait¡­I think I might know someone who''s just perfect for the role¡­"

    "Eh?" Elem brightened up. "Really? You do?"

    "¡­" Cecilia fell into speechlessness at the crown prince''s audacity. Roland offered her a sheepish smile when he realized that this wasn''t his home.

    "With your permission, of course. I would like to invite someone here. Perhaps both our parties will be able to watch something much more interesting."

    "Oh¡­" Despite herself, Cecilia was intrigued. "This person must be quite something if you regard him so highly."

    "Of course."

    "May I ask who he is?"

    Roland''s grin grew wider at Cecilia''s question. "You already know of him."

    *

    I was piloting a giant robot and clashing against other giant robots, missiles, lasers and particle projectile cannons firing and lashing out at each other. My cockpit was glowing red as cockpit temperatures rose to intolerable levels, the double heat sinks in my Mad Cat MK IV struggling to dissipate the heat after I recklessly fired two extended range particle projectile cannons in succession.

    Another hit caused my machine to shudder. A gauss shell from one of my enemies had torn through the armor jacket of my mech''s left torso, exposing wires and circuitries. I rotated the Mad Cat MK IV''s torso and let loose a volley of missiles, unable to fire off my extended range particle projectile cannons until my machine cooled down.

    Just before I could see my missiles land, a piercing shriek wailed inside my cockpit, jarring my ears. At first I thought it was the heat warnings, telling me to shut the engine down and restart it, or danger alerts reminding me that my enemies had a lock-on to my mech. I impatiently reached out and flicked the switch to turn off the damned noise, but nothing happened. The wailing continued, drilling into my head and¡­

    ¡­I woke up, jolting up in my bed and cursing. Glancing at my smartphone, I saw that it was only six in the morning. No, it wasn''t my alarm then. Even as I fumbled with my smartphone to shut off the alarm, I realized that the noise wasn''t coming from there.

    It was from outside.

    Staggering to the window, still bleary-eyed, I glared outside.

    "What the fuck, man?! Do you know what time it is!?"

    "Yeah, I do." A familiar voice replied, but I couldn''t put my finger on where I had heard him before. "Sorry to wake you up so early in the morning, but I have a favor to ask. Do you mind coming with me right now?"

    "Hell, no! Of course not! I''m going back to sleep!"

    "Please¡­"

    "Come back later, all right!?"

    "How dare you¡­" one of the men in suits stepped forward, growling menacingly. "Do you know who you''re addressing? How dare you refuse his Excellency''s request?!"

    "Look, I don''t care if you''re the prince of the Amazerian Empire himself. Nobody disturbs my sleep at 6am in the morning!"

    I was about to shut my window when I suddenly realized I recognized the man standing outside.

    "You are that Amazerian guy from the airport."

    "Ah, yeah. I am." The guy in the sleeveless vest and summer shorts raise his hand and waved in a cavalier manner. "Nice to see you again. Sorry for making such a racket outside your house, but you have some powerful fire barrier set up around it and we can''t get in. so we had no choice but to wake you up from outside."

    The bastard had actually originally planned to send his men to raid my home and kidnap me from my bed.

    "Anyway, hurry up and get changed and come down here. I need you to fight a match for me."

    What the hell?! You woke me up at 6am to force me to fight in a match for you?

    "Are you fucking with me?!"

    "Just go¡­"

    Dad barged into my room, wincing as he held his ears. He glared at the people outside, then turned to me with an expression of resignation.

    "If all they want is for you to fight in a match, then just go. Or they''ll continue making a ruckus outside here for hours."

    "¡­"

    In other words, Dad was selling me out to the strangers outside just so he could go back to sleep.

    Feeling completely betrayed, I shook my head in exasperation and resigned myself into doing whatever they wanted me to do.

    The poor guy they wanted me to fight against was going to suffer. A lot.

 178 Chapter 178: It is 6 bloody am!

    "¡­you really are the prince of the Amazerian Empire."

    I grimaced when I saw Roland Rothwell standing outside his gigantic hovercraft and waiting for me with his bodyguards. They still bristled at what they perceived at my complete lack of deference and respect, but he waved them back.

    "Yeah. Sorry to wake you up at 6am in the morning." Amazingly, Roland was still cheerful despite the ungodly hour. "As I said, I need you to fight in a match for me."

    I narrowed my eyes. "No, you don''t." gesturing at his group of bodyguards, I snorted. "You have plenty of people to fight for you. Why ask me, of all people?"

    "Oh, perhaps you misunderstand something. I don''t want you to fight for me as my representative or something. I''m asking you to fight against my bodyguards. Well, just one of them."

    That caught my attention, and I reluctantly followed the prince and his bodyguards as we boarded the hovercraft.

    "Why?"

    "Question not his Excellency!" one of the older bodyguards snapped, but Roland silenced him with a glare. He turned back to me with a smile.

    "I want to see something more interesting. I came all the way here, it wouldn''t be fun if I go home without being able to see the best of what the Global Federation has to offer."

    "You do know that I''m not among the best, right?" I reminded him. Roland''s grin widened.

    "That''s fine. I''m more interested in seeing what a mage capable of casting a Strategic-scale spell can do."

    "I see."

    I understood what was going on. Roland wasn''t just here to negotiate trade deals with the Stuart family or the Global Federation. He was also here to figure out our strengths. Our military power and combat prowess. He wanted to see just how strong the Global Federation was when compared to his finest warriors.

    Assuming his bodyguards were among the finest warriors in the Amazerian Empire. It was highly likely they were ¨C who in their right mind would assign mediocre warriors to protect the crown prince when he wandered overseas?

    Considering the various possibilities, I decided to play along even though I was pretty sleep deprived. Suppressing a yawn, I nodded even as I briefly shut my eyes. I was also interested in how powerful the Amazerian Empire was. If they wanted to squeeze information regarding our combat power out from us, then I was going to obtain intelligence on them too. This was going to be a two-way information exchange, not just one-way.

    The flight to Southampton City took less than fifteen minutes, what with the hovercraft moving at incredible speeds and all. I swear, they must be using warp drive technology or at least a teleportation spell. The damned thing was moving close to light speed! How did we get there without colliding into anything!?

    "All right, we''re here."

    We reached the destination even before I could doze off. That was one hell of a hovercraft. I was so exhausted that I could feel myself drifting off, but even before I could allow sleep to embrace my mind, the hovering vehicle pulled to a sudden stop and I reluctantly rose from my seat.

    I got off the hovercraft, just behind Roland and his bodyguards, only to catch sight of several familiar faces.

    "Brother Richard! You really came!"

    Adrian barreled toward me, and I waved at him in a friendly manner. It was some time since I had last seen him, and he didn''t look as if he had changed.

    "I''m glad you survived the invasion of Jing Tian City! We were pretty worried when we heard the news!"

    "Yeah, it was quite the calamity," I agreed wearily, still trying to rub the sleep out of my eyes. "It was unfortunate that many more people were unable to make it."

    "Ah, you are right." Adrian nodded sympathetically. "I''m sorry to hear that. Sister Alicia¡­she didn''t make it, did she?"

    "¡­yeah. I shouldn''t have let down my guard." I balled my hands into fists, remembering that fateful moment when the Deceivum Assassin revealed her true colors.

    "That wasn''t your fault." This time it was Cecilia Stuart. She stepped forward and offered me a hand. I shook it, though from her expression I realized I was supposed to kneel and kiss it. Whatever. I wasn''t one for all that fancy knight stuff. She was lucky I didn''t ignore her hand and bow instead. "We also heard that you made vital contributions into saving countless civilians, as well as major members of the city council."

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    Maybe, but what did that all matter when I failed to save the single person most important to me?

    Sacha also nodded toward me, and we all proceeded toward the courtyard. The sun was slowly rising over the horizon by now, its brilliant rays trickling over the garden and dying the sky red. We stopped in the middle of the courtyard.

    "Shall we begin then?" Roland Rothwell asked as he took his seat at some garden veranda. He glanced at me apologetically. "Sorry for waking you up again, but I really look forward to seeing you fight. After all, even in the Amazerian Empire, we heard quite a bit about you."

    "It''s 6 bloody am!" I growled. "Couldn''t you arrange this duel at a later time?"

    "Yeah, sorry about that. In return, I''ll treat you to breakfast. All you can eat. Everything is on me."

    "Oh, really?" that brightened me up and I straightened. "That will be great."

    "Hey!" a guy who was about the same height as me, and wearing the same suit as Roland''s other bodyguards, blurted out. "What about me? Don''t I get anything to eat?!"

    "I''ll treat both of you to lunch," Roland amended as he placed his hand on the guy''s shoulder. "So work hard, Elem."

    "Gotcha!"

    I watched Elem, my instincts automatically warning me that there was something off about this guy. That he was extremely dangerous. Even though he didn''t seem that much older than me, and his frame was on the skinny side rather than bulky, his movements were lithe and graceful. I could almost sense the power in his coiled muscles, as if he was always on the prowl at any moment, ready to spring forward and hunt his prey.

    "I surrender," I immediately said.

    "Oh, come on!" Roland complained. "At least indulge me in this, okay? Don''t forget, I''ll be treating you to lunch later."

    "¡­fine." the idea of having a free lunch won out and I nodded. "All I can eat, right?"

    "Yup. As long as you participate in this duel."

    "¡­okay." Taking a deep breath, I nodded and stepped forward. "Let''s do this then."

    Elem and I took our places on the opposite side of a space marked out in the courtyard as an arena. I waited as Elem drew his slender sword, and I did the same, unsheathing both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye.

    "Dual sword user?" Elem asked, a grin spreading over his face. I shrugged.

    "I look like one, don''t I?"

    The whistle went off, and Elem immediately lunged at me. He didn''t wait for me to attack, especially when he detected that I had gone into a defensive posture instead. Laughing wildly, he swung his sword at me.

    However, I struck him back with both swords. Elem flipped in midair and landed on both feet, and then he instantly bounced back with another slash. I deflected his sword, but his foot lashed out at my head, almost grazing my cheek. I countered with my other sword, but he stopped it by ramming his elbow against my forearm to prevent the blade from reaching him. Spinning around, he swept his leg below my waist in an attempt to trip me, but I raised my knee to parry his foot before bringing down Gan Jiang. Elem dropped to the ground, landing on one hand while using his other hand to parry Gan Jiang. I then sliced at him with Mo Ye from the other side, but he dodged it by a hair''s breadth, rolling on the ground and widening the distance between us.

    I didn''t pursue him, knowing that he had a trick or two in his sleeve. Looking disappointed when he saw that I wasn''t going to fall for his deception, Elem then jumped back several paces and clicked his tongue.

    "Since you don''t want to engage me in close combat, then¡­!"

    Golden mana flared to life, transforming into a gigantic pillar of destructive energy that seared the heavens. For some reason, I was reminded of a certain Servant with blond hair and usually wore silver and blue (or white and blue).

    "Seriously?"

    I retreated, but I realized that I had nowhere to run. As Elem finished casting his spell, he unleashed the massive torrent of devastating energy on me. Diving desperately to the ground, I tried to evade the colossal blast but I couldn''t escape. I could only watch the tremendous tsunami of golden energy roll inexorably toward me.

    Boom!

    The entire courtyard vanished as Elem''s "Excalibur" (I don''t know what else to call it, honestly) engulfed it.

    "Is that it?" Roland asked, disappointed.

    "No. not yet."

    Elem was grinning savagely as he watched the blazing ground, a molten crater craved into the courtyard in the aftermath of his devastating attack.

    "It''s only just beginning."

    "How?" Cecilia demanded. "There''s no way he could have¡­"

    "Plot armor," I cut her off. Everyone''s jaws dropped when they saw the smoke clear, only for me to be standing behind Black Tortoise''s shimmering water barrier. My Celestial Guardian stood behind me determinedly, his beady eyes focused on my opponent.

    "Oho!" Roland was grinning. "Yes! This is what I want to see!"

    "We''ll see how long that barrier of yours can hold!" Elem snarled as he began casting his gigantic Excalibur spell again. Golden torrents of mana swirled around his sleek blade.

    I just smiled as I pushed my glasses up my nose and returned his stare.

    "!!"

    Taurus suddenly descended from behind Elem, crashing into him and interrupting his spell. The short bodyguard spun around in reflex, swinging his glowing sword to knock the gigantic bull away. Taurus skidded backward with a grunt, his armor vibrating violently after Elem''s vicious counterattack, but his maw yawned and flames washed out over Elem.

    Aldebaran.

    "You¡­!"

    Elem desperately defended himself with his sword, cleaving through the flames as quickly as he could. Unable to handle the pressure, he prematurely unleashed his Excalibur, which disintegrated poor Taurus.

    And then Aries rammed into him from behind, knocking him onto the ground. Elem tried to spin around, but the huge ram trampled him onto the ground. Rolling on the ravaged grass, Elem tried to escape Aries''s relentless rampage, but he found himself cornered on both sides.

    Then a golden blast of light erupted and annihilated Aries from material existence.

    "Huff¡­"

    Wiping his mouth, Elem slowly rose to his feet and glared at me. Then he grinned excitedly.

    "That''s more like it!" he exclaimed. "Bring more of your Soul Beasts! Bring all of them!"

    "Soon," I assured him as I worked on completing my next summoning spell. "Real soon."

 179 Chapter 179: Unexpected Twis

    Elem was wise enough not to wait for me to finish casting my next summoning spell, for he lunged at me. Dodging to the side, I brought both my swords up to deflect his passing slash, and then Elem spun around and kicked me in the abdomen. I staggered back, bringing Mo Ye up to parry Elem''s slender sword.

    "¡­kuh¡­"

    Gasping, I countered with a thrust from Gan Jiang, but Elem dodged that elegantly before flipping his body away and sweeping with a kick from below. Jumping above his outstretched leg, I wasn''t able to dodge his strike while still in midair, and the force behind his blow was enough to send me hurtling several meters backward.

    Swoosh!

    A massive torrent of mana gathered around his sword again. Taking another step forward, Elem got ready to blast me into oblivion.

    "Don''t die from this yet!" he told me with a feral grin before swinging his sword and unleashing the devastating blast of mana. The entire courtyard erupted in another enormous explosion again, the trees and grass getting razed by the esoteric energies.

    "Huff¡­"

    Perspiration dripping down my face, I leaned on my sword. Outside of my impervious water barrier, winds howled and destructive mana continued to crackle in the newly scorched crater in the earth. Behind me, Black Tortoise trudged forward and unleashed several streams of highly pressurized water at Elem. Each of the deadly jets of water was enough to cut through metal and pierce through a steel plate that was several inches thick.

    However, Elem dodged every one of them. Occasionally, he would slice apart the streams of water with his sword ¨C those he could not evade ¨C but his slender sword was somehow able to withstand the intense pressure. Not that I was surprised. I could see the thin but dense film of golden mana coating his blade in a protective manner.

    "That''s one hell of a shell to break," the relatively short warrior remarked. The guy was actually a few centimeters shorter than me, even though I was only 168cm tall at most. Despite his diminutive figure, his aura was intimidating. I could see the golden mana flare up around his body before coalescing around his blade.

    I couldn''t afford to continue being on the defense forever. Sooner or later he would breach my water barrier and I would lose the battle. Not that I cared about winning, but after being woken up at 6am in the morning just to participate in such a ridiculous duel, I was seriously in a foul mood. I wanted to beat up Elem.

    So I waited for Elem to blast me with his "Excalibur" again. Just as Black Tortoise and I vanished from sight as the blinding flash of gold mana engulfed the courtyard, I completed my next summoning spell while still under the protective aegis of Black Tortoise''s water barrier.

    "?!"

    Elem suddenly spun around when gigantic claws savaged his back. Even as blood spurted from his wounds, he hit the ground and rolled, trying his best to fire off another devastating blast of golden mana. Unfortunately, as he had just recently fired off an "Excalibur" attack, he needed a few more seconds to recharge.

    A few more seconds that White Tiger wasn''t willing to give him.

    With a roar, White Tiger saturated the entire area with lightning, with jagged bolts dancing about and frying every living thing in the vicinity. Elem tried his best to weave through the tempest of electricity, but he found himself bombarded from all sights. A bolt of lightning struck his leg first, and then his arm, and then a third slammed powerfully into his body, electrocuting him. Gritting his teeth, Elem tried to slice through the network of lightning bolts, his sword conducting some of the lethal electricity away from him and into the metal.

    "BREAK!" he bellowed as he swung his sword and unleashed a devastating blast of golden mana that dissipated all the electricity in one strike. Fortunately, as distracted as he was in getting rid of the deadly lightning, he was not able to hit White Tiger.

    And White Tiger could just cast his lightning spell again. Electricity wreathed the blackened space once more, charging the highly tense atmosphere, once the golden mana was dispersing after the enormous attack.

    "Damn it¡­"

    Even though Elem knew that he had to eliminate White Tiger first if he wanted to be completely free of the electricity, reality never worked out the way you planned it. With lightning and electricity bombarding him from all directions at every second, he had no choice but to deal with the matter at hand as opposed to focusing on slaying the great beast.

    As such, he tried to charge his sword with more golden mana while enduring the lethal currents that flowed through his body. However, before he could unleash them once more, White Tiger pounced on him from behind and tore open a new wound, sending a geyser of blood spurting into the air.

    "Argh!"

    Elem staggered and desperately countered with a violent slash behind him, golden mana erupting from his blade. White Tiger soared above his clumsy slash, his lithe body coiling before he swiped at Elem with his paw. The swordsman just barely managed to parry the gigantic claws with his sword, only to be sent staggering a few paces backward.

    "!!!"

    I unleashed Alnasl from my recently summoned Sagittarius. What? You didn''t expect me to be standing around doing nothing while my opponent was being distracted by one of my summoned beasts, did you?

    "UWOOO!"

    Realizing the danger, Elem spun around and swung his sword downward in an attempt to intercept the deadly flaming arrow. The projectile detonated upon contact, bathing the poor swordsman in an inferno.

    Then golden mana erupted from within, tearing the inferno apart and scattering the lightning that remained on the field. Singed and blackened, the huffing Elem turned toward me, his sword still glowing. Kicking off the ground, he launched himself at me, ignoring White Tiger and Black Tortoise. Before either Celestial Guardians could react in time, he was already upon me.

    Unfortunately for him, I already anticipated that. After all, it was a well-known tactic to aim for the summoner and to take him out. Cut off the head, and the body would fall. Similarly, slay the summoner and his Soul Beasts would disappear along with his life.

    Before Elem could reach me, Leo materialized beside him and swatted him aside. Credit to Elem, he parried Leo''s claws in reflex and avoided a fatal blow, but Leo was not done yet.

    "Leo, Regulus!"

    A golden beam of light that rivaled the blast from Elem''s sword burst into being and slammed into the short swordsman, sending him clattering onto the ground.

    "Fuck! I don''t think I''ve ever been this hurt in a duel!"

    Cursing as he slid across the ground, Elem managed to roll back to his feet. Damn, but the guy was tenacious. Despite being battered and bleeding all over, he merely wiped the blood from his mouth and readied for another attack.

    Were all Amazerian Empire warriors this tough? The guy was like unkillable.

    Not that I cared. Intent on finishing him off, I mercilessly set both Leo and White Tiger on him. One side of the field was filled with deadly electricity as White Tiger rampaged through it, and the other side flared brilliantly as golden mana enveloped Leo.

    "Ah¡­" Elem sighed and clicked his tongue. "If I don''t get seriously, I might actually lose."

    "I don''t mind if you just lose without becoming serious, though." I suppressed a yawn. "It''ll make things easier for everyone, and we can go straight to lunch. Or I can just surrender if you really want to win."

    "That won''t be fun." Elem sulked. "Let''s go all out!"

    I said nothing and just waited for both White Tiger and Leo to hit him. Elem, for his part, was unusually calm, which raised my hackles.

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    "Guys!" I snapped. "Retreat!"

    Leo and White Tiger obeyed immediately, but I was almost too late. Shadows on the ground stirred and something whipped out. If I had been a millisecond slower in ordering my Soul Beasts, the two of them would have been ensnared by writhing serpents.

    "Rise, Anaconda," Elem hissed. I watched as a swarm of huge serpents slithered out of the shadows, and began to swarm over White Tiger and Leo. Even though the both of them blasted hordes of anacondas away with lightning or Regulus, there were too many of them. Elem grinned as he lowered his sword and charged behind his anacondas.

    "¡­I see."

    As expected of someone from the Amazerian Empire. Of course they would be able to summon a swarm of anacondas¡­actually, did anacondas operate in swarms? I wasn''t very sure about that. I did remember an old movie about them killing a bunch of poor humans who were stupid enough to sail straight into its nest.

    "You should be honored." Elem grinned. "You''re only the third person to have forced me to summon my Anacondas."

    "I''m flattered," I replied dryly and took a step back. One of the anacondas lunged at me, its jaws wide open to swallow me whole, but I cleaved it in half with Gan Jiang, then beheaded a second anaconda with Mo Ye.

    A searing blast from White Tiger electrocuted another horde of Anacondas and sent their sizzling bodies crashing down onto the ground. At the back, Black Tortoise offered ranged support by slicing the anacondas with highly pressurized jets of water. Leo incinerated another swarm with his Regulus, and his golden torrent almost caught Elem by surprise.

    "Hmph."

    With his soul beasts unleashed in front of him, Elem could no longer carelessly fire off his devastating golden blasts. Or so I hoped, but¡­

    "Anaconda God!"

    All of the surviving anacondas immediately retreated, their massive figures almost melting back into the shadows. I watched in horror as they began to meld together and merge into a single, gargantuan form. An enormous serpent, several dozen times larger than all the other previous anacondas, reared its head out of the shadows and roared.

    ¡­wait, what?

    "Anacondas don''t roar!" I yelled. "They hiss!"

    "Who cares?" Elem snapped. "It''s more dramatic and impactful this way."

    "But it''s not realistic at all!"

    "We''re talking about summoners calling forth mythical creatures and throwing energy blasts at each other with magic swords and spells, and you want to talk about realism?"

    The guy had a point there¡­

    Anyway, the gigantic Anaconda reared forward, snarling ferociously. Below, Elem raised his sword and got ready to launch another of those beams of his.

    I dismissed Leo and had White Tiger retreat behind Black Tortoise''s water barrier. Elem didn''t care and unleashed his golden blast, almost cracking the fluid shield. Even as Black Tortoise fought to maintain the water barrier and repair it, the gigantic anaconda crashed physically against it, its fangs piercing through and tearing it apart.

    With its great length, it swatted away Black Tortoise with its huge tail, and then coiled around a bellowing White Tiger, attempting to crush the poor Celestial Guardian despite being electrocuted incessantly.

    "It''s over," Elem said triumphantly as he readied another golden blast of mana. "Unless you''re going to unleash your Strategic-scale spell."

    To his astonishment, I burst out laughing.

    "Don''t flatter yourself," I sneered. "What makes you think I''ll need to use my nuke spell just to defeat the likes of you?"

 180 Chapter 180: Garden Battlefield

    Even as I ran along the perimeter of the largely razed courtyard, I dismissed White Tiger. Suddenly bereft of an enemy, the Anaconda God turned to face me, its massive jaws yawning wide open to swallow me whole as it lunged forward.

    I didn''t bother slashing it with my Gan Jiang and Mo Ye because I knew my two swords probably wouldn''t have much of an effect. Instead, I threw out my right hand and yelled out the name of my next Constellation spirit.

    "Serpens!"

    The gigantic serpent materialized between me and the Anaconda God before snarling and darting forward. The two gargantuan snakes collided in the middle of the garden before crashing down heavily, carving messy trenches in the soil and flattened grass. Several of the trees were essentially knocked down as they wrestled, trying to wrap their coils around each other. Serpens bit deeply into Anaconda God''s length, eliciting an enraged hiss. The Amazerian Soul Beast retaliated with a bite of its own, but its fangs failed to penetrate Serpens''s armored scales. It didn''t matter. Neither Serpens nor the Anaconda God had any venom in their fangs.

    That wasn''t unusual. Serpens was based off the Aesculapian Snake, a non-venomous snake that inhabited Europe, and was most often associated with the Greek God of medicine and healing, Asclepius. Anacondas, on the other hands, lived in the Amazon Rainforest and were constrictors rather than venomous snakes. In other words, they relied on crushing and strangling their prey instead of killing or incapacitating them with toxins. Therefore, they were both non-venomous snakes. Of course, this meant the Anaconda God had the advantage in terms of size and power. I could see Serpens slowly losing out in the battle between giant serpents.

    Unfortunately, I wasn''t given much time to worry about my Constellation spirit. While our Soul Beasts continued to wrestle violently, Elem charged at me without any hesitation, his slender sword glowing brightly.

    I parried his strike by crossing both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, but despite his shorter frame, the guy packed immense power behind his blows. I was thrown several meters back before he unleashed another golden blast of tsunami at me.

    "Where the fuck is he getting all that mana to spam so much of that spell?!" I demanded as I dove to the side, allowing my Black Tortoise to slide in and conjure a water barrier over me after he recovered from the blow that the Anaconda God dealt to him earlier.

    Obviously nobody answered me. The only response was for Elem to instead charge toward me with his glowing sword. As he needed to cooldown before charging up for another attack, he couldn''t fire off another one of those massive spells for a while.

    So he planned to finish me off in close combat, considering how I was easily nullifying his highly destructive spell with Black Tortoise''s water barrier.

    However, I was no match for him in close range. Understanding that, I jumped away, evading Elem''s strikes and widening the distance between us. While flipping my body in midair, I sheathed both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye before summoning Orion.

    "You''re not the only one who can fire off ranged attacks. That''s my specialty."

    "!!!"

    Elem leaped back in reflex, doing his best to dodge the volley of azure energy arrows that I fired in his direction. Righting myself up, I landed on the ground and hopped back while releasing another couple of arrows that grazed Elem''s cheek and shoulder, tearing open the skin and drawing blood. Ignoring the stinging pain, Elem grinned and charged at me.

    "In other words, as long as I get in close, I win!"

    Na?ve. He already failed to defeat me even though we had exchanged several blows in close combat. I might be at a disadvantage, being weaker and less experienced, but I could hold my own for at least a few minutes.

    Even so, I didn''t intend to just let Elem gain the upper hand by charging in close and forcing me into a melee, so I continued to retreat.

    "Betelgeuse!"

    "?!"

    A storm of azure arrows streaked forward, momentarily filling up the entire space between us. Elem tried to evade, but my attack was too fast and too fierce. In a few moments, he was engulfed by the intense bombardment, which smashed craters into the ground as well as razed the few trees standing behind him.

    "Huff¡­"

    One of my arrows were deflected back at me, but I calmly stood still and allowed it to sail behind me, not caring that it embedded itself deeply into the wall of the majestic Stuart manor before dissipating harmlessly. Well, not harmless to the poor wall. It left a mark, but I doubted the Stuart family would ask me to pay for the damages.

    If anything, the Amazerian Empire prince would pay for the entire ravaged garden of the Stuart estate. And since he was the one who forced me to participate in this annoying duel, he would have to pay for my share of damages too.

    "Not bad!"

    Cackling wildly, Elem blasted away the bombardment of arrows with his aura of glowing golden mana. Holding his sword with both hands, he prepared to swing it and consign me to oblivion, but I coolly took aim and let fly an arrow.

    Ping!

    Swoosh!

    I had judged the timing perfectly. The moment Elem swung his sword down, my arrow struck his right arm and deflected the blast. As Elem staggered backward, his arm thrown back by the immense impact, his "Excalibur" spell went wide and seared toward the heavens, breaking a bunch of unfortunate clouds apart.

    "You¡­!"

    I merely smiled and fired off a triple Orion''s Belt volley that he impatiently hacked away. Realizing that he was at a complete disadvantage at long range, Elem backed away into whatever sparse cover he could find, weaving through my hail of projectiles. I had to admire his speed and agility. I wasn''t going to claim that I had flawless accuracy, but none of my attacks were landing.

    However, both Elem and I knew it was only a matter of time before he was forced to slow down and catch his breath. And that would be when my arrows would hit him without fail.

    Elem wasn''t stupid, however. He wasn''t blindly dodging. Diving straight into a relatively intact area of the garden where several trees stood proudly, he lashed out with his sword and cut them down. Spinning around, he kicked the tree trunks at me, one at a time.

    Even though my arrows could obliterate the trees, they would end up showering me in splinters and wooden debris, as well as obscure my sight of him. Knowing that Elem would seize the chance to close in on me, and there was nothing I could do to prevent it, I decided to just discard my long-ranged advantage that I wouldn''t be able to preserve anyway, and draw both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye.

    "Green Dragon," I whispered, nodding as the chibi Celestial Guardian materialized over my shoulder. Without glancing at him, I immediately took off, charging at the approaching tree logs.

    Instead of cutting them down like any normal swordsman would do (which would have the same effect as me shooting them down with my Orion bow, so why bother?), I leaped onto the first approaching log. Stumbling on top of the closest tree trunk, I kicked off and launched myself at the second before I could fall off, and managed to just barely land on my feet. Bouncing from log to flying log, I closed in on the gap between myself and Elem while using the tree trunk projectiles as platforms instead.

    "Oh¡­?"

    In the protected veranda, Roland Rothwell raised an eyebrow, impressed.

    "Now that''s something I''ve never seen before."

    "Richard never fails to surprise me," Cecilia agreed quietly. Beside her, Adrian threw both his hands up and cheered.

    "Go, Brother Richard!"

    "Oh, but that doesn''t mean he''ll win," Roland told him confidently.

    No one said that, dude¡­not that I cared.

    A maelstrom of flowers gathered around both of my swords as I kicked off from the final tree trunk and descended upon the waiting Elem, who smirked. He responded with that usual Excalibur spell of his and completely obliterated my swarm of flower petals, which disintegrated the moment they came into contact with the volatile energies.

    But not before they detonated across the entire space between the both of us, sending even more of the tinier but sharp petals scattering across the courtyard. Elem staggered back as he struggled to defend himself, but his clothes and skin was a tattered mess of strips and blood.

    "Kuh! What is this¡­?!"

    Green Dragon''s ability, but I wasn''t going to tell him that. Instead, while he was still disorientated and stumbling about, I seized the opportunity to strike. Elem, credit to him, didn''t falter. Instead, he twisted around and cleaved apart a garden villa nearby, lifting the entire concrete structure with one hand and hurling it at me.

    "Whoa!"

    Faltering in midair, I spun my body about and just narrowly avoided being crunched by the massive structure. Instead, I rotated myself about and slammed my feet onto the smooth surface of the marble wall before running along the length of it. Elem charged forward and slashed with his sword, cutting the entire mass apart.

    "That''s quite expensive, you know?" I reminded him as I passed by him, parrying his vicious riposte with both my swords and getting myself flung back. "Destroying so much of the Stuart family''s property¡­how are you going to compensate for that?"

    Elem shrugged. "That''s not my problem. His excellency will handle that."

    True. This was why I preferred the simple life of a warrior instead of trying to be a ruler. All that responsibility and nonsense were just too much for me to handle. Returning my focus to the battle at hand, I flipped myself about so that my feet faced the ground, and I reversed the grip on both my swords so that both their tips were pointing toward the soil.

    Then I landed behind Elem and plunged my swords into the ground, casting another of Green Dragon''s spells.

    "?!"

    Tree vines emerged from the ground, curling outward and ensnaring Elem''s whole body. They wrapped around his body and coiled around his limbs, incapacitating and immobilizing him. Elem struggled futilely, but found himself unable to break free of his restraints.

    "What is this?!" he snarled.

    I turned around, getting ready to drain his mana dry, but the Anaconda God chose that moment to lunge forward at us. Behind it, the broken mess of Serpens lay, my Constellation spirit finally subdued after a fierce struggle.

    "Hah! I don''t know what you''re planning, but whatever it is, it''s too late. You didn''t expect my Anaconda God to be this strong, did you?"

    "Actually, I did," I replied as I rose to face the charging behemoth. "And even when taking its strength into account, I told you I don''t need to use my nuke spell to destroy it."

    Behind me, Vermillion Phoenix burst into being, spreading his fiery wings as he brightened the still dim and gloomy morning with his brilliant rays of flames. Elem''s jaw dropped and he shook his head in resignation.

    "Fuck! Just how many different Soul Beasts do you have?!"

    "A lot," I responded simply before mentally directing Vermillion Phoenix to incinerate the now intimidated Anaconda God. The gargantuan serpent had abruptly crawled to a stop and began retreating in reflex, as if instinctively understanding that the fiery being hovering in front of it was its natural predator. And I smirked. "And we haven''t even counted my nuke spell yet."

    The entire area vanished as Vermillion Phoenix bathed the courtyard in flames, incinerating the pitiful Anaconda God into ash. At the side, the hundreds of flowers bloomed to life, expanding gleefully atop the vines and branches that had entrapped Elem, ravenously sucking his mana dry in order to feed their blossoming.

    "¡­fuck¡­"

    That was the last thing Elem could manage before he collapsed, leaning against the vines that held him immobilized.

    Ignoring him, I sheathed my swords and impatiently turned toward Roland.

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    "Now can we go for lunch? I''m starving."

 181 Chapter 181: Free Lunch

    Normally, I was taught there was no such thing as a free lunch, yet here I was, being treated to a sumptuous lunch by the crown prince of the Amazerian Empire.

    To be fair, it wasn''t technically "free." After all, it was compensation in return for me having performed "labor" in the form of dueling against his top bodyguard, Elem. Despite me sucking his mana dry, Elem was still in pretty good shape. To be fair, he didn''t suffer that severe an injury, and he looked exhausted.

    Additionally, according to him, the best way for him to recover his strength was to eat. Of course. Even I understood that logic.

    "But man¡­I didn''t think you''ll actually beat Elem. Without resorting to a Strategic-scale spell, too!"

    Roland was chortling as he watched me feast on chicken, fish and potato from across the table, his eyes twinkling. Unlike me and Elem, he had refrained from stuffing his face and was merely leaning against his chair in a relaxed but somehow dignified manner.

    "I''m utterly shocked. Elem is one of my best, you know? The most skilled of my bodyguards. Even though he looks like this, the number of people in the Amazerian Empire who can defeat him can be counted on a single hand."

    "So five?" I asked after swallowing a piece of potato that I was chewing. Roland chuckled and shook his head.

    "Three, actually."

    "Cool." So Elem was the fourth most powerful dude in the Amazerian Empire. I was assuming that Roland meant our generation, of course. There was no way Elem was the fourth strongest mage in the Amazerian Empire ¨C there were so many other adults who could defeat him, never mind me. The Amazerian Empire would get crushed by the Global Federation easily if that was the case. Before that, they would have a hard time fighting off rank A monsters that roamed their rainforests.

    "Still, I''m grateful to you for putting on a good show for us." Roland was nodding. He glanced at Elem, who was too busily feeding himself to pay any attention to our conversation. "Elem, how would you rate your opponent?"

    "Huh? I don''t care about his rating."

    "Ouch." I grimaced. "Seems like he doesn''t think much about me at all. I''m too weak and insignificant."

    "I''m sure that''s not what he meant," Roland assured me with an amused smile. "Elem is just too lazy to think about complicated stuff like rating and after-action reports." He sighed exaggeratedly. "He gives me quite the headache sometimes."

    "Why even bother?" Elem snorted. "All those ratings and rankings are meaningless. You think you can accurately measure someone''s strength by his rank? By weird levels? What nonsense. A human''s potential is far more complex than that. You can''t just encapsulate someone''s strength through random alphabets or cold numbers."

    "Now that''s something I didn''t expect you to say," Roland remarked, amused. He turned to me and lowered his voice to a whisper. "Elem is usually a simple guy. He''s not usually that capable of such sophisticated reasoning. Hell, I didn''t even know his limited vocabulary included those words ''complex'' or ''encapsulate''!"

    "I can hear you, you know," Elem growled. "And I have been studying. Mistress Ishtar has taught me a lot."

    "Ah, yes. Ishtar is a great teacher indeed." Roland shuddered momentarily. "I can sort of understand why you learned so much and so quickly under her." he winced as he turned to me. "She''s a demoness from hell."

    "I''m sure," I responded dryly, though inwardly I thanked my lucky stars that I didn''t have the misfortune of being taught by her.

    "Anyway¡­what do you think, dear Cecilia?"

    Roland turned to Cecilia, who was sitting on the other end of the table, accompanied by several of her subordinates from the Stuart Clan. Sacha had declined to join, but Adrian was happily eating right beside me.

    Apparently the young kid love sushi. So did I. We ended up ordering and sharing a large platter of sushi, much to Roland''s amusement.

    "You guys have technology, stoves and the chance to eat cooked food in your advanced Global Federation," he had pointed out. "Why are you eating raw stuff?"

    "Don''t just write sushi off as raw stuff!" I had bellowed. "It''s more than that! Sushi transcends cooked or raw! It''s a high art form¡­the ultimate cuisine!"

    Okay, big words, considering this wasn''t even genuine Japanese sushi but bastardized forms prepared by non-Japanese. But I didn''t care. To me, sushi was sushi, no matter who prepared it or where it was from.

    Taken aback by my ferocious defense of one of my favorite foods, Roland had dropped the matter. He did like the few pieces he sampled, and ended up calling another platter. In contrast, Elem was just eating everything, sushi, cooked, raw or whatever, without any distinction. The guy evidently didn''t have any preference for food.

    He was eating for the sake of living, rather than to enjoy. I guess the Amazerian Empire must be quite the harsh place then.

    Cecilia also picked up a piece of sushi with chopsticks, more because that was the current dish that dominated the table than because she had any real preference for it, and nibbled on it. Oi! That was not how you eat sushi, lady.

    "What are you referring to, your excellency?" she asked Roland politely.

    "Him." Roland jabbed a finger at me. "You''re still going through that long list of suitors, aren''t you? And hasn''t Richard already defeated you before?"

    Why the fuck was he talking as if we were close friends or something? And acting like some damned wingman?

    Cecilia shook her head silently, but instead of answering Roland''s question, she turned to me instead and bowed her head slightly.

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    "I''m sorry to hear about Alicia."

    My hand froze, and the sushi nearly dropped out of my chopsticks. I turned to regard her a little stiffly, and shook my head.

    "Thanks."

    "¡­it was a tragedy. I didn''t expect that¡­"

    "No one did. It was my fault. If only I had been more vigilant¡­if only I had known¡­" I placed my chopsticks down and clenched my right hand into a fist. "She wouldn''t have¡­"

    "Nobody could have anticipated that," Cecilia told me gently. "You shouldn''t blame yourself."

    On the other end of the table, Roland fell silent for a bit when he sensed the mood. He just nodded, as if to himself, and turned away.

    In contrast, Adrian smiled brightly.

    "Well, at least you now have a chance, Sister Cecilia!"

    Then he turned pale when he caught the looks on both of our faces, and gulped, realizing that he had just said something extremely insensitive. Even Roland was giving him a cold stare. Only Elem couldn''t care less about what was being discussed around the table, swallowing another huge chunk of spare ribs.

    "S¡­sorry. I didn''t mean¡­"

    "It''s fine," I told him with a sigh. Unlike me, Cecilia was still enraged, her tone level but frosty.

    "Alicia is my friend, and a very precious person to Richard, Adrian. Please do not talk about her in that manner."

    "Y¡­yes. Sorry."

    "And do not ever imply that I am one to take advantage of a friend''s untimely demise."

    "¡­yes."

    Feeling sorry for Adrian, I quickly intervened. "I don''t think Adrian ever meant to imply that. I think he has learned his lesson."

    Cecilia shifted her icy gaze to me, and then she shook her head with a sigh. "You''re too soft, Richard."

    "Isn''t that fine?" Roland asked as he leaned back, chewing on a large piece of sashimi. An octopus tentacle stuck out of his mouth before he swallowed it. "I think that''s one of his good points. The world is filled with too much violence and cruelty." He glanced imperceptibly at Elem as he said that. His elite bodyguard pointedly ignored him in favor of stuffing a huge chicken thigh into his mouth and tearing its flesh off with his teeth. Roland shook his head with a chuckle. "We need to balance it out with kindness and gentleness."

    Cecilia stared at him in shock.

    "I did not expect the crown prince of the Amazerian Empire to say something like that."

    "There are a lot of things you will not expect." Roland shrugged lazily. "Even I have encountered things that are way beyond my calculations or predictions. As much as the world is full of dangers and hardship, it is also full of mysteries and wonders. If we don''t appreciate the good things in this world, then what is there to live for?"

    "Living is painful," I replied. "Life is too painful, the reality that conforms the universal belief that it is best not to be born."

    I hardly thought anyone would have read Dazai Osamu''s The Setting Sun, so I wasn''t surprised that no one recognized the quote. They were all staring at me blankly.

    "I didn''t think that you are a pessimist," Cecilia remarked. I shrugged.

    "I''m not. I''m just quoting someone."

    "Never heard of that quote before," Roland admitted. I smiled. So there was something even the crown prince didn''t know.

    "That''s fine." I was the one who randomly majored in Japanese literature before I found myself transported to this world, almost a millennium into the future. "It''s not important. I guess what I meant to say is this. As painful as living is, there are just some things worth living for¡­worth enduring the suffering and misery throughout life. After all, there can be no joy without misery, no enjoyment without suffering. We all live on in the hope that we can eventually overcome despair."

    Then I realized everyone was staring at me.

    "¡­what?"

    "No, just didn''t expect you to say that either," Cecilia replied. Roland chuckled.

    "I mean, I did think you were a somewhat sophisticated and intelligent fellow, but I didn''t think you''ll get all philosophical on us."

    Now he was embarrassing me. "Hey, you''re the one who started this whole discussion. Anyway, who wants more food?" Grabbing the menu ¨C which was in the form of a holographic device with a touchscreen that automatically recorded our orders and sent them straight to the chefs in the kitchen without us needing to wait for a waiter or waitress, I used it to hide my face from everyone''s intense gazes. "What else do you want to order?"

    "More sushi!" Adrian hollered, eliciting a laugh from all the older guys and girl sitting around the table.

 182 Chapter 182: An Old Acquaintance

    After the sumptuous lunch, I went my separate way. Apparently Cecilia and Roland still had a lot of things they needed to discuss on, something to do with trade and foreign relations, so I excused myself. After all, whatever they were negotiating or discussing on had completely nothing to do with me whatsoever. I had better things to do with my time.

    "¡­still, how do I go home?"

    I had arrived in Southampton City by Roland''s hovercraft, and obviously I couldn''t just ask the crown prince to give me another ride home. I didn''t own his damned hovercraft. With that option beyond my means, I had no choice but to take public transport.

    That was all right. It wasn''t as if this was my first time. I had been to Southampton City a couple of times before, and both times I had taken public transport. Especially during the fateful Stuart Corporation Building incident, where everything went to hell. After escaping from the terrifying battle between Lionel Stuart and Yuan Dao Yue Guang, I boarded the train back to Jing Tian City along with Alicia. I was no stranger to public transport. Hell, I took it everyday.

    It was just that Southampton City was a lot further than my usual commute and I was dreading the long ride home. Having lent my Kindle to Adrian, I had nothing to read on the train. I guess I could sleep on the ride, given how I was forced to wake up at 6 in the morning. I was already feeling drowsy after such a heavy meal.

    So I ended up walking from the restaurant and toward the train station. Suppressing a yawn, I followed the directions on the Google Map downloaded into my smartphone and headed straight ahead. The holographic route took me through a wide road that stretched between two rows of shop houses, which included a bakery and a jewelry shop.

    It was right outside the jewelry shop that I spotted what seemed like a commotion. A group of guys were heckling a poor girl.

    "Sorry, but can you please let me go?"

    A single girl was uncomfortably squirming as she founded herself surrounded by three guys, two of them flanking her to cut off her escape.

    "No can do, sis," the person who seemed to be the leader replied with a sneer. "You bumped into me and you expect to just walk off?"

    "I already apologized," the girl pointed out stiffly. Then she bowed her head. "If necessary, I''ll apologize again."

    "Do you think an apology is enough?"

    The girl''s eyes narrowed dangerously. "What do you suggest I do then?"

    "Are you really that dense?" the leader laughed. He then leaned closer, still keeping a firm hold on her slender arm. "Spend the night with me, and we''ll call it even."

    The girl scowled. "So you intend to rape me just because I accidentally bumped into you? How is that in any way even?"

    "It''s not rape if you give your consent," the leader drawled.

    The girl smiled thinly. "Do you honestly think I''ll consent to this?"

    "With a body like that, and dressed in such provocative clothing?" One of the lackeys chuckled. "Aren''t you just asking to be raped?"

    What in the actual bloody fuck?! What kind of fucking reasoning was that?! The lowest of all scum who refused to take responsibility for their own crimes and instead turned around and blamed it on the victim¡­pinned the responsibility on the women for "seducing" and "provoking" them into rape. I felt rage boiling inside me.

    "Grab her, guys!" the guy cackled. His two cronies grinned and closed in on her. Sensing some sort of danger, I hastened my pace. For some reason, nobody was intervening. Either they were afraid of the guy and his subordinates, or the trio were pretty notorious around these parts. They did seem like they belonged to some gang or underground society, what with those flashy shirts, dragon tattoos and longish hair.

    If nobody intended to help, then I had no choice but to interfere. Come on, it wasn''t as if I was risking my life. Someone in front of me was in trouble, what reason did I have to not help her, other than if I was some self-centered, uncaring, edgy asshole?

    "What seems to be the problem here?" I demanded as I approached them. The three guys and the girl turned around, and for the first time I got a good look of her. She had long, wavy green hair and sparkling emerald eyes that were for some reason very familiar. As if I had seen those eyes somewhere before, but I couldn''t put my finger on where exactly.

    Not that I had the chance to ponder on it. The girl brightened up when she caught sight of me, a dazzling smile spreading across her pretty face.

    "¡­ah!"

    I was stunned by how beautiful she was. It was just a second of hesitation, partially because I was still trying to remember where I had seen her before, but before I knew it she was latching onto my arm in delight.

    "Richard!"

    "¡­eh?"

    My jaw dropped as I stared at her in shock, but she was clinging tightly to my arm and giggling as she turned to face the three guys.

    "What¡­? When did that woman slip free!?"

    It wasn''t just me. The three men were also astonished by her sudden escape. One moment she was surrounded by them, with the leader keeping a firm hold of her arm, and the next¡­she was gone. Completely free from her grasp.

    I immediately understood that this lady was no ordinary girl.

    How does she know my name? I wondered. And why is she clinging to me like this?

    As the scum pointed out earlier, the girl was admittedly dressed in a revealing dress that emphasized her well-endowed breasts, which almost peeked out of her open-topped blouse. The same huge chest that was pressed tightly against my arm.

    "Sorry! Did I make you wait long?"

    "¡­who are you again?"

    "How cruel!" the girl sulked. "Forgetting me like this! Even though we had such a wild night the other time¡­!"

    I raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you haven''t gotten the wrong person? I''m just¡­"

    "What the fuck do you think you''re doing?!" the leader of the three growled as he stepped forward. "Flirting in front of us like this? That''s our woman, nerd!"

    ¡­nerd. Did he seriously just call me a nerd? Okay, I mean I was wearing glasses and didn''t look all that imposing, but that was one amusing insult.

    "Sorry, but I can assure you that she''s not your woman," I told him. "I''m supposed to escort her to my boss."

    "Aw¡­you don''t have a boss!" the girl teased as she poked my cheek with a finger, causing me to flinch.

    Something in the guy snapped and he drew his knife.

    "Fuck off! I told you to stop flirting in front of us!"

    "And I told you she''s not your woman. Please let her go."

    "Or what?" the guy scoffed. "Do you know who we are?!"

    I cocked my head to the side and scratched at my temple. "Not really. Who are you?"

    "Idiot!" one of the lackeys howled with laughter. The scum who blamed the victim instead of taking responsibility for his actions. Good. I wanted an excuse to clobber him. "We are the members of the Black Serpent Secret Society! Our boss controls the underworld of Southampton City! If you piss us off, you''re dead!"

    "That so?" I replied disinterestedly.

    "Now hand that woman over to us and we''ll let you leave with your corpse intact!"

    So you were going to kill me regardless. If that was the case why the hell should I listen to you? Do you think it was going to make a difference if my corpse was intact or not? I would be too dead to care about that.

    Sighing, I shook my head.

    "No."

    "You asked for it!" the leader howled as he darted forward, slashing at me with his knife. I felt a tug on my right arm as the girl slightly pulled on me, and instinctively I moved in tandem, completely evading the guy''s knife. As his blade sliced through empty air, I casually lifted my leg and kicked him in the face, sending him spinning onto the ground.

    "What¡­?!"

    "Who the hell do you think you are?!"

    The two subordinates, upon seeing their leader was down, immediately hurried over to check on him. He was dazed and barely conscious, but still alive.

    I wasn''t going to commit murder in broad daylight. I had no intention of having a criminal record at such a young age. Even if it was self-defense, excessive force in defending myself would still result in a charge of manslaughter.

    "I told you that we''re from the Black Serpent Secret Society, didn''t I? You won''t get away with this!"

    "Why should I care?" I smirked. "I''m friends with the crown prince of the Amazerian Empire and the children of the Stuart Clan. Can your boss handle them?"

    "¡­eh?"

    "You really expect us to believe that?!"

    The lowlife scum was howling at me, obviously thinking that I was lying. Without waiting for him to finish, I stomped his face, sending him crashing to the ground.

    "You¡­you¡­!" he spluttered, clutching his face. Blood trickled from between his fingers, pouring from his broken nose. "W¡­what was that for?!"

    "With a face like that, and dressed in such shabby clothing," I replied in a mocking tone. "Aren''t you just asking to be kicked?"

    Even as the girl giggled behind me, I kicked the guy in the solar plexus and sent him flying several meters away. He slumped down like a broken doll, his head lolling about as he lost consciousness.

    The last guy turned his gaze from me to his fallen comrades, and gulped visibly. I smiled politely.

    "If your boss has any beef with me, tell him to take it up with Roland¡­uh, his Excellency of the Amazerian Empire." The crown prince still owed me somewhat for waking me up at 6am in the morning.

    The guy''s eyes bulged, but at that point I was beyond caring. Ignoring him, I turned around and wrapped an arm around the girl''s bare shoulders. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.

    "All right, Miss¡­I shall now escort you to my boss, as requested."

    "Thank you, Richard."

    The girl decided to play along for now.

    "But I have no interest in meeting his Excellency. Shall we go somewhere else instead?"

    Evidently she thought my "boss" was Roland, but she couldn''t be further from the truth. That was something I made up on the spot as an excuse to escort her away from the three Black Serpent thugs. I didn''t think anything beyond that.

    "Uh, okay. I''ll let you take the lead then, Miss. Where do you want to go?"

    "Tee hee¡­" the girl giggled, and she practically waltzed away while clinging onto my arm. "On a date of course!"

    "¡­right. Okay." I wasn''t sure if the girl was being serious. She was just pulling my leg, I was sure. However, I had to play the part of the gentleman. "Are you all right?"

    "I''m fine. Thanks for your concern." The girl smiled in delight as she leaned closer, wrapping a hand around my waist. "But¡­why do I feel like you think that it was unnecessary to save me?"

    "You''re mistaken," I replied automatically. Then I glanced at her seriously, my dark eyes hardening behind my glasses. "But I do have a few questions for you."

 183 Chapter 183: The Mysterious Girl

    "Oh?" the girl smiled playfully. "What do you want to ask me?"

    "Who are you?"

    "Wouldn''t you like to know?" the girl teased me. "Why are you so interested in me?" she raised her hands in mock outrage. "Are you hitting on me?"

    "Isn''t it the other way around?" I replied dryly, trying not to roll my eyes. The girl continued to giggle mischievously.

    "I''m just an ordinary girl. There''s nothing interesting about me at all."

    "Really?" I snorted. "Even though you''re pretty skilled?"

    "Skilled? Whatever do you mean?" the girl acted innocently. "Don''t be daft. If you hadn''t intervened when you did, I would be in real trouble, you know?"

    "Both you and I know that that''s a lie," I retorted. "You slipped out of that thug''s grip so easily and quickly before anyone realized it. That takes some real skill. And when the thug attacked with a knife, you were the one who subtly and gently guided my movements and allowed me to smoothly evade to the side so that I can counterattack. Furthermore¡­"

    I studied her for a few moments.

    "You also don''t seem to be on your guard around me. You know my name, and you didn''t even pull away or flinch when I placed my arm around you." Sad to say, that was the typical response of most girls when I got even one centimeter near them. Okay, I was probably exaggerating, but I was rarely in such close physical proximity with them that I was surprised she went along. "Unless you were super-confident or familiar enough with me, you wouldn''t just let a male stranger approach you so closely and follow him wherever. And since I don''t know you, I''m guessing it''s the former ¨C you''re so skilled that you are confident that you''ll be able to escape no matter what sort of situation you end up in. Am I correct, Miss?"

    "Richard¡­" the girl was giggling, impressed. "I knew it. So you recognized me."

    "No, I don''t," I replied irritably. "Haven''t you been listening? I don''t know you at all. That''s why I''m wondering¡­why do you know my name? Just who the hell are you?"

    "You and I have met once before, you know?" the girl chuckled as she lowered her head slightly. "Our first encounter was so intense right from the start¡­"

    "¡­huh?" I gaped at her, having no idea what she was saying.

    "It was my first time having such a rough experience, you know?" the girl continued as she tightened her grip on my arm. "In fact, it was so hard that I lost consciousness immediately."

    "Uh, what?" I scratched the back of my head as I frowned. "I''m sorry, I don''t follow. I don''t remember any intense encounter with you¡­"

    "Fu fu¡­I can''t believe how you continued to set your beast on me even after you blasted me with so much white stuff¡­"

    "¡­white stuff¡­?" I repeated incredulously. She nodded, hiding her mouth with her free hand while giggling.

    "Black and white stuff," she amended. "Followed by a golden explosion at the end."

    Lady¡­I had no idea what you''re talking about. With every new revelation I was finding myself increasingly lost.

    "After I was engulfed by that golden spell of yours that you fired from your lion beast, I ended up getting knocked out."

    Lion beast¡­golden spell¡­ah. Leo and his Regulus spell. That meant the black and white stuff was probably either Gan Jiang and Mo Ye or Castor and Pollux. The girl was clearly talking about a battle I had with her.

    Unfortunately, I had fought too many enemies to be able to remember them all. So I shrugged. Until I suddenly recalled the piercing emerald eyes.

    ¡­the mask, and the poisoned daggers¡­

    "Oh."

    I immediately remembered who she was.

    "You''re from that time¡­"

    The girl let go of my arm and practically waltzed to the front, turning around to beam at me brilliantly.

    "I am Anastasia. I''m an Assassin that you defeated all those nights ago in Jing Tian City."

    "Right outside my school," I confirmed with a nod. Anastasia didn''t deny that, and instead continued to smile dazzlingly at me.

    "That''s correct."

    That was right. I recalled that fateful incident not too many weeks ago, when I was suddenly assaulted by three Assassins outside my school while on my way home. I remembered Anastasia as the green-eyed Assassin who wielded poisonous weapons, and had to be extra careful of her. She was the only one I incapacitated, though. I killed her comrade with Lyra, and then tried to take out the last one, but the leader of the trio was skilled and fast enough to escape even my Vega.

    Even so, right after I drove them away and captured the green-eyed Assassin, someone else showed up shortly after.

    "Wait¡­didn''t Instructor Feng Hai and the Silver Wolves take you away?"

    Then I stiffened, realizing something. If Anastasia was here, then¡­

    "You managed to escape from the Silver Wolves?"

    "Relax!" Anastasia laughed as she tugged my arm. "Of course not! The Silver Wolves are an elite mage mercenary guild. There''s no way I''ll be able to escape them, right?"

    "Then how are you here?"

    "The answer is obvious." Anastasia wagged her finger in front of my face. "I was hired by the Silver Wolves."

    "¡­huh?"

    That was so out of left field that I didn''t expect it. I continued to stare at Anastasia with disbelieving eyes.

    "Instructor Feng Hai hired you¡­an Assassin?"

    "A former Assassin," Anastasia corrected. She shrugged. "I''m no longer an Assassin, you know? After what you did, I couldn''t go back. You know what they do to captured Assassins?" she made a slicing motion across her throat. "They kill us to silence us. If I want to stay alive, I''ve no choice but to throw my lot in with Brother Feng and the Silver Wolves."

    "I''m surprised he hired you," I muttered. "I thought he would¡­interrogate you."

    "They did. I told them whatever I know¡­which isn''t a lot, to be honest." Anastasia sighed. "That''s how the Assassin Guild works. They don''t give us a lot of information because such cases often happen. If we Assassins get captured, apprehended or even killed¡­there are ways to extract intelligence from our bodies even if we refuse to talk. Memory manipulation, hypnotism, truth serums, brainwashing spells and more."

    She then puffed her cheeks out and poked my face.

    "Anyway, it''s your fault that I can''t return to the Assassin Guild! You''re the one who defeated and captured me! So you have to take responsibility!"

    "¡­I see." I still couldn''t keep the skepticism out of my voice. Secondly, I couldn''t imagine what she meant when she wanted me to take responsibility. Obviously she wasn''t asking me to marry her. Perhaps she wanted me to be her partner for future missions? Unfortunately, I wasn''t part of the Silver Wolves so that was pretty unlikely.

    "Oh, come on!" Anastasia pouted as she placed her hands on her hips. "Stop giving me that look! You can trust me, you know? If I really wanted to kill you, I would have done so already. Or tried to." she smiled sheepishly. "You''re a hard man to kill."

    "Thank you," I acknowledged while considering her words. Anastasia had a point. Up till now, she had ample opportunities to assassinate me if that was her goal. She was a mistress of poisons, and at any point of time she could have slid a poisoned needle to pierce my skin while clinging onto me, or applied some toxic lotion on her hand so that she could let it seep into my skin while grabbing my arm. Or a dagger to my throat while behaving so intimately.

    There was literally no reason for her to go in such a roundabout manner, revealing her name to me and acting all friendly and intimate if her goal was to assassinate me. She was a professional Assassin, not some badly written web novel or anime character.

    "Still, I didn''t expect you to be here¡­in Southampton City."

    Even after revealing everything, Anastasia was following me in a leisurely manner, strolling beside me and taking my hand. To outsiders, we appeared to be a couple, but inwardly we were probably watching and examining each other, probing for openings. Not physical ones, but also mental ones, to get an edge in some subtle psychological warfare that was being waged even without my knowledge.

    I wasn''t sure I liked this. I was way out of my league regarding such nonsense.

    Speaking of which, Anastasia didn''t know anything about my newly obtained immunity to poisons. I saw no reason to tell her. It wasn''t as if I could trust her just because she now suddenly showed up, claiming to be part of the Silver Wolves. There was still some element of distrust and the possibility of subterfuge.

    Perhaps her objective now wasn''t to assassinate me, but something else? That might explain why she was in Southampton City.

    "A lot of things happened," I confessed while scratching my head. "A friend requested my presence, so I came." I shrugged. "He treated me to lunch, and then he had other business, so I decided to go home first. That''s when I saw you."

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    Anastasia brightened up.

    "So you''re free now?"

    "Uh¡­I''m going home now."

    "That''s fine. I might as well follow you. It makes no difference if I stay here or go to Jing Tian City." Anastasia was nodding to herself. I raised an eyebrow in bewilderment.

    "Huh? Why?"

    "Hmm¡­well, because my next destination is out in the middle of nowhere." Frowning, Anastasia retrieved her smartphone and conjured up a hologram. Then she brightened up. "On the bright side, maybe I can ask you to come along!"

    "Why should I?"

    "You''ll get paid!"

    "How much?"

    If there was money involved, then there was no hesitation. I would never say no to the prospect of earning more cash. I could buy a lot more stuff if I had more money¡­though what exactly, I had no idea. Well, I could always think of what to buy after I earned the required cash. Otherwise it was pointless thinking too much about it if I hadn''t gotten the money in hand. Don''t count your chickens before they hatch and all that.

    Anastasia winked at me, and then tugged me toward the direction of some obscure place. I raised an eyebrow, but followed for a while until I realized where she was leading me toward.

    "¡­are you serious?"

    "Dead serious," Anastasia assured me.

    Well, no amount of money was going to convince me if this was the case. I sensed a trap. A honey trap, perhaps, but no matter how sweet it looked or tasted, a trap was still a trap.

    In this particular case, it took the form of a hotel district. Neon signboards with holographic displays of pink hearts and moody lighting filed the area. There were a few couples moving discreetly before entering the hotel lobbies, their arms linked. There were different rates, and instead of per night, it was per hour. Though there was a flat charge for a single night. Evidently, these hotels did not intend to accommodate their guests for any period longer than a single night.

    "Sorry. I think I had best¡­"

    "Don''t worry about it," Anastasia assured me again, a confident smile crossing over her face. "I don''t intend to do anything weird to you. It''s just that, for this sort of intimate activity, we need an enclosed, secure place that''s out of view and hearing of the public. Wouldn''t you agree, Darling?"

    She then glanced around pointedly before clamping hard on my arm with a mischievous wink.

    "In any case, I won''t let you go. You''ll be accompanying me the whole night. Perhaps we could get a threesome?"

    I suddenly understood that she was using some sort of code word, especially when she emphasized that last word with a wave of her smartphone.

    Threesome = third party. An enclosed space that was out of view and hearing of the public. To prevent people from spying or eavesdropping.

    "¡­all right," I agreed somewhat reluctantly. "I''ll play along. But nothing too extreme, or I''ll beat the hell out of here."

    "Don''t worry, Richard." Anastasia laughed throatily as she continued to cling firmly onto me. "I guarantee that you''ll like what I have in mind for you."

 184 Chapter 184: Mission Briefing

    The hotel receptionist stared at the both of us for a second, and then raised a hand.

    "Your ID, please."

    "Hmm? Okay."

    Without thinking, I showed him my student ID. The receptionist rolled her eyes and then pointed toward the exit.

    "Sorry, but we don''t allow underage customers."

    ¡­huh? Oh, right. This was a love hotel, after all.

    Anastasia looked perplexed for a moment, and then she giggled.

    "Oh, right. You''re still a student. Sorry about that. I completely forgot about that."

    Leading me by my hand, she led me out of the hotel. All the while the receptionist watched us with a raised eyebrow, and then returned her attentions to whatever it was she was doing. Which was watching some video on her tablet. From the moans and sounds, I gathered that it was an R18 video at the very least.

    Can''t blame her¡­she was manning the desk of a love hotel, after all¡­

    "¡­so where do we go now?" I asked. And then I frowned. "And how old are you, by the way?"

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    I had thought that Anastasia was about the same age as I was. She looked pretty young. But from her demeanor and behavior, I suddenly realized that she might be a little older. Maybe she was in her twenties?

    "Now, now." Anastasia giggled and placed a finger on her lips. "Don''t you know it''s rude to ask a lady for her age?"

    "Oh, sorry."

    "It''s fine. As for what we should do now¡­I guess we should just go to a proper hotel."

    Couldn''t we go to somewhere that wasn''t a hotel as long as it was safe and secure?

    In the end, at my suggestion, we ended up going into an Internet caf¨¦. After renting a cubicle, the two of us squeezed into it as if we were sharing a computer. It was pretty narrow and confined, but its size was adequate for our purposes.

    Anastasia still cast several spells and wards to ensure that our conversation wouldn''t be overheard by anyone outside the cubicle. With the Internet caf¨¦ promising the security and privacy of its customers, we didn''t have to worry about the Internet caf¨¦ staff trying to probe into whatever it was we were doing or what website we were surfing.

    "All right, all clear."

    Once she was satisfied, Anastasia produced her smartphone and placed it on the desk. In the background, we had the Internet browser of the computer open and was playing some YouTube video that featured the opening and ending songs of an anime I liked. More for the records of the Internet caf¨¦ staff than because we were actually listening. It also served to drown out our conversation, so Anastasia seemed impressed when I made the suggestion.

    No, I didn''t actually think about that when I proposed opening the YouTube video¡­but whatever. I didn''t see the need to tell her that.

    The call took several seconds to get through, and Feng Hai''s face appeared when it connected. His jaw dropped when he saw me.

    "Richard? What are you doing with Anastasia?"

    "Oh, uh¡­coincidence." I scratched the back of my head sheepishly. I wasn''t sure I should go around telling everyone that the crown prince of the Amazerian Empire dragged me to Southampton City just to see me duel his elite bodyguard.

    "He helped me out when I was being harassed by a group of lecherous secret society members," Anastasia explained, winking at me. I shrugged helplessly, feeling embarrassed when Feng Hai stared at me in awe.

    "Always playing the hero, eh?" he then turned serious. "Sorry about that time in Jing Tian City. By the time we got there, we were too late¡­"

    "It wasn''t your fault. No one could have known."

    "Even I didn''t know about the Dark Church''s plans to invade Jing Tian City." Anastasia sighed and shook her head. "Though they wouldn''t share something so important and huge to us hired grunts anyway."

    "Yeah." Feng Hai scowled, but didn''t say anything. It was clear that he felt guilty.

    The Silver Wolves were involved in raiding and destroying a monster nest at the time of the invasion. By the time they finished the mission and returned to their base, Dad and the Federation military had already mostly mopped up the remaining monsters in Jing Tian City. The Silver Wolves still rushed back as quickly as they could once they heard the news, but there was little more for them to do than to stand around and help with rebuilding.

    I wasn''t there, but I heard from mutual friends on social media that Feng Hai took Alicia''s death as a blow. I remembered them being a little close to the point that she addressed him as Brother Hai, but I didn''t know anything more than that. Alicia did tell me that Feng Hai was a family friend and had looked after her when she was younger.

    It was natural that he would be devastated upon learning of her death.

    "I''m the one who is sorry. I was there when it happened¡­I should have protected Alicia¡­"

    "No use blaming yourself for what happened. I''m just glad that you and so many others have survived." Feng Hai sighed and stared at me seriously. "I heard the school took some hits. And the director, Uncle Vincent, he still has yet to pull himself together."

    "Well, he''s back in the office and doing admin stuff for the academy, or so I heard a few days ago. We''ll be returning to school shortly. Everything seems to be returning to normal¡­on the surface, anyway."

    Feng Hai nodded. "That''s a relief. I''ll have to talk to him properly, but as of now, he''s still refusing to take any of my calls or to see me."

    Anastasia placed a hand on my shoulder.

    "And that was a Deceivum Assassin. Even among the Assassins in the Guild, they are the trickiest and hardest to track and locate. You could have a Deceivum agent placed beside you your entire life and not know it until the dagger strikes home. There is no shame in being unable to expose her true nature."

    Her voice was filled with a tinge of bitterness, though. It couldn''t be helped. As an Assassin, Anastasia had failed whereas another of her fellow Assassins had succeeded¡­well, somewhat. Being of rival sects, she must have found this to be a blow to her pride.

    "Her real target was Uncle Vincent, not Alicia, though¡­so she failed." Feng Hai must have also picked up on Anastasia''s tone, for he quickly moved to placate her. Anastasia didn''t brighten up, though, and Feng Hai cleared his throat. "We''ll have to investigate why the Dark Church wants the City Council and the director of Jing Tian Academy dead."

    "To disrupt the running of the city, and to slow down the training of future mages to fight monsters," Anastasia replied automatically. She shrugged when both the holographic image of Feng Hai and I stared at him. "I already told you that, Boss."

    "Ah, yes. You did." Feng Hai tilted his head. "But I don''t think you called me just for that, or just for me to say hi to Richard?"

    "That''s correct." Anastasia straightened up and looked his holographic avatar straight in the eye. "Do you remember the mission you assigned me? I wish to recruit Richard as a partner for that task."

    "Oh?" Feng Hai was surprised. Then his expression turned a little guarded. "For collecting information on the Dark Church? I thought you would move better on your own."

    "By the way, Richard already knows who I am." Anastasia smiled mischievously as she latched onto my arm. "There won''t be anyone better to cooperate with me."

    Feng Hai relaxed a little, but he still didn''t seem convinced. "I don''t mind, but what exactly do you need him for? No offense to Richard, but he doesn''t have the stealthy and intelligence-gathering skills that you Assassins are trained in."

    "Yes, but obviously that''s not what I need him for. I want him as hired muscle." She covered her mouth as she giggled. "After all, this is the young man who defeated me and two other comrades in direct combat."

    "Ah¡­" Feng Hai frowned. "Wait, what? Why do you need hired muscle for? Are you planning to fight?"

    "It might be inevitable." Anastasia reached out and drew out a holographic image in her projected screen of light. It resolved itself into a map. Shifting her fingers, Anastasia chose a specific location and expanded it, closing in on a city. Tapping on the bird''s eye view of the village, Anastasia smiled. "This is Azpire City."

    "A small city that''s on the outskirts of the Federation," Feng Hai explained for my benefit. He then frowned. "But we''ve detected nothing unusual in Azpire City so far."

    "That might be true," Anastasia admitted with a sly smile. "Because you''ve been looking in the wrong places."

    Feng Hai raised an eyebrow at that. "Did you find any clues leading you to Azpire?"

    "Not really, but¡­" Anastasia spread her fingers and expanded a new holographic window that pushed the 3D map of Azpire City back to the side. "Before I was completely cut off from the Assassin Guild''s communication system, I managed to intercept this encrypted transmission."

    It was an audio message. Anastasia dragged the file into a decryption program, which altered the file using a combination of magic and technology to decipher it into coherent dialogue. The voice was garbled, but I could barely make out the words.

    "Deliver the Grim Reaper to Azpire."

    Feng Hai listened, fascinated. He turned to Anastasia with a raised eyebrow. "Is that message saying what I think it means?"

    "That''s right. They are sending an Assassin to Azpire City. I don''t know the reason or who the target is, but apparently the Assassin Guild intends to perform an assassination there. And the Grim Reaper is the code name for one of the Assassins under them." she shrugged. "I don''t know who, though. But I don''t want to take any chances. That''s why¡­"

    She grabbed my arm playfully and leaned close.

    "I need some hired muscle for my own protection! As insurance!"

    "Not to mention that if there is an Assassin being sent there, then agents of the Dark Church might already be posted there." Feng Hai was nodding thoughtfully. "And you might need some help taking out their base there."

    "Correct." Anastasia snapped her fingers in delight. "I''m so glad the boss understands."

    "I got it. I''ll approve of this mission. But we''ll have to make it official." Feng Hai was looking away, most likely consulting a second holographic screen as he typed furiously. "I''ll send an official mission request to Jing Tian Academy, and Richard can accept it so as to get authorization. Then the both of you can go once the admin details are done. It shouldn''t take too long. Maybe a day or two."

    "Got it." Anastasia then turned to me with that usual dazzling smile of hers. "So for now, let''s return to Jing Tian City together."

 185 Chapter 185: Former Assassin

    The hooded figure went down like a puppet whose strings were cut, never knowing what (or who) hit him at the back of the neck.

    Behind him, Anastasia stood with an upraised hand, watching her victim coolly as he crumpled. She was probably ensuring that he didn''t get back up. I was amazed by how quickly and efficiently she neutralized her targets, as well as her elegant movements.

    "As expected of a former Assassin," I praised her as I dusted off my hands. Unlike her, I had chosen brute force and charging directly at my opponents, which was as inelegant as you could get. "Your skills are exquisite."

    "Fu fu¡­oh, Richard.'' Anastasia giggled before she sighed and shook her head. She then turned to look at the trail of bloodied bodies and devastated concrete walls, floor and ceilings that I had left in my wake. "You put even Assassins to shame."

    "I didn''t even touch them," I pointed out truthfully. I had caught the guards completely by surprise, with my Leo Minor all materializing out of nowhere and maiming the majority of them from behind. I didn''t even have to lift a finger. My pride of Leo Minor were still prowling the area, clawing at the bodies to check for survivors.

    There probably were a few alive. Some were still breathing, but they were going to need emergency first aid. Obviously I didn''t have the means nor the intention to provide them those. Reverse our positions and they would be trying to murder me at all costs.

    I felt no sympathy even for those lying on the ground and groaning or whimpering painfully to themselves, their limbs twisted at unnatural angles. Granted, not all of them were incapacitated by me. A few of the silent ones were done in by Anastasia. It was easy to tell because they were frothing at the mouths.

    A direct consequence of being poisoned by her. Which reminded me¡­I hadn''t told Anastasia that I was now immune to poison, and honestly there was no need to inform her.

    However, I was not a psychotic murderer either, and saw no need to go out of my way to kill those who were clearly helpless and incapacitated. If they had already surrendered, then as long as they stayed out of my way, I wasn''t going to take their lives. I had better things to do with my time and energy.

    Anastasia, on the other hand, was watching them thoughtfully, as if debating with herself if she should just finish them off in case they alert the others. I was struck by her beauty, but reminded me that she was a former Assassin who had once tried to take my life. Fortunately, she had now switched sides and was now a poison mage working under Feng Hai as one of his Silver Wolves. I was aware that she had deliberately arranged the video conference call in the Internet caf¨¦ to convince me that she was telling the truth.

    Having confirmed that she was indeed a subordinate of Feng Hai, I had agreed to be her partner on this assignment to take out the Dark Church in Azpire City. Truth to his word, Feng Hai had posted an official request to Jing Tian Academy within a day, and I immediately accepted it the moment I received the email.

    Once that was taken care of, I informed my dad, and then departed for Azpire City alongside Anastasia before the day was over.

    And so we were now here in Azpire City, having tracked down one of the Dark Church''s hideout to a specific building in a commercial district. It was silly, really. They were standing out extremely visibly with all the weird black hoods over their heads and their shadowy garb. It didn''t take a genius to tell that something was up with them.

    "These Assassins¡­" I began, but Anastasia snorted and cut me off.

    "Don''t insult us Assassins. These amateurs can''t even begin to compare to the likes of us. They are just fools pretending to be Assassins."

    "Uh, right." Anastasia had a point. Professional Assassins wouldn''t be wearing hoods in broad daylight and standing around outside a building in cosplay type clothing. Nobody in their right mind would want to draw too much attention to themselves if they intended to execute an organized criminal activity. Anastasia was understandably miffed that I even could entertain the dubious possibility of them being her colleagues at the Assassins Guild.

    "Not that I know many of my colleagues in the first place," Anastasia admitted, her voice becoming gentler. "The Assassins Guild take the possibility of its agents leaking intelligence and top secret information very seriously, and so conversations with each other were limited to the utmost extremes. None of us were allowed to interact with anyone we didn''t need to. To protect not just our clients but also the organization itself, none of us except the sect masters and the Grand Master were allowed access to the inner circle of the guild. We are not even allowed access to any information about the other sects."

    It made total sense to me. In the case where an Assassin was caught, the Guild could immediately save itself by sacrificing their agent¡­much like how a lizard cut off its own tail in order to escape.

    "I''m guessing you''re not even allowed to interact much with the members of the same sect¡­like you probably don''t know many other members of your Veneneum Sect¡­"

    "How did you know I''m from the Veneneum Sect?!" Anastasia gaped at me. "Wait, where did you even hear the word from?!"

    "Principal Vincent Violet gave me a personal lecture on Assassins shortly after his daughter was murdered by one of them," I replied somewhat stiffly. And then I shrugged. "Sorry. I thought it was common knowledge."

    "No, it isn''t." Anastasia smiled sadly. "And I''m sorry for your loss. However, if we don''t carry out an order, we would be the ones eliminated. You see, the Assassin Guild has no need for disobedient tools, after all."

    There was something about her expression that brought an ache to my chest. I scowled and chewed on my lip, clenching my fist.

    "That''s horrible."

    "Richard? What''s wrong?" Anastasia was about to proceed down the corridor when she noticed that I had stopped. I took a deep breath and shook my head before I made to follow her.

    "No, sorry. I mean, I can understand what the Assassin Guild is doing, and it''s doing what it needs to survive as an organization. But they are an enemy, and we''re fighting against them because we don''t agree with them. It''s just that¡­"

    I trailed off. Anastasia tilted her head, and prodded.

    "¡­that¡­?"

    "Don''t get me wrong." I exhaled wearily. "I''m actually relieved that Instructor Feng Hai spared your life. I''m not that na?ve. I''m aware that you are essentially a criminal¡­an Assassin whose hands have been tainted with the blood of others. So, when I think just what kind of treatment you would receive at their hands after I captured you¡­I feel a little guilty."

    "I tried to kill you, you know?" Anastasia reminded me gently, even though she must be finding my naivety annoying.

    "Oh, yeah. I have no regrets about defeating and capturing you. It''s just that¡­you were used as a tool by the Assassins Guild¡­treated as a weapon and sent to kill whoever they wanted, and then conveniently disposed of when they no longer have a use for you. That annoys me. But¡­" I gritted my teeth. "And while Instructor Feng Hai spared your life, he¡­hired you again. I feel that you''re not being treated fairly, if you get what I''m saying. Like¡­you''re being treated as a tool, hired and used at the convenience of others. I don''t mean to be critical of Instructor Feng Hai, but I hardly think he''ll get sentimental and spare and hire you if you''re of no use to him. The only reason he did so was because he saw value in your combat ability."

    I scratched my head.

    "It probably is unfair to judge Instructor Feng for being practical. And I know there really isn''t much else you can do¡­you were brought up your whole life to be an Assassin, trained and reared as one. Instructor Feng can''t simply let you go¡­and there''s not a lot you can do if you go out into society now. Who''s going to hire an Assassin or let one enroll in their school? Even so¡­it''s just that...will you ever get a chance to decide what you really want to do with your own life? Do you have a dream¡­or something you want to do, something that doesn''t involve fighting or killing?"

    Instructor Feng was correct in his decision to hire Anastasia. I was just being na?ve and stupid. I knew that. However, I just felt sad that Anastasia couldn''t decide her own life choices. It felt as if, after being released from the Assassin Guild, instead of being free, it ended up being Instructor Feng who decided what her life should be like.

    However, just because Feng Hai was correct didn''t mean that he was right.

    "Never mind, ignore me. Sorry. I''m just rambling too much. I don''t even know what I''m saying. I''m just being na?ve and unfair. Instructor Feng probably did the best he could under his circumstances. Even he has his own limits."

    "¡­fu fu¡­Richard¡­"

    Anastasia shook her head and giggled.

    "Thank you for seeing me as a person, not a tool. But that is how it is. That''s how the world works. I can''t change the fact that I have been trained my whole life to be an Assassin. There is nothing I can do to change my past. All the sentimentality and positive feelings in the world won''t wash away the blood I already have on my hands. And believe me, I have spilled a lot of blood over the years. I''m not going to whitewash my deeds just because I''m a beautiful girl like some anime or light novels do. I am a criminal, no matter how you look at it."

    Then her smile grew and she leaned in.

    "But you are right. I do have a dream¡­something that has nothing to do with assassinating and fighting."

    She practically waltzed around, as if being in a great mood after listening to my na?ve rant.

    "I always wanted to become a bride."

    "¡­huh?"

    Now that was totally unexpected. I didn''t expect a cold, ruthless Assassin like Anastasia to have such a girlish dream.

    "That''s assuming I can find someone willing to marry me, of course."

    "You definitely will," I replied. "You''re so beautiful¡­but that''s not the only good thing about you. You''re also intelligent, skilled and have a great personality.''

    I quickly amended my statement, because beauty was such a superficial quality and I was aware that not all girls liked being told that they were just beautiful. Beauty wouldn''t last forever, after all. Marriage was beyond your partner''s physical appearance. You were going to spend your lives together, even after the both of you grow old and wrinkled, your hair turn white and your senses dulled.

    "My beauty is artificial," Anastasia told me with a wink. "I''m an Assassin, remember? We''re designed this way¡­through surgery if necessary. Female Assassins, in particular, use seduction as part of their arsenal to take out high-profile male targets. It''s so easy to get a man to lower his guard by appealing to his sexual desires."

    I gulped, once again seeing Anastasia for who she really was.

    "But thank you. I don''t think you''re being entirely honest, though. I don''t have a great personality, and in any case, you don''t know me long enough to be able to tell that. I appreciate the sentiment, though."

    "Ha ha, sorry." I shook my head and continued down the corridor we were currently traversing. It terminated in a huge door at the end, which most likely led to another hall. Changing the subject, I dismissed my Leo Minor and got ready for another summoning spell. No doubt there was a welcoming party inside the hall, waiting to ambush us the moment we went through the door. "Wait for a minute, Anastasia."

    "''Anastasia'' is a bit long, isn''t it?" Anastasia took a step forward, a mischievous glint in her emerald eyes. "You can just call me ''Ana''."

    "If you''re all right with it¡­"

    I wasn''t able to finish my sentence because Anastasia placed a finger on my lips to silence me.

    "I wouldn''t ask you to address me as such if I''m not all right with it," she told me with a wink. Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.

    "A¡­all right, Ana¡­"

    I couldn''t help but be taken aback by her forwardness. She smiled dazzlingly.

    "By the way, Richard¡­"

    "Hmm?"

    "If no one is willing to marry me, you should take responsibility and take me as your bride."

    "W¡­what¡­?"

    I never got to finish reacting because Anastasia kicked the doors to the hall open and boldly stepped inside.

    Then chaos erupted.

 186 Chapter 186: Break in

    "O¡­oi!" I complained, but Anastasia was in too good of a mood to pay any attention to me. Instead, she smiled when she saw the hooded guards (seriously, why the fuck were they all wearing hoods inside a building?!) emerge from their hiding places to ambush her (aren''t they coming out too early for a damned ambush? Did none of them know how to launch surprise attacks from behind?!). They were dashing forward, armed with knives and daggers.

    Why they didn''t arm themselves with guns or just throw their bladed weapons at Anastasia the moment she broke in, I had no idea. Granted, they wouldn''t work against Ana. I had a feeling that she would have the reflexes and skills to dodge every single projectile if necessary.

    Already she was speeding forward, almost disappearing into a blur that took her assailants by surprise.

    "I''m pushing on!" she said excitedly, her earrings flying from her surge. Before any of the ambushers in the hall could react, she kicked the nearest one in the gut with such force he was hurled off his feet.

    "Gah!" he coughed out blood as he crashed into the wall, cracking the concrete. The other two ambushers glanced at their fallen comrade, stunned. Again, they were complete amateurs, not making use of their comrade''s "sacrifice" to flank and attack Anastasia while she was attacking. Not that they could, because I would have summoned something and taken them out.

    That was my job as her hired muscle ¨C to provide her cover fire and support.

    "Whoa!" one of them cried out instead of¡­you know, attacking. "What''s with this woman!? She''s so strong!"

    "You''re the ones who are too slow." Anastasia was shaking her head. "Has the Dark Church been reduced to hiring amateurs now?"

    At the back, I had summoned Orion and was firing off a bunch of arrows to keep a mass of hooded cultists down, thus minimizing Ana''s attackers to a handful. Even so, I couldn''t help but glance at the former Assassin in awe.

    She was really good at anticipating her enemy''s movements. One of the Dark Church cronies was dashing at her with his knives, but she was already moving to intercept his attacks. She was several times faster than me, but that was no surprise.

    After all, I was a summoner who probably specialized more in summoning and ranged spells whereas Anastasia was clearly in close combat and melee attacks. That made sense, given the nature of her sect''s specialization in poisoned weapons. A poisoned blade only worked if it came into contact with the target''s flesh and cut it.

    Her eyes were focused on her enemies and despite being outnumbered and unarmed, she remained confident, as if to say she didn''t need her poisoned daggers to deal with these small fries. She deflected her assailant''s knife by striking his arm to the side. Another ambusher tried to sneak around the corner to fire at her from her blind spot, but I took him out with an arrow to the knee, and then a second arrow to his chest. He crumpled, his crossbow dropping to the ground.

    Another ambusher lunged out to fire upon me with a machine gun, but I summoned Scutum Sobiescianum. While he concentrated fire upon my Constellation shield, Capricorn emerged from behind him and trampled him onto the ground. His comrades spun around, surprised by the giant goat''s appearance, and they scattered when he hit several of them with his horns.

    Anastasia''s movements accelerated, as if to say she wasn''t going to lose to me, and she grabbed her opponent''s arm before throwing him over her shoulder in one smooth move. Then she spun around gracefully to kick his comrade as he tried to stab her in the back. He cried out and doubled over as he flew several meters. She then finished off the guy on the ground with a stomp to his neck. I winced when I heard the sickening crunch.

    Ana could be brutal if she had to.

    While the remaining ambushers were fleeing from my rampaging Capricorn, I stopped in front of one of them and slammed my elbow into his face before he knew what was happening. To be fair, he was glancing over his shoulder to keep track of my Capricorn, so he didn''t see me coming. Clutching his nose, he rolled on the ground with a howl.

    "Ugh!"

    "Hey, it shouldn''t hurt that much, right?" I pointed out dryly as I knelt beside him. Anastasia, with Capricorn''s support, was cleaning up the rest of the ambushers in the room. Grabbing him by his pale hair, I yanked his head up to glare at him. He looked at me fearfully with wide eyes, beads of cold sweat dripping down his face. I smiled in what I hoped looked like a kind expression. "Sorry, but we''re a little lost here. Could you do us a favor and lead us to the main office? The one where your boss is currently in."

    Of course, there was no way he could refuse my polite request.

    A few minutes, with the poor guy tied up and leading us, Anastasia and I found ourselves in what was one of the higher floors (but not the top floor). A secure, wooden door stood out against the white, pristine concrete walls, looking nondescript. There was a sign that marked the door as an office belonging to the CEO, and I was suddenly reminded of stories like My Wicked CEO and all those weird romance novels promoting toxic relationships and abusive male leads. Good. I always wanted the opportunity to smash the handsome faces of those arrogant, violent and rapist CEOs for all the physical and/or emotional abuse they did to the poor heroines.

    I patted the poor guy''s shoulder gently when he stopped. "Are you sure your boss is inside this room?"

    "T¡­that''s right."

    The guy was clearly an amateur. No professional Assassin would sell out their boss so easily. Either that or he had no loyalty to the person who hired him. It was also entirely possible that he lied to us, and this was a trap, but we could deal with both the trap and him after we came out. Anastasia and I weren''t so na?ve to just stupidly believe him and walk in unprepared.

    Sighing in relief, I glanced at the CEO signboard. If we could apprehend the mastermind and hand him over to the Silver Wolves for interrogation, or extract the information from him ourselves (I was aware that Anastasia had her own methods of interrogation, which was why Feng Hai chose her for this specific mission to begin with), then we would have completed the first objective of our mission. Of particular interest was the Assassin sent to this city and the intended target.

    "Thank you," I told the heavily relieved guy, but he didn''t manage to ask if we could let him go because Ana knocked him out by striking the back of his neck before either of us guys could do anything. I caught him before he hit the ground and gently set him down. He did us a favor by leading us here, after all. That was the least I could do.

    Anastasia rolled her eyes. "You''re too nice, Richard."

    "Nothing wrong with being nice," I replied with a shrug before turning to face the door. "Well then, shall we go introduce ourselves?"

    "Be careful, Richard," Anastasia warned as I approached the office. "The door might be booby-trapped. I hardly think they''ll just let us walk in without any repercussions."

    "Good point. Taurus."

    "¡­eh?" Anastasia watched dumbly as the giant bull materialized in front of us to paw the ground and grunt. "Why are you summoning your Soul Beast, Richard? What do you intend to do with it?"

    "Him," I corrected. Then I glanced up at Taurus with a smile. "You''re free to pretend that the office is a china shop."

    Taurus snorted, but he complied. Kicking off the ground, he smashed through the door. Several explosions rang inside, but none of the security or anti-intrusion spells had any effect against Taurus''s bulk or steel armor.

    As I said, amateurs. The whole lot of them.

    We waited for the spells to run out, for their effects to subside, before I finally stepped in, walking past a waiting Taurus. Anastasia was still staring at me, her mouth hanging open from astonishment. She managed to close her lovely lips before shaking her head and following me through the wreckage.

    "You really know how to make an entrance," she told me. I shrugged sheepishly.

    "You''re the one who warned me that the door might be booby-trapped."

    "Yeah, but I didn''t expect you to still kick the door down and trigger all the traps with brute force. And I''m surprised it didn''t affect your Soul Beast at all."

    "My Constellation spirits are tough," I boasted proudly. Even so, I placed a hand on Taurus''s dark skin. "Sorry about that, Taurus, and thank you. It must have been tough on you."

    Taurus snorted, as if to say that such spells weren''t even worth placing in his eyes. There was no sign of injury of him ¨C I would have immediately recalled him the moment he started taking significant damage, which I could tell because of my mental and spiritual connection with all of my Constellation spirits ¨C so I could exhale in relief.

    "Anyway¡­" I then turned my attention to stare at the hooded man with a jeweled staff, who was still standing in the middle of the room, frozen in shock.

    His jaw was hanging open, and a bead of perspiration was rolling down his face. However, when he realized that we were looking at him, he immediately shut his mouth and raised his guard, pointing his ridiculously decorated staff at us.

    "!!"

    "What should we do about this dude?"

    "Barbarians¡­" the staff dude spat. He was evidently a high-ranking Dark Church agent¡­maybe a priest, considering his elaborate robes, absurd staff and weird, clearly stylized golden hair that hung from underneath his hood. I didn''t know priests went to a saloon to get their hair permed like that, but whatever. He was glaring at me, his lips curling into a sneer. "Kicking the door down and barging in like that¡­to think you would even bring an animal indoors¡­do you not have even a modicum of civility?"

    I raised an eyebrow. "Civility? I don''t want to hear that from a criminal organization that executes schemes of genocide¡­bastards who lure and unleash hordes of monsters on cities to kill innocent people."

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    "The world must be cleansed of humans!" the staff dude bellowed as he raised both his hands dramatically, mana crackling around him. The guy was getting ready to release a spell. "It''s the only way Earth will survive!"

    Earth will survive? With alien monsters pouring out of dimensional rifts and infesting her surface? What was this guy on about? I wanted to know what he had been sniffing.

    Nah, no point reasoning with a lunatic like him. I tilted my head while finishing the casting of another summoning spell.

    "Richard." Behind me, Anastasia issued a warning silently. "There''s another person in the room."

    "I''ll leave her to you," I replied, already aware of the second, invisible presence. She smirked and I shrugged. "We''re partners, right? Can''t have me doing all the work alone, right?"

    Anastasia grinned in return. "You got that right! Leave her to me!"

    "Oh, shut up, the both of you!"

    The staff dude blasted us with a torrent of flames¡­

    ¡­or tried to, but his flames were snuffed out in an instant. Instead, Leo pulverized him with a paw and crushed him against the ground. The staff dude cried out as the concrete cracked underneath him, his staff careening out of his grip and spinning away. Blood began leaking from his face and filling the cracks in the ground, pooling beneath his body.

    "Whoops. Did I go overboard?" I asked as I stroked my chin. "I didn''t even get to use Regulus."

    At that moment, an Assassin descended upon me, her sword slicing toward my neck.

    Her attack was flawless, executed from my blind spot. Normal people wouldn''t have sensed it, and my head would have rolled off before I even realized I was dead.

    Normally. I could probably react, but I didn''t because I knew I had someone reliable watching my back.

    "?!"

    Anastasia''s kick took the Assassin out, her foot catching my would-be killer in the stomach and diverting her off course. Spinning around, Ana kicked the Assassin''s face with her other foot, causing the hooded figure to spin head over heels before crashing untidily onto the floor. Before the Assassin could react or cry out in pain, Ana continued forward, raising one leg high (though how she did that in such a long, frilly skirt, I had no idea) before stomping on the Assassin.

    Blood spurted into the air as the Assassin coughed.

    "Thanks, Ana," I told her as I turned around to face the new threat. She shrugged and shook her head.

    "You didn''t need me to protect you. You were perfectly capable of taking her out on your own even if I wasn''t here."

    "Even so, I still appreciate you helping me out."

    "You''re too polite." Anastasia shook her head before she approached the fallen Assassin. Her voice turned cold. "Your mistake was to target my partner instead of me. I knew you were debating, you know? You were probably deciding who to eliminate first. You finally judged Richard to be the more dangerous target and moved to take him out, but that meant opening yourself to my counterattack." She smiled frostily. "You underestimated me. Richard left his back to me, and I don''t intend to let him down."

    "Gah¡­!"

    The Assassin continued to cough. When Anastasia noticed that the mask had fallen from the Assassin''s face, she suddenly realized she knew who the person was.

    "Adeline!"

    "¡­who?" I blinked in surprise. "A colleague of yours?"

    "That''s right." Anastasia nodded. "She was deployed together with me to Jing Tian City that night." she turned to me. "You should know her too¡­you defeated her along with me."

    "Ah¡­the last survivor. I failed to shoot her down when she fled." I nodded, remembering the third and last member who managed to escape even though I had fired Vega at her. She was glaring at me hatefully, gritting her teeth in frustration.

    Suddenly I realized that Anastasia was mistaken. This Adeline didn''t choose to eliminate me because she judged me as the bigger threat. She chose to strike at me because of a personal vendetta.

    I didn''t know at that time, but I was the one who had taken her arm off. of course I didn''t realize it because they had cast healing magic on her and regrew her arm, so I never knew that I had destroyed one of her arms with Vega that night. But Adeline remembered, and she continued to nurse the grudge.

    And when she saw me today, she saw the opportunity to take revenge.

    Anastasia must have noticed the venomous gaze in Adeline''s eyes, and she shook her head as a complicated expression came over her pretty face.

    "Adeline¡­" She then took a deep breath and composed herself. "I''ll restrain her. Richard, please go tie up that Dark Church priest over there."

    "All right."

    Honestly, I didn''t see a need to tie the poor guy up. He was pretty banged up by Leo''s paw. Again, I realized how I overdid it. Meanwhile, Anastasia was murmuring something to herself.

    "To think I admired you for being able to escape after Richard captured me¡­I always thought you were the strongest among us, the most skillful¡­I never thought there would be a day where I would defeat you and restrain you."

    She moved quickly to shove something into Adeline''s mouth before she could bit a poison capsule and kill herself, or bite her tongue off. Being from the same Veneneum Sect, she was aware of the methods they undertook to self-terminate them upon capture. She would have done the same if Feng Hai didn''t deprive her of her toxin capsule.

    Divesting herself of irrelevant thoughts, Anastasia quickly returned her attention to restrain our newly captured hostages.

 187 Chapter 187: Extracting Information

    "Ana, are you finished yet?"

    I straightened up after completing my task.

    "Yeah, I am. Richard¡­"

    Anastasia trailed off when she turned around, a dazed look on her face, as well as a bead of perspiration that was borne out of exasperation. I noticed that how I tied up the poor priest was completely different from the way she tied up her ex-colleague. The Assassin had something in her mouth, and both her hands and leg were bound together. As for the priest, I just bound him simply, like the usual stuff you saw in movies and cartoons.

    "Um, Richard¡­do you know how to tie someone up?"

    "Sorry¡­I never learned how to tie stuff." Actually, they tried to teach me that in the military but my poor sergeant failed spectacularly. Not that I was going to tell Anastasia that. She shook her head and knelt beside the poor priest.

    "You didn''t even tie the proper knots."

    "There are proper knots¡­?"

    My sergeant would smack me if he had heard me say that, especially since he introduced all the weird knots to me. Bowstring knot, or whatever. I couldn''t remember. I never had to, since I was more interested in shooting than tying.

    "I should teach you someday. For now, just look carefully."

    Anastasia untied the knots, removed the rope, and retied the guy. I winced at having wasted my effort and both of our time, but to my amazement Ana completed the task within seconds. Before I knew what was going on, the guy''s hands and feet were bound pretty tightly. Unlike the Assassin, she didn''t stuff anything into his mouth.

    She probably didn''t worry about him biting off his tongue or swallowing any hidden toxic capsule.

    "I''ll start searching the place," I suggested, trying to find a way to make myself useful. Anastasia nodded as she rose to her feet.

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    "Good idea."

    I rummaged through the place while Anastasia checked the bookshelves, presumably looking for anything hidden. Though why the masterminds would deliberately conceal anything in such a manner in their own office, I had no idea. Then again, it was entirely possible that they realized they might be defeated, and thus engaged in such subterfuge. However, common sense would dictate that you destroy your plans or any data regarding your schemes, not hide them.

    But what do I know? I wasn''t a nefarious criminal mastermind who schemed and hid in the shadows. I was just some self-insert character created for wish fulfilment purposes. According to readers, I was stupid and retarded.

    Whatever. For now I should focus on the task. There was a laptop on the desk, and I booted it up while inwardly thanking my lucky stars that Leo didn''t accidentally crush and break the whole thing when he manifested behind the unfortunate priest and subdued him.

    "Don''t touch that!" the priest hissed furiously, his eyes wide when he saw me switch on the laptop. The Assassin, Adeline, glared at him silently but in a resigned manner, as if the guy was an idiot for blatantly giving away the fact that the laptop was a useful piece of evidence. I mean, they could be acting, but I doubted it.

    The guy was too much of an amateur for that, and in any case it was more effective to maintain silence and not react at every little thing than to act dramatically to "divert attention away from the real important thing."

    "Do you know what to look for?" I asked Anastasia as she approached emptyhanded. Seemed like there was nothing worth looking at in the bookshelf. She nodded and accepted the laptop that I handed to her. After clicking and opening a few folders, she finally pulled out something and projected the holographic image in front of us.

    "What the hell is that?"

    I caught sight of an image that looked very familiar. A bunch of monsters, and a holographic screenshot of a very familiar-looking machine. Something that I had once seen on a mountain quite some time ago¡­

    The dragon. Right, weren''t they using a similar machine to try and influence the brainwaves of a Hellfire Drake residing in the mountains?

    "You''ve got to be kidding me," I murmured, especially when I read the lines of text next to the pictures. Dread began to fill me.

    "Richard? What''s wrong?"

    Anastasia was trying to piece the information together, probably reading the capabilities of the machine that was spelled out in all sort of scientific jargon. She hadn''t joined the dots yet, but to be fair she probably had never seen such a machine before.

    "They plan to control monsters," I muttered. "Or at least to influence them to contribute to their goals¡­such as directing the monsters toward a city."

    "They''re targeting Azpire City?!" Anastasia asked, horrified. "Just like what happened with Jing Tian City?"

    I nodded and then glanced at the pictures of the monsters. "They''re using F-ranked Grimstone Goblins, which are an unusually aggressive species of monsters. Even though they are pretty weak, they breed rapidly¡­sort of like rabbits. And it says here¡­" I placed a finger on a line of text that caught my attention when skimming through it. "¡­that this machine has been designed to amplify their aggressiveness and lust."

    "Goblins are known for raping human women and massacring human men¡­" Anastasia was covering her mouth in horror.

    "And this amplifies that behavior into overdrive," I confirmed grimly. My eyes widened when I read the next relevant line. "They''ve got hundreds of them underground?"

    Fuck. That meant I had to hunt them down and root them out manually. I couldn''t just conveniently nuke them from afar before they reached the city. Worse, according to the holographic image, the goblins were already in Azpire City. Or under it, to be more accurate.

    "How many mages are there in Azpire City?" I muttered, dread growing inside me. We needed every combat-capable mage we could get to protect the city. Would I be able to get all of the Goblins before they came to the surface? And when they reached the surface, they would massacre the male civilians and **** the women. It would be a nightmare¡­and while the individual Goblins were pretty easy to slay and defeat, I was more worried about the chaos that would follow. Trying to evacuate and save the panicking, screaming civilians would be a lot more difficult than dealing with the Goblin threat itself.

    The Dark Church had really planned everything out.

    "Ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

    The Dark Church priest was rolling on the floor laughing. Literally. I mean, he was tied up, so¡­

    "Are you sure you should be dawdling in a place like this?" he sneered with a scornful smile. "If you don''t look for the Goblins immediately, this city will be in huge trouble, you know?"

    I glanced at him with narrowed eyes. Even though the holographic text mentioned that the Goblins were underground, they didn''t specify the exact location. They could be in the sewers, but obviously the sewers ran throughout the city. There was also more than one underground facility. Even though we had narrowed it to underground, it would still be like searching for a needle in a haystack.

    "I don''t suppose you''ll be willing to tell us where the Goblins are."

    "Why do you think I''ll possess that knowledge?" the priest shrugged. "The grand plans of the higher-ups are not for one as lowly as I to know."

    He had a point. The higher-ups might have withheld the knowledge from anyone they deemed as not significant enough to know, so as to minimize the chances of leaks.

    "But you must have some idea," Ana said coolly. There was something in her voice that had the priest tense and sweat profusely.

    "No. I swear, they never told me anything! I''m just a grunt!"

    "I suppose you are¡­but why did they give you all this data then? What did they expect you to do with all this data? Hmm?" Anastasia knelt beside the priest, a cold smile on her face. "Isn''t it to prepare the route for the Goblins? To ensure that they get into the city''s bowels undetected? You must have been instructed to disrupt communications, divert traffic and personnel or close off certain underground sections."

    The priest''s face was pale now, but he thinned his lips. Avoiding her eyes, he maintained his silence. Anastasia had evidently pushed a button in him somehow and he was desperately clamping his lips shut.

    He probably was wishing he had learned how to terminate his own life like Adeline did.

    "Do you mind starting from there?" Anastasia asked, her voice dripping with forced sweetness. The guy shut his eyes and trembled, but he looked resigned to his fate.

    Even so, he was determined not to crumble.

    Anastasia raised an eyebrow. "A stubborn one, aren''t you? That''s okay. You''ll eventually tell me everything I want to know."

    She then took out a vial of purplish liquid. The guy blinked and stared at her incredulously. Then he smiled, almost as if in relief.

    "You''re going to poison me? Then threaten me with the antidote? Just kill me already."

    I recalled that Anastasia was from the Veneneum Sect, Assassins who specialized in poison techniques. It made sense that she would be relying on poisons, but somehow I doubted that. Not unless those toxins caused excruciating agony that would turn a man mad and have him desperately beg for the antidote.

    "Nothing so inelegant," Anastasia replied cheerfully. I cocked my head to the side. Upon catching sight of my reaction, she snorted. "What''s the matter, Richard? Did you expect me to pull out a knife and start stabbing him? To cut off his fingers? Then grab a few healing potions to heal him before cutting him up again? That''s so inefficient and time-consuming. We don''t have enough time to break him, not if we want to find those Goblins before they hit the city. And I don''t want to accidentally kill him before he can spill what we need to know."

    "Couldn''t we just find the information from reading all the data here?" I asked dryly. "Instead of wasting time with interrogation and some stupid torture scene from a badly written web novel that somehow got an anime adaptation?"

    Anastasia ignored my jab. "Go ahead and read the whole thing and tell me if you find anything else. Search for any data pertaining to what I had just said about underground facilities, diversion of traffic, closing off sections, etc. That should give us a good place to start."

    "I understand." I complied immediately, sifting through the multiple holographic windows and hoping to locate any sort of clues. Though wouldn''t it be faster if she searched the data with me?

    Ana must have caught the look on my face, for she smiled sinisterly.

    "Don''t worry, I intend to cut down the time taken to extract the relevant information. After all, it''ll be faster if he tells us everything immediately rather than us looking through every text and file for them."

    "Do you think I''ll tell you anything?" the priest taunted. Some distance away, Adeline appeared as if she was sighing in resignation before she turned to look away in disgust at the priest''s bravado. She must have some idea what the liquid in Anastasia''s vials was.

    "You will, after drinking this." Grabbing the guy''s chin, Ana forced his head up and his mouth open before plunging the vial into it. The guy choked and struggled, tears streaming from his eyes, but Ana forced him to swallow it. After a while, she yanked the vial out and allowed the priest to crash onto the ground, gagging and coughing uncontrollably.

    "W¡­what did you make me drink?!" he gasped. Anastasia smiled darkly.

    "A truth serum," she replied simply before patting his shoulder. The priest flinched, but she ignored his reaction. "Now, shall we begin again? You must have some idea where the goblins are right now."

    "Y¡­y...yes¡­"

    Despite himself, the priest spluttered an affirmative in a most unwilling manner.

    "Very good." Anastasia rewarded him with another smile. "Now, can you start listing them, beginning from the most probable location?"

    His eyes bulging in rage and helplessness, the priest began rambling and pouring everything out.

 188 Chapter 188: Underground

    Even as we walked along the underground tunnel, Anastasia placed her hand against the rocky wall.

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    "I knew it," she murmured. "There are traces of magic left on the walls. Someone has definitely been down here."

    "Obviously." I rolled my eyes at her statement of the obvious. "This tunnel is artificial. Someone had to come down here and build it. The question is who was down here and for what purposes?"

    "Ah¡­" Anastasia looked embarrassed. "My bad. I should have been more specific. This feels like dark magic¡­the type of magic that the Dark Church uses, to confound senses and disrupt communication." She smiled when she saw me recall her earlier conversation with the fallen priest. "Yes, exactly the kind of things I was looking for."

    "Then the people who cast the spell are most likely the Dark Church¡­" I conceded and glanced around nervously. "And the Goblins they were gathering must be around here somewhere."

    Anastasia nodded gloomily. I closed my eyes, remembering the other information I had read in the holographic screen. We had copied the data and downloaded it into a thumb drive as well as uploaded it to the cloud just in case, so that the authorities could conduct further investigations. The Azpire City Council had requested that we help track down the Goblins'' nest while the police began evacuations.

    But all of us were aware that if what the information we had obtained was true, we wouldn''t be able to evacuate all of the civilians in time.

    "They triggered an Emergence event to summon all the Goblins underground," I muttered. Then I brightened up. "At least they didn''t summon a Crastrate this time¡­or the city will already be doomed."

    I didn''t want to think about the consequences if Azpire City had an entire hive of Crastrates infesting their underground area. There would be a queen of sorts, and they would be able to wipe out an entire colony¡­uh, city.

    "Goblins are bad enough," Anastasia snapped, her eyes piercing. "The amount of damage they can do when unleashed on the city will still be catastrophic."

    "I''m not denying that," I assured her. "Just thanking the Heavens for small miracles, that''s all. But no matter what, we''ve to stop the Goblins from reaching the surface¡­as best as we can."

    "Agreed."

    Then I suddenly stopped when I caught a whiff of something terrible. Wrinkling my nose, I fought my reflexive desire to gag.

    "Good lord, what the hell is that¡­?"

    Unlike me, Anastasia wasn''t affected. She was merely staring ahead at a bunch of¡­what looked like carrion.

    "Seems like they were feeding the Goblins something," she said frostily. I grimaced as I caught sight of putrid bones sticking out of rotting flesh, doing my best to suppress the nausea that had risen in my gut.

    "Maybe the Goblins will die from food poisoning and we won''t have to deal with them," I suggested hopefully. Anastasia tried to smack my head, but I effortlessly dodge her.

    "Don''t be na?ve. Goblins won''t die from eating such things. They have much tougher digestive systems than humans."

    All monsters did, but that wasn''t the point. Trying to avoid staring at the carcasses, I glanced elsewhere and remembered something.

    "Wait¡­where are the Goblins that fed on those poor beasts?"

    "Not here?" Anastasia answered with a shrug. "I guess they moved on somewhere."

    "¡­to where?"

    "That''s what we''re here for¡­to find out their exact location. Best to keep moving."

    Without any hesitation, Anastasia continued walking forward. I rubbed my cheek and followed her, gingerly making my way through the underground graveyard of rotting carrion. Doing my best not to accidentally step on them, I proceeded toward the end of the corridor. My shoe squelched against something, making me flinch, but I didn''t complain.

    Anastasia must have nerves of steel, to walk through this damned, foul place without any emotion. Once again I was reminded that she was an Assassin. She must be very used to death. Such a gruesome scene didn''t affect her anymore.

    In some ways I found that pitiful. Looking at Anastasia, she appeared to be an ordinary girl. Extremely beautiful, yes, but other than that she didn''t seem very different from most girls her age. Alicia came to mind, for some reason. If Anastasia wasn''t an Assassin, she would be attending school like us, hanging out with female friends, gossiping about romance and maybe admiring guys from afar. She wouldn''t be involved in this dark business of death and violence.

    I was aware that I was being super-na?ve and unnecessarily idealistic. What happened had already happened. There was no changing Anastasia''s past, no matter how much I wished for it. Nor could she could simply forget the assassination skills she had mastered and suddenly switch to a new vocation.

    For now, we should focus on the present. Once we saved Azpire from a Goblin Apocalypse, then only could we worry about Anastasia''s future.

    Fortunately, we didn''t have to spend too much time traversing the field of carrion. It terminated abruptly, and after putting a good distance between ourselves and the revolting place, I found myself able to breathe properly again.

    "The trail of magic leads that way," Anastasia pointed out when we reached a fork. She had been unaffected the entire time and was coolly leading the way. However, I raised an eyebrow skeptically when I realized the implications of what she was saying.

    "Do you think the human mages¡­the Dark Church dudes are herding the Goblins, using magic?" That was a disturbing thought. If so, that it meant that the Dark Church had perfected their technology to the point where they could control low-ranked monsters at least.

    Anastasia considered the possibility for a moment, and then shook her head.

    "This sort of magic is usually used to disrupt and confound the senses, to conceal the user from others," she explained. I nodded. The only reason why Anastasia could detect the spells was because she was trained to do so¡­probably to locate her assassination targets despite their best attempts to hide from her. "I think it''s more likely that the Dark Church mages concealed their presence from the Goblins and observed them from a distance. If necessary, they''ll take steps to influence the Goblins or nudge them in the direction they want the creatures to go, using the technology that you were talking about earlier. But I doubt they were actively commanding the monsters."

    That was a relief. It meant that the enemy wasn''t omnipotent.

    "The trail seems to be ending soon. I think we''re close."

    Not paying any attention to me exhaling, Anastasia continued to focus on the search. I glanced up, and using the high-end sensors and functions on my glasses, which displayed a tiny holographic map on the lenses, I located a door.

    "You''re probably right. I see an entrance to something over there."

    The infrared vision revealed what seemed like hundreds of throbbing life signs behind the door. Gulping, I briefly informed Anastasia.

    She nodded, unsurprised. "That should be what we''re looking for." Then she frowned. "Does the Azpire City Council really expect the two of us to kill all hundreds of Goblins by ourselves?"

    "I think they''ve heard about me and my Strategic-scale spell and got carried away¡­forgetting that I can''t nuke them if they''re underground."

    "Oh, right." Anastasia giggled. "The slayer of three thousand monsters. Of course they would think hundreds of Goblins are nothing to you. You are the man who achieved such an incredible feat, after all."

    "That doesn''t change the fact that I can''t nuke them when they''re underground," I repeated dryly, to emphasize the point. Anastasia sighed and nodded again.

    "Yes, indeed. But we''ll still have to go and do something."

    "Agreed."

    It didn''t take us too long before we found ourselves standing in front of the nine-meter door my glasses had spotted earlier. Anastasia held out a hand to stop me.

    "Don''t do anything reckless like summoning a Soul Beast and smashing the door down, please. I know we''re in a hurry, but they might have a different kind of booby trap. One that might be dangerous even to your Soul Beasts."

    "Then how do you suggest we go in?" I asked, trying not to sound sarcastic but failing. "Should we go knock on the door politely?"

    Anastasia gave me a withering stare. "You''ve never been on a stealth mission before, have you?"

    "Of course not."

    She sighed and shook her head. "Just leave it to me, all right?"

    I bowed exaggeratedly and gestured for her to take the lead. "All yours, Ana."

    Rolling her eyes, Anastasia stepped forward cautiously. She was obviously looking out for traps, or for anything out of place.

    Unfortunately, she seemed to be looking at the wrong places.

    The moment she stepped on a particular block that made up the concrete floor, a gigantic magic circle materialized below her and suffused the entire chamber in an eerie green and crimson glow. Ana narrowed her eyes and immediately jumped back, but she was too late.

    "I knew it," she hissed under her breath. "This whole place is booby-trapped!"

    Unfortunately, it was too late. She had triggered the trap, and now something was emerging from the magic circle. I immediately recognized it as a summoning spell. I mean, I had to. I was a summoner, after all.

    "Watch out!" I shouted, but Anastasia was already moving. A gigantic silhouette pulled itself out of the magic circle and swung a massive arm at the former Assassin, but she effortlessly dodged it, jumping high in the air and gracefully flipping herself over.

    "A Golem, huh?" she remarked, as if it was nothing more than a nuisance. She was correct. The brown, rocky humanoid creature that was dragging itself out of the magic circle was a Golem. About five meters tall and half as wide, the bulky behemoth was a mass of solid rock. Despite its slow speed and clumsiness, its swinging arms struck with the force of a freight train, gouging chunks of concrete out from the underground walls.

    If we didn''t take it down soon, it would end up causing a cave-in and wipe us out along with itself.

    Anastasia didn''t seem too worried. Even as the Golem swatted at her again, she elegantly evaded it. While soaring in midair, she drew two poisoned daggers. Twisting herself around, she planted her feet on the stone ceiling before launching herself at the clumsily lumbering Golem and slashed with both of her deadly weapons.

    Clang!

    It was testament to her skill that she managed to chip off huge amounts of rock from her target. The Golem grunted and tried to turn to follow her, but she was already rolling away. Glancing up, she clicked her tongue in irritation.

    "I should have known that poison would have no effect on a Golem."

    The Golem finally turned to face her and it swung its huge fist to pulverize her. Anastasia simply leaped up and landed on its rocky arm before running along the length of the limb. The Golem shuddered and tried to swipe her away with its other arm, but the moment she reached its shoulder, she did a cartwheel and launched herself away, narrowly avoiding getting struck by several tons of solid rock.

    "Ana! Are you all right?" I asked as I hurried toward her. She rolled her eyes.

    "Of course I''m all right. I''m a former Assassin, remember?" she then placed her hands on her hips. "What, did you expect me to fall over in fear and become too afraid to move like some damsel in distress just so you can play the hero and rescue me?"

    "No." I was gaping at her. "Where did you get the idea from?"

    "From some badly written web novel that somehow got popular enough to get officially published as a light novel and have an anime adaptation."

    I didn''t know Ana watched anime and read web novels too. She was definitely a keeper.

    "Anyway, my poison doesn''t work on the Golem," she informed me as she retreated from the slowly turning summoned beast. "Do you mind if I leave this blockhead to you?"

    "Already on it," I assured her, and at that instant I completed my summoning spell.

 189 Chapter 189: Dark Schemes

    Before the Golem could start lumbering toward us, Ursa Major materialized and barreled right into it. The two titans crashed into the ground, wrestling ferociously with each other. However, Ursa Major seemed to have the edge despite being made of flesh and blood instead of rock. His claws gouged out huge chunks of stone, causing the Golem to bellow in pain.

    "Back, back!" I told Anastasia frantically, but my instructions were useless. Unlike a certain anime heroine, she knew how to take care of herself. What, did you think she was suddenly going to forget all the skills of her previous professionalism just so she could play the damsel in distress for me to save? This wasn''t a wish-fulfilment story designed to inflate the egos of males. Girls could kick ass as well as any guy.

    She was already hopping backward, gracefully avoiding the debris of concrete and rock that were hurled about as Ursa Major and the Golem slugged each other. Even though Ursa Major''s claws left huge rents in the Golem''s stony hide, the Golem itself didn''t seem to have taken much damage. Growling, it charged into Ursa Major and knocked him aside. The huge bear found himself sprawled on the ground, and the Golem seized the opportunity to clasp its massive hands and smash down on him.

    However, Ursa Major quickly rolled to the side. The Golem''s combined hands left a crater in the ground, but otherwise didn''t hit my Constellation spirit.

    And I had someone else waiting for him.

    "¡­?"

    Grunting, the Golem straightened up, only to find Canis Major waiting in front of it.

    "Canis Major, Sirius attack!" I commanded. The huge hunting hound''s jaws yawned and an intense blast of mana rushed onward, engulfing the Golem. The Golem bellowed in rage and pain, but then vanished under the overwhelming onslaught of destruction before exploding.

    Boom!

    Shards of rock rained down on the scorched crater. There wasn''t much left of the poor Golem, except maybe charred boulders here and there.

    "Richard¡­"

    Anastasia was shaking her head in amazement. She folded her arms under her big breasts and giggled.

    "I thought you would just punch the Golem and destroy it with brute force."

    "Who do you think I am? I''m a summoner. Since when do summoners go around fighting with raw strength?" I rolled my eyes. "I''m not a summoner just because I have a tiny wind spirit following me around to allow me to cast wind magic or because I can physically reinforce myself. I mean, I know physical reinforcement spells, but that''s not the point. I''m a summoner because I can summon a variety of Soul Beasts."

    "Yeah, yeah¡­" Anastasia shrugged nonchalantly and clapped. "Good job. You want a reward?"

    "Depends on what kind of reward," I replied cheekily. Ana rolled her eyes and then pointed toward the front.

    "I''ll consider throwing in a little bonus after you complete the job, but for now let''s focus on it. Look at that."

    I followed the direction she was pointing her finger at and saw that the massive doors were now open, as if inviting us to enter.

    "Since they''ve taken the trouble to open the doors for us, shall we take them up on their offer?" Anastasia''s tone was light, considering we had just fought a Golem.

    "It might be a trap," I warned, holding back both Ursa Major and Canis Major. My two Constellation spirits were bristling, revealing their gritted fangs and growling at the space beyond the open doors.

    There was definitely something sinister within, all right. That sense of foreboding increased as the doors opened wider.

    "Wow¡­you really are strong."

    A young, feminine voice came from within. A¡­child? Are you kidding me? What the hell was a child doing in a place like this?

    Then again, appearances could be deceiving. With magic, or the Deceivum techniques, anyone can alter their physical appearances or voices. It was but a simple task to conceal your identity with any shapeshifting spell.

    So I merely snorted and retorted.

    "It''s your Golem that''s weak."

    "¡­so big brother, you''re Richard?"

    A second young, female voice joined in. I frowned, trying to probe into the darkness with my glasses, but there were way too many heat signatures crowding the screen on my lenses for me to pinpoint the exact location of the speakers.

    "If I say no, would you believe me?" I asked dryly. If they already knew my name, then they must have done some research on me. Damn, after all those attacks on the Dark Church, I had become pretty much a celebrity within their circle.

    As both Anastasia and I cautiously stepped inside, the view of the chamber came clearly into view. There were dozens of green, glowing things in the vast space, all of them looking like¡­enormous eggs.

    Suddenly I was reminded of the Crastrates.

    "I told they were supposed to be Goblins," I muttered with a frown. "Why are all of them inside eggs?"

    "Genetic engineering¡­" Anastasia whispered. "Similar to the magic technology the Frenzor Sect uses to surgically enhance their Assassins. They are experimenting on monsters!"

    "Oh¡­this big sister knows a lot, doesn''t she?"

    "Of course she does¡­she''s an Assassin that we hired."

    Both Anastasia and I glanced up and finally tracked the source of the voices. Two little girls, about eight or nine, were standing near the top, in the middle of all those eggs. They looked like twins, with identical hairstyles, except that one wore her short ponytail to the right and the other wore her short ponytail to the left.

    "You know them?" I asked Ana, who shrugged. "Your employers?"

    "It is my sect master and superiors who had most contact with the employers and the signing of the contact. We subordinates just go and execute whatever orders we''re given." Anastasia then paused. "And I''m no longer an Assassin."

    "Heh¡­you aren''t?"

    "That''s strange. Our info told you were one."

    "Ah! I know! She decided to elope with that big brother over there!"

    "I see! How romantic!"

    Both the girls were practically dancing in glee, clasping their hands together as they spun about atop the hideous green network of pulsing material.

    Yeah, this looked like a hive to me, no matter how you spun it. Any time now I half-expected a queen monster to come bursting out along with her praetorian guards. Sucked that I didn''t have an automatic rifle, an underslung grenade launcher and a flamethrower, though.

    What I did have was my Constellation spirits. Ursa Major and Canis Major followed me warily, their snouts sniffing the putrid air and wrinkling.

    "Oh, how cute!"

    "Look, we have more guests!"

    "Then let''s welcome them!"

    "Good idea!"

    The two girls danced about and did a curtesy.

    "Welcome to Mell¡­"

    "¡­and Nell''s room!"

    With that, the two girls began giggling creepily and in an annoying manner that made me want to slap them.

    "So you sleep here?" I asked dryly, looking around at the revolting place. "And I thought the cheap basement room I rented out in my previous life was bad¡­"

    "Huh? Why would we sleep here?"

    "This is our room, but not our bedroom!"

    "Why are you even answering his question seriously¡­?" Anastasia was resting a hand on her forehead and sighing in exasperation.

    "So, Mell and Nell, right?" I asked, and the two girls perked up when I called their names. I gestured at the eggs. "So I''m guessing you''ve been left in charge of taking care of all these eggs and Goblins?"

    "That''s right! We were the one who triggered the Emergence event and gathered as many Goblins as possible! Then we put them in all these eggs as Uncle Solomon requested!"

    "Using our earth magic! That Golem you saw earlier is a Soul Beast summoned by us too!"

    The two girls were sure loose-lipped, but I could use that to my advantage. Especially since one of their revelations caught my attention.

    "Who is this Solomon? Is he the leader of the Dark Church?"

    "Uncle Solomon is Uncle Solomon!"

    "Uncle Solomon takes good care of us!"

    I wasn''t sure how giving goblins to a couple of young children and asking them to watch over them was "taking good care of them" but whatever. I hadn''t become a parent or guardian yet, and was thus in no position to criticize one.

    "I haven''t heard of this Solomon either," Anastasia revealed uneasily, chewing her lip as she glanced around. "Actually, I didn''t know the Dark Church''s schemes have progressed this much. And those girls¡­even though they''re so young, they already know summoning magic?"

    "Not just summoning magic, breeding and grooming magic too!"

    "We''ve been designed and raised to enhance the power of monsters!"

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    The two girls were puffing out their chests proudly before turning to each other and slapping a double high-five.

    "Okay, cool." As a summoner, that actually sounded like the perfect set of skills to have. Not only could they summon Soul Beasts, they could also enhance their capabilities. I would love to do that with my Constellation spirits, but I had never heard of grooming or breeding magic before. It was possible the girls made them up¡­or they were different from what I was currently assuming them to be. In any case, I decided to address the predicament at present. "So what do you intend to do with all these Goblins that you''ve bred and groomed?

    "We''ll awake the Goblins!"

    "And set them upon the city!"

    Behind me, Anastasia gasped in shock. She probably couldn''t reconcile such malicious actions with the incongruously innocent and playful tone. As for me, this was turning out to be a clich¨¦ scene from some anime, so I merely raised an eyebrow.

    I can''t say I didn''t expect that answer. This Solomon wouldn''t have assigned the Goblins to these children if he didn''t think they would do what he asked of them.

    "¡­I knew it¡­"

    However, Anastasia was far from convinced. Outraged, she glared at the two children.

    "Do you know what will happen if you do that?!"

    "Of course we know!" Mell replied cheerfully. "The Goblins have been commanded to **** the women until they break!"

    "And the Goblins have been ordered to kill all the men and children and eat them!" Nell added, joining her twin sister in some weird dance of delight.

    "Wait, you can order the Goblins?" I asked skeptically. "I''m pretty sure they still haven''t found a way to control the monsters yet, even rank F ones."

    "Hah! You''re just an idiot for not knowing who we are!" Mell puffed out her chest proudly.

    "We are to be future Apostles!" Nell also looked pretty arrogant.

    Anastasia and I exchanged bemused glances. "Apostles?" I asked uncertainly.

    "The top twelve mages of the Dark Church!"

    "We''re being groomed to be their successors one day!"

    "That''s why they''re leaving such an important mission to us!"

    "We will never let them down!"

    The two girls seemed pretty certain of their status in the Dark Church. I sort of could understand a little why they were here. It was entirely possible that the higher-ups in the Dark Church saw this as a trial, a test for the children they were raising to be their organization''s elite mages. No wonder they had all sort of fancy magic.

    "Besides¡­!" Mell produced a weird crystal ball. "We have this!"

    "That''s right!" Nell took the crystal ball and played with it, passing it back to her sister and taking it again several times. "We can use this to give orders to the Goblins!"

    ¡­that looked like an ordinary crystal ball with no functions to me, but I wasn''t one to shatter the innocent dreams of cruel children.

    "The poor kids." I shook my head and said to a horrified Anastasia. "They''ve been deceived. This isn''t going to end well for them."

    Well, they reaped what the sowed.

    "You''re just jealous that we can control Goblins and you can''t!" Mell shouted. Ha ha ha ha! Little lady, did you actually think I would be jealous of you for being able to control Goblins? Why would I need Goblins when I already have an army of Constellation spirits at my beck and call?

    "It doesn''t matter. Both the big brother and big sister will die here!" Nell crowed.

    "That''s right! Let''s do it!"

    "Yeah!"

    The two girls held the crystal ball together and raised it high into the air. I watched as it began glowing an ominous verdant.

    ""Awaken!"" both girls cried out in a shrill but cheerful and playful voice that echoed across the chamber. ""Everyone, wake up!""

    "Ugh¡­" I buried my face in my forehead. "Those idiots actually went and did it."

    Then I frowned. Actually, why did they wait for me and Anastasia to arrive before they awakened the Goblins? If they had the ability to do so, they could have done it any time before Anastasia and I got here. Why wait dramatically for us to arrive before deliberately pulling such a comical performance in front of us?

    Perhaps this Solomon wanted to make fun of us, to show us despair or some bullshit or that. If so, he was going to kick himself for wanting to get all dramatic when his plan failed. I mean, he could have awakened the Goblins a while ago and set them on the city, and it would be extremely difficult for both me and Anastasia to stem the tide and stop them from reaching the surface.

    But no, he decided to show off, and conveniently had all the Goblins gathered in one spot for me and Ana to deal with. I didn''t know whether to be grateful or amused. Perhaps both.

    Maybe that wasn''t his plan, but the kids being willful and stupid. If that was the case, then Solomon was still an idiot for leaving such an important plan to kids.

 190 Chapter 190: Goblin Slayer

    The eerie light flooded the chamber with a weird luminous glow that suffused the walls in sickly green. The capillary network pulsed and throbbed beneath the eggs, and they all began to hatch. Goblins tore their way through the leathery carapace, spilling out onto the ground as amniotic fluids slushed from their bodies and former containers.

    Bursting into open air for the first time in a long while, the Goblins began roaring and growling in the most fake manner possible. You know, like those poorly paid voice actors bumbling their roles in a cheaply produced anime adaptation.

    "Richard, these aren''t normal Goblins," Anastasia warned me, her voice tense.

    "Gee, you think?" I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes. "Goblins don''t usually hatch from eggs and receive grooming magic, right?"

    "Grimstone Goblins," Anastasia continued, ignoring my sarcasm. "They are known for their ability to breed rapidly and their versatility. They are adaptable to any environments and can evolve more easily than most monsters¡­"

    "So that''s why the Dark Church chose them for their experiments." I suddenly understood the implications. "Oh, that sucks."

    Hundreds of them began stepping forward¡­well, that number might be an exaggeration. There was probably less than a hundred in this chamber alone. Several dozens, yes, but not yet into the hundreds.

    That meant¡­

    "Are there more of these birthing rooms around?" I asked the giggling twin girls at the top of the Goblin nest, while putting myself between Anastasia and the Goblins in reflex. If they got me, I would just die, but Anastasia would probably face an ordeal far worse than death.

    "We have no reason to tell you now, do we?" Mell taunted.

    "But there''s more Goblins than just here!" Nell added gleefully, earning a smack from her twin. Yeah, she just gave me the answer I was seeking.

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I smiled. "Did someone say goblins?"

    If only I had a certain pal in armor who specialized in exterminating these pests by my side...oh well. I see. I guess I''ll have to do things my way then.

    Ursa Major swiped and obliterated the first wave of Goblins with a single paw, reducing them into blood and guts. Canis Major incinerated a batch of Goblin with his Sirius attack, and then pounced on a pitiful group, tearing and ripping them apart. I called forth more Constellation spirits, unleashing a pack of Canis Minor and a herd of Ursa Minor on the unfortunate creatures. Within seconds, the first batch of newly hatched Goblins were eliminated.

    Behind me, Anastasia sliced through several stragglers, her poisoned blades causing the poor things to turn from green to purple. Writhing about, the poisoned Goblins crashed onto the ground, clutching their throats and foaming at their mouths.

    "Even when enhanced, they are still vulnerable to poison," Anastasia remarked. She could really take care of herself. She glanced at me and snorted. "What? Did you think I''ll just stand around and do nothing except let you protect me? What''s the point of me coming along if I''m going to be so damned useless? If I leave all the bloody work to you, then what''s the point of creating this elaborate backstory about me being an Assassin in the past? Just because you happen to be a male protagonist, that doesn''t mean I''m going to suddenly forget all my skills and turn into a damsel in distress waiting for you to rescue me."

    "I feel like I''ve heard that complaint several times already," I muttered. Anastasia shrugged.

    "That''s because it happened several times in the badly written web novel and its anime adaptation."

    "All right, can we stop talking about that trashy series and focus on fighting?"

    "Sure." Anastasia slit the throat of a last Goblin, causing it to go into spasms. "Except that we''ve pretty much cleaned out all the enemies."

    "Heh¡­"

    Both of the girls marveled when they saw that all the Goblins had been massacred one-sidedly. I began to have my doubts that they really did anything to groom or enhance the Goblins. They still felt so weak. Nonetheless, the girls didn''t seem surprised.

    "You''re really strong!" Mell acknowledged.

    "But that''s still not enough!" Nell crowed.

    The crystal ball in their hands glowed green again. A more sickly green than before, which kind of reminded me about those clich¨¦ cartoons about gamma radiation. Not that gamma radiation was green, but apparently they designated it as such because of the Incredible Hulk. But gamma rays did not have any color, at least not that the human eye could decipher.

    Never mind, I was going off into a tangent here.

    More eggs hatched. And this time, the number really did go above a hundred. Goblins filled the room for as far as I could see, and once again I wished I had a reliable Goblin Slayer friend with me.

    Fortunately, I had a bunch of other friends to help me.

    While my pack of Ursa Minor and Canis Minor, each led by Ursa Major and Canis Major, were massacring the increased number of Goblins without difficulty, I also reinforced their numbers by calling forth more Constellation spirits. Taurus manifested in front of me and unleashed Aldebaran, incinerating large swathes of Goblins. Those few stragglers who somehow got too near to me were cut down by my Gemini twin swords.

    Behind me, Anastasia''s twin daggers twirled and cut. The two of us drew close and continued to fight back-to-back against wave after wave of Goblins, each of us covering the other''s blind spot. A Goblin that sprang at Anastasia''s back was cleaved into two by my Castor. Another Goblin that launched a surprise attack at the back of my head had its throat slit by Ana. In this way, the both of us formed a flawless partnership that drove the bulk of the Goblins back, only for the little critters to be picked off by my Constellation spirits at leisure.

    Strange. Even though this was the first time we were fighting together, our movements were so coordinated and our attacks were so in sync that it was hard to believe that we had only met for the second time a couple of days ago.

    Aries and Capricorn joined the fun to, and before long, Leo and his pride of Leo Minor were hunting down fleeing Goblins, tracking down to the recesses of the room and flushing them out. The end was finally in sight¡­

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    The twin screams of the two girls caught my attention. Judging from the way she tensed behind me, Anastasia heard it two. Both of us turned to watch as the now-transparent crystal ball, which was no longer glowing an eerie green, dropped all the way from the top to roll onto the bottom.

    "Not me!"

    "Not me either!"

    Mell and Nell were also fighting back-to-back, swarmed by a horde of berserk Goblins. The Grimstone Goblins shrugged off whatever spells the pathetic sisters were throwing at them and charged forward. Within seconds, they were upon the two girls, who screamed and thrashed violently as the humanoid monsters tore at them, ripping both clothing and fabric.

    "Please save me!"

    "Save me too!"

    The sisters were wailing now, unable to fight off the onslaught of Goblins. Anastasia looked at them coldly, then resumed her own battle for survival against a cluster of Goblins that had thought to capitalize on the slight opening she showed. Not that it was a real opening ¨C it turned out to be a feint as Ana sliced through the stupid group with her daggers.

    "Why?!"

    "NOOO!!!!"

    They reaped what they sowed. They thought to breed monsters and unleash them upon the city''s civilians, and now when they became the victims, they wanted to be saved? What nonsense. If the civilians were the ones begging them to stop, and to hold the monsters back, there was no doubt the two girls would deliberately taunt them before ordering their Goblins to kill and **** everyone.

    I left them to their fates. They deserved what they got. Just because they were little girls didn''t mean they should be forgiven for their crimes. They sought to murder and **** people, and now they were getting those done to them.

    Mercifully for the censors, whatever happened to the screaming, struggling girls was completely obscured by the mass of Goblins that had piled on top of them. I turned away from their grisly demise and grimly resumed fighting the few Goblins that remained around me, Anastasia and my small army of Constellation spirits.

    Still¡­

    I glanced at the broken crystal ball, which had been stomped on by one of the rampaging Goblins before it got crushed in turn by Capricorn. I couldn''t believe that this Solomon lied to even kids under his charge, telling them that it was a device that could control the Goblins.

    "Clearly they still have yet to master the technology to control and command monsters, eh?" I remarked.

    "Worried?" Anastasia giggled as she flipped over to avoid getting hit by a Goblin''s club, kicking it in the jaw and sending it staggering. Before it could recover, she carved its throat apart and sent it toppling over. "That will take away your monopoly on summoning magic, wouldn''t it?"

    "It also poses a significant risk and weakness. Destroy the device and what happens? The monsters go out of control, and becomes a danger to both its former controller and his enemies alike. Though¡­" I glanced at the heaving pile of Goblins at where the twins used to be. "¡­I guess the Dark Church doesn''t care about that, huh?"

    Their screams had faded quite some time ago, but now that the rest of the Goblins had been exterminated, there were no other enemies in sight. I felt as if I had done Goblin Slayer proud. I could half-imagine the armored guy giving me a silent thumb''s up.

    "Taurus. End their misery."

    I wasn''t sure what the Goblins were doing to those two girls, and didn''t want to know either. If they were lucky, the Goblin killed them immediately and were now feasting on their corpses. If they were unlucky¡­well, I would leave that to the readers'' twisted imaginations.

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    "Aldebaran!"

    Taurus obliged and incinerated them all, both the twins and the Goblins. The creatures howled for a second before they were reduced to ash. Mell and Nell, however, didn''t make a sound. They were most likely already dead, and if they weren''t¡­then they were worse than dead and I probably helped them by putting them out of their misery.

    "Ana? What are you doing?"

    I was surprised when Anastasia leaped to the top of the chamber, landing next to the smoldering corpses of the two kids. The two girls had been burned beyond recognition, their ravaged bodies smoldering from the heat. Even so, Anastasia knelt down and began rummaging through their scorched clothes, not at all affected by the intense temperatures.

    "Here¡­"

    Anastasia inserted her hand into Mell''s (or was it Nell?) pocket and pulled out her smartphone. It was warped from the heat, but still relatively intact. No matter. A little bit of magic was all we needed for it to work.

    "That''s¡­?" I raised an eyebrow, and then suddenly smiled in understanding. "Ah¡­you want the data inside their smartphone."

    "You''re learning, Richard." Ana gave me her usual dazzling smile as she hopped down to rejoin me. "We should be able to find the other birthing chambers with the information inside here."

    "Great." I dismissed my Constellation spirits and began following her out of the chamber. As an added precaution, I turned around and sterilized the area with Alnasl from my Sagittarius bow, bringing the entire place down and engulfing it in a hellish inferno to make sure nothing survived. Turning back to Ana, who was busily hooking the smartphone up to the same hacking device I saw Dad used back in the mountains overseas, I exhaled wearily. "We should hurry and find them before they hatch."

    "Yeah." Anastasia nodded, her eyes rapidly skimming through the massive reams of data that were being projected upward into a holographic screen. "It''s going to be a long night."

 191 Chapter 191: Daybreak

    I slowly stirred awake, rubbing my eyes groggily before reaching for my glasses and putting them on. People still asked me why I wore them ¨C it was because I could put all sorts of cool functions in them, like infrared vision, motion detector, visual sensors, targeting systems etc.

    Blinking the sleep out of my eyes, I became aware of a slight weight on my shoulder. Anastasia had dozed off right beside me, her head leaning on my left shoulder and her body tilting in my direction. She was wrapping her hands around my arm for some reason, as if it was some hug-pillow or stuffed animal.

    Oh, right. We spent the whole night and wee hours of the morning hunting through the underground passageway of Azpire City, using the data to locate and root out the Goblin nests. Thankfully, there weren''t any awakened Goblins and they were still slumbering inside their eggs. Without the twins to wake them up, they remained dormant.

    Obviously we couldn''t just leave sleeping monsters lying around underneath Azpire City, so we destroyed each and every one of them, demolishing the rooms they were in and sealing them for eternity. Okay, that was a bit of an exaggeration, but at least we did our part to minimize the chances that someone would come along and resurrect them as an undead monster army to terrorize the poor city from below.

    After we combed through all the locations specified in the data that Anastasia extracted from Mell and Nell''s smartphone, we were too exhausted to return to the surface. We were literally running about the entire space of the city, albeit underground, without any stop or rest. Our smartphones received no signal this deep down and we couldn''t make a call or contact the people on the surface. We would have to report to Feng Hai at the very least.

    But we were so, very tired¡­he would forgive us for taking a short break, right?

    "Gah?!"

    As it turned out, it wasn''t a "short" break. The moment I looked at my smartphone to check for the time, I received a rude shock. We had been asleep for almost twelve hours. It was already past evening. We had stopped to rest at 9am and now it was almost 9pm. We must have exhausted ourselves to oblivion.

    "Hmm?"

    Anastasia was muttering something in her sleep, and then she shifted her head. Opening her eyes, she glanced at me for a moment, and then smiled.

    "Good morning, Richard."

    "It''s already night, though?!"

    "Eh? It is?" Anastasia calmly checked her smartphone and frowned. "Oh, you''re right. We must have been more tired than we thought."

    She stood up and stretched herself, creaking her neck from side to side to ease the tense muscles.

    "We should hurry to the surface and report to the boss."

    "Oh yeah¡­but even though we''ve eliminated the Goblin threat, we still have yet to find out what the Assassin''s target was, or who the Assassin was¡­"

    "We''ll slowly look through the data once we get back to the hotel," Anastasia assured me. "But for now, the both of us could use a bath and a change of clothes, wouldn''t you say?"

    "Ah¡­"

    She had a good point. After all that running around underground and fighting off hordes of Goblins (well, only the first time, but we still had to work hard in exterminating the nests and their eggs), we were pretty grimy and sweaty.

    I hoped I didn''t stink too much.

    "Let''s go."

    Anastasia offered me a hand, which I accepted gratefully, and pulled me to my feet. As Anastasia cheerfully spun around to lead the way out of the underground tunnel, her dress flitting around her ankles, I was suddenly reminded of Alicia.

    Of course the two girls were completely different, almost polar opposites of each other. Anastasia was a lot more aggressive, bolder and more confident, whereas Alicia was a lot more reserved and passive. Aside from that first kiss, Alicia didn''t really take the initiative. Obviously I also shouldered some of the responsibility for being passive, but because the both of us didn''t actively reach out, we didn''t really start dating until pretty much later. Our personalities and mannerisms were somewhat similar. On the other hand, Anastasia was always openly clinging to me or seizing every opportunity to get physically close.

    I wasn''t going to start taking things for granted and assume, though. It was entirely possible that Anastasia had her own motives for trying to get close to me. It was also possible that she behaved this way to any guy, or was teasing me without any real intention of getting into a serious relationship. She was a former Assassin, after all. She had been trained in the art of seduction and luring men to lower their guard around her.

    She could possibly be behaving this way unconsciously without realizing the deeper implications of physical intimacy. I would feel so embarrassed if I asked her if she was interested in me, and she looked at me as if I was an idiot before saying something along the lines of, "you? I like you, you''re a nice guy, but I''ve never thought of you as a potential romantic interest before."

    Yeah, if that happened, I would want to crawl into a hole and die.

    We managed to get to the upper levels of the underground complex we were currently in, following the corridor toward a flight of utility stairs. We had already ascended a ladder and another set of stairs earlier, and if my memory served me correctly, we should be about one or two levels away from the surface.

    Then my smartphone vibrated, notifying me of several missed calls and an urgent text message from Feng Hai, asking me to contact him as soon as possible. Anastasia also received the same thing, her pretty face scrunched when she stared at her incessantly shaking smartphone.

    "They must be really worried about us," I remarked dryly. "I''m so touched."

    "I wonder if that''s the case." Anastasia frowned as she studied the list of missed calls. Okay, that was an exaggeration. The both of us only received about two missed calls each. "Something tells me it''s not so simple."

    "Well, I guess we''re about to find out."

    Swiping across the screen of my smartphone, I conjured a huge holographic screen as I began calling Feng Hai. It didn''t take long for him to answer. After a few seconds, Feng Hai''s worried face filled the screen.

    "Oh, the both of you are all right!" he exclaimed, relieved, when he caught sight of the two of us. Both Anastasia and I exchanged puzzled glances.

    "Why wouldn''t we be?" Okay, that was a stupid question, but still¡­ "We informed you yesterday that we will be proceeding underground to wipe out the Goblin nests, and that it might take quite some time. We also told you about the possibility that we would be beyond communication range because of the underground environment."

    "Yes, yes. You did. Of course." Feng Hai nodded fervently. Anastasia and I continued to share a bewildered gaze at his reaction. However, Feng Hai turned serious and stared at the both of us intensely. "As of 10.16am, today morning, we lost all contact with the operatives we had in Azpire City. We also lost communication with the entire city¡­as if there was a communications blackout. There was also reports of monster attacks shortly before all contact was lost, and any reinforcements we sent toward the city have met heavy resistance on the way there."

    "Goblins?" I asked, feeling deflated. Despite our efforts we were still unable to eliminate all the Goblins before they emerged to the surface and wreaked havoc.

    "No." Anastasia shook her head. "Even if there were Goblins who somehow escaped our net and hatched, there is no way they would be able to cause a total communications blackout."

    "Anastasia is correct," Feng Hai agreed grimly. "And more than that¡­before we lost contact, the monsters attacking weren''t Goblins but Hellhounds and Bloodhounds. There were reports of Revenants and Grim Ghouls as well. Mostly rank D and C monsters, but there were no sightings of any rank B or rank A monsters, which makes this even more peculiar."

    In other words, there wasn''t any monster powerful enough to destroy a city''s standing militia and security forces present. Theoretically, anyway.

    Then what could have caused the total silence of an entire city?

    "Ana and I will go investigate," I offered. "Since we''re the closest operatives on hand."

    "And the only ones," Anastasia added gloomily as she folded her arms.

    "Be careful, the both of you." Feng Hai''s expression turned very strict. "We don''t know what''s out there, and what caused this communication blackout. We''re still sending reinforcements, but we''ll have to break through the monster blockade that has surrounded the city."

    "Understood." I saluted. "We''ll send any information we can get as soon as possible. You should be able to get the data transmitted from my glasses once I get up there."

    My glasses had a satellite function installed, which constantly beamed what I was seeing during missions. Obviously I turned it off when not during a mission or whenever I wanted privacy, but otherwise it would continue to stream visual and audio data that it recorded when I was out in the battlefield. That was how Jing Tian Academy monitored its students during missions in any case. It was only natural that mercenaries and the military also had similar devices.

    They could be installed anywhere, on com beads, weapons, the uniform, a Swiss army knife or even backpack. I just chose my glasses as the recording device because it was the most convenient and offered the most accurate recordings.

    "The top priority is for you both to stay alive, not to transmit intelligence, if you sense that you''re in danger, or you meet an overwhelming opponent, retreat. Do not engage. Withdraw to safety. Contact me only when you''re in safety."

    "But if we believe we have a chance of defeating the enemy, are we allowed to engage?" I asked, just to be sure. Feng Hai hesitated for a second, and then nodded.

    "I guess. If it''s just low and mid-ranking monsters, then go ahead and wipe them out." He scowled. "I know you''re capable of defeating high-ranking monsters, but still¡­be careful."

    "Yes, sir." I snapped off a salute.

    "Don''t worry, Leader." Anastasia was smiling. "I''m a former Assassin. If all it takes to save the city is to cut off the head, that should suit my specialized set of skills. It doesn''t matter whether it''s a high-ranking monster or the head of the Dark Church himself. Unless they have immunity to poison, I should be able to eliminate them without too much difficulty."

    "Assuming they let you get too close to them." Feng Hai narrowed his eyes. "Remember that you''re not invincible."

    "How can I forget? My partner is the very guy who defeated me." Anastasia giggled as she lay a hand on my shoulder.

    Feng Hai looked at the both of us for a few more moments, and then nodded. "I''ll be counting on you two then," he said before he signed off.

    The both of us then hurried upward, clearing the last flight of stairs. Yesterday, when we went through the same place, we weren''t surprised that it was bereft of any human presence. After all, the Dark Church had been doing its work here, with the priest we captured yesterday being responsible for diverting non-Dark Church personnel away from the underground facilities.

    But today, the emptiness seemed a lot more ominous. As if every other human in the city was gone. Granted, it could be the claustrophobia caused by the dark, enclosed space. I was allowing my imagination to run too wildly. Even with my common sense trying to suppress the dread in my heart, I couldn''t shake off a sense of foreboding.

    "¡­"

    Anastasia was more subdued than normal, her usual cheer gone and replaced by grim professionalism. She was faster than me, staying just a couple of steps ahead, and reached the door. In a single stroke, she kicked it open.

    "¡­why so dramatic?" I growled as I followed her out of the door. "You trying to draw attention to us or something?"

    If there truly was a monster attack, kicking the door open and making so much noise was sure to draw the attention of all those Hound monsters to us.

    However, Anastasia nodded.

    "That is exactly my intention," she said. "If there are any people out here, they would be drawn to the noise we''re making. If there are monsters, then¡­" she raised her gleaming daggers, which she produced from somewhere inside the folds of her fancy dress. "We kill them."

    I couldn''t help but smile. "Works for me."

    However, even as we stepped out into the surface and emerged in the open space of Azpire City for the first time in over a day, we didn''t see anyone.

    Anyone human, at any rate.

    There were dozens of monsters swarming the place. Just as Feng Hai told us, they were mostly Hound type monsters ¨C fire-breathing Hellhounds and vampire-type Bloodhounds. There was the occasional wraith-like Revenant, their thin, almost skeletal forms gliding across the floor and the unnatural rattling of their freezing breaths.

    Both Anastasia and I froze when we saw the scene of monsters ¨C not just because of them, but also in the background.

    There was evidence that a huge battle had just taken place here. Splatters of blood flooded the broken roads and sidewalks, buildings were wrecked, glass had shattered and crushed furniture were strewn about. Countless remains of humans lay about, the majority of them having chewed on or ripped apart by the prowling monsters that now inhabited the streets of aspire City.

    It wasn''t just the humans who died. Hundreds of monsters'' broken and maimed carcasses also lay scattered across the city, some of them intertwined with determined humans desperate enough to fight to the death and bring their enemies with them. The surviving monsters did not care about their deceased brethren, however, trampling over the dead of both human and monster alike.

    "¡­kill them¡­"

    Anastasia was trembling beside me, her voice cold. It wasn''t trembling, it wasn''t filled with any emotion like rage or hatred.

    It was just a statement, almost mechanical and unfeeling.

    "¡­let''s kill them."

    Then Anastasia disappeared. The next thing I knew, she was in the midst of the closest swarm of monsters, her daggers flashing. Before they knew what was happening, they were cut apart. Those that recoiled from what seemed like shallow wounds dropped later, going into spasms as they frothed in the mouth, poisoned by Anastasia''s weapons.

    The other monsters in the vicinity raised their heads to stare in her direction.

    "Good grief." Sighing, I proceeded forward to back my partner up, my hands on Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. A pack of Hound-species monsters pounced on me, but they never reached me. Instead, their heads and limbs began to fly off in all directions and their carcasses dropped like a rock with a wet splat. I continued walking through the rain of blood and body parts to link up with Anastasia.

    The surviving monsters shrank back, afraid of the newly appeared pair of humans. Whimpering, they exchanged frightened glances and began to retreat, fleeing from the real monsters.

    "Do you think we''ll let you go?" Anastasia asked frostily.

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    If any of the fleeing monsters ever harbored any semblance of such thought, they found out how just how mistaken they were a few minutes later.

 192 Chapter 192: Fall of Azpire City

    Once we cleared out the vicinity of monsters, we made a report to Feng Hai, who listened grimly.

    "We''ll continue to search for survivors," I told him. "I doubt these low and mi -ranking monsters could have wiped out everybody. There should still be some alive somewhere."

    "It is also possible there''s a far deadlier enemy lurking somewhere in the city," Anastasia added, her voice cold and her eyes hard. "If there is, we''ll locate it and destroy it." she pondered for a moment. "I believe the Assassin might be involved. The target could be the city council, just like in Jing Tian City. Wipe out the leadership so as to leave the city vulnerable and disorganized as it falls to a monster invasion."

    "Be careful, you two." Feng Hai still looked concerned. "Our reinforcements will get through as soon as they can. And if you''re able to, get out of the city. Especially you, Richard. We''ll need your Strategic-scale spell to¡­" he broke off sheepishly. "Wait, hold that thought. Before you nuke the monsters, please let us know or you''ll hit our own people. They''re still engaging the horde of monsters."

    "Will do." I glanced up at one of the skyscrapers. "Maybe, if I can get into a high place, I can summon Scorpio and nuke them from above. I''ll let you know when that happens."

    "Good. Do your best, you two."

    "Yes, sir!"

    As I switched off the holographic screen, we proceeded to the next stop. Behind us, hundreds of monsters lay mutilated, courtesy of our stroll through the area. Ahead, fires and smoke billowed from the blackened husks of buildings, the ruined cityscape resembling a warzone. Spells and elemental attacks had been hurled from both sides, heedless of the collateral damage they might have caused. After all, homes and buildings could be rebuilt.

    But the dead couldn''t be brought back to life.

    "Ana." I paused a moment while scanning the entire area with my glasses and relying on the equipment on the lenses to pick out the tallest building in the vicinity. "I think I''ll head toward that Villard Tower over there, get to the rooftop and begin casting my Strategic-scale spell to help the reinforcements from outside."

    "I understand. I''ll help you." Anastasia nodded and picked up the pace, staying a few steps ahead of me but not too fast that I couldn''t keep up. As much as I hated to admit it, she was fitter, faster and stronger than me. I was better at magic, but that was the only edge I had over her (an overwhelming edge, admittedly, since my summoning magic directly countered her poison magic). Not that I wanted to turn this into a competition.

    At any rate, I was glad I had her on my side.

    However, we didn''t get very far.

    "!!!"

    My instincts screamed something, and I jumped to the side on reflex as one of the buildings beside us exploded.

    "Ana! Watch out!"

    Even before the warning could leave my throat, Anastasia was already vaulting away, flipping herself gracefully in midair before landing on a piece of debris several meters away. Fiery chunks of broken concrete rained down on us, but missed us entirely thanks to our reflexes. As I skidded back and raised my head, I saw a massive silhouette lumbering through the wreckage.

    "That''s¡­not a monster."

    Even as the disbelieving words spilled from my mouth, I could feel the potent demonic aura oozing from the giant''s figure, an ocean of qi that blanketed even the rank A monsters I had faced before, such as the Hellfire Drakes.

    A heavy, evil and overpowering dark presence that weighed upon me tremendously, almost crushing me. I could feel my legs buckling from the sheer pressure, my throat constricting as something intangible suffocated me.

    Glancing at Anastasia, I saw that she was experiencing something similar. However, she was able to better control herself and remain upright. Her gleaming daggers, their blades coated with lethal poisons, were already out in her hands as she faced the new threat.

    The dark silhouette burst from the crumbling building, but I still couldn''t see his features. They were concealed under his massive cloak that covered his entire body, his face hidden under the shadow of his hood. Towering over nine feet, he was a giant with an imposing figure, his muscles bulging through the thick fabric. In one hand he wielded an enormous scythe, its gleaming, sharp blade dripping with blood. A skull decorated the hilt, which was longer than an average male human''s height. For some reason, his scythe looked extremely familiar, but I couldn''t remember where exactly I had seen it before.

    Even as I tried to search through my memories, Anastasia''s voice broke through my thoughts.

    "You are right. He''s not a monster." she regarded the newcomer. "¡­the Grim Reaper, I assume?"

    The gigantic man didn''t reply. Instead, there was applause from someone else. A second figure hopped out from nearby, appearing from nowhere to join the silent giant.

    "Bingo!"

    A woman with long dark hair and dressed in a tight, black bodysuit that was completely at odds with Anastasia''s green, frilly dress. Well, one was an Assassin and the other was a retired Assassin, so I guess it was natural that their clothes differed. Anastasia would probably wear something similar if she was still performing her old job.

    As for me, I frowned when I realized I recognized the woman.

    "Selina Wright."

    "Oh! You remember me! I''m so touched!" Selina sounded delighted as she clasped her hands together.

    How could I not remember? She was one of the deadliest and most powerful foes I had faced in my life. Even when working together with Cecilia Stuart and Alicia Violet, the three of us weren''t able to defeat her. We only succeeded in driving her away.

    "You are¡­" Selina frowned as she faltered a bit, then she stuck out her tongue sheepishly. "Sorry! I forgot your name! But I remember you¡­after all, you''re that boy with that extremely powerful arrow! That performance back then was really impressive! Few people I''ve fought tend to stick in my mind like this!"

    "I''m flattered," I said sarcastically, but I was already preparing a spell. If she didn''t want to attack immediately, then it was her funeral. I wasn''t going to pass up on the chance she offered me when underestimating me.

    "What are you doing here?" Anastasia''s voice was steady. "Who was your target?"

    "Hmm¡­and you are¡­?" Selina tilted her head when she spotted Anastasia. "I don''t know you. You''re different from the two girls accompanying that boy last night." she then turned to me mischievously. "That''s not good, young man. You shouldn''t be cheating on your girlfriend. But my, I didn''t expect you to be such a player."

    "One of those two girls is dead, thanks to the Dark Church you''re working for."

    "Oh¡­?" Selina raised an eyebrow, and then turned to survey the destruction of Azpire City. "I can''t say I like their hobbies, but as Assassins, we don''t get a say on who our employers are. We get our orders and we kill who we''re told to kill. It''s just that simple."

    "Who did you terminate this time?" Anastasia repeated her question coolly. Selina glanced at her in surprise, and then her eyes narrowed.

    "You¡­you are one of us, aren''t you?" she placed her hands on her well-curved hips. "Then you should know that protecting our clients'' privacy and information is of the utmost importance."

    Anastasia said nothing. Selina studied her for a few more seconds, and then a light went off in her blue eyes.

    "No¡­you are a deserter." She began laughing. "Someone who failed in the mission and was marked for elimination because you refused to kill yourself to deny the enemy information. Very good! As per stipulated by our rules, I will have to terminate you as well."

    "I was the one who incapacitated her and stopped her from killing herself." I quickly intervened, even though I knew it would be pointless. "Her life belongs to me now. You have no right to take her from me."

    "Oh?" There was no way for Selina to know that I was bluffing, but she didn''t care. "So you went and got yourself a personal Assassin? A Veneneum one at that? You really have quite the horrible taste, young man."

    Since I was just throwing out bullshit and bluffing her, I didn''t muster a retort. I merely shrugged, though honestly I didn''t see what Anastasia''s sect had to do with anything. She had a bright, cheerful personality and good humor. What else did I need?

    "But let''s see¡­I guess I''ll tell you anyway, as one final professional courtesy." Selina was placing a finger on her chin somewhat playfully. "And because your cases are so very similar."

    "Similar?" Anastasia''s voice was guarded, her emotions suppressed.

    "You''re both Traitors!" Selina laughed, practically prancing about in front of the cloaked giant, whom I now knew to be Hades. "I was originally sent here to terminate a former Dark Church priest who thought he could walk away from the organization without any consequences. Even though he hid himself pretty well and didn''t defect to the authorities, we still can''t leave him to his own devices, you see?" she tapped her head. "He possessed too much information, too many of their secrets. The Dark Church just couldn''t take the risk."

    "I assume you got him," I said unnecessarily. Selina grinned gleefully.

    "Of course I did. Who do you think I am?"

    "The Grim Reaper," Anastasia whispered under her breath, a sense of reverence and awe in her voice. Lady, all we had was her word to go on, we didn''t know if she was bluffing. Not that it mattered to me one jot.

    However, it was a missed opportunity. If we knew who that Dark Church deserter was, perhaps we could catch him and obtain a lot of information from him. That way, we could more easily locate the main base of the Dark Church and destroy them once and for all.

    No wonder the Dark Church was so bent on eliminating him, to the extent that they requested the Assassin Guild to send one of their best killers.

    "And¡­I''m sure the Guild will thank me for terminating a defector," Selina was continuing. She turned to Hades. "Hades, go kill the girl."

    Anastasia tensed, but the silent giant immediately crunched his feet against the crumbling ground and unleashed a roar before springing at the former Assassin.

    He never reached her.

    Several arrows slammed into him, knocking him off course. Even as Hades'' cloak disintegrated, revealing his obsidian skin and flaming red tattoos, the goliath bellowed as he turned to face me, swinging his scythe to slash apart my volley of arrows, each of which was striking him with the force of a tank shell. Despite their firepower, Hades remained completely unscathed.

    Not that I intended them to hurt him. They were just the prelude to the main appetizer.

    As Hades turned to face me, I readied a single fresh arrow in my Constellation bow.

    "Sagitta."

    The arrow slammed into Hades before he realized what was happening, engulfing him in a colossal explosion that gouged a crater in the already ruined streets of Azpire City. A massive inferno raged, the tongues of flames licking away at his skin.

    However, with a single slash of his scythe, Hades sliced through the inferno, dissipating the flames. Even as he stepped out, the last of his cloak crumbled away to ash. For some reason, he was still wearing a cape underneath that poor cloak, which was chained to a silver pauldron that supposedly protected his right shoulder. Other than that, he was clad only in black pants and boots, just like that night. His bare torso continued to display those red cryptic tattoos over his black skin. A couple of horns jutted from his bald head, and his blazing red eyes narrowed at me as he assessed me as the new threat.

    Even so, he looked completely unscathed from the encounter.

    "If you want to be Hades'' opponent so badly, I guess I can indulge you." Selina was giggling, amused. Clearly she was excited by the spectacle of destruction. "Hades, go get the boy instead. You can play around with the girl later. Or¡­are you perhaps going to double-team him like you did the other night?"

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    "No need for that." I glanced at Anastasia. "I''ll leave the woman to you. We can''t let her get away. I''ll take care of her summoned spirit."

    "I understand. Be careful." Anastasia lunged forward, her daggers flashing. Selina''s eyes narrowed and she dodged them while drawing a sword of her own.

    Snarling, Hades twisted around and launched himself at Anastasia, probably to protect his mistress, but I kicked him in the head. Hades roared and swung his scythe about to decapitate me, but I ducked before surging forward and slamming both my palms into his solar plexus. Using physical reinforcement spells, I managed to enhance my strength to the point where I could actually knock him several paces back.

    "Your opponent is me," I told the giant coolly.

 193 Chapter 193: Rematch

    Hades roared before he lunged at me, his scythe descending in an arc to behead me. Aware of his raw strength, I didn''t parry his scythe head-on at the moment. Instead, I summoned Scutum Sobiescanium to deflect the strike.

    Even so, the brute force behind his blow was enough to shatter the Constellation shield and send me hurtling several meters away. I crashed onto the ground, blood trickling from my mouth, and rolled to my knees.

    Kneeling on the ground, I heaved and wiped the blood from my mouth.

    "Is this the difference between a contracted spirit and a summoned Soul Beast created from my own mana? The gulf is enormous." Closing my eyes, I sighed. "Man, I wish I could have a contracted spirit too¡­"

    "I''m surprised." Selina was still exchanging several blows with Anastasia, but she was somehow able to continue conversing. "I didn''t think you of all people would want a contracted spirit."''

    There was something in her tone that caught my attention. "What''s that supposed to mean?"

    "Didn''t you know?" Selina acted surprised as she dodged Anastasia''s dagger. "You need a sacrifice of equal value in order to forge a contract with a spirit. Someone who can serve as a vessel for the spirit to maintain a permanent link not just to this world, but to you." a smile grew over her face. "It''s a heavy price to pay¡­I''m not sure if you can afford it."

    She ducked under Anastasia''s daggers and then reached out to brush a finger against the latter''s cheek.

    "I''m sure you don''t want to give up your pretty girlfriend here just to get a spirit, do you?"

    "Don''t touch me!" Anastasia hissed as she slashed at Selina''s hand, but the dark-haired woman was able to quickly withdraw her arm in time before she could get cut. With Ana''s poison, even the slightest of grazes could prove to be lethal. Selina was dancing on quite the fine edge there, but again, it was her funeral if she continued to underestimate her opponent.

    Even so, I was more drawn to the information Selina was sharing than the fight. An image of Dad and Angelica swept across my mind.

    "Don''t tell me¡­"

    "Oh, and you can''t just sacrifice anyone, you know? Otherwise the contract will fail. The bond between you and the vessel must be strong enough to bind the spirit to you, after all."

    "Impossible¡­"

    There was no way Dad would¡­

    ¡­no. There was nothing Dad wouldn''t do to save the world. The sacrifice of the few to save the many. The sentiment he wielded like his own sword and fire spells. If it was necessary to save the majority, then he would sacrifice the minority.

    Even if the cost is his son, albeit adopted. Even if the price to pay is the life of the one he loved¡­

    "Seems like you get it now. Power doesn''t just come easily to anyone." Selina was sounding gleeful. "That father you look up to¡­the Angel of Fire, was he? He never told you how he obtained his contracted spirit? Funny¡­I thought there were no secrets a parent wouldn''t share with their child. Then again, you are merely adopted¡­"

    I didn''t know how Selina knew about my dad and family circumstances, but it was natural that she did some research on me after that night when we first clashed. She did say she had some interest in me. However, that wasn''t what bothered me.

    Dad¡­and Angelica¡­just what was the truth behind them?

    "Shut up!" Anastasia snapped as she sliced toward Selina''s throat, her dagger missing by just a hair''s breadth. Selina giggled as she retreated a single step, and countered with her sword, which Anastasia easily parried with her second dagger. My partner then risked a glance at me. "Richard! Snap out of it! Don''t listen to this bitch''s prattling!"

    "Oh dear¡­it might be too late. That boy seems like he suffered some sort of mental shock. Perhaps I shouldn''t have said anything about his being adopted?"

    Selina''s malicious giggle rang through the night.

    Hades silently sauntered toward me, and then stopped a meter away. He didn''t care that I had stopped moving and was kneeling on the ground. His mind was hollowed out, completely filled with nothing but thoughts of killing, of obeying his mistress. She had ordered him to kill me, and so he would obey.

    He raised his scythe for a killing blow¡­

    ¡­and suddenly jumped back, retreating to a safe distance.

    "Gr¡­"

    His usually stony expression darkened and he bared his teeth before he glanced at his right arm. A red line of blood had appeared on his bicep and began dripping unceasingly.

    "Damn¡­and I was so sure I could cut your arm off," I moaned as I removed my hand from the hilt of Gan Jiang. I rose to my feet again and smiled innocently. "That would have made this so much easier for me."

    Unlike her contracted spirit, Selina was amused. She barked out a laugh while deflecting Anastasia''s daggers. "Interesting! It seems that you still have a few tricks up your sleeve. I don''t remember seeing that sword the last time we fought!"

    "That''s because I didn''t have them back then," I replied wryly. Instead of drawing Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, I summoned Gemini instead, feeling the comfortable weight of the twin swords as they materialized in my hands.

    For now, I was going to need speed and agility more than power and strength. Gemini provided me that. I was no match for Hades in a contest of strength, so I needed to outmaneuver him rather than face him head-on.

    With a bellow, I sprinted toward Hades before launching myself at him. Hades watched calmly as I executed a series of relentless attacks that he simply batted away with a single swipe of his scythe. Tucking my legs into my chest, I landed on Hades'' scythe when he slashed at me in a counterattack, and then used it as a springboard to jump high above him. Doing a backflip in the air to avoid a punch from his free hand, I flung both Castor and Pollux out in a vicious slashing motion that would have split him into three if he didn''t block them with his scythe. The ground underneath him shattered from the impact of my forceful assault, but Hades stood firm, completely unscathed from the clash.

    I didn''t stop there, however. Twisting in midair, I delivered a couple of strikes, thrusting my swords from different angles before my momentum carried me past my opponent. I hit the ground and rolled, then jumped back to my feet before turning around to face him again.

    The silver pauldron that decorated his right shoulder cracked slowly before shattering into pieces and harmlessly falling onto the ground. The huge black cape that was previously chained to it billowed and was swept away by the wind, now loose from its wearer. The cape gone, Hades'' prominent red tattoos and black skin stood out further in the silvery moonlight, causing me to grimace from the hideous sight.

    Someone should tell Selina to bring this poor guy to a better tattoo parlor.

    "Ha ha ha! Excellent, boy!" The aforementioned mistress in question was laughing gaily. In front of me, Hades'' scythe began smoking as purplish black mana flowed into it and began changing its shape. Selina continued to chuckle. "It seems that you have impressed Hades. He intends to fight you seriously from now on."

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    "Wait, what?" I demanded, caught off guard. "Are you telling me that he hasn''t been fighting me seriously this entire time?!"

    Hades grunted in place of his mistress and brought his scythe up.

    No¡­it was no longer a scythe.

    The sickle had transformed from horizontal to vertical, resembling a gigantic spearhead rather than a scythe. The skull was still present, but this time a thick blade was protruding from its jaws in what seemed like a painful manner. The weapon was currently closer to a halberd or spear than a scythe. Scratch that, it was now a halberd with an oversized blade.

    Refusing to be cowed by the sudden transformation of Hades'' weapon, I gritted my teeth and launched another attack. However, Hades effortlessly blocked all of my attempts with his newly altered weapon. Fortunately, it seemed that I was at least succeeding in pressuring him with my barrage because before long, he forced me back with a single, massive strike that sent me flying across the air. I did a back-flip in midair before landing on my feet.

    "What''s with that new shape?" I growled, gnashing my teeth in frustration. My hands were still trembling from attempting to parry the powerful attack from earlier. "His weapon has become much more powerful!"

    Hades charged at me recklessly with an enraged roar, brandishing his new weapon.

    "Not bad! Not bad at all!" Selina was chuckling, impressed, as she parried a dagger from Anastasia. She then spun around and delivered a roundhouse kick that Ana blocked before delivering a riposte with her sword. She then kicked at Ana''s face, but the green-haired former Assassin did a cartwheel that brought her out of her opponent''s range. A silver streak shot past Selina''s own cheek, but the dark-haired Assassin merely twisted her head out of the trajectory of the projectile, avoiding even a tiny graze. Despite being under siege, she was still enjoying herself. "You''ve actually gotten Hades to willingly transform his weapon from Pluto into Annihilation! That means he has personally recognized you! He only uses this weapon against opponents he deems as worthy!"

    So the name of his newly transformed weapon is Annihilation, huh? My eyes narrowed. A fitting name for a monster like him.

    Hades lunged at me and began bombarding me with a merciless hail of attacks that¡­er, annihilated the ground beneath us. I was forced to dodge all of them, occasionally deflecting one or two stray strikes that I couldn''t evade.

    Those blocks cost my Gemini twin swords dear, chipping the blade or outright obliterating them, but I managed to conjure up new ones to replace the broken ones every time. Fortunately, I was focusing on evading rather than parrying, or I would be pulverized long ago.

    However, I couldn''t evade forever.

    Hades finally swung his Annihilation in a single, forceful and desperate swing that obliterated the ground I was standing on less than a second ago. However, I had managed to jump away in time, just narrowly avoiding a messy death.

    The bottom of my black jacket was ripped just from being in such close proximity with the strike. I narrowed my eyes in frustration as a bead of perspiration dripped down my face.

    I can''t let this go on forever, I realized as a chill ran down my spine. I have to attack him as well, otherwise he''ll overwhelm me with his extremely strong strikes.

    I launched myself high into the air before diving toward Hades, wielding Gemini in an all or nothing attack. Black and white mana began to coalesce around them as I descended upon the wrathful spirit.

    Hades, however, merely turned around and swung his Annihilation. My instincts screamed at me to evade the strike. I managed to alter my trajectory in midair, but his vicious counter knocked both Gemini twin swords out of my hands and completely shattered them.

    I landed behind Hades and fell to a knee, winded from the impact. Blood spurted from my shoulder.

    "Cheh!" I spat angrily. "So this is what happens even after I completely dodged the attack?"

    Hades turned around to face me, growling in anticipation. Some distance away, as Selina and Anastasia traded kicks, the former couldn''t resist throwing out a taunt in my direction after springing apart from her own opponent.

    "Damn¡­and I was so sure Hades could cleave you into two."

    I ignored her mocking tone and stood up to face Hades. Concentrating, I summoned Gemini again. The black and white twin swords materialized in my hands again.

    "Hah!" Selina laughed, even as she parried Anastasia''s dagger. "It doesn''t matter how many times you summon those pitiful weapons. My Hades will just crush them again!"

    As if responding to his mistress''s will, Hades lunged at me. I dodged his attacks, weaving in and out of his strikes and slashes.

    I thrust my body backward to avoid a swing, only to jump away as another slash smashed the ground into debris. I jumped again to avoid another slash, hopping up and stepping back to avoid every single strike from the furious assault Hades was throwing at me. Unfortunately, I was unable to evade one final attack that was directed straight at my face. Not having enough time to dodge it, I was forced to block Annihilation by crossing Gemini in front of me.

    The giant halberd struck both my swords. I managed to hold my ground for a while, resisting the immense pressure that Hades was putting into his blow.

    Unfortunately, I didn''t last very long.

    In just a second, both Gemini shattered and I was flung back, hurtling across the city and into a building behind me. I smashed through the wall and continued going through the room behind it before finally crashing into abandoned furniture and vanishing in a cloud of debris and splinters.

    "Argh¡­argh¡­" I groaned.

    "How weak."

    On the other side, Selina kicked Anastasia back, causing the latter to double over. Anastasia managed to flip back and did a cartwheel to withdraw to a safe distance, grimacing as she placed a hand over her gut. Not placing her opponent in her eyes, Selina ignored the retreating Anastasia to turn a disdainful stare in my direction.

    "Your weapons broke before you could show them off?"

    Anastasia was giving me a perplexed stare as well. She was probably wondering why I hadn''t summoned any of my Constellation spirits yet, despite facing such an overwhelming opponent.

    The answer was simple. They wouldn''t be of any use.

    I mean, I could summon them, but what would be the point? My normal, weaker Constellation spirits would be obliterated instantly by Hades'' Annihilation. Never mind his fearsome weapon, he was perfectly capable of tearing a Constellation spirit of Taurus''s level with his bare hands in under a second. I would just be wasting mana and casting time throwing my Constellation spirits at him just for them to die. They were MY Constellation spirits. Like hell I would be comfortable with the idea of sending them out like lambs to the slaughter.

    No. I would rather save the casting time for my big guns, my most powerful Constellation spirits. I was focusing on casting them as quickly as possible, but obviously the most powerful Constellation spirits required more casting time than my usual ones.

    Until I could summon them into existence, I had no choice but to buy as much time as possible with what I had on hand.

    "Trying to take on Hades with such pathetic spirit swords¡­Hades!"

    At her command, the gigantic spirit stood before me, raising his Annihilation to deliver the finishing blow.

    "You''re an interesting person with curious spells," Selina acknowledged, but she then shook her head and sighed in disappointment. "But I guess it all ends here."

    Hades'' scythe came whistling down to annihilate me from existence.

 194 Chapter 194: The Heavens and Earth Roar

    "Just as strong as the legends say you are, huh?"

    Despite my predicament, I couldn''t help but smile.

    In the distance, Selina frowned in puzzlement. "You¡­you are laughing?"

    No, I was ripping off lines from an old anime that was adapted from a legendary visual novel, but she didn''t have to know that. Instead, I merely grinned at Hades and jumped away before his scythe could reach me.

    The ground where I was lying on was completely pulverized, but I made use of the debris as makeshift footholds, jumping from one to the other and ascending higher and higher. I managed to reach a balcony of the building we currently resided in, an expansive area that was once filled with an artificially created garden with expensive plants and flowers.

    Hades emerged out of the hole in the ceiling and leaped toward me, brandishing his Annihilation in an intimidating manner as he bellowed.

    "I never told you, did I?" I asked as I turned to face him. There was still quite some time before he reached the balcony, and I had a clear sight of him through the hole in the ceiling. His bulk was working against him right now, making it difficult for him to clear the huge distance in one bound. The debris, which I had used to propel myself to such a huge height, would simply crumble under his weight. "My most powerful techniques aren''t my sword techniques. I''m more of a ranged fighter. Sagittarius."

    A black bow materialized in my left hand and a flaming arrow in my right. I fitted Alnasl to the string and pulled it back as far as I could before I took aim at the charging spirit.

    Hades didn''t seem to care that I had a flaming arrow pointed right at his chest. Roaring, he continued coming straight at me.

    "Alnasl."

    I released the bowstring. The flaming arrow flew from my fingers and struck the rapidly approaching Hades squarely in his chest before exploding into a supernova of fiery light that seared all the way into the heavens and temporarily lighting up the night sky with a crimson blaze.

    Hades howled as he was consumed by the inferno, his immolated body dropping like a rock and crashing onto the ground below. He vanished in an explosion of fiery debris, disappearing in a crater that continued to be consumed by ravenous flames.

    "Hades actually got blasted back from that?"

    I caught sight of Selina, who was now finding herself being pressured by a reinvigorated Anastasia. She was deflecting the latter''s poisoned blades from her bodysuit and face, but she couldn''t help but turn toward the raging inferno in my direction. Her eyes widened as she watched the smoldering silhouette of Hades bathed in crimson flames, breathing heavily as he knelt within the inferno. The Assassin turned her gaze back to me.

    "Who exactly is that boy? Is he actually summoning spirit weapons?"

    I ignored her awestruck dread and focused on my opponent, my brow wrinkling in a frown. Despite taking a direct hit from Alnasl and being incinerated, Hades was still quite very clearly alive. Shaking my head, I sighed in disbelief.

    "Normal spirits would already be dead from that."

    Hades raised his head and screamed at me. The entire surroundings shattered, the inferno enveloping him actually dissipating from the sheer force of his sonic assault, and even so high above, I was thrown off my feet when I was buffeted by his thunderous voice.

    "Ugh!" I raised my hands as if to defend myself. Then I turned around and began bounding away. I could hear Hades coming after me, launching himself upward like a bullet and smashing through the ceiling, creating a second hole.

    I skidded across to the other end of the balcony, realizing that I was cornered. Behind me, Hades cleaved trees and plants unfortunate enough to be in his path, rampaging through the luxurious garden and uprooting the meticulously tended shrubs in his berserk fury. Despite the ample cover the flora provided, Hades managed to reach me.

    I suddenly spun around and jumped, dodging a fatal blow from Annihilation. Landing on my feet, I took several hops back, refusing to take my eyes off my opponent. Hades continued, undaunted, both his halberd and his body tearing trees out by their roots and hurling them across the open space.

    "You move pretty well even with a huge body," I remarked bitterly when I saw that the terrain wasn''t able to slow him down one bit.

    Amidst my retreat, I raised both my hands and focused mana into them, completing another summoning spell.

    "Chains of Andromeda!" I yelled. The heavy chains materialized above Hades, descending upon him and restraining him. I tightened the chains as much as I could, wrapping the heavy metal around his body and binding his limbs. I tossed the chains in four different directions, focusing my mana and manifesting four giant nails to anchor them into the ground. Hades struggled against his restraints, but the chains held firm, refusing to budge.

    "Gemini!"

    The twin swords appeared in my hands again. I threw them at Hades'' exposed chest and shoulders, but they spun away after being deflected by the giant''s rock-hard skin. Gritting my teeth, I summoned a second pair of Gemini twin swords and charged them with mana. Scraping my foot against the ground, I threw the both of them with all my might.

    "Castor! Pollux!"

    All four Gemini twin swords spun around and struck the trapped Hades before exploding into black and white infernos that engulfed the black goliath.

    Hades let out an enraged scream of pain as the black and white flames licked his skin.

    "W¡­what?!"

    Unable to contain her surprise, Selina spun around to witness the setback her contracted spirit had just experienced. Anastasia seized the opportunity to close in and stab her with her daggers, but Selina almost casually deflected them by striking the former''s forearm and then kicking her in the gut. Fortunately, Anastasia whirled around gracefully to avoid her enemy''s foot and lashed out with her other dagger, forcing Selina to block it with her sword.

    Damn¡­so close! If Anastasia had cut her, even just a little, we would have won the battle there and then!

    There was no time for me to gloat, however. Hades was still alive. I had to finish this right now if I could. Sprinting forward, I summoned Gemini again.

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    "Vermillion Phoenix!" I shouted.

    The chibi Vermillion Phoenix materialize right above my shoulder, the miniature version of my Celestial Guardian flapping his fiery wings and following me. Satisfied that he knew what I wanted, I leaped high up into the sky.

    The chibi Vermillion Phoenix ghosted over both my Gemini swords and enchanted them with his flames. The black and white blades glowed red-hot for a moment and then they transformed, much like Hades'' Pluto transforming into Annihilation. The blades grew and elongated, lengthening past my head and then took on the shape of wings. Endowed with the fiery aspect of Vermilion Phoenix, even as I raised both swords high up, against the night sky it seemed almost as if I had produced a pair of fiery phoenix wings that held me aloft for a brief moment.

    Anastasia later told me that I looked like an angel of fire. Nah. That was my dad''s title. I had no intention of taking it from him.

    After being suspended in the night sky for just a second, I then allowed gravity to pull me back down into its embrace so that I could unleash my attack with maximum impact.

    I slashed Hades with the full weight of my Vermillion Phoenix enhanced twin fiery feather swords.

    A tremendous explosion rocked the area, throwing me back. Crashing onto the ground, I managed to flip myself over somehow and land on a kneeling position. Coughing, I wiped blood from my face and continued channeling more mana into my hands as I prepared for the next summoning spell.

    Hades emerged, his entire body blazing furiously. He had been immolated by Vermillion Phoenix''s flames and incinerated thoroughly, yet even the divine fire wasn''t able to slay him. Worse, the Chains of Andromeda had been destroyed during the blast and he had broken free from whatever metal that had held him down previously.

    And now he was free to exact vengeance upon me.

    However, I was not done yet. My fingers twitched as I completed my next summoning spell.

    "Virgo! Iron Maiden!"

    The woman-shaped coffin materialized around the advancing Hades, entombing him. Spikes dug into his body, locking him in place.

    However, the coffin blew up almost immediately. I raised both of my hands to defend myself even as the immense shockwaves buffeted me. Amidst the hellish flames, I could see Hades stalking toward me silently, his halberd raised like the grim reaper''s scythe.

    Hades dashed forward and swung his Annihilation. Miraculously, I wasn''t cleaved into two, but I was thrown off and sent flying through several concrete walls of the neighboring building. Parts of the structure collapsed upon me.

    "It''s done," Selina smirked as Hades turned away, and then focused her attention on Anastasia, who warded her sword away with her daggers. "You''re next, sweetie."

    "It''s not over yet," I panted, hauling and throwing the rubble off me. Rising to my feet unsteadily, I summoned Lyra. The golden harp hummed melodiously in my hands as I heaved myself forward to approach the raging spirit.

    "You''re a stubborn one, aren''t you?" Selina sighed as her Hades turned back to face me.

    The wrathful spirit lifted Annihilation over his head and raced toward me, bounding across the gap between the two buildings. However, hundreds of invisible garrote wires streamed out of the harp, cutting everything in its path, including steel, brick and concrete. Hades was no different, blood spurting from all over his body as the near invisible wires sliced into his black flesh and cut to the bone.

    "Cheap techniques like those won''t work against Hades!" Selina shouted furiously as she kicked Anastasia away and returned to spectating the battle between her spirit and me. Wow, I must be hurting her spirit really bad if she got this rattled.

    That meant I should continue whatever I was doing.

    Unfortunately, Hades wasn''t making it easy for me. Purplish black mana billowed outward and blew out from his body, ripping the wires apart in a huge searing blast. I was thrown back from the overwhelming force, but I managed to do a back-flip and land on my feet again.

    "Out of tricks, boy?" Selina sneered derisively with a laugh as Hades approached me. "Your little harp can''t do anything¡­"

    "Harp?" I was pointing Vega at Hades while fitting the glowing arrow to the bow form of Lyra. Golden mana swirled around Vega, giving the impression of a violent whirlwind. My surroundings were breaking apart just from the presence of such immense amounts of mana. "I already told you, didn''t I? My most powerful techniques are my ranged ones."

    I released Vega. The golden arrow slammed into the berserk spirit and hurtled him all the way back. He flew several hundred meters away before exploding in a fireworks display of golden light.

    I gritted my teeth as I fought to stand amidst the resulting shockwaves. Staggering back, I watched the awesome spectacle of destruction with grim satisfaction. However, my intuition told me that Hades wasn''t down yet.

    "I wouldn''t be surprised if he survived that attack as well. That bastard seems to be immortal."

    "You got that only half-right," Selina informed me. I glanced at her for a moment, and then froze when I sensed something impossible behind me.

    "What¡­?" My eyes widened in shock. I didn''t even have the chance to turn around before something slashed me from behind. If I hadn''t instinctively jumped forward, that attack would have cleaved me neatly in half. Stumbling forward, I felt something heavy slam into my back, sending me flying across the city. I crashed heavily into the ground several meters away, somewhere near the crowing Selina.

    "I''ll have to admit, your attacks are really impressive." Selina placed one hand on her hip and raised her other hand to count with her fingers. "They took away like¡­three of Hades'' lives? It''s amazing that you''re able to kill Hades three times by yourself. Too bad Hades has thirteen lives."

    She began to laugh.

    "You have to kill Hades thirteen times before he dies permanently ¨C and even that wouldn''t be permanent because as long as I maintain the contract with him, I''ll be able to resurrect him sooner or later. It''ll cost me a lot of time and resources, and I''ll have to pay a heavy price, but for a spirit like Hades, it''s more than worth it."

    Selina chuckled as she gazed down on my prone form.

    "But look at you. It only has been three lives and you''re almost dead. Face it. You''ll never be able to defeat Hades."

    I wheezed in agony, struggling to get to my knees at the very least. Clutching my back, I coughed out a mouthful of blood.

    "But I have to hand it to you! Throughout the entire time I have established a contract with Hades, I have never met anyone capable of killing Hades three times by himself. Even back then, when you worked together with Cecilia Stuart and that other girl, the three of you only took two of his lives or so. By allying against him. But now¡­you actually took three of his lives by yourself! You''ve truly gotten so much stronger! You''ve exceeded my expectations! I knew it was right to let you live that time!" Selina threw her head back and laughed. Whether it was in delight or scorn, I could not tell. "A pity¡­you would have made a great Assassin, but I''m aware that you''ll refuse. If I leave you alone, you''ll threaten the Assassins Guild eventually. Sorry, but I''ll eliminate you before that happens."

    I could only watch as Hades approached me silently, hellish flames wreathing his body. He was a black silhouette engulfed within the inferno I had set ablaze upon his body, yet he didn''t even seem affected by the immolation. It was as if he was becoming immune to the devastating effects of fire itself.

    "I see¡­" I smiled to myself. "Truly the Grim Reaper indeed."

    The flames that continued to burn Hades'' burly muscles flickered out, revealing totally unharmed skin. At present, he looked as if nothing had happened to him, with no sign of injury whatsoever. He had emerged from his battle with me, completely unscathed.

    So, Selina wasn''t lying when she said that he had thirteen lives. Not that it would make any difference.

    Hades raised his Annihilation and slashed me with such force that I was sent flying again. Crashing into the ground several meters away, I coughed out another fountain of blood as I clutched my wounds. Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to my feet again, glaring at Hades. Despite the blood streaming down my face, I grinned.

    "You are insane," Selina concluded before her berserk spirit brought his Annihilation down on me.

 195 Chapter 195: Unlimited Constellation Works

    I lay in a pool of blood, staring at the night sky above me.

    "Hey," I said. "It''s not over yet."

    I slowly rose to my feet, swaying unsteadily from the massive loss of blood. Grinning, I stared straight into Hades'' stony countenance while pointedly ignoring Selina''s incredulous expression. She shook her head in disbelief.

    "Despite suffering such fatal injuries, you can still stand," Selina remarked, astonished. "I must applaud you for your tenacity and persistence. But didn''t I tell you that you will never be able to defeat my Hades?"

    "You know, I''m glad that you told me that Hades has thirteen lives, and that I''ve taken only three of them away."

    "Why?" Selina had a perplexed and bewildered expression on her face as she watched me stagger. "Most people would have fallen into despair."

    "Really?" I began laughing hysterically. "Because it means that I just have to kill your Hades ten more times!"

    Selina narrowed her eyes. "I see. You truly are insane."

    "I don''t want to hear that from a psychotic mass-murderess like you."

    Selina ignored me and turned to Hades. Anastasia struck from behind, but she casually moved her sword to her back to parry the dagger. Anastasia clicked her tongue, but before she could slash again, Selina kicked in her direction, forcing her to dodge. Not paying much attention to her opponent, the black-clad killer shouted a command to her contracted spirit.

    "Hades! There''s something wrong with that boy''s head! Destroy him before he attempts anything funny!"

    I cocked my head and smiled as Hades lumbered forward, gripping his halberd with both hands. My eyes riveted to the swinging Annihilation, I nodded to myself when I remembered something.

    "You transformed your weapon from Pluto to Annihilation because you''ve acknowledged me as a worthy opponent, correct?"

    Hades merely roared in reply. The berserk warrior was in no condition to answer any of my questions. Even so, I received the affirmation I needed.

    "Very well then. As a sign of my respect, I''ll use my strongest Constellation weapon to slay you. Well, actually I''m forced to use it now because I won''t be able to kill you otherwise. Hercules!"

    Mana began flowing into my hand as the strongest hero in ancient legends began materializing himself into the form of a weapon.

    "You know, I''ve been meaning to ask you this, but what are those two swords for if you don''t use them?" Selina asked from a distance, pointing at Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. The pair of male-female swords continued to stay sheathed at my side. "You''ve been summoning weapons out of thin air during your entire fight with Hades. Other than the first time you''ve slashed his arm, you haven''t used your real swords at all."

    I glanced down at them. "Oh, I forgot that they are still there."

    Selina rolled her eyes. "That''s such an obvious lie."

    "Maybe." I shrugged. "Believe whatever you want. I have no obligation to tell you anything."

    "Fair enough." Selina nodded.

    To be honest, the reason why I hadn''t used Gan Jiang and Mo Ye yet was because Constellation magic was my most powerful magic. At the same time I was saving them for a final surprise attack, a trump card that I could unleash from my hand if Hercules failed to end this battle.

    Hercules finally materialized in my hand.

    No. Not just my hand.

    Golden armor materialized all over my body. Massive gleaming gauntlets formed over my arms, and a huge breastplate fitted itself over my chest. In my right hand the golden sword of Hercules shone brightly, like a beacon.

    "Herculean Armor. Hercules was a demigod. Summoning him consumes a lot of my mana, but it also gives me the power of a demigod."

    "Demigod?" Selina smirked as she fended off Anastasia. At her command, Hades merely raised his Annihilation emotionlessly. "I would like to see you back up your claim."

    "Don''t you ever shut up?" Ana growled, frustrated. Selina shrugged.

    "The boy is the one who made such a bold declaration¡­"

    She never got to finish her sentence. I smashed my golden fist into Hades'' face, throwing his immense bulk across the street. Before he landed, I was already upon him, cleaving him in half with Hercules.

    "That''s one life gone."

    Selina recovered from being shocked, parrying Anastasia''s strike and then leaping back to put as much distance between them as possible. She glanced at her fallen spirit, whose face had been crumpled in, his skull cracked open.

    "He certainly looks dead to me," Anastasia quipped with a shrug. "Convinced yet?"

    Hades'' face began steaming as his broken skull forcibly knitted itself back together and his head regenerated. He slowly stood up. Seeing him, Selina chuckled.

    "Impressive," she conceded. "But do you think the same trick will work twice?"

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    "When did he¡­?"

    "Better start paying attention, boy," Selina sneered. "Or you''ll end up dead."

    She was forced to dodge a vicious strike from Anastasia, whose dagger came up from her blind spot.

    "I shall return those words directly back at you." Anastasia twirled her poisoned daggers. "You''ve been too distracted the entire battle. Do you really think so little of me?"

    "I do." Selina grinned. "I can beat you with my eyes closed and one hand tied behind my back."

    "Then prove it. Blindfold yourself and tie one of your hands behind your back." Anastasia pointed her dagger at her opponent. "Or are you afraid?"

    "I have no obligation to go along with your stupid requests."

    Even as the two girls clashed, I turned to face the slowly healing Hades. He shook his newly restored head and let out a deafening roar.

    "All right then." I raised my sword and steeled myself for the coming conflict. "Let''s finish this."

    The both of us sprinted at each other and swung our weapons, our collision resulting in a tremendous explosion that destroyed the buildings all around us.

    *

    My armor was almost destroyed, but I had taken at least two more lives from Hades. Parrying another blow from Annihilation, I gritted my teeth and forced the berserk warrior back with the demigod strength bestowed upon me by my Herculean Armor.

    "You have surprised me," Selina admitted, still multitasking as she fought off Anastasia''s relentless attacks while watching Hades get shoved back at the same time. "Demigod''s strength, huh? It far exceeds my imagination. Usually the same weapon or technique wouldn''t be able to kill Hades a second time, but to have killed him three times with the same weapon¡­not bad at all. That''s a total of six lives gone now."

    There was no trace of worry or concern in her voice, despite the fact that I had taken almost half of her spirit''s lives.

    I panted, swinging my golden sword at Hades. "Seven more lives to go."

    Selina''s grin widened. "Seven, right? You only took less than half of that down and you''re already at your limit. Do you really think you can win this? I bet you can only summon that Hercules of yours once. Once you lose all your armor and your sword breaks, you will have nothing left to face Hades with."

    She had evidently forgotten about the two swords still sheathed by my side. The same two swords she asked about earlier when she wondered why I hadn''t used them yet.

    Not that I was going to remind her of them, of course.

    However, Selina must be extremely na?ve if she thought I was relying on Hercules alone. I was a summoner, and I had been casting summoning spells the entire time I had been fighting Hades. I just needed time to complete them. After all, as I mentioned previously, regular Constellation spirits weren''t going to cut it. Not unless I planned to feed them to the grinder. No, I needed my big guns.

    And one of those one guns was just about to emerge.

    "Cerberus!"

    A massive three-headed dog materialized above Hades. Snarling, Cerberus pounced on Hades, biting and snapping at his face, arms and body. Annihilation was knocked away from the berserk spirit''s grasp, forcing him to defend himself with only his bare arms. Unfortunately, despite his relatively large size, Hades was still small enough to fit inside one of Cerberus''s jaws.

    "The god of the underworld getting mauled and eaten by the guardian who watches over the gates to the underworld," I remarked, wiping a trickle of blood from my mouth. "This is some delicious irony."

    "I almost forgot that you''re supposed to be a summoner," Selina commented with a frown. "But this is the first time you''ve summoned a Soul Beast."

    "I was wondering the same thing," Anastasia muttered under her breath. I would later explain my rationale to her, but at that time she still didn''t know the reason. Why would she? It wasn''t as if she could read my mind.

    "But so what?" Selina sneered. "Do you really think your dog can defeat my Hades just because he has three heads?"

    Cerberus wasn''t just a dog, but it would benefit me if Selina continued to underestimate me and my Constellation spirits. Not to mention Anastasia as well. Despite Selina''s complete disregard for her opponent, I noticed that Anastasia had been steadily making progress, with each of her attacks being much closer than the previous one.

    Instead, I cocked my head toward Cerberus and issued an order.

    "Cerberus, Triple Herculi!"

    Cerberus reared his three heads back, abruptly ceasing their attempts to bite and swallow Hades. Instead, while pinning the berserk spirit down with one of his immense paws, Cerberus opened his three jaws wide and gathered black mana into them.

    "W¡­what are you doing?" Selina demanded, sounding a bit frightened now. Linked to her emotional state, Hades roared and desperately fought to escape, but to no avail. His prodigious strength was allowing him to budge Cerberus''s paw ever so slightly, but he didn''t have enough time to break free before Cerberus''s spell hit him. "You can''t possibly¡­!"

    Whatever she meant to say, she never got to finish because she was forced to shut her mouth and dodge Anastasia''s dagger, which almost sliced her cheek. Staggering back, she kicked out at Ana in panic, but the former Assassin effortlessly dodged her counter.

    I smiled and turned away to watch the two girls go at it. "Though I''m probably asking for too much, I''m hoping Cerberus''s spell will take away three of your spirit''s lives."

    Cerberus launched his Triple Herculi into Hades at pointblank range, obliterating the entire city district and carving a crater into the road.

 196 Chapter 196: Nine Lives Blade Works

    Hades crawled out of the crater, his body still fuming. It had taken him quite some time to regenerate this time, probably a few minutes.

    "Nope, that only took out one of Hades'' lives." The relief was evident in Selina''s voice, even as she traded blows with Anastasia and dodged her poisoned daggers. Right now she was so flustered and preoccupied with fighting her opponent that she couldn''t even see what I was doing. "Any more tricks, boy?"

    "You mean them?" I asked, gesturing to the gigantic silhouettes, half-concealed by the smoke that now filled the city from my fight against Hades. "We''ve been waiting for your spirit. He took so long that I thought he had finally died, you know."

    Hydra and Draco stood behind me, growling and snarling ferociously. What? Did you think I just stood around for several minutes doing nothing while Hades regenerated? Of course I used that time to quickly complete the summoing of my most powerful Constellation spirits.

    "Well, I''ll be. You never run out of giant monsters, do you?" Selina risked a glance at me, her lips pursed in annoyance. As for Hades, he merely raised his hand. Annihilation flew back to his grip. I was slightly disappointed that Cerberus''s Herculi wasn''t able to destroy the weapon, but I refused to show my dismay. Instead, I smiled.

    "What do you expect? I''m the Summoner Sovereign." I shrugged and then pointed upward. "Go check the title of this garbage story if you don''t believe me. It says right there¡­well, okay, maybe the title might not be referring to me, but still¡­"

    "Stop breaking the fourth wall!" Selina snapped irritably. "It ruins the immersion and annoys the readers!"

    "But we need to pad the word count for all those spirit stones," Anastasia pointed out. Okay, we didn''t, but whatever. In any case, I returned to the issue at present.

    "Six more lives, right?" I asked, as if to confirm with Selina. It was possible she wasn''t telling the truth, but she had no reason to lie and lead me on a merry goose chase. Not when she was so confident that I couldn''t kill her contracted spirit. I still went and provoked her anyway. "Still think I can''t defeat your Hades?"

    "You have a snowball''s chance in hell of winning against my Hades!" Selina sneered, still confident in her inevitable victory. Responding to her resolve, Hades gripped his Annihilation tightly and lumbered forward.

    "Well, I won''t know until I try!" I yelled and charged forward. I slashed my golden sword down, only to meet the berserk spirit''s Annihilation in a destructive clash.

    This time, however, Hydra had joined me in the fight. His serpentine heads began biting away at Hades, who was forced to disengage from his clash with me to defend himself from my Constellation spirit. He desperately loped off one of Hydra''s heads.

    Three more heads grew back in its place. The newer, more ferocious heads renewed their assault even more aggressively than before.

    "How¡­?" Selina growled as she glanced in her spirit''s direction, watching Hades fight Hydra''s heads away by decapitating another one of them. However, he only increased the number of heads of his opponent. "Impossible!"

    "I suppose I should tell you the legend regarding the Hydra." I sighed, knowing that it was unlikely that Selina would persist in ordering Hades to continue beading my Constellation spirit. "Whenever you chop off a head of the Hydra, three more heads will grow in its place, stronger and more ferocious than before."

    "Damn it!" Selina cursed and flung out a mental command at Hades. At the same time, Anastasia struck, pressuring the already beleaguered Assassin. "Get away from me!"

    "Not so confident now, are you?" Anastasia taunted. A vein bulged in Selina''s temple and she slashed at Anastasia, who gleefully danced away. The blade sliced through thin air, missing the green-haired beauty completely. "Oh, getting mad now, are you?"

    "Shut up!"

    Despite the momentary distraction, it appeared that Selina succeeded in getting her command through. Hades leaped away as one of Hydra''s heads attempted to crush him. Instead, the Constellation spirit only left a crater in the already devastated ground. Hissing, the head responsible for that attack rejoined the other brethren in pursuing the fleeing spirit.

    The flailing heads struck deep holes into the ground, raining dirt and concrete onto the evading Hades. Hades swung his Annihilation out to parry a blow from the Hydra, but accidentally severed one of his heads.

    "Shit¡­!" Selina swore as three more heads grew from the wound. "Hades! Stop cutting off that damned serpent''s heads!"

    "It''s not as if he can help it," I explained sympathetically, mercilessly slashing Hades across the chest. He stumbled back, caught off guard by my sudden appearance and speed. The dozen Hydra heads then smashed into him.

    And exploded.

    I could only watch in horror as black purplish mana surrounded Hades and consumed Hydra, disintegrated the titanic Constellation spirit in an instant.

    "Draco! Fall back!" I yelled. My dragon retreated immediately, flapping his great wings in anxiety at the sudden turn of events.

    "Destroy all of them!" Selina shrieked, no longer able to control her rage.

    The purple and black glow around Hades expanded exponentially. The entire area around him disintegrated, the very ground crumbling under his feet, as a violent storm raged about him. The chill of death permeated the atmosphere, causing me to shudder.

    To have taken out Hydra in an instant¡­what the hell was that spell? A spell that could decimate one of my most powerful Constellation spirits in a single hit?

    The amount of mana that the berserk spirit was emanating was enormous. Just from being near him, my Herculean armor was already beginning to crumble. If I didn''t do anything and soon, I would disappear along with the disintegrating surroundings.

    "Draco! Thuban!" I ordered.

    Draco charged up the black mana even as we watched the raging spirit discharge more destructive mana.

    "You don''t get it, do you?" Selina snarled, cold fury lacing her words. "My Hades embodies death itself. He''s the strongest spirit that ever existed! Hades will never lose to anyone!"

    "We''ll see about that," I replied evenly, facing down the berserk contracted spirit with icy resolve.

    The destructive black mana burst from Draco''s jaws and slammed into Hades¡­only to dissipate as soon as Hades sliced the tremendous beam apart with his Annihilation.

    My mouth fell open.

    "No way¡­how is that¡­?"

    I had a slight ray of hope when Cerberus''s Herculi took out one of his lives earlier, revealing to me that a direct blast could still kill him. But right now, Hades just took a direct blast from Thuban (which was more powerful than the Triple Herculi spell) head-on, and deflected it away with his weapon. That meant I had to disarm him if I wanted to kill him with that spell.

    It was a bloody nuke spell, damn it! One that could level entire mountain ranges, and the bastard deflected it with his bloody halberd!

    "All your attacks are useless against Hades now, even your demigod strength," Selina crowed. "It''s over."

    I felt Annihilation smashing into me, destroying what remained of my Herculean armor. Rolling away, I finally came to a stop, coughing out blood.

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    "Argh¡­" I struggled to get up, leaning on the golden sword of Hercules.

    "Stop fighting!" Selina bellowed from a distance away, though I couldn''t tell if that was directed at me or Anastasia. Hades delivered a vicious kick in the ribs, throwing me into the air before sending me crashing heavily onto the ground several meters away.

    Gritting my teeth, I struggled to my feet again.

    "Why?"

    For some reason, Selina was in front of me. I didn''t know what happened to Anastasia, but I prayed that she was all right. I didn''t see or hear anything that indicated her demise. She might have retreated¡­I hope.

    Hades grabbed me by my left hand and hoisted me up for his mistress to study me.

    "Why are you still holding your sword? Why are you still fighting? Don''t you understand that you can''t win any longer?"

    I could feel my flesh burn away as the corrupted mana ate into me. Even so, I grinned and spat into Selina''s face. "So what?"

    Selina observed me calmly, despite the murderous rage evident in her eyes. "You''re still lucid. You haven''t gone into shock. You can still feel the fear." She made that last note when she saw my trembling arms. "Yet you still haven''t given up hope. You think you can beat me?"

    "It''s not that I think I can beat you," I corrected. "But that I have to beat you."

    "That''s right!"

    "!!"

    Selina was forced to duck when Anastasia''s dagger sliced from behind her, almost cutting her throat. It wasn''t because Anastasia spoke ¨C Selina was already dodging from instinct before Anastasia appeared. Dropping down, she lashed out with a kick, but Anastasia jumped above her leg and delivered her own kick that forced her to block with her arm. The force sent Selina staggering a few meters back, away from the aegis of her spirit.

    Hades roared, dropping me as he spun around with Annihilation to defend his mistress from the other assailant.

    However, he never got far. Draco emerged from behind him and slammed a paw onto him, crushing the huge spirit into the ground.

    "So be it, the both of you." Selina''s eyes flashed furiously as she glanced from Anastasia to me and back to Ana again. "I''ll destroy you both until there''s nothing left of the two of you, I''ll thrash the both of you until every single cell in your bodies fears me, I''ll crush you until the very mention of the name Grim Reaper brings you immeasurable despair."

    Purplish black mana exploded from under Draco''s claws before blasting the great dragon off balance. Twisting around, Hades thrust Annihilation into Draco''s belly, pumping destructive mana into him. Draco roared in agony before vanishing from existence.

    "I dare say that was your most powerful trump card, wasn''t it?" Selina glanced at me triumphantly. "With even your dragon gone, you have nothing left to face Hades. Not even your pitiful demigod sword can stop him now."

    "Don''t you ever shut up?" Anastasia complained as she flipped over Selina''s sword and countered with a riposte from her dagger. Selina merely parried her first dagger and then avoided a slash from her second dagger.

    "It''s fine. It''s clear that the bitch never listened to anything I said." I sighed in exasperation. "For the third and final time, my most powerful attacks lie in my ranged spells, not my sword techniques."

    Hercules had transformed from a sword into a golden bow, and I was already aiming several dozen arrows at Hades.

    "This is the most powerful form of Hercules," I informed both girls before I released all the arrows. They struck Hades and sank into his obsidian skin, throwing him back. The berserk spirit stumbled, with the arrows protruding out of him like pins on a porcupine.

    "You think this will work?" Selina mocked me as she watched Hades merely straighten himself and tear the arrows out of his body. "Those aren''t even one tenth as powerful as your other arrows."

    "Oh no." I shook my head in an almost sad manner. "Power isn''t everything. And as it is, you have completely misunderstood Hercules''s arrows."

    "What?" Selina stared at me dumbstruck, even as she deflected Anastasia''s dagger. "What do you mean by that?"

    "A¡­AAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

    Hades bellowed and sank to his knees as excruciating pain wrecked his body. Even Anastasia paused for a moment at the horrifying sound, her eyes transfixed on the gruesome spectacle taking place before her.

    Not to mention Selina, whose mouth was hanging wide open at the demise of her supposedly invincible Hades.

    Boils began bursting out of his skin, turning his black flesh a dark green color. Hades howled in immeasurable agony as he held his head, his eyeballs melting into jelly in their sockets. Blood steamed from every single pore in his body, and began corroding and eating the ground the instant those drops made contact.

    "What''s going on?" Anastasia asked, utterly horrified even though she was supposed to be my partner.

    "I presume you''ve never heard of the story regarding Hercules''s arrows." I turned to the two stunned girls with a smile that must seem monstrous. "After Hercules had slain the Hydra, he dipped his arrows in the Hydra''s blood. And the Hydra''s blood was so toxic that just a few drops destroyed an entire river and its ecosystem. Yes, that''s how poisonous a Hydra''s blood is. When Hercules killed some dumb centaur called Nessus, his blood that was tainted with the Hydra''s poison in turned destroyed the river Anigrus in Elis. Nasty little thing, eh? It''s potent enough to take out a few million lives at once."

    "Why do you know so much about these obscure legends?" Anastasia asked suspiciously, wondering if I was pulling her leg. I wasn''t. Seemed like Greek mythology somewhat faded into obscurity in a thousand years'' time, or at least the versions the people of this time was familiar with were different from those I had read. Actually, even back during my original time, not many people knew the original legends as well as I did.

    "I read a lot," I replied simply with a shrug. "My hobby includes reading up on all these cool myths and legends."

    Selina remained uncharacteristically silent the entire time, watching as her Hades struggled and flailed wildly while the potent venom took its toll. Within moments, there was nothing left of him but a smoking puddle.

    "You''ve got to give me that poison someday," Anastasia remarked, her features pale. "It would put even the most potent and deadliest toxin that the Veneneum Sect owns to shame."

    "Sorry, but it''s not something I can just extract at leisure, you know?" I then turned away from my late opponent. "But it seems that I''ve finally won. You''re up next."

    I gestured at Selina with a jerk of my head. Anastasia smiled and was about to say something, but¡­

    "Not yet."

    Selina''s voice froze me in my tracks and cut off Anastasia''s reply.

    I slowly turned around, even as fear began to seep into my mind.

    "T¡­that''s not possible," I muttered, shaking my head. "Not possible at all."

    "I take it from your expression that you really have nothing left up your sleeve." Selina sounded gleeful and extremely relieved when she watched Hades emerge from the smoking puddle, totally unscathed. "Your Hercules''s arrows are really impressive, I must admit. Surpassed even my expectations. That single shot took out five of Hades'' lives in one go¡­you really are a scary fellow." She glanced at Anastasia. "Figures¡­given how you''re in the company of a Veneneum Assassin."

    The purplish black mana billowed about Hades again, destroying his surroundings. I could feel perspiration drip down my face.

    "Now then, young Constellation mage. You shall die."

    "Oh dear, oh dear." I sighed as I buried my face with my hand. "I never expected it to come down to this."

    Selina frowned. "Come down to what, exactly?"

    I drew Gan Jiang and Mo Ye and smiled cruelly. "I never thought you would be able to force me to use my real swords."

 197 Chapter 197: Back to the Basics

    I watched Hades cautiously, my eyes tracking his every move. Above my shoulder, a green ball of mana coalesced and slowly took form.

    "Green Dragon. I''m counting on you."

    A chibi Green Dragon appeared and curled on top of my shoulder, nodding his tiny head. Following which, verdant mana began suffusing my whole body, as well as my two swords. A line of petals began swirling gently around me.

    Hades watched me as well, his caution understandable for this was his last life. He wasn''t stupid enough to recklessly charge in.

    However, his patience wasn''t infinite. When he saw that I wasn''t going to attack, he sprang forward and raised his Annihilation high up to crush me.

    I smiled and waited for him to get within range. On top of my shoulder, Green Dragon stirred and lifted his head to watch the advancing enemy.

    "Wind of Fragrant Pollen."

    I swung Gan Jiang with my right hand. A huge wind, filled with the sweet scents belonging to a thousand different flowers, blasted the charging Hades and caught him by surprise. Hades began choking when he inhaled the myriad microscopic pollen that was carried aloft by the wind, the overwhelming scents sending his olfactory senses into overdrive and causing him to feel dizzy. His eyes watering, Hades began sneezing uncontrollably as the innumerable pollen seeped into his nose and lungs, giving him a mild hay fever.

    But that was not the true power of the Wind of Fragrant Pollen.

    The Fragrant Wind gently enveloped the sneezing spirit. The warm air current began wrapping around his body.

    "You think this can stop Hades?" Selina demanded, amused despite the stupid sight of her contracted spirit sneezing unceasingly. "It''s a simple matter for Hades to suppress the pollen in his nose. In fact¡­" she frowned as she reached out to mentally link with her spirit. "He finds your little wind very comfortable. Like a warm, gentle breeze on a sunny day. Is that supposed to be an attack?"

    I smiled and shrugged. "Well, it''s supposed to do that."

    "Hah!" Selina snorted derisively. "It''s supposed to make your opponent comfortable? Have you lost it?"

    At her beckoning, Hades took a step forward.

    "You might not want him to do that," I warned.

    "What?" Selina snapped even as Hades stalked toward me.

    Blood began dripping from the giant''s mouth and nose. Stunned, Hades lifted a hand to wipe it away. Selina gawked at her spirit.

    "When¡­?"

    "You heard it, didn''t you?" I grinned evilly and turned away, ignoring Selina. "The gentle song of the Fragrant Wind."

    Blood began spurting out of several dozen wounds on Hades'' body.

    "GUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUARGH!" Howling in agony, Hades fell to his knees. Throwing his hands out to support himself, the spirit began vomiting huge volumes of blood.

    "Even upon your death, you''re still enveloped in the comfortable embrace of the Fragrant Wind," I explained poetically. "Be thankful, for this is a merciful technique. But after the fleeting sense of comfort comes the grim reality of suffering and dread."

    Hades grunted as he forced himself to his feet, blood running off his body in streams. Black purplish mana flared up all around him, destroying everything in his proximity.

    "DESTROY THAT BRAT!" Selina shrieked, all dignity lost. Only fury remained, taking over her humor. She realized that she had played around for too much, and her fear was bubbling just beneath her usually calm exterior. She was frothing in her mouth, though I doubted it was because Anastasia had cut her. "KILL HIM!"

    I sighed and swung Gan Jiang again as Hades barreled toward me with a roar.

    "Kaleidoscopic Flower Barrage."

    A rain of flowers, each from a different species, spiraled around Hades, sparkling wildly in a myriad of colors before barraging him from all directions. The razor-sharp petals drew even more blood despite Hades blasting them away with his raging demonic aura.

    I didn''t take it for granted that he would die from this. Instead, I nodded at Green Dragon before assuming a second stance. Taking a deep breath, I didn''t wait for Hades to break out of the barrage before I executed my next technique.

    "Green Dragon''s Petal Dance."

    Thousands of petals danced across the entire crater, the storm comprising of different varieties and colors. As if they were taken from the pages of a vividly illustrated art book or a painting, the vibrant petals of various shapes and sizes literally came to life, swallowing up the wrathful spirit. The flowers were split apart by the swirling black purplish mana that shrouded Hades, only to divide into even more razor-sharp petals in order to inflict maximum damage.

    I watched as the cloud of vibrantly colored flower petals danced around in their full glory, eating and slicing into Hades. Despite their breathtaking beauty, the lovely flowers concealed a ruthless deadliness within their soft petals ¨C just like how every rose would have its thorns. The maelstrom would never cease until it sliced its victim into oblivion, or until I called it off.

    However, I knew the battle wasn''t over yet. My Green Dragon techniques might seem overwhelmingly powerful, but they were probably of the same level as my most powerful Constellation magic, barring my Strategic-scale spells.

    As expected, the storm of petals could not hold Hades off for long. The berserk spirit broke free of the cloud and struck me with Annihilation. I parried his vicious blow by crossing Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, but was thrown several meters back. My feet screeched as they slid across the ground, leaving twin trails of broken concrete. Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to a stop, only to catch sight of Hades descending upon me. I quickly raised both swords to ward him off, but the earth beneath me split apart from the sheer force of his attack.

    "Ugh¡­" I grunted as Hades began to pummel me repeatedly with his halberd. Only my hasty defense with my two swords prevented a messy death on my part. On my shoulder, Green Dragon writhed restlessly, cowed by the devastating forces that detonated around him.

    "Not looking too good there, are you?" Selina taunted from a distance. "That is a great pair of swords you have there. Under any ordinary circumstances, they would have broken under the force of my blows, but there''s not even a single crack on their blades even after Hades has repeatedly hammered them."

    "It just means that your contracted spirit is weak, doesn''t it?" I pointed out wearily. Not good, I was beginning to sway from fatigue after summoning so many high-level and powerful Constellation spirits and Celestial Guardians.

    "Shut up!" Selina shrieked furiously as she knocked Anastasia back. At the same time Hades slammed me away with another swipe of his Annihilation. I stumbled back, but he didn''t give me a chance to recover. Another strike sent me hurtling into the air again.

    I coughed out even more blood as I landed heavily on the ground. Opening my eyes, I weakly glanced up at the raging spirit.

    His fist crashed into my chest, shattering my entire ribcage. I coughed more blood onto his face as the broken shards of bone pierced my heart and lungs, but Hades showed no mercy or hesitation. He repeatedly punched and slashed me, his arms moving like pistons as he practically pulverized me to the ground over and over again. I was unable to block any of his attacks for a brief moment, but I finally forced myself to defend myself somehow.

    Gritting my teeth, I finally managed to somehow parry his Annihilation with Mo Ye, locking his dreadful weapon for just a second. Before Hades could react, I desperately slashed away with Gan Jiang and cut off his right arm.

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    The monstrous giant bellowed in pain and jumped back, clutching his bloody stump with his left hand, even as his disembodied right arm and Annihilation dropped to the side uselessly. A few dozen meters away, Selina froze at the impossible sight.

    "No way!"

    I was already behind Hades, swinging Gan Jiang to behead him, but he ducked with surprising agility and slammed his remaining fist into my belly, swatting me away. I was flung helplessly off my feet before thudding into the side of the crater. Gasping in pain, I struggled back to my feet, only to see that Hades had already relinquished his Annihilation with his left hand and was heading for me.

    Annihilation''s menacing blade swung down on me. Time seemed to slow down as I motionlessly watched the blade inch toward my face.

    I dodged.

    Hades buried Annihilation into the side of the crater as deeply as possible, the tremendous impact sending cracks throughout the wall of concrete. Or earth. Or whatever it was roads were made of.

    "Ugh!" he grunted as he tried to pull his demonic halberd out, but it held fast in the solid material.

    I didn''t waste any time, getting in under his defenses and severing his left arm at his shoulder. Hades howled in pain as he stumbled back, blood spurting from both stumps. The strength that he used to tug his weapon now turned against him, causing him to lose his balance and crash clumsily into the ground.

    Without any hesitation I thrust Mo Ye at his heart, intent on finishing this duel once and for all.

    Hades screamed, and accompanying his sonic assault was an explosion of purplish black mana that blasted me off my feet. I was hurled almost a hundred meters away from the force of the explosion before being rudely brought back down to earth again.

    "Gah!"

    I coughed out even more of that bloody red fluid that now filled my lungs. Just how much blood did I have in my body? I couldn''t believe I still had so much blood left.

    "I guess it''s true when they told me that the average anime character has 47 liters of blood in their bodies," I muttered as I wiped the blood from my mouth and staggered to my feet. I watched as Hades sprinted toward me, bellowing incomprehensibly. The earth shattered explosively with every step that he took. Even though I had cut off his arms, I could see ghostly appendages growing and half-solidifying out from his stumps, composed entirely of the creepy black purplish mana that now surrounded him. I certainly didn''t want to be touched by those things. I sighed as I watched my impending doom advance toward me. "Looks like I''ve no choice. Green Dragon."

    "GGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRGH!"

    Hades resembled a berserk freight train that had derailed from its tracks, determined to run me over. However, I summoned Green Dragon to my shoulder again and drew strength from my Celestial Guardian, refusing to get fazed by the fearsome sight in front of me.

    "Flower Frenzy: Green Dragon Overgrowth Maelstrom!"

    A colorful maelstrom of flowers whipped around Hades in a frenzy, completely swallowing and overwhelming his black purplish aura. No, they devoured the demonic mana that had previously shrouded the berserk Hades, growing exponentially before exploding into countless flowery fragments. The innumerable flowery fragments in turn drank deeply of their victim''s eerie mana before expanding rapidly again, only to once again blow apart into yet more fragments. An almost never-ending cycle that continued to unceasingly feed upon poor Hades'' reserves of mana to reproduce infinitely.

    "This is the most destructive technique of Green Dragon''s, and also one of the most powerful. Second only to Green Dragon''s ultimate attack, Blossom, Hundred-Colored Flowers."

    I couldn''t help but whisper to myself as I watched the effects of my spell. This was the first time I was using Flower Frenzy, after all.

    After the storm died down, I leaped over and stabbed Hades right in the heart. There wasn''t even anything left of him but a bloody skeleton that had been completely stripped of its flesh. Pulling my Gan Jiang out of the ruptured organ, which had finally stopped bleeding, I beheaded my opponent.

    "That''s the thirteen," I declared somewhat tiredly.

 198 Chapter 198: Assassination

    I wasn''t given any opportunity to celebrate, however. An enraged shriek echoed behind me, and I turned to see Selina lunging forward.

    I no longer had any strength left to evade or defend myself. I weakly raised both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye to parry her blade, but she twisted around and kicked me. The blow was crushing, rattling my already shattered ribcage whose shards of bones were embedded in my lungs and most likely rupturing an internal organ.

    "Gah!"

    Crashing across the ruins of the devastated city, I coughed out another mouthful of blood. My consciousness tilted, clouded in a red haze, and I collapsed over. I didn''t even have the strength left to lean on both of my swords.

    "You killed him¡­" Selina hissed as she strode over to me, her hair almost rising from the potent mana that now suffused her. I suddenly understood that Anastasia might have been defeated earlier while I was trying to finish off Hades. "You killed Hades!"

    "H¡­he was trying to kill me¡­" I croaked. "W¡­what did you¡­e¡­expect? T¡­that I''ll just lie down a¡­and let him k¡­kill me?"

    "YES!"

    I give up. There was no reasoning with this bitch.

    "You''re making a huge fuss over losing your contracted spirit. Didn''t you say you could always summon him again, albeit with difficulty? All you need is a bunch of resources and a lot of time, right? Overreaction much?"

    Selina''s reaction was puzzling me. She wasn''t behaving like a normal summoner would upon losing a contracted spirit or Soul Beast. She was being overly emotional.

    "He wasn''t just my contracted spirit, you son of a bitch! He was my brother!" Selina shrieked a she kicked me. "You killed my brother!"

    Normally I would muster up a retort at that, but the revelation shocked me a little too much. Her brother? That berserk gigantic spirit was her brother? What the hell was this bitch rambling about? Wasn''t he a spirit?

    Ah¡­the sacrifice. Selina mentioned a huge sacrifice. A vessel with a bond strong enough with the summoner in order to bind the summoned spirit to this dimension.

    That meant¡­Selina used her own brother as the vessel. She sacrificed her own blood-related brother in order to bind Hades into a contract. No¡­wait¡­

    "Your brother''s name¡­was it Hades?"

    "Shut up! You have no right to speak my brother''s name!"

    All this time I had thought that Hades was the name of Selina''s contracted spirit. That he was some legendary spirit that embodied the Greek god of death. As it turned out, Hades was the name of Selina''s brother.

    Then Angelica¡­what about Angelica? That wasn''t the name of Dad''s contracted spirit, was it? Could it be¡­?

    I didn''t dare imagine it.

    "Even though I''ll be able to summon my contracted spirit again, I will need to find a new vessel! That won''t bring my brother back, even if I get a new vessel! You killed my brother! And now I will kill you, you fucking bastard!"

    Selina raised her sword and plunged it downward, getting ready to finish me off. I closed my eyes briefly as the point of her blade streaked toward my face.

    "!!!"

    Selina suddenly halted and jumped away as something flashed through the place where her head had been. A poisoned knife, thrown from somewhere. She twisted around and intercepted a lethal strike from Anastasia, who had recovered and resumed her assault.

    "Your opponent is me," Anastasia informed her coolly before kicking her in the knee. Selina''s leg buckled and she fell into a kneeling posture, but she still warded off Anastasia''s dual daggers with her sword.

    Black mana rippled through her ominous blade and blasted off in a scythe-shaped arc. Anastasia sliced through the spell with one of her daggers, and then parried Selina''s riposte with her other dagger, sparks flying between them.

    The two girls almost wrestled, locked in deadly combat with each other.

    "I''ll kill you both!" Selina swore. "I''ll definitely kill you both!"

    "How do you plan to do that without your contracted spirit?" Anastasia asked with an innocent smile. Selina''s face twisted in fury.

    "Shut up!"

    Selina forced Anastasia back with another sweeping slice of her sword. Anastasia did a cartwheel, one of her foot catching Selina in the chin and throwing her back.

    "Kuh!"

    The Assassin in black rubbed her bruised jaw, and wiped away a trickle of blood from her mouth. Her eyes bulged in fury.

    "You¡­you¡­!"

    Anastasia didn''t wait for her to finish cursing. She swooped down with both of her daggers, forcing Selina to block once more. Spinning around, she kicked Selina in the small of her back, sending her staggering forward.

    "Your movements have gotten a little slower than before," she observed.

    "Shut up!"

    It was clear that Selina had been mentally affected by the demise of her Servant¡­I mean contracted spirit. Her reflexes had become somewhat dulled and her decision-making no longer on point. Anastasia was getting more hits in and Selina was rising to the former''s provocations and becoming too reckless.

    Despite Anastasia''s taunts and successful kicks, Selina was still able to somehow avoid any lethal blow from her dagger or poisoned weapons. She staggered back, keeping Ana at a safe distance with her sword.

    More mana billowed from her blade ominously, and with a shout, Selina unleashed a blast that scythed through a building, cutting it into several pieces.

    Anastasia dove to the side, ducking the massive attack, and responded by throwing another poisoned knife. Selina merely whirled around to evade it, and then she lunged at her retreating opponent, determined to stop her from escaping.

    Clang!

    Her sword cleaved through a falling debris, scattering more concrete about. Despite having used the rain of rubble as cover, Anastasia found it difficult to shrug off her opponent. She spun around and parried Selina''s sword, and then blocked the latter''s kick before returning with a kick of her own, catching her opponent in the solar plexus and forcing her back.

    "Bitch!"

    "You''re the real bitch here," I snapped, despite my voice almost bubbling from the blood that now flooded my lungs. Damn¡­if I didn''t get any first aid treatment soon, I would probably die from my injuries. I was actually amazed I hadn''t died yet.

    Selina probably didn''t hear me, or she couldn''t care less about the ramblings of a dying man. She continued to assault Anastasia who was slowly being driven back by the overwhelming pressure. Beads of perspiration ran down Ana''s face as she struggled to keep up.

    She glanced at me, her emerald eyes sparkling for a moment, and I sort of understood what she was thinking.

    We had split the mission between us and chosen our respective opponents. I had offered to take Hades on because I had somewhat speculated (correctly, as it turned out) the true nature of his abilities, and knew that Anastasia''s poison wouldn''t work on him (probably take out one of his lives and then he would become immune to it, not unless she had something as potent as my Hercules''s Hydra Arrows). In contrast, all she needed was one cut and Selina would succumb to her deadly poison. Yet, here we were, me having killed Hades thirteen times and she still hadn''t accomplishing her mission.

    This wasn''t to say Anastasia was incompetent. It was just that Selina was extremely skilled. It was only natural, given how Selina was also trained as an Assassin and rated as among the most powerful in the Assassins Guild. In fact, I was impressed that Anastasia was able to pressure her to this extent despite apparently not being ranked very highly within that organization.

    "No pressure," I called out to my partner, trying to plaster on a smile. "Take your time. Slow and steady and all that."

    Even so, Anastasia didn''t seem satisfied. Her lips curled as she studied me for a moment before glancing at the crater where the remains of Hades lay. Her eyes gleamed slightly, as if she had been weighing several ideas in her mind before she finally came to a decision. Then she returned her attention to her opponent.

    Selina was still shrieking incoherently, slashing almost wildly, without any elegance or form. It was just pure violence now, the manifestation of her murderous intent. She was hacking and slashing repeatedly, trying to overwhelm her opponent through sheer number of strikes.

    Taking a deep breath, Anastasia suddenly stopped dodging. When Selina thrust her sword forward, she didn''t move and allowed the blade to puncture her shoulder. Blood gushed out of her wound, but she gritted her teeth and stood still, refusing to yield.

    "Hah!"

    Selina crowed and worked to stab her sword deeper into her opponent''s wound, but her triumph was short-lived.

    While she pressed onward, Anastasia struck. Selina, who had expecting Ana to be in shock after taking such a huge hit, wasn''t able to avoid the latter''s counterattack. Anastasia sliced forward with both of her daggers, one of them slitting Selina''s throat and rupturing her carotid artery. The second dagger plunged into her chest, driving deep into her heart.

    "G¡­!?"

    Selina staggered back, gargling feebly. She let go of her sword and clutching at her ruined throat, still unaware that her heart had also been stabbed. Unable to make any proper sound, she keeled over, her eyes bulging and turning bloodshot. Her skin was turning gray and she began frothing at the mouth as the poison took effect.

    Heaving heavily, Anastasia watched her enemy for a few seconds before she sheathed her daggers. Gripping the sword with both her hands, she cried out as she yanked it out. Stumbling forward, she glared spitefully at Selina before beheading her.

    As a former Assassin, she was taking no chances. Selina might be playing dead, faking her demise until we leave. Anastasia was going to ensure there was no way she would miraculously return to life. Come to think of it, Anastasia probably knew best the methods of faking one''s death and surviving poisons.

    "Ana! Are y¡­you all r¡­right?"

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    I was still lying on the ground, unable to move. Anastasia snorted as she tossed the sword to the side and staggered toward me.

    "Fancy you asking me that. You''re in much worse shape than I am." She looked a little glum as she studied me. Her face turned white when she realized how close I as to death. "I''m sorry, I don''t know any healing spells. But I''ll do my best."

    "Take c¡­care of yourself f¡­first."

    Anastasia glanced at the shoulder wound I was staring at, and snorted. "This is just a scratch. I''ll live. You, on the other hand¡­" she sighed in exasperation. "You were way too reckless. I know the enemy is a monster, but you shouldn''t have tried to take him on alone like that. Do you think you''re some sort of heroic spirit with a reality marble?"

    "H¡­hey, I try¡­"

    "Oh, just stop talking for a while." Anastasia kneeled beside me and began applying emergency first aid with whatever she had on hand. However, there was absolutely nothing she could do. I mean, what were you supposed to do with a broken ribcage? Bandage my chest? That would just drive the bone shards deeper into my lungs. What about my massive blood loss? There was no place where she could get blood bags to begin a transfusion.

    "But you''re amazing, you know?" Anastasia shook her head in disbelief. "I can''t believe you actually defeated that monster. You killed him thirteen times. Thirteen! A monster like that?! I wonder if you are even human¡­"

    "You killed Selina too." I smiled weakly, my voice a whisper. "You get to claim the honor of slaying the Grim Reaper."

    "The honor belongs to us both." Anastasia held my hand firmly. "So don''t go dying on me. I won''t accept this." she sighed again. "You really are too reckless."

    "I''m not sure you''re in any position to be saying that," I muttered, staring at her shoulder. Anastasia rolled her eyes.

    "Compared to the injuries you''ve sustained, this is nothing. I couldn''t shy away from finishing the battle unscathed after you''ve risked and sacrificed so much." Anastasia paused for a moment. "Besides, at that time you had already slain that monstrous spirit. Initially I was trying not to get hurt because I thought I could assist you to fight that monster together. I never thought you would be able to destroy him before I eliminated my target."

    I see. So that was what Anastasia was pondering about that last few seconds before she allowed Selina to stab her. She was weighing the risks of sustaining an injury to finish her opponent in certain fashion, and now that the other threats in the vicinity had been eliminated, she decided that it was safe to risk an arm (or shoulder) to ensure the termination of her target.

    And it paid off.

    I closed my eyes and smiled to myself. Anastasia was truly a former Assassin, huh? Not some damsel in distress who suddenly forgot her previous vocation just because she met the protagonist, and the writer needed to inflate and assuage his masculine ego by making all his heroines suddenly useless just so his male protagonist can swoop in and save her and inevitably add her to his harem. This wasn''t some cheesy and badly written isekai light novel with a terrible anime adaptation.

    "Good thing the Grim Reaper cleared the surroundings of monsters as she got here, and so did we." Anastasia plopped down beside me, still holding my hand. "We''ll wait for reinforcements." She looked a little sheepish. "I''ll let the boss know that you won''t be able to use your Strategic-scale spell."

    He probably already knew what happened, because my glasses had been transmitting the data in real-time the entire time.

    But I was in too much agony and exhaustion to correct Anastasia, so I merely nodded silently.

    "Apologize to everyone for me," I muttered, and then closed my eyes to allow the darkness to take me into oblivion.

 199 Chapter 199: Convalescing

    "Over here! A survivor!"

    "I need help here! Sector 13A!"

    "Anyone with earth magic? We need to move all this rubble!"

    "Healer! Man down!"

    I awoke to the bustle of voices that filled the remains of Azpire City. Anastasia was still holding my hand, but her shoulder had been patched up. She didn''t really need the bandage, though. I could feel mana from a healing spell suffusing her shoulder and accelerating her recovery.

    "Richard! You''re awake!"

    "Ana?"

    I tried to get up, and winced at the sudden soreness that shot through my body. Gritting my teeth, I leaned over, allowing Anastasia to support me.

    "You shouldn''t be getting up yet," Anastasia cautioned as she tried to gently push me back down. "You''ll open up your wounds again."

    "Don''t worry about me." I took a deep breath, and grimaced when my lungs stung. My recently mended ribcage protested when the soft tissue expanded against it, and I could almost imagine cracks reappearing all over the abused bone. My other injuries also seemed to be gone, particularly the ruptured organ resulting from Selina''s kick. Regulating my breathing, I glanced around, surprised to see the crowd. "What happened? Who¡­?"

    "The Silver Wolves, the military and rescue teams are all here," Anastasia explained. "Shortly after you passed out, I contacted Feng Hai. It also helped that the Grim Reaper smashed a path through the monsters in this area, so it took little effort from the Silver Wolves to break through the thin line of monsters here and get to our position. Once they reached us, our healer cast a few spells on us and saved your life."

    "I hope you thanked her for me."

    Anastasia smiled. "Yeah."

    "How about the others? Did they find any survivors?"

    "Fancy you worrying about others when you''re the one closest to death." This time it was a newcomer. A twenty or thirty year old blond lady strode forward, her hands on her hips. She was flanked by none other than Feng Hai.

    "Oh, Richard! You''re finally up!"

    "Instructor Feng." I lowered my head humbly. Then I glanced at the blond lady and also greeted her with a bow.

    "Heather St. Helen. Our healer." Feng Hai introduced me. "She''s the one who saved your life."

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    "Thank you very much." I bowed again, but deeper this time.

    "As to answer your question¡­" Heather was glaring at me. "There aren''t many survivors. A few hundred civilians here and there, pockets of survivors hiding out in shelters and basements, able to avoid the monsters. But thanks to their intelligence, they manage to avoid conflict and injuries. There isn''t anyone as wounded as you were!"

    "Speaking of which, I was pretty sure I ordered the both of you to prioritize your survival and not engage with any enemy who is too powerful." Feng Hai was frowning as well as he gave Anastasia and me a stern stare. "Why in the blazing heavens did you go confront the Grim Reaper?"

    Anastasia and I exchanged a glance and then shrugged.

    "We didn''t consider the Grim Reaper a big threat," Ana declared plainly. "We were confident of defeating her. She''s only human after all."

    "I have previous experience of fighting against her spirit," I added honestly. "So I thought I would be able to come up with countermeasures against them."

    "Furthermore, we couldn''t let her escape. This was a rare chance to subdue her. If we let her get away, she''ll just return to take more lives in future. She''s quite the evasive figure. Her existence among the Assassins Guild is considered legendary. I don''t know they''ll send her out again, if ever¡­"

    Most likely, if they did send Selina out again, it would be to target someone from the ten great families. Not anymore, though, considering that both Anastasia and I had worked together to kill her. Her corpse was still nearby, wrapped up in a black body bag when the Silver Wolves came. They planned to cremate her to ensure that she would never return to haunt us again.

    She deserved nothing less.

    Feng Hai studied both me and Anastasia disbelievingly, as if he wondered if we were bluffing. We probably were, to be honest. It was just that it had been such a desperate and frenetic battle that the thought of escaping didn''t even cross our minds.

    Hell, there was no way we would be able to escape if Selina chose to chase us. She and Hades were too fast, too aggressive and too violent. Our only chance of survival lay in fighting.

    "You yanking my chain or something?" Feng Hai finally spoke up, still skeptical. "You seriously telling me that you thought you could win against a legendary Assassin like the Grim Reaper? The Assassin who had succeeded in 99% of her missions targeted at members of the ten great families and leaving a trail of dead behind?"

    "Yeah?" I shrugged and pointed at the body bag where Selina''s rotting, headless body was ¨C it was easy to tell, because her head was placed right next to the body bag. "We won, didn''t we?" I tapped my glasses. "And you should have gotten all the data that I transmitted to the cloud server."

    "Yes¡­no, that''s not the point!" Feng Hai threw both of his hands up in frustration. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but when he glanced at Selina''s corpse, he was at a loss for words. Probably because reality was staring right into his face. He tried not to hyperventilate, taking a deep breath to calm himself down. Gritting his teeth, he turned upon Ana. "Especially you, Anastasia! You of all people should know how overwhelmingly powerful and deadly the Grim Reaper is!"

    "I do, but I also know how strong my partner is." Anastasia smiled brightly as she leaned a head on my shoulder. I winced from the stinging pain, which arose because my body still hadn''t fully healed yet. "I believed that Richard would have no problem defeating the Grim Reaper''s notorious contracted spirit."

    "Like I said, I fought her spirit before," I repeated with a shrug. "They failed to kill me then. So what reason would I have to be afraid of them?"

    To be honest, there were plenty of reasons. Not that I was going to tell Feng Hai that. So I continued to pretend that I had everything planned out.

    Honestly, it had been a close shave. A very close shave. I didn''t expect to actually win against Hades, but then again at that moment in time it hadn''t been a matter of winning or losing. It was a matter of survival.

    Like I told Selina, it wasn''t that I thought I could beat him, but that I had to beat him. Whatever my chances were, no matter how outmatched I was, I had no choice but to fight. I had to win. If I wanted to survive, I had to struggle no matter how pitiful or pathetic it might seem. I didn''t want to die, so I wasn''t going to just roll over and let him kill me because I "had no chance of winning." Who decided that, anyway? Readers? Fans?

    Stupid power levels and ranks? What, so I should just give up if he''s rank S and I''m rank B? I should stop fighting and let him kill me if he''s 100 levels higher than me?

    BULLSHIT!

    Too many readers relied on the bullshit xianxia logic of cultivation realms or the LitRPG level systems. Reality didn''t work like that. A badger wasn''t going to just roll over and let a leopard eat him just because his enemy was bigger. Fight like a badger, my dudes!

    If we lost to Selina and Hades, then at that time we would find a way to run away. But like I said, it was unlikely that we would be able to escape. Okay, that was an excuse. The thought of running away never crossed our minds at all. Not even once.

    Feng Hai continued to stare at both Anastasia and me, his expression doubtful, but he finally shook his head resignedly.

    "Whatever. You both did a great job. You''ll be rewarded appropriately." He suddenly jolted upright, as if remembering something really important, and slammed a fist into his palm. "Holy shit! I just remembered! There''s a bloody bounty for the Grim Reaper that''s in the millions! The both of you are going to be rich!"

    Anastasia and I glanced at each other, and then turned back to stare at Feng Hai blankly. Evidently, neither of us had ever heard about the bounty.

    "The ten great families have placed a bounty on the Grim Reaper''s head, especially after she assassinated quite a few of their members. The bounty has only gotten higher and higher every time she succeeded. The last time was against¡­Cecilia Stuart, but even though she failed that mission¡­" Feng Hai gave me a pointed look, probably aware of me and Alicia assisting Cecilia against Selina and Hades that time. That was also the experience against Hades I constantly referred to. "¡­the Stuart family doubled the bounty on the Grim Reaper''s head."

    Most likely it was to make sure Selina and Hades were terminated before they made another attempt on Cecilia''s life.

    "All right, stop talking to them." Heather was getting impatient. "They need to rest."

    She then glanced at one of the hovercrafts that were now descending upon the city. Unlike Roland Rothwell''s massive, extravagant one, these were smaller, utilitarian troopships meant for transporting soldiers. They had weapons, but not the crazy ones outfitted on Roland''s personal craft. That guy had too much money to burn, being a crown prince and all. In any case, Heather nudged Feng Hai and pointed above.

    "These two should be back home on the first craft going back to Southampton City."

    "Why Southampton?" I moaned. Of all the places to send me to¡­couldn''t I just go straight back home?

    "Where else do you want to go to?" Heather asked, bemused.

    "Jing Tian City."

    "Huh? Why Jing Tian?" Heather gaped at me. Feng Hai quickly stepped in.

    "That''s where Richard lives. He''s not a part of Silver Wolves, there''s no reason to send him back to our headquarters."

    "Oh, then that''s better." Heather nodded in agreement. "Send him straight back home. What he needs most now is rest, not to run around in a city he doesn''t live in." she turned to me. "Don''t go anywhere else, young man. Stay at home and take the time to recover. Is that understood?"

    "Crystal clear, ma''am," I replied.

    "I do need a written report at your earliest convenience," Feng Hai told me. Or in simple terms, immediately. Meaning I had to start writing the report immediately when I reached home. "Submit it to me when you''re ready. You too, Anastasia. You''re not exempt from submitting a report."

    "Yes, sir." Ana sighed heavily. Understandably enough, she wasn''t looking forward to it. But the organization required things done in black and white. It was tedious as hell, but bureaucratic paperwork was one thing that didn''t disappear even in the far future.

    "I''ll go ahead and formally submit the video," Feng Hai continued. He was obviously referring to the holographic recording I had captured of my battle against Hades, and Anastasia''s own recording of her duel against Selina. Unlike me, she didn''t wear glasses, so her recording must be captured on some other device. Feng Hai grinned at the both of us. "Most likely the higher-ups have already received and processed the video, though. You''ll receive the bounty in a couple of days. Great job, the both of you. Now go get your well-deserved rest."

    He then turned and waved toward one of his Silver Wolves.

    "Sergeant Wolfe! Take these kids and send them home. Uh, take the Sky Hawk. Drop the guy off at Jing Tian City, and bring Anastasia back to HQ after that."

    "Roger that!" A soldier, who was wearing a load-bearing vest, helmet, combat goggles and carrying a rifle that was slung over his shoulders, hurried over and saluted. He then turned toward Anastasia and me and gestured for us to follow him.

    I allowed Anastasia to help me up and leaned on her as we followed after the sergeant, who began leading us toward one of the recently landed hovercrafts. As we did so, I took one last glance at the ruins of Azpire City.

    We had only been here for a couple days at the longest, but for some reason it felt like an eternity.

 200 Chapter 200: Father and Son

    "Hey, Dad, I''m home."

    After Sergeant Jamie Wolfe dropped me off at Jing Tian City, I headed straight home. To my complete lack of surprise, Dad was watching anime on the couch when I pushed the door open. I waved at him as I took my shoes off at the entrance.

    "Oh, Richie! You''ve been gone for a couple of days now! How did your mission go?"

    Dad paused his anime and raised his head from the couch to glance at me. I smiled briefly and shrugged.

    "Okay, I guess?"

    Dad gave me a stare as I proceeded toward the stairs and headed up to my room. He snorted in disbelief.

    "Seriously? You take down the Grim Reaper and flushed out several nests of Goblins, and you say it is just okay?"

    I paused at the bottom of the stairs to gape at him.

    "How did you know¡­?"

    "Hah!" Dad crowed. "What do you take your old man for? I''m a mercenary as well, you know? I have access to the mercenary information network. Your feats are all over the news today! You and that young lady¡­Anastasia, was that her name?"

    "Uh, yeah."

    Dad nodded thoughtfully. "She seems to be a fine young lady."

    He said nothing more than that. Dad was aware of my relationship with Alicia, even if I didn''t explicitly tell him about it, and that it was still too soon for me to move on. It had been less than two weeks since her death. Maybe three. I had lost track of time.

    "Anyway, good job out there." Dad sighed as he looked at me seriously. "But really¡­you''re too reckless. Why did you try and fight an enemy like the Grim Reaper, anyway?"

    "Because she and her spirit attacked me," I replied simply.

    Dad studied me, inferring that Anastasia and I was unable to escape and thus were forced to fight to the death, and nodded understandingly.

    "I''m glad you''re all right," he said. "As long as you''re fine¡­" he frowned. "Well, you probably got healed by a healer in the military."

    "The Silver Wolves," I corrected. I didn''t tell Dad how injured I was, or how close to death I was when they found me. He would probably get mad and concerned. He wouldn''t fuss over me ¨C Dad wasn''t the type to do that ¨C but he would still be worried.

    "Ah¡­I think I''ve heard of their healer. Heather, was it?"

    "Heather St. Helen."

    "That''s the one." Dad nodded. "That''s good. She''s a very competent healer, and considering that you''re in one piece, she must have expended quite some mana." He pursed his lips. "I hardly imagine that you''ll be in good shape after fighting a monstrous enemy like the Grim Reaper."

    "What do you think your chances are against someone like Selina Wright and Hades?" I asked. When Dad gave me a blank stare, I quickly amended," I mean the Grim Reaper."

    Seemed like the Grim Reaper''s true identity wasn''t common knowledge. People just knew of her legend, but they didn''t know who she really was.

    "Ah¡­fifty-fifty, I guess? That guy is quite the troublesome one." Dad was nodding. He grinned. "In a way, you''ve surpassed your dad. You should be proud!"

    I didn''t feel proud. Just tired. It was only because my Constellation magic happened to counter Hades'' ability that I defeated him. Any regular mage who didn''t have a bunch of different magical techniques or Soul Beasts would find it near impossible to defeat that murderous spirit. And when all was said and done, I just felt¡­weary.

    All I wanted to do was go to my room and sleep. Probably because my body was still sore and I needed some more time to fully recover.

    "Oh, Dad¡­"

    Before I went upstairs, though, I suddenly remembered something. While we were on the topic regarding Hades¡­no, the topic of contracted spirits, I might as well ask him about it. it had been bothering me ever since Selina mentioned something about a sacrifice¡­a vessel, and a terrible price to pay to establish the contract.

    "About Angelica¡­"

    "Hmm? What about her?"

    Dad turned back to look at me, his hand on the remote. Having seen that I was about to go upstairs, he intended to resume watching anime. This time it was some trashy series about cheat magicians in another world, except that the protagonist didn''t really have any "cheats." Despite the protagonist and his childhood friend using the word "cheat" over and over and fucking over again, I still didn''t understand how his isekai power was a cheat. He was just different from all the other characters living in that world. That was the basis of a fucking isekai protagonist. Now, if he was literally hacking the world because it was a game and his power was gameshark, I would understand his insistence that he was using a "cheat". However, all he did was control spirits¡­like wow, that was so game-breaking (no, it really isn''t)!

    After a while, I honestly just couldn''t give a shit about the show¡­not just because of the cheesy premise, but because of the bland dialogue, the flat and one-dimensional characters, the overabundance of clich¨¦s and a poor, predictable storyline.

    Whoops¡­I was digressing too much from the topic at hand. Dad was still waiting for me expectantly, a bemused expression on his face.

    "Why are you asking me about Angelica?" he prodded, bringing me back to reality. I stared at him and hesitated for a moment.

    Then I shook my head and scratched my scalp.

    "No¡­never mind."

    This wasn''t the appropriate time to ask about Angelica. No, that was just an excuse. I found myself afraid to ask. I had a feeling that I didn''t want to know the answer. That my dad had committed an unforgivable sin and sacrificed someone he loved.

    A truth that would shatter my imagination of him as a hero. I had always looked up to him and admired him as a hero, an ally of justice. For Dad to have done something¡­so inhuman was unthinkable. I just couldn''t imagine it.

    I didn''t want to imagine it.

    "Sorry. I''m just confused after such an exhausting mission. I''ve a report to write, so I''ll go get it done."

    "Don''t push yourself," Dad called out to me as I ascended the stairs. I merely nodded and waved at him, and he started playing the video.

    Yeah¡­this was for the best. I was not ready to know the truth. Not mentally prepared or emotionally strong enough. I wanted to continue believing that Dad was an infallible hero.

    ¡­yet I knew that he was the type who would sacrifice the minority to save the majority. For him to exchange a single life ¨C albeit the one he loved the most ¨C to gain power to save the world¡­that was unmistakably Dad.

    I knew that. I knew that Dad was not beyond sacrificing the few for the many. What was one life balanced against the world?

    However, the truth would be¡­devastating, somehow. It would still alter my perception of Dad. Even with his cold, methodological thinking, Dad was still human. There had to be a price he would refuse to pay, no matter what. Even if it was to save the world.

    If he was willing to sacrifice even the person he loved the most¡­then was Dad even human? How could someone like him see me, someone who wasn''t even related by blood, as his son? Despite his friendly demeanor, did he always see me as a tool? A tool to be sacrificed if the circumstances called for it and he needed power to save the world?

    "Ugh¡­"

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    There was no point thinking too much about it. Taking a deep breath, I stepped into my room and pushed the matter out of my mind. For now, I should focus on my report.

    I didn''t need to know Dad''s so-called true nature or his past. Dad was my dad. I just needed to believe in him as I always did.

    *

    "¡­eh?"

    I woke up in the middle of a night, slumped over my desk. Rubbing my eyes, I adjusted my glasses back on and stared at the space above my desk where my holographic screen should have been. My personal computer had gone into power-saving mode and switched off the holographic screen after several minutes of inactivity.

    I must have dozed off in the middle of writing my report. Rubbing my head and stifling a yawn, I reached out to switch my computer back on and resume writing the report.

    An explosion rocked my room, almost throwing me from my chair. Glancing out of my window, I saw an immense inferno billowing upward, consuming something in front of our gate, just beyond the fiery barrier that Dad had designed.

    "What¡­?!"

    I immediately turned around and bolted out of my room without any hesitation, barreling down the stairs. Someone was wreaking havoc just outside our house and I intended to take care of them once and for all.

    Dad wasn''t in the living room watching anime ¨C well, it made sense, considering the time of the night. Most of the times he would just leave the intruders to the fiery barrier¡­which was strange. The fiery barrier didn''t have a function to blast flames outside of our territory.

    Meaning the inferno was most likely a spell conjured by Dad.

    Slipping on my shoes, I bounded out of the house. Raising my head, I caught sight of Angelica hovering high up, her wings of fire shedding flaming feathers. Lifting a hand, she directed another colossal fireball at somebody outside of our courtyard, on the road beyond, and blew him or her out. I hastened my pace and burst through the front gate.

    "Dad?"

    I caught sight of Dad standing outside, his arms crossed and his features grim. He tilted his head as he glanced at me.

    "Richie. Sorry, did I wake you up?"

    "No, I was writing my report anyway¡­what happened?"

    Dad didn''t reply. Instead, he strode toward the immolated corpse within the inferno and plunged his hand into the flames. In a single jerk, he yanked out the blackened body and tossed it uncaringly into the street, where it continued to smolder.

    "Professional killers from the Assassins Guild. Umbra Sect, from the looks of it. Caught them sneaking around." He frowned. "I think they were targeting you instead of me. Seems like you''ve pissed off the Assassins Guild."

    "Well, they can piss off," I growled, irritated. "They can try to kill me, but I''m not allowed to kill them back in return? What kind of logic is that?"

    Dad grinned and kicked the charred corpse. "That''s the spirit."

    He then glanced up at Angelica, who slowly descended toward our position with a single flap of her fiery wings.

    "Is there anyone else?"

    "No, we got all of them." Angelica nodded, distaste evident on her beautiful face. It was as if she hated killing, and wasn''t pleased that she was forced into staining her hands with the blood of humans. I watched her, transfixed, wondering briefly if it was because she had been human once.

    What did being a vessel mean? Was this Angelica''s real form, or was that the physical features of the loved one Dad sacrificed in order to host the angel of fire?

    "Richie? You okay?" Dad frowned when he noticed my stare. "Is there something wrong with Angelica?"

    "Uh, no." I snapped out of it. Perhaps it was time to face the truth, after all. I still dreaded learning it, but if I didn''t confront it once and for all, then I would never be able to move on. Taking a deep breath, I turned to Dad. "I''m sorry if I sound rude, but I wanted to ask about Angelica."

    "What about her?" Dad asked, furrowing his brow in puzzlement.

    "She''s a contracted spirit, right?"

    "Yeah." Dad raised an eyebrow, as if that was obvious. He had explained that concept to me before, when I first started trying to learn summoning magic.

    "Then¡­who did you sacrifice to make a contract with her?"

    For a few seconds, there was nothing but silence, the only noise being the crackling of flames that continued to eat away at the Umbra Assassins. Dad stared at me, his expression unreadable.

    I gulped, wondering if I had made a mistake after all.

    "S¡­sorry. It''s all right if you don''t want to tell me. I''m probably overstepping my boundaries. I mean, I''m not even your real, biological son, and yet I''m¡­"

    "No, that has never been an issue, and will never be an issue."

    Dad sighed and shook his head. Angelica vanished, almost like a flickering fire, and I wondered if that sad expression on her face just before she disappeared was just my imagination.

    Turning his back on the pyre of Assassins, Dad strolled back to the house.

    "The story will take some time¡­it''s not something I can tell you while we''re standing out here in the open." He paused for a while. "I should probably grab a can of beer while at it. What do you want to drink? I''ll make you a cup of hot chocolate."

    I didn''t expect Dad''s wistful tone, so I nodded as I followed him back into the house.

    "¡­it''s not that I didn''t want to tell you." Dad sighed as he headed to the kitchen. He went for the fridge and grabbed a can of beer, and then reached up to a cupboard to pull out a sachet of hot chocolate. Emptying the powder into a cup, he then filled it up with boiling water from the electric kettle, stirred it, and pushed it toward me. He sat down on one end of the dining table, while I took the seat adjacent to his. "It''s just that it''s a very¡­complex story. And there was no need for you to know¡­or so I thought."

    He stared at his can of beer for a few seconds before he flipped the tab open and took a gulp.

    "But I guess¡­you would have found out about the truth behind contracted spirits sooner or later." He sighed heavily as he set his can down, his eyes still dark and weary. "I''m guessing you already know it requires a¡­sacrifice."

    "Yeah. Of someone you love¡­someone important to you." I nodded, my voice sounding diminutive even to me.

    "That''s right." Dad straightened up, his eyes still taking on a faraway gaze. "Angelica''s true identity is¡­the woman I loved the most in the world¡­the person who would have been my wife if ''that'' didn''t happen¡­"

 201 Chapter 201: Everything but the Rain

    "Let go! Let go of me!" the girl kicked and screamed as she struggled to break free of her captors'' grip, to no avail. Twisting around, she threw out a hand to the young boy who was lying on the grass, battered and bruised. "Shun Yin! Shun Yin!"

    Huang Shun Yin lay on the field, in too much pain to answer. Those bastard adults¡­they couldn''t go easy on a kid, could they? Even though he was only a seven-year-old, they sure as hell didn''t hold back at all.

    ¡­all because he talked to the daughter of the Porter family.

    "Shun Yin!"

    He could hear Angelica Porter''s voice from far away, but his body hurt too much for him to get up. He could try saying something, but one of those damned adults had socked him in the jaw so hard he found it difficult to speak.

    There were still a couple of adults lingering around to kick Shun Yin when he was down.

    "Don''t you ever approach the young mistress again!"

    "You''ll pay for your arrogance and audacity!"

    "You''re lucky we''re letting you off with just a beating! Or you''ll be dead!"

    "Stop it! Stop hitting him! Shun Yin! Shun Yin!"

    Angelica''s cries were getting further away now. Shun Yin closed his eyes and waited for them to disappear.

    It was all right. Angelica had her own circumstances. He understood that they belonged to two very different backgrounds. She would forget about him eventually and resume her duties as the daughter of the Porter family while he returned to his normal life.

    "Did you not hear what Angelica told you?"

    Shun Yin''s eyes flew wide open when he saw an eruption of crimson flames sear through his eyelids. A couple of the adults who were kicking him were blasted off their feet, their suits scorched and their sunglasses incinerated. Coughing and screaming as they rolled on the grass, attempting futilely to extinguish the flames on their immolated bodies, the adults wailed in pain.

    "B¡­Brother!"

    Shun Yin forced open his swollen eyelids when he heard Angelica''s surprised outburst, and caught sight of a young man, about fifteen years old, striding forward with an extended hand. Flames continued to dance in his palm as he glared at the surrounding men in suits.

    "What do you think you''re doing?"

    "Y¡­Young Master!"

    The remaining men in suits immediately dropped to their knees, their heads lowered. The young man, Angelica''s brother, stopped right in front of them. The leader hastily formulated an explanation.

    "This peasant thought he could talk to our young mistress! He dared to approach her¡­"

    "So?" the teenager cut him off. "You beat a seven-year-old kid up because he approached and talked to Angelica? Are you listening to yourself?"

    "He''s just a commoner of low birth, of¡­"

    "And who are you to make that judgement? Did you investigate his background? Did you conduct a thorough check? Or did you make that assumption because you''ve never seen him before and he wears normal clothing?" the guy''s lip curled in disgust. "And even if he is, so what? Are commoners not allowed to talk to Angelica?"

    "You and the Young Mistress are of the noble Porter lineage, Young Master. Commoners should not be allowed to¡­"

    "Fuck you. Our Porter family is one of the ten great families of the Global Federation. It is our duty to fight for the citizens of the Federation and protect them, no matter their status. We built our power and wealth upon the backs of normal citizens. It is our responsibility¡­our obligation to normal civilians. We should be protecting them¡­and yet here you are, beating them. You dare call yourselves the subordinates of the Porter family?"

    The men in suits said nothing.

    "And since when do you have the authority to decide who we can or cannot talk to? Aren''t you overstepping your boundaries?" the young man closed in on the leader. "Are you the master? Or is Angelica the young mistress?"

    "Young Mistress is the Young Mistress, sir."

    "Then why are you acting as if you''re the master and making decisions on her behalf? Why are you deciding who she can and cannot befriend?"

    "But, Young Master, it is our responsibility¡­"

    "It is your responsibility to protect us, not run our lives for us. Not to decide who we can or cannot socialize with." The young man kicked the leader. Flames exploded and wreathed the shrieking man in an angry red. The other men in suits glanced at him nervously, and then returned to lowering their heads, awaiting their turn. "You bring shame to my Porter family. You think that just because you serve one of the ten great families, you can go around beating up kids? Well? Do you feel good about yourself now? Do you feel strong now that you''ve kicked and punched a seven-year-old?"

    The leader was in no condition to answer, and none of the other men in suits dared to speak up. The young man regarded them with disdain, and then turned toward the injured Shun Yin. He then gestured for one of the men in suits.

    "You over there. Rendall, was it? Go get a healer and get this kid''s wounds healed."

    "Yes, Young Master!"

    The guy didn''t dare to disobey, and he immediately retrieved his smartphone and began dialing a private number.

    "Thank you, Big Brother!"

    Angelica managed to break free of their grip and ran over. She bowed gratefully, her expression a little nervous and timid.

    The young man sighed and shook his head. "If people find out the Porter family is going around abusing small children, our image is going to be ruined."

    "Thank you." Angelica then hurried to help the battered Shun Yin up. Remembering his manners, he tried to form word with his aching jaw.

    "T¡­thank you, s¡­sir."

    "I''m Michael," Angelica''s brother informed him. He grinned. "And no need to thank me. It''s our fault that you ended up like this."

    Shun Yin merely stayed silent, but he continued to study Michael, a look of admiration in his eyes. He was different from the other adults¡­then again, he was only a teenager¡­

    "We''ll get you patched up, so hang in there," Michael told him. Shun Yin nodded quietly and closed his eyes, allowing Angelica to help him up. The older boy watched them, an amused smile quirking his lips. "How did you end up befriending him, Angelica?"

    Angelica brightened up. "He''s a hero like you, Big Brother!"

    "I''m no hero¡­" Shun Yin began, but Angelica cut him off, too excited to pay any attention to him.

    "I was playing on the field here when I got attacked by a dog. Shun Yin showed up and drove it off!"

    "That''s an exaggeration," Shun Yin muttered, feeing embarrassed.

    A few minutes earlier, he was strolling across the field when he saw a young girl with her back pressed against a tree, cornered by a stray dog that was barking incessantly at her. She was so terrified that she was about to cry and Shun Yin felt sorry for her. Not to mention, he was getting annoyed by the racket that the barking dog was making.

    So he picked up a few stones at threw them at the dog. The dog yipped and howled before turning tail and fleeing when it caught sight of Shun Yin picking up more rocks to throw at it. Making a complete 180, it fled the field.

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    Shun Yin then proceeded to check and Angelica. Apparently, she had run away from her guards because they were getting too oppressive and annoying. She wanted to have fun, but they were overly restrictive on what she could or could not do. Unable to endure their endless instructions, she had snuck out when they made a pit stop nearby for gas, and quickly ran off to this area. Her family''s servants were out looking for her, but they didn''t expect her to run right into such a muddy field. That was when Angelica ran into the dog, and was chased by it all the way to the tree.

    After that, they had a long talk. Angelica turned out to be quite the sheltered girl from one of the ten great families, so she wasn''t very familiar with how the outside world worked, or how normal people lived their lives outside the great walls of her family''s manor. The outside world was a great revelation to her, and she was curious to know more. Furthermore, she rarely had the opportunity to speak to other kids her age, and was happy to interact with Shun Yin.

    Unfortunately, before long Angelica''s guards showed up, took her away and beat up Shun Yin for being audacious enough to approach and talk to the young mistress of the ten great families.

    "I''m so very sorry." Michael shook his head before glancing at the guards in disdain. "I can''t believe the family''s servants are even more arrogant and high-handed than the Porter family ourselves. I''ll be reporting this to Father, make no mistake. Beating up a young kid for nothing more than speaking to my sister¡­have they lost their minds?"

    The men in suits shrank back timidly.

    "But what are you doing here, Big Brother?" Angelica looked puzzled. "You weren''t supposed to be following us¡­"

    "Oh, well¡­" Michael looked a little sheepish. "When you went missing, everyone went into a panic. I heard the servants making a big fuss over the family''s communications network, and I rushed over as quickly as I could. I got worried¡­if anything happened to you¡­"

    "What could happen?" Angelica asked innocently. Michael sighed and bent to ruffle her long, crimson hair.

    "There are many bad people in the outside world. A lot of them hold grudges against our Porter family. You don''t want to be kidnapped by any bad men and brought to somewhere scary, do you? Remember what Dad said? Naughty children will get taken away by bad men and they will never be seen again."

    Shun Yin raised an eyebrow, the effort earning him a grimace from the pain. He had heard a similar thing, but he didn''t think Angelica was being naughty. Hence she didn''t have anything to worry about, or so he thought.

    "No." Angelica shook her head frantically, her emerald eyes wide. "I don''t want to be taken away by bad men."

    "Then listen to Uncle Sam and stay with the adults when you''re outside. Don''t run off on your own."

    "¡­yes¡­" Angelica''s shoulders drooped a little. "But I want to make friends."

    "Ah, yeah¡­I know how you feel." Michael gazed at her sympathetically, a twinge of sadness in his eyes. He had probably been brought up in a similar fashion. "You will make friends eventually. You''ll be going to elementary school this year, right? You''ll make plenty of friends there."

    "What about Shun Yin?"

    "I''m sure he''ll be happy to stay as friends with you." Michael gave him an apologetic glance, but Shun Yin merely nodded.

    "That''s right."

    "See?" Michael looked grateful and relieved. He nodded his thanks to Shun Yin, and then straightened up. "For now, let''s go home. Dad and Mom are worried."

    "¡­yes¡­"

    They were about to leave when there was a huge explosion a few yards away. Cursing, Michael beckoned for one of the men in suits to come over.

    "Take care of the kids. Not just Angelica, but the boy as well. If either of them gets injured, I''ll make sure your head rolls off your shoulders. Is that understood?"

    "Yes, sir." The newly appointed leader looked nervous. "What do you intend to do?"

    "Isn''t it obvious?" Michael cracked his knuckles before jogging toward the direction of the explosion. "I''m going to check that out."

 202 Chapter 202: The Hero

    Despite Michael''s instructions to the contrary, the men in suits ended up escorting an enthusiastic Angelica toward the direction of the explosion. Not knowing what to do, Shun Yin followed as well, much to the relief of the man in suit who Michael had just recently appointed as the new leader. It would be bad if he had to split up his men to look after both the young mistress and the new charge.

    The guy clearly didn''t want his head to roll, after all. He obviously took Michael''s instructions and threat seriously.

    Shun Yin, for his part, was curious to see what Michael would do. Earlier, he had seen the awesome fire spell that the teenager had cast, and he wanted to see what more this heroic guy was capable of. He had a feeling that he would be able to see more things if he followed, the natural inquisitiveness of his youth overcoming any rationality he might have had. Not that a seven-year-old would have any rationality to begin with.

    The group made their way across the field and toward the urban part of the city, with Michael at the head. It was easy to spot where the commotion was occurring, what with the clearly visible fumes billowing from one building and a huge crowd gathering to watch the spectacle. Needless to say, a good number of them already had their smartphones out, snapping pictures or recording the event, most likely to upload them to social media.

    None of them had thought to call the police. Sighing, Michael glanced over his shoulder to call out to one of the men in suits.

    "Call the police."

    "Yes, Young Master." The guy complied immediately, fishing a smartphone from his pocket and speed-dialing 110.

    The rest of the group followed silently, but found their route obstructed by the crowd. They slowed to a walk, but Shun Yin was able to see enough of what was occurring at the poor building that had been blasted.

    It was a bank. The entrance had been blown open by what looked like explosives. A group of men in camouflage fatigues and black ski masks were shouting and waving automatic weapons. The armed, masked men herded a bunch of bank employees into the middle of the bank, their fearsome rifles pointed at the back of the whimpering staff''s heads.

    Evidently they were robbing a bank. There were a few shadows deeper inside the bank, moving rapidly as they sought to grab whatever cash they could and throw them into duffel bags. A few of them had reached the vault at the very back and forced it open. Even though the robbers did not move out into the open, the crowd could still clearly see what was going on inside the bank. The poor hostages were forced into kneeling positions in the middle of the bank, both staff and customers rounded up and placed under the watchful eyes of the armed robbers. They were too scared to make a single sound, and could only obey whatever the robbers told them to do.

    None of the crowd made any move. It wasn''t because of cowardice, but there was simply nothing they could do against heavily armed robbers. Any move to recklessly dash in and save the hostages would simply result in them being shot¡­their bodies being riddled with bloody holes from the high caliber automatic rifles the bastards were wielding.

    Even so, Michael made his way to the front, gently pushing the spectators aside as he moved through the tightly packed crowd. Angelica tried to follow, but one of the men in suits firmly held her back, placing his hand on her shoulder and shaking his head.

    "Sorry, Young Miss, but no closer than this."

    "Eh? But Big Brother¡­"

    "Young Master knows how to take care of himself."

    Shun Yin wondered about that. Michael was just approaching the bank, completely unarmed. No one in the crowd seemed surprised about the teenager pushing past them to get to the front. Their attention was completely focused on the robbery event unfolding before them.

    "Big Brother is a hero!" Angelica was still arguing with the man in suit who held her back. "He''ll beat up those bad robbers and save the day!"

    "He will, but you being there will only make his job more difficult. Let Young Master do his job, okay?"

    Angelica sulked, but she couldn''t fault the guy''s logic. She then turned back to watch her brother reach the entrance of the bank.

    By now, everyone noticed how there was this solitary teenager who had walked right to the front of the shattered bank entrance by himself, heedless of the armed robbers inside. His shoes crunching on the broken glass, Michael caught the attention of the robbers who were too busily ransacking the counters and vaults to pay much attention to him.

    "You¡­!"

    One of the robbers finally noticed him and quickly raised his rifle to aim it at Michael. The rest of the robbers glanced up, and a few of them also leveled their guns at the approaching teenager. Michael merely smiled and raised a hand in a friendly wave.

    "Yo."

    "Stay where you are!" the leader robber commanded, his rifle aimed squarely at Michael''s face, but he didn''t flinch. He just obeyed, coming to a stop next to a broken booth.

    "Do you mind letting the hostages go?" he asked, almost conversationally. "You''re getting the money, aren''t you? What use have you for the hostages?"

    "Huh? Are you stupid? On your knees!"

    This time, Michael didn''t obey. He merely stared at the guy evenly, his eyes narrowed slightly.

    "Let the hostages go."

    "Did you not hear me?!"

    "I did. Did you not hear me?"

    The lead robber opened fire, the bullet whizzing past Michael''s face but not hitting him. Even so, the teenager didn''t flinch and merely kept his eyes on the guy, who clicked his tongue.

    "If your main purpose is to obtain money, you have it. Why bother with the hostages? Let them go."

    "Are you a moron?" the lead robber scoffed. "If we let the hostages go now, then how are we going to escape when the police arrive? We need some insurance."

    "I see. Then how about we make a trade? I''ll be your hostage. Let the others go."

    "Huh? Are you stupid? One guy for many? Who are you kidding?"

    "Why are we even listening to this guy, boss? Just shoot him already."

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    Getting impatient, one of the masked robbers raised his rifle and opened fire. This time, his hail of bullets streaked directly at Michael, who sighed.

    "I see. So that''s how you want to do it."

    Before the bullets could reach him, they flared up a meter away from his body, burning brightly as flames incinerated and melted them. Molten metal dripped onto the ground harmlessly.

    "T¡­that''s¡­"

    "He''s a mage!"

    The robbers exchanged frightened glances, not sure what to make of this new revelation. As civilians, they weren''t as adept in magic, or they wouldn''t be relying on guns in the first place. They were probably capable of basic spells, but nothing of the level that Michael was currently displaying.

    "I¡­I know that boy!" one of the robbers suddenly blurted out, pointing his rifle at Michael. "H¡­he is Michael Porter! The first son of one of the main lines of the Porter family!"

    "Michael Porter? The mage known as Blaze?!"

    "What is a man like him doing here?"

    "So you know who I am." Michael clapped his hands, almost in delight. "That makes things a lot easier. I hope this convinces you to agree to swap me for the hostages. I''m sure the first son of the Porter family is worth more than all those staff and customers put together." He put on a bitter smile. "You can even ransom my family for more money if you wish."

    "Do you take us for fools?" the lead robber snarled. "With your power, you can easily escape from us once you''re the only hostage."

    "Yeah!" one of the other masked robbers made to jab a hostage with his rifle. "Get out of here or we''ll shoot the hostages."

    "If you can promise us safe passage, we''ll return the hostages to you," the lead robber said, overruling his subordinate. Evidently he saw an opportunity in this and decided to cash in. "But if you try anything funny, we''ll shoot them."

    "Really?" Michael paused for a few moments, holding their gaze. Then he shut his eyes and turned away with a shake of his head. "Never mind. The time for negotiation has come to pass."

    "Huh?"

    "What is this idiot talking about?!"

    "He''s definitely doing something funny, boss! There''s no point talking to him!" the trigger-happy robber from earlier rocked his rifle for emphasis. "As I thought, tell him to get out of here or we''ll shoot the hostages!"

    "You can try," Michael said. "But it''s too late."

    While he had been standing there and speaking to the robbers, he had been casting a large scale spell to envelop the whole bank. The robbers didn''t notice the spell, too absorbed on the newcomer as they were.

    "Fucker!" the trigger-happy robber snarled and squeezed the trigger. Knowing that bullets would be useless against Michael, he chose not to shoot at the fire mage this time. Instead, he directed his weapon at a hostage this time, the female bank staff screaming as she dropped down, squeezing her eyes shut and covering her head.

    The bullets never reached her. Instead, they all melted the moment they left the weapon.

    "AAAAAH!"

    "Argh!"

    "Whoa!"

    All around the back, the robbers shrieked and jolted as they dropped their weapons. The rifles were all glowing red-hot from Michael''s spell, heated up to extreme temperatures that they began melting, turning into molten metal that seared their way past the robbers'' gloves and clothing and into their skin.

    The masked robbers hurried unslung their melting weapons and began throwing them down. Even as they did, the gunpowder in their ammunition exploded, showering them with shrapnel and metal shards.

    The robbers had given Michael too much time to cast his spell.

    "Amazing¡­"

    Shun Yin watched the whole spectacle, enamored by Michael''s spells and conduct. The guy in front of his eyes was a true hero, an ally of justice capable of saving everyone. It wasn''t just him. The spectators in the crowd were cheering even as they recorded the entire thing, applauding and yelling out Michael''s name.

    "Michael!"

    "Blaze!"

    "The Porter family!"

    "Big Brother is a hero!" Angelica crowed triumphantly, much to the bemusement of the family subordinate who continued to hold her back. She puffed her chest out proudly. "I knew he would save them!"

    Shun Yin continued to gaze around in wonder at the raucously cheering crowd before his eyes settled on the valiant figure of Michael, who pointedly ignored the screaming robbers and proceeded to help the hostages, starting with the whimpering employee who almost got shot. The hostages lowered their heads gratefully before they began making their way to safety.

    In the distance, the wail of sirens indicated that the police had finally arrived, but by then Michael clearly already had the case well in hand.

    Taking in all the incredible sights and celebrations, Shun Yin couldn''t help but feel something ignite within his chest. Clenching his fists, he glanced down at himself as he struggled to stop his hands from trembling excitedly.

    "¡­I want to be a hero too," he whispered to himself.

 203 Chapter 203: Everything but the Rain II

    Huang Shun Yin tugged the collar of his high school uniform, loosening it a little so that he could breathe. Precisely because he had only just officially started as a first year high school student a few days ago, he still couldn''t get used to wearing the weird black straight-collared uniform that somehow resembled a military attire more than a school one. It even had that old Meiji period styled cap.

    "Only thing they need is a cape and we might as well return to the Meiji period," Shun Yin muttered. Except that this wasn''t Japan¡­however, the nation called Japan was now located within the super-entity known as the Global Federation, along with the vast majority of Asia, Europe and North American continent.

    At his side was a sword, which normally would have earned him inquisitive looks from the authorities, but he held a mage license. The police in the area already knew of his role, and they gave him a lot of space whenever he was called to perform his duty.

    Speaking of duty¡­

    "¡­it has already been nine years, huh?" he remarked nostalgically as he placed his hand on the embroidered hilt of his sword. he couldn''t believe it had been almost a decade since he had started learning magic, and could believe less so that he had somehow managed to make it this far. Even though anyone could theoretically learn magic, few people had the tenacity and determination to withstand the punishing regime and spiritual abuse that the training demanded.

    In return for teaching him magic, however, the city council had assigned him to perform missions. He had been doing that throughout the third year of his middle school despite officially being underage. Normally the City Council only allowed second year students of high schools to undertake such dangerous missions.

    However, Shun Yin wasn''t just any student.

    He had shown promising talent and far surpassed any other mage his age, his mastery of fire spells surpassing even the specialized fire mages of the Porter family. He had heard rumors that they sought to adopt him, or perhaps marry one of their daughters to him in an attempt to marry him into their family, but he paid them no attention.

    There was only one girl he would ever be interested in, and she was beyond his reach. Furthermore, his goal wasn''t to get married or for fame, but to become a hero like his idol, Michael Porter. He wanted to be an ally of justice, and protect civilians who weren''t as adept at wielding magic as professional mages.

    And his first task as a "hero" was to save the household in front of him, the poor dudes who were being plagued by monsters.

    "I swear, I don''t know how they got in!" the owner of the house was complaining to an indifferent-looking policeman, who merely nodded as he recorded the details in his electronic notepad. "They just showed up one day¡­!"

    "It happens," the policeman told him in an almost disinterested manner. He most likely wouldn''t bother putting charges against the guy because it was too troublesome. Not to mention, the guy was telling the truth. It was unlikely that any random guy could smuggle monsters into the city. He would probably be killed the monster got loose.

    "Please! You''ve got to exterminate them!" the guy was begging. "If this continues, my wife and kids will be in danger!"

    "Relax. We''ve called in a professional. He''ll deal with your problems shortly. Just give him the details regarding your monsters."

    "Like I said, it''s not my monsters! They all showed up one day, without warning! I have no idea how they got into my house¡­"

    "Most likely underground," Shun Yin suggested as he finally reached the frantically gesticulating man. "They might have burrowed through the ground and exited through your basement. You''re just really unlucky."

    The house owner turned and glared at Shun Yin sharply, as if to say this was none of his business. However, the policeman beamed.

    "Ah, you''re finally here!"

    "Yeah. Sorry for being late."

    "No, no. we didn''t wait long." The policeman took a step back and gestured toward the house. "This is all yours now."

    "Roger that."

    "W...wait!" the house owner blurted out, turning his eyes from the policeman to Shun Yin. "You don''t mean to tell me¡­"

    "Ah, forgive my lack of manners." The policeman briefly took off his cap to scratch his head. "This is the pro I''m talking about. He''ll exterminate your monsters for you."

    The house owner''s jaw dropped. He was so stunned that he didn''t correct the policeman this time (regarding who the monsters belonged to). He turned to stare at Shun Yin, unable to form any words despite his mouth flopping open.

    "B¡­but he''s just a kid!" the guy finally found his voice and protested hotly.

    "So?" the policeman responded. "He''s still a pro magician."

    "Stop joking! Get me a real mage!"

    "Why don''t you let me in your house and deal with the monster?" Shun Yin asked coolly. "If I can''t defeat it, then I''ll call my master. Will that be acceptable?"

    "Hell, no." the policeman paled. He turned to the house owner and shook his head. "Trust me, you don''t want this kid''s master to get involved."

    "Huh?" the guy glowered at the policeman, but Shun Yin had enough. He impatiently shoved past the guy and walked straight into the house. Noticing the teenager barging right into his property, the house owner got all flustered. "Hey, wait!"

    "For what?" Shun Yin glanced at him with a raised eyebrow. "The monster is inside your house, right?"

    "No, but what can you do against¡­?"

    Shun Yin placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. The house owner trailed off when he saw that, and he gulped audibly.

    "Make yourself feel at home," he muttered as cold perspiration formed over his face. Shun Yin responded with a smile, and then stepped into the house.

    At first, he didn''t see anything. The corridor leading to the main hallway was empty, as was the kitchen and living room. Shun Yin proceeded to the basement, and found the hole where the monsters emerged from. Closing his eyes, he muttered an incantation, and then drew his sword. Slashing at the hole, he sealed it with purifying flames, scorching the earth and filling it up with holy fire. The fires cooled down and hardened into rock-like crystals that blocked off the burrow.

    There wouldn''t be any monsters coming from there again.

    Satisfied, Shun Yin sheathed his sword. However, he had yet to find the monsters the house owner was talking about. He doubted they were in the burrowed tunnel when he sealed it, which meant the monsters were still lurking somewhere inside the house.

    No matter. He was going to flush them out and save the family from their nightly torments. They had yet to suffer any casualties, but Shun Yin knew that wouldn''t last long. The house owner was intelligent enough to quickly evacuate his house and send his family to his parents'' place while he struggled to deal with this threat.

    "Where could they be?" Shun Yin murmured to himself. He closed his eyes and reached out with his senses, only to stiffen. "This is bad¡­"

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    There were quite a few monsters, and they were located upstairs, in the bedrooms. However, what concerned Shun Yin wasn''t their numbers, but the strange way in which their monstrous auras were expanding.

    They were clearly growing stronger. He wasn''t how, but they appeared to be feeding on something and converting those raw materials into power. If he left them be, they would only become more terrifying.

    No wonder none of the house owner''s family had been threatened yet. The monsters were biding their time, feeding on something else, and waiting to grow strong enough so that they could overwhelm the family and devour them all in one go.

    Hurtling up the stairs, Shun Yin drew his sword and skidded across the second story. He kicked the door to the first bedroom open, and caught sight of something chittering on the floor.

    A humanoid monster, almost the size of a kid. However, it sported green skin instead of pink flesh, and was bald, its scalp scabby and full of warts. At the front of its head were three horns, the two side horns curved inwardly.

    "Tri-Horns," Shun Yin whispered, recognizing the rank F monster immediately. It screeched at him, and then spun away to flee, dropping to all fours and bounding toward the window.

    Shun Yin didn''t give it a chance. He immediately swung his sword and unleashed a crescent of fire that incinerated the poor Tri-Horn before it could get within a meter of the window. The creature wailed as it was roasted alive, its feeble body reduced to blackened ash that drifted across the room.

    Shun Yin then quickly inspected the room to ensure there weren''t any other monsters hiding inside the room. Once he was satisfied that it was clear, he moved on to the next room.

    Unfortunately, his senses warned him that he might be too late.

    "They''re all gathering together?!"

    The moment he exited the current room, he caught sight of a dark silhouette darting into the last room at the end of the second story. Cursing under his breath, he pursued, dashing across the second story and into the last room.

    He then skidded to a stop the moment he reached the open door.

    There were a lot of monsters, but they were congregating somehow. The dozens of Tri-Horns, each of them a size of a human child, were gathering and clambering over each other, almost as if they were forming some monster mountain.

    "You guys¡­"

    Growling, Shun Yin swung his sword to unleash a blast of flames, but the Tri-Horns didn''t seem to care even as the fire hit them. A few of them were incinerated instantly, but enough of them survived to do whatever they were planning to do.

    Right before Shun Yin''s stunned eyes, all of the surviving Tri-Horns melded and merged into a single gigantic Tri-Horn. Resembling a fearsome horned oni from Japanese myths, the green creature let out a bellow before lumbering toward Shun Yin. It was so huge that its head smashed through the ceiling, and its feet actually smashed holes through the floor.

    And then the structure unable to withstand the giant Tri-Horn''s weight as it stomped toward Shun Yin, gave way. The gigantic Tri-Horn crashed through the floor and into the first story, but it didn''t seem bothered. Snarling, it raised a hand and smashed through both walls and flooring in order to crush the hastily running Shun Yin.

    Cursing, the teenage mage hurdled himself over the railing and dropped to the first story below. The Tri-Horn, its head still poking through the floor, rammed through the structure with brute force to track its opponent, and another fist came crashing down upon Shun Yin.

    "Tch."

    Shun Yin clicked his tongue before swinging his sword to engulf the Tri-Horn in flames. The creature bellowed in pain and recoiled, but it managed to kick out at the young mage, forcing him to evade. Hitting the ground, Shun Yin rolled right below the gigantic foot, and lashed out with his sword, cutting a small, shallow wound across it.

    "Gr¡­!"

    The Tri-Horn pulverized more walls and flooring as it struggled to grab hold of Shun Yin. Jumping to his feet, the sixteen-year-old managed to sail over another one of its kicks before diving to the side and widening the distance between them. The Tri-Horn spun to face him clumsily, throwing another powerful punch.

    Taking a deep breath, Shun Yin straightened up and parried the gigantic fist with his sword. The ground around him shattered, the concrete unable to withstand the immense impact, but still Shun Yin managed to hold his ground.

    Then with a single motion, he swung his sword and sliced off the Tri-Horn''s arm.

    "UGH!"

    The Tri-Horn bellowed in pain as it crashed backward, clutching its bloody stump. As it fell, it demolished the wall behind it and toppled right into the open. Outside, the policeman and the house owner jumped when they saw the monster emerge out of the crumbling house.

    The arm tried to split apart into the little Tri-Horns, but Shun Yin had already anticipated that. He had enchanted his blade with a spell, which was now coming into effect. The disembodied arm was suddenly wreathed in flames, the Tri-Horns composing it shrieking in agony as they were burned into cinders.

    With that taken care of, Shun Yin jumped outside, through the hole left in the demolished wall, and prepared to finish the Tri-Horn off.

    Growling, the Tri-Horn swatted at him desperately, but Shun Yin merely severed its fist at the wrist. Once again, the hand was incinerated before it could divide into small Tri-Horns. The gigantic monster bellowed as it retreated, both its fists amputated.

    Even so, it was far from helpless. Red mana began coalescing around its horns as it prepared to launch some sort of beam attack. Being a fan of manga, Shun Yin decided to jokingly christen the spell as a Cero.

    Even so, the spell would have no effect on him. Gathering crimson flames around his blade, he swung his sword and overwhelmed the colossal beam that the gigantic Tri-Horn unleashed on him. The flames actually incinerated the crimson beam before engulfing the Tri-Horn and incinerating it.

    The gigantic beast howled in agony before it was disintegrated, reduced to nothing but soot.

    Closing his eyes briefly, Shun Yin tried to probe the remains of the house for any other monsters. He jumped back through the hole in the wall and proceeded to the rest of the bedrooms to ensure there weren''t any strays. Once he had checked and confirmed that there was nothing left inside the house, he emerged into the open where the house owner was speechless.

    "My¡­my¡­my house!" he shouted.

    "Sorry about that." Shun Yin bowed his head slightly. "The damages were unavoidable. I believe you should be able file a claim from your insurance company."

    "That''s not the point! You destroyed my house¡­"

    "The monster destroyed your house," the policeman corrected. The house owner spluttered and shook his head.

    "Fine! The monster did! But why didn''t you kill it before it damaged my house?!" he threw up his hands in despair. "I knew kids wouldn''t do it! You should have called your master here to exterminate the monster before it destroyed my house!"

    The policeman burst out laughing. "Are you an idiot?"

    "Huh?" the house owner rounded on him, but the policeman continued to laugh.

    "If the kid''s master was the one fighting, he wouldn''t even bother to save your house. He would have destroyed everything along with all the monsters inside it. There wouldn''t be anything left of your house except ash. At least now you still have three quarters of your house standing. Just a few repairs and it will be all good. But if this kid''s master was the one handling the task, you''ll probably have to rebuild your house from scratch! Might as well buy a whole new house if that''s the case."

    Not really interested in the adults'' affairs, Shun Yin waved casually as he whirled away.

    "I''ll leave the rest to you to handle, uncle."

    "Yeah. Good work as always."

    The policeman waved cheerfully and watched Shun Yin depart. Then he turned back to the spluttering house owner.

    "Now, if I can get the details of your insurance company¡­"

 204 Chapter 204: Everything but the Rain III

    Shun Yin pushed the heavy gates open and stepped into the broken courtyard beyond the rickety fence. Huge trees towered over him as he made his way through the old gravel path that took him into the small building in the center of the perimeter, their leaves unkempt and their branches untended. Grass and weed were left to grow rampantly throughout the yard. The owner of the place evidently didn''t bother with gardening.

    With a sigh, Shun Yin reached he door to the building and pushed it open. He entered the empty, spacious dojo, took his shoes off at the entrance, left his bag in the shelf located there, and stepped onto the unpolished wood.

    "Master¡­?" he called out, his voice reverberating in the hollow dojo. Frowning, he shook his head and placed his hand on his hilt. This¡­

    He suddenly spun around when he sensed something hurtling toward his back. Drawing his sword instantly, he sliced through the tremendous fireball that was hurtling toward him.

    "!!!"

    However, that wasn''t the only attack. Right after the lethal flames dissipated, a huge figure came barreling toward him, his broadsword raised. Shun Yin stood his ground, however, and parried the heavy blow, both of his legs buckling as the wooden floor underneath his almost bare feet (he was still wearing socks) splintered.

    Grunting, he forced his assailant back, unleashing a torrent of flames of his own. His opponent didn''t hesitate to generate a new stream of fire and they clashed again, sparks flying as their blades collided violently.

    Shun Yin then spun around and thrust his sword from his assailant''s blind spot. Despite wielding such a massive and heavy sword, the swordsman moved with a grace and speed that belied his bulk and blocked it. Deflecting Shun Yin''s sword, he then attempted to twist it out of the teenager''s grip, but the high school student retreated.

    "Smart," the huge guy grunted. However, he lunged at Shun Yin again, his broadsword descending in a deadly arc while the blade was wreathed in flames. Shun Yin refused to yield and met him squarely, the both of them exchanging several blows that sent tremors across the old, crumbling dojo and causing the poor structure to fall apart further.

    With a bellow, Shun Yin knocked his opponent back with a particularly powerful swing. Fire began culminating around his sword before he unleashed it in a single tremendous surge that bathed the huge man in crimson energies.

    The huge man cocked his head to the side, defending himself with his broadsword while exuding a thick layer of armament Ba Qi. The flames washed over him without any visible effect, but beads of perspiration formed on his bearded face.

    Roaring, the massive man cast his own spell, blasting Shun Yin with his own torrent of fire. Shun Yin narrowed his eyes, but he rushed inward, thrusting his sword boldly at the fiery funnel. The blade sliced through the tremendous torrent of fire, dissipating it harmlessly before going straight for the massive man''s throat.

    The huge man merely deflected Shun Yin''s sword with his broadsword before delivering a hook with his left, meaty fist. Shun Yin ducked under it and whirled around to retaliate with a kick that forced the huge man to block. Straightening up, he the slashed at the huge man, but his opponent effortlessly blocked his blow.

    Their energies clashed once again, twin infernos colliding before exploding forcefully and violently throwing both parties apart.

    "You''ve gotten better again, Shun Yin," the huge bearded man admitted as he lowered his broadsword and shook his head with a grimace. His left hand smoked and he shook it tenderly. "This old man can''t keep up with you any longer."

    "Come on, Master," Shun Yin scoffed as he nursed his own hands, both of which were reddened. "You were holding back."

    "I have no choice. If I didn''t, we''ll level the dojo again. And I can''t afford to rebuild it so many times." Shun Yin''s master scratched the thick mass of black hair that crowned his scalp. "But I can''t believe you managed to master fire spells to this extent. And to think that the vast majority of them were self-learned."

    Shun Yin laughed at that.

    "I don''t have a choice. Master, you didn''t teach me any magic for the first five years. I had to find a way to learn them on my own."

    "Well, I have a good reason for that. You need to establish a solid form foundation of combat before you learn magic, otherwise your magic would be pretty sloppy." Shun Yin''s master winced. "Just like those Porter people. I understand that they specialize in fire magic, but they rely too much on fire magic. If it wasn''t for their overwhelming potential, they would have died many times over in actual combat. They are just too careless and sloppy in fighting." He narrowed his eyes. "Combat isn''t about magic or throwing spells alone. A mistake in close combat, a misuse of your weapon, a small slipup will result in death."

    "Yes, Master." Shun Yin nodded, lowering his head and remembering his master''s teachings. The huge man grinned.

    "And there were quite some unexpected results too. You created your own fire spells, some of which I had never seen before. I''m thinking that withholding magic and allowing you to experiment on your own actually helped improve your creativity. Using martial arts and combat techniques as a base instead of the standard magic spells, you were able to come up and invent your own more powerful and efficient spells instead of being shoehorned into learning the same fire spells as me." he stroked his beard. "That thrust you executed near the end to destroy my fire strike¡­that was beautiful. Contracting your fiery aura to a thin surface around your body and blade to cancel out my fire spell¡­while expending so little of your own mana¡­brilliant!"

    "Thank you, Master." Shun Yin felt a little sheepish. That was something he had seen in an anime episode and he always wanted to try it out. He didn''t actually think it would work, and was secretly relieved he didn''t mess it up.

    "When you begin accepting disciples of your own, that might be something you want to keep in mind." Shun Yin''s master nodded sagely. "Instead of forcing you own magic or spells onto your disciple through rote learning, you might want to let him experiment and learn magic on his own. Just teach him the very basics, give him a good foundation. But the advanced spells, the so-called clan techniques, leave them out. I''m sure he''ll surprise you in future by coming up with his own creative way of using spells. Don''t lock him into becoming another you."

    "I''ll keep that in mind, Master."

    Even though Shun Yin complied outwardly, inwardly he couldn''t imagine himself ever accepting a disciple. He felt as if he was still so far away from becoming a proper mage. He had only just started out his mage career¡­a year earlier than most of his peers, admittedly, but nowhere near the point where he was a recognized mage.

    He highly doubted that there would be anyone who would want to learn from him. And he wasn''t confident he had the knowledge, skills or experience to teach them either.

    In any case, there was no point worrying over this. It was still something far in the future, something he couldn''t envision. As they said, take one step at a time, and worry about it when it came. If it hadn''t happened yet, what was the point of worrying over it?

    Master chuckled, as if he had read Shun Yin''s thoughts, and reached out to ruffle his hair.

    "It will happen eventually. Trust me. I was the same as you once¡­I could never imagine becoming a master of mages and magic swordsmen when I was your age¡­I only busied myself with learning under my own master." He glanced up at the broken ceiling, where several wooden beams hung precariously. "I never took my master seriously when he advised me on how to teach because I didn''t think I would inherit his dojo¡­yet here I am." He had a nostalgic look on his face. "Years later, after so many of my fellow disciples came and went¡­I''m the only one left here. The only one who is still teaching the old Miyamoto sword styles to future prodigies."

    "Future prodigies¡­" Shun Yin repeated with a roll of his eyes. His master chuckled again.

    "Don''t look down on yourself too much. You are definitely a prodigy."

    Shun Yin decided not to argue and instead raised another question. His curiosity had been piqued when he heard his master reminisce about the past.

    "What happened to all your other fellow disciples? Did they become powerful mages?"

    His master''s expression turned grim, and his eyes glazed over. Taking a deep breath, the master of Miyamoto dojo shook his head.

    "Most of them died."

    "¡­eh?"

    Shun Yin gaped at his master, who merely nodded his head gravely.

    "I told you, didn''t I? That a solid foundation is the most important thing of all. That one mistake in close combat or a misuse of your weapon will cost you your life." Shun Yin''s master sighed. "Many of my fellow disciples got too impatient or didn''t adhere to that teaching closely, overly trusting and relying on their magic. At the most pivotal moment, they fell to a monster attack when those things got in close, and they mishandled their weapons or defense."

    His eyes narrowed and he thumped his broadsword against the ground.

    "This is what it means to fight against monsters¡­to risk your life. Your enemy doesn''t exist for you to slay. Both of you are locked in a life-or-death struggle. Obviously it would do its best to survive too. Never underestimate your enemy. Never neglect your basic foundation and combat techniques. Hone your sword and combat skills to their sharpest. Only then would you survive the bloody battlefield even as so many others fall."

    "¡­yes, Master."

    Shun Yin lowered his head, his heart a little disturbed. He raised his sword a little, staring at it and catching a glimpse of his reflection on the highly polished blade.

    Would he die just like his master''s fellow disciples, an ignominious death on the battlefield? Or would he survive?

    "There''s no point thinking so much," Shin Yin''s master told him with a shrug. "You either live or you die. You can only change your fate when you''re fighting. Right now, no matter how much you ponder over the matter, it''s not going to change the outcome of your battle. You can only prepare and continue to be careful and vigilant."

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    "Yes, Master."

    Shun Yin nodded and sheathed his sword. That was correct. The only thing he could do now was train and hone his skills. Anything else would just be an unnecessary distraction.

    "Speaking of which¡­" Shun Yin''s master peered closely at his uniform. "I almost forgot. You''ve finally gotten into high school, haven''t you? You''re starting this spring?"

    "That''s correct."

    "Good luck." Shun Yin''s master nodded and reached out to pat his disciple''s shoulder. "You''re going to need it."

    Shun Yin gave him an inquisitive look, and his master burst out laughing in a boisterous manner.

    "What? You didn''t know?" When Shun Yin shook his head, his master snorted gruffly. "The school you''re going in¡­that''s run by the Porters. It''s an academy for mages¡­on the surface, but the students and staff in there¡­they have quite the¡­uh, distorted view of how mages should be." He coughed scornfully. "Some bullshit thing about strong eat the weak and all that nonsense. Of course they would emphasize such a dumb ideal when they believe themselves to be the strongest. The moment they''re no longer the strongest, they''ll probably start changing their rhetoric and twisting the rules to keep themselves in power." He let out a disgusted guffaw. "Their notions of what power means will change according to the circumstances they find themselves in."

    "Huh?" Shun Yin looked confused. His master merely laughed and shook his head.

    "Like I said, when they are the strongest, they will do whatever they want and oppress and bully others while claiming stuff like ''survival of the fittest'' and ''the strong eat the weak.'' When they run into someone stronger, they start backtracking and spouting nonsense like, ''power comes with responsibility, the strong should protect the weak, and they can''t abuse their power to do whatever they want.'' You should be careful when you go in there. As long as you''re not from the Porter family or one of their subordinate clans, they''ll make life difficult for you."

    Shun Yin sighed and shook his head. "Ever since I chose to walk the path of being a fire mage, my life has been full of difficulties and idiots trying to push me down. What''s going to be different about Vermillion High?"

    "Oh, you''ll find out." Shun Yin''s master was smiling humorlessly. "You''ll find out really soon."

 205 Chapter 205: Vermillion High

    Shun Yin raised a hand and caught a drifting Sakura blossom that had fallen from the tree he passing by. Looking up, he glanced at the sea of pink that filled the entire district. The Sakura trees were in full bloom, imbuing the place with vibrancy and life.

    Along the pink-splattered pavement, students wearing the distinctive uniform of Vermillion High were strolling toward their new school, chatting happily. The guys were wearing the standard black high school uniform so reminiscent of traditional Japanese schools whereas the girls were dressed in a more flamboyant sailor styled uniform with yellow scarves against a vermillion blouse and a dark brown skirt. The Vermillion High crest was emblazoned visibly across the breast pockets of both types of uniform, taking the form of a majestic Vermillion Phoenix that spread its fiery wings.

    And no¡­even though I was about 200 chapters too late, it was time that people understood there was a difference between Asian phoenixes and Western phoenixes. Asian phoenixes did not have miraculous healing powers with their tears or whatever (you people have been reading too much Harry Potter) and they did not symbolize rebirth or resurrection. That was the Western phoenixes. Rather, Asian phoenixes were associated with royalty, loyalty and honesty, and sometimes benevolence and knowledge ¨C all virtues related to ruling.

    I should have realized that readers would confuse the two and assume that Asian phoenixes were the same as Western phoenixes, but I kind of took it for granted that people recognized the distinction. Sorry about that.

    "Hey, why are you breaking into my origin story and speaking to the existences beyond the fourth wall?" Shun Yin asked before waving me away. "This is my turn, my flashback arc! We don''t need no fourth wall breaking or meta-commentary here! Shoo! Go away!"

    Sorry, Dad.

    "I won''t be your dad until like twenty years later! Now get lost!"

    Anyway, the design of the crest was pretty cool, but the intention of using the Vermillion Phoenix (which again was different from the usual Asian phoenix ¨C the Vermillion Phoenix was not associated with royalty at all, but rather was a celestial guardian that embodied the fire element¡­yes, I know it''s confusing for non-Chinese readers) was not lost on Shun Yin. The Porter family specialized in fire magic, and the Vermillion Phoenix was the embodiment of fire element. So it was pretty clear right from the start that Vermillion High was under their jurisdiction.

    "Just like what Master said."

    Shun Yin nodded to himself, but he wasn''t very bothered by the fact that the Porter family essentially controlled the school. He wasn''t interested in politics. The only Porter he was interested in was Michael Porter, the hero he idolized and whose footsteps he vowed to follow, and Angelica, the girl he loved but knew he was unable to form a relationship with.

    That was fine. Shun Yin didn''t come here for romance and teenage drama. He was here to become stronger. Vermillion High was among the elite combat magic academies in the Global Federation, filled with talented prodigies and geniuses clamoring to join the top mercenary guilds and occupy the highest ranks of the military. Shun Yin was one of them, even if he had no interest in joining them.

    Shun Yin only aimed to be a hero. An ally of justice. He intended to save the world, not to become famous or wealthy. Though, he had to admit, when he saw the crowd applauding and cheering Michael Porter all those years ago¡­

    ¡­it felt good.

    However, Shun Yin was aware that Michael didn''t do it to be adored by the crowd and the public. Like any true hero, he worked for the greater good of everyone. To save the world, not to win its affection and adoration.

    Shun Yin wished to follow in his footsteps.

    "?!"

    Suddenly, he sensed something hurtling toward him. Tilting his head to the side, he slightly whirled about and caught sight of a bottle of soda spinning past him and shattering on the pavement next to his feet. He scowled and glanced at the other students, but they were all staring at him and sniggering to themselves.

    There was no way to tell who threw the bottle of soda at him. And it was clearly meant to hit his head and break, soaking him in coca cola¡­if he didn''t dodge. Clearly someone was out to humiliate him.

    "What a waste."

    Glancing at the broken bottle and the spilled drink, Shun Yin shook his head. However, there was little he could do ¨C it was pointless crying over spilled soda, as they said, and since it wasn''t his drink or money, he couldn''t care less what others did with theirs.

    So he continued onward without glancing at the other students. A few of them looked a little disappointed or disgusted.

    "What a coward."

    "Is that the kid from the Miyamoto dojo?"

    "His family name is Huang, right? Never heard of him before."

    Apparently there had been some research done on him, but why they bothered to put in the effort, Shun Yin had no idea. Perhaps they were curious as to what sort of person was able to enroll in Vermillion High even though he possessed no connections or noble bloodline.

    The truth was that he made it in here through his own effort.

    "Admittedly, he has great reflexes. I didn''t think he would dodge that."

    "Come on¡­don''t be ridiculous. If he couldn''t even dodge that, then how did he get in our school in the first place? I can evade something like that with my eyes closed."

    Ignoring the scorn and ridicule, and wishing they would stop staring at him, Shun Yin continued onward. He hoped he could reach the hall and disappear among the mass of new students as soon as possible.

    "Hey, hey! What''s this?"

    Shun Yin paused for a moment when he heard the scornful voice. A group of high school students dressed in the same uniform as him were approaching. He frowned in puzzlement. He didn''t recognize any of those guys, yet they were clearly heading toward him, their eyes gleaming with malicious intent.

    "Can I help you?" he asked calmly. The trio of thugs glanced at each other, and then burst out laughing.

    "Can he help us, he says?"

    "What''s the matter with him?"

    "Is something wrong with his head?"

    Shun Yin frowned and cocked his head for a moment, and then shrugged. Suppressing a sigh, he turned away.

    "If you have no business with me, then I''ll take my leave."

    "Hold it!"

    The leader of the group grabbed his shoulder roughly and hauled him back. Shun Yin decided to go along for now, allowing the assailant to pull and spin him around to face the trio once more. Keeping his expression neutral, he offered a reminder.

    "The entrance ceremony will begin soon."

    "Oh, this will be quick. We''re just going to give you a welcoming ceremony of our own." The first guy cracked his knuckles. "It''s something we give all country bumpkins who somehow sneak into our great, prestigious school by luck."

    Shun Yin sighed, recalling his master''s words. "Because I''m not from the Porter family or any of the affiliated clans?"

    "Oh, so you do know your place!" the thug exclaimed in delight. "This will make things so much easier!"

    "I''m sure it will," Shun Yin agreed sarcastically, but his tone was lost on the idiot.

    "Let''s not waste any time then! As you said, the entrance ceremony will begin soon!"

    The lead thug immediately punched Shun Yin in the face.

    ¡­or tried to, only to find his fist caught in Shun Yin''s hand. His face contorted in surprise and he tried to yank his hand out, only for Shun Yin to grip it tightly.

    "What''s the matter, Senior?" Shun Yin inquired with a polite smile as he applied more pressure. The thug''s face paled as his bones began to make ominous cracking sounds.

    "L¡­let go of my hand!"

    "Why? I thought this was your own version of the welcoming ceremony. I really appreciate that you came all the way here to offer me such a warm and firm handshake."

    "Ah¡­ha ha ha, yeah¡­just a handshake." The guy was squirming as beads of perspiration formed all over his face. "That''s what this is¡­the handshake is done now. Can you please let go?"

    "If you say so, Senior. Sorry if I mistook your intentions."

    "No, no! You didn''t mistake my intentions at all!"

    The other two thugs were staring at their leader, baffled at the sudden turn of events. One of them reached out uncertainly.

    "Qi Fu Ren, are you all right?"

    "Of course I am!" Qi Fu Ren waved and nursed his hand grudgingly after Shun Yin let go of him. He turned away grumpily, suppressing the urge to swear under his breath. Trying to maintain some sort of dignity, he gestured for his followers to leave. "Let''s go."

    "But¡­"

    "Just go, okay?"

    The first lackey obeyed, but the second couldn''t help taking a swing at Shun Yin. The latter effortlessly stepped to the side and evaded his fist, and then he kicked out at the crony''s feet, sweeping it out from under him.

    "Eh? Whoa!"

    "Watch out, Senior! You''re losing your balance!"

    Shun Yin placed a hand on the lackey''s back and sent him tumbling head over heels onto the ground. The bully''s face slammed into the floor, causing a bunch of Sakura petals to fly upward before drifting down around the poor dude and turning him pink.

    "Are you all right, Senior? Here, let me help."

    Shun Yin offered a hand, and without waiting for the crony to reply, grabbed his hand and pulled him up. The guy howled in pain as Shun Yin''s fingers crushed the bones in his arm, sending red-hot agony shooting through his body.

    "I¡­I¡­I¡­"

    "There you go." Shun Yin then slapped him so hard the guy nearly sprawled forward and blacked out. "Ah¡­you almost fell again." another crushing grip on his shoulder that brought the poor lackey to tears. "You ought to be more careful, senior."

    "Y¡­yes. Thank you. Sorry!"

    The poor guy was practically weeping. He staggered toward his comrades, the first underling quickly reaching out to catch him before he could fall from the agonizing pain.

    "I told you to go!" Qi Fu Ren hissed, his face pale from fright. "You idiot!"

    "S¡­sorry, Qi Fu Ren¡­"

    Shun Yin watched the three of them go, and then shook his head with a sigh. It seemed that no matter where he went, bullies existed. Once again, he recalled what his master said. Seemed like he was right.

    If they thought they were stronger, they would claim "survival of the fittest" and "strong eat the weak" and do whatever they liked. If they turned out to be weaker, they would turn tail and run, appealing to the stronger person''s sense of justice and morality to avoid retaliation.

    Revolting, the whole lot of them.

    Shun Yin aimed to be a hero, so he wasn''t going to enact vengeance on them or revolutionize the arrogant thoughts that ran deeply through the students of Vermillion High. He had better things to do with his time.

    They weren''t victims who needed rescuing, after all.

    "¡­"

    While he thought that, he suddenly caught sight of a blond guy waiting right outside the gateway to the main hall of Vermillion High. He was smirking and watching Shun Yin with sky-blue eyes, his handsome face smirking.

    For some reason Shun Yin found himself immediately on guard, his intuition warning him of something. His hand automatically went to the hilt of his sword.

    "?!"

    The blond guy raised his hand. The next moment, lightning sparked to life between his fingers before lancing out in a silver-white arc to crash against Shun Yin.

    A roar of flames filled the courtyard, causing students to scatter. Electricity collided with fire, the resulting explosion causing the pink Sakura petals scattered all over the pavement to combust and blacken.

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    "¡­oh?"

    The blond guy looked impressed.

    "¡­huff¡­"

    In contrast, Shun Yin was scowling. His hand trembled for just a second, his fingers gripping the hilt of his glowing sword tightly. Flames continued to wreath the blade, but now that the danger was over, Shun Yin relaxed and straightened up. Extinguishing the fire on his sword, he then returned it to his scabbard and glared at the guy.

    The handsome blond guy merely gave him a smile before turning around and walking into the hall.

    "¡­someone from the Porter clan, huh?" Shun Yin murmured to himself with a shake of his head. Sighing, he resumed his journey in the same direction, his gut churning. His earlier optimism fading, he chewed on his lip and glanced at his still quivering hand before clenching it into a fist. "Seems like high school life is going to be very interesting¡­"

 206 Chapter 206: Vermillion High II

    Shun Yin watched as the fifty-something-year-old principal climbed up the stage and toward the podium. The guy had long, graying hair and glasses perched upon his weathered face, but his movements were still full of life. He turned toward the students of Vermillion High with a bright smile and spread his hands.

    "Welcome, students of Vermillion High!" he boomed enthusiastically.

    The student greeted him back, somewhat less enthusiastically. Even though Henry Porter was technically the principal of the combat mage academy, he was known more for his scholarly work than his combat skills and magic. Having dedicated his life to research, in particular history and archeology, Henry Porter had graduated with a PhD from one of the most prestigious academic universities in the Global Federation.

    However, he rarely went out to the battlefield, if ever. While he was highly respected in the field of academia and his theoretical curriculum was in widespread circulation throughout many schools in the Global Federation, he wasn''t as respected on the battlefield, mostly because he wasn''t that good at fighting.

    As such, the students didn''t seem to pay him much heed. There were rumors that the eccentric Henry Porter planned to transform Vermillion High from a combat-centered academy into a more scholarly and educational institution, much to the chagrin of many of the students here. Consequently, many of the students who had applied for Vermillion High solely for its prestigious combat division held some resentment against the newly installed principal.

    Even though this was only his third year here, it appeared that Henry Porter was in for a rough ride. Despite the obstacles he faced, Henry Porter took everything in stride and tackled the issues one at a time, refusing to be depressed by his students'' lack of acknowledgement. During his brief tenure here, his reforms had already helped out a lot of the more unfortunate students and allowed those who exceled in theory and experimentation to flourish.

    After all, magic wasn''t solely about fighting and killing. The theoretical and research departments were also a vital piece of cog in the machine that drove the Federation''s progress. Without the theoreticians and scientists, many of the magic techniques today wouldn''t have existed. They were constantly improving and refining magic spells, maximizing their efficiency, increasing their effects and power or reducing their costs and casting time as much as it was humanly possible. They also produced many of the weapons and Devices that mages now wielded.

    But because these researchers, weapon smiths and scientists weren''t "strong", they were often looked down upon by the same mages who benefited the most from their research and products. What irony. if these combat mages ever realized how much they depended on these support personnel, and how they would die against monsters without learning the spells that these scientists first conceived of in theory, without being armed by the weapons and equipment crafted by these smiths, and without the tactics and intelligence conducted on the monsters by these researchers, they might not behave so arrogantly. Unfortunately, they were too drunk on their own power to pay attention to others. One day the complacent and arrogant mages would suffer when the researchers had enough and stopped providing their support.

    They would regret scorning and abusing these supposedly "weak" support personnel who were in actuality vital to their combat activities and their survival when fighting against monsters.

    Henry Porter was actually trying to raise that awareness by promoting research and emphasizing the importance of these support personnel, to tell people that they can still contribute and be proud of themselves even if they couldn''t fight. That non-combat personnel were just as vital to the survival of an entire society as the warriors. Warriors couldn''t survive alone ¨C all humans had to depend on each other to survive. Without farmers, everyone would starve. Without warriors, there wouldn''t be anyone to protect the civilians from monsters. Without smiths, the warriors would have no weapons to fight monsters. Without researchers and scientists, the warriors would have to rely on using inefficient and weak magic, and they would suffer many more casualties due to not possessing sufficient intelligence and information regarding the monsters.

    As they said, knowing your enemy was half the battle won.

    It would take time, but Henry was confident that he would be able to change the mindset of the mages in the Global Federation, and he intended to start with students, the youngsters who would form the core of the Federation in future.

    Even though he wished to convey all of these values, he was keenly aware that the students wouldn''t pay much attention to him. Furthermore, from research, he knew that most youngsters wouldn''t have a long attention span and even his most ardent supporters would begin to drift off if he droned and rambled on for too long.

    So he kept his speech short.

    "I would like you all to support and help each other," he declared. "We are civilized people, living in the progressive and liberal Global Federation. We are lucky not to be born in a world where we have to kill and eat each other to survive. I urge you all to use this chance to forge strong bonds with each other. Together, we are strong. United, we stand. Divided, we fall. Set aside your differences, and don''t obsess with reaching the top at the expense of everyone else. We are not beasts. We are not animals. We do not live in a jungle. We live in human civilization, so please behave like humans. Show kindness and respect your peers. You might not believe me now, but down the road you will realize how much stronger you become when you rely on and trust each other. I don''t want this school to be a battlefield where all of you compete intensely and slit each other''s throats just to reach the top. To be fair, competition is a good thing, but I have seen students take it too far. Healthy competition is encouraged, but bullying, backstabbing, betrayals and abuse are not allowed. We are not here to eat or kill each other. We are here to learn from each other, to support each other and to grow stronger together."

    He paused for a moment.

    "A castle, when divided, will fall. Only when the residents of a castle rally together, support each other and fight as one would we prevail against all invaders. I hope you all remember that when you are surrounded by monsters on the battlefield. At that time, you have to leave your back to the people you trust. No one is god, and no one can destroy all the monsters in this world by himself. Even the strongest soldier must rely on civilians to support him. Your clothes, the food you eat, the weapons you wield, the magic you learn ¨C these are all produced by the civilians around you. You may think you are strong, and make no mistake, you are. However, you are still nothing without other people to support you. Always keep that in mind."

    Realizing that he had been going on for a bit too long, Henry Porter took a step back and smiled. "Well, I should let you all go now before you fall asleep. See you again tomorrow! Classes will begin then, so make sure you know your schedule. Don''t choose the classes that are popular. Choose the classes that are appropriate for your own development. That''s all the advice I have for today. Dismissed!"

    Now the students cheered, more enthusiastic at the end of the speech than at the beginning. While a good number of mages didn''t seem pleased, there was a significant portion of the student body who had been motivated by Henry''s speech and were raring to go. Shun Yin also looked forward to his days at the new school.

    Honestly, if this had been over three years ago, there was no way he would have been accepted to Vermillion High. He was considered an outsider, someone not of the Porter clan or its subordinate families. Only when Henry Porter took over as the new principal a couple of years ago did he begin to reform the school''s admission requirements. He was open to accepting "outsiders" and promising students regardless of their birth, status or families. Henry was aiming to build a fair and educational school operating on the merits of meritocracy. He wished to encourage research and theory alongside practical combat magic.

    Shun Yin was grateful to the principal for approving his enrollment, and after hearing the speech, he was more determined than ever not to let the old guy down. Henry''s values resonated with his own. After all, a hero saved everyone, regardless of birth, status or ability. A hero also recognized that he couldn''t save the world on his own. A hero wasn''t an arrogant bastard who looked down upon everyone without abilities, but rather someone who valued the sanctity of life and respected everyone, regardless of what they could or could not do. Even normal people were capable of doing things that a hero couldn''t, and a hero was merely doing what others couldn''t do.

    But a hero wasn''t a god. He still needed to rely on others.

    I''m glad I enrolled in this school.

    Nodding to himself, Shun Yin got up and made to leave. As he joined the students filing out of the hall, he noticed that quite a few of them had chosen to look around the campus instead of go straight home. Being a new student, Shun Yin found himself quite intrigued by the school that he was going to spend the next three years of his life in.

    "Maybe I should check out my classroom."

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    That sounded like a good idea. He needed to find where it was anyway.

    It didn''t take him too long before he located his classroom. It was on the second level of an adjacent campus building, where all the first year students'' classes were held. The second years had the third level to themselves, and the fourth level was reserved for the third years. It seemed pretty standard to Shun Yin. As far as he could tell, anyway.

    Peeking into the interior of the classroom, Shun Yin surveyed the row of desks. They were all equipped with the usual electronic digital tablets with touchscreen features. At the front was a holographic board that the teacher could peruse, changing screens or conjuring diagrams with a swipe of her hand. All very hi-tech and state of the art.

    ¡­to me, anyway. To Shun Yin, who was born in the thirtieth millennium, this was considered normal. Even so, he was still impressed with the facilities, which appeared to be using the latest versions. Henry was serious when he wanted to turn Vermilion High into an academic powerhouse. There was even a university campus adjacent to the high school, and from what Shun Yin heard, Vermillion High students often progressed straight to Vermillion University.

    Henry Porter was aiming to make the transition smoother for research students so that they could go straight into the research, crafting or theoretical departments and continue whatever research projects they began during their high school years. The university had greater resources and facilities for students who wished to continue their research, but the high school principal had evidently done his best to bridge the gap as much as possible.

    "Amazing¡­"

    Shun Yin could feel the statement of intent. It was a pity that he had no intention of going into research. His aim had always been to become a combat mage, to become a hero who could save others with his magic.

    However, he didn''t begrudge those who had chosen to walk the route of noncombat vocations. Unlike most of the arrogant mages who scorned others "without strength", Shun Yin had always appreciated the value of other people, regardless of whether they were capable of fighting or not. Throughout his life he had received kindness and help from strangers whenever he was in trouble. A lady giving him a ride when he got lost. An old man helping him after he threw up when he was sick. The doctor who gave him medicine at a discount when realizing how poor he was. His teacher doing her best to help him with his grades so that he could graduate from elementary school (Shun Yin was never a good student). The cafeteria auntie who gave him an extra serving of food because he looked so thin and she wanted to ensure he was eating enough.

    All these acts of kindness had saved him. And through those, Shun Yin vowed to repay their kindness by being there to save them whenever monsters or villains attacked. To become a true hero. People had given him so much, helped him so much. It was only natural that he gave back and contributed to society in his own way.

    "All right¡­"

    Taking a deep breath, Shun Yin then descended the stairs. Now that he had located his classroom, there wasn''t much of a reason for him to linger any longer. He decided to return to the Miyamoto dojo and learn some more stuff from his master.

    The moment he reached the first level, he caught sight of a familiar figure. Principal Porter was heading toward his office when he saw the student exiting from around the stairs.

    "Ah¡­Huang Shun Yin, was it?" Henry waved at him in a friendly manner.

    "Principal Porter!" Shun Yin hurriedly bowed politely, but Henry gestured for him to raise his head.

    "Don''t need to greet me like that. I''m not a king." Henry chuckled and stroked his gray beard. "Checking out where the classrooms are?"

    "Yes, sir." Shun Yin nodded and pointed upward. "Just making sure I know where my classroom is before class begins tomorrow."

    "Good, very good." Henry chuckled and nodded in approval. Shun Yin felt a little awkward as he trailed off, and he desperately searched for something to say.

    "That was a great speech, sir!"

    "Ah, thank you. I think I rambled on too much and bored the hell out of everybody¡­maybe got too preachy, but I appreciate the sentiment, Student Shun Yin."

    "N¡­not at all!"

    Henry regarded him for a few seconds, and then he seemed to make a decision. "Student Shun Yin, do you have a moment? If you don''t mind, I would like to have a chat with you in my office."

 207 Chapter 207: Seraph of the End

    Shun Yun glanced around the office nervously, trying not to fall off the huge velvet chair that was placed in front of the principal''s desk. He felt small and out of place inside the huge office with portraits of preceding principals and directors looming over him, casting their fierce and intimidating gazes over his relatively small form.

    He could swear they were alive, that one of the principals actually moved inside his frame, his lips curled into a sneer. An ancestor of the Porter family, no doubt. Probably finding it distasteful that an outsider of common birth was allowed within the sacred space of his office.

    "Relax."

    Opposed to the disapproving glares of his predecessors, Henry Porter was smiling cheerfully as he settled down behind his desk. He pushed a cup forward.

    "Coffee? Tea?"

    "No thank you," Shun Yin declined politely with a shake of his head. He was too nervous to drink anything. Clearing his throat, he tried not to look around ¨C heaven forbid that he would establish eye contact with the harsh gazes of the past principals and directors. "Um, you said you had something you wish to speak with me, sir?"

    "That is correct." Henry Porter waved a hand and called forth a holographic screen. "I''ve seen your records and I must say, I''m very impressed. I didn''t need to do a lot of convincing for the board to accept your admission. You more than proved yourself capable."

    "T¡­thank you, sir." Shun Yin stammered, but he looked bewildered. "Convincing, sir?"

    "Oh¡­you know how this school is. I''ve been trying to change things over the last three years when I''m in charge, but it''s hard. The conservatives on the board¡­they want to keep the school as it is. They fear that my encouragement of non-combat students and support students would dilute the prestige and strength of the academy." Henry made a face. "Anyone who isn''t from the Porter family or any of its affiliated or subordinate clans is automatically excluded."

    Shun Yin nodded. He had heard about this, and was aware that he only succeeded in enrolling in Vermillion High because of the new principal and the implementation of his new programs. That was why he was grateful and highly respected him.

    "I''m glad you made it easier for all of us to get in."

    "Oh, that''s the thing, you see. Even though it required quite some work, I was relatively successful in bringing ''outside'' or ''common'' students in. The thing is¡­the influx of new students not from the Porter Clan or any of its affiliates was largely limited to the support and non-combat streams. I managed to persuade the board that we couldn''t just focus on combat alone ¨C without weapons, research and innovative spells, the combat personnel weren''t going to last very long on the battlefield."

    Henry Porter steepled his fingers and smiled.

    "But you¡­you''re different. You''re one of the rare ''outside'' students who managed to get into this school''s combat stream on your own merits. I was prepared to argue your case, to persuade the board to make an exception. Your fire spells in particular are on par with Mike''s when he was your age. I saw a lot of potential in you, and was really glad that you chose to apply here."

    "¡­Mike?" Shun Yin''s brow furrowed at the unfamiliar name. Henry chuckled.

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    "Oh, sorry. I mean my nephew, Michael Porter. I''m sure you know him. He mentioned you to me before. It''s why I knew about you when I saw your application."

    That was right. They were all Porters here. It was only natural that Michael was related somehow to Henry.

    "That said, I was surprised when they all agreed to pass your application." Henry Porter chuckled again as he leaned back in his seat. "Either Mike pulled some strings or they were sufficiently impressed with what they saw."

    Shun Yin lowered his head humbly. "I believe Michael helped me a lot."

    "Make no mistake, Mike has high expectations of you. I also regard you highly." Henry was nodding in approval. "We know you won''t disappoint us."

    "I will do my best, sir." On one hand, Shun Yin felt crushed by the weight of their expectations, but on the other, he didn''t really mind. He was aiming to be a hero, an ally of justice. Of course people would have expectations of him. If he couldn''t handle this much, how would he be able to handle the weight of the world upon his shoulders? How would he be able to save anybody if he couldn''t do anything as simple as meet people''s expectations?

    "Very good." Henry rewarded him with a grin. "Now, to the heart of the matter. I asked you to come to my office today because I wanted to discuss something with you." he leaned closer with a foreboding smile. "Have you heard of the Seraph of the End?"

    "It''s a manga series," Shun Yin replied automatically. "A post-apocalyptic manga series about vampires and the Japanese imperial army. It has an anime adaptation and a light novel spin-off focusing on Ichinose Guren when he was sixteen years old." He cocked his head to the side. "Hell, this whole flashback arc is based off that sixteen-year-old Guren spin-off."

    Henry grimaced. "Keep that up and your adopted son in the future will start breaking the fourth wall as well."

    "I intend to teach any child of mine the art of breaking the fourth wall. We descend from the lineage of the legendary Wade Wilson."

    "¡­right." Henry winced. "Anyway, back to the topic. The Seraph of the End is a new project that we are working on right now. There are students in both the high school and university research divisions working together to find ways to improve summoning magic."

    "Summoning magic?" Shun Yin''s brow furrowed. He had heard about summoning magic, but mages rarely learned or used it because of how impractical it was. Even though the payoff was tremendous, the long casting time made it untenable in actual combat unless the summoner was supported by other mages. Those Soul Beasts that only required short casting time were too weak to make much of a difference in combat, and the powerful ones that truly mattered often took too long to cast and summon.

    Consequently most mages rarely bothered with summoning magic. There were a few eccentric mages who tried to get it to work, but they were far and few in between. With the current demand for very powerful individual mages who could win tournaments and climb to the top rankings, most people ¨C both students and teachers ¨C dismissed summoning magic as highly impractical and not worth the time.

    Henry was aware of the stigma against summoning magic, or so it seemed, because he smiled when he caught sight of Shun Yin''s bewildered expression.

    "Here at Vermillion High and Vermillion University, we aim to make the impossible possible. At least the research divisions anyway." Henry laughed sheepishly. "Cheesy slogans aside, my research students have been researching on ways to improve summoning magic. They are considering entirely brand new forms of summoning magic that''s completely different from the existing one¡­a new type of summoning magic that allows the caster to summon a spirit immediately. That''s right. Spirits." He nodded when Shun Yin''s jaw dropped. "Instead of having the summoner create his or her Soul Beast through imagination and manifesting it with his or her mana, we will have the summoner establish a contact with an already existing spirit."

    "Spirit? Is that some kind of monster?" Shun Yin sounded uncertain as he probed for more details. This sounded intriguing, but he couldn''t help feeling some sort of premonition. It sounded too good to be true. Furthermore, he hadn''t heard of these spirits before. If they were a type of monster, then that itself presented another set of problems. "But I heard that monsters are untamable. They can''t be controlled¡­any mage who tries ends up being corrupted and dying horribly, killed by the beasts they tried to control."

    "Oh, no¡­spirits are different from the monsters that appear in our world through Emergence events," Henry assured him. Turning his holographic screen around, he put on an image display of several different worlds. "You are aware that these monsters come from another dimension, right? One that exists on a different spatial plane from ours."

    Shun Yin nodded. Henry''s grin grew wider.

    "That had us thinking. What if there are other dimensions? After all, if there exists one alternate dimension where the monsters come from, there has to be other dimensions, right? Other planes of existence. And the beings that dwell within those dimensions might not be as malign as the monsters from the dimension that is currently trying to encroach upon ours."

    "I see. So these spirits are from another dimension?"

    "That''s right!" Henry was nodding enthusiastically. "We aren''t sure yet, but we believe we have located a second alternate dimension that exists on yet another separate plane from both ours and the monster''s dimension. It appears, from preliminary reports, they are¡­angelic beings. Seraphs, like I said. Hence the title of the project." The principal''s excitement grew. "If we succeed, this could mean the end of the monsters! Combining our powers with the strength of angels¡­we might finally obtain the power to exterminate them completely and drive them from our world!"

    Hence Seraph of the End. Shun Yin finally understood the meaning behind the name.

    "The problem, of course, is that we still haven''t found a way to establish a path to that other dimension. There are risks and dangers, of course, but we are trying to find a way to safely trigger an Emergence event for these spirits to cross over to our dimension. We haven''t even discovered a method to communicate with them, so there might be¡­issues¡­if they turn out to be hostile, we might just have doomed our own dimension instead of saving it."

    "But it''s a risk you''re willing to take."

    "Indeed." Henry nodded. "And if you don''t mind, I would like you to partake in this as well. The project is still in its infancy, and we''ll probably require more funding and resources, but if it succeeds, then it will revolutionize magic¡­it will bring about great changes in the world. No longer would we be on the defensive. With an army of spirit summoners, we''ll be able to wipe out all monsters from our dimension and save the world!"

    That last sentence in particular appealed to Shun Yin. Save the world. Wasn''t that what he had always been dreaming of? To be a hero who could save the world?

    "I will help as best as I can," he promised without hesitation. Henry brightened up and stood up, bending across his desk to clasp Shun Yin''s hand.

    "Thank you very much, young man. I really appreciate it." he dropped back onto his seat, looking both relieved and delighted. "I''ll introduce you to the research students tomorrow or so¡­when they resume their project." He offered a sheepish smile. "As you know, today is the entrance ceremony for new students, so they most likely wouldn''t be in school now."

    "I understand. I look forward to meeting them." Shun Yin couldn''t even begin to imagine what sort of people they would be. "I assume they''re not from the Porter family?"

    "They are not," Henry affirmed. "They are like you¡­students from so-called common families." He made a face. "I hate that term. Common. As if there''s something wrong with being a commoner. Or as if you''re entitled to respect and adoration just because you''re born in a family of high status. It''s ridiculous, if you ask me. People should be judged on results, not which family they are born to."

    He then paused and lowered his head.

    "On that note, I should apologize to you about the behavior of my son."

    "Huh? Your son?"

    Shun Yin was caught off guard by the sudden apology. Henry looked a little embarrassed as he nodded.

    "Yeah. He gave you quite the uh¡­shocking welcome. Don''t mind him. It''s my fault for not educating him firmly enough. He gets spoiled by his mother quite a bit¡­she thinks that the Porter bloodline is superior to any other lineage outside the ten great families, and Glen was brought up believing that. I''m doing my best to change his mentality and attitude toward other people, but as a parent I have failed terribly."

    "Not at all, sir. He seems¡­strong."

    Shun Yin remembered the handsome blond guy who attacked him from the entrance to the main hall, using a lightning spell. Then another question occurred to him.

    "¡­eh? But your son¡­he uses lightning magic instead of fire magic? Even though he''s from the Porter clan?"

    "Ah¡­Glen is a bit¡­proud." Henry scratched his head. "Simply put¡­it''s because of family politics. Already in the Porter clan, we have Mike and Angie being geniuses in fire magic. With those two around, the Porter family is sure to rise to prominence. No one can beat them in fire magic. As such¡­Glen decided to give up on competing against them and instead he carved out his own niche in lightning magic. He wishes to stand out among the Porter family in his own way, rather than always being one step behind the others."

    "¡­I see." Shun Yin could only nod, astonished by what he was hearing. So even that arrogant blond handsome guy had his own troubles. That was unexpected.

    "Honestly, though, his magic is topnotch. He shouldn''t belittle himself too much. I believe that he can reach the same level as Mike and Angie if he believes in himself. That said, I am proud as a father of what he has achieved with lightning magic. He has surpassed my expectations and perhaps even made the right choice in refusing to follow the footsteps of other Porter mages and choosing lightning as his element." Henry chuckled as he gazed into the distance. "Instead of dictating what our kids or successors should learn, we should leave it entirely up to them. They will innovate new creative ways of developing and casting magic. And that''s exactly what I want to see."

    He lowered his voice to a mischievous whisper.

    "His mother isn''t very happy about it, though. But personally I think he should just learn whatever magic he wants. It''s not as if we''re in a manga called Fire Force or something."

    "¡­right."

    "Anyway, I shouldn''t take up too much of your time." Henry rose to slap Shun Yin''s shoulder. "I''ll see you tomorrow¡­and once again, thank you for agreeing to participate in the project. You are a very promising student, and I''m sure you''ll contribute greatly to our dreams of bringing the spirits to our world safely to help us in our war against monsters."

    "I''ll do my best." Shun Yin bowed his head as he also stood up. This whole thing still sounded a bit too good to be true, but he decided to give it a shot.

    After all, what was the worst that could happen?

 208 Chapter 208: Schoolmates

    The moment Shun Yin stepped out of the office, he caught sight of a familiar figure leaning against the wall. That golden blond hair, that handsome face and that dignified posture¡­Shun Yin immediately recognized him as Glen Porter.

    He lowered his head in greeting and made to step around him, but Glen stopped him with a single sentence.

    "It seems my father has some expectations of you."

    "Principal Porter requested my assistance with a research project," Shun Yin responded neutrally. He wasn''t sure if Glen was jealous that the one his father chose to speak to was some random outsider student instead of his own son.

    "Oh, yeah. I know. Dad has some stuff he wants to try out. If it works, it''ll revolutionize combat. I look forward to seeing him succeed."

    Shun Yin stared at him, surprised. He had expected some measure of hostility, and definitely resentment, but Glen didn''t seem that bothered by the meeting he had with his father. Glen must have seen the expression on his face, for he chuckled.

    "Don''t worry, I''m not my mother. She might disapprove¡­hell, most of the Porter dudes disapprove of what Dad is doing, but I''m pretty sure he''ll prove them all wrong. Already his work is bearing fruit."

    "¡­I see." Shun Yin felt a little relieved, but he was certain Glen didn''t wait out here just to tell him that.

    "Ha ha! There''s no need to be on your guard. I''m not my mom. I don''t care about your family lineage or bloodline. I only care about results." Glen nodded approvingly. "You''ve earned my respect. Not many mages in our generation can block my Titanic Tempest spell, yet you merely cut it down with your sword. You''re pretty strong!"

    "Thank you." Shun Yin was taken aback. This was certainly not what he was expecting, especially after speaking to Henry Porter and hearing about his son earlier. "Your spell was incredibly powerful. I almost couldn''t withstand it."

    "There''s no need to be humble." Glen leaned in. "Let''s be friends."

    "¡­eh?"

    Glen guffawed when he saw Shun Yin''s shock. "What? I''m not such a snob that I wouldn''t befriend anyone not from my clan." He dropped his voice to a whisper. "I''ll be honest¡­among the Porter family, my dad and I are considered¡­outcasts of sorts. Disgrace to the family. Why do you think my dad was posted as a principal of a high school instead of¡­you know, fighting on the frontlines and earning prestige? He studies too much instead of fight."

    He then scratched his head sheepishly.

    "And I''m considered a black sheep in the Porter family because I insisted on learning lightning magic instead of fire magic. Dad was the only one who supported me. Even Mom was pretty upset when she learned of my decision." He shrugged. "She''s pretty old-school. I''m lucky I have my dad, or I would have been disowned and kicked out of the Porter family." He laughed. "Actually, they''re thinking of kicking out my dad and my entire immediate family out of the clan, but Dad has been impressing the elders with his educational reforms and research."

    Glen grinned.

    "Not that we would have cared. Dad would just resume his old family name¡­ah, yeah. Dad married into the Porter family. That''s why he''s a lot more flexible than Mom, who descended directly from the Porters. But because my dad is considered somewhat of an outsider who married into the family, you can imagine the kind of discrimination he faces from the Porter clan. As his son, I sort of receive the same treatment. That''s kind of why I learn lightning magic¡­but also because everyone else learned fire magic, and that was the only way for me to stand out. Speaking of which¡­"

    Glen glanced around, and then lowered his voice again.

    "¡­she''s here. The princess of the Porter family, one of the most powerful fire mages of our generation."

    Glen sighed and shrugged.

    "As long as she and her brother are around, I''ll never be able to match them if I focus on fire magic. I''ll always be overshadowed by them, unable to come out on my own. The same goes for all the other Porter and affiliated clan children enrolling in this school."

    "Right." Shun Yin wasn''t sure what to make of that. He had a feeling he knew who this Porter princess was. Glen leaned over and threw an arm over his shoulder.

    "That''s why I''m searching for strong comrades¡­I don''t care where you''re from, or what kind of family you''re born in. We''ve to stick together if we want to survive in this cutthroat academy. Even with Dad here to help and reform the school, a lot of the students in the combat division still believe in that survival of the fittest or strong eat the weak nonsense. Sad to say¡­they are probably right for now. If you lack the strength, you''ll get bullied. If you''re weak, you''ll get trampled upon."

    Shun Yin could sense some sort of disgust in Glen''s voice, probably partially directed at his father for being so na?ve.

    "But looking from another way, there''s strength in numbers¡­as long as the so-called weak band together and cooperate, there''s nothing we can''t do. They can try to attack us, but as long as we team up and work together, they won''t be able to break us!" Glen raised a hand. "Just like Dad said, united we stand, divided we fall. A single stick will snap easily on its own, but a bunch of sticks tied together will be more difficult to break."

    "That''s right," Shun Yin agreed, having heard of the old Chinese fable. "But surely you don''t intend to look into the combat division alone, do you?"

    "I might not be my mom, but I''m not my dad either." Glen let go of Shun Yin and began striding away. "Strength is what matters the most to me. Of course Dad is correct in that warriors can''t do everything on their own, that we must rely on support personnel and researchers to survive against monsters, but¡­in this school¡­that kind of mentality is too na?ve. Accepting that fact will not make us immune to bullying and abuse. Power will."

    Shun Yin began to understand the difference between Glen and Henry. The son was practical while the father was idealistic. It was an interesting combination, to say the least. Nonetheless, he was relieved that Glen didn''t turn out to be a bully. He had almost thought he was in trouble when he caught sight of Glen standing outside, especially since the guy had attacked him right before the entrance ceremony, but he didn''t turn out to be such a bad guy.

    Even so, Shun Yin wasn''t gullible enough to trust him completely. He would play along for now and see what Glen''s real motives were. As long as the Porter guy didn''t intend to hurt him, then he wouldn''t take action against him.

    After watching Glen disappear into his father''s office, Shun Yin turned away and headed home.

    *

    The next day, Shun Yin caught sight of Glen entering the classroom he was inside. Glen grinned when he caught sight of Shun Yin and strode over before taking the desk behind him.

    "So we''re in the same class, eh?"

    "So it seems," Shun Yin responded dryly. Glen laughed and shook his head.

    "Well, I hope to learn from you over the next year, at least."

    "Same."

    Even as the two conversed, Shun Yin noticed that the rest of the students were giving the two of them a wide berth. At first, he found that normal. After all, he was an outsider, somebody who wasn''t from the Porter clan or any of their affiliates. There was some resentment and hostility toward him from his new classmates.

    What surprised him was that they were also treating Glen with the same amount of distance. A few of them were whispering as they regarded Glen. In fact, the moment Glen walked into the classroom, the attention had shifted from Shun Yin and toward the blond guy. There was no small amount of scorn in their gazes.

    "They¡­" Shun Yin began, but Glen shook his head and placed a hand on his shoulder.

    "I''m used to it. Don''t worry." He then grinned. "And they won''t dare to do anything to me because I''m from one of the main families of the Porter clan. They might not like me much, but unless they''re also from the main family, they haven''t got the balls to do anything about it."

    "¡­I see." Shun Yin nodded, but he couldn''t help but feel a little sympathetic. Not that Glen needed his sympathy.

    "Well, to do the usual greetings again, I look forward to learning from you this year!"

    "Same here." Shun Yin didn''t wince when Glen slapped him on the back, and merely nodded somberly. Perhaps he was meant to be a shield for Glen, which was why the other guy approached him under the pretense of befriending him. Shun Yin still didn''t entirely trust Glen, but for now it appeared that the handsome blond guy had been telling the truth.

    That didn''t mean he was going to let his guard down.

    After classes, Shun Yin found himself summoned to the principal''s office. Glen merely smiled knowingly and wished him luck, as if he was privy to what his father had summoned Shun Yin for. After yesterday''s meeting, Shun Yin was already aware of what Henry requested of him, and so he went without complaint.

    "Ah, Student Shun Yin. There you are. How was your first day?"

    Henry Porter beamed when he walked into the office. Shun Yin bowed his head politely.

    "It was fine."

    "Good, good. If there are any problems, don''t hesitate to let me know. For now, allow me to bring you to the research department."

    The research department was located in a separate building, a couple of blocks away from the main campus. Even so, it seemed new and was pristine looking, equipped with all sorts of hi-tech equipment and state-of-the-art facilities. As it turned out, it was a shared building with Vermillion University, which explained why the laboratories were so advanced. As they passed through the corridors, Shun Yin could see both university and high school students working together, though the former outnumbered the latter by a lot.

    "We have a lot of research students in the university department," Henry Porter explained jovially as he gazed through the transparent windows with pride. "Many students immediately join the military or become mercenaries the moment they graduate from high school, but increasingly there are more students willing to enroll in universities as the next step. I hope you will consider applying for university too when you graduate."

    "I''ll think about it," Shun Yin said, but inwardly he was reluctant to do so. He was never a good student, and wasn''t the type to be studious. He would rather be moving his body and practicing than reading. The only exception being manga and light novels, of course.

    "Please do."

    Henry Porter than stopped in front of one of the laboratories. Scanning his ID card, he waited for the door to open before he gestured for Shun Yin to enter. Following after the principal, Shun Yin strode right into the lab.

    "Principal Porter!"

    The research students residing inside the laboratory immediately stood up to greet him, but Henry raised a hand and bade for them to resume whatever they were doing.

    "Don''t stand on ceremony. I''m just here to help. Speaking of help, I''ve brought someone who might be able to assist in your research to establish a contract with the spirits you''ve discovered." Henry then signaled for Shun Yin to step forward. "This is Huang Shun Yin. He''s from the high school combat division, and he''s a very promising fire mage. He should be the perfect candidate for becoming a contractor or the new type of spirit summoner you guys have been espousing about."

    "Combat division?"

    "Fire mage?!"

    "That''s great!"

    The three members of the research team crowded around him excitedly. Henry beamed indulgently, and then turned back to Shun Yin.

    "And these are the research team for the spirit summoning project¡­Seraph of the End that I told you about yesterday. The leader of the research, Seinagi Tenshi."

    A girl with long, golden hair that was tied into a ponytail immediately bowed.

    "Nice to meet you!"

    "And this is Rebecca Chambers. She might only be eighteen, but she is already working on getting a degree on biochemistry and medicine."

    "Well met." A short girl with her red hair tied into twin tails bowed, a white lab coat draped over her vermillion and brown uniform.

    "The last member of the team, Gabriel Gallagher. He has some knowledge of spirit magic and mythology, which has greatly helped in advancing the project."

    A young man with brown hair nodded, smiling as he stared at Shun Yin with his warm, honey-brown eyes.

    "I look forward to working with you."

    "Same here." Shun Yin bowed somewhat awkwardly. He didn''t recognize any of them even though they all wore the same uniforms as him (well, Gabriel anyway ¨C the girls were wearing the Vermillion High uniforms). He didn''t see any of them in his classroom earlier that day, which meant that none of them were his classmates.

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    It was only natural. He was in the combat division while the three of them were in the research division. The two streams divided the students into different classes. As such, Shun Yin would rarely get to interact with the research students outside of this.

    "You really saved us!" Tenshi was telling him, moving forward to clasp his hands. "You have no idea how hard it is to convince someone from the combat division to help us with our project!"

    "I was going to have to volunteer to make the contract and do the summoning myself, but I don''t have the mana required or the strength to cast such powerful magic." Gabriel looked a little sheepish. "Even though this contract-based spirit summoning theoretically reduces the casting duration to almost zero, it still consumes a lot of mana. Unless you''re from the combat division, it''ll be very hard for us research students to pull it off."

    "But it''s not impossible," Rebecca chimed in thoughtfully. "After all, healer-type mages always manage to get enough mana to cast multiple healing spells. It''s all a matter of training."

    "Yeah, but you''re not going to wait months for me to build up my magic fitness before we can finally start the experiments, right?"

    "You''ve got a point¡­"

    "Well, anyway¡­" Henry cleared his throat. "I''ll leave you younglings to continue conducting your research. I don''t want to get in your way, so I''ll take my leave first."

    "Thank you, Principal!"

    After Henry left, Tenshi turned back to the rest of the group with a dazzling smile.

    "All right¡­shall we continue where we left off? Don''t worry, Shun Yin. We''ll explain to you as we go along, but basically this is what we have so far¡­"

 209 Chapter 209: Dark Invitation

    "¡­so they still have quite a few bugs to iron out before they can finally call the spirits to this dimension to establish the contract, huh?"

    Shun Yin sighed wearily. He found himself quite lost in the trio''s discussions as they argued back and forth the best way to trigger a safe Emergence event. They ended up compromising by trying out all three methods, but each failed spectacularly.

    "The project is still in its infancy," Tenshi had told him, not at all discouraged by their lack of success. "It''s only natural that we won''t be able to find a way yet."

    "Okay¡­then call me when you need me."

    Honestly, Shun Yin didn''t want to waste too much time idling away in the lab, listening to the three researchers argue, debate and run experiments. He was completely out of his depth, and would much rather spend his time training his magic than sitting around doing nothing.

    Tenshi had understood his troubles and agreed, much to his relief. They had exchanged contact information, which made it easy for the research team to call him up whenever they needed. Until then, Shun Yin was going to do whatever he wanted.

    Which was to train.

    "I should go to Master''s dojo." It was still early in the evening, and Shun Yin planned on grabbing a sparring session or two before he went home. He wanted to grow stronger, after all. Especially after hearing what Gabriel said about the summoning spell requiring large amounts of mana, he was determined to become powerful enough to handle it.

    That was the only reason why they consulted a combat division student like him, after all. Only by working together could everyone grow stronger together. Everyone had a part to play. The moment one cog was missing, the whole machine would fall apart.

    Still, Shun Yin was intrigued. Just what kind of spirit did Tenshi and the others encounter? They were being vague about it, most likely because they didn''t know themselves. Shun Yin hoped it wasn''t a monster in disguise.

    Now that would be a disaster.

    That wasn''t the only reason. After conversing with Glen, Shun Yin realized that he had some ways to go before he could reach the level of the legendary Porter princess. Even though he wasn''t in the same class as her, he had heard enough rumors to finally be able to discern her identity. He had his suspicions, of course, but it wasn''t until he overheard his classmates gossiping that he was finally able to confirm his thoughts.

    Angelica Porter was attending Vermillion High as well.

    Shun Yin hadn''t seen her yet, but he was sure of it. And he vowed to catch up to her someday, or even surpass her¡­to become a man worthy of standing at her side. A hero who earned the recognition of not just the one he loved but also her entire clan.

    "Hu¡­"

    Exhaling, he continued along the pathway. The sun was slowly setting over the horizon, and the streets were now deserted. Most of the students had already gone home, with the exception being the research students who often worked late into the night, obsessed with their projects. Either way, Shun Yin found himself traversing the route during a time when there was no one else around.

    For a moment, he felt a chill run down his back. It wasn''t that he feared being alone, but he just found the complete absence of other people creepy. His gut crawled, his instincts warning him that something was not right.

    Where was everybody? Even taking the time into consideration, it was impossible for the streets to be so empty. There had to be at least two or three other students who coincidentally went home during this time. The staff, in particular, usually worked until evening. Yet he saw no sign of the teachers.

    Something was not right here.

    It was with this thought in mind when Shun Yin finally saw another person. Relief filled him as he approached a man in a suit complete with a tie and inner vest, not to mention a pair of polished leather shoes. He lowered his head politely in greeting while the man smiled in a friendly manner.

    "Good evening," the man greeted him with a grin. "Are you going home from school?"

    "That''s right," Shun Yin replied. There was no reason to hide the fact. He was heading away from the direction of Vermillion High and dressed in the uniform. The badge was too conspicuous and visible that anyone could tell that he was from the school. As a show of good manners, he was obliged to continue the conversation. Taking note of the man''s attire, he offered an enquiry of his own. "Are you going home from work?"

    "Yes, that''s right." The man chuckled and made a show of stifling a yawn. "It''s been a long day at work."

    "It''s been hard on you." Shun Yin nodded. The man appeared to be the typical salaryman, judging from his expensive suit and tie. He had heard about the long work hours that salarymen were subject to, and felt a twinge of sympathy.

    Then he noticed that the man was empty-handed. He carried no bag or suitcase, his hands tucked into his pockets.

    Shun Yin''s sense of danger rose. Doubly so when he noticed something strange while walking past the salaryman.

    The man left no footprints. Even though the ground was littered with scattered pink Sakura petals, the man left no trail or sign that he had been walking through them. The salaryman continued walking without a sound, even though his shoes should have been crunching the leaves and Sakura petals. Yet there wasn''t even a single noise or footstep produced by his casual movements. There wasn''t even a shadow cast by the man, almost as if he was a hallucination.

    There was only one explanation. This man was¡­

    Swoosh!

    Without any hesitation, Shun Yin spun around and slashed at the salaryman with his sword.

    "!!"

    However, the salaryman merely caught his blade with his fingers. With a sly grin, he stopped Shun Yin''s sword a few centimeters away from his body.

    "Whoa there. That''s quite the greeting."

    "You¡­are an Assassin, aren''t you?"

    "From the Umbra Sect," the salaryman affirmed, still smiling. "And I thought I was being so careful. What gave me away?"

    "A normal salaryman doesn''t walk like you," Shun Yin pointed out with a frown. "Without making a single sound¡­and you have no shadow."

    "Ah¡­I admit, that was a mistake on my part." The Assassin sighed and shook his head sheepishly. "Forgive me, I''m not used to how normal people move. As you can probably tell, I hardly have any interaction with the outside world."

    He then yanked Shun Yin''s sword toward himself, pulling the high school student toward him. Shun Yin reacted quickly by spinning around and kicking the Assassin in the gut, but he merely blocked the former''s foot with his elbow.

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    Even so, the impact was enough to throw him back a couple of steps and force him to relinquish his grip on Shun Yin''s sword. The younger man seized the opportunity to free his sword and pull it back to safety while he threw out his free hand, which was already wreathed in flames.

    During the brief exchange, Shun Yin had already begun casting his spells.

    Before the Assassin could react, Shun Yin blasted him with a fireball at near pointblank range. Smoke billowed upward as the Assassin staggered back, his body and clothing smoldering from the heat and lingering cinders.

    "Oh, wow¡­" Despite the predicament he found himself in, the Assassin continued to chuckle. "You really show no mercy at all."

    Wordlessly, Shun Yin came at him, raising his sword high up before slashing without any hesitation or cheesy dialogue.

    The Assassin parried the blow with his arm. For a moment, Shun Yin''s sword sank deep into the man''s arm, slicing through fabric and flesh easily, only to stop the moment it reached the man''s bone. Despite putting more of his strength and weight into the blow, Shun Yin found that he was unable to cut any deeper.

    "What?!"

    The Assassin merely grinned in response before he flung Shun Yin off. Black shadows began creeping out of the wound, unfurling and spreading toward him.

    "I am an Assassin, remember?" he reminded a stunned Shun Yin. "It''s only natural that we modified and enhanced our bodies¡­though not to the extent of the Frenzor Sect, but we have at least surgically strengthened our skeleton to absorb impact and become impervious to weapons."

    "¡­what a monster¡­"

    Shun Yin felt cold perspiration drip down his face as he backed away. He kept an eye on the unfurling shadows that were billowing out of the Umbra Assassin''s arm, understandably wary of making physical contact with him.

    "What are these black shadows?"

    "You''ll find out if you touch them," the Umbra Assassin suggested cheerfully. Shun Yin snorted and jumped back, widening the distance between the two of them. Dropping to a knee, he kept his hand on his sword, getting ready to execute an iai.

    "As expected of the successor to the Miyamoto sword style." The Umbra Assassin glanced at his injured hand. The shadows had stopped emerging from his wound, but it was clear that he wouldn''t be able to use the damaged wound for a while. "How frightening. To think that you would slash a fellow human being who just happened to be walking along the same road as you without any hesitation whatsoever."

    "You''re not just a human being," Shun Yin pointed out dryly as he tightened his grip on both the hilt of his sword and the black scabbard. "You said you are an Umbra Assassin, right? From the Assassin Guild? So who hired you? The Porter family?"

    "Please." the Umbra Assassin rolled his eyes. "You think too highly of yourself. Why the hell would the Porter family go through all the trouble of hiring an Assassin from the Assassin Guild to eliminate an insignificant brat like you? And what do you think this is? A Chinese web novel? Nobody in reality will just send assassins after a high school or college kid for no reason other than because he''s the protagonist."

    Shun Yin wouldn''t be surprised if certain members of the Porter family hired Assassins because they were afraid of him getting too close to Angelica, but then again the Umbra Assassin had a point. There were so many other ways to separate him from Angelica, which entailed much less risk, weren''t crimes and were much simpler and cheaper in terms of time and resources to pull off. They could just find an excuse to kick him out of Vermillion High or something instead of going to extreme lengths to assassinate him.

    This was reality, not some edgy web novel where the whole world was out to kill the protagonist for no reason other than he was "trash" or "unworthy."

    "Then why are you targeting me?"

    "What makes you think I''m targeting you?" the Umbra Assassin burst out laughing. "All this time you''re the one attacking me, and not the other way around. You''re the one who delivered the first strike, remember?"

    "Stop treating me like an idiot." Shun Yin briefly gestured to the deserted space around him, occupied by nothing except Sakura trees in full bloom. "You didn''t prepare this stage and chase away everybody to lure me here, alone, if your target was someone else."

    "Ah¡­" the Umbra Assassin slapped his forehead with his uninjured hand. "It was that obvious, huh? Whoops¡­you completely saw through me. You''re much smarter than I heard you are¡­"

    He never got to finish his sentence. Shun Yin dashed forward and slashed through his body with a flaming blade, cutting the guy in half and cauterizing his wounds from the sheer heat of his fire enchantment. All around the two, Sakura petals were sliced neatly in half, their countless pieces raining upon the combatants. Amidst the veil of pink, Shun Yin''s eyes narrowed when he saw the effects of his attack on his opponent.

    "He didn''t get incinerated¡­"

    Black shadows began dripping from both halves of the man''s body, the top half still hovering above the bottom.

    "Those black shadows again¡­"

    "No, I didn''t. You truly are impressive." The black shadows began to merge and pull both halves of the Assassin''s body together, knitting him back into one whole. "Whoa, I didn''t expect you to actually cut through my reinforced skeleton. Bravo, bravo!"

    "Impressive? Me?" Shun Yin snorted dismissively. "I''m not sure how to feel, being praised by someone who can still move around in such a lively manner even after being cut in half by my sword."

    "Ha ha ha, yeah¡­I''m also pretty amazing, right?"

    Shun Yin glared at the Umbra Assassin. "Monster."

    "Hey, now¡­I''m human like you. I''m nothing like those monsters coming out of Emergence Events and roaming outside the city. Look! How can you perceive me as anything other than a human?" The Umbra Assassin waved his arms dramatically even as his body full restored itself with the black shadows.

    Shun Yin looked revolted. "Just what did the Umbra Sect do to you?"

    "They turned me into an Assassin," the shadowy man replied cheerfully. "Cool, right?"

    "Not really." Shun Yin held his sword up, getting ready to attack the man again. But the Umbra Assassin raised both hands up almost frantically.

    "Whoa there! I know you don''t believe me, but I really didn''t come here to assassinate you. Actually, I''m here to offer an invitation."

    "Invitation?" Shun Yin repeated incredulously. The Assassin nodded and offered a hand in a welcoming manner.

    "My name is Ying Bu Si. I am with the Bai Ye Sect." he bowed dramatically. "Huang Shun Yin. Would you like to join us and destroy the Porter family¡­as well as the King of Monsters imprisoned within the deepest vaults of the Global Federation?"

 210 Chapter 210: Shadowy Lies

    Shun Yin''s jaw literally dropped to the ground.

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    "How about it?" the Assassin who introduced himself as Ying Bu Si asked. Shun Yin threw up both hands in disbelief.

    "Don''t fuck with me! What Bai Ye Sect!? What do you mean, destroy the Porter family and some King of Monsters? You''re not referring to Godzilla, are you!? And why are you trying to rip off Owari no Seraph: Ichinose Guren, 16-sai no Catastrophe?! You think this is funny, is it? Wait until people report this story for plagiarism and force the author to take it down, and we''ll see if it''s funny!"

    "¡­"

    "Now tell me the truth or I''ll cut you down!" Shun Yin pointed his sword at the Umbra Assassin. "And don''t give me that Bai Ye Sect bullshit. I already know you''re from the Umbra Sect, which is under the Assassins Guild. We''re not going to complicate this further by throwing in random new sects, especially when the Dark Church is going to show up twenty years in the future!"

    "Fine, fine." The Umbra Assassin held up his hands in surrender. "Sorry, I was joking. I''ve been reading too much manga and light novels recently, it seems."

    "So? What are you here for?" Shun Yin prodded the guy with his flaming sword. Ying Bu Si immediately withdrew a step.

    "Hey! Be careful with that!" He then cleared his throat. "Anyway, I''m here to offer you an invitation. I wasn''t lying about that, at least."

    "Invitation to what?" Shun Yin demanded, his brow furrowing. Ying Bu Si smiled and then bowed as he offered a hand.

    "We would like to invite you, Huang Shun Yin, to the Assassins Guild. The Grand Master of Assassins holds your abilities in very high regard, and he hopes you can become one of us."

    "Sorry, but I refuse."

    "Oh! An immediate response!" Ying Bu Si clutched his chest in mock agony. "Couldn''t you at least pretend to think it over?"

    "No." Shun Yin''s response was firm. His dream was to be a hero, a symbol and ally of justice who stood in the light, defending the innocent and letting everyone knew it was okay to hope¡­that there would be someone to save them.

    An assassin was the direct opposite of a hero, skulking around in the shadows and performing subterfuge and other nefarious deeds. Their behavior and modus operandi didn''t align with Shun Yin''s values at all.

    Therefore he instantly and firmly refused.

    "Leave now and I''ll forget that all of this ever happened."

    "Oh? You actually think you can threaten me?" Ying Bu Si chuckled. "You''ll regret declining our offer, you know?"

    "I have no intention to be an assassin, ever. In fact¡­" Shun Yin''s fingers tightened around the hilt of his sword and he pointed it at Ying Bu Si, unwavering. "I will stand in your way. The Assassin Guild? I''ll make sure to save all those you target. Whenever you try to kill an innocent person, I''ll be there to stop you with all of my strength."

    "Big words from a brat." Ying Bu Si smiled. "You can''t even beat me, and you want to try and stop the whole Assassin Guild?"

    "You think I can''t beat you?" Shun Yin smirked.

    Ying Bu Si raised an eyebrow, and lunged forward so quickly that Shun Yin almost didn''t react in time. The high school student managed to parry his strike with his sword, noticing that there was a shadow blade wreathing the whole of his currently fully healed arm. Spinning around, Ying Bu Si kicked at Shun Yin from below, forcing him to take a step back and bent his head backward to avoid getting a foot to his chin.

    Ying Bu Si then whirled around and slashed with two shadow blades, each arm shrouded in deadly shadows. Shun Yin found himself forced back, attempting to fend off the deadly strikes with his sword.

    Taking a deep breath, Shun Yin ignited his sword more ferociously than ever, the flames surging upward and engulfing the entire area. Ying Bu Si''s eyes widened before he was immolated in the raging fires.

    "Whoa!"

    The Umbra Assassin jumped back, rolling on the ground to desperately put out the flames. He then shook both of his arms, which were still blazing with arcane fire.

    Shun Yin didn''t waste the opportunity and dove in, slashing at the now vulnerable Ying Bu Si. The Umbra Assassin spun around to dodge, but Shun Yin changed the trajectory of his sword at the last moment and hacked at him. Gritting his teeth, Ying Bu Si crossed his arms to block the blade.

    Then flames poured out from Shun Yin''s sword to bathe the Umbra Assassin.

    "Cut through!" Shun Yin yelled as he threw his weight behind his sword, trying to slice through Ying Bu Si''s defenses.

    "That''s dangerous!"

    Panting, Ying Bu Si suddenly spun around, allowing the sword to slash through the air where his body had been. He then twisted his body and delivered a roundhouse kick that knocked Shun Yin''s sword out of his grip.

    Another kick forced Shun Yin back to a safe distance.

    "Huff, huff¡­"

    Ying Bu Si shook his hands more violently to put out the flames. He grimaced when he saw that the shadowy blades that once shrouded his arms had been completely burned away. Even so, he smirked when he saw that Shun Yin was similarly unarmed.

    "Without your sword, what can you do?" he asked before he dashed forward with a punch. Shun Yin deflected his fist to the side, but Ying Bu Si continued to pummel him with a barrage of punches. "An Assassin''s body has been honed into a weapon. Do you think you can fight on par with me, unarmed?"

    Wham!

    "?!"

    To Ying Bu Si''s surprise, however, Shun Yin deflected and knocked away each and every of his punches. Even his kicks, which he delivered from unexpected angles, were parried by Shun Yin''s feet or knee. Instead, Shun Yin began to pressure him, knocking both his arms to the side and punching him in the chest.

    "Ugh?!"

    Before Ying Bu Si could react, Shun Yin stepped in and delivered a fast and furious hail of punches that slammed into his face and chest. Punching downward onto his solar plexus, Shun Yin then reversed direction and hammered Ying Bu Si from his chest upward into his face before twisting around and kicking him in the gut.

    "Gah?!"

    Ying Bu Si was sent flying several meters back, blood coursing from his mouth and nose. Blinking, dazed, he tried to rise to his feet, only to see Shun Yin approach his weapon. Spluttering, he glared at the younger man.

    "You¡­what was that¡­?!"

    "You claim that an Assassin''s body has been honed into a weapon. That''s the same for us martial artists, you know. Through training, we temper our body into a living weapon."

    Shun Yin swung his sword and reignited it, allowing crimson flames to course along the length of his blade once more.

    "Martial arts¡­" Ying Bu Si''s eyes widened. "So that''s it¡­the techniques you used earlier, they were Wing Chun!"

    "Oh, so you do recognize them."

    "But how¡­? You shouldn''t have learned Wing Chun from the Miyamoto dojo...?!"

    "Who says I learned Wing Chun from my master at the Miyamoto dojo?" Shun Yin snorted as he approached the downed Assassin, who coughed as he struggled to get up.

    "Then¡­" Ying Bu Si''s mind was racing as he considered several possibilities. "Your father¡­I see. He was Huang Ye Wen."

    "So you know my father. That''s right. He''s the 572nd successor of the Southern Wing Chun arts, which has been passed down my family for generations. Admittedly, they have gone through quite a lot of changes, though. Especially with the advent of magic¡­my great-great-great-grandfather pioneered a new version of Wing Chun by combining it with magic¡­a form of esoteric technique¡­"

    "Ba Qi." Ying Bu Si''s tone was sour. "I''ve heard of it. You''ve learned Armament Ba Qi. No wonder you were able to break through my Shadow Defense. Even so¡­!"

    Whoosh!

    Shun Yin watched impassively as shadows flared up and surrounded Ying Bu Si, healing his broken bones and injuries.

    "No matter how many times you hurt me, it won''t change the fact that I''ll just heal my injuries!"

    "And that''s the moment you''re most vulnerable."

    "?!"

    Before Ying Bu Si could move, Shun Yin stepped in and swung his flaming sword. Not only was the sword wreathed in flames, he had enchanted it with Armament Ba Qi. Ying Bu Si screamed as the flames washed over him and the blade sliced his entire body in half, from head to groin.

    With a sickening squelch, the two halves of his body fell apart. Flames continued to consume both body parts, eating away at flesh and the organs within.

    Shun Yin extinguished the flames on his blade before he sheathed his sword. Then he turned away slightly to leave.

    ¡­only to freeze when he sensed something impossible.

    "No way¡­"

    He turned around and spotted the thick threads of shadow oozing from the insides of the split halves, reaching out and merging with one another. Slowly but surely, the shadows helped to knit the cleaved body of Ying Bu Si together. The Umbra Assassin slowly rose to his feet, almost like a broken, mechanical doll whose gears hadn''t quite clicked together yet.

    "Ah¡­damn. That hurts." Ying Bu Si reached up and wiped the blood from his face. "I''ll admit it. Right now you''re stronger than me. If this goes on, I''ll run out of the mana I need to regenerate. Damn, I was this close to death."

    Shun Yin was already dashing forward, his hand on the hilt of his sword as he prepared to unleash an iai.

    "Oh, no. I don''t want to get cut by you again."

    Ying Bu Si smiled and then his body seemed to explode.

    "!!!"

    Shun Yin instinctively jumped back as countless tendrils of shadow writhed and lashed out at him. He was forced to draw his sword, ignite the blade, and cut through them before they reached him. the flames roared and incinerated a huge mass of shadows, but more seemed to emerge from the thick, no longer humanoid body that used to be Ying Bu Si.

    That was fine. He just needed some time to cast a massive area of effect fire spell¡­

    However, the monster that was Ying Bu Si suddenly stopped and withdrew all of his shadowy appendages, and resumed his human form.

    "Damn it¡­somebody troublesome is coming." He sighed and shook his head. "I really wanted to play with you some more, Huang Shun Yin, but it seems that time has run out for me. Well, I''m sure we''ll get a chance to exchange moves sometime in the future."

    "I''ll kill you the next time you show up in front of me," Shun Yin snarled. "And go tell your masters that I will never join the Assassin Guild. Any Assassin who shows up in front of me¡­I''ll kill them. I''ll kill them all."

    "Perhaps you will. Or perhaps you will be the one who gets killed. Just try not to die until we meet again. I want to be the one who takes your life." Ying Bu Si raised a hand and gave a friendly gesture. "Well, I''ll be seeing you."

    And then he melted into the shadows, his presence completely vanishing. With a roar, Shun Yin blasted the shadows with his flames, incinerating the Sakura petals, but his spell didn''t reach the enemy.

    "Shun Yin! Are you all right?!"

    He looked up and caught sight of his master hurrying over. Kicking off the ground, the master of the Miyamoto dojo cleared over a hundred meters in one bound and landed next to Shun Yin.

    "I sensed a dangerous aura, and rushed over as soon as I can. What happened? Are you hurt?"

    "No, I''m not." Shun Yin shook his head as he exhaled in frustration. "And¡­as for what happened, it''s a long story."

 211 Chapter 211: Engagemen

    The next morning, Shun Yin was strolling down the corridor toward his classroom when a couple of people stood in his way. He glanced up at the redhead who towered over him ¨C the guy must be over six feet tall ¨C and the surprisingly diminutive girl who accompanied him.

    "Huang Shun Yin, right?"

    "That''s right." Shun Yin looked a little puzzled. He didn''t recognize either of the duo at all. "Can I help you?"

    "As a matter of fact, yes. I''m wondering what Angelica sees in you."

    "!!!"

    The punch came, almost out of nowhere. Shun Yin dodged it on reflex, stepping to the side and avoiding the redhead''s fist totally. His assailant scowled and threw another hook, but Shun Yin deflected his arm to the side before punching the guy in the gut.

    Or tried to, but the redhead caught his fist. Sensing danger, especially when the redhead attempted to yank him close, Shun Yin bent his arm while delivering an elbow strike to his opponent''s neck. The other party quickly let go of his fist to block the sharp attack, and retreated, his forearm stinging from the blow.

    "Not bad¡­"

    The redhead closed in once again, beginning with a frontal kick, and then followed up with a vicious hook to the side of Shun Yin''s head. The latter merely spun away from the kick, and then blocked the punch before retaliating with a series of rapid blows to his chest and face. The redhead grunted, but managed to shield his face despite taking a few hits to his chest. He tried to retaliate, but Shun Yin preemptively kicked him in the knee to force him back, disrupting his rhythm.

    "You¡­" the redhead growled.

    Shun Yin didn''t waste any words on him and approached him, ready to finish him off, but the petite, blond girl who had been accompanying the redhead suddenly sprang into action.

    "!!"

    Shun Yin was almost caught off guard by her speed. He twisted to the side to avoid her kick, and then knocked away her jab. While he was busily dealing with her, the redhead came from the side, punching him in the ribs and throwing him off.

    "Ugh!"

    Hitting the ground, Shun Yin rolled to soften the blow, but was forced to cross his arms to block a kick from the redhead. While distracted by his attack, the girl stomped on his leg, causing him to clutch it and howl.

    "It''s over."

    The redhead was about to smash Shun Yin''s face to the ground when someone else grabbed hold of his arm.

    "What a pathetic sight, Charles. Do you really need to team up with Mathilda to beat up a single person?"

    "You¡­!"

    The redhead shook his arm free from Glen''s grasp.

    "This is none of your business, Glen!"

    "Who are you to decide what''s my business and what''s not?" Glen retorted. "The person you''re beating up is my friend."

    "Your friend?" Charles snorted. "Don''t make me laugh."

    "Classmate, then. If you don''t believe me, you can check my class roster." Glen shrugged, not caring. "And besides, it''s quite the blemish on the Porter family if other people see you ganging up on a single victim like a common thug. I don''t want other people thinking the Porter family is full of nothing but bullies. My dad worked so hard to dispel that image, after all."

    Charles held Glen''s gaze for a moment, and then looked away. "You exaggerate. We''re not bullying anybody. I just wanted to see what the fuss is about¡­why Angelica was so taken with this guy."

    "He was kicking your ass before you decided to double-team him with Mathilda, so I hope you got your answer."

    "Who kicked my ass?" Charles roared. "The fight wasn''t decided yet! I was just¡­"

    "We can continue if you''re still not convinced," Glen cut him off with a polite suggestion. "If you insist of having Mathilda join in, then perhaps I should participate as well, to even the numbers."

    Charles''s glare hardened, but he didn''t respond. Instead, he turned away with a huff.

    "Let''s go, Mathilda."

    "Yes, Master Charles."

    The petite blonde made to follow him, but the redhead suddenly stopped to throw a parting smirk at Shun Yin, who was slowly rising to his feet.

    "Ah¡­forgive my lack of manners. I don''t believe I have introduced myself yet." His sneer deepened. "I am Charles Porter¡­adopted into the main Porter family. I am also Angelica''s fianc¨¦."

    With that, he disappeared down the corridor with Mathilda in tow, leaving a trail of laughter behind him.

    Shun Yin watched him go, his expression unreadable. Glen cleared his throat and offered a hand, which Shun Yin ignored.

    "Are you all right?"

    "Yes. Why wouldn''t I be?"

    "No, it''s just that¡­uh¡­" Glen looked away uneasily. "Even I''ve heard about the rumors regarding you and Angie."

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    "They are just that. Rumors." Shun Yin shook his head and began heading to class. "Excuse me. Lessons are about to begin, so I suggest we hurry to class."

    *

    Ten days since school had officially started, and nothing of note occurred other than Ying Bu Si''s invitation and the "bullying". Even the research students didn''t progress very much with their attempts to forge a spiritual connection with the other dimension. Shun Yin also didn''t experience much harassment or bullying thanks to his "friendship" with Glen.

    Apparently people were smart enough to realize that if they messed with Shun Yin, they messed with the principal''s son. For his part, Shun Yin was aware that Glen probably had some ulterior motive for "befriending" him, and held him in suspicion. After all, Glen was a practical person, and not at all idealistic like his father. He wouldn''t make friends with someone like Shun Yin unless there was some sort of benefit.

    What sort of benefit, Shun Yin had no idea. He was sure he would figure it out, though.

    "Let''s go, Shun Yin!"

    Glen was grinning broadly today for some reason as he jumped up from his desk the moment math lesson ended. Shun Yin could probably guess the reason for his good mood. They were going to have a practical combat lesson.

    Shun Yin honestly didn''t know how to feel about that. On one hand, he appreciated the opportunity for sparring and training, but on the other hand he realized that these lessons were no more than glorified sessions to show off the strength of the Porter family. The matches were often so lopsided in the favor of the Porter family member that it couldn''t even be considered sparring. Simply put, the other students existed solely for the Porter family members to humiliate and beat them up in front of everyone else.

    ¡­in order to prove their superiority to everyone.

    However, Shun Yin couldn''t care less about the family or clan politics that pervaded these sessions. He was going to do his best, and if his opponent turned out to be from the Porter clan, then all the better. He was going to prove that the non-Porter mages were just as good, if not better than the Porter mages.

    That didn''t seem to be a sentiment Glen shared. The handsome blond lightning mage was probably looking forward to showing off his abilities in front of a crowd, in order to raise his status and increase his influence.

    The sparring session started simply enough, with Shun Yin defeating a couple of his classmates. Even though they were from some minor family affiliated with the Porter clan, they weren''t very powerful or significant enough to kick up a fuss, and merely accepted their loss disgruntledly.

    "These guys aren''t much of a challenge, are they?" Glen asked as he approached Shun Yin. He grinned. "What do you say to a duel with me?"

    "I''ll be honored to." Shun Yin lowered his head somewhat humbly.

    "Excellent!" Glen rubbed his hands gleefully. "I''ve always wanted to duel against you. Let''s go all out! Don''t hold back!"

    "I could say the same to you."

    There was a soft silence over the field as most of their classmates stopped or paused in the middle of the sparring session to watch. Glen and Shun Yin were recognized as the two strongest students in their class, and for good reason.

    Nobody had been able to beat either of them.

    However, the two of them rarely clashed, and the first time they exchanged blows outside the main hall on the first day of school ended in a stalemate. Everyone was curious to see how a full match between the two would play out.

    Lightning crackled around Glen as he faced Shun Yin, the blond mage dropping into an aggressive stance. Shun Yin drew his sword and ignited his blade, facing down his opponent from a distance.

    "Not going to use a weapon?" he asked.

    "Never needed one. My own body is my weapon. So is my magic."

    Now where did I hear that before? Shun Yin wondered cynically. That whole "my own body is a weapon" thing was becoming such a clich¨¦.

    Nonetheless, he recognized Glen as a powerful opponent.

    The two of them studied each other for what seemed like long seconds. All around them, their classmates held their breaths, not daring to blink for fear of missing something.

    They still missed the second the both of them moved.

    "?!"

    Both Shun Yin and Glen seemed to disappear almost entirely, leaving empty space in the field. The next thing they knew, fire and lightning collided right in the middle of the field, exploding violently. Flames scattered across the courtyard, burning and razing grass while electricity spread across the air in a deadly web.

    Shun Yin''s sword almost sliced through the lethal lightning that wreathed Glen''s arms, engulfing the latter in flames. Glen didn''t falter and instead unleashed bolts of lightning that forced Shun Yin to dodge. As lightning bolts forked and crisscrossed the air, Shun Yin tirelessly weaved through them, evading the deadly webs of electricity as best as he could, spinning, jumping and cartwheeling. Even so, Glen continued to bombard him with a lightning storm, undaunted by his lack of success thus far.

    However, Glen wasn''t the only one who could attack.

    As Shun Yin ducked under a stream of lightning, he swung his sword and unleashed a torrent of flames that washed over the golden maelstrom of electricity. Glen was forced to recall a significant portion of his spell to erect an electrical barrier, which held strong against the crimson tide of fire.

    However, Shun Yin was far from done. Raising his sword high up, he leaped over the dancing web of electricity before descending upon Glen''s position. With a single stroke, he cleaved Glen''s electric barrier in half and blew him away with powerful flames.

    Coughing and spluttering, Glen hit the ground and rolled, his body smoldering. He scrambled to his feet, avoiding another flaming strike from Shun Yin, and desperately threw a lightning bolt that the latter deflected with his sword.

    "I''ve to admit," Glen confessed as he was forced into the defensive. His sleeves were beginning to burn away despite the enchanted fabric of the Vermillion High uniform supposedly possessing a high amount of magical resistance. "You''re among the strongest opponent I''ve ever faced."

    "You''re not doing so bad yourself," Shun Yin told his opponent before bathing him in another ferocious blast of flames.

    "Ha ha ha¡­don''t try and flatter me. It''s been so one-sided so far. You''ve completely overwhelmed me." His body and uniform fuming, Glen stumbled out of the inferno, his skin burned and covered in soot. He coughed a little and stumbled back, trying to cast a new lightning spell to defend himself from Shun Yin''s next strike.

    "I have yet to defeat you."

    "That''s right. You''re smart enough to acknowledge that, at least."

    Glen beamed. At that moment, Shun Yin''s instincts screamed.

    "?!"

    A powerful surge of lightning erupted from Glen''s body, knocking him away. Shun Yin effortlessly avoided the deadly electricity and jumped to a safe distance, still holding his sword up cautiously as he kept his eye on his opponent. Glen, for his part, wiped the soot and ash off his burned face.

    "You''re probably the only one in our generation who forced me to use this spell."

    Shun Yin''s eyes widened when he caught sight of a gigantic tiger manifesting behind Glen, its form composed completely of lightning.

    "White Tiger, one of the four Celestial Sovereigns." Glen shrugged with a smile. "I''m sure you''ve heard of him before."

    "I have." Taking a deep breath, Shun Yin ignited his sword more fiercely than ever, enveloping his body in a raging inferno. He recognized the summoned tiger as a real threat, one of the most powerful foes he had ever faced.

    So this was a Soul Beast¡­a crystallization of a summoning mage''s imagination given real form and taking shape in physical space.

    However, Shun Yin had fought monsters before. How different could Glen''s White Tiger be from the monsters he had defeated in the past? They were just another creature he could slay with his fire magic and his sword.

    As such, Shun Yin was not at all intimidated. He kicked off the ground and slashed at the roaring White Tiger.

    "?!"

    He never saw the hit coming. The White Tiger''s claw swatted him to the side, slapping him with several million volts of electricity. White-hot pain exploded in his body, his vision winking out, followed by a paralyzing numbness that shorted out all the nervous signals that ran through his dendrites.

    Blood spurting from his mouth, Shun Yin crashed to the ground¡­

    ¡­and his consciousness sank into total darkness.

 212 Chapter 212: Infirmary

    "Ouch, ouch, ouch¡­!"

    The first thing that hit Shun Yin when he woke up was the throbbing pain from the bruises all over his battered body. He felt as if he had been hit by a damned truck. Groaning, he tried to sit up in the bed he found himself in, trying to remember what had happened.

    Oh, right. The enormous White Tiger taking him out with a single swipe¡­

    Shun Yin cringed at that. He still remembered how overconfident he had been, thinking the White Tiger would be just like any other monster and thus easily slain by his fire magic and sword. He had paid the price for underestimating his foe.

    "Seems like I need to train more¡­" Shun Yin grumbled as he slapped his forehead. Bad mistake. Wincing at the stinging pain and trying not to tear up, Shun Yin bent over and held his head with a grimace.

    Calming down, he went over the battle once more.

    "A summoned beast is so powerful," he muttered. "How am I supposed to beat something like that? No wonder it takes so long to summon one¡­"

    It struck him as odd that someone as practical as Glen Porter would learn summoning magic, but then again, perhaps it wasn''t all too strange. After all, Glen''s father was providing such massive support for research on summoning magic. Glen must have been influenced by his father''s passion in summoning or perhaps it was Henry who delved into methods of improving summoning magic precisely because he saw his son learning it.

    Whatever the case, it was undeniable that summoning magic was a real force to be reckoned with.

    "Even so, he took quite the huge risk," Shun Yin murmured to himself as he analyzed the battle in his mind. "While he was struggling to cast his summoning spell, he was slowly but surely being overpowered by me. If I had been a bit more forceful, I could have finished him off before he completed his summoning spell."

    That was the one weakness of summoning magic. That a summoning spell took too long to cast. Often the summoner would be defeated or killed before he could complete the summoning of his Soul Beast. It had been a struggle for Glen to try and survive until he could summon his White Tiger, his lightning spells and magic being inferior and weaker to Shun Yin''s fire magic and swordsmanship, but the payoff had been enormous.

    After all, Shun Yin got defeated by a single attack from the White Tiger.

    "Impressive. Very impressive."

    Rather than be disheartened by the loss, Shun Yin''s combative spirit had been ignited. His heart glowed warmly as he began thinking of countermeasures against Glen''s White Tiger. More powerful magic, perhaps? Did his master know any techniques that could deliver a certain-kill strike against summoned Soul Beasts? Or maybe he should take this chance and delve into summoning magic as well?

    "Ah¡­"

    That was right. He was involved in that research project with Tenshi and the others, wasn''t he? He should go visit them after school today. He was now far more invested in the success of their project than before, especially after experiencing the strength of a summoned Soul Beast firsthand. He now wanted a summoned spirit of his own.

    Would I have won if I could summon a contracted spirit? Would it have been on par with Glen''s White Tiger? Shun Yin wondered.

    It might. No, it had to be. Otherwise why would Henry Porter and Vermillion University spend so much resources and invest so much money in this summoning project? It had to be superior to the current summoning magic, or it would all be for naught.

    He had to believe.

    I want a summoned spirit of my own now¡­

    Chucking, Shun Yin tried to rise from his bed, only to wince and double over from the pain. With a moan, he crashed back onto the soft mattress.

    "You shouldn''t be getting up so soon. Lie down and rest."

    "¡­eh?" Shun Yin blinked at the somewhat familiar voice, dumbfounded. He tried to raise his head and caught sight of a beautiful girl with crimson hair standing at the entrance of the infirmary.

    The girl shut the door and approached him, stopping at the side of his bed. For a moment, Shun Yin froze, his eyes going wide when he recognized her.

    Time seemed to stop for eternity, the two of them staring at each other. Shun Yin swallowed, and shook his head, trying to break free of the spell that had enraptured him.

    "Lady Angelica?" he closed his eyes briefly and lowered his head formally. "It has been a while."

    "¡­eh?"

    Angelica looked a little taken back by his response. Then she lowered her eyes slightly and smiled sadly.

    "Ah¡­so that''s how it is¡­"

    As she closed her eyes, a brief, fleeting memory of them as kids from nine years ago passed through her mind.

    "You no longer speak to me in the manner that you used to before."

    "People change. The circumstances are different." Shun Yin kept his head slightly lowered. Angelica bit her lip, looking hurt.

    Even so, she made to sit on his bed.

    Shun Yin narrowed his eyes.

    "If you get too close to an outsider like me, your father will be angry."

    "Only if he finds out," Angelica replied indifferently with a shrug. Her gaze was firm¡­strong. "I''m also no longer the same person I was in the past. I can make my own decisions now."

    "¡­I see."

    Shun Yin glanced at her for a moment, and then lowered his gaze, staring at the covers on the bed. Angelica waited wistfully, clasping her hands tightly.

    "As you said, it''s been a while, hasn''t it? How have you been, all these years?"

    "I''ve been great. Thank you for your concern." Shun Yin forced a smile. "How about you, my lady?"

    "The years haven''t been kind to me, I suppose. You know how the Porter family is. With the exception of Uncle Henry, none of the adults are¡­understanding or gentle. They only see us as tools with which the Porter family will ascend to greatness. Weapons to fight against the monsters. The usual bullshit."

    "Even so¡­Lady Angelica." Shun Yin''s smile was genuine this time. "You have become so strong and beautiful over these nine years."

    Angelica blushed, completely caught off guard. She tried to reach for his hand, but Shun Yin pulled away, aware that such intimate contact would spell trouble for the both of them. Angelica withdrew her hand, and Shun Yin tried not to notice the expression of pain on her face.

    "I''m still hurt," he reminded her, trying to soften the blow.

    "Ah¡­that''s right. How is your injury?" Angelica tilted her head to study him. "I heard Teacher Emres had cast the basic healing spells on you after that sparring session, but evidently it isn''t enough to restore you to perfect condition."

    "It won''t be a problem. I''ll be fully healed by the end of this afternoon." Shun Yin flexed an arm to test it out, doing his best to suppress a flinch. He bowed his head. "I''m sorry for worrying you."

    "Not at all."

    The two of them lapsed into silence once again. Angelica stared at Shun Yin, her grip on her own wrist tightening. She resisted the urge to reach out to him once more, to take his hand. Noticing it, as well as the presence behind the door, Shun Yin leaned back against his bed.

    "¡­I heard about it."

    "Huh?"

    Angelica aborted her move to stare at Shun Yin in confusion. He raised his head and met her gaze evenly.

    "I heard from Charles Porter regarding your engagement. I suppose congratulations are¡­in order."

    "¡­thank you."

    Shun Yin felt a sharp pain his chest when he saw that Angelica was about to cry. He cursed himself for being insensitive, but¡­he had no choice. If anyone saw Angelica getting close to him, then she would be in big trouble. It didn''t matter if he landed in trouble ¨C it was nothing he couldn''t handle ¨C but Angelica was a different matter.

    He couldn''t allow any harm to befall her. Not a single one.

    "I¡­"

    "It''s okay. I understand. You''re worried about that rat skulking about, right?"

    Angelica raised a hand. Before Shun Yin could say anything, a huge fireball surged out and veered out of the door. There was a small explosion, and a shriek. Several loud footsteps followed, the uneven sound making it clear that whoever it was had been hurt and was hobbling.

    "There. All the pests are gone now. We should be able to speak frankly."

    "That''s¡­" Shun Yin couldn''t help but shake his head in exasperation. "¡­a violent way of handling things."

    "It can''t be helped. How else can you exterminate pests if you don''t get violent with them?" Angelica looked around, as if confirming there was no one else around, and then she leaned closer, almost pinning Shun Yin to his bed. She lowered her voice into a conspiratorial whisper. "You are the only one I can trust."

    "I wouldn''t be too sure. Lady Angelica, we haven''t met or talked in years. You can''t sure that someone like me is¡­"

    "Cut that out. I don''t want to hear you speak to me like that." Angelica glared at him. Shun Yin shut up helplessly.

    "¡­"

    "Good. Now listen. I want you to take me away from here. From the Porter family. I''m sick of Father making all these decisions on my behalf. I never asked to get engaged. I never asked to succeed the family and be the next head. They are arbitrarily shoving all these responsibilities onto me without considering my personal feelings."

    "¡­take you away¡­?"

    "Don''t be dense. I''m in love with you. And I know you love me too. We are going to elope. To hell with the Porter family. To hell with my condescending father. I''m going to do what I want, marry whoever I want, and I won''t let anyone or anything stop me."

    Breathless after all those words tumbled out of her mouth, Angelica surged forward and kissed Shun Yin.

    "Mmh!"

    Shun Yin struggled under her embrace and gently pushed her away.

    "Calm down, Angelica! We can''t! You can''t¡­!"

    "And who says I can''t? My father? Screw him." Angelica folded her arms. "He just thinks of me as a tool¡­something to inherit the leadership of the Porter family. He doesn''t regard me as a human. And besides, even if I''m gone, others can inherit the leadership. As long as it''s not Charles. My brother is a good choice, if he isn''t out saving the world so often. Glen is another good candidate. He''s practical and has a good head on his shoulders."

    "It''s not about that." Shun Yin took a deep breath. "Where can we go? Where will we run to? You know the power and influence that the Porter family wields. No matter where we go, they will track us down, hunt us down and drag us back. There is no escaping their reach, not unless you''re prepared to flee beyond the borders of the Global Federation."

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    "Of course I am prepared. The Amazerian Empire. The Zurium Empire. If we can get a boat, we should be able to¡­"

    "It''s not just that. Even if we somehow escape their clutches¡­even if we manage to get away by boat before they catch us, there are other people who will suffer in our stead instead." Shun Yin sighed heavily. "Think of the consequences. What do you think will happen to my family if I elope with you? You think the Porter family is going to ignore this? Even if we can somehow hide from them, they''ll go after my family. My master. They will destroy my family, and my master''s Miyamoto dojo. They will destroy anyone who is related to me in one way or another."

    ''¡­your family." Angelica paused for a moment, pondering over it. "You are right. I can''t be so selfish and ask you to abandon your responsibility to your family and master. I can''t drag those innocent and uninvolved into our own affairs."

    "I''m glad you understand." Shun Yin bowed his head a little.

    "¡­yes." Angelica straightened up. "I''ll have to find another way then."

    "¡­eh?" Shun Yin thought she would give up, but evidently Angelica refused to surrender to her fate. She was still pondering over alternatives. Somehow Shun Yin felt a chilling premonition run down his spine.

    "No matter what I do¡­will you forgive me?"

    "Huh?" Shun Yin looked at Angelica, bewildered. "What do you mean?"

    "Oh. Nothing much. Just that¡­" Angelica ran a hand along her long, crimson hair. "I''m planning on something big. To change the status quo."

    "¡­I see." Shun Yin regarded her suspiciously. Angelica quickly laughed and raised her hands.

    "Don''t worry. I will never harm your family or your master. They''ll probably be my in-laws in the future, so we can''t have them hurt now, can we? Even I understand that I can''t go that far¡­"

    "Yeah." Shun Yin breathed a sigh of relief. For a moment he had thought Angelica had gone full yandere and was planning to massacre his family and kill his master so that he would have no other attachments to the Federation.

    "However¡­everyone else is fair game, right?"

    "¡­eh?"

    Before Shun Yin could muster up a proper reply, Angelica had gotten back to her feet and was sashaying toward the door of the infirmary. She turned back and winked at him.

    "Look forward to it, my dear."

    Then she was gone. Shun Yin stared dumbly at the now empty door, not sure what to make of her last, ominous words.

    He prayed she wouldn''t do anything too drastic.

 213 Chapter 213: School Tournamen

    "¡­we''re having a school tournament? Now?"

    "Just among the first years. What? Why are you so worried about? You''ll definitely rank highly, given your strength. The only person who can beat you is me¡­and probably Lady Angelica."

    Shun Yin gave Glen a dry stare, as if he wasn''t convinced by his statement. He shrugged and shook his head.

    "It''s only been¡­what, a few weeks?"

    "Three weeks." Glen shrugged. "They just want to evaluate the new students'' strength. See how we rank among each other. They do it every semester¡­a school tradition to decide who is the top dog and all that. Dad wanted to put a stop to it, but the board rejected him. Besides, it encourages healthy competition and gives us good combat practice. So what''s the harm?"

    "I see." Shun Yin sighed. What a troublesome affair. While he liked the idea of getting good combat practice, he disliked the idea of ranking students against each other. It created quite the toxic environment where the so-called "weaker" students were trampled upon by the supposedly "stronger" students.

    Then again, if he could obtain a high rank, he could put his foot down on this nonsense and force people to stop the bullying. He was going to save as many of his peers as he could¡­the helpless ones who were often the target of bullying, anyway.

    "All right. Let''s do our best."

    "Yeah!" Glen shook his hand. "No hard feelings, no matter the outcome."

    "I couldn''t care less about the rank, to be honest," Shun Yin grumbled.

    "Aw¡­how boring." Glen placed a hand on his shoulder. "In any case, all students are required to participate. The ones in the combat division, I mean."

    Shun Yin felt somewhat relieved at that. That meant it wasn''t mandatory for the research students to take part in this farce, and they would be free from the violence and aggression of thee arrogant combat students.

    Glen noticed his expression of relief and he raised an eyebrow.

    "What? You have friends outside the combat division?"

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    "Yeah. A few friends from the research division. I''ve been helping them out with their research for a few weeks now." Shun Yin took care not to mention any details of their research. It wasn''t as if they were keeping it a secret, but he wasn''t going to be careless with the information. Loose lips sank ships and all that.

    "Heh¡­I didn''t expect that." Glen guffawed. "To be honest, I didn''t think you had any friends!"

    Shun Yin narrowed his eyes, but didn''t retort. He was too tired to play these games of banter with his so-called friend. However, he had to admit that Glen helped him a lot, so it wasn''t as if the friendship was one-way.

    The so-called give and take, you scratch my back and I scratch yours.

    "Shall we proceed then?"

    "Yeah. It''s in the school courtyard. Let''s go."

    By the time they reached the courtyard, the place was already brimming with a lot of students. The majority of them were clustered together, gossiping and chattering. More than a few of them were placing bets on who would finish at what rank, or the usual stupid gambling antics.

    Shun Yin wanted no part of those activities.

    "The first rounds begin today," Glen was explaining unnecessarily. "If you don''t get eliminated today, you move on to the next round tomorrow. Of course, you have to win if you want to progress. Lose your match today and you''ll be eliminated."

    "How are they supposed to determine the ranks like that?" Shun Yin asked with a puzzled frown. "The eliminated students are all assigned the same rank?"

    "That''s right. Here, you''re either top 128 or bottom 128. Following which, you''re top 64, then top 32, followed by 16¡­you get the math."

    "I see."

    "Of course, if you''re dissatisfied with your ranking, you can challenge other people to claim their rank. Lots of people do that." Glen was nodding in approval. "If¡­by luck you face me in this round and lose, you can challenge a top 128 or top 64 a few days later, and if you win, you take their place in the top rankings."

    So the ranking tournament wasn''t as unforgiving as he thought it would be. Even so, Shun Yin had no intention of crashing out in the first round, even if his opponent happened to be Glen.

    Already there were matches taking place. Shun Yin watched as a couple of girls clashed against each other. A red-haired girl with twin tails was casting physical reinforcement spells and using martial arts against a girl with her short black hair styled in a bob cut, who used daggers and knives. The redhead dodged the flying daggers with astonishing ease, dashing forward to deliver a devastating punch that could wreck concrete, but the black-haired girl dodged her easily. Flipping over the redhead, the black-haired girl slashed with her daggers, managing to cut several wounds on her opponent and causing her to stagger.

    Gritting her teeth, the redhead retaliated with a backhanded swing, which the black-haired girl cartwheeled over. She then retreated when the black-haired girl slashed at her face with a dagger and countered with a kick that forced her opponent to jump several meters back.

    Even as she withdrew, the black-haired girl threw several knives at her, which the redhead knocked away with her physically reinforced hands. The throwing knives actually warped and bent from the sheer force. A couple of throwing knives managed to bypass her defenses and left a graze on her cheek, a line of blood dripping down her face, but the redhead ignored her injuries and continued pummeling the throwing knives away.

    "Not bad." Glen whistled, visibly impressed. "For her to reach this level of physical reinforcement even without mastering Armament Ba Qi¡­"

    "Martial arts is the basis and foundation to learning and mastering Ba Qi eventually," Shun Yin remarked, remembering what his father and his master at Miyamoto dojo taught him. Glen glanced at him with a raised eyebrow.

    "That reminds me¡­you used Wing Chun against Charles that other time, didn''t you?"

    "Perhaps I did." Shun Yin shrugged indifferently. "I don''t remember."

    The redhead dashed forward, braving the hail of throwing knives and closed in on her opponent. The black-haired girl twisted away to avoid the first punch, and her daggers scraped the redhead''s flesh. However, the redhead would not be stopped. With her other fist, she landed a blow in the black-haired girl''s solar plexus and knocked her out.

    The teacher quickly declared the winner. The black-haired girl was ferried off by a couple of other teachers, and the redhead left the stage by herself, clearly exhausted.

    "That was a good battle¡­but with that level of strength, I don''t think she''ll make it past tomorrow."

    "Really?" Shun Yin kept his tone neutral. It wasn''t as if he didn''t agree with Glen''s assessment, but he just couldn''t care less about other people. If they didn''t need saving, then whatever happened to them was none of his business. He was more concerned about the black-haired girl. "I hope that lady is all right."

    "She will be. Teacher Emres will take care of her. Anyway, it''s my turn." Glen proceeded to the stage when the teacher called his name, and gave his friend a wave. "I''ll be back really quick."

    "No, take your time." Honestly, Shun Yin wanted nothing more than to be left alone. He took a deep breath and stepped back. Despite his lukewarm attitude toward Glen, he was curious to see the lightning mage''s skills.

    He wondered how much stronger he had gotten since they had last fought.

    Glen''s opponent was someone from another class, a polite young man who bowed his head humbly when he realized that he was facing the son of the principal.

    "Dispense with the formalities," Glen told his opponent dismissively. "I just want you to go all out. Hit me with everything you have."

    "Yes!"

    The young man didn''t seem put off and immediately began casting his spell. When he realized that Glen wasn''t going to attack, he began casting his most powerful spell. A massive tsunami of water rose into the air, threatening to pour over Glen and drown him under tremendous, crushing water pressure.

    "Are you ready?" he asked hesitantly. Glen scoffed.

    "Are you serious? Are you actually going to ask an opponent that question in the middle of a battle?"

    "Um¡­well¡­you don''t seem to be doing anything."

    Glen lifted a finger up. "You are right. I don''t seem to be doing anything. But what makes you think I''m not?" he smiled. "In fact, I can end the battle anytime I want to. Should I do so right now?"

    His opponent seemed perplexed, but he decided to just go for it.

    "I apologize in advance then!" he shouted before launching the massive tsunami at Glen. The blond guy looked up with a smile, and then spread out all five fingers of his raised right hand.

    There was a crack of thunder, and a gigantic lightning bolt crashed from the heavens to obliterate the tsunami. The water mage cried out as electricity electrocuted him, and he toppled over onto the stage, his body sizzling.

    "M¡­match over!" the teacher shouted. "Winner¡­Glen Porter!"

    "Geez." Glen shook his head disapprovingly as he turned to descend from the stage. "I told you not to hold back. Well, you didn''t, but don''t hesitate when you fight me next time."

    Unfortunately, his downed opponent was in no condition to reply or even listen to his advice. He was being ferried off by a couple of concerned teachers, who rushed him toward the infirmary.

    "That was fast," Shun Yin remarked. Inwardly, he was a little disappointed that Glen''s opponent wasn''t able to force out that White Tiger of his from the last time. He shook his head, realizing he still didn''t have a good read of Glen''s true strength.

    "I haven''t met a worthy opponent yet," Glen pointed out as he placed a hand on his shoulder. "It''ll be your turn soon, comrade. Don''t get eliminated until you face me in the final."

    "I will do my best," Shun Yin replied dryly.

    Another couple of matches continued, with Shun Yin watching silently ¨C glad that Glen didn''t speak to him throughout the tournament. Perhaps he was exhausted from using such a large spell during his match earlier. Given the power and magnitude of the lightning bolt, that spell must have cost quite a huge amount of mana.

    Shun Yin continued to assess and evaluate the other students in Vermillion High. Currently, none of the candidates so far could hold a candle to Glen. Glen was easily the strongest out of the participants here.

    Right after an earth mage defeated a water mage, Shun Yin heard his name being called by the teacher.

    "It''s your turn now!" Glen crowed gleefully, clapping him on the back. "Go show everyone what you''re made of!"

    "¡­right."

    As he climbed the stage, Shun Yin caught sight of his opponent. He was a huge, burly first year student whose muscles rippled under his black uniform. In one hand he held a massive axe that he rested on his broad shoulder.

    "Do me a favor and don''t waste my time. Surrender immediately."

    The huge guy sounded bored. Shun Yin merely returned his gaze evenly before slowly drawing his sword.

    "Make me."

    The huge guy scowled. "You asked for it."

    "All right¡­the both of you may begin!" the teacher declared as he swung his hand down.

    Immediately, the huge guy lunged forward with a thunderous bellow. Mana swirled around his axe as he streaked across the stage with an incredible speed that belied his immense bulk. The spectators cowered when they saw a gigantic red oni materialize right behind him, almost as if the demonic visage was lending him strength.

    With a yell, the huge guy pulverized the ground with his axe, obliterating the concrete and carving a colossal crater into the stage. Debris flew out, scattering the space around him and covering him in a fine layer of dust.

    "Incredible¡­"

    "What power¡­"

    "Just who is that guy?!"

    "Hmph." The huge guy straightened up triumphantly, getting ready to lift his axe from the broken ground. Then he froze.

    "Do you surrender?" Shun Yin asked as he pointed the tip of his sword at the guy''s throat. The huge guy slowly glanced down, and noticed that Shun Yin was calmly standing on top of the wide shaft of his massive axe.

    He swallowed and tightened his muscles, but before he could even budge, Shun Yin''s sword stabbed into his throat slightly, drawing a thin line of blood. The huge guy trembled as he felt the warm fluid trickle down his skin.

    "Do you surrender?" Shun Yin repeated. "Or should I slit your throat here and now?"

    Everyone was gaping at him in disbelief, their eyes wide in shock. A hushed whisper rose over the crowd as they tried to make sense of what had just happened.

    "How fast¡­!"

    "I didn''t even see him move!"

    "When did he¡­?!"

    The huge guy gulped, and then slowly nodded. He cleared his throat, his face flushing from both embarrassment and fear.

    "It''s my loss."

    "Match is over!" the teacher declared, even as Shun Yin withdrew his sword and stepped away from the huge guy, who dropped to a kneel. "Winner! Huang Shun Yin!"

    "Whoa¡­" Glen shook his head as Shun Yin jumped off the stage to rejoin him. "How scary. You won without even using magic."

    "Magic isn''t the only way to win fights," Shun Yin responded indifferently.

    "Yeah, I can see that." Glen grimaced, and then he grinned. "Seems like this semester''s tournament is going to be really interesting."

 214 Chapter 214: Distance

    The matches continued on for the rest of the day, occurring in several different venues. Feeling bored, Shun Yin decided to go look around and watch the other matches instead of staying at the same arena for the entire day.

    "¡­hmm?"

    One of the matches caught his eye, not because it was particularly entertaining but because it was completely one-sided.

    "That''s¡­!"

    Recognizing Charles Porter immediately, Shun Yin froze for a moment. He watched as he punched a pink-haired girl across the face, flooring her and sending her skidding across the floor with a groan.

    The girl didn''t give up, however. With tears in her eyes, she slowly rose to her feet and glared at her opponent, gripping her sword tightly.

    "Ha ha ha! You''re quite the feisty one, aren''t you?"

    Charles laughed as he hit her before she could parry the blow, his fiery daggers streaking past in a crimson blur and cutting her uniform. Angry red burns flared up on her skin, cauterized wounds visible as she shrieked.

    Even so, Charles mercilessly kicked her in the stomach, sending her flying. She hit the floor and rolled, but slowly staggered to her knees.

    "You¡­" she gasped, but Charles didn''t wait for her to finish her sentence. He slammed a knee into her face, breaking her nose and causing blood to spurt out. With another slash from his fiery daggers, he tore open her blouse, revealing injured patches of her once pale skin.

    The girl stubbornly retaliated with a riposte from her sword, but he merely parried her blade before ramming the side of her head with his elbow and grazing her temple. As blood flowed downward and impaired her vision, he kicked her.

    Shun Yin cursed as he hastened his stride toward the arena. The match was so one-sided that Charles could end it at any time, but he chose not to, all so he could toy around with her opponent. The girl was hanging limply as Charles lifted her up and pressed his burning dagger to her chest, causing her to scream in agony.

    "Stop!"

    The teacher who was refereeing the match grabbed his shoulder and shoved him back. Shun Yin rounded on him angrily.

    "The match is over! Why haven''t you declared it over yet?! That girl clearly can''t fight any longer!"

    The teacher merely stared at him coldly. With a sudden understanding, Shun Yin realized that the teacher was under the payroll of the Porter clan.

    And Charles was one of the heirs to the Porter clan, the fianc¨¦ of Angelica Porter, the future leader of the Porter family. They couldn''t go against him.

    "Fuck this!"

    Shun Yin swore under his breath and headed toward the arena, only for the teacher to yank him back roughly.

    "If you intervene, you''ll be disqualified along with that girl."

    "Who cares about this stupid tournament?!" Shun Yin yelled. "If you allow that bastard to continue his abuse, that girl might die! Will you take responsibility if that happens?"

    "All students sign an indemnity form when they enroll. We are not responsible for the deaths of normal students."

    Shun Yin bristled at the callous tone. Gritting his teeth, he resisted the urge to smash the teacher''s frosty face in, and instead tried to break free of his grip.

    "Go ahead and disqualify me. I don''t care."

    After all, Shun Yin intended to be a hero. He didn''t care about tournament rankings or prestige or strength. He only cared about protecting the innocent and the vulnerable. And right now, a helpless young lady was being beaten up in front of his eyes.

    He had to save her, or he would never be able to forgive himself.

    However, before he could reach the stage, someone else beat him to it.

    "!!!"

    "¡­eh?"

    Voices of surprise resounded from the spectators, who had been enjoying the excessive smack down this entire time. No one had protested or shown any dismay or disgust at Charles beating up a girl one-sidedly, particularly because of his background. Those who were revolted by the display of arrogance and violence had left long ago, particularly because they couldn''t do anything about it. Shun Yin didn''t blame them ¨C they were shackled by the system, and by the abuse of authority. He was more furious at those who enjoyed the spectacle and reveled in the flouting of such power.

    Even so¡­he wasn''t the only one who had resolved to resist the system, the so-called authorities.

    "That''s enough."

    Angelica had managed to sweep up the girl in her arms and carry her away before Charles could slash her with his daggers again. Her fianc¨¦ froze for a moment, stunned by her sudden appearance, and then he broke into a smile.

    "Hey, hey! Darling, even if it''s you, breaking the rules and interfering in a match like this¡­don''t you think it''s an abuse of your position as the Porter clan''s next leader?"

    Angelica ignored him and instead turned toward the dumbfounded teacher, who was still restraining Shun Yin.

    "The match is over. Why haven''t you declared it yet?"

    "Uh¡­right! Sorry about that, Lady Angelica. The match is over! The winner is Charles Porter!"

    "What?! How boring." Charles sulked, his eyes narrowing into a glare. "My opponent can still fight, you know? She hasn''t given up yet. How dare you take away her chance at victory¡­"

    "Disgusting." Angelica silenced him with an icy stare of her own. Even Charles found himself taken aback by her cold fury, faltering for a moment and involuntarily taking a step back. He tried futilely to suppress a shudder.

    "Cheh!"

    Clicking his tongue, he whirled around and stepped off the stage. Angelica didn''t follow him for much longer and instead descended.

    "Where are the medics? Bring this girl to the infirmary."

    "Yes, Lady Angelica!"

    The teachers in charge of ferrying injured combatants to the infirmary showed up and took the girl from Angelica. They then quickly disappeared in the direction of the school building.

    Shun Yin continued to watch Angelica, but her beautiful face remained a mask of emotionless iciness. He kept his distance, knowing that he was in no position to approach her. Besides, he didn''t need to. As much as he was grateful to her for her assistance, he didn''t do anything. And she wouldn''t appreciate him thanking her.

    They were worlds apart. She was the next leader of the Porter clan, a prodigy in her family and their generation. He was an outsider, a normal mage who worked his way up the ladder, had no wealthy or influential background. Approaching her would only hurt her reputation and spark gossip among the other students.

    So he stayed where he was.

    If Angelica was disappointed, or noticed his presence, she didn''t show it. Instead, she turned slightly to glare in the direction of the retreating Charles Porter. To Shun Yin''s amazement, he could see the naked fury and outright disgust in her emerald eyes. He felt a chilling premonition, almost as if he was staring at the wintry embodiment of death itself.

    That couldn''t possible. Why would Angelica want to kill Charles? As much as he was a bastard, and despite her position and status as the heir to one of the ten great families of the Global Federation, they were still bound to the laws of that very Federation they served.

    However, Shun Yin didn''t get to observe Angelica further. She turned to disappear somewhere, and he didn''t follow her. He couldn''t, not in front of everybody, and somehow he knew that he wasn''t supposed to. Angelica probably wanted to be alone for now. Besides, what was he going to say to her? Thank her for saving the girl?

    It wasn''t his place to express his gratitude.

    "Oh, wow¡­what a big fuss."

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    Glen Porter showed up beside Shun Yin, but the former''s presence didn''t surprise the latter. He had sensed him approaching from a mile away. Glen wasn''t even trying to conceal his presence in the first place.

    "That Charles¡­he really goes too far." Glen was shaking his head in disapproval. "He let that engagement go to his head and now he''s acting like he''s some big shot."

    "¡­Lady Angelica, she doesn''t seem happy about it."

    "Of course she isn''t. Her father arranged the marriage against her will, and it''s quite obvious that she hates the guy. Nonetheless, Charles is from a prestigious lineage with quite the pedigree. That''s why he was adopted into the Porter clan¡­because of his pure bloodline and affinity with fire magic. Speaking of which, don''t you have affinity with fire magic too?"

    Glen turned to regard Shun Yin, who stiffened immediately.

    "Hmm, the only problem is your family background and lineage. My father being the obvious exception, most Porter people would look down on you for not being born into a renowned bloodline. They only care about the stupid purity and strength." Glen folded his arms with a scowl. "I''ll never let anyone decide my wife for me. Good thing my dad is around to help me. My mom is surprisingly receptive to that too¡­then again, she''s the one who chose to marry my dad against my grandfather''s wishes. Heh, that''s probably the best decision Mom ever made."

    "¡­right." Shun Yin nodded neutrally. He couldn''t imagine being a parent, but if he did indeed become one, he saw absolutely no reason to decide his child''s spouse on his or her behalf. His parents, particularly his mother, would probably nag him in the future about getting married and having a family, but otherwise they wouldn''t care who he ended up with.

    The people from the great families or noble lineages had their own problems to worry about. Sighing, he shook his head and turned away, having lost interest in the rest of the tournament. Even though it was more practical to stick around and watch the other matches to get a bigger picture of what kind of opponents he might be facing tomorrow, he had lost his stomach for watching the duels after Charles''s overly aggressive and violent display.

    He vowed not to show that bastard any mercy if he did indeed meet him in the arena tomorrow.

    For now, he decided to drop by the research division. Fortunately, Glen decided not to follow him, instead choosing to stick around to watch more matches. Relieved, Shun Yin went straight to the research building that the high school division shared with the university and headed for the laboratory where Tenshi and the others were in.

    "Oh, Shun Yin. You''re here. How''s the tournament?"

    Tenshi looked up when she caught sight of Shun Yin stepping into the laboratory.

    "You didn''t crash out, did you?" Gabriel asked in a teasing manner. Not one to take jokes, Shun Yin merely shook his head and gave a serious reply.

    "No. I''ll be competing in the next round tomorrow. But before that, I thought I should drop in and see how you guys are progressing."

    "Sorry, Shun Yin." Rebecca looked apologetic. "Even though we made all those promises, we still haven''t come close to developing a method for binding the spirits temporarily into our material universe. We were hoping to come up with something for you to do a trial run, but the spirits have proven elusive so far. We just can''t¡­grasp them."

    "They are too ghostly, for a lack of a better word." Gabriel shrugged. "Too intangible, too insubstantial, too incorporeal. They just can''t physically manifest in our world and exert any significant form of influence or change."

    "But we did manage to communicate with at least one of them." Tenshi smiled and gestured for Shun Yin to draw closer to her. In front of her was a gigantic holographic screen that displayed some sort of weird signal and graphs on a 3D plane, but yet didn''t look anything¡­solid or material. Shun Yin didn''t understand what he was looking at. Seeing the bewilderment on his face, Tenshi quickly pointed at the weird wavy lines. "We believe that''s a spirit."

    "¡­huh?"

    "They don''t translate visually in our dimension. How do I put it¡­?" Rebecca paused to ponder for a moment, gazing at the huge holographic screen in wonder. "I think a simpler way to put it is that we simply lack the senses to perceive their existence. The machines also aren''t very effective in translating their¡­existences into a form we understand. This is the best the AI can come up with when trying to¡­uh, describe the spirits'' form or essence to us."

    "That''s right. We think that the spirit or spirits are trying to communicate with us, but we simply lack the tools or devices to translate their language. If language is even the right word. For all we know, the concept of language or words might not even exist for the spirits." Tenshi was gushing excitedly now. "We still don''t quite understand how they communicate, but that''s obviously because they are non-terrestrial and would of course develop their own form of communication that we humans¡­or anything living on Earth cannot imagine."

    "They are very different from monsters," Rebecca added. "Even though both spirits and monsters are from another dimension¡­biologically and conceptually, the monsters are much closer to us in form and function, existence and essence, than the spirits. It''s really fascinating, really. We should have realized that the monsters being similar to us might be an aberration, a coincidence that two dimensions, out of an astronomical amount of possibilities, happen to be so similar to each other."

    "We don''t know if the spirit dimension is the exception," Gabriel protested cautiously. "We don''t have enough data or evidence to say which is normal and which is the exception. We haven''t found other dimensions yet¡­for now."

    "True," Tenshi conceded, but she was still smiling brightly. "Even so, can you imagine the various possibilities? If we can finally understand what the spirits are communicating with us, we might someday be able to open up the door to an infinite number of other dimensions!"

    "I hope they aren''t all as hostile and dangerous as the monsters'' dimension," Rebecca muttered darkly.

    Tenshi ignored her. "We are getting closer to figuring this out. Once we succeed in communicating with the spirits and discovering a way to trigger an Emergence event to bring them to our world, we''ll contact you. We''ll probably need you to cast the summoning spell or the spell to trigger the Emergence event."

    Shun Yin scowled, not liking the use of "Emergence event." However, he was committed to this project. He realized that he was disappointed that he still wouldn''t be able to summon any spirits against his opponents in the tournament. At this rate, if he were to meet Glen Porter and his White Tiger in a match, he would be at an overwhelming disadvantage.

    "Let me know."

    "Sure!" Tenshi clasped his hands gratefully. "We really need your help! I''m sorry for taking so long, and I really appreciate your patience. But I promise you, we will succeed!"

    "¡­yeah. I believe you."

    Swallowing, Shun Yin glanced at the holographic display. Even as he watched the undulation of the waves and curves, he felt a sense of uneasiness crawl through him.

    Just what are we trying to bring into this world?

 215 Chapter 215: Complicated Relationship

    The moment Shun Yin stepped out of the laboratory, the first person he saw was none other than Angelica.

    "Lady Angelica." He bowed his head slightly. Trying to find something to talk about, he blurted out, "thank you for saving the girl earlier today."

    "That was a really unsightly match," Angelica replied with a scowl. "Charles is letting the arrogance get to his head and now thinks he can do anything he wants. If I didn''t do anything, he''ll destroy the image of the Porter family."

    Shun Yin said nothing. He was in no position to criticize the Porter family, given their status and background.

    "Even so¡­why are you thanking me? It has nothing to do with you."

    "No. But we commoners appreciate the fact that you will defend us when necessary."

    Angelica''s lip curled. "¡­commoners, huh? Is that how it is?"

    Again, Shun Yin remained silent, his head bowed to avoid her gaze. Angelica''s expression darkened as she stared at him for a moment, and then she turned to glance at the laboratory. The door was closed, so she couldn''t see inside the lab, but being the heiress to the Porter clan, she probably had a good idea of what was going on inside the room.

    "You seem to have gotten close to the research students here."

    "They are very intelligent," Shun Yin responded with a nod. "They''ve earned my respect. In the beginning, I was just here to help out with their research¡­for my own purposes, but now I''m beginning to see why the principal created an environment conducive to their research. If they succeed, they might be able to change the world."

    "I wouldn''t go that far¡­but that''s not what I meant." Angelica bit her lip for just a second. "What''s her name¡­Seinagi Tenshi, was she? The two of you seem awfully close."

    Shun Yin started at that. "Huh? Tenshi? I''m close to her?"

    Angelica merely stared at him coldly, and then she turned away in her usual dignified manner. "Does it not appear like that to you?"

    "No, not really." Shun Yin was being honest. "I''m only helping out with their research, and she''s the leader. To be honest, I don''t understand half of what she''s saying. She''s incredibly smart¡­all three of them are. The stuff they are doing goes completely over my head. It''s¡­not for me, you know? I only know how to fight. I don''t know how to¡­research stuff or come up with theories or run experiments. Yet, without the research division, I would never be able to¡­"

    "I''m not talking about the research division or the team. I''m talking about Seinagi Tenshi in particular." Angelica''s voice was frosty.

    "What about her?" Shun Yin was completely confused. "She''s the leader of the research team regarding summoning." He raised a hand and clenched it, and then stared at his fist. "I hope they succeed. If we can come up with a new summoning spell, I might be able to fight on par with Glen."

    "You''re already strong enough as you are now." Angelica''s face softened a little as she glanced back. "You don''t need summoning spells or anything else. I''ve seen you fight¡­I was there, at your match, you know?"

    "Ah¡­thank you." Shun Yin felt a little embarrassed. Especially when he didn''t watch Angelica''s match. Actually, he tried to search for her match, but was unable to find it at all. Glen had scoffed at him, reminding him that Angelica was the heiress to the Porter clan¡­and therefore she had automatic entry into the finals.

    Seeing how Charles utterly dominated the other girl, Shun Yin could understand why. It wouldn''t do to break the other students'' confidence by allowing her to crush them in the opening, preliminary rounds of the tournament.

    "But I lost to Glen¡­to his Soul Beast. That White Tiger is ridiculously strong. I don''t know how I can fight against it without a spirit¡­a Soul Beast of my own."

    Angelica closed her eyes for a second, and then smiled mysteriously. "You don''t have to worry about that. Starting tomorrow, everything will change."

    The ominous tone of her words caused Shun Yin to look at her sharply. "What do you mean by that?"

    "You''ll find out tomorrow." for a moment, that familiar mischievous smile of Angelica''s was back on her beautiful face, and then it was gone. Shun Yin was reminded of why he had fallen for her back when they were both kids. That forgotten innocence¡­the nostalgia for a time when everything was so much simpler¡­pure and untainted.

    Until the adults came.

    Angelica would say no more, and she disappeared down the corridor, leaving Shun Yin to continue brooding by himself, uncomfortable over her words.

    *

    The next day, the tournament resumed. To the side, Shun Yin stood and watched as two guys battled to the death. They were using swords, which were the favored weapon for mages for some reason. Bladed and melee weapons were more effective against monsters than ranged weapons such as guns and missiles, particularly powerful monsters¡­but of course there were exceptions. Besides, swords and melee weapons could still be utilized to cast long-ranged spells, and doubled as protection when the monsters came up close, which explained their popularity among most mages.

    "Argh!"

    "UWOOOH!"

    The two guys continued to clash, but one of them finally got the upper hand and forced his opponent''s sword away before slashing him across the chest. The victim gave a cry before falling over and lying motionlessly on the ground.

    "Ha ha ha! I did it! I won!" the guy who slashed his opponent crowed triumphantly, waving his sword in celebration.

    "Match over!" the teacher quickly ended the match, and several of the medics rushed over to check on the fallen guy.

    "Damn it!" one of the medics cursed when he saw the extent of the wound. "I was hoping that nobody would die this year."

    "He''s not dead yet. We can save him." his partner glared at him, annoyed. "Stop being so dramatic. Do you think this is Owari no Seraph: Ichinose Guren 16-sai no Catastrophe or something?"

    "¡­never mind." The other medic sighed and relented. The two of them bundled the wounded guy onto a stretcher and carried him off. His worried girlfriend accompanied them, holding the guy''s hand and praying desperately for him to survive.

    Shun Yin shook his head and glanced upward at the clear skies. Despite such good weather and such a beautiful blue, there were death-matches taking place under the bright, sunny heavens. It was almost incongruous.

    But he didn''t care. Taking a deep breath, he prepared for his own match.

    "Seems like I might finally get matched against Charles Porter," he muttered to himself as he clenched his fists. After witnessing how the bastard toyed around and bullied the girl yesterday, he was determined to smack Charles around for a bit. Not very heroic, but someone had to defeat the villain. And Charles, to him, was a villain.

    If I kill him, will I be able to save more victims in future? He wondered. He would definitely get in trouble with the Porter clan, of course. But perhaps it was worth it if he got rid of a threat now to save many in the future.

    ¡­however, what right did he have to dictate who lived and who died? Who was he to decide whether Charles was a villain or not? Right now, his only crime was arrogant bullying of people he deemed inferior to himself.

    Perhaps, if he got destroyed by someone he thought was weaker and inferior, it might deal a huge blow to his pride and lead him to walk the right path.

    Either way, I have to win this match.

    Having steeled his resolve, Shun Yin began approaching the arena.

    "Hey, will you be all right?"

    Turning around, Shun Yin caught sight of Glen approaching him with a wave of his hand. He nodded in acknowledgement.

    "Yeah, I will be."

    "Even though your opponent is Charles?"

    "I should be able to handle him," Shun Yin replied calmly as he glanced in the direction of the arena. Charles had yet to make an appearance, but that didn''t surprise him. The guy was the type to believe that others should wait upon him.

    "Hah! I like your confidence!" Glen laughed as he slapped Shun Yin''s shoulder in delight. "This is exactly why I planned to make you my comrade."

    Shun Yin frowned at that, but didn''t refute that. Their relationship had always been give and take, and he had no reason to break it.

    "Still, I can give you several pointers regarding Charles''s weaknesses if you want."

    "No need. I want this to be a fair fight. Besides¡­" Shun Yin grinned darkly. "Even without knowing his weaknesses, I''ll still crush him."

    "Ha ha¡­you really are brimming with confidence, aren''t you?" Glen shook his head, amused. "Then I won''t waste your time then. But I''ll wish you good luck."

    "I''ll indulge you on that."

    They exchanged a fist bump before Shun Yin climbed up the stage. There was still no sign of Charles, and the teacher was looking uncomfortable. On one hand, the rules stated clearly that if one of the duelists didn''t show up after the first few minutes, so as to minimize time-wasting. On the other hand, the person in question was a member of the Porter clan, adopted by the current head, and thus not someone he could just disqualify so simply.

    Fortunately, he was saved from making the decision when Charles strolled arrogantly toward the stage. With a sneer, he pulled himself up and glared at Shun Yin.

    "I''ll praise you for not forfeiting immediately, at least," he said.

    For his part, Shun Yin didn''t rise to the provocation and instead glanced at the teacher, as if waiting for him. The teacher gaped, and then nodded when he suddenly realized what Shun Yin was looking at him for.

    "Match, start!"

    "Hah!" Charles was crowing. "I''ll end this in thirty seconds¡­eh?!"

    The tip of Shun Yin''s sword was already pressing against his throat, cutting the skin and causing a slight trickle of blood. Shun Yin carefully slid it toward his jugular vein without breaking the skin while his eyes were still focused on Charles''s wide ones.

    "Do you surrender, or should I cut your throat here and now?"

    Charles realized he couldn''t even swallow or he would risk having his jugular vein ruptured. He slowly raised both hands in surrender and nodded, while gazing fearfully at the teacher. The teacher, stunned at the sudden movement, broke out of his stupor and blinked.

    Then he cleared his throat.

    "Match over! Winner: Huang Shun Yin!"

    Shun Yin immediately withdrew his sword. Charles crashed to his knees the moment the tension fled his rigid body, his palms pressed against the ground in disbelief and bewilderment. It was clear that he still didn''t fully comprehend what had just happened.

    "Ending this in thirty seconds, huh?" Glen''s mocking voice rose over the silent and disbelieving crowd. "You didn''t even last three seconds!"

    "Fuck!" Charles cursed as he struck the ground. "Damn it!"

    Ignoring him, Shun Yin turned away to walk off the stage, but then he suddenly noticed something.

    The skies were¡­suddenly dark. Dense fogs were curling over the school for some reason, blanketing them in semi-darkness. Feeling a chill, he raised his head to study them.

    "!!!"

    He suddenly kicked off the ground and shoved the surprised Charles to the side.

    "What the fuck are you doing?!" Charles roared, but his question was cut off when he saw a crimson beam of light lanced through the ground where he was kneeling on a millisecond earlier. "¡­eh?"

    All around them, students screamed and shrieked as countless beams of light streaked down upon the mass of spectators.

 216 Chapter 216: Massacre

    At first, nobody knew what the red lights were about. More than a few of them watched dumbly as the red lights lanced through them. A guy watched as the light shone on his arm, while a girl fearfully cowered as the light shone upon her shoulder.

    Then the guy''s left arm fell off, as if cut and cauterized by a laser. The girl''s body fell apart, the left side beyond her shoulder coming off cleanly.

    "My¡­my arm!"

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    The guy cried out in shock while the girl shrieked. Elsewhere, similar incidents were happening all over the place. Shun Yin glanced around, but surprisingly enough his area was clear. Other than the light that seemed to be aiming straight for Charles, there weren''t any other crimson lasers in his vicinity. After checking to see if the stunned and spluttering Charles was all right, he hopped off the stage to check on the others.

    "Shun Yin!"

    As expected, Glen was all right as well, having moved on reflex to move away from the red lights. Shun Yin nodded as he caught up with his friend.

    "What''s going on?"

    "How should I know?!" Glen snapped. Then he composed himself. "All of a sudden these red lights came down from the sky and started cutting people up! Are they some sort of attack spell?!"

    "They must be," Shun Yin replied as he glanced up. The fog was still around, but it was no longer firing red lasers. However, it seemed to be thickening, settling around the school courtyard and obscuring vision.

    "How can you be so calm?" Glen demanded, staring at him. "We''re under attack right now, and you''re still as cool as a cucumber¡­"

    Almost all his life, Shun Yin had always wanted to be a hero¡­an ally of justice. So it wasn''t surprising that he was constantly envisioning a scenario such as this. Even so, the death and injuries occurring throughout Vermillion High had him aghast. However, he understood that this was the moment he needed to stay calm, or he would never be able to save anybody.

    "We need to bring the wounded to the infirmary. Let''s hurry¡­"

    A scream cut off his instructions. Both Shun Yin and Glen spun around and caught sight of dark shapes moving through the fog. Surviving students, both wounded and unscathed, were being cut down and cleaved apart by Assassins in black, taking advantage of the shock and confusion to move through the fog unseen and launch surprise attacks.

    "Help me!"

    "Ugh!"

    One of the students'' heads flew off as the Assassin decapitated him, while a girl gurgled as another Assassin slit her throat. Shun Yin froze for just a second, and then he sprang into action, drawing his sword and launching a blast of flames at the callous killers.

    However, a dark shadow surged between them and intercepted his flames. Shun Yin watched, stunned, as his fire burned away the shadow, but the darkness was replaced by gray fog. Now he could no longer see the rest of his schoolmates except for Glen.

    "What¡­what''s going on?! Who are those people?! Why are they slaughtering the students of Vermillion High?"

    Glen''s usually composed voice was breaking, his eyes wide after he saw the bloody carnage in front of his eyes. He gritted his teeth and began casting lightning spells to wreath his hands in deadly electricity.

    "Those shadows¡­" Shun Yin found something familiar about them¡­as if he had seen those shadows somewhere before, and just recently too. He was sure he knew the caster. Even as the name came to mind, a chuckle cut across his thoughts.

    "Still as impressive as ever, I see. I knew you would be able to escape the Crimson Rain spell, but I never imagined you would still have the composure to counterattack against my men."

    Both Shun Yin and Glen turned around to regard the man in a salaryman suit, his usual short black hair slick with gel and his eyes crimson. He spread out both hands to give off a seemingly helpless manner.

    "The both of you are really talented kids. I can see why the Grand Master admires you."

    "Ying Bu Si," Shun Yin hissed silently. Glen glanced at him in surprise.

    "You know this guy?"

    "Yeah. We''ve met. I almost killed him, but he escaped."

    "That''s an exaggeration, you know." Ying Bu Si looked as if he was hurt. "You were never able to kill me. I always had the ability to escape, but I just wanted to talk to you a little bit more."

    "There''s nothing for us to talk about." Shun Yin closed his eyes momentarily and listened. The screams and shrieks were still faint, but they were dwindling. The students were being slaughtered systemically and inevitably. "You must have brought your Assassins from the Assassins Guild."

    "They are not ''my'' Assassins, but you are correct. We have been employed en masse to ensure the destruction of your school¡­and of the Porter clan."

    "What are you guys talking about?" Glen demanded, at a complete loss. "What do you mean, destruction of our school and the Porter clan? Why¡­?"

    "I don''t know the details, but it seems that someone employed the Assassins Guild to exterminate your entire clan¡­and since Vermillion High is an affiliate under the Porter family, they must be included within the list of targets."

    "What? Why?!" Glen gaped at Shun Yin after the explanation, but he turned to glare at Ying Bu Si. "Who hired you? Why do they want the Porter clan destroyed?!"

    "I can''t tell you right now¡­clients'' privacy and all that. We have to protect their interests and we''re bound by the contract. However, if you join us and become an Assassin, then of course we can share the details with you. How about it?"

    Ying Bu Si raised a hand invitingly.

    "You''re asking us to join the Assassins Guild?" Glen asked incredulously.

    "Of course," Ying Bu Si replied good-naturedly. "The Grand Master has his sights on you both. Especially you, Huang Shun Yin. Your potential has impressed him, and he wishes for you to be among our ranks. You have the potential to be the next Grand Master¡­and he''s hoping to raise you as his successor."

    "No."

    "Aw¡­a straight and immediate rejection again. You''re really hurting us, you know?" Ying Bu Si shook his head. "All that strength, power and talent, and you''re going to let it go to waste? You might possibly be the most powerful Assassin alive if you allow us to train you."

    "I will only ever have one master."

    "That old man from the Miyamoto dojo?" Ying Bu Si scowled. "I''ll admit, he''s probably the one person I don''t want to fight, besides the Grand Master himself. Well¡­if he''s the one teaching you, then I guess I can''t complain if you choose to learn under him instead of becoming an Assassin. Our beliefs are much too incompatible."

    Shaking his head, he sighed.

    "I really don''t want to do this, but¡­"

    He never got to finish his sentence. Shun Yin dashed forward, slashing his sword at him. Ying Bu Si dodged him, but Shun Yin changed the direction of his sword almost immediately and sliced upward, forcing the Umbra Assassin to raise a hand to parry it. Once again, the same shadows billowed outward from the damaged arm, but Ying Bu Si showed no sign of pain.

    "Hey! How rude! I was still talking, you know?"

    Shun Yin couldn''t care less. Instead, he pressured Ying Bu Si with his sword.

    "Call off the attack. Now."

    "I don''t have the authority to do so."

    With a grin, Ying Bu Si completed his casting and launched several shadowy appendages at Shun Yin. For a moment, the fire mage could see an impression of a gigantic shadowy spider towering behind the Umbra Assassin, its monstrous visage glaring at him with clacking mandibles. Eight spiky shadows lashed out, piercing the ground and obliterating concrete.

    Shun Yin effortlessly evaded the bombardment of shadowy spikes, weaving through their devastating barrage. Gripping his sword, he cast his own fire spell and unleashed it, washing over half of the eight legs with blazing flames. In an instant, four of the shadowy appendages simply ceased to exist, incinerated into nothingness by the ferocious fire.

    "Not bad, not bad! Very impressive!"

    Ying Bu Si was clapping his hands, applauding Shun Yin''s movements. His remaining shadowy appendages lanced forward, trying to pierce the younger man, but Shun Yin dodged them gracefully. Spinning around, he sliced apart another leg before twisting his body in midair to dodge another. Throwing out a hand, he pushed himself off the ground to retreat beyond another slashing appendage. While he whirled in the air, he unleashed another torrent of flames that bathed the last appendage, destroying it.

    Ying Bu Si withdrew his two remaining shadowy appendages and looked at them in mock dismay.

    "Oh my, oh my. It seems that you''ve really done a number on my arms."

    Shun Yin didn''t reply and instead launched himself at Ying Bu Si again. The Umbra Assassin smirked and spread out both hands, as if inviting his assailant to stab him in the chest.

    And then six new shadowy appendages unfurled from behind his back, the insubstantial gigantic spider aura still manifesting behind him. They lanced forward once more, stabbing at the advancing Shun Yin.

    Even so, Shun Yin wasn''t taken by surprise. He calmly leaped over the first one while cutting apart the second one. Landing on the third one, he ran along its length before jumping off to bath the other five in flames. The inferno blazed and burned away parts of the fog, but Shun Yin saw no sign of the Assassins or other students. Even though they had suffered massive casualties, the strongest and most elite of the students were still putting up a good fight, holding out against the superior Assassins.

    Unfortunately, Shun Yin didn''t have the luxury to worry about them. He knew how powerful Ying Bu Si was¡­a single lapse in concentration, one slight misstep and Ying Bu Si would pounce on him and deliver a fatal blow.

    Whirling around, he cut off the last three shadowy appendages that were stabbing at him from behind¡­or tried to. Then he landed on the ground before springing at the seemingly helpless Ying Bu Si.

    "Oh boy¡­"

    Just before Ying Bu Si was going to get stabbed, he suddenly grinned. Eight new shadowy appendages unfolded and lanced toward Shun Yin. At such close range, there was no way he would be able to dodge¡­

    But Shun Yin never intended to evade them.

    Skidding to a stop, he swung his sword and incinerated all eight of them at once with a blast of crimson flames. The inferno expanded to engulf not just the shadowy appendages but the shocked Ying Bu Si as well, bathing him in superheated mana and burning him to a crisp.

    Or tried to, anyway.

    "Ouch! This is hot!"

    A charred Ying Bu Si stumbled out of the inferno, his body fuming. Shun Yin mercilessly cut him down, his blade cleaving into his shoulder and penetrating all the way to his chest. Ying Bu Si stumbled and then fell to his knees.

    "Ugh¡­"

    "Now call off the attack."

    "I already told you¡­I can''t. It''s not as if I''m the Grand Master of Assassins. I don''t command anyone. I just follow orders. But¡­"

    Ying Bu Si grinned as he looked up at Shun Yin.

    "!!! Oh no, damn it¡­!"

    Shun Yin realized his mistake when he caught sight of the strange seal in Ying Bu Si''s eyes. Some kind of cursed eyes¡­a spell that Ying Bu Si had been casting the entire time. He couldn''t move in time to avoid eye contact, knowing that he would get caught up in the spell and¡­

    Sizzle!

    Twin lightning bolts arced forward and destroyed Ying Bu Si''s eyes. The Umbra Assassin cried out as his head snapped back, the melted remains of his eyes smoking and sparking with golden electricity.

    "That was dangerous," Glen remarked as he strode forward, his hand still crackling with lethal lightning. He then stopped to glare at Ying Bu Si. "You have a lot of explaining to do, Mr. Assassin."

    "Ha ha¡­I guess I got caught." Ying Bu Si chuckled, not at all bothered even though he literally had a sword protruding out of his body and his eyes burned out by lightning. "But I''m afraid you''ll get nothing out of me."

    "We''ll see about that." Glen kicked him in the gut. "Why are you Assassins attacking Vermillion High? If your plan is to destroy the Porter clan, then why aren''t you attacking our military headquarters in Vermillion city or the garrison south of here? Why pick on a bunch of weak and inexperienced students? What''s the point of killing us?"

    "Weak and inexperienced? Man, you guys really underestimate yourselves. You might not seem much now, but you are all the future of the Porter clan, you know? The fate of the clan rests squarely in your hands, you know? It''s up to you kids to lead the Porter clan to glory and prevail over the other nine great families of the Global Federation."

    "Don''t give me that bullshit. Even so, you still have no reason to attack here. Destroying the school will only bring retaliation upon yourselves from the Porter clan''s main and elite forces. And as callous as I may sound, they can always train and groom new students, even if you kill the ones here today. So why here?"

    "Ha~" The Umbra Assassin sighed at Glen''s interrogation. "Man, even though the two of you are still brats, you''re much more powerful and intelligent than I imagined. I guess I don''t have a choice. It shouldn''t hurt to tell you, since you''ll eventually become one of us anyway."

    "Don''t count on it," Shun Yin said coldly. Ying Bu Si shrugged nonchalantly.

    "Well, don''t dismiss the possibility yet¡­at least until you''ve heard me out. After all, it was your own fellow student who betrayed the Porter clan and sold all of their secrets to our current employer. Their objective is to delve into¡­forbidden research. Ah¡­before you ask me, I have no idea what kind of research they are carrying out. We Assassins are just hired killers, we are not privy to the grand schemes of our clients."

    Shun Yin glanced at Glen. "I don''t suppose it''s you or your father, right?"

    "Why would I do something like that?" Glen snorted. "I don''t know any secrets of the Porter clan. And there''s no way the Porter clan would tell my dad, who they regard as an outsider, any of their secrets. Being his son, they naturally wouldn''t tell me anything too."

    "That''s true. But I can say this¡­it''s someone more talented than you who sold our clients the information."

    "Gah!" Glen grimaced as he clutched his chest in feigned pain. "That hurts!"

    "Not you or your dad, but someone who hates the Porter clan to the core despite being of the Porter lineage."

    "Who in your family would have reason to hate the Porter can, Glen?" Shun Yin asked, bewildered.

    Glen remained silent, even though it was clear that he had an idea. Shun Yin was about to press him for details when the Umbra Assassin chuckled.

    "At least I succeeded in my job¡­to keep the both of you occupied."

    "What are you¡­?" Shun Yin began, but Glen gasped and suddenly turned around to run into the fog.

    "Damn it! So that''s what this is about!" He then glanced back at Shun Yin, shouting even as he continued to run off. "Hey, you read Owari no Seraph, right? The Ichinose Guren spinoff? Remember what happened in that story, and you''ll know what I''m talking about."

    "Huh? Glen? Wait¡­"

    However, with his sword still stuck in Ying Bu Si''s body, Shun Yin couldn''t just run after him. Instead, he turned back to glare at the Assassin while slowly piecing the details together.

    Somebody in the Porter clan who has the ability to sell the family secrets to an outsider and carry out experiments¡­and that person is somebody who possess a deep grudge against the Porter clan. And for some reason, they thought it important to assign a single elite Assassin to occupy me and Glen throughout this¡­massacre¡­yup, I have completely no idea. But this is supposed to rip off Owari no Seraph for some reason. Oh, now I know about that, because I read the manga adaptation.

    No, seriously. No matter how you thought about it, none of those "clues" led to Angelica ¨C like why the hell would she possess a deep grudge against her clan to the point where she wanted to kill them? Because her parents didn''t let her marry whoever she wanted? Really? And why would she single out Shun Yin and Glen as people to be drawn away in a diversion? Because they were the main characters? What utter BS. But hey, if this scenario followed the Owari no Seraph light novel spinoff closely, then the culprit ¨C according to the clich¨¦ twists ¨C could only be her.

    Shun Yin''s eyes widened briefly when he suddenly realized that he had the same idea as Glen.

    "The traitor is¡­Angelica Porter?"

 217 Chapter 217: Traitor

    "¡­the traitor is Angelica Porter?"

    Shun Yin glared at Ying Bu Si as he asked coldly. Even though his eyes had been fried, the Umbra Assassin smiled as he glanced up with an eyeless expression in the high school student''s direction.

    "What''s this? You don''t sound surprised at all. And for you to figure it out¡­you must know Miss Angelica very well. You must be very close to her¡­is Angelica perhaps your lover?"

    "Don''t even joke like that." Shun Yin tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword. "I haven''t seen her in almost ten years. How is it possible for her to be my lover?"

    "Really? But I can still feel some lingering desire in you." Ying Bu Si''s grin grew wider. "Hmm, so you wish to take Miss Angelica back from the Porter clan using magic that you weren''t capable of casting when you were a child."

    "Wrong."

    "Gah!"

    Ying Bu Si cried out in pain as Shun Yin stabbed him deeper, twisting his sword maliciously as if he had forgotten his heroic values. Despite the agony and a bead of perspiration running down his cheek, Ying Bu Si maintained his smile.

    "Really? Miss Angelica says that she still loves you, you know." He chuckled ominously. "Deep within herself, she continues to wholeheartedly harbor a desire to see you. That''s the only reason why she sold out her own family just so she could obtain more power."

    "Isn''t it because she hates her own family?" Shun Yin responded dispassionately as he glared at Ying Bu Si. "And because we need to have this obligatory clich¨¦ twist of main heroine being the villain?"

    "Now, now. Don''t be dense. Even now, Angelica is eager to embrace you, you know?" Ying Bu Si reached out with a hand. "Sir Shun Yin¡­please follow me to where Miss Angelica is."

    An explosion resounded some distance away from the two of them, clearing some segments of the fog. Mages in uniform were dashing through the fog, their weapons drawn and spells cast, and attacking the Assassins aggressively.

    "The Federation military is here!" one of the surviving students yelled in relief and delight.

    "They''ll save us!" another student agreed as he clutched his arm, still standing with his sword drawn as he fought off a black-robed Assassin. "We just need to hold out for a few more seconds!"

    "Oh dear." Despite the desperate situation, Ying Bu Si didn''t look too dismayed. "It appears that we''ve run out of time."

    Shun Yin merely regarded him callously, his sword still stabbing into the Umbra Assassin''s shoulder. Ying Bu Si smiled in a friendly manner as he tried to look up at him, even without his eyes. Shun Yin noticed the dark shadows creeping out of the man''s ruined sockets and trying to restore his sight and eyeballs.

    "If you could please withdraw your sword, then we can begin to bring you for a reunion with Miss Angelica."

    Shun Yin slowly pulled his sword out inch by inch before suddenly stabbing the flinching Ying Bu Si furiously, causing him to grunt in pain.

    "Ugh!"

    "I refuse." He glared at Ying Bu Si. "Instead, I want you to spill everything you know regarding your client and their plans. What is Angelica intending to do, joining up with them? What are they researching on?"

    "Sorry to disappoint you." Ying Bu Si was breathing heavily. "But no matter how much you torture me, I won''t tell you anything."

    "Then die," Shun Yin replied callously as he cast his spell.

    "Wait!" Ying Bu Si called out. He wasn''t exactly panicking, but he did realize how close he was to death. "If you kill me, then you and Miss Angelica will never¡­"

    "Who cares?" Shun Yin responded nonchalantly. "It''s fine if we don''t see each other again. It''s not as if I grew stronger just to meet her¡­"

    "That''s such a cold thing to say."

    Shun Yin shivered when he heard a feminine voice in his ear. He yanked his sword out of Ying Bu Si and jumped as far back as he could on reflex, raising his sword defensively.

    And not a moment too soon.

    A girl descended upon him, swinging her sword and forcing him to parry her blade. There was a thunderous clang as metal ground against metal. Gritting his teeth, Shun Yin raised his head to glare at his opponent.

    "Angelica."

    "Oh?" Angelica looked a little taken aback for a moment, but she then smiled. "No longer using any honorifics, are you?"

    "There''s no point pretending to be respectful and polite to someone who betrayed the Porter clan, is there?" Shun Yin responded dryly.

    "That''s true." Angelica nodded as she increased the pressure of her sword. Shun Yin grunted as his knees buckled and the ground shattered beneath his feet from the tremendous impact. Angelica smiled. "Impressive. There are very few people capable of stopping my sword."

    "Kuh¡­"

    As he dropped to his knees, struggling to withstand Angelica''s blade, Shun Yin gasped. Studying his opponent, who was effortlessly pinning him down despite him hurriedly casting several physical reinforcement spells in succession, he wobbled.

    Is this strength even human?!

    "Don''t disappoint me now, Shun Yin." Angelica was giggling. "I know your true strength isn''t limited to this much."

    Shun Yin narrowed his eyes, and the knocked her back determinedly. He retreated in a single bound, maximizing the distance between them.

    However, Angelica effortlessly kicked off the ground and closed in, swinging her sword and bombarding him with a relentless hail of swings that nearly tore his arms off their sockets. His sword vibrating violently, Shun Yin was forced to yield ground and retreat.

    He ground his teeth and began casting a fire spell. Flames crackled in his hand as he prepared to launch a fireball at her.

    "Heh! A spell, huh?" Angelica continued to giggle joyfully. "So you''re admitting that you won''t be able to best me in a sword duel?"

    Shun Yin responded by flinging a fireball into her face. Angelica merely cleaved the relatively tiny projectile apart with her sword.

    "What did you think you were going to achieve with such a pathetic spell?"

    However the moment the fire dissipated, a single blade thrust through the flickering flames and stopped right before her throat.

    "Ah¡­"

    Her eyes wide, Angelica froze. She stared at Shun Yin in disbelief, realizing that the fireball had been a feint.

    Shun Yin met her gaze evenly, waiting for her move. Angelica smiled as she gazed down at the sword at her throat.

    "Amazing. You really have gotten so much stronger...haven''t you, Shun Yin?"

    She playfully placed a hand on her chest and smiled flirtatiously.

    "Perhaps¡­you grew stronger for my sake?"

    "You wish." Shun Yin lowered his sword when he realized that Angelica no longer had the intention to fight. She knew as well as he did that he could have killed her in that strike, and that she had lost the match.

    "I see." Angelica squeezed her chest somewhat wistfully, but she maintained that coy smile on her beautiful face. The expression, Shun Yin noticed, didn''t reach her eyes. "But I got stronger just to be with you, you know?"

    "That''s no reason to join up with the Assassins Guild and start slaughtering innocent students in Vermillion High to spark a war."

    "Don''t be na?ve, Shun Yin. You know as well as I do that these students aren''t innocent. Haven''t you seen the kind of person Charles is? He''s not the only one in this school, you know. The majority of the so-called noble students here are just as rotten to the core and arrogant as he is, thinking they can trample people like you¡­refusing to recognize your talent. All because you''re from a commoner family. Don''t you think they deserve death?"

    Even as she stood amidst the fog, the two of them could hear screams of death and pain continuing to echo throughout the darkness.

    "Argh!"

    "NOOO!"

    Angelica chuckled ominously and clasped her sword arm with her other hand.

    "This power¡­one can get drunk upon it, you know? Isn''t it the same for you, Shun Yin? Don''t you enjoy this power coursing through your body?"

    "¡­power? What are you talking about?" Shun Yin stared at her, completely bewildered.

    "If I succeed in mastering this power, we can be together forever. Bound together by bonds stronger than that between me and my accursed family."

    "What is this power you''re talking about?" Shun Yin demanded, still not comprehending.

    "So that''s why¡­I''ll surpass all other mages¡­all other humans!"

    Angelica cackled as she raised her sword up high. Then she swung it down, unleashing an enormous inferno in an instant, cremating a good section of the school courtyard. Shun Yin shielded his face and jumped to the side to avoid the spell, but Angelica had never been aiming for him in the first place.

    Falling onto his rump, he glanced at the scorched crater and molten earth, dazed from the enormity of the spell.

    "That was¡­?" he murmured to himself, his eyes wide and perspiration pouring down his face. He then glanced at Angelica. She cast such a powerful spell in an instant?! How is that possible?!

    "Surprised?" Angelica asked mischievously. She then brought her sword up to admire it. "This is a spirit weapon."

    "¡­spirit weapon?" Shun Yin repeated, dumbfounded.

    "Ah, yes. That''s correct. You should be aware of the existence of spirits, right? After all¡­you were flirting with that Seinagi Tenshi and her research team this entire time. They were so close to summoning spirits to our world¡­but because they exist in another dimension, they can''t properly manifest in our dimension. So¡­I thought, why not have these spirits ''possess'' weapons and sacred artifacts?"

    "There''s a spirit¡­dwelling within your sword?" Shun Yin asked skeptically. That was way beyond what Tenshi and her team had researched on. And how did Angelica know about it? No, of course she would. She was the heiress and the future leader of the Porter clan. She would be able to know everything that her family was doing.

    Even her uncle.

    "Exactly. It cost us a lot of resources and lives, but we eventually implemented a working system for sealing the spirits into the weapons and making them safe enough to use. It''s still not finished yet, but I''m confident of completing the technology very soon."

    "You¡­sacrificed people''s lives for that experiment?" Shun Yin repeated incredulously, a chill running down his spine.

    Angelica looked at him disappointedly, even as he slowly rose to his feet. She lowered her sword and shook her head.

    "You''ve also sacrificed a lot in order to become this strong, haven''t you? Shun Yin."

    "It''s not the same thing!" Shun Yin snapped. "All I did was put in a lot of effort and invested a lot of time! I never hurt anyone! I never sacrificed anyone else in order to obtain my strength¡­"

    "Ah, what about your master at the Miyamoto dojo? Didn''t he spend a lot of time and effort raising you to be the swordsman you are today?"

    "That''s¡­" Shun Yin clenched his fists. "That''s different! He''s my master¡­he taught me¡­"

    "And you don''t deem that a sacrifice?"

    "There''s a difference between sacrificing other people''s lives for an experiment, and sacrificing your time and energy teaching others! I wouldn''t think twice about training and teaching someone how to fight!"

    "No. I don''t suppose you would. You probably wouldn''t see that as a sacrifice of your own time and effort." Angelica lowered her head slightly and smiled cynically. "Whatever the case, it''s no use arguing over this. But I''m sure you know as well as I do that without power, you will never be able to protect anyone."

    Shun Yin didn''t refute that.

    "We won''t be able to protect the people we love. And thus¡­we seek power. I seek power. You also seek power."

    "You call this protecting the people you love?" Shun Yin growled, gesturing toward the blood and carnage around them. "How in the world is this¡­?"

    "Hey, Shun Yin."

    Angelica cut him off and extended a hand toward him.

    "Won''t you come with me? I can give you power too." She smiled temptingly as she reached out with her hand. "I need your assistance to complete this research¡­I need your help in order to obtain more power. And I''m sure you also need more strength¡­to achieve whatever goals you have in mind. Even if that goal doesn''t involve me¡­"

    Then she suddenly faltered and swayed on her feet. Shun Yin was moving before he knew it, reaching out to grab hold of her, but she withdrew as she clutched her chest.

    "Sorry, Shun Yin. Right now, I¡­"

    "What¡­?"

    Angelica looked up at him, her face red and tears streaming from her eyes as she stared desperately at him.

    "I''m already¡­possessed by the spirit."

    "Angelica!" Shun Yin was still puzzled, but he knew that whatever was happening, it was bad. He anxiously reached out to her. "What are you talking about? What do you mean, you''re possessed by the spirit?"

    "I failed the experiment. In order to house the spirit, I used myself as a guinea pig. And this is the result."

    Crimson fire began burning and etching themselves across her snow-white flesh, forming what seemed like tattoos.

    "I don''t know how much longer I have left¡­"

    Flames began burning uncontrollably around her sword, and wings of fire began unfolding behind Angelica''s back.

    "Oi! What is¡­?"

    "I want more power¡­more power¡­to burn the world¡­!"

    However, before Angelica could swing her sword and unleash fire, dark shadows curled out and seized her, restraining her.

    "That''s enough, Miss Angelica." Fully healed and standing up straight, with no sign of the injuries that both Shun Yin and Glen inflicted upon him earlier, Ying Bu Si approached the crimson-haired girl. "You''ll lose control if you continue using that weapon."

    "Y¡­yeah, you''re right."

    "What the hell did you do to Angelica?!" Shun Yin demanded as he charged forward, but Ying Bu Si gestured for him to stay back.

    "I didn''t do anything. The Assassins Guild didn''t do anything to her. This is between Miss Angelica and our client¡­though she''s probably part of our clients'' organization for now. Still, there is a way if you really want to know."

    Ying Bu Si smiled, his eyes gazing upon Shun Yin darkly.

    "You should just join the Assassins Guild."

    "I asked you what you did to Angelica!" Shun Yin yelled as he leaped forward to slash Ying Bu Si. However, Angelica parried his sword with her own. In front of his stunned eyes, she cut his sword, sending half the length of his blade flying off and stabbing into the ground. In a single graceful move, she pointed the tip of her sword at his throat, and stopped there.

    "Now we''re even." Angelica smiled. "In return for not killing me earlier, I won''t kill you now."

    "You¡­" Shun Yin gritted her teeth, but Angelica ignored him. Instead, she stepped forward and embraced him.

    "Hey, Shun Yin. I love you."

    Refusing to let go of him, she clung to him tightly. For a moment, Shun Yin couldn''t hear or feel anything except their heartbeats resonating, especially as she pressed her chest to his and leaned her head on his shoulder.

    For a fleeting moment, Shun Yin was reminded of the past.

    "I''ll ask you one more time, Shun Yin. Won''t you come with me?"

    "I won''t." Shun Yin''s reply was straightforward and immediate.

    "Even if you can obtain more power?"

    "Not interested."

    Angelica narrowed her eyes disappointedly, even as she continued to rest her head on his shoulder. She then pushed herself away.

    "Ha ha ha¡­I wonder if you hate me or something."

    Shun Yin watched as she ran a hand through her crimson hair, and then shook his head and softened his tone.

    "The power I aim for and the strength that you desire are simply different."

    "Ha ha¡­" Angelica kicked a pebble away, trying to hide her frustration. "I wonder when our paths began to diverge."

    "Perhaps we were never walking on the same path to begin with."

    "Maybe. But I think it''s safe to tell you this." Angelica leaned closer, her voice in a conspiratorial whisper. "The organization I joined¡­they plan to destroy the world. They have some religious beliefs or whatever¡­claiming that humans are a blight on the world, and it''s better to give the Earth over to the monsters. I can''t say I agree with them totally¡­but I do want to help them create an environment where only the strongest can survive."

    "¡­what?" Still holding onto his broken sword, Shun Yin scratched his head in bemusement.

    "You''ll get your chance to become a hero¡­an ally of justice. But in order to become one¡­you will surely come to me. At that time, you will definitely desire me." She spun away, but turned her head slightly to keep her emerald eyes on him. "So we''ll meet again."

    "Angelica, what are you¡­?"

    Before Shun Yin could finish his question, Angelica hopped backward. She smiled brightly, and almost innocently.

    "I love you, Shun Yin."

    And then, just like that, she was gone. Disappearing into the fog and beyond his sight.

    "Finally¡­I didn''t think she would let you go just like that." Ying Bu Si sighed in exasperation. Shun Yin turned to glare at him, but he merely smiled. "Don''t worry¡­you''ll eventually want to join us. I''ll keep in touch. Hopefully you''ll change your mind the next time we meet."

    "Fuck you¡­"

    "I''ll be going now!"

    Before Shun Yin could burn the bastard alive, Ying Bu Si vanished in a manner similar to Angelica. And just like that he was left alone in the fog.

    "Damn it!" Shun Yin cursed as he dropped to the ground, discarding his broken sword and slamming his fist against the broken concrete. "DAMN IT!"

 218 Chapter 218: Tragedy

    "Shun Yin! Are you all right?"

    Shin Yin raised his head and glanced up when he heard his name being called. The fog was slowly dissipating, and he spotted Glen running toward him, followed by Henry Porter and a small squad of soldiers.

    "Yeah." Shun Yin rose to his feet unsteadily. "What about you? Where did you go?"

    "He came to find me," Henry answered in Glen''s stead when the latter paused to catch his breath. "Informed me of the attack¡­though we detected it a few minutes before he burst into the office. Still appreciate it, though," he added with a pat on Glen''s shoulder.

    "I thought that the traitor and the Assassins might be aiming for my dad," Glen explained breathlessly as he looked around in dismay at the massacre. Many of the students were lying on the ground, motionless and lifeless.

    "Turns out that they weren''t," Henry remarked with a complicated expression, as if he wasn''t sure whether to feel relieved or bitter over the loss of his students. "Nobody attacked us."

    "Was the traitor really¡­Angelica?" Glen demanded as he approached Shun Yin. The latter lowered his head, not sure how to answer. He didn''t have to. The moment Glen saw his crestfallen expression, he understood.

    "¡­is that true?"

    Henry''s tone was urgent. Shun Yin slowly nodded. There was no point denying it.

    "That''s right, sir." One of the soldiers was listening to the com bead in his ear. "It seems that Angelica Porter has gone missing. She''s not among the dead, the wounded or the survivors. There are Porter clan servants frantically searching for her, but she''s nowhere to be found."

    "Just what was her goal?" Glen growled, punching his palm angrily. "Why did she launch an attack on the school? She has no reason to attack us! This doesn''t make sense!"

    "If their target wasn''t me, then perhaps it was something else at the school." Henry was pondering thoughtfully. "Was there anything in particular that they were after?" he turned to Shun Yin. "I''m assuming you met Angelica and saw her collaborating with the enemy, otherwise you wouldn''t be so sure she is the traitor."

    Shun Yin hesitated for a moment, and then nodded. "That is correct."

    "What did she say?" Henry grabbed his shoulders urgently. "Did she mention anything about her goals? Why they attacked our school?"

    "Something about destroying the Porter clan¡­"

    "That''s why I went to find you first," Glen joined in, staring at his father. "I was so sure that her aim would be you."

    "Thank you, my son." Henry nodded distractedly, his attention still on Shun Yin. "Did Angelica say anything else? Was she targeting someone else? Perhaps¡­my wife?"

    "No, she didn''t say anything about that." Shun Yin frowned, trying to remember his conversation with her. His mind was still in a daze. It felt like an eternity since they last talked, even though it was mere minutes ago.

    "Reporting on that¡­Charles Porter is dead." One of the soldiers looked up and reported gloomily. Henry, Glen and Shun Yin turned to stare at him. The soldier shrugged helplessly. "He was killed by one of the Assassins. His throat was slit."

    "So Charles was her target all along." Glen''s shoulders slumped. "I should have known."

    "That makes no sense, though." Henry was troubled. "If Charles was her target, why would she need to launch an attack on school and make such a big fuss? Why would she need to kill so many of the other students?"

    The principal gazed over the corpses of his students and sighed.

    "The reason why I believed you, Glen, was because it seemed to make sense. We believed the attack on the students was a diversion, and that they were planning a hit on me. Draw the main forces of the school toward the courtyard to suppress the assailants¡­thus leaving me open and vulnerable. But if her target wasn''t me¡­if it was Charles, then there was no need to launch such a massive attack and kill so many students."

    "Diversion¡­"

    There was something scratching incessantly at the back of Shun Yin''s mind, but he couldn''t place his finger on what he should be thinking about.

    Then, unbidden, a memory surfaced in his mind.

    "Spirit weapons."

    "I beg your pardon?" Henry turned to stare at Shun Yin, puzzled. Glen shared the same bewildered look.

    "Spirit weapons. When Angelica showed up and attacked, she was wielding this new spirit weapon, which she claimed to have created by sealing a spirit inside the weapon." Shun Yin held up his broken sword thoughtfully. "It was so powerful that she could easily cut my sword into two, and reduced the casting time of an extremely powerful spell drastically."

    Henry turned extremely pale.

    "So that''s it¡­" he muttered so softly that Shun Yin and Glen almost couldn''t hear him. Glen frowned.

    "What is it, Dad?"

    However, Henry didn''t respond. Instead, he turned toward the soldiers and began gesticulating frantically.

    "You, and you! Follow me! And hurry!"

    The Federation soldiers followed without question. Shun Yin and Glen exchanged a glance, and then hurried after the adults. To their surprise, Henry was running straight for the research division of the campus.

    "Did Angelica and the Assassins stage a diversion to steal¡­research material from the university division?" Glen asked, bemused. Shun Yin shrugged.

    "It''s not just the university division. The high school division also shares the building¡­"

    "What is it?"

    Glen glanced at Shun Yin when the latter trailed off. The dark-haired guy''s eyes widened in horror when he remembered something.

    His friends. Tenshi. Rebecca. Gabriel. They were all in the research division, working on their spirit project. And they were most likely still in the building when the assault from the Assassins Guild occurred.

    "Damn it!"

    Summoning spirits and allowing them to manifest in this world. Sealing spirits into weapons to allow them to manifest in this world. Why didn''t he see the connection?

    Feeling an icy chill surge through the mounting horror that filled his chest, Shun Yin increased his pace.

    "Everyone! Are you all right?!"

    Henry shouted the moment he burst into the building. At first, he was afraid that he was too late. The corridors were deserted, there was no sign of any living person inside the building.

    And then¡­one of the doors opened.

    "Principal Porter?"

    "Is it over?"

    Henry stared at the pockets of students emerging from their labs, small groups who had been hiding inside their labs the entire time. Most of them seemed unscathed, just shaken and frightened. Breathing a sigh of relief, he nodded.

    "Yes. It''s over."

    There was an audible sound as the students exhaled in relief and joy. Some of the girls began hugging each other, tears streaming from their eyes when they realized their ordeal was over. A few of the guys dropped down to sit on the ground, their legs unable to hold themselves up. They exchanged high fives and grins.

    "We survived!"

    "I was so sure we were a goner!"

    "Can somebody tell me what happened here?" Henry asked calmly, trying to be gentle. He didn''t want to scare the students back into a panic.

    "We aren''t sure." One of the male students approached wearily. "We heard the alarms and the noise of fighting ¨C we can hear the battle outside even from inside here. We didn''t dare to go out and check what was happening, and the security cameras weren''t showing anything except fog and shadows. But the screams¡­we heard so many screams¡­!"

    Glen and Shun Yin exchanged dark glances. They were there firsthand when the massacre occurred, and they witnessed their schoolmates dying.

    "So you all decided to take cover in your labs?" Henry nodded and smiled. "Good choice. I''m glad that you''re all safe. I''m also relieved that none of you did anything reckless."

    "Well, actually¡­" the guy scratched his head. "Lady Angelica dropped by."

    Shun Yin froze. He was sure Glen and Henry did so too, but the principal was adept at covering up his reaction. Taking a deep breath, he forced a gentle smile.

    "What did she do or say?"

    "She told us to hide in the labs. Said it was extremely dangerous outside, and we should wait until help arrived. So we obeyed her."

    "Wise choice." Despite putting on an expression of approval, there was an anxious glint in Henry''s blue eyes. "She certainly has a good head on her shoulders. Where did she go after that?"

    "We don''t know. We went back to the labs and locked the doors as she told us to, and waited for help."

    "I see."

    "Dad was right. Whatever Angelica was planning, this building was her target. Or at least something inside this building."

    Shun Yin nodded at Glen''s whisper and glanced around, but he could see no sign of Angelica. There was still something nagging at him, but he wasn''t able to figure out why he was so uneasy and unsettled.

    Then he realized that he didn''t see his friends here.

    "Where''s Tenshi, Rebecca and Gabriel?"

    "Eh?"

    The other students turned to stare at him, dumbfounded.

    "Maybe they''re still in their lab," one of the guys suggested and pointed right at the end of the corridor. Shun Yin began to have an ominous feeling in his chest. Judging from his expression, so did Henry.

    "Let''s go!" he ordered the two soldiers accompanying him, and the three adults surged toward the end of the corridor. Shun Yin and Glen followed, hot on their heels, with the former particularly concerned.

    He almost collided with the soldiers who stopped right at the door, shifting their weapons up as they swept through the room to check if it was clear. Then he heard a whimper.

    "Rebecca?"

    "Shun Yin?"

    The soldier to the left stepped aside as Shun Yin rushed forward. Rebecca and Gabriel were crouching behind a broken bench, the electronic system sparking and cracking from damage. The entire lab had been thrashed, equipment destroyed and computers crushed. The holographic screens were flickering on and off, their screens showing nothing but eerie static.

    "You are all right!" Gabriel looked relieved as he clasped Shun Yin''s hand. "I''m so glad you''re all right!"

    "I''m more worried about you guys!" Shun Yin tried not to laugh from the sheer joy and relief that filled him. "I''m glad to see you guys are okay!"

    "What happened here?" Henry asked, striding forward and dropping to a knee. The two research students were taken aback by the principal''s presence.

    "S¡­sir!" they sat upright, trying to hide their nervousness. The both of them glanced at each other for a second, their faces pale and their bodies trembling, but they weren''t able to utter even a single word.

    That was when Shun Yin noticed something was amiss.

    "W...where is Tenshi?"

    The two of them lowered their heads, unable to meet his eyes. His heart thumping faster, Shun Yin rose and glanced around.

    A pool of blood at the corner of the room caught his attention. Dread swelling up inside his chest, he hurried over.

    Lying spread-eagled across a broken piece of machinery, her body almost cut into several pieces, the corpse of Tenshi stared lifelessly back up at him.

 219 Chapter 219: Piecing Together

    Shun Yin watched numbly as the medics ferried Tenshi''s corpse away in a black body bag, his eyes hollow. Behind him, Gabriel and Rebecca related the events to Henry.

    "Lady Angelica came and she¡­she killed Tenshi. Without saying anything. She had this weird, powerful sword that we had never seen before¡­casting awesome fire spells and destroying all our equipment except the computers."

    "Then after cutting Tenshi apart, she went and downloaded all the data from our computers. Transferred it into some private cloud server. Then she destroyed our computers, our computing processing units, everything."

    "Our data is all gone. I just checked the school''s cloud server. They''ve been wiped clean."

    "All our work¡­gone just like that. Worse¡­Tenshi¡­she¡­she¡­!"

    Rebecca began weeping and sobbing uncontrollably. Gabriel put an arm around her, trying to comfort her. From the looks of it, this wasn''t the first time he had tried to console her whenever she broke down.

    The two of them had been too afraid to move after Angelica left silently, still hearing the noise of battle outside. They continued to cower inside the remains of the ruined lab, unable to move out because of their lack of combat ability.

    "What did Lady Angelica want our research for?" Gabriel demanded, his voice quivering. Henry glanced at Shun Yin, and then shook his head.

    "I honestly have no idea."

    "She¡­she wanted to summon spirits of her own. I''m not sure how exactly, but she found a way to seal them into weapons. She claimed that the technology had not been completed yet, that she planned to perfect it. I''m guessing that''s why she stole your data."

    Gabriel and Rebecca stared at Shun Yin in amazement. "Lady Angelica actually told you all that?"

    Shun Yin hesitated at Gabriel''s question, and then nodded. "Yes. She wanted me to join her."

    "Obviously you refused." Glen placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. His expression darkened. "I don''t care who she is¡­heiress or not, the future clan leader or not, she''s not going to get away with this."

    "The clan leader and elders are in an uproar, from what I can tell." Henry looked grim. He glanced at Shun Yin. "They refuse to believe that Angelica is a traitor and that she had joined the Assassins Guild. They are actually accusing you of lying."

    "Huh? Then how are they going to explain all this?!" Glen demanded, gesturing at the destruction all around them.

    "I don''t know. For now, they are asking us to confirm if Angelica wasn''t actually kidnapped by the Assassins. They said there was no way Angelica would follow them of their own volition, and they want to personally interrogate the eyewitnesses¡­including you. Glen." Henry sighed and lifted his glasses to rub the bridge of his nose. Yes, even in the far future he chose to wear glasses, not because he was shortsighted but because of the various functions installed within the lenses to help with analysis and calculations. "However, I''ve just transmitted the recordings of the security cameras in this building, including the video of her murdering Seinagi Tenshi in cold blood and stealing all the data from the computer terminals in this lab."

    "They surely can''t deny her guilt after that!" If he didn''t know him better, Shun Yin could have sworn he heard some relish in Glen''s voice.

    "Honestly¡­at this point I think they would hide from the truth and choose to delude themselves if it means preserving their pride. They probably will continue deceiving themselves and denying reality until Angelica shows up herself to personally kill them."

    Glen snorted. "If that happens, then they deserve it."

    "Now, now." Henry raised both his hands in a placating manner. "Don''t wish ill of your relatives. As¡­delicate as they are, they are still your uncles and granduncles."

    "Hmph."

    Glen scowled as he turned away. Shun Yin raised an eyebrow at that. It was clear that the blond mage had some grudge against the higher-ups of the Porter clan, though he could not imagine what reason that could be.

    Perhaps it was discrimination against his father and his family for being "outsiders" and the ostracizing he received from the main families that shaped his attitude toward them.

    However, Shun Yin was still concerned about what they planned to do.

    "I don''t suppose they''ll knock me out with a tranquilizer dart, lock me up in a cell, drug and torture me in an interrogation session to force the truth out of me? And then after abusing me, ask me to be his right-hand man?"

    "¡­huh?"

    Both Glen and Henry stared at him in bafflement. For a moment, everyone was too stunned to say anything.

    "What the hell are you talking about?" Glen finally broke the silence.

    "On my authority as principal of this school, I will not allow any of my students to undergo such violent interrogation sessions," Henry declared firmly. "You have my word on that. I don''t care if it''s an order from the clan head himself, I will not hand my students over."

    "Thank you, sir." Shun Yin breathed heavily. However, Henry shook his head.

    "Don''t thank me yet. I''m only just an outsider in the Porter clan, with no authority. There are limits to what I can do. I will do my best to stop them from touching you, but if the Porter clan decides to send their elite mages to capture you by force, then even I won''t be able to do anything about it."

    "I still appreciate the sentiment, sir."

    Henry smiled sadly. "I''m really sorry that you''re dragged into all of this. You deserve better."

    "Those old man should stop being obsessed over bloodline and lineages!" Glen growled angrily under his breath. This time Henry didn''t reprimand him.

    "Wait, what''s going on? You''re saying Lady Angelica betrayed us?"

    Being in a daze all this while, it took quite a lot of time before the trio''s conversation sank in, and Rebecca stared at them dumbly. Gabriel still didn''t quite follow what was going on, but he probably already understood that Angelica had turned her back on her schoolmates the moment she callously murdered Tenshi.

    "It''s a long story." Shun Yin sighed. Rebecca glared at him determinedly, and then gestured toward the body bag that the medics were carrying away.

    "We have a right to know."

    "You are right." This time it was Henry. He regarded the two surviving researchers seriously. "Angelica has joined hands with the Assassins Guild. We believe there is someone hiring the Assassins Guild to eliminate the Porter clan, but we don''t know who exactly. I don''t know why, but it seems that Angelica wishes to destroy the Porter clan as well. To achieve that end, she appears to want to finish the development of spirit technology¡­through these spirit weapons."

    "It is possible that your data on summoning spirits might be vital to perfecting and stabilizing the current technology used to craft spirit weapons," Shun Yin added wearily. "At least that''s the impression Angelica gave me."

    "¡­I see." Rebecca nodded resolutely. "Then we have to stop her, don''t we?"

    "But how?" Gabriel blurted out.

    "That''s for us to take care of," Henry assured them. "If possible, I would like the both of you to try and rebuild the project. I''m so sorry to ask this of you, and of course I''ll give you some time off to recover from the shock and trauma¡­but your strengths are clear. You both are incredibly intelligent and talented. Don''t recklessly throw your lives away in combat."

    "Uh, that''s not what I meant." Rebecca looked embarrassed. "I mean¡­we can''t let her use our technology for whatever it is that she is plotting. We have to develop a countermeasure for whatever we were researching on."

    "How far have you progressed on your research?" Shun Yin asked, astonished. "Didn''t you say you still haven''t found a way to summon a spirit to this world and manifest it concretely yet?"

    "And we still haven''t. But we were very close. This close." Rebecca spaced her thumb and forefinger less than a centimeter apart.

    "If what you said is true, it won''t take Lady Angelica much time and effort to finish up the work we have done so far on the project." Gabriel looked grim. "Especially if she already found a way to seal spirits into weapons ¨C that''s something beyond even our capabilities."

    "That''s not necessarily true. Tenshi did manage to succeed in that. But the fluctuation was deemed too unstable and dangerous, so she scrapped that part of the project. The spirit in the weapon would contaminate and possess the wielder, altering him or her psychologically and spiritually." Rebecca shook her head thoughtfully.

    "What did you say? Tenshi did what?"

    Something stirred inside Shun Yin''s mind, a faint memory of what Angelica said during their duel earlier.

    "Hmm? I said Tenshi found a way to manifest a spirit inside a weapon, but it was too dangerous, so she shut that aspect of the project down. She originally didn''t want to tell you this because she knew you would take the risk anyway and put your own soul and body in danger."

    "The both of us agreed with that," Gabriel put in hastily, as if he was afraid that Shun Yin would fly into a rage.

    However, Shun Yin was far from furious. He was thinking very hard, trying to piece together what Angelica said with the current conversation.

    "When did that happen? When did Tenshi discover a way to manifest spirits inside weapons?"

    "Eh? About¡­a month ago? Maybe three weeks?"

    "Did Angelica perhaps visit you then¡­?"

    "Hmm? Now that you mention it¡­" Gabriel thought for a bit. "A day or two after Tenshi shuttered the project, Lady Angelica dropped by and asked us if she could look at our data."

    It was during the time when Shun Yin was spending more time training at Miyamoto dojo than coming to the lab, so he missed her. Or perhaps Angelica came precisely because she was confident she wouldn''t run into him there.

    "Tenshi had a big argument with her back then. She refused to show Lady Angelica the data, and was asking her why she knew about the spirit weapon. But of course Lady Angelica used her authority as the heiress of the Porter clan¡­"

    "They were arguing about the deleted data, right?" Gabriel cut in before Rebecca could finish her sentence. "Something about restoring the deleted data. Tenshi refused to, but Lady Angelica overrode her and hacked our computer terminal to forcibly restore the deleted data and make a copy of it."

    "In the end, Tenshi just gave in, because we reasoned that Lady Angelica can''t do much with the data since she wasn''t a researcher. We didn''t think that she would have her own personal group of researchers working under her¡­"

    "Nobody did," Shun Yin affirmed, realizing how little he knew about the girl he was formerly in love with.

    "I also thought they were arguing over you." Rebecca couldn''t help but smile mischievously, but the gravity of the situation wiped away all traces of humor in a second. "Tenshi saying that she doesn''t want to put you in danger, but Lady Angelica insisting that she was doing this for your sake."

    "Yeah. I don''t get it." Gabriel scratched his head in frustration before he shrugged in resignation. "Women."

    Whatever the case, Shun Yin was sure of one thing. His memory vividly played back a single sentence in his mind over and over again.

    "It cost us a lot of resources and lives, but we eventually implemented a working system for sealing the spirits into the weapons and making them safe enough to use."

    Angelica said those very words to him. And he responded by demanding to know how many lives she sacrificed to achieve that.

    "Angelica used Tenshi''s research¡­she used Tenshi''s deleted data and continued with the experiments, heedless of people''s lives or safety¡­and finally developed a spirit weapon."

    "What?" Gabriel and Rebecca stared at him, but Henry nodded thoughtfully.

    "That makes sense. And after she reached the limits of her research, she came to check if we had made any progress of our own. So she came to steal the data from you guys, to merge it with her own research data and experiments."

    "But there''s still something strange." Glen raised his hand. "Why would Angelica kill Tenshi? I mean, she left the rest of the research students alive. She spared these two. And Tenshi has no ties to the Porter family, right?"

    "None that I know of," Henry confirmed.

    "Then¡­why?"

    Gabriel and Rebecca glanced at each other, and then shook their heads.

    "We don''t know either."

    "She never said anything. She just came in and killed Tenshi without a single word."

    Even as the others debated and pondered over it, Shun Yin found to his horror that he probably knew the reason. He could still recall the conversation from yesterday as vividly as if it had just happened a few seconds ago.

    "¡­Seinagi Tenshi, was she? The two of you seem awfully close."

    "I''m not talking about the research division or the team. I''m talking about Seinagi Tenshi in particular."

    Shun Yin did not pay much attention to Angelica''s tone at that time, but now, as he played the conversation back in his head, he realized that she sounded jealous.

    It was entirely possible that Angelica had killed Tenshi out of jealousy and because she viewed her as a potential threat¡­a love rival.

    However, there was no way he could tell the rest that.

    Swallowing his horror, he closed his eyes and lowered his head, discreetly pulling himself away from the conversation.

 220 Chapter 220: Message

    It took a while, but Vermillion High eventually recovered from the massacre. Despite the tragic losses, they finally resumed classes again.

    Shun Yin glanced at his new classmates from his desk, trying to wrap his mind around what had just happened. After the Assassins Guild''s assault on Vermillion High a month ago, over half of the students were slaughtered. The first year students in particular suffered the most, their original number of 500 dropping to about 150.

    Consequently, half of his class comprised of new faces. While he wouldn''t go as far as to say he was glad that Charles Porter was assassinated during the attack last month, he was relieved that he wouldn''t be put in the same class as that arrogant prick.

    Unfortunately, other than Glen, he recognized none of his new classmates. Rather, Glen was a remnant from his old class, one of the few original classmates who survived the massacre along with him. Even so, he couldn''t claim to be particularly close to the other students who were from his old class, though he was a little relieved that they were still alive.

    It would be lonely if he and Glen were the only ones who survived that bloody carnage.

    Despite it being a month, he received no news or information regarding Angelica and her movements. Fortunately, Henry Porter had stayed true to his word and protected his students from the predatory and cruel interrogation methods of the Porter family. He was really determined to protect his students from his in-laws.

    As such, Shun Yin didn''t have to worry about being illegally detained, interrogated and tortured for information.

    "Man, I really miss all this peace and quiet."

    Glen plopped himself down on the desk behind Shun Yin, who turned around to give his friend a dry look.

    "We literally just had a month of peace and quiet. Unless something dramatic happened to you back home¡­which I doubt, because you''re here."

    If a crisis had happened back in the Porter family, Glen wouldn''t be casually attending classes like this. Principal Henry Porter would be too preoccupied putting out fires at home to reopen the school. To be fair, he reopened school a few weeks ago, about a week after the massacre. There were several confusion over assigning the surviving students to new classes, but other than that it didn''t take much time for everyone to move on and return to their daily routines.

    After all, this was a school for combat mages. Deaths and violence were expected. If the students weren''t resolved to fight and risk their lives against monsters and magic-wielding criminals, then they had no business enrolling in the combat division of a magic school.

    As an aside, the research students fared a lot better. Despite her grisly death, Tenshi was the only casualty from the research department. Apart from her, none of the research students were touched or hurt.

    Was that on purpose? Shun Yin wondered. Did Angelica deliberately request the Assassins Guild to spare the research students?

    In the end, he gave up. He would never know the answer, not unless he met Angelica again and asked her.

    However, he was aware that their next meeting wouldn''t be a peaceful one. Angelica had murdered Tenshi in cold blood and carved her corpse into pieces. He couldn''t forgive her for that. Even though he still had lingering affection for her, he couldn''t let go of the fact that she had cruelly slaughtered his friend.

    "You okay?" Glen asked, a little concerned. Shun Yin shook his head to clear his mind of ominous thoughts.

    "Yeah, sorry. You were saying?"

    "Nothing much. Just expressing my surprise that everyone seems to have moved on and forgotten about the massacre last month. I mean, I know it has been a month, but still¡­it disturbs me how quickly people adapt to their circumstances."

    "Ah. I know how you feel about that." Shun Yin nodded in agreement. Glen studied him anxiously before sighing.

    "I''m most worried about you, buddy. I know you had a thing going with Angelica¡­that she was in love with you. Even among the clan, it was pretty obvious. She never forgot about you."

    "I never forgot about her either."

    "Of course." Glen chuckled wryly. "You''ll have to be a machine if you didn''t feel anything for someone as beautiful as her."

    "It wasn''t her beauty that attracted me." Shun Yin paused and glanced outside the window. "We were just kids back then. I''m not sure how to describe it¡­but she was just like the sun. Bright, radiant, warm, active¡­filling me with hope. When I was with her, I didn''t worry about our difference in statuses. I just wanted to be¡­with her."

    "Yet you didn''t accept her offer and go along with her?" When Shun Yin gave him a stare, Glen shrugged helplessly. "Don''t look at me like that. I know Angelica well enough that it''s pretty obvious she would try and drag you along with her."

    "¡­she did."

    "Then why didn''t you follow her? If I were you, I would most certainly throw away everything to follow the girl I love."

    Shun Yin sighed as he gazed outside the window, his eyes blanking out wearily. He rested his chin on his hands and pondered.

    "¡­people change. I haven''t seen her in nine years. Our relationship can''t be the same as before. It will no longer be as pure¡­as innocent¡­"

    "Don''t give me that bullshit. I know that look. You''re obviously still in love with her." Glen glared at him. "Who cares about whether your relationship is the same as before or different? If you love her, you''ll choose to be with her."

    "Our paths diverged." Shun Yin lowered his head. "At some point¡­our values and paths differed from each other. She was walking down a road I cannot¡­will not take. I have responsibilities¡­not just to myself, but also my family and my master. You talk about throwing away everything for the girl I love, but I cannot. I will not discard my family, my master and my friends for a single girl. They are just as important to me as Angelica is."

    He then stared hard at Glen.

    "Would you abandon your parents¡­your father and mother just to elope with a girl?"

    "¡­uh, well¡­you have a point there." Glen scratched his head sheepishly. "I was thinking way too romantically, but now that you''ve hit me over the head with harsh reality, I realize that the situation isn''t as simple. Still¡­I really admire you. For you to keep your calm and composure and assess the situation rationally instead of throwing everything away in the heat of passion and emotion¡­that is really impressive. I probably can''t do that under such circumstances."

    "Good thing the one Angelica approached was me and not you then."

    Glen grimaced. "Ouch¡­you really know where to rub it in. Oh, don''t worry. I was never interested in Angelica. I admit, I found her beautiful, but she was extremely intimidating, you know? She was this perfect, talented, once-in-a-lifetime prodigy who surpassed everybody''s expectations. Any partner of hers has to match her."

    "I''m not a genius, and yet she chose me."

    "HA HA HA HA HA!" Glen burst out laughing when he heard that. Shaking his head, he slapped Shun Yin across the back. "Are you serious?! Do you really think you''re not a genius?"

    "Huh? Of course I''m not. I''m just a normal guy from a commoner family. We are just as average as you can get."

    "I don''t know if you''re trying to be modest or delusional. Anyone with your skill will be regarded a prodigy in our generation. I think you can even match Angelica herself. We actually had footage of you fighting on par with her during that attack last month. You even defeated her in the first round. Okay, you let your guard down later and she cut your sword, but otherwise you''re clearly on the same level as her." Glen patted his own chest. "I daresay that you''ll be on the same level as me if it weren''t for my White Tiger. But other than me, there is no one in this school who can challenge you."

    "Are you saying that you''re stronger than Angelica?" Shun Yin asked skeptically. Glen blanched at that.

    "Well¡­no¡­not really¡­it depends." Glen looked sheepish. "If I can summon my White Tiger, I will have a high chance of defeating her. The problem is that¡­"

    "¡­she always defeats you before you can complete the summoning spell for your White Tiger." Shun Yin understood. Glen grinned in embarrassment.

    "Exactly."

    "Even so¡­we still have to stop her."

    Shun Yin rested his head on his desk tiredly. Glen watched him in concern.

    "Do you know how? Hell, do you even know where she is right now? The Porter clan is tearing the entire city apart trying to track down her location, you know? What makes you think you can find her when the sheer amount of manpower that the Porter clan brought to bear can''t?"

    "Oh¡­I won''t be able to find her. I believe that Angelica will be the one who comes to find me."

    Glen stared at him, his jaw dropping for a second, and then he guffawed boisterously. "So you do have some confidence, after all! And here I thought you were trying to be modest."

    "No¡­it''s just something she said." Shun Yin rubbed his temple as he recalled his conversation with her. "Angelica said that we''ll meet again. Knowing her, she probably isn''t lying or being figurative. She still plans to persuade me, if I''m not mistaken."

    "So that''s what you mean." Glen looked a little disappointed. He then leaned back in his desk. "Oh well¡­whatever happens, happens. Just don''t try and take everything upon yourself, you hear? The moment you get something, let me know immediately. We''ll figure it out together."

    Shun Yin simply smiled silently, but he didn''t promise or agree.

    *

    With the month being peaceful and quiet, there was little for Shun Yin to do after school ended, except to head to the Miyamoto dojo and resume his usual training. Even in the week out of school, and the rest of the weeks that followed as Vermillion High struggled to return to normalcy, he had continued to train and spar with his master in the dojo.

    However, today, he paused right at the road. Months ago, he was first attacked here by Ying Bu Si. Back then, the Sakura blossoms were scattering across the road, turning the entire place pink. However, spring was nearing its end and summer was taking over. Bright sunlight baked the green trees that stood tall on both sides of the road.

    There was no longer any sign of damage on the place where he had fought the Umbra Assassin. Rather, the presence belonged not to an enemy but¡­someone unexpected.

    "Lord Michael." Shun Yin bowed his head slightly. "What can I do for you, sir?"

    "I have a message from my sister."

    Shun Yin immediately froze. "Angelica?"

    "Yes." Michael regarded Shun Yin impassively, his expression unreadable. "The very same girl who betrayed the Porter clan to obtain more power, all for the sake of the man she loves."

    "That''s¡­" Shun Yin narrowed his eyes. "If that is so, why are you talking to me? Shouldn''t you be reporting this to your parents? To the Porter clan?"

    "She''s still my sister."

    "¡­you are on the side of your sister? The Assassins Guild?" Somehow that struck Shun Yin as odd. A hero like Michael would never join hands with the Assassins Guild. The person he had been idolizing, worshipping, admiring¡­he would never¡­

    "No. I am on nobody''s side." Michael sighed. "But¡­she''s still my sister. Besides, there is nothing for me to report to my father. What am I supposed to tell him? That she left a letter for you? If I tell him that, you''re the one who suffers the most. They will take you in for interrogation and torture you for whatever information they think you have. But¡­" he clenched his fists. "I know you well enough. You aren''t related to this at all."

    "Then why would Angelica leave me a letter?"

    "I don''t know. That''s between you and her. It''s none of my business." Michael stepped forward and handed a white envelope to Shun Yin. He accepted it, but kept his eyes on Michael.

    "What is she planning? What did she tell you?"

    "You misunderstand. I never met her. I found the letter in my room. I don''t know how she delivered it to my room¡­maybe she left it there before her so-called disappearance and I didn''t notice it for a month¡­or more likely, she used some sort of spell to deliver the letter to my room. Or bribed one of the servants¡­but obviously I don''t know which one, and all of them claimed not to know anything about it. In any case, I found it in my room this morning, and it has your name on it."

    True enough, Shun Yin found his name spelled across the front of the white envelope. He frowned, recognizing Angelica''s handwriting. It hadn''t changed, even after nine years¡­still the pretty and elegant script.

    Sighing, he tore it open and read it.

    "Please don''t join the Assassins Guild. I intend to betray the organization hiring them."

    "¡­what in the world?"

    "What''s the matter?" Michael raised an eyebrow. Shun Yin didn''t hesitate in showing him the letter. After the older guy read the letter, Shun Yin wasn''t able to resist his question.

    "What is Angelica plotting?"

    "Your guess is good as mine. I''ve known that she has been in love with you all this time. I wager she just doesn''t want to involve you in her own affairs."

    "Isn''t it a bit too late for that?" Shun Yin pointed out dryly. Michael shrugged and gestured toward the rest of the message. Shun Yin returned his attention and continued reading.

    "All I desire is more power¡­that way, I will be able to be together with you. Our paths may be different, but our destination is definitely the same. I''m sure we''ll arrive there together¡­eventually."

    Shun Yin glanced up at Michael, scowling at the cryptic message. "What''s that supposed to mean?"

    "I don''t know." Michael sighed in frustration. "This is the first time that Angelica is behaving neither logically nor rationally." He shook his head as he stared hard at Shun Yin. "All I can guess is that she is¡­acting impulsively because of love."

    Shun Yin didn''t know whether to laugh or cry over such a cheesy bullshit line.

 221 Chapter 221: On the Hun

    Honestly, even without the message, Shun Yin had no intention of joining the Assassins Guild. They sounded extremely shady, and their values and modus operandi were completely at odds with what he aimed to be.

    A hero. An ally of justice. A hero did not go around assassinating people for money or sneaking around in the dark. A hero was someone who stood up against others, protect them from evil while being a symbol in the light, for all to see.

    However, he thanked Michael after receiving the letter. Just to be sure, Shun Yin crumpled up and burned the letter with a basic fire spell, erasing all traces of it ever existing. Michael expressed his agreement.

    "Do you have any idea how to search for Angelica?"

    "If I did, we would have found her long ago, don''t you think?" Michael was trying his best not to let his frustration show in his voice.

    "Yeah, sorry." Shun Yin nodded. As her brother, Michael was probably the one who most wanted to find her and bring her back. Yet, he was feeling very conflicted because it meant bringing her back to stand at trial for her crimes.

    There was no way Michael wanted to see his own flesh-and-blood sister brought to "justice" before the hypocritical elders of the Porter clan.

    "Let me know when you know something. The moment Angelica contacts you, inform me as soon as possible."

    "I will." If there was anyone he could trust, it would be Michael. Despite his sibling bond to Angelica, Shun Yin was confident that Michael would do the right thing. He was a hero, after all. If he had to kill Angelica to save the world, he would.

    However, he hoped it wouldn''t come to that. Angelica also mentioned that she was planning to betray the organization hiring the Assassins Guild, so she must have some scheme of her own. He was curious as to why she didn''t identify the organization hiring the Assassins Guild. If she provided a name, he could begin investigations. The Porter clan could¡­

    No, that was precisely why Angelica refused to mention anything and deliberately kept everything vague. If they started investigating the organization, the Porter clan would want to know the source of that information, and they would trace it back to this letter. And then Shun Yin would be dragged into the mess and imprisoned by the Porter clan, tortured for more information.

    Angelica had thought that far ahead. More possibly, she just didn''t want Shun Yin to get involved and continue pursuing her. She had taken everything into account, minimizing the chances of Shun Yin getting dragged into any unsavory business.

    Even so, Shun Yin refused to give up. He was going to find Angelica, no matter the cost. Clenching his fists, he looked up at the sky and gritted his teeth.

    "Don''t blame yourself too much."

    Michael patted his shoulder, and then turned away to leave. However, he stopped after taking a few steps.

    "And if I find anything about my sister, I''ll let you know immediately."

    "Thank you."

    "I would put you in my team, but the higher-ups don''t allow outsiders." Michael sighed. "Uncle Henry is trying to change the way things are being run, but it''s going to take time. I don''t know how long, but short of killing every elder and the person at the top of the clan, I don''t think we''ll be able to implement any changes overnight."

    He smiled sadly as he turned his head back slightly to give the stationary Shun Yin a glance.

    "That''s one of the things Angelica wanted to change. We wanted to change. To improve the Porter clan, get rid of their arrogance and traditionalistic views, and progress along with the times. Just like the Stuart clan."

    Shun Yin nodded. From what he had heard, the Stuart family was pretty progressive and open-minded, not caring about bloodlines, lineages and family background. They were more practical and only cared about results. That did make them a little¡­callous and ruthless, but it was sometimes better than looking down on everyone else because they were "commoners."

    "Well, good luck. Maybe we might stand a better chance of finding Angelica if we use several different methods."

    With that, Michael was gone. Shun Yin pondered over his last words, and picked up the hint. While Michael would be employing the more traditional methods of searching when working in the Porter clan, he was free to experiment with radical search methods and explore avenues the Porter clan might otherwise not conceive of.

    "I''ll do my best," he vowed before he turned and headed for the Miyamoto dojo.

    *

    "¡­there''s nothing here."

    "Why are you following me?"

    Shun Yin glared at Glen before he returned his attention back to the seemingly deserted warehouse at the outskirts of Vermillion City. He tried to ignore his friend''s complaints as he studied the edge of the walls for any sign of tracks.

    "Someone has to keep an eye on you, you know? The Porter clan still has their doubts regarding you. They know of your relationship with Angie¡­"

    "I haven''t seen her in nine years prior to the attack¡­except that one time when she visited me in the infirmary to check on my injuries. What kind of relationship can I possibly have with her?"

    "Who knows?" Glen shrugged. "The adults knew that Angie continued to harbor affection for you. When her engagement with Charles was announced, she protested and resisted bitterly to the very end, even against her father. Said that she would rather marry you. Of course, the adults were having none of it, and wrote it off as a child''s tantrum."

    His expression then turned somber.

    "Not much of a tantrum now, is it? Nobody thought she would go as far as betraying the clan and vowing to destroy it. Can''t blame her. They really pushed her over the edge. Placing that much pressure on her from such a young age, controlling every aspect of her life, to the point where they decided who she should love, who she should marry, how she should behave, what she should learn, where she should be. If anything, I''m surprised she didn''t snap earlier."

    Outwardly Shun Yin ignored Glen as he continued to search for more clues on the warehouse''s walls. There were signs of battle here, with traces of mana left over from cast spells. He was looking for any sign of Angelica''s fire spells and superheated mana and was disappointed not to find any. Not that he was surprised.

    Inwardly, his chest ached. So while he was searching for ways to become stronger and training to become a hero, an ally of justice, the girl he loved was suffering from cruel injustice. He couldn''t imagine what sort of ordeals Angelica suffered through ¨C all alone ¨C while he was busily occupying himself with his dreams to become a heroic ally of justice.

    Compared to his childhood, Angelica had to endure through hell ¨C a hell created by her own family, isolating her from everyone else while her so-called parents treated her like a puppet or tool to further the agenda of their great family. Michael was probably the only one who treated her decently, but he was often regarded by the family as an outcast, an eccentric who wasn''t fit to succeed as the next head.

    That was why they passed over him to give the helm to Angelica. Angelica was deemed as someone with more potential, more talent than him. She was the once-in-a-lifetime genius, the person who could bring the Porter clan to greater heights. Compared to a prodigy like her, Michael seemed very average indeed, despite his very real achievements and all the work and contributions he had done for the family.

    Reality was so unfair.

    Cynically, Shun Yin wondered how the Porter clan was scrambling to declare Michael as the next head the moment Angelica turned her back on the family and betrayed them all. They put so much faith and invested so much in her, while holding no regard whatsoever for her psychological and emotional welfare, that the betrayal must be devastating and inconceivable. And now, their greatest weapon and tool had turned against them, almost guaranteeing their destruction. They had no choice but to turn to her still-loyal brother and pin their hopes on him instead.

    Michael, being the valorous person he was, would certainly accept the role without complaint even though he had suffered quite the unfair mistreatment from them throughout these years. Not because he had any real attachment to the Porter clan, but because that was who he was. a responsible, heroic person who only selflessly cared about others without sparing a single thought for himself.

    People might call him stupid, but that was exactly what Shun Yin admired Michael for, and why he aspired to become like him. To Shun Yin, the purity of that ideal, the noble sacrifice of himself to save others¡­that was beautiful. He had seen the reception of the people who were saved by Michael, the adoration he basked in, and while that was a secondary concern, he had to admit that he didn''t hate that feeling.

    Shun Yin hoped Michael was all right. It had been two weeks since he last saw him, when he received that letter from Angelica. He wondered how Michael was coping.

    "So what did you find?"

    Shun Yin snapped out of his thoughts when Glen''s inquiry broke into his mind. He shook his head, partially to shake himself out of a daze.

    "Nothing much. There was a battle here¡­seems like Michael was here."

    "Eh? Cousin Mike? What was he¡­oh, never mind. If he was here, then it means that we were on the right track. But it also means we''re too late and Angie and the shady organization she''s working with have already moved out."

    Shun Yin nodded distractedly, and then moved to the front door to enter the warehouse. There wasn''t much stuff inside the warehouse ¨C the interior was completely blackened, as if someone had incinerated the inside completely.

    No doubt it was Michael.

    "¡­this¡­"

    Shun Yin knelt down next to a pile of ashes, instantly recognizing from the traces of mana that it had once been a person. An Assassin, from the shadowy mana that stubbornly clung to his or her remnants.

    "Michael fought Assassins in here. Killed them all."

    "Seems like it," Glen remarked dryly as he stared around at the scorched walls and floor. "We''re late to the party. He didn''t leave anything for us."

    "That might not be true."

    Shun Yin proceeded toward a singed computer terminal, which was covered in soot. Wiping off the ash and dust from it, he activated it and watched as a massive hologram was projected above it, displaying a map.

    "He left this for us." Shun Yin studied the holographic map and moved his fingers over the graphic overlay, thinking hard. "He even marked out several locations he thought we might want to check. Left a message saying we might want to make a copy of this before the Porter clan arrives to take everything."

    "Hey, I''m from the Porter clan too!" Glen complained, but he glanced outside the door to keep watch while Shun Yin downloaded a copy of the map. "Or I''m supposed to be, but sometimes I think they regard me and my dad as outsiders. They''re not going to listen to me if I try to tell them that we''re helping with the investigation."

    "Their pride is off the charts," Shun Yin agreed. "They will never accept help from anyone outside the Porter clan. And now that their future leader and heiress has betrayed them, I think they kind of suffered some sort of psychological blow and might become more paranoid. If your father wasn''t around to help out, I think they would have rounded all the non-Porter and non-affiliated students in Vermillion High and lock them up in a concentration camp for interrogation."

    "Ha ha, you''re exaggerating. They wouldn''t go that far. But yeah, I wouldn''t be surprised if they detain a few of the students and torture them for information. You''ll probably be the top one in their list." Glen grimaced, and then glanced outside. "You done? I think they''re here."

    "Yeah." Shun Yin pulled out the micro flash drive and stuffed it into his pocket. "Let''s go before they find us here."

    The two high school students leaped up into a scorched and half-melted gantry on what seemed to be the second level of the warehouse. Carefully pushing open a burned window, they vaulted out of the warehouse on the opposite side of the main entrance, and began moving quickly.

    In the distance, they could hear the screeching of tires as the convoy of Porter clan cars and vehicles pulled up at the front of the warehouse, followed by the stampede of footsteps as Porter clan staff in suits and sunglasses disembarked to conduct their own investigation of the warehouse.

    "So where to next?" Glen asked as the duo continued to jog into the urban district.

    Shun Yin paused for a moment, recalling what he saw in the map. One of the locations stood out particularly to him.

    "Azure Aquarium."

    "Huh?! Why the aquarium?!" Glen gasped in shock, totally not expecting the answer.

    "That''s one of the locations that Michael marked out in the map I just downloaded. And¡­" Shun Yin narrowed his eyes. "A possible place where they are conducting experiments."

    "What kind of experiments? More spirit weapons? Why would they build spirit weapons in an aquarium of all places?" Glen was gaping at him.

    "No, not spirit weapons. According to the data that Michael unearthed¡­the Assassins'' data in that computer terminal we found¡­" Shun Yin turned his head to stare at Glen gravely. "They aren''t satisfied with spirit weapons alone. They want to summon an actual spirit into our dimension."

 222 Chapter 222: Vermillion Aquarium

    "All right, I''ve gotten permission to conduct a check on Vermillion Aquarium." Glen lowered his smartphone to stare at Shun Yin. "They''ll let us in."

    "Are you sure it''s a good idea to let them know we''re coming? If they''ve been thoroughly infiltrated by the enemy¡­"

    "Yeah, I thought of the same thing. So I went higher up." Glen grinned. "My dad has contacts with the security department. We just had them adjust the security systems to recognize our¡­uh, authority. The staff working at the aquarium doesn''t know we are paying them a visit. Actually, the staff has mostly gone home at this time, so there''s nothing except a janitor or a security guard. Easy to sneak past them since¡­thanks to the higher-ups, we will appear invisible on the security cameras."

    "What if those higher-ups have been infiltrated as well?" Shun Yin questioned skeptically. Glen shrugged.

    "Then we have bigger problems to worry about than Vermillion Aquarium. It means the enemy has penetrated way deep into the Porter clan, and we''re probably screwed regardless of whether we go to the aquarium or not. Besides¡­" he shrugged again. "That''s the problem for the Internal Security Agency in our clan to solve, not us. It''s the ISA''s job to root out traitors and insurgents from within our own ranks."

    "Okay." In other words, they had no choice but to trust these Porter clan higher-ups. If Glen went that far to tell him about the inner workings of his clan, then he probably thought they could be relied upon. Shun Yin was in no position to doubt any further, and Glen had a point. If they started being paranoid over everything, then they would get nowhere.

    Furthermore, the security system of the aquarium would be tight. They didn''t want to trip an alarm and bring the police and authorities down upon the place, thus scaring away the enemy before they could find them. Shun Yin was trained to be a hero fighting for justice, not to sneak around like some criminal burglar. There was no way he could avoid tripping an alarm or triggering the security system. He just didn''t have the skills for that.

    He didn''t know about Glen, though. Now that he thought about it, even though the two of them were supposed to be friends and they had hung out for months now, he still knew next to nothing about Glen, except about his family and magic.

    For now, the two of them just decided to head toward the place.

    "Hey, you said that it was the Assassins who weren''t satisfied with spirit weapons and want to summon a spirit, right?"

    "Michael was the one who got that information," Shun Yin corrected, but Glen would not be stopped.

    "Yeah, Cousin Mike did. But I mean to ask¡­about the way you put it. It sounds as if the Assassins are the one who wants to summon the spirit, not their clients. I thought they were doing this for their client?"

    Shun Yin paused for a moment. Taking the micro flash drive, he inserted it into his smartphone and conjured up a hologram. After reading the analysis that Michael had included in the file, he turned back to Glen and nodded.

    "Yeah¡­it seems like a separate program. Something the Assassins want for themselves rather than their clients. They are developing their own weapons for their own Assassins. At least that''s what I gather from here. Michael did not elaborate on much."

    "Yeah, it''s not as if we''ll find that information lying around. But still¡­that''s pretty interesting. What happened to their clients? Was there a conflict of interest? Did they¡­?"

    "Unlikely." Shun Yin shook his head. "Just because they are siphoning off the data Angelica stole and developing their own weapons doesn''t mean they terminated their contract with their employers. I think it''s more likely that they are using this opportunity to improve their own weapons and technology. Their employers probably wouldn''t mind¡­if the Assassins get better weapons, they would be able to do their job better. Angelica would probably be more than happy to share the data with them, separately and privately, if her goal is to destroy the Porter clan." He took a deep breath. "Imagine¡­an army of spirit summoners assaulting the Porter clan. You''re already powerful enough with White Tiger, but it takes you quite a lot of time to finish casting that summoning spell. What if an army of people shows up, able to instantly summon powerful spirits, each as powerful as your White Tiger?"

    "That''s¡­"

    Glen looked a little pale, but he swallowed and nodded grimly.

    "Yeah, that would be a disaster. We''ve to stop them..." he smiled suddenly. "¡­or grab the technology for ourselves."

    Always the practical one, Shun Yin noted mentally. Even in a situation like this, Glen was looking to exploit it to get the best for himself or his family. Especially since this was data and technology stolen from his father''s academy in the first place. In which case, Glen was probably justified for retrieving the data for Vermillion High.

    He was sure that Rebecca and Gabriel would appreciate it. They were still struggling to piece their research back together, but to redo the whole project from scratch was outright demoralizing and devastating. Getting their data back would speed things up tremendously.

    Perhaps they would find some of their previous research data in the aquarium. If they did, then Shun Yin vowed to recover it for his friends.

    The duo reached the aquarium a little after 9pm. Glen was right ¨C Vermillion Aquarium was closed and most of the staff had gone home for the day. The lights were all off, and there was nobody manning the front. Not even a security guard.

    "Where''s everyone?" Shun Yin couldn''t help but ask.

    "Home," Glen replied as if it was obvious. He continued up the steps and placed a hand against the huge glass door. "Come on."

    The doors automatically slid open to grant them entry. The security cameras located outside were scanning Glen, unmoving, probably to confirm his identity. With the doors open, Glen wasted no time stepping into the dimly lit aquarium. Shun Yin hastily followed after his friend, looking around warily to ensure there weren''t any traps.

    The tanks were illuminated with minimal lighting, and fishes from a myriad of species continued to swim about in their artificial environments, darting through weeds and aquatic plants or soaring through the tip of the enclosed spaces. The great sharks glided silently through the waters, their predatory snouts curled into a feral, toothy grin. Huge manta rays spread their wings out like underwater bats, almost sheltering the smaller schools of fish under their wing. Brown clownfish peeked out from the wriggling tentacles of sea anemone, with a father clownfish finding his son.

    "Perfect place to bring a girl on a date, eh?" Glen joked, but Shun Yin didn''t respond to that. Instead, he continued to look around. Unfortunately, he saw no sign of any suspicious activity. On a normal day, there would be visitors admiring the fish in tanks, overawed and inspired, but at night, it was completely bereft of amazed guests staring at a Great White Shark.

    Shun Yin didn''t think the Assassins would leave any sign of their presence in obvious sight of public visitors, but he hoped he could at least find some clue. Anything¡­

    "What are you looking for?" Glen asked, amused, when he caught sight of Shun Yin intently inspecting the walls and floor of the aquarium.

    "The Assassins, of course."

    "Do you really think they''ll just leave visible signs of them being here blatantly lying in the open?" Glen rolled his eyes. "Follow me."

    The blond lightning mage headed toward a door that denied entry to all except authorized personnel, and then pushed the door open. The sensor at the side scanned him, recognized his authority, and the lock clicked open to allow him access. Shun Yin followed his friend into the corridor behind the door.

    "That way."

    Instead of heading toward the offices, Glen proceeded toward a set of stairs near the end of the corridor. Shun Yin nodded, despite knowing that Glen wouldn''t be able to see the gesture, and descended the stairs along with his friend. The two high school students reached the bottom of the single flight of stairs to find themselves in the basement.

    There still wasn''t anyone present. Despite the absence of any human presence, Shun Yin felt a premonition¡­his senses growing tense. Chewing on his lip, he looked around cautiously even as Glen went through the automatic doors.

    "Whoa."

    Glen stopped momentarily to study the basement. There were a few rooms, all locked behind closed doors, but he had no clue where to start looking. He tilted his head toward the closest door, but he obviously thought that the enemy wouldn''t be stupid enough to hide any sensitive information inside the first room.

    Even so¡­

    "There''s someone here."

    "Eh?"

    Glen turned in surprise at Shun Yin''s declaration. The dark-haired fire mage nodded and strode past the stunned lightning mage, heading toward the fourth room from the stairs. His senses were going on overdrive¡­he was sure he detected a¡­not-quite-human yet at the same time a distinctly human presence inside the room.

    "How can you tell?"

    "Magic." Shun Yin tried not to roll his eyes at Glen''s seemingly stupid question. He raised a hand and pushed the door open, but it wouldn''t budge.

    "Here, let me." Glen stepped beside him and waved his hand at the scanner, but nothing happened. He frowned and glanced around. "Yup, we''re in the right place. Doesn''t seem like the clan''s authority has any pull here."

    "Then let''s bust the door down," Shun Yin replied, already casting a spell and wreathing his hand in flames. Glen began gesturing frantically.

    "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Cool your jets! Calm down, would you?! If you blow the door up, you''ll call attention to us and let whoever''s in here know that we are here!"

    "If they are in any way competent, then they should know that they have intruders," Shun Yin pointed out. Glen groaned and buried his face in his palm.

    "I mean, you''ve a point, but¡­in case you haven''t noticed, we haven''t actually had any welcoming reception from our hosts. It''s possible they aren''t aware that we''re here yet, so let''s roll with it for now and not do anything too drastic, all right?"

    Shun Yin gave him a stare, and then dismissed his flames. "All right, then how do we open the door?"

    "Like this." Glen raised a hand and allowed a tiny current of electricity to flare to life between his fingers. Curling his fingers, he pointed his index finger toward the doorknob and allowed the tiny spark of lightning to arc into it. A second later, the scanner beeped and the locked clicked compliantly, allowing the door to automatically slide open. Glen turned to grin broadly at the impassive Shun Yin. "There you go, buddy."

    "Thank you." Shun Yin carefully peeked into the room to ensure it wasn''t a trap and there weren''t Assassins waiting for him. Instead, he was surprised by the scene that greeted him. It resembled a laboratory, with hi-tech equipment and gadgets, but it also had¡­cages. Stepping inside, he glanced around. "What is going on here?"

    "Your guess is as good as mine." Glen shrugged as he also entered the room beside the dark-haired fire mage. "Seems like Cousin Mike''s analysis is right on the money. They''ve clearly been conducting all sorts of experiments here."

    A cough drew the attention of both of them, and they hurried over. Shun Yin frowned when he stopped in front of one of the cages. Some of them were empty, but many of them were filled with things. Things he wasn''t sure he recognized.

    The cough, fortunately, seemed to come from someone rather than something.

    A young girl with blue hair was lying sprawled on the floor of her cage, muttering softly. When the two high school students approached, she raised her head to stare at them pitifully with her sapphire eyes.

    "What in the world¡­?"

    "Allow me." Glen stepped in front and sent a spark of lightning at the electronic lock that was nestled upon one of the bars. The door then swung open and Shun Yin quickly stepped in to help the girl out.

    "Are you all right?"

    "Who¡­who are you?" the girl was staring at the two of them in wonder. Shun Yin swallowed and glanced at Glen, who shrugged. The latter was also at a loss.

    "We are¡­allies of justice. We''re here to save you." Shun Yin forced a smile. "You''re safe now."

    The girl stared at her, tears welling up in her eyes, but she shook her head before lowering her gaze.

    "No¡­it''s too late. I can''t be saved."

 223 Chapter 223: Mei

    "¡­seriously? Why so dramatic?"

    Glen buried his face in his palm. The little girl shrugged, showing some attitude despite her haggard condition.

    "We needed to have a cliffhanger to end the previous chapter, so my dialogue was intended to leave the readers hanging with some cryptic tone."

    "The fuck are you talking about?"

    "Does it matter?" Shun Yin cut in wearily. He turned back to the girl. "I''m Shun Yin. This is my friend, Glen. We are here to save you."

    "I told you, it''s too late." The girl glanced downward. "I can''t be saved. I don''t have much longer to live."

    "Why?" Glen frowned as he studied her. "You look perfectly fine to me. If it''s about food, don''t worry. We''ll bring you somewhere to eat once we get out of here. I know a good restaurant in the neighborhood. It''ll be my treat."

    "That''s not it. The scary people¡­they did something to me." The girl hugged herself, almost burying her face into her knees. "I don''t know what they did, but they said I was¡­a failed product. A defective. They also said I won''t be able to survive for longer than a month or two."

    Glen and Shun Yin exchanged a glance, and then the blond mage snorted. "That remains to be seen. I know a few doctors and healers. They''ll check you out. There''s almost nothing that modern healing magic can''t cure today."

    Even though he said that, Shun Yin knew that healing magic was pretty expensive. Healing physical injuries was often covered by the academies, but curing other sort of deficiencies, such as birth defects, diseases (such as cancer), genetic defects and other problems cost a lot of money. Doctors and healers weren''t running a charity, after all. Even a thousand years into the future, capitalism continued to maintain its grip on all aspects of society. The pharmaceutical corporations and even companies that manufactured prosthetics needed a way to make money, and they drove the costs of their products down so as to compete with the astronomical prices that specialist healers charged. Often, medical insurance would cover healing of life-threatening wounds and physical injuries, but for other types of wounds, there were cheaper alternatives.

    The world still ran on money.

    Fortunately, Glen was from the Porter clan, and he had¡­connections. He and his father should be able to figure something out for the financial aspect.

    "So it''s still too early to give up."

    "That''s right," Shun Yin agreed as he offered the girl a hand. "What''s your name?"

    The blue-haired girl hesitated for a moment, and then steeled her resolve. "Mei. My name is Mei."

    "All right, Mei. Come with us if you want to live." Shun Yin suddenly frowned, and then shook his head. He had watched way too many sci-fi movies. "Even if you don''t want to live, we''ll make sure you live, so just come with us anyway."

    After helping her out of the cage, Shun Yin went around to check the other cages for captives, but found horrifying hybrids of what seemed like different animals fused together. There was a monkey with eight spider-like legs and mandibles, its five red eyes shining brightly against its dark fur. There was a half-fish, half humanoid creature that flopped weakly on the ground. There was a serpent with porcupine-like spikes jutting out of its back, writhing around.

    Shun Yin did not recognize them. Either they were new monsters whose existence had yet to be recorded by the Global Federation, or they were something created out of a lab. Many of them were lifeless, having expired quite some time ago and left to rot in their cages. Others were near death, and Shun Yin considered ending their misery.

    He glanced at Mei and gave her an once-over to ensure that she was fine. Even though she didn''t show any outward defects or injuries, her words continued to haunt him. Unfortunately, he didn''t know any healing magic, so he had best leave her to an actual healer.

    "My God¡­"

    Glen''s voice drew his attention. The lightning mage had been hacking the computer terminals in the room and stealing the data all this time, while Shun Yin was checking out the cages, and he seemed to have caught something in the rapidly scrolling holographic screens that were projected into the air before him.

    "What is it?"

    "These guys are nuts!" Glen''s eyes were wide in horror and rage. "They were conducting live experiments not just on monsters, but also humans!"

    "That can''t be good." Taking a deep breath, Shun Yin glanced back at the cages filled with grotesque monstrosities. That explained why he had never seen those types of monsters before, and why they were dying. Quite clearly they were failed experiments, discarded by the Assassins'' researchers once they regarded them as failures.

    Then he suddenly had an idea.

    "Any information regarding Mei?" he squeezed her hand to comfort her. "If we know what they did to her, perhaps we''ll be able to save her."

    "You mean perhaps we''ll be able to give some useful data to specialized healers so that they can save her," Glen corrected, but he was beaming. "Sounds like a good idea! I''ll run a search program while downloading the data and I''ll let you know if I come up with anything. I''ll run the program in my phone so that we can continue the search even after we leave the place."

    In case they got attacked and were forced to flee. Though unspoken, Shun Yin understood Glen''s sentiment and he agreed.

    "How long more do you need?"

    "A few more seconds¡­there. Done!" Glen yanked out his micro flash drive from the computer terminal and turned to Shun Yin. "Should we go check out the other rooms?"

    "Sounds like a plan." Shun Yin nodded. "Let''s see if they have anything else here in this dungeon of theirs." He turned to Mei. "Do you know if there have been others who were kidnapped?"

    Mei responded with an emotionless expression. "As far as I know, I''m the only one who survived. The other people have been disposed of."

    Shun Yin clenched his fists as he struggled to suppress the rage welling up inside him. Swallowing a curse, he nodded and returned his gaze to Glen.

    "We should hurry. We don''t know how much longer before they realize we''re here¡­if they haven''t already known there are intruders."

    "Yeah."

    The three of them left the lab and proceeded to the next one. There were quite a few rooms to choose from, so they decided to start with the nearest one, just after the door they left. Cautiously proceeding toward the door, Shun Yin waited for Glen to unlock the door, and then he pushed it open slowly and carefully.

    The chamber beyond was dark, but the lights automatically came on when they stepped inside. It was surprisingly empty despite its size. The room was vast, almost like a cavern that was almost as wide as a football field.

    There were several shelves with data stacks, but there weren''t anything else inside the room. Rather, it resembled more of an arena¡­one of the training arenas that Vermillion High had for students'' use.

    "What kind of place is this?" Shun Yin wondered out loud, looking around in disbelief.

    "Looks like a training arena to me," Glen remarked, confirming his opinion. However, Shun Yin still had his doubts.

    "Why would they need a training arena in a place like this?"

    "How would I know? You should ask the Assassins, not me."

    "Nothing from your data?"

    At Shun Yin''s question, Glen retrieved his smartphone. The search program was still running, judging from the scrolling holographic screen that was projected to hover a few centimeters above the phone. Glen scratched his head as he skimmed through the data, but didn''t find anything.

    Then the holographic screen stopped scrolling. Glen''s eyes widened as he read through the data, and Shun Yin quickly hurried over with Mei by his side.

    "What''s the matter?"

    "Well, I don''t know what exactly they use this room for, but my program has found out what they were trying to do with Mei here." Even as Glen spoke, he used his fingers to expand and enlarge a specific window in the holographic screen, which featured a photograph of a black-haired Mei and several lines of text. Shun Yin leaned close to read and his eyes narrowed when he scanned through the main points of the text.

    "Fucking bastards!"

    "Yeah¡­" Glen sounded just as outraged as he stared at the hologram. "These bastards were experimenting on her with the spirit summoning technology that our pals in the research division cooked up. Do you remember you told us how Angie was boasting about manifesting spirits in our dimension by sealing them into weapons? Well, these fucking Assassins had the bright idea to manifest spirits inside humans¡­using humans to host the spirits."

    "They''re trying to create human weapons with the power of spirits. Of monsters." Shun Yin was utterly horrified by the atrocity. "And to achieve that, they have conducted human experiments. Abducted people and¡­"

    "Surgically enhanced them, and tried to put a spirit in their bodies." Glen glanced at Mei worriedly. "They tried to turn her into a mermaid¡­a siren, by placing a water spirit inside her body. It didn''t work out, and the spirit sealed inside her is slowly killing her. If we don''t get it out, she will really succumb in a month or two."

    "We have to get her out of here and let your father know about this. The authorities¡­your clan elders."

    "Yeah. Let''s see if we can get more information first. I don''t know what''s in the other rooms, but it''s possible they are conducting other experiments¡­"

    Before Glen could finish his sentence, the door to the vast chamber flew open. Both Glen and Shun Yin instinctively jumped back as something smashed into the floor they were standing on, penetrating the reinforced material and protruding upright. Shun Yin had managed to grab hold of Mei and carry her along with him to safety, and now he placed her on her feet and herded her behind him, standing in front of her protectively.

    "Stay back," he instructed her.

    "¡­you''re right. Looks like a couple of rats snuck in."

    A hooded figure stepped forward, her voice dripping with amusement as she stared at the two high school students from underneath the shadows her cloak cast upon her face. A second, burly cloaked figure remained behind her, bristling with hostility.

    "Assassins," Shun Yin hissed, stating the obvious. The female Assassin shrugged, even as she continued to hold the daggers in her hand.

    "Intruders." She paused for a moment as she tilted her head to study them, and then a hint of recognition entered her voice. "I know you both. Aren''t you that boy that Lady Angelica is in love with? The one that Ying Bu Si and the Grand Master wants to recruit? And the other¡­you''re the son of Henry Porter, aren''t you?"

    "Wow¡­I''m so honored that you know me," Glen responded dryly. Shun Yin, on the other hand, merely drew his sword in silence.

    "Looks like we''ll have to fight our way out." He took a deep breath. "I''ll take the big guy. Can you handle the girl? Be careful¡­if she''s an Assassin, then it''s possible that her daggers are poisoned."

    "Will do." Glen cocked his head with a smile. "I don''t know whether I should be glad that you''re giving me the girl, though."

    "Heh." The female Assassin giggled. "It seems like you''re misunderstanding something. Your opponent isn''t us."

    "¡­eh?" both Shun Yin and Glen exchanged puzzled glances, but the female Assassin ignored them. Instead, she nodded to the huge figure behind her, who produced what looked like a remote control. He then pressed a red button.

    There was a mechanical clang at the back of the massive room, and the walls on the far end began to slide open as gears clicked and whirred. Deep behind the wall, something enormous stirred. Shun Yin caught a glimpse of red eyes glowing in the darkness¡­

    ¡­and then something roared thunderously as it leaped out of its prison, its deafening voice sending reverberations throughout the vast room.

 224 Chapter 224: Experimental Duel

    "How fitting." The female Assassin giggled, even as Shun Yin quickly stepped in front of Mei to protect her. "This place is a coliseum to test out the combat ability of summoned spirits in our dimension, did you know? I''m sure the higher-ups wouldn''t mind if we carry out an unauthorized experiment. The data would be invaluable."

    Shun Yin struggled to make out the silhouette of the new beast. It seemed impossibly human, just engorged to incredible sizes. A goliath with glowing red eyes and a mane of long, stringy black hair dangling from its crown. It let out a bestial roar as it stomped on the ground with one of its legs, cracking the concrete.

    "We''ve been testing these spirits out against various Assassins, but that''s not a fair experiment. After all, pitting these poor things against trained killers is just¡­imbalanced. We need more accurate data. This is a great chance to see how spirits fare against regular combat mages, the kind of enemies they would be facing more often."

    "So we''re basically guinea pigs, huh?" Glen grumbled under his breath. Shun Yin stayed silent as he shielded Mei and observed the newly appeared bellowing enemy.

    For some reason, Shun Yin had the impression that a lion had possessed a man, turning him into something that was half-beast and half-human. Towering over three meters, the creature''s skin was largely gray, though Shun Yin couldn''t tell if the color was from its fur or from its flesh. As he saw previously, the huge mane of stringy hair seemed to crown its head in a majestic manner, marking the dude out as a male. Standing on two legs, the fingers on the beast''s two hands curved into razor-sharp claws, and the mouth opened up to reveal two rows of glistening fangs. A dark, cloudy aura seemed to permeate the monster''s body, giving off a tyrannical gloom.

    "The Crimson Eyed Lion King," he whispered.

    "Oh? That''s a pretty apt name." the female Assassin sounded both amused and impressed. "You are partially correct. We attempted to possess Subject #47 with a lion spirit. The spirit of a lion king, if I''m not mistaken. We succeeded¡­only partially, but the spirit seems to burn out the host pretty quickly. Even though Subject #47 obtained unprecedented physical strength and monstrous power, I think he only has less than two weeks left to live before his life force is completely consumed."

    "You bastards!" Glen growled. The female Assassin shrugged nonchalantly.

    "Sacrifices are inevitable if we wish to progress."

    "Then why don''t you sacrifice yourself instead of others?" Shun Yin snapped, his temper fraying at the sheer hypocrisy.

    "Don''t be stupid." The female Assassin giggled. "If we sacrifice ourselves and die, who''s left to continue the research¡­the project? You should be considering the bigger picture. If we succeed in this project, the human race will obtain an immeasurable strength against monsters. The Global Federation will gain a tactical advantage over the Empires."

    The lion spirit possessed dude couldn''t care less about standing around and waiting for the humans to spend half the episode delivering explanations. With a feral bellow, he pounced on Shun Yin and Glen.

    "!!!"

    The both of them immediately split up, with Shun Yin grabbing hold of Mei and jumping to the side. The impact of the landing was so tremendous that the lion dude smashed a hole into the ground, dropping to all fours with a growl.

    Instead of standing up, the lion dude spun around and lashed out with his arm. Shun Yin initially found himself confused by that act ¨C the possessed guy was too far away to reach either him or Glen with his claws.

    Then the claws abruptly elongated and streaked toward him like missiles, the keratin stretching endlessly and curving in midair to adjust the trajectory in which it was traveling in, so as to hit the evading Shun Yin and his charge.

    "Damn it!"

    Cursing, Shun Yin swung his sword and incinerated the incoming claws. All five were burned into a crisp before they could reach him or Mei.

    While the lion dude''s attention was focused on him, Glen seized the opportunity to launch a counterattack. Raising his hands, he sent several bolts of lightning lancing across the coliseum and struck the possessed guy ferociously.

    Boom!

    The entire area was immediately filled with static and ozone, the lethal lightning crackling around the area where the lion dude was. Despite the deadly electricity continuing to dance and strike him, the possessed guy merely stood up on both legs, seemingly unaffected.

    "No way¡­he''s unscathed even though I landed a direct hit on him?!"

    Glen glared at the lion dude in disbelief, and was forced to dodge when the enemy swung his arm in his direction, launching another volley of stretchable claws.

    "This fucker¡­"

    While the lion dude was distracted with Glen, Shun Yin put Mei down and made use of the opportunity to launch a wave of fire at him. The lion dude ceased his pursuit of the lightning mage and turned toward the fire mage before he disappeared in a raging inferno.

    "Did you get him?" Glen asked as he skidded to a stop, panting heavily and watching in relief as the claws that were chasing him were burned to a crisp.

    "How can it be that easy?" Shun Yin retorted, his eyes still on the inferno. He also glanced warily in the Assassins'' direction, aware that they could launch a sneak attack on the two high school students while they were busily occupied with the lion dude. "They wouldn''t be weaponizing spirits and locking that possessed person up here if they were so weak."

    "Correct." The female Assassin chuckled, impressed. "And you don''t have to worry about me or Brad interfering. We need to collect invaluable combat data on how the spirit hosts fare against regular mages in real battle. The two of us joining in would skew the data, and we want to know the limits and maximum capabilities of the spirit vessels. It wouldn''t be useful if we end up doing most of the work."

    "I''m so grateful," Glen muttered sarcastically, only to jump to the side when something burst out of the flames and struck the ground where he had been standing on. His eyes widened. "What the hell was that?!"

    "¡­"

    Shun Yin managed to grab Mei and evade the crimson streaks, weaving through a web of them before he withdrew to a safe distance. Keeping his eyes on the lion spirit vessel, he watched in horror as his inferno was ripped apart.

    The lion spirit vessel emerged, crimson lightning bathing his titanic form. He turned to somehow glare at both Shun Yin and Glen with his demonic red eyes, despite the both of them being at opposite sides of the room. Even if he wasn''t directly facing them, they could still feel his predatory, murderous gaze upon them.

    "What the hell is that thing!?" Glen demanded, fear lacing his trembling voice. "It''s completely different from any monster I''ve faced before."

    "That''s because he''s not a monster," Shun Yin explained softly. "He''s a human who has been possessed by a spirit."

    "What''s the difference?!"

    "If we can reverse the possession, then perhaps we can save him." Shun Yin parried a blast of crimson lightning with his sword, and then fended off a volley of elastic but razor-sharp claws with his blade.

    "How na?ve." The female Assassin watched as the two high school students struggled with the lion spirit vessel. "There is no way to reverse the process. Once you''re possessed and merge with the spirit, there is no way to remove or extract the spirit from your body."

    "Don''t screw with me!" Glen snapped as he dropped under a web of crimson lightning. Rolling to his feet, he sent another arc of golden electricity that merely dissipated against the red field of lightning that continued to thunder about the lion spirit vessel.

    "Oh, but I''m not. You can read about it in the data you stole." The female Assassin shrugged, revealing that she was already aware of what they had been doing this entire time. Shun Yin suddenly felt a chill. Did the Assassins already know that the two of them had infiltrated the aquarium from the start, but had deliberately refrained from making any move against them because they wanted to lure the two combat mages into a test battle against their spirit vessels?

    As if to confirm his thoughts, the female Assassin smiled slyly.

    "One of the first experiments we tried was to make the possession temporary. After all, the spirits appear to continually drain the life force of the host and kill them in a very short amount of time, making it costly and unsustainable to train a group of Spirit-possessed Assassins. So we tried to seal the spirit away into another medium that we Assassins can use¡­so we need only use Spirit Possession during a mission or while fighting, and exorcize the spirit once the mission or battle is over. That way, we can lengthen the duration and number of times we can employ the spirits in combat. However, the spirit merged and transformed the host''s body in a number of ways¡­including at the genetic and subatomic level. They literally become one with the host, such that there is no longer any way to separate and split them apart once the possession takes place."

    Her smile widened.

    "If you don''t believe me, you can read the data¡­oh, whoops. I forgot. That is, if you survive this battle, I mean."

    Shun Yin wordlessly clashed with the lion spirit vessel by delivering a titanic blast of flames against its colossal currents of crimson lightning. Even as he countered the crimson web of electricity with a raging tide of fire, he couldn''t help but feel disturbed. Suppressing the urge to glance back at Mei, he bit his lip.

    Did that mean there was no hope for Mei?

    No. he was a hero. An ally of justice. There was no way he could fall into despair here.

    "Don''t worry," he said, more to himself than for Mei''s benefit. "We''ll definitely find a way to save you. Whether it''s to extend your life, or separate the spirit from your body, or whatever, I''ll make sure you at least get the chance to live normally."

    "You''ll have to survive and win this duel if you want to do that!" the female Assassin cackled. Shun Yin had no doubt that she was also reminding him that even if they somehow prevailed over the lion spirit vessel, they still had the Assassins to worry about.

    The lion spirit vessel roared and pounced on him again. Shun Yin barely had the time to shove Mei out of the way before he firmly stood his ground and parried its claws. The ground cracked beneath his feet, but he managed to hold his own for a moment before the lion spirit vessel delivered another swipe and sent him hurtling across the room.

    "Ugh!"

    He smashed into the wall, leaving a cobweb of cracks in its surface, before slumping to the ground. Gritting his teeth and feeling the blood trickle out of his mouth, he raised his sword again to parry the lion spirit vessel''s next slash. The lion spirit vessel began to pummel him, but realizing that he wouldn''t be able to withstand his barrage of attacks, even with physical reinforcement, Shun Yin dove out of the way.

    With a snarl, the lion spirit vessel twisted around and sent five of his claws flying out in an effort to rip his prey into shreds. Shun Yin twisted his body in midair and dodged the first claw before spinning between the second and third. He deflected the fourth with his sword and then blasted the fifth away with a fire spell.

    Heaving heavily, he dropped back onto the ground, skidding backward. The claws came again, and he weaved through them, almost dancing in the gaps between them. One of them nicked his uniform, tearing the fabric, while another left a scratch on his face, but he escaped mostly unscathed, using his sword to knock away the claws that were getting too close for comfort.

    However, the claws weren''t the only weapons that the lion spirit vessel possessed.

    "!!!"

    A colossal surge of crimson lightning lanced toward him at high speed. Knowing that he wouldn''t be able to dodge it in time, Shun Yin cursed and swung his sword.

    "Damn it!"

    His hastily cast fire spell soared out and collided with the devastating electricity before both volatile energies exploded. Too close to the detonation, Shun Yin found himself battered by the shockwaves and he was sent tumbling ungracefully onto the ground.

    "Ugh¡­"

    He tried to suck in a breath into his bruised chest, but the lion spirit vessel refused to give him the time to recover. He was already pouncing on him, his claws slashing downward in a deadly arc.

    Shun Yin quickly raised his sword to fend off the claws, but the attack ¨C combined with the massive weight of the lion spirit vessel ¨C squeezed whatever breath he had in his lungs out. The ground he was lying on cracked and disintegrated, and blood spurted out from his mouth and arms, especially the places where the tips of the possessed man''s claws grazed him.

    "Argh!"

    Shun Yin almost blacked out from the impact, his vision blurring and darkness expanding from the edges of his sight. The lion spirit vessel seemed to grin before bringing his arm down again.

    "Fuck¡­"

    Swearing, Shun Yin desperately lifted his sword, but the tremendous impact almost broke his arms and obliterated the concrete beneath him once again, causing blood to spurt out of his mouth. He gasped in pain as darkness threatened to consume his consciousness. He could feel his body numbing as paralyzing crimson lightning ran across his body.

    His arms fell to the side numbly. He could no longer feel them, could no longer lift them up. Even though the lion spirit vessel was raising his electrified claws for another strike, even though he desperately wanted to defend himself, he couldn''t move his arms at all.

    Before the lion spirit vessel could finish him off, an enormous blast of golden lightning struck him and smacked him off Shun Yin. Breathing heavily, Shun Yin watched in disbelief as the possessed person struck against the wall so hard that it left a huge cracked dent.

    A familiar roar echoed throughout the arena.

    "Sorry for being late." Glen was hurrying over apologetically. Beside him, a gigantic White Tiger bounded as it got ready to launch more lightning at the lion spirit vessel. Glen grinned as he helped the helpless Shun Yin up. "But you bought me enough time to bring out my big guns."

 225 Chapter 225: Lion versus Tiger

    The lion spirit vessel growled as he struggled to his feet, but White Tiger didn''t give him the chance to recover. With a roar, White Tiger lunged at the lion spirit vessel and smacked him across the face, drawing several red lines of blood from his gray face and tearing out chunks of hair from his thick mane.

    Snarling, the possessed man retaliated with a swipe of his own, his claws exploding outward to tear into White Tiger''s flesh. However, the summoned spirit deftly dodged the counterattack, and then returned with another slash that the lion spirit vessel somehow managed to deflect away with his arm. The possessed guy twisted the claws'' trajectory in midair, having them turn almost 180 degrees to stab White Tiger''s back.

    As if it had eyes on the back of its head, White Tiger ducked downward, allowing the claws to sail past its head and clip the edges of its white fur. The lion spirit vessel snarled, but somehow stopped his claws from stabbing himself in time.

    With a single swipe, White Tiger smashed the claws into shards of keratin, showering the lion spirit vessel with fragments of its own nails. Far from defenseless, the lion spirit vessel immediately cast a spell and blasted White Tiger with crimson lightning.

    However, the White Tiger possessed powerful electricity of its own. Golden lightning surged out of its body to clash against the web of crimson energies, the two violent storms erupting in an explosion.

    White Tiger tumbled out of the smoke and landed on all fours, growling ferociously. Apart from singed fur and some smoke rising from its body, it was unscathed. In contrast, the lion spirit vessel crashed out of the fumes, bloodied and burned. He raised a paw and sent another volley of claws spiraling toward White Tiger, but it was clear that his movements had slowed down drastically. White Tiger effortlessly dodged the attack before sending another bolt of golden lighting at its foe. The lion spirit vessel was sent hurtling back against the wall, debris raining down around him as he slumped down on the scorched ground.

    "I''ll take care of that thing. You deal with the Assassins."

    Shun Yin raised an eyebrow at Glen''s instruction. "You''re putting an awful amount of faith in me, thinking that I can handle two professional Assassins by myself."

    "Heh." Glen grinned at him. "You''re the guy Angie fell in love with and the person I recognized as a comrade. I have very high expectations of you."

    "¡­I''ll leave Mei to you then."

    When Glen nodded, Shun Yin gently pushed her toward his friend''s direction before turning to face the two Assassins.

    "Oh dear¡­seems like the experiment failed. The spirit can''t even take care of a single summoned Soul Beast."

    The female Assassin''s voice was tinged with mocking dismay. Shun Yin ignored her remark and drew his sword before lunging forward.

    "Brad, leave this brat to me."

    The huge Assassin made no movement, but he clearly complied with the girl''s request. The female Assassin lunged forward and slashed at Shun Yin with her daggers. Even though he was hurt, Shun Yin still somehow parried her strike with his sword.

    However, her speed almost caught him by surprise. The female Assassin spun around and delivered a kick to his head, but he ducked it, only to block her right dagger with his sword. He withdrew a step as she stabbed at him with her left dagger, barely avoiding getting grazed by the tip. Noticing some fluid spread across the blade, Shu Yin surmised that the daggers must be poisoned.

    I''ve to be careful.

    Far from discouraged, the female Assassin relentlessly pressed on with her attack, scything her daggers toward his neck. Shun Yin retreated another step, and then countered with a riposte that forced her to jump backward.

    "Oh, how skillful!"

    Giggling, the female Assassin spun about, almost as if she was doing a waltz, and struck Shun Yin from two different directions. Shun Yin dodged the first one, and then deflected the second one, but his opponent reversed the first dagger in her hand and stabbed downward.

    "!!!"

    Shun Yin whirled about and slammed his elbow into her wrist, knocking the blade away from him.

    "You even prevented that attack!"

    The female Assassin sounded shocked now, but she kicked Shun Yin, who blocked her foot with his knee before swinging his blazing sword. She did a cartwheel and flipped herself backward, and then tossed one of her daggers at him.

    Shun Yin struck it away, but the enemy had already produced a new dagger and was lunging at him again. Shun Yin desperately fended off her relentless hail of attacks, parrying, blocking, deflecting and defending, but her speed only seemed to increase.

    I can''t let her cut me even once, or it''s all over!

    Ducking under one of his opponent''s swing, Shun Yin kicked her squarely in the gut, but she didn''t seem fazed and instead stabbed down toward his leg. Fortunately, Shun Yin already withdrew his limb in time and attacked her with his flaming sword. The female Assassin parried the blazing blade with her dagger and struggled to drive him off.

    "Huff¡­"

    Shun Yin allowed the momentum of her blow to send him flying several meters back, so as to maximize the distance between them. Finally skidding to a stop, he held his sword in both hands and took a deep breath.

    Behind him, the furious battle between lion and tiger continued. The lion spirit vessel clawed at the White Tiger, sending streaks of crimson lightning flying, but the Soul Beast effortlessly evaded the deadly web of electricity. In response, it launched golden bolts of lightning at its foe. The lion spirit vessel struggled to dodge through the crackling electricity, his agility helping him to swerve past several of them. Spinning in midair, the possessed human sent another volley of elongating claws at the darting and dashing tiger.

    A searing blast of lightning lanced forward and disintegrated the lengthening claws before they could reach the dodging White Tiger. Lowering his smoking hand, Glen smiled grimly. The lion spirit vessel turned to roar furiously at him¡­

    ¡­only for White Tiger to decapitate him. Lightning wreathing its claws, the immense Soul Beast literally swiped the lion spirit vessel''s head from his shoulders, effectively beheading the monstrous enemy. The headless gray corpse teetered for a moment before toppling over. The body began dissolving into nothingness and faded away.

    "No way!" the female Assassin gaped at the impossible sight. Slightly shifting her attention away from Shun Yin, she glanced at the scene of the lion spirit vessel''s death. She clicked her tongue, annoyed. "Damn it, the technology is far from completed. So the spirits still aren''t as strong as Soul Beasts, huh? Or perhaps it''s the type of spirit we summoned¡­we should have summoned a much more powerful spirit¡­"

    "Does it matter? You''ll never be allowed to conduct this sort of experiments again." Glen turned toward the female Assassin, his White Tiger flanking him. At a mental command, his Soul Beast pounced on her, lightning erupting from its body.

    "Brad!" the female Assassin shouted. The huge guy nodded once and leaped forward, intercepting the massive Soul Beast and tackling it to the ground. The White Tiger wrestled with Brad, the latter holding off the former''s claws, but just barely.

    And then lightning exploded from White Tiger''s body, bathing Brad in deadly electricity. The huge Assassin gathered mana to physically reinforce himself to withstand the lightning spell, but Glen arrived while he was still pinned down by his summoned Soul Beast.

    "Heads up!" he said gleefully as he poked Brad''s forehead with a glowing finger. Brad struggled to knock him away, but the White Tiger continued to pin him down, crushing his arms with its heavy paws. "Shining Finger!"

    A highly concentrated bolt of lightning arced out of Glen''s finger and bore a hole through Brad''s forehead, drilling past skin and skull to melt the brain within. Even with the physical reinforcement spell, the highly focused mana that Glen gathered and concentrated into a single tiny point was enough to penetrate the large guy''s defenses.

    Brad went into spasms, his body shaking violently as the electricity flowed through his body. Not that it would help much ¨C his brain had already melted into a puddle caged within his skull, and blood was dripping from his eyes, nose and mouth.

    "What in the¡­?!"

    The female Assassin didn''t have time to be surprised. While she was distracted, Shun Yin had been spending all this time casting his spell.

    And now he completed the casting.

    "Combust, Yan Yue!" he shouted. His sword burst into flames¡­well, it was already ablaze, but a much more ferocious fire consumed his blade, expanding beyond its former size to swell up gigantically above him. Shun Yin swung his sword and unleashed the titanic tide of flames upon the half-distracted female Assassin, engulfing her in hellish fire.

    The female Assassin screamed as she disappeared from view. Despite trying to rely on her lightning reflexes to save herself, she was unable to escape the overwhelming torrent of fire.

    But Shun Yin was far from finished.

    Enduring the agonizing heat, he jumped straight into the inferno and slashed the female Assassin while she was still stumbling around, immolated by his spell. She shrieked and crashed over, but blood didn''t spurt out of her wound because it was instantly cauterized by the extreme temperatures. Nonetheless, Shun Yin had delivered sufficient damage to incapacitate her.

    With a groan, the female Assassin lay on the ground, unmoving and gravely injured. Shun Yin kicked the daggers out of her hands before dismissing the flames. He then placed his blade next to her neck.

    "Surrender," he ordered.

    The female Assassin hissed and spat at him.

    "You think you''ve won? Really? You must be really na?ve if you think we''re the only operatives in this building."

    "I could say the same to you, if you really believe that these two kids were the only ones who infiltrated your base."

    Both Shun Yin and Glen glanced up in surprise when they heard a familiar voice. Michael Porter strolled in, his sword in hand. There was blood on the blade, dried blood, probably from a cauterized wound.

    "We took care of the Assassins in the other rooms," Michael informed the two high school students. He then glanced at the wounded female Assassin, who was lying on the ground. "You didn''t kill her?"

    "She''s helpless and incapacitated. There is no need to kill her." Shun Yin shrugged. "Besides, we can interrogate her for more information."

    "I guess there''s that, but just a word of advice. An Assassin is never helpless." Michael sighed. "I''ll get the investigation team to apprehend her, but just to be safe, keep her there." He was about to poke his head out of the room and call out to his comrades when he caught sight of Mei, who was inching closer to Shun Yin. Doing a double take, he gaped at her. "Who is that?"

    "Mei." Shun Yin reached out with his free hand to pat her head. "We found her in one of the labs. They''ve been conducting experiments on humans, fusing them with spirits."

    "If you don''t mind, I would like to bring her to the Porter''s private hospital, to see if we can help her." Glen raised a hand, and Michael nodded in approval.

    "Sure. I''ll help you take care of that. I''ll be back¡­"

    "!!!"

    Shun Yin was so distracted speaking to Michael that he didn''t notice the female Assassin moving under him. From her dark sleeve a new dagger slid out and she stabbed at his sword hand.

    "Watch out!"

    Having clung to Shun Yin, Mei was the first one to see the move and the first one to act. She tackled Shun Yin and knocked him aside. Michael spun around, and the moment the female Assassin leaped to her feet, he beheaded her without any hesitation. The female Assassin''s head, still concealed beneath her hood, tumbled about and crashed onto the ground in an undignified manner, leaving a trail of blood.

    Her headless body then fell over with a thump.

    "Shun Yin! Are you all right?"

    "Yeah, I am. But¡­"

    Shun Yin''s expression was pale and ghastly. He was staring down at Mei, who was convulsing violently. Blood had blossomed on her back. It was just a shallow cut, but¡­

    ¡­it was a cut made by a poisoned dagger.

    "Fuck!"

    "Medic! Get a healer over here! Immediately!"

    While Glen was swearing uncontrollably in panic, Michael stormed out of the room with a yell.

    "Mei! Are you all right!? Talk to me, Mei!" Shun Yin gripped her hand tightly. Her temperature was plummeting, perspiration glistened her whitening skin, and he could sense her pulse weakening. "Stay with me, Mei. You''ll be all right. You''ll definitely be all right! We''ll save you!"

    "¡­Big Brother¡­"

    Mei was staring at him hollowly, the life fading from her eyes, but she managed a tiny smile.

    "¡­are you all right? Did that bad woman¡­hurt you?"

    "No. I''m all right. You saved me, Mei. Thank you so much!" Shun Yin hugged her to his chest, tears dripping from his eyes. "You''re a hero, Mei. And heroes don''t die. Heroes can''t die. That''s why you shouldn''t give up. We''ll get you¡­"

    "Ah¡­I see many pretty stars." Mei''s voice had dropped to an inaudible whisper and she was staring upward dreamily, her tone soft but delighted. "I¡­feel like I''m flying. Are you¡­carrying me, Big Brother?"

    "No¡­but I''ll carry you when you recover, okay? That''s why¡­don''t give up. Once you heal up, I''ll bring you flying to wherever! Mei!"

    However, Mei no longer heard him. Drawing her last breath, her chest stopped rising gently, and her pulse stopped.

 226 Chapter 226: A Heroâ€™s Duty

    "You okay?"

    Shun Yin nodded silently, but he continued to stare blankly at the staff of the Porter clan going in and out of the aquarium, moving black body bags. One of them contained Mei''s body, but he could no longer tell which one.

    His mind had almost completely shut down from shock and guilt.

    Glen looked at him in concern, and reached out to grip his shoulder reassuringly. However, Shun Yin didn''t respond. He was still lost in his own world, unable to accept what had happened. He was still unable to come to grips with reality.

    "Let''s go home and get some rest." Glen tried again. Shun Yin nodded and rose to his feet, but he felt as if he was moving underwater. His mind continued to be fuzzy and¡­slow.

    If only he had killed the female Assassin instead of allowing her to live, Mei wouldn''t have died. His act of mercy had cost Mei her life. He had been so na?ve, thinking that it was over as long as he had incapacitated the enemy, and that they wouldn''t try anything. That it was fine to spare a killer''s life and that she would have somehow surrendered.

    How na?ve. Now that he thought about it, he found it laughable. He couldn''t stand his stupidity and naivety.

    If he wanted to save someone, he had to kill the people who threatened the lives of those someone. There could be no compromise. Otherwise, it would be too late. Just like in Mei''s case, there was no bringing her back.

    "Damn it¡­!"

    Shun Yin cursed under his breath.

    "Whoa! Are you all right?" Glen turned to stare at him, shocked by his sudden outburst. In any other time, Shun Yin would have felt embarrassed, but right now he just felt enraged. Clenching his fists, he struggled to suppress his rage.

    "Yeah." Shun Yin inhaled deeply and closed his eyes briefly to calm himself down. "Sorry. I''m just feeling¡­"

    "I understand." Glen nodded sympathetically and lowered his head. "We weren''t able to save Mei."

    "No. Not we. I failed to save Mei."

    "Hey, you weren''t the only one there," Glen protested. "I was there too, and there was absolutely nothing I could do¡­"

    "If I had killed that Assassin instead of naively sparing her life, Mei wouldn''t have died." Shun Yin wasn''t listening. "I should have killed her¡­by taking her life, I would have saved another person''s life. I can''t make this mistake in future."

    Kill the few to save the many. Shun Yin was beginning to understand what that meant. It was not possible to save everyone. In this world, there existed people who refused to compromise, who were determined to kill others and were more than happy to drag innocent victims to along with them to the underworld. If he wanted to save people, if he wanted to prevent the deaths of countless innocents in future, he had no choice but to take the lives of those few who threatened them.

    Locking them up wouldn''t make them repentant. Even though he showed mercy to the female Assassin, she did not turn over a new leaf. A leopard would never change its spots. If they were determined to kill, murder and plunder, they would continue to do so, regardless of whether their lives were spared or they were shown mercy.

    For the sakes of innocents, some of the guilty should not be allowed to live.

    "Dude, you have a scary look on your face."

    Glen turned slightly pale and gulped when he saw Shun Yin''s hardened expression. He shook his head and sighed.

    "Relax, man. Don''t start getting reckless and think that you should go after the Assassins Guild and hunt them all down. That''s a job for the adults. Kids like us will be getting way over our heads if we get involved."

    "I know." Shun Yin gritted his teeth. "We''ve to become stronger. That battle earlier¡­we were lucky. If you didn''t summon White Tiger, we would have been obliterated by that huge Assassin. If I hadn''t trained under my master at the Miyamoto dojo, I would have been killed several times over by that female Assassin."

    "Yeah, she used poison, didn''t she?" Glen shuddered. "A single cut from her and we would have died. Good thing you were the one fighting her instead of me. I have no idea how you did it, but I would never have been able to escape completely unscathed."

    "Master trained me to fight in such scenarios." Realization was dawning upon Shun Yin now. "That was why he was so fixated on ensuring I master the basics of martial arts and swordsmanship instead of teaching me advanced magic or powerful spells. He was aware that no matter what sort of magic I wielded, if I get cut by a poison user or come in contact with a curse, everything would be over. The foundation is the most important thing. Having a strong foundation will prove the difference between life and death."

    If he had focused more on magic than martial arts and swordsmanship, he would have died the moment the female Assassin grazed him with her poisoned weapons. Shun Yin couldn''t help but feel grateful to his master.

    "You should introduce me to your master sometime," Glen joked. Shun Yin, however, nodded seriously.

    "I''ll bring you to Miyamoto dojo."

    "Uh¡­one day. I''ve my own master." Glen hastily raised his hands and tried to divert the topic away. Taking a deep breath, he glanced back at the aquarium the two of them had exited. The Porter clan''s staff were still all over the place and cleaning up the scene, but they mostly ignored the two young high school students. "We''ll just get in the way if we stick around. Let''s go home. And as you said, we''re going to need to train more to become stronger. So it''s best if we return home early and rest, so that we can begin tomorrow."

    "Yeah."

    Shun Yin''s eyes dropped to the body bags that were being loaded up in what seemed like hearses, and his chest tightened. Even though the majority of them belonged to the enemy, he still couldn''t erase the image of Mei from his mind.

    "Speaking of which, what do you make of their research on spirit technology? Using a human or monster as a host¡­a vessel for the spirit?"

    "Ethically? Hell, no." Glen made a face. "Did you hear what they were saying? Did you see the data? It''s certain death for the host. Once the spirit fuses with the host, it will burn his or her life out very rapidly. In exchange for¡­what?"

    He then glanced at his smartphone, as if remembering something. Conjuring a holographic screen, he skimmed through it, and his expression darkened.

    "Worse¡­it seems that the majority lose their sanity. Even those who don''t go mad from merging with the spirit lose their humanity¡­they lose their personality and huge segments of their memories." He glanced at Shun Yin. "Mei¡­she wasn''t able to remember who her parents or family were after the experiment."

    Shun Yin balled his fists, his hands trembling uncontrollably from anger, but he managed to prevent himself from howling in frustration.

    "What do they take human lives for?"

    "They are Assassins," Glen reminded him. "They kill for a living. To them, human lives are something to be taken. Just like¡­currency."

    "Fuck this!" Shun Yin furiously punched a lamppost. The entire metallic structure caved in and crashed downward, the glass shattering as it impacted against the ground. The Porter clan staff turned to stare at him in shock, but Glen quickly intervened, gesturing for them to ignore them, and escorting Shun Yin away.

    "I know how you feel, man, but calm down. Yelling and breaking public property isn''t going to stop them."

    "You''re right. Sorry." Shun Yin took a deep breath. Raising his head, he glared at the sky. "But I swear, I''ll stop them. Whether it''s the Assassins Guild or whoever, as long as they are villains, I will stop them. I will prevent them from killing any innocents¡­even if I have to bloody my hands and wipe every single one of them out."

    If he had to be evil to become a hero, then so be it. If he had to kill every single villain in the world in order to save countless innocents, then he would happily bloody his hands. He didn''t care if people label him a hypocrite.

    At least they were alive to call him a hypocrite. That was more than enough for him. That was the weight¡­the burden he had to shoulder as a hero. So that others could keep their hands spotless and clean. He should be the only one to take on the sins of everyone, so that every innocent could live freely, cleanly and happily.

    But to do that, he had to become stronger. Much, much stronger than he was right now. Otherwise he wouldn''t be able to withstand such a tremendous burden.

    "Let''s go," he told a visibly relieved Glen, and stalked toward the nearest train station.

    *

    "This seems like a dead-end," Glen remarked as he stared at the empty office. There was no sign of anyone ever having occupied it. The desks were empty, the seats were deserted, the cubicles were lifeless and the shelves were vacated. No documents, no computers, no files, no stationary, nothing at all.

    It had been two weeks after the raid on Vermillion Aquarium. Shun Yin and Glen had continued to track down the locations on the map that Michael had gotten from the warehouse. Often, they had close brushes with skilled Assassins, who managed to escape before the two could defeat them. Not that Shun Yin and Glen could easily beat them, of course. Often they had close brushes with deaths before the Assassins bolted.

    Only for Michael and the staff of the Porter clan to arrive minutes later, finding a dazed and surprised duo standing in the remnants of the room.

    "You two are too reckless!" Michael would often reprimand them. "Do you really think you can fight Assassins at your level?"

    "But we survived, didn''t we?" Glen protested. Michael snorted.

    "If they wanted you dead, they would have killed you already."

    That got Shun Yin wondering. Why wouldn''t the Assassins want them dead? They had been raiding their bases and headquarters, causing quite a huge amount of disruption, and in all probability being a thorn in their side by delaying their research and trying to save test subjects. However, other than Mei, they found no other survivors.

    And just a few days ago, Shun Yin and Glen ran into the same pattern. They would often find themselves in clearly emptied and vacated bases. As if the Assassins or the enemy within had known they were coming and quickly evacuated or abandoned their bases. It was occurring far too frequently to be a coincidence.

    "This is weird¡­"

    Shun Yin realized something was amiss. If the enemy knew he and Glen were coming, why didn''t they just prepare an ambush and lure the two of them into a trap? From the few times he and Glen fought against them, he was aware that they were highly skilled enough to defeat the both of them¡­or at least had the numbers to overwhelm the both of them.

    Yet they didn''t. It was as if they were doing their best to avoid killing the two of them. Why? It made no sense.

    The main bulk of the enemy comprised of Assassins. It was their calling to kill others, to take lives. So why would they spare him and Glen?

    "Damn it! Not again!"

    Glen was cursing behind Shun Yin as he kicked a desk in frustration. Not too hard that he would break the furniture. At least the blond mage knew how to hold back.

    "We always miss them! Why do they keep running away?!"

    "Yeah¡­wouldn''t it be easier for them to lure us into a trap and ambush us if they know we are coming? They should be finding us quite the nuisance."

    "You have a point there." Glen was looking stumped. Their confusion didn''t last long, however, because Glen''s smartphone rang. He sighed and answered it grumpily. "Hello? What''s up?"

    Then he turned extremely pale, his eyes widening when he heard what the other party had to say.

    "Yeah, I''ll be there immediately."

    "What happened?" Shun Yin asked after Glen hung up. His friend turned to look at him gravely.

    "There has been an attack on the main Porter''s manor. Assassins are killing the clan elders and the current Clan Leader right now."

 227 Chapter 227: Fleeting Reunion

    By the time Shun Yin and Glen reached the Porter manor, they were too late. The entire estate was ablaze, and they could see a lot of corpses lying on the ground. Some were smoldering from the flames, immolated by spells, but the vast majority of them had been slain through some other methods. Glen was somewhat relieved to see dead Assassins intermingled with Porter mages.

    At least his family and the staff serving them had put up a fight.

    Then again, Glen wasn''t that bothered. Even though he was technically part of the Porter clan, the elders and the current leader had never treated him or his father as part of the family. He rarely interacted with them, mostly dealing with the servants and staff they dispatched to give him orders or assist him, but he wasn''t very close to his cousins or relatives. Honestly, he didn''t feel anything, even as he continued to see the death toll mounting up.

    "We''re too late."

    Shun Yin looked grim. If anything, he was more disturbed than Glen was at the death toll. He was clenching his fists, his eyes flaring up stormily as he took in the scene. He held back the urge to howl, to rage at the excessive deaths.

    "Why?!" He growled. "Why are they doing this?! What do they want?!"

    "In all likelihood, it''s not the Assassins themselves who want this but the people who hired them." Glen maintained his calmness as he looked around. He shrugged. "Unless we find the mastermind, we''ll never know. The Assassins will never spill the information of their clients. They''re trained to withstand any forms of interrogation."

    "Most of them kill themselves upon capture." Shun Yin could feel his fingernails digging into his palms. "What sort of inhuman organization brainwashes them and then treats them as expendable, discarding them like pawns?"

    "There are worse things in the world," Glen reminded him quietly. "I know you don''t like the way they operate and take lives¡­but they are not necessarily evil. The Assassins Guild have been used to assassinate corrupted politicians, end tyrannical regimes, and destroy overly ambitious CEOs set on monopolizing the world market. Yes, they often act in their own economic interests, but they are not evil. Sometimes they sacrifice their own people because they cannot afford to put their organization at risk."

    "Revolt against the government, and you are a freedom fighter." Shun Yin felt deflated. "But why would anyone want the Porter clan dead?"

    "Did you think the Porter clan was some kind of benevolent entity? An innocent family?" Glen snorted cynically. "No, our hands have been stained with the blood of others. We haven''t been very innocent ourselves. The elders have killed people they thought were threatening their power. We just have been pretty discreet about it."

    "What¡­?"

    Shun Yin turned to stare at Glen in shock. He shrugged indifferently.

    "I don''t know the details, but how do you think the Porter clan maintain their position as one of the top ten great families? We shut down other families before they can grow larger than ours. Of course, I''m not saying we resort to something as blatant as assassination or hired hitmen, but I''m aware that the Porter clan has bankrupted small and medium family businesses before, and driving those promising entrepreneurs or businessmen to suicide. Bullying tactics, hiring gangs to harass and displace families from their homes so that we can buy up their land for our own industries and businesses. Using the law to steal patents and products from others. We may not stab people in the back with knives and blades, but we use money to kill them. Driving people to suicide is the same as murdering them, don''t you agree, Shun Yin?"

    Shun Yin fell silent for a moment. He wasn''t sure how to answer that. The world was twisted. The world was cruel.

    The world should just get destroyed¡­

    No.

    Shun Yin suddenly stiffened. Just what was he thinking? Swallowing, he forced the dark thoughts from his mind and scoffed at himself.

    What the hell am I, an edge lord?

    Yeah, only edge lords would say such stupid stuff like the world should just get destroyed, or that everyone should die, or that they would kill every single person on the planet, or that the human race should perish.

    Shun Yin was not an edge lord. He was a hero. The whole purpose was to save the weak and the innocent, not to engineer the extinction of humanity.

    "They''re still fighting over there!"

    Glen''s voice snapped him out of his stupor. Shun Yin raised his head and glanced around. Even though much of the estate had been destroyed, he could still sense people fighting somewhere in the distance.

    They were¡­faint, but still barely hanging on there. Judging from the power, they had to be the clan elders. Perhaps the most imposing figure in the center was the clan leader, but Shun Yin couldn''t tell. He had never met the clan leader or the clan elders before, so he recognized none of the mana signatures that they emanated.

    However, he could make a calculated guess, based on the type of spells they were casting. The darkness type spells¡­the ones that sent chills up his spine, those had to belong to the Assassins. There was one in particular that was emitting a violent bloodlust that caused him to shudder. There was no way he could fight that single Assassin head-on¡­

    "¡­eh?"

    There was a single presence that felt extremely familiar to Shun Yin. He narrowed his eyes as he tried to home in onto it, but it proved evasive. Even so, he had a feeling that he knew the person. A tinge of nostalgia¡­

    "Hurry!"

    Glen''s tone was urgent. Shun Yin understood why. The life-signs of the people he guessed were the Porter clan members were rapidly fading away, weakening under the onslaught of murderous spells. For a moment, Shun Yin hesitated. He and Glen were just high school students. Even if they reached the place in time, just what could they do? There was no way the two of them would be able to stop an entire team of Assassins.

    Especially a team of Assassins who were capable of slaying quite a few clan elders and the clan leader of one of the top ten Great Families¡­

    Glen must have noticed his hesitation, for he lowered his head.

    "Sorry to ask this of you when you''re not part of the Porter clan. You''re not obligated to help us, you know? If you drop out now, I won''t blame you."

    "No." Shun Yin shook his head as he hardened his resolve. "I vowed to stop the Assassins. I don''t care if I die in the process. As long as I can save someone¡­"

    "The Porter clan is hardly innocent, as I told you earlier," Glen reminded him. "We deserve what we get."

    "Even so¡­killing is wrong. Two wrongs don''t make a right. If you truly are guilty, then we''ll have to expose their sins and have them punished by the law. Not slaughtered like this." Shun Yin raised a clenched fist, his determination swelling up within him. "I will stop them, no matter what."

    He then accelerated, kicking off the ground and launching himself toward the main house. Glen lagged a little behind, unable to keep up. It didn''t matter. He wasn''t a frontline fighter anyway, and he would rather stay back to complete casting his spell to summon White Tiger. It was unfortunate, but as with all summoning spells, it had a range limit. In other words, he couldn''t just cast the spell while running until he reached within 100 meters of where he wanted to summon his White Tiger. The moment he moved out of those 100 meters¡­

    The spell would be reset and he had to cast it all over again.

    Not caring about all those, Shun Yin just smashed into the wooden doors, hitting the floor and rolling up. Drawing his sword with one hand, he fired off a fireball with the other at the nearest Assassin, who merely sliced the fiery projectile apart with his dagger.

    "¡­I''m too late."

    To his horror, Shun Yin realized that there was little point in his presence. All of the clan elders had been brutally murdered and torn apart. He wasn''t sure who the leader was, but he had to be one of the corpses lying amidst the carnage. In the center of them all, a single massive Assassin stood, his face concealed behind a skull-like mask and his bulging muscles barely contained within his black synthetic skinsuit.

    A Frenzor Assassin.

    The mana signatures and life-signs he had sensed just a minute earlier were all gone, not a single one of them remaining. They had been gradually fading all this time, but now he could sense that they were completely gone.

    They were too late. He was too late.

    With an enraged howl, Shun Yin launched himself at the Assassins. His first target was the huge Frenzor Assassin in the center of the room. The burly man merely swiped at him, his heavily muscular arm swinging at near supersonic speed.

    "!!!"

    Intuitively Shun Yin realized the danger. He brought his sword up to parry the blow, but the sheer strength behind it sent him hurtling several meters across the room. Even with his breath knocked out of his chest, Shun Yin managed to flip himself up and land on his feet.

    "Huff¡­"

    Before he could recover, two Assassins descended upon him, their gleaming blades flashing in a deadly arc. Shun Yin could only parry one of them, but the other''s sword swung toward his neck. The two Assassins had acted in perfect synchronization, having anticipated his reflexes, but their superior amount of experience and training had made the difference.

    "Damn¡­!"

    Fortunately, Shun Yin was not alone. A lightning blast snaked out and struck one of the Assassins. Or tried to, but the Assassin spun around and evaded it effortlessly. Even so, he had failed to decapitate his target.

    Gritting his teeth, Shun Yin forced the other Assassin away with his sword. Flames ignited around his blade even more ferociously than before and he unleashed a torrent of flames at pointblank range.

    However, this Assassin was far more skilled than any of the other professional killers Shun Yin had faced before. Twirling his sword around, he merely cut apart Shun Yin''s flames before thrusting his sword forward.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    Shun Yin was unable to avoid the sword, despite twisting to the side. The tip of the blade scraped the skin of his cheek, leaving a thin line of blood trickling down his face.

    If that blade had been poisoned, I would have died from that!

    Fortunately, Shun Yin intuitively understood that this Assassin was not someone who used poison. His skills were too different, too¡­specialized. His weapons didn''t seem designed for poison. This was someone who had trained and perfected his sword skills.

    Another slash and Shun Yin staggered backward, blood spurting from his shoulder. He tried to counter, but his opponent responded with a riposte that cut across his stomach, slicing through the uniform.

    "Damn it¡­!"

    Shun Yin realized that he was outmatched. Even with his training at the Miyamoto dojo, this Assassin was far superior to him in terms of swordsmanship.

    Behind him, the bellow of White Tiger resounded as Glen finally finished summoning him. The roaring Soul Beast pounced on the Frenzor Assassin¡­

    ¡­but the massive man merely batted the massive creature aside. The White Tiger vanished in a shower of splinters, roaring in pain as it crashed through the wall. The Frenzor Assassin didn''t relent, however, and dove after the White Tiger, who had gotten back onto its feet. Snarling, the White Tiger met the charging Frenzor Assassin with its claws, but the berserk killer merely swatted its paws away before pummeling it.

    "Kuh!"

    Glen tried his best to defend himself from the second Umbra Assassin, even as Shun Yin found himself cornered. The two high school kids were completely out of their league, even as they struggled to launch fire and lightning spells at their opponents. The shadowy killers merely wove in and out of their elemental projectiles or easily cut them down.

    As if in perfect synchronization again, the two Umbra Assassins managed to disappear before appearing from the two high school students'' blind spots. Before Glen could react, the blade was reaching his neck. As for Shun Yin, he found his blade deflected and the opponent''s sword thrusting toward his throat, unstoppable.

    "No!"

    Both Assassins froze, their swords resting on the skin of their targets'' necks. Shun Yin and Glen also stayed still, not daring to even breathe. One wrong move and their carotid artery or jugular vein would be slit respectively.

    "I told you that those two are not to be killed."

    Shun Yin''s eyes twitched as he tried to locate the speaker. He recognized that voice, knew who the owner of the voice was, but he had to confirm it with his own eyes. He just couldn''t believe that she would be here¡­

    Stepping out of the crackling flames, Angelica Porter emerged and stepped over the dead bodies of her kinsmen. With a single nod from her, the two Umbra Assassins melted away into the shadows and disappeared. Behind, the Frenzor Assassin continued pummeling the weakening White Tiger, who vanished at Glen''s discretion.

    The berserk Assassin bellowed in frustration at the lack of a target, but he was suddenly pacified by some spell, and he silently turned away to also disappear into the flames.

    "Angie, you¡­" Glen began. Angelica gave him a sad smile.

    "What are you doing here, Angelica?" Shun Yin blurted out. She turned to him, a look of sorrow on her face, but she didn''t reply.

    "Isn''t it obvious?" Glen growled. "Angie was the one who orchestrated the assassination of the Porter clan elders and the leader! She''s the one who masterminded everything!"

    "They had to die," Angelica replied coldly. She then lowered her gaze. "I told you not to get involved."

    "People are dying. What would you have me do?"

    "Endure." Angelica looked up. "Just a bit more, and we can be together again."

    "This isn''t what I want!" Shun Yin snapped. "Do you really think I can just overlook this and be together with you after all that you''ve done?!"

    "¡­you will." Angelica gave him one last look of grief before she turned away and disappeared into the raging flames. "Soon, the whole world will be consumed in fire¡­and the few of us will be the only ones left."

 228 Chapter 228: Demise of the Porter Clan

    Long after Angelica had disappeared, Shun Yin continued to gape in the direction where she had gone, his jaw hanging wide open.

    "What''s that supposed to mean?" he demanded.

    "You tell me," Glen replied irritably, also just as baffled. "She''s your girlfriend."

    "No, she isn''t. I haven''t seen her in nine years, and we haven''t kept in touch for so long."

    "Same difference."

    Shun Yin rolled his eyes, but didn''t say anything. It was true that, even after all these events, he continued to hold a good amount of affection for Angelica. He still didn''t understand what her goal was, especially after that cryptic statement.

    However, he finally understood why he and Glen were still alive.

    So that''s why¡­they didn''t ambush us or lure us into a trap because they never intended to kill us in the first place!

    Angelica had instructed the Assassins not to kill them. Shun Yin still wasn''t sure what her relationship with the Assassins Guild was, whether she was their client and the one who hired them, but it was clear that she was the one giving them orders.

    What was going on?

    "¡­but if that''s the case¡­"

    Then it meant Angelica wanted to wipe out her own clan. She was the one who ordered the hit on the clan elders and leader, and judging from the flames that ravaged the Porter estate, she was the one who cast all those fire spells.

    A chill ran down Shun Yin''s spine. Why would Angelica want her own family dead?

    "Ugh¡­standing around and thinking isn''t going to help!"

    Glen''s frustrated voice snapped Shun Yin out of his thoughts and he shook his head. His friend was right. There was no point pondering over Angelica''s motive for now. The most important thing at the present moment was to hurry and save whoever they could, and hopefully salvage what they could from the current situation.

    Boom!

    Both Shun Yin and Glen spun around when they heard the massive explosion. At another place in the estate, someone was still fighting. Even from this distance, Shun Yin could sense powerful flares of mana erupting. It was almost like seeing blinding sunlight in the middle of the night, occasionally puncturing the darkness with violent outbursts.

    "This is¡­!"

    Shun Yin recognized one of the powerful mana signatures. To his relief, it wasn''t fading away and weakening like the others, but even so he had to hurry over there to support. The familiar figure was currently outnumbered.

    "Mike?!" Glen exclaimed, having come to the same conclusion as Shun Yin and recognizing the mana signature of his cousin.

    "We should hurry!"

    "Gotcha!" Glen was drawing a deep breath and trying to gather his mana again. However, he looked a little pale, probably from the feedback he received after his White Tiger was obliterated by the Frenzor Assassin from earlier. Fortunately, it didn''t have any lasting effects, but Glen wouldn''t be able to summon his trump card for a while.

    That didn''t matter to him. Even without his Soul Beast, Glen was still a formidable mage. The two high school students might not be a match for the top Assassins of the Assassins Guild, but they were the brightest of their generations. As long as they joined hands with Michael Porter, they should be able to drive away the Assassins. Especially if Angelica had ordered them not to kill them, then they should have an advantage.

    At least that was the plan, but even as Shun Yin and Glen raced toward the building, they were both forced to dodge when something was sent hurtling in their direction.

    "!!!!"

    "Whoa!?"

    The two teenagers spun around and watched the object crash into a wall, demolishing the solid concrete and vanishing under debris. It took a moment before they realized that it was the charred body of an Assassin.

    "Mike is really going wild in there," Glen remarked with a shake of his head. He grinned. "I wouldn''t be surprised if he doesn''t need our help."

    "We should still go and assist him."

    "Yeah, not saying otherwise. But I won''t be surprised if he''s done by the time we reach him."

    The duo increased their pace and burst into the house, only to catch sight of Michael cutting down a Frenzor Assassin and incinerating the berserk killer. The huge man howled, his voice inhuman and bestial, but even with the combat drugs pumping through his system and a complete lack of pain, he was unable to withstand Michael''s spells.

    Shun Yin noticed that there were more Assassins around, but they were keeping their distance. No, they were actually trying to escape, but Michael had the hired killers trapped in a ring of raging fire.

    However, upon witnessing the demise of the Frenzor Assassin, the nerve of several of them failed and they risked diving through the flames. Even as they were immolated and set ablaze, they didn''t emit a single sound of agony. Instead, they merely extinguished the flames with their own mana, and despite suffering grievous burns, they ran.

    "Don''t let them escape!" Michael shouted, breaking the two recently arrived reinforcements out of their stupor. He was about to pursue them, but the Frenzor Assassin lunged at him. Miraculously, even though he had been burned into a crisp, his skin melting off his face and revealing singed bone underneath, which resembled the death mask he had on before it was incinerated. The material of his scorched synthetic skinsuit was clinging to burnt pieces of flesh, which was barely hanging onto to raw muscles and frayed nerves.

    Honestly, it was incredible how the Frenzor Assassin was still alive despite the fatal injuries and devastating damage he had suffered.

    "Tch!"

    Michael clicked his tongue and dodged the berserk Assassin''s grappling. Flipping over and doing a cartwheel, he kicked the bony jaw of the Frenzor Assassin, but the huge man didn''t look as if he felt it. Then again, it might be because his skin and nerves had been burned off and he was no longer capable of making facial expressions.

    While Michael was still occupied by his half-dead but impressively tenacious opponent, Shun Yin and Glen took off to pursue the fleeing Assassins. Unfortunately, they were forced to stop when confronted by the superheated flames of his ring of fire.

    "Kuh¡­!"

    "Hot!"

    "Damn it! Sorry about that!"

    Ducking under a vicious swipe from the Frenzor Assassin''s still bulky arm, which demolished a wall, Michael threw out a hand and extinguished those flames. He then parried the berserker''s massive fist with his sword, and found himself thrown back a few paces.

    Shun Yin and Glen quickly chased after the Assassins, but they were long gone, having melted away into the shadows and disappeared. Despite being unable to locate them, the duo continued to run in the direction they saw the Assassins disappear in, the both of them splitting up in hopes of capturing at least one person for interrogation.

    Back in the house, Michael continued to withstand the pummeling the Frenzor Assassin delivered and countered his punches. Originally, the Frenzor Assassin should possess a neuro-gauntlet and sword, but those had been scorched away by his flames.

    Even when wounded, the Frenzor Assassin was still a formidable foe. Each of his attacks, boosted by the cocktail of volatile chemicals coursing through his system, formed from a potent soup of combat drugs, was powerful enough to punch through a tank. Michael was aware that being hit even once would spell the end for him.

    He whirled away from another punch and leaped up, tucking his legs into his chest and spinning about to avoid the next punch. Straightening out, he landed on the Frenzor Assassin''s outstretched arm and raised his sword high up.

    Snarling, the berserk killer tried to shake him off, but Michael had already launched himself off the former''s arm. Twisting in midair, he slashed with his sword.

    To his surprise, the Frenzor Assassin merely spun around and caught his blade with burned fingers. Growling with his skull-like face, the berserker struck out with his other arm with the intention to punch a hole through his chest.

    "!!!!"

    Michael was forced to let go of his sword and whirl around in midair to avoid a direct hit. Blood sprayed out as his face and shoulder were grazed, but he ignored the stinging pain and regained the grip on his sword. With a yell, he completed the casting of his spell and bathed the berserk Assassin in hellish flames.

    The Frenzor Assassin staggered back, more of his body melting away from the intense inferno. He held up one hand in reflex to shield his already damaged face, but the limb literally disintegrated into ash.

    Even so, he somehow survived that hellfire spell. Roaring, he stomped on the ground, causing cracks on the concrete, before lunging at the retreating Michael.

    Michael arrested his momentum and stood his ground, refusing to yield. Holding his sword with both hands, he raised it high and faced the approaching Assassin head-on. With a determined yell of his own, he swung it down just as the Assassin punched him.

    The berserk killer continued hurtling past him, his tremendous fist punching through empty space and unleashing a massive shockwave that smashed another wall into rubble. Then he slowly came to a stop his skull-face frozen in that malevolent rictus grin.

    "¡­"

    Taking a deep breath, Michael straightened himself before sheathing his sword. Behind him, the Frenzor Assassin staggered for a moment, and then fell apart, his body cleanly cleaved into two. No blood leaked out, for the wound on either side of the split halves had been cauterized by superheated flames.

    "Mike! Sorry!"

    Glen was the first to report back, followed by an apologetic Shun Yin.

    "We tried to pursue them as far as we could, but¡­we can''t find them at all. They covered their tracks too well. We don''t know where they went."

    "It''s not your fault." Michael shook his head. "Those are trained Assassins. They are experts in stealth, sabotage, killing and escaping. I would be too optimistic if I had thought you two could catch them."

    "Then why send us after them?" Glen demanded, annoyed. Michael shrugged flippantly.

    "It was worth a try. Besides, what were you going to do? Sit in one corner and watch me fight? I know Shun Yin definitely won''t do that."

    "¡­yeah." Shun Yin nodded. He swallowed and glanced around the room. Even as the two halves of the Frenzor Assassin lay still in the center, the place was relatively bereft of corpses. Other than a couple of other Assassins, slain by Michael''s sword, there weren''t any other dead.

    That didn''t mean anything. Given Michael''s powerful magic, he could very likely have burned his enemies into ash. Then again, given the caliber of the Assassins, they had the magical resistance to withstand even such potent spells.

    ¡­as could be seen from the Frenzor Assassin.

    "We should see if there''s any other survivors," Shun Yin spoke up as he glanced around. However, Michael shook his head.

    "¡­we are it. Everyone else is dead."

    "We''re too late." Glen''s shoulders sagged visibly. Then his eyes widened as he raised his head to stare at Michael. "Then Uncle¡­your father¡­your parents¡­"

    "All dead. Angie didn''t spare any of them."

    Michael''s voice was cold.

    "Damn it¡­so the Porter clan is¡­destroyed?" Glen fell to his knees, despair taking over his features as he stared blankly at the devastation. "We''re doomed?"

    "No. you''re still alive. So am I. so are your parents." Michael frowned. "The Assassins¡­they were taking care not to harm you or me. Well, we forced them into a life-and-death battle, but if they really wanted to kill us, they would have tried a lot harder instead of fleeing like that. Apparently Angie has no intention of killing me or you or your family." He glanced at Shun Yin. "And especially you. I''m under the impression that Angie would have ordered them to protect you instead."

    "But why?!" Shun Yin could no longer contain his questions. "Why would she kill her own family? Her own parents? Why would she want to wipe out the entire Porter clan, all the elders and the leader, except you and Glen''s family?"

    "Are you sure you don''t know the answer?" Michael''s tone wasn''t condescending or accusatory. It was gentle and¡­resigned. As if he was too weary after all the killing.

    Shun Yin frowned, his chest tightening. Something was not right here, but he couldn''t place his finger on what exactly.

    "What''s that supposed to mean?"

    "Yeah! Why would Shun Yin know Angie''s motives?" Glen chimed in. He shrugged. "I mean, Angie is in love with him, but I hardly think she told him what she has planned."

    "That is true." Michael raised his head to study the scorched ceiling, his eyes wandering. "I don''t know if I should be the one telling you this¡­but the reason why Angie wiped out the Porter clan was because of you, Shun Yin."

    "¡­me?" Shun Yin blurted out in disbelief. "But why? What do I have to do with the Porter clan?"

    "To be more specific, it''s because they forbade her to have a relationship with you, and prevented her from marrying or courting you. So¡­she decided to take everything back¡­by eliminating the obstacle that stood in her way between you and her." Michael turned to look at Shun Yin.

    "Huh? But¡­how? Why would she kill even her own family¡­?"

    "That''s the fault of my parents and the elders." Michael clenched his fists furiously. "They treated her as a tool¡­the ultimate weapon of the Porter Clan. They held all sorts of unrealistic expectations of her and forced her into a life that she never wanted. They never regarded her as a daughter or a human being, just¡­a tool that would one day lead the clan."

    He then indicated the scorched surroundings.

    "And this is the result. This is what happens when their own tool¡­their own ultimate weapon gains a will and rebels against them."

    "¡­okay." Glen scratched his head. "I get that Angie got all mad when Uncle and Auntie and the geezers told her that she couldn''t marry Shun Yin, the person she wanted. I get that she decided to kill them all because of that, and also because they basically abused her. But¡­what does that have to do with the end of the world?"

 229 Chapter 229: The Phoenix Rises

    "Hey, at least the chapter title isn''t ''Dark Phoenix'' or something," Shun Yin remarked as he stared above. Glen glared at him.

    "What the hell are you talking about?"

    "Never mind. How are things at your end?" Shun Yin switched the topic. "The Porter clan took a really big blow this time."

    "We sure did." Glen sighed. "The only survivors are my family. Apparently Dad suddenly finds himself the leader of the Porter clan right now¡­actually, Mom should be the leader, but you know, patriarchal bullshit and all that¡­"

    "I''m surprised they didn''t just appoint Michael."

    Glen shook his head. "Mike didn''t want the role. He was the one who elected Dad to succeed his father as the new clan leader. He said that his responsibility lies somewhere else, and he won''t rest until he stops his own sister."

    "¡­Angelica."

    Shun Yin fell silent as he continued to stare into the distance. Taking a deep breath, he clenched his fists determinedly.

    "I also have to stop Angelica. I''m the reason she''s doing this."

    "No, you don''t."

    "Yes, I do."

    "You are not responsible for Angie''s actions, no more than she is responsible for yours. She made her choice and decided to kill her family except her brother and the elders. She could have gone about this a different way, but no. She decided to undertake drastic actions." Glen cocked his head to the side. "I mean, I somewhat understand why she chose this route. Other than Mike, none of her family members ever treated her decently. In fact, it''s pretty much unnatural how she endured this long without snapping¡­"

    "I don''t know about that." Shun Yin frowned. "Something of this scale has had to be planned out and in the works for a long time. Maybe Angelica snapped a long time ago and began plotting and scheming the demise of the Porter clan. She needed a lot of preparations to steal your father''s research and hire the Assassins Guild. I can''t imagine her doing this over the last year."

    "You have a point there," Glen admitted thoughtfully. Then he shrugged. "But we won''t know for sure unless we ask the person herself. And to do that¡­"

    "¡­we have to find her," Shun Yin finished for him.

    That was how the two of them ended up in front of the Phoenix Temple that was on the outskirts of Vermillion City. It was located on a protected estate, with the city council forbidding any corporation or tycoon from purchasing the land and renovating it, or demolishing the temple. It helped tremendously that the city council was dominated by the authority of the Porter clan, one of the ten Great Families. Even with the deaths of so many elders and the previous leader, the council still found themselves bound to the will of the current leader, Henry Porter.

    Glen was aware that his father wouldn''t suddenly change and reverse the order regarding that, even if he wasn''t a staunch traditionalist. Progressive or not, Henry Porter still respected history and tradition.

    Ironically, it was someone from the main family who had desecrated the holy grounds of the Phoenix Temple.

    "Are you sure this is the place?"

    Shun Yin raised an eyebrow as he stopped at the entrance. Glen glanced uncertainly at the holographic screen of his smartphone before turning back to his friend and nodding a bit more confidently.

    "That''s what Dad said."

    Apparently Michael Porter had assigned what remained of the Porter Clan''s staff to assist Michael in his hunt for Angelica, though the reason probably was more to keep an eye on him, to ensure he didn''t get into trouble. While the staff serving the Porter clan had been decimated, unlike the Porter clan itself, there was still a huge number of people available. Other than the main security guards protecting the clan elders and the clan leader, the majority of the Porter clan staff had been left untouched. Angelica''s goal wasn''t them, after all.

    Honestly, Michael didn''t want to involve them, but he couldn''t do this alone.

    He was ambivalent toward the participation of both Shun Yin and Glen. On one hand, he wasn''t comfortable with the idea of putting them in danger, but on the other hand, he was aware that Angelica had no intention of hurting them. Of course, the Assassins would still defend themselves and fight back if the duo attacked, but the chances of the two of them getting killed were pretty low. No matter what their personal feelings might be, Assassins were immaculate professionals. They would do whatever was necessary in order to adhere to their clients'' demands as much as possible.

    Both Shun Yin and Glen were gambling on that. It might not feel honorable, exploiting such an obvious advantage, but if they wanted to save the world, they couldn''t afford to be picky about their methods.

    "Why would they be here, though?" Shun Yin wondered out loud. "You would think the last place the Assassins would hide in is a temple."

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Glen roared in laughter. "Are you serious?! Have you not heard of the various Assassin sects that serve under the Guild? They all train in their respective temples before they become official Assassins!"

    What is this, the 41st Millennium or something? And I don''t suppose these Assassins are all loyal to the Emperor, are they?

    Shun Yin suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. However, before he could muster any sharp retort, a huge explosion drowned out their words. He and Glen both ducked down, shielding themselves from the flying rubble.

    "Seems like they''ve begun." Shun Yin''s lips thinned in a grim line. "We should hurry."

    "Not that our presence is going to make any difference." Glen sighed, but he followed after the sprinting Shun Yin.

    The both of them were forced to evade when a couple of supersonic projectiles flew into their direction. Pavlichenko Assassins were camped in the shadows or eaves of the temple, taking potshots at the two. The two of them didn''t even notice that they were there until it was too late. To his horror, Shun Yin realized that they were only firing warning shots.

    If the Pavlichenko Assassins wanted them dead, they would have taken both him and Shun Yin out by surprise with their first, stealthy shots. They were merely discouraging the two from entering into the temple any further.

    "¡­"

    Shun Yin caught sight of several bodies lying in the courtyard, victims of the Pavlichenko Assassins'' perfect aim. Those were staff belonging to the Porter clan. They must have followed Michael here before they met their demise.

    Fortunately, he didn''t see Michael''s corpse around, and he was aware that the number of the dead was just a fraction of the team that followed the supposed successor into the temple. At least that was what he heard from Glen, anyway.

    "They are going to regret not killing us," Glen crowed as he dove out of the way of a sniper bullet, hitting the ground and rolling behind cover.

    "Actually, I think we are going to be sorry that they won''t kill us," Shun Yin replied as he flattened himself behind a tree, wincing as the armor piercing bullet went through the trunk and left a huge, gaping hole in the poor thing. He realized that the Pavlichenko Assassins, realizing that neither he nor Glen was taking their warnings seriously, had elected to fire incapacitating shots. More than a few times, he narrowly avoided getting his limbs blown off by the powerful bullets, each projectile able to bust through the armor of a tank.

    He shuddered to think what would happen if his arm or leg got hit by those turbo-penetrator rounds. Actually, those were probably Hellfire rounds rather than turbo-penetrator rounds. Shun Yin was aware that the Pavlichenko Assassins used various specialized ammunition for different targets. The Hellfire round was the most common as it contained a vial of lethal acid that could instantly dissolve any biological organism or corrode metal. The turbo-penetrator rounds were reserved for target hiding behind thick plates of armor¡­for example, a tank commander, or an idiot who thought he was safe inside the void-hardened hull of his starship. Um¡­wait, we didn''t have many starships in this universe even though it was the 31st century. Never mind.

    "Damn it!" Glen received a close call when one of the bullets nearly grazed his arm, the superheated stream of air actually scalding his skin and sending shrapnel ricocheting into him when the bullet obliterated the stone pavement that lined the middle of the courtyard. "How do we get past them? How do we take them out? We can''t even get close to them!"

    Shun Yin contemplated for a moment, and then shook his head, stumped. If he was the adopted father of another main character in some other anime, who doubled as a Master of a Saber-class Servant in the fourth Holy Grail War, he would have an assistant who was adept at sniping. Hell, he probably could have sent his Servant after the Pavlichenko Assassins, her divine armor protecting her from their bullets.

    Unfortunately, this was reality and¡­

    Boom!

    Before Shun Yin could finish his fourth wall breaking thoughts, a huge explosion rocked the temple. Something massive flew out, twisting around in midair with a grace that belied his size, and landed on his feet. His tremendous weight actually caused the concrete to crack beneath his boots, and he raised his head to unleash a feral roar.

    The Pavlichenko Assassins immediately held fire and scattered, for fear of drawing unwanted attention from their berserk comrade to them.

    "A Frenzor Assassin?!" Glen turned pale. Shun Yin understood his dismay. The last time they met a Frenzor Assassin, he literally pummeled the hell out of them. The berserker was capable of obliterating even Glen''s White Tiger.

    There was nothing the two of them could do against him.

    The Frenzor Assassin launched himself from the ground and leaped at the broken wall of the temple. However, a torrent of flames washed out and bathed him, but the Frenzor Assassin punched the fire away with an enlarged fist.

    "That''s¡­Ba Qi?!" Shun Yin gasped, immediately recognizing the technique as one of those that Miyamoto Sensei had taught him but he had yet to master.

    The specific Ba Qi that the Frenzor Assassin was using belonged to Armament Ba Qi, which he cloaked around his body to enhance his resistance against elemental spells and allowed him to deal damage to those users whose bodies were composed entirely of their elements, including spirits. Okay, this was starting to sound too much like a certain manga about pirates¡­

    However, his opponent was no pushover. Stepping out of the hole in the wall, Michael Porter met the Frenzor Assassin in combat. He ducked under the massive fist and countered with a kick to the berserker''s midriff. The flaming kick didn''t even faze the Frenzor Assassin, who responded by swinging his neuro-gauntlet at Michael''s head. The latter merely dropped to the ground and swung his leg out in a hook to trip the Frenzor Assassin, who responded by smashing down on him with an elbow. Michael rolled out of the way before throwing another flaming kick, which forced the berserk but reflexively skillful killer to block with his forearm.

    As the two of them broke apart and rose to their feet, Michael completed his spell. A gigantic phoenix materialized behind him, spreading its fiery wings across and endowing the temple with a vermillion glow.

    "That''s¡­the Vermillion Phoenix," Glen gasped.

    Shun Yin remembered that the family crest of the Porter clan was the Vermillion Phoenix. It was the same emblem that was emblazoned across the school uniforms of Vermillion High.

    The fiery Vermilion Phoenix soared high into the air before bathing the entire area in flames. The Frenzor Assassin was unable to escape the inferno, and he howled in rage before he was incinerated into ash.

    "That''s¡­!"

    Shun Yin''s jaw dropped when he saw the sight. The fire spells of the Vermillion Phoenix were several magnitudes more powerful than any fire spell that Michael had ever cast. The difference between the spells a human mage cast and the ones a Soul Beast unleashed were as vast as the chasm between heaven and earth.

    No wonder Henry Porter was so invested in researching on summoning spirits! If Michael could summon that Vermillion Phoenix immediately instead of being forced to buy himself time against the Frenzor Assassin while simultaneously casting it and a few other spells to defend himself, he could have ended the battle long ago.

    Recognizing the threat Michael posed, the Pavlichenko Assassins immediately fired a hail of supersonic projectiles upon his stationary figure. Without even moving, Michael nodded surreptitiously to his Vermillion Phoenix above.

    A fiery barrier appeared around and above him, causing the Hellfire bullets to combust spontaneously before they ever reached him. A few of them tried shield-breaker rounds in order to neutralize his invulnerable save, but the Vermillion Phoenix''s flames were so powerful that they incinerated even those specialized ammunition.

    Michael glanced around the temple, as if noting the location of each and every Pavlichenko sniper. Then, relaying his thoughts to the Vermilion Phoenix above, he had the Soul Beast unleash a meteoric barrage of fireballs that arced and descended upon the prone or kneeling Assassins, the vicious flames negating their cover.

    Even with their lightning reflexes, the barrage covered such huge areas that there was no way for the Assassins to escape. They were immediately obliterated and incinerated.

    "Amazing," Glen murmured. Even though he could also summon a Soul Beast, the difference between his White Tiger and Michael''s Vermillion Phoenix was clear. They were entirely worlds apart. As expected of the one they called a genius.

    Beside him, Shun Yin nodded numbly. The Porter clan, though decimated, was far from destroyed. With Michael and Glen''s family at the helm, they would surely restore the great family and rise like a phoenix from the ashes.

 230 Chapter 230: An Assassinâ€™s Honor

    "Are you sure about this?"

    The hooded granny was staring at the couple in concern. The man and woman glanced at each other, and then nodded determinedly.

    "Michael Porter is pushing our forces back hard. We did not expect him to have a Soul Beast of his own."

    "It''s only to be expected," the granny replied to the man''s somber statement with a bow of her head. "The Porter clan was always the guardians of the south, the great family that embodied the Vermillion Phoenix. Many of its most famous scions are well known for materializing the Vermillion Phoenix as their Soul Beast."

    "Daddy! Mommy! Please don''t go!"

    A young boy clung to the man while gripping the fabric of the woman''s black skinsuit. The couple exchanged a glance, then the father knelt down to place a hand on the boy''s shoulder.

    "Don''t be like this, Hades. We already told you that we need to go."

    "Your parents have a duty that they must fulfil." The mother stroked the hair of the boy''s head. She tried to smile, but was unable to stop the faint tears from leaking out of her eyes. "We have pledged our lives to the Guild. It is only natural that we serve them unto death."

    "But¡­!" Hades wailed, refusing to let go of his parents. "But you can''t die! At least take me with you!"

    "You know we cannot," Hades'' father told him as he placed both hands on his son''s shoulders. Looking at the dark-skinned boy, he felt his heart break. The boy was barely five, but already he was forced to deal with tragedy. Cronus wished he could spend more time with his children. There was still so much he wanted to teach his son¡­

    No, not just teach. Enjoy the warmth of a family, bringing him up, and watching him grow up to become a respectable Assassin.

    "You have your own duty, young man. Your mother and I are counting on you to protect your little sister."

    Cronus''s gaze turned toward the young baby in the granny''s arms. She was cradling her in a soothing manner, having quietened her down when she was crying earlier. His wife, Serena, reached out to stroke the baby''s face.

    "I''m so sorry, Selina."

    The baby cooed happily, not understanding her mother''s words at all.

    "Take care of Selina, Hades." Cronus turned to stare grimly into Hades'' eyes. His son lowered his head for a moment, and then took a deep breath and nodded.

    "I''ll protect her with my own life if necessary. You can count on me."

    "Very good." Cronus nodded and smiled proudly. "I know I can count on you."

    He then stood up, still patting Hades'' head, and turned to the granny, who was watching the entire scene in dejection.

    "I''ll raise them both as my own."

    "I know you will."

    The granny smiled bitterly. "Don''t hold too high an expectation of me. You know who we are. They will be raised to become killers like you."

    "We are all tools that serve the Guild, Granny." Cronus merely smiled. "And you raised me yourself. Look how I turned out."

    "A little rough around the edges, but a decent man all things considered." Serena giggled. "Good enough for me to marry, anyway."

    The granny tried to smile, but tears slightly trickled from her eyes.

    "I wish there was a way where all of us can return alive." She sighed. "No matter how long I live, I can never get used to saying goodbye to my charges."

    "I hope you will never have to bid our children goodbye," Serena said, sending a wistful look at Hades and Selina.

    "I won''t bury you," the granny declared. "No more. I''ve raised you, I''ve treated your injuries, but I won''t bury you. I''ve buried enough members of the Wright family."

    "I don''t think any of us have a say in the matter," Cronus pointed out dryly as he tapped his chest. "Our lives and souls belong to the Guild. We exist solely to serve the Guild."

    "They see only one end to their goal. Killing. Making more money. Becoming more powerful and obtaining new weapons. One day, I''ll have to tell them¡­this isn''t wartime anymore. It''s an era of peace, where bloodshed can and should be avoided. They have to find another way. They used to talk about finishing, about expanding beyond that awful vocation of murder and assassination."

    "Don''t let the higher-ups hear you say that," Serena warned hastily, her face pale. "Or they''ll bring you in for correction training. Worse, they might eliminate you."

    The granny smiled. "I''ve lived long enough."

    "Not yet. Not long enough." Cronus placed a hand on her shoulder. "We still need you to look after our children. Live for them, if nothing else."

    "¡­I understand." The granny looked up into his face, and then at Serena''s. "But that doesn''t mean I''ll let you both off the hook if you die. You had better come back alive, no matter what. I don''t care what the higher-ups or the Grand Master himself says. Your children are waiting for you."

    Cronus and Serena exchanged glances, and then they nodded heavily.

    "Goodbye, Granny."

    They then turned away and departed, leaving their children behind with their new guardian. For a moment, they walked in silence, and then Serena suddenly turned to Cronus.

    "Is it all right? Deceiving them like this."

    "We''ve said our goodbyes. They are aware of that there is a very high chance that we won''t survive this mission."

    "You know what I mean." Serena clenched her fists. "We didn''t tell them the whole story. They think there''s still a chance, no matter how small, that the both of us can return alive."

    "And there is. If it works out, you''ll return to them."

    "I don''t want to return alone! How do I explain it to them?!" Serena turned and clasped Cronus''s arms before embracing him. "I¡­can''t. We can''t live without you. How am I supposed to explain to them that you are¡­?"

    "You know as well as I do that we don''t have a choice. Our enemies have proven stronger than anticipated. In order to fulfil our clients'' request, we must¡­make certain sacrifices. We must overpower our opponents. Even when horribly wounded, the phoenix is still a formidable foe. Michael Porter has taken out at least three of the top Frenzor Assassins in our Guild. If this goes on, he''ll reach the location of the ritual and stop it. This is¡­the only way."

    Serena scowled. "Are we seriously selling our souls to a bunch of nut-jobs who plan on destroying the world? In exchange for money? Doesn''t the Grand Master understand that if we let them have their way, they''ll trigger an artificial Emergence event in Vermillion city and lay waste to it?"

    "That''s not all. Given the unique fiery ley lines of Vermillion City, they don''t plan on summoning just any rank A monster. They want to summon Surtr."

    "The Demon of Fire, Surtr?!" Serena''s hand flew to her mouth. "Are they serious? They really plan on destroying the world, don''t they?!"

    "We''ve known that ever since they hired us¡­the Grand Master is completely aware. But he plans to honor the contract to the very end¡­even if we all die in the process. That''s our honor as hired Assassins."

    "That''s insane." Serena sighed. "Then again, this whole world is insane. Maybe it''s better to let it get destroyed."

    "The strongest will survive." Cronus smiled, despite himself. "In such a deadly world, our Assassin Guild will thrive. The world will need natural-born killers such as our children. I trust Granny to raise them well, and prepare them for the new world."

    "¡­perhaps." Serena nodded.

    By now the both of them had reached the building adjacent to the camp of the Assassins Guild. They virtually melded with the darkness, slipping through the myriad of sensors set to detect any lesser human foolish enough to trespass upon the hallowed grounds of one of the Assassins'' temple. They avoided the traps, dodged the line of fire of automated sentry guns programed to indiscriminately open fire upon any moving object, living or mechanical, swung past pitfalls and glided through invisible lasers that would cut them apart.

    This was the Assassins'' temple. There was no safety switches, no friend-or-foe identification system, no recognition device, no biometric scanners¡­nothing. The traps would kill both ally and enemy alike if any blunder into them. No Assassin manned them, no human watched out for intruders and allowed visitors in.

    They were Assassins. They were expected to clear the traps of every temple effortlessly. For if they could not, then they had failed as Assassins, for what use was an Assassin who could not infiltrate the most highly guarded fortresses of their targets? If they died to their own traps, then they have proven themselves failures, and their losses would not be mourned but justified.

    Cronus and Serena split up, weaving through the invisible lasers, which were indicated as red on their bioengineered retinas and relying on their enhanced senses and reflexes to evade being cauterized by them. The two of them reunited past the intricate web of lasers, and then gracefully leaped over a pitfall that was concealed by a tile. A misstep and the two would plunge into a space of enchanted spikes. They then melted into the shadows to fool the sensors of the sentry guns that guarded the next corridor, rematerializing behind the guns ¨C almost as if they had teleported.

    Eventually, they reached a massive laboratory that was guarded by heavy doors.

    Without bothering with the doors, the two Assassins slipped into a ventilation shaft some ways away, and vanished. The next time they appeared, they silently dropped behind a couple of scientists covered in full-body protective suits.

    The first one turned to them, not at all surprised by their sudden, stealthy appearance. Even though they were not as skilled in the art of killing as the other temples, the Collegia Sect was still a branch under the Assassins Guild. Specialized in research, information warfare, biological experimentations and weapons developments, they were the doctors and armorers of the Guild.

    "Cronus and Serena Wright?" the Collegia Assassin stated coolly, his expression concealed behind a sterile mask and wide goggles. There was no emotion in his voice, only a cold, calculated detachment.

    "That is correct." Cronus nodded. The Collegia Assassin scanned them with a biometric scanner anyway, to confirm their identities ¨C the Deceivum Sect, after all, was known for disgusing themselves as others by literally transforming and altering their physical features. The Assassins could never be too careful.

    Once he was satisfied, the scientist then led them toward the center of the laboratory, where a massive machine stood in the center, a single orb revolving amidst a collection of metallic vanes and generating ethereal energies.

    "You are aware of the consequences of this spell, correct?" the scientist stated emotionlessly. "I believe I do not need to brief you."

    Cronus was holding Serena''s hand, and he gave it a squeeze before he nodded.

    "That is correct. We''ve come, mentally prepared."

    "Good." The scientist nodded. "Then let''s not delay the process. We should begin right away. Which one of you will be the vessel?"

    "Me¡­" Cronus began, but Serena pulled him back.

    "Are you sure about this, Cronus?" She was hesitating at this last moment. "There is no going back. Once you walk into that, you will¡­"

    "I know. And I''m ready for it. As you should be too, Serena. We''ve already talked about this." Cronus reached out and stroked Serena''s face.

    "I should¡­"

    "No. we''ve already discussed this. I''ll be the vessel."

    Tears were streaming down Serena''s eyes. "No, don''t do this, please¡­"

    "I''m sorry."

    Cronus shrugged her off, and then walked straight into the machine. The energies began to intensify as he neared it.

    "No! Cronus!" Serena shrieked and she lunged forward, but three of the Collegia researchers immediately grabbed hold of her and restrained her, pulling her away from the machine. She struggled and kicked, almost breaking free, but she was outnumbered.

    "Don''t worry, Serena. It''s not as if I will be gone. I''ll always be by your side. And this time, I will be with you forever."

    With that, Cronus placed his hands on the spinning orb in the center of the machine.

    "NOOOO!!!!"

    While Serena sobbed as a blinding, white light engulfed her husband, a single, solitary figure watched from the distance, her hands resting on the railings of the observation room.

    Angelica Porter narrowed her eyes, and then turned to leave the laboratory.

 231 Chapter 231: Reinforcements

    The Vermillion Phoenix screeched before it unleashed another hail of fire that incinerated the warriors guarding the innermost segments of the temple. The minor Assassins, those who had not yet reached the level of the more professional, elite ones, were instantly obliterated by the overwhelming firepower of Michael Porter''s Soul Beast.

    "Amazing."

    Shun Yin inwardly agreed with Glen''s overawed remark. The both of them had single-handedly witnessed the Vermillion Phoenix incinerate another two Frenzor Assassins in an instant before single-handedly sweeping away any opposition that stood between them and the temple. Michael had then proceeded unimpeded into the temple, mercilessly burning the enemies into ash.

    He was clearly furious.

    "We have to hurry," he told both Shun Yin and Glen, his brow furrowed in a vicious scowl. "Or we''ll be too late."

    "What''s happening, Mike?" Glen asked as the two high school students caught up with Michael. He had summoned White Tiger, and his Soul Beast proceeded to cast an electrifying barrier over the two young teenagers to protect them from Pavlichenko snipers, the specialized rounds getting fried by lightning. "Too late for what?"

    "The Assassins Guild''s clients¡­we''ve received information that they plan to artificially trigger an Emergence event right here in Vermillion City. We''ve to stop them before they succeed."

    "That''s not good." Glen gulped. "We should hurry then."

    "It gets worse." Michael''s expression was grim. "They plan to summon Surtr, a fire demon with the power to engulf the whole world in flames and annihilate humanity. If our intelligence is correct, then the ones behind this whole thing is¡­the Dark Church."

    "Seriously?! They want to destroy the world?!" Glen groaned. Then he frowned. "Huh? And the Assassins are okay with that?"

    "Apparently." Michael''s features were set in cold fury. "They don''t care if the world is destroyed. Being Assassins, they will probably survive and thrive in such an apocalyptic world. Well, some of them, anyway. Even without that, their Grand Master is clinging to some stupid Assassin''s Pride that prevents them from reneging on their contract."

    "Well, Assassin''s Pride was quite the¡­clich¨¦ and not-exactly-good anime," Shun Yin muttered. "I didn''t really like the plot or the characters. Maybe the anime adaptation screwed up the original source material. I heard they had a lot more character development in both the manga and light novel, but the anime rushed things and left those out."

    Michael turned to glare at him. "Are you seriously talking about anime in a situation like this?"

    "If you''re right and the world is going to end, this will be my last chance to talk about anime, right?" Shun Yin pointed out dryly.

    "Ha!" Glen guffawed, his White Tiger bounding beside him. "Shun Yin has a point there!"

    Arcs of electricity blasted out of his Soul Beast and struck the stealthily hiding Assassins, electrocuting the Pavlichenko snipers and sending them toppling onto the ground. Michael finished the rest of them with a meteoric bombardment of fireballs from above, destroying cover and burning them to ash.

    "But if we can clean up all the bastards here and save the world, then you can go home and watch whatever anime you want. Deal?"

    "Yeah, whatever." Shun Yin shook his head, and continued forward. He glanced at Michael. "Where exactly are they holding the ritual? We''re already in the main hall, and I don''t see anything¡­"

    "Underground," Michael grunted. "And don''t lower your guard. Those aren''t the only Assassins they have¡­"

    He had barely finished speaking when figures darted out of the shadows, effortlessly evading the fireballs and lightning before slashing at Michael and Glen.

    The enemies'' strategy was clear. They knew the one weakness of summoning magic once it had been cast. Take out the summoner and the Soul Beast would disappear along with its master''s death. As such, the most effective way of dealing with the overwhelmingly powerful Vermillion Phoenix and deadly White Tiger was to assassinate the mages who had summoned them in the first place.

    And assassination was precisely the sort of task they specialized in.

    "!!!"

    Clang!

    That was where Shun Yin came in. Even though both Michael and Glen were perfectly capable of protecting themselves, they left their backs to Shun Yin. Drawing his sword, the dark-haired fire mage parried a few dark blades from the charging Umbra Assassins and repelled them with a flaming swing. An explosion engulfed them temporarily, forcing them back.

    "Kuh!"

    Even though they had borne the full brunt of Shun Yin''s fire spell, the Umbra Assassins were little more than singed. Twirling their short swords and lethal blades, they came in for another attack, but Shun Yin stubbornly stood in their way.

    However, he was just one person. Against a dozen Assassins, he could only hold off a handful at a time. A couple of them got past him and lunged at Michael, determined to finish him off before the Vermillion Phoenix eradicated every last one of them.

    Unfortunately, they found themselves repulsed effortlessly. Michael had drawn his sword and deflected their attacks before kicking one of them. Spinning around, he blocked a blade before unleashing a flaming spell at pointblank range. The third Umbra Assassin managed to fire off a series of shadowy spikes, which grazed Michael and left a cut on his face and arm. Fortunately, Michael had moved to avoid getting struck in his vitals.

    Spinning around, he swung his sword forcefully to knock the last Assassin back, but his opponent gracefully flipped backward and out of his range. The two of them then traded a shadow ball and fireball, the two magical projectiles colliding and exploding in crimson and black flames.

    "Tch!"

    Clicking his tongue, Michael had his Vermillion Phoenix bombard the area. He sent a glance at Shun Yin and Glen, the both of them still engaged in a furious melee with the other Assassins. They caught his look and immediately retreated, with White Tiger pouncing in to swipe at them with its lightning claws. One of them went down in a spray of blood, his body unable to withstand the lethal strike, but the rest managed to withdraw to safety.

    Exactly where Michael planned for them to retreat to.

    His Vermillion Phoenix screeched as it launched another fiery hail of meteors upon the Umbra Assassins. They glanced up, and then scattered, melting into the shadows. Even so, there was at least two or three of them unable to escape in time. Not that it mattered in the grand scheme of things, but every Assassin lost was another blow to their chances of victory.

    Fortunately for them, they didn''t have to dodge.

    "!!!!"

    Tremendous tendrils of shadows swept out and flicked the flaming meteors away, sending them crashing into the walls and ceilings and demolishing the already ravaged temple.

    "You¡­!"

    Shun Yin recognized the solitary figure who was stepping out of the shadows, accompanied with something¡­so horrifying and eldritch that he was almost driven mad from the sheer sight of it. Waving tentacles and a gelatinous, shifting organic body with countless blinking demonic red eyes. A gigantic Shaggrowth, or at least something that resembled a Shaggrowth, but had many more eyes and tentacles. With a gargled roar, it struck out, its many tentacles whipping out to ensnare the hovering Vermillion Phoenix above.

    The fiery Soul Beast responded by incinerating the tentacles with its fire spells, bathing the entire area in flames. Stirring within the inferno, the immense Shaggrowth continued to launch shadow spells, hurling dark projectiles at the soaring phoenix. Vermillion Phoenix then swooped and dove, weaving through the storm of shadowy spikes before launching a colossal fireball into the misshapen mass of the writhing creature.

    "What the fuck is that?!" Glen cried out, his eyes bulging from witnessing the sheer horror of the thing.

    "Hey, language." Ying Bu Si made a tutting sound and wagged his finger at him. "And that baby is my Soul Beast. You didn''t think you were the only summoners around here, did you? We are pretty rare among Assassins because the summoning spells take too much time to cast, but there are among us a few who went and learned it anyway."

    "Your Soul Beast." Shun Yin was gaping at him in disbelief. "That monster?"

    "I would appreciate it if you don''t call my little pal a monster. You''ll hurt his feelings, you know." Ying Bu Si feigned a pained look. Then he raised a hand and blocked a sword strike from Michael, a mass of shadows wrapping around his arm to protect it from the latter''s flaming blade. "Hey, don''t you know it''s rude to interrupt a person when he''s talking?"

    "Are you really an Assassin?" Shun Yin felt as if he was getting a headache. "You talk too much and are too showy. Most of your brethren just do the job quickly and quietly, with us almost not realizing we''re under attack until it''s too late."

    Just like the Umbra Assassin capable of using Shadow Ball. While Michael was distracted by Ying Bu Si, the other Umbra Assassin launched a sneak attack from behind, his shadowy dagger stealthily snaking toward his back.

    "!!!"

    Michael spun around on instinct and deflected the dagger before ducking under the short sword that the Umbra Assassin swung at his unprotected neck. He clenched his free hand into a fist and ignited a fire blast that combusted against his opponent, only for the Umbra Assassin to counter the spell with another Shadow Ball.

    The two of them split apart from the explosion. While Michael''s attention was occupied by the other Umbra Assassin, Ying Bu Si sprang his trap. His hands in his pockets, the Assassin in a business suit calmly unleashed several shadowy appendages from behind him, the limbs reaching out to grab Michael.

    "Mike! Watch out!"

    Glen shouted a warning, but neither he nor Shun Yin were in any position to assist. The two high school students were currently besieged by the remaining Assassins. White Tiger roared and swiped at a couple of Umbra Assassins, who stayed out of reach of its claws, but when it turned to lunge at the Umbra Assassin trying to stab Shun Yin in the back, its two intended victims retaliated with a double shadow ball that struck its flanks and sent it spinning.

    The Assassin who was assaulting Shun Yin also threw out a hand and summoned his own Soul Beast. A ghostly demon with two pointed ears, entirely dark purple in color, and had red eyes and a wide mouth that was perpetually twisted into a sinister grin. Spikes lined the back of the humanoid Soul Beast, and a stubby tail complemented short hands and legs.

    "What the¡­?!"

    Glen gaped at the newly summoned Soul Beast, but the Ghost-type demon sprang at his White Tiger and punched it with a Shadow Punch, flooring it. Snarling, White Tiger leaped back to its feet and sent lightning arcing crazily across the ground, only for the Ghost-type demon to lazily evade the web of lethal electricity.

    Having finished his summoned spell, the Umbra Assassin spun around and kicked Shun Yin, who was busily weaving through the grappling shadowy appendages that Ying Bu Si had conjured. Having used his fiery sword to slash at one of the limbs that were so close to entrapping him, Shun Yin was unable to block the kick to his midriff and was sent tumbling into the nefarious embrace of the shadowy appendages, who closed around him with a crushing grip.

    Flames exploded around him, but the shadowy appendages merely extinguished them before turning into somewhat of a writhing sphere that enclosed him. However, before they could pulverize the nearly helpless Michael, someone jumped forward and smashed the shadowy appendages apart with a single punch.

    "?!"

    Ying Bu Si twisted around to face the new threat, his mouth already opening to yell a command to his Shaggrowth thing. However, even as its numerous tentacles lashed out at the newcomer, a blizzard of vividly colored petals flitted out and sliced them into bits, causing the creature to wail and recoil from the pain.

    "You are¡­!"

    "My, what a monster you have there." Lionel Stuart stepped forward, swinging his sword down to send another storm of flowers spiraling into the fleeing giant Shaggrowth. Behind and above him, the ghostly aura of an enormous Green Dragon shimmered, as if lending him power.

    Glen and Michael immediately recognized the Green Dragon as the symbol and mascot of the famed Stuart clan.

    "You¡­!"

    Ying Bu Si''s calm fa?ade broke for a moment, his anger leaking through his mask, as he sent another flurry of shadowy appendages at Lionel Stuart. However, the first newcomer broke in between them and punched them away.

    With just a single fist, he obliterated the entire collective of shadowy limbs, disintegrating them and reducing them into nothing.

    "Thank you very much, Yue Guang."

    "It is my duty to serve, sir."

    Yuan Dao Yue Guang bowed his head humbly for a moment, and then he proceeded to charge at Ying Bu Si.

    "That technique¡­destroying my shadows with a single physical punch¡­you''re an expert on Ba Qi, aren''t you!?"

    Ying Bu Si immediately retreated wearily, recognizing the potent Armament Ba Qi that wrapped around Yuan Dao Yue Guang''s heavily muscled body. That figure spoke of decades of harsh training, honing his body into the peak of human capabilities with nothing but mystical martial arts and grueling combat.

    Ba Qi¡­the pinnacle of the mystical martial arts practiced by those mages whose magic was not aligned with any element.

    "Sorry for being late, Michael." Lionel stepped forward, unleashing another wood spell that blasted the giant Shaggrowth back with sheer numbers of razor-sharp petals. "We rushed over when we heard about the near annihilation of the Porter Clan. I''m very sorry for your loss."

    He then straightened his gleaming sword and infused it with even more mana. Behind him, the shimmering Green Dragon aura roared silently as more petals danced around it.

    "But rest assured¡­the Stuart clan is here to help you avenge the deaths of your family."

 232 Chapter 232: Breaking Through

    Lionel Stuart blasted the gigantic Shaggrowth back with another wave of his sword, a blizzard of petals slicing through its misshapen mass. A little ahead of him, Yuan Dao Yue Guang punched through the bulk of Ying Bu Si''s shadows as he advanced toward the desperately retreating Assassin, destroying his spells with sheer force.

    Or Ba Qi, but you know what I mean.

    The purple Ghost-type Soul Beast tackled the Vermillion Phoenix soaring high in the air, and Michael swung his sword, clashing against the blades of the Umbra Assassin who had summoned it. The two exchanged a flurry of strikes that sent sparks spiraling through the air.

    "Go!" Michael shouted.

    For a moment, Shun Yin didn''t react. He was too busily engaging the Assassins in front of him to pay attention to whatever the others said. Then Glen and White Tiger smashed through the trio of Umbra Assassins attacking him, scattering them with terrifying lightning spells.

    "Go!" Michael shouted again. "Shun Yin, you go ahead! We''ll take care of the Assassins here!"

    "Go ahead, where?" Shun Yin blurted out, puzzled.

    "The ritual is taking place the temple! Further back in the main hall, there should be a hatch somewhere! It should have a set of stairs leading to the basement. If all their forces are here to stop us, then there shouldn''t be much Assassins or mages left guarding the device they are using to artificially trigger an Emergence event!"

    "You''re gambling quite a bit on that," Lionel remarked as he dodged one tentacle before cutting another apart. "If he goes alone, there won''t be anybody to support him¡­especially if there happens to be another group of enemies waiting down there."

    "But he''s the only one who can convince Angie to stop this madness." Michael took a deep breath, his expression bitter. "He''s the only one she would never hurt. If he can talk to her, he might be able to change her mind and put a stop to all this!"

    "What makes you think Angie is the one behind all this?" Glen muttered as he ducked under the shadowy blade of an Umbra Assassin before slamming his palm into his opponent''s chest and electrocuting him. Despite lethal voltage running through his body, the Assassin was able to resist the spell and continued to fight on, retaliating with a slash that forced Glen back.

    "You are right. Angie really isn''t behind this." Michael smiled wryly as he combated against the grim Umbra Assassin who had summoned the ghost-type Soul Beast. "But if there''s anyone who can persuade her to turn against whoever is behind this, it will be him."

    "You put too much faith in me," Shun Yin replied bitterly. "I couldn''t even convince Angelica to give up on her insane goal of destroying the Porter clan."

    "You didn''t try," Michael pointed out as he rolled his eyes. "And now that the Porter clan has been all but annihilated, she has already achieved her goal. There is no longer any reason for her to continue siding with whoever she joined up with."

    "Then why is she still with them?"

    "Remember what I told you, about a month ago? The message she asked me to pass on to you?"

    Shun Yin blinked in surprise. He did indeed recall the letter that Michael delivered to him on behalf of Angelica.

    "Please don''t join the Assassins Guild. I intend to betray the organization hiring them. All I desire is more power¡­that way, I will be able to be together with you. Our paths may be different, but our destination is definitely the same. I''m sure we''ll arrive there together¡­eventually."

    His eyes widened. Michael was definitely giving him a hint somewhere, reminding him of Angelica''s plans. She didn''t stay with the mastermind behind this artificial apocalyptic Emergence event after the demise of her clan to destroy the world. She was planning to betray the organization who had schemed the end of the world all this time. And what better way to obstruct their plans than from doing it within their organization?

    That was why she stuck with them after she achieved her goal of assassinating her family and clan elders. To stop them from destroying the world. Still, Shun Yin had to admit that she had a really convoluted way of doing this. And why even bother with wiping out the majority of the Porter clan when you were going to destroy the world anyway?

    Well, whatever. He was never going to find out unless he asked her directly. And the only way to do that was to meet her.

    "I''ll be counting on you then."

    Gathering mana into his sword, Shun Yin launched himself forward. Three of the Umbra Assassins lunged at him, determined to halt his advance, but his blade erupted into a hellish inferno before washing over the three of them. Two of the Umbra Assassins retreated in reflex, avoiding a fiery death, but their third comrade was instantly incinerated.

    Without missing a beat, Shun Yin surged into the back of the main hall where they had been fighting in all this while. The two Umbra Assassins spun around and pursued him, their blades flashing downward dangerously.

    "Oh no, you don''t!"

    "!!!"

    The two Assassins were forced to dive to the side as jagged bolts of golden lightning struck the space where they would have occupied if they continued on their trajectory toward their target. Flanked by his growling White Tiger, Glen approached them.

    "Your opponent is me!"

    Shun Yin didn''t even turn back, trusting his friend to watch his back. He cleaved through a pile of rubble that was in his way, almost on intuition, and spotted the hatch that Michael was talking about. He yanked it open with his free hand, the trapdoor swinging upward to reveal a set of stairs leading to the darkness below.

    Without any hesitation, he plunged downward, leaving the fighting behind him.

    Eventually, he reached the bottom of the stairs, which then tapered off into a long corridor. Slowing down, he proceeded cautiously, aware that there would be traps planted between here and his destination.

    "!!"

    As he took a single step forward, he sensed something enormous. An awfully potent source of mana that hummed and thrummed from deep within the temple. Michael was correct. Whatever they planned on doing, it was being carried out in the bowels of the Phoenix Temple, its sacred grounds desecrated by lunatics.

    "¡­this is¡­"

    Shun Yin was sure that the source of the mana was what the enemy used to artificially trigger the Emergence event. Such tremendous amounts of energies were required to rip open the fabric of time-space and cause a rupture between the two dimensions. It was unlike the miniaturized devices that the Dark Church eventually developed in the present, but back then the technology was still young and undeveloped.

    These were pretty much the prototypes that they used.

    However, it was clear that they needed a lot of mana to power the device that they used to artificially trigger the Emergence event. That was why Shun Yin knew he was on the right track. He began to hasten his pace.

    "!!!"

    He slowed down when he caught sight of something massive guarding the corridor. At first he thought it was a spirit, particularly when he remembered the experiments the Assassins Guild carried out by using human subjects as vessels.

    The creature was emanating that much mana, after all.

    Then, as it roared, he could see its physical shape coming in more clearly. It wasn''t humanoid, but a gigantic beast that stood on four legs. Three heads snapped and snarled, spittle flying from fanged jaws.

    "Cerberus?"

    Shun Yin frowned when he recognized the three-headed monster. He readied his sword, flames igniting along the length of his blade as he prepared for combat. The three-headed hound growled, a throaty bellow emitting from all of its throats in unison.

    Then it pounced on him.

    "!!!"

    Shun Yin barely caught sight of a huge, dark blur that literally flew across the hundred meters between them in a single bound before all ten tons of it crashed on top of him. Diving to the side, he hit the ground and desperately rolled away as a massive paw crushed the spot where he had been lying on a millisecond earlier.

    "Kuh!"

    Springing to his feet, he launched a surge of flames at the offending Cerberus, but it merely batted his fire spell away with a swipe of its huge paw. The left head twisted around to close its jaws around him, and he was forced to withdraw.

    "?!"

    The right head then crashed toward him from the opposite direction, forcing him to raise his sword to parry the snout before the big, razor-sharp teeth could tear him into shreds. He unleashed a burst of flames at pointblank range, causing the assaulting head to yelp and recoil from pain. Shun Yin followed up with a second spell, but the center head darted forward and chomped on the fireball, extinguishing it inside its mouth.

    "What the¡­?!"

    Shun Yin gaped as he watched smoke steam from within the center head''s closed jaws, but the Cerberus merely shook his attacks off before howling at him.

    "Ugh!"

    The sonic assault threw Shun Yin off his feet and sent him crashing into the wall several dozen meters away. Even as the concrete cracked from the impact, the fire mage could see the invisible sound wave tear a ravaged path through the ground and leaving a trail of destruction.

    Dropping to the ground, he clutched his bleeding ears and winced, trying to maintain his focus despite his sense of balance being warped from the sonic assault. The monster wasn''t kind enough to wait for him to recover, however, and it seized the opportunity to lunge at him again.

    With his sense of balance disorientated, Shun Yin couldn''t move from his position. He was too dizzy. Instead, he closed his eyes and swung his sword as hard as he could, unleashing a torrent of fire at his enemy. Cerberus was knocked back, kept at bay by the firewall that now spread between it and its prey.

    However, it continued to pace the corridor, its three pairs of blazing eyes fixed upon Shun Yin''s kneeling figure. Leaning on his sword, Shun Yin gathered more mana into his head, trying to restore his sense of balance and minimize the damage caused by his injuries. Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes and glared at the Cerberus.

    The three-headed monster stopped for a moment and opened all three jaws to unleash another sonic assault. The sheer force of the sound wave blasted the flames back like a hurricane and extinguished them. This time, Shun Yin was prepared, and he clamped his hands over his hears as he evaded the supersonic blast. Tucking his legs into his chest, he rolled across the air and flipped himself over to safety.

    However, Cerberus wasn''t content with firing off sonic assaults from a distance.

    The moment Shun Yin landed, Cerberus sprang at him. Twisting around, Shun Yin crouched low and ducked under a swinging paw that passed over his head and ruffled his hair, cutting off the ends of several strands. The moment Cerberus flew past him, he immediately spun around and swung his sword, unleashing another massive fire bolt at its rear.

    "!!!"

    Something whipped out and struck him from behind the curtain of flames he had conjured. Only his reflexes saved him, Shun Yin raising his sword to parry the cruel blow. The tremendous impact hurled him to the side, causing another crater in the heavily devastated wall.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    Blood dripped from his mouth, Shun Yin collapsing to a heap at the bottom of the wall. Trying to support himself with his sword, he glanced up and was horrified to see a serpent. The colossal snake hissed and bared its venomous fangs, a forked tongue darting out.

    No, it wasn''t a serpent. It was Cerberus''s tail. For some reason, the monster had four heads instead of three, with the serpent making up its tail.

    "What in the world¡­?"

    Wiping the blood from his mouth, Shun Yin slowly rose to his feet and gripped his sword with both hands, preparing to conjure another fire spell. Before he could finish casting it, Cerberus pounced on him, its outstretched paws ready to crush him.

    "?!"

    A glowing white crescent slammed into its side, knocking it off course and sending the gargantuan creature sprawling on the ground.

    "My, my. You''re having trouble with a spirit of this level? How will you ever be able to defeat the elite Assassins serving the Dark Church at this rate?"

    "?!"

    Shun Yin''s eyes widened when he recognized the familiar voice. Blinking, he also realized the earlier white crescent as the arc of energy generated by a sword slash. The person who saved him was a superlative swordswoman.

    And not just any swordswoman.

    Angelica Porter strolled out from the shadows, her sword in hand. Cerberus snarled as it turned upon her, its three heads frothing in rage and the serpent hissing vengefully. Even though it had taken a direct hit from her sword, it was still very much alive.

    Her lack of success didn''t seem to concern her. Instead, Angelica smiled as she adopted an offensive stance.

    "Get up, Shun Yin," she instructed gently. "We''re going to stop this Emergence event from occurring."

 233 Chapter 233: Reunion

    "Angelica?" Shun Yin gaped at her in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"

    "Saving you, obviously."

    Angelica snorted impatiently, but continued to keep her eyes on the snarling Cerberus. Her blade glowed white.

    "You don''t seem to be faring too well against the Dark Church''s experiment. I don''t blame you, though. It''s a result of fusing a monster with a spirit."

    She shrugged almost flippantly. Shun Yin continued to stare at her, still sunken in a stupor. Then her words struck something in him.

    "Dark Church¡­?"

    "A group of religious extremists who believe that humanity should be eradicated for the sake of the world. They believe the monsters are a sign of the end of the human race, saviors of a dying, heavily polluted Earth. They wish to speed up the process¡­hence their efforts to artificially trigger Emergence events."

    Shun Yin had never heard of them before, but he wasn''t given any time to ponder over the issue. Cerberus was attacking once more. Growling, it pounced on Angelica, who calmly stood her ground and watched it approach.

    Then she swung her sword and knocked it back with another colossal energy arc that was unleashed from her blade. Even though the Cerberus twisted in midair to avoid a fatal blow, the spell cut deep and blood sprayed across the ground. With a whine, Cerberus landed several dozen meters away from its target to lick its wounds.

    "Too shallow, huh?" Angelica murmured to herself. White flames danced around her sword as she infused it with mana, but as she had already seen, they were ineffective against the spirit-monster. She glared in the shocked Shun Yin''s direction. "Why are you still sitting there and doing nothing? I can''t beat this thing on my own!"

    "R¡­right."

    Shun Yin snapped out of his shock and quickly resumed the casting of his fire spells. His sword ignited crimson once more and he took a deep breath as he spread his legs apart and assumed the stance his master taught him.

    The Cerberus howled before lunging at Angelica, probably out of retaliation for her attack earlier. While its attention was focused on her, Shun Yin ran to the side, taking care not to be knocked over by its massive bulk in the narrow corridor, and twisted around. Exhaling, he swung his sword and unleashed a stream of flames that washed over the three-headed dog from the side. The monster bellowed as it was engulfed in the inferno, blindly striking out in hopes of landing a lucky hit, but Angelica was far too skilled to fall for that.

    She backtracked a little, her sword glowing for a moment before she cut through the flank of the massive hound with her white flames, which erupted into a gigantic crescent of superheated energies. The sacred fire didn''t just burn its target ¨C it appeared to have the effect of purifying the Cerberus''s demonic aura and weakening it.

    But it wasn''t weakened enough. Even upon sustaining such damage, the Cerberus continued to pose a formidable threat. While Angelica engaged the three heads at the front, conjuring a white firewall to block its inevitable sonic assault, Shun Yin was forced to deal with the writhing giant serpent of a tail at the back.

    When the serpent darted at him, its venomous fangs poised to sink into his flesh. Without any immunity or resistance to poison, Shun Yin couldn''t afford even a single hit. Gritting his teeth, he dug his feet in and unleashed a wave of flames that scorched the serpent, blackening its scales and causing it to withdraw with an angry hiss.

    "Huff¡­"

    Shun Yin spun about and dodged a kick from the Cerberus''s right hind leg, the claws gouging out three tunnels in the reinforced concrete. Jumping high above, he infused his sword with a tremendous pillar of fire that surged outward and left a molten trail in the ceiling. With a determined yell, he swung his sword and the massive pillar of flames upon the Cerberus.

    The serpent whipped out at him in an attempt to stop him, but he merely shifted his aim and cut it down. The tail-snake hissed in agony as it was engulfed by a tsunami of flames and charred even blacker than before.

    However, it remained intact and very much alive. Terribly wounded, yes, but not at all discouraged from attacking. Shun Yin suspected that even if he cut off the tail, the serpent could probably split off from the main body and live on its own as an individual organism.

    "Do you have any idea on how to slay a spirit?" he called out to Angelica, who was fighting off three heads at the same time. She was weaving elegantly through their snapping jaws, evading their fangs and attacks with an amazing grace while punishing their efforts with cuts and abrasions across their faces, her blade penetrating the thick coat of fur that normally protected them from conventional attacks.

    Angelica scoffed at his question.

    "You can''t slay a spirit," she informed him coldly. "You have to slay the vessel. But even if you kill the vessel or the host, the spirit will not die. It will merely return to its dimension. It cannot be slain by conventional magic or normal means."

    Angelica paused for a moment to assess the situation, and then she sighed.

    "Worse, this spirit monster is worse than the one you fought in Vermillion Aquarium. Normally, vessels that are fused with spirits will burn out very quickly, the spirit consuming their life force at an alarming rate and thus expiring after a short time. However, the Assassins Guild and the Dark Church, working in conjunction, have developed a way to tether the spirit to our dimension without it necessarily burning out the life force of its host. By binding it to a human summoner through a contract, they can anchor the spirit to this world without it needing to consume the host''s life force and essence. And the summoner can call upon them any time he or she wants."

    "They¡­what?"

    "There''s not much of a difference between the two except that the summoner method is more efficient and doesn''t require us to expend considerable resources, sacrificing a host every time we need to summon a spirit to our world. Either way, the spirit can be¡­exorcized by destroying the vessel that contains it."

    "Yeah, and I''m asking how we can destroy this thing." Shun Yin tried not to let his frustration seep into his voice. Angelica shook his head.

    "I know. But it''s not so simple. The reason I''m telling you this is because there''s another key difference between the two types of summoning. If a contract has been established, even if you destroy the host, the spirit can be summoned again by the summoner who made a contract with it, with the condition that he or she finds a new host for it to materialize in our dimension once more. However, this in itself presents us with an opportunity and exposes the one disadvantage that a contract-type summoning has over the sacrificial-type summoning. In such a case, the most efficient way to permanently stop the spirit from being summoned to our dimension is to assassinate the summoner. Just like how you would deal with normal summoners who call forth Soul Beasts to aid them in combat."

    "So where is the summoner of this Cerberus?" Shun Yin demanded. Angelica shrugged indifferently.

    "I don''t know. I am aware of his identity, though. He''s a priest of the Dark Church. I know for sure he''s not one of the Assassins. They have moved beyond experimenting and fusing monsters with spirits."

    There was something in her voice that told him that the Assassins had progressed to something far worse than monster experimentation, but this wasn''t the time for Shun Yin to ask for an elaboration. He ducked the venomous fangs of the serpent before slashing its neck and rupturing an artery. His flames, however, ended up cauterizing the wound instead, so there was no chance of the serpent bleeding out.

    That was fine. He was aware that the spirit monster wouldn''t die from such grievous wounds. It would find a way to seal its own injuries with mana or something.

    "So what do you suggest we do? You''re the one with the most knowledge regarding these spirits and new type of monsters."

    "Just like every other monster¡­we can destroy it through the application of overwhelming power and brute force."

    Shun Yin tried not to roll his eyes. If it was that simple, then he would have exterminated the spirit monster already.

    "We have to find the summoner."

    "He knows the weakness of his magic. What makes you think he''ll be hanging around here, in plain sight?"

    "He can''t be far." Shun Yin remembered the weaknesses and limitations of summoning magic, especially since he had fought alongside and against Glen many times. "He can only be a maximum of a hundred meters away from his summoned spirit. Any more and he wouldn''t be able to maintain the existence of his Soul Beast. Not unless contracted spirits aren''t bound to the same kind of restrictions as normal summoners."

    "Don''t worry. They are. In order for them to be anchored firmly in this world and maintain their existence here, they can''t be too far from their summoner. The problem is that, in a place like this, there are plenty of hiding places."

    "¡­right." Shun Yin glanced around skeptically. The walls had been ravaged and devastated by the combined onslaught from both the Cerberus and the human mages. He was surprised that they hadn''t accidentally opened up a hole into some room where the summoner might just be happening to seek shelter in.

    If only they could be so lucky.

    Movement at the corner of his eye caught his attention. He saw Angelica being pressured and backed to the wall by the snapping, biting jaws of the three heads, and he accelerated toward the creature.

    The serpent tail lunged at him, but he sliced it off at the base of the tail, the flames wreathing his sword erupting into what seemed like a volcanic stream. The tail wailed as it crashed onto the ground, writhing and flailing as it was enveloped in flames and incinerated into ash.

    The Cerberus howled in pain at the sudden loss of its tail and whirled around to confront the new threat. Flipping himself over one of the heads, Shun Yin delivered another devastating strike with his sword, the volcanic stream of fire rushing toward the Cerberus¡­

    ¡­only for one of the heads to intercept it with its teeth, its jaws clamping down on the blazing sword and stopping it flat.

    "!!!"

    Shun Yin struggled to yank his sword free of the Cerberus''s jaws, but it held firm. The other heads twisted about to take a bite out of him. Realizing that he would be forced to relinquish his sword, Shun Yin made to let go and dodge, but¡­

    "?!"

    White flames surged past him and bathed the other two heads, causing them to yelp. Even the third head recoiled, its maw yawning just a fraction of a centimeter for Shun Yin to quickly yank his sword free. Backing away, Shun Yin withdrew to Angelica''s position and took up another defensive stance, getting ready to protect her.

    Not that she needed his protection.

    "Are you all right?"

    "Yeah." Angelica nodded. "Thanks. You saved me."

    Despite himself, Shun Yin couldn''t help but grin. It felt like so long ago since they were this candid with each other. Nine years, in fact. "You saved me too. We''re even."

    "I''m not going to bother keeping count." The two of them were forced to weave and dodge through the Cerberus''s attacking heads. Splitting up, they went on either side of the Cerberus and withdrew to a distance. The monster hesitated for a moment, not knowing who to chase after, but it eventually did a full 180 to face both of them when they reunited a good distance away, behind it. Snarling, it unleashed a howl with all three heads, assaulting them with a sonic wave.

    Angelica didn''t bother to dodge. She merely raised her sword and conjured a white firewall that completely halted the sonic attack in its tracks. Shun Yin watched in wonder as the purifying effects of the white flames negated the demonic mana that was used to cast that spell.

    However, they couldn''t just defend. They also needed a way to attack. Gripping his sword, he got ready to cast another bigger spell, but Angelica reached out with her free hand and took his left hand while smiling.

    "Wait."

    "Eh?"

    "Earlier, I said we can destroy this monster with overwhelming power, right?" Her smile widened. "There''s a way for us to amplify the strength of our spells to the extent where we can completely obliterate it."

    "How?"

    Angelica''s green eyes seemed to sparkle mischievously as she paused for just one second before replying.

    "Resonance."

 234 Chapter 234: Resonance

    "Huh?" Shun Yin gaped at Angelica, confused for a moment. He wasn''t sure he had heard her correctly. "What the hell is resonance?"

    "What, you never watched Sousei no Onmyouji or something?"

    "I did, but I didn''t know you were a fan of anime. Besides, this is reality, not a manga. Or the anime adaptation."

    Angelica rolled her eyes and tightened her grip on his hand. "Just keep quiet and cooperate with me already. Synchronize your mana with mine. This is pretty easy to screw up on."

    The Cerberus wasn''t going to wait patiently for them, however. Even as its sonic assault faltered against Angelica''s white firewall, it continued to lunge forward. Shun Yin was aware that it was perfectly capable of smashing through the firewall with brute force and its sheer bulk.

    He didn''t have a choice. He had to trust in Angelica and hope she knew what she was doing. Taking a deep breath, he circulated the mana in his body and adjusted it to flow in tandem with hers. Their mana coalesced in their linked hands, glowing hotly as crimson and white merged into a flaring sun that illuminated the dim corridor with blinding fire.

    The Cerberus howled as it tried to skid to a stop, instinctively recognizing the danger, but the two human mages swung their swords in unison. The crimson and white flames from their blades merged into a ferocious torrent that engulfed the Cerberus and instantly incinerated it. The creature howled in agony as its form rapidly disintegrated under the intense heat.

    "Amazing¡­"

    Shun Yin watched the incredible spectacle in disbelief, not daring to trust his eyes. The combined spells wasn''t just the sum of his and Angelica''s attacks. Her Resonance method had amplified their merged spells by several times, more than quadrupling its power. No wonder the Cerberus wasn''t able to withstand it.

    The remnants of its corpse drifted away, the massive monster reduced to nothing more than ash. Other than the scorched patch that covered the cratered floor, there was no sign that it ever existed. Not even the presence of a spirit leaving its destroyed host and fleeing back to its dimension. Then again, Shun Yin didn''t know why he should expect such a thing to begin with.

    "We did it."

    He let go of Angelica''s hand. Or was she the first to let go of his? He wasn''t sure. Nonetheless, he felt reluctant to release her hand, his fingers still feeling the comfortable warmth of hers. It had been a while since they had such intimate contact.

    Had it really been nine years? It felt like an eternity.

    Then Shun Yin realized something.

    "If you do this, then aren''t you blowing your cover?"

    "It can''t be helped." Angelica shook her head somewhat bitterly. "I had to stop them, or Vermillion City will be doomed."

    "You were a double agent from the start." It was a statement, not a question. Shun Yin was slowly piecing everything from what he had heard from Michael. "You joined this¡­Dark Church in order to foil their plans."

    "That was the eventual goal, yes. Though¡­" Angelica smiled. "I did have my own personal reasons for using them. Unfortunately, the deception is up. In order to prevent the Emergence event, I made my move, but I underestimated them. The Assassins aren''t the only ones capable of fighting. The Dark Church priests contain a lot of power too."

    She glanced at the ash laid out over the blackened crater, her expression wistful. Sighing heavily, she turned toward the door that the Cerberus was guarding.

    "I didn''t think the Dark Church would make use of the spirit summoning technology as well. The whole reason they hired the Assassins Guild was because they didn''t have many combat-capable mages to begin with."

    Shun Yin raised an eyebrow at that, but he had to admit that it made some sense. The Assassins'' services couldn''t possibly come cheap. To justify that kind of extravagant expenses and tremendous amount of resources, the Dark Church must have seen no other alternatives. Or they could afford to throw away tons of money.

    Somehow he doubted the latter. Anyone that rich wouldn''t want to destroy the world. Then again, what did he know? Some men just want to watch the world burn.

    The surge in mana behind the door drew his attention back to his objective. Shun Yin gritted his teeth.

    "We have to hurry! It seems like they are beginning the process!"

    "I concur." Angelica nodded. "But be careful. There should be a few Dark Church priests protecting the machine."

    The both of them sprinted across the remaining length of the corridor and reached the door. Whirling around, Shun Yin kicked the door down after augmenting his physical strength with a physical reinforcement spell. He then barged into the room with his sword outstretched, the blade once again igniting fiercely.

    In the center of the room was a massive contraption that resembled some kind of gate or portal. Huge amounts of mana were coiling around the center, turning into some sort of translucent dimensional doorway. Shun Yin caught a glimpse of things writhing and moving on the other side of the screen, monstrous limbs and hellish fires burning atop a barren landscape.

    "Surtr''s realm, Muspelheim," Angelica whispered when she also caught sight of what existed on the other side of the doorway.

    "You¡­!"

    A robed figure glided forward, jabbing an accusatory finger at her. He was a bit on the short and chubby side, wearing thick, heavy clothing appropriate for his office as a priest, except that the fabric was dyed an ominous black instead of a pure white. Dark rings with portentously gleaming gems decorated his stubby fingers.

    "Traitor!" the dark priest spat. "We welcomed you to our ranks, even aided you in eliminating the majority of the Porter clan, and this is how you repay us?!"

    Angelica inclined her head slightly. "I am very grateful to you for allowing me access to the summoning technology you used me to steal, as well as lending me troops from the Assassins Guild."

    The dark priest''s face turned purple, but he continued to rant furiously, his eyes shifting from Angelica to Shun Yin.

    "And you killed my dog! The both of you! My beloved Fido! How dare you!"

    "Huh?" Shun Yin blinked for a second, and then he suddenly understood. "That Cerberus-type monster was your¡­dog?"

    "I''ll kill you!" the dark priest wailed, gesticulating angrily. "I''ll kill you for slaying my Fido! How dare you¡­!"

    Shun Yin stared at him blankly, a little taken aback by his vehemence. Angelica stepped in to explain.

    "Even though I said they perfected the summoning technology and solved the problem of burning out the hosts by establishing contracts, it''s not as if they can just create a contract by using anybody or anything as a host. The vessel that contains the spirit must be someone close to the summoner in order for the spirit to be firmly anchored to this dimension. It is the strong emotional attachments between the summoner and the host that allows the spirit to be tethered to this world and bind it to the summoner''s will. It often demands a great¡­sacrifice."

    "And in this case, this guy used his beloved pet as the vessel for the spirit the Dark Church summoned." Shun Yin was nodding in understanding. Angelica shrugged.

    "That''s right, but I find it difficult to understand how he has such strong emotional affection for a mere dog."

    "It wasn''t just a dog!" the dark priest growled. Angelica rolled her eyes, but before she could retort, Shun Yin hurriedly interjected.

    "You didn''t hear about the ex-assassin who basically wiped out an entire mafia in New York in just a couple of nights because the mafia boss''s son was stupid enough to murder his dog and steal his car?"

    "¡­huh?"

    "Never mind. I ought to bring you to the Continental one day."

    "Shut up!" the dark priest roared, drowning out any response Angelica could muster to Shun Yin''s cryptic statement. He gestured for his subordinates to step forward. "Kill them both! Show no mercy! Don''t let them anywhere near the transdimensional device!"

    "So it''s the transdimensional device now? I thought it was the Dokodemo (Anywhere) Door the last time? Did you guys change the name?"

    "Shut up!"

    Even as the dark priest snarled, a few of his followers, all clad in hooded robes that were much simpler than his extravagant setup (Shun Yin reckoned they probably meant to look like monks or something), took a step forward. Elemental magic circled their hands as they chanted incessantly to cast devastating spells.

    Too late! Shun Yin realized. They''re already close to completing their spells!

    He kicked himself for not noticing them. While he was busily talking with Angelica and the dark priest, his followers had used that time to cast their spells. Any spell he cast in the next few seconds before they unleashed theirs wouldn''t be powerful enough to stop them. He and Angelica would have to rely on evasion¡­

    "¡­eh?"

    He felt Angelica grab his hand. She smiled and nodded at him, and he understood what she was trying to do. Taking a deep breath, Shun Yin calmed down and allowed his mana to flow in synch with Angelica''s.

    "DIE!" the dark priest roared, and as if on cue, his followers unleashed their bombardment of elemental spells. Fire, lightning, icicles, wind and razor-sharp leaves blasted toward the couple (?) in a deadly line, threatening to encircle and overwhelm them.

    However, Angelica swung her sword and unleashed a torrent of white flames that was made from fusing her mana with Shun Yin''s. Their Resonance technique amplified the otherwise basic spell by several times and allowed it to swallow the tide of elemental spells, washing across the diverse volley of magical projectiles.

    "!!!"

    The followers of the Dark Church scattered, trying to avoid the remnants of the white flames that washed over their failed bombardment and nearly incinerated a couple of them.

    "Fuck! What the hell was that?!" the dark priest demanded, but no one had the luxury of answering his question. They were either trying to dodge white fire or busily casting yet another spell. Even so, the self-important dark priest continued to futilely deliver orders. "Rally, all of you! Form another defensive line! We can''t let those two¡­"

    He never got to finish his sentence.

    Feeling Angelica''s mana surge into him, Shun Yin swung his sword and unleashed a devastating stream of crimson flames. This time, his spell was directed at the Dokodemo Door whose mana intensity was growing with every second, and the dimensional doorway becoming less translucent. Before the first of the fiery monsters on the other side could cross over, Shun Yin''s flames washed over the device and obliterated it.

    "NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

    The dark priest howled when he witnessed firsthand the destruction of his organization''s efforts. The dimensional gateway vanished, as if it had never been there, and the massive amount of mana used to power the device combusted spontaneously, consuming the entire machine in a hellish inferno that melted and warped metal and disintegrated more delicate mechanisms within. The room was enveloped in a roiling cloud of flames that caught several of the fleeing scientists and even a couple of the robed followers, immolating them. Their fiery figures thrashed about as they wailed in agony for a few seconds before toppling over, their skin either blackening or melting right off.

    The remaining followers of the Dark Church, including their head priest, immediately began to back away. In fact, the dark priest spun around and bolted for the nearest exit ¨C at least the one that wasn''t currently blocked by Shun Yin and Angelica.

    "Where do you think you''re going?" Angelica asked sweetly, the tip of her sword stabbing onto the floor. "If I recall, you were planning on drowning the world in fire. How about I give you a taste of what that feels like?"

    Using Resonance, she engulfed the entire laboratory in a sea of flames, burning every single occupant save Shun Yin and herself. The dark priest shrieked as he was set ablaze, his expensive and ridiculous black robes catching fire and combusting rapidly. The dark color absorbed the heat even more quickly than white fabric would, embroiling him in an intensified inferno that reduced him into a blazing husk.

    Not even his bones were left. His ash slowly drifted apart amidst the sea of fire.

    "¡­well¡­" Shun Yin shrugged as he reluctantly let go of Angelica''s hand. "I guess that poor guy just got¡­fired."

 235 Chapter 235: Far from Over

    "Stuart Swordsmanship, First Stance."

    Lionel Stuart had his eyes closed and his hand placed on the hilt of his katana, crouching low as he prepared to draw his sword.

    "Ten Thousand Splinters."

    In a flash, tens of thousands of razor-sharp splinters rained down upon the giant Shaggrowth, peppering it with deadly destruction.

    "Stuart Swordsmanship, Seventh Stance."

    This time, a blizzard of petals swirled around Lionel in an elegant manner, a myriad of colors filling the air.

    "Blossoms of Life and Death."

    The millions of petals swallowed the gigantic Shaggrowth, behaving like a single, enormous living tide. The dark creature wailed with a bubbly noise before it was consumed and disintegrated by the mystical petals.

    "Hmph."

    Sheathing his sword, Lionel turned away from the completely annihilated Soul Beast and watched the battle between his friend, Yuan Dao Yue Guang, and Ying Bu Si. The Umbra Assassin was getting pinned and obliterated by his longtime buddy. Another punch grazed his cheek, leaving a trail of blood streaming downward.

    "That hurt!" Ying Bu Si complained, still as flippant as ever despite losing his Soul Beast and getting increasingly cornered by his opponent. Yuan Dao Yue Guang did not fall for his tricks and continued to pummel him mercilessly, knocking the multiple shadowy appendages aside with nothing but his fists.

    Stomping on the ground and changing his stance, he punched through another net of shadows, his fist smashing through the hastily conjured barrier and catching Ying Bu Si in the chest. The latter vomited blood as he was sent hurtling across the air before landing untidily on a heap.

    "Whoa¡­I really didn''t expect this." he tried to get up, but grimaced and held his chest before coughing out another mouthful of blood. "I never thought there would be a human capable of fighting so many of my shadows with nothing but his bare hands. Even though I''ve attacked you from so many different directions, you deflected every single one of them. What are you, some kind of prodigy? No, you''re a monster."

    Yue Guang didn''t bother responding to his compliments or taunt, merely impassively charging forward and punching through another web of shadows that Ying Bu Si rapidly summoned to aid him. Twisting around, he kicked the Umbra Assassin just as he was getting up, smashing his knee into his chest and causing him to double over. Without missing a beat, Yue Guang whirled around and delivered a roundhouse kick that caught Ying Bu Si at his neck, smashing him onto the ground.

    "Ugh¡­what monstrous strength!"

    Lying on the ground, stunned, Ying Bu Si raised his head slightly. Parts of his body were literally missing, having been obliterated by the sheer, overwhelming power of Yue Guang''s barrage of attacks. Thin threads of shadows tried futilely to rejoin and weave his broken body back together, but they dissipated before long.

    "Armament Ba Qi¡­truly a terrifying skill indeed. I can''t believe you were able to hone Ba Qi to such an extent that you can physically destroy my otherwise elemental body and disrupt the mana flow of the enchantments."

    Yue Guang silenced him by stomping on his head, but Ying Bu Si quickly rolled away. Even when fatally wounded, he was still able to evade and move. An incredible feat that demonstrated his amazing tenacity.

    However, the burly bodyguard was far from impressed. He methodically pressed on with his attack, relentless and merciless. When his stomp missed, he was already calculating and executing his next attack, a kick that swerved from the opposite direction and right into the trajectory of Ying Bu Si''s writhing body.

    "?!"

    Ying Bu Si wasn''t able to muster a witty remark when Yue Guang''s foot caught him fully in the face, lifting his body up and sending it flying like an arrow into the air. his jaw shattered and blood streaming from his nose and mouth, the Assassin tried to flip himself up in midair and right himself.

    However, he wasn''t given any chance to recover. As he struggled to halt his momentum, he found himself bursting into a storm of vividly colored flower petals.

    For the first time, Ying Bu Si''s face paled and he lost his composure.

    "Oh, shit."

    The flower petals closed upon him, their razor-sharp edges slicing into him and utterly destroying him. Even with his elemental, shadowy body, Ying Bu Si wasn''t able to withstand the ferocious spell, which was also imbued with formidable amounts of Armament Ba Qi that ignored his normally intangible and elemental form to cut him apart.

    However, even as he was disintegrating, Ying Bu Si managed one final parting remark.

    "See you on the other side, young men. I''ll be waiting in hell for you."

    With a peal of laughter, he vanished as Lionel Stuart''s petals utterly annihilated and erased his existence from Earth.

    "I am sorry for taking so long to finish off my enemy, to the point where you had to intervene." Yue Guang lowered his head apologetically as he turned to face the approaching Lionel. "I am ashamed of my deficiencies."

    "Nonsense." Lionel snorted. "You had the battle well in hand, and were perfectly capable of eliminating that bastard in another few minutes. I just thought I should save us some more time so that we can get to the bottom of the temple as quickly as possible. That kid from earlier might need our help. Besides¡­" he grinned. "I''m the one who should be ashamed for claiming the easier fight. Even though that monster was big, it was pretty simple-minded and easy to destroy. That Umbra Assassin was one hell of a sneaky bastard, and if you hadn''t given me an opportunity to launch a surprise attack, even I wouldn''t be confident of killing him with one spell."

    "Everybody! Are you all right!?"

    A beautiful girl was jogging toward them, and she immediately went for Yue Guang to help him up.

    "We are, Zi Yang," Yue Guang assured his girlfriend. She scowled.

    "Sit down for a moment and let me heal you!"

    Lionel watched the couple for a moment, his expression unreadable. However, his eyes clearly lingered on Zi Yang''s gorgeous form for a few seconds more than necessary, and he forced himself to turn away to assess the situation of his comrades. Depending on how they fared, he would either assist them or if they had the matter well in hand, he would proceed downstairs to help Huang Shun Yin destroy the device.

    Michael Porter was still clashing with the relatively skilled Assassin, but he evidently held the upper hand. The latter had cuts all over his body, but he wasn''t bleeding because the sheer heat from the flames of Michael''s sword had instantly cauterized the wounds. Above, the Vermillion Phoenix was overwhelming the ghost-type Soul Beast by bathing it in flames and minimizing the amount of shadows it could escape into.

    It wouldn''t be long before its defenses crumbled.

    As for Glen Porter and his White Tiger, he was still struggling against a superior number of foes, even if these weren''t necessarily the elite Assassins. In fact, judging from their skills, they were most likely rookie Assassins, fresh out of the training programs in their sects¡­no, they might even be trainees from the various sects, sent out on official missions to gain invaluable combat experience.

    As talented as Glen was, he was also still very young and relatively inexperienced. Realizing that, Lionel stepped forward to aid him. The greenhorn Assassins didn''t even realize that he was intervening, even as he swung his sword and unleashed a couple of them with his Stuart Swordsmanship, slaying them before their comrades even knew they were under attack.

    "What the¡­?!"

    The remaining Assassins turned around to face the new threat. Again, as expected of a relatively untested youth, Glen paused to stare at Lionel in shock instead of calmly continuing the battle and seizing the opportunity to take his opponents out while they were still reeling from the surprise attack from behind. Even his White Tiger stopped, its mind controlled by its summoner.

    Fortunately, Glen was a quick learner, especially when he met the hard gaze of Lionel, and he mentally commanded his White Tiger to dispatch the Assassins while they were staring and trying to deal with their latest assailant. Lightning seared forward and struck them, electrocuting them. While they went into convulsions, Lionel mercilessly finished them off with his sword, leaving a trail of flower petals and blossoms behind as he cut them down.

    "Thank you." Glen hurriedly joined Lionel, breathless from his earlier exertion. His White Tiger remained on the prowl, searching for any more enemies as a precaution.

    "You don''t have to thank me."

    "But I do," Glen protested. "I don''t know how much longer I could hold on for."

    "Get Zi Yang to look at your wounds and heal you," Lionel instructed, not in the mood to argue or make small talk. He looked at her again distractedly, feeling something stir in his loins, and then forced himself to look away when Yue Guang came into the picture. Taking a deep breath, he smiled at Glen. "You did a good job there, kid. I don''t know of anybody your age who can survive a prolonged battle against not just one but several Assassins. Well done."

    He didn''t mention that these were most likely rookie or trainee Assassins. He knew how unwise it would be to damage Glen''s morale and confidence at this crucial juncture. In any case, Lionel was being sincere. Even if they were mere trainees, they were still Assassins trained in the sects of top killers. A kid like Glen surviving against them was no mean feat. It was something to celebrate and praise.

    There was a tremendous explosion above. Without even turning to look, Lionel knew that the Vermillion Phoenix had finally defeated the Ghost-type Soul Beast. On the ground, Michael finally hacked off the arm of his opponent, causing the Umbra Assassin to fall silently to his knees and clutch his cauterized stump. Despite himself, Lionel was impressed. It took incredible mental fortitude and discipline for that Assassin to prevent himself from crying out upon receiving such an agonizing injury.

    Then again, he was long aware of how terrifying the Assassins of the Guild were.

    "!!!"

    He suddenly turned around when he sensed the implosion of mana. The incredible amount of mana pulsing below the Phoenix Temple had vanished, as if something had swallowed it¡­or it had never existed to begin with.

    Yue Guang noticed it too. He nodded wearily and smiled.

    "It seems that the kid succeeded."

    "Yes. Very impressive." Lionel agreed, thoroughly impressed. Earlier, he was pretty sure that the kid had encountered a huge obstacle. The mana signatures were faint and difficult to sense, especially from this distance, but there unmistakably was a very powerful enemy below, which had been exterminated shortly before he destroyed the gigantic Shaggrowth. Come to think of it, he had also picked up a second presence who appeared to have assisted the kid.

    But ultimately he was not a god, and thus he didn''t possess the omnipresence that a god would have.

    "Nonetheless, we should go check them out," Michael said tiredly as he lowered his sword. The Umbra Assassin, sensing a momentary opening, lunged at him, but Michael casually swung his blade and decapitated the killer before his shadowy blade could reach him. He grimaced when he realized he had acted on instinct and beheaded the Assassin he had planned on apprehending and interrogating later. "Damn it."

    "He''s an Assassin. He wouldn''t have told you anything anyway."

    "¡­right." Michael must be wondering if Lionel had read his mind, but the latter was merely stating the obvious. After all, he would have probably done the same if he wanted to collect information on his enemy. Even if he knew it was unlikely for the Assassin to spill his secrets and rat out on his Guild, it was still worth a try.

    At that moment, Shun Yin and Angelica emerged from the hatch that the former had gone through earlier.

    "Angie! You¡­!"

    Glen started forward, but Michael held him back with a raised hand. He regarded her grimly for a moment, and then nodded with a sigh of relief.

    "You stopped them from triggering the artificial Emergence event."

    "That''s right," Shun Yin confirmed.

    "Great!" Glen brightened up. He still cast a wary glance at Angelica, but he looked immensely relieved. "We''ve stopped them!"

    Lionel snorted. "Those bastards never stood a chance to begin with. The moment they made the ten great families their enemies, they were already signing their own death warrants."

    "So everything is over?" Yue Guang asked as he held Zi Yang''s hand tightly.

    "No." Angelica shook her head. "It''s far from over. This is just the beginning."

    "What do you mean by that?" Lionel demanded with a scowl. "Didn''t you stop them?"

    "We stopped the Dark Church from activating one of their prototypes for the transdimensional device," Angelica affirmed. "But as long as they still have the blueprint in their server, they will be able to construct new ones. We''ve to hunt them down and delete that blueprint to prevent them from manufacturing new devices."

    "In other words, we''ve to find their mainframe and cloud server, and then delete it from their computer terminals?" Zi Yang hazarded a guess.

    "Seems like it." Michael nodded and glanced at Angelica.

    Her shoulders sagged and she shook her head sadly.

    "It''ll be difficult to infiltrate them again. I''ve blown my cover. They now know I''m a double agent."

    "Double agent?" Glen blurted out. "Do you expect me to believe that?! You killed the clan elders and your own father! Do you think we''ll just accept that and welcome you back? That all that carnage was necessary for you to infiltrate this¡­insane organization?!"

    "Oh, no. You are right, of course." Angelica smiled evilly. "The Dark Church never cared about the Porter clan. That was my own desire¡­my own goal. It had nothing to do with the Dark Church. I was using the Dark Church to achieve the annihilation of the Porter clan."

    "You¡­!"

    "Enough," Michael cut in sharply. "We can talk about this later. Angie will have to face justice for her actions, I promise you that. But right now, we''ve to deal with this Dark Church and the Assassins Guild first, before they summon some calamity that will destroy the world. And Angie is the one with the most knowledge on them."

    "Yes." Angelica''s smile widened, but the expression only served to intensify the malice in her eyes. "Even though I won''t be able to infiltrate them, at least I know where their main headquarters and their main computer terminals are. It will take even an organization as big and resourceful as them time to dismantle and move everything¡­so I suggest we stop wasting any more time and strike them as soon as possible."

 236 Chapter 236: Final Assaul

    It took a few hours for the remnants of the Porter clan and the Start clan to organize an attack battalion, but they did as Angelica instructed and mustered a bunch of mage soldiery to launch one final assault on the place she designated as the current headquarters for the Dark Church.

    In the meantime, Shun Yin and the rest took the time to rest. Even though Michael and Lionel gave the orders, they were able to delegate the task to capable subordinates to plan and organize the mage battalion, particularly those who weren''t involved in the assault on the Phoenix Temple. They quickly used the time to recover their spent mana.

    "Make no mistake, this will be the toughest battle. I know you''ve faced quite formidable enemies in the Phoenix Temple, but the Assassins Guild will probably be reserving their biggest gun to protect the HQ."

    "Biggest gun?" Shun Yin noticed that she was using the word in its singular form. She nodded.

    "I mean, they used up their main forces for the Phoenix Temple, but I''m sure they''ll hold back their final weapon for the defense."

    Everyone exchanged glances, unsure of how to react. On one hand, they were relived there was only one thing they had to stay on guard against, but on the other hand they were aware that this wasn''t going to be any ordinary foe.

    Most likely it would be a lot more powerful than Ying Bu Si and his Soul Beast (which, honestly, was a little pathetic).

    Whatever the case, they steeled themselves and gathered in front of the underground facility a few miles outside of Vermillion City. The headquarters was a bunker that was built into the base of a mountain, surrounded by a forest inhabited by monsters.

    The monsters posed no threat to the Assassins, however. As expected, the Assassins were more than happy to navigate through treacherous terrain and dangerous monsters to keep their skills sharpened and on edge. It was a constant reminder to themselves on how dangerous it was to be an Assassin.

    And now they were probably facing the greatest threat ever since they declared the Porter clan their enemy and decided to work for the Dark Church.

    Just like the Assassins, the combat mages under the decimated Porter clan and the still powerful Stuart clan''s employ were just as powerful and skillful, having fought against monsters daily in the defense of the Global Federation and its citizens.

    "They know we''re here."

    That was Lionel''s first words when they gathered outside the massive door built into the foot of the mountain. Even though it was constricted out of reinforced material and steel, the Federation forces were confident of blowing it open. Super-heavy tanks trundled behind them, their sponson weapons and hull-mounted heavy bolters blasting a stream of reactive shells against monsters in the forest, slaying them in waves. Twin laser cannons spat ruby beams of destructive energies, scything down massive monsters reckless enough to rear their heads out of the forest, while the turret weapon unleashed titanic lances of superheated mana that tore colossal gouges out of the forest, annihilating entire hordes with each individual volley.

    Escorting the super-heavy tanks were smaller but no less sturdy Leonard Ruff heavy tanks, their turret plasma cannons assaulting monstrous foes with azure beams condensed from the fury of the sun. Their sponson plasma cannons, though smaller in scale, were no less destructive, and their hull laser cannons continued to cut down tyrannical monsters that survived the initial bombardment of superheated plasma.

    The forces of the Global Federation were not to be trifled with. They were the hammer of humanity, defending the race from the myriad of monsters that swarmed against them from Emergence events.

    And now that sheer mass of firepower was brought to bear against a sinister and no less monstrous enemy.

    While Shun Yin followed the infantry in Cerberus Armored Personnel Carriers, he ducked his head down when one of the Leonard Ruff tanks exploded nearby, its armored hull penetrated by a turbo-penetrator round from a Pavlichenko Assassin. The remaining tanks traversed their turrets to retaliate with a barrage of plasma at the place where the shot was fired. It was unlikely that the Pavlichenko Assassin survived, but one sniper for a tank was a worthwhile trade.

    "Damn¡­"

    Even as the ramp slammed down, allowing Shun Yin and the soldiers to disembark from the Cerberus, its laser turret rotated and lay down suppressing fire against the concealed snipers, trying to force them to keep their heads down. Even under the cover of such a devastating barrage, mages and soldiers went down beside Shun Yin, their heads blown apart by sniper rounds.

    Shun Yin had to admire the impeccable accuracy of the Pavlichenko Assassins. He cursed as he tried to cut down a sniper round with his sword, but it detonated and sprayed him with shrapnel. None of the shards cut through his protective aura, thankfully.

    "Over here!"

    Shun Yin raised his head when he heard Angelica''s voice. She was swinging her sword and detonating sniper rounds with a torrent of white flames from her sword, offering the infantry running alongside her some protection. She glanced in his direction and Shun Yin immediately understood. Kicking off the ground, he dove to her side. Weaving through a barrage of rounds, he reached her side and straightened himself up before casting another fire spell that incinerated a couple of soldiers who were sneaking up on them.

    "Eh? Why¡­?"

    Angelica''s voice trailed off when she saw the soldiers'' features melt away, revealing a completely different person within.

    "Deceivum Assassins," Shun Yin explained. "We''re aware that several of them may have infiltrated the ranks of the Federation Army, so we''re on guard against them."

    "So not only do we have to watch out for attacks from the enemy, we''ve to keep a lookout for betrayals from within."

    "Basically," Shun Yin agreed tiredly before swinging his sword and unleashing a volley of fire at a Pavlichenko Assassin perched atop the recess of the mountain, trying to use the rock as cover. He would find no protection amidst molten rock that burned through his synthetic suit and incinerated him.

    "We have to keep pushing!"

    "Trust me, I know. But they''re making it hard for us."

    Several bestial roars drew their attention to the front. A trio of Frenzor Assassins had stepped into the fore, slaughtering dozens of Mustered Soldiery with their neuro-gauntlets and machine guns. Even though such heavy weaponry would result in massive recoils, the heavily augmented Assassins wielded them single-handedly, their surgically enhanced physiology allowing them to compensate against the bone-breaking recoil and massive weight.

    The surviving soldiers responded with a massed barrage of laser bolts from their energy carbines, but the berserk Assassins shrugged off the small arms fire, their synthetic suits absorbing the worst of the impacts.

    "We''ve to help them," Shun Yin began but Angelica shook her head.

    "No. They can take care of themselves. We have to hurry into the headquarters and delete the data for the device''s blueprint, or none of us will be able to live peacefully again."

    With the ability to artificially trigger Emergence events at any time and any place, none of the human cities would be safe again. That was why Angelica regarded the issue so urgently. Shun Yin understood that, but¡­

    "Don''t worry," Angelica assured him. "They might not be mages, but they are soldiers. They won''t die that easily."

    Right after she spoke, a Leonard Ruff tank bellowed, its plasma weapons vomiting blue steams of superheated energies. One of the Frenzor Assassin simply ceased to exist, despite his lightning reflexes trying to get him out of the way in time. The sheer destructive power of the plasma beams incinerated his entire body in less than a millisecond.

    "See?"

    "Yeah, yeah." Shun Yin conceded, and then accompanied her run as they broke out of cover and sprinted past the furiously combating soldiers and Assassins. The death toll was staggering, and Shun Yin could see literally hundreds of corpses littering the battlefield.

    One of the super-heavy tanks battered the reinforced doors, the volcanic lance from its massive turret weapon vaporizing the metal and leaving red-hot shards of molten material dripping onto the ground. Careful not to hurt himself on the still steaming edges, Shun Yin checked for enemies before hurdling into the mountain base.

    "Oh, you kids got here earlier than we did!"

    "Mr. Lionel!"

    Shun Yin spun around at the voice. The next head of the Stuart family was strolling in, a storm of petals trailing him and his sword. As ever, his trusty bodyguard, Yuan Dao Yue Guang, was nearby, punching away Umbra Assassins that struck out from the shadows.

    Lionel waved his hand, almost as if in embarrassment.

    "Ditch the mister. We''re all comrades here, fighting against the same enemy and trying to save the world. Anyway, Miss Angelica, you said this is the place, right?"

    "That''s correct." Angelica pursed her lips as she stared into the darkness. Already she was casting a white firewall spell to defend them from a sneak attack from the shadows. In a place like this, there were plenty of places for the Umbra Assassins to hide. "The computer mainframe should be at the back of this base. But be careful, they have laid out quite the welcoming party."

    "It doesn''t matter." Michael had joined in, with Glen following closely. "We''re going to blow all of them away. Vermillion Phoenix!"

    His Soul Beast burst into existence, flooding the entire passageway with blinding illumination and crimson fire. Assassins shuffled and dove around in the dark as flames washed over their previous positions. Those unlucky enough not to be able to get away in time were incinerated, but many more remained.

    "White Tiger!"

    Glen''s Soul Beast might not be as powerful as his cousin''s but it was no less impressive. A storm of lightning filled the area they were in, not only protecting them from attacks but also electrocuting a few Assassins who had gotten too close for their own safety.

    Having cleared the space for now, the two Porter mages stepped in. Behind them, platoons of infantry sprinted inside, unleashing laser bolts into the shadows and providing cover for the comrades who were following closely behind them. The first few squads dropped into position, taking up cover behind rubble caused by a combination of attacks from the super-heavy tank and the elite mages'' spells, and continued firing wildly into the shadows. While the Assassins were being suppressed, the rest of the soldiers moved in before setting up in new positions to cover their comrades. In this way, they moved in a staggered manner and advanced forward.

    "Ugh!"

    "Medic! Healer!"

    "Over here!"

    "Watch out!"

    Despite their disciplined advance, the soldiers were beset by Assassins from all over. They became embroiled in close-range melee, with many resorting to fixing bayonets and trying to stab the more skillful Assassins. The infantry were taking horrific losses, but the elite mages at the head of the group continued to push through.

    "Over there!"

    Ignoring the deaths and agony about them, Angelica plunged forward, her insider knowledge of the enemy allowing her to lead the way. However, she was forced to skid to a stop when something blasted at her. Initially, she raised a hand to cast a white firewall to halt the projectile in midair.

    "?!"

    Angelica skidded backward and dodged when her white firewall simply ceased to exist. Frowning at the anomaly, she glanced at the front.

    "Holy f¡­!" Glen cursed as he caught up with her. "Just what kind of spell is capable of punching through your Sacred Firewall spell?!"

    "No, it wasn''t destroyed by a spell." Shun Yin also reached the both of them, his sword raised grimly as he scanned for the enemy.

    "You have sharp eyes, Shun Yin." Angelica nodded as she also kept an eye out for her assailant. "Rather than penetrate my Sacred Firewall, that spell¡­reversed time¡­it rewound my spell to a time when I hadn''t cast it yet."

    "Time magic? Just who is capable of casting such a spell?" Lionel wondered out loud.

    "¡­we''re about to find out," Angelica murmured as two figures emerged from the shadows to face them.

 237 Chapter 237: Itâ€™s Time

    "So it''s true¡­you really have betrayed the Dark Church¡­Angelica."

    Angelica stiffened at the familiar voice, and recognition dawned upon her. Swallowing her bitterness and regret, she nodded.

    "Even you must realize that those dark priests are insane. Do you really intend to help them destroy the world?"

    "We are bound by our contract. If we break off a contract every time we disagree with the client, then our honor as Assassins, our¡­reliability and reputation will be destroyed. We pride ourselves on working all the way to the very end to fulfil the terms of the contract. It''s not something we can just discard just because our client does something we don''t agree with."

    "This isn''t a simple matter of agreement or disagreement! Innocents will die! The world will be destroyed! Humanity will be annihilated!"

    "We are Assassins," the lady replied with an ironic smile. "Our hands are already stained with the blood of countless. A reason like ''the death of innocents'' isn''t enough to sway us from our path."

    "¡­true." Angelica took a deep breath. "I''m sorry that it has to come to this, Serena. But unlike you, I don''t care about honor or pride. I''m not going to help a group of nutcases destroy the world."

    "¡­you fight for the person you love, don''t you?" Serena Wright smiled, but her expression was full of sorrow. "Honestly¡­I admire you, Angelica. My husband and I do¡­"

    Angelica froze when the other person came into view. Beside Serena, Cronus stood tall and hulking, but there was something clearly different about him.

    "You¡­what have you done?"

    "Only what was necessary."

    Power radiated from Cronus''s form, and he stared at the crew of mages, almost blankly. His eyes struggled to focus on Angelica, and he nodded.

    "It''s been a while."

    "Cronus, you¡­"

    "I''m afraid we don''t have the luxury to catch up with old friends," Lionel interrupted as he stepped forward. He held his sword up, the aura of a Green Dragon materializing behind him. "Head toward the computer mainframe, kids. Yue Guang and I will hold these two off."

    Yue Guang was already dashing forward, throwing a powerful punch that actually resulted in a powerful shockwave that tore a gouge through the ground. Cronus held up a hand and parried his fist, but the colossal impact sent tremors reverberating violently throughout the cavern.

    If Yue Guang was shocked that his punch was stopped so easily, he didn''t show it. Instead, the professional bodyguard yanked his hand out and continued to deliver a relentless barrage, attempting to pummel his opponent. Cronus blocked and deflected each and every one of them, but Yue Guang''s attacks only seemed to accelerate and grow more powerful as the Armament Ba Qi wreathing his arms thickened and grew denser.

    "Impressive." Cronus sounded amazed. "If I was still human, I would have been obliterated by your punches long ago."

    "Hmm¡­" Lionel stole a quick glance at the exchange, even as he lunged to slash his sword at Serena, but she blocked it with her spear. Instead, she twirled her long weapon about to keep him back, but he blasted her with a wave of petals that she managed to scythe down with her own Armament Ba Qi. "That man is really fast. I didn''t expect there to be someone capable of keeping up with Yue Guang''s speed."

    "That''s not speed," Serena quietly informed him as she thrust her spear forward. Lionel deflected it from his chest and answered with a riposte that she parried with the shaft of her weapon. A dark aura surrounded her to repel the razor-sharp petals that danced around the two of them.

    "¡­eh?"

    "She''s right." Yue Guang sprang apart from Cronus after the two exchanged a particularly violent punch that caused the cavern to tremble and rocks to fall from the ceiling. "He''s not using any physical enhancement spell to increase his speed. It feels different somehow¡­" he frowned as he tried to analyze his opponent''s magic. "It''s as if he is slowing down time in his body and thus my movements appear as if in slow motion to him."

    "Time magic," Angelica whispered. Shun Yin raised an eyebrow and snorted, unable to stop himself from speaking out.

    "Time Alter, Double Accel? Or Triple Accel?"

    Angelica smacked him at the back of his head. "You''ve been watching way too much anime! Besides, that anime was like seven years ago! Never mind the two-cour Unlimited Blade Works anime adaptation that came two years after that, now we''re all looking forward to the third movie of the Heaven''s Feel route!"

    "Stop talking nonsense and focus on the battle!" Michael was surging ahead to engage the hulking figure of Cronus in battle, assisting Yue Guang. Flames erupted from his sword and engulfed the massive Assassin, but Cronus merely walked out of it.

    "How¡­?!" Glen gaped at the impossible sight. "He''s completely uninjured!"

    Yue Guang and Michael both jumped away as Cronus lunged forward and smashed the ground they were standing on. Rock shattered, but Shun Yin noticed something else. Despite the ground being pulverized from the sheer force of Cronus''s attack, the rock seemed to disintegrate. Not from the destructive power, but from something else¡­

    "That''s¡­"

    "Time magic," Angelica repeated. "By accelerating time, he can move the object forward into a future where it has crumbled away. Nothing lasts forever."

    "My Armament Ba Qi can resist the effects of his time magic," Yue Guang informed them, but he was breathing heavily. "But it expends a lot of my mana just to defend against him."

    "That''s correct." Cronus regarded Yue Guang, impressed. "Any normal mage would have grown old and turned into a corpse from my spells, but you were able to resist it with Ba Qi. I never imagined that would be a mage as powerful as you."

    "That''s impossible!" Michael blurted out. "No such time magic exists! At least not of that magnitude of power!"

    "That is correct. No such time magic exists in our world." Serena nodded and conceded while defending against Lionel''s sword strike. The Stuart clan''s next head narrowed his eyes when he caught the hidden meaning behind her words.

    "¡­our world, huh?"

    "Think about it. What if there exists other worlds other than ours? You already know of the hellish dimension that the monsters inhabit ¨C their home world that they live in before they invade ours through Emergence events."

    "But there''s no monster with such time magic¡­!" Glen protested hotly, only for Lionel to shake his head and cut him off.

    "That''s not it, kid. The lady here only mentioned the monsters'' dimension as an example, but before that she used the plural form¡­other worlds."

    "You''re pretty sharp." Cronus grinned as he swung his fists, knocking both Yue Guang and Michael aside. "That''s right. There exist other dimensions besides ours and the monsters''. This power, this time magic comes from there."

    "Spirits!" Angelica muttered, even as she joined Lionel in attacking Serena, but she kept them at bay with her spinning spear before unleashing a wave of greenish-black spells that forced the two to defend themselves. "You summoned a spirit¡­and Cronus, you sacrificed yourself to become its vessel!"

    "You don''t sound very surprised."

    "I already knew what you and Serena had done ever since I first saw you." Angelica kept her voice calm and level, but rage flared up in her ruby eyes. "I was the one who brought the spirit summoning technology to you. I had thought you guys would perfect it, but I never thought you would distort it into such an abomination."

    "Why would you want the Assassins to perfect the spirit summoning technology?!" Glen demanded, annoyed. "Delivering such a potent weapon to them¡­"

    "They have resources and magic that the Porter clan doesn''t have," Angelica explained, showing no sign of regret. "If there was anyone who could perfect the technology, it would be them."

    "And you planned to steal it from us and hand it back to your uncle," Serena concluded. When Angelica didn''t deny it, the female Assassin chuckled. "You really are quite the nice girl¡­is what I would like to say, but your hands are stained with blood as much as ours are soaked in it."

    "I never claimed to be innocent," Angelica replied coolly.

    "I don''t suppose you know if the spirit possessed guy has any weakness, Angie?" Michael asked as he warded off a punch from Cronus. He spun about to avoid the barrage of punches from the spirit host, and then whirled about to counter with a kick. Cronus didn''t even budge or stagger back from the flaming kick and instead retaliated with one of his own. Michael flipped about to avoid the huge foot, twisting in midair to slash at Cronus, but the massive guy merely deflected his blade with his bare hand. There wasn''t even a scratch despite the sharp edge of the blade seeming to slice deeply into his skin. Cursing, Michael glanced at Serena. "Or¡­is it the same as with normal summoners? Kill the summoner and the spirit will disappear along with her life?"

    "That is correct," Angelica admitted. "That aspect remains unchanged."

    "Good." Michael spun himself about as Cronus pursued him. Ramming both feet onto Cronus''s forearm, he propelled himself toward Serena, his sword ablaze. "Old man, I''ll leave this big guy to you!"

    "I''m not even that old!" Yue Guang protested, offended. "I''m only five or so years older than you, punk!"

    Michael didn''t pay him any attention, but Yue Guang grudgingly provided support, rushing forward to tackle Cronus when the huge Assassin sought to pursue the speeding fire mage. They grappled for a moment, with Cronus kicking Yue Guang off. The bodyguard clasped at his side and gasped, his physical reinforcement spell and Ba Qi unable to save him from sustaining a few cracked ribs.

    On the other side, Lionel leaped away when he saw Michael approaching, and he headed in the opposite direction ¨C as if trading places with the fire mage ¨C to support his bodyguard. The two passed each other, with Michael unleashing a blast of flames at Serena and Lionel launching a hail of razor-sharp petals at Cronus.

    Cronus merely endured the blizzard of deadly petals, smashing through them with his hulking form. Serena cleaved through the flames with her spear, and then launched a few ranged spells of her own, the greenish-black projectiles arcing to puncture Michael.

    However, Michael dropped onto the ground, thrusting the tip of his sword downward. Crimson flames erupted around him, forming a fiery barrier that incinerated the ominous-looking spells before they could reach him.

    "!!"

    Serena spun around and deflected the claws of White Tiger. Lightning exploded as the immense Soul Beast swiped at her, but she managed to defend herself from the web of lethal electricity and retreat to a safe distance.

    "Damn, she is good," Glen growled grudgingly. He raised his hand and fired off a few bolts of lightning at her, even as his Soul Beast prowled incessantly. "Don''t let up, White Tiger! Continue attacking her!"

    "That''s right!" Michael joined the White Tiger in striking at Serena. "Don''t lower your guard!"

    At the other side, Cronus batted Lionel to the side. Fortunately, the wood swordsman had managed to parry his fist with his sword and he flipped in midair to land on his feet. Flower blossoms continued to drift about him.

    "This is a bad match," he complained. "There''s nothing more transient than flower blossoms, and his time magic accelerating their demise is particularly super-effective against them."

    "I don''t like this way of winning, but my preferences are irrelevant." Cronus reared up and struck him, only for Yue Guang to dash in and block the fist with his crossed arms. With a grunt, the bodyguard tried to knock the guy away, but the huge Assassin spun about and delivered a roundhouse kick toward his head.

    "!!"

    His reflexes being on point, Yue Guang blocked the kick with his forearm, but the attack was so powerful that it sent him tumbling away and crashing to the side. Yue Guang vanished in a shower of rubble when he collided with the wall.

    Taking a deep breath, Lionel launched another storm of razor-sharp petals. The green dragon aura materialized around him before disappearing into a vortex that raged around his sword. The bombardment of deadly blossoms actually drove Cronus back, causing cuts and injuries on his skin. But the huge Assassin refused to yield.

    With a roar, he unleashed a silver blast of mana that caused the vividly-colored petals that assailed him to desiccate, shrivel and wither away.

    "Tch!" Lionel clicked his tongue. "That stupid time magic again!"

    "Sorry, but that''s how it is."

    Cronus took no pleasure in what he perceived to be his victory, his wounds disappearing as if he was either rewinding time to make it as if they never existed, or speeding time up to after they had healed. Lionel wasn''t sure, but he couldn''t help but looked dismayed when he saw all the effort he put into his last spell go to waste.

    "!!!"

    His dismay didn''t last very long, for an eruption of flames engulfed Cronus, burning his figure and incinerating him into ash.

    "Cronus!" Serena screamed, but she was forced to dodge a flaming sword strike from Michael, and then evade an electrifying claw swipe from White Tiger. The flame mage managed a cold smile as he pressed on with his attack.

    Behind the incinerated form of Cronus, Vermillion Phoenix soared, its flaming feathers illuminating the dim cavern. With a screech, it plunged toward Serena, getting ready to roast its second target.

    "Watch out!"

    "?!"

    Silver mana rippled outward and extinguished the ferocious flames unleashed by Vermillion Phoenix. The shockwaves generated by the churning silver mana knocked Lionel off his feet and sent him hurtling across the corridor. Right in front of everyone''s stunned eyes, the blackened ash that was all that remained of Cronus¡­vanished, only to be replaced by Cronus''s full form. Restored, as if he had never been attacked.

    "What in the world¡­?!" Michael growled.

    "That''s impossible!" Glen blurted out, unable to believe his eyes.

    "Resurrection?" Lionel murmured disbelievingly as he struggled back to his feet, watching the terrifying enemy get enveloped in a maelstrom of silver mana. "No¡­time magic. Reversing time to the moment before his death."

    "We''ve really encountered a troublesome enemy, haven''t we?" Shoving a massive block of debris off himself, Yue Guang rose unsteadily to his feet, blood trickling down his face and other wounds. "And we don''t have much time left too¡­"

 238 Chapter 238: Three Celestial Guardians

    "Even if you say that, it''s not as if we can speed up the battle or something," Glen grumbled, but he launched a lightning bolt at Serena, nonetheless. The lithe Assassin dodged his attack, only for Shun Yin to swing his blazing sword at her from behind.

    The backstabbing attack might seem dishonorable, but at that moment, they had no choice. The fate of the world was at stake here. They didn''t have many options except to take out the enemy as efficiently and quickly as they could.

    Serena and Cronus did not begrudge them that. The Assassin couple broke off and fought in their respective divisions. While Shun Yin attempted to close in on her, she spun around and kicked him in the gut, hurling him several meters back.

    "Ugh!" he grunted. Glancing up, he saw Serena launch several ominous-looking greenish-black spells at him. They resembled¡­arms or hands.

    Most likely Serena Wright was from the same Umbra Sect as Ying Bu Si, employing similar techniques from the same school. Shun Yin flipped himself upward and gritted his teeth as he readied to defend himself, but a torrent of white flames surged ahead, purifying the dark mana and erasing the spectral hands from existence.

    "Thanks," he said as Angelica joined him. She merely nodded silently, and without another word the two of them split up to charge at Serena. Behind them, Glen commanded his White Tiger to lunge at her, lightning pouring out of its gigantic form.

    Serena smiled and spread out both of her hands. Behind her, the greenish-black magic warped and transfigured themselves into eight pairs of hands, each equipped with a different weapon. She almost resembled some Buddha or goddess with an almost infinite number of hands and weapons. The three high school students were suddenly forced into the defensive when the elastic, spectral arms shot toward them, slicing and slashing.

    "White Tiger!" Glen shouted almost panicking. Electricity exploded from its immense body and shielded him, but he was too far from his allies. Fortunately, Shun Yin and Angelica reacted in time, conjuring twin firewalls of crimson and white to deflect dozens of ghostly weapons. Even as the shadowy armaments battered against the flaming barriers, they righted themselves and withdrew to safety without sustaining much damage.

    "That''s bloody cheating!" Glen groaned.

    "Quit your whining," Angelica told him irritably. Beside her, Shun Yin scanned their opponent, his eyes on the countless writhing arms.

    "Any idea how to defeat that lady?" he asked quietly. "You seem to be acquaintances with her."

    "I''m afraid I don''t know Serena well enough to come up with a solution," Angelica replied reluctantly. "We didn''t really interact all that much, and this is the first time I''ve actually seen her and her husband fight."

    As for her husband, he was currently bearing down on the injured Yue Guang. Lionel Stuart intervened as quickly as he could, swinging his sword to cleave the giant before he could attack his longtime friend. However, Cronus merely batted him aside, his silvery aura protecting him from the hundreds of deadly blossoms that danced around them.

    "Kuh!"

    Lionel grunted as he was thrown back, but he managed to spin himself in midair and land on both feet. Without missing a beat, he immediately unleashed another torrent of lethal flower petals at the enemy, who was forced to twist around and engage him. With a wave of his hand, he caused the petals to shrivel and wither before they reached him.

    "Accelerating time, huh?" Lionel clicked his tongue in annoyance. "What a troublesome ability."

    Cronus almost seemed to vanish, and appeared right in front of him. Lionel''s eyes widened, but he just barely managed to parry a devastating strike from Cronus before he was sent hurtling to the side. He smashed into the wall and crashed downward with a painful bellow.

    "My lord!"

    Yue Guang forced himself back to his feet and lunged at Cronus, delivering a furious flurry of strikes. However, the Assassin twisted around and dodged his barrage of punches, using his Time Alter (okay, maybe that wasn''t the real name of his spell, but who cares, right?) to accelerate his movements and increased his evasive capabilities.

    Even so, Yue Guang continued to methodically and relentlessly pummel him.

    Cronus was far from defenseless, however. While evading Yue Guang''s punches with his Time Alter, he countered with a hook of his own, almost catching his opponent off guard. Yue Guang just barely dodged the vicious fist, but the giant Assassin''s knuckles grazed the side of his head, leaving a trickle of blood.

    Roaring, Yue Guang buried his fist in Cronus''s chest, almost throwing the guy off his feet, but the Assassin appeared to freeze time to halt his momentum, then spun around to kick Yue Guang. Only his incredible reflexes saved him from getting his head kicked off, the bodyguard instinctively raising his arms to block the powerful foot.

    For a moment, Yue Guang appeared to have held his ground, but then his whole body was sent spinning head over heels off the ground and into a nearby wall, disappearing in a pile of debris. Coughing, he tried to dig his way out of the rubble, but Cronus was advancing upon him.

    An inferno blasted across the cavern and engulfed Cronus before he could take another step toward Yue Guang, almost reducing him to cinders in a matter of seconds. Michael strode forward, sword in hand.

    "Are you all right?" he asked. Yue Guang nodded, still groggy from the devastating impact earlier, and shook his head to clear it.

    "I can still fight."

    "Good. Because I don''t think it''ll be over just yet."

    As before, Cronus''s form appeared to regenerate, the silver aura ripping the inferno apart from within and his ashes glowing hotly before taking a humanoid shape again. Within seconds, Cronus''s body was fully restored, despite his figure still steaming and fuming furiously.

    Before he could fully recover, a storm of petals bombarded his position, causing him to vanish in a shower of blood. Lionel let out a yell as he unleashed a powerful Stuart swordsmanship technique, attempting to slice Cronus apart before he could reestablish his silvery time aura.

    "Huff¡­"

    An arm broke out of the mass of petals, and in an instant, silver mana erupted from within. The flower petals dried up and crumbled to dust almost immediately, even as a snarling Cronus burst out of their dying drifts.

    He didn''t get very far. Vermillion Phoenix swooped down on him, raking him with its blazing claws and causing his body to combust.

    "Leave him to me! You guys should go help the kids."

    "I''ll leave the big guy to you then." Lionel turned away. "Yue Guang, support Michael Porter. I alone should be more than enough to support the kids."

    "Understood."

    Even with the gigantic phoenix battering Cronus, the three men knew their victory was far from guaranteed. Whoever Cronus might have been when he was fully human, right now he was a monster.

    Yue Guang waited for Cronus to bat the phoenix aside before he charged in and punched the guy in the face. The Assassin staggered, taken by surprise, but he retaliated with his own fist, pummeling Yue Guang. The future security chief desperately defended himself, but the blows sent him skidding backward despite him crossing his arms to shield his face and chest. Even so, it would only be a matter of time before Cronus''s onslaught broke through his defense.

    Fortunately, Vermillion Phoenix intervened before Cronus could succeed, sending a hail of fiery feathers down upon his position with unerring accuracy ¨C such that, even with Yue Guang right in front of Cronus, none of the fiery feathers struck him by accident.

    Back on the other side, both Shun Yin and Angelica were flung away when a shadowy arm bearing a bulky mace smashed through their twin barriers and struck them. The two of them rolled and dodged a series of attacks from the many shadowy arms of Serena, but they were about to be overwhelmed by the sheer numbers.

    Crack!

    A web of lightning blasted and seared across the weaving arms, disintegrating at least a few of them. Bellowing, White Tiger leaped forward, only to be deterred by a whip. As it dodged the whip, a scimitar came swinging by and almost eviscerating it. A sword would have decapitated it if its summoner hadn''t deflected it with a lightning bolt.

    "Damn it!" Glen cursed. "There''s just too many arms!"

    "Shun Yin!" Angelica called out. He immediately understood what she was intending and responded, reaching out to grab her hand.

    "Resonance!"

    The two of them merged their mana together, and while Glen and his White Tiger were still distracting Serena, cast a combined fire spell.

    "!!!"

    Serena recognized the danger and spun around, her spectral arms all surging toward the couple. However, Glen had managed to buy them enough time to cast their spell, and the two of them unleashed a gigantic fireball that incinerated a few of the arms, causing the shadowy weapons to topple onto the ground.

    "That''s really powerful. I see¡­by synchronizing your power, you''re able to amplify the effects of your spell by not just double but several times. Impressive. Really impressive. But¡­"

    Her remaining spectral arms reared up, bearing their weapons in an intimidating manner.

    "¡­even with that increased power, you only destroyed a fraction of what I have."

    "!!!"

    Shun Yin and Angelica continued to link their hands, this time casting a firewall spell. Even as the shadowy arms and weapons surged toward them, they conjured a combined crimson and white firewall. Glen tried to help, but a few of the arms snaked away to attack him and his White Tiger, forcing the summoner and his Soul Beast to keep their distance.

    A hammer and a mace slammed into the firewall in unison, but the reinforced barrier held. Strengthened by Resonance, the two''s combined spell would withstand whatever attacks Serena threw at them for a while.

    "You kids did well to hold out this long."

    "?!"

    The three of them turned and spotted Lionel diving down, his sword flashing. A trail of flower petals followed, and he ripped the shadowy arms into shreds. Serena recoiled as the backlash of her spell struck her, but she managed to conjure a fresh batch of armed¡­arms.

    "You¡­!" she hissed.

    Lionel ignored her. Instead, he raised his sword. A green dragon coiled around his blade, intensifying the swirl of flower petals around him. Serena raised an eye when she saw the green dragon curl about the sword and snarl at her, and then she lifted her gaze to Glen''s White Tiger before finally settling on Michael''s Vermillion Phoenix.

    "Amazing. I never thought I would see three of the four Celestial Guardians appear in one place. The only one that is missing is Black Tortoise."

    "Don''t worry. One day my adopted son will be able to summon all four Celestial Guardians! No, five, maybe!" Shun Yin proclaimed proudly. Everyone stared at him.

    "Your adopted son, eh?" Lionel chuckled. "If he really achieves that, I''ll marry my daughter off to him."

    "Hey! Not fair! If Shun Yin''s adopted son were to marry anybody, it should be my daughter!" Glen shouted. "We''re best friends!"

    "I don''t remember being best friends with you, and neither of you have any daughters yet," Shun Yin muttered under his breath.

    "Stop talking nonsense!" Serena screeched as she launched her mass of spectral arms at them. Lionel returned his attention to her and swung his sword.

    Dozens of vines whipped out from the ground and ensnared the shadow arms. They curled around the spectral appendages, coiling around them and restraining them. The vines also lunged at Serena, but her Assassin''s instinct told her to leap away and avoid them at all costs. A few vines managed to catch her right arm and left leg, tangling her up and tripping her over.

    "That''s¡­?!"

    "Hundred-Colored Flowers," Lionel intoned. The spectral arms began shrinking and wilting as their mana were being sucked and drawn into the vines, where flowers of myriad colors began blooming as they drew upon the enemy''s power for nourishment. He didn''t elaborate ¨C only a fool or a manga character would explain his spells to an enemy.

    Serena swiftly cut away several of the vines with her short swords, but it was clear that she was severely weakened, a huge chunk of her mana drained out of her. Her spectral arms faded away ¨C without the mana to sustain them, she could no longer maintain their existence.

    "Time to finish you off," Lionel declared as he stepped forward and slashed at her, but Serena barely managed to parry his blow.

    A terrifying screech diverted his attention away from her. Cronus had managed to bury a fist in the Vermillion Phoenix''s belly, and seemed to be doing something to it.

    "You!" Michael''s face contorted in fury and he lunged at the time spirit Assassin, swinging his flaming sword in order to free his Soul Beast. Cronus casually spun around, using the Vermillion Phoenix as a shield and forcing its summoner to stop for fear of hitting it accidentally. The moment Michael hesitated, Cronus ruthlessly whirled around and kicked him, sending him flying.

    "Gah!"

    "Mike!"

    "Brother!"

    However, Glen and Angelica''s attention was captured by the fate of the Vermillion Phoenix. Silver mana was building up inside its body. The Vermillion Phoenix thrashed about and flailed, ripping chunks of flesh and muscle off Cronus''s body. However, the huge Assassin held on stubbornly, probably confident in the fact that he could later reverse time to heal himself¡­or make it as if the injuries had never happened.

    "Not good!" Lionel''s face twisted, and he spun away from the downed Serena to dive at the two who were locked in combat. Yue Guang followed suit, but both men were too late.

    Vermillion Phoenix ceased to exist, the silver mana surrounding its form and then crushing it into an orb before fading out of time.

    "Even if it''s Vermillion Phoenix, it''s still not immune to the ravages of time," Serena remarked sinisterly, even as she continued to lay on the ground.

 239 Chapter 239: Demise of a Legend

    With a yell, Yuan Dao Yue Guang lunged at Cronus Wright. From the opposite end, Lionel Stuart also leaped at the imposing spirit-possessed Assassin, swinging his sword down to unleash a storm of razor-sharp petals.

    Cronus merely stood still and weathered the blizzard of petals. The silver aura that permeated his body flared up and caused the petals to shrivel and wither, but the moment they all died down, Yue Guang smashed his Ba Qi wreathed fist into his back. The tremendous impact caused the ground underneath Cronus''s feet to shatter and he was actually thrown forward with a grunt. Whirling around, he countered with a kick that Yue Guang ducked.

    While he was distracted by the bodyguard, Lionel thrust his sword forward to stab him. Cronus threw out a hand behind himself to grab the blade, the silver aura flaring. Fortunately, even with the time-warping effect rushing forward to engulf the sword, Lionel''s weapon had in-built magical resistance and defensive enchantments inscribed into it. The metal didn''t corrode and dissolve as it would have in a few thousand years and managed to maintain its integrity.

    "UWOOOOOH!"

    Lionel let out a roar as he unleashed his mana in a single immense burst. Even as Cronus caught his blade with his finger, flower petals blossomed around the two and spiraled lethally upon his target. Locked in combat with Lionel, Cronus was unable to pull free and he found himself ripped into shreds by the devastating storm of dancing petals.

    "Huff¡­huff¡­"

    Lionel dropped to his knees, panting heavily. Gritting his teeth, he raised his head to look at the remains of his opponent, knowing that it wouldn''t be so easy to kill him.

    "!!!"

    He was right.

    A massive arm smashed through the scattering petals and slammed into his hastily raised blade. Lionel clenched his teeth as he fought to weather the immense impact, but he skidded for a centimeter before his body was lifted off the ground and sent hurtling across the cavern. Tumbling almost helplessly, he flipped himself in midair and landed on his feet and a knee.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    He coughed out a mouthful of blood, but managed to lean on his sword to slowly get up. Seizing the opportunity, Cronus barged out of the blizzard of petals and closed in on him.

    "Oh no, you don''t!"

    At Glen''s shout, White Tiger crashed into the charging Cronus, tackling him away from Lionel. The spirit possessed Assassin twisted around and grappled with the Soul Beast, grabbing it by its throat and suffocating it. White Tiger desperately unleashed bolts of high voltage electricity at pointblank range, attempting to electrocute its foe, but to no avail. The silver aura that enveloped Cronus protected him from certain death.

    "!!"

    Fortunately for White Tiger, Yue Guang arrived in time. Bellowing, he punched Cronus in the face with such force that the spirit inadvertently released his stranglehold on the Soul Beast and staggered. He spat out some blood, and then turned to Yue Guang, his expression as devoid as emotions as ever. Undaunted, Yue Guang hammered him, but the spirit possessed Assassin caught his fist, stopping the punch in midair. The ground shook from the tremendous impact, but neither man moved an inch.

    "Kuh!"

    Yue Guang tried to yank his fist free from Cronus''s grip, but his efforts proved to be futile. Cronus smiled grimly and slowly pulled the resisting Yue Guang forward. Narrowing his eyes, the bodyguard drew his other arm back for another punch, but¡­

    "?!"

    Huang Shun Yin descended between them, swinging his flaming sword to amputate Cronus''s arm at the elbow. The superheated flames lanced through the silver aura and dense muscle, slicing through bone as easily as a hot knife through butter.

    Cronus retreated a step, staring at his cauterized stump in disbelief. Meanwhile Yue Guang grabbed the opportunity to pull his fist free of the now disembodied arm and toss it away. Synchronizing with Shun Yin, he waited for the fire mage to slash at an evading Cronus, and while the time spirit was half-distracted, he kicked the giant in the midriff.

    Boom!

    Cronus was sent flying several meters away, vanishing into a wall that exploded into a shower of debris.

    "Thank you," Yue Guang told Shun Yin, but the fire mage shook his head.

    "You don''t have to thank me."

    "But I do." Yue Guang straightened up and glanced at the pile of rubble. "Unfortunately, I don''t think we''ve won just yet."

    "I concur."

    Pieces of debris shook and trembled, before erupting upward. Cronus rose to his feet, rocks and stones rolling off his dusty form. He shook his head, as if to clear the knock he received, and then dusted himself off casually with his remaining arm.

    Right in front of the allied clans'' disbelieving eyes, Cronus''s missing arm glowed and restored itself. It wasn''t regeneration ¨C it wasn''t as if his arm regenerated and grew right back. The silver aura that engulfed the place where his arm used to be glowed, and it seemed as if time was turning back. Arcane energies rippled over the form, over a faint silhouette, and reversed time to when Cronus''s arm was still attached.

    At the side, the disembodied arm that Yue Guang tossed aside glowed faintly before vanishing completely, as if taken away by the ravages of time. Or perhaps it was merely going back in time too, to a moment when it was still attached to its owner.

    "Damn it¡­" Lionel growled as he joined Yue Guang and Shun Yin. "I mean, we already saw how he literally came back to life by reversing time earlier, so I honestly shouldn''t be surprised. But still¡­there has to be limits to his power. Otherwise we can continue killing him all day and he''ll just continue coming back to life."

    "Just keep him off my back long enough for me to eliminate the summoner!" On the other side, Michael and Angelica were occupied with fighting Serena. Crimson and white flames flowed across the cavern, combating against the ominous greenish-black flows of mana that Serena cast. She giggled as she cleaved apart another torrent of flames.

    "Are you really that na?ve to think you''ll be able to eliminate me?"

    "We have no choice but to try, right?" Angelica responded wryly as she slashed at her head, but Serena ducked under the blow before retaliating with a kick. Angelica managed to parry it, but she was sent skidding backward. While she stumbled, Michael struck from behind, but Serena raised her other short sword to deflect his blazing blade.

    "That was dangerous."

    Meanwhile, Shun Yin and the other three were facing down Cronus. Glen nodded to his White Tiger, who growled and pounced on the spirit possessed Assassin. However, the space surrounding Cronus appeared to distort, and White Tiger''s movements appeared to slow to a crawl as soon as it entered the shimmering field that expanded a few meters around its target. Even the golden electricity that emanated from its fur appeared to slow down, the lightning painfully inching toward Cronus at a fraction of its usual speed.

    In contrast, Cronus continued to move at what was his normal speed and he punched the vulnerable White Tiger in the midriff. The Soul Beast howled as it was flung out of the slow time field and smashed into the wall, before being buried by rocks.

    "Fuck! He can do that too?!" Glen swore. "How are we supposed to counter that?!"

    "By whatever means necessary." Lionel didn''t waste any time complaining. Instead, he was advancing with his sword, flinging another storm of petals at Cronus. Thousands of razor-sharp petals engulfed the spirit Assassin, trying to slash into his body before his protective time-aura could cause them to wither away.

    However, this time Cronus had switched his defensive enchantment. The petals all slowed down the moment they entered the slow time field and drifted to a stop. In the middle, the hulking Assassin merely watched as the myriad of petals came to a halt right in front of him, and then he raised a hand. With that single motion, all of the petals came crashing down to the ground, dragged under by gravity.

    "He really has a variety of defenses, doesn''t he?" Lionel grumbled with a click of his tongue.

    "Just be glad that he can''t stop time and assassinate us while we are completely immobile." Yue Guang was grim. "That would be unstoppable."

    Shun Yin realized that Yue Guang was right. If someone was able to stop time, then he would pretty much become the most fearsome Assassin alive. He could pretty much sneak up on anyone before he could react and assassinate him while his guard was down. There was nothing that could stop him, no security system, nothing. He could just stopped time and walk past the traps before they activated. All the bodyguards in the world would be helpless to stop him. He could get in, kill his target, and then get out before anyone even realized what had happened.

    All he needed was to stop time for a second. Literally.

    "There has to be limits to his time magic, though. Not to mention, casting such spells should cost quite a lot of mana. Even if he''s drawing from his own supply of mana that''s separate from Serena, it shouldn''t be unlimited."

    "Shouldn''t, yet¡­" Lionel didn''t seem pleased by Yue Guang''s analysis. "Even if it''s unlimited, we''re doomed as long as his supply of mana is much larger than all of ours combined."

    "Then we''ve no choice but to delay him until Michael and Angelica slay the summoner." Shun Yin didn''t sound very confident, but he knew there was no other option. "Or we continue killing him until he runs out of mana."

    "If he doesn''t kill us first," Glen muttered pessimistically. He took a deep breath and raised a hand, infusing his Soul Beast with more mana. A wounded White Tiger emerged from the rubble, shaking itself loose and growling in pain. "Sorry, White Tiger, but I need you to fight for a bit longer."

    He exchanged a glance with Shun Yin, and for a split second Shun Yin understood what he was going for. The fire mage nodded surreptitiously, and the corner of Glen''s lips lifted just a fraction. Taking a deep breath, Shun Yin charged at Cronus, swinging his flaming sword and unleashing fireballs. As before, the fiery projectiles slowed down and stopped short of Cronus before crashing downward and scorching the ground.

    Lionel relentlessly attacked, undaunted, launching more of his deadly petals right after Shun Yin. He probably was trying to overwhelm the defensive time field of Cronus, overloading it or hopefully exploiting some sort of cooldown. However, his efforts seemed to come to naught as, once again, his petals scattered and drifted.

    However, just after Cronus neutralized his barrage of blossoms with his time magic, Yue Guang burst through the vanishing petals and punched him. Unlike the magic spells, Yue Guang''s movements were not slowed at all even though he entered the slow time field. Cronus''s eyes widened in shock, but then he understood why when he sensed the tremendous amount of Armament Ba Qi that had condensed and coalesced around his foe.

    His fist crashed into Cronus''s face once more, causing the hulking spirit to stagger, his head hurled to the side. Heaving, Cronus tried to retaliate, but Yue Guang struck him again in the midriff with another vicious hook. Even so, the exertion of resisting the slow time field with Armament Ba Qi alone was taking its toll, and Yue Guang''s face was reddening. Not only that, his movements were beginning to slow.

    Fortunately, he wasn''t alone. Lionel descended from above, his sword wreathed with his own Armament Ba Qi, combined with flower petals. In a single slash, he bisected Cronus from collarbone to groin. Blood splattered both Lionel and Yue Guang, with Cronus''s corpse still standing upright despite sustaining such a fatal wound.

    Then Shun Yin joined in and beheaded Cronus, his flaming sword slicing through the giant Assassin''s neck and severing it from his shoulders.

    "Great job!" Lionel was panting, but he seemed pleased with their combined efforts. "Even a monster like him will need some time to come back from that sort of damage!"

    On the other side, Serena''s expression cracked a little, but she continued to fight on without another word. She parried Angelica''s sword before kicking her away. But before she could turn to confront Michael, the White Tiger swiped at her, slashing her with its electrifying claws.

    "!!!"

    Serena just barely managed to parry its claws, but the lightning struck her, electrocuting her. She cried out, but retaliated with a dark spell that pierced through White Tiger''s belly and threw it off. Trying to straighten herself up after the debilitating attack, she turned to glare at Glen, who was approaching her, but he skidded to a stop, seeming intimidated by her gaze.

    However, that was just an act. Behind, Michael stabbed her in the back, causing blood to fountain out of her throat. Serena flailed for a moment, grasping at the blade that protruded from her chest. Blood ran down her wound and hands and she slowly slumped down.

    Michael wasn''t done yet. Knowing that a wound of this level still wouldn''t be able to guarantee an Assassin''s death, he cast his spell and began to immolate her. Crimson flames ignited around his blade and began consuming Serena from the inside out. She shrieked as the hellish fire began expanding from her foe''s sword and spreading to her body.

    "We did it!" Glen crowed.

    Unfortunately, his celebrations proved premature.

    "?!"

    Shun Yin, Lionel and Yue Guang were all blasted off their feet when silver mana surged around Cronus''s corpse. In a second, his body was made whole again, knitting together at an impossible speed and restoring itself. Before the three of them could get up, Cronus lunged.

    But his target wasn''t any of them.

    Instead, he swept across the cavern before anybody could react and obliterated Michael with a punch. His gigantic fist literally erased Michael''s head and the top part of his chest, spraying the fatally wounded Serena with his blood.

    Gritting her teeth, Serena yanked the sword out before she slumped down. Her chest rising shallowly, she lay on the ground with an agonized smile, incapacitated but still alive. Clutching her wound, she stared at the grisly remains of her would-be killer.

    "Such a pity. You were so close."

    "MIKE!"

    "BROTHER!"

    Even as Michael''s headless corpse toppled to the ground, both Glen and Angelica''s voices echoed throughout the cavern in despair.

 240 Chapter 240: Win Condition

    "Fuck!"

    Lionel Stuart swore when he saw Michael''s headless corpse slump down lifelessly. Some distance from him, Angelica was screaming and Glen was yelling, probably for Michael, but no matter how hoarse they shouted themselves, he was never coming back.

    Cronus turned to lumber toward them, but Yue Guang deftly put himself between them, his fists raised and clad in Armament Ba Qi. He looked battered and weary, but he was still capable of putting up a fight if necessary.

    However, with Michael''s death, their chances of winning had been halved. No, probably less than that.

    ¡­wait¡­since when did the win condition entail the defeat of their enemy?

    "Shun Yin!" Lionel snapped. The young man raised his head sharply to look at him. Good, he was still lucid. "Take your friend and girlfriend and get to the computer mainframe. Get to the computer room immediately."

    "But what about you?" he protested.

    "We''ll hold that guy off." Lionel gestured to the massive figure of Cronus Wright. "We''ll stop him from pursuing you and your friends."

    "How?" Shun Yin''s eyes darted toward Michael''s dead body. "There''s no way¡­"

    "The summoner is incapacitated, thanks to Michael, and you three. Not to mention, I drained her of her mana earlier with my Hundred-Colored Flowers technique. She poses no threat to us. Yue Guang and I will just concentrate on Cronus. If she can still move, however, then you are to protect your friends from her. Is that understood?"

    Shun Yin''s mouth went dry when he glanced at Glen and Angelica. One was in shock over the loss of his cousin, the other was devastated over the death of her own blood-and-flesh brother. Shun Yin understood at that moment why Lionel was instructing him to bring them away.

    In their current mental conditions, neither Glen nor Angelica was capable of fighting. They would only get in the way.

    "Understood."

    "Good. Hurry! And remember this! Our victory lies not in defeating our enemies, but in denying them the blueprints for the transdimensional device!"

    "That''s right."

    Shun Yin nodded and watched briefly as Lionel took off to assist Angelica and Glen. The latter was able to snap out of his stupor more easily, and nodding at Shun Yin''s brief and quiet explanation, he was more than willing to follow along.

    However, the two guys didn''t know where the computer mainframe was. That knowledge lay with Angelica, who was still in a daze.

    "Hey, Angie! Pull yourself together!" Glen shook her. "We need to get to the computer mainframe and wipe the data now!"

    "Do you remember where it is?" Shun Yin asked gently. "Can you take us there?"

    Angelica blinked for a moment, and then she nodded. Taking a deep breath, she rose to her feet, with Shun Yin helping her out. Her eyes hardened in determination and she glanced past the three men who were locked in combat.

    Lionel noticed them, and then he nodded just a fraction of a millimeter. Receiving the hint, Angelica moved out, taking the other two guys toward Cronus.

    The massive Assassin spun toward them, detecting the direction they were heading toward. Even if he wasn''t facing them, he would still have sensed where they were going anyway. However, before he could lunge at them, Yue Guang barreled into him, knocking him to the side. With a yell, Lionel surrounded the titanic Assassin with a cloud of petals, obscuring his sight and blocking him off from the three high school students.

    "Now!" Glen urged, and they hastened their pace, with Angelica leading them toward one of the doors at the far end.

    "Oh no, you don''t!" Serena shrieked and launched one last greenish-black spell at them, the projectile taking the form of an arm. With her mana sucked out by Lionel, and the grievous injury she received from Michael before his demise, there wasn''t much spells she could cast. Without turning around, Glen ordered his White Tiger to take care of it.

    With a roar, the Soul Beast pounced on the appendage and destroyed it with a lightning storm. It then turned tail and followed the three, escorting them through the door Angelica took them through.

    "Fourth room from the right," Angelica muttered as she searched through her memories. They then turned around the corner and caught sight of the series of doors down the corridor. Angelica smiled. "Just as I remembered them."

    The trio charged into the room, barging through the door. As all the Assassins and dark priests were outside, engaging the Federation army in combat, the interior was mostly unguarded. There were several sentries, but given that the elite and most powerful line troops had been committed to the defense of the headquarters, the ones left behind were reserves and untested trainees.

    It didn''t take much for Shun Yin and the others to dispatch them. As soon as they wiped out the guards, they proceeded straight into the computer mainframe room, the vast machine hissing and whizzing under super coolants and fog to ensure it ran at optimal capacity without overheating.

    "This is it?" Glen asked, his voice tinged with awe. Angelica nodded in a somewhat anticlimactic manner before confirming.

    "This is it."

    "So we destroy it?" Shun Yin raised his sword and ignited it, but Angelica immediately restrained him with an annoyed look.

    "Chill, Shun Yin. It''s not so simple."

    "Heh, chill. That''s a pretty apt word." Glen chuckled until he caught Angelica''s glare and fell silent. She then turned back to Shun Yin.

    "We can''t destroy the mainframe yet. We need to hack into it and delete the data from the cloud. The Dark Church-exclusive cloud server is stored in this mainframe, so as long as we hack and delete it here, we''ll be able to erase any backup file in their online server."

    "How?" Shun Yin asked, confused. "I''m not skilled at programming, but something about that logic doesn''t sound right¡­"

    "Just explain everything away with magic, okay?" Angelica interrupted. "And before you ask about physical thumb drives and external hard disks that may contain the blueprint, well, there''s nothing we can do about that. But at least destroying the main cloud server and computer mainframe will delay their research for a long while. And if they happen to not have any backup thumb drives or whatever, then even better!"

    Shun Yin conceded that it was better than doing nothing and allowing the Dark Church free reign in doing whatever they wanted, so he silently nodded. However, even as he glanced around the freezing room, another thought came to mind.

    "Uh, how do we hack the computer then?"

    "I can do it." Glen raised a hand. "My lightning magic will allow me to interface with the computer mainframe, and I should be able to bend it to my will and purge it of its data. Then, as a final measure, I''ll destroy the whole computer. White Tiger, watch my back."

    "We can do that," Shun Yin began, and Glen grinned.

    "I know. I''ll leave it to you¡­"

    "Actually, no." Angelica raised a hand. "If you and your Soul Beast can handle this place by yourselves, then Shun Yin and I should go back and assist Mr. Stuart and his bodyguard. As powerful as I am, their opponent is a spirit-possessed Cronus Wright. I don''t know how long they can hold out against them." her lips thinned. "We already lost Brother. I don''t want any more sacrifices."

    Glen watched her for a moment, and then nodded. "We got rid of all the sentries here, so this place should be clear. Even if there are still any survivors remaining, they''re probably small fries. They won''t be a match for my White Tiger."

    "Thank you. We''ll leave this place to you."

    Angelica then left, and Shun Yin hastily made to follow. She glanced at him with a bitter smile.

    "I went through so much trouble and ordered the Assassins Guild not to kill my brother¡­told them to avoid hurting him if possible¡­and all that went to waste. I never thought he would die here¡­to an Assassin, of all people."

    "It wasn''t your fault."

    "I''m not blaming myself¡­or anybody." Angelica took a deep breath and balled her fists, her eyes glaring forward. "But admittedly, there were a lot of things I could have done better. I was counting on Brother to be the next head, you know? And now he''s¡­gone."

    "The Porter clan still has you."

    "No." Angelica shook her head vehemently. "That''s no longer possible. Didn''t you hear what Glen said? There''s no way I can walk back and take over, not after I massacred the elders and killed my parents. And besides, I never wanted to return to the Porter clan. Not after all this." she smiled. "Even if Brother had forgiven me, the law wouldn''t. I committed murder. There is no going back for me."

    She whirled around, almost happily, to face him briefly.

    "But that''s all right. After all this, I always dreamed of eloping somewhere with you. the both of us, heading toward the Amazerian or Zurum Empire and living out the rest of our lives overseas, free from the responsibilities of my clan¡­of the ten Great Families."

    "My parents¡­"

    "We''ll bring your parents along, of course. If they agree. If not, then¡­too bad, we''ll just leave them behind."

    Shun Yin shook his head in amazement. Angelica was always living in a world of her own. Then again, that was what attracted him to her in the first place. When he first met her when they were both kids, she was building sandcastles in the sky¡­quite literally, except that they were castles forged from white flames and magic. And she aimed to be a princess.

    Perhaps she still wanted to play the role of a princess¡­a runaway princess in a fairy tale-like romance story.

    However, all hope of that happy ending shattered¡­especially when everyone knows what was going to happen to Angelica in future. Okay, I really should stop breaking the fourth wall. Sorry.

    "Eh?"

    Shun Yin was surprised when Angelica stopped in front of one of the doors. He skidded to a stop behind her.

    "What''s the matter, Angelica? Aren''t we supposed to assist Mr. Stuart and Mr. Yuan Dao?"

    "Yes, but we can''t help them as we are right now." Angelica paused before she reached out and blasted the door open. As the smoke billowed inward, Shun Yin peered inside. Past the dissipating smog, he caught sight of a strange machine.

    In the center of the chamber, it stood, with a single orb revolving amidst a network of metallic veins. Glowing ethereal energies suffused the still-running machine, and for some reason Shun Yin felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

    "This is¡­" he began.

    Angelica smiled sadly and nodded before finishing the sentence for him.

    "¡­our only hope for defeating Cronus and Serena Wright."

 241 Chapter 241: Ultimate Sacrifice

    "What are you talking about?"

    Even though Shun Yin had no idea what Angelica was trying to say, he felt a sudden premonition, which was punctuated by tremors. Lionel Stuart and Yuan Dao Yue Guang were still fighting fiercely against Cronus Wright, but they seemed to be losing.

    "Even if we accomplish the mission and delete the blueprints from the mainframe, Cronus will still be waiting for us out there. None of us will be able to leave alive at this rate. We may have won the war, but we''ll all pay a high price for it."

    "That can''t be," Shun Yin protested. "If we''ve won, then there is no reason for Cronus to continue fighting. He''ll just¡­"

    "Give up? Surrender? Are you really that na?ve?" Angelica scoffed. "He''s an Assassin. His whole purpose is to kill. Even if the Dark Church loses the blueprint and everything here, they would try to at least salvage something out of the situation¡­by taking revenge on the people who denied them, for example. Moreover¡­for Cronus, this has become personal."

    "P¡­personal?" Shun Yin stammered in disbelief. Angelica gave him a hard look.

    "Brother delivered a fatal wound to his wife, Serena. She might still be alive for now, but her life signs are slowly fading. She can''t be saved unless there is a healer mage on site, and trust me, there is no healer mage here in the Dark Church headquarters."

    And once Serena was gone, Cronus would disappear too, the spirit possessing his body no longer having anything to tether it to this world. And he, as the host, would crumble away because of the spirit burning away his body and life force.

    Shun Yin understood why Cronus would just lash out at anyone and everyone before his final demise, to try and drag everyone down with him.

    Moreover, as Angelica had said, this had become personal. Cronus would seek the death of all those responsible for killing his wife. He would want revenge at almost any cost.

    "No, it''s worse." Angelica''s expression was grim. "Mr. Stuart and Mr. Yuan Dao didn''t tell us because they wanted us to go ahead without any worries. But even they should know that Cronus can heal his wife. If he can cast rewinding magic on himself, there''s no reason he can''t cast it on Serena. They probably have to prevent him from getting to her."

    "But that''s going to be difficult!" Shun Yin protested, immediately understanding the dilemma the two men were facing. It was already near impossible for them to defeat Cronus, never mind hinder him from reaching his wife.

    And if Cronus succeeded in healing Serena, then the odds against the two men would be doubled once more. Shun Yin couldn''t imagine what would happen if that happened. After Cronus and Serena eliminated Lionel and Yue Guang, he, Angelica and Glen would be next.

    "Exactly." Angelica nodded, as if she had read his thoughts. "There is no way the two of them would simply let us go after all that happened."

    In other words, revenge. Shun Yin perfectly understood what their mentality. After all, he would probably react similarly if he was in their shoes.

    He swallowed and nodded. "So the only way to leave this place alive is to defeat Cronus and Serena Wright. Otherwise, even if we''ve won, we would still die."

    "That is correct."

    "Okay." Shun Yin glanced at the machine, still feeling the chill run down his spine. "So what does that have to do with that?"

    "It will grant us power." Angelica took a deep breath as she turned toward Shun Yin and looked into his eyes. "I need you to tell me that you love me."

    "Huh?"

    For a moment, Shun Yin wasn''t sure if he had heard her right. He stared at her, completely dumbfounded.

    "I love you?"

    "Not as a question. Be firm." Angelica glared at him. Shun Yin swallowed, and nodded for a moment before taking a deep breath.

    "I love you, Angelica. But what¡­?"

    He never got to finish his question. Angelica was stepping toward the machine. Feeling a sense of panic, he reached out to seize her hand.

    "Hey, wait! What are you¡­?"

    "Doing what must be done."

    "How will this help defeat Cronus Wright?! What''s going on? Explain this to me properly!"

    Shun Yin''s voice was rising, and he squeezed her hand more firmly, refusing to let go of her. There was something wrong with this thing, and his innate paranoia was at its peak. Angelica was hiding something from him, he was sure of that.

    "That time magic that Cronus Wright wields¡­I can counter it. Theoretically. If I can amplify the power of my purification flames, I should be able to nullify his time magic and prevent him from rewinding time and restoring himself every single time."

    "And that machine amplifies your power?"

    Shun Yin found the whole thing dodgy and suspicious, but he wasn''t able to place his finger on what he thought was amiss. Even so, his intuition told him it wasn''t so simple, so he continued to grab her hand tightly, refusing to let her go.

    "I have to do this, otherwise Cronus will just continue to rewind time again and again, until his mana runs out. We need an equal amount of mana, and equal quality of spells to counter his magic. Or something that surpasses his time magic¡­"

    Angelica turned toward the machine, her eyes narrowed in determination.

    "And this will help us achieve it."

    "How?!" Shun Yin snapped, his patience fraying. "I don''t know what''s going on, but I''m not an idiot. You''re lying to me, aren''t you?"

    "No, I''m not." Angelica smiled sadly.

    "You are hiding something from me, at the very least," Shun Yin accused. "Come on, Angelica. Don''t do this to me."

    Angelica sighed and turned back to him.

    "It''s been so long since we''ve reunited like this. Nine years, was it?"

    "¡­" Shun Yin closed his eyes briefly and nodded. It truly had been a long time. Almost enough to make him forget about her, but he had stubbornly clung into his memories of her, refusing to let go.

    He was telling the truth when he said he didn''t become stronger for her sake. He had a specific goal in mind, and it was his dream to follow in Michael''s footsteps and become a hero. An ally of justice who could save other people.

    However, Michael Porter was dead. Reality was harsh. He was forced to make some hard choices, and sacrifice the few to save the many. And right now, he had a feeling that he was about to make the ultimate sacrifice.

    Angelica, as if sensing his mood, embraced him.

    "Thank you, Shun Yin. I¡­didn''t want our reunion to be so fleeting. You know, I''ve always dreamed that we would be together forever after all of this. that we will elope to a distant land, away from the Federation and the ten Great Families, get married, have children, grow old together and then live out the rest of our days in a nice, little cottage in the countryside. Nobody would bother us, except our children, and we will leisurely pass the days by reading, knitting, cooking and eating. In the winter, we would huddle together in front of the fireplace while watching a movie. Maybe one of those classic Federation movies we can smuggle into the Empire. In the summer, our children will come visit us, maybe bringing their own spouses and children. And those kids will play in the garden that you so meticulously tended to, growing your own plants. I remember you like tomatoes? I always pictured you planting your own tomatoes in our garden."

    "What are you talking about?" Shun Yin demanded, even as he returned the embrace, refusing to let her go. He wrapped his arms around her, his chest feeling increasingly scared. As if this would be the last time he would see her. "Why are you speaking in such a manner?"

    "No matter what happens, we''ll always be together. At least believe me on that."

    "No matter what happens?" Shun Yin echoed. "Angelica, what do you intend to do?"

    "I''m sorry."

    "?!"

    Angelica reached up with both hands and kissed him. Stunned, Shun Yin loosened his grip on her. Then Angelica suddenly broke out of his embrace and kicked him. Shun Yin parried her foot, but white flames suddenly erupted and blasted him off his feet, hurtling him across to the other side of the laboratory. As Shun Yin flipped himself over and landed upright in a kneeling position, Angelica headed straight for the machine.

    "Remember, it''s the bond between us that will keep me here with you on this world. The bond of our love."

    "What?" Shun Yin dashed after her, but he was too late. Angelica had reached the machine. She turned around to give him one last look.

    "I love you. No matter how much I change¡­no matter how I transform, that will always be true."

    Then she plunged her hand into the revolving orb.

    Boom!

    The entire place was engulfed in flames in an instant. Almost blinded, Shun Yin staggered backward, shielding his eyes. He could see the bright, white illumination piercing through his eyelids, almost scorching his retina.

    "Angelica!" he yelled.

    There was no reply.

    A massive shockwave struck him. It wasn''t a physical shockwave that knocked him over, but something gentler, yet at the same time more powerful. The ethereal mana waves resonated across the entire cavern, causing everyone to pause.

    "This is¡­?!"

    Back in the computer mainframe room, Glen glanced up while his White Tiger stiffened. He was still in the midst of purging the data from the cloud server and tracking down whatever physical hard copies they might have, but his work was somewhat interrupted by the immense magical shockwaves that had surged through the entire compound.

    "Angie¡­?"

    Boom!

    "?!"

    Meanwhile, in the cavern, Lionel Stuart paused when he felt the massive shockwave of arcane mana ripple outward. Yue Guang felt it too, pausing momentarily to glance around in shock. Meanwhile, Cronus and Serena ¨C who had been healed when her husband rewound her time to a moment to before she sustained her lethal injury ¨C halted, dismay on their faces. The two of them in particular recognized the particular shockwave that was reverberating throughout the mountain the Dark Church had chosen to locate their headquarters.

    It was one that they were very familiar with, one that they had experienced themselves right before this day.

    "It can''t be¡­those kids¡­" Serena''s hand flew to her mouth. In contrast, Cronus remained grim, his consciousness melded with the spirit dwelling within his body. He merely lowered his head, acknowledging the birth of a brethren.

    Outside, the soldiers and Assassins froze when they sensed the tremendous shockwave. The Assassins did recognize it, but along with their recognition was the knowledge of the significance, and they hesitated for just a second. They didn''t know if the new spirit was friend or foe, but they knew that either way, it would tip the balance of the battlefield without fail. As for the soldiers of the Federation, they were more bewildered by the exotic energies that passed through them without any effect.

    "Angelica¡­"

    Inside the laboratory, Shun Yin lowered his head and stared at the being who was hovering in front of the metallic contraption, siphoning away the mystical mana that saturated its mechanism. The person in front of him still resembled Angelica somehow, but there was something different about her. In terms of presence¡­no, her very existence itself.

    Wings of crimson fire spread out from her back, enfolding her hovering body and sending countless fiery feathers fluttering around. A blazing halo crowned her head, illuminating her long, crimson hair. Her ruby eyes opened and fixed a stare upon him, a gaze that seemed to pierce through the depths of his soul.

    "Yes and no," the person who was once Angelica said. "I''m Angelica Porter, and yet I am also someone more."

    She then floated toward Shun Yin and stopped right in front of him. Unexpectedly, she knelt before him, her wings drooping to either side of her, and lowered her head. Offering him her hand, she asked in a clear, powerful voice.

    "And I answer the call to your summons. I ask of you, are you my master?"

 242 Chapter 242: Spirit versus Spiri

    "¡­huh?"

    Shun Yin gaped at the person right in front of him. Appearance wise, she resembled Angelica so much, but for some reason he could instinctively tell that she was not Angelica.

    "I can sense the bond between you and the host I now dwell in, and I heard the vow you made before the Possession. I am very sure you are the one I am bound to by contract. Therefore, I shall ask again. Are you my master?"

    "Uh, yes, I guess?" Shun Yin still didn''t understand anything, but the person who used to be Angelica nodded. In a flash, Shun Yin felt a strange warmth circulating within him, and he could "see" invisible threads of mana linking him to her. He blinked, wondering if he was imagining things, but he could clearly sense their connection.

    "Let''s go then." Angelica hovered past him and toward the door. "We have a battle to fight."

    "W¡­wait! Angelica, what happened to you?"

    The fiery angel turned to smile sadly at him.

    "I am Angelica¡­yet at the same time, I am no longer Angelica."

    "Huh?" Shun Yin stared at her blankly, not comprehending, but she shook her head and continued toward the door.

    "It''ll take too long to explain. One day¡­I''ll explain it to you, but for now, just know that I have transcended the existence of a human, and fused with a spirit. You probably should know¡­after all, this isn''t the first time you''ve encountered a being like me."

    "¡­that''s right." Shun Yin understood. The spirit possessed experimental subject at Vermillion Aquarium. Cerberus. Cronus Wright.

    Angelica was now the same type of existence as all of them. For better or for worse, she was irreversibly merged with a spirit, never to return to being human again. She was no longer a human or a spirit, but both, something that transcended both.

    And he was the only anchor that allowed her to exist in this world.

    Swallowing, Shun Yin reached out to hold her hand, but Angelica moved away, sweeping out of the door and into the corridor. He could sense her discomfort at his attempt at physical contact, and he felt a pain stab his chest.

    I''ll never get used to this, he thought. However, Angelica was right. This wasn''t the time to worry about intimacy or Angelica''s new form. He had to help Lionel Stuart and Yuan Dao Yue Guang before it was too late.

    The both of them hurried out of the corridor, Angelica practically flying above the floor while Shun Yin ran. They burst into the cavern where Lionel and Yue Guang were still dueling against Cronus Wright and the now fully restored Serena Wright.

    Serena narrowed her eyes when she caught sight of them.

    "I knew it," she murmured. "So you really went and did it. You went and sacrificed yourself to become a spirit in order to fight on par with us."

    "What''s going on?" Lionel demanded, turning from Shun Yin to Angelica and back again. "Why is Ms. Porter like that?"

    Shun Yin shook his head. "I would like to know myself."

    "No time to explain," Angelica interrupted. "But leave Cronus Wright to me. Mr. Stuart, Mr. Yuan Dao, please withdraw."

    Lionel and Yue Guang looked extremely battered, beleaguered from their battle against both Cronus and Serena. Blood was streaming down their bodies, their clothes were ripped, and their breathing was heavy. They were nearing their limit.

    However¡­

    "I''ll leave Cronus to you. But we''ll take care of Serena." Lionel forced a smile. "I don''t know what happened, but I''m sure that even you and Mr. Huang will have trouble trying to deal with the both of them on your own."

    "Your assistance is much appreciated."

    Angelica wasn''t able to say much more, because Cronus was already lunging at her, instinctively recognizing her as the biggest threat in the room. Silver mana rippled across his massive form as he threw a punch at her.

    "Watch out!"

    Shun Yin recognized the punch as the one that ended Michael''s Vermillion Phoenix earlier, the time technique that transfigured the phoenix to its future self, where it had long perished and decomposed to the point of no longer existing in the world.

    Angelica didn''t flinch. Instead, she steeled herself to meet Cronus head-on, soaring high into the air and raising her hands. Crimson flames enveloped her hands and she unleashed dual torrents of fire at the incoming spirit-possessed Assassin. Placing faith in his time magic, Cronus charged through the inferno without stopping.

    "?!"

    To his amazement, Angelica''s flames didn''t disappear, forced into the future where they didn''t exist because of time. Instead, his silver time-field flickered and disappeared. Before he could respond to this new development, Angelica dove upon him and hammered a fist wreathed in fire right into his midriff. Cronus crossed his arms to parry the blow, but he was sent hurtling across the cavern, his forearms smoldering from the purifying flames.

    "What is this?!"

    "My purification flames transcend time itself. They exist to nullify magic. Your time magic will not work on me."

    Even as she spoke, Angelica continued to hurl fire at her opponent. Despite his single big advantage neutralized, Cronus was still a deadly Assassin who had honed his skills before his possession. He flipped himself over with a grace that belied his immense size and dodged the fireballs that bombarded his position. Jumping right onto the wall, he bent his knees and launched himself at the hovering Angelica.

    It didn''t matter if he didn''t have his time magic. He could just resort to brute force to beat Angelica down. Even her purification flames wouldn''t stop his sheer strength.

    Instinctively recognizing the threat, Angelica banked and dodged his attack, but Cronus whipped around in midair and kicked her. Despite crossing her arms to defend against his attack, the sheer power knocked her out of the air and sent her crashing onto the ground.

    "Kuh!"

    Cronus descended upon her, drawing his fist back. Angelica rolled away, but she wasn''t fast enough to avoid her assailant.

    "!!!"

    Cronus suddenly twisted around and altered his trajectory, throwing himself to the side when flames erupted across the space between him and Angelica. With his protective time-field temporarily purified by Angelica''s fire, those flames would have proven dangerous to him. Keeping his distance, he turned to glare at Shun Yin, who had stepped in to intervene.

    "Burn all creation to ash," Shun Yin commanded his sword. "Liu Ren Ruo Huo!"

    A pillar of flames exploded outward from him, and in an instant half of the cavern was engulfed in a sea of flames. Cronus shielded himself with his arms, but he could see his skin blackening from the sheer heat. Perspiration poured down his body as he struggled to withstand the terrifying flames. if he hadn''t been fused with a spirit and gained unbelievable resistance to magic, he might have been incinerated right there and then.

    "Impressive¡­such power from someone so young."

    Shun Yin said nothing and focused on attacking him. Swinging his sword, he unleashed another burst of superheated flames that would have incinerated Cronus if he didn''t dodge.

    "?!"

    While Cronus was diving to the side, Angelica showed up in front of him, and with a flaming kick, she sent him sprawling on the ground. This time it was Cronus who was rolling desperately to avoid a blazing slash from Shun Yin, only for him to get right into the path of Angelica''s inferno. He winced but managed to suppress a grunt of pain as the purification flames scorched his body.

    Coughing, he rose to his feet and retaliated, forcing Angelica back. Turning around, he deflected Shun Yin''s sword, only for his arm to fall away. It didn''t matter. As he withdrew, his cauterized stump glowed silver and he slowly restored his amputated arm.

    "¡­the restoration is slower¡­is it because of that spirit''s purification flames?"

    Cronus narrowed his eyes, but he wasn''t able to ponder much before Shun Yin pressed on with his attack.

    On the other side, Serena faced off against Lionel and Yue Guang. With her mana restored when her spirit-husband reversed her time earlier, she was able to conjure countless spectral arms to attack them. Like a thousand-arm Buddha wielding a myriad of weapons, she slashed, hacked and swiped at them, trying to cut them into shreds or bludgeon them into oblivion.

    In the face of such a relentless onslaught, Yue Guang stood strong, refusing to yield ground. Clad in Armament Ba Qi, he countered each and every one of her strikes, knocking and deflecting the weapons away with what was essentially his bare hands. Despite his relative success, even his Armament Ba Qi was not invincible. Fresh cuts appeared over his body, blood streaming from countless wounds. He flinched as a huge dagger sliced open the skin on his face, and staggered when he struggled to endure the devastating strike from a massive mace, but he held firm. Heaving heavily, he knocked a halberd aside, ignoring the blood flying from the back of his hand as he did so, and kicked a sword before it could stab him.

    "I''m probably in no position to say this, but you truly are a monster," Serena growled, perspiration dripping down her face. She never imagined that somebody would be able to defend against her thousand arms with Ba Qi and martial arts alone.

    Yue Guang didn''t respond to what he probably acknowledged as a compliment, and only slid forward while knocking aside an axe and a sword. Twisting around to avoid getting impaled by a huge spear, he obliterated a spectral arm with a punch. Dropping to a stance and taking a deep breath, he kicked another arm into oblivion, the sword falling out of it, and then spun to hammer a third arm that was bearing a scimitar, sending the weapon flying out of the crumbling hand.

    A huge hammer then slammed into him, and despite Yue Guang fortifying himself to the max with Ba Qi and physical reinforcement spells while crossing his arms to withstand the blow, he was sent hurtling across the cavern, with blood bursting from his mouth.

    "Huff¡­"

    Breathing heavily, Serena glared at the fallen bodyguard, wondering how just one person could force her to exert herself with martial arts alone. What chilled her even more was the fact that she could actually lose to him. Perhaps, in a few years¡­or even months, when this man refined his martial arts and techniques further, strengthened his Armament Ba Qi by another few notches, he would be able to crush all of her thousand arms and defeat her with a single strike.

    What a terrifying foe.

    "A pity though, that you will die here."

    Two spectral arms scythed the swords they were bearing downward, ready to cleave the sprawled Yue Guang to pieces. Truthfully, he could defend himself, but before he needed to, flower petals cut through the arms and severed them.

    "So you''ve finally decided to step in, huh?" Serena turned to cast a scornful gaze at the approaching Lionel Stuart. He merely smiled, cocking his head toward his bodyguard.

    "Thank you, Yue Guang. You bought me enough time to cast this spell."

    A green dragon was coiling around his sword once more. Serena snorted disdainfully when she saw it.

    "That technique again? Do you really think¡­?"

    "Bloom, Ten Thousand Sakura Blossoms."

    Lionel stabbed his sword into the ground. The green dragon coiled around his blade vanished, and dozens of green dragons slowly rose from the ground behind him, almost as if they were trees sprouting and growing from the soil.

    "What the hell is that?!" Serena demanded, a sinking feeling punching her in the gut when she saw the multiple green dragons behind Lionel.

    Then they disappeared.

    No, that wasn''t correct. To be more accurate, they dispersed and scattered, each dragon transforming into countless Sakura blossoms. Tens of thousands of pink Sakura petals drifted across their half of the cavern, soaring across the space to engulf Serena and her thousand arms.

    "Hah! Do you think these flower petals will work against me? I have a thousand arms and a thousand weapons! I''ll just destroy all of them!"

    "You may have a thousand arms and a thousand weapons." Lionel smiled thinly. "But will they be enough against tens of thousands of Sakura blossoms?"

    Serena''s eyes widened when she saw the sea of Sakura blossoms blot out her vision, swallowing her and her shadowy arms in an ocean of pink. As they slammed down onto her and her spectral appendages like an inexorable tsunami, she screamed.

    "!!!"

    Cronus turned around out of concern for his wife. Through their bond, he could feel her seriously wounded.

    "Where are you looking at?"

    Angelica struck him, but he caught her foot before it could hit his face, and then flung her off. Angelica spun helplessly about in the air before she righted herself, but Cronus lunged at her with a punch, forcing her to parry the blow.

    "Kuh!"

    Even with the powers of a spirit, Angelica wasn''t able to withstand the immense force behind Cronus''s fist. Blood spurted from her mouth as she was sent tumbling across the cavern before crashing into a wall and disappearing underneath a rubble of rock.

    "¡­"

    Cronus glanced at his burning fist, which was being ravaged by Angelica''s purification flames ¨C a parting gift before he sent her flying. He extinguished the fire with sheer will and mana, and worked hard to reverse time ¨C a process made more difficult by the lingering effects of Angelica''s purification fire. He then took a step toward her.

    "I had best hurry up and finish you off before I go save my wife."

    "No, you won''t."

    Shun Yin stepped between Cronus and Angelica''s buried form, blood streaming down his head. He spat out a glob of blood, an injury suffered when he was hit by Cronus off-screen earlier. However, he stood determinedly between his enemy and the girl he loved. Cronus regarded him dismissively, having judged that he wouldn''t pose much of a threat, but Shun Yin couldn''t care less what his opponent thought of him.

    Instead, he straightened up and channeled his mana into his sword. In an instant, all the flames that surrounded the trio vanished.

    "Bankai," Shun Yin growled. "Can Huo de Tai Dao."

 243 Chapter 243: The Angel of Fire

    For a moment, Cronus wondered if he was mistaken. He was pretty sure that Huang Shun Yin had just unleashed his ultimate technique, but all the flames had vanished. It didn''t make sense to him. Shouldn''t his fire spell get more powerful?

    Where did all the flames go?

    Instead, all Cronus could see was a single sword, its blade blackened and smoldering. His instincts warned him that there was something terribly wrong with the sword, and that it was highly dangerous, but he wasn''t sure why he should fear such immense fear from a little burnt blade.

    For some reason, his throat felt dry. The temperature seemed to rise, the air shimmering from invisible heat. His lips cracked, the dried skin peeling off to reveal blood. He raised a hand to it, and began to rewind time to heal it¡­only for it to crack against after seconds of exposure to the current temperature.

    "¡­ugh¡­"

    For some reason, he felt dizzy, as if he was suffering from heat exhaustion. But that couldn''t be possible. He had been fused with a spirit. He should have transcended the very existence of humans altogether. So how could he¡­?

    So hot¡­so dry¡­so thirsty¡­

    No, it wasn''t thirst. As a spirit vessel, Cronus could no longer feel thirsty. Yet, he felt a sensation akin to what was the equivalent of human thirst. It was as if all the moisture in his body was evaporating, drying up and fleeing somewhere. Probably trying futilely to keep his body cool, or diffusing to fill up the lack of water in the sweltering atmosphere.

    "What''s going on?" he demanded, his throat parched somehow. He staggered a little, wondering if he was staring at a mirage. His opponent seemed to have doubled himself¡­no, tripled.

    Shun Yin merely grinned at him, seeming to hold his scorched sword in a relaxed manner.

    However, Angelica rose out of the rubble to smack Shun Yin right in the head.

    "What do you mean, Bankai?! Are you trying to be funny?!"

    "Ow, come one! I just wanted to rip off one of the most awesome techniques ever from my favorite manga!"

    "Rip off?! What happens when someone reports us for plagiarism and force us to delete this story? You''re going to take responsibility?!"

    "People are already complaining that we copied Battle Frenzy and a bunch of other manga, web novels and anime. What''s one more?"

    "Enough!" Cronus roared as he lunged at them. He could sense his wife, Serena, growing weaker by the minute. She was currently being cornered by Lionel Stuart and Yuan Dao Yue Guang. No, even Lionel alone was more than enough to overpower her.

    If he didn''t finish this idiot couple off soon, both he and his wife would be in danger of having their existences erased from this world.

    As such, he didn''t have patience for their antics and fourth-wall breaking humor, much like some readers and commenters, and hurled himself straight into combat. Silver mana rippled around him but he condensed it into pure power rather than time magic, as that would easily be countered by Angelica''s purification flames.

    However, Shun Yin didn''t bother evading such a horrifying attack. He merely stood his ground and swung his sword.

    Despite his initial misgivings and gut feeling, Cronus didn''t care and plunged toward him with his punch. Even though his chest was feeling troubled and screaming a warning to him, he was pretty sure that there was no way a little, burned sword could do anything to him.

    Even if it could, he could just merely restore himself with his time magic, rewinding time to back when he was still unscathed. He didn''t need to worry about any sort of attack. As long as he still had his mana, he was immortal.

    "!!!"

    Cronus''s view seemed to vanish as red-hot agony enveloped him. He continued barreling past Shun Yin before tumbling helplessly to the ground.

    "¡­eh?!"

    Through the red haze of excruciating pain, he glanced down at himself when he realized that he couldn''t move his left arm. That he couldn''t move either of his legs.

    His body was gone. Completely erased. Only his head, shoulder and some part of his chest remained, his right arm clutching blankly at the ground. A cauterized wound ran where the left part of his chest would have been, but the rest of his body was simply gone.

    It wasn''t just his body. As he raised his head to look behind himself, he inevitably caught sight of the scorched crater that was all that remained of the ground. It was as if the ground itself had been sliced open, leaving nothing more than a ravine of molten rock behind.

    His eyes moved toward Shun Yin''s sword, and he suddenly understood where all the flames went.

    That kid focused all of his flames into his sword! So each of his swing contains the full power of all those flames condensed into a single point!

    As a result, his body was nearly completely incinerated from just a single strike.

    Curling his fingers into the ground, Cronus forced himself to get up on his single remaining arm. With a roar, he gathered his mana into his body, trying to reverse time. A maelstrom of silver mana swirled around the remains of his body with immense force, buffeting both Shun Yin and Angelica, and a translucent silhouette of his body began to gradually form. Even though the time rewinding process had been slowed down by Angelica''s flames of purification, he would not be stopped.

    He could not be stopped.

    "GUAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    However, he wasn''t able to finish rewinding time and restoring himself. Withstanding the barrage of mana from his spell, Angelica raised a hand and bathed him in crimson flames. Cronus bellowed as he was engulfed by the mystical flames, but he gritted his teeth and struggled to endure it. All he needed was a few more seconds and he would be able to fully restore himself and break out of this inferno¡­

    "!!!"

    To his horror, Cronus realized that his time rewinding spell wasn''t working. His magic was being neutralized by Angelica''s purification flames. Even though he was attempting to overcome the purification effects through sheer volume of mana and willpower, it wasn''t enough. He could see the regeneration of his body stunted and halted by the purification power.

    "Damn it¡­!"

    "Did you think I would just stand here and watch you rewind time to restore yourself?" Angelica''s lips were curling to an insidious smile. "Don''t be na?ve."

    Cronus growled and tried to lunge at her, hoping to catch her off guard with his remaining hand. She might be powerful, but if he caught her off guard, he might be able to break her concentration and interrupt her spell. That should give him enough time to complete the casting of his time rewind spell and restore himself.

    "!!!"

    However, he never reached her.

    Shun Yin amputated his arm with his blackened, smoldering sword. The charred blade enveloped Cronus''s remaining body with flames on par with those generated by the sun, and he screamed in agony. His arm vanished, completely incinerated, and it wasn''t long before his head and chest followed it into the void, reduced into ashes.

    "Phew¡­" Shun Yin wiped the perspiration from his brow. "I didn''t expect my Can Huo de Tai Dao to be this powerful.

    "It''s not over yet!" Angelica warned. The next second, an explosion of silver mana erupted from Cronus''s ashes, but Shun Yin leaped away in time. Gritting her teeth, Angelica blasted the silver maelstrom with crimson flames, slowly destroying it. The gigantic human outline that had gradually grew out of the ashes began to collapse again.

    By purifying the time magic that Cronus cast, Angelica was neutralizing his resurrection and ensuring that he stayed dead for good. Even though this was similar in principle to the magic she originally wielded, she would never have been capable of casting purification flames of sufficient strength to neutralize Cronus''s far more powerful time magic if she had not chosen to sacrifice her humanity and merge with a spirit.

    That was why she had chosen to take this drastic step. In order to stop Cronus for good. Otherwise he would just return to life over and over again by rewinding time, and eventually slaughtered every single person here who belonged to the Global Federation.

    This was the only chance they had for survival.

    "UWAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    With an inhuman howl, Cronus''s existence slowly faded away from this dimension. Without a physical form to which the spirit could tether itself, Cronus''s biological body was expiring rapidly and losing cohesion. It wasn''t as if Cronus''s essence or soul could remain in the physical domain for very long if he didn''t have a body to house it. It was dissipating, purged and cleansed by Angelica''s relentless purification flames.

    And then, just like that, he was gone.

    "Cronus!"

    Serena shrieked when she sensed and witnessed the demise of her husband. Greenish-black mana rolled outward from her body as she turned toward the two kids, incensed. At least eight pairs of hands burst from behind her, each carrying a different weapon.

    "I suggest that you worry about yourself instead," Lionel advised. He had a point. Serena was in a critical condition, having been mauled by his countless Sakura blossoms. Her black synthetic suit had been ripped in a hundred different places, and she had lost a massive amount of blood from several dozen injuries. In fact, she was barely able to keep herself upright, staggering from the pain and blood loss.

    "!!!"

    Serena whirled around and slashed at Lionel, but he parried her short sword. Her eight pair of arms hammered or slashed down on him, but flexible wood sprang out from behind him, each bearing a green dragon coiled around it and blossoming leaves, and curled around the spectral appendages, restraining them. They began to diminish as the wooden technique drained the mana from them at an incredible rate.

    "Kuh!"

    Serena swung her second short sword, but Lionel ducked under it. Before she could respond, he twisted the sword in his hand and sliced off her arm.

    "Argh!"

    Screaming, Serena staggered back, blood spurting from her amputated limb, but before she could react, Lionel twirled his sword in an almost elegant fashion and rammed the tip of his blade into her chest, puncturing her heart.

    Blood dripped from Serena''s lips as she stared hollowly at the sword piercing through her chest, and then she slumped over lifelessly.

    "That should do it."

    Kicking Serena down and ruthlessly yanking his sword out of her corpse, Lionel turned toward the injured Yue Guang.

    "Are you all right, Yue Guang?"

    "Yes, my lord." the future security chief nodded and accepted the hand that his master offered him, allowing the latter to pull him to his feet.

    "Good. Then I suggest that we¡­"

    His proposal was cut short when a familiar figure burst into the cavern, followed by a massive White Tiger.

    "I did it! I purged all the data in the cloud server, and destroyed the computer mainframe! I also went through the other rooms and wrecked them! There shouldn''t be any physical hard disks containing the data, at least not in this facility!"

    Glen Porter looked pretty proud of himself, but his triumph was short-lived. Catching sight of Angelica''s angelic form, he did a double take.

    "Angie!? What happened to you?!"

    Angelica offered him a sad smile.

    "I''m afraid that I''m¡­not Angelica. Well, I am still her, but at the same time I''m not her."

    "Huh? What the hell are you talking about?!" Glen scowled at her. "Stop speaking in riddles and explain clearly!"

    "I''m afraid I can''t do that." Angelica shook her head. "Maybe we''ll meet again, but for now¡­"

    She disappeared, turning into a ball of fire that streaked toward Shun Yin and vanished into his chest. Shun Yin could feel a familiar and nostalgic warmth spreading throughout his body. Closing his eyes, he clamped his fingers to his chest.

    "W¡­what?! Where did she go!? Angie!?"

    Glen was gaping at the unbelievable spectacle, and his eyes came to a rest on Shun Yin''s stationary form, the last place where Angelica went.

    "Shun Yin! What''s going on?! What happened to Angie?!"

    "I would also like an explanation, if you don''t mind." Lionel joined them, backed by his bodyguard. "It appears that¡­she underwent the same process as the Assassin we were fighting earlier. If I recall from the data correctly, that was Spirit Possession¡­"

    "What?!" Glen''s face paled considerably. He spun toward Shun Yin and grabbed his shoulders. "Don''t tell me she went and turned herself into a spirit?! Why?! Why didn''t you stop her?!"

    "I tried to." Shun Yin slumped down wearily, feeling as if the weight of the world had just sank into his shoulders. "But she tricked me. I know it''s not an excuse¡­I''m sorry."

    "Instead of apologizing, why don''t you start from the beginning?" Lionel suggested gently, placing a hand on Glen and coaxing him away. Shun Yin nodded.

    "It''s a long story¡­"

 244 Chapter 244: Aftermath

    "You okay?"

    Shun Yin was sitting by himself outside the cemetery, brooding. Glen approached him, and when his friend turned toward him, he tossed a bottle at him. Shun Yin caught it by reflex, and then stared at the clear water swirling inside the plastic bottle.

    Yeah, they still used plastic 1,000 years in the future. Maybe technology allowed them to use some alternative to fossil fuels as the ingredient for plastics. Synthetic materials could be manufactured through magic or through a fusion of alchemy and chemistry. Though alchemy was simply magic chemistry.

    "Yeah." Shun Yin nodded distractedly as he uncapped the bottle and took a gulp. He lowered his gaze, unable to meet Glen''s eyes.

    "What about¡­Angie? Is she all right?"

    Glen wasn''t sure how to approach the subject. He wondered if Shun Yin could still communicate with Angelica when he didn''t summon her, and where she existed when not summoned. Probably in some interdimensional soul plane inside Shun Yin''s mana pool or consciousness. Magic was a mysterious thing. Anything was possible.

    "Angelica is all right. She doesn''t like it if I summon her for nothing¡­or for the most trivial things. Sorry."

    "Nothing you should apologize for. I understand that Angie''s not the same as she used to be. I''m not even sure if she''s still Angie."

    Shun Yin sighed and scratched his head. "She''ll tell you for the millionth time that she is Angelica and at the same time she is not.

    "Of course." Glen snorted. "As if I understand that."

    "Anyway¡­" Shun Yin tried to change the subject. "How about¡­your cousin? How is the Porter clan reacting to Michael''s¡­death?"

    The two of them turned back toward the graveyard, as if in unison. The funeral was long over, with the remnants of the Porter clan sobbing or acting out their grief in front of Michael''s coffin. The priest had said his prayers and they were supposed to lower his corpse into the grave¡­except that he was meant to be cremated.

    Just as well. There wasn''t much of Michael''s body left to collect, not after Cronus Wright had obliterated the top half of his body. Without his head, they could hardly identify the body and confirm that it belonged to him by dental records or whatever. If they were relying on modern technology, that is. Fortunately, magic could do anything, and they identified him through the lingering mana signature that stubbornly clung to his body.

    The two guys were dressed in dark suits, complete with a tie and everything. It was a funeral, after all, and they were expected to at least look formal. Not that Shun Yin felt comfortable in such a rigid attire, but he was too somber about Michael''s death to care about such trivial details. The person he idolized and hero-worshipped had died.

    He had always believed that Michael was invincible. After all, what superhero story had the hero killed off ignominiously in battle? This was the guy he had been adoring and whose footsteps he wished to follow, whose back he had been chasing almost half his life. A hero he aspired to become like when he grew up.

    And now¡­Michael was gone. Just like that.

    Shun Yin was aware of the dangers of battle, and knew that the casualty rates and death tolls for combat mages were extremely high. He had heard countless stories of combat mages failing to return home alive, getting killed in the battlefield, losing their lives to monsters or enemy mages. But he never imagined that Michael would be among the dead.

    The guy was supposed to be indestructible¡­a hero. A symbol of hope, someone for kids such as him to look up to and follow. Just how¡­?

    "There''s not much of the Porter clan left to mourn Mike''s death," Glen said finally, snapping Shun Yin out of his thoughts. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed, glancing back at the pitiful number of Porter clan members who were still gathered in the graveyard. Other than Glen''s family ¨C his father, Henry Porter, and his mother ¨C the rest were distant branch families who were now elevated as the core families because of the original latter''s demise. They didn''t have a choice, not unless they were willing to allow the Porter clan to fade into obscurity.

    Furthermore¡­

    "They aren''t holding a funeral for Angelica," Shun Yin murmured. Glen raised an eyebrow and shrugged.

    "Well¡­technically she''s not dead. Not human anymore, no longer existing in our dimension, sort of, but still¡­alive. I guess. How do you classify someone who has been fused with a spirit and can only exist in our world through the contractor summoning her?"

    "I don''t know," Shun Yin admitted truthfully. His head began to hurt as he considered the various complications. "I really don''t know."

    "I guess, in the end, it doesn''t really matter, does it?" Glen glanced up at the sky, shoving his hands into the pockets of his suit. "You still get to see her and talk to her whenever you summon her. It''s not ideal, but at least she''s not gone forever. Like¡­"

    He trailed off as he glanced in the direction of Michael''s grave. The coffin was for show, because his remains were going to be cremated anyway, and then they would put the urn in front of the gravestone.

    "Funerals are held for the living¡­to give the people who live on some closure." Shun Yin rubbed the bridge of his nose, knowing that the funeral was pretty much meaningless to the actual person who had died. However, to the people who were still alive, the ones who were grieving, it eased their pain a little.

    Even that tiny amount helped a lot psychologically.

    However, who was grieving for Michael? Both his parents were dead. His sister was now a spirit, appearing on Earth only when Shun Yin summoned her. The only people who truly mourned his loss were probably Glen and his parents. The branch families didn''t know Michael, weren''t close enough to him to truly feel any pain. They were somber, not because they were devastated over his loss, but because they recognized the significance his death had on the future of the Porter clan.

    It would be a long while before the Porter clan could truly reestablish itself as a force, as one of the ten Great Families of the Global Federation.

    "What will the Porter clan do from now on?" Shun Yin asked. Glen shrugged, hopping off the small set of stairs leading into the entrance and gate of the graveyard.

    "Who knows? Dad will figure it out. As of now, he''s the acting head of the Porter clan." He grimaced. "I don''t envy him."

    "Doesn''t that mean you''ll succeed him as the next clan leader after he steps down?"

    "Ugh, I don''t want to think about it."

    Shun Yin smiled, seeking a little comfort in Glen''s usual behavior. He reached out and patted his shoulder reassuringly.

    "You''ll do fine."

    "I doubt it."

    "Trust me, you will."

    He then leaned back and stared at the distant sky, his mind momentarily blanking out as he struggled to process the reality. Now that Michael was gone, he didn''t have a role model to follow. Well, he could always follow the stuff that Michael Porter did while he was alive, but eventually he would reach the point where he caught up with him and even overtake him. At that moment, he would be at a loss at how to proceed from there.

    No. it was meaningless to continue following along Michael''s path. That was Michael''s path, not his. He would have to forge his own route.

    "What about you?" As if on cue, Glen inquired. "What do you plan to do from now on?"

    "¡­I''ll have to find my own path, I guess."

    Shun Yin raised a hand toward the sky and pondered for another second. He still wanted to be a hero. He still intended to become an ally of justice, saving others from danger and villains. That had not change.

    The question now was¡­how would he become a hero? What sort of ally of justice would he become?

    If he followed Michael''s route, he would just be a counterfeit. A "hero" who hollowly clung to a beautiful, albeit fragile ideals that others had set out upon him, only to find them all shattered the moment he reached the point where his predecessor had died. That route wasn''t impossible. Even if he pursued Michael''s vision up to the point of his death, he could think about where to proceed from there. He could just worry about the future after he got there, not before.

    He realized that Glen was still staring at him quizzically.

    "What do you mean?"

    "Now that Michael is gone, someone has to pick up the slack. I''m not saying he can be replaced, but the world needs¡­heroes more than ever. Allies of justice." Shun Yin clenched his right fist and stared at it. "The Dark Church isn''t the only villain in this world. People will still need to be saved. I''ll save them in Michael''s place."

    "Hey, you don''t have to do that¡­" Glen began, but Shun Yin shook his head.

    "No, don''t misunderstand me. I''m not doing this out of some misguided sense of responsibility. I''m doing it because I want to." he smiled as he tilted his head back and stared at the sky. "Ever since I first saw Michael defeat those robbers almost ten years ago, I always aspired to be an ally of justice like him. I always imagined being a hero, saving people''s lives and defeating villains."

    "You are a hero," Glen told him quietly but firmly. "You''ve saved my life so many times. And your actions against the Dark Church and the Assassins Guild undoubtedly saved countless lives. If you didn''t stop them from activating their device, Vermillion City¡­no, the world would be doomed."

    He took a deep breath.

    "You also saved me, Mr. Stuart and Mr. Yuan Dao from that Assassin couple in the mountain. You and Angie both."

    "If I had been stronger, Michael might not have died."

    "It wasn''t your fault."

    "I know," Shun Yin agreed. "I''m not stupid enough to blame myself for his death. But at the same time I understand that there are ways to prevent that. I''ll move on and grow stronger from this experience rather than mope over it."

    Glen looked at him in surprise, and then smiled.

    "Yeah. You''ll be fine."

    "You too."

    Shun Yin rose to his feet, and the both of them departed from the cemetery. As they strolled toward the bus stop, something occurred to Glen.

    "I know you said you want to become an ally of justice, but what do you want to do specifically? How does one become a hero?"

    "I don''t know. I''m planning on becoming a mercenary like Michael, taking on missions, going into hot combat zones and saving people." Shun Yin thought for a while. "Maybe I''ll go on a journey and travel the world."

    "A journey?" Glen''s eyes widened. "What about school? Do you plan to drop out?"

    Shun Yin laughed. "Of course not. I plan to graduate properly. There''s still a lot I can learn." He scratched his head. "Well, I inadvertently caught ahold of the spirit summoning thing that your dad and his research students are working on, but even so I think there''s plenty I need to learn before I go out and explore the world." He pondered further. "And I plan to attend university as well. There are quite a few magic universities that specialize in teaching combat magic."

    "If you want to get into them, you''ve to work hard!" Glen warned.

    "I know. It''s not going to be easy, but I''ll strive to fulfil my dream." Shun Yin raised his hand toward the sky to display his resolve. "I''m not going to let anyone down¡­with Angelica by my side, I''m going to save everyone I can, and hopefully never witness another person dying in front of me ever again."

 245 Chapter 245: Everything but the Rain IV

    "And that''s pretty much it." Dad grinned. "So, are you finally ready to go to the Soul King''s Palace to get your Zhan Po Dao re-forged and begin your training anew?"

    "¡­huh? What are you talking about?"

    I gaped at Dad, not sure I heard him correctly.

    "Did you forget?" Dad knocked on my head. "That blacksmith dude threw you down here from the King''s Palace because he wanted you to know your roots. Otherwise you''ll never be able to master your Zhan Po Dao."

    "WRONG STORY! This isn''t even a manga!"

    I threw my hands up in exasperation, trying not to blow up and failing miserably. I didn''t know whether I was angrier at myself for actually catching the reference. Granted, that was one of my favorite manga, what with all the awesome Shinigami and their Zanpakuto, but we would get into copyright trouble if I started mastering Bankai right here and now.

    Forcing myself to calm down, I glanced at where Angelica had been, but she had disappeared when Dad began his tale. Probably because she didn''t want to listen to her own life story being told. I knew how that felt. It was really awkward listening to someone tell other people a story about you. And in my experience, it tended to be people making fun of me and telling everyone how much of an idiot or a retard I was, which made it more humiliating.

    "Then why were you asking about Angelica? I thought you wanted to know about your mother and your Quincy origins."

    "WRONG! Since when am I a Quincy?!"

    "But your most powerful spells are the ranged ones, right? And you use a bow and arrow pretty often."

    "I''m just ripping off Archer-class Servants from another anime! The one with the Holy Grail War! Not Shinigami!"

    I was clutching my head, regretting ever asking Dad about Angelica and spirit summoning. Dad stared at me strangely, his face scrunched up for a moment, and then he scratched his head before sighing.

    "Sorry. It has been forty-five chapters and probably almost a whole month of reading, even including the double mass releases. I know there are readers screaming in the comments about the whole flashback arc being fillers and extremely boring, and that they want you to get back to the ''real'' story, never mind that this flashback arc is a vital part of the real story. Why do they think they know what''s the real story better than the writer of the story himself? But that''s not important. I forgot why you even asked me about this in the first place."

    "Because of the sacrifice necessary to make a contract with a spirit in order to tether it to this world¡­the requirement of a host to bind the spirit to you. And for that to be possible, the host has to be someone close to you."

    "Oh, right." Dad paused for a moment and gave me a strange stare. "How did you know about that? I don''t recall ever telling you anything about that."

    "No, you didn''t. I found out on my own."

    I briefly told him about my encounter with Selina and Hades. He listened for a moment, unsurprised because he had already heard of my hard-fought victory over the legendary Grim Reaper. While I recounted, I wondered inwardly if Selina and Hades were related to Serena and Cronus. It would be one hell of a coincidence if Selina and Hades were the children of Serena and Cronus. That would mean that the battle our parents fought had continued down to our generation. That said, Serena was clearly several years older than I was, so it wasn''t accurate to categorize her as part of my generation.

    It didn''t matter. She was now dead.

    "So they told you." Dad nodded thoughtfully, but he didn''t seem shocked at the revelation. "I knew the Assassins Guild would continue using that spirit summoning technology to create more of those Spirit Assassins."

    Having just heard the entire story, I could only nod.

    "Damn them," Dad muttered. Then he sighed. "But then again, if those two are really the children of Cronus and Serena Wright, it''s only natural that they would take up the mantle of their parents and delve into forbidden technology. Furthermore, if there''s anyone who would be able to preserve the spirit summoning technology, it would be the Assassins."

    "Are you hunting down the Assassins Guild?" I asked. "Do you intend to destroy them completely?"

    "I don''t know if it''s even possible. Even after a couple of decades, I''m still unable to locate their elusive Grand Master and real base. They are a tough nut to crack." Dad sighed heavily. "I''ll fight them and stop them whenever I see them, but I''m not optimistic enough to think I''ll find their real headquarters and leader and end them decisively."

    He leaned closer, his face turning grim.

    "Furthermore, the Grand Master of Assassins is the deadliest man alive. I don''t know whether I stand a chance against him."

    "You''ll do fine, Dad," I assured him. "You''re invincible! Nobody can beat you!"

    Dad gave me a really sad smile, and I suddenly had d¨¦j¨¤ vu for some reason. That look on his face ¨C it was as if he was staring at his younger self.

    "No, I''m not invincible."

    "But you¡­"

    "Remember the story I told you about my past?" Dad''s smile was hollow. "I also thought that Michael Porter was invincible. That he would never die, no matter what. That he would overcome all obstacles and emerge a shining hero whose figure gave hope to everyone. That he would become the symbol for peace."

    "Are we going to my Hero Academia now?" I asked sarcastically. Dad raised a hand.

    "My point," he continued, as if he ever had a point to begin. Hah! "Is that nobody is invincible. Even Michael died. And I will die too¡­one day. I hope the day will never come, just like everyone else except my enemies, but in my line of work, it''s very likely. And when that day arrives, I hope you will be mentally prepared."

    He shrugged.

    "I know we aren''t related by blood, and there''s still quite a wall between us. Honestly, despite my meta commentary back then, I never thought I would adopt a son. I¡­honestly have no idea how to be a father, and being a single parent at that."

    "You did a good job," I assured him. Dad smiled at that, but he shook his head.

    "Thanks. But I probably should have spent more time taking care of you instead of watching anime all the time. And¡­" he stared at me thoughtfully. "Maybe I should have spent money for the healing procedure to correct your eyesight permanently instead of just buying you glasses."

    "That''s fine. I''m used to wearing glasses. I feel weird not wearing glasses. Besides, it''s a waste of money. It''s not worth the cost."

    While most healing spells and procedures, such as injuries sustained in the battlefield or illnesses, were covered by the national healthcare insurance plan, cosmetic surgeries such as eyesight correction, plastic surgery, slimming, and pigmentation were not because they were considered non-essential. Furthermore, in an ultra-capitalistic society such as the Global Federation, corporations wanted to continue making profits, and the industry that manufactured and sold glasses was a lucrative one. They were better served keeping the prices of eyesight correction up while maintaining cheap prices of glasses, otherwise they would go out of business.

    Welcome to capitalism.

    "But I can afford it and I chose not to¡­"

    "Because you wanted to buy the latest DVD collection of Gun Damn, as well as the new model kits, didn''t you?"

    Dad looked sheepish and he shrugged. Yeah, I caught him red-handed.

    "Anyway, I didn''t know Uncle Glen was from the Porter clan." I returned to the subject at hand. I had met Uncle Glen a few times, but he never gave any sign that he was from one of the top ten great families. Granted, from what Dad had just told me, the Porter clan was pretty much decimated about twenty years ago and were struggling to recover ever since. But even so, I thought either one of them would at least mention it.

    "Oh." Dad rubbed his head. "Yeah¡­we didn''t mean to hide it from you. It''s just that Glen gets annoying sometimes, so¡­"

    "Right."

    It was at that moment, the doorbell rang. Dad raised an eyebrow, but I was already up and going forward to answer the door.

    "Hey, Richie! It''s been a while!"

    "Uncle Glen?"

    "What a coincidence." Dad also appeared behind me as I gaped at the visitor after opening the door. "We were just talking about you."

    "¡­huh?" Glen Porter stared at the both of us for a few moments, and then he scowled. "I hope it''s not something bad."

    "No, no. Not at all. It seems we''ve completely forgotten to mention that you''re from the Porter clan."

    "Oh, that!" Glen was guffawing as he followed us into the house. At a nod from Dad, I headed to the kitchen to grab a drink for my father''s best friend. "I completely forgot that I was supposed to be from the Porter clan too!"

    "Uh huh." Dad led Glen to the couch, and both grown men took a seat. For a moment, as I brought the drink to Glen, I thought the both of them would resume their usual get-together and play games. Dad had a console and a couple of controllers, and they enjoyed playing co-op shooter games. I sometimes played with Dad, but not too often because I was terrible and always got wrecked by online opponents. "What''s up today?"

    "Right. I''m here to inform you about the Spiritual Road training camp. You know, the training camp that takes place for high school students every year? The Spiritual Road is open again, and I believe the academies will be sending their representatives to take part, as preparation for the international tournament. As you know, representatives from all the schools will be present, so it also counts as an opportunity to collect information on each other, assess each other''s strengths and weaknesses, and be a mock preliminary for the actual tournament itself."

    "Oh, right." Dad looked at Glen blankly, and I could tell that he had no idea what Glen was talking about. "I see."

    "Your adopted son has been making quite a few waves recently, and I thought that he might end up being one of the representatives," Glen continued with a wink. Dad grinned proudly.

    "Of course! I was the one who trained him."

    "I didn''t expect him to be a summoner, though. I thought he would be a fire mage like you."

    "Oh, Richie came up with his own summoning magic." Dad waved, as if trying to push the credit toward me. "I merely taught him the basics, but he really grew into his own and became his own person. He''s not going to be a clone of me, if that was what you thought."

    "No, indeed." Glen was musing thoughtfully. "But yeah, that''s pretty much it."

    "You came all the way just to tell me that?" Dad looked a little astonished. "You could just have called."

    "Nah, I also came to hang out." Glen grinned. "It''s been a while since we''ve answered the Call of Duty."

    I wasn''t a big fan of that game, so I made preparations to hide in my room before they began owning newbie players online. Before I could leave, however, Glen turned to me.

    "How about it, Richie? If you go to the Spiritual Road, you should meet¡­"

    "No," Dad interrupted. Glen sulked at that, but Dad continued. "Richie already has a girlfriend, so don''t even think about it."

    "Really?"

    Not really. Alicia was dead. I didn''t want to say I had moved on, but that was life. I couldn''t use her as an excuse to continue like this forever. As callous as it was, I was still alive and I had to move on with my own life without dwelling on her memory forever. Remember the dead, but do not allow them to shackle you.

    However, from Dad''s hasty interruption, I sort of understood what was going on, and therefore I nodded.

    "Yeah."

    "I see." Glen looked a little disappointed. I couldn''t care less. It was not my job to make him happy. Quite the contrary, actually.

    Leaving the two grown men to play their game, I disappeared into my room and began reading a bunch of translated web comics that included some ability user with a zombie girlfriend and growing zombie harem, a prince who released that witch, and cultivators in the 41st Millennium. Not to mention a certain Mary Sue Garrulous King who won his every match in the OP system.

 246 Chapter 246: Qualifiers for Qualifiers

    The next day, when I returned to Jing Tian Academy, I was met with a new announcement from the still grieving Vincent Violet.

    "We have received an opportunity to participate in the Spiritual Road training camp this year," he explained to all the students who had gathered in the hall. "Of course, getting a slot for the Spiritual Road is a very competitive procedure, and not all those who want to go can go. As a result, we''ll be holding what we call qualifiers. Then we''ll pick the top five students or so to participate in the Spiritual Road training camp. Take note, the camp itself will run for several months."

    "What''s the Spiritual Road?" one of the students whispered to her classmate. She wasn''t the only one. Quite a few students hadn''t heard of the Spiritual Road before. Hell, I hadn''t¡­okay, maybe I had when I first read the Great Ruler web comic, but it was only after I watched the Great Ruler animation that the Spiritual Road suddenly decided to manifest itself in my story.

    Seriously? So I went from being the Garrulous King to becoming Archer, had a shot at being an Isekai Cheat Magician, played around with becoming the Versatile Mage, and now I was expected to become the next Great Ruler?

    Someone must be running out of ideas.

    "The Spiritual Road is an annual event held regularly by the top academies of the Federation," Vincent explained. "No, don''t worry. You will not have your magic sealed, that''s utter bullshit and open to all sorts of abuse. Besides, there are monsters inhabiting the Spiritual Road¡­well, it''s more of a Spiritual Forest actually, and Road might be a misleading term because it really actually translate better to Spiritual Way from Chinese. Anyway, to seal your magic ¨C which is impossible to begin with ¨C in a place inhabited by monsters is to sentence you to death, so we don''t have such shenanigans. Furthermore, you are not expected to kill each other like some barbaric civilization. That said, there will be quite some competition, and each of the participants will be issued a single¡­uh, blood token each. At least I think it''s a blood token, but whatever. You''ll be strongly encouraged to fight each other and steal each other''s blood token. The blood token is what you need to stay within the Spiritual Road. If you lose it, you''ll be teleported out."

    Even the teachers were looking a little bewildered.

    "Why were we suddenly allowed to participate this year?" one of them asked in a hushed tone.

    Vincent must have heard her, for he cleared his voice and deviated a little to explain.

    "In recent years, our performance was not good enough to warrant inclusion, but this year, because of a couple of certain individuals¡­" he stared pointedly in my direction and I was forced to hide behind the towering figure of one of my classmates. "Our academy has caught the attention of quite a few higher-ups in the Federation, and they decided to give us a few slots this year."

    "What''s the benefits of participating in this Spiritual Road thing?" Craig Carlson asked boldly. Vincent scratched his head.

    "Quite a few, to be honest. Students who can boast of participating in the Spiritual Road on their CVs will have a higher chance of getting into magic universities, particularly the prestigious combat ones. It will also improve your own techniques and magic, not to mention allow you to gain insight and knowledge of techniques and magic used by other schools. Often, this serves as an exchange right before the International Tournament itself, with the students from various academies¡­uh, spying on each other and assessing each other''s abilities."

    "Sounds like a good idea." Craig grinned in anticipation, evidently already planning to grab a slot for himself. "How do we qualify?"

    "We''ll hold a pseudo tournament of sorts¡­where those who want to participate will have to fight against other prospective participants. There would be a few rounds¡­and you earn points from defeating an opponent. By the end of this week, the one with the most points will qualify. Since we have five slots, so that makes the five students with the most points."

    Vincent paused for a moment, sweeping his gaze across the room.

    "Oh, and Vermillion Academy has also agreed to host an exchange session at the end of the Spiritual Road training camp. So once the session there ends, most likely the teams representing us in the tournament will travel to Vermillion Academy. So if you plan to represent our academy in the tournament, it''s best if you at least try to participate in this Spiritual Road."

    The academy director was probably saying that because he knew this exchange would benefit the tournament representatives the most. After all, if the whole point was to experience the magic and techniques of the students from other schools and gather knowledge on their fighting styles and strategies, then obviously the tournament representatives would stand to gain the most from this experience.

    In other words, it had nothing to do with me.

    The moment I thought that, I groaned inwardly. Yeah, as clich¨¦s would have it, I would somehow find myself forced to participate in it somehow. Author damn it. Well, might as well resign myself to participating in it eventually.

    However, I wanted to focus on other things at the moment, and I didn''t have time to spend a few months in some stupid training camp, no matter how beneficial it might be. Unlike Wang Zhong, I had no intention of becoming Jing Tian Academy''s team captain and leading them to victory in the international tournament (Good Lord, I almost typed CHF by mistake). In fact, I wagered that I would be missing the tournament completely.

    Not because I didn''t want to participate in it, but because I planned on doing a few missions that would take me some distance away from the academy. After listening to Dad''s story the other night, and working with Anastasia to eliminate the Assassins and Dark Church in Azpire City, I wanted to pursue the Assassins Guild.

    Right now, I had half a mind to join Dad, if not the Silver Wolves in their mission to hunt down the Assassins Guild. I recalled that night when Dad rushed off to eliminate the organization that was manufacturing the device that could artificially trigger an Emergence event, that night when I fought against three rank B Crastrates. He was pretty determined in destroying them before they could come to fruition, and given his past with the Dark Church and their uses of similar devices, I didn''t blame him. I wondered if he would allow me to join him.

    If he didn''t, then I would just contact Feng Hai and assist the Silver Wolves in hunting down and rooting out the Assassins Guild and Dark Church. Anastasia was working for them, so I could probably contact them through her.

    With such goals, there was no way I could afford to waste a few months wandering somewhere on the Spiritual Road and fighting other students. My real enemy was the Assassins Guild, not fellow students.

    After the announcement, and other mercifully short speeches, Vincent Violet dismissed us and the student dispersed.

    "What do you think?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked as he jumped me. Man, I almost forgot his name. It had been over seventy-five chapters since I last saw him, after all. Even though, in-universe, it had only been a week or two, it probably had been almost two months for the writer. It was a miracle I still remembered that he existed. "When should we start fighting in the qualifiers?"

    "Up to you, but I might give this a miss."

    "What?!" Dong Fang Yue Chu grabbed my shoulders. "Why?! We need you in the team that represents Jing Tian Academy!"

    "We need Troy too, but I don''t think we''ll be getting him," I pointed out, crossed. The guy was busy chasing after his brother, Tyrant King. Similarly, I had more important matters to take care of. "I''m going after the Assassins Guild."

    "Seriously?!"

    "Hmph." Tie Quan strode forward, an unhappy expression on his face. I waved at him.

    "Oh, it''s you. I haven''t seen you in almost 220 chapters. I thought you would have been consigned to oblivion. Good thing you didn''t get killed when the academy was attacked by wolf monsters back during the Jing Tian City siege arc."

    "What the fuck are you babbling about?!" Tie Quan snarled as he folded his arms. "And of course I wouldn''t get killed by those weaklings. Even a Thunder Wolf would have trouble piercing through my Iron Spirit." he turned somber. "However, the Iron Fist Society lost a lot of members during the attack. Before the military came to evacuate us¡­"

    I bowed my head out of respect for the deceased. I wasn''t the only one who had lost someone close to me during that incident. Alicia''s face flashed through my mind, bringing a stab of pain to my chest. "I''m sorry to hear that."

    "Anyway, you don''t deserve to represent Jing Tian Academy!" Tie Quan told me with a sneer. "You lost 99 matches before that whole duel with the Crowley''s Arcane Academy representatives. It took you over a year to figure out something as easy as summoning weaker, cheaper spirits to defend yourself ¨C how can we trust an idiot like you to represent the team?"

    "And yet you lost to Richard." Dong Fang Yue Chu flared up. "I hope you''re not seriously suggesting that you''ll be more suitable to represent the team than he is."

    "No, of course not." Tie Quan raised both his hands in denial. "There are many more candidates more suitable for representing our school than I am¡­and than him, for that matter." He jeered smugly. "You still haven''t countered the fact that he lost 99 matches and took a year to figure such an easy solution."

    "You''re right." I merely smiled calmly, not caring about his insults. I had better things to do than to entertain the idiot. There was no point wasting my time arguing with him. "That''s what the qualifiers are for anyway. And besides, this is just to decide who gets to go to the Spiritual Road, not who gets to represent the academy, so I''m not sure why you''re bringing this up?"

    "Because¡­for some reason, recently you have an influx of readers jumping in and pointing this out in the first few chapters! Not that you need to explain anything because 100% of those readers would have dropped your story long before they reached this chapter, but you''re going to do it to fill up the word and chapter count!"

    "Is this guy on drugs?" I asked Dong Fang Yue Chu, who was just as baffled as I looked. I only understood what he was talking about because I had the ability to break the fourth wall, but even so that should be an ability exclusive to me and Dad.

    "¡­eh?" Tie Quan blinked in confusion. "What did I just say?"

    "You tell us!" Dong Fang Yue Chu snapped irritably.

    "N¡­never mind." Tie Quan tried to hide his embarrassment, but it was too late. He put on a proud look. "A¡­anyway, I''ll see you in the qualifiers! I''ll prove that you don''t deserve to go to the Spiritual Road or represent the academy!"

    "Yeah, yeah."

    I watched him leave and shook my head. As I said, it was a waste of time arguing with him. I would rather prove my point in the arena. Actions speak louder than words. I could quarrel with him all I wanted, but in the end, it was the results on the battlefield that decided my qualifications or status, not winning a stupid squabble.

    This wasn''t being a pussy, as much as some readers claimed. It was being mature. They were still pretty young, but once they got old enough, they would realize that staying quiet and keeping calm was more of a victory than getting dragged into the argument and quarreling with the other party.

    "You''re not the same person as you were a year ago!" Dong Fang Yue Chu assured me, thinking I was feeling down from the insults. I couldn''t care less, to be honest, given that I was looking at some other destination, but I didn''t tell him. "Who cares about your 99 losses in the first year?"

    Some readers did, but they appeared to have misunderstood some fundamental thing. Probably because they misread something. Most of them seemed to assume that I already had mastered the Celestial Guardians before the start of the 99 defeats and just did the same thing over and over again during the whole year before I finally came up with my Constellation magic.

    That was incorrect. I actually spent the entire year trying to learn and master the spell to summon the Celestial Guardians. Throughout the majority of those 99 losses, I was defeated not because I was trying to buy time to summon my Vermillion Phoenix or whatever, but because I was simply weaker. That was all. At that time, I still hadn''t learned how to summon anything, and I was just using the martial arts my dad taught me, combined with a few spells I learned from the classes I took during my first year, which unfortunately didn''t include combat magic under Teacher Fielding. I had focused on summoning classes and elemental classes.

    So the first eighty or so matches, I lost because I was weaker, and not because I was trying to buy time to summon my Celestial Guardians ¨C during those eighty matches, I still hadn''t learned how to summon my Celestial Guardians then. Obviously I wasn''t allowed to just decline so many matches using the excuse, "I haven''t mastered my summoning yet, can you wait until I learned how to summon my Celestial Guardians?"

    Most readers seemed to have believed I had already mastered summoning by the time I started the first of the 99-losing streak, but that was not true. I spent a year learning how to summon the Celestial Guardians (what, you think I can learn how to summon them immediately upon going to school?). After the protection period of a couple of months, I was no longer allowed to avoid matches, and that was how I ended up losing. And since I was already in the middle of learning summoning magic, I just decided to endure the loss because it wouldn''t be productive if I gave up on summoning magic halfway and ran off to learn a brand new magic. It was like trying to change disciplines or specializations in the middle of your university career. Some people did it, and it wasn''t impossible, but it was very inefficient and would have completely wasted the six months or so of learning summoning magic. Furthermore, I couldn''t just change the classes I had already enrolled in, and a big part of my curriculum had been invested in summoning. With that in mind, I decided to stick with it until I finally mastered it.

    There was a reason why people didn''t want to learn summoning magic or enroll in summoning classes. They didn''t have the patience. As for me, I endured the losses because I knew that would be a great payoff at the end.

    And by the time I learned how to summon the four Celestial Guardians, I had already lost over eighty matches. When I started losing the next three or four matches after that, I realized that despite the tremendous payoff if I summoned my Celestial Guardians, no one was going to wait for me to summon them, and hence¡­I continued my losing streak.

    It took me another month to learn and create cheaper spells, and by that time I lost about another ten or so matches to bring it to ninety-nine. Yeah, the solution might be "obvious" but I couldn''t simply create a cheap spell on the fly. Creating and conceiving a Soul Beast and bringing it into existence was a complex process. I couldn''t just go, "Hey, I lost because summoning Vermillion Phoenix takes too long! Let me summon a weaker version in the next match!" No, I needed time to create that weaker, cheaper version that required a shorter casting time. It wasn''t something that I could do after snapping my fingers.

    That was the in-universe, story answer. The real answer was because I just wanted to copy and make fun of Battle Frenzy. Or, if you really hate the fourth-wall breaking and couldn''t understand why creating cheaper summoning spells required another month or so, then just assume I was smurfing and saving my true power for when I could shock everyone in a clich¨¦ way. Okay?

    With that explanation done, I turned away.

    "Don''t worry, Yue Chu," I assured my friend. "Whatever happens will happen. If I''m meant to end up in the Spiritual Road, then I will."

 247 Chapter 247: Fighting for Rice

    "Apparently, the more opponents you defeat, the more rice¡­uh, I mean points you get."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was explaining the rules of the qualifiers to me, as if I didn''t already hear them the previous chapter. I nodded distractedly.

    "Okay."

    "Don''t ''okay'' me!" Dong Fang Yue Chu snapped. "Why are you behaving as if this has nothing to do with you?! It''s almost a week and you still have yet to fight in any of the qualifying matches¡­except the one against Tie Quan!"

    Originally, Vincent had given us all a week to run the qualifiers, and the top five by the end of the week would get the chance to participate in the Spiritual Road. Other than Tie Quan, who had kept his word and challenged me on the first day, I hadn''t fought any other qualifying matches.

    Needless to say, I destroyed Tie Quan. Without even summoning my Celestial Guardians. I just nuked him with an arrow from Sagittarius near the start of the match, which completely shattered his Iron Spirit and incinerated his more vulnerable body within. The poor guy didn''t stand a chance. After the match, even though I knew it was extremely childish, I still had to ask him.

    "How does it feel to lose to someone who lost 99 matches in a row? In just a few seconds? Thanks for breaking my losing streak."

    As the guy was on a stretcher, he could do nothing more than glare at me from his blackened face. I ignored him and left the arena, and for the rest of the week, I usually went straight "home" after school. Or to be more precise, the moment classes ended, I took up certain missions that helped me obtain intelligence regarding the Assassins Guild''s movements. Not all of them were combat missions, and a lot involved going undercover and sneaking around to check for their presence at certain premises. Often I was disappointed when they proved to be false alarms, but hey, at least I tried.

    I expected as much, though. After the Jing Tian City invasion incident, the Federation military and Internal Security Agency had rooted out whatever Assassins they could find in the city. They did a thorough investigation to ensure there were no sleeper agents or long-term undercover Assassins hiding in there. They even cast spells to check that each person was not a Deceivum Assassin who had shapeshifted to assume the identity of another person. Particularly with what happened in regards to Alicia Violet, the added measure of security was certainly necessary.

    However, it was still discouraging to not find any information thus far. I toyed with the idea of leaving Jing Tian City and going out to somewhere¡­like that time in Azpire City. Not Azpire City ¨C they had yet to rebuild and repopulate it after Selina Wright and her summoned spirit, Hades, had absolutely destroyed it. But there were plenty of other cities that I could investigate. The Assassins Guild definitely had their tendrils coiled almost everywhere throughout the Federation.

    I was going to track down their agents and hopefully go all the way to their current Grand Master. Anastasia, however, explained that it would be impossible, as each of the sects had their own separate bases and masters, and the Grand Master himself was elusive, his location not known to even the respective masters of each Assassin Sect. she had never seen or heard him herself, or at least she didn''t think so. It was just as likely that he had disguised himself as one of the many people she had interacted with, but hid his real identity from her.

    Then again, the Grand Master of Assassins would hardly bother himself with a rank-and-file Assassin like herself. So it was unlikely that he would personally eliminate a defector such as her. And she was able to take care of herself against the other Assassins sent to eliminate her. Apparently she was one of the more skilled ones within her guild.

    Perhaps I should contact her¡­

    "Hey! Richard! Are you paying attention?!"

    I returned to the present. Dong Fang Yue Chu was glaring at me, his hands on his hips. I nodded hastily.

    "Yeah, sorry. But like I said, I don''t really care about the whole Spiritual Road thing. I have more important matters to take care of."

    "Chasing after the Assassins Guild again?" Dong Fang Yue Chu shook his head. "You should just leave that to your dad and the adults. Even if you pursue them, what can you do? At most you can fight against the Assassin trainees and perhaps the lower-ranked Assassins. But what can you do against the elite Assassins? The top Assassins? You''ll just be throwing your life away recklessly if you try to go after them."

    "Ha ha ha ha!" I burst out laughing, earning a glare from him. But I couldn''t help it. "Sorry to burst your bubble, dude, but¡­when he was my age, my dad was already fighting elite Assassins. Okay, he kind of needed help and in the end sacrificed a lot to summon a spirit to defeat an elite Assassin, but that didn''t stop him from confronting them in battle. And did you forget that I was part of a two-man team who defeated the Grim Reaper, one of the top, elite Assassins of the Assassins Guild?"

    Well, one-man and one-woman team, to be honest, but that was quite a mouthful. Besides, it was a lot more gender neutral in Chinese so we didn''t have to be so anal about being politically correct and cater to the social justice warriors if the story was written in Chinese. Well, right now it was in English, but it should be translated to Chinese someday¡­I hope?

    Dong Fang Yue Chu looked a little chagrined when he realized that it was true. At that time, Anastasia and my victory over Selina Wright and Hades had made the huge splash in the news, and despite the news keeping my identity under wraps because I requested it, he had managed to discover that I was involved.

    "Yeah, okay. But we can''t lose you now. We have no way of contacting Troy and getting him to come back, Alicia is¡­gone, and without you, the Jing Tian team doesn''t stand a chance against the other schools in the Federation!"

    "You''re kidding me, right? You''ll do fine without me." I snorted. "What, you think I''m some sort of Mary Sue character that the world revolves around? No one will care if I''m gone. You''ll probably do much better without me in the team, actually."

    "What the hell are you talking about? You''re currently the strongest student in Jing Tian Academy. You''re supposed to be the ace! If you''re not participating, then how are we going to fight against the likes of Crowley''s Grand Academy, Vermillion Academy and the others?"

    "Normally?" I suggested sarcastically. "Use your magic? Techniques? Are you guys suddenly going to forget how to fight just because I''m not in the team or something?"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu gave me a stare, and then sighed before shaking his head.

    "I''ll go for my match now. I have one lined up right now. I''m actually trailing behind in terms of points, but I''ll try my best to make up for it today." He straightened himself and headed for the arena.

    As he was my friend, I decided to provide moral support. I didn''t really have a mission today anyway, so I might as well watch over my friend. For those edge lords yelling at me for wasting my time or being a pussy or a beta male who allows other people to dictate my life, well, screw you. If I wanted to watch my friend fight and cheer for him, I will. That had nothing to do with me being a fucking pussy or a beta male, and everything with Dong Fang Yue Chu being a good friend of mine.

    To my surprise, the matches today were different from what I was used to, especially that first match against Tie Quan at the beginning of the week. The teachers were standing in what seemed to be an upper alcove overseeing the arena. Sitting in seiza around the arena were a whole bunch of students in uniform, waiting serenely. For some reason, all of them were wearing black belts and their hair was closely cropped.

    What were they doing, behaving like the military who learned karate or something?

    Dong Fang Yue Chu strode to the middle of the arena, and then cupped his hands respectively toward the teachers, who then began the match. One of the students who were kneeling around the arena rose when his name was called, and he proceeded to the arena. While Dong Fang Yue Chu cupped his hands, his opponent bowed.

    ¡­why was this scene so familiar?

    Without further ado, they began the match. Dong Fang Yue Chu immediately charged forward. His opponent generated water, tidal waves flowing around his hands as he stepped back to evade Dong Fang Yue Chu''s first flaming punch, and then retaliated with a strike. Tremendous hydro pressure accompanied his attack, but Dong Fang Yue Chu managed to parry it. Where water met fire, it instantly transformed into steam that clouded the arena.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu and the water mage exchanged several fierce blows, with embers and water droplets scattering across the scorched coliseum. Dong Fang Yue Chu threw a hook, which the water mage deflected to the side, and then the latter countered with an eblow to his temple. Dong Fang Yue Chu managed to parry that with his forearm, then he twisted his waist and rammed his knee into the water mage''s midriff.

    The other party staggered back, and desperately retaliated with a torrent of water that surged across the ring. Dong Fang Yue Chu didn''t bother evaporating it, and instead dove to the ground to evade the devastating burst. As he rolled to his feet, he hurled a fireball at his opponent.

    The water mage barely managed to conjure a water sphere in time, but then the consequent explosion sent him skidding backward, his watery barrier boiling into steam. He choked for a moment and waved the white fog away.

    Dong Fang Yue Chu came barreling through it and his fiery fist smashed into the guy''s face, breaking his nose. The water mage cried out in pain as his head snapped back, but Dong Fang Yue Chu wasn''t done yet. The fire mage whirled around and kicked him with such force that the guy was sent flying out of the ring.

    There was silence, and several medics came forward to help the poor unconscious mage up and into a stretcher. Dong Fang Yue Chu raised his head to look at the teachers, which included Teacher Fielding and a thin, bespectacled teacher, Zuo Teng.

    "Well done," Teacher Fielding told him, and then he nodded to a student aide. The uniformed guy quickly grabbed a sack of rice and tossed it toward Dong Fang Yue Chu, who effortlessly caught it. "As promised, you get a sack of rice for defeating one opponent."

    "What the fuck?!" I exploded. "Isn''t this the qualifier matches to see who gets to participate in the Spiritual Road training camp?! Aren''t we supposed to get points from a victory?! Why the rice?!"

    "It''s fine. I''m hungry, anyway. This will help me a lot." Dong Fang Yue Chu raised a hand to stop me. "And it''s just an extra. I still get the points for winning."

    "That''s right," Teacher Fielding confirmed, keeping a straight face throughout the entire thing. I wasn''t sure if I should keep up the tsukkomi role or not.

    "But¡­if you don''t mind." Dong Fang Yue Chu faced the two teachers standing on the above alcove overlooking the stage. "I wish to fight three people this time."

    "Heh, really?" Zuo Teng scoffed. Teacher Fielding, on the other hand, looked sternly at Dong Fang Yue Chu.

    "Are you sure?"

    "Yes. I believe I get triple the amount of rice¡­I mean points if I defeat three people."

    "You do, but¡­" Teacher Fielding rubbed his forehead. "It''s kind of risky."

    "I know. But I want to try." Dong Fang Yue Chu swallowed. "I need the points if I want to participate in the Spiritual Road training camp."

    "Okay, then." Teacher Fielding nodded and gave his consent. Beside him, Zuo Teng barked out three names and gave them orders.

    "Take to the field!"

    "Hai!"

    The three martial artists¡­I mean mages whose names were called stood up and proceeded toward the stage. As usual, Dong Fang Yue Chu cupped his hands, and the three of them bowed. Then, with a word from Teacher Fielding, they began.

    "AAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    With a yell, Dong Fang Yue Chu charged at them. The three of them immediately split up, but the fire mage didn''t care. He tossed two fireballs at the two mages moving to flank him, forcing them to dodge, and launched a fiery punch at the opponent in the center.

    Earth walls erupted from the ground and between Dong Fang Yue Chu and his intended target. Even so, Dong Fang Yue Chu''s flaming fist left molten rock in its wake. Behind the earth walls, the earth mage twisted his hands to manipulate more of the earthen rock that was bursting from the ground. Dong Fang Yue Chu managed to dodge some of them while obliterating those he couldn''t evade with his flaming fists.

    However, the earth spells weren''t the only ones he had to worry about. Ice froze across the ground and ensnared his legs, immobilizing him. Dong Fang Yue Chu cursed and tried to yank his legs out while melting the ice with a surge of fire around him, but that second of delay was more than enough for the earth mage to hit him with a pillar of stone.

    "Gah!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was hurled off his feet, but he managed to counter with a massive fireball that smashed through the earth barrier that the earth mage had conjured and knocked him off his feet. The poor earth mage shrieked in agony, his body immolated, as he rolled about the ground desperately to put out the flames.

    Meanwhile, Dong Fang Yue Chu had just barely rose to his feet when the ice mage reached him. He threw his head back to dodge the ice sword that the ice mage had materialized, and then raised his flaming arms to block an ice dagger in his opponent''s other hand.

    Taking a deep breath, he lashed out with his leg, trying to sweep his opponent''s feet out from under him, but the ice mage jumped. Abandoning his dagger, he raised his now empty hand and froze several frozen daggers in the air before launching them at Dong Fang Yue Chu.

    The fire mage countered by swinging his hand and erecting a literal firewall that vaporized the icy daggers. Even as he did so, the lightning mage punched him from behind, injecting a tremendous amount of electricity into his body.

    "AAAAAAAAARGH!"

    Even as he convulsed and flailed violently, Dong Fang Yue Chu managed to whirl around and blast the guy with twin streams of flames. The lightning mage was sent hurtling across the ring, scorched and charred, but he crashed just upon the edge of the arena, preventing himself from being flung outward.

    Even as he scrambled to safety, Dong Fang Yue Chu readied to deliver the finishing blow, but the ice mage stabbed him from behind. Blood streaming from his lips, Dong Fang Yue Chu smashed his elbow into the backstabber''s face, breaking his nose and causing him to fall back. Twisting around, he kicked the guy, sending him toppling to the side.

    However, he barely put his foot down when a solid pillar of rock slammed into him, causing him to cough out more blood. He was sent crashing onto the ground several meters away. Gritting his teeth, he blasted the rock apart with flames, but no sooner had his fire spell dissipated when several bolts of lightning crashed down on him.

    Cursing and swearing, Dong Fang Yue Chu staggered to his feet, only for his body to end up entombed in ice. He vaporized the frozen block with his flames, but another barrage of earth spikes slammed into his body, impaling him to the ground.

    He writhed and tried to melt the rock spikes that pinned him, but the lightning mage stepped up and added to the attack by bombarding him with lightning.

    "All right! I give up! It''s my loss!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu, realizing that his body had accumulated too much damage, wisely surrendered. Coughing out blood, he lay on the ground helplessly for a few moments as the teachers and his opponents acknowledged his surrender. The three mages returned to their positions, and the spells slowly dispersed, leaving him free again.

    Humiliated and battered, Dong Fang Yue Chu slowly rose to his feet and staggered to the edge of the ring. After he stepped off the arena, he bent down and picked up the sack of rice before heading toward the exit. I watched him for a second and then proceeded to join him.

    I didn''t get very far.

    No sooner than I had taken a step when a thunderous explosion rang throughout the coliseum. Dong Fang Yue Chu collapsed, the sack of rice spilling from his hand, after a spell from Zuo Teng struck him and exploded right in his face.

 248 Chapter 248: I want ten!

    Everyone watched in icy horror as Dong Fang Yue Chu toppled to the ground, the side of his head bruised and scorched by Zuo Teng''s spell. It wasn''t a fire spell because the fire mage would have some resistance to it, but still¡­

    "What the fuck are you doing?!" Teacher Fielding hollered as he grabbed Zuo Teng by the collar and heaved him off his feet. "Who gave you the order to shoot a student?!"

    "But he went and took the sack of rice even though he lost."

    "¡­what''s with the rice?" one of the students whispered, completely lost at what was going on. I mean, seriously, who shot a student for taking a sack of rice he had rightly won? Actually, she had a point. Why were they giving out rice to students for winning qualifiers in the first place?

    The guy beside the female student scowled. "Huh? You never watched any of Donnie Yen''s movies? Especially the first movie of the franchise that made him famous?"

    Ah. That explained the chapter title above.

    Narrowing his eyes, Teacher Fielding let go off Zuo Teng and glared at him.

    "Do that again," he warned icily. "And I will kill you."

    "¡­yes, sir." Zuo Teng straightened his collar as he backed away and audibly gulped. Fielding then turned to survey the edge of the stage, where a few healing students had hastily rushed forward to put poor Dong Fang Yue Chu on a stretcher.

    The rest of the students had fallen silent by now, probably horrified by what they just witnessed. Meanwhile the black-belted students sitting in seiza around the ring maintained their stony expressions, as if used to all this violence.

    "Yue Chu!" I rushed toward my unconscious friend, but the healer students waved me back in annoyance.

    "Don''t obstruct us! We''ve to take him to the infirmary as quickly as possible!"

    "Don''t worry," the other healer student assured me. "Teacher Cure will take care of him. I''m sure he''ll be fine."

    And just like that, they were gone.

    "¡­anyone else wishes to challenge?" Teacher Fielding was asking, but after witnessing the brutal murder¡­uh, I mean "punishment" of Dong Fang Yue Chu, no one was enthusiastic or eager to proceed toward their deaths. Uh, I mean no one was a glutton for punishment.

    Except for me.

    I glanced in the direction Dong Fang Yue Chu had disappeared in, feeling rage well up inside me. The guy was my friend. And it enraged me to see him being treated like that, to be robbed of the reward he was promised just because he lost the second match against three martial artists¡­I mean mages. True, he stupidly overestimated himself and got overly cocky, and he sort of deserved the beat-down he received at the hands of his three opponents.

    But Zuo Teng pissed me off. obviously he was looking down on Chinese martial arts and testing how strong we were against his Japanese karate¡­wait, what? Never mind. I should stop confusing reality with movies (did I just make a movie reference instead of an anime reference? The horror!).

    Pushing my glasses up my nose and loosening my tie, I stepped onto the ring.

    "I wish to make a challenge," I declared, my voice frosty with rage. Any colder and my surroundings would start freezing around me.

    Teacher Fielding nodded, probably understanding the reason for my anger. He was about to choose my opponents for me, but I raised a hand.

    "I want ten!" I shouted.

    "¡­eh?"

    "Huh?!"

    "What?!"

    All the student spectators gaped at me in total disbelief, not sure they had heard me right. I ignored them, focusing my gaze on Fielding. He was also taken aback, staring at me uncertainly.

    "Are you serious? Don''t be reckless."

    "I said, I want to fight ten people!" I insisted stubbornly. One of the students stood up and nervously translated my words for the two teachers, though why, I had no idea. I was speaking the same language as everyone else.

    "Did you say ten people?"

    The student translator lowered his head. "Yes."

    "Oi, cut it out! You don''t need any translations!" I snapped. "Stop wasting time with all this acting! We all know which movie you''re trying to parody!"

    "Okay, okay." Fielding swallowed and sighed heavily. He knew what was coming, probably because he also watched it.

    Beside him, Zuo Teng barked out in amused laughter. "I would love to see him try!" he sneered scornfully.

    I kept my determined gaze on Teacher Fielding, my eyes steely and unyielding. He took a deep breath before he finally nodded to show his consent.

    Folding his arms, Zuo Teng turning to the dozens of black-belted students kneeling around the ring.

    "Division 5!" he bellowed. "Unit 1! Unit 3! Unit 5!"

    Suddenly remembering something, I reached into my pocket and yanked out a packet of Calbee pizza-flavored potato chips. I then calmly turned around and returned to the place where the bloodied sack of Dong Fang Yue Chu''s rice lay, and placed my snack right next to it.

    While I did so, ten of the students rose from around the ring and stepped up one by one, in a concerted effort to surround me. I glanced around calmly, and then proceeded back to the center, where ten students stood, waiting. The rest of the black-belted students knelt back down in impeccable unison, and joined the rest of the students as spectators. I then slowly raised both of my hands to cup them respectfully toward the ten opponents Zuo Teng had chosen for me. They bowed in perfect accord before taking up combative stances with a yell.

    "Hajime!"

    No, nobody was calling for some edgy, emo protagonist from an isekai web novel that was later turned into a light novel and was now adapted into two seasons of anime (so far). Zuo Teng was shouting for the match to begin, though why he chose to speak in Japanese was beyond me. No, actually, I knew why, thanks to my fourth-wall breaking abilities, but it would be funnier to see the readers get the reference by themselves without me spelling it out for them.

    "Hai!"

    The first one came at me with a bellow, but I smacked him to the side with my elbow, and then turned away to avoid a kick and a punch from two different mages behind me. Why were they physically attacking me instead of casting spells, I had no idea. Okay, maybe I did, but I decided to just pretend that they were all honing their Ba Qi for real-life combat.

    A fourth guy threw a high kick at the back of my head, but I spun around, caught his foot and then kicked him in the crotch. As he shrieked, I drove him downward and basically snapped his leg with a loud crack before knocking him out with a punch to his head. Another two came at me, but I whirled around and parried their strikes almost simultaneously before hammering my elbow into a third guy who tried to ambush me.

    As I distanced myself from the two who were trying to attack me, I slammed my knee into the reeling ambusher and then knocked him out with another punch to his face. Spinning around, I kicked another guy who was coming at me with a punch, sending him flying. Another came at me, but I ducked under his punch, caught his arm and yanked him over. While he fell, off balance, I rained several dozen rapid blows on his face, pummeling him all the way to his chest before moving my fists up toward his face. The guy gurgled and crashed onto the ground.

    "Why aren''t they using any magic?" someone from the audience demanded, getting annoyed.

    "They are supposed to be mages, right? Why are they just fighting with nothing but physical attacks?"

    "I mean, I can sense them using their physical reinforcement spells and very rudimentary Ba Qi, but why aren''t they using ranged spells or elemental attacks?!"

    The spectators had a point. It was just that my opponents were restraining themselves for fear of accidentally hitting their own comrades with their own elemental or area of effect spells. Not solely because we were trying to rip off a scene from a certain martial arts movie.

    "Is that Wing Chun?" Zuo Teng demanded, scarcely able to believe his eyes. "Is he trying to copy that famous martial artist who lived in Foshan before moving to Hong Kong and training Bruce Lee?"

    "His grandfather is supposed to be a grandmaster of Wing Chun," Teacher Fielding explained. "Before Richard''s father, Huang Shun Yin, learned swordsmanship at the Miyamoto dojo, he learned Wing Chun from his biological father, Huang Yue Wen."

    "Ugh!" Zuo Teng was getting frustrated. He leaned over the railing and began¡­uh, railing at his students. "What the fuck do you idiots think you''re doing? You think you''re karate experts, is it?! You''re bloody mages! Use your magic!"

    He slapped his forehead and groaned, shaking his head.

    "Fucking idiots."

    "They just don''t want to accidentally hit each other with their own spells," Teacher Fielding informed him coolly, merely echoing what I already knew. Zuo Teng grimaced when he realized his colleague had a point.

    "Don''t tell me that brat actually knew that and planned this from the start? He was using their numerical superiority to his advantage to nullify their magic?!"

    No. quite honestly, that never occurred to me at all. I was just trying to rip off Donnie Yen from one of my favorite martial arts movies.

    Another guy jumped and tried to kick me, but I moved to the side and allowed him to sail past me before I slammed my elbow into his midriff, knocking his breath out of him. As he grunted, I then grabbed him by his uniform and slammed him into the ground, and then stomped on his face, almost breaking his neck.

    Three more enemies came at me from the front, throwing a flurry of punches, but I parried, blocked and deflected every one of their strikes, and even had the luxury of kicking a fourth guy who tried to flank me to discourage him from getting close. Advancing forward, I punched upward and caught one of them by the jaw, causing him to stagger, then swept low to kick the one in the middle. Ducking under another punch from the third guy, I spun around and slammed my elbow into his neck, cracking it, and then dropped him with a kick to his midriff. Without any hesitation, I then kicked the staggering guy and knocked him over before bringing my arms up to parry a blow from the guy in the middle. He came at me ferociously, backed up by the comrade I discouraged earlier, but I managed to retreat.

    As the middle guy charged me again, I grabbed his arm even as his fist flew past the side of my face, and then twisted it. He yelped, but tumbled over helplessly, and I mercilessly pounded his face with my right hand, bloodying my knuckles. I refused to stop my barrage until the poor guy finally stopped convulsing and slipped into unconsciousness.

    Straightening myself, I turned to stare at the others, but one of them ran at me with a yell and tried to kick me. I ducked under his foot and then struck his knee with his foot, snapping his balance and throwing him off. As he fell, I kicked his face and floored him.

    All around me, the fallen groaned and moaned in pain. At least those who weren''t unconscious anyway. There was two last opponents left, and they were nervously keeping their distance, aware that I would crush them instantly if they recklessly attacked.

    Regardless, they could withdraw all they want and I would still pulverize them. I couldn''t forgive their teacher for hurting Dong Fang Yue Chu.

    At this point, though, I was getting annoyed.

    "Hey!" I snapped, raising both of my hands. "Why aren''t any of you using magic?! You looking down on me or something?"

    The two of them glanced at each other, and then a silent agreement seemed to pass between them.

    One of them dove away, but before I could understand what was going on, the other guy launched a fireball at me. Taking a deep breath, I punched the fiery projectile into oblivion, the flames dissipating harmlessly around me. I didn''t even need to counter such a pathetic spell with my own magic.

    However, I realized that it was merely a distraction. The other guy was casting healing spells on his fallen comrades, fixing whatever broken bones or bruises they had sustained during my fight. He wasn''t as proficient as Teacher Cure, but the injuries were not fatal and relatively minor, and in any case he didn''t need to heal them back to full health for them to begin using magic. Glancing around, I saw at least five different elemental spells being cast and aimed at me.

    I grinned. "Now that''s more like it."

    Then my world vanished in an explosion of volatile elements and violent mana.

 249 Chapter 249: One versus Ten

    Crashing through the smoke, I began laughing gleefully.

    "This is more like it! It would be boring and stupid to kick all your asses when you don''t use magic. This isn''t a martial arts story, after all. It''s a fantasy story! It makes no sense if you guys don''t use magic!"

    Fireballs, lightning bolts and icicles rained down upon me, but I weaved through them effortlessly, using physical reinforcement to increase my speed. Running in a somewhat zigzagged manner across the scorched ground, I ran toward one of them, dodged his close-ranged fireball, and then flipped upward to smash a knee into his nose and breaking it.

    While he fell, blood coursing down his face, I flipped my body over and dodged a web of jagged lightning bolt that his comrade sent toward me. Throwing my hands out, I scraped my palms against the ground before cartwheeling away.

    Just as I landed on my feet, a barrage of icicles crashed down upon my position. Twisting around, I drew Gan Jiang and Mo Ye before slicing them apart. The icy fragments rained down on me, but none of the sharp pieces could cut through the protective mana aura that shrouded me.

    As I burst out of the icicle barrage, I saw the healer mage kneeling by the fire mage I had just kneed. Knowing that he was healing the guy, I immediately kicked off the ground and launched myself at him.

    "?!"

    He raised his head up in shock when he saw me coming for him. His comrades, knowing that he was the lynchpin of the team and the most important member, quickly moved to cover him. One guy used Iron Spirit or a similar technique to toughen his body, turning his skin silver and metallic, and threw himself in my path.

    At my side, boulders materialized in the air as an earth mage hurled them at me, deterring me from my trajectory. The ice and lightning mages were firing off their respective elements at me from my left, the opposite side, and I found myself flanked by the different elemental spells.

    And that was just half of their ten-man team.

    Unfortunately, these guys were getting in the way of each other. While I evaded the spells, I watched in amusement as the lightning got in the way of the icicles, and the elemental projectiles collided with the boulders, accidentally shattering them into harmless shards of rock before they could hit me. Even though they all had the same goal, there was no real spirit of cooperation. I wasn''t very sure, but it appeared to me that they were all trying to defeat me for their own individual purposes.

    Rather than working together to eliminate a single enemy, each of them wanted to claim the kill for himself, and thus overtly ignored any real collaboration. They recognized the value of the healer, and thus stepped in to protect him, but the fact that almost half of the team didn''t intervene to protect him was an indication of their self-centeredness.

    Even at this stage, and despite the reforms in the education system, the students still had no inkling of the importance of teamwork. At least these guys didn''t. I recognized it was a drastic change from what they were used to, having been brought up to treat individual rankings as the number one priority, the one versus one tournament format, but even now not many of them ascribed to the new, more realistic and practical system.

    Evidently only the person who defeated me would get the points, so the nine non-healer mages were more focused on trying to claim my head for himself rather than working together to ensure my defeat.

    As the elemental projectiles clashed against each other and exploded behind me, I surged toward the guy with the Iron Spirit body. He threw a devastating punch and I could actually see the sonic boom get flung off his fist. Twisting to the side, I then dropped downward and slashed him. A chibi Vermillion Phoenix appeared above me as I finished casting the summoning spell, and I effortlessly cleaved through his steel skin to bring him down. Blood would have gushed out of his wound, but the superheated flames on my twin blades had cauterized any bleeding that would have happened. In any event, unless his healer mage got to him, he would be out of the fight.

    The healer mage''s jaw dropped when he caught sight of me. The other mages were rushing forward now, realizing that their lifeline might hang in the balance, but it was too late. I swung my sword and bathed the healing mage and his charge in a stream of flames. The fire mage had some resistance to fire spells, of course, but he was already injured and my attack just served to put him down for good.

    "You bastard!"

    One of the earth mages was rushing forward. He completed his advanced spell and he began glowing golden. I watched, fascinated as he conjured a massive rock armor that covered his entire body completely, making him resemble a golem. He threw a massive fist that was almost as large as half of my body, and I was forced to dodge it.

    Jumping up, I landed on the rock wrist and slashed at it with my swords, but I barely made a dent on the thick, solid rock armor. The golem-like armor, with the caster controlling it from inside a pseudo cockpit, straightened up and shook its arm to throw me off, but I flipped over and avoided the swat from his other hand. Landing on the other arm, I ran along the length before lunging forward and slashing the front of the golem with my blazing twin swords.

    However, his physical armor was too strong. Other than leaving two scorched trails on the rock, I wasn''t able to do any real damage other than a couple of deep scratches.

    "!!!"

    Icicles and lightning crashed onto the chest of the golem, almost catching me off guard. These guys didn''t care about friendly fire, or they were confident that their teammate would be able to withstand their elemental attacks. However, considering the curses from the earth mage inside his golem armor, I was pretty sure it wasn''t the latter.

    Slowly spinning across the air, I swung Gan Jiang and immolated the ice mage just as he was conjuring a new batch of icicles. He shrieked as his uniform combusted and his barrage of ice vaporized into boiling steam. The lightning mage paid his friend no attention and continued sending jagged lightning bolts at me. All the while, the formidable but cumbersome and clumsy golem pursued me, throwing devastating punches from behind.

    Weaving through the bombardment, I twisted around and caught sight of a bombardment of boulders from the first earth mage. At first, my initial intention was to cut them apart with my swords, but I realized ¨C with other enemies attacking me from behind ¨C that I could use my enemies'' attacks to my advantage.

    The golem struck at me again, heedless of the stray boulders that slammed into his armor after I evaded them. He didn''t care about the angrily yelling lightning mage and his other teammates when his titanic silhouette blocked out their spells, the electricity dissipating harmlessly against the Rock. No, it had nothing to do with Dwayne Johnson.

    Instead of cleaving the incoming boulders apart, I jumped toward them. Landing on the top of one of the nearest boulders, I began nimbly leaping from one boulder to another, almost as if I was playing some kind of platform game. All the while I began drawing near the frantic earth mage, who was glancing at his friends for support.

    Behind me, the golem guy bashed through the boulders, flinging them to the side carelessly and not bothering if he accidentally struck his teammates with collateral damage. While dodging, the lightning mage tried to adjust his aim and spray me with lethal lightning. From the opposite side, I could see vines curling out to ensnare me. A wood mage had joined the fray, thinking he could catch me while I was jumping about his friend''s boulders. Never mind that the vines and wood spells were destroying the boulders that his teammate was trying to throw at me.

    Kicking off one boulder, I abruptly switched direction, much to the surprised relief of the earth mage, and to the dismay of the lightning mage. Before he could weave an electric barrier to protect himself, I swung both swords and unleashed twin streams of raging fire that swallowed him up and almost incinerated him. His charred body struck the ground, unconscious, before I even landed.

    That was half of the team eliminated so far.

    The golem bore down on me, getting ready to destroy me. The earth mage and the wood mage split up to flank me, and also because their annoying titanic teammate was blocking their line of view and preventing them from hitting me with their spells.

    I calmly turned around and nodded almost imperceptibly.

    "Thanks, Vermillion Phoenix. Green Dragon and White Tiger, it''s your turn."

    The chibi Vermillion Phoenix disappeared, only for Green Dragon to appear over my right shoulder and White Tiger to perch on my left shoulder. The flames around my two swords vanished, and were replaced by different elements. A bunch of vividly colored petals danced and coiled around the black blade of Gan Jiang in my right hand while white lightning crackled and wreathed the white blade of Mo Ye in my left.

    "?!"

    The three mages who were attacking me were taken aback, but it was too late. They continued to plunge toward me.

    I still couldn''t take the golem head-on yet, since I was still casting a spell for that, so I chose to deal with the first earth mage and the wood mage first. Being smaller in size and a lot faster, they managed to dart past the golem to attack me.

    Their mistake. If they had decided to work together with their teammate and use his golem armor as a tank to absorb damage and withstand punishment from my attacks instead of desperately trying to seek glory on their own, they would have made my life a lot more difficult.

    As it was, I punished them for their selfishness and arrogance. I sliced through the boulders with my right sword and launched a volley of petals at the earth mage who conjured them. None of his rocks stood a chance. They were all sliced apart by the raging flowers that appeared to blossom in midair. The earth mage then desperately conjured an earth barrier, but the petals easily sliced through the rock and cut into him.

    The earth mage toppled over, blood spurting from a hundred different cuts all over his body.

    The wood mage didn''t hesitate, sending vines and thick, solid branches in my direction. I blasted them apart with a discharge of high-voltage electricity. Before I could counterattack, the golem had reached me, his tremendous fist crashing down upon my position to pulverize me.

    Once again, I jumped away, and then landed on his fist. I took a few steps across his arm, and then vaulted away before he could swat me once more. Spinning around, I stretched out my legs and then used the golem''s right shoulder as a platform to propel myself in another direction, disappearing just before his armored palm clamped down on that portion with crushing force. Slicing through the network of vines and branches that the wood mage conjured, my two swords easily hacking a path through the dense shrubbery, I stabbed him with my sword.

    "Ugh!"

    Despite what seemed to be a fatal attack, the wood mage grabbed my sword and grinned. Despite the blood trickling down from his mouth, he finished casting a spell that had huge thorny vines slam down on me like tentacles, the writhing appendages coming from all directions and trapping me completely.

    If they hit, I would be punctured by countless thorns and probably ripped into shreds.

    Well, I just needed to not get hit then.

    Mo Ye glowed and I unleashed a storm of destructive lightning, blasting apart the vines once more and electrocuting the screaming wood mage. Even as I yanked out my sword, his smoldering body fell, smoke fuming from his mouth and blackened skin. He continued to convulse as the deadly currents coursed through him, but I paid him no attention.

    The golem had arrived.

    Once again, I was forced to evade his slow but overwhelming attacks, each one easily capable of flattening me into a bloody pancakes. Dodging and diving, I rolled across the ground as the golem''s huge fists left craters in the coliseum.

    Springing to my feet, I tried to duck and avoid more of his attacks for the last few seconds before I could finish casting my spell. The golem tried to stomp on me with his titanic feet, but I managed to clamber over what passed for his toes and avoided being pulverized.

    Then I finished casting my spell. Vines and branches traveled out of Gan Jiang and ensnared the golem, wrapping around and immobilizing him. The golem armor flailed and struggled against his bonds, to no avail. The vines held firm, slowly tightening and wrapping around him. flowers began to blossom across the countless vines that tangled around him, and leaves sprouted, a clear sign of the wood spell absorbing mana and vitality from the golem armor.

    "You¡­what did you do?!" the earth mage within the golem armor shouted in panic. I didn''t bother to answer. Instead, I turned away as his armor crumbled completely, the vines sinking in and slicing through the rock like razor-sharp garrote wires. The vines then wrapped around the now vulnerable earth mage and completely drained him of mana.

    "!!!"

    Someone sprang from the shadows, aiming right for my back. The shadow mage had hung back in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to strike, and now he believed that I had just let my guard down after defeating the person who seemed to be the biggest and strongest enemy, and he capitalized on that moment to plant a dagger in my back.

    "Ugh!"

    Blood spurted into the air.

    The shadow mage stared dumbly at the sword impaling his chest. Lightning crackled around the blade and began to fry him, causing his body to convulse uncontrollably. I had reversed my grip on Mo Ye and stabbed him the moment he emerged from the shadows. He thought I wouldn''t notice his scheme, but I had detected the flow of his mana moving through the shadows long before I completed the destruction of the golem and the defeat of its caster.

    Calmly pulling Mo Ye out of the falling shadow mage, I turned to face the last, remaining mage. He was trembling fearfully, probably realizing how pitifully outmatched he was. He gulped in dread, but to his credit, he maintained his combative stance. Yelling to improve his own morale, he charged forward. Wind began blowing around him and he used his air element to speed up his body to incredible velocities, shooting across the arena in zigzagged patterns. The guy probably was trying to hit me from an unexpected angle, taking me out by surprise.

    I understood why he didn''t attack until now. With that sort of technique, he would just as likely end up colliding into a teammate and take the both of them out instead of defeating me. Furthermore, it was hard for him to control himself to avoid friendly fire, especially if the battlefield was filled with too many people ¨C most of them his allies.

    Right now, he seemed to be trying to generate a hurricane. But I had no intention of allowing him to finish his spell. Raising my left hand, I then stabbed the white blade of Mo Ye into the ground. Lightning erupted from the ground, turning the entire coliseum into an enclosed electric cage. No, it''s not a Faraday cage ¨C rather than block electromagnetic forces, it amplified my electricity.

    "UGH!"

    The guy screamed as all the lightning was drawn to him and struck his speeding body, much like a lightning rod catching every single electric current in the surroundings. He crashed onto the ground, his fuming body skidding for a few moments.

    Then¡­silence.

    I stood there alone, righting the grip on Mo Ye and holding both of my swords up. Then I slowly sheathed them. As I did so, there was a huge yell from the remaining students who were kneeling around the arena. All of them rose up in perfect synchronization and immediately surrounded me, assuming combative stances and getting ready to beat me. This time there was fifteen¡­no, twenty mages.

    Even though my face was outwardly a cold mask, inwardly I was smiling.

 250 Chapter 250: The Whole Poin

    "Stand down!" Teacher Fielding roared as he descended from the podium upstairs and proceeded toward the arena. The uniformed students bowed sharply, and then withdrew reluctantly. As they did so, a couple of teachers threw ten sacks of rice at me. As Teacher Fielding approached, he kicked one of the sacks of rice at me, and it landed at my feet. He regarded me sternly. "Make sure you come again."

    I glanced at the sack of rice at my feet, and then looked up to stare at Teacher Fielding determinedly.

    "I didn''t fight because I wanted the rice."

    Then I scowled and gestured toward all the sacks of rice.

    "What the hell is the point of all these rice?" I demanded, annoyed. "Why the hell are you giving rice out to students who scored victories in the qualifiers? Aren''t the qualifiers supposed to help us score points for the purpose of trying to participate in the Spiritual Road training camp? What''s with all the rice?"

    Teacher Fielding shrugged silently, looking just as perplexed as I felt.

    The translator hesitated, but he quickly recovered and bowed submissively to Teacher Fielding. He most likely interpreted Teacher Fielding''s loss of words as a sign that he didn''t understand what I just said. "He said he will be happy to come again."

    "I never said that!" I snapped.

    "Why are you acting as if I need a translator?" Teacher Fielding added, annoyed. "I can understand perfectly what Richard is saying. What are you trying to do? And why bother translating if you''re going to completely change the meaning of his words?"

    The translator student paled and backed off. With nothing else to do, I turned away and began to depart the stage.

    "Oi!" Teacher Fielding called out to me, and I stopped to glance back at him. "Who exactly are you, Richard?"

    I smiled grimly. "I''m just a normal citizen of the Global Federation."

    With that, I descended from the stage, grabbed my packet of Calbee pizza-flavored potato chips and Dong Fang Yue Chu''s bloodied sack of rice, intending to bring it to him. Without sparing the teachers or the student spectators a second look, I departed from the coliseum without a single word.

    *

    "Oh, thanks. But you really shouldn''t have¡­"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was lying on bed in the infirmary, a few rows down the ten poor dudes that I had beaten up as revenge for his thrashing. He grimaced as he tried to sit up, and adjusted the pillow behind his back.

    "You should just have taken the rice."

    "For what?" I growled, irritated. "What''s with the rice? Why are they giving out rice for the qualifiers? And what are we supposed to do with the rice?"

    "Uh¡­cook it and eat it?" Dong Fang Yue Chu sounded as if he was stating the obvious. I sighed and rubbed my forehead.

    "Ten sacks of rice? I mean, sure, they are fairly small, but it''s just me and Dad at home, we don''t need that much rice. Besides, this isn''t World War II, it''s not as if there''s a shortage of food and we are starving."

    Thanks to magic and technological advancement in agricultural industries, the world no longer had to worry about starvation and food shortages. Even the less¡­technologically inclined empires were able to sustain their populations with magically grown and replicated crops without requiring vast swathes of agricultural fields.

    However, the ultra-capitalist nature of the Global Federation still made food fairly expensive. That was how the Federation worked. Any reason they could use to generate profits, they would. While the government decreed that all citizens be allocated a bare minimum amount of food for survival, any more than that was charged exorbitant prices. Chefs made a lot of money, as did the suppliers of surplus food. There was no reason to sell them so expensively, but people did so because it would bring them money. As much as people protested and complained, they couldn''t exactly do much because they all received the bare minimum of food to survive, and anything else was a luxury.

    Nobody was obligated to cook for free or to settle for the prices you wanted them to accept, especially if you''re not going to starve from death just because they refused to sell you food and you had your own bare minimum amount that ensured survival.

    So people mostly sucked it up and paid them. Besides, even though I whined about how expensive, it wasn''t as if people were charging a hundred dollars for 15 pounds of rice. Just $30 for 15 pounds of rice, for example. Not ideal, but not that bad. The better quality rice could go up to $50 or $60. I was talking the equivalent of the present day''s USD, for reference.

    In the end, as long as there was supply and demand, the merchants got to keep their prices artificially inflated, and the consumers just paid them while grumbling on the side. It was the same with non-essential medical services ¨C something as cosmetic as eyesight correction, plastic surgery, slimming or pigmentation was going to cost the payer a bomb. Since essential and life-and-death medical services were covered by national healthcare insurance, the medical sector needed some way to make money, and that came from non-essential medical services. If there were people willing to pay for it ¨C and there was quite a few ¨C they would make lots of money from it. Otherwise, well, we weren''t going to die if we were denied such things, so there really wasn''t anything to protest against. They would just tell us, "don''t purchase the surgery/product/service then."

    And that was within their rights to do so. They had to make a living.

    "Still, I appreciate it."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was smiling gratefully.

    "I didn''t expect you to help me take revenge and beat them up for me. Really¡­thank you."

    "I didn''t do anything."

    "Ha ha!" Dong Fang Yue Chu burst out laughing. "You always say that, but in truth you''ve done a lot more than you know."

    "Uh, right."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu slumped against his pillow and the aluminum head of his bed. I watched him sympathetically. Even though Teacher Cure had cast her famous healing spells on her, given the magnitude of the injuries he had suffered, he still needed an hour or two before he fully healed.

    At least he was better off than the ten dudes I had just beaten up. I wouldn''t say I thrashed them. The battle was so much closer than I hoped it would be. If I had made even the slightest mistake, I would be the one lying on the bed instead of all ten of them. The earth mage with the colossal golem armor spell in particular was extremely powerful.

    Furthermore, they were too self-centered and obsessed with attaining individual glory to work together, which was why their attacks were so haphazard and unsynchronized. If they had learned to fight in a team like me and my friends, they would have overwhelmed me long ago. Well, maybe not ¨C I didn''t just recklessly challenged ten guys because I assumed they wouldn''t be working together. I still had my ways of dealing with them, but it would be a lot more difficult, and I was certain I wouldn''t have gotten off with anything worse than light injuries.

    "You should get a healing spell cast on that," Dong Fang Yue Chu advised when he caught sight of my bruised and bleeding knuckles. I tilted my head to the side and scoffed.

    "They''ll heal within the hour, even without a healing spell." That was a benefit of being a mage. The mana that flowed through our bodies accelerated our innate healing ability. It wasn''t as efficient and nowhere as fast as a healing spell, but it was a lot better than non-mages, who would otherwise take a few days to a week to heal from a bruise or a cut.

    Glancing at Dong Fang Yue Chu and remembering how that bastard teacher Zuo Teng had flamed him with a spell, I scowled. Then I also recalled something that had led to that event in the first place.

    "Rather than me, what about you? Why were you so reckless? Challenging three people at once like that¡­you think you''re Master Liu, is it? You''re lucky you''re not dead!"

    "No, that was¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu looked embarrassed. I snorted.

    "Don''t tell me you were really that desperate for rice. If you need rice, I can give you some. I have quite a lot stocked up at home. You don''t need to risk your life stupidly like this just for food. Don''t hesitate to ask me for help."

    "It''s not that either." Dong Fang Yue Chu looked even more embarrassed. He probably regretted ever picking up the sack of rice that I had passed to him. "I was short on points."

    "Points?" I raised an eyebrow. Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded before he sighed and glanced at the ten dudes on the beds a few rows away from his.

    "Yeah. Have you forgotten? The whole point of this qualifier is to accumulate enough points to get into the Spiritual Road training camp, remember?"

    "Oh, right." I scratched my head sheepishly, remembering that. "You were lacking in points to make the top five?"

    "Yeah. Most of us are, actually. I only managed to get five or so matches these days, and I didn''t win all of them. Just four out of five. If I didn''t stake everything on winning another three, I wouldn''t be able to get enough points to qualify." He rested his head against the wall. "As it is, I''ve failed anyway, so it doesn''t matter."

    "Hey, at least you tried." I patted his shoulder in an effort to console him. "You''re a far better person than those who didn''t have the courage to make that attempt. If you didn''t challenge the three of them, you would have spent the rest of your days wondering what could have been and regretting not taking the plunge. Right now, all you did was fail, but everyone fails. You''ll just bounce back and recover from the failure, just like everyone else."

    "Ha ha, yeah." Dong Fang Yue Chu shook his head. Then he stared at me. "What about you?"

    "What about me?" I asked as I adjusted my glasses tiredly and slumped against the chair I was currently sitting in. even though I appeared outwardly fine, trying to take on ten mages at once was still quite the draining affair. I had used up quite a lot of mana.

    "You ready for the Spiritual Road?"

    "Hah!" I scoffed. "Of course not. Why would I be? I never intended to go to the Spiritual Road and participate in it in the first place. I''m going off on a mission to another city next week once I receive confirmation from Instructor Feng Hai."

    "I don''t think you have a choice," Dong Fang Yue Chu pointed out. "You probably have among the highest number of points now, enough to make it to the top five."

    "Huh? How?!"

    "Dude¡­" My good friend glared at me as if I was an idiot. Which, to be fair, I was an idiot. There was no denying my lack of intelligence. Just look at the number of comments at the side, and you will count at least a hundred different readers insulting me as stupid and bemoaning how much of an idiot I was. "You defeated ten opponents today. Add to the match you had against Tie Quan, you''ve probably gotten a massive haul of points. The average person only won five or six matches in this week. The top students like Craig or Theodore only won ten, one less than you. I think only Harrison Reed has probably won more matches than you."

    I wasn''t surprised. The Holy Saints president was a monster. At least he didn''t get expelled and leave the school unlike some Saint Judgement president in a web novel that I was supposed to be copying. Honestly, I was glad that he was on our side, rather than against. Hopefully he had improved and was much stronger than he was last year, when his performance in the previous national tournament was less than stellar.

    However, I was taken aback by the information that Dong Fang Yue Chu had just provided. The hell?! How was it possible that I was one of the very few who had defeated eleven opponents in a week? Surely there were other students besides Harrison who were much stronger than me, and more passionate.

    "What? How¡­?"

    "You really have no self-awareness, huh?" Dong Fang Yue Chu shook his head, almost scornfully, and reached out to pat me. "Good luck in the Spiritual Road, my friend. I''m counting on you to do my part for me too."

    "Hell, no! There''s still quite some time. I''m sure Craig, Theodore and the rest will surely be able to surpass me."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu gave me a pitiful smile. "With only one day left? Oh, and before I forget¡­my friend, because you fought ten guys all at once instead of fighting ten separate matches, you get multiplier rewards¡­I mean, points bonuses for defeating ten opponents at once. Simply put, you probably gained ten times the points you would get if you fought and won ten separate matches." He shook his head. "You probably overtook even Harrison in terms of points alone, and there really is no way anyone can catch up to you now, never mind surpass you, unless they go crazy and challenge ten guys at once like you did today."

    "I''m sure they will try."

    "Yeah, but there''s no guarantee they will succeed." Dong Fang Yue Chu laid a hand on my shoulder. "Face it, Richard. You''re going to the Spiritual Road, whether you like it or not."

 251 Chapter 251: Embarking onto the Spiritual Road

    "Ugh¡­I don''t want to go."

    I was staring at the email I had just received on my phone, feeling that familiar feeling of dread creep over me.

    "No, I''m sure you want to."

    "Whoa!"

    I almost jumped out of my skin when I heard Vincent Violet speak out just behind me. Whirling around, I gaped at him, wondering when he arrived. Even then, it was a mystery why he sought me out specifically, given how I was still wandering aimlessly around the school corridors shortly after classes had ended.

    Originally I had intended to go straight to the mission office to look for a relevant mission to help me in my war against the Assassins Guild. Damn, I made it sound so grand, but it was just me being delusional and pretending that my actions actually made any difference when in all honesty I was just doing this for my own self-satisfaction.

    In any event, I was proceeding toward the mission office when my smartphone buzzed and informed me that I had just received a new email. And that email turned out to be the one that told me I was selected for the Spiritual Road training camp.

    Now that I thought about it, today marked the end of the one week that the principal announced the qualifiers for the Spiritual Road. So it ended today, huh? Turned out that Dong Fang Yue Chu was right. Nobody was able to beat my artificially inflated score. I heard Craig tried to engage ten opponents as well, but he got his ass handed to him. His spear technique was devastating in one-against-one engagements, but quite frankly he was going to have trouble trying to fight multiple enemies at once. I was sure he had an anti-army technique where he threw his spear and obliterated an entire area, but that required his opponents to be stupid enough to clump up in the same spot for him to eliminate all at once. As it was, he got surrounded and was taken out by several spells to his back.

    The successor to Ip Man he was not.

    That didn''t explain why Vincent Violet wanted to see me, though. I wondered if his visit was perhaps related to me topping the qualifiers by sheer dumb luck, but you know what they said about making assumptions.

    "Sir?"

    "Come with me for a bit."

    Even though many readers were going to condemn me for being spineless for obeying an instruction from my principal and whine about how I just listen to other people and going along with whatever they tell me instead of¡­I don''t know, doing whatever I want, I still followed him. No, I mean, seriously, why was hearing whatever Violet had to say considered "spineless"? Honestly, I didn''t get some of the comments here.

    Ignoring the whining from the right side of this story, I followed Violet to his office, and took a seat when he gestured at the chair opposite his desk. He plopped down on his couch and then leaned over to steeple his fingers and rest his chin on his hands.

    "Richard, I am aware of what you''re trying to do."

    "What is it I am trying to do then?" I asked, trying not to sound too combative. Violet sighed and closed his eyes for a moment.

    "Ever since my daughter''s death, you''ve been hunting down the Dark Church and the Assassins Guild with a vengeance. I''m not sure if you''re trying to take revenge for Alicia, or if you''ve recognized their threat and seek to protect innocent people from their predations, especially since those nut-jobs aim to destroy the world, but you''ve been recklessly taking too many missions that are¡­quite frankly, above your pay grade."

    "All of us start somewhere," I muttered. "And a few of them was taken alongside experienced veterans."

    Such as Dad, or Anastasia, both of whom had a wealth of experience in dealing with killers and powerful organizations.

    "You won''t be able to continue if you end up dead." Violet pursed his lips as he studied me gravely. "Take a break for now, lay off the missions for a while and focus on practicing and honing your skills, getting your basics and foundation solid again."

    "Yes, sir."

    He had a point. I had been neglecting my basics for a while now and I needed to review my foundational spells and techniques again.

    "I''m surprised," Violet admitted as he watched my reaction. "I expected you to protest or complain about this."

    "No," I assured him. "You have a very valid concern. I believe my father shares the same opinion as you."

    Lately Dad had forbidden me from following him on any other missions, citing my lack of experience and strength as the main factor. In more¡­relaxed missions, he would allow me to go along, but extended missions ¨C particularly the ones overseas ¨C were a no. he claimed that I was not prepared to go that distance yet.

    "Get into university first and then we''ll talk about it," he had told me. And now, not just Dad, but even Violet was saying the same thing.

    I wasn''t some arrogant youth who thought I was invincible or that I needed a chance or that the adults were suppressing me. Those sort of sentiments were bullshit and a hallmark of immaturity and impatience. And on the battlefield, impatience was what got you killed. The adults had good reasons for holding me back and I understood why. Similarly, I wasn''t going to bring Adrian along on a monster-hunting trip even if he requested me to, because he simply was not ready and would most likely get in the way.

    So I accepted their advice without any protests.

    "Is there anything else, sir?" I asked, wondering if the principal will dismiss me. I was a little flattered that he would go through the trouble of calling out to me and explaining everything in his office, but that was quite the show of favoritism.

    "Another thing," Violet added, to my surprise. He smiled grimly. "Another reason why you might want to participate in the Spiritual Road is¡­that there will be a possibility that the Assassins Guild will be present."

    That caught my attention and I jerked up. "They are planning an attack? Are they targeting the students from the various academies participating in the Spiritual Road?"

    "Not exactly." Violet pondered for a few moments, probably deciding how much he should tell me and how much information he should withhold. Not because he intended me any harm, but this was strictly confidential information, and he couldn''t just tell me everything without permission or he would be breaking the trust of other people in the know, such as the intelligence agents who provided him the info. Or the higher-ups.

    No, transparency wasn''t the issue. The problem was that if you freely release information regarding your enemy, you make it so much easier for them to find out where all the leaks were coming from, and that would put your intelligence agents'' safety and positions in jeopardy. This wasn''t a simple manner of "that principal guy is a bastard for keeping some information from you!" Even I myself wasn''t completely sure I would keep my mouth shut.

    Fortunately, Violet''s hesitation didn''t last long.

    "From what we know, the Assassins might be sending undercover agents to infiltrate the Spiritual Road training camp. Deceivum Assassins, possibly. More likely, they are sending their Assassin trainees to gain experience and obtain knowledge on the students, various academies, and the techniques they use. Perhaps they are preparing for eventualities where many of these students will become targets of assassination in the future."

    I gulped. "Isn''t that more of a reason for me not to go?"

    "Don''t be daft. They already know your fighting style and spells, having attacked you several times. On the other hand, you are the one who needs to know what sort of techniques the diverse sect of Assassins employ."

    To be honest, I wasn''t very enthusiastic about that, but Violet had a very valid point. Know your enemy and half the battle was won. The enemy certainly knew about me, but I probably only knew a very tiny fraction of their real strength.

    "Furthermore, you don''t have to worry because it seems that you''re not their target this time." Vincent Violet''s brow furrowed. "The Assassins seem to be targeting the sons and daughters of the ten great families. Such as Cecilia Stuart ¨C you''ve met her and bested her before. I believe that Kureha Franklin is also a friend of yours? She will most likely be participating in this as well, along with a few of the other heirs and heiresses."

    All of whom had absolutely nothing to do with me, as far as I was concerned.

    Then it struck me that Violet might be sending me on this training camp for another purpose. Not only for a chance to take revenge on the Assassins Guild and obstruct whatever insidious schemes they might have cooked up, but also¡­

    "You want me to protect these heirs and heiresses of the ten Great families?"

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Violet roared in laughter, instigating a scowl from me. All right, getting that wrong was indeed embarrassing, but did he really need to laugh like that? Violet blinked away tears as he pounded on the table. "Those prodigies and geniuses don''t need you to protect them!"

    "¡­right." He had a point there, as much as I hated to admit it. Having seen both Cecilia and Kureha in action, I was aware that he was correct. Those geniuses were on an entire level. They certainly could take care of themselves.

    "However, you''re partially right. This is a chance for you. While the Assassin trainees are distracted with their powerful targets, you can hit them hard when they aren''t looking at you. Make them regret ever thinking they could just ignore you and not place you in their eyes."

    "No, seriously, I prefer to keep a low profile and not show up in their eyes at all." The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. However, I smiled coldly. "That said, I appreciate the opportunity to strike back at them and ruin their schemes. Thanks for allowing me a shot at revenge."

    "You''re welcome." Violet''s expression was stony. "I also have a stake in all this. They took my daughter away from me. I will pay them back, no matter what."

    Even if he had to use a student as a tool to do so. Somehow I understood that. It was then I realized that this wasn''t favoritism, and he didn''t so much as favored me as he saw me as a weapon he could wield against his enemy. Employ me correctly and I could tear out the heart of the enemy. He knew he could rely on me because I shared the same grudge against a common enemy, and had a similar motivation to visit upon them their destruction.

    "In any event, keep your eyes open and stay on your guard." Violet rose and reached to place a hand on my shoulder. "Don''t do anything reckless. Your life and surviving should be your top priority. I already lost my daughter. I don''t want to lose a student as well."

    "Yes, sir. I''ll do my best."

    "I know you will." Violet beamed, his eyes gleaming malevolently as he savored the thought of our common enemy being destroyed. "I''ll be counting on you, Richard."

 252 Chapter 252: Inside the Spiritual Road

    "That''s it?"

    After all the hoorah and hype, the students from the various academies gathered in front of what looked like an interdimensional gateway, and were led into an artificial realm that was really just a forest populated by monsters. The teachers in charge gave the usual briefing, and then allowed the student into the realm.

    Apparently we were supposed to spend a few months trying to survive here. The rules were simple. Each student was issued a blood token, and we were supposed to steal the blood tokens from each other. Once you had zero blood token, you were automatically kicked out of the realm and lost the game.

    If you could call this dangerous training camp a game.

    The more blood tokens you obtained, the higher your rank would be, and apparently the more benefits you get. What sort of benefits, I had no idea, but it sure as hell better not be the usual bullshit cultivation resources or spirit pills or martial arts techniques or crystals or whatever nonsense. This wasn''t a cultivation novel, and if I saw that word one more time, I swear I will smash my fist through my computer screen (unlike most readers, I don''t read Web Novels on my phone, and since I had to write this account, it was easiest for me to do it on a PC).

    "What do you intend to do?"

    There were five of us from Jing Tian Academy. Harrison Reed, Craig Carlson, Theodore Hammond, Lily Liam and myself. No wonder Dong Fang Yue Chu was so desperate as to try and fight three opponents to gain as many points as possible. He wanted to participate in this training camp together with Lily.

    Too bad that plan never came to fruition.

    "What do you mean?" Theodore asked when Craig asked the question. The demonic spearman shrugged as if it was obvious.

    "Should we work in a team, or should we split up?"

    Harrison considered for a moment. "I suggest we stay together." He glanced at the forest, where congregations of students gathered to divide themselves into groups. Naturally students from the same school stuck together. "Being alone is too dangerous. Not only do we have to defend ourselves from monsters inside the forest, we also have to look out for other students attacking us to steal our blood tokens. If we move alone, we''ll make ourselves easy targets and end up being picked off one by one. It''s necessary for us to watch each other''s backs."

    "I concur," Theodore agreed seriously. The thought of splitting up and acting independently had never occurred to him, which was why he was puzzled when Craig raised the question. To be honest, I didn''t even think about that either. I always assumed we would be cooperating, much like we did during Feng Hai''s training camp, and also during the monster invasion of Jing Tian City much later. We had a history of teaming up and working together, so I thought it would be the same here. "Divided, we fall. United, we stand. We''ll be much stronger if we stick together."

    "I''m fine either way," Craig said indifferently. The spearman was always the maverick, a rogue who did whatever he wanted. But even he saw the benefits of being part of a team. No man was an island, after all.

    Even though I believed that, I couldn''t believe what I saw when I went through the comments that were popping up in the Web Novel app on my smartphone. Readers were absolutely seething that I chose to party up with my friends. The edge lords in particular were shouting about how they couldn''t be trusted, that they would inevitably betray me and try to kill me, and that I should move on my own like every other Mary Sue web novel protagonist out there just so I could hoard whatever treasures I obtained to myself. Never mind I had teamed up with Craig and Theodore before, as well as fought alongside Harrison and Lily during the invasion of Jing Tian City, and we all relied on each other to survive those life-and-death ordeals. I had trusted them back then, and none of them backstabbed me or gave in to treachery. While the situation was somewhat different and we were encouraged to steal each other''s blood tokens, I seriously doubted my schoolmates would turn on me this early in the training camp.

    Having been through so much, we had forged quite a strong bond. They had given me a lot of reasons to trust them. In contrast, these edge lords ranting about how the world cannot be trusted, how all humans are evil and treacherous, and obsessed with protagonists who could solo everything and claim every treasure for himself and himself alone, were complete strangers on the Internet, randomly spouting edgy and antisocial nonsense without any real understanding of how society or the world worked. granted, I was aware that I couldn''t afford to be na?ve and overly trusting, but at the same time it was the height of sheer stupidity to give into paranoia, delude yourself into antisocial behavior and lashing out at everyone in the world for no reason other than because it was cool to act all emo, angsty and edgy.

    Some readers never thought carefully before they launched into a crusade with their keyboards. The ultimate keyboard warriors, I guess, who thought they understood the "harsh, cruel reality" of the world yet ultimately their battlefield consisted only of online verbal sparring on Internet forums, comment sections and social media. Most of them hadn''t even undergone proper military training like I did. Come to think of it, the combat training we received in the magic academies was pretty similar to the military training I underwent back in my previous life.

    "It''s a pity we don''t have Pearl with us," Lily remarked wistfully. The president of the Super Power Society wasn''t much of a combatant, so she didn''t rack up enough points to qualify for the Spiritual Road Training Camp. However, Pearl Pang''s healing magic would undoubtedly be indispensable to us if we wanted to survive. Or prevail.

    "Can''t be helped. We''ll work with who we have. And honestly, I can''t think of any better teammates than you guys." Harrison smiled encouragingly. "As long as we work together, we''ll be a force to reckon with! Let''s start collecting blood tokens as soon as possible!"

    Craig grinned. "Now we''re talking!"

    With that, the five of us went through the interdimensional gate together and were transported right into the forest.

    "¡­"

    The five of us glanced around after finding ourselves in a clearing. There was no sign of the other groups, but that was to be expected. After all, it would be no fun if the students immediately got into fights right after being transported into the forest and began eliminating each other within minutes of the start of the training camp.

    This wasn''t merely to "teach" us, but also for the teachers to watch us come up with tricks and tactics. After all, the whole purpose of the Spiritual Road training camp was for us to obtain information on each other''s spells, techniques and magic. What was the point if we begin to launch surprise attacks and start taking out each other before the other party could even react and prepare their magic? The tournament wasn''t going to allow such deception, ambush or underhanded tactics.

    Moreover, the training camp wasn''t solely about pitting students against each other. There was a reason why they bred monsters in the forest we were now transported to.

    "Be careful!" I warned the moment I picked up a monstrous presence nearby. It hadn''t seemed to notice us yet, and wasn''t drawing closer to our direction, but it was still near enough to put me on alert. If we started yelling, we might attract its attention.

    However, Craig seemed pretty enthusiastic. Hefting up his spear, he grinned as he proceeded toward the direction of the monster, albeit cautiously. He might be on the reckless side, but he was not an idiot. At least I hoped he wasn''t an idiot, but sometimes I doubted it.

    "Rank C Fiery Ape," Theodore remarked with a tilt of his head. "I think we can easily handle it."

    "Wait," Harrison cautioned. "Don''t forget that Fiery Apes always come in swarms. If we attack that Fiery Ape, it will howl and call all of its comrades down upon us. Not to mention, our fighting might attract other enemies."

    He was obviously referring to the other students participating in the Spiritual Road camp. They might wait to see if we exhaust ourselves fighting against the Fiery Ape, and then swoop in to take advantage of our momentary vulnerability. Sort of the hunter waiting for two tigers to battle it out and wound each other severely before he dives in and takes both of them out in one fell swoop. Even if we didn''t expend all that much mana, we would still be revealing our hand by showing our future opponents what sort of magic or techniques we could use.

    "I could kill the Fiery Ape in just one hit before it can call its comrades," Craig said confidently as he twirled his spear almost leisurely.

    "But what''s the point?" I asked.

    "Huh?" Everyone turned toward me. I shrugged.

    "What''s the point of randomly killing a single monster when it hasn''t noticed us? We might as well just avoid it instead of wasting energy. You guys speak of killing so easily, taking away a life as if it''s nothing more than a flip of your hand. It''s not attacking us at the moment, so what exactly is the point of killing it other than¡­I don''t know? It''s not as if we''ll be getting any blood token from its corpse?"

    Even if the Fiery Ape was a monster, it was still a living, breathing thing. There was no reason to casually take its life just because we could. If it was no threat to us and wasn''t bothering us, why should we kill it? Because it was a monster? There was no benefit to killing it other than exposing our position and leaving clues that we had been here.

    "Because it''s a monster?" Craig replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "All monsters are innately hostile toward humans."

    "I don''t doubt that, but I''m just pointing out that we can just currently leave it alone instead of exposing our position and leaving behind a trail. If the Fiery Ape''s swarm finds its corpse, don''t you think they will come after us for revenge? That will put us at a disadvantage, especially if we happen to be engaging one of the other student groups."

    Monsters, despite being seemingly not sentient, were extremely cunning. They were known to display an extraordinary amount of intelligence, setting up ambushes, recognizing two different groups of humans and exploiting rivalries to their advantage. Humans were not the only ones who knew of the hunter and two tigers'' principle.

    "You''re saying that they''ll figure out who killed their comrade?" Craig asked incredulously.

    "Yeah. Monsters are pretty sensitive to mana signatures. They''ll detect your mana on the Fiery Ape you killed¡­especially since it emanates pretty visibly from your spear."

    "Richard has a point," Lily agreed. "I''ve heard of monsters being able to detect specific human mana signatures from up to a mile away and identify particular human targets."

    "If they come after us, let them," Craig sneered, tightening his grip on the spear. "I''ll slay all of them. They''re just rank C monsters."

    "That''s still a fairly high rank," Harrison pointed out. "Richard has a valid point. We don''t want to earn the grudge of the Fiery Apes¡­not unless we can lure all of them in and wipe out the entire swam in one fell swoop."

    "But should we engage in such a large-scale battle so soon?" Theodore asked. "We''ve to be careful. We don''t want to attract the attention of the other student this early in the game and give our magic away."

    In any case, the decision was made for us. The Fiery Ape grunted, and glanced to the side before leaving. I sighed in relief, but that feeling was short-lived when someone screamed.

    The Fiery Ape bellowed and beat its chest, flames blazing across its crimson fur, before it bounded in the direction of the scream. From that direction, I could hear more roars from other Fiery Apes in the distant. Then the unmistakable sensation of spells being cast in the distance, mana bursts from elemental projectiles launched at the Fiery Apes.

    Someone else had run into the Fiery Apes'' comrades, and they had called for the entire pack to descend upon the poor dudes.

    "What should we do?" I asked.

    "I vote we follow them." Craig was grinning. "If we can watch how the other students fight, we''ll be able to find out more about their techniques and magic."

    "Yeah, that sounds like the best plan. Let''s go!" Harrison, taking charge, issued an order, and we all immediately broke into a run, following him.

    "Aren''t you glad you listened to Richard?" Lily asked Craig as we followed the Fiery Ape while keeping a respectable distance. The black-haired spearman scoffed.

    "Well, yeah." He shifted his spear from one hand to another. "I don''t like just watching, though."

    "If the other students really can''t fight the Fiery Apes off, we should help them," I suggested. Harrison and Lily looked at me as if I was mad, but Craig laughed.

    "I''m with you on that!"

    "Me too." Theodore was smiling, probably knowing what sort of person I was by now.

    "¡­well, it makes sense to have somebody in our debt," Harrison reckoned somewhat reluctantly. "And you''re right. I probably won''t feel comfortable leaving someone to die right in front of me."

    With that matter decided, we continued to pursue the grunting Fiery Ape as it lumbered deeper into the forest.

 253 Chapter 253: Aping Around

    Elemental spells washed over the clearing, striking out at random Fiery Apes. However, a combination of their fiery aura and their innate magical resistance allowed the Fiery Apes to weather the onslaught.

    One of them howled and beat its chest, drawing more Fiery Apes from all over the forest. The beleaguered group of students shrank back as it bellowed, but they continued to battle on despite being surrounded. About five of them, dressed in beige and red uniforms, were clustered in back-to-back positions as they tried to ward off the ever-increasing number of Fiery Apes. A few of the monsters had fallen, lying unmoving on the ground, but there were five times as much dead.

    And these were rank C monsters. They weren''t a pushover.

    I didn''t recognize the uniform or the school badge, but for them to make it to the Spiritual Road meant they were probably from the top schools. In fact, it was pretty impressive that they managed to down a couple of the Fiery Apes. One of the Fiery Apes'' corpses stood out in contrast to the rest, solitary and slumped over a tree, a single wound on its chest.

    No doubt the students in this particular group had chosen to do what Craig had suggested and killed a Fiery Ape that had drawn near their position. Or perhaps one of them had impulsively acted before his or her teammates could stop him or her. It didn''t matter. The deed was done and they were in deep trouble.

    The Fiery Apes were constantly calling in reinforcements, but thankfully the rush of the rank C monsters had somewhat slowed. There were about fifty in the clearing by now, which posed a sizeable threat to any group of mages, never mind five students.

    "This is bad," Lily remarked, her face ashen. "They will be killed if this goes on!"

    "Should we help them?" Theodore asked grimly. I nodded.

    "Let''s¡­"

    "No. not yet." Harrison raised a hand to stop me. He glanced around with a frown. "I don''t think we''re the only ones here."

    "Yeah." Craig revealed a feral grin. "Seems like there''s quite a few people who came to watch. But none of them intend to lend those poor bastards a hand."

    "We are not them," I pointed out, trying to keep my voice level and failing to do so completely. "At least I''m not going to watch someone get killed in front of me without doing anything."

    "You misunderstand me," Harrison told me. "I''m not saying we shouldn''t help them. Just not yet."

    "Then when?" I gestured toward the hidden students in the trees, who were too focused on the current battle to pay any attention to our group. "I''m not going to monkey around like those chimps. If we don''t do anything soon, those guys would be dead."

    "Nah, they won''t die so easily." Harrison smiled. "Remember what kind of place this is, and what the objective is."

    I paused for a moment, conceding the point. Craig voiced out my thoughts a few seconds with a grudging nod of his head.

    "Let''s say we go help them now. We''ll exhaust ourselves exterminating those Fiery Apes. And then those others who were watching this entire time will swoop in and grab the blood tokens of two groups at once. We''ll be vulnerable to an assault after that."

    "Wouldn''t they fight amongst themselves first?" Theodore asked.

    "There are about two other groups besides us," Harrison informed us as he looked around with a frown. "Eliminating two groups and sharing our blood tokens amongst themselves¡­there should be enough to distribute fairly to each member if they decide to strike an alliance. Right now, since we are the third group and there''s only one group to take advantage of, they are refraining from impulsively reaching out to others. They''ll probably wait and see what happens, but I doubt they would help. Rather, they would wait for one group to move ahead and attack first, and then attack that group after they worn themselves out against the victims."

    "But if we can help those guys out and form an alliance of sorts ¨C they would be indebted to us, and will help us against the two groups." I was looking at the bright side, the benefits, so to speak. However, there was one flaw in my plan.

    "They would be too exhausted to be of much help to us when fighting off the other two groups." Craig scowled.

    "Even so, we can''t just leave them to fall to the hands of the other groups!" Lily protested.

    "That''s right. We are humans, not animals. We have a moral compass. If we resort to such despicable means, then we are no better than the robbers, pillagers and criminals that the Federation trained us to fight." Harrison straightened up. "But we''ll have to fight smartly, not nobly, or our values would be of naught. I propose that we intervene at the last moment, and conserve our strength to fight off the other two groups when they arrive¡­"

    "Begging your pardon, but when is the last moment?" Theodore suddenly interrupted. "Because it looks like they''re going to get annihilated."

    His words drew us back toward the predicament the red and beige uniformed students were presently in. Though a few more Fiery Apes had fallen, the students were being worn down and pressed into a smaller circle. Their spells seemed to be weakening, and I watched as one of them was physically swatted by a Fiery Ape, his skin burned as he crashed heavily. A girl screamed before the Fiery Ape she was engaging overwhelmed her magical defenses and engulfed her in flames.

    "They''re a bit weaker than I thought," Harrison muttered, frustration evident in his voice. "No choice. We go in now. Richard, I''ll have to count on you."

    "Sure."

    I knew what Harrison was referring to. Watching as my teammates launched themselves at the Fiery Apes, I hung back for a few more seconds to complete my spell. Harrison was pretty sharp ¨C he had noticed that I had already begun casting my summoning spell the moment we reached the area, instead of waiting for him to issue or make any decision.

    Craig reached the enemy first, plunging his demonic spear into the chest of a Fiery Ape that whirled around in surprise at the arrival of new foes. Lily landed beside him and proceeded to cleave through another Fiery Ape with her sword while deflecting a gout of flames from a third Fiery Ape with her shield. Harrison descended nimbly beside them, and casting holy-type spells, he had the entire area awash in white light, the purifying mana antithesis to the monsters'' very existence. A few of them toppled over, their bodies sizzling and whitened by the overwhelming holy magic.

    One of the surviving Fiery Apes smashed through the white light to get to Harrison, recognizing him as the biggest threat, but he calmly raised an arm and stopped its massive strike. Flames washed over him, but harmlessly dissipated against the holy white aura that shrouded his body. Clenching his fist, he returned the punch, which obliterated the Fiery Ape''s chest and sent the huge monster flying across the clearing with a trail of blood.

    Damn. That guy was a monster.

    Theodore was the last to land, but his attack did the most damage. He slammed his hammer against the ground and unleashed a violent storm of lightning that rippled outward in a vague circle and electrocuted the Fiery Apes. A huge portion of the horde convulsed and fell, deadly electricity running through their bodies.

    A couple of them endured the lethal lightning and pounced on Theodore, flames swirling around their bodies protectively and aggressively. Without missing a beat, Theodore hefted his hammer up and rose to his feet. He swung his bulky weapon and smashed the skull of the first Fiery Ape that reached him, electricity enfolding his body to protect him from the worst of the flames. Spinning around, he then smacked the other Fiery Ape in the face, probably knocking a few teeth loose, and sent it careening toward the ground. As it aped about and clutched at its broken jaw, its flames flickering out pitifully, Theodore stood over it and finished it off with another strike from his thunder hammer. The unwieldy weapon doubled his strength and allowed him to dish out a ton of damage.

    The remaining Fiery Apes withdrew, giving the beleaguered group of students a breather and a chance to escape. They didn''t just up and run away, though, but joined up with the four newly arrived mages who saved them.

    "Gr¡­!"

    Growling, the Fiery Apes flung dozens of fireballs at us from their newly taken up position. Lily cursed and brought her shield up, but she was aware that she wouldn''t be able to protect all of her teammates, plus the students we had just rescued, with such a small armament.

    Splash!

    Water descended upon them, forming a dense curtain that proved impervious to the fireballs. Water boiled and steam flooded the entire place, obscuring vision. The Fiery Apes grunted, but dozens of highly pressurized geysers shot out and pierced through them. More than a handful of them died in the first barrage, their bodies burst apart by the colossal forces of water. The rest were swept away, carried by the irresistible flow and washed further out.

    "Thanks, Black Tortoise," I told my Celestial Guardian. The gigantic tortoise nodded as he crawled to check his charges behind the water barrier he had conjured, and turned back toward the remaining Fiery Apes. A few more had drowned, but the majority managed to cling onto trees to prevent themselves from being washed away.

    One of them snarled and spun about the thick branch it clung to, lunging at me. Casting a spell, it uses its flames as makeshift rocket engines, propelling itself toward me like a bullet and leaving a trail of smoke.

    Wow. I didn''t think monsters were capable of conceiving such creative ways to use their magic.

    In any event, I couldn''t afford to be impressed. Having summoned Aquarius as a precaution, I brought the blue broadsword up and cleaved the charging Fiery Ape into two. Then, scraping my front foot against the ground, I swung Aquarius and unleashed another tidal wave to knock three more Fiery Apes back before they could finish pouncing on me.

    Craig jumped up and above me before he lanced through the heart of the center Fiery Ape with his spear. Lily darted forward and decapitated the Fiery Ape on the left, while Theodore crushed the one on the right with his thunder hammer, its skull giving way under the massive weight of the large weapon.

    The surviving Fiery Apes hung back warily. The arrival of my team had exterminated over eighty percent of the numbers, and now there were about ten or so of them left. Realizing that to continue would be suicide, they began to turn tail and run.

    Or so we thought, but they suddenly whirled around to bare their teeth at us. We weren''t intimidated, especially since we all had our weapons and spells to the fore and responded appropriately.

    "And I was about to tell you guys not to chase them down." Harrison sighed. "If they want to be idiots, then I guess it''s their funeral."

    I frowned in puzzlement, especially since something about the Fiery Apes'' behavior and their sudden change of heart bothered me, but before I could even begin to guess, one of the students who we had just saved spoke up.

    "Thank you for saving us. We really don''t know how to repay this debt."

    "It''s nothing," I began, but Harrison cut me off.

    "Well, for starters¡­" he smiled charismatically. "You can help us fight these Fiery Apes off and survive."

    "Sure thing!"

    Harrison was an amazing leader. With just a sentence, he lifted their morale and revitalized their fighting spirit. And he did so naturally. Such a thing had never occurred to me, and once again I was reminded of the difference between me and him.

    "¡­!"

    I was about to bring another tsunami down on the approaching Fiery Apes, but they wisely kept their distance and flung fireballs at us. Those flaming projectiles sizzled ineffectively against Black Tortoise''s water barrier and did nothing.

    My brow furrowed further. They must be aware of the futility of their attacks, yet they continued casting their spells. At the same time, they were maintaining a distance¡­almost as if they were buying time and waiting for reinforcements.

    "We should leave, now!" Harrison had evidently come to the same conclusion, his face a little pale but he still managed to maintain his composure. "Theodore, Lily, escort these guys out of here. Craig, Richard, you''re the rearguard with me."

    "You mean you''re the center guard," Craig corrected. "Can''t lose you in a fighting retreat, leader."

    Harrison nodded, his hands glowing white. "Even so, I''ll help you as much as I can."

    The next moment, however, something crashed into the clearing, at the head of the Fiery Apes. About twice their height and almost three times their size, the newly arrived monster reared up to almost nine meters in height and bellowed, beating his chest.

    "That¡­" Harrison''s face was ashen. "That''s an Inferno Kong, a rank B monster."

    "Fuck! I never heard about this!" Craig shouted, his hands gripping his spear tightly. Even though he was no coward and relished battle, even Craig was apprehensive at facing a rank B monster. He still recalled how he almost lost his life against the rank B Silver Skeletal Wolf during the invasion of Jing Tian City.

    That wasn''t all. The Inferno Kong held up a hand, a mocking grin on its bestial face. Flipping it facedown, it dropped a bunch of stuff on the ground.

    "That''s¡­"

    Ten charred corpses scattered across their ground, huge portions of their bodies missing. Their faces were mostly blackened beyond recognition, but I could tell from the vague shapes that their expressions had been locked in hideous scream before they died from the incineration.

    "Those are the other two groups that were watching with us earlier," Harrison murmured, fear gripping his voice.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me!" Craig exclaimed in disbelief. "Are you telling me that the Inferno Kong annihilated both groups in an instant without us noticing there was a massacre taking place behind u at all?!"

    "The damned Inferno Kong was aping us and monkeying around!" I grumbled, earning a glare from the other two.

    "Run!" Harrison snapped. "Now! Both of you!"

    "We won''t make it. I''ll buy as much time as I can." Black Tortoise crawled over at my mental command and placed himself between us and the Inferno Kong and its cronies. Understanding the situation, my Celestial Guardian strengthened his water barrier.

    Not caring about the thick magical screen between itself and its prey, the Inferno Kong smirked sinisterly at us before lunging forward with a terrifying bellow.

 254 Chapter 254: Inferno Kong

    I didn''t wait for the Inferno Kong to hit the water barrier. The bastard was using what looked like Flare Blitz (okay, I''m too much of a fan of Pok¨¦mon) and charging toward us while its body was completely wreathed in flames. Gritting my teeth, I stood my ground and unleashed a tidal wave at the Inferno Kong.

    Aquarius''s tsunami didn''t help much, boiling and vaporizing instantly the moment the water came into contact with the flames. The Inferno Kong charged through the roiling inferno and slammed into the water barrier, breaking it upon impact. Fog erupted out as the water barrier collapsed and transformed into steam.

    Black Tortoise started forward, but I was ahead of him, swinging Aquarius to meet the Inferno Kong''s charge. The gigantic gorilla smashed my blue broadsword aside, shattering it into spirit fragments that gradually disappeared as they sailed through the air, and swatted me aside. I tumbled through the forest helplessly, parts of my body seared and scorched by his ferocious flames.

    Snarling, the Inferno Kong turned toward me, intent on finishing me off, but Black Tortoise charged him, slamming into the monster and almost knocking it off its feet. The rank B Fiend twisted around and grabbed Black Tortoise, who wisely withdrew into his shell. However, Inferno Kong lifted Black Tortoise up, slowly but surely, the veins popping and muscles bulging in its arms from the sheer exertion.

    With a grunt, it raised Black Tortoise over its head, its knees buckling from the tremendous weight. Baring its teeth and bellowing triumphantly, it tossed the helpless giant tortoise away, flinging him somewhere deep into the forest.

    "HAH!"

    It was then Craig struck, his glowing demonic spear piercing through the Inferno Kong''s chest. The tip of the crimson weapon sank deeply past the thick muscle and skin of the rank B monster, and then stopped.

    "?!"

    Craig''s expression twisted in surprise. The Inferno Kong stared at him, bemused, and then swatted him away. Coughing and leaving a trail of blood as he cartwheeled haplessly through the air, Craig crashed onto the ground.

    The Inferno Kong snarled as it slapped at its bleeding chest where Craig had stabbed it before. The sheer force of its swipe had dislodged the spear along with Craig, leaving a small wound. However, it appeared to look extremely shallow. While Craig''s crimson spear and his demonic techniques allowed him to pierce through any defenses ¨C and penetrate the Inferno Kong''s defense he certainly did ¨C it didn''t pack enough power to deal any significant amount of damage.

    Realizing that it had been wounded, albeit slightly, the Inferno Kong''s features curled in rage. With an enraged roar, it leaped forward to pounce on the stunned spearman, its fists wreathed in violent flames.

    It planned to pulverize and incinerate him to bloody ashes!

    "Not on my watch!"

    Even though I was still breathless and fazed from the blow I took earlier, I refused to give up and leave my friend to a monster. Summoning Orion, I got ready to aim at the charging Inferno Kong. However, the surviving Fiery Apes descended upon me. Cursing, I rolled away before they could crush me under their feet.

    Unfortunately, that slight delay was enough to prevent me from assisting Craig. While I was evading the Fiery Apes, the Inferno Kong''s fist was crashing down upon the downed spearman and about to obliterate him¡­

    A burst of white light slammed into the Inferno Kong, deflecting its massive fist by half a meter. Slight, but more than enough to just barely miss Craig. Instead, the Inferno Kong''s flaming punch pulverized soil and earth, leaving a scorched crater.

    Harrison Reed dove in and kicked at the Inferno Kong, white light wreathing his body. His holy magic augmented his strength and allowed him to deal bonus damage to the rank B monster, but it fought with him evenly. The two of them exchanged a flurry of punches. Harrison was forced to rely on his tinier size and superior speed to weave through the Inferno Kong''s attacks. Each punch was devastating enough to pulverize him into a bloody pulp, so he had no choice but to be careful. In contrast, the Inferno Kong was extremely powerful, but its movements were slow and cumbersome.

    As much as I wanted to rush in and help, I had my hands currently full with the five Fiery Apes pursuing me relentlessly. Twisting around, I let fly a volley of azure arrows that peppered the first one and punched bloodied holes through its body. Even as it fell, two more Fiery Apes took its place and closed the distance.

    Cartwheeling in the air, I kicked off a tree before revolving in the air. Shifting my aim, I fired a single blue arrow that caught the second Fiery Ape in the forehead and blew a massive crater in it. It dropped immediately, but its comrade furiously and vengefully continued to charge at me. Conjuring another powerful arrow, I took it out by firing into its chest and rupturing its heart,

    The final two remaining Fiery Apes launched a few fireballs at me, but I used Betelgeuse to shoot them down before they could hit me. Firing at a rate of 1,200 arrows per minute, the sheer number of arrows overwhelmed their relatively pitiful volume of fireballs and destroyed the last two Fiery Apes, transforming them into bloody pincushions.

    Spinning around, I caught sight of Harrison still engaging the Inferno Kong. Even though he had successfully avoided the Fiend''s barrage of attacks thus far and even managed to retaliate, none of his holy attacks seemed to have effect. I watched as he jumped over a huge swing, landed on the monster''s arm, and then ran up its length to deliver a kick to its temple. Despite the holy white light shrouding his leg and increasing the force of his attack, Harrison''s kick did not even faze the Inferno Kong, who merely roared thunderously and swatted at him.

    Harrison flipped himself off its shoulder, spinning in the air, and then pulled his knees in his chest and rolled in midair to avoid getting struck by another swipe. Stretching out his body, he twisted around and lashed out with another kick that sent the Inferno Kong staggering, but he otherwise did little more than buy some distance for himself.

    The Inferno Kong growled and began to move toward him, but before it could, an immense dog pounced on him.

    "Canis Major! Sirius!" I shouted.

    While the Inferno Kong grappled with my large Constellation spirit, Canis Major''s jaws yawned wide and a destructive blast of mana washed out to engulf the rank B monster. The Iron Kong bellowed in pain and struggled to throw off Canis Major, but the hunting hound nimbly landed on all fours without sustaining any injury.

    "Thanks," Harrison told me as he heaved heavily from the exertion. Wiping the perspiration from his face, he readied another holy spell to blast the distracted Inferno Kong. The monster turned to snarl at him, but Canis Major chose that moment to pounce and closed his jaws around its neck.

    With a roar, the Inferno Kong tried to force Canis Major''s jaws open to release its injured neck, but found them closed tightly and firmly, the teeth puncturing its thick skin and embedding deeply into the muscle beneath. Taking a deep breath, the Inferno Kong cast a fire spell to immolate itself, forcing Canis Major to let go and retreat or risk getting himself incinerated.

    At that moment, Black Tortoise returned to the battlefield after crawling his way back, and he knocked the bleeding Inferno Kong over with twin jets of highly pressurized water.

    "Harrison! Take Craig away and run!" I shouted. "I''ll hold the Inferno Kong off for as long as I can!"

    "But¡­" Harrison, like any natural leader, was hesitant about leaving a teammate behind. Even so, he could see that Craig was in pretty bad shape. If we continued to battle, it was highly likely that we would advertently draw the semiconscious spearman into our fight and he was in no condition to evade or fight back.

    "Trust me! If there''s anyone who can defeat a rank B monster, it''s me!"

    Harrison regarded me for a moment, digesting my words. He was very aware of my reputation for taking down high-ranked monsters, having heard of me nuking three rank B Crastrates at once and even witnessed firsthand my subjugation of the Silver Skeletal Wolf. He probably also heard of me destroying two rank A dragons ¨C the Hellfire Drakes. Of course, I had help in the two latter cases, working together with Harrison, Craig, Theodore and the rest to slay the Silver Skeletal Wolf, while Troy King and the Sword Saint Kureha assisted me in exterminating the two Hellfire Drakes. If it weren''t for my reliable teammates, I would never have lasted long enough to kill either of them.

    "I can''t nuke the Inferno Kong if you guys are still in the area," I reminded him gravely. As if I ever intended to nuke the Inferno Kong ¨C that would start a forest fire, which would go out of control as well as drew the attention of not just the other students but other monsters to me. By then I would have used up all my mana and wouldn''t be able to fight them off.

    Not that Harrison needed to know that. and before readers started complaining and calling me stupid for bravely sacrificing myself for my friends and seemingly to walk to my death, allow me to remind you that I could still kill a rank B monster without needing to rely on a spell of mass destruction. That was how I slew the Silver Skeletal Wolf, remember?

    "Aquila!" Even as the Inferno Kong managed to knock Black Tortoise and Canis Major aside, I summoned a new Constellation spirit. "Altair!"

    The giant eagle soared through the air before releasing a devastating torrent of crimson energy that sliced through the clearing and struck the Inferno Kong with full force, knocking it aside. Stunned, the Inferno Kong tried to roll back up to its feet, its chest bleeding profusely, but Canis Major fired off another Sirius spell that engulfed it.

    Visibly, it seemed that I was winning. Just a few more spells here and there and I might finally be able to finish it off. It might be a gradual process, but anyone could see that I was slowly but surely chipping away at its health. I should be able to finish it off before long.

    That was the appearance I wanted to give, anyway.

    Fortunately, it was enough for Harrison to accept my proposal. He slung Craig''s arm over his shoulders and hefted him up.

    "Don''t die. I forbid it."

    "Hah! Who do you think you''re taking to?" I scoffed. "If anyone dies, it''ll be the Inferno Kong." As if to punctuate my statement, a combined volley from Canis Major and Aquila, casting their Sirius and Altair at the same time, slammed into the Iron Kong and knocked it off its feet, engulfing it in a maelstrom of destruction.

    Black Tortoise then unleashed a waterfall to crush the seemingly hapless Inferno Kong.

    Harrison flashed me a smile, but he knew as well as I did that the Inferno Kong wouldn''t go down so easily. Already the waterfall was transforming into steam as the rank B monster boiled it with its incredible flames.

    Even if I could prevail over the Inferno Kong eventually, it would only be after a long, grinding battle. And the rest of my teammates couldn''t afford to wait that long. Craig was injured, and the students we had just rescued were also hurt and being escorted by Theodore and Lily. The groups that were spectating earlier had been eliminated and killed by the Inferno Kong, their charred corpses callously discarded to the side.

    Karma was a bitch.

    Aware of my predicament, and knowing that it was not realistic for me to waste too much time and energy on defeating a single opponent especially when there were so many other enemies to keep an eye out for, Harrison issued another instruction.

    "Our objective is not to kill as many monsters as possible. It''s to survive until the end of the Spiritual Road. Once we''re clear and retreated to a safe distance, withdraw. Leave the Inferno Kong, and try to catch up with us."

    "I''ll do my best," I replied, deliberately being vague. There was no way I was going to let the Inferno Kong live. Not because I was seeking revenge for the ten students it had slaughtered, but because it had attacked me. Of course, it wasn''t just because I was being petty. The Inferno Kong was going to hunt us down, and being a highly intelligent rank B monster, I was sure it would continue to pursue the puny humans who had dared hurt it so badly until it wiped all of us out.

    It would be too dangerous to let the Inferno Kong live past this battle. Not after I had caused so much damage to it. It would definitely want vengeance for the wounds I had dealt it.

    But Harrison didn''t need to know that.

    "Go on ahead. I''ll catch up with you guys later."

    Harrison studied me, his instinct for some reason informing him that I wasn''t quite telling the whole truth. But with the weight of a teammate on his shoulders ¨C quite literally ¨C he couldn''t afford to quibble. Taking a deep breath, he nodded.

    "You had better."

    Then he was gone, along with the rest of my teammates and the people we rescued. Turning to the Inferno Kong, who was still flailing against my three Soul Beasts, I grinned and raised a hand to finish casting one final spell. Golden mana swirled violently as it coalesced around my right arm and extended to cover the rest of my body.

    "It''s just you and me now."

 255 Chapter 255: Strength against Strength

    With a thunderous roar, the Inferno Kong lunged at me. Despite the terrifying visage drawing closer, I stood my ground in determination and straightened my right arm, almost as if I was pointing at the approaching gorilla monster.

    "Bankai!" I shouted.

    Nothing happen. Whoops. Maybe this wasn''t the best time to be ripping off Bleach, but I couldn''t help it. I love that manga.

    "Hercules!"

    My most powerful Constellation weapon materialized as shiny golden armor, covering my entire body. I didn''t bother with the sword this time, not that it was going to be necessary against an opponent that didn''t use swords.

    Instead, I faced the Iron Kong with strength against strength.

    The flaming fist hurtled toward me, but I caught the Inferno Kong''s punch with a hand, stopping its attack dead. The Inferno Kong''s hideous face twisted in surprise, and I improved its features by punching it right there. I felt bone crack underneath my golden gauntlets, breaking the Inferno Kong''s nose instantly.

    "Gr¡­?!"

    The Inferno Kong grunted in pain and surprise as it was sent flying back, blood streaming from its crumpled features and flattened nose. It tried to get up, shaking its head but obviously unable to clear the red haze from filling its vision. Before it could recover or blink away the crimson cloud, I was already in front of it and delivered another devastating punch to its chest.

    Ribs snapped and punctured the Inferno Kong''s lungs, and it crashed onto the ground a few meters away, its breathing ragged. It struggled to its feet, blood dripping from its mouth and nose, but it hadn''t lost any of its bloodlust despite suffering such severe injuries.

    "You monsters sure are tenacious, huh?" I murmured. Still, I was impressed at how I was currently overwhelming a rank B Inferno Kong. It was too bad Hercules took such a long time to summon, otherwise I would be using it more often.

    Around me, Canis Major, Aquila and Black Tortoise gathered, getting ready for another rumble, but given how I was just stomping the poor Inferno Kong to the ground with my most powerful Constellation weapon, there was nothing for them to do. Even so, I kept them around because I was aware of other threats.

    Watch out for other monsters and students aiming to capitalize on my vulnerability right after I defeated the Inferno Kong.

    Hercules expended a lot of mana, after all. Even after I destroyed the Inferno Kong, it wasn''t as if I would be able to fully recover immediately. I needed to find somewhere to rest to restore my depleted mana, much like how a runner needed to rest after completing a full-length marathon. While I clearly wasn''t going to expound BS like MP and how I had exactly zero mana left because the real world didn''t work like a game and relied on concrete values, it didn''t alter the fact that I wasn''t going to be able to fight much when I was exhausted.

    For now, I focused on the enemy before me. I should finish the battle as quickly as possible with decisive action.

    The Inferno Kong stood up again and began casting a powerful fire spell. The same Flare Blitz as before, where it tore through my Black Tortoise''s water barrier without much difficulty. In other words, defending against such a powerful attack wasn''t an option.

    Fortunately, at that moment, I finished casting yet another spell. Even as the Inferno Kong charged toward me, flames engulfing its form, I stood my ground calmly and raised my left hand. A golden bow materialized in it. In my right hand, a single arrow appeared and I notched it to my freshly summoned bow.

    "Trigger off," I whispered. Pulling the arrow as far back as I could even while the Inferno Kong bore down upon me, striking a hellish figure with all those flames raging around its demonic body, I continued to complete the incantation. "Nine Lives Blade Works."

    Then I released the arrow just as the Inferno Kong drew within five meters away.

    Five meters. That might sound like a long distance, but in reality, it was but a blink. It was so short that the Inferno Kong could clear it in a single bound, could cross it in a blink of an eye ¨C less than a millisecond. It was dangerously near, and I was testing my luck too much.

    Even so, at this distance, I could not miss. And with this arrow, I did not want to miss.

    The arrow struck true, piercing the Inferno Kong''s forehead and sinking all the way to the bone. Even so, it didn''t have the impact that my other seemingly more powerful arrows had. The Inferno Kong was able to shrug it off and continued barreling forward, its flaming figure set on course to collide against me.

    Dismissing the bow, I threw out both hands and stopped the Inferno Kong right in its tracks. The massive momentum behind its charge caused me to skid backward, the ground breaking underneath my feet and leaving two deep furrows in the ravaged soil. Even so, I continued to dig my feet in to halt the monster''s charge. Flames washed over me, but I stood my ground determinedly, trusting in my armor to absorb the flames. The lion crest on my breastplate glowed, the Nemean Lion of legend providing it an invulnerable property and incredible resilience.

    And then the Inferno Kong finally stopped. Its veins were bulging, it was frothing and foaming at the mouth, and it was beginning to go into convulsions. Not feeling any pity for it, I hammered it in the solar plexus and sent the poisoned Inferno Kong flying several meters away. It slammed into the ground and began to dissolve into a smoking, toxic puddle.

    There was no way for the Inferno Kong to survive the hydra''s poison that coated my arrow. I watched grimly at its demise, then raised my head to glare at the people hiding amongst the trees. Not that there were any of them, given how the Inferno Kong had cleared them out earlier, but I was sure that my subsequent battle with it had definitely attracted some attention. Unlike Harrison or Craig, I didn''t have very sensitive senses that could detect the presences of others, especially if they wanted to conceal themselves. That was what I had Corvus for, but currently I couldn''t spare the mana to summon them. Especially after expending so much mana to summon Hercules.

    Any enemy who was watching didn''t know that, so I put on a brave front.

    "Who''s next?"

    Silence filled the forest. I frowned, and wondered if there really was no one else here. If that was the case, then I felt silly talking to myself. Sighing, I shook my head and decided to head in the direction where Harrison and the others had went. Like our leader had instructed, I should catch up with them. I sure as hell wasn''t very enthusiastic about trying to survive in the forest on my own.

    Before I left, however, I noticed something. The corpses of the ten students that the Inferno Kong slaughtered while they were watching us fight off its Fiery Ape lackeys were still lying scattered on the ground where it had discarded them. Particularly something about their corpses caught my attention. Despite the macabre sight, I swallowed back my nausea and steeled myself to approach the grisly collection of disembodied body parts.

    "Oh, right. The blood tokens."

    There were ten blood tokens, each corpse sporting one. Remembering that our objective was supposed to collect these blood tokens, I started picking them up and clearing the soot, flesh and dried blood off them while grimacing. No matter how much combat I experienced, I just could never get used to death.

    Gulping, I placed the ten blood tokens into a bag and stored them safely. As I did so, the corpses disappeared from my sight.

    "¡­eh?"

    Oh, that was correct. I recalled the teachers in charge informing us that we would be forcibly teleported outside from this Spiritual Road the moment we lose our last blood token or something like that. Turned out it was true.

    But damn. If they could kick us out of this artificial realm once we lost all our blood tokens, why couldn''t they cast a precautionary spell to teleport us out of the place when we were in danger? These kids all died needlessly, for a mere training camp. It just wasn''t worth it.

    And this was just the first day. I shuddered to imagine what the attrition rate would be like by the end of the Spiritual Road training camp. In any event, it was best not to think about it and focus on surviving the present.

    "Let''s go, guys."

    I dismissed Black Tortoise and Aquila, but kept Canis Major to follow me in case of any emergency. I didn''t want to receive any nasty surprises, not when I was still vulnerable and extremely exhausted. Canis Major followed me loyally, sniffing the air for any sign of peculiarities or enemies. From our linked spiritual connection, I could tell that he found none so far.

    Good.

    Hastening my pace, I set off to find my friends.

    *

    "We should be safe here."

    Harrison panted as he caught up with the rest. Theodore and Lily had found a cave where they and the students they had just rescued could seek shelter in and rest to recover from their wounds. The guy who got swatted and the girl who got burned were currently having their injuries treated by their comrades, who were wrapping bandages around the affected parts.

    "Too bad we don''t have Pearl with us," Harrison grumbled in frustration as he gently set Craig down against the cave wall. Craig muttered something, but he seemed to be delirious from semi-consciousness. The attack from the Inferno Kong had taken a lot out of him.

    "Where''s Richard?" Lily asked when she noticed my absence. Harrison grimaced visibly and lowered his head.

    "Rearguard action. He volunteered to stay behind to delay the Inferno Kong long enough for the rest of us to escape." He grinned. "Even boasted that he would kill the Inferno Kong, though I told him not to force himself and withdraw as soon as possible if he could."

    "That sounds like Richard, all right," Theodore agreed with a smile. "If there''s anyone who can defeat a rank B monster by himself, it would be him."

    "He did destroy three rank B monsters by himself before," Lily added. She frowned. "But you don''t think he''s going to nuke the forest, is he?"

    "I don''t know." Harrison scratched his head and turned back toward the entrance of the cave. "But he should be catching up really soon. I believe in him."

    An hour passed and there was no sign of me. My friends began to get worried. Trading glances, they ventured out of the cave.

    "You don''t think Richard has¡­?"

    "No way," Harrison cut Lily off before she could voice out her fears. "He won''t die that easily."

    "Then where is he?"

    "We might want to backtrack and check out his condition. Knowing him, he might still be fighting the Inferno Kong."

    Theodore''s suggestion had merit, so they left Craig with their new allies and hurried toward the clearing where they last saw me. Upon reaching there, they found the smoking puddle that was the Inferno Kong and a devastated clearing, but no sign of me anywhere.

    "He evidently survived. No signs of any other battles after that. Where did he go?"

    "That way, apparently, but his tracks kind of vanished into the forest. Wait¡­" Harrison knelt down and studied the grass. "Why did he take a turn this way?"

    "¡­oh."

    "What is it?" Harrison turned to look at Theodore, who had an unpleasant expression.

    "I just remembered that Richard has a terrible sense of direction and gets lost easily even with a map. He can''t read maps. Well, I mean, once he has been to a place before, his fairly good memory allows him to navigate through familiar routes without any problems, but in a completely new place where he has never been before¡­he has no sense of direction."

    "He got lost?!" Lily exclaimed, her hands flying to her mouth. "Harrison, you didn''t leave any signs for him to follow?"

    "Well, I was busily carrying Craig, and I assumed that Richard could follow my tracks¡­"

    "That''s the thing. Richard doesn''t know how to read tracks. He sucks at pathfinding." Theodore probably didn''t recall the time when I relied on Troy to track down the enemy, but it was something similar to that. He probably learned of that when I trained with him back in the camp under Instructor Feng Hai and the military.

    "Damn it!" Harrison clutched at his head. "I didn''t know that! I shouldn''t have left him behind then!"

    "What do we do now!?" Lily moaned.

    "I wouldn''t worry," Theodore told the both of them. "It''s Richard we''re talking about here. If there''s anyone who can survive the Spiritual Road on his own, it will be him."

    "Yeah." Harrison calmed down and straightened himself. "All we can do now is survive on our own, and I''m sure we''ll meet Richard again. Definitely."

 256 Chapter 256: The Bloody Boar

    "Er¡­where is everyone?"

    I had dismissed Canis Major quite some time ago because the drain on my mana was starting to affect me physically but I couldn''t find anyone at all. It felt as if I had been walking in circles for ages. All the trees looked the same, there were no notable landmarks to distinguish one area from the next, and nobody to ask for directions when I got lost.

    And lost I was.

    "Actually¡­where the hell am I?!"

    There was no response other than the chirping of a bird from far away. I looked around blearily, feeling extremely tired. I needed to rest and soon, and I obviously couldn''t do it in the open. If only I could find a cave¡­

    Ironically, at that moment my friends were all resting and recovering in a cave, and if I just found them I would be able to do just that. Unfortunately, I had completely forgotten about my poor sense of direction and my inclination to get lost, especially in a forest like this. I had trouble finding my way around a new city even with a map, though I managed (especially since there were people I could ask for directions if I ever got lost), but in a forest?

    Basically, I was fucked.

    "Damn it. So much for being a hero."

    And I wanted to surprise my friends with the blood tokens I had gotten, and share them with Harrison and the rest. The looks on their faces when I brought the blood tokens back¡­I was so looking forward to savoring their pleasantly shocked features.

    Now that plan was all ruined because I couldn''t find my way around a damned forest. To be fair, most people couldn''t. I wished I had learned pathfinding and tracking like Troy and the rest. Then I wouldn''t be in so much trouble.

    For now, however, the most important thing was to find shelter. I needed a place to rest or I would be a sitting duck for both the monsters and other predatory students seeking to add my blood token to my collection. If they found out that I had a ton of blood tokens on my person, I would become quite the ripe target for exploitation.

    That wouldn''t be good.

    If I couldn''t find a cave, I should just improvise.

    Thinking that, I glanced at the trees and wondered if I could use any of them as shelter. It took another few minutes of trekking through unknown territory, but I finally found a tree suitable for my purpose.

    There was a hollow at the base of the tree, where I could squeeze in and sleep without anyone knowing that I was in there. Well, to be sure, specialized trackers might be able to locate me, but if they weren''t looking for me specifically, they had no reason to watch for my presence and track me to my makeshift shelter.

    "Ugh¡­"

    Crawling through the dirt and soil, I dusted myself off wearily. Even creepier was the bugs, which I swatted away in disgust. I hated bugs and insects. Most of them, anyway. They crept me out, and I was a little ashamed to say I had a slight fear of them. Well, I dealt with that fear by squashing them or swatting them away.

    If they were gigantic, then I tended to take them out from long range with the hopes of not needing to get into close combat with them.

    In any event, once I cleared out a comfortable spot for myself inside the hollow of the tree, I went to sleep and began the process of recovering my depleted mana.

    *

    When I woke up, it was the next morning. According to my cellphone, anyway. I had slept the entire night away, as well as evening. I was pretty exhausted after unleashing Hercules, so I didn''t find it strange.

    Just a little annoyed that I had slept for too long.

    "Damn¡­well, I guess I should start looking for my friends now."

    Crawling out of the hollow, I dusted myself off and looked around for any imminent danger.

    Thankfully, there was none whatsoever, so I could immediately begin my journey to look for my friends.

    "What a pathetic MC!"

    "Spineless wimp."

    I sighed heavily as I glanced at the comments to the right. Quite naturally, there were readers already condemning my plan to look for my friends. They were posting pretty edgy stuff such as me being pathetic for wanting to rely on others instead of surviving the forest on my own. Never mind that I wasn''t going to last long if I tried to survive on my own, particularly given my poor sense of direction and tendency to over-expend mana when fighting against monsters. These readers wanted me to solo the Spiritual Road and hoard all the blood tokens to myself, and were enraged that I would even consider joining up with my friends again. They thought the act of wanting to reunite with my group was pathetic, cowardly and evidence that I was a spineless "pussy."

    Seriously? I wasn''t some God Mode Mary Sue protagonist who could solo the entire Spiritual Road by myself. Fighting a single rank B Inferno Kong was enough to exhaust me to the point where I almost collapsed. If there was a second rank B monster, or another group of students chose to attack me then (to steal the ten blood tokens I had just picked up), there was no way I would have survived. Luck was essential in that scenario.

    Unlike what all those edge lords would tell you, there was strength in numbers. And it wasn''t as if my friends had betrayed me. Harrison genuinely didn''t know that I had a terrible sense of direction while I completely forgot about it myself. If anything, it was more of my fault for wanting to play the hero than my friends for "abandoning" me. They didn''t actually abandon me, to be honest. I was sure they would be searching for me like I was.

    Actually, I should be more practical. Neither my friends nor I were going to actively search for each other. I was sure Harrison and the rest would focus on surviving in their present predicaments and looking for a way out of whatever current crises they found themselves in. Looking for me was a secondary objective, and they were confident that they would run into me sooner or later as long as all of us survived. Similarly, I had to prioritize my own survival over everything else. Finding my friends was second on the list, not first. I was certain that I would encounter them sooner or later, but to meet up with them eventually, I had to first survive whatever the Spiritual Road had to throw at me.

    Growl¡­

    No, thankfully that was not from a monster. That was from my stomach. I realized just how hungry I was, after a whole day of fighting and not eating. All I did was sleep, but I didn''t feed my stomach at all yesterday.

    I needed food. Thankfully I had a bunch of rations stored. I knew I had to be careful and proportion them out ¨C I didn''t have enough to last me an entire month, never mind the few months we were supposed to be here. Even so, I was starving, so it was fine if I opened a single packet for today. The ration pack''s food was admittedly not at all appetizing, but it was better than the alternative ¨C which was to starve.

    The majority of the food supplies and rations were probably with Theodore and maybe Harrison. This was why teamwork was so important. It wasn''t just a matter of combat ability. By taking on the majority of the load for the team, which included equipment and rations, Theodore''s movements would be slightly slowed, but that allowed the rest of the team to operate at 100% combat ability, unimpeded. Not everything had to be about sheer strength or combat ability or power. Each team member had a role to play, and all roles whether it was a combat, support or reconnaissance role were equally important.

    Unfortunately, many xianxia or cultivation writers and readers didn''t understand that, and they adopted the edgy "strength is everything" or "power decides all" arrogant mentality that just didn''t work in reality. There was no one in this world who could do everything by himself or live by himself. No man was an island, nobody was self-sufficient. If you specialized in a specific role, chances are you are not going to fulfil any other role just as well as other people specializing in that role could. Steve Jobs was a genius who could invent his Apple devices and an innovative entrepreneur able to start up his own company and become a billionaire, but even he needed to rely on doctors when he fell sick. He couldn''t just treat his own disease without a doctor''s help.

    All these stupid myths about overpowered protagonists going solo and ruling the world with strength was just bullshit cooked up by not very sociable people who wanted to delude themselves into believing that they could solve everything with violence and not face the social consequences of their tyrannical actions. Yes, the world was unfair and bad things happened to good people. But good things happened to good people too, and bad things do happen to bad people, and it had nothing to do with obtaining strength.

    Particularly in the military, we were trained as soldiers to fight in a squad, to forge strong brotherhood and bonds with our platoon, and to work as a company. Any idiot who thought he could solo the enemy like some crazed teenage Call of Duty gamer running in gung-ho and shooting everyone with his aimbot skills would die in the first few seconds. In a military unit, there were no individuals, only squads and brothers. Everyone watched out for each other, everyone helped each other. That was how you win a war. By banding together and cooperaring, becoming a cohesive, unified fighting unit. United we stand, divided we fall.

    You would think that those martial artists and cultivators would understand this simple concept and follow a similar code that had been established by the military (since martial artists and soldiers were both warriors), but nope. All that bullshit "strength is everything" or "I can only do whatever I want if I have the strength" was just built upon false premises of grandeur. Power came with responsibility, and tyrants would be toppled. A single powerful tyrant would still fall to the united "weak" masses. A single droplet of water might not be able to break through a wall of stone, but countless droplets of water constantly pounding against it would erode it and eventually destroy it.

    So enough of this antisocial edge lord individual bullshit of "power is everything" and "get rid of everyone who is useless" or "the world can''t be trusted" or "abandon the world." That wasn''t how reality worked.

    Anyway, for now, I needed to eat. I was about to reach into my backpack and grab a ration pack when I heard a grunt. Turning around, I saw a Blood Boar.

    "¡­oh?"

    It was huge, almost as tall as a man and several times as bulky. Its crimson fur stood out remarkably, with veins pulsing through its dense muscles. Wickedly curved tusks jabbed toward my direction and the creature glared at me with blood-red eyes.

    A rank E monster, maybe rank D at most (but I doubted that. Completely incapable of casting any elemental spells. Easy prey, but I couldn''t let my guard down. A slight mistake on my part was perfectly capable of resulting in a fatal injury.

    So I took my current opponent as seriously as I would any other monster. Moreover, an idea was slowly forming in my mind. If my ration packs were limited and wouldn''t last me for a month, why not seek an alternative for food?

    Gradually, the Blood Boar was beginning to look more and more delicious in my eyes. My mouth watered when I pictured its eventual form, a thick, glistening thigh slowly roasting over a fire.

    Yeah, I wanted it.

    "Hi¡­?!"

    The Blood Boar suddenly shuddered and backed away, instinctively sensing my hunger. It pawed at the ground nervously, then suddenly turned tail and ran.

    "You''re not going anywhere!"

    In a flash, I summoned Orion, and I slew it with a single arrow. The Blood Boar went down the moment my azure arrow pierced its neck, skidding across the ground and gouging out a slight tunnel before it writhed.

    I finished it off with another arrow to its head before proceeding toward it. Trying not to drool, I began the process of cutting it apart so that I could hoist it over a fire.

    Looked like my meals for the next few days have been taken care of in a most satisfactory manner.

 257 Chapter 257: Boy meets Girl

    With food pretty much secured and my getting used to foraging around the forest, I proceeded to the next phase of my plan. The whole purpose of being in the Spiritual Road in the first place ¨C no, not to collect blood tokens. What, you thought I was aiming to be the Great Ruler or something? Nope. I was going to observe the dudes from the other schools and gather information on their magic, skills and techniques.

    Fortunately, I had a powerful tool for that. My glasses could help me record entire events and sequences, my lenses whirring silently as they filmed fights between students and monsters, and even students against other students.

    As it turned out, my separation from my team had been sort of a boon because it was much easier for me to stealthily conduct reconnaissance missions on my own than in a group. An individual was much harder to spot and find than an entire group, and none of the students I was watching ever noticed my presence. Thus I was able to record a great deal of techniques, magic and skills, and gathered a lot of vital intelligence for my own academy.

    Inwardly, I prayed that my friends were doing well and hadn''t succumbed to the cruel nature of the forest. I had already seen quite a few students kicked out when they lost their blood tokens, or severely injured by monsters or other students and forced to leave for emergency treatment. This was where losing the blood token turned out to be a benefit. The injured student or the one who surrendered handed their blood tokens over to comrades or to the enemies who defeated them, and allowed themselves to be teleported out to receive medical treatment. Of course, this meant they forfeited their place in the Spiritual Road, but their lives and wellbeing were infinitely more important than trying to rank up in some obscure training camp.

    The same went for me, but obviously I hadn''t run into any sort of life-threatening danger yet to require such a drastic escape. Mostly, I hunted Blood Boars, Cockatrice Chickens and other monsters for meals, but to maintain a good diet, I also harvested herbs and edible mushrooms. Even though I had immunity to poison and therefore didn''t have to worry about falling to poisonous mushrooms, I selected the edible ones.

    They simply tasted better, after all.

    And just like that, a week or so passed. I was still unable to find my friends, but I had collected a good deal of data regarding our potential opponents. I must have caught sight of at least twelve different schools. Even amongst these schools, the students had a myriad of abilities and spells. It wasn''t as if all the students of the same school fought in a unified, single pattern or used the same element or something. Just like Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy, they employed groups of students with different abilities that could complement each other''s strengths and cover for each other''s weaknesses. Nobody in their right mind would send out an entire team full of nothing but fire mages, after all. Speaking of which, I hadn''t seen any students from Crowley''s Academy so far, but I was sure Cecilia Stuart and her friends were somewhere in the Spiritual Road. They were too powerful and elite to leave out of a prestigious event like this.

    They were a perfect example of a balanced team that the other academies employed. A member who specialized in defensive magic, an attacker capable of overwhelming firepower, and a flexible center guard who could switch between roles. Not to mention the shadowy assassins that I had to watch out for.

    However, because of the focus on strength, there was a distinct lack of healers. That was the one flaw in the majority of schools. Without healers, it was difficult to survive the trials and tribulations of the forest without any medical assistance. That led to a good number of students dropping out after receiving fatal injuries in order to receive emergency treatment.

    Furthermore, I also noticed that the groups were not at all even. Not all students were willing to work in groups, even among the same school. Certain schools had students who split up into pairs or trios, and there were many students who chose to solo the forest individually. Inevitably, it was these individual students who ended up getting eliminated early, especially when they ran into huge groups of enemies.

    Honestly, I would have faced the same fate¡­except that unlike the majority of these solo players, I wasn''t aiming to collect as many blood tokens as possible. Thus, instead of looking for fights and setting up ambushes, I stayed silent and stealthy throughout the entire week. As long as I didn''t bother anyone, nobody bothered me. By keeping my head down and maintaining a low profile, I was able to survive without any trouble.

    "Coward."

    "Spineless."

    I sighed when I glanced to the right and saw the comments again. There were a bunch of edgy readers complaining about my decision to stay out of sight and avoid battle. They had unrealistic expectations of me, thinking I could somehow solo entire groups of students. No, I couldn''t. Perhaps I could summon a bunch of Constellation spirits and defeat a few here and there, but that would draw some attention to me and I would be hunted by other groups after expending so much mana. Furthermore, the students in the Spiritual Road were the cream of the crop, the elite students of their respective academies. They weren''t cannon fodder who existed solely for me to beat up and collect experience points and blood tokens from.

    Given their superior numbers, I would just fall in a battle of attrition. Eventually. I also had to beware of those mages capable of stealth. The assassin-type students would probably stab me in the back while I was attempting to engage and defeat their teammates. Once I suffered a debilitating injury, it would all be over for me and I couldn''t continue my mission. Given the relatively huge number of blood tokens I was carrying on my person, I wouldn''t be surprised if I ended up being marked as a target of assassination when people found out I was going around hunting other students. So I refrained from doing something so reckless.

    Besides, the main objective wasn''t to defeat as many enemies as possible. This was preparation for the tournament, which meant the more information I could collect regarding our school''s opponents, the better. I was here to learn what sort of spells they used, what kind of element attributes they possessed and what type of techniques they employed. Not to bash their heads in and collect their blood tokens before realizing what I had forgotten to ask what magic they specialized in. What was the use of exceling in the Spiritual Road when my team ended up suffering from a complete lack of intelligence during the actual international tournament itself?

    With that in mind, I continued to look around for more targets to record with my glasses. By now, it was the seventh day, and I had slipped into a daily routine. Getting up from a camouflaged place where I used as a resting place, I shook off the drowsiness and forced my eyes open. As usual, I summoned a flock of Corvus and sent them flying to a hundred meter radius from my position, to see if I could find anyone to record today. It also served as a security measure, to ensure I didn''t have any enemy sneaking up on me, whether human or monster.

    "Nothing so far¡­"

    Well, if someone made a ruckus within a hundred meters, I probably would have woken up from the noise. But one of my Corvus picked something up. He couldn''t see very clearly because his vision was obscured by leaves and branches, but he thought he spotted humans trekking through a particular location in the forest.

    Where there were humans, there was information to collect and record. If they ran into other groups of students or into monsters, they would use their magic, and I would be able to film the spells they used and send it to the academy for video analysis. That would lead to better preparation for the tournament.

    Hopping out of my hiding place, I dismissed the rest of my Corvus and hurried toward the other guy''s position. Once I reached him, I proceeded toward the direction where he saw the humans, maintaining stealth and silence. Corvus flapped overhead, blending in with the flora and fauna, and becoming just another bird in the immense forest, unnoticed and unsuspected by any student hanging around in the area.

    "What''s this?"

    To my surprise, there was a single girl in a red and pink uniform, with a bright yellow ribbon tying her platinum silver-blond hair into a ponytail. She was currently fighting against a bunch of students in black uniforms.

    ¡­wait, were those students? I paused and scrunched up my face in puzzlement when they came into view. Corvus''s 20/20 vision confirmed it further, and I adjusted the vision on my glasses, enhancing and magnifying it to record their faces. Or rather, their¡­masks.

    Yeah, for some stupid reason, this group of students were wearing masks. Even their uniforms didn''t resemble uniforms, but¡­ninja costumes. It was as if one of the academies had decided that their students should cosplay for the Spiritual Road training camp, and they all reached the consensus to dress up as ninjas.

    "¡­you''ve got to be kidding me."

    Well, the alternative was that they weren''t students but intruders who had somehow infiltrated the Spiritual Road and were now wreaking havoc across the training camp. And the poor girl who was currently fighting them off happened to be their current victim.

    I had to help her.

    Before I could take a step forward, however, one of the masked dudes chuckled and spoke up in a sinister tone.

    "You really are the woman that Ji Xuan placed his eyes on!" he chuckled. "Your skills are impressive!"

    By now, the ninja dudes were surrounding the poor girl, all of them wielding some sort of weapon. A sword, a staff, a spear, a mace and a dagger. Scattered around them were the sprawled bodies of more cloaked figures, clearly unconscious.

    Enhancing the view on my glasses, I studied them and realized that they had been burned to a crisp. That girl must have used some sort of fire spell¡­in other words, she was a fire mage just like my dad.

    "Even though you''ve defeated four of our brothers, you''re currently severely injured as well. There''s no way for you to escape!"

    I watched them for a moment before burying my face in my palm. Were these guys two-bit actors hired to play out the part of a villain or something? What was with these awfully cheesy lines? Moreover, all these guys ganging up on a single girl? Did they have no shame or something?

    "Lilith," another one of the ninja dudes drawled. "You should just obediently follow us back to meet Ji Xuan. I promise that we won''t cause any trouble for you."

    The girl glared at them for a moment before she swung her crimson sword slightly and tightened her grip on it.

    "Stop with the bullshit," she snapped coldly. "Go ahead and attack."

    Hey, girl¡­I''m not sure if it''s a good idea to provoke the enemy when they outnumbered you five to one. Not that I expected her to surrender¡­and admittedly there was nothing she could do. But rather than provoke them, I would have remained calm and waited for them to move rather than inviting them to do so. That was just me, of course.

    The ninja dudes merely smirked at her¡­though how I could tell with them covering the lower parts of their faces with masks, I had no idea. In any case, none of them moved, so the girl took the initiative instead.

    Lilith charged forward without any hesitation, her sword igniting with flames. She slashed at the guy with the sword, and even though he managed to parry her strike in time, she detonated her fire spell and caused him to hurtle back. The assassin with the dagger slipped in to stab her in the back, shadows trailing his move and imbuing his attack with darkness, but Lilith elegantly whirled around to deflect the deadly blade before it could plunge into her back.

    She traded a few blows with the shadowy assassin, the flames on her sword growing fiercer. She then ducked under a swing and kicked him in the chest, flooring him. The ninja with the staff then rushed in, seeking to exploit a gap in her defenses while she was still occupied with the shadowy assassin, but she sidestepped to avoid his long weapon before ramming her elbow into his face. He went down, along with the flower petals that were spiraling around the length of his staff.

    The guy with the mace dove in and smashed the ground with his bulky weapon. Along with his strike, boulders rained down upon Lilith, forcing her to evade. She gritted her teeth and cleaved through the incoming boulders with her sword, cleanly slicing them into two and leaving molten rocks falling onto the ground.

    "That''s quite the sharp sword," I murmured to myself, impressed.

    "Damn it." the guy with the sword rose to his feet with a curse. "Don''t underestimate this woman! Don''t show any mercy! Brothers! Charge!"

    "AAAAAAAAH!"

    The five of them bellowed in unison as they charged as one, all of them coming from different directions.

    "Ji Xuan''s lackeys," Lilith snarled. "I''ll kill all of you!"

    With a determined shout, she kicked off the ground and lunged at one of them, swinging her blazing sword. She managed to force a parry out of the guy with the sword, and then ducked under the heavy mace before spinning around to kick him in the solar plexus. The huge guy grunted and toppled over.

    Her sword combusting, Lilith then knocked the guy with the sword aside, but the guy with the staff smashed his weapon into her back. Countless flower petals followed, slicing into her skin and causing her to cry out in pain.

    However, the girl endured and spun around to knock him and his staff away, incinerating the petals in one go. The ninja with the staff managed to conjure a wooden wall that protected him from the worst of the flames, but given how his defensive barrier had so easily caught fire, he was forced to withdraw to safety.

    Lilith couldn''t pursue him, for she was forced to avoid the dagger from the shadow assassin. His blade missed her spine, but sliced into her arm, drawing a thick line of blood. Lilith staggered backward and swung her sword desperately, but he melted into the shadows, completely evading her attacks. The guy with the spear was next, his thrust just barely blocked by her sword but enough to send her crashing heavily into a tree.

    "Ugh!"

    Coughing out blood, Lilith slumped down, but she managed to rise shakily to her feet. As she did so, leaning on her sword, the ninjas approached her.

    "Lilith," the guy with the sword said mockingly. "Even if you have been bestowed such great talent from the heavens, you still won''t be able to prevail against so many of us."

    Yeah¡­he was right. That was exactly the reason why I didn''t recklessly go solo and tried to take down the other students by myself. I always knew that in reality, it would be difficult for me to win against so many people. Okay, I literally beat ten black belts by myself, but that was because those guys weren''t working together, and quite frankly¡­they were considered cannon fodder and among the bottom or middle ranked in my academy at best. They were nothing compared to the elites and geniuses who had gathered here in the Spiritual Road. Otherwise they would have made it here instead of me.

    However, Lilith refused to give up. Taking a deep breath, she raised her sword.

    "Single Sword Transformation: Fiery Meteor!"

    Her crimson sword erupted like a volcano, with a pillar of fire streaking high up into the heavens.

    Watching her cast that spell, I was suddenly reminded of somebody close to me.

    ¡­isn''t that¡­one of Dad''s spells?

 258 Chapter 258: Fated Meeting

    I wasn''t given much time to dwell upon it. The flames continued to erupt from Lilith''s crimson sword before searing the air. With a resolved yell, she swung her blade down to engulf her opponent in hellish fire.

    "Hmph."

    The guy with the spear stepped forward and thrust his weapon. Water swirled around him, forming an immense whirlpool that swallowed up the vortex of flames. The whirlpool transformed into steam almost immediately, boiling as it filled the entire area in a thick, white cloud, but Lilith''s fire spell was effectively extinguished.

    "Hah!"

    The guy with the mace slammed his weapon down and launched several boulders at her. Taking a deep breath, Lilith sliced through the boulders with her blazing blade, standing her ground firmly. Even as she endured the onslaught, the guy with the sword slashed her from behind, wind currents swirling around her. As she spun around to knock him back, the guy with the staff struck her, more petals cutting through her uniform and flaying her skin.

    With a yell, Lilith''s body seemed to explode, hellfire erupting from her surroundings and forcing her two assailants back, slightly scorched.

    "She still has this much power?" the sword dude murmured in disbelief.

    Lilith panted heavily as she retreated. The five dudes warily kept their distance from the flames, but they otherwise didn''t move in. Lilith then smiled grimly as she surveyed them.

    "You''re too late."

    "Oh no!" the guy with the spear widened his eyes in horror. "Damn it!"

    It was that moment when the ninja dudes realized they had fucked up.

    A massive silhouette ignited into life behind Lilith, almost six meters in height, and took the shape of a gigantic bear. Crimson fur, paws the size of a small desk tipped with wicked claws, and hellfire that blazed across its outline to form a monstrous mane of fire. Demonic red eyes stared down hungrily upon the trembling five dudes.

    "The legendary Inferno Bear of Lilith Porter!"

    ¡­did they say Porter? That Porter clan? The one that Dad had some relationship with?

    And wait a minute¡­why the hell did she have a very similar name to some character from some web novel I had read before? And seriously?! Inferno Bear?! She had the exact same Soul Beast!? I might as well go into fanfiction territory at this point.

    "WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING INFERNO BEAR?!"

    All the five dudes stared at Lilith in astonishment. I didn''t blame them. I was also gaping at the platinum silver-blond girl incredulously.

    "This is my Hellfire Bear!"

    ¡­not much of a change there, if you ask me¡­why don''t you change your name to Laura as well? Then I could sit back and wait for the lawsuits and copyright stuff to drop in. At least she didn''t call her Soul Beast something as lame as Hell Bear. I could picture that. Get your cuddly Hell Bear and hug it today! Look at the fire symbol on its belly and tickle it for it to set itself on fire!

    In any case, the five ninja dudes realized they were fucked. The Hellfire Bear bellowed as it lumbered toward them, swinging its claws and unleashing a ferocious inferno across the clearing. The would-be victims scattered, and so the Hellfire Bear settled its predatory gaze on the biggest target. It swiped a massive paw at the guy with the mace.

    "Hi¡­!"

    Shrieking in an almost girlish manner, the mace dude hastily erected a wall of earth, but the paw smashed through it and transformed it into molten rock. The flames slammed into the mace dude and sent him flying, leaving severe burns on his skin. It didn''t kill him, though. I was impressed by how tough he was.

    The spear dude lanced his weapon at the Hellfire Bear, nimbly dodging its massive attacks and making use of his agility. I was amazed ¨C these guys, even though they were confronted by a superior foe, had no intention of backing down at all. As the sword guy and the staff dude joined in, they worked together to annoy the Hellfire bear.

    First, the spear dude hurled a torrent of water at the Hellfire Bear, which merely boiled the entire stream with a burst of flames. Amidst the boiling white fog, multiple wind blades sliced through and struck the immense Soul Beast. Being huge and clumsy, there was no way for the Hellfire Bear to evade. Not that it needed to. Despite the crimson blood trailing down its fur before vaporizing across its flaming mane, the Inferno¡­I mean Hellfire Bear didn''t seem the least affected by the vicious barrage. It growled and swatted away at the dancing storm of petals and immolated them before directing another blast of hellfire at the staff dude, who quickly wove a wall of wood together to block the flames. It lasted a second before being incinerated, but that second was all he needed to scamper to safety. Even so, he was buffeted by a blazing shockwave that set him ablaze.

    A boulder almost caught the Hellfire Bear by the side of its head, but the enormous Soul Beast merely grunted and swatted the huge projectile away. Breathing heavily, the mace dude rejoined his comrades while lifting up several more boulders magically to fire off a barrage at the monster. The Hellfire Bear merely raised its head and roared thunderously, unleashing a torrent of superheated flames that actually melted the rock and caused the boulders to drip onto the ground in magma-like puddles. Water gushed toward it, courtesy of the spear dude, but the stream boiled into steam immediately the moment it came into contact with the bear''s fiery mane.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me," the spear dude muttered. A swipe from the Hellfire Bear sent him flying, partially immolated. He rolled on the ground, desperately putting out the flames with some help from a water spell, but he was in pretty bad shape.

    "Is there no way to beat this monster?!" the mace dude cried out in despair before he and the others were caught in another massive fire spell cast by the Hellfire Bear.

    "Wait," the sword dude snapped. "And quit your whining. As long as we continue to work together, we should be able to¡­"

    "Hmph." Lilith folded her arms in a somewhat arrogant manner. "Give up. All of you will be burned to cinders¡­"

    She never finished her sentence. The dagger dude stabbed her from behind, his blade reaching into her chest. He avoided puncturing her heart, though, and instead drove the sharp weapon into her left lung to fill it with blood.

    Choking and almost drowning on her own blood, Lilith fell forward and flailed helplessly. She curled to a ball and cursed, clutching her chest. In order to preserve her own life, she began drawing all of her mana desperately to her body to stem and cauterize the bleeding, to accelerate her own innate healing. It wasn''t healing magic, but more of an emergency stopgap measure to treat a fatal wound to prevent herself from dying.

    Consequently, because she was busily expending all of her mana to contain the lethal injury, she could no longer sustain the existence of her Soul Beast. The Hellfire Bear disappeared while she coughed violently, trying to stop her body from convulsing.

    "Your Hellfire Bear is indeed powerful," the sword dude told her as he approached with a sneer. At least I assumed he was sneering from his tone, given how his expression was concealed by a mask. "Perhaps if it was just the four of us, we would have been defeated. But we were merely buying time for our teammate to take you out. Assassinate the summoner, and her Soul Beast will disappear along with her life. That''s the standard strategy against summoners."

    "Your mistake was to go solo and fight on your own against a team." The dagger dude sounded triumphant. "No matter how talented you are, or how much of a genius you are, you can''t win against a team of less gifted individuals working together."

    "You lost because you underestimated us!" the mace dude crowed. "You thought we were cannon fodder? Hah!"

    Even though they were gloating, they were still pretty injured. The mace dude, in particular, was suffering from third degree burns. The spear guy was also breathing heavily from having clashed with the Hellfire Bear earlier. The sword guy and staff guy were staggering from accumulated injuries sustained from both the Hellfire Bear and Lilith. Even the shadowy assassin was swaying after repeated blows and burns from his target.

    Still, they won. And it was the results that mattered the most. With the recording done, I decided to start sneaking away. As much as I sympathized with Lilith, she wasn''t the only person to have been eliminated from the Spiritual Road. As I mentioned, over the week, I had seen plenty of individuals kicked out of the artificial realm because they were reckless and arrogant enough to operate independently and attempt to solo the training camp. They were pretty close to defeating their targets, but often teamwork and sheer numbers overwhelmed them and their blood tokens were taken away. I was under no obligation to help any of them, including this girl.

    The moment I tried to save each and every one of them, I was going to end up revealing myself and ruining my mission. Nope, my objective was what mattered, not trying to clean up the mess of arrogant young geniuses who were deluded enough to think they could take on the world on their own, or that strength was everything.

    Only edge lords thought like that. Abandon the world, refuse to trust anyone, and try to solo everything, and you will find yourself falling short.

    This might not be consistent with my desire to be a hero, but the situation was very different. For one thing, the students here were not exactly in trouble or in any need of being saved. They were all competing against each other. I could no more assist them than I would someone who was fighting in an arena. For another, no one was in any real danger unless it was against a monster. The students were still normal, civilized humans. Nobody had any real intention of killing other students. Nobody here was a psychopath, bent on murdering his fellow students. Reality was very different from those bloodthirsty fantasy xianxia worlds that claimed that strength was everything or power was all. That kind of logic was a joke, to be honest. Did you really go around killing students from other schools just because you could? Anyway, once someone was in danger, the moment their blood token was taken away, they would be teleported out of the artificial realm and back outside to receive medical treatment and healing spells. The teachers would take care of them and ensure their lives wouldn''t be in danger, as long as they didn''t perish inside the forest.

    So no one''s lives were truly in danger, not unless they were facing a monster opponent instead of a human opponent. Most humans were rational and civilized, and wouldn''t simply take lives for the fun of it. From my past week of recording and reconnaissance, nobody had died in combat between humans. Not a single one.

    Therefore there was no reason for me to intervene. Even though these guys were clearly hostile, they obviously had no intention of killing the poor girl. If they defeated her, they deserved the victory.

    "Fucking bitch. You really did quite a number on us." the spear guy rubbed his burned arms gingerly and winced.

    "She should compensate for our wounds!" the mace dude snarled vengefully.

    "How do you suggest she do that?" the shadowy assassin asked somewhat softly.

    "¡­fuck you¡­" Lilith spat as she writhed on the floor. Blood trickling from her lips and her breathing ragged, she forced herself to kneel, leaning on her crimson sword as she glared at her tormentors defiantly.

    "Lilith," the sword dude said with a shake of his head. "I advise you to cease your futile struggling."

    "Hey, everyone," the staff dude spoke up with a grin. "I say that we shouldn''t waste the swan meat that has somehow found its way to our lips."

    Swan meat was pretty much a Chinese idiom for something that was elegant, divine and high quality, and was usually used to refer to beautiful girls. You know, like that stupid idiom about frogs trying to eat swan meat often being used to refer to ugly guys wanting to marry beautiful girls (seriously, that was so shallow ¨C what was with this obsession with physical appearances? Why can''t an "ugly" guy marry a beautiful girl? There was more to a person than his looks!).

    "What do you think?" the staff dude continued before chuckling ominously. The sword dude turned to him in amusement.

    "Are you not afraid of Ji Xuan?"

    "Hah~" the staff dude sighed. "Heaven knows, Earth knows, you know, I know. Who else will know?"

    "You guys can enjoy her," the mace dude licked his lips. "But I want her weapon!"

    He rushed forward eagerly. Lilith gritted her teeth and tried to defend herself, but he smacked the crimson sword out of her grip with his mace.

    "Ha ha ha ha ha!"

    The other four were howling with lecherous laughter and hurrying forward, unzipping their pants and leering at Lilith. She raised her head, fear now taking over defiance when she realized just what they were about to do.

    None of them made it.

    Lightning exploded throughout the clearing, electrocuting all of them. The five of them screamed and convulsed and the deadly currents coursed through their bodies, and they crashed to their knees, smoking.

    White Tiger leaped into the clearing, and he swiped at the sword dude, knocking him over. Then he slashed the mace dude and the spear dude with his lightning claws before they could react. Finally, he turned toward the shivering staff dude ¨C the bastard who proposed that they raped Lilith in the first place ¨C and began to maul him.

    While his comrades were howling and shrieking, the shadowy assassin tried to sink into the darkness. However, a flaming arrow slammed into him, piercing his body and detonating. He yelped in pain as he crashed and rolled about, immolated.

    I lowered Sagittarius and stepped into the clearing. Before I knew it, I had intervened, even though I originally did not intend to.

    The reason was simple. Those bastards were about to rape her.

    If they had just taken her blood token and allowed her to be transported out of the forest, I would have left them alone. Even if they had taken her away and brought her to whoever this Ji Xuan was, I couldn''t care less. It was their business, and if their boss wanted to talk to her, then that was his prerogative. As long as there was no crime such as murder committed, all was fair game. To the victor goes the spoils.

    However, these bastards planned to rape her. That changed everything. If they wanted to kill her or rape her or commit a crime against her, then I was going to step in. there was no way I was going to stand by and do nothing but watch while a girl got raped in front of me. It was one thing for her to get hurt in a match, in a battle between mages. It was another for her to get physically and psychologically violated by a bunch of sick bastards.

    "W¡­who the hell are you?!" the mace guy demanded, still lying on the ground and barely conscious. "H¡­how dare you interfere in our affairs?!"

    The sword dude glowered at me, but if he thought he could intimidate me with a glare while lying helplessly on the ground, fried like dried bean curd, he was sadly mistaken.

    "Who the hell are you, brat?!" he snarled. "Are you not afraid that Ji Xuan will look for you?"

    "Who the fuck is Ji Xuan?" I rolled my eyes and shrugged nonchalantly. "And why should I care?"

    "You''re signing your death warrant, brat!" the staff dude hollered. I sighed and glanced at White Tiger.

    "Looks like my warning hasn''t gotten to you yet. You haven''t been shocked enough."

    More electricity filled the air, causing them to shriek. Despite that, they refused to lose consciousness. Damn, but they were tough. Now that I had intervened, I actually planned on taking their blood tokens, but¡­

    "¡­reinforcements, huh?"

    Corvus alerted me to a new group of students approaching from my left. Considering their black garb and masks, I wouldn''t be surprised if they belonged to the same group.

    "Sorry, Miss." I told Lilith as I spun around and snatched her up in my arms. "It''s going to be a bit rough, but we''ve to get out of here now."

    "You¡­what do you think you''re doing?!" Lilith cried. I ignored her as I completed my next summoning spell.

    "Pegasus!"

    The winged horse materialized in front of me. Tossing Lilith on top of Pegasus''s back, I then jumped up to ride him. With a mental command from me, the white Constellation spirit took off and sprinted deep into the forest and beyond the reach of any pursuers.

 259 Chapter 259: Fated Meeting II

    "Let me down!"

    Despite her injuries, a punctured lung that caused breathlessness, and almost drowning in her own blood, Lilith Porter was still behaving feistily.

    "I will once we are out of their reach," I assured her.

    "Your help is unnecessary," Lilith told me coldly. "Even without your assistance, I could have handled them myself."

    That wasn''t what I saw, but whatever. Admittedly, her Hellfire Bear was immense and would have wiped the floor with those dudes if that shadowy assassin guy didn''t backstab her. Actually, what the hell was she doing, allowing the shadowy assassin to sneak up on her like that? One of the tenets of being a summoner was to never let your guard down even after you completed casting your summoning spell, for that was when your opponent will work even harder to take you down when he realized he couldn''t defeat your Soul Beast.

    Not that I was going to tell her that, but whatever.

    Above, Corvus squawked to inform me that there was no longer any student or monster in the vicinity, and I mentally instructed Pegasus to stop. He did so, and I allowed Lilith to jump down. She staggered for a moment, and then sat down cross-legged at the base of a tree.

    "Hmph¡­well, I suppose I should thank you for saving my life, at least."

    Lilith seemed to want to say that I actually saved her from something else, but the experience was so traumatic and horrifying that she didn''t put that into words and instead settled for that choice of words. Arguably, she was about to lose something that might arguably be just important as her life, so it made sense.

    "What are you, a tsundere?" I demanded. Lilith flushed and looked away.

    "Hey, I at least have some manners, you know? You helped me, and I owe you. I''ll definitely repay this debt."

    "No, you don''t have to. I chose to help you myself. You don''t owe me anything."

    Knowing the clich¨¦s and iron-clad laws of web novels, light novels or manga, the repayment of debt often included something as ridiculous as romantic relationships or marriage. I sure as hell didn''t want anything to do with that.

    Lilith regarded me, annoyed. "It''s not what you''re thinking¡­"

    She then erupted into a coughing fit, blood flying from her mouth. Grimacing, she held her chest and tried desperately to stem the wound. With a sigh, she closed her eyes and straightened her posture. I watched as crimson mana began to shroud her body.

    "Sorry¡­I''ll have to ask you for another request. I need you to watch over me¡­ensure nobody attacks me while I try to heal from this injury."

    "Okay."

    I recognized the healing spell that Lilith was attempting to cast as very rudimentary. Hell, it was the same basic healing spell that Dad knew. It wasn''t enough to make them a healer-type mage, and was often used to heal very light injuries such as slight burns, shallow cuts, scrapes or bruises. It certainly wasn''t enough to heal severe injuries, not unless you did the same thing as Lilith and continuously cast the damned spell for two hours straight.

    That was why she requested that I watched over her, to ensure she didn''t get assaulted while focusing on recuperating from such a fatal wound. It seemed that she was determined not to lose her blood token and get kicked out of the Spiritual Road¡­yet.

    Too bad I didn''t have any healing Constellation spirit. It sucked, but I couldn''t summon a healing Constellation spirit just because I imagined it. There were limits to my imagination, so I couldn''t just imagine an invincible Constellation spirit and expect it to be invincible when I summoned it. I was also bound to the rules I had established for my constellation theme, so there was no stupid shenanigans such as summoning a tiger and pretending it was Leo, or pretending Corvus was a dragon or drake or such nonsense.

    The limits of my magic were also displayed by the fact that I couldn''t summon sentient or human-type spirits, which was why all my human constellations were summoned in weapon forms. That was something I could never summon, none of my Soul Beasts could ever be sentient or a human. That was a little sad, but that was how it worked.

    Therefore healing magic was out.

    This wasn''t to say that my system or the rules I had established forbade it completely. If there was a Constellation that had something to do with healing, such as Ophiuchus, for example, then I theoretically should be able to summon a healing spirit. However, I wasn''t a Mary Sue protagonist who could master all elements, otherwise I might as well be a god, and everyone would be following my example to become a Versatile Mage capable of casting multiple elements. Most mages focused on a specific element and specialize only in it, often locking themselves to a single attribute, such as fire or ice. Theoretically, people could specialize in multiple elements, but no one could claim to master every single element on earth. That was why elemental mages often didn''t know how to cast healing spells, and healing mages weren''t very adept at combat magic.

    Furthermore, I had already done my very best to learn as many different types of elements as possible. Hell, I barely managed to learn the five different elements for my Celestial Guardians, and for my Constellation magic, I couldn''t even do any wind magic. I never bothered to learn spells from the wind element. Five elements were my limit, and I will be honest, my elemental spells were the most basic of basic. I could never learn the intermediate or advanced elemental spells, not unless I one day chose to focus and specialize on one of them. They were powerful, yeah, but that was only because I infused a lot of mana into the basic spells. Even the simplest of spells would possess the power of a nuke if you infuse it with several megatons of mana.

    Healing was no different. It was a completely different type of magic from elemental magic, and I had already invested so much time and effort in learning the basic spells of the five elements in order to create my elemental type Constellation spirits to the point that I didn''t have the luxury or space to branch out into healing magic and summoning healing spirits. It was like jumping into a new major in the middle of your university years, after you spent two years on your previous major learning computer science, only to suddenly decide that you want to switch to liberal arts after all. You were not going to convert all that previous knowledge of computer science into writing essays for liberal arts. You will have to learn everything, including theory and content and knowledge from scratch. Similarly, healing magic was a whole new branch of magic that was completely different from elemental magic, and diving into it after spending so much time learning elemental and summoning magic was just impractical. Only a Mary Sue would be capable of doing everything and mastering everything while graduating at the top of her classes and becoming the number one mage or whatever while maintaining her super popularity and beautiful looks. I was not a Mary Sue.

    In other words, I wouldn''t be able to summon a healing Constellation spirit, not unless I decided to spend another few years trying to learn a whole new branch of magic. I would much rather develop the magic I already learned and start on the path of advancing my basic elemental spells toward intermediate and advanced. Right now, the only element I had moved toward advanced was wood magic, which was how my Green Dragon techniques were so¡­complex. And also the reason why he ended up being my last Celestial Guardian that I summoned (barring Golden Kirin, but that''s a whole new subject altogether).

    And just like that, two hours passed. As expected, despite the agonizingly slow process, Lilith succeeded in healing her injury. Not fully, but at least she restored herself to the point where she was no longer debilitated by a punctured lung, and her life was certainly no longer in danger. While she did so, I observed her, and was amazed by how beautiful she was. Not that I cared, because as I said, physical appearances meant jack all. That didn''t mean I didn''t appreciate beauty, especially since I was a normal, healthy guy.

    I just wasn''t immature enough to be swayed by it to the point I thought with nothing but the lower half of my body.

    "Are you all right?" I asked her when she opened her eyes. She nodded. Sighing in relief, I watched as she stood up. When she swayed unsteadily, I stepped forward to help her, but she waved me away.

    "I''m fine."

    I wasn''t sure if it was her pride or mistrust, but I backed off obediently.

    "Who were those guys? Why were they attacking you? I think they said something about Ji Xuan? About bringing you to meet him? What does he want to do with you?"

    "¡­"

    Lilith studied me for a moment, and then she sighed and shook her head.

    "Don''t take it the wrong way. I''m grateful for your help, but please¡­don''t pry into my affairs."

    In other words, her business had absolutely nothing to do with me, so I should stop asking. That was fine. I understood her need for privacy. Moreover, I was some random stranger. As kind as I seemed, and even though I had saved her, she couldn''t just trust me so easily. For all she knew, I could have my own sinister motives for helping her out.

    Honestly, though, I didn''t want anything in return. So I just nodded.

    "You look familiar, though." Lilith was studying me, her lips pursed and her pretty brow furrowed in puzzlement. "Where have I seen you before?"

    "I assure you, this is the first time we''ve met. I''ve never seen you before. Perhaps you''ve mistaken me for someone else?"

    "Maybe." Lilith didn''t look convinced. She took a deep breath and bowed her head slightly. "I''m Lilith Porter of Vermillion Academy. Thank you very much for helping me."

    Did she say Vermillion Academy? Where did I hear that name before? I was pretty sure I just recently heard about Vermillion Academy not too long ago. It had nothing with me visiting them or interacting with their students, but something I heard second-hand. And I was pretty sure it had something to do with the Porter clan too. Right, was it my dad who told me something about Vermillion Academy? What did he say about it again?

    I couldn''t remember. It probably wasn''t anything important.

    "No, it''s nothing." I raised a hand and waved. "If you''re all right, then I''ll get going then. Be careful and take care of yourself."

    "Wait!"

    Lilith called out before I could depart the clearing. I turned back to her, raising an eyebrow quizzically.

    "Could you at least tell me your name?" Lilith fidgeted a little, her face red. "I still owe you for saving me. Like I said, I promise to repay the debt."

    "And like I said earlier, there is no need to. I chose to help you on my own. I didn''t do it so that you''ll owe me."

    "Even so¡­" Lilith looked reluctant. "I would like to at least know the name of the person who helped me, if that is all right with you."

    "Richard Huang, Jing Tian Academy." I lowered my head humbly. "Well, I''ll see you next time, Miss Lilith."

    "R¡­Richard?!" Lilith stammered. In an instant, she reached out and grabbed my shoulder, preventing me from leaving. "Wait! Don''t tell me you are¡­?!"

    "Miss, I don''t know what you''re thinking, but I''m pretty sure you''re mistaking me for someone else."

    "No!" Lilith insisted adamantly, her eyes bright as she shook her head. "I''m sure you are Huang Shun Yin''s son!"

    Then everything came back to me and I abruptly understood why the Porter clan and Vermillion Academy sounded so familiar to me.

    My dad had just only recently told me about the years he spent in Vermillion High, working with the Porter clan!

 260 Chapter 260: Red String of Fate

    "I''m his adopted son," I confirmed as I watched Lilith Porter, feeling a chill run down my spine. Taking a deep breath, I narrowed my eyes as I recalled the entire flashback arc Dad subjected me to about 15 chapters and 60 chapters ago. "Is your father Glen Porter?"

    "You know my father?"

    "No, my dad knows your father."

    "¡­I see." Lilith frowned and picked up her smartphone. She broadcasted a holographic screen into the air and studied the details with a frown. I blanched when I saw my photograph hovering in the air, with several details listed under it.

    "What the fuck?! How did you get my profile?!"

    "Father provided it to me. He said that I''ll end up meeting you one day."

    Now that I thought about it, Uncle Glen did constantly tell me that I should meet his daughter one day. I had refused, not taking him seriously because he often snuck out of Vermillion City alone to play games with my dad without bringing his daughter along, and really had no interest in meeting her because I had other more important concerns.

    "This is a great chance." Lilith was drawing her crimson sword as she stared intently at me, fiery mana blazing along the length of her blade and igniting ferociously. "I always wanted to have a duel against you."

    "Why?!" I threw up my hands in despair. "I''m a nobody!"

    "You''re kidding, right? My father often talks about you! You''re the same guy who nuked an army of three thousand monsters! Who destroyed rank A and rank B monsters with strategic-scale spells! The one who defeated the Grim Reaper, one of the deadliest Assassins to have terrorized the Global Federation! You even defeated the Invincible Goddess of War, Cecilia Stuart!"

    "You give me way too much credit. And in all those cases, I had a lot of help. I would never have been able to pull it off if I didn''t have my friends or teammates with me."

    "You team-killed the representatives of Crowley''s Academy by yourself! Without any help! You''re not fooling anyone!"

    Oh, right. I forgot about that. Sighing, I ruffled my hair irritably. It wasn''t that I didn''t want to fight her, especially since I was pretty sure it would be an excellent learning experience. I actually looked forward to fighting her.

    The problem right now was that¡­

    "¡­no. You still have not fully recovered from your injury. We''ll fight some point again in future, when you''re back to full strength. Otherwise it''s meaningless."

    "Are you underestimating me?" Lilith flared up. "Even in this condition, I can still¡­"

    "Are you underestimating me?" I retorted, cutting her off. "Do you really think that little of me that you are confident of defeating me even when you''re injured?"

    Lilith trailed off, realizing that she had just committed a huge act of disrespect toward an opponent. Not that I cared because I was used to be looking down upon and insulted, but like I said, it would be meaningless to win against her when she wasn''t at her full strength. I desired to test my skills against her, to see the ultimate techniques and legendary spells of the Porter clan. Dad had told me a lot about them, and most of his fire spells were modeled after the Porter clan''s magic. I wanted to see how I measured up against them.

    Fighting against the weakened heiress of the Porter clan wouldn''t do much for collecting information or accurately measuring how far I could go against the likes of them. And I wanted to gather as much information on the Porter clan''s techniques as possible, not just for the tournament and my team but also for myself.

    There was some sort of connection between my dad and the Porter clan, and it would undoubtedly be passed down to me, so I might as well find out more about them as I can.

    "We can have an official match after the Spiritual Road training camp. Or perhaps once you''ve recovered, you might be able to locate me somewhere in this forest." I was skeptical of such a thing happening, but I obviously didn''t voice that out. "But fighting now is meaningless. I don''t want you to use your injury as an excuse to justify your defeat. And if you can win against me even when you''re injured, then it just means you''re wasting your time challenging a weakling like me and you might as well spend hat time and energy recuperating instead."

    "Hmph."

    Lilith chewed on her lip for a moment, and then looked away unhappily. She then sat down at the base of the tree.

    "Well, seems like you''ll be able to take care of yourself now, so I''ll take my leave. If we meet again in the forest, let''s have a match. Otherwise, we can arrange to have one sometime after the training camp."

    With that, I turned to leave.

    "Before you go, can you at least explain to me what that was about?" Lilith suddenly asked before I could take another step. I turned to glance at her quizzically.

    "What do you mean?"

    "Your Soul Beasts. I heard that you patterned your Soul Beasts after the theme of constellations, but seeing them, it''s just so hard to imagine how you did that." Lilith frowned as she leaned against the tree trunk. "Summoning spells and Soul Beasts are dependent entirely on the summoner''s elemental attributes and specialization. Fire mages can only summon fire-type Soul Beasts, lightning mages like my father can only summon lightning-type Soul Beasts. You can''t just summon whatever Soul Beasts you want. They are a shadow of your soul, the mana that makes up your magic. It originates from some spiritual dimension present within our own bodies, and the summoner establishes a connection with it, almost like some sort of soul contract. Thanks to this connection or soul contract, they can summon their Soul Beast for a short moment to assist them in combat. However, they are always inevitably modeled and created based upon the summoner''s innate elemental attribute."

    "Yeah." I took summoning classes, I was a summoner, so I knew all that.

    "But your Soul Beasts don''t belong to a single element. They have so many different elements. How is that possible?! I haven''t seen anyone summon so many different types of Soul Beasts, which belong to so many different elements before. Your Soul Beasts should normally belong only to one elemental attribute! Two, or three at most!"

    I didn''t reply. I wasn''t stupid enough to give away my secrets to an enemy. As I mentioned before, the only reason why I could pull it off was because I went and studied the basics of all five elements (the Chinese ones, so I didn''t learn how to summon air element). In exchange for giving up on the intermediate and advanced elemental spells most elemental specialists moved on to, I was able to expand my repertoire of Soul Beasts and summon a variety of Constellation spirits that covered different types of elements.

    Of course, Lilith didn''t need to know that. She didn''t give up, however, and continued to reason.

    "Well, you know that Soul Beasts are a projection of the human consciousness." When I nodded at her statement, she continued. "I''ve loved teddy bears ever since I was a young girl. That''s why my consciousness imagined a bear as my Soul Beast, which I eventually conceived and developed into my Hellfire Bear. If I''m not mistaken, you like constellations, which is why your consciousness projected your Soul Beasts based upon their legends."

    She glanced at the spot where Pegasus was standing on before he disappeared, and then raised her head to glance at Corvus, who was keeping an eye out.

    "But there are limits to summoning. They are based completely on your elemental attribute. What exactly is your elemental attribute?"

    "Did you think I''m just going to simply tell you, a rival from another school that I''ll be facing off in the tournament, my secrets?" I smiled cryptically.

    "No. fair enough." Lilith shook her head sheepishly. "And I owe you for saving my life too. Forgive my lack of manners. It was rude of me to pry. Perhaps I''ll ask you again after the tournament."

    She was assuming we would still somehow meet after the tournament, which I doubted. Then again, our dads were friends, so I wouldn''t be surprised if she showed up one day, tagging along in one of Uncle Glen''s visits.

    For now, we were enemies, and the less time I spent lingering around her, the better. I had already ensured that she wouldn''t be raped or killed for the time being. My obligations had been fulfilled and my conscience was clear.

    "All right, I''ll get going then." I studied Lilith to ensure she was fine. "Take care of yourself, and don''t recklessly challenge groups for blood tokens. It''s difficult to fight when you''re outnumbered. I hope you learn your lesson from that. And it may be none of my business, but watch out for that Ji Xuan or whoever."

    "It really is none of your business, but I appreciate the advice nonetheless. I''ll be seeing you shortly."

    I scoffed at that. The chances of us running into each other again in such a large forest was negligible. I most likely have a higher chance of finding my friends then encountering a random stranger I met for the first time today. Okay, she wasn''t a complete stranger, she was Uncle Glen''s daughter, but even so, it wasn''t as if we had any red string of fate connecting us. I honestly doubted I would see her again. "We''ll see about that."

    "I will definitely track you down and find you," Lilith promised as she leaned against the tree, probably to continue tending to her injury and restore herself to full health as quickly as possible. "You won''t get away."

    I waved a hand casually, not taking her words all that seriously. My friends should have been able to find me by that logic, but they had yet to reunite with me. I was trying my own methods of searching for them, with a distinct lack of success so far. I really sucked at moving around the forest. Sighing, I disappeared deeper into the forest and searched for new groups of students to spy on and collect intelligence on.

    *

    Three days later, I was kneeling by the river to gather some water. My supply had run low, and we had to use our magic to purify the water to prevent ourselves from suffering cholera or other forms of bacterial diseases obtained when drinking tainted water.

    "Finally," I grumbled to myself as I filled my bottle with the water from the clear spring. I took a few sips, and then topped it up once again, to ensure that it was full. It wasn''t often that I would find a good water source like this, so I was going to make full use of it.

    While I was strapping my water bottle back in my storage device, I caught a glimpse of someone descending upon me, thanks to the reflection in the water. Even without the reflection, the motion tracker on my glasses picked out the movement as a white blip.

    "Hah!"

    My assailant swung her crimson sword at me. Spinning around, I summoned Gemini and fended off the attack, but the blazing blade cut through my hastily conjured twin swords like a hot knife through butter.

    "Oh boy¡­"

    I watched as my broken Gemini twin swords dissipated to nothingness, but they had bought me enough time to retreat safely.

    "Tch." I clicked my tongue when I recognized my assailant. "You again."

    Lilith Porter didn''t reply, and instead charged at me, flames trailing her sword as she launched a series of slashes at me.

    "You''ve been chasing me for three days now. Is this really how you repay someone for saving you?"

    I rolled my eyes as I drew Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, crossing them to parry another ferocious flaming trike from Lilith. Her sword erupted into an inferno that washed over me, but I managed to cleave through the flames before flipping backward across the clear spring, exchanging blows and defending myself against her relentless attacks.

    Damn, but she was one hell of a stalker. I didn''t take her seriously when she said she would track me down, but she had stayed true to her word and ambushed me at every turn. She was serious when she said she wanted a duel.

    We traded a few blows across the spring, her flames boiling the water and shrouding the entire space in steam. Despite vision being obscured, the lenses on my glasses glowed and provided me alternative visions to see through the fog. Infrared vision was out because the entire place was glowing with heat signatures, but I could adjust the spectrum to pick out mana signatures instead of temperature and easily locate Lilith.

    Locking my blades with her, I managed to stop Lilith from landing a fatal blow.

    "Are you seriously trying to kill me?!" I snapped at her.

    "That''s right," she replied coldly. "I don''t want to hold any affections for you because you saved my life. I only wish to train and develop my magic, to become stronger. Having feelings for you will distract me from that goal."

    "¡­say what?"

    That had to be the stupidest bullshit I had ever heard in my life.

    Upon seeing my astonishment, Lilith retreated to the river bank and began howling in laughter. She actually dropped onto the ground and rolled on the floor, laughing and striking the damp soil with her fist. I stared at her, even more stunned than before.

    "You should have seen your face!" she gasped, trying to breathe. "Did you actually believe a word of what I just said?!"

    I shrugged. "Was I not supposed to believe it?"

    "I heard from my father that you and your dad are big fans of anime. I''m pretty sure you got the reference." Lilith struggled back to her feet, trying to restrain more laughter.

    "Oh." I slapped my forehead. "The Great Ruler. Of course. You would make for a great Luo Li if you''d just get rid of that ridiculous yellow ribbon and let your hair down."

    Lilith giggled again. "Did you really believe such nonsense? That I''ll kill you just because I don''t want to get distracted from cultivation, and thus I must eliminate you so that I won''t have any affections for you? And you think too highly of yourself. Why the hell would I fall for you just because you saved me? You''re not the only one who had saved my life before."

    "That part I didn''t believe at all," I assured her wearily. "I was more astonished by the BS you pulled. Anyway, why have you been chasing me for the last three days?"

    "Because I want to duel you, of course!" Lilith snapped, pointing her crimson sword at me. "Have you forgotten? I won''t let you make any excuses this time. I''ve fully recovered! Let''s test our skills against each other and see if your Constellation spirits can overcome my Hellfire Bear!"

    I watched her for a second, and then sheathed Gan Jiang and Mo Ye. A smile crept over my face as I anticipated the battle to come. Pushing my glasses up my nose, I nodded my acquiescence.

    "All right. Let''s do this then."

 261 Chapter 261: Grin and Bear i

    I studied Lilith Porter for a moment, and once I was satisfied that she had been fully healed, I nodded. Might as well get this fight out of the way. For one thing, I was sick and tired of her chasing me, especially after three days of nonstop pursuit. Fortunately, she wasn''t stupid enough to get in the way of my mission, and only chose to attack me during my downtime. I was tempted to take away her blood token, but inwardly I was waiting for her to fully heal up so that we could have a proper fight.

    One of my objectives was to evaluate Lilith''s strength and see how I could measure up against someone of her stature. There was no doubt she would be a fierce opponent and a huge threat to our title challenge, so I preferred to fight her at full strength and see what kind of techniques and spells she could pull out.

    "You''re finally going to fight me?" Lilith was staring at me, astonished. The entire time, she had been too impatient, trying to take me out and grab my blood token before she had fully recovered, but I refused to fight her properly the entire time, for the reasons I mentioned above. So she was taken aback by my sudden 180 degree reversal.

    "Yup. That''s what you want, right?"

    "¡­"

    Lilith regarded me suspiciously, a frown furrowing her brow. I shrugged.

    "Hey, you''re the one who said that you''ve fully recovered."

    "¡­right. I did. So that''s what you were waiting for this entire time. I did find it strange you didn''t just defeat me and take away my blood token even though you had so many opportunities to do so." Lilith folded her arms, despite still holding on to her crimson sword. "I guess I should thank you for granting me the honor of a proper duel."

    "Yeah. Let''s begin."

    We chose a clearing as our site of battle. We were aware that there were quite a few spectators who were hidden, and when I glanced at them, Lilith waved dismissively.

    "They won''t attack us even if we do end up hurting each other. I have friends in there."

    "Your schoolmates¡­your team from Vermillion Academy."

    "That''s right." She scowled. "They even have the audacity to record this battle. Well, not that I care." She punched both of her fists together before drawing her sword. "As long as I get to fight with you, I''m satisfied. Daddy has always been telling me about you, Uncle Shun Yin''s adopted son, and I have always looked forward to fighting you."

    In contrast, Dad and Uncle Glen never mentioned anything about Lilith. Well, actually Uncle Glen did mention his daughter a couple of times in an attempt to hook me up with her, but Dad and I never took him seriously and ignored him. Besides, Lilith seemed more interested in fighting than in developing any sort of relationship.

    That was fine with me.

    "Hmm¡­" Lilith observed me for a moment as she adopted a combative stance. "Not going to draw your swords?"

    "Not yet," I replied. My beautiful opponent nodded.

    "It''s rare for me to fight someone who is proficient in martial arts. I heard from Daddy that your father trained you in martial arts. Wing Chun, was it?"

    "Yeah." I glanced at her left arm. Unlike her right hand, which was gripping her sword, it was bare. "It''s nothing impressive, though. I was never a good student and had no talent in martial arts."

    "We''ll see about that." Lilith followed my line of sight and glanced at her arm before scoffing. "What, were you expecting me to use a small one-handed shield? Are you mistaking me for somebody? I''m a swordswoman first and foremost."

    "So Uncle Glen didn''t teach you martial arts?"

    "Daddy doesn''t know any martial arts! He''s a summoner, just like you and me!" Lilith smiled as she held her crimson sword in both hands in anticipation. "Well, let''s fight without any regrets!"

    "All right, Miss Lilith. I hope you''ll give me some pointers."

    The both of us charged at each other, kicking off the ground and producing double sonic booms that thundered in opposite directions. We clashed in the middle of the clearing, with me summoning Aquarius in the middle of the charge and swinging the blue broadsword at her. Fire collided with water, which immediately vaporized into steam.

    "¡­"

    Huffing, I found myself shoved back by Lilith''s greater strength. Embers rained down on me, boiling the protective cloud of water that now permeated my figure, but I swung Aquarius down to unleash a tidal wave at pointblank range.

    Lilith determinedly swung her own crimson sword down and unleashed a torrent of hellfire that boiled the mini tsunami into steam. Both of us stumbled backward, our vision obscured by the white fog that expanded across the clearing.

    Fortunately, my glasses adjusted, my lenses displaying Lilith''s mana signature and allowing me to pinpoint her location within the boiling steam. I dove to the side, avoiding another stream of flames that burned a hole through the steam, and then flanked her, swinging Aquarius toward her supposedly vulnerable back.

    Flames erupted and blazed along the length of Lilith''s blade and she spun around to instinctively parry Aquarius. Digging her heels into the ground, Lilith intensified the hellfire that wreathed her sword and cleaved through the blue broadsword. My huge Constellation weapon dissipated into wisps of mana as both broken pieces ceased to exist in this dimension.

    "Hah!"

    Almost triumphantly, Lilith closed in and tried to cut me in half with her flaming sword. I withdrew nimbly, using my martial arts training to evade as best as I could. Ducking under her sword, I kicked out below (also to ensure I didn''t lose my leg, so I didn''t recklessly try a high kick) to force her back. Lilith grunted as she staggered from my blow, but she managed to bring down her flaming sword, which I avoided by stepping to the side.

    I could still feel the scalding heat from her blazing blade, but I seized the opportunity while her sword was down to punch her from the side of her head. Lilith kept her grasp on the hilt of her sword with one hand while letting go of it with the other and parried my fist. She tried to bring her sword back up, but I stepped onto it, my shoe insulating my foot from the flames and then rammed a knee into her chest. She coughed and staggered backward, but before she could bring up her sword, I spun around and threw a kick into the side of her face.

    "!!!"

    Lilith just barely blocked it with her arm, but she was knocked over. With a curse, she completed the casting of her spell and a fireball erupted from her sword and hurtled toward me. I adjusted my trajectory in midair, twisting around to avoid it, and dropped to the ground. The fireball swerved past me and slammed into a tree behind, immolating it.

    One of the students who was watching the match yelped and jumped out of the burning tree, desperately beating out the flames. A spectator, huh? Well, I couldn''t care less about him. Instead, I focused on the opponent before me. Pushing my glasses up my nose, I studied Lilith while taking note of the spikes in her mana signatures as displayed by the energy readings etched into the lenses of my glasses.

    That was an indication of some big spell.

    An inferno erupted from Lilith''s sword and she got ready to blast me with the flames. I kept my distance, but didn''t move from my position. Instead, my right hand fell into the hilt of my still sheathed Gan Jiang.

    "?!"

    Lilith instinctively sensed the danger, but it was almost too late. A sharp arc of energy lanced toward her like a deadly crescent moon, and she was forced to parry it with her sword. Blood dripped from her arms as she skidded several meters backward, trembling from the ferocious blow.

    "That''s¡­"

    Her eyes widened when she noticed that Gan Jiang was back in its sheath. She shook her head, impressed, and sighed.

    "That iai, isn''t that Miyamoto sword style? You learn that from your dad too, I presume?"

    "That''s correct," I confirmed. So Uncle Glen did tell his daughter about the techniques Dad learned when he was younger.

    "That was dangerous. But I won''t give you another chance to use it!"

    Flames exploded around Lilith''s feet as she lunged at me, swinging her sword and unleashing yet another devastating torrent of fire. I was forced to draw both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye this time, parrying her blast. Around us, grass and trees wilted from the heat or combusted spontaneously from the flames. Even I found myself gradually worn down by the sheer power of the flames despite the protective mana aura cast around me.

    "Hu¡­"

    I traded several more blows with Lilith, finding myself gradually driven back and overwhelmed by the superheated flames. Gathering mana within myself, I completed my next summoning spell. A chibi Black Tortoise materialized over my right shoulder, and a chibi Green Dragon appeared over my left. A whirlpool of water snaked along the length of the black blade of Gan Jiang while flower petals danced around the pristine white blade of Mo Ye.

    A pseudo waterfall surged out of Gan Jiang as I struggled to knock Lilith back with my sword, the tremendous pressure of my water spell canceling out the effects of her flames and actually forcing her to withdraw a step. Without pausing, I slashed Mo Ye at her, forcing her to duck because she was still preoccupied with parrying Gan Jiang with her crimson sword. The petals scored a few cuts across her skin, and the edge of Mo Ye actually cut through the yellow ribbon adorning her long hair, freeing those silky, silvery strands and allowing them to fall free over her back.

    "You look better with your hair down," I told her automatically. Lilith scowled in reply and responded with a vengeful swing of her flaming sword. I crossed both blades, but despite the curtain of water nullifying the terrifying eruption of fire, I found myself thrown back several paces. Stumbling to regain my balance, I defended myself against Lilith''s next flaming slash with a watery defense from Gan Jiang, and then countered with several razor-sharp petals and a thrust of Mo Ye toward her midriff. Lilith twisted away, but the keen edge of the blade still scored a cut across her waist and opened up a slit in her blouse.

    "I thought you said you had no talent in martial arts?!" Lilith snapped as she slashed at me, but I easily deflected her sword. We exchanged several more blows, and I was forced back into the defensive, parrying and blocking Lilith''s flaming sword.

    "Yeah, I don''t. You''re completely overwhelming me."

    That much was true. Even Lilith couldn''t deny that. It was obvious that her sword techniques were superior to mine, and she was easily pushing me back. Even so, she recognized that she couldn''t defeat me so easily.

    "The gap between us is not that big," she said. "And you seem to be better at magic than I am."

    "Thank you for the praise." As if to prove her point for her, I completed casting my next spell after knocking aside a potentially fatal thrust that would have found its way into my chest had my reflexes not been up to par.

    Swinging both of my swords, I blasted her with a vortex of water, which she easily vaporized with a tremendous maelstrom of flames, but she was taken by surprise by the storm of razor-sharp petals that arrived as a follow-up.

    "ARGH!"

    With a shout, Lilith incinerated the cloud of razor-sharp petals. Even as the flames expanded outwardly from her body, a surge of water crashed down upon her and boiled into steam¡­

    ¡­for only a moment.

    "?!"

    Lilith''s eyes widened when the inferno she conjured to defend herself from my wood spell was immediately frozen. As her hands glowed crimson with fiery mana, she smashed and melted the ice, only for the black blade of Gan Jiang to smash aside the partially melting fragments of frost and sliced toward her throat.

    "¡­ah¡­"

    Lilith froze for a moment, not just because of my ice spell. Perspiration ran down her face as she stared at the tip of the black blade pointing toward her throat. However, I halted my blade before it could nick her skin, and then slowly pulled it back.

    "You¡­"

    My opponent glared at me, a little ruffled by the "mercy" I had shown her.

    "What''s the meaning of this?"

    "I don''t want to win like this. We are both summoners, but you have yet to actually summon anything. Didn''t we agree to fight without any regrets?"

    "You''re right. Forgive my disrespect." Lilith retreated for a moment, perspiration still rolling down her face. "Next, I''ll summon my Soul Beast. I''ve to say, though, you must be really confident if you think you have the luxury of allowing me to summon my Hellfire Bear. But I will thank you for not finishing me off when you had the chance."

    I smiled and shook my head.

    "I also have a stake in this. I personally want to challenge your Hellfire Bear with my own Constellation spirits."

    "It''s coming! The Hellfire Bear!"

    "Woo! The Hellfire Bear!"

    From deep within the forest, I could hear spectators shouting and cheering. These must be the students of Vermillion Academy. Or perhaps Lilith Porter was so famous that almost every student in the Federation knew of her Hellfire Bear. Even I had vaguely heard about it, despite having paid almost no attention to the students of other academies and tournament battles.

    I was a little¡­narrow-minded and self-centered, only focusing on my own matters and not caring about the world at large.

    Pushing up my glasses, I grinned when the lenses detected an astronomical spike of mana, reflected in the energy readings. A sudden surge in thermal energy was forcibly ripping its way into this dimension.

    "Will you find yourself cornered by this, I wonder?" Lilith murmured, almost to herself. Then she raised her hand, her sword having been abandoned. "Come here, Hellfire Bear!"

    "!!"

    I glanced upward and caught sight of an enormous fireball plummeting toward me, a meteorite that was at least three meters in radius. With a thunderous roar, it crashed onto the ground where I was standing, razing the entire space and engraving a scorched crater into the earth.

    "Amazing! It''s the Hellfire Bear!"

    "Looks like that dual sword guy is going to lose!"

    The spectators just refused to shut up. In any case, they were dead wrong. I had managed to leap backward and avoid getting pulverized by Lilith''s summoning spell. Raising my head, I found myself staring up at the Hellfire Bear, the creature towering over six meters. Once again, that majestic, flaming mane of crimson fire, thick fur that served as armor, and massive claws the size of a desk.

    Despite the intimidating sight, my grin widened.

    "Let''s see how much I can bear," I remarked excitedly before charging forward with both of my swords.

 262 Chapter 262: Bearing a Bear Hug

    With a single swing of its paw, the Hellfire Bear swatted me away. I had only just barely managed to parry its claws by crossing both of my swords, but I was unable to resist the immense force behind the blow.

    "Kuh!"

    I was sent crashing through several trees, hurtling over several dozen meters before I finally flipped myself over and halted my momentum by crunching my feet against an unfortunate tree trunk that splintered from the impact.

    Lilith''s Hellfire Bear was already charging toward me mercilessly, bellowing ravenously as flames combusted around its titanic form. Despite me swinging Gan Jiang and blasting him with a torrent of ice, the frost vaporized instantly upon coming contact with the superheated flames.

    Then the Hellfire Bear barreled into the tree that I had used to stop my crash, immolating the unfortunate plant and setting the surrounding woodlands ablaze.

    I had already managed to move away, cartwheeling through the air to land a few meters away. Realizing that I wasn''t going to be able to take on the damned bear with two swords, I had no choice but to call for reinforcements of my own.

    "Ursa Major!"

    A gigantic bear materialized in front of me. As Lilith''s Hellfire Bear slowly turned around to face me, Ursa Major tackled the immense Soul Beast and the two bears went down. Ursa Major wrestled with the Hellfire Bear, the two massive Soul Beasts rolling around in the forest, leveling trees and leaving small fires in their wake.

    This was the reason why I had Lilith copy Laura Porter from Battle Frenzy and why I didn''t bother changing her Soul Beast from Inferno Bear to another animal. There were readers who were furious about this and accused me of ripping off Battle Frenzy, but honestly ever since I read about that particular character and her Soul Beast, I always imagined Ursa Major versus Inferno Bear. Since I couldn''t exactly just write a fanfiction and copy Inferno Bear, I had to come up with a "different" version that was still clearly a reference to the Inferno Bear.

    I mean, come on, wouldn''t you guys want to see which bear was stronger? Lilith''s Hellfire Bear or my Ursa Major? It was a bear versus bear battle! Even if you guys didn''t want to read about it, I still wanted to write a scene of monster bears wrestling with each other, thanks to my love of kaiju movies (just look at my penname ¨C Tanaka Tomoyuki is the creator of Godzilla!).

    "Stop breaking the fourth wall!" Lilith shouted. "And get back to fighting!"

    "As you wish, Miss Lilith."

    I darted toward her immediately, swinging my swords and unleashing another stream of ice that froze a path through the forest. Lilith blocked my attack with her flaming sword, melting the frost before it could reach her, and then countered with her torrent of flames that I dodged by spinning my body to one side. Even as I evaded, I didn''t pause in my approach and continued to close in on her. With my other sword, I tossed another storm of razor-sharp flower petals at her, which she incinerated with another burst of flames.

    If I was some Mary Sue protagonist in a winning streak and just couldn''t lose, I would use Shadow Steps to evade Lilith''s Inferno¡­I mean Hellfire Bear and attacked the summoner herself, thus ending the battle once and for all. It was widely known that the Soul Beast would disappear if you defeated the summoner.

    Hence the summoner was always such a high-priority target. The sooner you take her out, the better.

    The same went for me, of course. In any case, even though I was aware of the tactic, it was easier said than done. Earlier, before I summoned Ursa Major, if I had attempted to charge and attack Lilith, her Hellfire Bear would just swoop in and pulverize me to the ground. At the very least, it would draw my attention away from its summoner, forcing me to evade its attacks and engage it. A six-meter tall monster was not something you could simply ignore.

    Right now, with Ursa Major distracting the Hellfire Bear, I was free to attack Lilith and take out the summoner herself. However, the tactic was a double-edged sword. By directly engaging Lilith, I was also directly exposing myself to danger and putting myself at risk. The same solution that I employed against Lilith could also be applied to me. If Lilith took me out, Ursa Major would disappear along with my consciousness.

    Lilith was also aware of that, and she sprang forward to take me out. From her grim expression, it was obvious that she was hoping for a swift and decisive victory when her Hellfire Bear was summoned to the battlefield, but I had thwarted that scheme by bringing my own Ursa Major into play. With no other recourse, Lilith had to defeat me directly.

    Well, she was superior in terms of swordsmanship. So I couldn''t let my guard down.

    Away from us, the two bears continued to wrestle. Ursa Major shoved the Hellfire Bear back and raked his claws across the flaming bear''s chest, but the monstrous Soul Beast retaliated with an eruption of flames that scorched through the Constellation spirit''s armored fur. Despite the magical resistance and protection the fur afforded, Ursa Major still suffered severe burns.

    Undaunted, he continued to tackle and clawed at the Hellfire Bear, who slashed back. Blood sprayed across the clearing, almost drowning the grass in red fluid. Both monsters continued to slug it out, trading heavy blows that caused tremors. Quakes rippled throughout the forest, shaking birds and bugs loose as the two Soul Beasts continued to pummel each other senseless.

    Bellowing, the Hellfire Bear unleashed another inferno that bathed and immolated poor Ursa Major. Stumbling back and fuming, the Constellation spirit began to teeter backward. However, he gritted his teeth and stubbornly regained his footing, refusing to fall to his rival.

    The Hellfire Bear coldly delivered another slash, almost spearing Ursa Major in the chest. Flames rippled out of its paw and struck the suffering Constellation spirit, almost erasing him from existence, but he held on defiantly. Even though he was my creation, a figment of my imagination given form by infusing my mana into him, he still maintained some semblance of consciousness¡­of pride and desire. As Lilith explained earlier, these Soul Beasts were often reflections or shadows of our consciousness incorporating our own personalities and values into their own spiritual makeup.

    However, such emotions still weren''t enough. Ursa Major was slowly but surely succumbing to the Hellfire Bear''s overwhelming flames.

    Even so, I appreciated his refusal to go down without a fight. So I spared a single glance at him after deflecting Lilith''s sword to the side with Mo Ye and cleaving through her fire spell with Gan Jiang.

    "Ursa Major! Alioth!"

    Black flames exploded out from Ursa Major''s form and washed over the stunned Hellfire Bear, washing over it. The immense Soul Beast staggered back, grievously wounded by the flames, but it swatted the injured Ursa Major back, breaking through the black inferno and countering it with crimson flames of its own. Its mane seemed to rage even more furiously than ever, as if affronted by the unnatural fire that Ursa Major had sparked.

    Ursa Major replied with a paw to its face, a right hook that sent Hellfire Bear staggering again. Even as blood dripped from ugly wounds torn deep into its face, the Hellfire Bear snarled and straightened up. Diving forward, it drove both pairs of claws into Ursa Major''s chest and bodily lifted it up. The Constellation spirit flailed weakly and responded by slashing the back of the Hellfire Bear''s neck, but that supposed vulnerable spot was protected by the ferocious flaming mane that danced madly.

    With a triumphant bellow, Hellfire Bear finished off the limp Ursa Major with another eruption of hellfire, and the unfortunate Constellation spirit exploded into countless mana orbs that drifted randomly before dissipating. Crowing, Hellfire Bear turned toward me.

    "It''s over," Lilith told me coolly as she drove me off with another strike of her sword. "You''ve reached the end of your rope."

    "Hah!" I snorted. "Isn''t it too premature to be celebrating your victory?"

    Lilith narrowed her eyes, but didn''t reply. Instead, her Hellfire Bear came charging over. If I was Wang Zhong, I would just use Shadow Steps to completely evade all of Hellfire Bear''s attacks and then take Lilith out by surprise, but I wasn''t an invincible Mary Sue capable of mastering every weapon in existence, a genius who could solve some weird equation that a college professor and headmaster had problems solving, top in theory, yet was also unbeatable in practical battles and just never lost a single match in some weird OP system.

    So I had to do this the hard way.

    Flipping myself up and over the charging Hellfire Bear, I then took a deep breath and completed my next summoning spell. While the Hellfire Bear spun around to charge in my direction again, a gigantic whale that was several times larger than the poor Soul Beast materialized.

    "What the hell is that?!" Lilith demanded, her eyes going wide.

    I smiled. "Cetus. Mira!"

    Cetus obeyed and cast Mira immediately the moment I commanded him to.

    "?!"

    It wasn''t just Lilith, but even the Hellfire Bear was taken by surprise when Cetus charged right at it. Casting the spell I had commanded him to, Cetus left a tremendous trail of ice in his wake. Mira was an ice-type spell, after all, and was of a much greater magnitude than the ice spell I attempted to cast when imbuing Gan Jiang with Black Tortoise.

    In just a moment, the entire clearing was frozen. The section of the forest Lilith and I occupied as completely covered in ice, almost as if winter had come¡­or an ice age had taken over.

    Even the Hellfire Bear was not immune to this sudden change in climate. Despite its ferociously burning flames, the Hellfire Bear was unable to melt the enormous amount of ice that had entombed it and its surroundings. The superheated flames were still unable to put a dent in the extremely low temperatures that Mira had created, which was close to Absolute Zero.

    "How?!" Lilith demanded, shivering violently from the cold despite her desperate attempts to warm herself with her fire spells. She clutched her sword tightly and intensified the flames around her blade, to no avail.

    "How what?" I asked flippantly. She gritted her teeth and pointed her sword at me. Focusing her mana to the point of her blade, she unleashed a highly intensified heat beam that seared a clear path through the fog that resulted from the cold. The water vapor in the atmosphere had condensed from the low temperatures, and this time my infrared vision that was built into my glasses came in useful. Even so, despite being perfectly able to see the heat beam coming straight at me, I made no move to dodge it. Instead, I slashed it apart with Gan Jiang.

    "How is this possible?!" Lilith murmured, her confidence shaken. She then jolted upright when she heard something moving behind her. Glancing around, she caught sight of dark shapes darting through the dense white fog, but she was unable to see anything.

    "Earlier, you said that you like teddy bears, right?" I asked.

    "W¡­what about it?!" Lilith was desperately trying to clear the fog by casting several fire spells. Even as she did so, I was weaving my own complex spell, drawing enchantments and formulating a spiritual array. For now, I allowed her to recklessly expend her own mana. She was gradually raising the temperature and clearing the fog, but by the time she achieved her goal, I would have another nasty surprise awaiting her.

    I merely smiled and allowed my Constellation spirits to do the talking. Especially since the fog was inevitably becoming diminished, there was nowhere for them to hide. So they took the initiative and pounced on Lilith before she could fully clear the fog.

    "EH?!"

    Credit to the fire mage, she was able to incinerate a couple of my Constellation spirits with her flaming sword, but the rest of them fell upon her before she could follow up with a second spell or attack. The pack of cute Ursa Minor crashed onto her, sending her toppling onto the ground. As Lilith cried out, they began to mercilessly pummel her to the ground, pinning her sword down and piling on top of her. Before long, there was a mountain of deceptively cute teddy bear-like Constellation spirits weighing down on the helpless Lilith and beating her up.

    "What''s the matter?" I asked, amused at Lilith''s muffled shrieks. "I thought you like teddy bears."

    I thought she responded with some sort of angry retort, but I couldn''t catch it because it was drowned out by the noise my Ursa Minor were making, their fluffy paws smashing into her with the force of a three-ton truck. Normal monsters would have died from such devastating damage, never mind a human. Fortunately, Lilith had her protective magical aura and physical reinforcement spells to keep her alive, but even those wouldn''t be sufficient against the relentless onslaught from my horde of aggressive teddy bear type Constellation spirits.

    Pushing up my glasses as I turned away, I couldn''t help but smirk.

    "I hope you''re enjoying your¡­uh, bear hug."

 263 Chapter 263: Unbearable

    "Really now?" I moaned when I glanced upward and saw the title chapter. "You''re still going to make pun jokes about bears?"

    Before the author could reply, an eruption of flames incinerated a good chunk of the horde of Ursa Minor. I watched as the vermillion pillar of fire surge high into the heavens, breaking apart one of the clouds.

    "Huff¡­huff¡­"

    Lilith staggered out from underneath the huge heap of Ursa Minor, a good fraction of which were disappearing after having been hit by the superheated flames. Even so, they had done a lot of damage to their target. There were plenty of bruises and scrapes all around Lilith''s body from where the cuddly teddy bears had clobbered her with their fearsome strength and claws.

    "!!!"

    However, she found herself staring down my blazing arrow. I had summoned Orion and had Rigel notched onto my bow, pointing the blindingly illuminated projectile at her. Lilith understood at once that she had been defeated. I could shoot her anytime I wanted, and there was no way she could avoid it. Furthermore, she could sense from the tremendous amount of mana emanating from the arrow that it was going to be a devastating spell that could potentially kill her.

    "Hah~"

    Sighing, Lilith sheathed her sword and raised both of her hands up. She lowered her head meekly and glumly.

    "I surrender. This is my loss."

    "About time," I grumbled as I dismissed Orion. Then I glanced up at the spectators in the trees. "You heard her. You can stop watching now."

    Murmurs of disbelief rippled through the trees as student spectators frantically exchanged opinions and analyses. They couldn''t believe their eyes.

    "The Hellfire Bear Goddess¡­was defeated?!"

    "Not even Lilith''s summoning spell could stand up to that guy''s summoned Beasts?!"

    "Just who the hell is that guy?!"

    "I know him! Isn''t he the summoner who team-killed the entire Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy earlier this year?! The one who defeated the Invincible Goddess of War, Cecilia Stuart!?"

    "Oh my God¡­it really is him!"

    Even from down here, I could hear a lot of things I didn''t want to hear. Stupid rumors and groundless speculation. There was some useful tidbits of information mixed in as well, but I would have to filter them out later. what? I wasn''t some edge lord who condemned the whole world and wanted to be forever alone. Reality didn''t work out that way. I had to rely on others to survive. It was only natural.

    Plus my desire to keep a low profile took a hit. Come to think of it, I could have avoided the whole thing by refusing to battle against Lilith, but I was more interested in challenging myself, finding out her skills and techniques and in general, the thrill and exhilaration that combat brought. So even if my profile went up, I had no regrets. It was a good fight, and I had recorded the exchange in my glasses.

    My teammates would benefit a lot from watching this duel and analyzing Lilith''s skills and techniques. It sucked that other people could also see my techniques and the magic I used, but I would be na?ve if I thought I could keep my skills hidden throughout the entire duration of the Spiritual Road training camp.

    Furthermore, let''s be serious, Lilith wasn''t going to stop pursuing me just because I refused to fight. I would eventually be forced to fight her properly one day. I might as well get it done sooner than later.

    And now that this matter was settled, I could move on and continue with my original objective. To continue collecting information and intelligence on the other students in the Spiritual Road. Glancing at the trees where the spectators hid, I briefly wondered who I should follow. The reason why I tolerated their presence was because I had been doing the exact same thing the entire time. Whenever a fight broke out in the vicinity, I would conceal myself inside the forest and watch the combatants duke it out, even recording the fights on my glasses. So I had no right to condemn other people for doing the same thing I did.

    Of course, the difference was that I stayed quiet and didn''t talk to other people like what the spectators were doing right now, speculating, gossiping and chatting. Especially since everyone besides my teammates were strangers, I couldn''t carelessly trust them or talk to them. If it turned out to be an enemy¡­

    "You okay?" I asked, expressing concern for Lilith. I didn''t hurt her that badly, just enough to incapacitate her momentarily and to prove my point. It was a good thing she surrendered before I delivered the finishing blow, or I would be collecting her blood token from her near-corpse and forcibly teleporting her out of the Spiritual Realm for emergency medical treatment.

    "Yes." Lilith nodded, and as though she had just read my mind, her hand went to her pocket. "I suppose I should hand over my blood token to you."

    "No need." I raised my hand and stopped her before she could take out her blood token. "I don''t want your blood token."

    "¡­eh?"

    Lilith stared at me dumbly. It was understandable. Most of the students here were fighting in order to steal each other''s blood tokens and eliminate as much competition as possible. They saw this Spiritual Road as one gigantic competition where the strongest survived and the weak get culled.

    However, that wasn''t the way I viewed this Spiritual Road. Not only did I not buy all this "strong eat the weak" and "survival of the fittest" bullshit, my objective for the Spiritual Road differed. I was not aiming to reach the top but rather, to gather information and intelligence on the various opponents and rivals that Jing Tian Academy would be facing in the national tournament. In that way, Lilith was still useful to me. If she was still around, she was bound to challenge others, or others would inevitably challenge her, and I could watch their fight and collect even more information regarding more opponents. So rather than kick her out of the Spiritual Road for now, it would be more useful to keep her around to watch her fight other people.

    Furthermore, if I took her blood token right in front of everybody, it would mark me out as a huge target. Lilith was sure to have multiple blood tokens, given how she defeated other mages in the Spiritual Road before our fight. In the Spiritual Road, your rank was determined by the number of blood tokens you collected. In other words, the more you have, the higher you would be ranked. Conversely, it also meant that the more blood tokens you had, the bigger a target you would be. After all, it would be more efficient to gather blood tokens by targeting the people who had the largest number of blood tokens on their persons and take all of them in one fell swoop. In contrast, it would be a waste of time to target the poor guy who only had one blood token, and after witnessing me take down Lilith Porter, I was sure the majority of the people here would think that it wasn''t worth the trouble of fighting me just to take one blood token.

    Of course, none of them knew about the ten extra blood tokens I had collected from the deceased students after the battle with the Inferno Kong.

    "Are you serious?"

    Lilith was not privy to my thoughts, and she couldn''t believe what she was hearing. Nor did I intend to enlighten her about my motives.

    "Yeah. My goal is not to collect as many blood tokens as possible. I couldn''t care less about the rankings. Besides¡­" I gestured toward our hidden spectators. "If I take them, all those guys there will start hunting me. I would rather not put such a huge bullseye on my back."

    "Fair enough." Lilith nodded, convinced. She also saw the intelligence of making oneself as unappetizing a target as possible. "But I don''t feel right about this."

    "Oh, of course it''s not without any conditions." I smiled, and Lilith didn''t know whether she should be relieved or alarmed. She was instinctively crossing her arms in front of her chest, as if to defend herself. I didn''t know what she was imagining, and I didn''t want to know either. "I want you to promise that you won''t attack me again, at least for the duration of the Spiritual Road."

    "Done." Lilith nodded. "You''ve won against me in the Spiritual Road, and you have the right as the victor to demand that from me."

    "Bargained well and done," I said, mimicking a Mechwarrior from one of the clans, even though I very much preferred to be from the Draconis Combine. Yeah, the Draconis Combine, not the Capellan Confederation. You got a problem with that?

    After ensuring that Lilith wasn''t hurt too badly, and given how her friends were nearby to help in case a few of the spectators had the stupid idea to ambush us after we exhausted each other out in a match, I could leave without worry.

    "I''ll see you next time," I told her. She nodded.

    "Keep in touch."

    "¡­we were never in touch to begin with." I sighed and shook my head. "I mean, our dads are, but this is the first time we''ve actually met and talked to each other."

    "True." Lilith giggled. "I look forward to seeing you again." she then smiled and cut in before I could say anything. "I''m sure I''ll be seeing you in the exchange session at Vermillion Academy."

    I almost forgot about that. Maybe I would think of an excuse when the time came to escape the trip, but I was also aware that it wasn''t a bad idea to just go. I could see the edge lords complaining about me socializing, but establishing several connections, looking for alternative resources and gathering information on other academies (not just their magic but also their education curriculums and specialization programs) would also be a great idea.

    The more I thought about it, the better the idea sounded.

    "Yeah. I''ll be seeing you then."

    With that, I turned and left the clearing, disappearing into the shadows of the forest and melting away into the darkness.

    *

    "Damn it!''

    "Just fall already!"

    I watched as the two mages engaged each other aggressively, blasting spells at each other. The lightning mage charged forward, using high-speed maneuvers to avoid the floating boulders that his opponent hurled at him, and threw his hand to unleash a deadly web of electricity. The earth mage then conjured a barrier of rock in response, which was scorched black by the superheated lightning.

    The lightning mage continued, undeterred, weaving his way through the sandstorm that his opponent threw up. Blasting away sharp sand, he seemed to disappear into a blur before reappearing behind the earth mage. The huge guy spun around, wrapping his arm in armored rock that took the shape of a gauntlet, but the smaller, more agile lightning mage nimbly flipped himself up and over the rock gauntlet by placing a hand on its rough surface, and then kicked the earth mage in the head. Lightning exploded when his foot connected and the earth mage staggered.

    Grunting, the earth mage refused to fall and instead stomped on the ground. A huge earth spike burst out of the ground to impale the lighting mage, but he twisted his body in midair and then swung his lightning-wreathed hand to obliterate the earth spike. Even as shards of stone showered both parties, the two guys threw their fists at each other, one clad in hard, rocky gauntlet, and the other wreathed in deadly silver lightning.

    Boom!

    The resulting explosion sent tremors rippling across the ground. I peered at the battle, the lenses of my glasses briefly darkening to protect my eyes. The first to emerge from the smoke was the earth mage, his body fuming. He raised his head to glare at the electric explosion, snarling.

    However, lightning struck him in the place he least expected. Having disappeared into a blur and making use of his extreme speed, the lightning mage punched his opponent from behind. The earth mage bellowed as he was electrocuted, but he somehow withstood the lethal currents to turn around and retaliate. The lightning mage wasn''t stupid enough to wait for his opponent to counter, and he was already moving up. Placing both hands on the big guy''s rock gauntlet, he sprang up and over the astonished earth mage and then whirled around to kick him in the head. There was a snap and the earth mage tumbled forward, falling face-first into the dirt.

    Spinning in the air, the lightning mage descended upon his sprawled opponent. Clasping both hands, he completed the casting of another lightning spell and generated an immense ball of electricity. Swinging both hands down, he slammed his entwined fists into the earth mage''s spine and unleashed the tremendous amount of electricity.

    Everything vanished in a blinding explosion.

    "This is mine, I guess." The lightning mage smiled as he took the earth mage''s blood token. A few seconds later, the earth mage''s body shimmered, and then the unconscious guy completely vanished from sight.

    "Anyone else want to challenge me?" the lightning mage asked in a carefree manner as he directed his gaze toward the trees where the other spectators were concealed, and I was sure he also looked in my direction. When there was no response, he whistled mockingly and stalked off. There were a few enraged murmurs, but no one was stupid enough to rise to his provocation.

    After all, if they challenged him and lost, they would forfeit their blood tokens, and then they would be forced to exit the Spiritual Road. Unless they were confident of defeating the lightning mage, they had to suck up their indignity for now.

    "Lei Lie from Tian Rai Academy." I checked my glasses to ensure that I had the recording of the entire battle. This guy was sure to be a formidable foe in the upcoming national tournament. My team needed the video to analyze his skills and magic.

    While I was replaying the video in my glasses, the lenses projecting a holographic screen for me to review the recently transpired fight, the other spectators nosily left. As usual, they indulged in their speculation, gossip and rumors. I knew it was sometimes useful to eavesdrop on them, for some of the information they provided was actually pretty relevant.

    "Richard!"

    "WHOA!"

    I was so engrossed in watching the video that I didn''t notice Lilith sneaking up on me. Jolting up upright, I spun around and almost hit her with a reflexive iai. She also instinctively backed off, realizing that she had almost made a fatal mistake.

    "Lilith? What do you want?"

    My heart thumping, I lowered my hand from the hilt of my Gan Jiang. Lilith looked a little embarrassed, but I trusted her not to renege on our agreement. So far, she had stayed true to her word and stayed out of my way.

    Her sudden appearance now brought about a sense of foreboding.

    "Sorry for surprising you." Lilith hesitated for a moment before she took a deep breath. "Honestly, I know I don''t have the right to bother you, but I don''t have a choice. You''re the only one I can turn to right now. I need your help."

 264 Chapter 264: Spiritual Sain

    "No, you don''t," I replied irritably. "What happened to your friends? Your teammates from Vermillion Academy?"

    Unlike me, Lilith was able to meet up with her friends and stick together with them. Apparently they had reunited sometime during the three days when she was chasing me, but she had insisted on pursuing me, so they just kept their distance and allowed her to. After I had defeated her, I had seen her going back to her team, and enjoyed a few days of solace.

    ¡­until today.

    "They''ve been wiped out." Lilith looked extremely pale. She glanced behind her, as if watching out for somebody, and then turned back to me with a shake of her head. Tears welled up in her eyes. "I couldn''t save any of them."

    "W¡­wait, what? What''s going on?" I scowled, completely bewildered. "Start from the beginning. Wiped out by who? Save them from who?"

    As if to answer my question, a flock of birds flapped their wings and fled a deeper part of the forest. The both of us turned to watch them, and I could see the trees swaying in the distance.

    "Somebody''s coming," I muttered, picking up a dense aura of killing intent. These guys meant business. No wonder Lilith said her friends were wiped out. These guys evidently had no intention of showing any mercy.

    "It''s them!" Lilith hissed angrily.

    "Who is ''them''?" I asked dryly. Pushing up my glasses, I had my lenses sharpen and enhance my vision, and I spotted a group of mages hiding inside the vegetation. They were all wearing black ninja costumes. I tried not to burst out laughing at their ridiculous outfit, even as I recalled who they were. "Oh, those ninja guys again."

    The same ones who were attacking Lilith when I first met her. Except that this time, they had called a ton of friends to come with them.

    "What the hell?! There''s at least thirty of them, and they have surrounded us." my face contorted in confusion. "I''m pretty sure there''s a limit to the number of students from each school who can participate in this."

    "They are not all from the same school," Lilith informed me in a chilling tone. "They''ve infiltrated various schools, most likely for some kind of sinister motive, and now they''ve decided to gather in their original group."

    "Sinister motive? I hope it''s not something as ridiculous as wanting to capture you."

    "No, I''m just a minor target¡­a tertiary objective. Their leader, Ji Xuan, is just abusing his authority and position to order his subordinates to capture me for his own selfish desires. But they are going along with it because he promised them their own women."

    "Oh, yeah. I''ve been meaning to ask you who the hell this Ji Xuan is the entire time." Honestly, I had completely forgotten about him, or couldn''t care less because he had absolutely nothing to do with me. Unfortunately, it seemed that I had been dragged into this mess, but I certainly couldn''t just leave Lilith alone in this sort of situation. I had seen what kind of people these lackeys of Ji Xuan were. They were horrible bastards with rape on their mind.

    "Ji Xuan is¡­the Spiritual Saint. One of the most promising youngsters who participated in this Spiritual Road training camp."

    The both of us were already running. There were far too many of them for the two of us to fight. Even Ip Man wouldn''t be able to defeat thirty Black Belts coming at him all at once. It sucked, but we had to retreat.

    Perhaps I could summon my Constellation spirits, but even they would be dragged down by the sheer numbers eventually. I had no choice but to retreat with Lilith. Come to think of it¡­

    "When you asked me for help, I don''t suppose you''re asking me to fight and defeat all of those guys, are you?"

    "Of course not. Even I''m not that unreasonable."

    So she did recognize that she was unreasonable. Good girl. Recognizing one of your flaws was the first step to growing as a character.

    "What do you suggest we do then?" I asked while we burst into a clearing. Before Lilith could reply, a bunch of the ninja dudes appeared right in front of us. A splinter group who had gone ahead to cut off our line of retreat and enclose us in a trap.

    No choice. It seemed like I had to fight them here and now.

    Summoning Gemini, I charged at the nearest guy and knocked him away with a slash. He managed to parry them both, but I unleashed twin waves of black and white mana to blast him aside. Spinning around, I kicked a second ninja who sought to ambush me, my foot catching him in the neck and sending him toppling to the ground.

    "Go on ahead!" I instructed Lilith, who had drawn her crimson sword and set parts of the clearing ablaze. "I''ll hold these guys off!"

    Their target was Lilith, so I doubted they would waste too much time and energy on me. The best I could do was delay a few of them as long as possible while Lilith attempted her escape.

    A third ninja came at me and I parried his short sword with my twin swords, twirling them around and exchanging a few blow with him. This time, my opponent was good. I tried to cast Castor and Pollux again, but he flipped back and cleaved them apart before kicking off the ground and slicing at me. Several wind blades buffeted me, but I spun Castor and Pollux around to cut them apart before they could flay the skin off me.

    A fourth ninja tried to attack me from behind, but Lilith countered with a strike before he could stab me in the back. As she knocked him away, another ninja descended upon her, but she merely reversed the grip of her crimson sword and stabbed him in the chest. The guy went down with a grunt.

    By now, I had managed to shake off the wind ninja, and threw both Gemini twin swords into the air. Spinning rapidly, they cut through a couple of unsuspecting ninjas, and they both went down, clutching their bleeding necks. The wind guy cast another spell to bombard me with wind blades, but I summoned Scutum Sobiescianum to defend myself. Moving the Constellation shield aside, I summoned Orion and unleashed a hail of azure arrows upon the group and forcibly paving a path.

    "Go, go, go!" I yelled at Lilith.

    That was the plan, but she was currently engaging a ninja who was bombarding her with a few hundred daggers. Um¡­they were a bit too small to be daggers, so throwing knives, I guess? Whatever they were, I could see a storm of silver raining upon Lilith, each relatively small blade crackling with electricity.

    Taking a deep breath, Lilith conjured an immense inferno that formed a firewall between her and the deadly projectiles. Spinning her sword, she cut down whatever knives that managed to penetrate her fiery barrier, while her defensive spell incinerated the rest.

    "Hmph."

    Her assailant was not limited to just throwing countless knives at his opponent, however. Several of the throwing knives abruptly twisted around and altered their trajectories, flying past Lilith''s barrier and spinning about to strike her from behind. I jumped forward and shot them down with a couple of arrows, but the wind guy came back for more. instinctively, I dove to the ground and rolled away as massive, almost invisible wind blades, struck into the place where I had been occupying, tearing out great furrows in the earth.

    While I was preoccupied with dodging, one of the knives managed to shift direction and sliced deeply into Lilith''s arm.

    "AAAH!"

    She cried out and staggered forward, and a few other knives managed to stab her in her body, but fortunately didn''t hit anything vital. Gritting her teeth, Lilith tore the knives out of her body and flung them side, then fell to her knees as the deadly electricity coursed through her. Fortunately, her innate magical resistance protected her from death, but she wasn''t able to prevent herself from being paralyzed by those stun-type spells.

    "Lilith!"

    While Lilith was on her knees, one of the ninjas descended in front of her and pointed his sword at her neck. She gasped, but glared at him defiantly, despite knowing that she had no way of resisting him.

    "The both of you," the ninja dude drawled. "Don''t even think of getting away."

    As if to prove his point, the rest of the ninjas dropped down around us, encircling the both of us. The wind dude cocked his head at me, and I reluctantly lowered my bow, dismissing it even. A few of the ninjas were readying their throwing knives, preparing to throw them at me if I so much as twitch.

    Whatever.

    "The Spiritual Road is now completely controlled by Ji Xuan," the ninja dude with the sword sneered as he continued to wave his weapon threateningly at Lilith. "Nobody will save you."

    If he expected me to buy that bullshit, he would sadly be disappointed. I was sure my friends, at the very least, wouldn''t follow. Not unless they had already been eliminated, but I trusted them enough to know they wouldn''t fall so easily.

    But saying all that was meaningless, not when they had us cornered. Or at least it seemed that they had us cornered. However, I knew Lilith well enough ¨C she would have a plan to get her out of this. And she was counting on me as well.

    That was the reason why she approached me for help in the first place.

    All we needed was to buy a bit of time. Since time was the one thing that summoners needed the most. Besides the mana required to cast the summoning spell and maintain the Soul Beasts'' existence, of course.

    "You want my blood token or something?" I asked, moving my hand toward my pocket. "If I give you my blood token, you''ll let Lilith go?"

    "Don''t be absurd. What can so many of us do with your one blood token?" the guy evidently had no idea that I actually had eleven blood tokens on me. Still not enough to share amongst themselves, but I wasn''t going to tell him that. "No. Ji Xuan has already ordered that you, Richard Huang, must die here today."

    "Huh?" my jaw dropped. "Why?"

    "Who knows? Ji Xuan probably sees you as a threat¡­a romantic rival for Lilith, I suppose? If he wants Lilith for himself, of course he''ll want to eliminate you."

    Then they ignored me. A few of them were approaching Lilith with lecherous expressions.

    "Hey, brothers. What do you say about us having some fun with her?"

    "Good idea. Everyone, let''s enjoy ourselves before we hand her over to Ji Xuan."

    "It''ll be a waste to not take advantage of such a beauty."

    "Seriously?" I snorted and somehow managed to draw their attention back to me, focusing on the guy who told me of Ji Xuan''s order. "That''s not the reason. I''ll tell you the real reason." I began jabbing my finger at each and every one of them. "It''s simply because you''re all one-dimensional villains from a third-rate cultivation novel who exists solely to justify the protagonist murdering them. You''re deliberately created to be as flat and despicable as possible because you''re just forgettable two-bit characters who will never appear again in the story. So your minds are filled with nothing but murder and rape so that I can justify myself in killing you guys."

    "¡­huh?"

    They all gaped at me.

    "Who the fuck are you calling one-dimensional villains?!"

    "Who the hell is forgettable?!"

    "What do you mean by our minds are filled with nothing but murder and rape!?"

    "Are you seriously asking me that question?" I buried my face in my palm. "Or are you lacking in self-awareness? You''re trying to murder me for no reason other than because some idiot who deludes himself into thinking he''s a bigshot asked you to, and you''re trying to rape a girl here, and you still don''t understand that is villainous behavior? And ever since you guys showed up in the story, have you actually done anything significant that isn''t attempted murder or attempted rape? And you claim that your minds aren''t filled with nothing but murder and rape? That has to be the greatest bullshit I''ve ever heard in my life."

    "SHUT UP!"

    "Oh, I''ve touched a nerve, eh?"

    "WE TOLD YOU TO SHUT UP!"

    All at once, the ninjas threw their knives, kunai, shuriken and daggers at me. I rolled my eyes and completed a single spell. A chibi Black Tortoise appeared over my shoulder, even as I drew Gan Jiang. Azure mana rippled through the length of my blade, and I stabbed it to the ground to erect an ice fortress that surrounded me.

    The ninja weapons all struck the frost barrier and bounced off harmlessly.

    "You¡­! If you don''t surrender, we''ll kill your girl!"

    "She''s not my girl, and you don''t have the ability to kill her anyway."

    "Huh?" the sword ninja snarled, and then he thrust his sword forward at Lilith''s neck, but by now she had suppressed the electricity that had been paralyzing her body and picked up her crimson sword to deflect it to the side. Looking up, she smiled.

    "You guys have given me too much time."

    "?!"

    A fiery meteor descended upon the battlefield, and an explosion rocked the clearing while gouging out a crater from the earth. A dozen ninjas were scorched by the sudden arrival of Lilith''s Hellfire Bear, a few of the immolated ninjas screaming as they rolled around on the ground desperately to put out the flames. The rest of the ninjas spread out immediately as they faced the ferocious Hellfire Bear, while a few of the blackened ones managed to pick themselves up.

    "The Hellfire Bear¡­!"

    "She summoned it!"

    "Don''t worry!" the guy with the sword shouted. "It''s just one Soul Beast! If we work together, we will surely be able to overcome it!"

    "Oh? Then what happens if you have to face two Soul Beasts?" I asked, an amused smirk on my face.

    As if on cue, Vermillion Phoenix erupted from the heavens and descended, bathing the entire clearing in superheated flames.

 265 Chapter 265: Retrea

    The poor ninjas were all forced to dive for cover or risk getting incinerated by the newly appeared Vermillion Phoenix. While they were distracted, Lilith and I took advantage of the inferno that had now consumed the whole of the clearing and used it to cover our escape. Summoning Cygnus and Pegasus, I jumped atop the white swan while gesturing for Lilith to ride the winged horse. The silver-blond fire mage did not hesitate, vaulting over a fallen, charred tree trunk to hop onto Pegasus and rode him as naturally as if she had been riding horses for years.

    Knowing the Porter clan and how they were one of the ten great families, I wouldn''t be surprised if she had indeed been trained in such luxurious activities. Yeah, only the rich could dream of doing something as niche as horse-riding. As for me, I had a horrible experience riding Pegasus every single time, back when I was following Dad to the mountains outside Sakha City, and when I was trying to rescue Lilith earlier during the Spiritual Road training camp. Despite the discomfort, I went and summoned Pegasus because firstly, I had to do the mandatory "summon a new Constellation spirit thing" (got to summon them all!) and secondly, because one of my readers really, really wanted to see Pegasus show up because he was his favorite Constellation or something. I was obligated to respond to the requests of readers, so I threw in a cameo. Well¡­actually, I had Pegasus show up outside Sakha City before the request was ever made, but I decided to have him show up a couple more times after that because of the reader.

    Anyway, the point was that, without training and whatever, I wasn''t used to riding a horse and it felt extremely uncomfortable for me. Not to mention, it was a little embarrassing how I almost mishandled Pegasus. I was better off riding on Cygnus where I didn''t need to learn the necessary horse-riding skills that so many nobles practiced during their excessive free time.

    "Don''t let them get away!"

    "Fuck!"

    "AAAAARGH!"

    Even though they were desperately trying to pursue us, Lilith''s Hellfire Bear and my Vermillion Phoenix covered our retreat, bathing the pursuers in superheated flames. A couple of them were roasted alive, their skin blackening and their flesh melting right off, and the rest wisely backed off. Vermillion Phoenix then soared after us, while the Hellfire Bear dropped onto its haunches and ran on all fours to keep up with its mistress. We weren''t going to dismiss them just yet because they were vital to covering our retreat.

    And then¡­we were gone. Just like that. Leaving the ninjas far behind, the poor dudes gagging and coughing on the smoke (if they would only succumb to smoke inhalation, but that was probably asking for too much), we plunged deeper into the forest. A few monsters raised their heads and snarled, a few getting ready to pounce on us, but either the Hellfire Bear almost casually batted them aside with its flaming paw or my Vermillion Phoenix incinerated them with a single flap of his wings. The other monsters cleverly retreated and got out of our way when they realized they were outmatched by the immense Soul Beasts.

    "I''ve always been meaning to ask you." Lilith was leaning forward as she rode Pegasus hard, but she glanced up at me. "Did your father teach you to summon that Vermillion Phoenix?"

    "No."

    "¡­interesting. You do realize that the Vermillion Phoenix is the symbol and mascot for the Porter clan, right?"

    "Not at all." Maybe I was vaguely aware of it, especially after Dad''s super-long flashback arc, but I honestly couldn''t care less. I only cared about being able to summon the four Celestial Guardians. Well, five, but I had yet to find a way to fit the fifth and last Celestial Guardian in, especially when I considered that he didn''t have a constellation like the other four. For your information, only the four Celestial Guardians ¨C Vermillion Phoenix of the South, Black Tortoise of the North, White Tiger of the West, and Green Dragon of the East ¨C had constellations dedicated to them. Unfortunately, the Golden Kirin of the Center was less well-known and often neglected. For the sake of the Five Elements principle, he was often added as the Celestial Guardian that embodied Earth, but otherwise he wasn''t really considered as one of the Celestial Guardians for the purpose of Constellations.

    That made it so much more difficult for me to conceive and summon him. Like I said before, even if summoning was imagination-based, it was not as omnipotent, imbalanced or broken as people perceived it to be. I couldn''t simply imagine something and expect to summon it. There were a lot of limitations built into the system, otherwise everyone would become a summoner if the system was that open to abuse. I couldn''t simply go, "hey, I want a healing Soul Beast!" and then summon a Soul Beast capable of casting healing spells. The Soul Beasts I created and conceived were entirely dependent on the magic I was capable of casting.

    That was why I spent a year or so to master the summoning spells of all four Celestial Guardians ¨C it wasn''t simply to create them, it was also to learn the basic five elements necessary to pave the foundation to summoning them. Readers erroneously thought I spend a year and ninety-nine matches losing despite already being able to summon all four Celestial Guardians, but they were mistaken. I only managed to finally master the summoning of those four near the end of the year, after I already lost eighty or so matches.

    "Your Green Dragon too¡­that''s the symbol and mascot of the Stuart clan. And your techniques are very similar to the swordsmanship used by Cecilia and her father. How are you able to learn the method of summoning the four Celestial Beasts that are supposedly the representatives of four of the ten Great Families?"

    "Lady, anyone can learn how to summon them. Just read the book, The Celestial Creatures and how to summon them, written by Huang Zhan Ming. I borrowed it from my school library. Anyone can pick it up and learn how to summon the Celestial Guardians. In fact, your family and the other clans probably based your inherited techniques on these traditional concepts, but chose to specialize on a single element and its corresponding Celestial Guardian, and took that magic to the utmost pinnacle. You don''t monopolize the Celestial Guardians, you only hold the right to claim that you''re the ones capable of summoning the most powerful versions, and the family of mages who are the strongest in their respective elemental field. I can guarantee you that my Vermillion Phoenix is probably a lot weaker than your family''s version of Vermillion Phoenix, especially since I diluted my elemental spells by broadening out and learning only the basic ones."

    That was the weakness of lacking a specialization. I was pretty much a jack of all trades and a master of none. Quantity over quality. Against a true master, I would find myself far more inferior. The only thing I had going for me was my versatility and flexibility. And no, please don''t make any Versatile Mage jokes. I guarantee that I was nowhere as strong as Mo Fan, who could master each and every of his elements to their peaks despite having so many of them.

    It sucked, but that was reality. I wasn''t a genius. Then again, it was precisely because I wasn''t a genius that I had to find some way of competing with them. If I couldn''t measure up to them in their respective elemental fields, then I would just outnumber them by having access to more elements than them!

    Or that was my reasoning anyway.

    I wasn''t sure if Lilith bought my explanation, but I couldn''t care less if she believed me or not. It was not my job to persuade her. Fortunately, she didn''t argue and had chosen to fall silent. That made my life easier.

    We rode on in silence for a few more minutes, and then Lilith suddenly perked up.

    "They''re coming. A small group of them¡­maybe five."

    That made sense. The fastest ones would have gone ahead of the group and catch up with us. They specialized in speed and tracking, after all.

    It also meant that this was an opportunity to shake off our pursuers and throw them off our trail. If we got rid of these guys and then made our escape, the main body of the group wouldn''t be able to track us. They would just find their defeated comrades while having no way to track us down. Actually, they wouldn''t even find their defeated comrades¡­because I would be taking their blood tokens and forcibly teleporting them out of the Spiritual Road.

    "What is it?" Lilith asked, noticing my grin. I turned toward her with a smirk and pushed my glasses up, the lenses gleaming sinisterly.

    "I have a plan."

    *

    The five ninjas burst into the clearing, and despite sprinting nonstop at incredible speeds, they showed no sign of exhaustion or breathlessness. With their physical reinforcement spells and Spartan training, they were capable of running at top speed for hours on end.

    They would have been a truly annoying foe if I didn''t come up with the proper countermeasures.

    "Where did they go?" one of the ninjas demanded as he glanced around. The trail had ended here, and their senses had informed them that we had stopped here. They had also seen my Cygnus and Vermillion Phoenix descend into this clearing, and the fires flickering out naturally. Even so, they could detect our mana signatures here.

    But we were nowhere to be seen.

    "Fuck! How did we lose them?!"

    "This isn''t possible! They have to be around here somewhere!"

    "Shut up!" the leader snapped at them. As expected of someone of his position, he was the calmest and most composed. "All of you, spread out immediately and begin searching! They can''t be far from here! They should have left tracks behind!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    The four subordinates immediately obeyed and dispersed to search the area. The leader followed shortly, stepping into the clearing and cautiously looking around. Being one of the brightest of his generation, he wasn''t stupid. The hair on the back of his neck was standing and he had a niggling suspicion that his scout team was walking straight into a trap.

    "Be careful!" he ordered, a tad hastily. "If you sense anything wrong, pull back immediately!"

    "Understood!"

    Satisfied, the leader took another step forward. He knelt down to survey the ground, looking for any signs that Lilith and I might have left behind.

    Then I sprang the trap.

    "!!!!"

    All five ninjas, credit to them, moved reflexively and jumped back when they sensed a shift in the air. However, it was too late. They had strode right into the trap I had prepared for them.

    Garrote wires wrapped around them, entangling them and slicing deeply into their skin. Almost like a massive net, the thin, almost invisible wires closed in on them, tying them up in a bundle and sent blood splashing across the ground. It was only because of their physical reinforcement spells that they weren''t cut into pieces the moment I sprang my ambush.

    "Fuck!"

    The leader, being the most cautious of them and also the one who was at the edge, was somehow able to escape. He cast his spell, which was a terrible typhoon that forcibly tossed the garrote wires off him. He seized the opportunity to dive out of the trap without any hesitation and rolled away to a safe distance.

    "Help!"

    The leader helplessly glanced up at the cry of his comrades and saw that they were being crushed and gradually cut apart by the tightening garrote wires. Mana exploded around him as he rose to his feet and bellowed.

    "WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!"

    "Here." I stepped out of my hiding place, Lyra in my hand. The golden harp gleamed brilliantly, the thousands of strands of razor-sharp wires trailing from it. With a twitch of my fingers, I increased the pressure, and despite their physical reinforcement spells and protective magical aura, the four subordinates shrieked in pain as the cuts got deeper and almost reached to the bone.

    "Let them go!" Even as he yelled that, the leader knew the most effective way of freeing his subordinates was to eliminate me and he lunged forward while drawing his glowing combat knives. Wind blades sailed across the clearing to strike me, but Scutum Sobiescianum materialized in front of me to deflect the deadly spells.

    The leader scowled as he closed the distance between us, his eyes narrowed murderously and vengefully.

    "Don''t think you can hide behind that shield of yours!"

    I merely smiled. "I don''t have to."

    "?!"

    Lilith descended upon him, crashing upon the poor ninja scout leader and smashing him onto the ground. Even before the wind was completely knocked out of her victim, she stabbed downward with her flaming sword and pinned him to the ground.

    "ARGH!"

    The poor ninja scout leader hollered in pain and thrashed around desperately, but Lilith firmly held him to the ground.

    "Let''s not waste any time," I told her, and she nodded. While I approached my poor victims, who were completely immobilized and incapacitated by Lyra''s wires, Lilith fished the ninja scout leader''s blood token out of his pocket. I did the same, snaking my hand through the gaps between my Lyra''s garrote wires and feeling their pockets.

    Fortunately, it didn''t take me long to locate all four blood tokens and requisition them. Stepping back, Lilith and I watched as all five ninja scouts disappeared from sight, forcibly teleported out of the Spiritual Road. They were left with grievous injuries, but at least their lives were intact. There was nothing that couldn''t be fixed with a couple of healing spells. Probably the injury to their pride and egos would require some other type of treatment, but that was none of my business.

    I nodded at Lilith, a broad smile spreading across my face.

    "Let''s get out of here before the rest of their group catches up."

    "Roger that."

    With that, the both of us disappeared from the clearing, and did our best not to leave any tracks behind.

 266 Chapter 266: Hit and Run

    "There''s way too many of them for us to fight head-on," I was saying the next morning while jabbing at a holographic screen projected from my glasses to emphasize my point. "Even if we include the 5 scouts we took out yesterday, and the casualties they suffered during our retreat, there are still at least 20 of them. And we haven''t accounted for the possibility that they would swell their numbers with reinforcements."

    "That Ji Xuan really has his tentacles sunk in everywhere across the Federation. I can''t believe so many schools were sheltering his lackeys." Lilith huffed angrily. Then she frowned. "There are rumors that he has ties to the Assassin Guild¡­"

    I narrowed my eyes at that. The Assassin Guild again. Come to think of it, those ninja-like dudes were pretty similar to the amateur assassin trainees that I had come across. The connection made some sense, but it felt ridiculous that someone who called himself the "Spiritual Saint" would have any ties to an underground organization like the Assassin Guild. Then again, maybe the title "Spiritual Saint" was something other people gave him.

    However, it made sense that he was able to mobilize them under one banner and for a single goal ¨C because they were all from the Assassins Guild to begin with.

    "In any case, what do we do?" Lilith asked with a frown. "We can''t run away from them forever. They''re still hunting us. At this rate, they''ll corner us before long and we''ll be forced to fight them head-on regardless of what you say."

    "No, we won''t." A smile was creeping across my face. Lilith shuddered when she saw my insidious expression.

    "Why not? What are you scheming?"

    "You''ve never heard of guerilla warfare?" I pushed my glasses up my nose. Since this was like a thousand years into the future, the history the people of this period learned was very different from the history that I had learned.

    First, the Chinese Communist Party, despite the odds, managed to defeat the Nationalist Kuomintang despite the latter having better trained troops, more technologically advanced equipment, wealthier funds and foreign support. They did that by recruiting the farmers and launching guerilla strikes against the Kuomintang troops, hitting them when they least expected before melting into the forests and withdrawing before the superior forces could retaliate.

    It wasn''t just the Chinese Communist Party. The Vietnamese, particularly the Vietcong, were able to drive a militarily superior force from the United States out of their country (granted, politics and other reasons also forced President Lyndon Johnson''s hand), but prior to that, Viet Minh guerilla forces defeated their French enemies in the war for their independence shortly after World War II.

    When used properly, guerilla tactics could prove to be extremely effective against superior opponents, even if they outnumbered us or had better equipment, weapons and technology. Or in this case, magic.

    Of course, I didn''t give Lilith an entire lecture on history because she had no interest in it other than how it was relevant to our current predicament. Fortunately, she was intelligent enough to understand the reasoning behind my plan.

    "That does seem to be the most logical course of action," she agreed with a nod. "If we can take out isolated units, we''ll be able to gradually chip away at them and finally wear them down. Especially since they won''t be able to receive reinforcements and replenish their numbers from outside the Spiritual Road."

    "That''s right." I was glad that she saw the wisdom of my suggestion. "The only unknown factor for us is how many Assassins or whoever this Ji Xuan has under him. But it''s unrealistic to think that he will commit his entire force just to chase and capture you. He must have other goals¡­"

    "It''s probably regarding my status as the Holy Maiden of the Porter Clan." Lilith paused for a moment, chewing on her lip. "Political marriage¡­and I heard rumors of some sort of¡­ritual. I don''t know the details, but apparently they need me specifically for some sort of spell."

    For some reason I thought of the spirit contract that Dad told me about, the one that required the sacrifice of someone dear to you in order to bind a spirit from another dimension into this world, in exchange for tremendous power. Surely, it couldn''t be¡­

    Well, there was no use speculating and over-thinking things. For now, I decided to focus on the present and do my best to ensure the situation wouldn''t lead to that.

    "Anyway, that''s a good idea you have, but¡­" Lilith had also chosen not to dwell on the rumors. "Even though you say guerilla warfare, what are we supposed to do, concretely?"

    I grinned. "How about I demonstrate it to you right now?"

    *

    The ninja dudes appeared to like moving out in groups of five. While I certainly couldn''t take on twenty to thirty of them at once, even with Lilith''s help, five was a manageable number. The odds of two against five were something I would take any time over two against twenty or thirty. After all, I was the guy who defeated ten mages by myself.

    Okay, admittedly that was just me wanting to rip off Ip Man or Donnie Yen, and these guys were probably much more skilled than the poor mages I defeated during the qualifier rounds for this Spiritual Road training camp. So there wouldn''t be any more "I want ten!" scenes. Not to mention, ripping it off once was funny, but doing it too many times would just get annoying. Repetitive jokes got stale and old really fast.

    Anyway, Lilith and I stood by somewhere and watched the five. Given their skills, they should be able to locate us really soon, but I had planned to ambush them before they found us. It was all a question of timing.

    "Are you sure they''ll be in this area?" one of the ninjas complained. His leader spared him a glare.

    "Sure as sure. If you got a better idea, out with it."

    The guy shut up after that, his face flushing red.

    They continued to comb through the forest, leaving no stone unturned. One of them stopped at a tree and frowned when he found some tracks.

    "There''s a footprint here! Human¡­it might belong to the two of them!"

    "Really?" the leader sounded skeptical. "Don''t forget that there are plenty of other students in the Spiritual Road besides those two. Make sure they belong to either of the two we are pursuing. Otherwise don''t waste our time!"

    "Sorry, sir!" the guy leaned down and poked the print that Lilith had deliberately left. He closed his eyes and used his magical senses, savoring the sensation for a few seconds before he finally opened his eyes and raised his head. Smiling triumphantly, he rose to his feet. "The mana signature matches that of Lilith Porter''s! And it''s recent too! She can''t be far!"

    "You''re right. I''m right here."

    "¡­eh?"

    All five dudes looked up, only to see a screaming fiery meteor descend upon them. Lilith''s Hellfire Bear materialized and crashed onto them, crushing two screaming ninjas before they could escape. The other three succeeded in dodging, but just barely.

    "Fuck!" the leader swore angrily as he tried to roll to his feet. He parried the Hellfire Bear''s claws when it swiped at him, and was flung across the forest. He crashed into a tree, splintering the trunk and uprooting it. "Kuh!"

    Wiping the blood from his mouth, he tried to look for his surviving subordinates, but he caught sight of the two of them being mauled by a pack of Leo Minor. They were desperately flinging spells at the Constellation spirits and screaming. The lions nimbly dodged the fire and earth spells while slashing at them.

    "You¡­!"

    Hollering in fury, the leader cast his own spell and imbued his arms with what seemed like gigantic claws. Throwing his arm out, he unleashed three surges of sharp mana that scythed across the air and cut through the grass and trees. The pride of Leo Minor were forced to dodge, but one of them was cleaved apart by the razor-sharp spell.

    "Tiger Claws!"

    The leader lunged forward, both of his arms wreathed in deadly mana. The maelstrom of energies washed over another unfortunate Leo Minor, ripping him to shreds, while the rest ducked. The Hellfire Bear turned to face him, and bellowed as his intense energies ripped a bloody swathe through its protective fiery fur.

    "I don''t care what you are, I''ll destroy you!"

    The leader barreled into the Hellfire Bear, tearing into it. The immense Soul Beast roared in agony and swiped at him, but he agilely dodged it while retaliating with another slash into its face.

    "He''s really skilled," Lilith muttered, impressed. I nodded detachedly, but I was more concerned with the amount of time we had left. Any moment now Ji Xuan or one of the higher-ups would be demanding a report, and realize something was amiss when they couldn''t contact this particular team. Not to mention he would just inform them of our ambush and give our position away.

    I needed to finish him off as quickly as I could.

    "Leo, Regulus."

    "?!"

    A golden pillar of light surged forward and slammed into the ninja leader. He cried out before he was sent hurtling across the forest, crashing headfirst into a tree. Before he could even get up from under the broken, splintered trunk, Leo pounced on him, pinning him to the ground with a huge paw. His claws dug deeply into the poor ninja leader''s back, drawing blood.

    "Ugh¡­"

    The guy heaved and struggled, to no avail. Even as his mana swirled around him and he attempted to break free by slashing Leo with his Tiger Claws, the lion was protected by a sturdy aura reminiscent of the Nemean Lion''s armored fur. He didn''t receive any damage at all.

    Croaking and gasping, he forcibly turned his head to see what happened to his subordinates. They were already fading away, after their blood tokens were sequestered by me and Lilith. Swearing under his breath, he glared at me defiantly.

    "You won''t get away with this!"

    I snorted. "Making me sound like the villain now, are you? You and your friends are the ones trying to murder me. You and your friends are the ones attempting to rape Lilith. We''re just defending ourselves, and we even held back so as to not kill you guys, yet you''re acting as if I''m the villain and I won''t get away with it? Get away with what? Self-defense? Protecting myself from your assault? Are you an absolute moron?"

    The guy went still and at least had the temerity to look embarrassed and ashamed of himself.

    "We never intended to murder you," he finally admitted. "That was just us talking big. We would just have beaten you up and taken your blood token, but none of us ever actually thought of killing you. We''re not stupid enough to commit such a blatant crime under the noses of the Federation."

    That much was true, I knew. Kids always loved to exaggerate and make threats like "I''ll kill you!" But nobody actually goes through with that. Seriously, did you guys really not go through school hearing guys make all these empty threats, but nothing worse than an altercation or a fight happened and nobody died?

    Not to mention, the Federation was monitoring the entire training camp from outside the Spiritual Road. Unless the students wanted to be disqualified and arrested for murder, they weren''t stupid enough to actually kill anyone inside the Spiritual Road. You all probably remember what happened to Mu Chen when he was forced to kill a bunch of people in the Spiritual Road after being led to a trap by Ji Xuan. Well, here we actually had modern rules governing us, and the perpetuators wouldn''t be let off with a simple disqualification. There would be an enquiry, an investigation, and the culprits would be sentenced to death. Or at the very least, life imprisonment.

    "I know. That''s why I''m not going to kill you. But you have to be really deluded if you think I''m just going to stand there and let you guys beat me up without fighting back." At my mental command, Leo sank his claws deeper into the poor dude''s back, causing him to writhe and moan audibly in agony. Crouching, I then took the blood token from him. "Thanks for this."

    "You won''t be able to defeat Ji Xuan!" the ninja leader shouted. "He''ll utterly destroy you!"

    "Then I''ll do my best to avoid him," I replied with a smile. "Just like how I''ve eluded you guys this entire time."

    The dude howled in frustration before he disappeared, forcibly teleported out of the Spiritual Road. Rising back up, I turned to Lilith.

    "All right. Let us get out of here before their comrades notice something is wrong and send some people to check on these guys."

    Just like incorporeal phantoms, the both of us melted away into the shadows and disappeared without a trace. By the time the ninjas'' friends arrived, there was no sign that either of us had ever been here.

 267 Chapter 267: Guerilla Warfare

    "What do you mean we lost contact with Shi Bai''s group?!"

    Ji Xuan slammed his fist against a nearby tree in frustration, splintering the bark and causing the poor thing to waver. Fortunately, it didn''t topple over from his punch, but there was a faint groan that almost seemed to express its agony.

    "Exactly what we said, sir," the ninja dude replied coolly. "They went into sector 23B thirty minutes ago, and we lost contact with them fifteen minutes later. I immediately dispatched squad Zhao Ta Men to search for them, and they¡­were gone. There were traces of a fight, and after a preliminary investigation of the mana signatures left behind, we are confident that they have been eliminated and kicked out of the Spiritual Road after having their blood tokens taken."

    "And I''m guessing the culprits are those two again?!" Ji Xuan demanded furiously. The silver-haired, handsome guy couldn''t help but snarl in fury, his blue eyes almost sparkling with malice. "This is the sixth squad we''ve lost to them!"

    "¡­yes. It''s those two again." the ninja dude lowered his head, his tone almost resentful. Mostly because he knew what was coming next.

    "Idiots! All of you are useless! Useless trash!"

    Ji Xuan howled furiously, his mana erupting from his body and blowing up his surroundings. Despite being buffeted by the raging maelstrom of mana, the ninja dude remained kneeling calmly in front of his leader, unaffected save for his hair being ruffled by the violent winds.

    Says the guy who does absolutely nothing but command us, he thought with a sneer. You call us useless, but what have you done other than rely on us to do our work? You have done nothing but sit there and give orders without lifting a single finger, and then blaming us when things don''t go your way. Why don''t you actually do something for once? See if you are more capable than us, if you will succeed if you were the one hunting them instead of us.

    In the first place, the ninja dude wondered why this guy was so obsessed with Lilith Porter. He was essentially abusing his authority and position to get other people to chase his own girl for him. Actually, she wasn''t even his girl. Normally, this would count as stalking, but with them all inside the Spiritual Road, nobody could do anything about it.

    Once the Spiritual Road training camp ended, Lilith could lodge a complaint about his behavior, and he would get punished. However, given his status, Ji Xuan would probably get a slap on the wrist. Fortunately for Lilith, she would be able to get a restraining or protection order and he would be forced to stay away from her outside the Spiritual Road.

    However, we had to survive the Spiritual Road training camp first.

    "Fuck!" Ji Xuan continued to swear. "How many more people do we have left?"

    "Probably less than twenty."

    The ninja dude resisted the urge to say none. Even though they were mere trainees, they were still part of the Assassins Guild. It was just their bad luck to be contracted to this selfish, arrogant asshole who thought so highly of himself that he called himself the Spiritual Saint.

    Ji Xuan was no saint. He was a fucking demon.

    "Useless trash! How in the world did you Assassins get wrecked so badly by just two students?!"

    "We''re students too¡­and we are trainees. We haven''t reached the full status of professional Assassins." Even as the ninja dude informed his employer that, he knew inwardly that the reason wouldn''t fly.

    "Shut up! Just do what I tell you to do! I''m paying you guys for a reason! Your services don''t come cheap, and seriously, you haven''t earned back your money''s worth!"

    That was because Ji Xuan was using the Assassins for personal reasons not exactly stipulated in the contract. If it was the other goals, which was to gain control of the Spiritual Road and dominate the other students, then the Assassins had definitely achieved that goal. Unfortunately, Ji Xuan had completely overlooked that because of his¡­well, lust.

    However, he did have a point. Despite taking control of the Spiritual Road, the Assassins were still unable to get ahold of these two people, who continued to be a thorn in their side. Worse, with their steadily dwindling numbers, the Assassins were no longer able to control the territory they worked so hard to obtain.

    They were losing control and were no longer dominating the Spiritual Road. With the Assassins weakened by the constant guerilla warfare, the other students had begun to retaliate.

    It was no longer possible to suppress the survivors through force. Worse, these survivors were the strongest of the participants, the best of the elite, and the most cunning. They were no less troublesome than me and Lilith.

    "We''ll withdraw our contract if you''re dissatisfied with our services, and refund you in full," the ninja dude finally spoke up.

    "Running away now?!" Ji Xuan bellowed. "If you''ve signed a contract with me, then make sure you see it until the very end! Useless cowards!"

    The ninja dude shrugged indifferently. "Since we''re useless trash and cowards, then it makes no difference if we go all the way to the end or not. The only difference is that we''ll probably incur more casualties. Therefore it''s wiser for us to cut our losses before it''s too late, and compensate you for not just getting what you wanted, but also for wasting your time. It''s clear that you''ll be able to handle this better than us anyway."

    "W¡­what¡­what?!" Ji Xuan stammered, taken aback. "Don''t you dare¡­!"

    The ninja dude was about to retort when he suddenly paused and raised a hand to a com bead in his ear. It crackled to life and a panicked voice babbled from the other end.

    "¡­squad Bei Da Bai just got defeated by those two again. They were ambushed by summoned Soul Beasts and were eliminated. We''re down to fifteen men now." With a sigh, he rose to his feet, cupped his hands and lowered his head. "As I said, we''ll cut our losses and refund you in full. The casualties are unacceptable."

    "It''s not as if your comrades are dead!" Ji Xuan howled.

    "No, they aren''t," the ninja dude agreed. "But the blow to our morale is crippling. Any more attempts to fight and prolong this inevitable defeat is a waste of time."

    "Fuck! How are just two people giving you Assassins so much trouble!? We outnumbered them by fifty to two! By twenty-five times! How the hell did they turn the tables on us and reduce the deficit by so much?!"

    "Guerilla warfare." Despite himself, the ninja dude was thoroughly impressed. "They made good use of the terrain and struck at our isolated forces. When you ordered us to search the Spiritual Road for those two, we were forced to spread out¡­that made us dangerously thin. They used the forest for cover to spring ambushes and take out our isolated groups one by one. Even though they were completely unable to fight our whole group head-on, by forcing us to split up into small groups to search for them, we ended up being the ones hunted down one by one. Even though we''re trained in assassination techniques, we''re not trained in jungle warfare or how to fight guerillas. Our targets tend to be¡­high-class and rich people hiding safely in urban environments."

    "Bullshit!" Ji Xuan roared. He balled his fists, and then took a deep breath. Closing his eyes, he contemplated for a few seconds, and then smiled. "If they''re so good at ambushing us, why don''t we set up a trap ourselves?"

    The ninja dude tilted his head. "How, exactly?"

    "Simple." Ji Xuan''s grin grew wider. "We give them an invitation they can''t refuse. We''ll lure them to our remaining forces by giving them the chance to finish this once and for all. Since there aren''t many of us left, they''ll take the bait. This will probably be our last chance to crush them before we lose our numerical superiority."

    "Why would they take the bait?" the ninja dude asked, bewildered. "They have been avoiding confrontation with our full force all this while, so I hardly think they will¡­"

    "Oh, no¡­they will. Trust me." Ji Xuan''s eyes gleamed malevolently. "Because I''ll be using myself as bait. They''ll only have this one time to destroy me and my schemes once and for all."

    The ninja dude hesitated for a moment. "Are you sure about this?"

    "Yeah¡­sometimes, the greatest success only comes about if you''re bold enough to take the risk. It''s high time I step out of hiding and start doing things personally."

    The ninja dude suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. If only Ji Xuan was brave enough to do this from the start, then they wouldn''t have lost so many of his comrades. Unfortunately, he was their client, and it was never a good idea to talk back and hack off someone who was paying you your salary.

    Instead, he nodded obediently.

    "I''ll start strategizing and deploying," he said.

    *

    "This is definitely a trap."

    "Gee, you think?" Lilith glared at me, sarcasm dripping from her every word. "Of course it''s a trap. Why else would Ji Xuan reveal himself now, of all times?"

    "Because he''s an idiot."

    Even though I knew that was the truth, I was also aware that he wasn''t bluffing. I never thought we would be able to whittle their numbers down to a little over fifteen. We had taken out so many of those ninja dudes that I had lost count long ago.

    That said, Ji Xuan wasn''t a complete moron. He knew exactly how to bait the enemy toward himself. By gathering all of his forces in one place and presenting himself, he was essentially inviting us to finish this war once and for all. As long as we could eliminate him, his whole organization would fall apart and we would win a decisive victory without needing to worry about being hunted again. However, at the expense of rendering himself vulnerable to enemy attack, he was able to force us to fight in a place of his own choosing, and on his terms.

    Except that I had no plans of fighting on his terms. If the guy thought he could lure me, of all people, into a trap, he had another thing coming. I was the one who essentially led his poor forces on a merry trip with my guerilla tactics and cornered him to this point, where he became desperate enough to stake everything on a last stand.

    Honestly, the smart thing to do was to leave him be. He and his Assassin cronies would be forced to wait for someone who would never show up, staying high-strung and on guard until the end of the Spiritual Road training camp. I had no idea how long more it would go on, but it felt as if I had been here for months.

    I wanted to go home already.

    But I refused to give Ji Xuan and his lackeys the satisfaction of defeating me. Actually, I wanted to troll him.

    "Let them wait. We''re not stupid enough to walk into a trap."

    "¡­yeah." Lilith didn''t look satisfied, but she understood the wisdom of my decision. It sucked for her, especially since she wanted to at least get a punch in on the guy who made her life in the Spiritual Road so miserable, but fortunately common sense prevailed over her desire for revenge. "Let''s go."

    "Don''t worry," I assured her with a grin. "Just imagine how furious that bastard will be when we never show up."

    That earned a giggle from Lilith, and she nodded with a smile. "I would love to see the look on his face when he realizes we won''t be biting."

    "Exactly."

    After spending so long launching guerilla strikes on Ji Xuan''s forces, I saw no reason to alter my tactics and throw away my advantage by agreeing to his dumb "finish this once and for all" bullshit. Not when his forces still outnumbered us almost eight to one. Lilith and I probably could manage against fifteen, but there was still a huge risk involved. I would estimate our chances of victory to be about thirty percent. Forty, at most.

    There were too many things that could go wrong, and I wasn''t about to risk our necks for a slim chance of victory, however tempting it was to finish things once and for all. We could end up paying the price for being too impatient and overconfident. I had seen others succumb when they underestimated their opponent and walked right into a trap.

    Of course, both Lilith and I could just summon our Soul Beasts and walk right into it, but even with overwhelming firepower on our side, we couldn''t just blow the fifteen Assassins and Ji Xuan away. They were definitely aware of what kind of magic and summons we possessed, and they surely would have some sort of countermeasure prepared. If they were confident enough to lure us summoners into an ambush, then they most certainly had some way of dealing with our Soul Beasts. There was a possibility they were idiots who completely underestimated the power of our Soul Beasts, or that it never occurred to them, but like I said, it never paid to look down on the enemy. If they turned out to only be pretending to be stupid, then Lilith and I would be the morons walking into our own demise because of our arrogance and overconfidence.

    "Besides," I added, remembering something when I caught sight of Lilith''s wistful expression. "We have more than enough blood tokens between the both of us."

    To emphasize my point, I scooped a bunch of blood tokens out from my pocket. Each of us had at least thirty blood tokens by now. The thing was that the Assassins we had subdued had also been collecting blood tokens of their own, having banded together to take out other students and groups in the Spiritual Road. It was only natural ¨C their goal was to dominate the Spiritual Road and place the entire space under their control. At least that was Ji Xuan''s goal, anyway. In any case, in order to achieve that vision, they had gone around crushing other students and groups in an organized effort. Thanks to that, whenever Lilith and I defeated them, we ended up obtaining the blood tokens that our fallen opponents in turn plundered from others.

    "Yeah. If I get too greedy, I might end up losing everything instead." Lilith counted her own blood tokens, and nodded. I could see her suppressing the temptation to take the risk to acquire more of them. Honestly, if she still insisted on going to fight those guys, I would have just left her to do it alone. I wasn''t obligated to participate in stupidity.

    Fortunately, Lilith was intelligent enough to know when to hold back, and where her limits were.

    "Let''s go," I told her, and the two of us turned away from Ji Xuan''s position to disappear deeper into the forest.

 268 Chapter 268: United Fron

    "Where the fuck are you?!" Ji Xuan bellowed into the forest. Even though there was obviously no reply, he continued ranting and railing. "Cowards! Come out here and face me! I took the trouble of presenting myself in the open! The least you could do is fight me!"

    The idiot thought he was entitled to a "fair" fight just because he exposed himself in the open? Never mind that he still had about fifteen dudes under his command, and they outnumbered the two of us by almost eight to one. Did he really think we would accept him having a numerical advantage and confront him on his terms?

    While Lilith and I could simply summon our Soul Beasts before we walked right into the trap, I was sure the enemy would have prepared countermeasures for our summoned creatures too. They probably had spirit arrays or formations cast over their area of choosing, and the moment we stepped into the range of the array or formation, a large-scale spell ¨C not too dissimilar to my so-called strategic-level spells ¨C would be cast immediately and wipe both the summoners and their summoned beasts in one shot.

    What? You think the protagonists would be the only ones allowed to prepare? As a side note, this was exactly why tournaments banned the use of spells or summons before the match began. If summoners were allowed to summoned their Soul Beasts outside the match and bring them into the arena, then why weren''t other mages allowed to finish casting their large-scale or strategic-scale spells? Why wouldn''t other mages be allowed to bring in their completed spirit arrays and formations? The matches would end in one second, with both large-scale spells clashing and obliterating everyone within the vicinity. It would be mutual destruction. It was the same logic as why students were not allowed to bring their textbooks and notes into an examination. If you could already prepare and finish casting your best spells right before the match began, and unleashed them immediately from the first second (and your opponent too), then what was the point of having the match in the first place? To see whose best spell was more powerful?

    Not to mention, you weren''t always going to be prepared when you go into the battlefield. The enemy could attack you while you were still in the convoy, moving from one place to another, while you haven''t cast any spells. It was impractical to expect summoners to maintain the existence of their Soul Beasts 24/7 in the material world because it would be far too draining for them, and consumed more mana than they could afford. Similarly, you couldn''t just complete the casting of a spell and hold it indefinitely. There was an expiry date, sort of, and if you didn''t just cast the spell after a few hours, the casting would be reset. Same with summoning.

    Too many readers just jumped into the comments, complaining about why people didn''t abuse the system. It wasn''t because the characters and I were stupid. It was because we couldn''t abuse the system, there were already rules established in place. But they didn''t care. So many readers only wanted to read about how the overpowered Mary Sue protagonist exploited the system and started cursing him as stupid when he didn''t do as they directed. They weren''t the ones living in this world and had no idea how it worked, yet they had the gall to think they were smarter than the protagonist and could tell him what to do.

    Ji Xuan was similar in that way, I supposed. Always looking for ways to exploit the system, and then raging when nothing went his way. Like now.

    "COME OUT AND FIGHT ME, YOU COWARDS!"

    That amused me. I honestly didn''t care if he thought I was a coward and labeled me as such. The hypocrisy was just too delicious to savor. Can you imagine? He called us cowards for not facing him in the open, yet this was the very same guy who chose to hide for so long until now, who relied on sheer numbers to gang up and bully other people ¨C he literally sent thirty dudes after two people ¨C and the very same guy who continued to hide behind his lackeys, even now. Even if we showed up to fight, we would have to get through the fifteen ninja dudes who were ordered by contract to protect him before we could actually engage him in combat. No doubt he didn''t expect to dirty his hands and believed we would fall to his hired assassins before we could reach him.

    And this guy called us cowards? Wow. The hypocrisy was just amusing.

    Anyway, Lilith and I left him raging where he was, and continued to survive in the forest. By now, there weren''t many other students left in the Spiritual Road, so I wasn''t able to record much of their fights. Furthermore, they seemed less interested in fighting against each other than they were in eliminating the single biggest threat that remained.

    "Over here!" Someone called out to us with a wave. Apparently, there was a gathering among the majority of the survivors, and they were meeting in a clearing that was pretty far from the place that Ji Xuan and his Assassins selected for their final battleground.

    "What''s going on?" I wondered out loud. Lilith shrugged.

    "I say we go check it out."

    "Uh, okay." I doubted this would be a trap. Unlike Ji Xuan and his cronies, the other students in the Spiritual Road held no grudge against me. What, did you think I''m some cultivation or xianxia protagonist who somehow made an enemy of everybody I met just by the virtue of existing? That every single person in the world would look at me, somehow start frothing in the mouth and ranting about how I was trash, or for some inane reason get jealous of me either because I somehow have treasures, skills or maybe because I was simply being accompanied by beautiful women?

    Nah, humans are not that superficial or one-dimensional. They didn''t exist just to hate on the protagonist and give him justification to beat them up or kill them. The world didn''t revolve around me. Most of the time, the other people in the world didn''t even know I existed, or if they did, they couldn''t care less. If I didn''t offend them, then they had no reason to hate me or pick on me like every other antagonist in cultivation and xianxia novels.

    Lilith, on the other hand, turned out to be very famous. A few of the students in the clearing gaped in shock and awe when she showed up in the clearing.

    "The Hellfire Bear goddess!"

    "The princess of the Porter clan!"

    "The Holy Maiden of the Porter clan!"

    That was quite a lot of titles. I wished people would decide on one. Okay, maybe the princess and Holy Maiden thing weren''t titles, but more of a reference to her status. From what I knew, Lilith certainly was the next in line to inherit the leader position from her grandfather, so calling her a princess was not wholly inaccurate.

    I didn''t know about the Holy Maiden thing, and Lilith avoided answering when I asked her about it. The only thing she told me was that "Luo Li was considered the Holy Maiden of the Luo Clan, and since I''m based off her, the author randomly gave me that status for no reason other than because he wanted to rip off The Great Ruler."

    I guess I should prepare for the inevitable event where I met the Nine Nether Sparrow and accidentally absorb her, and have her caged in my qi sea or mana sea or whatever. Nah¡­like hell I''m going to copy The Great Ruler.

    "Who''s the guy next to her?"

    "Oh, I know him. Isn''t he the guy with the strategic-scale spells and the one who defeated the Invincible Goddess of War?"

    "Ah¡­now that you mention it¡­"

    I resisted the temptation to mention that if Cecilia Stuart had been defeated, then she surely was no longer the "Invincible" Goddess of War. Not just me, but she lost to Shawn Franklin as well.

    Speaking of which¡­

    "It''s been a while." Cecilia waved toward me. She was accompanied by a few familiar faces. I didn''t see Hal Gunther, thankfully, but I recognized Chang Cheng and Doug Daniels. The latter waved at me, and I responded with a bow.

    "Yeah. I hope you''ve been well."

    "Oh? You know each other?" Kureha Franklin sounded surprised. For some reason, she was close to Cecilia. I remembered that she, Cecilia and Alicia were all friends or something, so I wasn''t shocked that they were together even though they were from different academies.

    "Yeah." Cecilia nodded, and then frowned. "I thought you already knew that."

    "Oh, right. He''s the first guy who defeated you." Kureha nodded. She then turned to Lilith with a raised eyebrow. "And you''re¡­Lilith Porter?"

    "Nice to meet you, Miss Kureha."

    "Yes, indeed¡­this is the first time we''ve met."

    While the girls conversed and socialized, I caught sight of familiar faces. Breaking into a grin, I strode over to their positions.

    "Harrison! Theodore! You guys are here!"

    "Of course." Harrison nodded, smiling briefly when he saw me approaching them. He and Theodore began making their way toward me.

    "I knew you wouldn''t go down so easily." Theodore grinned as he placed a hand on my shoulder. "It''s great to see you."

    "Where are Craig and Lily?" I asked, glancing around. I was astounded by their absence. I thought they would be with Harrison and Theodore. Come to think of it, I didn''t see the dudes we rescued at the start of the Spiritual Road.

    Harrison and Theodore shared a grim look before shaking their heads.

    "They didn''t make it. They were eliminated quite some time ago."

    Harrison lowered his head. Theodore gritted his teeth as he raised an angry fist.

    "Those ninja bastards¡­working under that Ji Xuan fucker. They systematically took us out one group at a time so that he can dominate the Spiritual Road and place the whole forest under his control. We barely escaped with our blood tokens."

    "Damn¡­"

    I sighed and shook my head. That Ji Xuan¡­he would pay for this. Actually, wasn''t what he was doing against the rules? Since when could you infiltrate a bunch of Assassins on your payroll into a training camp and use them against the other competitors?

    But the teachers and the people in charge of the Spiritual Road weren''t taking any action against him, so they didn''t regard this as a breach of the rules? How was this fair?

    "What about you? It seems like you''ve ended up allying with the Porter princess and surviving against Ji Xuan''s attacks." Harrison sounded impressed when he glanced in her direction. Lilith was still speaking to the other girls at the moment.

    "Yeah, I ran into her when she was being attacked by Ji Xuan''s cronies, helped her out, and we had to band together to survive." I shrugged. "For some reason, he''s really obsessed with capturing her, so I couldn''t just leave her alone."

    "Oh, yeah. I heard about it too." Theodore nodded. "We heard through the grapevine that Ji Xuan was focusing on the Holy Maiden of the Porter clan particularly. People were saying he was enthralled by her beauty and wants her to be his woman or something like that."

    "Disgusting." Harrison''s lip curled. "Good thing you were there, or Miss Lilith Porter would have suffered horribly."

    "I''m sure she could have taken care of the enemies on her own, even if I wasn''t present." I waved his words away. "And I''m sorry. If I didn''t get lost and manage to meet up with you guys, maybe we wouldn''t have lost Craig and Lily."

    "Dude, don''t talk as if they were dead. I''m sure they are fine. They just got teleported out of here when their blood tokens were taken."

    We weren''t given much time to catch up, for the person who organized the gathering finally spoke up.

    "Thank you all for answering my call."

    He was a good looking guy with blond hair and blue eyes. For some reason, he reminded me of a prince. He was dressed in similarly flamboyant fashion, in white and blue flowing knightly robes and shiny armor. A white tiger crest was emblazoned over the side of his silver breastplate, its claws raised even as it roared amidst a backdrop of a single gigantic lightning bolt.

    "The prodigy of the Lacroix Clan," Harrison whispered. "Charles Lacroix. He''s well known for his knightly qualities, superlative swordsmanship and lightning magic. He''s also a very charismatic leader who has led his team to several victories in the national tournament. They were the ones who won last year."

    "All of you have been through plenty of hardship in the Spiritual Road." Charles''s voice was resonant and almost melodious, thoroughly capturing the attention of everyone in the clearing. His eyes sparkled with sincerity. The guy was an amazing speaker, and I understood why Harrison''s mention of his charisma. I found myself inexplicably drawn to him, hanging onto his every word. "Many of you have been persecuted, hunted and attacked¡­particularly by a despicable person who practically cheated by hiring a group of Assassins and having them infiltrate the Spiritual Road for his selfish reasons. Regardless of whether what he has done is against the rules, the fact remains that his group is now in complete control of the Spiritual Road."

    I wondered about that. I noticed that there were over a hundred students gathered in this clearing. In contrast, Ji Xuan had no more than fifteen Assassins under his command. Honestly, there was no way he could dominate the Spiritual Road now, what with his forces now completely outnumbered by the very people he hunted.

    "And now¡­this man, Ji Xuan, has audaciously issued a challenge and invited one of our number to attack him openly. He has a force of about fifteen Assassins under his command, and awaits her to accept his challenge." Charles nodded in the direction of Lilith, who looked pretty unhappy. Not at Charles''s revelation, but at Ji Xuan''s stupidity. Charles smiled charmingly as he swept his eyes across the gathered students over a hundred strong. "I say we accept the challenge and attack Ji Xuan and his group together."

    "YEAH!"

    Everyone roared in approval.

    "Everyone here has suffered in one way or another at the hands of Ji Xuan. I''m sure you''ve gathered here today because you hold a vendetta against him and rightly so. He has openly flouted the rules or exploited the Spiritual Road for his own gains and impudently assaulted us, against the spirit of this training camp, and against the code of chivalry. Not only that, he openly declared his lecherous intentions and attempted to abduct a lady to satiate his nefarious desires. He must be punished for his insolence."

    "YEAH!"

    "I''m glad you all agree with me." Charles smiled and bowed his head gratefully. "And with that, I would like to invite all of you to work together with me to crush this tyrant once and for all. No longer shall we cower in fear from his assassins! No longer shall ladies have to dread about his unsavory lust! Since he has revealed himself and openly issued a challenge, we shall accept it, and eliminate him once and for all!"

    "Finally." Theodore sounded satisfied, even as the students gathered here shouted and cheered. "I''m going to help Craig and Lily get their revenge."

    "I''m with you," I agreed as I glanced around at the applauding students. "But I think this is going to be overkill."

 269 Chapter 269: Overkill

    The expression on Ji Xuan''s face when he saw over a hundred students descend upon him and his hired Assassins was priceless.

    "What in the world¡­?!"

    The ninja dude and his Assassin subordinates fought as best as they could, but no matter how powerful they were, they were still facing elite students about seven times their number, and they were overwhelmed in short order.

    "Ji Xuan!" Charles Lacroix bellowed as he descended upon him, his blue and silver sword crackling with white lightning. "I am here today, to deliver justice upon you!"

    The perpetuator''s eyes bulged when he saw the Knight of Thunder plummet toward him, devastating energies crackling around him. Credit to him, he was able to pull out his spear and deflect Charles''s weapon.

    For only a moment, then he was hit by thunder and lightning, blown off his feet by the powerful sonic boom and deadly energies.

    "Ugh!"

    Even as the Assassins fell, they were not going out without a fight. As I suspected, the Assassins had been prepared for the event where Lilith and I would bring our Soul Beasts or Constellation spirits into the fight. Formation arrays activated, and the place was filled with devastating mana as extremely powerful spells were unleashed. I saw two of the students get struck by lightning and electrocuted, and another three get incinerated by fire. They didn''t actually die ¨C these were elite students with high innate magical resistance and absurd defenses ¨C but the spells were powerful enough to incapacitate them. Several more found themselves frozen by another spirit formation, and only half of them were able to break out of the ice.

    The Assassins had really ensured that they were loaded for bear when they chose to make their last stand here. Unfortunately, it wasn''t Lilith''s Hellfire Bear or my Ursa Major and pack of Ursa Minor that showed up but over a hundred students who were tired of being their victims.

    Even they in their wildest dreams never imagined that the surviving students would all gather together and launch an attack on them in a unified coalition.

    "H¡­how?!" Ji Xuan spat as he deflected Charles''s sword with his spear. "Why now? All this time, you refused to band together to resist my group¡­you ran away and dispersed yourselves among the forest without turning to the others for help¡­why do you only decide to unite together now to fight against me?!"

    "Simple¡­your challenge was your undoing." Charles smiled grimly. "Initially, we didn''t know who to trust. After all, so many of our comrades¡­so many of the students from the various schools who participated in the Spiritual Road turned out to be sleeper agents¡­Assassin trainees who have infiltrated the many academies and suddenly betrayed their schoolmates and classmates when you sent out the order. We didn''t know who to trust, especially since we hardly had any interaction with anyone from the other schools. How do we know we weren''t walking into a trap, and that we wouldn''t be stabbed in the back by Assassins pretending to be our allies?"

    The two of them sprang apart again, their mana colliding violently before they traded blows. Charles closed in on Ji Xuan, putting his weight behind his sword and driving the tyrant back.

    "Then you stupidly issued that challenge, declaring that you want to finish this once and for all. You exposed yourself, even though there wasn''t any real need to, and put yourself at unnecessary risk. The only reason for you to do so is because you were cornered. Not to mention, we weren''t just running and hiding. We were also keeping watch on your forces, and we were aware that quite a few groups have been launching guerilla strikes and taking out your Assassin squads and patrols one at a time, which caused your numbers to diminish drastically. So I decided to take a gamble. If you were desperate enough to expose yourself to lure your target ¨C Lilith Porter ¨C into accepting your challenge for a final battle to settle this once and for all, then it means you could no longer afford any more losses on your part. That you were cornered with nothing more than the forces you have in this battlefield."

    He then hesitated and looked around, looking satisfied as he watched the last of the Assassins get eliminated, and their blood tokens snatched away.

    "Of course, I was prepared for the scenario that you were bluffing and hiding more of your forces in the forest, that you still have several reserves concealed and waiting to unleash them once Miss Lilith takes the bait and attacked you. But it seems that you don''t even have any reinforcements for your final scheme. Your gambit didn''t pay off. Your spirit formations and arrays, and the Assassin trainees you''ve hired, are certainly impressive, but even they cannot withstand an assault from over a hundred students combing forces."

    "Fuck!" Ji Xuan howled before he charged at Charles, purplish mana coalescing at the tip of his spear. Charles parried the strike before deflecting the spear away.

    "And so¡­your reign of terror is over. Your own arrogance proved to be your undoing."

    Lightning struck Charles''s sword, imbuing him with destructive energies that left a scorched crater around him. Behind the blue and silver knight, the intangible figure of a White Tiger materialized and roared ferociously.

    Ji Xuan backed away cautiously, his eyes narrowed. Charles pursued him, and he grinned triumphantly. A spirit formation activated underneath both their feet, and a tremendous amount of mana began to flow toward them in a violent maelstrom.

    "You''ve activated my trap card!" he crowed.

    "Oh, really?" Charles looked completely unimpressed as he glanced around at the purple lightning that danced violently around the edges of the spirit formation, like wailing specters desperately clawing their way into the living world. His White Tiger seemed unfazed by the hair-raising energies that crackled around it, and with a casual swipe of its paw, it dissipated a significant chunk of them.

    "What?!" Ji Xuan''s jaw dropped. Charles merely smiled at him before stabbing his sword into the ground, right where the spirit formation was drawn on. Silver lightning traveled from his blade and into the ground before shattering the arcane array and returning the ground to normal. Almost immediately, the purplish energies weakened tremendously, and Charles dispersed them with a swing of his electric sword. "Impossible!"

    "Not really," Charles replied casually. "You merely activated my counter trap card."

    "There''s no such¡­wait, there is." Ji Xuan paled visibly. "¡­fuck."

    Then he was blasted away by white lightning.

    While he was lying on the ground, convulsing helplessly from deadly electricity, Charles strolled toward him and nonchalantly relieved him of his blood token. Spitting and swearing, even as he continued to jerk and writhe from electrocution, Ji Xuan howled in rage.

    "You won''t get away with this!"

    "Funny." Charles snorted. "And you think you''ll get away with exploiting the system and hiring Assassin trainees to help you with dominating the Spiritual Road? Fine then. We''ll settle this in court, if necessary."

    "FUCK!!!!" Ji Xuan screamed before he completely disappeared and was forcibly teleported out of the Spiritual Road.

    "Good riddance." Shaking his head, Charles turned to check on the progress of the battle behind him.

    Like I said, it was overkill. With over a hundred students attacking all at once, even with the spirit formations and arrays, the Assassins were pretty much overwhelmed and defeated. The victors were taking their blood tokens and kicking them out of the Spiritual Road. I didn''t even get to lift a finger, having watched all this take place from the back.

    What? Did you think this was going to turn out to be some climactic boss battle where I got to square off one-against-one with Ji Xuan? Nope. Sorry to disappoint you, but this wasn''t some xianxia story where I hogged all the battles to myself. Furthermore, I was better served recording the fights of everyone else. I had just obtained some vital footage of Charles and the techniques he used. That guy was going to be a formidable opponent during the tournament.

    Besides, the best victories were the ones you obtained without even having to fight. Let others do the fighting for you, heh.

    "Great job, everyone!" Charles didn''t care about that, though. He was confident that even if we saw his techniques and knew what kind of magic he used, it would still make no difference. He would still win by sheer strength and skill alone. Or perhaps it didn''t even cross his mind. Either way, he was raising his sword into the air. "We''ve won!"

    "YEAH!"

    Everyone cheered and rejoiced at the one-sided battle. I wasn''t sure how to feel about this. after about a month of hiding and cowering from a much stronger enemy, carrying out guerilla hit-and-run tactics and chipping away at the foe''s strength, I was half-expecting some final confrontation with the boss. Not some one-sided victory where I did nothing but watch my allies wipe the floor with our foes.

    Sorry for subverting the standard xianxia or light novel formula and not following tropes. But reality wasn''t a novel or story where every event or encounter with someone would conveniently lead to the same old generic formula of protagonist meets antagonist, faces challenges, trains, and then defeats antagonist in final battle. Besides, if I could get someone like Charles to defeat the big bad for me, then why wouldn''t I?

    It saved me a lot of trouble, and I also obtained data on Charles''s skills, which could be useful if we face him and his team in the tournament.

    "It''s finally over."

    Lilith breathed a sigh of relief as she, Cecilia and Kureha, along with Chang Cheng and Doug, strode into the clearing. They had also participated in the attack, but with so many other people joining in, they took out maybe one Assassin between the five of them. I could tell that Lilith was also disappointed at the anticlimactic conclusion. Way to hype up the big bad so much, only for him to lose in a single chapter to some newly appeared character we had never heard of until now.

    Well, at least we have a new hyped up character whose team we would inevitably face in the national tournament¡­

    "As a celebration of our alliance¡­tonight, we party!"

    Charles''s enthusiasm was infectious. All of the people who agreed to ally with him were yelling their approval and cheering when they heard that. It was understandable. After almost a month of surviving through hardships and stuff in the forest, including Ji Xuan''s tyrannical oppression and relentless attacks, a little cheer was what we needed to liven things up.

    I was also a little impressed by Charles''s integrity. It was so easy for him to turn on us and attack to rob us of our blood tokens now that the reason for establishing our alliance was gone. With no common enemy, he could easily renege on his word and attack the people present, but he chose to honor our coalition and even suggest a celebration.

    Personally, I wasn''t sure if I wanted to take part in it, especially since I didn''t contribute at all to the last mission.

    "Neither did we," Harrison added when I voiced that out. He shrugged noncommittedly. "There are so many of us, and too little of the enemy."

    "There is that," Theodore agreed. "But that doesn''t change the fact that we didn''t do anything but watch the fight."

    "Not at all."

    The three of us jumped when Charles suddenly showed up. He smiled sincerely and tilted his head in a humble manner. He fixed his clear sky-blue eyes on me.

    "I know of your efforts, Mr. Richard Huang. You were the one who led the guerilla efforts against Ji Xuan''s forces. It was your tactics that wore down the Assassin trainees in his employ and diminished their numbers by so much¡­which led to our overwhelming victory today. If anything, this joint mission and its success was only possible because of what you did earlier."

    I scratched my head in embarrassment. "You give me too much credit."

    "No. it is you who are being too humble." Charles then turned to my friends. "And you guys too. You did very well in surviving the persecution and attacks from Ji Xuan''s Assassins. Your battles against them have contributed in weakening them. You may claim that they don''t seem much, but every battle counts. Just as every drop of water is essentially in eroding away stone, I can assure you that your efforts were vital in accumulating the amount of damage that Ji Xuan''s group sustained. Every injury you dealt would pile up with the others, and make a difference."

    "Uh¡­"

    "¡­well¡­"

    Neither Theodore nor Harrison knew how to respond to that. Not that Charles was expecting us to reply. He smiled and placed a hand on each of our shoulders, his gesture firm and reassuring.

    "I would be honored if you guys could join us tonight. For now, at least allow us to forget the rigors of the Spiritual Road and enjoy ourselves after such a grueling month."

    Then he was off, speaking to other students and expressing his gratitude for their participation and contribution, no matter how small.

    "Charles Lacroix will make a great politician," I muttered under my breath as I watched him interact with the others. The girls were swooning over his words while the guys were taken aback by his praise in a positive manner. Even I couldn''t help but feel a little proud at being thanked directly by such an august personality.

    "He should be," Harrison noted. "The Lacroix clan has a heavy influence on the Federation government. Many of their members serve in the ruling party."

    "Never trust a politician," Theodore growled darkly, casting a suspicious glare in Charles''s direction. Then he softened. "But this Charles guy doesn''t seem so bad."

    "Yeah, he feels pretty genuine," I agreed.

    "The Lacroix family emphasizes their chivalric code and is well known for serving and protecting the people." Harrison began coughing sarcastically. "Unlike¡­arrogant xianxia cultivators who love the stupid principle of ''strong eat the weak'' and ''survival of the fittest'', using that as an excuse to oppress the common people with their strength and indulge in their greed and corruption."

    Which, ironically, went against the "Way" that Lao Zi conceived and endorsed, but most xianxia writers just used cultivation to go on power trips and write about overpowered Mary Sue protagonists without actually understanding its true principles. Honestly, Lao Zi''s Dao De Jing was supposed to show people the Way of virtues, teach them humility and rid them of worldly desires so that they could return to a harmonious coexistence with nature. The point of cultivation was to shed these worldly desires, and to maintain humility and preserve virtues, yet xianxia writers had corrupted the concept to give characters some sort of godlike divine power, turned them arrogant and gave them so many worldly desires that Lao Zi would be turning in his grave if he ever learned how his teachings had been turned into nothing more than wizardry and a method to immortality (arrogant and selfish immortals, at that), while completely omitting his emphasis on humility, harmony and virtues.

    It wasn''t that Western values and chivalric codes were inherently superior, but just that modern writers corrupted Asian teachings for their own egoistic power trips, and then readers and other writers seeking to emulate them ended up replicating this nonsense ad infinitum. Ugh.

    For now, I decided to just trust Charles, and join the party. No, seriously. This wasn''t some stupid light novel or Chinese web comic or web novel where every handsome male character turned out to be an evil villain in disguise, because the author couldn''t stand the thought of having a genuine love rival threatening their self-insert protagonist, and were afraid that such good-natured, handsome male characters would seem more attractive to the heroines, and therefore they contrived some sort of way to repel the heroines from the "despicable" handsome characters and also to justify the protagonist beating him up. Did the authors have some sort of inferiority complex against handsome guys in real life or something? Actually, just look at Zombie Girlfriend. It seemed that every single male character in the story, handsome or not, was just an atrocious villain who exists solely to antagonize the male protagonist and give him an excuse to kill him, while almost every female character served as a heroine that he could add to his ever-growing harem of undead girlfriends. And that wasn''t the only story that worked on such a contrived principle.

    People aren''t naturally evil just because they were guys in a story centering on a male protagonist. So, despite several readers who would inevitably curse me for being "stupid" for trusting Charles, I decided to believe him. If I turned out to be right, I would be laughing at the readers for being so edgy and paranoid over stupid things that they probably learned from reading all these other trashy stories.

    Not that my story wasn''t trashy, but¡­at least not every male character around me exists just to be an antagonist. Real life didn''t conveniently work that way, after all¡­

 270 Chapter 270: End of the Road

    Even though Charles Lacroix called it a party, there wasn''t much we could do to hold an actual party. Not when we had been trapped in the Spiritual Road for almost a month or so. There was no equipment, no catering, no food and drinks. Just what we had on our backs. Eventually, we just did a pseudo campfire party.

    Of course, that brought back terrible memories of the other time when Alicia and the others held a campfire party outside Jing Tian City, only for a rank B Crastrate to crash the party and massacre a good number of students. Charles did caution against the use of a campfire, reminding the students that the heat, light, smoke and noise would draw monsters toward our location. Then again, like many normal animals, monsters tended to avoid fires because they could be destroyed by the ferocious element. There were plenty of exceptions, but the students didn''t let that fact get in the way of having fun.

    But other than the campfire, there wasn''t much we could do about the food and drinks. Charles was pretty resourceful, fortunately, and organized a hunting party. That was something I excelled in, so I joined in, and we managed to get a bunch of Blood Boars and other monsters for barbeque and grilling over the fire. A few other mages also collected jars of water, and using natural herbs and honey found in the forest, concocted sweet drinks that we could enjoy. Even better, those herbs and spices that grew in the wild could be used to season the boar meat that we grilled and barbequed.

    Wait, several readers cried. If you can eat monster meat, then why can''t you gain the properties or physical strength and magic of those monsters?

    Because no such convenient plot device existed. Come on, dudes. Do you guys gain the ability to fly after eating pigeons or birds? Do you grow hooves when you eat pork or beef? Do you grow feathers after eating chickens? No, right? So what made you think we suddenly gain new magical abilities and whatnot if we eat monster meat? They were no more nutritional than normal animals. What, you think this was another one of those cheat stories where the protagonist exploited the system and gained an infinite number of abilities by eating lots and lots of monsters, to the point where the writer essentially lost track of how many abilities or what abilities his protagonist has?

    No. I wasn''t some overpowered Mary Sue protagonist who could conveniently gain new abilities through eating monster meat and stuff. Sorry, but such convenient stuff doesn''t happen in reality.

    Even so, that didn''t stop monsters from wanting to eat us, so I offered to stand guard and watch from the perimeter of the campfire, to ensure we didn''t get ambushed by a bunch of ravenous monsters while we were busily celebrating the demise of Ji Xuan.

    "Here, eat something." Theodore ventured over and passed me a huge chunk of seasoned Blood Boar meat. I gratefully accepted it and began eating it. "You''re the one who volunteered to hunt these guys. It''s only natural you get to eat them."

    "I got them for everyone to eat." Honestly, this wasn''t the first time. I had been hunting throughout my stint in the forest. Lilith probably knew best, because she had no choice but to eat with me after I hunted a Blood Boar and roasted it over a fire. Actually, she was pretty grateful for it, because it beat the bland rations that we had been handed at the beginning of the training camp.

    Speaking of which, she was currently hanging out with the other girls, Cecilia and Kureha, who were shadowed by Chang Cheng and Doug, and a couple of other students from Kureha''s school. They did trade a few words with me earlier, but other than that we didn''t have much interaction. What? You think they were heroines in some harem story who would inexplicably stalk me? Lilith only accompanied me because she relied on my help to evade Ji Xuan''s Assassins and strike back at them. Cecilia and I hardly had any interaction at all, and she wasn''t interested in me. Kureha appreciated my help, but that was the extent of our relationship. She wasn''t, as some readers suspected, a "harem member." Seriously, girls weren''t going to fall for me just by virtue of me walking on two legs. They had completely no reason to fall for me and start behaving like brainless cardboard stalkers whose existence revolved solely around me, and trying to win my affections.

    They had better things to do with their lives, and their own personal goals and social lives. They had no reason to overly worry about me or cling onto me like 99% of the heroines in Chinese web novels or Japanese light novels. The girls I met didn''t exist solely to fall in love with me. They were real, living, breathing people with their own lives, agendas, personalities and social circles. Not desperate, thirty thots that existed to cling onto my arm 24/7 and start behaving rabidly and becoming jealous whenever I met a new girl, or deciding for some inane reason to come to a tactic understanding and accept being in a harem that centered around one guy.

    They weren''t that shallow or one-dimensional. And let me be frank, just because a beautiful girl showed up in front of me, doesn''t mean she was automatically a love interest or harem member. Give them more respect than that, please. Beautiful girls and strong female characters could exist on their own without being automatically subjected to the bullshit love interest or harem member treatment. I knew that ran contrary to popular belief and readers seeking wish fulfilment power fantasies where they could self-insert themselves into a bland, boring protagonist (yes, I know I''m bland and boring) while reveling in the feeling of being surrounded by beautiful heroines who existed solely to pander to their "alpha" male ego and indulge in their harem fantasies.

    Sorry, but this was not that kind of story.

    "Your shift is over, Richard. I''ll take over for the next couple of hours."

    Harrison came over, chewing on some barbequed Blood Boar meat. I shook my head.

    "Nah, I''m good. I''m not really fond of dealing with crowds and I don''t like partying. I''m fine staying where I am."

    "Aw, you''re no fun." Theodore snorted. "You should learn to live a little."

    "I have. I''m still alive and living, am I not?"

    "That''s not what I mean¡­"

    "He''s just pretending. He knows what you mean." Harrison sounded dismissive. "And this is an order from your leader. You''re not allowed to work overtime. You did your part and you deserve to have some time off. Go enjoy yourself."

    "¡­yes, Great Leader."

    I sighed and bowed submissively.

    "You mean the Great Ruler," Theodore joked. Both Harrison and I glared at him.

    "Hey, don''t go raising a death flag. The last time some guy tried to be the Great Ruler, he ended up dying in the weirdest way possible. I mean, he was always meant to be a comic character, often labeled as The Great Pig by his friends, but when Mu Chen finally decided to encourage him to become the Great Ruler together with him, he went and died in the next episode¡­to some weird sneak attack. And instead of getting medical help or treating his injuries, Mu Chen and his friends wasted a lot of time wailing and acting sad over the tragedy as they watched Su Ling die. Like, seriously? Why didn''t anyone treat his wounds or call for a doctor/healer?"

    "¡­what are you talking about?" both my friends stared at me, bewildered. I scratched my head and sighed.

    "Oh, looks like you guys didn''t watch the animated adaptation."

    They still had no idea what I was talking about, so I gave up and wandered back into the party, with Theodore tagging along. As I did so, Charles approached.

    "Thanks for your hard work." He nodded in the direction of Harrison. "You guys don''t really have to stand watch, you know. You should just relax¡­all of us have earned it."

    "Nah. I didn''t survive this long just to let my guard down and get killed by monsters right after the final boss battle."

    Charles chuckled at that, then he shook his head and gestured to a makeshift table. We ended up using one of the trees we had chopped down for firewood to serve as a table, placing its trunk across the clearing and placing the bottles there.

    "Go get some drinks. I recommend the honey tea. Somehow Claudia succeeded in brewing some tea with the leaves we found."

    Claudia was one of the students at Charles''s Pendragon Academy. Just like Charles, she was also dressed in gleaming silver armor, but with red and white hints. Instead of the White Tiger crest that Charles sported, the white heraldry on her gleaming armor was resplendent with crimson crosses. Harrison had called her a Paladin, as if that meant anything.

    She was also a great tea brewer, and had somehow succeeded in concocting red tea with the leaves she found in the forest. I swear, she practically cooked up her own homebrewed Earl Grey tea in the Spiritual Road with nothing more than a bottle and a mess tin.

    I took Charles''s advice and went off to get some tea, remembering to get a cup for Harrison, who was on sentry duty. Charles went off to speak to Cecilia and the rest. I wasn''t interested in eavesdropping and honestly, who the girls socialized with was none of my business. So I wandered to a quiet spot and practically dozed off.

    Before I knew it, dawn was breaking over the horizon, with the forest bathed in gentle sunlight. Harrison was also asleep, having long since rotated out of his shift and handed it over to Theodore.

    However, even Theodore had completed his shift and went to rest, and Charles''s classmate was keeping watch now, sipping from his bottle some tea as he stared into the forest blankly. Fortunately, unlike that time with the campfire incident, there was no monster that crashed our party and massacred the survivors.

    "Gawain¡­right?"

    Gawain looked up as I approached. I waved and plastered on a smile.

    "You can go rest now. I''ll take over."

    "No need for that. Everyone''s going to wake up soon anyway." He raised his bottle in salute. "I wonder what''s going to happen next."

    "That''s a good question." the both of us jolted, startled, at Charles''s voice. We didn''t realize he was awake and nearby. He didn''t seem to notice our astonishment, and continued calmly. "I believe most of us think we''ll just go back to competing against each other and collecting blood tokens. After all, the reason for our alliance is gone. There really isn''t anything tying our coalition together anymore."

    "So¡­we''re going to start fighting again?" I asked dryly. Charles shrugged.

    "Honestly, I would prefer to avoid that if I could help it. I''m sick of fighting in the Spiritual Road, of all the cutthroat competition. It''s precisely because of such nonsense that people like Ji Xuan resorted to such lengths to dominate over the others." He glanced up at the brightening sky. "Furthermore, it was so difficult to convince everyone to establish this alliance. I would hate for it to be dissolved so easily. It felt like we were¡­comrades, you know?"

    "I know how you feel, but that''s not for me or you to decide." Gawain sighed as he continued crouching down on the dirt, his blue and silver armor unmarred by the soil somehow. I bet it was magic. "It''s probably not even up to anyone here, but to the teachers and higher-ups who organized the Spiritual Road."

    "¡­yeah. I know." Charles took a deep breath. "But if there was another way, I would¡­"

    He never got to finish his sentence. The heavens split open and a golden pillar of light shone down on the campfire site. The three of us stared up in awe, our jaws dropping.

    "What the hell?!" Theodore mumbled as he jumped up, fumbling around. Harrison, in contrast, was already prepared for combat, beginning to cast his spells as if he had never been asleep. Similarly, Claudia was already up and armed, her armor looking as resplendent as ever. Cecilia, Kureha, Lilith, Chang Cheng and Doug were also braced for battle, despite having woken up only seconds ago. There was no sign of them being bleary-eyed.

    I was kind of jealous. I didn''t possess such battle sense or instincts. Normally, when I was rudely roused to wakefulness, I would be half-confused and partially in a foul mood at having my sleep disturbed.

    "Relax," a voice boomed from above. "I''m Ling Dao."

    "The director in charge of the Spiritual Road and the ultimate authority," Charles whispered in a reverential tone.

    As if he hadn''t heard him, or he couldn''t care less, Ling Dao continued, his disembodied voice continuing to resonate across the entire forest.

    "Today, I declare the Spiritual Road over. All of you have braved the ordeal with admirable resolve and tremendous tenacity. Well done. You have survived until the end of the Spiritual Road, and for that, you shall be rewarded handsomely for your efforts. You will be granted your spot of choice among any one of the Five Great Academies."

 271 Chapter 271: Weird Exchange

    "Fuck you!" I shouted, showing the golden pillar of light my middle finger. Yeah, it was extremely rude, but come on, this was so ridiculous Ling Dao deserved the insult. "What Five Great Academies!? You think this is The Great Ruler, is it!? You''re in the wrong story, dude! Get serious and tell us the truth!"

    "Ahem¡­" Ling Dao cleared his throat sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry. I was kidding. Mu Chen is correct. There are no Five Great Academies¡­"

    "WHO THE FUCK IS MU CHEN!?" I roared.

    "Sorry, I mean Richard Huang. Anyway, instead of great academies or whatever, we''ll bill you monetary rewards corresponding to the number of blood tokens you''ve collected. Spend them however you want."

    Ling Dao was clearly telling us to upgrade our equipment or buy new ones. I didn''t, because Gan Jiang and Mo Ye were still in pristine condition. Actually, their real names were Hei Yue and Bai Ri, but I completely forgot about their names after the chapter I received them and just called them Gan Jiang and Mo Ye because¡­well, Fate/Stay Night. Sorry about that. It''s about time I start switching back to Hei Yue and Bai Ri.

    I sincerely apologize for the confusion.

    However, the world didn''t revolve around me, and the other students sorely needed the funds to buy their armaments or upgrade their current equipment. Harrison was unwrapping the bandages from his fists and was probably considering a purchase of divine gauntlets. Theodore might want to upgrade his Thunder Hammer to improve its strength, armor penetration and damage. The Knights of Pendragon Academy probably didn''t need new armor, considering the still pristine condition of their armaments. However, I was aware that Lilith probably wanted a new sword.

    "What the hell?!" one of the readers complained at the side. "What''s the point of getting these stupid monetary reward if you have no use for it? You might as well attend something that gave you spirit pills or elixirs or treasures instead! Or cultivation manuals!"

    For one thing, this was not a cultivation story, and God, if I hear that stupid word one more time, I swear I''ll go smash something. This was reality. And in reality, you don''t conveniently just happen to have a tournament or event pop up right at the most opportune time to offer something that you needed right at that moment as the first prize or whatever. Hell, most of the time, you would never get what you wanted. Life just didn''t work out so conveniently. I mean, seriously¡­if you need a Dragon Pill, since when would an alchemy tournament just so conveniently occur a few minutes later, offering that Dragon Pill as the first prize?

    Only in stupid cultivation and xianxia novels with conveniently contrived situations would such overly expedient things happen. Oh, boss fight coming up? I''ll just happen to conveniently find some treasure weapon in this tomb I''m exploring beforehand to tip the scales in my favor! Oh, I need some herbal ingredient for a breakthrough? I''ll just happen to conveniently find that herb in the middle of some dangerous forest that I was somehow exploring even though I''m supposed to focus on breaking through or running away from the enemy.

    Yeah, if only real life worked out so conveniently, then nobody needed to be so diligent. Most of the time, the prizes you won from a tournament don''t happen to conveniently align with what you need. Seriously, though, if you happen to need to obtain something, why the fuck would it show up as a prize in a tournament?

    That was so ridiculously contrived and conveniently, and often served as a poor excuse for the protagonist to show off his skills, beat everyone, and get the praise and compliments from the audience and big-shots.

    Just¡­no.

    "Then I''ll drop your story!" the reader shouted stubbornly. "I''m here to read about overpowered main characters curb-stomping stupid, one-dimensional enemies with their cheats! I don''t care about logic! I just want my power fantasy!"

    I kicked the reader back through the fourth wall he broke out of, and then sealed the dimensional rift shut. Drop my story then, see if I care. This was my story, and I was going to dictate how it went. Not pander to the likes of you xianxia addicts seeking overpowered Mary Sue protagonists around which the world revolved around, and how everything just conveniently fell in their laps and in place for them to breeze through life.

    "¡­"

    Charles and Gawain were staring at me in astonishment. I scratched my head and shrugged apologetically.

    "Sorry. Fourth wall matters, as usual."

    "I almost thought that was an Emergence event!" Charles exclaimed. "But I didn''t expect a human to pop out from the other dimension¡­"

    "Well, these sort of readers can be considered monsters and a blight on the universe of web novels," I told him. "But enough of that. Let''s get out of here."

    "¡­uh, right."

    The other students were walking into the golden light and being teleported out. After a month in this place, I was getting sick of the Spiritual Road, and I couldn''t wait to get out of here. Joining Harrison and Theodore, I strode into the golden light and allowed myself to be transported back into the real world.

    *

    After the Spiritual Road training camp, we were given a week to rest. We attended classes as usual, and I trained like always, whether it was at home in Dad''s dojo or in Teacher Fielding''s combat magic class.

    "So, Richard, are you ready for the exchange session?"

    It was right after I finished one of those combat magic classes when Vincent Violet approached me. I had just left the classroom, so I was taken aback when he called out to me. Calming myself down, I turned around and swallowed.

    "Uh¡­I guess?"

    Violet raised an eyebrow. "Don''t forget that you and the others are supposed to go to Vermillion Academy for an exchange session after the Spiritual Road training camp. You will be leaving in three days. I hope you''ve started packing."

    "Oh, right."

    "Vermillion Academy, huh?" Harrison happened to be passing by when he heard that. Lily Liam and a few of the Holy Saints were accompanying him. No, not Saint Judgement. Holy Saints. There''s a difference. "Their Hell Beast team is one of the favorites to win the national tournament. They are the strongest team in Vermillion Academy."

    "Oh, I''ve heard of them." Lily nodded in agreement. Then she looked at me with a sly smile. "You''ve met their captain, haven''t you?"

    "¡­uh, yeah."

    "Their entire team basically has no weakness," Harrison continued gravely. "Their captain is a top-tier summoner with an extremely powerful Soul Beast."

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Craig was laughing as he passed by, with Sheila beside him. "That might be true, but Richard here has defeated her in combat!"

    "Wait, how the heck did you know that?" I demanded, annoyed. My duel with Lilith was during the Spiritual Road, and even though there were spectators, I was pretty sure none of them were from my school. Otherwise I would have been able to meet up with them instead of floundering around alone for almost a month.

    "Your duel with her has been uploaded onto the Internet," Sheila informed me with a smile. "A lot of the other students have been trying to analyze and dissect the battle, to pick apart your tactics and magic."

    "Maybe I shouldn''t have accepted her challenge after all," I grumbled.

    "No, it was actually good that you did." Harrison was pondering deeply. "You managed to obtain invaluable combat data regarding Lilith Porter''s summoning magic and fighting style. It''ll be very useful for us in the upcoming tournament."

    "I know, right?" Vincent Violet smiled as he placed a hand on my shoulder. "I''ll be counting on all of you to make Jing Tian Academy proud. Do your best, and ensure that the other academies do not look down on us."

    "Yes, sir!" everyone chorused.

    *

    What? Were you expecting me to digress into some weird dream arc and explore a tomb?

    Nope, this wasn''t that kind of story. And I didn''t have a stupid clown floating around with me either. I had more important things to worry about than to randomly explore some dreamscape and encounter mummies in a tomb, as well as two powerful people from the Empires. And no, I wasn''t going to bring hotdogs and cola. Why the hell would I do that?

    Anyway, three days flew by quickly, and I ended up taking the train alongside my friends to Vermillion City. Since we were allowed up to ten members for the national tournament, there were double the number of people who had attended the Spiritual Road training camp.

    In addition to Harrison Reed, Lily Liam, Craig Carlson and Theodore Hammond, we also had Sheila Scarlet, Pearl Pang, Dong Fang Yue Chu, Cody Crosby, Bu Fan and me. Even though I disliked the arrogant Bu Fan, I had to admit that his abilities were first rate, and he was one of the rare mages with multiple elements.

    I bet you guys had forgotten who Cody was. I almost did, to be honest, until I remembered there was supposed to be an Assassin-type person in our team because¡­well, Battle Frenzy had him too.

    Anyway, I spent most of the journey sleeping on the train, and only woke up when we drew near. Trying to stifle a yawn, I blinked and forced myself to rise from the chair I inhabited the moment the train stopped.

    "We''re here!" Cody cheered, for no other reason than so that his voice actor had some lines to say.

    "Amazing¡­" Lily was gaping at the sight that greeted us when we disembarked from the high-speed train that brought us here. "So this is Vermillion City!"

    "Yeah¡­to think that the entire city is built across such a vast mountain range." Dong Fang Yue Chu was also awestruck by the sight of a city interwoven with dense trees, and nestled into the mountain range. Despite the presence of towering skyscrapers and commercial buildings, even these hundred-story structures were dwarfed by the mountains behind them.

    There was an air of majesty about the city, combined with an untamable wilderness that ran rampant with the sense of unbridled freedom.

    "Um¡­are you the exchange students?"

    One of the staff approached us, noting our uniforms. As it turned out, we weren''t the only school there. I recognized the uniforms of quite a few schools, and caught sight of Charles Lacroix and his friends from Pendragon Academy. To my surprise, I didn''t see Cecilia Stuart and Kureha Franklin, but they were probably busy¡­I guess?

    To no one''s surprise, Ji Xuan was absent. The guy had been punished and penalized for flouting the rules and was suspended. He wouldn''t be participating in the national tournament or the exchange session. Good riddance, if you ask me.

    "All teams, please take the cable car." The staff waved us toward a row of cable cars that were hanging suspended across what seemed like a track. To my amazement, I realized that they were not tethered to the rails at all. Instead, the cable cars were magnetically levitating over an electrically charged track that extended toward the peak of one of the mountains.

    Maglev technology, combined with cable cars. Impressive. Licking my lips nervously, I boarded one of the cable cars along with the rest. As expected of maglev technology, the cable cars hurtled forward at incredible speeds, and we found ourselves at the top of the mountain within mere minutes.

    That was some crazy speed.

    When we alighted from the cable car, we were greeted by the majestic sight of Vermillion Academy, which looked extremely hi-tech and new. I was suddenly reminded of Dad''s past. Didn''t he enroll in Vermillion Academy when he was my age? So this was the school he attended about twenty years ago¡­and where he fought the Assassins, such as Ying Bu Si, alongside Uncle Glen.

    Speaking of which, Uncle Glen was somewhere in this city. Maybe I should pay him a visit when I have the chance. I doubted I would be able to, though. More likely, Uncle Glen would drop in unexpectedly to say hi.

    "I''ve finally come full circle, huh?" I murmured to myself. I never thought I would be here in Vermillion Academy so soon after Dad''s flashback arc. It was funny how life worked out. Small world and all that, eh?

    "Um¡­"

    The student volunteers showed up and courageously attempted to organize the milling students into groups. There were so many students from a myriad of schools that we resembled some sort of flower garden. The diversity of colors and uniforms added to the brilliance of Vermillion Academy, and it was impressive how each uniform was able to stand out and stamp down its own individuality and uniqueness.

    One of the student volunteers approached my group nervously.

    "Um¡­you are from Jing Tian Academy, right? We will be bringing you to your dormitories. Please follow me. I have your room assignments."

    "Okay," we chorused. The volunteer looked relieved that we weren''t going to give him trouble. Why he thought we would in the first place, I had no idea. The other schools were also complying with the volunteers who approached them, with minimal fuss. Everything was well organized and going along smoothly.

    As it turned out, we were all assigned single rooms. I was impressed by the amenities and accommodation. It was almost as if we were living in a first-class hotel.

    "Are we on an exchange session to trade pointers and train, or are we on a holiday?" I mumbled. Honestly, I shouldn''t be grumbling, but something struck me as amiss. Well, I should enjoy the utilities while they lasted instead of complaining.

    Glancing out of the window and noting that it was still pretty early, I realized that if I had been sticking to my daily routine, I would be training right about now. To me, it was important that I trained everyday, without missing a single session if possible. After all, my goal was to become stronger¡­to catch up with my dad and become a hero who could save everybody.

    I was still far from achieving that objective. Right now, I lacked the strength to save everybody. I didn''t possess the power to protect my loved ones.

    ¡­like Alicia.

    "If Alicia is still alive, she would be here in this exchange session with us, eh?"

    Closing my eyes briefly, I forced down the welling of emotions and took a deep breath.

    Looked like I really needed the distraction that training provided. The desire to be a hero, the goal to become stronger¡­those were just excuses.

    For now, I just wanted something to distract my mind from all the terrible choices I made and my stupidity that readers constantly harassed me about in the comments section.

 272 Chapter 272: Training Room

    "¡­er¡­where am I again?"

    As it turned out, it was a bad idea to leave my dormitory room and wander around Vermillion Academy. Even though I roughly knew how it looked like after watching the entire flashback arc of Dad, that didn''t necessarily meant I knew the school like the back of my hand. My poor sense of direction was my undoing again, and I found myself utterly lost.

    "Hey, you over there!"

    I caught sight of a couple of students in the Vermilion Academy uniforms approaching me. One of them was a huge guy with a really buff stature and closely cropped hair, while the other was a carefree, skinny guy with a bandanna wrapped around his head for some reason.

    "Why are you loitering around here? Aren''t you from one of the other schools? You''re here for the exchange session, aren''t you?"

    "That''s right," I affirmed, scratching my head sheepishly. The burly guy was quite imposing, and his tone was just as intimidating as his huge figure. "Sorry. I didn''t mean to loiter around. I was just searching for the training room."

    "Relax," the skinny guy told his friend before he turned to smile at me. "Don''t mind Brutus. He''s always quite¡­"

    "¡­brutal?" I offered. The skinny guy with the bandanna burst out laughing, even as Brutus''s expression grew more severe.

    "That''s certainly one way of putting it. Anyway, if you''re looking for the training room, it''s in that building over there." He pointed in the opposite direction. "You''re a long way from it."

    "Holy f! Thanks! No wonder I couldn''t find it!"

    "No problem. I''m Riley." The skinny guy with the bandanna offered his hand and I took it. His handshake was strong and firm but warm and friendly. "I think I recognize you. Aren''t you the guy from Jing Tian Academy who helped our captain out when she was in a pinch?"

    "Your captain?"

    "Lilith Porter. You should know her. You took really good care of our captain in the Spiritual Road, from what I heard anyway."

    Brutus grimaced and looked away in embarrassment. "I should thank you. You succeeded where we all failed¡­we got wiped out by Ji Xuan''s forces right from the beginning. We are really grateful to you for saving our captain."

    "Honestly, I didn''t do much." I raised both of my hands quickly. "Your captain is perfectly capable of taking care of herself."

    "You''re just as modest as we''ve heard." Riley chuckled and patted my shoulder. "I''m glad that, of all the people in the Spiritual Road, she ran into you."

    "You saved her from Ji Xuan and his cronies," Brutus agreed.

    "The authorities would have intervened if things got too far," I argued. Actually, they couldn''t. The Spiritual Road was completely separate from the real world. No matter what transpired within that artificial reality, the instructors and teachers in charge were not allowed to intervene. Or they couldn''t. Once they sent students into the space, there was no way for them to enter the Spiritual Road. Having known that fact, Ji Xuan exploited it to his advantage, but he never thought he would be defeated and have his blood token seized from him.

    He clearly intended to stay in the Spiritual Road forever and create his own little kingdom within that little, isolated pocket of reality. Too bad he failed. The moment he was forcibly teleported out into the real world, he was apprehended.

    Despite him breaking the rules, the Spiritual Road training camp was counted as a success. The higher-ups viewed this as a good experience in teaching us students how to deal with the unexpected, and they really admired how we coped with Ji Xuan''s unscrupulous attempts to conquer the Spiritual Road. They declared that we had emerged from the experience a lot stronger and wiser. Furthermore, even though Ji Xuan broke the rules, it wasn''t as if anyone died. The Assassins trainees were still pretty green, and they refrained from murdering because it wasn''t part of their contract. Also, they knew that crossing that line would bring about a tremendous backlash and force the surviving students to resort to much more desperate measures.

    They didn''t want to deal with those sort of measures inside the forest, where they were unfamiliar with the terrain.

    "Isn''t Captain training there too?" Brutus suddenly remembered. "She wanted to go over a few of her new techniques, if I recall correctly."

    "She probably is. The captain loves to train." Riley grinned at his own remark as he glanced at me. "She''s kind of similar to you in that regard."

    "¡­why do you know what kind of person I am?" I frowned in both annoyance and puzzlement. This was the first time I''ve met these guys, and Riley was acting overly familiar with me. He chuckled in a placating manner.

    "You don''t realize how famous you are online, are you? Quite a few of your schoolmates posted about you on forums when the other schools were asking for your information¡­ever since you defeated the Invincible Goddess of War."

    "¡­right."

    "We should get going," Brutus reminded Riley. "We still have several errands to run."

    "Oh, right. Anyway, don''t get lost again. Just keep going straight toward that building." Riley gave me a slight push and I nodded before I made my way. Waving back at them, I plastered on what I hoped would look like a friendly smile.

    "Thanks again!"

    It didn''t take more than a few minutes to reach the building. There was a huge gymnasium in the first floor, which doubled as an arena. No sooner had I stepped through the huge door and into the premises when a familiar voice called out to me.

    "Oh, hey! Richard!"

    Lilith waved to me, a sheen of perspiration clinging to her skin as she breathed heavily. The ground around her was scorched and the air was shimmering from the heat. Evidently she had been practicing her fire spells.

    "Hello, Lilith. It''s been a while."

    "It has indeed." Lilith beamed dazzlingly. "I''m so glad you could make it to the exchange session my school is holding."

    "Well, it was too good a chance to pass up on¡­"

    Lilith giggled. "Yeah, I suppose. By the way, you came here to train as well?"

    "That''s right." I nodded as I swung my arms in preparation for training. Some kind of weird warmup to loosen my muscles and relax the tension in my body. "I hope you don''t mind."

    "Of course not! In fact, I welcome it!"

    Lilith was grinning, and for some reason I felt a sense of foreboding.

    "On one condition, though." for some reason, I knew she was going to say that, and I suppressed a groan. "Spar with me!"

    Well, at least it was a lot less contrived than me being tricked by a trio of idiots who held a grudge against me for no reason other than because it seemed I was popular with girls, and walking into Lilith wearing nothing but a bath towel in the changing room right after she had just taken a shower (seriously, why wasn''t the door locked, displaying an occupied sign or at the very least separated according to gender?). I know Skeletal Wizard loved his fanservice and any sort of excuse to throw his protagonist into enviable situations with beautiful heroines, but honestly, that wasn''t how reality worked. Lucky sube incidents just didn''t happen out of thin air. And people didn''t just hold grudges for something as stupid as "why is this baby face super popular with girls?" Not unless the author just wanted to wank off to how lucky and enviable and super popular his self-insert male protagonist was.

    I mean, I was also a blatant self-insert protagonist (or author avatar), but I obviously didn''t have good things conveniently falling into my lap all the time. Reality was never that generous. All that label granted me was the ability to break the fourth wall, make obscure manga references and rant about irrelevant stuff.

    "What in the nine hells are you talking about?" Lilith demanded. "Why would you walk in on me when I''m in the changing room? They''re sorted by genders and they have electronic locks to prevent that kind of thing¡­to prevent the wrong person from just intruding in like that! This isn''t an ecchi story, you won''t be getting fanservice from me! And I''m not even a heroine to begin with! So don''t even think of adding me to your non-existent harem!"

    "¡­uh, okay." Seemed like my ability to break the fourth wall was pretty infectious. Anyway, time to return to the main plot before the irrelevant ranting and dialogue derailed the story entirely. "Give me a second and we''ll begin."

    I dropped my stuff on the floor¡­which wasn''t much, actually. I didn''t bring Hei Yue and Bai Ri.

    Lilith noticed that and she raised an eyebrow. "Where are your swords?"

    "I didn''t bring them. I wanted to train with my summoning magic, not my swordsmanship. I didn''t expect to be sparring against someone. Sorry about that."

    "No need to apologize. Summoning magic is fine too." Lilith casually tossed her crimson sword aside. "Then I''ll also fight barehanded."

    "Cool." I pushed my glasses up my nose as I studied her. Even though Lilith exceled in the sword, I was aware that she was no slouch in the unarmed combat department either. In fact, I looked forward to seeing what she could do. Stepping up into the stage, I took my position. Lilith nodded at me, and then she swung her hand down.

    "Let''s begin!"

    "Okay."

    I let her make the first move, not because I was underestimating her (her being a lady had nothing to do with anything) but because I was recording the kind of skills and spells she was using. If she, like Brutus and Riley said, was practicing new spells, I wanted to know what they were. Even though her school hosted this exchange session, we were all in a sense enemies and rivals in the upcoming national tournament.

    However, her first move took me by surprise.

    "Hellfire Bear!"

    I watched as the Hellfire Bear plummet upon my position, and scowled.

    "What the hell?! That''s against the rules! You''re not supposed to have your summoning spell already cast at the start of the battle!"

    "Sorry, but I was training the entire time, so this isn''t the start for me. Besides, you''re supposed to learn how to deal with the unexpected. And treat this as a match where I have already summoned my Hellfire Bear to eliminate your teammates in the previous match¡­just like how you team-killed Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy with almost a single Vermillion Phoenix."

    "Right." I fought to roll my eyes. Even though I was at an overwhelming disadvantage, I didn''t complain. Instead, I decided to embrace the challenge. Like Lilith said, I should learn to expect the unexpected and find a way to win from an extremely disadvantageous position. Only then could I become strong enough to be a hero.

    Villains weren''t going to give warnings or offer me ample time to prepare before they struck and attack the innocents. They often caught heroes off guard through despicable means and nefarious schemes. It was the same logic here.

    Taking a deep breath, I jumped up and evaded the Hellfire Bear''s flaming paw. Spinning in midair, I dodged another blazing swipe and dropped to the ground. keeping my head low to prevent it from getting burned off, I then dove to the side before the Hellfire Bear could stomp me into a pile of ash, and rolled up to my feet just in time to duck under a fireball.

    "Impressive." Lilith was forced to keep her distance somewhat or she might end up becoming collateral damage from her Hellfire Bear''s devastating attacks. Her Soul Beast rampaged in an almost berserk manner, smashing and scorching the arena as I dodged around. "Your evasive techniques are excellent."

    "Because I might die if I don''t dodge?" I pointed out wryly before I avoided another blazing swipe from the Hellfire Bear. Just another minute or so¡­

    "Too bad you didn''t learn Ghost Steps or Shadow Steps from Wang Zhong¡­or that clown, Simba, or I''ll be calling you the Garrulous King and having a crush on you for no reason other than because you''re the invincible protagonist."

    "Can we stop making references to Battle Frenzy? It''s getting pretty old by this point." I sighed. Dodging yet another flaming slash from Lilith''s Soul Beast, I counterattacked with a kick. The Hellfire Bear merely grunted and retaliated with a crushing swat that reduced the ground to burned rubble. Fortunately, I managed to escape that attack too.

    Snarling, the Hellfire Bear continued to bear down upon me (because it was¡­a bear. Get it?). I jumped away and gave another kick into its growling face, but its fiery mane protected it from any real damage. Flipping myself up and over the rampaging Soul Beast and just narrowly escaping its intersecting claws that would have eviscerated me if they landed, I slammed my foot against the crown of its head, ignoring the blazing mane.

    Even that kick didn''t work, but I never intended it to. As the berserk Soul Beast struck at the top of its head with both its blazing paws, I propelled myself off the top of its head and launched myself across the arena. Reaching the other side of the stage, I tucked my legs in, hit the ground and rolled away, even as the lumbering Hellfire Bear turned to face me.

    Bellowing, it charged at me. I smiled as I adjusted my glasses again.

    "Too late."

    Ursa Major materialized in front of me. Dropping to his haunches, the immense Constellation spirit charged and tackled the lumbering Hellfire Bear. The two gigantic monsters grappled, wrestled and crashed heavily onto the ground, sending tremors across the gymnasium.

    "Ho¡­as expected, you''re an expert at dealing with monsters. But¡­how about a human opponent?"

    "?!"

    While I was busily dealing with Lilith''s Hellfire Bear, she had been clenching her fists excitedly. Right after I summoned Ursa Major, she kicked off the ground without any hesitation and launched herself at me. Her fists burst into flames and she delivered a barrage of punches.

    "Ugh¡­"

    I grunted as I whirled around to face the new threat. Taking a deep breath, I deflected her punches to the side, twisting my body to minimize the impact of her strikes and deftly knocking her blazing fists away while taking minimal damage in return.

    "Wing Chun?"

    A bead of perspiration dripped down Lilith''s pretty face, but I mercilessly kicked her from below, forcing her back. The two of us sprang apart in a blazing spark. Lilith skidded backward for a moment, a smile spreading over her face.

    "I knew it!" she crowed. "You really learned martial arts from Uncle Shun Yin!"

    In a distance, our two bears continued to wrestle and shove each other. They were locked in a stalemate for now, but Lilith paid no attention to them. Instead, she raised her hands, her fists igniting into flames once more.

    "Again! Another round!"

    "Fine then." I pushed my glasses up and loosened my tie. Smiling, I flicked my arms to loosen the muscles and prepare for another punishing session of combat. "I''ll accompany you until the very end."

 273 Chapter 273: Sparing the spar

    "Huff¡­huff¡­"

    The both of us panted after we sprang apart from a violent clash of fire and water. Even though I was supposed to have the elemental advantage, my main weakness was that my elemental spells were all too¡­elementary. Even though Lilith''s fire magic had the elemental disadvantage, she was capable of casting advanced spells that were several magnitudes more powerful than my¡­well, elementary element spells.

    That was the weakness of diversifying and refusing to specialize in a single element. That was also the reason why most people didn''t try and learn all the different elements. I might be a lot more flexible, but even that versatility wasn''t going to save me from someone who had honed her element to its utmost pinnacle.

    However, there was no rule that stated that elementary spells will always be weaker than advance spells. As long as I pumped sufficient mana into it, I could artificially amplify its power and effects. It was obviously a lot more inefficient and unwieldy than just learning how to cast an advanced version of the elemental spell, but in the end, brute force was all that mattered.

    The only question was whether I had the larger amount of mana necessary to overcome the difference in our strengths.

    As we traded blows again, fire and water colliding violently in a crimson and azure maelstrom, the Hellfire Bear continued to wrestle with Ursa Major. Just like their summoners, neither Soul Beast was giving an inch. Both refused to yield.

    If I didn''t change things up, it would remain a stalemate for a very long time.

    Fortunately, Ursa Major wasn''t the only Constellation spirit I could summon.

    "Black Tortoise!" I called out. The gigantic Celestial Guardian manifested in reality, and immediately the entire arena was flooded with water. Even though it was but a basic spell, the amount of mana thrown into it simply overpowered whatever advanced spells Lilith could cast.

    Or so I thought.

    "!!!"

    Water boiled into steam as flames raged around Lilith as she conjured a new spell. Fire spun rapidly around her wrists as she cried out, bubbles escaping from her mouth. Ignoring the water that was flowing into her mouth, Lilith''s voice came out strong and steady.

    "Kagutsuchi!"

    The entire flood vanished in a flash, vaporizing into scalding steam in an instant. I was blinded momentarily, the lenses on my glasses darkening automatically to protect my eyes. Staggering back, I glanced up as the fog cleared and gaped at the immense white dragon-like monster that now hovered above us. It resembled a whale, with fiery wings spread out from its back. A golden sword had been stabbed through its terrifying jaws, and crimson and golden arcane symbols were etched across its white surface.

    The divine Soul Beast bellowed before unleashing a torrent of flames that engulfed the entire interior of the gymnasium.

    "Whoa!"

    Fortunately, Black Tortoise was on hand to erect his water barrier. Ursa Major and the Hellfire Bear both vanished, the former incinerated by the new summoned beast''s appearance and the latter already damaged and wounded by the flood that my Celestial Guardian had conjured. Ferocious flames battered the watery sphere, and the fluids immediately flash-boiled into steam and steadily receded. Black Tortoise gritted his jaws (not that he had teeth, but you know what I mean) and did his best to maintain the water barrier, and just about allowed us to barely withstand the overwhelming firepower.

    "Kagutsuchi, huh? The kami of fire indeed."

    The god of fire in Japanese mythology who was known for accidentally burning his mother, Izanami, to death after she gave birth to him, and getting cut apart by his vengeful father, Izanagi. That must be what the golden sword represented ¨C Izanagi''s sword.

    "I''ve been perfecting this new Soul Beast to counter yours!" Lilith declared proudly, her hands on her hips as she kept a safe distance away from me.

    "Oh, congratulations." I applauded sarcastically. "Should I give you an award too?"

    "Shut up," she snapped, her cheeks burning. "Just surrender."

    I actually laughed at that. "Why would I surrender when I still have a chance of winning?"

    Lilith actually blanched at that. Was she really that stupid, or was she underestimating me? She couldn''t possibly think that she had won just because she had me and my Black Tortoise trapped under her Kagutsuchi''s fiery spell? She was getting too carried away because of a little success.

    She forgot who she was facing.

    While Black Tortoise was maintaining the defensive barrier spell to protect the both of us, I was secretly weaving another spell and preparing for a massive summon. Lilith didn''t seem to be aware of that, mistakenly believing that my Celestial Guardians were the most powerful Soul Beasts I could summon.

    She was so wrong.

    It probably took me five minutes, Black Tortoise admirably holding the fort and enduring the relentless torrent of hellfire from Kagutsuchi. Lilith didn''t even notice that something was amiss, and in any case there was nothing she could do about it. Even with her innate affinity with fire and a high resistane toward it, she would still get burned badly if she ventured too close to her Soul Beast''s intense spell.

    That was good for me.

    "Draco."

    The black dragon materialized amidst the hellish inferno and roared. With a flap of his massive wings, he extinguished a good portion of the flames. Black mana coalesced in his jaws before he unleashed them at Kagutsuchi. The white dragon responded by unleashing a devastating stream of fire that collided with the colossal mana beam.

    The resulting explosion shook the building violently and caused debris to begin falling. The reinforced material of the walls and ceiling cracked, and tremors continued to rack the increasingly splitting ground.

    Draco and Kagutsuchi then charged at each other, and the tremendous impact from their collision sent ripples of destructive shockwaves that battered the dangerously creaking gymnasium, threatening to demolish it.

    "Okay, stop! That''s enough!"

    Both Lilith and I turned around and caught sight of a teacher hurrying forward frantically, shouting in panic.

    "Ah¡­Teacher Huang Zhang." Lilith lowered her head and obediently withdrew Kagutsuchi. When the massive Soul Beast vanished from sight, I also dismissed Draco and Black Tortoise while looking very sheepish.

    "Having a fierce competitive spirit is fine and all, but try not to wreck the training rooms!" Huang Zhang complained.

    "Sorry," I apologized.

    "We went a little too far," Lilith admitted, embarrassed. She turned to me. "That was a good fight, though!"

    "¡­yeah. I''m sure it was." inwardly, I was already formulating several plans and countermeasures against his Kagutsuchi. That was quite the formidable beast. I knew there would be a high chance of me losing if Huang Zhang didn''t step in to stop the fight. It wasn''t as if my defeat was 100% certain, but I knew how dangerously close I was to being defeated.

    I briefly wondered if Draco could really stand up to a Soul Beast meant to be the embodiment of a fire god.

    After a reprimand from Huang Zhang, I was finally allowed to leave the gymnasium. Lilith hit the showers, after working out quite a sweat from the sparring. I didn''t bring a change of clothes ¨C they were in my dormitory room ¨C so I didn''t bother with that. besides, thanks to Black Tortoise and his water spells, I was able to keep cool most of the time, and thus I didn''t perspire that much.

    Phew.

    Walking out of the gymnasium, I caught sight of Brutus and Riley approaching the slightly shuddering building. Their eyes widened when they caught sight of me.

    "What the hell happened?!" Brutus demanded. "Where''s the captain?"

    "She''s showering," I replied with a shrug. The two of them visibly sighed in relief.

    "That must be quite the intense battle," Riley remarked with an amused smile as he glanced at the training building. "We could sense your mana spikes several blocks away, and could even feel the tremors when you cast massive spells." He chuckled. "We should be relieved that you didn''t cast any of your strategic-scale spells."

    "I don''t think I''ll be able to get away with nuking your school," I muttered.

    "Ha ha ha!" Riley burst out laughing at that. "You probably won''t! But I would like to see the authorities try to arrest you when you possess the power to obliterate them!"

    I could only use that spell once a day, but I wasn''t stupid enough to tell that to someone I literally just met today.

    "Well, we should check on the captain to see if she''s all right." Brutus excused them, and I nodded understandingly, waving at them.

    "See you around, Richard!"

    "Yeah¡­oh, before you go¡­can you point me in the direction of the library?"

    "Library?" Riley sounded surprised. "Why do you want to go to the library?"

    I raised my eyebrow and suppressed my annoyance. "To borrow some books and read, obviously."

    *

    Even though I really should be reading nonsensical books such as Art of War, or rune systems or team battle tactics, I was not Wang Zhong. I wasn''t some pretentious prick who was both invincible in combat and read every academic or reference book of knowledge known to man.

    So instead, I wandered into the fiction section and began borrowing quite a few sci-fi books about the 41st Millennium, featuring a galaxy-wide empire that was embattled and beset on all sides by traitors, heretics and aliens. My tastes in literature were diverse, so I also picked up a book on folklore, concerning fox spirits, and another story on mythology. Man, Vermillion High''s library had everything!

    While I was carrying the bunch of books to a table, I happened to stop by a holographic bulletin board.

    "Hmm? Conflicting myths? The separation of religions?"

    Apparently, somebody was trying to reconcile the different religions in a specific region. Of all the places, it happened to be ancient Japan, the area I specialized in during my previous life. Pushing my glasses up, I leaned in and noted how the guy was trying to separate the Bodhisattva from the kami, and he was unable to distinguish the two despite trying to delve deeply into their origins. He was also struggling to understand the conflicts in specific texts and folklore, which had both Shinto and Buddhist elements for some reason.

    "Huh¡­is that really the case?"

    Putting the books down to the side, I decided to type in some text, challenging the need to separate the two religions in the first place. I argued that religion was a Western and "modern" concept (so far as the nineteenth to twenty-first centuries could be considered modern in the thirty-first century), and pointed out that there was a great deal of syncretism and integration, and that they were not necessarily two separate systems of beliefs. In fact, the people of that time did not distinguish Shintoism from Buddhism, and just believed in everything as "natural." The divine, to them, was just divine, and they didn''t place a label on that.

    That thus led to the folkloric texts having both Shinto and Buddhist elements together. These elements weren''t in conflict with each other, nor were they mutually exclusive. People didn''t think of them as separate in the first place.

    However, this belief of separation was something that was invented during the "modern" period, when the Japanese government attempted to rapidly modernize and learn from the West. They then tried to create a new state religion, and bought into the nativist logic and rhetoric that tended to idealize and imagine a "pure" and "authentic" Japan free of any foreign influences. However, that was far from reality. Even so, the formation of a nation-state and the resulting discourse on national identity and culture was powerful in making a huge impact on reality. Folklores were rewritten and reinterpreted to adhere to this new nationalistic discourse.

    "¡­whoops. I think I wrote too much."

    Shaking my head, I swiped away the holographic screen and walked off. Before I left, I made sure to leave my name as anonymous. I didn''t want people bothering me and flaming me for making such erroneous assumptions or accuse me of spouting bullshit. If they believe me, great. If not, then too bad. I couldn''t care less.

    With that done, I picked up the books and went in the direction of the counter to get them loaned out so that I could read them in my dormitory room.

    *

    The very next day, Henry Porter was gaping at the holographic bulletin board, his eyes wide in disbelief.

    "Who wrote this?" he demanded.

    All the students in the library froze and stared at him, uncomprehending. Gritting his teeth, the old guy waved a hand at the holographic board, magnifying the image so that they could see the post I had written yesterday.

    "Did anyone see who wrote this? Please tell me!"

    For a moment, nobody said anything. Then one of the students nervously spoke up.

    "P¡­Principal Porter, aren''t you the one who wrote everything on that bulletin board? I don''t think anyone here is audacious enough to write on it¡­"

    "¡­anyone here¡­so perhaps someone not from our school?" Henry Porter murmured, his eyes narrowed. The poor guy clamped up.

    "Ah, right!" he struck his fist into his palm when he remembered something. "There''s that elite exchange session between the different schools of the Eastern part of the Federation! Maybe a student from another school wrote it!"

    "¡­I see." Henry Porter nodded as he glanced through my wall of text another time. He turned toward the librarian currently on duty. The poor guy blanched and turned extremely pale. "Du Shu Guan, I want a list of everyone who entered the library yesterday. Not just those who took out loans. Check the security cameras at the door. I want an identity check on every single person who entered and left the library yesterday. As soon as possible."

    "¡­yes, s¡­sir."

    Henry Porter clasped his hands behind his back as he turned back toward the holographic bulletin board.

    "If whoever wrote this is right¡­then the field of history will see a huge transformation in the way they approach historical and religious texts¡­"

 274 Chapter 274: Lecture

    "Seriously? We have a lecture?"

    I couldn''t say I was very fond of lectures, but if my goal was to get into university eventually (because a degree would put me further along the path of becoming a mercenary-hero like Dad), then I had to get used to it.

    Honestly, I wasn''t that bad with theory and lectures and classes. Of course, I was nowhere near Wang Zhong''s Mary Sue levels of being the top at the theory classes, nor was I at Shiba Tatsuya''s godlike levels of topping theory exams and classes. Plus those two weren''t just excellent at theory, they also turned out to be invincible in combat. These Mary Sue protagonists could just do about anything. Anyway, I digress. Unlike those godlike protagonists who were talented at everything and were virtually undefeatable, I was a normal, average guy. Sure, I had a nuke spell, but I could only use that once a day, and people tended to beat me up before I could finish casting it. Furthermore, while my grades were above average, they were nowhere near the top.

    Top ten percentile, at best. Twenty-five percentile most of the times. Definitely not the peak like Wang Zhong or Shiba Tatsuya or any of those Mary Sue protagonists infesting web novels and light novels. On the other hand, I was also different from the clich¨¦ hotheaded protagonists who completely flunked their exams and tests. I at least bothered to study, so I was consistently scoring above average.

    Even so, that didn''t mean I had to like studying or attending classes. To be honest, I was neutral. I didn''t love attending classes, but I didn''t hate them either. Somewhere in between. That said, I did have a lot of other things I preferred to do over attending classes. Like reading manga and web novels or watching anime, for example.

    "We''re here for an exchange session, aren''t we?" Dong Fang Yue Chu complained, evidently liking it a lot less than I did. "Shouldn''t we be training and having mock duels and all that?"

    "Lectures are important too," Harrison told him. As expected of the captain of Jing Tian Academy''s team. "There''s no point doing nothing but train and fight when we don''t even know what we are doing. We also need to learn tactics and strategies, and also magical theory if we want to better refine our casting."

    "Ugh¡­I understand all that, but¡­ugh¡­"

    "Don''t worry. We all find these lessons dry and boring too." Lily laughed and assured him. "I feel you."

    "Strategies and tactics, huh?" I murmured to myself. My view of Dad was that of an individualistic hero who often operated solo, with only his summoned spirit as his companion. Now that I heard his story, I understood why he was so inseparable from Angelica. Even so, I rarely saw him fighting with a team (probably with the exception of Uncle Glen), and I always envisioned him as this solo guy who always fought alone.

    That was what I ended up aspiring to be. A hero without any sidekicks¡­an individualistic person. However, reality had struck and I realized how very little I could accomplish by being alone. Along the way, I had received help from so many people. My friends at the Black Roses. Dong Fang Yue Chu. Troy King. Craig, Theodore and the rest. Even Harrison. In the Spiritual Road, I had survived with the help of Lilith (okay, maybe she survived with my help, but honestly, I doubted we could have toughed out the forest if we were alone).

    Reality was so different from ideals. I realized that the heroes I often read about rarely had sidekicks (unless he was Batman, and even so the Dark Knight trilogy didn''t feature any sidekicks), but now that I thought about it, they always had a whole crew of support behind them. Tony Stark had Jarvis, his buddy James Rhodes, Pepper, Happy, etc. Even Bruce Wayne had Alfred Pennyworth and Lucius Fox supporting his vigilante endeavors. Superman had his parents. And while he was fighting, Lois Lane and Laurence Fishburne''s character were on the ground helping civilians evacuate the city. I wasn''t even going to talk about the Justice League movies. By the way, I''m talking about the movies instead of the original comics because they happened to be the ones I watched recently, as compared to the comics I read long ago.

    Even heroes needed help. There was no shame in admitting that you couldn''t save the world and protect the innocent on your own.

    We stepped into the classroom and sat around one of the tables provided. Students from several schools were already there, and there were still a few other schools trickling in long after we settled down. I caught sight of Riley and Brutus, and waved at the former.

    "Friends of yours?" Theodore asked. I nodded.

    "Yeah, they helped me yesterday when I got lost."

    "How did you even manage to get lost here?" Craig scoffed. "The dormitory building isn''t even that big."

    "No, I actually left the dormitory building to train in the gymnasium, and then went to the library shortly after that."

    "Oh, I heard about that!" Pearl said excitedly. "Didn''t you guys hear as well? Richard had a duel against Lilith again yesterday."

    I groaned inwardly. I didn''t want anyone to know if I could help it. I almost lost that match, and I wasn''t sure Draco could defeat Kagutsuchi. Furthermore, I didn''t want people knowing that I had Draco as my trump card.

    "Settle down, everybody."

    The teacher strolled in, clapping her hands and drawing everyone''s attention to her. No, I''m not going to comment on her figure or the Porter clan''s genes. Please. Let''s stop that nonsense and stop objectifying women''s bodies. It''s disgusting.

    "As you all know, today we''re going to talk about tactics and strategies. You might be wondering why. Well, there has been quite a few changes to the tournament format recently, as well as the magic curriculum. This year, particularly, has seen a major alteration where the higher-ups placed a greater emphasis on team combat. The ministry of education and magic has recognized that the ranking tournaments are too¡­impractical in preparing our future mages for battles against monsters. On the battlefield, what is important isn''t individual strength, but teamwork ¨C how well you work together with your team. Consequently, today, I''m going to share several tips on team tactics with you all. You should be honored ¨C you''re among the first to receive a taste of the revised curriculum, which will be starting next year."

    There was an excited murmur among several students, but the majority couldn''t care less. Dong Fang Yue Chu looked grumpy while Craig didn''t bother to conceal the expression of boredom on his face. Theodore''s impassive face was indistinguishable from his sleeping one, and I could have sworn I heard soft snoring coming from him.

    Only Harrison seemed particularly interested, leaning forward as he frowned in intense concentration. I decided to leave the lesson to our great leader. I''ll probably take notes as and when relevant, but I knew I would probably zone out half of the time. A quarter, if I really focused.

    What''s that? Why wasn''t I the captain? In the first place, why should I be the captain? I had displayed no signs of leadership whatsoever. I never took the initiative nor did I have any experience in commanding or issuing orders. I was the kind who tended to overcome my foes with brute force rather than strategic thinking¡­I guess? Even if I did some thinking, it wasn''t complex strategies that weaved the strengths of a team together and cover everyone''s weaknesses. It was just me being individualistic and fighting solo.

    Furthermore, I was more used to taking orders from others rather than issuing orders. I could already see the stupid beta male comments, but honestly, there could only be one leader. I wasn''t going to challenge and jeopardize Harrison''s authority for no good reason. I could see the bigger picture ¨C the world didn''t revolve around me, my pride wasn''t the most important thing, and Harrison was a far better leader than I was. Admitting that and working together coherently with everyone for the sake of the team was nothing to be ashamed of. What, on a pitch where you had 11 men in a single soccer team, were the other 10 men "spineless" beta males because they followed the leadership of their team captain? What utter bullshit.

    I honestly didn''t understand what went on in the minds of some readers. Their masculine egos were so much larger than their actual heads.

    Teacher Flora Porter, who was the instructor in charge of our tactics lecture, wasn''t the type of teacher who allowed her students to sit back passively and just listened. After explaining several concepts of teams, she began asking us questions.

    "As you all know, there are teams that specialize in a single theme, or single element. There are teams that are built around a single¡­playmaker, or ace, if you call it. And then there are more conventional teams that aim to be more flexible. Maybe some of you could share what are the lineups your academies are preparing?"

    There was a buzz, and then one of the students from another school, wearing a smart, almost military-like uniform, raised a hand.

    "I am Leon Leo, the captain of St. Austin Arcane Academy. We are fielding a conventional lineup that is supposed to be versatile and able to adapt to any battle scenario. Our team possesses a balance of offense and defense, and thus we don''t have any clear weaknesses."

    "Very good." Fiona nodded in approval. "It is true that conventional teams are very versatile, and the members can cover for each other''s weaknesses, which is one advantage they hold over specialized teams."

    She then glanced at the other students. "Any more conventional teams, or do the specialized teams wish to respond to that?"

    "Ma''am." One of the students from Aurora Academy raised his hand. "Lei Bing, of Aurora Academy. We specialize in ice magic. Our whole team does, I mean. Even though we do lack the versatility and adaptability of a more conventional lineup, I believe we have the power to overwhelm a more balanced lineup because we honed one aspect of our magic to its very peak, and any counters they have would not be sufficient to overcome our specialized magic."

    "Not bad. I like your confidence, and you do raise a good point. Even for the versatile conventional and balanced lineups, they will find it difficult to rival a team that has honed one of its elements to its pinnacle. Anyone else?"

    There was a clamor and other teams and students began throwing in their opinions. If you were expecting some idiot to volunteer me to speak up, then you were in the wrong story. Come on, I''m not some guy who offended other people just by virtue of existing. No one cared about me, to be frank. I wasn''t even on their radar.

    The dialogue became pretty heated as students excitedly and enthusiastically debated and argued over the strengths of their teams. I vaguely took notes and highlighted certain traits and specializations of each team who spoke up. Fiona was a great facilitator and moderator, who frequently stepped in to break apart groups of students before the exchange could turn into an outright conflict. She smoothly changed the topic and guided us back to the main debate when things veered off course, without even blatantly cutting in.

    How impressive.

    Before I knew it, the lesson was over. However, the teacher raised a hand before we could rise from our seats.

    "My lesson isn''t over, but don''t leave just yet. You still have a special lesson after this!" she turned toward the door, where a familiar figure strolled in.

    "That''s¡­Principal Porter?!"

    "What is he doing here?!"

    There was a hush as everyone watched the legendary principal step into the classroom, awestruck. He was known for resurrecting Vermillion Academy after its near destruction at the hands of the Assassins Guild, for the reforms that slightly shifted his school toward a more research and scholarly direction rather than being solely combat orientated, without neglecting the combat aspect of the school''s curriculum at all. He had also got rid of the hardliners in his school board and prevailed over the other Porter family heads after their near-annihilation upon Angelica''s betrayal to become the leader of the Porter clan.

    As such, everyone knew and respected him.

    Smiling, the bespectacled old man looked up at all the students, his eyes twinkling mischievously. Even though he was over seventy, he was quite the energetic old man. Then again, at this time and age, life expectancies had gone up drastically, and people were expected to live for hundreds of years without any problems. No, it has nothing to do with cultivation.

    Pushing my glasses up, I wondered just what he was here for today.

 275 Chapter 275: Debate

    "We''re going to have a classical literature lesson now!" Principal Porter declared cheerfully, much to the students'' dismay.

    "DAFAQ?!"

    "Huh?!"

    There was a bunch of students who weren''t able to help themselves from crying out in shock. I didn''t blame them. I didn''t expect that too. I mean, seriously? Why would the principal of one of the most prestigious academies in the Federation suddenly deliver a classical literature lecture to combat magic students? Most of whom wouldn''t be interested in the subject? Even Harrison Reed was frowning, and he was the most studious guy I knew.

    However, I found myself perked by the topic. Even though I didn''t care much about classical literature, history was one of my favorite subjects, after all. A lot of myths, folktales and legends were derived from classical literature, and those were certainly my topics of interest.

    "I''m sure you''ve all at least heard about the Greek epics?"

    Now that was something I was familiar with. I couldn''t help but feel excitement bubble inside me. My whole Constellation magic theme was based around ancient Greek legends, though I had liberally reinterpreted them for my own purposes under the stringent restrictions placed upon me by the laws of the universe.

    "What is the most common tragic flaw of the Greek heroes in those epics?" he asked, his eyes twinkling. "Anyone care to guess?"

    "Tragic flaw?"

    "What''s that?"

    Being combat magic students, none of them understood what Henry Porter was referring to. However, I was so excited at finally knowing what the class was talking about that I raised my hand without realizing it.

    "Hubris."

    "Very good!" Porter beamed and nodded, impressed. "That''s right."

    "¡­hubris?"

    "What''s that?"

    As the students in the classroom whispered amongst each other, puzzled, Porter continued to smile at me. I suddenly realized I might have made a mistake.

    "Since you''re the one who brought it up, young man, perhaps you could define hubris for everyone?"

    "Hubris is the excessive pride or self-confidence¡­sometimes used to refer to the hero thinking he can defy the gods or the divine will."

    "Excellent." Porter was pleasantly surprised. "That is exactly the meaning." He went on to give several examples, but Bu Fan raised a hand.

    "Why is pride a tragic flaw?"

    "What do you mean?" Porter asked. Bu Fan scowled.

    "If you''re strong¡­if you have the strength, then of course it''s only natural that you will be proud of it, right? Why is it a flaw?"

    "That''s right!"

    "Yeah! As long as you possess the power, you can do anything you want!"

    A few of the other students agreed with him.

    I suppressed a sigh. Not this bullshit again. Even though Porter was perplexed, I couldn''t stop myself from opening my mouth.

    "Then what happens if you meet someone stronger? If he''s stronger than you, then he has the right to beat you up? To bully you?"

    "That''s how the world works," Bu Fan said. "That''s reality¡­"

    "No, it''s not how reality works." I resisted the urge to bury my face in my palm. "Otherwise the military will enslave the civilians. Yet we are free, aren''t we?" pushing up my glasses, I took a deep breath. "There will always be a mountain taller than you. If you know the frustration of being looked down upon and abused, why mete it out on other people? Do unto others what you want others to do unto you. Just because you''re strong doesn''t mean you''re naturally entitled to be arrogant. Like the tragic flaw and excessive self-confidence present in these Greek heroes before they fell¡­they didn''t realize their limits and thought they were invincible, that they were the strongest. Then they ran into a much stronger enemy and were killed. Now I''m not saying they should not have fought or resisted, but if they admitted that they had limits, that they weren''t invincible or the strongest, they could have changed their tactics, they could have come up with countermeasures and panned accordingly instead of stubbornly challenging their foes in direct combat."

    I was overly generalizing the case here and simplifying the myths when they were a lot more complex than that, but for the purposes of enlightening my classmates, I had no choice. This attitude just pissed me off.

    "I wouldn''t say that exactly." Porter looked unconvinced by my argument. I decided to sit down and stay silent instead of embarrassing myself further. "But Richard has a point. Nobody is invincible. And I like his statement ¨C do unto others what you want others to do unto you. There will come a time when you find yourself in the shoes of those you looked down upon, and it''s not a pleasant feeling. Rather, we have all been granted this strength and the ability to use magic in order to protect other people. I won''t ask you to be a hero and save the world, but at least use that power to protect your friends, your families and the people close to you. I''m sure that you have a close friend or family member who can''t use magic or can''t fight. How would you feel when someone looks down on them?"

    Bu Fan hesitated, especially when he realized that his sister was precisely one of those people who couldn''t fight.

    "But I digress. Yes, hubris is certainly a tragic flaw of these Greek heroes. And therefore¡­" he smiled. "¡­they also serve as a grim reminder of the dangers of excessive pride and self-confidence. I''m not saying you should not be proud of your achievements and skills that you have invested so much time and effort into honing. Hold your head up high. And believe in yourselves. You are the future of the Federation. However, do not make the mistake of believing yourselves as invincible or peerless. As Richard said, there will always be a mountain higher. Different enemies will require different tactics to overcome, and not all of them can be defeated by brute strength alone. Humans may¡­arguably be the dominant race at the moment, but we cannot afford to underestimate the monsters that plague our borders."

    Fortunately, he shifted the topic elsewhere to explore more on Homer''s tales, including the Odyssey and the battle of Troy. Again, the topic of Achilles was raised, and he reminded us that we all had a weakness.

    "Oh, and before I end¡­can anyone tell me the difference between the Greek God Zeus and the Roman God Jupiter?"

    Everyone exchanged glances, but no one could answer. Apparently, in a thousand years, all the ancient myths had been neglected and forgotten. Or maybe these combat mages weren''t interested in classical myths and legends. Fortunately, I was, so I raised a hand.

    "There really isn''t much of a difference. The Roman Empire typically had analogues for the Greek Gods when they absorbed ancient Greece into the Byzantine sphere of culture, and apart from many provincial differences and language ¨C because the Empire consisted of populations speaking different languages such as Greek or Latin ¨C Zeus was regarded as Jupiter or vice versa. I don''t think the Roman citizens made any such distinction. Rather, what is interesting is that today we tend to think of gods in the monotheistic sense, in that they were often regarded as a single, unified entity, but throughout ancient Greece and the Roman Empire, the people did not necessarily think of the gods in that way. Even if he was the "same god" such as Zeus/Jupiter, he was usually divided and recognized by the temple he was worshipped in, or the province his temple was located in. The whole "Zeus/Jupiter" as a single god of thunder or the king of gods tended to be a more modern interpretation."

    "So you''re saying there''s no difference between the Greek and Roman versions?" Porter asked, his lips crooking slightly.

    "No, sir¡­at least not that I know of. At the very least, most people during that time didn''t regard them as different. They were more interested in the individual temples that housed the idols of these gods than the cultural or national origin."

    "I see. Interesting." Porter paused for a moment. "Are there any other examples you can think of regarding such instances? Perhaps¡­East Asia?"

    I hesitated a little. "East Asia, sir?"

    "For example¡­is Bishamonten Buddhist or Shinto?"

    By now, everyone was completely lost, swiveling from me to Porter and then fixing their eyes on the principal in astonishment. It was almost as if only the two of us were engaging in a dialogue while everyone else was ignored. Probably only Lilith had some idea what we were talking about, but she seemed more uncertain than confused.

    I shrugged. "Why not both, sir? Before government intervention in the late nineteenth century, the Japanese people probably didn''t even distinguish the kami as belonging to the Shinto pantheon or Buddhist pantheon. That sort of split was a more¡­modern creation, and was institutionalized for political purposes rather than having any basis in some nativist origin."

    To my surprise, Porter laughed, and then nodded. His eyes were twinkling triumphantly for some reason.

    "That was a good dialogue, but I should stop here before everyone else gets even more lost." He nodded toward the struggling students. To be fair, they were combat mages, not history and literature students like me (which I was in my previous life¡­maybe that was why I sucked so much at fighting). "All right. Class dismissed! You can all relax now!"

    Everyone let out huge breaths and slumped over their desks after Principal Porter left the classroom. Even I slumped against my chair wearily, mentally exhausted from talking so much nonsense that most people had no interest in.

    "All right, everyone!"

    The only person still energetic was none other than Lilith Porter. She had come to the front of the class and drew everyone''s attention with a clap of her hands.

    "I''m sure we''re all familiar with practical combat classes and training, so I won''t waste my time elaborating on them. But I got some good news for you all!" she waved her hands cheerfully. "I''ll be hosting a welcome party for everyone tonight! All of you, please show up!"

    That brought some life back to many of the students, who perked brightly at Lilith''s words.

    "Awesome!"

    "A party? Really!?"

    "I''ll definitely be there!"

    "I''m glad to hear that!" Lilith was pleased by their enthusiasm. "But I also should inform you that a few of the elders of Vermillion City will also be present tonight, so this is a chance for you to meet and get to know them."

    Why the fuck would we want to meet and get to know old fogeys? Most of us weren''t even from this city.

    Harrison must have read my mind (and probably that of Dong Fang Yue Chu, Craig and Theodore''s as well), for he leaned forward and explained in a hushed whisper.

    "Socializing. If you get to know the elites of upper society, there''s a chance you can establish connections, find a route into a university ¨C Vermillion University, for example ¨C or an internship at one of their companies. Not to mention, find sponsorships for your societies, or get funding for your activities, such as missions."

    Still didn''t interest me. Politics were not my thing at all.

    "Networking is very important," Harrison insisted, even though I didn''t voice that thought out at all. Damn it, was he reading my mind? "If you''re aiming to get a spot in a university, your chances go up higher if you''ve a connection with them."

    In other words, just like finding jobs or graduate school positions in my past life. I wouldn''t have made it that far if I didn''t rely on my professor''s connections.

    "Richard!" Lilith approached me, an invitation card in her hand. "You and your team will be coming, right?"

    "Uh¡­" it would be rude to refuse her directly, so I shrugged. It was one thing if she was hitting on me, I would hit her back with a verbal riposte. But she was simply inviting me to a party, so it wouldn''t be good to be too blunt. "Will there be food?"

    "Of course."

    "Then I''ll definitely be there." I glanced at the rest, who were nodding mischievously. "Seems like everyone will be there as well."

    "Great. I look forward to seeing you there then."

    "Thank you."

    After she left, Pearl nudged me. "Is there really nothing between you two?"

    "What do you mean?" I asked slyly. "I helped her out during the Spiritual Road, that''s all."

    "Heh¡­that''s all?"

    I refused to give that mischievous question a serious reply.

 276 Chapter 276: Socialization

    As you should all know by now, the sole reason why I deigned to participate in Lilith''s party was because of the free food.

    Just as she promised, there was a long table that provided a sumptuous buffet. I was quite enamored in particular with the seafood, and I grabbed a huge plate of cockles, mussels, shrimps, lobster and crab parts, and sashimi. Yay! They even served raw salmon! I missed that!

    "Are you seriously treating this like an all-you-can-eat buffet?" Harrison commented dryly when he saw the amount of food on my plate. I shrugged.

    "I guess?"

    "Have some dignity, dude." Harrison was burying his face in his palm. "You do realize we''re here to represent our school?"

    "Yeah, but that doesn''t mean we can''t eat. Or all the food here will go to waste. You want some?" I offered him some of my food, and Harrison raised an eyebrow. I realized that it wasn''t very polite to offer him my plate of half-eaten stuff, so I withdrew it and gestured toward the table. "There''s still quite a lot there. And they are really delicious."

    Harrison sighed and shook his head. "Yeah, I''ll have some."

    "Don''t let the food go to waste!" Theodore lumbered over, his plate having twice the amount of food that I had. The guy was bigger than me and so it was natural that he had a larger appetite. "They are really good!"

    "You guys¡­" Harrison tried not to roll his eyes, but he relented. As he scooped moderate amounts of food into his plate, he glanced at us. Dong Fang Yue Chu, Lily, Craig, Sheila, Theodore and I were all gathered together and eating almost side by side. Pearl was off somewhere, speaking to one of the girls from another school while Cody Crosby was nowhere to be seen. Well, he was an Assassin, so he was always hiding somewhere, his presence concealed.

    There was no need to mention Bu Fan. He hated my guts and looked down on the rest of us, and therefore refused to be caught dead in our company. Too bad Zhang Hou Zi wasn''t with him, but other than his bro, Bu Fan was a lone wolf anyway. I rarely saw him with any other guys other than Zhang Hou Zi. In contrast, he was always surrounded by girls by some unknown reason. I bet it was the harem protagonist aura or pheromones that drew them to him.

    "You do realize that the whole purpose of this party is to socialize and expand your network, right?" Harrison continued, almost unable to hide his annoyance. "How are you going to do that if you guys just hang out with each other?"

    We all exchanged a glance, and then shrugged in unison. Say what you will, but our team was pretty synchronized and coordinated.

    "Do you have to greet the elders later?" Lily asked. "I heard that all the team captains have to go to the main hall to greet the elders of Vermillion City."

    "And where are the arrogant young masters and elites looking down on our third-rate school?" Dong Fan Yue Chu added, looking around. "I was half-expecting a vice-captain from another academy to approach us and make fun of us or something."

    "Why would they do that?" Craig demanded, annoyed. "See if they dare, I''ll cut their tongue out."

    I sighed heavily. "Do you guys think this is some Chinese cultivation or fantasy magic novel or something? Do you really think people will just come and provoke us and hate on us for no reason other than because we are the main characters, and despite all evidence to the contrary, they continue to judge us as trash for some unfathomable reason? You think people just walk up and scorn random strangers for no reason other than to provoke conflict for the sake of advancing the plot and having antagonists?"

    Everyone stared at me. "I have no idea what you just said," Sheila said.

    "Never mind." I waved dismissively. "At least we didn''t receive a random challenge from some vice-captain from some random school who is mocking us for no reason other than because we are the main characters."

    "¡­huh?"

    "Stop breaking the fourth wall," Craig complained. "Not all of us have read Battle Frenzy. And I don''t plan to read it either."

    "Returning to Lily''s question¡­" Harrison dragged us back to reality. "No, we are not going to any main hall. The elders will be coming here and joining the buffet. They probably want to have a good look at all the students, not just the team captains."

    As if on cue, there was a furor at the entrance, and a group of people trickled in. Middle-aged adults, accompanied by entourages of bodyguards and the like. The world of the rich ¨C once again, I was reminded of the engagement party I attended. The one organized by Lionel Stuart and which ended in quite the disaster. The middle-aged adults in the middle were led to seats and tables at the far end of the main hall that the students were populated, and served glasses of wine and other finger food. It wasn''t just middle-aged men, but young men and women in their twenties and early thirties, mingling with the students and speaking to them. A few of them raised their glasses of wine to a toast, and chuckled as they conversed.

    "Good evening, everybody."

    Dressed in a lovely lavender velvet evening gown, Lilith stood in the middle of the main hall, drawing everyone''s attention to her. Her figure was spectacular, and more than enough reason for the guys to ogle her, while the girls whispered enviously to each other, admiring her style. Unaffected by the combined gazes of everyone in the main hall, Lilith continued.

    "The ladies and gentlemen from the Cyan family, the Lavender family, and the Maroon family have always supported the Porter Clan as the main pillars of Vermillion City. Everyone, please introduce yourselves. I hope that after this evening, you''ll all get to know each other a little more."

    In other words, she was telling us to socialize with the elites of Vermillion City.

    Several of the adults, seated in couches and sipping their wine, offered encouraging smiles and put on friendly expressions. One of them waved at us in a welcoming manner.

    "I''m so heartened to see such a gathering of so many young, talented people in one place!"

    "You can relax. Don''t mind our ages, please come to talk to us freely. We prefer it that way."

    "Yeah, let''s dispense with formality and get to know each other!"

    The students whispered among themselves, but more than a few of them had already begun their approach. Even though these families weren''t among the top Ten Great Families of the Federation, they were still pretty renowned and wealthy, and persuading them to invest in one''s talent and future was the goal of many of the students here.

    "Better get started." Harrison sighed and wandered toward one of the adults, probably to pay his greetings. I bade him farewell. Honestly, I couldn''t care less about this nonsense. I wasn''t interested in sponsorships or backing, not when I wanted to be a mercenary. If I was really that desperate, I would rather join Feng Hai and his Silver Wolves, though ideally I would just tag along with Dad on his missions once I graduated from university and received my actual combat mage license.

    Quite frankly, there was no reason for me to socialize with these guys, and they most likely were not interested in funding mercenary missions and guilds. They were here to¡­probably employ future bodyguards or representatives for their clans in big-money tournaments. Nothing to do with actual combat. Perhaps some of them funded paramilitary organizations, but if that was the case I might as well join the Federation military.

    Good thing I could just leave this socializing nonsense to Harrison. I decided to continue eating.

    "Oh hey¡­Richie! So you really did come!"

    Unfortunately, while I didn''t want to socialize with the old fogeys, the same couldn''t be said of the other party. Fortunately, the voice belonged to someone I was really familiar with.

    "Uncle Glen! You''re actually here?"

    My jaw dropped when Glen Porter wandered over to the buffet table where my team and I had gathered. Harrison froze in the middle of his walk, then he slowly did a 180 degree and discreetly rejoined us.

    "Who¡­?" Dong Fang Yue Chu blurted out. Lily, Craig and the rest looked just as puzzled, but Harrison elbowed him.

    "He''s Glen Porter! The Divine Tiger of Vermillion City! The son of Principal Henry Porter, the current head of the Porter Clan!"

    "¡­oh."

    "Why do you know such a big shot?" Craig hissed into my ear before Theodore shoved him aside, to maintain some modicum of politeness.

    "Excuse our rudeness," the big guy apologized to Uncle Glen, who didn''t look at all bothered. Instead, he chuckled.

    "Ha ha! Don''t worry about it!" Uncle Glen waved Theodore''s apology away, and then turned back to me with a grin. "Your friends?"

    "Yeah. We''re all from Jing Tian Academy."

    "I see, I see. I''m glad that you have a lot of friends." He chuckled. "I was worried that you will take after your dad and become some sort of edgy lone wolf who wants to hide his strength for some reason even though his harem¡­I mean, female subordinates were getting beaten up."

    "Don''t mistake my dad for Ichinose Guren, and this isn''t some side-story for Owari no Seraph."

    "I know, I know. Anyway, I hope you''re enjoying yourself. My daughter worked hard to organize this." he then ducked his head behind a waiter who was carrying a tray of glasses filled with wine. "Don''t tell her I''m here. She''ll probably get mad."

    "Huh? I''m sure she already knows you''re here."

    "¡­eh?"

    Uncle Glen froze for a moment, and then slowly turned around. His daughter was glaring at him, and I could literally see an inferno rage behind her.

    "DAD~"

    "Ugh! Um¡­I mean, greetings, my dear daughter¡­?"

    "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"

    Realizing that everyone was staring at her, Lilith then coughed and cleared her throat before regaining her dignified posture. Plastering a scary smile that would have frozen over the fires of hell, she strode toward her dad.

    "Dad, I thought you weren''t coming today? Where''s Mom? Weren''t you both supposed to attend the festivities at Southampton City today?"

    "Your mom can handle all that on her own, you know that."

    "You abandoned Mom and left everything to her again?!" Lilith seethed as she buried her pretty face into her palm. "Good lord¡­you¡­"

    Fortunately, before she could explode, her father was saved from her wrath when Riley hurried over.

    "Captain! Big news!" before she could turn her rage upon him, he hastily added. "Principal Porter is here!"

    That caught the attention of every middle-aged elite in the main hall, many of them hopping to their feet in shock.

    "What?!"

    "What''s he doing here?!"

    "The head of the Porter Clan is¡­?"

    The majestic figure of Henry Porter strolled through the huge entrance. He was dressed in flowing vermillion robes, with the crest of the phoenix emblazoned across his chest. His expression grave, he strode forward in a straight line, even as Lilith hastily approached him.

    "Grandpa, why didn''t you tell me that you were coming?" she was practically flailing about frantically. "I could have arranged for people to receive you!"

    "Why is her treatment of her grandfather so different from the way she treats you, Uncle Glen?" I whispered to her dad, who was blue in the face.

    "Uh¡­because my father is the clan head?"

    "And you''re the deputy clan head."

    "I don''t know. I think little Lilith respects her grandfather more than me." Uncle Glen chuckled sheepishly, and then shrank back when Henry Porter glanced in his direction. "Am I in trouble?"

    "Don''t worry about it, little Lilith," Principal Porter assured her. "I wasn''t actually planning on coming to be honest. It''s just that¡­an interesting person showed up in your party, and I wanted to speak to him."

    Lilith cast a glare at her father, no doubt discerning that he was her grandfather''s target. "Listen, Grandpa! Dad is at it again! He abandoned Mom to attend the Festivities of Blades at Southampton City by herself, and sneaked into this party without telling me!"

    "I see." Principal Porter''s tone remained indifferent. "Well, your mother should be able to handle the Festivities of Blades by herself. I''m sure she''ll be delighted to see her friends again after such a long time. She''ll probably have some sort of Ladies'' Night with them after the festivities."

    Lilith''s jaw dropped when she heard her grandfather dismiss her father''s mischief just like that. She closed her mouth and tried to say something, but words just wouldn''t form.

    Principal Porter didn''t wait for her to gather her thoughts and construct a coherent protest. Instead, he smiled. "Little Lilith, I''m sure there''s someone named Richard Huang among the people who are attending your party today?"

    A bead of perspiration ran down Lilith''s cheek as she clearly wondered what I did this time. She tried to remain calm.

    "Grandpa, is there some sort of misunderstanding?"

    "Are you looking for me, sir?" I asked as I raised my hand. I had no choice. Uncle Glen was about to give me away, and he was already pointing at me. Fortunately, I cut him off before he could call his father''s attention toward me. "I''m Richard Huang."

    He nodded and approached me.

    "The things on the library''s holographic bulletin board¡­were you the one who wrote them?"

    "What things?" I asked innocently.

    "The short essay on how Shintoism and Buddhism weren''t regarded as two separate religions before the nineteenth century, and were only institutionalized as such after the modernized Japanese government sought to build a new national and cultural identity in the face of the colonial threat from the West?"

    "Oh, yeah. That was me." I scratched my head sheepishly. "Sorry about that. I got too carried away."

    "I knew it! When you gave that answer during my lecture today, I suspected that you were the one!" the volume of Principal Porter''s tone was rising. Behind him, Lilith paled considerably and shuddered from dread.

    "WTF?! Did he scribble on Grandpa''s research?!"

    Principal Porter''s hands were shaking as he placed them on my shoulder.

    "Impressive! I want to know what your basis for that argument is! Do you mind following me for a bit? I want to discuss with you regarding this subject¡­if what you say has some firm basis, then it might revolutionize the field of history!"

    "Surely you exaggerate." I was raising an eyebrow and wondering what the hell happened to the field of history over a thousand years. "The arguments I made were already pioneered by historians in the early twenty-first century. In fact, already in the late twentieth century, a few scholars have already recognized the distinction between modern religion and premodern religion, and pointed out how religion as a concept was a modern, Western invention, and might not be applicable¡­"

    "Fascinating! I would like to hear of these scholars you speak of!"

    "Uh, Harry Harootunian is one of them¡­"

    "Come with me!" Principal Porter was practically pushing me toward some random direction and leading me from the party.

    "Uh¡­Dad? What do you plan on doing with Richie?"

    "Grandpa? What exactly is happening?"

    Both Uncle Glen and Lilith were gaping at Principal Porter, completely flabbergasted by his reaction.

    "History research," Principal Porter replied dismissively. "Academic stuff. I don''t think anyone else will be interested." He then slightly pushed me. "Richard, let''s discuss this in my study and see if we can dig up these ancient scholars you speak of."

    The elites of Vermillion City and the students watched us go, and then Uncle Glen cheerfully clapped to break the tension.

    "Seems like my father needs to discuss something with Richie, so the rest of you, continue partying! There''s still a lot of food left, help yourself!"

    "DAD! I''m the one who ordered the food!"

    "Ha ha!" Uncle Glen chuckled, ignoring her and turning back to my friends who were still reeling from the unexpected turn of events. "Well¡­Shun Yin always said that Richie was a big fan of history and folklore. It''s a pity, but even though I''ve visited Richie and his dad so many times over the last few years, I can''t say I know him very well. Do you guys mind telling me how he''s like at school?"

    "Uh¡­he''s¡­a nice guy?" Dong Fang Yue Chu offered uncertainly.

    Lilith could only shake her head, but her father gestured for her to join in.

    "Come on, Lilith dear, you might want to hear about Richie too!"

    "Why would I?!"

    "Well¡­" Uncle Glen glanced in the direction of his father''s study and grinned mischievously. "From the way your grandpa is acting, I wouldn''t be surprised if he asks you to marry him eventually!"

 277 Chapter 277: Historical Discourse

    "I think your grandpa is calling you, Lilith," Uncle Glen told her before she could protest vehemently at his previous statement. She sulked and gave him a deadly glare before she stomped off in the direction of the study.

    As it turned out, Uncle Glen was right. The moment Lilith hurried into Henry Porter''s study room, the old principal casually directed her to help him brew some tea. He even instructed her on which tea leaves to use.

    "¡­seriously?"

    Lilith was fuming as she struggled with the teapot, and then began pouring hot liquid into a couple of small cups. By the way, she didn''t bother to use any electricity ¨C using her own fire magic, she boiled the tea manually herself. She frowned as she stared at the two cups of steaming tea, perplexed as a bead of perspiration ran down her face.

    "Grandpa treasures this tea so much that he can''t bear to share them with his friends, and actually conceals them at my private estate. To think that he would actually pull them out to entertain Richard¡­"

    Well¡­for one thing, I wasn''t a big tea drinker, and I doubted Principal Porter would have to worry about me liking the tea so much that I began requesting for it or drinking it excessively. I normally preferred chilled honey-flavored tea because I had a sweet tooth, so these sorts of refined tea leaves weren''t to my taste.

    Placing the cups on a tray, Lilith strode over to the huge mahogany coffee table that Principal Porter invited me to sit on. Already I had pulled out a few holographic screens from my smartphone and was displaying several digital archives.

    "Fascinating!" Principal Porter exclaimed when I showed him one of Harry Harootunian''s essays regarding the Tokugawa and Meiji periods. "I never would have thought that such academic discourse existed in the twenty-first century!"

    And late twentieth century, but I didn''t bother to correct him. Instead, I merely nodded. Even though I loved the subject, I couldn''t claim to be an expert, having almost failed my preliminary exams and nearly getting kicked out of graduate school in my past life. So I decided to let the digital archives and long-lost scholars do the talking.

    "I didn''t think that so much academic material would be lost to the ravages of time! I''m so glad they still have digital archives of these ancient records stored in the cloud server! I would hate to think what would happen if they were lost to us forever!"

    "Uh, right." I could only laugh hollowly as Principal Porter continued to gush over the books I had dredged up.

    "Hmm¡­Marilyn Ivy¡­Ben Figal¡­John Dower¡­Tessa Morris-Suzuki¡­even Donald Keene! Why have we not heard of these amazing scholars'' work in the field before?"

    Because a thousand years had passed since their texts had been published? It would be weirder if people were still talking about them a thousand years into the future¡­I guess? Then again, people still talked about Socrates and Plato during my time, but admittedly they were no longer as renowned as they once were.

    "Um¡­I brought the tea."

    Lilith was hesitant to break into her grandfather''s enthusiastic ranting, and she stood off to the side, the tray in her hands.

    "Thanks," I told her, but Principal Porter continued rambling even as his beloved granddaughter passed him his cup. At least he was conscious enough to accept the cup without dropping it.

    "Young man, how did you come across these works?! Surely you didn''t randomly decide to search the ancient archives for scholarly articles and books from the twenty-first century? How did you pinpoint that period?"

    "Uh, the truth is¡­yeah. It was a lucky coincidence." Okay, that wasn''t the truth, but surely you couldn''t expect me to tell the old guy I somehow reincarnated from the past after sacrificing my life to save someone from a falling crane. He would probably think I was mad or something. Or dismissed me as joking. "I was just browsing through the archives when I caught sight of these articles, and decided to arbitrarily read them. I was so drawn to their fresh viewpoints and perspectives that I couldn''t stop reading and thinking about them, and so¡­that''s how I recalled them when I saw your post in the library''s bulletin board yesterday."

    "It''s rare to see a combat mage take such a keen interest in history!"

    Principal Porter fell silent for a moment as he reminisced, and then he smiled, a nostalgic expression on his face.

    "I remember when your father was here. He never had an interest in anything outside fighting. I never would have thought his adopted son would show such keen interest in the academic field. Not just history, but literature too¡­"

    "Well, I like reading¡­"

    Partly because I was trying to learn more about this new world that I was thrown in. However, something in his words caught my attention.

    "You still remember my dad?"

    "How could I forget?" Principal Porter chuckled. "He was one of the brightest and most talented students in my academy. He was always getting into trouble with my son." He threw a sidelong glance at Lilith, who was hovering in the background. "I''m glad my granddaughter didn''t take after my son. The two of them were always up to mischief, showing no interest in research unless it benefited their combat skills."

    I remembered the spirit summoning research program that Principal Porter approved and helped established. However, it was supposed to be top secret, and technically Dad wasn''t allowed to share the details of that with me, so I continued to feign ignorance.

    "Uncle Glen seems like a responsible person to me," I said instead. Principal Porter almost spat out his tea. Even Lilith snorted in disbelief, but she remained silent as Principal Porter wiped his mouth with a napkin and gaped at me.

    "Surely you jest!"

    I shrugged noncommittedly. "I can only say what I''ve observed of Uncle Glen so far."

    "Fair enough." Though Principal Porter conceded that, I had no doubt he was wondering what sort of trickery Uncle Glen employed to pull the wool over my eyes. Coughing, he cleared his throat and beamed.

    I suddenly had a bad feeling about this.

    "Would you be interested in joining my research group?"

    "¡­huh? What research group?"

    Oh boy. My premonition proved to be true. Don''t tell me it was the same spirit summoning research group that Dad got involved in about two decades ago. That had been a pretty dangerous project, which had eventually led to the Assassins Guild throwing their lot in and stealing their research. I still remembered how Seinagi Tenshi was murdered in cold blood, all because Angelica was a yandere who didn''t want any other girl getting close to Dad.

    Not that I was ever going to call her that to her face, but you know¡­the truth has to be spoken and all that.

    Fortunately, Principal Porter seemed to have moved in new, different directions.

    "Archeological research, actually."

    "Uh, you do know that archeology and history are two different things, right?" I reminded him, scratching my head.

    "Yeah, they are. But they work hand-in-hand. I just need someone with a fresh perspective to help us catalogue and analyze the scrolls we''re bringing in."

    "¡­scrolls?"

    "Oh, right, I suppose I should explain from the beginning." Principal Porter looked apologetic. "We discovered an ancient tomb right across the Black Underworld Swamp, a few kilometers west from Vermillion City. I''m leading a team of archaeologists to excavate the site. Even though your history training isn''t exactly the same thing as archeological training, I''m sure you can provide certain perspectives that even experienced archaeologists may overlook. Moreover, you can double as security¡­as you are probably already aware, the Black Underworld Swamp is a very dangerous place. We are in need of powerful combat mages who are capable of protecting the archeological team. For this aspect alone, you are more than qualified ¨C but your history viewpoint is just a bonus that might come in useful."

    "That sounds fascinating," I remarked, feeling a little excited. It wasn''t everyday that you get a chance to explore an ancient tomb. "Do you know which period the tomb was built? When did it originate from?"

    "Hmm, records put it around at least eight hundred years ago." Principal Porter was musing.

    Yeah, if it was eight hundred years ago, it would be about two hundred years after my previous life, so I would know nothing about it. I doubted I would be able to help. Even so, this sounded like a great chance to explore ancient tombs and perhaps earn some cash from a mission. Plus¡­Principal Porter said that the archeological team required protection. As a wannabe hero and an aspiring mercenary, of course I wouldn''t pass up such a golden opportunity.

    At least that was what I thought, but Lilith quickly cut in.

    "Grandpa! You can''t just drag people into your archeological dig! Richard is busy with his own classes at Jing Tian Academy! Not to mention, the national tournament is coming up really soon! He will want to focus on training and preparing for it¡­"

    "My dear Lilith, you cannot be serious?" Principal Porter calmly sipped from his cup of tea. "What is a little tournament compared to an exploration of an ancient structure that would most certainly yield new and exciting discoveries that can change the way we study history?" He then suddenly perked up, as if he had a great idea, and turned back to me. "Speaking of which, you should just transfer to our Vermillion Academy. Your father was a student here once to, it''ll be very easy for me to arrange your transfer."

    "No, no, no." I waved my hands frantically. "There''s no way I can abandon my school this late into the semester and this near the tournament. That would be too irresponsible. And with all due respect to your Vermillion Academy, I really like Jing Tian Academy and would prefer to stay there until I graduate."

    "Fair enough. Principal Porter was unperturbed. "If you feel that strong a sense of responsibility toward your school, then perhaps I can have Lilith transfer to Jing Tian and help you guys with the tournament. Even though she isn''t as knowledgeable as you ¨C she takes too much after her father for that ¨C I daresay she excels at fighting."

    "!!!" Lilith almost broke into tears when she heard that. It was clear that she was thinking something along the lines of "I''m your granddaughter, am I not!? Are you actually selling your own flesh and blood granddaughter away in some backroom deal?!"

    "You''re kidding right?" I blurted out. "This isn''t Battle Frenzy! Let''s stop ripping that off!"

    "Battle what?" Principal Porter repeated, bewildered. I shook my head and decided to take the initiative.

    "Never mind, sir. Rather than that, I want to say, I would love to volunteer for the archeological expedition. As long as I make it back in time for the tournament, I will be happy to help and guard the excavation team for a period of time. Fighting against the monsters in the Black Underworld Swamp will provide me with excellent combat experience anyway."

    Lilith was so shocked that she didn''t object to this. She was still perspiring profusely, her mouth hanging wide open. Fortunately, Principal Porter was still on the ball.

    "Excellent! I''m very glad to have you onboard!"

    "Yes, sir¡­but before that¡­don''t forget about the matter of uh¡­payment?"

    "Oh, certainly! I can''t possibly ask you to work for free, can I?" he stroked his beard. "You sure you don''t want to be rewarded with a scholarship into Vermillion Academy?"

    "No, no, I''m staying in Jing Tian Academy¡­"

    "I see. Oh, wait¡­how about Vermilion University? Once you graduate from Jing Tian High School, you''ll be looking for a university, right? Just like your dad. I strongly urge you to consider Vermillion University as one of your choices. I''ll definitely be able to grant you a place here¡­"

    For now, I decided to just accede to his requests and frantically nod, while praying that Lilith didn''t pass out on the spot.

 278 Chapter 278: Practice Matches

    After a night of discussing both history and business with Principal Porter, I was finally released and allowed to return to my room.

    Honestly, I had nothing to say. Principal Porter could just read all the stuff I showed him. I was merely just regurgitating past scholars'' work, without having any of my own ideas or arguments in the mix. Mostly because I was a half-baked scholar who was more interested in magic than studying. I liked reading and writing, that was for sure, but I preferred to be practicing my own magic.

    Even so, I couldn''t help but feel excited. Once this exchange session was over and we returned to Jing Tian Academy, I could prepare for yet another expedition. Even though they were two different fields, history still had an intimate relationship with archeology, and I really couldn''t wait to join the expedition. I wasn''t as sanguine about venturing through the notorious Black Underworld Swamp, but as with everything else, I took it in my stride and hoped to get it done and over with as soon as possible.

    At the very least, the Black Underworld Swamp and its denizens provided me with ample opportunity to sharpen my fighting skills and polish my magic. They were a different type of opponent when compared to human mages, but they would still present quite the challenge. A fight to the death was still a fight to the death, and would help me hone my senses and instincts to their peak. If anything, I preferred fighting monsters to humans anyway. Not because they were easier, but because I was supposed to protect humanity, not¡­defeat them.

    Unfortunately, what I wanted wasn''t always what I got. There were times when I had to fight other humans to protect innocent civilians.

    Anyway, I managed to finish reading several of the books and I brought them back to the library. On the way there, Lilith waved and approached me.

    "You are the Garrulous King!" she shouted.

    "¡­say what?" I responded, utterly baffled. "I''m the what king now?"

    "Never mind." Lilith folded her arms and glared at me. "You can continue pretending, but I know the truth! I know your real identity!"

    "Lady¡­you''re not making any sense at all. Are you perhaps confusing reality with some web novel?"

    Lilith sulked. "What web novel? I''ll have you know that I never read Battle Frenzy!"

    "Lady, you''re not convincing anyone here. I didn''t even mention the title, yet you already know the specific web novel I''m referring to. We don''t have any OP system, I''m not some overpowered Mary Sue dude who can use every weapon in existence, I don''t dive into any pseudo virtual reality system to fight other people, I''m not the team captain of Jing Tian, I''m just ripping off scholars from my own time instead of actually innovating stuff and contributing to the creation of knowledge, I don''t have any clown floating around me, I don''t have weird out of body experiences in some spiritual plane where I meet people from the empire and go on adventures in strange tombs with them, and I certainly don''t have a harem of beautiful girls falling for me just because they think I''m some mysterious fighter who kept his identity a secret while maintaining an unbeaten record."

    "Uh¡­" Lilith was unable to catch up with my wall of text that she actually blanked out for a few seconds. "All right, you win."

    "As all things should be," I replied, relieved. "Anyway, I''m sure you''re not here to break the fourth wall and rip off Battle Frenzy, are you? Are you looking for me for something?"

    "Um¡­" Lilith looked at me guiltily. She couldn''t possibly be serious. Did she really come here to troll both me and the readers? Seriously?

    "¡­"

    "Okay, okay! I really did just come here to accuse you of being the Garrulous King! That''s what Laura did in Battle Frenzy, and I''m supposed to be a copy of her!"

    "Then do something original to distinguish you from her! Don''t just rip off a character from another story!"

    "Ahem¡­" Harrison cleared his throat behind Lilith, and both of us immediately shut up when we realized we were making quite the ruckus in the library. "Sorry, Miss Lilith, but if you have no important matter to discuss with Richard, then I would like to impose on his time right now."

    "You need me for something?" I asked, feeling relieved that someone was going to approach me with serious business for once. At least Harrison wasn''t a rip-off of some character from another story¡­

    "I''m supposed to be Reed from Battle Frenzy, minus the unbelievable villainous side."

    "Are you reading my mind or something!?"

    "Do you really think you''re the only one who can break the fourth wall?" Harrison crossed his arms. "That aside, I need you in the gymnasium. We''ve a practice match with the students of Sexton Academy today."

    "Oh, okay." I lifted the books I had placed on the table. "Let me loan these out first and I''ll join you in a second."

    "Why are you even borrowing physical copies?" Harrison asked, perplexed. "You could just order the digital copies online and read them on your smartphone or Kindle device. They don''t take up as much space and are more accessible and convenient. You didn''t even need to physically come to the library and carry those books around in the first place, and you won''t have to worry about returning them."

    "You''re right." I looked a little sheepish. "But if I don''t come to the library, I wouldn''t have done that whole writing in someone else''s holographic bulletin board thing, and we wouldn''t have this scene where Lilith accuses me of being a Garrulous King."

    "Remind me why we even need that scene¡­no, actually, please don''t." Harrison realized I was going to give him a troll answer. "Anyway, let''s go. Excuse us, Miss Lilith."

    "I''m coming along if you don''t mind." Lilith was smiling. "I want to watch."

    We headed to the training room where I had sparred with Lilith just the other day. Quite a lot of students had gathered in the gymnasium, which wasn''t unusual. Many of us came here with the goal to learn each other''s magic and size up our potential rivals and challengers in the upcoming tournaments. The sparring matches also provided ample opportunity for preparation and practice for the actual thing. In fact, there were already a few practice matches held between several schools, but fortunately Harrison was on top of things and he had already recorded them.

    "Why are you having a practice match with Sexton Academy?" Lilith asked curiously. "Did they challenge you? Did their vice-captain hold a grudge against Richard? Did their vice-captain beat up Theodore as revenge after being humiliated by his wrong prediction that the Garrulous King would lose his OP system match?"

    Both Harrison and I stared at her, completely confounded.

    "Do you know what she is talking about?"

    "No." I had an idea, but I wasn''t going to admit to Harrison that I knew she was referencing Battle Frenzy, or I would look like I was participating in the trolling as well. I wanted nothing to do with her odd commentary. "She''s speaking in some alien language I can''t decipher."

    "B¡­but it has to be, right?!" Lilith protested. "Otherwise why would Sexton Academy randomly challenge you? Their captain or vice-captain must be holding a grudge against the protagonist and seeks to humiliate his team! That must be the only reason!"

    "Miss Lilith." Harrison was struggling to sound patient. "I''m not sure where you get all these weird ideas from, but real life does not operate in that way. Most people can''t be bothered to go out of their way to humiliate you for no reason other than because you''re the protagonist. And most people wouldn''t hold a grudge over something as inane as ''you''re trash, therefore I must put you in your place.'' Especially toward someone they have met for the very first time in their lives. Do you randomly walk up to a stranger and start mocking him just because he''s from another school?"

    "No¡­"

    "There you go. Besides, we''re not the only ones who have conducted practice matches. Crimson Valley Academy and Redfield Academy just had their practice match not too long ago. Veritas and Reunion Academies are just about to finish theirs. And after our match, Springville Academy and Huo Tian Academy will be having theirs. I''m sure none of them are sparring because their captains hold a grudge against the other school and seek to humiliate them."

    "Uh¡­"

    "Besides, isn''t that what we are all here in the first place?" I stepped in before Lilith could cry from Harrison''s tirade. "Practice matches. Preparation for the national tournament. It''s only natural we want to do test runs and probe each other''s strength before the actual thing."

    "Geez! I know! I was just trying to make a joke! Why can''t you guys get the reference?"

    "Because I''m not a fan of Battle Frenzy," Harrison replied shortly. Probably because the guy his character was based on was some awful one-dimensional villain who existed only to shallowly give Wang Zhong and Tian Jing Academy problems. Don''t ask me why. I don''t know the reason either.

    I had to admit, I enjoyed reading quite a lot of Battle Frenzy, though. There were a few flaws, yeah, but it was still good, mindless fun, if you aren''t too anal over logic.

    Fortunately, the rest of the team was already assembled.

    "Captain Harrison?"

    A handsome, blond guy approached our team leader. Harrison nodded and bowed politely.

    "Captain Paul?"

    I immediately recognized his uniform. So this was the captain of the Sexton Academy team. He smiled.

    "Since this is just a practice match, I probably will sit this one out. I mean no offense, but I would like to assess the capabilities of my team members, and hopefully improve upon their weaknesses later. I hope you don''t mind."

    "No, of course not." Harrison shook his head. "You should do what is best for your team. I will certainly be doing what I think is optimum for my team as well."

    "Thank you for understanding. I just thought I''ll inform you, as a courtesy, just to ensure there are no misunderstandings."

    Lilith was raising an eyebrow at that, no doubt thinking something along the lines of Paul being some sinister schemer who was looking for an excuse to save face if they lost, even though the reality was clearly different.

    "Thank you for telling me. I suppose I''ll extend the same courtesy to you as well, and also tell you that I won''t be participating. I also want to watch and analyze the abilities and skills of my own team members."

    "No problem. That sounds good. I''m glad you share the same view." Paul was nodding in approval. "Our teams can''t rely only on their captains alone. It''ll be good to see how they perform without us, a good stress test in case we somehow get incapacitated during the tournament."

    With that agreed, the two team captains shook hands amicably, and then they headed toward their respective areas.

    "So there you have it, Richard. I''ll be relying on you."

    "¡­wait, what? Why me?"

    "Because if I''m not around, you''ll be next in line to lead the team, duh."

    "¡­please don''t put such pressure on me. You know I don''t have such leadership capabilities, the charisma or the tactical nous to take on such a role."

    "Oh, you don''t need those. You can just be you." Harrison patted my shoulder and grinned. "I''m counting on you."

    In a few minutes, the lineup for Sexton Academy was announced, and they were sending out a single guy and four girls.

    "¡­do they think this is a fashion show instead of a practice match?" Craig muttered. He wasn''t alone. All around, the students from the other schools were buzzing.

    "Whoa, they certainly score full marks for style!"

    "One King and Four Queens¡­how divine!"

    "They look amazing! Those four girls are goddesses!"

    "That guy is an Adonis! I want him to marry me!"

    I could hear fans screaming in the background.

    "Paul really didn''t take part," Theodore noted, having heard the conversation earlier. "You''re going to stay out of this, Harrison?"

    "Yup. There''s no need for me to join."

    "Are you sure about that?" for some reason, Lilith had followed us back to our team area. "I know they look more like idols than mages, but those girls there are really strong. Their teamwork is impeccable. And that guy, Gray Winters, is a prodigy of the sword. Although he hasn''t beaten Kureha Franklin, he''s still pretty close to her in terms of sword skills. They call him the second Charles Lacroix, except that he doesn''t use lightning magic."

    "Even so, Gray Winters is neither Kureha Franklin nor Charles Lacroix. And even if he is, I will still have confidence in my teammates." Harrison turned to us. "Go get them, guys."

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I took a deep breath and nodded. Truth be told, I was looking forward to this match.

    "We''ll do our best."

 279 Chapter 279: Practice Matches II

    Unlike Sexton''s four girls and one guy (hence the name of their school), we fielded a somewhat balanced lineup. Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily Liam, Craig Carlson and Sheila Scarlet, and me as three fire-teams. Well, I wasn''t exactly a fire-team given that I was just one guy, so saying that our team was divided into three semi-independent units would be more accurate.

    Thanks to the presence of girls in our team, we received several cheers as well. It was unfortunate for the ogling male members of the audience that our girls were already attached. They had no chance with either Lily or Sheila.

    Not that the opposing team cared, being comprised mostly of girls. Only Gray Winters stood out as the sole guy in their lineup, and he could have any girl he wanted. He didn''t seem interested in our girls, or the girls in his own team.

    Our guys, on the other hand¡­well, were reined in by their girls. Fortunately, neither Lily nor Sheila needed to warn them. Their guys were unconditionally faithful to them. I actually felt envious of the couples.

    Who knew how far I would have progressed with Alicia if I didn''t stupidly let her die¡­?

    "!!!"

    The match had already begun, and I was nearly punished when two girls from the back of Sexton Academy unleashed a volley of plasma at me. To be more accurate, one girl did, and she was covered by her buddy, who wielded dual pistols reminiscent of the late Alicia. My team scattered and dispersed to avoid getting hit by their heavy weapon.

    "Yue Chu and I will take care of the two girls at the back and eliminate their ranged support. We''ll leave the other three to you guys!"

    Lily dove forward decisively, with Dong Fang Yue Chu covering her almost naturally. He raised his hands and unleashed a torrent of Pure Yang flames that washed over the superheated plasma that the girl with the heavy weapon unleashed upon them. The other girl fired relentlessly with her dual pistols to keep the couple away, but Lily raised her shield and withstood the solid shots. I could see her flinching from the tremendous impacts, but fortunately the magical bullets dispersed against her shield without much effects.

    While the two closed in on the two girls at the back, Craig and Sheila ¨C having attained an intimate understanding of each other (and I wasn''t just talking about their romantic relationship) ¨C had already wordlessly charged toward the other two girls, who had lunged forward to meet them in combat. One of the girls wielded dual daggers and she clashed with Sheila, who knocked her short weapons away with a twirl of her spear. Deflecting another dagger with her shield, she thrust her spear forward, but the short, blond girl nimbly twisted her body out of the way and evaded her strike. She then spun around and retaliated with another slash that Sheila parried with her shield.

    Beside the two of them, Craig engaged the final swordswoman in a furious exchange of blades. He twirled his crimson spear about, deflecting her strikes with consummate ease, and then countered with a riposte that nearly took her head off. The girl ducked and parried with her shield, but Craig''s blow was so powerful that it skidded past the metal and grazed her cheek, leaving a trail of blood.

    "My bad. I shouldn''t have gone for the face."

    "You¡­!" the girl''s demeanor turned an angry purple at what she took to be an insult from the cavalier Craig and she slashed at him with her sword. Violet mana glowed before arcing forward explosively at the spearman.

    Craig merely deflected the spell with an effortless swing of his spear, and then he thrust it forward in retaliation, forcing her back. Despite her rage, the girl was an excellent swordswoman. She knocked his spear aside before stabbing toward his midriff.

    Clang!

    The two of them sprang apart, but Craig maintained his posture and lowered his spear. I knew he must be readying his deadly strike that could penetrate any defenses. That meant the swordswoman''s shield would be useless.

    Credit to her, she instinctively recognized Craig''s spell and she immediately backed away as far as she could. Despite its devastating power, Craig''s curse was not absolute or omnipresent. There was a range limitation to it, and as long as his opponent could withdraw far enough, it was nothing more than a little stinger.

    "Hmm¡­" Craig''s face twisted into a sneer. "I guess I shouldn''t be expecting an easy victory."

    While the two of them clashed again, Sheila was still locked in combat with her dagger-wielding opponent beside them. The two girls danced to a deadly rhythm of blades, sparks of silver and red flying to their beat every time they tangled. They exchanged moves in an almost silent but furious manner, the only melody the shrill cry produced whenever their weapons clashed against each other. And when they finally broke apart, it was almost as if they did so reluctantly.

    "I understand how you feel, but I don''t think either of us has the luxury of worrying about our teammates."

    "!!!"

    I was forced to retreat several steps when Gray Winters struck at me with his sword, his pristine blade carving up a lovely arc that would have neatly cleaved me in half. Even with the boundary field on to prevent accidental deaths, I still didn''t want to risk such a painful injury.

    "Not going to draw your swords?" Gray asked pleasantly. There was no sign of mockery or scorn in his tone. He wasn''t being condescending, just curious. But it didn''t matter to him whether I drew my swords or not. He was confident of beating me either way.

    It would just be a matter of time.

    Glancing at Hei Yue and Bai Ri (yeah, I had to change their names back because I completely forgot them and accidentally called them Gan Jiang and Mo Ye the entire time ¨C I blame myself for watching too much Fate/Stay Night and idolizing Archer), which were still sheathed, I toyed with the idea, then shook my head. Instead, I summoned Gemini and surged forward to meet Gray in a battle of blades. Parrying his strike, I twisted around and thrust one sword from the side, but he neatly parried it before he countered with a stab of his own.

    I knocked his sword away with Castor, but he angled his sword so impressively that it actually shattered the black blade. Staggering backward, I blocked his next strike with Pollux, but a twist from his part neatly cleaved the white blade in two.

    "¡­huff¡­"

    Looked like I had no choice. Sighing, I drew Hei Yue and Bai Ri to block Gray''s next graceful lunge before I could get myself eliminated. A burst of flames at the corner of my eye alerted me to Dong Fang Yue Chu''s explosive display of pyrotechnics, but I couldn''t afford to be distracted. Gray''s sword came singing, and I was lucky to escape with nothing more than a cut on my shoulder.

    This guy was almost as skilled as Kureha and Charles.

    "You must be really confident if you think you can get away with not paying attention to our battle," Gray remarked as he slashed at me. I parried his sword with Bai Ri, and then countered with Hei Yue, but he danced out of my range before I could land a hit. I watched as he used something like Ghost Steps, his figure seemingly multiplying into several illusory forms before he attacked. I sighed as I blocked his next attacks and wondered which of my Constellation spirits would fare the best against such an elite opponent.

    I couldn''t carelessly summon any Constellation spirit or Gray would just cut him down instantly. While there wouldn''t be much of a backlash, each summoning spell was still a massive expenditure of mana, and I couldn''t afford to throw my guys at the meat grinder. Not to mention, I would never treat my beloved Constellation spirits like expendable ammunition, flinging them callously at the enemy in hopes that I would drown him in their blood.

    What, you think I was Commander Kubrik Chenkov of the Valhallan Ice Warriors? Hell, no. I ain''t gonna sacrifice my troops to earn a bloody victory. Furthermore, these Constellation spirits were made of my own mana, my own essence, and were a part of me as much as my own limbs and organs were. You weren''t going to carelessly discard your own arm, even if you could grow it back, would you (I know some readers claim they would, but they obviously haven''t fought in real battles or been in such situations before, and believe me, I have).

    "Hmm? Aren''t you a summoner? Why aren''t you summoning anything?"

    Gray frowned as he slashed at me, but I crossed both swords to block his downward strike. My knees buckled from the impact, but I firmly held my ground.

    "What would you like me to summon?" I asked sarcastically.

    "How would I know? You''re the one who knows your own Soul Beasts the best!" Even though Gray threw a retort, his expression remained completely unchanged. He maintained a carefree smile as we traded another couple of blows.

    "True." I shrugged as I deflected his sword to the side. Gray raised an eyebrow.

    "But why is a summoner like you pretending to me a swordsman?"

    "Pretending?" I feigned hurt. "Are my sword skills so awful that I can''t pass off as a swordsman?"

    "Ah, I mean no offense. Your swordsmanship is impressive." Gray quickly amended his words and smiled. "I''m actually amazed that you can hold out against me with nothing but swordsmanship for this long."

    His illusory figures seemed to surround me as he continued to make use of his Ghost Steps to confound my sight. Unfortunately for him, my glasses canceled out any attempt to befuddle me with illusion spells, and I was able to see the right one. Hence, when Gray slashed at me, I parried his sword once more.

    "Not bad¡­you can tell which of me is real."

    This was why I wear glasses. Well, one of the many reasons, but there were benefits to wearing glasses. Too bad the readers who dropped the story for the sole reason of the protagonist wearing glasses in the far future (seriously?) would never get to see this, but I couldn''t care less about them, especially since they left almost three hundred chapters ago.

    "Not going to launch a sneak attack on me, using a secret weapon?" Gray asked as he knocked me back.

    "Dude¡­you know I''m a summoner and not an Assassin, right?" I couldn''t help but retort dryly. Moreover I wasn''t jealous of his smoldering good looks, nor did I care about the limelight or whatever nonsense like a shallow, one-dimensional character who existed solely to be an antagonist did. "At best I''m an Archer. Like you pointed out, I''m not even qualified to belong to the Saber class."

    "Fair enough. If you aren''t going to employ any tricks, then I''m going to end this. Sword Technique! Celestial Dragon Whirlwind!"

    He revolved about, his sword turning into a tornado of blades that slashed at me from all directions. Taking a deep breath, I summoned the chibi version of Black Tortoise. In the face of the terrifying tornado, I stood my ground and froze the entire space around me.

    "Absolute Zero."

    "!!!"

    Gray retreated almost immediately when he sensed the danger. And a good thing he did too, for his whirlwind froze solid. He slid across the ice, but his fancy footwork allowed him to regain his balance and prevented him from falling over. He crouched down and pointed his sword at me, generating more wind currents.

    "Dragon Roar!"

    I reversed the grip on Bai Ri and pointed the white blade downward. Infusing it with Black Tortoise''s icy mana, I erected a glacial wall in front of me. The hurricane crashed heavily into my icy barrier and turned into frost.

    "Heh¡­impressive." Gray lowered his sword and readied for another spell. "But I don''t believe I can''t break through¡­"

    He never got to finish his sentence.

    Craig''s spear burst through his chest, sending a fountain of blood spraying into the air. The red fluids immediately froze when they came into range of my area of effect spell. Spluttering, Gray dropped his sword and clutched at the spearhead that had erupted from his chest, blood dribbling from both his mouth and flowing profusely from his wound.

    It was a good thing we were in the boundary field, or he would have died from that. As it was, it was nothing a healing spell couldn''t fix, but he would be out for a couple of days at least.

    "You¡­you backstabbed me¡­took me by surprise from behind¡­"

    "Don''t be na?ve," Craig told him coldly. "Did you forget that this is supposed to be a team battle? Did you get carried away with your duel against Richard?"

    "Well¡­admittedly, if it was an individual one-against-one fight, it would be extremely difficult for me to defeat you," I confessed. Perhaps I was trying to justify the sneak attack from my teammate. "And I would be happy to have a one-versus-one rematch against you in the future if you''re not satisfied with this defeat. However, Craig is correct. This is a team battle. That''s why I was keeping an eye on my teammates. It wasn''t because I was being distracted, nor was I disrespecting you by not paying any attention. But I need to keep in mind my teammates'' situations and coordinate with them accordingly. I hope you won''t hold this against us."

    Gray closed his eyes briefly for a few seconds, and then he finally shook his head. Slumping on the floor, he smiled.

    "No, you are correct. I have forgotten that this is a team battle and had neglected my teammates. It is only natural that we lost. I''ll have to learn from this mistake and make sure I won''t repeat it in future. You''re right¡­we should be fighting as a team, and not get too carried away with our individual battles."

    Damn¡­of course he was going to learn from this mistake. I prayed hard that we wouldn''t run into Gray''s team during the tournament. He was one hell of an opponent. Those sword techniques of his were so difficult to counter.

    "Well fought," I told him, even as the announcer declared it our victory. Crouching next to him, I tried to help him stem the bleeding by freezing his wounds, but fortunately I could see the healers hurrying toward the stage.

    Best to leave Gray to them.

 280 Chapter 280: Drinking Session

    After a long day of practice matches, the students decided to take a break and spend the evening in a restaurant. Barbequed meat, chicken skewers and the like ¨C the students from the many academies gathered to have a feast.

    Fortunately, the food were all paid for by Vermillion Academy ¨C which meant it was free. That was the main reason why I tagged along.

    "This is good!" Dong Fang Yue Chu mumbled as he placed a piece of honey-glazed barbeque meat into his mouth.

    "Don''t talk while your mouth is full!" Lily chided him, and he shut his mouth, chewed and swallowed.

    "Sorry. But yeah, this is really good."

    I swallowed my own meat before nodding in agreement. Reaching out for a chicken skewer, I slowly slid the glistening chunks of before placing them in my mouth. Savoring the sweet, tangy sauce on the skin, I smiled contentedly.

    "Yeah, this is delicious."

    "Are you really that desperate for free food?" Harrison asked me, trying to conceal his annoyance. I shrugged.

    "Aren''t you?" then I paused. "No, never mind. A rich kid like you will never understand the suffering of us poor people."

    "You''re not even that poor!" Harrison pointed out with a sigh. Fortunately, he didn''t bother to argue and instead chewed on a piece of pork that he had been grilling the entire time. He nodded in approval and turned into some semblance of Michael Fassbender. "Perfection."

    Everyone stared at him, and he shrugged.

    "What? Just saying the truth."

    "Just make sure you don''t turn into an evil android that suddenly has a god complex and decides to engineer a lethal parasitic alien species."

    "Now why would I do that?"

    "Don''t ask me." This time, it was my turn to shrug. "Ask Ridley Scott."

    "Vice-Captain Richard!"

    Surprisingly enough, Lilith Porter wandered over to join us, with Riley and Brutus by her side. She gestured toward the few open seats around our table. Each table could seat up to fifteen people, and only ten spots were taken by our Jing Tian Academy team.

    "Mind if we join you?"

    "Sure," Harrison consented before anyone could say anything. While the three from Vermillion Academy sat down, I couldn''t help but blurt out.

    "Did you just call me vice-captain?!"

    "Yeah. You''re the vice-captain of Jing Tian Academy''s team, aren''t you?"

    "No."

    "Yes," Harrison and Dong Fang Yue Chu said at the same time. I gaped at them.

    "Since when was I ever the vice-captain?"

    "What, nobody told you?" Dong Fang Yue Chu looked puzzled. Dude, I''m more confused than you are. "Ever since we decided who would represent Jing Tian Academy. The decision was pretty much unanimous."

    "We all agreed that you would be best for the role," Harrison agreed. Then he paused for a moment. "Oh, right. You weren''t there at the time. You were off on a mission with your father shortly after the monster invasion of our city. We made the decisions then"

    "And you guys didn''t tell me." I was doing my best not to fume. Craig chuckled at my indignant expression.

    "Of course we didn''t. We knew that you would protest and refuse if you knew. So we just put your name down and submitted it. Besides, it''s not as if you need to do anything concrete even if you''re the vice-captain."

    "I can handle most of the admin stuff anyway," Harrison added. "You''re the guy with the strategic-scale spell and our ace."

    Troy should be our ace and the team captain, but he was never around. Come to think of it, I wondered how his chase after his brother, Tyrant King, was faring. I needed to contact him soon.

    "So, Captain Lilith," Pearl began, and also politely nodded at Brutus and Riley to ensure they weren''t left out. "What business do you have with our vice-captain?"

    "Actually, it''s not just Richard. It''s with all of you." Lilith was beaming brilliantly, which almost took the guys by surprise. Fortunately, Lily was on hand to pinch Dong Fang Yue Chu before he could be mesmerized by Lilith''s beauty, while Sheila instinctively clung to Craig''s arm. "Your duel with Sexton Academy today was pretty impressive. I was hoping to have my team spar against you in another practice match soon, so that we can exchange several pointers."

    "Oh! Challenge accepted!" Craig''s eyes flashed excitedly. Then he glanced at everyone when he realized he had gotten ahead of himself. "Provided everyone else in the team is all right with it, of course."

    "I have no problems with it. In fact, I think this will be a splendid opportunity." Harrison nodded thoughtfully. "I look forward to having a practice match with you. When will we hold it? I''m guessing sometime tomorrow?"

    "Tomorrow sounds good." Lilith smiled in satisfaction. "Bring your best lineup. I''m not like Captain Paul. I won''t be holding anything back!"

    Harrison returned the grin. "Certainly. We plan on going all out against the best team in the northern province of the Federation!"

    "Excellent!" Lilith clapped her hands, and then rose to her feet. She snatched up a chicken skewer to nibble on it. "Enjoy your meal, everyone."

    "I''ll see you all tomorrow," Riley winked at us. "I look forward to learning from you guys."

    "Same here," Brutus grunted as he stood up and followed his teammates. I could see the muscles bulging under his shirt. "This will be a great learning experience."

    "We feel the same way," Theodore agreed.

    We watched the trio depart and join another table, chatting with the students of another school. As the host, poor Lilith and her team had no choice but to socialize. They didn''t seem to resent it, though, so good for them.

    I personally would have balked at such a task. It wasn''t that I was antisocial, but I could think of better things to do with my time than to spend an entire night mingling. Inwardly, I desired to return to my room immediately after dinner to resume my reading or do a session of training. Just like writing, I was loathe to skip even a single day of training, or I would be just as disappointed in my lack of progress as readers would be when they saw a cessation of daily updates on Web Novel.

    Speaking of disappointment, I had an appointment with Principal Porter tomorrow. Probably to discuss the archeological expedition that would be held in a couple of weeks, before the actual tournament itself.

    "Richard? You listening?"

    I suddenly realized that Harrison was speaking to me. Evidently, he had asked me a question, but I was so lost in my thoughts that I missed it.

    "Yeah, sorry. I mean, no. You were saying?"

    "Oh, no. I was asking you about Lilith. Out of all of us, you''re the one with the most experience fighting against her. We''ve viewed both of your duels against her, the one time in the Spiritual Road, and the second time here, a few days ago. What do you think of her skills and magic? Do you have any counterstrategies in mind?"

    "Hmm, not really. I''m of the same opinion as you guys."

    I opened up a holographic screen with my smartphone and replayed one of the videos that some guy had recorded in the Spiritual Road. We spent the next few minutes discussing tactics and possible scenarios we might face.

    "Of course, I haven''t fought against her team members such as Riley and Brutus, so I have no idea what to expect. I know as much as you guys regarding the Vermilion Academy''s Hell Beast Team. In other words, what we''ve seen from past matches and recorded videos of their fights."

    "Fair enough." Harrison rubbed absently at his cheek, then turned off the holographic screen. He smiled tiredly. "I''ll sleep on this tonight, but you guys should relax. After all, we all worked very hard today, so all of you deserve a break. We''ll discuss this again tomorrow, once I come up with a more concrete strategy."

    "Yes, Captain!"

    Everyone was glad that we had such a kind and understanding leader. I felt a pang of pity. No doubt Harrison would be burning hours of his sleep trying to concoct some sort of plan against Lilith and her team. That was the burden the team captain had to shoulder.

    I was so glad I wasn''t the leader, but that didn''t make me any less sympathetic to Harrison''s plight. Fortunately, Harrison was a natural born leader, and he had taken to his role like a duck to water, so he was more than happy to deal with this. He was the one who actually volunteered for the role, and there was a reason why everyone agreed without protest that he was the best for it. Harrison was held in high regard and deeply respected by all students in Jing Tian Academy.

    Unlike a certain one-dimensional, shallow antagonist from another story who obsessed over petty grudges and was arrogant for no reason other than because the protagonist needed a reason to slap his face and humiliate him. It was as if only the protagonist was allowed to be the sole male smart and capable of leading. The moment another talented and genius guy showed up to threaten his position as an "alpha" male, they must immediately transform into sinister villains who used their immense intellect to plot insidious schemes against the protagonist in an attempt to bring about his downfall. Also, the moment a handsome guy who could be a potential love rival appealing enough to "steal" one of the heroines in the protagonist''s harem, he would instantly become a one-dimensional villain who discarded all his intelligence and behaved according to his lust and desires to one-directionally scheme against the protagonist and abduct the heroine, often justifying the protagonist''s "rescue" of the heroine and beating up and humiliation of the formerly "smart" and "talented" good looking antagonist.

    Like, seriously, there can exist guys other than the protagonist who were smart, intelligent yet morally upright and virtuous. And beautiful girls can fall for guys other than the protagonist, you know? It wasn''t as if he was the only good male in the whole world or something.

    "All right, you guys. Now that you''re done with your meals, go and socialize." Harrison put on a strict appearance when he issued that instruction.

    "Eh?" Craig stared at him dumbly. "Why?"

    "No buts." Harrison shook his head. "Don''t forget the objective of this exchange session. Yes, getting vital intelligence on rival teams before the tournament, and training with them are important, but that''s not all we''re here for. We''re also here to establish ties and forge connections. They may not seem like it now, but many of these people will surely become your future classmates in whatever universities you choose to enroll in, or possibly future colleagues, since we''re all disciples of the same combat magic field. It''s only natural that you try to get to know as many of them as possible."

    This guy was even more mature than me, who was supposed to be a thirty-year-old dude reincarnated into the body of a teenager. I had completely lost to him.

    "That''s true." Sheila nodded, and firmly took Craig''s arm to drag him toward one of the mixed groups. It appeared that the other schools had the same idea, and many of the students had dispersed to mingle with students from other schools. Dong Fang Yue Chu and Lily also left, probably to say hi to one of the latter''s acquaintances from another school. Harrison and Pearl also went their separate ways, while Cody disappeared as usual. That Assassin was always sneaking around. Theodore grunted, picked up a plate of food, and wandered over to the counter where they were broadcasting some professional match live on the gigantic holographic screen projected against one of the walls of the restaurant. There were quite a few students from various schools watching the match, shouting and cheering.

    That was the most interesting activity in the restaurant, and I decided to join Theodore. After all, if I wasn''t able to find anyone to talk to, I could prevent any awkwardness by watching the professional magic matches on the big screen.

    Before I left, however, I noted that Bu Fan was the last one remaining at the table. Even Harrison couldn''t be bothered to convince the stubborn guy. Nobody could tell Bu Fan what to do, because he was the Mary Sue protagonist from another story who was always right. Right now, he was wearing an irritated scowl (there''s a pun joke here ¨C basically, irritated can also be translated as "Bu Fan" in Chinese, which is homophonic with Bu Fan''s name¡­or maybe I''m translating it wrong and it actually means not irritated).

    "What?" he growled, when he caught sight of me looking in his direction. He downed his drink (I doubted it was beer, but it certainly wasn''t water or juice) before glaring at me. "I ain''t gonna play buddy-buddy with the other students. You sheep can listen to whatever Harrison tells you to do, I don''t care, but don''t drag me into it."

    As amicable as always. I couldn''t be bothered to argue with him, so I ignored him and wandered over. Or tried to, but I received a call from Principal Porter on my way there. As the restaurant was pretty noisy, I went into one quiet corner, far from all the other patrons, to take the call.

    "Sir? You were looking for me?"

    "Yes! Yes, I am! Sorry to disturb you while you''re in the midst of dinner, but I just ran into an unexpected archive and I wanted your opinion regarding it. I recall you possess some knowledge of the Edo period, is that correct? And that you read quite a bit of folklore and are familiar with the monsters known as youkai."

    "Oh, that''s right." I should be. That was my major back in my previous life, after all. "What do you need?" Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.novelhall.com for visiting.

    It turned out that he had several trivial questions regarding youkai and certain species whose conception came later in the twentieth century rather than in the Edo period. I answered his questions as best as I could, and then hung up after he thanked me.

    The moment I put my smartphone back in my pocket, I heard a loud crash in the restaurant. Looking up, I saw Theodore lying on the ground, his arm bruised and bleeding. Another student, from a school I didn''t recognize, was standing over him, a sneer curling over his face. For some reason, I could see some ghostly spirit floating above him.

    And then he gave some sign, to which the hovering specter responded to by throwing a ghastly fist at the downed Theodore.

 281 Chapter 281: A Challenger Arrives!

    Theodore was flung several meters back from the blow and he landed on the ground, unmoving, even as several girls shrieked in shock and a few guys jumped up in reflex. I quickly ran over to help him, and he groaned as he slowly sat up.

    "What happened?" I demanded, glaring at Paul, the captain of Sexton Academy. "Why are you attacking him?"

    "Huh? I didn''t attack anybody!"

    "Wrong guy," Theodore muttered and shook his head.

    "Ho ho!" a huge guy with blond hair and a macho appearance strode up, his heavily muscles bulging under his yellow and black uniform. "You thought it was Paul, but it was me, Diego!"

    Seriously? Now we were ripping off Jojo of all things?

    "We were talking about the match¡­" Theodore grunted in pain as he raised his uninjured hand to gesture at the big holographic screen. "I said the Garrulous King would win, even though Diego claimed that he would lose. When the Garrulous King won, he felt humiliated and decided to take revenge by attacking me."

    "¡­the what king?"

    Seriously? Are we still doing that stupid Battle Frenzy thing? At least I wasn''t pretending to be the Garrulous King by diving into some virtual OP system and fighting some prodigy and winning against all odds (in the middle of an exchange session, no less) or some bullshit.

    "He''s lying!" Diego snapped. "There''s no such person as the Garrulous King or All Mouthy King! We were just watching the Rock and the Hard Place fighting against each other! I bet on the Hard Place, he bet on the Rock, and I lost. Then he demanded money even though we didn''t bet any money! Of course I''ll hit him!"

    Theodore looked sheepish. "I thought betting meant placing money on whoever you bet on."

    "Even so, you went too far," I told the guy named Diego with a frown. "Just tell Theodore you won''t pay up. Why is there a need to hit him?"

    Pearl was hurrying over and casting healing magic on Theodore. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the extent of his injuries.

    "It''s a simple fracture, nothing serious. I can heal it in no time."

    "That''s good, because we''ll need him tomorrow." Harrison had also hurried over and was relieved to see that it wasn''t serious. He then glared at Diego. "However, Richard is right. You went too far."

    "Oh ho? What do you intend to do about it?"

    "Don''t do it!" Theodore warned us, gritting his teeth in pain. "That guy''s ability is insane! I still don''t quite understand how he did it, but his World amplifies the strength and power of his Soul Spirit! Soul Spirit is another type of Soul Beast, but instead of taking the form of a beast, it takes a more humanoid form! I don''t think it has any sentience, so it''s still somewhat connected to him spiritually and mentally."

    "Yeah, that''s pretty much how Soul Beasts work," I confirmed, since I was the master of so many Constellation spirits.

    Diego grinned slyly when he heard that and he slowly raised his hand to point a finger at me.

    "You''re next, Richard!"

    "¡­wait, what?" I gaped at him. "You''re still ripping off Jojo?"

    Another moan from Theodore caused me to clench my fists furiously, and I decided to roll with it for now.

    "You bastard¡­" I growled, and then I began walking toward him, my mana rippling through my relatively short and skinny figure. My eyes narrowed in fury. "Diego!"

    "Ho¡­" Diego raised both his hands dramatically. "You''re approaching me? Instead of running away, you''re coming straight at me?"

    He certainly had a penchant for stating the obvious.

    "Even though your friend, Theodore, told you the secret of The World," Diego continued in an exaggerated manner. "Like a web novel author scrambling to finish writing a chapter right before his readers come online to check his story for any new chapters so that he can maintain his daily updates and therefore receive their votes and power stones?"

    "I can''t beat the crap out of you if I don''t approach you," I pointed out dryly as I continued to calmly close the distance between us.

    "Ho ho!" Diego chuckled evilly. "Then come as close as you like."

    He then began moving, and the two of us approached each other right in the middle of the restaurant, while the other students cowered from the sheer fury or aggression that seemed to emanate from us.

    I didn''t even summon anything or yell anything, but Diego''s ghostly specter suddenly materialized in front of me and kicked out. Fortunately, I managed to raise my leg to block the kick in time.

    "!!"

    The blow was so powerful that I actually withdrew a single step. The trousers leg of my uniform was ripped right open.

    "You''re too slow, too slow!" Diego crowed as he folded his arms. "The World is the ultimate Soul Spirit! Even if he doesn''t stop time, his speed and power are infinitely more powerful than those of your Constellation spirits!"

    "So it''s the same kind of Soul Spirit as my Constellation spirits, huh?" I mused to myself. "Well, almost. Unlike my guys, your ghost doesn''t have a lot of range, but he has tremendous power and is capable of precise movements."

    Diego scoffed at me. "I wanted to test out a little to see how much more powerful the World is, compared to your Constellation spirits." He raised a hand as he stifled a chuckle. "Though¡­it seems that a test was hardly necessary."

    "Test?" I snorted. "Is that what you call just poking me with a move that couldn''t even injure me? Well, I guess you tore my uniform trousers, though."

    "Why are you Jing Tian Academy students so stubborn about admitting defeat?" Diego growled with a scowl.

    Then he scoffed and gestured candidly, a silly grin spreading across his macho face.

    "Hmph. I suppose I should rise to your immature provocation and test you a bit more."

    His ghost appeared and rushed toward me, getting ready to punch me. Unfortunately, I didn''t have a ghost of mine to summon, so I just conjured a bunch of Corvus crows that flew at him. When the specter jumped back, a pack of Canis Minor pounced on it. While the ghost was distracted, one of the Canis Minor leaped up and bit at Diego, who knocked him away with a sweep of his arm. However, a fang grazed his cheek and drew blood, causing him to snarl.

    Our spirits began hammering at each other, causing devastation in the restaurant. The ghost shielded himself from the countless crows that pecked mercilessly at his face, while several of my Canis Minor collided with him, knocking him over and sending them sprawled across a counter. The specter tried to throw them off, punching and rolling, and sending plates and glasses crashing onto the ground and shattering.

    Tables were flipped and broken, and the customers in the restaurant ¨C both students and adults ¨C shrieked, screamed or yelped in surprise or dismay as they scattered, trying to get to safety as the spirits continued to wrestle and attack each other.

    "Heh." Diego smirked as he placed a hand on his bleeding cheek. "Shall we compare the speed of our attacks?"

    "Useless! Useless! Useless!" Diego''s specter howled as he threw a barrage of punches at my pack of Canis Minor and flock of Corvus.

    "Are you seriously ripping off Jojo here?!" I yelled as I ducked under one of the powerful fist from Diego''s ghost. Diego himself wasn''t even doing anything. He was just standing there with a cool-looking pose, but he didn''t even lift a finger except to defend himself from whatever stray Canis Minor who leaped at him. Was he really a combat mage, or did he rely entirely on his The World to fight for him?

    More glasses and tables broke under the conflict, sending fragments across the room. Getting irritated with how the duel was dragging on, I recalled all of my Constellation spirits. Corvus and Canis Minor all disappeared.

    "Ho?" Diego chuckled triumphantly. "So you''ve finally given up? Are you finally admitting defeat? How admirable."

    "Who says I''m admitting defeat? I was testing you, and I realized that your little ghost isn''t worthy of fighting my Constellation spirits."

    "Ho ho!" Diego shook his head in disbelief. "You''re just saying that now because you want to save face and avoid a humiliating defeat at my hands, aren''t you? I say, aren''t you Jing Tian Academy students too stubborn? You should understand when you''re beaten."

    I actually laughed at that. "Would you like to try it out?"

    "Hmph." Diego wore a sneer. "I suppose it''s best to let our fists do the talking instead. Go, The World!"

    "Uh, you''re letting your ghost do the talking, not your fists¡­"

    Unfortunately, even as I commented dryly, my voice was drowned out by Diego''s ghost''s mocking shouts.

    "Useless! Useless! Useless! Useless!"

    "Can someone shut that idiot up?" I grumbled. Suppressing the urge to roll my eyes, I placed a hand on Bai Ri. The moment Diego''s phantom rushed toward me, his fists flying in a flurry at blinding speed. I almost couldn''t follow his movements.

    Then again, I didn''t need to follow his movements at all.

    Focusing entirely on my technique, I dropped to a crouch, my hand still on the pristine white hilt of Bai Ri. Taking a deep breath, I then drew and sheathed the white sword in a single breath. A crescent-shaped blast of destructive mana arced toward the flying ghost and cleaved him into two.

    "Useless! Use¡­!"

    With that single attack, the specter disintegrated and dissipated into nothingness.

    "What?! How¡­?!" Diego''s jaw dropped. I shrugged.

    "Because¡­like your The World said, it''s useless."

    "Don''t fuck with me!" Mana erupted from Diego''s burly figure before coalescing into a terrifying aura that shrouded his body. He began striding toward me slowly but confidently, each of his steps burning a scorching crater into the restaurant floor. Cue that famous Jojo shot where Jotarou and Dio walked toward each other for a showdown.

    "This is¡­Ba Qi! Armament Ba Qi!" I realized. Reflexively, I tightened my grip on Bai Ri while considering drawing Hei Yue as well. To defeat this guy, I might need to use all of the sword skills I had learned from Dad.

    "Okay, that''s enough!" Harrison shouted as he firmly interposed himself between us. Throwing out a hand on each side, he shoved Diego back by the chest, but he didn''t have to touch me because I didn''t move a single step. "This is neither the time nor the place! I mean, I enjoyed watching the two of you rip off and parody Jojo''s Bizarre Adventures, but it''s getting old now! If you really want to continue fighting, I suggest the two of you spar in a practice match tomorrow!"

    "That''s a good idea." I straightened up and removed my hands from my swords. "I''ll be happy to fight anytime. I''ll challenge you to a Pok¨¦mon¡­I mean, a practice match."

    "NO! NO! NO! NO!"

    "Are you seriously still trying to rip off Jojo?!" Harrison groaned. Diego grinned, but before he could answer, I cut in with a sigh.

    "Yes! Yes! Yes! Oh my God."

    I finished my sentence by burying my face in my palm. I can''t believe we were still trying to parody Jojo''s Bizarre Adventures.

    "Can you both be serious?!" Harrison snapped, his patience fraying. He turned on Diego. "What''s the matter with you?! You''re happy to fight in a restaurant, but you refuse to accept a challenge to a practice match?!"

    "Hmph. Why should I?" Diego shrugged flippantly. "My goal was to test Richard out just a little. I have already achieved that goal. Therefore, there is no longer any need for us to fight. Not unless you still want to seek revenge for your poor friend over there."

    "I did say I will beat the crap out of you," I reminded him evenly. He burst out laughing.

    "Yes, you certainly did. But why should I go along with what you say? I''m not an idiot who would agree to getting beaten up by you."

    "My, my." I shook my head disapprovingly. "I thought you strongly believed that you were much more powerful and stronger than me? What happened to all that confidence?"

    Diego merely flicked his hand dismissively. "Does it matter? I don''t need to actually beat you to be confident of beating you. I just don''t want to waste my time on meaningless fights. I have a lot of more important things to deal with."

    He then stalked off with a guffaw. "Besides, don''t you have a practice match against the Hell Beasts team of Vermillion Academy tomorrow? Where are you going to find the time to battle against me?"

    Crap. He was right. Seething, I could only watch as he stalked out of the restaurant with that annoying, snide laughter of his.

 282 Chapter 282: Training against Hell Beasts

    Even though we wanted revenge on Diego for hurting Theodore, we couldn''t just beat him up. That would make us no better than us. And stop calling us spineless or weak-willed or stupid. This is being mature. Once some of you readers grow up and realize that violence is not the solution to everything, and that you have to be a responsible adult in society, you will understand that you do not go around attacking people for revenge over hurting your friends or you.

    If you really want justice (which is very different from revenge), contact the authorities. Which was what we did, so Diego got punished. I didn''t know the details of his punishment, but needless to say he never provoked Jing Tian Academy or any of the other schools during the rest of the exchange session again.

    Returning to the present, as promised, we showed in the gymnasium the next day because of Lilith''s invitation for us to run a practice match against her Hell Beast team. Everyone was fired up and excited over the match, especially since we knew what kind of reputation the Hell Beast team possessed. They were known as the strongest team in the northern provinces of the Federation for a very good reason, and their team captain belonged to one of the ten Great Families.

    Having both fought with and against Lilith, I was also keenly aware of her power. I would put us at one win and one defeat apiece. She was definitely not someone we could afford to underestimate. The only chance for us to win was to prevent her from summoning Kagutsuchi, otherwise it would be extremely difficult.

    As of now, I doubted Draco could defeat Kagutsuchi. There was always the nuclear option, but I would end up nuking myself along with her and resulting in mutual defeat. Seriously, would you detonate a nuke while you were still in the vicinity? Not to mention, my strategic-scale spell was so powerful it would obliterate the boundary field and render its enchantments ineffective, which would kill not just me and Lilith but probably everyone in the audience as well. Half of the city would be blown into oblivion, never mind the whole school.

    Even so, Harrison seemed to have a plan, and after listening to him, all of us had some measure of confidence. Besides, it was just a practice match. It was all right to lose, but obviously we intended to go all out and do our best to win.

    "Hello, Jing Tian! Everyone''s so early!"

    Lilith was astonished to see our team already waiting inside the arena. She arrived with her own team, which comprised of five people, including herself. The two who stood beside her, in particular, were very familiar.

    "I''m sure you all already know Riley and Brutus." Lilith smiled as she introduced her teammates. I nodded, having exchanged a few words with them over the past few days, and they also showed up to talk to us yesterday night, at the restaurant. Riley waved in a friendly manner and Brutus nodded politely. Lilith then gestured toward her other teammates. "So let me introduce our other teammates in the Hell Beasts team''s main lineup. We have the Assassin, Victor, and Kassim, who provides long-ranged support."

    "Hello, everyone!"

    Both of them greeted us. Victor, in particular, resembled a Frenzor Assassin, what with those muscles and burly figure. So he was more into shock assaults, terror tactics and overwhelming strength to kill rather than stealthy subterfuge. The dark-skinned Kassim, on the other hand, had a lean figure and was wearing a turban of some sort, probably indicating his Sikh or Muslim origins. He was a lot more reserved, clasping his hands and lowering his head as he greeted us. His white teeth sparkled against his olive flesh.

    "All of them are pretty strong, you know?"

    "I don''t doubt that." Craig grinned in anticipation. "I''m itching to test my skills against them."

    "All right, that''s enough for introductions!" Lilith was also rubbing her hands in glee. Evidently Hell Beasts team was just as enthusiastic as we were. "Let''s get started!"

    "Yeah!"

    After everyone cheered, we began the match.

    Harrison had elected to put Craig, Sheila, Theodore and me in the team, and he personally led us against Lilith and her team. There were quite a few students watching the match eagerly, wondering who would win. It was only natural. A team with the reputation of the Hell Beasts'' would definitely draw a lot of attention from the other schools.

    "Wait, we aren''t skipping the fight scene and going straight to our after-match discussion?" Lilith asked, confused. "Where Richard starts analyzing my Hellfire Bear and giving me advice on how to improve my use of it?"

    "¡­lady, you really have to stop confusing this story with Battle Frenzy. And I''m not Wang Zhong. How the fuck would I know how to improve the way you use your Hellfire Bear? And besides, don''t you have Kagutsuchi? Your Hellfire Bear is already quite the formidable foe. If it''s not enough, then just nuke everyone with Kagutsuchi!"

    "I''m surprised you even know what she''s talking about," Harrison remarked dryly. "I have enough of people breaking the fourth wall."

    "Better get used to it," Theodore told him kindly, placing a hand gently on our team captain''s shoulder. "As long as you hang out with Richard, you''ll get used to it eventually."

    "¡­seriously?"

    "Whatever! Let''s just begin the match!"

    Blushing furiously from embarrassment, Lilith cast a fire spell. At her signal, her teammates immediately lunged forward, coordinating their attacks. Most of them, anyway ¨C Kassim stayed back and summoned his gigantic cannon, and then he began bombarding our position.

    "Scutum Sobiescianum!" I shouted, summoning the Constellation shield to protect us from his attacks. Under cover of my hovering Constellation shield, my teammates lunged forward to meet the other team in combat.

    Theodore swung his thunder hammer at Brutus, who raised his gauntlets to parry the strike. There was a clap of thunder and deadly electricity rippled from the two of them, even as a crater opened up beneath Brutus''s feet. Grunting, the big guy shoved the thunder guy back, but Theodore regained his balance quickly and countered with his hammer once more. Lightning erupted from the collision of their armaments, almost blinding me and the others.

    I saw Craig and Sheila moving to engage Kassim, but Victor was up to the task, sneaking upon them from the shadows before unleashing a powerful attack. However, Craig responded reflexively, spinning around to parry his power sword. Arcane energies crackled as demonic spear met the power field of the glowing sword, and the two of them sprang apart. Without a word, Sheila darted forward, intent on eliminating Kassim, who shifted his aim toward her when he realized the threat she posed. Fortunately, Sheila didn''t need my Scutum Sobiescianum to protect her. Possessing a shield of her own, she shouldered the powerful bombardment aside and thrust her spear forward.

    Kassim was not without close-range self-defense, however, and he nimbly flipped himself away, his lithe body twisting to avoid Sheila''s spear by the narrowest of margins. Parying Sheila''s next spear strike with his cannon, he then drew a pistol with his other hand and fired into her at close range. Fortunately, Sheila managed to lower her arm in time and deflect the mana burst with her small shield. Planting his cannon on the ground, Kassim nimbly flung himself around and retaliated with a kick that Sheila blocked with her foot.

    "Richard! I leave Lilith to you!"

    Harrison was now engaging Riley, who had rushed out to meet him in combat. The two of them began engaging in what looked like a martial arts contest, trading blows with incredible moves. Both of them were so fast that their punches and kicks were mere blurs, normal human eyes being completely unable to follow them. Sonic booms from the speed of their attacks and shockwaves from their exchanges rippled outward, but were countered by the immense kinetic force emanating from the collision of Theodore''s thunder hammer against Brutus''s gauntlets.

    "So it''s me versus you again. How many times has this been?"

    "The third time." Not that I could bother to keep count, but it hadn''t been that many times yet. Somehow I had a premonition that this wasn''t going to be the last time either.

    Lilith chuckled. "Well, I have some good news for you. I won''t be able to summon Kagutsuchi, not unless I want to incinerate my own teammates along with you guys. Normally, in a battlefield, they would buy me enough time to summon Kagutsuchi to wipe out hordes of monsters, or maybe a single high-ranking monster such as the Behemoth class, but unfortunately we have restrictions placed upon us in tournaments. I''m sure it''s the same for you."

    Funnily enough, I was thinking along similar lines regarding my spells of mass destruction. So I wasn''t the only one being limited by tournament rules. And before the whiners start complaining about how stupid it was, they had to understand that tournaments are by their very nature different from actual battles. Yes, they constitute as part of our training for real battles against monsters, and gave us vital experience, but they were also competitions among students. Even with the boundary fields, incidents could still happen, and they didn''t want students to kill each other. Never mind the "survival of the fittest" bullshit where some delusional readers believed that in some nonsensical social Darwinism where the cohort of students should be trimmed down into a small core of the "strongest"¨C these elite students still weren''t gods and they couldn''t be everywhere all at once. What army were you going to use to protect your cities and nations if you allow most of your soldiers to kill each other during training? The boundary fields could only do so much ¨C but like I said, the moment nuke spells or strategic-scale spells came into use, or Soul Beasts as powerful as Lilith''s Kagutsuchi were summoned, they would end up destroying those boundary fields and causing deaths.

    The Federation had to prevent that at all costs. And if there were readers who think this was retarded, they could screw off and read some other edgy story that celebrated killing and revenge. So easy to talk about "letting the ''weak'' die" or eliminating the "useless", but one day, when it turned out that they were the very "weak" people that they themselves sought to get rid of, they would hypocritically do a 180 and started clamoring for human rights and protection from those stronger than themselves.

    Admittedly, most of these readers were probably teenagers who still hadn''t actually experienced just how cruel the world was, and how the only way to survive was not to become stronger, but to actually become smarter and cooperate with people you could trust. I''m not saying they should be na?ve and believe everyone they met, but they certainly couldn''t survive if they pull that edgy bullshit of "can''t trust anyone in this world" and "the whole world should die" rhetoric. If that''s the case, stop eating the food your parents buy for you, stop relying on farmers to produce the crops that constitute your meals, and stop going to the supermarket. Get off the damned Internet and live off the land, and plant your own food if you''re so bloody paranoid.

    "!!!"

    I dodged Lilith''s flaming sword, and then hopped back when she unleashed a torrent of flames at me.

    "Don''t you dare get distracted and start ranting at the existences beyond the fourth wall!" she reprimanded me.

    "Hey! I''m trying to explain and justify why you can''t just summon Kagutsuchi in the middle of a practice match or tournament so that they won''t call you stupid or retarded!" I protested. "It was for you!"

    Well, it was also to explain why I didn''t simply nuke everyone in the arena¡­I didn''t want to kill myself along with everyone else for something as trivial as a practice match¡­hell, it wasn''t worth it to "win" a tournament either. A posthumous championship title was as useful to my pile of ashes as certain readers'' insults.

    "Not drawing your sword yet?" Lilith asked as she slashed at me. "Don''t underestimate me!"

    "I think you misunderstand," I assured her. "I''m not underestimating you. I''m waiting for your Hellfire Bear. There''s no meaning if we summoners just fight a sword duel. Don''t you think so as well?"

    "Mu¡­" Lilith sulked, but she couldn''t refute my point. Taking a deep breath, she raised her free hand and summoned her Hellfire Bear. It descended with a roar and slashed at me.

    This time, I didn''t bother to summon Ursa Major. I merely smiled and waited as the Hellfire Bear barreled toward me. Instead of summoning, I placed my hand on Hei Yue and dropped to a crouch.

    "!!!"

    With a single iai, I decapitated the charging Hellfire Bear. The poor Soul Beast bellowed before blood spurted from its severed neck like a fountain, and its disembodied head bounced off the ground several times like an abandoned soccer ball.

    "I¡­impossible¡­" Lilith was so shocked that she fell to her knees, her mouth gaping. "How¡­?!"

    "Did you forget who taught me swordsmanship?" I asked as I turned toward her, my hand still on the hilt of my black sword.

    "You cheater!" she shouted shrilly. "All that talk about us being summoners and how it''s meaningless to fight a sword duel! You tricked me, didn''t you?!"

    "Nah¡­" I shrugged helplessly. "I just didn''t expect your Hellfire Bear to fall so easily. I meant to test my sword technique, and then summon Ursa Major if that didn''t work out. But it seems that the iai Dad taught me has far exceeded my expectations. So this is the power of the Miyamoto School, huh?"

    Lilith glared at me and charged at me, her flaming sword descending in a fiery arc. I merely smiled as I prepared to intercept her blazing blade, but before that, I raised an inquiring finger.

    "Just one question¡­are any of your sword techniques more powerful than your Hellfire Bear?"

 283 Chapter 283: After Action Analysis

    "Huff¡­huff¡­"

    Lilith panted as she hung limply, suspended in the air by countless vines. Around her, flowers bloomed as they drank her mana, blossoming in a myriad of colors that turned the coliseum into a temporary garden.

    "That technique¡­doesn''t that belong to the Stuart clan? I''m pretty sure Uncle Shun Yin never learned anything like that!"

    "Perhaps." I shrugged nonchalantly. "I learned this from neither Dad nor the Stuart clan. I learned it on my own."

    "How?!" Lilith glared at the chibi Green Dragon that had curled up on my shoulder, trying not to splutter. She probably could have summoned Kagutsuchi by now, except that I had drained her of all of her mana, and she didn''t have the energy to pull off such a powerful summoning spell.

    Around the both of us, the others were also finishing the last of their battles. Sheila was down, having been taken down by Kassim, but Victor had turned out to be not the victor because Craig had impaled him in the chest. After that, he had charged the worn down Kassim, and the two of them were locked in a bloody stalemate.

    Theodore was on his knees, looking as if he had passed out, but Brutus had been battered and badly bruised despite his narrow victory. Nothing Harrison couldn''t take care of, for Riley had already been taken out. At the cost of severe injuries, but Harrison still had enough left in his tank to deliver the knockout blow to an exhausted and unsuspecting Brutus.

    That left me and Lilith, but I had already clearly defeated her. Loosening my vines, I then sent a storm of flower petals at Kassim, catching him by surprise and almost cutting him apart. He crashed onto the ground, a pool of blood spreading under his body.

    "Hey!" Craig growled, even as blood streamed down his face. "I almost had him!"

    "Yeah, I know," I replied wearily. "Sorry."

    Craig shook his head, but he flopped down in exhaustion, and thankfully didn''t pursue the matter. While he did so, I turned toward Harrison, but he was done earlier than I was. With Kassim down, all of Hell Beasts team''s members were down, while Jing Tian Academy''s team was down to three. Two, if we counted the slack Craig as out as well.

    "Jing Tian won?!"

    "Holy f¡­! How?!"

    "The Hellfire Bear Goddess has fallen!?"

    "Isn''t this the second time she lost to that constellation summoner guy?"

    Oh. So now I was known as the "constellation summoner guy." What the hell was with that weird nickname? At least it was better than Stargazer Summoner or Rising Star Richard or some bullshit nickname like that.

    After absorbing so much of Lilith''s mana, I was bursting with energy and thus I ended up feeling restless and overly energetic. Striking a contrast to my clearly drained and unconscious teammates, I did the best I could to help them get off the stage the moment the medics arrived. Fortunately, Pearl was a healer and she began casting her recovery spells right away.

    "You¡­" Harrison was shaking his head as he stepped right up beside me. He ended up just patting me on the shoulder. "Good job back there."

    "You too. Great work!"

    While we got off the stage so that other teams and students could have their practice matches, I spotted Lilith approaching me. She waved a little frantically, but her movements had clearly been dulled by me sucking all her mana earlier.

    "Richard." She stopped beside me, trying to suppress her frustration. "The way you evaded my attacks during the match was really impressive."

    "¡­but I didn''t evade your attacks?" I glared at her, wondering if she was trying to rip off Laura Potter (or was it Lola Porter?) from Battle Frenzy. "I took them head-on and overwhelmed them with strikes of my own."

    "Ha ha, you certainly did. I never expected you to have such good swordsmanship. I assume you''d have neglected them in favor for summoning magic."

    "I actually did, for a very long time. But don''t forget who my dad is." I had resisted using swordsmanship for a long time, which ended up in my ninety-nine match losing streak. In the end, in trying to reverse that losing streak, I returned to my dad''s dojo, stopped being stubborn and focusing too much on summoning alone, and ended up combining summoning magic with swordsmanship. That was what led to my current hybridized skillset today.

    Okay, yeah, I was stupid. Or you could just treat the whole premise of this story as ripping off Wang Zhong from Battle Frenzy, all right? Don''t need to think too much about logic or intelligence or whatever, and just enjoy the ride. A little too late to be complaining about the beginning of the story almost three hundred chapters later, don''t you think? I was just trying to do a Battle Frenzy reference, but most readers didn''t get it and instead focused on complaining about how stupid, retarded or illogical I was. Maybe I should have turned this into a Battle Frenzy fanfiction or something.

    "That''s right." Lilith nodded, and then she scowled. "But what you used to defeat me wasn''t a Miyamoto sword technique. It was a Stuart clan sword technique."

    "I told you, I learned that on my own. It''s not as if the Stuart clan is the only one who learned how to use wood magic." I sighed heavily. "Or are you going to accuse Dong Fang Yue Chu and every fire mage in the Federation of copying and learning from the Porter family?"

    "No¡­you''re right. Sorry." Lilith''s head drooped for a moment and she sighed. After a moment of contemplation, she glanced back at the scorched stage, particularly at the blackened craters that our exchange had left in the ground. She then turned back to me seriously. "But the way you beat my ultimate move¡­it was so disheartening. I understand that even ultimate moves have weaknesses, and they can be easily countered once your opponent is familiar with them."

    "What ultimate move?! Your Hellfire Bear isn''t your ultimate move! That''s your Kagutsuchi! The only reason why I won was I stopped you from summoning Kagustuchi. The moment you pull out your ultimate Soul Beast, there is very little I can do to defeat you. Even my most powerful Constellation spirit will be hard-pressed to fight against something of Kagutsuchi''s caliber."

    I doubted any of my Celestial Guardians could stand up to the sheer firepower of Kagutsuchi. Even Draco, my strongest Constellation spirit, probably would have trouble rivaling that monster. There was a reason why it was named after the Japanese kami of fire.

    "Even so, I still want to find a way to improve it."

    "Why?!" I threw my hands up in despair. "You do realize that there is no such thing as an invincible combat technique or spell, right? Your Kagutsuchi is already extremely powerful. I don''t know of any other Soul Beast that can rival its raw destructive power, except maybe Dad''s Angelica. But he has years of experience and training over you, so that''s a given. And besides, you''ll figure something out. I haven''t seen enough of your Kagutsuchi to figure out how it works, and what its main strengths and weaknesses are."

    "That''s true. Our last match where I used it was interrupted."

    Lilith sighed and then stared sadly at the coliseum, which was now being restored by magic so that the next teams could begin their practice match. She clenched her fists and crimson mana began swirling around them.

    "However, I''m less worried about Kagutsuchi and more concerned about my Hellfire Bear. I know this sounds dumb, but I don''t want to let go of my Hellfire Bear. It''s my first Soul Beast and I am loathe to give it up and allow it to become obsolete. I don''t want to just replace my Hellfire Bear with Kagutsuchi, you know?"

    I knew exactly what she meant. My Celestial Guardians, the four (or five in future) of them being the very first Soul Beasts that I succeeded in creating and summoning, were like family to me. There was no way I could just discard them aside in favor of more powerful or newer Soul Beasts and Constellation spirits. Which was why I continued to look for ways to use them, even to the point where I reduced their casting time by summoning chibi versions of them to enchant my sword techniques rather than unleash a powerful monster upon my foes.

    So I nodded understandingly, sympathizing with her flight while inwardly worrying about my own Celestial Guardians being relegated to obscurity in favor of more popular Constellation spirits from Greek mythology.

    "That''s why I will definitely find a way to strengthen my Hellfire Bear." Lilith glanced at her hand and conjured vermillion flames. "I wonder if the problem is its range. The Hellfire Bear''s area of effect spell is too small. Perhaps I can alter the repertoire of its spells by infusing it with more fire mana or something."

    "Wouldn''t that require you to re-conceptualize your Hellfire Bear and rebuild it from the ground up?" I inquired, scratching my head.

    "Yeah¡­but for its sake, I''m willing to go through the trouble."

    "Aha!" I snapped my fingers excitedly. "Upgrading!"

    "What¡­?" Lilith stared at me, puzzled. "Upgrading?"

    "Yeah." I nodded fervently. "What, you didn''t know? All summoners should know that if they grow stronger, their Soul Beasts naturally grow stronger along with them. They will always have the corresponding strength, and their power is based off their summoner''s. It''s not the Soul Beast you summon that matters, but your own ability that determines how far they can go."

    However, even though Soul Beasts were entirely dependent on their summoners'' strength, it was undeniable that different Soul Beasts would have different roles and attributes. Kagutsuchi was conceived of as the ultimate weapon possessing the divine power of a kami, and thus it would always be more powerful than the Hellfire Bear. However, such power always came with a price. Correspondingly, Kagutsuchi would require a far longer time to summon than the Hellfire Bear. It was only natural ¨C they both fulfilled somewhat different roles. One was the main frontline brawler, while the other was the ultimate weapon.

    In the same way I couldn''t expect Corvus to be better than say, Aquila, at fighting because they were more suited for reconnaissance duty. Leo Minor by their very nature would be inferior to their leader, Leo Major (same went for Ursa Minor and Ursa Major, and Canis Minor and Canis Major). Hercules, because of the legend associated with him as the strongest of mythical heroes, would always be more powerful than the other Constellation weapons I wielded. Each Soul Beast had its own inherent properties and its own role, strengths and weaknesses, as well as the corresponding prices. It was an intricate balancing act we had to maintain while designing and redesigning them.

    That said, it was not impossible to redesign or upgrade them.

    "I know that, but I''m not looking to scale my Hellfire Bear''s strength according to mine. I''m happy with its growth rate. I''m thinking about its role in the field. I can''t allow it to be overshadowed by Kagutsuchi. I don''t want Hellfire Bear to be a stand-in, who just exists solely to delay for time before I finally summon Kagutsuchi. I want it to be able to stand on its own two feet as an incredible Soul Beast to be feared in its own right, not a prelude to something more terrifying."

    "Yeah. That''s why I''m proposing that you upgrade them." I paused for a moment, trying to think of how to better explain the process. "You know, when you withdraw in your mind and manifest yourself in your imagination to conceptualize and create what Soul Beasts you want to summon? The place inside your personal spiritual plane or sea where you forge the blueprints or biographies for your Soul Beasts? Go back there and search for the blueprint for your Hellfire Bear."

    "Ah¡­!" Lilith''s eyes brightened up when she understood what I was referring to. "You''re right! Perhaps I should be able to find my notes and write-ups regarding my Hellfire Bear in that place!"

    "Yeah, that''s right." I was relieved that she knew what I was talking about. This would be so much easier then. "Once you get there and find your notes, you can began to rewrite them."

    "How¡­?" Lilith looked puzzled. "But I''ve already written them¡­how do I rewrite them? Do I tear them up and produce a new biography? But it feels as if I''m destroying the original Hellfire Bear and replacing it with a new one¡­"

    I tapped my head. "Use your imagination. Why is your biography perceived as ''written''? Could it not have been typed? Just like¡­" I conjured a holographic screen for demonstration and began deleting some text to rewrite segments of it. "¡­this?"

    "Oh! You''re right!" Lilith seemed to be kicking herself for not realizing such a simple solution. Then again, very few people dabbled in summoning. There was a reason why it was not in the meta. It was usually too inefficient, took too much time and cost too much mana. Most summoners were knocked out before they could summon their trump card, like how I defeated Lilith before she could summon Kagutsuchi. Admittedly, we had both agreed beforehand that we wouldn''t unleash our most powerful Soul Beasts on each other for fear of accidentally destroying the boundary field and killing our teammates. The collateral damage would be awful.

    I didn''t want to be arrested for manslaughter ¨C and that was assuming I even survived the carnage I myself had wrought in the first place.

    "Speaking of which, there has to be a way to control Kagutsuchi to minimize its firepower and not inadvertently destroy the boundary field and drag my teammates into it." Lilith must have seen the expression on my face, for she guessed correctly what I was thinking. "Even though I did declare beforehand that I will not summon Kagutsuchi, I can''t continue to limit myself forever. What''s the point of developing such a powerful Soul Beast if I don''t allow myself to use it?"

    "Yeah¡­easier said than done, though."

    If it was so simple, I would be unleashing miniaturized versions of my nuke spells, restraining the power enough to just barely not break the boundary field while possessing enough firepower to defeat everyone in the arena. However, I had no need for that because I could simply summon my Celestial Guardians. If my opponents were humans, the vast majority of them shouldn''t be a match for any of my Celestial Guardians. Not unless they were prodigies such as Cecilia Stuart.

    So I wasn''t worried about that. And I wasn''t stupid enough to nuke myself just to win a dumb tournament match.

    "Well, this is as far as I can help you." I shrugged callously. Even though I might sound rude, I honestly couldn''t stick around talking to Lilith forever. I had to check on my injured teammates and ensure they were all right, and then resume my daily regimen later. Today''s match reminded me that I was still far off from where I wanted to be. Literally heaven and earth apart from my dad¡­the Hellfire Bear was one thing, but I wanted to be able to defeat Lilith''s Kagutsuchi decisively in future. Given her talent, she was sure to figure out how to conjure Kagutsuchi in the arena, and even if she didn''t, I suspected that we might meet in combat outside the tournament someday. Call it a premonition, or a gut feeling, but I just felt that a conflict between us was inevitable, despite the history between Dad and the Porter clan. "Sorry, but you''ll have to come up with the solution on your own from here on out."

 284 Chapter 284: End of Exchange Session

    "Where are your hotdogs and cola?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked me. I stared at him, utterly confused.

    "Huh? What hotdogs and cola?"

    "Aren''t you supposed to bring them to some other dimension to share them with your friends from some empire, one of them being a prince?"

    "¡­I have no idea what you''re talking about." actually, I did, but I couldn''t be bothered to give a straight man''s retort to Dong Fang Yue Chu''s nonsense. He stared at me suspiciously, then turned away and dug through his backpack.

    "Here! This is for you, it''s a perfect disguise!"

    ¡­and he produced a clown costume that he presented to me. I stared at him dumbly, this time genuinely not understanding.

    "¡­uh¡­"

    "Put this on!"

    "Hell, no!" I screamed and slapped the costume away. "Why the fuck would I dress up as a clown?! I mean, I enjoyed the movie adaptations of Stephen King''s It, but there''s no way in hell I would wear a clown costume!"

    "But you don''t have a choice. You need a disguise to hide your identity before you go to the explorer''s base."

    The guy was making less and less sense. I shook my head, struggle to comprehend what he was trying to do.

    "Okay, slow down. What explorer base?"

    "You know, the explorer base! So that you can exchange the treasures you got from the tomb in another dimension for money, and then help me out when I participate in the auction that my Assassin clan organized!"

    I struck him in the head, causing him to sprawl on the ground and drop the clown costume. Stepping on the fabric, I knelt down to glare at him.

    "You are not from the Assassin clan¡­because if you''re a member of the Assassins Guild, I will kill you right here and right now. Besides, why the fuck would Assassins hold an auction?! They should leave that to the merchant class."

    Then I paused and frowned.

    "And what the hell are you talking about? What tomb? What other dimension? What treasures? I never got any treasures from anywhere, nor do I have some way of traveling to another dimension while having some stupid chibi clown ghost float around me. And what the hell is this explorer base? I''ve never heard of such a thing in this universe."

    "Aw¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu looked disappointed as he got back to his feet. "And here I thought you were going to continue ripping off Wang Zhong and Battle Frenzy."

    "I may have been making references to poke fun at the story many times, but I''m not going to copy it entirely." I sighed as I rubbed my forehead. Waving a hand, I cast a simple fire spell to burn the clown costume into ash. "Anyway, what brought this about? Why are you pulling this nonsensical stunt all of a sudden?"

    "Because the exchange session is ending soon, and we''re about to return to Jing Tian Academy. It''s just that, according to the chronology of Battle Frenzy, you''re supposed to randomly go to the other dimension in the middle of the exchange session, get a bunch of treasures, go to the explorer''s base in a disguise, approach Lilith to get her to show up in the auction to support me, and¡­"

    I decided to leave Dong Fang Yue Chu to ramble by himself, and he began panicking.

    "Okay! I''ll get serious! But we really are returning to Jing Tian Academy tomorrow. So I was thinking we should say goodbye to the people who helped us out a lot during the past week or so. We had a lot of practice matches!"

    "Yeah, it feels like an intense practice session right before the Global Starcraft League Code S," I agreed, rotating my arm to loosen my stiff muscles. We had just completed another practice match against Yves Academy earlier that day. Fortunately, I got to sit this one out because Harrison wanted to rotate the squad and give other members a chance. There were ten of us in the team, after all, and I couldn''t be in it all the time. That said, Yue Chu had a point, and I tilted my head thoughtfully. "Aren''t they holding a farewell party tonight?"

    "Oh, you''re right! But that''s exactly why I''m here! We need to do something for the party!"

    "¡­if you''re asking me to dress as a clown and entertain everyone tonight, I''ll have to refuse. Hell, I''m going to hit you for suggesting such a stupid thing."

    "Ha ha¡­" Yue Chu looked a little sheepish. "I guess that idea is out."

    "Should I hit you for coming up with it in the first place?" I was beginning to ball my fists. Yue Chu wisely retreated, holding both his hands up in a placating manner.

    "All right, all right. I''ll talk to the others as well, see if they have any better ideas."

    I watched him leave and shook my head. Yeah, this story began as a joke after reading Battle Frenzy, but it was never my intention to copy that story. I was merely having fun parodying its tropes and criticizing Skeleton Wizard, even though my writing was much more horrible than his, so truthfully I wasn''t in any position to make fun of him. But seriously, all those tropes he used were just begging to be made fun of.

    "Hmm, so this exchange session is going to end soon, huh?"

    About time, it was going on for too many chapters. Almost 15 chapters, huh? Hey, at least it wasn''t like Battle Frenzy, which took over 50 chapters and included tangential sidetracking chapters where Wang Zhong went off into the other dimension to meet his friends from the empire, became an adventurer and did a lot of other weird stuff. I completed an analogous arc in less than a third of the number of chapters that Skeleton Wizard needed. So¡­dear readers, are you still going to accuse me of spamming fillers?

    Anyway, that wasn''t the important thing. The end of the exchange session meant that I should participate in Principal Porter''s expedition to the swamp. Even though I really should be preparing for the tournament, I actually viewed this as the perfect sort of preparation. If I wanted to grow exponentially stronger and hone my skills to an entirely new level, I wasn''t contented with merely fighting "safe" practice matches in arenas with a boundary field that prevented death. I wanted to test my skills against monsters, experience life-and-death battles, and learn how to survive against all odds. Only then could I surpass all the talented peers of my generation.

    Unlike them, I didn''t have any talent. I was not some genius at magic, nor did I have any cheat skill or whatever like so many web novel protagonists or light novel protagonists. No ghostly master to teach and advise me, no secret Divine God skill that allowed me to stand head and shoulders above the rest, no ultimate weapon that could serve as a Deus ex Machina that allowed me to get out of sticky situations, and no secret treasures that could artificially boost my training (like Mo Fan''s loach in Versatile Mage). Just my hard work alone. Well, I did receive certain gifts here and there, like the Holy Spring or Hei Yue and Bai Ri that were forged by the famous swordsmith couple Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, but otherwise everything I had earned was through sheer hard work. Even with those swords, that didn''t mean I was invincible. The swords did nothing to increase my power, they were just more durable than the Constellation spirits I summoned.

    Unlike most web novel protagonists, who literally get spirit elixirs, treasures, skills, or even masters handed to them on a silver platter, I had to work with what I had. That kind of sucked. It also meant that I would never become an invincible God Mode Mary Sue who could casually stroll through the world, curb-stomping any enemy stupid enough to cross my path. Hence this expedition, while important to earn me real combat experience, was extremely dangerous. Like a double-edged sword, if I wasn''t careful in utilizing this opportunity, it could backfire and I might end up dead instead of becoming stronger. Thankfully, I had plot armor¡­or so I hope. Not unless the readers were so sick of reading this story that they forced the author to drop it prematurely and it would no doubt end with him trolling them by killing his protagonist in the next chapter. It all depended on what the readers wanted.

    "Ah¡­Richard. So you finally remembered that I''m the one running this academy."

    Principal Porter looked up when I approached him in the library. He was talking to Lilith before I showed up, probably with regards to tonight''s farewell party, but he immediately perked up when he spotted me.

    "Why would I forget?" I asked, confused.

    "No, that was something the character I''m based off was supposed to say in Battle Frenzy." Principal Porter cleared his throat. "That''s right¡­today is the last day of the exchange session. So you''re here to say goodbye?"

    "Sort of¡­except that it''s not really goodbye, right? I''m here to ask you about the expedition to the Black Underworld Swamp."

    "Oh! That''s right!" Principal Porter''s eyes lit up. "We need to discuss that!"

    "Um¡­" Lilith was looking from me to Principal Porter, and her grandfather immediately understood.

    "Oh, sorry. Give me a few minutes, Richard¡­if you don''t mind waiting, I need to speak to my granddaughter regarding a few things."

    "Sure. I don''t have anything at the moment anyway."

    I bowed politely and took a step back to allow the grandfather-granddaughter pair to wrap up their conversation. What, you think Henry Porter was going to spout nonsense like my time being infinitely worth more than Lilith''s? Bullshit.

    Fortunately, their dialogue didn''t take too long to finish. Lilith nodded, and then turned to leave. She smiled in greeting as she passed by, and then she was gone.

    "Sorry about that." Principal Porter rubbed his beard. "I hope you didn''t wait too long."

    "Not at all." I scratched my head. "Um¡­so, about the expedition¡­I was hoping for more details. When are we moving out? I''m guessing sometime next week? I hope I can return hope and pack up before returning to Vermillion City."

    "Oh, you don''t have to worry about that. I''m sure we''ll arrange sometime and pick you up at Jing Tian City before we head to the Black Underworld Swamp."

    "Is Lilith coming along as well?" I asked, glancing in the direction where she had just left. Principal Porter shook his head.

    "Unfortunately, no. unlike you, she has no interest in archaeology or history. She''s going to stay behind and prepare for the tournament." He took his glasses off and pinched the bridge of his nose. "She takes after her father too much."

    "Right." I was assuming this was going to be a The Great Ruler rip-off where she followed the anime adaptation and followed me in the expedition, even though she didn''t do so in Tian Can Tu Dou''s original novel. Can''t have the main heroine not show up at all throughout the first 12 episodes of the anime series, eh? "Anything we should look out for? Like¡­uh¡­any sign of the Nine Nether Sparrow?"

    "The what now?" Henry Porter blanched, his brow furrowing in bewilderment. "What sparrow? Is that some new kind of monster?"

    Evidently he had never heard of it before, so I frantically shook my head and waved my hands.

    "No, I was joking. That''s just a fictional monster from some web novel I read. Actually, I didn''t even read the web novel, I only read the web comic and watched the anime version."

    Principal Porter regarded me somewhat suspiciously, and then he shrugged, as if to say that wasn''t important.

    "Anyway, I''ll give you more details through email. I think I sent you a timetable and a contract, so get that signed and submit it, and we''ll handle the rest. When the time comes¡­it should be sometime next week, we''ll come pick you up."

    Fortunately, this counted as a mission, so I could seek permission from my school to miss classes and attend the expedition. After the invasion of Jing Tian City by monsters, Principal Violet and the teachers began to value practical combat experience more than classes and practice matches. Even though they had been reluctant to accept the changes in curriculum set by the ministry of education, finding comfort in stagnation and maintaining the usual status quo and rankings determined by individual tournaments, recent events such as those triggered by the Assassins Guild and the Dark Church had them understanding the necessity of change. If the students were far too focused on winning tournaments and increasing their rankings, they neglect the real world where combat was not so necessarily so clear-cut and the unexpected could happen at any time.

    The long trek from the academy to the shelter, particularly, convinced many of the formerly hardline teachers and board of directors that team combat and group cooperation were essential for the future generations of mages facing against enemies and monsters both internally and externally.

    "I''ll be relying on you then," I said. Principal Porter chuckled and shook his head.

    "No, son. I''ll be the one depending on you."

 285 Chapter 285: Embarking on the Expedition

    Nope. I''m not going to waste time dedicating an entire chapter (or several, if I was Skeleton Wizard) to describing a meaningless party. There was only so many times you could repeat a party chapter where students from other academies continued to inexplicably look down on your team for no reason other than because you were the main character, and it got pretty old. In any event, nothing of note happened, we had food, we had fun, and then we went home the next day.

    That was pretty much it, and I found myself reminiscing over the days that I spent in Vermillion Academy. That week of practice matches and other stuff was really fun.

    It didn''t take long before Principal Porter contacted me.

    "Are you looking forward to it?" he asked me, as ecstatic as ever. I tried not to let a bead of perspiration drip down my head.

    "Uh, yeah. I am. This sounds fun."

    "It will be!" he assured me enthusiastically. "You''ll see! We''ll have so much fun on this trip! And I really look forward to seeing your perspective regarding these ruins. There''s speculation that the tomb dates back to the early 2200s, a little before the Dark Age. We might be able to unearth some sort of ancient technology or uncover some information regarding the civilizations of those times!"

    "Yeah, I guess." The Emergence events began around the mid to late 2200s, which sort of threw mankind into a technological dark age when everyone got overwhelmed, entire nations were annihilated and humans teetered on the brink of extinction. Only with the advent of magic during the 2300s, mankind was able to stand their ground, fortify the few remaining cities that survived the relentless onslaught, and thrived from there.

    The Federation and Empires were founded relatively recently, as fortress cities banded together in alliances, expanded to recapture lost territory from the monsters, and rebuilt human civilizations across sprawling continents. It was understandable why so much history was lost to the current Federation, and perhaps that was why Henry Porter and modern scholars found my knowledge of what they considered ancient history so fascinating.

    Much historical knowledge had been lost over the millennia, with the death of academics, museums and databases while the monsters ran rampant, almost succeeding in wiping out human civilization before it finally pulled itself together and fought back.

    About 200 years after my original time, huh?

    Unfortunately, while I possessed a relatively large amount of historical knowledge regarding my era and the preceding centuries before it (though most of it was generally East Asian history because of my major in Japan), I knew next to nothing about the next couple of centuries before the Emergence Events almost threw mankind back into the Stone Age. Consequently, I was extremely curious about the two "lost" centuries. My thirst for knowledge and my interest in history overruled any sense of responsibility I might have felt toward preparing for the tournament. Besides, I wasn''t that invested in the tournament.

    If they selected me, fine. I would participate in it. Of course, I intended to do my very best to try and win it, but I was under no illusions that Jing Tian Academy would make it all the way to the finals. It wasn''t my dream to be number one, or to become the strongest. What, you think I was some weird martial arts freak or a xianxia cultivator who wanted to rule over the heavens or some bullshit like that?

    Nope. I wanted to be a hero like my dad. Even though I repeated that quite a few times throughout the story, there were still readers who claimed that the didn''t know what my goal was, what my motivations were, and therefore couldn''t relate to me or my story. Come on, I even mentioned Emiya Shirou and Fate/Stay Night, and it was clear I was ripping that guy off more than even Wang Zhong from Battle Frenzy, and Dad was just a funny version of Emiya Kiritsugu. Like I said, near the beginning, I always aimed to become a heroic mercenary like my dad, traveling around the world and taking missions to save people from monsters and magic terrorists. That was my dream, my goal, and the agenda that drove or motivated me.

    Therefore, protecting archaeologists during an excavation dig appealed to me more than participating in some tournament and increasing my rank. It might seem strange to some people, but my goal was to protect people, not to become number one. So why wouldn''t I prioritize participating in this mission over preparing for the tournament? Moreover, as I said, this mission would provide me ample opportunity to become exponentially stronger and allowed me to surpass the talented genisues and flawless prodigies of my generations. Hopefully.

    If not¡­then I had no regrets. I was going to do my best, and it just meant my best was not enough. Then again, I was never interested in competitions and trying to be better than other people. All that mattered to me was that I had the strength to protect others. I didn''t have to be number one for that. What I needed to do was to learn how to work with others under those sort of circumstances, and develop a way to work under pressure or highly tense situations where the lives of many innocents lay on my shoulders.

    Not win trophies. Those were meaningless to me. If it made my friends happy, then yeah, I would do my best for them. After all, like I said, the team tournament provided me an avenue of learning how to work with others, taught me the values of teamwork and cooperation, and allowed me to coordinate efforts with my friends. That was why I didn''t refuse it outright. But when it came down to it, saving people was more my jam, if you know what I mean.

    "Say, do you know anything about the 2200s?" Principal Porter was asking. I quickly dragged myself back to the present and shook my head.

    "I''m afraid not."

    "I see." Principal Porter was unable to hold back his slight disappointment, but he nodded. "Still, I''m confident that you''ll provide us a fresh perspective on the dig. And we need you to protect us from the monsters anyway!"

    "I''ll do my best."

    "Excellent." Principal Porter beamed. "I''ll see you in a few hours then! Get ready!"

    "Yes, sir."

    With that, the line cut off, and I went off to prepare for the expedition.

    *

    Principal Porter was as good as his word. Right on the dot, a massive hovercraft descended from the clouds, its engines roaring like some ferocious god of thunder and casting a huge shadow on the landing bay where I awaited. I shielded my face as powerful gusts of wind buffeted me, and the hovercraft elegantly set itself atop the marked location before its bay opened.

    "Glad to see you!" the old man shouted as he stood right at the top of the ramp. He gestured for me to board. "Get in!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    I hurried onboard, dragging my luggage with me. Once I was inside the hovercraft''s bowels, I was directed to a cargo bay where I placed my baggage with everyone else''s, and then I was led to the passenger compartment by none other than Principal Porter himself.

    "This is my archaeological team!" Principal Porter excitedly introduced them to me. There were about twenty of them, all gathered in comfortable-looking seats that resembled those on a passenger airline jet. Complete with holographic screens where they could watch in-flight movies, play games, or listen to music. A few of them were reading their eBooks on their Kindle, just like what I usually did when I was taking a long flight home in Singapore from my graduate school in America. Ah, I missed those times in my previous life.

    They were mostly university students, with quite a few professors among their count. The minimum qualification was a graduate student, so no undergraduate students, which sort of made sense. Though I had a feeling the graduate students were present more as dig assistants who did the heavy lifting in place of the old or middle-aged professors, rather than intellectuals sharing the same status as their mentors. I was probably ranked lower than them in the hierarchy, but at least we would all receive the chance to provide our opinions.

    "I should also introduce you to the people you''ll be working with. When I informed them that you were coming along, they were more than happy to accede to my request." Principal Porter then led me from the luxurious-looking compartment to the more utilitarian and Spartan compartment where a small group of people resided in. This time, there were about ten or so people, and I recognized one of them. Oblivious to my surprise, Principal Porter continued. "We hired several mercenaries to protect our excavation team." He patted my shoulder and laughed when he mistook my expression. "Did you really think we would just ask a single person to guard the archaeological site? Don''t get me wrong. I value your fighting skills, but I''m sure that it''s too much for even you to protect an entire dig site and twenty people all by yourself."

    "No, that''s not what I''m¡­"

    "Richard! It''s been a while!"

    A very familiar beautiful girl with long, green hair and emerald eyes bounced to her feet and approached me, delighted when she saw me. I nodded toward her, still in shock.

    "Anastasia."

    "Geez!" she sulked unhappily, placing her hands on her hips. "I told you to call me Ana!"

    "Oh, yeah. Hey, Ana. So¡­uh, the Silver Wolves were hired to provide for this archaeological dig?"

    "That''s right!" Anastasia nodded as she grabbed my hands. "I''m so glad that you are joining us!"

    "Oh? You know each other?" it was Principal Porter''s turn to be stunned.

    "Yeah." I nodded in affirmation. "We''ve worked together before."

    "This will be the second time!" Anastasia added, obviously in a good mood. She turned to the rest of the mercenaries, who were lounging on the benches. "He''ll be a great addition to the team!"

    "I know." One burly guy who must tower over two meters ¨C hell, he was almost as tall as me even though he was still seated on the somewhat cushioned bench ¨C spoke up. He cocked his head at me as a greeting. "That''s the kid that Brother Feng Hai spoke about before. A potential recruit once he graduates from university."

    "I have to get into university first," I muttered.

    "Don''t worry!" Principal Porter barked out in laughter. "You''ll definitely get into university! I have a spot reserved for you at Vermillion University!"

    Oi, oi. No favoritism or corruption here, sir. I wasn''t going to accept a free ticket to university like this. I wanted to earn my place, not have it handed to me like so many web novel protagonists who get offered the most ridiculous positions by virtue of being the main character (I''m referring to the more contemporary settings like in Metropolitan System or So Pure, So Flirtatious, where the main characters basically get money or status or whatever they want just from asking).

    "Anyway, grab a seat. I''ll brief you on our plans and give you an assignment." The burly guy paused for a moment and looked at me. "I hope you don''t mind if I take the liberty to assume that that you''ll allow me to take command."

    "No, not at all." I bowed. "As an experienced junior, I hope to learn from you all. I will listen to any instructions you give and do my best to fulfil them."

    "Ha ha ha!" a lanky guy, his red hair in a wild mess, laughed and nodded. "He''s as humble as Brother Feng Hai said he''ll be!"

    "No wonder the boss has his eye on him," another guy, a shadowy fellow dressed in a cloak and had a hood over his head, remarked with an approving nod.

    "No one has any problems if he''s assigned to the same team as me, right?" Anastasia asked, raising her hand.

    "None whatsoever," the massive guy confirmed. "Since the both of you have worked so well together, I might as well assign you to the same team. By the way, that was an impressive job the two of you did in Azpire City, defeating the Grim Reaper and destroying a huge chunk of monsters there."

    "Thank you, sir."

    "Great, Captain Brent!" Anastasia was practically spinning around in glee, her earrings clinging softly. She turned back to me and grabbed my hands. "Yay! We''re in the same team!"

    "Uh, right." I felt a bead of perspiration drip down the back of my head, but managed to smile. "I look forward to working with you again." I then glanced around and slowly counted the number of mercenaries to ensure I wasn''t mistaken. "So¡­there''s ten of you?" I began, but Brent shook his head.

    "We have a battalion billeted in the deck below," he explained. "The ten of us make up the command element. Don''t worry, we''re not stupid enough to trek through the swamp and guard an excavation site with only ten people."

    "That''s good," I responded, not sure whether to feel relieved or not.

    "I''ll leave it to you guys then." Principal Porter regarded me for a moment, his eyes flickering to Anastasia occasionally. For some reason, his expression was now unreadable, and there was something in those foggy gray pupils of his. He smiled at me, and then turned away, and I could have sworn I heard him mutter something along the lines of "poor little Lilith."

    "All right." Brent gestured for me to take a seat. "Let''s get started with the briefing." He then conjured a holographic screen that displayed the dig site in the middle of the Black Underworld Swamp. "So this is where we''ll establish a perimeter, and each team will be assigned a sector to patrol¡­"

 286 Chapter 286: Black Underworld Swamp

    For fear of damaging the site, the hovercraft ended up landing in an exposed field several hundred meters away. Not too far away, but not too close where its engines would damage the fragile walls of the crumbling tomb. Principal Porter was pretty explicit about this.

    Along the way, we were attacked by flying monsters that inhabited the swarms. Uh, Ghoul Wyrms and Shadow Drakes, nefarious creatures that roosted among the twisted, gnarled trees that populated the gray bogs of the Black Underworld Swamp and took off to attack aircraft. Fortunately, with several of the Silver Wolves mercenaries onboard the craft, we drove them off with precise, powerful spells. I also summoned Aquila to help eliminate a couple of flying monsters that drew too close to the thickly armored hovercraft, and we managed to complete the rest of the journey in safety. It was unfortunate that the hovercraft was moving too fast to stay within a hundred meter range for me to summon Vermillion Phoenix. Ugh. In fact, I almost couldn''t summon Aquila either, and was only able to do so when the hovercraft was forced to halt and hover in midair for the Silver Wolves mercenaries to scramble out to fling spells at the annoying swarm of Shadow Drakes that buzzed around us. That short pause of two minutes was enough for me to summon the gigantic red eagle, but it was less than half of the required time (five minutes) to summon Vermillion Phoenix, so too bad.

    With Aquila escorting the hovercraft, the frequency of attacks lessened and now here we were, landing near the tomb.

    "Be careful," Brent warned as he strode toward the ramp in three gigantic strides. He held up a hand to stop the archaeological team. "You guys stay on the hovercraft until my team has ensured that the landing zone is secured."

    "Understood," Principal Porter agreed, and he nodded for his colleagues and students to hang back.

    Brent and the Silver Wolves then proceeded to disembark the moment the ramp dropped down, moving into positions and taking up firing stances. About three out of the ten mercenary officers were wielding rifles, two of them long hunting rifles with powerful scopes. The third was an automatic carbine that spewed out mana bullets at an incredible rate. The lower-ranked mercenaries mostly wielded rifles.

    Unlike the gun-toting lower ranks, most of the officers had the standard fantasy type weapons, but even swords, axes and spears were capable of unleashing long-ranged spells at foes far away, while doubling as peerless weapons in melee. Their versatility ensured that they would never be obsolete.

    "Go, go, go!"

    Using hand signals and urging in hushed tones, Brent directed us to make use of fire and movement. That was, half of the group provided covering fire while the other half rushed forward to take up new positions to offer support fire while the first half then made their way forward. Typical military stuff.

    There were a few monsters awaiting in the Black Underworld Swamp as we advanced toward the tomb, but they didn''t pose much of a problem. At least not to the seasoned veterans of the Silver Wolves. A Blood Boar recklessly tried to charge us and was mercilessly blasted apart by a hunting rifle, the magical projectile embedding itself deeply within the poor monster''s core before detonating violently. A Bog Monkey swinging amidst the branches tried to ambush us from behind, but was knocked down by a hail of fire from the carbine before the red-haired mercenary, Redfield, finished the fallen creature off with a fire spell.

    Covering the first few fifty meters, Brent then turned back and called for the archeological team to disembark and follow us.

    "Stay close to us," he ordered. "Don''t stray too far or you''ll get devoured by the monsters in the swamp."

    That was more than enough of a warning for them to obey. I was pretty sure that the archaeological team comprised of mages who could defend themselves with spells in a pinch, but they had focused on studying more than combat, and thus wouldn''t be all that useful in a fight against all but the weakest of monsters.

    Worse, the danger of the monsters in the Black Underworld Swamp wasn''t that they were particularly strong, but that there existed many highly toxic monster living in the marshes, bearing deadly venoms ¨C where one drop could kill a normal man in seconds.

    Fortunately, I had immunity to poison because of the Holy Spring about a hundred and fifty chapters ago (what, you didn''t think I would forget about that ability, did you?), so I wasn''t afraid of poisonous creatures. Even so, I still had to be careful.

    Glancing around, I grimaced at the purple mist that had permanently settled over the Black Underworld Swamp. The Silver Wolves cautiously marched through it, their eyes narrowed as they glanced around for any hidden dangers, but for the moment, other than the low-ranked monsters, we were safe.

    For now.

    My vigilance was rewarded when the motion tracker in the lenses of my glasses picked up movement.

    "Be careful!"

    I drew Hei Yue and Bai Ri and struck the moment something lunged at us from the trees, decapitating it. I blinked and vaguely registered my victim. It was a huge, black serpent with purplish venom leaking from its fangs. Blood splashed across the gray grass as the headless body and the disembodied head landed clumsily, the former writhing about desperately.

    It wasn''t the only one. Three more black serpents darted out of the trees, hissing ferociously as they lashed out at the group.

    Working in tandem with me, Anastasia was the next to react. She rushed forward, her daggers sliding into her hands and slashing at them. Like the first, one of the snakes was decapitated instantly. The other two withdrew, hissing furiously as blood trickled down from cuts on their necks.

    Several seconds later, they convulsed violently and fell over, frothing at their jaws. Quite clearly, they had been poisoned to death.

    Seeing Anastasia''s smirk, I was reminded that she was a former Veneneum Sect Assassin who specialized in the use of poisons. The Black Underworld Swamp must feel like home to her, in a manner of speaking (obviously she wouldn''t want to live in here permanently).

    "Black Underworld Snakes!" Brent shouted out a warning as he raised his massive staff and jabbed it at another monstrous serpent. "Everybody, be careful!"

    With a single swing, he obliterated the Black Underworld Snake, turning it into little more than bloody paste.

    Holy f¡­! He could reduce something of that size (they were about twelve meters long and their heads were almost the size of an adult man) to nothing with just a single swing of his staff?!

    The other Silver Wolves mercenaries were now engaging the swarm in combat. The guys with the guns weren''t able to get shots off at the serpentine shapes of the coiling creatures, but what bullets they fired did reduce their heads to bloody messes and dropped them. The rest of the mercenaries sliced and diced them with their swords and spears, while the lower-ranked soldiers fired a barrage of shots from their carbines, taking care not to get bitten by the Black Underworld Snakes. Their potent venom could incapacitate even a fairly powerful mage pretty quickly, despite them only being ranked E or D.

    This was why ranks were deceptive. There was no bullshit like "rank D monsters will never be able to defeat rank C monsters and above or their equivalents of human mages." The venom of a rank D Black Underworld Snake was enough to kill a rank C or even rank B monster. It could even incapacitate a rank A monster if the latter was weakened or not careful.

    There were no absolutes in reality, however much xianxia and cultivation stories would have you believe with their nonsensical realms and ranks. Like in the real world, a cobra could still kill an elephant several times its mass and size with a single bite.

    "Stand strong!" Brent bellowed. "Keep them off the archaeological team!"

    "Captain!" Redfield shouted when he incinerated a swathe of serpents with his fire spells. A few mercenaries provided covering fire for him with their guns. "There''s another fifty or so of them advancing toward our position! It''s like we''ve stumbled into a viper''s nest!"

    "Fuck!" Brent swore. "Hold your ground, Silver Wolves! Do not yield!"

    "Yes, sir!" everyone chorused, slashing and striking at the Black Underworld Snakes relentlessly. The serpents had gotten a little smarter and were pulling back, staying out of range of the melee weapons. That didn''t stop them from being bombarded by long-ranged spells or magical bullets, but they minimized their casualties as much as possible.

    I was about to charge into battle with my swords to help the mercenaries, but Anastasia flung out a hand to stop me.

    "Richard, you should do what you''re best at."

    I immediately understood what she meant. Pushing my glasses up, I hung back and tried to complete my spell as quickly as possible. With so many Black Underworld Snakes, even after five minutes of furious combat, their number seemed undiminished.

    Fortunately, five minutes was just the amount of time I needed to complete my summoning spell.

    "Vermillion Phoenix!"

    The majestic Celestial Guardian burst into life, spreading his wings as he soared into the air. Fiery feathers materialized around him as he hovered above the clearing.

    "Everyone, be careful!" I shouted. "Fall back!"

    They didn''t need telling twice. Everyone immediately complied, broke off from combat and withdrew to a safe distance. I didn''t require a further invitation and immediately mentally directed Vermillion Phoenix to sterilize the area. The fiery feathers slammed into the writhing swarm of Black Underworld Snakes before enveloping the entire area in a hellish inferno.

    "Holy f¡­!"

    Even the mercenaries shrank back at the fearsome firepower that my Vermillion Phoenix had unleashed when his job was done, there was little more that remained of the clearing but scorched craters and ash.

    "This boy really reminds me of my granddaughter and her Hellfire Bear," Principal Porter said ruefully. "They would have made a great match."

    Screw you, old man. I ain''t interested in Lilith. And she wasn''t romantically interested in me either. She had much better candidates for love orbiting around her. Why would she choose a random stranger like me? Just because I helped her out in the Spiritual Road? As if romantic relationships were so easily contrived.

    "Is anyone hurt?" Brent demanded, turning back to his forces and assessing their condition. He tried to ensure that everyone had been accounted for "Sound off!"

    "Sir!"

    Barely had the first person began to voice out when I spotted a dark shadow slithering out of the trees and darting toward our leader. The movement was so subtle that I almost didn''t catch it ¨C it was only thanks to the fine-tuned sensors on my glasses that I was able to see it at all.

    "Watch out, sir!" I shouted.

    "!!!"

    Brent spun around and was almost knocked off his feet by a gigantic cobra that was several times bulkier than the huge Black Underworld Snakes we had just faced. He twirled his staff around and deflected its jaws to the side, barely escaping getting bitten by its extremely venomous fangs. Huffing, he dove to the side just as it bit at him again, its forked tongue snaking out dangerously.

    "A Nine-eyed Giant Cobra?" I muttered, recognizing its distinctive look. With a single huge yellow eye in the center of its forehead, four beady eyes blinked on either side of it. It hissed ferociously and lunged toward us once more. "As if I''ll let you! Vermillion Phoenix!"

    Soaring high up, my Celestial Guardian unleashed another meteor shower of fire once more, bombarding the Nine-eyed Giant Cobra and engulfing it in flames. The monstrous serpent hissed ferociously and dispelled the hellish inferno with brute force, purplish mana shimmering around its scale body.

    "Whoa, that thing''s pretty tough," I remarked. Despite Vermilion Phoenix''s powerful spell, all he managed to do was burn the Nine-eyed Giant Cobra a little. There were a few black spots on its serpentine body, but not enough to subdue it. I hoped the slight injuries were enough to drive it off, otherwise I would have to start bringing out my big guns.

    "The Nine-eyed Giant Cobra is a rank B monster," Brent warned. "It''s not going to go down so easily. Protect the archaeological team!"

    "Roger that, Captain!"

    While the mercenaries formed a wall between the Giant Cobra and the university professors and students, I continued to bombard the Nine-eyed Giant Cobra with Vermillion Phoenix''s flames. Moving up to support my Celestial Guardian, I summoned a chibi Green Dragon and had him aid me in sending a storm of flower petals to flay the scales off the gigantic monster. The Nine-eyed Giant Cobra lunged at me, but I twisted my body to the side before countering with slashes from both my swords. Despite my best attempts, I failed to decapitate it.

    The Nine-eyed Giant Cobra tried to coil around me in an attempt to suffocate and crush my body, but I vanished amidst a storm of flowers. Skidding backward, I sent another maelstrom of razor-sharp petals at its face, almost blinding it. However, I did nothing more than leave several cuts on its head.

    As much as I hated to admit it, I was still far from being able to defeat a rank B monster by myself.

    Fortunately, I wasn''t by myself.

    Behind me, Anastasia made her move. While I was distracting the Nine-eyed Giant Cobra with my wood spells and Vermillion Phoenix, she had snuck around and reached behind the rank B monster. The Fiend continued to snarl and bear down on my position, but failed to hurt me. Just like this we were locked in a stalemate. An amusing thought occurred to me ¨C the Nine-eyed Giant Cobra must have found me just as annoyingly sturdy as I perceived it to be.

    And then Anastasia threw her poisoned dagger, which sliced through the armored scales and penetrated deeply into the monster''s hide. The Nine-eyed Giant Cobra wailed and thrashed wildly, spinning around to hiss vengefully at Anastasia, who was now retreating.

    "Your opponent is me," I informed it coldly before casting another storm of razor-sharp petals that sliced off a good chunk of its scales and flesh. The Nine-eyed Giant Cobra screeched and twisted to face me, only to be met by a colossal fireball from Vermillion Phoenix.

    Then¡­it suddenly went rigid and began frothing at the mouth. Going into convulsions, it jerked and flailed about in the clearing, shrieking in agony. After a few minutes of razing the clearing, it finally fell to the ground, white foam flooding its jaws.

    "That took quite a while," Anastasia remarked casually as she plucked her dagger from the Nine-eyed Giant Cobra''s corpse, cleaned it and kept it wherever she usually placed it before drawing it. She turned to the stunned Silver Wolves and smiled dazzlingly. Even Brent was speechless at how effective her poisons were on such a massive monster. Disregarding their slack-jawed expressions, Anastasia gestured toward the tomb, which was still within plain sight. "Shall we move on?"

 287 Chapter 287: Bugging Ou

    Unfortunately for us, the gigantic snakes weren''t the most dangerous monsters inhabiting the Black Underworld Swamp.

    "Watch out!"

    A deafening buzzing noise drowned out the words of warning from one of the mercenaries. Turning around, I caught sight of a colossal swarm of bugs flying toward us, their wings almost shimmering as they beat the air.

    "Those are¡­Spirit Devouring Bees!" Redfield murmured, his expression filled with despair and horror.

    "Damn it." Brent scowled. "Spirit Devouring Bees are low-ranked monsters¡­rank F at most, but the problem is their astronomical numbers. A single swarm of them can reduce even a rank C monster into bones in mere seconds."

    Just like piranhas or army ants.

    "At least it''s not the Ghost Face Silver Mosquito," I muttered sarcastically. Everyone turned to stare at me, their mouths hanging open.

    "The what Mosquito?"

    "Never mind," I quickly said. We could choose to rip off either Forty Millennia of Cultivation or The Great Ruler (animated version), but it seemed that Fate had decided on the latter. "By the way, does anyone have a Tai Yi Lightning Railgun? We''ll need that to shoot lightning bolts at the Ghost Face Silver Mosquitoes¡­I mean, the Spirit Devouring Bees."

    "We don''t have a railgun, and I''ve never heard of a Tai Yi Lightning type of railgun before." The guy with the carbine hefted his weapon up and fired an automatic burst into the swarm, but for all of his efforts he might as well be throwing pebbles into an ocean. "Damn it¡­we''ll need something more powerful than this!"

    "Richard could always try and nuke the entire site with his spells of mass destruction," Anastasia suggested.

    "And kill all of us along with the Spirit Devouring Bees? Don''t be stupid. Besides¡­" Brent glanced at me. "I assume you''re going to need a lot of time to cast that Strategic-scale spell, right?"

    "Yeah¡­ten, maybe fifteen minutes¡­"

    "We''re not going to last that long under the onslaught of millions of Spirit Devouring Bees." Brent twisted around and gestured for everyone to move. "Go! Run toward the tomb! Seek shelter!"

    "What if the Spirit Devouring Bees follow us into the site?" one of the professors asked timidly, but he had already turned around and was running with the mercenaries and the archaeological team. However, it was a good question.

    "I''ll set up a barrier at the entrance of one of the buildings, and they shouldn''t be able to get in for a while. Even though they''re capable of eating a high-ranked monster to the point where nothing more than bones are left, they probably shouldn''t find stone, concrete, metal or cement as palatable. They probably wouldn''t try to chew through the buildings."

    If they did, we would be screwed because we had trapped ourselves inside an enclosed space. However, there wasn''t any other alternative. We could continue running, but there was no other place to run to, unless we decided to return to the hovercraft and fly out of here.

    Considering that Brent was a highly experienced mercenary who had faced countless monsters before, I was inclined to follow his instructions. However, I noticed that the swarm of Spirit Devouring Bees were too fast for us to outrun. Principal Porter in particular, because of his advanced age, was slowing down. At this rate, he would be caught by the rank F monsters and devoured into a skeleton.

    "You guys go in ahead. I''ll take care of the Spirit Devouring Bees. Vermilion Phoenix!"

    My Celestial Guardian soared into the air before unleashing a torrent of flames at the Spirit Devouring Bees. Even though the fiery bombardment tore huge gaping holes in the swarm, incinerating thousands of bugs in an instant, these were like drops in the ocean. There were still millions. A few thousand was barely enough to put a dent in their sheer numbers.

    However, it bought us more than enough time. One of the bigger mercenaries picked up Principal Porter and hauled him off the ground.

    "Thanks, kid!" he called out to me. "Good job!"

    "It''s nothing. Please get the archaeologist team to safety!" I focused on burning out the Spirit Devouring Bees before me. Vermillion Phoenix was being chased by a tendril of the swarm right now, pausing every so often to burn, but the bugs were getting smarter. I was astonished to see the swarm split into many tendrils and moved in different directions, minimizing the casualties they sustained from Vermillion Phoenix''s attacks. Even though he succeeded in wiping out entire tendrils, just like a many-headed hydra, they tended to reform and produce new tendrils from the massive swarm.

    It seemed that no matter how much I burned or incinerated, there were still millions of the bugs to replace those that I had exterminated.

    "Taurus! Aldebaran attack!"

    The gigantic bull materialized in front of me and bellowed. Stomping a hoof on the ground, his maw yawned and he unleashed a huge gout of flames that wiped out another swathe in the swarm, causing the surviving Spirit Devouring Bugs to scatter. Above, Vermillion Phoenix succeeded in throwing off his pursuers. Wheeling in the air, he then immolated another few tendrils of the swarm, even as they hastily broke off and split up to escape the terrifying inferno roiling toward them.

    I wondered if it would be enough.

    "Get your ass in here, kid!" Brent hollered. I whirled around and realized that the majority of the group had made it to the tomb. They had found an opening in one of the buildings that made up the tomb, and several of the Silver Wolves mercenaries were scrambling to set up a spirit formation array. Thanks to the precious few minutes I had bought them with my Constellation spirits, it seemed that they were going to make it in time.

    I turned to sprint toward the tomb, and at the same time recalled my Constellation spirits. To my surprise, Taurus refused to leave. Instead, he stood his ground resolutely while facing down the approaching swarm of Spirit Devouring Bees. I suddenly understood what he was trying to do.

    The Spirit Devouring Bees were too many and too fast. I wasn''t going to outrun them at this rate. So Taurus was going to sacrifice himself to buy me the few seconds I needed to dive into the tomb unmolested by the bugs. Vermillion Phoenix had also agreed with him, banking around to unleash his fiery fury upon the Spirit Devouring Bees that were closing on him.

    The two of them¡­

    "Damn it."

    Closing my eyes, I exhaled and ran for my life. I couldn''t allow their sacrifices to be in vain. Even as Taurus was engulfed by a swarm of Spirit Devouring Bees and reduced to nothing more than dissipating bones in seconds, despite doing his best to incinerate the bugs around him, I sprinted. Even as Vermillion Phoenix slowly faltered, being stung again and again by the pursuing Spirit Devouring Bees, I didn''t falter. The majestic celestial guardian erupted into a supernova of flames that expanded through the swamp in a colossal conflagration that consumed the majority of the swarm.

    The Spirit Devouring Bees reeled, having not expected the self-destruction of Vermillion Phoenix to be so destructive. Even though they were now reduced to a mere shadow of their former numbers, there were still hundreds of thousands of them left, and they buzzed angrily, flying after me in vengeance for their incinerated brethren.

    "Fuck!"

    The sacrifices of my Constellation spirits hurt me. Sure, most people saw them as expendable. After all, they weren''t gone permanently. It would take me a day or two ¨C a few days at most ¨C before I could summon them again. All I needed to do was resurrect them within my spiritual sea, and though that took quite a lot of time and energy, I should be able to revive them. This wasn''t the first time Taurus had met his demise, after all.

    However, my Constellation spirits weren''t tools or weapons. They weren''t ammunition to be expended and recklessly thrown at the enemy as suicide bombs. They were my Constellation spirits, my Soul Beasts. Comrades who fought alongside me in battle. I held a strong spiritual and emotional connection to them, a bond that couldn''t simply be dismissed as master-and-servant or owner-and-pet. They were companions, friends¡­even family.

    It hurt me emotionally to lose them. Furthermore, I would suffer some sort of mental backlash. It might not appear physically or visibly, but I would need some time to recover.

    "Hurry!" Anastasia yelled as I bounded over a fallen, ruined pillar. The scars on the once pristine marble led me to briefly wonder if the tomb here had been desecrated by the monsters. But if that was the case, the site wouldn''t be so intact.

    "Keep your head down, kid!" Redfield stepped out and pointed his spear at the incoming Spirit Devouring Bees. A torrent of flames washed over and singed my hair, but the bugs that were chasing me weren''t as fortunate. They were decimated by the flames.

    Several more of the mercenaries were unleashing spells from cover now, buying me those last few seconds so that I could dive and slide right past the entrance where Brent was hastily finishing the last of his spirit array.

    "Excellent. Now activate the Tian Qiang Protective Spirit Array!"

    He struck the magic circle that he had carved into the dirt, and a shimmering wall of violet burst into life, covering the entire entrance.

    The spirit formation arrays were a complex thing. They weren''t something you could just set up as and when you liked, and because they consumed a tremendous amount of mana, a single mage couldn''t possibly activate it on his own. Usually, spirit formation arrays ¨C such as those that created an impenetrable barrier to protect cities from monsters, or the fiery barrier that had been permanently set up around our house by Dad ¨C required massive generators to power them. The power station that fed the barrier around the city was most likely the equivalent of a nuclear power plant in the late twentieth century while Dad actually had a sizeable generator built in our basement just for that single household barrier. Right now, the three hundred or so Silver Wolves mercenaries were combining their mana to power the spirit formation array, but even their merged strength would not maintain such a mana-consuming barrier for more than an hour. Later they would begin to assemble the portable generators they had brought with them (which had been dismantled so that each soldier could carry an individual component or part) and hook it up to the spirit formation, but for now we needed the barrier because of the current crisis. Our enemies weren''t going to wait for us to assemble the portable generators and hook them up to the spirit formations, after all.

    The first wave of Spirit Devouring Bees collided with the barrier and they simply disintegrated. It was as if they ceased to exist. The remaining Spirit Devouring Bees broke off from their attack and divided themselves, buzzing away and most likely searching for ways to force an entry into the building we sought shelter in.

    Fortunately, there weren''t any other entrances or exits. At least none I could see for now. The corridor we now inhabited seemed to lead deeper underground, which was most likely where we were going to spend the night. At least until we found a way to eliminate the Spirit Devouring Bugs from the entire site.

    "We are safe for now." Redfield exhaled in immense relief as he slumped down against a damp wall, resting his spear on his shoulder. Flames continued to crackle around his hand, but he extinguished them through his will.

    "Don''t let your guard down," Brent told everyone, his expression as stern as ever as he gazed out from behind the barrier. The Spirit Devouring Bees were still in the vicinity, their huge numbers hovering around the ruins. "The enemy''s still here."

    "Not for long," Anastasia remarked. Brent sent her a sidelong glance.

    "Is your spell ready yet, Ana?"

    "Yup. Just waiting on your signal, Captain Brent."

    Brent nodded. "Do it."

    Ana nodded and cast the spell that she had been preparing this entire time, while being protected by the Spirit Array, and while I was distracting the Spirit Devouring Bees. A thick miasma, not borne out of the swamp, drifted upward and settled itself upon the dig site, almost resembling a cloud. The Spirit Devouring Bees didn''t react at first, not knowing what was going on until it was too late. They buzzed about, even as the gray fog enveloped them.

    And then they began to fall. One by one, ten by ten, hundred by hundred, thousand by thousand, the bugs began to die.

    I was reminded vaguely of fogging carried out in the past, where humans would release insecticide in the form of fumes into drains, canals, and other places to flush out mosquitoes and other insects. Pest exterminators, if I was correct. It was a common technique carried out by exterminators in tropical countries, where pests such as mosquitoes were very common, which in turn led to the spread of insect-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever. As long as it wasn''t DDT, which stood for dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, it was fine. And completely worth it.

    "Good job, Ana," Brent praised her as the last of the Spirit Devouring Bees dropped. He turned to the rest. "And the rest of you too. Good job holding out."

    "Allow me to express my thanks as well." Principal Porter bowed to Brent, Anastasia and the Silver Wolves. He then straightened up and peered past the shimmering barrier. "I suppose we''ll have to wait for the poisonous fumes to die down before we can begin excavating the site."

    "That would be best," Brent agreed. "But before you do, at least allow us to set up defensive spirit formations and arrays. We''re going to try and create a barrier around the tomb, so as to keep monsters out."

    These were the small-scale barriers that were a lot weaker than the ones used to protect human cities, though, so the mercenaries still needed to patrol and keep watch. I was going to help them out with that.

    Still¡­to think that Anastasia''s poison spell would be so effective. I guess it was true that toxins were the best way to exterminate bugs! It was far more effective than my fire spells. Not that I was going to learn poison magic after this. It was considered a specialized subset of wood magic, but that was too far from my more generalized Constellation magic, and just like healing magic, it would take far too much time and resources to learn. Not worth it.

    Even then, I had best not get on Anastasia''s bad side if I wanted to live a long life.

 288 Chapter 288: Patrol

    "¡­what''s going on?"

    Looking out over the marshes, I felt a chill crawl down my spine. There were a bunch of monsters swimming toward our position, each of them a twelve-meter-long crocodile covered from head to tail in armored scales.

    It was only my first shift and already I was confronted with the fact that monsters had come to attack. Even with the barrier generated over the dig site by the spirit formation arrays, the flimsy screen wasn''t going to stop monsters of that size and numbers. It looked like I had to find a way to eliminate them.

    Oh, right. I should go back a few hours. After the Silver Wolves had constructed the spirit formation arrays around the dig site, we were assigned to patrol the area in pairs. Each of us were given a specific sector to handle, and naturally I was paired with Anastasia.

    Since both Anastasia and I did the most in repelling the Spirit Devouring Bees, Brent had allowed us to rest first. Each pair would patrol for four hours before the next pair took over. Fortunately, in addition to the ten mercenaries who made up the core command staff (which included Brent, Redfield and Anastasia for some reason ¨C I was surprised how quickly she climbed the ranks of the Silver Wolves mercenaries), the hovercraft also carried a battalion-sized contingent of lower-ranked mercenaries armed with rifles. That translated to about three hundred soldiers, including the ten officers that comprised the command staff and logistics elements, who were even now organizing crates of food and equipment. Normally, they would be handling ammunition as well, but the best thing about modern rifles was that they relied on the mana of the soldiers, and thus didn''t need actual ammunition. That saved us a lot of trouble regarding logistics and resupply.

    After the first four hours, Anastasia and I took over a pair of soldiers. Despite her supposedly being on the command staff, Anastasia was still assigned sentry duty. I wasn''t sure what to make of that, other than to surmise that she hadn''t reached that high of a rank that I thought she did. Or perhaps the Silver Wolves still didn''t trust her because of her past as an Assassin, and therefore she was treated the same way as the common soldiery.

    Not that I was going to ask her about that. In any case, I couldn''t, because of the emergence of the crocodile monsters.

    "Marsh Alligators," Anastasia muttered. I did a double take and peered closer adjusting my lenses to magnify the image.

    "Oh, you''re right. I thought they were Marsh Crocodiles."

    "Nope." Anastasia pointed at them. "Crocodiles have a more pointed snout, whereas alligators such as these have wider snouts. You can also tell by their teeth ¨C crocodiles are unable to hide their teeth when their mouths are closed, but alligators can conceal their teeth when their jaws are shut. See? Those Marsh Alligators over there, with their mouths closed, don''t show any teeth."

    I nodded. "Yeah, I know. But I was thinking that these are monsters, not the same type of alligators and crocodiles that existed on Earth in the past¡­before the Emergence events. I know they aren''t the same species, they are monster versions that come from another dimension."

    "Now that''s an interesting thought." Anastasia pondered for moment. "I wonder if the monsters in the other dimension originally had different forms, but when they crossed over and emerge into our world, they assume the shapes and characteristics of the native organisms in order to better adapt to inhabiting our dimension."

    "Wow¡­" my jaw dropped. "I never thought of that. You could be right! That explains why so many monsters bear such a great resemblance to preexisting animals from the past. Their original forms in their home dimension are probably very different, and perhaps they are influenced by this dimension when they tear their way through the fabric of time-space to emerge here!"

    I was suddenly reminded of how spirits were without form or shape in their dimension ¨C so far as forms that humans couldn''t perceive, anyway. At least Dad told me about that during his flashback arc. It stood to reason that monsters also existed in a similar state back in their home dimension, their shapes unperceivable by humans until they manifest in our world. And in order to manifest physically in our dimension, they had to adapt by taking on the forms and shapes of organisms that already existed in our world. Perhaps even to replace them.

    That was quite the sobering thought. The monsters weren''t just terraforming our world. There was some sort of compromise where they were adapting to become more like the organisms populating our world. Something between terraforming and adaptation. They weren''t just foreign, alien organisms that sought to invade our territory and completely destroy and uproot the environment here. They were meeting us partway by taking on our characteristics.

    I shuddered. Would there be human type monsters in future? Or perhaps they already existed, but had chosen not to show themselves to the mages yet?

    "There''s no need to think too much," Anastasia assured me cheerfully, spinning a poisoned dagger on the tip of her finger. Hey, that was dangerous. If you cut yourself, wouldn''t you die? Then again, perhaps that was Anastasia''s way of honing her skills. "Even if it''s true, it''s not like it will change anything. They''re still our enemies. If we want to survive, we can only kill them. Like those Marsh Alligators approaching our position."

    "Yup." I nodded, and then tilted my head inquisitively. "You know a lot about the monsters in this swamp."

    "I have to." Anastasia smiled. "I was trained here. As part of the Veneneum Sect''s curriculum, I was brought up in a place where the most venomous monsters known to men existed. We had to learn how to extract toxins from the monsters." She looked up at the dark sky wistfully. "Out of a cohort of a hundred, only seven of us survived the training here."

    "Uh¡­" While I appreciated hearing about Anastasia''s past, I suddenly realized something. "What if the Assassins Guild and the Veneneum Sect are still training here? Wouldn''t we be in trouble?"

    "Who knows?" Anastasia shrugged mischievously. "If they try to attack, we''ll just drive them off. They have no reason to attack us, though. Not unless someone ordered a hit on Professor Porter or someone in his team."

    "Or the Silver Wolves," I added. Anastasia nodded.

    "Yeah, or the Silver Wolves. But they are strong, you know? The Assassins are going to find it difficult to break through their defenses. And I say this as a former Assassin myself. Besides, we have the advantage because I''m here." She giggled and tapped her head. "I know all their tricks and tactics. It''ll be easy for me to organize a countermeasure against them."

    "¡­right."

    The Marsh Alligators were within range now. Taking a deep breath, I finished the casting of my spell and summoned Orion. Since I had been casting this entire time, I didn''t need to wait a few minutes before I could unleash one of Orion''s techniques.

    "Betelgeuse."

    A volley of arrows hurtled upward before arcing downward and bombarding the Marsh Alligators. Even though their tough armored scales prevented the meteoric arrows from penetrating any further into their vitals, the powerful projectiles still embedded themselves deeply and dealt a lot of damage. Crimson blood spread out and mingled with the murky, gray bog. Several of the Marsh Alligators were felled by lucky shots, but the volume of my bombardment was such that statistically I was bound to score a critical hit, such as an arrow finding its way into a Marsh Alligator''s eye, or driving its way through a chink in another''s armored scales to pierce its vital organs.

    Realizing that their prey were more trouble than they were worth, the remaining Marsh Alligators turned tail and fled, leaving huge splashes in their wake as they dove deep into the swamp to seek cover. I had only taken out a small fraction of them, but I was just one person out of several hundred. The rest, such as Anastasia, hadn''t made their move yet.

    Therefore the Marsh Alligators instinctively understood that they were outmatched and swiftly retreated before they could sustain any more losses.

    "We are lucky," Anastasia remarked as she watched the Marsh Alligators withdraw. "Their King isn''t here."

    "¡­king?" I repeated incredulously. The green-haired ex-Assassin nodded solemnly.

    "The alpha of a pack. Normally a large herd of Marsh Alligators such as that one is ruled over by a single Alligator King. That guy will be troublesome. He''s only rank D, but his armored scales are so tough that they can withstand a tank shell."

    Yeah, considering that rank E Marsh Alligators mostly survived the bombardment of my arrows, each of which packed quite a punch, I could believe it. Again, ranks weren''t that clear cut. Just because I couldn''t kill rank D monster easily didn''t mean I was weak or some bullshit like that. It was just that each monster had its own unique characteristics. The Marsh Alligators lacked ranged spells and couldn''t wield elemental magic, which prevented them from reaching rank C, but they were protected by sturdy armor that could resist all but the most powerful spells.

    Of course, it would be so much easier if I could nuke the whole lot of them with a spell of mass destruction, but that would be an incredibly reckless move. For one thing, I would be drawing attention to our location, and if a powerful rank B or even rank A monster decided to check it out, I would already have spent my trump card for the day on some insignificant monsters that didn''t pose much of a threat. Just because you could nuke hordes of monsters at once didn''t mean you should. One had to be responsible and strategic in using them and not unleash them at every opportunity you get.

    I knew there was an influx of power-hungry god-like protagonists in cultivation novels that wouldn''t hesitate to use their invincible power to raze entire sects and abuse their strength, but those were just wish fulfilment novels that didn''t consider the repercussions or recklessness of such actions. Great power came with great responsibility ¨C even though I stole that line from Uncle Ben, I just couldn''t emphasize that enough. Just because you could destroy the world, doesn''t mean you should. Otherwise where is everyone else going to live? Where are you going to live after you destroy the world? In the cold vacuum of space? Just because you can raze a sect, doesn''t mean you should. If you become a tyrant who mercilessly slaughtered and massacred entire sects just for offending or threatening you, then a day would come when you met a sect or a cultivator much more powerful than yourself. Of course these protagonists had plot armor and author''s favoritism to protect them from such repercussions, but reality never worked that way. You could act all arrogant and oppress people all you want as long as you were a protagonist of some sick story that advocated murder and rape as justified as long as it was the protagonist who did it, but do that in real life and you would find that¡­there would be dire consequences for your irresponsible behavior.

    If only some readers would understand that. If only they would comprehend that brute force and violence wasn''t the solution to everything. There were checks and balances in the world, and you couldn''t just do whatever you want simply because you were "strong." The survival of the fittest thing was pure bullshit. People needed each other to survive, and different talents were required to build a functioning society. A world couldn''t exist with only soldiers and warriors alone. Farmers, artisans, businessmen, industrialists, educators, politicians (as much as everyone hated them), parents, blacksmiths, chefs, etc. Everyone had a role to play in society, and just because you were physically weaker didn''t mean you were any less important or should have less rights than a soldier. Hold your head high up and be proud of your vocation, and ignore those cultivation novelists'' bullshit about strong eat the weak and survival of the fittest! Such Social Darwinism had no place in reality and often brought about serious repercussions (just look at Nazi Germany and their promotion of the "superior" Aryan race and the massacre of Jews just because they could).

    "Hey, don''t go off ranting to the existences beyond the fourth wall." Anastasia waved a hand in front of my face. "We''re still on duty here."

    "Oh, right. Sorry about that." I nodded and rubbed at my eyes, feeling a little exhausted. While I did so, I noticed something strange. To confirm what I had seen, I adjusted my lenses and magnified the image, sharpening it by several times. "Is it just me or is there a bunch of¡­people wading through the swamp toward us?"

    There was what looked like a parade of people casually wading through the marsh toward the tomb. That didn''t make sense. Were they human type monsters that I was just wondering about? They certainly couldn''t be normal humans or they would be dead by now, eaten up by the Marsh Alligators or the myriad of monsters that populated the Black Underworld Swamp. At the very least they would be poisoned to death.

    Plus their movements looked odd. They seemed to be staggering and splashing clumsily, almost as if they were drunk. How the fuck did they get drunk on the noxious fumes of the marsh, I had no idea. Again, I suspected that they weren''t humans. They must be¡­

    "Bog Ghouls," Anastasia suddenly said, once she spotted them. Unlike me, she didn''t have visual aids or equipment to enhance her vision. Only when they drew closer was she able to spot them. She grimaced. "Rank F monsters, but unlike the Marsh Alligators, they are too stupid to retreat. They will keep throwing themselves at our barrier until they are wiped out." She raised a hand to stop me from aiming with Orion. "Save your mana. They won''t be able to get through the barrier that we set up. They''ll just kill themselves by dumbly running into it."

    "Good point. But¡­" I frowned as I refocused my glasses at the solitary figure that was leading the procession of Bog Ghouls. "Is that guy at the front a Bog Ghoul too?"

    Anastasia''s expression turned so pale I almost mistook her for a ghost. She took a step back, trembling for a moment, and slowly shook her head.

    "No," she whispered, her voice filled with dread. "That''s¡­Xue Tu."

 289 Chapter 289: March of the Dead

    I shook my head in puzzlement. "Who the hell is Xue Tu?"

    "The next leader of the Blood Slaughter Sect," Anastasia explained. Except that it didn''t really explain anything. Seeing my bewilderment, Anastasia elaborated. "Um, it''s a sect that practices blood magic and necromancy."

    "Uh, I see." Actually, I didn''t, but obviously there wasn''t much else Anastasia could say. I couldn''t expect her to give me the full historical background of the Blood Slaughter Sect and a list of its members, after all. "What are they doing here?"

    "I don''t know." Anastasia peered beyond the barrier, just as perplexed as I was. "But it seems that he intends to assault our position. For what purpose, I have no idea."

    Not that it mattered. Anastasia wasted no more time on meaningless explanations. The enemy was here, and we were to drive him and his horde of Bog Ghouls off. She tapped the com bead in her ear and broadcasted across an open channel.

    "All Silver Wolves forces, prepare for imminent attack. A horde of Bog Ghouls, led by a member of the Blood Slaughter Sect, approaching from the north marsh. Be advised, Xue Tu is here."

    "Roger that, Serpent." Brent''s voice crackled over the com bead, using Anastasia''s call sign. "We''ll be sending Alpha Company to back you up. They''ll be there in five minutes."

    "Copy that, Eagle," Anastasia affirmed. "We''ll hold the fort until then."

    Fortunately, given the slow and clumsy movements of the Bog Ghouls, I hardly thought they would be able to reach our position within five minutes. As enthusiastically as Xue Tu was advancing toward the barrier, he had to wait for his Bog Ghouls to shamble through the thick swamp. More than enough for me to finish casting my spells.

    Without any hesitation, I was already summoning one of my big guns.

    The stamping of feet thundered behind me as soldiers ran toward their positions and took cover behind whatever structures they deemed most appropriate. Unfortunately, an ancient tomb wasn''t the best site to fortify and fight in, but being professional mercenaries, they did the best they could with their current situation without any complaint. Which was more than I could say regarding certain people who would rather blame everyone but themselves when things went south.

    "Serpent, you have command."

    "Roger that, Eagle." Anastasia acknowledged Brent''s decision, and then raised her voice. "Take aim! Fire!"

    Dozens of cracks resounded across the air as the ninety-odd soldiers of Alpha Company squeezed their triggers. Volleys of ruby las-beams scorched the air with ionizing shrieks before lancing into the heads of the Bog Ghouls. The first row toppled into the marsh like broken toys, disappearing beneath the sludge in huge gray splashes. Not all the mana beams hit, though. Many of the Bog Ghouls staggered as the las-beams left cauterized craters in their bodies or even blew off arms, but true to form, they continued shuffling forward.

    Just like zombies from movies, they didn''t register any pain from what would be mortal wounds on a normal human being.

    Undaunted, Anastasia gave a second order.

    "Again!"

    The second bombardment saw more of the Bog Ghouls fall, but there were literally hundreds of them. While we were thinning out their numbers, I saw that we wouldn''t be able to wipe them out before the zombies hit the barrier.

    "Damn it¡­"

    Worse, Vermillion Phoenix had sacrificed himself earlier to save me from the Spirit Devouring Bees, so I couldn''t summon him. Otherwise I would have incinerated the entire horde of zombies. Fortunately, I had an alternative.

    "White Tiger!"

    As the five minute mark arrived, I manifested my Celestial Guardian. A storm of lightning whipped out and fried the approaching Bog Ghouls, causing their blackened, convulsing bodies to topple back into the marsh. Electricity traveled through the gray sludge, temporarily paralyzing several more of the Bog Ghouls that were near the areas that the lethal lightning had struck.

    "Good," I murmured, satisfied. At the same time, I wasn''t staying idle. I had also summoned Sagittarius and was casting another spell to conjure a flaming arrow.

    Fitting Alnasl to the bowstring, I pulled it back and took aim before firing it into a particularly dense cluster of Bog Ghouls. The swamp water vaporized and boiled into grayish steam while throwing up charred corpses and ash into the foggy air.

    Even as I began to conjure a second arrow, I could her Anastasia shouting instructions. Her poison techniques were ineffective against the undead ¨C like me, the Bog Ghouls were immune to toxins. Unlike me, it was because they were already dead, so whatever venom Anastasia employed wouldn''t work on their nervous systems or stop their hearts from beating. If anything, their hearts weren''t beating and their blood was hardly circulating in the first place. These foul creatures were powered solely by necromantic energies and black magic.

    Not that I had anything against necromancy and zombies. I could see their use, and if I hadn''t chosen the constellation route, I might have become a necromancer instead. Perhaps in my next life, after I died and reincarnated in another world, I might summon zombies. Who knows? For now, however, I was very contented with my choice of Constellation magic. Maybe I''ll work one of my previous stories, The Golden Gravekeeper into this story one day as a sequel and become a summoner of zombies, but I''ll worry about that when the time comes.

    For now, I focused on exterminating the Bog Ghouls in front of me.

    "¡­hmm?"

    I blinked for a moment after decimating another horde of Bog Ghouls, something gnawing at the back of my mind as I lowered my bow. For some reason, I felt like I was forgetting something. Sure, we were making good progress with the Bog Ghouls, but they shouldn''t be the only threat.

    Oh, right. I had forgotten about Xue Tu.

    "Where''s Xue Tu?" I asked, spinning around and asking Anastasia, who had borrowed a rifle and was taking potshots. With her poison abilities rendered ineffective by the nature of our undead foes, she had chosen to take up a gun instead. I was impressed by her accuracy ¨C evidently, Anastasia had learned how to handle a gun as part of her Assassin training. She didn''t even pause in firing as she tossed an answer to my question.

    "I don''t know. I haven''t seen him for a while now." She lowered the scope from her eye, looking grim. "He''s the summoner of these Bog Ghouls, and that means he''s the primary threat. Richard, you have those hi-tech glasses. Use them to find him."

    "Roger."

    I began sweeping the area with my glasses, using its advanced suite of sensors to scan the swamp for the only living human amidst the Bog Ghouls. Switching to infrared, my vision blurred into a mosaic of colors, red, orange and yellow standing out in stark contrast against hues of blue, black and gray. The Bog Ghouls gave off no heat, their bodies as cold as¡­well, a corpse. Thanks to that, I should be able to locate Xue Tu relatively quickly.

    In theory, anyway. In actuality, I couldn''t find him.

    "He''s¡­gone?!"

    It didn''t matter much. A spike in mana signature alerted me to a specific quadrant, and I was already shouting out the coordinates before I turned toward it.

    "Sector 7! To our left!"

    Even as I adjusted my glasses back to normal view, I spotted an eruption of red curling above a horde of Bog Ghouls. Xue Tu was standing there, raising a hand as he cast his blood spells. The guy was forming a blood barrier to protect his Bog Ghouls from the rain of las-fire that the Silver Wolves mercenaries were delivering.

    Glaring at us, Xue Tu clenched his hand into a fist. One of the blood barriers broke off and turned into a tide that surged toward the barrier like a trident, its tip splitting into three sharp points. Shifting my aim, I blew the huge blood trident up with a flaming arrow.

    "Tsk!" Xue Tu clicked his tongue in annoyance, but he didn''t withdraw. Instead, with a few choice gestures, he manipulated the blood around him and turned them into countless spheres before firing them forward like a buckshot blast from a shotgun. By now I had finished casting the summoning spell for Black Tortoise and was able to conjure a water barrier just in time before the numerous blood pellets smashed through the barrier of the spirit array formation.

    This might sound counterintuitive, but the water barrier of Black Tortoise was stronger because I focused it on a much smaller area. The principle of diffusion might be helpful in explaining it. Say it takes x amount of mana to conjure a barrier. A barrier that covers an area of y would be thinner and weaker than a barrier that covers an area that was a tenth of y. The latter would be a lot stronger and denser.

    Even though the spirit formation array used several times the amount mana that I had, the area it had to cover was a few dozen, if not hundred times the area I directed my barrier to protect. That was why Black Tortoise''s water barrier was seemingly stronger than such an enormous spell ¨C not because Black Tortoise and I were somehow more powerful than spirit arrays, but because of diffusion and the difference in the size of the place we had to cover.

    "Take care of the Bog Ghouls. I''ll handle Xue Tu."

    Seeing an opponent that her poison skills might have effect against, Anastasia tossed her rifle to me. I caught it while dismissing my bow. Admittedly, an actual weapon was more mana efficient and cost effective than my Constellation weapons, which consumed large amounts of my energy. Considering that the number of Bog Ghouls had thinned out considerably, and that there was the possibility that a bigger threat might emerge later ¨C I sort of regretted not forcibly dismissing Vermillion Phoenix and allowing him to supernova himself earlier ¨C I decided to save my mana and switched tactics.

    Peering through the scope, I rested my cheek on the rifle stock, took a deep breath, held it there, and squeezed the trigger. My military training in my previous life was paying dividends now. While I was no sharpshooter, I could at least hit half of my targets. The rest of my rounds went wide, sadly, but that was fine. This was why my arrows emphasized more on power or volume than accuracy. I was never a good shot and I tended to miss half the time. To make up for my lack of precision, I made it such that my terrible accuracy didn''t matter. After all, why would I need to hit a particular target when I could blow the entire area up with a missile-like arrow? What did accuracy matter when I could nuke the entire site from orbit?

    It was the only way to be sure.

    Fortunately, 55% accuracy was better than 0%. I had barely passed my marksmanship test back during the military, but whatever. That was a two-year mandatory service and I wasn''t cut out to make a career out of being a soldier (kind of ironic when you consider that I planned to be a mage mercenary like Dad). Fortunately, I was better at magic than I was at handling a rifle. I was a passable soldier, at least. Or so I would like to think.

    Admittedly, it felt good to score headshots, and this was providing me ample opportunity to practice and improve my aim.

    "!!!"

    While I was blowing the heads off individual Bog Ghouls, Anastasia was engaging their summoner. Xue Tu had thrown several blood appendages at her, the fluid-like extensions morphing into blades, scythes and other sharp weapons. Making use of her incredible agility, Anastasia twisted and turned, evading their merciless slashes and weaving through their attacks to close in on the furious Xue Tu. Snarling, he threw out another hand and fired several blood spheres at her again, almost like a shotgun blast.

    Instinctively realizing the danger, Anastasia flipped backward gracefully, sailing above the bloody shotgun blast. Spinning in midair, she avoided a blood spear that sort to lance through her body, and lashed out with a poisoned dagger. Despite the venom making contact with the blood, it seemed that the blood used to craft those magic weapons wasn''t going to return to circulate back in Xue Tu''s body, so he wasn''t the least affected by Anastasia''s specialty.

    Anastasia realized that too, and understood she had to get closer if she wanted her poison magic to work. Diving under another snaking pair of bloody scythes, she rolled and threw a dagger at Xue Tu. He merely stood there calmly, conjuring a blood shield to deflect the poisoned knife.

    "Poison magic, huh?" Xue Tu murmured when he observed the blood darkening after coming into contact with the toxic blade. Even I was disturbed by how black the blood had become. Whatever Anastasia was using, it seemed pretty potent. Xue Tu also comprehended the danger she posed, and he narrowed his eyes. "A Veneneum Sect Assassin? Since when did Henry Porter begin hiring professional killers from the Assassins Guild?"

    "I''m no longer an Assassin," Anastasia replied as she straightened up, deflecting a bloody blade with her daggers. Taking a deep breath, she watched her opponent. "And I would like to ask you as well. Why is your Blood Slaughter Sect attacking us?"

    "Blood Slaughter Sect?" Xue Tu scoffed. "No, the Blood Slaughter Sect isn''t here. This has nothing to do with them. I''m here on my own private business."

    "Oh?" Anastasia lifted an eyebrow skeptically. "And what business is that?"

    "That''s between me and Henry Porter," Xue Tu replied before he lunged forward to attack her.

 290 Chapter 290: The role of an antagonis

    "White Tiger! Help Anastasia!"

    At my order, my immense Celestial Guardian roared his acknowledgement before twisting in midair to pounce on Xue Tu. With so many of the Bog Ghouls eliminated by his lightning, there wasn''t much left for him to do. Besides, by now I was able to conjure up a new pride of Constellation spirits who could help mop up the remaining rank F Minions.

    "Leo! Leo Minor!"

    I had chosen the majestic lion for a reason. Leo''s element was fire, and fire was particularly effective against the undead.

    "Regulus!"

    A golden beam of light seared through the marsh, disintegrating scores of Bog Ghouls. Those that escaped the blinding spell''s wrath were eviscerated and beheaded by the smaller Leo Minor, their lithe forms leaping nimbly across the swamp.

    "Kuh!"

    While my newly appeared Constellation spirits, the Silver Wolves mercenaries and I were taking care of the Bog Ghouls, Anastasia began to pressure Xue Tu back with the assistance of my White Tiger. White lightning danced across the clearing, illuminating the swamp and temporarily lifting the gloom that had permeated it since primordial times. Gritting his teeth, the leader of the Blood Slaughter Sect threw out his hand desperately in an attempt to conjure a new blood barrier to defend himself.

    "!!!"

    However, while he was distracted by the ferocious Celestial Guardian, Anastasia seized the opportunity to sneak up upon him and stab him in the back. Fortunately, Xue Tu''s reflexes saved him and he dodged it by a hair''s breadth before countering with a blood spear that coalesced around his arm and thrust out with incredible velocity.

    Anastasia flipped backward, the bloody spear succeeding only in cutting a small segment of her dress, splitting the fabric apart to reveal white skin. Adjusting her position, Anastasia whirled around and kicked Xue Tu in the neck, causing the poor guy to topple over facedown into the mud.

    "Gah!"

    Coughing and spluttering, Xue Tu hurled another barrage of blood spikes at her, but Anastasia succeeded in vaulting over the crimson thorns and landed a few meters away. As she did so, while Xue Tu''s eyes were fixed on her, White Tiger mauled him from behind, causing a fountain of blood to spurt into the air.

    Xue Tu staggered, but he swung his hand back to launch another volley of gigantic blood spears behind. White Tiger agilely leaped up, bouncing from one spear to the next and swiping those that he was unable to evade, shattering them into red crystals. Spinning around in midair, the immense Guardian of the West slashed at the blood mage, who conjured a shield to defend himself. Despite the protection from the physical attack, torrents of deadly electricity streamed forward to electrocute him. Crying out, Xue Tu backed away as his body began to fume.

    At that moment, Anastasia closed in with her daggers, but he managed to kick his foot upward and sending a blood blade flying at her face. Throwing her head back, Anastasia just barely avoided the hurtling blood bladed, which passed centimeters away from her retreating chin, and flipped backward elegantly to land on both feet again.

    Gnashing his teeth in frustration, Xue Tu prepared to launch another attack, but his spell was interrupted by White Tiger. The enormous beast raked his claws against his back, or tried to, but the blood mage was quick to react, ducking under the lethal claws before spinning away to safety. He bought himself more time by throwing another row of blood lances at the advancing Celestial Guardian, forcing the latter to keep his distance.

    The guy was truly skilled. I couldn''t help but be impressed. Even when facing an ex-Assassin and one of my Celestial Guardians at the same time, he was still able to hold his own.

    But not for long.

    "UGH! I can''t believe a Divine Spirit Realm practitioner like me is being suppressed by a couple of Spirit Rotation Realm brats!" Xue Tu bellowed in rage.

    I actually stopped in the middle of battle to stare at him in utter astonishment.

    "¡­huh? What realm? Did he just say practitioner? What the fuck is he talking about?"

    "No idea," Anastasia said with a shake of her head, looking equally bewildered.

    "He''s gone nuts," one of the Silver Wolves mercenary muttered. The rest of his comrades murmured in agreement and nodded. All of them held blank stares, while a couple exchanged weird glances.

    "That lunatic sounds like he''s fantasizing about some cultivation novel or something," one of those who had weird glances said.

    "Oh, God¡­" I groaned as I buried my face in my palm. "I hate that fucking word. Please, stop using those terms ''cultivation,''''realms'' or ''practitioner.'' I''m begging you."

    Xue Tu must have heard me, for him suddenly rounded on me, his face contorted in fury. To my incredible surprise, he began jabbing his finger in my direction and ranting wildly, spittle flying out of his frothing mouth.

    "MU CHEN! You son of a bitch! I''m going to kill you! I swear I''ll kill you!"

    "WHO THE HELL IS MU CHEN!?" I bellowed back, a vein popping in my temple. "You''ve got the wrong guy! My name is Richard! I''m the protagonist of Summoner Sovereign, not The Great Ruler! Get your facts right!"

    "I don''t care! Since you''re the protagonist, I must harbor an inexplicable and illogical hatred against you!"

    "What the fuck?! Why?! At least come up with a legitimate reason, or this is just lazy writing!"

    "B¡­because¡­" Xue Tu stammered, and then straightened up. "How dare you breathe in front of me?! You''re courting death! I''m going to kill you in broad daylight!"

    "¡­"

    "¡­ahem. Kneel!"

    "Excuse me?"

    "How dare you still stand in front of me?! Die!"

    "Come on, dude." I was clutching at my head. "You''ve got to come up with something better than that."

    "How dare you not kiss my feet?! I''ll have you crippled!"

    "Fuck you. Seriously, can you think of a more realistic reason? Do arrogant young masters actually go around demanding that everyone they meet kiss their feet!? Stop exaggerating!"

    "Um¡­how about this? How dare you not allow me to rob and murder you?! I''ll still kill you anyway!"

    "This is getting nowhere," Anastasia said with a sigh. She was still holding her daggers tightly, but curiously enough she had made no move to attack the raving Xue Tu. "Are the two of you done with your Manzai comedy act? Can we resume fighting?"

    "That''s it!" Xue Tu snapped his fingers, his expression brightening when he glanced at Anastasia. He then jabbed a finger at me. "How dare you steal my woman from me!? I love her more than you do! I won''t allow you to take her from me! I''ll kill you!"

    "Excuse me? Who the hell is your woman?" Anastasia demanded furiously. "I''ve never met you before in my entire life. How the fuck would you fall for me, you disgusting creep?!"

    "But I''m the leader and young master of the Blood Slaughter Sect, I deserve to get everything I want by virtue of existing!"

    "WHO THE HELL CARES?!" Anastasia shrieked before she threw a poisoned dagger at him, and Xue Tu slapped it away with a blood appendage. "You can be the fucking crown prince of the Amazerian Empire for all I care, and I''ll still kill you, you bloody man-whore!"

    "You have a point there¡­" Xue Tu glanced warily at the poisoned knife he had just swatted away. Then he suddenly had an epiphany. "Oh, I know! You''re the one who stole Lilith Porter from me! I''m so in love with Lilith¡­she''s my woman! She''s mine! Yet you seduced her and took her away from me!"

    "Richard, is this true?" For some reason, despite the sweet smile on Anastasia''s pretty face, her voice sounded very dangerous.

    "Of course not!" I snapped, more from fear than outrage. It was never a good idea to upset a girl who was an ex-Assassin specializing in killing with poisons. Even if I was immune to poisons, she could still figure out several dozen ways to kill me.

    "It doesn''t matter if it''s the truth or not!" Xue Tu hollered. "As long as it''s a legitimate reason for me to kill that bastard for being a protagonist, I couldn''t care less if it was entirely fabricated!"

    Anastasia no longer bothered to listen to his nonsense, and she lunged forward to slash at him, but Xue Tu defended with his blood barrier. At the same time, White Tiger pounced on him, slashing a path through his hastily conjured blood shield and nearly tearing his spine in half. Xue Tu dropped to the ground and rolled away, desperately flinging blood spears to keep the rampaging Celestial Guardian at bay.

    Panting, he got to his feet, blood mingling with sweat as he swayed unsteadily.

    It wouldn''t be long before he fell now. Even so, I briefly wondered why he even bothered to show up at all. He must have known that he wouldn''t be able to break through the Silver Wolves'' defenses and defeat all the mercenaries just by himself. Okay, he had a horde of Bog Ghouls to assist him, but they were pathetic Minion-class rank F monsters that couldn''t even stand up to a breeze spell from an amateur wind mage.

    A disturbing thought struck me. What if this guy was a diversion, and the enemy''s true objective was something else?

    "Eagle, this is Astra. Status on Genius?"

    Genius was the call-sign for Professor Porter. Brent picked up my call and responded immediately.

    "Genius is fine. Nothing untoward in the site. They''re still excavating the tomb." He must have realized the urgency in my voice, for he swiftly added a second later. "West, South and East patrols see no sign of any other enemies. Only the North has been attacked so far. But we''ll keep an eye out for any trouble."

    "Yeah. It''s strange that we have a single human enemy carrying out what seems like a suicide attack on our lines¡­" There was something about this whole situation that bothered me, but I still couldn''t place my finger on it. "We''re cleaning up what''s left of the enemy, but we''ll continue to stay alert here as well."

    "Excellent."

    Before Brent could sign off, however, Xue Tu bellowed.

    "I WANT TO SEE HENRY PORTER!"

    "Whoa!" All the soldiers grimaced and clamped their hands over their ears at the shrill cry. Even I wasn''t immune, wincing and staggering from what seemed to be a sonic assault. Damn, but that fucker almost caused me to be death.

    "Who was that?!"

    To my surprise, Principal Porter''s voice hissed from the other side of my com bead, extremely faint but just barely audible.

    "No, it''s nothing, Professor¡­" Brent was saying, but Porter overruled him.

    "Someone wishes to see me?"

    "Just some trespasser trying to¡­"

    "Oho. Interesting. Mind if I take a look?"

    "No! Professor, it''ll be too dangerous¡­"

    "That''s why I hired you. You''ll be escorting me and keeping me safe, right?"

    I didn''t hear the rest of the dialogue because Brent shut the receiver from his end. Glancing at the swamp, I watched as the last of the Bog Ghouls were hunted down and slaughtered by the mercenaries. Surprisingly enough, we hadn''t sustained any injuries. Thanks to their disciplined volleys of fire, the soldiers succeeded in dropping all of the Bog Ghouls before they reached within a hundred meters of the barrier.

    The Silver Wolves mercenaries really deserved their legendary reputation of being among the best. I couldn''t help but be thoroughly impressed. Now, with his troops of summoned Minions annihilated, Xue Tu was completely alone.

    Despite realizing that his plan had failed and the odds were stacked against him, Xue Tu didn''t give up. He deflected Anastasia''s daggers with a couple of blood blades and pulled back. Conjuring a new armory of blood weapons, he readied for one last-ditch attempt.

    Before he could launch his spells, however, a strong voice resounded firmly across the tomb.

    "Stop!"

    All of us turned and caught sight of Professor Porter ambling to view, his stature strong and imposing as ever.

 291 Chapter 291: Marriage Troubles

    Xue Tu immediately lowered his head and cupped his hands respectfully.

    "Grandfather-in-law," he greeted the professor humbly.

    "I''m not your grandfather-in-law, you imbecile!" Professor Porter roared angrily. "Lilith has no interest in you at all! How many times must she tell you that, you stalking son of a bitch!? And I''m sure both my son and I had warned you that if you stalk little Lilith again, we''ll smash your face in!"

    "Well, that¡­" Xue Tu swallowed and looked around. Abruptly, he blinked and frowned. "Where''s Lilith?"

    "Why should I tell you?" Professor Porter snarled. "Get lost from here!"

    "Not until I get to see Lilith!"

    "Lilith isn''t here. And even if she is, she doesn''t want to see you." Professor Porter''s lips thinned. "She''s sick and tired of you stalking her. You even heard her tell you that directly so many times. Face it. She doesn''t like you. Stop bothering her!"

    "Lies!" Xue Tu shouted. "Lilith and I love each other! There''s no way she''ll hate me! I know! You and her father are forcing her to keep me away because you don''t want her to marry me! I''ll show you! Our love will prevail!"

    Porter buried his wrinkled face into his palm and sighed wearily. I understood how he felt. Even I was beginning to get irritated at Xue Tu''s delusional insistence that Lilith was in love with him. Normally, I would give him the benefit of the doubt and personally ask Lilith if that was true, but I knew Professor Porter and Uncle Glen well enough to be confident that they wouldn''t interfere in Lilith''s love life. Plus the guy was seriously unhinged, and his attempt to tear apart the barrier with a horde of Bog Ghouls wasn''t helping him argue his case.

    As if he had read my mind, Xue Tu turned on me, his eyes wild and his expression frantic. He was practically frothing at the mouth as he jabbed his finger at me.

    "It''s you! It''s your fault that Lilith no longer loves me as she once did! You stole my woman away from me! I''ll kill you!"

    "Lilith never loved you in the first place, you delusional freak!" Principal Porter shouted in exasperation. "And Richard has nothing to do with this! He isn''t even that close to my granddaughter! Don''t drag uninvolved people into this mess!"

    "Lies!" Xue Tu howled. Yup, I knew it. Everything was just this guy''s one-sided delusion. He refused to listen to reason and insisted in believing whatever distorted imagination his warped mind conjured up. "There''s no other reason why she would hate me! It must be because she found another man!"

    "Assuming you''re right, why are you thinking that I''m somehow that guy?" I asked dryly, unsure if I should feel sorry for this nutcase. He really ought to be locked up in a padded cell so that he wouldn''t harm anybody. At the very least he needed psychiatric help and some counseling.

    "B¡­because you are the protagonist! It is inevitable! In all web novels about a main male character, all the beautiful female characters must inevitably fall in love with him and be added to his harem! It''s an ironclad rule for all web novels! And me being the antagonist, I must find some excuse to attack you! Like how in every cultivation or xianxia novel, the arrogant young master or antagonist will contrive a poorly made up excuse to provoke the protagonist into beating him up! Whether it''s calling him trash for no reason and bullying him so that the protagonist has a chance to slap their faces, or getting all jealous over the harem of girls fawning over the protagonist and trying to steal one of his heroines so that the main character will be justified in kicking his sorry ass!"

    I scowled. "Look, even if you want to break the fourth wall, you can''t be so blatant or people won''t find it funny."

    "Fu fu fu¡­" Behind me, Anastasia was giggling in a terrifying manner, and her eyes had gone all dark for some reason. "Rest assured, Richard will never have a harem. I will guarantee that. I will never allow that kind of bullshit to exist¡­even if I have to personally dirty my hands and eliminate each and every one of my potential love rivals¡­ahem, I mean, even if I have to find a way to help Richard keep his distance from other women."

    Why was she fiddling with her poisonous daggers in such a frightening manner while giggling ominously? And why was I feeling some preternatural chill running down my spine, in addition to an inexplicably growing worry for Lilith and the other girls I occasionally hung out with?

    Damn it, did I get myself involved with a yandere? I mean, she was an ex-Assassin, but still¡­

    "What is this, some kind of romantic comedy?" one of the Silver Wolves mercenaries demanded, partially perturbed and partially irritated.

    "I don''t know. Seems like Miss Anastasia is a yandere. Will we see a boat scene at the end of this story?"

    Hell, no! I would prefer my head still stuck to my neck and shoulders, and not being hugged by Anastasia as she sailed away to the far ends of the ocean.

    "I was just joking, of course." Anastasia put her daggers away. "I have left behind all the killing when I quit being an Assassin and turned my back on the guild."

    "Uh¡­" One of the soldiers tried not to gulp. "Miss Anastasia, you haven''t actually left behind all the killing, you know? That''s still one of our main jobs as a mercenary."

    "Huh¡­you''re probably right. Oh well, a serpent never changes its scales."

    "Actually, they do. Snakes molt and shed their old skin."

    "You know what I mean! I mean a leopard never changes its spots! I chose serpents because they are poisonous and I specialize in using toxins!"

    "Ahem¡­" one of the soldiers ¨C probably a sergeant, given his chevrons ¨C cleared his throat. "So what do we do now?"

    The Bog Ghouls had been exterminated, and all the soldiers awaited with their rifles pointed at Xue Tu. White Tiger and Leo were on standby, prowling the area as they eyed the blood mage cautiously. Only Principal Porter''s presence kept them from opening fire.

    Anastasia turned to Principal Porter. "Principal Porter, do you mind if we apprehend this fella? He poses a threat to the security of the site¡­"

    The old man took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose with a sigh. Shaking his head, he grimaced. "I don''t want to resort to something as drastic as killing him, but I''m not sure capturing him would be a good idea either. He''s a very dangerous man, and I honestly don''t want him anywhere inside the tomb."

    That was a good point. The bugger was capable of summoning Bog Ghouls in the swamp. Being inside a tomb would strengthen his abilities further, like how a water mage would be several times stronger when fighting on water such as atop a lake, sea or ocean, or a fire mage''s flaming spells would be amplified by the power of a volcano. Or a wind mage''s spells would be enhanced when there was a hurricane or storm. Needless to say, a lightning mage''s magic would be boosted by electricity from a power plant, and a wood mage would have an overwhelming advantage inside a forest.

    Terrain and environment had a significant impact on a mage''s abilities and strength. That was why nobody bothered with the bullshit that was power levels or realms or ranks. Even the monster rankings were done according to size and the kind of impact they would have when attacking humans, but it didn''t mean rank B monsters were inferior or always lost to rank A monsters. Like earlier, a swarm of rank F Spirit Devouring Bees could probably eat a rank B or C monster within seconds, leaving nothing but bones behind.

    In any event, a tomb would essentially become home ground for a necromancer capable of summoning Bog Ghouls. Maybe we might actually see some zombies! Who knows?

    "Anyway, little Lilith isn''t here. She''s in Vermillion City. So quit bothering us and go away." Principal Porter folded his arms and glared at Xue Tu before flicking his head in a "shoo! Go away!" movement.

    The fuck? Was he seriously sacrificing his granddaughter just so this creepy stalker wouldn''t bother his excavation of a tomb?

    However, Xue Tu hesitated. He then began to voice his protest.

    "B¡­but if I leave now, then how is Richard going to justify fighting and killing me?!"

    "Why the fuck would you want to get killed by me?!" I yelled, perplexed. "Just leave! Get out of here! Quit bothering us!"

    "Then¡­the fight scene¡­"

    "WHO CARES ABOUT SOME RANDOM FIGHT SCENE WITH SOME RANDOM CHARACTER WHO APPEARED OUT OF NOWHERE?!"

    "But I''m not some random character who appeared out of nowhere!" Xue Tu produced a messy holographic screen and began waving it at us. "See, I''m inside the author''s notes. He conceived of me to serve as some sort of love rival when he began planning for your meeting with Lilith."

    "What love rival?! There were never any plans to make her a love interest to begin with!" I was burying my face in my palm so hard I could feel my glasses pressing painfully into my skin.

    "That''s true," Xue Tu admitted grudgingly. "But he wanted to do a rip-off of a villain from The Great Ruler. Considering that Lilith is pretty much the counterpart of Luo Li from there, and there was that entire weirdly written and contrived arc about me being in love with her and chasing after her in the anime adaptation even though that never happened in the original novel or the web comic version. Just to introduce drama and give Mu Chen an excuse to fight and kill me¡­"

    His chest exploded in a shower of blood and he pitched backward, gargling. I lowered my smoking rifle and shook my head.

    "Sorry. I couldn''t control myself. He was pissing me off too much." I glanced at the fizzling barrier and the heap of dead Bog Ghouls outside. "But it''s justified, right? He threw an entire horde of monsters at us."

    "I have no complaints," Principal Porter confessed, recovering from his shock. "I honestly prefer to settle this without violence, but what has been done is done. There''s no use crying over it. Moreover, if I may be honest, I''m relieved that he''s gone. He has been bothering and stalking my dear granddaughter for far too long."

    "I would have shot him myself if you hadn''t," another of the Silver Wolves mercenaries mumbled. "He was getting annoying."

    Not as annoying as me, I bet, but¡­

    "Ku ku ku¡­now you''ve done it."

    Xue Tu was rising to his feet. I watched, stunned, as the cauterized wound on his chest began to mend and heal. In seconds, there was no sign of the fatal injury at all. Instead, blood began flowing around him and turning into countless appendages, making him resemble some creepy crimson arachnid of gigantic proportions.

    "Open fire!" Anastasia shouted, and the mercenaries complied immediately, blasting Xue Tu with a volley of ruby las-fire. Several of the appendages snaked forward and morphed, transforming into a shield that absorbed the deadly mana projectiles.

    "Sir, you should get back inside the barrier," one of the soldiers told Principal Porter. He was among those assigned by Brent to safely escort the old guy here. Principal Porter didn''t argue, and he and his entourage hastily returned through the barrier and ran toward the inner sections of the tomb, presumably to seek shelter. As they did so, the soldiers continued to provide cover fire, peppering the enormous blood stuff that Xue Tu had conjured with shots.

    "Oh no, you don''t! You''re not getting away from me until you agree to let your granddaughter marry me, Grandfather-in-law!"

    "Dream on!" Principal Porter retorted. "And I already told you not to call me that!"

    Xue Tu let out a disturbing peal of hysterical laughter. Using several of the blood appendages as giant legs, he bent them before propelling him upward in a jump. Clearing the entire distance in a single bound, he pounced on the fleeing Principal Porter. The clan head''s escorts spun around and fired ineffectually with their magic rifles, but the mana bullets dissipated harmlessly against Xue Tu''s defense.

    He never reached Principal Porter.

    "!!"

    White lightning seared through the air in the space between them, forcing Xue Tu to alter his trajectory and veer away. While he landed, a brilliant pillar of golden light struck him. Leo''s Regulus disintegrated a good section of his blood appendages and left parts of his body smoldering.

    "You¡­!"

    Xue Tu turned to snarl at me. I was approaching him, my Constellation spirits in tow. Folding my arms, I glowered at him.

    "If you want to grab Principal Porter, you''ll have to get through me first."

    "With pleasure!" Xue Tu began laughing crazily again. A blood-red miasma began to shroud the entire area.

    "!!!"

    The ground was rumbling. I realized that Xue Tu, in his jump earlier, had torn through the barrier and was now inside the tomb. All around me, desiccated and rotting hands burst out of the soil as zombies began to dig their way out of the ground.

    Cold perspiration dripped down my face and back, even as I smiled grimly. Shaking my head, I sighed.

    "Looks like you''ll be getting the fight scene that you wanted after all."

 292 Chapter 292: Blood Slaughter Sec

    "Don''t get in my way!" Xue Tu hollered furiously.

    "Huh? I thought you wanted a fight scene?" I asked, genuinely confused by his sudden change of attitude.

    "Shut up! I''m going to marry my beloved Lilith, no matter what! Get them, zombies!"

    With a furious cry, Xue Tu lunged at Principal Porter again. I tried to intervene, but a horde of zombies clumsily but firmly shambled to put themselves between me and their master.

    Bloody hell¡­thanks to the zombies being very weak, Xue Tu could summon them fairly easily ¨C he only required a very short casting time, especially since these poor zombies were literally cannon fodder.

    However, they were still enough to delay me for a few seconds. And a few seconds were all he needed to close the gap on Principal Porter.

    "Damn it! White Tiger! Leo! Leo Minor!"

    In contrast to the pitiful zombies, my Constellation spirits were far stronger, and they demolished the entire line in almost an instant. However, the sheer number of zombies appeared to weigh them down, even as they incinerated or fried them with spells and lightning. I also found my path barred by a group of zombies that had broken off from their comrades to harass me.

    Taking a deep breath, I cut through them by summoning Gemini ¨C that was the only spell I could summon in one second. I didn''t have time to summon a flying Constellation spirit to soar above the horde of zombies. I could draw Hei Yue and Bai Ri to help me, but I decided to rely on the speed and mobility that the lighter Gemini twin swords afforded me for now.

    Fortunately, I could afford to not worry because Anastasia was here. Even as I was bogged down by hordes of zombies, I could trust my partner to pick up the slack. Vaulting over the zombies, she landed on the head of one of them, and then propelled herself off the poor thing to intercept the bounding Xue Tu. Seeing her poisoned daggers flash toward his throat, his eyes widened and he arced his head back to avoid a fatal strike.

    That was the problem with fighting a poison user. Be too careless, let your guard down, and sustaining even a single attack could potentially prove to be fatal.

    "Great!"

    I realized that Anastasia was our best bet for eliminating a high-priority target such as Xue Tu. The moment she took him out, all these annoying zombies would be gone along with him. So the best thing I could do for now was keep the zombies off her back.

    The other Silver Wolves mercenaries appeared to have the same idea, for they were crouching down and laying a line of suppressing fire. Their shots were pretty accurate. Even with me and my Constellation spirits being in the line of fire, none of them hit any of us by accident, their precise shots taking out selected zombies with terrifying ease.

    "Get lost!" Xue Tu shrieked as he bombarded Anastasia with a series of blood blades, weapons and projectiles. Almost as if she was waltzing, Anastasia whirled and spun around to avoid getting impaled. With the melodic grace of a dancer, she weaved through the wildly stabbing appendages while simultaneously deflecting them with her daggers. Appendages recoiled, writhed and died as poison spread across them, only to amputate themselves ruthlessly to prevent the corruption from spreading to other parts of the main body.

    Swearing, Xue Tu hopped back while throwing another blood lance at the advancing Anastasia. She twisted her body to avoid the deadly projectile before hurling a poisoned knife in return, the lethal blade sinking itself deeply into a hastily conjured blood shield before it could cut the panicking blood mage''s skin.

    "That was close!" he muttered, paling considerably. He tossed his knife and broke the poisoned shield before the toxins could spread into his body. While retreating, he sent another volley of blood spears that would have impaled Anastasia, but she destroyed them with a swing of her daggers, sending crimson fragments falling through the air like bloody rain.

    I cut down the last of the zombies, and with the mercenaries helping me out, I could direct both White Tiger and Leo toward more fruitful endeavors. The two huge Constellation spirits split up before attacking the half-distracted Xue Tu from each flank. Gritting his teeth, he threw out both hands in opposite directions and sent countless spikes erupting from the ground like lava. Both White Tiger and Leo twisted in midair to dodge the volley of cruel lances, and landed a relatively safe distance away.

    Growling, White Tiger unleashed a storm of lightning upon the fence of blood that had now grown around Xue Tu. He was panting at trying to consecutively cast so many spells at a high speed. Fortunately, the spells he was casting were relatively basic, so he didn''t need a long casting time unlike my more complex summoning spells. Similarly, his zombies were weak, but in exchange they gave up lots of casting time to gain the ability to be summoned quickly.

    Even so, the simple spells were crudely effective. I watched as the devastating lightning splashed against the fence and shattered them. Despite their instant demise, they had served their purpose in shielding Xue Tu for that specific moment when it mattered.

    "Tsk¡­"

    I clicked my tongue, especially since I keenly exploited that logic the most. Basic, elementary spells, which I often made use of (or my Constellation spirits made use of) were very simple to master and cast, and didn''t require a lot of time to cast, but they could be very powerful as long as you pump a lot of mana into them. Conversely, they were not as efficient as intermediate or advanced spells, which often used like half the amount of mana to produce the same effect or firepower, but in exchange for requiring perhaps twice the amount of casting time (for example). But brute force remained a surprisingly effective method or strategy.

    It also meant that you wouldn''t necessarily lose just because you only learned basic spells and your opponent mastered advanced spells. As I said, that whole level or ranking thing was bullshit. Advanced spells gave you a massive advantage, but you still had to cast them. Fortunately, this meant that basic spells would never be obsolete. If I were to give an analogy, it would be like Magic: The Gathering. Essentially, one-mana or two-mana or cheap spells, though simple, would never be obsolete and could be surprisingly effective in overwhelming your opponent through speed. The more expensive spells, such as those that cost seven or eight mana, could be devastating and deal the finishing blow to your reeling opponent, or change the tide of the game when employed correctly, but if you opponent could overwhelm you with cheap, fast spells before you placed down your fifth land (or ramp up to having seven or eight mana), then you would still lose the game, no matter how many rare and powerful cards you had in your deck. Similarly, control decks could often frustrate opponents with cheap denial spells, such as fog cards preventing combat damage, counter spells preventing stuff from going off, or perhaps a two mana spell granting you protection from a specific color for a single turn. Not enough to win the game, but enough to keep you alive until you accumulated enough mana to cast your big game changers or pull off a combo.

    That was just a simplified version, though, and battles were a lot more complex than that. Nonetheless, I was sure that readers weren''t here for a massive info dump.

    Even so, because of our constant pressure, the poor guy couldn''t pull off his advanced spells. Thanks to my support, Anastasia was able to go on the offensive and push Xue Tu into the defensive. Coordinating with her wordlessly, I had White Tiger and Leo launch their spells at the beleaguered Xue Tu. Lightning bolts and Regulus hurtled toward him, smashing apart his bloody defenses and almost engulfed him.

    Almost.

    "!!!"

    To my surprise, the spells were dispelled by a new volley of blood lances.

    "Incoming!"

    "Take cover!"

    The Silver Wolves mercenaries were yelling behind me. Spinning around, I saw a second bombardment of blood lances arcing over the night sky and crashing down upon the ranks of scattering soldiers.

    They never hit them.

    Water sprouted out and formed a shell over them, absorbing the blows of the blood lances and causing them to diffuse harmlessly. Lowering my raised hand, I nodded to my recently summoned Black Tortoise and directed him to crawl toward the regrouping mercenaries.

    "Reinforcements?"

    Anastasia too was forced to draw back, along with White Tiger and Leo, when a salvo of blood weapons were thrown at them. I cast a small water barrier over Anastasia to help her out, and she skidded backward under my protection.

    All of us turned toward outside the barrier. A new group had finally shown up, a bunch of weirdly dressed guys with blazing red eyes similar to Xue Tu''s.

    "That''s got to be one hell of a fashion statement," I remarked, staring at their black tunics that wouldn''t look out of place in an ancient China setting, yet was evidently not something normal people wore even back then. And what was with the bandages wrapped all around their faces, necks and hands? Were they trying to be mummies or something?

    "Elder Liu!" Xue Tu brightened up. "You''ve finally arrived!"

    The leading figure scowled, a man who looked to be about in his late forties or fifties, what with the wrinkles and long, flowing grayish hair. He set his piercing eyes on the errant blood mage, his frown deepening.

    "Xue Tu, I know you''re currently the sect leader, but you shouldn''t recklessly run off on your own. Remember your position! Just because you''re the new head doesn''t mean you can do anything you like!"

    I watched the new group cautiously, several thoughts running through my mind. This must be the Blood Slaughter Sect or whatever edgy name they called themselves. Swallowing, I steeled myself and sent silent telepathic directions to my Constellation spirits in case this would erupt into another battle.

    "Don''t tell me you''re here to help Xue Tu threaten Principal Henry Porter into marrying his granddaughter to him."

    "Huh?" Liu turned to me, his mouth hanging open. Then he blinked, glanced at Xue Tu, and burst out laughing. "Of course not! I apologize for the nonsense our sect leader is spouting. Even though we''ve known of his stalker behavior and obsession with the Holy Maiden of the Porter Clan for so long, we have been lax in disciplining and reining him in."

    I felt some relief creeping over me. Perhaps these guys weren''t here to fight, after all. That made sense. It would be nonsensical if the elder of the Blood Slaughter Sect would spout bullshit like, "how dare your granddaughter refuse such a great honor and not realize how good it is to be recognized and loved by our young master? If you refuse to accept his request, then we''ll destroy your entire clan!" Like, seriously, do you go commit genocide and exterminate an entire family just because their granddaughter refused to marry your young master? No matter how rich and powerful a sect was, it would be extremely stupid to flippantly waste so much resources, money, and manpower in squabbling over something as petty or trivial as the arrogant young master''s whim.

    "Well, then take him away please." Anastasia sighed, probably also relieved. "He''s interfering in our expedition."

    "About that¡­" Liu stroked his neatly trimmed beard. "Sorry about that, but I think you''re misunderstanding something. We''re not here to take him away."

    Immediately I felt some sort of chill. Linked to me spiritually and telepathically, all of my Constellation spirits, including the pride of Leo Minor that had wiped out the zombies, tensed instinctively. The sheer bloodlust that emanated from the Blood Slaughter Sect elder was setting all of us on edge.

    "We''re here for the tomb." Liu''s smile widened. "I apologize, but I hope you won''t resist. I promise that we will make your deaths as painless as possible."

 293 Chapter 293: Blood Feud

    "Incoming!"

    Soldiers scattered as a rain of bloody projectiles fell upon them explosively. The Silver Wolves mercenaries attempted to retaliate with a volley of mana bolts, but the blood mages of the Blood Slaughter Sect neutralized them with blood shields and other crimson techniques.

    "Fall back! We can''t hold!"

    "We need reinforcements!"

    "They are coming!"

    While the mercenary lines collapsed under the bloody onslaught, Anastasia and I stood alone as we tried to hold the line.

    "Hah!"

    Laughing wildly, Xue Tu lunged at Anastasia, who was attempting to evade and defend against Liu''s barrage of blood lances, but fortunately I was on hand to intercept him. Unfortunately, I had to do it alone, for my Constellation spirits were fending off the disciples of the Blood Slaughter for now, to prevent the Silver Wolves'' retreat from turning into a complete rout.

    "Don''t overestimate yourself!" Xue Tu sneered as he slashed at me with a huge blood blade. I shattered it with a swing of Bai Ri, and then unleashed a black wave of stellar energy from Hei Yue. Xue Tu was knocked back by the blast despite conjuring a blood shield to protect himself.

    Staggering, he glared at me before hurling another couple of blood lances. I obliterated them with a couple of swings and closed in on him, forcing the bugger to withdraw.

    "You''re always getting in my way!" Xue Tu howled. "First, you took my woman, and now you''re trying to halt the objective of my sect!"

    "Only the second accusation is true!" I hollered back, scything through a layer of blood blades to get to him. "I never touched or took your woman! Actually, Lilith isn''t even your woman to begin with! She''s not an object or the possession of anyone! Stop treating her like that! No wonder she rejected you!"

    "You don''t know anything!"

    Yeah? After listening to you rave and rant, and enduring your stupid attacks, I was more than confident that I could guess why exactly he got rejected flat out by Lilith. If I were her, I would certainly stay far away from him as possible.

    "!!!"

    An agonized bellow drew my attention back to my Constellation spirits. White Tiger and Leo were being knocked aside by a berserk goliath who nearly reached five meters in height. For some reason he was wearing very little, with his armor exposing most of his bulging muscles. His bronze skin was layered with blood-red symbols, most likely some kind of enchantment? An iron mask concealed a fifth of his face, only cover the bridge of his nose and spreading from ear to ear. Otherwise his glazed eyes and leering grin were clearly visible.

    "Heh¡­Elder Liu decided to unleash Spartacus, huh? You''re all dead!"

    Laughing hysterically, Xue Tu renewed his attacks and drove me back. Gritting my teeth, I had Black Tortoise lumber forward to form a water barrier, but the Bloody Berserker smashed through it. Fortunately, the defenses delayed him long enough for White Tiger and Leo to launch a counterattack. The Bloody Berserker didn''t dodge even as their devastating spells ripped through his body, nearly cleaving him in half and leaving scorched skin.

    For a moment, Spartacus listed, dropping to his knees. Even with his head and half of his torso split off from the other half, he was still grinning. Then I saw the threads of blood thicken further and pull the two broken halves of his torso back together. Worse, his muscles began bubbling, and he appeared to grow bigger than before.

    "What the hell!?"

    "Our Blood Slaughter Sect''s unique blood techniques allow us to create a warrior who is near immortal!" Xue Tu crowed triumphantly. "You mercenaries are all doomed!"

    I noted his use the word "near". So, even with such incredible regenerative abilities, the Blood Slaughter Sect warriors were not immortal. Not yet. They had yet to reach that level.

    So there was a way to kill that Bloody Berserker. It was just that it would be incredibly difficult. Even more so when I had to fight off Xue Tu and his approaching comrades at the same time. I might be forced to use the nuclear option, but that would end up destroying the dig site and killing the people I was supposed to be protecting.

    "Ugh¡­"

    Anastasia stumbled back as a volley of blood spears from Liu finally managed to catch her. She warded them off with her daggers, just barely, to avoid a fatal hit to her vitals. However, while she was retreating, another Blood Slaughter Sect warrior tried to stab her in the back. Anastasia spun around to parry the blood blade but the female blood mage kicked her.

    "Kuh!"

    Even though Anastasia succeeded in raising her arm just in time to soften the blow, she was still sent skidding across the ground. The blood mage pressed on, her lithe figure lunging through the air before she unleashed another bombardment upon Anastasia. While the former Assassin sliced through her enemy''s attacks, Liu prepared to impale her with another set of blood lances.

    "!!!"

    Ferocious flames exploded across the ground, forcing Liu back. A red-haired mercenary landed between Anastasia and Liu, twirling his spear and launching another torrent of fire at the retreating Liu, who was forced to conjure a row of blood barriers to protect himself. The red fluids immediately boiled into crimson steam, but they still managed to prevent the worst of the flames from reaching the elder.

    "Mr. Redfield!"

    "Sorry for taking so long, Ana." Redfield thrust his spear at Liu, who conjured a blood spear of his own to deflect the flaming weapon away. "But reinforcements are here."

    I saw another company of mercenaries arriving to support the retreat, and the withdrawal immediately turned into a counterattack. Suddenly faced with a fresh contingent of soldiers and severely outnumbered, the momentum of thee Blood Slaughter Sect''s charge faltered, and then halted entirely.

    Spartacus roared and batted White Tiger away before barreling almost clumsily toward the newly arrived mercenaries. Before he could close the gap, however, someone landed in front of him.

    "I won''t let you come any closer," Brent declared.

    The Bloody Berserker couldn''t care less and roared wordlessly, his seemingly lobotomized mind filled with nothing but violence and murder. He only saw a prey in front of him, a target that he should crush. Clasping both hands, he took a massive swing at the smaller, but still gigantic, mercenary captain.

    Brent calmly raised a hand and stopped Spartacus''s swing. The ground beneath his feet shattered and tremors rippled out along with massive shockwaves as an unstoppable force slammed into an immovable object, and knocked over mercenaries and blood mages alike.

    When the collision finally came to a conclusion, it appeared that the latter had prevailed. Spartacus was perspiring profusely, snarling in incomprehension as he struggled to shift the annoying obstacle in front of him. However, Brent refused to budge even a centimeter, and he raised his other hand to punch the goliath.

    I could actually feel the thunder of a sonic boom vibrating throughout my body before I saw Spartacus get blown back over a hundred meters from the single punch alone.

    "Holy fuck¡­" I breathed, almost unable to believe the incredible sight. So size didn''t matter, after all.

    "Hmph." Xue Tu was completely unimpressed. "It''ll take more than that to put Spartacus down."

    His words proved prophetic. No sooner than Spartacus had crashed was he immediately back up on his feet again. It was as if the goliath couldn''t feel pain. Instead, he was laughing manically, his tongue lolling about and spittle flying from his maw.

    "Kill! Kill!"

    "Damn it¡­" Liu groaned in irritation as he glanced at the monster he had unleashed upon our lines. "The bastard has gone into a blood frenzy again. It''s going to be difficult to sedate him after this."

    "You sure you have the luxury of worrying about your subordinates?" Redfield yelled as he thrust his spear at the elder, who spun his own blood spear to deflect it away from his chest. Flames ignited and boiled part of the lance away into red steam, but Liu merely restored it with more blood from goodness knows where.

    "Do you honestly think you mercenaries can beat our Blood Slaughter Sect?"

    "That should be our line," Brent responded steely, and then snorted. He stood his ground as Spartacus charged at him again, and stopped his punch. This time, he actually grimaced from the impact and the ground ruptured into a crater. A frown creased his brow. "This guy¡­he has actually gotten a bit stronger?"

    "And he''ll only get stronger and stronger from here on out!" Xue Tu taunted gleefully, his voice dripping with scorn. He dodged under a swing from Bai Ri and then parried Hei Yue with a blood blade.

    "And we''re doomed," I finished for him as I rolled my eyes. Xue Tu glanced at me, shocked, but I didn''t give him a chance to speak. "Yeah, yeah. I know what you''re going to say."

    "Shut up, you imbecile!"

    Xue Tu tried to knock me away with a barrage of blood lances, but I blew them apart with a swing of my swords.

    "You guys¡­what do you know about this tomb?"

    To everyone''s surprise, Principal Porter had emerged once more. I thought he had retreated safely to seek shelter in a more¡­covered area, but he had decided to show himself despite the protests of the mercenaries Brent assigned to guard him. His gray eyes were fixed on Liu, who smiled despite himself (and despite defending against an onslaught from an enraged Redfield).

    "You say you want the tomb. Why? What''s inside it? What do you know?"

    I see. So his curiosity and thirst for knowledge had cause him to abandon all caution and seek information. Principal Porter had a good point. There must be some sort of reason why the Blood Slaughter Sect was willing to assault one of the most reputable and skilled mercenary to claim the tomb.

    "Some sort of treasure, I''m guessing?" Principal Porter frowned. "It must be really precious if you''re willing to risk declaring war on the Silver Wolves just to get your hands on it."

    "We have no reason to tell you. Not when all of you will be dead within the hour."

    Liu''s voice was cold and malicious.

    "We''ll see who will be the ones dead by the hour!" Redfield growled as he swung his flaming spear, forcing the venerable elder to retreat after his hastily improvised blood spear was snapped cleanly in half.

    "Fools!" Xue Tu sneered. "All of you are already dead! You just haven''t realized it yet!"

    "Yeah, I mean, because corpses can continue to move around, talk and fight as long as they don''t know they they''re supposed to be dead, right?" I asked, each of my words dripping venomously with sarcasm.

    "Shut up!"

    Oh wow. Resorting to silencing your opponent just because you got outsmarted and couldn''t win a verbal duel. Very mature.

    Xue Tu bit his hand and then flung his blood onto the ground. He grinned as he finally completed the advanced spell that he had been trying to cast this entire time. To my complete lack of surprise, the pool of blood glowed before expanding and growing, taking on a human shape. Within seconds, it transformed into a gargantuan figure about the same size as Spartacus. Unlike the Bloody Berserker, however, this new¡­thing didn''t have any features. It was vaguely humanoid, but its blocky arms and legs had no fingers or toes. The spheroid at the top of its body that passed off for what seemed to be its head totally lacked a face.

    Having learned summoning magic as part of my specialization in Jing Tian Academy, I immediately recognized the new monster.

    "A golem," I murmured with a nod. "A Blood Golem, if I''m not mistaken."

    "Hah! So you know what this is!" Xue Tu crowed. "Then you know that you can''t beat me!"

    ¡­huh? How did he come to that conclusion? Where was the link between being able to identify his magic and realizing the futility of defeat? Did this guy suffer a blow to his head or something? Maybe Anastasia managed to deliver a concussion to him when I wasn''t looking. None of his words were making any sense.

    Shaking my head, I sighed and raised one hand, Hei Yue raised high into the air. Black Tortoise, White Tiger, Leo and Leo Minor were still around, and they were gathering around me, but I decided to show off a little and summon just one more guy.

    "Green Dragon," I called out. "I''ll be counting on you."

    In a flash, an emerald dragon materialized behind me with a thunderous roar, its twenty-meter long body uncoiling amidst a storm of vibrantly colored petals.

 294 Chapter 294: Blood Apocrypha

    "Looks like I won''t be able to defeat you if I don''t get serious."

    Elder Liu was musing to himself as he drew a real lance. Not the blood spear that he had been conjuring this entire time, but an actual spear made of metal. He twirled it to fend off Redfield''s thrust, and unlike his blood spears, this weapon didn''t disintegrate or boil away from the sheer heat of the red-haired mercenary''s flames.

    "There won''t be any difference in the outcome," Redfield declared confidently as he swung his spear. Liu parried it, and despite his advanced age, he held his ground firmly against the younger man. While the two of them were locked in combat, a couple of poisoned throwing knives streaked through the air, silver tinted with purplish venom.

    Anastasia had thrown them at Liu while he was currently distracted by her comrade.

    However¡­

    "!!!"

    A couple of blood spikes erupted from the ground and formed a barrier. The poisoned knives embedded themselves deeply in the blood structures, the red turning a toxic violet. Liu allowed them to crumble away, not even turning to look at his second assailant as he focused on warding off Redfield''s relentless attacks.

    "Tch."

    Anastasia clicked her tongue irritably, but she continued to weave through the battlefield. It wasn''t just Liu, but the entire Blood Slaughter Sect had unleashed blood lances and spikes throughout the area, attempting to impale the fiercely resisting silver Wolves mercenaries. Fortunately, none of the mercenaries had died yet.

    Brent was proud of his comrades, of his disciplined and well-trained subordinates. However, he knew that the reason why they hadn''t sustained any significant casualties yet was because the officers were holding off the big guns. Brent himself was keeping Spartacus at bay, denying the Bloody Berserker any victims.

    "Ha ha ha ha ha!" Spartacus roared in laughter as he pummeled Brent, but the mercenary captain absorbed his blows well. Guarding against the barrage of earthshaking punches, he held his ground firmly despite the earth splintering underneath his feet. "Puny man, why aren''t you fighting back?!"

    Was the guy blind? Brent was in no way puny. Okay, he might be small compared to Spartacus, but he certainly wasn''t tiny at all. Especially since he was much larger than the rest of the warriors fighting throughout the tomb. Then again, Spartacus was insane, so whatever.

    "You really want me to fight back?" Brent''s lip curled, and he hammered Spartacus in the midriff. The bloody berserker doubled over and dropped to his knees, only for Brent to smash his own knee into the guy''s face, breaking the metal quarter-mask and driving the shards deeper into the berserker''s flesh. Blood spurted as the goliath toppled over.

    For only a few seconds. His hand twitched and he jolted back upright with a guffaw, reaching out to crush Brent in a murderous embrace.

    Fortunately, the mercenary captain had reflexively dodged that by withdrawing to a safe distance. He whirled around and kicked the goliath in the face, sending Brent hurtling backward.

    Even then, Brent knew that the Bloody Berserker wouldn''t go down from that sort of attack. Not with such terrifying regenerative abilities. Taking a deep breath, he bounded after the cartwheeling Spartacus, determined to finish him off before he could fully recover.

    While he did so, Anastasia and Redfield continued to double-team Liu. Anastasia weaved through the field of erupting blood spikes, gracefully evading them. she twisted and turned, making it hard for stray Blood Slaughter Sect disciples to land a direct hit, and replied with poison knives that instantly took down more than a few. Hopping elegantly over a particularly long and powerful blood lance that surged out from under her feet, she spun in midair ¨C almost as if in slow motion ¨C and flung a couple of poisoned daggers at Liu just as he was parrying a strike from Redfield.

    "Can''t let my guard down for even one second, huh?"

    The elder sighed as another couple of blood stakes burst from the ground to intercept the knives for him. Twirling his spear, he managed to knock Redfield back, but the younger man was darting through the forest of blood spikes and making use of his superior speed to confound him. Switching his trajectory abruptly, he came from the flank, hoping to take Liu by surprise. As he anticipated, Liu turned to block the blow, but it turned out to be a feint. If Redfield could just strike from a direction that Liu didn''t expect¡­

    Unfortunately for him, the old man was a seasoned veteran who had been through countless battles. He recognized a feint when he saw one.

    Almost as if he possessed precognitive powers, Liu flipped his spear up and over and deflected Redfield''s lance without even looking at his opponent. Redfield gritted his teeth and turned to brute force, hoping that his youth would provide him the edge in a contest of strength.

    However, Liu had him beat in guile and cunning.

    "!!!"

    Redfield reversed his steps in reflex, and not a moment too soon. Dozens of blood spikes erupted and pierced through the space where he would have been occupying if he had gone through with his charge. With an enraged bellow, he shattered the barrage of blood spikes and tore through the obstacle to get to his opponent.

    At the same time, Anastasia hurled another couple of poisoned knives that almost disappeared in the jungle of blood blades.

    Reacting almost on instinct, Liu stepped to the side and landed a blow on the charging Redfield, who managed to twist just in time to parry the deadly spear. At the same time, another thicket of blood lances shot upward to swat the almost invisible knives away from their target.

    "Huff¡­"

    Panting, Redfield staggered backward, swinging his spear. Liu effortlessly blocked it, and then sent another barrage of blood spikes to impale the red-haired mercenary. Fortunately, the fire mage wisely backed off and retreated. Nimbly landing on the ground, he began jumping and evading a series of erupting crimson spikes that were hell-bent on impaling him.

    "Kuh!"

    Grounding his teeth so hard they almost cracked, Redfield darted through the growing foliage of red, and was forced to widen the distance between himself and the target. One of the spikes burst from right under him, however, taking him completely by surprise. The mercenary hastily brought his flaming spear down to intercept it before it could pierce through his chest and rupture his heart. The sheer impact from the assault actually flung him high up into the air. Sparks continued to rain downward as the blood lance screeched against his spear.

    "Impressive. To think you managed to block that."

    "You talk too much!" Redfield grunted, winded from the effort of just barely hanging onto his life. Before he could incinerate the offending blood spike, however, a bunch of blood appendages whipped out and attempted to pierce him. Gathering his mana into his body, Redfield maximized his physical reinforcement spell and hardened his Ba Qi aura.

    That quick thinking saved him from being punctured into a human pincushion, but he now found himself completely trapped and immobilized by hundreds of blood appendages that were coiling around his limbs and holding him firm.

    "I see. Armament Ba Qi is really quite the amazing technique. It''s extremely versatile and can be used for both absolute defense and devastating attacks."

    Liu almost seemed like he was soaring in the air, but in reality he was riding upon a snaking tendril of expanding blood. Holding his spear in both hands, he readied for a lethal thrust.

    "But even that absolute defense can be pierced once I get close¡­"

    With a roar, Redfield activated his fire spell, almost turning his body into a supernova. A colossal fireball ignited and incinerated the forest of blood appendages that had ensnared him, the tremendous shockwaves forcing Liu back and sending him skidding across the ground. Embers drifting around him in an almost spectacular display, Redfield slowly descended to the ground, his spear blazing.

    "¡­I see." Liu nodded, immensely impressed by what he saw. "It appears that you''re no ordinary mercenary. The Silver Wolves deserve their reputation indeed. I had always thought that Feng Hai alone was the main pillar of your guild, but I guess it is only natural that a prodigy would draw similar talents to him."

    "Hmph." Redfield narrowed his eyes, which burned almost like twin suns. "So do you surrender?"

    Liu threw his head back and laughed. "I would never!" he then straightened his head and studied Redfield. "Those fire spells¡­that spear¡­that Armament Ba Qi¡­I wonder how long you''ll be able to last, expending such vast quantities of mana. Perhaps you are the one who should surrender. I promise I''ll deliver a painless death."

    "It seems like it''s useless to talk." Redfield leveled his spear, the immolated tip pointed straight at Liu''s chest. "We''ll decide this in battle."

    "Fine by me!"

    The two of them charged at each other, the collision of their spears igniting yet another colossal conflagration that engulfed the better part of the dig site and send massive shockwaves buffeting the other combatants.

    "Kuh¡­" Anastasia shielded herself for an instant, and she narrowed her eyes, unable to see past the blinding inferno that now consumed part of the barrier. "Those guys are really going at it. I''ve to find an opportunity¡­"

    She then ducked her head as a blood blade sailed through the space where her neck had been. Without looking, she reflexively threw her poisoned knife at the source, and the Blood Slaughter Sect disciple went down with a strangled gurgle. Not bothering to pay attention to those she deemed as small fries, Anastasia navigated her way toward her comrade.

    "!!!"

    She never made it.

    A volley of blood arrows landed upon her previous position, forcing her to vault backward. Cartwheeling in midair, Anastasia threw out her hand to propel herself backward. Skidding for a few meters, she glanced up and saw another barrage of blood arrows rising high up before arcing to crash down upon her.

    "Little tricks," she muttered disdainfully. Spinning her daggers, she slashed the air in front of her and almost appeared to open up a tear in space-time. Of course, it wasn''t anything so fancy. Anastasia was simply leaving a stream of venom that drifted before her. Infusing it with mana, she turned it into an acidic barrier.

    Within seconds, the corrosive fluids appeared to solidify, yet somehow maintain the appearance of viscosity.

    "Acid Armor."

    The hail of arrows slammed into Anastasia''s Acid Armor and dissolved instantly with a hiss. Acrid fumes billowed outward, momentarily obscuring the former Assassin from view.

    Her assailant paused for a moment, looking around warily. She refused to lower her bow and instead summoned another blood arrow, notching it and aiming it into the center of the thick vapors. Taking a deep breath, she waited for her target to show up.

    "!!!"

    Sensing movement behind her, she dove to the ground and rolled. A poisoned knife struck the dirt next to her face, and she just managed to get to her feet when a flash of silver hinted with purple venom snaked toward her neck. Lowering her bow, the blood mage quickly conjured a short sword of her own to parry the dagger before it could cut into her flesh.

    "I should have known it''s you again," Anastasia murmured with a scowl. She was irritated that she couldn''t take the warrior out instantly. Perhaps her assassination skills had gotten rusty. If so, she had to intensify her training.

    On the other hand, she felt as if this was a good thing¡­that she was really leaving her past and the career of murder behind¡­

    "You''re not worthy to fight Elder Liu," the Blood Slaughter Sect warrior spat as she slashed at Anastasia, who effortlessly deflected the blood blade. "I''ll be your opponent."

    "Fair enough." Anastasia replied with a shrug. She would have thrown another quip, but she was still a former Assassin. The attitude of staying silent and wasting as little words as possible was still deeply ingrained within her. As long as her target was still alive, she was going to focus every bit of attention into eliminating her instead of getting distracted with taunts and thus discarding the element of surprise by giving her position away.

    While the two ladies dueled, I was brought back to the present when the gargantuan fist of Xue Tu''s Blood Golem pulverized the rock where I stood a millisecond ago. Thousands of razor-sharp petals danced and drifted freely, slicing into its thick hide, and Green Dragon swatted the hulking monstrosity back with his tail. Even so, the cuts and wounds regenerated almost instantly, the smooth surface of the Blood Golem seeming to bubble and expand before mending itself.

    "Where do you think you''re looking at?" Xue Tu snarled. I shrugged.

    "That''s the problem with being a first-person narrator. It''s so hard to keep track of everything all at once. And if I pay attention to another fight scene that doesn''t involve me so that I can account it to my readers, my opponents complain that I''m not taking them seriously."

    "Oh, shut up!"

    Xue Tu wasn''t impressed by my ability to break the fourth wall. He intensified his attacks, his Blood Golem lumbering after me again.

    "I''ll crush you! And then Lilith will be mine!"

    I sighed. "Dude, you do realize that Lilith will never be yours regardless of whether you get rid of me or not?"

    "Oh, just shut it! Can''t you play along and behave like the typical protagonist for once? You know, start shouting about how you''ll never hand Lilith over to me, and then arrogantly beat me up before warning me to never get near any of your heroines again? Just so you can monopolize all the beautiful girls in your harem?"

    "I hate harems, and I will never have a harem." I tried not to roll my eyes. "And this is reality. In what reality would so many beautiful girls fall in love with a single, plain-looking, ordinary guy, and just decide to share him among themselves? Seriously? Besides, Anastasia will eliminate any girl who so much as looks in my direction."

    "Whatever! I''m going to kill you in broad daylight!"

    "What?! Why? I already told you that I have nothing to do with Lilith. She isn''t attracted to me at all."

    "I don''t care about logic!" Xue Tu directed his Blood Golem to obliterate me with a punch, but the immensely powerful yet slow and clumsy familiar completely missed. I bolted away from the crater that its huge fist left. While I was running, Xue Tu''s lip curled. "Okay, cheap shot!"

    That also missed. I managed to hop upward and tuck my knees to my chest, spinning above the Blood Golem''s arm. Even as the immense fist left another crater in the earth, I landed in front of a stunned Xue Tu.

    "Kneel, knave!" I sneered as I whirled around and kicked my assailant. At the same time, Green Dragon pulverized the Blood Golem, one of his claws gripping the poor familiar''s head and stomping it into the ground.

    "NOES!" Xue Tu hollered.

    There was some sort of applause. I looked up and gaped as a slightly older Blood Slaughter Sect disciple strolled up to our position, clapping his hands.

    "Okay, apologize to Sect Leader Xue Tu."

    My jaw dropped at his audacity. "Dafuq? No way in hell."

    "YOU BASTARD!" the newcomer roared. "I''m going to kill you for not giving me face!"

    "¡­okay." I sighed and shook my head. This was going to be a long day.

 295 Chapter 295: Lancer of Red and Lancer of Black

    Needless to say, the newcomer ended up getting pulverized by Leo, his face buried in the dirt and his body partially disintegrated by Regulus. I wasn''t even going to bother commenting on how he was supposed to be yet another "genius" who had more talent than Xue Tu, and listen to his entire dossier that included detailed information about his sect, his past, his power level, his specialization, his magic, the girl he was in love with, his rivals (which included how he was jealous over certain rivals because of how much closer they were to the girl he was in love with than he was), his family, his friends, and maybe even their damned dog.

    Why should I? All that mattered is that I won. And then this poor bastard ceased to matter anymore. The same went for Xue Tu, which made me wonder why he even bothered to introduce his name in the first place. He was just another nameless antagonist who would fade away into obscurity after getting defeated, because readers would complain about him being an annoying cockroach, condemn me for not finishing him once and for all so that he could keep coming back, or something similar if he decided to show up again.

    Hell, there was even an entire thread in the forums asking for "ruthless" main characters and complaining about "spineless" protagonists who avoided killing as much as possible. Some of the readers commenting on the forums were so disturbing that I was bleeding just from reading the edge in their words.

    "Fucker!" Xue Tu howled when he saw how his senior, hyped up to be even more of a genius than he was, still got utterly destroyed in one move by the protagonist, just like in every cultivation story ever. "How is this possible?!"

    "Well¡­let''s get this straight." I scratched my head before ramming my knee into his face, breaking his nose and causing blood to spew out. "If he''s more talented than you, and more of a genius, and has higher power levels, than why the hell are you the sect leader and not him?"

    "Uh¡­that''s¡­well¡­I don''t know¡­"

    Xue Tu looked away sheepishly even as he clutched his broken nose. Then he flared up, launching a volley of blood spikes at me.

    "Who cares about that?! Just die, you fucker!"

    With a sigh, I obliterated the crimson bombardment with Hei Yue and Bai Ri, scything through them. a few of them managed to scrape my flesh, leaving cuts and scrapes on my cheek and arms before I shattered them into blood fragments, but other than minor injuries I escaped relatively unscathed. Ignoring the stinging pain, I advanced closer, unleashing another twin waves of destructive mana that blasted through Xue Tu''s hastily conjured shield.

    "Why aren''t you using Limitless Seal of Death?!" Xue Tu demanded as he flipped backward, avoiding getting hurt by a direct hit from my spells.

    "Because I''m not Mu Chen and this is not The Great Ruler!" I yelled, irritated. "Get that through your thick skull already!"

    "Why should I?" Xue Tu sneered as he infused his Blood Golem with more of his mana. The huge hulk slowly forced Green Dragon''s claws off its head and staggered to its feet. "Your dear author just watched all 12 episodes of The Great Ruler anime recently and he decided to copy¡­I mean make fun of it! Especially with how the director randomly decided to turn an originally insignificant character into a love rival out of nowhere!"

    Could I just kill the bastard already? I was aware that he was very powerful and I couldn''t easily kill him, but at least I managed to get a stomp on him earlier. Never mind, I was going to continue attacking.

    "Hydra."

    Nine serpentine heads burst out of the ground as the legendary creature of Greek mythology emerged, hissing ferociously. Turning around, Xue Tu paled considerably. Even as his Blood Golem launched itself at my newly arrived Constellation spirit, Hydra smacked it aside and sent it flying across the site of the tomb.

    "Huff¡­" Panting, Xue Tu continued to wipe the blood off his face even as his broken nose healed and realigned itself. He glared at me. "Don''t think you have won yet!"

    "I don''t. Unlike most people, I don''t underestimate my foes."

    "Good for you!" Xue Tu cackled hysterically. "My army of blood, answer my call! Eradicate all the foes before me!"

    "!!!"

    Watching a red mist billow outward and expand around Xue Tu, I instinctively jumped back while simultaneously directing my Constellation spirits to retreat. There was something not right about that ominous blood mist. Perhaps it had corrosive properties ¨C toxic was one thing, because I was immune to poisons, but I wasn''t resistant to being burned by acids.

    "Too bad¡­I managed to succeed in surviving long enough to complete my ultimate spell!"

    Xue Tu crowed as he stepped out from the unfurling mist. Within the red-blood veil, I saw humongous shapes rearing up and coalescing, all feeding off from the blood mist that now settled over the area.

    Each of them was immense, looking like little hills and almost nine meters high. Behind me, my Constellation spirits bristled and readied themselves. White Tiger growled, Green Dragon snarled, Black Tortoise stood firm, Leo and his pride of Leo Minor roared, while the nine heads of Hydra hissed incessantly. Even my non-sentient Constellation spirits were able to intuitively recognize a massive threat.

    Oh, by the way, if you were wondering what the majority of them had been doing this entire time, they had been busily wiping out the dredges of the Blood Slaughter Sect, assisting the normal mercenaries in fighting them off. However, having understood that I might now be facing the battle of my life, I had recalled them back to aid me.

    Especially since I needed numbers now.

    "It took me a while, but it''s entirely worth it!" Xue Tu was still shouting happily. "You will all fall before the might of my Blood Army!"

    Blood-red giants stomped out of the swirling mist, their featureless hulks splintering trees and flattening boulders as they advanced inexorably. There had to be dozens, if not over a hundred of them. Somehow I was reminded of the Titans of old, gathering under a single banner to lay ruin to the realms of men before the first gods slew most of them and imprisoned the rest of them in Tartarus. There mere sight of such goliaths marching through the forest was imposing, and I felt a chill as I craned my neck to look up at them.

    "This isn''t good," I murmured.

    The gigantic army of Blood Golems charged forward soundlessly, the only noise they made the thunder of their earthshaking footsteps.

    *

    A few more blood lances struck the earth, embedding themselves deeply into broken soil. Huffing, Redfield hopped a few steps backward, doing his best to avoid the stake-like projectiles, almost literally flying through the now crowded field of red.

    The few blood spears that did succeed in hitting him merely dissipated harmlessly against the Armament Ba Qi that he wreathed around him. Weaving through the relentless bombardment of blood, Redfield streaked through the site and swung his flaming spear at Liu.

    The elder dispassionately parried his strike with his spear, while several blood spikes erupted from the ground to impale Redfield. The mercenary dodged them, not wanting his Armament Ba Qi to slowly accumulate damage. If he left the attacks to continue assaulting his Ba Qi unchecked, it would reach the point where it would shatter eventually.

    Vaulting away, Redfield twisted his body in midair before lashing out with his blazing spear. Embers illuminated Liu''s wizened face and dispelled the shadows that night cast upon his aged figure for a moment before the elder thrust his spear upward. Redfield twirled his spear to block not just the real spear but also the countless blood spikes that had burst out of the ground and now mercilessly thrust toward him to impale his body.

    The two figures danced amidst the battlefield of blood and leaves, flashes of red and orange colliding to punctuate the darkness with flashes of flames. Spinning around with a fervor of a man half his age, Liu easily parried the constant slashes and strikes from Redfield. The two of them traded over hundreds of blows, each of their exchanges obliterating the stakes of blood that now stood as monuments to their furious duel. Trees fell, razed by the sheer shockwaves from their exchanges, their leaves and twigs fluttering upward as if caught in the embrace of a tornado.

    Liu parried Redfield''s strike, and sent another volley of blood spikes to impale him, but the red-haired mercenary wisely evaded and darted away. The elder stood very still, his experienced eyes scanning the battlefield, and he raised his spear, unruffled, to block a blow from Redfield that came from what appeared to be his blind spot. While he did so, Spartacus lumbered forward to pulverize the preoccupied Redfield from behind.

    Boom!

    Both Liu and Redfield split apart and dove in opposite directions to avoid getting crushed by the Bloody Berserker''s enlarged fist.

    "He''s attacking his own ally?!" Redfield murmured, shocked. He then twisted around to cut apart a storm of blood lances blowing toward him, and leaped forward to engage the far more dangerous Liu in close combat. The two of them swung their spears at each other, trading another couple of blows that shattered the blood stakes and splintered the trees around them.

    "Why are you surprised?" Liu asked, amused. "Spartacus has lost his sanity. He is driven by the Red Thirst and forever imprisoned by his Black Rage. He can''t distinguish between friend and foe. His only directive is to rampage until everything around him is destroyed. Once his job is done, I will sedate him and transport him to the next battlefield, but otherwise he will spend every waking moment in a murderous haze."

    "You¡­!" Redfield growled, but Liu laughed.

    "That is what it means to be a warrior of the Blood Slaughter Sect. Every now and then, we will have a practitioner who will succumb to the Red Thirst and become a near-immortal berserker. The price for such power is one''s sanity, but it is a price that we are willing to pay."

    Guffawing in manic glee, Spartacus raised both his arms high up his head to smash the positions of the two combatants. Redfield tensed, getting ready to evade, but Liu didn''t make it easy for him. Instead, the elder grinned after he successfully lured Redfield into a trap.

    Blood spikes suddenly appeared in a circle to imprison Redfield. At first, the red-haired mercenary tried to evade, only to realize that those thick spikes weren''t aimed at him. He then realized Liu''s motive.

    He was trying to limit his movements and trap him inside a blood prison!

    Cackling triumphantly, Liu dove away just as Spartacus smashed the blood prison into bits. Despite his best attempts to defend himself by maximizing his physical reinforcement spell and Armament Ba Qi, Redfield was hurled off his feet, blood dripping down his face. He hit the ground and rolled in an ungainly manner, finally coming to a stop against rubble.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    Heaving, Redfield tried to get up, but he wouldn''t be able to rise in time to evade Spartacus. The goliath had arrived above him, and was stomping toward him to crush him into a bloody pulp before he could roll away. Even when he maximized his physical reinforcement spell, Redfield was aware that he wouldn''t be able to escape tremendous damage¡­

    "?!"

    The Bloody Berserker''s foot never reached him. Instead, it was stopped by Brent, who had used his own foot to block Spartacus''s leg from descending upon the prone Redfield.

    "¡­tsk."

    Brent sounded annoyed, looking at Redfield.

    "Defeated even before you could show the results of your training. I know you were caught by surprise and double-teamed by two powerful foes, but even so¡­what a pitiful Lieutenant."

    "You could be a lot nicer about it!" Redfield complained angrily, but Brent merely scoffed. Redfield saw red. "Besides, this whole situation is your fault to begin with! Isn''t it your job to hold back that monster?!"

    Said monster was slowly turning around to leer at Brent.

    "So you''ve come to help? I was so sure I swatted you several kilometers away that last time. How did you get back here so fast?"

    "You thought you could swat me so far away?" Brent scoffed as he met the Bloody Berserker''s gaze evenly. "Don''t flatter yourself, fool. You overestimate your own strength."

    "Wonderful!" Spartacus burst out laughing. "That''s so wonderful! I was so bored and disappointed that you couldn''t provide more of a challenge. I''m so glad you weren''t so easily slain by a few of my attacks!"

    "¡­stop laughing and start killing, Spartacus." Liu stepped forward, his voice low and dangerous. "You''re wasting too much time. We have to get to the inner chamber of the tomb as quickly as possible."

    "Don''t worry." Stomping forward and carving a small crater into the earth, Brent drew his staff. "I didn''t come here to fuck around."

    Mana began swirling around his staff and it melted away, transforming into something fluid that flowed over his hands.

    "Bankai."

    ¡­did he just rip off Bleach? Seriously?

    "Tie Quan Duan Feng!"

    The once fluid staff solidified into a silver armor that curled across the top part of his body, winding around his shoulders and coiling around his arms. His hands were now gloved in menacing gauntlets that had gleaming blades fused into their knuckles.

    Spartacus leered at him.

    "I guess I have no choice!"

    Leaping up, the Bloody Berserker kicked Brent with all of his might, sending the mercenary captain skidding through the site in a trail of destruction.

    "Hmph." Liu made to move after the sliding duo, presumably to support Spartacus, but a burst of flames forced him to jump back.

    "Where do you think you''re going?" Redfield growled as he shakily rose to his feet, his spear ignited once more. "Your opponent is me."

    "I see." A vicious, bloodthirsty aura of demonic red appeared to coalesce around the elder of the Blood Slaughter Sect. His spear glowed ominously as torrents of blood swirled around it, in response to Redfield''s blazing spear. All around the old man, blood stakes began erupting uncontrollably. "If you really want to die that badly, I will gladly indulge you."

 296 Chapter 296: Rages at the Ringside

    The two figures skidded across the tomb site, inadvertently wrecking ancient monuments that had existed for almost a millennium. At some point, they finally came to a stop.

    "!"

    Spartacus''s eyes widened when he realized that the momentum of his powerful kick had finally been spent, but his opponent had not fallen.

    "What''s this?" the mercenary captain growled, enraged, even after he had stopped the Bloody Berserker''s rampage with a parry of his armored arm. "Unforgivable!"

    Veins were popping out of his temple as Brent bellowed in rage.

    "Did Redfield get defeated by this!? What an idiot!"

    The blades on his knuckles whirred with a metallic screech, almost as if it was turning into a chainsaw. Without any hesitation, Brent threw a right hook into Spartacus''s gut, lifting the hulking goliath off the ground and sending him flying several meters away with a grunt.

    The entire area around the two immediately leveled out, turning into a crater even as debris fell from crumbling monuments around them. Such was the power from Brent''s blow that everything within ten meters were demolished from the merciless shockwaves that erupted from his hook.

    "Ugh?!"

    Even the Bloody Berserker, supposedly unable to feel pain and doped to insanity, felt that powerful punch. Blood spilled out of his mouth and he lay sprawled across the ground where he was thrown to, doubling over and clutching his midriff pitifully.

    "AAAAAAAAH!"

    "Impossible!"

    Several of the surviving Blood Slaughter Sect disciples were turning around, having felt the impact from that colossal blow. Their jaws were dropping when they saw the trump card of their sect falling over.

    "How did the Bloody Berserker fall to just one blow from the opponent!?"

    "Isn''t he unable to feel pain!?"

    "What''s going on?!"

    Strolling over, Brent hauled Spartacus up with his armored fists.

    "You felt that, didn''t you?" he snarled. "My staff is a Divine Device that allows me to amplify my wind spells, allowing me to explode whatever I hit with my staff. Its Bankai¡­I mean, Divine Ascension, transfers all that power to my fists."

    He cocked his right gauntlet back to prepare for another attack.

    "That explosive power will continue to hit you endlessly as long as my fist remains in contact with you."

    Brent then delivered another crunching punch into Spartacus''s gut and detonated him with volatile mana. Even as another colossal crater opened up beneath his feet, the mercenary captain continued to pummel the dude endlessly, blowing him up from within.

    "GWOOOH!" Spartacus roared, barely conscious. Not that it was any different from his usual mental state, but¡­

    "I''ll blow you away!" Brent roared.

    With a single shift of his armored hand, he sent the massive goliath flying through the tomb site, and watched as the smoking giant vanish in a minor explosion when he crashed through one of the dilapidated towers that ringed the tomb.

    "I hope he stays down from that," the mercenary captain muttered, craning his neck to stare high up at the place where he blew Spartacus into.

    The Bloody Berserker was lying motionlessly amidst a pile of rubble, fumes billowing from his broken and battered body. His midriff was sporting a huge hole, blood spreading rapidly across his front before spilling over and pooling underneath his sprawled figure.

    "I should go back Redfield up now," Brent murmured as he slowly turned away. "His opponent might lack the brute strength of this muscle-head, but he''s more troublesome because of his guile and cunning."

    However, he froze when Spartacus landed right behind him. He turned around, cold perspiration dripping down his face.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me¡­"

    The Bloody Berserker''s figure had transformed somewhat, the hole in his midriff bubbling incessantly and regenerating. No, it wasn''t just regenerating, it was growing, the cells multiplying rapidly to heal and evolve. Even though Spartacus originally towered over him, Brent couldn''t shake off the impression that the goliath was now bigger than before.

    Spartacus''s counterattack swept Brent off his feet, but fortunately the mercenary captain was able to parry the powerful blow. Grunting, he hurtled through the air for almost a hundred meters before he flipped his body and skidded to a stop. Dropping onto the ground, he straightened up and shook his trembling arms.

    "What a powerful blow¡­"

    He looked up at the mutating and growing Spartacus, who was laughing manically as he advanced forward. Forcing the shaking to a stop, he grimly raised his arms and took a deep breath.

    "Looks like this is going to be one hell of a battle¡­"

    In response, the now monstrous Spartacus howled in laughter, his form no longer human. just like William Birkin from Biohazard 2 (or Resident Evil 2 for those playing the American version), a single gigantic eye blinked in what used to be his right shoulder, and his right arm had elongated and grown into a heavily muscled limb with three long claws. A new hound-like head had sprouted out of his left, mutating shoulder, its slavering jaws snapping ravenously.

    With a gleeful bark, the new monstrous form of Spartacus barreled forward, leaving craters in his wake as he pounced on the dismayed Brent.

    *

    On the other side of the tomb, Redfield and Liu continued to clash, their spears colliding amidst a shower of sparks. The two of them exchanged several more blows before splitting apart. His age was showing, and Liu found himself tiring as he staggered back after a particularly powerful blow from the red-haired mercenary.

    Hopping back, Liu threw out a hand when Redfield lunged at him.

    "!!!"

    Redfield skidded to a stop and forcibly altered his trajectory. Spinning around, he elegantly danced across the field, running and soaring as a trail of blood spikes pursued him, bursting out of the ground behind his fleeing figure in a desperate attempt to stake him. Redfield managed to flip himself up and above, landing atop one of the ancient towers while swinging his blazing spear to obliterate the rest of the pursuing blood spears.

    "Impressive." Liu watched the imposing figure of the flame mage, nodding in admiration. "You''re probably one of the few young men able to avoid my blood spears like that. No wonder you''re able to rise up to the rank of lieutenant in one of the most reputable mercenary guilds even at such a young age. Remarkable indeed."

    "And you¡­" Redfield regarded his opponent, his face scrunched up deep in thought. "With such skill and power, why are you not the leader of the Blood Slaughter Sect? Why have you handed over leadership to such a young boy who is clearly inexperienced and reckless? What exactly are you planning?"

    "Who knows?" A sly smile crept over the elder''s wrinkled face. "I have no obligation to tell you, except that I will remain loyal to the leader of my sect and offer my advice whenever necessary. Are you perhaps trying to see through my intentions? What use is that? Whatever happens to my sect is none of your business now, is it?"

    "You are right." Redfield nodded. "I was stupid for asking."

    He then lowered his spear, as if to pierce through Liu from a distance. Flames danced around its edge as he prepared to launch a torrent of hellfire at the Blood Slaughter Sect elder. If there was no point talking, then he shall finish this battle as soon as possible.

    However, Liu''s grin widened and he raised his empty left hand to snap his fingers.

    "!!!"

    Blood spikes erupted not from the ground, but from within Redfield''s own body. The red-haired mercenary fell to his knees, gurgling in blood as he clutched helplessly at his wounds. Blinking in disbelief, he stared at Liu in astonishment.

    "You gave me too much time," the old man explained idly, leaning on his spear. "I have already completed my ultimate spell. This whole space is now my territory. The blood within this space is all under my control" His smile grew ominously. "That includes the blood of all my opponents. It''s not a very big space, but it''s more than enough for the likes of you."

    "¡­I see," Redfield murmured, but Liu didn''t give him a chance to speak.

    With a snap of his fingers, he had even more spikes erupt from within the fire mage''s body, causing even more hemorrhaging and internal damage. Redfield gurgled and jolted violently a few times from the old man''s merciless attack, but he somehow managed to pull himself together and endure the attack. For the time being.

    "It''s a pity, though¡­that I can''t kill you with your own blood alone. My victims'' blood holds a lot more resistance than the blood of mine, and that of my allies. And you have also proved yourself to be infuriatingly tenacious, young man."

    "Hah! You have no idea!" Redfield coughed defiantly, but managed a mocking smile. "You won''t be able to kill me like this!"

    "Indeed. That''s why¡­I''m going to have to resort to a more¡­conventional method." Liu raised his hand and conjured a dense hail of blood spears that emerged from the ground. There were thousands, if not tens of thousands of them responding to his will. Obeying without question, the countless blood spears launched into the air before arcing downward to bombard the immobilized Redfield in a dense rain of blood. So thick and numerous were the blood spears that they temporarily blotted out the night sky in a carpet of crimson.

    Held aloft and immobilized by the blood stakes that now impaled his body from the inside out, Redfield muttered a single incantation.

    "Prometheus Unleashed."

    Flames erupted around his body and expanded into a colossal conflagration that consumed the entire row of blood stakes that had skewered and restrained his body, expanding exponentially toward the heavens. Even as the hail of countless blood spears rained down upon him, they were immediately incinerated by the growing flames that lit up the dark area like the sun.

    Even as glowing embers drifted down the battlefield, Redfield hovered in the air for a moment before descending, almost taking on the visage of a god of fire. Despite the wounds he had sustained earlier, he now appeared unscathed, the blood that caked his lips and the wounds on his limbs and torsos erased, almost as if they had been burned away by his divine fire.

    "You¡­" Liu growled as he watched the red-haired fire mage descend slowly, his imposing figure illuminated by wildly dancing embers. He shook his head in disbelief. "Even though I''ve seen so many things throughout my life, I find that I can still be taken by surprise sometimes. Impressive. Just like a phoenix, reborn, huh?"

    Redfield swung his spear and launched himself forward, slashing at Liu, who swore before parrying the flaming strike with his spear. Blood stakes and fire collided and exploded, but the two combatants continued to trade furious blows that blew scorched craters or left bloody remains across the ravaged battlefield.

    *

    Anastasia spun gracefully in the air, almost like a ballerina skating across ice, as she avoided the blood arrows being fired at her by her opponent.

    The female Blood Slaughter Sect disciple cursed under her breath, but she continued bombarding her opponent with more of her bloody projectiles. Several of the other disciples had joined her, pursuing the elusive ex-Assassin ¨C but to their cost. More than a few of them were corpses lying on the ground, their eyes wide open, their pallor purple and their mouths foaming. Victims of Anastasia''s poisons, they had succumbed in short order, paying for their attempts on her life with their own.

    "Stop dodging!" the female Blood Slaughter Sect disciple complained, even though inwardly she knew that Anastasia wouldn''t listen to her.

    Or at least that was what she thought, but the green-haired ex-Assassin whirled to a stop and sliced apart her blood arrows with her daggers.

    "Finally!"

    One of the Blood Slaughter Sect disciples ¨C a male, this time ¨C thought that this was a great opportunity and he lunged forward while forming a new blood sword in his hand. Gripping it in both hands, he swung at Anastasia, who calmly parried his blood blade with a single dagger. Her other hand flashed out in a silver blur, her second dagger slitting her opponent''s carotid artery.

    "!!"

    The Blood Slaughter Sect disciple collapsed in a bloody gurgle. There wasn''t even a need to wait for Anastasia''s poison to take effect. He was dead the moment she cut out his throat.

    "Stay back, you fools!" the female Blood Slaughter Sect disciple shouted with a shake of her head. "She specializes in close combat! Engaging her in melee is suicide! Stay back and launch ranged spells at her!"

    "Yes, ma''am!"

    The remaining Blood Slaughter Sect disciples fell into formation behind her and readied their blood arrows.

    "?!"

    One of them coughed and clutched at his throat before falling. Another wavered, foaming at the mouth, before he keeled over. More than a few were staggering back, grasping at their throats and gagging.

    "?!"

    The female Blood Slaughter Sect disciple realized something was amiss. Even she was finding it very difficult to breathe, and a burning sensation erupted at the back of her throat. Blood and tears clouded her vision as she stumbled, her hands flailing about.

    "How?!"

    That was when she noticed the thin, almost invisible green mist that had settled across the entire space. Realizing the toxic nature of the gas, she tried her best not to inhale it even though she knew it was too late.

    "When did she¡­?"

    "You gave me too much time." Anastasia was smiling wickedly. "This whole area is now my territory."

 297 Chapter 297: Oppressing the Oppressors

    "!!!"

    "Ha ha ha ha!"

    Spartacus was laughing raucously as he threw punch after punch at the evading Brent. The mercenary captain dodged the first barrage, but one of the flying fists suddenly sprouted a new arm that hurtled toward him in a hook. Brent was forced to parry that punch, which contained so much force that he was thrown several meters back despite defending against it with his armored gauntlets.

    Skidding across the ruined land, he dug his feet to halt his momentum. Glancing up at his grotesque opponent, he grimaced in disgust.

    "Monster."

    Right now the Bloody Berserker was no longer recognizable, his body now about fifteen minutes in height. He had sprouted a new head, and all three heads were howling in sadistic glee, while numerous arms grew out of the bubbling body. Brent cursed as he was forced to duck under yet another punch, and he countered with an attack of his own, his gauntlet blowing the limb apart in a shower of flesh and blood with sheer explosive force.

    "Ga ha ha ha ha!"

    However, Spartacus didn''t seem to care. The remains of his arm bubbled and a new limb regenerated, bigger and more muscular than before.

    "Is he converting damage into power? To regenerate and rebuild his broken body?" Brent scowled as he jumped back to avoid getting crushed by Spartacus''s wildly pummeling fists. "Even so, there has to be a limit to the amount of damage that he can sustain."

    Narrowing his eyes, he considered his chances. If his guess was wrong, he might end up creating an enemy that would become too strong for even someone of his vaunted reputation and capabilities to handle. However, if he was right¡­

    "¡­guess I don''t have a choice. I can''t let this battle continue on forever."

    Taking a deep breath, he reared his arm back and obliterated yet another cluster of arms from the mutating Spartacus, blowing another huge portion of his body to bits. The Bloody Berserker cried out, but laughed as he reached out with newly growing arms.

    "It''s useless! Useless, I tell you!"

    "Really?" Brent raised an eyebrow, a hint of a smile on his lips. He had detected an unsteady waver in his opponent''s mana, like that of a nuclear reactor just about to blow. Sure, Spartacus remained a dangerous enemy, his massive body harboring tremendous amounts of power, but he was just about to go critical.

    And when he did, everyone in the vicinity would die.

    By the way, Spartacus wasn''t his real name. Once, he had another name, one belonging to the man he formerly was before he was driven insane from mastering the blood techniques of the Blood Slaughter Sect.

    That man was forgotten now, lost to the ravages of time and erased from the records of the Federation. Liu and the former sect leader of Blood Slaughter Sect had taken him in, kept him sedated until whatever time came for them to set him loose upon their enemies. They had renamed him Spartacus because¡­well, to be frank, because Liu happened to watch Fate/Apocrypha and he noticed how similar the Bloody Berserker''s abilities were to a certain Servant''s Noble Phantasm. But we shall not elaborate on that further, for fear of plagiarism.

    In any case, Brent was forced into a dilemma. Yet he knew he had no choice ¨C to defeat his foe, he had to take risks and be willing to sacrifice just a little.

    Taking a deep breath, he drew his right arm back and began accumulating as much mana around the gleaming gauntlet as possible.

    "Ha ha ha! Resistance is futile! Just die!"

    Lumbering forward, Spartacus guffawed and threw his many arms at the stationary mercenary captain, whose face was tense in concentration.

    "Oh, God of the Wind, bestow upon me your strength and allow me to blow my enemies apart. This glory, I do in your name."

    Exhaling, Brent threw his right fist forward and unleashed a tremendous torrent of devastating mana that took the form of a terrifying tornado. The immense funnel of air surged forward and slammed into the advancing Spartacus, rupturing his mutating body and blowing a massive hole in him. The bellowing goliath vanished in an incandescent light of explosions, his hulking figure engulfed in a tempestuous maelstrom of destruction.

    "Our leader, Feng Hai, bears the fearsome title of Hurricane Blade. But I, one of his right-hand men, possesses the nickname, Hurricane Fist."

    Straightening himself and lowering his gauntleted arm, Brent smiled slightly as he watched the silhouette of his flailing foe through the devastating tempest.

    "Ha ha ha ha! Splendid! That was a splendid attack indeed!"

    Bursting out of the swirling storm, Spartacus chuckled thunderously, his form continuing to mutate and regenerate, restoring lost limbs and expanding further. However, Brent merely stared him down and shook his head in grim satisfaction.

    "Nope. This is as far as you go. You''ve finally reached your limit."

    "?!"

    Spartacus initially lunged at his much smaller opponent, heedless of his warning, but then part of his body glowed and blew apart into shreds. All around his shifting, writhing form, infernal lights glowed incessantly, almost as if superheated energies were melting his body from within. His legs giving out under him and melting away, the goliath tumbled helplessly onto the ground.

    "What is this?!"

    "You don''t realize that your own body is going into critical meltdown?" Brent sighed almost sadly. "What a pitiful man. To be used by your sect like a weapon without any regard for what your techniques might do to you¡­"

    "Who cares, as long as I can keep killing?!" Spartacus howled. Brent shook his head, disgust curling across his face.

    "Even until the very end, you only think of killing."

    "Shut up! Just die and become my food!" driven insane by the Red Thirst, Spartacus tried to lunge at the mercenary captain who had turned his back on him and was departing the scene. "You are my prey!"

    "You may not have realized it, but¡­" Brent didn''t even bother to glance back as he shook his head. "Omae wa mou shindeiru."

    Behind him, Spartacus''s enraged bellows transformed into agonized shrieks as his body swelled up beyond his limits and blew itself apart from the inside out, the raging tempest of crimson mana billowing outward in a vicious storm.

    *

    Raising his hand, Liu continued to rain an unceasing torrent of blood spears upon his opponent. Redfield evaded and dodged them, sometimes spinning around to deflect them, but he mostly escaped unscathed. One or two of the blood lances managed to pierce his cheek, causing blood to flow out, but he didn''t flinch.

    Instead, he skidded to a stop and incinerated the swathe of them with a burst of crimson fire.

    "Hmph."

    Unimpressed, Liu clenched his fist.

    "!!"

    This time, Redfield did have a reaction when blood spears stabbed through his foot, staking him to the ground and incapacitating his movements momentarily. Gritting his teeth, he tried to break them apart to free himself.

    "From above too," Liu crowed as he raised his spear. A hail of blood lances descended from the heavens, bombarding Redfield''s position.

    Flames ignited around Redfield''s spear as he smashed the blood spears impaling his foot, and then rolled away before he could be turned into a human pincushion. Heaving, he swung his spear to incinerate a swathe of blood lances that managed to twist in midair and alter their trajectory to home in on him, and then disappeared from Liu''s sight.

    Unperturbed, Liu calmly parried Redfield''s spear aside before his younger opponent vanished with a burst of speed and a graceful roll. Propelling himself to some distance behind Liu, Redfield unfurled his body and pointed his spear at Liu.

    Fireballs materialized in midair before launching themselves through Liu''s volley of blood lances, burning them apart in midair before streaking toward the elder, unimpeded.

    "Wall of Blood."

    Liu wasn''t without tricks of his own. A barrier of blood manifested itself before him, and while it was blown apart instantly by Redfield''s powerful fire spells, they prevented most of the flaming projectiles from ever reaching their wielder.

    One of the fireballs managed to make it through the conjured Wall of Blood, but Liu calmly cleaved it apart with his spear. While he was distracted by the errant fireball, Redfield appeared behind him, muttering an incantation.

    "Gift of Prometheus¡­"

    "Hmm¡­"

    Liu narrowed his eyes as he turned around, even as a new Wall of Blood grew from the earth. The flames washed over him, turning red blood into crimson steam, but Liu''s masterful defense allowed him to avoid the worst of the blast.

    "!!!"

    Suddenly, Liu tensed and turned his head toward another direction. A mushroom cloud was billowing upward, volatile crimson energies expanding uncontrollably in rampant fashion. He clicked his tongue.

    "¡­so Spartacus has perished, eh? That useless trash."

    "??"

    Redfield frowned, puzzled at Liu''s sudden change in demeanor. He was about to attack, but Liu spun around and leaped away in the other direction.

    "Where do you think you''re going?"

    "Away." Liu shrugged, almost indifferently. "Our trump card has been destroyed, and we are suffering unacceptable casualties. Continuing this fight would only guarantee the annihilation of my sect. We have no choice but to retreat."

    As he said that, he thrust his spear into the sky. A crimson burst of mana erupted from the tip and soared high up before blossoming into a blood-red flower. All around the site of the tomb, the surviving Blood Slaughter Sect disciples looked up and immediately recognized the brilliant display.

    "The signal for retreat!"

    "Fall back!"

    "Disengage!"

    The beleaguered Silver Wolves mercenaries watched, bewildered, as their erstwhile enemies suddenly withdrew and vanished back into the darkness. Truthfully, it wasn''t as if they wouldn''t be able to hold the line, but the zealous and fanatical behavior of the Blood Slaughter Sect disciples had put an immense amount of pressure upon the defenders, and they would be lying if they didn''t admit to be relieved at the sudden lift of the siege.

    "You''re running away now?" Redfield''s voice was scathing with scorn, but he made no move to pursue despite his frustration.

    "You''re welcome to pursue me," Liu taunted as he faded into the distance. "If you''re willing to leave the tomb site and your charges by themselves."

    Redfield clenched his fists, his right hand gripping the shaft of his spear tightly, but he didn''t budge an inch even as his fleeing opponent''s mocking laughter echoed around him.

    *

    "The signal for retreat?!"

    Xue Tu glanced up when he saw the blood flower, and he clicked his tongue angrily.

    "Like hell I''ll fall back now! Not until I kill you!"

    Despite his threat, right after one of his Blood Golems pulverized a single head of Hydra''s, three more heads grew in its place and obliterated the Blood Golem in return. The dwindling army of Blood Golems still fought mechanically and fiercely, but their numbers were slowly but surely being whittled down.

    If this turned into a battle of attrition, I would win. A few of my Leo Minor were gone, torn apart or crushed by the merciless fists of the Blood Golems, but my main Constellation spirits and Celestial Guardians remained in play, methodically destroying their blocky and gigantic opponents. It wouldn''t be long before we wiped them out.

    But I wasn''t going to wait that long.

    "Rigel."

    Having summoned Orion earlier to back my Constellation spirits up, I had finally completed the casting of one of its most powerful spells. My Constellation spirits immediately withdrew, most of the disappearing into wisps of mana and fading from reality.

    "Ho¡­so you have given up?"

    Xue Tu smirked at me. I didn''t answer verbally, and instead responded by unleashing my arrow. Not realizing my intent, Xue Tu ordered his remaining Blood Golems to advance upon my position. They obeyed silently, their crunching footsteps their only sounds as they lumbered toward me.

    Rigel struck the center of the marching army and detonated. Another mushroom cloud sprouted toward the atmosphere, engulfing the entire space and disintegrating everything within it while leaving a scorched crater.

    "What¡­what¡­what¡­?!"

    My opponent was gaping at me, unable to believe what he had just seen. His entire army of Blood Golems, annihilated in an instant¡­there was no way that was possible, or so he thought. Shaking his head in denial, he glowered at me, his mouth still moving as if to say something, but his voice just couldn''t come out.

    "Not going to run?" I mocked him.

    "Fuck you!" Xue Tu was about to lunge at me, but a poisoned dagger speared him from behind, emerging from his chest. The Blood Slaughter Sect leader gurgled and glanced down at his bleeding chest, unable to comprehend what had just happened. However, he gritted his teeth and struggled to push the dagger out of his chest. "Such a thing won''t¡­!"

    Oh, right. His regenerative powers. He would just heal from even such a fatal wound, if my experience from earlier was to be believed.

    ¡­normally, anyway. However¡­

    "Ugh¡­how¡­? Why¡­?"

    Xue Tu''s eyes widened and he staggered as his blood turned purple and his pallor turned a nasty pale. I understood why, however, given that I recognized the poisoned dagger.

    Behind the flailing Xue Tu, Anastasia yanked the dagger out of his back and kicked him to the ground. Xue Tu gurgled and went into convulsions. Despite his regenerative abilities from his blood techniques, he was unable to stop the lethal toxins from killing him. The venom coursed through his body, systematically destroying his cells and ultimately killing him.

    "I had him," I remarked offhandedly, but Anastasia stuck her tongue out at me.

    "You were taking too long."

    "Yeah¡­sorry about that." I glanced at the retreating Blood Slaughter Sect disciples. "I wonder why they''re suddenly running away."

    "Probably because Captain Brent slew their trump card." Anastasia gestured indifferently toward the site where the first enormous explosion occurred. Ah, that explained the first mushroom cloud. She shook her head as she watched them fade into the swamp. "Without their Bloody Berserker, they have no chance of winning, so it''s only natural that they will run away with their tails between their legs."

    "Oh, but they''ll be back," I assured her, my eyes hardening behind my glasses. "Make no mistake, there''s no way they''ll give up so easily after throwing away so much of their resources into taking this tomb site. Speaking of which, I wonder what exactly they are after, to be so desperate to launch an assault on the Silver Wolves of all mercenary groups¡­"

 298 Chapter 298: Infiltration

    "Squad leaders, take stock of casualties!" Captain Brent commanded, to a chorus of assent from the gathered soldiers.

    After the main officers were drawn away by their respective opponents, and when I was forced to withdraw my Constellation spirits from the frontline to deal with Xue Tu''s army of Blood Golems, the rank and file mercenaries began sustaining casualties. A few of them had succumbed to the esoteric blood techniques of the Blood Slaughter Sect disciples, while others suffered from grievous wounds. Fortunately, we had medics who could cast healing magic and allow them to pull through without fear that they might die, but they remained out of the fight for at least a day or two. Some, even longer, despite the healing spells cast on them.

    The others were assigned sentry duty to ensure the Blood Slaughter Sect and other threats (such as monsters) weren''t going to come back. Or if they did, we could sound the alarm and be ready for them. Truthfully, I was exhausted from expending so much mana to fight Xue Tu, but compared to the wounded, I got off pretty lightly so I couldn''t complain.

    "What do you think the Blood Slaughter Sect was after?" Anastasia asked, perplexed, but I didn''t know the answer either.

    "Who knows?"

    "Perhaps there''s some treasure inside the tomb?" Principal Porter suggested, almost taking me by surprise. Except that I had detected his presence earlier. Even if I was too tired to be alert of people sneaking up on me, my glasses had a motion tracker that detected his movements earlier. Sure, it only sounded out the movements in a 180 degree arc in front of me, but I constantly turned about, and thus was able to spot Principal Porter before he reached us.

    "What kind of treasure?" Anastasia asked, naturally curious. "I don''t think it''s gold or jewelry like in those tomb exploration movies and novels, right?"

    "While it is true that many tombs around the world contain treasure, there are many more sites that do not. At least not the same kind of treasure as we call them today." Principal Porter was stroking his beard. "Don''t let those tomb raider movies, games and novels fool you and idealize tombs. Most of them don''t actually contain gold or priceless artifacts. Well, honestly, historical artifacts still sell for a lot, but usually governments take them and enshrine them in national museums, so it''s not as if you can make tons of money off them unless you go to a black market. And unless you can prove their authenticity, nobody is stupid enough to buy some random statue or whatever off you. Those stories, games and movies often idealize ancient tombs, but they really don''t have that much treasure. Most archaeological digs turn up nothing of value more often than not¡­monetary value, anyway." He smiled. "But they have priceless historical value and provide an incredible wealth of knowledge. Not that most people watching those movies are interested in that kind of treasure."

    I nodded, well aware of that as a history student. Most people tended to idealize tomb exploration stories, especially with the success of Harrison Ford''s Indiana Jone movies and Lara Croft games, but archaeological digs were frequently dull and boring affairs. It involved a lot of back-breaking work, meticulously chiseling away at sites under the blazing hot sun, braving bugs and discomfort that the outdoors threw at you.

    In short, don''t let the tomb raiders and explorer stories deceive you. Archaeology is a lot of hard work and suffering. Fortunately, there were passionate scholars who still do it because of their thirst for knowledge, not greed for treasure and money.

    But that did not explain why the Blood Slaughter Sect was so invested in the tomb, to the extent where they would throw away so many of their disciples. Indeed, the Silver Wolves had inflicted such an appaling death toll on the retreating Blood Slaughter Sect that there couldn''t be more than 10% of their forces left. If Liu had chosen to stay and fight to the last, they would have been wiped out to the very last man.

    Even so, I doubted that Liu would just retreat and give up on the tomb. That Blood Slaughter Sect elder was just too stubborn to give up, and his craftiness was going to pose us problems. He would definitely find an alternative route to attack us. He had sacrificed far too much of his sect, including his own leader, to give up now. No doubt he was off somewhere nearby, plotting some sinister scheme to take the tomb without needing to rely on brute force.

    That said, I wondered about Xue Tu. Even though he was technically the leader of the Blood Slaughter Sect, something didn''t feel right about the whole thing. I wouldn''t be surprised if he had only been a puppet, propped up on the throne by none other than Liu so that the old man could manipulate the sect from behind the scenes and effectively rule the sect as a regent without drawing too much attention and resentment toward himself.

    Just like how the patriarchs of the Fujiwara clan ruled as regents in their grandsons'' stead after forcing the previous Emperors to abdicate once they reached of age.

    "If we only knew what they are looking for, we can better prepare," Brent murmured as he joined us, looking extremely weary. He looked battered and exhausted, with burns on his skin from enduring the explosion that resulted from overloading of the Bloody Berserker with critical damage. He had declined treatment from the medics, insisting that the healing mages took care of all the rank and file mercenaries and other officers first.

    "I''m afraid I haven''t got a clue," Principal Porter admitted grumpily. "The whole reason for organizing this expedition is to dig up information about this tomb in the first place! We don''t know who was buried here, or which civilization it belonged to! Except that it predated the Era of Unification and most likely belonged to the Dark Age of Technology. Before it even, if our carbon testing spells prove to be correct."

    "So perhaps they are looking for some relic from the Dark Age of Technology? Some sort of machine or piece of technology¡­like a Standard Template Construct?"

    "Don''t mix this up with Warhammer 40,000," Professor Porter growled irritably at Brent''s guess. "Standard Template Constructs don''t exist in this universe. But to answer the first part of your question, probably. Though I have no idea what kind of relic they are looking for. Still, the technological devices from before the Dark Age exceeded our imagination. It is well known that it was the machines and technology from before the Dark Age ¨C something to do with opening up quantum portals and gateways to alternate dimensions, or creating webways that allow for faster-than-light travel between star systems ¨C that resulted in Emergence events¡­an experiment gone wrong when humanity attempted to spread beyond their solar system to colonize the galaxy."

    "The Dark Church," Anastasia murmured horrified. Having been part of the Assassins Guild when the religious extremist group of terrorists hired them, she firsthand knew how ruthless they could be when artificially triggering Emergence events to kill large populations of civilians. Her guess was only natural. Of course the Dark Church would want to grab hold of such ancient technology that was reputedly the cause of all these Emergence events that made our lives miserable in the first place.

    Those nutjobs actually worshipped monsters from another dimensions and fanatically welcomed them to our world so that humanity (except themselves) could be erased, and to restore it to some sort of warped nature fashioned in their distorted views.

    "But I haven''t heard of the Blood Slaughter Sect having any connection to the Dark Church," Brent said with a frown. "I won''t pretend to know everything about them, but from what intelligence I gather, I''m sure they have nothing to do with each other."

    "Good point. Otherwise we would have seen Assassins working alongside them." Anastasia nodded. "But I haven''t seen any sign of my ex-colleagues."

    "In any case, we should remain vigilant and keep an eye out for their return." Brent sighed heavily. "This has become more complicated than I thought. We''ll probably need to request for reinforcements, and post a permanent guard here to ensure that nobody, Dark Church or Blood Slaughter Sect, gets access to whatever Dark Age technological relics buried within the tomb. Unless your team can dig up and transport whatever is inside the tomb, Principal Porter."

    "We''ll try," Principal Porter replied absently, rubbing the side of his neck wearily. "But so far we have found nothing to suggest that there are any such valuable technology hidden inside the tomb. In the first place, why would they bury technologies inside a tomb? Treasures, I understand, but technological devises and interdimensional gateways? Inside a burial ground? Why the hell would anyone want to put those stuff inside a tomb?"

    "Perhaps we are looking at this from the wrong angle," I suggested with a shrug. "Before this was a tomb, it was a research facility. An abandoned one. So nobody knew what was under the earth at all, even when they buried someone here and built a huge tomb around it. The Blood Slaughter Sect isn''t interested in the tomb itself, but what lies underneath it ¨C which is a research facility. Something that''s older than the tomb."

    "You might be right," Principal Ported agreed with a nod. "I''ll get my team to dig underneath, and see what we can find under the grave. There were previous reports that some portions of the ground felt hollow, as if there''s another space below it."

    "Interesting," Brent mused, and then he came to a decision. "I''ll assign a security detail to watch over your team as you work, Principal Porter. The rest of us will continue to patrol the perimeter of the site as usual, to ensure those bastards won''t return. Or if they do, we''ll be ready for them."

    "That will be much appreciated." Principal Porter nodded with a smile, and then shuffled away. "Now we''ll be returning to work."

    "Before you do so, you should catch some sleep, Principal." Brent was quick to call out after the departing old man. "You look like you need it badly."

    "You soldiers need it more than we do, to be honest," Principal Porter protested. "Make sure to allow your men the rest they need. They won''t be able to fight if they''re exhausted."

    Brent''s lips thinned, likely because he was offended by Porter''s insinuation that he didn''t know how to take care of his subordinates, but he appreciated the advice nonetheless and showed no sign of resentment.

    "I will definitely see to that, Principal." He glanced at me and Anastasia. "The two of you had better go to sleep once your shift ends."

    "Yes, Captain!" Anastasia saluted. I merely nodded, too winded from the constant battles to do anything else.

    Right now, I really wanted to sleep, but I still had another two hours of sentry duty to do. Especially with so many of the other mercenaries injured in the fighting¡­so we had no choice. Well, I would just have to deal with it.

    Fortunately, time flew past at an incredible rate, and before I knew it, I was sound asleep atop the sleeping mat that all soldiers carried.

    *

    "What do we do now, Elder Liu?"

    One of the surviving Blood Slaughter Sect disciples asked, looking terrified. He had been bloodied during the encounter with the Silver Wolves mercenaries. All of them were. Very few of them had escaped unscathed.

    Even Elder Liu had sustained a few injuries himself, a couple of first degree burns from that red-haired mercenary. Thankfully, his blood techniques allowed him to speed up his healing and provided rapid regeneration, so the injuries were gone by now.

    On the other hand, his subordinates and disciples didn''t share the same potency or level of blood techniques as him, and their rate of healing was not as fast as him. By the time they fully recovered, the damned mercenaries would have reestablished their perimeter, rebuild the damages to their barrier that was set up by their spirit array formation, and patched up the wounded as well.

    It would be impossible to launch another direct, frontal attack from now on. Especially with his forces decimated. Liu had originally set out with over two hundred Blood Slaughter Sect disciples. Now, only a little over twenty remained. Even though they had inflicted significant casualties on the Silver Wolves mercenaries, there was still a sizeable force left. Not to mention, their main fighting force in the form of Spartacus and the late sect leader Xue Tu had been slain in combat.

    Liu clenched his fists in frustration. Even though he had been aware of the Silver Wolves'' reputation and had ensured not to underestimate them, their power still far surpassed his imagination. He had thought that the Blood Slaughter Sect would stand a chance if the Silver Wolves mercenaries'' leader, Feng Hai, wasn''t present. But who knew the Hurricane Fist Brent Bradford was capable of destroying their trump card, the Bloody Berserker?

    And that fool Xue Tu¡­even though Liu had relented to the young upstart taking over as sect leader, the idiot had gone and gotten himself killed because of his obsession over a girl. A girl who wasn''t even here! Honestly, Liu couldn''t care less about the leadership of the sect. Xue Tu had inherited the position from his late father, and Liu was sworn to protect and guide the young man. Unfortunately, the stubborn, reckless fool had disregarded the elder''s advice and impetuously plunged ahead on his own, doing whatever he wanted.

    Now he had died ignominiously, his corpse probably claimed by the Silver Wolves mercenaries and buried anonymously somewhere in this Heaven forsaken swamp. Liu had no idea how he was going to face the idiot''s father in the afterlife, but he decided to worry about it when he got there.

    For now, he had to prioritize the mission objective. He looked over the battered survivors of his once proud sect and drew a deep breath.

    "Our goal remains unchanged," he declared, his eyes still fierce and unyielding. "We will seize the tomb and the gateway within through whatever means necessary."

    "But how?" one of the disciples demanded. "You saw how powerful those Silver Wolves mercenaries are. We''ll never be able to defeat them!"

    "You''re right," Liu admitted. He wasn''t that petty and stupid of a villain to randomly kill a subordinate for speaking the truth. Only morons did that, or childish authors who were trying to make a point about how evil their antagonists were without realizing the world simply didn''t work that way. "We can''t defeat them in combat, so we won''t fight them."

    "Eh?" That caught the attention of all the surviving disciples, who stared at him, bewildered. Liu felt a smile spread over his wrinkled face before he continued.

    "Don''t forget our main goal. It''s not to defeat the Silver Wolves. It''s to complete the ritual and awaken the Great One."

    "¡­ah."

    "That''s right."

    "If we awaken the Great One, he will fight for us!"

    "That''s right!" Liu contemplated his current options thoughtfully, and then his sly smile grew wider. "It''s likely that those archaeologists still have no idea what''s beneath the tomb. If I''m not mistaken, there should be a network of tunnels leading to the ancient temple. It might take us a while to navigate and map out the subterranean maze, but if we can reach the Blood Altar before the Silver Wolves mercenaries or archaeologists discover it, we can complete the ritual before they noticed that we are directly underneath them and then set the Great One upon them! Their blood will be the sacrifice that we need to fully awaken him!"

    "OOOH!"

    With a roar of approval, the disciples of the Blood Slaughter Sect rose in delight. Grinning, Liu raised his hand and punched the air.

    "Blood for the Blood God!"

    "Skulls for the Skull Throne!" his disciples chorused excitedly in return, a shimmering red aura settling over them murderously and almost driving them to a frenzy.

 299 Chapter 299: Underground

    The Blood Slaughter Sect walked through the underground tunnels, encountering a few subterranean monsters here and there, but they otherwise faced little impediment in their progress. Even though the monsters, such as Massive Moles, Dril Sarges, Tunneler Wurms and Giant Ants, were no match for the skilled combatants of the Blood Slaughter Sect, the humans found themselves mired in an endless labyrinth.

    "Where are we?"

    "The compasses aren''t working!"

    "This doesn''t look like it''s on the map?!"

    The Blood Slaughter Sect disciples were struggling not to panic, but lost inside such a dark and claustrophobic space, they were unable to suppress their fears. Liu glared at them in disgust, but said nothing because he knew that reprimanding them now would only serve to lower their morale further. That was something he couldn''t afford, particularly after the sect''s morale had hit rock-bottom upon the calamitous defeat that the Silver Wolves mercenaries inflicted upon them.

    "Calm down!" he instructed. "We''ll definitely find our way past these tunnels! I did warn you that the journey wouldn''t be easy. We just need to keep going. Give me some time and I''ll lead all of you out of this godforsaken place."

    "Yes, Elder Liu!" the disciples chorused, feeling more encouraged. The old man tried not to smirk as he watched them march forward. In the distance, the roar of a Tunneler Wurm echoed, and the twenty-meter long monster burst out of rock and soil to shower the front row of disciples with sand.

    "Retreat!"

    "Fall back!"

    The veterans among the disciples recognized the threat that the rank D monster posed. Keeping their distance as the row of razor-sharp teeth that ringed the gaping maw of the eyeless monster spun rapidly, almost like a chainsaw, the disciples scattered. The Tunneler Wurm plunged after them, but hesitated for just a second when it saw its targets splitting in different directions. With a bellow, it decided to choose the Blood Slaughter Sect disciple unlucky enough to be closest to it.

    The pursued disciple did not resent his fate. Instead, he spun around and readied himself, moving to engage the approaching Tunneler Wurm in combat. Blood arced about him and turned into huge, crimson scythes before hurtling forward at the massive monster. The blood scythes bit in deeply, causing scales to flake off and ichor to pour out from large ruptures, but the Tunneler Wurm continued barreling onward, undeterred.

    "Ugh!"

    The disciple waited until the last moment before he dove to the side, rolling on the ground as the Tunneler Wurm''s massive bulk swept past above him. furious at being deprived at its prey, the Tunneler Wurm twisted around, its maw wide open to swallow both rock and human alike, but a volley of blood lances speared through it, impaling it to the ground.

    "Wasting our time, what a fool."

    Liu mercilessly decapitated it with a single swipe of his hand, a gigantic blood blade materializing above him before beheading the poor monster instantly. Pinned and helpless, there was no way for the Tunneler Wurm to escape the attack.

    "Whoa¡­"

    The Blood Slaughter Sect disciples turned to stare at their elder in amazement, but Liu impatiently waved them forward.

    "Let''s go," he ordered stiffly as he strode ahead. "We don''t have much time."

    Even though he knew that to be true, as he stepped into the vast darkness in front of him, he couldn''t help but wonder if his sect would be trapped within the labyrinthine tunnels and doomed to wander through the endless subterranean networks for eternity.

    *

    A few days had passed since the attack from the Blood Slaughter Sect, but thankfully they hadn''t returned.

    Brent and Redfield were pretty sure they would be back, however, and constantly drilled us to remain vigilant and on the lookout for any sign of enemies.

    "Now that their fighting force has been drastically destroyed, they will most certainly resort to more insidious means of subterfuge. That will actually make them a lot more dangerous than before."

    The captain had a great point. But after days of fighting nothing but monsters, the constant tension was starting to wear me down. No matter how many reminders you received daily, it was only human nature to lower one''s guard. After all, it was not biologically natural for a person to constantly dope himself up on adrenaline and keep watch for 24/7. Not only would the consistent tension be mentally draining and psychologically detrimental, attempting to maintain such a state of mind would also affect the body physically, such as hormonal imbalance, indigestion and other side-effects.

    Of course the perfect soldier was one who could stay vigilant and on alert 24/7 all year round, but there was only so much the human body could do.

    "Hu¡­"

    I wearily returned to the space allocated as our sleeping quarters, wondering how much longer the expedition would take. On the other hand, there would be a change in shifts soon, and my contract had stipulated that I would be sent back to the academy in less than a week. I still had to participate in the national tournament, after all. So I would be rorated out with the existing personnel when they send in a fresh batch of mercenaries to take over.

    "Oh! Richard! Are you heading back to rest after your shift?"

    While I was on my way, Principal Porter happened to pass by and catch sight of me. He gave me a friendly wave and beckoned me over. Even though I was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to hit the sack, I was obligated to politely indulge my employer.

    "What is it, Principal Porter?"

    "I wanted to ask you for your perspective regarding the tomb. I know that you don''t know much about the Dark Age of Technology, or the Era of Unification, but I''m confident that you''ll still provide an alternative perspective."

    What use was my "alternative" perspective when it was uninformed and terribly lacking? At least that was what I wanted to say, but I didn''t want to offend Principal Porter, so I nodded amicably and followed him to the inner chamber of the tomb.

    "As per the advice from the mercenaries, we have checked underneath the ground and dug into yet another chamber." Principal Porter was rambling excitedly. Normally I would be curious and inquisitive enough to ask what they found, but at the moment I was too tired. So I merely nodded and went along with the old man. Completely oblivious to my current condition, the principal of Vermillion Academy continued enthusiastically. "We thought we had discovered another layer to the tomb, but we were mistaken!"

    Now that caught my attention, and I almost snapped back to full wakefulness.

    "Wait, what? Are you saying that there''s something else underneath the tomb?" Recalling what we had discussed several days ago, I frowned. "A research facility¡­?"

    "Doesn''t look like it, to be honest." Principal Porter laughed. "Honestly, we have too little information or intelligence regarding the Blood Slaughter Sect, so we cannot even begin to guess at what their motives for claiming the tomb site could be. Captain Brent might have raised a likely possibility, but with all due respect to him, he is only looking from a monetary or pragmatic point of view. The Blood Slaughter Sect might not necessarily be looking for technological relics or treasure to sell on the black market."

    "That''s true," I agreed with a shrug. "But I''m not sure what else they could possibly be looking for. Knowledge? But they don''t strike me as scholars¡­and their actions don''t certainly match those of people searching for knowledge or historical information. Why the hell would you kill other people and hoard the knowledge for yourself? What use is that?"

    "Hah! Don''t put such barbarians in the same vein as us!" Principal Porter actually scoffed at my speculation. "They certainly aren''t academics like us, resorting to violence and visiting destruction upon the tomb''s premises without any consideration. Do you know how much damage your battles from several days ago did to the site? Lots of priceless monuments and historical clues gone in just the matter of minutes!"

    "Sorry about that¡­"

    "No, no. I don''t mean to blame you. It''s not your fault. If anything, we''re grateful." Porter waved my apology away. "We understand the necessity and the nature of these enemies. If you didn''t stop them, they would have murdered all of us and plundered the tomb for themselves. That would have been worse than losing a few important historical clues."

    Well, I could certainly see that, but¡­

    "In any case, from their wanton destruction, we can see that they are not interested in gaining any historical knowledge from the tomb at all," Porter explained patiently. He also smiled. "And they aren''t concerned with accidentally wrecking whatever treasure they plan to steal if that was their goal¡­which is why I doubt that their motive is anything so monetary."

    "Huh¡­so why¡­?"

    My mind blanked out, and I couldn''t think of another reason why the Blood Slaughter Sect would come here.

    Porter laughed. "Come on, I know you''re smarter than that. Here''s a clue. What we found under the tomb was something that was more akin to¡­a temple. Not a research facility, not a treasure room filled with gold, but a religious site that bore idols and statues dedicated to certain¡­deities. Altars and shrines¡­places of worship."

    I immediately understood what Porter was getting at, and swallowed uneasily.

    "Religion. They want this place because their sect belongs to some sort of cult¡­a cult that built the temple that housed this tomb? So they want to take it back for their cult now?"

    "That is very likely." Porter nodded. "At least that''s the conclusion I came to after conducting a preliminary investigation of the small portion of the temple beneath the tomb." His smile widened. "And yes, that''s but a small portion of the temple. A single chamber out of hundreds. From diagrams and texts scribbled over the walls, it appears that the actual temple is much larger¡­the ancients built an almost city-sized temple underground before the entire place was swallowed up by swamps and Mother Nature during the Dark Age."

    "That''s¡­" I gulped and then cocked my head. "Have you told Captain Brent yet?"

    Porter grimaced. "Yeah. But the captain being a mercenary and professional soldier¡­he didn''t take me seriously. He told me to dig harder, says there''s probably something else hidden underneath the temple. Even though what we''ve unearthed so far points to the contrary."

    "Oh well¡­" I raised a hand. "For what it''s worth, I believe you."

    "Thank you." Porter beamed. "I knew you would, as a fellow scholar. Now, if you would please come with me¡­I would like your perspective on this."

    "My perspective? I''m not sure it''ll be helpful¡­"

    "I''ll be the judge on that. Besides, we''ve exhausted our ideas and run to a dead end, so I''m hoping you can inject something new¡­something fresh into the discussion. Ah¡­I should explain from the beginning." Porter looked sheepish. "Basically, none of us could identify the religion or cult that built the temple. There are several¡­disturbing diagrams, but we have trouble deciphering them. They look weird. In addition, they have been giving our graduate students and even several of the professors nightmares."

    "Eh? If you guys don''t know what they are, how would I¡­?"

    "Can''t hurt to take a look and try, right?"

    I supposed Porter had a point. Besides, I was curious as to what sort of temple existed underneath the tomb. In ancient Japan, Shinto regarded death as polluting, and it was unusual for shrines to ever commemorate the dead or serve as burial grounds. Before Buddhism became a major influence, Emperors moved entire capitals whenever their predecessors died, for fear of pollution, and this continued on until the Nara period in the early 6th century. I wasn''t as well-versed in other temples and religions because I majored in Japanese stuff, but even in ancient China, I didn''t recall anybody building a tomb on top of a temple. That said, temples did serve as sacred sites to house the urns of the cremated dead, to enshrine them in tablets for descendants to pay their respects to their late relatives, so it wasn''t all that unusual.

    However, since Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and most other major religions continued to exist even in the 31st century (what? they had existed for thousands of years prior to the 21st century, why was it unusual for them to continue existing another thousand years later?), if this was a religion that Porter and his archaeological team couldn''t identify, then they must bee a very odd one indeed.

    I followed Porter down into the inner tomb chamber where the coffins were kept. Most of the dead were gone by now, having decomposed and were reduced to nothing, not even bones. The expedition had dug through the center, which revealed a hole that granted access to the level below.

    "Here. we have a¡­"

    Porter was about to hand me a harness, which was hooked to a pulley to allow the archaeologists to safely descend into the level below, but I ignored him and just jumped down, using physical reinforcement spells to soften my landing.

    Porter shook his head, and muttered something about me taking after my adopted father, but he slipped on the harness and allowed the team above to slowly lower him. While he did, I surveyed the area and my jaw dropped.

    I found that I did indeed recognize the motifs, diagrams and illustrations splayed across the walls in blood-red ink somewhat, but not because they belonged to any real religion that I knew. Instead, they belonged to a fictitious cult that I read about in a fictional universe that I often engaged in tabletop gameplay.

    The eight-pointed star. The daemons with horns, hooves and blazing swords, illustrated in red skin. The chalices overflowing with blood. Greater daemons with wings, axes and whips, towering over their smaller brethren. The swirling masses of berserk humans tearing into each other, their faces frozen in enraged howls and ectasy as they sought to butcher each other and spill as much blood as possible.

    "Blood for the Blood God," I murmured in utter disbelief. "This can''t be right¡­"

    "Blood God? What is that?" Porter demanded as his feet touched the ground, and he unstrapped his harness to approach me. I turned to him frantically.

    "We should evacuate the entire area and leave right now. I say we take off and nuke the site from orbit. It''s the only way to be sure."

    "What the hell are you talking about?!" Porter grabbed my shoulders. "Start speaking some sense, young man!"

    I gestured to the gigantic two-headed dragon with blood-red scales that was depicted in the middle mural, the largest and most imposing illustration that dwarfed even the bellowing greater daemons with wings.

    "That''s the Blood God," I whispered, almost unable to find my voice. "And if the Blood Slaughter Sect successfully summons him to our dimension, we''re all doomed."

 300 Chapter 300: Blood Sacrifice

    "Seriously?" Principal Henry Porter scowled. "Why so dramatic?"

    "Oh¡­because I wanted to end the previous chapter on a cliffhanger."

    "Excuse me?"

    "Nothing." I quickly amended my statement and returned to the main topic at hand. "I''m not sure what''s going on, but this is actually based off a fictional universe that was created for a tabletop game set in the 41st millennium, so I don''t know how they ended up dedicating an entire temple to it. To simplify, the cultists of the Blood God revel in murder, bloodletting and violence. The more blood they spill, the more glory they gain. Their god cares not from where the blood flows, as long as it continues to flow. To put it bluntly, it''s a cult of homicidal psychopaths who love killing."

    "No wonder they''re called the Blood Slaughter Sect," Porter mused, nodding thoughtfully. "I always thought it was quite the chuuni name, but it seems that there was a valid religious reason behind it after all."

    No, it was still a chuuni name, regardless of the religious reasons that led to its establishment. Not that I was going to voice that out.

    Glancing at the two-headed dragon, I shuddered. For some reason, its demonic visage was giving me the chills. It was just an immense illustration, but somehow it felt alive¡­as if it was watching the humans in the room.

    Taking a deep breath, I tore my eyes away from the gigantic mural and took a deep breath to calm myself.

    "In any event, we''ve to stop the Blood Slaughter Sect from reaching this place at all costs," I muttered. "Who knows what they would do when they reach the temple? Probably hold some blood sacrifice to bring their Blood God to our material world."

    Porter shuddered, despite himself. But he straightened himself to his full height and steeled his resolve. "I''ll inform Captain Brent of this immediately."

    "Thank you, sir. I''ll leave it to you then."

    This was a talk between adults, after all. I didn''t want to get involved unless absolutely necessary. I briefly wondered if Brent would believe Porter, though. The last time the Vermillion Academy principal told the mercenary captain that the Blood Slaughter Sect might be after different goals, the latter didn''t believe the older man.

    Well, that was none of my business. I was too exhausted so I merely nodded. Bowing my head and taking my leave, I jumped through the hole in one bound without bothering with the harness and the pulley, much to the archaeologist technicians'' surprise, and headed straight for the area designated as our sleeping quarters.

    The moment my head touched the sleeping bag I fell asleep immediately.

    *

    "¡­finally."

    Liu panted as he emeged in a more artificial-looking cavern that resembled a room built out of metal, concrete and marble than the stone, earth and soil that the remnants of his sect had been traversing the last few days.

    "We''ve found the place!" One of the disciples yelled in delight, squinting at the bright lights and waiting for his eyes to adjust. "I told you Elder Liu knew where we were going!"

    "Long live the Elder!"

    "We''re free!"

    "At last!"

    While the disciples whooped and cheered, Liu turned away, trying to hide his expression of relief. To be honest, he had been bullshitting and randomly picking directions for the last three days. He could hardly admit to the disciples who were counting on him to lead them out that he had been utterly clueless about where they should go, and relied on dumb luck to find their way around. Well, some things were best left not known.

    Clearing his throat, Liu turned to address what remained of his once fearsome troops.

    "We''ll take an hour break. Drink up, replenish your mana, and catch some sleep. Then we shall launch our attack against the invaders who dare trespass upon the sacred ground of the Great One!"

    "OOOOH! Blood for the Blood God!"

    The Blood Slaughter Sect disciples roared their approval, and then they began doing whatever they needed. Resting, bathroom breaks, drinking, catching a nap, etc.

    Folding his arms, Liu smiled approvingly. He could almost taste the blood of his victims, hear their screams echoing throughout the temple of his god.

    He couldn''t wait for the carnage to begin.

    *

    Da Xue Sheng was chipping away at one of the shrines, trying to free one of the relics that had been riveted to the ground. He tried not to look too much at the mural, which displayed a disturbing scene of death and massacre, where humans impaled each other with blood-red spears. The spears themselves dripped crimson tears, and Da Xue Sheng couldn''t tell if the spears had originally meant to be red, or if they had been totally stained by the blood of their victims.

    "Nonsense," he muttered to himself. "It''s just a picture. There''s no original color to begin with. The artist got lazy."

    Shaking his unease off, he then brought a scanner and waved it over the mural. The digital device recorded the image before uploading it to the cloud server. Several programs ran checks and searches on the recorded illustration, but turned out no results.

    "A cult dedicated entirely to the worship off a Blood God," Da Xue Sheng mused. He shivered and closed his eyes briefly. "Just what sort of deity would drive his worshippers to the heights of depravity and enjoy watching them slaughter each other?"

    A noise from around the corner drew his attention. Da Xue Sheng frowned and rose from his spot, abandoning the relic that he had been trying to meticulously extract over the past hour without damaging it. Gulping, he slowly made his way toward the corner.

    "Hello?" he called out uncertainly.

    There was no answer. Some sort of fluttering, almost like a bug. Perhaps it was a bug. They were underground, after all. This wasn''t the first time he had to swat away a pest or two that wriggled over his tools or crawled up his arms while he worked.

    Da Xue Sheng laughed nervously. "I''m thinking too much."

    Another noise flared out, and he froze. The graduate student backed away, fear building up in his chest.

    "H¡­hey! Who is there?!" he yelled. Perhaps one of the mercenaries, seeking to play a prank on him and scare him? "This had better not be some kind of joke! It''s not funny!"

    Steeling himself, he stepped toward the corner and poked his head around.

    There was a moth flitting about, repeatedly slamming itself against a portable lamp. It buzzed angrily, and then charged at the light, its brown wings fluttering incessantly.

    "¡­"

    Da Xue Sheng let out a sigh of relief, and then turned away. Like he suspected the first time, it was just a damned bug. Best to leave it alone and return to work.

    "What a waste of time," he grumbled as he proceeded back toward the shrine. Before he could reach it, however, he bumped into someone. Without thinking, he yelped in shock.

    "Whoa! Calm down, sir!"

    It was one of the mercenaries. Da Xue Sheng recognized him as one of those assigned as the archaeologist team''s security detail. He had his rifle slung over his shoulder, and a shoulder lamp illuminating the dim temple chamber. He raised an eyebrow as he watched Da Xue Sheng scramble hastily to his feet.

    "Are you all right?"

    "Y¡­yeah." Da Xue Sheng forced out a laugh. "You scared the hell out of me, dude. Don''t just jump out like that."

    "My apologies. I just heard a sound, so I came to investigate. Besides, you shouldn''t be running off on your own." The mercenary gave him a stern stare. "You should be sticking with the rest of the group. It''s too dangerous to be alone."

    "But the enemies haven''t shown up for days, right?" Da Xue Sheng retorted, trying to still his furiously beating heart. "Maybe they have given up."

    "Who knows?" the mercenary shrugged. "Better to be safe than sorry."

    Da Xue Sheng understood the wisdom. Even without the Blood Slaughter Sect, it was possible that there were monsters capable of digging underground and breaking into the temple right under the mercenaries'' noses. Even though the concrete and metal walls were technically capable of withstanding a burrowing monster and halting it in its tracks, Brent was taking no chances. That was why there was a security detail assigned to guard the archaeological team even as they continued to excavate the site. Fortunately, nothing untoward had happened yet.

    "I''ll take your advice into consideration," Da Xue Sheng said stiffly as he straightened up. He was a graduate student, someone who was educated and was on track to earn a PhD, unlike the mercenary before him, who was uncultured, uneducated and unintelligent. These brutes only knew how to fight. They didn''t realize the value of knowledge and culture. However, the archaeologist major had to admit that the place was increasingly creeping him out. It was best to listen to the mercenary and get the hell out of here. "I''ll return to the group."

    "Very good, sir," the mercenary responded. And then he resumed his patrol.

    With an irritated huff, Da Xue Sheng turned away and began retracing his steps back to the main group. Before he could take more than a few steps, however, he heard the mercenary grunt, and something clatter noisily to the ground.

    "Now what?!" Da Xue Sheng growled, turning around indignantly. "Be careful around here! These are priceless relics and monuments! What will you do if you break them!?"

    His voice died in his throat when he saw the mercenary clutching at his chest, gurgling. Blood was flowing from both his mouth and chest, where a single blade protruded, dripping with crimson fluids.

    Just like the mural that Da Xue Sheng was analyzing mere minutes ago.

    "No, no¡­" he murmured, his eyes wide in terror. "This can''t be happening¡­"

    The mercenary let out one last groan before he expired, and his killer slid him off the crimson blade, allowing the corpse to slump downward. An old man watched the corpse topple over for a second, and then raised his head to look at the horrified Da Xue Sheng. A blade composed entirely of blood extended from his wizened hand, still freshly wet ¨C and not just from the blood of its victim.

    "Well, well¡­what have we here?"

    With a shriek, Da Xue Sheng turned to flee, but something whipped out and caught him by the legs. The graduate student found himself crashing clumsily onto the ground, but he scrambled desperately to get up to his feet.

    Only to realize that he couldn''t.

    "¡­eh?"

    He glanced down and realized that his legs were gone¡­cut off right below the knees. Blood was gushing out of both stumps, spilling into an expanding pool of red.

    "Ah¡­ah¡­AAAAAAAAAH!"

    Da Xue Sheng''s sanity shattered and he writhed about, devastated by the loss of his legs. The pain was catching up to him now, overcoming his shock and lancing through him like red-hot knives. He clutched at his amputated stumps and howled in agony.

    A few footsteps drew his attention back to the present. Even though his consciousness was tinged in a red haze, he was vaguely aware of a whole group of hooded people marching around the corner and approaching his position. The light from the portable lamp was no longer white, instead taking on a red hue for some reason.

    The moth¡­he could no longer hear the buzzing of the moth that was constantly ramming into the fluorescent bulb earlier. It probably was dead. He didn''t know. He didn''t care. He was about to die himself¡­

    The old man''s lips curled into a smile, and his tongue darted out to moisten them. He nodded toward the newcomers, all of whom were dressed in black cloaks and hoods that concealed their features. Despite his slipping consciousness, Da Xue Sheng was sure he recognized them as the enemy that assailed the tomb a few days ago¡­the terrorist religious extremist group who had fought against the Silver Wolves mercenaries.

    "This one will make a fine sacrifice."

    "Blood for the Blood God!"

    Hollering, the disciples moved forward. Da Xue Sheng detachedly felt something slice across his throat, the front of his chest getting wet, a piercing pain, a suffocating sensation akin to drowning, and then¡­

    ¡­he knew nothing.

 301 Chapter 301: Summoning Ritual

    I didn''t expect the Silver Wolves to send fresh reinforcements of mercenaries to the tomb site so soon. But there they were, disembarking from the newly arrived hovercraft that set down on the temporarily established landing field several hundred meters away from the site. As usual, the mercenaries spread out in a professional manner, sweeping the place for any monsters or enemies.

    "About time!" Redfield grunted as he fought off a Swamp Orc. The nasty, huge beasts had emerged from the swamp just an hour ago, and was assaulting our position. I had joined the fight with my Constellation spirits, raining destruction down upon them with spells and arrows. Redfield incinerated the offending Swamp Orc with a fire spell. "If they came an hour later, our position would have been overrun!"

    "You''re exaggerating," Anastasia snapped as she flipped over a Swamp Orc''s clumsy strike. Her dagger lashed out in a streak of silver, and then she was gone, leaving the lumbering Swamp Orc behind. The brute sought to chase her, but a few seconds later it fell flat on its face, boils erupting from its wound and its corpse going into convulsions.

    As usual, Anastasia''s poisons were deadly.

    "We would have cleared the entire horde out within the hour even without reinforcements," the ex-Assassin continued. And then she shrugged after stabbing a Bog Goblin in the face. The creature squealed and toppled backward in a splash. Ignoring it, Anastasia searched for her next target, still speaking. "That said, I appreciate receiving reinforcements. It''ll make our lives so much easier. Not to mention, I''m dying to rotate out of here. I pity the next batch who will be here for the next couple of weeks or so."

    "Oh no, you don''t." Brent''s voice was dripping with amusement. "Anastasia, you won''t be shipping out with most of the first batch. You''ll be staying here. You''re the one with the most experience and knowledge about the Black Underworld Swamp. We''ll need you here."

    "Eh?!" Anastasia complained. I felt sorry for her, but with the tournament looming in the near future, I couldn''t stay with her. Not that I was obligated to stay with her in the first place. But you know how some women were.

    Then she suddenly stiffened. For a moment I thought there was a new threat approaching and I whirled around, checking my glasses for any new arrivals. There were still nothing but Swamp Orcs, or at least nothing else that the suite of advanced sensors on my glasses could detect. But I suddenly understood Anastasia''s reaction when a pillar of flames washed through the swamp, followed by a familiar roar.

    A gigantic bear with a flaming mane barreled through the shriveled trees and smashed aside several Swamp Orcs, burning them into ash or blasting them apart from the sheer destructive force. Snarling, it rose on its hind legs, swatting aside another Swamp Orc stupid enough to rush it with nothing but its club.

    "Lilith? What are you doing here?"

    The astonished voice of Principal Porter filled the air. The old man had emerged from the tomb chamber to discuss something with Brent before the attack hit us. Something to do with a strange series of disappearances. From what I knew, Brent was also concerned over missing personnel, particularly several members of the security detail he assigned to guard the archaeological team.

    "Grandpa!" the blond fire mage jogged toward her grandfather, beaming brightly. She caught sight of me and waved, but Anastasia deliberately strolled to block me out from the former''s view, much to her puzzlement. However, she had more pressing concerns at the moment, and she turned her eyes back to Porter. "I''m here for a visit!"

    "Visit, eh?" Porter raised an eyebrow. "I thought you were supposed to prepare for the national tournament?"

    "Yeah. So I figured I''d get some combat experience when I come here. Also, Principal Violet requested me to make sure I bring Richard back. He was worried that you would either forget or renege on your promise."

    I could literally see the steam rising from Anastasia''s reddening face. That was not good. Especially since poor Anastasia wouldn''t be returning with me. It was as if someone was twisting a knife in her gut after stabbing her.

    Lilith didn''t even seem to notice. She was smiling as she chatted with her grandfather, almost casually. Raising a hand, she launched a searing blast of fire at a nearby Swamp Orc that had burst out of the marsh to strike at the puny humans, reducing it to charred ash.

    "Thanks." Porter didn''t even bat an eyelid. He was probably used to such things at home. "He needn''t have worried. Since when have I ever gone back on a promise?"

    "Uh, well¡­sometimes you get carried away with your research, you know?" While Lilith spoke, her Hellfire Bear swiped at an approaching Swamp Orc, cleaving it in half. The blond fire mage shrugged before turning away. "Well, anyway, I''ll go help them get rid of these disgusting monsters. We''ll talk more later!"

    "I''ll be here," Porter agreed with a nod. He glanced at Brent. "I have to speak to the captain anyway."

    "Yeah, let us finish up with this first, if you don''t mind." The mercenary leader was grunting as he pummeled a Swamp Orc, obliterating its skull with his bare fist. With his other hand, he swung his staff and cracked the head of another, causing it to drop back into the bog.

    "Will do."

    "It''s been a while, Richard!" Lilith waved as she approached me. Anastasia looked unhappy, but there wasn''t exactly anything she could do. What, was she going to forcibly shove Lilith away or something?

    Lilith must have noticed her with her woman''s sixth sense, for she turned to look at the green-haired ex-Assassin curiously. Then a mischievous smile spread over her face.

    "Oh? Is this your girlfriend, Richard?"

    "No," I began, but I noted that Anastasia looked a lot happier than before. Bloody hell, I really don''t understand women.

    "Why aren''t you beating the Swamp Orcs up with brute force? I thought you be pummeling then with your bare hands."

    "Uh, you do know that I''m a summoner, right?" I tried not to roll my eyes at Lilith''s utterly random question.

    "So is Taichi from Isekai Cheat Magician."

    "That guy is a God Mode Mary Sue¡­or Gary Stu. I ain''t copying him. There''s no way I can go around soloing entire armies." I sighed, wishing that she hadn''t reminded me of that story. The visuals and character art designs were great, but the story and character development¡­not so much. And I swear, if those stupid characters use the word "cheat" one more time, I will personally break through the fourth wall and murder them. And no amount of "cheats" or God Mode that Taichi possessed would save him from my wrath. Great Spirit Queen? Hah! She was no match for the Celestial Guardians I had under my command!

    While I idly engaged in banter, Capricorn, Aries and Taurus finished off the last of the Swamp Orcs, trampling over them and kicking or ramming them into the swamp. Monstrous piranha and other marsh denizens swam to eat away at the carcasses, and the mercenaries took care to avoid them. I had my Constellation spirits retreat too, just in case.

    "That should be the last of them," Redfield remarked as he kicked a charred corpse back into the bog, sending a pile of ashes billowing upward. He dusted the soot off his hands and turned back toward us with a grin. "Time for a break!"

    "Oh!" the mercenaries shouted, buoyed by our overwhelming victory. There were no casualties this time, much to everyone''s relief.

    Lilith had latched onto Anastasia, much to my bemusement. Probably because the two girls were so similar in age, and the Holy Maiden was curious about her relationship to her. No doubt she would be offering poor Ana love advice, ironically not knowing that the latter was already well trained in the arts of seduction.

    "The battle''s finally over." Porter breathed a sigh of relief, but he remained grim. "I hope I''m not spoiling the mood, but we still need to discuss the missing personnel, Captain."

    "Of course. I concur. This cannot wait." Brent nodded grimly. He turned to the rest of us. "You guys, take a break, except for the sentries who are still supposed to be on shift. I''ll be speaking to the professor."

    "Yes, sir!"

    However, before anyone could move, there was a whining screech that erupted into a thunderous roar. Mercenaries stumbled when a sudden earthquake shook the ground violently beneath their feet, throwing them off balance. I found myself falling over, desperately throwing my hands out to break my fall and roll to reduce the impact. Even then, I could feel the earth tremble powerfully underneath my sprawled body.

    "What in the world¡­?!"

    I watched in horror as the entire tomb site transformed into a sinkhole, the ancient buildings collapsing upon themselves and crumbling into dust. The ground simply ceased to exist, and I could see the temple underneath disintegrate from the sheer fury.

    "What the hell is going on?!"

    "The tomb¡­the tomb is¡­!"

    "What''s happening?!"

    "I don''t know!"

    Panicked shouts and shrieks bounded back and forth between fleeing mercenaries, most of whom had the sense to pick themselves up and run. I also just barely managed to get up, and after helping a few mercenaries nearby, I joined them in their escape. Needless to say, I checked on Anastasia and Lilith first, but the two girls were more than capable of handling themselves. At the very least, they were helping each other, so I decided to concentrate on the others instead.

    With the ground collapsing and vanishing beneath us, we needed no encouragement to run. Even the monsters inhabiting the swamp were fleeing, swimming away from the rapidly expanding sinkhole. Brent had scooped up an indignantly protesting Porter, thrown him over his shoulder, and ran. Redfield was ensuring that none of the soldiers were left behind.

    We probably lost all of our equipment, but that was fine. At least we were still alive.

    "Grandpa!" Lilith yelled as she jogged acoss the damp earth. "What''s going on? What happened to the tomb?"

    "I don''t know!" Porter shouted back as he struggled atop Brent''s shoulder. "I have no clue! This has never happened before!"

    ¡­duh. Of course it hadn''t, or we wouldn''t have a tomb to study.

    Fortunately, the ground stopped trembling before long, and we were finally able to come to a stop, pausing to catch our breath and take stock. As I suspected, we lost nobody to that sudden earthquake. Everyone had managed to escape.

    For now.

    "Holy f¡­"

    However, I found myself gaping at the sight. The sinkhole was now revealing almost the entire temple¡­except that the entire temple had been destroyed. There was no longer any sign of murals, no sign of the tomb that once existed, no monuments, no pictures and altars, nothing.

    Instead, it was complete darkness.

    No, I was mistaken. Rather than darkness, the space inside the colossal crater was tinged red. I didn''t know how, but I could somehow see a crimson haze rising¡­as if something from below was emanating it. A bloodthirsty red¡­a murderous aura.

    Was it my imagination? I hoped it was, but when I turned around, I caught sight of other mercenaries staring into the blood-red space, almost spellbound.

    "That''s blood," one of them murmured.

    "Everyone, back off!" Brent shouted, running along the lines and slapping soldiers back to submission. Having dumped poor Porter off somewhere, he was now reorganizing our ranks and was bent on restoring morale. "Don''t look into the abyss! It''s obvious that it''s some sort of enemy attack! Everyone, ready your weapons!"

    That brought everyone back to reality, and they began reloading, slapping magazines and power packs back to their las-rifles¡­except that they didn''t really need to reload, considering that the magic rifles drew power from their mana. But the habitual action was comforting, something to anchor us to our reality, and occupy us with something to do in the present instead of staring blankly at the sinkhole like the poor professor.

    "My team¡­my students¡­my colleagues," he was murmuring, mired in icy shock. "They were all down there."

    "So were a good number of my soldiers!" Brent snapped. Then he took a deep breath. "Don''t worry. We''ll find them. There''s still a chance that they might be alive down there¡­"

    A hellish bellow cut him off, the deafening roar reverberating across the swamp and actually causing trees to sway.

    "Ah¡­my lord! My lord!"

    Levitated by a swirling vortex of blood-red energy, Liu and his surviving Blood Slaughter Sects were held aloft, rising to the surface. The old and young alike were all on their knees, spreading their hands in supplication. Expressions of ectasy stretched across their faces, their eyes wide in madness and joy.

    "The Blood Slaughter Sect!"

    "Liu, you bastard!" Brent bellowed. "What did you do to my men? Where''s the archaeological team?! What have you done?!"

    "Your¡­men? The archaeological team?" the elder turned to stare at him, his expression still dreamy. He then blinked, and then slowly returned to reality. Grinning, he shook his head. "Why, I''ve offered them up as sacrifices, of course."

    Horror gripped my gut and chills ran down my spine. "You can''t have¡­"

    "Oh, but we have." Liu turned to smile mockingly at me. "We''ve summoned the Great One to this world. May he sate his rage and visit his wrath upon this pathetic dimension!"

    "Blood for the Blood God!" his disciples cheered.

    Even as they sang their praises, a gargantuan two-headed dragon reared upward from the abyss below. Snarling, it began climbing out of the sinkhole, dragging its almost hundred-meter tall body out from the dimensional rift to emerge in our world.

 302 Chapter 302: Two-headed Dragon

    "What have you done?" Henry Porter sagged to his knees, almost mired in despair. He gazed up at the ascending two-headed dragon, almost suffocated by the crimson bloodlust that it emanated. Around him, mercenaries were choking and staggering from the sheer presence of the monster.

    "Our Lord!" Liu crowed, spreading both hands as far out as he could. Tears were streaming down his face. "Finally! For us to be blessed to witness your descent into our mundane world¡­! Come! Sate your hunger on this blasted world! Visit your wrath upon the pitiful souls who fester and corrupt this world with their na?ve ideals of peace! Drown this world in blood!"

    "Blood for the Blood God!" the disciples of the Blood Slaughter Sect chorused in unison. I swear, that phrase was getting irritating by now.

    The two-headed dragon glanced down upon Liu with both pairs of eyes, disdain evident in those crimson pupils. For a second, Liu held its gaze, his expression rapturous.

    And then he was gone. He and all of his disciples.

    "?!"

    The two-headed dragon almost paid the puny humans no heed. Raising a claw, it stomped on Liu and the entire Blood Slaughter Sect, squashing them into nothingness. Their screams of shock and agony at the sudden betrayal were abruptly cut off, whisked away by the howling wind of madness and murder that swept around the hovering dragon.

    A chill ran down my spine and I shuddered when a single line surfaced within my memory.

    The Blood God cares not from where the blood flows, as long as it continues to flow.

    It seems that even his most devout followers were not immune to his murderous whims.

    "Are you kidding me?!"

    "That dragon killed the people who summoned him?"

    "What''s going on? Infighting? A falling out?"

    A murmur ran through the gathered merecenaries as they attempted to decipher what they had just witnessed. Despite the earlier shock and awe the two-headed dragon imposed upon them, they were slowly recovering and regaining their senses. As expected of the best mercenaries that the Federation had to offer.

    "Don''t let your guard down," Brent warned. "If that thing has no hesitation in killing the people who summoned him for no reason, then it definitely has no qualms squashing us."

    As if to puncuate the mercenary captain''s sentence, the two-headed dragon dragged itself out of the abyss with a roar and swung its claw at us. We quickly dove out of the way, watching in horror as its massive paw raked three gigantic gouges in the earth, creating a ravine.

    "How are we supposed to fight that thing?!" one of the mercenaries shrieked as he crashed heavily into a tree.

    "Use your magic!" Redfield hollered as he flung an immense fireball at the emerging dragon. "You are combat mages, aren''t you? So stop whining and start fighting! We can''t let that thing manifest fully in our world, or we''re doomed!"

    While the mercenaries struggled to put together an improvised combat plan on the spot and execute it, Porter hurried over to me, accompanied by his granddaughter.

    "Richard, you seem to know the most about this ''Blood God.'' Do you know its weakness? How to defeat it?"

    As if I would conveniently know any such thing! Maybe in another story, the monster would happen to have some sort of weakness that we could conveniently exploit, but reality was never that easy. Most likely we would have to do this the hard way.

    "Well¡­the stories that I have read¡­" I paused, taking care to emphasize that I was talking about fiction here, and not reality. "¡­say that the only way to defeat such a Greater Daemon is through force. Destroying his physical body in this reality will banish him back to the Warp¡­uh, I mean back to his original dimension."

    "So how do we destroy him?" Lilith demanded impatiently. "Look at the size of that thing! How many spells do we have to cast before we can finally wear him down to banish him back to his original dimension?!"

    "If you can buy me time, I''ll be able to nuke him to oblivion¡­never mind send him back to his dimension, I''ll probably destroy him." I had already begun casting the summoning spell for Draco ever since the two-headed dragon had first shown up, but I still needed some more time.

    "We''ll be counting on you then," Brent called out. He vaulted over the gigantic claws and landed upon it. Running along the length of the dragon''s arm, he drew tremendous amounts of mana into his staff. "Bankai!"

    "At least change the name, oi!" I shouted after him. He ignored me, obviously.

    "Tie Quan Duan Feng!"

    Ducking as the dragon swatted at him, he spun around in midair to punch the offending limb. Despite being so tiny in the greater scale of things, his attack sent the dragon staggering backward. While the two heads snarled and turned to dart toward the evading mercenary captain, presumably to swallow him whole.

    "Oh no, you don''t!"

    Redfield launched a powerful fire spell that detonated against one of the dragon''s heads and sent it snapping back. Twirling his spear, he swung it as he descended upon the other head and uneashed a similarly devastating torrent of flames that engulfed the serpentine head.

    "Whoa!"

    He was forced to alter his trajectory in midair and hurl himself away when the two-headed dragon swiped at him. He landed on the dragon''s claw, and then sprang away before the dragon could throw him off. Landing several dozen meters away, he managed to skid to a stop before crashing into a tree or something.

    Lilith and the others had also stepped forward now, pelting the two-headed dragon with spells and mana bullets. The mercenaries, in particular, were uleashing volleys of mana beams and projectiles at the dragon, but for all their efforts, they might as well be tossing pebbles into the ocean. The two-headed dragon reared up with a snarl, ignoring their insignificant attacks and focused on Brent, Redfield and the other officers. And Lilith.

    Her Hellfire Bear was lumbering forward, but despite its large size, it was still dwarfed by the two-headed dragon that was ten times its size. Fortunately, by now Lilith was able to summon Kagutsuchi. The white whale-like dragon manifested within an inferno and released a storm of superheated plasma at the two-headed dragon, searing its crimson scales and eliciting an enraged howl.

    "Richard!" Brent snapped at me breathlessly as he crashed almost clumsily on the ground, but somehow managed to land on all fours. "We''ll buy you the time you need to cast that nuke spell of yours!"

    "You mean the two-headed dragon isn''t going to patiently and politely wait for us to finish talking and strategizing in front of it before attacking?" I asked sarcastically as I watched the others fling their elemental spells at it. For a moment Brent gaped at me.

    "What the fuck are you smoking? Why the hell would it do that?"

    "How would I know? You should ask the author of some isekai light novel about cheat powers, or the director of its anime adaptation. The characters literally spent almost five minutes talking about plans and strategies, deciding who gets to fight the dragon, who stays to watch (though I have no idea why the heroine even bothered, especially when she did absolutely nothing), while the dragon patiently and politely waits for them to finish."

    Brent stared at me for a second, and then he shook his head.

    "That''s fucked up and totally unrealistic. It sounds like the typical wish fulfillment type of story where the writer gives his protagonist every overpowered ability imaginable, and didn''t think things through when crafting the plot."

    Unfortunately, he didn''t have any more time to waste on this nonsense, because the two-headed dragon chose that moment to unleash a torrent of flames from both of its mouths and incinerate the entire section of the swamp where the mercenaries were taking cover. The professional paramilitary soldiers instantly scattered and avoided a fiery death, especially when Brent swooped in underneath both of the dragons'' heads and delivered a crushing blow.

    "Hurricane Fist!" he shouted as he unleashed a devastating blast of explosive energy that rammed into the two-headed dragon''s chest and sent it toppling over. Above, Kagutsuchi unleashed another set of superheated flames capable of melting metal, the immense inferno roiling over the sprawled two-headed dragon and scorching its scales.

    The Blood God''s tail whipped forward to swat Kagutsuchi away, but the kami of fire nimbly dodged the powerful strike that leveled trees and crushed them into splinters amidst the damp marsh. Spreading out its wings, Kagutuschi vomited another gout of superheated flames that washed over one of the dragon''s heads.

    Snarling in pain, the head shrank back from the inferno before spitting a retaliation of its own.

    "!!"

    Kagutsuchi veered off to the right, avoiding the concentrated beam of fury that lanced through the swamp and left a smoldering trail in the swamp, the bog waters vaporized into boiling steam and glowing magma that hissed in what remained of the terrain.

    "Draco!"

    I summoned my most powerful Constellation spirit and had him slam into the two-headed dragon, knocking it over. The two titanic beasts wrestled, with the two-headed dragon pinning the much smaller dragon underneath and beginning to obliterate him. However, Draco''s jaws glowed and he fired Eltanin at pointblank range, the dual beams of black mana ramming into the two-headed dragon and bodily throwing it off him.

    "Everyone, please retreat. I''m very close to nuking that bastard now, and I don''t want to accidentally get all of you guys caught up in the explosion."

    The rank-and-file mercenary soldiers, in particular, glanced at each other, and nodded. They knew that the ones who would suffer the most if they get caught up in the pseudo nuclear explosion would be them.

    "Gotcha." Brent landed somewhere nearby, his feet leaving furrows in the already fragile earth. Spinning around, he issued an order. "Retreat! Everyone, fall back! Get to the hovercrafts and prepare for emergency evacuation!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    As I expected, nobody hesitated to obey his command. Only an idiot would hang around and wait to get nuked. The two-headed dragon probably didn''t know what was coming, so it could be excused, but the Silver Wolves mercenaries were certainly aware of my reputation as the summoner of mass destruction.

    "Make sure you don''t nuke yourself," Redfield told me, placing a hand on my shoulder before he joined the rest of the fleeing mercenaries.

    "Yeah."

    "Lilith!" Principal Porter was talking to his granddaughter, who had yet to budge. Even now, Kagutsuchi was joining Draco in distracting the two-headed dragon, the two powerful summoned beasts darting around the bigger monster like boxers in a ring, and delivering jabs and punches here and there in the forms of bites, slashes and spells. "What are you waiting for? Hurry!"

    "Sorry, Grandpa, but I''ll be staying. Richard can''t handle that monster on his own. Besides¡­I have Kagutsuchi." She smiled as she gestured toward her most powerful spirit familiar. "Once Richard launches his nuke spell, I''ll just jump on and fly the hell out of here."

    "Are you serious?" I complained. "What''s the point of you being here? You''re just going to stand to one side uselessly and watch the whole battle. It makes no difference to the plot whether you''re here or not, except to add some drama when the best heroine is dying and sees you and suddenly realizes that she can''t win against you in terms of capturing the main character''s heart¡­"

    "Oh, stuff it!" Lilith snapped. "Don''t confuse me for some useless heroine from a badly written light novel whose purpose is solely to be the damsel in distress and await the main character''s rescue for her even though she is supposed to be a quad magician capable of wielding four different elements! I mean, seriously, when her spells didn''t have any effect, what did she do? Fall to her knees helplessly and wait for the monster to kill her while going off on this longwinded dialogue about how she knows her childhood friend will arrive in time to save her¡­instead of actually taking her own initiative to run away or evade such a slow attack that takes minutes to execute! I''m not some damsel in distress needing some self-insert protagonist to rescue!"

    "I can''t argue against that," I muttered. While I wouldn''t hesitate to help Lilith if she was in trouble, I was confident that she was more than capable of taking care of herself. She didn''t need me to baby her just like all the other flat, one-dimensional heroines whose sole purpose of existence was to be added to the protagonist''s harem after he saved them, so as to assuage the male writer''s masculine ego. Sometimes I found that misogynistic, and I wasn''t even some social justice warrior arguing for women''s rights or insisting that all modern stories should be "woke" or whatever. It was just that the characterization was so blatant that even neutrals like me were turned off by it.

    While the soldiers evacuated, Lilith and I charged ahead. The blond fire mage vaulted and landed on top of Kagutsuchi, riding the kami of fire and more easily directing it to launch several fire spells in succession. As for me, I drew both Bai Ri and Hei Yue, whlle running about and blasting off several black and white spells from my two swords.

    Not that it would have any effect. Taking a deep breath, I summoned the chibi version of Green Dragon to spring a storm of razor-sharp petals at the bellowing two-headed dragon. It was still too distracted by Draco raking one of its heads with claws to pay any attention to me, but I was abl to leave a series of ragged, bloody wounds upon its limbs and belly.

    Its tail whipped out and I flipped myself over it to land safely on the opposite side. Twisting around, I channeled chibi White Tiger''s mana into Bai Ri and unleashed a tremendous lightning bolt that seared through the two-headed dragon''s legs.

    "You know¡­I''m pretty surprised by the way you''re fighting. Why aren''t you just charging in recklessly and punching the dragon with your bare hands? You have Ba Qi and physical reinforcement spells, don''t you?"

    "Aren''t you mixing me up with a flat protagonist with so-called cheat powers from a badly written light novel?!" I demanded as I ducked under one of the massive claws. Draco then barreled into the two-headed dragon, knocking it a few steps back.

    The two-headed dragon roared furiously. Its next move caught all of us by surprise. Angry red waves rippled out from its body, almost as if a shockwave, and rammed into us, knocking us over and sending us sprawling on the ground. Even Draco was battered by the sudden surge of furious crimson energies, lying on the ground, stunned. Kagutsuchi was sent careening several dozen meters away, crashing into a cluster of gnarled trees and vanishing in a splash of swamp water.

    Poor Lilith. She wwas going to curse and swear at getting drenched in the bog, of all waters.

    While I struggled to rise to my feet, I noticed someone approaching. A familiar figure, in that lovely dress and sporting long, green hair.

    "Ana!? What are you doing here?!"

    "When did she¡­?" Lilith was spluttering as she burst out of the swamp, clutching onto Kagutsuchi to stay afloat. I glanced at her.

    "You didn''t notice her at all?"

    "How would I?!" Lilith shrieked. "Do you think I''m some useless heroine who decided to stay behind and do nothing but watch the battle while not noticing that some random stranger popped out of nowhere and was walking through a very visibly empty battlefield because¡­the plot demanded it? As if I need an excuse to be displayed as even more useless than before!"

    "Chill, girl. Nobody said that." But I knew why she said that. It was all because of that damned anime adaptation. Coughing, I tried to stand, still winded from the blow earlier. Unfortunately, unlike the two-headed dragon from that bad anime adaptation, my current opponent wasn''t going to wait politely for me to recover or finish talking. Both of its heads swiveled to glare at me, their jaws opening as outrageous amounts of mana accumulated within them.

    Then twin torrents of hellfire surged toward me before I could do anything to defend myself.

 303 Chapter 303: To Slay a God

    While I helplessly lay there like an idiot, waiting for readers to condemn me as useless and weak, I could only watch the two torrents of hellfire sweep toward me. Of course, I tried to scramble to my feet and summon Scutum Sobiescianum to defend myself, but I knew I wouldn''t be able to evade in time. At the same time, my Constellation shield got blasted into bits.

    Seeing the magnitude of firepower, I realized that even Black Tortoise''s water barrier wouldn''t be able to protect me from such a powerful spell.

    Before I could fully rise to my feet, however, someone tackled me. I found myself hurled out of the way, crashing several meters away from the hellish stream. Even from that distance, I could feel the intense heat from the flames, and my skin began to blister.

    I managed to catch one final glimpse of Anastasia before she vanished in the flames. At that moment, I understood what just occurred. Ana had just saved me, shouldering me out of the way, and in doing so she ended up bearing the full brunt of the two-headed dragon''s attack.

    "Ana!" I yelled, my voice drowned out by the crackling roar of the hellfire. Not that she could hear me.

    The two-headed dragon ceased its spell. It glowered at me murderously, but before it could unleash another horrifying spell, Draco recovered and charged into it, knocking the Blood God aside. The two gigantic monsters crashed into the ground, razing another crater in the already weakened earth. Geysers of soil and clouds of dust rose from the tremendous impact.

    Leaving the two-headed dragon to Draco and Kagutsuchi, who had just gotten up to rejoin the fray, temporarily, I rushed over to Anastasia''s side even before the flames fully died down. She was lying on the ground, incredibly still in one piece and mostly unblemished. I was relieved to see that she hadn''t been completely burned to ash.

    Actually¡­aside from soot here and there, I didn''t see any signs of burns. Er¡­what was going on? Even then, Anastasia was lying motionlessly, as if she was on the verge of dying.

    Dropping to my knees, I tried to help her without aggravating her injuries.

    "Are you all right?"

    "Do I look like I''m all right?" Anastasia snapped, barely able to open her eyes, her voice a soft croak. Yeah¡­stupid question. I decided to focus on checking her for injuries, but surprisingly enough I didn''t see any wounds except¡­

    ¡­except for a small cut on her side.

    "¡­huh?"

    I stared at the cut on her side, and even though I didn''t waste any time stemming the bleeding and dressing it with emergency first-aid (no healing magic, I''m afraid), I couldn''t help but be bemused by what I had just seen.

    This made no sense whatsoever. There were no other injuries except a¡­cut. How the fuck did Anastasia get cut by the two-headed dragon''s firebreath!?

    If she had ended up a charred corpse, I would understand. If she suffered from horrendous third-degree burns all over her body, I would understand. If there was nothing left of her but ash, I would understand.

    But¡­what the hell?! A single small cut on the side of her waist? From a two-headed dragon''s firebreath? How¡­?!

    "¡­you''re kidding, right?"

    "Do I look like I''m in any condition to joke?" Anastasia snarled, wincing. Then she coughed out some blood. Seriously? How did you get internal hemorrhaging from getting roasted by the two-headed dragon''s fire spell? Could someone explain to me what the hell was going on here?

    "Is she all right?"

    Lilith had hurried over, and then she stopped when both Anastasia and I shot her a bewildered look. Crossing her arms, she scowled.

    "What? Why are the both of you looking at me like that?"

    "No, I didn''t expect you to rush over and check on Ana''s condition. I figured you would be standing uselessly some distance away, watching her die or something."

    "Yeah," Ana agreed. "Giving me a weird reason to think, ''oh, my feelings are one-sided.'' And then dramatically die just like that." she snapped her fingers.

    "What on earth are the both of you talking about?!" Lilith demanded furiously.

    "An anime adaptation based off a badly written light novel," I replied. A roar then drew my attention back to the two-headed dragon, who was busily dueling with Draco and Kagutsuchi. Gritting my teeth, I drew one of my swords and pointed it at the Blood God. "Crater!"

    A colossal cup-shaped cannon materialized in the air, its rim pointed toward the flailing two-headed dragn. Azure light began to gather within the hollow of the cup-shaped cannon, superheated plasma that swirled violently and causing the very air around the Constellation cannon to shimmer from the extreme temperatures.

    "What the hell is that?!" Lilith cried out, her jaw dropping.

    "The Constellation, Crater. It depicts a cup that belongs to Apollo¡­and hence it contains the caged fury of the sun."

    Taking a deep breath, I finished the incantation by murmuring the name of the stars in the Constellation.

    "Crateris."

    The massive plasma beam streaked from the Constellation cannon and slammed into the two-headed dragon while it was thrashing about. Both Draco and Kagutsuchi instinctively jumped away in time to avoid the devastating plasma strike, and the two-headed dragon vanished in a blinding explosion of blue-white thermal energies.

    "Is that your nuke spell?!" Lilith asked, shielding her eyes from the incredible display. I shook my head. Already Draco was gathering mana to complete his Thuban spell. As for me, I summoned Cygnus and heaved the wounded Anastasia atop the white swan.

    "No. that''s coming next. So we had better get out of here while we still can."

    Lilith hopped onto Kagutsuchi, who took off in the direction of the hovercraft. Once I made sure Anastasia was secure, I also jumped on top of Cygnus, who launched himself into the air at high speeds.

    "Hey! Be gentle! You know I''m on the verge of dying, right?"

    "¡­if you can still complain like that, you''ll be fine."

    "But I don''t understand!" Lilith shouted from several dozen meters away, Kagutsuchi swooping low in to meet us. "How did Anastasia survive that?! I know that you''re trying to parody the anime adaptation of a certain badly written light novel, but that still makes no sense! That magnitude of firepower is more than enough to raze half a city!"

    "Who says I survived it?" Anastasia retorted. When both Lilith and I merely responded with disbelieving looks, she sighed and finally relented. "All right, all right. I had cast Acid Armor on myself. That absorbed most of the blast."

    "So what''s with the bleeding?" I asked, pointing at the cut on the side of her waist. Anastasia sulked.

    "It''s to make things more dramatic, you know? A heroine who is going to die¡­so that the protagonist can start screaming, complain to a literal Deus ex Machina to get her to give him even more cheat abilities, and then get a sudden power-up and beat up the dragon."

    "If you seriously think I''m going to start ranting about cheats and beat myself up over failing to protect a person important to me, then you''ve got another thing coming." I sighed. "And as you''ve already seen, Lilith isn''t a useless heroine who just stands around and watch other characters get killed for no reason other than to contrive some sort of cheap tragedy. But that''s not the point. HOW DID YOU GET THAT BLOODY CUT!?"

    "Because plot. Because the author said so. How would I know?!"

    I give up. As long as Ana was all right, I couldn''t care less how she survived, even with such a ridiculously sustained wound from out of nowhere. Still, that must be one hell of an Acid Armor if it could protect her from such hellish flames. Perhaps my Scutum Sobiescianum absorbed most of the blast before the spillover engulfed her, reducing the damage further. Fortunately, it seemed that the bleeding had stopped, especially since it didn''t hit any vitals, and Ana was rapidly recovering. If there were any more damage, we could get them treated once we caught up with the Silver Wolves mercenaries and have a medic look at her.

    Behind, the two-headed dragon emerged from a molten crater, surrounded by glowing magma. Its body continued to smolder intensely. Even if it was a Blood God, it still couldn''t avoid taking damage from a plasma cannon. Unleashing the caged fury of a star was not something one could simply shrug off. If it had been any other monster¡­perhaps even a rank A Behemoth type, it might have disintegrated under the plasma bombardment.

    Yet, another spell of mass destruction added onto my list. A smaller scale one, thankfully.

    However, Draco wasn''t going to wait. He unleashed his Thuban the moment the two-headed Dragon took a step forward and spread its wings. The black torrent of calamitous energies struck the two-headed dragon and detonated in a catastrophic explosion that wiped out the entire site from the face of the earth. Even the sinkhole that the Blood God created while trying to claw his way out to our dimension couldn''t compare.

    An entire segment of the Black Underworld Swamp, about five miles in radius, was literally gone. Just like that. Even as Cygnus and Kagutsuchi flew in pursuit of the fleeing Silver Wolves hovercrafts, a massive mushroom cloud blossomed up toward the sky, throwing up blazing embers. None of them were radioactive, thankfully.

    "Amazing," Anastasia breathed. She had laid low for most of the flight, and I forced her to stay down and not look in the direction of the blast. Of course¡­even with the protective filters that darkened to protect my eyes, I might still have gone blind from looking directly at the pseudo nuclear explosion. Lilith was intelligent enough to wait for the mushroom cloud to billow upward and for the terrifying lights to fade before she dared to look back. So I didn''t have to worry about her.

    "You¡­annihilated everything."

    "Let me see!" Anastasia was eager to look as well, and she clambered over Cygnus''s back to stare at what remained of the tomb site and the ravaged Black Underworld Swamp. A crater almost ten miles in diameter had been blasted into the earth. If there was a tomb or temple there, it now certainly ceased to exist because of my extreme measures. Ana''s voice glowed with admiration and disbelief. "Incredible! You¡­you actually slew a god!"

    "Uh, I''m not even sure if that thing was a god, to be honest." I shrugged. This wasn''t the forty-first millennium, and I highly doubted if the two-headed dragon was some primordial entity of Chaos. A Blood God he might have claimed to be, but in the end, he was just another monster. Otherwise he would be destroyed by copyright, which would have resulted in his demise either way. Might as well take credit for slaying him.

    Lilith shook her head. "You''re crazy, you know that?"

    "Only a thin line separates genius from insanity," I responded. Then I nudged Cygnus mentally to have him speed up a little. The hovercrafts were within view right now.

    Upon seeing us, the ramps to the back hovercraft lowered, allowing the three of us to jump in. Lilith went first, diving into the interior of the hovercraft. I scooped up the wounded Anastasia despite her protests, and leaped inside the hovercraft as well. Outside, Cygnus and Kagutsichi circled one final time before they disappeared, returning to whatever dimensional soul space they dwelled in before Lilith and I summoned thme.

    Needless to say, I had dismissed Draco beforehand, before he could get consumed by his own nuke spell and get obliterated like the Blood God. Speaking of which, if Liu or any of the Blood Slaughter Sect people were around, I wouldn''t be able to resist taunting them, "Where is your god now, huh?"

    Too bad they were all dead.

    "Little Lilith!"

    Principal Porter was so relieved that he crushed his granddaughter in an embrace, despite her embarrassment. Lilith squirmed and struggled to escape, but to no avail.

    "Grandpa! Let go!"

    "Never!"

    "Oh, come on!" Lilith whined, her face reddening when she realized that everyone was watching her, taking amusement in her plight. "I''m not a kid anymore! I''m a combat mage, you know?! One of the most powerful among my generation! You don''t have to worry about me! I''ll definitely be all right!"

    "What grandfather wouldn''t worry about his granddaughter?" Henry Porter shot back. "Don''t get me wrong. I know how capable and powerful you are. But that opponent is on a whole different level! Of course I would be concerned!"

    "Ugh¡­it''s so embarrassing!" Lilith moaned, visibly wishing that she could disappear into a hole somewhere.

    While she flailed around, I hurried toward the nearest squad. There were about fifty or so mercenaries cramped into what was fortunately a wide and spacious passenger bay, and they had leaped out of their safety harnesses the moment they saw one of their comrades being ferried over, looking feeble and all that.

    "Miss Anastasia!"

    "Medic!" I shouted. "Someone, get a medic!"

    "Here, coming through!"

    To my immense relief, a healing mage hurried over, hastily conjuring his mana for a healing spell. He nodded toward me and gestured for me to put Anastasia down so that he could begin treating her. I complied without question.

    "Good work, kid. Leave the rest to us."

    While he worked on Ana, and the rest of the mercenaries gathered to watch, I found myself a seat in the passenger bay. The first wave of exhaustion hit me, and I almost crashed to my knees. Evidently I had expended way too much mana with all that summoning and spells of mass destruction. Closing my eyes, I sank into a leather chair¡­

    ¡­and instantly fell into a deep sleep.

 304 Chapter 304: The Fall of Troy

    "You know, if Troy is taking part in the national tournament, we might just get first place."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was commenting while we strolled through the school courtyard. Most of the students were busily hurrying about, rushing from classroom to classroom. Many of them were hoping to get involved in the tournament in one way or another, but only ten students had been selected for it. The same ten who attended the exchange session with Vermillion Academy a few weeks ago.

    Well, if Troy made it back, he might just nudge one of us out of the list. As the number one student in Jing Tian Academy, he would be our trump card. Unfortunately, he tended to take missions that kept him out of school for months at a time, completely out of communication. Fortunately, he always returned, so I wasn''t concerned about him ignominiously dying in some random place. If anything, he had even more plot armor than me.

    After all, he was a character who was based off a protagonist that my friend had created for his own Black Roses story (which I doubt my friend would ever get around to writing ¨C not his fault, though. As a lawyer, he was always super-busy and had no time to write). That friend had no time to read this story, so I doubted that he would care if I arbitrarily killed Troy off, but I was unlikely to risk it. Except that the title of this chapter sounded pretty ominous¡­

    Nah, that won''t happen. I wouldn''t risk offending my friend (even though he didn''t read my story), right?

    "How does it feel? Are you nervous?"

    Yue Chu mistook my silence for worry, and I shook my head.

    "No, just thinking stupid stuff and breaking the fourth wall as usual."

    "¡­huh?" Yue Chu stared at me blankly for a moment, then shook his head, interpreting my cryptic remark as a joke. "Anyway, you''re the one closest to him. Any clue as to where he''s at? Perhaps you can try and call him back?"

    "I''m afraid I don''t." I shook my head again, displaying a little of my bitterness. "The last time I heard from him, he was chasing after his brother, Tyrant King. That bastard went and wiped out an entire city with a bioweapon or something¡­"

    Yue Chu shuddered. Even he had heard of the atrocities that Tyrant King had committed. The authorities of the Federation were still trying to track him down, and I had learned that he had links to the Dark Church, so I naturally hoped that Troy would bring him to justice. Maybe kill him. While I usually didn''t condone killing, I knew that Tyrant was one of those rare few homicidal psychopaths who were too dangerous to be allowed to live. The guy was perfectly capable of escaping a maximum security prison and leaving a trail of corpses in his wake while laughing to the next site of his chosen victims. And this was assuming he was being held there while awaiting execution after being sentenced to death.

    In other words, he was somebody who should be killed on sight.

    "Still¡­if we can help him deal with his brother, and bring him back just in time for the tournament, that would help our chances of winning the championship greatly." It would be a small challenge to integrate Troy into our team and coach him on how to coordinate and work together, but his immense abilities and pure strength were more than worth it.

    Unfortunately, ideals did not always coincide with reality, and it appeared that Troy wasn''t going to make it in time for the national tournament next week.

    "Hey, guys!" Harrison Reed called out before he joined us. "We should have a meeting soon to discuss the tournament. If I''m not mistaken, there are over 500 teams participating in the national tournament this year. It''ll be divided into qualifiers and the main event. I''m not sure what the qualifier is about, but with the emphasis on teamwork, we''ve been informed that it will be a team event. As for the main tournament, it seems like it''ll be hosted in Southampton City this year."

    Wasn''t that the city that Cecilia Stuart lived in? Interesting. Apparently we would head there to be briefed on the qualifiers before being sent out once again. Then the teams who made it through the qualifiers would then return to Southampton City for the final event.

    "Anyway, I also wish to look through the list of top candidates and teams¡­the most highly rated mages of our generation who will be participating in this tournament."

    "What''s the use?" I grumbled. "Other than the ones we already know, such as Cecilia, Kureha and Lilith, the rest are just random characters who we''ve never heard of before, and wouldn''t matter anyway because the readers wouldn''t remember them. I don''t think the readers will be happy to read a bunch of info dump right now. And after hyping them up to be this powerful opponent, all that hype would be meaningless when we crush them like the cannon fodder they really are. You can hype them all you want, write an entire dossier on their past, techniques, etc., but all that matters is we beat them to reach all the way to the finals. Then these poor bastards cease to matter anymore."

    "What¡­?" Harrison was gaping at me. Then he scowled. "Don''t be ridiculous. You think you can beat them if you don''t research on your potential opponents and develop countermeasures and tactics against them? We have to prepare."

    "Oh, sure." I nodded sagely. "You are right. What I''m trying to say is that we should do all that preparation and info dump off screen. Instead of, you know, boring readers with info dump. We don''t want to end up like Battle Frenzy now, do we? So let''s transition to black screen now, do a time skip, and then return to the story after all that briefing¡­"

    Unfortunately, we never had the chance to get a black screen or time skip, because my cell phone buzzed at that moment.

    "Sorry, got to take this call."

    I left behind a gaping Harrison and Yue Chu to answer the call at the side of the pathway. Fortunately, the both of them were polite enough to grant me some privacy, and I proceeded to swipe at the green icon.

    Troy''s face appeared in the video call. He stared at me, and surprisingly enough, he looked quite shaken. Behind him, explosions were blossoming, and my jaw dropped when I saw an entire building collapsed. Even in the poor resolution, I could actually make out poor civilians tumbling to death from the disintegrating structure.

    "Troy? What''s going on?! What happened?"

    "It''s bad," my dark-skinned friend replied. "Real bad. Everything''s gone to hell here."

    "Wait, what? Slow down. Where is there? And what''s going on!?"

    Troy took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. He stared at me with his chocolate-brown eyes.

    "I tracked down my brother. Tyrant was hiding out in this city, called¡­Troy. As we suspected, he has ties to the Dark Church, and they unleashed a living bioweapon on it¡­everything''s gone to hell. Everyone is dying¡­"

    Another explosion drowned out his voice. Troy glanced at something off screen, but the dust billowing from the side told me that another building had just toppled over. Perspiration welled up on his face.

    "I never thought I would say this, but¡­I need help. I have requested for reinforcements from the academy¡­from the authorities, but even they aren''t enough. I need you, Richie. You''re probably the only one who can stop this."

    "What¡­? How?"

    I shook my head, still unable to digest what was occurring. Troy wiped the sweat from his brow and glanced off screen again.

    "You have those nuke spells, don''t you? I need those. We need to sterilize the whole city before they get out. Before they contaminate the rest of the Federation." He exhaled heavily. "I know it sounds crazy. But if we don''t resort to drastic measures¡­"

    "Wait, what are they? What will get out and contaminate the Federation?"

    "Mutated monsters." Troy looked grim. "I''m not sure what exactly my fucking brother did, but he developed some sort of virus in conjunction with the Dark Church. They have been running all sorts of experiments here. Drove the monsters in the Lake of Rage ¨C that''s the name of the lake right outside Troy ¨C insane, mutate or evolved them from rank F Magic Carps to¡­rank A Gyaragon. I don''t know how they did it, but they engineered some sort of virus that drove the monsters berserk, and caused them to mutate¡­to evolve¡­and then they unleashed them upon the city."

    An inhuman howl burst from off screen somewhere. Troy nervously glanced in another direction. I had never seen him so frightened before.

    "Listen, bro. I''m asking you to take off and nuke the site from orbit. It''s the only way to be sure."

    In the grainy video, I caught sight of a Federation soldier running across the road, flailing helplessly and shrieking.

    "Game over, man! Game over! What the fuck are we going to do now?! What are we gonna do?!"

    Troy turned on him, his eyes narrowed and spittle flying from his mouth in rage. "Maybe we can build a fire, sing a couple of songs, huh? Why don''t we try that?"

    "We better get back, because it will be dark soon. And they mostly come at night. Mostly."

    A young girl showed up of nowhere, whispering cryptically. Troy reached down to pat her head, and then returned to resume his conversation with me.

    Oh boy. Things were looking pretty dire right now. Especially when Troy was ripping off lines from a sci-fi movie he had never watched in his life. I suddenly realized that the chapter title was bait. It wasn''t referring to Troy King''s death. It was quite literally referring to the fall of the city named Troy. Sorry, dear readers. I couldn''t resist trolling you.

    However, that might all change if I actually went ahead with Troy''s request and enact Exterminatus.

    "I''m not going to nuke the city when you''re still inside it!" I protested hotly.

    "Oh¡­I would appreciate it if you wait until I get out of the city first." Troy smiled weakly, but I could tell that the expression of bleak levity was forced. "Right now, I''m currently helping out with evacuations. What few surviving soldiers left in the city are trying to round up civilians and fight their way out to safety. I''m going to link up with them¡­" he glanced at the raving soldier and grimaced. "¡­and save as many lives as we can. Then¡­if possible, I''m going to settle this with Tyrant once and for all."

    He then squeezed the little girl''s shoulder.

    "Don''t worry, kid. I swear I''ll get you out of here."

    The girl didn''t seem to believe a word he said. Her expression looked haunted, and her eyes bore a resigned detachment that no child her age should ever have. She must have seen a lot of terrifying things, to be traumatized and forced to grow up beyond her years. She knew as well as Troy that he was making empty promises.

    However, I refused to leave Troy to his fate. Troy and all the soldiers and civilians still in Troy City. Taking a deep breath, I immediately began trotting toward the school gate, getting ready to depart. Calling up a secondary screen, I googled Troy City and searched for directions. Looked like the fastest way was to fly there on Cygnus or Aquila¡­

    "I''ll be there in a few hours, tops," I assured him. I also had to send an email to the principal and explain my sudden leave of absence. Probably send him a recorded message of this video call as evidence. I could do that on my way there, but I needed to hurry.

    "I''ll be coming with you."

    To my surprise, Harrison jogged up to me. He was joined by Theodore, who nodded grimly.

    "Sounds like you need help."

    "Were you guys eavesdropping on my conversation?" I scowled, even though this wasn''t the time to be outraged at their invasion of my privacy.

    "Well¡­we all received a notification from the mission center." Yue Chu raised his smartphone sheepishly. "So we roughly knew what was going on. We just pieced them together when we caught snippets of your conversation with Troy."

    "Yeah. If our schoolmate is in danger, we''ll all chip in to help." Harrison sounded determined. Then he grinned and winked at me. "And like you said, if we help Troy deal with his brother, we might all make it in time to bring him back for the tournament."

    "That''s right." I couldn''t help but smile back. "We''re all going to return here safely. Without leaving a single person behind."

    Ironically, I never thought Harrison would be so proactive in helping out. After all, the character he was based off originally was some treacherous antagonist who treated Wang Zhong as trash, gave his vice-president an opportunity to kill him and his society, and then used his connections to get into an elite school (one wondered why he didn''t bother to enroll in that school in the first place instead of the supposedly low-ranked and "trash" Tian Jing College), only to convince the students of that so-called "elite" school to ambush and outright murder Wang Zhong and the Tian Jing College students (why were these kids'' minds full of nothing but murder and killing? What were they, psychopaths?). it was refreshing to see what was potentially a rival act decently for once, behaving like any normal schoolmate would do, and offering his help instead of scheming and plotting behind the protagonist''s back and holding a grudge for no reason other than because the protagonist was "trash" (seriously, Wang Zhong did absolutely nothing to offend Reed, yet he for some reason harbored some homicidal desire to kill the dude¡­like, why? That made no sense whatsoever).

    Putting aside badly written villains and poorly developed antagonists for the moment, I took a deep breath and smiled gratefully.

    "Thanks, guys. I really appreciate this. I''m sure Troy does too."

    "Hey, what are friends for, right?" Yue Chu responded with a grin.

    "That''s right." Theodore nodded and thumped his chest. "One for all, all for one."

    "As the team captain, I''m going to ensure all of us return home safely and alive¡­no matter the cost," Harrison vowed determinedly. "Let''s do this!"

    "YEAH!"

    All four of us raised our hands and bumped our fists, and then we strode out of the school gate resolutely, every one of us inwardly resolving to to pull our friend out of the proverbial fire.

 305 Chapter 305: Backup

    We didn''t get very far before we were stopped by a group of people.

    I was about to summon Cygnus, Aquila and Pegasus to help fery the four of us from Jing Tian City to Troy (both the city and my friend himself), but unexpectedly a huge truck pulled up before us. It was a military-styled five-tonner, the kind I used to see back when I was serving mandatory national service in my previous life.

    Except that it had hover-jets instead of wheels¡­because, well, this was one thousand years into the future, and people love hover-vehicles in futuristic sci-fi settings.

    A lady in the passenger seat poked her head out of the window and waved at us.

    "You guys are Troy''s friends, aren''t you?" she called out. "Hop on! We''re gong to Troy City right now!"

    "Kureha?" my jaw dropped when I realized that I recognized the fair-haired girl. The Sword Saint of the Franklin family waved in a friendly manner.

    "The one and only," she joked. Somehow I doubted it, for I knew of mages stronger than her, but she was certainly among the most elite in our generation.

    "Miss Kureha?" Harrison bowed his head humbly. "It''s an honor."

    "Yeah, yeah. Now get on. We don''t have time to waste."

    While we scrambled onto the back of the truck and strapped ourselves with the seatbelts on the bench, Dong Fang Yue Chu couldn''t help but ask.

    "Eh? You know what''s going on?"

    "We received Troy''s request for help," Kureha replied, her head still sticking out of the window. For now. The moment we took off, she was going to pull back in. "I owe him a favor, so I''m paying back my debt. We''re gathering whatever forces we can to help him! The Federation military is also mobilizing an entire regiment to evacuate the city."

    "Not put down the monsters there?" Harrison asked. Kureha shook her head, then raised her smartphone, which displayed a small holographic screen.

    "You''ve read the mission directives, right? There are way too much to try and exterminate. We''re doing a hard contain, and then we''re going to sterilize the area with a strategic-scale spell."

    She glanced at me at that last sentence, and then withdrew back into the passenger compartment.

    "Well, that''s quite the change," Theodore remarked, puzzled. "Normally the military would do their best to exterminate the monsters and preserve as much of the city as possible, like what they did with our Jing Tian City."

    "That virus thing must have scared them more than we realized," Harrison agreed.

    "Eh? What virus thing?" Yue Chu shuddered. "Doesn''t that mean we''ll all get infected?"

    "Reading the briefing, it seems that humans aren''t affected by the virus. It''s not airborne anyway, it''s something that''s fed directly into the monsters, something for them to ingest. Or inject directly into their blood circulatory system. But it doesn''t affect humans, for one reason or another¡­meaning it''s an engineered virus."

    "It''s manufactured by Tyrant King and the Dark Church," I confirmed, recalling what Troy had told me. Harrison nodded gratefully.

    "Yeah. And it seems there are no¡­harmful effects, even if it does affect humans. It causes a significant boost in magic power and physical strength. It allows low-ranking monsters to evolve. The worry is that if these monsters escape, they''ll spread the virus¡­especially if they get ingested by high-ranking monsters."

    "Seems like the Porter family has mobilized to take care of the Lake of Rage," Theodore noted, consulting his own holographic screen. I scrolled through my smartphone and caught sight of the news.

    "Hmm, interesting." This time, they had hired the Hell Hounds instead of the Silver Wolves, another well-known mercenary unit in the Inner Sphere¡­I mean the Federation. They had already left for the Lake of Rage earlier, preparing to quarantine it and exterminate the monsters there. There was a single statement talking about how the Holy Maiden and daughter of the Porter clan was personally participating in the mission.

    In other words, Lilith. Well, she had Kagutsuchi, so I had no doubt she would be able to turn the lake into a boiling cauldron and incinerate the poor monsters dwelling within it. She just needed the mercenaries to buy her enough time to distract the rank A monsters and keep them at bay.

    ¡­yeah, easier said than done. Given how powerful a single rank A monster was, never mind an entire horde, I didn''t know how those poor mercenaries were going to pull it off. A single rank A monster was enough to annihilate a whole city on its own, and now we have an entire swarm to deal with! The good news was that the rank A Gyaragons were too busily fighting and tearing into each other to bother with the puny humans.

    Apparently, whatever virus had triggered their evolution had driven them insane, and caused them to descend into a murderous frenzy. They were killing each other, bathing the once clear waters of the lake red with their blood. According to the video I was watching, anyway. Perhaps the mercenaries and Lilith would be able to make use of that. Furthermore, given how they were only just recently evolved, they probably had no idea how to make full use of their new abilities and magic. Yet.

    Meaning now was the best time to slaughter the whole lot of them before they left the lake and endanger the whole of the Federation, or humanity¡­eventually.

    Grimacing at the bloodbath, I was about to close the holographic video when I received another incoming call.

    "Antonia?"

    It was Troy''s girlfriend. She was looking extremely worried, sweat plastered across her pale face.

    "Richard? Thank God¡­I finally got through."

    What do you mean, finally got through? I didn''t block any calls or switch off my phone. I was pretty sure this was her first attempt to contact me, but I obviously couldn''t be bothered to argue, so I nodded.

    "What''s up?"

    "Did you receive the news regarding Troy?"

    I nodded. "Yeah, we''re going over to reinforce him now."

    "Thank God!" Antonia was almost weeping in relief. "Thank you so much¡­please¡­please, I''m begging you, bring Troy back. I know he is extremely strong, but¡­he has been so reckless recently. Especially when it comes to his brother. Please¡­make sure you bring him back alive."

    "I''ll do my best," I told her. "That''s why we''re all going there now."

    Antonia straightened up and nodded. "Yeah, you too. Make sure you don''t put yourself in danger as well. I''ve heard a lot about Tyrant, and¡­" she swallowed. "He terrifies me. Troy has convinced himself that he has to stop his brother at all costs, and I''m worried that he might do something stupid."

    "Troy is smart. He won''t¡­"

    "So please¡­" Antonia cut me off. "When you reach him, hold him back for me. Bring him back to me safely. Okay?"

    "I''ll do my best." I took a deep breath and steeled myself. "We plan to all come back together, safe and sound. We still need Troy to participate in the tournament with us¡­to lead our team to victory. We aren''t going to let him die ignominiously in some random city that''s named after him for some reason."

    "Thank you." Antonia sighed in relief. "Not just Troy¡­I want all of you to return safely too, okay?"

    "We''ll do our best." I offered her an encouraging grin. "I''ll let you know once we get back¡­or rather, I''ll have Troy call you himself."

    Antonia forced a smile. "I''ll see you guys later then."

    "Yeah. See you."

    Switching off the video call, I raised my head to look at my friends. Harrison was already pondering deeply over a holographic map. Clearly he was coming up with some strategy. That was his department, not mine, so I was going to rely on him. That was what friends were for. I couldn''t do everything by myself. I had my own role to play, and I was sure Harrison was considering what that role would be, along with those of Yue Chu''s, Theodore''s and his own.

    "¡­so what''s the plan, Harrison?"

    He glanced up and smiled grimly.

    "Not much, but this is what I have for now¡­"

    *

    As the famous Helmuth von Moltke the Elder once said, no battle plan survives contact with the enemy. Or more specifically, no plan of operations extends with any certainty beyond the first contact with the main hostile force.

    "!!"

    The flying five-tonner truck suddenly veered off course when something blasted at it. From our vantage point, we could see a colossal beam of golden destructive energy piercing through the heavens. It originated from the gaping maw of one of the gargantuan Gyaragon that was now thrashing about in a lake near the city.

    "Hyper Beam!" Harrison gasped. He was well aware of how destructive the attack was, able to pierce through several buildings and demolish them instantly. If that Hyper Beam spell had been unleashed within the city itself¡­

    "Why does that name sound so familiar?" Theodore rumbled, scratching his head in puzzlement.

    "Never heard of Sword and Shield, the latest iteration?" Yue Chu teased him, but the big guy still didn''t get it. I didn''t get the chance to break the fourth wall because one of the Gyaragon chose that moment to rear up and lunge at the flying truck.

    A third Gyaragon released a highly pressurized torrent of water at us ¨C I might as well drop all pretense and name it Hydro Pump ¨C forcing the driver to desperately undertake evasive maneuvers.

    "Buckle in, everyone!" Kureha''s voice, magically amplified by a spell, emanated from the front compartment. "We''re going to make a forced landing!"

    "Try not to land too far away, we''ll start preparing our spells." As always, Harrison was calm and collected, already planning ahead for the incoming engagement. I shared his concern. If the truck went out of control and crashed more than a hundred meters away from this position, our spells would be reset and we had to cast them from scratch all over again.

    Against rank A Gyaragons, we would need our more advanced spells. Of course, it wasn''t the end of the world if we didn''t get to cast them. We just needed to delay them, but we might as well make use of whatever advantage we could get to make our lives easier.

    "So much for landing in the city and immediately helping out with the evacuation, huh?" Yue Chu sounded bitter that we had to deviate from our original plan. Part of it was because we would have to complete the rest of the journey on foot while still being under fire from rank A Gyaragons. That also meant exhausting a significant amount of our mana before we even began our main mission.

    "What happened to Lilith and the Hell Hounds?" I wondered out loud, feeling a little worry. They were supposed to be dealing with the Gyaragons. Did they already get wiped out? That couldn''t be good.

    As if to answer my question, a tremendous pillar of flames burst through the air, breaking through the heavens as if the Flame Emperor himself had arrived to unleash his essence fires or whatever. The truth was a bit more mundane (because we didn''t want Tian Can Tu Dou to sue us) or more spectacular, depending on which side of the fence you were on. The massive, white figure of Kagutsuchi reared up, flapping its gigantic wings of fire, and unleashed torrents of divine flames upon Gyaragon after Gyaragon, incinerating them.

    Or trying to, anyway. Being rank A monsters, they were much more tenacious than other monsters. Despite Kagutsuchi''s attempts, only one or two charred corpses of Gyaragon were floating motionlessly on the blood-red waters.

    I watched the battle in awe from the exposed space at the back of the truck. The gleaming blue serpentine water dragons writhed in a swarm, sending tsunamis splashing across the shore as they reared up to bare their fangs at the kami of fire.

    An entire swarm of Gyaragons.

    I recognized the Behemoth-class monsters. They were Gyaragons, colossal monsters notorious for their vicious tempers and merciless rampages. Able to wield the element of water, they were usually more famous for their signature attack, Hyper Beam. The single destructive beam of golden light that they fired from their jaws, which was capable of leveling a skyscraper ¨C and the very same one that forced our driver to dodge earlier to avoid annihilation. They were classified as dragons, their faces reminding me of the ancient oriental dragons that ruled the seas and called upon storms and thunder.

    Roaring, one of the ferocious serpent-like Gyaragon reared its massive head over the crashing waves of the lake to glare at us. Another Hyper Beam surged toward us, but the driver banked hard to the right while ducking under another Gyaragon that snapped at us with its terrifying jaws. The driver wisely did not try to ram the Behemoth with his relatively unarmored truck. With sapphire scales as hard as steel and teeth that could crush boulders, a single Gyaragon was capable of demolishing cities in a fit of rage.

    And there were so many of them.

    "Brace for impact!" the driver shouted. Even amidst the noise, and his words muffled from behind the driver compartment, we could still somehow hear him. Magic, I suppose. In any event, the four of us maximized our physical reinforcement spells and steeled ourselves.

    There was a crunching thud, and we were almost flung out of our seats. Fortunately, our seatbelts restrained us, fighting against the forces of gravity to ensure our safety. We crashed back against the cushioned seats, grunting, but didn''t suffer any injury worse than a few bruises and maybe several scrapes.

    And just like that, the crash ended. As the truck skidded to a stop, no doubt gouging a large tunnel in its wake, the only sounds we could hear were our own breathing, and the blood rushing in our ears. Calming our thumping hearts, the four of us looked at each other, wide-eyed, and then raised shaky hands to check for any injuries, and also to unfasten the seatbelts that had no doubt saved our lives. Even with physical reinforcement spells, we might have smashed our skulls if we were thrown about with such tremendous forces.

    This is why, ladies and gentlemen, you should always fasten your seatbelts when traveling in a vehicle. They truly saved lives.

    "Everyone okay?" Harrison asked hoarsely. Too numb and shocked to speak, I nodded. This wasn''t the first time I was in an accident ¨C I remembered when the land rover I was a passenger in crashed when I was back in the military ¨C and now the same numbing shock was spreading toward me. As if I couldn''t believe what had just happened¡­my mind still unable to comprehend that I had just survived a crash. Everything was so detached, and I felt as if I was watching the whole event unfold from a separate, disembodied perspective.

    Theodore and Yue Chu staggered from their seats, mumbling incoherent affirmations. The four of us then stumbled out of the tonner, vaulting over the hatch and landing on ruined soil. The truck had done quite a lot damage to the earth.

    "You guys okay?" Kureha had already hopped out of the passenger seat, and she was helping the driver, who looked dazed. Blood was streaming down his forehead. Despite his seatbelt, he had been flung into his steering wheel, which explained his injury. Probably a bad concussion, but at least he was still alive.

    If he hadn''t strapped in, he would have literally flown through the windshield and ended up a bloody pulp against one of the trees several dozen meters in front of the truck. Good thing our tonner didn''t crash into those trees.

    A roar drew our attention back to the present, reminding us that we basically did a hot drop into the middle of a battlefield. A blue Gyaragon had crawled up to our position, its maw yawning to unleash another devastating Hyper Beam in our direction¡­

 306 Chapter 306: Lake of Rage

    "Scutum Sobiescianum!" I shouted, conjuring the Constellation shield immediately. There was no time to summon Black Tortoise ¨C we hadn''t been hovering in the air for the five minutes I required to summon a Celestial Guardian, especially when we kept moving from place to place and getting out of the hundred meter restriction. Despite that, I knew that Scutum Sobiescianum wouldn''t be enough to withstand such a powerful attack.

    "Fire Wall!"

    Fortunately, Dong Fang Yue Chu joined in as well, conjuring a barrier of flames between us and the Gyaragon.

    "Light Screen!"

    Everyone turned to stare at Theodore Hammond, who constructed a wall of electricity as well, to reinforce our defenses. Someone had evidently been playing too much Pokemon, despite his claim that he had never heard of Hyper Beam or the latest Sword and Shield.

    "Holy Strength!" Harrison Reed shouted as he leaped forward, casting a spell to buff our defenses. Unlike the rest of us, Harrison''s spell didn''t manifest in the form of a solid defense, but actually served to enhance the durability and endurance of our defensive spells.

    With triple barriers between us and our assailant, buffed to insane levels, I hoped that they would be enough.

    The Gyaragon unleashed its Hyper Beam, which instantly smashed through Theodore''s Light Screen in under five seconds, the transparent lightning barrier shattering as it gave way under the colossal force. Next was Dong Fang Yue Chu''s fire wall, which managed to hold strong for another ten seconds. The four of us watched with bated breath as a significant amount of the Hyper Beam dissipated, expending itself ferociously against the fire wall.

    Then Yue Chu''s fire wall was extinguished and the remnants of the Hyper Beam continued to hurtle forward. Even when spent, the Hyper Beam was still a devastating attack. Mind you, we were trying to defend against an attack that could literally tear large swathes through cities with our flimsy defensive spells, so it wasn''t as if we were weak and pathetic, no matter how much some readers would like you to believe.

    The Hyper Beam then collided against my Scutum Sobiescianum. Even when reinforced by Harrison''s Holy Strength, the Constellation shield was still nearly unable to withstand the violent spell ¨C and take note that this was after the Hyper Beam had already wasted enormous amounts of destructive energy against Theodore''s Light Screen and Yue Chu''s fire wall. If I had been trying to defend against the attack by myself, I would have failed miserably and ended up obliterated by the furious assault.

    Of course, there was the option to evade, but the four of us knew that we wouldn''t be able to dodge such a massive attack in time. We would get caught in its wake even before we could scramble out of its range. Not to mention, the Gyaragon could simply twist its head around and continued tracking us with its Hyper Beam even as we ran.

    So the only method left was to defend against it. And we were struggling immensely¡­

    "Damn it!"

    Scutum Sobiescianum was shattering, falling apart against the volatile mana used to cast Hyper Beam. The colossal golden blast was disintegrating my enhanced Constellation shield bit by bit, square centimeter by square centimeter. Honestly, if Harrison hadn''t buffed my summoned shield with his Holy Strength, it would have broken instantly under the furious onslaught.

    "GUAAAAAH!" I roared, pouring as much mana into Scutum Sobiescianum as possible. The last fragments of the shield continued to crumble under the irresistible advance, and several rays of destructive golden energies leaked past, but managed to harmlessly dissipate before they could reach us. Then Scutum Sobiescianum shattered completely, shards of the Constellation shield flying out in multiple directions and vanishing into nothingness.

    Fortunately, by then, the Hyper Beam had expended itself totally. The Gyaragon glowered at us hatefully, but fortunately it had to recharge before it could unleash a second Hyber Beam in succession. For the time being, it wouldn''t be able to attack. Essentially we had a free turn to counterattack¡­

    ¡­if we weren''t so exhausted after defending against its ferocious spell.

    Luckily, we weren''t the only ones on scene.

    Kureha Franklin slashed at the Gyaragon while its attention was still focused on us. Her sword glowed silver and she managed to almost decapitate it, a geyser of blood spurting from its neck. The Gyaragon bellowed in agony and turned around to face her, its jaws widening to swallow her up. Kureha dove to the side, her sword coming up as she parried its fangs and was thrown to the side.

    By now, the rest of us had recovered. Harrison cast his Holy Judgement spell and blasted the snaking Gyaragon while it was still pursuing the Sword Saint. His spell actually tore through the Gyaragon''s steel-hard scales and ruptured its insides, causing blood to pour out. Snarling the Gyaragon turned to face him, but Theodore descended from above and slammed his Thunder Hammer against its head. Lightning exploded and the Gyaragon fell back, smoldering as electricity danced across its body. Oh, right. Weren''t Gyaragons weak to lightning attacks and the metal element?

    This was good.

    Growling, the Gyaragon tried to lash out and knock Theodore away, but the big guy managed to vault over its snaking head and land on his feet. The Gyaragon bore down on him, only for Kureha to intervene and strike at its throat. More blood gushed out as her incredibly sharp blade cut through sapphire scales that were supposed to be as hard as metal.

    Few people in our generation could hurt a rank A Behemoth-type monster with just a sword. Kureha must have mastered the pinnacle of Armament Ba Qi in order to execute such powerful moves.

    However, as skilled as she was, even Kureha was not invincible. The Gyaragon twisted around to crunch her with its fangs, forcing her to deflect it away and withdraw hastily. She bounced several steps back and unleashed a silver blast from her sword, knocking it back. Theodore then smashed his hammer against the Gyaragon''s head, snapping it back.

    "GRRR!"

    Roaring, the Gyaragon unleashed several twisters that spun wildly around it. Its demonic aura swirled and twisted into mini-tornados that ravaged the surroundings, forcing both Theodore and Kureha back.

    Then it charged through its own twisters to seize the two melee combatants.

    "Oh no, you don''t!"

    Hollering, Yue Chu conjured a gigantic inferno that bathed the Gyaragon. Shrieking, the rank A monster fell back. I realized that it wasn''t just Yue Chu who was casting the spell. Harrison had added his own buffs by augmenting the fire spell with the divine element, amplifying the damage it could cause to monsters.

    Even when hurt so badly, the Gyaragon was still not dead. Bellowing, it reared up and slithered toward us, its jaws glowing as it gathered mana for another Hyper Beam.

    It never got to fire off its spell.

    White Tiger descended from above and smashed its head to the ground with a single paw. Growling, he electrocuted the Gyaragon incessantly, sending waves after waves of lethal electricity through its convulsing body. Theodore seized the chance to join in, swinging his thunder hammer and cracking the Gyaragon''s skull again and again.

    Meanwhile, Kureha was standing off to the side, muttering an incantation. Tremendous amounts of mana flowed and coalesced around the blade of her sword, almost making it seem as if it had grown several hundred times. Once she completed her spell, she opened her honey-brown eyes.

    Both Theodore and White Tiger retreated instinctively, as if understanding her intentions. Kureha swung her sword down and decapitated the Gyaragon in a single strike.

    "¡­phew¡­"

    Yue Chu wiped the perspiration off his brow as he watched the disembodied head bounce away. He shook his head and brought up a hand to incinerate the corpse. If this monster had been contaminated by a virus, which was spread through ingestion, then we couldn''t leave any remains behind for other monsters to devour, or the mutation would disperse beyond the Lake of Rage, and beyond Troy City.

    "GUOOOH!"

    We turned to glance at the other Gyaragons, who were still mired in a bloodthirsty frenzy inside the Lake of Rage, either tearing into each other or fighting against what seemed like a large group of mages.

    The Hell Hounds.

    They were being led by a familiar figure, who was directing an enormous white dragon with wings of fire to immolate nearby Gyaragons with divine fire. Lilith was leading the assault, attempting to destroy the rank A monsters, but she was evidently having difficulty doing so, even when backed up by so many elite mercenaries.

    It was only natural. These were the highest-ranked monsters we were talking about here. Glancing at each other, we then wordlessly reached an agreement and hurried over to see what we could do to help.

    "You guys!"

    Lilith could hardly spare us a glance as we reached her. White Tiger and Theodore sent out devastating bolts of lightning that kept several Gyaragons at bay, but failed to slay them, but we decided to leave them for now. One thing at a time. If we could group up with Lilith and the mercenaries, we could regroup and organize a more devastating counterattack later.

    "Seems like you could use some help," I remarked, gesturing toward the Lake of Rage. I had summoned Orion, and took a few potshots at the nearest Gyaragons, my arrows detonating against their armored scales with the force of tank shells. Those wounds weren''t fatal, unfortunately, but it was enough to discourage them from attacking. For now, anyway.

    "We can handle this," Lilith declared, despite her face frozen in an icy scowl as she directed her Kagutsuchi and Hellfire Bear to knock a couple of Gyaragons aside. At least she didn''t forget her beloved Hellfire Bear. "You guys should get into the city and help with the evacuation. There are still countless people inside, trapped by the evolved monsters."

    "But you can''t fight all those Gyaragons by yourself," Yue Chu protested. Lilith shot him a frosty glare.

    "Perhaps not, but what difference will the five of you make against a horde of rank A monsters? I''m not looking down on you, don''t get me wrong. I saw you guys destroy one of them. But your strength is better used in the city, to save more lives. We''ll take care of the Gyaragons here."

    "How?" Kureha demanded, glancing at the teeming horde. She spun around and swung her sword, slashing a Gyaragon at range and causing it to flop back into the waters, staining the lake with more blood. "These things are tough."

    "We''re getting reinforcements."

    As if on cue, a hovercraft crashed through the clouds above, and someone leaped out from the open cargo bay. Lightning storms crackled and danced around him before sending hundreds of jagged bolts into the lake and frying the horde. Smoke rose into the air, which crackled with static electricity as more of the lightning bolts flashed and flickered above the surface of the lake.

    "That''s¡­"

    It was a guy a couple of years older than us. A very handsome guy who resembled some South Korean superstar during my time, with longish black hair, expressive eyes, and a face that would cause a fashion supermodel to go green envy.

    "Adam Lacroix," Harrison breathed, immediately recognizing him. "The Lightning Tiger."

    Adam Lacroix landed on the head of one of the Gyaragons, and then punched it with his fist. Devastating lightning exploded out of his hand and shot through the poor monster, immolating it and causing its gleaming sapphire scales to blacken from the sheer heat. Before the convulsing monster could topple back into the lake, he was already leaping away. Another Gyaragon swiveled about to attempt to devour him, but a massive White Tiger materialized beside him and swatted it away. The poor dragon-type monster''s head exploded in blood and viscera as the lightning claws blew it apart with sheer strength.

    "The prodigy of the Lacroix Clan?" Yue Chu gasped, recognizing the name. Even I had heard of the Lacroix Clan ¨C they were one of the top ten Great Families of the Federation, and their emblem, not surprisingly, was the White Tiger.

    Adam landed on the shore, kneeling in front of Lilith. Smiling, he seized her hand and gently brought it to his lips.

    "It''s an honor meeting you, Miss Lilith."

    The famous fire mage couldn''t help but blush furiously. She suppressed the urge to yank her hand away and smiled politely.

    "Mr. Adam. I''m glad you could make it."

    He nodded solemnly, letting go of her hand and standing up. "Sorry for being late. But now that I''m here¡­" he turned around, his White Tiger also whirling around to face the horde of Gyaragons. "We''ll take care of these."

    My own White Tiger shrank back, intimidated by the more potent presence of Adam''s much larger White Tiger. It was only natural. As powerful as my Celestial Guardians were, I was the one who took the jack of all trades route and focused on quantity over quality. None of my Celestial Guardians could compare to the summoned familiars of mages who chose to specialize and dedicate their lives to a single element.

    Adam turned to stare at me curiously, no doubt wondering how I was able to summon a Celestial Guardian that was supposed to be the mascot of his family, but he decided to focus on the threat at hand for now.

    Recognizing him as a threat, all the Gyaragons immediately turned as one to lunge at him. Adam''s White Tiger kept them at bay, a ferocious maelstrom of lightning rippling out of its body as it growled at them. The first row crashed back, convulsing violently as deadly energies surged through their bodies.

    "Hmm, looks like White Tiger might not be enough to deal with this many," Adam observed when he noticed that the Gyaragons hadn''t died despite his familiar''s efforts. Undaunted, he raised a hand. "Raijin."

    A massive serpent descended from the heavens, its glowing, golden body crackling with electricity and causing the clouds to roil about restlessly. Dozens of tremendous thunderbolts rained down upon the Gyaragons like spears, obliterating several of the Rank A Behemoths and causing the rest to scatter fearfully.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me¡­" I muttered, my eyes wide. Beside me, my friends were speechless with shock.

    Lilith, on the other hand, didn''t seem surprised at all. Turning to us, she made to shoo us away.

    "So you don''t have to worry. Mr. Adam is as strong as my elder brother, Gabriel. A horde of rank A monsters is no match for him. It''ll take him ¨C and us ¨C some time to exterminate them, but we can handle this place just fine. You guys do what you need to do."

    Wait, what? Lilith had a brother named Gabriel? Oh, right. Uncle Glen mentioned that he had two children before ¨C a son and a daughter. I had never met either of them (except Lillith during the Spiritual Road training camp), so I wasn''t familiar with them, but now that I thought about it¡­yeah, Uncle Glen had a son too.

    If this Gabriel was as powerful as Adam, then I shudder to think what he was capable of.

    We were about to run off, but a sudden splash and a much more deafening roar echoed throughout the Lake of Rage.

    For some reason, in the center of the blue swarm, a red Gyaragon had emerged.

 307 Chapter 307: New Threats

    "A¡­red Gyaragon?" Dong Fang Yue Chu spluttered, stupefied by the monster''s sudden appearance. "I''ve never heard of a red Gyaragon before!"

    "It must be a shiny monster!" Harrison Reed exclaimed without thinking. I gave him a dry stare. Really now? A "shiny" monster? What was this? A Nintendo game? I was pretty sure we didn''t get to capture these monsters in hi-tech balls and use them for battles.

    "Interesting. It must be the alpha of the pack." Adam Lacroix was completely unperturbed, and he was musing to himself for some reason.

    "I''ll take care of that," Lilith said, somewhat confidently. She glanced at Adam. "Mr. Adam, I''ll trouble you to handle the rest of the Gyaragons."

    Adam bowed. "Consider it done, my lady."

    "The rest of you, please back Adam up." Lilith turned to instruct the Hell''s Hound mercenaries. Then she paused and considered for a moment before glancing in our direction. "Colonel Kell, if you don''t mind, I would like you to split up half of your forces and send them with my friends to help with the evacuation of Troy City."

    "Understood, ma''am." A grizzled man of about forty nodded, his steel-flinted eyes hard and cold. He turned and barked out a few orders to his mercenaries, and a company filed up to join us. Lilith then turned toward us.

    "Don''t waste too much time dally about here. Hurry up and go!"

    With that, she was gone, taking off on Kagutsuchi, with her Hellfire Bear tailing them both to engage the red Gyaragon in the center of the Behemoth swarm. I exchanged a glance with my friends, and then we took off in another direction and headed straight for the city. The mercenaries followed closely, covering our advance with their mana rifles.

    Swiping the screen of my smartphone, I called Troy.

    "Come on, answer, Troy," I grumbled. "Where are you?"

    "Shouldn''t we be evacuating the people here?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked, confused. I glanced at him and nodded.

    "Yeah. But from Troy''s reports, it seems that he has gathered the majority of them somewhere, but he needs more manpower to serve as escorts for¡­" I consulted the secondary holographic screen that my smartphone projected. "Three thousand people?!"

    "What the fuck?! That''s a lot!" Theodore exclaimed, shocked. The mercenaries who were following us exchanged several worried looks. I didn''t blame them. It was going to be a tall order for less than fifty of us to escort three thousand civilians.

    But we had to try.

    "What about the people still in the buildings?" Harrison glanced at the smoking and crumbling skyscrapers around us. It was hard to tell, with all the fumes and destruction, if there was still anybody inside there. And if Troy wanted me to nuke the city, it was going to be diffult to avoid collateral damage with civilians still in there.

    "If they see us and join us, we''ll protect them. Otherwise, they''re on their own. We''ll have to link up with Troy King''s forces first." The leader of the mercenaries spoke up. As he did so, I noticed an update to the mission directive.

    Oh, so we weren''t going to nuke the city after all. The higher-ups had specifically sent me a high-priority order instructing me not to unleash my strategic-scale spell on Troy City. They didn''t want to sacrifice the civilians and abandon the city. They wanted to save it.

    Even now, they were pouring more of their military forces into the city to exterminate the monsters and quarantine it. They weren''t taking the nuclear option, after all. Not when there was a chance that civilians might still be inside the city.

    "That makes sense," Theodore pointed out when he noticed me reading the updated directive. "They didn''t abandon Jing Tian City and nuke it to oblivion when the monsters invaded it. Why would they do that for Troy City?"

    Because it wasn''t the protagonist''s city, and so nobody cares what happened to a random city that had never been mentioned until just a few chapters ago?

    "Pick up the call, Troy," I hissed irritably, checking my smartphone and seeing that it was still trying to connect to him. Fortunately, it didn''t take too long, and I heard a click before the screen transformed into Troy''s face.

    "Richie? That you?"

    "Yeah! Where are you? We''ve reached the city." I consulted the secondary screen. "You said you have about three thousand civilians following you right now, but you didn''t specify the location."

    "Ah, my bad. That''s because we''re constantly on the move. These bastards keep chasing us, and there''s way too many of them to fight off." there was an inhuman shriek off-screen, and then desperate gunfire and lots of shouting. Troy glanced to the side, his brow furrowing, and then he turned back to me. "I''ll send you the coordinates by text¡­and if we move, I''ll send you the new coordinates. But we shouldn''t be too far from the old ones if that happens, so just proceed to wherever I send you first."

    That made sense. Unless the civilians could fly or teleport, there was no way such a massive group of people could move so quickly. Combat mages and professional paramilitary soldiers would be able to catch up in no time at all.

    "On the double!" the mercenary leader shouted. From his epaulets, I was able to guess that he was a lieutenant. They had received the coordinates that Troy had just publically posted on the network for all friendly forces.

    "The other forces will arrive in about two hours, huh?" Harrison murmured to himself darkly. "Until then, we''re on our own."

    "Why are they taking so long?" Yue Chu whined. "They should hurry up and fly here already!"

    "We are fast because there''s so few of us, and we don''t need much preparation," I informed him. "But large-scale military mobilizations are a different matter. Logistics, getting whatever vehicles available to move thousands of men, arming all of them with thousands of weapons ¨C unlike us, who have our own personal weapons ¨C establishing supply lines, a chain of command, especially when different regiments are participating, and recalling soldiers from exercises, leave or training¡­there''s a lot of preparation that needs to be done before you can send an entire army to fight. It''s not as easy as receiving the order and then rushing here immediately. They have to all report to camp first, organize their equipment, and wait for transports. And the officers also have to draw up strategies, coordinate their efforts, and¡­"

    "Okay, I get it. I get it!" Yue Chu held up both hands to cut off my rambling. Then he stared at me suspiciously. "Why do you know so much about military stuff?"

    "I thought it was pretty obvious," Theodore rumbled.

    "Me too," Harrison added. Yue Chu paled considerably as he glanced from him to Theodore to me.

    "You guys¡­"

    "Contact!" one of the mercenaries yelled, and gunfire erupted explosively. The four of us spun around to engage the enemy, and I caught sight of fleeting specters emerging from behind debris and collapsed buildings.

    An eerie howl burst out from one of them, the sonic assault flooring a couple of mercenaries. Their comrades opened fire upon the offending ghost, but it raised its seemingly intangible arms and constructed a sound wall that vibrated intensely to halt the mana bullets in their tracks.

    "Banshees!" Harrison hissed, identifying the rank C monsters immediately. I nodded, even as I summoned Orion and prepared to launch a volley of arrows at the incoming spectral creatures. The soldiers, undaunted by the first failure of their attack, continued to pepper the Banshee, and eventually its sound barrier couldn''t hold up against so many mana bullets and collapsed. Its body riddle with lethal rounds, it dropped onto the ground.

    "These things evolved from Phantoms," the lieutenant remarked as he consulted his smartphone. "According to your friend, anyway. His brother injected Phantoms with the evolution virus, and they mutated into Banshees."

    "At least they didn''t jump from rank F all the way to rank A like the Magic Carp and Gyaragons," Yue Chu mumbled with a shudder. Raising his hand, he bathed a couple of Banshees that were trying to flank us with flames, reducing one of them into cinders. The other backed away with a screech, but my azure arrow found its mark and reduced its head to a bloody crater.

    "Maybe the virus affects certain species of monsters more than others," Theodore suggested as he swung his thunder hammer and smashed a couple of Banshees into gray pulps, their bodies shaking from the devastating electricity. A third Banshee tried to scream at him, but Harrison snuck up behind it and rammed his glowing hand through its back and chest, destroying its heart. The Banshee collapsed without a sound. Swining his hammer around to brain another Banshee, Theodore expressed his gratitude without turning. "Thanks."

    "I hope the Gyaragons are just a special case," Harrison murmured, looking slightly worried.

    I concurred, but I kept my words to myself for fear that I would trigger a flag and some new monster would pop up. Both Yue Chu and I continued to provide ranged support for the mercenaries, whose disciplined volleys of las-fire were scything down ranks after ranks of Banshees. Yue Chu''s fiery spells were burning away their sound barriers through sheer heat, while my armor-piercing arrows penetrated their defensive spells with the force of tank shells and obliterated whatever unfortunate Banshee too slow to evade.

    I had to admit that the mercenaries were helping us out a lot, their combined firepower overwhelming the line of Banshees and driving the rest into a disorganized retreat. Even though individual mana rifles were weak, when coordinated into unified volleys of las-fire, they proved to be devastating, able to chip away at the hide of eventhe most armored monster. Any monster underestimating the humble mana rifle was going to pay with its life.

    Honestly, if it was just the four of us, we wouldn''t be able to rout the Banshees so quickly and move on. The moment we confirmed that there was no longer any sign of the enemy, we proceeded forward cautiously. The last of the Banshees were disappearing into the distance, and a few of the mercenaries stepped ahead to aim their rifles.

    "Don''t chase them," their lieutenant ordered when the Banshees vanished from view. "Prioritize the evacuation."

    "Yes, sir!"

    Restraining themselves, the mercenaries returned to their formations without complaint. They were just as disciplined as the Silver Wolves. I couldn''t help but be impressed.

    "Keep an eye out for any new enemies," the lieutenant continued. Even though I wasn''t under his command, I obeyed. Checking my glasses, I scanned the area for heat signatures and the like. At the bottom left of one of my lenses, the motion tracker beeped as it detected countless movements on the edge of the vicinity.

    "I''ve got movement!" I warned. "Hundreds of them!"

    The mercenaries remained vigilant, glancing around and making use of their own devices. More than a few of them flipped their visors down to magically enhance their vision, peering through the gloom and rubble for any sign of the enemy.

    "They''re keeping their distance," one of the soldiers said. Even his professionalism couldn''t mask the puzzlement in his voice.

    "Probably because we gave them a good beating earlier," a grizzled sergeant suggested with a shrug. "They''re being careful because they know they''ll die if they just rush at us again."

    "I thought they were monsters! Since when are they that smart?" it was a female mercenary this time.

    "They have always been cunning," I muttered. "Underestimate them at your own peril."

    The female mercenary glared at me. "Who do you think you''re preaching to, kid? I''ve been through more battles than the number of years you''ve lived."

    Ironically enough, I was probably much older mentally than she thought I was (I bet I was older than her, even, she looked like she was only in her twenties), but I decided not to mention that fact.

    "Enough chatter!" the sergeant barked. "Eyes front! Sweep the area!"

    "Yes, Sarge!"

    The mercenaries hurried forward without any hesitation. I traded glances with my friends, and we followed them, but respectfully kept our distance. It wouldn''t do for us to trample upon the pride of actual professionals, even if we technically ranked higher than them as combat mages as opposed to rank-and-file soldiers, who were only capable of the most basic spells.

    That said, we couldn''t underestimate soldiers. They were often the ones who mastered Ba Qi to its utmost extreme, and could easily defeat even advanced mages in direct combat. Hades, for example, could overpower me even without any advanced spells or techniques. Yuan Dao Yue Guang was also another example ¨C and evidently he was ex-military before he became the security chief of the Stuart Corporation.

    It was these soldiers with extreme Armament Ba Qi who were the deadliest warriors of the Federation. To a certain extent, anyway. They couldn''t unleash spells of mass destruction like I could, but that didn''t mean they would lose to me in a fight. More often than not, they would overwhelm me effortlessly, like how Yuan Dao so easily smashed apart whatever Constellation spirit I threw at him.

    "The Banshees should be simple enough to exterminate for the reinforcements," Yue Chu was saying as we followed the mercenaries. "Let''s hope this city doesn''t throw any more nasty surprises¡­"

    "Do you really have to raise a flag?" I growled, cutting him off. Yue Chu stared at me blankly.

    "Flag? What flag?"

    Was the guy deliberately being thick or something? I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and resisted a caustic response.

    "Never mind. Just stay frosty." I returned my attention to the motion tracker on the bottom left of my glasses, and my pulse accelerated. "Something''s approaching!"

    At my warning, the mercenaries halted and quickly took up positions, glancing in the direction I was pointing. Several of them did so without even glancing at me ¨C they had also picked up the anomalous movements with their hi-tech visors.

    "Over there!"

    One of the mercenaries rose from his position to open fire at an emerging dark shape, but after a few seconds, he froze.

    No¡­he didn''t really freeze. I watched in horror as his body slowly darkened, taking on a gray hue. His skin¡­his body was turning to stone.

    "Petrification spell! Everyone, lower your visors!"

    The lieutenant shouted.

    Thanks to my glasses, which also provided some sort of protective enchantment against eye curses, I was able to see the source of the petrification spell. As the dark silhouette came into view, I recognized those uncoiling serpents that passed off as hair for a hideous, humanoid monster that possessed gray eyes and whip-like arms.

    "Gorgon," I whispered, dread filling my voice. Noting the other menacing figures that were following behind the lead Gorgon in a sinister fashion, I felt my heart drop into my stomach. "A whole horde of them."

 308 Chapter 308: Back to the Stone Age

    The Gorgons emerged en masse, advancing toward our position and intensifying their petrification spells. Despite the protection that their visors afforded, more mercenaries were succumbing to their terrifying effects.

    The defensive runes embedded into their visors (and my glasses) weren''t totally foolproof. For one thing, magical runes were completely useless unless you fed them mana. The normal spirit arrays and formations often drew power from a tremendous mana generator. Otherwise it wasn''t practical lugging around what we informally termed as "spirited engraved gear." We couldn''t provide our own equipment with a constant supply of mana 24/7, after all. Or we would end up exhausting ourselves terribly.

    They had their uses, like now, for example. But these Gorgons were rank B monsters. They had an enormous amount of mana, and coupled with their potent petrification spells, they could cause the poor mercenaries to run out of mana before long.

    Fortunately, the mercenaries had their own solutions. An entire platoon concentrated fire on one Gorgon who was stupid enough to advance toward them without cover. Despite its relatively high rank and tenacity, even the Fiend-class monster succumbed to mass las-fire, toppling over with a screech as its body was riddled with cauterized craters.

    Even before the first Gorgon was taken down by focused fire, I was already taking aim and launching arrows of my own, the azure projectiles detonating against them. To my satisfaction, a few of them were blown off their feet and sent crashing, but I realized to my dismay that only one of them had actually died from my bombardment.

    The rest of them were slowly rising to their feet, singed, but otherwise not grievously hurt. Before they could fully recover, an inferno washed over them, immolating quite a few of them. One was reduced to cinders, its pitiful cry fading away in the roar of the crackling flames, while the others rolled away, desperately extinguishing the fire with their mana.

    "Whoa!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu jumped back when one of the Gorgons whipped its serpent-like arm at him. The end of the arm was filled with venomous claws that were shaped like fangs. Fortunately, before the claws could reach him, Harrison Reed obliterated it with a holy spell, causing the Gorgon to withdraw its ruined appendage with a shrill shriek.

    Then Theodore descended upon the Gorgon, swinging his thunder hammer to pulverize it under his sheer weight and force. The poor thing just vanished in a shower of blood, the snakes hissing wildly as they convulsed from the lethal electricity.

    Another Gorgon that was nearby lashed out at the crouching Theodore, but my arrow struck its head and sent it toppling over. The snakes that composed its hair writhed wildly, but they turned into ash as Dong Fang Yue Chu incinerated it.

    Theodore then straightened up and swung his hammer horizontally, keeping a few of the Gorgons at bay. My arrow blew up the head of one whose hair-snakes were lunging to bite the big guy with their venomous fangs. Theodore nodded gratefully at me before he smashed his hammer into the ground, generating deadly voltages of electricity that stunned a group of Gorgons. While they were trembling from the paralyzing currents, Harrison stepped forward and completed the casting of his spell.

    "Holy Judgement."

    The entire place was enveloped in golden mana that seared through the screaming monsters before destroying one of them. The rest collapsed, badly hurt, but credit to rank B monsters, they were tenacious.

    "We''re lucky," Harrison remarked. Yue Chu and I glanced at him in surprise. "Even though Gorgons are usually rank B, these monsters are clearly still not¡­fully developed yet. Their offensive powers and spells might be rank B, but they lack the endurance of a Fiend-class monster. They are dying too easily."

    "You''re kidding, right?!" Yue Chu yelled. "You call this dying too easily?!"

    "I, for one, am grateful that they are falling to our attacks more easily than a normal rank B monster," Theodore said as he hammered another Gorgon. To his dismay, it didn''t die, and he was forced to blast it with a lightning bolt when the snakes that were its hair reared up to strike at him. Despite the electrocution, the Gorgon wouldn''t stay down, its arm whipping out to score a poisonous bite¡­or would have if Theodore didn''t whack it away with his hammer. "I don''t think we''ll be able to handle normal rank B monsters, especially when there''s this many of them. They are already deadly enough. Maybe they are somewhere between rank B and rank C."

    "The ranks are meaningless," I reminded him. "They are at best an estimate for a monster''s danger level, but they are not absolute. Just because a monster is ranked F doesn''t mean it''s not dangerous at all, and even rank A monsters still have certain vulnerabilities that we can exploit. It''s not always set in stone."

    "You''re right," Theodore agreed as he tried to discourage another Gorgon from coming near. Fortunately, Yue Chu''s flames and my arrows formed a makeshift barrier between him and his assailant while he was busily trying to finish off his current opponent. "But that doesn''t stop me from wishing we were facing lower ranked monsters."

    "On the other hand, rank B monsters don''t usually gather in groups like this. They never emerge in such numbers." I pushed my glasses up my nose before loosing another volley of arrows that sliced off several snakes from the Gorgons'' scalp. "They tend to be individualistic, and when too many of them gather, they''ll end up fighting like¡­the Gyaragons."

    That was when I remembered the blood-frenzied Gyaragons tearing into each other, almost heedless of the humans who assaulted them before Adam Lacroix arrived and they recognized the potent threat that he was. It was almost as if they were more concerned with killing each other than they were about the humans. It made sense ¨C the rank A monsters were more of a threat toward each other than we were to them.

    We were probably mosquitoes or flies to them. We were probably capable of killing them when their guard were down (just like how mosquitoes caused the deaths of humans by spreading deadly diseases such as malaria and Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever), but besides that we were just pests when compared to their more powerful brethren.

    It was unusual to see so many Gorgons clumped up together and working in unison like this. Rank B monsters didn''t normally cooperate without dissent.

    "Oh, right. They evolved. They used to be Phantoms¡­or probably Banshees that evolved further into Gorgons after the virus." I nodded thoughtfully while releasing another arrow that detonated in their midst. That made more sense.

    "No wonder they''re so relatively weak when compared to other rank B monsters." Harrison was agreeing. "Well, I''m not complaining. We should use this to our advantage and wipe them out while they''re still relatively weak. Otherwise, if they escape, the world will be in trouble when rank B monsters start cooperating with each other."

    He then blasted another Gorgon with his holy spell, knocking it off its feet. The creature granted and lashed out with its flexible arm, but he smashed it with his gauntlets, shattering the fangs against gleaming metal. The Gorgon cried out in pain.

    "This is taking too long, though," Yue Chu complained as he incinerated another Gorgon, but only after expending a lot of mana to do so. "At this rate, we''ll never reach the civilians!"

    "We''ll have to do our best then and hope they survive until we reach them," Theodore replied grimly while crushing the skull of another Gorgon with his thunder hammer. I understood his point. There was nothing we could do. As if to illustrate his point, Theodore''s victim snarled despite its deformed head and the snakes on its scalp snaked toward him.

    Lightning surged from Theodore''s body and electrocuted the snakes before they could reach within a hair''s breadth of him (okay, I know I''m being ironic). The Gorgon hissed and took a step back, only for the big guy to smash his hammer into its face again. This time, its head was pulped into a shower of blood and brain matter.

    I glanced at the mercenaries worriedly, only to feel a sense of relief. Even though they had taken substantial casualties, they were slowly but surely driving the Gorgons back. More than a score of them had fallen to the massed firepower, and even now the heavy weapons were being brough to bear. Plasma blasts enveloped the Gorgons, scorching them with the fury of a miniature star. Not even a rank B monster could withstand such awesome firepower, and they were being driven back. The petrified were being tended to by healers, who were casting restorative spells to lift the curse and return the victims back to normal.

    There was little they could do for those already poisoned to death by the Gorgons'' venomous claws, or the fangs of their hair-snakes, though. But I wasn''t na?ve enough to think every single one of us would walk away from such a dangerous mission alive.

    "Hu¡­"

    Taking a deep breath, I considered my options. We couldn''t just allow ourselves to be pressed to the defensive. There had to be something I could do¡­a Constellation weapon or spirit I could summon to speed up the process. Yue Chu''s words were borne out of frustration, but he had an excellent point. If we allowed ourselves to get bogged down here, it would take us forever to reach Troy and the civilians he and the surviving soldiers were escorting. Every second counted, and I recalled how Troy said that they had to move every now and then to escape monsters.

    If we dawdled here for too long, then there would be more casualties. That said, I wasn''t reckless enough to start yelling at the mercenaries or my friends, or impulsively attacking the Gorgons. Obviously that reason wasn''t enough to increase casualties on our side. Already, the mercenaries had already suffered significant losses, and it would be unfair to ask anything more of them. They were clearly doing their best.

    Rather than blame them, I should seek for a solution. That was how it worked in real life too. Instead of blaming other people for being weak, pathetic or incompetent, or whine about how you had to carry them (whether it was in a game or a group project in school or at work), you should identify the problem and come up with the solution. Throwing the blame around and looking for scapegoats solved absolutely nothing. If anything, it only exacerbated the problem, increased everyone''s resentment toward you and thus affected their performance and morale even more, and made the workplace atmosphere even more toxic than before.

    Instead of spending all that energy ponting fingers and railing at other people, invest that time and energy into doing something productive for once.

    Taking a deep breath, I searched for the Constellation weapon that I had already created. Seeing the Gorgons, I suddenly remembered something. That was right. I might have something that was very appropriate for this situation. But because I had been calling the Gorgons¡­well, Gorgons, I almost forgot about it.

    If I could just¡­

    "Perseus!"

    A glowing sword materialized in my right hand right after I dismissed Orion, its blade glowing in shades of gold and red. The gleaming blade caught the attention of the Gorgons, who instinctively recognized the threat. Hissing ferociously, they all slithered toward me.

    "Richard!" Theodore shouted as he fought his way toward me, swinging his thunder hammer frantically. The mercenaries seized the lull in the assault to counterattack, shooting the Gorgons in the back, but the rank B monsters shrugged off their fire in their desperation to get to me.

    "Oh no, you don''t!" Yue Chu hollered as he conjured a fire wall between me and the approaching Gorgons. Even as they were set ablaze, the Gorgons were not discouraged, and they dragged their immolated bodies out of the inferno to whip their long arms at me.

    Harrison blasted them away with his holy spells, but there were too many of them. He rushed forward, and I almost balked at the rare sight of him panicking.

    Fortunately, I was able to wave him back.

    "Don''t worry! I''ve got this!"

    "Huh? Really? Because from my vantage point, it doesn''t seem that you do!"

    I ignored him ¨C the guy was sounding like Obi-wan Kenobi for some reason, you know, the usual banter with Anakin Skywalker before he fell to the Dark Side ¨C and focused on completing my spell. Holding my glowing sword high up, I yelled out an incantation.

    "Algol!"

    A blinding flash filled the entire district, causing the humans to shield their eyes and duck down instinctively. Even as the lenses of my glasses darkened automatically to protect my vision, I was unable to see anything for just a few seconds.

    Those few seconds passed, and my lenses lightened up, allowing me to see once again.

    All the Gorgons were frozen solid. Well, not really. They were actually petrified, having turned into stone. Like ancient statues, they all stood immobile in the middle of what used to be a bustling district, their hideous faces entombed in masks of surprise.

    "W¡­what did you do?" the mercenary lieutenant demanded, his jaw dropping. I shrugged as I lowered Perseus.

    "I stoned them."

    "Seriously?" Theodore gave me a sour look. "You''re making jokes even under this sort of situation?"

    It was precisely because it was this sort of situation that we needed a bit of humor, even if it was dark humor. Everyone needed to lighten up. I didn''t say that, of course. Instead, I answered with a wide grin as I gestured at the petrified Gorgons.

    "Yeah. Look at them! They are all stoned!"

    Those cold stares again. Okay, maybe I was taking the joke too far. Turning serious, I cleared my throat and gave a proper reply this time.

    "I reflected their petrification curse on them."

    "You can do that?" Yue Chu blurted out in disbelief. He looked around, and buried his face in his palm when he realized how stupid his question sounded. "I mean, yeah, of course you can, but¡­how?"

    "You called that sword Perseus." As always, Harrison was attentive to the minute details. No wonder he was such a great leader. He frowned, scratching his head. "I''m pretty sure that name has some sort of significance, but I can''t remember¡­"

    That wasn''t unusual. This far in the future, in the thirtieth century, most people had long forgotten the ancient Greek myths and constellations. That was something that only I, a person who was transported from the twenty-first century to this era, was intimately familiar with. Not unless you had other astrological nerds hiding somewhere in the Federation despite the fad having died out centuries ago.

    "Perseus is the Greek hero most famous for slaying the most notorious Gorgon, Medusa. He accomplished that by using his shield, which had been polished so cleanly that it was able to reflect her own gaze onto her¡­and thus cause her own petrification curse to rebound and turn her into stone. With that done, he then chopped off her head, and used it as his ultimate weapon."

    "I''ve never heard that story before," Theodore confessed, scratching his head.

    "Yeah, it''s a very old story." I didn''t elaborate further, especially when we were so short of time. "Anyway, we should get going before more monsters show up again."

    Glancing at the corner of a building, where long shadows danced teasingly just out of our sight, and what suspiciously sounded like scrabbling of claws, the mercenaries nodded and began moving out without wasting any more time. After tending to their dead and wounded, of course.

 309 Chapter 309: Reinforcements

    "Be careful! More Gorgons incoming!"

    I almost didn''t hear the warning in time. The lieutenant''s men heard him, however, and they immediately dove into cover, throwing themselves prone and snapping off las-beams in the direction of the approaching rank B monsters.

    "They just keep coming, don''t they?" Dong Fang Yue Chu growled in frustration. "There''s no end to them!"

    "Phantoms always appear in large numbers," Harrison Reed explained, his tone deceptively calm. However, I could see anger flare up in his blue eyes. "All the Dark Church has to do is round up a gigantic pack and they''ll be able to artificially evolve thousands of rank F monsters into rank C or rank B, like those Banshees or Gorgons."

    "Thank goodness they aren''t so strong¡­if they were given the time to learn how to use their new powers, we would be screwed!" Theodore exclaimed.

    "Then again, when that time comes, they''ll start turning on each other in order to assert dominance," I remarked optimistically. Some people went mad with power, after all, and monsters were sort of similar.

    "Richard, can you use that Perseus sword of yours again?" Harrison asked. I nodded and raised my red and gold Constellation weapon.

    "Yeah, but I need a few minutes to cast Algol." Since we were constantly on the move, I couldn''t just cast the spell and then hold it in suspension ¨C it would reset itself the moment I left the hundred meter point from where I originally began casting it. The Constellation sword was another thing ¨C I had kept it manifested and didn''t dismiss it the entire time because I anticipated running into another bunch of Gorgons again.

    And besides, Perseus was a powerful Constellation weapon, so even if I ran into other types of monsters such as Banshees, I could still use it to slice them up (though it would be more efficient if I just used my real swords).

    What was the difference, you ask? Why wouldn''t my Constellation spirits or weapons disappear if they exit the hundred meter boundary from the original position where I summoned them?

    For one thing, they were counted as "completed" spells. When spells were completed and manifested in reality, they stayed in reality for as long as my mana could maintain them, no matter how much distance they traveled. Fireballs, monsters, mana projectiles, etc. ¨C these successfully manifested spells had firmly taken root in reality and wouldn''t so easily disappear. Thus you could hurl your fireball at a target over five hundred meters away without worrying that it would disappear after traveling a hundred meters. Or I could ride on Cygnus or Aquila and have them travel kilometers without fearing that they would disappear as long as I continue to supply them with mana.

    However, incomplete spells or spells that hadn''t been manifested were another thing altogether. As they hadn''t been anchored in reality, their link to our dimension was tenuous at best. While we certainly could pause the casting of our spells in the same way we could pause downloads of files, because of their weak hold to reality, the moment we moved too far from the original casting position (hundred meters), the whole process would be terminated and reset. We would have to cast the spell from scratch again.

    The downloading analogy would be useful again. It was like downloading a file ¨C the moment you finished downloading a file and opened it, it would remain in your computer until you delete it (dismissing the spell or the spell being used up counted as auto-deletion). You didn''t have to download the file (or in this case cast the spell) until you used it up. However, if you decided to pause your download for some reason, at say, 99%, and then keep it that, the moment you moved out of the hundred meter range, you sort of lose connection with the Wi-Fi, your download would get interrupted and you would receive a fail message, and you would have to download it from scratch all over again. And no, you couldn''t just finish casting a spell and hold it in (that sounded¡­ugh). The moment you completed casting it, the spell would manifest, no exception. You could certainly pause at the 99% or 99.9% point, but if you reached the 100%, the spell would manifest in the same way a file would automatically open (well, I guess you had the option to not open it, but magic was slightly different and you were given no choice in the matter) once the download finished.

    Otherwise everyone would be walking around with their ultimate spells forever suspended at 99.9%, and ready to fling them off immediately the moment they encountered a threat.

    I could already see many readers complaining about the system and how it was stupid, probably because they were enraged that nobody could exploit the system. They were already unhappy about me not abusing the system or gaming it to summon healing Constellation spirits or doing all sorts of overpowered protagonist things where God Mode main characters went around stomping whatever poor opponent stupid enough to challenge him. Well, they could go read all those God Mode main character stories then. This wasn''t one of them. I wasn''t going to master every single type of magic in existence (which was the prerequisite to summoning those types of Constellation spirits in the first place).

    "How long do you need?" Harrison asked, almost snapping me out of my reverie. I shook my head and glanced at him apologetically.

    "Oh, well¡­a minute or two."

    "Done. Don''t join in the fight, leave it to us. I want you to take them out with one spell as soon as possible."

    "Got it¡­"

    I never got to finish my sentence. A roar overhead drowned out my words and caused all of us ¨C including the monsters ¨C to look upward. There was a hovercraft soaring above the ruined, smoking buildings of Troy, and someone leaped out of its open bay, descending in a storm of lightning. He was followed by similarly dressed figures, all of them clad in gleaming armor.

    "Those are¡­"

    For a moment, I was reminded of Adam Lacroix ¨C so similar was the lead figure with that lightning mage that I mistook the two. They shared the same handsome features and somewhat noble bearing, but unlike Adam''s dark hair, the newcomer''s hair was golden blond, and his eyes were sky blue instead of chestnut brown. Furthermore, unlike Adam''s casual dress, the newcomer was completely clad in knight-like armor.

    "Charles Lacroix!"

    Harrison gave voice to my thoughts when I realized I recognized the guy. Charles didn''t respond. He was too busily focusing his attention on the enemy. Drawing his sword, he plunged the crackling blade into the middle of the gathered Gorgons, electrocuting all of them. Unlike Theodore Hammond''s thunder attacks, Charles''s spell was even more potent, outright disintegrating any Gorgon unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity.

    The rest turned to flee. Harrison, Theodore, Yue Chu and I immediately engaged the Gorgons luckless enough to run in our direction, the rank B monsters no doubt thinking we would be weaker than the newly arrived assailant and therefore easier to break through.

    They were sadly mistaken.

    I didn''t even bother with Algol. Their numbers were so reduced that there was little point in expending so much mana. So I beheaded the first one with Perseus. Theodore and Yue Chu worked together to electrocute and incinerate a trio of Gorgons that sought to petrify them, lightning and fire engulfing them voraciously and reducing the screeching rank B monsters into ash after much burning and shocking. Harrison cast a holy spell to entrap another Gorgon before I took its head off while it was terribly weakened by our team captain''s debuffs.

    The rest of the knights of Pendragon Academy landed around the area, cutting off the Gorgons'' escape and systematically eliminating them one by one. Otherwise, the armored figures directed the panicking Gorgons into the overlapping fields of fire of the Hell''s Hounds mercenaries, who had set up killing zones while the Fiends were distracted. Through concerted effort, we succeeded in getting rid the current population of rank B monsters.

    "Phew!"

    Yue Chu crashed down and wiped the perspiration from his face. Meanwhile, Harrison and I approached Charles, who was busily wiping the blood off the blade of his sword before sheathing it. He looked up and smiled.

    "Harrison and Richard¡­was it? It''s so good to see you guys again. When was the last time we met?"

    "The Spiritual Road training camp," I reminded him. He nodded, his smile friendly and polite.

    "You''re right. It really has been a while."

    "Pendragon Academy is helping out with the evacuation and rescue efforts as well? Harrison asked. He wasn''t being rude, just curious. Charles didn''t seem offended, and his smile revealed perfect white teeth.

    "That''s right. My cousin volunteered, and so the Lacroix clan mobilized to help. So here I am."

    "We," one of the other knights murmured behind him. Charles nodded apologetically and amended his statement.

    "Yeah, we. When my friends heard that there were people in dire need of our help, they stepped forward and offered their assistance too. I really appreciate their help." He glanced at us. "And yours too, of course. I didn''t think there would be so many students from other academies helping out as well. It makes me so happy to confirm my belief in human nature."

    "¡­uh, okay?" I wasn''t sure how to respond to that. Yue Chu, Theodore and I shared bemused looks, but we wisely stayed silent. Harrison, more used to handling such diplomatic matters, took over without hesitation.

    "Indeed. Speaking of which, we should hurry. The evacuaees shouldn''t be far now. We''re heading toward their last-known position." He glanced at me for confirmation, and I affirmed with a nod after consulting Troy''s email, just to be on the safe side.

    "With you guys here to reinforce us, we should be able to reach them more quickly, and safely evacuate the civilians out of the city!" the mercenary lieutenant exclaimed in relief. His subordinates were all gathering, their morale buoyant when they saw who had arrived. Even the Hell''s Hounds were aware of Charles''s identity as the second son of the legendary Lacroix clan, one of the ten great families in the Federation.

    "You said cousin," Yue Chu blurted out while we resumed our journey. "Are you talking about Adam Lacroix?"

    "Oh, you''ve seen Brother Adam?" Charles smiled and nodded. "That is correct. He was the one who volunteered, and thus inspired the rest of us to do the same. Where did you see him?"

    "The Lake of Rage," Harrison replied. "He is currently helping the Holy Maiden of the Porter Clan contain and eliminate a swarm of Gyaragons."

    Charles''s face turned slightly pale. And rightly so, for the Gyaragons were feared rank A monsters with a notorious reputation. A swarm of them too¡­

    "Don''t worry. The last time we saw him, Adam was kicking ass." I grinned to assure him. The silver and blue knight nodded, relaxing a little.

    "That indeed sounds like Brother Adam."

    We rounded a corner and continued onward, for the Federation. Without even glancing at my smartphone, I knew we were nearing the area where Troy directed me toward. The sensors on my glasses were picking up an unusual amount of activity and movement ahead, as well as countless heat signatures.

    They could either be friendlies or they could be hostiles. There was no way to tell. Stepping forward, I briefly made my report to Harrison, the mercenary Lieutenant and Charles. The commanders listened intently and contemplated.

    "My men say the same thing," the mercenary lieutenant agreed, glancing at his aide, who nodded in confirmation. "I''ll send a few scouts ahead to check them out. If they are monsters, then we''ll pull back and find another way. Sir, please continue with your attempts to contact Mr. King."

    "Yes, sir." I was uncomfortable being addressed as sir by an officer, given that the highest rank I had ever ascended to during my mandatory military service was corporal. I was never a good soldier. A hardworking one, at best, who took my orders seriously and never slacked off as much as possible (unless I was sick, or furthering my studies), but otherwise I held a healthy amount of respect for authorities and officers.

    Hurrying away, I consulted my smartphone again, and Troy managed to pick it up. He grinned when he caught sight of me.

    "Richie! How''s your progress? Are you anywhere near us yet?"

    "I hope so. I''m at the place where you told us to go to. Or nearby, anyway. Just checking in to make sure you guys haven''t moved from that location, and the¡­uh, people we are picking up ahead of us are really you."

    "Nope, we haven''t moved. It should be us."

    As if on cue, the coms crackled and a voice blasted out from the speaker. Without needing to ask, I immediately knew that it belonged to one of the scouts who had gone ahead to check on the signals we had detected.

    "Sir! We''ve confirmed that the civilians are ahead of us! Should we proceed to establish contact?"

    "Yeah, please do. Tell them we''ll be there in five minutes." The mercenary lieutenant then hung up and turned to face his subordinates. "All right, people! You heard Zhen Cha! We''re moving out!"

    "Yes, sir!" everyone responded.

    "We should go too," Charles added, turning to his armored friends from Pendragon Academy. Harrison nodded in agreement.

    "That''s right!" Yue Chu bounced up eagerly. "Time to get them out of this hellhole!"

    "We''ll be there soon," I reported to Troy. "Give us five."

    "Sure. That''s more than I could have hoped for, honestly¡­"

    A sudden screech cut him off, and explosions ensued in the background. I saw fire flare across the wall behind Troy, even as he spun around to gape at the sudden turn of events. Off screen, the screams of civilians rose in a chorus, and the sound of a massive stampede as people sought to run and flee the attack thundered through the phone''s receivers.

    "Troy? What happened?!"

    "Sorry, Richie. I''ve got to hang up now. He found us." Troy turned to look at me grimly.

    "He¡­?"

    I never got an answer. Amidst another explosion, Troy hung up and I was left staring at a blank holographic screen. Even as I dismissed the screen, I realized I could hear the detonations and shrieks from a distance.

    "Damn it! Even though we are this close to reaching them!"

    Cursing, I kicked a piece of debris, obliterating it. Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to calm down and turned toward the direction of the explosions. I could see another cloud of fire blossom above a broken building, much like a volcanic eruption.

    We had to hurry, or there wouldn''t be anyone left to save¡­

 310 Chapter 310: Flames of a Tyran

    "Hurry! On the double!"

    The mercenary lieutenant was waving his men onward, shouting for them to accelerate their pace. Behind the mercenaries, the students continued to jog. We would be preparing our spells, but we were over a hundred meters away from the venue so there was little point to it. And I couldn''t afford to waste time standing around to complete my bigger spells while there were explosions and screaming people about.

    If small spells could save a life in the meantime, then I would do so. Just because they were small or minor spells didn''t mean they were any less effective in saving a life than the big ones (yeah, I already knew what some readers would whine about). As if to prove my point, a group of fleeing civilians came into view. A piece of falling debris crashed down upon them, and I quickly summoned Orion to blast the debris apart. Even though I couldn''t prevent dust from raining down upon them, they were still alive and unhurt.

    Much better than what would happened if I didn''t take out the debris¡­they would have been crushed into bloody paste under tons of rubble.

    "Over here!" Dong Fang Yue Chu shouted as he unleashed his own volley of fireballs to obliterate falling debris. The civilians raced toward the mercenaries, and the lieutenant gave quick, sharp orders to have several men stay behind to protect them. The Knights of Pendragon Academy, my friends from Jing Tian Academy and I hurried onward with a few glances, but we didn''t stop.

    Not when the main battle and the bulk of the civilians were still ahead.

    "TYRANT!"

    Amidst the chaos of running evacuees and the erupting infernos, I heard Troy''s furious voice. Whirling about, I saw my dark-skinned friend hauling himself up and over several piles of burning rubble to confront his nemesis. Opposite Troy King, a similarly dark-skinned person, with dreadlocks, a fancy mustache and a ripped jacket that bared his arms, stood, an insidious grin on his menacing face. He clapped his hands as Troy approached him.

    "Ho¡­you''re approaching me? Instead of running away, you''re coming straight at me?"

    "Are you seriously trying to rip off Jojo''s Bizarre Adventures right now?" I yelled, even though I knew Tyrant wasn''t going to hear me. "And we already ripped it off a few chapters ago! Don''t reuse the same joke too often!"

    "Sorry, but I can''t resist it. This situation is way too gold to not make that homage." Tyrant shrugged, and for some reason I was reminded of Dio. A dark-skinned Dio with perfect, white teeth. Must be those bulging muscles.

    "I can''t beat you if I don''t come closer." Ignoring the exchange between me and Tyrant, Troy coldly advanced toward his brother. I groaned.

    "Not you too, Troy!"

    "Richie." He regarded me with an apologetic look. "Sorry, but can you stay out of this? From this point onward, this is my fight."

    "No, Senpai." One of the female Knights from Pendragon Academy, dressed in blue and white armor and wielding a spear that was longer than she was tall, spoke up as she pointed her spear at Tyrant. "This is our fight!"

    "I swear to God, if I ever hear you utter that line again, I''ll tear your tongue out." I couldn''t help but cringe. What was next? The descent of the Fourth Primogenitor? The appearance of vampires in this story?

    While Troy confronted his brother, the mercenaries and students rushed toward the collapsing shelter. We cast basic and small spells to blast falling chunks of debris and rubble out of the way so that they wouldn''t crush the poor civilians who couldn''t get out of the way in time. There were still surviving soldiers who had accompanied Troy this entire time. They were doing their best to escort the civilians out of the crumbling building, using their own magic or bodies to protect them.

    "Those fire spells¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu murmured in realization. As a fire mage, he was the one most sensitive toward spells of the same element. He glanced in the direction of Tyrant. "He''s responsible for casting them!"

    Fortunately, with Troy distracting Tyrant, he was able to divert a significant of firepower away from destroying the building and attacking the civilians. We could help them escape. As Troy said, there were thousands of them, and they were quite a handful to take care of.

    With the Hell''s Hounds mercenaries and students of Pendragon Academy, however, we were able to work something out and evacuate all of them safely. Or so we thought, but¡­

    "You think I''ll just let you go like that?"

    Tyrant managed to knock Troy back a few steps, and with a wild laugh, he threw out his hand. An immense inferno manifested at one of the exits, the one where the vast majority of the civilians were fleeing through, and took the form of a gigantic horse.

    "How apt¡­" he mused, chuckling darkly. "I have brought the Trojan Horse into this city to level it and kill every resident."

    The horse neighed thunderously, its black fur bristling and its fiery mane blazing. It had to be almost nine meters tall in height, and a single kick demolished an entire wall. Its lips pulled back and its mouth opened wide to unleash a torrent of flames that incinerated a significant number of screaming civilians. Even though the mercenaries at the front struggled to erect a magical barrier to deflect the hellish flames, at least a third of them found themselves incinerated instantly.

    "The fuck is that thing?!" Theodore growled furiously, his hair singed.

    "A Soul Beast¡­just like Richard''s!" Harrison understood what we were facing. As the flaming hell horse reared up to unleash another deadly stream of flames, he threw his hand out to cast a holy spell, despite knowing he wouldn''t be able to withstand it.

    Fortunately, I had managed to conjure Black Tortoise in time. A water barrier appeared around the crying and weeping civilians who had survived the blast, clutching burned limbs or searching for loved ones burned into a crisp by the attack. I didn''t have time to take in their sorrow. The survival of the remaining soldiers and evacuees were my priority right now.

    Seeing my water barrier up, Harrison quickly switched magic and buffed my water barrier. At the same time, Dong Fang Yue Chu opened up with a fire wall in hopes that his defensive would prove more resilient against an attack of the same element.

    It worked. Almost.

    Initially, Yue Chu''s fire wall swelled and expanded rapidly as it absorbed the flames, and it seemed to actually become stronger. However, the flames from the Trojan horse overloaded the barrier before long, and it burst apart in an explosive death before the irresistible torrent of fire continued onward to collide with my Black Tortoise''s water barrier.

    Tyrant laughed. "The horse of a tyrant will not be so easily denied!"

    "Shut up!" Troy roared as he hurled several boulders at his brother. The tyrant ducked under one of them before blowing up another with his own fireballs. Weaving through the hail of rocks, he jumped up to pummel Troy with his flaming fists.

    Undeterred, Troy countered with his own techniques. A master of Krav Maga, he was able to deflect Tyrant''s flaming fists to the side without taking much damage, and he returned with a kick that almost bowled his opponent over. The tyrannical brother laughed as he flipped himself back up and retaliated with a kick that forced Troy to move his head to the side in order to dodge it.

    The sole of Tyrant''s flaming boot grazed Troy''s cheek, leaving a cauterized scar, but Jing Tian Academy''s number one didn''t even flinch or seem to register the pain. Instead, he lashed out with a kick of his own, almost taking Tyrant by surprise. The both of them circled each other, their arms and legs snaking out with deadly precision and snapping toward each other''s vitals. More than once Troy managed to slap away Tyrant''s punches or deflect his kicks before they could reach him, and he even got a few good hits into his brother''s gut. He didn''t escape completely unscathed, though. Burns and grazes scored his arms, chest and face, but he ignored his wounds and continued to bear down on his opponent, mercilessly delivering a barrage of attacks.

    All around them, boulders collided with fireballs and exploded into flaming rocks that crashed down about them, leaving smoking craters. Despite the devastation about them, miraculously enough none of the shatter flaming rocks hit either of them. The two of them were too skilled and fast, their movements so graceful and sublime, that they would never allow themselves to get struck by anything as mundane as collateral damage or stray meteors.

    As the two brothers pounded away at each other, I struggled to withstand the onslaught from Tyrant''s Trojan horse. Fortunately, Harrison''s holy buff strengthened my defenses, and together we were able to protect the civilians and mercenaries within the area.

    "Your atrocities shall end here!" Charles growled as he brought his sword down, descending upon the Trojan horse from above and unleashing a deadly web of lightning that crackled around its titanic form. While the Trojan horse turned to snarl at him, Theodore came from the side and struck its head with his thunder hammer. The gigantic Soul Beast staggered, its head snapping back, but it kicked out at the big guy, who was forced to dive and roll away or risk getting pulverized from the sheer force of its kick. the fiery mane that ran along its back erupted and blasted Charles off, but his pristine armor seemed to protect him from the worst of its flames.

    "Strong," he murmured, wiping at his smoldering armor. For me, I was more surprised that he actually escaped that blast unscathed.

    "As long as we work together, we should be able to destroy that Soul Beast!" one of Charles''s friends from Pendragon Academy murmured. He approached the Trojan horse, his massive figure completely clad in gargantuan armor, and charged with his lance. Bluish-white energies crackled around his long weapon as he rammed it into the Trojan horse, which neighed in agony.

    The Soul Beast unleashed another massive blast of flames that sent the poor guy hurtling across the demolished shelter, but from what I could see, his armor protected him from what would otherwise be certain death. He vanished underneath a crumbling pillar, disappearing under a pile of rubble and dust, but his grunt and curses told me he was still alive.

    By now, the Trojan horse was going into a rampage, hellfire snaking out in all directions and discouraging the knights of Pendragon Academy. The mercenaries, fortunately, were nowhere near its berserk figure, and were busily helping the civilians out through another avenue, now that the monstrous creature was blocking the main exit.

    ''Watch out!" Harrison warned. A few seconds later, the Trojan horse slammed into the water barrier that Black Tortoise created, its flames scrabbling and licking ineffectively against the clear, transparent screen.

    Snarling, the Trojan horse then delivered a powerful kick that actually caused the fluid barrier to crack. I winced from the impact, but fortunately both Black Tortoise and I continued to hold strong. Especially with Harrison providing backup by buffing us with his holy spells.

    "Useless," one of the civilians sneered. Harrison, Yue Chu and I turned to stare at him. he was reading the Webnovel app on his smartphone, but had torn his gaze away from whatever story he was engrossed in to mock me. "What a weak main character, needing to rely on his friends to help him fight or survive. Why can''t you be like the main characters from other stories, who can solo everything by themselves? You''re pathetic. One day your friends will betray you and you will find out that you can only depend on yourself. If you continue relying on your friends to help you in every battle like this, you will only suffer. Not only that, it''s extremely frustrating to read about such a weak main character. Why do you have so many stupid limitations, and can only fight if you have allies? Most main characters have cheats and can solo their stories by themselves, yet you''re so pathetic, needing to depend on other people for help! I can''t read this trash!"

    Yue Chu strode forward and hammered the guy in the face, breaking his nose and sending him sprawling on the ground. He then stomped on the guy and kicked him, knocking him out. Turning toward us, he shrugged.

    "Keyboard warriors. Always throwing insults and talking as if they were so tough, but when they get into a fight in real life, they get stomped so easily. But seriously, the comments they leave on your story are so inane. And so unrealistic. What person in real life would ever be able to solo everything by himself? Even Steve Jobs had to create an entire company, and relied on his employees and distribution facilities to get rich. He didn''t just do everything himself. These guys just want to read their wish fulfilment, self-insert power fantasies where they are gods who can do whatever they want without needing help. They can go screw off and read other stories if that''s what they want. We deal with reality here."

    "Uh¡­right." I wasn''t sure what to say, so I returned my attention to the Trojan horse, which was beginning to breach Black Tortoise''s usually watertight defenses.

    Fortunately, I had allies outside of the barrier. Theodore, Charles and several other knights from Pendragon Academy (including the girl with the spear and blue and white armor) launched their attacks while the titanic Trojan horse was still distracted, their Divine Devices glowing with incredible power as they unleashed devastating spells. The Trojan horse shrieked as it was struck from all sides by every manner of elemental spells, ranging from lightning to ice to earth.

    "Withdraw your Soul Beast!" Troy commanded from above, having cast his gravity spell. A massive black orb now surrounded Tyrant, who had dropped to his knees when he found himself unable to resist the powerful gravitional forces that pulled him toward the ground. "It''s over, Tyrant!"

    "Over? No, it''s only just beginning!"

    With a shrill cackle, Tyrant forced himself to rise to his feet, flames pouring from his body.

    "Nightmare! Trojan Ambush!"

    "¡­huh? Ambush?"

    At first, I wasn''t sure what Tyrant was talking about. Then I noticed the black Trojan horse swelling and expanding, its flames intensifying to the point that Theodore, Charles and the Pendragon Knights were forced to back off. The black stallion then exploded.

    No¡­it didn''t explode. Hellfire was erupting from its body like a volcano, pyrotechnics and enormous embers blasting upward and arcing through the air before crashing heavily onto the ground. My water barrier was able to protect the civilians, my friends and myself from the fiery projectiles, which just bounced off and landed on the ground like blazing meteors.

    No, not blazing meteors.

    The flames began to flicker and transformed, taking on familiar silhouettes. To my astonishment, I found myself looking at an army of hell horses, each sporting a flaming mane, rise to their feet and neigh ferociously. They were several times smaller than their parent Trojan horse, but each of these hell horses stood two meters tall, and were no less ferocious.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me," Yue Chu murmured, his jaw dropping.

    "The Trojan horse indeed¡­" I agreed, my mouth dry, while I watched the horrifying sight. "It was bearing an entire army of monsters inside itself."

 311 Chapter 311: Trojan Nightmare

    The nightmarish horses stampeded about the place, pursuing the other civilians. Mercenaries shouted as they closed ranks and formed defensive lines, firing haplessly into the incoming beasts. Fortunately, assistance arrived in the form of the Pendragon Academy Knights, who burst into the foray with their weapons and magic. Lances pierced horses, blades cut stallions, and axes cleaved steeds. The smaller horses neighed in agony and seared the area with flames, but their fire spells were clearly less powerful than that of their primogenitor.

    Even as flames washed over the Pendragon Academy Knights, the students'' gleaming armor held strong against the aggressive spells. The defensive runes glowed as the knights infused their armor with mana, and dissipated the flames.

    By the way, the defensive runes weren''t exactly spells, nor were they accelerants. They were more of boosters that served to enhance the knights'' innate defensive spells and buff their endurance. They weren''t auto-cast or passive spells that were perpetually in place. Just think of them as a different kind of Divine Device or Spirit Engraved Gear, so all they did was strengthen spells that their wearers cast, not automatically cast spells for them. Runes on their own did absolutely nothing until the user fed them mana or use them as a medium to cast their spells. And while they strengthened the spells, they did not speed up the casting time.

    "Why are you explaining that?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked irritably. I shrugged and gestured to several of the civilians, among whom the existences from beyond the fourth wall had taken possession of.

    "Because they would definitely ask me those questions and complain about how I''m so stupid for not making use of these runes to speed up the casting time for my summomning spells¡­even though such a convenient thing doesn''t exist."

    "Furthermore, it''s not as if anyone can just get spirit engraved gear," Harrison Reed added as he glanced at the mercenaries. "The Hell''s Hounds, even though they are among the top mercenary groups and most famous, and arguably the most well equipped, don''t have Spirit Engraved Gear for each of their soldiers. Pendragon Academy is a school for the elites and super-rich. All the studetns who enroll there usually come from wealthy families. Thus they can afford to arm each and every student with the very best spirit-engraved armor and weapons."

    Spirit Engraving was a very luxurious industry that commanded much more money than comestic healing magic/surgery (which was why I couldn''t afford to have my eyes fixed, because they charge people with exorbitant sums of money just to heal myopia, plastic surgery, slimming stuff, and other "comestic" things). Anyone who chose to become a Spirit Engraver would most certainly become set for life.

    "Then why don''t you become a Spirit Engraver and become rich?" one of the reader-civilians sneered. "Stupid MC."

    "Do you think it''s so easy to become a Spirit Engraver?" Harrison scoffed at the na?ve reader, who could only think of ways to game the system without considering reality or the practicality of the situation. "If it''s so simple, everyone will become a Spirit Engraver."

    "But he''s the main character!"

    "So what?" I pointed above impatiently. "In case you haven''t noticed, the title of the story is Summoner, not Spirit Engraver. Obviously I''m going to focus on learning summoning magic instead of Spirit Engraving or healing or whatever!"

    "But¡­but, look at The Great Conqueror! Even though Ya Se is supposed to be a great conqueror, he is also a Spirit Engraving prodigy!"

    "Do I look like I''m some prodigy to you?" I snarled. "I''m just a perfectly normal, average, mediocre guy with no talent whatsoever! I had to work hard to reach my current status and position! I don''t have any stupid cheats or any random master conveniently popping out from nowhere to teach me ultimate magic or something! Even my dad only taught me martial arts and not a whole lot of magic! And I still sucked at learning martial arts despite my dad''s best efforts, which is much more realistic than all those usual xianxia protagonists mastering whatever their masters teach them so easily as if they were sponges absorbing water! How convenient that they just happen to either have the best teachers in the world or they just happen to be geniuses who can master everything perfectly when being taught! If only everyone was that talented, eh?"

    "Shut up! We only want to read about overpowered main characters! Weak and pathetic MCs like you can just fuck off and die!"

    Yue Chu went over and smashed his fist into the rambling guy''s face so hard that teeth actually flew out of his bleeding mouth. Shaking his hand, he turned back to me.

    "Ignore those idiots and focus on the current battle. Seems like that big guy is about to breach your defenses."

    "Black Tortoise!" I shouted, returning my attention back to the present. Even though Harrison and I were infusing the water barrier with mana, the original Trojan horse was smashing through the fluid screen and somehow causing cracks (I have no idea how, let''s just say it made for easier visual representation for manhua and anime viewers) in it. We wouldn''t be able to hold on for much longer.

    Which was why I was sending my Celestial Guardian up to contest the breach.

    At that moment, the Trojan horse kicked a gigantic hole open in the water sphere and vaporized the rest with its hellish flames. With a nightmarish neigh, it strode right in, triumphantly rearing up to torment the civilians.

    "Harrison, Yue Chu, take all of them and run! My Constellation spirits and I will hold that giant horse off!" I yelled. Black Tortoise was already responding to my will, lumbering forward to contest the Trojan horse.

    The titanic Trojan horse snorted, as if to say that my Black Tortoise wouldn''t pose a threat to it at all, and kicked at him. My Celestial Guardian quickly withdrew into his shell and withstood the double kick that the nightmarish creature delivered, and his sturdy defense meant he didn''t take any damage. He popped his head back out and unleashed a hydro pump attack (okay, I really need a more original name for this water spell) that crashed into the gargantuan creature and washed it away. The titanic Trojan horse screeched in rage and pain, but the fiery mane only served to ignite more forcefully, vaporizing water into boiling steam.

    Charging through the highly pressurized torrent of water, the Trojan horse kicked out at Black Tortoise again, who quickly withdrew into his shell. Snarling, the titanic Trohan horse stomped on the durable shell, but failed to make even a dent. Spinning around, Black Tortoise tackled the Trojan horse and sent it crashing onto the ground.

    Scrambling back to its feet, the Trojan horse then unleashed a huge stream of hellish flames that whirled about in a fiery tornado.

    "Is that damned thing using a fire spin attack?" I moaned. We were really intruding into Pocket Monster territory here. Pretty soon Tyrant would reveal a ball to recall his fainted Rapidash¡­I mean Trojan horse into it.

    Black Tortoise''s shell, while impervious to physical attacks, was not as resistant against magical or elemental attacks. His shell, formerly black, began to glow red-hot.

    "This ain''t good."

    Fortunately, I had not been idle this entire time. While Black Tortoise had been occupying the Trojan horse''s attention, I had been investing all my time and energy into summoning yet another Celestial Guardian.

    "Golden Kirin!"

    A massive dragon-like horse materialized in the center of the crumbling building, his golden scales gleaming in the dim light and almost illuminating the area. Antlers crowned his draconic head, along with whiskers and a single horn that protruded from his forehead. Hooves clattered against the ground, the heavily muscled legs also similarly protected by armored scales. He issued a bellow of challenge at the stunned Trojan horse.

    "What the hell? When did you get a new summon?!" Yue Chu demanded, still at the back directing the civilians through an alternate avenue of escape.

    "The fifth and supposedly most powerful Celestial Guardian. Golden Kirin of the Center, who reigns over the element of earth." I shrugged. "If I can summon the other four Celestial Guardians ¨C Green Dragon of the East, White Tiger of the West, Vermillion Phoenix of the South, and Black Tortoise of the North, why wouldn''t I be able to summon this guy?"

    In actual fact, it took me a long time to finally complete my conceptualization and creation of this guy, which was why I never summoned him until now.

    Snarling, the Trojan horse unleashed a second fire spin attack at the newly materialized Golden Kirin, but he responded by stomping a single hoof into the ground and conjuring several walls of earth. Even as the rocky barriers were melted into molten magma, the flames failed to get past any of them. Instead, boulders levitated and flung themselves at the Trojan horse, almost like railguns firing off electromagnetically charged projectiles.

    Or the reversal of gravitational forces. Well, I wasn''t a physicist, so I had no idea how it worked, but I was aware of the concept of geomagnetism. The Earth had its own magnetic field, produced within its inner core, and my Golden Kirin was making use of that to charge its boulders into powerful railgun-like projectiles.

    The Trojan horse was almost unable to dodge the gauss rifle like slugs, but it nimbly dove to the side, making use of its superb speed to evade the incoming projectiles. Even though the gauss slugs were being fired at incredible speeds, for the Trojan horse to still dodge them at near pointblank range, I couldn''t help but be impressed.

    Flames wreathing its body, the Trojan horse closed in on my Golden Kirin, screeching. Even so, my Celestial Guardian stood strong and conjured dozens of earth spikes that lanced out and almost impaled his opponent, forcing the titanic horse to veer off and alter its trajectory in midair. Stray fireballs crashed around the Golden Kirin, but he remained unperturbed by what would otherwise be close shaves. Ignoring the firery bombardment, he continued to unleash more earth spikes at the dancing Trojan horse, who made use of its amazing agility to avoid getting speared by the deadly stone lances.

    While the two titanic creatures battled it out, I spun around to ensure that my friends were all right. Theodore was working together with Charles and the Knights of Pendragon Academy to fend off the smaller horses so that the civilians could escape. Even though the majority had already fled under the protection of the mercenaries, there were still a significant number of them left inside. It was only natural. We literally started off with thousands of evacuees. They weren''t going to simply empty out the building in a matter of minutes.

    Especially when the whoe situation was so chaotic, and the soldiers were working to ensure they didn''t stampede over and crush each other in the mass panic. The mercenaries also fought to keep the horses off their backs, and as much as I wanted to help, I was currently too busily fighting against the main Trojan horse. If I could, I would have summoned more Constellation spirits to help out, but I had already expended most of my mana and time into summoning Golden Kirin. Besides, I realized that if I took out the main Trojan horse, it was highly likely that the other smaller horses would disappear.

    Additionally, my friends and the Knights of Pendragon Academy were doing a good job of holding the smaller horses off and even destroying them.

    Drawing Hei Yue and Bai Ri, I sprinted toward the struggling Trojan horse. It was still nimbly dodging the hail of stone lances that my Golden Kirin was firing at it, twisting from side to side and weaving through the rock-hard barrage. I leaped onto one of the lances and began hopping from one stone spike to another, closing in on the thrashing Trojan horse.

    At first, it disregarded me as insignificant. After all, what was a puny human when compared to the likes of Golden Kirin or Black Tortoise?

    However, even as I jumped off from an elongating stone spike and spun midair to avoid getting burned by its fire spin, it kicked out at me almost casually. I altered my trajectory abruptly and swung about to slash its leg. Both of my swords flashed out, the black and white blades cleaving through its black fur and leaving a geyser of blood.

    The Trojan horse neighed in agony and whirled about to face me, its flames spiraling in concerted fashion toward my falling figure. Even as the flames roared toward me, I smiled.

    That small moment of distraction was more than enough.

    The guass rifle shot made out of solid earth tore through the Trojan horse''s body, pulverizing it and leaving a massive crater in its figure. The Trojan horse actually shrieked as it crashed downward, blood and fire erupting from its fatal wound. The spiraling flames that would have engulfed me went wide, scorching the air just centimeters away from my face. What few deadly embers that rained in my direction, I managed to slash apart with my dual swords.

    Landing on the ground, I rolled to avoid another shower of fire, and then glanced up at the writhing Trojan horse. Using geomagnetic forces, Golden Kirin launched another gauss slug made entirely out of solid earth and obliterated the remains of the Trojan horse again. It cried out one last time before it shattered into wisps of mana.

    "?!"

    Tyrant King froze for a moment, and was forced to duck when Troy punched him. Even though he avoided getting a fist in his face, Troy''s attack caught him in the shoulder when he proved too slow in completely evading it and he was sent spinning to the ground.

    "My Nightmare has been defeated?" he growled in disbelief. Troy stomped on him, forcing him to roll away.

    "You underestimate my friends, Tyrant," Troy sneered. "And it won''t be just your stupid horse. You''re going down too, big brother."

    Tyrant chuckled as he hurled himself away, and back to his feet.

    "We''ll see about that, little bro."

    Despite his confidence, the smaller horses found themselves slowly disappearing the moment their primogenitor was slain.

    "They''re falling!" Yue Chu cheered as he punched a horse into oblivion with his flaming fists.

    "Yeah. Looks like Richard did it." Harrison glanced at me, even as his right hand unleashed a golden holy beam that sheared off the head of another horse.

    "Leave it to the specialist to destroy monsters," Theodore agreed as he hammered another horse, pulverizing it into wisps of mana. He then turned to the civilians and gestured for them to hurry. "Get out of here! Now!"

    "All¡­all right!"

    Despite being shaken, the evacuees were able to leave the shelter in orderly fashion. Nodding to Golden Kirin and Black Tortoise, I proceeded to mop up the remaining horses that continued to stubbornly linger despite the demise of their parent. Despite their obstinacy, they were pretty easy to clean up. Between my Golden Kirin''s earth spells and my Black Tortoise''s water spells, we were able to crush any remaining resistance while allowing the remaining refugees flee from the crumbling shelter.

    However, before long, I heard a massive explosion that wrecked half of the broken building. Spinning around, I caught sight of Troy vanishing in a shower of debris.

    ¡­and heard Tyrant''s triumphant laughter echoing through the interior¡­

 312 Chapter 312: Brothersâ€™ War

    Allow me to rewind a few minutes before Troy''s apparent defeat. And yes, I''m going to maintain first person perspective because of my ability to break the fourth wall. Got a problem with that? Too bad. I don''t care if I break immersion.

    Anyway¡­the two brothers actually broke out of the shelter, and were battling in the streets, even as Tyrant''s tyrannical horses roamed free inside the ruined shelter, trying to slaughter the fleeing civilians. Only the mercenaries and students held them at bay, their heroic efforts denying the nightmarish horses any bloodshed.

    But we weren''t gods. While I was distracted by the gigantic Trojan horse, and my allies were tied up in fighting the other smaller horses, there were still plenty of other smaller horses that often broke free of the herd and rained down fiery death on the sceaming refugees, immolating them. A good number of innocents died that day, to our regret.

    What did you expect? We weren''t gods. Collateral damage was inevitable. We were already trying our best. If you think you could do better, then go ahead and become a mercenary. A soldier. Throw yourself into a warzone and see if you could save everyone. The mercenaries and my friends did their utmost best, and I refused to allow the readers to call them weak, pathetic and useless. Especially since almost all of these readers had never been in an actual battle in their lives. They think it was so fucking easy, but they had never experienced having bullets scream over their heads, their squad mates blown into bloody bits by a grenade, dodging shrapnel when a tank was hit by a missile¡­they evidently had never been in a real firefight before, and they thought they had the right to judge professional soldiers as useless or pathetic?

    Those keyboard warriors were the ones who were pathetic scum.

    Troy was aware of the casualties we were sustaining. The innocent civilians weren''t the only ones who were dying in droves. Mercenaries were succumbing to hideous burns and grievous injuries, incinerated by the nightmarish horses or kicked across the building. With great effort, he dove at Tyrant with a roar.

    A gigantic rock fist manifested over him and pummeled Tyrant to the ground. Or tried to, but the slippery villain vanished in a burst of smoke and embers before re-materializing elsewhere. His fingers ignited and he mischievously pointed both hands at Troy, mimicking a pair of guns.

    "Flaming Bullets!"

    A series of tiny fireballs blasted out of his fingers and detonated against the ground where Troy was standing a few seconds ago. He dove to the side, trying his best to avoid the volley of fireballs that trailed and tracked him, Tyrant almost lazily shifting his aim too continue firing at him. Rolling on the ground, he took cover behind a battered two-story house.

    "Heh!" Tyrant smirked. "Hide all you want, little bro! Do you think that little house can protect you?"

    "Ugh¡­!"

    His muscles bulging and popping from the strenuous effort, Troy actually grabbed the two-story building and tore it from its foundation. Using both hands, he lifted up the entire structure with a determined roar before hurling it at the flaming Tyrant.

    "!!"

    Tyrant glanced up at the flying house for a second before he dropped to his knees. His right hand blazed furiously with flames, but he decided to slam both hands into the ground and ignite them, creating an inferno around him.

    "Flame Commandment," he intoned, flooding the entire area with fire as he crouched down. "Fire Pillar!"

    A torrent of flames erupted from his body, turning into a literal pillar of fire that pierced the heavens and even dispelled the clouds. The building that Troy tossed at him was no match for such a destructive spell, disintegrating instantly from the sheer heat.

    "Whoa!"

    Troy dove to the side again, doing his best to avoid the flaming debris that rained down upon him. He jumped up to maintain his distance, but the bloodthirsty Tyrant was too eager to continue the battle to allow his younger brother to withdraw to safety.

    "Fire Fist!"

    "!!?"

    Troy tried to conjure an earth barrier, but even the solid wall of dirt was obliterated in little more than an instant. The funnel of flames washed over the crumbling barrier and engulfed the earth mage, scorching a trail of molten rock in the ground.

    "Ugh!"

    Smoldering, Troy crashed onto the ground and rolled about frantically, using a combination of his own mana and the soil to extinguish the flames that immolated his body. Even as he put out the flames, fumes continued to pour upward.

    "Hot! Ouch! This hurts!"

    Coughing, he rose to his feet and glared at the smirking Tyrant, while waving his hands and putting out the last few embers that continued to dance atop his arms. Sucking a deep breath, he steeled himself, hatred visible in his dark eyes.

    "Fuck!" he cursed hoarsely, trrying to draw breath through his raw throat. He seethed and gritted his teeth, enduring the pain. Then he smiled bitterly. "Well¡­this isn''t any different from back when we were still children."

    "Heh? You still remember our childhood?" Tyrant scoffed. Troy''s eyes sparkled with resentment and a deep-sated grudge.

    "How can I forget? You''re the one who carved those bitter memories into my body." Boulders began rising around him. "Ever since we were toddlers¡­you were a sadistic bastard who did nothing but beat me up, just to indulge your own sick hobbies. You would take a knife and carve it across my skin, trying to draw patterns on my body and call it art. You treated me like your own personal punching bag, claiming that you wanted to experiment with new techiques and skills, but all you did was beat me up so brutally that I often got hospitalized. And after I was treated with healing magic, you repeated that as soon as possible. You never saw me as a brother¡­you treated me like nothing more than a guinea pig¡­a punching bag¡­a toy you culd torture to your heart''s content."

    "But that''s exactly what you are!" Tyrant let out a peal of gleeful laughter. Troy''s lip curled.

    "I knew it. You''re still the same sick bastard that you''ve always been."

    "Come now," Tyrant sneered. "You honestly don''t think that you are any different? You share the same blood as I do¡­from our old man. You know as well as I do that he raised us to be the ultimate warriors. That the reason why we end up being so strong today is all because of our old man!"

    "Don''t you dare talk to me about that fucker!" Troy bellowed, his face contorted with rage. "He has no right to call himself a parent! Not after what he did to Mom! His bullshit logic about the strong eat the weak and survival of the fittest!"

    That was why Troy and Tyrant''s father did absolutely nothing even when Tyrant was bullying his younger brother in the most horrific way imaginable. He justified it as "strong eat the weak" and if Troy was too weak to fight back, then he deserved to be bullied. Troy''s father valued strength above everything else.

    Ironically, he ended up being killed by the sadistic and twisted Tyrant, who one day wanted to find out if he had surpassed his old man. And he did¡­not to mention, he enjoyed conducting certain heinous experiments on his dying father before he finally expired. Troy shed no tears over his father''s demise, not after the abuse he had suffered during the King Patriarch''s reign, and especially after Tyler King abandoned his wife because she was too "weak" to accomplish a mission, leaving her to die on foregin soil, surrounded by enemies.

    A fitting end, so far as Troy was concerned. And now, he wanted to erase the insanity that Tyrant was unleashing upon the world, once and for all. That one last person who was related to him by blood. And as a member of that sick, twisted family (his mother being the exception), Troy felt that it was his responsibility to clean up after his evil brother.

    "This ends here, Tyrant," he declared resolutely. "I will ensure you never commit another atrocity again from today onward."

    "Try it if you can, little bro!" Tyrant mocked him. "I know you don''t have the balls!"

    Troy responded with a grim grin. "I don''t have the balls, you say?"

    All around him, massive boulders rose, each of them vibrating violently, and each of them the embodiment of his fury. Infused with mana, they were being charged by geomagnetic forces similar to my Golden Kirin''s gauss rifle spells. Those hovering gigantic boulders dwarfed Tyrant''s fireballs, practically several dozen times bigger than the latter.

    "My balls are a lot bigger than yours, Tyrant."

    "¡­!"

    Tyrant craned his head to look at the floating boulders, but he showed no sign of fear. Instead, he cocked his head to the side.

    "You''ve got me beat there, little bro," he admitted, raising both of his hands. "I forgot that among the members of our family, you''re the one person closest to mom¡­of course you would have inherited her affinity to the earth element."

    He then grinned.

    "So what? What of it? Did you think that you could beat me just because you take after mom? Just because your balls are bigger than mine?"

    Troy didn''t even bother responding. He hurled the boulders at his brother, obliterating his position. Tyrant merely stood there calmly, his flames enveloping him in a protective inferno. The smaller fireballs swerved forward to meet the boulders, colliding and exploding, but smaller flaming meteors continued to rain down upon the tyrannical fire mage, disintegrating when they ran into his inferno force field.

    However, Troy would not be denied. A few of the boulders actually breached Tyrant''s inferno and slammed into him.

    "!!!"

    Tyrant''s eyes widened in shock for a moment, but he managed to punch the meteors with his flaming fists before they could crush him, pulverizing the solid rock and shattering them. Debris crashed down on him, grazing his cheeks and arms and leaving countless scrapes and cuts. Blood leaked from his cuts and dripped onto the ground, only to vaporize from the intense heat before they could leave any trace.

    "Looks like I managed to scratch you, at the very least," Troy remarked with an amused grin. "I bet you never would have expected that, eh?"

    "¡­whatever."

    For the first time, Tyrant was scowling. He folded his arms, ignoring the multiple cuts on his face and arms.

    "Are you really so pathetic that you''re happy from just scratching me?"

    "You really are a fool, aren''t you?" Troy couldn''t help but scoff. "You think that''s all I''m capable of?"

    Tyrant was about to retort, but something else caught his attention and he spun around in disbelief.

    His main familiar, Nightmare, had been slain, and vanquished back to wherever it resided before he summoned it to do his bidding. Back inside the shelter he had just attacked, Tyrant watched as the smaller clones of Nightmare began vanishing as well.

    "?!"

    He froze for a moment, and was forced to duck when Troy punched him. Even though he avoided getting a fist in his face, Troy''s attack caught him in the shoulder when he proved too slow in completely evading it and he was sent spinning to the ground.

    "My Nightmare has been defeated?" he growled in disbelief. Troy stomped on him, forcing him to roll away.

    "You underestimate my friends, Tyrant," Troy sneered. "And it won''t be just your stupid horse. You''re going down too, big brother."

    Tyrant chuckled as he hurled himself away, and back to his feet.

    "We''ll see about that, little bro."

    "We will, indeed."

    Troy made no move to close in on Tyrant. Instead, he maintained his distance and finished his spell.

    "?!"

    Tyrant realized something was wrong. While he was busily defending against Troy''s boulder bombardment and physical attacks, the latter had already started casting another spell. And he had just completed it. With a raised of his hand, he enveloped the entire area outside in darkness, taking care not to swallow up the fleeing civilians. It wasn''t difficult ¨C his only target was Tyrant, after all.

    "What is this?"

    Troy didn''t reply. He wasn''t stupid enough to give away information on his own spells and techniques. Insead, he focused on amplifying the gravitiy within the space caught within the darkness that he had engulfing the area around Tyrant.

    Gravity was one of the most powerful forces in the universe. When strong enough, not even light could escape from it.

    "¡­ugh!"

    Tyrant fell to his knees when he felt the immense weight weighing down on him, crushing him down to the ground. He threw his hands out to support himself, but was unable to rise to his feet. Tremendous gravitational forces sought to squash him flat, but through some miracle he maintained his kneeling posture.

    "Don''t think something like this can¡­!" he snarled, only to glance up in shock when he saw boulders crashing down on him.

    "You experienced getting struck by my boulders earlier, didn''t you?" Troy asked with a smirk. "Now¡­what do you think will happen when those same boulders fall upon you again¡­but this time, they are under the influence of much stronger gravitational forces?"

    "¡­?!"

    Above the two brothers, a swarm of boulders had materialized and hovered unsteadily, vibrating as they fought desperately to resist the tremendous gravitational forces that now permeated the area. Troy''s face contorted as he kept up the effort to maintain the boulders'' current elevated position. He was just summoning as many boulders as possible. Once he reached his limit, he then let go of the boulders and allowed them to descend upon the person who had been the target of his hatred for so long.

    Tyrant desperately tried to throw himself to the side, but he found himself completely unable to move¡­his body refused to budge even a millimeter. The gravity that was weighing down on his body was far too much for him to resist.

    "Ugh¡­! No way¡­!"

    "I''ll be paying you back all the pain you''ve inflicted upon me all these years¡­several fold."

    With that statement, Troy mercilessly obliterated the howling Tyrant''s position with a boulder bombardment, razing the entire ground and engulfing the site in a gigantic explosion of dust and utter darkness.

 313 Chapter 313: The Two Brothers

    Troy regarded the devastated site with an almost detached look, and he sighed, almost as if he was relieved that the entire ordeal was over.

    "!?"

    He blinked when he suddenly noticed the thousands of floating tiny lights of fire surrounding him, almost like fireflies.

    Amidst the rubble, a single hoarse voice croaked out.

    "Will O''Wisp."

    "When did they¡­?"

    He never got to finish his sentence. The Will O''Wisp detonated in unison, engulfing the poor earth mage in a hellish inferno.

    "Gwaaah!"

    Rolling in the ground, Troy desperately tried to extinguish the flames that now immolated his body. Coughing, he tried to get up, but a severely wounded Tyrant managed to drag himself out of the debris to leap toward his position.

    "You really did a number on me, little bro," Tyrant sneered, blood dripping off his face in streams. He seized Troy by the the collar and hoisted him up. Troy countered with a hook that sent Tyrant staggering but the older guy rammed a knee into his little brother''s solar plexus and caused him to double over. Raising a flaming fist, he punched Troy''s face so hard that the latter was sent flying several dozen meters away.

    Troy crashed back into the shelter where he was originally sheltering the evacuees, erasing half of the building from the tremendous impact and vanishing under a pile of debris. Tyrant laughed triumphantly as he stepped over the ruins of the once sturdy building, his face twisted into a sneer. Despite his apparent victory, he struck a hideous figure, blood streaming down his face in thick rivulets and injuries pockmarking his dark skin.

    "Troy!" I yelled, hurrying toward his position. I wasn''t sure what I was going to do, maybe help him out or something. But if this was an opponent that even Troy couldn''t defeat, then I wasn''t sure what I could do to help him. Fortunately, I wasn''t alone. Golden Kirin was galloping beside me, his antlers and horn glowing golden.

    Earth lances erupted from the ground and surged forward to spear Tyrant. The fire mage casually turned around and obliterated them with his flaming fists.

    "So now you need the help of your puny friends, eh, little bro?"

    A particularly huge piece of debris suddenly flew at him, flung by Troy. Tyrant flippantly raised his arm and smashed it effortlessly.

    "Throwing a tantrum isn''t going to help your cause, little bro."

    "Stay back, Richie!" Troy yelled. "He''s mine!"

    "But¡­"

    "You''ll only get in the way!"

    "That''s right!" Tyrant cackled as he threw out an arm and unleashed a torrent of flames at me. Golden Kirin skidded to a stop and conjured an earth barrier that barely withstood the superheated inferno, which immediately created a tunnel of molten lava. The boiling red and black rock flowed and snaked across the ruined shelter, and I had to mentally command Golden Kirin to summon rock blocks to seal them off from the still evacuating civilians.

    "Morons," Tyrant sneered. "Always worrying about and trying to protect those garbage who are weaker than you. If you would only discard those useless baggage instead of allowing them to weigh you down, then maybe¡­just maybe you would stand a chance against me."

    "Someone as evil as you will never understand¡­" Troy coughed as he rose from the rubble, wiping the blood from his mouth. "It''s not about strength or weakness. Everyone has a role to play in society. Everyone has a place, a talent that no other can. It''s not about having superpowers or being able to wield magic. I will never be able to repair a leaking faucet, or restore broken powerlines. I can''t fix computers or find out the problem with a disrupted wi-fi. I can''t cook a good meal. Yet these so-called useless people that you deride¡­they are what keeps society running. They are the people who provide me with food, allow my daily life to run smoothly without hiccups. If I''m in no mood to cook, I can always rely on the chef across the street to provide me a warm meal. If my computer breaks down, I can call up a technician to fix it for me. A plumber to fix my bathroom when all things go to hell. Shop at Walmart or Target when I need groceries, instead of foraging in the wild, trying to guess what''s edible and what''s not. We rely on each other to survive. We are all part of society, whether you like it or not. All our daily necessities, our daily lives and services¡­we depend on the unsung heroes¡­the workers, the usually unappreciated staff to keep our daily routines running smoothly while we go about our work and schools. And they in turn depend on us to protect them. It is give and take¡­a reciprocal relationship forged on mutual trust. You think you can survive on your own, but all you''ve really done is take things that people craft with their own blood, sweat and tears for yourself, and rob others. One day, it''s all going to backfire on you¡­"

    He smiled.

    "But you won''t live to see that happen¡­because I will stop you. I will end your reign of terror today, once and for all."

    "Big talk, little bro. but you don''t have the strength to back that up!"

    Tyrant turned his back on me to visit his rage upon his younger brother. However, Troy had not been idle while he had gone on a tirade against his brother. He had been preparing his spell while Tyrant was momentarily distracted by me.

    "Black Hole."

    "!!?"

    Tyrant jerked and faltered when he found himself suddenly sucked toward Troy''s position. Troy, on the other hand, had raised a black-tinted hand and was exerting powerful gravitational forces on his brother to draw him toward him.

    This was no longer Troy approaching Tyrant, but Troy dragging his brother toward him ¨C presumably ¨C to beat him up.

    "Gravity?!"

    Before Tyrant could react, Troy punched him in the gut with a rock-hardened fist. So powerful was the force behind that blow that I could literally feel tremors ripple out from the collision even from so far away.

    "Gagh!?"

    Blood spurted from Tyrant''s mouth before the big guy was sent hurtling out of the broken shelter and crashing into a nearby building, demolishing it.

    "Hmph." Troy shook his arm, even as the stone armor around his fist, which had served as a gauntlet, slowly crumbled. He flexed his fingers a few times before rubbing his bruised knuckles. "I actually felt that."

    "Fuck you," Tyrant spat, a glob of blood mixed with his saliva striking the ground and hissing with smoke. He slowly rose to his feet and conjured new pillars of fire. "Seems like you''ve learned quite the fancy trick, little bro¡­ Should I be proud of you?"

    Troy narrowed his eyes, but he activated Black Hole again, drawing his brother back toward his position. Tyrant allowed himself to be sucked toward Troy, but he wasn''t going to let himself get hit so simply again. Instead, he ignited his fists.

    "Divine Flames: Seaside Aurora!"

    Twin torrent of flames surged out from his hands at the same time as when Troy threw his newly gauntleted fist forward again.

    Both attacks hit at the same time. As the twin torrent of hellfire speared into Troy''s chest, incinerating cloth and burning the flesh underneath the scorched fabric, the earth mage''s rock gauntlet slammed into Tyrant''s neck with an audible crack.

    "Gaah!"

    Crying out, Troy fell back and clutched at his wounds, hastily trying to put out the flames. Crashing several dozen meters away and vanishing underneath another disintegrating building, Tyrant staggered to his feet amidst the rubble, blood dribbling from his mouth.

    "Ugh¡­" he grunted as he clutched at his neck. "That blow from earlier almost broke my spine! That shitty brat¡­since when did he get this strong!?"

    However, he shrugged off the damage and twisted around to cross his flaming fingers to cast a new fire spell.

    "!!"

    Even as he huffed and perspiration dripped down his face, Troy was able to glance up in time to see the attack coming.

    "Holy Cross!"

    "¡­!!!"

    Gritting his teeth, Troy slammed both palms against the ground and conjured a gigantic earth wall that parried the spell. An enormous explosion enveloped the area and caused entire buildings in the district to topple from the devastating impact.

    "Troy!" I yelled, hurrying over, but he threw out a hand to stop me.

    "Leave this bastard to me, Richie." His tone was final and firm. He would not accept any help from me. And I would only get in the way if I tried to help¡­no, he might probably attack me to force me away from this battlefield. Troy wanted to personally defeat his brother with his own hands. Protagonist or not, I had to allow other characters the chance to shine. It would be incredibly stupid if I hogged all the boss fights to myself. "Protect the civilians. Escort them out of the city. Don''t let any more harm befall them. Tyrant has done more than enough damage to them already. I will not allow him to hurt any more innocents."

    "¡­"

    I watched him for a moment, and then nodded. There was no changing his mind. The only help I could offer was minimizing as many casualties as possible.

    "Understood. You take care of yourself¡­and settle your blood feud with your brother once and for all."

    Troy turned to offer me a determined smile.

    "Thank you."

    Then he returned to his battle. I hurried away to wave the last remaining civilians onward, trying to escort them toward the rest of the mercenaries and military. There were thousands of them, and the soldiers and students escorting them were stretched to the limit.

    Especially since the monsters chose that moment to crawl out of the woodwork. I could see Banshees and Gorgons emerging from behind ruined husks of buildings, the former wailing eerily and the hair-snakes of the latter hissing ferociously.

    "Golden Kirin! Black Tortoise!"

    I had yet to dismiss my Celestial Guardians, and they served me well, forming barriers between the newly emerged monsters and the screaming civilians. The Knights of Pendragon were quick to react, falling upon the monsters and hacking them apart. Or trying to, anyway. The rank B Gorgons, in particular, were not going to fall easily.

    "Look!"

    A cry drew my attention back to the skirmish behind me. The refugees were pointing toward a crashing structure, a hundred-story building collapsing downward on the district as it was drawn by irresistible gravitational forces.

    Troy.

    "The Trojan Skyscraper is falling¡­!"

    "What''s going on?! Are those two fighting over there¡­even human?"

    "¡­our city¡­will there be anything left of it?"

    Several of the civilians had froze, watching the demise of what was once their home. Disbelief and shock filled their weary expressions, and many were weeping, wondering if they would ever be able to live here again, even if they somehow survived getting out of the city today.

    The homes they had inhabited for years¡­decades for many of the older residents ¨C was crumbling right before their eyes.

    Amidst the destruction and rubble, Tyrant was kneeling before Troy, heaving and panting. His body was bleeding heavily, battered by both gravitional forces and earth spells. Troy, for his part, had sustained a fair bit of damage from his older brother''s fire spells, but he still somehow managed to stand despite horrendous burns and injuries.

    "It''s over, Tyrant!" he proclaimed, standing atop a pile of debris. Around the two of them flowed a sea of molten magma, the result of earth and fire spells colliding, merging and coalescing into superheated rock. "I have the high ground!"

    Huffing, Tyrant looked up defiantly, his lips pulled back in a feral snarl.

    "You underestimate my power!"

    "Don''t do it, Tyrant!" Troy warned. Then he grinned. "No, actually I want you to do it. Come on, try and jump at me! Give me an excuse to end your sorry life!"

    "Hah! I will, even if you didn''t tell me." Tyrant grinned as he forced himself to his feet despite the massive gravitational forces weighing down on him. "And the only one dying here will be you, little bro!"

    Troy''s eyes narrowed. "We''ll see about that."

    Gigantic boulders appeared above him, and he conjured a massive rock gauntlet that appeared to swell the size of his arm by several dozen times.

    "Time to end this."

    "For once, I concur, little bro!"

    Laughing madly, Tyrant raised up both hands as he bathed himself in his own hellish flames, igniting an immense inferno that seemed to draw power from the molten magma around the both of them. Seemed like Troy wouldn''t be cutting off his arms and legs and throwing him into the superheated lava, after all.

    "Great Flame Commandment."

    Intoning firmly, Tyrant held up his right hand and conjured an enormous fireball that was at least ten meters in diameter. Blazing red and golden, it resembled a miniature sun, enveloping the entire place in hellish flames and melting rock, earth, concrete and metal alike.

    "Flame Emperor."

    "!!!"

    In the face of such awesome firepower, Troy remained undaunted. He raised his massive gauntleted arm and directed his boulders at the flaming sun that Tyrant had summoned, their speed and power boosted tremendously by the Black Hole that now swirled around him.

    "Today, only one of us will walk out of this confrontation alive," he declared.

    "Heh!" Tyrant smirked. "I will be King. Nothing you do will stop me, little bro. Fate has already ordained my rightful place as such."

    The two of them then flung their massive spells at each other.

    BOOM!

    Even from a distance, I could see golden and red flames of a miniature sun clashing against the overwhelming darkness of a black hole.

    Then the entire district vanished under the collision of such colossal forces, and was completely wiped off the face of the Earth.

 314 Chapter 314: Fall of a Legend

    It wasn''t just the district. The entire city was battered by the shockwaves from the consequent colossal explosion, skyscrapers disintegrated, buildings level, roads scorched into craters, traffic lights and lampposts obliterated. Almost nothing was left standing after that.

    Fortunately, by then, the mercenaries had successfully led most of the civilians out of the city. I was forming the rearguard, having been the last to leave Troy behind, and I quickly had Black Tortoise conjure a water barrier to protect what remained of the refugees who were still somehow within the blast radius.

    Even with the water barrier, we were still sent sprawling over from the sheer force of the explosion.

    "Ugh¡­"

    Crawling to my feet, I observed the destruction. There was no sign of the city. They literally nuked it. What the fuck, they didn''t even require me to cast my nuke spells. Then again, it wasn''t as if I was the only one in the world capable of annihilating a city with a spell.

    Even so, I couldn''t help but be amazed by the sheer destruction that was caused. There wasn''t anything left of Troy City. It had been literally razed to the ground, leaving nothing but a colossal crater behind, molten lava still steaming and glowing red-hot.

    "Well, at least we don''t have to worry about monsters now," I murmured. Never mind the Banshees, even the rank B Gorgons wouldn''t be able to survive such a catastrophic explosion, which did Strength Destroyer hits to whatever was caught within its radius. Or mortal wounds, if you were more invested in the new edition.

    On the other hand, the city was completely destroyed, and if there were still any civilians remaining inside somewhere, hiding or seeking refuge in some concealed place, they were all dead. In his effort to stop his brother, Troy''s clash with Tyrant ended up wiping out everybody unfortunate enough to still be in the city.

    "Good Lord¡­"

    I exhaled wearily, my heart already aching for Troy. He was going to blame himself for this. But he didn''t have a choice. If he didn''t finish off Tyrant once and for all, the bastard was going to escape to continue wreaking more havoc on more innocents, potentially destroying another city just for the laughs. The sick fucker.

    Troy did the right thing, even if the consequences proved to be disastrous. But would he see it that way?

    Dismissing the water barrier, I hurried toward the devastated crater in search of my friend.

    "Troy!" I shouted. "Where are you?!"

    There was no sign of him or his brother. Both combatants seemed to have vanished completely. For a moment, my heart skipped a bit, and I wondered if they had both been disintegrated by the colossal forces they unleashed upon each other.

    "Oh, God¡­no¡­"

    Then my glasses picked up movement. It was pretty faint, and the sensors on my lenses were pretty fogged up by the glowing heat signatures that permeated the entire area, the temperatures still intolerably high, but the motion tracker still managed to pick up a very faint signal. Two very faint signals, right at the center of the crater.

    I doubted they were the monsters. They had to be Troy and Tyrant. There could be no one else, nothing else.

    The two brothers were still slugging it out. Quite clearly they had expended almost all of their mana, and I could sense very little traces of magic, but they refused to fall or stop. Troy punched Tyrant in the face, while Tyrant struck Troy in the gut. They exchanged a barrage of punches and kicks that sent tremors rippling across the area.

    Troy parried a punch from Tyrant before ramming his knee into the latter''s gut. Tyrant doubled over, but he somehow managed to send a hook that struck Troy''s neck and sent him staggering. The younger brother retaliated by whipping out his fist and catching the older brother square between the eyes, rocking him. The two of them spun around and kicked, their legs colliding with such force that the ground shattered beneath their feet. Even from this distance, I could feel the shockwaves from their clash buffeting me.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    I tried to hold my ground, but I found myself blown off my feet. Flipping in midair, I landed in a crouch and skidded backward. Raising my head, I watched in awe as the two combatants smashed their elbows against each other with a deafening boom.

    "Amazing¡­even though they''re not using any elemental spells, they can still cause so much destruction? Is this what the peak of physical reinforcement spells¡­no, the pinnacle of Ba Qi can do?"

    Tyrant caught Troy in a clinch and rammed his knee into his face, but the latter succeeded in using his elbow to stop the attack. Just barely. With a roar, he rammed both hands into the sides of Tyrant''s waist, causing him to stagger ¨C that must have struck his target''s kidneys. Throwing a knee up, Tyrant forced Troy to stumble back, and then he swept down with an axe kick that pulverized the ground when his younger brother spun away to avoid the attack.

    Troy wasn''t without counters of his own, and he swung his elbow around to slam it into Tyrant''s neck. The older guy managed to bring his forearm up to block the elbow strike, but Troy pressed on, slamming his knee into his brother''s gut and causing him to skid backward. Exhaling angrily, Tyrant threw a barrage of punches that forced Troy to deflect them. One of the punches caught Troy in the side of his head and spun him, but his leg shot up and kicked Tyrant in the face, causing blood to spurt out of his mouth and nose.

    "Shitty brat¡­!"

    "Fuck you, Tyrant!"

    The both swore at each other before whirling around to crush their fists against each other. The impact from the collision blew outward and shattered more of the already ruined earth, carving another crater within the colossal crater.

    The two of them sprang apart, and then charged at each other again, weaving through the barrage of punches and kicks. Chunks of molten rock and debris flew, dislodged from the sheer reverberations caused by their exchange, and more than once I was forced to evade the stray projectiles.

    Even as I neared them, I was aware that I couldn''t interfere in their battle. I was running pretty low on mana myself, and any spell I attempted to cast might end up accidentally hitting Troy as well. The both of them were so entangled with each other that it was impossible to strike one without accidentally drawing the other into friendly fire.

    As the old military adage said, friendly fire was anything but friendly.

    The two of them traded another devastating blow that almost forced them apart. Troy then spun around to kick Tyrant, who ducked under his sweeping leg and countered with a punch. Troy cocked his head to the side, just barely evading his brother''s fist, which grazed his cheek, and slammed his elbow into Tyrant''s chest. With a roar, Tyrant''s knee came up and missed his opponent''s chest, but managed to land on Troy''s gut.

    "Gah¡­!"

    Blood coursing from his mouth, Troy staggered back, but he managed to respond with a hook that grazed Tyrant''s temple and sent blood dribbling into his eyes. Cursing, the older guy wiped the blood away while bringing his elbow up to guard against Troy''s kick.

    Spinning around, the both of them rammed their elbows against each other with such force that they sprang apart, with a couple of meters between them. Debris rained down on both sides of them, and the crumbling earth groaned beneath their feet.

    "Time to finish this once and for all," Tyrant declared, lowering his arms into an aggressive stance and clenching his hands into tightly balled, glowing flaming fists. The fires that wreathed them were weak, the last vestiges and final embers of his exhausted mana supply.

    "For the first time in my life, I actually agree with something you said." Troy''s own fists were glowing dimly, solid stone forming gauntlets over them. He grimly adopted his own combative stance as he confronted his nemesis. "Let''s settle this right here, right now."

    The two of them wasted no time charging at each other, their glowing fists colliding. I was thrown back when a colossal explosion blossomed from the center of the crater, a massive blinding conflagration that blocked both of their figures from view. The lenses of my glasses darkened briefly to protect my eyes, but I couldn''t see them.

    "Troy!" I shouted, scrambling back to my feet, even as I continued to be buffeted by tremendous shockwaves. Fissures split the earth beneath me, and I had to balance and move to avoid dropping into newly opened ravines.

    My friend was still in there somewhere, along with his brother. A sense of premonition gripped my heart as I braved the continuing destruction to reach their position.

    And then¡­the flames and dust faded, revealing the fate of the duo.

    For a moment, the both of them stood. Troy''s fist had slammed squarely into Tyrant''s face, breaking his nose and smashing several of his teeth. Blood dripped down the sadistic bastard''s disfigured face, his skull seemingly broken and warped from the blow. The stone gauntlet that once protected Troy''s hand was now shattered, shards of rock raining down on the ground and slowly dissipating into wisps of mana.

    "Did Troy¡­win?"

    I felt an immense sense of relief. It seemed that Troy succeeded in delivering the finishing blow and caved Tyrant''s face in. A fitting ending for a bastard who experimented with so many people''s lives and indulged in massacres.

    And then I saw it.

    Even though Troy did land what seemed like a decisive blow, he paid the ultimate price for it. Tyrant too had delivered an attack of his own, and unlike Troy''s, it was most certainly fatal.

    His flaming fist had punched through Troy''s chest, bursting out through his back, and was clutching a bloody heart. The last embers danced around Troy''s heart, and Tyrant grinned triumphantly, despite having his face smashed in, and squashed Troy''s heart.

    Troy toppled over lifelessly, only for Tyrant to catch him. He swayed for a moment, and then kicked his brother''s corpse over. Licking the blood off his fingers, his smile widened.

    "It''s my win, little bro."

    "TROY!"

    Yelling, I bounded across the crater, my eyes bulging in disbelief. This couldn''t be possible. It just wasn''t. There was no way the invincible Troy would be defeated, not by his brother. He was supposed to prevail over his brother, stop his atrocities here once and for all, and then return with me and the rest of our friends to Jing Tian Academy. He was supposed to play a pivotal role in the national tournament, and spearhead our team as our ace.

    He was the number one student in Jing Tian Academy, our biggest and brightest hope for the tournament. Screw the fucking tournament. Before all that, he was my friend. One of my closest friends, who never discriminated against me, and hung out with me, and treated with decency and respect even when I was mired in a losing streak and scorned as weak by my schoolmates. Even when everyone else ostracized me, he was the one friend who stood by my side.

    And now he was dead, killed by his own flesh and blood. His very own brother.

    This couldn''t be real. It couldn''t.

    Yet, when I saw Troy''s open, lifeless eyes staring upward at the heaven, completely hollow and devoid of life, I knew that I was too late. Everything was over.

    "Oh¡­? You are Troy''s friend, correct?" Tyrant turned to me, a wicked smile on his face. He raised his hand, ferocious flames blazing along his fingers and knuckles. Even when diminished, they still posed quite a threat if I wasn''t careful. Just like Troy, if I was too reckless, I might get my heart punched out of my body and destroyed. Even so, Tyrant didn''t seem to care. He looked up at me with a smirk. "Even though I''m gravely injured, do you really think you can defeat me? You''re so much weaker than my little bro. And where are your little Soul Beasts? Did you run out of mana to summon them already?"

    Throwing his head back, he spread his arms and bellowed in laughter, almost mockingly baring his chest for me to hit.

    "A little summoner thinks he can engage me in close combat! Hilarious! I may be badly hurt, and my mana might be near empty, but even then it''s more than enough to take care of the likes of you, a pathetic weakling¡­"

    He never finished his sentence.

    My two swords flashed out, Hei Yue and Bai Ri bisecting in black and white arcs that crossed over his neck.

    "¡­eh?"

    Tyrant''s eyes bulged for a moment, and he tried to turn to look at me disbelievingly¡­only to fail.

    Because his head was no longer attached to his neck. A thin line of blood appeared around the circumference of his neck, thickened and swelled, and then his head fell right off. It struck the ground, rolling like a ball before coming to a stop in a puddle of molten lava. His jaw was hanging wide open, and his eyes were staring disbelievingly at the sky. Even in his last moments, right before his death, he wasn''t granted the dignity of having one last look at his killer.

    I couldn''t care less.

    Sheathing my swords, I picked up Troy''s rapidly cooling body and supported it. It didn''t matter that I didn''t learn healing magic. No amount of healing magic could help Troy now. Healing magic couldn''t bring someone back to life, couldn''t create a new heart from scratch. As miraculous as healing magic was, it was not resurrection magic.

    Resurrection magic did not exist in this universe. Once someone was dead, he was gone. Forever.

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    Screaming at the heavens, rage filling my voice, I wept. Gazing through tear-streaked eyes, I glared at Tyrant''s corpse. His headless body had finally fallen over, slowly smoldering in a puddle of molten lava.

    Golden Kirin landed next to me. Taking a deep breath, I suppressed my sorrow and allowed my fury to take over. Heaving Troy''s body over Golden Kirin, I also hopped on and urged him to gallop away, to the edge of the crater.

    There, we stopped. Tyrant might be dead, but I wasn''t finished with him. Not yet.

    "Do it."

    Golden Kirin obeyed. Charged by great geomagnetic forces, boulders levitated in the air, behaving like gauss slugs. With a thought from me, Golden Kirin launched those gauss projectiles at the site where Tyrant''s corpse and head lay, pulverizing the entire area and erasing the fucker''s very existence from the face of the earth.

    It was the least the bastard deserved.

    "Richard!"

    I could hear my friends running toward me now, asking questions, but I wasn''t paying any attention to them. My mind was so mired in the red grip of rage that I wasn''t able to pay any attention to anything for a long while.

    Even though I had avenged Troy, that was of little comfort when weighed against the knowledge that he wouldn''t be coming back with us.

 315 Chapter 315: Funeral

    It was raining.

    I stood at the edge of the cemetary, watching listlessly as the procession carried Troy King''s coffin into the mould designated to be his grave. They didn''t put it underground yet, but placed it in the open where everyone could pay respects.

    Everyone was dressed in black suits or school uniforms, their heads lowered forlornly. Many students from Jing Tian Academy had come to pay their respects, but nnot as many as I thought there would be. Despite his fame and legend, Troy rarely hung out with any students in school, often running off somewhere for missions. Consequently, he hardly interacted with his classmates and schoolmates, and wasn''t close to anyone except me and a select group of friends.

    "May his soul find peace again¡­ he has sought shelter with our Lord in Heaven. His sacrifice has saved countless innocent lives, and despite his youth, he has diligently endeavored to work for the betterment of mankind and heroically rescued those in need of his help, much more than most people twice his age. His example shall serve as a beacon of hope, his memory a bastion of strength and reminder to all those of whom are endowed with power that it is our duty to serve. After dedicating his entire life to helping those weaker than him, may Troy find eternal rest in Heaven, where he sits at the right hand of our Father in Heaven, glory to His Name, and watch over the Kingdom that will be sure to arrive for all of humanity one day."

    The priest was delivering some speech, and while there were strong Christian motifs in it, it sounded extremely different from the prayers I was used to. It was only natural. A thousand years had passed, minus a hundred here or a decade there. Of course the prayers or last rites would have undergone vast changes throughout the years.

    I allowed the raindrops to hit me and slide off my hair and skin, still numb to the loss of my friend. Even though I had hollowly resumed my daily routine and gone about my usual life activities, it wasn''t as if I had accepted Troy''s death. It still had yet to sink in, that was all.

    Funerals were meant more for the living than the dead. At that moment, I was reminded of that sentiment. Troy probably couldn''t care less about this, and he would laugh the whole thing off, saying it was a total waste of money. Spending so much on his funeral and gathering everyone like this¡­it was of no use to him, not when he was no longer in this world.

    However, it was meant more for the people who loved him¡­who treasured him. His friends. His relatives ¨C what few of them there were, given that his late brother was the one who murdered him and his father, his mother was abandoned by his callous father, and no one knew who his cousins were. Troy had been an orphan for quite a while now, and he never talked about his extended family¡­if he had any to begin with.

    The priest continued muttering some religious lines that were lost to my memory, probably because I was still too numb to pay attention to anything. He wrapped up the final few lines, and then politely stepped away from the podium, his head lowered humbly.

    Then came the moment where everyone would walk up to his coffin and pay their last respects. Taking a deep breath to calm myself down, I strode toward Troy''s coffin. I could feel dozens, if not over a hundred pairs of eyes on me. I was the one who brought Troy''s body back, after all. Thanks to me ferrying his body away from the crater after I obliterated the nefarious Tyrant King, we were able to hold a proper funeral for Troy, his body lying peacefully inside the coffin.

    Stopping next to the coffin, I placed a hand on the smooth, wooden surface, and peered through the glass screen where Troy''s face could be seen. Even in death, his expression was peaceful. It looked as if he was sleeping.

    A small window popped up in the center of the lenses of my glasses. I blinked as I read the message.

    "Press F to pay respects."

    ¡­what the fuck?

    Never mind the random message that obviously came out from the Call of Duty game, but why did it emerge after I already placed my hand on the coffin? Shouldn''t it be before I did that, to serve as the prompt for me to put my hand on the wooden surface?

    Closing my eyes, I exhaled wearily before I clicked F with a single thought. Nothing happened. Well, what exactly were you expecting? A cutscene or something? A quicktime event? This was real life, not a game.

    Stepping away, I allowed Dong Fang Yue Chu to follow suit. Harvey Deng was also present, as was Harrison Reed and a bunch of other friends from Jing Tian Academy. The majority of them were Black Rose members, such as Jin Hao and Mizuno Aoi. I nodded at them as they came up. Come to think of it, I was still technically a Black Rose Society member, along with Harvey.

    But that whole Society thing never came much into play for quite a long while now. At least not on screen. Off screen, Harvey and I benefited from training rooms, resources and other society benefits, so it wasn''t a waste of time. Not to mention, we were able to maintain a cordial friendship with Jin Hao, Aoi and the others.

    But other than the Black Roses Society, there weren''t many Jing Tian Academy students who showed up. As I said before, Troy wasn''t that¡­famous or sociable. He hated interacting with people most of the time, and was more of a lone wolf.

    And that lone wolf trait was ultimately what led to his death. Maybe. I wasn''t sure. I didn''t know.

    While I stood off to the corner, waiting for my friends to press F to pay respects, Antonia approached me. It was obvious that she had been crying the whole time. Her eyes were still red and puffy, and streaks of tears still hadn''t dried on her cheeks. Even with the rain splashing onto her face, it was pretty easy to tell apart tears from raindrops.

    I said nothing. I knew that Troy''s girlfriend would be the one most devastated by his death. Nothing I said could comfort her. I bowed my head instead.

    "I''m sorry."

    "It''s not your fault." Antonia sniffled, and placed a hand on my shoulder. "I know you made that promise¡­but it''s not your fault. I''m glad that you arrived home. I was na?ve¡­too na?ve. I knew how dangerous Tyrant was, how powerful he was, and I was praying that everyone would survive¡­but¡­"

    She almost broke down, but she forced a smile.

    "I''m glad that you were able to return alive, at least. Troy would have been pleased. That''s why he fought so hard¡­to ensure no one died at the hands of his brother."

    "Yeah, but I¡­"

    I knew it wasn''t my fault¡­not really, but it was precisely because of that knowledge that I felt guilty. As if, I should be blaming myself, but I wuldn''t know what I could have done to change the outcome.

    "Shut up! You pathetic MC! Useless MC!"

    A few of the people who attended the funeral jostled to the front, jabbing fingers at me. Despite their attire, I recognized them as intruders from beyond the fourth wall, those who enjoyed polluting the comment section with their edgy insults.

    "What¡­?" Antonia stuttered, taken aback.

    "You could have done a lot of things to help! Of course it''s your fault! Why didn''t you shoot at Tyrant when you had the chance? You had ranged spells and arrows, right?!"

    I sighed heavily. "I already explained it in the chapter itself. I don''t have Aimbot, and contrary to what you might think, my accuracy is pretty terrible. Plus my arrows have a wide radius and area of effect ¨C there''s a reason why I sometimes call them nukes. If I fired them at Tyrant, I would have accidentally hit Troy as well. This isn''t a game ¨C there is no option to turn off Friendly Fire. What, you think it was better if I killed Troy with my own hands rather than the enemy doing it?"

    "YES!"

    These readers and commenters were definitely insane.

    "Then what about your summons?!" another reader shouted. "You could have summoned a Soul Beast and set it on Tyrant! You''re a summoner, aren''t you?!"

    "Same reason as above. My Soul Beasts are so big and their attacks so massive that they would have accidentally injured Troy as well when attacking Tyrant. Not to mention, Tyrant is so powerful that he would probably have obliterated my Constellation spirits in an instant anyway."

    "Then why didn''t you just charge in? You have those swords, right? You should have double-teamed Tyrant and worked together with Troy!"

    "You think I didn''t want to?!" I flared up irritably. "But haven''t you been reading the past few chapters!? Every time I got near, the shockwaves and impacts from their exchanges were so powerful that they blasted me off my feet and prevented me from getting close! By the way, that''s the exact same reason why I couldn''t send my Constellation spirits in either! They would have been blown away by the extreme forces that resulted from the clash between Troy and Tyrant! It''s not that I didn''t want to help, but I literally couldn''t! I wasn''t even able to stand within a few hundred meters within range of their fight!"

    As mortified as I was to admit it, Troy and Tyrant were so much stronger than me. If I tried to interfere, I would only get in the way. Troy would be forced to cover for me and protect me, and he would have just gotten killed sooner. If that happened, Tyrant wouldn''t be weakened to the point where I could easily chop off his head.

    "You suck."

    "What a weak and pathetic and useless MC."

    "Why can''t the author make you overpowered?"

    Antonia slapped them before I could retort, the thunderous crack echoing through the graveyard and drowning out the raindrops.

    "Get lost, the lot of you."

    "Who are you to hit us?!" the readers raged. "You''re just a background character¡­"

    They never got to finish their sentences. A torrent of flames washed over them, incinerating them and reducing them into ash.

    "Sorry for taking so long." Dong Fang Yue Chu stared at them in disgust, and shook his head. "I managed to banish those edgelords back to the fourth dimension where they belong. I don''t know why they love to invade the comments section."

    "Isn''t this filler? Won''t you have other readers complaining that this is filler and demand that you focus on the story?" Harvey asked, glancing at the sky, as if worrying that the existences from beyond the fourth wall would erupt into our reality again.

    "Screw them. The problem is that you will have readers and commenters complaining and insulting me as stupid, pathetic, useless or weak, and demanding to know why I didn''t do this or that to save Troy. Instead of wasting an inane amount of time replying to each and every comment, I might as well explain it in the main story itself." I sighed. "As much as I wished I could save Troy, I really don''t know what I would have done differently. All other scenarios in my head just point to me accidentally nuking Troy and killing him with friendly fire instead. And as much as I am ashamed to admit it, I''m too weak to jump in, not with those colossal forces and shockwaves erupting every time they clashed. I would only have dragged him down even if I managed to withstand those shockwaves and get close."

    "There''s no need to think too much," Antonia assured me. "Troy would just tell you to show those haters and commenters the middle finger and yell at them to fuck off. You''re alive. That''s more than enough. And you''re not weak¡­" she smiled dryly. "Troy is just in a league of his own. He''s pretty much a monster¡­there''s a reason why they call him the Invincible Superman."

    And the only one able to fight on par with Superman or kill him was a fellow Kryptonian. In other words, his brother. I shuddered involuntarily. If I had tried to engage Tyrant in close combat, chances were I would have been slaughtered in less than a minute. The bastard was that strong.

    "What has happened has happened. We can''t change the past, and there''s no use feeling regret or guilt." Harrison approached us, having just paid his respects. He nodded at us. "Troy''s death is a great emotional blow, as well as¡­a blow to our tournament hopes, but¡­even then, we have to stand strong. We have to do our best, and win¡­for Troy. He will definitely want that." he glanced at the coffin, and at the portrait of a grinning Troy. "He will tell us to¡­well, stop fucking around, and get shit done."

    "That''s exactly what he will say," I agreed, smiling bleakly.

    "Yeah, he''ll also tell us not to depend on him." Dong Fang Yue Chu nodded. "He''s not egoistical to the point where he thinks that the entire team is built around him. Knowing him, he would find some excuse to skip the tournament."

    "Especially if his brother is still at large," Antonia agreed. She turned to me. "Thank you for avenging Troy''s death and putting an end to Tyrant''s reign of terror."

    "If Troy hadn''t kicked his ass so badly, I never would have been able to," I replied honestly. It was only because Tyrant didn''t have much mana left that I was able to decapitate him before he realized what was happening.

    "It''s a promise." Harrison raised his hand and smiled, his usual charisma returning. "We will do our best to win the national tournament¡­for Troy. Then we''ll come back here with the trophy and brag to him about how we were somehow able to pull it off even without him."

    "He''ll just laugh at us and say that he always knew that we could do it." I was also grinning, despite my grief.

    "All right then." Harrison reached out to slap my shoulder. "We should get ready then. We''ll all be heading to Southampton City in a couple of days¡­to attend the opening ceremony of the tournament."

 316 Chapter 316: Strange Logic

    "¡­huh?"

    Zhao Zi Jun was gaping at the other guy from across the table. Well, not exactly. Hei Gui was actually framed within a holographic screen, his image flickering erratically. Zi Jun kicked the projector and the hologram stabilized, with Hei Gui no longer looking like a ghost, despite his name (Gui is syonym for ghost in Chinese).

    "Did you not hear what I said?" Hei Gui asked, his lip curling. "I just told you to arrange for an assassination."

    "No, no, no. I heard you just fine. I just think you''re being stupid." Zi Jun was shaking his head in utter disbelief. "You think you can just order an assassin like going to a fast food restaurant, is it? That if you tell me you want someone assassinated, I can pull a professional killer out of my ass just like that, is it?"

    "You''re a branch member of one of the Ten Great Families," Hei Gui pointed out indifferently. "You have the means and resources¡­"

    "NO, I DO NOT, YOU MORON!" Zi Jun yelled, even though he was aware of the difference in their statuses. "What, you think this is some stupid Chinese webnovel, is it? Just because my family is rich and powerful doesn''t mean we have connections to the underworld and can anyhow hire Assassins! Who the fuck go around hiring assassins just because they are rich?! Why the fuck do you want to kill Richard Huang anyway?!"

    Hei Gui''s brow furrowed into a scowl.

    "My intelligence network has identified some ambiguous connection between that commoner male from Jing Tian Academy and Cecilia. Therefore, he must be destroyed."

    "LAN JIAO (Singapore swearing)! WHAT KIND OF FUCKING LOGIC IS THAT!? WHO THE FUCK DECIDES TO KILL SOME RANDOM NOBODY BASED ON SUCH A STUPID REASON?!"

    Zi Jun couldn''t help but roar at the holographic screen before burying his face in his palm. He was aware of Hei Gui''s fearsome reputation as a perfectionist. He could guess that Hei Gui was aiming to marry Cecilia in place of the late Shawn Franklin. The Hei family, also one of the ten Great Families, wished to establish an intimate relationship with the Stuart family through marriage. Hei Gui probably viewed me as a threat (yes, I''m going to continue first person perspective here, courtesy of my protagonist privilege and ability to break the fourth wall), and he sought to eliminate me because he didn''t want to leave anything to chance.

    The problem was that¡­one did not simply hire assassins to kill people, even if you happened to be the son of one of the ten richest and most powerful families in the Federation. Especially over a reason as inane as "Cecilia looked at this man differently" or other equally vague rumors. Assassins cost millions of dollars to hire, plus arranging such criminal activities entailed a high amount of risk. They were not means that could be simply employed based on some childish whim. Nor was the sum of millions something that mere children happened to have saved up ¨C for Zhao to mobilize such tremendous amounts of cash, he would need to justify to his parents why he was spending such a fortune as well as taking on such a massive risk, which could spell the death sentence if he ever got caught.

    Honestly, the Chinese writers who often resorted to such idiotic tropes in their webnovels had no idea how the real world worked, nor did they do sufficient research on how the rich operated. They just made stupid things up just to throw the protagonist into some dumb conflict. And in this case, it wasn''t even because of any actual good reason, but a contrived context where the protagonist was attacked for literally no reason other than because he was the protagonist.

    Cecilia had an ambiguous connection to me? She looked at me differently? That was enough of a basis to send assassins after me? The fuck kind of reason was that? Why target only me then? You might as well go kill every single male in her age group who had interacted with her. What utter bullshit. Only in Chinese webnovels would you find this kind of logic handwaved into existence by an incompetent writer.

    "Dude¡­Brother Gui." Zi Jun was taking a deep breath and trying to force himself to calm down. "Think about this rationally, okay? You can''t just anyhow waste money and resources hiring assassins to kill a single common guy for no reason other than because you heard some bo liao (dumb) rumors. Cecilia looks at him differently? That''s because he''s one of the only two guys who have ever defeated her. And he rejected her and she moved on already lah. Why you still want to stir shit up? You think killing people is so easy, is it? We must cover our asses and make sure it doesn''t get traced back to us, we have to spend a lot of money, go through a lot of ma fan (trouble) just to get a single person killed. All over a stupid rumor. You think hiring assassin is cheap, is it? Hey, the amount of money is not peanuts lah. Also, it''s a human life we''re talking about here, you know? This is fucking murder, you know? You think you can just kill someone and get away, is it?"

    "Yes," Hei Gui replied seriously. "Who can touch me? I''m an heir to one of the ten Great Families. Screw the rules, I have money. And status. And power."

    "You seow ah?! (Singaporean colloquialism for ''are you crazy?!'')" Zhao Zi Jun threw up both his hands.

    "No, I''m Hei Gui."

    "Chao Chi Bai, kaninah¡­ (Swearing, Singaporean style¡­trust me, you don''t want me to translate this¡­it''s basically Hokkien)." Zi Jun buried his face in his palm so hard his face almost turned red. "Limpei (I) want to vomit blood sia¡­"

    "¡­huh?"

    "Aiyah, never mind lah. Anyway, no. Don''t do anything stupid. Not this close to the tournament. Don''t anyhow kill people, can or not? Use your brain, okay? If someone dies this close to the tournament, what if they trace it back to us? You think the police stupid, ah? Huh?"

    "The police can''t touch me."

    "Alamak! Don''t be so na?ve, can or not? You think this is China, ah? Hello! This is the Federation lah! Anti-corruption, anti-nepotism! Even if the police cannot touch you, you think the other nine Great Families also cannot, is it? They confirm will find reason one. They will kaopei kaobu (kick up a fuss) and use this opportunity to get rid of you and eliminate your family¡­or at least weaken your clan by arresting its first heir. Don''t forget hor, the police not under us. They under the Lacroix clan, and you know how those white knight lan jiao all very gum one (those white knight bastards have a close relationship with each other). You forget ah? They love to kaopei (preach) about justice, and use justice as an excuse to kajiao (disturb/provoke/pressure) the other clans. Not worth it, bro."

    Hei Gui''s lips thinned. "If you won''t do it, then I will find someone who will."

    "Okay, whatever lor. Just don''t jio (invite) me, can already. I don''t want to get involved. Bye!"

    Zi Jun hurriedly switched off the holographic screen before Hei Gui could say anything else. He shuddered.

    "Wah kao, that chao chibai seow liao lah (Man, that fucker is crazy). Anyhow kill people over no reason. He think this is China, is it?"

    Needless to say, despite looking around and asking around, Hei Gui failed to persuade anyone to listen to him. His parents, upon hearing his extreme request, got all worried and ended up sending him to a psychiatrist.

    "From such a young age, he is already harboring psychotic and homicidal tendencies¡­"

    "We''ve to send him to a mental institution."

    "Yeah, but we can''t let anyone know about this, or our Hei Clan will be humiliated¡­especially by the other families¡­how could this have happened? Where did we go wrong? Did we bring him up wrongly?"

    "It''s our fault for not teaching him properly¡­"

    Thanks to that, poor Hei Gui stupidly found himself forced to withdraw from the national tournament just so he could attend psychiatric counseling sessions, and was deemed to be too "dangerous" and mentally unstable to participate in what would potentially be a violent battlefield.

    Of course, I was supposed to be unaware of all this, but thanks to my ability to break the fourth wall and a conversation with Zhao Zi Jun somewhere in the as yet unknown future, I ended up knowing about everything.

    "Aiyo¡­if that chibai (fucker) smart ah, he can just wait for you to enter the knockout stage, and then wayang (put on a show) by crushing and humiliating you there. But who ask him want to act smart and hire assassin? What the fuck sia, so bo liao (stupid, nothing better to do). Now he kana (was sent to) mental hospital, not my problem."

    Good thing I was from the same country, so I could somewhat decipher what would otherwise be a strange dialect of English. Probably because of that, I ended up befriending Zhao Zi Jun. What, you think this is some Chinese webnovel where I went around making enemies with every male character for no reason other than because I was the protagonist?

    Without wasting too much time on an idiot who thought he could so easily resort to killing over the dumbest reason imaginable, I decided to return back to the present, where our team captain, Harrison Reed, was briefing us.

    "As I already told you last week or so, there will be over 500 teams participating, and that the tournament will be split into the qualifiers and the main event."

    "Please don''t do a recap, Captain," Dong Fang Yue Chu begged, but Harrison ignored him.

    "At the beginning of the tournament, the teams will be divided and sent to different cities for the qualifiers."

    That was a pretty roundabout and inefficient way of handling things, but as Zhao Zi Jun would eloquently put it, whatever lor.

    "And the winners of the qualifiers will then return to Southampton City for the knockout stage of the main event."

    The team grew excited when they heard that.

    "Southampton City isn''t far from our Jing Tian," Harrison continued with a smile. "So we will still make it in time even if we choose to leave next week."

    "Okay¡­" Craig began, but Harrison didn''t let him finish.

    "However, if we decide to leave early, we''ll be able to enjoy ourselves in Southampton City for three days." He lowered his voice. "I know you all want to cram some last minute training and improve as much as possible in whatever little time we have left, but this is a rare chance for us to explore another city. Especially one as famous as Southampton."

    He then gestured toward everyone.

    "Of course, this will depend on what all of you want. I say we vote."

    "Sounds good to me," Pearl piped up with a smile. "Since this is such a rare opportunity, I suggest we leave early and have some fun! We''re not going to spend the whole day exploring anyway, so we can train at night, or rearrange our schedules accordingly."

    "Hear, hear!" Lily Liam agreed, sitting beside Yue Chu. "I want to see what Southampton City is like!"

    "I heard they have some good spas there," Sheila Scarlet added, and then she blushed. "I mean, they are good for improving our strength and mana, and thus could benefit us for the tournament ahead¡­"

    "No need to justify yourself," Craig Carlson told her with a laugh. Then he shrugged. "I''m okay if everyone else is."

    "I have no objections." Theodore raised a hand. Since the girls were all enthusiastic about going early, the guys weren''t about to contest their decision.

    "Let''s go!" Yue Chu chimed in happily. Cody nodded, silent as always, but clearly giving his consent.

    Only Bu Fan spoiled the mood, wearing a sour expression as ever.

    "Do whatever you want," he tossed out casually, almost as if the decision didn''t involve him. Harrison turned to glance at him.

    "You can bring your sister along, Bu Fan."

    I had never seen someone''s expression change so quickly. Bu Fan immediately brightened up and he nodded excitedly.

    "I''ll tell Xin Chun the good news!"

    Oi, we hadn''t even decided or confirmed yet¡­well, it seemed that the vote was overwhelmingly in favor of going, so it was as good as being confirmed, but man¡­Bu Fan was just as two-faced as ever.

    "What about you, Richard?" Even as Harrison turned to ask me, I knew that it was a mere formality. Not wanting to waste time arguing and voting against, which would spoil everyone''s mood ¨C and truthfully, I had no reason to vote against ¨C I nodded. Even though I had been to Southampton City a couple of times before, my friends had not, and I was more than happy to follow them around. While I possessed several bad memories from visiting it, I had to admit that was a beautiful place. I briefly wondered if I would run into Adrian again. I should give him a call when I get there, and find a chance to say hello.

    Knowing the brat, he would pop up in front of me before I even told him I was there.

    "It''s settled then!" Harrison nodded, satisfied. Evidently he had already anticipated the outcome of the vote before he even tabled it before us. "We move out tomorrow!"

 317 Chapter 317: Train to Bu San

    The next day, we were all gathered on board a bullet train. On the way there, we heard a lot of sirens in the distance, which stuck me with some sort of foreboding. I tried to shake off a premonition from my spine, but almost couldn''t.

    Perhaps it was early in the morning, which explained why the platform was so empty. Aside from us ten students, there were very few passengers. A couple of old ladies, one of whom was peeling a hard-boiled egg for some reason. A father and daughter, the former who was speaking rapidly into his smartphone while his daughter looked around, bored. A bearded man who looked like an ex-boxer, and his heavily pregnant wife. A business CEO guy with a stiff expression and in a suit. One of the other carriages was taken up by students from an entire school. Unlike us, they weren''t combat mages. Instead, the guys seemed to be from a baseball team, and the girls were cheerleaders. They were probably participating in a regional baseball tournament.

    After all, combat magic tournaments weren''t the only competitions in the Federation, or in the world. Normal sports continued to exist long into the future. Yay for sports!

    As it was still so damned early in the morning, I was feeling extremely sleepy. I usually slept late at night, so I wasn''t very used to waking up early. I stifled a yawn and leaned my head back against the cushion seat.

    Given how it was so early and the train station was quite some distance from our school, there was no one to send us off. No entourage of students cheering and waving. The platform was eerily empty, save for a single conductor waving the train onward while the doors began to close. A few of the train stewards were striding through the carriages, making sure we had our tickets and that the passengers were all strapped in comfortably.

    Almost no one noticed a single panicky shape hurrying across the platform, right when the sole conductor''s back was turned, and rush into the train before the doors slammed shut. The train then began moving, even as the train driver''s voice blared over the speakers.

    I was about to close my eyes and doze off when the motion tracker on my glasses detected something very faint. I almost missed it. After all, there was movement around me ¨C from my fellow passengers, not to mention the bullet train itself was also moving. It was a stray movement at the end of its peripheral edge that caught my attention, and I forced myself to sit up. The conductor was waving at the train, gesturing for it to go, even as it picked up speed and everything turned to a blur.

    And then I saw someone dove at the poor conductor amd knocked him over, the duo toppling over the platform and falling into the rail.

    The train then shot out of there, and the conductor and his assailant vanished from sight.

    "Did you see that?!" I cried out, jolting upright. Harrison Reed, who was seated beside me, stared at me blankly. Normally, I would be sticking with Dong Fang Yue Chu, but my good friend was currently sitting together with Lily Liam. As I didn''t want to sit with Bu Fan, I chose to join Harrison instead. It made some sense, given that I was his vice-captain.

    "See what?"

    "The conductor¡­he¡­"

    I magnified the vision on my glasses, but saw nothing. Probably because the train station was vanishing into the distance. Was it my imagination?

    Unfortunately, I couldn''t playback the scene. As this wasn''t an official mission, I did not switch on the recording function of my glasses. It was highly impractical to leave such an energy-consuming device on 24/7, not to mention I would run out of memory space if I tried to record everything 24/7. Even this far into the future, we still had yet to develop micro SD chips that could store thousands of Terabytes worth of data.

    "Wait!" You may cry. "But it''s the future! It''s inconceivable¡­"

    Just roll with it, okay? Jeez. People wear glasses in the future. We still hadn''t developed microchips that could house a thousand Terabytes worth of storage space. Or you could just assume that I wasn''t obsessive-compulsive enough to record every single moment of my life, and there were many periods that I would prefer unrecorded. Privacy and all that.

    Shaking my head, I decided to go to sleep. It took less than a second for me to lean my head against the cushioned headrest to doze off immediately.

    While I was asleep, the lady who had dashed into the train was lying in the space between carriages, right outside the bathrooms. She was extremely pale, and was trembling violently. A hideous wound marred her exposed leg, but she was wrapping a torn cloth around the appendage, tightening it in hopes of cutting off the blood flow.

    It didn''t work.

    Her eyes rolling back in her head, she toppled over and lay sprawled on the ground, unnoticed by anyone. The train had just barely taken off, and not many people were choosing to use the restroom then. Many, like me, were still drowsy because they were forced to wake up so early in the morning to catch the first train.

    The first person to come across the poor lady was the female train stewardess. The train stewards were making their rounds as usual, checking passengers for their tickets, making sure everything was in place and not out of order, helping to improve the comfort of passengers, etc. This particular stewardess happened to cross from Carriage 7 to Carriage 8 when she caught sight of the injured lady lying sprawled outside the bathroom.

    "Ma''am?!" she panicked and rushed over to the fallen lady, crouching down to check on her. It was unfortunate, but she only knew the most rudimentary of firstaid. After all, she was a stewardess, not a nurse or a doctor or a healing mage. "Are you all right, ma''am? What happened? Are you feeling ill or something?"

    Callous readers might harshly accuse her of asking stupid questions, but they obviously never placed themselves in her shoes. Seriously, when you saw something out of the ordinary happen, you were going to panic a little, no matter how well trained you were. Especially when it looked as if someone was about to die.

    "Sir!" the stewardess quickly activated the com bead in her ear and contacted her superior, who was her senior by five years. "There''s a¡­casualty between Carriage 7 and Carriage 8! I''m not sure what happened to her, but it looks bad! She''s¡­she''s lying on the ground and shaking uncontrollably! Going into seizures¡­"

    "Calm down," her superior ordered. Despite his greater age and vaster experience, he was still unnerved by what he had heard. Even so, he was able to stay calm somehow. "I''ll proceed there immediately. Help her as best as you can. I''ll see if there''s any doctor on board the train or something."

    "P¡­please hurry!" the stewardess was clasping her hands so tightly that her knuckles turned white. "She¡­she looks like she''s about to die!"

    The male steward pursed his lips, but didn''t say anything. He knew that reprimanding his junior would be countereffective, so he merely took a deep breath.

    "Hang in there."

    Those were the only words he imparted to her before he hastily strode through the carriages to reach her position.

    While he did so, he went around asking or help.

    "Anyone a doctor? Anyone a nurse? Anyone has any knowledge of firstaid? Healing mage? Anyone?"

    As he did that, I was fast asleep, but I ended up waking up abruptly when the father, who was dressed in an immaculate suit, trotted past my seat, speaking loudly into his smartphone.

    "Yes, I know! I''ll be back in the office later today! I''m just taking my daughter to see her mother, that''s all! Deal with the ForEx Corp, hold them there until I return, okay? Give them the Sturen Plans to read for the time being."

    He impatiently hung up and glanced around, trying to find his daughter.

    "Su An? Where are you?"

    Rudely roused, I sat up and glanced around, bleary-eyed. Harrison chuckled as he watched me flounder about.

    "We aren''t there yet. You can go back to sleep, Richard."

    "Oh. Okay."

    I was about to, but the male train steward chose that moment to enter our carriage.

    "Anyone who''s a doctor? Nurse? Healing mage?"

    "I''m a healing mage." Pearl Pang raised her hand, looking at the flustered man curiously. "What''s the matter?"

    "Uh, we have an emergency." The steward was perspiring as he tried to catch his breath. He looked at her, an expression of immense relief. "One of the passengers seem to be badly hurt¡­or very ill. She''s between Carriage 7 and Carriage 8. My colleague is currently taking care of her, but we have no idea what is ailing her."

    Pearl swallowed, looking troubled.

    "I''ll inform you beforehand that healing magic is not the same as curing diseases. If it''s a physical injury, I can heal it, but diseases are a different type of thing, and require different type of spells and treatments."

    "Ah¡­I see. Could you please just take a look, in any case? We really appreciate it¡­"

    He paused to listen to a burst of voice over the com bead and nodded before turning toward Pearl, a strained smile spreading across his face.

    "According to my colleague, the lady in question does have a physical injury¡­a rather large wound on her leg. As if she was bitten by something."

    For some reason, the unease that had been crawling over me intensified at that moment. I shot upward, causing everyone to stare at me.

    "We should follow Pearl, just in case."

    "¡­huh? I mean, I don''t mind, but¡­" Harrison was puzzled by my behavior.

    "I have a bad feeling about this."

    "¡­if you say so." He glanced at the others, who shrugged.

    "Hey, not too many people." The steward wiped the perspiration off his face. "We don''t have much space, and you don''t want to crowd around the victim."

    "He''s right, you know." Pearl nodded. Harrison pondered for a second before he relented.

    "Richard and I will go. The rest of you, stay here."

    "Okay."

    Craig, Sheila, Theodore and Cody were playing cards for some reason, while Yue Chu and Lily were¡­uh, flirting. Bu Fan had been seated next to Pearl because¡­you know, the protagonist always got to sit beside a beautiful girl. Unless you were Peter Parker in a Marvel movie that was far from home.

    With the male steward leading us, we hurried toward the atrium between Carriage 7 and Carriage 8. We could hear the lady shrieking by now, her voice turning inhuman and guttural for some reason. The stewardess attending to her was panicking, near hysterical by now.

    "Where are you, Senior?!" she was almost shrieking. "Her condition is getting worse!"

    "Almost there!" he shouted back, trying to have himself heard over the inhuman screams of the victim. "Hang in there!"

    "That does not sound good," I murmured, a chill running down my spine when I heard the poor lady. That I could hear her even from this distance did not bode well at all. Already, many of the passengers were rising from their chairs and peering across, wondering what the hell was that racket about.

    Pearl was the first to burst into the receptacle, the three of us guys following right behind her. The lady was jerking and thrashing wildly now despite the stewardess''s best attempts to hold her down. She had gone into convulsions, her skin a deathly gray, her eyes dulling into cataracts and her tongue lolling in her mouth.

    And then¡­she stopped.

    "Oh God¡­oh Jesus, oh God, oh God, oh God!" the stewardess was moaning, tears welling up in her eyes. "We''re too late! She''s dead! She''s dead, she''s dead!"

    "Out of the way!" Pearl ordered as she stepped forward. "Let me see¡­"

    "Wait!" I shouted. "It''s best if everyone get away from her!"

    Everyone turned to stare at me. Pearl scowled.

    "Why?! If we don''t help her, she might really die¡­"

    I swallowed as I stared at the lady''s corpse. The stewardess suddenly got the hint and backed away to safety, scrambling behind her senior. I sucked in a deep breath. "I think it''s too late. That lady, I think she had turned into a zombie."

    "¡­huh?"

    My friends were staring at me blankly, wondering if they should be taking me seriously. Even the stewards looked as if they believed I had gone mad.

    Then¡­

    "I''m NOT a zombie!"

    The lady suddenly sat up. She began coughing blood and causing a big mess, to the stewards'' dismay. At least they were relieved that she was alive.

    Pearl gave me a cold glare, and then proceeded to check on the lady. After casting a couple of spells, she straightened up.

    "Viral infection. I''m sorry. She''ll need to see a specialist. I don''t have the healing spells necessary to cure her."

    Yeah, that made sense. Even among healing magic, there were different branches. The most common was the restorative branch, which healed common injuries, broken bones, cuts, bleeding, etc. and allowed healing mages to regenerate organs, limbs or whatever was lost. But it didn''t include myopia, nor was it "shapeshifting" or "cosmetic" magic, which altered the form of one''s body or physique rather than restore it. Those healing mages who specialized in that were rare, which was why they could get away with charging exorbitant prices for their treatments.

    And then you had the cure branches, which dealt with diseases. Pearl clearly belonged to the restorative branch, so she wasn''t adept in cure magic at all.

    "She needs treatment as soon as possible," she was currently telling the stewards, who nodded.

    "The next stop is Bu San City," the male steward informed her. "We''ll contact the staff there and arrange for her to be taken to Bu San General Hospital from the station."

    "Great."

    That left me feeling foolish and utterly stupid, but thankfully Harrison didn''t rub it in. Feeling sorry for me, he quietly gestured for me to return to my seat before Pearl and the others noticed. Hanging my head sheepishly, and realizing that my ability to break the fourth wall and make references to other media had failed me for the first time, I silently slinked back.

    Man, that was one of the most embarrassing moments in my life.

 318 Chapter 318: Return to Southampton City

    "After checking this city out over the last couple of days, well¡­there really doesn''t seem to be anything special about it¡­"

    "Yeah, but it''s definitely a lot more crowded and bustling than Jing Tian City."

    "Wait, wait, wait." I was gaping at my friends, looking utterly confused. "Did we just do a timeskip? Seriously? We transitioned from the train scene right to a few days later? Did you just skip our exploration and semi-vacation in Southampton City?"

    "Who cares about that?" Craig Carlson replied flippantly. "The readers want to proceed straight to the tournament already."

    "Ah, screw you guys. Is this the result of the web comic adaptation of Battle Frenzy? Why even have that entire plot point of having a couple of days off in Southampton if you were going to do a timeskip? Whatever. I''m going back in time. See you guys later."

    "Huh? What?" Theodore Hammond was gaping at me, but I didn''t care. Instead, I waved my hand, ripped open a space-time portal, and stepped through it to return to an event that just took place yesterday.

    "¡­did he just go back to the past?" Sheila Scarlet asked in disbelief, but I never got to hear the responses from the rest of my friends because the portal closed up. If this was a comic adaptation, I would kicked my way out of the panel to jump into another. As it was, I might as well leave that display to their imaginations. Long live Deadpool!

    Ignoring the weird timeskip employed by the story that this story was based on, I acted naturally when speaking to Dong Fang Yue Chu in our hotel room. As the tournament event hadn''t officially begun yet, we had to look for our own accommodations first, and our team captain Harrison Reed had booked several rooms in this hotel.

    "What''s going on? Did you just walk through a rip in the space-time fabric and travel back in time?" Yue Chu was gaping at me. Okay, so much for acting naturally and ignoring the timeskip. Fortunately, before I could explain anything, my smartphone rang, the ringtone being the opening song of an anime.

    "Hello?"

    "Ah, Richard?" A familiar face appeared on the holographic screen when I swiped the green icon of the video call. I was unable to conceal my surprise when I saw the other party. Cecilia, on the other hand, waved at me with a bright smile. "It''s been a while."

    "Yeah, indeed it has. What''s up?"

    "Oh, I heard that your team has just arrived in Southampton City. I was wondering if we could meet up today or tomorrow, before the tournament begins."

    "Huh? What for?"

    Cecilia smiled mischievously. "It''s a secret. You''ll find out when you get there."

    "¡­okay." I honestly didn''t want to play games, but there was no reason for me to reject her invitation. My friends had decided to split up and explore whatever places that interested them. The girls wanted to go shopping, the guys wanted to go to a gaming arcade or the hobby districts (think Akihibara) or visit the football stadium where Southampton Football Club was playing against Manchester United Football Club later in the evening. I planned to rush back to watch that, but honestly I couldn''t care less. I was a Blackburn Rovers Football Club fan, and I would prefer to go to Ewood Park instead. Unfortunately, that was in another city.

    "I''ll send you the address through email. Let me know what''s the most convenient time for you. See you then!"

    "Roger that." I waited for her to hang up, and then tapped the screen the moment I received a notification that I had just gotten an email from her. I planned to arrange it as soon as possible, so that I could return in time and join Craig and the others to watch the football game. For my own amusement, I was going to wear my favorite Blackburn Rovers jersey, which was blue and white and had a red rose adorned across the left breast (the club badge).

    "Let me see, let me see!" Yue Chu was being a busybody as usual, and he was rushing to take a good look at my email, ignoring the rules of privacy. His mouth dropped when he saw the location specified in the email. "The Royal Flower Garden Hotel?! She''s inviting you to such a fancy place?!"

    "No, it''s the Stuart Hotel," I corrected as I smacked the back of his head. "You''ve been reading too much Battle Frenzy. It''s the new hotel that her uncle, Stewart Stuart, opened a few months ago."

    Readers probably forgot about him, so I might as well remind them that he (and the hotel) first appeared in Chapter 52. Not that they would care or bother revisiting that chapter. Stewart Stuart wasn''t a major character anyway.

    "It''s the same thing," Yue Chu replied, waving my words away. No, it was not¡­but, there was no point arguing with him. "You need to get dressed for the event, bro!"

    Obviously I wasn''t going to wear my Blackburn Rovers jersey to such a formal place, but there was no way in hell I was going to wear some formal, stiff suit to the place either.

    "My uniform will suffice," I replied dismissively.

    "No, it wouldn''t!" Yue Chu practically howled. "You''re meeting a lady in such a high-class location! You can''t simply show up in your school uniform!"

    "Watch me."

    "Are you an idiot?!" Yue Chu was actually weeping tears as he buried his face in his palm. "Look, the both of you haven''t seen each other in half a year. I''m sure she at last has some feelings for you if she took the initiative to reach out to you and arrange a date¡­"

    "It''s not a date."

    "Don''t be dense!"

    "You''re the one over-thinking this. This is not some stupid harem story where every single girl falls for me just because I''m the protagonist, or because I walk on two legs." Plus Anastasia would literally assassinate Cecilia if that was the case. "Anyway, I''ll see you later."

    I had already sent the email and noted Cecilia''s insant reply. So we would be meeting in an hour.

    "CHANGE YOUR ATTIRE! At least put on a suit and a tie! Don''t wear your damned uniform there!"

    "Fine, fine." it took me less than ten minutes to change into a formal suit, and I didn''t bother with a blazer, but at least I had the tacky penguin necktie. Yue Chu''s jaw dropped when he saw the tie, but I didn''t give him a chance to object. "See you, bro."

    "Wait, wait! Make sure you know the rules! Remember to tip when they provide some service to you!"

    "Yeah, gotcha."

    I quickly made my exit before Yue Chu could ramble on about proper social etiquette or whatever. Waving my farewell, I followed the directions that Google Map provided, and made my way toward Stuart Hotel. Since I had been there once before, it was easy for me to find it again. I might have a terrible sense of direction, but I tended to remember the route once I familiarized myself with the place.

    The hotel attendant at the front of the hotel bowed his head slightly when he caught sight of me approaching.

    "Good afternoon," he greeted with a polite smile. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

    "I have an appointment with someone here," I replied, returning the courtesy. "I''m supposed to meet, uh, Miss Cecilia Stuart."

    "!!!"

    Immediately, all the staff inside the hotel jolted up in shock, cold sweat pouring down their faces.

    "It''s a guest of the Stuart family! Go take care of him, hurry!"

    "Uh¡­"

    Dudes¡­aren''t you guys overreacting? Who the hell cares?

    "Please forgive our rudeness!" A middle-aged staff with a fancy mustache, who probably was the manager, rushed forward and bowed frantically. "This way, please! Miss Stuart has reserved a private room for your meeting, Distinguished Guest!"

    ¡­say what? Distinguished Guest? What the fuck was this bullshit? They were getting so overly formal that I was getting crept out. I had never been treated like a VIP before, and I honestly thought I never wanted to be treated as such again.

    Repressing my unease, I followed them toward a relatively extravagant ballroom on the second floor. The heck? Cecilia booked an entire reception room for our meeting?! And that was my reaction even before I stepped through the opulent doors.

    My amazement increased several fold after I stepped through the ridiculously expensive mahogany double doors. They had a golden chandelier hanging from the ceiling, and dozens of portraits hanging on the luxuriously furnished walls. This wasn''t the first time I had seen such indulgence, however ¨C I was immediately reminded of my earlier visit to the now demolished Stuart Corporation Building a few months ago.

    Welcome to the world of the rich, I thought cynically to myself again. Bloody hell, I could think of a thousand different ways to better spend such an enormous sum of money¡­though, admittedly, I would waste a good chunk of that cash buying several Forge World Titans so that I could play Apocalypse games.

    "You''re finally here, Richard."

    Cecilia was seated in one of those massive, opulently decorated, but comfortable couches in the center of the room, calmly sipping from her cup of tea. I bowed my head slightly.

    "It''s been a while, Miss Cecilia."

    When she beckoned me over to take a seat, I approached warily, feeling a little nervous and intimidated by the whole¡­rich and powerful thing. Dude, this entire room alone was probably worth five times the price of my dad''s house.

    "What''s up? Why did you call me?"

    "Big Brother Richard!"

    Adrian popped his head up and waved at me. Pushing himself off the couch, he excitedly ran toward me.

    "It really has been a while!"

    "Oh, yeah, hey, Adrian. How have you been?"

    Cecilia watched the exchange in amusement, before taking another sip from her small teacup.

    "When Adrian heard that you were coming, he pestered me to arrange a meeting with you. And he begged to join the discussion."

    "I see." Actually, I didn''t. "What discussion?"

    "No need to be so nervous." This time, it was another voice, from the opposite couch. As this particular fancy and huge chair was facing away from me, I couldn''t see the occupant, but I found the voice oddly familiar. Yet, I couldn''t place my finger on who it belonged to. Fortunately, I wasn''t kept in suspense for too long, because I was already on my way there, with Adrian in tow. Reaching the super-long couch in the middle, I turned around.

    "Miss Kureha." I cocked my head politely.

    Kureha Franklin tilted her head in return, and beamed. "As I said, no need to be so formal. We''re all friends here. Come, have a seat."

    "Yeah!" Adrian didn''t need any further invitation and plopped down on the couch in the same fashion that kids did. I nodded and took a seat beside him.

    "If I remember correctly, you prefer Eastern Tea, right?" Cecilia lowered her teacup and gestured for one of the hotel staff. He nodded and produced a tray, upon which an oriental teapot and small China cups lay.

    With a flourish, he poured steaming green tea into my cup and gently placed it in front of me. I nodded my thanks.

    "Thanks."

    "You''re welcome."

    The staff nodded back, and withdrew. I noticed that Adrian was drinking some sort of frappe cappuccino, topped with lots of cream. I didn''t know they served that in such a high-end hotel.

    "How did you know that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at Cecilia, before accepting the cup of green tea.

    "You''re always drinking green tea," Adrian pointed out. Oh, right. I hung out a lot with him, so he roughly knew my tastes, especially since I treated him to drinks most of the time whenever I went to get my own.

    "Yeah, thanks." I sipped the tea, and then almost jolted upright the moment my tongue buzzed pleasantly. "Holy c¡­! This tea is delicious!"

    Both Kureha and Cecilia giggled when they saw my reaction. They both were obviously thinking that I hadn''t seen much of the world or something. So what? It wasn''t as if I was from a wealthy or powerful family, so what were they expecting?

    Speaking of which¡­

    "Why have you called me here today?" I asked, glancing from one of them to the other. The both of them exchanged glances.

    "First, allow me to apologize for some trouble that I may have caused." Cecilia lowered her head, much to my surprise. I raised both of my hands frantically and shook my head.

    "What trouble? I didn''t get into any trouble¡­I think."

    "Apparently some idiot tried to hire Assassins to kill you," Adrian explained as he sucked on his straw. He grinned. "He completely failed, and his parents were so horrified they sent him for counseling at a psychiatric ward."

    "Thanks to his stupidity, he was forced to pull out of the tournament," Kureha muttered.

    I stared at them blankly. At that time, I had no idea what they were talking about, and it was only after I ran into Zhao Zi Jun that I was able to build the whole picture.

    "Well, honestly, that''s not the main reason why we called you here today," Kureha continued, and she sent Cecilia a glance. The black-haired beauty nodded her head and straightened up.

    "We''re actually here to offer you a high-tier mission," she revealed with a smile. "Considering your experience in fighting the professional killers of the Assassin Guild, we thought that you would be the one who is most appropriate for the job."

 319 Chapter 319: Let Everyone Down

    "Eh¡­"

    I hesitated for a moment, and then frowned.

    "Um¡­you do realize that the national tournament is about to begin, right? Is this mission extremely urgent? Can''t it wait until after the tournament?"

    Kureha leaned forward, her eyes narrowing. A Machiavellian smile formed coldly over his pretty face, as if she had decided to take on the role of the bad person today. What the hell? Seriously? Why did she need to do that?

    "Actually¡­no, it can''t. I''m very sorry for doing this to your team, but we''ll need you to pull out of the tournament."

    "Then I''ll convey my apologies as well. I''ll have to reject the mission."

    "Even though people''s lives are at risk?" Kureha countered. She stared at me, but I returned her gaze evenly. "You are friends with the late Troy King, aren''t you? Then you of all people should know how important it is to stop these fanatics, and the murderers they employ. To prevent the further loss of innocent lives."

    "Miss Kureha, there is no need to play the guilt card or hero card on me. I''m not stupid. If I don''t take the mission, you''ll offer it to someone else. And I''ll be frank, I know that you won''t be entrusting a mission of utmost importance to a student like me, especially if it involves so many lives. At best, I''ll just be a volunteer helping out the other people that you have already hired or plan to hire, but even if I do not participate, my absence will not make a lot of difference. Especially since you''ll find other people to fill the gap eventually."

    Cecilia giggled and patted Kureha''s bare shoulder.

    "I told you that Richard''s a smart guy. It won''t be easy to trick him."

    "Aw¡­" Kureha moaned in defeat. "And here I thought I could appeal to his sense of justice!"

    "I also have a sense of responsibility toward my teammates. I can''t just ditch them right at the beginning of a tournament and run off for a mission by myself."

    "You¡­are certainly different from Troy," Kureha agreed, nodding her head. "If it was Troy, he wouldn''t have hesitated¡­especially if the mission concerned his brother, Tyrant King."

    "Troy will be missed." Cecilia sighed. "He was a legend¡­a one of a kind, whose strength and bravery are unparalleled among those in our generation. To lose such a prodigy in such a fashion will be a huge blow to the Federation."

    "If you''re asking me to take Troy''s place, or to replace him, then I''ll tell you frankly that I can''t," I said bluntly. "I am not Troy. I am nowhere as talented or powerful as him. No one can ever take his place. Especially not someone like me."

    "Brother Richard, you think too poorly of yourself!" Adrian protested. I shook my head.

    "No, I''m just being realistic. Besides, I will do the things that I can do¡­and I hope I''ll be able to help in ways that Troy wouldn''t be able to accomplish. I am not Troy, I will never replace him¡­but that doesn''t mean I''m going to sit around and do nothing. I will help out in my own way."

    I narrowed my eyes determinedly.

    "And one of those ways is to ensure that my team does well in the tournaments¡­and to make sure I don''t let down my teammates by abandoning them."

    "Good answer." Cecilia nodded in approval. She cast an annoyed glance at Kureha. "And don''t worry about it. Kureha is just pulling a prank on you. We don''t need you to actually pull out of the tournaments. In fact, we actually need you to stay in the tournament for as long as possible¡­in other words, we also require you to ensure that you don''t get eliminated. Make sure your team gets past the qualifiers and do well in the knockout stages."

    "¡­huh?"

    Now this was an entire 180 degree. While I was gaping at Cecilia, Kureha burst out laughing. She laughed so hard that she ended up tumbling off the couch and rolling on the carpeted floor clutching her stomach and hammering the ground.

    I held up both hands and held my head, looking as confused as Jackie Chan when he was trying to comprehend some foreign Internet meme.

    "Someone, please explain to me what''s happening? And no jokes, please. No more pranks. I want the truth."

    "Sorry¡­" Kureha gasped. "I just couldn''t help it. I needed to rip off Divian."

    "Who the hell is Divian?!"

    "You ought to know her. She''s from Battle Frenzy." Of all people, it was Cecilia who gave the reply.

    I groaned and massaged my forehead. "Okay, okay. Enough of that Battle Frenzy nonsense. So what exactly is this mission? I thought you said it has something to do with the Assassins Guild. So why do I need to remain in the tournament for as long as possible?"

    "We heard that the Dark Church might make their move during the national tournament. With so many teams from so many academies from all over the Federation congregating in one place, it''s the ideal situation for the Dark Church to commit a terrorist act and inflict maximum casualties to ruin the Federation. They will definitely take this chance to act. And from our intelligence agents, the Assassins Guild is still under their employ."

    "So they plan to attack the participants in the tournament." I scratched my head and nodded in understanding. "I''m guessing that you want me to help keep an eye out for them and thwart their plans if necessary."

    "That''s right." Cecilia smiled, pleased that I comprehended her intent so quickly. "Since you''ve fought them before, you''re probably the one in our generation most familiar with their modus operandi. That''s why we felt that we can count on you."

    I rubbed my forehead, feeling a knot of tension building up behind it. That was some pressure there. "¡­I understand. I''ll do my best."

    "Thank you. That''s all we expect, really."

    "Knowing Brother Richard, he may take this chance to wipe out the Assassins Guild!"

    I glared at Adrian. The kid expected too much of me. He reminded me of Harvey Deng, though I prayed that the two would never meet. I shuddered to think what would happen ¨C it was entirely possible the both of them would start up a fan club.

    "I can''t do that. But I will do my best to stop and apprehend whatever Assassins I encounter." By stopping, I meant I would kill them in self-defense, as I did those Assassins who tried to kill me. Honestly, I would have killed Anastasia if she forced my hand, but it was more through sheer dumb luck that I knocked her out instead of outright killing her, and Feng Hai showed up opportunely to take her off my hands.

    "Excellent. Then the contract is as good as signed." Cecilia nodded in approval. While she gave me the stuff to sign, she continued to brief me. Conjuring a holographic screen, she called my attention to a huge map that displayed the Global Federation.

    I watched the floating, holographic map, fascinated.

    "Uh, this is¡­?"

    "I''ve highlighted the cities where the qualifiers are supposed to take place," Cecilia explained. Indeed, there were several cities that were tinged in weird colors. "Sadly, even my intelligence network doesn''t know which city you will be assigned to for your qualifier match, but suffice to say, this portion will emphasize on teamwork. Instead of individual battles, you will be tasked to accomplish a goal together. That''s all we know for sure. I''ll send you a copy, but suffice to say, I''ll leave you in charge of the city you''re assigned to."

    I cocked my eyebrow and pushed my glasses up as I studied the colored cities. "You don''t seriously expect me to watch an entire city by myself, do you?"

    "No," Cecilia admitted. "Just do the best you can and watch over your team¡­"

    "Just hand it to him straight," Kureha interrupted and turned to me, her expression hard and ruthless. "I''ll be blunt, Richard. I''m sure you''ll figure it out anyway. Your team¡­you and your friends are bait. The Assassins Guild recognize you as a threat because of your multiple run-ins with them, and they will most likely target you. Furthermore, most of your friends in that team have also fought Assassins before. If I''m not mistaken, you and your friends survived against the Umbra Assassin Rei and his disciples. The Assassins Guild will see this as an affront, an embellishment on their honor. They will seize this opportunity to correct it¡­and target your team."

    I rose to my feet with a scowl. "If that''s the case, you shouldn''t be telling just me about this. You should have invited the whole team and let them know."

    "Hold on." Cecilia raised a hand, looking concerned. She glanced around, as if to confirm something, and then nodded. "Don''t forget, this is the Assassins Guild we''re talking about. They have eyes and ears everywhere. It was already risky contacting you in this manner. I''m sorry, but I request that you keep this to yourself, at least until the qualifier match itself. We can''t afford to have any leaks."

    "If the Assassins Guild know that your team knows, and they are prepared for an ambush, they will likely change targets and attack the other teams in the qualifiers instead," Kureha explained, her ruthless fa?ade disappearing and being replaced by an apologetic expression. She then gestured all around us. "This place is secure, we had our teams sweep the place to ensure there are no bugs or nobody listening in. the walls are warded with silence enchantments, and even the hotel staff can''t hear the details of our conversation."

    "It would have looked extremely suspicious if your whole team showed up here," Cecilia agreed. "And when you return, take care not to leak this out unless you have no choice. Let your team know once the qualifiers begin, and when your team is deep within the¡­location they choose to place you."

    From the way they were speaking, they seemed aware that we wouldn''t be conducting urban warfare, or the Assassins would definitely overhear if I told my teammates the moment the qualifiers began. Then¡­the qualifiers were most likely taking place in the wilderness outside the cities, huh? That made sense. Any fighting inside the city would disrupt civilian life and cause trouble for the poor residents.

    Furthermore, I recalled how Feng Hai conducted that special intensive training camp where he basically threw us out in the forest to complete missions. You know, the one where my friends and I had to fight Crimson Spiders in their nest? Don''t tell me Feng Hai and his trainers had already foreseen this, and were aware of what kind of qualifiers this year''s tournament would hold?!

    Either that, or the leader of the Silver Wolves was a visionary with uncanny precognitive abilities.

    "I understand."

    As much as I hated this, I had no choice but to accede to their request. No wonder they approached me directly and went through the trouble of having me meet them here, in Stuart Hotel. They didn''t want this getting out. They informed me because they trusted that I would prepare the appropriate countermeasures and lead my team preemptively against the Assassins ¨C especially since I was the one with the most experience against them.

    "The Federation will employ mercenaries to keep watch over the students," Cecilia continued. "But as you will be the Assassins'' most likely target, we thought we should inform you, and you can prepare. I know it will be harsh on you, to not be able to tell your friends, but given that you are the vice-captain of your team, you should know their abilities very well, and devise a strategy that will allow them to quickly adapt to the situation and adjust accordingly. Just don''t leak that strategy until the qualifiers themselves."

    "¡­I''ll do my best."

    Heaving a sigh, I nodded reluctantly. It still irked me that I had to keep this from my friends for now, but I at least understood the reasoning. Yue Chu, in particular, would blabber this out, and Craig was too direct and touchy ¨C he would give us away eventually. Only Harrison could particularly be trusted to keep this a secret, but¡­as Cecilia and Kureha pointed out, the Assassins had eyes and ears in this city. Even if the Assassins weren''t present themselves, they most likely had support staff and intelligence agents to gather information for the actual Assassins to make the strike.

    "Speaking of which¡­we are under the pretense of something in order to arrange this meeting without looking too suspicious." Kureha grinned mischievously, glancing at Cecilia, who sighed heavily. The Sword Saint, on the other hand, looked as if she was enjoying this too much. "Go on, Cecile, tell him."

    "I will if you don''t want to!" Adrian piped up, but Kureha glared at him.

    "You keep quiet!"

    "¡­all right." Adrian fell silent sullenly. Cecilia gave him a sympathetic glance, but she made no move to help him. Instead, she looked squarely at me.

    "We''re making use of certain dumb rumors to camouflage our meeting."

    "¡­dumb rumors?" I repeated, unsure of where this was heading. Cecilia gave me an apologetic expression, before looking distinctly uncomfortable.

    "Um, well¡­apparently, there are rumors that I wish to engage in a romantic relationship with you."

    "That scoundrel, Hei Gui, certainly thinks so!" Kureha giggled, only to fall into silence when Cecilia glared at her. "Well¡­you don''t have to worry about him. He''s currently warded in a psychiatric institution."

    "At least we''re not going along with those stupid clich¨¦s of young arrogant masters from powerful and rich clans sending Assassins after the protagonist just because," I muttered under my breath.

    "Well, Hei Gui might be one extreme example, but he''s¡­just one of many rich and powerful young masters who are interested in wooing Cecile." Kureha glanced at her good friend, who was clutching her head in dismay.

    "They can try, but they won''t succeed."

    "They all want to marry into the Stuart family, or in the case of the other Great Families, establish a connection to form some sort of alliance." Kureha then pointed at me dramatically. "So this is where you come into play."

    "Oh, come on¡­" I groaned when I realized what she was hinting at. However, before I could protest, Cecilia smacked Kureha in the back of her head before turning apologetically toward me.

    "Don''t worry. It''s not what you''re thinking at all." She rolled her eyes. "This isn''t a manga or an anime. I''m not going to use that as a ridiculous pretext to request that you masquerade as my fianc¨¦ or fake boyfriend to get all those horny guys off my back. That''s clich¨¦ as hell, and highly impractical. If anything, it would only cause you too much trouble, and idiots like Hei Gui will really start trying to cause uh, ''accidents'' or find some sort of way to eliminate you. And no, it won''t be as anything as blatant as hiring Assassins. They will dig up some dirt on you to smear your reputation, frame you for a crime you didn''t commit, or all sorts of things."

    This was how the real world worked. Assassinations were just a myth, a lazy clich¨¦ that most Chinese webnovelists resorted to when they came up with obstacles for their main characters. However, in reality, the rich didn''t do anything as blatant as that, because such drastic measures could often be traced back to them, and only an idiot wouldn''t be suspicious if someone died all of a sudden from unnatural causes. Their weapons were not of poison and daggers, but the law and money. It was much more effective and safer to just sue and slander the target, destroy him socially and financially, and wreck his reputation.

    "Plus I''m not selfish and self-centered enough to drag a completely unrelated person into my own problems." Cecilia shot an irritated glare at a disappointed Kureha, who was wishing for some romantic comedy manga moment to happen in real life. "I''ll reject each and every one of them myself, and I will handle my own personal problems on my own. Not resort to stupid manga or webnovel clich¨¦s that wouldn''t work in real life."

    "Uh, okay¡­" I wasn''t sure how to respond to that.

    "That said¡­" Cecilia sighed and lowered her head. "I must apologize in advance, because for this particular case, we''re making use of those rumors to camouflage the true reason for our meeting. Don''t worry, I won''t expect you to play along or do anything concrete with regards to my¡­personal situation. But for now, just put up with the rumors. That will throw the Assassins'' inteliigence off our backs for now."

    "Gotcha." Now I understood why Cecilia opened up the discussion by first apologizing about Hei Gui''s attempt, even though I had never heard about that. Standing up, partly because I was aware that the time to Southampton''s match against Manchester United was drawing ever closer and I needed to leave soon in order to make it, I bowed. "I''ll begin planning for this¡­mission, as soon as possible."

    "We''re counting on you." Cecilia stood up and offered me a hand and a smile. "Make sure you kick those Assassins'' asses."

    "Oh¡­" I smiled grimly, a plan already formulating inside my mind. "I''ll do much more than kick their sorry asses, you can be sure of that."

 320 Chapter 320: Dark Fores

    "That Lilith¡­she really went and made a name for herself, eh?"

    Gabriel Porter was staring at the photograph of his little sister, which was projected as a holographic image that floated above his smartphone.

    "Wow¡­her tournament ranking is pretty high¡­not that it means anything." Gabriel was nodding in approval. Rankings didn''t determine anything, otherwise nobody would bother to hold tournaments and just hand out wins based on the competitors'' ranks. That was stupid. I mean, look at the World Cup. Just because one team was higher ranked didn''t mean the other team rolled over and lost automatically. Even so, Gabriel understood that his sister was receiving recognition.

    Clenching his fist, he smiled.

    "As her elder brother, I can''t afford to fall behind!"

    "Oi! Gabriel! You''re falling behind!"

    Blinking, the silver-blond fire mage glanced up and caught sight of his teammates waving at him. He hastily raced forward, looking sheepish. Gabriella Monique placed her hands on her hips, her long golden hair waving behind her.

    "What do you think you''re doing? Zoning out like that?"

    "Ah¡­no. I mean¡­" Unable to contain his pride and excitement, Gabriel showed her the photo of Lilith. "My sister made it to the top tournament rankings this year! I really look forward to seeing how far she can go."

    "She''ll definitely make it out of the qualifiers," Gabriella agreed with an indulgent smile. Having met Lilith before, she treated the younger girl as her own sister. "And it''s our job to ensure that she and her friends are safe from any outside interferences during the tournament."

    Gabriel turned serious and he nodded. He glanced into the dark, dense woods ahead of them, and briefly imagined how his sister and her team would navigate through them. It would be a task several more times difficult and exponentially deadlier if they had Assassins lurking inside those depths and planning an ambush.

    "Just what is the Dark Church planning?" he murmured.

    "Who knows?" Gabriella shrugged. "Whatever they intend to do, it''s our duty to stop them." She smiled and reached out to hold her partner''s hand. "For the sake of your sister and her friends. For the sake of juniors still enrolled in the academies."

    "Yeah."

    The both of them continued their surveillance, only to hear a scrap against the soil. The couple momentarily halted in their tracks, reaching out with their senses.

    "!!"

    They found themselves surrounded by pack of Grotesques. Hulking, almost humanoid creatures that were over five meters tall and bulging with muscles, they were normally ranked D. However, both Gabriel and Gabriella knew that they couldn''t afford to underestimate the newly arrived enemies.

    There were a lot of problems with the ranking system ¨C in the end, it was a man-made system arbitrarily decided by a small authority to roughly estimate the strength of monsters and an attempt to categorize them into neat classifications. Obviously, such arbitrary categorizes could never capture the complexities of reality. The monsters themselves couldn''t care less about the ranks that humans assigned them, and they obviously couldn''t be bothered to obey the categories we placed them in. At best, the ranking system was based on estimations. They were not meant to be absolute.

    It was unfortunate that most people took the ranking system for granted and regarded it as the end all be all. But reality was far more complicated. A rank D monster wasn''t necessarily going to lose to a rank C monster, and a rank A monster could still be overwhelmed by plenty of rank F monsters working in concert to swarm it.

    Rank C monsters, for example, were ranked as such because they were powerful enough to master elemental magic. However, that didn''t necessarily mean that all rank D monsters would lose to rank C monsters automatically. While they undoubtedly had the advantage in terms of elemental magic, rank D monsters were often physically stronger than rank C monsters. So if they caught a rank C monster by surprise, maybe through speed or landing a fatal blow, much like how a tiger could kill an elephant by biting its neck, they could most certainly win. Then there were rank F monsters that possessed venom so toxic that a single bite could kill even a rank B monster. Speaking of which, while rank B monsters were generally more powerful than rank C monsters, that didn''t mean there was an absolute gap between them, or that rank B monsters were so much more destructive. Usually rank B monsters were given such status because of their control over their magical powers, because they tended to be the monsters that were capable of controlling their mana to the extent that they could compress it to a smaller sized body. So for rank B and rank C, it was skill rather than pure power or strength that separated them.

    "Stop the info dump!" a reader whined impatiently. "Just get to the point already!"

    Well, the point, my dear reader, is that please stop assuming that just because a mage can defeat a rank B monster, he automatically can defeat all monsters ranked C and below without much effort. Reality did not work like that. Monsters ¨C and living organisms in general ¨C did not fall so neatly into man-made categories and "ranks." Let your guard down, and even a low-ranked monster can kill you.

    Basically, all monsters are dangerous regardless of rank, and don''t ever underestimate them or take their ranks for granted.

    "Do these Grotesques seem¡­off to you?" Gabriel asked as he punched one of them away, immolating the shrieking creature in flames.

    "How so?" Gabriella asked as she ducked under a meaty swing from another Grotesque. She kicked it away before bathing it in lethal lightning, frying its skin and sending it into convulsion. "How can you tell? They seem just as aggressive as ever."

    For a moment, Gabriel paused. Gabriella had a point. The Grotesques were behaving like normal Grotesques, attacking whatever human they encountered.

    Even so, there was something not quite right about the situation, but the fire mage just couldn''t place his finger on it. He rubbed his forehead after hurling an immense fireball that set three Grotesques ablaze and sent them rolling on the ground, howling until they perished.

    "¡­"

    Gabriel''s eyes lingered on the dry leaves that had combusted spontaneously along with the corpses of the Grotesques that he and Gabriella had slain. For some reason, he was reminded of an arid desert. Then he started.

    "Ah¡­I see! So that''s how it is!"

    "What? What are you talking about?"

    Gabriella turned to look at him quizzically, but Gabriel continued to laugh for a few more seconds. Taking a deep breath as he drew his sword and cleaved another Grotesque in half before incinerating its corpse, he turned to his partner.

    "Grotesques shouldn''t be dwelling in forests. They are normally found in wastelands¡­or deserts."

    "¡­you''re right! They are out of their natural habitat! How did they get here?!"

    Gabriella gasped when she realized that he was right. Ducking under the ungainly punch of a Grotesque before she kicked it, she scowled. Lashing out with an electric whip, she electrocuted the staggering Grotesque and sent its smoking corpse toppling to the ground.

    "Don''t tell me¡­"

    "Yeah." Gabriel glanced up at the dark shadow who was concealing himself very well beneath the trees. "The Dark Church is involved."

    Gabriella smiked. "Do you want the honors, or you want to let me try?"

    "I''ll take care of the Grotesques. You get the guy." Gabriel grinned at his beloved. "You have quite the way of handling guys, after all."

    "Roger that!"

    "Leave this to me and go!" Taking a deep breath, Gabriel raised his sword. "Enryuu Kagutsuchi!"

    In a moment, the entire clearing vanished in an immense inferno. A fiery dragon emerged from the flames, bellowing ferociously before incinerating the remaining horde of Grotesques in an instant. Even though the ranking system wasn''t absolute, it still served as a good estimate. After all, it was still difficult for a single ant to bite an elephant to death (of course, a cobra could still kill an elephant with a single bite, so¡­).

    As the Grotesques burned, Gabriella was lunging out of the clearing, leaving the hellish inferno behind her. She shot toward the dark shape. The Dark Church dude recoiled, realizing that he had bitten off more than he could chew, and turned tail to run.

    "Oh no, you don''t!"

    Gabriella gleefully lashed out with her whip, which curled around the guy and ensnared him tightly. The panicking hooded figure toppled over with a crash, cursing and swearing under his breath, but found his restraints indomitable. Realizing that he couldn''t break free, the Assassin rolled over the ground and gritted his teeth.

    "Now then¡­we''ll have a few questions for you." Gabriella held onto her whip tightly, refusing to relinquish her prey. Behind her, Gabriel and his Soul Beast finished the last of the Grotesques ¨C not that there were many left after Enryuu Kagutsuchi''s summon ¨C and proceeded toward their newly captured hostage.

    "Don''t dismiss your Soul Beast just yet," Gabriella told him. "We''ll need him to transport this guy back to base."

    "Yeah¡­." Gabriel began, but his eyes widened and he rushed toward the Dark Church dude. Gabriella blinked at his sudden movements.

    "What is it, Gabriel?"

    "Damn it! We''re too late!"

    "¡­huh?"

    Gabriella studied her lover, looking utterly confused. She then moved her gaze toward the motionless hostage.

    And then she realized something was amiss. The guy was too lifeless. Even if she had electrocuted him ¨C and she didn''t ¨C he shouldn''t be so still.

    "He killed himself." Gabriel knelt next to the Dark Church guy and tilted his head to study him. Foam covered his lips, and his eyes were rolled up in their sockets, showing only whites. Gabriel slightly pried the mouth open and grimaced. "I knew it. He crushed the poison capsule in his mouth to terminate his own life."

    "Did he really need to go that far?" Gabriella inquired, her voice a whisper. "I heard they were zealots, but¡­"

    "It''s not unusual. Faith can drive people to do remarkable things. Both amazing things and horrible things."

    Gabriel was neither an atheist nor religious. He was¡­well, probably agnostic, if he had to describe himself. While he was aware of the atrocities that certain extremists committed in the name of religion, he also knew of the many charitable things that pious people did for the poor, the vulnerable and the innocent. Just like any other system, religion was exposed to both good and bad people, and could be used for both good and bad.

    Unfortunately, a lot atheists enjoyed focusing only on the atrocities and completely ignoring the good that religion did. On the other side of the coin, you had zealous proselytizers who seriously believed that non-believers in their "one, true religion" would go to hell and regarded non-followers condescendingly. Gabriel was neutral toward religion, fortunately.

    But the Dark Church wasn''t a religion. It was¡­well, a cult. A doomsday cult packed full of nutjobs and maniacs.

    "We''ll report this back to base." Gabriel sighed. Another bust, huh? If they could have captured the Dark Church dude alive and prevent him from killing himself, they might have been able to interrogate him. Even if he refused to talk, they should have truth serums that would make him¡­well, submissive. Of course they would have to ask him questions, unlike what Kippo believed, truth serums didn''t make people talk automatically. It was just tedious to go through an interrogation scene, so I skipped those details. But questions were asked, and¡­well, I would leave the other details to your imagination. Feel free to indulge in your grisly fantasies, or stay safe in more comfortable territory.

    Gabriel glanced at the forest and sighed again. He wondered if his sister, Lilith would be assigned to this city along with her team. Even though he knew it was irrational, he prayed that she wouldn''t. This place seemed dangerous.

    However, Gabriel knew that every venue was equally dangerous. He was willing to bet that the other mercenaries and patrol teams in the other sectors had their own run-ins with elements of the Dark Church. He prayed that they would have better luck capturing a Dark Church operative. Even a single apprehended target could yield invaluable information.

    "We''re going into this blind," he complained softly to himself. "There''s too many things we don''t know."

    "Huh? What did you say?"

    Gabriel shook his head and smiled reassuringly at a concerned Gabriella. She had been watching him the entire time, worried by how pensive he had gotten.

    "No, nothing." He straightened and glanced around the forest. "I''m hoping we''ll be able to root out the Dark Church before the tournament begins. That''s all."

 321 Chapter 321: The Arrangement of Academies

    After watching the game between Southampton and Manchester United, I returned to the hotel with the others. Upon reaching my room, I raised my hand, tore open a time-space portal, and then exited the flashback to return to the present.

    Everyone was staring at me, dumbfounded.

    "Where did you go?" Pearl demanded.

    "To the past," I replied. Ignoring their gazes of disbelief, I continued. "I''m surprised you guys actually continued waiting for me here."

    "You were gone for one second at most," Dong Fang Yue Chu explained, shaking his head in bemusement. "One moment you were gone, then we blinked, and then you were back!"

    "Hey, if you have such an ability to travel through time, can''t you use that to¡­save Alicia or do something more significant instead of randomly doing a flashback?" Craig asked, annoyed.

    "I''m sorry. I can only use that ability when the author intends for me to break the fourth wall as a joke. The moment things get serious, I lose the ability."

    "¡­you''re kidding me, right?"

    "All right, all right." Harrison clapped his hands to draw our attention back to him. "Let''s not waste any more time. Keep moving, people!"

    We arrived in Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy before long, which turned out to be a massive school that resembled a palace more than an education institute. There were already countless groups streaming through its opulent gates and strolling through its marble paved paths, guided toward the gigantic main hall by student volunteers. Passing through the extravagant double doors, which contain lots of artistic motifs, we found ourselves surrounded on all sides by thousands of people from hundreds of schools.

    "Wow, there are so many teams," Lily remarked excitedly. "There are so many participants!"

    While we were looking around in awe and wonder, one of the staff approached us. This time, she wasn''t a student volunteer, but an actual professional, an adult in her twenties wearing a gray business suit. She bowed.

    "Good afternoon, everyone! Welcome to Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy. I am the receptionist here. Ladies and gentlemen, we have staff who will take care of your luggage for you."

    To our utmost surprise, a bunch of bellboys with hats showed up with a trolley and began wordlessly stowing our luggage away. As they did so, the receptionist smiled at us politely.

    "Also, if you don''t mind me asking, you guys are the Jing Tian Academy team. Am I correct?"

    "That''s right." Harrison nodded.

    "Excellent. Then¡­" the receptionist rummaged her pockets, and then produced a formal-looking letter. "I believe this is for you. This is an invitation to a banquet organized by Quetzalcoatl Academy."

    "Quetzalcoatl Academy?" Yue Chu repeated, his brow creasing. "Never heard of them."

    "Quetzalcoatl is Aztec god of wind and air, and is often depicted as a gigantic feathered serpent," I explained. Everyone stared at me.

    "The Az¡­Az what god?" Theodore tried to repeat.

    "Aztec."

    "Never heard of that," Sheila admitted, scratching her head.

    "It''s an ancient empire that reigned in South America and Mexico, until they were destroyed by Spanish conquerors in the 16th century."

    I would have explained more, but the blank looks on my friends'' faces told me that it would be a pointless endeavor. Besides, I wasn''t a walking encyclopedia. That was pretty much the extent of my knowledge.

    "How do you know about them?" Harrison asked curiously. I stared at him, dumbstruck. I was more surprised that they didn''t know about them¡­

    ¡­oh, right. This was almost a thousand years into the future. Much of ancient history was lost to the past¡­hell, the time period I originally came from was considered ancient history by people of this era. The history that the people of this time knew was different from the history that I had mastered.

    "I read about it somewhere."

    "That''s cool and all," Craig broke in impatiently. "But what does this Aztec thing have to do with Quetzalcoatl Academy? Are the directors of that academy descended from that South American empire or something?"

    "¡­to be honest, I have no idea," I admitted as I raised my hands in surrender. "I haven''t heard of Quetzalcoatl Academy before either."

    "How can you not know who the Quetzalcoatl Academy is?!"

    We whirled around, only to see a red-haired guy in a green, dark blue and bronze uniform standing behind us.

    "¡­who?" I muttered, perplexed. But the guy paid no attention to my question, dismissing me as stupid.

    "Don''t you dare look down on Quetzalcoatl Academy?!" he gritted his teeth. "Even though their name might sound unusual, I''ll have you know that they were consistently ranked among the top 16 in the national tournament for the past two years!"

    That piqued my interest. So they must be a very strong team. I ought to do some research on them in case we faced them during the tournament.

    The red-haired guy was not done.

    "As a bonus, I''ll fill you guys in on some top secret information." He flicked his hand, and a huge holographic screen beamed into life in front of him. "I spent quite a lot of efforts obtaining this, so be grateful!"

    Uh, no. no one asked you to share it with us¡­

    The guy shared it with us anyway. Pounding on some weird graph that displayed indecipherable stats and weirdly colored bar graphs, the guy jabbed toward the numbers insistently.

    "They have been granted rank B! You guys should be very afraid of them!"

    "No, not really." That rank thing held absolutely no meaning to me at all. What was with people''s obsession with ranking things? Must everything be a competition? Okay, that was a dumb question. We were participating in a tournament. Of course ranks were a given. However, what was with this weird A, B and C grades? More importantly, what was this guy trying to achieve, showing off his knowledge like this. And¡­"Um, who are you?"

    "Me?" Redhead grinned. Then he flamoybantly flashed his arm up to introduce himself. "I''m Ding Ke Po from Divine Divination Academy, and I''m probably your best information specialist and analyst for this tournament."

    "Hey, look! There''s refreshments on the table over there! Let''s grab some chow! I''m famished!"

    Pointedly ignoring Ding Ke Po, Craig strode away, with Sheila, Theodore and the others in tow. The redhead''s jaw dropped for a moment, and then he jumped, outraged.

    "Hey! You people!" he shouted. "Is this how you repay someone who worked his ass off to obtain such top-secret information and so generously shared it with you?!"

    As much as I appreciated his information, I had to point out that no one asked him to. He just randomly approached us on his own and began shooting his mouth off before we even knew who he was or what he wanted.

    Harrison, on the other hand, was a lot more skeptical. Narrowing his eyes, he cast a suspicious glance at Ding Ke Po.

    "Where did you get that top-secret information from?"

    "Come on now." Ding Ke Po laughed. "Did you really think I''ll just tell you that? If I can so easily tell you how I came across this information, it wouldn''t be top secret anymore, would it?"

    "Funny." Harrison activated his smartphone and beamed a holographic screen of an electronic newsletter into the air. "Because I could have sworn I found that the same so-called top-secret information published in today''s article in The Public Guardian. Which offers all that information for free."

    "¡­"

    Ding Ke Po couldn''t say anything after that. As he stood there dumbly, realizing that his cover had just been blown, the rest of Jing Tian Academy proceeded toward the buffet table. I almost felt sorry for him.

    Almost.

    "I hope they still have steak," Pearl murmured.

    "Aren''t you supposed to be on a diet?" Theodore asked, earning a punch from her.

    "This is pointless," Bu Fan sighed heavily as he clasped both hands behind his head. "I want the tournament to start already."

    "Trust me, you''re not the only one," Craig told him.

    While our group strode away, the lone figure of Ding Ke Po remained, watching us fade into the distance. A smile spread across his face.

    "Heh heh¡­"

    Chuckling, he turned away, only to be greeted by four of his comrades, all wearing the same green and dark blue uniform as him.

    "We''ll definitely meet each other again soon¡­the C-ranked Jing Tian Academy team!"

    BULLSHIT! On what basis were we given that rank!? Oh, I get it. This must be another one of those "protagonist''s academy is trash" clich¨¦ where every other team looked down upon us and regarded us as trash because of our rank, only to get their faces slapped and their asses handed to them because we had a Mary Sue captain who could pull off the most incredible and perfect strategies known to the Federation and surprise everyone.

    Pushing my glasses up, I narrowed my eyes. I can see the ending!

    ¡­if this was Battle Frenzy, that is. Unfortunately, I doubted my author even knew what the ending of this story would be. The tournament was just one arc out a few. And I wasn''t even sure what the last arc was. Maybe defeating the Dark Church and the Assassins Guild? That would be so cool. Unfortunately, you can tell that this was going to be a train wreck if my author didn''t have an idea of how the ending should be like, and was just making stuff up as he went along.

    After the reception, where light refreshments were provided, we were then all assigned to our rooms. Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy was truy massive ¨C even with thousands of students, they were able to accommodate us in what looked like dormitories.

    The staff of Crowley was as good as their word. Our luggages were brought to our rooms in a perfunctory manner, and already awaited us when we got there. There were no mistakes, so far as I knew, even though it must have been difficult for the bellboys to know whose luggage belonged to who. Must be magic.

    It didn''t take long for me to unpack as I didn''t bring too much stuff. Once I had laid everything out and placed my clothing in the closests, I dropped onto my bed to rest. It had been quite a long day, and we woke up fairly early this morning. As usual, the one thing I lacked the most was sleep. Well, sometimes. There were days were I spent 10 to 12 hours in dreamland, reluctant to wake up. I''m pretty sure everyone has days when they just felt utterly sluggish and totally unwilling to rise from their beds.

    Unfortunately, I wasn''t given much of a choice. My smartphone buzzed and I swiped at the screen. Harrison''s face appeared in a hologram.

    "What''s up, Captain?"

    "The banquet tomorrow." Harrison held up the invitation card. "What do you think?"

    "What do I think?"

    "Should we go?"

    "I don''t mind going. What about you?" If there was free food, there was no way I was going to say no. My mouth was already watering when I imagined the sumptuous food that awaited me. I bet Yue Chu and Theodore would feel the same. The three of us would attend just for the free food alone.

    "Hmm¡­" Harrison hesitated for a moment, and then nodded. "I guess there''s no harm in going. I was just asking for everyone''s opinions and checking who wants to go." He grinned. "I kind of expected you to say yeah."

    Either he was familiar with me following Alicia around to such events when she was still alive, or he was aware of my desire for free food. It didn''t matter. I just nodded.

    "So everyone is going?"

    "I''m about to ask them now. You''re the first person I contacted." That made sense, given that I was technically the vice-captain. He shrugged. "I''m sure some will want to go, and some wouldn''t."

    "That''s normal."

    "Yup. But¡­" Harrison frowned. "I might seem paranoid, but I have a feeling that Quetzalcoatl Academy has their own motives for inviting all of us to this banquet. From what information I gathered, they only invited the lower ranking academies¡­the C ranks, and a handful of B ranks."

    "¡­heh¡­" Like I gave a fuck. Probably because it was too expensive for them to host rank A academies. Hell, what was with ths random ranking thing, anyway? I had never heard of this stupid ranking thing in my life.

    "Well¡­I guess we''ll find out what they want tomorrow. But for now, keep your eyes sharp. There''s something not right about this whole thing¡­" Harrison sighed. "I hope I''m not thinking too much."

    "Don''t worry," I assured him with a grin. "What''s the worst that could happen? If you turn out to be right, then¡­we''ll just leave. It''s not as if we''re obligated to obey them just because they treated us to free food, right?"

 322 Chapter 322: Congregation of the Weak

    "Is this where the banquet is being held?" Lily Liam asked nervously as she stared up at the huge hotel that Quetzalcoatl Academy had booked.

    "Looks like it," Dong Fang Yue Chu assured her with a squeeze of her hand.

    "There sure are a lot of people," Theodore noted, looking around. He was right. There were literally hundreds of students crammed into a single banquet hall. Given that the number wasn''t in the thousands, it was obvious that not everyone participating in the national tournament had been invited. I wondered what the basis for invitation was.

    After all, Jing Tian Academy had no relation to Quetzalcoatl Academy. Why did they want to invite us?

    Well, who cares? Free food! Free food is where it''s at!

    My friends and I helped ourselves to the finger food and refreshments on the long, white-clothed tables that were lined against walls of grandeur and luxury. Whoever booked the hotel had pulled out all the stops. Was Quetzalcoatl a rich school? I couldn''t remember. Not that I cared. I wasn''t going to question the sight of free food in front of my eyes.

    Harrison Reed, our captain, showed more restraint and dignity. Bu Fan wasn''t here at all ¨C the lone wolf pseudo protagonist running off somewhere to do his own thing. Maybe he was in the Hunters Society and was out looking for monsters to exterminate so that he could make an extra bit of cash to buy his Treasure Artifacts or Treasure Tools or whatever. I couldn''t care less. Everyone else tagged along, most of the guys in particular searching for free food more than any social reason.

    While we ate, more students drifted in. Jing Tian Academy kept to itself in the end, especially since we didn''t know anyone else in the room. It would be super-awkward to approach the others, and I noticed that most schools didn''t interact much with each other anyway. Everyone was forming small, isolated pockets where students of similar uniforms clustered together. There were of course plenty of exceptions ¨C a student from one academy seeing an old friend from another academy, and then meeting to chat and catch up on old days. It was not unusual for individuals to happen to have friends from other schools.

    But by and large, as units of schools, we didn''t really mingle.

    Just like that, an hour passed. By now, my friends and I had finished our food, and were sipping juice and stuff. We didn''t know what else to do.

    "Should we¡­uh, leave?" I asked, scratching my head.

    "Not yet," Harrison told me with a frown. "There must be a reason why they invited us. And it''s not just to give us free food. The main event has yet to arrive."

    "What''s the main event?" Cody Crosby asked, confused. Harrison shrugged.

    "We''ll find out."

    As if on cue, one of the students in a purple and gray uniform stepped forward and ascended a podium that lay in the center along one of the walls in the room. Spreading his hands dramatically, he cleared his throat into a microphone, broadcasting the sound across the banquet room to draw everyone''s attention to him.

    "Hello, everyone." He beamed. "It''s so great to see all of you here! I''m very gratified by the number of people who chose to attend our banquet tonight. Welcome! Help yourselves to the food and drinks, and enjoy yourselves tonight!"

    "Cheers!" everyone raised their cups and responded enthusiastically.

    "I''m Castian from Caliban Academy," the guy continued. "It''s nice to meet all of you, this close to the tournament!"

    "Hey, isn''t Castian from Caliban Academy?"

    "Isn''t the banquet organized by Quetzalcoatl Academy?"

    "Yeah¡­so why is he the one up there?"

    "Oh, sorry about that." Castian rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Although Quetzalcoatl Academy was indeed the ones who organized the banquet and sent the invitations, this is actually co-hosted by both Quetzalcoatl and Caliban Academies."

    He then raised his hand and gestured for us to look around, his lips spreading outward in a sinister smile. I suddenly felt the urge to wipe that smirk off his face.

    "Some of you may have already noticed that most of the teams invited to this banquet are ranked below B."

    ¡­huh?

    That didn''t make sense to me. How were we supposed to know that? Did anyone go around noting the uniforms here and then finding out our ranks? There were quite a lot of schools and uniforms here. But that just sounded so judgemental. I couldn''t care less about the ranks of other schools. Hell, that ranking system was stupid to begin with.

    "As you all know, we lower-ranked teams are always being oppressed by the higher-ranked ones!"

    Castian was getting animated now, his gestures getting more dramatic. The guy should be an actor or something. Even so, it earned the effect that he intended.

    "Yeah, that''s right! It isn''t fair!"

    "What right do they have to do that!?"

    ¡­what? Seriously? Since when were the so-called lower ranked teams being oppressed by the higher ranked teams? Why had I ¨C and my school ¨C never experienced such an "oppression" before? Wasn''t this just stupid hyperbole?

    I raised my hand.

    "What do you mean by oppression? What exactly did the higher-ranked teams do to us lower-ranked teams?"

    Everyone fell silent and stared at me.

    "Oh, shut up!"

    "Are you stupid?"

    "Can''t even see the obvious" What obvious? I didn''t see any obvious oppression being done, that was why I was asking about it in the first place.

    "Ignore the idiot."

    "Don''t talk to idiots. They are not worth our precious time."

    So instead of answering my perfectly valid question, they chose to ignore me and throw insults. Why was I reminded of trolls in the Webnovel forums? Coming in and making hyperbolic statements, and when I challenged them, instead of justifying their viewpoint or explaining themselves, they resorted to insulting me and ignoring my question altogether.

    Yeah¡­such people could be found anywhere.

    After pointedly ignoring my question, they returned to raving and ranting.

    "Anyone the Lacroix Family likes is definitely suspicious, if you ask me!"

    "The Franklin family is definitely scheming something this year!"

    The hell was with this bullshit? Just less than a month ago, the Porter family invited all the schools in the south and eastern district to their exchange session, to trade pointers and spar against each other. If anything, they were accommodating and helpful, not oppressive. I was starting to feel furious at the way these guys trash-talked the Great Families when they didn''t even know what they were talking about.

    "You guys¡­"

    "It''s not worth it, Richard." Harrison placed a hand on my shoulder and held me back, shaking his head. "Don''t bother arguing with them."

    "Yeah." Even though Yue Chu was seething, he was able to restrain himself when he saw Harrison''s action. "They are just trolls."

    "They are brainless idiots, that''s what they are," Craig Carlson muttered under his breath, only for Sheila Scarlet to nudge him.

    "Relax, everyone." After allowing most of the students here to vent, Castian dramatically raised his hand high into the air.

    As everyone fell silent, he theatrically swept his hand across the air, as if trying to include all of us in that single motion. Smiling, he lowered his voice conspiratorially.

    "This is why I wish to table a proposition for all of you. It might sound presumptuous and immature, but I believe we should all form a coalition and work together during the qualifiers round! Let''s cooperate to defeat the stronger teams together!"

    "¡­I was wondering what kind of suggestion you''ll make."

    A good-looking guy with blond hair and dressed in a pristine, impeccable blue and white uniform stepped forward with a shake of his head, a sneer curling his lips.

    "But it just turns out to be some insidious scheme about plotting behind the backs of other teams. How ridiculous."

    He turned away, and his teammates ¨C all of whom were dressed in the same graceful uniforms ¨C joined him with approving nods. It was clear they all agreed with their leader.

    "The Aurora Academy will not participate in such a shameless scheme. We are leaving."

    "Yeah!"

    "I''m with you, Captain!"

    We watched them go. Castian looked a bit flustered, but as experienced as he was in public speaking, he didn''t let it affect him too much.

    "That''s all right. This is just an idea from my team, and the team from Quetzalcoatl. We didn''t expect everyone to accept it. If any of the other teams disapprove of this plan as well, you are free to leave. We won''t hold it against you."

    I glanced at Harrison, who had already made his decision. Ever the great leader, he was looking at each and every one of us to ensure that he had our unanimous vote before deciding. When we all nodded with encouraging smiles, he then turned to face Castian.

    "I''m sorry, but the Jing Tian Academy team will not be participating in this plan either."

    "No worries, my friend." Castian accepted his rejection graciously. As he did everyone else''s rejection. There were more than a few academies who didn''t seem comfortable with these schemes, and they were among those who didn''t follow the mob mentality of condemning big teams without any actual explanation on why they thought they were being oppressed.

    For some reason, he cast a glance at me. Probably because he remembered me as the guy who raised the stupid question. But rather than a glare of resentment (you know, the stupid clich¨¦ of "how dare a mere C-ranked team be this disrespectful!? I''ll show you!"), it was one of understanding. More along the lines of "yeah, of course this guy''s team wouldn''t participate in our schemes, they don''t even feel like they had ever been oppressed by the bigger, higher-ranked teams. Lucky bastards."

    What, you think every single character in this story exists to find trouble and antagonize me and my team? Come on, let''s be more realistic. They had much better things to do than to hold grudges. Castian, in particular, had his hands full scheming against the powerful, high-ranked "A" teams. Where was he going to find the time and energy to carry out his grudge against a random, nobody rank C team from somewhere?

    "Are you sure we''ll be fine?" Pearl asked nervously when she glanced back at the hotel. "Will they target us as well?"

    "We''re not the only teams who rejected their proposal," Craig pointed out, gesturing toward the many students who didn''t want to participate. They were flowing out of the banquet room and departing to the dorms we had been assigned to by Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy. "Are they going to attack all of us?"

    "Not to mention they still have to take care of the higher-ranked teams first. Shouldn''t that be their priority instead of getting all offended at rejection, and seeking revenge? Seems counterproductive if they spend too much time and energy taking revenge for our so-called ''disrespect'' or refusal to ''give them face'' only for them to end up falling to the higher-ranked teams whom they banded together to try and defeat in the first place."

    Cody had a legitimate point. Nobody could argue against his logic.

    "Yeah, it would be highly stupid for them to fall into infighting, trying to target all the other lower-ranked teams, only for them to have expended all their strength and ending up in no shape to fight the higher-ranked teams," Theodore agreed.

    "Yeah, this isn''t like a Chinese webnovel where everybody and their mother holds a grudge against the protagonist and his friends for no other reason other than to create contrived cnflicts and forced drama," Sheila added. Everyone stared at her, and she shrugged. "What? Just stating the truth."

    "That was supposed to be my line," I complained. She smirked at me.

    "Serves you right for being too slow to say it then."

    I could muster no reponse to that. Damn. She was right.

    "Anyway, let''s get back to the dorms. If you don''t mind meeting in my room for tonight, we''ll discuss strategies for potential scenarios in the qualifiers." Harrison glanced at me. "Richard, you said that it''s possible that they might throw us into the wilderness like Instructor Feng Hai did during that training camp about half a year ago?"

    "Yeah, that''s what I think. I might be mistaken, though."

    "No, it''s all right." Harrison sook his head. "We don''t have any other leads, so any possibility is better than nothing."

    "Yosh!" Yue Chu threw his hand up happily. "Let''s do this!"

    "I second that. Talking about something and speculating what might happen during the qualifiers is better than sitting around doing nothing and completely not knowing what''s going to happen. Even if it turns out to be wrong, at least we still have a plan. We can just adjust and alter the plan according to the new scenario."

    Theodore was nodding in approval.

    "What about Bu Fan?" Pearl asked, raising a hand. "He''s not with us right now. Should we contact him and ask him to come too?"

    "Knowing him, he probably wouldn''t," Lily sighed.

    "But I''ll send him a message and inform him anyway," Harrison declared, ever the responsible leader. "If he does show up, then all the better. He knows that this will be a team match, and he can''t just ditch us. Otherwise, I''ll just brief him on the plans when I see him tomorrow."

    "Gotcha."

    "Before we start the meeting, do you mind if I go to the convenience store?" I raised a hand. "Let''s grab some snacks and drinks."

    "Great idea!" Sheila agreed enthusiastically.

    "I could use a beer," Craig remarked, only for everyone to stare at him.

    "No alcohol allowed. We are all underaged minors. It''s illegal for us to drink."

    "Oh, come on, Captain! Don''t be so rigid!" Craig pestered a resolute Harrison. The blond holy mage raised an eyebrow.

    "You do realize they''ll ask you for proof of age and identity at the store if you try and buy beer, right? Especially while we''re still in uniform?"

    "Uh¡­"

    Chuckling, the rest of us went ahead to the nearest convenience store ¨C which happened to be a Seven Eleven. I personally hoped that they sold the Calbee pizza-flavored potato chips that I was so fond of, and hopefully some mango juice and mango ice cream. That might be too much to ask, though¡­

 323 Chapter 323: The Hei Clan

    The next day, everyone split up for individual training. I went to a nearby park because I needed a vast expanse where I could freely summon my Constellation spirits. After practicing my summoning spells and reviewing what I already knew, I realized that I had taken a bit longer than expected, and that I was extremely famished.

    "Oh¡­it''s time for dinner."

    Rubbing my stomach gingerly, I dismissed my Constellation spirits and departed the park. There were a bunch of onlookers who were staring at me with their mouths wide open, as if they hadn''t seen Constellation spirits before.

    "Mommy, mommy! Look! I want to ride on that giant eagle!"

    "Daddy! That winged horse looks beautiful! I want to ride on that!"

    "I want that teddy bear!"

    "Cool! A tiger! Why is it so white?"

    "Eh¡­that tortoise is so big!"

    "Whoa! A lion! So cool!"

    "Can I stroke the fur of that dog?"

    In contrast to the adult onlookers, the kids were on a roll. They were pointing and gesturing excitedly, wanting Constellation spirits of their own, or at least wanting a ride or to touch them. a few of them even tried to run toward me, only for their anxious parents to desperately pull them back.

    "Don''t go near that boy!"

    "Sh! Don''t approach him! Don''t stare!"

    "Let''s go, let''s go. Nothing to see here."

    "Eh¡­papa will buy you a stuffed toy from Sogo, okay? So don''t bother that young man, okay?"

    Unlike the innocent and fearless kids, the adults were wary of what they knew must be a massive amount of magic. Anyone who could summon so many Constellation spirits and train with them in the form of sparring wasn''t someone their kids could trifle with. Unlike their bright and eager kids, the adults were a bit more¡­afraid.

    And I didn''t blame them. If they found out that I had nuke spells capable of leveling their city, they would probably faint on the spot.

    "Hmm, where should I go have dinner?" I wondered out loud as I explored the place. There was a row of restaurants and eateries in the town district, in particular, and I wasn''t sure what I was craving. Probably some soup, or tofu. So tofu soup.

    Fortunately, there happened to be a restaurant named Tofu House that stood at the corner of a street. My eyes lightened up and I hurried inside. Unfortunately, I had chosen quite the inopportune moment. It was crowded as hell, the tables packed with customers. One of the waitresses glanced up when I came through the front door.

    "How many?" she asked. I showed her a finger (no, not my middle finger ¨C what exactly were you guys imagining?).

    "One."

    "Okay." She glanced around, as if to confirm that the place was full, and turned back to me apologetically. "Sorry, but we are currently full at the moment. If you don''t mind waiting for about five minutes¡­"

    "Nope, I don''t mind." My craving for tofu soup was stronger than my hunger or impatience. The waitress nodded and beckoned for me to take a seat at the back of the restaurant, where there were a row of chairs for people to wait.

    With nothing better to do, I checked the Webnovel app on my smartphone, replying to comments from my readers and surfing through the forums ¨C I sure as hell wasn''t going to write my story on my phone. If the wait had gone on any longer, I would have grabbed my Kindle and start reading the eBooks that I had downloaded into it, but I was so carried away with responding to reader comments that I almost didn''t realize the waitress calling out to me after about ten minutes.

    "We have a table open for you now." She directed me to my seat, and passed me the menu. I had already decided on what I wanted, but I allowed her to move away to serve other customers after she placed a cup of iced water on my table. Gulping down some water, I then resumed to replying to reader comments before the waitress returned to my table with a notepad in hand. She tilted her head at me. "Are you ready to make your order?"

    "Yeah. Tofu soup, please. Mild spicy."

    It was a Korean restaurant, so they served kimchi with meals. Honestly, I wasn''t a fan of kimchi, but eating the spicy, picked cabbage with rice made the taste bearable. I was looking forward to the soup, though, and after waiting for a bit more, the waitress finally brought it to my table.

    "Yay!"

    "Enjoy," the waitress told me with a smile, probably amused by my enthusiasm. "Be careful, it''s hot."

    "Will do." I nodded in delight before cracking the egg that they placed in a plate, and dropping it into the still boiling soup. Then I picked up my metal chopsticks and readied myself to devour the sumptuous meal before me.

    Right after I placed the first mouthful of rice into¡­well, my mouth, the doors to the restaurant were flung open.

    "This whole place has been booked!"

    Says who?

    Apparently a gang of men in suits and sunglasses were waltzing right into the restaurant brazenly and acting all arrogant.

    "Everyone else needs to get out!"

    "Respected customer, you can''t do that!" the waitress began, but they silenced her with a glare. Meanwhile, the other customers in the restaurant immediately jolted up when they recognized the newcomers.

    "It''s the Hei family''s people!"

    "Let''s go!"

    "Stop eating, we had best get out of here!"

    "We can''t afford to offend them."

    "HELL, NO!" the male chef from the kitchen roared, stomping toward the front. "I don''t care which Great Family you are from. This is my restaurant, so you are to follow my rules! If you didn''t book a reservation in advance, you can''t just get rid of all my customers like this! Either you wait in the queue like everyone else, or you come back another day!"

    Wow. It was rare to see a small restaurant owner display such integrity in the face of such arrogant, wealthy and powerful families.

    The Hei Clan henchmen towered over him threateningly, but the otherwise diminutive restaurant owner refused to be intimidated and stood his ground.

    "My restaurant, my rules. If you''re not happy with that, you can leave."

    "Don''t get so cocky, old man!" the lead henchman snarled. "The Hei family can easily buy ten or even a hundred of your restaurants! We can put you out of business, close your restaurant and make it that you will never be able to open a restaurant again for the rest of your life!"

    Okay, this was just pissing me off.

    "Hey," I snapped, rising to my feet and swallowing another mouthful of rice. Damn, too much kimchi there. As I said, I was not a big fan of it. "Leave the guy alone. Don''t you realize how pathetic you sound? A bunch of you guys ganging up on the poor uncle and bullying him like this? Putting him out of business? Threatening him? Who the hell do you think you are? Scratch that, you guys think you can do anything and get away with it just because you belong to the Hei Clan, huh? Is this how members from one of the Ten Great Families should behave?"

    "Ho?" the lead man in a suit glared at me with a sneer. "You''ve got guts, brat. Not only did you not leave the restaurant when we told you to, you even dare to get in our way? Are you not afraid of offending our Hei Clan?"

    "Who the fuck cares about your stupid Hei Clan?" I snapped irritably. "This is not your home. This is a public restaurant. And for the record, no, I am not afraid."

    I had met people from the Stuart Clan, Franklin Clan and Porter Clan, and even had an encounter with people from the Lacroix Clan, and they were all decent, nice and civil. They didn''t throw their weight around and abused their status to bully others. I guess it made sense that at least one of the top ten Great Families thought highly of themselves and would exploit their position to take advantage of people from the lower class.

    Such people existed in reality, after all.

    "Shitty brat!" the lead henchman grabbed my shoulder roughly. "You aren''t from around here, are you?"

    "You''re right, I''m not from around here," I affirmed dryly.

    "Allow me to teach you a lesson then! The Hei Clan isn''t someone you can mess with!" the lead henchman cocked his fist back and threw a punch at me.

    I parried his fist. The concrete beneath my feet cracked from the impact. I raised an eyebrow.

    "I hope you will pay for the damages in the store, dude."

    "Shut up!" the dude threw another punch without his other hand. I ducked his fist, feeling the sonic boom breeze past my cheek.

    "Oi, no fighting in the restaurant. If you want to fight, take it outside."

    "Why, you¡­!"

    The guy threw another punch, but I kicked him so hard he flew out through the door and crashed heavily into the pavement outside. His two subordinates gaped at me, uncomprehending.

    "What happened?"

    "I¡­didn''t see."

    I glared at the both of them, my eyes narrowed, and refusing to back down.

    "Are you really from the Hei Clan? You''re supposed to be members of one of the Ten Great Families, and yet here you are, resorting to violence like uncivilized barbarians, or underground triads? I see now, the Hei Clan is actually a secret society (this is a Chinese pun, secret societies are translated as "Hei She Hui") trying to pretend to be one of the Ten Great Families."

    Like the mindless idiots they were, trying to prove me wrong, the two remaining henchmen launched themselves at me.

    "Get him!"

    Seriously, dudes? You are bloody grownups picking on a kid and an old man. Did they not know the meaning of shame? Or did they perhaps not have any self-respect?

    "I said¡­if you want to fight, take it outside!"

    I dodged the first punch from the second guy, and then delivered a roundhouse kick that sent him flying through the door to join his leader on the pavement. The third and last guy swore as he tried to hit me from behind.

    "Damn it!"

    I didn''t even bother to turn to face him. Instead, I snapped my leg up and caught him in the jaw before his fist could reach me, and again he was hurled out of the shop and sent sprawling on the street next to his comrades.

    Cracking my knuckles, I stepped out of the restaurant and cracked my knuckles as I towered over them.

    "You wanted a fight, right?" I asked menacingly. "Sure, I''ll accompany you. But only as long as we''re outside. Don''t go around bothering other people and wrecking their restaurants, you morons."

    "Ugh¡­"

    The three of them writhed on the ground, clutching their guts or jaw and rubbing their injured parts tenderly. They looked up at me, and even though their eyes were concealed by their sunglasses, I could tell that they were slightly afraid of me.

    "D¡­don''t think you can get away with this, you shitty brat!"

    "You have no idea who you''re offending!"

    "Oh, but I do. Weren''t you the ones who proudly proclaimed that you''re from the Hei Clan?" I watched them coldly. "Attacking others and bullying people of a lower status¡­you bring shame to the ten Great Families."

    "Shut up! What do you know about the ten Great Families, you commoner?!"

    The leader tried to lunge at me. Given that he had been lying on the ground the longest, he obviously had the most time to recover.

    Stepping to the side, I effortlessly dodged his clumsy strike, and then brought a knee to his midriff. He howled as he doubled over, and then I rammed my elbow into his neck, almost breaking his collarbone. He dropped like a rock.

    "I don''t really know or care about the ten Great Families, but I''m going to stand up to a bully when I see one."

    "Oh¡­"

    I whirled around when I heard a scrape on the pavement as someone approached, and her silky voice that indicated how she was impressed by my performance.

    "You¡­you''re really something, aren''t you?"

 324 Chapter 324: Hei Xin

    I stared at the pink-haired girl, who was for some reason wearing a blue mask that covered her mouth and the lower half of her face. Like, seriously? What was with that stupid-looking mask? At least she was dressed in more¡­practical clothes, wearing a black leather jacket over a blouse, and dark jeans. Of course, because we had to pander to manhua readers and offer webservice, she was revealing a fair amount of cleavage and a bare midriff. Wasn''t she cold, exposing her tummy like that?

    The fashion sense of anime characters continued to befuddle me. But whatever.

    "You''re really something, huh?" the girl repeated herself, as if to do a brief recap of the cliffhanger of the previous chapter. She raised a gloved fist. "Now¡­let me see how good you are."

    "¡­who?" I asked blankly. Well, that was a stupid question. Obviously she was a member of the Hei Clan.

    In any case, the girl wasn''t interested in answering. She responded by lunging forward at incredible speed, almost as if she was a bullet.

    "!!"

    I almost didn''t react in time, backing away instinctively as a bead of perspiration rolled down my face. The girl didn''t hesitate and instead whirled around to deliver a kick. Her foot, which was clad in a black, spiked boot, swung toward my head in a deadly arc.

    "Ugh¡­"

    Raising my left arm, I just barely managed to parry her kick and prevent the spikes from digging into my skin. Gritting my teeth, I found myself staggering a step or two to my right from the tremendous impact.

    "What a powerful kick¡­" I murmured to myself as I struggled to regain my balance.

    Unfortunately, the pink-haired girl wasn''t going to give me a chance to recover. She mercilessly brought her leg down, forcing me to dodge to the side, and then spun around to send a riposte with her arm, which nearly took my head off if I hadn''t bent my back backward to avoid it.

    "Whoa¡­she''s strong¡­"

    Take note, neither of us had used magic yet. I wasn''t going to start casting spells, though. If my opponent wasn''t going to use magic, then neither was I. I was going to battle her fair and square. Not because I couldn''t bear the thought of losing a physical battle to a lady (I would have done the same if the opponent was male), but because it would be foolish for me to reveal my magic too soon. Additionally, I inwardly understood that the girl did not plan for the fight to escalate into one where we ended up wrecking the whole district with highly destructive spells.

    Taking a deep breath, I held my ground firmly and began deflecting her rapid barrage of punches. Recalling the moves that my father taught me when he trained me in Wing Chun, I defended, parried and knocked aside her punches and kicks. Blocking a punch, I then retaliated with a serpent-like strike that forced her to throw her head back. Moving one step forward, I then kicked with my other leg, but she jumped above my attack before spinning in midair to throw a kick that I successfully blocked. Dropping to her hands, she bounced off to direct another kick toward my head, but I calmly sidestepped her and lashed out with my foot toward her head, which was still near the ground.

    Skillfully spinning around to evade my kick, the girl tried a scissors kick where both of her feet attempted to clamp down on my neck, but I raised both my hands and knocked them aside. The girl then flipped herself up, forcing me to dodge her next kick, and then returned to a standing position. Without missing a beat, she threw another punch that I slapped away by striking at her wrist with my forearm, and then I delivered a riposte that had her retreating a couple of steps.

    Almost as if she was dancing, the girl waltzed around me, probing my defenses with punches and kicks. Raising a leg while spinning on the other like a swan, she threw a powerful kick that would have floored me if I had chosen to parry it. Instead, I instinctively threw myself backward and flipped in midair to put as much distance between us as possible.

    Unfortunately, despite Dad''s training, I was not a real martial artist. I was a summoner, for God''s sake. A mage who summoned Constellation spirits. Close, unarmed combat was never my forte. Hell, I was barely passable in terms of wielding swords, and my archery was half-baked ¨C with me focusing entirely on power rather than accuracy, it didn''t matter if I couldn''t hit my target as long as I could nuke the entire area and have it engulfed within the explosion radius.

    Flipping myself back and landing on my feet, I stabilized my footing and reestablished a typical Wing Chun defensive stance, with one hand out, in front of the other, and ready to parry.

    "Hu¡­"

    Exhaling, I kept a wary eye on my opponent and did my best to track her movements. Narrowing my eyes, I bit my lip to force down the impatient urge to charge and attack.

    She''s really strong! I realized grimly. Any careless attack on my part would end up in disaster. I could see no openings at all, and was intuitively aware that she would be able to counter any strike I executed. I couldn''t afford to recklessly charge in. This isn''t just any ordinary girl. Her strength is greater than Lilith''s, and at least on par with Cecilia''s.

    As much as I hated to admit it, the longer I dragged this battle, the more disadvantageous it would be for me. Like I said, I was not an expert martial artist. Dad trained me in Wing Chun and swordsmanship, but ultimately I only knew enough for basic self-defense. I wasn''t some grand master like Ip Man who could defeat every other martial arts opponent through skill alone. Dad and I both knew that I lacked the innate combat sense and talent of a martial arts prodigy, and that I had already reached the ceiling of my skills. Of course, I could still improve through daily practice, plenty of combat experience and consistent training, but I was never going to reach the grand heights of grand master.

    The girl in front of me, on the other hand¡­she was a true prodigy. I was aware that she hadn''t even attacked me seriously, and she was holding back this entire time. Despite restraining herself, she had already cornered me. If I continued to fight, I would inevitably fall to a humiliating defeat. The fact that I could only defend and not attack was proof of how she was overwhelming me.

    If this was a magic battle, though¡­

    No. if my opponent didn''t use magic, then I wouldn''t. Besides, I had no idea if I would be plunging straight into a trap. For all I knew, the girl could be a genius at magic, and was capable of more powerful spells than me. Turning this into a battle of spells wouldn''t guarantee my victory ¨C if it turned out that I was underestimating her, she would just as easily crush me as she would in a martial arts duel, and we would end up inflicting a lot of collateral damage in the district. Especially the Tofu House restaurant that I was doing my best to protect.

    "Hah¡­"

    Letting out another sigh, I tensed up and clenched my fists tightly, trying to assess my options. However, no matter what kind of idea flashed across my mind, the outlook still seemed pretty bleak. I was definitely going to lose if we continued, especially since I refused to use magic unless my opponent did it first.

    Funnily enough, my opponent was probably thinking the same thing. She most likely decided not to use magic unless I forced her to by casting the first spell. So we were stuck in what might be a deadlock that would inevitably end in my defeat.

    Well¡­so what if I lost? I couldn''t care less. I honestly didn''t care if I lost to a girl. My only regret was that I would fail to defend the courageous owner of Tofu House. That was all. I wasn''t some invincible God Mode Mary Sue protagonist who won every single fight I got into. I had no expectation that I would win this. This wasn''t even a tournament match, so who cared if I lost this duel?

    Even so, I was going down fighting. That much was for sure. This girl was definitely a participant in the CHF¡­I mean national tournament. If I viewed this as a practice match, then it would make things look a lot better.

    However, to my absolute surprise, the girl relaxed and raised a hand in submission.

    "How about the both of us stop here?" she asked. She bowed her head slightly, astonishing me further. "I apologize for the overbearing attitude of my retainers earlier¡­not just toward you, but also toward the restaurant owner, as well as causing trouble for the other customers."

    She cast a glare at her three henchmen, who had the temerity to look sheepish and ashamed of themselves while still lying on the floor.

    "I told you guys to stop doing that every time I go to a restaurant."

    "Sorry, Young Mistress."

    The pink-haired girl then turned back to look at me, and she removed her blue mask, revealing a dazzling smile underneath.

    "I am Hei Xin from the Hei Family," she introduced herself graciously. "What about you?"

    "¡­Tanaka Tomoyuki."

    "I''m not asking for your pen name, Mister. I''m asking for your real name."

    I coughed, wondering how the heck she knew my pen name. Hell, why did she even know that I was a writer in the first place?

    "¡­Richard Huang."

    "I see. Sorry for interrupting your meal." She paused for a moment. "How about we eat together?"

    "Uh¡­"

    "Don''t worry about it," Hei Xin assured me, mistaking my hesitation for being intimidated by the gulf in our statuses instead of me just wanting to enjoy my meal in peace, alone. "I would say that you more than earned the right to sit at the same table as me. Besides¡­" she glanced at the customers, who had paused to watch the fight. "It''s pretty crowded, and I don''t want to deprive the other guests of their tables. Since you appear to be dining alone, I might as well share a table with you."

    "How the heck did you know that?" I asked with a frown. She definitely wasn''t here when I was eating, and I didn''t see her henchmen inform her about my circumstances. However, Hei Xin merely smiled mysteriously.

    "You''re not the only one who can break the fourth wall."

    "I''m glad we didn''t break any walls at all," I muttered, casting a glance at the poor restaurant.

    Anyway, we ended up herding the other customers back into the restaurant, and the owner was so grateful that he heated my food again ¨C which had gone cold ¨C before sending it back to me. I began helping myself to my meal again, while Hei Xin sat opposite me, sipping some warm tea. Steepling her fingers, she observed me while I ate, which made the moment super awkward.

    "You don''t seem like you''re from around here."

    "You''re damn right I''m not," I agreed in between mouthfuls of food. Hei Xin chuckled.

    "If I''m not mistaken¡­you came here for the CHF, right?"

    "WHAT THE FUCK IS THE CHF?! This isn''t Battle Frenzy! Stop mixing up the two stories! I know they are very similar, but I am not Wang Zhong!"

    Hei Xin cleared her throat. "Sorry, I meant that you came here for the national tournament, right?"

    "Yeah." I calmed down and nodded before taking a sip of water.

    "Which team are you from?" Hei Xin inquired curiously. I shrugged indifferently, seeing no reason to hide the fact from her. Even if I lied now, with her connections and influence, she could easily investigate and uncover the truth.

    "Jing Tian Academy."

    "Jing Tian¡­?" Hei Xin looked stupefied by my answer. She then clasped her hands together apologetically. "I mean no offense, but¡­if your team has someone like you, then there''s no way it''s a weak one."

    "What makes you think Jing Tian Academy is weak?" I countered. Hei Xin giggled at that.

    "Ah, yes. Forgive me for my presumptions. You are right, of course." Her smile widened and her eyes twinkled. "Crouching tigers, hidden dragons and all that."

    "Are you a fan of Ang Lee?" I asked. Hei Xin''s brow furrowed.

    "¡­who?"

    "Never mind."

    Hei Xin didn''t seem satisfied with my response, but she turned around to beckon the waitress over. "Pour Mr. Huang some tea."

    "Sure. Excuse me." the waitress poured me some tea, and I bowed gratefully.

    "Thank you."

    Hei Xin was watching me carefully with those pink eyes of hers. It was clear what she was thinking.

    He is so humble¡­and he doesn''t seem to be from a powerful, wealthy or influential family.

    "I''m very curious." Hei Xin leaned forward with a smile. "Are the other members of Jing Tian Academy''s team also as powerful as you?"

    I merely responded with a mysterious smile of my own as I pushed my glasses up.

    "That''s a secret. You can''t really expect me to give away information about my own team to a potential rival right before the tournament, right?"

    "Fair enough."

    I downed the last spoonfuls of soup, and then rose.

    "Thanks for the meal¡­that was delicious!" I raised my hand toward the waitress. "Excuse me, but I would like to pay." I glanced at Hei Xin and tilted my head. "Don''t worry about the bill¡­this will be my treat."

    "Hey, wait!" Hei Xin was flustered, thrown off by my sudden departure. "I still have a lot of things I want to talk to you about! Besides, I''m the daughter of the Hei Family. I don''t need you to pay for me."

    "I''m not belittling you, Miss Hei," I assured her. "I just want to thank you."

    "Huh? Thank me? What for?" Hei Xin was further thrown into disarray, gaping at me in confusion.

    "For offering me a practice match¡­and for also looking the other way even though I beat up your subordinates."

    "Hey, they were the ones who threw the first punch. You had every right to act in self-defense. We''re the ones who should compensate you for the trouble!"

    "Nah, don''t worry about it."

    I merely smiled at Hei Xin''s protests, and then bowed.

    "I''ll take my leave then. Speaking of which, I need to meet up with my teammates tonight. To discuss the qualifiers for the tournament."

    With that, I departed.

    "Wait¡­!" Hei Xin called out, but I was already striding out of the door.

    "I''m sure we''ll meet again!" Actually, I was sure we wouldn''t, but knowing how clich¨¦s worked, I would end up running into her before long. Otherwise the author wouldn''t bother introducing her in the story.

    Hei Xin continued to stare after me, but then she sighed and shook her head with a resigned smile.

    "Richard Huang, huh?" she mused to herself, grinning cheekily. Damn it. Even though I couldn''t physically see her, I was aware of her mischievous expression because of my ability to break the fourth wall. Did I just get involved with quite the troublesome Mistress? Good thing I got out of the restaurant as quickly as possible. She was definitely planning something.

    Unaware of my dark, pessimistic thoughts, Hei Xin chuckled to herself. She was really black-hearted (black-hearted in Chinese is prounounced as "Hei Xin").

    "What an interesting guy."

 325 Chapter 325: Assigning the Qualifiers

    "All right, everyone! Gather around! It''s time for us to go!"

    Harrison Reed clapped his hands to draw our attention toward him. I glanced up at the bright blue sky, admiring the awesome weather, before allowing my sight to be guided toward the row of buses parked outside the dormitories.

    "Whoa, they are so extravagant," Dong Fang Yue Chu remarked as we followed the hundreds of students from all the different academies to line up beside the buses. "To think that they would give each team their own shuttle bus¡­"

    Yeah, that would mean about five hundred buses, all catered just for the students participating in the national tournament alone. The Federation certainly was not sparing any expense for this annual event. I had always been aware of the huge importance they placed on the tournaments and academy and student rankings, but this seemed like a huge waste of money to me. Well, the bus drivers had jobs and benefited from earning from this, so I couldn''t complain.

    As I boarded the bus, I noticed several students from a particular academy ¨C Castian from Caliban Academy, to be specific ¨C staring in our direction. It wasn''t exactly hostile, and Castian wasn''t staring at only us. He was sweeping a calculating gaze across the entire street, as far as he could see, taking note of students from Aurora Academy among others.

    What? You think this was some stupid Chinese webnovel where the antagonists all had a hard-on for hating the protagonist and his team for no reason other than because he was a protagonist? Even though there were other teams who also rejected his offer and refused to participate in his schemes, he was only going to hate and resent only the protagonist''s team because¡­of protagonist power? That every single character in this world existed only to provoke and pick fights with the protagonist, solely because the author intended for him to slap their faces and humiliate them later on when they attempted their pathetic antics to bring down the main character?

    That isn''t how real life worked, dudes. The whole world isn''t out to get you over something as petty as "not giving face" or some bullshit reason like that. Realistically speaking, most people had much better things to do with their time and energy than to pointlessly hold on to trivial grudges.

    "Harrison," Yue Chu began nervously. Like me, he had caught Castian''s stare and was feeling anxious over a possible backstabbing. "Since we rejected their proposal to cooperate against the higher-ranked teams, do you think those other teams will gang up on us?"

    "Of course not." Harrison snorted. "We''re not the only ones who rejected the proposal. There were plenty of other schools who refused to participate in their nonsense. Are they going to target each and every academy who rejected them? They risk creating a greater enemy ¨C they will inadvertently drive all the teams who rejected them to form a coalition to resist them. Also, why would they waste time with other low-ranked teams when their goal for teaming up is to defeat the higher-ranked teams in the first place? Where are they going to find the time and energy to target everyone? If they waste their time and resources backstabbing other low-ranked teams, they risk forfeiting their original objective of challenging the higher-ranked teams, and leave themselves open to counterattacks. The higher-ranked teams wouldn''t care about their infighting or honor ¨C if they see a lower-ranked team looking vulnerable after having exhausted themselves in defeating other low-ranked teams, they will definitely exploit that opportunity to erase one of their opponents."

    "That''s true," Craig agreed. "They have more important things to worry about, more important enemies to deal with than the likes of us."

    Thank you for not spouting bullshit about how alliances built upon short-term benefits completely lacked trust and would tear themselves apart from infighting before attacking other people. That was the most na?ve thing I had ever heard. Underestimating your enemy and assuming that something wouldn''t work without an actual basis or justification was a surefire way to suicide. But of course, the protagonist who waved that bullshit around was right because the author said so. That was the problem with Mary Sues. The authors simply couldn''t conceive of a scenario where their protagonist makes mistakes or is wrong, and the world itself would warp just to fit the protagonist''s view.

    "Of course, I''m not na?ve enough to dismiss them," Harrison added, almost as if he had read my mind. "They might try something funny. Although it''s highly unlikely that they will waste their time on us because they will have to prioritize the higher-ranked teams, highly unlikely is not the same as impossible or will never happen. We should still be cautious. But¡­" he smiled. "We already know that, don''t we? Every other team participating in this tournament is a potential enemy. In the first place, the whole purpose of the qualifiers is for us to compete against each other. Of course we can''t afford to underestimate the enemy and dismiss the threat they pose. Everyone, no matter which school they are from, is an opponent that we must eventually defeat. It shouldn''t ome as a surprise that they will seize an advantage to eliminate a rival without any hesitation when they come across one."

    Sheila Scarlet nodded. "That makes sense. So we should stay on our guard, regardless, and treat them like any other opponent."

    "Correct."

    "Fine by me." Lily leaned back against her seat. "If they come for us, I''ll show them the extent of their folly."

    "Harrison literally just told us that we can''t afford to underestimate our opponents," Yue Chu reminded her dryly.

    "That''s right," Theodore Hammond agreed. "It doesn''t matter what rank the opponent is. We can''t let our guard down just because they''re supposed to be low-ranked. We must offer our respect to everyone we fight against."

    "Seconded," Harrison said with a smile.

    "Oh¡­this is getting really exciting!" Pearl hugged herself, suppressing a shiver. "I can''t believe that the tournament is already beginning!"

    "Speaking of which, we''re here." As silent as ever, Cody Crosby spoke up suddenly, surprising us with his rarely-heard voice. All of us eagerly gazed out of the bus window and gaped at a gigantic statue that stood proudly outside a vast stadium. Even though we weren''t exactly late, we could already see countless students already gathered upon the steps leading up to the stadium proper, enthusiastically conversing and exchanging words.

    "Whoa, there are so many people here!" Yue Chu almost pressed his face against the window to stare at the bustling crowd.

    I stared at the statue for a moment, completely baffled by what I was seeing. Was it my imagination, or was that¡­?

    "Why is the Statue of Liberty here?" I demanded in disbelief. "Did they bring the whole thing from New York and rebuild her here or something?"

    Everyone stared at me.

    "What are you talking about?" Bu Fan growled irritably. I pointed at the bluish statue standing tall outside the stadium.

    "That! The Statue of Liberty! How the heck is it here!?"

    "Never heard ot the Statue of Liberty," Bu Fan muttered. The rest of my friends also responded with blank stares. Seriously? The people of this time had never heard of the Statue of Liberty, and wasn''t questioning why it was randomly appearing in the middle of a city that was clearly not New York?

    Then I understood why. The manhua artist responsible for drawing the manhua adaptation couldn''t be bothered to come up with and draw a proper original statue, and so just lazily used a photograph of the Statue of Liberty for the background.

    Wow. Way to go, manhua artist.

    The silver dome-shaped stadium was packed full of chattering students, filling out its vast, open expanse. They streamed toward their assigned seats, which was pointed out to them through holographic screens and floating arrows.

    The capacity of the stadium was fifty thousand, so it was usually more than enough to accommodate all of the students who sought to participate in the national tournament. Yet, for some reason, the full stadium was filled to capacity. Perhaps there should be between five to ten thousand participants, but the stadium was full¡­which meant, a good majority of the students present most likely were not participating in the tournament, or there were a lot more of the teams and students involved than I previously thought.

    Shortly after we had taken our seats, a familiar figure strolled arrogantly toward us. I recognized that spiky red hair immediately.

    "Jing Tian Academy team! What a coincidence!"

    Ding Ke Po from Divine Divination Academy grinned as he stared at us for a moment, even as his teammates strode past him to take their seats. For some reason, he was crowing triumphantly.

    "I told you we would meet again, didn''t I?"

    "Nobody said you were wrong," I pointed out dryly. Yue Chu nudged me.

    "Don''t pick a fight for the sake of it."

    "However, this is quite strange," Ding Ke Po continued, ignoring us. "Why is a C-ranked team like you guys seated next to us?"

    "Probably because the ranking system is bullshit, and the official school board doesn''t use this arbitrary ranks that some idiot came up with?" I replied with a roll of my eyes. "You do realize that this stupid ranking system doesn''t have any credibility at all?"

    "Don''t be obtuse!" Ding Ke Po snapped. "These ranking evaluations are based on the individual academy''s results from the past years, as well as the quality of the members in the team. Therefore it can be considered accurate!"

    "And who does the evaluations?" I responded coldly. "The Ministry of Education? Teachers? Or a bunch of students and fans with nothing better to do and too much time on their hands?"

    I swear, they reminded me of football fans who love analyzing their teams and players and often thought they were better than the manager. A lot of these armchair managers arrogantly believed they could do better than the manager, and whenever their team lost a game, they would call for the manager to be sacked while declaring that their tactics would have won their team the game.

    However, I didn''t take their armchair analysis seriously. For one thing, they weren''t on the field everyday overseeing the team''s training or discussing the tactics. They thought it was so easy to manage a team, probably because they played too much Football Manager. Similarly, the people who came up with the ranking evaluation probably read too much manga and thought they could come up with a ranking list based off¡­I don''t know, the "quality of the members in the team." If people like Harrison, Craig and Theodore were ranked C in their eyes, then I knew for certain that the evaluators were blind.

    "Hmm¡­if this is the case, maybe the seating assignments aren''t based on rank?" Ding Ke Po mused, outright ignoring me now. I decided to return the favor and ignore him from now on as well. My teammates certainly were paying him no attention.

    "Hello, everyone! I am Melida Chao, and I will be your MC! First off, please give a round of applause to the pride of the Federation! The top 8 teams from last year will be entering the arena!"

    I caught sight of Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy strolling into the center of the stadium, led by Cecili Stuart. She struck a regal figure at the front of her team. I also remembered Doug Daniels, who was part of the team as ever, as well as Nick and Chang Cheng, and a few other students I didn''t recognize. Evidently there had been a shuffle in their roster. Hal Gunther was conspicuously missing, as was Elena. I wasn''t surprised at Hal''s exclusion. The guy was only going to be a liability, what with his arrogance and sadistic attitude.

    "Amazing¡­" Ding Ke Po was weeping. "Damn, I wish I could sit with the S-ranked Gods. I''d be fine even with the A-ranked teams too¡­"

    Dude¡­you''re really pathetic, you know that? Plus I was finding his obsession over ranks annoying. Who cares about ranks? They were arbitrarily assigned to us amd were not representative of our true strength or potential. What, did you think a rank C team would automatically roll over and fall the moment they faced a rank A or rank S team? If everything was based on ranks, why even have the tournament? You mght as well decide victories based on the teams'' ranks and not bother with the trouble of actually fighting.

    Honestly, all these stupid ranks were just a lazy plot device for the author to make his protagonist''s team the underdog, only for them to surprise everyone by defeating teams that were supposed to be ranked levels above them, and thus rendering the whole ranking system utterly meaningless in the first place. Their protagonists were such a special snowflake that the rules did not apply to only them.

    Speaking of which, it felt so long since I last team-killed the Crowley''s Grand Arcane team. To think they were ranked among the top eight¡­I wondered if I could pull off another team kill of a supposedly high-ranking team and surprise everyone once again. That would be fun, but highly unlikely.

    I tried to pay more attention to the actual announcement, especially when I saw an older man in his fifties come up to take Melida''s place at the podium. Leaning into the microphone, he cleared his throat to gather everyone''s attention.

    "Ahem."

    Immediately the chatter all died down and the students fell silent to listen to him attentively. Even though the guy seemed soft-spoken, his voice had a power that appeared to draw everyone in and captivate them.

    "Thank you." the guy tilted his head, as if appreciating everyone''s polite acquiescence. "I will now talk about the arrangements for the national tournament. I''m sure that by now, everyone has already familiarized themselves with the rules for the tournament, but this year¡­there has been a change. You probably know about that, what with the alterations to the format of this year''s qualifiers. We will be splitting you up into five city districts, which have already been determined."

    There was a soft buzz as everyone murmured to each other about having their suspicions confirmed, or their surprise at the change that they didn''t anticipate.

    The middle-aged man smiled indulgently, and then raised his hand to gesture for silence once more. The moment the students complied, he began reading from a list. Behind him, a massive holographic screen flashed into the background, displaying the various cities and the environments outside them, the environments they were most well known for.

    "Tian San City Disctrict."

    This was a city nestled within what seemed like barren mountains, filled with treacherous terrain and monsters.

    "Aurora City District."

    A city most well known for its winters and icy environments, surrounded by snow-capped mountains and often prone to blizzards. To make matters worse, the snow often served as home and camouflage for a myriad of monsters that had adapted to the extreme temperature and prospered by hunting unwitting explorers who carelessly wandered into the snow.

    "Tallarab City District."

    The city located in the middle of a desert, often bombarded by sandstorms and ferocious monsters. Of course, this wasn''t as bad as it sounded, for the residents of the city itself had made great headway with land reclamation and the restoration of derelict land, and were able to turn parts of the former desert into flourishing agricultural fields and pristine rivers. However, they left a portion of the desert untouched because they saw great importance in training their soldiers and mage students, and also because it was practically impossible to eliminate the powerful monsters lurking within the sand of those areas.

    "Cerulean City District."

    This city was situated right next to the sea, and boasted a lot of ports and ships sailing through its position for business, cargo and leisure. What was of particular interest were the various coastal islands that dotted its shoreline, and this was probably where the qualifiers were held. Needless to say, there were countless monsters swimming in the watery depths.

    "And the Huang Wu City District."

    Compared to the other cities, this particular city was located in a much milder environment, sprawling meadows and plains of green stretching across the broad expanse for as far as the eye could see. Of course, the gentle scenery was deceptive. There were monsters concealed within the tall grass, and unless you didn''t have your own monster¡­sorry, I mean, unless you didn''t have your own magic, it would be dangerous to venture out in the tall grass.

    "Now, we shall announce the distribution of teams!" The middle-aged announcer beamed. "As you all know, your teams will be assigned to one of these city districts for the qualifiers. Good luck!"

    This was an opportune time for me to drift off until they announce my school and which district we would be assigned to.

 326 Chapter 326: Which City District?

    "Divine Divination Academy, Aurora City District!"

    The only reason why I actually heard that, out of all the other school announcements, was because Ding Ke Po and his teammates reacted to it in their usual boisterous fashion. The moment they heard which city district they were assigned to, they began chatting animatedly and discussing possibilities for the qualifiers.

    "Jing Tian Academy, Aurora City District!"

    "Oh, we''re assigned to Aurora City District?" I asked, scarcely believing myself. At least it wasn''t Tallarab City District ¨C while the city was a lovely place, and the people were great, I sucked at desert warfare. I dislike sand ¨C I avoided the beach as much as possible ¨C and I hated the heat. That said, I wasn''t very fond of the cold too, but I was at least used to it.

    "Heh." Ding Ke Po looked over in our direction and grinned. "Fate has put us together! Don''t worry, our Divine Divination Academy will take good care of you!"

    "You ought to take care of yourselves first," Craig Carlson responded derisively. "Before worrying about others."

    The middle-aged guy continued to announce the assignments for the other academy teams, and I drifted off again. Finally, at long last, he finished announcing the very last academy and the city district they were assigned to, and smiled.

    "That''s it for the assignments. We''ll send you the specific details of the assignments and the content of the qualifiers later. Needless to say, it will be heavily team-based. So ensure that you all work together! All participants, be reminded that you are to gather at the Stuart train station before 6am tomorrow morning. We will have trains taking you to your respective city districts from there."

    "Huh? That''s it?" Kureha Franklin murmured, puzzled.

    "What about the rules of the qualifiers?" Lilith Porter asked, looking worried. Lady, did you not just hear the guy literally say that he will send us the specific details for the content of the qualifiers later? She reminded me of those guys complaining in the forums without actually reading through the posts of other people (but expecting other people to read theirs and hypocritically attacking them for not reading their posts).

    Castian turned completely pale as he went rigid atop his seat. He clenched his fists tightly, looking extremely worried.

    He realized that if the organizers weren''t going to announce the rules for the qualifiers, then it would be difficult for him and his allies to plan. They weren''t even sure what format the qualifiers would take, or how they were going to compete ¨C it was entirely possible that the lower-ranked teams wouldn''t be able to ally or band together to gang up on the higher-ranked teams, depending on the circumstances or rules of the tournament.

    "Of course!" Ding Ke Po was crowing for some reason. "There is no reason for the tournament organizers to give us the rules right away! They planned to surprise us from the start, to keep us on our feet, and to test our adaptability!"

    "He''s right, you know." Harrison Reed did a pose that would make Morgan Freeman proud. "This isn''t the first time that teams from various academies decided to form coalitions and band together in order to gang up on other teams. However, that obviously is unethical and should be considered against the rules and spirit of the tournament. So they''re going to keep their cards close to their chests for now, and minimize the schemings and conspiracies. The tournament organizers want to see our strength, adaptability, skill and determination, not schemes and insidious plots. After all, backstabbing each other isn''t going to lead to a healthy environment for mages who are supposed to work together and fight alongside each other in the future."

    "Exacta!" Ding Ke Po was now imitating an Arrancar. "As expected of the Captain!"

    We all stared at him, and he suddenly realized how embarrassing his antics were. Clearing his throat, he withdrew quietly back to his seat.

    "Wouldn''t that put us lower-ranked teams at a disadvantage, though?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked, concerned.

    "Are you buying that ranking bullshit?" I asked, annoyed. "Rankings are not absolute. They don''t determine the outcome of the match. And if our opponents prove to be stronger and more powerful than us, then they deserve to win. They deserve to be ranked higher than us. What, should they handicap themselves to give the rest of us a chance? How is that fair for them?"

    "I think what Richard is trying to say is that these teams worked hard and sacrificed a lot to achieve the rank that they currently possess, and if you want to attain similar achievements, you should work hard and become stronger instead of plotting behind other people''s backs and allying with other people to unfairly gang up on them."

    Theodore Hammond managed to surmise my statements in a more tactful and less offensive manner.

    "Yeah, that''s what I meant to say. I guess. Sorry."

    In any case, that was all we could do for now. There was no point thinking too much about this. Whatever happen would happen, and no amount of worrying would change that. All we could do right now was wait for the details.

    "Well¡­that''s that. I guess we should get going then."

    Harrison''s words were marked with the furor of students rising from their seats and making their way to the exit. I caught sight of Lilith and a few other friends from other schools, and exchanged nods with them.

    "Whoa! Why do you know Lilith Porter and Charles Lacroix?!" Ding Ke Po demanded when he saw me greet them from afar.

    Pushing my glasses, I smiled and strode off, but not without a parting remark.

    "That''s none of your business."

    *

    The next day, we arrived at the train station as stipulated by the tournament organizers. Even though it was six in the morning, the station was already packed full with students, with over five thousand students trying to gather into it. There were so many that we spilled out into the square outside the station, and not everyone could make it to the platform.

    We weren''t supposed to. There were already tournament staff in the area, overseeing the movements and transport of the students.

    "Did everyone receive the stuff that the TOs sent out last night?" Harrison asked everyone as we gathered on the square.

    "Yup!"

    Right around 9pm last night, each of us received an email, which contained attachments in the form of a file. A tournament packet containing all the details of the tournament qualifiers, including vital information.

    One of those vital pieces of information was being projected into the air right now when Harrison opened it with his smartpone to display a holographic display.

    "This is a map of Aurora City and the terrain surrounding it. And just like the training camp we had under Instructor Feng Hai, there are certain objectives, which are marked out by locations on the map."

    He then swept his gaze across everyone.

    "I''m assuming that none of us have been to Aurora City before?"

    All of us exchanged glances, but no one said anything. Taking our silence as affirmation, Harrison continued with a smile.

    "Aurora City is located in the north, one of the northernmost cities in the Federation. It''s just below the North Pole, but it''s still extremely cold. There are a few places, particularly the mountains, where the snow does not melt at all, even throughout the year. So make sure you have your winter gear ready. We''re in for quite the cold experience."

    I rubbed absently at my cheek, smiling subconsciously. Winter was one of the weathers I could deal with. In my previous life, I spent several years in Minnesota, one of the coldest places in North America, while in graduate school. If that didn''t prepare me for winter, I didn''t know what would. I wasn''t going to lie and say I love the snow and winter, but I had gotten used to it. Honestly, standing outside at negative twenty degrees was not an experience I would care to repeat, but by God I was ready to endure it if necessary.

    "The most dangerous part isn''t the cold, however. It''s the monsters. As you know, the northern glacial areas are populated with monsters. High-ranking, low-ranking, they are all equally dangerous. We can''t get complacent just because we run into rank F monsters. Remember, this is their home ground, their territory. We can''t afford to underestimate them just because they are low-ranked."

    Good, at least Harrison wasn''t falling to the usual trap of "rank F = fodder." He would do well.

    "I heard that Aurora City has certain geomagnetic disturbances that will affect compasses and other navigation devices." Theodore raised a hand. Harrison nodded.

    "That is indeed correct. Navigation will be very difficult."

    "The monsters, though¡­" Craig mused to himself. "There are restricted areas that are supposedly the habitats of high-ranking monsters." He jabbed a finger at a specific sector that was colored an ominous blood red. "This place¡­is the Den of Dragons. It''s supposed to be inhabited by a nest of dragons."

    Everyone felt a chill, because we all knew how powerful a rank A dragon was. Maybe I could nuke the mountain, but if even one dragon escaped, it would destroy me right when I was out of juice. Damn it. Never mind the dragons, I would be vulnerable to all the other monsters hiding out in the icy wilderness after exhausting myself against the dragons.

    Best to let sleeping dragons lie.

    "If you are assigned an objective that ends up separating you from the rest of the team, then you should look for railroad tracks. There was a system of railroad tracks built by the Federation to link the different cities of the north together, and they are still in use. Follow the tracks and they will lead you to a city eventually. Don''t worry about the mission or the qualifiers ¨C your life is more important. Even if we don''t pass the qualifiers, I want to ensure that all of us return home safe and sound, alive and well. Is that understood?"

    "Yes, sir!"

    All of us saluted at Harrison''s instructions. The guy would make a great military officer in future, especially given his concern for the welfare of his men. Even Bu Fan said nothing, leaning to the side with his arms crossed, but he regarded Harrison with a respectful expression. The lone wolf recognized a good leader when he saw one. Not that he would openly admit it.

    "If a train comes along, we can just hitch a ride on it," Yue Chu remarked with a grin. Everyone nodded.

    I glanced around for a moment, and then took a deep breath. Raising my hand, I reinforced the silence spell that Pearl had cast to shroud us. From the point of view of an outsider, it wasn''t anything unusual. Most academy teams were currently doing the same thing, using identical or similar spells to conceal their discussions from other schools and teams. It was only natural, of course the myriad academies participating in the tournament had no intention of revealing their strategies to eavesdroppers or spies.

    Also, unlike the hotel, we were free of bugs or listening devices that might have been implanted in every hotel room. Not unless the Assassins'' spies laid out a mine of a million listening devices across the square (and they definitely had no way of predicting exactly which area in the square we would be standing in), we didn''t have to worry about bugs.

    "Before we go into the qualifiers, I have something I need to tell you guys." I glanced around cautiously, to ensure that there was no one spying or eavesdropping on us. The walls had eyes and ears, which was why it was impractical to hold this conversation within the hotel or dormitory rooms we were being accommodated in, but out in the vast, open plaza, surrounded by other teams and concealed by spells, there were no walls where spies could hide behind. For now, I didn''t see anyone, but if they were professionals, they would obviously not allow me to spot them.

    I had to trust the protective spell for now.

    "A few days ago, I was contacted by Cecilia Stuart¡­"

    "Cecilia Stuart!? That Cecilia Stuart, the Invincible War Goddess from Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy?!" Yue Chu blurted out.

    "Yeah," I said with a nod, trying not to show my irritation at his interruption. "Apparently, she says that the Assassins Guild and the Dark Church will be making their move during the qualifiers. It''s the best opportunity for them to create chaos and inflict maximum damage on the Federation, with so many of the younger generation''s brightest and best gathered in one place. The Stuart and Franklin Families'' intelligence networks are certain that they will try something."

    "Not unusual," Harrison agreed thoughtfully. "That does sound like them."

    "Well, it gets worse," I admitted. "Apparently Cecilia and Kureha Franklin wish for us to act as bait, to draw these Assassins out of hiding so that we can defeat or capture them before they can do anthing significant."

    "We are not her tools," Bu Fan declared coldly. "We have no obligation to do what they ask us to do."

    "True, but the Assassins are coming for us anyway, whether we like it or not."

    "Why?" Pearl Pang asked, pushing a strand of blue hair away from her pretty face, her brow wrinkling. "Why would they target us?"

    "Oh¡­could it be¡­because we survived that attack from those Assassins a few months ago? When a bunch of monsters invaded our city?" Craig was sharp.

    I nodded.

    "That bald Assassin and his disciples? Who attacked us and Teacher Fielding?" Sheila Scarlet turned pale. "Just because we survived their attack?"

    "Sounds like those sneaky Assassins, all right," Lily Liam muttered darkly. "They have some sort of twisted Assassin''s Pride. I''m not talking about that anime. I mean, their pride was bruised when they failed to assassinate anybody back then, and they will definitely want revenge."

    "Well¡­since you''re raising the subject, I assume you have some sort of plan, Richie?" Yue Chu turned to me. I grinned in response. My good friend knew me so well.

    "That''s correct¡­" I pushed my glasses up my nose and reached for my smartphone, projecting a holographic screen for them to see. "This is what I have planned for now¡­in order to counter them."

 327 Chapter 327: Spies and Lies

    When I neared the end of my briefing, I noticed one of the students visibly approaching us. He was trying to be discreet, but his movements caught my eye for some reason. A tanned young man in a black uniform, with dark hair and piercing brown eyes, he stood out to me because of how fluidly he weaved through the crowd of students without attracting their attention.

    I would have missed him if I wasn''t so paranoid and summoned Corvus to keep watch from the edge of the anti-spy spell. The guy was almost a professional.

    Almost.

    "Guys, your four o''clock. Someone''s trying to get near us, for some reason. Don''t turn around to look at him. We don''t want him to find out that we are aware of his presence."

    My friends went rigid for a second, but didn''t give themselves away. Harrison didn''t move, but I could see him watching the approaching guy from the corner of his eye.

    I stopped my briefing, and with a nod, we dispersed for the moment, to carry out with our own preparations.

    Craig deliberately stumbled out and almost crashed into the approaching guy.

    "Whoa! Sorry! What are you doing here?" he gave the guy''s shoulder a strong squeeze ¨C to the extent the guy winced in pain. "I didn''t see you. My bad. You okay, bud?"

    The guy mumbled something ¨C an apology, and loitered there. Craig watched him with a raised eyebrow.

    "Hmm? You look very familiar. Have we met before?"

    "No," the guy in the black uniform said quickly. "I''m sure this is the first time we''re meeting."

    "Realy?" Craig pretended to think for a moment, and then shrugged, as if to say it wasn''t important. "Are you looking for someone in particular?"

    "Uh, no."

    "Okay. Well, sorry about that, bud. I hope you''re not too badly hurt."

    "No, not at all."

    Craig then rejoined us, right as we began moving our position. Just as I suspected, the guy tried to follow us. Very subtly, but he maintained the same distance, no matter where we moved.

    "Plan B," Craig muttered, winking at Sheila.

    We decided to stop for a while. The guy paused for a moment too, and even though he took care not to stare in our direction, it was obvious that he was keeping tabs on us. This time, it was Sheila who took the initiative. She jogged in the direction of where the guy was, pretending to catch sight of her friend and waving toward her. Before the guy could respond, she barreled into him, knocking him over.

    "Ah! I''m so sorry! Are you all right?!"

    "No, I''m¡­fine. Sorry. I¡­"

    The guy was a little flustered, totally not expecting to be bowled over in such a manner. Sheila started dusting him off by slapping him, hard, causing him to flinch.

    "I''m sorry, it''s my fault you got dust all over your uniform."

    "No, it''s really all right."

    "What''s up, Sheila? I saw you fall over. Are you all right?"

    This time, Craig showed up, and made a show of wanting to help. He paused dramatically when he stared at the guy in black uniform, and then pointed exaggeratedly.

    "Hey! I know you, weren''t you¡­there, earlier? Why are you here again?" he scowled. "Were you following us?"

    "No¡­it''s just a coincidence."

    "Ah¡­!" Sheila suddenly cried out, drawing a few stares to herself. She was pointing at the fallen guy, trembling theatrically. "I know you! I remember you now! Weren''t you the guy stalking me outside my school a few months ago? I already told you that I''m not interested! Stop following me around!"

    "You¡­!" Craig flared up, his nostrils flaring in rage. "You are that stalker?! No wonder you look so familiar! You have some balls, bud, still stalking my girlfriend like this. Looks like the beating I gave you back then wasn''t enough, eh?"

    "No, you really have the wrong person!"

    "Then why are you following my girlfriend around?"

    "No, I seriously am not stalking your girlfriend!" The guy was panicking now, and backing away. Either he was not a professional or he simply hadn''t been trained to deal with this sort of situation.

    "Really?" Craig sneered. "Dude, I literally just caught you following us around. I even asked if you were looking for anyone in particular. Why are you still sticking so close to us if you are not?"

    "I¡­" the guy faltered when he realized everyone was staring at him. He swallowed, bowed, and quickly left the area without another word.

    "That did it." Sheila sighed. She leaned against Craig, so as to reinforce the performance. "Thank you, Craig. That stalker really gives me the creeps. I thought he would leave me alone after that time, but seems like he''s determined¡­"

    "It''s been hard on you," Pearl remarked in amusement, trying to conceal a smile.

    "Who was that?!" Ding Ke Po, for some unknown reason, showed up again. I groaned. This guy was probably the real stalker here, showing up whenever. To be fair, he probably just saw the commotion and approached us out of curiosity.

    "You tell me." I shrugged. "Some random idiot who was stalking my friend''s girlfriend."

    "Hmph." Ding Ke Po''s voice was full of scorn as he watched the guy disappearing into the crowd. "Judging from his uniform, he''s probably from Edgar Pole Academy. That''s one of the strongest A-ranked teams in the Federation. Because of that, he probably thought he could go around stealing the girlfriends from members of lower-ranked teams. Arrogant bastards, the lot of them."

    "Uh-huh." The truth was a lot more complex than that, but obviously I wasn''t going to say anything. For all I knew, Ding Ke Po could be an Assassins Guild spy. Best to keep an eye on him. Just in case.

    "Be careful, though." Ding Ke Po looked at us worriedly. "Knowing how these guys operate, he will call his entire team to attack yours just to seek revenge for this humiliation, or refusing to yield to his carnal desires and surrender your girlfriend."

    Craig snorted. "They are free to come at us whenever they want. We''ll crush every single one of those arrogant douchebags then."

    "You do realize that they are an A-ranked team and you''re C-ranked, right?" Ding Ke Po tried not to roll his eyes.

    "You do realize that rankings are bullshit and not absolute, right?" I responded with a shake of my head. "You guys read too much LitRPG or cultivation stories and get obsessed with levels and ranks. Dude, the real world doesn''t work so simply. People''s strength can''t be so neatly categorized into levels and ranks. So what if they are ranked higher than us? Should we just roll over and let them kick us then? Just because they are ranked higher doesn''t mean we can''t defeat them, or they automatically win. If everything is based on levels, ranks or unrealistic fantasy bullshit, then what use is there in holding tournaments? Just as a formality to confirm people''s ranks? What is the use of having matches? Isn''t it because it''s entirely possible that a lower-ranked person can beat a higher-ranked one? Isn''t it because it is possible that ranks aren''t everything and don''t determine the outcome of a match? Isn''t it because a person''s strength shouldn''t be so neatly categorized into ranks and levels?"

    "¡­uh¡­okay." Ding Ke Po was backing away now, completely intimidated by my rant. He could come up with no rebuttal, nothing, unless he was the childish type of commenter (such as Meatballs) who could only respond with insults, calling me stupid or lazy without actually justifying why I was stupid or why it was lazy writing. "¡­do your best. See you guys later."

    I waved at him as he left to rejoin his team, and turned back to my friends with a smile. That felt refreshing, even if some readers were irritated.

    "Let''s go back to strategizing."

    *

    After our stategy meeting, we were all called by the tournament staff to board the trains. That wasn''t anything out of the ordinary. The train we were assigned to was obviously going to take us to Aurora City.

    At least that was the plan, but¡­

    "Um¡­why are we going to Olympus City?"

    That made no sense. We were assigned to the Aurora City District, but for some reason the train was taking us to Olympus City, if the holographic screen at the front of the train that displayed travel information was to be believed.

    Everyone looked at each other, and shrugged.

    This changed nothing, albeit causing a fair bit of confusion. Perhaps Olympus City was one of the cities located within the Aurora City District, but if that was the case, what happened to the Olympus City District?

    "We still don''t know what the actual details of our mission are," Harrison continued over from the briefing. The strategizing we did in the square was mostly based on me preparing everyone for the advent of an Assassin ambush, and to share with them my improvised plan of defense. Thanks to everyone''s input, we had polished up several details, raised points that I had overlooked, and improved it further. A pretty impressive feat, given the short amount of time we had to do it.

    However, we said nothing about that aboard the train. Probably because the train, just like the hotel and dormitory we stayed in, might have listening devices and bugs implanted in the walls, the seats or even the windows.

    By the way, the other academies were speculating about what the qualifier might be about, based on the information and details they received yesterday, making guesses while looking at the map. But, like us, they had no idea what the qualifier was going to be. A Battle Royale in Aurora City District? Were we going to be thrown into the wilderness and asked to collect objectives, just like what Instructor Feng Hai did during our training camp? Maybe we were assigned to hunt specific monsters and bring their heads back? Or was it a siege event where one group would be the attackers and one group would be the defenders?

    There were way too many possibilities. Thanks to that, Castian and his Caliban Academy, as well as the students of Quetzalcoatl Academy were unable to gather their coalition of low-ranked academies and come up with a strategy. Their original plan was to form alliances in order to have a superiority in numbers, but that depended on the content of the qualifiers and the rules of elimination. Unfortunarely, the tournament organizers had not revealed anything regarding the qualifiers, and thus they were completely stumped. For example, if it turned out that the qualifiers would be a siege event and the committee had already decided which academy belonged to which group, then whatever alliance they had forged would completely fall apart.

    Sucks to be them.

    "No point wasting too much time speculating and guessing," Harrison assured us. "We''ll find out when they tell us. But I personally think it''ll be similar to Instructor Feng Hai''s outdoor training during the camp a few months ago.

    "Do you think Instructor Feng Hai is on the tournament organizers'' committee?" Lily asked curiously. "Is that why he has hints on what sort of qualiifiers this would be?"

    "I don''t think so," Yue Chu replied with a frown as he scrolled through a holographic list. "His name is not listed under the committee."

    "It''s entirely possible that Instructor Feng Hai is just guessing, and the qualifier might not be an outdoor event like the one he trained you guys in," Bu Fan cut in, his armed crossed and his eyes closed as he leaned back against his chair. "He''s probably just making an educated guess, or he just trained you guys according to his own experiences and credentials, without giving too much thought to the tournament itself."

    As much as I disliked the guy, I had to agree that he had a very good point.

    "Whatever the case, I guess we''ll find out eventually." Harrison sighed. "For now we should rest as much as we can, so that we''ll go into the qualifiers fresh and unexhausted."

    "We also have to remember that our opponents aren''t just teams from other schools or the monsters in the wilderness." Even though I left it unsaid, I knew my friends were aware of who I was referring to. The Assassins might or might not, but they probably wouldn''t cancel their plans for ambush over such an ambiguous statement.

    "Yeah!"

    My team chorused enthusiastically, and then we all drifted off to do our personal preparations. Most of which included sleeping on the train. After all, it was going to be a long trip ¨C the train normally took a whole day to travel from Southampton City to Aurora City.

    It would probably take a similar duration to get to Olympus City, which was also located in the north, not far from Aurora City¡­

    Unbeknownst to me, someone was watching the trains from a safe distance, a smile creeping up his face.

    "What''s the matter, your highness?" Elem asked as he lazed around in the couch. Roland Rothwell turned to him with a grin.

    The Amazerian Prince had returned to his empire a while ago, but thanks to the wonders of the Internet and of streaming, he was able to watch the live broadcast of the Global Federation''s national tournament.

    "Nothing. I was just wondering how our old friend is doing."

    "Old friend?" Elem repeated, puzzled. Roland didn''t answer and instead kept his eyes on the screen, where the train ferrying me and my friends trundled along the tracks.

    "Let''s see how far you can go, Richard," he whispered eagerly. "I hope you''ll continue to entertain me."

 328 Chapter 328: Beginning the Qualifiers

    Before we knew what was happening, the train reached Olympus City. However, the train staff forbade us from alighting just yet, and instructed us to remain in our seats. Instead, we were being called to alight team by team, according to our academies.

    If we were following clich¨¦s, the S-ranked teams would be called first, followed by the A-ranked teams. However, the tournament organizers cared little for our arbitrary ranking system I caught sight of the black-uniformed guy from Edgar Pole Academy, along with his comrades, being among the first few teams who were disembarking. He gave us a glance, was startled when he caught sight of me watching him, and then quickly jumped off without looking back again.

    As I said, amateur.

    It didn''t take long for our team to be called. The military-uniformed staff poked his head in, his short-cropped hair hidden under a purple beret, and called out to us.

    "Jing Tian Academy team, please alight."

    My friends and I exchanged glances, and then we complied without any hesitation, rising from our seats and heading for the exit. Stepping out into the cold, I suppressed an involuntary shiver and looked around.

    As I expected, our surroundings were not that of a safe and warm train station, but instead an icy valley that was being overlooked by towering, snow-capped mountains. As my team gathered in in a spot right outside the train, I noticed that none of the other teams were present.

    They had already moved on and started the qualifiers on their own.

    The military staff with the purple beret stood with his arms folded behind his back, watching us coldly.

    "I will now share the mission details with you. The objective for your Jing Tian team is very simple."

    Like hell it was going to be simple! I couldn''t believe the guy thought he could get away with telling such a bald-faced lie.

    "You are to reach Olympus City in two weeks."

    "Huh? Olympus City? Shouldn''t it be Aurora City?" I asked, wondering if I had misheard the guy. He shook his head.

    "No, Olympus City is right. Ask Skeleton Wizard if you don''t believe me."

    "Who the hell is Skeleton Wizard!?" Dong Fang Yue Chu practically screamed. The soldier glared at him, but noticed that everyone was staring at him intensely. He coughed and cleared his throat.

    "A Chinese author on Qidian. Anyway, if you are unable to reach Olympus City within two weeks, or if fewer than half of your team only managed to reach Olympus City, then you will be disqualified from the tournament."

    "Fewer than half¡­" Lily Liam did a quick count. "In other words, at least five of us must make it to Olympus City."

    "That is correct," the military guy affirmed. He then reached out with his hand and gestured toward our backpacks. "Turn in all of your equipment except your personal weapons and Divine Devices. Other than your weapons, you are only allowed to carry the fieldpacks that have been specially prepared by the TOs."

    "Really?" Theodore Hammond raised an eyebrow, but didn''t argue further. Like us, he slipped the backpack off his shoulders, removed his thunder hammer, and accepted the fieldpack that the military man designated us toward.

    "Additionally, you are to safeguard this item." The military guy then stretched out his hand to pass Harrison Reed a blue, hi-tech badge. "This badge serves as your proof of identification, and it also doubles as a distress beacon. If you ever find yourselves in life-threatening danger, use the badge to contact HQ for help. We''ll dispatch a rescue team immediately. Of course, that would also mean that you are forfeiting."

    "Our lives are not worth as much as trying to qualify for the knock-out stages," Harrison said, more for us than the military guy. "We will use it without hesitation when necessary."

    "Good." The military guy smiled approvingly. "That is the right attitude. As long as you''re alive, you''ll always have another chance in future. It''s not worth throwing away your lives for a single tournament. Now that that''s clear, are there any other questions?"

    "¡­um¡­"

    "I don''t think so¡­"

    "Sounds clear to me."

    "Yeah." To our surprise, it was Bu Fan who raised his hand. "Are there any other ways of advancing past the qualifiers? Such as¡­" he smirked. "Stealing the badges from other teams?"

    "No. this isn''t a battle royale. You''ll be disqualified if you attack the other teams and steal their badges. And make no mistake, we will know. Don''t think that just because you''re in the wilderness and away from civilization, there''s no one to watch over you and you can do anything you want. The only time you are allowed to fight is against monsters, or in self-defense if the other party attacks you first."

    There was a hidden meaning behind that last sentence. Evidently the military guy was aware of the presence of the Dark Church and Assassins Guild. To minimize casualties and ensure the students'' safety, they wanted us to focus on surviving and looking out for each other instead of recklessly competing and backstabbing each other.

    "In fact, it''s more advantageous if you link up with the other teams and band together to survive the wilderness and ally against herds of monsters. But that''s entirely up to you. The other teams might not necessarily agree, especially since it would be more advantageous for them to weed out as many potential rivals during the qualifier stages as possible. But again, that''s entirely up to you."

    He shrugged, and then turned around to return to the train. With a wave of his hand, he left one last remark for us.

    "Good luck, all of you. Stay alive. That''s the number one advice I can give you."

    "Yes, sir!"

    Before we walked straight into the forest, we found a good area to stop and discuss our strategy going forward. First, Harrison checked the contents of the fieldpack that we had just been issued. While he did so, Sheila shook her head.

    "Wow¡­that''s quite the unique qualifier this year. It''s totally different from the format last year, where they just had a simpler one-on-one duel in group stages."

    "The Federation is really placing a lot of emphasis on teamwork," Craig agreed. "Looks like they have been taking the feedback from all the mercenaries and soliders very seriously."

    "I recall Instructor Feng Hai being one of the most vocal supporters for reforming the tournament format and ranking system," Cody Crosby added seriously. "He was citing how impractical it was to allow one-on-one duels and ranking systems determine the capability and potential of students, and how we needed a more holistic approach."

    "The mercenaries and military form the core combat forces of the Federation, of course the government will listen to them," Pearl Pang agreed.

    "All right, everyone." Harrison rose to his feet after laying out the contents in his fieldpack. "It seems like they have issued us winter gear and clothing, which would be extremely useful for this mission. In addition to clothing, they also gave us a holographic map, a compass, and basic wilderness equipment."

    "Seems like they also packed three days'' worth of water and rations," Theodore added as he rummaged through his own fieldpack. Leave it to the big guy to pay attention to our food. "But if they expect us to make it through the mountains and forest in two weeks, then they probably mean for us to obtain the rest of our food, water and other necessities on our own."

    "This will be tough," Pearl muttered, grimacing.

    "We''ll figure it out," Lily assured her.

    "Yeah!" Dong Fang Yue Chu was excited. "This sounds like one heck of a camping trip! I''m so looking forward to it!"

    "A camping trip in the snow and cold," Bu Fan grumbled darkly. "How fun."

    "Looking at the map, it seems like the easiest route is this main road here." Harrison traced his finger along the holographic map that he projected from the device included in our fieldpacks. "Theoretically, this should allow us to get there within the stipulated timeframe with plenty of buffer. If we count it by distance, anyway. However, given the adverse weather conditions and volume of ice and snow, I suspect that our journey will be hampered greatly. Most likely we''ll end up moving at three or four times our usual speed."

    "Should we try to link up with one of the other groups and ally together?" Yue Chu asked, recalling the military guy''s words from earlier.

    "Don''t be na?ve. How do we know they aren''t the enemy? They could backstab us when our guard was down."

    As usual, Bu Fan was behaving in his usual callous manner. However, this time he had a good point. Even though he didn''t say it out loud, he was clearly referring to the presence of Assassins and ambushers. The guy from Edgar Pole Academy in particular stood out as very suspicious.

    I had a feeling that Bu Fan would have said the same regardless of whether there were Assassins or not. Being the lone wolf protagonist type of guy, he was more prone to running off and doing stuff on his own without being tied to any group or whatever.

    "We also don''t know if they will be willing to agree to work with us," Sheila whispered anxiously. "They might reject our offer of cooperation."

    "They can if they want to. But they''re not allowed to attack us, remember?" Craig grinned. "They will get disqualified if they do."

    "That doesn''t mean we should recklessly take risks and approach anyone," Bu Fan pointed out. "We might end up wasting too much time fighting when we don''t have to."

    "They might attack us whether we try to avoid them or not," I muttered, but made sure not to give away anything regarding the Assassins. "And we have other things to worry about. Don''t forget that humans aren''t the worst enemies in this terrain. Not only do we have to survive the cold and snow, we also have monsters to deal with."

    "Yeah. We''ll have to keep an eye out on the elements and monsters." Cody was nodding in agreement. "There will be danger from every angle."

    "No route will be the safest, huh?" Pearl murmured wearily.

    "Regardless, we should plan the best route," Harrison said, bringing us back to the main point. "Or what is the most optimal route under the current circumstances, anyway. I''m not sure if the main road is the best route to take, but¡­unless anyone has any alternatives, I suggest we follow it for now."

    "No objections," Pearl spoke up.

    "None from me too," Theodore agreed.

    "It will make us more vulnerable to an ambush," Cody warned as he studied the map. And then he shrugged. "But given our magical abilities and combat techniques, an open terrain would be more advantageous for us¡­I''d hate to be dragged into a fight inside the forest or snow, where our enemies will have the advantage in terms of favorable terrain for them."

    "Good point." Craig grinned and rubbed his hands eagerly. "I would rather meet the enemies and fight in the open than be forced to fight them on their own turf."''

    "If we do run into another team along the way, we might want to at least try reaching out to them." Dong Fang Yue Chu hadn''t given up on his proposal. "We might not be able to trust them, but there''s no denying that there will be safety in numbers. Besides¡­keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer."

    "That makes sense," Harrison admitted with a nod. "We''ll go with that plan for now, and adjust accordingly whenever something unexpected happens. Hopefully we''ll find an alternative route, or we won''t get ambushed at all."

    Bu Fan snorted at that, evidently believing that such thoughts were na?ve. Harrison pointedly ignored him.

    "Do you guys have any other questions?"

    "Nope!"

    "All right. Let''s move out!"

    Without wasting any time, all of us headed straight into the dark forest that had settled at the foot of the snowy mountains for centuries.

 329 Chapter 329: Caves of Ice

    The first day ended without incident. Well, I guess the Assassins weren''t going to attack this early. Maybe? I had no idea. In any case, even though we silently kept a vigilant eye out for those Assassins, we saw none of them.

    Yet.

    As we trudged through the snow, trekking through the forest at the foot of the mountains, the sky overhead slowly darkened. It wasn''t unusual for the sun to set early during the winter. During December in Minnesota, the sun set as early as 4.30pm. Hell, I heard that the sun set at 3pm in Alaska, and they had less than six hours of daylight during some periods of winter. In fact, there was that famous legend of thirty days of night in Alaska (there was a book series about vampires on it that even had a movie adaptation). I wasn''t sure if Alaska really had polar nights, but I knew for sure that the north and south poles definitely underwent a month without daylight, occurring between latitudes of 67?24'' and 72?34'' for both.

    Fortunately, we made good distance despite our earlier pessimism, and ended up reaching the foot of one particular mountain. Cody Crosby, in particular, claimed that he saw something just as he crept over an outcrop of snowy rock, and waved us over.

    "I think I see a cave over there!"

    I tapped my glasses to magnify the image and filter out the snow. Sure enough, there was a cave at one small portion of the foot of the mountain. I turned back and nodded at my friends.

    "Cody is right. There''s a cave over there."

    "I''ll lead you guys there!" the assassin wannabe scrambled over the rock and darted through the snow. I noticed that he didn''t leave any tracks at all, not even a single footprint. Wow, Cody was pretty skilled. His stealth skills were immense.

    I was glad he was on our side.

    Wanting to be out of the cold, the rest of us hurried toward the cave, following Cody closely. We didn''t bother to hide our tracks. With the amount of snow falling, any footprints that we left on the trail would be covered up in minutes. Even though the interior of the cave was going to be similarly cold, at least it would provide some shelter from the howling wind. The extreme temperature was one thing, but the wind was a killer, its icy touch biting deep into our bones and causing us to shiver uncontrollably. My fingers and toes had already gone numb, and having lived in Minnesota for a few years, I was aware that we had to watch out for frostbite.

    Even with our magic and enhanced physical constitutions, we were still not completely immune to the elements.

    "Let''s camp here tonight," Harrison Reed suggested, turning around to ensure that all of us had made it. To be sure, I counted ten, and then nodded at him. He smiled gratefully in response, and turned back to the rest of us.

    "Be careful," Craig Carlson warned, his crimson spear already out. "We are not the only ones in this cave."

    "Yeah." I nodded. We would be extremely na?ve to think that the cave would conveniently be empty. Chances were, there was already a monster that had chosen the dark, sheltered dwelling to be its home.

    We spread out cautiously, keeping our eyes peeled for any movement. With a stealthy gesture, I adjusted my glasses and switched to nightvision, turning my view green for a moment. Even so, I saw absolutely nothing.

    I frowned. There was no way such a perfect spot would be empty. At the very least, it should be inhabited by¡­

    That was when I caught sight of a dark shape stirring in the back of the cave, and rising from its slumber. Glowing red eyes glowered at us, and jaws opened to exhale a foggy breath, the vapor from its lungs condensing immediately the moment it came into contact with the cold air. Dagger-like fangs gleamed in the darkness, seemingly illuminated by its crimson eyes, and framed a fork-like tongue that darted out in our direction.

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I studied it, recognizing the Frost Fiend, a rank D monster whose body was laced with armored scales and armed with wicked claws. The sharp tips pierced the crust of the earth, leaving small holes on the ground with a clack. It had impressive physical capabilities, but was ranked D because¡­well, it couldn''t cast elemental magic.

    Just as well it couldn''t, or it would be quite the troublesome opponent.

    "I guess we found dinner for tonight!"

    Craig, on the other hand, didn''t hesitate at all. The Frost Fiend''s eyes were still fixated on me for some reason (okay, it was because I was the closest, having ventured out in front of my teammates because I had nightvision), so it couldn''t react in time when the Demonic Spearman''s weapon pierced through its hide and ruptured its heart.

    The Frost Fiend screeched and flailed about wildly. Craig leaped back with his spear, avoiding getting struck aside by its violent death throes. He was confident that he had delivered a killing blow, however, and smiled as he watched the result of his attack.

    "A clean kill," he murmured proudly to himself as the Frost Fiend''s thrashing finally died down.

    "You should be careful," Sheila Scarlet chided him as she advanced forward, her shield out just in case the Frost Fiend was merely feigning death. She proded it with her spear, and then stabbed the head, puncturing the poor thing''s skull, to ensure that it really was dead, and turned back to us with a nod. "Clear."

    "We''re pretty lucky," I remarked, looking around the cave and finding no sign of any other inhabitants. "I''m pretty sure that Frost Fiends usually gather in packs. It''ll be troublesome to deal with a huge number of them, considering their armor and toughness."

    Glancing at Craig''s spear, I marveled at how much stronger he had gotten ¨C again. Craig''s spear technique allowed him to penetrate any magical or physical defenses¡­well, almost any. It was obviously dependant on how much mana his opponent had ¨C if his opponent had several times more mana than him, then the curse would be overwhelmed by sheer power. Quantity over quality and all that. All, as someone once said (they attributed it to Joseph Stalin, but I had my doubts), quantity is a quality of its own. It was actually said by Thomas A. Callaghan Jr., who was a US defense consultant in the 1970s and 1980s, who apparently wrote it in his 1979 strategic report or something.

    I couldn''t help but smile. Craig was going to be a major player in the national tournament, and to hell to those idiots who mocked us as a so-called C-ranked team. And also to hell with the readers who labeled him as a mob character in the comments section. Seriously, so many readers loved to deal with the idea of absolutes and thought that fighting was as simple as "X can beat Y, so X must be able to beat all people ranked lower than Y." What utter bullshit. Reality never worked that way, otherwise why the hell would we bother organizing matches and having leagues where teams played against each other? Even Leicester City can beat Manchester City. That was the beauty of the game. Similarly, that was the beauty of fighting tournaments ¨C we had matches because there was always the possibility for anyone or everyone to win. Outcomes were not decided by ranks alone, otherwise we might as well skip fighting and not go through all that trouble of stepping into the arena in the first place.

    But no, some readers wanted to obsess over their overly simplistic and downright unrealistic view of "ranks are absolute!" without caring that the protagonist is a special snowflake that breaks those stupid ranking systems in the first place. They were too used to cultivation and xianxia stories or LitRPG stories where everything was neatly categorized into ranks and levels, and people''s strength could somehow be conveniently measured.

    Sorry, dudes, but that was not how the real world worked. sorry to burst your bubble, but there is no level 100 or Nirvana whatever Stage in real life, and a black belt Karate master can still lose to a street-fighter who spent his entire life surviving brutal gang fights, but would otherwise be unranked in the martial arts scene.

    With that done, we began setting up a fire. Thanks to Dong Fang Yue Chu, that was a simple enough task. With a single flick of his hand, he set the improvised firewood that we gathered ablaze. All of us then gathered near the fire to bask in the heat. After suffering so long in the cold, the sensation of having warmth wash over us was heavenly.

    The fire didn''t just serve as a natural heater ¨C we also used it to cook our dinner. Theodore began dragging the body of the Frost Fiend over and chopping it apart with the swiss army knife that was included in our backpack. Within moments, he carved out chunks of juicy meat and hung the slabs on a stick above the sizzling fire.

    "This might not seem delicious, but I don''t think we have much of a choice," Yue Chu said sheepishly.

    "None of us are going to complain," Lily Liam assured him. "We all have some experience of what outdoor camping is like. All of us have undergone survival training in the wild."

    "That''s right." Pearl Pang nodded in agreement. "This much is nothing!"

    Despite our optimism, the Frost Fiend''s meat was not palatable. It might seem strange, eating monster meat and all that, but we didn''t have much of a choice. Monster meat, fortunately, was edible, and was even a delicacy in the Amazerian Empire and Zurium Empire, where tribal warriors often went out to hunt monsters and bring them back for gigantic, celebratory feasts in their villages or towns. It was pretty much a fun festival.

    Unlike the empires, the Global Federation relied more on domesticated animals that had continued to survive through millennia, rearing livestock within the safe territories of their domains in specially protected farms. The main population tended to eat meat butchered from such livestock, and even kept normal "pets" that were descended and almost identical to dog and cat breeds of my previous timeline. Obviously it wasn''t just dogs and cats, but other domesticated animals too, such as rabbits, parrots, fish, terrapins, etc.

    I glanced outside of the cave, pondering deeply. What did that mean for all the other creatures living in the wilderness, outside the territory of man?

    I wasn''t sure, but from what I had read¡­they had evolved. While monsters were entities from another dimension that surely dwelled in a different form or shape in their original homes, when they crossed over, they took on very familiar shapes, that resembling the terrestrial animals that inhabited Earth. Scientists speculated that the monsters had almost certainly replaced the majority of the biosphere and species that once lived in or world, taking their place entirely and creating the new ecosystem. Either that, or the animals had mutated and evolved into monsters, probably from ingesting monster carcasses or whatnot.

    Whatever the case, it remained a hotly contested scientific debate in academic circles. I wasn''t sure. Perhaps it was both. It didn''t really matter to me, other than I needed to watch out for monsters and ensure they didn''t sneak up on us. As such, after our dinner, I raised my hand.

    "I''ll keep watch. I''ll take the first shift."

    "Okay." Harrison nodded. "I''ll be counting on you then."

    "You sure?" Yue Chu asked, concerned. "You need the rest as much as we do."

    "Are you volunteering to take the first shift then?" Craig asked him slyly, and he spluttered.

    "Uh, well¡­I''ll take the next shift."

    "I''ll take the third shift then." Harrison, as always, was the responsible leader. "We''ll be taking two-hour shifts, if that''s all right with you. I suggest we move out at six in the morning. That should give everyone eight hours of sleep, and those on guard duty about six hours of rest. Is that fair?"

    "Yeah!" Everyone echoed.

    "I''ll take the last shift," Bu Fan said, much to everyone''s surprise. He shrugged when he saw everyone staring at him. "What? I''m part of the team. I''m not a slacker, it''s only natural that I do my part."

    "We''ll be counting on you then." Harrison smiled, and then nodded at me and Yue Chu. "You guys too. Thanks for volunteering."

    "We''ll cover tomorrow''s shifts," Craig spoke up, determined not to lose. Theodore and Cody nodded in agreement.

    "Sure. We''ll talk about that when tomorrow comes."

    While everyone went to sleep, I sat by the fire and stared out of the cave. Raising a hand, I summoned a couple of Corvus and mentally instructed them to fly out to serve as sentries. Before readers could complain in the comments, I had to remind them that summoning would not work if I was asleep. The moment I fell asleep, my Constellation spirits and whatever Soul Beast I summoned would automatically disappear. You couldn''t throw a punch or kick when you were asleep, right? You couldn''t run while you were asleep, right? Similarly, maintaining the existence of a Soul Beast required conscious effort and will. You couldn''t just summon one and expected it to remain flying around while you went to sleep. Reality was never so convenient.

    I probably drifted off ¨C not exactly asleep, but just lost in my thoughts. Thinking of my next move, of the enemies I had to face, and all that. This was only the first day, so I wasn''t expecting the Assassins to show up just yet, but I knew we had to be vigilant.

    "Another two weeks of this, huh?" I grumbled, staring absently into the flames. Reaching for a twig, I fed it into the fire, and then stretched my hands out to enjoy the warmth. Suppressing a shiver, I sighed. "I can''t wait."

    Minnesotan or not (well, as much as you could call a foreign resident living in Minnesota for a few years a Minnesotan), I still wasn''t a fan of the cold. That said, this was a lot better than dehydrating in the Tallarab Desert.

    "Richie, it''s my turn now."

    At some point, Yue Chu stirred and woke up, crawling out of his sleeping bag and looking at me bleary-eyed.

    "Go get some rest. We have another long day tomorrow."

    "Right." I was exhausted by now, and could feel myself drifting off. Dismissing my two Corvus, who saw nothing but a few monsters here and there ¨C fortunately, they slinked away into the distance rather than choose to approach the cave, I then rose shakily to my feet. I wasn''t going to be pretentious like Wang Zhong and pull that whole BS of tempering my own body or claiming that my large volume of mana allowed me to quickly recover and thus I didn''t need rest or I wasn''t affected by exhaustion. I wasn''t a God Mode Mary Sue, after all. I was only human, and thus I was still vulnerable to human frailties.

    "Anything interesting happen?" Yue Chu asked as I staggered past him. I shook my head and suppressed a yawn.

    "Nope. Nothing."

    "Eh? No academy lost their badge signal? Nobody got eliminated?"

    "How the fuck would I know?" I snapped irritably, probably still cranky from my drowsiness. "Do you think the TOs are going to broadcast the elimination of a team to all the other teams? What would be the point? They want to keep us on our toes. If we know that the majority of teams had been eliminated, it will only breed complacency. Besides, what benefit would there be if we know who was eliminated? We''re not supposed to look for them and rescue them unless absolutely necessary, and they will tell us if that''s the case. All it does is bring humiliation to those teams. Best to let them bow out insconspiciously without announcing it to the whole world."

    "Eh? But Battle Frenzy did it¡­"

    "WHO CARES ABOUT BATTLE FRENZY?! This is our own story!"

    "Right, right. Sorry. Anyway, stop shouting. Everyone else is still sleeping." Yue Chu looked at me apologetically. "You get some rest too."

    "Yeah, sorry." Too weary to muster another retort, I crawled into my sleeping bag and immediately fell asleep.

 330 Chapter 330: Movement in the Shadows

    When I opened my eyes, it was already morning. Even though it was already past 6am, the sun still had yet to rise. That was perpetual winter for you. The days were short and the nights were long. The sun most likely wouldn''t rise for another hour.

    "Ugh¡­sorry for oversleeping."

    The girls were awake, preparing food and cooking stuff. I caught a sniff of what smelled like stew. Evidently the girls thought it would be a good idea to boil some soup. And I agreed ¨C I could feel my mouth watering already.

    "Oh, you didn''t oversleep. We just didn''t want to wake you and the others. You guys were on sentry duty last night, so you need the rest."

    At Lily''s words, I glanced over and saw that Yue Chu and Harrison were still asleep. Like me, Harrison was slowly stiring to wakefulness, but he was careful not to accidentally nudge the slightly snoring Yue Chu awake.

    Bu Fan, on the other hand, was perched at the entrance of the cave, slowly sipping some hot soup as he kept an eye outside. Even though we didn''t get along, I had to admit that he was someone who did his duty. I could find no fault with his conduct.

    "I hope we progress a lot today as well!" Craig said with a grin as he looked up at the gradually brightening sky, which was slowly leaving the grip of twilight.

    I grunted in response, and felt too reluctant to leave the warm comfort of my sleeping bag. It was probably minus ten degrees Celsius out there, not exactly good weather for trekking¡­however, we couldn''t hide in the cave (or in this instance, I couldn''t cower in my sleeping bag) forever. We had to move on and reach Olympus City, whether I liked the weather or not.

    Fortunately, as far as winters went, this was relatively mild. I had experienced horrid winters where temperatures plummeted below negative twenty degrees Celsius. Under such conditions, my fingers and toes essentially went numb and almost froze off within minutes of just being outside. Not an experienced I cared to repeat.

    Negative ten was still bearable, especially with the fire still blazing hotly at the mouth of the cave. I doubted it went on for eight hours straight ¨C most likely Bu Fan continued to stoke it with his fire magic. The guy was a quad magician, possessing fire, lightning, shadow and summoning magic. If I wasn''t mistaken, his Soul Beast was a great Warrior Wolf or something to that effect. Yeah, why don''t we just change his name to Mo Fan already?

    Okay¡­I was probably trolling about the summoning magic. He was definitely not a summoner, as far as I knew.

    "All right, everyone!" by now Harrison had fully roused himself and was taking center stage again. "Time to eat! Make sure you stock up on carbo and keep yourselves warm, because it''s going to be another arduous hike through the mountains!"

    "Yes, Captain!"

    Everyone responded without hesitation, and began helping themselves to the soup that the girls were passing around. I accepted a bowl from Pearl, and took a sip.

    Ah~ This was delicious.

    "Tastes great!" I told the girls, who shared a smile.

    "Well, we did what we could. Added some herbs and spices that we found from the forest." Sheila shrugged. She glanced at Lily and grinned. "All that effort Lily went through in scrounging through those plants this morning really helped."

    "You didn''t go too far out, did you?" Yue Chu asked his girlfriend, concerned. Lily shoo her head and placed her hand reassuringly on his.

    "No. Just out there." She pointed toward a nearby patch of plants that had somehow grown and bloomed despite the snow. "I had Bu Fan watch over me, just in case."

    "Thank you," Yue Chu told the lone wolf, and he merely shrugged.

    "I was looking forward to a meal that actually tasted something, so I might as well work for it too. Besides, it was my shift."

    Maybe the guy wasn''t so bad after all. He was certainly no Draco Malfoy.

    "All right," Harrison spoke up after a sip of his stew. He conjured a holographic map and pointed toward it, right at one of the mountains. His selection seemed random to me, and I couldn''t tell any mountains apart from their comrades, so I didn''t know the difference, but I just nodded all the same. There was a reason why Harrison Reed was the team captain and I was not. "Our goal should be to make it to Mount Reynas by the end of today. Hopefully we''ll find another cave of place to camp out in there. But if we reach Mount Reynas, it''ll mean that we''re past the twenty-percent point of our journey."

    That sounded great. If we kept up our current pace, we should theoretically finish our journey and reach Olympus City by the tenth day since the start of the mission. Given that we were allocated two weeks to make the trip, it meant we had quite a bit off buffer if we kept this up.

    I honestly couldn''t wait to get out of the cold. Yeah, strange hearing that from someone who lived in Minnesota, but just because we grew up with the cold didn''t mean we had to like it. Singaporeans grew up and were used to the heat, but that didn''t mean they enjoyed the sunny weather all year long either. Interesting¡­come to think of it, I spent significant portions of my previous life in two regions of extreme weather conditions. Well, not that extreme, but pretty far apart in terms of temperature.

    We finished up our meal, scattered the firewood and stuff, and packed up our gear. Hauling our fieldpacks up onto our backs, we resumed our trek.

    A few hours passed uneventfully. Partly because we proceeded with caution and avoided unnecessary battle. There were a few packs of rank E White Wolves and Grey Wolves wandering in the area, the dangerous predators lurking about as they hunted for prey. As low as their rank were, expending our mana uselessly in such cold, energy-sapping conditions would slow us down a lot and render us a lot more vulnerable to attacks from other monsters ¨C possibly higher-ranking ones or¡­the Assassins who had yet to show themselves.

    We had a great scout in Cody, who made great use of his stealth skills to scout ahead and perform reconnaissance missions. Combined with my flock of Corvus, who soared overhead to spot for us, we wer able to catch sight of the monsters well ahead of time and alter our plans or routes to avoid them before they ever caught a whiff of our scent. It wasn''t just the Wolves. We also managed to avoid a rank D Spotted Jaguar, and even a deadly rank C Shadow Leopard that was lurking almost invisibly in the dense, dark tangle of trees ahead. I almost missed it too ¨C if one of my Corvus hadn''t accidentally alerted the alpha predator and drawn an almost lazy swipe of it, I would totally have overlooked it.

    The damned thing was perfectly camouflaged in the trees.

    "Wow¡­" Sheila mused. At the end of the day, we did manage to get to Mount Reynas, or whatever mountain Harrison said it was. I couldn''t tell the difference, and I didn''t know how to tell apart one mountain from the other, so I trusted him. Everyone did so, but Sheila in particular was staring at me in surprise. "I didn''t know having a summoner in the team would be so useful."

    She then blinked and then raised a hand to her mouth.

    "Ah, sorry¡­I meant no offense. Of course you would be useful, Richard. I ever doubted that."

    "No, it''s fine." I understood her reaction. There had always been a stigma against summoners, because of how they tended to be a burden to their teammates, often requiring protection and babysitting while casting their summoning spells. As a result, they weren''t very popular when it came to building teams. Not that teamwork was a major component in our curriculum until very recently. Consequently, most people didn''t regard summoners very highly, despite them having the potential to utterly destroy entire teams if they were allowed to accomplish their summoning spells.

    But such strategies were often all or nothing, with the entire team banking on the summoner to complete his spell. As a result, the moment the summoner was taken out before he could summon his Soul Beast, the entire team would almost inevitably lose. Of course it wouldn''t be pragmatic to build an entire team around such a risky strategy.

    Unfortunately, that did not help our image much at all.

    "Ha ha ha! Aren''t we glad they changed the tournament format, eh?" Craig threw an arm around me and guffawed. "Otherwise we would miss out on such great potential. Turns out that we''ve been using summoners wrong all this while! Who could have figured?"

    Everyone chuckled and nodded in agreement. Even Bu Fan smiled at that.

    "I''ll need to purchase more resources to help Wolfy with his cultivation and increase his rank¡­"

    ¡­you''re kidding, right? I seriously hope you''re trolling. If Bu Fan had summoning magic in addition to his fire, lightning and shadow magic, I was going to kick him out of the story before we got sued for plagiarism.

    "Anyway, we''ll set camp here for tonight. We''re lucky!" Harrison beamed as he pointed toward a cave not far from our position. "Let''s flush that den out¡­hopefully we''ll be able to find some dinner, and then we can turn in for the night."

    "Yes, captain!"

    Feeling buoyed, especially since we had made such tremendous progress over the first two days without any major incidents, we hurried toward the cave.

    That didn''t mean I was going to let my guard down, of course. Glancing back, just in case, I watched the shadows to ensure we weren''t be followed. The Dark Church and their Assassin cronies were out there somewhere, and I knew they were going to strike soon.

    The question was¡­when and where?

    *

    As it turned out, the Assassins didn''t show up for the next two days either. Not wasting our time worrying about what they were doing, we hurried across the somewhat steep slope of one of the mountains before finally coming across the foot of a ridge.

    It was finally the fifth day, and we had exceeded our expectations. If we kept up our current pace, we might reach Olympus City by the eighth or ninth day, way ahead of time. Of course, Harrison kept a level head and warned us not to get too complacent. It was entirely possible that the hard part still lay ahead, and we would run into unexpected delays during the later stages of our journey.

    Everyone nodded somberly, knowing that he was most likely right.

    We cautiously made our way through the treacherous terrain that made up the foot of the ridge. Here, the ice was particularly thick, and we had to navigate our way carefully or risk slipping and falling despite our supposedly preternatural reflexes and training. In fact, it was precisely our training that taught us not to underestimate these little details, and to respect the hostile environment.

    As my feet crunched through the snow and pounded against the solid ice, I half watched the frosty road ahead of me and half looked through the eyes of my Corvus that were sent to scout ahead of the main group. There was nothing amiss so far, though I knew that I had to stay vigilant.

    Thanks to that, I was able to save all of our lives when the first sign of danger struck.

    To my shame, it wasn''t me who noticed it first. Cody paused at the front, and threw his hand up to stop us in our tracks.

    "Do you hear that?" he whispered. We craned our ears, and sure enough, there was a thunderous rumble in the background.

    "What the hell is that?" Theodore demanded.

    "!!"

    Harrison scowled, trying to place his finger on where he had heard the sound before, but before his mind could turn up anything, I was already reacting by having my Corvus whirl about and reconnoiter the source of the ominous noise.

    "Avalanche!" I yelled when I saw the thick sludge of snow pouring toward our direction.

    "Then shouldn''t you not yell?!" Yue Chu¡­yeah, yelled back.

    "Why?" Lily asked, genuinely confused, even as she turned to run with the others.

    "Huh? Didn''t you know? Shouting and all that cause avalanches."

    "That''s a myth," I told him, annoyed. "Avalanches usually only occur when a fragile layer of ice cracks underneath all that snow, and the tremendous increase in weight leads to the whole thing just sliding over. In fact, the biggest cause of avalanches is wind. Or¡­if you want to trigger a manmade avalanche, you use explosives! Pressure caused by waves such as sounds, shouting or loud noise is significantly smaller than the shockwaves caused by explosives, or even wind. So contrary to popular belief, shouting and loud noises do not cause avalanches!"

    Pearl gaped at me as we ran. "I''m amazed you''re able to blabber all of that while running."

    I was too out of breath to muster a retort by then, and could only focus on running. Fortunately, we didn''t have far too long, and thanks to our physical reinforcement spells, we were able to outrun the avalanche. And before certain readers start complaining, no, I certainly did not have time to summon a Constellation spirit to ride on before the avalanche hit. The damn thing came within seconds, and I needed a significantly greater amount of time if I wanted to summon a Constellation spirit big enough for me to ride on. Besides, I couldn''t just ride on the Constellation spirit by myself and abandon my friends to the avalanche.

    If we all get caught in it, we were going to get caught together. And we were going to dig our way out of the snow together.

    Fortunately, it didn''t come to that. We managed to throw ourselves into a relatively safe valley right before the avalanche stopped. The huge pile of snow slowly settled, almost like a sea of white, and burying lots of coniferous trees that made up the forest. My group gradually slowed to a stop and turned around to watch the elemental force of nature come to a rest.

    "That was close!" Yue Chu muttered, his face pale.

    "We somehow made it!" Lily gasped in immense relief, clutching her chest as she struggled to breathe.

    "Are you guys all right?" Pearl asked, panting. Despite the cold, she was persiring profusely, and was bent over, gasping desperately for air. She was worse off than me, who was delivering a small lecture while we were sprinting earlier.

    "Yeah, we''re fine," Cody assured her as he knelt down to catch his breath. He glanced to study the avalanche. "Damn, I can''t believe I didn''t see that coming."

    "Nobody did," Harrison told him. "Don''t blame yourself."

    "Good thing you heard the noise and Richard saw it coming," Theodore said as he wiped his brow. "If the both of you hadn''t warned us¡­"

    "No, wait¡­" I straightened up when something occurred to me. "Do you remember what I said earlier, about the causes for an avalanche?"

    "Hmm? Yeah. You mentioned wind and explosions." Yue Chu had been paying attention, to my surprise. "What about it?"

    "There was no wind," I began.

    "So?" Craig demanded, still trying to recover his breath. Unlike him, however, Bu Fan was quick to catch on.

    "Use your brain," he snapped callously. "If there was no wind, then someone triggered the avalanche with an explosion. And that means¡­someone artificially caused the avalanche!"

    "Eh?! But who?!" Sheila jolted up in fright.

    None of us could answer her question. Instead, I threw myself forward and tackled Theodore, knocking him over to the ground.

    At the same time, a ruby beam of superheated light flashed across the place where his head had been, streaking onward and vaporizing the snow several dozen meters ahead of us.

    "Enemy contact!" Harrison shouted as he threw himself behind cover to avoid a second lance. "Everyone, take cover!"

    Whatever other instructions he might have were completely drowned out by a series of explosions that lit up the entire site in a blinding light.

 331 Chapter 331: Avalanche, Assassins and Ambushes

    Thankfully, even without Harrison''s instructions, we were all able to automatically dive for cover and evade the bombardment of elemental spells and mana beams that lanced into the snow, boiling it immediately.

    Grabbing Theodore by the collar, I dragged him along with me and hurled the both of us into a hollow underneath a tree. Flames scorched the trunk and lit the whole thing aflame, but I quickly extinguished the fire with a basic water spell.

    "We need to counterattack!" Theodore growled, heaving. He nodded at me, as if realizing he had forgotten something. "Thanks for saving me."

    "No, I didn''t really do much."

    The crimson beams of mana continued to slam mercilessly into the snow, forcing us to keep our heads down. They were followed by a volley of fireballs, and a web of lightning bolts that arced toward our cover, dissipating against the snow.

    For some reason, nobody was using ice spells. I wondered why. In this environment, ice mages would have the absolute advantage as their spells would be buffed tremendously and their mana amplified. The terrain and environment mattered a lot to magic battles.

    Glancing at the fire spells, I suddenly realized how they were able to trigger an explosion powerful enough to cause an avalanche. Must be those grinning fire mages standing atop the ridge. Those bastards.

    "Who are you guys?!" Craig demanded, trying to poke his head out from behind cover. A screaming fireball scorched the air above his crimson hair, forcing him to duck. He cursed. "Fucking assholes!"

    "Cover fire!" Harrison ordered, his bellow drowning out the shrieks of fireballs, howls of mana beams and roar of lightning. Dong Fang Yue Chu and I instantly responded, popping out to toss out a few ranged spells of our own. The former unleashed a volley of fireballs at the ridge, forcing the shooters back while I peppered the fire mages with a hail of azure arrows from Orion. Bu Fan also cast a powerful Fiery Fist spell, obliterating a good chunk of the cliff, before he unleashed Divine Lightning from the skies to strike a few others, scattering them.

    Behind me, Theodore emerged, his thunder hammer out. With a growl, he smashed the hammer into the ground, throwing out a blinding curtain of snow. Simultaneously, chains of lightning snaked out to crash against the position of our assailants. More than a few cursed or cried out in pain before they were blotted from sight.

    "Now!"

    We didn''t need Harrison to tell us what to do. The moment Theodore conjured that impromptu snow screen, the close-ranged fighters were already up and running. Cody was darting ahead, almost blending in with the snow, followed by Craig and Sheila ¨C both of whom had their spears out.

    Pearl stayed behind, to ensure that she could heal anyone who was hurt. Lily, on the other hand, bounded across with Harrison by her side, the two Holy Saints members working in tandem because of their years of training alongside each other.

    Before the snow was gone, we already reached the ridge. My friends, under cover fire from me, Yue Chu and Bu Fan, scaled the ridge by running up the steep wall or bouncing from segment to segment, and reached the surprised gunners. Craig''s spear lashed out in a crimson blur, slashing the nearest gunner and sending him toppling over.

    "Whoops," he said, as if suddenly remembering something. "We''re not allowed to attack other teams, right? Oh, wait. This is self-defense. Never mind."

    Then he thrust his spear forward and stabbed a second one in the chest. A third mage spun around, his hands glowing as he prepared to launch a fire spell at pointblank range, but Sheila chose that moment to show up and her spear went through his neck. The guy gargled as he went down, clutching his throat.

    The gunners leveled their devices at the two spear users, but Harrison and Lily vaulted over our teammates and landed right in the middle of them. with a few punches and kicks from the former ¨C enhanced by holy magic ¨C and slashes from the latter''s sword, they broke apart the ranged formation and laid them low.

    More of the mages twisted around, frantically trying to cast their spells in close range, but Cody rendered them either unconscious or killed them outright with daggers to their backs or necks. They didn''t even know what hit them, or even noticed their comrades falling beside them. Cody silently moved from one target to the next, taking them out methodically and silently.

    However, while our melee and close combat fighters were dealing with the ranged mages, new enemies emerged from below.

    "!!"

    One of them included the guy from Edgar Pole Academy. I recognized him as the "stalker". Damn bastard.

    They were unsheathing daggers or shortswords as they burst from the foliage nearby, wisps of shadow magic curling around their blades and bodies. They must have mistook us for long-ranged fighters and intended to eliminate us in the same fashion. Clearly, they didn''t expect our vanguard to take out the ranged fighters, but they were determined to exact vengeance for their fallen comrades.

    "¡­"

    I was expecting them to shout something, but even if they were not complete professionals, it seemed that they were at least well-trained Assassins. The first one came at me, slicing his dagger toward my throat. Dismissing Orion, I summoned Gemini and parried his blade. This guy wasn''t worth the bother of drawing my real swords, and I didn''t want to reveal them too soon in the face of an enemy anyway.

    "!!!"

    While I stopped him, Theodore smashed the ground and sent a few of his assailants flying. Meanwhile, Yue Chu whirled around, his arms wreathed in flames, and almost melted the weapons of the Assassins coming at him. The three of us formed a bulwark between the Assassins and Pearl, ensuring that they did not reach our healer.

    The Assassins, distracted by us, did not realize that one of us was missing. Bu Fan had melted away using some sort of shadow magic, and then reappeared behind them. His fists crackling with flames or lightning, he unleashed his dual elements upon them, using intermediate spells to take them out. A fireball to the back of one hooded figure, and a lightning bolt that sent a second professional killer into convulsions.

    Parrying another strike, I whirled around and delivered a roundhouse kick at my opponent, sending him toppling into a stream of lightning from Theodore''s hammer spell. Spinning around, I threw a second kick at another Assassin before he could slash me, sending him toppling. He rolled back to his feet, thrusting his sword at me, but I managed to parry his blade with both of my Gemini twin swords and staggered back.

    By now, my friends had rejoined us. My erstwhile opponent gurgled when a spear burst out of his chest, courtesy of Craig. Fortunately, the remaining Assassins were of a higher caliber, and they quickly withdrew to regroup. We had taken out about five of the close-ranged, Umbra Assassins, but there were at least fifteen left.

    Most of them had been wounded by our spells, though. I doubted it would debilitate them much. I had seen them shrug off a fatal injury that would have incapacitated a lesser man. Probably because their systems were pumped full of combat drugs.

    "These are the real Assassins," Harrison warned. "Be careful, they are more skilled than the ranged mages above."

    "Those aren''t Assassins," one of the hooded figures replied with a shrug. "They are Dark Church followers who insisted on accompanying us for our mission."

    "So you''re from the Assassins Guild after all!" Craig growled, pointing his spear at them. He wanted to rush forward and stab them, but given their defensive formation, he couldn''t just crecklessly charge in.

    "Please." Cody rolled his eyes. "They should be ashamed to call themselves Assassins. They haven''t even killed a single one of us yet."

    Credit to the Umbra Assassins, none of them rose to his provocation. Instead, they remained silent and on guard.

    "What are they waiting for?" Sheila asked, puzzled. "Why aren''t they attacking?"

    "They have seen our skills and already suffered quite a few casualties," Theodore pointed out as he rested his bloody thunder hammer on his shoulder. He had bludgeoned at least one of the Assassins during the fierce melee earlier. The others managed to survive his lightning spells, courtesy of their high magical resistance. "They can''t help but be cautious."

    "That guy¡­" Lily''s eyes were fixed on the Edgar Pole Academy student. "Isn''t he¡­?"

    "Yeah, he is," Yue Chu confirmed grimly. "The same guy who tried to spy on us back in the train station in Southampton City."

    "So you were already on guard ever since back then." The guy had the temerity to look astonished. "How long have you anticipated that we would ambush you?"

    "Even before your grandfather was born!" Craig sneered. Seriously? What kind of provocation was that?

    As I thought, the guy remained unmoved.

    "Uh¡­" Pearl nervously spoke up, her eyes darting from the faces of the Assassins toward the fallen ranged mages atop the ridge. She swallowed. "Where are the other students from Edgar Pole Academy? Other than that guy, I don''t see the rest of them. These people¡­they are definitely not students from Edgar Pole Academy."

    Wow. Pearl certainly had a good memory. I didn''t even notice, to be honest. Even after she pointed it out, I still couldn''t tell, mainly because I didn''t bother remembering the faces of all the students from Edgar Pole Academy.

    However, now that she mentioned it, I noticed that a lot of the Assassins were certainly older than high school students. A few of them looked like university student, or in their early twenties, so they definitely were not from Edgar Pole Academy.

    "What have you done to the students from Edgar Pole Academy?" Harrrison demanded, his eyes narrowing. For a moment, the emotionless fa?ade of the Assassins cracked, and as a unit, they chuckled ominously.

    "Isn''t it obvious?" Bu Fan murmured softly, folding his arms. "They slaughtered them all. Seems like their first target wasn''t us, after all."

    "Well, you''re actually slightly mistaken there. You were our first target, but it is true that the poor souls of Edgar Pole Academy had to die first. They were the easiest to eliminate, considering that we already had a mole in their midst."

    "You bastards¡­" Lily''s face was murderous, and she tightened her grip on her sword. "Killing innocent people for no reason¡­"

    "No reason? That''s not true." The lead Assassin shook his head. "All potential eyewitnesses have to be eliminated, in order to maintain our cover. We cannot allow them to give us away before we launch our plan."

    "For such a reason¡­" Sheila was pale.

    "Bastards¡­" Craig growled.

    "Why?" Yue Chu was shaking his head in disbelief. "Why go through such lengths? Why kill so many innocent, uninvolved people? Just what do you want?"

    "It''s not what we want," the lead Assassin replied with a shrug. "We were ordered to eliminate certain targets ¨C and it''s our employers who choose our targets. We just obey their wishes, as per our contract."

    "Why do your employers¡­the Dark Church want to kill students?" Theodore demanded, slowly bringing his thunder hammer down to rest it on the floor. "What exactly do they stand to benefit from the slaughter of young innocents?"

    "How would I know?" the lead Assassin shrugged again. "As per our contract, we''re not allowed to pry into the privacy of our clients. They designate a target for us, we carry out their orders, and we get paid. No questions asked, as it always has been."

    "Just assume the Dark Church is a bunch of overly zealous nutjobs with psychopathic tendencies," Bu Fan cut in irritably. "There''s no need to over-think this. Not everyone has a rational reason for what they do."

    The Edgar Pole Academy mole chuckled at that. "You''re probably right."

    "Edward." The lead Assassin gave the youngest of the Assassins'' number a glare, and the mole fell silent. He then returned his gaze to us. "I apologize, but all of you have to die here today. It''s nothing personal."

    With a single signal, the fifteen Assassins kicked off the ground and launched themselves at us, their deadly weapons flashing in blurring speed. My group immediately lunged forward, meeting them midway, magic flaring up and spells colliding as we fought in close combat.

    We were outnumbered by half¡­or rather, five to three, if we didn''t count Pearl because she was a non-combat team member. Even though we were at a numerical disadvantage, we didn''t yield and fought fiercely.

    "!!"

    I ducked under a swipe from one Assassin, and then turned around to parry a blow from another. Twirling my Gemini twin swords, I deflected and blocked the constant barrage of attacks from two Assassins, the pair determinedly slashing at me with their short swords. Magic erupted from them in the form of shadowy spikes, seeking to pierce through me. I twisted to the side, avoiding the first black projectile, and then cut the second apart with Castor. The third nearly caught me in the chest, but I just barely managed to bring Pollux in time to parry it.

    Clang!

    "Huff¡­"

    Heaving, I withdrew some distance away, but the pair of them pressed on relentlessly.

    I smiled.

    "Taurus!"

    "?!"

    The two Assassins were knocked aside when the gigantic bull materialized and smashed into the snow with the force of a meteor. Grunting, he twisted his head around and unleashed Aldebaran, turning the surrounding snow into boiling steam. Kicking out with his hooves, he caught a third Assassin and flung him deep into the forest.

    Of course, being trained Assassins with high magical resistance, they survived the initial onslaught. They were really different from the relatively fragile ranged mages that took potshots at us from above. Despite smoldering and suffering burns, the two Assassins launched themselves out of the boiling fog to collide against the giant bull, but their swords only scraped against metal.

    By now, I already had Capricorn and Aries ready, having tried to summon the three of them simultaneously. That whole pause earlier where the Assassins exchanged dialogue with us really bought me enough time to summon quite a few of my larger Constellation spirits.

    "?!"

    The Assassins whirled around, only to scatter as Aries and Capricorn ran rampant in their lines. In the blink of an eye, I had switched the numerical advantage over to our side.

    "I really have to revise my view of summoners," Sheila said with a shake of head before she blocked an Assassin''s dagger with her shield.

    Despite the new setback, the Assassins didn''t retreat. Instead, they switched to a defensive formation, trying their best to evade my huge Constellation spirits while launching counterattacks.

    Then I realized why¡­I wasn''t the only one who benefited from dragging the time out from the earlier dialogue.

    "!!!"

    A new shape emerged from the forest, streaking forward like a black bullet. I was just barely able to jump in his way and protect Lily from having her head cut off, but at the cost of my Gemini twin swords. Despite successfully parrying the strike, my Constelaltion weapons shattered and I toppled backward, blood spurting from my arms.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    "Oh?" the familiar bald Assassin raised an eyebrow when he saw that I had somehow halted his attack and prevented a killing blow. "You actually survived my strike? Impressive."

    Dread colder than the surrounding snow filled me when I recognized the grinning psychopath before me.

    "¡­Rei."

 332 Chapter 332: Murderous Reunion

    "It''s too bad, but you won''t have your teacher to protect you this time!"

    Crowing, Rei slashed at me with his katana, and I was forced to draw both Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, I mea Hei Yue and Bai Ri to parry them. Yeah, I''m sorry for still not being able to get the names of my swords right. Force of habit. I spent too much time pretending to be Archer (basically Kanshou and Bakuya were the Japanese names for Gan Jiang and Mo Ye) that I totally forgot the real names of my swords.

    Oh, well.

    Rei didn''t hesitate, and continued to swing his katana from what he thought was an unexpected angle, teasing out an opening from me and darting his katana through an apparent gap in my defenses. I reversed the grip on Hei Yue and caught his curved blade with mine, causing sparks to fly between us as silver metal screeched against black steel.

    Drawing a deep breath, I counterattacked with Bai Ri, the white blade arcing from my left. Hissing, Rei quickly withdrew and deflected my white sword, but I was already thrusting Hei Yue at his chest with my right hand, forcing him to jump back a couple of steps to escape the range of my sword. Refusing to let him go, I kicked off the ground and pursued, both of my swords seeking his vitals, but Rei skillfully parried them.

    "Those sword techniques¡­you definitely didn''t learn them from Ruff Fielding."

    "Teacher Fielding taught me combat magic, not swordsmanship," I responded without thinking. Even as the words left my mouth, my arms continued to move rapidly, delivering a barrage of strikes that actually forced Rei into the defensive.

    "Heh¡­I see."

    Rei''s mouth thinned into a cruel smile, and he retaliated with a riposte that almost caught me wrongfooted. Fortunately, I was able to twist Bai Ri around to swat it aside. A frantic slash from Hei Yue compelled him to duck and then put some distance between us.

    "Not bad, not bad! I didn''t think someone of your age would be this skilled!"

    The master Assassin laughed as he swung his katana. Deadly tendrils of shadows began curling from the curved blade.

    "But¡­it''s not enough!"

    He then unleashed a volley of shadows in my direction, forcing me to jump back. Gritting my teeth, I conjured Scutum Sobiescianum. The shadowy projectiles collided violently against my Constellation shield, cracking the metallic surface and driving through it. Biting back a curse, I staggered a few steps back before cutting down a couple of shadowy spikes that had managed to penetrate past my defenses.

    Chuckling, Rei pressed onward with his attack, slashing at me with his shadowy katana and sending more deadly black trendrils in my direction. Not only was I forced to defend against his relentless attacks, I also had to stay on guard against his shadow magic. Throwing my head back to prevent a shadow spike from stabbing into my face, I twisted to just barely avoid yet another lethal projectile before counterattacking with my swords.

    Rei effortlessly deflected them before responding with a riposte that would have cleanly run through my chest had I not whirled out of the way in time. Both of my blades glowed and I sent black and white blasts of mana at him. Jumping a few steps back, Rei swung his katana and unleashed his own shadow spell that slammed into mine and exploded.

    "Kuh!"

    I staggered another few steps back, holding up my hands to shield myself from the shockwaves that buffeted me. Rei didn''t seem affected at all, and he grinned as he slowly approached me, twirling his katana almost playfully.

    More shadows emerged from behind him, almost resembling a hydra. At his mental command, they surged forward to pierce through me.

    "Hah!"

    With a determined cry, I swung both of my swords and obliterated the volley of shadows in a single black and white blast. Embers and dissipating bits of shadow fell around me, writhing at my feet before disappearing from existence. I sucked in a deep breath and glared at Rei, who was already raising his katana for another attack.

    "Good!"

    Guffawing, Rei charged at me and thrust his katana forward. No sooner had I deflected it than he suddenly reversed the trajectory of his deadly weapon and sent his curved blade lancing from the side in a slashing motion. Bringing Bai Ri down, I just barely managed to parry it amidst a shower of sparks and the tortured screeching of metal.

    "Hu¡­"

    Exhaling, I counterattacked with Hei Yue, but Rei practically danced out of the way. His katana lashed out from another unexpected angle, seeking to probe my defenses, but I easily repelled it with Bai Ri again.

    "Ho¡­"

    Rei was musing to himself as he retreated, probably to regain his bearings and analyze my movements. He grinned.

    "I see¡­so you''re from the Miyamoto School."

    "No, I''m from Jing Tian Academy," I corrected. Rei snorted.

    "Funny. I mean your swordsmanship. That''s the Miyamoto style."

    "Uh huh." I saw no reason to refute him. The guy could tell if I was lying, so I might as well just admit it. Besides, I had more important things to worry about. Like catching my breath and planning my next move, for example.

    "I wonder which style is superior? Your Miyamoto sword style, or my Kagetani Swordsmanship?" Rei was grinning as he held his katana up in an aggressive stance. I tried not to sigh.

    "Who cares? And even if you win, that doesn''t mean the Kagetani style is superior. It just means you are better than me at swordsmanship, that''s all. No one ever said I was a master of the Miyamoto style. I''m just a half-baked kendo apprentice with absolutely no talent at all. Even if you utterly destroy me in swordsmanship, it''s nothing impressive. Hell, it''ll be embarrassing if you lose to me in swordsmanship, considering how much I suck at it."

    My specialization didn''t lie in swordsmanship but magic, after all. No matter how much Dad trained me, or how great a teacher he was, there was only so much he could do if I was an untalented and incredibly slow learner.

    "¡­I see." Rei regarded me for a moment, and then shrugged. "Well, it doesn''t matter. My job is to eliminate you anyway, not to compare swordsmanship. As such¡­"

    Shadows burst out from behind him, that hydra-like spell that was going to bombard me viciously like before. As expected, he launched the shadows at me.

    However, this time I didn''t just obliterate the bombardment by swinging my swords and unleashing an energy blast.

    "!!!"

    Instead, Taurus descended upon an unsuspecting Rei, almost pulverizing him as he rammed his horns against the bald Assassin. Unfortunately, the professional killer''s reflexes were nothing short of godly, and he managed to leap away before Taurus smashed a crater into the ground where he was standing a millisecond ago.

    "You¡­!"

    Flipping around in midair, Rei threw out a hand and altered the target for his shadows. The hydra-like shadows snaked around and hurtled toward Taurus, who merely grunted and pawed the ground. The giant bull''s jaws opened and he unleashed a stream of fire that incinerated the approaching shadows.

    "Tch." Rei clicked his tongue as he watch Taurus''s Aldebaran spell destroy his shadows. He wasn''t given much time to curse any further because Capricorn and Ariies came from two opposite directions, flanking him and destroying the entire terrain with their charge.

    Rei managed to throw himself to the side, flipping himself up to land in a kneeling position, his katana stabbing into the ground.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    My three Constellation spirits turned around and barreled toward Rei. He calmly corrected his breathing and stood up, holding his katana in both hands. Wisps of shadows continued to flood out of his katana, writhing and almost howling silently.

    "Kagetani Style. Beast Slayer."

    It was almost as if the earth itself had opened up, a chasm materializing as the ground split open from the sheer force of his technique. Monstrous shadows erupted and swallowed up my three giant Constellation spirits, but they managed to smash apart the first wave of shadows as they closed in on their target.

    And then three silver flashes, so quick that I almost couldn''t follow them with my eyes. The next thing I knew, my Constellation spirits were cut apart. As the shadows faded away, Rei turned to grin at me, twirling the katana almost casually in his right hand.

    "Monsters and Soul Beasts won''t work on me, boy."

    "We''ll see about that," I replied. As if on cue, a scorching blast of destructive mana engulfed a stunned Rei before culminating in an explosion.

    "?!"

    Canis Major bounded forward with a howl, after he had unleashed Sirius. Rei staggered out of the devastating spell, his body smoldering and parts of his flesh burned, but he was still grinning. He slashed out with his sword, beheading the gigantic wolf.

    "Not bad, eh?"

    He was upon me before I could react, and I crossed both of my swords to parry his sword strike. Spinning around, he kicked me in the chest before sending me flying a few meters away. The breath knocked out of my lungs, I lay sprawled on the ground for a second before scrambling back to my knees and bringing Hei Yue up to deflect Rei''s next strike.

    Rei grinned as he struck again. This time, I managed to catch his katana with both Hei Yue and Bai Ri, but he continued to bear down on me. Increasing the pressure of his weapon, he slowly forced his curved blade closer to my face.

    "!!!"

    Then Ursa Major''s immense paw swatted him away¡­or would have, if Rei didn''t react in time and flip away from the powerful swipe. He retaliated gracefully with a slash, but Ursa Major intercepted the blade with his claws. Even so, blood trickled down the thick, brown fur that covered his paw, and the huge bear growled.

    Right when he landed, Rei was struck by a golden pillar of light. He roared in agony, writhing for a few moments, before tumbling out of the powerful spell. As he did so, he managed to bring his katana up to parry a swipe from Leo''s deadly claws, but despite successfully defending himself, the sheer strength of the blow sent him hurtling across into the forest.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    Flipping himself over, he managed to bend his knees and slam his feet against an unfortunate tree, causing its trunk to buckle and splinter. Then he launched himself back at Leo, spinning rapidly before unleashing another shower of shadows.

    However, the king of beasts stood firm. Golden mana erupted from his body once again and obliterated most of the shadows. The remaining shadowy spikes struck Leo, but found no purchase against his supposedly impervious fur. After all, Leo''s fur was the same material that was used to weave Hercules''s legendary armor.

    While he was distracted by Leo, Ursa Major lumbered up behind him to crush him with his massive paws. Rei''s eyes darted backward, even without him turning his head, and he smiled as he sheathed his sword.

    I suddenly felt a chill.

    "Ursa Major! Retreat!"

    Too late. Hundreds of shadows burst out of the ground and impaled the huge bear, almost ripping him apart. The massive Constellation spirit dissipated in just a few seconds.

    "I told you, didn''t I?" Rei sneered, his voice filled with scorn. "Soul Beasts won''t work on me, boy."

    "¡­"

    I glared at him, but didn''t respond to his provocation. Nearby, Leo fired another Regulus spell, but Rei cleaved it apart, allowing what little energies remaining to disperse harmlessly against his body and blade.

    "Don''t feel bad. It''s just that it''s a pretty bad matchup. I''ve been trained to kill a large variety of people, summoners being one of them." he grinned. "But I must say, you''ve put up quite a good fight, boy. You and your friends."

    At that, I glanced at my team. My friends were still holding out against the fifteen Assassins for now, or¡­that number had been reduced to twelve. None of them had fallen¡­yet. But I could see the injuries piling on them, and exhaustion showing on their faces. In contrast, the Assassins were withdrawing and watching them intently, displaying no sign of weariness. In a battle of attrition, the ones with higher numbers would eventually win out. Even more so, it appeared that Harrison had risked everything on a quick and decisive battle in hopes of taking all of them out, but his plan had failed.

    They had only defeated three, at great cost to themselves. This wasn''t looking good at all.

    "Damn it¡­"

    If I fell here¡­if I failed to stop Rei, he would then proceed to slaughter my exhausted teammates. He might not even have to, at this rate. His disciples were quite clearly having the upper hand for now.

    "Leo!"

    I decided to launch a coordinated attack, hoping to catch Rei by surprise. Both my Constellation spirit and I charged forward from two different directions. Even if it was Rei, he still had to split his attention between two enemies, and could only guard in one direction. I also noticed that his shadows mainly came from behind him. If that was the case, what if we attacked from the sides?

    "Ah¡­sorry to disappoint you."

    "!!!"

    Rei casually parried my swords, and he kicked me. I spun away, winded, but managed to thrust Bai Ri at his throat, which he effortlessly deflected with his katana before retaliating with a strike that I just barely managed to parry with Hei Yue.

    "You seem to misunderstand my shadow spells."

    "Grr¡­?!"

    I watched in horror as shadowy spikes erupted from Rei''s right side and impaled the roaring Leo, annihilating him. Gritting my teeth, I tried to push back, but Rei''s elbow rammed into the side of my head, knocking me over. While I managed to deflect his katana, he followed up with a kick to my gut that sent me flying.

    Rolling to my feet, I lunged at him again, and he grinned as he parried my strike.

    "Checkmate."

    "?!"

    I sensed an immense surge of mana below me, and I threw myself to the side in reflex. And not a moment too soon, too. A microsecond later, hundreds of shadowy spikes burst out of the ground, and would have torn me apart if I had still been there. Despite my prescient evasion, I still ended up getting grazed by at least a few dozen of those shadowy spikes. Blood spurting from my mouth and several dozen wounds, I crashed heavily onto the ground.

    Summoning spell¡­I need to summon something¡­

    Before I could complete another spell, Rei stood over me, ready to deliver the finishing blow. His katana flashed downward, and even as I raised both my swords, I knew I couldn''t deflect his blade in time to avoid getting my head stabbed.

    Clang!

    "?!"

    Rei''s katana never reached me. Instead, he stumbled back and spun around to swat aside something with his weapon. A familiar-looking dagger clattered on the ground a meter or two away from me, its silver edge laced with poison.

    "You¡­!" Rei''s face contorted in fury as a familiar figure stepped out of the foliage.

    "Yes, me." Anastasia smiled brightly as she came into full view, dressed in a thick, verdant winter coat, dark leather boots and a snow cap that still allowed her long, green hair to flow out from underneath it, instead of that flamboyant, frilly green dress that she usually wore. "Hi~ Miss me, everyone?"

 333 Chapter 333: Samurai and Shinobi

    "You¡­!" Rei''s eyes widened when he recognized Anastasia. "Aren''t you that Veneneum Sect Assassin who defected to the Silver Wolves?"

    "Well¡­it was either join them or die¡­and to tell you the truth, the Silver Wolves treat me a lot better than my masters at the Veneneum Sect." Anastasia shrugged. "They have earned my loyalty rather than demand it, so I guess, yes. I am proud to have defected to the Silver Wolves."

    "Bitch¡­" Rei narrowed his dark eyes. "You lack an Assassin''s honor."

    "What can I say?" Anastasa shrugged again. "The Assassins Guild lack compassion, treating us like tools. But¡­I realize that we aren''t tools. Perhaps it''s time that you guys realize it too."

    "I have no intention of debating with a traitor." Rei flipped his katana about and rushed forward to stab her. Anastasia drew her own short sword and parried his strike. Even as her boots crunched against the ice and snow, she held her ground firmly against Rei''s superior strength.

    The bald Assassin didn''t take his advantage for granted, however. He was already casting shadow spells to strike at her from above, the serpentine trendrils seeking to eviscerate her. Fortunately, Anastasia managed to draw a second dagger to slice away the offending shadow spikes and keep herself unscathed.

    Rei pressed on with the attack while unleashing more of his shadow spikes upon Anastasia. Before they could reach her, however, I cleaved them apart with both of my swords.

    "!!"

    Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Rei spun around to parry my swords while kicking at Anastasia when she closed in to stab him with her poisoned swords. He avoided getting cut, and was able to whirl away from the both of us, his katana turning into a deadly storm of blade.

    It wasn''t just his katana we had to watch out for. We also had to be careful of his shadow spells.

    "?!"

    The both of us jumped away when the ground erupted with countless shadow spikes. Rolling to my feet, I cut through another horde of shadows that surged toward me before realizing I was standing in the shadow of something immense.

    "Oh boy¡­"

    Looking up, I caught sight of a gigantic shadow hammer that was raised to pulverize me. Rei didn''t hesitate or throw any fanciful villain words before he delivered the crushing hammer blow that would consign me to oblivion if I didn''t evade.

    I dove to the side, hitting the ground and rolling as quickly as I could, even as the hammer smashed a crater and threw up an expanding cloud of dust and snow. For a moment, my vision was completely blotted out, but my glasses adjusted and infrared vision rapidly overlaid itself over my lenses.

    Even though I could see the heat signatures, it was hard to tell who belonged to who. I did notice one of them swiftly approaching me. A silver flash of light nearly blinded me, but I managed to take a step back to avoid it before countering with swings of my own swords.

    Clang!

    Rei parried the blow effortlessly and turned my swords aside before elbowing me away. I managed to deflect his curved blade from my throat, only for him to kick me in the gut and send me sprawling in the snow. Before he could finish me off, Anastasia barged through the rapidly dissipating snow cloud and stabbed toward his back.

    With a hiss, the bald Assassin spun around to block her poisoned blades. As he did so, I thrust both of my swords up from where I was lying, and Rei was forced to jump and tuck his knees in to prevent getting crippled.

    Even so, I succeeded in grazing his thigh, drawing a thin line of blood. Rei muttered an oath as he retreated, but he focused on defending against Anastasia. It was only natural ¨C against her poison, even a single scratch would be deadly. In contrast, the shallow wounds I dealt to him wouldn''t be fatal at all, not unless I managed to deliver a few hundred other cuts. And even then it was unlikely that he would bleed to death.

    Anastasia pursued him, and I tried to get to my feet, but Rei launched a new wave of shadows at us.

    "Tsk!"

    The green-haired Assassin jumped back and retreated, swiping at any shadow spikes that aggressively homed in on her. As for me, I cleared them with a single blast of black and white mana.

    "¡­"

    The moment Rei put a good amount of distance between us, he dropped onto the ground and slammed both palms against the snowy ground. Something burst out of the frost behind him, numerous shadowy, serpentine heads writhing and snarling. They lurched toward us, tearing through trees and sending up clumps of snow flying into the air.

    "Hydra!"

    Without any hesitation, I completed my summoning spell and called upon one of the strongest Constellation spirits in my arsenal. The behemoth materialized behind me, his nine heads uncoiling to hiss ferociously at the approaching shadowy heads.

    Both monsters clashed. Well, I wasn''t sure if Rei''s spell was a summoned monster, but I didn''t care. Hydra could take care of it, at least for now. I should focus on taking Rei out while he was still maintaining that massive spell.

    "Kuh!"

    Rei realized just how dire his situation was, especially as he tried to defend against simultaneous attacks from both me and Anastasia. Our blades struck from unexpected angles, probing his defenses. Afraid of Anastasia''s poisons, Rei prioritized defending against her short sword and dagger, his katana sweeping up to deflect her venomous blades. As he did so, he left himself open to my strikes. Despite his impressive reflexes that allowed him to avoid fatal hits to his vitals, he wasn''t able to emerge from the exchange totally unscathed.

    Even as he kicked at me to force me back, I could see that I had scored several cuts across his arms, shoulders and legs. Even his back was dripping with blood. True, they were superficial wounds, but I was pretty sure the more injuries I inflicted upon him, the damage would eventually accumulate drastically to affect his movements and fighting condition.

    Spinning around, wisps of shadows spilling from his blade, Rei unleashed a stormy hail of strikes that forced both Anastasia and me back. I ducked under his strike, only to grunt as I blocked his foot. The kick was still powerful enough to send me skidding back in the snow, but fortunately Rei couldn''t follow up because he had to deal with Anastasia. She managed to cut away his shadows, but another kick toward her head forced her to stumble a step backward.

    A new wave of shadows caused her to flip away and gracefully land a few meters away. Holding up her dagger, she reversed her grip on it and used it to shear through another volley of shadows that Rei directed at her.

    The bald Assassin''s eyes darted toward me, and I suddenly understood his intention. He was weighing whether it would be worth eliminating me first so that he could fully focus on dealing with Anastasia.

    Rei was na?ve if he thought he could eliminate me so easily. I smiled and waited for him to charge at me, while he covered his advance by throwing another storm of shadows at the struggling Anastasia. As he closed in on me, glancing at the battling Hydra ¨C who was still occupied by that monstrous cluster of serpentine shadows he had conjured ¨C to ensure that he was in no position to intervene, he struck out with his katana. Vapor-like darkness streamed out of the curved blade and lashed out at me, as if to ensnare me or cut me apart.

    At the same time I summoned my next Constellation spirit. An azure gigantic whale materialized behind and above me, hovering in the snowy skies. With a silent song, Cetus barreled forward, swimming through the air and leaving a thick trail of ice. Everything was frozen in an instant, even the shadows that Rei was unleashing.

    "You¡­!"

    "What?" Despite the gravity of my situation, I couldn''t help but smirk. "Did you think I had run out of Soul Beasts or something?"

    "Just what the hell are you!?" Rei snarled as he backpedaled, drawing more shadows toward himself to defend against the incoming blizzard. The entire place had already plummeted to below minus fifty and vapor was freezing immediately into ice, deadly enough even to a mage enhanced with physical reinforcement spells and magical resistance. His skin was already turning blue from the extreme temperature.

    "I''m a summoner," I replied before his vision of me was replaced by the gargantuan jaws of Cetus.

    However, Rei was no simple Assassin. He wasn''t going to get swallowed up by my humongous Constellation spirit like that.

    "!!!"

    Cetus recognized that too, and banked to the right. Hard. A gigantic ice shield the shape of a snowflake appeared in front of him and protected him from a sword strike from Rei''s katana. I recognized that sword spell as the same basic ranged strike any swordsman could use by swinging his sword. Hell, I was casting the same spell earlier, with the only difference being that my sword blasts were black and white instead of Rei''s silver.

    However, Rei''s sword slash was several times sharper and more powerful than mine ¨C and I was taking into account the combined power of both of my sword slashes. The guy was clearly a madman. Or he was really a professional Assassin. Not that I ever doubted that, but hey.

    "Damn¡­I thought I could cleave that gigantic whale in half."

    Rei cursed as he glanced up at Cetus. The gigantic ice shield had been split in half, and was raining down fragments of frost onto the snow below, and a deep wound had been gouged into Cetus''s side, but otherwise the Constellation spirit was still in the fight.

    "Too bad I didn''t learn healing magic," I muttered. It was impossible for me to summon healing type spirits ¨C and let''s be honest, it was much more efficient for me to learn healing magic and cast it myself instead of summoning a spirit and then having it cast on me. To summon a Constellation spirit capable of casting healing spells, the prerequisite was that I myself had to master healing spells first. The reason why I could summon Constellation spirits of the five traditional Chinese five elements was because I learned the basic elemental spells for each of them. Unfortunately, I didn''t learn wind magic, so I had to improvise with wind-attribute Constellation spirits. Same with healing spells. And before you go and demand that I learn them, it wasn''t that simple. You don''t expect a lawyer to suddenly master medicine and double as a doctor, do you? Even if they try, they would need years to do that. For me to go and learn a completely new magic such as healing or whatever, I would need to spend another few years learning a completely different branch of spells.

    Rei glared at me, but before he could deliver another attack at Cetus, Anastasia practically jumped him. As expected of a former Assassin ¨C even I, who was looking in Rei''s direction, didn''t see Ana sneaking up on her target at all. She lashed out with a poisoned dagger, intending to bury it in the bald Assassin''s back.

    However, Rei didn''t survive this long and grow this strong from being careless or na?ve. He reacted on instinct, moving to dodge her strike. At the same time, shadows surged from the ground and almost pierced through Anastasia, who was forced to vault over them and land a few dozen meters away. Several of them curved and shot toward her, but she cleaved them once again with her dagger and short sword.

    Taking a deep breath, Anastasia dug her feet in the snowy ground before launching herself forward. She weaved through the multiple shadowy spikes, slashing and cutting those that she couldn''t evade, and closed the distance on Rei. She was greatly assisted by the fact that Rei was forced to divert a significant amount of his shadows and coalesce them into a single spear to thrust it at the approaching Cetus.

    Again, Cetus swerved away while creating a second ice shield, which got smashed completely by the shadowy spear. Before he could wheel away to safety, another powerful sword strike from Rei sent him crashing through the forest, and leaving ice in his wake.

    By now, Anastasia had reached him. Rei spun around, just in time to intercept her short sword from piercing his back. He whirled about and kicked at her, but she ducked under the blow before slashing upward with her dagger. Rei slammed his elbow down on the flat of her blade, ensuring that he didn''t get cut at all while deflecting the deadly, poisoned weapon, and then countered with his katana. Anastasia parried it with her short sword, but the power behind Rei''s blow sent her staggering back a few steps.

    He ground his feet into the snow and swept his katana up, unleashing a sword blast that rippled devastatingly through the forest and forced Ana to flip away. While she was still trying to regain her balance, Rei sent another bombardment of shadows to pierce her. Still off balance, Anastasia threw herself off the ground before she could get impaled, blood trickling down her arms when she failed to evade them completely.

    She crashed onto the ground awkwardly, and before she could get up, Rei stood over her, getting ready to plunge his katana into her and finish her off.

    It was only natural. She posed the biggest threat to him. One little injury from her and he would be finished. He probably didn''t have any antidote, or even if he had, he didn''t want to risk it.

    However, before Rei could deal the killing blow, a single arrow slammed into his back, piercing his coat and leather suit to embed it deeply into his skin. Snarling, he staggered around and glared at me. I shrugged as I lowered my bow.

    "Hmph."

    Rei snorted when he realized that the arrow didn''t hit any of his vitals, and his injuries seemed superficial. Like I said, I was never a good shot. I was glad that I was able to hit him at all, and that was thanks to him being a stationary target. If Rei had been moving, I would never have been able to hit him. And even though my aim struck true, I wasn''t able to target his vitals.

    I told you I sucked at archery. I specialized in brute force, not precision.

    "What are you playing at?" he sneered. Because my arrow had embedded itself in his back, he was unable to reach behind and pull it out. Not that it was a big deal ¨C he could get one of his disciples to extract it once all this was over. "After all the Soul Beasts you were summoning, such a lame attack is so disappointing."

    I shrugged as I dismissed Hercules. Rei watched me, bewildered. He was evidently wondering if I had given up.

    And then hellish agony exploded across his body.

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    Howling, Rei dropped onto the ground and writhed. His body began to bubble and melt as the intense hydra toxins that laced my arrow finally took effect, destroying his system from the inside out. He stared at me with melting eyeballs, the final expression on his dissolving face that of disbelief, despair and excruciating pain.

    "Sorry¡­but I figured I should take a leaf from Ana''s book, you know?"

    Smiling, I watched Rei''s demise to ensure that the master Assassin wasn''t feigning his death. He wasn''t, of course.

    The highly virulent toxins utterly annihilated his body, making certain that he wouldn''t be coming back in any shape or form¡­for good.

 334 Chapter 334: Narrow Victory

    With the death of Rei, the remaining Umbra Assassins fell apart.

    Credit to the disciples of Rei, they didn''t immediately collapsed. By the time Anastasia and I had dealt with Rei, there were still ten left standing. My friends, on the other hand, were on the verge of collapse. They were running low on mana, and were basically on their last legs. The numerical superiority of the Assassins were winning out in the end.

    I didn''t blame them. I had spent quite a bit of mana myself, summoning my big guns such as Cetus and Hydra. Which, by the way, were still around. With the shadowy gargantuan multi-headed serpent gone, after its spellcaster was slain, Hydra could slither toward my friends to back them up. Cetus, though wounded, was still able to soar onward and envelop the entire place in a freezing field. Two Assassins were frozen solid before they even realized what was happening. The rest scattered, only to be seized by Hydra.

    The snapping serpentine jaws closed in on another couple of them, crushing them. They struggled, their physical reinforcement spells allowing them to endure the destructive attacks for a few more seconds, and their comrades immediately counterattacked, as per their training.

    However, my friends were not out of the fight.

    "!!!"

    Craig and Sheila''s spears stabbed through two Assassins, bringing them down before they realized what was happening. A fifth Assassiin jumped away, only to have his head caved in by Theodore''s thunder hammer. The remaining Assassins found themselves surrounded by Yue Chu and Bu Fan''s flames, and Lily rushed through them to run her sword through one of them, while Cody snuck up on another and cut his throat while the guy was still distracted by the surrounding flames. Between Harrison, Yue Chu and Bu Fan, they distracted the surviving Assassins long enough either for Hydra to pulverize them, or for their teammates to deliver the killing blows with their weapons.

    The last Assassin managed to break away and escape, fleeing into the woods. However, Anastasia stood before him.

    "!!"

    He skidded to a stop, and knowing that he couldn''t possibly defeat Anastasia, dove to the side. However, a poisoned dagger found its way into his shoulder. Yanking it out, the Assassin continued to run.

    Unfortunately, he toppled over a few seconds later, his complexion ghastly and his mouth foaming as the venom took effect.

    "Are you guys all right?" I asked as I approached my heavily breathing teammates while dismissing Cetus and Hydra. They nodded.

    "Thanks for the backup," Harrison told me.

    "I can''t believe you actually took care of their boss." Craig stared at me in amazement. "I know he was just one guy, but he was on a completely different level. It''s impressive that you could defeat him, never mind survive!"

    "I had help." I nodded in Anastasia''s direction. She was returning to our position after ensuring that the guy she killed was down for good.

    "Who is that person?" Pearl wondered with a glance at Ana, even as she rejoined us to begin casting healing spells on our wounded members. Not a single one of us had escaped unscathed from the battle. We really needed medical treatment as soon as possible. "I don''t think I''ve seen her before. Is she a student from another school?"

    "No," I told her. "She''s my friend."

    "I''m more than just a friend," Anastasia teased as she wrapped her hands around my arm and leaned close. "Hello, everyone, I''m Anastasia. I''m a member of the Silver Wolves. I''m pretty close to Richard too, and we''ve worked on a couple of missions together in the past."

    "The Silver Wolves? Instructor Feng Hai''s mercenary group?" Harrison instantly recognized the name. You had to understand. Unlike me, my friends rarely had dealings with the Silver Wolves. I was the guy who took missions related to the Silver Wolves, after all. Harrison, fortunately, was on top of the game. "What are you doing here?"

    "To take care of you students, of course." Anastasia paused for a moment, and then smiled. "The Federation hired us mercenaries to watch over you guys, especially when we received intelligence that the Dark Church might make their move. So we were essentially taking care of you guys."

    "Huh¡­you mentioned ''us'', but you''re the only one here." Bu Fan cocked his head suspiciously. Ana shrugged.

    "Well, there are five hundred schools, and the Silver Wolves could only spare a couple of dozen high-level mercenaries. For obvious reasons, we can''t just send our rank-and-file soldiers against highly trained operatives from the Assassins Guild. That would be sending them to their deaths. Even though the Federation managed to hire a few mercenary guilds, the truth is that we''re pretty much stretched thin, trying to keep an eye on all of you guys. Besides, thanks to a certain higher-up, your group has been chosen to bait out the Assassins and Dark Church agents, so we couldn''t afford to give the game away by escorting you with too many mercenaries."

    "What about the students from Edgar Pole Academy? Was there anyone watching over them?" I asked. I remembered how the Assassins bragged about eliminating the poor students from Edgar Pole Academy first. But if there was a high-level, skilled mercenary watching over them, then they might not have to die.

    "Oh, that guy was exaggerating. They did try to ambush and annihilate the other students from Edgar Pole Academy, but when they claimed they eliminated them, they were only partially telling the truth." Anastasia looked thoroughly amused. "They weren''t exactly lying ¨C thanks to the injuries they suffered, the team from Edgar Pole Academy have forfeited and been eliminated from the qualifiers. But they are still all alive."

    "Really?" Lily sounded relieved. All of us, except Bu Fan ¨C who honestly couldn''t care less what happened to other people as long as they weren''t his father or sister ¨C felt similarly. It was always a terrible thing when something terrible occurred to other peope.

    "Captain Brent took care of them personally." Anastasia nodded toward me, and I smiled when I heard the name. Brent was someone I was familiar with, having worked under his command during the expedition to the tomb. He was definitely someone who was extremely competent. "He managed to intervene when the Assassins launched their attacks. Even so, he was unable to prevent casualties. Fortunately, the students of Edgar Pole Academy are well trained, and they responded appropriately, and thus were able to prevent any deaths."

    "That''s good to hear." Sheila sighed in relief, raising a hand to her chest and nodding.

    "As of now, they are being evacuated by tournament staff, who flew a hovercraft over to take them out of the forest." Ana smiled. "Don''t worry¡­even though it may not seem like it, but we are watching over you to ensure nothing untoward happens. It''ll be stupid to allow deaths in something like a tournament."

    Yeah, the whole "strong eat the weak" and "realistic training" was absolute bullshit. Nobody was born already able to fight. What was the point of training if you killed people during training? There was a reason why training was called "training" and not considered the same as an actual battle. You were supposed to teach people how to survive in an actual battle, not throw them straight into an actual battle. That was the point of training ¨C to teach, not to make things as realistic as possible. Most people couldn''t possibly succeed or survive the first time, and consistent training was supposed to increase the odds of survival, not weed out the unfit or the "weak" until you end up handicapping your own army when you realize how little soldiers you had when compared to the enemy. Otherwise you might as well not bother with training. Even in the military, we had something called "conditioning" where we allowed trainees to slowly acclimatize and build up their fitness. You trained soldiers on how to fire their guns at range, and teach them fire and movement with blank rounds instead of throwing them straight into live-firing. Nobody was stupid or delusional enough to buy that bullcrap about "making training realistic" or "the enemies won''t be firing blanks at you" or whatever nonsense. Those writers who spouted such bullshit clearly had not trained in the military before.

    I could tell you that if we were to implement such awful training practices, you would lose 90% of your recruits within the first six months. It simply was not a sustainable training method if you kill off most of your recruits before you even got to war.

    "All right, best if you guys don''t waste any more time on these guys and continue your journey. You still have about¡­ten days left? Nine?"

    "She''s right, you know." For some reason, I was reminded of Morgan Freeman even though Harrison was the one speaking. "We should get a move on, once Pearl is done with her treatment."

    "Yes, Captain!"

    "Bye~" Anastasia waved as she hopped back a couple of steps, smiling mischievously. "I''m only here to deal with outside threats¡­such as the Dark Church and Assassins. I am not allowed to intervene or assist you in tournament stuff. So you''re on your own, unless you get attacked by the Dark Church or Assassins again."

    "So we''ll have to deal with monsters and the weather on our own." Theodore nodded thoughtfully. "That makes sense."

    "That''s right. So¡­good luck!" Ana gave me a wink. "I''ll be watching you from the shadows, but I''d appreciate it if you treat me as if I''m not there! Don''t worry, I''m not the only one watching over you, so if anything happens, you''re in good hands."

    Right. The tournament staff and the Federation were probably keeping their eyes on the students participating in it. Of course they had to. We were the best and brightest of our generation, and it would be a waste to just leave us to die in the wilderness. Safety first, and all that. Even almost a thousand years ago, during the military, we had safety officers watching over the soldiers who were out on exercises in forests, deserts and other "real" environments. With magic and technology that was slightly more advanced, the Federation should have an easier time monitoring the students running through the qualifiers.

    Even more so, I believed that segments of the qualifers were being broadcasted and streamed online, for people to watch as entertainment. Apparently a lot of Federation citizens viewed the tournaments as a kind of sport, and watched videos of it for fun.

    Then Ana was gone, disappearing into the shadows of the forest. Even with my hi-tech glasses, I was aware that I wouldn''t be able to find her no matter how hard I looked, so I didn''t bother trying. Instead, I turned my attention back to my friends.

    "We''ll rest for about an hour," Harrison was suggesting. "Heal up our wounds, take stock of our current condition, and then we''ll move out."

    "You should rest too," Pearl ordered when she saw him conjuring a holographic map to plan for our next route. "Your injuries are no less worse than the others."

    "Don''t worry, I''m just looking at the map. I won''t be doing anything strenuous or physical." Harrison offered the worried Pearl a reassuring smile. I was suddenly reminded of rumors that the two of them dated in the past. The two of them had some history, and seeing their interaction right now I could tell that it was somewhat true.

    "I''ll keep watch."

    "No, you rest too!"

    Pearl seized me by the collar and dragged me to a log where the others were sitting, just before I could walk to the edge of the clearing and keep an eye out.

    "You spent quite a bit of mana, and you have a few injuries. They may be shallow, but I''ll treat them later."

    "Prioritize the others first," I told her. She nodded, already moving on to Craig and the others. They certainly seemed to be in worse shape than me. That was why they needed healing magic a lot more than I did.

    Harrison exchanged a look with me, and I nodded before approaching and taking a seat next to him. He conjured a holographic screen, which conveniently showed a green icon that marked out our position.

    "This battle has delayed us for a bit," he said with a sigh. Using a gloved finger, he traced a blue path through the snowy terrain. "Fortunately, we have quite a buffer, and nine days left, so I''m not concerned about our pace. I think we''ll still make it. But what I''m worried about is this¡­."

    I raised an eyebrow when I saw the blue path cross over a place marked out as a red zone. That was one of the dangerous areas.

    "Doesn''t this cut across the Den of Dragons?" I frowned when I saw the name labeling the valley. Harrison nodded.

    "I honestly would prefer avoiding this place, but if we skirt across the Den of Dragons, it''ll take us another day or two of trekking." He sighed and rubbed his forehead. "We''ll be cutting it close, especially if we take into account today''s delay."

    "Safety first," I told him. "Passing the qualifiers is just the second priority. Our first priority is to ensure everyone makes it back safe and sound."

    "Yeah." Harrison nodded. He glanced at the gray sky thoughtfully. "If anything happens to me, Richard, you have to take over the team and lead them safely. Don''t worry about me. Since the Federation is keeping an eye on us, they''ll dispatch a team to rescue me. You are to ensure everyone reaches Olympus City safely."

    "Gotcha. Same. If anything happens to me, don''t worry about me. I''ll survive somehow. Just bring the team back to the city." I grinned. "I''ll just nuke the Den of Dragons to oblivion if I have to."

    Harrison laughed out loud at that, drawing a couple of stares from the others. "Yeah, that certainly sounds like what you would do." He then turned serious. "Regardless, don''t do anything too reckless. The dragons there¡­they are not to be underestimated."

    "You too. Don''t go raising a flag in the middle of a journey." For some reason, I was getting some sort of premonition. "Everyone is depending on you to lead them to safety¡­and victory. Don''t get yourself killed."

    "You''re one to talk!" Harrison chuckled. I shrugged.

    "Well, I have plot armor, so nothing will happen to me unless the author gets sick of writing the story and decides to end it abruptly."

    "There you go with that kind of incomprehensible talk again." Harrison shook his head. "Well, I certainly hope nothing untoward will happen." He glanced at the trees again. "It''s also possible that those Assassins or Dark Church agents aren''t the only ones in the Aurora City district. We need to stay vigilant for them."

    "Agreed."

    "What should we do about those bodies?" Yue Chu asked as he stumbled over, still feeling the effects of Pearl''s healing spells. He cocked his head toward the corpses of the Assassins, and the Dark Church agents above the ridge.

    "Leave them," Harrison replied coldly. "Let the beasts of the forests have them."

    I smiled at the thought of the monsters having a feast tonight, long after we left this godforsaken place. "Knowing the Dark Church, I think they''ll be pretty happy and honored to continue serving their beloved monsters after death...as food."

 335 Chapter 335: Den of Dragons

    Fortunately for us, the next three days went on without any incident.

    It was already past the halfway point for us in terms of the deadline, since this was nearing the end of the eighth day. Fortunately, we were approaching the last portion of our journey. As long as we cleared this path, we would reach Olympus City before we knew it.

    "This is the Den of Dragons, huh?" Craig murmured as he glanced down from the ridge we were currently trekking on. The valley laid out before us was one that seemed made entirely out of ice. Coniferous trees still grew there, their green leaves barely visible under the heavy snow, but other than that the valley was almost completely white. Dark shadows often teasingly emerged on the edge of our vision, but they always seemed to dart out of our sight when we tried to lock onto them. What troubled us were the immense size of those shadows, and despite their massive bulk, the speed and grace with which they avoided our gaze.

    "It looks¡­scary," Sheila whispered, hugging herself to prevent a shiver.

    "Yeah," Lily agreed. She glanced at the rest of us. "We shouldn''t go down there."

    "I have no intention of trekking through the Den of Dragons," Harrison assured them. "Even though it''ll take us some extra time, I recommend that we take the long way around. We''re going to skirt over the edge of the Den¡­"

    He conjured a holographic map and displayed a blue path that was evidently the long way around. However, it skirted across the circumference of the red zone that was designated as the Den of Dragons, and as such allowed us to avoid the dangerous valley for the most part.

    "To be honest, I would love to put more distance between our route and the Den of Dragons, but there''s no alternative path. This is the only route toward Olympus City."

    The ridge that circled the Den of Dragon was located atop a ring of mountains. The only other way forward was to climb the mountains, which¡­to be honest, was not going to work. It would take us too long, perhaps weeks, if we climbed up and down the mountains surrounding the valley. We might as well just forfeit.

    "If only the rules allowed us to ride Richard''s flying Constellation spirits and just soar above the mountains, eh?" Dong Fang Yue Chu shot me a grin. I shook my head and shrugged.

    "That would be unfair to the other competitors," Theodore pointed out seriously. "Imagine if we could just fly there. Then all those teams with summoners who have flying Soul Beasts, such as Lilith Porter, would automatically qualify without facing any obstacles or hardship that the other teams have to face. It''s¡­just luck, and not an actual victory."

    "Thankfully the summoners are still allowed to summon flying Soul Beasts or whatever Soul Beasts to help with other things¡­like scouting, battling, reconnaissance, and driving away the monsters in the wild." Cody was considering the uses of my Constellation spirits thoughtfully. He was our lead scout, but my flock of Corvus had assisted him tremendously.

    "In any case, we should mentally prepare ourselves for the journey ahead." Harrison straightened up as he stared up the ridge. "Besides the enormous number of monsters inhabiting the mountains ¨C and I''m not even including the dragons within the Den yet ¨C the extreme weather conditions will stretch us to our limits. Make sure you have your winter gear and whatever stuff you need. This is certainly not going to be a walk in the park."

    "Yeah," I agreed with a sigh. "With temperatures that can go below negative thirty degrees Celsius¡­guys, make sure you guys watch out for frostbite and hypothermia."

    "I''ll take care of frostbite or any injuries," Pearl spoke up with a raise of her hand.

    "You should take care of yourself first," Bu Fan reminded her. "You''re our healer. If something happens to you, we''re all screwed."

    "That''s right," Harrison agreed as he folded his arms. "Try not to get separated from each other. That dense fog is going to reduce our visibility to zero. Especially you, Cody, don''t get out of range when you''re scouting ahead. Richard, we''re going to have to rely on your crows."

    "Roger that."

    "I''ll stay as close as possible," Cody consented at the same time, but it was clear he wasn''t going to abandon his duty.

    "All right¡­everyone ready? Let''s go."

    And thus, our group began to march into the ridge overlooking the Den of Dragons. The further we progressed along the thick ridge, the heavier the snow grew. And the colder it got.

    "Ugh¡­this¡­" Theodore grimaced as he tried to wade through the snow.

    "It''s so cold!" Yue Chu complained. Lily nodded and clung toward him, trying to generate as much heat as possible.

    "I guess we should just cast some fire spells to warm ourselves up," Bu Fan suggested as he raised his hand and ignited a huge flame. The snow somewhat abated around us, but it still wasn''t enough to disperse the curling fog.

    "At this rate, we might not make it in time," Craig muttered as he slogged through the thick snow, wincing when his boots sank all the way in.

    "We just need to endure until we reach the end of the valley," Sheila reminded him. "Another two or three days of trekking through this, and we should reach the main road leading toward Olympus City."

    "Do you think they''ll ask us to go to Aurora City from there?" Cody asked, keeping one step ahead of us, but he found himself buffeted by snow. "Ugh¡­I can''t see a thing!"

    "Yeah," I grumbled. Even with my hi-tech glasses, I couldn''t see anything either. Not even with infrared vision, or the myriad of sensors built into my glasses. Above, my flock of Corvus was trying to fly above the mountains, but all they spotted was a constant swirling dense mist that had settled across the ridge and valley, obscuring everything in white. "The damned fog is blocking everything. Even my Corvus can''t see anything either!"

    "Huff¡­" Sheila rubbed her gloved hands together, looking pretty miserable. Her breath came out in thick clouds. "I can''t stand this any longer¡­"

    "Pull yourselves together." Harrison was doing his best to sound encouraging. "We just need to endure this for the next two or three days. The faster we move, the earlier we can get out of this cold place."

    "Hang on. I have an idea." Pearl was staring at the flames in Bu Fan''s hand ¨C as well as Yue Chu, who had followed the Demon King''s example and ignited his own handful of fire ¨C and thinking deeply. She then smiled and raised both of her hands. "Everyone, please gather together."

    "Hmm?" All of us turned to look at her. She gestured impatiently.

    "Hurry!"

    "Right¡­" Harrison nodded, and we all clustered closer together. Whispering an incantation, Pearl then conjured a shimmering sphere of blue light that shrouded us.

    Immediately the cold fell away. The snow melted and dissipated harmlessly against the thin, transparent but blue-tinted barrier, no longer burying us in sludges. Even the ground became easier to walk on, probably because we were practically gliding across the snow within Pearl''s boundary.

    "Oh! That''s one way of using defensive enchantments!" Harrison''s eyes widened, and he nodded, impressed. "Thank you, Pearl!"

    "No problem." Pearl smiled, even though it was clear that she was going to have to spend quite a bit of mana to maintain the barrier. "This is the least I can do for the team, given how I lack combat ability."

    "Your healing spells have helped us a lot," Bu Fan reminded her. "I would say you''re the most important member of our team."

    "Without you guys, I wouldn''t be able to survive. All of you are equally important." She glanced ahead, where Cody had forged further front after warming up a little within her barrier. "Without Cody, or Richard, we wouldn''t know where we are going. And without you guys fighting off the Assassins, any other team would have been annihilated. Never mind the Assassins, we wouldn''t be able to survive the onslaught from monsters."

    I stayed silent and allowed everyone to flatter each other, my mind drifting elsewhere. I was still using Corvus''s eyes to look out for anything in front. It was so difficult to see anything in this thick fog, but if Cody was doing it, then I couldn''t complain. The guy had left the comfort of Pearl''s barrier to scout ahead in such extreme cold and poor visibility. At least I got to enjoy the warmth and relative safety within Pearl''s barrier, relying instead on my Constellation spirits to do the scouting for me. I had one Corvus keep his eyes on Cody, just to ensure his safety and to make sure he didn''t get lost or separated from the group.

    "Hmm?"

    However, it was one of my other Corvus that spotted something huge and immense coming through the snow. Cody also caught sight of it too, and he stopped for a moment.

    "Captain," he reported to Harrison using a spell. Not only did he communicate verbally, he also fired off a warning signal using magic. "There''s something ahead, and it looks big. Really, really big."

    "I don''t like this," Harrison muttered. "Maybe it''s a dragon. Cody, return to our position, now."

    "I''ll keep an eye on it for a bit longer¡­to make sure it''s not heading in our direction."

    "Actually, it is¡­no, they are heading in our direction." My Corvus had descended slightly to get a better view on what was approaching. When I saw what it was, my blood turned cold. "It''s an entire horde of monsters!"

    "Damn it!" Harrison cursed, one of the few rare times I heard him do that. "Get back here, Cody! That''s an order!"

    "Roger that!" Cody leaped up and began sprinting back toward the rest of the group. As for us, we began looking around. Even though the ridge was relatively wide, there wasn''t any space for us to take cover from an entire pack of stampeding monsters.

    "Oh boy¡­what the hell is that?" Craig demanded as he felt the ground shake beneath his feet. Sheila was quicker on the uptake.

    "An earthquake?"

    "No, worse." Theodore looked grim. "A stampede from a monster horde."

    "That''s right!" Harrison snapped, looking around for any shelter. We could jump off the ridge we were in, but that meant we would fall right into the Den of Dragons. And truth be told, most of us would rather face an entire bestial horde than encounter a dragon. A single dragon had the power to wipe out a pack of rank D monsters on its own.

    Fortunately, while I was staring at the Den of Dragons, Harrison was looking in the complete opposite.

    "Guys! Over there! Get to the cliff!"

    As fortune would have it, there was a sheer cliff standing to the side of the ridge we were traversing. And no, this wasn''t Battle Frenzy, so there were conveniently no vines that happened to be hanging over the face of the cliff. Especially not in this weather ¨C they would have been buried by the snow, and such plants wouldn''t have survived in the cold, unlike coniferous trees.

    Luckily, I was around, and I understood Harrison''s intention.

    "Cygnus! Aquila! Pegasus!"

    It took me two minutes to summon all three Constellation spirits, and it was cutting it dangerously close. The monsters that were approaching us would be upon our position in another minute. Or thirty seconds. Even as we ran toward the cliff (that was less than a hundred meters away), that was the most agonizing two minutes that passed in my life. The tension rose along with the tremors caused by the stampeding monstrous horde.

    "Get on!"

    "Thanks, Richard!"

    My friends scrambled upon my Constellation spirits in twos and threes, with Theodore, Harrison and Pearl climbing onto Aquila, Bu Fan, Yue Chu and Lily embarking upon Cygnus, and Craig and Sheila riding on Pegasus. My winged Constellation spirits immediately launched themselves into the air and deposited them atop the cliff.

    "Hey! Richard! What are you doing?! Get up here too!" Yue Chu bellowed when he noticed that I was still standing on the ground. I shook my head, and instead directed Cygnus to dive downward once he deposited his passengers. But when Yue Chu saw that I still hadn''t jumped on the swan''s back, he waved frantically. "You want to get squashed by the monsters or something?!"

    "I''m waiting for Cody to return!" I snapped. "Don''t worry about me!"

    I could see the cloud of snow and dust being kicked up in the distance, caused by none other than the stampeding horde. Magnifying the vision on my glasses, I spotted Cody sprinting at the head of them, perspiration running down his face as he pushed himself to his limits.

    "Time to go, Cygnus!"

    I hopped onto my swan and had him fly over to Cody. Throwing myself to the edge, I reached out with my hand.

    "Cody! Grab my hand!"

    "Gotcha, Vice-Captain!"

    Despite his predicament, Cody still managed a grin. He kicked off the ground and propelled himself high into the air while stretching his hand forward. I just managed to grab his wrist and pulled him aboard Cygnus.

    A few seconds later, the horde stampeded past below us, almost catching us in their cloud of snow and dust that was being kicked up by their rampage.

    "Stupid brutes," I growled, but Cygnus somehow soared back to the cliff where the others were waiting. Both Cody and I hopped off, the former still panting as he struggled to catch his breath. Even when buffed by physical reinforcement spells, he was still not immune to exhaustion.

    "Thanks for hauling my ass out of the fire," he told me.

    "No problem."

    "Whoever said that summoners are useless clearly are out of touch in reality," Pearl murmured, staring at me in amazement. She shook her head. "If they''re broadcasting the qualifiers throughout the Federation, people''s perception of summoners will change a lot!"

    "It''s just that their testing method was inadequate in the past." Harrison shook his head as he patted my shoulder. "They emphasized too much on one-on-one duels and the ranking system, rigidly sticking to it while ignoring teamwork and other aspects. It took the ministry of education too long to realize that such ranking systems don''t translate well into reality, just like game-like levels in LitRPG stories and cultivation stages in xianxia stories! Ranks, levels and cultivation stages aren''t absolute, and they should not be used to measure someone''s strength or determine the outcome of a match between two mages!"

    As if to voice their agreement, the stampeding monsters howled thunderously from below.

 336 Chapter 336: Blizzard

    The entire group stood on the ledge and watched as the horde of monsters continued to stampede forward. There were literally hundreds of them ¨C Horned Boariceratops. No, seriously, that was their names. They had a horn at their snout, and another larger one jutting from their forehead. Getting impaled by those rank D monsters would hurt tremendously¡­assuming you survived getting stabbed and pierced by those massive and deadly horns.

    "Phew, that was close." Theodore wiped the sweat off his forehead.

    "Good thing you spotted this cliff, Captain." Craig glanced and nodded at Harrison, who in turn smiled in my direction.

    "If it weren''t for Richard''s flying Constellation spirits, it would have been difficult for us to scale the steep cliff wall."

    "That''s true," Pearl admitted with a laugh. "I was never good at rock climbing."

    "It''s also a good idea to just avoid such a huge herd of monsters," Sheila added as she glanced down at the unceasing tide of Horned Boariceratops. "Trying to fight all of them would be suicide."

    "However, if we continue experiencing interruptions like this, wouldn''t we be delayed further?" Lily asked nervously. "At this rate, we won''t make it in time."

    "And we can''t just cut straight through the Den of Dragons either," Yue Chu grumbled, glaring at the valley further below. "Not unless we don''t mind becoming food for the dragons. Maybe we can beat one or even two of them, but a whole den of them? Not happening, even if Richard nukes the whole valley."

    "That will just attract unwanted attention to us," Bu Fan warned darkly. "Even if we nuke the dragons, there are bound to be other high-ranking and powerful monsters around, and they won''t just sit still and watch us nuke the place to oblivion."

    "That''s right." Theodore noded grimly in agreement. "No point risking it. It''s too dangerous."

    "Speaking of dangerous," Cody began and pointed into the distance. "Everyone, watch out!"

    "!!!"

    Everyone stared in the direction in which Cody was pointing. A howling blizzard was rapidly encroaching upon our position, blowing a ton of huge hailstones into the cliff. It was so powerful and violent that it actually lifted the few unfortunate Horned Boariceratops that were lagging behind and lifted them high up into the air, battering them with immense hail the size of small cars.

    "It''s a blizzard!" Harrison exclaimed, his voice filled with cold dread. "No wonder the Horned Boariceratops were running away!"

    "It''s coming in our direction!" Lily cried out. A little unnecessary, I might add, but given the dire circumstances, I couldn''t blame her or Harrison for stating the obvious.

    "Is Blizzard coming to announce a new Starcraft game?" I asked. Everyone turned to stare at me.

    "¡­huh?" Yue Chu gaped dumbly.

    "Starcraft?" Lily repeated incredulously.

    "What the fuck are you talking about?!" Craig demanded, annoyed.

    "Never mind," I muttered. "I was just trying to lighten the mood."

    "This isn''t the time to be making jokes!" Sheila snapped. I shrugged.

    "Should we start screaming and running then?"

    "Where can we run?" Theodore asked, looking left and right. The cliff we were on was pretty narrow, and at the rate the blizzard was heading toward us as well as the immense speed at which it was approaching, there was nowhere to escape to. There was also no shelter under which we could seek cover from the storm.

    "Pearl! Defensive enchantment!" Harrison ordered without hesitation, turning to our blue-haired healer. She nodded and closed her eyes for a moment, still looking a little pale. Taking a deep breath, she then raised both hands and murmured an incantation.

    "Guardian Sphere!"

    At her words, a spherical barrier formed over us, a blue-tinted transparent screen that solidified into a protective bubble. And not a moment too soon. The second Pearl finished casting her defensive spell, the howling blizzard slammed violently against her Guardian Sphere. Vehicle-sized chunks of hail relentlessly banged against the seemingly fragile screen, almost causing it to warp inward from the immense impacts.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    Perspiration running down her pale face, Pearl struggled to maintain her Guardian Sphere. A few huge hailstones were getting through, smashing their way through her thinning barrier and crashing down upon us.

    "Damn it! I''m sorry, everyone!" Pearl almost looked as if she was about to cry. "I won''t be able to block all of the hailstones!"

    "Don''t worry. You''ve bought me more than enough time."

    Holding up my hand, I summoned Black Tortoise. The Celestial Guardian balanced precariously upon the narrow cliff, which was just wide enough to accommodate his massive bulk. Even so, he dug his feet in and slowly conjured a water sphere that reinforced Pearl''s Guardian Sphere. The watery barrier managed to deflect the crushing hailstones.

    "You really have some kind of Soul Beast for almost every situation, don''t you?" Pearl smiled gratefully at me before she sank to her knees, exhausted. Harrison hurried to help her up, but she waved him away. "Can you hold the fort while I recover? I will definitely construct a stronger Guardian Sphere if you give me more time to cast a more powerful version of the spell."

    "There''s no need for that. Thanks to Richard, I have the time to start constructing a Holy Barrier that should theoretically be powerful enough to protect us from the blizzard." Harrison turned toward me. "Your summoning magic is more flexible, so once I finish casting the spell, dismiss your Soul Beast and allow me to take over. I need you to conserve your mana in case something happens." He jerked his head in the direction of the disappearing horde of Horned Boariceratops. "We might need your Soul Beasts if another pack of monsters show up. They''ll be more useful than my holy spells in combat."

    "Roger that." I couldn''t fault Harrison''s logic. He had a valid point. Not that Harrison was bad in combat ¨C on the contrary, he was far more competent than most in fighting ¨C but he was correct in that my Constellation spirits would deal far more damage to monsters and potential enemies than his holy magic. Which, honestly, specialized in defenses and buffs. It was those buffs that turned Harrison into a formidable fighter when he cast them on himself, but certainly they would be far more effective when he cast them on my Constellation spirits.

    It was a matter of delegation, I guess.

    "I''ll leave it to you then," I told him while I made my way toward Black Tortoise. Outside the Water Sphere, the giant hailstones continued bombarding, but they failed to penetrate my barrier. Hah! My Black Tortoise''s defensive spells were invincible!

    Of course, as Harrison rightly pointed out, they cost quite a lot of mana. I didn''t know how long the blizzard would continue for, but it wasn''t practical for me to maintain a magical barrier for hours on end. I didn''t have that much mana to spare.

    "Give me five minutes and I''ll be able to construct a strong enough barrier," Harrison told me. I nodded, but wondered about why he needed that much time. It took me five minutes to summon Black Tortoise, which I had already started casting the moment I saw the blizzard. Pearl''s Guardian Sphere bought me another few precious minutes, or I would have done it sooner to spare her the suffering. Then I realized that Harrison had his hands full trying to help Pearl. Not only that, he had been silently buffing Pearl''s spell with his holy spells before she was forced to dismiss it, which was the only reason why our healer''s hastily cast protective spell lasted as long as it did.

    Additionally, Harrison was busily calculating a schedule. He decided to let me maintain the barrier for another five minutes so that he could keep his up for as long as possible. Currently, he was also glancing around to take stock of our team and see who was capable of constructing barriers. He swiftly spoke to Dong Fang Yue Chu, who nodded.

    "Yeah, I think my firewall should be able to protect us from the blizzard for an hour or so."

    "Good. I''ll take the first hour or two."

    "Wait!" Pearl raised a hand, still breathless from her earlier exertion. "Yue Chu is one of our combatants. I should take the second or third hour. By then I should recover enough mana to be able to maintain a higher level Guardian Sphere."

    "Good point," Harrison conceded as he glanced at me. By that logic, he might as well allow me to take the brunt of the blizzard for the first hour since there wasn''t much of a difference between getting me to do it and getting Yue Chu to do it. "We''ll do that then. But Richard and Yue Chu, both of you should still standby with your spells."

    "Gotcha."

    Both Yue Chu and I nodded in understanding. As long as we didn''t move, we could indefinitely standby with our spells. Like I said, casting spells were akin to downloading a file from the Internet. Theoretically we could pause the casting process at 99% and standby until we needed to complete the casting. While we couldn''t cancel the spell once it reached 100% - it would manifest no matter what ¨C we could still pause it at near completion indefinitely¡­until we moved out of the 100 meter boundary from where we first started casting the spell.

    With the blizzard battering at our defenses, it was clear that we wouldn''t be going anywhere for a long while, so we wouldn''t be wasting our time or mana casting the spells and remaining on standby. Hell, most of the mana expenditure happened during the manifestation and complete casting of the spell (literally 100% download completed), so it wasn''t even a waste of mana, to be honest. Of course, we would still have to spend quite a bit of mana, but it was a mere fraction of the amount we would have to spend if we were to complete the spell and manifest it in reality.

    If that was the case, it wasn''t going to affect us much even if our goal was to conserve our mana for a future battle. Besides, we were a team. We had to share the load, not leave everything to Harrison and Pearl. If something happened to either or both of them, then we would be in trouble if we weren''t prepared.

    The blizzard continued pounding away at my defenses, as well as the cliff, with gigantic hailstones. My friends instinctively shrank away from the edge, backing away from the sheer drop and going near a second cliff wall that made up the mountain we were now perched on. Since the Den of Dragons was a valley, to skirt around it, we had chosen to follow a ridge atop a mountain that ran along its circumference.

    I stayed near Black Tortoise, listening as the massive hailstones bombarded his water sphere and the face of the cliff, shaking large sludges of snow loose and causing them to crash down below. I was reminded of the avalanche that the Assassins sprang on us a few days ago, and idly wondered if it would work on monsters.

    Speaking of which, the Boariceratops were no longer present. They had long since fled the area, with the majority of them having outrun the blizzard. Good for them. Even though they were monsters, I wasn''t vicious enough to wish such a freezing death upon them. Or something.

    "All right, I''m ready! Get ready to dismiss your Black Tortoise, and back away from the edge!" Harrison was looking at me disapprovingly. "It''s dangerous."

    "Yeah, but I can''t just leave my Celestial Guardian alone, especially when he''s the one protecting us all."

    "Well¡­I understand, but I don''t want you to fall off the edge."

    I scoffed at that. "Are you serious? Come on, man. I can''t be that unlucky."

    "Better safe than sorry. Anyway¡­Holy Barrier!"

    He raised a hand and conjured a golden sphere of light that settled over us. A few seconds later, I dismissed the water sphere and nodded at Black Tortoise, getting ready to return him to whatever spectral dimension he resided in before I summoned him.

    That was when I heard an ominous crack.

    "¡­eh?"

    None of us realized it, but the constant and relentless pounding of the hailstones had weakened the cliff tremendously, loosening the rock and rendering it very fragile. The massive weight of Black Tortoise ¨C I mean, look at that huge shell, man ¨C amplified the effects of the erosion, and the cliff had been steadily cracking and crumbling below our feet without us noticing it.

    To be fair, how could we have noticed it? Not unless we were hanging off the edge and staring directly at the face of the cliff.

    Unfortunately, that fact didn''t help me one bit. Before I realized it, the ground beneath me and my Black Tortoise gave way and broke apart as a particularly huge hailstone struck the cliff somewhere below. It was a chain reaction. As the hailstone gouged out a huge chunk of rock, the edge of the cliff ¨C already weakened from the merciless bombardment of hail ¨C began to fall apart, and so the ground disintegrated, spilling both me and my Black Tortoise into the chasm below.

    "Whoa!"

    "Richard!"

    "Richie!"

    "NO!"

    The last thing I saw before I was swept up and away by the blizzard ¨C along with my disappearing Black Tortoise ¨C was the terrified faces of my friends. Good thing Harrison had managed to erect that Holy Barrier of his. All of my friends were safely protected behind that shimmering gold screen.

    Not that it was of much help to me.

    I tried to summon Cygnus or Aquila, but I knew inwardly it would be useless. I could attempt to summon any flying Constellation spirit ¨C or even Vermillion Phoenix ¨C but there was no way they would be able to fly inside such a violent storm. Like me, they would be caught by the ferocious, freezing winds and sent tumbling helplessly in the air, unable to control their movements.

    That didn''t mean I wasn''t going to try, however. Taking a deep breath, even though the chilling air burned my lungs, I tried to gather as much mana as possible, to complete my summoning spell.

    Unfortunately for me, while I was struggling in midair, a particularly large hailstone slammed into my head.

    Then everything went dark.

 337 Chapter 337: Loss

    "Richie! Hold on! I''m coming!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was yelling as he sprinted toward me, but I was already gone, swept away by the howling blizzard and vanishing into the distance.

    "Yue Chu! Stop!"

    Lily managed to grab hold of him and yank him back before he could run through the Holy Barrier that Harrison had set up.

    "But¡­! Richard, he¡­!"

    "He''s gone." Theodore was staring at the blizzard dumbly, unable to believe what he had just witnessed. "The blizzard took him."

    "Damn it!" Yue Chu slammed a fist against the ice. "We''ve to go down and save him!"

    "How?" Bu Fan asked bluntly. "Do you know where the blizzard blew him off to? Are you going to jump into the blizzard and let it blow you away as well?"

    "You¡­!" Yue Chu growled, but Craig and Cody held him back.

    "Bu Fan has a point," Cody said quietly. "You''ll only get sucked into the blizzard and blown off if you jump in now. Then we''ll have to look for not just Richard but you too."

    "And we have no idea where Richard would be blown off to. The valley is so huge¡­it''s possible he was blown to the Den of Dragons." Craig sighed in frustration. "As much as I hate to admit it, we''ll only be walking to our deaths if we try to search the Den for Richard."

    "We''ll have to contact the tournament staff and request them to send a request team." Sheila was looking over the edge and staring bleakly at the rampaging blizzard.

    "Actually¡­about that¡­"

    While everyone was busily stopping Yue Chu and reasoning, Harrison had fallen into deep contemplation for a while now. He watched the blizzard for a few moments and then hardened his gaze.

    "It''s Richard we''re talking about here. If anyone can survive, it''ll be him. He''s a lot more resourceful than we give him credit for."

    "That''s true," Theodore agreed. "A year ago, no one would have thought it possible for him to rise to the top of our school. With summoning magic, no les."

    "And he has those nuke spells if things go south for him," Yue Chu added, feeling a lot calmer now. Craig chuckled at that.

    "Additionally¡­" Harrison was staring deep into the valley, as if he had noticed something. "We probably don''t even have to call in a rescue team."

    "Huh? Why not?" Pearl gaped at him. "I don''t care if our team has to forfeit the qualifiers! None of us do! It''s meaningless if we lose a member!"

    "No, that''s not what I''m worried about. I would forfeit the qualifiers to call in a rescue squad, but I think someone is already en route to help him." Harrison didn''t take his gaze from the valley at all, his blue eyes seeming to pierce the thick, white veil of the howling blizzard. "Do you remember the green-haired girl from before? Richard''s, uh, friend?"

    "More like his girlfriend," Craig chuckled cheekily. That got a few laughs from the rest of the team, and the mood gradually lightened.

    "Maybe," Harrison conceded with a smile. "Whoever she is, she has most likely gone after Richard. I think it''s safe to leave him to her. If Richard does need rescuing, a skilled mercenary like her should be more than capable of pulling him out of the fire. The Silver Wolves wouldn''t have recruited her otherwise, if she didn''t have the ability."

    "That''s true." Lily nodded, feeling a lot more relieved. Everyone knew the reputation of the Silver Wolves, and were personally trained by our esteemed senior, Feng Hai. They were an almost legendary existence, almost on par with my dad.

    "What if you''re wrong, and Richie dies?" Yue Chu asked solemnly. A deadly silence hung in the air for a few seconds before Bu Fan ¨C unexpectedly ¨C broke it.

    "Then I''ll be the new main character." Bu Fan folded his arms. "And you''ll get to read about how I get into university, become the new Demon King by defeating two hundred students with summoning magic, perform a few missions with Teacher Tang Yue, save the campus from scaly parasitic monsters that take human hosts during a concert, protect a gigantic snake god from evil politicians, switch my specialization from summoning magic back to fire magic and defeat the whole division of fire mage students."

    Everyone stared at him blankly.

    "¡­huh?" was all Sheila managed to say.

    "You''re in the wrong story, mate," Theodore finally managed to speak up.

    "If that''s what will happen, why don''t you get everyone to read Versatile Mage instead?" Craig snapped, annoyed.

    "That''s my goal," Bu Fan replied smugly. "I''m trying to force readers away from this trash of a story and read Versatile Mage instead. It''s so much better, and it''s more worth it to spend your Spirit Stones on Verstaile Mage. A lot of readers are complaining about how rubbish this story is, and demanding that Webnovel stop making it premium. A few of them are also demanding that Webnovel takes down and deletes the story, and ban the writer from the site because they think he''s the worst to have ever existed in history."

    "I''m¡­kind of lost now." Cody was looking utterly confused.

    "Go read the comments on the right, or the Discord server. You''ll understand what I mean."

    Everyone exchanged glances, and then started to ignore Bu Fan from then on. No matter how much he gestured wildly toward the comments section or point them toward Discord, they didn''t bother. They had more important things to do.

    "Everyone, stay away from the edge. Keep a safe distance from the blizzard," Harrison instructed. Having seen what happened to me, they obeyed. None of them wanted to be blown off like I was. And yeah, I was going to use first person perspective. Let''s just say Yue Chu told me everything that had happened after I was blown off, and I was recording down in what was clearly my memoirs. No reason to break out of first person perspective just because I wasn''t around. I was at least present in spirit, even if I wasn''t physically.

    Fortunately, Pearl didn''t need to conjure her barrier. Before two hours were up, the blizzard exhausted itself to nothingness and abated. Or rather than abate, it blew over the team''s position and traveled up the mountain, completely passing over them.

    "Phew¡­"

    Raising a hand to his eyes, Harrison watched the tail of the blizzard whip across the mountain peaks, searching for new victims to torment and freeze. The hailstones had vanished along with its parent, leaving mild drifts of snow that lazily settled over their encampment.

    "The blizzard is finally gone. The horde of Horned Boariceratops have also run off somewhere as well, and I don''t think they will be coming back. I think we''re safe for now."

    "I hope you''re right about Richard, Harrison." Yue Chu glanced at the Den of Dragons, which was slightly more visible than before, now that the dense blizzard was gone. "I honestly still think we should call for rescue¡­"

    "Uuu¡­it''s all my fault." Pearl was sobbing. "If only my magic was strong enough to endure the onslaught of the blizzard earlier, then¡­"

    "Uh, wasn''t it Richard, and then Harrison who were conjuring the barrier before the accident?" Bu Fan was blint as usual. "I mean no offense, but you only summoned your Guardian Sphere for the first few minutes before Richard took over. Nothing you did would have made any difference."

    Sheila smacked him, and Lily kicked him. Bu Fan staggered and whirled around to glare at the two girls.

    "Hey! What''s that for?!"

    "For not showing any delicacy to a girl!"

    "For not showing any tact at all!"

    "Huh? But I was just telling the truth¡­!" he then glanced at Harrison worriedly. "The person who is feeling the guiltiest right now should be our captain."

    "Oh, wow¡­" Yue Chu''s jaw dropped as he stared at Bu Fan in amazement. "I never thought I would hear that from you. You''re actually being considerate of someone?"

    "Hey!" Bu Fan snapped. "What do you take me for?!"

    Harrison ignored the banter between the two and placed a hand on Pearl''s shoulder, offering some comfort.

    "Pearl, please don''t blame yourself. You did your best under the circumstances. If anything, I''m the one who should assume responsibility."

    "No!" Pearl squeezed his hand tightly, looking stricken. "You did your best too! No one could have known that would have happened!"

    "Yeah, Captain!" Craig agreed wholeheartedly. "This isn''t anyone''s fault!"

    "Given Richard''s abilities and resourcefulness, I''m sure he''ll survive even if he somehow ends up in a Den of Dragons." Theodore looked thoughtful. "In fact, I won''t be surprised if he gets a new summoned beast, or some treasure, or some new skill when he escapes from there and rejoins us."

    "Just like the typical main character of a Chinese web novel, huh?" Yue Chu chuckled with a shake of his head. "That figures. Richie''s always reading those."

    "I still think we should request for help, even if we have to forfeit the qualifiers." Pearl raised a trembling hand, trying to stifle the quiver in her voice. "Without Richard, we wouldn''t have made it this far."

    "I agree," Cody said quietly.

    "Me too!" Yue Chu growled forcefully.

    "Actually¡­" Harrison raised the blue badge that the tournament staff handed to him at the beginning of the qualifiers. The squarish device projected a blue-tinted holographic screen above. "I already did that. I contacted the tournament staff using the emergency hotline, right after the blizzard blew past us. That was the first thing I did the moment I regained a signal."

    "Eh?!" everyone stared at him in shock. Harrison could only shrug sheepishly.

    "Sorry for not telling you guys. But I thought that Richard''s life was more important than reaching a consensus."

    "That''s true," Craig agreed with a nod. "We''re not some murderous bastards who abandon our comrade to the wild like¡­Bei Pan Zhe and those girls."

    By the way, the teammates who deserted me during my first mission, because they wanted me to die during an "accident" after getting jealous of me being close to Alicia, were currently imprisoned. They wouldn''t be getting out of jail for another twenty or thirty years. Ten at the minimum, if they get released on parole.

    By then I would be so far out of their lives it wouldn''t matter. And their own lives had been ruined by their criminal record. Nobody would hire them to be mages.

    "So are they sending a rescue squad for Richard?" Pearl asked eagerly.

    "Well¡­" Harrison began to replay the conversation for them to hear. As they exchanged glances of astonishment, he nodded. "Yeah, they told us to resume the trek, and reminded me that as long as at least half of us reach the destination, we will qualify for the next round. As for Richard, there is already someone looking after him, so they told me not to worry about him. He''s in good hands." He took a deep breath and stared at the holographic screen. "As you heard, they told me to trust them."

    "I trust them," Yue Chu said simply.

    "I bet that someone is that green-haired girl from earlier," Craig remarked cheekily. "He get to be alone with her in such a barren place¡­we need to grill him for details when he returns!"

    "Yeah!" Lily was giggling.

    "We want to hear all about it." Sheila was nodding. Girls and their love for romance gossip. Ugh.

    "Anyway, we should continue to move on. We''ll head to Olympus City and wait for Richard there." Harrison straightened up, switched off the holographic screen and put the blue badge back into the pocket of his winter coat. "Let''s get ready to move out! We have a lot of ground to cover and not much time left! And we sure as hell don''t want to arrive in Olympus City after Richard has already reached there!"

    "Yeah!"

    With a roar of approval, everyone began to enthusiastically break camp and prepared for the remainder of the journey.

 338 Chapter 338: Den of Dragons 2

    "Ugh¡­"

    The moment I woke up, I immediately winced as a splitting headache lanced through my skull. Holding my head, I tried to sit up, only to collapse back down from the intense throbbing.

    "Ara? Are you awake?"

    A gentle voice spoke up above me. For a moment, the throbbing abated slightly and I realized there was something soft cradling my head.

    Blinking my eyes open, I tried to look upward, only for my vision to be slightly blurred when I realized my glasses were gone. Even with my sense of sight impaired I could make out Anastasia''s pretty face staring at me from above.

    "¡­Ana?"

    "Oh, good. You recognize me. Seems like the injury to your head isn''t that bad after all." Anastasia nodded, pleased. "You were really lucky. To have survived even after being carried off by the blizzard like that."

    "¡­blizzard? Did they carry me off to Blizzcon? Are they going to announce Starcraft 3?"

    Anastasia rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you''re definitely all right."

    "I guess." Closing my eyes again, I savored the soft sensation below my head. The pain was dissipating slowly as I gathered mana to reinforce and repair the damage dealt to my head, and I suddenly realized the reason why I was feeling so comfortable.

    Anastasia was giving me a lap pillow. She had my head nestled on her lap, while the rest of my body was spread out on the ground. Presumably to ensure I didn''t have any broken bones or whatever. Fortunately, everything seemed to be in order. I tested my limbs to make sure they were fine, and other than a few bruises, cuts and scrapes, I was virtually unscathed.

    That was a lot better than I expected. I had thought I would at least wake up with one leg heavily bandaged because of a sprain or something. As it turned out, I didn''t even need anything for my head.

    "Whoa, I managed to survive a blizzard without suffering much serious injury?" I raised a hand to my head as I sat up, not wanting to exploit Ana''s kindness further. "Well, it seems like I have one hell of a concussion, though."

    Fortunately, with mana, I should be able to accelerate my healing. It wasn''t healing magic ¨C all mages were capable of speeding up their body''s recovery processes. The more serious the injury, the longer it took to heal, which was why healing magic was so vital ¨C also, healing magic helped restore lost limbs, destroyed organs and other stuff. It was a miraculous kind of magic that was capable of doing almost everything just short of reviving the dead.

    It wasn''t my calling, though. I personally knew I didn''t have the aptitude for it. I did take a healing class once in Jing Tian High, and dropped out almost immediately. If I had continued, I would have completely flunked it.

    "Where are we? How long was I out?"

    "The Den of Dragons," Anastasia replied ominously. She glanced at her smartphone. "Hmm, I''d say you were out for a couple of hours at most. Not too long."

    "Thanks." I struggled to sit up as I continued to massage my temples in an attempt to coax the annoying headache away. Fortunately, the pain was gradually subsiding. "You saved me."

    "No, actually¡­I didn''t." Anastasia gave me a look. "You got blown here. I followed you into the Den of Dragons, found you here, and decide to take care of you until you wake up. But I didn''t save you at all."

    "Huh?"

    "You were fortunate to fall into this chasm." Anastasia pointed upward and I saw that we were surrounded by ice walls. "I doubt the dragons will bother looking into here. Even if I hadn''t shown up, you would have been fine if left alone. You''ll just wake up and get out of here by yourself." She nodded and raised both of her hands. "So technically, I didn''t intervene. You''re still in the qualifiers. That is to say, you''re not disqualified yet."

    "Hmm, okay. Thanks, though. I still appreciate you comng down here to accompany me." I glanced up, but I couldn''t see anything beyond the sheer ice walls. Perhaps I should summon Corvus and send them flying up to take a look. Not that they would be able to spot my team. "What about my friends?"

    "From what I know, they are safe and sound. They will be moving on to Olympus City. I''ve assured them that I''ll keep an eye on you, so they will go on ahead of you."

    "Wise choice." I nodded. Harrison would know how to lead the rest of the group. There was a reason why he was the captain. As for me¡­

    I caught sight of a few of the Horned Boariceratops lying motionlessly in the abyss. Evidently they had been blown into this chasm by the blizzard, but unlike me, they didn''t survive the fall. Yeah, well¡­I couldn''t blame them. If this was a game or story, they were "mob characters" (a term I really hated because it just disregarded every living thing in this world and condemned them as insignificant), and I had plot armor protecting me.

    Honestly, there were no such thing as mob characters, no matter how much Meatballs insisted. Each monster was a potential threat, especially if I let down my guard. Similarly, the people in this world did not exist for me to beat up and defeat, no matter how much readers like Meatballs insisted they did. That was blatantly disrespecting them, and completely unrealistic.

    Unfortunately, that didn''t change the fact that they were dead, so I clasped my hands, uttered a prayer (to God for Christians, to Buddha for Buddhists, to Allah for Muslims), and then summoned Gemini to begin carving them apart.

    "Oh?" Anastasia sent a curious gaze in my direction.

    "No point letting the meat go to waste. And we should eat before we leave." I turned toward her. "You joining me for a meal doesn''t count as intervention, right?"

    "Nope," Anastasia confirmed with a shrug. "Well, this is an emergency, so we have quite a lot of leeway as to what we can do in this particular situation."

    "Okay." I nodded, and grabbing a few branches and twigs that had scattered into the abyss along with me and the Boariceratops, I created a fire. I wasn''t as skilled as Dong Fang Yue Chu or Bu Fan, but I at least knew the most basic of fire spells. It literally took me just a snap of my fingers to create a small spark and set the dry wood ablaze.

    After that, I went to work on skewering the pieces of meat. Feeling awkward when she just sat there doing nothing, Anastasia joined me and helped with roasting the meat over the fire. She giggled as she watched the meat slowly change color.

    "Boariceratops meat is supposed to be highly nutritious."

    "Oh?" I glanced at her. She shrugged.

    "That''s what I heard."

    "Hmm¡­"

    Even though I read quite a bit on monsters from various encyclopedias, none of them mentioned monsters as delicacies. So my knowledge regarding their nutritional value or taste was sorely lacking. On the other hand, Anastasia had been rasied as an Assassin, and no doubt a major part of her training involved throwing her out into the wilderness and leaving her to fend for herself. She must have needed to hunt monsters for food in order to survive.

    That was also the reason why she was so good at tracking my team and keeping an eye on us. If she hadn''t shown up to help us against Rei and his disciples, I would never have known that she was following us the entire time.

    "¡­outside influence, huh?" I murmured. "I suppose the blizzard counted as external influence?"

    "That''s right." Anastasia nodded before she nibbled away at a chunk of warm meat. "That''s why I have a lot of leeway in helping you¡­until you rejoin your team. Well¡­to a certain point. The moment we leave the Den of Dragons, you are on your own."

    I nodded. "Fair enough."

    A distant roar rumbled from somewhere above, and the both of us tensed. Taking a deep breath, I turned the skewered meat over in my hand as I felt a sense of dread crawl over me.

    "This isn''t going to be easy¡­"

    *

    "We made it!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu breathed heavily when the whole team, minus me, strode through the doors of the Olympus City center. Many of the teams who had made it were resting there before taking the train to Aurora City. Well, those teams whose members were all accounted for, anyway.

    "Yeah, we sure did." Theodore nodded, feeling an immense sense of relief as he looked around, almost as if he couldn''t believe that they were able to reach their destination.

    "I never doubted us," Lily declared with a bright smile.

    "Is everyone all right?" Harrison asked, checking on his team and carrying out his duty as captain.

    "I am," Cody said softly.

    "No injuries here," Craig assured him.

    "None for me too," Lily added. She smiled at Pearl, who was still looking a little crestfallen. "It''s all thanks to Pearl''s healing magic."

    "¡­but Richard¡­he''s not here." The blue-haired healing mage was unable to suppress a guilty look.

    "A mere blizzard won''t kill him," Bu Fan said dismissively. "I wouldn''t worry about him if I were you. Knowing him, he''ll show up in dramatic fashion on the very last day, arriving just minutes or even seconds before the deadline."

    Yue Chu gaped at him in disbelief, momentarily dumbfounded. When he finally found his voice, he tried to work his mouth.

    "I can''t believe that you, of all people, have so much confidence in him." he then rolled his eyes. "And please don''t give us that main character and plot armor bullshit. This is reality."

    "Well, putting that aside¡­" Bu Fan waved Yue Chu''s words away with a flourish. "The guy can nuke entire mountain ranges and wipe out hordes of rank A monsters. If there''s anyone who can survive the Den of Dragons, it''ll be him."

    "Even if it''s Richard, he still has to be careful." Harrison was pondering thoughtfully. "He can''t recklessly use his Strategic-scale spell, or he''ll be in trouble when another dragon shows up. Never mind a dragon, he''ll be too exhausted to fight the other monsters that show up after he nukes the Den."

    "That''s where the rescue team comes in, right?" Craig suggested hopefully. Sheila smacked him.

    "Even if they send a top rescue team, they''ll have difficulty trying to extricate him from a horde of monsters. And it''s not as if they can teleport to his position immediately after he nukes the dragons. Assuming they survived following him through the Den of Dragons. Even the most skilled mercenaries avoid the Den as much as possible."

    "That green-haired mercenary seemed extremely skilled, though." Theodore seemed to be gazing into the distance. "I daresay Richard is in good hands."

    "¡­that''s true. We can only hope and pray for the best." Harrison nodded and sighed. Before they could continue, one of the tournament staff stepped forward, his military uniform immaculate and his short-cropped hair hidden under a purple beret.

    "Congratulations on passing the qualifiers!" He declared. He stared at their winter coats for a moment, realizing that he couldn''t see their school uniforms under the thick winter clothing. So he had to do this the hard way. "Um, which team are you guys from?"

    "We''re the team from Jing Tian Academy," Harrison reported without hesitation. The soldier blinked for a moment, as if realizing something.

    "Wait, that means¡­you''re the team who encountered a blizzard and almost got run over by a stampede of Horned Boariceratops? Yet all of you managed to arrive here safely?!"

    "¡­not all¡­" Pearl''s shoulders were slumped. The soldier stiffened when he sensed the mood of the team, and he lowered his head apologetically.

    "Oh¡­I''m sorry." He softened his tone. "Don''t worry, we have tournament staff stationed all over the forest. I''m sure they''ll be able to rescue your friend. For now, you guys should go get some rest, and get ready to depart for Aurora City once we bring back your friend."

    Everyone stared at him in wonder. It was as if the soldier was assuming that it was only natural for the mercenaries or tournament staff to rescue me and bring me safely back to the Olympus City center. That was quite the confidence they had.

    Slowly, they began to feel a bit better and more assured. That was right. They should have faith in the authorities. Well¡­not exactly, but you know what I mean. Just like how you believe an ambulance will show up when you dialed the emergency hotline, or for the firefighters to arrive to extinguish the flames on your house, that sort of thing. I ain''t talking about politics here.

    Harrison handed the tournament staff the badge, and he nodded in approval. He scanned it with his smartphone, and verified the identity of our team.

    "Good, I''ve confirmed that Jing Tian Academy has successfully passed the qualifiers, especially since you''ve returned with the badge, and more importantly, with sufficient members of the team. Again, allow me to offer my congratulations. We''ll all gather back here, in the main hall, on the last day, before we proceed to Aurora City."

    "Roger that."

    With that, the staff dismissed the team, and they began to head back toward the dormitory they were assigned to. As they did so, a familiar figure popped up.

    "Oh? Aren''t you guys from Jing Tian Academy?"

    It was none other than Ding Ke Po from Divine Divination Academy. Everyone turned to glare at him.

    "What do you want?" Craig demanded.

    "No, nothing. Just offering my congratulations to you guys for passing the qualifiers." He then paused for a moment and crowed. "But you''re still slightly slower than us!"

    "Yeah, yeah." Bu Fan was irritably waving the guy away. "If there''s nothing else, I''m going to hit the sack."

    "Hmm?" Ding Ke Po stepped aside to allow Bu Fan to pass, but he noticed something was amiss. "Where is the guy wearning glasses? The one with black hair?"

    "Richard?" Yue Chu shrugged. "Doing his own quest¡­he''ll catch up with us later."

    Ding Ke Po paused for a moment, his sharp intuition allowing him to form a picture of the truth. He then smiled and shook his head.

    "I wouldn''t worry about your friend if I were you. According to my extensive knowledge of astrology, that Richard fella is a child favored by the stars. He won''t die so easily."

    "You''re an astrologer?" Harrison asked skeptically.

    "I mean, he''s from a school called Divine Divination Academy," Yue Chu pointed out dryly. Ding Ke Po chuckled.

    "That''s right! That''s why I say, don''t worry!"

    "We might have to worry a bit, though," Cody remarked glumly. He was consulting his smartphone. Looking up, he sighed. "According to the rules, if Richard doesn''t make it before the deadline in four days¡­if he arrives in Olympus City after the deadline, then he will be disqualified."

    That meant, if I didn''t hurry, I wouldn''t be participating in this year''s national tournament at all.

    Richard¡­ Pearl clasped her hands in prayer, closing her eyes briefly. Where are you¡­?

 339 Chapter 339: Rescue Mission

    As it turned out, I was disqualified after all.

    "Well, sorry to say, but¡­the moment you needed to be rescued, and have a mercenary escort you out of the Aurora Mountains, you''re disqualified."

    Captain Brent, especially since he was the leader, knew more about the situation than poor Anastasia did.

    "I understand that the blizzard was beyond your control, but what did you expect when you entered the Aurora Mountains? We did specify that the weather was not considered outside influences, along with the monsters. I know it''s frustrating, and it''s pretty much bad luck on your part, but rules are rules."

    "I''m so sorry." Ana bowed her head to me. "It''s all my fault. If I didn''t intervene and save you, you wouldn''t have been disqualified."

    "Seriously?" I wasn''t sure whether to be mad or amused. "Are you really apologizing to me for helping me? My life is more important than making it past the qualifiers. Sure, I might be disappointed, but I''m more relieved that I''m alive."

    "Well¡­that''s the thing, you see" Anastasia shifted uncomfortably. "I didn''t even help you much at all. You could have survived on your own, and get out of the abyss by yourself. You didn''t require assistance at all ¨C if I left you to deal with your situation alone, you wouldn''t have been disqualified."

    Oh¡­well, that was fine. I appreciated Anastasia''s kind intentions, and while it was frustrating to be disqualified, that was life. Things happened that were beyond my control. I was still alive after such a dangerous predicament, and honestly, that was all that mattered.

    After recovering from my fall, I had summoned Cygnus, and both Anastasia and I hopped on to fly out of the chasm the blizzard had blown me into. I had half a mind to just fly out of the Den of Dragons, but I didn''t know I was disqualified then, and so I followed the rules and had Cygnus put us down somewhere in a coniferous forest, using the trees for cover.

    It was fortunate that I did, for a dragon burst out of the canopy, its massive form gliding over the swaying trees. If we had been flying on Cyngus for a few minutes longer, the dragon would have spotted over, flew over and attacked. After just barely escaping with my life from the blizzard, I was in no condition to fight a rank A Behemoth so soon.

    The both of us stay hidden and waited for the dragon to fly past before proceeding. No sooner did we move than Brent, Redfield and several familiar members of the Silver Wolves showed up.

    "Captain Brent!" Anastasia had hurried over, and snapped a salute. He nodded in acknowledgement, and then turned from her to me, frowning.

    "Uh¡­Ana, you do realize that the moment you helped Richard, he was disqualified, right?"

    "Eh? But I didn''t help him at all. And besides, he was blown off by a blizzard! It couldn''t be helped! Aren''t we supposed to assist the students in case of unexpected situations?"

    "That only covers external forces, such as the Dark Church, Assassins and terrorist acts. The weather, though abrupt, is not an external force. Did you forget the briefing?"

    "EH!?"

    And that was how we came to this conversation. Well, what was done was done. There was no point blaming Anastasia, especially since she meant well, and it was useless to cry over spilled milk. So I smiled and just ran with it. My teammates would be disappointed, but if they had proceeded to Olympus City without me, then they would have assumed the worst.

    Knowing them, though, they would be more relieved that I somehow survived than disappointed that I was disqualified. Even without me, they could still somehow manage in the tournament.

    "I''m very sorry!"

    Returning to the present, I found Anastasia frantically bowing to me, despite my best attempts to stop her. Sighing in resignation, I turned to Brent.

    "Um, what are you guys doing here? I''m pretty sure the tournament staff didn''t send an entire force of mercenaries to rescue me just because I was blown away by a blizzard, right?"

    "No, of course not." Brent chuckled good-naturedly. "Don''t flatter yourself, kid. You''re not some VIP that the world revolves around. Of course they wouldn''t send all of us here for you alone. No, we''re the rescue squad."

    "We''re here to rescue all the other students from the participating teams who got lost in the Den of Dragons," Redfield supplied helpfully.

    "Oh?" I raised an eyebrow before nodding. That made a lot of sense. As it turned out, I wasn''t the only one thrown off course and forcibly separated from my team because of the blizzard. There were dozens of students who had been reported lost, or missing, and the mercenaries were dispatched to locate and rescue them.

    Apparently the blizzard had swept through several teams as they tried to traverse the ridge that was skirting the Den of Dragons, and a few of them were blown off course. Quite literally, in several cases ¨C like me. Others were cut off, thanks to fog, and got lost somewhere, several wandered or fell off the cliff accidentally, and a quite a few ended up running into the Den when they were forced to scatter under monster attacks. Not the Horned Boariceratops, but other stronger monsters. A few even reported dragons, and the mercenaries prayed that those unfortunate students who encountered the rank A monsters hadn''t been killed or eaten yet.

    "Ana, since you''re responsible for the students of Jing Tian Academy, you should take Richard and escort him back to Olympus City safely."

    "Roger that!" Anastasia saluted, but I shook my head before raising my hand.

    "If you don''t mind¡­since I''m already disqualified, I might as well help you guys with the rescue mission."

    "Really?" Brent looked at me, baffled. "You don''t have to¡­"

    "If it''s dragons, and icy environments, I have quite a bit of experience." Even though that experience was mainly in non-magical Minnesota, which was thankfully free of monsters and Assassins (though robberies happened on an almost daily basis), I was sure it would come in useful. I hope. But I definitely had the dragons down in my CV.

    "That''s true¡­" Brent hesitated a little, but Redfield jumped in.

    "Hey, that''s a great idea! If things go south for us, we can always count on Richard to cast his strategic scale spell and nuke the whole Den into oblivion!"

    "And while he''s exhausted, we can defend him from whatever monsters that come and evacuate out of here," Anastasia finished.

    "That is indeed a tempting idea, but please¡­don''t nuke the Den¡­" The captain looked a little dour at our suggestion. "For one thing, we need to rescue all the students lost in here first, and we don''t want to accidentally obliterate them alongside the dragons. For another, we don''t want to draw the attention of other monsters to Olympus City and Aurora City. They''ll come flooding into here when they learn that most of the dragons are dead."

    "And that''s assuming we get most of the dragons in the first strike," Anastasia admitted, suddenly seeing the reality. Yeah, that was right. How were we supposed to know if all the dragons happened to be clustered inside the Den when I unleashed ths spell? A good number of them could be out hunting or flying elsewhere¡­and the moment they returned to find their nest annihilated, they would definitely seek vengeance on the perpetuators.

    I sure as hell didn''t want to be around when that happened.

    "Let''s keep that as a last resort for now. But¡­okay. We''ll just do this as the usual mission, and recruit Richard. It''ll be a really great help if both Ana and Richard are with us, rather than going off on their separate ways."

    "Sorry to break your date," Redfield teased Anastasia, and she merely smacked him silently in return.

    "All right, let''s move out!" Brent ordered, and the mercenaries obeyed without question.

    *

    Over the next few hours, we cautiously trekked through the Den, keeping close to the forest for cover. Just as I did when I was with my team from Jing Tian Academy, I summoned Corvus and sent them out in various directions to scout ahead. Combined with the intelligence from reconnaissance units, we were able to avoid monsters.

    The dragons, in particular, were pretty active after the blizzard. More than once, Brent held up a hand and called for a halt, silently ordering us to take cover. As I dove into a hollow of a tree, I caught a glimpse of a gigantic shape soaring high above the canopy of the snow-stained coniferous forest, the leaves trembling violently from the sonic boom. Piles of snow crashed down, blanketing poor mercenaries who happened to take shelter under those trees. Credit to the veterans, they stoically bore the indignity without complaint, merely poking their heads out from the white stuff.

    They only began to clear the snow off their bodies once the dragon was gone and safely out of sight, shivering slightly from the cold as they brushed the frost from their winter coats. Stamping their feet, they shook themselves off, and then rejoined Brent as he strode back to the head of the formation.

    "Where are we going?" I asked, a little lost.

    "We''re searching for other students, remember?" Redfield reminded me. I suppressed a sigh.

    "No, I mean¡­do you guys know where the other students are? Do you know where to start looking for them?"

    "Ah¡­the captain has an idea. We''re proceeding toward the site where Guang Yan Academy''s team last saw their missing teammate¡­according to their report."

    Oh¡­if that was the case, then I felt stupid. Of course Brent would know where we were going. He wasn''t going to blindly lead us to stumble around aimlessly in such a dangerous place. I should have known. This wasn''t the first time I was following him on a mission. I knew more than most people how capable he was.

    "Where exactly is the site?" I asked. Turned out that Redfield had no idea, so I approached Brent, who was carefully making his way through the snowy foliage. Despite the weather and extreme temperatures, the plants were somehow still verdant and green, flashes of vibrant life defiantly peeking out from beneath the white snow.

    Brent spared me no more than a quick glance, so focused on his task ahead that he almost seemed to ignore my presence. It was only when he threw a question at me that I understood that he diid notice me.

    "Your crows saw anything, Richard?"

    "No. Actually, that''s why I''m here." I inclined my head politely. "If you don''t mind specifying the location where the Guang Yan Academy student was last seen, then I''ll send one of my Corvus to scout ahead, to check that place out."

    "Good shout." Brent nodded and half-spun to beam a holographic map at me. He marked out the location with a blue icon. I only needed a single glance to recognize the place, and I mentally instructed one of my Corvus to break off from the flock and fly there ahead of others.

    Unlike Cygnus, Corvus was small enough to escape the notice of dragons and other high-ranking monsters that dwelled in the Den. Like normal (well, normal in the sense that they constituted the majority after their various mutations or evolution after the advent of monsters from another dimension) birds, Corvus was far too tiny and insignificant for the dragons to bother with. He wouldn''t fill their stomachs, for one thing.

    It didn''t take log for my single Corvus to reach there. Through his eyes, I spotted nothing but a few plants and a lot of snow. There was nothing else, no tracks, no sign that any human had ever been there. Perhaps a couple of low-ranking monsters scavenging here and there, picking off the remains of an unfortunate prey whose carcass was left behind by a dragon.

    Shaking my head, I reported my lack of discovery to Brent, who nodded grimly.

    "I was afraid that would happen," he muttered.

    "So what do we do?" Redfield asked.

    "We go anyway." Brent sighed. "Perhaps we can cast tracking magic on the ground and find clues pertaining the direction the student went. We should hurry¡­I hope he hasn''t run into other monsters¡­or worse, a dragon."

    The mercenaries hurried toward the place, all the while keeping an eye out for monsters. The low-ranking monsters instinctively detected our presence, and wisely retreated, disappearing deep into the forest before we came within sight of them. If my Corvus hadn''t been keeping an eye on them, we would never even know they were there.

    "All right, Lie Ren. You''re up." Brent nodded toward the mercenary who specialized in tracking magic. A thirty-year-old muscular man with brown hair and tanned skin, the hunter hurried forward to cast his usual spells. I recognized them as the same type of tracking spells that Troy used to cast when he was still alive.

    Damn, but I missed the guy.

    The rest of the mercenaries spread out, forming a perimeter while Lie Ren worked his magic. As they did so, one of my Corvus noticed something.

    "Watch out!" I yelled, almost too late. Fortunately, Lie Ren heard me in time and was able to spring away just as something struck the position he was examining a millisecond ago. I would like to say that it was my timely warning that saved him, but it was likelier that his reflexes and veteran senses were what allowed him to dodge the attack. Nonetheless, he turned to nod gratefully at me, and I felt a little pleased.

    I was on my way to becoming a hero-mercenary like Dad¡­which was pretty much my life goal since five years ago. A hero, who could save everyone in front of him.

    However, I had to survive this ordeal first. Raising my head, I watched as Lie Ren''s assailant reared its head¡­no, their many heads back, and hiss. Sapphire scales gleamed brightly under the dim sunlight, and an icy mist clouded around their titanic bodies, each of which uncurled to over twenty meters long.

    Rank C Frost Serpents. Precursors to dragons¡­monsters that had reached that evolutionary stage just shy of that last step. Powerful Elementals that couldn''t be underestimated.

    With raging icicles manifesting around them, the Frost Serpents hissed ferociously before striking at us.

 340 Chapter 340: Frost Serpents

    Lie Ren tried to retreat, but it was clear that he wouldn''t be able to escape the Frost Serpents in time. They were darting toward him like azure bullets, their hideous jaws wide open to clamp down upon him. Presumably to swallow him whole.

    "Sagittarius."

    Without thinking, I had summoned my Constellation bow and was unleashing several flaming arrows in the Frost Serpents'' direction. The fiery arrows detonated against the hissing monstrosities, cloaking them in ember and smoke and halting them momentarily. Lie Ren seized the opportunity to withdraw, putting as much distance between himself and his pursuers as possible.

    "Thanks!" he told me, pausing to catch his breath. I nodded and readjusted my aim. The Frost Serpents emerged from the slowly dissipating smoke, and I was stunned to see that they were still unscathed despite taking the brunt of my flaming arrows.

    Yeah, I didn''t use Alnasl, but the arrows I unleashed with Sagittarius were still of the fire element. Fire was supposed to be super-effective against ice-type monsters or spells. Give the extremely short amount of time that I spent to summon Sagittarius and fire off arrows at the Frost Serpents, I could only cast basic fire spells at most. Furthermore, I only knew basic fire spells. I didn''t know any intermediate or advanced fire spells. I could buff them by boosting their firepower with more mana (which was an incredibly inefficient way of enhancing their power, compared to learning intermediate or advanced spells) ¨C that was basically Alnasl, an arrow and basic fire spell that I pumped tremendous amounts of mana into in order to amplify its firepower.

    But even artificially enhancing a basic spell with lots of mana required a good amount of time. You simply did not just boost a spell with lots of mana in one second, no matter how basic it was. Which was why intermediate and advanced spells were more efficient, but thanks to me trying to learn five different elements at once, I never got to the intermediate stage for anything other than wood magic. Currently I was trying to learn intermediate ice magic as a specialized branch for water magic (to improve Cetus''s attacks), but I had yet to do anything significant with it.

    In any event, it was only natural that my basic fire spells did nothing to the rank C Frost Serpents despite the supposed elemental advantage.

    "!!"

    Anastasia spun around and deflected another Frost Serpent with her daggers. All around us, more Frost Serpents emerged from hiding, lunging at the mercenaries ferociously. Evidently Ana didn''t need any help, but I still fell back to her position and drew my swords. Dismissing my bow, I parried a strike from a Frost Serpent that was aiming for Anastasia''s blind spot. At the same time, Ana threw a poisoned dagger to obliterate a Frost Serpent that was sneaking up on me from behind. The both of us spun around in flawless coordination, almost transforming into a whirlwind of paired weapons that lashed out and formed a curtain of bladed defenses that kept the attacking Elementals out.

    "Form up!" Brent ordered, rallying his men. "Fire mages, to the fore!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    Brandishing their weapons, the first line of mercenaries physically drove the Frost Serpents back while the backline of fire mages used that precious time to cast their spells. Fireballs and flaming torrents bombarded and engulfed the gigantic serpents, almost melting them.

    However, the Frost Serpents were not without teeth of their own. One of them twisted around, its maw yawning, and it unleashed an azure beam of ice. One of the mercenaries wasn''t able to dodge in time and he found himself entombed completely in ice, his body frozen solid.

    "Watch out!" Redfield shouted, twirling his spear to deflect another Ice Beam.

    "Damn it! This Frost Serpent is dangerous!" one of the mercenaries moaned.

    "How can we defeat it?!" Another cried.

    "By using fire magic and stabbing it with your weapons instead of whining!" Brent roared, driving his retreating soldiers back toward the battlefield. Apparently they seemed more afraid of their captain than the rank C Elementals, and they renewed their attacks. Protected by the spearmen, swordsmen and other melee combatants at the front, the ranged mages launched more fireballs from the back, raining down fiery death upon the swarm of Frost Serpents.

    "Richard, your spell is done yet?" Anastasia asked, her voice devoid of her usual levity, as she knocked aside one of the striking Frost Serpents. I slashed at another, cutting across its icy scales and discouraging it from attacking again.

    "Yeah¡­cover me!"

    Anastasia nodded and placed a hand on my shoulder before propelling herself upward to kick an offending Frost Serpent. As the stunned monster jolted backward, Ana spun around and slashed at another serpent with her poisoned dagger, but the blade didn''t penetrate the icy scales, which were as hard as¡­well, ice. Even so, the physical force was enough to knock it several inches backward.

    While my comrade was repelling the Frost Serpents from my position, I summoned Sagittarius again and conjured Alnasl. Having avoided casting any other spells within that moment, I was able to complete the casting for that ultimate arrow.

    "Alnasl."

    Lifting the fiery arrow to my bow, I pulled it back before launching it into the center of the swarm.

    "Everyone, retreat!" Redfield yelled. Unnecessarily. By now, most of the mercenaries knew me well enough to recognize when I was going to nuke something. We had all worked together during the tomb expedition less than a month ago. They were already scattering when they sensed the tremendous amount of mana I was emanating.

    "Hurry! Get away!"

    "Move!"

    My teammates automatically dispersed, leaving a swarm of very confused and very angry Frost Serpents behind. The hissing rank C monsters were about to pursue, but my arrow chose that moment to strike the largest Frost Serpent ¨C which was most likely their leader ¨C and explode. The entire clearing was engulfed in fire, a ravenous inferno that expanded rapidly to consume the rest of the shocked Frost Serpents.

    Unlike normal monsters, the Frost Serpents didn''t exactly bleed. I watched, bemused, as they shattered into countless fragments of frost and ice, the tiny remnants of their corpses bouncing and breaking across the scorched earth. Lowering my bow, I checked the clearing for any survivors, but they were being mopped up by Redfield and the others. The red-haired spearman led the charge on the stunned survivors, his long weapon blazing in crimson flames. The Frost Serpent he pierced didn''t survive for more than a second.

    Under the concerted attack of the mercenaries, the swarm was completely eradicated.

    "Good job, everybody." Brent smiled and nodded approvingly. The medic was already rushing toward the poor mercenary who was frozen solid, and was casting restorative magic to thaw him out and heal his frostbite or hypothermia or whatever cold injury he suffered when entombed within the ice. Other than him, we didn''t have much casualties. Maybe a few scratches and scrapes here and there, but nothing major.

    "I''ll get back to searching for clues," Lie Ren spoke up, returning to the scene. He raised an eyebrow when he saw that the entire place had been razed.

    "Uh, sorry." I scratched my head sheepishly. Evidently my Alnasl had obliterated the entire place, erasing any clues that had lingered along with the Frost Serpents.

    "It''s fine." Lie Ren sighed and glanced around. "You guys take a break. I''ll look around the surroundings to see if I can find anything."

    "All right." Brent nodded in agreement. He turned to the rest of the mercenaries and held up a hand. "Take five, everyone. Drink up, rest up, and do whatever you need to. Once Lie Ren returns, we''ll move out immediately."

    "Yes, sir!"

    The mercenaries responded without any hesitation. We knew we couldn''t stick around in this place for too long. Our fight would have attracted other monsters¡­especially dragons. Even though we hadn''t seen any dragons yet¡­that didn''t mean they wouldn''t show up soon. We made quite the ruckus during the battle against the Frost Serpents.

    Surely a dragon would show up to check out what was happening in their own Den.

    For now, I had my Corvus keep an eye out for any approaching monster, while waiting for Lie Ren to return.

    *

    As it turned out, the clues led to traces of the poor kid''s death. From the tracks Lie Ren found, we realized that the poor guy had been seized by a dragon. The only fortune he had was that he died quickly, given the amount of blood that had splashed against a nearby tree. It took only one attack to end his life.

    There was no corpse left behind, inevitably. The dragon had taken his body away, probably to feed him to its young, or more likely, it had devoured the poor kid right on the spot. There were traces of battle, tiny, lingering mana signatures that indicated that he had at least gotten off one or two spells before he was maimed, but other than that, it was clear that he died quickly¡­and hopefully painlessly.

    Disappointed, the mercenaries carried on, hopefully to look for the next batch. Night fell quickly, and we found ourselves shrouded in darkness once more.

    "This is the next place," Brent announced as we drew up next to a mountain. I honestly couldn''t tell the mountains apart, but if the mercenary captain said this was the mountain, then it was. I had no reason to doubt him.

    "It''s the whole team from Lie Huo Academy this time, right?" Redfield asked. Brent nodded.

    "That''s right. This was where they sent their distress signal. They got caught up by the blizzard, and were blown over to here. The mercenary supervising their team reported that this was the last place he saw them, before he was forced to retreat when he encountered a dragon. The distress beacon was also transmitted from this place."

    I was surprised that they managed to get reception in a place like this, but stranger things had happened.

    "Now¡­the problem is¡­where exactly did they go?"

    Brent was musing to himself. For a moment, I was puzzled at his question. I glanced at the mountain and wondered just how many places they could hide.

    Then I saw the reason for his consternation.

    The mountain we were currently approaching had caves. Many caves, in fact. There were at least a dozen that I could see from here alone, and while I was sure that several of them were interconnected in some sort of subterranean network, there was no way of knowing for sure until we actually explored the caves.

    As if he was thinking the exact same thing, Redfield turned toward his captain inquisitively.

    "How many students were on the Lie Huo Academy team? The ones we have to look for, I mean."

    "Ten." Brent was grim even as he anticipated Redfield''s next question. "And I don''t know if they are all together, or if they had split up. From their supervisor''s report, the last time he saw them they were scattering into different directions to avoid the dragon ¨C the dragon that forced their supervisor to retreat ¨C and force it to choose. Beyond that, I have no idea. They could still be split up and divided, lost in those caves, or they could have reunited somewhere inside those caves and are awaiting rescue. Whatever the case, we''ll only find out if we go in."

    "What about the distress beacon?" I asked, hoping for some good news. Brent shook his head.

    "The last distress beacon was sent eighteen hours ago. Right after their supervisor broke contact with them. We have not heard anything from the Lie Huo Academy team since."

    "Fortunately, the dragon that chased them no longer seems to be here. Looks like it has flown off somewhere." Lie Ren provided the single spark of optimism. "At least for the time being, we should be able to conduct our search undisturbed."

    "Excellent." Brent nodded as he studied the multiple caves on the mountain. Taking a deep breath, he turned back to us. "We''ll split up into teams and investigate each cave."

    "Yes, sir!"

    "You''re with me," Anastasia told me as she seized my arm and dragged me off toward one of the caves.

    "Okay." I had no objections. Among the mercenaries, I had worked with Anastasia the most and knew her the best. We could more easily coordinate our movements and strategies than if I were in another team. Besides, there was no one else I would rather have watching my back.

    Taking a deep breath, I gazed into the darkness that was the interior of the cave, and reached up to toggle the nightvision on my glasses on. Praying that the students from Lie Huo Academy were still alive, I followed the confident Anastasia into the cave and toward its shadowy bowels.

    "!!"

    Something moved at the corner of my eye. I reacted, almost on instinct, and knocked Anastasia aside as something lunged at her. Drawing my swords, I beheaded the thing in a single swift stroke.

    ¡­or tried to, but my sword only smashed fragments of ice into the air.

    "A Frost Serpent!"

    Damn, but these things were everywhere. Flipping myself up, I avoided getting swallowed whole by the persistent Elemental. Landing on its back, I drove both Hei Yue and Bai Ri into its neck.

    That didn''t do much other than anger it. The Frost Serpent thrashed about furiously, trying to throw me off, but to no avail. I clung on grimly, anchored to the Frost Serpent by my two swords. Fortunately, I wasn''t idly hanging on all this while. As the Frost Serpent smashed itself against the walls in an effort to fling me away, I prepared a summoning spell.

    "HISS!"

    Snarling ferociously, the Frost Serpent attempted to batter me against the wall, twisting its body in mid-lunge so that it could bash its neck ¨C the place where I was currently residing ¨C against solid rock. Realizing the danger, I yanked both of my swords out of its neck and dropped to the ground. Rolling, I completed my summoning spell.

    "Taurus! Aldebaran!"

    The gigantic bull materialized and struck the writhing Frost Serpent with his horns, knocking it against the wall. Trampling on it, he then lowered his head and opened his maw. A torrent of flames washed over the struggling Frost Serpent and melted it into a puddle of boiling steam.

    "Phew¡­" Sheathing my swords, I allowed Anastasia to pull me up to my feet. Staring at the dead Frost Serpent, I shook my head and sighed. "That doesn''t bode well for the Lie Huo Academy students. If they have really gone this way¡­"

    "¡­they might have already been eaten by these giant Frost Serpents," Ana finished ominously.

 341 Chapter 341: Caving In

    Pushing up my glasses, I scanned the interior of the cave with nightvision, bu saw absolutely nothing. Even so, looks could be deceiving. Remember that Frost Serpent that snuck up on us a few minutes ago?

    Yeah, I wasn''t taking anything for granted.

    Anastasia hung back, looking a little miffed that her poison techniques had no effect on the Frost Serpents. Even if she managed to penetrate their icy exterior ¨C which was as hard as ice ¨C with her poisoned dagger or short sword, the Frost Serpents appeared to entirely be made of ice. It was highly likely that her poisons would have little effect.

    Even so, it wasn''t as if Anastasia was completely helpless. Even without her poison techniques, she was a competent fighter, and earlier during the battle at the clearing when we were ambushed by the swarm, I had seen her cut apart Frost Serpents with her short sword, decapitating them or shattering them with brute force.

    She was far from helpless, unlike a certain supposed-to-be-an-ex-Assassin-but-somehow-forgot-all-her-skills-and-turned-into-a-damsel-in-distress-so-that-the-protagonist-can-save-her character from a certain "Cheat" light novel series that had an awful anime adaptation. Not that the source material was not terrible to begin with¡­

    We proceeded deeper into the cave, looking out for any threats and signs. It was unfortunate, but I wasn''t able to perform any tracking spells. Even though I wanted to find the students of Lie Huo Academy, I had no idea how to do so. For all I knew, they might not have wandered into this cave.

    "You can cast a basic fire spell to light up the place, right?" Anastasia asked when I admitted that to her. I nodded and complied, raising my hand and igniting a small spark of fire that illuminated the dark interior. I had seen Dong Fang Yue Chu do something similar in the past, and mimicked his example. Ana then took a step forward and observed the surroundings.

    There wasn''t much to see, to be honest. Whether it was my glasses'' nightvision or the visibility afforded to us by my fire spell, it was the same scene. Nothing but rock for meters on end, and stalactites and stalagmites that jutted from the ceiling and floor respectively. I could also hear water dripping here and there, and most of the liquid had frozen over to ice over the cold rock, thanks to the extreme temperature outside.

    Even inside the cave, it was hard to forget the numbing cold from outside. I adjusted my winter coat and marched on¡­only to stop when Anastasia knelt down to study something.

    "Found something?" I asked conversationally. Ana shook her head, just as I expected her to.

    "I''m afraid not. Whatever clues there are will be erased by the ice anyway." Her expression was one of frustration. "Unlike Lie Ren, I only know the most basic of tracking spells. They aren''t enough to find any clues of the students who might or might not have wandered in here. That''s more of an earth mage thing¡­"

    "I''m surprised you know tracking magic at all," I remarked. Anastasia turned to smile at me.

    "It''s part of our training as Assassins. How are we supposed to take out our targets if we aren''t able to track them down? Sometimes they would go into hiding and we''ll need to look for clues as where they ran off to."

    "That makes sense," I conceded with a nod. I was a fool for not having thought of that. Sighing, I glanced up and stared at the moist walls, most of which was covered in a think layer of ice. Honestly, they looked undisturbed, but then again, if the students went through here, it was entirely possible that they didn''t touch the walls. Honestly, we weren''t leaving any tracks while walking through the cave, so I couldn''t tell if the Lie Huo Academy students had gone through here or not. "I guess we can only keep moving forward."

    Given that I was the one who volunteered for this mission, I had no right to complain. Once again, I was reminded of how much I disliked the cold, even though I thought I had gotten used to it. One never really got used to the cold, no matter how long you lived in Minnesota¡­I guess.

    I didn''t know how long we walked for. Maybe hours. Perhaps just minutes. Time seemed to flow strangely in here, you know, in the same manner where time appeared to fly past like a bullet when you were in a hurry, or how the moments dragged on agonizingly when you just wished everything would be done and over with. I felt more like it was the latter case, hoping that I would run into someone soon, so probably less than thirty minutes passed while Anastasia and I walked on. And then¡­

    "Stop."

    Halting at Anastasia''s instructions, I broke out of my scattered thoughts and glanced around. I realized the reason why she had called for a stop. Apparently we had reached a deadend. A wall stood in front of us, barring any way forward. Looking left and right, I saw that there were no alternative routes to take. We had reached the end of the cave. Anastasia strode toward the wall, undaunted, and rapped her knuckles against it. Not sharing her enthusiasm, and feeling weary, I sighed. Disappointment welled up within me at not being able to find the students, but I remembered that there were still plenty of caves to explore.

    "I guess we''ll turn back then."

    "No. There''s something strange about this wall."

    "¡­huh?"

    I raised an eyebrow at Anastasia''s declaration, but since she was the ex-Assassin and a mercenary who had more experience than me in missions, I listened to her. The green-haired former Assassin was kneeling at the foot of the wall and reaching out with her hands to press along the length of rock, as if she was looking for something.

    "What are you searching for?"

    "A switch." Anastasia glanced up at me and smiled. "When I knocked on it, it felt hollow."

    "Oh, right." I recalled Ana rapping her knuckles against the wall. Come to think of it, there was a strange sound when she did that, as if there was nothing behind the solid stone. "You think there''s a hidden chamber or something behind the wall?"

    "I don''t think there is. I know there is."

    "Do you need me to blast the wall open?"

    Anastasia glanced at me, amused, but I was already preparing to cast a spell. Specifically, I was summoning Sagittarius and conjuring Anasl. Alarm washed over her face and she hurriedly waved for me to dismiss my Constellation weapon.

    "Hey! Don''t do that! You''ll cause a cave-in and bury the both of us alive!"

    "¡­oh. Sorry."

    I obeyed immediately. I honestly wondered about that, but since she was the more experienced one, I listened to her advice.

    "More importantly, we don''t want to make too much noise and draw too much attention to us. I don''t believe the Frost Serpent from earlier is the only monster lurking about. If I''m not mistaken, there should still be more monsters somewhere around here."

    "That makes sense," I agreed. No, that made more sense than the excuse of a cave-in.

    "Besides, why waste your mana and cause such a huge fuss when we can easily open it by finding the switch?"

    "There''s a switch?"

    "I''m sure there is. I don''t believe this cave was naturally hollow. I bet someone hollowed the cave out." Anastasia cocked her head to the side. "It''s likely that the Lie Huo Academy students stumbled upon this, opened the wall, and went into the chamber beyond. How else did they do it if they didn''t find the switch to open the wall?"

    "That''s assuming they came through here," I pointed out, not unreasonably. Anastasia nodded.

    "Yeah. But how do we know they didn''t? We have to check every possibility. Especially since they were hiding from a dragon¡­if I were them, I would be desperately looking for a place to hide. And this is a perfect hiding place."

    Fair enough. What was the worst that could happen? If the students from Lie Huo Academy turned out to have not come through this way, Anastasia and I could simply backtrack and return to the rest of the squad. If they did, and we didn''t investigate the possibility¡­then we were perhaps dooming them to the wilderness.

    Stepping forward, I tried to help search for the switch. Even though I scanned the area with my glasses, I was unable to locate anything. As it turned out, Anastasia was the one who found the switch ¨C more by skill than by luck, especially since she was trained as an Assassin. Somewhere on the wall, near the edge, she felt something along the sides that could be depressed, and she pushed the artificial block in. With a click, the wall began to rumble and move.

    "Be careful," Anastasia warned as she withdrew to my side and drew her weapons. My hands were on the hilts of my swords, ready to draw them at any time, but I waited to see what the chamber would bring us.

    Nothing.

    "¡­"

    I adjusted my glasses, switching between views to ensure I wasn''t seeing things. But there was nothing residing in the space beyond except an empty corridor that led further down. Unnerved, I glanced at Anastasia, who merely nodded.

    "Let''s go."

    "Okay."

    We proceeded down the corridor and toward the room at the end. To our surprise, there was some illumination being afforded from the interior, as if someone had started a fire. We could also hear some murmuring.

    "Did you hear that?"

    "The wall just opened."

    "Someone''s here!"

    "Is it a monster?"

    "Idiot! Would a monster know how to open that wall?"

    Anastasia and I exchanged glances and hurried in. As we burst into the room, we caught sight of three students gathered around a makeshift campfire, sharing in the warmth and light that the flames provided. The trio jumped, startled.

    "AAAH!"

    "Calm down!" Anastasia told them, raising her empty hands to indicate that she meant them no harm. The three of them stopped panicking, but they blinked rapidly as they struggled to comprehend what was happening. Presenting her best smile, Anastasia took a step forward. "Are you from Lie Huo Academy?"

    She had to ask. The three students were dressed in the exact same winter gear as I was, their uniforms concealed beneath thick layers of synthetic fabric. It was best to confirm ¨C otherwise it might turn out that they were not from Lie Huo Academy, and were from another school. Then we would have problems accounting for the numbers.

    "Y¡­yeah."

    "That''s right."

    "Um¡­who are you?"

    One of the three students ¨C the sole girl among them ¨C stared at us, wide-eyed. Anastasia continued to smile reassuringly.

    "I''m Anastasia. I''m from the Silver Wolves mercenary guild. We are here to rescue you." she glanced around. "Where are the rest of you? If I''m not mistaken, there should be seven more, correct?"

    They nodded.

    "We split up," one of the guys ¨C a hulking one whose frame was barely contained by his thick winter coat ¨C explained. "When the dragon attacked, we were forced to split up to divide its attention. We don''t know where the others went."

    "We wanted to go out and look for them," the skinny guy explained. "But we didn''t dare to go out, not with the dragon still out there somewhere."

    "Oh¡­don''t worry about that. The dragon is gone." Anastasia maintained her smile and assured them. "When the Silver Wolves arrived, we didn''t see any dragon. It''s probably gone."

    "Really?" The girl looked baffled. "But we can still hear it."

    "Huh? What are you¡­?" Anastasia trailed off and tilted her head, as if to listen for something. As silence sank throughout the chamber, I realized that I could hear something too. A faint roar echoing somewhere. I met Ana''s gaze, and she nodded before turning toward the three Lie Huo Academy students. "That''s not from outside."

    "¡­huh? It''s not?"

    "No¡­" I frowned as I focused on the sound. "Doesn''t it sound like it''s from inside this cave?"

    At that, the three of them turned frightfully pale and leaped to their feet, looking around warily. The big guy, in particular, stiffened and his jaw dropped.

    "They''re right. The sound¡­it''s coming from in here."

    "But where?" the girl cried, backing away to a wall. She gazed around the interior of the chamber fearfully. I could only imagine what sort of horrors they went through to be so thoroughly traumatized. "I don''t want to¡­!"

    Click.

    "?!"

    The girl spun around when she accidentally hit something in the wall. Another switch, just like the one Anastasia found, that allowed us access to this chamber.

    The roar grew louder.

    "Kyaaaa!" the girl shrieked as she tried to fling herself from the wall. This time, the wall didn''t rumble. It was the ground that appeared to shake.

    And then it broke apart.

    "NOOOO!" the girl screamed as she tried to sprint to safety, but the ground was crumbling beneath her feet. I dashed forward and seized her hand, pulling her up. However, I realized that we wouldn''t be able to make it to safety in time. So I whirled around and flung her toward Anastasia, who caught her. The two guys, thankfully, were already next to Ana, having dove to her side in reflex when the tremors began. They would have rushed in to help their teammate, but I just happened to be the closest.

    Not that that was going to help me.

    The floor disintegrated beneath my feet and I fell through the disintegrating debris, crashing into the darkness below.

    "Richard!" Anastasia yelled, and her terrified face was the last thing I saw before I vanished underneath a cluster of toppling rocks.

 342 Chapter 342: Bottom of the Cave

    It all happened so fast that I didn''t have time to summon anything. Again, something struck me in the head, but I didn''t black out. There was also no point summoning anything ¨C there were far too many rocks in the space around me that even if I summoned Cygnus or Aquila, they would end up getting battered by debris. And then they would continue falling with me to the bottom of wherever I was plummeting through.

    Even if I did, I didn''t have time to summon anything. I crashed against a wall and slid off some edge to fall somewhere deeper. The fall lasted another few seconds, and I managed to summon Aquarius. Holding the broadsword with both hands, I blasted the debris apart with a geyser of water. The moment I cleared the space of rocks, I completed casting my summoning spell before I could plummet past the hundred meter mark.

    Twisting in midair, I landed on Cygnus. The great, white swan manifested right below me, allowing me a soft landing spot. Raising Aquarius, I conjured a water barrier that was similar to Black Tortoise''s water sphere and managed to protect myself and Cygnus from the falling boulders.

    "Ugh¡­"

    Wincing as one particularly large debris slammed into the water barrier with such force that both Cygnus and I shuddered from the kinetic impact. Glancing up, I saw that there was still a torrential downpour of boulders, and decided to just dive low and take shelter. Especially when my glasses detected a ledge, a concave set within one of the walls.

    At my mental nudge, Cygnus dove toward the hollow opening, and suddenly the shower of rocks ceased. I stumbled off my Constellation spirit and crashed into the cold, icy ground, noticing how the entire place was covered in frost. Despite my winter gear and thick clothing, I still found myself shivering intensely.

    "Damn it¡­how cold¡­"

    With a wave of my hand, I dismissed Cygnus. It was too awkward for him to walk through the narrow tunnel, anyway. Turning around, I watched as several boulders crashed down right at the entrance, sealing my route back up. There was no way for me to reunite with Anastasia and the others, not unless I blast the rocks apart.

    But that would end up causing me to get buried in even more rocks¡­the tunnel I presently occupied, for instance, didn''t seem very durable.

    "Br¡­"

    Wrapping my hands around myself to preserve whatever heat I could, I continued toward the other end. Retrieving my smartphone, I tried to call Ana, probably to let her know that I was all right, but I saw that I had no reception.

    Of bloody fucking course.

    I guessed the only recourse I had was to look for an alternative way out of here. Not wanting to bury myself under another avalanche, I turned away from the debris that now sealed the entrance and stared into the opposite end. Despite the suite of hi-tech sensors built into my glasses, I couldn''t see anything beyond empty space and¡­ice.

    Lots of ice. Frozen stalactites and stalagmites hung from the ceiling, composed completely of ice rather than stone. Then again, stalactites and stalagmites were formed from water dripping from the ceiling of a cave and landing onto the ground as calcite deposits. It wasn''t pure water, but these stalactires and stalagmites were formed purely from water and ice, without any traces of calcite or stone within them.

    Even the walls were covered in a thick sheen of ice. There was nothing but ice for meters around. It was almost as if I was trapped within a hollow iceberg.

    My fingers and toes were becoming numb from the sheer cold, and to warm myself up, I cast a basic fire spell to heat my surrundings. Most of the warmth escaped into the cold air and flickered out but I huddled my hands around the small lotus of fire to keep my fingers from freezing off. Occasionally, I would stoop down to warm my toes, to get some sensation back to them.

    Damn it¡­I really wanted to get out of this hellish place. I wondered if I had fell into the equivalent of Cocytus, the lowest level of Hell, where all the Titans and the greatest demons were entombed in ice for eternity, in the coldest place possible in existence.

    Too bad I wasn''t Wang Zhong, and I didn''t have Scarlet with me, or I could easily get out of this place, beat up a bunch of monsters and show off in front of a harem member. Oh well.

    "Maybe I''ll run into a secret treasure cove, which has all sorts of high-ranking, mystical cultivation techniques, a skeleton of a dead god-like practitioner, a bunch of spirit pills and medicine that for some reason haven''t expired despite being stored in a cave for centuries, and an arsenal of treasure weapons conveniently arrayed for me to collect."

    Then I scowled.

    "Nope. Wrong genre. Not going to happen."

    Yeah, this was reality. Who the hell was going to conveniently come across a treasure trove, get his hands on highly prized scrolls of wonderful cultivation (I hate that word) techniques, a bunch of spirit medicine and pills that conveniently never expire, and even a bunch of cool treasure weapons¡­which I don''t need when I already had Hei Yue and Bai Ri.

    Would be cool if it did, though. But I wasn''t going to delude myself that it would. Only people who read too many cultivation stories would actually believe they would have such a miraculous encounter.

    That said, I wouldn''t be dropped right into this place without reason. If it was not to give me treasure, then why would God (or the author) throw me ¨C all alone ¨C into such an isolated place? I wouldn''t know. I guess I would see.

    Huddling over the small fire in my hands, I proceeded, seeing nothing but ice, ice and more ice. I was getting sick of seeing ice, getting sick of the temperature even though I was supposed to be used to it as someone who lived in Minnesota, and just getting sick of my bad luck in general. Come to think of it, it was a good thing I had rations in my backpack, or I would be screwed if I couldn''t find any food in this godforsaken place.

    "¡­"

    I frowned when that thought passed through my mind. Was this cave really empty? Even though I had been walking through the icy tunnel for almost an hour now, I hadn''t seen a single thing. Sure, the environment was probably too cold for any living things, but even so¡­

    Back in Minnesota, even insects kind of disappeared during the winter. I didn''t know if they hibernated, and I was not an entomologist. If I wasn''t mistaken, insects did not hibernate per say, but actually entered a phase called diapause, a dormant state that allowed them to endure cold temperatures that was one of the few good things I liked about Minnesotan winters ¨C unlike the summer, and fall, I didn''t have to worry about insects crawling into my basement.

    Bears and other mammals, such as squirrels, went into hibernation during winter. Though they would usually slumber in caves such as these, given how the interior of this portion was covered in nothing but ice, I doubted there would be any monster hibernating here, or they would have frozen solid. And for those monsters that could withstand such cold temperatures and ice, they wouldn''t hibernate at all. Frost Serpents and Frost Wyverns probably would thrive in such environments.

    Recalling the Frost Serpent that attacked both me and Anastasia when we first entered the cave, I stiffened and looked around vigilantly. It wouldn''t be good if I lower my guard and get assaulted by an ice-type monster, and being injured in such cold conditions would be fatal. I might have lived in Minnesota, but I wasn''t born there (not that it would have made a difference). Being used to the cold wasn''t the same as being immune to it.

    "¡­"

    For now, I could see and sense absolutely nothing. Hating the cold, I gritted my teeth and pressed on while doing my best to retain some measure of sensation in my fingers and toes. Those were the ones you had to watch out for when out in the open during winter. The first part of your body to get frostbite, and the most vulnerable to cold injuries, were your extremities. In other words, your fingers and toes.

    "FILLER!"

    "Oh, shut up," I snapped as I rolled my eyes at the distant whining from beyond the fourth wall. Bloody hell, I was explaining the dangers of a cold environment and the sort of damage it could wreak on my body, and some bloody idiot thought it was filler "because it didn''t advance the plot" or because I was trying to pad the word count. Well, f you.

    I wouldn''t break the fourth wall so many times to complain about this if I didn''t see so many readers ranting about fillers on the forums, or in the comments section on other stories. Can you believe that people acutally complained Li Yao''s train ride toward his university in Forty Millenniums of Cultivation as filler? Even though it did advance the plot? Why? For no reason other than because they were too impatient and wanted to skip ahead to the part where Li Yao entered university, not caring about the character development or the impact the ride had on him ¨C where he met cultivators of great moral characters, saw firsthand the sacrifices that cultivators didn''t hesitate to make in order to protect civilians from monsters, etc. Honestly, most of the complaints seemed to be about labeling whatever readers didn''t want to read as "fillers".

    And before some people complain about this whole rant being filler, I''ll remind them that this story is about fourth wall breaking. If they didn''t like fourth wall breaking, why were they reading a story that was about fourth wall breaking? Seriously? It was like reading Deadpool, and then writing to Marvel and complaining about how Wade Wilson constantly broke the fourth wall. You''re reading the wrong series, bro.

    "That''s right!"

    "?!"

    Now this time, I was sure it wasn''t from beyond the fourth wall. Half wondering if I was hearing things because of the cold, I glanced around cautiously.

    My jaw dropped.

    "You¡­you are¡­?!"

    "Nope. Don''t say my name." a mercenary dressed entirely in a red and black Spandex costume, with two swords strapped to his back, lifted a finger to his mouth¡­or where his mouth should be, because his entire face was hidden behind a red and black mask. He stared at me from behind huge white lenses framed by black circles. "We''ll get into trouble with copyright, you know? You don''t want people suing you because a copyrighted character showed up in your story, right?"

    "Then what am I supposed to call you?" I demanded in disbelief. Even if I didn''t name him, he looked identical to¡­you know who. And you know what they say, if he walks like a duck, and looks like a duck¡­

    "Oh, good question." As the red and black mercenary considered, I noticed that he was intangible. Like a ghost, he was floating around the icy tunnel, doing a few lazy back-flips and lying on what looked like an invisible couch. Resting his head on his hand, his elbow propped up on thin air, he seemed to brighten up ¨C but I couldn''t tell because his face was hidden in a mask. "Aha! Call me Ryan. Ryan Reynolds."

    "¡­seriously?"

    "Hey, an actor''s name isn''t copyrighted, right?"

    "Why do you even know the name of an actor from the early twenty-first century in the first place?"

    "What makes you think I''m not from there?"

    I stopped at that, bewildered. Was this guy serious? Was he really from¡­?

    "No, no. Forget about all that. Anyway, kid, I''m here because you''ve been such a great prot¨¦g¨¦. So I need to make an appearance, even if I can''t name myself. By the way, good job. You''ve learned the art of breaking the fourth wall well." The person who called himself "Ryan Reynolds" was nodding in approval. "And don''t bother with what the naysayers tell you. Ignore the people complaining about you breaking the fourth wall and ranting. This is your story, write what you want, say what you want, and break the fourth wall if you want. If they don''t like it, they can fuck off."

    He then drew two guns, cocked them and pointed it at the ice wall behind me.

    "And if they still whine¡­you know what to do."

    "That''s a little extreme," I remarked, eying his guns warily. Ryan shrugged.

    "Maybe. But who cares? They are in the wrong story if they want a serious one that has no fourth wall breaking. I don''t tolerate idiots who stride into my comic, telling me how it should be written, or ordering me to break the fourth wall. I kick them out and send them to read other comics. You know, like the one with a bunch of mutants living under a mansion¡­with a bald professor." He reached up and patted his head. "Ugh! I forgot that I''m in no position to make fun of people for being bald!"

    "¡­uh huh." I stared at him for a few moments, still trying to wrap my head around what was going on. "What are you doing here¡­uh, Mr. Reynolds?"

    "Ryan. Just call me Ryan." The masked mercenary waved a hand daintily, pretending to be shy. "There''s no need to be so formal, my cute prot¨¦g¨¦."

    "Uh, right. So¡­Ryan, what are you doing here?"

    "Hmm¡­good question. I can''t remember." Clasping his hands behind his head, Ryan floated as he lay down on an invisible, drifting matress. "The last thing I recall was me flying through several universes, having fun, breaking fourth walls, and getting the girls¡­before I ended up here. And of all the places to put me, they decided to throw me in this icy hell."

    He then jumped up and threw his hands into the air.

    "Holy hell¡­I''m freezing my balls off¡­or would have, if I had an actual physical body."

    "So you''re dead? Are you a ghost?"

    "Who knows?" Dead¡­Ryan shrugged. "I don''t really care. I can never really die. I bet that once my role is done here, I''ll be sent off to another universe to wreck havoc on some poor villainous soul who wished he had never committed any crimes that would catch the attention of the merc with a mouth."

    He then leaned closer and grinned.

    "By the way, kid¡­I heard you want to be a mercenary. A mercenary-hero like me!"

    "Like my dad," I corrected, but Ryan plainly ignored me.

    "That''s just swell! You aiming to get your own comic series too?"

    "That''s entirely up to Qidian," I replied noncommittedly. And then I forcibly returned to the topic at hand. "So¡­uh, is there a way out of here, or have you been trapped here for long?''

    "Oh, right. Now I remember what I''m here for." Ryan snapped his fingers as he slowly rotated in midair. Rubbing his chin, he nodded. "I can''t get out of here until I have helped you to level up."

    "¡­level up?" I repeated incredulously.

    "Yup." Ryan appeared to grin under that mask of his, but his eys clearly displayed his delight. "This is a Chinese webnovel series, remember? So we''re going through the clich¨¦ cultivation trope of protagonist conveniently falls into secret cave and gets resources for a new power up."

    "¡­seriously?"

    Dead¡­Ryan suddenly turned solemn, his eyes boring into me from behind those white lenses.

    "Yeah. And you don''t have a choice, kid¡­because unless you go through this clich¨¦, I''m going to be stuck here. So I''m sure as hell going to throw you through that clich¨¦ (for my own sake), no matter how many readers complain about it."

 343 Chapter 343: Dead Pool

    "You know all those stories, like Martial Peak or Break Through the Heavens, or even Apotheosis, where the protagonist conveniently runs across this ghost master that ends up following him like a sidekick while teaching him new skills?" Ryan Reynolds puffed his chest out proudly, his hands on his hips. "I''m taking on that this role for this story!"

    "¡­right." I wasn''t sure if I should laugh or cry, but for now I decided to just listen to him. "So what are you going to teach me?"

    "How to break the fourth wall!"

    "¡­"

    "What? Okay, fine. I''ll be honest. Unlike those spirit masters or ghosts, I''m only going to be here for a few chapters. Maybe I''ll return in the future if the readers really, really like me. It''s up to them ¨C just keep your eyes on the comments. For now, I''m only helping you because¡­if I don''t, I''ll be stuck here forever."

    I sighed wearily as I glanced around the ice, trying to suppress a shiver. From the temperature, not a premonition.

    "How do I get you out of here?"

    "First¡­you need a powerup." Ryan spread his hands dramatically and shrugged. "That''s what these arcs are for, right? Stumble upon a treasure, grab a secret technique scroll, cultivate¡­"

    "DON''T SAY THAT WORD!" I bellowed, cutting him off. Ryan raised both hands in a placating manner.

    "Okay! Sorry! I know it''s the wrong genre! But the clich¨¦s are still the same. This is a great chance for you to power up! Or at least improve one of your magic! Right now, you''ve only dabbled in the most basic spells for each of the five elements. Maybe your wood element has reached advanced, but even so you still can''t compare with a mage who has chosen to specialize solely in wood element. The only thing you can compete against others is in summoning magic."

    "Shouldn''t I be improving my summoning magic, then?" I asked, puzzled. Ryan nodded eagerly.

    "Yeah, but you see¡­if you improve your basic element spells and learn advanced ones, wouldn''t your summoned Soul Beasts become stronger? Don''t forget, your Soul Beasts are completely dependent on you ¨C their abilities are completely dependent on what kind of magic you''ve learned. That''s why you can''t summon Soul Beasts that can cast healing spells ¨C because you''ve never learned healing magic!"

    "So you want me to learn healing magic?"

    "No, of course not! You already stretched yourself thin, trying to learn five different elements. As a result, none of your Soul Beasts¡­except your Green Dragon, is capable of anything more than the equivalent of brute force for spells. They are so inefficient! Cost too much mana! And it''s a pity that you chose to learn more of wood magic than any other elements because the only Soul Beast that can benefit from it is your Green Dragon! Since you chose Greek Constellations as your theme for the rest of your summoning magic, you sort of shot yourself in the foot¡­it''s unfortunate, but wood is not part of the Greek four elements, and thus none of your Greek Constellation Soul Beasts can benefit from your advanced wood magic."

    Now that Ryan mentioned it, I realized that it was true. I had never really given much thought into the intricacies and difference between the Chinese Five Elements and the Greek Four Elements, and just went for constellations because I was familiar with their myths and legends. Plus I read a lot of sci-fi, so I ended up knowing quite a few stars.

    Why did I end up learning advanced wood magic? It was a coincidence, really. Well, during my first year in school, I took summoning class as one of those in my curriculum. By the way, I was the only student in my summoning class, and it was¡­not very productive. The teacher was a cranky old man who thought the magic was a lost cause because¡­as you know, back then, the curriculum and syllabus was based on one-on-one matches and rankings. Even the summoning teacher didn''t believe in the magic he was teaching.

    Basically, he took one look at me on the first day of class, and then put a sign labeled self-study. For a whole year, it was self-study. I would occasionally visit his office to consult him on summoning magic, and he would help me out in individual problems. It was a long process ¨C I had to spend a whole year learning how to summon something as complex and powerful as my five Celestial Guardians. What, you thought I could already summon them before I entered high school? Then why would I even need to attend a magic academy in the first place if I could already cast such high-level magic?

    The teacher explained to me that it was pointless to summon weaker, small monsters that cost little mana and no time at all, because they were so easily obliterated by my opponents (remember, the syllabus focused on one-on-one matches back then). What was the point of summoning a mouse? A canary? Maybe even a puppy? A single basic spell would destroy them, and¡­I wouldn''t have much else I could counter with.

    The only thing was that¡­students were required to take several classes, not just one class. Fortunately, I had already learned the basics of elemental spells over the four years before I attended high school (under Dad''s tutelage). So that wasn''t much of a concern, and I had little interest in specializing in elemental magic, as that would come at the cost of summoning magic. So along with Divination (which involved stargazing) and Care for Magical Creatures (where we had a giant for a teacher)¡­

    No, wait. That never happened. We didn''t have such classes. I was mixing up my academy with another magic school from some other story¡­

    Long story short, I took wood magic classes as my second subject because it was the only element with any slots left ¨C most students signed up for the more popular classes, such as fire, water, metal (lightning), wind and earth. . My first choice was fire magic ¨C because that was what my dad specialized in. however, after the first two weeks of bidding, I realized that fire magic classes were so popular that they were no longer accepting students for them. So I had to look for alternatives. Most of them, unfortunately, were filled to the brim, leaving just wood magic.

    It was only natural. Very few students chose wood magic, especially the guys. They thought it was a girl thing. And wood magic was usually perceived as the weakest element, particularly because it was thought to lack powerful, offensive spells, and was too brittle or fragile to be of any defensive use (like metal or earth or even water). Even wind magic, which provided speed, agility and unsurpassed mobility through flight and other means, was considered more useful than wood magicThat wasn''t to say wood magic was bad. As the Stuart family had proven, those who hone wood magic to the pinnacle were capable of overcoming mages from any of the other elements. Wood might not possess the best offensive or defensive power, but it was well-rounded and possessed a repertoire of more subtle tricks¡­relying on causing status effects, so to speak. Not to mention, it was among the most versatile elements.

    The name of my wood element teacher was¡­Willow Woodgate, by the way. Not that anyone cares. Rather¡­

    "How do you know so much about my summoning magic?" I demanded, glaring at Ryan. He shrugged.

    "I read your story on Webnovel before coming to this universe. Or perhaps I''m just a figment of your imagination, your subconscious playing tricks on your mind and manifesting in a hallucination. Or I can read your mind. Does it matter?"

    Of course it did. I wasn''t sure if I could trust him.

    "You have no choice, kid." Ryan shrugged. "You want to get out of this hell? You''ve got to listen to me."

    He had a point. There was no one else in this place. I couldn''t see anything but ice and more ice. It was like some crystalline labyrinth, taunting me with a million distorted reflections of myself. Even though I had been walking through what seemed like a single tunnel, the winding passageway, combined with the kaleidoscopic mirror-like ice was rendering my senses dizzy.

    "Fine. So what should I do?"

    Illusion, hallucination, or real ghost, it didn''t matter. I was already going crazy from wandering in here. I might as well give in to insanity.

    "Good choice. Now follow me."

    Ryan chuckled as he flipped about in midair before drifting away. I watched him for a few seconds, my hands on my swords, and then noticed that he was a dual sword wielder like me. Maybe he was a mystical reflection of me. I wasn''t sure. Couldn''t hurt to follow him for now.

    "Sh¡­"

    Suddenly, Ryan floated to a halt and held a finger to where his lips were, behind that red and black mask of his. He threw out a hand to stop me, and I complied silently. Incidentally, I had dispatched a few Corvus to scout ahead, but they continually crashed into ice walls, so I ended up just recalling them and walking on my own.

    Consequently, I didn''t know what was ahead of me.

    "Gr¡­"

    There was a low rumble. I froze, not from the cold but from apprenehsion. Whatever the source was, it was huge.

    Scowling, I glanced at Ryan, but he shook his head. Leaning over, he dropped his voice into a whisper.

    "What, you didn''t think we were the only ones down here, did you? Did you forget what this place is called?"

    The Den of Dragons. How could I forget?

    ¡­oh.

    I instinctively took a step back, and immediately began casting Draco. Given how he was my strongest Constellation spirit, he would take a long while to summon. That was fine. As long as the dragon didn''t notice me, I should have ample time to cast the spell. I hoped.

    "No, no, no. don''t worry about it." Ryan waved his hand airily. "You''re not here to pick a fight with the owner of the cave. And I don''t think he will bother you as long as you don''t wake him up. You can just sneak past him. As long as you don''t make too much noise and accidentally hit him with a hammer¡­I mean, a spell, he would be too lazy to wake up to deal with you. We humans are ants to the majestic beings that are dragons. Most of the time, they couldn''t be bothered to deal with the likes of us. Not unless we irritate them too much¡­or if they are hungry."

    "How do we know this guy isn''t hungry?"

    "If he was, he wouldn''t be sleeping. He would be looking for food."

    I guessed Ryan had a point there. With a sigh, I nodded and cautiously took a step forward. When I did so, Ryan immediately gestured at my hands.

    "Put out the fire. I know it is cold as fuck, but we don''t want to wake the guy up by accidentally burning him. No point taking risks unnecessarily eh?"

    "¡­right."

    I obeyed and extinguished the flames. The cold didn''t hit me totally yet, but as I walked on for a few seconds, my fingers and toes began to feel numb. Suppressing a sigh, I stepped into the colossal cavern just beyond the winding passage.

    An enormous dragon lay in the center, fast asleep. Its body shook gently, heaving as it breathed. Large clouds of fog were expelled from its nostrils, drifting lazily in the freezing air and shrouding the beast''s face in white. Unlike the crimson Hellfire Drake that I had encountered in the past, this particular dragon was covered in sapphire scales that sparkled in the dim light of the cave.

    "A Frost Dragon," I muttered under my breath. Needless to say, it was a rank A Behemoth type dragon that could wield ice magic. Beside me, the hovering Ryan nodded.

    "That''s right. And you don''t want to wake him up."

    "¡­yeah. You''re right."

    Taking a deep breath, I gingerly crept around the Frost Dragon, taking care to maintain as much distance between us as possible. Before I knew it, I managed to circle around the massive monster and reach the other end of the cavern, where another passageway awaited.

    "¡­phew."

    Exhaling, I realized how tense my body had been this entire time. Swallowing, I stepped into the tunnel and hopefully out of sight of the Frost Dragon. After a few steps deeper into the icy corridor, I cast my little fire spell to warm myself up and return some sensation to my fingers and toes.

    "Was that Frost Dragon hibernating?"

    "Nah. He will wake up when he''s hungry. Hopefully you''ll be out of here by then."

    "¡­right." I hoped that would be the case. I sure as hell didn''t want to be present when the Frost Dragon woke up. I had no intention of becoming his breakfast. Taking a deep breath, and wincing when the icy air chilled my lungs, I hastened my pace.

    "Relax. You want to stick around for a bit longer. Especially when we reach our destination."

    "Huh?" I looked up at the hovering Ryan, confused. He was gliding in a relaxed manner, staying a few steps ahead of me. "Destination? Aren''t we getting out of here?"

    "If it was that easy, then I wouldn''t need you to show up to help me get out of here. No, my friend. You need to get your powerup. Then only I would be released from being locked in this godforsaken place."

    That bullshit powerup thing again. I tried not to sigh and roll my eyes. Something about Ryan''s statements rubbed me the wrong way.

    "There''s no way something so convenient would exist."

    "Well, you''re right. It''s not so convenient as to suddenly increase your mana, or hand you a new technique or treasure weapon. I mean, look at this place! Who the hell would hide some stupid martial arts or cultivation scroll in here? Or bury their treasures here? Even if you want to keep them out of the hands of other people, why would you go through all the trouble of braving the dangers of dragons, digging your way into the deepest part of an icy mountain, and hiding your treasure far from human civilization? Then¡­if you want to retrieve it, are you going to make that perilous journey and spend hours digging through the mountain and hiding from dragons again? Sometimes, these so-called cultivators or whatever just don''t make any sense."

    "This is not a cultivation story," I reminded Ryan impatiently. "It''s reality."

    "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, remember the Holy Spring that helped you with your cultivation magic like two hundred chapters ago?"

    "¡­yeah?" I nodded, remembering the Holy Spring hidden underneath Jing Tian City. Training next to it had helped me improve my summoning magic, mostly by increasing the amount of mana I had in order to maintain them for longer durations.

    "I have something similar for you!" I swear the guy was grinning under his mask. Floating through a mouth toward another cavern, Ryan threw out both hands in a celebratory manner. "Introducing the Dead Pool!"

    "¡­huh?"

    Following him into the cavern, my jaw dropped when I saw the gigantic pool that he was presenting to me.

    ¡­it wasn''t so much a pool as it was a gargantuan block of ice. An iceberg, if you will.

    "Whoops¡­I meant the frozen pool," Ryan corrected what he evidently thought was a witty punchline.

    "¡­cool, I guess?" I tried not to roll my eyes. "And¡­what am I supposed to do with this¡­uh, giant ice?"

    "Well¡­" Ryan paused dramatically for a few seconds, and then bowed exaggeratedly. "Devour the whole thing, of course!"

 344 Chapter 344: Thousand-year-old Ice Essence

    "Are you serious?" I asked disbelievingly.

    "I''m never serious," Ryan replied. When I gave him a look, turned around and began to walk out of the cave, he got flustered. "All right, all right! Sorry! Of course I didn''t mean it literaly. All you need to do is absorb the Thousand-year-old Ice Essence from this frozen pool."

    "Thousand-year-old Ice Essence?" I repeated incredulously. Now that was a term I had never heard of before, apart from a few obscure comics back in the mid-2000s. I wasn''t sure if they were the same thing. With all the different stories out there, you would never know. I had a suspicion that I could guess what this one was.

    But this was not a cultivation story, so I doubted it would work the same way.

    "Hmm, how should I explain this?" Ryan Reynolds rubbed his chin and pondered for a few moments, and then he snapped his fingers. "Well, to put it simply¡­this mana has been accumulating in all this ice for a thousand years, and has basically transformed into¡­well, sentience isn''t the right word. A soul of its own? A spirit?"

    I scowled at that. Spirits were something I really didn''t want to deal with, especially after hearing what they entailed from my dad. Sacrificing someone I love in return for awesome power¡­what was the point? The whole reason for getting such power in the first place was to protect the ones I loved. Sacrificing them completely defeated the purpose of attaining such enormous power in the first place.

    "Don''t give me that look. I''m not talking about spirits from another dimension." Ryan placed his hands on his hips. "That''s why I called it essence. It''s almost living, but it''s not exactly¡­sentient, tangible or physical. I don''t know how else to describe it."

    "Okay." I scratched my head. "Let''s say it is fine to absorb this essence. But mana and magic have only been around for 800 years at most. How did this conglomeration of mana manage to accumulate for a thousand years?"

    "Ah¡­" Ryan appeared to grin, but as always, it was hard to tell with his mask on. He jabbed his thumb toward the entrance of the chamber. "You might want to thank the Frost Dragon for that."

    I raised my eyebrow at that. It was true that the age of monsters were unfathomable, especially the high-ranked ones. Many of them were observed to live unnaturally long lifespans. Dragons, in particular, could live for centuries, if not millennia. Well, those were based on academic assumptions and studies, where scientists used carbon dating and other scientific-magical methods to examine specimens and monster bodies brought back by mercenaries. I was in no position to question the validity of their methods or investigations.

    "The Frost Dragon, like all monsters, emanates lots of mana. The excess mana, as you know, bleeds off into the environments and diffuses normally. But in an isolated pocket of space like this cavern, the excessive mana gets trapped in here, with nowhere to go. So the mana ends up accumulating in this pool over here. Or ice. I also suspect that a significant amount of water was actually brought over by the Frost Dragon to this dimension. Meaning, some of the water is actually from another dimension. Don''t worry, it should be watered down, though!"

    At his words, I glanced at the ice once more. It was huge, about five meters wide and tall, and of a largely blockish shape. The edges, on the other hand, were rounded, so I didn''t need to worry about cutting myself on it. Edgelords should learn from its example and stop whining about the lack of deaths or killing, or how I wasn''t ruthless enough. Anyway, I could see a shimmering aurora inside the center. That must be the Thousand-year-old Ice Essence.

    If there was indeed some water from another dimension mixed into the ice, I honestly couldn''t tell the difference. Water was water¡­on the molecular level, it was made out of two hydrogen atoms bonded to a single oxygen atom. Whether it came from another dimension or was formed here, it didn''t matter. Water was water.

    Reaching out, I felt a tremendous amount of power emanating from it. A cool, almost comfortable sensation that washed over me, giving me the impression of drifting along the northern seas like¡­well, an iceberg.

    However, as always, I was skeptical that things were this convenient and easy. Absorbing this thing? Getting stronger without needing to pay any price? Since when did something so good exist in reality? This wasn''t a cultivation story.

    Ryan noted my doubts and nodded.

    "You''re right. It''s not as simple as absorbing it and becoming stronger."

    "So what''s the point of absorbing it?"

    "Oh, even though I say absorb it, I don''t mean you literally suck the whole thing and suddenly get all that amount of mana added to your own existing mana pool. That''s ridiculous. If it was so easy, people will go around absorbing mana from everything they can get their hands on. Of course you don''t just suck the mana to amplify it." Ryan jabbed a finger in my chest. "Use your brain. Remember how you cultivated next to the Holy Spring?"

    "DON''T USE THAT WORD!" I bellowed. Ryan actually flinched from that, and he quickly held both of his hands up in a soothing manner.

    "Sorry. I mean, remember how you trained next to the Holy Spring? That helped you improve your magic, and gave you poison immunity, right?"

    "Yeah." I nodded, recalling the time when I trained next to the Holy Spring to improve my summoning magic. The coin dropped, and I realized what he meant. "Oh, so I just need to train next to the Thousand-year-old Ice Essence, and my summoning magic will improve?"

    "Not your summoning magic, you dolt!" Ryan smacked me¡­or tried to, but his ghostly hand went through my head. He threw his hands up and rolled his eyes. As far as he could, behind those white lenses, anyway. "This is a Thousand-year-old Ice Essence. What kind of magic do you think it will improve?"

    "¡­ice magic. But I only know the most basic of ice magic." Then I thought for a moment, recalling Cetus. "I have a few Constellation spirits that are of the ice attribute. I can use the Thousand-year-old Ice Essence to improve them."

    "Yeah, but this is also a chance for you to improve on your elemental spells. Other than your wood magic, all of your other elemental spells are pretty basic. Never mind that, your wood magic was basically ripped off from the Stuart Clan''s techniques¡­"

    "I didn''t steal the Stuart Clan''s wood magic," I interrupted, annoyed. "I honestly just read all that from a few books on wood magic, and learned that from Teacher Woodgate''s classes at Jing Tian Academy. If you don''t believe me, you can ask her."

    "Oh, that''s not what I mean." Ryan slapped his forehead in exasperation. "But did you never honestly wondered where those books, or where your teacher learned and developed their wood magic from?"

    "¡­eh?"

    Now that he mentioned it¡­

    "In fact, did you never wonder why the Ten Great Families became the Ten Great Families? And why five of them bear the emblem of the five Celestial Guardians? The same Celestial Guardians you learned to summon?"

    "That''s¡­"

    The Porter Clan bore the badge of the Vermillion Phoenix. The Lacroix Clan displayed the insignia of the White Tiger. The Stuart Clan boasted the emblem of the Green Dragon. And if I wasn''t mistaken, the symbol of the Hei family was the Black Tortoise. There was a fifth family who sported the Golden Kirin as their crest, but because I didn''t want to give away spoilers, I wasn''t going to name them just yet.

    This was no coincidence.

    "These five of the Ten Great Families were the ones who pioneered the spells for the five elements. Anyone who is learning the spells for any of these five elements can trace their lineage back to these families. They were the great ancestors, the primogenitors, the creators or innovators of their respective elements."

    "¡­so that''s why the advanced wood magic I learned from reading and from class was so similar to the Stuart Clan''s¡­"

    "Also because no one else outside the Stuart Clan bothered to master wood magic to that extent. If you recall, you''re probably the only one who attended Woodgate''s classes all the way to the end. The rest dropped out before the year was out."

    Yeah, but the only reason I did that was because I had hit a critical phase while developing Green Dragon and I realized that basic wood spells weren''t going to cut it. So I spent a lot more time reading and studying wood magic than I did for the other elements¡­simply because basic wood magic wasn''t very good for combat. And I was a combat-orientated person.

    "Also, there''s a major flaw with my wood magic," I admitted with a sigh. "I can''t cast advanced wood magic without summoning Green Dragon¡­or at least a chibi form of him."

    That was why I always had to summon the chibi Green Dragon to imbue my swords with wood magic before I could cast them. I must have screwed up somewhere, because I was unable to cast advanced wood magic without him otherwise.

    "Oh, that?" Ryan shrugged casually. "That was entirely your fault. You missed a step somewhere and tied your wood magic too much to your summoning magic, and now you can''t use it unless you use summoning magic. Your foundation is pretty¡­weird. You approached wood magic from the wrong direction. I think Woodgate also misunderstood your request. When you asked her for help to summon wood-type Soul Beasts, she thought you wanted to entirely dedicate wood magic to summoning, and so she taught you an alternative form of wood magic. That was the wrong way of using wood magic."

    "That sucks." I sighed wearily and stared at my swords. Was I doomed to repeat this mistake?

    "Now, I''m trying to help you not commit the same error here. If you do this right, you''ll be able to cast advanced ice spells without needing to summon any chibi ice constellation spirits. Additionally, you will be able to power up your ice Constellation spirits further. All you need to do is master the advanced ice spells."

    The bastard made it sound so simple¡­

    "But I don''t know anything else about ice magic besides the basic spells. I mean, I could convert several of my Constellation spirits into ice types, but¡­"

    Since my Constellation spirits were based on my imagination, they were fairly fluid and easily changed. Subject to the limitations of my current abilities, of course. I couldn''t change them to be stronger just because I imagined them to be more powerful, for example. Obviously such convenient things did not exist in reality. There were hard restrictions even though they were mostly shaped by my imagination. Otherwise there was nothing stopping me from imagining them to be invincible, and they would become invincible.

    Nope, not happening.

    "Weak," a reader sneered. "What a pathetic MC. Dropped."

    Ryan shot the reader in the head without even turning to look at him. His bullet passed through the fourth wall and obliterated the idiot''s skull, turning it into a messy shower of bones and blood. The raging edgelord toppled over, his brains spilling to the floor. Not that he needed them, since he had only displayed the mentality of an edgy twelve-year-old obsessed with wish fulfilment power fantasies and overpowered protagonists.

    "Ignore that loser," he told me. "Focus on the present. Yeah, you can change some of your Constellation spirits to ice type if you want. That might be for the best. But before you do that, you might want to improve on your ice magic."

    "And how am I supposed to do that, concretely?" I asked, glancing around. "Just practice my ice spells here? Then they were get stronger just like that? For summoning magic, training by the Holy Spring helped me get a better grasp on the advanced summoning spells, and improved my efficiency, allowing me to maintain my Constellation spirits in reality for extended durations, and allowed me to be able to withstand the mana burden of summoning and maintaining more of them. But that was because I already had some knowledge of the advanced summoning spells. I don''t know anything about advanced ice magic¡­"

    "That''s easy to solve!" Ryan took out a few books and tossed them at me. I would have caught them, but they passed through my hands. "Whoops. I forgot that you can''t touch them. Never mind, I''ll open them for you and show you. I can''t teach you ice magic, but I can at least help you gain access to the books you need, and flip through them for you. Just let me know when you want to turn the page." He frowned. "Hey, wait a second¡­did I just become some glorified personal digital assistant?"

    "No, you''re still the merc with a mouth."

    "Thank you." for some reason, Ryan Reynolds looked pleased when I stated the obvious. Well, since I was going to have to rely on him, I decided to just roll with it.

    "Okay, I guess I''ll get started then." Scanning the titles on the books that were now hovering in the air for some reason, I pointed at one. Intermediate Ice Magic for Innovators. That sounded like a good place to begin as any, given that I already knew the basic ice spells. "Do you mind helping me open that?"

    "Sure!" Ryan snapped his fingers, and that particular book levitated toward me, opening itself up to reveal the pages within.

    "Thanks." Nodding, I read through the first chapter, with Ryan''s help, and then began practicing next to the Thousand-year-old Ice Essence, benefiting off the tremendous amount of icy mana that it emanated. As I practiced, I realized the benefits.

    The Thousand-year-old Ice Essence was helping me purify my mana, allowing me to cast ice spells with greater effect than before. It was also strengthening the particular mana type required for ice magic and making the mana conversion (from energy into ice) more efficient than before. At this rate, I should be able to master the advanced ice spells in much less time than I would if I were to study it outside.

    Even so, I couldn''t spend too much time here, or the people outside would get worried. However, as it seemed that the only way to get out of here was to¡­master ice magic, I might as well roll with it for now.

    Not to mention, ice magic was¡­cool.

 345 Chapter 345: Get Out!

    Under the tutelage of Ryan Reynolds, I was able to learn ice magic very quickly. Well, I say "tutelage", but the mercenary in a red and black Spandex costume didn''t really teach me anything. All he did was flip the books open and help me look at whatever page I needed to go to.

    I didn''t know how much time had passed, but it seemed like a week. According to my smartphone, it had only been five days. Time flew past when you were in a hurry, but fortunately, with no Internet, with absolutely nothing else to do, I could only practice ice magic. By the fifth day I had finally gotten past intermediate ice magic and was starting on advanced ice magic. I couldn''t claim to have fully understood advanced ice magic, but at the very least I had some handle on it. Which was far better than what I could say for myself when I first entered the cavern.

    At the end of the fifth day, Ryan suddenly snapped close the book I was studying.

    "Okay, that''s enough."

    I stared at him blankly. By now, because I practiced ice magic, I had gained remarkable resistance to the cold and my fingers and toes no longer felt numb even if I didn''t cast that small fire spell to warm myself up. Even so, all I had so far was knowledge. Not even comprehension or full understanding of ice magic. Just pure knowledge.

    "I haven''t finished learning all the advanced ice spells yet."

    "Of course you haven''t! It''s only been five days! What, did you think you are some kind of unprecedented genius who can master ice magic in a matter of days when people take years? You already made quite tremendous progress with intermediate ice magic!"

    Yeah, but advanced magic was the hard part. Intermediate was slightly easy¡­to put it frankly, it was a joke when compared to advanced magic. I needed a few years for that¡­a year at least.

    "That''s right. This isn''t some cultivation story where you conveniently make breakthroughs or reach some weird esoteric stage or level after meditating next to something. Hell, in those stories you will absorb all the Thousand-year-old Ice Essence, dope on so-called spirit medicine ¨C which is just a glorified name for steroids ¨C and experience an increase in strength. Here, you didn''t get any increase in strength, right?"

    Ryan was right. It wasn''t as if I became any stronger. Not that the point was to become stronger. So many readers had this stupid impression that it was about becoming stronger, about "leveling up" or increasing your mana or Strength stats or whatever. As if reality could be so easily quantified. Let''s be real, nobody measured one''s strength in terms of X value. I mean, you could¡­grip strength, for example, was measured in kilograms. And people''s speed was measured by how much time they took to cover a specific distance. Or the distance of the javelin you threw. But all of these required different sets of muscles, different training, and only a fool would say Athlete X is stronger than Athlete Y. similarly, a soccer team didn''t become better just because you added a new talented player into the mix. Teamwork, training, coordination, discipline and tactics all mattered. You didn''t simply throw a bunch of talented players together and expect your team to win every game.

    And even "big" teams could lose to "small" teams. That was the beauty of sports. Victory was not guaranteed just because you won a championship last year, or your skill was recognized. Anyone could beat anybody. Otherwise why would there even be a need to compete if the outcome of the match was decided beforehand by one''s rank or "level"? Those levels are utter bullshit.

    Unfortunately, too many readers were obsessed with simple systems such as rankings, stages or levels, and when things didn''t go the way they expected, they started whining about how the protagonist was "weak" or whatever. Dude, there was so much more to "strength" than simply winning or losing, ranks and levels, or whatever.

    So what was the point? To improve my ice magic. That was all, really. If I got better at ice magic, I had one more weapon in my arsenal, I could be a bit more versatile than before, and my ice-type Constellation spirits would be powerful.

    It was about learning more, not necessarily about getting "breakthroughs" or "leveling up" or becoming stronger per say. In a sense, this was still considered becoming stronger, just not in the same way that most readers used to xianxia stories perceived. Essentially I was no longer a one-trick pony, and I had alternatives to delay and fight my opponent until I finished casting my summoning spells. In some cases, I could just defeat my foe outright with ice spells without even needing to resort to summoning. It added another weapon to my arsenal, so to speak.

    As I said, it wasn''t always about "leveling up" like in those xianxia or LitRPG stories.

    Raising my hand, I gathered azure mana and crystalized more frost in the air. Turning it into an icicle, I then hurled it at the ceiling, shattering more ice and causing a minor hailstorm. That was just the basic ice spell, but it felt¡­a little stronger than before.

    "That''s because the mana you use for ice magic has been purified, and you''ve grasped on how to more efficiently cast them." Ryan was nodding in approval. "You''ve made great improvements, considering that it has only been five days. Alas, the rest of the ice spells you have to learn by yourself when you return to the outside world. We don''t have a convenient plot device for you to suddenly turn into an ice master in such a short duration. It''s just to give you an alternative option to stall for time until you summon your Constellation Soul Beasts. Or even a way to finish off weaker enemies without resorting to your mana-consuming summoning spells. That''s all. You''re not some Mary Sue god mode protagonist who can master all kinds of magic and go around being better than other people at them. You''ll still lose to a specialized ice mage who has put in years of learning his craft, that''s for sure. This training is not supposed to allow you to surpass them."

    "Oh, I probably would lose to ice mages, yeah." I grinned. "But my ice-type Constellation spirits will not. Not after this training."

    Ryan appeared to grin back from behind his mask. "That''s the spirit, kid! But time''s up means time''s up, and to be frank, I don''t want to stay in this godforsaken place for any longer than I have to. Sorry, bud, but I''m getting out of here!"

    Well, I also wanted to leave this place, if I could be honest. I wasn''t some ascetic or monk, holing up in a mountain for extended periods of time to cultivate or whatever. Furthermore, I was sure my friends would be worried. I hoped that Anastasia wouldn''t be driving herself mad looking for me. if she and the Silver Wolves deigned to look for me. Most people would write me off as killed in action after seeing me fall into an abyss.

    Furthermore, it had been five days. If they hadn''t given up after the first three days, they should have given up by now. They had no obligation to search for me, to be honest. It was best if I assume that I was on my own.

    "So how do I get out of this place?" I asked Ryan.

    "Easy." Ryan raised both his hands exaggeratedly. "To be more precise, though, you''re not the one getting out of this place. Our buddy over there is going to get us out of this place."

    He jabbed toward the entrance of the cavern¡­in the direction of the slumbering Frost Dragon. For a few seconds, I stared at him dumbly.

    "¡­eh?"

    "I suggest you start casting your strongest summoning spells now."  Ryan waved his finger at me. "Any time soon, big daddy is going to wake up and get all mad that you''ve been benefitting off the Thousand-year-old Essence that he has been accumulating all this time."

    "Eh? But it''s not as if I absorbed it or took much of it."

    I did gather and absorb some of the mana from the Thousand-year-old Ice Essence to train my ice magic, but just as with the Holy Spring, it wasn''t something I could completely devour on my own. Not unless I overloaded and killed myself with excessive mana burnout. Or freeze-in, in this case. Whatever the case, I didn''t absorb more than a tiny fraction of the whole thing.

    "You do realize it''s a dragon we''re speaking about here, right? Greedy, possessive bastards that love to hoard? You know how you kill ants or sway away flies that approach your food? It''s the same thing here. You''re nothing more than a bug to the dragon."

    "So he''s just going to kill me because of that?" I shrugged. Oh well, that was karma for you. I had to pay for the sins of crushing and swatting annoying insects, and I understood how the dragon felt. Perfectly. I was in no position to criticize him for his perception, while taking the high and mighty ground of squashing bugs that irritated me. "Okay, I''ll just have to defend myself then."

    A slight tremor shook the place, sending a pile of frost raining down. Five days ago, I would have shivered uncontrollably from the cold, but today I merely brushed the white snow off my winter coat. I wasn''t completely immune to the cold, so I appreciated having my winter gear on. What, were you expecting me to strip down to my underwear and walk around exposed, like a certain ice mage from some manga that spouted nakama power bullshit?

    In any case, Ryan was right. I had best hurry and summon whatever I could before the Frost Dragon fully awakened. Already my glasses were picking up a spike in mana signatures as well as a huge increase in tetonic activity. Or what seemed like tetonic activity, but the movements were obviously coming from the dragon''s sleeping chamber.

    ¡­and this looked like its pulse or heart rate. Oh, wow. It was rapidly increasing, stirred into vigorous activity as its host awoke from hibernation.

    "Oh God¡­oh Jesus, oh God, oh God, oh God¡­"

    I could feel a tremendous ocean of mana pressure weighing down upon me, suffocating me. More icicles rained down from the walls and ceiling as the Frost Dragon rose to all fours, his sheer weight sending tremors throughout the underground cavern. A thunderous rumble began from his chest and left his throat in a deafening growl that shattered quite a lot of ice. I had to conjure a small defensive ice spell to form a barrier between myself and the sharp shards.

    And this was just the Frost Dragon waking up. He hadn''t gotten furious or aggressive yet, he was just stretching and yawning, or something similar to that.

    Then he appeared to turn and look in my direction. I didn''t know how I knew it, especially with so many layers of frozen walls between us, as well as an entire tunnel. But I could feel his stare.

    And you know what the best thing was? He wasn''t looking at me. He was merely gazing in the direction of his beloved Thousand-year-old Ice Essence. Yet I could already feel the tremendous weight of his gaze. It was heavy as fuck.

    There was a pause as the Frost Dragon took in what had occurred during his hibernation. He didn''t even notice me ¨C I was so insignificant that he couldn''t care less that I was there. No, he was more interested in his Thousand-year-old Ice Essence. The walls and ceiling continued to shake as he appeared to move closer.

    There was a slight pregnant pause as the Frost Dragon probed his precious Thousand-year-old Ice Essence with his magical senses. Even though he was not physically present, he could still reach out and feel it with his sixth sense, so to speak. Just like how mages could sense each other or monsters through mana.

    Then he snarled.

    "¡­and so it begins," Ryan remarked as he snapped his fingers.

    The Frost Dragon evidently detected the slight reduction in his Thousand-year-old Ice Essence. Then he shifted his focus toward me, and the mere presence¡­or weight of his invisible gaze was enough to crush me. It took me everything I had to not sink to my knees in the snowy ground.

    "Oh, he''s mad all right." Ryan was nodding, not at all surprised. "He''s going to come for you now."

    The Frost Dragon let out an earth-shattering roar. If I had thought the growl earlier was bad, this was several times worse. The entire place exploded, ice shattering into a million pieces, piles of snow pouring down in pseudo avalanches. The sonic assault traveled through the tunnel, shattering the ice frozen along its floor, walls and ceiling, and smashed into the current chamber where I occupied, smashing even more ice and turning the whole place into a site of incredible destruction. If I hadn''t conjured an ice barrier, I would have been cut apart by the sheer volume of sharp frost fragments that flew across the entire space like shrapnel.

    Growling, the Frost Dragon charged through the cavern, his immense size obliterating the wall as easily as if it was made out of snow. Rock and ice toppled over in a mixed slush as the Frost Dragon bulldozed his way through, artificially enlarging the tunnel I had used a few days ago and turning it into a devastated trail of pulverized rock and frost. Within a few minutes, he burst into the chamber where his Thousand-year-old Ice Essence was. His azure eyes glared at me in hatred, and he raised a paw to swat me.

    I dove out of the way, almost not making it in time as his claws raked deep furrows in the ground. Rolling across the snow, I completed my summoning spell.

    "Draco!"

    A gigantic black dragon manifested inside the chamber, bellowing a challenge as he confronted the Frost Dragon. Draco and the rank A dragon glowered at each other for a second before they charged and collided with earthshaking force.

    Even as I tried to pull away to a safe distance, the entire space vanished in a ferocious explosion of snow and kinetic force.

 346 Chapter 346: Duel of Dragons

    Draco and the Frost Dragon clashed again and again, sending icy fragments spinning in all directions like deadly shrapnel. The two titanic creatures collided once more, with my Draco shoving the Frost Dragon into the wall with his claws. More ice shattered, and the rock underneath all that frost crumbled from their combined weight, causing another cave-in.

    Neither dragons seemed to care. While I was weaving through raining boulders and debris made of both ice and stone, the two dragons unleashed vast amounts of mana that tore through rock and ice like paper, blowing a hole through the cavern.

    A fierce wind blew in, stinging my cheeks with snow and cold, and for the first time in almost a week I caught sight of the outside world again. Squinting outward, I saw that it was night. Fortunately, my glasses automatically enhanced my vision, allowing me to see everything clearly through my lenses.

    "!!!"

    Boom!

    Both Draco and the Frost Dragon tumbled out of the broken hole of the mountain, tumbling through the steep slope and rolling back to their feet in the valley. They snarled at each other, mana gathering in their jaws. Azure ice beam lanced out, only to be cleaved apart by a blast of pure blackness. The entire clearing vanished in white fog as the azure beam froze the black blast into ice, but dissipated harmlessly before it could reach Draco.

    With a swipe, Draco smashed the ice and lunged at the Frost Dragon. The latter met his charge squarely, and they went down, wrestling furiously in the ice and snow, sending up huge sludges up in freezing fountains.

    "Huff¡­"

    Heaving, I pulled myself out of the collapsing cave and followed my Constellation spirit into the valley. Dwarfed by titans, I wisely sought cover whenever appropriate, avoiding getting crushed by their sheer mass and large attacks.

    Overhead, Draco and the Frost Dragon struck at each other with such force that they caused avalanches of snow toppling from mountains. It was almost like a scene out of a kaiju movie. The Frost Dragon''s tail whipped out, almost catching Draco by the face, but the black dragon managed to retreat a step. Snarling, he unleashed a black beam of destructive energy that seared a glowing trail across the snowy mountain, only for the Frost Dragon to retaliate with an ice beam that froze blocks of ice at Draco''s feet and causing him to withdraw.

    Spreading his wings, Draco soared overhead, unleashing more deadly rays of darkness. The Frost Dragon responded with multiple ice beams of his own, taking off into the air to join my Constellation spirit in an aerial duel.

    The two dragons danced in the skies, twisting and trading attacks in a deadly waltz. Almost as if they were moving in a slow spin, they spat out lethal beams of energies that either froze or disintegrated. Below, I was forced to duck as colossal beams lanced into the snow, freezing or destroying everything in their paths. Tucking my legs into my chest, I hurled myself over a ledge before the entire ground was turned into ice. Even with my improved ice magic, I was not immune to cold. I hardly desired to end up entombed inside a block of ice for eternity.

    "Huff¡­"

    Diving to the side, I managed to settle down beside a tree and glanced up to see how the fight was going. Draco was trading evenly with the Frost Dragon, the two of them relatively unscathed despite being embroiled in a vicious duel for some time now. They were relying on speed instead of power, cartwheeling and darting agilely through the heavens as they continued to hurl deadly spells at each other. For now, they were able to evade most attacks and spells, but they were clearly expending lots of mana.

    This was bad. If it came down to a battle of attrition, I wouldn''t be able to last very long. A dragon that was potentially over a millennia old? Yeah¡­not going to happen. If it dragged out to that point, I might as well use the nuclear option, to hell with conserving mana and leaving myself vulnerable. I would be out of mana anyway.

    "!!!"

    That wasn''t the worst thing. I understood at that moment while this place was known as the Den of Dragons. Swallowing, I pressed my back against the tree and glanced around nervously. All around the valley, dragons were emerging to watch the battle unfold.

    There were so many of them. Most of them were Frost Dragons, just like the one combating my Draco right now. The remainder were Sapphire Dragons, which also used ice element, Ice Hydras, and even a titanic Cocytus Dragon that was undisputedly the king of this place. A crest that spread across its head like a crown, and demonic wings that could shelter an entire stadium, the colossal beast appeared to lie atop a mountain peak, watching the battle unfold, almost as if it was bored. Its mere presence was enough to turn my legs into jelly.

    "Oh Jesus, oh God, oh God, oh God¡­" I mumbled, just like the non-playable character in Aliens versus Predator 2 that was produced by Monolith and published by Sierra back in 2001. Yeah, I was that old, ha ha. Anyway, that was a great game. The graphics sucked now, but it was a classic that I held close to my heart before it was replaced by the Dead Space franchise.

    Fortunately, the dragons made no move. None of them stepped in to intervene in the battle. The Frost Dragons, in particular, watched the duel hungrily, as if they were waiting to pounce upon the wounded victor the moment it ended. I realized that fights between dragons were fairly common in the Den of Dragons. The dragons were ferociously territorial creatures, after all, and would fiercely guard their nests against other intruders¡­even if the intruders happened to be from the same species. That was why the dragons were not fazed by the scene of awesome destruction at all. They were used to it, in fact.

    Now that I observed them, I noticed that many of them bore old scars, gouges across sparkling scales, clotted wounds, slashes or burns. Yeah, they definitely were no stranger to fighting. That was for sure.

    Another stream of darkness surged from Draco''s jaws, but the Frost Dragon flipped over in midair to avoid it before retaliating with an ice beam. Draco twisted his body, dodging the fatal beam by just a millimeter and turned around just in time to intercept a charge. The Frost Dragon crashed into Draco, and the two of them grappled somewhat clumsily in the air before they both plummeted back toward the earth. Fortuantely, Draco managed to twist in midair ¨C directed by my telepathic instructions, and slammed the Frost Dragon''s head against the ground.

    Snow exploded in geysers all around the two titans, even as I heard an ominous crack. The Frost Dragon appeared to black out for a moment, but he grabbed hold of Draco''s arms with his claws before breathing his ice beam into his face.

    The black dragon snarled and toppled backward, clutching at his face. Ice was freezing over his snout, entombing his entire head and snapping his jaws shut. Mana flared around Draco and he shattered the ice before unleashing Eltanin into the still stunned Frost Dragon, drilling two bloody holes into the latter''s body.

    Flailing, the Frost Dragon''s tail caught Draco in the head and sent him tumbling into the ground with earthshaking impact. I felt the tree behind me shudder involuntarily as tons of snow crashed down. Fortunately, I was able to conjure a spell to prevent myself from being buried by all this snow.

    "Ryan? Where are you?" I demanded, looking around. I suddenly realized that the mercenary in red and black was missing. Did he manage to escape during the chaos?

    "Yeah, I did. Sorry, buddy, but I''m getting out of here." Ryan Reynolds appeared next to me with a wave, still hovering in the air despite the falling snow. He brushed off the snow from his shoulder, except that the white stuff just fell through his intangible body, so he didn''t really need to. "My job is done here, kid. I''m just here to say goodbye."

    My jaw dropped. "You''re leaving me?"

    "Dude, what do you expect me to do? I''m a ghost. I can''t devour souls like the spirit in Martial Peak, I can''t possess you and help you fight like in Battle through the Heavens or Wu Dong Qian Kun. What exactly do you want me to do? I''m not your sidekick. Sorry, but this is your story. You''re the main character. You''ve to solve this problem on your own, overcome your challenges by yourself, not always relying on Deus ex Machina or convenient plot devices or ghostly masters to haul you out of the fire."

    He had a point there.

    "Before I go, kid¡­remember. This is your story. Not mine, not anyone else. If any haters come in whining about how weak and pathetic you are or loudly shout about how they are dropping your story even no one gives a fuck about them, then¡­you know what to do." He took a gun from his holster and aimed it at the fourth wall. I swear, he was grinning under that mask. "I never miss. I know you''re not that accurate, but hey, with the firepower you have at your disposal, you don''t need a direct hit to blow those losers up."

    "¡­right." I raised an eyebrow, but remembered that I was speaking to the master in fourth wall breaking. In spirit, anyway (now that I thought about it, that could be taken literally too).

    "Adios, kid. Make sure you buy both of my movies on DVD! Oh, and before I forget¡­don''t forget to buy Detective Pikachu too! I love being the voice actor for one of the mascot characters in that series!"

    And with that, he disappeared. Hopefully not for good, unless the readers hated him and didn''t want to see him again. As Ryan advised, I should keep my eyes on the comments section. It was one thing to accept criticism and value feedback, but it was another to bow down to hate, insults and inflammatory and derogatory comments.

    I stared at the space where he occupied for a few moments, and then dragged my attention back to the titanic battle in the valley. Draco and Frost Dragon were swiping at each other, their tails lashing out and sending drifts of snow flying. They backed off, their jaws glowing with mana, before they unleashed hell upon each other. White explosions dotted the landscape, shrouding the place in ice, snow and fog, and obscuring vision.

    I glanced at the other dragons. They were all too far apart, too spread out for me to nuke them in one shot. And I only had one shot at this. It was unfortunate, but there was no way for me to nuke the whole bunch of dragons together. Knowing dragons, they would be intelligent enough to identify me as the guy who nuked them, and thus pursue me. And I was pretty sure I didn''t want to bring down the attention of almost a hundred dragons on me at once.

    I still wanted to live.

    Still, at this rate I was going to run out of mana if I didn''t do anything to tip the scales in Draco''s favor. Sparing the surrounding dragons a glance again, I decided to take a gamble. What happened if one of them intervened? Would the whole thing erupt into a free-for-all melee? That would be great ¨C I could sneak away during the ensuing chaos. Would they just watch? Well, I could worry about them after I defeated the Frost Dragon, dismiss whatever Soul Beasts I had summoned, and try to sneak away. They might still identify me as the summoner, but if I didn''t nuke them, they wouldn''t have a reason to chase after me vengefully.

    Coming to a decision, I completed my next summoning spell.

    "Green Dragon!"

    The enormous Celestial Guardian materialized above the coniferous trees, drawing power from the resilient and tenacious forest. With a roar, he unfurled his body and flew toward the two wrestling dragons, plants, trees and flowers blooming in his wake. In a single motion, he sent countless vines whipping forward to ensnare the Frost Dragon and immobilize him.

    The Frost Dragon snarled and struggled against his new restraints, but Draco wasn''t going to wait for him to break free. Lunging forward, he closed his jaws around the azure dragon''s neck, drawing blood and a screech.

    While the trio tangled, I glanced at the surrounding dragons again. So far so good. None of them moved to intervene even when Green Dragon joined the fray. They were still watching, looking bored or indifferent. Was a third party interrupting the battle and allying with one of the combatants a common occurrence then? But then, why weren''t any of the other Frost Dragons coming to help?

    Or were dragons really as individualistic as the legends made them out to be?

    Nonetheless, I decided to end the battle as quickly as possible, but to my surprise, the Frost Dragon froze all of the vines and shattered them. To avoid getting frozen along with those green plants, Draco wisely backed off and retreated.

    Shaking the broken, frozen pieces of vines cascading across his azure scales, the Frost Dragon glared at both of my dragons before bellowing defiantly.

 347 Chapter 347: Pick your Poison

    Under my telepathic commands, both Green Dragon and Draco leaped to action, flanking the stunned Frost Dragon from both sides. The Frost Dragon spun from side to side, trying to catch Draco with his ice beam, but several thick vines lashed out and tied around his neck, yanking his head to the side and causing him to miss.

    In response, Draco spun around and unleashed Eltanin, another two devastating black beams that drilled twin holes through the Frost Dragon''s body again. Meanwhile, Green Dragon conjured a storm of razor-sharp petals that blew away the snow and sliced into the Frost Dragon''s azure scales, drawing red rivulets of blood.

    The Frost Dragon snarled before releasing an icy wave that froze his surroundings, almost catching both of my dragons in ice. Both of them retreated, with Green Dragon in particular conjuring a wall of ice-resistant plants (like coniferous trees) to block the ice. The wood froze before shattering, but the Frost Dragon''s spell mostly dispersed before it could go any further.

    I wasn''t going to idly stand around and leave the fighting to my guys. Racing forward, I drew both of my swords and channeled my mana into them. Sucking in a deep breath, I yelled out a single incantation as I lunged toward the furious melee.

    "Bankai!"

    Ice enveloped my body for a few seconds before expanding rapidly into a pair of icy dragon wings. The ice spread across my arms and shoulders like some sort of armor, and for some reason, covered my feet while taking the shape of dragon claws. Why, I had no idea. If I looked into the mirror, I bet my hair had turned white too, but I wasn''t going to bother with that. Behind me, three icy flowers floated, each divided into four diamond-shaped petals of frost. A tail made entirely out of ice stretched out behind me.

    All the dragons stared at me. Even my own dragons, and the Frost Dragon that was fighting them, paused in mid-battle to stare at me.

    "What?" I asked with a scowl. Not wanting to waste any time, I charged straight at the Frost Dragon and stabbed him with my swords. Ice erupted out of my strikes and entombed large segments of the Frost Dragon, but still my enemy didn''t move or respond, and continued to merely stare at me. Seemed like my attacks were ineffective.

    Well, that made sense. Ice attacks were not very effective against ice-type Po¡­I mean monsters. However, since the Frost Dragon was also dragon type, he should have a weakness to ice attacks. Its ice and dragon type canceled each other out, so now he should theoretically have normal resistance to ice rather than half resistance to it.

    The stares were getting painful now. I awkwardly pulled my swords back and returned the gazes of all the dragons.

    "What? Stop staring at me like that. You''re making me feel uncomfortable."

    "Kid," one of the dragons growled. I was completely taken by surprise. I didn''t know dragons could talk. And this guy was speaking human language perfectly. "Why the hell are you ripping off Bleach? Do you think you are Hitsugaya Toushiro or something?"

    "¡­eh?"

    "Come on, brat¡­" Another dragon sighed in exasperation. "Don''t go copy the Bankai from Bleach. Can''t you be more original?"

    "Besides," the Frost Dragon who I just attacked also spoke up, catching me off guard. This could guy speak our human language too?! "Parody attacks don''t have any effect on us. If you don''t get serious, I''m going to get offended."

    "Aren''t you already offended?!" another dragon snapped from elsewhere. "Otherwise you wouldn''t be chasing and trying to kill an insignificant human like him?! Nobody wastes this much effort to swat a human!"

    "Just end this farce already," another dragon agreed.

    "You are right, I should."

    The Frost Dragon swiped at me, catching me before I could flap my ice draconic wings and fly away. I almost blacked out as I was sent hurtling through the air, crashing into the ground amidst an eruption of snow. The ice wings and frost armor shattered immediately from the impact, and I found myself rolling about, completely normal.

    "Ouch¡­"

    I slowly got to my feet, dusting the snow off and shaking myself to ignore the pain. The Frost Dragon lunged at me, but Draco slammed into him, knocking him off course and sending him toppling into the snow. The two titans grappled and wrestled, leaving huge gouges and furrows in the snow that exposed patches of brown earth and dessicated grass.

    Green Dragon capitalized the opportunity to make the grass bloom and turn green again. Vines and stuff burst out of the ground, ensnaring the struggling Frost Dragon after Draco wisely retreated. Another blast of ice destroyed the grass, but Draco was already unleashing his Eltanin to knock him back down.

    Snarling, Frost Dragon unleashed a Blizzard spell that wrapped the entire place in ice, but despite the raw power of the massive attack, the clumsy way he cast it meant that he missed totally. Draco managed to evade the creeping sea of snow before it could capture and entomb him in ice. Even as he ducked, an ice beam seared through the white cloud to freeze his wing, sending him crashing down. With a growl, Draco shattered the ice on his wing, but the slight delay was more than enough for the Frost Dragon to lumber out.

    Green Dragon was far from idle, however, and chose that moment to lock our enemy down with vines. Gigantic green vines lashed out and coiled around the Frost Dragon''s limbs, restraining him. Tearing at the bonds, the Frost Dragon began to freeze them once more to shatter his bonds, in order to escape, but it was clear that he was becoming increasingly exhausted.

    Draco then leaped forward and tore out his throat with a single vicious swipe, raking his massive claws through the supposedly armored scales and ripping them apart like wet paper. A geyser of blood spurted out and the Frost Dragon toppled to the ground, flailing involuntarily. Standing above the guy, Draco grimly unleashed his Eltanin at pointblank range, almost baking the guy. The Frost Dragon thrashed more violently, but I could see his body begin to disintegrate.

    The head was the first to fall off. The neck completely disintegrated under Draco''s black spell, and the head flopped off, crashing onto the snow to stare wide-eyed into the heavens. Draco didn''t stop, and while he did not destroy the entire body, he was able to at least obliterate a good portion of the Frost Dragon. Even if he somehow had regenerative spells and could heal himself, he wouldn''t be able to restore his body with such a tremendous amount of damage.

    Throwing his head back, Draco let out a triumphant roar that resounded across the Den of Dragons.

    Both Green Dragon and I glanced around to ensure the other dragons weren''t going to approach. I prayed that they wouldn''t. I was running low on mana at this point. It took a lot of mana to maintain two high-level Soul Beasts such as Draco and Green Dragon, and Draco had been expending my mana with his multiple Eltanins.

    While I still had enough juice to mount a fight if I had to, I knew it would be too reckless of me to play along. With this many dragons, I would never win a war of attrtition.

    "!!!"

    As I suspected, a second Frost Dragon stepped out to issue its challenge. This time, it wasn''t speaking human language ¨C perhaps that whole scene from earlier was my delusion, hallucination or whatever. None of the dragons were speaking human language again.

    Who cares about that? I had more important things to worry about. Such as running from the horde of Dragons.

    "Time to go," I muttered. Good thing the swat from the currently deceased Frost Dragon had sent me flying deep into the forest, probably out of sight of all the huge dragons. I was making use of the coniferous trees for cover, keeping a low profile and staying out of their sight. As the Frost Dragon lunged at Draco, I dismissed him.

    "!!!"

    The Frost Dragon crashed through empty space and into the snow, landing in an undignified heap. The other dragons, upon watching the poor guy thrash about for a moment, began to make what sounded like the dragon equivalent of laughter. Snarling, the fallen Frost Dragon rose to his feet, its mana swirling dangerously around it. Snapping its head around, it fired an ice beam at my Green Dragon.

    ¡­who promptly disappeared before the ice beam could hit him.

    "?!"

    The Frost Dragon swiveled around furiously, searching for its prey. It knew I was the one who summoned those two dragons, and it was currently searching for me. The problem was¡­you know how a human couldn''t find a single ant if it had scurried away somewhere? Even when we were irritated by pests such as houseflies and mosquitoes, and were determined to swat them, once they flew off somewhere in the room, it was difficult to locate them by sight. I was so small I was beyond its notice, apparently.

    But the dragon, being a dragon, was persistent.

    Either by sounding me out through my mana, or some other method, the Frost Dragon identified the section of the coniferous forest that I was using as cover. With a flap of its wings, it lunged forward, tearing through the trees and ripping the poor wilderness open.

    "Damn it!"

    I turned around and stopped for a few seconds, knowing that I couldn''t leave the hundred meter boundary if I wanted to cast a spell or summon a creature. I waited for the Frost Dragon to barrel toward me, then I drew both Hei Yue and Bai Ri before meeting the Frost Dragon in combat. Right before its jaws closed around me, I leaped high up into the air, flipping myself before landing on the top of its skull. Running along the length of its neck, I hacked and slashed, slicing through its azure scales with my deadly black and white swords and sending fountains of blood spurting out.

    With an inhuman screech, the Frost Dragon flailed about, trying to throw me off. I was more than happy to oblige, diving off its body to hit the ground in a roll before getting to my knees. Plunging both of my swords into the ground, I summoned Sagittarius.

    Good thing I had just barely remained within the hundred meters vicinity of where I first began casting the spell, or I wouldn''t be able to pull this off.

    "Alnasl!"

    The fiery arrow streaked from my black bow and slammed into the Frost Dragon with a supernova effect, engulfing the behemoth in flames. The Frost Dragon wailed in agony as it toppled backward, flopping around as the raging fire ate its body. With a determined bellow, it extinguished the flames with a blast of ice-cold mana, shrouding the entire place in fog.

    Dismissing Sagittarius, I yanked both of my swords out of the ground and summoned the chibi Vermillion Phoenix. Even though this was a great opportunity to test out my newly learned ice magic, I was too practical to consider messing around. Fire was super-effective against ice-type monsters such as the Frost Dragon, and I had expended quite a bit of mana to defeat its brethren earlier. I didn''t have time or energy to waste on this fella.

    The Frost Dragon''s tail flicked out and struck me. I managed to cross my swords and parry the blow, but the sheer size and power behind the attack sent me crashing through the trees. The wind knocked out of me, I grunted before flipping myself about and planting my feet against a tree. The trunk groaned in protest as it bent out of shape, splinters exploding beneath my feet, but at least I didn''t smash through it like I did the other three or four trees before I finally got to this particular one.

    Bending my knees, I propelled myself forward, flames igniting along my blades. Swinging my swords, I tossed a fiery cross at the Frost Dragon, who countered it with an ice beam. Boiling mist sizzled in a curtain between us, but the Frost Dragon uncaringly swiped through the fog, its claws raking the air above me.

    If I hadn''t ducked, the entire upper half of my torso would have been ripped away. Or more likely, I would be tossed aside like rag doll while having the upper half of my torso obliterated. Either way, not a pretty sight to imagine.

    Huffing, I rolled against the ground before summoning Golden Kirin. Earth spikes slammed into the Frost Dragon, spearing it and jamming it in place.

    "We''re getting out of here!" I told my Golden Kirin, and he agreed with a growl. Leaping onto his back, I had him fly out of there. Yeah, Kirins could fly ¨C you didn''t know that? They were known as the steeds who galloped through the heavens or something.

    The Frost Dragon wasn''t done with us. Not yet. With a snarl, it fired a volley of ice beam at us, causing Golden Kirin to swivel around and conjure an earth barrier to deflect it. The solid wall of rock turned into ice immediately before shattering, but it served its purpose. Most of the blast had been absorbed and dispelled from it.

    Breaking free of the earth spikes that had pierced its body to the ground, and spilling large amounts of blood in the process, the Frost Dragon took off with a single flap of its wings and pursued us in the air. Conjuring a storm of icicles, it fired off a tremendous barrage that literally blotted out the skies with countless projectiles.

    "Ugh!"

    "Gnh!"

    With a grunt, Golden Kirin dove toward the ground, his hooves kicking up soil in his wake. Twisting around to face the bombardment of icicles, he conjured several layers of earth barriers, walls of solid rock that stood strong and firm against the relentless hail.

    Almost. The first layer of earth walls were obliterated after ten seconds. The second layer held out for twice as long, and then the third layer was destroyed in another half a minute. Fortunately, by the time the bombardment reached the fourth layer, it was already showing signs of weakening.

    Good. While it was difficult for me to slay a second dragon in succession without resorting to my nuke spells, it was also hard for it to kill me and my Soul Beasts.

    "!!!"

    Just when I thought that, a colossal ice beam struck me and Golden Kirin from behind. I was throw off the flailing Golden Kirin''s back before he was completely frozen in a block of ice. I could see a thick layer of frost rapidly expand across my body, effects of the formidable spell, but fortunately my recent training in ice magic offered me a measure of resistance. I could slow the freeze and eventually break out of it, but I wouldn''t make it in time to escape the approaching Frost Dragon that came at us from behind.

    A third Frost Dragon, huh? Stabbing me in the back while I was distracted by its comrade. Well, given how I double-teamed on the first Frost Dragon with both Draco and Green Dragon, I couldn''t complain.

    "?!"

    However, before the third Frost Dragon could reach me, it suddenly recoiled. To my shock, I saw the entire forested area around it wither and die. The plants were drying up and turning brown, the trees were shriveling and wilting, and even the Frost Dragon bellowed in agony as it raised its smoking claws.

    What happened? It was almost as if it had just gotten its paws corroded by acid.

    "!!!"

    That was when I saw her. The solitary figure with long, green hair, in an emerald winter coat. Anastasia was standing before the third Frost Dragon, noxious fumes pouring off her hands as she cast her poison spells to maximum effect.

 348 Chapter 348: Toxic Waste

    "Anastasia!"

    "Stay back!" she ordered, her face pale and perspiring as she held the Frost Dragon at bay with her poison magic. "It''s dangerous!"

    Evidently, Anastasia wasn''t just referring to the Frost Dragon alone. She was also talking about her poison magic. Did she not know of my immunity to poison? If she didn''t, that explained why she thought it would be too dangerous for me to get close to her.

    The second Frost Dragon chose that moment to attack, his ice beam spearing through the clearing and leaving a trail of frost. I managed to dive to the side, and the Behemoth lunged to pulverize me with its claws.

    Turning around, Anastasia threw out another hand and struck the incoming Frost Dragon with a torrent of poison. The Frost Dragon choked and coughed, toppling over the instant Anastasia''s venom reached it.

    However, it was far from dead. A monster of its immense size and tremendous power wouldn''t succumb to poison so easily. Perhaps Anastasia''s toxins would kill the Frost Dragon eventually, but they would last for at least a few hours before they finally succumbed to the lethal spells.

    Not only that, but Anastasia was trying to fend off two Frost Dragons at the same time. The second Frost Dragons narled and reared up, getting ready to feeze her with its ice beam. The green-haired ex-Assssin was forced to evade, throwing herself to the ground, which turned into a tundra almost immediately as the dragon''s azure beam raked over it.

    "Huff¡­"

    The third Frost Dragon then lunged at her, but another arrow exploded against its face. I steadied Sagittarius and loaded another Alnasl before taking aim and letting the fiery arrow fly again. Even though my aim was pretty bad, the sheer size of my target made it difficult for me to miss.

    Of course, a single fire arrow wasn''t going to kill a gigantic dragon, whether the ice-type monster had a weakness to flame-type magic or not. To slay a dragon, I needed something more drastic.

    "¡­huff¡­"

    Heaving, I wiped the sweat from my brow. Even though the weather was cold, I was still perspiring profusely from the exertion. Dismissing my bow, I drew both of my swords and sprinted forward. At the same time, I channeled the rest of my mana into summoning Hydra. The gigantic multi-headed serpent reared up and hissed ferociously before biting into the flailing Frost Dragons. The nine heads wrapped and constricted around the Frost Dragon, sending it tumbling down in a flurry of snow. Growling, the Frost Dragon tried to sink its claws into my Hydra, but there was one difference between my current Hydra and the one from before.

    This time, my Hydra was azure. Frosty fog billowed out of each of their mouths, layering a coat on ice on whatever it touched. The Frost Dragon, to be sure, was resistant to ice spells, but I was dying to try out my new ice magic anyway. Or newly transformed ice-type Constellation spirits, if I were to be more precise.

    The third Frost Dragon spun around to assist its entangled brethren, but I summoned Cetus and telepathically directed the gigantic whale to tackle it. The two gargantuan creatures were sent crashing into the side of a mountain, and Cetus whipped up an icy wind that sent an avalanche of snow piling upon the Frost Dragon, burying it under tons of rock and frost.

    "That Hydra looks very different from when I last saw it," Anastasia remarked when she caught up to me, pausing to catch her breath. I recalled that she witnessed my Hydra attacking Hades when we fought against Selina Wright. Yeah, the scales of Hydra back then were black, the color of night. Here, Hydra was now azure, which represented his newfound mastery over ice.

    As if to emphasize his new abilities, several heads of Hydra reared back before bathing the struggling second Frost Dragon with his ice breath. Even a Frost Dragon could not completely withstand such intense cold, its body gradually encased in ice.

    "!!!"

    However, as befitting a rank A ancient Behemoth, the Frost Dragon was far from defeated. Gathering its mana in its gut, it blew everything out in one burst, shattering the ice and flinging my Hydra away.

    "Damn it¡­!"

    "Don''t worry. I''ve got this."

    While my Constellation spirits had been distracting the dragons, Anastasia had been far from idle. She had been casting some super spell this entire time, and now she was done. Taking a step forward, she threw her hands out and blasted the Frost Dragon with green mana.

    The Frost Dragon roared and thrashed about, but Anastasia continued to pin it to the ground, slowly approaching it. With each step she took, the area around her wilted and sizzled, the soil turning acrid, the grass withering and the plants dying. So potent was the poison that she was unleashing that she was literally transforming the entire area into a toxic wasteland.

    I noticed that she was keeping her distance from me. Probably so that I wouldn''t get dragged into her attack.

    Well, there was no point in telling her about my immunity to poison. She probably wouldn''t believe me. There was no way she wouldn''t know about it, especially since most people were aware of it, so if she still held me at arm''s length when casting poison spells, either she didn''t believe it or she thought her poisons were so powerful they would overwhelm my immunity.

    I wasn''t sure I wanted to find out if they could, to be honest. For now, I focused on the battle at hand. Anastasia was slowly but surely killing the Frost Dragon in the forest for now, so I had Hydra turn his attention toward the third Frost Dragon and assist Cetus in tying it up. Both Constellation spirits unleashed an onslaught of combined ice spells that continued to pin the Frost Dragon to the mountain through sheer volume of ice.

    With a growl, the second Frost Dragon froze the entire place around it, practically constructing an ice fortress around itself. Anastasia was forced to call off her spell and jump back, to prevent herself from being caught in the rapidly expanding ice.

    "Ugh¡­"

    "You all right?" I called out to her, still distracted by my opponent. A rank A dragon wasn''t going to die so easily¡­not unless I nuked it.

    "Yeah." Anastasia was heaving from the exertion, her cheeks flushed. Skidding back across the snow, she shook her hands and gathered more of the green mana into them. Exhaling, she glared at her opponent, who was breaking free of the icy citadel that it had just woven around itself. Its scales were fuming now, turning a sickly teal. "I pumped so much toxins into that Frost Dragon, but it''s still alive. As expected of a rank A monster¡­it sure is tough!"

    "You have no idea," I muttered under my breath before firing off another Alnasl with Sagittarius. The arrow detonated against the Frost Dragon''s head, snapping it back and causing it to stagger. While it was off balance, Anastasia closed in and struck it with another toxic torrent. "The only way to kill a rank A monster is to nuke it¡­"

    If you were someone of my level, that is. I had precious few options other than the nuclear one, unfortunately. That was life. It was never as simple as attaining whatever stage and then defeating whatever monster that was of equivalent rank and below. This wasn''t a game. People, monsters and living organisms couldn''t be so neatly categorized by "strength." Even the greatest hunter would still get mauled by a lion if he wasn''t careful, regardless of how many lions he had successfully hunted and killed in the past.

    I wish some readers would understand that. They were so fixated with ranks and leveling up that they couldn''t comprehend that reality was a lot more complex than that. You didn''t magically and suddenly become invincible and immune to all monsters of the same rank and below just because you killed a single monster of that rank¡­you didn''t magically and suddenly become invincible to anyone who was ranked below you just because you defeated someone who was of a higher rank. Yet idiots continued to whine about how I drew with Craig Carlson even though I defeated Cecilia Stuart. Come on, life was not so simple and convenient. If I could automatically win against anyone lower ranked than me just because I won against Cecilia, then what need was there to have matches? I might as well just automatically be handed the victory right from the start without even needing to go through the trouble of fighting.

    Look at football/soccer, for example. Just because Manchester City won the Premier League last season didn''t mean they were invincible. They could still lose to a team that was ranked 20th in the table, even if they occupied first place last season. Just because Liverpool was currently ranked top didn''t mean they were invincible. If they were complacent or not careful, they could lose to a team ranked at the bottom. It was silly to write people off just because they were ranked lower than you. Even worse, I saw reaers actually calling Craig a "mob" character, completely disrespecting him and insulting him. Fuck them and their arrogance. Fuck them and their casual disregard for my friend. Perhaps people would regard them just as condescendingly in real life, disrespect them and label them as "mob" characters too. Then they would know how it felt. That didn''t stop them from being obnoxious and rude, forcing their values and perceptions of what was "right" on my story. How stupid, boring and absurdly convenient it would be if you could just level up and suddenly become invincible against everyone who was ranked lower than you. But these readers actually thought reality worked in such a ridiculous and overly simple manner.

    Sigh¡­some people.

    The third Frost Dragon broke out of the ice, driving both Hydra and Cetus back. By now, I had Green Dragon materialize and bind the poor thing in vines and plants. The Frost Dragon took only a few seconds to freeze the wooden restraints and burst free.

    ¡­only for Anastasia to step in and blast it with her poison magic.

    Turning around, I took note of the other Frost Dragon''s demise. It was lying in a toxic wasteland, its body atrophying and fuming profusely. Blood was oozing out of its eyes and nose, and it was clear that the once great beast was slowly dying. Whatever toxins Anastasia had pumped into its body, they were working. The Frost Dragon couldn''t even get up, its body going into sporadic spasms.

    "Sorry¡­I''m running out of mana."

    While Anastasia somehow managed to keep up a constant stream of poison on the Frost Dragon, which caused what few of Green Dragon''s plants that still remained to wither, she was gradually sinking to her knees from exhaustion. While the Frost Dragon was visibly weakened, it was far from dead.

    "That''s enough," I told her as I approached. Anastasia glanced up with a jolt and frantically gestured for me to keep my distance.

    "Careful! Don''t come near me, or you''ll get poisoned too!"

    "Don''t worry about that. I won''t be harmed by your poison."

    "Don''t joke about that! I''m serious!"

    "So am I¡­"

    I wasn''t able to finish my sentence because one of the other dragons had joined in the fray. A Sapphire Dragon was accumulating a tremendous amount of azure mana into its mouth, converting it into destructive energy.

    "Scutum Sobiescianum!"

    The Constellation shield manifested between Anastasia and the Sapphire Dragon, but intuitively I knew that it wasn''t going to be enough. I was going to need a stronger defensive spell than Scutum Sobiescianum.

    "I am the soul of my sword."

    Muttering an incantation, I began sprinting toward where Anastasia was. Having witnessed her lethal abilities, the Sapphire Dragon had chosen her as its prime target, and was aiming its gradually coalescing beam at her. Unfortunately, the ex-Assassin was too exhausted to evade. She was on her knees, and wouldn''t make it in time.

    Even so, she was still somehow able to glare at me.

    "Why are you ripping off Fate/Stay Night?" She demanded. Ignoring her, I vaulted over to stand beside her as the Sapphire Dragon unleashed its colossal spell in the form of a beam. As I expected, Scutum Sobiescianum didn''t last for more than a few seconds. The Sapphire Dragon''s devastating spell obliterated it almost instantly, shattering and disintegrating the Constellation shield with raw might. Damn it.

    Fortunately, I still had another defensive spell up my sleeve. I had to make sure I cast it in time!

    "Fear is my body, Frost is my blood."

    Raising my right hand up, I gathered as much azure mana as I could into my palm and hurriedly constructed an ice barrier.

    "Discarded by Life, Embraced by Death¡­"

    Taking a deep breath, I continued in the face of the approaching spell, which was leaving a trail of molten lava and boiling snow in its wake as it streaked toward us.

    "I have frozen over a thousand fortresses¡­"

    "Richard!" Anastasia was shouting at me to move¡­to save myself. But I refused and stood firm, finishing off my incantation with the name of my spell.

    "Snow Aegis!"

    A gigantic snowflake materialized in front of me, about five meters in width. Possessing six petals, the azure shield solidified just in time before the colossal azure beam struck it, causing the snowflake-shaped armament to shudder violently from the impact. The ground around us crumbled under the immense power, rocks, snow and everything disintegrating almost instantly.

    But I held. My Snow Aegis held.

    Withstanding the terrifying onslaught, Snow Aegis endured for almost half a minute before it finally cracked. First, one petal cracked and gradually shattered, frosty fragments breaking apart and drifting away from the hurricane force before disintegrating fully. Then the second petal. The third. And the fourth¡­

    Boom!

    The resulting explosion seemed to engulf the both of us, but I let out a bellow as I infused the rest of my mana into my crumbling snowflake shield to withstand the last of the blast. Nonetheless, Snow Aegis blew apart along with the last vestiges of the beam.

    Bloodied, battered and bruised, I dropped to my knees. Blood streamed over my face, and my right arm flopped uselessly at my side, almost broken. Coughing out some blood, I threw out my left hand to break my fall when I flopped forward, but Anastasia quickly seized me before my face could hit the ground.

    "Richard! Are you all right?"

    "I''ve been better," I admitted groggily. That took almost all of my mana. And even then I was no longer in fighting shape.

    The Sapphire Dragon, the poisoned Frost Dragon that was still alive and kicking, and a couple of blue dragons closed in on us, snarling vengefully as they finally deigned to join the battle.

 349 Chapter 349: King of the Dragons

    I closed my eyes, even as I prepared to cast one last spell in defiance of the dragons that surrounded us. Draco manifested behind me, getting ready to fire his Thuban and nuke the whole mountain area. Even if I failed to kill all the dragons in here, I would at least take down a good number of them. A quarter, if I was lucky.

    Rather than get killed by the dragons, I would much rather nuke myself with my own stragetic-scale spell.

    "Sorry, Anastasia," I told her quietly. She stepped forward and held my uninjured left hand, despite still having poison magic wreathing her hands. Like me, she was readying herself for one final display of defiance. Even if she died here, she would at the very least turn the entire place here into a toxic wasteland. The soil around her was dying, the plants wilting from the sheer amount of toxins being pumped into the place. Even the dragons had to keep their distance.

    "Why are you apologizing? It''s not your fault." She gave my hand a quick squeeze. "In fact, I''m honored to make my last stand with you. I couldn''t have hoped for a better partner."

    "¡­thanks." I took a deep breath as I glanced at the dragons. "I don''t mean to sound ungrateful, but how did you get here? I thought you would have left with the others long ago. The students from Lie Huo Academy¡­are they safe?"

    "Yeah, thanks to you. You risked your life to rescue them, so it''s only natural that I stay behind to look for you. The Silver Wolves have mostly moved out after recovering the majority of the lost students, but I convinced Captain Brent to allow me to stay behind to look for you. He gave me a week, and I was pretty close to leaving. Fortunately, I saw your battle with the Frost Dragon from afar, and I recognized your black dragon Constellation spirit, and Green Dragon."

    "Ha ha, yeah. They are pretty large¡­"

    I nodded, feeling touched. Against all odds, and against the wishes of her superiors, Anastasia had remained behind to help me. I wasn''t even sure I would have done the same for her, if I was to be honest. I mean, I would have remained behind for a couple of days to search for her¡­but for an entire week? I wouldn''t be that optimistic about her chances of survival.

    I felt a little ashamed of myself. I really didn''t deserve to be her partner. Taking a deep breath, I squeezed her hand and tried to channel the rest of my remaining mana into Draco, who had spread his wings over us protectively, and was somehow immune to poison like I was. Well, all of my Constellation spirits and Celestial Guardians inherited that trait from me. That didn''t mean they were overpowered or immortal, of course. It just meant they wouldn''t die from poison attacks.

    The dragons, of course, weren''t polite enough to wait for Draco to finish casting Thuban. They were charging forward too deliver their attacks in close range, to pulverize me. Having witnessed me basically withstand and hold off a direct hit from a Sapphire Dragon''s destructive azure beam, they probably didn''t want to take any chances. They wanted to crush me under their claws. I bet they were going to use Dragon Claw or Crush Claw attacks.

    Reaching for one of my swords with my terribly injured right hand, I tried not to wince as I drew it. Taking abother deep breath, I whispered an incantation.

    "Bankai."

    Anastasia smacked me across the head, almost sending me sprawling on the ground. The snow was gone, having fizzled to steam thanks to her poison, but it still wouldn''t be pleasant to roll around on toxic soil. I was glad I managed to recover my balance before I fell flat on the ground.

    "Even until to the very end, you''re still fooling around! Can''t you at least be serious right before we die?"

    "No, it''s precisely because I''m about to die that I''ve to make jokes." I shrugged sheepishly. "I don''t want to go out all somber and grimdark. I''m going to die while laughing, with a smile on my face. That''s the best way to defy the enemy¡­to show them that they''ve failed to intimidate me¡­to completely defeat me."

    "Ah¡­that makes sense." Anastasia nodded before smiling brightly. "Dying with a smile on our faces, huh? Defiant until the very end. I like that."

    The dragons, on the other hand, didn''t seem pleased. If anything, they were more agitated than before, and the lead one lunged forward to squash us. I tensed, holding up my sword with my injured hand and got ready to cast a second ice barrier. Hydra and Cetus were already rushing forward, with the latter tackling the lead dragon and knocking it onto the ground.

    A Sapphire Dragon twisted its head to fire off another devastating beam at Cetus, but Hydra coiled around it and forcibly altered the trajectory of its attack, throwing its aim off. The immense beam went wide, smacking into a mountain and punching a hole through a couple hundred meters of solid rock before dissipating.

    Green Dragon then descended upon another Frost Dragon, trampling it under his claws. Trees and vines grew rapidly, entwining themselves around the horde of dragons and temporaily inhibiting them. They would break out of their restraints in seconds, but even so Green Dragon had bought Draco precious time to finish casting his Thuban.

    Letting go of my hand, Anastasia stepped forward and unleashed yet another torrent of poison at an approaching Frost Dragon, forcing it to dive to the side and break away from the attack. Even if it could survive and suppress the poison, it still wasn''t something that any dragon in its right mind would want to bear the full brunt of.

    In the midst of the melee, a sudden roar punctured the din of combat, the deafening sound drowning out all other noises made by the dragons or my Constellation spirits.

    "?!"

    Everyone stopped, including the dragons. The roar turned into a low rumble, a growl that appeared to be saying something.

    The colossal Cocytus Dragon had finally spoken.

    Every dragon in the Den, except mine, bowed their heads in supplication. To my absolute surprise, they backed away from both me and Anastasia. They retreated from my Constellation spirits, who were looking just as stunned as I was. To be fair, they were linked to me telepathically, so of course they would share the same emotions.

    "What''s going on?" Anastasia demanded, dropping her hands and watching the astonishing sight in disbelief.

    The Cocytus Dragon loomed before us, approaching us in what appeared to be the draconic equivalent of a stroll. He beheld us arrogantly, derision coloring its white-blue eyes, and then he snorted before jerking his head in the direction toward the north.

    The meaning was clear. He was telling us to go.

    "What?" Anastasia was still confused. "What is the Cocytus Dragon trying to do?"

    "He is telling us to leave the Den of Dragons," I explained, my voice almost a reverent whisper. "He is sparing our lives."

    "Huh? Are you serious?!" Anastasia gaped at me in disbelief. "Why?"

    "Dragons are monsters with a tremendous amount of pride and honor. The Cocytus Dragon¡­he is the king of the dragons living in this Den. And he has deemed their united attack on a couple of mere humans as beneath them¡­a dishonorable, cowardly move. Would you gather an entire gang of people just to crush two ants? He''s disgusted by their behavior and what he deems as an overreaction."

    "How do you know that?" Anastasia asked skeptically, tilting her head to the side. "You can understand dragon tongue?"

    "No, of course not." I scoffed at that. "I read a lot about dragons, especially to conceive and create both Green Dragon and Draco. And also a few of my other Constellation spirits, such as Draco. I had to do quite some research, and from the few material humans gathered on them, they always inevitably talk about how dragons are prideful creatures."

    The Cocytus Dragon was staring at us now, as if impatient. I dropped to a knee and bowed my head, as if to express my gratitude or acknowledge its mercy respectfully, and then I turned away. Gesturing to Draco, I mentally cancelled the Thuban spell and instead had him pick us up on his back. Cetus, Hydra and Green Dragon vanished from existence, so as to demonstrate to the dragons that I wouldn''t pursue combat with them as long as they didn''t provoke us.

    Recognizing my move, the Cocytus Dragon grunted, and the whole horde of dragons backed away further. Some of them even moved away, breaking their ring to offer us a path. I gratefully took it, directing Draco toward the newly opened path and flew toward Olympus City.

    *

    At the city hall in the middle of Olympus City, all of the students had gathered. They were chattering as they hung out within the thick, solid walls of the castle-shaped building, watching the snow outside from behind glass windows.

    "I''m pretty sure that girl has been standing there all night," one of the students remarked when he caught sight of a short, petite blond girl standing on the top of the fortress walls of the city, almost as if she was on sentry duty. He couldn''t help but drop his jaw in awe. "She hasn''t budged a millimeter at all since I saw her there last night."

    "Who is that?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked, tilting his head in puzzlement.

    "Who knows?" Lily Liam replied with a shrug. "And who cares?"

    "I bet her name is Amelia, and she is waiting for her team captain to return, along with the vice-captain. Unfortunately, she''s secretly in love with her team captain for some reason¡­because the guy happens to be a harem story protagonist."

    Everyone stared at Harrison Reed in disbelief.

    "What the hell are you talking about?" Pearl Pang demanded, annoyed.

    "Never mind¡­seems like Richard is the only one who read Battle Frenzy." Harrison sighed and shook his head. "Anyway, it''s entirely possible that she is waiting for a team member or two who have yet to return."

    "But there are only a few minutes before the deadline," Sheila Scarlet murmured as she glanced up at the gigantic holographic bulletin board that was displayed majestically in the middle of the hall. As she noticed, there were less than twenty minutes left. Eighteen minutes and thirty-four seconds at this precise moment.

    "Yeah. It''s going to be close." Theodore Hammond nodded gravely.

    "Who cares about that?" Cody Crosby growled. "We''re still waiting on news regarding Richard! Have they not found him yet?"

    "I wouldn''t worry about Richie if I were you," Craig Carlson cut in, crossing his arms and leaning back lazily. "He won''t die so easily. I bet he''ll show up anytime now, dramatically appearing right before the deadline."

    "It''s pretty pointless, though," Bu Fan observed coldly. "Even if Richard makes it back here before the deadline, he has been disqualified. The moment they sent out a rescue team to pick him up from the Den of Dragons, he was considered to be eliminated from the tournament." He shrugged. "But I think it''s more important that he gets back alive than remain qualified for the tournament. His life is more important than our chances in progressing."

    "That''s surprising. I thought you hate Richie." Yue Chu raised an eyebrow.

    "I think he''s na?ve, too kind and too soft-hearted for his own good, but I acknowledge his strength and skills." Bu Fan shrugged. "I don''t hate him to the point where I wish him dead. And let''s be serious. Without people like him, the world would be a worse place. Just look at the edgelord readers who condemn him for being stupid just because he risks his life to save strangers."

    "Those people have no idea how the real world works, until the day comes when they become the ones who need saving," Yue Chu murmured in agreement.

    "Besides, I have to deal with arrogant young masters on a daily basis. Richard is nothing compared to those obnoxious assholes."

    "¡­you deal with arrogant young masters on a daily basis? Really?" Lily sounded incredulous.

    "All Chinese webnovel protagonists do."

    "Then why doesn''t Richard have to deal with them?" Craig asked, amused. Bu Fan raised an eyebrow, as if the answer was obvious.

    "Because he''s not the protagonist. I am."

    Before anyone could respond to that outrageous remark, a cry resounded over the students gathered in the city hall.

    "Watch out! There''s a dragon approaching!"

    The staff was breaking into a flurry, with mercenaries and veteran tournament staff running to their positions.

    "All defensive arrays activated!"

    "Begin casting offensive spells! Rank A attack spells! Otherwise they would be too weak to hurt the dragon!"

    "Hurry! The dragon will be here in less than three minutes, if it continues at its current velocity!"

    "Identification of dragon species?"

    "Unknown!"

    "Is it a new species of dragon?"

    "How would I know?!"

    "Just cast the rank A Solar Flare spells first! We''ll bombard it in two minutes!"

    "Let''s hope it''s enough!"

    "What''s going on?" Theodore wondered as he watched the soldiers and staff running about and taking positions on the wall. Mana surged up and accumulated around the spellcasters, manifesting in esoteric magic circles as they tried to cast their spells as quickly as possible. The white paint on the wall began to blister and blackened from the sheer heat as their spells slowly clamped a grip upon reality.

    "A dragon? A dragon is attacking the city?!" Pearl was close to panic.

    "Don''t worry," Harrison assured her, taking her hand to provide some comfort. "With so many powerful mages here, they should be able to drive away the dragon."

    "Wait!" one of the mercenary mages shouted. "There''s¡­there''s people riding on the back of the dragon!"

    At that moment, one of the Silver Wolves mercenaries rushed out of an office, holding a smartphone in his hand. The crimson of his flushed expression matched his red hair, and he was out of breath. Waving wildly, Redfield jumped toward the top of the wall.

    "Halt the attack!" he yelled frantically. "The dragon is a friendly! I repeat, the dragon is a friendly!"

    "Huh?!" all the veteran spellcasters turned to gape at him. Redfield waved his smartphone in response.

    "That dragon is a summoned Soul Beast! And the passengers on its back are Silver Wolves mercenaries!"

    After what seemed like a relatively long pause, the spellcasters began to power down their spells, their magic circles disappearing slowly. As they did so, the dragon swooped down on the wall, and I jumped down from Draco''s back, landing in front of an astonished crowd. Seconds later, Anastasia joined me, along with a few Silver Wolves mercenaries who had remained behind in the Den of Dragons until the very last moments to search for any stragglers.

    "Hey," I called out to my friends with a wave of my hand. "I''m finally back."

 350 Chapter 350: Last Minute Arrival

    "Richie!"

    "Richard!"

    My friends were immediately upon me the moment I set foot on the ground. Above, Draco circled above the city hall for a moment and let out one last triumphant roar before he disappeared. Below, the students watched the now empty skies in awe.

    "Whoa¡­"

    "That guy can actually summon a dragon?!"

    "Amazing¡­"

    "Hmph." One of the students, Castian from Caliban Academy, shook his head and sighed. "But it''s a pity¡­didn''t his friends already say he''s disqualified? Seems like he was rescued by the Silver Wolves mercenaries¡­"

    He then paused for a second and cocked his head to the side.

    "¡­but doesn''t it look more like he was the one who rescued the Silver Wolves mercenaries instead?"

    "Nah, I didn''t do anything." I raised both hands up. "They were actually done with their missions and were about to return to base. Since I was heading back here and we were all going in the same direction, I thought I might as well give them a lift. But they didn''t need to be rescued. They could have made it back here on their own. I was just helping them return here faster, and save them a lot of time."

    "You helped us a lot!" one of the Silver Wolves mercenaries told me. He smiled as he placed a hand on my shoulder. "Thanks!"

    "No problem."

    While the students chattered excitedly, I noticed a fairly large group approaching me. They were wearing the red and yellow uniforms of Lie Huo Academy. Three of them in particular, struck me as extremely familiar.

    "You are the one who helped us!" A girl exclaimed emotionally, brushing her blond hair from her face as she tried to smile. Her eyes were slightly red from crying, and she was still sniffling. "Thank you very much!"

    "I''m so sorry¡­" the skinny guy bowed his head. "Because of us, you ended up almost losing your life. I''m so glad you manage to survive."

    "We can''t express our gratitude enough," the huge guy finished as he reached out with a hand to offer a handshake. I accepted it, and while the big guy was putting enough strength to crush my hand, I knew he did it out of overwhelming emotion rather than any malice on his part. He was almost in tears. "I''m so glad¡­"

    A lot of the other students watched, stunned by how the team of one academy had gathered around a student from another academy and expressed such an outpouring of emotion. Clearly none of them had heard what had happened to Lie Huo Academy, or to me.

    "Hah! What did I tell you?"

    In contrast, Craig was chuckling as he strode toward me. Slapping me in the back so hard that I was sent sprawling forward ¨C I was pretty exhausted after trying to fight off a horde of dragons, after all, and my injured right arm still hadn''t healed fully ¨C he threw an arm around my shoulders before whispering into my ear.

    "It''s good to have you back."

    "It''s good to be back," I responded.

    "I knew you wouldn''t die from a little blizzard like that!" Dong Fang Yue Chu yelled, laughing in delight. "You maniac! You suicidal maniac! You actually pulled it off! You survived the Den of Dragons and returned to us safely!"

    "With some time left, to boot too," Theodore added with a smile. He glanced at the holographic bulletin board, which displayed the las remaining three minutes and fifty-six seconds. Not that it mattered, since I was already disqualified. But I knew he wasn''t referring to the qualifiers or the tournament. "A day later and we wouldn''t be here to welcome you back."

    "Sorry, everyone. I got myself eliminated from the tournament. Looks like I won''t be joining you in the next stage in Aurora City."

    "Don''t worry about it." Harrison was the next to place a hand on my shoulder. He smiled encouragingly. "The most important thing is that you came back safely. That''s all that matters."

    "Thanks."

    "Leave the rest to us!" Pearl said with a forced smile. "Even though it''ll hurt, not having you in the team, you can still count on us to put up a good fight."

    I smiled back and nodded. "I look forward to that."

    "Go get some rest, man." Theodore thumped me in the back. "You look exhausted. Given how you spent so many days out in the wilderness, you''re going to need it. When was the last time you took a warm shower and slept on a soft, comfortable bed?"

    "About two weeks." That was the amount of time we were given to make the trek across the Aurora Mountain Range and forest to reach Olympus City, so that sounded just about right.

    "Get going then. We have your stuff waiting for you in your room." Harrison patted my shoulder again. He grinned when I raised an eyebrow. "We always knew you would be coming back, so we kept everything in order."

    "That''s right," Cody agreed. "All of us believe that you will definitely return."

    "You''re a pretty tenacious fella," Bu Fan added, much to my surprise. He didn''t seem to care about my surprise, folding his arms and nodding gruffly in grudging respect. "I doubt there''s anything in this world that can kill you."

    That was most likely because I had plot armor, but that was beside the point.

    "It''ll be a lot more boring without you around," Bu Fan continued as he looked away. What was he, a tsundere now?

    "All right¡­I''ll leave everything to you guys then." I glanced at Anastasia and the other Silver Wolves, but true to their professional form, the mercenaries had instead followed Redfield back to the headquarters in order to report and do whatever they needed to do. Instead of proceeding straight to their bunk to catch some much-needed sleep, they were apparently still on the clock and intended to do their duty until the end.

    No doubt Brent would order them to wash up and get some rest after they checked in and briefed him slightly on what happened out in the field. With our current magic and technology, he could peruse the recordings from our devices anyway.

    Whatever the case, they were getting paid for their jobs as mercenaries. I wasn''t. So I had no reason to feel sorry for them and follow them into the whole reporting and briefing process. I was exhausted from expending so much mana in summoning and fighting the dragons that I was pretty much dead on my feet.

    Nope, I was going straight to sleep.

    Bowing to my teammates, I bade them farewell and left for my room that the tourmant organizers had reserved for us.

    *

    The next morning, I was about to catch the next train back home, to Jing Tian City, when I found myself mobbed by a bunch of people.

    Well, I did expect my friends to show up. They knew as well as I did that I was disqualified, so they were sending me off. There was bitter disappointment present, especially when they realized that we wouldn''t be fighting together. Apparently they considered me a vital asset in combat. They overestimated my abilities, and I was somewhat relieved that the pressure would no longer be upon me to help the team reach unprecedented heights.

    However, I was surprised when I saw the students from Lie Huo Academy show up too. Evidently they found out that the disqualified students were leaving at this time, and they hurriedly turned up to see me off.

    At least that was what I thought, but¡­

    "Oh¡­we are disqualified as well. Remember? Our whole team needed to be rescued by the Silver Wolves. You were part of the rescue team, remember? So naturally we were all eliminated from the qualifiers."

    "I''m sorry to hear that."

    "No, no." the big guy waved my apology away. "If anything, we are the ones who are sorry for putting you in danger. If it weren''t for you, Amelia would have been the one who fell into the bowels of the cave."

    "And I don''t think I would be able to survive for almost a week and escape alive, like you did."

    The girl called Amelia bowed her head. Suddenly, I realized that she was the one who had been standing on top of the wall for the past few days, looking out into the open, as if waiting for her team members to return before the deadline. But that was all a misunderstanding. She was waiting for news on the person who saved her life back in the Den of Dragons.

    "For what it''s worth, we tried to appeal to the tournament staff to get you reinstated," the skinny guy told me. "After all, you risked so much to help us, total strangers. Your courage and selflessness serve as an inspiration to all mage students."

    I wouldn''t be so sure about that. Even now, I was sure the comments were full of edgelords condemning what they perceived to be my stupidity, mocking me for being a na?ve idiot who risked my life to save strangers, and whining in the forums about how I was a goody-two-shoes main character, and demanding for ruthless, murderous and psychotic main characters who could kill without batting an eyelash.

    They could go read some other story then. A specific isekai revenge story, if they so desired that kind of thing. Hell, I didn''t dare to recommend The Golden Gravekeeper to them because I wasn''t confident that it was edgy enough for those emo teens with such juvenile mentalities.

    One day they were going to have to learn that killing everybody who pissed you off or offended you was not a solution.

    "That''s fime. It was my fault for letting my guard down and underestimating the blizzard." That was partially true. If I had known the edge was going to crumble, I would have stayed a little further back. Even if Black Tortoise fell off, I could just dismiss him and safely bring him back to whatever soul dimension he inhabited before I summoned him.

    The captain of Lie Huo Academy inclined his head respectfully and offered me a hand. I shook it good-naturedly.

    "We''ll remember this," he told me with a smile. "We''ll never forget the debt that we owe you. One day we''ll definitely repay you for this favor."

    "You exaggerate," I told him with a laugh. "I only did what anyone else would have if they were in the same position."

    "I wonder how many people are willing to risk their lives for a total stranger." The captain glanced to the side, and then shrugged when he saw the inane amount of edgy comments condemning me as stupid. "Not many, I''d wager."

    I shrugged, not interested in what other people thought or would do. I did what I thought was right, I acted according to the values I inherited from Dad ¨C to be a hero, to save those more vulnerable than myself. That was enough for me.

    "Well, we had best get going then." I turned to my friends. "See you guys then, and good luck for the tournament! Do your best!"

    "We will," Harrison assured me. I nodded, and then turned to board the train.

    "Wait a minute!"

    All of us froze when we heard that powerful voice echo thunderously throughout the train platform. Turning around, we caught sight of Feng Hai, the great leader of the Silver Wolves, hurrying toward our position. He gestured at me, and I nodded dumbly before stepping forward to meet him in between.

    "Instructor Feng Hai? What are you doing here?"

    "Last minute orders," he replied as he paused to catch his breath in front of us. Grinning wolfishly, he placed a hand on my shoulder. "Richard Huang, thanks to the bravery and selflessness you displayed in your rescue of other students during the tournament qualifiers, the organizers have decided not to eliminate you. They have reinstated your place back in the tournament."

    There was a stunned silence for a moment as everyone in the train platform allowed his words to sink in. And then¡­

    "NANI?!"

 351 Chapter 351: A brief briefing

    "Are you serious?" I asked incredulously. Feng Hai nodded.

    "That is correct. In light of your valiant courage and selfless sacrifices to rescue other people, even though you had no obligation to, and to recognize your heroism, we decided to make an exception for you." He glanced at the Lie Hou Academy students. "We also listened to the students from Lie Hup Academy, who managed to gather everyone and petition for you to not be eliminated from the competition."

    I turned toward the Lie Huo Academy students, astonished, and bowed gratefully. I didn''t think they would go that far. Still, something puzzled me.

    "How did you know I would be back anyway? Most people would have assumed that I died in the Den of Dragons."

    "No, we started the petition after you returned yesterday." The big guy grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head.

    "Oh." That made more sense, though for them to get so many people involved and had the tournament organizers make such a big decision in such a short period of time was impressive. Acknowledging that, I bowed my head gratefully. "Thank you."

    "No, not at all. We are the ones who should be thanking you. You''re the one who saved our lives, after all." The skinny guy lowered his head humbly. The blond girl nodded.

    "That''s right! So please¡­take your place back with your team!"

    Honestly, I was still weirded out that they decided to resort to this clich¨¦ of reinstating the main character even though he was supposed to be disqualified. You know, all because he was the protagonist. As if I was some special snowflake who deserved to be treated differently from all the other characters. It was almost as if the rules of this world were bending backward just to accommodate me at my convenience.

    "All right, Richard, and the Jing Tian Academy team. Now that you''ve been informed, go back to the city hall and attend the briefing for the next stage of the qualifiers. The rest of you, start packing up and boarding the train. Thank you for participating, and I know you did your best. Even though you didn''t qualify for the next round, your performance this year has been spectacular."

    Feng Hai applauded them, inspiring them to feel proud of their efforts despite falling short. He was right. The most important thing was that everyone cooperated and worked together to survive and return safely. Those of us still alive to remain standing on the training platform, anyway. There were a few casualties, students who had perished in the Den of Dragons and succumbed to the elements or slain by monsters, but for the most part, the majority of us pulled through.

    And no, there were no weird "evil" teams who tried to bully others by robbing them of their survival gear, stripping them naked, burning their supplies and clothes, raping the sole female member of their team and leaving them to die in the snow. There were no "main character''s team beat up a high-ranked ''evil'' bully team who underestimated them, and karma bit them in their asses when the victim teams who stalked them all this while, waiting for a chance at revenge, showed up to enact their vengeance on the defeated bullies." While I was not na?ve enough to think bullies didn''t exist, evil caricatures who attempted to blatantly murder other students in the wild just because they arrogantly thought they could do so without suffering the consequences was just not realistic. Nor would a character who had been established earlier in the story as a calm, intelligent and seemingly rational, charismatic leader suddenly transform into a warped evil incarnate dripping with sadism and malice. Like, he displayed absolutely no signs of sadism at all, and the author suddenly claimed the change was just him revealing his true nature, even though it looked nothing more like an excuse for the main character to beat him up and slap his face for looking down on him.

    "Hello? Richard? Come back."

    Harrison Reed was waving his hand in front of my face. I jolted up and then blinked, smiling sheepishly and lowering my head in apology.

    "Sorry¡­I was drifting away."

    "Don''t drift off, dude!" Craig Carlson chuckled at my dazed expression. "We''re only just getting started!"

    "Let''s go back now," Sheila Scarlet agreed. Without any reason to refuse, I nodded and followed my friends back in the direction of the city hall, dragging my luggage behind me.

    Seemed like I had wasted my time packing everything last night. Whoops.

    *

    Later during the day, around noon, I found myself sitting with my friends inside some sort of lecture hall. There were hundreds of students gathered, whispering to each other and trying to speculate what was next.

    Now that we had passed the qualifiers, the next stage naturally should be the elimination rounds. Everyone was eagerly awaiting details regarding the elimination stages, especially since that would determine our overall ranking and performance during the tournament. Those who made it to the finals or the knockout stages would obviously have a greater prestige than those who were eliminated during the qualifiers.

    One of the tournament staff stood at the podium, dressed in that weird military uniform of his, which included a purple beret and¡­opaque glasses. How was he able to see through those opaque lenses, I had no idea, but I guess the answer lay simply in magic. But it was still a waste of mana.

    "Everyone, please quieten down," the muscular military man said into the microphone. In an instant, the entire lecture hall fell silent, with every student craning their neck and enthusiastically listening to him.

    He swept his stern gaze across the lecture hall, and took a deep breath.

    "First of all, I would like to congratulate all of you for making it past the qualifiers. All of you, without exception, have performed splendidly. The judges and staff supervising the qualifiers are all impressed with the teamwork and tenacity you displayed in a hostile environment, and how all of you cooperated to survive in the wilderness. You should be proud of yourselves."

    He then raised his hands to applaud us. The students broke into a cheer, clapping and whooping, with some girls hugging each other in delight, and guys slapping each other in the backs. Even the stiff military man at the podium cracked a small smile as he watched us celebrate.

    Well, the majority of us, anyway. I was too caught up in my own world to be happy. I merely watched the surroundings quietly.

    "Why so glum, Richie?" Dong Fang Yue Chu seized me by the neck and patted my back with a laugh. "We made it this far!"

    "¡­yeah. We did."

    I wasn''t sure what else to say. The tournament was only just beginning. The hardest part was yet to come.

    "Don''t be so pessimistic," Theodore told me. "Whatever happens, will happen. No use worrying about it."

    "Yeah." I nodded. Theodore Hammond had a point. Even if I pondered and contemplated on whatever possible scenarios the future might bring, I couldn''t change it. I might as well relax and face each difficulty head-on when they came, not tense myself up worrying for something that might or might not happen.

    "But now the hard part begins!"

    The military man waited for everyone to quieten down before he announced the same sentence that had been plaguing my thoughts this entire time. I sighed. I knew it.

    "You will have plenty of opportunities to earn more points for your team," the tournament staff continued. "Especially in the second round of the qualifiers. The top ten teams will receive an extra ten points, specifically."

    "¡­huh?"

    Everyone stared at the guy, bewildered. One of the students from the other schools raised a hand and the tournament staff nodded at him.

    "What is it, Private?"

    "I''m not a private¡­I''m not a soldier. Anyway, what''s the point of giving the top ten teams ten extra points? I mean¡­if they are the top ten teams, they are already ranked as the top ten. What''s the point of giving them more points?"

    "I was about to explain that." the military man paused for a moment, and then waved his hand. Behind him, a holographic screen flickered to life. "The second round of qualifiers will be divided into five segments."

    "Second round of qualifiers?" Ding Ke Po stroked his chin in an attempt to look smart, but only succeeded in making him appear foolish. "Extra points? Am I hearing this correctly? So is the second round a continuation of the first? Does that mean we''ll be thrown back into Aurora Forest and the Den of Dragons again?"

    "Of course not," one of his teammates snapped and smacked him across the head. "Why would they throw us back into the forest again? They might as well keep us out there instead of having us return to the city hall."

    "The next stage will be held in Aurora City," the military man continued, ignoring the murmurs and speculation that was rife among the students. "The second round of qualifiers will be different from the first round. While the first round was designed around teamwork, tactics and survival, the second round will be a bit more individual-based. In the second round, each team must select a specific member to represent them in each segment of the competition."

    "What are these segments that the TO is talking about?" Pearl Pang wondered out loud. Harrison shrugged.

    "Who knows? Let''s listen for now. He''s going to tell us."

    "Each team will have to compete in a total of five different segments."

    I suddenly had d¨¦j¨¤ vu. This guy can''t be serious. Weren''t we going to be in copyright infringement of Battle Frenzy if the story proceeded down this route?

    "Let me guess," I grumbled. "The scouting stage, the ranged stage, the tank stage, the fighter stage and the final stage will be between captains."

    Everyone stared at me, and I suddenly felt super-uncomfortable and awkward. Me and my big mouth. I was only stating the truth, but even so, it still hurt to be stared at in such an intense and skeptical manner.

    "Ahem."

    The tournament staff cleared his throat to redirect our attention back to him. He gave me an apologetic look.

    "No, that''s incorrect. I have no idea what this ranged stage or tank stage is supposed to be. You are not allowed to bring tanks or any other vehicles into the tournament. And what is this ranged stage supposed to be? Do you think we are supposed to bring you all to a range and test your aiming skills by having you shoot at a target?"

    "No, I just thought it was ranged fighters versus ranged fighters, and tanks versus tanks¡­"

    "Like I said, you are not allowed to bring tanks or any other vehicles into the tournament. Anyone caught doing so will be disqualified."

    "What if we summon them using magic?"

    "Don''t be daft. I know how summoning magic works, and it only allows you to summon living things, Soul Beasts and spirits. Not inorganic vehicles."

    ¡­well, I mean, my other self in some other story literally summoned a Titan (even though he''s supposed to be an undead necromancer¡­sorry, I have no idea what that story was trying to do). So the sky was the limit, or so they say. That said, there were hard limits on this story and I couldn''t summon anything I wanted just because some other character in another story did it. There were rules that I had to follow while being in this story. Too bad. I had no choice but to suck it up.

    "Rather than stages dividing into mages of specific specializations fighting each other, it''s just five free for all matches happening in five different maps around Aurora City. We will announce the maps one by one, and the team will choose a member to represent them in that map. As stated earlier, the format is free for all ¨C meaning, that you''re supposed to fight each other. The last 10 remaining in each group will gain their teams 10 points. This will be repeated another four times until all five maps are done."

    "That sounds simple enough," Cody murmured with a nod.

    "The only limitations is that you can''t choose your captain for the first four rounds. The captain must participate in the final map. That''s about it."

    The military man nodded in satisfaction and took a step back, casting his stern gaze upon all of us.

    "Good luck, and happy hunting everyone! We''ll release the specific details to you shortly, but the first match¡­will be tomorrow!"

 352 Chapter 352: Stuff Happens

    "Amelia, you''re up." Harrison turned to the blond loli who he thought belonged to the Assassin clan. "Tomorrow is the scouting stage. Time to show us what you can do."

    "¡­"

    Everyone was staring at Harrison, completely baffled by his behavior. They stared at the blond loli for a few seconds, and then turned back to their captain.

    "Why are you asking a middle school student to take part in the match tomorrow? She''s not even a student from our school."

    "But¡­" Harrison protested against Pearl''s objection. "¡­what else am I supposed to do? We''re supposed to be copying Battle Frenzy. This is where Wang Zhong sends Amelia into the scouting stage, and she rekts the Assassins from the so-called A-ranked academies so hard that everyone either feels as if their faces got slapped or they start expressing their surprise over how such a talented genius actually came from a supposedly ''trash'' school like Jing Tian Academy is. You know, the usual Chinese webnovel clich¨¦s."

    "Get serious!" Pearl snapped, hitting him in the head. Harrison winced.

    "Sorry."

    "Sorry about that." Sheila was kneeling next to the utterly confused girl and comforting her. The blond middle school student continued to gape at us for a while, and then nodded and left. She was still completely bewildered over what had just happened.

    "Besides, didn''t the TO already say that they are not doing that scout stage, tank stage bullshit?" This time it was Craig Carlson, who was folding his arms as he watched our great leader. "It''s just five free-for-all matches in five different maps." He then raised his hand and grinned broadly. "I volunteer to take the first map."

    "Sounds good to me." Harrison nodded. "We''ll go with that then."

    "I''ll take the second map," Theodore added after a while.

    "Leave the third map to me," Cody said darkly, leaning against the wall and almost disappearing into the shadows. We all glanced at him, startled. As always, he erased his presence so easily that we almost forgot that he was here.

    "That''s settled then." Harrison glanced at me and Bu Fan. "The fourth match will be either one of you then."

    "Ugh¡­let Richard handle it." Bu Fan waved his hand dismissively. "I''ll do my part in the finals instead. I don''t want to give away my magic and trump card just yet."

    Harrison glanced at me, and I shrugged.

    "Fine with me, unless someone really wants to participate."

    "No, I think it''s safe to say that you should handle the fourth map." Pearl giggled. "Just in case anything goes wrong and we''re desperate for points."

    "Hey! What''s that supposed to mean?!" Craig complained. "You think I''ll lose?"

    "Nobody said that."

    "Now, now¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu quickly cut in to placate everyone before it could escalate into a fight. He turned to Harrison. "And you''ll be responsible for the captain match at the end, right?"

    "That''s correct."

    "Then I guess we should start preparing for the coming matches, right?" Dong Fang Yue Chu shifted his gaze across each of us, almost as if he was challenging us to object. None of us did, of course. We all knew how important preparation was.

    However, Harrison cleared his throat uncomfortably. Conjuring a holographic screen with his smartphone, he waved for us to take a look at the matchups.

    "Um¡­that''s precisely the problem, guys. Not only are we not told the specific maps, we have no idea who the representatives are for the other teams. Not unless we spy on them, but even so there''s little point, given how over fifty teams are participating. There''s no way we''ll be able to gather the information in time, and learn each and every participant''s magic, fighting style and abilities. Suffice to say, we are going in blind."

    "This is really meant to be a free for all, huh?" I sighed. Harrison nodded grimly.

    "Yup. They are trying to keep us on our toes and surprise us. Expect the unexpected, deal with twists in real-time, and all that. It''ll be very difficult for us to prepare if we don''t know who is participating in which round. We won''t be able to come up with adequate countermeasures."

    "We still have to come up with a strategy, though," Theodore pointed out.

    "Of course," Harrison conceded. "But we don''t even know what the map would be¡­yet. They still have yet to announce the first map." He turned to our spear-wielding friend, concerned. "Craig, the pressure on you will be immense."

    "I can handle it," the Crimson Spear Society president replied confidently. He grinned and thumped his chest. "Hell, that''s why I volunteered to go first in the first place. If anyone can deal with this pressure and emerge victorious, it will be me."

    "Good to see that you''re as confident as ever," Sheila remarked with a smile. "But don''t get complacent and underestimate the enemy."

    "Hah! Who do you think I am? Just watch, I''m going to earn our first ten points!"

    While Craig bragged, I checked the information I received on my smartphone. Out of the five hundred academies who participated in the tournament, only half of them had survived elimination in whatever city districts they were assigned to. Each city district originally had a hundred teams, but now each had a little over fifty teams left. And out of these fifty teams, only the twelve top teams would make it past the qualifiers.

    So, in order to get to the top, we needed to amass as many points as possible. And to do that, our representative had to be among the last ten to survive in each of those maps.

    This was going to be difficult. I wasn''t sure about magic, but I knew I was pretty bad at survival games and all that. Whenever I played shooter games in my previous life, I would be among the first to die. To be blunt, I sucked at gaming. Strategy games were another matter ¨C hilariously enough, I could survive among the longest in strategy games, because I was generally the type to turtle, tech up to the strongest units, and survive¡­

    That didn''t mean I won, though. Most of the time, I lost because I generally sucked. I was good at macro, but I sucked at micro and multi-tasking. I was always able to amass huge amounts of resources and build up a powerful army, but I was always vulnerable to timings, being flanked, and god-like micro from my opponents.

    Honestly, I wasn''t confident in surviving, because it seemed like the matches were more akin to free for all shooter games, where everyone was just gunning down whoever they saw. And I sucked most at those kind of games. Furthermore, if the opponent even had an inkling of what I was capable of if left to my own devices, they would strive to eliminate me as quickly as possible, before I could summon anything.

    And right now, I would be left to fend for myself, with no teammates to back me up, no one to provide support and protect me while I cast my summoning spells. It wouldn''t be like in the first stage of the qualifiers, where I had an entire team helping me out and delaying the foe while I cast my summoning spell at the back.

    Summoning was only good when executed in a team. If this was a solo free-for-all play, then I was pretty much screwed.

    "Anyway, we''ll just return back to the hotel and discuss our plans there." Harrison glanced around to ensure that we weren''t being eavesdropped upon. Not that any team would single us out and spy on us ¨C they were all too busily discussing the new round of the qualifiers with each other to do anything that unethical.

    Furthermore, there were plenty of other teams who were regarded more highly than us, and viewed as bigger threats. As far as the other teams were concerned, we were somewhat of a dark horse at most. No, we were not trash. Nobody was that rude or disrespectful, not unless you were a reader like Meatballs who dismissed characters as "mob" without even bothering to read on. Come on, have you ever met anyone in real life who went around calling people trash just because they weren''t as skilled as them? I wasn''t na?ve enough to say arrogant people didn''t exist in reality, but that was way beyond simple arrogance and actually plain stupidity.

    At most, you laughed at people for being newbies (or noobs), and you scoffed at their efforts. But nobody actually went through the trouble of condemning other people as "trash" and went out of their way to humiliate them for no other reason other than because they happened to be the main characters. As such, nobody was going to bother eavesdropping and sabotaging us just to prove that we were "trash." Like seriously, who had so much free time and energy on their hands?

    While we followed Harrison back to the hotel, passing by teams who didn''t give us a second glance (to be fair, we didn''t spare them more than a few seconds of attention either ¨C we were too busy for that), I caught sight of a familiar figure approaching us.

    "Richard!"

    "Redfield?" I recognized the red-haired mercenary immediately. He frantically approached me, waving me over.

    "Great! I found you!" After he hurried over, he looked at my friends hesitantly before taking a deep breath. "Sorry, can I have a quick word with you?"

    "Sure." Realizing that he wanted to speak to me in private, I stepped away and bowed my head apologetically to my friends. "Go ahead. I''ll catch up soon."

    "Don''t take too long," Yue Chu joked. "The last time you said that, you were gone for seven days."

    "I don''t think I actually said that¡­"

    "Geez, I was joking!"

    Yue Chu chortled and smacked me across the back, pushing me in Redfield''s direction. Harrison nodded at me.

    "Don''t worry. Like I said, there''s precious little we can do about our current predicament. Do whatever you need to do. As long as you''ll be available to fight for the fourth map, that''s more than enough. Even if something crops up, we''ll just have Bu Fan take your place."

    "Hey, hey!" Craig jumped up, looking from Harrison to me, and then glancing at Redfield with a raised eyebrow. "What''s with all these ominous foreshadowing? You''re talking as if Richard will be booted out of the competition or something."

    "Or at the very least, he will be involved in something that would that would force him to stay out of the tournament," Theodore murmured darkly.

    I wasn''t sure how to respond to their pessimistic remarks. These guys had been reading way too many webnovels. I was too amazed to muster up any sort of retort. Fortunately, before I could say anything stupid, Bu Fan cut in, outraged.

    "What the fuck?! Then what was the whole point of making a special exception and reinstating Richard back in the tournament, nullifying his elimination and allowing him to participate again, if he''s going to be forced by some cheap, contrived plot device to miss out on the next round of qualifiers? Is the writer of this story high or something?"

    "Hey, I resent that," I snapped, annoyed. But Redfield placed a hand on my shoulder and gently led me away.

    "Sorry, but there''s no point wasting your time arguing and making up retorts. We have more important things to worry about."

    "Fine." I allowed him to lead me away, trying not to feel grumpy and whatever. "What''s up? Why so serious?"

    "Have you seen Ana?"

    The question caught me off guard. I looked around, but saw nothing other than students from fifty academies milling around and talking to each other. Throughout the vast courtyard that served as a garden for the city hall, there was no sign of the green-haired ex-Assassin. Not that I expected to see her amidst all the students competing in the tournament.

    "No. What happened to Ana?"

    "That''s the thing. She has gone missing." Redfield paused as he tried to steady himself, but I could see that he was highly disturbed. "When was the last time you saw her?"

    "Yesterday, after we returned from the Den of Dragons." I was starting to feel alarmed. "Why? What happened? Did something happened to Ana?"

    "Well¡­yeah." Redfield took a deep breath before glancing around and ensuring that no one was listening in our conversation. Lowering his voice, he leaned in and whispered to me in a grave tone. "Her poison magic has gone out of control. I''m not sure, but I think she headed back out in the forest to die alone, before she can accidentally kill anyone with her rampaging powers."

 353 Chapter 353: Poisoned Chalice

    After notifying my teammates that it would be unlikely for me to join them, at least until the fourth match (which was in four days, so I still had three days to find Anastasia). Even if I ended up missing it, there were ten members in our team. Bu Fan or Dong Fang Yue Chu could take my place. Actually, why not have Lily or Sheila take my place? Other than Pearl, who was our healer and not as proficient in combat as the rest of us, there was no reason why the girls couldn''t fight in the place of the guys. Or perhaps Harrison planned on holding them in reserve, to spring them on our opponents later in the tournament. After all, Bu Fan used that reason to abstain from fighting in the qualifiers. Surprising our opponents with the girls ¨C whose skills and techniques were rarely seen in tournament matches ¨C would be a good tactic.

    Whatever the case, that was Harrison''s problem, not mine. He was the captain, not me. What, you think this is Battle Frenzy or something, where the main character has to be the great genius leader who brings everyone to victory with his awesome strategies or something? Sorry to disappoint you, but I wasn''t some perfect Mary Sue who was the strongest fighter, yet at the same time possessed tactical genius on the level of Ursarkar E. Creed.

    For now, I focused on searching for Anastasia.

    "Where was the last time you saw her?" I asked Redfield, even as we proceeded toward the hotel that the Silver Wolves booked for their accommodation. He shook his head.

    "Here. The hotel. We just conversed last night, in the lobby. The captain ordered Ana and all the other mercenaries who returned with you to rest, so they were heading to their rooms. But¡­"

    He hesitated for a little, and I prodded him impatiently.

    "But what?"

    "Even as early as last night, Ana was already showing signs¡­signs of uh, instability."

    I didn''t spare the ornate interior of the grand hotel a glance, and so focused was I on the conversation that I almost stumbled over a velvet couch. Throwing myself to the side to avoid falling into a luxurious lamp stand that served more as decoration than illumination, I turned back to stare at Redfield in bewilderment.

    "Instability? What do you mean by instability?"

    Redfield hesitated a little before plopping down on the velvet couch. I took the cushioned chair opposite him, leaning over the small coffee table between us to fix a glare on him. The guy was not going to squirm his way out of this one.

    "Why didn''t you bring her to a doctor then? Or a¡­psychiatrist?"

    "Not that kind of instability," Redfield hastily corrected, waving his hands. "Not mental instability. I''m referring to magic instability. We gave her a sedative, but it didn''t seem to be very effective. Ana was complaining about it, I remember that."

    "¡­magic instability?" What the fuck was that? I was getting even more confused by the second. I had never heard of "magic instability" before.

    "You know how Ana practices poison magic, right?" Redfield scratched his head. "Especially since she was formerly a Veneneum Assassin. Even after she was recruited by us and left the Assassins, she continued to practice the Veneneum Sect techniques, which involve a lot of poison spells and other methods."

    More like after the Silver Wolves abducted her, interrogated her and forcibly conscripted her. That said, Anastasia seemed like she enjoyed her time more in the Silver Wolves, who treated her much better than those monstrous assassin masters of hers.

    "Is she getting poisoned by her own magic?" I hazarded a guess, unsure of where the conversation was going. That was the only scenario I could envision when Redfield told me that Ana was suffering from magic instability.

    "Sort of, but it''s a lot more complicated than that." Redfield sighed and sank back into the couch. "Have you heard of the Woeful Poison Body before?"

    "Are we ripping off Battle Through The Heavens now?" I asked, exasperated.

    "Figures that you would have read that one. Well, it''s similar to that one there, I guess. It''s a physical constitution that turns the user herself into a very poisonous existence ¨C her body becomes so toxic that just being in her presence alone is fatal. For people who have attainted that sort of constitution, they have no choice but to consume poison in order to survive. However, the more poison the practitioner consumes, the greater the toxicity of the poison that accumulates in her body."

    "That can''t be good. But this came out of nowhere. When did Ana start consuming poisons? I don''t remember¡­"

    Redfield gave me a look. "Why the fuck would she consume poisons in front of you? Or anyone, for that matter?"

    "Then how do you know about it?"

    "She told me that she had it, and after she disappeared, the captain and I did some research on it."

    "Research? Yeah, right. All you did was go read Battle Through The Heavens."

    Redfield didn''t deny that, which meant that I was right. But seriously? Were we just going to assume that whatever happened in Tian Can Tu Dou''s story was applicable here in reality, and that the Woeful Poison Body was pretty much exactly the same?

    Sighing, I shook my head and chewed my lip.

    "Let me guess¡­so the amount of poison in Ana''s body has reached critical levels and she''s in danger of blowing up from all the toxins gathered inside her."

    "Exactly." Redfield was nodding grimly. Fuck. And here I thought I was being sarcastic by regurgitating whatever happened in Battle Through The Heavens. Can''t the writer be more original instead of ripping off other books? However, Redfield continued to plunge ahead without waiting for me to roll my eyes. "When the poisons in Ana''s body erupt, every living organism within a kilometer radius will die. Horribly."

    Except me, because I had immunity to poison, but that wasn''t something Redfield needed to know. So I just nodded for now, and plastered on what I hoped was an appropriately horrified expression. Gulping ¨C well, just hearing about the kind of damage the poison could cause was pretty shocking, to be honest ¨C I pondered for a moment.

    "Wait, Ana knows about this, right?"

    "Yeah. She was the one who told me that she was practicing such a terrifying technique." Redfield''s complexion was ghastly even as he recounted everything to me. He rubbed the back of his neck and exhaled. "And judging from her condition last night, it seems that she doesn''t have much longer before the¡­eruption."

    Pushing my glasses up, I took a deep breath and steeled my nerves.

    "We have to find her."

    "That''s right. That''s why I approached you. I was hoping you might know where Ana went. You''re the one closest to her."

    Come on, dude, you didn''t need me to guess where Anastasia would go. If Ana knew that she was on the verge of blowing up from her poison and in danger of killing every single living thing in a kilometer wide radius, then the answer to where she could have gone was blatantly obvious. If I were her, I would have done the same thing.

    "Ana left the city. She''s no longer in the city. She''s worried about dragging people into the¡­uh, explosion, so obviously she would have gone to a place where there''s nobody around. And if I''m not mistaken, she would probably head to the closest monster habitat ¨C might as well take out as many monsters as she can before she dies, right?"

    "Aurora Forest!" Redfield''s eyes widened when he remembered the vast expanse of wilderness that lay between Aurora City ¨C where we currently resided in ¨C and Olympus City, the one we had just left two days ago. "You might be right!"

    "Yeah, and we had best hurry. We should go search for her now." I was rising to my feet. Redfield jumped up as well, glowing excitedly.

    "You''re right! Let''s go immediately."

    "Wait."

    The both of us froze when we heard the familiar, authoritative voice. Turning around, we saw not Captain Brent but the leader of the Silver Wolves himself, Colonel Feng Hai. Why not General, I don''t know, I was just ripping off the mercenaries from BattleTech, where Jaime Wolf ¨C the leader of Wolf''s Dragoons ¨C was a Colonel. So I was going to assume that the highest-ranked officer of a mercenary guild was a Colonel and not a General. Mercenaries usually were composed of only one regiment, after all.

    The dark-haired mercenary leader glared at the both of us sternly, his hands clasped behind his back. He was dressed in his usual Silver Wolves military uniform, just like Redfield, a blend of black and Arctic gray. Currently he was giving off an imposing air that belied his young age ¨C it was hard to remember that he was still only in his twenties.

    "Sir?" Redfield ventured uncertainly. Feng Hai sighed.

    "I don''t mean to stop you guys from finding Ana, but you''re not thinking things through. What are you going to do when you find her? As much as I hate to say it, Ana is a ticking time bomb right now. If you go find her, you''ll just end up getting killed when she blows. Is that what she wants?"

    "Even so¡­we can''t just leave her alone!" Redfield argued hotly. Feng Hai shook his head and sighed again.

    "That''s not what I mean. I''m not telling you to leave her alone. I''m telling you to think. What are you going to do when you find her? Die with her? Do you have any way of saving her?"

    "That''s¡­" Redfield trailed off, realizing that his leader was right.

    "First, we need to find a way to stop the poison within her body from erupting. Then we find her and administer the¡­cure. Or implement the method of cure. Blindly running after her right now is not going to help anyone, least of all Ana herself."

    "I understand." Redfield took a deep breath. "But how? Is there a way to cure Ana of the poison inside her body?"

    "We''re looking for one right now." At that moment, Brent chose to appear. He waved his smartphone, which was currently projecting a holographic screen into the air and displaying an automatically scrolling list of¡­items. "But our prospects look pretty dim. I wouldn''t be surprised if the Veneneum Sect is the only one who knows how to control it¡­and in fact makes use of this technique to keep their Assassins in line by forcing them to rely upon them for continued survival and¡­well, defusing the poison bomb inside their bodies, for a lack of a better word."

    "Uh¡­what about the Poison Pill Method?" I asked, raising a hand. All three older men stared at me blankly. "She needs to learn how to control her technique ¨C by gathering all the poison accumulated within her body and transforming it into a Poison Pill. To refine the Poison Pill, she probably needs three essential ingredients ¨C three kinds of Heavenly Flames, the monster core of a Sky Poison Dragon Scorpion Beast, and the Bodhisattva Body Transformation Saliva."

    "¡­you okay, bro?" Redfield asked dumbly.

    "I''m serious!"

    "Kid, you''ve been reading way too much Battle Through The Heavens," Feng Hai told me in a tone that brooked no argument. "Since when does such a convenient method exist? This isn''t a receptartier or alchemist story, we don''t have such pill methods or whatever nonsense. And there are no such thing as monster cores. What the fuck is a monster core? The accumulation of their qi in their dantian or some shit like that? Don''t be ridiculous. There''s no such thing."

    "There''s no such thing as a Sky Poison Dragon Scorpion Beast or a Bodhisattva Body Transformatio Saliva," Brent added, scratching his head as he ran a search on Google on his smartphone. "Whatever results I find are all entirely fictional. And those are quite the cumbersome, chuunii names."

    "I wasn''t the one who named them," I muttered under my breath.

    "Speaking of pills, we did try to find some medicine for Ana, but we couldn''t find anything effective for her constitution." Brent pinched the bridge of his nose and scowled. "Modern medicine just doesn''t have the tools to deal with this kind of thing."

    "And the Veneneum Sect will not save a ''traitor''," Feng Hai growled furiously. "They are more than contented to let her die, sayig that she deserves it for betraying them. Not that I would trust them to save her even if they accepted my request. I would go hunt down and destroy them if I could, but we can''t afford to waste time on waging war right now. We need to solve Ana''s problem."

    "Is there any antidote, any miracle medicine¡­?" Redfield asked, but Brent shook his head.

    "Do you think an antidote conveniently exists out there somewhere? This is a technique exclusive to the Veneneum Sect, and you know how secretive Assassins are. Our intelligence network is working around the clock to dig out whatever information they can find, but we don''t have the time to wait for them to bring anything back concrete."

    "Time¡­" that word stuck in my head for a moment. "If only we can stop time¡­"

    At that moment, I blinked. All my experience of reading and watching science fiction novels and films came into play that moment (as well as playing sci-fi horror games such as Aliens versus Predator), especially the Aliens universe in particular.

    Grinning, I raised my hand again, confident this time despite not having to rip off Battle Through The Heavens.

    "Gentlemen¡­I think I might just have a way."

 354 Chapter 354: The Search for Anastasia

    "This is your plan?!" Redfield exclaimed after listening to my suggestion. He looked as if he was on the verge of erupting himself, much like a Space Construction Vehicle (SCV) being ordered to attack a swarm of Zerglings instead of mining minerals or vespene gas.

    "Yeah." I nodded seriously, because Redfield didn''t look like he was joking. "I''m suggesting that we use stasis. We can put her on ice and freeze her for as long as it takes to develop a treatment for her condition."

    "That sounds like a good idea," Feng Hai spoke up, his tone approving. He nodded at me. "If we don''t have time, we go make it. Excellent."

    "Yeah, we''ll get our doctors and healing mages to find a cure in the meantime." Brent seemed relieved. Despite being "magic", there was no miraculous spell that could conveniently cure Anastasia of her condition, or we would have done it already. Normal healing spells didn''t work, and detoxification spells were ineffective ¨C there was way too much poison for the spell to neutralize. If we wanted to cure Anastasia, we needed a much more powerful detoxification spell. A spell that had yet to exist.

    "Still, stasis¡­where did you get that idea from?" Feng Hai looked at me, impressed. "We definitely have stasis magic. We can ask Glacia to freeze her and¡­well, put her on ice, as Richard suggested. Still, who would have thought?"

    "I read a lot of science fiction novels¡­and watched more than a few science fiction movies. Stasis is always a big part of all of them. Going into cryo sleep and all that." Then I frowned. "There was also this recent manga that I read¡­what was it called again? World''s End Harem? Or an anime called RErideD: Tokigoe no Derrida. Something like that, where the protagonists go in cryo-sleep and are held in stasis for years. I think it was World''s End Harem where the guy was frozen for five or so years while they searched for a cure for him."

    "Okay, I get the point." Feng Hai raised a hand to stop me, evidently because he didn''t want to hear me go on and on about manga and anime forever. "It''s a great idea, though. I''ll go get Glacia, and then we move out within the hour. Go get ready, everyone!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    *

    Even though Feng Hai told us to get ready, we didn''t really have much to do. I didn''t bother going back to the Aurora City hotel that the tournament staff assigned us students to, because there wasn''t much stuff I was going to bring out into Aurora Forest anyway. Instead, I just took the standard fieldpack that the mercenaries were handing out, which included rations, water bottles, detoxification pills (to treat and detoxify water if we were forced to collect it from rivers or other sources) and other survival gear. I always had Hei Yue and Bai Ri on me, so I didn''t need to go back and collect them.

    So essentially I just followed Redfield around.

    The red-haired mercenary turned and placed a hand on my shoulder after I collected the green camouflage-patterned fieldpack.

    "Be careful out there, Richard. You and Ana are like my younger siblings. I don''t want anything bad to happen to you out there."

    "What are you talking about?" I raised an eyebrow, but Redfield shook his head, even as he heaved his fieldpack upward.

    "Nothing. It''s just me trying to play the big brother." He forced a grin and flashed a thumb''s up. "Don''t worry about it. If it comes down to it, I''ll protect you and save Ana."

    "Saving Ana is my job," I joked. Redfield actually laughed at that before he patted me on my shoulder.

    "I won''t deny that. What comes after you save Ana will be my job then."

    "I thought that''s Glacia''s job. Aren''t you a fire mage?"

    "Aw¡­come on! You''re making me look bad! That was my moment to act cool, you know!?" Redfield groaned, causing me to chuckle. The guy was deliberately playing the fool, so as to ease the tension and get me to relax.

    "Well, we can always count on you to pull us out of the fire."

    "Really now?" Redfield rolled his eyes before he strapped his spear between his back and bulky fieldpack. For some reason, he was also holstering a Glock 17 handgun and a shotgun.

    "Huh? Don''t you already have your spear? What are those guns for?"

    "Oh, I didn''t tell you?" Redfield puffed his chest out proudly and displayed a badge with stars on it. "My full name is Christopher Redfield. I was formerly part of a special tactics and response squad in a police department before Feng Hai recruited me for his mercenaries."

    "That doesn''t explain why you''re bringing guns," I muttered under my breath. Redfield raised an eyebrow.

    "Seriously? My name Chris? Special Tactics and Response Squad? They don''t ring a bell?"

    "Of course they do ¨C we literally had two remakes over the past year. But other than your name, I''m pretty sure you bear no relation to any characters in any zombie game."

    "Aw¡­you hurt me, bro¡­"

    Any chance to continue to banter was cut off when Feng Hai appeared in the parking lot where the mercenaries were unloading crates of supplies and handing out fieldpacks, weapons and ammunition. He raised a hand and shouted for everyone to gather around him.

    "All right, ladies and gentlemen!" he bellowed. "I''ll make this short. At 0812 this morning, one of our members disappeared. Apparently she is suffering from a condition called Woeful Poison Body¡­if you don''t know what that is, read the briefing email I sent to you earlier for details. In any event, the toxin levels in her body have gone critical, and she''s essentially a ticking time bomb, which is why she decided to up and leave us. To ensure that none of us get caught up when she blows."

    Grim silence greeted Feng Hai at that, but he continued, unimpeded.

    "However! We are soldiers! We leave no man or woman behind! We may be mercenaries, but our loyalty to each other is beyond any doubt! Our bonds, faith and values are what set us apart from other mercenaries! We are the Silver Wolves, all of us are of the same pack! Even though she is a recent addition to our team, Ana has proven herself by fighting beside us in numerous missions. She has saved the lives of many of us, including mine! She is one of us! We will not turn our backs on her! We will not abandon her! We will not leave her alone to die by herself in some godforsaken forest!"

    "Hoo-rah!" the mercenaries roared, pumping their arms and weapons into the sky, as if to emphasize Feng Hai''s point.

    "Therefore we will go out and locate her right now, and bring her back! And find a way to cure her!"

    "Yeah!"

    "I''ll be brief. The plan is to find Ana, and then put her on ice. If you''ve read the briefing email ¨C and you had better start doing so if you haven''t done so already ¨C you''ll know the situation. Long story short, Ana is a walking poison bomb who is about to blow, so we need to freeze her and put her on stasis. Then we bring her back here. Then Doc is going to find a way to cure her. That''s it. Any questions?"

    "Yes, sir!" One of the mercenaries raised a hand. Feng Hai raised an eyebrow, and looking as if he was going to regret it, sighed and nodded.

    "Hudson?"

    "How do I get out of this chickenshit outfit?"

    "You secure that shit, Hudson!" Brent bellowed, jabbing his finger at the grinning mercenary. The guy called Hudson shrugged.

    "Just making an Aliens joke, Cap. You didn''t catch the reference?"

    Feng Hai shook his head and sighed, rolling his eyes. "All right, ladies, hop into the hovercraft. We''re moving out now! We''ve a flight to catch and a girl to bring home. Now move it!"

    "Sir! Yes, sir!"

    It took less than five minutes for over twenty mercenaries to scramble aboard the hovercraft and strap themselves in before the squat-shaped military vehicle lifted up. Plasma vented from twin engines before the bulky transport hurled itself into the sky, its gray metallic surface gleaming in the sun. Blue flames roared outward and it streaked across the clouds, creating a sonic boom as it surged in the direction of the forest.

    Below, the trees on the edge of the forest rustled as the hovercraft dropped low enough to almost skim their canopies. Locating a clearing somewhere near the periphery of the forest, the pilot expertly guided his craft down, nestling it on a wide space of baked soil. The twin engines slowly spun in their apertures, vomiting out blue plasma fumes to slow the ship''s descent before it landed heavily atop the scorched earth. What few grass that remained in the thin sleet of snow were blown away or incinerated into a crisp from the sheer heat.

    "Go, go, go!"

    The moment the ramp thudded down against the ground, the mercenaries were already unstrapping themselves from their safety harnesses and barreling down the ramp. The first few immediately knelt down the moment they touched ground, sweeping the area for any sign of monsters or enemies and covering their field of view with their weapons or spells.

    I was the last to leave the hovercraft¡­well, what did you expect? I wasn''t a mercenary. I didn''t receive the same kind of training these guys did, and thus I was a second or two slower. Okay, maybe I was ten seconds slower. Same difference.

    Once we established a perimeter, Feng Hai and his command staff gathered to discuss tactics. I was actually allowed to help out and stand sentry at the cordon, mostly because I could summon Corvus and send them to patrol the area. Thanks to that, I wasn''t privy to the details that were shared between officers.

    "Okay, listen up, people!" Feng Hai didn''t take long to come to a decision. He clapped his hands and gathered all of us once more, his eyes raking through the group. "We''ll be splitting up into fire-teams of twos and threes, with each fire-team assigned an area to search. If you run into any trouble, contact the other fire-reams immediately. Do not try and be a hero. Is that understood?"

    For some reason, his eyes lingered on me when he said that last line. Damn. Feng Hai must have known about my tendency to rush forward and try to be a hero on my own. He probably knew my fighting style and personality from the reports he read about me.

    "Yes, sir!"

    However, I showed no sign that I noticed, and responded just as enthusiastically as the others. Placing my hands on the hilts of my two swords ¨C a movement more instinctive than conscious ¨C I looked around and wondered whose fire team I would be assigned to.

    "Richard, you''re with me." Redfield waved me over. I nodded and jogged over to the red-haired spearman''s position, then glanced around.

    "Where''s Jill?"

    Redfield blanched. "Who?"

    "Jill Valentine. You know, the last member of our fire-team."

    "There''s no such person in the Silver Wolves!" Redfield threw his hands up in exasperation.

    "Uh, okay. Then where''s Sheva? Sheva Alomar?"

    "We do not talk about 5 and 6. For any games after 4, we only talk about 7 and the remakes. 5 and 6 do not exist in our eyes."

    Redfield''s tone was so vehement that I nodded dumbly and decided not to argue. I felt as if I had just poked a hornet''s nest.

    "So who''s the third member? It can''t be that there''s only the two of us in this fire-team?"

    Somehow this felt familiar. Usually, when I was helping the Silver Wolves out with their missions, I would be alone with Anastasia. But that was because of¡­actually, why was that? I couldn''t think of any reason other than "plot" and "fanservice (romance)" for the Silver Wolves to assign only Anastasia to partner me in our missions. Putting that aside, I shouldn''t be surprised if it was just the two of us.

    "Only two of us? Are you kidding me?" Redfield threw his head back and chortled loudly, almost drawing some stares from the other mercenaries. "It''s you we''re talking about here. You''re the equivalent of an entire platoon!"

    "You know I''m not that strong, right? I can''t beat a single person here¡­"

    "I''m not talking about combat strength or experience," Redfield hastily corrected me. "No, I''m talking about your summoning magic. You might think there''s one of you, but as a summoner you''re pretty much carrying a platoon''s worth of personnel in terms of numbers. Don''t forget, we''re not here to fight, kill or defeat an enemy. We''re here to look for Ana. And your multiple Soul Beasts will get the job done more easily than any number of soldiers."

    "That makes sense." I nodded thoughtfully. If he put it that way, then I understood what he meant. When we talked about usefulness, it wasn''t always about fighting or combat strength. In reality, there were so many different types of abilities and a vast variety of roles that needed filling. A civilization couldn''t function on soldiers or military strength alone. You needed farmers to feed the soldiers, blacksmiths to forge the weapons to arm them, logisticians to maintain the smooth running of an army and ensuring an unbroken chain of supplies, drivers to transport food, weapons and ammunition, cartographers to draw maps vital for strategizing, commissars for maintaining morale, scouts who exceled in stealth rather than direct fights, etc. A machine didn''t just run on a single type of cog. It ran on many different types of cogs.

    This was why all those stupid martial arts or xianxia stories made absolutely no sense. The main character can''t learn martial arts or is bad at martial arts? Then he is trash! Fuck that bullshit. Who cares if he can''t learn martial arts? What if he had a great business sense and made the family rich? Who was going to maintain the treasuries of the famililes and ensure their wealth? The martial artists? How? Or what if the guy chose to become a scholar, take the civil exam and become a government official? Then we shall see how "trash" he was¡­ Or what if he was good at medicine? Then he could become a doctor, and treat the injuries of the martial artists or cultivators after their many fights. Let''s see if any of these so-called talented warriors dared to call the doctor whose hands they put their lives into "trash."

    It was utterly ridiculous how a person''s worth in xianxia was judged entirely on his martial arts talent, and completely disregarding the possibility that he might have talents in other areas, and could contribute to the family in other capacities. Like, seriously, who the fuck went around calling students "trash" just because they failed math or science? What if they were good at history or literature and went to the art stream instead?

    "All right, people! We don''t have much time! Once you''re in your fire-teams, spread out and start searching! Move!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    At Feng Hai''s orders, we immediately split up and rushed toward our respective areas. While I followed Redfield, who was consulting a map, I prayed that we wouldn''t be too late. This particular portion of the forest seemed unaffected for now, with no sign of being poisoned, but that didn''t mean anything.

    Hopefully Anastasia was still alive somewhere¡­

 355 Chapter 355: Reconnaissance

    "Any sign of Ana anywhere?"

    "Nope."

    I shook my head bitterly at Redfield''s question. I had sent my flock of Corvus out to scout ahead, but I had yet to find anything amiss. There was no sign of poison or withered plants ¨C traces left by a poison mage passing by. I would think that I would at least find a few dessicated trees or a corpse of a monster that succumbed to venom, but¡­nothing.

    It was entirely possible that Anastasia hadn''t passed through this forest at all. Hell, it was very likely that Ana didn''t come to the forest in the first place. In which case, where could she have gone? I knew for sure that she wouldn''t stay in the city, but where else could she have gone?

    "Viper reporting in. We found traces of poison in our sector. It''s clear that the target has passed through here at least."

    Viper was the call sign of one of the fire-teams that had undertaken this mission along with us. By the way, the call-sign for the fire team comprising of me and Redfield was Stars. A sneaky coincidence, given that Redfield merely took the name because it was the acronym for the special operations police team he used to be a part of before Feng Hai recruited him into the Silver Wolves.

    Life could be funny that way sometimes.

    "She''s here!" Redfield looked a little more optimistic than before, and he clenched his fists excitedly. "You were right, Richard!"

    "Yeah. I mean¡­where else could she have gone? So what do we do? Do we head over to Viper''s sector?"

    "No." The veteran mercenary shook his head. "We continue searching our area. Just because Viper found traces of Ana doesn''t mean she''s still in there. She might have passed through that area a while ago. Each fire team is to stick to their own assigned areas until we find more concrete signs that Ana is nearby."

    "Roger that." That made sense. If all of us rushed toward a single sector, we might miss Anastasia entirely, passing by her as she made her way through one of the other areas within our search radius. He was also right that it was likely that she was no longer in that place. Anastasia probably wouldn''t stay in one place for too long.

    We proceeded through the forest, looking out for any signs of clues that might lead to Anastasia''s whereabouts. Twigs crunched under our feet ¨C there was little point trying to be overly stealthy. Even if we tried to navigate the treacherous terrain silently, the monster inhabitants had more than enough ways of sounding us out. Infrared vision, smell, mana sense, etc.

    Speaking of which, we hadn''t run into any monsters so far. I looked around the dense cluster of trees that we were traversing through, as if expecting some serpent monster to slither down one of those thick trunks. Every rustle of a branch, with slowly drifting leaves, put me on sharp alert, but I saw nothing. Neither did my Corvus.

    Viper continued to report in sporadically, informing us of their progress. There were signs of Anastasia having passed through the area of the forest they were currently searching in, but they were not recent, and she evidently had gone long ago. Still, they were confident that we would be able to locate her eventually.

    The other teams continued to silently sweep the forest, until one of the other teams reported in.

    "Eagle here. Spotted some traces of poison. Very likely to be the target''s spells. A couple of Blood Boars have died from venom, their carcasses are rotting here."

    "Might want to burn it," his partner remarked over the com.

    "Belay that order. We don''t want anyone to know we are coming, especially the target. We also don''t want to alarm the monsters and draw attention to us." Feng Hai''s voice came from the command channel, as calm and decisive as ever.

    "Roger that, Wolf."

    "Stars to Eagle. How recent were those signs?"

    "Um¡­relatively recent. A few hours old." It was the female partner who answered this time. "The target has most likely already moved on from here. But we''ll continue sweeping the area. Maybe we''ll find more clues."

    "Thank you, Eagle."

    "No problem."

    Lowering his hand from his com bead, Redfield sighed heavily before glancing around. He shrugged helplessly.

    "It might just be our bad luck that we''re not finding any signs here. Still, let''s not discount anything and continue searching."

    "Affirmative," I replied. Redfield raised an eyebrow at that, but chose not to say anything. Instead, he continued foraging ahead, occasionally glancing at me to provide directions. Gazing out of the eyes of my multiple Corvus soaring over the forest, I shook my head.

    Still nothing. It sucked, but at least the other teams found the clues we needed. It didn''t matter who found Anastasia, as long as she was found. What, you think me being the protagonist would automatically lead to us being the ones who located her? Reality didn''t conveniently develop like that. The odds of us being the ones to find Anastasia were literally one in eight (since there were pretty much eight fire-teams sweeping the area right now). If I was a betting man ¨C and I wasn''t, because I would always lose ¨C I wouldn''t bet on such low odds.

    Funnily enough, what my Corvus found wasn''t Anastasia but someone else.

    "Wait," I told Redfield, holding up a fist to indicate that we should stop. Why did we bother with field gestures if I was going to speak anyway? Oh, for the readers'' benefit. "I see someone."

    "Ana?" Redfield eagerly asked. I shook my head.

    "Doesn''t look like it¡­" I paused for a moment, and then frowned. "Those black hoods and sneaky movements¡­they seem like they are from the Assassins Guild."

    "What?! Are you sure?"

    "Not really. They are people wearing hoods and black ninja costumes. I''m just making a guess. I don''t think cosplayers will take the trouble of going into a monster-infested forest just to show off their costumes, so they are either Assassins or¡­ninjas or covert operatives. Except that covert operatives know better than to dress like that."

    "You might be right. We had better get a closer look, to confirm their identity." Redfield gritted his teeth, and bade for me to lead the way. While I did so, he pressed a hand to the com bead at his ear. "Stars to everyone. Be warned¡­possible presence of the Assassins Guild. Going ahead to confirm their identity right now."

    "Wolf to Stars. Roger that, but be careful. Be very careful. Try not to let them know that we''re here as well, and avoid combat if possible."

    "Roger that, Wolf. Will do our best."

    "What are the Assassins doing here?" someone asked over the main channel, her voice a whisper.

    "Do you think they are looking for Anastasia as well?" another person guessed, his tone tense and anxious. "I thought they were content to let her die."

    "That''s what they told me," Feng Hai growled. "I don''t know what they''re playing at, but it''s also likely that those people may not be Assassins. Stars, confirm their identity if possible. But if they are Assassins, then they should most certainly be after Ana. I knew I couldn''t trust those lying bastards!"

    "What use would they have for her? Wouldn''t they¡­die if she blows up in their faces? Or are they planning to cure her, after all?"

    Various questions arose in the channel, but Feng Hai silenced them by reminding them of the need to maintain coms discipline.

    "I know you are all worried about Ana, but we are professionals. We are soldiers. We will take things one at a time. Continue looking for her for now ¨C while it''s possible that they may not be here for Ana, we should find her before they do. I don''t think anyone knows what their motives or reasons are, and it''s useless to speculate. We''ll find out if we watch them. Stars, that''s your job."

    "Roger that, Wolf," Redfield acknowleged, then lowered his hand to nod at me. "All right, kid, we have a job to do."

    "I hear that." I snapped off a salute, and then hastened my pace, but not so much that I would draw the attention of the ninja wannabes currently swinging through the forest. For some stupid reason, they were not trekking on the ground, but were instead jumping from branch to branch¡­like ninjas. It always puzzled me why they thought jumping from tree to tree was a more effective way of traveling. Sure, it might be faster and easier in terms of navigating difficult terrain, but it consumed a lot of energy ¨C it was a complete waste of stamina. Not only that, it was a lot more dangerous. If you tripped and fall on difficult terrain, chances were you would only come away bruised and bleeding. If you missed a step and fall while jumping from one tree to another, odds were that you would most likely break a bone or two. If you were lucky. If you weren''t, you might hit your head and die almost instantly. I guess manga artists thought it was cool, or it perhaps was easier for animators to animate characters soaring through the landscape with minimal movement instead of trying to animate the deceptively simple act of walking ¨C animating even a simple movement was a lot more complex than it seemed, and required drawing multiple frames, instead of merely sliding the character across a background when making them jump from one place to another.

    Keeping my eyes ¨C or rather, Corvus''s eyes ¨C on the ninja wannabes, I tried to lead us through a dense forage of plants, keeping our silhouettes as concealed as possible. To my astonishment, a Wood Ape dropped out in front of the jumping ninjas, roaring as it swung its meaty fist at them. Vines rippled across its hulking frame, whipping out to ensnare the Assassins.

    "?!"

    Without missing a beat, the Assassins continued plunging toward the Wood Ape without stopping. Several silver flashes streaked through the air, and the vines fell to the ground in pieces. The Wood Ape bellowed in rage, but then toppled over, its head severed from its shoulders. Both disembodied head and body crashed into the ground with a dull impact.

    The Assassins continued moving on, as if there little combat was no more than a little nuisance, a fly that they had just casually swatted away. Glancing at the Wood Ape''s headless corpse, I was astonished when I saw both the head and the carcass fuming and rotting.

    Poison! Those ninja wannabes didn''t just behead the Wood Ape! They actually poisoned it too!

    "Holy s¡­!"

    "What?! What is it?!" Redfield demanded, placing a hand on my shoulder and almost shocking me out of my skin. I shook my head to clear my thoughts and briefly informed him what I had just seen. He regarded me grimly and sighed. "They took out a rank C Wood Ape in a second?! Yeah, seems like they are professional killers all right."

    "Instructor Feng Hai is right. We should avoid combat with them if possible."

    I glanced at the comment section and rolled my eyes at the readers complaining about me being a pussy or having absolutely no confidence. Look, life wasn''t about fighting and winning all the time, all right? We had a mission ¨C to locate Anastasia. Plus there was a sizeable number of Assassins, and only two of us. Even if we were supposedly stronger, it was very reckless and disadvantageous to challenge a numerically superior enemy. Not only would we get bogged down and waste too much time in pointless combat ¨C time we could spend searching for Ana and monitoring these guys'' movements ¨C there was a chance we risked an injury.

    And getting injured in a monster-infested woods like Aurora Forest was pretty tantamount to a death sentence.

    Redfield softly reported what I had just seen to Feng Hai, revising the possibility of the ninja wanabes being Assassins from likely to extremely likely. Judging from the use of poison, their precise movements and flawless killing techniques, they were definitely Veneneum Assassins. There was no doubt about that in my mind.

    The Veneneum Sect. Anastasia, who was formerly a member of them before I knocked her out and handed her to the Silver Wolves. Yeah, they were definitely after her. Even though Feng Hai requested them to save her, and they outright rejected him, they were still evidently pursuing Anastasia. Why? It couldn''t be to kill her, right? She was currently a ticking time bomb. It would be much easier to just let her blow up and kill herself. Even though she specialized in poison magic, that didn''t mean her body was able to resist such critical levels of toxins.

    Redfield must have seen the question on my face, for he offered me an explanation.

    "The Woeful Poison Body isn''t just a technique to strengthen the user''s killing abilities," he explained grimly. "They are also¡­treasures to other practitioners who have attained the Woeful Poison Body."

    "Treasures¡­?" I repeated incredulously. Redfield nodded.

    "That''s right. I told you, right? Training Woeful Poison Body involves the consumption of poison to convert the magical toxins contained within the poison into a special kind of venomous mana. The more toxic the poison, the more effective it is in enhancing their strength. And what is a Woeful Poison Body if not another type of highly toxic material?"

    "They are planning on consuming Ana?!" I exclaimed in horror, my eyes going wide.

    Redfield nodded again, graver than ever. "To be more precise, I believe it is the Veneneum Sect Leader who plans to consume Ana''s own toxins in order to elevate his powers to unprecedented levels."

 356 Chapter 356: Assassinâ€™s Pride

    "The Veneneum Sect Leader is currently the Grand Master of Assassins," Redfield explained, even as we trekked through the treacherous terrain of the forest while keeping track of the Veneneum Sect Assassins'' location. "That means he holds overall command over the Assassins Guild, and is currently one of the High Lords of Terra."

    "¡­High Lords of Terra," I repeated incredulously. "Really? Are you sure you''re not in the wrong universe?"

    "Uh, sorry. I mean he''s one of the most powerful men in the underworld." Redfield quickly amended his slip of the tongue (though I doubted it was a slip ¨C he definitely made that reference on purpose). "And also one of the most dangerous and lethal killers in the Federation¡­perhaps even the world."

    "Okay¡­"

    I had no reason to argue against Redfield''s explanation. That sounded about right. More importantly, we had to follow the Assassins while searching for Anastasia at the same time. Even though I could still find no trace of Ana in the vicinity, the fact that the Assassins were searching for her in this area meant that it was likely that she was close by. Either that, or the Assassins sucked at locating their target. Given how Anastasia told me that they learned at least the basic tracking spells, I highly doubt that it was the latter scenario.

    Still, given how these were professional Assassins that we were following, I was surprised that we were able to track them for this long without being noticed. As much as Redfield and I were trying our best to be as stealthy as possible, I honestly doubted that we succeeded. I certainly lacked the training required to conceal my tracks and stay as silent as humanly possible. No matter how much I tried, I couldn''t stop breaking twigs under my feet as I trampled through the dense foliage. The only small mercy was that my relatively small silhouette was mostly hidden under the tall grass and closely packed trees, but I wouldn''t be surprised if the Assassins heard me.

    For now, they either hadn''t detected my presence, or they assumed I was just another monster running about in the undergrowth. Glancing at Redfield, who was moving a lot stealthier and quieter than me, I was sure that he was annoyed at my amateurish attempts to follow. Another small mercy was that the both of us were quite some distance away from the Assassins ¨C normally we would be beyond the visual or hearing range of ordinary humans. Whether the Assassins had enhanced senses or not, I didn''t know, but I was only able to keep visual track of them through the eyes of my Corvus.

    Luckily, the Assassins could very easily dismiss my Corvus as another monster that inhabit the forest, so they paid the little crows no attention at all. Fortune was on our side¡­for now. I could only hope we wouldn''t run out of it so soon.

    "Something''s not right."

    After almost thirty minutes of tailing the band of professional killers, I noticed something amiss. They were moving to quickly and fixatedly, without any pause. In other words, they didn''t seem to be tracking anything or looking for any sort of clues. Instead, it was obvious that they already had a specific destination in mind.

    When I voiced that out to Redfield, he stroked his chin and pondered, even as we continued to run. Tilting his head to the side, he frowned in puzzlement.

    "Well¡­they might already know the precise location of Anastasia. If that''s the case, I had best warn the others to expect hostile encounters."

    I nodded distractedly, focusing my attention on the Assassins even as Redfield tapped on his com bead to report. As he did so, I registered a new change. The Assassins had stopped atop a cluster of trees, perching atop their respective branches.

    "They stopped," I informed Redfield. "But¡­they don''t look like they are searching for clues or trails. It''s like they are waiting for something."

    "Waiting for what?"

    How would I know? Did you want me to walk up to them and ask?

    "I don''t know¡­eh?" pushing my glasses, I watched as the leader bring his hand to his lips and whistled. It was a low, cryptic whistle that pulsed against my Corvus''s senses, disorientating them for a bit. I blinked, realizing there was some sort of¡­provocative spell mixed into the sound. If my Corvus weren''t so tightly bound to me mentally, they might have gone berserk.

    "What''s going on?"

    "They just cast a spell. To provoke the monsters in the forest."

    A few snarls and roars punctuated my explanation. The Assassins cocked their heads, listening for something, and then they almost disappeared, leaping off from their branches and rushing into the distance.

    "!!!"

    Their movements were so quick and sudden that I almost lost track of them. Fortunately, Corvus could fly, so I sent the majority of them soaring after the fleeing ninja wannabes. Out of curiosity, I left one Corvus behind to monitor the site where the dude cast his weird sonic spell. There had to be some reason why he instigated whatever monster that was in the vicinity.

    As my Corvus pursued the jumping Assassins, a few of them suddenly whirled about and threw something. Even though I desperately sent a telepathic order to my Corvus to dodge, as expected of professional killers, their weapons struck true. I had a brief flare of psychostigmatic feedback that lashed out at me when my Corvus all blinked out of existence.

    "Ugh!"

    "What happened? Are you all right?!"

    "The bastards¡­they knew I was watching all along. They just took out my flock of Corvus! We have to hurry! Based on the direction they were going, they should be heading that way¡­"

    Before I could take off in the direction where I last saw the Assassins, I halted abruptly, almost causing Redfield to collide to me. He stared at me quizzically.

    "What is it this time?"

    "¡­the spell. It''s bringing a few monsters to the vicinity. But that''s not all. There are¡­other people there."

    "Our people?" Redfield asked dismissively. "I guess we must have gotten close to one of the other sectors without realizing. Good thing they just missed the Veneneum Assassins, or they would be forced to engage in combat."

    "No. It''s not Silver Wolves. It''s¡­"

    I had a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu when I spotted the newcomers bursting from a bush and staggering into a clearing. They were too young to be mercenaries. They weren''t even old enough to be high school students, seeming to be about fourteen or so. Close to Adrian''s age.

    ¡­actually, Adrian Stuart was among them.

    "What the fuck are you doing here, Adrian?!" I yelled, almost startling Redfield. He immediately cuffed me across the back of my head.

    "Oi! Maintain field discipline! Don''t start shouting in the middle of a forest!"

    "Sorry. But they aren''t Silver Wolves. They are a bunch of middle school students!" I rubbed my head and growled in frustration. "I have no idea how they got into the forest, but¡­it gets worse. They are currently being under attack."

    Through the eyes of my sole surviving Corvus, I could see a pack of Jack-o''-Lanterns descend upon the helpless students. Named as such for their pumpkin heads, hollow glowing eyes and mouth, they resembled cosplayers more than monsters. Don''t ask me why. They had a weird witch''s hat atop their orange heads, and the rest of their bodies were draped in black cloaks. Thin, black arms protruded from beneath those shadowy cloaks, bearing deadly-looking scythes that they swung mercilessly at the panicking middle schoolers.

    To his credit, Adrian finally stopped to stand his ground. Drawing his sword and using the basic Stuart clan swordsmanship techniques, he managed to halt one of the Jack-o-Lanterns'' attacks, parrying its scythe with his sword. The rank E monster spun around and kicked him in the chest, throwing him off. Fortunately, Adrian managed to flip himself upward and land on both feet. Heaving, his face red, he raised his sword and unleashed a storm of petals at the approaching monster.

    Beside him, a blond girl ¨C her long hair mostly let loose, except for two small pigtails at her side ¨C also drew her sword and charged the monsters. As if not to be outdone by Adrian, she swung her sword at the closest Jack-o''-Lantern, but the skillful monster deftly deflected her sword before spinning around to slash its scythe down on her neck. The blond girl quickly withdrew her sword to parry the strike with her blade, but the impact from the blow sent her crashing several meters to the side. Coughing out some blood, she struggled to roll to her feet and just barely managed to block the Jack-o''-Lantern''s next blow. It was unfortunate, but she was knocked to the side again.

    The other middle school students, unfortunately, were almost completely useless. Unlike Adrian and the blond girl, they were unable to fight, and instead screamed as the Jack-o''Lanterns descended upon them in a flurry. They couldn''t even run, the majority of them falling over and scrambling desperately on all fours as they tried to escape.

    That wasn''t good.

    "We have to help them!"

    I was already rushing in the direction of the middle school students before Redfield fully understood what was going on. He stared at me blankly, and then sprang into action.

    "Hey! What''s going on!? Where are you going?!"

    "The middle school students ¨C they are being attacked by Jack-o''-Lanterns right now! They''ll be massacred if we don''t step in to help them!"

    "But¡­but what about Ana? And the Assassins?!"

    "We can find her after we save the kids!" I snapped. "Or are you just going to let them die?!"

    There was no way I was going to just stand around and pretend I didn''t see a group of kids a few years younger than me fall prey to monsters. I wasn''t going to abandon somebody who was getting attacked right in front of my eyes ¨C or in this case, right in front of my Corvus''s eyes, but same thing, really. Especially since Adrian was among them ¨C though, to be honest, I would still have gone and rescued them even if there wasn''t a single person I knew.

    That was my own personal code of¡­chivalry, if you wish to call it that. My code of honor, my value systems, my beliefs. I couldn''t care less if scumbag readers condemned me as stupid for wanting to be a hero and trying to save everyone in front of me. They were reading the wrong story if they wanted an evil, cold and ruthless or pragmatic (?) protagonist. I was going to help whoever was in need right in front of me. Period.

    It took me half a minute to dash into the clearing where the Jack-o''-Lanterns were. Drawing both of my swords, I cut apart the closest Jack-o''Lantern before it even noticed me coming. A streak of black and white crossed the air, and the pooor monster fell apart in bloody pieces.

    The rest of the Jack-o''Lanterns turned to face me, completely disregarding the poor middle school students who were completely at their mercy mere seconds ago.

    "Brother Richard?!" Adrian cried out. I glanced at him, wanting to ask what he was doing here, but a Jack-o''-Lantern chose that moment to swing its scythe at me, forcing me to parry it. Whirling about, I twisted my sword and slashed at it, but it agilely withdrew. At the same moment, another Jack-o''Lantern tried to slash be from behind, but I instinctively raised Bai Ri to deflect it without even bothering to turn around.

    A third Jack-o''-Lantern attempted to flank me, but I thrust Hei Yue in its direction to discourage it from approaching. The swarm of Jack-o''-Lanterns danced around, almost mischievously, as they lashed out in rhythmic concert, eliciting a defensive posture from me. We waltzed around at a surreal speed, our blades blurring as we clashed, collided and tangled over and over again, dancing to a silent beat that only we could hear. The air seemed to ripple every time the Jack-o''-Lanterns swung their scythes, ethereal flames coursing through the crescent-shaped blades and pulsing eerily. I responded with black and white ripostes from my differently colored twin swords, alternating between offense and defense, and spinning almost melodically in order to accommodate my multiple partners in ferocious combat. All the while, the Jack-o''-Lanterns appeared to mischievously dart around and dance out of range of my attacks, their eyes and mouth glowing gleefully and faint whistles emitting in what seemed like a teasing manner as my occasional counterattacks missed them. Sparks flew, punctuating the orchestral beat of our clashing weapons and leaving the spectating middle school students in spellbound silence.

    Even though Jack-o''-Lanterns were designated rank E monsters, they were still pretty tricky to deal with, their speed and skills making them a formidable foe. That was why the ranking system was not absolute. It wasn''t always a case of "oh, I can beat rank A monsters, therefore I can easily massacre all rank B and below monsters." It would be fatal to underestimate lower-ranked monsters ¨C even rank F ones ¨C as mobs or fodder just because you possessed the strength to defeat a high-ranked monster. No, it was never that simple. Reality was a lot more complex than that.

    Jack-o''-Lanterns were classified as rank E because of their lack of durability, their relatively small sizes ¨C they were about the same size as a normal human, being 170cm of height at most ¨C and their inability to cast elemental spells or other sorts of magic. However, their speed, ferocity and skill with their scythes made them extremely troublesome to deal with ¨C if I wasn''t mistaken, their skills were probably on par with a veteran swordsman. They moved almost instinctively, had awesome reflexes, and could pick out openings in a mage''s defenses. Their low rank was deceptive, all because the ranking system was not perfect and didn''t account for other factors, such as speed and combat skill.

    Honestly, power, amount of mana and size weren''t everything. Skill mattered a lot as well. those fools (especially some readers who rigidly adhered to the ranking system and demanded that everything falls into neat categories and levels) who dismissed monsters just because of their low ranks without taking into account other factors such as speed, skills, intelligence and even flawless cooperation between numerous numbers of monsters in a single pack were people who died early deaths or those who evidently had not experienced combat before. A pack of rank E monsters such as these skilled Jack-o''-Lanterns was probably equivalent to perhaps a single rank C Elemental, or even a rank B monster in terms of speed alone.

    "Be careful!" the girl shouted. "Those Lycanthropes are dangerous!"

    I almost dropped my guard and got cleaved when I spun around to gape at her.

    "Say what? Lycanthropes!? Are you blind?! These are Jack-o''-Lanterns, not Lycanthropes!"

    "Eh? Yeah, I know. I mean they are a type of Lycanthropes, a specific species of Lycanthropes, right?"

    "You''re in the wrong story, lady!"

    However, I didn''t have the opportunity to correct her because a Jack-o''-Lantern seized the opportunity to slice at my throat in an effort to behead me. I jerked my head back and just narrowly avoided getting my neck cleaved apart, and then retaliated with a thrust of my sword, but it seemed to giggle as it danced out of my reach.

    "That''s it. Time to get serious. Green Dragon!"

    A chibi Green Dragon manifested over my right shoulder. At the same time, thousands of flower petals drifted around me, almost resembling springtime in the middle of winter as their pink clouds engulfed the entire area.

    "Watch and learn, Adrian." I directed this sentence toward my young friend, who was currently watching the battle, mesmerized. "This is how you use wood-type spells in conjunction with your sword techniques."

 357 Chapter 357: Donâ€™t Kid Yourself

    The Jack-o''-Lanterns shrank back when they noticed the growing storm of pink Sakura petals that fluttered around me. Being the intelligent monsters that they were, they quickly turned to flee.

    Unfortunately, they weren''t smart enough. Otherwise they would have retreated long ago, instead of waiting until I finished casting my spell.

    Swinging my sword, I unleashed the blizzard of razor-sharp Sakura petals in all directions. Despite their preternatural speed, the Jack-o''-Lanterns found themselves consumed by the expanding cloud of pink petals. A few of them spun around to counter the petals with their scythes, defending themselves with consummate skill. I could see them hacking down swathes of pink Sakura petals with their deadly weapons, cutting out a safe zone.

    Those who chose to run, unfortunately, found themselves cut apart and shredded into pieces. In less than half a minute, fully half of the Jack-o''-Lanterns were slain, their horde decimated by just a single spell. The rest fought bravely, their twirling scythes a black blur that sliced through the dense fog of Sakura petals almost effortlessly.

    However, while they found themselves pressed and cornered by the overwhelming number of deadly petals, I seized the chance to cast a second spell. Thick green vines whipped out of the ground and ensnared them, catching them by surprise. Coiling around their limbs, they yanked, turning taut as the Jack-o''-Lanterns strained against their new restraints. A few of them responded with impressive reflexes, working to cut apart the fresh bonds that now ensnared them, but more than a few were stunned by the sudden onslaught.

    That split second of hesitance proved to be the difference between life and death. While they froze, the razor-sharp petals cut them apart mercilessly, turning them into bloody ribbons of flesh. Even those who did manage to respond in time to cut themselves free weren''t able to fully escape the ferocious assault of the Sakura petals, and they barely broke out of the clouds, bloodied and severely injured.

    By then, I had yet another spell prepared for them. This time, black petals rained down upon them, cutting through their arms and disarming them. Their scythes clattering onto the ground uselessly, still clutched by disembodied hands, the remaining Jack-o''-Lanterns were shredded by the ravenous black petals.

    A few of them survived, and ran, grasping at their amputated stumps, but I had decided to finish them off personally. My two swords flashed mercilessly, the black and white blades behading the fleeing monsters. Even though they were still as fast and agile as ever, their injuries had dulled their reflexes and movements. Not to mention, the drop in their morale had psychologically impacted them to the point where they were essentially routed. It was but a simple task to clean them up.

    Even before I could finish the dwindling horde up, Redfield marked his arrival with a flaming spear that pierced through a fleeing Jack-o''-Lantern, causing the poor creature to combust instantly. As its brethren milled hysterically about it, trying to duck and dodge with their incredible speed, Redfleld appeared within their midst after retrieving his spear. Unbelievably, the veteran mercenary was much faster than even them, his spear cleaving through their broken forms and cutting them apart into flaming chunks.

    Unfortunately for him, there were no more than a handful of Jack-o''-Lanterns left. I had claimed most of the kills. As I cut down the last of them, I straightened up and sheathed my swords before turning to the kids.

    "Are you guys all right?"

    "Yeah!" Adrian jumped up to me brightly, his eyes shining in admiration. "That was amazing, Brother Richard! I''ll make sure to learn from you!"

    "Uh, no, you don''t really have to¡­" Then I remembered that I was the one who told him to watch and learn. Never mind. As long as he got something out of this mess, that was fine. More importantly, I had questions that needed answering. "What are you guys doing here? How the hell did you end up in the middle of Aurora Forest?"

    "¡­long story." Adrian turned serious, his expression changing from admiring delight to sullen glumness in under a second. "Our bus was attacked, and we were forced to escape into the forest after the driver was killed."

    "Attacked? By who?" I raised an eyebrow questioningly. Adrian shook his head.

    "I don''t know. I''ve never seen them before. They were wearing hoods and cloaks, looking suspicious and all that nonsense. You know, like the characters from Assassin''s Creed."

    "Assassins," Redfield murmured. He had his hand to the com bead, evidently having reported this situation to Feng Hai. "But why would the Assassins Guild target you guys?"

    "Huh? I don''t know. But we tried to escape them by running into the forest. I think we managed to lose them quite some time ago, but we ended up running into monsters." Adrian shrugged, looking more exhausted than angry. "If you hadn''t shown up when you did, Brother Richard, we would probably be monster chow by now."

    "Uh huh." That made no sense. I recalled the Veneneum Assassins who Redfield and I had been tracking in hopes that they would lead us to Anastasia, but it occurred to me that they weren''t looking for the green-haired ex-Assassin but were instead trying to kill these kids. But that made no sense. If they really wanted to kill the kids, they had plenty of more efficient and certain methods to do so, especially with their poison. Why go through the trouble of calling down a pack of rank E monsters on them, and leaving before they could confirm that the monsters did the job?

    That made no sense whatsoever.

    "By the way, those Assassins who attacked you¡­were they dressed like ninjas? With masks, and a metallic headband?"

    Something about Adrian''s description caught my attention. He mentioned hoods and cloaks, but while the Veneneum Assassins I had spotted wore hoods, they weren''t wearing any cloaks. They were, well, dressed like ninjas.

    "Huh? No. Though their features were mostly concealed under the shadow of their hoods, I''m pretty sure they weren''t wearing masks. And like I said, they look more like the assassins from the game Assassin''s Creed than ninjas."

    In other words, the group of Assassins who attacked Adrian''s party was different from the Veneneum Assassins I had spotted and was tracking until they took out my Corvus. Now their modus operandi made sense. They had lured the monsters here because they caught sight of the kids, and aware that I had been tracking them, they decided to use the kids as a distraction to throw me off their trail. They must have known that I would go help the kids instead of pursue them, though that was one hell of an assumption.

    "This reminds me of the time when you saved me from those Ravagers, Brother Richard!" As always, Adrian was cheerful as ever. Even as the other kids kept their distance, he alone stayed at my side, chattering away incessantly.

    "Richard," Redfield called out, lowering his hand from the com bead. "New orders from the top. We''re to escort these kids back to the landing zone. We''ll bring them back to the hovercraft, where they can seek shelter in, and then we''ll resume our search."

    "Sounds good to me," I agreed. Adrian blinked and tilted his head quizzically.

    "Search? What are you searching for?"

    "We''re actually searching for a missing friend," I told him. He brightened up.

    "Oh¡­a person? Does she have long green hair or something?"

    "What was that?" That caught Redfield''s attention, and he rushed over. I almost had to step in to prevent him from grabbing Adrian''s collar and hauling him up. "You saw Ana? Where? When?"

    "Ana¡­?"

    "The green-haired girl we''re looking for," I explained again, placing a hand between Redfield and Adrian. I wasn''t going to let the Silver Wolves mercenary manhandle my young friend. "Where did you see her? How long ago?"

    "Um¡­over there¡­in that direction. She actually helped us. After the bus driver was killed, she showed up and drew away the hooded people, luring them away from us. Then she told us to run. At that point, we were somewhere inside the forest, and have no idea to go, so we were just running randomly, and we got lost. She saved our lives, though."

    He paused for a moment, as if trying to remember something. Fortunately, the blond girl stepped up to help.

    "We saw her about an hour ago, I believe. Maybe less. It was quite some distance away, but it wasn''t very far from where our bus crashed after we were attacked."

    "Do you remember where your bus crashed?" Redfield demanded. I gave him a look, trying to resist the urge to roll my eyes. How would the kids know?

    "If you have a map, I can give a rough estimation." The girl scratched her head. "I don''t know where exactly, but I think I recognize the mountain we were on."

    "Thanks!"

    Redfield eagerly beamed a holographic map from his smartphone and knelt down so that the blond girl could reach and pinpoint the rough location of where their bus had crashed. Seeing how he was so desperate to find Ana, I sighed.

    "You go ahead and look for her, Redfield," I suggested wearily. As much as I wanted to find Anastasia myself, I had a responsibility to look after these kids. "I''ll escort these guys back to the hovercraft, and then join you afterward."

    "Thanks." Redfield nodded and began communicating with Feng Hai to inform him of the new location. From the information he had just gleaned from the blond girl, we could narrow down the search radius and locate Anastasia quicker. He then turned back to me, looking apologetic. "I''ll be counting on you then."

    I nodded and watched him go before turning to the kids. Motioning to them, I led the way back to the hovercraft, relying on my single surviving Corvus to lead the way. Green Dragon disappeared for now, on standby until I plunged into combat once more. And in a monster-infested forest like this, I had no doubt that we would encounter hostile life-forms soon enough.

    "Brother Richard." Adrian joined me at the front, enthusiastically surging ahead of his peers. "I have someone to introduce to you."

    "Uh, okay?" I raised an eyebrow curiously. That came out of nowhere.

    "Yeah." Adrian turned around and gestured for the blond girl to join us. She wasn''t far from our position, having stayed near the front. I understood why. From what I had seen, Adrian and the blond girl were the main combat strength of the group. Protecting the others naturally fell on their shoulders.

    "Greetings, Mr. Richard Huang." The blond girl bowed her head after she joined us at the front, looking a little hesitant. "My name is Melina Franklin."

    "¡­Franklin?" I repeated her family name incredulously. That was a family name I was very familiar with.

    "That''s right. One of the ten great families." Melina nodded. "I believe you''ve already met my cousin, Kureha. She has spoken about you. Also¡­I heard that you fought against my brother and defeated him."

    "Your brother?" That took me entirely by surprise. There was no way I could have fought against her brother¡­oh. Maybe there was. "Are you¡­Shawn''s sister?"

    "That''s right." Melina nodded, an expression of grief coming over her face. Even though it felt like so long ago, it hadn''t been a year since Shawn Franklin''s death. "Shawn is my older brother."

    "¡­I''m sorry. I witnessed him¡­fight bravely until the end."

    "Yes. I''ve heard." Melina glanced at Adrian, who shrugged haplessly. "I¡­thank you for your kind words. My brother was always on the arrogant side, but there was no denying his courage."

    At least she wasn''t blaming me for his death. I felt a bit of relief wash over me. I was half-expecting her to launch into a tirade about the whole thing being my fault, that Shawn wouldn''t have died if it weren''t for me (which was totally untrue), so it came as a pleasant surprise that she didn''t hold anything against me. Like Adrian, she was relatively mature for her age.

    What, were you expecting the same old clich¨¦ from Chinese webnovels where the whole family held a grudge and would go through absurd lengths to kill the protagonist even if he only indirectly caused the death of their beloved son? That sort of bullshit never happened in reality.

    "There''s another thing." Melina fidgeted a little, but Adrian offered her an encouraging smile to allow her to steel her courage. "I would like to ask a favor from you."

    "What sort of favor?" There were alarm bells going off in my head, but I wasn''t mean enough to turn away someone who was asking me for help. Come on, it definitely wouldn''t be something as ridiculous as asking me to pretend to be her fianc¨¦ or something (she might as well ask Adrian for that), or some contrived harem nonsense. Or some other clich¨¦ bullshit that would only happen in webnovels or light novels.

    "Could you please become my private tutor?" Melina asked as she clasped her hands hopefully. "I would like you to teach me swordsmanship and combat techniques."

 358 Chapter 358: Assassinâ€™s Pride II

    "¡­excuse me?"

    I wasn''t sure I heard Melina correctly. This had to be some sort of joke¡­right?

    "Private tutor? Me?"

    "Yes, that''s right." Melina nodded earnestly. Beside her, Adrian grinned brightly, as if he was prud of me. The blond girl continued, taking encouragement from her friend''s smile. "You are the perfect person for the job. You are strong enough to defeat my older brother ¨C no mean feat in itself, considering that Brother was the candidate for the Sword Saint before Cousin Kureha. That alone is more than enough qualifies you to teach me."

    No, it didn''t, but I doubted she would let the truth get in the way of her agenda. Maybe I was mistaken and she held some grudge against me for being involved in her brother''s death in an indirect form. This had to be a trap. There was no other reason behind this nonsense.

    "Furthermore, you''re the only one who can help me." When she saw that I had remained silent, with a suspicious expression on my face, her own features fell. "No one else is willing to teach me swordsmanship."

    "¡­what? Really?" I raised an eyebrow at that. "I saw you fight earlier. Those were some superb skills. Where did you learn that from?"

    "Self-taught. I imitated the sword techniques of my relatives by watching them train. But none of them agreed to teach me."

    "Really? Not even Kureha? Kureha would be a much better and more apprioriate teacher for you. I''m sure she will teach you if you ask her instead¡­"

    "About that¡­" Adrian was the one who cut in this time, raising his hand. "Melina has some, uh, problems with her family. They don''t recognize her as a swordsman¡­at least not a swordsman in the Franklin tradition."

    "What the hell is even a ''Franklin tradition''?" I demanded, growing increasingly skeptical of this nonsense.

    "As you know the Franklin family is a clan of swordsmen. You know, you''ve met Brother Shawn and Sister Kureha. Among the ten great families, they are known as the Paladins."

    "¡­so?" I glanced from Adrian to Melina, still not sure what the hell they were driving at.

    "So, to preserve their honor and reputation as Paladins, all members of the Franklin family must excel in swordsmanship, or¡­stay out of the public."

    "¡­I''ll be married off to someone from one of the other ten great families," Melina whispered sullenly. I shrugged.

    "That''s great. Why don''t you and Adrian get married?"

    Both kids gaped at me, their faces turning bright red, and they began spluttering. Adrian finally found his voice.

    "Come on, Brother Richard! Be serious!"

    I was actually being serious, but I could understand if the two young mages still didn''t want to resort to marriage at their current age.

    "I wish to choose my own partner¡­and above all, I wish to prove to everyone that I can be a swordswoman. An excellent, peerless swordswoman just like Cousin Kureha." Melina puffed her not significant chest out determinedly. "I want to show everyone that I can be a Paladin just like Brother and Cousin Kureha, and stop everyone from looking down on me!"

    "A noble goal," I conceded, pushing my glasses up. "But that doesn''t explain why Kureha would refuse to teach you. I know her personally, and she doesn''t strike me as someone¡­mean and petty. She seems like a nice and helpful person to me."

    "That''s¡­well, a little more complicated than that." Melina fidgeted a little, turning her head away and avoiding my gaze. Adrian quickly stepped in to help her out.

    "Melina is known among the noble families and the school as the Incompetent Talented Girl."

    "WHAT THE FUCK!?" I bellowed. "Are we ripping off Assassin''s Pride now?! Screw this bullshit! At least change the nickname or something!"

    Both Adrian and Melina were staring at me, and I sighed before burying my face in my palm. Suppressing my fury, I gestured for them to continue.

    "Aside from ripping off a light novel with the most ridiculous nickname that you couldn''t even be bothered to alter, what does that have to do with anything?"

    "Melina has been judged as talentless or untalented when it comes to swordsmanship," Adrian explained, casting an apologetic look in her direction. "So her family has basically given up on her. They also told her to give up on learning swordsmanship, and instead focus on becoming a lady befitting of serving as a noble''s wife."

    "Like hell I''ll do that!" Melina snarled defiantly, balling both of her fists.

    "I know, that''s why I suggested that you approach Brother Richard for help." Adrian turned back to me. "Please, Brother Richard. Even Sister Kureha has abandoned Melina, saying that it''ll be a waste of time to teach someone without talent."

    A scowl creased across my face and I also clenched my fists. Talent? Untalented? Waste of time? What utter bullshit. I had never heard of such nonsense in my life. Since when was someone''s worth decided by this intangible and invisible thing called "talent"? How do you decide if someone has talent or not? Just because they were not as good as others? So they should just surrender and stop just because they weren''t as good as others?

    What rubbish. While I wasn''t going to deny that there was a clear difference between geniuses and ordinary people, that was no reason for people to submit to such bullshit. I had absolutely no talent in writing, especially if you read the comments from 99% of my readers, who often claimed that I should stop contaminating the Internet with my trash and accused me of wasting everyone''s time by trying to write even though I evidently lack the talent or skill to do so. Yet I wasn''t going to meekly obey them and abandon my efforts to write a story, as you can see before me.

    So I totally understood Melina''s predicament. Being told to stop doing the thing that you love just because you didn''t have "talent"? Condescending bastards going around calling you trash because they didn''t like what you write, or because you weren''t able to execute sword techniques as well as others? Fuck them. They could go rot in hell.

    "¡­I''ll see what I can do. Just a disclaimer, though. Please don''t expect anything from me. I''m a terrible teacher, and my own swordsmanship is terrible. I''m actually better at magic than swordsmanship. It''s actually a better idea to approach my dad and ask him to teach you."

    "Really? You will?" Melina brightened up, hope flaring up in her for the second time since I had seen her. "Thank you so much!"

    "Like I said, I can''t offer any guarantees. And my dad will be a better teacher than me if you truly want to learn swordsmanship."

    "Well¡­" Adrian joined in, musing. "To be honest, Melina is actually similar to you in a way, Brother Richard. She''s more proficient in magic than she is in swordsmanship. That''s why she''s known as the Incompetent Talented Girl. She''s incompetent at swordsmanship, but she''s talented at producing and controlling mana."

    "So the complete opposite of Melida Angel," I remarked with a nod. Both Adrian and Melina gaped at me.

    "¡­who?"

    "Never mind." I dismissed the question from the both of them and sighed. "Well, I''ll see what I can do, but as you probably know, I''m in middle of a tournament right now, so it''ll have to wait until then. For now, I''ll talk to my dad. Adrian, you know where I live, right? Bring Melina over someday and my dad will train her in our dojo."

    Melina brightened up at that. "That''s great! I heard that the Angel of Fire, Huang Shun Yin, is a master of the Miyamoto sword style! I look forward to learning that!"

    "Uh, yeah." I wasn''t sure why she was so enthusiastic about learning a sword technique that clearly wasn''t from her Franklin family''s school, but if she was all right with it, then that would be great. I was fine with whatever.

    "You and your dad are from the Samurai class, right? Even if I can''t become a Paladin, I''ll strive to be someone worthy of the title Samurai. It doesn''t matter what kind of sword techniques I learn as long as I can prove to everyone that I can become a competent swordswoman!"

    Seriously? So she wanted to be a Samurai now? Wait a second¡­

    "Uh, I''m not a Samurai, lady. Neither is my dad. If anything, we''re more summoners than samurai. Who gave you the idea that we are Samurai, anyway? Just because we''re practitioners of the Miyamoto sword style?"

    "¡­but you''re supposed to be this cool-looking Kirito clone, wearing all black, pretending to smile while acting all edgy and mysterious, and concealing your background as an Assassin and half-Lycanthrope or half-Vampire!"

    I buried my face in my palm again. I give up. This conversation wasn''t going anywhere. These kids were so obsessed with parodying Assassin''s Pride that I doubted I would be able to talk any sense into them. For now, I just had to ensure their safety.

    Fortunately, there wasn''t much danger in the journey back to the hovercraft. Even without Redfield, I was able to trace our route back by relying on the mapping function on my glasses. Tapping my glasses, I watched as a blue line snaked out in front of me, displaying a holographic route across my lenses.

    That was pretty convenient.

    Even as I followed the digitally constructed route that was visually broadcasted by my glasses, I sent Corvus to scout ahead to ensure that we were on the right track, and to make sure we didn''t encounter any monsters along the way. A Gray Wolf showed up, but I summoned the chibi Green Dragon immediately and cut it apart with a single swing of my sword (and a bunch of razor-sharp flower petals). Leaving the carcass toppling on either side of me, I proceeded onward without pause. Behind me, the students followed anxiously, casting an awestruck glance at the Gray Wolf''s corpse.

    "You really are strong," Melina murmured, her eyes wide. "That was¡­Miyamoto sword style? Combined with some elements from the Stuart family''s wood magic sword techniques?"

    "I never learned anything from the Stuart family." I sighed and glanced at Adrian, who hastily nodded to back me up. "I learned wood magic from school, and combined it with summoning and the sword techniques that Dad taught me. That''s all."

    "You combined three different skills together? That''s impressive." Melina''s eyes were shining, and she was growing more excited when she realized that she would be learning under me. Suffice to say, I didn''t burst her bubble by informing her that I wouldn''t be able to teach her all that. There was no difference between being disappointed now and being disappointed later, except that the length of time she spent disappointed would be shorter.

    Without replying, I swung Hei Yue and unleashed a torrent of black petals at a Wood Ape that was swinging from branch to branch, getting ready to descend upon us. the storm of razor-sharp petals caught the poor monster just as it let go of a branch to propel itself forward, thus rendering it unable to evade. The Wood Ape threw up its burly arms to conjure a wall of wood, but I swung Bai Ri and obliterated that wall of wood by summoning a thick log of wood to puncture through it. The black petals burst through the shower of splinters and engulfed the hapless Wood Ape befor shredding the poor thing into countless pieces.

    Lowering my swords, I continued striding forward, scanning the area with the suite of hi-tech sensors installed in my glasses. Motion tracker, infrared, whatever. When I spotted a monster nearby, I would unleash deadly flowers upon them without hesitation, eliminating whatever dangers that would potentially threaten my charges before they could fully move into action.

    And just like that, we were back at the hovercraft before we knew it. A skeleton crew had been left behind to guard the dropship, their weapons held at the ready. At a makeshift command center, Feng Hai was managing the coms and relaying instructions while surveying the tactical display that marked the locations of each and every mercenary in the forest. Despite the red icons, I knew that the display wasn''t 100% precise ¨C as much as Feng Hai tried to get the data transmitted in real time, there were still discrepancies between the holographic display and reality.

    Looking up, he rewarded me with a smile when he caught sight of the kids tagging behind me. I turned back and did a quick head count, feeling reassured when I ensured that all of my charges had been accounted for. I then spun back to face Feng Hai before snapping off a salute.

    "Sir. I brought them back."

    "Well done." Feng Hai nodded and gestured for the students to board the hovercraft. A few of the sentries stepped forward to escort them. Adrian and Melina glanced at me, but I nodded at them.

    "These are the Silver Wolves mercenaries. They can be trusted. I''m currently helping them out on a mission right now."

    "Amazing!" Adrian''s eyes widened. "The Silver Wolves! One of the most renowned mercenary guilds today! Then that guy must be the legendary Hurricane Blade, Feng Hai!"

    "Oh, you know me?" Feng Hai chuckled. "I''m flattered."

    As the kids were bundled aboard the massive hovercraft, the mercenary colonel turned back to me.

    "Get some rest, Richard. Take ten, and then rejoin the rest of the groups in this sector." He swiped his hand across the air and slid one of the massive holographic screens toward the space in front of me. I noted that it was a sector of the forest that was near where Melina directed Redfield toward, where their bus crashed when they came under assault. "Or you can stay here and take care of the kids. It''s up to you."

    "I''ll go look for Ana. I''m sure Adrian and the rest will be safe here." I glanced around and noted the tight cordon that the remaining mercenaries had woven around the clearing. Nothing short of a rank A dragon was going to get past them¡­or so I hope, but as always I knew it was dangerous to underestimate the lower ranked monsters. Regardless, the middle school students were as safe as they could possibly be under the circumstances. And I was still very worried about Anastasia. "I''ll join Redfield and the others."

    My concern for her must be showing on my face, for Feng Hai nodded understandingly.

    "Good. But take a break first. You''ve been operating out there nonstop since the mission began. Drink some water, take a breather and catch your breath. We don''t want to have to rescue you too if you collapse in the middle of the forest."

    "I won''t do that."

    "That''s what they all say before they do." Feng Hai suppressed a sigh and the urge to roll his eyes. Managing a smile, he clamped a hand on my shoulder. "Anyway, go take a break. I''ll let you know in ten minutes. And I have some good news for you." His smile grew wider. "Thanks to the information from the kids you found, we''re much closer to finding Ana than before."

 359 Chapter 359: The Search for Anastasia II

    After ten minutes of sitting and closing my eyes, doing my best to recover as much mana as I could, I got up and stretched myself. Downloading a holographic map into my glasses, I plotted out a route that was marked entirely in blue, and began running off. I was about to follow the route when Feng Hai called out to me.

    "Richard! Wait!"

    "What is it?" I bit back the words "this time" because I didn''t want to sound rude to someone who had been my instructor. Instead, I coughed out a single word. "Sir?"

    Feng Hai was placing a hand on his earphones at the moment, listening intently to reports over the coms. Consulting a few holographic screens, which displayed sporadic fighting from the mercenaries on the ground, he glanced at me and gestured for me to come over.

    "We''ve narrowed the search radius for Anastasia. We found traces of poison that are very recent, and the fresh corpses of monsters as well as¡­Assassins. The Assassins that your young friends have reported, the Assassin''s Creed cosplayers."

    Seriously, that was what we were calling them now? Cosplayers? I mean, he wasn''t wrong, and modern Assassins did not wear such anachronistic costumes in the present, not unless they were trying to blend in a cosplay convention.

    "Glacia, get ready. We''ll be moving in their position. I''ve a feeling we''ll be able to find her in the next fifteen minutes, so we might as well get started." Feng Hai was sounding pretty excited as he stood up. The silver-haired ice mage nodded and joined him, drawing her coat around her. Her long hair hung loosely on her front in a single thick braid, the luster of the strands standing out against her black and dark blue clothing.

    "I''m ready to move out whenever you are. Are we taking the hovercraft?"

    "No. too big and too loud, not to mention there won''t be a big enough space for a landing zone where we are going. We''ll be using an alternative method." Feng Hai glanced at me with a knowing smile. "I''ll be counting on you, Richard."

    "Yes, sir."

    I immediately understood what he wanted. Nodding, I immediately began casting a summoning spell. It would take a while, but under the safety of the mercenaries'' perimeter, there was nothing to threaten or obstruct my attempts.

    "You''ll tell me how to get there, right?"

    "Yeah, so just provide the means of transport. And don''t worry about drawing the attention of monsters in the forest. I''ll take care of them." Feng Hai raised his hand, and twenty floating spears, eighteen hovering hammers and a bunch of other levitating weapons appeared behind him. For a moment, I was dumbfounded.

    "Where are your swords, Instructor Feng Hai?"

    "Huh? Swords? Since when do I use swords?"

    "No, no, no. You''re the Hurricane Blade, right? So you should be using swords, right? I mean, your Blade Body technique is supposed to allow you to convert your wind magic into swords."

    "Yeah, that''s what I did." Feng Hai gestured toward the floating weapons behind him. "All of these weapons behind me are converted from my wind spells.

    "But where are the swords? The bladed weapons?"

    Feng Hai burst out laughing at that. He waved a hand airily and conjured a bunch of wind swords. "There you go. Happy now? If you feel safer when you see me use swords instead of other weapons, then I''ll throw swords instead."

    Honestly, it made no difference to me. It just felt weird that the Hurricane Blade was a wind mage who didn''t use bladed weapons. Well, I guess spears count as bladed weapons, but the hammers certainly did not.

    In any event, I had succeeded in summoning Pegasus. Two of them, in fact. I was about to try and summon a third Pegasus, but Feng Hai and Glacia boarded the nearest one before I could say anything, with Glacia riding in the rear and wrapping her hands around Feng Hai''s waist. Partially relieved that I did not need to spend any more mana than necessary, I climbed aboard Pegasus and looked at the mercenary leader expectantly.

    Feng Hai tested the Pegasus that he was riding, pulling the reins on the armored winged horse to see if he responded. Pegasus, instructed telepathically by me, obeyed, and galloped.

    "Nice! Thanks, Richard!"

    Quickly getting the hang of riding Pegasus, Feng Hai took the reins ¨C both literally and metaphorically ¨C and guided him in a particular direction. As he and Glacia galloped past the other mercenaries atop Pegasus, he shouted several instructions. Probably instructing them to maintain the perimeter and protect the hovercraft.

    I wasn''t far behind them, spurring my own Pegasus into action. The two winged horses half-soared, half-galloped through the forest, occasionally gliding across the dense terrain in gigantic bounds. I didn''t know where we were going, and the blue route marked out by my glasses were blinking in disarray, informing me of multiple errors when I went off course. Stifling an exasperated snort, I tapped my glasses to deactivate the holographic map and focused on following Feng Hai and Glacia into the heart of Aurora Forest.

    As we plunged rapidly into the depths of the forest, the trees becoming a green and white blur (from the snow) around us, I could hear the com bead in Feng Hai''s ear crackle through Pegasus Number One''s ears.

    "We''ve located Anastasia''s position, but there is a bit of a problem."

    I recognized that voice ¨C seemed like Redfield had joined up with the rest of the platoon and were converging on Anastasia''s position.

    "Is Ana on the verge of erupting because of her Woeful Poison Body? Keep a safe distance, and don''t get too close. But don''t let her out of your sight either."

    "No, it''s not that. It''s just that there''s a troublesome enemy between us and Ana." Redfield''s tone was unusually tense, a contrast to his usual cheerful demeanor. That meant that the brown stuff had truly hit the fan.

    "Assassins? The Veneneum Asssassins have located her before us?"

    "It would be great if it was just mere Assassins, but nope¡­a more formidable foe stands in the way. Actually¡­they''re the ones who wiped out the Veneneum Assassins before we reached the area. They are rank B Arachnes."

    A chill ran down my spine, and I reflexively urged Pegasus on faster. Sensing the urgency, Feng Hai also prodded Pegasus Number One to be quicker, and both winged horses picked up the pace. They leaped up and began soaring over the canopy, skimming just above the tips of the trees. A couple of Wood Apes jumped out, but Feng Hai immediately lanced them with floating spears, pinning them to the trees. They didn''t die from such meager injuries and cheap, speedy spells, but they certainly wouldn''t be able to pursue us for a while.

    Not having the time to finish them off, Feng Hai had Pegasus Number One gallop past them, all the while maintaining a floating arsenal in the air. I swear, the guy was casting some wind spell to accelerate both Pegasuses and increase their speed by several times. It could just be my anxiety playing tricks on my mind, of course.

    It didn''t take more than a few minutes before we burst into a clearing, where we almost ran into a swarm of fairly huge monsters. Not as large as rank D monsters or rank A Behemoths, and they were just about two or three meters high, but they were still relatively big when compared to normal humans. I couldn''t help but recoil in revulsion and horror when I caught sight of our new foe.

    They were grotesque monsters, a horrifying fusion of woman and spider. A black, bloated abdomen sagged beneath a slim, feminine form with pale, gray skin. Eight legs scuttled on either side of the monstrous, bulbous body, each of the thin appendage tapering off to a point that seemed as sharp as swords. The human-like figure atop the gigantic spider body was, if possible, even more hideous. Wide hips joined with the black abdomen before curving inwardly into a fairly slim waist and demonstrating womanly curves on the chest. What appeared to be normal hands ¨C other than the ghoulish pallor ¨C rose and waved in agitation. Long white hair flowed silkily down the body, reaching the waist, but it wasn''t able to veil the monstrous features of where a woman''s face should normally be.

    Eight red eyes gleamed ominously, and slavering manibles clacked incessantly in place of where a mouth would be. The nose was gone, the space where it usually would be take up by several beady eyes.

    While Feng Hai, Glacia and I disembarked from my Pegasuses and rejoined the rest of the mercenary platoon, I noticed lots of white fluff here and there. Looking around, I perceived that the entire clearing had been caught in cobwebs. The Arachnes had woven a gigantic web over the entire area, turning the place into a death trap.

    "¡­!"

    There were already a few victims. I saw what were clearly human bodies, mummified and all wrapped up in white silk, all cocooned and stuck to parts of the web. Glancing at Redfield, who acknowledged our arrival with a silent nod, I guessed that those husks belonged to the Veneneum Assassins we saw earlier.

    "The Veneneum Assassins tried to exterminate the Arachnes, but they were quickly defeated. The Arachnes trapped them in their web, and then injected them with venom before they could cut their way free."

    Poor bastards. That was no way to die. Knowing the feeding habbits of spiders, the toxins injected into the Assassins wouldn''t be enough to kill them (and besides, they were Veneneum Assassins ¨C professional killers who dabbled in poison ¨C so I wouldn''t be surprised if they had built up a resilient resistance to venom). However, they would be drugged to semi-consciousness, and have their bodily fluids and nutrients slowly sucked out of them, and they would gradually be rendered into dessicated corpses. It was in some way one of the worst ways to die. At least they wouldn''t spend most of their last moments conscious.

    I hope.

    "¡­jeez¡­"

    Shaking my head, I realized just how terrifying this swarm of Arachnes were. To be able to so easily take down an entire group of skilled Assassins capable of instantly slaying rank C Wood Apes ¨C just how much stronger were they?

    I also noticed signs of corrosion here and there ¨C traces of poison magic being used. I couldn''t tell whether they belonged to Anastasia or her former colleagues, but one thing was clear.

    Poison magic wasn''t effective against these Arachnes. Then again, it was clear that they were one of the most venomous monsters in existence, so why wouldn''t they have a natural tolerance to poison? Of course, that didn''t mean they wouldn''t die from poison or were immune to venom. Even the most poisonous spiders would die when fumed with pesticides. Of course, you always heard of insects such as ants, cockroaches and maybe even spiders build up tolerance and resisteance to insecticide, so it was possible that these Arachnes had done so too.

    How, I had no idea.

    "Anastasia is just beyond that web," Redfield explained to us. "We tried going around, but the Arachnes would pursue us. They have surrounded her in what looks like¡­a gigantic nest made entirely out of strands of cobweb."

    Beyond the thick webs, I caught sight of something. I wasn''t sure what it was, but it did fit Redfield''s description of a nest. Furthermore, I could sense powerful venomous mana pulsing from within. A green glow that thrummed silently but visibly.

    That mana signature¡­it definitely belonged to Anastasia. And given how it was flaring up exponentially every other second, it was obvious that she was on the verge of erupting. If we didn''t place her in stasis, and soon, it would be too late.

    "Hmph. Leave these foul creatures to me." Feng Hai stepped forward with a raise of his hand. Flinging his arm forward, he launched a volley of spears, hammers and swords at the swarm of Arachnes.

    As one, the half-woman, half-spider monstrosities twisted around and fired thick strands of web from the end of their abdomens, the strong threads wrapping around and ensnaring the weapons. Feng Hai clicked his tongue and had them twist around to cut the webs, but the Arachnes skillfully spun their webs to restrain the struggling weapons.

    "What?"

    "A spider''s thread is stronger than a length of steel that is of the same thickness," I whispered, dread filling my voice. "It''ll be difficult for your weapons to cut through those webs."

    Feng Hai took a deep breath and straightened himself. He acknowledged my statement with a nod, but he didn''t seem discouraged or frustrated at all. Instead, he steeled his resolve further by raising his right arm and gathering wind mana into his loosely clenched fist. Another spear materialized in his hand and tempestuous winds blew about him, blasting leaves and soil up into the air. Fixing his glowering eyes on the enemies, he issued a single order.

    "Silver Wolves, time to hunt! Slay those Arachnes!"

    What, no Silver Wolves assemble line? Whatever the case, at his words, all of us sprang into action immediately.

 360 Chapter 360: Iâ€™m a Spider, what about it?

    In case you guys didn''t get the reference in the chapter title above, just translate it into Japanese. You know what, I''ll just do it for you. It''s Kumo desu ga, nani ka?

    "¡­oi! Stop muttering to yourself and focus on fighting!"

    Redfield''s annoyed shout pulled me back to reality and I snapped back as a steel-like thread of web burst out of one of the Arachne''s¡­well, ass. Twisting in midair, I managed to dodge under what would otherwise be a deadly lance.

    So they could use their web in such an offensive manner as well. I had to be careful.

    "Colonel Feng! If swords and spears don''t work, then let me burn them!"

    Redfield was driving ahead, leading the vanguard. His spear blazed crimson even as he conjured a storm of fireballs. Swinging his spear, he launched them at the swarm of Arachnes, but once again they wove a wall of web that smoldered and melted under the heat. Despite withering away from the flames, they didn''t really combust and turn into a raging inferno like Redfield would expect.

    "!!"

    While Redfield thrust his spear forward, one of the Arachnes countered with one of its sword-like legs, slashing at him. Twirling his spear, Redfield deflected the leg to one side, but he didn''t even manage to leave a burn on the thin appendage. The Arachne bore down on him, executing a flurry of rapid strikes with almost all eight legs at once (I mean, it still needed to stand on a few of its legs or it would fall over) that forced him into the defensive. As skilled as Redfield was, even he found himself overwhelmed by the sheer number of attacks.

    He couldn''t expect assistance, for the rest of us were also assaulted by the other Arachnes. Inhuman shrieks filled the air as the monstrous woman-spider hybrids charged into our positions, almost forcing us to scatter. Brent smashed a fist into the face of one of the Arachnes, even as he struck another wall of web with his staff. Tornadoes spun about him as he charged into their midst, trying to blow them away with his wind magic.

    I wouldn''t be surprised if he unleashed his, uh, Bankai again.

    Feng Hai was living up to his name, blasting the horde of Arachnes with what appeared to be hurricanes. Dozens of blades danced about him, sweeping through the air in deadly slashes and slices at what appeared to be the vital spots of the Arachnes. However, the Arachnes hung on tenaciously, parrying the blades with their many legs, while tethering themselves to the ground through web. The hurricane, though devastating against most other foes, was ineffective against the extensive web that the multiple Arachnes had spun around the forest.

    "No wonder they are rank B¡­" Feng Hai muttered, though I suspected they were classified as such because of their amount of mana rather than any real estimation of strength. They were skilled and deadly, that much was sure, but I hardly understood why they would be ranked the same as Crastrates or a Silver Skeletal Wolf. I guessed they were rank B because of the immense mana compressed into their relatively small forms.

    Still, even if they lacked the strength of other rank B monsters, they were certainly tricky buggers. No pun intended.

    "!!!"

    Dodging under the swipe of an Arachne that chose me as its target, I parried the next strike from its sharp leg with Bai Ri before deflecting a third spike-like appendage with Hei Yue. The Arachne put more force behind its next blow, and even though I crossed both of my swords to block the combined thrust of three legs, I was flung several meters backward.

    "Huff¡­"

    Skidding across the ground, I mentally cycled through the possible options in my mind. Fire didn''t seem effective, from what I had seen so far from Redfield''s failed assault, and if I recalled correctly, spider threads weren''t very conductive so lightning spells wouldn''t be a good idea as well. Spiderwebs possessed so little conductivity that they were for all intents and purposes considered non-conductors, even though there were currently attempts to turn spider thread into electric wires on the microscopic scale.

    In any event, White Tiger or Vermillion Phoenix might not be appropriate in this scenario. I was better off using some other Celestial Guardian. A natural predator of spiders¡­now what could that be? Scorpio? Uh¡­but I designed my Scorpio to be a nuke type Constellation spirit, so he didn''t really possess any other combat abilities other than the strategic spell Antares.

    Obviously I couldn''t just nuke the entire place, not when my goal was to rescue Anastasia, who was trapped behind that wall of webs.

    Lizards, fish, birds, wasps, even monkeys¡­but I didn''t have any of those except Pisces. And Pisces wouldn''t be able to swim around in a web-filled environment like this. Corvus, too, would be too small to pick on these Arachnes. Besides, I could only use one Corvus for today because the rest of them got wiped out by the dumb Veneneum Assassins earlier. So I needed to wait for a bit to regenerate them before I could summon them again.

    Aquila¡­no, eagles did not eat spiders, as far as I know, anyway.

    "!!!"

    Unfortunately, the Arachnes were not the only enemies we had to deal with. A weird buzz echoed throughout the forest, and a swarm of over thousands of spider-like creatures crawled down the web to join the hideous woman-spider monstrosities in battle. I gaped for a moment when I caught sight of the newcomers. They were a ghastly white, with spider-like legs protruding out of their heads. Their heads, particularly, appeared to be upside-down human skulls, for some reason.

    "Trites!" Brent murmured as he spun his staff around to blow them away. They exploded into slightly acidic green blood every time they were struck. These monsters, while numerous, were thankfully fragile. However, I couldn''t help but roll my eyes.

    "We''re ripping off Doom 3 now?"

    The Arachne I was currently engaging slashed at my neck with one of its blade-like legs, forcing me to duck. While I did so, a bunch of suicidal Trites launched themselves at me, but I easily cleaved through them with a single swing of my Hei Yue.

    Then I parried another of the Arachne''s legs with Bai Ri. As I did so, several more Trites lunged at me, their jaws ¨C which were strangely above their multiple pairs of eyes ¨C wide open and ringed with slavering teeth. Muttering an incantation, I blasted them away with Hei Yue, only to be almost caught off guard when the Arachne struck me with its leg.

    "Kuh!"

    Good thing I managed to parry the two sharp legs with Bai Ri, or they would have pierced through my body. However, the blow was still powerful enough to send me hurtling across the clearing, and I landed on the ground in a roll.

    While I was trying to rise to my feet, a few more of the Trites jumped at me, trying to take a huge bite out of my face or body. There were so many of them that it wouldn''t be hard for them to target different regions of my body. I desperately lashed out with both of my swords, slicing a deadly arc at them that disintegrated their tiny forms into acidic blood.

    Distracted by the smaller monsters, I almost didn''t guard against the Arachne in time. Its legs lashed out and caught me by the side, even as I just barely managed to deflect the sharp tip away from penetrating through my kidney, and sent me flying across the ground again.

    Hitting the ground, I grunted, but managed to finish casting my spell. As the Arachne lumbered over, a sudden gust of mana buffeted it. My spell completed, I stood up slowly, a storm of petals dancing around me. Above my shoulder, a chibi version of Green Dragon materialized.

    Since my wood magic was the most advanced out of my elemental spells, I might as well use it. Raising both of my swords, I then unleashed a storm of black petals at the Arachne. The woman-spider hybrid responded in reflex, shooting out web to form a wall, but the black petals absorbed the mana from the web, disintegrating the strands almost instantly. Even as they made contact with the threads, the black petals split apart into even more numerous tinier but deadlier petals, and sliced through the swarm of Trites that had leaped in front of the Arachne to protect it.

    ¡­almost like bodyguards sacrificing themselves to guard their queen from danger.

    Not having enough time to deal with the Trites, I blitzed past them in a blizzard of pink Sakura petals, cutting them apart while directing the remainder of the deadly storm at the Arachne. Whirling around to avoid the web that the Arachne tossed at me, I then swung both swords down upon the hideous creature.

    However, the Arachne was far from helpless despite me having rendered its defensive webbing useless. Raising four of its spike-like legs, it parried my slashes. Unfortunately for it, it was unable to guard against the torrent of Sakura petals that trailed both of my blades, which sliced into its hard but surprisingly brittle chitin and causing ichor to leak out. With a wail, the Arachne arched up on its four hind legs and lashed out with its other four, trying to stab me with a fierce bombardment of strikes, but I answered with a riposte that almost took off one of its legs, thanks to my petals.

    Even so, I found myself driven back from the Arachne''s ferocious counterattack. At the edge of my peripheral vision, I could see more of those Trites gathering around for another charge. Exhaling in frustration, I directed my pink Sakura petals toward the smaller monsters, cutting them apart and erasing them from existence.

    With my pink barrier of petals gone, the Arachne sought to exploit the opening I had just revealed, three of its legs slicing downward to pierce my chest. Two toward my lungs, one straight for my heart. An attack filled completely with murderous intent¡­.okay, I know I was stating the obvious, but I was trying to be poetic here, all right?

    Spinning around, I just barely managed to deflect the three legs away with both of my swords. At the same time, Green Dragon twitched on my shoulder ¨C a visible sign that I had just finished casting another spell.

    "?!"

    The Arachne let out a surprised screech when vines unfurled out of the ground and wrapped around its legs, ensnaring it. It struggled against its bonds, to no avail. Not wasting the chance I just bought for myself, I thrust Hei Yue forward.

    "!!!"

    The Arachne, to my complete surprise, shoved its face forward instead of trying to evade what would otherwise be my killing blow. It caught my sword with its mandibles, and I could see acidic venom dripping down my black blade. Fortunately, Hei Yue was forged by Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, the most eminent swordsmiths of their time, and it would take more than mere acid to damage the exquisitely crafted weapon.

    "Why, you¡­!"

    Swearing under my breath, I thrust Bai Ri forward, but the Arachne managed to catch the white blade with its hands. Unlike its eight legs, its human-like hands lacked the power or deadliness, but I was surprised that it could still grab my sword like that. Even so, the extremely sharp edge of Bai Ri managed to cut the ghoulish flesh, leaving thick rivulets of ichor dripping down.

    With a wail, the Arachne hurled me back. I managed to flip in midair and land on the ground, skidding across the broken earth as my momentum threw me backward. Glancing up, I was just in time to see the Arachne spit a stream of acid in my direction.

    "Scutum Sobiescianum!"

    Conjuring the Constellation shield, I protected myself from the wave of acid. Despite summoning Scutum Sobiescianum in time, I could only watched, horrified as the acid ate through the Constellation shield and reduced it into nothing more than a smoldering husk of corroded metal.

    Snarling, the Arachne wrenched itself free of the vines that restrained it. All around me, more of the Trites swarmed my position, trying to throw themselves at me ¨C only to be shredded by the curtain of pink Sakura petals that I had placed between me and them. Rearing up, it hissed at me before raising a hand and using telekinesis to levitate several boulders and broken trunks to hurl them in my direction.

    Risking a glance at my comrades, I saw that they were all engaged in their own individual life-and-death battles. I would not be getting any assistance from them, not while they were fiercely struggling against the powerful rank B monsters.

    "!!"

    A trunk almost struck me, but I managed to knock it away with a hastily conjured wall of wood. Under my direction, several vines snaked out of the ground and caught the boulders that the Arachne was throwing at me via telekinesis. Hissing, the Arachne then strode over, stabbing in my direction with its legs. Despite my best attempts to trap it with my vines, it sliced through those plants near effortlessly before landing right in front of me.

    Conjuring a fresh wave of sharp petals, I slashed at it with Hei Yue, only for the monster to parry my strike. It countered with a couple of stabs, which I deftly dodged before answering with a riposte through Bai Ri. The petals cut through its pale flesh, causing more bleeding of ichor and eliciting an enraged shriek from the Arachne, which batted me away with brute force with three of its legs. Fortunately, my crossed swords absorbed most of the impact or I would have been knocked unconscious by that blow.

    Once again, I flipped myself upward in midair and landed in a crouch. The Arachne turned to snarl in my direction, but I responded with a smile.

    For I had finally finished casting my next spell. Straightening up, I nodded at my chibi Green Dragon, who continued to hover above my shoulder.

    "Over to you, Green Dragon."

    The chibi Green Dragon crowed cheerfully for a moment before glowing a bright green that suffused the entire area. An exponential surge of mana swept across the entire clearing before Green Dragon''s form ¨C now a glowing silhouette ¨C rapidly expanded to tower over even the tallest tree of Aurora Forest.

    The stunned Arachne found itself retreating instinctively, quaking before Green Dragon''s true form. The gigantic dragon-type Celestial Guardian threw his head back and bellowed ferociously before setting his glower on the unfortunate Fiend. All around him, plants and flowers blossomed amidst the white snow, a false dawn of spring in the perpetual winter of Aurora City.

    "Sorry to spring this on you, lady," I remarked with a smile. "But you''re going down."

 361 Chapter 361: Spiders and Dragon

    The outgrowth of wood knocked the Arachne onto its back and it struggled to scramble away, but an astronomical amount of razor leaves poured down upon the poor creature, slicing it up. Incredibly, it survived the onslaught, with ichor leaking out from multiple wounds.

    Green Dragon didn''t care. Rearing up, his mouth glittered as he gathered energy from the sun. Being Aurora City, the sun wasn''t as bright or intense as it would be in tropical countries, but it was more than enough to power his next spell.

    Instinctively sensing the danger, the Arachne let out a shrill screech as it tried to retreat. Its subversient Trites hurled themselves suicidically at Green Dragon in a desperate attempt to protech their monarch, but plants and leaves that sprouted from the ground batted them aside almost casually, disintegrating them from the sheer force. Considering that a Trite died to just a single punch from a normal human Marine, or a whack from a torchlight before the BFG Edition made the duct tape mod official and canon was more than enough to slay it, that wasn''t surprising. I was more impressed by the tiny creatures'' single-minded loyalty to their queen.

    Shrieking, the Arachne flung itself at Green Dragon, all of its eight legs flaring up to slice a path through the thick foliage that had blossomed protectively around my Celestial Guardian. However, I intervened, jumping between the Fiend and my Constellation spirit. Striking with my two swords, I forced the Arachne to parry and defend, and though she nearly overwhelmed me with her eight legs that assailed me almost simultaneously, I unleashed the spells that I had been casting so far.

    Black and white mana blasted the Arachne back, hurling the fairly huge creature back several meters. The Arachne landed messily, in an undignified heap. Before it could get up, Green Dragon finished casting his Solar Beam attack and unleashed a brilliant beam of blinding golden energy that seared across the air to disintegrate it.

    Credit to the Arachne, it was able to throw up a wall of webbing to protect itself. Unfortunately, the web barrier wasn''t durable enough. Even though a spider thread was stronger than a steel wire of the same thickness, the devastating firepower of Green Dragon''s Solar Beam spell was able to obliterate it all the same. The golden beam smashed through the web before engulfing the screaming Arachne, disintegrating it.

    I winced as I heard it die. Its death cries were so tragically¡­human-like. Turning away from the disintegrating Arachne, I swung my swords and wiped out another horde of Trites. To my surprise, I noticed that the little monsters had become incohesive, their movements sluggish and hesitant, upon the demise of their queen.

    "So that''s how it is¡­" I wasn''t sure how to describe it, but evidently the Arachnes controlled the Trites like a queen, so they subscribed to the hive mind mentality or something like that. Well, a good analogy would be the synapse creatures of the ravenous Tyranids ¨C the Arachnes were the psychic commanders, the synapse creatures that served as a conduit through which the Hive Mind controlled the lesser beings such as the Trites. With the Arachnes still alive, the Trites would be immune to Morale and essentially Fearless, but once the synapse creatures were taken out, the lesser bugs would revert back to Instinctive Behavior and be vulnerable to casualties caused by Morale. "We need to prioritize eliminating the Arachnes first."

    "Great job, kid!" Redfield shouted as he jumped back, defending against another Arachne with his flaming spear. My Green Dragon lumbered forward and swiped at the offending Arachne, breaking its assault and allowing the red-haired mercenary a breather. He withdrew and nodded at me, then took in my Celestial Guardian. "You finally called in one of your big guns."

    Then he blinked, and studied my Green Dragon with a frown for a few seconds before snapping his fingers, as if he had just received an epiphany.

    "I have an idea! Richard, can you keep these bitches off my back for a minute or two?"

    "I''ll wipe that Arachne and its attendant Trites out in a minute or two," I replied somewhat confidently. "If that''s what you need me to do."

    "No, I mean, well, that would be great, but I have a better idea. If all goes well, you''ll be able to exterminate the entire horde, not just a single Arachne. That spell of your dragon''s from earlier, it seems like it''s powered by the sun?"

    "That''s right," I affirmed. Solar Beam required the caster to gather sunlight for a turn before he can unleash it the next turn. He can skip that first turn of accumulating sunlight if he was fighting in a battlefield with harsh sunlight, but the power of Solar Beam would be halved when it was raining.

    Fortunately, it was currently not snowing in Aurora Forest, or I would be screwed. Just because it was subzero temperatures didn''t mean the sun wasn''t out. That was quite the misconception many people who didn''t live in countries with the four seasons had of winter. Just because it was winter didn''t mean it snowed everyday. There would still be days with relatively bright sunlight, just that it wouldn''t be as bright and intense as during the summer.

    "Good. Give me a minute."

    "Okay." I stepped in with Green Dragon, warding off the Arachne. This time, I summoned Aquila to help me, the giant eagle soaring through the air before cartwheeling about and unleashing Altair to raze the ground of Trites. It was almost as if he was dropping a cluster of firebombs, incinerating large swathes of the tiny spider monsters. Even the Arachne was forced to back off and weave a wall of web or get obliterated along with its little minions.

    As Aquila soared away to do another pass, the Arachne emerged from under its cover to strike at me, but I easily parried its legs with both my swords. The petals that trailed my blades sliced into its sickly flesh, causing it to hiss in pain.

    Snarling, the Arachne tried to slash me, but I ducked and rolled under its multiple limbs before thrusting Hei Yue at its black, bloated abdomen. Leaving a thick scar across the bulbous body, I then parried a reflexive retaliation from one of my target''s legs with Bai Ri and allowed my momentum to throw me to safety.

    Taking a deep breath, I then dropped under a thread of web that was meant for my face ¨C probably to seal my mouth and nose in order to suffocate me ¨C and unleashed twin waves of black and white mana that sent the Arachne staggering. More of the Trites scrambled to protect their queen and attack me, but I blew them off with a storm of vividly colored petals, slicing them into nothingness or bursts of acidic blood.

    "Huff¡­"

    Pausing to catch my breath, I watched my formidable foe warily. Despite emerging from the battle with its brethren relatively unscathed, I knew I couldn''t afford to underestimate it. The venom dripping from its mandibles was worrying. Even though I was supposedly immune to poison, I still had no intention of allowing myself to get bitten by that thing.

    The Arachne lunged at me again. Before it could reach me, Green Dragon swatted it away, almost eviscerating the hideous monster with his claws. The Arachne wailed as it crashed a few meters away, but before it could recover, Green Dragon drowned it in a blizzard of razor-sharp petals. The Arachne rolled to its legs and shot a wall of web, but the petals easily sliced through the thick strands ¨C more from absorbing the mana from the threads rather than because they were sharp enough to cut through the physically strong webbing.

    While the Arachne flailed about, I caught sight of another Arachne breaking free from the cordon that the mercenaries had created, lunging straight at one of the other Silver Wolves to behead him. Reaching out to Aquila telepathically, I directed his Altair spell at the screeching monstrosity. The blast caught the woman-spider monster by the side, sending it crashing a few meters away from the stunned mercenary.

    "Thanks!" he called out to me, and then proceeded to finish off the Arachne. Not an easy job, as he found out later, when the creature thrust its leg upward to force him back. While he blocked it with his axe, he found himself swarmed by hundreds of Trites. With a roar, he swung his axe down and unleashed a destructive wave that cleaved through the tiny monsters and almost took a leg off the scuttling Arachne that had sought to slay him.

    In front of me, the Arachne that was formerly Redfield''s opponent managed to break free of Green Dragon''s grasp by trying to sink its venomous mandibles into his paw. Instinctively withdrawing to prevent getting hit by a lethal attack, Green Dragon sent another storm of petals at the Arachne, but it sliced through them. The black petals burst apart into more, tinier black petals and cut through flesh, but the Arachne remained standing despite bleeding from multiple places. Vines whipped out to coil around its limbs, but the creature spat out venomous acid to corrode the entire thing before breaking free of its restraints.

    "Green Dragon!" I called out, mentally willing him to retreat while I brought out Cetus. The entire place was covered in ice, which froze even the webbing. The Arachne shattered the block of ice that encased most of its body, but Cetus slammed into it, knocking it over, and then soared away before the Arachne could retaliate with a bite. The Trites, on the other hand, were not as lucky. A huge bulk of the swarm had been frozen solid by Cetus''s spell.

    "All right, kid, I''m done!"

    I turned back to Redfield, surprised. I had almost forgotten that I was covering for him. He nodded at me and then raised his spear to point it at the sky.

    "Sunny Day!"

    "?!"

    The sunlight immediately became a lot more intense, shining brightly and become exponentially harsher. I felt the dry heat crawl over me, baking the snow and causing it to melt. The Arachnes and Trites all looked up, astonished by the sudden change in weather. Being spiders, though, they didn''t seem to care about the heat. In actual fact, they seemed to revel in the increase in temperature. If I didn''t know better, I could have sworn they were smiling.

    "What are you waiting for, kid?!"

    At Redfield''s hollering, I suddenly understood what it was that he wanted me to do. Recalling Cetus, I mentally urged Green Dragon onward. With the sun shining so brightly over the clearing, there was only one thing to do.

    "Green Dragon, Solar Beam attack!"

    This time, Green Dragon didn''t need to spend precious moments collecting sunlight for his spell. His maw yawned open and a stream of golden destructive energy blasted out, scorching across the warming clearing and disintegrating hordes of Trites. Even as the golden beam lanced toward the Arachne, the whole swarm of woman-spider queens leaped back as one, and instantly wove a gigantic wall of web to defend themselves.

    "Oh no, you don''t!"

    Bouncing his spear in his hand, Redfield then threw it. The spear combusted into flames as it flew, and I realized that the fire spell that enchanted it had been tremendously boosted by the harsh sunlight that was currently shining upon us.

    The blazing spear struck the wall of web before the Solar Beam could reach the white barrier, igniting it and incinerating the defense immediately. Even though the webbing was not very flammable and didn''t catch fire so easily, it still melted and disintegrated from the raging inferno that blazed once before extinguishing.

    That was more than enough. The wall of durable web that served as their supposedly impenetrable defense was down.

    Green Dragon''s Solar Beam lanced through the dissolving webbing that shriveled and blackened from the heat and caught one of the Arachnes, disintegrating it utterly. Still drinking in the sunlight from above, the immense Celestial Guardian swept his head from side to side, his serpentine neck twisting as he bathed the entire clearing in devastating golden energies. The Arachnes tried to scramble to safety, but they found themselves herded by the Silver Wolves, who cast spells to force them back into their positions and cut off their retreat.

    Consequently, the Solar Beam disintegrated one Arachne after another, sweeping across the entire line of woman-spider monstrosities and annihilating the swarm in less than a minute. By the time Green Dragon closed his jaws and straightened up, visibly taking a breather, the clearing was scoured clean of monsters.

    "Good job, kid." Feng Hai placed a hand on my shoulder. I nodded as I dropped to my knees wearily, feeling exhausted from casting such a high-level, advanced spell. Even though most of the energy expenditure relied on sunlight, I still needed to spend a significant amount of mana to cast the spell in the first place. Green Dragon''s mana reserves were taken directly from mine, so whenever he exhausted his own individual pool of mana ¨C which was a very quick process ¨C he would begin siphoning mana from me instead. That was true for all of my Celestial Guardianns and Constellation spirits. "You did well."

    "Ana," I muttered. "She''s still¡­"

    "Don''t worry, I have her." Glacia was already proceeding toward the cocoon where Anastasia was held in, but keeping her distance. "This amount of poison¡­"

    "We just barely made it in time," Feng Hai muttered with a shake of his head. "Just barely. A few more minutes and she might erupt. Stay some distance away from her before you cast your stasis spell. I don''t want to sacrifice you."

    "Roger that."

    "I''ll get rid of the webbing." Captain Brent strode forward and swung his staff. The entire webbing was broken apart by a violent gust of wind.

    As the broken strands of spider silk fell away, Anastasia was revealed, lying on the ground. Her body was glowing a sickly green, the flunctuations of her mana incredibly unstable. It was clear that she was doing her best to suppress the venomous mana that was threatening to burst out of her body, which would render her surroundings into a toxic wasteland if they were released unrestrainedly.

    However, Glacia couldn''t get too close. The immediate vicinity around Anastasia was saturated with so much toxins that it would be difficult for her to move near her without suffering some awful affliction. Even so, she couldn''t abandon a comrade, so she took another step closer.

    Feng Hai stopped her by placing a hand on her shoulder. Shaking his head, he gestured for her to begin.

    "You can cast the spell from here, and then slowly approach once Ana''s condition is stabilized."

    "Understood."

    Taking a deep breath, Glacia steeled herself and began casting her stasis spell.

 362 Chapter 362: Stasis Uninterrupted

    So we were making an Aliens: Colonial Marines reference now. Brilliant. That turned out to be such a disaster, thanks to Randy Pitchford and Gearbox screwing things up and then trying to absolve themselves of responsibility for butchering the game. And the demo was so promising too¡­

    "Hello? Kid?"

    "Sorry. I was making a reference to the downloadable content, Stasis Interrupted, for the game Aliens: Colonial Marines because I thought it would be appropriate." I shrugged after Redfield waved a hand in front of my face. He stared at me incredulously.

    "Did you use up so much mana that you''ve gotten delirious?"

    "No, I was just making a reference." I sighed. "In case you haven''t noticed, the genre of this story is parody. I''m supposed to seize every opportunity I have to joke, break the fourth wall or make fun of other popular media."

    "You okay, bro?" Redfield was getting increasingly concerned. Looked like my jokes weren''t working on him. He raised his hand to hail a healing mage over. "Medic¡­"

    "No, no, I''m fine!" I hastily assured him as I rose to my feet. "I was just cracking jokes. To ease the tension and all that after such a huge battle, you know?"

    "Really?" Redfield didn''t look convinced, but it wasn''t my job to persuade him. "If you''re sure¡­"

    "I''m sure," I told him firmly.

    "Sir, what do we do about the Assassins?" one of the Silver Wolves mercenaries asked Feng Hai. The Hurricane Blade didn''t hesitate to give out the order, his voice cold and almost emotionless.

    "Kill them."

    Not to sound like an edgelord, but we couldn''t just leave the Veneneum Assassins lying around here, unguarded and unchecked. Once they recovered from the Arachnes'' venom ¨C which was enough to kill most skilled mages, a testamount to the tolerance and resistance that Veneneum Assassins built up to toxins that they were so adept in using ¨C they would cut their way free of the webbing and chase us. Their target was clearly Anastasia, and if Redfield already knew about how the Grand Master of Assassins planned to use our precious comrade as food to fuel his own growth for power, then certainly Feng Hai was aware of that as well.

    The Silver Wolves commander thus executed the Assassins without any ceremony, conjuring a few spears and impaling the cocoon forms of the unconscious Veneneum Assassins, granting them a quick and relatively painless death. No, we were not edgelords who reveled in the pain and suffering of our enemies, so stop whining in the comments about how we didn''t take our time to torture them to death. Besides, we had much more important things to do, and not a lot of time.

    The other Silver Wolves mercenaries joined in, butchering and massacring the rest of the Veneneum Assassins that Feng Hai didn''t manage to hit. Brent obliterated a few of them with well-placed strikes from his staff, and he even checked their corpses to make sure they were dead. Not that it would be likely that they could live when he smashed their heads into bloody pulps. The other mercenaries under his and Feng Hai''s command executed the order similarly, beheading the poor bastards or impaling them through their chests.

    I closed my eyes briefly, not at all enjoying the grisly sight. Even though I knew the slaughter was necessary ¨C especially since our lives were at stake here and we couldn''t afford to let these guys live and then pursue us through the forest later ¨C that didn''t make the spectacle pleasant or satisfactory. Just a grim sense of necessity and resignation, and a recognition that the world was harsh and cruel. Normally, we wouldn''t have bothered, but these were highly trained, professional killers we were talking about. We couldn''t afford to cut them loose.

    "You okay, kid?" Redfield noticed my grimace and deliberately stood between me and the gruesome carnage, probably remembering my age. He didn''t have to. I had killed other people before, like Hades, for example. I didn''t have a weak stomach. It was just that I didn''t enjoy watching it, and had no reason to watch such a grisly spectacle when it was absolutely unnecessary.

    Nodding, I then turned away in a different direction and began striding off to leave the massacre behind. Glancing at Redfield, I forced a smile. "Yeah. More importantly, let''s go check on Ana."

    By now, Glacia had completed the casting of her spell and placed Anastasia in stasis. A white fog drifted over the shimmering field of azure mana that currently enshrouded her body, which was currently lying down. For some reason, I was reminded of a crystal or glass coffin ¨C from an ominous perspective, it looked as if Anastasia was being entombed and sent off for burial.

    Of course, the mercenaries who were ferrying her with telekinesis spells were not bringing her to a graveyard or mortuary. Instead, we were trekking back toward the hovercraft. Feng Hai organized us into a closely packed formation, with Anastasia''s, uh, coffin in the center. The rest of us escorted the floating container, flanking it on all sides and holding our weapons at the ready.

    Okay, that was an exaggeration. Most of us had slung, sheathed or holstered our weapons, but any sense that we were far from combat ready was an illusion. We could draw our weapons in under a microsecond, rather than remain so highly tense and strung up that we exhausted ourselves mentally and needlessly even before an actual battle.

    Fortunately, other than a few Grey Wolves and Snow Panthers, we didn''t encounter any real resistance. We managed to dispatch them relatively easily ¨C at least more effortlessly than we did against the formidable Arachnes, anyway. They were obviously more difficult to deal with than the Trites, but a few spells, and a few strikes from our weapons were more than enough to put them down and discourage the rest, who fled.

    "Do not pursue," Feng Hai ordered when he saw the Grey Wolves escaping into the depths of the forest. "Our goal here is rescue, not extermination."

    "Yes, sir!"

    Time was of the essence, after all, and we couldn''t afford to get bogged down in fighting when we wanted to bring Anastasia back to the base, safe and sound. And unlike the Veneneum Assassins, the Grey Wolves weren''t stupid or persistent enough to pursue us after we left them alone. Their instincts kicking in, they would have learned from this experience to avoid conflict against us mages at all costs. Sometimes I wondered if monsters were smarter than humans¡­and if humans were actually a more dangerous and terrifying foe than monsters.

    "Brother Richard!"

    The first voice I heard, upon returning to the landing zone where the hovercraft awaited, belonged to none other than Adrian Stuart. He was waving at me from atop the lowered ramp of the flying transport, with Melina Angel¡­I mean Franklin right next to him.

    "Hey," I called back to them with a friendly wave of my hand. Their eyes widened when they saw how bloodied and battered I looked. When I saw their horror, I raised both of my hands quickly to placate them. "Don''t worry, most of the blood isn''t mine."

    "That''s what you get for wading into battle instead of relying on your summoning magic!" Redfield guffawed as he slapped me in the back, almost sending me toppling over. I scowled as I staggered forward.

    "I didn''t have time to summon anything!"

    "Yeah, you did. If you hung back and allowed us to take care of the monsters while using the time we bought you to summon, you could have used your Soul Beasts instead of your swords. Aren''t you supposed to be a summoner, not a swordsman?"

    I tried not to roll my eyes. Given their skills, the Silver Wolves mercenaries would have annihilated the enemy and driven them off before I could summon a single significant Constellation spirit capable of combating the Grey Wolves or Snow Panthers. I would feel bad leaving them to do all the work. Besides, I needed to move, to fight, so that I could take my mind off some¡­unpleasant memories.

    "Amazing." Melina was staring at me in admiration. "As expected of the Samurai class! That''s impressive, Sensei!"

    "Give that samurai thing a rest already," I growled. "I already told you I''m not a Samurai. Just because I learned the Miyamoto sword style from my dad doesn''t automatically make me a Samurai. Get that through your head already."

    "Make way, kids." Feng Hai was unamused at our conversation, or more likely just not paying any attention to our dialogue at all. He waved for the kids to clear the ramp, most of the middle school students having emerged to watch the strange procession in fascinated curiosity. "Coming through. Give us some space."

    "What the hell is that?!" one of the middle school students gasped when they saw the hovering ice coffin that encased Anastasia''s beautiful form. However, Anastasia was still shrouded by a sickly green ¨C shimmering toxic mana that was frozen in the midst of pulsing and expanding. Like Feng Hai mentioned earlier, it was a very close shave.

    "A comrade," Brent told the kids shortly when Feng Hai couldn''t be bothered to answer. "A very precious comrade who is in urgent need of medical care. So please understand and give us some space for her."

    "Understood!"

    Wow, the mercenary captain was a genius. By appealing to the innocent middle schoolers'' sense of compassion, he was able to earn their obedience more effectively than through reprimanding or losing one''s temper.

    As the middle school students scattered to the sides to make way for the mercenaries and Anastasia''s stasis pod, I stayed below with the rest of the escort force. The sentries waved us to the temporarily set up tents, wordlessly instructing us to get some rest. After going through such a grueling ordeal, we were more than happy to oblige.

    "Take ten, and hten we pack up and leave." Feng Hai poked his head out from the underbelly of the hovercraft, having followed the procession into the transport earlier. He smiled, tiredly but triumphantly. "We''re going home."

    *

    I watched as the Silver Wolves mercenaries brought Anastasia back to their headquarters, a secure base in their adopted home city, Lupin City.

    "We''ll bring you guys back to Aurora City," Brent informed me. Feng Hai had busied himself with Ana''s case, and Redfield had followed him deep into the secure vaults that were protected by advanced security that forbade outsiders from entering. Even though I had participated in many missions alongside the Silver Wolves, I was still not officially recognized as a member. Truthfully, I also had no intention of officially joining the Silver Wolves anyway. In any event, with the commander of the Silver Wolves occupied with important issues, he had delegated the taking care of the middle school students and me to his second-in-command.

    "Thank you." I nodded and bowed. "We''ll be relying on you then."

    "We appreciate it!" Adrian added cheerfully, and also lowered his head to express his gratitude on behalf of his class. Beside him, Melina mirrored his gesture by bowing sharply. "Thank you so much! That will be a great help!"

    "All right then¡­follow me." Brent then led us to another convoy, where a second hovercraft was being prepped for travel. "That''s your ride, kids!"

    He then turned back to me and clapped a hand on my shoulder.

    "I''ll be leaving them to you then, Richard. Take good care of them."

    "Uh, I''ll do my best." Somehow I wasn''t sure that was a good idea, but since I was used to dealing with kids, especially back in my previous life, I theoretically should be able to handle the responsibility.

    "Once we''re done with Anastasia, the bulk of the Silver Wolves will return to Aurora City. We''re still under contract to provide security for the tournament, and for the high school students participating in it."

    I nodded. That made sense. Watching Brent leave, I then glanced at the hovercraft and cracked my neck to the side, loosening my stiff muscles. I was finally returning to Aurora City, huh? It had been a few days. I wondered how the rest of my team was going. First, I needed to drop the kids off at wherever they were supposed to be, before I rejoined my friends.

    "That reminds me." I turned to the middle school students. "What were you guys heading to Aurora City, anyway? I thought you enrolled in a school in Southampton City. Are you on a field trip or something?"

    "Sort of, but the reason why we are going to Aurora City¡­" Adrian grinned, excited. "¡­is to watch firsthand the national tournament qualifiers for the Federation High Schools!"

 363 Chapter 363: The Fourth Stage

    "Richie! You made it! Just in time!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu almost barreled into me, grabbing my shoulders excitedly. Behind him, the rest of my team approached, looking equal parts relieved and equal parts pleased. I nodded at them in greeting.

    "Sorry, guys. What''s up? How goes the qualifiers?"

    Harrison actually grimaced as he closed the distance. Rubbing at his cheek, he sighed heavily and tried to weigh his response. Eventually, he decided on telling me the truth.

    "Well, to be honest¡­not good, actually."

    "Sorry, it''s my fault." Cody Crosby looked ashamed of himself, raising an apologetic hand and hanging his head. "I lost the third stage."

    "I also screwed up the second stage," Theodore Hammond added sheepishly and placed a comforting hand on Cody''s shoulder. "It''s not just your fault. I wasn''t able to get as many points as I should." He turned to Craig Carlson and lowered his head. "Sorry¡­the both of us ended up wasting your efforts in the first round."

    "Stop that." Craig waved his apology away. "This is a team sport, not an individual effort. There''s no point blaming other people. We go up together, or we go down together."

    "That''s right," Harrison Reed agreed. "Right now, we should focus on thinking about how to gain the necessary points to not get eliminated from the qualifiers."

    "Okay, I''m going to need you guys to bring me up to speed on what happened in the past three qualifiers." I was trying my best to conceal my confusion, without much success. Suppressing my frustration at not being able to be present during the first three stages, I took a deep breath and made my request. "Could you start from the beginning?"

    "Right." Dong Fang Yue Chu conjured a holographic screen and quickly explained everything to me, tracing what seemed like charts and replaying a few videos here and there.

    Apparently the qualifiers were, just as the tournament staff said, free-for-all matches where all of the representatives were pitted against each other in a bloodthirsty battle for the ultimate prize ¨C survival. Okay, maybe that was exaggerating too much, but basically there were not much in the way of restrictions other than you couldn''t kill your opponent, and obviously attacks with malicious intent and actions that went against the spirit of the tournament (torture, bullying, etc.) were not allowed. Otherwise you could attack anyone and everyone.

    Of course, alliances were allowed and encouraged, especially since the last ten got the most points out of the entire group. Consequently, most alliances centered on ten-men teams. But there were many who chose to operate independently, or chose instead to work in smaller teams, such as trios or quartets. After all, a huge team would draw a lot of attention and was basically a massive walking target or firemagnet. No sane participant in their right mind would leave such a powerful alliance alone, and there were instances of several teams temporarily setting aside their differences and combing forces to take out one of the top tiered ten-man teams.

    Even the most skilled students couldn''t win against overwhelming numbers. There were more than a few occasions where such large teams succumbed to the weight of numbers, despite their enemies supposedly being less skilled. Even so, the difference between our skill levels were not that far, considering that each school sent their best and brightest, so there wouldn''t be one Mary Sue figure who dominated the entire tournament like those you saw in manga, light novels and web novels, where a single solitary figure could literally defeat a thousand enemies on his own.

    "Sorry¡­I thought I could maximize my skills if I worked alone and strike from the shadows, but it turned out to be a bit too difficult for me." Cody scratched his head and looked apologetic. "Instead, my hubris was what caused me to be eliminated early on. I was barely able to earn any points for our team. This is my fault."

    "I also got eliminated midway, without earning many points." Theodore squared his shoulders. "This qualifier is pretty difficult."

    As it turned out, Craig was the only one among the three of them who managed to get into the top ten and secure us the extra ten points. However, adding the middling amount that Theodore secured, and the admittedly abssymal number of points Cody scraped in the third stage, our Jing Tian Academy team was rooted near the lower middle. Not exactly a poor position, considering our performance last year, but not enough to allow us to qualify for the next round.

    We were far from reaching the tally of the top twelve teams. Even so, the number of points that each team had earned were much closer than I imagined. Scanning through the tallies, I estimated that a single excellent performance or two would be more than enough to propel us all the way to the top.

    The problem, of course, was to actually perform well on stage.

    "All right, I get the gist of things. So basically we have to secure two top-ten finishes in the last two stages to ensure that we make it past the qualifiers."

    "That''s correct," Harrison affirmed with a sigh. "I know it''s a long shot, but¡­I still want to do my best."

    "We all do!" Pearl Pang argued hotly. "We came this far, there''s no way we''ll give up now!"

    "We''ll fight to the bitter end!" Lily Liam agreed, throwing a fist into the air. She turned to me. "We''ve discussed earlier, before your return, and come to a consensus that you might stand the best chance out of all of us to get into the top ten for the fourth stage."

    "Yeah!" Sheila Scarlet added with an encouraging smile. "We''ll be counting on you for the next stage."

    "Don''t feel too pressurized to do this, though," Harrison warned. "I understand that it''s unfair to place so heavy a burden on a single person ¨C you. To be honest, it''s also not guaranteed that we''ll make it past the qualifiers even if you managed to get into the top ten of your stage. There''s still the team captain stage that we have to deal with. Even if you succeed, the moment I fail, there''s still a very high chance that we would crash out of the qualifiers."

    "Come on, Harrison!" Craig slapped his back. "Don''t look down on yourself too much! You''ll definitely score well!"

    "You should believe in yourself more," Pearl said quietly but firmly. Harrison smiled briefly at that and slapped both of his cheeks, almost as if to wake himself up.

    "Well, yeah. We won''t get anywhere by being pessimistic and giving up. As you girls said, we''ll fight all the way to the very end!"

    "That''s right. One thing at a time." I nodded determinedly. "There''s no point talking about the last and final team captain match if I don''t achieve the target number of points necessary for us to qualify for the elimination rounds."

    Taking a deep breath, I placed my hand on Harrison''s shoulder and offered him an encouraging smile.

    "Earlier, you said that it''s unfair to place a heavy burden on one person. I should say that too. Even though you''re the team captain, that doesn''t mean you should shoulder everything by yourself. Allow us to carry some of the weight with you. That''s what teammates are for. Just like everyone mentioned earlier, this is not an individual effort but a team one. I will do my part, you will do your part, and whatever happens, happens. The most important thing isn''t that we win and make it to the elimination rounds, but that we all did our best and fought all the way to the end ¨C as a team. And that we have no regrets at all."

    "You are right." Harrison returned my smile and clasped my wrist in a brotherly manner. "I shouldn''t be faltering here. Thanks for reminding me of my duty."

    He then turned away to face the rest of the team, swelling in confidence with each passing second. Not because he was really confident, but because he acknowledged the necessity of putting on an impressive front of resolve to his teammates and inspiring them with self-belief.

    "We will not give up here! Let''s do our best for the next two rounds!" he paused and glanced at the hotel lobby, then came to another decision. "Strategy meeting in my room. Let''s go now!"

    Buoyed up in mood, despite the somber results we had gained so far, we headed to the lift in slightly higher spirits. Still, I could sense some sort of urgency in Harrison''s steps. It was no wonder. The next match was tomorrow. We didn''t have a lot of time.

    The hotel rooms assigned to us were fairly large. While we were given individual rooms (because the parents committee were worried about boys and girls rooming together, which would result in¡­um, well, unexpected pregnancies sometimes¡­or so they say, anyway), it wasn''t practical for the hotel to reserve the luxurious suites for so many of us. So despite the relatively big size of the hotel room, it still felt cramped with the ten of us all packed tightly into the confines.

    Not that anyone complained. We were all used to it by now. Each of us took up a corner in the room, grabbing a chair, sitting on a low wardrobe, or sprawling on the huge bed that Harrison usually slept in for the duration of the qualifiers. The three girls, in particular, claimed the bed for themselves, so Harrison merely sat on the chair near the dresser and placed his smartphone on the desk to beam a holographic screen right into the middle of the room. The remaining guys had to find their own corners, with Bu Fan grabbing the only other chair in the room and settling into it.

    Craig leaned next to the television, Dong Fang Yue Chu and I sat on the low wardrobe usually meant for shoes, and Theodore plopped down in the space between the bed and the two chairs, nestling on the carpet. Cody withdrew to a corner, near the bathroom, and I glanced at him worriedly. I hoped the Assasin wannabe wasn''t feeling guilty over his performance during the qualifier stage, and his decision to go solo.

    "Okay, so what do we know about tomorrow''s stage?" Harrrison asked. Everyone stared at him blankly.

    "Nothing. They haven''t told us anything yet. They usually leave it until the last moment." Dong Fang Yue Chu sounded like he was reminding our team captain of what happened in the previous stages. That was good to know, but¡­

    "By the way, where were the last three stages held again?" I asked, raising a hand. Once again, I cursed my luck for not allowing me to be here when my teammates were busily doing their best in the tournament. I mean, it was great that we managed to save Anastasia, but¡­her Woeful Poison Body couldn''t have chosen a worse time to erupt.

    "The first stage was held in an industrial district, a place filled with warehouses and factories." Craig leaned back against the shelf where the television was propped up. I said television, but it was nothing more than a blank transparent screen that would usually light up as a holographic display whenever people wanted to watch a movie or something. Technology had advanced pretty far a thousand years later¡­well, not as far as I thought it would, but you get what I mean. Craig smiled as he carefully angled his body so as not to collide with the seemingly fragile screen. "It was a perfect place for me to carry out hit-and-run attacks."

    "The second stage was located inside a gigantic mall ¨C Aurora Mall." Theodore shrugged. "Or a replica of it. I don''t think they''ll close down a whole mall and disrupt local businesses for a single day just for a tournament. It was pretty confined, and there wasn''t a lot of places to hide. Melee battles erupted everywhere, and I got taken out midway through because¡­well, there wasn''t anywhere for me to go, so I ended up encountering opponents after opponents, and the team I was allied to ended up being worn down eventually."

    Apparently Theodore had joined an alliance with nine other representatives, and because of the size of their team, they ended up drawing a lot of attention. As I said earlier, big teams tended to be a juicy target for the other representatives who chose to operate in smaller teams.

    "The third stage took place in Aurora Park," Cody informed me sullenly. "There''s a huge cluster of trees there, so I thought I could hide in the shadows and silently eliminate the other representatives one by one. However, I didn''t expect to be caught by a wood mage so soon. She used the terrain to her advantage and eliminated me very early on."

    Ouch. I winced at that. I understood how frustrating it must be for Cody, to get taken out almost effortlessly by someone who had the environmental advantage, way before he could display his abilities. This was basically terrible luck, and not a true reflection of his skills.

    "Do you think we''ll be able to narrow down the possible locations for the fourth stage from there?" Bu Fan asked, folding his arms. Harrison scratched his head and grimaced.

    "It would be difficult¡­but do you have any idea?"

    "Um¡­well¡­" Bu Fan thought for a while, and then shrugged. "It''ll be in Aurora City, I guess?"

    That wasn''t very helpful. We already knew that all five stages would be held within Aurora City. The question was which part of Aurora City exactly.

    "Well, we''ll have to discuss potential strategies then. For now, Richard, you might want to watch the replays while we brainstorm."

    "Good idea." Having missed out on watching the first three stages firsthand, I might as well watch the video analysis and commentary. Perhaps I might even learn more from this.

    Before I knew it, evening had come, and we still hadn''t managed to iron out a proper strategy despite me having watched all three replays. However, right before Harrison could come to a decision, his smartphone buzzed. Blinking, he pulled a tiny holographic screen toward himself and flicked it open. It wasn''t just him ¨C all of us received notifications at the same time, our smartphones informing us that we had just received an email.

    "Looks like the stage for the fourth match has been decided," Harrison declared as he glanced up at the rest of us, his eyes hard. "It''s the docks."

 364 Chapter 364: Docked

    I glanced around at the other representatives who had gathered in the docks that was specified in the email. All of us had gathered here today for the fourth stage of the second qualifying round, and there was a mix of excitement, anxiety, glee, triumph and fear among the students milling about. Already I saw some people approaching each other to form alliances and scheme with each other to pick out specific targets.

    There were a few who glanced in my direction and I knew that they were intending to eliminate me as soon as possible. If this was the typical web novel, their reasoning would be the clich¨¦ stupid "because he is trash", which made absolutely no sense when you thought about it. If I was truly trash, then they wouldn''t waste time trying to get rid of me, and instead focus on the more dangerous opponents who actually posed a sizeable threat to their title challenge.

    Nope, they were targeting me because they were highly aware of how dangerous I could be, with my summoning ability. Most of them had witnessed firsthand how I arrived in the Olympus City Hall atop the back of a dragon (Draco). Combine that with my reputation, they knew that they had to eliminate me before I could summon my big guns¡­or I would essentially dominate the stage. Well, not dominate as one-sidedly as you would imagine ¨C there was still the chance that all the other representatives would gang up on me had overwhelm my strongest Constellation spirits and Celestial Guardians with sheer numbers. No matter how powerful I was, there was no way my individual pool of mana could compare to the combined mana total of almost fifty other students''.

    Fortunately, ever since the location was revealed last night, I had ¨C along with Harrison and the rest of my team ¨C come up with what I hoped was a decent plan.

    Glancing at the environment, I took note of what I could use to my advantage. The docks, as we called them, was a collection of piers and jetties built upon the Arctic shore. Despite the perpetual cold, the sea wasn''t completely frozen because saltwater had a lower freezing point than pure water (about negative four degrees Celsius as opposed to zero degress Celsius). Even if the sea was frozen, it was still traversable. Usually, only the surface of the sea was frozen, so the shipping companies used a special type of ships called Icebreakers to plow through the icy surface. Using hulls that were strengthened both magically and technologically, they could shatter even the thickest of ice and sail through the frozen seas that embraced Aurora City''s snowy shores.

    The setting for today''s stage was the entire dock area, which included the warehouses where the goods shipped by sea were stored before being delivered via transport to their respective destinations. There was a small shipyard where shipwrights and technicians could effect minor repairs and refittings for damaged and battered ships, either through technological or arcane means. That would make for a decent battleground. Then there were the various piers, where ships were anchored, slightly bobbing in the gentle waves, or held extremely still because their keels had been frozen in place by the icy sea.

    In other words, plenty of hiding places. This would have benefited Cody more if he wanted to subscribe to his usual stealth and assassin techniques, hiding in the shadows, only to lunge out and catch an unsuspecting prey by surprise.

    "The rules are simple," the tournament staff was informing us. "Don''t leave the stipulated area, no killing allowed, no action with malicious intent allowed either. Those who are knocked unconscious will be automatically eliminated."

    If you were wondering how they would know when someone was knocked unconscious, well¡­I could explain that with one word. Magic. Almost like a virtual reality simulation, the moment someone lost consciousness, he or she would be automatically teleported out of here.

    Consulting the holographic map that had been emailed to me via my smartphone, I took note of the stipulated area and smiled when I remembered that it included a large swathe of the sea. In other words, as long as I was within the boundary, I could take cover under the sea if I had to. That made things a lot easier.

    My friends had laughed when I suggested the idea yesterday.

    "You''re kidding, right?" Craig had asked. I had shaken my head.

    "Nope. I''m dead serious. I should be able to make use of the underwater environment to my advantage."

    Dong Fang Yue Chu had guffawed as well, but for different reasons.

    "That''s a crazy plan, but I like it! I can''t wait to see what the expressions of the other representatives will be like when they find out you''ve been hiding underwater all this time!"

    "Yeah."

    "Hmm¡­" Harrison had pondered on my suggestion, having taken it more seriously than the others. "That sounds like a good plan. Remember, there are two ways to gain points. One is by eliminating others ¨C you earn a number of points for each person you defeat. The second is the order in which you remain ¨C meaning, the longer you survive, the more points you gained. As you recall, the last 10 remaining gain an extra 10 points each."

    Of course, the only way to end up being the last 10 was to eliminate others, so we couldn''t just hide and avoid conflict totally. In fact, the amount of points we received from defeating other participants were significant, to the point that it was possible to score more points than the last ten survivors, provided you took out a lot more opponents than they did, and they didn''t actually actively participate in combat. Of course, that was unlikely, considering how greedy everyone was for points, and only the teans with the top twelve tallies would qualify for the knock-out stages. There was too much at stake to play safely and passively.

    "It''s just for as long as until I can summon my Constellation spirits or Celestial Guardians," I had assured my friends, who looked unconvinced.

    "We''ll trust you." To everyone''e surprise, it was Pearl. She nodded fiercely. "We are the ones who asked you to do this¡­to represent us for this stage. We are the ones who said that we will be counting on you. We will believe in whatever strategy you have come up with."

    I had smiled, relieved. Now that I had gotten their approval, I could begin to employ my strategy. I called it¡­Operation Seasick. I was going hide in the sea until everyone got sick of looking for me. Just when they thought they were safe, I would emerge from the frozen waves with my chosen Constellation spirit ¨C serving as a stand-in for the ubiquitous sea monster ¨C and strike fear into their hearts. Or to be more precise, strike that sickening feeling in their hearts where they regretted not having dove into the sea to search for me.

    Truthfully, it was going to be difficult for them to look for me in the sea, not unless they were ice mages. Even I wasn''t very confident that I would be able to pull this off if I hadn''t done that last-minute training and learned ice magic next to that Thousand-year-old Ice Essence in the Den of Dragons last week or so. Ever since that fateful event, I had spent a good portion of my waking moments trying to hone my ice magic, even when I was participating in the mission to rescue Anastasia. Okay, it was difficult to practice ice magic in the wilderness, but I managed to squeeze a couple of hours of revision during my breaks, when I wasn''t on shift.

    Even when I was accompanying Redfield to search for Ana in the forest, I was occasionally casting ice magic so as to commit them to muscle memory or something similar. In this case, I guess it would be spiritual memory?

    "If there are no other questions," the tournament staff declared, his stern tone dragging me back to the present. "Then we shall begin. You can all disperse and take up your positions."

    "!!"

    Almost as if by the snap of his fingers, all the representatives disappeared. We were completely invisible to each other. This was the segment of the match where we were essentially given a brief period of protection, so that the match wouldn''t immediately erupt into a violent free-for-all right from the start. This "grace period" was meant for us to take up whatever positions we thought were advantageous, and allowed us to begin employing whatever strategies we came up with the night before. If we happened to materialize right next to each other, we could either begin small skirmishes ¨C which would attract other students to our location ¨C or we could quietly strike alliances. Most people would do the latter because, well, if you guys chose the same position to start off with, chances were you probably thought alike and would work well together.

    Of course, there were those predetermined alliances ¨C people who had already discussed and formed alliances before the match ¨C who had already agreed on their meeting places beforehand. If they didn''t suspect it to be a trap, they would proceed to that meeting place so that they could start off as a team as soon as possible.

    There were cases where the proposals of such alliances were traps, and the mastermind would seize the chance to eliminate his or her would-be partners immediately, once the stage officially began. Thankfully, such cases were rare, because it usually meant that the school the representative belonged to would be blacklisted and singled out for retaliation, especially in the later stages. Nobody would trust the school and form alliances with them again, not just for this year''s tournament but for future ones as well. Such shallow victories for a single stage just weren''t worth it.

    I had an inkling that most of the students would hide themselves aboard ships and the like, seeking refuge within those immense vessels and looking for an opportunity to strike. Unfortunately, as I said earlier, passive play was not encouraged, so the majority of them wouldn''t bother to hide and wait, or they would risk losing out on points, especially if nobody passed by the ships they were concealed in. Furthermore, there was the destructible environments rule. I wasn''t sure how they did it, but this was just a replica of the real Aurora Docks, which were still operating normally in real-time. This wasn''t virtual reality, but an alternative space created through magic. Though the rule said no killing, the truth was that no one was going to die in the space (which was why we were not allowed to leave the stipulated site) because of the boundary fields set up to ensure that no one would die from an unfortunate accident.

    With that in mind, the destructible environments rule allowed participants to¡­well, destroy the environment. So we could blow up ships, demolish the warehouses and destroy the jetties. Pretty fun stuff ¨C I bet this was what DICE wanted to do with Battlefield 4 but couldn''t quite accomplish. Too bad, I guess.

    Glancing at the timer, I saw that the countdown had begun. It was best to quickly move before the grace period was over. I jogged toward the beach, took a deep breath, and then stepped atop the ice. The surface of the sea had totally frozen over from the sub-zero temperatures, and despite my winter gear I still couldn''t help but shiver from the cold. Mastering ice magic didn''t make me immune to the cold, just more resistant to it.

    Glancing around, I saw that there was no hole where I could dive through, no liquid portion for me to plunge under. I didn''t want to break a hole through the ice in such an obvious, visible place out in the open. While it was unlikely that anyone would glance in the direction of the frozen sea and study it in great detail, I wasn''t going to take any chances. A hole in the ice would be an immediate giveaway that someone had tampered with the ice and decided to take a dive. After all, water mages could survive underwater for a long time, without needing to come up for air. I was not a true water mage, but the basic water spells I had learned were more than enough to help me breathe underwater longer than a regular person.

    So instead, I went under one of the jetties, where I was completely obscured from the view of anyone on the surface. Taking a deep breath, I drew my sword and cut a hole through the ice, prying it loose as quietly as possible. Closing my eyes, I steeled myself before I reluctantly lowered myself into the ice-cold sea below the ice.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    My body instantly locked up, my teeth chattering violently as I shivered from the intense cold. Despite my protective mana keeping me relatively dry, I still wasn''t able to keep the cold from totally seeping past my magical defenses. I could, of course, increase the amount of mana I was infusing my protective aura with, but that ran the risk of not only exhausting myself and depleting my mana reserves at an unsustainable rate, but also rendering me much easier to detect. I had to lower my mana emanation to the absolute minimum if I wanted to escape any form of detection. And given the skills of the participants in the area, I wasn''t sure if that was even realistic. However, more than escaping detection, I was concerned with preserving as much mana as possible. Mana conservation was my goal, not stealth. I was never good at stealth, and I wasn''t even going to try.

    Moreover, I would be inevitably emitting mana as I cast my powerful summoning spells. No matter what the spell, it cost mana, and thus there was no way to contain the mana emission when I cast it. The upside, fortunately, was that these mana emissions were pretty vague and difficult to pinpoint, and also that there would be almost fifty other students casting their own spells at the same time. With so many mana flares and signatures all over the docks, mine would just be another ripple in a huge lake. Even if they noticed my mana emissions, those would be swamped up by countless other emissions, and by the time they eliminated enough of each other to notice that something was not quite right, and the emanations were coming from a weird direction, it would be too late. I would already be able to summon something spectacular.

    I controlled my breathing underwater and stabilized myself while floating almost helplessly in the freezing waters, and waited for the stage to begin.

 365 Chapter 365: It came from 20,000 Leagues

    When the stage began, all of us received a notification through our smartphones (good thing mine was waterproof, but even if it wasn''t I had it enveloped in a protective field of my magical aura) right before the invisibility cloak wore off. I felt a tingle, and sensed that the cloaking spell had been lifted. Not that it made any difference for me.

    There was no one else hiding in the sea with me. Smiling to myself, I began casting my summoning spells.

    Above, battles erupted sporadically as teams or individuals encountered each other. Alliances were forged or broken, and pitted against one another. Unlike normal webnovels, they couldn''t be bothered to single out a specific target and focus all of their energies into hunting him. I mean, they had better things to do with their time, and more imminent threats to deal with, rather than look for someone they couldn''t find at the moment.

    I mean, seriously, it wasn''t as if they held a deep grudge against me. They recognized me as one of the bigger threats, true, but that didn''t mean they would go out of their way to search for me and eliminate me, like all those caricature villains did in xianxia stories. In reality, most people had more important matters to deal with, and they couldn''t invest too much time and resources into prioritizing the elimination of someone they regarded as "trash" or insignificant, not when there were so many other strong participants competing against them.

    So I didn''t have to worry about that. Additionally, I did not know any of the other participants personally, so I could hardly think of why they would hold a grudge against him. Perhaps¡­perhaps if this was a typical Chinese webnovel, I would have offended some arrogant young master who was swaggering into the qualifying stage, either bullying other people or sexually harassing the female participants, by stepping in and stopping him (bonus points if I slapped him in the face for his behavior). Sometimes the arrogant young master has relations with an insider on the tournament staff, and requested for help to cheat, resorting to despicable means to eliminate the protagonist at all costs for no reason other than a stupid grudge, even if it meant risking being exposed for cheating and getting disqualified. But this was reality, and no such nonsense transpired.

    The water around me gently churned as my mana accumulated inside me, tiny bubbles drifting away leisurely as they formed from the increase in magical energy within the vicinity. Since I was given such time and opportunity, I was going straight to one of my Celestial Guardians, but I thought I might as well stay underwater a bit longer and summon a few other Constellation spirits as well.

    The docks were a great place to test out my new summoning spells and their improved abilities. And I intended to unleash them in full.

    *

    Above ground, Ding Ke Po was running around, trying to avoid blazing fireballs, sharp icicles and jagged lightning. The docks had erupted in a furious melee as students from the fifty or so different academies engaged each other in combat. Some were laying low, hiding out until the conflict was over and tried to reap the rewards while everyone was exhausted or wounded, but the majority didn''t bother with such tactics. After all, it wasn''t worth waiting until the end, and taking out opponents net them more points than surviving until the end.

    The last ten surviving people would get forty points, for example, plus the ten bonus points for being the final participants remaining ¨C so a total of fifty points. But everyone received ten points per "kill." In other words, a person who eliminated ten other students would get a hundred points. High risk, high rewards against low risk, relatively low rewards ¨C of course, fifty points were nothing to scoff at, but you ran the risk of being taken out by surprise before there were ten left, and thus you gained very little points in the end. It was a very risky gamble.

    By the way, the first person to get eliminated would receive one point, the second person to get eliminated would receive two points, and so on and so forth until the fortieth person, who would receive forty points. The last ten would therefore receive forty points each, plus the bonus points, for a total of fifty base, because that was when the stage ended.

    "Huff¡­"

    Ding Ke Po wasn''t the team captain ¨C he was just a show-off who was nominated for the fourth stage by his team in Divine Divination Academy because¡­well, they had no choice. At this rate, they wouldn''t get enough points to qualify for the next round. Ding Ke Po was the least bad option in their current roster.

    Not that Ding Ke Po himself had any faith in his own abilities. While the Divine Divination Academy was famous for their ability to predict the future and they specialized in Feng Shui, the sad truth was that they were fairly bad in combat. Ding Ke Po himself was not adept in fighting, which was why he was running instead of resisting.

    Throwing himself into one of the ships to take cover from a volley of fireballs that arced across the air and smashed down on a wooden pier, incinerating the broken splinters into blackened ash. Rolling across the deck, he then dove into the bridge as a bunch of icicles thudded against the metal. The casters weren''t paying too much attention to an insignificant threat like him, though. They were focusing their attention on other opponents.

    A small slice of luck.

    "Damn it," Ding Ke Po grunted, frustrated. He hastily cast a small astrological screen ¨C a spirit circle that possessed hovering esoteric runes that manifested in strange patterns. Those who could decipher the patterns would be those capable of predicting multiple trajectories of the future and could thus act accordingly.

    Of course, the future was never set in stone, and diviners such as him often saw more than one possible routes ahead of the present. The difficulty lay in trying to identify which of these routes was the most likely to occur. Divination was never certain, often muddled in ambiguous temporal tides that obscured their inner sight. Time was not a singular, linear existence, but rather multiple strands of possibilities tightly woven together. Even a single minor action was enough to throw the entire path off into an entirely new branch.

    Attempting to predict the future under battle conditions and combat stress was not very advisable, but since this was the only thing Ding Ke Po could do, he had little choice. Sighing, he glanced up at the broken window and saw a volley of spears hurtling toward a cluster of mages, who conjured a shimmering barrier to deflect the lethal projectiles. Seeing the small group of mages who had banded together temporarily to form a formidable alliance, Ding Ke Po couldn''t help but clench his fists.

    "If only I was able to ally with somebody¡­" he muttered under his breath. It couldn''t be helped. Most people didn''t take divination mages seriously, especially in a match like this. With very little combat ability, there was little that he could offer them. normally, fortune telling would usually only be useful before the battle, where he could predict what the enemy would do in advance and thus allowed his teammates to set up traps and ambushes at possible routes of advance or paths that the opponents would take. They were extremely useful in a support role, but they were pretty much dead weight in the middle of battle when the future came to pass, and the mages were all already embroiled in furious combat, too busy to listen to predictions and speculations. Additionally, everyone knew how fickle fate was, and how the divination mages'' predictions were not always 100% accurate. There was no such thing as certainty when it came to forecasting the future, after all.

    That was in part the reason why Ding Ke Po''s Divine Divination Academy fared so badly in the qualifiers. While they could easily make use of their divination abilities to avoid danger, monsters and bad weather, and plot the safest route possible through Aurora Forest during the first part of the qualifiers, those fortune-telling skills weren''t as helpful now that they were in the thick of actual battle. Especially since they were not allowed to use their divination spells before the stage or matches started, out of fairness. I mean, if they could predict the types of matches, the venue of the matches, and the movements of all their opponents beforehand, and make their preparations, they would have an overwhelming advantage ¨C thus, just like every other spell such as summoning magic or ultimate spells, they were obviously not allowed to cast divination spells before the match. This ended up gimping them quite a bit.

    While they couldn''t directly cast divination spells to predict the matches or their opponents directly, they could do other stuff with their fortune telling spells. So, avoiding anything to do with the tournament, they cast a different type of divination spell to measure luck or success, and calculated that Ding Ke Po would be the one with the highest odds of success for this particular qualifying round. However, that was the limit of what they could do ¨C any more direct, and they would be breaking the rules and would end up being disqualified for casting spells for the match before the match. So all they knew was that Ding Ke Po would have the highest probability of making it past the qualifiers. The issue, of course, is that the forecast was still pretty bleak. Just because he had the highest chances didn''t mean the chances were actually high. 2 percent of winning was still higher than 1 percent, especially if that was the scores for everyone else''s. Even so, the other members of Divine Divination Academy decided to stake everything on him.

    "We have nothing to lose," the captain told him with a shrug.

    And thus he was here, cowering in fear from the aggressive and powerful spells from all the other participants. Cursing his breath and wondering if he would eventually be ignominiously eliminated without even knowing what hit him, Ding Ke Po continued to trace the astrological circle with his finger and muttered incantatons under his breath. He could see several paths open to him, none of which looked promising. Stay here, and he would eventually be eliminated when a powerful spell destroyed the ship he was taking shelter on. Leave his refuge and he would be taken out by a stray shot. No matter what action he took, it seemed that he was doomed for failure¡­

    ¡­until he saw a single narrow strand of time that offered him a tiny hope of salvaging his situation and preserving some dignity. His face fell when he saw it, but he steeled his resolve, realizing that he had little choice.

    "Time to convince him to ally with him," he muttered. Then the ship he was on rocked, a massive fireball disintegrating a huge part of the ship. Rolling away from burning metal and blazing debris, Ding Ke Po coughed and gagged on the smoke as he ran off, swearing at himself for jumping ship a second too late.

    "!!!"

    As he did so, landing clumsily on the pier that was next to the docked ship, he realized that a barrage of earth spikes was raining down upon his position. There was no way he would be able to evade those in time¡­

    Splash!

    At that moment, a colossal tidal wave swept up, inadvertently washing away the bombardment of earth spikes in its fury. The small tsunami poured dowh on the mages in the shore, and while most of them were skilled enough to withdraw and leap out of the way, there was still a good number who was caught by the wave, which immediately froze once it touched the ground.

    In just a few instances, a dozen or so mages were frozen solid, encased totally in ice. They weren''t knocked out or eliminated yet, judging from their mana signatures that flared up viciously as they sought to break free of their ice. Even so, it would be quite the strenuous endeavor that consumed a huge chunk of their mana.

    But they still broke free.

    Everyone spun around and stared in my direction as I emerged from the waves, standing atop Cetus''s head. The gigantic whale almost flailed about, leaving a massive trail of frozen ice in his wake, and encasing the imprisoned dudes once again.

    Having been forewarned and sort of predicting my entrance, Ding Ke Po was able to seek shelter somehow. Just before the wave hit, he had jumped into another ship, seeking refuge inside one of the cabins. Once Cetus was done with his second spell, he slowly poked his head out of the frozen cabin, breaking a small hole in the wall of ice that coated the door. He watched me, stunned, but not as stupefied as everyone else in the docks, almost all of whom were staring at me with their mouths hanging wide open.

    "Hey, everybody," I greeted them with a wave of my hand. "I was hoping that I would make a big splash with my entrance¡­did I succeed?"

 366 Chapter 366: Winter Wins

    After a second or two, they snapped out of their stupor. One of them recovered enough to yell out an order.

    "Attack him!"

    Yeah, "attack" me. Not "kill" me. Honestly, if you think my opponents would try and kill me in a bloody tournament, you really have been reading way too many Chinese xianxia stories. Seriously, if I had a cent every time an antagonist screamed "kill him!" in a xianxia story whenever they saw the protagonist, I would be a billionaire by now.

    Anyway, I could only watch as a volley of fireballs, icicles, earth spikes, razor leaves, wind blades, lightning, holy beams, and a myriad of other elemental offensive spells shrieked toward me, almost like an artillery battalion firing in unison. Calmly watching the bombardment, I raised a single hand without bothering to unsheathe my swords. Instead, I called upon the services of another Soul Beast.

    "Black Tortoise, over to you."

    The huge black Celestial Guardian lumbered out of the sea and onto the frozen surface, plopping himself down even as he finished the rest of his spell. A watery sphere engulfed all three of us ¨C Cetus, Black Tortoise and myself ¨C and shimmered brightly. The elemental projectiles from almost thirty students (by now, quite a few had been eliminated and there were about a dozen frozen because of Cetus''s spells) collided against the glowing fluid barrier before detonating forcefully.

    "Hey! Richard Huang, right?!"

    I glanced down at the voice. For some reason, there was a guy standing on the deck of a frozen ship, waving his hands frantically. I had the impression that he would be jumping up and down wildly, were it not for the slippery icy surface that coated the metal floor. Noting the spiky hair and glasses, I recalled his name¡­Ding Ke Po, was it? The guy from the Divine Divination Academy, who was showing off his knowledge or something.

    "Wait!" he shouted, as if afraid that I would attack him. I was tempted to ¨C after all, we were still in the middle of a competition and I would score points for eliminating as many participants as I could. "I just want to ally with you!"

    I raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh? And why should I ally with you?"

    I knew this could possibly be a trap. I wasn''t that na?ve. Right now, almost all of the remaining participants in this stage were launching their spells at me, not because I was the protagonist or because they held some sort of petty grudge or thought I was "trash", but simply because they recognized me as the single biggest threat right now. Not to mention, my Constellation spirits were literally the biggest target at the moment, their immense sizes almost ten meters across. I had the potential to take out almost everybody in the stage, and they knew it. Therefore there was an implicit, unspoken agreement between them to cooperate to defeat me before they turned on each other again.

    However, now that I thought about it, it was also precisely this impressive display of strength that made it not unusual for someone to seek an alliance with me. After all, if Ding Ke Po could piggyback my Constellation spirits and area of effect spells, he could potentially come out of this alive, and benefit from the entire situation.

    Even so, I wasn''t generous enough to simply ally with some random stranger who could potentially backstab me in the middle of a competition just because I was a nice guy. His life wasn''t at stake here, and he evidently didn''t need to be rescued. There was no reason or benefit for me to accede to his request.

    Ding Ke Po must have anticipated my doubts, for he hurriedly shouted an offer.

    "I can increase your chances of winning! Tremendously!"

    "Oh?" Now that caught my attention. "How?"

    "Uh, can you help me first?"

    Whoops. He had a point. While I was safely protected underneath the water sphere of my Black Tortoise, Ding Ke Po was at the risk of getting hit by the countless elemental projectiles that my opponents were flinging in my direction. I glanced at them, and wanted Cetus to freeze them, but I was aware that leaving the safety of Black Tortoise''s water barrier would expose the azure whale to immense danger.

    "Okay. Get in here!"

    At my command, Ding Ke Po scrambled off the frozen ship and hurled himself in the direction of my Black Tortoise''s water sphere. I muttered an incantation to slightly alter the impermeable screen, and the bespectacled divination mage passed through the watery barrier, unharmed. If I hadn''t adjusted the settings, he would have been washed away by the imprevious wall of water.

    "Thanks." Ding Ke Po crawled to his feet and steadied himself on the ice before pausing next to Black Tortoise. I left him down below, not trusting him enough to allow him a ride on my Cetus. There was no telling what he could do if he had the opportunity to get close to me.

    Fortunately, he didn''t complain. Instead, he observed me for a moment, and then conjured an astrological circle with arcane symbols and weird, flickering patterns.

    "Give me a minute," he instructed without looking up, his attention completely focused on the astrological circle before him. I was about to nod when his gaze flickered from his astrological circle to the assailants outside, and then back to me. "Heads up, powerful attack incoming. An ultimate spell that can break through your water barrier."

    "Oh?"

    That was a useful tip. Unbeknownst to me, one of the students had withdrawn from the bombardment, leaving the relentless assault to the other participants while he accumulated enough mana to cast his ultimate spell. He was a holy mage who was crouching at the back and using the time his allies bought him to cast his spell.

    A spear wielder. I noticed enormous volumes of golden mana swirling around his spear, and instinctively sensed danger. I wouldn''t be able to dodge it, not with Black Tortoise''s lack of speed. And Ding Ke Po was correct. The immense amount of mana that shrouded the spear suggested to me that it would be a technique powerful enough to penetrate Black Tortoise''s water sphere.

    "I am the soul of my sword."

    The holy mage chose that moment to hurl his golden spear at me. I watched as the Divine Device transformed into a blinding golden light that streaked across the space between me and the docks, shrieking with angry judgement.

    Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes, raised my right hand and gathered as much azure mana as I could into my palm.

    With a single bang, the holy spear pierced through Black Tortoise''s water sphere instantly, rupturing the barrier and hurtling toward me unimpeded. Opening my eyes I completed the spell with a single incantation.

    "Snow Aegis!"

    The gigantic snowflake shield manifested in front of me, its icy petals unfurling as if blossoming. The entire area around me turned into fog as the temperature plummeted further, but Cetus remained unaffected, being an ice-type Constellation spirit.

    The holy spear slammed into Snow Aegis with a thunderous crack, almost shattering the gigantic shield into frosty fragments. However, Snow Aegis held for now, enduring firmly under the vicious onslaught. The golden spear spun rapidly, almost as if trying to drill through the multiple barriers conjured by Snow Aegis, to no avail.

    "UOOOOH!"

    With a roar, I infused as much mana as I could into my Snow Aegis, weathering the relentless onslaught from the incredible Divine Device. The entire place erupted around me, the icy surface of the sea cracking. Ding Ke Po hastily jumped on top of Black Tortoise, clinging to his black shell for purchase as the thick layer of ice shattered and the sea rushed upward to lap at the Celestial Guardian''s feet. Being a water type Celestial Guardian, Black Tortoise calmly waded through the waters, somehow maintaining his position and floating atop the surface almost lazily.

    Boom!

    The holy spear finally exploded, enveloping in a golden orb of destructive energy.

    "Huff¡­"

    Dropping onto the ground ¨C or the sea, to be more precise, which froze again because of my basic ice spell ¨C in a kneeling position, I dropped my wounded right arm down. It wasn''t that bad, for my Snow Aegis had absorbed most of the explosion before finally shattering, but I was far from unwounded. As expected of an ultimate technique. Raising my head, I glared at the huge number of participants, who were beginning to resume their bombardment when they saw that I was still in the game.

    "Cetus!"

    The azure whale leaped upward and soared high into the air, unleashing another massive wave of freezing energy across the docks, halting the elemental projectiles already unleashed while trapping more of the fleeing students in ice. The majority of them scattered, while the rest tried to break free.

    At the same time, I had the water sphere back on, and began the process of summoning a new Constellation spirit. Which one should I call upon next? Draco? Hydra?

    "I see something," Ding Ke Po spoke up from above. He clambered down from my Black Tortoise and waved excitedly at me, gesturing at his astrological circle. "Your sign of victory is the scorpion! I''m not sure what that means, but¡­that''s what it shows here. Also, apparently you don''t have to worry about death. The shadow of death does not hang over you. Oh, and I see a picture of¡­eternal winter. I''m not sure what that means, but maybe those words may mean something to you?"

    They did, actually. I was impressed. Ding Ke Po couldn''t possibly know about my new ice magic, yet he was able to somewhat predict the effects and inform me of how they were key to victory. I decided to place my faith on him. Glancing up, I saw Cetus slowly getting bogged down by the weight of spells. He had reduced the number of mages by a bit, knocking a few out with massive ice spells, but the rest possessed high magical resistance and were able to break out of their frozen entombment and launch counterattacks.

    Some of them even left the fight against Cetus to their comrades and targeted me with their spells instead. Lightning crashed against Black Tortoise''s water sphere, followed by a hail of icicles, and then a bombardment of earth spikes. The holy mage from before was panting, trying to cast a second ultimate spell, but he was swept aside by Cetus''s icy blizzard. A few of the other mages rushed in frantically to protect him.

    That guy was a big threat. I should keep my eye on him for now.

    "Be careful," Ding Ke Po warned, partially transfixed on his astrological circle. "I see a broken shell and an overturned tortoise. It wouldn''t be a good idea to rely on your Soul Beast''s defensive spell forever. They will break through eventually."

    "Then I''ll have to distract them a bit further." Raising my hand, I had Cancer materialize not far from me. Clattering across the dock, he launched himself at a gaggle of students who were assaulting me ¨C those not distracted by Cetus. Unleashing Altarf, he slammed his gargantuan pincer down on their position, forcing them to scatter. One of the students wasn''t able to evade in time and he went down, unconscious.

    The rest turned to bombard the new Constellation spirit, but Cancer released a stream of rock-hard bubbles (yeah, bubble beam) in their direction, forcing them to evade. A few of them sliced through the bubbles or smashed them with their various weapons, which ranged from swords and spears to hammers and axes. Whatever armament they chose, they were able to easily cleave through Cancer''s bubbles and protect themselves.

    For now, anyway. That was fine. It was never my intention to have Cancer defeat them. That role fell to another Constellation spirit.

    "I see a shadow on the floor. A few of them." while I was orchestrating the battle with Cetus and Cancer, Ding Ke Po issued another warning. He glanced up at me grimly. "I believe that means they will attack you from a place you least expect."

    "That''s helpful," I muttered. While that certainly assisted in causing me to put my guard up, I wished the divination mage could narrow down the methods a little more. However, out in the open, there was only one place that I would least expect¡­

    "!!!"

    I knew it. There were a couple of students coming up from underneath our feet, having dug into the ice some distance away and swam through the icy sea toward our position. That was a brilliant way of circumventing Black Tortoise''s defenses. The two water mages blasted twin geysers of highly pressurized water that pulverized the ice and almost caught me by surprise. And they would have, if Ding Ke Po didn''t warn me about them.

    Wow¡­everyone had been underestimating how useful divination magic could be. Ding Ke Po''s predictions essentially helped me avoid defeat twice in a row. I could feel some sort of affinity with him, having my summoning magic be dismissed as impractical in the past. It seemed that certain types of magic could only shine through the use of teamwork.

    "Get him!"

    The first water mage ¨C a short girl with chin-length blue hair and a short sword ¨C lunged at me. Her companion, a taller girl with long, dark hair and a katana, also flanked me from the other side and lashed out with a deadly slash.

    Drawing both of my swords, I managed to parry the short-haired girl''s short sword before twisting around to deflect the katana from the dark-haired girl. I caught sight of the torrents of water that trailed their blades in a dangerous manner, increasing the force of their strikes. Skidding across the ice, I untangled myself from their concerted assault and hopped back frantically.

    "Whoa, those are really cool sword techniques! What are they? Breath of water?"

    "You''ve been reading too much Kimetsu no Yaiba!" the long-haired girl shouted at me, exasperated. Then she charged at me again, while her shorter companion ducked to the opposite side to execute a pincer attack.

    It would be fitting if I could unleash Cancer on them, but he was currently engaged with three students on the shore. So instead, I summoned a Constellation spirit that was more appropriate for fighting atop the sea.

    "Pisces!"

    Twin sharks materialized underwater and burst through the icy surface to clamp their teeth down on the two water mages. The two of them shrieked as they were pulled under, but being water mages there was no way they would drown.

    Instead, my Pisces rendered them unconscious by chewing through their magical defenses, their countless razor-sharp teeth piercing through their skin. The icy sea turned red as both of the girls bled out underwater, screaming incoherently. They would be teleported out instantly the moment they lost consciousness from massive loss of blood.

    Not that Pisces were going to wait that long. In perfect unison, both sharks tossed the girls through the ice, knocking them out when they crashed through the ice with colossal force. Their bodies slumped atop the cracked ice, slowly sliding back toward the cold waters, but they vanished before they could sink thanks to the boundary field and enchantments.

    "Great." I turned my attention back to the shore, where both Cetus and Cancer were being worn down. Not that it mattered. My trump card was done. "Scorpio, over to you."

    The azure scorpion climbed up from the sea, his stinger raised. Once, he was purple and red in color, to resemble the Death Stinger of legend. Now, because of my improved ice magic, I had altered him significantly and slightly repurposed his current role. After all, it wouldn''t do to nuke the entire place.

    "Antares Zero," I ordered. I could sense Scorpio smiling mentally, and then he unleashed the azure orb of mana that he had been accumulating at his stinger for the last five minutes or so. As the torrent of freezing energy streaked toward the shore, I immediately dismissed both Cetus and Cancer, who were pretty wounded by now. The other students glanced up, taken by surprise by their abrupt disappearance.

    They never got to find out what had happened. Antares Zero struck the center of the stage and exploded.

    Within seconds, the entire docks turned to ice.

 367 Chapter 367: Whatâ€™s the point?

    After the¡­well, nuclear winter, the stage was effectively over. Other than Ding Ke Po and me, there were about eight others remaining ¨C the pretty skilled and powerful dudes who could survive Antares Zero.

    There wasn''t much else to say, seriously.

    Striding through the frozen docks, I glanced around at the poor participants, almost all of whom were locked in ice. Cocking my head to the side, I sighed.

    \"I won''t lie to you about your chances,\" I told them, and then smiled coldly. \"But you have my sympathies.\"

    With that, the stage ended after the eleventh remaining guy was taken out by one of the other eight guys, and we were all forcibly warped back to the Aurora City Hall right after that. Yay! I think.

    \"Richard! You did it!\"

    Thanks to being teleported right in front of my team, I found myself swarmed by them, buried under hugs and embraces.

    \"You maniac! You suicidal maniac! You actually did it!\"

    \"That was awesome!\"

    \"A few hundred points! A few hundred! This will propel us up to the top twelve, for sure!\"

    \"All we need is for Harrison to gain a decent amount of points and we''re in! We''ll make it to the knock-out stages!\"

    I tried to free myself because it felt so suffocating, and truth be told, I was pretty exhausted from the earlier battles. Summoning so many high-level Constellation spirits (well, they might not be \"many\" but they were pretty high-level, so even a handful of them counted as quite a lot when we looked at it in terms of mana expenditure) and casting so many advanced spells had drained me of so much mana that I was on the verge of collapse.

    Particularly that last Antares Zero spell from Scorpio ¨C that was no mean spell. Being an advanced spell that took about three minutes or more, it took out a chunk of my rapidly dwindling mana. Fortunately, it was not as much as the normal Antares, which would probably nuke half the city (and the entire docks) ¨C but the reason why I didn''t just cast Antares was because of the rules. No killing, remember? If I unleashed a Strategic-scale spell, not only would it destroy the boundary fields that protected us from death, I would end up murdering the other participants. Never mind disqualification, I would be arrested and sentenced to jail for that.

    \"Thanks.\"

    Everyone stopped mobbing me and turned to stare at an unexpected visitor, stunned by his gratitude. Then they recognized Ding Ke Po as the only one willing to ally with me during the match (well, probably there would be certain participants who would ally with me if given the opportunity, but since I spent the majority of the stage hiding underwater, they didn''t get the chance to speak to me before the shooting started).

    \"You¡­!\"

    \"Yeah, me.\" Ding Ke Po gave a short bow, and grinned. \"Thanks to you, our Divine Divination Academy was able to salvage some of our pride.\"

    Those last few words caught my attention and I raised my eyebrow. \"What''s your chances of making it to the next round?\"

    \"Who says we will make it to the knock-out stages?\" Ding Ke Po laughed. He waved his hand dismissively when I frowned. \"Don''t worry. We already knew the chances of us making past the second stage of qualifiers were slim at best. Don''t forget, fortune-telling and predicting the future is our speciality.\"

    \"That doesn''t mean you should give up,\" I argued. \"The future isn''t set in stone. You of all people should know that. Fate can be changed. The whole point of divination magic is to trace out the many temporal threads of possibilities, estimate which of those threads are likeliest to occur or adjust the current path to follow the most favorable threads. Then you predict the problems beforehand and set out to counter them.\"

    \"Yeah, but don''t forget, we''re not allowed to use our magic before the match. Especially to directly influence the outcome of the match. So our ability to predict the future, divine which of the threads are most likely to occur, speculate on the problems that might occur and deploy countermeasures is greatly limited. It''s also difficult for us to guide the present toward a favorable thread of the many possible futures if we are not allow to view the threads pertaining to them before the match. Even then¡­\" Ding Ke Po grinned. \"Thanks to you, we have some people seeing us divination mages in a new light. Have you seen the forums? And a couple of the other teams have approached our academy, asking our captain if he would like to team up with them for the last stage.\"

    \"That''s good.\"

    I honestly wasn''t sure what else to say, so I just nodded. The fate of Divine Divination Academy was up to them to determine. I wasn''t going to change their fate for them, and I wouldn''t be able to do anything for the next match in any event. Harrison was up next, and I guess we should prepare for his match in the day after tomorrow.

    \"Still, I''m surprised you know quite a bit about divination magic.\" Ding Ke Po studied me curiously. \"Most people don''t really know what it entails. They think it''s all about predicting the future, but they don''t really know that it can be changed. Fewer even realize that there are many possible threads of the future, and that our job is not so much predicting those threads but instead guiding the present toward several of the favorable threads.\"

    \"Ah, well¡­I took a divination class during my first year.\" I scratched my head sheepishly. Long story short, because I had very few classes I could take other than my summoning class, divination class was the third class I took after wood magic class. There was a good reason for that, though. Ever since ancient times, divination was strongly linked to astrology and stargazing ¨C astrologers had been watching the stars and plotting the movements of celestial bodies to tell the future. Given how my summoning magic was literally summoning Constelaltion spirits and Celestial Guardians, I had believed that there would be plenty of overlap and relevance.

    I was dead wrong. I understood almost nothing from my divination classes, and apparently stargazing and astrology had somewhat fallen out of favor, especially since the ancient Greek myths and other legends regarding constellations were no longer in vogue. They were largely dismissed as superstition and fictional myths. That led to me having to rely on my prior knowledge that I picked up in my previous life rather than learning new stuff in my new present.

    \"Again, I really appreciate what you''ve done for us. Good luck for the final stage!\"

    Ding Ke Po repeated his thanks, and then he turned to leave. I watched him go, and then returned to discussing with my teammates about the next match.

    \"So what will you do, Harrison?\"

    \"Who knows?\" Harrison Reed shrugged, and then sighed. ''We''ll have to find out the venue for my match. Just like before, they won''t give it to us until the last minute.\"

    \"Meaning we can''t do much until then, huh?\" Dong Fang Yue Chu muttered softly.

    \"Well, for now, we should celebrate Richard''s victory.\" Lily Liam raised her hand to offer her suggestion. She smiled. \"I say we head over to the Aurora Bar tonight for a meal, and some drinks!\"

    Of course, since we were underage, we weren''t allowed to drink alcohol. By drinks, Lily was referring to alternatives such as fruit juice, soda and other soft drinks. Aurora Bar was also known for its delicious meals too, being a Japanese-styled restaurant that sold sashimi alongside skewered meat. I smiled and nodded eagerly, my mouth beginning to water at the mere thought of the taste of those juice chicken skewers.

    However, I was still a little hesitant about this.

    \"Isn''t celebrating right now a little too premature? Shouldn''t we wait until after Harrison''s match, until after we actually qualify for the knock-out stage before celebrating?\"

    \"Idiot!\" Craig Carlson threw a hand around my shoulders and chuckled. \"We''ll celebrate again if Harrison wins and we get to the knock-out stages. The more celebrations, the better! Don''t be such a wet blanket!\"

    \"Let''s live it up tonight, and leave the strategies and discussion for tomorrow!\" Sheila Scarlet added, getting caught up in the jubilant mood.

    \"Yeah, no point stressing over it right now,\" Theodore Hammond agreed. \"It would be a good change of pace, and there really is no use worrying over something we don''t have control of, especially when we will only know the venue tomorrow.\"

    \"It''s decided, then! Let''s go!\"

    At Pearl Pang''s command, we all set off. Not immediately, of course. Shortly after the match, we still had the debriefing, we had to go through certain formal ceremonies ¨C which were mercifully short ¨C and speak to a few teachers before returning to the hotel for a couple of hours of rest. Then only could we finally leave for Aurora Bar once evening dawned upon us.

    And then we were done for the day.

    *

    \"Hey, where did you learn your ice magic from? I don''t remember you having learned such advanced ice magic before.\"

    Craig was staring at me as he placed his mug of soda down on the table, the liquid foaming as it slushed at the edges of the cup.

    \"That''s because I don''t remember telling you about it,\" I replied snidely. Craig glowered at me before playfully strangling me.

    \"You rascal!\"

    \"Did you learn ice magic from the Silver Wolves?\" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked, a little more diplomatically. I shook my head.

    \"No, not really. But¡­well, you could say that I was indeed guided by a mercenary.\"

    The merc with a mouth, to be exact, but I doubted that any of my friends would get the reference. Hell, the majority of my readers had never heard of Deadpool when I tried to explain why I spent most of my story breaking the fourth wall. They really ought to watch more Ryan Reynolds movies. Speaking of which, I needed to watch that Detective Pikachu movie soon, but seriously, who thought it was a good idea to only have the To Buy option, and no To Rent? Damn it. At least it was cheaper on Amazon than it was on Youtube¡­

    Actually, that was a wasted opportunity. I should have been guided on ice magic by a yellow electric mouse wearing a cap instead of a guy in a red and black Spandex costume. I wondered which one would be more fun¡­

    \"Who?\"

    \"Secret.\" I decided not to answer Cody Crosby''s question. They would never believe me, and up till today I wasn''t sure if Ryan was actually real, or a just a figment of my imagination. Given how insane I was, I wouldn''t be surprised if he turned out to be a hallucination, but I had a feeling that he was real. No, I was certain that he was real.

    \"Another card we can use for the knock-out stages,\" Theodore remarked with a bearish grin. \"I like it.\"

    \"I''ll have to get past the final stage first, though,\" Harrison muttered glumly, both of his hands on his mug. The poor guy¡­I could see the tremendous amount of pressure mounting upon his shoulders. Not only did he have to score as many points as possible, apparently it turned out that my performance was a hard act to follow. The guy would be hard-pressed to perform just as impressively, or he would lose his dignity as our captain.

    \"You''ll do fine,\" Pearl assured him. \"Don''t stress yourself out unnecessarily.\"

    \"That''s right,\" Lily agreed whole-heartedly. \"Save your strength. Keep some of your techniques and spells in reserve¡­they will come in useful later, where they will take our opponents in the knock-out stages by surprise.\"

    Harrison looked up sullenly. \"You guys are speaking as if we are already going to make it to the knock-out stages.\"

    Whoops. That wasn''t good. We were placing too much stress on the poor guy.

    \"Well, the most important thing is for us to do our best, that''s all. Even if we don''t make it to the knock-out stages, we did well. Nobody will look down on us again!\"

    I tried to lighten up the mood, but Harrison stared at me. Oh¡­yeah, coming from me, the guy who gave our chances of making it to the next round a significant boost, that wasn''t going to be convincing. However, as the leader, Harrison was aware that he couldn''t mope around, so he smiled and nodded instead.

    \"Yeah. I will do my best. We''ll definitely get to the next round. I promise.\"

    He raised his mug high into the air, and we all followed his example, chinking our glasses together.

    \"For our victory!\"

    \"For our victory!\"

    With that triumphant cry, we downed our drinks in a single gulp. Or several.

 368 Chapter 368: Preparing for the Captainâ€™s Match

    Before we knew it, the venue for the fifth match was announced to us via email, as usual. Surprisingly, it turned out to be¡­the metro.

    \"So I''ll be battling underground,\" Harrison Reed remarked when we all met up for a last-minute strategy meeting right after we received the email. By now, everyone knew the drill, and automatically headed to his room the moment we received the email. Having missed out the first three matches, I wasn''t aware of this tradition, but Dong Fang Yue Chu made sure to stop by my room and knock on my door to get me to move out.

    \"This looks like it''s going to be difficult,\" Pearl Pang said worriedly, staring at the holographic map that was sent as an attachment along with the email. She spun it around and enlarged it for us to see. \"There''s a lot of hiding places and shadowy spots to lay ambushes and catch the participants by surprise. Not to mention, these tunnels¡­they are so dark, so winding, and long¡­it''s like a maze in there. A labyrinth where you can get lost forever.\"

    \"Couldn''t Harrison use that to his advantage?\" Cody Crosby suggested with a nonchalant shrug. \"Set up traps and spring ambushes on his opponents. That''s what I would do.\"

    \"That''s precisely the problem.\" Lily Liam instead agreed with Pearl, also giving Harrison a concerned look. \"This sort of battlefield and sneaky style doesn''t suit Harrison at all.\"

    \"Sneaky style¡­oi!\" Cody growled, feeling offended. Lily quickly waved her hands frantically to placate him.

    \"Sorry! I mean no offense! But you know what I mean. There''s absolutely nothing wrong with the way you fight, and relying on stealth, traps and surprise tactics are definitely valid methods in a map like this. Preferable, even. However, Harrison isn''t the type to fight like that. We''re in the same society, you know how Harrison fights, and what sort of magic he uses.\"

    \"Holy magic.\" Theodore Hammond nodded thoughtfully, placing a finger on his chin. \"If he uses his holy magic in such a dark place, he''ll practically be shining a beacon upon himself and painting a gigantic target over his head. He''ll be attracing a lot of unwanted attention.\"

    \"Exactly!\"

    \"Just our bad luck!\" Craig Carlson cursed angrily. \"Of all the places to choose for the final match, they picked such a shady place! It''s almost as if they are doing this on purpose!\"

    Of course they weren''t. Everyone knew that the tournament staff selected the venues for the tournaments randomly, without favoring one school over the others. As much as we hated to admit it, lady luck had chosen not to smile upon us this time.

    \"Damn¡­if only the map I participated in was this¡­I would have done a lot better!\" Cody groaned as he leaned back.

    \"It can''t be helped.\" Surprisingly, it was Bu Fan who spoke up. The guy usually didn''t bother joining the discussion and was always off in his own world, thinking about his own personal matters (and most likely his sister). Sometimes we even forgot that he was part of the team. He shrugged when he found himself scrutinized by nine pairs of eyes, totally not flustered by our intense gazes. \"They already specified that the last round would be between captains. We are not allow to swap another member in. whether we like it or not, Harrison has to participate in this round.\"

    \"I don''t think anyone is denying that,\" Sheila said, confused. \"Even if we want to, we can''t just change the team captain without a valid reason.\"

    Obviously they woudn''t allow us to change the team captain now. Unless he had somehow been incapacitated, fallen ill or was terribly injured (which was no excuse since healing magic existed), or had urgent family matters that required him to drop out of the tournament suddenly, it was against the rules to change the captain in the middle of the tournament. Even if we could, there was little point. Someone who had already participated in the earlier stages was not allowed to participate in the other stages. Each member was only allowed to take part once. No member was allowed to repeatedly participate in two or more stages or the whole team would be disqualified. That meant that we couldn''t just substitute Cody in for Harrison even if we somehow concocted a \"valid\" excuse.

    Not that Harrison was having any of it. Being the dignified, responsible leader that he was, he maintained his own code of honor.

    \"I will participate in this and I will earn us the points we need to qualify for the next stage,\" he declared firmly. No one was going to propose that we switch captain, no matter what Bu Fan might imply. Harrison wouldn''t allow it. His pride demanded that he did his best, no matter the venue.

    \"More importantly, we should think of how you will fight in the metro,\" I pointed out, bringing everyone back to the topic at hand. \"These tunnels seem like a death trap. It''s tempting to hide in them, but the moment you use your holy magic, you''ll expose your position.\"

    Harrison nodded, pondering on my words. He tilted his head at me.

    \"So are you proposing that I stay on the platform?\"

    \"Uh, well¡­I guess so.\"

    \"That seems like an obvious plan.\" Craig chewed on his lip. \"But won''t the other participants also think along similar lines? That will get you stuck in one place, and Harrison might end up being cornered sooner or later.\"

    \"He''ll be cornered if he goes into the tunnels,\" Bu Fan scoffed.

    \"Yeah, well¡­then what should he do?\"

    \"The answer''s obvious, isn''t it?\" Bu Fan was trying not to roll his eyes as he sneered. \"Just beat up everyone who challenges him. Overpower them with overwhelming strength. It''s not rocket science.\"

    Everyone looked at him in disbelief. Easier said than done. If it was so easy, anyone would just do that. Unfortunately, Harrison wasn''t some god mode Mary Sue who could steamroll 49 other participants by himself (or 40, considering that he only needed to be among the last surviving ten to get the bonus points). Actually, now that I thought about it, he didn''t even need to survive until the very end. He just needed to get a decent haul of points.

    Again, easier said than done.

    While my teammates continued to debate and argue over possible strategies, I returned my attention to studying the map once again. For some reason, the map of the metro looked very familiar to me. I felt as if I had seen it somewhere before¡­

    \"¡­eh?\"

    Yeah, I was pretty sure I had seen this layout of the metro somewhere before. But I just couldn''t place my finger on where exactly¡­

    Then it hit me.

    \"I know this place!\"

    \"Really?!\" everyone turned to stare at me. Harrison, in particular, raised an eyebrow. \"You''ve ben to Aurora City before? You''ve used the metro before?\"

    \"No. Not Aurora City¡­uh, well¡­I saw it somewhere before. In a simulation.\"

    Now that was not exactly a lie, but it wasn''t exactly the truth either. The reality was that I had indeed played through this \"metro\" over a hundred times before, but it was through a game. To be more precise, it was the Metro map of Battlefield 3, a game that I played with my friend when we were both still undergraduate students. Even though Electronic Arts often received a lot of criticism because of their microtransactions and whatever, Dice was still an excellent AAA developer, and there was fierce rivalry between fans of the Battlefield series and fans of the Call of Duty series, I had to admit that Battlefield was somewhat addicting. Well, at least 3 was. I kind of stopped playing 4 because I found a better game ¨C Titanfall. Titanfall is the best and most fun shooter I had ever played, and its sequel was just as good, if not better.

    Respawn rules.

    Before I detracted too much, the main point was that I had often played in Metro whenever I joined my friend in Team Deathmatch or Conquest for Battlefield 3. Thus I was unexpectedly familiar with the map. Recalling what I could from spawn points, flags that you were supposed to capture in the Conquest game mode, the various killzones and chokepoints, I hurriedly explained the places where most conflicts occurred to Harrison, who nodded as he listened intently and attentively.

    \"The most important thing about this map is¡­\" I paused dramatically, savoring the looks on everyone''s faces as they stared at me, almost as if they were enraptured. \"¡­teamwork.\"

    \"¡­huh?\" Craig gaped at me.

    \"You heard me. Teamwork is most imperative here. If you try to go solo, you''ll get caught in between these killzones and eliminated very quickly. In order to prevail, you must team up with quite a few people and hold the chokepoints here, or here, or here. You then cast ranged spells and form an overlapping field of fire to create a killing zone. Anyone who comes this way will die. No doubt about it. The only way to weather your hail of fire is to have a team of their own, but by then you should have established a foothold and have an overwhelming advantage.\"

    \"¡­right.\" Harrison seemed skeptical, but he didn''t dismiss me outright, which was a good sign. \"You are definitely right, though. I can''t do this on my own. I''ll need allies.\"

    \"That''s the spirit!\"

    I smiled, and then dug through my memory for any more advice. Oh, there was plenty I could offer, especially since I had died countless times in this damned map before. I was glad I wasn''t the one who had to return there to brave the fire.

    Speaking of fire¡­

    \"The most effective spells are area of effect spells, or high explosive spells.\" I couldn''t conceal the grin that was spreading across my face. Enlarging a single point in the holographic map, I pointed toward the staircases on the first level of the station that led to the subway below. I recalled how often I died while running through those chokepoints because Engineers fired their rocket launchers or Assault medics launched grenades downward at the killing zones, often wiping large swathes of my team out and gaining lots of points for team deathmatch. Of course, the reverse was true as well, where my team held the high ground and completely wiped the floor with the poor opposing team. \"In such confined spaces, particularly, the opposing team will be tightly clustered and vulnerable to area of effect spells. With just a few of those spells, you can take out a whole bunch of them at once. Not only that, the explosive effects of your destructive spells will be amplified exponentially in such enclosed spaces. So all it takes is a single boom!\"

    I emphasized my point with a snap of my finger.

    This time, Harrison looked convinced, and he snapped out of his enthralled expression to nod somewhat excitedly.

    \"You''re right. That certainly sounds like it will work.\"

    \"Now, all you need now is a team, like Richard says.\" Craig also seemed persuaded by my plan. He folded his arms and nodded gravely. \"Otherwise you''ll end up getting stabbed in the back while trying to pin the enemy at these chokepoints.\"

    \"That''s right.\" Harrison leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment, his handsome features creased into a frown. \"But who can I trust? Who among the other participants would be ideal to team up with?\"

    \"The strongest,\" Bu Fan said automatically. Everyone turned to scoff at him.

    \"Don''t be ridiculous. What use is teaming up with the strongest if they backstab and betray you?\" Pearl shook her head. \"They are the ones we have to watch out for the most. If anything, they have no reason to team up because they will be confident in their own strength.\"

    \"Yeah,\" Lily agreed. \"More than strength, we need someone who can be trusted to not betray us. Someone with honor. I would rather team up with a somewhat mediocre student from a rank B or C academy than entrust my back to a genius from a rank A academy, only to get stabbed in the back because he or she wants to score as many points as possible.\"

    I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes because I personally thought the whole ranking system was utter bullshit. However, Lily did have a valid point. Loyalty and honor were more important than strength and talent when it came to forming a team. There was no use teaming up with someone who we had to spend half the time keeping an eye on, afraid to turn our back on him because we were aware he would backstab us at any time. That defeated the whole purpose of trusting him to watch our backs. I knew of the adage \"keep your friends close, but your enemies closer\"¨C but that obviously did not apply in the battlefield when the bullets started flying and you were more occupied with fighting and staying alive than scheming and betraying.

    Aha. I suddenly thought of someone who I could trust. Well, I wasn''t sure about his academy, but the guy at least kept his end of the bargain and helped me out, and even until the very end, he never betrayed me even though he had every opportunity to do so.

    \"How about the students from Divine Divination Academy? Ding Ke Po owes me for the alliance in our previous match, so I think his teammates are more likely to help us out than any of the other participants.\"

    \"Hmm¡­\" Harrison hesitated a little, as if he wasn''t sure he should voice his objection. Fortunately, he had Bu Fan to say the ugly things for him.

    \"Are you joking? That bunch of fortune-tellers? What can they possibly do in combat? Maybe they are trustworthy, but how are you going to trust your back to someone who sucks at fighting, and can only do palm-reading or astrology? How are they supposed to contribute to winning this match?\"

    \"I''m afraid Bu Fan has a point,\" Harrison reluctantly admitted. \"I understand that they are trustworthy, but I don''t see how having them as an ally will be helpful in this situation.\"

    \"They will just drag Harrison down,\" Bu Fan continued dismissively.

    \"Actually, that remains to be seen.\"

    \"Oh?\" Theodore cut in before anyone could protest hotly. He matched my gaze, his dark eyes curious. \"What makes you say so?\"

    \"When I fought alongside Ding Ke Po, his predictions and divination actually helped me avoid ambushes and traps,\" I explained, curling a finger on my chin. \"If you''re camping on these chokepoints and holding the killzones, what better ally would you have than someone who can accurately predict where the next assault will come from, when the opponents will attack, or if there is someone sneaking up on the team from behind?\"

    \"You''re right.\" Harrison nodded eagerly, his eyes lighting up. He had watched the video analysis of my match alongside Ding Ke Po, and everything was falling in place for him now. \"Intelligence is definitely a vital resource for victory. If we can predict where the enemy comes from, and what exactly they intend to do, that''s pretty much half the battle won.\"

    \"Yeah, that''s a very useful asset to have in battle,\" Bu Fan condeded grudgingly. I couldn''t help but stare at him in shock. I never thought he would admit that he was mistaken.

    \"All right.\" Harrison clapped his hands, a smile spreading across his charismatic face. \"I guess it''s time to start forging alliances.\"

 369 Chapter 369: Operation Metro

    The city hall where the students had gathered to watch their captains'' match was full. The spectator seats were packed to maximum capacity as hundreds of students squeezed together and craned their heads to stare at the massive holographic screen that depicted the current stage. The captains had just been teleported to the metro station, and were turned invisible so that they could \"spawn\" wherever they wanted.

    Fortunately, Harrison had already agreed beforehand where to meet up with his allies, and they chose to do so above ground, right outside the station and beside a nearby caf¨¦ that was just within range of the boundary of the map. Even though there was such an immense holographic screen projected at the center of the stadium-like hall, most students chose instead to consult their personal smartphones and beamed much smaller screens in front of them.

    Noticeably, students from the same academy tended to cluster in front of a single hologram, where the vice-captain of their team would sweep his or her finger across to adjust the location they were viewing. Presumably, they were aware of the \"spawn location\" for their team captains, having discussed where he or she should best start off in.

    \"Interesting¡­\"

    Beside us was Divine Divination Academy. Ding Ke Po was watching the screen that was being projected by his vice-captain ¨C a girl with long, purple hair and a hairband with yellow star patterns against its dark blue material ¨C but he glanced toward us when he spoke. Evidently he was including our Jing Tian Academy in the discussion, especially since we agreed to ally for the qualifiers. A coalition formed since yesterday night, we extended it to several other academies, including Aurora Academy and other less known but definitely honorable ones.

    \"From what we gathered, it seemed that everyone split into two teams for this last qualifying stage. Given the close confines and restrictive environment, everyone seemed to have agreed that they are better off allying with others instead of trying to tackle this stage alone. So it''s a pretty even split, with twenty-five members in each team.\"

    \"Did the tournament staff foresaw this?\" Craig chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. \"To think we really ended up doing a team deathmatch for the final qualifying stage. Or perhaps this was always their intention?\"

    \"But it makes no sense.\" Sheila looked puzzled. \"The match will go on until there are ten participants left. Why would they divide into groups of twenty-five?\"

    \"Didn''t you read the details in the latest email that they sent us this morning?\" Lily scowled at her. \"The format for this match is different from all the other stages. Unlike the other stages, participants will respawn after they are killed. The match will end after about thirty minutes, and the total points tally will be added to each academy''s score. You get points for ''killing'' another participant, so the more you ''kill,'' the points you get. Whenever you get ''killed,'' you automatically respawn. While this gives you a chance to get back in the game, this also means that the opponent can increase the gap between you and him or her if he or she repeatedly targets and kills you.\"

    In other words, there was the potential for less skilled players to end up being used as farming materials for the more skilled ones. I remembered how awful it felt to be on the receiving end of one-sided matches where¡­the other team was essentially filled with smurfs who liked forming teams to crush newbies. Games tended to be fun¡­until it became extremely one-sided where the other party was literally toying with you. I never understood where the appeal lay. Wouldn''t it be boring to watch or play a match where the outcome was already decided from the beginning? The same thing could be said for most xianxia stories as well ¨C when the protagonist was curbstomping all of his opponents while being at the pinnacle of godhood (just look at Li Fu Chen from Eternal Reverence, for example), then where was the fun in reading it? We already know he was going to simply steamroll his opponents with his thousands of techniques. There were no stakes, no tension, nothing. And with Li Fu Chen already reaching the peak near the beginning of the story and essentially becoming a god, where could he go from there? Even the infamous map change and power creep didn''t make sense.

    Back to the topic at hand, I fervently prayed that it wouldn''t end up in such a situation. Harrison and his team getting utterly crushed when the match hadn''t even neared the middle would be a very dispiriting and discouraging sight. Not to mention absolutely frustrating. No one liked to be on the receiving end of a humiliating defeat.

    \"The winning team gets ten points per player,\" Yue Chu added helpfully.

    \"It can''t be helped,\" I murmured in Sheila''s defense. \"We were hardly given any time to read the email. They literally sent us the details of the new format an hour before the stage officially started. Even Harrison was caught off guard.\"

    \"This really is team deathmatch, huh?\"

    Yue Chu turned to me, still mired in disbelief. He shook his head as he stared at me in awe and suspicion.

    \"How did you guess that? Even the Divine Divination Academy didn''t predict that the format for the final stage will turn out to be a team deathmach.\"

    \"That''s only because they weren''t allowed to use their magic to find out what the format for the final stage would be,\" I pointed out. Much like how I wasn''t allowed to use summoning magic before a match, other participants were obviously disallowed from casting spells before the match that would directly influence the outcome. Otherwise everyone would begin casting their ultimate spells right before the match started, stroll right in, wait for the bell, and then immediately unleash Armageddon right from the first second. That was completely unfair and against the spirit of competition. And I agreed with that logic, to be fair. \"If they were allowed to use their magic to divine the format, they would probably have predicted this as well.\"

    \"Actually, I heard that the change to team deathmatch was decided at the very last minute,\" one of the Divine Divination Academy students said. \"The tournament staff caught wind of the participants going around and organizing alliances and forming what appeared to be two very large teams, and they decided to just turn this stage into a deathmatch between two teams.\"

    \"That explains why we received the second email so much later,\" Theodore mused. We only received news of the new rules this morning, almost an entire night after we received the email notifying us that the final map would be the Metro. And also after Harrison ran around trying to forge an alliance together with several other schools. If I recalled, he managed to band nine other students together, rallying them to his cause and convincing them that the Divine Divination Academy captain would be useful.

    Now it was time to see if he was right. The Divine Divination Academy''s intelligence was pretty spot on ¨C the tournament staff, evidently being aware of the alliances forged last night had placed all of Harrison''s hastily conceived coalition together in the same team, along with fifteen others. From what I learned later, another ten out of the fifteen had also decided to ally together last night, with three of the remaining five in a group, and the last two members being strays who couldn''t be bothered with alliances and whatever.

    \"They turned friendly fire off,\" Cody observed as he consulted the details in his email. \"So the two teams don''t have to worry about hitting their own teammates with their spells.\"

    Take note, this was only possible because they had set up the same boundary field that prevented deaths in official duels. That was also how they were able to \"revive\" and respawn the participants who were \"killed\" during the match. The students would never truly die, after all. Not unless they cast a spell powerful enough to destroy the boundary field that was enveloping the simulated battlefield.

    \"Wouldn''t the team with the healers have the advantage?\" Pearl asked with a frown. That was right. Prior to the fifth match, and throughout the entire second qualifying round, there were complains from a few teams regarding how it was compulsory that the captain participate in the fifth match. After all, the captain was not necessarily the strongest or most powerful mage in the team, but rather the most skilled or charismatic person who could pull the entire team together and coax them to cooperate flawlessly.

    Consequently, the captains from several academies were healers. They possessed great tactical ingenuity or had overwhelming personalities that were capable of weaving various individuals into a closely knitted cohesive unit, but they didn''t necessarily have great combat ability. Therefore there were complaints that this fifth round would be unfair to these healer-type captains. Of course, the tournament staff merely listened stoically, but said nothing regarding the matter.

    Perhaps they had taken that into account, after all, and decided that it would be best to see how these captains could work together as a team despite being thrown in with complete strangers. That certainly would be an impotant skill in real life. After all, you couldn''t always choose your teammates, and were often forced to work with who you had rather than who you would prefer to have.

    Then again, if that was the case, why did they keep all the alliances that were formed yesterday together, instead of breaking them apart and randomizing them?

    Whatever. I didn''t know the answer, and didn''t think it was that important to try and analyze the decisions of the tournament staff. What mattered was that Harrison was thrown into this team deathmatch along with his allies, and his performance at present would determine whether our academy would move on to the next round or not.

    The match had already begun. My friends and I watched our shared holographic screen, zeroing in on Harrison when he appeared from what seemed like nowhere. A couple of dozen other students materialized beside and around him, all of them drawing their weapons and checking their Divine Devices or casting a few spells.

    Then they ran without a word. Even without needing to communicate, the students already knew what to do. They had already discussed this prior to the match. In any case, those stragglers who were thrown into the team at the last minute naturally followed the rest, intuitively aware of their roles. There was little point in staying behind at the spawn point.

    The goal of the match was to \"kill\" as many opponents as possible. It was that simple. Playing passive and lingering behind while the other forge ahead would be a great way to get left behind in terms of points. In addition to kill points, participants also earned points by Support ¨C in other words, healing and reviving a teammate, assist kills, repairing weapons and equipment, protecting and defending a teammate, providing intelligence, etc. Even if you didn''t have much in the way of combat ability, as long as your support skills were excellent, you could still score high in this round.

    I frowned at that. They should have done this format for all of the stages, not just the final one. Maybe they would implement this system from next year onward.

    Harrison vaulted over one of the ticket barriers, following his teammates into the train platform. They rounded a corner and were about to descend the stairs when a fireball scorched toward them.

    \"!!!\"

    Already anticipating that, Harrison''s team immediately pulled back, avoiding a huge explosion as the fireball struck the wall and burned away paint. Taking cover behind the wall, Harrison''s team launched a counterattack of their own, flinging icicles and earth spikes down the stairs. An explosion ensued, followed by a painful yell.

    \"Get them!\"

    \"No, wait! Don''t just rush up the stairs!\"

    It was too late. The first two mages from the opposing team literally flew up, wind billowing about them as they cast furious spells to blow their opponents away or cut them apart with aerial blades. However, they were met with a wall of overwhelming firepower, almost a dozen spells slamming into them and incinerating them instantly. Their bodies crashed down the stairs in a burned heap, and lay there for a few moments before disintegrating.

    They didn''t really die, of course. A few seconds later, they respawned back at the back of the tunnel, dazed and outraged.

    \"What the fuck happened?!\"

    \"Why is the entire enemy team gathered up there?!\"

    \"Where''s our backup?\"

    Even as they began to sprint back toward the stairs, a furious firefight had erupted between the two teams. Harrison had to conjure a golden holy barrier to deflect a few spells that came dangerously close to ending the lives of his teammates. As they withdrew, huffing and heaving, a healer captain rushed over to tend to their wounds.

    \"Fall back a few steps for now,\" Harrison directed, providing suppression fire with several holy spells to cover their retreat. Sensing a weakness, the opposing team surged up the stairs, only for a fire captain to detonate the advanced flaming spell he had been casting this entire time. Four of the enemy mages howled as they toppled over, their bodies set ablaze. Either falling across the stairs or crashing right back to the bottom, their lives expired almost instantly. The healers couldn''t get up in time to revive them, not when a blistering hail of firepower came crashing down on their positions, forcing them to keep their distance.

    \"Damn it!\"

    \"Find an alternative route!\"

    While Harrison''s team kept the opposing team pinned at the stairs, a small group detached themselves and made for another path ¨C the relatively wide array of escalators ¨C in hopes of circling around so that they could attack the enemy from behind.

    Unfortunately, the captain of Divine Divination Academy had already predicted that.

    \"!!\"

    The covert operative mages, who thought they were being stealthy, were met with a barrage of spells that were akin to machine gun fire, and forced to flee. Before they realized it, at least two of them were shredded by razor leaves and icicles.

    \"If we can''t break through these barricades and reach upstairs,\" one of the opponents murmured, turning anxious. \"Then we''ll seriously lose the match!\"

 370 Chapter 370: Battlefield

    Even though Harrison''s team was relatively successful in pinning the enemy and trapping them underground, it wasn''t as one-sided as the previous chapter made it out to be. While they indeed drew first blood, Harrison''s team still sustained casualties in the furious firefight.

    Realizing that they had no choice, the enemy threw themselves upward the stairs in greater numbers. The confined space ¨C while being used to its maximum potential by Harrison and the others to become the ultimate killing zone ¨C also proved to be a double-edged sword. Powerful, area-of-effect spells that the enemy launched upward combusted, engulfing more than a few of Harrison''s teammates in arcane flames, iridescent ice, ethereal earth or lustrous leaves. Despite Harrison''s best attempts to protect them with his holy barriers, even his formidable defesnes were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of spells spitting upward into their otherwise firmly entrenched position.

    Never mind his teammates. Even Harrison succumbed to the overwhelming barrage a couple of times, taken out by a lucky headshot, or also caught in a massive explosion alongside his teammates. Though Harrison''s team succeeded in holding the upper floor for now, and limiting the opposing team to the underground subway, they were doing so at great cost. The price for their transitionary victory was being paid for in blood, and they were barely hanging on to their slender lead. I could see the total scores being 353-328 in favor of Harrison''s team for now, but occasionally the enemy team''s score would spike up and close the gap.

    If they ever broke past the killing zone at the stairs and elevator and surge upward, they might rout Harrison''s team. Well, it probably wouldn''t be that bad, but it would certainly mean defeat if the enemy pushed Harrison''s team all the way back to their spawning point at the caf¨¦. The vast, open space there meant that snipers would have free reign and Harrison''s team''s current tactics of maximizing the use of explosives and area-of-effect spells would fall apart.

    To be sure, area-of-effect spells would remain potent, but they wouldn''t be nearly as effective as they were, currently in such tight confines. Furthermore, the opposing team had skilled snipers that Harrison''s team lacked, and they were perfectly capable of picking Harrison and his teammates off the exact moment they spawned next to the caf¨¦. At least here wasn''t a place where we could gain a vantage view of the opponents and shoot them when they spawned.

    To do that, we had to break past the stairs and elevator and push them all the way back to their spawning point at the end of the tunnels, where the trains were. In fact, that was the reason why our lead was so slender. This position was not overwhelmingly advantageous to us by any means, as the enemy could use the close confines to take out a whole chunk of Harrison''s group whenever the opportunity presented itself.

    \"Hang in there!\" Harrison shouted, casting another golden barrier to withstand another onslaught of spells that crashed into the shimmering wall. Even though the protective screen didn''t collapse, the immense impact sent several shockwaves across the enclosed space, rocking the members of his team who were crouching and firing off their own spells. Gritting his teeth, Harrison obliterated the head of an enemy with a holy blast. \"It''s almost thirty minutes!\"

    I glanced at the timer. Harrison was right. Holy¡­had it really been thirty minutes already? The action was so frenetic, the battlefield so intense and gripping that I had totally lost track of time, and it flew by before I realized it. Right now, the total scores of both teams were 402-389, with Harrison''s team barely in the lead. It appeared that it was slowly slipping out of their hands¡­

    \"¡­just a bit more¡­there!\"

    One of Harrison''s teammates stepped forward as soon as he finished casting his spell. Suddenly, a singularity vortex opened up at the bottom of the stairs, the tremendous gravitational forces catching the opposing team completely by surprise and sucking them into a black hole, crushing them into unrecognizable messes of blood and flesh. Screams and shrieks filled the air as the others fled, but they were struck in the back by opportunistic mages, looking to pulverize the remnants of the enemy and seize the chance to push forward.

    In that single moment, the score jumped to 508-412. Buoyed, the members of Harrison''s team surged forward, ready to take the fight to the opposing team''s spawning points.

    \"Wait!\" Harrison cautioned, realizing something was amiss. \"Don''t go too far! They can''t possibly have left the subway unguarded¡­\"

    His warning came too late. The moment the first member stepped into the basement level of the subway, he accidentally triggered an enchantment that the opposing team spent a lot of time weaving.

    \"!!!\"

    A supernova erupted, rippling across the stairs and incinerating swathes of students. Harrison threw up his hands and conjured a holy barrier to defend the dazed survivors from the expanding cloud of plasma, but the spell was so powerful that it shattered his protective screen in an instant. The massive shockwaves, accompanied by tremendous heat, blasted Harrison and the other members of his team back up the stairs and into the wall with such force that their bodies cracked the concrete. Crashing back down on the ground, their bodies smoldering and their skin blistering, Harrison raised his head, completely dazed and nearly blacking out from the excruciating agony.

    In that instant, the opposing team had clawed back up to close the gap, with the score now 527-499. Worse, they were in position to capitalize on that turning point, with their members having respawned seconds earlier, and were now rapidly making their way toward the stairs. With so many of Harrison''s teammates obliterated by the supernova trap, and the rest momentarily incapacitated, it appeared that they would lose their advantageous high ground and surrender their lead for the first time in the match.

    \"Harrison!\" Pearl cried out worriedly, but there was no way our captain could hear here, not when he was still within the simulated battlefield, his position about to be overrun by enemies.

    The blond team captain evidently realized the dilemma that his team was in, and he ground his teeth as he forced himself back to his feet, swaying slightly from the damage he had received. In the face of overwhelming numbers and an onslaught of spells, he was the only one left to halt their advance.

    Taking a deep breath, he took a step forward while his hands frantically drew intricate arcane symbols in the air.

    \"You shall not pass!\" he bellowed, and stomped his foot against the ground. A massive golden holy barrier materialized in front of him, stretching to emcompass the entire set of stairs, barring entry to the onrushing mages.

    \"!!!\"

    Almost caught by surprise, the various mages attempted to smash their way through Harrison''s barrier, but even though he bled from his eyes, nose and mouth, the captain of Jing Tian Academy held on grimly, pouring every ounce of his mana into his barrier.

    But inevitably his golden holy barrier cracked and began to shatter, piece by piece, fragment by fragment consumed by the sheer number of arcane spells and ethereal projectiles that hammered his entrenched position.

    \"Gah!\"

    Clutching his chest, Harrison coughed out a glob of blood. However, he bit his lip and firmly held his ground, refusing to yield. With a roar, he maintained his upraised hand and infused the last of his mana into his crumbling holy barrier.

    Crack!

    And then it inevitably shattered completely and totally. Harrison''s eyes flashed defiantly as he gathered the last vestiges of his mana to make a last stand, only for him to be engulfed in over a dozen spells that disintegrated his body.

    \"Harrison!\" Pearl screamed. I raised my eyebrow at that. There was no need to be so dramatic, lady. Harrison didn''t actually die from that. He would respawn in his team''s spawning point a few seconds later.

    Unfortunately, with his final act of resistance overwhelmed, the opposing team was now free to rush up the stairs, uncontested¡­

    ¡­or so they thought, but Harrison''s valiant act of defiance had bought his teammates more than enough time to reach the chokepoint. In fact, one of his surviving teammates ¨C among those who had escaped the supernova trap with her life thanks to Harrison''s hastily conjured barrier ¨C had used the time to cast a powerful spell that erupted the moment the fools reached the top of the stairs.

    Now the situation was reversed and it was their turn to be caught in Harrison''s team''s trap. The girl''s enchantment went off with the force of a volcano, molten lava washing the stunned mages back down into the subway and burning them into ash and cinders.

    That turnaround allowed Harrison''s team to get some much-needed breathing room and widen their lead ¨C now the score read 634 to 589.

    And there was only a minute left for the opposing team to try and overhaul their opponents and snatch the lead. If Harrison''s team could just hold on for the next sixty seconds, then the ten bonus points per player would be as good as theirs¡­!

    My eyes flickered between the timer at the top left corner of the screen and the spawn location where Harrison was newly resurrected. This was going to be one hell of a nail-biting finish, and I was tempted to swipe the screen right to where the main fight was taking place in the heart of the metro. The stairs and elevator where the opposing team had launched a renewed assault¡­or was going to, only for Harrison''s team to take out a good number of them in one fell swoop.

    Fortunately, the respawn point was not too far away from the stairs. After materializing in the caf¨¦, Harrison immediately rushed for the entrance to the station. He vaulted over the ticket barricades and sprinted toward the stairs. With the distance from the combat zone being less than a hundred meters, he wasted no time and began to cast his spells, his hand glowing golden as he accumulated mana into them.

    Reaching the top of the stairs, he immediately cast his holy barrier, protecting several of his teammates from a volley of ethereal elemental spells that detonated fiercely against the shimmering wall of golden light. The ones right behind the protective screen rocked from the huge impacts, but their lives were preserved for now. At theif feet were the casualties sustained from holding the stairs, and the gap between the scores had closed to 648 to 612.

    Thirty seconds left. I gulped as my eyes flitted toward the timer again. Lily and Pearl were unconsciously clasping their hands, as if in prayer, while Sheila clutched Craig''s arm tightly. Theodore and Cody watched grimly, Yue Chu chewed his lower lip and I swallowed again nervously. Only Bu Fan didn''t seem to give a damn, what with that haughty expression of utmost confidence spelled across his face. It was almost as if he knew we would make it to the knock-out stage by sheer will of plot, considering that he was the protagonist and his story wouldn''t come to an ignoble end here. That he would eventually become champion of the tournament because¡­well, he was the protagonist.

    Bastard.

    Harrison retaliated, his hands dancing across the air and drawing arcane runes and sigils. A torrent of holy energy seared downward, washing over two of the captains from the opposing team and disintegrating them.

    Speaking of which, weren''t the¡­captains quite fragile in this match? Normally they shouldn''t die so easily in reality, because of physical reinforcement spells and such. Human mages were a lot more durable than that, they shouldn''t be dying to a couple of spells even if they received a direct hit from an advanced one. Yet they had died so many times over and over again throughout the match. What was going on?

    Later I would find out that the boundary field had deliberately reduced their durability for purposes of the match. I had no idea why. Maybe they were trying to rip off Battlefield 3 and its Operation Metro map or something.

    Realizing that they had only scant seconds left to turn the tables, the opposing team renewed their vigor and threw everything they had up the stairs, flinging whatever spells or trump card they had been holding up their sleeves the entire time. Now I suddenly realized that the tournament staff had cast an indestructible environment enchantment over the entire site, otherwise the whole station would have been leveled from the sheer intensity of such powerful spells. But no, just like in any shooter games, even if you fire off a rocket launcher or other powerful weapons within such tight confines, the walls and ground remained completely intact. They showed signs of damage, yes, but other than blackened scorches, cracks and a few pieces of debris (which miraculously disappeared after a few seconds), they were otherwise largely in one piece.

    Sucking a deep breath, Harrison steeled himself and strengthened his holy barrier. Furious projectiles clattered ineffectively against the shimmering wall, but the advanced spells began to obliterate it.

    \"Fall back!\" one of his teammates shouted. \"We''ve done enough! We can''t hold any longer! Our priority should be to deny the opposing team as many kills as possible!\"

    \"Go,\" Harrison instructed. \"I''ll be the rearguard.\"

    As his teammates turned to flee upward and across the station, Harrison wove his intricate wards together, repairing the crumbling barrier to withstand one last onslaught. Unfortunately for him, a crimson torrent of destructive energy speared through his holy wall to slam into him. Harrison was flung back across the head of the stairs, colliding violently against the wall. As his consciousness darkened and he sank into the abyss, the opposing team rushed over him and into the first level, with one of the mages stopping to ensure that he was dead.

    \"¡­damn it.\"

    Harrison raised his head to look up at his would-be killer in one defiant stare, the timer hit zero.

    Then everything vanished in a bright flash of light, the holographic display showing the loading screen that transformed into a scoreboard. Inside the simulated battlefield, all of the participants, including Harrison, glowed brightly and vanished, their bodies forcibly teleported outside the boundary fields.

    The match was finally over.

 371 Chapter 371: The knock-out stages

    When we saw that Harrison''s name was among the top ten scores, the Jing Tian Academy team erupted into cheers.

    \"Yes! We did it!\"

    \"Woohoo!\"

    \"Great job, Harrison!\"

    \"You did it!\"

    The guys traded high fives and whooped, while the girls hugged each other and almost shrieked in delight.

    To be sure, it wasn''t as if Harrison had gotten the highest score or anything. If anything, his kill to death ratio was pretty abysmal when compared to the others, whether they were his teammates or from the opposing team. His kill to death ratio was 2.23, which to be fair, was better than about half of the participants.

    However, his score was extremely high because of his support achievements. He had scored a lot from protecting his teammates, providing suppressive fire, being a \"Savior\" or offering assists and a lot of other things. Evidently the tournament staff judged each individual not just on his or her kill tally but how well each participant contributed to the team, be it combat or support. After all, even the most skilled killer wouldn''t be able to get as far as he could without relying on his teammates for healing support, assists and other forms of aid.

    Once again, we could see clearly that this was meant to emphasize on teamwork and cooperation, not individual glory and rankings. Looked like they seriously intended to revamp the entire student mage system from the ground up.

    A few moments later, while the spectators either celebrated, grieved or remained in stoic silence, the participants themselves finally entered the city hall, having been teleported from the simulated battlefield. Many of them still looked dazed, having been warped away in the middle of a frantic firefight or a desperate retreat, and a few looked as if they couldn''t believe what had just occurred.

    The captains were then mobbed by their teammates, who surged from their seats to lunge at their leaders. Congratulations flew through the air, followed by cheers and excited embraces. A few \"good job\" to those who scored decently but didn''t quite make the cut. Even so, they did enough and scored well to the extent that they could be proud of themselves, even if they were knocked out of the tournament. Then there were the bitter captains who were on the verge of tears, and had to be consoled by their teammates. Those were far and few in between, for the majority of the captains understood their role as leaders of the team and maintained a posture of quiet dignity or apologetic guilt, the latter bowing to their teammates to express their apologies for not being able to help propel them into the knock-out stages.

    At last there were no awful scenes of teammates berating and blaming their captains for allowing their schools to crash out of the tournament. Everyone who had made it this far into the qualifying stages knew that the whole thing was a team effort, and that the result couldn''t be placed at the feet of any one person. If they failed, then they failed as a team, and not because of a single person. The captains, despite the nerfs they received for the purpose of this match, had poured their heart and soul into this battle, risking almost everything ¨C even pride ¨C and literally throwing themselves into the meatgrinder just to score as many points as possible.

    Some had succeeded beyond imagination. Most others had fallen short. Even so, at least half of the participants received 10 bonus points each for being on the winning team. The losing team, despite their defeat, had run very close to overtaking their opponents. Even until the end, they never gave up and closed the gap to under a couple dozen points. A single act of heroism was all that separated them from victory.

    It was that close.

    Consequently, even in defeat, the other team could hold their heads up high, and each member had racked up quite a good number of points. Not bad. Not bad at all.

    \"You did it, Harrison!\"

    Our team reached our captain and we literally buried him under embraces and congratulations. The girls ¨C Pearl in particular ¨C hugged him tightly, almost weeping tears of joy. Ladies, save your tears for the finals. We only made it to the knock-out stages.

    Still, their emotions were only natural. We never made it as far as the knock-out stages last year, or in any of the past five or so years. This was the largest progress we had made in years.

    \"Great job!\"

    \"You the man!\"

    The guys were also pretty touched as well, grinning and laughing as they slapped Harrison in the back or threw their arms around his shoulder to rock him. It was a highly emotional moment, and I could see the expressions of the third year students, in particular. Never in their wildest dreams did they think we would make it this far.

    Theodore, Cody, Lily, Pearl and Harrison. Half of our team were made of third year students, veterans who crashed out of the qualifiers early on last year and watched their own seniors get knocked out even earlier during their first year. Therefore it was understandable that they were the most overjoyed that we managed to reach the knock-out stages.

    \"It''s not just me.\" Harrison was beaming, but his voice was choked, packed with emotions. It was taking every ounce of his self-control to keep his own feelings from erupting within him. Despite his best efforts, I could see that he was trembling. \"All of you contributed massively as well. Every single one of us. Without even one of you guys, we would never have gotten this far. This isn''t my victory alone ¨C it''s our victory. We achieved it together!\"

    \"Yeah!\" the guys roared, pumping their fists into the air. Even the aloof and usually cold Bu Fan couldn''t help but grin in approval.

    \"Now we should prepare for the next stage,\" Pearl declared softly, trying to hold back a sob. She had done some calculations and saw that we had achieved the top twelve scores needed to get to the knock-out stages. Our place in the next round had been sealed. \"It''s only going to get harder from here on out.\"

    \"Bring it on!\" Craig shouted, unable to contain his excitement. \"We''ll crush whatever opposition that throws themselves at us!\"

    \"Don''t underestimate the opponents,\" Sheila reminded him quietly, her eyes slightly red. \"Those who made it to the knock-out stages are the best of the best. The strongest schools of the Federation. We cannot afford to take them lightly.\"

    \"That''s true,\" Theodoe conceded, but he smiled bearishly. \"Even so, I think it''s fair to say that we can proceed to the knock-out stages with a good amount of confidence. We have proven that we don''t need to fear anyone. Not with this year''s team.\"

    \"Yeah!\" Dong Fang Yue Chu hollered enthusiastically. \"Let''s all do our best! I''m sure we won''t let our school down!\"

    While we were celebrating, a few other students approached us. Turning around, I recognized Ding Ke Po and the Divine Divination Academy students.

    \"Congratulations,\" Ding Ke Po said to us. Their captain offered a hand, and Harrison accepted it in behalf of us.

    \"Thanks. You guys too¡­?\"

    Ding Ke Po shook his head at my question. But he smiled nonetheless.

    \"Thanks to you guys, our captain got a good haul of points this match, but it still wasn''t enough. Even taking into account the bonus points, we''re far from the top twelve. We''ve been knocked out of the qualifiers.\"

    \"Sorry to hear that¡­\"

    \"No, don''t worry about it.\" Ding Ke Po patted my shoulder. \"We are proud of what we achieved here. Even though we aren''t that proficient in combat, we still put in a good showing. We gained a lot of respect from other schools and restored the pride of Divine Divination Academy. The last two rounds, in particular¡­people have changed their perceptions of us. Now they understand how useful divination magic can be. We can hold our heads up high, having proven our detractors wrong.\"

    \"The new system has benefited you guys,\" Theodore remarked with a nod of his head. \"With the emphasis on teamwork, your school will have more chances to display your abilities in the future.\"

    \"That''s a good thing, right?\" Cody agreed with a nod of his head. \"The old system, with its over-emphasis on individual rankings and brute strength, was stifling. I think I like this new system a lot more. I wished I had worked with it instead of around it.\"

    I could hear the regret in his tone. During the third round, Cody had tried to act individually and play to his strengths as a solo Assassin, working alone to stealthily take out his opponents from the shadows. He got taken out by a wood mage who was working in concert with a bunch of other students, having formed a three-girl team in the park.

    \"Thanks again. If I didn''t have the chance to work with you, I''ve no idea how I would have fared.\"

    \"I''m sure you''ll do well,\" I assured him, but Ding Ke Po shook his head.

    \"I doubt it. I would have been eliminated much earlier, and we probably wouldn''t have bothered with this match. Hell, our captain was only motivated to do his best because he saw how you cooperated with me in the previous stage.\"

    \"Nah¡­\" I wasn''t sure what else to say, but I believed he was giving me a little too much credit. Ding Ke Po would definitely find some way to survive even without me. Hell, he helped me survive ¨C if it weren''t for me, I would have been eliminated much earlier by surprise attacks. Twice in a row, in fact.

    \"Honestly, the five stages surprised me,\" Ding Ke Po admitted. \"I thought the final stage between the captains would be a¡­written test.\"

    \"Huh?\" Yue Chu stared at him, baffled beyond belief. \"Written test?\"

    \"Yeah. The captains would be required to write an essay on a selected academic topic or something.\"

    \"Why the fuck would they be required to do that?\" Craig demanded irritably, only for Sheila to nudge him.

    \"Watch your language!\"

    \"Sorry.\"

    \"Well¡­I don''t know. So that it''ll give the protagonist a chance to show off how intelligent he is by getting a S+ rank on his genius essay that wows the graders and surprises everyone in the tournament, allowing him to slap the faces of all the so-called high-ranking academies who looked down on him and his school, regarding him as trash. Also to force out a reaction from the goddess Cecilia Stuart, making her embarrassed for dismissing him out of hand and underestimating his abilities after dumping him when she thought he was a nobody and would probably not be fit to stand by her side as her lover.\"

    \"¡­what have you been rambling on about since earlier?\" Lily asked with a scowl. \"And what does Cecilia Stuart have to do with anything?\"

    \"Yeah.\" Bu Fan, surprisingly, joined the conversation. \"Don''t be ridiculous. They won''t do a written test just to show off how smart the protagonist is. I mean, I''m the protagonist, and I can tell you for sure that I don''t do that well on written tests. I''m much better at practical exams.\"

    \"You''re the protagonist?\" Yue Chu spluttered, staring at him incredulously. \"Since when?\"

    \"What?\" Bu Fan scoffed arrogantly. \"Did you not read Versatile Mage? Of course I am the protagonist. I control two elements¡­which will increase to four once I get to university. And I have a beautiful ojou-sama character in love with me to the point where she tried to elope with me, and a cute little sister with healing magic, who''s also in love with me.\"

    \"Is this guy nuts or something?\" Craig muttered under his breath.

    \"You''re not the protagonist,\" Ding Ke Po informed Bu Fan flatly, provoking an enraged response from the¡­uh, versatile mage.

    \"What do you mean¡­?!\"

    \"Attention, everyone!\"

    The tournament staff''s timely announcement cut him off before he could say anything. The whole population of participants turned to face the soldier in a purple beret. He cleared his throat and clapped his hands to ensure that everyone''s attention was focused solely on him.

    \"I shall announce the twelve top teams who have made it into the knock-out rounds.\" He listed twelve schools, eliciting cheers from each academy who heard their name announced. Being used to this, the tournament staff patiently waited for the applause and celebrations to die down before he announced the next name. Needless to say, when he said, \"Jing Tian Academy,\" we practically yelled our lungs out, exchanging high fives and delighted hugs.

    \"We did it¡­we actually did it¡­\" Yue Chu had tears in his eyes. \"We''re in the knock-out stages!\"

    \"I can''t believe we made it.\" Theodore slumped down, dazed. \"I mean, I know we did, but actually hearing our name officially announced¡­\"

    \"I know what you mean.\" Harrison clapped his back, unable to hide a grin. \"It''s like we are dreaming. After the disaster last year, I didn''t think we could come this far.\"

    As our celebrations died down, the tournament staff proceeded to announce the rest of the schools who had made it. Interestingly enough, that wasn''t all. After he listed all twelve schools that made it into the next round, the soldier smiled and looked down on all of us.

    \"As you know, this means that there are sixty teams who are guaranteed a place in the play-offs. But there are four slots remaining. So how do we decide that?\"

    Everyone exchanged glances, not knowing the answer.

    \"The thirteenth place team in each group will be singled out,\" the tournament staff continued. \"But there are five groups, which means five teams¡­and only four slots.\"

    \"Ah¡­\" Ding Ke Po seemed to have realized something. \"Play-offs?\"

    \"Not exactly. We aren''t going to waste time with play-offs. Rather, out of this five, the four with the highest scores will get into the knock-out stage. The team with the lowest score is automatically eliminated.\"

    He then beamed as his eyes settled on a group of students wearing black uniforms.

    \"And I''m pleased to announce that the thirteenth placed team in this group has qualified for the knock-out stages ¨C your performance in the second round of qualifiers has been outstanding, and you have the highest score out of the five groups. Everyone, give a hand to Dark Horse Academy!\"

    Everyone burst into applause, their attention now fixated on the stunned students of Dark Horse Academy. The black-uniformed mages had been crying, having been so close to making it, but believing themselves eliminated by just a point or two. Their efforts, their tears, sweat and blood had finally been rewarded.

    \"Hmph¡­isn''t that surprise usually sprung on the protagonist''s team?\" Bu Fan was sounding confused, but we decided to ignore his nonsense for now.

    \"Once again, congratulations to the thirteen teams who made it to the knock-out stages. Make sure you do your best again! But be warned, the real battle is only just beginning. Do not bow to adversity! If you continue to show the spirit that you have displayed so far in the qualifiers, I personally believe that you''ll make remarkable progress in the knock-out stages!\"

    \"Yes, sir!\"

    The tournament staff swept his stern gaze across the hundreds of participants ¨C many of whom would be returning home tonight, disappointed or accepting their elimination with good grace and pride that they did their utmost best. Then his stony fa?ade broke into a warm smile.

    \"Go get some rest, all of you. You''ve definitely earned it.\"

    With that, the qualifiers were officially over.

 372 Chapter 372: A Small Break

    \"How do you like Southampton City?\"

    After the qualifiers, all of the sixty-four teams who had made it to the knock-out stages were required to return to Southampton City, where the tournament would be held this year. We were given a week''s break after all that fighting and competing, and Bu Fan wasted no time wheeling his sister out. Xin Chun was wheelchair-bound for some reason. Don''t ask me why. For some reason, even though healing magic existed, she couldn''t heal her own legs and still needed a wheelchair. Maybe her disability wasn''t something that could be healed, or it was a curse rather than an injury/disability. I had no idea. Knowing the author of Versatile Mage, I wouldn''t be surprised if Xin Chun turned out to be harboring a Divine Spirit inside her body, and thus the burden of carrying two souls inside one body was so great that she couldn''t walk. I guess we''ll find out after 1,000 chapters¡­assuming we ever get that far (most likely we wouldn''t).

    Anyway, as Harrison promised, we brought Xin Chun along. Originally we planned to bring her before the qualifiers first began, but the young healing mage had classes and school stuff to do so she declined. Fortunately, she was able to come along right after the qualifying stages and here she was. Bu Fan turned into a completely different person the moment he saw her, and was always babying her, looking after her and wheeling her about.

    \"I''ll take you around Southampton City!\" he declared, and left the rest of the team behind. He couldn''t even be bothered to stick around for strategy meetings and other discussions. With the knock-out stage taking palce next week, most of the team had gathered in Harrison''s room to watch video replays of the other teams'' duels, and figure out the optimal tactics to tackle them. Unsurprisingly, the lone wolf Bu Fan (unless he was required to go grab some treasure item in the middle of a desert) declined to participate in these group events and was more occupied with taking his sister out to play. Thus he was conspicuously absent.

    \"Southampton City? Isn''t this Stuart City?\" Xin Chun sounded confused.

    \"Of course not. I know this city serves as the home base for the Stuart Clan, one of the ten great families, but why would they name the city after them? This isn''t Battle Frenzy.\"

    \"Uh, right¡­okay.\" Xin Chun didn''t sound convinced, but she went along with whatever her brother said. And the two disappeared from the hotel shortly after that, never to be seen again for the rest of the day. By most of us, anyway. Since they were step-siblings and were not actually related by blood, I wouldn''t be shocked if they developed a romantic relationship, despite Bu Fan already having a love interest in the form of someone from the Mu clan. Don''t ask.

    \"Are we seriously going to let Bu Fan go like that?\" Craig complained as he glanced out of the window.

    \"Let him.\" Harrison sounded dismissive as he waved his hand. \"It''s not as if he''ll contribute much to the discussion anyway. He''s the type who relies on brute force and overwhelming magic. That''s his strategy and admittedly it''s pretty viable.\"

    \"Besides, it has been a while since he got to see his sister.\" Sheila placed a soothing hand on Craig''s arm. \"Give them some time together.\"

    \"All right, all right.\" Craig was grumbling, but he didn''t argue. Harrison nodded and swept his gaze across everyone with a bright smile.

    \"Let''s begin then. This is the replay video of the team from Adolf Academy¡­\"

    *

    After spending a whole day of analysis and stuff, we broke up for rest. Several of my friends decided to go have dinner in some bar, but as I wasn''t feeling very hungry, I decided to return to my room for now.

    \"Are you sure you are all right?\" Yue Chu asked me, concerned. I nodded and smiled to assure him.

    \"Yeah. Just a little tired. I''ll probably take a nap, and then go for dinner in two or three hours. It''s still too early for me.\"

    It was only five in the afternoon. I usually didn''t eat dinner until seven or eight, mostly because I was too lazy to cook. My stomach ran on its own internal biological clock, always subjecting me to its whims. It sucked, but there was little point in forcing myself to eat when I wasn''t hungry, and I needed to eat when I was hungry.

    Okay¡­that sounded weird. Anyway, I had more important things to focus on than to explain the whims of my stomach.

    \"Since I have some time, I should go practice and develop my ice magic more, and infuse more of it with my summoning magic.\"

    That was right. The best way of making myself hungry was to train. By the time I finished training, I bet I would be starving. Burning up mana, energy and calories would cause my stomach to growl. Theoretically, anyway. As I said, my stomach was one weird one.

    After training, I left the gym, took a shower in my hotel room upstairs to wash away the sweat. Even though I practiced ice magic and ended up freezing myself, I still perspired a lot from the sheer effort and exertion of practicing magic and sparring with my newly developed Constellation spirits. Cetus was much improved from before, and Scorpius had a new ice-type ability because ice magic was a branch of water magic, so it was easier for me to infuse him with ice spells than my other Constellation spirits.

    Even so, there were a couple of others that I wanted to try and infuse with ice magic, but I didn''t know how it would work out. Honestly, it was going to take me a lot of time, but it should be worth it. Or so I hope. Well, one step at a time. Training and learning magic was a journey, not a single jump. You would get nowhere by being impatient and without making the required steps.

    \"Ugh¡­now I''m hungry.\"

    Glancing at the clock, I saw that it was finally eight in the evening. In other words, time for me to get some dinner. Gulping down some water, I then left my room, took the elevator down to the lobby, and then departed from the hotel. There was a Korean restaurant nearby, from what I remembered. Right, Tofu House. That was the one.

    I had a craving for white rice and tofu soup. Mild spicy, of course. The last time I went there, I was attacked by the Hei Clan¡­sort of, but fortunately Hei Xin stopped the assault and allowed me to eat in peace. Not that I needed her permission, mind you, but it was better than getting into fights when all I wanted to do was eat.

    Hopefully nothing too dramatic would happen. I recalled the courageous chef who stood up to the bullies from the Hei Clan, not caring that they were from one of the top ten great families of the Federation. As he said, this was his restaurant, and nobody was exempt from the rules he instituted. All customers were equal in his eyes, as long as they were within his property.

    \"Yeah, I''ll have that.\"

    My mouth was already watering when I thought about the food that was sure to be cooked in the establishment. I could already taste that awesome tofu soup.

    \"Welcome!\" the waitress greeted me in Korean when I stepped through the doors. She didn''t recognize me, of course, even though I somewhat vaguely recalled her. I mean, she had to deal with hundreds of customers on a daily basis, she wasn''t going to remember each and every one of them. \"How many?\"

    \"One person.\"

    \"Oi! Make that two. Let him sit here.\"

    I was puzzled when I heard that, and caught sight of a bespectacled guy waving at me. He looked like the scheming type, with dark black hair and a smirk, dressed formally in what seemed like a suit. He didn''t really emanate much mana, so I wondered if he wasn''t a mage. If he wasn''t a mage, then what business did he have with me?

    \"Don''t worry lah, bro. I mean no harm. I very friendly one (I''m a very friendly person).\"

    \"¡­oh? You''re from Singapore?\"

    It had been a while since I heard that Singaporean dialect ¨C Singlish, as we called it, was a hybridized version of English and a bunch of Hokkien, Catonese and Malay words all thrown into it. Kind of like rojak, one of the signature dishes of Singapore, where you basically threw everything together and pour sweet, spicy sauce over it.

    \"Oh? Whoa, you damned pro sia (you''re pretty smart¡­well, hard to translate this). How you know I from Singapore?\"

    \"¡­you''re speaking Singlish.\"

    \"Wah kao, you even know about Singlish? Nice one, sia. Come here, bro. we really need to talk.\"

    The waitress had already left me to talk with the guy, so I had little option other than to take the chair opposite him. As I sat down, the waitress returned to hand me a glass of iced water and a menu.

    \"What you want to eat, huh? I recommend the silky tofu soup. Damned nice, sia.\"

    \"Yeah¡­\"

    \"Trust me lah, I''m not lying.\" When I regarded him with a raised eyebrow, he waved both of his hands to show that he meant no harm. \"Oh, by the way, I''m Zhao Zi Jun. you are Richard, right?\"

    \"Yeah. Are you here to participate in the annual tournament as well?\"

    \"Ya lah. I''m from the Black Demon Academy. Nice to meet you.\"

    To my shame, I didn''t recognize him, though I could guess why he knew me. He clearly had done his research on the other teams and took note of the participants that his team might possibly face. Speaking of which, I did hear about the Black Demon Academy. Wasn''t that the school that the heirs to the Hei Clan ¨C one of the ten great families of the Federation ¨C enrolled in? It was pretty famous and was regarded as one of the top schools.

    \"Oh, no lah.\" Zi Jun must have read my expression, for he shook his head. \"It''s just that¡­Hei Gui actually approached me to launch an assassination on you.\"

    \"¡­excuse me?\"

    \"Don''t worry lah. Of course I don''t want. What kind of lan jiao (stupid) request is that? Oh, and you also don''t have to worry about him. He kana (got) sent to a mental hospital when his parents found out that he was trying to jio (hire) Assassins. Unlike him, they normal people.\" Zi Jun sighed heavily. \"Don''t know what''s wrong with that seow chi bai (crazy idiot), he damned fucked up sia (he''s damed fucked up). Small thing also want to assassinate.\"

    \"Small thing? What small thing?\"

    \"How I know?\" Zi Jun threw up his hands in despair. \"Some bo lio rumor about you having an ambiguous connection with Cecilia Stuart.\"

    \"I don''t have any connection with Cecilia Stuart,\" I protested, frowning.

    \"I know lah. That''s why I say he seow (is crazy).\" Using a finger, Zi Jun drew circles next to his head. \"Like that also want to kill people. His head something wrong (there''s something wrong with his brain).\"

    \"Okay.\" I was still watching him suspiciously and wondering why he was telling me all this. Zi Jun must have read my mind for he chuckled.

    \"Don''t worry lah. I''m not here to kajiao (disturb) you. I here to belanja (treat) you. Take it as me saying sorry for the trouble that seow zai (crazy fella) caused, ''kay?\"

    \"He didn''t exactly ccause me any trouble, especially if he got locked up before he can do anything¡­\" Even though I appreciated a free meal, I wasn''t sure if I could just accept Zi Jun''s treat at face value. Perhaps he wanted something in return?

    \"No lah. Just consider this networking. I damned suay sia (I''m damned unlucky). With my patron locked up in mental hospital, I now looking for new friends. I very good at intelligence work, so if you need me to find out anything, let me know. I don''t mean to hao lian (show off, brag), but I can hook up to the city''s entire camera network and track down whoever you need.\"

    \"¡­okay.\" I nodded. \"Thank you. I will keep that in mind.\"

    \"So in return for belanja-ing you, accept my name card.\" Zi Jun then waved the waitress over. \"Waitress, check! I also pay for this guy.\"

    \"Understood.\" As the waitress went to bring him his check, Zi Jun turned back to me, standing up and putting on his coat.

    \"I''ll leave you to your meal then. Remember, if you need anything, can call me, ''kay? I very good one (I''m very good). I''ll find out whatever info you need, guaranteed plus chop (guaranteed).\"

    \"All right. I will.\" I acknowledged his sentence with a smile and watched him leave, whistling to himself after he paid for his meal by swiping his credit card across the tiny holographic reader that the waitress brought to him. Unsure of what to make out of this conversation, I returned to eating my meal when the waitress finally brought me a steaming bowl of soup and rice.

    I love Tofu House.

 373 Chapter 373: Kidnapping

    \"Ugh¡­\"

    For some reason, I threw up a little because my stomach probably couldn''t handle the kimchi. As much as I loved the tofu soup, the Korean pickled cabbage was too much for me. I vowed never to eat that damned thing again.

    Wiping my mouth and doing my best to clean up the mess I made, I sighed and wiped my hands with plenty of tissue. It was unfortunate, but I couldn''t clean up the whole thing completely. I did my best, though.

    After disposing of the stuff I used, I then strolled back toward the hotel. This was bad. Having thrown up half of my meal, I would probably get hungry in the middle of the night. Most likely I would have to visit a convenience store in the ungodly hours and buy cup ramen or something.

    I didn''t manage to get very far because I saw Bu Fan rushing across the street. Puzzled, I paused for a moment and studied him, but he was too flustered and panicky to notice me. Speaking of which, where was Xin Chun? Bu Fan''s sister was nowhere to be seen. I could have sworn the two of them were inseparable.

    That explained why Bu Fan was so frantic. Although it was nothing but speculation, I guessed that the wheelchair-bound Xin Chun got lost somewhere, and Bu Fan was currently unable to find her. Hence he was running around, trying to search for her. Even though I didn''t like Bu Fan all that much, Xin Chun was another story. She was a very nice girl, and didn''t deserve to be left alone, lost and helpless in the middle of an unfamiliar city.

    \"Hey!\"

    So I approached Bu Fan, waving my hand to catch his attention. The versatile mage stopped for a moment, his face blank until the glint of recognition ignited within his eyes. He cocked his head and glared at me impatiently.

    \"Not now. I''m in a hurry.\"

    \"I can guess what happened. Did your sister get lost? I''ll help you look for her.\"

    Ignoring his rude response, I went straight to the point. I somewhat understood his impatience. If I were in his shoes, I would probably be just as rude and touchy.

    Bu Fan''s shoulders sagged immediately and he ran a hand through his hair, his frustration showing visibly.

    \"It''s that obvious, huh?\" he sighed and swore under his breath. Not at me, so I let it slide. \"Thanks, but the problem isn''t just that Xin Chun got lost. She got kidnapped. A bunch of bastards came by, grabbed her and pulled her to their car. I tried to chase, but they drove off so fast I couldn''t catch up, even with physical reinforcement and speed spells.\"

    \"They grabbed your sister? Right in front of you?\" my jaw dropped as I stared at Bu Fan incredulously. He shook his head sheepishly.

    \"I went to buy ice cream for her, and left her by the side in Southampton Park. I didn''t think someone would be audacious enough to drive right into the park and abduct somebody in broad daylight. I also don''t understand why they kidnapped Xin Chun. What do they want with her?!\"

    \"Money?\" I suggested. That was the number one reason kidnappers abducted hostages, because they wanted to ransom their parents or relatives. Weirdly enough, as far as I knew, Bu Fan was not rich. I had no idea why they would choose to kidnap his sister of all people.

    Bu Fan winced, but not because he read his mind. Rather, he was thinking about something else.

    \"I thought it was money at first, but the kidnappers hadn''t contacted me or my dad for ransom at all. In fact, my dad still doesn''t know that Xin Chun has been kidnapped, and I don''t want to worry him, so I didn''t inform him about it¡­yet. I''ll find Xin Chun before he finds out. I swear it.\"

    \"Okay.\" Pushing my glasses up my nose, I considered for a moment, and a question came to me, unbidden. \"What about your mother?\"

    Bu Fan turned completely cold at that.

    \"My stepmother, as far as my family is concerned,\" he hissed. \"¡­does not exist. After marrying my dad, she threw Xin Chun to us and abandoned her, running away and disappearing somewhere without a word. She''s dead to us now¡­that bitch.\"

    I couldn''t help but bury my face in my palm. This was getting increasingly ridiculous trying to suppress a sigh, I glared at Bu Fan.

    \"Are you seriously going to rip off Versatile Mage? Can''t you be more original?\"

    \"Huh? What are you talking about?\"

    \"Never mind.\" Then something else occurred to me. \"Wait a second, what if the reason why those dudes kidnapped your sister was precisely because of your missing stepmother? I mean, following all the usual clich¨¦s and stuff, your stepmother will turn out to be the number one terrorist on the planet, and a cardinal of the Dark Church. She will be the main antagonist of this story, harboring a deep hatred for humanity and wanting to destroy them¡­\"

    \"Stop! Stop, stop, stop!\" Bu Fan shouted, cutting me off. \"Stop talking nonsense! I don''t know where you get all these crazy ideas from, but my stepmother is not that outrageous of a person! She may be a cold, heartless bitch, but even she isn''t evil enough to be a terrorist!\"

    \"¡­I got them from reading Versatile Mage,\" I began, but Bu Fan was having none of it.

    \"Stop quoting and making references to webnovels! I''m being serious here! Xin Chun has been kidnapped, and I need to find her! Are you going to help me rescue her or not?\"

    \"Yeah, but you''re the one dismissing my hypothesis¡­\"

    \"Who cares about your stupid hypothesis? Stop talking nonsense, you''ve read way too many webnovels! Focus!\"

    \"Then do you have an idea where they took your sister and why they abducted her?\" I countered dryly. Bu Fan, predictably enough, trailed off. \"Do you even know where to begin searching for her?\"

    \"If I did, do you think I''ll be this worried and aimless?! Damn it, if only I knew where they took her! Fuck!\"

    Kind of pointless venting your anger on me, especially since I was trying to help. That said, my \"help\" consisted of pretending that reality followed a set template from another existing story, so I could understand why he was annoyed.

    However, Bu Fan had a point. Where did we even begin to start searching for his sister? We had no idea where to start, and if the kidnappers were using a car, it could have gone anywhere by now. I wouldn''t be surprised if they had driven out of the city. Also, how were we supposed to track down a vehicle?

    \"Do you remember what the vehicle was? Its make, model, or license plate?\"

    \"Oh, I managed to snap a picture of it before it drove out of view.\" Bu Fan retrieved his smartphone and showed me a photo. It was an old Honda, and the picture even included the license plate number.

    Excellent.

    \"¡­I think I might have a friend who can help you.\"

    Recalling the person I had just met and conversed with tonight, I reached into my bag and yanked out the name card that Zhao Zi Jun gave me. Taking my smartphone as well, I dialed his number and waited for him to pick up my call.

    It didn''t even take three seconds for Zi Jun to answer. His face appeared in a holographic video screen that hovered above my smartphone, and he looked at me in surprise. Despite his shock, he was wearing a half-grin.

    \"I knew you confirm will call me one (I knew you wuld call me eventually), but even I didn''t expect you to contact me so fast (soon). What happened?\"

    \"Sorry, this is an emergency.\" I quickly briefed him on what happened to Bu Fan''s sister, and he listened quietly while nodding occasionally. Finishing up, I then gestured for Bu Fan to beam him the photo of the kidnappers'' car. \"This is the vehicle they escaped in after abducting Bu Fan''s sister. Will you be able to find it, or the kidnappers?\"

    \"Confirm can one (I definitely am able to do so)! Leave it to me! Wait ah, I get back to you later, can (Please wait a moment, I''ll get back to you later, okay)?\"

    \"All right.\" The holographic screen flickered for a moment as Zhao Zi Jun went to work, probably downloadling the image of the car and uploading it to his computer. I could hear the furious clatter of typing off-screen as his fingers ran across the keyboard. Wow, but the guy typed really fast!

    \"Who''s that guy?\" Bu Fan asked suspiciously. It was only natural, he had never seen or met Zi Jun before. \"Where did you find him?\"

    \"In a restaurant,\" I replied. Bu Fan raised an eyebrow, and I shrugged in response. \"He''s an intelligence agent. Someone who specializes in finding information. He''ll find those kidnappers for you. Having a photo of the car they escaped in is a great start.\"

    \"Intelligence agent?\" Bu Fan repeated skeptically, his eyes narrowing. \"He''s just a high school student like us!\"

    \"Yeah, and you''re about to go save your sister without contacting the police or informing your dad or any adults.\"

    \"I don''t trust the authorities,\" Bu Fan replied snidely. \"I''ll save Xin Chun with my own hands. The police or adults will just fuck things up. You can''t trust anyone these days.\"

    \"And how is your solo effort working out for you?\" I scoffed. Bu Fan''s face darkened, but he couldn''t offer any comeback. Instead, he glanced at the video call.

    \"Are you sure you can trust this fella?\"

    I shrugged. \"Couldn''t hurt to try¡­unless you have a better alternative other than running around cluelessly like a headless chicken and getting nowhere close to finding your sister or her kidnappers? Or maybe they will finally call you tomorrow to demand a ransom. Perhaps you would like to wait until then?\"

    \"Cheh!\" Clicking his tongue, Bu Fan turned away and folded his arms. \"What happens if he isn''t able to find Xin Chun and the bastards who abducted her?\"

    \"Then nothing changes. We''re back to square one. Since we have absolutely no other choice, what''s the harm in trying? Or are you actually hoping that Zhao Zi Jun fails so that you can tell me you told me so?\"

    \"No.\" as expected, even Bu Fan valued his sister more than his pride. He took a deep breath and balled his fists.

    \"Anyway, Zi Jun is from the Black Demon Academy. The one where the Hei clan children attend. They don''t just admit anybody. I''m sure his skills in finding out information are at least better than anyone else our age that we know.\"

    \"I hate to admit it, but we have no choice but to bet everything on your¡­friend.\" Bu Fan chewed his lip in frustration, but at least he was no longer whining. I was about to say that Zi Jun wasn''t actually my friend, but I didn''t want to arouse any more suspicion than Bu Fan already possessed. The guy was currently on edge, and he ended up pacing around while we waited for the Hei branch family member to return to us.

    Fortunately, he didn''t take too long. After less than a minute, Zi Jun reappeared in the holographic video.

    \"Found them¡­sort of. According to the city cameras, the car those pai kia (gangsters) were in is parked outside this warehouse.\"

    Zi Jun did something with his hand and the holographic screen transformed, now displaying a warehouse instead of the guy''s bespectacled face. Just as he mentioned, there was a single car in the otherwise empty parking lot outside the warehouse. Even as Bu Fan and I scanned the surroundings to identify the street and exact location, the information agent was already on top of things.

    \"Wigan Warehouse, Southwest Street, Wigan Avenue. Wah say, damn far sia (whoa, that''s damned far). About an hour from your current position if you jalan-jalan (walk). I''ll send you the addresss, then you can use Google Map to GPS your way there. You better chiong and get there chop chop (you better hurry up).\"

    \"Thanks.\"

    \"Are the kidnappers inside the warehouse?\" Bu Fan asked tensely, his eyes fixed on the car.

    \"Ya lah (of course). According to the city cameras, they already went in like fifteen minutes ago. Where else they go? Lepak in casino, is it? (Where else would they go? Slack off in a casino?)\"

    Bu Fan scowled, having difficulty understanding Zi Jun''s Singlish.

    \"Can you show us pictures inside the warehouse? Show us the kidnappers inside? I want to make sure Xin Chun is inside there with them.\"

    \"Cannot.\"

    \"Why not?\"

    \"Use your brain lah. Those pai kia kidnappers, right (those gangsters are kidnappers, right)? If they want to hide, they go hide in a warehouse with public cameras for what (if they want to hide, why would they hide in a warehouse with public cameras)? Of course cannot see inside lah (of course I can''t see inside)! The warehouse got no camera what (the warehouse has no cameras)!\"

    By now I had summoned Cygnus and was impatiently gesturing for Bu Fan to get on. He glanced at Zi Jun''s holographic image, still suspicious, and I sighed in exasperation.

    \"Whoa, hurry up, can or not?\" Yeah, I was lapsing into Singlish. Whoops. \"Whether your sister is there or not, we''ll find out when we get there. Stop wasting time!\"

    \"Right.\" With little other choice, Bu Fan hopped on, and I mentally instructed Cygnus to take off into the skies and head straight for Wigan Warehouse.

 374 Chapter 374: Saving Xin Chun

    We dropped several blocks away from Wigan Warehouse, using the tall skyscrapers to keep us out of sight. If the kidnappers were anything close to approaching competent, they would have posted sentries to keep a lookout. Whether they actually did so or not was beside the point. We weren''t going to take any unnecessary risks.

    \"So how do you plan to get in there?\" I asked when I saw Bu Fan immediately rush in the direction of the warehouse. \"Do you seriously intend to barge in through the front door?\"

    \"How else then?\" he snapped at me. I tried not to sigh and roll my eyes.

    \"For starters, we could sneak around. Find an alternative entrance that those kidnappers aren''t guarding, and stealthily infiltrate the warehouse, find your sister, grab her and get out before anyone notices.\"

    \"You think I''m just going to leave those bastards be after they touched my sister?!\" Bu Fan growled.

    \"Uh¡­shouldn''t your sister''s safety be the top priority?\" I asked uncertainly. Bu Fan glared at me, on the verge of exploding.

    \"I don''t care! The moment they lay a hand on my sister, they have sealed their own doom! I''m going to destroy their entire sect, kill every single member of their families and erase their existence from this world!\"

    The fuck? Why was he sounding like a xianxia protagonist? Only xianxia protagonists would go that far. I understood that there were many edgy readers who loved ruthless main characters because they enjoyed self-inserting themselves into positions of absolute power, but honestly I didn''t understand why they reveled in violence and the bloody deaths of others. In the end, the protagonist just became the very same thing that he claimed to hate, but then again they would always hand-wave the logic away with \"strong eat the weak\" and \"survival of the fittest.\" Essentially, as long as you had the power, you could do whatever the fuck you wanted.

    That wasn''t how reality worked, kids.

    Struggling to keep a lid on my temper, I forced myself to speak calmly. \"Focus on saving your sister and getting her out of here. After that, if you want to take revenge, I won''t stop you. You can go back to the warehouse and kill all of them by yourself, if you really want to.\"

    \"Fine. I''ll do that then.\"

    There was no doubt that Bu Fan evidently thought of me as a spineless coward who, as one of the reviewers for this story wrote, \"never retaliates\" or \"never gets revenge on people.\" Well, screw him. I was kind enough to help him save his sister, and if he continued that attitude, I was going to leave him be. The only reason why I was still assisting him was because Xin Chun herself was innocent and didn''t deserve to go through this ordeal.

    Honestly, I wanted to call the police and let them deal with this, but Bu Fan stubbornly insisted that he didn''t want to drag them into this. Mostly because he believed that the police were highly incompetent and would more likely fuck things up than resolve the crisis. Being the main character (or so he believed), he strongly believed that he couldn''t afford to rely on anyone except himself. He would have gone at this solo if he had to, but he had been running around like a headless chicken with no clues whatsoever before I ran into him.

    Even I couldn''t help him directly ¨C I had to approach Zhao Zi Jun and request him for assistance before we finally tracked down Xin Chun''s location. No one man was an island. Strength wasn''t everything. Everyone had different skills and talents, and each person had a role to play in society. It wasn''t like all those bullshit xiannxia stories that spout the nonsensical \"if you''re not a martial artist, you''re trash\" or \"if you don''t have talent in martial arts, you''re trash.\" Then what about the doctors, merchants, farmers, blacksmiths, and a whole range of support vocations that allowed the martial artists to benefit from their statuses? Treat them like trash, and they would have absolutely no reason to work for you, they might as well leave or find an employer who treats them better. Or resign themselves to death instead of living lives of slavery.

    \"So, did you find an avenue in?\" Bu Fan demanded impatiently, breaking me out of my thoughts. A few seconds ago, I had summoned a flock of Corvus and sent them flying around to reconnoiter the perimeter. Obviously I had yet to see anything, given how less than thirty seconds had passed since I had sent my Constellation spirits out.

    \"Dude, do you not know how summoning and reconnaissance work? Give me more time.\"

    \"We don''t have time!\" Bu Fan yelled. I really felt like kicking that spoilt brat.

    \"And what does you screaming and shouting like a child achieve other than distracting me from my job and wasting more time?\"

    That shut him up, thankfully. I spent the rest of the time peacefully looking through the many pairs of eyes that my flock of Corvus set upon the warehouse as they circled, or perched in different positions. Some sat atop an outcrop of a skyscraper, or balanced precariously upon the railing of a balcony. Others circled here and there, appearing to humans like normal birds soaring lazily in the air. The sentries, if the kidnappers were competent enough to post them, wouldn''t be looking out for birds. They would be looking out for humans.

    Actually¡­now that I thought about it¡­

    \"We don''t even need to sneak in,\" I muttered. Bu Fan stared at me, astonished.

    \"What did you say?\"

    Ignoring him, I knelt down and summon a pack of Lepus, Canis Minor and Ursa Minor. The little Constellation spirits looked up at me, awaiting orders. Pushing my glasses up, I smiled at them, relaying my thoughts rather than words. With a nod, the whole horde of them turned and scattered in unison before approaching the warehouse from different angles.

    By the way, Lepus was a rabbit or hare-type Constellation spirit. I rarely had the opportunity to summon them because they weren''t that strong in combat, but they were small, lightweight and easy to miss because of how harmless they looked. They would be perfect for infiltrating the warehouse. As long as people didn''t get suspicious about how there was a random herd of rabbits wandering around the vicinity of a warehouse, anyway.

    \"Oi!\" Bu Fan reached out for me irritably, evidently thinking that I was deliberately ignoring him. I raised a hand.

    \"Can you be quiet? I''m trying to rescue your sister.\"

    \"Huh? So when can we get in there?\"

    \"We don''t have to go in there.\" A smirk curled over my face. \"The goal of this mission is infiltration and rescue. It doesn''t matter who does it. In fact, wouldn''t it be better if non-humans carry out the mission instead? Those kidnappers wouldn''t be expecting animals to sneak in and rescue your sister.\"

    \"Ah¡­\" Despite his impatience, Bu Fan was a sharp one. \"So that''s why you summoned those little creatures of yours.\"

    \"You can say that.\"

    \"Well, after you get Xin Chun out, I don''t care what you say. I''m going in and exterminating every last one of them.\"

    I shrugged nonchalantly. What Bu Fan did in his spare time was none of my business. \"Be my guest.\"

    Returning to the point of view of my Constellation spirits, I directed them through the vicinity of Wigan Warehouse. They first adopted the gait of stray animals, loitering around the compound and pretending to look for food. Just as I expected, a couple of sentries were standing at the entrance, and even though they appeared relaxed and unguarded, they weren''t going to randomly let people in. in fact, one of them cast a spell and launched a fireball at one of my Canis Minor who got too close. Yelping, the hound-type Constellation spirit leaped away and wisely backed off.

    There would be no going through that way, human or not.

    And my Canis Minor didn''t even get as far as crawling through the fence and into the parking lot. Those guys sure were twitchy and trigger-happy.

    Fortunately, it appeared that their concentration was focused solely on the front. None of them noticed the small pack of Lepus, Canis Minor and Ursa Minor sneaking in through the broken fence at the back. Making use of their tiny sizes, they crawled through the little gaps, or making use of their teeth and claws, they tore apart the thin wiring and widened the holes to just wide enough for them to sneak through. Overheard, my Corvus circled around, keeping a keen eye on the premises, especially on the windows. Though they didn''t see anyone other than the guards at the front, it was better to be safe than sorry.

    There wasn''t a stir or any sign of movement, even as my little Constellation spirits infiltrated the compound from the back. They looked for any alternative entrances that weren''t doors, whether it was piping, ventilation, gratings, or even broken windows. They landed in the interior silently and fanned out, going from room to room.

    \"¡­where''s everyone?\"

    \"Huh? What happened? What do you mean?\"

    Bu Fan''s tense voice broke me out of my concentration. Not that I needed to concentrate much to begin with. How do I put it, I was essentially a drone pilot looking out of my Constellation spirits'' eyes, but my Soul Beasts were largely on autopilot, so I could just leave it to them. If necessary, I could step in and pilot them personally, sort of like hijacking them, but they were more of extensions of my own body rather than actual separate, living organisms with their own sentient, free will.

    Hence my total lack of guilt in possessing one of them. For now, though, I was more than content to let them run on autopilot because there was nothing I could do better by personally piloting one of them. We needed to find Xin Chun first.

    Speaking of which, where was Xin Chun? In fact, where was everybody? The rest of the kidnappers? Other than the two sentries, I didn''t come across any other kidnappers at all.

    \"What is it?\" Bu Fan demanded, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me until I glared at him and smacked his hands away.

    \"Don''t do that,\" I snapped. Taking a deep breath to calm myself down, I closed my eyes and peered through the eyes of my infiltrating Constellation spirits. The smaller Lepus and Ursa Minor crawled in the vents, while the Canis Minor scooted around, peering through doors and keeping a low profile as possible. I eventually noticed a small section of the main hall of the warehouse being cordoned off, with five or six of the kidnappers having spread out sleeping mats to sleep on. A couple of my Canis Minor pranced over silently to investigate, but they were sound asleep.

    \"I finally found the kidnappers¡­or a few of them, but I don''t see your sister anywhere. Where did they bring her?\"

    I received the answer shortly, when one of my Lepus, crawling through the ventilation vents, caught sight of the poor girl. Her wheelchair was missing ¨C apparently they had snatched her off her wheelchair and left it behind while bundling her into their car when they abducted her ¨C and she was currently tied to a chair. Her head was down, her hair hanging limply down to shield her face, but from what I could see, Bu Fan''s sister looked completely unharmed. Of course, that wasn''t apparent ¨C with Xin Chun being a healing mage, they could have roughed her up and she ended up casting a healing spell on herself in reflex.

    From her demoralized and disillusioned appearance, I could only pray the kidnappers didn''t do anything to her. Fortunately, her clothing, though crumpled, was still fairly intact and showed no signs of tear or damage. In other words, they didn''t try to rape her. That was a good sign, at least.

    Along with Xin Chun, there were three kidnappers in the room, guarding her. They were bored as hell, and ended up playing a card game on a nearby table to alleviate the tedium. Their weapons ¨C which included a rifle, a large sword and a spear ¨C lay next to their chairs.

    Directing more of my Lepus and Ursa Minor toward the ventilation shaft that my current rabbit inhabited, I formulated a plan. My little Constellation spirits weren''t exactly strong, and would have trouble taking out those three. I could overwhelm them with numbers, but they would call for reinforcements. Not only the two sentries ¨C the six guys I saw sleeping upstairs would wake up and rush underground to see what the fuss was about.

    So how do I take them out, while safely bringing Xin Chun to safety?

    For now, I decided to inform Bu Fan of her whereabouts. Opening my eyes, I turned to him with a grave expression.

    \"I found your sister. She''s in the basement, being guarded by three guys.\"

    \"Then what are we waiting for? Let''s go in and save her!\"

    \"Wait, wait, wait.\" I pulled him back. \"We can''t just charge in there and beat the kidnappers up. What if they use your sister as a hostage and threaten you with her life? How are you going to rescue her then?\"

    \"That''s¡­\" Bu Fan gritted his teeth in frustration, but he knew I had a valid point. He couldn''t risk putting his sister''s life in danger. Even so, he clenched his fists and punched the wall. \"But we can''t just do nothing¡­!\"

    \"I''m not saying we do nothing. I''m merely suggesting that we plan properly, to minimize danger to your sister.\" I pondered for a moment, running through several options in my head. Then I smiled when a plan came to mind. Since I already had a bunch of little Constellation spirits clustered in the ventilation shaft above Xin Chun, ready to rescue her, all I needed to do was distract the majority of the kidnappers away, so that they didn''t realize their hostage was being carried off.

    Turning to Bu Fan, I recalled how eager he was to beat up the kidnappers.

    Perfect. I could put that simmering rage to good use.

    \"To rescue your sister, we''re going to need a diversion.\" I placed a hand on Bu Fan''s shoulder and dropped my voice into a conspiratorial whisper. \"And all this time, you''ve been itching for an opportunity to strike them for ever touching your sister, right? Seems like you''ll be getting your wish, after all. So this is what we''ll do¡­\"

 375 Chapter 375: Rescue Hostage

    \"You can go in the front, all guns blazing, then withdraw. Don''t just stay there, make sure they come to you. I need you to lure as many of them away as possible so that my team can extricate your sister.\"

    \"Considered it done,\" Bu Fan said automatically, grinning malevolently. Then he blinked, a little startled. \"Wait¡­your team? What team?\"

    \"My Soul Beasts. The guys I summoned. I know they are extensions of myself, but I still refer to them as my team.\"

    \"Makes sense.\" Bu Fan nodded, and then he cracked his knuckles. I sensed the immense mana buildup as he began to cast his intermediate fire spells. The guy was now an intermediate mage¡­wait, wrong story. \"All right, I''ll begin right away.\"

    \"Wait!\" I raised my hand and summoned a Constellation spirit that I had been preparing all this while. \"Lupus will help you.\"

    The gigantic wolf materialized beside me, growling. Bu Fan cocked his head to the side, staring at my new Constellation spirit curiously.

    \"A¡­wolf? Why a wolf?\"

    \"Because you are Bu Fan, so I thought a wolf summon would be more appropriate.\"

    \"Why would a wolf summon be more appropriate for me?!\" Bu Fan demanded. Evidently he had not watched Versatile Mage. I took my smartphone, sent him the link to Webnovel''s translated Versatile Mage comic series, and also added Tencents'' link to the currently three seasons of the anime adaptation. Bu Fan stared at his smartphone for a moment, and then scowled at me. \"I don''t have time to watch dongman and donghua!\"

    \"Watch those with your sister after you rescue her. You''ll be surprised how much she enjoys that series.\"

    \"How would you know about what Xin Chun likes?\" Bu Fan snapped suspiciously, but then shook his head and pulled away. \"I''m wasting too much time arguing with you. I''m going to go create the diversion now. You had better save my sister¡­\"

    \"Yeah, I''ll get her out. I swear. Lupus!\"

    Before Bu Fan could react, Lupus bounded right into the warehouse''s territory, surprising the two sentries. They immediately raised their hands in reflex when the gigantic wolf landed right in front of them, hastily casting spells.

    But Lupus had finished casting his spell before they did.

    \"Lupus, Yang Mun!\"

    The jaws of the great wolf yawned and a sonic howl erupted ferociously, washing over the two sentries and hurling them into the bowels of the warehouse. All around the huge structure, glass shattered and windows broke from the sheer impact.

    \"What?! What''s going on!?\"

    \"Enemy attack! We''re under attack!\"

    \"It''s a monster!\"

    The kidnappers who had been napping all this time were rudely awoken by the deafening noise, scrambling frantically to respond. Bu Fan hurried after Lupus, crusing under his breath when he realized that my Constellation spirit had beaten him to the first punch.

    \"Damn it, you stole my thunder!\"

    Considering that he couldn''t howl like my Lupus, I doubted he would have made an equally thunderous entrance. Then again, he was capable of intermediate lightning magic, or powerful basic lightning magic at the very least, so he might just be capable of unleashing thunder and lightning upon his foes.

    \"Let''s go, Wolfy!\" Bu Fan yelled as he burst into the scene, hurling colossal fireballs at the kidnappers who were rushing out in force, still bleary-eyed from their disturbed sleep and dazed over what was happening. Another huge explosion rocked several off their feet, and set them ablaze. Screaming, the incinerated foes ran smack into the wall and crashed down, desperately rolling on the floor to put out the flames.

    \"His name is Lupus, not Wolfy!\" I shouted at him, but true to form, Bu Fan blatantly ignored me. That was fine, Lupus was going to ignore him if he tried to call him something other than his true name. In the background, I could hear the song, Huan Meng (Calling Dreams), being sung by Inory.

    \"Why the fuck are they playing the opening theme for Versatile Mage season 3 here?\" I wondered out loud, irritated. Well, whatever. As long as they didn''t play Jue Di by Drunken Snow (Zui Xue) during the ending credits, I couldn''t care less. Honestly, I liked Jue Di better, but I wasn''t doing a promotional chapter for Versatile Mage, the donghua adaptation. I swear.

    Anyway, I left the diversion to Bu Fan and Lupus. When things got dicey and more of the kidnappers poured out in force, Lupus automatically withdrew, luring the bulk of the abductors away. He had been instructed by me, and I was still keeping a tight mental rein on him.

    \"Hey!\" Bu Fan hollered, annoyed at being \"betrayed.\" I did tell him beforehand to pull away and lure kidnappers away from the warehouse so that I could rescue his sister. It was his problem if he refused to stick to the plan. I didn''t care if he was super-confident of defeating all the kidnappers by himself. The further he baited the damned abductors away from the warehouse, the less of a chance they would get to use Xin Chun as a hostage.

    The idiot was putting his own sister at risk if he didn''t stick to the plan.

    \"Damn it!\"

    Bu Fan realized that he couldn''t handle over a dozen enemy mages on his own, and he reluctantly retreated, following Lupus.

    While they were luring the dudes away from their hideout, I executed my rescue plan. Using the eyes of my Lepus, I saw that two of Xin Chun''s captors had stood up to check what was happening, leaving just one guard in the room. True to form, and unable to resist the curiosity that was so ingrained within human nature, the guard stared out at the door.

    While his attention was fixated on the noise above, my Constellation spirits sprang to life. They waited until the other two guards were quite a distance away, falling for the decoy that was Bu Fan and Lupus and pursuing them along with the other kidnappers. Then they burst from the ventilation shafts, just like the xenomorphs from the movie, Aliens, taking the guard completely by surprise.

    \"What the¡­?!\"

    That was the only thing he managed to spit out as he grabbed for his weapon, the sword that was lying by his chair.

    Unfortunately, he didn''t make it. One of my Lepus landed a drop-kick into his face, the hare twisting in midair to deliver a powerful strike. The guard grunted before he crashed into the table where he was playing cards earlier with his friends, sending the deck flying into the air. He scrambled for his weapon, which clattered several feet away along with his toppled chair, but an Ursa Minor stepped on it, pinning it to the ground.

    \"You¡­\" the guard growled as he lowered his hands from clutching his broken nose, only to see a whole bunch of rabbits and teddy bears standing over him. His jaw dropped.

    Then he got mobbed by the swarm of \"cute\" Constellation spirits, who promptly beat him senseless. The poor guy.

    One of the Ursa Minor rushed over and swiped at the ropes that were binding Xin Chun, freeing her. She raised her head and stared at the horde of cute Constellation spirits in front of her, completely dazed.

    \"¡­huh? What''s¡­going on?\"

    It wasn''t as if she wasn''t aware of what was going on. She had seen my Constellation spirits rain down from the ceiling and take out her captor. I guess she was still in so much shock that she hadn''t registered what was going on. Her eyes were still blank. The color was only just beginning to return to her eyes and she was struggling to drag her mind out of the gutter.

    \"Eh? What are these? Monsters?\"

    Even as she murmured, Xin Chun didn''t feel any fear. Most likely because she saw how cute and adorable my Constellation spirits were. They gestured for her to move, only able to signal to her because they were unable to talk. No, readers, I cannot summon Constellation spirits that can talk. It just didn''t work that way. I couldn''t simply grant them special abilities just because I \"imagined\" them. There was no such thing as convenient \"utility\" summons or whatever in reality. I had to work with what I had.

    \"Are you¡­helping me?\"

    When Xin Chun saw that my Constellation spirits weren''t going to attack and devour her, she relaxed a little, and then glanced at her legs, looking a little forlorn. Raising her head apologetically, she grimaced.

    \"I''m sorry. I appreciate you helping me, but I''m afraid I can''t walk. Without my wheelchair, I won''t be able to move from here.\"

    \"That won''t be a problem.\"

    \"¡­eh?!\"

    Xin Chun glanced up as I entered the room, flanked by a pack of Canis Minor. I would have brought Canis Major along, but he was too large to fit into the room, so I had him wait outside, in the main hall of the warehouse.

    \"You¡­aren''t you¡­?\" Xin Chun blinked, trying to recognize me, but failed to do so. Then her face lit up when she finally remembered. \"You are one of Brother''s friends!\"

    Well, I wouldn''t exactly call myself a friend, but I wasn''t going to deny that. So I smiled and nodded.

    \"Yeah. We''re here to rescue you.\"

    \"Ah¡­thanks. Where''s Brother?\" Xin Chun craned her neck and tried to look for Bu Fan, evidently knowing that he would definitely come to save her. I tried not to smile when I thought of a prank, but decided not to break her heart and slander her big brother. Knowing Xin Chun, she would be furious if I insulted or cast doubt upon the integrity of her brother in front of her.

    \"Bu Fan is distracting the kidnappers for now. That''s why you see so little of them right now. They are being taken out. Let''s get you out of here before they come back.\"

    \"Oh, okay¡­but how?\"

    \"Leave that to me.\"

    Striding forward, I carried her out of the chair. She was surprisingly light, almost like a feather, and she squirmed ¨C probably uncomfortable with the idea of anyone other than her brother carrying her like this. Ignoring her awkwardness, I focused on getting the hell out of the warehouse. Rushing out of the door, flanked by my minor Constellation spirits, I burst into the main hall of the warehouse where Canis Major was awaiting.

    Loading her upon Canis Major, I then directed him to sprint out of here with his charge while I made up the rearguard. Just as we departed from the warehouse, I caught sight of a couple of kidnappers rushing back.

    Evidently they had wisened up to the possibility that Bu Fan''s assault on the front door was staged as a diversion, or they realized they had lost contact with the lone sentry left behind to guard the hostage. Whatever the case, they caught sight of me and my Constellation spirits leaving with their hostage, and bellowed in rage.

    I rolled my eyes and mentally issued a command to Canis Major. With just two dudes, there wasn''t much for me to do. My huge Constellation spirit reared up, turned his head around and opened his jaws. A black bolt of freezing energy swept across the entire place, freezing the running kidnappers in place and entombing them in ice.

    \"This new version of Sirius is pretty cool,\" I remarked with a chuckle. Turning around, I patted Canis Major and then had him bound out of here while I followed suit.

    \"Xin Chun!\"

    \"Brother!\"

    For some reason, Bu Fan had doubled back, with my poor Lupus keeping the bulk of the kidnappers at bay. While we had gained some distance, I noticed the two criminals breaking free of the ice and drop free, shivering uncontrollably from the deep cold. Even so, they weren''t out of commission yet. Looked like I needed to up the strength of Canis Major''s Sirius¡­

    \"!!\"

    Before I could have my Constellation spirits turn and fight, however, a sudden spell rocketed from above and almost literally nuked the pursuing kidnappers. I threw up my hands in reflex, even as the lenses on my glasses automatically darkened to protect my eyes, and squinted through the blinding flare.

    All of Xin Chun''s captors had been obliterated in that one strike, leaving nothing but skeletons or ashes.

    \"What in the¡­?\" I murmured, and noticed that my Constellation spirits were instinctively shrinking away in fear. Looking up, I caught sight of a dark figure hovering at the rooftop of a building amidst the skyscrapers surrounding the warehouse. I frowned, magnifying my vision with my glasses, but still didn''t recognize her. Oh, right. She was a lady with long, black hair, and was dressed on a dark one-piece. Even from this distance, I could make out her pretty features, thanks to my enhanced vision through my glasses.

    Frowning, I tilted my head as I searched my memory. That lady didn''t look like the police I had contacted once I ensured Xin Chun''s safety. The same police whose wailing sirens could be heard from here. Considering that I had just only contacted them while exiting the warehouse mere minutes ago, they were pretty quick to respond. And since teleportation magic didn''t exist, I doubted that lady was associated with the police.

    \"¡­who?\"

    On the other hand, both Bu Fan and Xin Chun seemed to recognize her, the both of them looking extremely pale. The sister, in particular, brought her hands to her mouth in utter shock as a single word escaped her trembling lips.

    \"¡­Mother?\"

 376 Chapter 376: Return to the hotel

    \"¡­what? Mother?\" I turned to stare at the step-siblings, stunned by the revelation. Neither Bu Fan nor Xin Chun was paying attention to me, their gaze fixed on the lady perched atop the rooftop. She appeared to glance in their direction, and then she leaped away and disappeared in a single bound, her figure swallowed by the night.

    \"No way¡­\" Bu Fan murmured, his face hard. \"What is she doing here?\"

    \"She just saved our lives,\" Xin Chun whispered, her voice still suffused with disbelief. Well, not exactly. Given our skills and the Constellation spirits I had already summoned, Bu Fan and I would probably be able to hold the kidnappers off, at least until the police showed up. Speaking of which, the sirens were getting increasingly louder as their vehicles rushed toward the scene.

    \"Nobody asked her to. We could have handled those bastards on our own.\" Clenching his fists, Bu Fan glared into the distance, his face simmering with resentment. \"Leaving whenever she wants, showing up whenever she wants¡­still as selfish as ever.\"

    I stifled my irritation at being ignored and repeated my question ¨C louder this time. \"So that''s your mother?\"

    \"Ah, yes.\" Xin Chun seemed to remember that I was there, and she nodded. She was still riding on top of Canis Major, and Bu Fan reached up to help her down, cradling her protectively in his arms. Apparently he didn''t trust anyone other than himself to handle the safety of his sister. \"It may be a while since we''ve seen her, but there''s no mistaking it. That''s definitely my mother.\"

    \"Should we pursue?\" Bu Fan asked, glancing at Xin Chun. For some reason, his voice was unusually muted. Most likely he was taking into consideration Xin Chun''s feelings and being sensitive in his own way. Xin Chun shook her head.

    \"If Mother doesn''t want to be found, there''s no way we''ll be able to track her down.\"

    Bu Fan barked out a harsh laugh. \"That''s true.\"

    The lead police car pulled up right beside us, its tires screeching to a halt. Yes, they are still driving normal cars on wheels instead of bestowing hover technology and anti-gravity on all conventional vehicles. Seemed like all the flying cars of 70s and 80s sci-fi movies (like Blade Runner) was an unrealistic pipe dream. Anti-gravity hover technology was way too expensive for common civilians to install it in their daily vehicles. Not to mention impractical.

    \"Hands up! Don''t move!\" the police alighted from their vehicle, bringing their guns up to point their weapons at us. I obeyed, raising my hands, but predictably enough Bu Fan was too proud to surrender. He scoffed.

    \"We''re not the bad guys here. If anything, we are the victims.\"

    \"We''ll record your statement back in the station. I would like to remind you that you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in court¡­\"

    \"In case you haven''t noticed,\" Bu Fan growled, his voice dripping with annoyance. \"My sister is handicapped. I can''t raise my hands unless I put her down somewhere, and unless you have a wheelchair somewhere inside that car, I''m not going to simply leave her on the ground. She can''t stand or walk.\"

    The police looked a little sympathetic, exchanging glances, and nodding.

    \"Put your sister in the car. We''ll bring you all to the station. But no tricks.\"

    \"We are not criminals. I don''t appreciate being treated like one¡­\"

    \"Just do as they say, Bu Fan,\" I told him with a heavy sigh. \"Let''s get this done and over with, and we can return to the hotel faster. The earlier we get back to the station, the faster we can show them the recordings, and the earlier they''ll let us go.\"

    Unable to argue with my logic, Bu Fan relented and carried his sister to the open police car. After he gently placed her upon the leather couch, he held his hands up for the police to handcuff him ¨C but only after he spotted me doing so earlier. I heard the metallic snap and felt cool steel close around my wrists, but didn''t complain about the lack of comfort. I noticed that the police didn''t handcuff Xin Chun, and I silently approved of that.

    Behind us, the rest of the police cars arrived, and the officers spilled out to carry out their investigations, hastily cordoning the scene and beckoning specialists over to cast spells to preserve clues and recreate the incident that had just occurred here. Combined with the public city cameras that kept a vigilant eye on the streets to maintian the security of its residents. The more cynical citizens would accuse the Federation of prying into their privacy and depriving them of their freedom, but honestly, unless you were committing a crime in public or doing something you knew was wrong, why should you care about being caught on camera?

    Bu Fan insisted on being put in the same car as his sister, which was fair if you thought about it. After all, he had just literally saved Xin Chun from abduction. I allowed myself to be manhandled¡­I mean escorted to a second car, and waited a moment or two until the police could spare a couple of personnel to drive us back to the station.

    At the station, we were then herded into separate interrogation rooms. I was heartened to see the station staff pull out a wheelchair from somewhere to accommodate the crippled Xin Chun, but that was the last I saw of either her or her brother before the police shoved me into the room. I obediently sat down on a chair, and then watched as the policemen shut the door, leaving me alone inside the room.

    Sighing, I closed my eyes and waited. Fortunately, I didn''t have to wait too long. Before I knew it, I heard the door creak open and my eyelids flung open. A detective in a trenchcoat and that clich¨¦ hat strode in, glaring at me from across the table as he took a seat opposite.

    \"Why did you murder those men?\" he demanded without any hesitation. I gaped at him.

    \"¡­excuse me?\"

    \"Stop pretending! I know you murdered those men!\" he yelled before rising to his feet and striking me across the face. I crashed into the ground, tasting blood. What the fuck? Since when were police allowed to use violence?

    While I lay on the ground, the detective kicked me in the ribs, sending me spinning. I coughed and curled into a fetal position, wondering if I should fight back. I would get into deep trouble, and it wasn''t going to be a minor incident that I could easily cover up if I got into trouble with the authorities. I would get into all sorts of legal disputes, which would be guaranteed to put me out of the tournament for sure. Hell, I wasn''t sure if being arrested like this would automatically disqualify, but I decided to play it safe for now.

    \"Listen, kid. Just ''fess up your crimes and I''ll make this quick and easy. If you admit your guilt, you''ll avoid the death sentence. If you behave well, we''ll let you go on parole, maybe twenty years max. Fewer if you behave yourself. But you need to be responsible and admit your crimes first.\"

    He then hauled me to my feet and slammed me into my chair. I rocked against the cold metal and plastic, coughing out more blood. The detective smacked my face and then gripped my chin, forcing me to look at him.

    \"Hurry up and ''fess up, kid. We haven''t got all day.\"

    \"I didn''t kill anybody¡­\"

    The guy struck me across the face, and I almost toppled over, only for him to stomp on my foot, pinning me to the ground as I jolted backward. Heaving, my vision almost blinded, I gritted my teeth and glared at him defiantly.

    \"Oh? You don''t want to cooperate, huh? We''ll do this the hard way then.\" The detective punched me in the gut, causing me to double over. He then stalked off and opened the door. Glancing back, he sneered. \"Don''t worry. What we have is time. We''ll force the truth out of you eventually. A kid like you think you''re so tough? You''ll break like all the others do. I''ll give you some time to think about it clamly and differentiate between right and wrong. When you''re finally ready to confess to your crimes, you can let me know.\"

    He then slammed the door, leaving me alone in the room.

    \"¡­fucking bastard,\" I wheezed, wincing and closing my eyes to force away the pain. Gathering mana into myself, I trued to ease the injuries. Before I could do much, however, the door opened, and this time a different detective came in.

    \"Sorry about that. I see that Detective Rottsfield has done quite the number on you.\" the newcomer had a kind smile, and he placed a cup in front of me. \"Coffee?\"

    \"...thanks.\" I was relieved when I saw that it wasn''t black, and I drank a sip. After placing the mug down, I watched as the second detective push a bowl toward me.

    \"You must be hungry. Here, a katsudon (pork rice bowl).\"

    I raised my eyebrow at that. Why a katsudon of all things? Then again, I was indeed hungry after throwing up half of my meal from Tofu House, so I accepted it gratefully.

    As I scooped the rice into my mouth, the detective relaxed in his chair and watched me eat with a satisfied smile.

    \"You look like a good kid. I hope you can cooperate with the investigation.\"

    \"Sure.\"

    \"So what happened?\" Leaning forward, he asked his question in a gentle manner. I glanced up from my bowl, recognizing the strategy. So this must be the good cop, bad cop scenario. Fine, I might as well play along.

    \"My friend ¨C Bu Fan ¨C and I went to rescue his sister from a group of kidnappers. I can replay the whole video for you if you need to. I have it all recorded in my glasses.\" I tapped my glasses, which projected a holographic video in front of me. Swiping at it, I inverted it so that the detective could watch it properly. Raising my hand, I created a copy of the data and beamed it to his smartphone. \"You can watch the entire thing.\"

    \"Thank you. That will be useful. So¡­the kidnappers attacked you, and you were forced to kill them?\"

    \"We didn''t kill them. Not me or Bu Fan, anyway. It was a¡­lady in black who did so. Bu Fan and Xin Chun said she was her mother, apparently. Hang on, let me find the scene for you.\"

    Using my finger, I fast-forwarded to the end, when the kidnappers were obliterated by a single spell from Xin Chun''s mother. The detective watched, his eyes widening for a moment.

    \"Hang on¡­you sent this to my phone, right?\"

    \"That''s right.\"

    \"Good.\" The detective rose from his seat. \"I''ll be back in a bit. I need to show this to my superiors. If what you have just shown me is true¡­\"

    \"It''s true.\"

    \"I don''t doubt that.\" the detective forced a smile. \"But yes, once we confirm the veracity of your video¡­let''s just say this is a very big find.\"

    \"What do you mean?\" I stared at him, puzzled. The detective paused for a moment, as if conflicted whether he should tell me or not.

    \"Let''s just say she''s a very big fish¡­a target that the police has been pursuing for a very long time. Sorry, but I can''t tell you any more than that.\"

    With that, he left, and I found myself alone in the room once more. With nothing else to do, I finished up my bowl of katsudon and waited.

    I must have dozed off, because the next thing I knew, I was awaken by angry voices and the door slamming. To my complete surprise, it was Sacha Stuart who barged into the interrogation room, his usually handsome features twisted in rage.

    \"What did you do to Richard?!\" he bellowed at the cowering policemen. Rottsfield, in particular, was slinking away, but Sacha glared at him. \"You beat him up to try and force a false confession from him? And you call yourself a policeman?!\"

    \"Sorry¡­it''s just that¡­the evidence was pointing toward the kids¡­\"

    \"What evidence!? You brought them back to the station without having fully inspected the scene, and you beat Richard up before you tried getting any details or his own personal account of what transpired here!? Do you think I''m stupid? I''ve heard about how you guys operate. You just want to force a confession out of whoever you find on scene so that you can wrap up the case quickly. Isn''t that right, Rottsfield!?\"

    \"I¡­I¡­\"

    \"The chief superintendent will hear of this, I promise you this.\" Sacha was glowering at the now frail-looking Rottsfield. \"About your illegal interrogations and assault on interogatees. I''ll make sure you will never find a job in the police force again.\"

    By now, Rottsfield had stopped stammering, and he hung his head, his shoulders sagging. I almost felt sorry for him. Almost.

    \"Let''s go, Richard. We''ll get you healed up, and get you back home tonight.\"

    Sacha''s voice turned gentle when he turned to me. I nodded dumbly, feeling an immense sense of relief. This ordeal was finally over, and it was resolved without me needing to defiantly fight back against an abusive detective trying to force a confession out of me. I knew I made the right choice. Rottsfield would get punished and fired from his position, and I would return to participating in the tournament without a hitch. Great.

    \"Actually, I''m staying in a hotel that the Federation booked for us students,\" I told Sacha. He nodded and inspected me. I must have looked quite the sight, with all the bruises and bleeding on my face. He shook his head in disgust before softening his face.

    \"Oh, yeah. I meant hotel. But before we send you and your friends back, let''s get those wounds healed.\"

    He then glared at Rottsfield and the rest of the policemen, all of whom visibly avoided eye contact with the current Stuart clan head.

    \"As for these¡­gentlemen¡­\" he almost spat out the word. \"You have my word that they will pay for their¡­methods.\"

 377 Chapter 377: Return to the hotel II

    In the end, there was no need to bring me to a hospital. Xin Chun, who was in the police station with me and Bu Fan, cast her healing spells on me, and the bruising disappeared within minutes. Honestly, light injuries such as these would heal in another hour, given the amount of mana in my body, so she didn''t have to waste her mana¡­

    \"Where''s Bu Fan?\" I asked, noticing that her brother was missing. Sacha Stuart looked a little uncomfortable.

    \"Your friend¡­got into a fight with the police, attacking Rottsfield. I''m getting my lawyers to work on his case, but he''s being held for¡­assasult.\"

    \"It''s self-defense!\" Xin Chun argued hotly. \"The detective attacked him first!\"

    \"I don''t doubt that, but unfortunately the law is the law. Assaulting a detective is still a crime. No way out of that. Don''t worry¡­give me a few days and I''ll be able to bail him out. Just be patient.\"

    Xin Chun lowered her head, but she understood that Sacha''s hands were tied in this case. That he was already doing his best, and she couldn''t demand more of him.

    \"Thank you,\" she said quietly instead. Sacha nodded, an understanding expression on his face.

    \"No, I understand how you feel. Perfectly. Trust me. I will do everything within my power to get your brother out.\"

    As I wheeled her out, I was greeted by Adrian and a bunch of Stuart Corporation bodyguards. I glanced around warily, half-expecting Yuan Dao Yue Guang to show up out of nowhere, but thankfully he didn''t.

    \"Brother Richard! Are you all right?\"

    \"Yeah.\" I lifted a hand from Xin Chun''s wheelchair to wave at him. \"You''re here too?\"

    \"This is Southampton City, remember? I live here.\"

    Oh, right. The Stuart clan''s base city was indeed Southampton City, and that was where the main family and all their establishments were located in. Most of them, anyway. Still, I had just only recently seen Adrian in Aurora City, so I was a little taken aback to see him return to Southampton City so soon. Then again, he did say that he was there just to watch the qualifiers, so it made sense that he came back here to continue watching the knock-out rounds.

    \"Wow, I heard you took out a bunch of kidnappers?\"

    \"That wasn''t me.\" I gestured toward the girl I was currently wheeling toward Sacha''s limousine. \"That was her mother.\"

    Xin Chun pursed her lips, but she didn''t say anything. I hoped she wasn''t too offended. She didn''t glare at me, though, and merely stared straight ahead before sighing.

    \"¡­yeah.\"

    \"We''ll bring you both back to the hotel for now. You''ve been through a lot.\" Sacha glanced back in the direction of the police station, his eyes hardening. \"I''m sorry about your brother, young lady, but as I said, I''ll definitely get him out. A few days max. I promise.\"

    \"Thanks.\" Xin Chun''s voice was subdued, but audible. She said nothing else as I loaded her up into the limousine.

    \"How are your preparations for the tournament?\" Adrian asked when I sat next to him in the passenger compartment.

    \"Well, you know,\" I replied vaguely. As if I was going to give away details of our strategy to an outsider. Even if I didn''t care about this secrecy thig, I couldn''t because I had no idea what Harrison had planned. Yet. \"Okay, I guess.\"

    \"Do your best! I''m rooting for you!\"

    \"Thanks. That''s assuming I''m still in the tournament, though.\"

    \"Don''t worry about that,\" Sacha informed me, having taken a seat opposite me and settling into the rich, leather couch. \"You won''t be disqualified. I''ll make sure of it. If anything, it''s the police''s fault for treating you like a criminal.\" When I stilled looked unconvinced, he took out his smartphone and waved it at me. \"I''ve already spoken to the tournament staff, and they assured me that nothing will happen to you or Bu Fan.\"

    Xin Chun visibly relaxed at the mention of her brother, relieved that he wouldn''t be kicked out of the competition just because he \"assaulted\" a police detective. I was suddenly immensely relieved that I didn''t pull that defiance stunt and fought back, or I would be sharing a cold, dirty cell with Bu Fan tonight. Poor guy.

    This, kids, is the reason why you don''t just resort to violence and fight back every single time. This wasn''t me being \"spineless.\" No, it was just me playing smart. And Rottsfield was going to get punished. Sometimes, what you need is patience and wisdom, not instant retaliation and edgy vengeance.

    When we reached the hotel, we were greeted by almost the entire team, minus me and Bu Fan, of course.

    \"What happened?\" Harrison demanded, looking concerned. His eyes widened as he took in me and Xin Chun. \"Where''s Bu Fan?\"

    \"Stuck in jail for now.\" I sighed for a moment before I briefly gave him an account, with Sacha interjecting occasionally to help me build a fuller picture. \"He won''t be out until a few days later.\"

    \"It''s my fault,\" Xin Chun said miserably. \"If I didn''t get myself kidnapped, Brother would never have to¡­he was only trying to save me.\"

    \"It''s not your fault,\" Pearl assured her, kneeling by her side to place a comforting hand on her arm. The girls gathered around her, trying to help her out.

    \"That''s right! It''s those bastards who tried to kidnap you in the first place!\" Lily agreed fiercely. \"How dare they lay a hand on you?!\"

    \"I''m glad you are all right.\" Sheila patted Xin Chun''s head. \"That''s the most important thing. That you''re safe and sound. I''m sure Bu Fan thinks it''s all worth it.\"

    \"Yeah, Bu Fan is the kind of guy who will walk through hell and back just for his sister. I''m sure he''ll just laugh off his stay in a mere cell.\" Craig chuckled with a shake of his head. \"It sucks, but I know he''ll be fine. if anything, his jailmates are going to be afraid of him.\"

    \"Knowing Bu Fan, he''ll probably tame all the other inmates and have them address him as boss or big brother by the end of his stay,\" I muttered. A very typical trope in most modern Chinese webnovels featuring the ultimate soldier or secret agent or whatever.

    \"You guys should rest for now. Go to bed and take the night off. I''ll make sure Bu Fan gets help, so don''t worry about it. And he''ll still be legible to participate in the tournament, so continue to prepare accordingly.\"

    \"Okay.\" As the team captain, Harrison represented all of us, and he nodded to acknowledge Sacha''s iinstructions.

    \"See you, Brother Richard! And good luck!\"

    Adrian waved at me before getting back into the limousine, and I waved back almost absent-mindedly.

    \"Yeah. Thanks.\"

    We watched the limousine pull away and drive off in the direction of the Stuart District. Now that I thought about it, we were actually being accommodated in the Stuart Hotel, of all places. When we returned to the lobby, Stewart Stuart emerged.

    \"You guys all right? I heard everything from Sacha. That was quite the crisis you''ve been through. Let me know if there''s anything we can do to help.\"

    \"Thanks, I appreciate it, but for now we probably just want to return to our rooms and rest for the night.\" Harrison bowed politely, and Stewart nodded.

    \"I''ll bring some snacks for you guys¡­the room service will be on the house for the rest of your stay here.\"

    \"That would be very much appreciated. Thank you.\"

    Well, at least we got free food. That was an improvement.

    After we got into the elevator and went up, Yue Chu turned to me.

    \"Richard, why didn''t you tell us?\"

    \"¡­tell you?\"

    \"The kidnapping,\" Theodore explained. \"I know you and Bu Fan were worried for Xin Chun''s safety, but to go after the kidnappers by yourself¡­it''s too dangerous. Why didn''t you tell us that Xin Chun got abducted? Why did you go after them by yourselves?\"

    \"Well¡­to be honest, that''s because Bu Fan ordered me not to tell anyone. I wanted to report it to the police, but he seemed to think they would mess up and put his sister''s life in danger. He was also pretty flustered and impatient, and didn''t want to wait for reinforcements. He wanted to go save her immediately. In fact, the only reason why I knew about Xin Chun getting kidnapped was because I just happen to run into him by coincidence while he was searching for her outside the restaurant I had my dinner in.\"

    \"Even so, you should have told us!\" Yue Chu insisted. I lowered my head.

    \"Sorry.\"

    \"I do sort of understand Bu Fan''s emotions, though,\" Craig admitted. \"If I were him, I would probably want to move out immediately and not waste any time at all on contacting others. I would want to save my sister with my own two hands instead of relying on other people. And you know how paranoid Bu Fan is ¨C he definitely doesn''t trust the police at all.\"

    \"You don''t have a sister,\" Sheila reminded him dryly. Craig glared at her.

    \"It''s just the thought that matters! The personal feelings!\"

    \"In any case, what''s done is done, and I''m glad the three of you are all right.\" Harrison sighed, rubbing at the crease between his eyes. He looked a little stressed out, but more than that he seemed relieved. \"As long as you guys are back safely, that''s all that matters. Just that¡­in future, if something similar happens, don''t hesitate to contact us, even if you don''t want to contact the police. Perhaps there is very little we can do, but we would like to at least try to help in whatever way we can.\"

    \"I''ll keep that in mind,\" I assured him, though I doubted Bu Fan would ever do that. The guy was too much of the typical arrogant god-mode main character to consider anything other than going solo. Maybe he would join a mission with a party if it contained cute girls, but otherwise he was the type who believed he could do everything alone.

    \"Why did they want to kidnap you, though?\" Cody asked Xin Chun, his arms folded. \"Are you a super VIP or something?\"

    \"That''s actually the strange thing. They didn''t call Bu Fan or his dad to ask for ransom. They just took Xin Chun and brought her to a warehouse.\"

    \"I¡­\" Xin Chun hesitated for a moment, and then swallowed, as if her mouth had just gone dry. \"I overheard them saying that they intend to bring me to the Dark Church.\"

    \"The Dark Church? Why?\" Yue Chu''s eyes almost bulged out of his sockets. At that moment, the elevator doors slid open, and we found ourselves back in the level where our rooms were located. Lily took charge of pushing the wheelchair and then caressed Xin Chun''s hair.

    \"Don''t worry about it, sweetie. We won''t let the Dark Church touch you again.\"

    \"Yue Chu did raise a valid question, though,\" Theodore pointed out seriously. \"Unless we know why the Dark Church is targeting Xin Chun, it''ll be difficult to prevent them from carrying out similar acts in future. What do they want from her?\"

    \"Maybe it has something to do with drawing out her mother,\" I suggested, remembering that last scene at the end when the lady in black showed up to obliterate the kidnappers in one spell. I shrugged when everyone turned to stare at me. \"I did tell you about how she showed up at the end, right?\"

    \"You did,\" Harrison affirmed.

    \"¡­perhaps.\" Xin Chun had this faraway look in her eyes. \"I was never close to my mother. I don''t know what she''s doing and I can''t tell what she''s thinking. I don''t even know what the relationship between her and the Dark Church is, and why they would want to lure her out. But if they didn''t bother my brother and father, then¡­it is possible that my mother is involved in this somehow.\"

    She lowered her head and sighed sadly.

    \"But honestly¡­right now, I just wish she will stay as far away from our family as possible¡­\"

 378 Chapter 378: Eve of the Knock-out Rounds

    Bu Fan was finally released from jail after a couple of days, thanks to Sacha pulling some strings. As an aside, Rottsfield really was fired and blacklisted from the police force. I would pity him, but he totally deserved it. I still remembered how he beat me up and kicked me just to force a false confession from me. All so he could close the case early.

    Bloody corrupted cop. I heard that he was even going to have to serve a jail sentence for a few years at least. All the false confessions and acquittals were happening now, across the Federation as a result of Rottsfield and his colleagues forcing false confessions and dishonestly imprisoning prisoners just so their job could be easier. It had become quite the scandal.

    Not that I cared. The police had nothing to do with me now. I was more concerned with the upcoming tournament.

    Bu Fan, as you would expect, returned to the hotel in a foul mood. He was absolutely fuming as he stomped through the lobby. However, the moment he caught sight of Xin Chun, he brightened up and rushed over to hug her.

    \"I''m so glad you''re all right!\"

    \"Brother! They finally let you out! I hope they didn''t abuse you in jail¡­\"

    \"Hah!\" Bu Fan scoffed. \"Who do you think I am? They don''t dare to touch me in my cell. I had the whole group of inmates serving me throughout my two days there!\"

    As I expected, he really became the prisoners'' boss. Wow.

    \"I made you guys worry as well,\" Bu Fan said when he caught sight of the team gathering around his sister, scratching his head sheepishly. \"Sorry about that.\"

    At a glare from his sister, who was reminding him something, he lowered his head. I was startled when I realized he was bowing to me.

    \"Thanks for helping me save my sister. I really appreciate it.\"

    \"No, I only did what other people would have done if they were faced with the same situation.\" I raised both of my hands.

    \"You''re way too humble,\" Yue Chu mocked me, throwing an arm around my neck. \"Oh, and make sure you inform us before you pull this kind of stunt in future. It''s not fair to leave us out of the fun! We want a share too!\"

    \"That''s right!\" Craig hollered. \"How dare you leave us out of a scrap?!\"

    \"Okay, okay. I''ll call you guys in future when I go pick a fight with assholes and idiots dumb enough to kidnap my sister.\" Bu Fan raised both of his hands and laughed good-naturedly. I doubted he would actually do it too, and honestly the chances of his sister getting kidnapped again were low. Not unless her mother was as much of a prime target of revenge as my dad was, and so scum of the underworld from all over the globe decided to converge upon her and kidnap her to enact vengeance or blackmail her mom.

    I still had no idea who her mother was, and why they were so fixated on drawing her attentions. Not that it turned well for the previous batch of abductors, who were nothing more than dust now. If only I had suit of armors, I could entomb the dust inside those power armor and revive them as automatons. Then have them moan, \"All is dust\" as they marched forward.

    Rubric Marines are awesome.

    \"Anyway, I''m glad you''re back. You should get some rest, and I''ll update you on our plans going forward tomorrow.\"

    \"You included me in your plans? I''m flattered.\" Despite Harrison''s sincerity, Bu Fan''s tone dripped with sarcasm. He looked apologetic when Xin Chun sent him a harsh glare, and he forced a smile. \"I''ll do my best to live up to your expectations.\"

    \"You will,\" Harrison assured him. \"For now, take a rest.\"

    \"What, already?\" Craig complained. \"That''s not right! We should celebrate his release tonight! Let''s go eat somewhere!\"

    Oh, yay. Food. I couldn''t wait to eat. For some reason, I was feeling slightly hungry, and this sounded like a great chance to¡­well, eat.

    \"Hmm, this sounds like a good opportunity,\" Bu Fan remarked with a nod. \"Might as well brief me over dinner instead of waiting until tomorrow. What do you say, Harrison?\"

    \"I say yes, zutto!\"

    Why was Harrison quoting the name of an ending song from a relatively old 2000s anime?

    With that settled, all of us left for the nearest restaurant.

    *

    After dinner, we returned to our rooms to¡­well, rest, but obviously I spent it training. I had reached a breakthrough of sorts with my ice magic, particularly with several ways of applying it to my summoning magic. Several of my Constellation spirits benefited from the ice spells, and I made sure to improve Canis Major''s Sirius spell ¨C even though it was still ice type, I made it a lot more destructive so that the targets would disintegrate and crumble apart when the ice shattered, rather than them being trapped for a minute or so.

    To put it simply, I increased the potency of Canis Major''s Sirius. Of course, I could adjust the output of the spell, so if I chose to incapacitate my opponent instead of kill him, I could just ensure he gets frozen for a very long time. Obviously, the more powerful the opponent, the higher his resistance toward magic, and thus the likelier he would be to break free of frozen spells, but I had to learn to let it go. I mean, I had to learn to roll with it and adjust my strategies accordingly. Right now, ice-type Sirius should be just as destructive and powerful as the original Sirius, but more versatile in that I had the option to immobilize my foes rather than kill them outright.

    \"Good.\"

    Satisfied with my progress, I moved on toward the rest of my magic, until I was done for the night. Completing the last routine of my training, I returned to my room, only to run into Harrison. He nodded at me right outside the door of the training facility that the hotel provided.

    \"There you are. You weren''t in your room, and you didn''t answer your phone. Yue Chu said you might be in here¡­turns out that he was right.\"

    Yeah, Yue Chu knew me best, out of the team. We had been through a lot together. Even though it was almost 360 chapters since I first met him, now that I thought about it, in terms of in-universe temporality, it had been less than a year. A little over six months. Wow.

    Maybe doing daily updates wasn''t a good idea as it would screw up one''s sense of time.

    \"Do you need me for something?\" I asked bluntly. I wasn''t trying to be unfriendly or anything. That was the only reason why Harrison would search for me in the first place, and there was no reason to hide it. We were friends, I guess, but we weren''t exactly buddies. Harrison rarely socialized with me outside of team matters.

    That didn''t mean we had a bad relationship. We trusted each other, cooperated well with each other, and held no grudge against each other, but it was a working relationship. You know, like your colleagues. You spend quite a lot of time working with each other, even have lunch or dinner with each other, but outside working hours you wouldn''t really hang out. When you wanted to have fun during the weekend, you wouldn''t call your colleagues for that. That sort of relationship.

    Harrison knew me well enough not to get offended, and he nodded without any hesitation.

    \"Yeah, for the first round in three days, you know who our opponent will be, right? The students from Adolf Academy.\"

    \"Huh? Adolf? Why Adolf?\"

    Harrison blinked in confusion. \"Why not Adolf? That''s the school that was assigned to be our opponents for the first round, remember?\"

    \"I know. That''s not what I mean¡­never mind.\" Evidently Harrison had not read Battle Frenzy or he would have known that Adolf Academy was a reference to a school from there where Wang Zhong led his team to victory over them.

    Since I wasn''t Wang Zhong, I wasn''t confident that we would be able to prevail over them. But I was going to place my faith in Harrison. Unlike him, I didn''t have any tactical nous or a brilliant mind for strategy and teamwork, so I could only obey.

    \"Anyway, what about Adolf Academy?\"

    \"Well, I was thinking of assigning you to a particular opponent. If he shows up, I''ll have you deal with him. If that''s fine with you.\"

    \"Of course it''s fine with me,\" I told him. \"You''re the captain. Just tell me who to fight and I will obey!\"

    \"Thank you.\" Harrison beamed. \"Of course, there''s a possibility that they wouldn''t field him, but if they do, I''ll be relying on you to take him out.\"

    \"I''ll do my best, but no guarantees.\"

    The format for this tournament worked in quite the strange manner. The knock-out stages would first beign in a series of five one-against-one matches, where the captain (and vice-captain, depending) of each team would select who to field. After which, they would have a team match where it would be five versus five.

    The captains had to be very careful in selecting their members, because those defeated in the earlier one-versus-one matches would be eliminated and no longer available for the team match. So, in order to prevent a comeback, some captains thought it wise to hold their stronger members back for the team matches instead of commiting them to the individual battles, for fear of having their strongest cards eliminated too early.

    Of course, that was¡­a bit rude of me. It wasn''t about stronger members or weaker members. Though I wasn''t na?ve enough to deny some members are stronger than others, I doubted that matches and victories were achieved by individual strength. Each member had a role to play, and even if you weren''t strong individually, if you worked in a team, you could more than make up for your so-called weakness. Synergy in team battles was far more important than individual strength. The strength being more than the sum of its parts, and all that.

    Furthermore, even if you were powerful individually, that didn''t mean you worked well in a team. And that could be more detrimental to the team than beneficial, especially if that one person''s ego was too big. Everything would fall apart. A team of five powerful individuals but no teamwork would fall easily to a team of weaker individuals with flawless coordination and superb synergy. If I were to liken it to Magic: The Gathering, while big 6/6 and 7/7 Creatures were powerful and could potentially win you the game if your opponent had no blockers or they had Trample, your opponent could still pull off a win with his supposedly weaker 1/1 and 2/2 Creatures with awesome abilities that synergize with each other ¨C essentially combos. Pulling off combos with a few small Creatures and Enchantments or Artifacts or spells would turn the whole game around and win it for your opponent, no matter how many big Creature cards you had in play.

    That was why teamwork was so important, more so than a single individual''s ego.

    Returning back to the present, I decided to raise the question that led me to that info dump in the first place.

    \"You''re not saving me for the team battle?\"

    Harrison considered for a second. It was a valid point ¨C after all, my summoning spells would work best in a team battle, where my teammates could cover for me and protect me until I summoned my big Creatures to overwhelm our opponents. That came with a set of problems, however. They were risking everything on me, and if I got taken down early, the whole strategy would fall apart. Moreover, my abilities didn''t synergize well with the rest of the team, it wasn''t as if I could buff them with my Constellation spirits or whatever. There was no combo, just brute strength.

    \"No. I think you would do better against this guy.\" He raised his smartphone and smiled. \"I''ve sent you several video replays of his previous matches. Could you watch them over the next couple of days? Familiarize yourself with his fighting style. Oh, and I do have the other videos for the rest of the members, so watch them when you have the time, but I want you to familiarize yourself with this guy''s style at least.\"

    When I saw the name in the email that just got sent to my smartphone, my eyes widened and I raised an eyebrow skeptically.

    \"Are you sure? You want me to take on this guy?\"

    \"Yeah. I''ll be counting on you.\" Harrison patted my shoulder and smiled. \"I think your abilities will serve us best in this matchup.\"

    \"What about you?\"

    \"Me? Well¡­\" Harrison grinned, and for a moment his expression appeared sinister. I couldn''t help but feel sorry for our opponents, who would be dancing in the palm of his hand. \"I''ll be leading the five versus five team battle, so I''m going to need you to set an example for the team during the individual matches, Vice-captain Richard.\"

 379 Chapter 379: The First Round

    \"Finally, after all that side-tracking, we''re finally going to start the tournament!\"

    \"Side-tracking?\" Yue Chu gave me a perplexed glance when I started throwing my hands up and yelling in joy.

    \"Yeah. Not filler. Readers just complain about everything that they don''t want to read as filler, but those side-tracking were imperative to move the story onward as it would impact what happens during the tournament. Like Anastasia, for example. I won''t spoil the readers, but it''s not a coincidence that she had something happen to her during the qualifiers. And Bu Fan''s sister too¡­\"

    \"Sorry.\" Yue Chu raised a hand. \"You''ve lost me totally.\"

    \"Well, essentially, there are no fillers, and these events are all related to what happens in the main plot, so people whining about them being fillers are just wrong.\"

    \"I still don''t understand.\"

    \"Never mind. Anyway, let''s proceed to the first match. We''re up against¡­uh, Adolf Academy, was it?\"

    \"Is that what Harrison told you?\" Yue Chu burst out laughing. \"Well, he wasn''t wrong, but to prevent copyright troubles, they changed their name. Now they are known as Adorno Academy.\"

    That was one hell of a reason to change the name of their school, and I honestly doubted that Skeleton Wizard would bother with an obscure story like mine to file some copyright claim, so it was probably unnecessary. Even so, I understood why they did it.

    There had been several other matches, but because I didn''t want to drag the story out unnecessarily (and it was a pain to write fight scenes about characters who would probably show up once or twice and never appear again), I was going to skip over them and head straight for our match. Of course, in reality, Harrison would have the team watch those matches again and again to ensure we knew what sort of tactics or fighting style our future opponents would employ, but I wasn''t going to bore the readers wiith longwinded analysis.

    If you really enjoyed that sort of thing, you could go read Battle Frenzy instead.

    Anyway, our team showed up early in the massive stadium that the Stuart family had reserved for the national Federation high school tournament. I couldn''t help but look around, admiring the gleaming chrome shell that made up the walls. There were tens of thousands of seats, surrounding the metallic arena in the middle. Even though it looked nothing more than a football field sized slab of concrete for now, I was aware that using magic, they could transform the arena into any type of environment they wanted. A forest, a lake, an urban environment, anything.

    As long as you had the right spells and the right personnel (those who specialized in such magic), you could do almost anything. Obviously, such personnel were in high demand, because not everyone was capable of learning landscaping magic (or healing magic, for that matter).

    Everyone applaused when Adorno Academy showed up at the other end of the stadium. The ten members were striding into the open area, which included a huge space for technical teams, substitutes, and the captains and vice-captains to sit around, strategize and plan, or watch the match. They even had holograms and other equipment up for the benefit of both teams. The technical area, if I remembered, was an old throwback to old football/soccer games where the manager and the coaching team would prowl around, watching his players.

    They adopted a dignified stance, looking almost like celebrities stylishly making their entrance in some ball or whatever those movie stars ceremonies were called. Sorry, I don''t watch those. Anyway, everyone was screaming and cheering for them.

    As for us¡­not so much. We were still a relatively obscure team, and there was some polite applause. Not many people enthusiastically roaring our names and such, probably because we didn''t have time to build up a fanbase, and our performance over the last few years was far from impressive. Even though we had gotten a few decent results this year, there weren''t that many who knew too much about us.

    That said, there were quite a few people cheering us on as underdogs. I could see Adrian and his friends amongst the crowd, including Melina and his middle school classmates. Then I could see Harvey Deng and a fairly large contingent of supporters from Jing Tian Academy also cheering within the crowd, their grayish uniforms standing out against the other schools. I smiled and waved to both Adrian and Harvey and their friends, wondering if the two would ever meet one day. They could become good friends, given how similar they were.

    Well...Harvey had to be careful, though. Adrian seemed to be the scheming type, particularly after what happened in the Stuart Corporation Building¡­

    The captain of the team, Cecil¡­ahem, I mean Cain, was narrowing his eyes as he watched us. His gaze was intense.

    I could probably guess what he was thinking. If this was a typical Chinese webnovel, he would probably be thinking along the lines of, \"what a trash team\" or \"no matter what kind of strategy you have, it''s useless in the face of overwhelming power\" or something.

    Utter bullshit. The most brilliant strategies could bring down even the most overwhelming of power. It had been done so in the past, and it would be done again here. Just like how the Vietnamese gureilla forces defeated a superior French army when they tried to recolonize Indochina. David versus Goliath. The battle of Zulu. Stuff like that that became legends.

    \"Who will you choose as your first figher?\" Cain asked, his eyes cold and hard. He was holding back, testing to see who we would field.

    Harrison turned and nodded at his Holy Saints teammate, Lily. She took a deep breath and acknowledged his silent instructions with a jerk of her head, and then stepped forward, climbing atop the arena.

    \"Oho! The first fighter for Jing Tian Team has entered the stage!\" the commentator announced with a flourish. \"It''s Lily Liam! She''s the backbone of the third year students in Jing Tian Academy, and has been a reliable starter for the team for the past couple of years! Will she be able to replicate her impressive display from last year?\"

    The crowd murmured and watched, with some nodding in approval and others shrugging nonchalantly.

    \"So Captain Harrison sent out an all-round warrior, and a veteran too. A safe start.\"

    \"Good choice. I would have picked Lily too if I were him.\"

    Harrison merely smiled confidently as he watched, but there was no way to read his intention behind those glacial blue eyes of his. Cain was watching Harrison intently, his eyes still narrowed, but he remained silent. He then jerked his head toward the burly guy next to him, who was some reason also wearing glasses and handling a massive gun.

    \"And now we have the first fighter from Adorno Team also entering the stage!\" the commentator was on a roll now. \"It''s their Vice-captain Gunther Schalke! As opposed to the all-round warrior Lily, he is a heavy gunner!\"

    I whistled when I saw the huge cannon that Gunther was carrying. From barrel to handle, it was at least the length of his height, and almost a quarter of his mass. The weapon had several sophisticated tracking devices inbuilt into its glossy, black frame, with some silver inlets. That thing looked like it packed some serious firepower.

    Glancing at the rowdy spectators, I thought back to the rules of this elimination match. In the finals, as they called it, the rules had changed since last year. In the past, it used to be the best of five, where whichever team won more matches would progress to the next round. This year, however, they had added the team match component at the end of the five individual matches, which could potentially allow the losing team to turn the tables through display of superior teamwork even though they were weaker individually.

    The rules were slightly more complex. Defeating an opponent net the winning team a point. So even if you were down 5-0 where all of your members lost every single individual match, if you somehow defeat all 5 members of the opposing team without sustaining a single casualty, you could tie the match 5-5. In an event of such a draw, the winners of the team match would take priority, and progress ahead of the team who won more individual matches.

    Of course such a scenario was unlikely. More likely, even if you were 1-4 down, if you could eliminate 5 members of the opposing team while losing 2 of yours, you would tie the score 6-6, and progress by virtue of winning the team match. It was an excellent opportunity to showcase the new emphasis on teamwork, and force the team captains to strategize accordingly and not dismiss the team match in favor for brute force.

    \"You can do it!\"

    \"Good luck!\"

    Shouts from the spectators echoed throughout the stadium as supporters of both sides screamed as loudly as they could. Lily, being the beautiful girl that she was, actually drew a lot of support and attention from the male portion, who for some reason began cheering for her instead.

    Yeah, they weren''t cheering for Jing Tian Academy, but for Lily personally. Yue Chu, fortunately, didn''t look uncomfortable at all, having complete faith in Lily. Instead, he was grinning and leaning over to voice his own support for his girlfriend.

    \"Do your best!\"

    Lily raised a sword without glancing back, acknowledging his support. The male members of the audience grew wild at that, and their voices became louder.

    Gunther''s eyes narrowed behind his glasses, but he suppressed any resentment he might have felt at being overshadowed by his opponent and maintained a neutral expression. Even so, he couldn''t help but snipe at Lily.

    \"Looks like you''re considered one of the stronger fighters on the Jing Tian Team. I''m sorry to say, but considering the class matchup and the difference between our abilities, you only have a very low chance of winning.\"

    \"Really?\" Lily tested her sword by swinging it, doing some sort of warmup and pointedly disregarding his words. \"I''m sorry to say, I won''t know until I actually try.\"

    She then raised her shield and adopted a defensive stance, readying herself for battle. Of course she wasn''t allowed to cast magic before the match, so there was no buildup of mana or anything. Even so, the commentator couldn''t hold his excitement.

    \"Oh! Look! Lily refuses to be intimidated by the heavy firepower that Gunther is carrying! She''s all rared up and ready to go!\"

    In response, Gunther lifted his cannon and aimed it at Lily. Like her, he wasn''t allowed to cast any spells yet, so the barrel remained cool and inactive, with no trace of mana at all. I had no doubt it would immediately burst into life and begin firing the moment the match began.

    \"Gunther is also preparing to fight! He is accepting Lily''s challenge head-on!\"

    Was there any need for so dramatic a commentary when the match had yet to begin?

    The bell rang and a thunderous buzz echoed throughout the stadium, to signify the start of the match. The volume of the spectators rose several times, with people actually jumping out of their seats to peer forward.

    \"Battle, begin!\"

    Immediately after the commentator shouted, Gunther wasted no time, casting a spell. His huge cannon glowed and he fired a heavy burst from his cannon, the heavy weapon booming from the shot.

    Lily deftly avoided it by sliding to the side. Without any hesitation, she charged forward and sprinted toward the heavy gunner, who maintained his position and continued to aim his glowing barrel at her advancing figure.

    \"!!\"

    The commentator swallowed his shock, and remembered his job. I could almost imagine him grabbing his microphone.

    \"She evaded it! Amazing reflexes! It seems like Lily has gotten a lot faster than last year?!\"

    Ignoring the commentary overhead, Lily streaked forward in a golden and crimson flash, her long hair flying behind her. Her figure turned into a blur as she weaved across the arena to close in on her opponent. Gunther grimly tracked her figure and released a barrage of shots, but she evaded every single one of them by weaving unpredictably through the stage.

    Wearing an expression of determination, Lily thrust her sword forward and sliced apart another projectile that was speeding toward her. Even without the ability to read minds, I could tell what she was thinking.

    I''m not going to let my teammates down!

    Setting her jaw resolutely, Lily charged forward to deliver her first attack.

 380 Chapter 380: Warrior versus Gunner

    \"Go, Lily!\"

    \"You''ve got this!\"

    \"You''re doing great!\"

    Cheers erupted from the male portion of the crowd, as well as the significant Jing Tian Academy contingent who had traveled all this way to support us. They were all on their feet, throwing up their hands and screaming their hearts out.

    As if inspired by their encouragemnt, Lily appeared to accelerate, weaving through the stage to avoid more of Gunther''s shots.

    \"Oho!\" the commentator sounded thoroughly impressed. \"This armored warrior is using a skill similar to Flash Steps!\"

    Seriously? Flash Steps? Might as well just rip off the name and call it Shunpo. It wouldn''t be the first time we were ripping off Bleach. Lily was actually disappearing from spot to spot, and reappearing in a totally different place a millisecond later.

    Across from the arena, at the Adorno Academy team''s technical area, their captain, Cain, was studying her movements with a grave expression. Even though he didn''t show it, it was clear that he was impressed with Lily''s movements. Using my privilege as a fourth-wall breaking protagonist, I read his mind.

    Compared to the previous recordings and her performance from last year, she has improved tremendously. Not bad at all.

    However, I could detect a smirk in his thoughts. Well, smirk was perhaps too much when describing his emotions or lack of them. He wasn''t mocking her or anything, but just making a matter-of-fact observation.

    Unfortunately, it''s all the same to Gunther.

    \"Oh!\" the commentator gushed when he saw the Adorno Academy vice-captain cease firing and raise his heavy cannon. \"Gunther is aiming his gun toward the ceiling!\"

    \"This is¡­!\"

    A bead of perspiration dripped down Lily''s face when she realized her opponent''s intentions. She tried to move, but it was too late.

    \"!!\"

    Boom!

    A pillar of violet light descended upon her from above, slamming into her back and causing her to double over.

    \"How did that shot hit Lily in the back?!\" one of the spectators cried out in disbelief and outrage. \"That has to be cheating!\"

    The guy next to him gave him a smack. \"What cheating? He''s just casting a spell to fire an arced shot and alter the angle and trajectory of his shot! We have people throwing fireballs and icicles around, and you complain about a relatively simple spell used to arc a mana beam is ''cheating''? Have you not been keeping yourself up to date on the latest magic developments?! Even so, such basic combat spells have been around for a long time! Where have you been? In hibernation somewhere?!\"

    \"It''s over!\" Gunther sneered. Well, sneer was too strong a word. I swear, all of the Adorno Academy students completely lacked emotions. They were fighting like¡­I don''t know, robots or something. In any event, Gunther unleashed a barrage of shots like a Terminator, his volley arcing in various angles and crashing upon Lily from different directions.

    Obviously Lily wasn''t going to take this lying down, unlike a certain character in Battle Frenzy so that the first year students could show off how much better they were than the second year students. She managed to raise her shield to deflect several of the shots, while using her sword to scythe down those that she couldn''t block with her sword.

    What, you thought her shield was for show or something? This wasn''t Battle Frenzy. I didn''t know why the artist bothered drawing the characters with shields when they never used them¡­even once.

    \"It''s over!\"

    I had no idea why Gunther thought so, but he relentlessly bombarded poor Lily with a barrage of shots that continued to pummel her from all the different directions. Lily crouched down grimly and raised her shield, casting a defensive spell. A shimmering purple barrier enveloped her, protecting her on all sides as the mana projectiles crashed against the glowing screens.

    \"?!\"

    Gunther raised his gun, needing to stop firing and recharge his gun and spells for a moment. Lily couldn''t help but giggle from underneath her forcefield.

    \"What? Did you think I would be taken out immediately just because you fired a couple of arced shots? I don''t exist just to be cannon fodder just so the protagonist can show off with his brilliant tactics by employing the more talented first year students to steal the spotlight from us old guard. Well¡­I say that, but we don''t have any first year students in our team¡­\"

    \"¡­huh? What the hell are you talking about?!\" Gunther spluttered, perplexed. Lily shrugged playfully.

    \"Who knows?\"

    That girl¡­she really knows how to wage psychological warfare. Having thrown her opponent into confusion, she could force out an opening.

    Taking a deep breath, she drew a circle with her sword and muttered an incantation. Gunther aimed his cannon at her, and she waited for him to attempt to bombard her again. Throwing her shield, she somehow reinforced her defenses, while still continuing the casting of her spell.

    Boom! Boom! Boom!

    Despite Gunther''s relentless bombardment, Lily''s barriers held strong. Even so, Yue Chu fidgeted restlessly beside me, his fingers growing white as he clasped his hand anxiously. I smiled at him reassuringly.

    \"Don''t worry. Lily knows what she''s doing. Trust her.\"

    \"I believe her, but that still doesn''t make it any easier.\" Yue Chu glanced down and chewed on his lip. \"That Gunther Schalke guy is quite the fella¡­you''ve watched his previous matches, haven''t you? He''s really powerful.\"

    As Yue Chu pointed out, Gunther''s strength was formidable. His relentless bombardment was slowly but surely wearing down Lily''s crumbling barriers. She was breathing heavily, sweat pouring down her pretty face, as she struggled to cast her spell and maintain her defenses simultaneously, but it was clear that the violently trembling screens wouldn''t last long against Gunther''s tireless onslaught.

    However, given how powerful his spells are, Gunther couldn''t cast them forever. Even he needed a breather, and some time to cast the next bombardment spell. His cannon, still glowing hot from the earlier firing volley, spluttered to a stop. Inhaling, Gunther began his \"recharge\" by beginning to cast another spell.

    That was all the opening that Lily needed.

    She dismissed her barrier and dropped her hovering shield in a split second, and then pointed her sword at Gunther.

    \"You''re not the only one who can cast ranged spells. Bloom, Crimson Lily!\"

    The entire area around her exploded into flames, taking the shape of a gigantic, crimson flower. The inferno raged across the stage, seeking to swallow up the stunned Gunther. The heavy gunner was forced to lower his cannon and evade before the flames could engulf him.

    While he ran, slightly weighed down by his bulky weapon, Lily pointed her sword at him.

    \"Crimson Burst.\"

    A red beam of superheated fire lanced out of the tip of her sword and seared through the air toward the sprinting Gunther.

    \"Gah!\"

    The heavy gunner dove to the ground in an effort to avoid getting speared by the lethal crimson streak, then rolled on the ground to snap off a shot.

    \"!!\"

    Lily kicked her shield up, snatched it in midair, and used it to deflect the fierce shot. She scowled irritably.

    \"Hey! That''s not fair! Snap-shots only hit on 6+!\"

    \"This is 8th edition! Snap-shots no longer exist!\"

    \"Yes, it does! In Horus Heresy!\"

    \"That''s quite the exclusive game! Very few people play Horus Heresy when compared to the sheer numbers of those who play 8th edition! And besides, all the Forge World models are super expensive! Not everyone can afford to play Horus Heresy!\"

    \"¡­what the hell are they arguing about?\" Pearl asked with a perplexed frown. Harrison scratched his head and shrugged.

    \"I don''t know.\"

    \"Warhammer 40,000,\" I explained. Everyone stared at me.

    \"What?\"

    \"A tabletop miniature game. Never mind.\" The more I explained, the more mystified they looked. I directed their attention back to the match. \"Lily just needs to close in on Gunther and she should have a good chance of winning, right?\"

    \"Not necessarily.\"

    \"Eh?\" I stared at Harrison, who was the last person I expected to cast doubt on Lily''s abilities. He was watching the match with a grave expression, his lips pursed. He didn''t look troubled, his fa?ade still calm as if everything was going according to plan. I suppressed a flicker of irritation. For some reason, I was reminded of Wang Zhong, who wore the same smug expression in the webcomic adaptation of Battle Frenzy. \"Then what should she do?\"

    \"Her best.\"

    No shit. Really? I wondered if Harrison was trolling me. But I shook my head and returned to watching the match.

    Lily was almost dancing around the stage, weaving through the volley of shots that Gunther was hurling at her. She retaliated with an eruption of fire, forcing Gunther to counter it with a concentrated blast of mana. The huge beam collided with the ravenous flames and culminated in an explosion that sent shockwaves throughout the stage.

    Both combatants skidded back, and Gunther suffered the worse of it because he didn''t have a shield like Lily. In contrast, Lily weathered the shockwaves without any problems, and immediately sprang toward the staggering Adorno Academy vice-captain before he could recover.

    Gritting his teeth, Gunther swung his cannon around and let loose another shot, which forced Lily to dodge. She then swung her sword and unleashed a torrent of flames that Gunther blocked with his bulky cannon. Even as his weapon smoldered, Gunther dropped the barrel without pause and snapped off another blast that compelled Lily to alter her trajectory once again.

    \"Blossom, Flaming Rafflesia!\"

    Lily swung her sword, and the arena exploded once more as roaring flames expanded outward, almost engulfing the cursing Gunther. Using his huge gun, he batted the flames away, to little effect. Staggering back, half-burned from the ferocious flames, he almost didn''t see Lily coming.

    \"It''s over!\"

    Appearing above Gunther, she swung her sword down almost triumphantly. With the boundary field on, it didn''t matter if she cleaved the poor guy in half. Gunther wouldn''t die because of the boundary field, and the medics would heal him immediately. Well, I say immediately, but it was going to take him some time to fully recover from such a grievous injury. He would be out for several hours at least, and no longer eligible to participate in the team battle. Then again, you were disqualified from the team battle if you lost, so the injury was a moot point anyway.

    Gunther parried the sword with his cannon, stopping the blade inches away from his face. Lily smiled and ignited her blade, flames roaring forward and consuming the poor vice-captain. Gunther held the sword at bay for a few moments, grimacing as the fire reached him and licked his arms. Despite the agonizing pain he felt, he withstood the flames and tried to force Lily back. It helped that his uniform had defensive enchantments, just like Jing Tian Academy''s uniforms, to reduce damage taken from spells and increase magic resistance of the wearer. Even so, the protection was limited, and the Adorno Academy vice-captain wouldn''t be able to endure for much longer.

    However, Gunther let go of his cannon and kicked it away. Lily ducked and blocked his leg with her shield, and freed her sword from his huge gun¡­only for Gunther to draw a magic revolver from a holster by his hip and fired pointblank into her face before she could adjust her shield to defend herself.

    \"Gah?!\"

    Lily staggered, but Gunther did not relent. He emptied his sidearm into her¡­well, that was a misleading word, considering that the ammunition was his ammo. In any case, the blasts actually punctured Lily and sent her crashing onto the ground. Gunther cocked his revolver, cast a stronger spell while Lily lay on the ground, breathing heavily, and then finished her with a single, powerful charged shot to her head.

    There was a long silence as Lily lay motionlessly on the ground, her limbs twitching. Huffing, Gunther lowered his gun and glanced up. The commentator, who was stunned by the unbelievable sight, finally found his voice.

    \"Lily is unable to continue battling! Team Adorno wins the first match!\"

    Gulping, I closed my eyes. This did not seem like an auspicious start.

 381 Chapter 381: Battle of Assassins

    Cain watched us from the opposite side of the arena, his eyes cold and calculative. He folded his arms, evidently thinking, what do you plan to do now, when you''re down one match?

    \"Damn it, Lily actually¡­\" Perspiration running down his face, Cody Crosby muttered a curse under his breath. However, calm as ever, Harrison turned to him.

    \"Can we leave the second match to you, Cody?\"

    \"No problem!\" the assassin wannabe replied somewhat confidently. \"Leave it to me!\"

    I raised my eyebrow at Harrison''s choice. Was he trying to be Wang Zhong or something? Of all the people to send for the second match, he chose Cody. What did he intend to do?

    \"Hey, what''s up with Harrison?\"

    \"Who sends an Assassin type for the second match after already losing the first?!\"

    \"What''s going on?\"

    The spectators were also murmuring in confusion, their skepticism at Harrison''s tactical selection visible and audible.

    \"Eleanor.\" In response, Cain made his choice. A girl with short, shoulder-length purple hair stepped forward, smiling confidently. Cain didn''t even glance at her ¨C such was his belief in his teammate that he issued only a one-word instruction. \"Win.\"

    \"Adorno Academy also sent out their main Assassin! They seem really confident of winning!\"

    This wasn''t good. Biting my lip, I watched the match unfold before us, feeling uneasy. As the two Assassins stepped up onto the stage and faced each other from opposite ends, Eleanor smirked as she drew her pair of daggers.

    \"Don''t worry. I won''t hurt you.\"

    \"Uh, what?\" Cody raised an eyebrow at that. \"You do realize that this is a match, right? How are you going to win if you don''t hit me?\"

    \"No, I mean¡­never mind.\" Eleanor looked like she gave up when she realized that her psychological baiting wasn''t working. She was trying to be condescending and enrage him by mocking him, but she only succeeded in getting a stupid question in return.

    Cody shrugged and waited for the buzz to signal the start of the match. The moment it did, he charged forward. Drawing his own twin daggers (wait, Assassins didn''t necessarily use daggers, so why was he using them?), he closed the distance in a single bound and slashed at Eleanor from two different directions.

    \"Cody is charging forward and launching a fierce assault!\"

    The two Assassins exchanged several dozen of blows in the space of a few seconds, their weapons ferociously clanging against each other. Eleanor effortlessly parried strike after strike, and then retaliated with a slash here or there, which Cody deflected to the side. The both of them virtually danced across the stage, locked in a deadly waltz as they moved and swayed to the tune of death. Trading another blow here, they continued to press against each other, their daggers a blur of silver that collided in a shower of sparks.

    \"Seems like a pretty even match right now!\"

    \"Phew.\" Hearing that, Cody couldn''t help but sigh in relief. \"Cody might just be able to win this match.\"

    \"Is that what you think?\" Harrison asked neutrally.

    \"What do you mean?\" Sheila asked, turning to him with a worried expression. Our team captain merely shrugged, a mysterious smile on his face.

    \"Look closer. What can you observe from this match?\"

    \"Eleanor''s movements are just half a beat faster than Cody''s,\" Theodore spoke up ominously, his eyes never leaving the scene. \"The gap between their skills isn''t that big, but¡­at this rate, Cody will eventually lose.\"

    \"That''s not good!\" Yue Chu exclaimed. Then he scowled. \"Hey, you seem like you expected this. If that''s the case, why did you send him out?\"

    Harrison turned serious as he turned to us. \"Both Lily and Cody, being third-year students, wished to fight today. They were hoping to set an example for their juniors and pave open the path for victory. They were also confident because they have achieved excellent results in their recent training. How can I deny them that request?\"

    \"¡­ah.\"

    The rest of the team fell silent. It also helped to remember that both Harrison and Theodore were also third-year students, but I was sure Harrison would put aside his emotions and select someone over himself for the other matches. He had already told me of his decision to lead the team match, and I knew he wasn''t lying.

    However¡­

    \"We would be down two matches at this rate,\" Bu Fan said, but as usual he didn''t seem like he cared. \"Are you sure about this?\"

    \"Yeah.\"

    Harrison nodded. \"Even if they didn''t request to go first, I wouldn''t have chosen much differently. Experience is key, after all. And it''s not a given that Cody would lose. He''s our teammate¡­so I believe in him.\"

    \"I believe in him too,\" Theodore declared quietly.

    Unfortunately, Cody himself was having trouble fighting against Eleanor. He was feeling pressured as he struggled to keep pace with her deadly dance, often finding his movements just half a beat slower. Her daggers lashed out at him, occasionally nicking him and drawing a trail of blood here and there.

    In contrast, he hadn''t left a single injury on her.

    \"Damn¡­looks like I won''t be able to keep up.\"

    Taking a deep breath, Cody began to draw more mana within himself to begin casting a spell. An Assassin was still a mage in the end. Magic would be the deciding factor in combat.

    \"Shadow Clone technique!\"

    \"Did he just rip off Naruto?\" I complained. \"And that''s a ninja technique, not an Assassin technique?!\"

    \"What''s the difference?\" A wizard who was a skeleton asked, startling me. He raised his bony arms in a shrug. \"Don''t mind the little details. It''s not as if you keep track of them either.\"

    \"The hell?! Don''t scare me like that!\" I shouted before smacking the skeleton wizard so hard he fell apart into many bones.

    \"Where did that guy come from!?\" Craig demanded, drawing his spear.

    \"Ignore that fella and focus on the battle before you,\" Harrison ordered, an edge in his voice. We obeyed without question, returning our gaze to the battle. Craig had split himself up into several clones and was attempting to surround the faster Eleanor.

    \"There are flaws!\" Eleanor exclaimed gleefully. In a moment, she also divided herself into several clones and used some sort of flash step to disappear from sight, only to appear behind each of Cody''s clones.

    \"!!\"

    Cody wasn''t able to react in time, for Eleanor''s daggers slashed toward his throats in a beautiful arc.

    \"?!\"

    The moment she did that, all of Cody''s clones exploded into smoke, obscuring her view. Eleanor staggered, coughing as she batted away the black smoke. Her clones faltered and flickered, disappearing from existence from the weird spell, leaving only her real person behind. Her eyes widened when she realized that she had fallen into a trap.

    A long blade sliced outward from a shadow, cutting her thigh and leaving a deep wound. Eleanor hissed and retreated, clutching her leg. Her reflexes were good, I had to give her that ¨C the reappearing Cody was aiming for her back, but she had instinctively shifted a fraction of a second before she got punctured and avoided a fatal injury.

    Cody emerged from the shadow, and raised his head up, grimacing when he realized that he failed to take her out with his trump card. Twirling his sword, he struck again, but Eleanor deflected his blade away with her daggers.

    \"Oh¡­that''s pretty impressive. I didn''t expect you to pull something like that off. Was that a new spell?\"

    \"Who knows?\"

    The assassin wannabe wasn''t interested in conversing with his opponent. He parried her daggers and withdrew a few paces before disappearing into the shadows once again. Eleanor frowned and glanced around warily, knowing that her foe could erupt from any location and catch her off guard.

    And he did just that.

    \"!!\"

    Popping out from a shadow behind Eleanor, his sword sliced toward her neck. However, Eleanor spun around and parried his blade with her dagger before counterattacking with her other dagger. Cody just barely managed to draw his dagger with his left hand to block the deadly blade and prevent it from plunging into his chest.

    \"Attacking from behind? How very predictable.\"

    Cody realized his mistake, and he disengaged, retreating rapidly into the shadows. Eleanor shook her head and raised a hand.

    \"Don''t forget¡­you aren''t the only one who can use spells.\"

    The entire place erupted in light, blinding the spectators and the other team members in the technical area. Even Cain was forced to shield his eyes with one hand as he stood resolutely, his gaze fixed upon the stage. As for me, the lenses of my glasses automatically darkened to protect my sight, and I cursed when I realized Eleanor''s intention.

    With such bright illumination, the shadows throughout the entire arena had been reduced to an absolute minimum. Cody was forcibly thrown out of a rapidly shrinking shadow, his potential spots for cover completely flushed out. Rolling on the ground and still somewhat blinded, he found himself under assault by Eleanor.

    \"It''s over!\"

    The purple-haired Assassin slashed at him with both her daggers, but amazingly enough Cody managed to recover enough to parry both blades. Despite being blinded and having his senses confounded by the blinding light, he reacted on instinct and whirled around, bringing his sword up and clashing his weapon against Eleanor''s.

    \"Oh? Impressive. I didn''t expect you to be able to defend from this.\"

    \"You talk too much.\"

    Saying that, Cody then flipped upward and kicked Eleanor. She managed to withdraw half a step, but it wasn''t enough for her to avoid getting her temple grazed by his foot. A small line of blood trickled down her face.

    \"You¡­!\"

    She kicked back, but Cody was already spinning away on the ground and springing back to his feet. His eyes finally recovering and adjusting to the blinding illumination, he then charged forward to finish this battle once and for all.

    Eleanor didn''t budge an inch and held her ground, smiling nefariously as she awaited her opponent''s approach.

    \"!!\"

    Too late, Cody realized something was amiss, but he wasn''t able to pull away in time. The moment he got within an inch of Eleanor, his foot stepping onto the ground, he triggered a golden magic circle that materialized and expanded rapidly under him.

    \"You''re not the only one who can set traps. Don''t forget¡­I''m also an Assassin.\"

    Smirking smugly, Eleanor fell back. Cody tried to, but he was too late.

    The magic circle exploded, a golden pillar of destructive light that engulfed his body and knocked him out. As his smoldering body toppled over from the fading colossal beam that extended all the way to the ceiling, the commentor quickly followed up by announcing the outcome of the match.

    \"The second match has been decided! The winner is Adorno Team again!\"

 382 Chapter 382: Tank Wars

    Cain regarded our team from his side of the technical area, his expression unreadable as always.

    \"What''s your plan, Captain Harrison?\" he wondered, his eyes narrowed. \"Well, not that it matters anyway.\"

    The guy was confident that his team would win no matter what we did, or who we chose. I really wanted to show him the finger, but I was too polite to do that. Instead, I suppressed my anger and glanced at our team captain.

    Harrison was still pretty calm, despite our teaming being down two matches. He was contemplating for a moment, and then he turned to Theodore.

    \"Theodore, this match will be yours.\"

    \"Oho! Seems like Captain Harrison has full trust in the veteran third year students of his team! Even though they are down two matches, he is choosing the experienced members! Perhaps that would allow them to mount a comeback?\"

    \"¡­Theodore?\"

    \"Who is that?\"

    Unlike the commentator, however, the audience seemed puzzled. Theodore, despite being a third year student, did not participate in the national tournament last year. Therefore there wasn''t many people outside our school who knew about him. He was a relatively unfamiliar figure on the big stage, as was many of the other students in the team.

    Even so¡­

    \"Isn''t Jing Tian Academy''s faith in their third year students misplaced?\"

    \"Yeah, they already lost two matches.\"

    \"Wouldn''t now be a good opportunity to inject new blood into the team? Allow the younger students to show what they can do?\"

    \"What is Captain Harrison doing?\"

    As usual, Harrison ignored the armchair commentary from the people who played too much Fantasy Football and thought they could become managers or something. They believed they knew more than the manager, except that they really didn''t.

    \"I understand!\"

    Instead of bowing to pressure and responding to the jeers and mockery from the crowd, Theodore stood strong and nodded resolutely. Rearing to his full height ¨C which was considerable, he stepped onto the stage.

    \"You can do it!\" Yue Chu told him. \"Ignore those jerks!\"

    \"I¡­no, we believe in you,\" Sheila added.

    \"Show them how it''s done!\" Craig shouted enthusiastically, while showing a finger to the crowd who was baying for blood. \"And screw the haters.\"

    \"Do your best, and don''t place too much pressure on yourself.\" Pearl looked concerned, but if she had any doubts she didn''t voice them.

    \"You only need to do your best, Theodore.\" Harrison was his usual charismatic self. \"The results will follow naturally.\"

    Theodore clenched his fists, visibly moved. I could tell what he was thinking. The whole team has placed their trust in me. I can''t let them down. I don''t want to be a burden for the team!

    \"You''re not a burden, and will never be,\" I assured him. \"You will always be an important part of the team, no matter what.\"

    Theodore stared at me, surprised, as if he was wondering how I knew what he was thinking. He took a deep breath and nodded.

    \"Yeah, thanks.\"

    \"Go get them!\" Craig yelled, pumping a fist into the air. Theodore responded with a smile, and stepped onto the stage.

    \"You seem to have a lot of confidence in Theodore.\" Pearl turned to Harrison with a smile. \"Do you know something that we don''t? Or maybe you''ve already anticipated who the other team will field?\"

    \"Ha ha, yeah.\" Harrison beamed confidently. Seriously?

    \"Hey, you''re not copying Battle Frenzy, are you?\" I asked suspiciously. \"Deliberately sending Lily and Cody out to lose the first two matches so that they can see the difference between their strengths and those of elite schools, and then mastermind some genius plan to see us overturn the deficit and win eventually? You''re not pretending to be Wang Zhong, who''s some sort of tactical genius foreseeing every single scenario and planning accordingly, while also being the strongest fighter capable of mastering every single weapon in existence?\"

    \"I''ve no idea what you''re talking about,\" Harrison replied smoothly. Like hell you didn''t, you pretty boy!

    \"So who is Adorno Team sending?\" Pearl asked, dragging us back to the topic at hand. Harrison turned back to her.

    \"For this match, they will send¡­\"

    He never got to finish his sentence, for the commentator cut him off. His voice boomed excitedly across the whole arena.

    \"Adorno Team''s fighter for the fourth match has stepped onto the stage as well! Seems like they are sending their main tank, Roseville!\"

    \"¡­tank?\" I repeated incredulously. \"That''s a human, not a tank.\"

    \"Oh, come on. You know what they mean.\" Yue Chu rolled his eyes. \"They mean the class of mage who serves as a frontline fighter, drawing all fire and buffing himself with defensive spells to become as durable as possible. They serve as a decoy to absorb the enemies'' attacks so that they can protect other teammates.\"

    \"Number one, this isn''t a game. Number two, what''s the fucking point of sending a tank-class in an individual match where there''s no other teammates to protect, to serve as a decoy as?!\"

    \"I don''t know. Ask Skeleton Wizard.\"

    I was getting sick of these Battle Frenzy references. They made no sense whatsoever.

    Roseville studied Theodore with a smug smirk, and he was clearly looking down on our teammate. Like Theodore, he was also sturdily built and burly, the both of them being of similarly immense sizes. Despite the lack of difference between their bulks, Roseville clearly thought this would be an easy match.

    \"Captain told me to destroy their fighter and win decisively to deal a crippling blow to their morale. If possible, humiliate them a little, so that we can send a statement to the rest of the teams competing in this tournament¡­\"

    He paused in his thoughts when he noticed something strange about Theodore.

    \"!!\"

    Even though Theodore had not cast any spell yet, his fighting spirit was ablaze and his eyes were as hard as steel. So much so that Roseville could actually sense the tremendous killing intent emanating from him. Well, not killing intent exactly, but he could tell from Theodore''s determined posture that his foe would not be lying down and taking his punches.

    \"So they haven''t given up yet, huh? Seems like they still hold onto the hope that they can somehow turn this around. Na?ve fools.\"

    Theodore didn''t rise to the bait. Maybe he didn''t hear Roseville''s insults at all, or he just didn''t care. He just clenched his fists and breathed deeply, allowing his mana to flow through his body. Just flow, of course. No casting of spells was allowed, or he would be disqualified. This was just a relaxation technique to loosen his muscles and calm his mind, not to get ahead of his opponent by jumping ahead to cast spells before the match began.

    \"All right! Begin!\" the commentator roared, and the two of them sprang into life.

    Theodore''s surroundings immediately crackled with lightning as he converted his mana into a spell. Finally allowed to being casting, his mana erupted and transformed into intense electricity that scorched the ground.

    Roseville frowned and immediately converted his own mana into petals. I had the image of a gigantic tree trunk that materialized behind him, almost resembling the Gigas Cedar in Rulid Village. Watch or read Sword Art Online Alicization if you have no idea what I was talking about.

    \"Interesting! Come at me!\"

    This Roseville was clearly confident in his absolute defense, and he beckoned the electrifying Theodore to come at him. The big guy raised an eyebrow, but didn''t refuse the invitation. Swinging his hammer, he kicked off the ground and launched himself forward, clearing the distance between them in a single bound.

    \"Take this!\"

    Roseville wasn''t going to passively stand there. Calling upon the power of the gigantic cedar tree behind him, he swung his arm around in a vicious punch that sent shockwaves rippling across the stage.

    \"!!!\"

    Theodore recognized the threat, but he couldn''t halt his momentum in time. Not that he intended to. Sucking in a deep breath, he transferred all of the lightning crackling around him into his immense hammer and swung it down on his opponent.

    Realizing that he couldn''t simply receive the dangerous blow and emerge unscathed, Roseville adjusted the trajectory of his punch. Thick wooden bark congregated around his arm, forming some sort of biological gauntlet. Cocking his arm back, he threw his newly armored fist in the direction of Theodore''s hammer.

    The thunder hammer collided against the wooden gauntlet, and golden eletricity exploded against brown bark. There was a deafening thunderclap, as if a lightning bolt had struck a tree, followed by a blinding explosion that buffeted the spectators with incredible shockwaves.

    \"Ugh!\"

    \"!!\"

    The students recoiled from the immense collision, and gaped as they watched the two combatants stagger away from each other. The stage was still saturated with roiling waves of mana, electricity continuing to dance around Theodore''s burly form. Behind Roseville, the image of the tree still stood strong and resilient, despite showing signs of being singed from the lethal voltage of his opponent''s strike.

    \"It''s a draw?!\"

    Not yet. The match hadn''t ended yet.

    \"Believe in yourself, Theodore!\" Harrison shouted. \"You''re strong!\"

    \"Kick that bastard''s ass!\" Craig hollered.

    \"Show him who the boss is!\" Yue Chu yelled.

    \"You can do it!\" I added, partially because I genuinely wanted to encourage my friend, and partly because I didn''t want to get left out.

    Theodore grunted as he swiveled his hammer around to deliver another blow. Roseville cursed as he was knocked back despite crossing his arms to block the blow. His hands trembled violently, and he realized that they were growing numb from the intense currents flowing through Theodore''s hammer and attack. He hastily cast another spell and conjured a thick wooden staff that was the diameter of a normal tree, and wielded it as easily as a Shaolin monk would do with a staff several times thinner and lighter.

    \"Like I''ll let you!\"

    The two of them traded blows, hammer against staff. Lethal lightning coursed through the stage, scorcing the bark and sending splinters flying, but credit to Roseville, he was resilient. Gritting his teeth, he twirled and spun his staff, deflecting and parrying Theodore''s blows. However, Theodore relentlessly pushed on, his lightning shifting and changing into a gigantic serpent.

    \"That''s¡­!\"

    Roseville''s eyes widened when he saw the gargantuan electric serpent rear up high above him, its jaws spreading wide, as if to swallow him whole.

    \"What the hell is that?!\"

    A bead of perspiration ran down Cain''s face when he watched what he thought was an impossible display of power.

    \"Roseville is actually being suppressed?! Who is this guy?! He never showed up in Jing Tian Team last year?!\"

    \"Mjolnir!\"

    His thunder hammer bathed in devastating electricity, Theodore bellowed out the name of his spell as he swung his massive weapon down. Behind him, the gargantuan lightning serpent lunged at the screaming Roseville before devouring both his tree and staff. Right as the wooden weapon disintegrated in the wood mage''s grip, Theodore''s hammer smacked into his face, breaking his nose and the front half of his skull and pulverizing his skull.

    That blow would have killed Roseville outright if it wasn''t for the boundary field. As it was, the immense impact sent Roseville hurtling out of the arena and right into the technical area. He crashed heavily into the wall right below the spectators, cracking the reinforced concrete and vanishing in a pile of rubble.

    Panting, Theodore straightened himself up and rested his thunder hammer upon his shoulder. He wiped his perspiration with his other hand.

    \"¡­\"

    Both Eleanor and Gunther could only stare at the incredible scene in disbelief.

    \"This¡­\" one of the academy directors murmured, still having yet to digest what had just transpired.

    \"¡­\"

    The spectators fell into deathly silence, frozen in their cheers and jeers, their eyes having grown wide and bulging from the unbelievable sight. This couldn''t be possible. It just wasn''t. Not to them, at least.

    \"We actually won this match!\" one of the Jing Tian Academy students finally broke the silence. \"We won this match!\"

    \"Great job, Theodore!\"

    \"Hah! That serves them right for underestimating you!\"

    \"Woohoo! We got a point! We''ve narrowed the deficit to 1-2 now!\"

    \"We might just be able to pull it off!\"

    \"Don''t get too carried away yet,\" Harrison reminded us, even as the team erupted into cheers and celebrated. \"We still have a couple more matches to go.\"

    Even though he uttered those serious words, the team captain was beaming just as widely and brilliantly as the rest of us.

 383 Chapter 383: Battle between Aces

    Amidst the boisterous and polite applause, Cain remained unruffled. He turned to his shell-shocked team, his voice calm and reassuring.

    \"Don''t worry. We still have the lead.\"

    \"Captain, please allow me to participate in the fourth round.\"

    One of the members stepped forward to volunteer. Cain turned back to appraise him. It was a slightly good looking guy with stylish, longish silver-blue hair. He wore a smug and confident smirk, his eyes gleaming eagerly as he sought this opportunity to prove himself.

    \"If I''m the one fighting, ten minutes is more than enough.\"

    \"Then I''ll be counting on you.\" Cain nodded coldly. The gangly guy grinned and shook a couple of fingers in his captain''s direction.

    \"Don''t worry, I''ve got this.\"

    \"Still acting so arrogantly,\" Gunther Schalke muttered disapprovingly, but he sighed in partial relief. \"Oh well¡­I guess he''s entitled to his confidence. After all, he''s our hidden ace. I can''t believe we''re unveiling him so early in the knock-out rounds.\"

    The commentator''s excitement grew when he caught sight of the guy stepping onto the stage, carrying a sword.

    \"Adorno sends Adonis to the stage!\"

    \"¡­who?\" I wondered out loud, but the rest of my teammates shrugged. Even Harrison didn''t seem to know much about him.

    \"From what I know, he''s one of the elite students in Adorno Academy, even though he''s only a second year student. If I recall, this Adonis fella is said to possess immense talent, and is a prodigy in the sword.\"

    Fortunately, despite not being familiar with this guy, our team captain was still on top of things. In just a few seconds he managed to unearth at least a bit of information on this new guy that none of us had ever seen before.

    \"I think I''ve heard of him before.\" Yue Chu was thinking hard. \"Isn''t he from the Cyan family? I thought their base was in Vermillion City.\"

    \"Apparently the Cyan family had some conflict with the Porter family, so Adonis decided to enroll in some other academy outside Vermillion City.\" Sheila was the one who provided this new piece of information.

    While we were discussing the new guy, the crowd was booing and jeering at Adonis.

    \"You''ll finish this in less than ten minutes? Show-off!\"

    \"Arrogant asshole!\"

    \"You better not cry when Jing Tian Team forces you to eat your words!\"

    While the spectators decried the arrogant Adonis, Harrison turned to survey the team, his brow furrowed as he considered who to send out. Fortunately, the choice was made for him. Craig stepped forward, thumping his spear on the ground and jabbing a thumb at himself.

    \"Harrison, if you don''t mind, I would like to teach that smug bastard a lesson.\"

    \"Sure.\" Harrison smiled and nodded, as if he had anticipated this. \"Go get him, Craig. Show him that our Jing Tian Team is not to be underestimated.\"

    \"Leave it to me, Captain!\"

    Grinning, Craig stepped up onto the stage.

    \"Oh?! Jing Tian Team is sending Craig Carlson, also a relatively unknown second-year student who is participating in the tournament for the first time! I wonder what tricks he has up his sleeve?\"

    Placing a hand on the hilt of his sword, Adonis slowly drew his weapon.

    \"So you are Craig Carlson, the one known as the Demonic Spear. I think I''ve heard of you. Your cursed spear is capable of piercing any defense, or something like that, right?\"

    Adonis snickered, and swung his sword in a flash, showing off his technique without actually casting any spell.

    \"I''m sorry to say, but you''ll never get the chance to unleash that cursed technique of yours!\"

    \"Uh huh.\" Craig merely snorted disinterestedly, but didn''t bother to respond otherwise. Like me, he was more interested in sparring with action rather than with words. So he merely dropped his spear and pointed it toward Adonis, while waiting for the commentator to signal the beginning of the match.

    \"Ready¡­start!\"

    \"Take this!\"

    The moment the commentator gave the signal, violet mana exploded around Adonis and he surged forward immediately, clearing the space between himself and his opponent in a single bound. Wisps of vicious violet mana trailed his blade and back, almost as if they were forming wings. Gushing backward, the purple spell seemed to convert itself into kinetic energy that propelled Adonis forward at an incredible speed.

    \"Whoa! Amazing! Adonis powered himself with a single basic physical reinforcement spell right from the start! Even though it''s only an elementary physical reinforcement spell, he is able to enhance himself to such impressive levels?! He truly deserves his title as a sword prodigy!\"

    However, that wasn''t all. I noticed that this wasn''t just a simple physical reinforcement spell or a flash step. Adonis was incorporating a specific element into his technique. It took the commentator a second or two to realize it too.

    \"There are wind spells wrapping aroud both his blade and his feet! The wind spells are what increased his speed manifold! He really is one of the top wind mages of his generation!\"

    Almost as if he was riding a sonic boom, Adonis gleefully thrust his sword forward to pierce Craig. Manic laughter burst from his mouth.

    \"Your cursed spear technique is useless if I take you out before you can use it!\"

    Craig merely smiled before he stepped to the side, dodging Adonis''s sword thrust by a hair''s breadth. Despite the close shave, he didn''t even sustain so much as a graze. Undeterred, Adonis launched a barrage of sword strikes, slashing and stabbing at the evading Craig, who twirled his spear and deflected each and every one of them.

    Crimson collided against violet, Craig parrying all of Adonis''s sword attacks with his demonic spear. Sparks flew from the furious exchange, neither combatant letting up in this tit-for-tat trade of ferocious blows. Craig counterattacked with a sweeping blow that forced Adonis to duck, and the latter than retaliated with a riposte that Craig avoided by cocking his head to the side. Despite the blade singing past his cheek, it left no cut.

    The more they traded blows, the faster their movements became. In less than a minute, the two of them virtually disappeared from the arena, their figures becoming nothing more than crimson blurs against streaks of violet. The spectators gasped as they struggled to follow the two''s movements, unable to keep up with what was happening.

    \"What amazing speed!\"

    \"I can''t even see either of them!\"

    \"Allow me to display the true extent of a prodigy''s abilities!\" Adonis boasted as he almost became one with the wind. He practically flew around Craig, turning into a circle of purple wind currents that blew ferociously against the crimson spearman.

    Craig burst out laughing as he deflected and parried all of Adonis''s strikes before responding with his own counterattacks, his spear turning into crimson streaks that almost caught the swordsman by surprise. Blood sprayed into the air as the tip of his spear grazed his adversary''s arm, as well as cheek. Adonis staggered back in shock.

    \"How?!\"

    Adonis looked completely stupefied by the sudden turn of events, desperately fending off Craig''s onslaught and doing his best to keep his distance before Craig could reverse casuality and stab him in the chest with a sure-kill hit.

    \"How did he counterattack?! If he simply avoided it, I could understand. Even though this wasn''t a distance that he could evade my strike, I would still understand if he somehow pulled it off. But for him to catch my blow and even retaliate?!\"

    \"You underestimate your opponent too much.\"

    After another ferocious clash, the two of them sprang apart in a shower of sparks. Perspiration dripped down Adonis''s face, mixing with his blood. Swearing under his breath, the sword prodigy wiped it off his cheek.

    \"What? Did you expect me to be dodging like some clown? This isn''t Battle Frenzy, you''re in the wrong story, pal.\"

    \"What the fuck are you talking about?!\" Adonis roared before he lunged at what he perceived was an insolent enemy. As if he was the only one allowed to be arrogant and all that. What utter bullshit.

    \"Nothing.\" Craig even had the opportunity to shrug casually bfore he deflected Adonis''s blow. \"If you don''t get it, then it''s pointless to explain it to you.\"

    He skidded back after trading another couple of blows with Adonis, their weapons gouging out concrete from the stage and sending rubble flying all over the arena. The two of them seemed evenly matched, with neither party giving an inch or yielding any ground as they furiously traded blows in the center of the stage.

    \"This scoundrel¡­!\" Adonis swore under his breath. \"Give up already!\"

    \"Make me!\" Craig retorted, his voice dripping with disdain. \"You can''t seriously be expecting your opponent to give you a free win, can you?\"

    \"Oh, shut it!\"

    \"You shut up!\"

    Thankfully, they didn''t get any further with their squabbling because their mana chose that moment to clash and explode, forcing them apart in a thunderous shockwave. Flipping himself back upright, Adonis swung his sword and unleashed a couple of wind blades that Craig effortlessly hacked apart with his twirling spear.

    A tornado materialized over Adonis before he leaped forward, spinning rapidly and turning his sword into a funnel of sharp wind. Craig calmly stood before him before intercepting his opponent''s technique with his spear, the crimson streak darting into the middle of the purple whirlwind and tearing it apart.

    \"!!!\"

    Adonis just barely managed to deflect the spear away from his chest, and he landed heavily on his feet. Bringing his sword up, he parried Craig''s next counterstrike, the sharp tip grazing his cheek again and drawing another line of blood. Cursing, he used brute force to knock Craig back, but the spearman merely regained his footing and spun his weapon about to bedazzle him with another stroke that almost took him in the neck.

    \"Damn it!\" Adonis swore before he desperately retaliated, but Craig knocked his sword aside before slamming the blunt end of his spear''s hilt into his midriff. The sword prodigy doubled over, coughing, but his hacking was abruptly ended when Craig smashed the shaft of his spear into the poor guy''s face, almost breaking his nose and sending him flying.

    While Adonis staggered back, his face a mess of blood, his eyes flickered with rage and he swung his sword.

    \"Why, you!\"

    Even as he spat, several wind blades blasted out to slice into Craig. Craig narrowed his eyes and defended against the sudden spells, but even he wasn''t able to escape injury this time, his arms bleeding as he forced himself to withstand the barrage.

    Smirking, Adonis thrust his sword forward, a ferocious whirlwind wreathing his blade. Craig swung to the side, spinning away from the thrust. Despite the sword cutting his shoulder deeply and sending a geyser of blood into the air, Craig grimly replied with a spear thrust of his own.

    \"!!!\"

    Adonis was unable to evade this attack in time and found his chest punctured by Craig''s spear. He convulsed and fell forward, held up only by the length of Craig''s spear. Dropping his sword, he clutched the fatal injury in his chest and slumped down.

    \"Oho! What a turnaround! Adonis has fallen to a debilitating injury! Winner: Jing Tian Team!\"

    \"Craig!\"

    The significant contingent from Jing Tian Academy who had traveled all the way here to support us immediately erupted into cheers, pumping their fists into the air and roaring their approval. Even those not from Jing Tian Academy began to clap enthusiastically, moved by our impressive display.

    \"They actually turned things around!\"

    \"It''s 2-2 now! They clawed back to a draw!\"

    \"Will this become a reverse sweep?!\"

    Craig sauntered back to the technical area, his spear in hand, even as medics and healing mages rushed onto the stage to take care of the fatally injured Adonis, whose life was preserved only by the boundary field.

    \"Nicely done, Craig.\" Harrison beamed in approval. Craig grinned back, his expression full of triumph and joy.

    \"I''m glad I didn''t let you guys down.\"

 384 Chapter 384: Fifth Individual Round

    Cain watched my team gather and celebrate in the technical area, his face stony and impassive. Despite the apparent lack of emotion on his face, there was a bead of perspiration slowly trickling down his forehead as he gazed at us intently.

    \"Seems like we underestimated them,\" he murmured to himself.

    \"Yeah, that''s right.\" Gunther Schalke didn''t realized that his team captain was talking to himself and joined in. \"I heard the rumors, but I couldn''t believe it. That Craig Carlson¡­the Demonic Spear. They said that his spear can pierce through any defense¡­but I didn''t think he would be able to break through Adonis''s impenetrable wind barrier so easily. He cut through the Barrier of the Wind King as if it was nothing more than paper!\"

    \"No.\" Cain shook his head. \"Did you not realize it?\"

    \"Realize what?\" Eleanor asked, puzzled. Cain sighed and lowered his head.

    \"That spear technique wasn''t natural. It was truly a curse. It didn''t simply penetrate Adonis''s Barrier of the Wind King. It reversed casuality and effect¡­in other words, no matter what kind of protection Adonis cast, it wouldn''t have worked.\"

    \"I don''t understand. What do you mean, that technique reversed casuality and effect?\" Eleanor was left looking more confused than ever. However, realization seemed to dawn on Gunther and he slammed a fist into his palm.

    \"Ah¡­you mean¡­!\"

    \"That''s right.\" Cain nodded, almost as if he had read Gunther''s mind. \"Usually, the act of Craig Carlson throwing the spear would be the cause, and the effect would be the piercing of his opponent''s chest. Or wherever he chose to attack. However, his curse reversed that cause and effect, and it is almost as if his opponent''s chest or wherever getting punctured is what caused him to throw his spear. It''s pretty convoluted, but unstoppable once he pulls it off.\"

    \"Then there is no counter!\" Eleanor gasped. \"How do you fight against such a horrifying curse?!\"

    \"As horrifying as that cursed technique is, it has a range limit.\" Gunther was the one who came up with an answer. \"The moment he begins casting that spell, back away and retreat as much as you can, maximize the distance between yourself and him. As long as you are far enough, that terrifying cursed spear would be nothing more than a stinger.\"

    \"Easy for you to say!\" Eleanor complained. \"You use a gun! You excel at long range combat! But how do people like me, who are exclusively close ranged melee combatants, fight against him?!\"

    \"We have our ways,\" Cain told her. \"Instead of whining about it, take your time and think of a solution yourself.\"

    He then proceeded toward the stage.

    \"C¡­Captain?!\"

    \"I''ll be finishing the individual matches personally,\" he told his stunned teammates without turning back to look at them. He gripped his sword tightly. \"We''ll need to regain the intiative and build back our advantage.\"

    \"Oho!\" the commentator''s voice raised the tension, and I could almost imagine the guy leaning forward and almost yelling into his microphone. \"The captain of Adorno Academy personally takes the stage! Perhaps he realizes that he cannot afford to hold back any longer! It''s time for him to eke out a decisive advantage over Jing Tian Academy!\"

    The spectators gasped and murmured, watching the scene unfold before them. Cain was a famous figure among the Federation, and there were few people who did not know him. He was a superlative swordsman, one of the few who was almost comparable to Kureha Franklin. Almost. That still made him a formidable opponent in his own right, for he had integrated his own style and magic into his swordsmanship.

    He was a very difficult person to fight against.

    \"Will the Jing Tian Team send their captain out as response to this massive challenge?\" the commentator continued excitedly. \"Or will they strategically yield this match and focus on the team battle instead?\"

    I glanced at Harrison, wondering the same thing. Personally, I wasn''t very fond of giving up any matches, and any decisive advantage we could gain in the individual matches would spill over to the team battle. If we could eliminate Cain in the individual matches, he would be disqualified from participating in the team match. That would prove beneficial to whatever team Harrison chose to send out.

    But who should he send? Bu Fan? The pseudo protagonist of Versatile Mage had plot armor, so I had no doubt he would win no matter who he was sent up against¡­okay, never mind I was going too far with the joke. Regardless, this would be a tough choice for Harrison, and as much as I detested the guy, I recognized Bu Fan''s strength. Moreover, Bu Fan wouldn''t be participating in the team match because he was the solo type of guy. He could work with us if he was forced to, but quite frankly he was far from being an ideal teammate.

    Unfortunately, I was in no position to criticize him. Everyone else probably thought the same of me. They didn''t consider me arrogant, thankfully, but I wouldn''t be surprised if they thought I was toxic and considered me a pain to work with.

    Everyone in our team glanced at Harrison, awaiting his decision. However, he merely stayed silent, pondering by himself. His eyes seemed so very far away, as if he wasn''t even thinking about the current situation.

    \"Harrison?\" Yue Chu prodded. Our team captain blinked and glanced at him, then shook his head. Smiling, he turned to me.

    \"Richard, you''re up.\"

    \"Huh? Me?\"

    \"I know you can do it.\" Harrison placed an encouraging hand on my shoulder. \"This is a great chance to take out their captain and gain an edge in the team battle.\"

    \"Are you sure about this?\" I frowned, feeling nervous. \"I can''t guarantee that I can win. That Cain guy is pretty formidable.\"

    \"There are no guarantees in life,\" Harrison replied sagely. \"But that doesn''t matter. Just do your best and don''t worry so much. Whatever happens, happens, but make sure you give your all and have no regrets.\"

    I straightened up, took a deep breath and nodded. Picking up Hei Yue and Bai Ri, I entered the stage.

    \"Eh? Jing Tian Team is sending Richard Huang!? What a surprising selection! You would think they will reserve their summoner for the team battle, but they are using him for their final individual match? Will he be able to hold on against Cain long enough to summon anything?\"

    Cain narrowed his eyes as he watched me take my place opposite him, on the far side of the stage. He swung his unsheathed sword, as if testing his weapon, his eyes never leaving me.

    \"A summoner trying to be a swordsman? Are you sure about this?\" his eyes gleamed maliciously. \"No matter what stunt you''re trying to pull, I have no intention of showing any mercy to you!\"

    \"That''s fine.\" I shrugged almost nonchalantly. \"That''s exactly what I ask for. Give your all against me, and I''ll do my best.\"

    With that, I drew both Hei Yue and Bai Ri and held them in a defensive stance, preparing myself for the match ahead.

    \"Ready, battle start!\"

    The commentator shouted, and we moved immediately.

    Gripping his sword tightly, Cain charged at me. Kicking off the ground, he cleared the space between us in a single bound. In contrast, I didn''t waste my energy lunging at him and instead stood my ground. Drawing a deep breath, I crossed both of my swords and held them up, parrying Cain''s fierce strike.

    Clang!

    \"!!\"

    My legs nearly buckled from the force of his blow. The ground cracked beneath my feet as it struggled to endure the tremendous weight of Cain''s strike and my steely resistance. Gritting my teeth, I swung both of my swords, inadvertently unleashing black and white waves of energy. Cain''s eyes widened briefly and he sprang backward, sparks flying between us as his blade screeched against my twin swords.

    \"Those spells¡­!\" he muttered before he skidded backward. Dropping his sword, he held it parallel to the ground and readied a thrust before shouting. \"HAAA!\"

    Surging forward, he stabbed and slashed at me in what seemed to be a chain attack, seamlessly stringing together thirteen sword strikes to confound and pierce through my defenses. Even though I was desperately parrying and blocking with both of my swords, I could barely deflect his strikes away in time.

    \"That''s the sword technique designed by Adorno Academy over the course of thousands of trials!\" Sheila exclaimed. \"Adorno''s Thirteen Chained Strikes!\"

    Everyone in our team turned to stare at her, causing her to blush. She glared back, trying to hide her embarrassment.

    \"What? It''s true!\"

    \"No, it''s not,\" Harrison told her bluntly. \"You appear to be confusing reality with a webcomic. This is not Battle Frenzy. Adorno Academy never came up with some stupid thirteen strikes! It''s true that Cain is unleashing a combo, but it has nothing to do with thirteen strikes, and nothing to do with the academy developing it over countless trials! Cain is just using the sword techniques he learned from the combat magic currirculum developed by Adorno Academy!\"

    \"I''ve been spending too much time reading comics on Webnovel,\" Sheila admitted, her face completely red by now. Craig chuckled and threw a hand over her shoulders.

    \"Don''t worry about it. We all do. I mean, we have Fast Passes now, which is actually better for comic readers than the previous spirit stone system.\"

    While they were discussing the benefits of a reading website, I was fighting for my dear life, trying to block and deflect Cain''s consecutive strikes. I was suddenly reminded of Shawn Franklin''s sword techniques.

    \"This is so familiar¡­!\"

    That was right. Most of the sword techniques we learned in combat magic classes today probably had their origins in the Franklin family''s sword magic. Needless to say, the ten Great Families of the Federation gained their current unshakable statsues today because their ancestors, their founding members were the ones who pioneered modern magic. Especially elemental magic ¨C the Porter clan, for example, pioneered fire magic, and the Stuart family innovated the first ever spells for wood magic. All elemental magic could trace their lineage to the founding members of the ten Great Families, and that was also the reason why their positions in the Global Federation were absolute. They were practically the parents of the modern magic world.

    \"You can''t keep dodging forever!\" Cain yelled as he launched another flurry of sword strikes that grazed my arms and cheek, drawing blood. I staggered back, and just barely managed to deflect the tip of his blade away from the center of my face, between my eyes. Then he reversed the grip on his sword and slashed my shoulder, drawing another geyser of blood.

    \"Uh oh! Seems like Richard is being fully suppressed here! It wouldn''t be long before he falls!\"

    \"Will you surrender?\" Cain asked. He wasn''t mocking me, just recognizing that I was at a complete disadvantage. I merely shook my head.

    \"You should worry about yourself more.\"

    \"Hmph.\"

    With a snort, he launched a barrage of three short, sword strikes that sharply grazed my face and neck, but I was fortunate enough to avoid a direct severing of my carotid artery or jugular vein. I floundered as I attempted to knock my opponent back, but he rammed the hilt of his sword against the side of my head. I crashed downward, the floor rushing to meet my face, and Cain seized the opportunity to deliver the finishing blow, his sword arcing to decapitate me.

    The blade never reached my neck. Spinning around, my foot came up and I kicked him.

    \"!!\"

    Cain''s incredible reflexes saved him. He hurriedly blocked my powerful kick with his forearm, which forced him to draw his sword away from me. The powerful blow sent him staggering a few steps to the side, and I kicked out again, forcing him to defend his chest. As he caught my foot with his palm, I used his hand as a platform to propel myself away, flipping around in midair to land on my feet. Bringing both my swords up, I adopted yet another aggressive stance.

    \"So you do have some tricks up your sleeve, after all.\" Cain exhaled as he dusted off his hand on his uniform, trying to hide a grimace. \"It seems that you are no mere simple summoner.\"

    \"As ashamed as I am to admit it, I am still no match for you in terms of swordsmanship.\"

    \"No, you are not.\" Cain didn''t mince his words, and I winced a little at his bluntness. Wow, dude, I wasn''t expecting you to praise me, but you didn''t have to be that cruel. \"But it''s still impressive that you lasted as long as you did against me. Not many people will still be capable of standing after trading over a few hundred blows with me. However¡­it''s over.\"

    Narrowing his eyes, he then kicked off the ground and almost vanished. For a second, I glanced around, trying to track his whereabouts, but he appeared in front of me a second later, his blade screeching as it streaked toward my throat in a deadly, silver blur.

 385 Chapter 385: Swords and Snow

    I cocked my head to the side and slammed Bai Ri against Cain''s sword, barely escaping getting my neck slashed apart. The sharp edge of Cain''s blade cut the skin, but it was a shallow graze. All I felt was a warm trickle, but I could ignore the slight bleeding and counterattacked with Hei Yue. Cain''s eyes narrowed and he parried the black blade while kicking out at me.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    I managed to block his foot with a raised leg, but his attack still caused me to stumble back. Huffing, I slashed at him with Bai Ri ¨C a desperate maneuver that bought me a little more time and forced him back. Cain flipped up to kick at my head after I deflected his sword to the side, but I succeeded in dodging that while replying with a kick of my own.

    As we evaded each other''s kicks, we whirled around and clashed, sparks flying as our swords crashed heavily against each other. Mana surged through our arms and blades before we sprang apart in a small detonation.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    Both of us were breathing heavily. I dropped down to a slight crouch, raising Bai Ri with my left hand while lowering Hei Yue with my right.

    \"This posture¡­!\"

    Cain couldn''t help but gasp. I raised an eyebrow.

    \"What about my posture?\"

    \"Adorno''s Thirteen Chained Strikes?! How do you know my move?! Did you just learn it from seeing me execute it once?! Impossible!\"

    \"¡­what the fuck?!\"

    I actually dropped my stance and straightened up to gap at him.

    \"What Adorno''s Thirteen Chained Strikes?! What the hell are you talking about!? Are you sure you aren''t mistaking reality for Battle Frenzy?! Do you seriously expect me to rip off Wang Zhong or something?! I''m not some god-like Mary Sue protagonist who can immediately learn and perform a technique just from seeing it once, and use it perfectly against an opponent! Furthermore, don''t tell me you think I''ll start analyzing your techniques and somehow point out the flaws and imperfections in your moves?! I''m not an author who''s deeply in love with his own protagonist to the extent I make him a genius at everything!\"

    \"Wait, what? You''re an author?!\"

    \"Never mind.\" I dropped back to my stance again and got ready to attack. \"By the way, you''re mistaking something. I''m not trying to copy your moves at all ¨C I''m not some genius who can learn and copy other people''s moves instantly from watching them use them once. I''m merely using the Miyamoto sword style that my dad taught me.\"

    \"¡­oh, right. Miyamoto sword style. Indeed, I heard that there is a branch of the Miyamoto School that specializes in wielding two swords.\" Cain nodded in acknowledgement, and then parried my strikes with his sword. \"Sorry, I got a bit confused for a moment because I was trying to rip off Battle Frenzy.\"

    \"Dude, that story is getting old now.\"

    Sighing, I knocked Cain back while withdrawing a step to avoid getting cut by his blade. Alternating my attacks with my two swords, I held one back for defense while using the other proactively to attack. I took care to switch roles between the two swords, so as not to make my attacks and defense predictable.

    Otherwise Cain would notice that I was favoring Hei Yue for attack and Bai Yue for defense, for example. And he would move to exploit that.

    \"Again!\"

    Cain was attacking me relentlessly now, his blade thrusting at me from multiple angles. It was almost as if I was facing a hail of a hundred blades, each of my opponeent''s strike moving almost too quickly for me to follow.

    \"Gah¡­!\"

    I parried and deflected as best as I could, sustaining cuts and hits here and there. Even though he was successfully drawing blood, Cain was growing increasingly frustrated and impatient when he found himself unable to deliver that single decisive blow that would end the match.

    Evidently he was not used to long matches, or battles of attrition. He had been winning most of his matches single-handedly or decisively, taking his opponents out in a relatively short time.

    ¡­or he had been defeated in an instant by far superior enemies.

    I sensed a spike in Cain''s mana as his attacks grew heavier and became faster. The blades were coming like a hurricane now, turning into a single blur that swirled like a raging maelstrom. Pulling back as far as I could while doing my best to keep Cain''s sword at bay, I crossed both of my swords to weather his ferocious onslaught.

    Determined to break through my crumbling defenses, Cain kicked off the ground and spun his body, almost turning into a human whirlwind.

    \"Spiraling Charge!\" he yelled. His sword almost turned into a spinning drill, a move that would inevitably drill through whatever defense I might have.

    Taking a deep breath, I paused whatever spell I was casting and switched to another one. Dropping my Bai Ri onto the ground, I raised my left hand and murmured an incantation.

    \"I am the soul of my sword.\"

    \"This is¡­\"

    Cain realized something was amiss, but he was too committed to his attack to pull back now. Unable to halt his momentum, he decided to just plunge forward and smash through whatever I had planned with brute force.

    \"Fear is my body, frost is my blood.\"

    Unintimidated by Cain''s fierce Spiralling Charge, I stood my ground and gathered azure mana into my left hand, holding it up. A faint silhouette shimmered into existence in front of me, its petals unfurling majestically.

    Even though he knew I was up to something, Cain resolutely thrust his spinning sword forward to drill through the flickering figure of a gigantic snowflake.

    My eyes narrowed as I completed my spell.

    \"Snow Aegis.\"

    \"!\"

    Clang!

    Cain''s sword collided against my now fully materialized snowflake shield, the spinning blade attempting to drill through my icy defenses, but to no avail.

    \"What?\"

    Still spinning haplessly, Cain was stunned to see that his drilling sword had failed to penetrate my Snow Aegis. Gritting his teeth, he tried to regain his footing to increase the pressure behind his thrust, but he slipped and almost fell over.

    \"?!\"

    He didn''t realize that the ground around me had frozen over completely, ice covering the stage and making it slippery. Unable to maintain his footing, Cain whirled about desperately to prevent himself from falling into an undignified heap, and somehow staggered several meters away. Huffing, he swung his sword to preemptively keep me back, but I did not pursue him at all. Instead, I merely dismissed my Snow Aegis and retrieved my Bai Ri, which was standing with the tip of its blade piercing the ground.

    \"Captain Cain,\" I addressed him with an amused smirk. \"It seems that my technique managed to stop you cold.\"

    \"!!\"

    Cain sighed and shook his head as he studied me. Exhaling, he straightened up and crushed the ice beneath his feet, his mana flaring up exponentially.

    \"I hadn''t planned on revealing my ultimate technique here, so soon in the tournament, but you leave me no choice.\"

    \"You always have a choice,\" I replied with a shrug. \"But I agree with you. Best not to hold anything back or you''ll regret it later. I don''t want you to use the excuse, ''if only I had used this ultimate technique back then, I wouldn''t have lost!'' or some bullshit like that.\"

    \"Hmph.\" Cain snorted. \"Richard, you are really impressive. You''ve concealed your true abilities a lot better than I ever did!\"

    \"Huh? I never concealed my true abilities, you dolt!\"

    \"However, you''re not my opponent!\"

    Ignoring me, Cain continued with his fierce declaration. The bastard really didn''t seem to be paying attention to anything I said.

    \"Oho! The atmosphere has totally transformed!\" the commentator was going wild. \"It seems that Captain Cain is revealing his trump card!\"

    \"Heavy Sword Style!\"

    With a bellow, Cain leaped off the ground, sending fragments of frost flying and scattering in his wake. Soaring high up in the arena, he then arced downward, descending upon me with his rapidly expanding sword.

    No¡­the rapid expansion was simply my imagination. That was all of Cain''s mana coalescing around his blade and giving the impression of a gigantic sword. I could almost see the manifestation of a ghostly tower appearing behind him, as if he was bringing the weight of an entire supersized structure down on me.

    \"!\"

    I crossed both of my swords and parried Cain''s strike, knowing that I didn''t have any time to dodge or evade it. My knees buckled and the ground beneath my feet split apart, turning into a crumbling crater of debris from the sheer force of Cain''s attack.

    \"Kuh¡­\" I grunted, gritting my teeth as I struggled to withstand the powerful blow.

    Without pausing, Cain swung his sword a second time and almost knocked me off my feet. Unable to endure the sheer power of his strike, I was sent hurtling across the stage and skidding across the ground, leaving a trail of broken concrete in my wake.

    Dropping to a knee, I leaned on Bai Ri while holding Hei Yue out to fend off another attack. Just in case.

    \"Richard!\" Yue Chu shouted from the side, concerned. But Harrison waved him back, his expression still unreadable despite taking in the unfavorable situation I was now in.

    \"Your magical power is too weak,\" Cain told me coldly. \"How many more hits can you withstand? Or perhaps you should do your best to evade for as long as you can?\"

    \"Yeah, yeah.\" I stood up shakily and straightened up despite still not having fully recovered from the earlier exchange. \"But you know, you seem to be forgetting something.\"

    Cain didn''t even bother to rise to any provocation. He sprang forward, raising his sword with both hands and swinging it down to deliver another heavy strike. Again, that massive tower materialized behind him, almost lending weight to his powerful attacks.

    In the face of such overwhelming strength, I grinned.

    \"You seem to be treating me like a fellow swordsman. But have you forgotten that I''m a summoner by specialization?\"

    Boom!

    A powerful maelstrom of mana exploded around me, immense shockwaves buffeting Cain and knocking him off his trajectory. Shocked, the superlative swordsman was sent spinning helplessly to the side with a cough and curse. He crashed onto the ground, but managed to immediately roll back to his feet.

    Countless flower petals drifted around me, a myriad of vibrant colors and a dazzling display of variety.

    That wasn''t all. Rearing behind me was a colossal dragon. Green Dragon, to be exact, the full magnificence of my Celestial Guardian unleashed within the view of my opponent. Cain looked up, almost awestruck, as he struggled to take in the full figure of my gigantic Green Dragon. It was clear from his gaping expression that he sensed the potent waves of mana emanating from him.

    However, as expected of the captain of Adorno Academy, he refused to be cowed from such a terrifying sight. Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself and lunged at Green Dragon with a determined bellow. His sword once again took on the aspect of a tower as he prepared to mete out the tremendous weight and power upon my Celestial Guardian.

    In a single motion, Green Dragon''s tail whipped out and struck the charging Cain, almost catching the poor swordsman by surprise. Despite the irresistible momentum behind his heavy sword style, Cain''s relatively insignificant weight was no match for the sheer power of Green Dragon, and he was hurled several dozen meters across the stage, crashing into the wall and disappearing beneath a pile of rubble.

    \"What the hell?!\"

    \"What just happened?!\"

    \"That dragon¡­?!\"

    \"Holy shit, did Richard actually summon a dragon?! A real dragon?!\"

    The spectators were yelling boisterously at the sudden turn of events. What, you didn''t realize that I hadn''t cast any spells and entirely relied on my Miyamoto sword techniques this entire time just so I could summon one of my most powerful Constellation spirits?

    Green Dragon looked at the surrounding spectators almost disdainfully, and I had the sense that he wanted to return to whatever dimension he resided in before I rudely summoned him here. I mentally sent him an apology and requested for his patience.

    \"After all,\" I told him telepathically. \"The battle is far from over.\"

    As if to prove my point, the debris at the far end of the arena blew up, flying in multiple directions. Leaning on his sword, a bleeding and battered Cain crouched upward, struggling to stand. He glared at me defiantly and slowly rose to his feet while wiping the blood from his moutn. However, he didn''t attempt to close the distance, at least not yet.

    I watched him for a few seconds, and then smiled. Shrugging, I stepped forward ¨C a cue for my Green Dragon to coil protectively around me. Thousands of flower petals continued to drift and spiral around me, almost as if my spells had transformed the arena into a garden in full bloom during spring.

    \"Captain Cain,\" I said as I beckoned him over. When he didn''t budge, I shrugged. \"If you''re not going to make a move, then I assume it''s now my turn to attack?\"

 386 Chapter 386: Swords and Flowers

    Perspiration dripped down Cain''s face as he sent a discreet glance at his sword. I could see purple rings of mana vibrating about his blade as he infused them with power. From his less than confident expression, I could practically tell what the captain of the Adorno Academy team was thinking.

    \"If I want to win, I have no choice but to reveal my special technique¡­\"

    He stood his ground, beckoning me to come to him. I sensed a trap, but I decided to go for it anyway. After all, this battle wouldn''t end if neither of us made a move, and I needed to knock him out in order to advance.

    I gathered thousands of pink Sakura petals around my swords and lunged forward, swining my blades and directing the pink cloud of razor-sharp blossoms at Cain. My opponent held his position while deflecting my spell with his blade.

    \"Amazing! The rippling mana on Cain''s sword knocked Richard''s petals away!\"

    The commentator was yelling something in the distance, but I didn''t pay much attention. I was forced to parry Cain''s sword, but the rippling mana waves sent me reeling back. More of my petals descended upon him, but the Adorno Team Captain raised his sword and emitted another rippling blast of energy that disintegrated them. He then spun around to thrust this sword forward. I crossed both of my swords to block his blade, but the revolving rings of purple energy shook off my defense and sent me hurtling backward.

    Cain made to charge, but twin clouds of Sakura petals descended upon him from both sides, forcing him to slice through them in two successive actions. Even after he got rid of them, Green Dragon swiped at him with his claws, inciting a block from him.

    \"Guh!\"

    The poor guy was flung across the stage, his much smaller body unable to withstand the tremendous weight behind Green Dragon''s blow. He flipped himself up and landed on both feet, skidding a few meters back.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    Sweat was pouring off his face now as he crouched down. Straightening up, he raised his sword and gathered an immense amount of mana into it. Swinging it, he unleashed an enormous blast of enerfy at Green Dragon.

    Even though my Celestial Guardian was more than capable of protecting himself, I decided to step in. More to show off than out of necessity, because it wasn''t as if Green Dragon would be moved by my act of protection ¨C he was more a part of me than he was a separate, sentient entity with his own individual sense of self. Despite that, I was slightly surprised to detect a telepathic emotion of gratitude from deep within his soul.

    Nonetheless, I swung both my swords and unleashed a cloud of black petals in Cain''s direction. His huge mana blast met my black flowers in the middle, and my spell seemed to break apart. The black petals seemed to drink in the purple energy blast, expanding before blowing up, but instead of merely disintegrating, they split part into even more black petals, each tinier than their predecessors but each just as sharp and deadly.

    \"Kuh!\"

    Cain grunted as he tried to fend off the numerous black petals that bombarded him. Even though he managed to deflect them with those mystical purple rings of mana that rippled from his sword, he couldn''t block all of them. His sleeves and uniform ended up being torn and tattered, and blood dripped from numerous wounds throughout his face, arms, legs and body.

    Unfortunately, that wasn''t all. After Cain had just barely survived the onlsaught of black petals, he caught sight of Green Dragon rearing up high and gathering a lot of golden mana into his jaws. It was a pity that I didn''t have Redfield to cast Sunny Day so that I could skip the turn of gathering sunlight for Green Dragon''s Solar Beam, but part of the reason why I defended my Celestial Guardian was precisely to buy him the time he needed to charge up that ultimate wood spell.

    \"!!!\"

    Cain dove to the side in a desperate attempt to evade, but he was too late and Green Dragon''s Solar Beam was far too large. The colossal beam of golden mana lanced across the stage and engulfed the leaping Cain, and despite him turning around and trying to cleave the enormous spell of destructive energy with his sword, even the purple rings that rippled from his blade dissipated harmlessly against such an astronomical volume of mana.

    Boom!

    Cain vanished in a golden conflagration, his charred body toppling out of the brilliant inferno and crashing lifelessly onto the ground.

    There was a long silence, before the commentator finally found his voice.

    \"M¡­match over! Captain Cain is down! I repeat, Captain Cain is down! The winner, against all odds, is Richard!\"

    \"WOOO!\"

    The sizable contingent from Jing Tian Academy erupted into cheers, surging to their feet and screaming their lungs out, hugging each other as they wept tears of joy. My teammates were celebrating in the technical area, yelling and shouting as they exchanged high fives, and the girls wrapped their arms around each other in an embrace.

    \"3-2! We are actually leading 3-2!\"

    \"WOOHOO!\"

    \"Now we need to just defeat 4 of them in the team battle, and even if we lose, we would still progress to the next round!\"

    That sounded like quite the task, but honestly, the pressure was now on Adorno Academy to catch up to us.

    \"Damn it¡­\"

    In contrast to us, Adorno Academy was in a disarray. Their representative team was on the verge of panicking as they watched their smoldering captain get carried off by the medics and healing mages. The next in command, Vice-captain Gunther Schalke, tried to take the lead.

    \"We still have a chance,\" he told Eleanor and the others. \"We have to do our best in the team battle¡­it''s not as if we are out of the match just yet. We need to deny them two knock outs and win, and we will get through.\"

    By defeating our team with two of their members remaining, they would overtake us with the score of 7 to 6, so it wasn''t as if they had no chance at all. It wasn''t impossible, and truthfully the gap wasn''t even that large. That was why the team battle was implemented ¨C to give the losing team a chance to claw back victory through a flawless display of teamwork.

    In theory, anyway.

    Unfortunately, the problem was that Adorno Academy had overplayed their hand and was at an overwhelming disadvantage. Their morale had hit rock-bottom after suffering three consecutive defeats in a row, and they had lost three of their main fighters while our Jing Tian Academy still had all of ours. I meant no disrespect to Lily or Cody, but neither of them would be considered our primary fighters in a team match.

    Worse, the person responsible for tactical selections and outwitting the other team, Cain, hadn''t simply been eliminated. He was incapacitated, and would spend the rest of the day recovering in the infirmary. He was in no shape to give commands, lead his team in the team battle or make tactical selections. In fact, Adorno Academy had built their team battle around Cain, and they never expected to lose him in an individual match.

    \"What do we do now?\" Eleanor asked anxiously, watching Cain''s smoldering body disappear down the tunnel leading to the infirmary. \"Without Cain, there''s no way we can fight a team battle.\"

    \"Was the information we received regarding Jing Tian Academy wrong?\" Another of their members murmured.

    \"Even though some of the intelligence we gathered on them was unmistakably wrong, the fact remains that we had underestimated them. To think they were capable of eliminating our team captain. I should have stopped Cain from taking part in the last match!\"

    Breathing heavily, Gunther slammed his fist against the wall, trembling visibly. The pressure was getting to him. Even though he was the vice-captain, he wasn''t meant to take over as the commander. He had no idea who to select for the team. Three of their main fighters eliminated during the individual matches and no longer eligible for the team match. They were left with substitutes.

    Scratching his cheek, Gunther forced himself to take a deep breath and glanced over the seven members remaining in his team. He had to work with who he had, and select the next strongest members from the people he had left.

    \"Good work,\" Harrison told me after I returned to the technical area. I nodded and waved my hand, dismissing Green Dragon. The gargantuan Celestial Guardian nodded once, and I sensed his delight before he returned to whichever dimension he resided in before I summoned him.

    Back with the rest of my Constellation spirits, I suppose.

    \"That was amazing,\" Yue Chu jumped me enthusiastically, almost knocking me off my feet. He wrapped an arm around my neck, inadvertently strangling me. \"You actually matched that Cain blow for blow in a sword duel!\"

    \"That was indeed impressive,\" Theodore agreed. \"There aren''t many people who can fight on par with Cain in a sword duel.\"

    \"On par? Was that what it looked like to you?\" I scoffed. \"He was overpowering me! He had the total advantage! Another five minutes or so, and he would have defeated me with his superior swordsmanship!\"

    \"Nonetheless, the fact remains that you defeated him. Excellent job.\" Harrison clapped a hand on my shoulder and smiled. \"I knew I could count on you.\"

    The only reason I won was because I summoned Green Dragon. Even the best swordsman or swordswoman would have trouble taking on both me and my Celestial Guardian. I was a little heartened to see that my sword techniques had improved slightly. A year ago, Cain would have defeated me in under five seconds.

    That speed¡­that power¡­that amazing technique¡­given how I had only half-heartedly learned Miyamoto sword techniques from Dad, I probably would have gotten destroyed. Then again, a year ago I wouldn''t have made it into the team anyway. Actually, I was surprised that I made it into the team. I never thought I would be representing Jing Tian Acaedmy in a national tournament.

    How far I had come¡­

    \"So who''s going to take part in the team battle?\" I asked, pushing my glasses up. Harrison smiled as he glanced at our team.

    From what I knew, Harrison would personally lead the team. He was the captain, after all. He would need to be present to give commands and make tactical decisions. That was the advantage we currently held over Adorno Academy ¨C with their captain eliminated, their strategic ability had been hampered significantly. I had no doubt that Gunther would be a decent leader, but he did not possess the same strategic skills as Cain.

    Even so, we couldn''t afford to underestimate the opponent. Despite the loss of three of their key members, they were still very competent and good. This was the team that made it to the last sixteen last year, driving the team of Vermillion Academy, led by the Porter family''s first daughter, to a corner before they finally got subdued.

    \"Me, Yue Chu, Theodore, Sheila and Craig.\" Harrison glanced at the other four, who nodded. Even though Craig was slightly hurt in the previous match, they were just minor injuries. By now, those slight cuts and bruises had disappeared and he was raring to go.

    \"Awesome! I''m in!\" Craig grinned. Sheila, who was next to him, squeezed his hand and nodded.

    \"I''ll do my best.\"

    \"I''m at your command,\" Theodore agreed.

    \"Uh¡­are you sure you want me to take part in the team battle?\" Like me, Yue Chu was a little anxious. Harrison smiled reassuringly at him and nodded.

    \"Yeah. We''ll need your skills. Don''t worry, we''ve practiced our moves so many times before this. Just remember your training and you''ll do well.\"

    \"All right.\" Yue Chu gulped and nodded. \"I''ll do my best.\"

    \"Then it''s settled.\"

    I took a seat on the bench and used the opportunity to relax. I didn''t mind sitting this one out. I was exhausted from my duel against Cain, and I felt as if I had already fulfilled my role. I also understood why Harrison opted to not use me ¨C not only was I tired from the earlier battle, the strategy would be too obvious. Gunther would definitely be¡­well, gunning for me right from the start. And if I got taken out too early, the whole strategy that was based around me would collapse immediately.

    \"Good luck, guys!\"

    \"Yeah. Wait and watch, Richard. This time it''s our turn to kick ass!\"

    I couldn''t help but grin. Craig''s enthusiasm was certainly infectious. At that moment, the commentator announced something.

    \"Team Jing Tian and Team Adorno, please come to the stage!\"

    While still seated, I watched as my teammates stepped up onto the arena, silently wishing them all the best.

 387 Chapter 387: Team Battle

    Unlike Jing Tian Academy, Adorno Academy did not send their team up the stage immediately. Poor Gunther Schalke was still struggling over who he should field for the team match. He was not privy to Cain''s strategies and plans, after all. None of the members of Adorno Team ever anticipated their captain being eliminated and incapacitated during the individual matches, rendered unable to make tactical selections.

    As mentioned earlier, it was a tough decision for Gunther. They had lost three of their main fighters while Jing Tian Academy still had ours. He knew it was a poor excuse, but he could only blame the faulty intelligence. Even so, the fact remained that both he and Cain had vastly underestimated us. The captain of Jing Tian Academy, Harrison Reed, had turned out to be much more tactically astute that either of them had imagined.

    \"How terrifying,\" he murmured, a bead of perspiration dripping down his face as he bit his lip in frustration. Taking a deep breath, he finalized his choice and gestured for his team to follow him onto the stage.

    \"Okay, everyone,\" Harrison reminded our team. \"Stick to the plan and we should be able to win. Don''t stress yourself out unnecessarily and believe in each other. This time, we are fighting not for personal glory, but for our team!\"

    \"Yes, captain!\" everyone responded enthusiastically.

    \"We won''t let you down,\" Yue Chu promised.

    \"This will be a piece of cake,\" Craig chuckled confidently. Sheila nudged him.

    \"Hey, don''t underestimate our opponents. Give them a bit more respect.\"

    \"That''s right,\" Theodore agreed, his deep voice a rumble. \"We don''t want to make the same mistakes as them and let our guard down.\"

    \"Damn it.\" one of the substitutes, a burly guy named Bert, growled furiously. Gunther spared the guy he had chosen for the tank role a glance, but remained silent. Bert continued, his frustration visible. \"Those bastards, acting as if they''ve already won! Team battles and individual matches are completely different.\"

    \"Get ready!\" The commentator bellowed from his haven above. \"Team battle, start!\"

    At the buzz, both teams charged at each other.

    Five minutes later¡­

    \"HEY!\" I yelled angrily. \"Don''t you dare do a time skip! Are you seriously going to gloss over the team battle?! I know the comic adaptation skipped it because¡­I don''t know, the artist was too lazy to draw it or something, or was behind schedule. But at least the web novel covered the whole team match! This isn''t padding the word count, and we are not going to spend three to four chapters on the whole thing, praising Wang¡­I mean Harrison''s strategic genius ro whatever! So just cover the damned fight scene!\"

    Everyone stared at me. I glared back at them defiantly.

    \"What?! Are you seriously going to accept a time skip where we took out almost the entire Adorno Team off screen, leaving them with nothing but their captain being cornered by all five of our members?! Don''t be ridiculous. Besides, Cain is knocked out and in the infirmary, so even if we want to copy Battle Frenzy, we can''t do that any longer!\"

    \"Dude, just shut up.\" Bu Fan looked irritated.

    \"No.\" Taking a deep breath, I proceeded toward a clock, poked the settings and reversed the time to five minutes ago. Right before my eyes, everyone began moving backward as time did a hundred and eighty degrees and flowed in the other direction. In just a second, everything was reseted to just when both teams were about to charge at each other.

    Gunther Schalke provided cover fire for his advancing teammates, attempting to suppress our own advance. However, Sheila sprang forward and intercepted his shots with her shield. The mana bullets dissipated harmlessly against her shimmering shield, which was further buffed by Harrison''s holy magic.

    I whistled in approval when I saw that. Given how powerful Gunther''s shots were, under normal circumstances Sheila would be sent staggering backward from each of the tremendous impacts. Yet Harrison''s spell had boosted her durability to incredible heights. Standing her ground in front of the rest of her teammates, Sheila continued to endure the relentless onslaught from Gunther''s long-range cannon in an almost effortless manner.

    \"Good job, Sheila!\" Harrison encouraged her, having extended a hand to maintain the defensive buff. I could see golden strands of mana linking him to her, allowing Sheila to siphon off some of Harrison''s might to augment her defenses.

    \"Don''t celebrate too soon!\" Bert roared as he charged forward, his shield up front to deflect the lightning bolts from Theodore''s thunder hammer. Lowering his posture, he went straight for Sheila. It was clear that he intended to shield-bash her, knocking her off her feet and destroying our defense in one stroke.

    \"Like I''ll let you.\" Craig emerged from behind Sheila, his demonic spear glowing an ominous red that reminded me of blood. Bert''s eyes narrowed, but he kicked off the ground and continued charging anyway, confident in blocking whatever technique Craig threw at him.

    \"Idiot!\" Gunther howled when he realized what his teammate was doing. \"Don''t charge forward! Fall back, Bert! Don''t take Craig Carlson''s attack head on!\"

    \"Don''t worry, Vice-captain! There''s no way he can pierce my defenses!\"

    The moron evidently didn''t pay attention to the match between Craig and Adonis. He had assumed that Adoni''s Barrier of the Wind King was not a true defensive spell, and therefore would crumble easily in the face of a real attack. Unlike Adonis, Bert saw himself as a true tank and therefore was confident of withstanding Craig''s assault.

    Craig''s spear glowed hungrily as he thrust it forward at the onrushing Bert. The burly guy smirked and raised his shield, scoffing at what he perceived to be an ordinary strike.

    \"!!!\"

    The demonic spear shattered his shield in one blow and embedded its tip deeply in Bert''s heart. The huge guy bellowed in agony before crashing to his knees. He stared up at a smug Craig in disbelief, then toppled facedown onto the floor.

    One of Adorno Team''s members had been eliminated.

    \"That idiot! I told him not to!\"

    Gunther would have slapped his forehead if he could, but he was currently using both hand to lay suppressing fire with his huge cannon.

    \"Now''s not the time! We have to counterattack!\"

    Eleanor took the lead, directing her other two teammates, Schwartz and Piotr Jeske, to flank Craig and Cecilia while she practically disappeared into the shadows. Much like how Cody used shadow magic to vanish earlier, but slightly more skillful.

    She then showed up behind both Craig and Sheila, her twin daggers shrieking toward their backs. She would have buried her weapons deeply in them too, if Craig hadn''t spun around and twirled his spear to deflect both daggers away.

    \"!!\"

    Cursing at her failed attempt to assassinate our two frontline attackers, Eleanor took a step back and tried to escape into the shadows, but at that moment Theodore slammed his hammer into the ground, lighting the entire place up with electricity. Blinded for a moment, and deprived of shadows to seek cover in, Eleanor backed away but found herself forced to engage Craig in close combat. She gritted her teeth and parried his spear with her daggers while continually retreating, keeping in mind that she had to maintain a safe distance away or risk getting hit by his curse.

    \"Hang in there, Sheila!\"

    Both Schwartz and Piotr swung in from opposite directions. Sheila whirled about to face Schwartz, her shield and spear keeping him at bay, but Piotr was able to exploit the opening that she left when engaging his teammate, and struck with his sword.

    Theodore was on hand to intercept the blade with his thunder hammer, and with a forceful swing he hurled Piotr back. He then sent a lightning bolt at Schwartz, forcing the swordsman to retreat as well. Sheila turned about, keeping her shield out to face him in case of any threats, while still backing away, seeming to unintentionally close the gap between herself and Craig.

    Craig himself appeared to have trouble handling Eleanor, with his opponent pushing him back. It wasn''t surprising ¨C despite Craig''s excellent skills, Eleanor was still known throughout the Federation as one of the elite Assassins. While she didn''t make it to the MO rankings¡­wait, what? What MO rankings? Never nind, the point was that Eleanor was still well respected among high school students, and she wasn''t an opponent anyone could underestimate.

    Furthermore, now that she knew about Craig''s cursed spear techniques, she could better develop countermeasures against them. Otherwise she would have fallen to defeat long ago. In fact, it was only because she constantly withdrew to a safe distance that she was able to completely avoid it. Despite that, she was able to dart in here and there to deliver a strike. Craig could fend her off easily, and to be honest she was more of a nuisance than an actual threat, but he couldn''t allow her to roam free in the arena forever.

    Theodore''s illumination spell was slowly dying out too¡­soon Eleanor would be able to slip back into the shadows and hide again.

    Furthermore, Schwartz and Piotr were redoubling their efforts, only to be held off by Theodore and Harrison. With them all locked in close combat, Gunther was no longer able to provide long range fire for fear of accidentally hitting his own teammates.

    \"Damn it,\" he muttered and lowered his huge cannon, feeling frustrated.

    \"You won''t be able to last forever!\" Eleanor sneered as she darted past Craig''s spear to stab him. The spearman managed to draw the shaft of his spear back to parry her twin daggers, but Eleanor flexibly spun one of her daggers about to slash at him while he was holding the other off.

    Before she could, a second spear streaked past Craig''s face and above his shoulder to hammer into her head. Eleanor''s vision exploded in blood and pain before she careened back, her face a ruined mess.

    \"What just happened?!\" the commentator shouted, taken aback. I watched my team intently, resisting the urge to playback the scene because I didn''t want to miss anything else. If I wasn''t mistaken, while Eleanor was occupied with attacking Craig, Sheila struck her with her spear from behind her boyfriend. Unknown to the opposing team, this was the reason why Sheila was retreating back toward Craig''s position in the first place.

    That took a lot of guts and trust. Craig relied on Sheila to watch his back, and even paced his life in her hands totally, not even flinching when Sheila''s spear zoomed past him within a hair''s breadth. A slight miscalculation or even the tiniest mistake would have seen him impaled by her spear instead of Eleanor getting taken out, but Craig had complete faith in Sheila to not miss.

    \"Eleanor!\"

    Both Schwartz and Piotr reacted furiously, redoubling their efforts, but they found Theodore and Harrison an impassable wall that endured each and every of their strikes.

    \"Fall back!\" Gunther ordered. He could see Craig and Sheila turning around to surround and cut off his remaining teammates'' path of retreat. Soon they would be outnumbered two to one and taken out through sheer numbers. \"We need to regroup! I''ll cover you!\"

    At a nod from Harrison, Theodore didn''t pursue. The two swordsmen didn''t question their fortune and immediately pulled back under the protection of Gunther''s suppressing fire. As they reached Gunther''s position, Harrison glanced at Dong Fang Yue Chu, who had stayed out of the fight this entire time.

    \"Yue Chu, are you ready?\"

    \"Yup.\" Yue Chu raised a hand and the entire arena turned crimson when a massive fireball materialized above them, resembling a miniature sun. \"Solar Emperor.\"

    \"You''ve got to be kidding me,\" Schwartz muttered as he gawked at the enormous fireball hovering above them. Yue Chu smiled before swinging his hand down and launching the ultimate fire spell down on them.

    \"Move!\" Gunther shouted and swung his cannon up. Charging as much mana as he could, he fired a colossal, intense beam of mana at the descending fireball, but even his full burst failed to put a dent on the fiery projectile that rushed toward the trio of them like certain death.

    Both Schwartz and Piotr scattered, the three of them spreading out as much as possible so as to force Yue Chu to choose between them.

    It made no difference. The fireball was so large that it engulfed all three of them, despite their best efforts to spread out. They shrieked as their bodies were immolated by the superheated flames, their charred figures toppling over.

    There was a short silence, and then the commentator burst to life, no longer surprised by the turn of events.

    \"What an incredible development! Adorno Team, the team that finished third in the regionals, and is considered by many to be stronger than the second, and also made it to the last sixteen in the national tournament last year, has been eliminated in the first knock-out round! By Jing Tian Team, who has displayed a remarkable improvement over their performance last year! They truly deserve their status as this year''s dark horses!\"

    \"WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!\"

    A roar surged out of the spectators, the contingent from Jing Tian Academy being the loudest and most boisterous.

    Amidst the screams and yells of celebratory delight, the commentator had to shout himself hoarse to be heard over the ruckus.

    \"The winner of this match is Team Jing Tian!\"

    His announcement was then swallowed up by the combined voices of over a hundred students who had traveled all the way from Jing Tian City to support us.

    \"WE WON!\"

    \"I can''t believe it! We won!\"

    \"We did it!\"

    \"Harrison, you son of a gun! I knew you had it in you!\"

    \"Great job, everyone!\"

    It wasn''t just the Jing Tian contingent. Other students were applauding, impressed by our display. Seemed like we had earned quite a few fans.

    \"Well done.\" For some reason, our academy director, Vincent Violet, was holding up a fist and praising us, tears of joy in his eyes. Wiping them, he raised his head to look heavenwards. \"Are you watching this, Alicia? If you were here¡­you would have been so proud of what your school has achieved.\"

    \"Long live Jing Tian! Long live Jing Tian! Long live Jing Tian!\"

    Throwing their hands up into the air, our schoolmates chanted enthusiastically. No matter the outcome in the knock-out rounds, even if we lost the next round¡­we would already have earned their respect and brought pride to a \"fallen\" academy who had once been scorned and disdained by others.

    We had won back our place among the elites.

 388 Chapter 388: Toxic Tomb

    While the tournament was going on, Anastasia floated in her stasis chamber, arcane energies stilling her life-signs and halting the rapid expansion of toxins within her body. Without the stasis spell, all the poisons in her body would have erupted and blown her apart from the inside out. It wasn''t inaccurate to call her a ticking time bomb.

    Fortunately, Glacia had managed to preserve her life by the thinnest thread, stopping all biological and magical processes within Anastasia''s body before she could exceed the critical amount. It wasn''t a complete cure, but it would buy the Silver Wolves enough time to search for a real one while keeping Anastasia dormant.

    \"Still nothing yet?\" the silver-haired ice mage asked the entourage of healing mages who were busily working on analyzing the toxins found within Anastasia''s body and trying to concoct an antidote or a serum to neutralize the poisons.

    \"Unfortunately, we haven''t come up with a working serum yet.\" An elderly healing mage, a thin man in his sixties, replied. He resembled the typical doctor, with a white lab coat over his shirt and tie, wearing large round glasses that perched in front of his wrinkled face. He ran a hand through his gray hair and sighed heavily, looking exhausted. \"This is quite the potent cocktail of poisons in her body. I don''t know how the Veneneum Sect does it, but the toxins are too strong, resisting all of the antidotes we administered into her body.\"

    \"I''m sure you''ll figure something out, Doctor Dorden,\" Glacia assured him with a strained smile. Despite her frustration, she knew it wasn''t the healing mages'' fault. They had done the best they could. She cursed the Veneneum Sect for developing such insane poison magic and dangerous techniques. There was no denying their effectiveness on the battlefield, but at the cost of their operatives'' lives? Like hell she could accept that.

    Glacia realized just how lucky she and her colleagues were, working for the Silver Wolves. Feng Hai was a great man, ensuring that all of his subordinates were treated fairly and decently. He had never regarded any of them as tools or weapons to be disposed at his convenience. He had always watched out for their welfare.

    The fact that he was spending so much money and resources into trying to save a single subordinate ¨C Anastasia ¨C was proof of that. Glacia was aware that Feng Hai would have done the same for any of the other Silver Wolves. That was why everyone, from Redfield to Brent to even her, was so loyal to him. He had earned their trust and respect.

    \"Please¡­get well soon.\"

    Clenching her fists, Glacia glanced up at the stationary body of Anastasia, and prayed fervently for the wellbeing of her friend.

    *

    At night, the medical staff departed. Even though they were trying to save a life, the healing mages were still human. They still got tired and needed rest. It would be unreasonable to expect them to work 24/7. Understanding that, Feng Hai had allowed them the usual 9 to 5 working hours, and by 7pm, even those diligent healing mages determined enough to do overtime of their own accord had packed up and returned home.

    Of course there would be a few who would skip dinner entirely and burn their nights away, staying in the lab until past midnight, but Feng Hai put a stop to that and ordered them all to go home. Not because of security reasons, but because he mandated that the doctors needed their rest. It would do them no good to make remarkable progress at the cost of their own health and wellbeing. None of the doctors protested against his decision ¨C Feng Hai could be very persuasive if he wanted to ¨C and they obediently shut down their computers and put a hold on whatever they were working on.

    By evening, the lights were all off and the lab was vacated. Even Glacia rose to leave, stifling a yawn before giving the unconscious Anastasia one last look. Her brow creased in worry, and she placed a hand on the glass chamber, as if hoping she could convey her emotions to her friend.

    Even though Anastasia hadn''t been in the Silver Wolves for as long as the vast majority of the mercenaries, she had proven herself during the short period of time, having saved many of them and carried out her missions admirably and efficiently. They had come to rely greatly on her knowledge of poisons and, out of necessity, her impressive arsenal of killing skills. The ex-Assassin had become an indispensable member of the Silver Wolves, particularly because of their vocation as combat mercenaries who visited a myriad of battlefields. Furthermore, her bright disposition and cheerful personality had endeared her to everyone, particularly the guys.

    Everyone would do anything to save her¡­and if their positions were reversed, Glacia was sure that Anastasia would do the same, using whatever means she could to preserve the lives of her comrades. No matter what heinous measures she was forced to resort to.

    \"Ah¡­I should go.\"

    Shaking the dark, gloomy thoughts out of her head, Glacia proceeded to the exit of the lab. If Anastasia could see her pondering over such pessimistic sentiments, she would surely laugh and tease her about it.

    \"I should go home and get some sleep,\" she muttered distractedly. Wait, before that, wasn''t there something she should do? Glacia couldn''t remember clearly, but she had the distinct impression that she needed to do something before she went to bed.

    Right. It had something to do with Anastasia, but what was it exactly? Rubbing her temples, Glacia sighed wearily as she racked her brain, trying to recall what it was.

    \"You missed the live telecast!\" Ana whined.

    \"?!\"

    Blinking, Glacia spun around, but she saw no one. Anastasia''s voice no longer rang in her ears, but she was so sure she had heard her speak. That couldn''t be possible. Ana was still locked in stasis, unconscious and unmoving in the lab. How could she complain to her in the corridor?

    It must be a hallucination, them. Glacia had the feeling that she might have overworked herself over the last few days, trying to save her friend. No wonder she was beginning to see and hear things. And it couldn''t have been a ghost, because Ana was still alive. Close to death, yes, but otherwise very much alive.

    Nonetheless, that phantom voice had reminded Glacia exactly what she had forgotten. A trivial promise that she had flippantly made with Anastasia before they took on a particular mission¡­what was it again? Right, the Silver Wolves were hired to serve as security for the national high school tournament held in the Federation.

    Anastasia, Glacia recalled, had been so enthusiastic about it. A boy who was very dear to her had been slated to participate in it, and Ana was confident that he would made it all the way. She wanted to cheer for him all the way to the finals, and was ectastic when she learned that they would broadcast a live telecast of the matches. In fact, rather than the live telecast, she wanted to watch the matches firsthand, but was disappointed to learn that she would be dispatched to guard the exterior of the stadium and be forced to keep her eyes out for anomalies and threats rather than be allowed to watch the matches like the spectators.

    Fortunately, Glacia reminded Anastasia that they wouldn''t be guarding the stadium 24/7 but in shifts. All she had to do was arrange her schedule in a way that her shift wouldn''t come in conflict with the boy''s match.

    What was the boy''s name again? She should know ¨C after all, she had met him before, particularly when they held that rescue mission to recover Anastasia when the ex-Assassin was on the verge of erupting. He also helped Captain Brent and Redfield in their mission to the tomb at the Black Underworld Swamp, and assisted Anastasia in eliminating the infamous Grim Reaper, one of the top killers from the Assassins Guild.

    There was no way she could have forgotten his name.

    \"You talking about me?\" I called out to her from beyond the fourth wall, startling her. She glanced in my direction, but I disappeared with a wave, leading her to believe that I was nothing more than a hallucination. Better that way¡­otherwise Glacia would think she was going crazy because of my ability to break the fourth wall. That was the problem with sticking to a first person perspective, but stick to it I fully intended.

    \"That''s right! Richard Huang!\" Glacia stared at me for a moment, dismissed me as a hallucination, and continued on her way, ignoring me. Fine, be like that. I rolled my eyes and retrated back past the dimension beyond, returning to my hotel.

    While I did that, Glacia resumed her journey home. She stepped out of the corridor and exited the compound that served as the home base for the Silver Wolves. The moment her shoe touched concrete, she froze.

    \"?!\"

    Glacia glanced around, her eyes narrowing, but she saw no sign of anyone. Not even me ¨C by then, I had fully retreated into the hotel and was not going to break the fourth wall again ¨C at least not for the rest of this chapter anyway.

    \"Weird. I could have sworn there''s someone here.\"

    The cool ice mage continued to look around, but to no avail. As her first impression proved, she was unable to find any sign of anyone. At first she thought it might have been one of the medical staff loitering aound the compound, presumably having forgotten and left something in the office. A cursory glance told her that she was mistaken.

    There was no one around. Glacia felt a chill crawl down her spine, and she tensed, but a few seconds passed with nothing happening. Was it her imagination?

    \"I must have been working too hard,\" the silver-haired lady murmured as she rubbed her eyes. She smiled when she remembered this time that she was supposed to go watch my matches. Not because she particularly wanted to support me, but because she planned to tell Anastasia everything ¨C right down to the last detail ¨C when she finally woke up and was cured of her current poisoned condition. Glacia was certain that Anastasia would want to know everything, and would no doubt press her for details.

    Shaking her head and dismissing her sense of unease as the consequence of overwork, Glacia left the base and headed for her home.

    When she did so, a shadow crept out from around a corner, pressing itself close to the wall. Stepping out into the light, it revealed itself to be a hooded figure, a person clad entirely in black. Taking a deep breath, he gave the surroundings one last cautious look before he tried to enter the door that Glacia had just exited.

    The double glass doors automatically slid open, relying on sensors rather than manual operation. The Assassin gratefully entered, infiltrating the Silver Wolves base. Sneaking past the lobby, he came across the main corridor that led to the labs at the back.

    Casually flicking his thumb, he tossed several spirit stones into the corridor. The bright gems shone for a moment before they disintegrated in a rainbow-like shower, revealing dozens of ruby laser lights that formed an intricate web across the corridor.

    Unfazed, the Assassin strode through the weaving red laser lights, spinning, whirling and twisting his body to avoid each of them by a hair''s breadth. His graceful movements made it seem as if he was almost dancing, having fun as he waltzed across the extensive network of deadly lights, taking care not to trigger any of the sensors and set off the alarms.

    He snapped his fingers and thumbs, hurling more of those enchanted jewels at the sources of the laser lights, destroying them soundlessly and deactivating them. The Silver Wolves would find out that their security system was being shut down eventually, but by then he would be far from their premises, and with his target.

    Spinning around to avoid another sweeping laser sensor, which doubled as a killing trap that would slice through his body like a hot knife through butter, he practically pranced to the end of the room, a massive reinforced door that served as an entrance to the laboratory where Anastasia was currently being held in stasis.

    \"So much for the airtight security of the vaunted Silver Wolves,\" he remarked with a laugh. \"I heard so much about them, and yet I didn''t think I would be able to break through their security network this easily.\"

    He grinned as he placed his hand on the security pad that controlled the door mechanisms to the lab, and then began to cast a basic hacking spell. It might take some time, but he was confident of cracking the security code and forcing the doors open. Then he would grab Anastasia and bring her back to the Assassins Guild¡­

    \"It''s like taking candy from a baby.\" As he typed on the number pad, he couldn''t resist a chuckle.

    \"Indeed.\"

    \"?!\"

    The Assassin tried to spin around, but before he could fully turn to face the speaker, a sword slammed into his hand, impaling it to the security pad. The hooded figure howled in agony, his expression of pain concealed behind his skull-like mask. Perspiration dripping down his face, he slowly turned around to face his assailant, his body trembling in fear.

    Feng Hai smiled as he conjured a hail of wind blades, each of which vibrated violently from the wind spells that enhanced their speed, power and sharpness.

    \"Who gave you permission to set your eyes on me?\"

    That was the last thing the Assassin saw and head before the hurricane blades crashed upon him, tearing his body apart.

    \"¡­nothing to fear, you said?\" he croaked, remembering what the Grand Master of Assassins said before dispatching him on this mission. \"I would be able to avoid conflict and sneak into the Silver Wolves'' base unseen and unheard, you said?\"

    The disbelieving words had just barely left his mouth when a huge sword smashed into his face, obliterating both his mask and skull. A red haze of excruciating pain exploded across his mind and flooded his body ¨C he could feel the sensations of countless other blades piercing his stout figure ¨C before darkness swallowed him completely.

    Then¡­merciful oblivion.

 389 Chapter 389: The Shadows Stir

    \"Lord.\"

    The hooded figure knelt down before the seemingly indescript man seated in an office chair. Slim, of average height and looking slightly plain, the middle-aged man seemed completely harmless, but in actual fact he was the most dangerous person in the entire temple.

    \"Shakes. What''s up?\"

    The Grand Master of Assassins smiled pleasantly, his eyes twinkling as he set them on his subordinate. The hooded figure stiffened, knowing that there was more than meets the eye when it came to Drake Vangorvich. Even when he was smiling, there was something far more dangerous lurking behind that genial expression.

    A promise of death, perhaps. For many a victim, that friendly smile was the last thing they ever saw before they died.

    Shakes suppressed his fear and swallowed. Despite Vangorvich''s superlative assassination skills, he was never one to needlessly or excessively punish his subordinates. Indeed, Vangorvich never sanctioned execution or the death sentence for any of his operatives unless absolteuly necessary. Even for the traitor Anastasia, he issued a single order.

    Capture her. Do your best not to kill her.

    That was also why the Assassins so faithfully and loyally served Vangorvich. Despite his ruthless and merciless approaches toward his targets, Vangorvich never failed to ensure the welfare of his own operatives. While they understood the necessity of leaving or sacrificing Assassins in the field to ensure a mission''s success, Vangorvich never carelessly expended their lives for his own goals. Those who returned in less than one piece were provided the best healing treatment he could afford. And he did not scrimp on their weapons and equipment.

    For he believed that his operatives deserved nothing less than the best. Vangorvich treated every Assassin, regardless of sect, as his own child, and it almost seemed as if he personally took a hand in nurturing each and every single one of them.

    That was a lot more than Shakes could say for the various masters of each sect. it was unfortunate, but the individual sect masters were a lot colder and less¡­kind than Vangorvich. The current leader of the Veneneum Sect, who took over after Vangorvich was elevated to his present position, was intent on eliminating Anastasia so as to wipe out whatever embarrassment or shame she felt at having a member defect to the enemy. Most likely Anastasia betrayed them because of the treatment she suffered at the hands of the Veneneum Sect.

    Those who were not directly under Vangorvich usually ended up being puppets or pawns in their respective leaders'' play for power. No doubt this incident was a blow to the current Veneneum Sect leader''s ambition to succeed Vangorvich as the next Grand Master. Not that Vangorvich would be leaving his position anytime soon¡­

    In any case, that was why Shakes was unable to shake off the caution and fear that haunted him. As part of the Umbra Sect, he had been subjected to the cruel politics and power plays that took place in the shadows. He still couldn''t easily trust anyone, even the Grand Master himself.

    \"Shakes?\"

    Vangorvich repeated his question, his tone still mild, but Shakes''s muscles locked up. Was it psychological conditioning? Or perhaps there was force of will in that deceivingly gentle voice of the Grand Master? Whatever the case, Shakes found himself answering automatically, without any hesitation, before he realized it.

    \"Our plans to infiltrate the Silver Wolves'' base has failed. Our operative has been killed in action.\"

    \"I see. So Hassan has failed.\" Vangorvich steepled his fingers, looking grim. He sighed and shook his head. \"What a pity.\"

    \"What do we do next?\"

    \"What do you think we should do?\" Vangorvich smiled humorlessly, his eyes glinting. Even though he was looking straight at Shakes, the subordinate had the sense that the Grand Master was staring at someone else, somewhere else. \"If at first you don''t succeed, try again. Since the Umbra Sect has proven themselves to not be up to the task, send an Assassinf rom another sect this time.\"

    Shakes swallowed and lowered his head, his throat stuck. Vangorvich softened his tone.

    \"Relax, Shakes. I''m not blaming you. You''re not the one who failed.\" He sighed and leaned back in his great chair, pinching the bridge of his nose. \"You might be from the Umbra Sect as well, but another Umbra Assassin''s failure isn''t your failure. Even so, we must move fast.\" Lowering his hand, Vangorvich allowed a flash of frustration to cross his face.

    \"Lord?\" Shakes ventured uncertainly. The Grand Master glanced back at him, his dark eyes refocusing.

    \"I am well aware of the politics between the leaders of the various sects and the stunts they try to pull behind my back. The Veneneum Sect leader, in particular. She''s the one who is obsessed with eliminating Anastasia, what with her determination to clear the stain on their honor or that nonsense. I must capture Anastasia before she succeeds in killing her¡­or capturing her for herself.\"

    \"I have conveyed your displeasure to her,\" Shakes informed him. Vangorvich chuckled and nodded.

    \"I know you have, Shakes. And she''s trying to be careful. That''s why she enlisted the Umbra Sect leader for a favor rather than employ her own Veneneum Assassins. After the last time I¡­told her off, she knows better than to directly defy my orders.\"

    Shakes watched the Grand Master cautiously for a moment, trying his best to hide the frown that he felt. Vangorvich chuckled again and waved a hand in his direction.

    \"I know what you''re thinking, Shakes. Don''t worry, you don''t have to hide it from me. I''m not going to kill you just because you have doubts against my orders.\"

    \"Begging your pardon, Lord,\" Shakes began uncertainly. \"But why do you want Anastasia alive? Isn''t she more of a threat alive? Providing our enemies with information about our guild, and all that.\"

    \"Can any Assassin ever claim to be knowledgeable enough about everything in our Guild?\" Vangorvich responded mildly as he spun his chair around to stare out of the dark-tinted window behind him. \"I dare say that Anastasia doesn''t even know the full details of her own Veneneum Sect¡­she does not even know the name of her own sect leader. What would she know about the other sects, or about the Guild?\"

    That was true. Being in this line of work, Drake Vangorvich was as cautious as ever, taking care not to mention the names of the various sect leaders despite only speaking to Shakes. This wasn''t because he didn''t know their names ¨C as the Grand Master, he was the one person with the privilege to hold onto the knowledge of their identities. However, one could never tell if there were bugs or spells that allowed other people to eavesdrop on their conversations within Vangorvich''s office. Even though the Grand Master was confident of the soundproof and anti-spy defensive spells that enchanted his headquarters, he couldn''t be too sure.

    Even the sect leaders were unaware of each other''s identities, and to maintain the balance in power, he would like to keep it that way.

    \"Even so¡­despite her being in her current condition, you still wish to capture her instead of leaving her to die? She doesn''t deserve to be saved.\"

    Vangorvich laughed at that.

    \"My dear Shakes¡­do you actually believe I intend to save a traitor? An Assassin who has defected to the Silver Wolves?\"

    Shakes blinked at that, looking puzzled. \"I apologize, my lord¡­then why is it that you have ordered the Veneneum Sect leader to refrain from killing Anastasia?\"

    \"Isn''t it obvious?\" Vangorvich smiled slyly. \"It''s because she is worth more to me alive than she is dead.\"

    \"I don''t believe she will willingly rejoin the Asssassins Guild¡­especially after what the Veneneum Sect did to her.\"

    \"No, no. You misunderstand me, Shakes.\" Vangorvich shook his head, thoroughly amused. \"I am not trying to recruit her back to the Guild. Ah, it''s only natural that you do not know about it¡­you''re not from the Veneneum Sect, after all. You''ve not heard of the Woeful Poison Body, have you?\"

    Shakes scowled. \"Yes, I have. But isn''t that from Battle Through the Heavens? What does that have to do with¡­oh.\"

    \"Yes.\" Vangorvich grinned. \"Although our dear Creator obviously ripped it off from a Chinese web novel, this still applies somewhat to our reality. Anastasia is pretty valuable as material for another Veneneum Assassin.\"

    Shakes suddenly recalled that Drake Vangorvich was the former leader of the Veneneum Sect before he became Grand Master. Before his name was known (because the Grand Master of Assassins had a seat with the High Lords of Terra¡­I mean, connections with the ten Great Families of the Federation and was thus required to participate in politics and present himself as the face of the Assassins Guild), he was known as the shadowy, terrifying and almost mythical Veneneum Sect leader with the greatest number of successful kills. Small wonder that he beat his rivals to attain his current position.

    \"If that is the case, wouldn''t the Veneneum Sect leader want to capture Anastasia alive rather than kill her? Then why is she publically¡­?\"

    \"She can''t possibly announce to the other sects that she''s about to consume a former subordinate and take her powers for herself, to increase the lethality of her own Woeful Poison Body, can she? I don''t think it''ll go down that well for the others.\" Vangorvich chuckled. \"Just as I trust you not to carelessly inform the other sects about this¡­\"

    There was a slight warning in his voice, but it was more than enough to cause Shakes to tremble all over. For some reason, he had the feeling that a wrong answer would see him killed instantly, before he even knew what was going on.

    As expected of the Grand Master of Assassins. Despite the immense amount of time he spent in the office, he was still no less deadly than before, back when he was a nameless, shadowy figure known only by his myth.

    \"No, my lord. I have no intention of leaking this to anyone else.\"

    \"Good. I wouldn''t want to lose a valuable subordinate just to preserve any secrets.\" Vangorvich didn''t seem to care that he was the one who leaked it. He was aware that Shakes would find out sooner or later, being the competent and resourceful operative that he was.

    That was fine. Vangorvich trained his Assassins to be competent and resourceful in the first place. They would be useless in the field otherwise.

    \"I will leave the assignments to you. If one operative isn''t enough, send several.\" Vangorvich smiled as he leaned forward. \"The Umbra Sect might want to make up for their failure this time. I can authorize an Execution Force if you need me to.\"

    \"That''s¡­unnecessary for now, my lord.\"

    \"Ho¡­? I like your confidence. But you had best hurry.\" Vangorvich was not worried about the doctors finding a serum and neutrailizing the toxins in Anastasia''s body. That was fine with him ¨C in fact, that would benefit him even more. A more powerful Woeful Poison Body, especially one belonging to a practitioner who had control over the toxins within her body, would be more valuable as material for absorption than someone on the verge of eruption. Rather, he was more worried about someone else. \"I heard that one of the Dark Cardinals is on the move. Or ex-Dark Cardinals, I should say. Apparently she showed up to butcher a bunch of idiots stupid enough to kidnap her daughter and attack her stepson.\"

    \"Ah¡­\" Shakes knew what Vangorvich was referring to. He had seen the news too, and could scarcely believe what he had watched. \"Do you think she¡­is the real thing? Why has she returned, after all this time? Just for her daughter and stepson? I didn''t think she had any close relations to them, what with abandoning them so many years ago.\"

    \"She must have her own circumstances. Who knows?\" Vangorvich shrugged nonchalantly. \"Who cares? Truth be told, I don''t think she was saving her stepson. Her priority is most definitely her daughter, and I doubt she rescued her simply because of motherly love. There must be a reason why she couldn''t allow her daughter to fall into enemy hands.\"

    \"What reason is that?\"

    \"As I said, Shakes, who knows? Certainly not me. More importantly¡­\" the Grand Master of Assassins leaned over, and while his voice remained amicable there was more weight to his words than before. \"I''ve given you an order, have I not? Why are you still here?\"

    \"My apologies, my lord!\" Shakes hastily bowed and departed the office, visibly shaken. Drake Vangorvich watched him go before he idly leaned back in his chair, his fingers lazily drumming against the surface of his desk and his eyes taking on a faraway gaze.

    \"Seems like the gears have been set in motion,\" he murmured to himself. \"And everything will change, whether it''s for the Federation, the Dark Church or¡­my Assassins Guild. The world will never be the same again.\"

 390 Chapter 390: Scorched Earth

    \"Huff¡­huff¡­\"

    I watched my opponents warily, aware that I was the only one in my team left. Harrison had collapsed, his body smoldering. He had taken that last spell meant for me, and despite his holy barrier, the combined efforts of our five opponents had broken through his defenses and finally fell him.

    Yue Chu was lying somewhere else, unseen, along with Lily. Theodore was slumped against the wall, unmoving, his hammer a few meters from his hand.

    We were already falling behind 2-3 thanks to our less than spectacular performance during the individual matches. And now the score was 2-7 because they had downed four of our members in the team match, with me being the sole survivo, and they still had five of their members standing.

    \"Do you surrender?\" the opposing team captain, Harold Collainder, asked as he pointed his glowing sword at me. Despite his intimidating stance, he was clearly out of breath, sweat pouring down his pale face as he panted heavily.

    \"No. why should I?\"

    I swept my gaze across the five members. All of them were clearly worn out and badly injured, thanks to the tremendous efforts of my teammates. Harrison had switched to a more conventional tactic this time, with four of the team protecting me while I cast my summoning spells. Theodore, Yue Chu, Lily and Harrison had done their best to guard me from the aggressive spells and strategy of the opposing team, and paid the price.

    They had been eliminated, sort of, and the score had gone to 2-7 in our opponents'' favor. They were placing a lot of faith in me to turn this around by myself. If I failed, then we would be knocked out right here and right now.

    \"Don''t you dare underestimate us!\" a huge guy growled, lumbering forward with his axe. He was Aximand, the one who knocked out Theodore with brute force, augmented by his earth magic. Despite his immense strength, he was swaying slightly from the terrible wounds that my friend had dealt to him. The two giants had clashed so violently that they almost dragged the other teammates into their conflict. \"No matter how beaten up we are, it doesn''t matter! Even you can''t take on all five of us at the same time, not by yourself!\"

    I smiled, amused. \"What makes you think I''m by myself?\"

    At that moment, both Golden Kirin and Vermillion Phoenix manifested behind and above me, bellowing and screeching. My opponents recoiled from the sheer amount of mana that emanated from both Celestial Guardians, buffeted and sent staggering from their potent presence alone.

    That was why I only summoned them after my teammates were down. It was because I was spending ten minutes to complete the summoning of two Celestial Guardians instead of one. To be honest, this was Harrison''s idea. When I pointed out that I could support them earlier with just one Celestial Guardian, he rejected that plan and insisted that he wanted me to summon two of my most powerful Constellation spirits at the same time.

    \"Two are better than one,\" he told me with a grin. Time to see if he was right.

    \"Fuck! We''re too late!\" Harold howled in impotent rage. He rushed forward, swinging his sword, but Vermillion Phoenix blew him back with a single swipe of his right wing, unleashing a tremendous inferno that engulfed the poor enemy team captain and sent him sprawling onto the ground.

    \"Harold!\" their team healer, a lady named Crystal, hurried over to cast a healing spell. Unfortunately, her mana was spent and near empty after repeated casting and she looked as if she was on the verge of collapse. Additionally, the severe injuries that Harold had suffered meant that he wouldn''t be able to fully recover for the duration of the match. Even with healing magic, he would need several hours before he was fully restored to peak condition.

    \"Fucker!\" Aximand roared as he barreled forward. Holding his double-bladed axe high up with both hands, he tried to cleave Vermillion Phoenix in two, but Golden Kirin stomped on the ground. A thick wall of earth shot out and struck the burly metal mage in the midriff. Ordinarily he should be able to dodge a slow attack such as Golden Kirin''s spell, but his movemnts were dull from exhaustion and a few wounds sustained from dueling Theodore. Consequently, he crashed several meters away, winded from the blow and grunting in pain. \"Ugh¡­damn it!\"

    The remaining two members circled me, hoping to flank me, but Golden Kirin raised more barriers made out of earth, encircling me. They sprang back after inadvertently colliding against the newly raised walls of earth, huffing, sparks flying as they stabbed the barriers with their blades, to no avail. Spikes burst out and forced them back, and because of their weariness they weren''t able to escape completely unscathed. Blood dripped onto the ground from various grazes and cuts.

    Crystal raised her hand to cast minor healing spells to close the bleeding, but even those miraculous charms did nothing for the exhaustion they felt. They glared at me, burns evident from their clash against Yue Chu earlier. Lily also left a few cuts on them with her sword.

    \"Do you have enough mana to cast your Geyser spell again?\"

    The Assassin wannabe, Arnold, asked the blue-haired girl, Leyla. She hesitated, and nodded.

    \"I have enough mana for one last spell, but after that I would be out.\"

    \"That''s fine. He''s the last one left. Let''s do it!\"

    Harold had gotten up by now, and he issued a command to Leyla. The water mage acceded and raised both of her hands, conjuring a new spell with the final vestiges of her mana.

    I smiled.

    \"Don''t let him take her out! Distract him!\"

    Not noticing my glee, Harold issued more orders to his teammates. Arnold and Aximand obeyed, and the three guys sprang forward, evading the fiery feathers that Vermillion Phoenix sent from above. Golden Kirin stomped on the ground again, unleashing another barrage of earth spikes that rammed toward the trio, forcing them back. Cursing, the three guys withdrew to a safe distance, casting whatever spells they could with what remained of their mana.

    \"Behind me!\" Aximand bellowed before he swung his axe down and unleashed a metal wall that held firm against the earth spikes. There were several dents as the powerful earth spikes slammed into the metallic barrier, but Aximand infused whatever mana he had left into his defensive enchantment to protect his friends.

    The moment it crumbled under the onslaught of earth spikes, the sheer volume of projectiles overwhelming his pitiful defense, the trio leaped away. Arnold threw a dagger in my direction while Harold mustered a beam of light that he fired from range. The dagger burned away from flames that Vermillion Phoenix unleashed from above while the golden beam of light was stopped by a wall of earth that Golden Kirin conjured.

    \"Kuh¡­\"

    The both of them exchanged frustrated glances, but grabbed hold of the staggering Aximand to pull him back.

    \"Are you not done yet, Leyla?!\"

    \"Almost!\"

    A raging whirlpool of water swirled ferociously around her hands, and she launched it straight at me. The geyser spear took the shape of a spear and punched a hole through several layers of earth walls that Golden Kirin conjured.

    That was fine. Mentally instructing Golden Kirin to take a step back, I myself strode to the front and drew Bai Yue. Raising my white sword with both hands, I swung it down and cleaved the approaching geyser in half.

    I didn''t just cleave it into two. The moment the white blade touched the ferocious water spell, it instantly froze it. The geyser transformed into ice, slowly at first, and then swiftly all the way back toward its caster. Leyla recoiled in horror as the ice reached her hands and encased her fingers in ice. If she hadn''t pulled back, she would have lost both her arms to the rapidly expanding ice.

    \"What''s this?!\"

    \"Damn you!\" Harold howled before whipping around and pointing his sword at me. A second golden beam of light surged out, but by now I was able to make use of the frozen ice from Leyla''s spell and craft it into Snow Aegis. The beam of light bounced off the gigantic snowflake shield, ineffective and pathetic.

    \"!!!\"

    \"Is it my turn to attack now?\" I asked pleasantly. Then I glanced up at Vermillion Phoenix before turning to nod at Golden Kirin. The both of them cast their spells simultaneously, with Golden Kirin stomping on the ground and unleashing a gigantic ripple of fluid rock at the opposing team. Leyla hurriedly raised her hands to create a water barrier against the avalanche, only to realize that she had spent all of her mana on the last attack.

    \"Oh no!\"

    \"Don''t worry, I''ve got this!\"

    Aximand lumbered forward and smashed his axe against the ground, creating a metallic wall.

    However, it was useless. Vermillion Phoenix''s flames from above washed over the avalanche that Golden Kirin had created, and the two spells combined into one. In an instant, the rocky avalanche turned into a superheated torrent of molten lava that flowed over the opposing team like a fiery tsunami. Even Aximand''s metallic barrier offered them no refuge, the poor screen collapsing into a disfigured hunk of melted metal that splashed across the shrieking metal mage.

    All five opponents vanished under the huge tide of molten lava, their bodies scorched and burned beyond recognition. I took care to ensure my friends weren''t caught up in the spell, of course, having quietly instructed Golden Kirin to bear their unconscious bodies away, aloft and far from any of the raging lava.

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I couldn''t help but smirk.

    \"I call this the Scorched Earth Tactic.\"

    There were several groans from the spectators, but I ignored them all. Come on, you can''t blame me for being pleased with myself after taking out five dudes. Of course, I wouldn''t have been able to pull this off without my teammates'' help. If they didn''t fend the opposing team off and buy me the time I needed to summon two Celestial Guardians, I would never have been able to pull this off and take them all out.

    This was only achievable because I cooperated with my team, and they put their faith in me, trusting me to turn the tables around after they sacrified themselves to protect me and buy me the time I required for my summoning. I was grateful to them.

    \"Are you guys all right?\"

    Using Golden Kirin''s spells, I held them back and placed them in what I hoped was a comfortable position. Above, the commentator was shouting something. It took me a while to disengage from whatever I was doing and pay attention to him.

    \"The winner is Jing Tian Team! What an amazing comeback! From 4 members down, their last member did a reverse sweep and took out the entire opposing team with a combo spell! Impressive! With this, the score is now tied 7-7, but Jing Tian Team gets through because they won the team match! What a surprising turnaround!\"

    I could barely hear him over the applause and boisterous cheers from the spectators, but I didn''t pay much attention to them. Instead, now that I received confirmation that the match was over, I immediately brought my friends to a waiting Pearl, who began to cast her healing spells even before the medics could arrive. Just as well, because the medics would be rushing toward the buried opposing team and applying emergency treatment to them. They were probably on the verge of death, kept alive by the boundary field.

    Hey, at least I didn''t nuke them, right?

    \"Great job!\"

    Craig and Sheila showed up to smack me around, the two of them having won their matches. Surprisingly, it was Bu Fan who lost his match, along with Cody and Pearl. Harrison had sent our team healer against theirs, for the opposing team fielded Crystal in the individual matches. Pearl took that as a challenge and had requested Harrison to send her, and she¡­got eliminated. Fortunately, in a battle between healers, neither of them got too terribly hurt (though they were exhausted and depleted quite a bit of their mana).

    Apparently Harold''s strategy was to deny us of our healer, but he didn''t realize that he was handicapping his team by using up quite a bit of his healer''s mana during the individual matches. The gamble failed for him. Well, it wouldn''t have mattered much even if Crystal was at full capacity anyway. Healing spells were not an instant heal like in games, where you suddenly restore full HP. Reality did not work that way. Healing spells worked more by speeding up the body''s innate healing by accelerating cellular regeneration and using the target''s own mana to slowly restore and recover lost organs, tissue and even limbs. And even these take time. It wasn''t an instant heal where you snap your fingers and all injuries were gone just like that. Of course minor injuries took mere seconds to fully heal, but major injuries would require a lot more time ¨C fatal wounds would require hours to recover from. Broken bones, regeneration of limbs and organs, etc. ¨C all of these would take the better part of a day. The more severe the injuries, the more time the healing spell took to restore the target''s body to its peak condition.

    Certain fatal injuries even took days, maybe even up to a week. So to try and heal your teammate back to \"full health\" in the middle of a match was just impractical.

    \"Thanks to you, we made it to the next round! We should be in the round of 16! Excellent!\" Craig was celebrating.

    \"No, it wasn''t just me. Everyone contributed.\" I nodded at my unconscious teammates. Harrison was beginning to stir and I approached him to share the good news. \"Without them, I would never be able to pull this off.\"

    \"You''re right. This was a team effort.\" Harrison accepted my hand and allowed me to pull him up, grimacing despite Pearl''s healing spells taking effect. \"But you have validated our belief in you. And that doesn''t mean you didn''t do a good job. You still deserve credit for what you''ve achieved.\"

    \"It''s an achievement by everyone,\" I insisted.

    \"Not denying that, but each and every one of us has a part to play, and you fulfilled your role above expectations.\"

    \"Uh, well¡­\"

    \"Richard''s as humble as always.\" Sheila giggled and reached out to ruffle my hair. \"Now, now. Just accept the praise, okay?\"

    \"¡­right.\"

    \"Get ready!\" Craig grinned as he raised a fist. \"We''re going all out for our celebration tonight!\"

 391 Chapter 391: Execution Force

    After dinner, my celebratory mood was spoiled when I caught sight of Feng Hai approaching me. That alone wasn''t enough to alarm me, but his expression and the dark, gloomy aura that pervaded him told me that something was up.

    \"Please go ahead,\" I told my friends, who were practically skipping about and pleased that we had gotten into the last sixteen. \"I might have some business with somebody.\"

    \"Instructor Feng Hai?\" Harrison caught sight of the Silver Wolves mercenary leader. \"What is he doing here?\"

    \"Yeah, if he has business with you, he probably has business with us,\" Craig told me flatly. \"Don''t worry about it.\"

    \"We''re together in this,\" Sheila added. I tried not to sigh. These guys had no idea what kind of matters I got entangled in with regard to the Silver Wolves. They probably thought this had something to do with the tournament when it didn''t.

    I was sure this had something to do with Anastasia. That was the only reason Feng Hai would look for me in the middle of the tournament. To seek my help regarding a situation that involved her. Given that the last time I saw her, she was encased within a stasis spell to stop the toxins within her Woeful Poison Body from erupting, I gathered that several implications had cropped up. Either they weren''t able to find a cure in time, or¡­

    \"Hey, guys.\" Feng Hai caught up with us. He nodded at Harrison and the rest before turning to me. \"Richard, you have a moment?\"

    \"What do you need Richard for?\" Harrison asked guardedly, putting on his strictest voice as the team captain.

    \"Oh, don''t worry. This has nothing to do with the tournament, or with Jing Tian Academy. I need to inform him about the situation regarding our mutual acquaintance.\"

    \"Anastasia?\" I knew it. \"She''s not just an acquaintance.\"

    Feng Hai smiled at that, but the humor was still not present in his eyes. \"Yes. She''s a very precious comrade for the both of us.\"

    \"I see.\" Harrison nodded and backed away, gesturing for the others to follow him. \"Then we''ll leave you to it.\"

    \"Thanks.\" I bowed toward him, grateful for his understanding. Theodore had to forcibly drag a grumbling Craig, who was more amicable when Sheila took over by grabbing his arm and not too gently leading him away. Yue Chu shot me a worried look, but I waved him away, trying to assure him that I would be fine.

    While my friends were moving out of earshot, Feng Hai turned back to me. He glanced around cautiously and lowered his voice.

    \"Do you mind following me to someplace more¡­secure?\"

    In other words, a place where we wouldn''t be overheard by any random person. I understood. Nodding, I allowed him to lead me to a Silver Wolves hover-van that levitated above the road, its massive hull parked right next to the sidewalk. I crawled into the back compartment and nodded a greeting to Redfield and Brent, who were both seated in there.

    \"Richard! Doing well in the tournament, I see.\"

    \"That was an impressive match today. You have improved a lot.\"

    \"Thanks.\" Even though I was buoyed by their praise, I could detect from their stiff expressions a forced levity. Something drastic had happened, and it was visibly affecting their mood. Taking a deep breath, I glanced at them one person at a time before I finally dared to ask the question that had been burning in my mind this entire time. \"Did something happen to Anastasia?\"

    \"We can''t hide anything from you, can we?\" Feng Hai chuckled darkly, and then he nodded. Taking a seat by the side of the van compartment, he slumped down, frustration crossing across his handsome face. \"Yes. Earlier tonight, an Execution Force struck our base back in Silver City and took Anastasia.\"

    \"What?!\" I almost jumped up and hit my head against the low ceiling of the van.

    \"That''s right.\" Redfield looked grim. \"They attacked when most of our forces were dispatched to Southampton City, to guard the students and staff participating in the national high school tournament. They overwhelmed our defenses and got into the base, snatched Ana and took her away.\"

    \"Execution Force¡­? Is everyone all right?\"

    I knew what an Execution Force was, only because I played Warhammer 40,000. It consisted of at least four Assassins from different sects, the deadliers killers of the Guild coming together and working in concert to eliminate a high-priority target. The amount of destruction and death they left in their wake was horrifying to say the least.

    \"Fortunately, they attacked after most of the medical staff left for home. None of the medical staff was hurt, but we did lose about fifteen security staff. Fortunately, Glacia was not among them ¨C she had the good sense to sen the medical staff back early before leaving herself, or I fear that she would have gotten caught up in the massacre as well.\" Feng Hai''s face was a cold mask of fury. \"They will pay for this.\"

    \"Easy to say, but they sent an Execution Force, you know? An Execution Force.\" Redfield was practically waving his hands about. \"A group of the Guild''s most elite Assassins and deadliest killers in the Federation¡­maybe the world. Ah¡­\" he stopped and glanced at me sheepishly. \"Perhaps we should explain to Richie what an Execution Force is.\"

    \"I know what an Execution Force is¡­\" I began, but was cut off by Feng Hai. The Silver Wolves mercenary leader was fiddling with several switches and he flipped on a gigantic holograph. The interior of the van was illuminated by bright lights, and I saw in detail the hi-tech consoles, surveillance equipment, radar, communication arrays and sensor displays that fitted the relatively large space. Holographic screens floated here and there, collating data and interpreting them into a decipherable form for the mercenaries.

    Feng Hai waved a hand and summoned one of the holographic screens toward us, the display zooming toward us before expanding to feature great detail. I managed to make out the outlines of five figures stalking through the ruins of the Silver Wolves base.

    \"Operatives from each of the major Assassin sects, such as the Frenzor Sect, the Veneneum Sect, the Umbra Sect, the Pavlichenko Sect and Deceivum Sect. All combined into a single terrifying team of elite killers.\"

    I watched their dark silhouettes stalk through the rubble, their figures concealed in skintight bodysuits. Their faces were hidden behind terrifying masks, in particular the Frenzor Assassin wore one that was a grotesque parody of a grinning human skull, complete with glowing red eyes. The Umbra Assassin''s face seemed to be missing, nothing but a black hole swirling underneath a hood. The Pavlichenko Assassin''s mask was more practical, a bone-white mask with in-built optics, no doubt layered with sophisticated sensors to allow him to lock onto his target with impeccable accuracy. The Deceivum Assassin merely wore a black skin-tight mask that completely hid her features from view, while allowing a long strand of braided hair to flow from an opening at the back. The Veneneum Assassin''s mask seemed nondescript upon first view, but I could see a gas mask attached to her face, probably to filter out any toxin gases she might unleash upon her enemy.

    \"Just five of them¡­five of them, and they defeated over a dozen security staff by themselves.\" Redfield was holding his head in despair. I noted the presence of bloodied corpses lying amidst the debris, disembodied limbs and heads with horrified expressions gaping in the direction of the camera, their mouths frozen in an eternal, soundless scream. \"They are monsters.\"

    \"It can''t be helped. The enemy has sent their best.\" Feng Hai was struggling to keep his emotions under control. He waved a hand and dismissed the hologram before turning to me, his expression grim. \"And so are we.\"

    For a moment, I wasn''t sure I understood. Then I frowned.

    \"I''m happy to help, because Ana is someone precious to me, but make no mistake. I am not one of you.\"

    \"Not yet,\" Redfield added gleefully, then fell silent when I glared in his direction.

    \"I''m with my dad. I plan to follow my dad when I become a mercenary.\" Not the Silver Wolves. That was a line I needed to draw with them.

    \"I understand.\" Feng Hai smiled in a placating manner. \"Of course I am not asking you to join us, and I''m not rude enough to take you for granted and issue you orders as if you''re one of my subordinates. Nonetheless, because Ana is someone important to both you and the Silver Wolves, and so I believe it is only polite to inform you about what happened to her instead of keeping you in the dark.\"

    \"I appreciate it, and I will definitely help save her.\"

    \"There is one problem, though,\" Brent rumbled, his tone disapproving. \"Richard has his own circumstances. Never mind the fact that he is a student and shouldn''t be dragged into such a dangerous mission¡­he''s also a representative of his school for this high school tournament. We cannot selfishly demand that he pull out of the tournament and help us unconditionally. He worked so hard to be able to represent his team. This matter should be left to the adults.\"

    \"You are right, Brent.\" Feng Hai nodded at his second-in-command. \"But I''m afraid you misunderstand. I''m not here to recruit Richard to our cause. As I said, I know how important Ana is to him, and thus I do not wish to leave him in the dark about her fate. He''ll find out sooner or later, and in any case I want him on alert¡­to report to me if he sees anything amiss.\" He turned back to me. \"Can you do that, Richard?\"

    \"You bet I can.\" Then I paused, my mind whirring in confusion. \"Wait, you''re not here to recruit me to help rescue Ana?\"

    \"Correct. I just thought it rude to leave you out of this, given how close you are to Ana. But I do not want you running off and sneaking into our staff to join the rescue mission secretly. The reason I''m telling you about this now is so that you don''t find out about this on your own later and run off by yourself to mount a one-man rescue mission. I''m here to assure you that we have this well in hand, and I swear I will bring Ana back no matter what. I want you to trust us, and leave this matter to us. Do not attempt to rescue Ana by yourself. Attend to your responsibilities ¨C don''t let your friends and teammates down. You have your job to do, and we will take care of our own duties ourselves. Is that understood?\"

    I realized that Feng Hai would allow no protest, so I dumbly nodded. \"Crystal clear, sir.\"

    \"Good.\" Feng Hai relaxed a little. He knew I wasn''t the reckless type of protagonist who would lie to him, only to sneak out behind his back and stupidly try to rescue Anastasia¡­but end up jeopardizing the whole mission, only for plot armor to kick in and allow me to succeed beyond all odds. Unfortunately, reality, being the harsh bitch that it was, wasn''t going to allow such convenient development. If I screwed up, I screwed up¡­and Anastasia would die. Even if I somehow saved her, I would end up causing the deaths of many Silver Wolves mercenaries as they attempted to cover up for my blunder ¨C a fact that most other stories hand-waved away because those were treated as \"cannon fodder\" or expendable characters whose brave sacrifice was promptly forgotten so that the audience could focus on the happiness of the main characters.

    Yeah, I wasn''t selfish enough to think the universe revolved around me and my friends alone. Even so, the fact that I had to sit out this mission stung and I clenched my fists tightly.

    \"I do have one job for you, though¡­if you''re willing to take it.\"

    Feng Hai was far from finished with me. I looked up, my spirits buoyed slightly by this small concession.

    \"Sure. What is it? I''ll do my best.\"

    \"I know you will.\" The Silver Wolves colonel took a deep breath. \"I want you to keep an eye out during the tournament. I know this will be hard on you, what with you being a participant and having to worry about your own matches and everything, but my Silver Wolves are being stretched thin by all these constant¡­harassment now. Even a single extra pair of eyes would be a huge boon for us. If you see anything or anyone suspicious, report to me immediately. Send me or Glacia a message ¨C Glacia will be back in our HQ, rebuilding our base, and she''ll have ways to convey the message back to me. however trivial you think it is, however insignificant or unimportant you think, as long as you see one thing out of place, or your gut feeling tells you there''s something more about that guy than what meets the eye, I want to know immediately. Can you do that?\"

    \"Yes, sir.\"

    Now I was feeling a bit more stressed. Sensing that, Feng Hai placed a hand on my shoulder.

    \"Don''t worry. I don''t want you to be overly paranoid. Just cautious.\" He sighed as he glanced up and stared at the enclosed hatch of the van. \"The Dark Church has been active really lately, and this new business with the Assassins tells me that¡­they''re not going to stop here. They''re planning one hell of a catastrophe, and I want to be able to prevent it before they can pull it off.\"

 392 Chapter 392: Before the next match

    Even though Feng Hai told me that, I remained worried about Anastasia. It was only natural ¨C she was someone precious to me, even if we weren''t in an outright romantic relationship. It was frustrating that I couldn''t do anything to help, even though I wanted to. However, Feng Hai was correct. I wasn''t some reckless shounen protagonist who ran off and tried to save everyone by myself. If Feng Hai said I could leave it to him, I was going to respect him and leave it to him.

    If he really needed my help, he would ask me for it. At that time, I would gladly offer it. However, if Feng Hai and the Silver Wolves could resolve this problem on their own, then all the better. As much as I desired to be a hero or ally of justice like my dad, I wasn''t that desperate to steal someone else''s responsibilities.

    \"You okay?\"

    At Harrison''s question, I snapped back to reality and nodded apologetically. That was right. I couldn''t afford to be distracted ¨C I had my own responsibilities, and my teammates were counting on me. My school was relying on me to perform.

    \"What''s the plan for today?\" I asked our team captain. He merely smiled.

    \"You''ll see.\"

    \"Oh, come on!\" Pearl protested passionately. \"Why are you so secretive, even among your own team? It can''t hurt to share what you have in mind.\"

    \"That''s because my strategies are entirely reactive and dependent on what the other party does.\" Harrison had a point. Most of the times he waited for the opposing team captain to select his or her representative before he picked one among us for the individual matches. If the other party waited for his choice, then he usually went with a safe order, which meant fielding either Craig or Lily or Sheila first, before looking to see who the opponent fielded.

    Cody had also been selected for all the individual matches so far, usually going second or third, as an attempt to intimidate the other team into using up their own Assassin or risk getting an important member sniped. Since the danger went both ways, it was a wise idea to force the other team to field their Assassin first so that our own members wouldn''t get sniped (or assassinated).

    I say that, but I honestly doubted it made any difference. These wannabe Assassins were nothing compared to the real thing. Honestly, I had encountered and fought, and had even slain real, professional Assassins (though I doubted Selina was truly a professional, given her cavalier behavior and ridiculous carelessness). These students trying to play at being Assassins truly made me laugh. I understood that it was to make fun of the Assassin class in Battle Frenzy, but now it sort of stuck and I couldn''t get rid of it in my story. I would have to deal with these fake wannabe Assassins who were a joke when compared to the real Assassins running around and actually killing people for their clients, the Dark Church.

    \"The next school is¡­a little peculiar.\"

    \"What do you mean?\" Impatient as ever, Craig lounged about and bluntly blurted out his question. Harrison merely smiled and waved a holographic screen into existence.

    \"Our next opponent is from Anuaiz Academy, a school known for its¡­technomagic.\"

    \"Technomagic?\" Theodore repeated incredulously. Our team members exchanged bewildered glances. It was clear that most of us had never heard of that term before. If I was to hazard a guess¡­

    \"Um, combining technology with magic?\" I speculated. \"Using magic to manipulate and control machines and robots?\"

    \"Bingo.\" Harrison actually looked impressed. \"That''s right. I''m surprised that you''ve heard of it, Richard. It''s a rarely mentioned field, and has only begun to catch academic attention very recently. A very young specialization of magic, comparatively.\"

    \"I''ve never heard of it,\" Yue Chu admitted as he scratched his head.

    \"Neither have I,\" Lily conceded, looking just as confused.

    Harrison sighed wearily. \"Rather than explain, I think it''s better if I just show you. Actually, that''s why I brought this screen up in the first place.\" he then tapped his fingers against the hovering holographic screen and played a video.

    To everyone''s complete lack of surprise, it was a replay featuring our next opponents. It was a team match, for some reason, and despite their valiant efforts, they were down 0-3 by the first half, the opposing team taking them out almost completely in under five minutes.

    \"Huh? They don''t look so tough.\" Bu Fan was bewildered. \"Over half of their team got wiped out in five minutes. How did they make it to the last sixteen?\"

    \"Just watch,\" Harrison told him. However, Theodore cut our captain off with a guffaw.

    \"Exactly the same way we won our team match and got into the last sixteen. Don''t tell me you''ve forgotten?\"

    \"Ah¡­\" Bu Fan glanced at me, and then he understood. \"How could I have forgotten? Of course. Don''t tell me that guy can also summon.\"

    \"Well¡­sort of. Though it''s a different kind of summoning. It''s more of channeling. Look closely ¨C especially at his Divine Device.\"

    The guy at the back had finally finished casting his spell, channeling his mana into his Divine Device. At first glance, the device seemed weirdly shaped. Actually, it looked humanoid, but it was presently the size of a doll. A large mechanical doll made out of metal instead of plastic, admittedly, but otherwise it might as well be one of those puppets you usually saw in Japanese Bunraku theater plays.

    And then it swelled up, expanding and transforming into a gigantic robot. The mage smirked as he took cover behind the gigantic robot. He wasn''t the only one. The only other survivor of their team, a petite girl with long green hair had also activated her device and clad herself in mechanical armor. In fact, that was the only reason why she had survived while the rest of her teammates had failed. She was literally flying around the arena at incredible speeds while unleashing volleys of laser rounds at her opponents. Not only was she equipped with twin thruster engines that belched superheated plasma to grant her flight, she was also armed with a heavy beam rifle.

    The other team was firing spells at her, but she effortlessly evaded all of them while laying down a suppressive screen of laser fire. However, with her teammate finally done with his spell, she no longer had to occupy their attention alone. The gigantic robot lumbered forward, a shimmering barrier settling over its enormous frame.

    \"Why, you!\" one of the opponents growled. He raced forward and slashed with his axe, but it bounced off the shimmering barrier, causing him to stagger from Newton''s third law. He ducked under the giant robot''s retaliation, its heavy metallic arm swinging over the space where his head had been, and he withdrew quickly.

    \"Max! Back!\" one of his teammates yelled. The guy with the axe obeyed, withdrawing to a safe distance while his four teammates turned to bombard the approaching robot with elemental spells. Yet the fireballs flickered harmlessly over its barrier, lightning splayed and spread inefficiently over the pinkish transparent screen, icicles shattered pathetically against the energy shields and earth spikes crumbled as they collided with its arcane defenses.

    \"Damn it! What powerful defenses!\"

    \"Leave that hunkering scrap of metal to me!\" Max hollered. He was casting an aggressive spell of his own right now, a whirlwind gathering into his axe as he spun it rapidly with both hands. The weapon was turning into a deadly blur right now and actually emanating strong gusts of wind that buffeted his own teammates.

    With a bellow, he leaped high into the air before descending upon the lumbering robot. Swinging his glowing axe with both hands, he delivered enough force that could crack open even the most durable nuclear bunkers whose titanium-steel alloy walls were two meters thick.

    The robot''s barrier didn''t even crack.

    \"What?!\"

    Max almost lost his axe, the bulky weapon practically torn from his grip as the opposite and equal force of his attack reacted against him. As it was, the poor guy was bodily flung several meters backward and landed in an undignified heap. Coughing, he rolled to his feet and staggered with his axe raised despite his visibly violently trembling arms.

    The robot continued to close the distance between them, unperturbed by what its programming deem to be nothing more than a minor nuisance.

    \"What kind of fucking defensive spell is that?!\" Max howled in insensate rage.

    \"Now, now.\" The owner of the robot smirked. \"You don''t seriously expect me to answer that question in the middle of a match, do you?\"

    \"Stop talking so much, Wilhelm!\" the girl shouted as she blitzed past, raining down a barrage of laser rounds upon the stunned opposing team, forcing them to scatter. \"You''ll accidentally give away your trump card!\"

    \"It makes no difference, Teresa,\" Wilhelm replied with a grin. \"Even if they know how my Castellan works, they won''t be able to penetrate his defenses.\"

    \"That overconfidence will be your undoing.\"

    Teresa tried not to roll her eyes, but she sighed in resignation before blasting one of the members and knocking her out.

    Meanwhile the robot reached a stunned Max and hammered him with one of its bulky, mechanical fist. Despite parrying the metallic arm with his axe, Max was blasted off his feet by the crackling power field that wreathed the fist. He smashed into the wall at the far end before slumping on the ground, his jaw slacked and his eyes glazed.

    The other three members exchanged uneasy looks before they did their best to pour more of their spells into the advancing robot. However, the hulking automaton shrugged off their spells almost effortlessly, the elemental magic extinguishing themselves uselessly against the growling pink shielding that emanated from some hi-tech engine built into the construct somewhere. They quailed and tried to spread out, but one of them was pulverized by a powerful punch.

    I didn''t have to watch the rest of the video to know how the rest of the match played out. Especially given how these guys would be our next opponent, it was a given that we would be forced to deal with that troublesome robot when the day arrived.

    \"What do you think, Richard?\"

    \"What do I think¡­?\" I raised a quizzical eyebrow at Harrison''s question. He nodded and smiled grimly, his expression a little strained.

    \"Do you think you can win against that robot? With your Soul Beasts and summoned creatures.\"

    \"It''ll be difficult,\" I admitted with a heavy sigh. \"Especially if we don''t find out how to penetrate that powerful barrier of that robot. That defensive spell looks stronger than even the fortress barrier spell of the Great Wall Chang Cheng.\"

    Of course, Chang Cheng was certain to have improved over the months. I had no doubt he wouldn''t be the same person I fought back when Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy came to visit us for a sparring session. Even so, it was clear that the robot''s defensive barrier was more powerful than Chang Cheng''s fortress spell from a few months ago. I wasn''t sure if my Celestial Guardians'' spells could crack it open.

    \"I''ll take care of that.\" Craig grinned confidently as he raised his hand. \"My demonic spear can break through any defenses.\"

    \"There''s that.\" Harrison nodded thoughtfully. \"We''ll be counting on you to tackle that giant robot if it ever comes to that then, Craig.\"

    \"Leave it to me!\"

    I couldn''t help but smile at Craig''s confidence. Of course we had him to penetrate any kind of defenses with his cursed spear technique. The team couldn''t always rely on me, it wasn''t as if I was the main character of a shounen manga or something.

    \"But there''s a reason why you''re asking Richard whether he can do the same, isn''t there?\" Pearl was sharp enough to note the motivation behind Harrison''s question. Our team captain hesitated, not wanting to undermine Craig, and then nodded.

    \"Yeah. To be honest, I''ve considered the possibility that the opposing team knows about the skills and techniques of each member in our team, and they are sure to be on guard against Craig''s demonic spear technique. Also, given how durable that robot looks, I''m not sure if you can bring it down even if you penetrate its barrier.\"

    \"Good point.\" Sheila pursed her lips as she considered Harrison''s words. She glanced at Craig. \"You''ll have to pierce and stab that robot several times to defeat it.\"

    \"All while making sure I don''t get sucker-punched by a counterattack.\" Craig was a little more serious now, considering the ominous possibilities and the ways in which this could go wrong. \"I''ll have to be careful.\"

    \"It''s not just that. The girl with the mechanical armor¡­Teresa. Her speed and mobility are going to be a problem. If I were the opponent, I would assign her to distract you, to keep you occupied while the robot goes around wrecking the rest of the team.\"

    \"That''s¡­a good point,\" Craig conceded.

    \"Do any of us have a spell that can penetrate the robot''s barrier, if Craig is occupied?\" Yue Chu asked nervously.

    Harrison sighed as he rubbed his forehead and exhaled in frustration.

    \"That''s exactly what I''m trying to figure out right now.\"

 393 Chapter 393: Friends and Fans

    After the meeting, I returned to my hotel room, only to find myself mobbed by Harvey Deng, Adrian Stuart and Melina Franklin right when I was turning around a corridor when on my way to the elevator.

    \"Oh, hey! Senior Richard!\"

    \"Brother Richard!\"

    I turned and waved at them as they approached. They glanced at each other, puzzled, probably because this was the first time they had met each other. I quickly stepped in and diffused the awkward atmosphere with a few introductions.

    \"Oh, Harvey, this is Adrian Stuart and his classmate. They are friends of mine. I kind of know Adrian''s family. Adrian, this is Harvey Deng. He''s a junior of mine from Jing Tian Academy, and in the same society as me.\"

    \"Nice to meet you,\" Adrian said brightly.

    \"Same.\" Harvey nodded.

    \"What''s up?\" I asked the both of them. \"Were you guys looking for me?\"

    \"As a matter of fact, yeah.\" Harvey nodded brightly. \"I''m here to represent the rest of the school in encouraging you and wishing you good luck!\"

    \"Huh? Shouldn''t you be going to Harrison then?\"

    \"Oh, I''m not the only one. There are about ten or so of us, and we all dispersed to visit each representative individually.\" Harvey''s explanation was sound, so I nodded without harboring any skepticism. \"I''m sure they''ve already met up with the respective seniors and are also wishing them good luck.\" He then punched a fist into the air. \"Good luck, Senior Richard! You can do it! I know you''ll be able to defeat Anuaiz Academy and make it to the quarterfinals!\"

    \"I will do my best,\" I replied somewhat stiffly, feeling uncomfortable at the amount of faith the innocent Harvey was displaying in me. \"But no guarantees.\"

    \"You should have more confidence, senior!\" Harvey chuckled, his laughter bouncing off the highly decorated walls of the well illuminated corridor. \"Everyone believes in you!\"

    Yeah. Thanks for mounting the pressure on me. I could literally feel the tremendous weight of unrealistic expectations crushing my shoulders.

    Trying to shrug the burden away, I turned to Adrian and his classmate.

    \"What about you guys? Do you need me for anything?\"

    \"No, we just came to congratulate you for making it to the last sixteen!\" Adrian replied brightly. \"We meant to do it yesterday, but you disappeared with your teammates so quickly that we didn''t have the chance to.\"

    Oh, yeah. After the match yesterday, the team decided to head out and celebrate, so it might appear to the spectators that we simply vanished after the match. We didn''t stick around to hang out with the traveling contingent, preferring our own private party at the restaurant.

    \"Sorry about that. We had¡­our own plans.\"

    \"Nothing to apologize for,\" Adrian assured me. \"We knew where you guys usually hold your strategy meetings anyway, and how long they last, so we waited around here.\"

    \"Um¡­\" Melina began, looking at me nervously. I turned to her.

    \"Hello, Melida Angel.\"

    \"Eh? Uh, my name is Melina Franklin.\"

    I knew that, but I was just teasing her. I had half a mind to call her the incompetent talented girl, but clearly no one but me would catch the reference so I would be wasting my time. Man, I missed Wang Fei. I wished he didn''t die.

    \"Thanks for your support. I''ve to admit, both you and Adrian surprise me. I thought you would be supporting your cousins.\" I glanced at Adrian. \"Shouldn''t you be supporting Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy and Cecilia? And Miss Melina, what happened to cheering for your cousin, Kureha? She''s from Saint Teresa Academy, isn''t she?\"

    \"Ah, yes.\"

    Saint Teresa Academy, like Pendragon Academy, had a huge focus on swordsmanship, but unlike Pendragon Academy they weren''t that gung-ho over knights and the chivalric code. Also, their uniforms were a lot less flamboyant in that they didn''t wear all those flashy knight armor in the style of past legends of Camelot.

    \"But I hope Cousin Kureha loses,\" Melina continued quietly. I raised an eyebrow and stared at her in surprise.

    \"Say what?\"

    \"I said I hope Cousin Kureha loses¡­\"

    \"No, I heard you. I just have trouble believing what I heard. Why do you want Kureha to lose?\" Despite myself, I was baffled. Melina looked at me sheepishly, seemingly at a loss on how to answer my question.

    \"It''s complicated,\" Adrian jumped in. Probably to help his classmate, because she clearly didn''t seem to have any intention of answering. That was fine. I had no desire to pry into her own private affairs so I shrugged.

    \"I see. Okay then. Thanks anyway.\"

    \"Actually¡­it''s because Cousin Kureha doesn''t recognize or acknowledge me.\" Melina raised her head and said in a stubborn voice. \"She thinks I have no talent in swordsmanship and refuses to teach me anything. None of my family members do. They tell me to focus on magic alone, even though I want to specialize in sword magic! I know I''m being petty, but¡­I just can''t bring myself to cheer for Cousin Kureha.\"

    \"That''s okay. I understand.\" I placed a hand on her head and stroked her blond hair. \"It''s only human nature to hold resentment against those who wronged you. For what it''s worth, I don''t think you should listen to people who tell you not to do something just because you supposedly lack the talent for it. As if talent is the only justification you need to do something. If you want to learn something, you should just learn it. To hell with all that talent bullshit. So what if they think you''re wasting your time? It''s not their time. They have no right to dictate what you should learn.\"

    \"T¡­thank you.\" Melina looked at me in wonder, impressed as hell. As if this was anything to be impressed about.

    \"That''s right!\" Harvey was nodding fervently, as if he was hanging on to my every word. I stifled a groan when I saw that he had his smartphone out and was recording the conversation. Damn it, was he going to treat my dialogue as gospel or something?! I wouldn''t be surprised if he published some Book of Richard in future or something. And no, I was not flattered. I would be embarrassed by the mere existence of such an abomination. \"Senior Richard is correct! Talent is not the end all and be all! Do what you want because you want to do it! Not because of talent or any such nonsense!\"

    \"The same applies to you,\" I reminded him. He grinned.

    \"Yeah! I''ve taken your advice to heart and continued to train in the Black Roses facilities! I hope I''ll be able to represent Jing Tian Academy next year!\"

    \"Good luck.\" I wasn''t sure if I could, but I would like to see that happen. As much as Harvey embarrassed me sometimes, I still liked him. He was a good friend and a great junior. Just a bit blinkered. One day he would figure out that I was not without flaws. \"I know you can do it. Continue working hard.\"

    For some reason, Melina was watching me with a similar expression, and I wasn''t sure whether I should feel disturbed or flattered.

    \"I knew it¡­you''ll be perfect for the role!\"

    \"Huh? What role?\" I felt as if I was missing some context. I had no idea what she was talking about. Did I not hear her say something?

    \"I would like to hire you as my private tutor! To teach me swordsmanship and sword techniques! I know you''ve learned the Miyamoto School of swordsmanship, and I''m happy to learn that instead of the Franklin sword style!\"

    In other words, if her family refused to teach her swordsmanship because they perceived her as lacking talent, then she had no qualms disowning their personal sword techniques and learning from another school. I could somewhat understand that.

    \"Uh, I think you''ll be able to find a much better teacher than me¡­\"

    \"Come on, Brother Richard!\" Adrian was pleading along with Melina. I was beginning to wonder if he had a crush on her, and thus was motivated to help her out. \"I''m making this request as well! Please help Melina!\"

    \"I don''t think I''m qualified for that¡­\"

    Harvey snorted. \"If you aren''t qualified, then who is?\"

    I glared at him. Wasn''t he supposed to be on my side? Then again, of course he would think I was qualified. The guy literally worshipped. Fortunately, he understood my current circumstances and lend me some aid in his own strange way.

    \"But now isn''t a good time. Senior Richard has to participate in the tournament, so I don''t think he has the time to teach anyone right now.\"

    \"That''s a good point. I''m very sorry for causing you trouble.\" Melina looked suitably chastened. However, she refused to give up, and brightened after an idea lit up in her mind. \"Then after the tournament, I''ll formally approach you and ask you again.\"

    \"I seriously don''t¡­\"

    \"Come on, Brother Richard. Don''t just reject Melina outright. At least take the time until the end of the tournament to think about it.\" Adrian was pleading with me too. Damn him. However, he had a point. It was only polite to ask for some time to consider instead of rejecting poor Melina outright. Furthermore, I was sure Fate would contrive some sort of reason for me to somehow become her private tutor and lead to some sort of rip off of Assassin''s Pride. No, it definitely had nothing to do with the fact that I had just watched the anime adaptation just recently (plus had some weird dream about it).

    \"Fine. I''ll think about it. However, I think there are much more skilled swordsmen out there who will be able to teach you better. I get that Kureha refuses to teach you, but what about Charles Lacroix? He''s definitely much better than me in terms of sword techniques.\"

    Melina fidgeted a little, and shook her head. \"He won''t accept me. I''ve talked to him before, and even though he was polite and very nice, it was clear that he also does not think I have the ability to learn the sword.\"

    \"What about Cecilia? I hate to admit it, but in terms of swordsmanship, she has me completely outclassed.\"

    \"Sister Cecilia shares the same opinion as Cousin Kureha.\" Melina looked downcast when she said that. \"They are both very close friends, after all.\"

    Oh, right. I was indeed aware of that fact. I had seen Cecilia and Kureha hang out with each other a lot. Weren''t they the ones who approached me for some mission right before the start of the tournament or something? Meeting me in a hotel lobby to make a deal with me¡­yeah, I could see that they were very close friends.

    \"Honestly, Brother Richard, you''re the only one who encourages Melina to learn the sword just because she wants to.\" Adrian put forth another reason that increased my responsibility toward her. I was beginning to wonder if I was the only sane one (other than Adrian, Melina and Harvey) in this world. What was this unhealthy obsession with talent, and what stupid metric did they use to judge if someone had the talent for something? Some stupid wuxia device that measured people''s potential by glowing?

    \"And your skills are the real deal. I''ve been following you throughout the tournament, watching all of your matches. I want to learn those sword techniques!\" Melina was gushing right now, clasping her hands as her eyes shone in wonder. I raised an eyebrow at that, but decided not to destroy her favorable impression of me.

    \"I just got lucky. You think too highly of me.\"

    \"Luck would have worked for one match, maybe two. But all of them? Throughout the qualifiers? And you even went through the missions too, in between. The Silver Wolves woudn''t simply approach anyone for help.\"

    She even knew my connections with the Silver Wolves. Damn it, just how much research did this girl do on me?

    \"Face it, Senior Richard.\" Harvey was laughing at my predicament. \"You''re the one who think too lowly of yourself.\"

    No, I was just being realistic and practical, and knew my limits. I didn''t know why these kids made me out to be some genius mage when I was perfectly normal and barely above average. All this while I had been relying completely on sheer luck and plot armor to see me through various battles and missions. Only the most deluded fans would think of me as some sort of skilled prodigy capable of nuking entire cities¡­

    ¡­oh, wait. I was indeed able of nuking entire cities. Never mind. But it was one thing to ask me to level a town with a single spell, and quite another thing to ask me to teach swordsmanship. My speciality was in spells of mass destruction, not the finesse and grace of sword techniques. That was more Cecilia, Kureha and Charles''s department.

    Nonetheless, I was too tired to argue, so I just raised my hand for now.

    \"Okay. I''ll think about it. Ask me again after the tournament. Right now, I need to focus on the next match. Sorry.\"

    \"No, that''s more than enough.\" Melina beamed in delight. \"I''m happy that you''re considering it.\"

    If only she knew that I had resolved to reject her even after the tournament (at least I intended to do so at that moment), she probably wouldn''t be as happy.

    Unfortunately, as I said, Fate had a funny way of contriving all sort of ways to force me into a situation right out of a light novel. Perhaps I should start wearing some cool black jacket and turning myself into a budget, bespectacled Kirito/Kufa. Since I was learning the Miyamoto School of swordsmanship, I was bound to be a samurai like Kufa.

    Perhaps, instead of a paladin like her revered cousin Kureha Franklin, Melina would become a samurai too¡­

 394 Chapter 394: Technomagic

    \"This isn''t looking good.\"

    I understood Craig''s murmur, seated beside as I was while our team watched the third individual match. Already Lily and Cody had lost their matches and we were currently down 0-2 to Anuaiz Academy, and it was looking as if we were going to be 0-3 down by the end of this match.

    \"Huff¡­huff¡­\"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was panting while he withdrew from the opponent, a big, burly guy who carried a gigantic cannon. The heavy gunner, Timothy Drake, hefted his bulky weapon up and pointed the smoking barrel in Yue Chu''s direction. The fire mage quickly dove to the side as the cannon unleashed a powerful torrent of superheated energy that seared the concrete into molten rock. Hitting the ground, Yue Chu rolled and threw a hand up to launch a huge fireball in Timothy''s direction, but a metallic shard of armor hovered in front of him and erected an energy shield that deflected the spell and rendered it harmless.

    \"That''s cheating!\" Yue Chu complained, only to be forced to evade when Timothy fired another immense blast at him. Panting, he threw himself up and fired off a barrage of fireballs from different directions, but Timothy''s armor shard settled on its wielder and turned into full body armor. A mechanical set of armor that resembled a metallic exoskeleton. The fireballs dispersed ineffectively against the advanced body armor, and the Anuaiz Academy student strode out of the inferno unscathed. Raising his left hand, he unleashed a hail of small but lethal energy sparks from a flechette blaster built into his wrist. The rain of energy projectiles carved tiny craters into the ground, even as Yue Chu scrambled hastily to dodge them.

    Both of his hands glowing red-hot with flames, Yue Chu launched dual streams of hellfire at the lumbering Timothy. Confident in his armor''s defenses, the heavy gunner allowed his gleaming exoskeleton to endure the inferno that bathed him before he raised the massive cannon with his augmented right arm and fired off yet another destructive bolt that tore a molten tunnel into the battered arena ground.

    \"Damn it! How am I supposed to beat someone like that?! And isn''t he just relying on his weapons and equipment instead of his magic?!\"

    To be fair, Timothy was using his innate mana to power up his bulky cannon and move his power armor, so even though he was packing heavy firepower it came at a cost. Spamming such powerful spells and attacks must be extremely draining on him. It had been only fifteen minutes and already his movements had slowed considerably. Adjusting my glasses, I zoomed in on his face, just behind the armored but transparent visor of his exoskeleton, and noted the large amount of perspiration streaming down his face. A visual filter told me that he was quite pale from the exertion, and I could see from his moving, open mouth that he was breathing heavily.

    I wouldn''t be surprised if he didn''t have a lot of mana left. At this rate, he would run out of mana before he could subdue Yue Chu.

    Unfortunately for Yue Chu, it would take only a single well-placed hit to bring him down. And Yue Chu''s stamina wasn''t without limits either. Just one mistake, one slip, and he would be knocked out from the match.

    \"Damn it!\" rolling back to his feet, he crouched down and slammed both of his palms against the ground. \"Bloom, Rafflesia!\"

    ¡­uh, what? Since when did he turn into Julis Riessfeld? Was he going to name all of his fire spells after flowers?

    When nothing happened, Yue Chu recognized his mistake, and he cursed under his breath. Instead, he switched the incantation, his lips moving and muttering something that I couldn''t hear. Whatever he chanted, it definitely worked because the next thing we knew, the whole arena burst into flames and Timothy''s armor was engulfed by an enormous inferno.

    \"Hah! Your fire spells have no effect against my advanced TA-102 Armor!\" Timothy laughed maniacally, like some Saturday morning cartoon villain. Seriously? The idiot just raised his own flag for defeat. No villain who laughed like that would ever prevail. It was an iron law unbroken by any self-respecting cartoon or anime. For my part, I was also amused that Timothy''s armor actually had an actual designation.

    Yue Chu didn''t rise to the bait. I smiled when my senses were prickled by the nature of his flames. This wasn''t any ordinary fire spell, but¡­

    \"The Pure Yang Flames.\"

    \"?!\"

    Timothy recognized that something was amiss, but by now it was too late. Swearing under his breath, the sweating heavy gunner lifted his massive cannon and fired off another immense shot toward Yue Chu. However, the fire mage firmly stood his ground and raised both of his hands to fend off the tremendous beam.

    An enormous firewall shot out of the ground and intercepted the beam, exploding right in the middle of the coliseum and sending huge shockwaves that buffeted both Timothy and Yue Chu. They staggered a little, but somehow Yue Chu managed a smile as he gathered the resulting flames and absorbed them into his spell to strengthen the inferno.

    \"Why, you¡­!\"

    Timothy could sense the direction in which the fiery mana was flowing toward, and realizing the threat, he immediately flipped some sort of switch in his armor. Pods opened all over his exoskeleton, countless laser cannons that jutted out. With a single command, he triggered all of them and fired over a hundred laser beams that arced through the air to crash down on his opponent.

    Even in the face of such a calamitous bombardment, Yue Chu remained stationary. Instead, he merely adopted a defensive stance, both his arms raised and ready. The firewall flickered away, torn apart by the first wave of lasers, but Yue Chu made no move to evade the rest.

    \"What the fuck is he doing?!\" Craig demanded, his eyes wide. He wasn''t the only one.

    Right before the stunned spectators, Yue Chu''s hands seemed to multiply several times, making it look as if he had a thousand arms. Like the thousand-armed Buddha, he thrust all of them forward, using his palms, fingers and fists to deflect each and every one of the laser beams that curved toward him. Divine fire wreathed each hand, allowing it to withstand the sheer destructive power of the countless laser beams that rained down on their owner.

    Not only that, with each thrust and counter he executed with those many hands, the inferno that surrounded Timothy intensified. It wasn''t just the temperature or heat. I wasn''t sure how to describe it with words, but if I had to say, it was the \"purity\" of the flames. The yang essence of the flames, I guess? It just felt so pure, so divine.

    \"W¡­what the hell are you?!\" Timothy roared as he stumbled back, trying to escape the flames. His onslaught of laser beams had ceased, each and every one of them successfully parried and deflected by Yue Chu, whose hands had returned to normal. Or I should say he no longer had a thousand hands but just a normal pair. The Buddha-like imagery was gone, replaced by that of a perfectly normal teenager. If a normal teenager could wield fire¡­

    \"I''m Dong Fang Yue Chu from Jing Tian Academy,\" the fire mage replied sarcastically as he advanced upon Timothy. The heavy gunner growled something inaudible before he hefted his bulky cannon up to fire another massive torrent of energy at the approaching Yue Chu. Even so, my friend didn''t falter and continued strolling toward the clearly trembling Anuaiz Academy student. I could see him trembling inside his armor, thanks to the transparent visor, in case you were wondering. No, his armor wasn''t shaking, it was the wearer inside.

    \"Fuck!\"

    Howling, Timothy fired off a massive burst¡­or tried to, but nothing came out of his cannon. His jaw dropped and he glanced at his huge weapon, trying to understand what was going on.

    \"Why won''t it fire?!\"

    At first glance, the cannon looked as if it was intact, but when I inspected it with the magnification function of my glasses I noticed that the hull had melted and warped from the sheer heat of Yue Chu''s flames. Even so, the weapon was sturdy enough to be able to fire off at least a couple more shots despite the damage it had sustained.

    The reason why it couldn''t was¡­

    \"Impossible! Impossible! Ugh?!\"

    Timothy fell over, his armor creaking and completely unresponsive. He had lost all power to his exoskeleton and was currently unable to move or fire any of its useless weapons.

    \"No way! What''s going on!?\"

    \"It appears that the opponents do not know of Yue Chu''s Pure Yang Flames,\" Harrison remarked softly, in our technical area and too far for any of the Anuaiz Academy team to overhear him. Well, they had hi-tech gadgets on their side, but even so we were magically protected from any bugs that they might have planted on us, because of defensive wards and buffers. Otherwise it would be considered cheating.

    Teams currently participating in a match were not allowed to spy on each other. The tournament organizers were pretty strict on that.

    \"Oh, you''re right.\" Lily, despite having lost her match, had finally regained consciousness and was able to watch Yue Chu''s duel with Timothy. She looked ashamed of herself, but she had fulfilled her role as vanguard spectacularly and allowed us to glean important information about the other team. It was a thankless job that often landed her in quite a humiliating position where people called her useless for losing, but none of the Jing Tian team ever considered her a burden. After all, if it wasn''t for her, Harrison wouldn''t be able to plan and strategize accordingly.

    Just getting the opponents to show their trump cards was important enough for him to be able to turn the tables and figure out a winning plan.

    \"If I recall, Yue Chu''s Pure Yang Flames have the ability to not only exterminate any kind of monster, but it can also be used to ''refine'' or purify Divine Devices and any other kinds of mystical weapons or equipment.\"

    \"That''s right.\" Harrison nodded at Lily''s explanation. \"And right now, Yue Chu has refined and purified Timothy Drake''s hi-tech armor. It''s nothing more than a useless heap of scrap metal now.\"

    Why did that suspiciously sound like a certain technique from a particular famous Chinese web comic that had an anime adaptation of over 110 episodes? An animation adaptation that had something to do with the matchmaking fox spirits of Tu Shan?

    \"Whoa¡­that''s scary¡­\" Craig''s jaw dropped from awe. \"I never knew that Yue Chu had such a terrifying ability!\"

    \"Well, now you know,\" Theodore stated, amusement evident in his deep voice.

    Timothy was not as amused, and he was desperately trying to reactivate and restart his armor, to no avail. Even though he was infusing the dead armor with his mana, scrap metal was still scrap metal. And he required a more sophisticated spell to repair and restore his now useless heap of refined armor. Such spells required a long casting time, obviously, and Yue Chu wasn''t going to stand around and watch his opponent rebuild his most potent weapons.

    Striding forward, he smashed a fiery palm into the center of Timothy''s armor, and the hull actually cracked.

    \"!!\"

    Whirling around, Yue Chu then kicked the helmet that Timothy wore, causing the bulky mechanical outfit to careen and crash into the ground. His foot blazing with hellfire, Yue Chu raised his leg before stomping on the prone Timothy. A deafening boom thundered throughout the coliseum, and a crater actually opened up beneath the buckling suit of armor.

    \"Why, you¡­!\" Timothy hollered defiantly. He tried to raise his arm, physically reinforcing his own body and raising his strength rather and try to power his armor. The gears and inactive servos whined in protest, but they responded adequately to the sudden surge of physical strength from their wearer. A metallic fist shot up, almost catching Yue Chu by the head.

    But the fire mage had already anticipated such an attack, having spun around to avoid it. In a swift, elegant motion, he kicked Timothy in the midriff, further denting the armor and expanding the cracks. Timothy grunted from the impact as his armor rolled back helplessly.

    He scrambled to his feet, forcibly crouching on all fours with sheer physical strength now that his armor was cut off. If I were him, I would discard the cumbersome armor and fight normally ¨C the exoskeleton was more of a hindrance than an advantage right now. Unfortunately, either because of sentiment or misguided faith in his armor and equipment, Timothy refused to divest himself of it and insisted on making it work.

    Yue Chu exploited his enemy''s lack of speed and mobility, agilely landing beside Timothy before he could turn around to face the new threat, and punched him with a fiery fist. The armor crumbled again, the cracks spreading and growing. Timothy growled and retaliated with a clumsy hook, which Yue Chu effortlessly dodged before he rammed his flaming palm into the cracks and gouged out a huge chunk of armor.

    \"How dare you break my suit!?\" Timothy howled as he awkwardly threw a punch, only for Yue Chu to duck under it and kick his armored leg. The blazing fire turned the dormant metal red-hot and Timothy stumbled to a knee.

    The fire mage didn''t waste any time, flipping himself up and over the armored heavy gunner, the latter''s desperate swing going wide. Delivering a barrage of punches and palm strikes onto the helmet and back, Yue Chu left Timothy''s gradually crumbling suit immolated.

    With his armor offline and the defensive enchantments inoperable, Timothy was unable to endure the spike in temperature. Even within the supposedly protective confines of his armor, his skin began to blister and he wailed from burns popping up on his reddening flesh.

    \"UGH!\"

    Whirling around in an ungainly manner, he lashed out at Yue Chu ¨C who was originally behind him. Obviously the fire mage wasn''t going to remain behind Timothy forever, to wait for a counterattack. He was already moving, darting out of range before closing in and slamming his fiery fist into the cracked chest portion of the burning armor.

    Timothy gasped in pain, staggering back from the impact, but Yue Chu was not done. Not yet.

    With a determined roar, Yue Chu slammed his palm into the cracked chest armor, causing the wearer to judder backward. While Timothy was trying to regain his senses ¨C an increasingly difficult feat given the rising temperature of his suit''s interior ¨C Yue Chu rammed another fist into the widening chink in his opponent''s armor. Curling his fingers, he then rippied out a large chunk of metal from the exoskeleton.

    Timothy snarled and swiped with his bulky armored arms, in hopes of braining his opponent. Yue Chu dodged under the slow and clumsy movements, and then plunged the fingers of his right hand into the hole he had just dug out.

    \"Burner Fingers,\" he muttered, obviously ripping off the technique from a certain Quincy from the manga Bleach.

    Inside Timothy''s armor, flames engulfed him and he screamed as his trapped body was burned almost into ash.

    \"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!\"

    It didn''t take more than five seconds before Timothy''s armor crashed onto the ground, smoldering from the inside. In fact, the commentator took almost twice the length of that amount of time to stammer out the outcome of the battle.

    \"Match over! Winner¡­Dong Fang Yue Chu of Jing Tian Academy!\"

    And with that, the heated cheers and passionate yells of the spectators followed.

 395 Chapter 395: Power and Electricity

    \"All right, Bu Fan. You''re next.\"

    Harrison didn''t hesitate to pick out his next choice for the fourth match.  Bu Fan nodded and stepped forward, cracking his knuckles in anticipation and doing some sort of weird warmup. He had embarrassed himself the previous match by losing to Harold''s academy, and now he was relishing the chance to prove himself, to make up for that defeat.

    I wouldn''t be surprised if he scored a decisive victory here. Bu Fan was strong, by virtue of him being the stand-in protagonist of Versatile Mage. Thanks to that, he had an abundance of plot armor and Mary Sue godlikeness.

    The other party was a girl, but as Bu Fan walked onto the stage, he smiled grimly.

    \"Even if you''re a girl, I''m not going to hold back.\"

    \"Hmph.\" The girl looked offended that Bu Fan was taking a poke at her gender. \"As if I ever needed you to. Don''t go crying to your mom later, complaining that you got beaten by a girl.\"

    A shadow passed over Bu Fan''s face and he glanced down.

    \"I don''t have a mother.\"

    \"What?\" The girl suddenly looked extremely uncomfortable when she realized that she had touched upon a sensitive subject. Fortunately, Bu Fan didn''t dwell on it for too long, and he glanced up with a shrug.

    \"But my father and sister are watching, and I don''t want to show them a shameful display like I did in the other match.\"

    He waited for the commentator to signal the start of the match, and immediately drew his star maps. A massive crimson magic circle materialized underneath his feet before he launched a devastating torrent of flames at the girl, Juliana.

    \"Damn it!\"

    Juliana ducked under the roaring torrent of fire before whipping her gun out and firing off several rounds with her hi-tech weapon. Instead of the primitive standard lasguns issued to the Imperial Guard, she was wielding a more advanced plasma rifle that fired off powerful pulses of energy without fear of it overheating and blowing up in her hands. Manufactured for the Greater Good, the pulse rifle barked, emitting a destructive stream of plasma.

    \"For the Greater Good!\"

    \"You''re in the wrong universe, lady.\" Bu Fan tried not to sigh as he dodged another barrage of energy pulses while returning fire ¨C literally. Juliana ran across the length of the arena, barely avoiding getting singed by the rocket-like fireballs that detonated against the reinforced concrete. \"You won''t be assimilating anyone of the Imperium¡­I mean Federation into your new, recently founded hi-tech Empire. We won''t become Gue''la auxiliaries like you.\"

    \"What the hell are they talking about?\" Pearl demanded, irritated.

    \"I have no idea.\" Theodore''s face was twisted in confusion. I sighed and shook my head, knowing that it would be a bad answer to explain, but I did so anyway.

    \"A tabletop wargaming universe that takes place in the 41st Millennium, when the Imperium of Man is beset upon by a myriad of deadly xenos and heretical traitors who turned their backs on the light of the Emperor.\"

    Everyone stared at me blankly. I regretted ever answering them. As I expected, none of them knew what I was talking about. Whatever. I impatiently waved my hand back toward the arena, to return their attention back toward Bu Fan''s match. By now, Juliana had completed casting a more advanced spell of her own, her technomagic kicking into gear.

    \"Crisis Battlesuit!\" she shouted. Her equipment glowed and her weapon seemed to disassemble. Stuff came from inside her uniform and flowed all over her body, encasing her in a white light. The mana then solidified and transformed into a full body armor suit that protected her from head to toe. The pulse rifle disappeared, replaced by two plasma rifles mounted upon her shoulders, and a pair of fusion blasters ¨C one on each arm.

    Her jetpack flared and she soared into the air, her new flight capabilities allowing her to jump, shoot, jump and fly (I wasn''t literally meaning fly as in hovering in the air, but an ability that essentially allowed her to shoot even though she fell back from combat). Red-hot searing thermal beams that could punch through a meter-thick armored hull of a tank lanced out to incinerate Bu Fan, but the Versatile Mage threw himself to a corner, his hand raised to launch a bolt of lightning.

    The thrusters ignited again and Juliana boosted over the jagged bolt of lightning while continuing to bombard Bu Fan''s position with plasma bolts from her shoulder-mounted rifles. She raised her hands and unleashed twin bolts of thermal energy, but Bu Fan met those attacks with his fire spells, the flames taking on the shapes of giant fists and hammering against the anti-tank beams before all four streams erupted in a huge explosion.

    \"What a truly heated battle!\" the commentator raved from above, his eyes probably wide as he struggled to take in the match below. The spectators went wild, cheering until their voices went hoarse. Two of the top fighters pitting their best spells against each other¡­Anuaiz Academy, despite being relatively new to the field, had been wowing and astounding many neutrals with their innovative spells, hi-tech gear and technomagic.

    Screeching across the ground and leaving slight sonic booms in her wake, Juliana continued to unleash a hail of plasma and fusion blasts in Bu Fan''s direction, but he continued to dodge while firing back with fire and lightning spells. Doing a barrel in the air, Juliana punched one of the fireballs, dispersing it harmlessly.

    \"It''s useless! Your flames are only Strength 4 AP 0, or Strength 5 AP -1 if you use a heavier version of your flames! They won''t be able to penetrate my 3+ armor save, even if you somehow roll a successful wound roll against my Toughness 5! Your Strength 4 flames only have a 1/3 chance of wounding me, and your Strength 5 heavy flamers have 50% chance of wounding me¡­but even then I have a 50% chance of making my armor save, and I have 5 wounds!\"

    \"Can someone translate that for me, please?\" Craig asked, frustrated. \"I know she''s speaking Mandarin, but for some reason I don''t understand a single word she just said.\"

    \"Basically she''s saying that her Crisis Battlesuit is fireproof,\" I replied. \"And that it''s too armored and tough for Bu Fan''s mediocre flames to hurt her.\"

    \"You actually understand what she''s saying?\" Sheila was looking at me in awe. Damn it, stop looking at me as if I was some sort of genius. If you play tabletop wargames in sci-fi universes like I did, you would understand that esoteric language too. Actually, if you played Dungeons and Dragons and other tabletop role-playing games that involved rolling dice, you should probably have an idea of what she was talking about.

    \"And she''s only wearing the XV8 version instead of the Enforcer or Coldstar version, otherwise she would have 6 wounds instead of 5.\"

    \"You just lost me there,\" Theodore muttered with a shake of his head.

    \"Different battlesuits have different stats and characteristics. If Juliana had used a more expensive battlesuit, she would be tougher to kill, but I guess her academy couldn''t afford it or needed to cut costs ¨C considering the amount of hi-tech gear and incredible firepower they are packing, they obviously can''t afford to splurge on the very best for each and every one of their students. Not if they want to maximize their trump card.\"

    \"So they have their limitations.\" Yue Chu looked exhausted as he rested on the bench, his eyes glued on the fight. \"They don''t have a limitless budget to buy whatever advanced tech they want. And for a school like theirs who is heavily reliant on the latest technology and most advanced wargear, they need the funds more than others.\"

    \"Correct.\" Harrison nodded, but his expression hardened and he clenched his fists. \"But that doesn''t matter. I don''t care how much they spent. Money isn''t everything. Even if we didn''t spend as much as them or don''t have as big a budget, we can prevail over them through our skills, hard work and strategies.\"

    I was reminded of my old days in my previous life, where I supported underdog soccer teams that had a very low budget (often 1% of top elite teams such as Manchester City, Chelsea or Manchester United) and enjoyed games where they upset all odds to win against so-called titans. As an aside, I''m a fan of Blackburn Rovers, a small-town club from Lancashire, so you could see why I wasn''t all that hung up over budgets, ranks, titles or statuses. In the end, it was eleven men against eleven men on the pitch, it was one mage against one mage in the arena, and all the so-called rankings or family connections in the world weren''t going to help you win against your opponent. No, it was your own skill, hard work and strategies that would allow you to prevail over your opponent, whether he or she was ranked number one in the Federation or not.

    Rankings were fluid. They always changed. Sometimes readers had to understand that, instead of always whining about \"how can so-and-so lose to this lower-ranked guy when he defeated this higher-ranked girl earlier in the story?!\" that was not how reality worked. Anyone can rise up the ranks and change his or her status. Each person''s fate was in his or her hands, and not that of the readers. Even the writer was subject to the whims and determination of his characters.

    Juliana soared through an intense inferno, which singed and blackened parts of her white Crisis battlesuit, closing in on a stunned Bu Fan to fire her fusion blasters pointblank into him. She was probably trying to get within melta range so that she could increase the chances of her dealing more damage to him with the close-ranged anti-tank weapon.

    \"Got you!\" she crowed as she squeezed the triggers inside her armored gauntlets to fire off the superheated thermal beams. At such close range, there was no way Bu Fan could dodge her attacks.

    He didn''t need to.

    \"!!\"

    A gleaming shield appeared between him and the soaring Crisis Battlesuit wearer, withstanding the two fierce torrents of superheated energies. They managed to melt through the poor shield, leaving red-hot goblets of molten metal dripping down the now useless equipment, but it had done its job, and Bu Fan could get it repaired later (though it would take some time).

    \"You''re right,\" Bu Fan smirked as he reached out and grabbed hold of Juliana''s arm. \"Caught you.\"

    \"Hah!\" The Anuaiz Academy student snorted in laughter as she directed her shoulder-mounted plasma rifles to swivel around and lock onto him. The barrels of both weapons began to glow blue as plasma rushed through them to fire pointblank into Bu Fan, who was dangling helplessly from her arm as she swerved upward. \"So what? None of your spells can hurt me.\"

    \"We''ll see about that. Divine Lightning!\"

    \"?!\"

    A massive purple magic circle appeared beneath his feet and several immense bolts of lightning descended from the heavens (or the ceiling of the coliseum if you really want to be pedantic about details) and struck the both of them. It wasn''t just the lightning bolts from above. Tightening his grip on the arm of the smoking battlesuit, Bu Fan channeled more of his own lightning into his opponent. The lethal electricity coursed through the Crisis battlesuit, frying systems and shorting out its circuitry. With an agonized shriek, Juliana plummeted back toward the ground.

    Flipping himself up and over the crashing Crisis battlesuit in an almost graceful manner, Bu Fan planted both feet onto where the spine would be, and used his weight to drive Juliana further into the ground. The two of them crashed with a huge explosion, with poor Juliana''s battle armor absorbing the vast majority of the impact.

    The reinforced material used to build the battlesuit cracked and splintered from the immense impact, with significant parts of it shattering and flying off in chunks. Bouncing off the wrecked battlesuit, Bu Fan cartwheeled in the air before landing a few meters away.

    \"Ugh¡­\"

    Juliana tried to crawl back to her feet, but with her body armor shorted out, she found that she couldn''t even stand. As one final display of defiance, she slowly raised her arm-mounted fusion blaster to aim the currently useless weapon at Bu Fan. It didn''t matter that the weapon now lacked the power to fire its incandescent beam of molten light. Juliana was willing her own mana into it, trying to force it back into working capacity.

    \"Like I said¡­even if you''re a woman, I''m not going to show any mercy to you.\"

    Bu Fan didn''t waste any time waiting to see if Juliana would succeed. With a raised hand, he called down purple bolts of lightning to disintegrate what was left of her battle armor and fry the wearer inside the fuming wreck.

    With a final cry, Juliana fell into unconsciousness, and it didn''t take two seconds before the commentator announced Bu Fan''s victory.

    \"Match over! Winner¡­Bu Fan from Jing Tian Academy!\"

    Whatever the commentator said after that declaration was drowned out by the screams and cheers of the spectators.

 396 Chapter 396: Asterisk War

    \"Uh¡­what does Asterisk have to do with anything?\" I demanded when I saw the chapter title. Harrison glared at me.

    \"Focus, Richard, focus.\"

    \"Yes, sir,\" I grumbled and returned my gaze to the match. Seemed like Theodore wasn''t able to gain an advantage and was eliminated, so we were trailing 2-3 right now. The team battle would decide everything. The only way for us to advance to the next round was to defeat all the members while ensuring at least one of us survived at the end.

    Harrison had already made his choice. As usual, he would be leading the team, and we had already decided that Craig would be our trump card against the impenetrable barrier of Wilhelm''s Castellan. Sheila would back him up, while I made up the fourth member. Either Dong Fang Yue Chu or Bu Fan would take the last slot, not unless Harrison chose Pearl to cast healing magic on us. Not that it would work, as one of our opponents found to their cost. Healing magic was better used off field than in the middle of a battle.

    Reality didn''t work like a game where you automatically \"recover HP\" just because your teammate cast a healing spell on you. Your injuries weren''t going to disappear like that ¨C you still needed time for healing magic to take effect. Before you could fully heal, your opponent was bound to take you out. And then the healer obviously couldn''t win on her own.

    There would be circumstances when having a healer on the team would be a godsend, just like the qualifier mathes where we were thrown into the middle of nowhere, forced to survive in the wilderness while fighting off both rivals and monsters. The matches, on the other hand, were another thing altogether. Unless Pearl was on the level of Usato and embraced the wrong way of using healing magic, she wasn''t going to offer much in the arena.

    Defeating Anuaiz Academy and advancing to the next round was going to be our job.

    \"May the teams of Jing Tian Academy and Anuaiz Academy come to the stage!\" The commentator announced, signaling the start of the matches.

    We obeyed and took up positions on our respective ends of the stage, watching each other without much stuff to do. I took note of Wilhelm and Teresa, recalling that they were the aces of the team. Their performance the other day particularly stood out to me, and I was aware that they were always the last two survivors of the team matches, even when all their other comrades had failed. The barrier of Wilhelm''s Castellan, in particular, had practically never been broken.

    Craig was going to change all that today¡­provided our opponents allowed us to pull our strategy off. I somehow doubted that it would go so smoothly. They must know of Craig''s cured technique and that we would base our strategy around him and his ability to destroy Wilhelm''s robot''s barrier, and prepared the appropriate countermeasures.

    The demonic spearman must have noticed it as well, for he set his eyes grimly on the five students arrayed before us.

    \"They know,\" he said simply.

    \"We''ll do our best,\" Sheila told him, trying her best to sound confident and utterly failing. Instead, Craig too her hand in his and gave a tight squeeze.

    \"I know we will, darling.\" He gave her a reassuring grin. \"They will never know what hit them.\"

    \"Oh?\" the leader of the Anuaiz team, Ernest, raised an eyebrow. \"You guys seem pretty confident.\" He regarded Craig''s crimson spear with narrowed eyes and exhaled slightly. \"Well, you do have an ace up your sleeve.\"

    \"But you''re not the only one with a trump card,\" Wilhelm declared with a flourish. \"We''ll prove the superiority of Anuaiz Academy''s techno-magic and fusion of technology and arcane lore to everyone!\"

    \"I hope you''ll be able to entertain us a little, at least,\" Teresa remarked somewhat casually. \"Otherwise it''ll be boring if you fall too easily.\"

    \"These guys,\" Dong Fang Yue Chu growled, but Harrison shook his head and held up a hand to hold him back. \"Saying whatever they want!\"

    \"We''ll prove our strength with action, not words,\" our team captain reminded him ¨C and all of us ¨C quietly.

    No one could refute that. Not even Craig, who usually had a caustic comment or two. He recognized just as much as the rest of us the importance of this match, and was getting ready to fulfill his role. His eyes danced across their roster as he assessed their individual threat levels.

    We had watched several video replays and analyses, and had somehow built up a rough picture of how they might try to stop us.

    \"Match, begin!\" the commentator shouted, and all hell broke loose.

    Unlike Wilhelm, Teresa didn''t need to wait for a long time before she could fight. She needed some time to activate her battle armor, which was still dormant (because she obviously wasn''t allowed to start infusing it with mana before the match), but its initial mode was already more than enough to function in a combat capacity.

    With thrusters flaring, she boosted right at us, scattering us. I realized that she was aiming straight for Craig. Take him out, and our deadliest threat against Wilhelm''s Castellan would be neutralized.

    \"Oh no, you don''t!\"

    Stepping forward, Sheila parried Tereas''s beam saber with her shield. She swung her spear in an effort to eviscerate her, but Teresa flipped backward before retaliating with a barrage of pulses from her beam rifle. Sheila raised her shield to block the bombardment, and she fired off a beam lance from her spear that forced the armored girl into evasive maneuvers.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    I wasn''t given much time to watch them. I had stuff of my own to do, forced to move back when one of the members attacked. Harrison was fighting Ernest, Craig and Sheila were engaged with Teresa, and Dong Fang Yue Chu was defending against a huge guy in large body armor, who occasionally provided Teresa with fire support while shrugging off Yue Chu''s fire spells. My friend was going to need some time if he was going to eventually cast his Pure Yang Divine Flames. An advanced spell like that was obviously going to require a longer casting time than his basic fire spells.

    \"Your opponent is me!\" Emily declared as she fired off a burst of pulse rounds from her beam rifle. I dodged and dove to the side, rolling away from the line of explosive laser projectiles while summoning a weapon of my own.

    \"Gemini.\"

    Rolling to my feet, I sliced and deflected the laser rounds with my twin swords. I could probably do a better job with my real swords, but I didn''t want to reveal them just yet. I wanted to mislead my opponents into thinking I had no intention of using them.

    \"Hah!\"

    Shouting, Emily descended upon me, her beam saber slicing through the air and leaving a molten line in the reinforced concrete. Panting, I rolled away and parried her beam saber, but it easily sliced through my black Castor. Resummoning a second Castor, I then blasted her off with black and white energy waves.

    \"Ugh!\"

    Emily''s battle armor protected her, but only just. Twisting around, she shattered my Pollux with a precise shot from her beam rifle. While I staggered back, the shards of my broken Constellation weapon raining down from my hand, she activated her boosters and surged forward to slash at me with her beam saber. I parried it with my remaining Castor, but she sliced it apart with her energy blade. While she did so, I flipped up and kicked her in the midriff, sending her crashing several meters away.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    Despite her battle armor absorbing most of the impact, Emily still winced from the blow. Spinning around, she had the wing-like contraptions detach from her battle armor and fly about the battlefield. Over a dozen of them hovered and locked onto me before firing green bursts of laser from different directions, making it almost impossible to evade or defend.

    \"!!\"

    I barely had enough time to conjure whatever defensive spell I had in my repteroire to block the laser pulses. An ice fortress froze around me, its gleaming surfaces somehow managing to reflect most of the lasers before melting. Even as the ice melted, I instantly refroze it and restored my protective ice fortress.

    \"What?! How is this possible!? Aren''t you supposed to be a summoner?! Why do you know ice magic?!\" Emily demanded, stunned before launching another barrage of green laser pulses upon my position. Again, my ice fortress withstood the heated onslaught, with me continually repairing whatever parts of it that melted.

    Normally, she would be right, but I did manage to learn some ice magic during my encounter in the Den of Dragons. If I hadn''t managed to learn advanced ice spells, I would have been eliminated by now. Of course, I had no intention of telling Emily that, at least not in the middle of battle. Only an idiot would give away information about his capabilities and strength.

    So instead I just smiled while focusing on my next spell. My ice fortress, almost on par with my Snow Aegis in terms of defensive capabilities, would buy me the precious time I needed to summon my big guns.

    \"Just break already!\" Emily shouted, growing increasingly frustrated at her lack of success in penetrating the thick ice. More lasers bombarded my position, causing frost fragments to rain down, but I would pause occasionally in my current summoning spell to repair the cracks, holes and crevices with more ice. \"What is with that ice spell?! I mean, it''s not the first time I''ve seen it before, but I''ve never heard of a summoner¡­\"

    Then she paused, her Dragoon lasers also temporarily stopping to float around her, a frown crossing her face. She sighed and shook her head.

    \"Of course¡­but that summoner used advanced fire spells. They have to learn the basic spells of their Soul Beasts'' elements in order to summon them in the first place. And many of them ended up advancing the studies of their chosen element, and upgrade to high-level elemental spells of that specific type. We just assumed Richard Huang would remain on basic elemental spells forever because he couldn''t choose a specific element.\"

    That intelligence wasn''t entirely accurate, and it showed that they had no idea that I also knew a few advanced wood spells. Not as much as a dedicated wood mage, of course, but still more than those who never dabbled past basic or even intermediate level spells for wood magic. Again, I saw no reason to correct their misconception of me.

    Instead, I completed my summoning spell instead. Cerberus materialized and pounced on a screaming Emily, his three jaws tearing into her mercilessly. Her battle armor protected her for now, and her lasers tore through his black body, but freezing breaths of frost poured out of Cerberus''s mouths and created a layer of expanding ice over her suit.

    \"Damn it!\"

    Writhing from the sheer cold, Emily struggled and tried to shoot at Cerberus pointblank, but his massive paw swiped the beam rifle out of her hand, and then crushed the poor weapon into scrap. Cursing, Emily drew her beam saber and stabbed at Cerberus, but he pinned her arm to the ground, breaking the bone and eliciting an agonized scream.

    Above, the Dragoon pods continued to pour a blistering hail of fire upon Cerberus, and despite the damage he took, he ignored it and bit into Emily with his set of beam fangs¡­I mean ice fangs. Sharp, curved azure fangs almost a meter long and made entirely out of arcane ice stabbed downward and basically ripped Emily apart.

    The boundary field kept her alive, but she was definitely out of commission. Straightening up, I turned to the cowering Wilhelm. If I could finish him off before he summoned his Castellan ¨C and it appeared that he had yet to complete the spell that transformed his figurine into the gigantic robot from before ¨C then at least half of this battle would be considered won.

    \"Watch out!\"

    \"?!\"

    I glanced up and caught sight of Harrison barreling toward me, looking all battered. With a roar, Ernest descended upon me, but Cerberus swatted him away. Or tried to, but Ernest spun about and stabbed the bellowing three-headed hound with his beam sword. Harrison then charged at him, his hands glowing with holy magic.

    \"I''ll hold him off! Take out Wilhelm before he finishes his spell!\"

    I nodded and summoned Sagittarius before fitting an arrow to the black bow and taking aim at Wllhelm. The ground around me shimmered from the sheer heat as I poured as much thermal energy into my arrow as possible, and then I unleashed Alnasl.

    \"!!!\"

    The arrow never hit Wilhelm. Instead, Dong Fang Yue Chu''s opponent charged in with his bulky battle armor and intercepted the hit. The explosion engulfed him and destroyed his armor, incinerating the wearter inside and knocking him out of the match, but he did more than enough to ensure the survival of his teammate.

    Glancing in the other direction, I saw that Yue Chu himself had been taken out, his broken body lying at the edge of the coliseum. Sheila was also incapacitated, and Craig was struggling against Teresa, whose skills with her armor, beam rifle and beam ssaber were superlative.

    \"Another¡­\"

    I was about to conjure another arrow, but a second explosion rocked the coliseum and sent me sprawling onto my feet. Heaving, I slowly got up and saw that Ernest had resorted to drastic measures. He had self-destructed his battle armor, blowing not just himself up but also eliminating both my Cerberus and Harrison. My Constellation spirit had dissipated into nothingness from the sheer force of the detonation, while Harrison lay unconscious several meters away, blood leaking from his head and mouth.

    Scrambling to my feet, I let loose another arrow at the awaiting Wilhelm, but it was too late. He smiled and tossed his glowing figurine at the projectile. There was a bright glow, and then his Castellan appeared in his gigantic mechanical form. The robot then activated his barrier and absorbed the powerful arrow, halting its explosion and disspating the destructive mana.

    \"Damn it.\"

    We were too late. Wilhelm had summoned his Castellan, and with each team reduced to two members, this was going to be a tough fight.

 397 Chapter 397: Asterisk War II

    \"Ha ha ha! I''ve finally summoned my Castellan at last, Richard Huang!\" Wilhelm crowed. \"I''ve been looking forward to this! My robot versus your monsters¡­who will win?\"

    I raised both my hands in surrender. \"It''s your victory, bro.\"

    \"Oh, come on¡­don''t be like that. I''m expecting quite a lot of things from you!\" Wilhelm sneered. \"Go, my Castellan!\"

    \"You call that a Castellan?\" I responded as I backed away from the robot, who dismissed its shimmering barrier. \"Where is his shieldbreaker missiles? His seigebreaker cannons? His pair of twin meltaguns? His plasma decimator? His volcano lance? He doesn''t have any of those, he''s not a Knight Castellan.\"

    \"Don''t go adding the Knight on your own!\" Wilhelm shouted in exasperation. \"You''ve been playing too much Warhammer 40,000! Ever since the nerf to the Castellan, when they bump his points up by 100 and reduced his maximum ion shield save to 4++, he has fallen out of the meta! Nobody uses the Knight Castellan in a competitive setting anymore! The meta is being dominated by Iron Hands or Raven Guard or other Space Marines now!\"

    He then chuckled and gestured toward his Castellan, who conjured a massive weapon. A hammer materialized in his mechanical hand, and the huge robot casually rested it on his metallic shoulder.

    \"But at least we''ll be showing you the true power of a thunder hammer! They may have bumped the points of the thunder hammer up for Characters, but I can still turn my Castellan into an enhanced Smash Captain!\"

    \"Oho¡­\" I closed my eyes briefly and straightened myself before smiling. \"No doubt you''ll be a worthy opponent.\"

    Then I drew both of my swords.

    \"Heh¡­looks like Richard Huang is drawing both of his real swords for the first time in this team match! Does he have a plan up his sleeve?\"

    I ignored the commentator and focused my eyes on the Castellan, who was still resting his hammer on his armored shoulder. We squared off, our sight not leaving each other, as if waiting for our opponent to make the first move.

    The tension dragged on. Even the spectators had fallen silent, and I could practically sense them holding their breaths.

    And then I charged forward. The robot responded in kind, his thrusters flaring as he seared a path across the arena to meet in the middle. His hammer smashed downward, and would have crushed me to a pulp had I maintained my current trajectory.

    But I was more flexible than that.

    I dove to the side at the last moment, evading his thunder hammer by a hair''s breadth. Then I caught sight of a flicker from the Castellan''s glowing green eyes and instinctively raised both Hei Yue and Bai Ri, crossing them to parry the massive hammer blow that he threw in my direction. With a grunt, I was sent crashing several meters away.

    Striking the ground with a grunt, I rolled to soften the impact and throw myself back up to my feet, but the Castellan was towering above me, his hammer raised.

    \"I''ve predicted all of your movements, including your evasive patterns and attack strategies, and programmed them into my Castellan!\" Wilhelm crowed triumphantly. \"There''s nothing you can do!\"

    \"We''ll see about that. Black Tortoise!\"

    Water gushed around me as a chibi Black Tortoise materialized over my shoulder. Raising Bai Ri with my left hand, I conjured an ice barrier that shattered almost immediately the moment the Castellan''s hammer crashed into it, but it absorbed most of the blow and bought me more than enough time to escape.

    I didn''t just escape, though. Weaving through the deadly rain of frost fragments, I lunged forward and thrust Hei Yue at a gap in the Castellan''s defenses, right at his midriff and before he could bring his bulky, unwieldy hammer down to protect himself.

    The Castellan didn''t need his hammer to parry my sword. Instead, a shimmering blue barrier appeared between us, deflecting my lethal blade to the side. I wasn''t able to cut through it, but I persisted, using Black Tortoise''s spells to freeze the barrier and cover it in ice.

    \"It won''t work!\"

    At the side, Wilhelm laughed, dismissing my efforts to freeze the barrier. He was right, if my goal was to freeze the barrier¡­but it wasn''t.

    \"?!\"

    Vermillion Phoenix soared above the distracted Castellan and incinerated him with flames from behind. The robot shuddered and crashed to a knee as he endured the inferno, his systems smoldering from the sheer heat.

    \"I''d be offended if you forgot about me.\"

    \"?!\"

    Vermillion Phoenix was forced to pause his spell and dodged to the side as a laser beam scorched through the air where he was hovering earlier. Teresa had lifted her beam rifle up to fire off a barrage of laser blasts in his direction, disrupting his spell. Seizing the opportunity, Craig rushed past her to pierce the Castellan''s barrier with his cursed spear. However, Teresa raised her other hand, which was similarly equipped with a second, identical beam rifle, and fired off another barrage of lasers in his direction, forcing him to veer off and deflect them with his twirling spear.

    \"Your opponent is me.\"

    \"You say that, but you went and fired off at Richard''s monsters,\" Craig pointed out with a grim smile as a bead of perspiration dripped down his face.

    Teresa was not moved. \"Unlike you, I have the luxury of engaging multiple opponents at once. Such is the superiority of our technomagic.\"

    \"Oh, I''m so going to enjoy defeating you,\" Craig growled before he drove his spear at her. She darted away, her thrusters flaring to pull her out of range of his deadly cursed technique, and holding him at bay with her constant onslaughter of laser pulses. Craig cursed under his breath as he continued to deflect and block the bombardment. I wanted to help him, but I had more important things to worry about at the moment.

    The Castellan hurled his hammer at Vermillion Phoenix, forcing him to fly to the side. While he did so, I slashed at him, forcing him to conjure his barrier again. Spinning around, I wreathed both of my blades in azure ice before slicing down on him, leaving a layer of ice frosting over his pixelated barrier. He then countered with his hammer, forcing him back, but I leaped on top of his giant mechanical arm, ran along the length of it, and then struck at his head.

    The barrier appeared once again, thwarting my attempts to decapitate him, and then I was forced to do a cartwheel in midair to avoid his vicious counterattack when his thunder hammer swung through the space where I had been moments before.

    A couple of purple laser blasts from Teresa''s cannons seared through either side of me, almost catching me unawares, and I was forced to dodge. The Castellan sought to take advantage of that opening, but Vermillion Phoenix intervened and incinerated the space between the huge robot and me, forcing him to conjure his barrier once more. The devastating flames licked and curled across the shimmering barrier, but they remained ineffective against his impenetrable defenses.

    \"Damn it. Craig, we''re going to need to switch opponents!\"

    \"I''m aware of that!\"

    \"Like I''m going to let you!\"

    Double purple laser beams crisscrossed the area between me and Craig, forcing our distance. The crimson spearman whirled about to thrust his spear at Teresa, but she let go of one of her beam rifles, which was automatically ensnared by a tiny mechanical clamp built into her power armor, and activated a close-ranged beam saber to deflect the weapon. Craig closed in on her, pursuing her, but she warded his strikes off skillfully with her beam saber while still somehow able to fire a couple of purple pulses in my direction when I attempted to attack the Castellan.

    I didn''t know why she bothered. I wasn''t capable of penetrating the barrier of the Castellan. Perhaps she thought she could take me out with a lucky shot or something ¨C that would make some sense.

    However, if she thought I was an easy target, she had another one coming.

    Pushing my glasses up my nose as I temporarily retreated, I reassessed the situation and rethought my strategy. Harrison''s plan had bitten the dust, and like they all said, no battle plan survived contact with the enemy. That wasn''t to say Harrison''s schemes weren''t correct. If we had been able to execute them properly, we might have scored a higher chance of winning. However, because it was the most efficient plan it was also just as predictable, and our opponents clearly had anticipated our moves and prepared accordingly.

    The good news was that their plan to take our Craig didn''t work out either, and he remained a dangerous thorn in their side. As long as he was still in the fight, neither Teresa nor the Castellan could take him lightly, which was why she was devoting so much effort into pulling his attention away from the robot.

    \"Golden Kirin.\"

    The ground shook tremendously as I pulled up my next trump card. Fire from above and earth spikes from below, the two spells striking out at the poor Castellan simultaneously. He smashed the earth spikes into oblivion with his thunder hammer while a shimmering barrier protected him from the rain of fire above. That had to be one hell of a defense there, to be able to withstand the full fiery might of Vermillion Phoenix.

    His barrier was even stronger than Chang Cheng''s Great Wall that I faced almost half a year ago. Chang Cheng himself had upgraded his barrier spells and become much stronger than before, but even with his increased protective spells I was hardpressed to say whether he was still the number one defensive mage. This Castellan certainly could give him a run for his money¡­or even quite possibly be the new number one.

    Well, rankings and power levels were always in flux. Only narrow-minded readers thought that people would stay the same forever. I never understood why readers or some writers always thought the vilains, antagonists or rivals would for some reason remain at the same strength while the main characters grew stronger. Like¡­what were they doing in the meantime while the main characters trained? Slacking off? And why do readers love to assume that just because this guy (Craig, for example) was ranked lower now, he would always be ranked lower forever? I couldn''t forgive those bastard commenters who insisted on calling him a mob or noob or trash character just because they couldn''t pull their heads out of their asses and understand that power levels were never constant, rankings were never static, and statuses were fluid.

    \"Ha ha ha ha! You can try casting all the spells you want, but you''ll never be able to defeat my Castellan!\" Wilhelm shouted from afar. I wished I could take him out, but his puppet robot had placed himself squarely between me and his owner, and whaetever spells I threw at him would be intercepted by the dude''s barrier. He had been programmed to protect Wilhelm no matter the cost, and with the durability of his armor and impenetrable barrier, I could see why his master wasn''t worried about any damage the poor Castellan might sustain in the process.

    At that moment, Craig was sent crashing several meters back when Teresa combined her beam rifles to send a single massive purple blast of light that broke through his defenses and scorched his arms. He rolled about in pain, and could only helplessly glance up as his opponent leveled her combined cannon at him.

    \"Finally,\" she muttered.

    \"Yup,\" I agreed.

    \"?!\"

    A flaming arrow exploded against her and would have taken her out if the Castellan hadn''t throw his arm up to shield her with his powerful barrier. The flames engulfed the spherical barrier, which despite disrupting her aim and allowing Craig to roll away to safety, served its protective purpose. Spinning about, Teresa glared at me from behind the shimmering barrier.

    \"That was close!\" Wilhelm murmured, resting a hand on his chest. He then reddened, and spluttered as he searched for an excuse to cover up his frantic gestures and worried expression, clearing his throat to conceal his embarrassment. \"If you get taken out, then there''s nothing to stop the Demonic Spear from piercing through the barrier of my Castellan.\"

    \"I''m sure that was the main reason you had your Castellan protect me,\" Teresa agreed, looking both amused and touched.

    I wasn''t going to bother with their romantic comedy, however, and this was the moment I had been waiting for. Both Vermillion Phoenix and Golden Kirin, already cued in onto my intentions through our mental and spiritual link, combined their spells and launched the Scorched Earth technique, engulfing the now vulnerable Castellan in molten lava.

    \"Oh no! Damn it!\" Wilhlem yelled when his robot disappeared underneath red and black boiling magma.

    \"Don''t tell me this was their plan?!\" Teresa hissed. \"Attack me to force Wilhelm''s Castellan to protect me with his barrier, and then take him out while he''s without any defenses!?\"

    \"No barrier is going to save you!\"

    Hollering, Craig leaped upward and thrust his spear forward, easily cleaving through the shimmering barrier. Teresa was forced to whip out her beam saber to deflect his deadly cursed weapon away, and she was sent plummeting back to the ground. Her thrusters flared at the last moment, preventing an ugly crash that would have broken every bone in her body, and she soared away to relative safety, panting.

    Meanwhile, the Castellan broke his way out of the boiling magma, his body armor smoldering and glowing red-hot. Huffing, he staggered toward me, his hammer swinging wildly around.

    \"The hell?\" I growled. \"That robot''s still not destroyed by that spell?!\"

    \"Hah!\" Wilhelm looked immensely relieved. \"Looks like the durability of my Castellan''s armor has surpassed the sheer firepower of your trump card! It''s over now!\"

    \"No, it might not be¡­\" Teresa swallowed as she landed beside Wilhelm, the jets of her battle armor spluttering. \"Your Castellan has suffered tremendous damage. I''m not sure he can withstand another spell like that.\"

    \"Then what do you propose we do?\"

    \"We have no choice¡­\" Teresa clenched her fists and looked down. Wilhlem raised an eyebrow, and then brightened up.

    \"You''re right! It''s time for us to use our trump card!\" he turned back and grinned at me and a battered Craig. \"It''s our turn to counterattack now!\"

    \"Trump card?\" Craig repeated incredulously as he leaned on his spear. Tereas grimaced as she nodded.

    \"Honestly, I would rather not use it if I don''t have to. It''s not a technique we use lightly. However, in order to defeat the both of you for sure, there doesn''t seem to be any choice.\"

    She then raised her combined cannon and fired a massive burst into the air. The next second, the whole arena vanished in a blinding light as hundreds of orange laser beams rained down upon our positions.

 398 Chapter 398: Gattai

    Craig and I were forced to disperse the moment the meteor shower of laser bursts landed on us. Fortunately, Black Tortoise was still around and I had him conjure a water sphere over and around us. Golden Kirin also moved under the protective umbrella, while Vermillion Phoenix banked and jinked, avoiding the scatter spray of destructive lasers.

    \"What the fuck is that bitch doing?!\" Craig snarled. \"This is their trump card?\"

    \"No, it''s not,\" I told him. \"If it was their trump card, it would be a lot more destructive than this. They couldn''t even penetrate my Black Tortoise''s water sphere, so I doubt it''s their ace in the hole. It''s probably a cover¡­a smokescreen for their real ultimate technique.\"

    I was right. Teresa was ejecting her battle armor, the jet thrusters, cannons, weapons and helmet detaching from her body and soaring toward the stationary Castellan. Both Craig and I watched in awe as, under the protective cover of the laser rain, the separate components of Teresa''s battle armor attached themselves to the various parts of the Castellan. The jet thrusters clamped onto his back, giving the bulky, heavy robot flight capabilities and increased mobility. The cannons attached themselves to his arms, increasing their mass and power. The leg armor also connected to his legs, the helmet to his head, and the body armor to his mechanical torso, augmenting his already formidable defenses. A corona of mana gleamed over the Castellan''s new form, allowing him to emanate an intense aura.

    \"Did they¡­just gattai (combine)?\" I asked incredulously.

    \"Huh? Gattai?\" Craig repeated. \"What the hell is that?!\"

    \"Basically Wilhelm''s Castellan is much more powerful than before because he fused with Teresa''s battle armor,\" I explained as I scratched my head. \"This is going to be troublesome.\"

    \"Damn it! We can''t let him complete the Fusion!\" Craig realized how dire our situation was, but it was too late. Before I could stop him, he recklessly charged through the shower of lasers with his spear raised.

    \"Oh no! Craig Carlson has just charged into the laser barrage, risking certain damage!\"

    \"Get back here, you fool!\" I shouted, waving for him to return to the safe protection of my Black Tortoise. Unsurprisingly, he ignored me. A leader like Harrison, I was not.

    Craig charged through the barrage, wincing as he took several hits. Cauterized wounds opened up and sealed from the superheated strikes, but he ignored the burning pain and continued to charge forward, his arm cocked back to hurl his spear forward at the illuminated Castellan.

    \"It''s a pity, Craig Carlson,\" Teresa said as she firmly placed herself between the charging spearman and the glowing robot.

    \"!!!\"

    Craig attacked her out of instinct, his spear stabbing through her gut and incapacitating her. Teresa doubled over, but she smiled before she collapsed.

    \"You''re too late.\" She glanced over her shoulder and back at her stunned comrade. \"I''m leaving the rest to you, Wilhelm.\"

    \"Gattai complete!\" he shouted, the aura calming down to reveal his Castellan''s new form. Gritting his teeth, he directed his robot telepathically. \"I''ll be sure to avenge you, Teresa. And the rest too!\"

    \"I''m sure you will.\" Teresa nodded, and then collapsed.

    \"Gah¡­!\"

    The Castellan swiped at Craig, almost knocking the spear out of his hand. Craig, however, stood his ground and thrust his spear forward, smashing through the summoned barrier and piercing through a portion of the Castellan''s armor.

    \"It doesn''t matter. You can try to damage him all you want, but it won''t work!\" Wilhelm shouted. As if in response, the Castellan pulverized Craig, who realized that his spear was stuck inside the Castellan''s arm. Unable to let go in time, he vanished under the powerful weapon, a geyser of blood, dirt and rubble bursting upward.

    \"Craig!\" I shouted, rushing forward the moment the rain of lasers stopped. My Celestial Guardians flanked me, but I saw that I was too late.

    I was the only member of our team left in the arena. It was do or die. If I didn''t defeat Wilhelm''s Castellan, then Jing Tian Academy team would be eliminated right here and now.

    \"Well then.\" Wilhelm also recognized that the fate of his academy''s team rested on his shoulders. \"It''s just you and me now. Let''s settle this once and for all. Castellan!\"

    The robot let out a mechanical bellow before charging forward with his hammer.

    \"White Tiger!\" I shouted. All four of my Celestial Guardians attacked at once, with Black Tortoise conjuring a barrier that the Castellan smashed through. White Tiger swiped at the robot''s arm, deflecting the hammer in a different direction, but the terrifying weapon continued to carve a destructive trail through the stage. Vermillion Phoenix, Golden Kirin and White Tiger unleashed their devastating elemental spells, destroying the surroundings along with the Castellan, but he withstood all of the destructive force with little more than cracks on his singed armor.

    \"Damn it¡­this guy is an even better summoner than I am,\" I grumbled. Quality over quantity. I was somewhat confident in the quality of my Celestial Guardians, but the Castellan surpassed even that. Worse, I couldn''t last long, not when I had summoned four out of my five Celestial Guardians. Maintaining the existences of all of them at once was taking a huge toll on my mana reserves.

    If I didn''t end this battle soon, I would run out of mana first. Then it would truly be the end.

    \"¡­hmph.\"

    Smiling, I drew both of my swords again and lunged forward, in concert with my summoned beasts. What was the point of carrying Hei Yue and Bai Ri if I didn''t use them in combat? I should use them in conjunction with my Celestial Guardians. I should use every tool, every weapon at my disposal. I would be stronger if I attacked together with my Celestial Guardians, rather than just relying solely on their spells alone.

    Spurred on by my thoughts, my Celestial Guardians attacked together. White Tiger and Golden Kirin attacked from the sides, forcing multiple barriers out of the Castellan. While he was distracted, waving his huge hammer around to knock them back, I darted in underneath his defenses and thrust my swords upward. However, he conjured new barriers to block my blades while counterattacking with a spinning strike with his hammer. Before he could pummel me to the dust, I dove to the side, only for a freshly materialized barrier to block my escape route.

    \"Kuh?!\"

    I collided with the barrier and found my momentum halted. Not wasting the opportunity, the Castellan swung his hammer when he thought I was cornered, but I plunged Bai Ri into the ground and whirled myself away from his hammer and the blocking barrier, barely avoiding getting crushed into a bloody pulp.

    While I evaded, Vermillion Phoenix launched a blazing bombardment from above, his fiery feathers striking at several points and from different directions. The Castellan didn''t even bother to look upward, with multiple barriers materializing to parry those flaming strikes.

    \"Bloody hell, he has gotten so much stronger than before,\" I murmured with a curse. \"And I don''t remember him being able to conjure multiple barriers at once before, either! Is this a new ability gained from gattai?\"

    \"Ha ha ha ha! Useless, useless, useless!\" Wilhelm shouted, sounding suspiciously like Dio or his Za Warudo. I guess some people loved Jojo way too much.

    \"How the fuck am I supposed to defeat a monster like him?\" I grumbled under my breath. Shaking my head, I decided to go all out and summon Green Dragon. Plants and wood emerged from the stage to ensnare the Castellan, inhibiting his movements, but the monstrous robot tore free of his restraints with a single violent movement.

    \"Ha ha ha ha!\" Wilhelm was still guffawing from before. Damn it, that annoying laughter was starting to get on my nerves. \"I''ll be honest with you, but the power of the gattai Castellan has surpassed even my expectations! I''m finally able to understand and use the true power of my Castellan! This is the miracle of technomagic!\"

    All around us, the spectators either cheered or murmured in awe. Obviously I wasn''t going to bother with the infamous cultivation clich¨¦s where they trash-talked about me and talked about how I was doomed to lose and whatever. This was reality, and they were more likely to be impressed by the Castellan''s display of power than they were about trash-talking the protagonist.

    \"True power, huh?\" I took a deep breath and lowered my sword. Forcing myself to calm down, I considered my various options.

    \"Now, take this blow of mine!\" Wilhelm yelled. \"Castellan, Mjolnir Hammer!\"

    \"!!!\"

    My jaw dropped when I saw the gigantic double-head of the Castellan''s hammer fly right off its shaft, spinning rapidly in my direction. It was all I could do to get away in time. Even Black Tortoise didn''t bother to throw up his water sphere, knowing that the devastating attack would obliterate whatever barrier he conjured. My Celestial Guardians scattered along with me.

    Boom!

    The glowing double hammerhead slammed into the ground, carving a huge trail of destruction into the stage and threw up scorched debris. Backing away, with my Celestial Guardians on either side of me, I gulped.

    \"Whoa, the impact has increased several fold too. If I take a hit like that face-on, even with a barrier, I might not get away unscathed.\"

    Perhaps my Snow Aegis might just be able to withstand it, but I wasn''t going to risk testing that out in an official tournament battle where our advancement to the next round was on the line. There was no point in meaninglessly receiving an attack and potentially taking damage when there was no need to.

    The double hammerhead then dislodged itself from the ground and swiftly spun back toward the Castllan, refitting itself back onto his glowing shaft and returning to its normal condition. The Castellan pulled his hammer back as he readied for another attack. Behind his mechanical puppet, Wilhelm grinned malevolently.

    \"Come on!\" he sneered. \"We''re not done yet! Not by a long shot!\"

    \"Uh huh,\" I replied dryly. \"I''m sure.\"

    The Castellan didn''t even bother to reply ¨C I doubted he could. All the speeches were being made by his owner, Wilhelm. The puppet master merely curled his lip, wisely not wasting any time on arguing. At a mental command, the Castellan aimed his hammer at me again and fired the glowing hammerhead in my direction.

    \"Not this bullshit again,\" I sighed as I dove to the side, running along the stage to dodge the second shot. The hammerhead continually returned to the shaft so that the Castellan could continuously fire off a barrage over and over again. While he did so, my Celestial Guardians bombarded him with fire, wood, lightning, ice and earth spells, trying to break his barrier, to no avail. Shimmering pixelated barriers hovered around the Castellan, absorbing and intercepting those spells without the mechanical robot sustaining any damage behind the gleaming walls.

    Even as my Celestial Guardians'' spells proved ineffective, the Castellan continued to repeatedly hurl his hammerhead at me, recalled it, then fired it off again.

    \"Ignore those Soul Beasts!\" Wilhelm ordered, even as the five of them blasted him with their combined elemental spells. \"As long as you take out the summoner, they will disappear along with him!\"

    Oh boy. So that was why the Castellan couldn''t be bothered to attack my Celestial Guardians. Wilhelm certainly had his priorities right.

    However, for now, we were at a stalemate. Even if I couldn''t break through his defenses, his attack was still too slow to hit me. Powerful, yes, but much too slow. As long as I kept moving around, he would never be able to land a hit on me¡­

    ¡­or so I thought.

    \"How infuriating. Castellan, cut off his escape route.\"

    Wilhelm''s voice was cold. His words hadn''t fully sank in when I collided with a barrier. Bouncing off, I twisted around, only for a second barrier to appear behind me. And then a third. I was trapped inside a three-wall barrier, with the only open space leading straight toward the Castellan.

    And the huge robot was aiming his hammer right at me.

    \"Mjolnir Hammer!\" Wilhelm instructed gleefully. Trapped on three sides, with the only exit blocked off by the Castellan''s devastating weapon, I had no choice but to see if my hypothesis from earlier was correct. Dropping my swords, I raised my right hand and gathered as much azure mana into my palm as possible.

    \"I am the soul of my sword.\"

    The faint outline of a gigantic snowflake manifested in front of me.

    \"Fear is my body, frost is my blood.\"

    The dual hammerhead was almost upon me, leaving a destructive trail in its wake as it hurtled right into the passageway created by the Castellan''s barriers.

    And I had my own barrier of my own. Taking a deep breath, I confronted the devastating weapon head-on as I coalesced the mana in my hand.

    \"Snow Aegis!\"

    The hammerhead smashed into the gigantic snowflake-shaped shield that solidified in front of me, its crystalline petals unfurling to bloom majestically. Debris and rubble pelted the icy barrier as the howling hammerhead ground relentlessly against my ultimate defense, but I refused to yield. Standing my ground, I bellowed.

    \"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!\"

    The entire area exploded, with destructive waves of mana engulfing me as they were amplified by the barriers. Even the barriers actually cracked from the tremendous impact, but they held. As the smoke dissipated, I staggered, panting.

    Fortunately, my Snow Aegis had endured as well. Lowering my hand, I retrieved both of my swords even as my massive snowflake-shaped shield faded away from existence. Sweat poured off my face and I heaved from the exertion, but otherwise I was unscathed.

    \"Ho¡­?\" Wilhelm folded his arms, impressed. \"You can still stand even after taking a direct hit from Mjolnir Hammer? It seems that we''ve underestimated you, Richard Huang.\"

    \"¡­\"

    I was too drained and exhausted to respond to that. Instead, I merely pushed my glasses up my nose and forced what I hoped looked like a confident smile.

    \"What overwhelming power!\" the commentator yelled from above. \"It''s all that Richard Huang can do just to defend from it! Is this match¡­decided, then?\"

    \"Don''t go and end it on your own,\" I snapped and shook my head. Glancing at both of my swords, I then raised my head and nodded at Black Tortoise and Green Dragon. The both of them reverted to their chibi forms and then hopped onto my shoulders. Black mana curled and flowed around the black blade of Hei Yue like a whirlpool while green leaves and pink petals danced around the white blade of Bai Ri as if spring was in full bloom.

    \"Huh? I was wondering what you had up your sleeve, but you just turned your giant Soul Beasts into little stuffed animal versions? Are you kidding me? Did you think that by shrinking them, you''ll somehow make them more powerful? Don''t make me laugh!\" Wilhelm glowered at me, as if he thought I was making fun of him and his robot. \"Castellan, finish him off! Mjolnir Hammer!\"

    His mechanical puppet obeyed immediately, blasting the bulky dual hammerhead in my direction. Trapped within the three-sided barriers for now, I didn''t move from my position. Instead, I swung Hei Yue, frost trailing my blade as I cleaved the dual hammerhead and destroyed it. The frozen pieces of the obliterated weapon fell and shattered at my feet. Then with a single stroke of Bai Ri, I sliced apart the barriers that had been trapping me all this time.

    \"No way! Impossible!\" Wilhelm shrieked when he saw the impossible sight.

    \"I guess it''s only elementary,\" I muttered to myself. \"If I can''t cut through the barriers with large area-of-effect spells, then I''ll just have to compress all that tremendous amount of mana into a single point and work on a single specific spot.\"

    Smiling, I stepped out of the disappearing pixelated barriers and pointed Hei Yue at the stationary Castellan.

    \"Now then¡­my counterattack begins.\"

 399 Chapter 399: Decisive Duel

    Seizing the opportunity, I charged at the Castellan. The robot emotionlessly raised the shaft of his weapon and used magic to conjure a new double hammerhead.

    \"!!!\"

    Before I knew it, the Castellan stomped forward and swung his hammer straight at me, with every intention to pulverize my skull into bone shards and brain matter.

    I swept underneath the Castellan''s attack, ducking under his massive hammer even as I sliced through his barriers with my two swords. The mechanized puppet''s bulky weapon soared several centimeters above my face, almost ruffling my fringe as I slid past under it, as well as the metallic arms that wielded it. I could literally feel the heat flaring from the thruster-cannons on his arms ¨C even though the beam cannons from Teresa''s battle armor had fused with the Castellan''s arms, they did not seem capable of ranged weaponry. Instead, the cannons served as thrusters to boost the strength of his mechanical arms and augment his physical blows.

    Don''t ask me how that worked. I had no idea. Just assume it was technomagic (which it really was) or something. Dodging under another crushing blow from the Castellan''s massive hammer, I spun about to avoid a kick and then withdrew to a safe distance. Skidding back from a powerful strike, I managed to still my trembling arms. Enhanced by my chibi Celestial Guardians, I was able to parry the Castellan''s hammer with my crossed swords.

    \"Huff.\"

    Perspiration dripped down my face as I studied my opponent, and I took a deep breath as I prepared myself for the next round. Kicking off the ground, I lunged at the Castellan again, and we exchanged several dozen blows in the space of a few seconds, my two swords clashing ferociously against the Castellan''s hammer. All the while, my remaining Celestial Guardians continued to bombard him from afar with their ranged spells, but he always had his barrier activated at the last moment to block them, before I could slice them apart.

    Cut them too late and I would end up cleaving my own Celestial Guardians'' spells apart too. This was truly a complex battle.

    \"Ha ha ha ha!\"

    From afar, Wilhelm chortled as he watched what he perceived to be my fruitless struggle.

    \"It doesn''t matter if you concentrated all of your mana down into such a small area and penetrate my Castellan''s barriers! You still won''t be able to match him blow for blow!\"

    Despite his claims, I traded another few strikes with the Castellan, proving him wrong by holding my ground and matching the mechanized puppet blow for blow. The robot tried to shove me back, but I deflected his hammer and counterattacked, forcing him to withdraw.

    \"Richard is actually fighting on par with that monstrous robot!\" one of the spectators murmured in awe. \"How?!\"

    Magic, that''s how.

    With a mechanical bellow, the Castellan swung his hammer downward, crushing a massive crater into the ground and forcing me into a hasty retreat. While I jumped away, raising both swords to protect myself from the flying debris, my Vermillion Phoenix dove down on him, launching an enormous fire spell. The inferno that he unleashed took the form of a flaming, intangible phoenix, and crashed down upon the robot.

    Seizing the opportunity, I charged forward and thrust both of my swords forward, penetrating his barriers and scything through his metallic body to carve him apart.

    \"!!!\"

    Unable to evade either attacks, the Castellan could only stand his ground. Raising his left hand, he caught the flaming phoenix from above while he swung his hammer with his right hand to parry both of my swords. The ferocious fire spell seared through him, the superheated plasma almost melting his armor. More mana gushed out of the Castellan''s armor as he struggled to withstand the blow, and Wilhelm winced when he realized that even his reserves were being siphoned away. The half-molten metallic armor managed to solidify, but there were clearly rapidly expanding cracks on the head and torso as the Castellan buckled under the immense impact and extreme temperatures.

    \"Ugh!\" Wilhlem groaned. His Castellan responded, linked to him psychostigmatically, and let out a mechanical howl.

    \"UOOOOOOOOOOH!\"

    \"?!\"

    I was almost forced back by the hurricane-like white mana that poured out of the crumbling armored hull of the Castellan, buffteted by arcane shockwaves that tore through the ground and threw up chunks of debris.

    Skidding backward, I flipped myself upright and landed on my feet and used Bai Ri to maintain my posture. Slowly straightening up, I studied the glowing Castellan and sighed.

    \"This much mana¡­\"

    \"I can''t control it!\" Wilhelm shouted from afar, clutching his body as he crashed to his knees. \"He''s sucking me dry! At this rate I will run out of mana before the match can end!\"

    Even though that should sound reassuring to me, I couldn''t smile. I was in the same situation as him. This was quickly turning into a battle of attrition. I had no doubt the outcome of the battle would be determined by who ran out of mana first.

    \"This is bad!\" Wilhlem muttered, almost as if he was talking to himself. \"I need to get my Castellan under control!\"

    While he did so, I took a step with my swords while my Celestial Guardians cast their spells. It didn''t work ¨C the immense amounts of white mana erupting from the roaring Castellan deflected the fireballs that Vermillion Phoenix launched, as did the earth spikes and lightning from Golden Kirin and White Tiger crumble or dissipate when they made contact. As for me, I found myself physically shoved back by the shockwaves.

    \"I can''t get close!\" I realized. \"And I can''t even attack him when he''s in this state!\"

    \"What''s happening?!\" the commentator exclaimed excitedly. \"Seems like the Castellan is rampaging! Has the formidable robot gone berserk? Will Richard Huang be able to stop the Castellan when it goes out of control?!\"

    There were murmurs among the spectators who were watching the entire spectacle somewhat fearfully. If the Castellan blew up here and now, he would be dealing D6 mortal wounds to any unit within 3D6\" of him¡­ahem, I mean he would be dealing out mortal wounds to anyone in the vicinity. Of course the boundary fields and the barriers around the arena should hold, but I couldn''t blame them for feeling a sense of unease.

    Then I understood something.

    \"No, the Castellan isn''t rampaging or going out of control. He''s¡­\"

    The mana flunctuations were decreasing and the robot calmed down, drawing the violent currents of the mana back into himself. The white glow vanished, and he straightened. There were massive cracks all over his mechanical body, his formidable armor now damaged severely from the overload of mana as well as the constant onslaught from the strikes from both me and my Celestial Guardians.

    \"Phew.\" Wilhelm wiped his perspiration from his face and sat up. \"I''ve finally managed to force him back under control.\" He then grinned. \"But be warned, Richard Huang¡­my Castellan is a lot stronger than before.\"

    I didn''t point out to him that his mechanized puppet was also a lot more damaged than before, and I could exploit the visible chinks in his armor. It was always more advantageous for me to allow my opponent to underestimate me.

    \"Let''s settle this once and for all!\" Wilhelm hollered. Responding to his will, his Castellan charged forward, his backpack thrusters flaring furiously and allowing him to streak toward me like a missile. I could barely parry his hammer blow in time and was hurled back from his momentum.

    \"Ugh! His blows have gotten a lot stronger than before!\"

    The cannons fired a violent burst, augmenting his physical strength further, and I found myself flung back even though I somehow managed to parry his strike. Huffing, I adjusted the level of mana in my swords and fought back, countering and deflecting his hammer. Rather than receive them directly or head-on, I skillfully altered their trajectories and diverted them to the side. The hammer landed on the ground with crushing force, leaving more craters in the Castellan''s wake, but at last those lethal impacts were no longer directed at me.

    \"For a summoner, your sword techniques are unexpectedly good!\" Wilhelm growled, half-frustrated that his rapidly crumbling Castellan still wasn''t able to finish me off. Like me, he realized that his robot was operating on a ticking clock, and it wasn''t just the danger of him running out of mana. The very mechanical structure of the Castellan was unable to contain the enormous amount of mana he wielded, and was destroying the poor robot from the inside out.

    I couldn''t help but smirk. \"Thanks.\"

    The Castellan bore down on me once more, his hammer swinging to pulverize me. Once again, I parried it with my crossed swords, subtly sliding to the side while my blades screeched past the length of the hammer in a shower of sparks so as to avoid the full impact of the blow. The Castellan twirled his hammer and struck me back, and I had to withdraw to a safe distance to avoid getting every bone in my body shattered by the heavy blow.

    \"Kuh!\"

    However, in the face of adversity I found opportunity. While I retreated, I sent a mental command to my waiting Vermillion Phoenix and Golden Kirin, both of whom had been spending this entire time casting their spells.

    \"Scorched Earth!\" I yelled.

    The combined fire and earth spell engulfed the Castellan, turning into molten magma. The superheated molten lava washed over the Castellan, but the mechanized puppet merely raised his hand calmly and created a yellowish barrier that sucked all of the molten lava into it.

    \"You''ve got to be kidding me¡­\"

    My jaw dropped when I saw the Castellan contain the raw power of my Celestian Guardians'' combined Scorched Earth into a relatively small barrier box.

    \"I''ll return those flames back to you!\" Wilhelm called out gleefully from his safe corner at the far edge of the arena. His Castellan responded to his view and opened up a cracked, mechanical palm before releasing the full force of my Scorched Earth spell right back at me. The barriers of the coliseum glowed, shimmered and expanded desperately as it struggled to contain the colossal explosion that swept throughout the entire stage.

    \"Ugh!\"

    If it weren''t for the protective water sphere of my Black Tortoise, I would have been blown to smithereens. As it was, both my Golden Kirin and White Tiger were destroyed in that catastrophic blast, their bodies dissipating away into spiritual mana. Only my Vermillion Phoenix escaped unscathed, having taken off into the air to evade the enormous explosion.

    As for my opponents, both Wilhlem and his Castellan were safely shielded by the blue pixelated barriers. Damn it¡­even with an explosion of that magnitude, he was still able to protect both himself and his master from such a tremendous amount of molten lava.

    He was truly a monster¡­

    \"Huff¡­\"

    Dragging my battered body up, I tried to stand, but ended up almost falling. I had to plunge both of my swords into the ruined earth to keep myself upright. As I did so, I observed the ruined arena. The whole place had turned into a crater reminiscent of the Chicxulub crater ¨C the impact site of the supposed dinosaur-killing asteroid. Molten concrete continued to drip from seared black rock, and I found myself deep within the large hole that made up the poor arena.

    \"Now then¡­\" Wilhlem sounded gleeful. \"It''s time to finish this once and for all, don''t you think?\"

    At his mental command, his Castellan took a step forward. Then sparks flew from his cracked leg, and the mechanical limb buckled, causing the heavily damaged robot to topple over and sink deeply into the softened rock.

    \"?!\"

    \"Looks like your Castellan is reaching his limits as well,\" I observed wearily. I was too battered and in pain to smile at the slight victory. Pushing my glasses up my nose, I assessed my option. With all those enhancements to his speed and power after the gattai, he remained a formidable enemy. However, if I could just strike a decisive blow ¨C one that penetrated his barriers and take him down in just one hit¡­

    There might just be a way.

    \"Vermillion Phoenix,\" I called out. The huge Celestial Guardian descended upon me and turned into a chibi version before perching on my shoulder, next to my Green Dragon. Flames danced around me and wreathed me in a crimson, angry mana. I took a step forward and took a deep breath. \"It''s time to finish this once and for all.\"

 400 Chapter 400: Victory

    Taking a deep breath, I gently dismissed Green Dragon and replaced him with Vermillion Phoenix. The flower petals dancing around the white blade of Bai Ri were replaced by flowery embers. The fiery aura that wreathed my figure seconds earlier coasleced around the sword in my left hand, allowing it to glow like a miniature sun.

    \"Hmph.\"

    Wilhlem glowered at me as he tended to his Castellan, both his hands outstretched as he frantically cast a spell to repair its broken knee. His technomagic was not exactly suited for repair, but in a pinch it would do to patch up damaged systems in an improvised manner. The Castellan would still need to undergo full repairs and maintenance after the match, but for now the temporary field fixes were more than enough.

    I ignited my Bai Ri with superheated flames on one hand, and had an icy gale of ferocious frost swirl around my Hei Yue in the other. Taking a deep breath, I used the small amount of time to cast several spells in succession, planning ahead for what might happen later, and taking into account unexpected events and preparing contingencies for them. Even if I attacked now, the Castellan would just conjure his barrier and deflect my spells.

    No¡­to penetrate and cleave through his barriers, I had to go up close and personal and slice through them with my actual swords.

    \"Done!\"

    Wilhelm backed away quickly, allowing his Castellan to slowly rise to his feet. Electricity still spluttered and sparked from the damaged joints and ruined mechanical segments, but the huge robot was now able to stand and wield his hammer without much difficulty.

    \"Sorry. Did I keep you waiting?\" I asked, trying to keep the sarcasm out of my voice.

    \"Nope,\" Wilhlem assured me. \"As it happens, my Castellan was slightly out of shape as well. Obviously I can''t repair him fully, but this will do for now.\"

    With thunderous clanking, the huge robot lumbered over the ruins of the scorched stage. I also slowly approached him, both of my swords deceptively lowered. We closed the distance between us, facing each other calmly.

    For long seconds, nothing happened. Time seemed to drag on forever as we stopped less than a meter away from each other.

    And then, in a blink of an eye, we both moved.

    At first, it appeared that the Castellan might be a hair faster, and his hammer barreled down toward me at frightening speed. I swung Bai Ri up in response and the flaming blade sliced the hammerhead apart. The Castellan was forced to withdraw when I thrust the freezing blade of Bai Yue at him, and he conjured a new hammerhead.

    The Castellan sounded as if he was grunting, his hammer swinging almost wildly now to swat me away. I was using my smaller size and more nimble speed to dodge his blows while trading somewhat evenly with him. My blades often cut through his hammer and left either scorched marks across his armor, or froze vital systems in ice.

    \"UOOOH!\"

    With a mechanical howl, the Castellan desperately smashed his hammer into the ground. The entire stage caved in, with concrete debris flying upward and pelting me. For a moment, my vision was blocked by the floating chunks of massive rubble, with even the Castellan''s colossal figure partially blocked from view.

    What more could I say for me, who was tinier than him?

    Using my superior agility, I streaked past the Castellan, dodging his attacks and making use of the flying pieces of concrete for cover. Bouncing upward, I landed on one piece of floating rubble before jumping to the next. Springing from one piece of debris to the next, I weaved through the field of destruction, constantly disappearing from the Castellan''s point of view. Making use of my flaming Bai Ri and chibi Vermillion Phoenix, I set many of the stones alight, confusing whatever infrared sensors the robot might have installed within his suite.

    \"Damn it!\" Wilhlem howled from the side, his sight also blocked by the flaming debris that I left in my wake. Unlike his robot, he didn''t have any infrared vsion or other hi-tech sensors. \"Stop moving around like a damned monkey!\"

    Baka (idiot). Who was going to listen to him?

    The Castellan remained undaunted and continued to rain down destructive blows with his hammer, but he only succeeded in creating more debris for me to hide behind. He flailed wildly, spinning around and ramming his hammer, but I continued to dodge and duck, hopping from one piece of rubble to the next. It was almost as if I was playing a dangerous cat and mouse game, aware that the Castellan only needed one good hit to finish me off.

    Spinning about, I then streaked past the fumbling robot. As I did so, I whirled about in midair and kicked the flaming chunks of debris that I ignited with my chibi Vermillion Phoenix and possessed Bai Ri. The Castellan staggered as the concrete struck him, but they were more of a nuisance than a danger ¨C to the extent that he couldn''t be bothered to throw up a barrier to protect himself from such pitiful projectiles.

    He underestimated the multiple amounts of small damage that were slowly but surely accumulating. Already his armored hull was stressed to breaking point. But there was another reason why he didn''t bother with the barriers. If he did so, he wouldn''t be able to attack.

    And attack he did. With a thunderous mechanical roar, he swung his hammer to smash apart several debris and tried to pursue me.

    \"?!\"

    Twisting in midair, I planted a foot upon a crumbling piece of debris, and shot toward the approaching Castellan. Our weapons flashed across each other, my blades against his hammer. Rubble and debris shattered around us, and the robot''s hammer was cleaved apart, but the mechanized puppet merely conjured a new hammerhead.

    \"Your''e mine!\" Wilhelm shouted when he thought he caught a clear view of me. Following his mental command, the Castellan spun around and activated his thruster rockets. Plasma screamed from his jets, practically melting rock and debris as he hurtled toward me. I also danced about in the field of debris before dropping onto the ground to squarely meet his charge.

    This was it then. I had spent this entire time casting this ultimate technique, and it was finally time for me to reveal.

    \"Miyamoto Style: Blazing Sun and Frozen Moon.\"

    Drawing both of my swords back, I infused them with the last of my mana. Fire ignited and blazed ferociously along Bai Ri while ice crackled and swirled along Hei Yue. Kicking off the ground, I also shot toward the advancing Castellan in a blur of crimson and azure.

    Clang!

    The both of us continued barreling past each other for several paces before we finally came to a stop. Catching my breath, I stood up straight for a few seconds, and then my mana ran dry. Both of my swords deactivated, the fire and ice vanishing permanently. I dropped to my knees and coughed out blood and was forced to lean on both of my swords to remain somewhat upright.

    I was done. My battle was over. Without any mana left, with my current injuries, I could no longer fight.

    The match was over.

    \"Ha ha ha ha ha!\" Wilhlem laughed¡­for a moment before he witnessed something impossible.

    His Castellan was frozen. The robot was completely encased in ice, his cracked armor locked beneath formidable layers of frost.

    That wasn''t all. Despite the ice that entombed the Castellan, there was a clear, visible fireball glowing ferociously in the mechanical puppet''s center, where the solar plexus would be if he had been human. It was growing rapidly, almost as if it was feasting on the insides of the Castellan.

    \"You¡­\" Wilhlem spluttered, fear evident in his voice. \"What have you done?!\"

    \"I won the match,\" I replied dryly, a tired smile crossing across my battered face.

    Then the Castellan exploded. A fiery piece of metal sailed across the air and struck Wilhelm in the head, causing him to crash against the sidewall of the arena and slump unconscious onto the ground, blood trickling down his temple and jaw.

    With a tremendous exertion of will, I raised my right hand and pointed the gleaming black blade of Hei Yue toward the heavens.

    \"Oh my goodness!\" the commentator was going wild over the sight. \"This is incredible! What a comeback! What an unexpected outcome! Against all odds¡­against such a formidable opponent, Richard Huang of Jing Tian Academy has triumphed over the previously unbeatable Castellan of Wilhelm Williams! The match is over! The winner is Team Jing Tian!\"

    The spectators immediately erupted in joy, screaming and yelling their lungs out. Seated in the technical team area, Pearl leaped to her feet and cheered, along with the injured Lily, Cody, Bu Fan and Theodore. Over in the spectator seats, Harvey was jumping about and gesturing frantically, inspiring the taveling Jing Tian Academy contigent to a crescendo of thunderous cheers. They were hugging, slapping each other''s backs, high-fiving and yelling.

    I understood their delight. Against all odds, we had made it to the round of eight. We had far surpassed the expectations placed upon us and improved our performance and ranking from the previous year. We had taken everyone by surprise and exceeded their imaginations despite being acknowledged as one of the dark horses of the tournament.

    Even if we crashed out in the round of eight, we had more than done our school proud. The principal, Vincent Violet, was even crying tears of joy.

    \"Are you watching this, Alicia?\" he whispered, unheard among the screams of joy and disbelieving laughter. \"Your school¡­has done you proud. You can rest well in Heaven, and leave your aspirations for Jing Tian Academy to your peers.\"

    Even Adrian was shouting himself hoarse, exchanging a high five with Melina and waving his hands. I acknowledged him ¨C as well as Harvey ¨C with a weary nod, and then shut my eyes.

    Now that our victory was sealed, there was no longer any need to put on a show and force myself to remain consciousness. With my mana completely drained, I crashed onto the ground and allowed the inviting darkness to wrap me in a warm embrace.

    *

    When I woke up, I was greeted with unbelievable news.

    \"¡­Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy¡­lost?\"

    Even though they had grown stronger since the last time I team-killed them, they were still taken out in the round of sixteen. However, when I heard who their opponents were, my surprise was replaced with grim acknowledgement.

    \"¡­so they were knocked out by Saint Teresa Academy, huh?\"

    I glanced at the video that Harrison had sent me to watch while I was recovering in the infirmary. One of them caught my attention ¨C it was the match between Cecilia and Kureha. The two captains fought valiantly, in a very close match that finally ended in the Sword Saint''s victory.

    The arena had been devastated by razor-sharp Sakura petals that sliced through rock like a hot knife through butter, but Kureha deflected each and every one of them with superlative swordsmanship. Her sword glowed golden and she unleashed colossal amounts of destructive mana with enough power to level fortresses. Despite her sturdy defense with wood magic, Cecilia found herself gradually overcome by her best friend''s superb strokes and amazing techniques. She attempted a counterstrike when Kureha stepped in, but that turned out to be a feint, with the Sword Saint twisting the War Goddess''s blade to the side before crisscrossing it back to the opening she had just forced. Cecilia tried to take a step back, but realized that she was too late.

    There was no way for her to evade her opponent''s next stroke. Indeed, her friend would have delivered the killing blow (not that it would have been fatal, given the boundary field), but she had chosen to respectfully show her mercy.

    \"It''s over,\" Kureha told Cecilia, the tip of her sword pointed straight at the latter''s throat. \"Yield.\"

    Cecilia glared at her defiantly at first, but then lowered her head, recognizing that she had been outmatched, and that Kureha was only being polite. With a sigh, the formerly invincible War Goddess dropped her sword and raised both her hands.

    \"You have me. It''s your win.\" She then smiled. \"But don''t think the result will be the same next time.\"

    \"I''ll await your challenge again next year,\" Kureha told her simply. As the commentator announced her victory overhead, she turned away and sheathed her sword before stalking off the stage. \"But this year¡­the trophy will be ours, Saint Teresa Academy''s.\"

 401 Chapter 401: Strategy Meeting

    \"Our next opponents are very tough,\" Harrison informed the team solemnly. Even though our mood had been celebratory and we were on a high after making it to the round of eight, our team captain still had one eye on the bigger picture. His somber mood was enforced particularly after we were informed of our next opponents.

    \"The Saint Teresa Academy, huh?\" Craig mused, stroking his chin as he glanced at his smartphone. Unlike Harrison, he was grinning in anticipation and relishing the upcoming match. \"This will be good.\"

    \"We are finally facing one of the big guns this time. This isn''t just any elite academy, it is the Saint Teresa Academy. One of the top four teams from last year. Third, actually, since they won against Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy in the third-placing match last year after narrowly losing out to Pendragon in the semifinals.\"

    The big guns. One of the big names. Among the most prestigious academies in the Global Federation.

    At Harrison''s words, everyone went rigid, knowing that this was no laughing matter. This would possibly be the most powerful team we had faced thus far in the tournament. All the other teams we had eliminated along the way would be nothing compared to the superlative swordsmen and swordswomen of Saint Teresa. Only Pendragon Academy had a better record when it came to swordsmanship and blade magic.

    \"Well, we came this far and surpassed everyone''s expectations, so we can''t really complain.\" Theodore shrugged. He looked as if he found our cirumstances a pity, but understood there wasn''t anything we could do about it.

    \"You''re right. We came this far.\" Harrison straightened up and narrowed his eyes. \"I''m not going to give up after having come this far.\"

    \"Eh?\" Everyone stared at him in surprise.

    \"You''re seriously planning to challenge Saint Teresa Academy and win?\" Pearl asked disbelievingly. Harrison nodded.

    \"Of course. Who the hell goes to a match resigned to lose? We might as well give it our all. You don''t seriously think we should just give up and forfeit after coming this far, right?\"

    \"Well, no, but I think it''s unrealistic to expect that we will win against the likes of Saint Teresa Academy,\" Sheila pointed out glumly.

    \"The only expectations I have of everyone is for all of you do to your best. Fight like your lives depend on it. Give your all. Leave the match with no regrets ¨C and if we win, we advance. If we lose, we can hold our heads up highly proudly because we gave it our best shot without holding anything back. We have nothing to lose, so we might as well try.\"

    \"Harrison''s right!\" Craig growled. \"Why are we even discussing this? Let''s go kick Saint Teresa Academy''s asses!\"

    \"If only it''s that easy,\" Lily murmured softly. She looked at Harrison square in the eyes. \"I hope you have some sort of plan.\"

    \"As a matter of fact, I do.\" Harrison grinned and waved at his smartphone, projecting a gigantic holographic screen into the air for us to see. His grin grew wider as he displayed a table of statistics and numbers, backed up by tiny windows of videos featuring the members of the Saint Teresa Academy team. \"I''ve noticed a pattern in the way they deploy their team. It appears that they rely heavily on five or so core members, and the reserve members are not even half as good as the others. To the extent that they actually have their members fight two or three matches at once during the individual matches.\"

    Every team was given the option to choose if they wanted to swap their current member out or not after each match, provided that member had won his or her match ¨C obviously defeated members of the team were counted as eliminated and had lost the right to participate any further in the individual and team matches for that day. However, as long as you won your match, you could opt to stay on stage (or the captain could choose to leave you on stage), and continue fighting the other members of the opposing team. Most teams didn''t do that because they wanted to give their other members experience, or rest their core participants, or because the other team would choose to send out a member whose magic and techniques countered the current opponent''s skillset. However, a few elected to keep their faith in their core members and leave them in the arena to continue knocking out as many of the opponents'' members as possible. It also served as a strategy, so that the core members you had in mind for the team match wouldn''t be eliminated before it even began. For example, Harrison would sometimes have Bu Fan repeat a couple of matches because we all knew he was only going to participate in the individual matches, so as to minimize the risk of the main party for the team match getting unexpectedly broken up and eliminated.

    \"They have obviously built their team around their captain, Kureha Franklin.\" Harrison glanced at me. \"I think she''s an acquaintance of yours, Richard.\"

    \"We''ve met and worked together briefly,\" I admitted. \"Back when Troy was alive.\"

    \"The dragon incident,\" Dong Fang Yue Chu recalled, awestruck. \"The three of you worked together to slay two dragons.\"

    \"Something like that.\"

    \"That''s right.\" Harrison nodded. \"So you know firsthand how strong and skilled Kureha can be.\" He then pointed toward the glowing holographic screen that hovered in the air. \"She knows how powerful she is herself, and is extremely confident to the extent that she would participate in at least two or three matches to reduce the opposing team to cinders before leading her party in the team match. And for her to do that, she has won all the individual matches she participated in.\"

    \"Scary,\" Craig remarked, a mocking note in his tone. He smiled derisively as he turned to Harrison. \"So we''re going to make use of her arrogance to create her downfall.\"

    \"Well¡­I was thinking we should showcase some arrogance of our own,\" Harrison replied jokingly. \"But in more concrete terms¡­as long as we can eliminate Kureha Franklin, Saint Teresa Academy will suffer a huge blow to their strength during their team match against us. We can then take advantage of that.\"

    \"She''s not the only main threat in the Saint Teresa Academy team, is she?\" Pearl questioned, frowning as she studied the multiple holographic diagrams and replay videos. \"You said that they have five core members.\"

    \"Yeah, I did. And if I''m not wrong, they have no qualms sending all their core members out for the individual matches if they have to. That''s how confident they are. As you can see from their match against Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy, Kureha Franklin was confident enough to not swap out after she defeated Chang Cheng, and fought a head-on battle against Cecilia Stuart.\"

    I watched Kureha''s match against Chang Cheng. She had used an anti-fortress Noble Phantasm, ahem, I meant, she used an advanced, highly destructive spell that took the form of a colossal golden beam of devastating mana that blasted out of her sword to obliterate Chang Cheng''s Great Wall and pulverize him.

    He never stood a chance. Not because he was weak (in fact, he had won almost all of his individual matches before this, with none of his opponents ever able to penetrate his gigantic barrier), but because Kureha''s anti-fortress technique perfectly countered his fortress spell.

    \"Is Kureha trying to rip off Excalibur or something?\" I asked sourly. Harrison glanced at me, half-distracted from explaining something to Craig, Sheila and Theodore.

    \"What was that?\"

    \"No, nothing. Just a stupid joke, sorry.\" I sighed as I studied several more videos of Kureha''s matches. Wow, but she was amazing. Even Cecilia couldn''t defeat her, and I was more than impressed with Cecilia''s skills. She was the person who fought on par with the Grim Reaper, after all. \"She''s going to be difficult to beat.\"

    \"What about you, Richard? Do you have any confidence in winning against her?\"

    \"No, not really.\"

    \"Seriously?\" Harrison looked slightly disappointed. When I glanced at him with a raised eyebrow, he shrugged. \"I figured that out of all of us, you are the one with the highest chance of winning against her.\"

    \"I''m flattered by your belief in me, but realistically speaking, her sword skills are vastly superior to mine. In a duel involving swordsmanship, she would win 99.9% of the time. And I''m not exaggerating. She really is that much better than me.\"

    \"What about magic? She might have that anti-fortress Noble Phantasm¡­ahem, I mean high level anti-fortress spell, but wouldn''t your summoned Soul Beasts be able to defeat her? Even a superb swordswoman like her would have trouble fighting against your five Celestial Guardians, and she doesn''t have the defensive spells or impenetrable barriers that Wilhelm Williams''s Castellan possessed in our previous match. You should be able to knock her out with that magnitude of spells.\"

    \"That''s right!\" Yue Chu brightened up. \"Even the Sword Saint can''t withstand such an onslaught!\"

    \"Assuming she allows me to summon them. I don''t know if my lesser Constellation spirits and I can last that long. She''ll just cut me to pieces in minutes with her superior swordsmanship, while cleaving my poor Constellation spirits apart.\"

    \"Hmm¡­\" Harrison was musing as he stroked his chin, and he smiled knowingly. \"But what if you were already able to summon your strongest Soul Beasts right from the start of your match with her?\"

    \"That''s not possible. I''m not allowed to cast summoning spells before the match. It''s against the rules, remember?\"

    I knew a lot of readers constantly demanded why I never summoned anything before the match, and whined incessantly about how \"stupid\" it was, or how this was a massive plot hole or a problematic plot point, when it was not. No, seriously¡­think about it, if summoners were allowed to cast summoning spells before the match and start the match with their Soul Beasts already in hand, why wasn''t everyone allowed to cast magic spells right before the matches? Wouldn''t that be unfair? Why single out summoners for special treatment? Wouldn''t elemental mages, for example, demand that they should also be allowed to start casting their ultimate spells before the match so that they could unleash them right from the start? If all matches devolved into students just flinging their ultimate spells at each other right from the first second, then there was no meaning to holding the duels in the first place. Everyone would just be tested on their ultimate spells, and all the basic and intermediate spells that required less casting time but were a lot weaker would become meaningless.

    Then there were people who claimed this was not realistic at all and said that I was stupid for making the comparison to realism or the education system or paper tests. Well, if you want to talk about realism, let me point to a more accurate analogy them. When you play card games or computer games, for example, were you allowed to bring out your most powerful card or unit right from the first turn or start? When you participated in a Magic: The Gathering tournament, do you tell your opponent and the organizer to allow you to summon your 11/11 Darksteel Colossus \"before the match\" and then place it on the table on your first turn? When you watched professional Starcraft 2 esports matches, do you see players already building their highest tech unit in the first second? Do they tell their opponent to allow them to spawn a Batltecruiser right from the start of the match? Why should a Terran player be allowed to construct a Battlecruiser before the match and then bring it right from the start of the game, just because he refused to build Marines or Hellions and wanted to rush straight to Battlecruisers?

    A lot of the readers were just looking for ways to exploit the system, or they just hated the ideas of the protagonist they wish to project themselves onto having to face obstacles and challenges. They wanted him godlike and overpowered right from the very start, and if he loses or faces difficulty, they start complaining about why the system doesn''t go his way and how it was stupid. Then they claimed it was a flawed plot point when it actually wasn''t. No, seriously, go to any Magic: The Gathering tournament and ask them if you''re allowed to \"pre-summon\" a big creature or \"pre-cast\" a powerful spell before the match just so you can use it right from the first turn. You''ll get kicked out.

    In any case, I didn''t have to worry about this for quite a while now because I had developed my own swordsmanship and created smaller and weaker Constellation spirits that took a lot less time to cast. Of course, the trade-off was that these smaller Constellation spirits were vulnerable to being wiped out by area-of-effect spells, and each of them was so fragile that even the most basic spells were able to destroy them near-instantly. That was also one of the reasons why summoning wasn''t popular. Even if you managed to summon cheap hordes of monsters very quickly, the opponent would just incinerate them all with a cheap area of effect spell (think Breath of Darigaaz or something). They didn''t even need anything as powerful or expensive as Wrath of God because of the low durability of these cheap Constellation spirits.

    Even so, I still believed in them and swore by them. By God, I had made them work and I was going to continue making them work. I had already proven that I could do it. It was just that, even with all these improvements and progress in my skills and magic, I still wasn''t confident of delaying a swordswoman as excellent as Kureha long enough for me to summon my trump cards to level the playing field.

    However, Harrison was smiling, as if he knew something I didn''t. He merely placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

    \"Of coruse you''re not allowed to summon anything before the individual matches, but that''s not what I mean. I''m just thinking of creating a situation where you already have those summoned Soul Beasts in place before you specifically face Kureha Franklin herself. Knowing her, she would usually wait until the last moment before she steps in.\"

    \"Ah¡­yeah. I see what you mean.\"

    I was beginning to grin as well when I understood Harrison''s intentions. That sly fox¡­I never thought of that strategy. As always, Harrison was always one step ahead of me.

    That was why he was the team captain.

    \"All right then. I''ll leave her to you then.\"

    \"I''ll do my best, but no guarantees.\" I swallowed. \"Even if I somehow summon all my most powerful Constellation spirits or Celestial Guardians, that doesn''t mean I will definitely win for sure. She''s the Sword Saint. I''m sure she''ll have something up her sleeve even when pitted against giant monsters.\"

    \"Yeah, I understand.\" Harrison nodded sympathetically. \"But it''s fine even if you don''t win. As long as you do your best¡­even someone of Kureha Franklin''s caliber will be exhausted and injured to the point where her performance during the team match would be negatively affected. That will be our best chance to take her down.\"

    \"I see.\" I was beginning to see the big picture that Harrison had envisioned long before he approached me with this proposal. Straightening up, I struck myself in the chest. \"Leave her to me.\"

 402 Chapter 402: Predator

    \"Amazing! Amazing, Brother Richard! Your school actually reached the top eight!\"

    Just when I thought I would get some peace and quiet after the strategy meeting with my friends, Adrian showed up out of nowhere. I smiled politely, trying to mask my exhaustion. Even though I hadn''t actually done any physical activity, my mind felt drowsy from all that draining mental activity in the room. I had been watching replay videos over and over again, analyzing Kureha''s fighting style repeatedly, and coming up with whatever countermeasures I could.

    Not just Kureha, but for the core members of her team, just in case I had to face them. My team and I had discussed at great length the various strategies, tactics and skills that they could use. There was also great debate around the team match, and the near limitless permutations of possible combinations on the side of the Saint Teresa Academy team. Obviously it was impossible to cover all of them, but we did the best we could.

    \"Thanks, Adrian. Oh, Melida Angel, you''re here too.\"

    \"It''s Melina Franklin! Get my name right already!\"

    The girl with blond pigtails looked upset when I teased her. Well, anyone would be unhappy if I keep getting his or her name wrong, even if it was on purpose.

    \"Sorry, Melina. Have you gone to congratulate your cousin already?\"

    Melina sulked a little at that. \"I don''t want to talk to Sister Kureha.\"

    \"Eh? Why not?\" I started at that. Melina''s glare grew even graver and she placed her hands on her hips, which were somewhat accentuated by her petite waist.

    \"She''ll just look down on me and remind me of the vast difference between our sword skills again. I can''t stand her condescending tone.\" She leaned in closer, almost shoving her snow-white, pretty face into mine¡­or would have, but she was a full head shorter than me, coming to just below my chest. \"Please, Sensei, defeat Sister Kureha! I''m counting on you to beat her and knock her down several pegs! I''ll be rooting for you!\"

    \"Yeah! We''ll join the Jing Tian Academy traveling contingent and cheer for you!\" Adrian added brightly. \"Senior Harvey reserved a couple of seats for us!\"

    I knew Adrian and Harvey would become great friends¡­they were similar in a lot of ways and shared several interests. One of which was establishing my fan club (of course I was just joking here, or so I hoped).

    \"Uh huh¡­but I can''t promise anything. Sorry.\" I tried not to panic when I saw Melina''s face fall somewhat, but Adrian came to the rescue.

    \"Yeah, I mean, we still don''t know who your team captain will be sending out against Senior Kureha. Hopefully your team can defeat Senior Kureha during the individual matches and eliminate her, but even if you don''t, I''m sure you''ll get to face her eventually in the team match.\"

    \"That''s assuming Harrison picks me for the team match.\"

    \"Why wouldn''t he?\" Adrian asked innocently. I sighed and pushed my glasses up my nose.

    \"Because I might get eliminated during the individual matches. Saint Teresa Academy will be a very tough team. That''s why I can''t promise anything¡­other than that I will do my utmost best.\" I offered a weary grin. \"Personally, I would love to defeat Kureha with my own two hands¡­or swords, but you know what they say. Pride comes before a fall.\"

    \"If that''s the case, then Sister Kureha should be due a fall very soon,\" Melina said venomously. Gosh, but this girl could really hold a grudge.

    \"In my case, I guess it''s more appropriate to say that I can''t afford to be complacent or overconfident. We''ve worked out several strategies, but in the end, all the theory-crafting in the world will amount to nothing if we don''t actually implement it in reality. Everything depends on the actual match itself.\"

    \"I believe in you!\" Melina repeated fiercely and determinedly, as if trying to will my victory into reality. Of course, she had no way of knowing whether I would be selected to face Kureha, or if I would be able to survive all the way without being eliminated before I even got to fight the legendary Sword Saint. \"You can defeat Sister Kureha! That''s why I chose you to be my Sensei!\"

    \"You do realize I still haven''t agreed to that, right?\" I asked, trying to stifle the annoyance in my voice. \"Didn''t we agree to wait until after the tournament?\"

    \"That doesn''t change the fact that I have absolute faith in you!\"

    Ugh, the pressure. The tremendous pressure¡­

    \"All right, I''ll be heading back to my room now. The next match will be in a couple of days, so I''m going to need a lot of rest and preparation.\"

    \"Good luck!\" Adrian cheered.

    \"Are you going to cultivate in your room?\" Melina asked.

    \"Don''t use that word!\" I hollered. \"This is the wrong genre! The wrong story! If I want to improve my magic and become stronger, I have to practice my spells and undergo physical training, not sit cross-legged and meditate!\"

    \"Don''t ever use the word cultivate or cultivation. That''s a taboo word for Brother Richard.\" Adrian leaned in close to whisper into the startled Melina''s ear. No, it wasn''t as if I hated the word, but come on, lady. Nobody cultivated in this reality. This wasn''t a xianxia or cultivation story. That said, I couldn''t be bothered to clear that misconception. The less that word was used in the wrong circumstances, the better.

    Speaking of which, I should do some training before I sleep. I was feeling mentally drained and drowsy from the strategic meeting earlier, but a good workout should wake me up. Not to mention, there were a few techniques I wanted to try out. It was very possible that they might come into play against Kureha.

    But for now I decided to take a short nap and wake up earlier tomorrow to make use of the training room. Then I had to watch the match for tomorrow ¨C even though neither Saint Teresa Academy nor my Jing Tian Academy was slated to duel tomorrow (we were assigned the arena the day after tomorrow instead) ¨C either of the two teams would be our or Saint Teresa Academy''s future opponents in the semifinals.

    Kureha and her team would definitely be present to watch the match, and so would Jing Tian Academy team. Harrison would make sure of it and order us to do so.

    Bidding the two kids farewell, I headed to my room, almost swaying on my feet.

    I really needed that nap.

    *

    The next day, I was on my way to the stadium to watch the first of the round of eight matches. The matches, as always, was held in Southampton Stadium, a few blocks away from the Stuart Hotel where the students were accommodated. The Stuart family in particular took interest in actively helping out, reserving an entire building from their hotel chain and leasing it out to the many schools. Adrian and Cecilia''s uncle, Stewart Stuart, had been placed in charge of the students, and I had seen him show up to comfort Cecilia and her team after they returned in defeat the other night.

    When I asked Adrian about her, he shook his head.

    \"Best to leave her alone for now,\" he had told me. \"She and her team are really devastated, and they don''t want to talk to anybody at the moment.\"

    He was right, and I respected both his advice and the Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy team''s need for privacy. Unlike Jing Tian team, there had been a lot of expectations placed upon their shoulders, and to think they crashed out this early in the tournament, falling short of their previous progress from last year.

    Poor dudes.

    Well, whatever happened to them was none of my business. I could hardly count myself as Cecilia''s friend ¨C I barely knew her, and I was sure she wouldn''t appreciate me paying an unannounced visit and trying to comfort her. More likely she would politely tell me to leave her alone¡­and that was the most optimistic scenario. I would be lucky if I didn''t get screamed at and kicked out, but then again Cecilia was a lot more dignified and calmer than that.

    For now, I had best worry about what was going to happen to my team, and take note of future opponents.

    As I made my way toward the enclosed dome of Southampton Stadium on foot, I caught sight of several Silver Wolves mercenaries in uniform. They spotted me too and waved. I returned the friendly greeting, and feeling somewhat safe, ventured into the stadium.

    That feeling of security melted away the moment I was inside the enclosed building. It wasn''t the drop in illumination and the almost crushing darkness ¨C thanks to the hi-tech enclosed space (which ensured that all events could continue unimpeded within Southampton Stadium, regardless of weather) and artificially controlled internal climate, the space within had always been dark. I had gotten used to it.

    Rather, it was something else. The sensation of a dangerous apex predator lurking in the background. It was different from being watched and stalked. The overbearing presence of the predator was not directed at me specifically, but his potent killing intent seemed to hang over the very atmosphere of the stadium.

    The feeling was so subtle that not everyone noticed it, though. While I paused for a moment, chilled to the bone, many spectators and students strode past me excitedly. They were chatting enthusiastically about today''s matches, making the usual predictions, and some were even arranging bets and calculating odds. Only someone who had spent a lot of time in the wilderness, dealing with monsters and Assassins, would be able to detect the almost surreptitious murderous aura that soaked almost every inch of the stadium interior.

    Of course, I wasn''t the only one who noticed it. I caught sight of several Silver Wolves mercenaries hurrying about frantically, looking about with worried and almost fearful expressions on their faces.

    \"Do you feel that?\"

    \"Of course I do!\"

    \"Where is it coming from?\"

    \"I don''t know!\"

    \"Have you checked all the entrances yet?\" The person who seemed to be the commander asked. I recognized him. He was Jamie Wolf, one of the more experienced veterans among the Silver Wolves. \"I want every entrance and exit to this place accounted for. Sealed, blocked off if possible. And put extra eyes on the main entrance ¨C if anyone so much as wears something suspicious ¨C like a bulging bag that looks like it may contain weapons, pull him out and detain him. Don''t hesitate. I don''t want a suicide bomber blowing himself up in the premises.\"

    \"Sir! Yes, sir!\"

    The mercenaries scattered about to comply with their commander''s instructions. Jamie cast a severe glance over them, then turned about to check on a potential breach of security himself, mana gathering in his hand as he cast a detection spell.

    \"Brother Richard?\"

    \"Senior Richard?\"

    I turned at the familiar voices. Of course, it couldn''t have been anyone else but Adrian and Harvey. They were accompanied by Melina, a few middle school students, and a few Jing Tian Academy first year students who were most likely Harvey''s classmates. I nodded at them and raised a hand in a friendly greeting.

    There was no need to give them any reason to panic or grow anxious. Pretend everything was fine, send them into the stadium to take their seats, then go link up with the Silver Wolves and offer my assistance.

    \"What''s going on?\" As sharp as ever, Harvey had noticed the commotion. \"The mercenaries they hired for security seem pretty¡­restless.\"

    \"That''s because¡­they just want to doublecheck something. Everything will be fine.\" while I assured them, I suddenly had an idea. \"You guys should go take your seats first. Harvey, I need your help with something, if you don''t mind following me for a bit.\"

    \"Can I help too?\" Adrian asked eagerly, but I held him back with a hand.

    \"Nah. You''re in charge of cheering.\"

    \"Um, but your match isn''t today? There''s nobody to cheer for today.\" He looked puzzled. Of all the times to be smart¡­

    \"Yeah, so rest for now so that you can give your best tomorrow.\"

    \"Oh, okay. Let''s go, guys!\" Adrian and Melina led their classmates into the stadium, navigating through the packed crowd to find their seats. Harvey issued a few commands to his classmates, evidently instructing them to keep an eye on the middle school students and look after them, and they obeyed him fairly quickly, without any complaint. I was impressed.

    \"What do you need help with?\" Harvey asked, turning back to me. I turned back to study the deep recesses in the interior of the stadium, my glasses allowing me to see past the darkness and observe the rafters, beams, hidden spotlights, pillars and scaffolding. Also concealed doors covered in red and white signs informing outsiders that unauthorized entry was not allowed, and only staff were allowed inside.

    I wondered if we would be allowed inside those staff rooms, but shook my head. I wouldn''t be helping anyone if I got myself caught and detained while the dangerous presence continued to roam free.

    \"Senior?\"

    \"Sorry, just thinking. Do you not sense that?\" I gestured vaguely to the air. \"This heavy killing intent?\"

    \"What heavy killing intent?\" Harvey frowned in puzzlement as he strained himself, and then he stopped for a second. Beads of sweat began to form on his brow and his skin turned ghostly pale. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to calm down, but he wasn''t quite able to completely stop his trembling. \"What the hell is this?!\"

    \"That''s what I want to find out,\" I replied grimly. \"And that''s why I need your help. Harvey, please trace the source of this crazy killing intent.\"

    Harvey had exceptional observational and analytical skills. I still remembered him lading the way for us and helping us detect danger and track down monsters back when Jing Tian City was invaded during the Versatile Mage rip-off arc. It was entirely thanks to him that we avoided being ambushed by high-ranking monsters. If there was anyone who could trace the source of this murderous aura, I had complete confidence it would be none other than Harvey Deng.

    \"Uh, sure¡­but what do you intend to do once you find the source?\"

    Trembling nervously, Harvey wiped the perspiration from his face and swallowed fearfully. In contrast to his discomfort, I grinned.

    \"Destroy it, of course.\"

 403 Chapter 403: Frenzy

    \"¡­you''re kidding, right?\"

    \"No. I''m dead serious.\" My reply was unmistakably set in a serious tone. Harvey''s eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

    \"EH!?\"

    \"Oi, not so loud,\" I snapped, glancing around. There were still people streaming into Souhampton Stadium, making their way through the darkened interior and toward the spectator seats. A few of them were looking in our direction curiously, their attention no doubt piqued by Harvey''s exaggerated outburst. \"You want to alert the culprit that we''re looking for him?\"

    \"Ah¡­sorry.\" Harvey gulped and then calmed himself down. Then he appeared to remember who he was talking to, and he brightened up. \"Of course¡­Senior Richard, you have taken down Asssassins and rank A monsters before. Getting rid of whoever''s stupid enough to emanate such intense killing intent wouldn''t be a problem for someone of your caliber.\"

    I really disliked being looked at with those idolizing eyes of his. Harvey practically worshipped me and for some reason appeared to believe that I could do no wrong. If I intended to hunt this apex predator then I must be very confident of winning against it.

    Of course, I felt nowhere the same amount of confidence that Harvey seemed to place in me, but I couldn''t exactly tell him that or he wouldn''t help me. I wasn''t stupid enough to go face what was most definitely a monstrous killer by myself either, and I intended to call upon the assistance of Jamie and the other Silver Wolves.

    \"Actually, we''re helping the mercenaries and security track down the source¡­we don''t want it to suddenly show up in the middle of a match and massacre the students and spectators inside the stadium. Furthermore, if an attack happens inside such a closely packed area¡­you can imagine the chaos and pandemonium. People would be trampling and crushing each other in order to escape, and the death toll will rise even higher. No, it''s best to track down the source as soon as possible and erase it before it can threaten everybody.\"

    Harvey watched me in amazement. \"So that''s why you''re setting aside the chance for personal glory!\"

    \"Huh? What? No, I¡­\"

    \"You''re awesome!\"

    \"No, I''m not!\"

    It took me a few moments to figure out that Harvey had completely misunderstood my intentions when I brought up the Silver Wolves. I mean, sure, of course I prioritized the safety and well-being of all the students, staff and spectators inside the stadium over everything else, but I never thought of sacrificing personal glory and all that bullshit. In fact, the idea of personal glory and taking all the credit never even occurred to me.

    \"Dude, I''m not invincible. I''m not going to let pride get to my head and attempt to solo this monster, only to get killed¡­if that happens, it''s not just my life ¨C everyone''s lives are at stake here. My ego would be costing the lives of others. I''ve to be more responsible than that.\"

    \"Yes, you truly are someone we should all aspire to be like!\" Harvey was nodding in approval, again misunderstanding my rationale for some sort of noble attitude. I was tempted to inform him htat I was the last person everyone should aspire to become, especially if you believe the comments from readers about how I was stupid, mentally retarded, spineless or pathetic. For some reason, a good number of readers appeared to believe that only idiots like me would be willing to risk my life to save other people and they vehemently condemned me for it.

    Well, fuck them. I was going to save the people in the stadium, regardless of whether I knew them or not. This was my duty¡­my responsibility as a mage of the Global Federation. And my dream was to follow in my father''s footsteps and become a hero like him. Kill the few to save the many. If I had to stain my hands with blood and eliminate the source of the killing intent to protect the innocent spectators who had filled Southampton Stadium to capacity, then I wouldn''t hesitate to do so.

    Speaking of hesitation, there was no time to waste arguing with Harvey or convincing him of my fallibility. I gestured vaguely to the air.

    \"Can you trace the source of the killing intent? I remember that among all the students in Jing Tian Academy, you''re the one with the best nose for this. I''m counting on you.\"

    \"Yeah, I can try.\" Harvey took a deep breath and nodded.

    \"All right. Let''s begin immediately.\"

    \"Before that¡­have you already scouted out the place? I remember you can summon a bunch of crows and spirits to reconnoiter the place.\"

    I nodded and raised my hand to be perpendicular to the ground. There was a flutter in the darkness, then one of my Corvus floated downward to perch on my arm.

    \"Way ahead of you¡­but they can''t see anything. I had them search the place earlier, but they can''t see anything. Since they ¨C and I rely more on sight and sound, we couldn''t pinpoint the source of the killing intent by tracing the murderous aura alone. That''s why I''m asking for your help.\"

    Harvey puffed his chest out proudly and patted it. \"Leave it to me!\"

    \"All right. I''ll leave it to you then.\" When he closed his eyes and began tracking the source of the mana with his senses, I quickly departed to contact Jamie and the Silver Wolves. Briefly filling them in on what I had Harvey do, I requested that they join us both in finding the source.

    \"You kids should not be involving yourself in this,\" Jamie declared disapprovingly, but I shook my head in disagreement.

    \"It doesn''t matter if we''re kids or not. For the sake of everyone in the stadium, you''re going to need every helping hand you can get. This isn''t about kids or adults or whatever, it''s about preventing a massacre.\"

    \"Massacre, huh?\" one of the mercenaries chuckled dryly as he leaned against a counter, his arms folded. \"Surely you exaggerate.\"

    No, I wasn''t, but I wasn''t confident enough to refute an adult. However, this murderous sensation felt very familiar, and I had the impression this wasn''t the first time I was feeling it. I was certain that at one point during my life, I had faced a near-identical killing intent that almost overwhelmed me, but I just couldn''t place my finger on what exactly it was. Another person? A monster?

    No¡­an Assassin. And not just any Assassin. The Umbra Assassins, while deadly, relied more on stealth and subtlety, and thus did not emanate such a ferocious killing intent. The Veneneum Assassins might be capable of killing even the strongest mage with just a single drop of poison, but to get that into their target''s system they would lay low rather than produce such an obvious fearsome aura.

    \"¡­a Frenzor Assassin,\" I murmured, reminded of the two transhuman monsters I had faced back in Jing Tian City when we went to rescue the city council members, which included Alicia''s father, Vincent Violet.

    How could I have forgotten what those psychotic killing machines feel like?

    \"Senior Richard!\"

    Harvey appeared to be done, and he was scrambling toward me. His eyes went wide when he caught sight of the huge group of Silver Wolves milling around me, and he stuttered for a moment. I quickly stepped in, filling his view in an effort to calm him down.

    \"What''s up, Harvey? Did you locate the source?\"

    \"Uh¡­yes¡­yes! I did!\"

    \"Good. Excellent work!\" I patted his shoulder encouragingly. \"I''ll have to trouble you to lead the way then.\"

    Harvey brightened up, feeling proud at being relied upin by his idol (though I felt very uncomfortable at the idea of being regarded as such). He then wheeled about and strode off to one of the staff rooms.

    \"This way.\"

    I raised an eyebrow at that. Despite the sign clearly barring unauthorized personnel from entry, I had slipped a couple of my Corvus into the room and found nothing. Even so, I trusted Harvey, or I never would have approached him for help in the first place.

    \"Um¡­\"

    \"Don''t worry. We have authority.\" Jamie gestured with a hand, and the door swung open automatically to allow us entry. Just as I expected after sending my Corvus for reconnaissance earlier, the door led to what seemed like a deserted corridor, with nothing but dull gray concrete covering the walls, floor and ceiling. There were long piping, and narrow ventilation shafts that stretched endlessly across the entire length of the passageway. There were doors here and there, but again, my Corvus''s search had turned up fruitless.

    Did Harvey pick up something that I missed?

    \"There''s nothing here,\" one of the mercenaries complained as Harvey trekked through the corridor. My junior was ignoring the multiple doors along the way and heading straight for the end.

    \"Trust me,\" Harvey said.

    \"Why should I¡­?\" the mercenary wasn''t able to complete his sentence, because Jamie hushed him firmly. Since I was the one who asked Harvey for help, I decided to believe in him and I followed just behind, hurrying to keep pace.

    What exactly did Harvey find that I missed?

    \"Here.\"

    Harvey suddenly stopped near the end of the corridor and glanced about. Even though his eyes darted across the ceiling, the walls and the ventilation shafts, he eventually fixed his gaze on the floor. Pointing downward, he gulped.

    \"It''s right below us.\"

    The mercenaries exchanged several glances, but none of them could deny that the killing intent had amplified exponentially the closer we got toward Harvey''s position. I could feel the hair prickling on the back of my neck and chills were gripping my spine so tightly I swear my bones were creaking. Suppressing a gulp, I stared at the ground. For a moment, I thought I saw an illusion of an abyssal monster dwelling in the deep darkness below. My breath caught in my throat, and I found it increasingly difficult to breathe.

    \"The kid might be right,\" one of the mercenaries spoke up nervously, obviously feeling the same crushing weight of fear as I did. \"The killing intent is strongest around here.\"

    \"Is there a way to get down there?\" another mercenary demanded.

    \"Yeah.\" Jamie drew a huge cannon and pointed it at the ground, brown mana unfurling from his barrel. \"We''ll make an entrance.\"

    \"!!!\"

    All the mercenaries scattered backward. A couple of them grabbed me and Harvey and dragged us back. Even though Jamie didn''t bother to look up at us, he seemed to know when we were all out of range. The instant the last mercenary scrambled toward a five meter point, he pulled the trigger.

    A searing beam of ruby light disintegrated the ground below his feet, swallowing up not just the concrete but also everything bneath it. A terrifying roar echoed from the abyss below, and something leaped through the devastating beam, his bulging, muscular surgically enhanced body somehow withstanding the destructive force.

    \"!!\"

    Jamie barely managed to get out of the way in time, diving just as the lethal blades of a neuro gauntlet sliced through the air where his head and chest had been a second ago. As he threw himself down, the Silver Wolves mercenaries reacted instantly and fired as one, bombarding the massive figure in a black synsuit. I caught sight of a silver, metallic skull-shaped mask before it disappeared under elemental explosions.

    \"Hit him with everything you got!\" one of the mercenaries hollered as he sprayed a torrent of flames from his incinerator, bathing the hulking Frenzor Assassin in superheated fire. His comrades grunted as they flung whatever spells they could down the narrow corridor, and I was utterly impressed that not even one spell touched the retreating Jamie. The Silver Wolves were truly the best of the best, able to avoid inflicting friendly fire on one of their own even in such a situation.

    As he rolled back to his feet, Jamie hefted his cannon and added his immense firepower to the bombardment. The Frenzor Assassin snarled as he relied on a mixture of his lightning reflexes and the superhuman sturdiness of his altered physiology to withstand the merciless barrage of spells thrown at him.

    \"You kids should get out of here,\" one of the mercenaries told me and Harvey. My junior nodded and hastily departed, but not before he noticed that I wasn''t following.

    \"Senior Richard? What are you doing?\"

    \"I told you, didn''t I?\" I paused as the Frenzor Assassin let out a deafening bellow, and waited for the noise to die down before I resumed. \"I''m here to help kill that thing.\"

 404 Chapter 404: Battle Frenzy

    \"Awesome!\" Harvey looked as if he wanted to stay and watch me crush the Frenzor Assassin (which obviously wasn''t going to happen ¨C I wasn''t some God Mode Mary Sue who could win against a surgically enhanced superhuman killing machine so easily), but I shook my head and gestured for him to leave.

    \"Trust me, you don''t want to stick around. You''ve done your job ¨C a great job, at that. Leave the rest to us.\"

    \"You sure abut this, kid?\" one of the mercenaries asked, still firing. The warrior beside him snorted.

    \"You don''t recognize Richard? He''s worked with us before ¨C fought alongside Captain Brent, Redfield and Ana. He''s reliable enough. Hell, he might even be stronger than several of us.\" he then grinned. \"In case you forgot, he has a nuke spell.\"

    \"That''s not going to help us much unless you want to wipe us all out along with the enemy¡­\"

    I didn''t pay much attention to the bantering mercenaries because I was more worried about the Frenzor Assassin. Despite the heavy output of firepower they poured upon him, he somehow survived all that and was lunging forward.

    \"Damn it! What a monster! He''s not going down at all!\"

    The mercenary closest to the Frenzor Assassin shouted before the line collapsed. The bleeding, battered Assassin hurtled forward into the firing lines of the Silver Wolves, his neuro-gauntlet lashing out to scythe through any soldier unfortunate enough to be cornered while firing his needle pistol into the retreating mass.

    Luckily, the mercenaries'' body armor managed to protect them against those small arms fire, but it stilled look like they hurt. I saw one of them get bowled over, groaning as he clutched his chest. If it weren''t for the kelvar vest, those needle-like rounds would have imploded his torso. The Frenzor Assassin continued to bear down on the withdrawing mercenaries, swinging his claw-tipped neuro-gauntlet around. Even though a mercenary avoided getting slashed into ribbons, he was sent flying into the wall by the thick, muscular arm.

    Another mercenary fell over, shot in the back by the berserk killer. His body armor preserved his life, but he was winded from the thunderous impacts. The Frenzor Assassin didn''t miss that his small arms failed to slay his target, and swung his neuro gauntlet down to finish him off.

    Clang!

    The neuro gauntlet never reached him. The adamantium-tipped claws screeched against my Bai Ri, and then I tried to throw him back. The berserker glared at me from behind that eerie skull mask of his, his blood-red eyes gleaming maliciously.

    There was no consciousness or intelligence in those dark eyes. He didn''t recognize me or single me out specifically ¨C to the psychotic killer, whose brain had been addled by the potent cocktail of combat drugs pumped artificially into his system, I was just another target, an obstacle that got in his way of exterminating the other targets.

    He didn''t even take me seriously. I could hear him snarling incoherently as he slashed at me, but I parried it with my crossed swords. His augmented strength pushed me back and I stumbled, but I bent my back backward to avoid a vicious kick that would have snapped my spine in half and pulverized my torso if it had landed.

    Even with physical reinforcement spells strenghtening my endurance, I was not confident of surviving a direct blow from him.

    The Frenzor Assassin also seemed to realize that I was no ordinary foe and he drew his power sword from his back, almost juggling it in his left hand. Whirling around, he slashed at me, and I instinctively dodged instead of parrying it with my two swords. Just as well, because his power sword ¨C shimmering with a blue field of crackling energy ¨C cleaved through the walls, slicing through the solid concrete as if it was nothing more than tofu.

    \"What in the bloody hell¡­?\"

    My jaw dropped as I cartwheeled a few paces back, trying to maximize the distance between myself and my enemy. The Frenzor Assassin didn''t even have to yank his power sword out of the wall. The crackling, glowing blade was passing through the thick concrete as if it was water, leaving a massive line in its wake.

    \"Holy fuck¡­\"

    This wasn''t just the destructive capabilities of the Frenzor Assassin''s power sword. In order to wield a weapon like that, he must have the brute strength to back it up. Otherwise, even if I was equipped with an identical power sword, I still wouldn''t be able to effortlessly cleave through the walls in the same manner as he did.

    Just how juiced up was this guy? I knew that he was on insane steroids, but this level of strength was exaggerated! No wonder the Frenzor Sect was known as the most terrifying and strongest killers among the Assassins Guild. Having withnessed his raw strength firsthand, and not for the first time too, I couldn''t help but shudder at the thought that there was practically an entire army of these monsters lying in stasis somewhere.

    Unlike me, the Frenzor Assassin knew no fear (he should be a Space Marine then¡­) and his mind was too pumped up on aggression-inducing combat drugs for him to form even a single coherent thought. With a roar, he lunged forward and swung his power sword in my direction. Simultaneously, his neuro gauntlet came from another angle, trying to eviscerate me.

    \"Ugh!\"

    I ducked under the powerful blow from his sword while I parried his neuro gauntlet. Even though I was blocking a one-handed strike, the strength behind his blow was enough to send me hurtling several paces backward. I barely had any time to recover my breath when his power sword swung at my head, the psychotic killer attempting to decapitate me. If I hadn''t arched my back and flipped away, I would have lost my mind there and then. In the literal sense.

    Desperately, I kicked him in the jaw, putting my full body weight behind the blow. The impact was enough to jar him and send him staggering a couple of steps, but he otherwise shook his head and then returned his murderous gaze on me. Evidently he couldn''t feel any pain. Now that I thought about it, that was precisely what allowed him to shrug off what would otherwise be incapacitating shots from the barrage of fire that the Silver Wolves laid down on him earlier.

    Even so, I unleashed black and white waves of destructive mana to blow him back. It worked, momentarily, but he was back on his feet again and swinging his melee weapons wildly.

    Fortunately, that bought me more than enough time to complete a summoning spell. In this narrow space, it was disadvantageous for me to summon any Constellation spirits to aid me ¨C they would just get in my way or get slaughtered near instantly by the Frenzor Assassin. Furthermore, my more powerful Constellation spirits wouldn''t be able to fit within the tight confines of the corridor anyway. They would just end up being caged.

    I did have another option, though. The chibi Green Dragon appeared on my shoulder and pink Sakura petals danced around both of my blades. I directed the countless razor-sharp petals at the charging Frenzor Assassin, slicing through his black skintight synthetic suit and drawing spurts of blood. As ever, the berserker was immune to pain and unafraid of death, and he barreled right through the cloud of deadly Sakura petals, heedless of the damage his body was sustaining. As long as he could reach me, he could rip the life out of me.

    That was more than enough for him. His only goal was to kill. His life was a small price to pay for eliminating whatever targets stood in his way. Additionally, he knew that he wasn''t going to be able to evade my overwhelming maelstrom of Sakura petals in such an enclosed space, so his only option was to smash through it directly.

    And he almost succeeded.

    Before he could reach within five meters of me, I calmly twirled Hei Yue and conjured several vines that ensnared him. Wrapping around his four limbs and his body, the vines went taut as they struggled to restrain him, hauling him back and away from me, and temporarily immobilizing him. The Frenzor Assassin snarled and tore through the vines, ripping them apart without any apparent effort, but even so the binds had delayed him for a few seconds.

    It might not seem like much time, but those precious few seconds were more than enough for me to cast another spell.

    Pollen flooded the narrow passageway, swirling restlessly around the struggling Frenzor Assassin. Initially, as it inflicted no physical or visible damage, the berserk killer ignored the pollen that surrounded him. Not that he would be able to tell if anything was amiss, what with his mind completely driven into murderous insanity by surgery and combat drugs. He continued to rip the vines away from his limbs and body before lunging straight at me. While he did so, he continued to inhale large amounts of the pollen I had blown in his direction.

    \"¡­?\"

    Despite being in a frenzy, the hulking Assassin realized that something was wrong when his body began to stop responding to his movements. He lifted his left arm sluggishly, noticing that the power sword was trembling in his rigid fingers.

    \"You heard it, didn''t you?\" I pushed my glasses up my nose as I watched the swaying Frenzor Assassin. \"The gentle song of the Fragrant Wind.\"

    My technique, Wind of Fragant Pollen, had finally taken effect. I was aware of the potent cocktail of combat drugs coursing through the enhanced stature of the Frenzor Assassin and I guessed that it was possible to overload him through the introduction of more¡­powerful drugs in the form of pollen. There were often cases of medicine and drugs clashing against each other in a harmful manner if you ingested several of them at once, and this was one example.

    The Frenzor Assassin staggered as blood began to leak from the eye holes of the grinning skeletal mask. I had no doubt that behind that skeletal mask, the hulking killer was also bleeding from his nose and mouth. Even his surgically enhanced physique could not withstand the onslaught of so many drugs clashing inside his system and his body was slowly breaking down from the inside out from the volatile chemical and hormonal reactions.

    Grunting inarticulately, he dropped to a knee and vomited a stream of blood, which leaked from behind his skull mask and gushed onto the floor.

    \"¡­phew¡­\"

    I maintained my distance, knowing that the Frenzor Assassin was known to explode upon death, sort of like a biological bomb as a last-ditch effort to take down the enemy along with him. I wasn''t very enthusiastic about sustaining mortal wounds so close to victory, especially when it was totally unnecessary. To stay on the safe side, I remained a good distance away from the heaving and gasping Assassin while wreathing my blade with mana.

    \"Men! Fire!\"

    Noting my cource of action, Jamie was quick to issue orders. His mercenaries, who were recovering from the Frenzor Assassin''s berserk charge from earlier, quickly gathered in a neat row behind me and lifted their weapons up. Along with me, they poured a withering hail of fire, their mana projectiles and laser beams joining my barrage of razor leaves and deadly petals that consumed the kneeling Frenzor Assassin.

    For a moment, we thought the battle was over. All we needed to do was avoid the volatile explosion that came with the killer''s death.

    We were too na?ve.

    The Frenzor Assassin jumped back up to his feet with one final inhuman howl, his body pumped full of adrenaline and endorphins. Despite the lethal bombardment that was slowly tearing his crumbling body into pieces, he weathered the blows and charged forward, almost like an unstoppable juggernaut. We responded with a blistering hail of fire, but we might as well be throwing grains of sand at a massive avalanche.

    \"Stop him! Stop him at all costs!\"

    \"We can''t! He''s not going down! He refuses to go down!\"

    \"What a monster! Is he immortal or something!?\"

    \"Do we fall back?!\"

    \"No!\" Jamie bellowed fiercely and resolutely. \"Belay that! Stand your ground! He''s on his last legs! Finish him off, people! Just a bit more and he''s dead!\"

    \"I don''t believe that he''s an immortal!\" another mercenary growled. \"Just look how close we are to killing him!\"

    I certainly noticed that, and I was sure that the Frenzor Assassin understood that, on some instinctive level, that he was going to die. Yet the homicidal madman was bent on delivering one last kamikaze charge.

    No¡­I suddenly understood what was happening. It was precisely because the Frenzor Assassin knew he was going to die that he was recklessly charging forward like this, disregarding all of the fatal wounds that were accumulating across his ravaged body. He was aware that his body was a ticking biological bomb, and he was determined to throw himself at us and blow up in our midst so as to take down as many of us with him as possible.

    \"Bastard!\"

    Was there nothing I could do?!

    Wait¡­there was one single thing I could try out.

    Taking a deep breath, I summoned another one of my Celestial Guardians, who replaced Green Dragon. A chibi Black Tortoise appeared and he slowly climbed along my shoulder. The leaves and petals that swirled around the blades of my two swords previously were replaced by snow and frost. Fog billowed out and formed up around me as the temperature plummeted. The mercenaries glanced at me, noticing how cold it was after they began to shiver involuntarily.

    \"Stay back,\" I instructed. \"I''m going to stop him.\"

    \"How?\" Jamie demanded, not because he didn''t believe me, but because he was worried that I was going to attempt something reckless and he was concerned for my well-being. Even though he trusted my abilities, he still saw me as a kid and he would be damned if he allowed me to sacrifice myself for the adults.

    Fortunately, I had no intention of exchanging my life for theirs. If there was a way to save everyone''s lives, including my own, why not take that?

    \"Don''t worry, it''s simple,\" I assured him with a cold smile. \"I just intend to¡­put that idiot''s plan on ice.\"

 405 Chapter 405: Absolute Zero

    The Frenzor Assassin evidently didn''t appreciate the joke. He continued to charge forward with a terrifying bellow. Even though hundreds of mana bolts and laser fire struck him, he kept on going, an unstoppable juggernaut of ferocity.

    In the face of such a horrifying foe, I calmly stepped forward. Partially to shield my comrades from the berserker''s charge, and partially to execute my technique. Turning Hei Yue so that the tip of its black blade faced the ground, I plunged it into the concrete and whispered a single incantation.

    \"Absolute Zero.\"

    Atop my shoulder, my chibi Black Tortoise stiffened and then he allowed dozens of azure strands of mana to flow out of him and into my sword.

    Then the whole place froze in an instant. The corridor turned into a tundra, and the Frenzor Assassin was encased entirely in an icy tomb, suspended in mid-charge.

    \"¡­eh?\"

    Jamie and the mercenaries could hardly believe what they had just seen. I turned away from the frozen Assassin, retrieving Hei Yue and then sheathing it along with Bai Ri.

    \"He won''t be getting out of that for a while,\" I informed the stunned Jamie. For some reason I felt really exhausted. Absolute Zero wasn''t a spell I could use lightly. It wasn''t an ordinary ice spell ¨C the Frenzor Assassin would easily break out of any normal ice spells without breaking a sweat. To immobilize him adequately, I had to use an extremely advanced ice spell.

    Absolute Zero.

    Even though I called it an ice spell, Absolute Zero was far beyond any ice technique. It was quite literally the process of bringing the temperature of my immediate vicinity down to zero Kelvin¡­or -273 degrees Celsius, where all atomic movement stopped completely. Heat was measured by the amount of movement of atoms and molecules, and no matter how cold there would usually be some miniscule activity in the particles that made up the building blocks of all matter. Only in the void where there were scarce amount of atoms would there be an absence of molecular movement, but even so outer space was still filled with plenty of stray hydrogen or even helium atoms ¨C and these atoms were never completely at zero Kelvin (they wouldn''t be drifting freely in the void otherwise).

    Thus, rather than a proper ice spell, Absolute Zero was a much more advanced spell that dealt more on the atomic level than merely freeze stuff. Even so, the ice was formed precisely because of the complete lack of heat (in the form of molecular movement), so that was why so much ice was present. At such extreme temperatures, even metal became brittle, and the Frenzor Assassin''s body was breaking apart not just biologically but also at the molecular level. It was a miracle that he was still in one piece, but I suspected his body wouldn''t remain intact for long.

    \"You might want to finish him off while he''s still trapped in there. I doubt he''ll be able to break free, but best to be safe.\"

    \"Right.\" Jamie nodded in agreement, glancing warily at the frozen Frenzor Assassin. The guy was a ticking biological bomb. As long as he was around, he remained dangerous¡­even in death. The best way was to completely destroy him to the point where there wouldn''t be a trace of his weaponized body left. The mercenary captain hefted up his enormous cannon and began casting one of his most powerful spells. With the Frenzor Assassin frozen solid, he had all the time in the world to complete the casting of such a strong spell.

    I decided to stick around and watch as he obliterated the Frenzor Assassin, atomizing the poor guy and leaving not a single trace of the hulking killer. He ended up wrecking the corridor and erasing the piping and everything else, but that was a small price to pay for safety.

    \"Great job, Senior Richard!\"

    Harvey had elected to remain and watch, instead of fleeing for safety. His confidence and belief in me was so massive that he really thought he would be in no danger as long as it was me who was facing the enemy. The possibility that I might lose had never even crossed his mind.

    Bloody hell, the kid was going to get himself killed one day.

    \"Dude,\" I said disapprovingly, but Harvey cut me off before I could say another word. He was gushing so excitedly.

    \"That was so awesome! To think you''ve expanded your repertoire of magic! Now you''re able to cast such advanced ice spells! What are you going to learn next? Fire magic?\"

    \"No, no. Ice and wood are the extent I can get to.\"

    I almost exhausted myself to death just from casting Absolute Zero. There was no way I could learn other advanced elemental spells. Wood magic was all right because there was a technique that I could use to replenish my mana, and quite frankly wood magic wasn''t as draining or complex as the other elements. Like I said, wood magic was more of an all-rounder. Versatile, jack of all trades, master of none. There probably wasn''t any wood spell that was as powerful as Absolute Zero, for example.

    In contrast, the other elements would have their own ultimate spells that were just as mana-consuming and powerful as Absolute Zero. Furthermore, the only reason why I managed to reach that far with ice magic was because of the Thousand year old ice essence I found in the Den of Dragons, which deepened my comprehension of ice magic. Without another coincidental miracle of that level, I wouldn''t be able to master the advanced spells of any element so quickly.

    Furthermore, with the insane mana consumption of advanced spells or ultimate elemental techniques, it wasn''t practical to learn so many of them. I could only use one at a time ¨C for example, if I used Absolute Zero, I would have no mana left to use any of the other elemental ultimate techniques. I could use Hunded-Colored Flowers, but quite frankly I wouldn''t be able to absorb nearly enough mana to use another Absolute Zero or other elemental spells, not unless my opponent was weak enough to let me drain that amount of mana. And if he was, then it most probably meant he didn''t have enough mana left to break out of Hundred-Colored Flowers, which in turn meant I wouldn''t be able to absorb enough mana from him to cast an ultimate spell.

    So no abusing or exploiting the system to spam ultimate elemental techniques or come up with busted combos. Reality was never that convenient. I had to mention that because I just knew a few readers would jump into the comments complaining about how I was stupid for not thinking of broken combos with my current spells, or how I should go and master every element in existence, as if it was so easy. Hell, no. Even though I \"mastered\" advanced wood magic, if I were to go toe-to-toe against a dedicated wood mage such as Cecilia Stuart or her father, I would get completely crushed. No contest. I would have no choice but to use my summoning magic to fight on par with Cecilia, and I doubted I could win against Lionel Stuart.

    Dabbling in an element here and there did not automatically turned me into a master capable of rivaling those mages who had dedicated years of their lives to mastering just that one element. There was no way around it. In return for being flexible, I was just not as strong or skillful as masters who had chosen to practice that sole element.

    That was why most summoners, such as Lilith Porter, chose to master a single element, and summon only monsters from that element. Mostly. At most they would take on a second element, but that was basically the extent of their exploration (I heard rumors that Lilith had expressed an interest in water magic recently). But if you were expecting me to learn advanced fire spells, advanced earth spells, or advanced lightning spells, then you were going to be sorely disappointed. A god of learning, I was not.

    \"That''s true. Most mages only learn two elements throughout their lives. It''s going to be difficult to expand beyond that.\" Harvey was nodding in understanding, having heard or read all the reasonings behind the other mages'' decisions to learn what they did. \"Unless you''re a Verstaile Mage.\"

    \"Even a Versatile Mage has¡­four elements at most? I don''t know if he has gotten more, I''ve only read up to the point where he went to the desert to meet some fire spirit.\"

    \"Wrong universe,\" Harvey told me plainly. \"Anyway, let''s go back to the stadium. While we were busy down here, today''s match has already begun. I can''t wait to see who will make it to the semfinals! We''ll be facing whoever won today in the semifinals!\"

    \"Assuming we win our match against Saint Teresa Academy,\" I reminded him somewhat strongly. While I understood that it was natural for him to be confident, I was still the type who refused to count my chickens before they hatched. Before I even began to contemplate on the semifinals, I must get past the quarterfinals first. Everything else was secondary. It was useless to have all these big dreams, only to eat humble pie when you failed. Furthermore, allowing your mind to wander toward speculations of the future would only serve as a distraction. Best to focus on the present before you got too carried away with the future and ended up becoming complacent.

    \"¡­let''s go¡­\"

    I was about to take another step, but a wave of dizziness hit me and I staggered weakly. Harvey caught me before I toppled over.

    \"Senior Richard! What happened!? Are you all right?!\"

    Clearly I was not, but I was too light-headed to make any sarcastic retort. Instead, I forced myself to nod.

    \"I''m all right. Don''t worry abot me. I''m just¡­a little tired.\"

    \"Over-use of mana.\" Jamie came up and observed me, a stern expression on his face. Behind, his men were cleaning up the ruined corridor, scrubbing the remains of the Frenzor Assassin clean with magic, to ensure there was no chemical spill left behind. There were also a few wood mages and earth mages using their magic to restore and repair the devastated corridor. The mercenary captain''s expression softened when he glanced back at his men, and he lowered his head slightly. \"Don''t take this the wrong way. My men and I are very grateful to you for saving our lives. If you hadn''t stopped the Frenzor Assassin, we would have suffered a lot of casualties. Many of us would have died.\"

    \"¡­I know. I had no choice.\"

    \"But still¡­that was reckless of you. Judging from the way you''re keeling over, and the traces of raw mana left behind, you''ve not fully mastered Absolute Zero, have you? My guess is that it''s been only a few days since you''ve finally grasped the basic execution of it¡­a week at most. Casting the ultimate ice spell when you still aren''t completely ready¡­it''s no wonder you over-used your mana. You still are not ready to cast that spell yet.\"

    \"But if I didn''t, he would have blown all of us up.\"

    Honestly, that was the worst circumstances possible for me. In a tight, almost claustrophobic corridor where I couldn''t use my summoning magic to its full potential (it was too small for any of my bigger Constellation spirits to manifest inside), I had no choice but to resort to other more esoteric means such as the ice magic I had only just recently learned.

    \"That may be true,\" Jamie admitted grudgingly. \"As I said, you saved us and we''re grateful for that.\"

    \"Senior Richard is a hero!\" Harvey shouted excitedly. Both Jamie and I gave him a look that essentially said, shut up, and he obeyed.

    \"Mana overuse is still not a good thing, though. You need to rest. You there, bring your senior to the infirmary and make sure he stays there until he recovers enough to return to his accommodation. Or better yet, take him back to Stuart Hotel and have him sleep the rest of the day off.\"

    \"You can count on me!\" Harvey saluted, clearly pleased at being given the honor of escorting me, and then he gestured for me to follow him. \"Let''s go, Senior Richard!\"

    \"All right.\"

    I sighed and complied for now. It sucked that I wouldn''t be able to watch the match live, but I was practically dead on my feet. Right now, I wanted nothing more than to collapse on the ground and sleep. At least it was not as bad as that other time when I used the nuke spell.

    If used correctly, Absolute Zero could be unleashed on the same scale as my nuke spell (Scorpio''s Antares for those of you who have forgotten its name). That was how terrifying these ultimate elemental spells could be. Obviously, given my penchant for branching out and also my choice to specialize in summoning magic rather than focus on elemental magic, I would never be able to level my Absolute Zero spell to that level.

    Only the very best and most powerful ice mages could. For me, ice magic was a tool to upgrade my summoning magic, a means to another ends. Otherwise I wouldn''t be a summoner, I would be a pure ice mage.

    Allowing Harvey to assist me, I began the long journey back to Stuart Hotel.

 406 Chapter 406: Calm before the storm

    When I woke up later that night, I saw several messages waiting for me in my smartphone. Fumbling with it, I switched it on and saw that they were all from Harrison. He was updating me on the results of today''s match.

    \"Pendragon Academy won their match today,\" he informed me via text message. \"That means, if we beat Saint Teresa Academy tomorrow, we''ll be facing them in the semifinals.\"

    Of course, we had to beat Saint Teresa Academy first before we could think of facing Pendragon Academy. Last year''s finalists were the favorites to win this year. Hey, weren''t they the champion last year as well, now that I thought about it? I couldn''t remember (I was very certain they made it all the way to the finals, though), but a quick Google search showed that they did indeed won last year''s championship. Charles Lacroix in particular was a formidable swordsman who surpassed even the Sword Saint, Kureha Franklin, and he beat her in the captain''s match last year.

    As expected of the man known as the King of Knights. Or was it Prince of Knights? I can''t remember, and seriously, all these titles were too cheesy for me to memorize anyway.

    There were plenty of articles and posts online from students who were talking about how Kureha was looking forward to a rematch, or the spectators looking forward to seeing the rematch between the two. Naturally Saint Teresa Academy was the favorites to win tomorrow''s match, and most of the students had already assumed that they would win and proceed to the semifinals ahead of us. Lots of them bemoaned that these two prestigious schools would be facing each other in the semfinals instead of the finals. It was a pity, because such a matchup was worthy of being the finals.

    Unfortunately, real life didn''t work that way. You didn''t just happen to have the two strongest teams show up and fight each other in the finals¡­luck and probability tended to screw up such romantic matchups.

    I wasn''t offended that the vast majority of the Global Federation had written my school off. Obviously Jing Tian Academy would be seen as underdogs, and we had surpassed all expectations by getting this far in the first place. Our ranking had risen tremendously since last year, which meant that we had already achieved the goal that Principal Vincent Violet had set us. Furthermore, most pundits had described our progress as a fairy tale run, and many were impressed enough to acknowledge us as dark horses capable of pulling off an upset.

    That was more than enough. Of course, our dark horse status also meant that we were the underdogs in this matchup, and understandably that meant our chances of winning were fairly low.

    Nonetheless, that didn''t mean we intended to give up and go down without a fight. Just like any underdogs, we planned to give our best and pull an upset. If we lost, we wouldn''t have any regrets because we had clearly given our all, and if we won, that would be a super-sweet bonus that we would celebrate.

    I wasn''t arrogant enough to think our victory was guaranteed, or take it for granted that my protagonist status would cement our advancement to the next round. This was reality, and not everyone could win. This wasn''t a fairy tale story about me winning tournaments. I was not Wang Zhong, I couldn''t engineer a win all the way to the finals and then slap the faces of the Stuart family or the ten Great Families who looked down on me and my team. I wasn''t a genius who could wield every single weapon in existence ¨C come on, it was impressive enough that I could learn swordsmanship and handle a bow (again, my accuracy was horrible, and I relied more on immense firepower than precision ¨C think of my arrows more of a rocket that blew everything up rather than a sniper round that could land a headshot). Were you expecting me to wield daggers, crosswheels, barehanded close combat techniques, spears or other weapons?

    Also, it was already a strain for me to learn five different elements. Like hell I was going to start learning more advanced and sophisticated magic types like healing magic. stop pestering me about this, readers ¨C it''s bloody unrealistic and impossible. One does not simply learn healing magic just because the readers want him to. It required a completely different field of knowledge and a totally separate set of skills and tehcniques that were mutually exclusive from the basic five elements. Otherwise everyone would just learn healing magic as their secondary healing magic, and there wouldn''t be a need for specialized healers.

    By the way, this was also why I remained shortsighted ¨C sophisticated healing magic that restored my eyesight to perfection vision was only mastered by very few people and they were often in high demand. Want to get rid of your glasses? Pay up. You could complain that they were committing daylight robbery and charging exorbitant prices all you want, but that didn''t change the fact that what they were doing wasn''t illegal in a capitalistic society like the Global Federation. Additionally, the industry that manufactured glasses and lenses had a vested interest in maintaining their monopoly on producing glasses for the shortsighted, and they encouraged the exorbitant prices just so they could sell their products as cheaper alternatives.

    I was sure people would condemn them as greedy and despicable, but that was how capitalism worked. That was how reality worked. What, were you expecting healers to do charity? You were expecting the factory workers and company executives to give up their jobs and wages just so myopia could be entirely eradicated? Fat hope. As long as myopia was not a life-threatening disease or fatal condition, they had no reason to provide such services freely.

    Anyway, learning the basic spells of five elements was my limit, I couldn''t learn anything else except to progress a bit more with my advanced ice spells. Hell, even my wood spells had reached a ceiling, and my progress was stunted at Hundred Colored Flowers. I found that I couldn''t progress any further than that. Unlike Cecilia, I didn''t have a natural affinity or talent for wood magic. Everything I had achieved was through hard work and sheer effort, not to mention determination. Hopefully I wouldn''t hit the same restrictions in ice magic, or I might just fall into despair. For now, fortunately, it seemed that I did have a bit better affinity with ice magic than I did with wood magic.

    Speaking of Cecilia Stuart¡­

    \"Cecilia lost to Kureha, huh?\"

    Taking a deep breath, I closed the text messages windows and conjured a holographic window to play a video of Cecilia''s match with Kureha. Countless Sakura petals clashed against the majestic burst of golden mana before Kureha overwhelmed Cecilia''s advanced wood magic with brute force. The entire arena vanished in a gigantic explosion.

    \"Scary.\" I whistled, impressed. Obviously such an ultimate technique would require a lot of mana and time to cast. Probably five minutes, just like my Celestial Guardians, but the moment she cast it, she would obliterate anything in her path, even my Celestial Guardians. Even my Black Tortoise, with his water sphere and defensive spells, wouldn''t be able to withstand a direct hit from Kureha''s Excalibur (I decided to just call it that for now, for a lack of an actual name).

    As expected of a Rank A anti-fortress Noble Phantasm¡­ahem, I mean a top-ranked ultimate spell. It was considered to be the same level as my strategic-level spells, and I was sure it was capable of nuking an entire city (hence its nature as anti-fortress). I had to be very careful when dealing with her, otherwise I would be screwed.

    Me and all of my Constellation spirits.

    I gulped.

    \"??\"

    That was when my smartphone rang. Harrison somehow knew that I was finally awake (was he spying on me or something?) and was calling me. I frowned, and swiped at the green icon to pick up his call.

    \"I sensed a disturbance in the force¡­ahem, I mean, I sensed your mana fluctuating and rising. I''m assuming you''re awake?\"

    \"No, I''m somehow answering your call while I''m still asleep. Assume that I''m sleeptalking.\"

    Harrison chuckled from the other end of the phone, not at all offended by my sarcasm. He didn''t spend too much time on small talk and plunged straight into the topic.

    \"Sorry¡­I know you''re still resting after the strenuous battle with the Frenzor Assassin¡­\"

    \"How do you know about that?\" I asked, unable to conceal the surprise from my voice. I hadn''t told him or anyone else about it¡­more because I went straight to bed and fell asleep for most of the day. That meant¡­

    \"Harvey told me everything, as did the people from Silver Wolves. They apologized for the trouble they caused.\" There was a slight moment of hesitation, and then Harrison continued. \"If you don''t feel up to participating in the match tomorrow, let me know. I won''t force you. Your well-being is more important than the tournament.\"

    \"Hell, no. I''m in. I can guarantee I''ll be back to full health tomorrow. You know how mages work. A good night''s sleep is all we need to recover all of our mana.\" Yeah, that was pretty game-like ¨C just like in any decent role-playing game, all you needed was a good night''s sleep and your HP and MP would be restored. It mostly worked that way for us¡­mostly. Unless you did something as stupid and reckless as casting a nuke spell. Then you would need between five days and a full week to recover all your mana.

    Absolute Zero, while almost on the same scale, did not require nearly as much mana. For one thing, my nuke spells were just basic spells infused with tremendous amounts of mana, and thus were super inefficient and mana draining. Absolute Zero was an advanced spell and was more efficient, and thus was not as taxing on my mana and body as my nuke spells were.

    \"I''ll be fine. Use me however you see fit. You can send me against the whole team if you want.\"

    I could almost see Harrison smiling on the other end of the phone at my joke, and he returned with one of his own. \"I''ll take you up on that offer then.\"

    \"Try not to, or Craig and the others will complain about me stealing all the credit.\"

    \"There''s still the team match, and I plan to make use of them there.\" Harrison took a deep breath. \"But for now, if you can, I want you to watch and review the matches for these few members of the Saint Teresa Academy team. These are the core members that Kureha will be sure to send against us tomorrow in the individual match. I want you to familiarize yourself with them, just in case.\"

    \"Sure.\" I had already did that over the last few days, and Harrison was giving me a last minute reminder, to ask me to do some last minute reviewing of these core members before I went to nbed again. \"I''ll check them out again before I sleep.\"

    \"Excellent. I''ll be counting on you then. I''ve send you a copy of their files and data, so just glance through them and prepare for tomorrow.\"

    \"Roger that, Captain.\"

    The moment Harrison hung up, I received a notification informing that I had received a few files and documents, which included dossiers and videos. I opened them up into multiple holographic windows and studied the floating screens in front of me.

    Other than Kureha Franklin, the captain of the Saint Teresa Academy team, who served as a paladin, there was Eliza Franklin, a branch family member who also claimed to be a paladin. There was Rossetti Picket, who was the team''s maiden or dancer, a red-haired girl with a friendly deposition. Then there was Lute Dragoon, who was the team''s dragoon¡­which meant he was a summoner like me, who summoned a Soul Beast to ride upon so that he could serve a cavalry role. The fifth member was Miura La Noir, a Diabolos or black mage, who specialized in dark magic such as curses and other creepy techniques. Maybe summoning and necromancy, if I wasn''t mistaken. The sixth core member was Kufa Van Peer, who was a samurai.

    Out of these six, five of them would be chosen for the individual matches. The rest were mostly reserve members who were rarely selected for both team and individual matches. From the data, they were inexperienced second year students who had not even fought once throughout the entire tournament.

    \"Phew¡­\" I exhaled wearily as I went through the six core members'' files and information, making sure I was familiar enough with their fighting style, magic and techniques. Miura La Noir in particular was going to be a handful. \"This is going to be¡­interesting, to say the least.\"

    Shutting off the windows, I smiled to myself. Despite the massive odds stacked against my team, I was actually looking forward to the match tomorrow. Leaning back on my bed, I stared up at the ceiling.

    \"This is so going to be fun.\"

 407 Chapter 407: The Chronicles of Lute Dragoon

    Lute Dragoon was¡­in a word, a gigantic playboy. No, I wasn''t talking about his physical size.

    The number of women who fell in love with him was just ridiculous. It was as if girls fell for him just because he breathed. His mother was first among those to fall prey to his charms, and ended up giving him a handjob when he was seven, when they were taking his bath together. His half-sister (becaue his dad somehow managed to legally marry two wives, which was technically against the law but the original creator didn''t care about logic) kissed him on the mouth when they were both eight, and even his stepmother (his father''s second wife) ended up being seduced by his natural charisma. By fourteen all four of them were sleeping together, and by sleeping I did not mean \"resting\" but a more¡­let''s just say carnal activity.

    That wasn''t even the extent of his harem. His childhood friend also clamored for his affections and lost her virginity to him, as did a princess from a neighboring empire. There was also that rich merchant''s daughter who was willing to throw away her family''s wealth just to be with him. Suffice to say, no beautiful girl was safe from Lute''s clutches, such was his very existence as a harem protagonist that girls just fell for him and threw themselves at him for no reason other than because he walked on two legs. If I wasn''t jaded, I would rationalize his existence as the very manifestation of a horny teenager''s wet dream and his attempt at wish fulfilment.

    Having heard all of that, I swore to myself that even if I lost to any of the other members in Saint Teresa Academy''s team, I would never lose to a poorly conceptualized and highly unrealistic Mary Sue character like him. I was willing to sacrifice all the other matches just to destroy this piece of s. I was going to bash his handsome face in, even if it was the last thing I did.

    As if God deigned to answer my prayers, he turned out to be the first opponent that Saint Teresa Academy sent out.

    \"Richard, you''re up.\"

    Harrison nodded at me. I smiled and cracked my knuckles.

    \"My pleasure.\"

    Even as I stepped onto the stage, I could hear the cheers from the other side of the ring. Lute stood at his corner, looking all innocent and friendly while he basked in the cheers and encouragement from his entirely female group of fans.

    \"Go, Lute!\"

    \"I know you can win!\"

    \"Beat that ugly bastard''s face to the ground!\"

    \"Do an all-kill! You can destroy that entire team by yourself!\"

    A harem of almost a hundred girls were gathered in the spectator box, screaming their voices out as they cheered him on. Among them was his mother, stepmother (or second mother), his half-sister, the princess from the neighboring empire, the merchant''s daughter, the childhood friend, the class president, the young, beautiful homeroom teacher, the school idol, the student council president with a dark, dirty secret, the twin-tailed tsundere with pink hair and a voice like Kugimiya Rie''s, the black-haired yandere with hollow eyes and a creepy smile, the shy librarian who was hiding her cute face behind her book, the random girl he rescued from a bunch of strangers in a street somewhere, the sexy Assassin who was ordered to kill him but failed her mission and ended up falling for him because he \"spared her life\" and from henceforth did her best to seduce him as part of her new \"mission\" or some nonsense like that¡­

    ¡­okay. We were getting nowhere if I continued to list them. Just know there was almost a hundred of them, and I was disturbed to see that they were all crazy enough to share Lute amongst themselves, and didn''t care that he had sex with each and every one of them everyday. That was one hell of a stamina, but hey, that was how his creator designed him (he evidently cared nothing for realism and just wanted to wank off to his wet dream).

    \"I hope we have a good match!\" Lute told me earnestly. I nodded, trying not to shudder from disgust. Even though Lute Dragoon had been designed to be polite, well-mannered and the perfect gentleman (the very definition of a Mary Sue), his good points just felt so artificial that I wasn''t able to perceive him as a real character. I wasn''t sure how to put it, but he felt like a mannequin, a puppet or blank canvas for the writer or reader to self-insert himself into so that they could jerk off to badly written erotica involving him and his harem.

    \"Y¡­yeah. Good luck.\" I nodded and took a deep breath. Above, Lute''s harem of women obnoxiously rained insults and abuse down on me.

    \"What a pathetic loser!\"

    \"Crush him, Lute!\"

    \"Hah! I''m sure Lute will utterly destroy him in less than ten seconds!\"

    \"That''s our Lute for you!\"

    \"Girls¡­\" Lute turned to give his harem a dazzling smile. \"Please don''t be so rude. And I''m not insolent enough to underestimate my opponent. He and his team have done well to make it this far in the tournament. I know they are formidable.\"

    \"Whoa¡­\" The girls all looked at him, googly eyed, even his mother, stepmother and half-sister. \"Lute is so humble and respectful¡­I knew I was right to fall for him!\"

    \"He''s perfect!\"

    \"I need to make love to him tonight!\"

    \"No, it''s my turn!\"

    \"No, mine!\"

    \"Why don''t we all do it with him tonight? As a reward for him winning today''s match.\"

    They were already taking it for granted that Lute Dragoon would definitely win. The possibility that he would lose never even crossed their minds. I resisted the urge to bury my face in my palm. This was getting ridiculous.

    \"Ready¡­!\" the commentator yelled, trying to make himself heard above the din that Lute''s harem was creating. \"Match begin!\"

    Lute immediately drew his spear and charged forward. I deflected his weapon away with Bai Ri and countered with Hei Yue, but he spun away and parried my black blade with the shaft of his twirling spear. We exchanged several furious blows in the middle of the arena, sparks flying between us and metal collided against metal. Neither of us gave any ground, our arms turning into spinning blurs that dished out death.

    Well, not real death. With the boundary field, neither of us was going to die no matter what sort of fatal injury we sustained within the coliseum.

    One particularly massive clash saw the both of us skidding backward in a rain of sparks, black and white mana swirling around me while golden and blue mana billowed about Lute. He lowered his stance, and his feet glowed. Two pairs of feathered wings materialized on shoes, each pair on each foot, and he took off into the air.

    \"One of the special abilities or spells of a dragoon is flight!\" Lute explained. \"By casting a wind spell and growing wings on our feet, we''re given the speed and agility of Hermes, and superior mobility to those mages rooted to the ground! We can attack freely from any direction, and we have the advantage from up high!\"

    \"¡­why are you explaining your magic to me?\" I asked, bemused. Lute stared at me blankly, as if it was obvious.

    \"Isn''t that what all main characters do? Explain their magic to their opponents? It''s the polite thing to do, and it also serves to inform the readers of our abilities.\"

    I wasn''t even sure how I should respond to that. That had to be the most stupid reasoning I had ever heard. In any case, I was not obligated to play along with this badly written Mary Sue protagonist''s game. Keeping my mouth shut for now, I charged at him, but Lute kicked off the ground and soared up high. He then thrust his spear down from above, at what he perceived to be a blind spot, but the motion detector built into my glasses warned me and I whirled around just in time to intercept the blow with my crossed swords.

    Lute then slashed at me with his spear, breaking my swords apart. While I staggered, he stabbed at me with a swift, decisive movement, but I managed to bend Hei Yue to deflect the blow. Metal screeched against metal and I winced when the sparks flew right into my face, but fortunately my glasses protected my eyes from the screaming embers. I jerked my head to the side, avoiding impalement of my face by the damned spear.

    \"You''re good!\" Lute praised me. \"As I thought, you''re quite the skilled opponent! Worthy of testing my spear against!\"

    \"Uh huh,\" I grunted as I blocked another of his spear strike. As much as I hated the fella and how artificial and constructed his personality, I had to admit that he was formidable. Then again, he was designed by his creator to be the ultimate fighting machine who never lost a single match. Unlike him, I had been defeated multiple times (just look at the comments where readers whined about me losing to \"mobs\" or \"noobs\").

    Let''s be honest¡­a perfect, invincible Mary Sue main character like him against a flawed, pathetic, loser protagonist like me¡­the outcome of this battle was obvious.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    I found myself knocked back by another strike, but before I could counterattack, Lute was already flying off somewhere else. Making use of the wings on his feet and his amazing mobility, he was soaring in the air and fighting on a three-dimensional plane, unlike me who was bound by gravity. Of the five basic elements I had learned, wind magic was not one of them. As a reminder, the five elements I learned were water, wood, fire, metal and earth. So don''t expect me to start conjuring wind spells and flying around now.

    I didn''t even dare to wipe the perspiration from my face. Spinning around, I hacked away at a dodging Lute, who darted out of my reach before thrusting his spear forward. I threw my head back to duck under his deadly weapon, then swung both of my swords to unleash twin waves of black and white mana at him.

    However, Lute practically danced away, making use of his flight capabilities to soar out of range of my spells.

    This guy was going to be a nuisance¡­and worst of all, I was aware that he had yet to show any of his true power.

    \"Sky attack!\"

    I ducked under the sweeping blow of his spear, but the follow-up gust of wind buffeted me and sent me sprawling on the ground. Rolling to my feet, I managed to evade a thumping thrust from his spear and lashed upward with my swords. Once again, Lute danced away, using his superior mobility and speed to his advantage. I dropped my swords and summoned Orion to fire off a quick volley of arrows in his direction, but Lute rushed at me before I could aim properly and slashed at my head.

    \"Gah!\"

    Dropping my bow, I kicked up both my swords, snatched them from midair and crossed them to parry a thrust from my opponent. Staggering back from the impact, I cast another spell, but Lute was already kicking off empty space and flying away.

    \"Honestly, I was hoping to defeat you before I was forced to use this¡­but I guess that was overly na?ve of me. You''re not an enemy I can go easy on.\"

    Lute sighed and propelled himself away, soaring very high up. I immediately swapped my swords for a bow, summoning Orion again and launching multiple arrows in his direction. Lute kicked off and gracefully waltzed through the shower of azure arrows, while using his twirling spear to cut and cleave through whatever few arrows that he couldn''t avoid. Not that there were many ¨C as I said before, accuracy was not my strong point. What I lacked in precision, I made up in sheer volume and firepower.

    And even those failed in the face of Lute''s defensive techniques and durable spear. He hacked and sliced them apart before swinging his spear in a single, powerful stroke that sent shockwaves hurtling down.

    \"Whoa!\"

    I had to dive to the side to avoid the gusts of razor-sharp wind that he blew in my direction. While I was busily evading, Lute seized the change to complete his spell.

    \"Come forth, Wyvern!\"

    A blinding flash surged through the arena and momentarily cut off my sight. Fortunately, the visual filters activated automatically, my lenses darkening to protect my eyes, and I could see the massive amount of mana coalesce into a single, solid shape.

    A winged half-dragon the size of three horses materialized into being, and Lute jumped on top of its back, strapping himself to its saddle and riding it. Pointing his spear at me, he smiled.

    \"Allow me to demonstrate how a dragoon truly fights,\" he proclaimed, and for the first time he actually sounded arrogant. I could hear the triumph in his voice.

    Sighing heavily, I allowed my shoulders to relax as I scratched my head.

    \"So it has come to this, huh?\"

    \"Huh?\" Lute looked a little confused. I scowled, annoyed, wondering if he was for real.

    \"I''m not sure if you''ve forgotten or didn''t do your homework regarding your opponents, but you''re not the only one who can summon, you know?\"

    With that, I completed the summoing spell that I had been casting this entire time.

 408 Chapter 408: The Chronicles of Lute Dragoon II

    Pegasus materialized and I hopped onto him. Stirring him into action, I had my brown winged horse take off into the air and charge right at Lute Dragoon and his wyvern. The dragoon, to his credit, didn''t back down and met my attack head-on, his spear lancing straight for my heart.

    My flying steed banked to the right, thanks to a gentle mental nudge from me, and I slashed at Lute when his wyvern swept past us. Sparks flew as he yanked his two-handed spear back to parry my blow, and then he was gone.

    The both of us circled each other in the air, eyeing the other party warily. For my part, I felt greatly relieved. Earlier, I was at a complete disadvantaged, rooted the ground and outdone in mobility by Lute. Now that I had summoned my own flying Constellation spirit, I was finally able to fight on par with him.

    However, taking to the skies was only the beginning. No matter my attempt to neutralize Lute''s initial advantage, he was still a consummate spearman. All I achieved thus far was to level the playing field, nothing more.

    \"Hmph.\" Lute glared at me coldly. \"Just because you have a flying Soul Beast of your own doesn''t mean you''ll be able to match me in aerial combat. If I''m not mistaken, you are a summoner, not a dragoon.\"

    Was there a difference? Maybe there was, but I couldn''t care less. I had more important things to worry about, such as pursuing the fleeing Lute. We exchanged another vicious blow in midair, my two swords against his gleaming spear.

    \"Dragoons are specialized in cavalry combat,\" Lute explained, even though I never asked the question out loud. Did the bugger read my mind or something? \"We''ve trained to fight on horseback, or rather, we''re trained to fight while mounted on our steeds ¨C we are not limited to horses, after all. We are different from you summoners, who just summon Soul Beasts to fight on your behalf. We coordinate with our mounts and fight alongside them, rather than cower behind your Soul Beasts like the cowards most of you summoners are!\"

    I gave him a droll look. \"Do I look like I''m cowering behind my Constellation spirit and leaving all of the combat to him alone?\"

    \"That''s¡­\" Lute trailed off, and then he thumped his spear against the air to launch several wind blades at me. Pegasus swerved to the side to avoid them, and instead of following up with a second volley, Lute chose to spew more of his verbal nonsense. \"I admit, you''re different from most summoners. You''re courageous enough to fight alongside your Soul Beast!\"

    \"No, I think you''re the one who misunderstand how summoners really fight. The only difference is that we don''t always ride on top of our Soul Beasts and fight on top of them like traditional mounted troops. That''s all.\"

    Before the match, I had done my research on Lute and I knew what his self-proclaimed \"dragoon\" class entailed. He had provided detailed information on his role and what his class does. Hell, Saint Teresa Academy was unique in that it classified its students into different classes or categories of mages, unlike Jing Tian Academy, who adopted a much more free-flowing and flexible approach. No doubt Saint Teresa Academy would claim that this less stratified curriculum was the reason why we were ranked so much lower than them, and promote their class system as one of the catalysts for their success. Their students could choose to enter any one of these specialized classes, and they would be given dedicated training, appropriate resources and focused lessons to shape them into warriors solely of that class.

    It was very different from Jing Tian Academy, where students took whatever magic classes they wanted or whichever lessons suited their schedule (hence my weird and random foray into wood magic). Unlike Saint Teresa Academy, there was no clear, specific focus, no rigid specialization. Perhaps they had a point, and the difference between our ranks was due to their more specialized system, but I preferred Jing Tian Academy''s more flexible and freer curriculum. I mean, seriously, if I wanted to specialize in a specific class, I would have tried applying for Saint Teresa Academy or a school with a similar system instead.

    Come to think of it, Saint Teresa Academy didn''t have a dedicated summoner class ¨C if you wanted to go summoner, you had to be a dragoon. No argument. That was one of the reasons why I decided against Saint Teresa Academy and chose a lower-ranked school like Jing Tian Academy. I want freedom to choose my own classes, not have them selected for me by adults who claim to know my capabilities better than myself, and weren''t sympathetic to what I was interested in and what I actually wanted to learn.

    It reminded me of my previous life when my parents practically forced me to choose the science stream over the art stream because \"science had a better future\" (in terms of career and making more money). I was more interested in art, history and literature, but those ¨C according to the adults around me ¨C had no future. Fortunately, my parents eventually allowed me to major in Asian literature when I got into university (even though they originally wanted me to major in economics and business), and I went on to pursue it even up to graduate school. So much for science stream being better for my future ¨C in the end, I felt as if it was a missed opportunity, and I would have been better off sticking to the art stream back in my middle school and high school days instead.

    My point was, before readers started screaming about fillers and me projecting into myself (dude, I am the protagonist, who else am I supposed to project onto?), we should be allowed to study what we want to study. We students should be allowed to choose what classes or majors we wanted to take, and not be subjected to pressure from the adults. The adults didn''t necessarily knew best what we should major in. This applied to magic classes and elemental lessons, particularly. If I wanted to be a summoner, I sure as hell was going to be a summoner, and I couldn''t care less about the adults around me (like the teachers) telling me how it''s not viable, how it''s impractical, and almost forcibly advising me to specialize in other types of magic.

    I wanted to be a summoner, so I was going to learn summoning magic. End of.

    I wasn''t sure what Lute thought about this, but given how he chose to enroll in Saint Teresa Academy, and how he was so obviously flouting and bragging about the superiority of the dragoon class over the \"normal\" or \"vanilla\" summoner, there was no doubt he had bought into his school''s ideology about the way the magic education system should work. That was fine with me, as long as he didn''t rub it into my face like he was doing right now.

    Thanks to that, I was determined to crush him, just so I could stomp on his ego and prove him wrong ¨C that I could prove that the education system of freedom, choice and independence was not inferior to one where the adults selected and decided what was best for you.

    \"MUAAAAH!\"

    With a determined bellow, Lute Dragoon circled around before lunging at me atop his wyvern again. I was honestly getting sick of his antics, so instead of meeting him in the middle like what honorable knights would do in a proper joust, I sent Pegasus a command.

    \"Pegasus, Enif!\"

    The brown winged horse opened his mouth and a wave of freezing mana blasted out and froze both Lute and the Wyvern in midair. The two of them dropped like a rock, but before they could hit the ground, Lute unleashed his immense amount of mana and shattered the frozen tomb. He then had his wyvern pull up right at the last moment.

    \"You will pay for that!\" he hollered as he thrust his spear at me, unleashing another gust of deadly, razor-sharp wind. \"Resorting to cheap tricks and sneak attacks!\"

    \"Hang on a second,\" I remarked dryly. \"You''ve been casting all these long range wind spells and firing them at me from a distance all this while, and now you''re complaining that I launched a sneak attack on you when I cast a long range ice spell? Even though for the most part you''ve been flying around in the air and avoiding whatever attacks I threw at you? Are you¡­serious?\"

    \"Oh¡­well, I might have gotten overly heated and am not thinking clearly,\" Lute admitted, scratching his head. At least he was willing to acknowledge that he made a mistake, unlike a bunch of fictional arrogant young masters I read about in a million different cultivation novels.

    \"Shut up!\"

    \"Why are you apologizing, Lute?!\"

    \"You''re always in the right! It''s that bastard who''s definitely in the wrong!\"

    Unlike the affable Lute, his harem was filled with crazy bitches ranting and raving. Clearly they were enraged at what they perceived to be my audacity at standing in the way of Lute''s flawless victory. They were expecting him to steamroll me like every other overpowered wish fulfilment Mary Sue main character out there and were getting impatient when it was clear that they wouldn''t be getting their way. Like the rabid readers who started complaining about how the godlike main character was \"weak\" just because he had trouble winning (never mind that he didn''t lose, if he even had a bit of difficulty winning against a mob character like me, he was \"weak\" and \"pathetic\"), Lute''s harem was raging. How could this be possible? How could Lute have trouble against a nameless mob character like me? Take note they were seeing this from the perspective of a story where Lute Dragoon was the main character, not me. Thus I was nothing more than a nameless mob.

    The world of otome games/gal games/harem main characters is tough for mobs.

    \"Girls,\" Lute chided them gently. He turned his wyvern around to face me in the air, wearing an apologetic smile. \"Sorry about that. I hope you forgive them ¨C they don''t mean anything by it. They''re just very¡­uh, passionate.\"

    \"Right.\" I ignored the howls and shrieks from the raging female harem and focused my attention on Lute. He drove his wyvern on and stabbed at me with his spear, but I kept my distance. Sheathing my swords, I conjured Orion and unleashed a hail of arrows at Lute, who had his wyvern jink and swerve away from the deadly volley. He countered with a swipe of his spear, blowing my azure energy arrows with a terrible gust of wind.

    This time it was my turn to send Pegasus a mental command. My winged steed did a barrel roll and dodged the razor-sharp wind blades, and then his maw yawned as he unleashed a second Enif. The blue torrent of freezing energy constructed a river of ice in midair, but Lute was able to get his mount to dodge it by a hair''s breadth.

    Even so, the freezing stream of mana clipped the wyvern''s wing and it went tumbling down slightly. I seized the chance to fire Betelgeuse. Countless arrows blasted the slowed wyvern and nearly knocked Lute off his mount, despite the spearman desperately twirling his long weapon about to parry, slash and cut down the rain of arrows. Blood dripped from mys arms, shoulders, torso and face as a few of my azure arrows grazed him. Grunting, he and his wyvern were slowly pushed back, but he finally managed to conjure a wind barrier that shielded them both from my relentless barrage.

    \"It''s my turn!\" he shouted. Spinning his spear above him, he manifested a terrifying tornado that swept through the arena to engulf me and Pegasus.

    \"Whoa, scary.\" At my mental order, my winged horse broke off to flee the pursuing whirlwind, but it mercilessly pursued us throughout the stage. While we did our best to shake it off, Lute Dragoon and his wyvern unexpectedly cut in in front of us, hemming us between them and the approaching tornado.

    \"You''re going nowhere,\" Lute declared, pointing his spear at me. A ball of razor-sharp wind materialized and he fired it at me. Dismissing Orion, I drew Hei Yue and Bai Ri before slicing the ball in half.

    Behind me and Pegasus, the tornado closed in. Grinning triumphantly, Lute charged at me, powerful gusts of wind whipping up around his spear. It was cear that he intended to ram me right into the tornado he had conjured.

    \"Oh, well¡­it was about time anyway.\"

    Taking a deep breath, I finished my second summoning spell and cast it as quickly as I could.

    \"?!\"

    A colossal conflagration erupted in midair, consuming the tornado and incinerating it. The inferno swept across the stage, catching both Lute and his wyvern and almost engulfing them. Cursing under his breath, Lute flailed with his spear to keep the voracious flames at bay, but the superheated shockwave scalded his skin and hurled him several dozen meters back. His wyvern slammed into the ground, its formerly reddish-brown scales burned into a blackened crisp.

    \"How¡­how¡­?!\" Lute spluttered as he looked up at me in astonishment. Still riding atop Pegasus, I had my mount slowly set down. There was no longer any need for me to take to the skies.

    After all, occupying the space overhead was a single immense fiery Celestial Guardian.

    Vermillion Phoenix had finally chosen to grace us with his divine presence.

 409 Chapter 409: The Chronicles of Lute Dragoon III

    I didn''t even bother with a smart, witty remark. I just had Vermillion Phoenix unleash his fury upon Lute Dragoon and his scorched wyvern. The harem main character succeeded in cleaving the flames in half, but his wyvern was incinerated, leaving nothing but ash. Gritting his teeth, he sliced the fiery torrent apart and lunged at me.

    \"As long as I take out the summoner, his Soul Beasts will go down with him!\"

    The wings materialized on his shoes once more and he flew into the air. I didn''t eeven bother to defend myself ¨C before Lute could reach within ten meters of me, he was discouraged by a ferocious jet of flame that had him hopping backward.

    \"Damn it!\"

    Cursing, Lute slammed the blunt end of his spear against the ground and reassessed his options. Realizing that his flight spell wouldn''t work much, not when my Vermillion Phoenix could also fly, he retreated from the next embroiling storm of inferno.

    \"I was saving him as a trump card for the next match¡­but I can''t believe I''m forced to use him against my first opponent!\"

    Backing off, Lute grumbled inaudibly to himself. I narrowed my eyes when I heard him, and quickly mentally commanded Vermillion Phoenix to retreat.

    Just as well, because the entire space btween Vermillion Phoenix and Lute exploded into a colossal conflagration of destructive mana. If I hadn''t held my Celestial Guardian back, he would have flown right into that maelstrom and gotten severely hurt.

    \"Light Dragon!\"

    A golden dragon materialized in the colossal conflagration, sucking up all the mana into its gleaming body. It turned to rest its arrogant eyes upon me, its nostrils flaring in disdain.

    \"Whoa¡­amazing.\"

    \"Hmph. It''s only natural. I''m the main character of a harem story, it''s a given that I can summon dragons. That even the most powerful dragons are at my beck and call.\"

    Lute was sneering proudly at me. I wasn''t sure how to respond to that. One moment he was trying to act like the perfect Mary Sue protagonist, and the next moment flashes of his creator came shining through the holes he inadvertently left in his obvious self-insert avatar. Best not to think too deeply about this.

    The dragon and the phoenix clashed in midair, holy light and superheated flames clashing violently to send shockwaves throughout the arena. Only the barrier and boundary field protected the stunned spectators from the scale of destruction taking place within its parameters. Below the two dueling behemoths, Lute and I had a battle of our own, the former thrusting his spear at me and forcing several desperate blows and parries.

    Like I said, swordsmanship was not my specialty. Yeah, Dad trained me in the sword, but I had some way to go before I could measure up to a proper swordsman. I knew enough to take out monsters, but against a skilled swordsman, my skills were lacking. A lot.

    And I was up against a Mary Sue harem main character who had mastered almost every weapon in existence, and enslaved a dragon. I really had my work cut out for me.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    Parrying another spear strike, I skidded a few steps back and almost lost my balance. I brought Bai Ri up to deflect Lute''s spear, and then ducked under his reverse sweep. Slashing at his midriff with Hei Yue, I hoped to eviscerate him, but he deftly moved out of range.

    The wings on his shoes fluttered and he took off into the air, making use of his heightened mobility to outmaneuver me. His spear lanced toward what he thought were my blind spots and openings, and I had to depend entirely on instinct and reflexes to guard against them.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    Another powerful blow sent me staggering backward, but I righted myself and crossed my swords to withstand a downward swing from Lute''s heavy spear. My knees buckled and the ground underneath my feet cracked, but somehow I endured with nothing more than quivering arms.

    Kicking off the ground, Lute feinted to the right, then swung his spear from the left. I just barely blocked his strike with Hei Yue, but the sheer weight and bulk of the weapon knocked me off my feet. Stumbling, I swept about with a clumsy riposte from Bai Ri, but Lute effortlessly deflected it before slamming the shaft of his spear against the side of my head.

    Thankfully I had pulled my head out of the way just in time and the blow left nothing more than a graze. Blood trickled down my face, but I ignored it and slashed with Hei Yue. Chortling, Lute jumped up high into the air, the wings on his shoes flapping to ferry him away.

    Then Pegasus slammed into him above, catching him off guard. As he tumbled helplessly in midair, Pegasus stopped and kicked him in the gut, sending him flying across the ring. He crashed into the edge, the spear clattering from his grasp.

    \"What the¡­!?\"

    I ddin''t waste the chance and bounded forward to finish him off.

    \"What unfair and despicable tactics!\" Lute howled as he scrambled to snatch up his spear to defend against my attack. My swords clanged harmlessly against the shaft of his spear and he shoved me back. \"Launching a sneak attack like that, and ganging up on me two against one!\"

    I frowned. \"I don''t want to hear that from you, who summoned your wyvern first and started the whole two versus one in the first place. And I know you''ve done that against other opponents, so you''re in no position to complain about that.\"

    \"So what? It''s all right if I use such tactics, but other people should not be allowed to employ them against me!\"

    \"Why? What sort of logic is that!?\" I demanded, resisting the urge to hold my head in despair. \"That''s the most hypocritical thing I''ve ever heard!\"

    \"Because I''m the main character and the entire universe revolves around me! Now, just go down already!\"

    Lute''s spear almost sent me crashing onto the ground. Above, his dragon blasted my Vermillion Phoenix out of the sky with a well-aimed holy beam. Pegasus kicked off the ground to assist my plummeting Celestial Guardian, but Lute''s dragon disintegrated the poor winged horse with a single spell. The monster didn''t even bother to spare my Constellation spirit a glance as he did so.

    This was not looking good at all.

    Lute''s dragon then spun toward my Vermillion Phoenix, who had finally managed to swerve upward and flapped his wings to prevent himself from hitting the ground. He raised his head and unleashed a torrent of flames at the dragon, who effortlessly dodged. Before my Celestial Guardian could recover his balance and soar up high again, the golden dragon unleashed another colossal holy beam in his direction.

    Still off balance, Vermillion Phoenix wouldn''t be able to dodge.

    At the same time, Lute thrust his spear forward, intent on spearing my heart. I stumbled backward, parrying his strike, but the momentum behind his attack sent me hurtling backward. Exhilarated, Lute pressed on and delivered what he thought would be the finishing blow.

    Before either attack hit me and or my Vermillion Phoenix, several walls of ice appeared. The golden beam struck the glacial wall and dissipated harmlessly, while the frost screen in front of me melted into water and fuidly swirled around the stunned Lute. Black Tortoise had finally materialized. Seizing the opportunity while he was still floundering about in shock and disbelief, I swung both of my swords and disarmed him. His spear flew out of his hand and clattered several meters away.

    Cursing, Lute wisely retreated to escape the trajectory of my swords. Instead of going for his spear, he reached for empty space and pulled a sword out of nowhere.

    \"Huh? Where did you¡­.?\"

    \"Hah!\" Lute snorted arrogantly. \"I''m the main characer, remember? Of course I''ll have a spatial storage device! A rare, unique device exclusive only to me! Now be jealous! Start screaming about how unfair it is that you don''t have it, and demand that I give it to you, or you''ll threaten to beat me up! That will justify me crushing and stomping you onto the ground!\"

    \"Huh? Why would I do that? I''ve not sunk to the level where I threaten other people and try to steal their stuff.\"

    \"Because you''re just a mob character! You''re supposed to behave like every arrogant young master out there and behave in the most unrealistic and contrived fashion ever, just so I have an excuse to beat you up and slap your face!\"

    What the bloody fuck was wrong with this blithering idiot? I could hardly understand a single word he was saying now. Even for someone like me, who constantly broke the fourth wall, this guy had far surpassed any sense of humorous lunacy or stupidity.

    Nonetheless, he remained a threat. Above, his dragon lanched another barrage of holy beams, but my Black Tortoise conjured another wave of ice barriers to shield both himself and Vermillion Phoenix from the wave. Below, Lute twirled his newly appeared sword about before lunging at me with a vicious strike.

    \"Kuh!\"

    I was barely able to block his attack with both of my swords. Even though I managed to exchange a few blows with him, I was left with several grazes and scratches.

    This guy¡­he had gotten a lot faster! No¡­it was because the spear was heavy and bulky. With the lighter and less unwieldy sword, he was able to move without much physical inhibitions. Unburdened, his movements were now a lot swifter!

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    \"Didn''t expect this, did you?\" Lute sneered arrogantly. \"My real weapon is a sword, not a spear! I''m primarily a swordsman, and my sword techniques are the strongest out of all my techniques!\"

    \"Why¡­?\"

    \"Because I''m the main character, fool! What main character doesn''t use a sword?\"

    \"No, that''s not what I was asking¡­\" I tried not to bury my face in my palm while I was still in the middle of an intense duel. \"I meant, if your sword was your real weapon, why were you using a spear from the start?\"

    \"B¡­because¡­it''s more dramatic to reveal my true powers at the end of a match, and take my opponent by surprise?\"

    Why was he answering in the form of a question? Probably because he didn''t know the real reason either.

    \"Obviously it''s because it makes more practical sense for a dragoon ¨C a mounted warrior ¨C to fight with a spear while on horseback than with a sword!\" Kureha shouted from the technical area. She was burying her pretty face in her palm for the both of us. \"The sword doesn''t have the same reach and length as a spear, and it''s a disadvantage for cavalry to use swords because it would be more difficult for them to hit their foes with it!\"

    \"That makes more sense,\" I agreed. Then I stared at Lute, baffled. \"Your team captain knows more about your skills than you do about yourself.\"

    \"That''s because she''s the captain!\" Lute hesitated and scowled. \"No, I should be the captain, but for some reason she''s resistant to my charms. Don''t worry, she''ll join my harem soon¡­\"

    \"Don''t worry, you''ll never appear in this story again.\"

    \"?!\"

    A gigantic earth spike erupted underneath him and impaled him. Lute buckled against the massive projectile, blood spurting from his mouth. He dropped his sword as he clutched at the huge earth spike with both bloodied hands, flailing about helplessly.

    \"Thanks, Golden Kirin.\"

    Behind me, Golden Kirin materialized and clattered his hooves against the ground. He nodded with a grunt, as if acknowledging my gratitude.

    Catching sight of my newest Celestial Guardian, Lute flared up in rage and threw his head back to yell at his dragon, who was soaring above us and still dueling against my Vermillion Phoenix in a ferocious aerial battle.

    \"Fuck! Dragon, bomb our positions! It''s fine if you hit me too! Take this bastard out along with me!\"

    Realizing that he had lost, Lute was attempting to salvage whatever he cold of the situation. I understood that he was trying to take one for the team ¨C as long as he took me out here, I wouldn''t be able to participate in the other individual matches or even the team match. He had guessed that I might be the team''s ace, and it was of utmost priority to eliminate me as soon as possible.

    That doing so would earn him a draw was a nice bonus.

    The dragon shrugged off a hellish bombardment from Vermillion Phoenix and swerved to glower at me and Golden Kirin. Holy light gathered in its jaws and it directed it into a tremendous beam of destructive energy that seared in my direction.

    Boom!

    The entire arena went up in flames, smoke billowing outward to cloud the spectators'' vision. Excited and worried murmurs swept across the crowd as they tried to peer through the thick smoke, wondering if Lute''s last gamble had worked.

    \"No way¡­I''m fine?\"

    Lute realized that he hadn''t been hit by the holy beam of his dragon, despite the huge explosion.

    \"Ugh¡­\"

    However, his hands were still slick with blood, and he was still impaled by the earth spike, so regardless of his survival he wouldn''t be in any shape to continue participating further in today''s matches. Still, he had secured a victory for his team¡­of course he did! He was the main character of a harem story so there was no way he would lose¡­

    \"¡­eh?\"

    As smoke slowly cleared, he caught sight of a glimmering barrier. The slowly diminishing fumes dissipated, revealing me and Golden Kirin still standing intact inside a water sphere, accompanied by a third massive figure.

    \"Did you forget about him?\" I asked, gesturing at Black Tortoise.

    \"No way?!\" Lute growled, but I was paying no attention to him. Instead, I nodded at Golden Kirin, who worked in concert with Vermillion Phoenix. Combining their spells, they unleashed Scorched Earth on both the hapless Lute and the worn out dragon. The both of them vanished under boiling magma, with the dragon returning to wherever he inhabited before its owner called him forth into this dimension.

    As for Lute¡­let''s just say there wasn''t much left of him in the aftermath. Only the boundary field kept him alive, but even with the most expensive and advanced healing magic available to mages, he would be scarred for life.

    After all, healing magic only dealt with physical injuries, but had absolutely no effect on psychological damage. As a side note, Lute suffered from erectile dysfunction after this particular match, and his harem left him shortly after, but that was¡­another story (and too much information, if you ask me). For now, the most important thing was that¡­

    \"The match is over!\" the commentator yelled, delighted. \"Winner¡­Richard Huang of Jing Tian Academy!\"

 410 Chapter 410: Paladin

    I didn''t leave the stage even after the announcement. Instead, I turned to look in Harrison''s direction and he nodded.

    \"Can I leave the second match to you as well?\" he asked. I grinned and showed him a thumb''s up.

    \"Of course.\"

    \"Oho! Is Jing Tian Academy team serious? They have no intention of swapping out their individual participant?\"

    There were a buzz of disbelieving murmurs amongst the crowd, but a few mutters of approval and understanding. There were arugments for and against having a single member fight consecutively or fielding him or her again in an individual match. The logic for it was not too hard to support, particularly when so many team captains fielded the same individual for the team match anyway.

    However, there were those detractors who rightly pointed out that the current member would be exhausted from his previous fight ¨C for example, I had clearly expended quite a bit of mana when fighting Lute Dragoon, and so I would be at a disadvantage against a fresh new individual from Saint Teresa Academy coming in to fight for the first time.

    On the other hand, this was a valid strategy and there were advantages to keeping me in the field ¨C which was why several teams (especially Saint Teresa Academy) did it. Normally it was against the rules for someone to cast spells (like summoning spells, for example) before the match begins. It was obviously against sportsmanship and gave the caster an unfair advantage ¨C otherwise everyone would start casting their ultimate spell right before the match, and then walk up the stage and blew everything up from the first second.

    That didn''t count as a \"match.\" If you wanted to watch people spam ultimate techniques instead of watch a fight, you might as well have them cast their spells in a range and measure the destructive power, the amount of energy released, etc. with gadgets (like how they measured the destructive power of a hydrogen bomb back during the Cold War era). You wouldn''t bother with having people match their skills against each other. The whole point of holding duels was to see the dynamic, evolving battlefield where different tactics came into play.

    In any case, that rule was circumvented somewhat if you were already on the stage. Obviously you couldn''t expect the individual to dismiss all of the spells he had cast or was in the midst of casting during the previous duel. You might as well swap him for another member if you wanted to reset everything to zero. Of course, the advantage of him staying on the battlefield and already having spells at the ready was offset by the fact that he had already expended a lot of mana and was a lot more exhausted than his new opponent, who was fresh and rested, and still at full power.

    Furthermore, many teams exploited this tactic, using the member they already had on stage as a sacrificial lamb, to ensure they would still be able to save their trump card for the team match rather than lose their ace so early in the individual matches. It was better to lose one exhausted member after he did his job and took out at least one of the opponents than to send a fresh member and risk losing her if she was defeated in the second match. In comparison, losing me in the second match wouldn''t be as big a blow because not only was I unlikely to figure in the team match, I would have exhausted the second member as well and more than likely keep her out of the team match. Not a bad trade. According to theory, anyway.

    And if I won, then the advantage for my team would increase further.

    Kureha didn''t seem to panic. She was pondering over the choice of who to send out next, and then a confident smile curled over her lips.

    She was not discouraged at all by the fact that I had three Celestial Guardians summoned and ready to face her next selection. Rather, she seemed to think that everything was going according to plan. She probably knew that maintaining so many powerful Soul Beasts in existence was a massive drain on my mana pool, and I wouldn''t be able to keep them in reality for much longer. As long as she could continue to wear me out with a particularly powerful member, then I could be taken out fairly easily. The question was¡­who should she choose?

    \"Eliza.\"

    Kureha made her decision and nodded to her cousin. In the spectator seats, I noticed Melina stiffen and clenched her hands tightly. Beside her, Adrian reached out and squeezed one of her hands, giving her some comfort and assurance.

    That gesture was not lost on me. I wasn''t sure what the relationship between Eliza and Melina was, but judging from the fact that they were both from the Franklin family, I could guess somewhat the reason for Melina''s tension accurately. Evidently Eliza, a member of the branch family, had been chosen and trained in the Franklin swordsmanship, whereas Melina had been ignominiously passed over. It was only natural that she would hold some measure of resentment.

    Melina was from the main family, whereas Eliza was from the branch family. Yet their positions and statuses were reversed¡­

    Taking a deep breath, I forced away the sympathy I felt for Melina. Whatever her circumstances, there was currently nothing I could do for her. If I wanted to help, I could only do so after this whole tournament was over. For now, I should focus on my own battles. My priority was to help my team advance as far as possible.

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I watched as Eliza climbed up the stage, she was a fairly petite girl, with shoulder-length blue hair cut into a bob, and two small stylish buns on each side of her head. Despite her diminutive size, she carried a massive broadsword that was easily as long as she was tall, and she wielded its huge mass effortlessly.

    \"Eliza Franklin. I am of the Paladin class, which is often considered the strongest class. It is a well-roundd class that boasts a high level of combat power and also has the ability to support allies. Thanks to my blessing, Paladins also have incredible endurance and staying power.\"

    \"Why are you ripping off that description from a light novel?\" I asked dryly. \"And why the hell are you telling me all about yourself right before a battle? What kind of idiot gives away her personal information for the opponent to exploit?\"

    \"Exploit?\" Eliza smiled. \"I''m afraid you misunderstand. This is merely a courtesy. So that the battle will be a bit more balanced. Even if you know about my class and my strengths, you can''t do anything about it.\"

    \"I see.\" I nodded in understanding. \"Because the Paladin class has no weaknesses?\"

    \"Exactly.\"

    Eliza''s confident smile widened. Even with my Celestial Guardians still around me, I couldn''t help but feel a chill. Despite being confronted by at least three gigantic monsters, Eliza showed no fear. No, rather than anxiety, she seemed extremely confident.

    That meant she had a way of dealing with my Celestial Guardians. Then again, that was the Paladin''s role. They were meant to extermiate monsters. Saint Teresa Academy had dedicated its curriculum to training its students ¨C especially the top, elite students among its ranks ¨C to slaying monsters.

    My Celestial Guardians were mere obstacles to them, nothing more. It could be said that this was an extremely bad matchup for me. Paladin skills and techniques specialized in dealing with monsters, and my Constellation spirits were no exception.

    Kureha had made the right choice in sending Eliza forward to finish me off as soon as possible. She would undoubtedly need to expend quite a bit of mana, so as long as I did my job and exhaust her, even if I didn''t win, I would ensure that my friends wouldn''t have to face a figure as powerful and skilled as Eliza in the team match.

    \"The second coming, was it?\" I murmured to myself, recalling the data I read last night. Eliza Franklin, while still not on the same level as Kureha the Sword Saint, was recognized as one of the top students in Saint Teresa Academy. She was the Sword Saint''s Second, their ace or trump card. The second in command who would take charge and lead the team should Kureha fall in battle (like the last time when I defeated Cain and the whole Adorno Academy fell apart during the team match because they didn''t have a proper second).

    If she was allowed to participate in the team match, our chances of winning would be drastically reduced. In fact, Harrison had anticipated Kureha sending her out, and because he didn''t want to risk losing a member against her, he kept me in the ring. Of course, if I failed to wear her down, Kureha would keep Eliza in the stage and it would become a difficult battle of attrition. It would be Harrison''s turn to wear Eliza down and ensure her chances of participating in the team match were as minimal as possible.

    Of course I would prefer to do my job.

    The both of us took up positions on either side of the arena and waited for a moment. The commentator watched us, and was giving a general overview of Eliza before he finally returned to the main event.

    \"All right, match begin!\"

    Eliza surged forward immediately, swinging her massive broadsword down upon me. Vermillion Phoenix soared up high and unleashed a torrent of flames, but the Paladin darted across the arena, evading the fiery projectiles effortlessly.

    \"They really are a well-rounded class,\" I mused to myself. Not only was her defense sturdy ¨C I saw her cleave through a fiery feather and weathered the explosion without taking any damage ¨C her speed was also incredible. Eliza was practically a blue blur that streaked across the ring, not only evading the hail of fire from above, but also dodging the earth spikes that Golden Kirin launched from below. Zigzagging across the arena, she surged toward me, her massive broadsword raised above her head for a killing blow.

    Fortunately, Black Tortoise stepped forward and conjured a sturdy water sphere around me. Eliza''s broadsword clanged against the barrier and she was forced to bounce back. Staggering a few steps, she then threw herself to the side to dodge another volley of earth spikes, and rolled to escape the hellish fire from above.

    \"She''s good,\" I acknowledged. Even in the face of so many monsters, she continued to attack aggressively, undaunted by the odds. Spinning about to cleave a gigantic fireball from Vermillion Phoenix, she then kicked off the ground and charged at Golden Kirin, who conjured a massive wall of earth spikes to impale her.

    In one blow, she obliterated the earth wall and spikes.

    \"!!\"

    \"If I can''t get to the summoner, then I''ll start by eliminating his Soul Beasts one by one.\"

    In a single slash, she cleaved Golden Kirin in half, causing the Celestial Guardian to split apart and dissipate into golden orbs of mana. Without missing a beat, she shot upward at Vermillion Phoenix, who just barely managed to dodge her strike by diving to the side. Swinging around in midair, Vermillion Phoenix retaliated with a ferocious bombardment of fireball, which the plummeting Eliza couldn''t dodge.

    She didn''t bother to. Instead, she cast a spell and blessed herself, her body wreathed in glowing golden mana. The flames slammed into her and exploded, but she crashed out of the inferno and rolled to her feet, smoking but otherwise unscathed.

    \"You''ve got to be kidding me,\" I muttered. There was no way she could have survived a bombardment straight-on from Vermillion Phoenix and get away with nothing more than a few smudges and smoke. Not unless¡­

    \"Blessing,\" Eliza explained somewhat smugly. \"A unique ability of Paladins that allow us to heal ourselves, and boost our defense, which is why a single Paladin can enhance the combat power of an entire unit by so much.\"

    She then swung about and launched herself at Black Tortoise, who conjured a wall of water to deflect her. However, her blade actually managed to penetrate the watery veil and stop just a few centimeters away from the great Celestial Guardian.

    \"It doesn''t just boost our defense, though. It also amplifies our attack power.\"

    With a yell, Eliza cleaved the barrier of water apart, causing Black Tortoise to tumble away helplessly from the sheer power of her blow.

    \"I''m sorry,\" she sneered as she walked through the mist of water that was left over after she destroyed Black Tortoise''s water barrier. \"Blame the bad matchup if you have to¡­blame the fact that my Paladin abilities completely counter your Summoning skills¡­but this is my win.\"

 411 Chapter 411: Slayer of Monsters

    \"Uh huh.\" I was too lazy to point out that it was still too early to decide that, but nobody was going to take me seriously if all I did was spout words. I would rather prove my ideals with solid action, not just talk about them.

    So I just prepared for another attack. Eliza, having the same idea, charged at me again, but I was ready this time. Drawing both Hei Yue and Bai Ri, I parried her gigantic broadsword, but my knees buckled under the heavy impact. The ground around us crumbled and shattered and I found myself almost falling over, but I gritted my teeth and held firm.

    \"!!!\"

    While Eliza was focused on me, she almost didn''t the fiery feathers in time. Bound to my will, Vermilion Phoenix fired his fiery feathers upon our position. Despite the risk of friendly fire, I had him do so because I knew I wouldn''t last long under Eliza''s relentless attack. Drawing Hei Yue back, I countered with a riposte, but Eliza dodged to the side and cleaved at me with her broadsword. I parried her strike with Bai Ri, only to be sent skidding a few meters back.

    Pressing her advantage, Eliza swung her sword and conjured a powerful defensive sphere that withstood Vermillion Phoenix''s bombardment. As for me, I hopped back to avoid the stray fiery feathers that streaked in my direction. As I said before, accuracy was not one of my strengths, and the abilities of my Soul Beasts mirrored that. Vermillion Phoenix''s attack, while not very precise, was still more than adequate to force Eliza back and into defense.

    \"I''ll have you know that my Defense and Defense Support stats are ranked S, and my Attack and Agility are ranked A! Only my Attack Support is ranked B, and I have no Special stat because I don''t use elemental magic like you do!\"

    She was so confident that she could afford to boast to me about meaningless stats. The hell was I supposed to do with such stupid information? What did an S-ranked or A-ranked stat even mean? I didn''t even know what my stats were, so this was just gibberish to me. In the first place, how do you measure and determine a person''s strength or defense? The amount of kilograms of force he or she can apply with a punch or sword strike? The amount of mana output, in kilojoules? How do you measure defense? The amount of force his or her body can withstand before dying? How did you even define the parameters through which you measured and rank stats in the first place?

    All these ranks and numerical values were meaningless. In the first place, the strength of humans wasn''t something you could simply measure in numbers, and they tended to fluctuate according to situation. How about emotional impact? According to different circumstances, when under a lot of stress (such as life-threatening situations), the amount of adrenaline and hormonal changes could increase your strength tremendously. Do lab-controlled experiments designed to measure your strength account for such scenarios?

    Whatever the case, I couldn''t afford to let my thoughts wander. Eliza had cut the fiery bombardment apart and was lunging at me with her massive broadsword. She braved the shower of fire from above and closed in on me.

    I cocked my head to the right, but didn''t raise my swords.

    \"!!\"

    A barrage of icicles materialized and almost impaled Eliza when she barreled forward. Black Tortoise had recovered and he was slowly lumbering forward, casting his ice spells in an attempt to drive the Paladin back. The blue-haired girl hopped backward, easily evading the rising ice stalagmites, and instead used them as a platform to hop from one to another. Ascending through the air deftly, she then launched herself at my Vermillion Phoenix, who was soaring overhead to provide fire support from the air.

    \"Vermillion Phoenix! Get away!\"

    I didn''t make it in time, neither my mental command nor verbal warning. Eliza''s broadsword flashed down and sliced Vermillion Phoenix in half, causing him to explode into flames. Burning parts of his body rained down on the ground, blazing feathers that curled up and slowly dissipated into crimson mana. Cursing under my breath, I rushed forward, right where Eliza landed on the ground. She swung her broadsword up and around, driving me back.

    Despite crossing both of my swords to parry her blow, I was hurled back amidst a shower of violent sparks. Eliza paused for a moment to catch her breath after landing heavily from her aerial attack, and then she sprang at me.

    \"White Tiger!\"

    Before she could cut me down, I completed my summoning spell. Despite moving around for quite a bit, I did not exceed the hundred meters from when I started casting the spell, and I was able to bring the huge Celestial Guardian into existence just in time. Lightning flared as he materialized between me and Eliza, his claws lashing out ferociously.

    \"!!!\"

    Eliza deflected his claws to the side, but lethal lighting combusted and almost knocked her to the side. She crashed to the ground and quickly rolled to her feet, flicking her hands and grimacing as she tried to suppress the numbing feeling of the electricity that now flowed through her body. With her Paladin''s blessing and defense, she managed to dispel the lightning, though it certainly cost her quite a bit of mana.

    \"What a troublesome opponent,\" she muttered darkly. I smiled and shrugged.

    \"Leo!\" I called out as I raced toward her, supported by White Tiger from the side. My golden lion manifested into being on the opposite side, and the two Soul Beasts flanked a struggling Eliza while I came at her from the front.

    \"Hah!\"

    With a yell, Eliza, plunged her broadsword into the ground and created a sphere that enveloped her. Both Leo and White Tiger bounced off the shimmering barrier, their claws finding no purchase in the protective enchantment. As for me, I veered off at the last moment, knowing that neither of my swords would penetrate such a fearsome barrier.

    \"This is the same spell she used to protect herself from Vermillion Phoenix''s flames earlier,\" I murmured. It wasn''t as powerful as my Black Tortoise''s water sphere, but it was still quite the formidable barrier. Even though Vermillion Phoenix failed to¡­

    ¡­or did he? Something that Eliza said earlier came to mind. She was telling me about her Blessing right after Vermillion Phoenix hit her with that attack from earlier, didn''t she? She didn''t just mention the boost in her defense, but also¡­healing. In fact, she mentioned healing first, before she brought up the boost in defense.

    \"¡­I see. White Tiger, Leo.\"

    My Celestial Guardian hopped backward and began generating lots of lightning, almost causing a storm of plasma in the arena. Leo also followed suit, accumulating brilliant, golden mana into his body as he prepared to cast his spell.

    Eliza frowned, and was about to drop her barrier in order to evade the devastating spells to come, but I charged forward while summoning a pride of Leo Minor. The smaller lions joined me in the charge before they spread out and attacked from all directions. I also came from the front, black and white mana wreathing both blades of Hei Yue and Bai Ri respectively before unleashing them in Eliza''s direction. She defended herself from both energy blasts with her spherical barrier before hunkering down as my pride of Leo Minor threw themselves at her. Their claws scrabbled against the glowing golden sphere, leaving no effect.

    \"Don''t think these Soul Beasts can defeat me!\" Eliza growled as she prepared another spell, but I smirked.

    \"Oh, no. I never thought they could.\"

    \"?!\"

    The pride of Leo Minor quickly retreated, all of them jumping away in perfect coordination. The moment they were gone, a jagged web of lightning slammed against Eliza''s spherical barrier, the deadly thunderbolts engulfing her in lethal rays.

    \"!!!\"

    Eliza''s eyes widened when she saw her formerly impenetrable defense began to crack. Raising her left hand, she infused her glowing sphere with more golden mana, trying to repair the damage. Despite her best efforts, the cracks continued to expand and surge all over her protective enchantment, causing her knees to buckle from the effort.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    Perspiration dripped down her face, which was growing increasingly pale, but she withstood the barrage of intense lightning. The jagged web of deadly electricity dissipated and relented after a few more seconds, the bolts exhausting themselves against Eliza''s diminishing sphere. For a moment, the barrier dimmed, but Eliza quickly moved to restore as much of the enchantment as possible when she noticed the Leo Minor prowling about.

    \"Leo, Regulus!\"

    However, I wasn''t going to give her the time to recover. The moment White Tiger''s spell ended, I immediately had Leo launch an attack of his own. The golden blast of destructive mana seared forward and slammed into Eliza''s protective sphere, shattering it in an instant and engulfing her.

    \"AAAAH!\"

    Eliza let out a shriek as she was enveloped in the golden inferno, disappearing from view. She was flung several meters across the arena, crashing into the wall and cracking the concrete before her fuming body slid downward.

    \"Ugh¡­ha¡­\"

    Gasping, she struggled to her feet. I could see that she had suffered grievious injuries from Leo''s full-powered Regulus. Honestly, I was surprised to see that she was still conscious.

    I darted forward, getting ready to finish her off. White Tiger also joined me, lightning crackling over his massive figure as he launched bolts at Eliza.

    \"!!!\"

    However, Eliza was far from done. Raising her broadsword, she swung her heavy weapon and blew away the lightning while also unleashing a shockwave that kept me back. If I hadn''t raised my swords to defend myself, I would have been blown off my feet.

    \"Kuh!\"

    Steadying myself, I lowered my weapons and noticed the white glow that suffused Eliza. Her wounds were slowly disappearing, and she was able to straighten herself. In just a few seconds, she seemed to have suffered nothing more than a few scratches and bruises, but otherwise she was entirely unscathed from my spells earlier.

    \"I see¡­\" I nodded thoughtfully as the mana readings spiked, the gauges and sensors in the lenses of my glasses going wild. \"So that was what happened earlier.\"

    It wasn''t that Vermillion Phoenix failed to destroy her barrier. Those powerful flames had succeeded in incinerating her defensive sphere earlier and burned her. However, Eliza was able to hold onto her consciousness and rely on her Blessing to to heal herself. No wonder she boasted about her Blessing, and the healing aspect was the first thing she mentioned to me.

    That was the true power of her Blessing, the unique ability of the Paladin class. I believed Pearl was taking notes at this moment, seeing how powerful a healer could be in combat. At the cost of not being able to cast other spells, healers could specialize further if they want to participate in combat, and train themselves into becoming Paladins. However, only the very talented or the extremely determined and diligent healers too stubborn to give up were able to ever reach the pinnacle of combat healers and become recognized as Paladins. Not just any healer could become a Paladin just because they wanted to be. There was a lot of hard work, and some say talent and luck involved. Of course, I didn''t buy that whole talent argument, but I recognized that a very rare few people were more suited to become Paladins than other ordinary healers.

    Again, healing magic wasn''t something just anyone could learn. It was a very complex branch of magic that required you to sacrifice all other forms of magic, such as elemental spells and summoning, to learn. A magic that required single-minded, focused dedication. You couldn''t afford to learn healing magic otherwise if you got too easily distracted.

    However, healing magic or Paladin class was not invincible. I was going to prove that here and now.

    \"White Tiger! Leo! Leo Minor!\"

    While Eliza was still recovering, I had my Constellation spirits attack from all sides. I joined the fight, getting the feeling that this was going to be a decisive moment.

    \"Na?ve.\"

    \"!!!\"

    I quickly jumped back when I sensed something was wrong. So did Leo and White Tiger, but my pride of Leo Minor didn''t make it in time.

    \"Hah!\"

    In a single stroke, Eliza swung her broadsword and slaughtered all of my Leo Minor. I had the impression of a gigantic arc of golden mana flashing across the arena, and the next thing I knew, my ferocious Constellation spirits were all flying back in pieces.

    Plunging her broadsword down, Eliza sneered at me, her petite figure glowing majestically.

    \"Have you forgotten that I am a Paladin? I specialize in slaying monsters¡­your Soul Beasts included.\"

 412 Chapter 412: Desperate Struggle

    \"¡­no, I didn''t forget. I did kind of expect this.\"

    I sighed wearily as my shoulders drooped. Wiping the perspiration from my face, I studied Eliza while White Tiger and Leo flanked me.

    \"I was hoping to finish you off before you could recover, though.\"

    Sighing again, I shrugged wearily before linking my will to White Tiger and Leo. Lightning flashed out, but Eliza swatted it away with her glowing broadsword. Pushing my glasses up my nose, I continued to scrutinize her, and realized why I was paying such intense attention to her.

    Eliza Franklin was growing stronger with each passing second. The advanced spells that she had been casting and weaving around herself from the beginning were finally kicking in and manifesting as buffs. Her physical strength was increasing exponentially, and she was finally getting to be on par with me, canceling out the advantage I had at the start of the match.

    The more time passed, the more advantageous it got for her. Of course, it also meant that she would be expending quite a lot of mana maintaining her buffs and Blessing. Already, thanks to my glasses, I could see that her considerable mana pool had been drained drastically just to keep up her Blessing and heal her wounds.

    After I dealt a certain amount of damage to her, she would run out of the mana required to heal herself. This was going to be a real battle of attrition. Either that, or I had to overwhelm her with enough damage and knock her out with a single attack so that her Blessing and other buffs would disappear along with her consciousness.

    Easier said than done.

    \"!!\"

    While I was planning my next move, Eliza was already moving. She swung her broadsword at White Tiger, who parried the bulky weapon with his claws. Lightning sparked and crackled between them explosively, almost throwing the Paladin off.

    However, Eliza nimbly landed on her feet and gracefully swung about to unleash a holy blast from her sword. The golden wave of destructive energy soared toward White Tiger, only to dissipate against a water sphere that Black Tortoise conjured. She then jumped backward to avoid getting impaled by a series of icicles that burst from the ground.

    While she evaded, White Tiger launched lightning bolts from the air, the jagged web of electricity splaying out to ensnare the agile Eliza. She hacked away at several tongues of lightning with her broadsword while spinning her body in midair to avoid the rest, and then landed on the ground to skid several meters back.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    Despite her exertion, Eliza didn''t falter. Instead, her Blessing allowed her to recover her physical strength almost immediately and she straightened up with a smile, the flush disappearing from her formerly red face.

    Then her mana flared up and she charged forward, disappearing into a golden blur. Before any of us could react, she was already in front of White Tiger, slashing at him with her giant broadsword before Black Tortoise could conjure a shield.

    Only White Tiger''s reflexes saved him from being cleaved in half, his claws raised to parry the blow. Blood splattered the ground and he withdrew his wounded paw with a snarl. Eliza closed in, but White Tiger sent another blast of lightning at her, forcing her back from the sheer voltage of his electricity.

    \"She''s much faster than before!\" I reallzed. One of the enchantments that coalesced around her was a speed buff, tripling her Agility stat and allowing her to take her enemies by surprise. However, her attempt to take out White Tiger in one stroke had failed, and she had lost the element of surprise. White Tiger and I could adjust accordingly, or at least take note of her upgraded speed.

    \"!!\"

    Eliza suddenly switched trajectory and propelled herself in Leo''s direction. I had my Constellation spirit stand his ground, however.

    \"Leo, Regulus!\"

    The golden beam surged forward to meet the charging Eliza. Her momentum hurling her forward, she had no means of changing direction, so she decided to greet the powerful spell head-on. With a yell, she swung her broadsword and cleaved Regulus apart.

    ¡­only to be swatted to the side by Leo.

    \"Kuh!\"

    Eliza hit the ground in a roll and jumped back to her feet. Blood dripped from her arm and face, but those injuries rapidly disappeared as her Blessing healed them.

    Frowning, I glanced in the direction of the technical area. This ability somewhat reminded me of Harrison and his holy magic. Harrison, however, still hadn''t gotten to the part where he had mastered healing magic or Blessing yet, but certainly he struck me as a Paladin-to-be.

    He just hadn''t reached the same level as Eliza. Not yet.

    Leo and White Tiger pounced on Eliza while she was still vulnerable, but by the time they crossed the distance she had already fully recovered and was standing tall. Swinging her broadsword, she blasted the both of them back, and Leo hit the ground before disappearing despite his supposedly invulnerability. Eliza had focusd her boosted attack on him.

    Even White Tiger wasn''t able to escape completely unscathed, blood dripping down his flank as he backed off. Lightning crackled defensively around him, the reason why Eliza didn''t pursue him and deliver a deeper cut.

    \"They weren''t kidding when they said Paladins specialized in slaying monsters,\" I remarked, wiping the perspiration from my face. Despite Black Tortoise''s water sphere materializing between White Tiger and the charging Eliza, the Paladin succeeded in cleaving the barrier apart and taking a huge chunk of meat off the poor Celestial Guardian.

    Roaring in agony, White Tiger struck her with an electrifying paw, his claws raking her across her front and throwing her across the arena. Flipping herself upward, Eliza landed on the ground and skidded to a stop by plunging her broadsword into the ground.

    Already White Tiger was upon her, thunderbolts accompanying his descent. In the face of such a horrifying assault, Eliza met the onslaught of lightning with steely resolve, swinging her broadsword up to meet them. Stepping to the side, she was unable to avoid being eviscerated by Whtie Tiger''s claws. Despite the horrendous injury, she gritted her teeth and stabbed White Tiger in the gut, a fierce retaliation that elicted a bestial bellow from the flailing Celestial Guardian.

    \"Holy Judgement.\"

    The incredible spell ripped White Tiger apart from the inside out and he vanished in a blinding explosion.

    \"Ugh!\"

    Staggering back, I hurriedly commanded Black Tortoise to fire a barrage of icicles at Eliza. To my surprise, she didn''t dodge the attack and instead endured it, the icicles turning her body into a human pincushion. Blood splattered against the ground, but still she didn''t fall. Instead, rising to her full height, she flexed her mana. The icicles crumbled and shattered, the frost raining down in flakes of snow amidst her golden aura.

    As usual, her Blessing allowed her to heal up relatively quickly. Bringing her broadsword up, she pointed it at me. A golden orb gathered at the tip before lashing out in a huge, destructive torrent that ravaged the ground.

    \"Scutum Sobiescianum!\"

    I managed to summon my Constellation shield just in time to block the attack, but it was almost instantly obliterated from the sheer destructive power. Fortunately, the delay bought me enough time to dive to the side and evade it totally. Even so, I could still feel the searing blast surge past behind me and wreck a large portion of the arena.

    Rolling back to my feet, I brought both of my swords up in reflex. Just as well, because Eliza chose that moment to descend upon me with her heavy broadsword. I grunted as I parried her decisive blow, the ground cracking beneath my knee and feet.

    Seriously, it was not good to receive attacks like this when in a kneeling posture. They hurt like hell.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    Eliza continued to bear down on me with her superior strength, crushing me to the ground. My knee and feet hurt, unable to withstand the pressure any longer.

    Fortunately, they didn''t have to.

    \"!!!\"

    Icicles surged out of the ground and punctured Eliza''s body. She cursed as she was thrown into the air, helpless and impaled in many places. Blood dripped down the icy spikes, the red mixing with the transparent water droplets that condensed on the gleaming surface.

    \"Phew¡­\"

    I sprang to my feet and moved. At the same time, Eliza unleashed her mana and destroyed the icicles that were hoisting her up in the air, causing frosty fragments to rain down on the place where she had pinned me seconds earlier. Twisting her body in the air, she swung her broadsword to unleash a holy blast in my direction, even as her wounds began to close up and knit together.

    This time, instead of Scutum Sobiescianum, I conjured an ice shield instead. The holy blast froze upon contact, turning into a twisted structure resembling an ice sculpture.

    \"!!\"

    \"Cetus!\"

    While Eliza was still momentarily stunned and landing on the ground, I called forth one of my more powerful Constellation spirits. With three out of my five Celestial Guardians eliminated, I didn''t have much left.

    \"It won''t work!\"

    Eliza''s lips curled as she whirled around and slashed at the charging gigantic whale. The azure behemoth was cleaved apart immediately by her blade, which was wreathed in a golden flash of light.

    ¡­or so it appeared.

    \"Eh?!\"

    Cetus shattered into countless icy fragments that pelted a stunned Eliza, delivering numerous cuts to her. As she stumbled through the deadly hail of frost shrapnel, using her magical aura to deflect most of the damage, Cetus came up from behind and slammed her forward, causing her to cartwheel bodily through the air before crashing heavily onto the ground.

    \"Ugh!\"

    Amidst the shattered concrete, Eliza staggered to her feet, still holding her massive broadsword up. Her injuries were still healing from her Blessing, but the rate of her regeneration was noticeably slower than before.

    Good. She was running out of mana. Or so I hoped.

    However, Eliza clearly still had a lot of strength left. She faced down my charging Cetus, smashing through the ice that he generated, and slashed at him with her broadsword. Moving with a speed and grace that belied his massive size, Cetus swerved to the side and flipped over, evading the deadly attack.

    \"Ho¡­you move well, even with a big body like that.\"

    Eliza was impressed. Scraping her foot against the ground, she brought her broadsword back for another swing. Cetus cautiously backed off, noticing that she still had another trick up her sleeve. The Paladin''s lips curled further into a snide smile.

    \"Oh¡­your instincts are good. Too bad it''s useless.\"

    She swung her sword and unleashed a devastating bombardment of holy mana. Once again, her spell was frozen solid by my ice technique, turning into a distorted, gleaming crystalline sculpture before it could reach my Cetus.

    \"The same trick won''t work twice!\"

    Smashing through the ice with her broadsword, Eliza thrust her huge weapon forward and stabbed Cetus in the forehead. With another holy judgement spell, she blew him up from the inside out. Landing on her feet, ignoring the thousands of frost fragments that rained down on her and cut open her skin, she turned to me and my Black Tortoise. Her eyes glowing ferociously, she then charged forward to finish me off.

    I just barely managed to parry her broadsword by crossing both of my swords, but the tremendous force behind her strike blew me several meters backward. Blood spurting out of my mouth, I hit the ground and lay down limply. Black Tortoise tried to conjure another water sphere around me, but Eliza easily sliced through it. Water droplets were flung in all sides as she easily cut through whatever defenses my Black Tortoise could weave around me.

    \"!!\"

    Icicles sprang out of the ground to impale her, but¡­

    \"I told you, the same trick won''t work twice.\"

    Eliza''s body appeared to turn into a blur. Using her incredible agility, she wove through the labyrinthine network of icicles, shattering the ones that she couldn''t evade, and made her way toward my position in just an instant.

    \"It''s over.\"

    Her broadsword swung downward, ready to decapitate me and end the match once and for all. Completely helpless, I could only watch as her gleaming blade flash toward my head, knocking both of my swords aside and whistling in an unstoppable manner.

 413 Chapter 413: Unstoppable and Immovable

    Even as the broadsword descended upon my head, I didn''t move.

    No, I couldn''t move. There was no way I could evade that attack in time, so I didn''t even bother to try. Instead, I went for a technique that would give me a higher chance of defending against what would otherwise be a sure-kill strike, no matter how slight.

    Clink!

    \"?!\"

    Eliza''s eyes widened when she saw the ice freeze around her broadsword and encase her arms, stopping her in place. The frozen broadsword stopped a couple of millimeters away from my forehead, entombed in ice.

    \"You¡­!\" she snarled.

    \"What?\" I asked with a shrug, before rolling out of the way and bringing both of my swords up. With a wrench, Eliza shattered the ice furiously and struck me, but I managed to parry her broadsword this time. The tremendous impact sent me hurtling across the arena and I almost fell over before hastily regaining my balance. Grinning cynically, I tilted my head to the side. \"Did you think I would just sit around and let you win so easily?\"

    \"Cease this futile struggle at once!\" Eliza ordered obstinately. \"The match is over! It''s clear that you can''t win! Whatever Soul Beast you summon, I''ll just cut it down! There''s nothing you can do, so just give up already! Quit wasting my time!\"

    I raised an eyebrow at that. \"Lady, have you ever met anyone stupid enough to surrender just because you tell them to? If you want the victory, you''ve to earn it. Not demand me to forfeit just because you think I can''t win. Prove that I can''t win.\"

    \"Shut up!\"

    Hollering, Eliza kicked off the ground and slashed at me again. I ducked to the side, avoiding her massive broadsword, and retaliated with a riposte that drew a thin line of blood across her arm and shoulder. The Paladin hissed in pain, but she pivoted on one foot and spun around to counter with another vicious slash.

    \"!!\"

    I ducked under the heavy broadsword, relieved that it didn''t manage to take my head off, and then thrust Hei Yue forward. Eliza caught it with her left hand before the point of my black blade could reach her chest, blood spurting into the air as my blade impaled her palm and exited through the back of her hand, and almost severed her fingers.

    With a hiss, Eliza swung her broadsword with her right hand, and even though I parried it with Bai Ri, I was still thrown several meters to the side. Tumbling about, I managed to right myself up, but Eliza was unable to seize the chance to finish me off.

    She was clutching her left hand, which had almost been cut off by my Hei Yue when she pulled that drastic move earlier.

    \"Argh¡­\"

    Grimacing, she straightened and relaxed as her Blessing came into play, healing her wounds. Already, I saw the effects of her healing slowed down considerably. The injury across her arm and on her shoulder from before had yet to heal completely, despite the cut having closed and the bleeding stemmed. The reddish-white scar had yet to fade.

    Eliza was definitely running out of mana.

    \"Why won''t you give up?!\"

    \"Why won''t you shut up?!\" I snapped, getting irritated. Eliza flared up at that.

    \"How dare you¡­?!\"

    She never got to finish her retort. An icicle barrage from Black Tortoise forced her back, and she jumped away while using her broadsword to slice apart any icicles that she couldn''t evade. Landing on both feet, she skidded backward, using her huge broadsword as a shield to withstand the icy bombardment.

    \"I told you, your Soul Beasts can''t beat me! I''ll slay each and every one of them!\"

    The moment the hail of icicles ceased, Eliza swung her broadsword up and leaped at Black Tortoise. A water sphere sprang into existence between the two of them, but the Paladin effortlessly cleaved the defensive barrier in two with her massive weapon. Charging past the collapsing curtain of water, she continued onward toward the now vulnerable Black Tortoise, who remained immobile as she closed in on him. For a moment, it appeared as if he was resigned to his fate, waiting for Eliza to cut him down¡­

    ¡­and then he disappeared.

    \"?!\"

    Caught off guard, Eliza almost lost her balance, her momentum carrying her forward and causing her to almost stumble to the ground. Cursing, she righted herself up, glancing about for her missing target. Her eyes then rested upon me.

    \"That''s¡­!\"

    The reason why Black Tortoise vanished wasn''t because I dismissed him. No, I transformed him into his chibi form, and now the tiny, cute version of Black Tortoise was now crawling on top of my shoulder. I patted my Celestial Guardian with my fingers, while still holding onto Hei Yue, and then lowered my sword to focus on the battle.

    Streams of azure ice began to swirl around both of my blades, and I charged forward at the same time as Eliza, who lunged at me with her broadsword. Screaming in determined fury, she swung her weapon down and I met her blow with steely resolve, crossing my swords to parry her huge broadsword. Again, the ground beneath my feet cracked and crumbled, but this time the entire area around me flash-froze from the plummeting temperature.

    \"?!\"

    Eliza pulled back in shock, realizing that her arms were locked in ice. With a snarl, she swung her broadsword to cleave me in half again, but when I deflected her huge blade to the side, she spun around, one of her hands letting go of the heavy handle in order to deliver a hook toward my head. I threw my head back and responded with a kick that almost caught her in the jaw if it were not for her excellent reflexes.

    \"Bastard¡­\"

    Swearing under her breath, Eliza stepped forward to deal another deadly slash with her heavy broadsword, which I knocked away desperately with both of my swords. As I stumbled back, Eliza seized the opportunity to finish me off, only to find her movements slowed down considerably and the sensation in her hands numb. To her horror, she realized that her arms were encased in ice again.

    \"Damn it!\"

    I quickly retreated while throwing up a wall of fog in between, my freezing spell deflected by Eliza''s broadsword. Her weapon froze over, but the Paladin wasted no time in shattering the ice that covered both her arms and broadsword.

    Huffing, her face pale from the exertion, Eliza glared at me as she shook both of her arms. Evidently they were still numb.

    \"Every time I trade blows with this fella, I feel a shot of unnatural chill surging through my body. He has some sort of technique that locks my arms in ice, and I have to expend a lot of mana just to break thm. What a mysterious skill!\"

    I pushed my glasses up my nose and smiled.

    \"Still think I have no chance of winning?\"

    \"I don''t understand!\" Eliza growled in frustration. \"You are a summoner, aren''t you?! I have never heard of a summmoner wielding dual swords and engaging Paladins and other melee-class warriors in close combat!\"

    \"Well, there''s a first time for everything,\" I replied with a shrug.

    \"Don''t screw with me!\" Eliza shrieked before she lunged at me, her glowing broadsword exuding large amounts of mana. Well, even if I lost here now, I had achieved my goal of wearing Eliza out. With the excessive amount of mana I forced her to spend, she definitely wouldn''t be in any shape to participate in the rest of the matches, or in the team match.

    Or so I hope¡­

    In contrast to her, I was no longer spending a lot of mana. Having shrunk Black Tortoise to his chibi form, I was casting fairly basic ice spells right now, a very cost-efficient freezing enchantment to waste my opponent''s energy. Eliza didn''t realize it, but she was falling for my trap.

    As long as I could continue engaging in these cost-efficient trades without getting knocked out, I could wear her down. I might even win, no matter how unlikely that was.

    Actually¡­why not just go for it?

    Smiling to myself, I exchanged another few blows with Eliza, our weapons clashing against each other violently and showering us in sparks. Eliza recoiled, her arms clad in ice, and she pulled away to shatter them, but I pressed on aggressively and pursued her relentlessly, my swords striking from two different directions.

    \"Kuh!\"

    Eliza managed to deflect Bai Ri with her broadsword while blocking Hei Yue with her still frozen left arm. Blood sprayed across the arena and she staggered back before kicking out at me. I jumped over her feet and delivered a kick of my own, which caught her square in the chest and sent her flying.

    The Paladin hit the ground and rolled back to her feet swiftly, panting. Fragments of frost rained down from her arms as she forcibly broke the ice shackles apart, and she began treating her injuries with her Blessing.

    It wasn''t just the wound I dealt her. That healed up fast enough. However, she also had to treat frostbite and other cold injuries that she sustained during our exchange. The color of her skin was looking ghastly, especially those of her fingers and wrist. Evidently the constant freezing had cut off her blood flow or at least clogged up the circulation of her blood to her extremities.

    In fact, she was barely holding on to her broadsword. It was only through the sheer effort of her tenacious will that she was able to sustain herself and continue fighting on. Even though I found her obnoxious, I actually admired her grit and determination.

    She was a tough girl, for sure.

    \"I don''t understand!\" She howled, wasting my earlier admiration of her. She lunged at me, almost blindly, swinging her broadsword wildly now and without skill or precision. \"Your swordsmanship isn''t even impressive or topnotch. How are you gaining the upper hand over me?!\"

    \"Who knows?\" I replied with a shrug. As if I was going to waste my time thinking about such nonsense, and even if I did know the reason, I wasn''t stupid enough to tell her. Instead, I kicked her below her guard when she overextended herself with a particularly wide swing, and when she doubled over, I slashed her with Hei Yue and Bai Ri. Unsurprisingly, Eliza managed to block my attack with her broadsword, but once again her arms and weapon froze over.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    Grunting, Eliza appeared to stagger back from the vicious blow. This time it was her turn to be under pressure from my attack. Her body glowed and she used a combination of Blessing and her passive buffs to blow me off with her superior strength and attack power. The ice around her arms crumbled away from the sheer intensity of her holy mana and she pressed on, swinging her broadsword to eviscerate me.

    I jumped up high above Eliza''s broadsword, cartwheeling and flipping myself over. Landing on top of her huge, cumbersome weapon, I then kicked a stunned Eliza in the face and sent the poor Paladin sprawling onto the ground.

    \"Why, you¡­!\"

    Despite my best efforts, my kick hardly fazed Eliza. Her defense was truly ranked S (whatever that meant). Only my swords were doing any real damage to her. My kicks were at least throwing her back, because I was using my momentum to force her to a retreat more than any intention of causing any injury.

    Thanks to that, Eliza recovered quickly. She swung her broadsword at me while I was still in the air, but I flipped over and dove into the ground, just a few centimeters below her massive, sweeping blade that took off a few strands of my hair.

    While still on the ground, I struck out with my swords. Hei Yue and Bai Ri streaked out in black and white blurs, slicing through Eliza''s hands and amputating them at her wrists. The Paladin gave a horrified scream as she staggered backward, watching in disbelief as her broadsword spun away in the air, still in the clutches of her disembodied hands. Blood spurting from the severed arteries at her stumps, she fell to her knees, desperately trying to staunch the bleeding with her healing magic.

    While she did so, I rose to my feet and scissored her neck with both of my swords.

    \"Your call,\" I sneered, suppressing the urge to add the insult \"bitch.\" That would be very unbecoming of me. I wasn''t going to descend to her level, and besides, I understood that in a high-stakes match such as this, emotions were going to run high. I couldn''t blame Eliza for being overly passionate and short-tempered.

    Eliza stared dumbly at the two blades pressed against her bleeding neck. She swallowed for a moment, and then hung her head.

    \"I surrender.\"

    Her voice was filled with bitter resentment, but it echoed clearly throughout the arena.

    There was a stunned silence for a moment, and then the audience erupted into cheers and applause. Even the commentator took a few seconds to get his bearings, moving to his microphone to confirm the outcome.

    \"Match over! Winner¡­Richard Huang!\"

    His magically amplified voice was then drowned out by the celebratory cheers from my screaming teammates.

 414 Chapter 414: Diabolos

    Even Kureha couldn''t help but be surprised at the sudden turn of events. Her lips pursed and she thought about her next move, looking troubled for the first time. Initially, she wasn''t worried ¨C the defeat of Lute Dragoon was well within her expectations, even if unlikely, but to think Eliza also fell to defeat at my hands as well.

    And Eliza Franklin was supposed to be her trump card. As a Paladin, her buffs and abilities would be indispensable to the Saint Teresa Academy team during the team match, but now one of their pillars had been eliminated. Their team match had just gotten exponentially harder ¨C especially with two of their core members already knocked out of the battle today.

    Her eyes moved to the rest of my team, assessing the members and trying to make a gues as to who Harrison would send next. Probably it might be a better idea if she waited a moment longer for the opposing team captain to make his decision.

    Fortunately, she didn''t have to wait long. Miura La Noir stepped forward, brushing a hand casually along her long, black hair that reached past her shoulders. Two red and white ribbons pinned her bangs at the sides, and her deep blue eyes scanned Jing Tian Academy team with amusement. Flicking her hand in a playful manner, she strode up to her captain.

    \"Captain, why don''t you send me for the third match instead?\"

    \"Are you sure, Miura?\" Kureha asked somewhat uncertainly. The black mage nodded.

    \"Yes. I am confident I will be able to handle whoever they send out next.\"

    Kureha hesitated for a moment, looking deep into Miura''s eyes. After a few seconds, she finally took a deep breath and nodded. Placing a hand on her teammate''s shoulder, she offered an encouraging smile.

    \"I''ll be counting on you then.\"

    \"I won''t let you down!\"

    Back at our corner of the stage, Harrison was gesturing for me to descend from the stage. However, I raised my hand.

    \"Captain, do you mind if I stay on stage for the third round as well?\"

    Harrison glanced at the chibi Black Tortoise who was comfortably nestled atop my shoulder, and then pondered for a moment before nodding.

    \"If you think you can handle it¡­\"

    \"Yeah, I can. No point risking any of our members. Now that I''m committed, I might as well fight until the end.\" I grinned. \"I might just be able to surprise everybody.\"

    \"Okay, but don''t force yourself.\" Harrison looked a little concerned. \"Your health is the most important thing.\"

    Raising my hand, I gave him a thumb''s up and a reassuring grin.

    \"Sure. I''ll surrender if I can''t handle it.\"

    \"You had better,\" Pearl warned with a knowing glare. \"You always over-exert yourself. It''s not good for your body.\"

    \"I''ll keep that in mind.\"

    Taking a deep breath, I used the time between matches to recover as much mana as possible. Resting and recovering mana was permissible, casting any new spell was not. Besides, recovery was an unconscious biological reflex, so it wasn''t something you could stop unless you put every participant in stasis between each match, which was highly impractical.

    \"So you''re going to be my opponent?\"

    I turned and caught sight of Miura stepping onto the stage, running her hand through her long, silky black hair again. She smiled, a beautiful but terrifying expression that sent chills down my spine. At once I knew she wasn''t going to be an ordinary opponent.

    This girl is going to be very troublesome¡­

    Unlike Lute Dragoon or Eliza Franklin, Miura La Noir did not rely on overwhelming combat power or superior physical prowess to overcome her enemies. She was a cunning person who made use of schemes and tactics to deefat her opponent through guile and trickery.

    \"You don''t have to be so afraid of me.\" Miura chuckled as she covered her mouth in a mockingly shy manner. \"I''m not going to eat you. Don''t worry¡­I''m not as strong as Lute or Eliza, both of whom you had just defeated.\"

    \"¡­right.\"

    Yet she was going to be a much more difficult opponent to deal with than those two put together. At least with Lute and Eliza, I knew what I was going to get. With Miura, she seemed dangerously unpredictable.

    \"Both contestants, get to your positions!\" the commentator''s voice was booming above. We obeyed, standing opposite each other and waiting for the signal. It didn''t take long, and a buzz sounded across the arena. \"Match start!\"

    At least it wasn''t \"let''s go ahead!\" or some weird Japlish term.

    Unlike Lute or Eliza, Miura unsurprisingly didn''t charge forward. Instead, she stayed where she was. Her hands moved across the air as she murmured incantations softly. They sounded like gibberish to me, but they had effects on reality. I could see ominous black scripts manifesting in the material universe, hovering in shimmering symbols as they trailed Miura''s finger.

    This wasn''t good.

    I had Black Tortoise transform from his chibi self to his gigantic form, hurling a barrage of icicles at Miura. She turned to smile at me, but didn''t pause in writing her runic script in the air. She didn''t have to. The icicles passed through her body, and her figure shimmered for a moment before disappearing along with the script she had written.

    \"!!\"

    As I thought, she was going to be a very troublesome opponent.

    Spinning around intuitively, I caught sight of Miura appearing somewhere else, her hand lashing out in my direction. The black arcane script had evidently teleported along with her (or more likely followed her when she moved under cover of her invisibility or illusion spell), and they turned into deadly shadow bolts that seared across the space and hammered against the water sphere that my Black Tortoise had conjured up.

    \"Oh, what a perfect defense.\" Miura was smiling despite her words. \"It''s going to be hard to crack that shell of yours.\"

    \"Canis Minor!\" I shouted, unleashing a pack of hunting hounds upon her. The large number of Constellation spirits bounded forward, heading straight for the Diabolos. Even if Miura cast her invisibility or illusion spell, that wouldn''t be able to fool the senses of my Canis Minor, who relied on their sense of smell rather than sight or hearing.

    \"This is going to be troublesome.\"

    Miura frowned, and she waved her hand. Black darts shuddered in the air, and then streaked toward the approaching pack of Canis Minor. They weaved through the barrage, dodging and evading the deadly projectiles, and closed in on her. With an impatient gesture, Miura conjured a black barrier to enclose herself, causing my Canis Minor to bounce off the spherical screen when they pounced on her.

    My Constellation spirits landed on their feet nimbly, righting themselves and snarling at Miura. She watched them for a second, and then wore an amused smile.

    \"I''m sorry, but I''m more of a cat person, you know?\"

    \"No, I don''t know,\" I retorted. And honestly, I wasn''t interested in knowing either. Behind me, a new Constellation spirit reared up. \"Canis Major, Sirius!\"

    His jaws yawned wide and an icy torrent rushed out to engulf the black barrier. Miura''s eyes widened, and then she staggered as her defensive spell was frozen solid. With a click of her tongue, she shattered the ice with a burst of black magic to free herself, but the Canis Minor were upon her almost immediately.

    \"Well, well¡­\"

    Her fingers twirling about, she conjured a black staff into being and warded off the lunging Canis Minor. A shadowy scythe sprang to existence from the top of the shaft and she cleaved one of the pouncing Canis Minor into two. The poor Constellation spirit fell to the ground with a yelp before dissipating into mana.

    Spinning her scythe about, Miura fought her way through the pack of Canis Minor while firing shadowy bolts about. Canis Major and I approached, but she cleverly kept her distance, knowing that she possessed neither the raw physical strength nor the combat skills to deal with us. She practically pranced away in an infuriating manner, almost as if she was waltzing across the arena in a teasing manner. Canis Major pursued, but I hung back, realizing that something was amiss.

    \"!!!\"

    I was right. The moment Canis Major stepped onto a certain area in the arena, a colossal magic circle lit up beneath him. Tendrils of shadow leaped up to engulf him.

    \"That''s¡­!\"

    My shocked voice was drowned out by the agonized howls of Canis Major. I quickly dismissed him before the formation spell could take full effect, his bristling fur smoking from where the shadows touched him.

    \"You''ve got good instincts. Not bad.\"

    \"?!\"

    I spun around upon hearing Miura''s voice in my ear. That very same instant, her scythe slashed down toward my throat, but I managed to parry the deadly, curved blade with my two swords. Crossing them, I forced her back almost too easily.

    Then I recalled that I had been fighting warriors such as Lute and Eliza this entire time. Of course Miura wouldn''t possess as much physical strength as them.

    However, what she lacked in power, she more than made up for in guile and trickery. Dozens of black orbs surrounded me before exploding at pointblank range, knocking me over and sending my fuming body crashing onto the ground.

    ¡­or so Miura hoped, but instead I emerged relatively unscathed. Broken frost fragments slid off my body, the remains of the defensive ice spell I had desperately cast as a last-ditch attempt to protect myself.

    \"Oh¡­?\"

    Miura''s eyes narrowed, but she didn''t relent on her attacks. Instead, she swung her scythe at me, but I blocked it with Bai Ri. With my right hand, I thrust Hei Yue forward, forcing her to throw her head back to prevent the tip of my blade from piercing through her face. Reversing her grip on her scythe, she pushed me away before delivering a kick, but I managed to retreat a step back to avoid having my nose broken by her foot.

    She then brought her scythe back around and I deflected it to the side with my swords, sparks flying between us in the clash. While she staggered from the impact, I closed in to finish her off, but a magic circle appeared beneath my feet.

    \"!!\"

    I jumped back before shadowy appendages emerged to ensnare my limbs. Both of my swords flashed and I sliced apart the trap, breaking free to withdraw to a safe distance. As I did so, Miura righted herself, but that was when my remaining Canis Minor seized the chance to pounce on her from behind, their claws and fangs outstretched.

    \"Hah¡­how annoying.\"

    She swung her scythe backward to discourage them, and a few of my Canis Minor forcibly halted in midair before retreating. The length and reach of her weapon meant that she was able to cut down at least one of my slowly dwindling number of Constellation spirits.

    Whirling her scythe around, Miura then cast another dark spell, conjuring countless dark orbs that surrounded her. With a flick of her fingers, she had them blasting in all directions, the projectiles streaking toward both me and my Canis Minor.

    Bounding to one area, my Canis Minor congregated before a water sphere surrounded them and deflected all of the exploding orbs. As for me, I summoned Scutum Sobiescianum again, the Constellation shield withstanding the vicious onslaught from Miura''s spell. Sheathing my swords, I summoned Sagittarius and took aim. The moment her bombardment ceased, I had Scutum Sobiescianum hover to the side and released my flaming arrow.

    Alnasl screamed across the arena and detonated against Miura''s hastily conjured barrier, enveloping her in a hellish inferno. The blast was so powerful that even her protective sphere shattered and she was engulfed in flames. She shrieked for a moment as she toppled over, rolling desparetely to extinguish the flames on her immolated body. Casting a hasty dark spell, she managed to layer a thin shadow over herself, which somehow put out the fire and left gray smudges across her otherwise pale skin.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    She glanced up at me and shook her head with an amused smile.

    \"You really are a troublesome opponent, aren''t you?\"

    \"I could say the same for you,\" I replied as I took aim at her with another flaming arrow. The devastating power of Alnasl could punch through whatever protective barrier she conjured and blow her up. Unlike Eliza, she didn''t have any Blessing to heal herself, and her defensive capabilities were somewhat inferior.

    As long as I didn''t fall into any of her traps, I could defeat her. She certainly wasn''t as powerful as Lute or Eliza. I just needed to be careful and remain alert and that would allow me to overcome her with raw power.

    \"!!!\"

    Unfortunately, as I suspected, things weren''t going to flow so smoothly when I was up against an opponent like Miura. Despite what seemed like a precarious situation, she was smiling, as if to say everything was going according to her plan.

    And it was.

    Too late I noticed that I was standing on top of one of her carefully prepared formations, the ominous-looking formation circle glowing under my feet as she activated it. Black lightning danced around and formed a cage, and even though I swiftly jumped to exit the formation, I found myself blasted back by the dark energies.

    \"I caught you,\" Miura sang playfully before she snapped her fingers. And then everything within the circle formation vanished in a blinding, black explosion.

 415 Chapter 415: Curse

    \"Did that do it, I wonder?\"

    Miura''s lips curled into a smile as she watched the smoking scene. As the fumes dissipated and cleared, her smile faded and was replaced by a frown.

    A shimmering water sphere had formed between me and the formation circle, the sturdy barrier protecting me from the crackling black lightning. Clicking her tongue, Miura raised her hand and drew another line of arcane script in the air. With a snap of her fingers, she launched a colossal beam of dark energy in my direction, but it splattered helplessly against the glowing water sphere.

    \"What amazing defense,\" she admitted grudgingly.

    At that moment, my Canis Minor pounced on her, but she almost casually cut them down with her scythe, and a glowing formation circle sprang to life beneath her feet, forming a defensive array that resembled fencing. Black spikes shot outward and impaled a few of the unlucky hunting hounds who weren''t able to evade in time while forcing the rest back. Twirling her scythe about, she cast an annoyed glare at the retreating Canis Minor.

    \"Could you not bother me? I''m trying to think of a way to deal with your master.\"

    \"Uh huh.\"

    I straightened myself as I prepared to leave the safety of my water sphere. Black Tortoise remained where he was, gathering another barrage of icicles to hurl at Miura. However her defensive array held strong, the black spikes surging upward to form a wall upon which the icicles shattered uselessly against.

    \"Stalemate, huh?\" Miura sighed exaggeratedly as she waved her scythe around to slice through another wave of Canis Minor who threw themselves at her. Letting go with one hand, she used it to draw another line of runes. The illuminated scripture hovered in the air for a few seconds before turning into deadly beams of shadow that lanced out in all directions.

    My Canis Minor all dispersed swiftly, scattering across the stage to avoid the deadly beams. Meanwhile, Black Tortoise and I were protected by a water sphere that held strong against the bombardment. Already I was preparing another arrow, but Miura quickly weaved another row of runic script together.

    Not that I cared. Without any hesitation, I launched a second Alnasl in her direction, relying on my surviving Canis Minor to ensure that I wasn''t tricked by her illusion spell. Miura didn''t bother to evade ¨C she knew that she couldn''t get away in time ¨C and instead used her fresh line of runes to augment the defense of her protective array.

    Boom!

    Alnasl struck the wall of black spikes with devastating effect, the flames washing over the crude shadow barrier and scorching the dark surface crimson. The first couple of defensive layers were incinerated immediately from the sheer power, but the wall otherwise held.

    \"My turn,\" Miura smirked.

    The wall of spikes split apart and she gathered a bunch of runes with her fingers before pointing at me. A colossal beam of shadow lanced toward me and slammed into the water sphere surrounding me with powerful impact. Beside me, Black Tortoise rocked from the massive amount of force that collided with his water sphere and a trail of blood leaked from his mouth.

    However, other than that, the water sphere held. For now. Despite the raw strength of Miura''s power, it still possessed nowhere near the penetrative power of Eliza''s broadsword. To be fair, Eliza''s strength was buffed by her Paladin''s Blessing, so it was no wonder she could easily cleave through Black Tortoise''s water sphere.

    Unfortunately, Celestial Guardian or not, Black Tortoise wasn''t going to be able to take much more of such punishment.

    Miura didn''t seem to notice ¨C she was too far away, and unlike me, she didn''t have glasses that possessed zoom-in features and optical enhancement arrays. In any case, she wasn''t the brute force type, so even if she had she wouldn''t do anything as inelegant as spamming powerful spells until she finally down poor Black Tortoise.

    She was the type to scheme and look for other more graceful ways to overcome the current disadvantage. Already she was working on a new script. Try as I might, I couldn''t decipher any of them, despite using my glasses'' translation features. My lenses displayed \"unidentified language\" and refused to provide any translation.

    Well, that was because the script wasn''t so much a language than it was symbols of magic. I had not studied black magic, so I didn''t know how it worked, but I knew that the dazzling number of different arrays and formations were typical of a black mage.

    \"I still don''t understand what this Diabolos thing is supposed to be,\" I muttered with a shake of my head. Even as she drew symbols in the air, Miura continued to scythe down my remaining Canis Minor, and I recalled the survivors before she could annihilate them. I would rather resummons them again later than to lose all of them now ¨C while the deaths of my Constellation spirits were not permanent, it would take me at least a day or two to resurrect them inside my soul sea or whatever alternate space it was that my Constellation spirits dwelled in before I called them into reality.

    Essentially I was no longer able to summon Vermillion Phoenix, Golden Kirin and White Tiger, at least for the rest of the day. Add Leo Minor, Leo, Canis Major and Cetus to that list while at it, along with a good number of Canis Minor.

    That was fine. I still had a good number of Constellation spirits left. Obviously I didn''t have enough mana to summon all 88 of them at once, never mind throwing in the five Celestial Guardians from Chinese astronomy. For the current me, it was impossible.

    Miura was aware of that at least subconsciously, but she didn''t care. She was presently only concerned with dealing the threats that were directly in front of her.

    Such as Serpens. I had summoned the gargantuan serpent and unleashed him upon her. Hissing, my serpentine Constellation spirit now sported azure scales, and his breath billowed forth as cold fog, frost crystallizing in the air as he slid across the stage.

    \"Serpens, Serpentis!\" I ordered. Rearing up, Serpens exhaled a gout of freezing breath that washed over Miura''s position. She hopped back, almost in panic, conjuring a black sphere to protect herself. Moments later, she shattered the ice, but to my surprise she didn''t unleash the script she had been drawing this entire time. Instead, she continued to trace the runes in the air with her fingers, creating more complex scripts.

    I had a sudden premonition.

    \"Serpens! Black Tortoise!\" I shouted, already issuing a mental order. They fired off an ice breath and a barrage of icicles respectively, only for Miura to defend herself with another barrier. She scowled and paused in the writing of her current script, instead developing a new script in parallel to the previous one. This one was completed much faster, and she launched black bolts at Serpens. The colossal Constellation spirit crawled to a stop, and blew the space around him with his freezing breath, constructing a wall of ice.

    The black bolts slammed into the frozen fortress, cracking the ice and sending web-like fissures expanding rapidly across the surface, but was otherwise ineffective. Serpens demolished his crumbling ice wall himself and lunged forward, his fangs gleaming with freezing mana.

    Miura parried his charge with her scythe, cursing under her breath as she was thrown back. Cartwheeling in midair, she thrust her scythe downward and plunged the wickedly curved blade into the ground, stabbing the concrete in an effort to arrest her momentum. The sharp weapon left a trail of broken rock as it screeched in protest, but eventually she succeeded.

    That was when Serpens closed in on her, his jaws open wide as if to swallow her whole. Letting go of her scythe, Miura used both hands to compelte her script, and she tore half of it apart to throw it at Serpens. The huge Constellaltion spirit responded by stopping and unlashing another wave of freezing breath at her.

    However, the script disappeared and instead a glowing circle formation materialized underneath Serpens''s colossal body. The gigantic serpent glanced about and tried to freeze a barrier around him, but he couldn''t protect himself from the magic enchantment coming from below.

    \"Way of Destruction 90, Black Coffin!\" Miura declared calmly, flexing her fingers.

    \"!!!\"

    Before Serpens could react, a massive black cuboid appeared around him, entombing him inside a destructive space. Miura didn''t even bother to look back at her handiwork, casually turning away and striding off.

    After what seemed like eternity, the black cuboid faded away from existence, revealing a stunned Serpens. Blood spurted upward like volcanic geysers, amidst broken azure scales and shattered frost fragments. Then the colossal serpent toppled over motionlessly, his long, coiling figure dissipating into blue mana.

    \"You''ve got to be kidding me¡­!\"

    So this was black magic? The power of a Diabolos? Now I understood why they didn''t just call Miura a black mage. Diabolos¡­that came from the Spanish word Diablo, which was translated as devil.

    Miura was truly a demon¡­

    \"Incredible¡­\"

    \"How scary¡­skipping the incantation for a level 90s Way of Destruction spell, and yet still able to bring out that much destructive power?\"

    \"No, it''s a failure,\" Miura corrected with a smirk. \"I couldn''t even bring out one-third of its original destructive power.\"

    \"Stop lying!\" I yelled. \"I know you want to rip off Bleach, but this isn''t the way to do it! There''s no full incantation for the damned thing anyway! Not for your specific spell!\"

    \"Ara, you caught me.\" Miura playfully held up both hands in mock surrender before she picked her scythe back up. She resumed the drawing of her script with one hand while hefting up her scythe with the other. \"I just like trolling people.\"

    She then paused and stared at me, perplexed.

    \"I didn''t know you read Bleach too.\"

    \"It was one of my favorite manga,\" I admitted. \"I feel sad that the series ended a few years ago, and the ending felt rushed. I knew the editors at Weekly Shounen Jump were pressuring Tite Kubo Sensei to end the series, but they should have let him finish it however he wanted, instead of forcing him to wrap it up in a couple of chapters. It was the last arc too!\"

    \"He did drag Bleach out too long,\" Miura agreed, while using her scythe to conjure a bunch of shadow spikes to destroy the icicles that Black Tortoise had flung in her direction. She then vanished when my third arrow struck her barrier, the crimson flames sweeping across her territory. Stepping out of the inferno, smoldering but otherwise mostly unscathed, she swung her scythe and launched another barrage of shadow bolts in my direction.

    Again, the projectiles dissipated harmlessly against the water sphere that Black Tortoise conjured. She scowled and shook her head in displeasure, and then unleashed another colossal beam. This time, I stood in front of Black Tortoise and conjured Scutum Sobiescianum. As I thought, the devastating spell ripped through my Constellation shield without much effort, hurtling past the shrapnel and debris to slam into the water sphere.

    Fortunately, my Scutum Sobiescianum had absorbed most of the impact from the spell, and what remained dissipated harmlessly against Black Tortoise''s water sphere without injuring him. I could sense my Celestial Guardian nodding his thanks toward me through our mental connection.

    However, all of that was but a front for Miura to finish her script. Swinging her hand, she tossed the arcane symbols in my direction. They disappeared after moving a few centimeters away from her fingers, and suddenly a new circle formation appeared below Black Tortoise.

    \"!!!\"

    I was already jumping and rolling away, but the bulky Black Tortoise''s movements were too clumsy and cumbersome for him to move out of the circle in time. I watched in horror as black symbols emerged from the magic circle to plaster themselves onto Black Tortoise''s shell and skin.

    \"¡­\"

    For a moment, nothing happened. All that occurred was Black Tortoise''s body being drawn all over by these strange, ethereal runes. I frowned, expecting an explosion or such, and already my Celestial Guardian was on top of things, enveloping himself in a water sphere to protect himself from black lightning or whatever.

    \"It''s useless.\"

    Miura''s voice was thoroughly amused. I glanced at her, still not comprehending what was going on, and she merely snapped her fingers.

    \"This is a curse¡­I''m sure you know about curses, right? One of your teammates¡­the Demonic Spear, Craig Carlson, I believe? He''s famous for using curses.\"

    \"¡­yeah¡­\"

    \"And you know what curses do, I presume?\"

    \"What¡­?\"

    I never got to finish my sentence. Black Tortoise wailed, an inhuman sound that sent chills running down my spine. Turning back to my Celestial Guardian, I saw him writhing as boils erupted all over his body. Agony shot through our psychic link and I dropped to my knees from the psychostigmatic feedback.

    Black Tortoise was suffering horribly, internal injuries ripping through his innards from an insidious curse. Black tendrils of mana had seeped through the entirety of his body from the black symbols that currently marked his body, working their way into his organs and corrupting them.

    There was no defense against it. This wasn''t a physical attack or a direct offensive spell ¨C a barrier wouldn''t stop the curse from taking effect. Just like Craig''s cursed spear, which reversed causality and effect, Miura''s curse bypassed all sorts of defenses and directly occurred on the target''s body itself, rather than strike from the outside.

    Gritting my teeth, I dismissed Black Tortoise before his agony could be prolonged. Wiping the blood from my mouth, I turned to face Miura, who smirked.

    \"Well, then,\" she said with a sinister smile. \"What other Soul Beasts do you have to throw against me, my dear?\"

 416 Chapter 416: Black Magic

    \"Not much left,\" I admitted, pushing my glasses up. Miura smiled before she drew a short script in the air and fired bolts at me, which I dodged. I realized that she would need quite some time to draw a script for a curse, which was too slow ¨C allowing me to dodge easily ¨C so she didn''t bother with it. Or perhaps she was saving it for when she could cast it on me when she caught me off guard.

    I didn''t know and I really didn''t want to find out either. I definitely didn''t want to be on the receiving end of her curses, that''s for sure.

    The both of us maintained our distances, where we normally could put our spells and abilities to their greatest use, but I realized I might be at a disadvantage, especially with my mana running out and all that. Furthermore, like me, Miura did not specialize in close combat, and would be at a disadvantage if I could get into melee range with her. For the first time, I had encountered an opponent who was weaker than me in close combat, especially when I considered the fact that I trained under Dad, who taught me the Miyamoto sword style.

    With my mana running out, it might be best to end the battle as quickly as possible.

    Taking a deep breath, I woved through the barrage of shadowy bolts that Miura fired upon me. Darting through the hail of shadowy bolts, I cut apart a few of them that I couldn''t avoid and surged toward Miura. She moved slightly, shifting position, but this was one of the rare occurrences where I was physically faster than my opponent.

    \"!!!\"

    Miura brought her scythe up and parried my swords. She spun her weapon to force me back, the wickedly curved blade slicing through the space where my neck had occupied. That huge move left her open for a counterattack and I obliged, thrusting both of my swords forward from different directions. Miura kicked off, twisting her body but even though she evaded Bai Ri, I managed to graze her waist with Hei Yue, drawing a thin line of blood.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    Hissing in pain, Miura withdrew while slashing desperately with her scythe. She drew another series of runes to bombard me at close range, but I sliced her script apart with my sword. She staggered backward as the script exploded right in front of her and I closed in, hoping to take advantage of the opening to finish her off.

    However, Miura didn''t become a core member by being extremely weak in close combat. Like me, she had developed ways to make up for her vulnerabilities, and especially against someone like me who wasn''t specialized in melee, she had more than enough skills to survive and pull away.

    Plunging the shaft of her scythe onto the ground, Miura used it as a pole to swing about and kicked me before I could bring my two swords down to cut her. I managed to block her feet with my elbows, but I was still sent skidding a couple of paces backward. Miura spun around her scythe before landing on the ground, but before I could close in, she kicked me again, causing me to retreat a step and stay out of range. She then followed up with a slash, which I parried, and then jumped up and tried to kick me in the solar plexus.

    Raising a knee to block her attack, I staggered back and then grimaced.

    \"Are you sure you should be throwing kicks when you''re wearing such a short skirt?\"

    Miura was currently wearing a blue and silver one-piece dress-type uniform that sported a black tie. For some reason, the girls still wore pretty feminine-styled dress-type school uniforms when fighting in the tournament ¨C I guess it was the old anime clich¨¦ where the artists focused on eye candy over pragmatism.

    To her credit, Miura didn''t bashfully pressed her skirt down and act all shy and embarrassed when I pointed it out. She merely smirked and shook her head.

    \"You''re too busily defending against my attacks to see what''s underneath, so I''m not worried at all.\"

    \"I get that, but have you forgotten I''m wearing glasses?\" I tapped my glasses. The lenses had a recording function, after all, so even if I missed something during the fight scene, I could replay everything in full detail later.

    The color of Miura''s face changed slightly, and she glared at me while placing one hand on her hip. \"You had better delete the recordings later.\"

    \"I''ll just cut out whatever I need to cut out to keep it PG,\" I replied dryly. I was mentally over thirty, and thus I wasn''t that desperate for a view of what was under a teenager''s skirt.

    \"That works.\" Miura seemed satisfied with the compromise. She plucked her scythe out of the ground with one hand and drew more runes with the other, and I took that as a sign to resume my attack. Charging forward, I dodged to the side when she hurled several shadowy bolts at me, and then lunged at her exposed flank.

    Whirling around, Miura parried my swords with her scythe, and we exchanged several blows while hopping across the arena. The destruction that our exchange wrought upon the arena was not as much as when I fought against Eliza, especially since neither Miura nor I possessed as much physical strength as the Paladin or melee-type combat mages. Even so, the sheer sharpness of Miura''s scythe and my two swords were able to slice through the reinforced concrete and throw up some measure of debris.

    We continued to trade blows, the blades of our weapons easily cutting through the debris and reducing them into smaller chunks of rock. It almost appeared as if we were fighting in the middle of a fierce sandstorm, the dust and rubble billowing about us. To normal human eyes, our swords and scythe were streaking in black and white flashes, colliding in showers of sparks and throwing up more grains of broken stone into the air.

    In the midst of our furious melee, Miura still managed to find the time to draw more runes and fire off shadow bolts when the opportunity arose. As for me, I delayed my casting of a spell just so I could call something more potent.

    Clang!

    After a particularly violent exchange, the both of us sprang apart, and I finally found the chance to bring one of my stronger Constellation spirits into being.

    \"Hydra!\"

    The multi-headed serpent burst into the material realm, his azure scales sparkling. Five heads snarled and hissed intimidatingly before their jaws opened up to unleash many streams of freezing blasts that enveloped large swathes of the arena and essentially turned it into a tundra.

    \"Me and my big mouth.\" Miura looked a little upset as she glanced up at the gargantuan Hydra. \"So you still have such a powerful Soul Beast in reserve, huh?\"

    I didn''t reply, mostly because I was too busily bouncing from ice floe to ice floe while my Hydra continued to sweep his many heads about, engulfing the stage in frost. Miura emulated my movements, doing her best to stay one step ahead of my Hydra while retaliating with shadowy bolts that dissipated harmlessly against his azure armored scales.

    \"Just how many Soul Beasts do you have?\" she grumbled.

    Eighty-eight Constellation spirits from the Greek astronomy stuff plus five from Chinese astrology, but I saw no need to tell her that. Besides, like I said earlier, currently I didn''t have the mana to summon all of them in one go (and I didn''t mean a simultaneous summoning ¨C even if I summoned them one at a time, I didn''t have the mana to summon all of them into existence in a single day).

    Doing her best to dodge and weave through the multiple heads that pursued her, Miura twisted in midair and beheaded one of them. Three more heads sprouted from the stump, water freezing and coalescing into a serpentine shape. Rather than regeneration, this resembled more like freezing the moisture in the air into a living ice sculpture.

    \"Damn! What a troublesome ability!\"

    Miura clicked her tongue and shifted her trajectory in midair, launching herself toward one of the heads instead. However, she didn''t slice it off but instead landed on top of it, and then ran along the length of his neck to avoid getting struck by the others.

    The neck she was running along went rigid, and two of the other heads sprang forward to knock her off. Miura was forced to jump off, and while she was cartwheeling in midair, the other heads launched a series of freezing blasts that caught her.

    Swinging her scythe, Miura cleaved through one of the blasts before landing on the ground. Slamming the blunt end of her shaft against the ground, she murmured a short incantation to create a black spherical barrier that weathered the blow from another freezing breath. Her surroundings turned into ice, but she was physically safe from the chilling effects of the spell.

    Despite being safely ensconced within the barrier she had just conjured, the defensive enchantment was still unable to completely protect her from the plummeting temperature. Her breaths coming out in thick, white fog, Miura forced her numb fingers across the air, drawing a fresh script. Ominous black runes shimmered in the air, and I intuitively instructed Hydra to reintensify his efforts. Blue torrents of freezing mana gushed out of his mouths and smashed into the sphere, shattering it.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    Miura quickly darted away, and this time she drew several runes to place them on her legs. With a single leap, she propelled herself far from her original position, avoiding getting frozen into solid ice by Hydra''s spells.

    The serpentine heads continued to pursue her, lunging across the distance and descending upon her new position. Miura clicked her tongue and conjured a fresh script of runes, transforming them into a volley of black bolts that detonated ineffectively against the approaching Constellation spirit. Hydra continued to surge onward, the tremendous monster unfazed by her efforts.

    Miura hopped back, parrying one of the heads with her scythe. As she skidded backward, another head struck her from the side. Unable to evade in time, she let go with one of her hand to draw a defensive rune, but the barrier made in her haste was too fragile and it shattered immediately. Miura was sent sprawling onto the ground, blood leaking from her mouth, after being flung away.

    Hydra wasn''t going to miss this chance. He unleashed a blanket of freezing energy across the spot where she was sprawled on, endeavoring to end this once and for all. Rolling onto her back, Miura gritted her teeth as she rammed her scythe against the ground and conjured another defensive barrier. She barely managed to get it in time before she disappeared under a sheet of white and azure.

    For some reason, the outcome reminded me of an igloo.

    \"Don''t let up!\" I warned Hydra, sensing a tremendous output of mana still coming from the inside of the pseudo igloo. He complied, immediately lunging forward, but the ice surrounding Miura''s sphere cracked and shattered.

    Huffing and shivering, Miura completed the last of her incantation and sent the script forward. A formation circle manifested below Hydra and resolved into a curse. Despite his regenerative abilities, Hydra had no defense against a curse that attacked him from the inside out. He snarled as he fell back, black wisps of noxious fumes spilling out from his nostrils and mouths. The runes settled atop his azure scales, corrupting them and causing him to thrash about.

    Still, for a Constellation spirit as large and powerful as him, it was going to take quite some time to subdue him, even with a curse. Hissing ferociously, he sent another blizzard of freezing energy in Miura''s direction, forcing her to dodge. She swore under her breath as she jumped away, throwing bolts of darkness at the incoming breaths of ice to slow it. But she might as well be throwing pebbles into an encroaching tidal wave for all of its effects.

    Then Miura thought of an idea. Spinning in midair, she used her bolts to propel herself away, almost as if she was riding on their recoil like rocket thrusters, blasting herself away from her current position by relying on Newton''s third law. She wasn''t able to control herself smoothly, though, and she ended up colliding against the wall with a grunt.

    \"Damn, I''m so clumsy.\"

    Chuckling, she righted herself, but by now the curse had taken its full effects and Hydra was writhing. I had to dismiss him before the damage got worse. I had half a mind to let him bleed out his toxic blood, but that would be overkill. Fortunately, with my immunity to poison, I would survive, and it was a viable strategy against a target I really, really want to kill.

    Probably I should have used this against Miura, but she didn''t deserve such agony. I wasn''t a fan of torturing my opponents with excruciating pain that surpassed even death. Besides, I had just come up with an idea, which was more apprioriate for me given my current circumstances.

    \"Your move,\" Miura panted, not realizing that I had already developed a new plan in mind. She leaned on her scythe and continued to draw new runes in the air, either to curse me or to bombard me. \"I really hope you don''t have another one of those big ones hidden somewhere¡­\"

    \"I do, but don''t worry. I''ll shrink his size just for you.\" Smiling, I raised a sword in the air and completed my conjuring. \"Green Dragon!\"

 417 Chapter 417: Dragons and Curses

    Miura watched me warily, and raised an eyebrow when she saw a chibi Green Dragon appear instead of the usual giant Constellation spirits that I had been unleashing upon her. She held back a laugh and shook her head.

    \"I didn''t think you were serious when you said you would shrink your Soul Beasts for me. You''re really sweet.\"

    \"Uh, thanks?\"

    I doubted she would thank me once she saw what I planned to do. Not that she was going to wait for me to execute my schemes ¨C she was already drawing cryptic runes in the air and casting some new curse or spell at me. Replicating her attitude, I also moved because I had no intention of getting hit by whatever she was manifesting.

    Swinging my swords, I conjured a storm of razor-sharp petals and directed it in Miura''s direction. Her eyes widened briefly and she jumped back, hastily erecting a fresh barrier to deflect the blizzard of pink petals that relentlessly battered against the black screen. While she cowered uner her barrier, swiftly drawing up more runes, I closed in and sliced it apart directly with both of my swords. Cursing, Miura raised her staff to block my blades, but the trailing petals cut deeply into her, causing her to shriek in pain. She staggered back, blood dripping from her arms, but she somehow mustered the will to retaliate fiercely with her scythe, forcing me to withdraw.

    As I took a step back, she threw her runes at me, which transformed into black orbs that detonated at pointblank range. Despite her efforts, I had gathered azure flowers to blanket myself, which protected me from the deadly blasts.

    As the scorched petals withered away, I unleashed another maelstrom of petals in Miura''s direction. She twirled her scythe around to slice them apart, and was relieved to see that these weren''t as sharp as the ones before.

    \"Your magic is weakening,\" she remarked, and then smiled sinisterly. \"It''s only natural. You''ve been expending so much mana throughout the last three matches. I''m honestly surprised you''re still able to fight. Your stamina and mana reserves are really impressive.\"

    I didn''t respond verbally, and instead directed another onslaught of petals. Vines whipped out to ensnare her, but Miura cleaved them apart with her spinning scythe. Raising her hand, she drew another script of runes before bombarding my position with a barrage of shadow bolts.

    This time, I conjured up a shower of black flowers to absorb the shadow bolts, and they split apart, dispersing into even more razor-sharp petals that flew at her. Miura slammed the blunt end of her scythe''s shaft onto the ground and summoned another barrier that protected her from the ferocious assault. Panting, she scribbled a fresh wave of runes with her finger, only to add them to existing ones.

    A curse. No doubt she was trying to buy herself enough time to cast a curse upon me. I couldn''t afford to let her succeed, or I would no doubt suffer an agonizing end like my poor Constellation spirits and Celestial Guardians.

    \"Ugh!\"

    However, Miura wasn''t able to finish inscribing her runes. Blood dribbled out of her nose, mouth and eyes and she doubled over, dropping her scythe and clutching her chest. She glared at me with bloodshot eyes, not comprehending.

    \"What¡­what did you do to me?!\"

    She then widened her eyes when she realized something. Picking up her scythe, she leaned against it to support herself up, but she wasn''t able to get any higher than her knees. Gritting her teeth, she continued to glower at me.

    \"This is wood magic¡­?\"

    I said nothing, but inwardly I was impressed. Miura certainly was sharp, having picked up that her new injury was due to my Pollen of the Fragrant Wind. Earlier, the \"blunt\" flower petals had been a cover ¨C she had thought my magic was weakening, but she hadn''t realized that she had inhaled a large amount of pollen while swatting those \"feeble\" petals away.

    Not that I was going to tell her that. The less she knew, the better, but honestly she had already figured it out so there was little point in hiding the fact. Whatever the case, I decided not to waste any time and lunged forward to finish her off.

    Despite her heavy internal injuries, Miura was still far from down. Tightening her grip on her scythe, she fended me off, and then kicked from below. I took a step back to avoid her desperate kick, and then retaliated with two strikes from opposite directions. Miura ducked the first one and parried the second one before rolling on the floor and trying to kick my legs out from under me. I jumped above her sweeping leg and swung both swords down, but she blocked them with the shaft of her scythe.

    The ground beneath her split from the impact. Miura muttered something, and two shadowy bolts materiailized on either side of her betore streaking toward me. I attempted to deflect them with both swords, but they detonated upon impact with enough force to send me staggering backward.

    \"Phew¡­\"

    I righted myself up and assumed a new offensive stance. Wielding two swords meant that you were forgoing defense for attack, so it was natural that I favore more aggressive tactics. Which was odd, considering that I was supposed to protect myself long enough to summon something. However, I could also use my summons in an offensive manner.

    \"Flower Frenzy: Green Dragon Overgrowth Maelstrom!\"

    I launched a blurring maelstrom of vivid and dizzying colors, the countless petals whirling about in a violent vortex that swept across the stage and sliced through concrete and debris alike. Miura backed away instinctively, desperately calling up a new defensive enchantment, but she found herself engulfed by the destructive spell.

    Then a formation circle appeared below her and ripped the blizzard of deadly petals apart.

    \"Huff¡­huff¡­\"

    Panting, Miura leaned on her scythe. She was still heavily injured and slightly drained from the sheer effort, but I could see plenty of formation circles appearing all around her. She grinned triumphantly ¨C even without looking around she knew that the entire arena was now under her control.

    \"I see¡­so that''s how your magic works.\" She nodded at my chibi Green Dragon. \"You draw whatever specific elemental magic you get from your Soul Beast¡­using it as a conduit to cast advanced elemental spells that you otherwise couldn''t use. An encyclopedia of sorts.\"

    Wow¡­she even understood my magic to this extent. That was right ¨C in order to summon all these different Celestial Guardians, I needed to first learn the basic elemental spells (like fireball, icicles, razor leaf, earth spikes and lightning bolt) before I could conceptualize and create them within my soul sea (or whatever you call that internal spiritual dimension). However, I only had time to learn basic spells, other than wood magic. But because I had invested all my time and efforts into summoning magic, that had stunted whatever progress I made with elemental magic. Meaning, no matter how much I learned advanced wood magic, for example, I would find it extremely difficult to cast, because most of my memory space or the operating system of my brain was occupied by summoing magic. Think of my brain as a computer ¨C most of the computing power was dedicated to running summoning programs, and if I tried to run anything higher than a simple elemental program, my mind was going to lag. A lot¡­

    To circumvent this weakness, I crystalized my knowledge of advanced wood magic in the form of Green Dragon, and I summoned him as an encyclopedia, as Miura put it. A spiritual reference from which I could more easily draw my knowledge of wood magic from ¨C think of it as me summoning an external hard drive to help get free memory space from somewhere, a separate hard drive that boosted my computing power. Of course, when linked in this way, Green Dragon could only exist in his chibi form, and it would be difficult for him to separate out and attack in his original, monstrous form. The upside, however, is that I had total access to his full power.

    And I planned to use it¡­except that now I was in quite a predicament.

    \"That''s¡­\"

    \"Yup. You''re not the only one with an encyclopedia.\"

    Miura held up a grimoire with her free hand, grinning insidiously. Now I understood why she comprehended my complex magic so easily. She also had something similar, requiring a spiritual grimoire to assist her in casting her advanced black magic. Raising her hand, she allowed the ominous, black grimoire hover above her palm and open up, shadowy trendrils of dark mana spilling from its cursed pages.

    \"Grimoire Del Diablos.\"

    \"Are you just trying to come up with what sound like a fancy Spanish name? I''m pretty sure Grimoire is not Spanish.\"

    \"Oh, shut it. It sounds cool, doesn''t it? Anyway, more importantly¡­\" she gestured toward the many formation array circles that now surrounded us. \"It''s over. I''ve managed to set up all my formation arrays.\"

    \"Okay.\" I shrugged. \"So what do they do?\"

    Thornbush began materializing all over us, thorned vines and plants engulfing the arena and turning it into a beautiful but deadly garden. Gleaming black roses bloomed to life along the bushes, their sinister petals gleaming dazzlingly as they drank in the light. Lethal thorns sprouted from the snaking tendrils, turning the perimeter into a barbed fence that kept everyone out and me and her in. There was no escape from this garden of darkness ¨C I could tell that the thorns were enchanted. They weren''tjust powerful and sharp. Each of them was dripping with a lethal curse that would force whoever seeking an exit to pay a very high price.

    Most likely one''s life.

    \"Beautiful, isn''t it?\" Miura inquired, admiring her own handiwork. \"I''m very proud of this technique. You should be honored ¨C this is my ultimate technique. Up till now, there has been no one capable of breaking through it¡­with the exception of Captain Kureha, but she''s a monster. And even she ended up heavily injured when smashing through my Garden of Black Roses. You should be honored that I''m forced to use it against you.\"

    \"Yeah, I''m so honored.\" I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes. I could feel a tremendous pressure weighing down on me, the curses from the black roses slowly strangling and suffocating me.

    \"Come on¡­you use flower magic as well. You ought to be able to appreciate it. Except¡­as you probably know best of all, every rose has its thorns.\"

    \"Uh huh. You sure talk a lot, huh?\"

    \"Well, I do need to pass the time while waiting for the curses to take effect. And¡­as I said, there is no escape from here. You''re trapped here, away from the light of the outside, and as long as you remain within my Garden, you will receive the full brunt of my curses. You''ll die a lonely death, away from the eyes of everyone.\" She brushed her fingers through her hair. \"Well, don''t worry. I was speaking metaphorically. You won''t actually die ¨C the boundary field will keep you alive.\"

    \"I was never worried about that.\" I charged at her. \"And if I get rid of you, I assume the curse will be lifted.\"

    \"You might be right.\" Miura toyed with her ominous grimoire. \"But don''t forget¡­this entire space is now my territory.\"

    \"!!!\"

    Black bolts of energy streamed through the place where I had been hurtling along, and I dodged in midair, cleaving apart several of the bolts with my swords. Then vines lashed out, trying to ensnare me. I cut them apart with blurring strokes, my two blades transforming into a whirlwind of black and white blurs. Even so, I could feel myself slowly weakening as the curses continued to squeeze the life out of me.

    I wouldn''t be able to last long here.

    \"Oh my¡­this is dangerous. I really can''t underestimate you. To think you still have such power and can still move like that even when under the effects of my cursed Garden.\" Miura closed in on me, swinging her scythe. I had the impression that she had somewhat recovered from her injuries and nourished herself before I brought both swords up to parry her curved weapon. We sprang apart and I assessed her more closely, my glasses scanning her figure.

    Yeah, her injuries had mostly mended superficially and her bleeding had stopped. It wasn''t as if she had fully healed herself, but she had managed to apply emergency firstaid with her grimoire. Seemed like the Garden of Black Roses was both a place of blessings and curses. Blessings for its owner and curses for trespassers.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    I dropped to a knee, feeling giddier than ever. Miura smiled and descended upon me, her scythe swinging toward my neck.

    For a moment, I closed my eyes. And then smiled.

    \"Bloom, Hundred-Colored Flowers.\"

    \"?!\"

    Miura tried to move back in shock, but she was too late. Both of my swords shone brightly before erupting into countless vines that caught her. She tried to slice some of them apart with her scythe, but there were far too many of them, and a good number of tendrils wrapped around her arms and legs, restraining her. She thrashed about desperately, and had shadowy bolts blast and cut apart the vines that had ensnared her, but black petals blossomed into being between her spells and my vines, absorbing the dark projectiles and splitting apart into confetti-like pieces.

    \"What is this?!\"

    \"I''m sorry¡­but I''ll be taking your mana for myself.\"

    \"Eh? How¡­?!\"

    Miura''s complexion grew paler as she found herself weakening drastically. Her movements grew slower, more sluggish, and her breathing much heavier. She slumped, held up only by the vines now protruding from both of my swords. Any effort on her part to cast any new spells was quickly dispelled, her mana diverted away.

    \"What''s¡­what''s going on¡­?\"

    Her eyes widened when she saw buds appear along the vines that entangled her. Slowly but surely, each of them bloomed, transforming into glowing flowers. A myriad of colors, a diversity of species, and each flower spread out its petals and blossomed majestically under the dark shade of her crumbling Garden.

    \"Isn''t a Garden with nothing but Black Roses boring?\" I asked wearily, forcing a smile as I drank in her mana. \"Let''s liven things up with a little more color.\"

    \"That''s¡­that''s my mana inside those flowers¡­\"

    \"Yeah, and I''ll be receiving them gratefully. Thanks for the meal.\"

    Miura struggled one last time, but despite her best efforts, she couldn''t break free. With each passing second, she felt drastically weaker, her strength and mana slipping away from her grasp and flowing into me.

    \"Damn¡­damn it!!!!!\"

    All around us, the Garden of Black Roses disintegrated into countless, dissipating black petals, leaving very little trace that it had once existed.

 418 Chapter 418: Absorption

    One of the flowers drifted over to me and I picked it up, sniffing it a little. I could feel the throbbing mana inside flowing into me, restoring my strength considerably.

    I was right. Miura had a tremendous amount of mana, despite having expended a significant amount of it during our battle. It was more than enough to replenish my own exhausted reserves and last me for another couple of rounds.

    \"Thanks, I really appreciate it.\"

    I watched as the flower faded away atop my palm, slowly disappearing into the night, and closed my eyes briefly.

    \"This isn''t fair¡­\"

    I glanced at my fallen opponent. Miura was lying on the ground, sprawled on all fours. She was looking up at me, perspiration pouring down her ghastly white face. Her long, black hair was soaked in sweat.

    \"It isn''t fair¡­to think that you were hiding something this amazing¡­\"

    Uh¡­why did this dialogue sound so familiar?

    \"Let me guess¡­that''s your ultimate technique¡­Bankai, was it?\"

    \"Are you mixing reality up with a certain manga?\" I asked, annoyed. Miura giggled a little at that, and then used her scythe to right herself up. Frowning, I placed a hand on the hilt of Hei Yue, but she shook her head and raised a hand of her own.

    \"I''m done. I surrender. I can''t fight any longer ¨C you''ve sucked me dry. I don''t have any mana left.\"

    That was the point of my ultimate wood technique, Hundred-Colored Flowers, so I wasn''t surprised that she had been drained entirely of energy. So I just nodded and glanced up at the commentator.

    \"Match¡­match over! Incredible! The winner is Richard Huang of Jing Tian Academy!\"

    His announcement was drowned out by a lot of voices. I glanced up and around the arena, taking heart from the cheering spectators. Harvey, Adrian and Melina in particular were jumping up and down in joy, yelling and celebrating with their friends. I nodded in their direction, and then glanced at my team. As I expected, Harrison and the rest had also erupted in delight, hugging each other or exchanging high fives.

    I smiled wearily, but before I trudged over, I strode over and offered the sprawled Miura a hand. She accepted it without hesitation and allowed me to pull her to her feet while she dismissed her scythe.

    \"You''re such a gentleman,\" she teased.  I shrugged, and after ensuring that she could wallk on her own, turned away to approach my teammates.

    \"Good job!\" Harrison congratulated me enthusiastically, slapping my shoulder in excitement. \"You have really surpassed everyone''s expectations!\"

    \"You did it! You maniac! You suicidal maniac! You actually pulled it off!\" Craig was howling in laughter, more from sheer delight than amusement. He still looked as if he couldn''t believe what he ha just watched.

    \"Hah! I always knew you could do it! I''ve always believed in you!\" For some reason, Dong Fang Yue Chu sounded pretty smug. I shrugged somewhat helplessly. Honestly, I found it incredibly difficult for me to believe in myself. I really didn''t expect to beat Miura. That Hundred-Colored Flower technique was a move I pulled out desperately, and there was no guarantee that I would be able to suck her mana dry before her curse destroyed me.

    Thankfully, it all turned out fine in the end, otherwise I would be in one hell of a pinch.

    Even so, I was still exhausted from the consecutive fighting. Fortunately, there was an intermission between matches, often to allow the team captains to regroup and make their decisions. It was sort of like half-time in a soccer match, where the manager decided on substitutions, briefed his team on what to expect based on what he had seen so far, and for the participants to take a short break. I knew I could definitely use one. Harrison Reed, as usual, made use of the time to analyze the match.

    \"All right¡­now that you''ve eliminated three of their core members, I believe Captain Kureha will either send out Rossetti Picket, who is their Dancer, or Kufa Van Peer, who their Samurai. If we somehow beat them, then Kureha will take to the field herself¡­\"

    \"If we beat either of them,\" Theodore Hammond muttered darkly. He glanced at Harrison. \"What do you reckon our chances of victory are?\"

    \"Not very high,\" Harrison admitted. He glanced at Craig. \"Both Rossetti and Kufa are speed-based users, so I''m thinking of sending you out to face them, since you''re the fastest on our team.\"

    \"Leave it to me,\" Craig said smoothly, but I shook my head and raised my hand.

    \"Begging your pardon, but do you mind allowing me to go for another round? I would like to at last tire them out before Craig comes in.\"

    \"Oh.\" Harrison noticed that I was still on the stage. I had decided to stay put instead of stepping down, so that Green Dragon could maintain his chibi form and hover around. I doubted I had the mana left to turn him into his giant form, despite having absorbed quite a bit from Miura. However, Harrison narrowed his eyes, concerned. \"Are you really sure you''re up to it?\"

    \"Yeah, don''t force yourself,\" Pearl advised worriedly. I grinned.

    \"Don''t worry. I just absorbed quite a bit of mana from Miura, so I actually have more energy than I look. Against such powerful opponents, it''s best to use our members sparingly and allow me to tire them out as much as possible. Also, don''t you want Craig in the team match? It might be too risky to send him out right now.\"

    \"You think I''ll lose?\" Craig snorted. I shook my head.

    \"Nah. But there is the possibility, and if I do tire whoever they send out first, you''ll have a higher chance of winning in the final individual round, eliminating him or her, and then you can continue on to the team match without having spent more mana han necessary.\"

    \"Richard has a point,\" Harrison conceded with a nod. \"That''s quite the sound strategy, especially since we''ve agreed that he will not be participating in the team match¡­whereas we all know Saint Teresa Academy relies heavily on their core members for the team match, so the more of them we eliminate, the better.\"

    \"Well, if you put it that way, then I have no objections.\" Craig leaned back and shrugged nonchalantly.

    \"Are you trying to do a kill-team here in the national tournaments?\" Dong Fang Yue Chu joked. Then he snickered. \"Knowing you, Richie, you just might actually pull it off.\"

    \"Oh yeah, I still remember how Richard team-killed Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy all those months ago.\" Lily was getting excited. \"Maybe he''ll replicate a miracle right here, right now!\"

    \"One match at a time,\" I told her before she could get too carried away. \"Before we talk about team-killing or whatever, at least allow me to get through this match. I might be able to exhaust their fourth member, but I definitely can''t guarantee that I can win.\"

    \"Agreed.\" Harrison nodded again. \"One match at a time. Focus on the next opponent, and we''ll see where that takes us. Otherwise Craig will step in for the fifth round. But¡­\" he placed a hand on my shoulder. \"Don''t push yourself. We still need you for the next round. Don''t destroy yourself to ensure we get through to the next round, only for you to be unavailable for the semifinals against Pendragon Academy.\"

    \"Ha ha, Captain, you''re talking as if we''re already assured passage into the next round!\" Craig chuckled. \"I like your confidence.\"

    \"Actually¡­if we''re talking about progressing to the next round¡­\" This time, it was Bu Fan who stepped in. \"If Richard does fall in the fourth round, send me out for the fifth round instead of Craig.\" He nodded in Craig''s direction. \"Since you need him for the team match, it might be a better idea if I do the last individual match instead. That way, even if I somehow lose, you''ll still have all the core members for the team match intact.\"

    \"Good point,\" Harrison agreed. \"We''ll do that then.\" He then turned to me. \"Good luck, Richard. Let''s see if you can gift us a miracle.\"

    \"I''ll do my best.\" Taking a deep breath, I sat down on the devastated stage and closed my eyes to take a breather. Right now, every second was precious, and I needed to recoup as much mana as possible. Luckily, I had absorbed a great amount of mana from Miura, so I was able to recover a lot faster than I would have normally.

    Over at Saint Teresa Academy''s side, Kureha and her team were in turmoil.

    \"How is this possible?!\"

    \"We lost three individual matches in a row!? To the same person?!\"

    \"What''s going on?!\"

    \"Just who is that guy?!\"

    \"¡­I should have known.\" Kureha Franklin bit back her frustration as she listened to her teammates bitch and whine. \"I told you not to underestimate him. Didn''t I tell you that I''ve fought alongside him before? And this isn''t even his true power. I teamed up with him and Troy King once to fight against a dragon, and I remember telling you guys how he nuked an entire mountain range with a single spell?\"

    \"Yes, and he still hasn''t summoned that black dragon you showed us.\" Miura mused, her fingers on her lips. Then she smiled mischievously. \"Is it true that he rejected Cecilia Stuart? And she has decided not to pursue him?\"

    \"Yeah,\" Kureha replied distractedly, not sure what this had to do with anything.

    \"You don''t feel anything for him, Captain?\"

    \"Feel anything?\" Kureha frowned, puzzled. \"I feel that he''s quite the dangerous opponent. As I said, I fought alongside him before, and I know how strong he is.\" She scowled. \"This is why I told you guys not to underestimate him! Just because he''s from a B ranked school like Jing Tian Academy doesn''t mean he''s weak!\"

    \"No, that''s not what I meant¡­but I''m sort of relieved.\" Miura giggled. \"If neither you nor Captain Cecilia wants him, then I might just take him for myself.\"

    \"That''s assuming he doesn''t already have a girlfriend,\" Lute Dragoon replied. Then he glowered at her. \"You''re supposed to be in my harem!\"

    \"You already have over a hundred girls fawning and spoiling you.\" Miura tried not to roll her eyes, especially when she felt the intense glare from Lute''s harem, which included his mother, his stepmother, his half-sister, his childhood friend, a princess, and a hundred other girls that he met throughout his life and fell for him by virtue of him being a harem protagonist written by an Indonesian writer who loved harem manga, light novels and anime (you could tell that he was a gigantic fan of High School DxD). \"And let me guess, even if does have, you''ll just steal her from him anyway.\"

    \"I can''t help it! I was created to be the ultimate Alpha Male, completely irresistible to all beautiful girls in the world! There is no girl who won''t fall in love with me! Gotta catch ''em all!\"

    His fellow team members regarded him with disgust¡­well, mostly. Eliza was too taken with her cousin, Melina, to have any interest in guys. Honestly, Kureha did find herself somewhat attracted to Lute, despite his obnoxious personality, and Rossetti found him cute. Miura admitted that he was definitely handsome, but she did find his contrived density and poorly conceptualized \"innocence\" and \"naivety\" disgusting. Not to mention, his creator would leak out at some times and display his true arrogance. The guys definitely didn''t like him that much.

    \"Whatever. I just like to keep my options open. He''s my kind of guy, and that wood magic he used? He didn''t just absorb my mana. He sort of captured my heart.\" Miura laughed. \"Jokes aside, he''s very similar to me. It''s too bad I haven''t reached the point where I can summon a demon with my black magic, otherwise I might have stood a chance.\"

    \"He smashed through your Garden of Black Roses, which nobody except our captain had done so before.\" Eliza looked glum. \"I made the stupid mistake of underestimating him¡­I should have known he was a formidable foe.\"

    \"Richard didn''t actually smash through my Garden, to be fair.\" Miura stroked several silky strands of her hair. \"He sucked my mana dry, which caused me to be unable to maintain my Garden of Black Roses. A very different approach, one that relies on more insidious, scheming methods instead of the usual brute force and raw strength tactics that you guys are so found of.\" She chuckled. \"Like I said, he''s my type.\"

    \"Anyway¡­\" Kureha glanced at Rossetti and Kufa. \"Are either of you confident of winning against him?\"

    She had seen me remaining on stage and she guessed correctly that I was staying for the fourth round.

    \"Uh, well¡­he has quite the troublesome magic¡­\" Rossetti began timidly. On the other hand, Kufa stepped forward and bowed.

    \"Captain, if you don''t mind, I would like to face him.\"

    \"Oh? Kufa, you think you can win?\"

    \"Who knows?\" the dark-haired Samurai shrugged. \"But I would very much like to test my blade against his. He''s the same class as me¡­in a fashion. But therein lies his weakness¡­his sword skills are not as polished as mine, mainly because he focused on sharpening his summoning abilities instead. If that''s the case, I think I can exploit his lack of swordsmanship and prevail.\"

    \"All right then.\" Kureha nodded without any hesitation. \"I''ll be counting on you.\"

 419 Chapter 419: Samurai

    I watched as Kufa Van Peer climbed up the stage and took his position opposite me. Looked like he was going to be my opponent this time.

    \"Before we begin, do you mind if I ask a question?\"

    Kufa watched me with narrowed eyes for a moment before he shrugged and nodded. \"Go ahead.\"

    \"Did you watch Assassins Pride?\"

    \"Come again?\" Kufa stared at me blankly for a few seconds before he scowled. \"What the hell are you talking about?!\"

    \"An anime¡­well, it''s based off a light novel, and also have a manga adaptation. Did you watch the anime adaptation of Assassins Pride, or read the light novel or manga version? It''s about a young girl who supposedly can''t use mana, and she gets a Samurai teacher who also happens to be a vampire and an assassin¡­\"

    \"I''ve no idea what you''re talking about,\" Kufa cut me off, annoyed. He glanced at the commentator. \"Let''s not waste time and begin right away.\"

    \"Lies,\" I accused. \"You''re clearly a rip-off from the anime Assassins Pride¡­or should I say the light novel? Even your names are almost the same¡­\"

    \"Can we please begin?\" Kufa growled impatiently. The commentator fumbled with his microphone and cleared his throat.

    \"The fourth match between Jing Tian Academy and Saint Teresa Academy! Right now, Jing Tian Academy is leading 3-0, and they have chosen to stick with Richard Huang, who is taking part in his fourth consecutive match. Is he intending to pull a team-kill? Or will Saint Teresa Academy finally be able to turn things around?\"

    There were excited murmurs from the crowd as the spectators discussed amongst themselves the most likely outcome of the match. There were quite a few avid fans of Kufa screaming his name and waving handmade banners and flags to demonstrate their passionate support. Kufa ignored them pointedly, but I could see why he was so popular. He was extremely handsome, had a very cool and aloof appearance, and wore a black jacket over his blue and silver uniform. For some reason, he reminded me of a dual-wielding black swordsman who was trapped in a virtual reality massive multiplayer online role-playing game about swords, a guy who at first got together with the most beautiful girl who was trapped in the game with him and ten thousand other players, and then the writer milked the series by writing a bunch of sequels that granted him an ever expanding harem¡­

    Okay, I digress, but the point was that such clich¨¦ swordsmen in black were enormously popular with the masses, especially when they acted cool and emo and all that. I was sort of similar, except that I was plain and not handsome at all, and I wore glasses, which ruined everyone''s image of me (just look at the number of comments at the side from readers demanding that I \"heal\" my eyes and get rid of my glasses, ugh, what a pain). And when I didn''t turn out to be the splitting image or Kirito clone, some readers threw a tantrum.

    Well, screw them.

    \"We''ll find out!\" the commentator had been going off on a tangent, describing several of Kufa''s most recent victories an achievements, while leaving mine out. Not because he was biased against me, but because he already introduced me and mentioned my feats earlier when I first stepped onto the stage against Lute Dragoon. What, did you think this was another one of those stories where the whole world hated the main character, treated him as trash and found every sort of way to deride, insult or look down on him or something? \"Match begin!\"

    \"Let''s go ahead!\" someone screamed from the crowd. I swear, if I hear Japlish one more time, I''ll seriously kick somebody.

    Kufa didn''t waste any time, however. He was alreay springing forward with a vengeance, his sword lashing out at incredible speed. I quickly drew both of my swords and parried his strike, but only just barely. The ground split beneath my feet from the sheer impact and my knees buckled.

    However, Kufa wasn''t going to let me off with just that. He mercilessly whirled around and delivered another strike that swung toward my neck. I parried that with Bai Ri, having adjusted and acclimatized to his speed. He then followed up with a kick from below that almost caught me in the crotch, but thankfully I evaded that, his foot skimming several millimeters away from my fron. The guy certainly had no qualms against playing dirty.

    \"Why, you¡­!\"

    Fortunately, I already had my chibi Green Dragon in play. Razor leaves and sharp petals trailed my blades as I launched my counterattack, each of them slicing toward Kufa like a deadly blade. The Samurai nimbly evaded my spells, his long, curved blade cutting a swathe through my scattered leaves and petals.

    \"!!!\"

    A silver flash almost cleaved deeply into my neck, but I fended it off with Bai Ri. I countered with Hei Yue and another storm of lethal petals, but Kufa moved far too quickly for me to get a read on his movements. He was always staying one step ahead, his blade streaking here and there to poke holes in my defense. I managed to survive without a scratch for now, but I knew my luck would eventually run out. With his relentless pace, it wouldn''t be long before I slipped up and made a mistake. That was all it required, and I would sustain a wound.

    Once the first injury appeared, it would mark the start of an avalanche of cuts and wounds that slowly wore me down. Even if each individual cut or seemingly minor injury was not, by themselves fatal, I would eventually weaken from the incessant bleeding and massive loss of blood, and the damage would accumulate past the breaking point.

    Death by a thousand cuts. Not exactly a very pelasant scenario to imagine.

    Huffing, I did my best to avoid getting injured. Taking a step back here and there, I withdrew to harden my defenses, and found myself getting pushed back. Kufa appeared to be accelerating, and his barrage of cuts cornered me. His blade was increasingly finding more purchase, seeking out the chinks in my armor and slowly getting past my swords and delving deeper with each stroke. There were a few times when the razor edge of his katana came dangerously close to tearing my skin open, but I always managed to fend it off by a hair''s breadth.

    Yup, I was doomed.

    Spinning around, Kufa kicked me in the gut and threw me off balance. Even as I grunted, my opponent mercilessly brought his katana down from above, as if intending to cleave me in half. I crossed both of my swords to block his deadly stroke, but he twisted in midair and kicked me in the chest, sending me sprawling on my back. I rolled away before he could stab my face to the ground, and then lashed out with both of my swords, but a sweeping riposte knocked them aside.

    \"?!\"

    A blue-black energy blast leaped out from Kufa''s sword and slammed into me, lifting me from the ground and hurling me bodily across the air. I crashed several meters away, rolling in a desperate and undignified manner ¨C but my action was borne more out of shock and reflex than any conscious will on my part.

    \"Ugh¡­\"

    Coughing out blood, I staggered to my feet, but Kufa tackled me, his katana swinging down to behead me. Unable to get away, I opted to deflect his wicked blade to the side, but he rammed a knee into my face, causing my head to snap back. My vision blacked out for a moment because of the impact, but I allowed my momentum to spin me back before I rolled away. Coughing, I retaliated with a cross cut and a blizzard of petals, but Kufa wisely retreated, making use of his speed to stay ahead of the pursuing petals.

    I seized the opportunity to rise to my feet, making use of the time my spell bought me to recover. Wiping the blood from my face, I prepared to cast another wood spell, in hopes of ensaring Kufa or perhaps incapacitate him. Most likely I wouldn''t be able to take him out like this, but at the very least I should be able to slow him down.

    \"Hmm¡­?\"

    Kufa''s blue eyes glinted as he observed the air between us. With a single swing of his sword, he incinerated the space with a blue-black energy blast from his blade. Ignited pollen scattered throughout the air, slowly descending in a scene reminiscent of pyrotechnics.

    \"That pollen spell is very annoying,\" he remarked indifferently, as if he had done nothing more than comment on the weather, or how he had just swatted a fly. \"I would hate to breathe in something like that.\"

    \"I know what you mean,\" I admitted wearily and shook my head. \"Inhaling all that pollen is not good for health, especially if you have allergies. Hay fever is a pretty terrible thing to suffer from.\"

    \"Uh¡­you do realize that you''re the one casting all these pollen spells and throwing them at me, just so I can breathe them in and suffer internal injuries, right?\" A vein was twitching in Kufa''s temple. \"So don''t talk as if this has absolutely nothing to do with you.\"

    \"Um¡­you do realize that you''re the one swinging your katana everywhere in an attempt to attack me, right?\" I retorted, irritated. \"What exactly do you think I will do in response to your assault? Stand still and let you hit me without fighting back?\"

    \"Honestly, a lot less talking and a lot more fighting¡­\"

    I would have thrown both of my hands up in exasperation if I wasn''t holding my swords. \"You''re the one who started the conversation to begin with!\"

    \"True,\" Kufa conceded as he unleashed another sword blast from his katana, forcing me to dive to the side. While I rolled to my feet, I swung my two swords and launched torrents of swirling, razor-sharp petals in his direction. Relying on his speed to weave through the blizzard of deadly petals while slicing a path through those he couldn''t evade, he sneered in a voice full of disdain. \"But I didn''t expect you to be immature enough to rise to my juvenile provocations.\"

    I felt a vein twitch in my temple, but I suppressed my growing rage. Rather than bellow fruitlessly at someone who was a couple of decades younger than me, I decided to allow my swords to do the talking. However, just as I surpassed Miura in terms of swordsmanship during the previous match and thus was at a great advantage if I fought in close range, I would be outclassed if I engaged Kufa in melee combat. His swordsmanship was clearly superlative and surpassed mine by a mile.

    \"Ugh¡­\"

    Shuddering, I dodged another series of blasts from Kufa''s merciless strokes, jumping this way and that to avoid getting cleaved apart. I still recalled how he pressured me immensely with his superior sword skills, literally driving me into a corner. I was practically seconds away from being carved apart by his katana, and if I hadn''t retreated, I probably would have ended up as a bleeding mess right now.

    Yup¡­there was no way in hell that I would willingly throw myself into close range combat with Kufa again¡­not at the moment, at least. He was too fast and too skilled for me. It was all I could do to keep up with him.

    \"Hmph.\"

    Unlike me, Kufa was eager to get stuck in. He was weaving through my storms of petals and closing in on me, where his katana would do the most damage. Instinctively, I summoned Taurus and had the gigantic bull crash down upon his position.

    \"!!!\"

    Kufa glanced up and barely managed to jump away in time before Taurus smashed into the spot where he occupied a millisecond ago. He swung his katana in reflex, but Taurus met his curved blade with his huge horns, and using his prodigious strength, he tossed the medium-sized Samurai aside. Kufa nimbly flipped himself up in midair and landed deftly on his feet, with a single hand thrown out to maintain his balance.

    However, I wasn''t going to allow him the time to recover.

    \"Taurus, Aldebaran!\"

    My Constellation spirit charged forward, flames billowing from his jaws and engulfing the area. Kufa stood his ground firmly, holding his katana with both hands before he cleaved the inferno apart. Even so, he was visibly scorched in certain areas, his skin blistering from the sheer heat.

    Then Taurus struck him like a freight train. Kufa righted his sword up and parried the gigantic bull''s horns, avoiding a messy death from being gored. The impact hurled him across the arena, but still he made use of his amazing agility to cartwheel about, planting his feet against the wall. The concrete cracked from the collision, but Kufa ignored the damage he had caused, instead bending his knees before he sprang from the crumbling surface to launch himself forward, to meet Taurus in combat.

    The two of them clashed in the middle of the arena, horn against blade. With a single sweep of his sword, Kufa unleashed a massive blue-black wave of energy at pointblank range, cleaving my poor Constellation spirit in half.

    As Taurus fell apart, dissipating into mana, Kufa landed on the ground and exhaled heavily. Before he could recover, I was already descending upon him, a cloud of deadly flower petals following me. With a determined yell, I enveloped him in a blizzard of frenzied flowers, each of them a blade sharp enough to cut through steel.

    \"?!\"

    It was useless. Kufa swung his sword and blasted the entire maelstrom of flowers apart in a single stroke, blue-black mana wreathing him like a demonic aura. Blood streamed down his face and arms, but he was otherwise still in one piece.

    \"You were so close,\" he sneered. \"But too bad¡­you''re just not good enough.\"

 420 Chapter 420: Vampire Samurai

    \"I''m aware,\" I acknowledged dryly before springing away to avoid getting sliced in half by Kufa''s vicious katana. I bombarded him with another storm of razor-sharp petals in hopes of driving him away, but he sliced through them.

    \"Your wood spells may look pretty, but they are useless against me,\" he sneered.

    \"Well, I guess I''ll have to try something that will be useful against you then,\" I remarked nonchalantly as I hopped away. Kufa pursued me relentlessly, swinging his katana in my direction. He shot forward, his body turning into a black blur as he closed in on me.

    He never got to reach me.

    \"!!!\"

    Capricorn burst out of the ground and slammed into him. Kufa cursed as he twisted in midair and parried the giant goat''s horns, unable to dodge because of his irresistible momentum. He was thrown into the air, but he managed to right himself and slammed his feet against the wall before propelling himself forward once again.

    My Constellation spirit wasn''t stupid enough to take him on head-on, not after I witnessed what Kufa did to Taurus (we shared memories, as I said, my Constellation spirits were essentially a part of me, a part of my own psyche). Instead, he stomped his hooves on the ground and conjured several earth spikes that sought to impale the revolving Kufa.

    The Samurai swiftly made short work of the protruding obstacles, his blade almost singing as it sliced through the stony spikes. Before he could clear the entire course, however, Capricorn slammed into him from the side, but Kufa''s reflexes saved him. His sword lashed out to connect with my Constellation spirit''s horns.

    Spinning around, Kufa unleashed a blue-black energy blast that blew Capricorn back a few steps. Before he could fully recover, I was already on him, delivering a long trail of Sakura petals in his direction. Kufa cursed under his breath as he nimbly deflected as many of the pink petals as he could, swatting the razor-sharp blossoms away to prevent any major injury.

    While he was preoccupied with my spell, Capricorn struck him from behind, almost breaking his spine. Kufa grunted as he was thrown forward, but he somehow managed to flip himself and land on both feet. Launching another blue-black energy blast to keep Capricorn at bay, he then spun away from the second barrage of Sakura petals I threw in his direction, his glowing katana slicing a path through them.

    He was good, I had to give him that.

    When Capricorn charged at him, he decided to meet the giant goat head-on. Kicking off the ground, he surged toward my Constellation spirit. For a moment I thought he was going to cleave Capricorn in half, but Kufa instead chose to jump up at the last moment. Planting his foot on the giant goat''s huge horns, he switched his trajectory and propelled himself in my direction. His figured blurred into a black streak that moving at a speed too fast for the eye to follow. I almost couldn''t keep up with him.

    Fortunately, I didn''t have to.

    Aries rammed into Kufa from the side, sending him careening toward the edge of the arena. The Samurai vanished in an explosion of debris and powder, his body slumping beneath huge chunks of rock and out of sight. I wasn''t na?ve enough to believe that Kufa had been defeated by just that, though. Despite his relative lack of defense ¨C especially when compared to a Paladin such as Eliza Franklin ¨C Kufa Van Peer was definitely a tenacious warrior.

    \"!!!\"

    I had to back away when a huge chunk of concrete came flying at my head. It crumbled into dust as it collided with the wall behind me, the vicious impact leaving a crater on the surface. Raising both swords defensively in front of me, I watched as Kufa climbed out of the rubble and wiped the blood from his mouth with his free hand.

    \"I''m disappointed.\"

    \"Really?\" I honestly couldn''t care less, but the more Kufa talked, the more time I bought to summon another Constellation spirit or two, or cast a spell. Of course, the same went for Kufa, which was why he carried out the delaying tactics, but that was fine. I couldn''t prevent him from casting a spell, not unless I could cast a spell of my own first.

    \"Relying on such things to fight¡­\" Kufa glanced from Aries to Capricorn and scowled. \"I expected more from a Samurai like you.\"

    \"Uh, but I''m not a Samurai?! Don''t go labeling me as one on your own and then whine about it when I don''t meet your expectations.\"

    \"I guess you do have a point there.\" Kufa sighed somewhat exaggeratedly. \"But I thought you learned the Miyamoto sword style under your master, so I was expecting more of a sword duel. Not this. Not the spamming of soul beasts. I thought you would have a bit more honor than this.\"

    \"What bullshit are you spouting right now?!\" I demanded, getting irritated. \"You do realize that I''m a summoner, right? I''m not a bloody Samurai, I''m a summoner! Of course I''ll be summoning monsters to deal with my opponent! That''s what summoners do! I''m closer to Lute Dragoon than I am to you!\"

    \"Not exactly. I mean, yes, both you and Lute are summoners, but you are different from him. You are definitely not a Dragoon. You''re more of a Samurai who summons than a Dragoon.\"

    \"What are you rambling about now?\"

    \"You''re not cavalry. You don''t fight on horseback or on a mount, not like Lute does. If anything, you rely more on the Miyamoto swordsmanship that you learn from your master. I want to see more of that.\"

    \"We don''t always get what we want in life,\" I retorted sourly. At my mental command, Capricorn and Aries moved in. I had enough of listening to his rubbish, and intended to finish him off once and for all.

    Kufa might have noticed, or maybe he didn''t. It didn''t matter ¨C either way, he was moving out and rushing toward me. Aries and Capricorn caught him in a splinter attack ¨C or tried to, but he darted away, using his incredible speed to weave between them and launch himself toward me. Kicking off the ground, he soared up high when he found his path barred by my two large Constellation spirits.

    \"Scattered War Blade!\"

    Thrusting his sword forward multiple times, he launched countless of blue-black blades that fanned across the arena and sliced through both Aries and Capricorn. My two Constellation spirits were forced to retreated, battered and bleeding from the ferocious attack.

    As they did so, Kufa seized the chance to launch himself at me. Again, he transformed into a black blur that streaked toward me at a speed that no human eye could follow.

    \"!!!\"

    Once again, he never reached me. Lupus had appeared right beside him and bit down on him. Kufa twisted away, but this time he was unable to get away, and was forced to deflect the huge wolf''s attack. Lupus''s jaws clamped down on his arm and tore it off.

    \"Ugh!\"

    The Samurai staggered away, blood spurting from his stump. As he swung his katana to blast Lupus back, Capricorn and Aries closed in on him, their horns colliding against his body. Fortunately, Kufa was still somehow able to jump up high, spreading his legs and planting his feet on one horn each. Before either Constellation spirit could withdraw, Kufa was already jumping away, leaving a thick trail of blood in retreat.

    Only to fall into the trap that I had set up.

    \"Flower Frenzy.\"

    The deadly maelstrom of razor-sharp petals swallowed him up. For a moment, I thought I had him, but then several blue-black flashes of mana ripped my spell from the inside out.

    \"He still has this much power, even with one arm?\"

    I couldn''t help but feel a chill. Kufa managed to jump out of the flowers, and to my surprise, he was completely unscathed ¨C aside from his missing arm, of course.

    Aries, Capricorn and Lupus all pounced on him, reacting to my mental command. However, in a series of movements too fast for my eyes to follow, Kufa single-handedly cut them apart with his katana. I watched, dumbstruck, as all three of my massive Constellation spirits burst into strips and wisps of mana, their material bodies no longer able to handle the damage.

    \"This guy¡­!\"

    Cursing under my breath, I sent Green Dragon forth. Channeling whatever mana I could into his chibi form, I had him transform back into his massive version. The real Green Dragon materialized, stretching out to over twenty meters in length. Letting out a bestial roar, the divine Celestial Guardian descended upon Kufa, his jaws wide open as if to swallow him whole.

    Kufa merely raised his remaining arm and parried Green Dragon''s jaws and fangs with his katana. He didn''t even skid backward ¨C despite the ground behind him blowing up into smithereens from the impact, he firmly held his ground and refused to yield an inch.

    With a single arm, he stopped Green Dragon completely in his tracks.

    \"Impossible¡­how?! What is with this crazy strength?!\"

    To my astonishment, I watched the sinister blue-black aura coalesce around Kufa. His previously short black hair lengthened past his shoulders, turning into a ghostly silver-white color. His blue eyes turned red, and he smiled, revealing elongated canines.

    With a single stroke, he decapitated Green Dragon, blue-black mana coursing through my Celestial Guardian''s serpentine body and maiming him. Green Dragon vanished in dissipating fumes of ethereal mana, leaving not much of a trace behind.

    \"The fuck?! Are you supposed to be a vampire or something?!\" I demanded, astounded by the unbelievable scene. \"Were you lying when you told me you didn''t watch Assassins Pride?! You''re completely ripping it off right now!\"

    \"Oh, shut it.\" Kufa turned to glare at me with those blood-red eyes of his. Then he smirked. \"Still, I''m impressed. I didn''t know you possessed some knowledge regarding vampires.\"

    \"Why wouldn''t I know about vampires? They''re like one of the most famous monsters in the world.\"

    Even as I grumbled, Kufa ignored me and strode over to where his disembodied arm was. He picked up the severed limb and reconnected it with his stump. Blue-black threads of mana pierced through the flesh and sew the arm back to his stump, reconnecting nerves, skin, blood vessels and bone. Within a few seconds, Kufa had successfully reattached his arm, leaving no sign that it had ever been cut off.

    \"Good lord, you''re even ripping that particular scene from Assassins Pride off? Have you no shame? What happens if we become sued for plagiarism?\"

    Kufa rolled his eyes. \"I told you to shut it. I haven''t watched whatever anime you''re talking about. I''m not a nerd or a creepy otaku like you. I''m a cool, emo, stylish edgy guy who loves spouting about being a professional killer and pretending to be an assassin, only to behave completely differently and refuse to kill during the story itself.\"

    That only increased my suspicion that he was lying. I never mentioned all that, yet he knew exactly how the protagonists of all these light novels and their manga and anime adaptations acted. This was no mere coincidence.

    \"So¡­\" Kufa tested his left arm, making sure it was attached properly and he could move it without any ill effects. Seemed like there was no problem at all. As expected, a vampire''s regenerative abilities were on a totally different level. \"Do you surrender?\"

    \"No,\" I replied. \"And you still haven''t answered my question.\"

    \"I already told you I didn''t watch or read Assassins Pride¡­\"

    \"Not that! I mean, are you really a vampire?!\"

    \"Ah, yes. Now that I think about it, I haven''t confirmed it, have I? I only complimented you on knowing about then. Then¡­yeah, I am a vampire.\" Kufa''s grin widened, revealing his fangs again. \"To be more specific, I''m technically a half-vampire. I''m also half-human.\"

    \"How does that work?\" Now I was getting confused. \"Don''t you transform into a vampire when getting your blood sucked or receiving blood from a vampire? What''s with this half and full thing?\"

    \"You don''t have to know. It''s none of your business, after all.\"

    I really, really wanted to know, but I had the impression that Kufa wouldn''t tell me no matter how much I badgered him. Not to mention, we were still in the middle of a match. He would be too busily pummeling me to answer any of my queries. Right now, Kufa had drawn his sword once more and was charging at me.

    \"Ugh!\"

    I parried his strike, but his tremendous strength sent me skidding several meters backward. He kicked me in the solar plexus with such force that I actually threw up some blood as I was sent hurtling across the stage. Slamming against the ground, I rolled to reduce the impact, but as I struggled to my feet I realized I couldn''t stand. My legs shook so violently that I had to lean on both of my swords just to kneel upright.

    \"Unless you somehow have holy magic, it''s impossible for you to win against a vampire like me.\" Kufa chuckled as he approached me, the sharp tip of his katana pointed toward my throat. \"Well then¡­do you surrender?\"

 421 Chapter 421: Blood and Ice

    \"Stupid question.\" I snorted derisively. \"What''s with you guys always demanding that I surrender? If you want your victory, you have to earn it. Don''t expect it to be handed over to you on a silver platter.\"

    \"I see.\" Kufa Van Peer nodded thoughtfully. \"Fair enough. I never did expect you to meekly surrender just because I''m stronger. I did hear about how teancious and determined you were, and considering how you''ve personally fought alongside our captain¡­against an actual rank A Dragon, no less, I would say I expected nothing less. You truly are impressive.\"

    Ranks meant nothing to me. Sure, Dragons were extremely powerful and magnificent creatures, but whether you got devoured by a Dragon or maimed by a Ravager, it made no difference. Death was the same no matter how you died or what killed you. The stupid obsession with ranks often caused people to underestimate how dangerous even the smallest monsters could be. A kid with a gun could just as easily kill you as a so-called 10-Dan Black Belt karate master.

    Not that this was the moment to be spouting my sentiments. Seeing that I refused to give up, Kufa lunged at me with a thrust of his katana. Gritting my teeth, I yanked my two swords up and parried his curved blade, but the strength behind his blow was so powerful that I was sent hurtling across the stage again. Flipping myself up, I landed on my feet somewhat clumsily, stumbling as I frantically tried to regain my balance.

    Kufa mercilessly bored down on me. His speed was as incredible as ever, but ever since he transformed into his long-haired vampire mode, his strength had grown explosively. Each of his strikes felt like the force of a thirty-eight ton armored personnel carrier smashing into me. Metal shrieked as my swords struggled to weather the blow of his attacks, and my arms quivered from the immense pressure of enduring his onslaught. I swear, the bones in both of my arms were starting to break from the relentless attacks.

    The vampire Samurai did not care, and he relentlessly swung his katana again and again at a speed I almost couldn''t follow. Each blow a sure-kill if I didn''t block, his relatively thin weapon being used as a hammer to blungeon me to death rather than cut me apart. Staggering backward, almost on the brink of crumbling under Kufa''s punishing assault, I tried my best to retreat, to no avail.

    \"What else can you summon now? Do you have enough mana to summon that black dragon of yours that you used to nuke the entire northern mountain range? Even though you''ve absorbed a lot of Miura''s mana, you''ve been using so many spells and summoning so much that I doubt you have enough left for such a mana-consuming summon.\"

    I hated to admit it, but he was right. I didn''t have enough mana left to summon Draco¡­or even if I did have the mana left to summon Draco, I wouldn''t have sufficient energy remaining to power his spells and abilities, so I might as well not summon him in the first place. Of course, there was the option of just relying on his sheer bulk and raw physical prowess to crush my opponent, but maintaining his existence in the material realm was an exhausting task.

    Not only that, I had literally witnessed Kufa literally single-handedly slice Green Dragon apart with just one arm. I had no doubt he could repeat the amazing feat against Draco, now that he had reattached his other arm.

    His long, silver hair flying behind him ¨C more from the tremendous amount of mana emanating from his enhanced body than the wind generated by his incredible speed ¨C the vampire charged at me, his katana carving through the air to slash me in half. I crossed my swords and blocked it, only for my knees to buckle and I fell into a kneeling position even as my surrpundings crumbled. Grunting, I kicked up at Kufa, but he spun away before kicking me in return. Despite blocking his foot with my forearm, I was sent hurtling to the side.

    \"Ugh!\"

    The bone in my forearm felt as if it had shattered to pieces. My limb going numb, I tried to shake some feeling into it while hitting the ground in a roll. Already Kufa was waiting there, having gotten to my landing position before I reached it, and he slashed at me. I barely brought both of my swords up in time, and wheezed as I struggled to keep all three blades away from my face.

    Icicles erupted from the ground and impaled Kufa, who didn''t even bother to dodge despite clearly possessing the speed and ability to do so. He shrugged off the injuries with a sneer, but the attack had managed to drive him back by several meters. While he staggered, I quickly rolled away and widened the distance between us.

    \"Hmph.\"

    Kufa turned to face me, but I was retreating as quickly as I could, calling forth Monoceros. The unicorn charged forward, but Kufa merely cut him apart before the Constellation spirit could impale him with his horn.

    Fortunately, my sacrificial Constelaltion spirit bought me more than enough time to escape. Catching my breath, I watched Kufa while doing several analyses in my mind. Right now Kufa was too strong for me to deal with, especially when I was exhausted. Not only that, I was running out of mana, and fast.

    My tank was near empty, so to speak. I had to be very careful regarding my next move, or the match would end. Bu Fan would take over (damn, I almost called him Mo Fan by mistake), but I was sure he would have difficulties facing an opponent as formidable as Kufa, especially now that he was in his vampire state and Bu Fan wouldn''t have the time to draw his star circles or whatever it was that he needed to cast his advanced magic.

    Apparently my tactic proved to be pointless. Kufa merely smirked and in a single bound he crossed the vast distance of the arena in a second. I almost missed him, and it was only through my instinctive strikes with both my swords that I managed to deflect his deadly katana to the side. Kufa whirled about and kicked me, and even though I bocked his foot with the back of my hand, I was still sent tumbling to the side.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    Rolling on the ground, I tried to evade Kufa''s next relentless barrage. When we sprang apart after a particularly violent exchange, sparks flying between us, he then launched his Scattered War Blade, raining a deadly hail of silver blades on me.

    \"Scutum Sobiescianum!\"

    I quickly conjured a shield to deflect the hail of energy blades, and it buckled uner the onslaught, cracks appearing across its resilient surface. Shuddering under the bombardment, the Constellation shield slowly crumbled. Shrapnel flew about as the energy blades continued to chip away at it, sending tiny fragments of metal plummeting to the ground before those little debris vanished away in wisps of mana. Despite the punishing salvo that would have sliced an armored tank into pieces, Scutum Sobiescianum silently withsthood the barrage of lethal energy blades¡­until Kufa descended and cleaved it in half with his sword.

    Bursting through the two halves of my disappearing Constellation shield, Kufa descended upon me to deliver a single vicious strike. I met him resolutely, bringing both of my swords up. The blades collided violently and our mana detonated upon contact, hurling the both of us away to the side. Of course, Kufa wasn''t affected much by the shockwaves that buffeted him, his vampire physique impervious to all but the most powerful attacks.

    As for me, I was sent stumbling to the side, blood spurting from my mouth and numerous wounds.

    \"It''s over,\" Kufa declared as he sprang at me, intending to deliver the finishing blow. Despite my best efforts, I was unable to bring both my swords up in time, and Kufa''s blade swung toward my exposed, vulnerable neck.

    \"!!!\"

    Again, his blade never reached me.

    The entire space around me was frozen in an instant, and Kufa found himself trapped by huge blocks of ice. His katana was locked inside ice, which was rapidly spreading across his body and holding him in place. For a moment, he paused, unable to move as the ice completely covered him, but then he unleashed a huge blast of blue-black mana to shatter the ice. White mist mixed with noxious fumes of vampire mana, and Kufa surged out of the falling frost fragments to take my head off.

    Fortunately, my tactic had bought me enough time to recover and right myself. Rising to my feet, I deflected his katana and kicked him away. Kufa was superior in hand-to-hand combat, however, and he countered almost immediately, his blade cutting a few strands of my hair while his foot rammed into my side and sent me cartwheeling away.

    Coughing out blood, I crawled to my feet, and then whirled about to parry Kufa''s next strike. His limbs and sword were locked in ice once more, and he expended more of his mana to shatter them before unleashing a blue-black blast of energy at pointblank range. Despite my best attempts to freeze them, they hit me and caused blood to flow freely from my arms and chest.

    Staggering back, I sent a freezing blast of energy to entomb Kufa in ice, but he broke free almost instantly and retaliated with a blue-black blast of mana. This time, I successfully froze it in place before it could reach me, and then I dove at him. Kufa stabbed at me, but I ducked underneath his blade and cut off his arm.

    \"!!\"

    Kufa was stunned that he actually fell for my feint ¨C all this time he had been the superior swordsman and had been one-sidedly pressuring me. Yet, despite my mounting injuries and fading strength, I was still somehow able to catch him off guard with a decisive strike and deal him a debilitating injury that would have laid low any other opponent.

    No¡­it was precisely because Kufa could afford to receive such injuries that he allowed me to sever his arm. I was the one who was mistaken. I had thought I caught Kufa off guard with a feint, but in reality I was the one who fell for his feint.

    Having gotten impatient because I had been obstinately resisting his attacks and enduring whatever he threw at me for so long, Kufa had resorted to allowing me to take his arm, just so he could forcibly create an opening and strike a decisive blow just when I thought I had a chance at winning. Ignoring his disembodied arm, which was spinning away elsewhere, he slashed at me with his katana. I almost couldn''t block it in time, but therein lay the strength of wielding dual swords.

    With Hei Yue occupied with chopping off Kufa''s arm, I still had Bai Ri free. Raising my white sword, I parried Kufa''s strike. However, given his vampire strength, one arm wasn''t enough to fully guard against his strike. Blood burst from my left arm and I recoiled in pain before Kufa kicked me in the solar plexus to send me crumpling against the opposite wall.

    \"Ah¡­ugh¡­!\"

    Vomiting out a gout of blood, I slumped down, no longer able to stand. Kufa stepped forward, his disembodied arm actually floating across the air and returning to him, reattaching as threads of blood connected along with blue-black strips of mana. But the vampire Samurai reached out and drew out a substantial amount of blood for his use.

    \"!!!\"

    I watched as Kufa turned his blood into blood blades, each of them a long, crimson sword that hovered in the air. With a flick of his newly reattached left arm, Kufa sent the blood blades streaking toward me. I barely conjured a shield to stop them in time, but his blood projectiles smashed Scutum Sobiescianum into smithereens before continuing toward me in a ferocious manner.

    Lowering my head, I exhaled heavily and unleashed my last trump card.

    Crack!

    \"!!!\"

    Kufa narrowed his eyes when he saw my surroundings freeze. All of his blood blades had turned into red ice, held firmly in place by my spell. I slowly staggered to my feet, raising my two swords for one final time. Clicking his tongue, Kufa generated more blood blades while charging forward. His blood weapons lanced through my ice, shattering them into crystalline fragments, and he gathered a whirling maelstrom of blood-red mana around his sword.

    I could tell that this single strike of his was incomparable to everything I had faced so far. Instinctively I understood that if I tried to parry this attack, even by crossing both of my swords, I would die from the effort. No questions asked.

    It was that powerful.

    Even without that single ultimate strike, I still had to deal with the numerous blood lances that were smashing their way through my fortress of frost, breaking the ice effortlessly as they homed in on my battered figure. I was aware that even if I somehow defended against Kufa''s ultimate sword strike, I would find myself impaled and punctured by those countless blood lances that were zipping and zigzagging through my ice labyrinth.

    There was no escape.

    \"Divine Blood Strike!\"

    Kufa was upon me now, swinging his katana. Crimson blood mana exploded around his blade, disintegrating everything between us, whether it was ice, debris or metal. His technique was so potent that my skin was actually flayed off just from being in such close proximity to the sword. To my horror, I could see my blood leaking out of my arms and body and flowing toward Kufa.

    This was one of the strongest vampire techniques in existence ¨C controlling your opponent''s blood and sucking it to empower your own moves. Being the victim firsthand really opened my eyes to the terrifying nature of the incredible vampire technique, and reaffirmed the reason why vampires were feared so much throughout the Global Federation.

    In the face of such a horrifying and overwhelming power, I did not falter. Instead, I gritted my teeth and gathered what was left of my mana before I unleashed it in a single burst.

    \"Absolute Zero.\"

    The entire space around us turned white, everything freezing in an instant, whether it was blood, debris, swords, or even mana. Nothing was spared, especialy since this wasn''t just an ordinary technique that entombed its targets in ice.

    No, dropping the temperature to Absolute Zero was literally forcing the temperature down to zero Kelvin and stopping all molecular movement. Even mana was not exempt from this particular law of physics, their movements at the subatomic level shuddering to a jerking halt.

    Kufa''s eyes widened, and then he froze as well, trapped inside an arcane block of ice that even his vampire powers couldn''t break free.

    Panting, my breath leaving in thick dense fogs before solidifying into ice, I thrust Hei Yue at his frozen form and managed a weary grin.

    \"Looks like I don''t need holy magic to defeat a vampire, after all.\"

 422 Chapter 422: Question of Morale

    When it was clear that Kufa Van Peer wouldn''t be breaking out of my Aboslute Zero spell, the commentator finally cleared his throat and announced the outcome of the match.

    \"My goodness! Is Richard really going it? Is he on his way to achieving a team-kill ¨C against Saint Teresa Academy, no less?! How is this possible?!\" He then suppressed his excitement. \"Whatever the case, the match is clearly over! The winner is Richard Huang of Jing Tian Academy¡­again! Will Saint Teresa Academy be able to stop him?\"

    With the result of the match officially ruled in my favor and no longer beyond any doubt, I dismissed my spell and released Kufa from the clutches of my Absolute Zero. His frozen body slid out of the extreme ice and lay very still on the ground. It was only because of the boundary field that he was still alive, otherwise even his vampire body would have been completely destroyed by the absolute zero temperature.

    Medics rushed forward to cast emergency healing spells on Kufa''s near-corpse (fitting, given how he was a vampire) and ferry him out of the arena on top of a stretcher. The poor dude was still in his vampire form, his long silver hair unchanged, and his fangs still visible. His eyes were sealed shut by frost, so I couldn''t see if they had remained red or returned to blue. Most likely the former, given how the other vampire features lingered.

    \"Feed him some blood and he''ll recover quicker,\" Kureha informed the medics, and they nodded unquestioningly. Evidently Kufa''s status as a vampire was not a secret. His team captain obviously knew about it, and the medics seemed used to treating him, not at all appalled by what would otherwise be perceived as a demonic treatment.

    On the other side of the ring, the atmosphere was a lot less somber and a lot more celebratory. My teammates were cheering and whooping, exchanging high fives and hugs. The spectators were also riled up by the unexpected outcome and they were applauding what they thought was a splendid performance. Harvey and Adrian were leading the cheers, gesturing wildly for the supporting contingents to roar their approval and praise.

    But I wasn''t listening to any of that. I was far too exhausted, too drained. Slumped against the corner of the ring, I watched blankly as Harrison approached, a big smile on his face.

    \"You did well, Richard,\" he told me. \"You did very well.\"

    I forced a tired grin and nodded.

    \"Thanks.\"

    \"Four zero!\" Dong Fang Yue Chu yelled as he bounded over excitedly. \"Thanks to your efforts, we''re up four-zero against Saint Teresa Academy, of all people! You''re amazing! You helped build up such a tremendous lead and took out four of their core members!\"

    \"It''s not over yet,\" I reminded him cautiously. Taking a deep breath, I leaned against the wall. \"We still have the final match and then the team match. Assuming I lose the fifth match, as long as we defeat three of their members in the team match, we should theoretically progress to the next round.\"

    \"Yeah! Don''t worry, even if they are Saint Teresa Academy, I''m sure we''ll be able to take out at least a few of their members. But we aim to win!\" Craig was enthusiastic as he patted my shoulder almost violently. \"We''re not going to settle for the minimum score.\"

    \"Wait,\" Bu Fan said as he raised his hand. \"You just said assuming you lose the fifth match, didn''t you?\"

    \"Yeah.\" I was too tired to nod, and honestly it was a miracle I could still speak.

    \"So you intend on continuing on?\"

    \"Hah! At this rate, Richie will grab another team-kill! Another all-kill!\" Yue Chu was chuckling. \"As expected of him!\"

    \"That''s a bad idea!\" Pearl snapped harshly, glaring at me. \"Look at you! You''re in no condition to fight!\"

    \"I will be after resting for a few minutes.\" I was closing my eyes and doing my best to recuperate as much as possible.

    \"You''re too reckless!\" Pearl argued hotly. She turned to Harrison. \"Captain, tell him!\"

    However, Harrison was watching me intently, and he seemed to have reach an unspoken understanding from my posture. He nodded grimly and then returned Pearl''s gaze.

    \"Richard has earned his chance to attempt an all-kill. I don''t think it''s fair if I deny him this chance to make history.\"

    \"Make history?! But¡­\"

    \"Don''t worry,\" Theodore assured Pearl. \"We have healing spells to help him recover if he does go too far. Furthermore, there''s the boundary field to protect him too. Nothing bad will happen.\"

    \"But don''t blame yourself if you lose,\" Harrison continued with a grin. \"You''ve more than contributed your part for the team. You''ve surpassed all expectations and gone beyond what was asked of you. No matter the outcome of the fifth match, you have become someone that the whole team is proud of. I dare say you''ve earned the respect of the entire Global Federation¡­if not the whole world. So just go in there and fight however you want. Don''t hold back ¨C as long as you don''t regret anything, feel free to go wild.\"

    \"Thanks. I really appreciate it.\" I lowered my head, my eyes still shut as I focused on recovering my mana. \"Thank you for going along with my selfishness and allowing me the chance to score an all-kill.\"

    \"Like I said, you''ve earned it.\" Harrison reached up and patted my arm. He then gripped my shoulder and gave me an encouraging squeeze. \"And honestly, I believe in you. I strongly think that you''ll be able to pull it off¡­create a miracle and make history today.\"

    \"Thank you. I really appreciate it.\"

    Personally, I wasn''t sure if I could pull it off. After executing Absolute Zero, I was nearly on empty. I probably didn''t have much mana left to do anything beyond a couple of moves. Even so, I selfishly wanted to continue on, whether it was to the detriment of my team or not. I had gotten them this far, surely it wasn''t unreasonable for them to accede to my request?

    Furthermore, it wasn''t as if I wasn''t guaranteed to lose. I was stubbornly volunteering for the fifth match precisely because I saw a chance for victory, even if it was very slim.

    \"Who do you think Saint Teresa Academy will send out for their last member?\" Lily asked from the sidelines.

    That was a good question. If Kureha was smart and practical, she would send out one of the reserve members in place of the core members instead of risking losing any of them in the individual matches. Such a tactic was understandable ¨C she would be focusing on the team match, gambling everything on the team match. After all, it was unlikely that there was anyone of similar caliber to me in the rest of Jing Tian Academy''s team. Or so she believed.

    However, Kureha also acknowledged the necessity of appearances and reputation. She couldn''t be seen as deliberately throwing away the last match ¨C not only would it reveal that she had acknowledged that her Saint Teresa Academy couldn''t defeat our Jing Tian Academy in the individual matches, she would also be lowering the morale of her team while raising ours. Her team was already demoralized from suffering four consecutive defeats, and to throw the last match would further sink their already rock-bottom morale and affect their performance as a whole in the team match. Kureha was not stupid enough to ignore the psychological effects of such statements and outcome.

    In contrast, if Kureha fielded a core member and scored a victory in the final match, it would lift the spirits of Saint Teresa Academy considerably ¨C not only would it dispel the impression of my invincibility, it would inspire the remaining members to fiercely launch a counterattack and claw their way back into the game. It would greatly increase their chances of making a comeback.

    That was why Kureha understood that they needed a decisive victory in this final round. Very badly at that. Otherwise their morale would completely collapse.

    The other side of the coin was that if they lost, their morale would collapse even further than rock-bottom, and there would be only one core member left to lead the team match. That would guarantee their loss and our progression to the semifinal.

    Of course, everything was a gamble. There was a risk in whatever we did. There were no guarantees in life, and it was Kureha''s responsibility to shoulder all of that and make her decision. I didn''t envy her position ¨C in fact, it was the reason why I avoided leadership positions at all cost. There was no way I could withstand such a heavy burden.

    \"Do you think Saint Teresa Academy will send Rossetti next?\" Sheila asked thoughtfully.

    Harrison shook his head. \"No. Captain Kureha will be personally participating in the fifth round, in hopes of bringing about a decisive victory.\"

    \"You believe this based on earlier matches and their fighting patterns?\" Cody inquired. Harrison nodded.

    \"That''s right¡­in all of the individual matches so far, Kureha has never failed to participate in all of them. But it''s not just that. She wants to send out a statement.\"

    \"A statement?\" Bu Fan asked.

    \"Yeah. She''s trying to boost the ravaged morale of her team and encourage them. Give them hope and show that they can and will win. I would do the same if I was in her position.\"

    \"Doesn''t that mean Richard will be in for a very hard time?\" Pearl glanced in my direction worriedly. I didn''t blame her ¨C it wasn''t as if she had no confidence in me, or didn''t have any faith that I could pull off a miracle. Honestly speaking, the reputation of the Sword Saint far preceded her. Kureha Franklin was a formidable foe, much stronger than any of the other Saint Teresa Academy students. I personally knew just how strong she was because I had fought alongside her before, back when we confronted the Hellfire Drake along with Troy.

    She wasn''t someone I could underestimate. I daresay she was probably going to be the strongest opponent I had faced in my life.

    Even so, I was looking forward to the match, so much so that I couldn''t conceal the grin on my face. Harrison noticed it too and chuckled.

    \"Maybe, but Richard doesn''t seem to think so.\"

    \"I know that smile.\" Yue Chu was laughing. \"You bloody rascal, you have a trump card or two hidden up your sleeve somewhere, don''t you?!\"

    \"Who knows?\" I responded with a nonchalant shrug. \"We shall see.\"

    At the other end of the arena, the remaining members of Saint Teresa Academy finished their discussion. And then, just as Harrison and I had predicted, Kureha took to the stage herself.

    \"You''re a strong opponent,\" she acknowledged as she stood opposite me. I opened my eyes and slowly got to my feet. Obviously I didn''t have enough time to totally recover all of my mana, but I managed to recuperate enough to put up a good fight. Unfortunately thanks to my use of Absolute Zero, I calculated that I could only cast three or four spells before I ran out. Five at most. Even after absorbing Miura''s mana, I wasn''t able to completely refill my tank.

    However, Kureha didn''t know that, and she didn''t have to know. She did suspect that I was nearing my limits, though, because she had a sympathetic look on her face.

    \"Are you sure you want to continue? You still have the opportunity to swap out with a teammate.\"

    \"Yeah, I''m sure,\" I assured her confidently. \"I am not going to let this chance sweep by.\"

    \"I won''t think any less of you if you back off now,\" Kureha said. \"You have already proven yourself in front of everyone and displayed how strong you are. Nobody can make fun of you or call you a coward, not after you''ve defeated four of Saint Teresa Academy''s core members.\"

    \"I''m well on my way to achieving an all-kill.\" I grinned. \"I would prefer to have a chance to complete that, no matter how unlikely it is.\"

    Kureha studied me for a few moments, and then nodded in resignation. \"So be it. Even if you''re exhausted from fighting four consecutive matches, I still won''t hold back. I plan to go all out against you.\"

    \"That''s exactly what I wish for,\" I replied with a weary smile. \"It won''t be a true victory otherwise. And I don''t want you to use that as an excuse in case I actually win.\"

    \"Oh, I won''t,\" Kureha reassured me. Then she giggled. \"Honestly, I know exactly how you feel. I''m a little envious of you, you know? If I were in your position, I definitely wouldn''t pass up on the chance to score an all-kill, even if it''s at the expense of my team. Of course¡­pulling off an all-kill would benefit the team a lot more.\"

    \"Agreed.\"

    \"However¡­that''s not going to happen.\" Kureha pointed her sword at me, her eyes narrowing in determination. \"Because I''m going to end your winning streak here and defeat you decisively.\"

    \"You can try,\" I scoffed, drawing both of my swords in return. \"And I''ll do my best to ensure you fail.\"

 423 Chapter 423: Sword Sain

    The moment the commentator signaled the start of the match, Kureha Franklin wasted no time lunging forward. Her sword swept toward my neck, intending to decapitate me in a single stroke, but I parried it with both Hei Yue and Bai Ri.

    We dueled fiercely across the arena, trading over a hundred blows in under a second. Kureha''s fluid movements flowed like water, the silver flash of her sword the only proof that she was wielding metal. I struggled to keep up with her ¨C fortunately, while my mana was near exhausted, I still had enough stamina to fight physically.

    Even so, Kureha was the Sword Saint. Her superlative skill with the sword far surpassed mine ¨C hell, she was superior to even Kuf Van Peer. Blood leaked from my hands, shoulders and chest when I found myself unable to completely deflect her swords. Huffing, I fought as best as I could, both of my swords weaving through the lethal pattern of strokes and figure-eights that Kureha carved.

    \"Ugh!\"

    More blood spurted from my wounds as Kureha opened up a fresh set of cuts upon me. Most of them were superficial for now, but I honestly couldn''t withstand much more of her onslaught. It wasn''t as if I underestimated her ¨C I had gone into the match fully aware of how formidable she was.

    Despite being mentally prepared, I still found myself completely overwhelmed by her magnificent swordsmanship.

    \"!!\"

    A slash from my side opened up a new gash in my shoulder and I shuddered. Retaliating with a riposte, I thrust Hei Yue toward her chest, but she blocked it before countering with a strike that tore through the skin of my right forearm. I winced from the pain and withdrew my bleeding limb while parrying her follow-up strike with Bai Ri, but the impact of her blow nearly ripped the white sword from my grip. Staggering back, I crossed both swords to weather a heavy attack from Kureha, only to be blown back from a kick that snaked up under my guard and caught me in the gut.

    \"Ugh!\"

    I skidded backward, heaving from the exertion and pain. Opposite me, Kureha glanced at the ice that had locked her premier sword and arms, and with a flex of her mana she shattered the frozen restraints instantly.

    \"What an interesting technique,\" she murmured, shaking her hands. \"Every time we trade blows, I feel a shot of chill surging through my body and clogging up my mana circulation. Not only that, my arms are locked in ice, which hinders my movements and slows me down¡­\"

    That was her being slowed down!? Holy hell¡­I dreaded to think how fast she was if I hadn''t executed my specialized ice techniques to obstruct the flow of her mana. She would have cut me apart in minutes. It was only because of my mystical ice techniques that I was able to last this long against the legendary Sword Saint.

    Kureha also seemed impressed by that. She lowered her sword and studied me admiringly for a moment before she lowered her head thoughtfully.

    \"I always knew you would be an exceedingly tough opponent. Even when drained and exhausted, you still put up such a great fight. Honestly, I didn''t think you would last this long and exchange so many blows with me.\"

    She seemed to disappear for a moment, turning into a blue and silver streak. I raised both swords in reflex and parried her next strike, which hit me with tremendous force and sent me hurtling across the arena. Cartwheeling in midair, I landed clumsily on my feet and flailed about to maintain my balance. Kureha appeared where I was ¨C even though she was a much better swordswoman, she was still not as fast as Kufa ¨C and struck me again, but I deflected her exquisite blade to the side. Huffing, I strove to counterattack, but she rammed an elbow into the side of my face. I threw my head back as far back as humanly possible, but the edge of her gauntlet somehow grazed my temple and left a stream of blood trickling down my face.

    \"Hu¡­\"

    I exhaled as I pulled away, a gesture that was aided greatly when Kureha whipped around and struck me with her sword. The tremendous force behind her blow sent me tumbling back, and I landed in a skidding crouch that left twin trails of rubble in my wake.

    Like a blue and silver whirlwind, Kureha descended upon my position and swung her sword once more. Wisps of mana drifted from her blade, ominous specters of death that haunted the majestic weapon and seemed to sharpen its gleaming edge further. Switching her stance, Kureha swung about and smashed me with what seemed like a hammer blow. Even though I successfully blocked it, the blade-like mana that emanated from her sword cut deeply into my flesh, drawing more blood, and I had to bite my lip to prevent myself from crying out.

    Stumbling back, I retaliated desperately. Kureha''s arms were locked in ice once more, but she still somehow had the speed and reflexes to fend off my counterattack before kicking me in the midriff and tossing me to the edge of the ring. I hit the ground and rolled to lessen the impact, but clearly I wasn''t no longer in any condition to continue.

    Kureha studied the ice restraining her hands, and with a clench of her fists she shattered them effortlessly, shaking the fragments of frost loose. She then held her sword in both hands and narrowed her eyes. I pushed my glasses up my nose, being careful not to cut my face with my own swords, and returned her glare.

    The sensors on my lenses were picking up a spike in her mana emission and they tracked her movements, allowing me that split second of faster reaction time that would undoubtedly save my hide, if not preserve my life for a few minutes longer.

    However, I was aware that I was dying a death from a thousand cuts. I was slowly but surely bleeding out.

    Taking a deep breath, Kureha then launched herself forward, her sword turning into a broad blur of silver. Massive amounts of golden mana burst out of her figure, which resembled a shooting star. I watched the destructive tide of energy wash over me, but I somehow managed to cleave the huge wave into pieces with my two swords.

    \"!!\"

    That wasn''t Kureha''s true attack. She was merely making use of her mere sword pressure to mask her movements. Bursting from the dissipating waved of her blocked technique, she swung her sword at me, an explosive burst of golden mana wreathing the blade. I crossed Hei Yue and Bai Ri, but despite parrying her attack, I was blown off my feet and sent tumbling several dozen meters away. Both of my swords were ripped out of my grip and sent bouncing away, out of my reach. I didn''t have the chance to retrieve them, not while my body helplessly slid across the ground, leaving a slick trail of blood.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    Coughing out blood, I tried to roll to my feet, but was barely able to stand. Fortunately for me, Kureha had chosen to keep her distance. Perhaps she had paused to recover her breath. Or maybe she had another spell in mind. I didn''t know, but right now I was more concerned with my rapidly deteriorating state than I was with the Sword Saint''s intentions.

    \"You''ve fought well,\" Kureha told me as she brought up her sword to point the tip of her glowing blade at me. \"But this match is over.\"

    \"Not yet, it isn''t,\" I stubbornly insisted as I forced myself to stand. \"I''m still not incapacitated yet.\"

    \"I see.\" The venerable Sword Saint closed her eyes for a brief second and lowered her head. \"I apologize for my disrespect. Of course a true warrior such as yourself will fight until his very last breath. There was never any question about your resolve.\"

    Then she opened her eyes and surged forward, her sword swinging toward me. I ducked under it, my body swaying. I had already gone past my limits a long time ago, and even now I was unable to withstand the violent shockwaves generated by a mere slash of her sword.

    I fell to my knees, blood coursing from my mouth and wounds. Confident of her victory, Kureha stood over me, ready to deliver the finishing blow.

    \"!!!\"

    Icicles struck her, but they failed to impale the protective aura that surrounded her. Fortunately, that slight delay bought me more than enough time to retreat to safety. Kureha made to move, only to realize that her legs had been frozen to the ground.

    \"You¡­!\"

    The Sword Saint''s expression darkened, and she instantly shattered the ice restraints that had rooted her to the floor, magical energy surging out of her magnificent figure. However, those two seconds that she spent breaking free of her frozen bonds was more than enough for me to escape to the other side of the ring.

    Without my swords, I couldn''t do anything, but still I conjured enough mana to cast an offensive ice spell. Countless icicles manifested around and above me, and I launched the barrage of frozen spears in Kureha''s direction.

    In response, Kureha stood her ground and held her majestic sword high up in the air with both hands, the silver blade illuminated by golden mana.

    An ultimate attack for an ultimate attack. Kureha knew she wouldn''t be able to dodge the deadly hail of icicles in time, and wouldn''t be able to smash all of them with her sword. That being the case, there was only one way to respond to it.

    Cast a spell to obliterate the entire rain of ice.

    \"You have proven yourself a worthy opponent. Even if you''re not among the strongest I have ever face, you stll rank among the most tenacious¡­the most difficult. Take pride in that.\"

    \"Hah.\" I tried not to snort. It was a pity, but while Kureha Franklin was exceedingly impressive for someone of our generation, I couldn''t say the same for her. It was unfortunate, but I had confronted far stronger and far more difficult enemies than the likes of her.

    She still had some way to go. Hell, she couldn''t even compare to Troy King, who was perfectly capable of trouncing me with a single hand. That guy was planet buster level, according to his original creator. In contrast, I could only nuke single cities, not entire worlds.

    Not that Kureha needed to know about that, but whatever.

    \"So I''ll honor your resolve with my ultimate technique.\"

    \"Bring it on,\" I replied, still focused on directing my barrage of icicles upon her. Sucking a deep breath, Kureha cried out the true name of her Noble Phantasm¡­ahem, I mean sword technique.

    \"Excalibur!!\"

    Seriously? She was really going to rip off Fate/Stay Night until the very end?

    Not that it mattered. In a single burst of golden mana, the blinding light of her sword strike obliterated my hail of icicles immediately, disintegrating the frost spears. The tsunami of destructive mana carried on mercilessly, surging toward my position to ravenously engulf me.

    If I allowed that strike to hit me, it would be all over.

    \"Trace on.\"

    In the face of such a devastating attack, I maintained my cool and raised my right hand determinedly. Azure mana sizzled around my right arm before leaping upward and forward. My breaths came out in thick mists, and a layer of ice condensed around my surroundings, and even on my body. I ignored the chill and continued on with my incantation.

    \"I am the soul of my sword.\"

    Kureha''s ultimate technique was now five meters away. It would be upon me in another second. That was fine. I just needed another millisecond. It was going to be very close, but I knew deep down that it was doable.

    \"Snow Aegis!\"

    I intoned the true name of my most powerful protection, and the gigantic snowflake-shaped shield of ice materialized between me and Kureha''s Excalibur. The golden tsunami of destructive energy collided against the sturdy barrier, scrabbling violently against its frozen surface.

    \"Ugh!\"

    Grimacing from the tremendous impact, my knees buckled and my right arm almost burst apart in a shower of blood. Holding my injured arm up with my left hand, I continued to infuse what mana I had remaining inside me to augment my defense, to repair the numerous cracks that appeared all over my Snow Aegis.

    \"As if I''ll fall here¡­!\"

    With a roar, I held my ground firmly in the face of certain death, bellowing a challenge to the spectral grim reaper that now took the form of a golden blast of destructive mana certain to blow apart any fortress. Responding to my obstinate will, Snow Aegis held despite its gradually crumbling structure, refusing to falter against the Sword Saint''s strongest strike.

    Then there was a massive explosion that blasted me off my feet, the frost shrapnel of my shattered Snow Aegis raining down on my crashing body. Even so, the dissipating tendrils of golden energy never reached me. My Snow Aegis had fulfilled its task and absorbed 99% of Kureha''s Excalibur, and she had failed to kill me. Well, I wouldn''t have died because of the boundary field, so technically she wouldn''t be able to kill me anway. I meant knock me out, incapacitate me, or finish me off. Whatever.

    The detonation was so powerful that it flung Kureha back as well, but the Sword Saint was slowly climbing back to her feet, her sword still held grimly in her hands. She slowly stalked toward me, ignoring the faint trickle of blood that now stained her ghastly expression. Her golden eyes glared determinedly at me, as if willing me not to get up.

    I was more than happy to disappoint her.

    \"You''re unarmed, and I''m pretty sure you''ve expended almost all of your mana in trying to defend against my Noble Phantasm¡­I mean my ultimate technique. If I''m assessing you correctly, you don''t have any energy left to fight me.\"

    \"You''re assessing me wrong,\" I told her bluntly.

    Kureha lowered her head slightly, and then she smiled. \"Of course. It was a stupid question on my part. You''re still standing, aren''t you?\"

    \"Yeah.\" I nodded and stepped forward, doing my best to conceal how shallow my breaths had become. \"Let''s continue, and finish this match once and for all.\"

 424 Chapter 424: Sparks Liner High

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I smiled grimly.

    \"I''m going to do my best to win this match.\"

    \"That is impossible. That''s because you will fall to defeat here, Richard.\"

    \"...!\"

    I could sense Kureha''s killing intent expand. I knew she hadn''t been holding back at all, but at that moment I felt as if all bets were off, as if a switch had just been flipped inside her. Perhaps it was the frustration that was boiling within her at her failure to finish me, a clearly very weakened and exhausted opponent, off even after such a long time.

    \"We''ll see about that. As you can see, I''m still standing even after receiving so many of your blows.\"

    Kureha snorted. \"It''s only a matter of time. Anybody can see that you''re struggling just to stand. I estimate that it will be mere minutes before you succumb to your injuries.\"

    Right. At the moment my body was battered beyond belief. Cuts and wounds decorated every visible part of my flesh. I had stemmed the bleeding by freezing my injuries, but that was at best a temporary measure. If I didn''t receive treatment soon, I might really collapse here.

    But not yet. Not until I defeated my opponent. Having exchanged blows with her firsthand, I had a taste of her unfathomable strength. If I wanted my team to progress to the semifinals, I couldn''t afford to allow her to participate in the team match. I needed to eliminate her so that she couldn''t fight against Jing Tian Academy during the team match.

    I had a feeling that she could single-handedly wipe out my entire team without breaking a sweat, before her side lost any members.

    There was no way I could retreat here and now, not when she presented such a formidable obstacle to our chances of progression.

    \"Then we had best get started then.\"

    I exhaled. Kureha was strong ¨C I knew that when I first volunteered to participate in this match. That was why I refused to let Bu Fan take my place. I wanted to give my all to defeat her, so that she would be eliminated from the team match. She was such a dangerous opponent, and to have even the slightest chance of victory, I needed to create an opening.

    Yet there was no sign of any opening. She was standing in a defensive posture, guarded and awaiting my next move. Once she got impatient, she would move to attack, and I wasn''t confident that I could withstand her aggression.

    There was only one route left. To go on the offensive.

    Taking a deep breath, I glanced at my two swords that lay quite some distance away. Kureha''s eyes followed me, and I instinctively knew she would intercept and cut me down if I tried to go for Hei Yue and Bai Ri.

    There was no going that way, not unless I had given up all hopes of victory.

    So instead I chose another path. I was a summoner, after all. I didnt'' always have to rely on real swords.

    \"Gemini.\"

    I summoned my weapons. The twin swords that, out of all my Constellation armaments, would place the least burden on me. The twin black and white titanium blades that I was known throughout Jing Tian Academy for.

    The black sword, Castor. The white sword, Pollux. They didn''t have much special abilities other than firing off black and white blasts of mana, but they were reliable weapons that I had depended upon for most of my career. Furthermore, I no longer had enough mana left to cast those energy blast spells, at last not in my current condition, so any spells or special abilities that they might have possessed were a moot point to begin with.

    However, they were reliable. Unlike my real swords, they were fragile, but I had used them long enough to be confident that they wouldn''t shatter from one or two blows against Kureha''s Excalibur.

    \"I see you''ve chosen to summon new swords instead of retrieving your real ones.\" Kureha sounded mildly curious. I shrugged in return, but offered no reply. She studied me, and then shook her head. \"Never mind. That''s none of my business. The fact is that you have armed yourself, and that''s all that matters. I assume¡­that means you are ready?\"

    She wielded her holy sword, and I lowered mine in return, adopting a defensive posture.

    \"Come. Given your current exhausted condition, I daresay your body will not hold out for any duration longer than a few minutes.\"

    She gestured an invitation at me. I felt my lip curled, and even though I knew she meant to respect me, it still felt as if she was underestimating me.

    I took a step forward. Studying Kureha, my first instinct was to attempt and predict her counterattack, and then figure out how to avoid it. Running several simulations in my mind, I discarded them and decided to just go for the jugular. I could calculate all I wanted, but no battle plan survived contact with the enemy, so I might as well just throw everything away and attack.

    Kicking the ground, I launched myself at the steady Kureha. In an instant, I cleared all ten meters between us in a single bound and swung my white sword, Pollux, down with my left hand. Putting everything I had into my left arm, I slashed toward Kureha''s neck with all my might.

    Just as I expected, Kureha parried my first strike. Undaunted, I swing my black sword, Castor, without missing a beat. Despite the black blade coming from the opposite direction, Kureha still somehow managed to effortlessly ward off my attacks, and her riposte surged forward to pierce my throat.

    \"...?!\"

    Despite her Godspeed, Kureha was stunned to see me block her strike. Hell, to be honest, I was also astounded at the small miracle I had just pulled off. My body had acted on its own, my unconscious reflexes saving me from a grisly death.

    I grew into the fight, trading furious blow after furious blow with Kureha, despite the \"fact\" that my battered and exhausted body shouldn''t be capable of such superhuman feats. My blades darted forward like twin flashes of black and white lightning. My instincts read ten steps ahead, allowing me to parry Kureha''s fierce retaliation and therefore ensured that I survived an additional five seconds with each successful block.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    Heaving, I took a slight step back. I was just barely able to defend. As it turned out, my aggression only lasted until the failure of my first attack. From then on, the tables had turned and I spent the rest of the time fending off Kureha''s attacks. We traded another thirty blows since then, each of her strikes lethal enough to kill me if they landed.

    Even as we continued to clash, my mind swam. Time seemed to slow to a stop, but my body couldn''t keep up with my mind. My limbs weren''t keeping pace with my predictions and attempts to read my opponent''s moves. Fortunately, I had gained invaluable experience fighting with Gemini, and it was this vast repository of combat experience that allowed me to stand toe to toe against someone of the Sword Saint''s caliber.

    My vision swam as I deflected another few strikes, but my body cried out, my limbs burning from pain and exhaustion. It wouldn''t be a surprise if I collapsed any second now. The only thing holding me up was sheer adrenaline and the human instinct to defy death.

    Even so, I could see that death was inevitable. In another thirty moves or so, she would kill me. Not unless I switched my tactics. If Dad hadn''t trained me in Miyamoto swordsmanship, I would have been laid low long ago.

    \"Heh¡­\"

    Despite the bleak premonition, I couldn''t help but smile. I was actually keeping up with the Sword Saint, of all people. I could actually fight on par with her! I could exchange blow after blow with her without falling!

    There might be a chance of victory. After unleashing her ultimate technique earlier, she would need some time to recharge it, but I knew that as long as I kept her in close combat, she wouldn''t have the chance to unleash it. She couldn''t fire it off at pointblank range, or at least I believed so. For now, her actions proved my suspicions right ¨C she was only fighting me with her swordsmanship alone, without relying on her spells.

    Perhaps it was her pride ¨C there was no way she would admit to being unable to prevail over the likes of me with her swordsmanship alone ¨C the sword techniques that she was famed for throughout the Global Federation!

    If that was the case, then perhaps I might just have a stab at victory. I should somehow be able to force an opening as long as I prevented her from casting her ultimate spells.

    Realizing the urgency of the situation, and knowing that I must do whatever it took to stop her from casting her spell, I accelerated my movements. I poured more energy into my limbs, hastily defending and looking for an opportunity to counterattack.

    One opening¡­all I needed was just one opening!

    Chip!

    I cursed when I saw Castor and Pollux being chipped away slowly but surely. As I said, I already knew how fragile my Constellation weapons were, especially when compared to real weapons. At this rate, Kureha would smash through them¡­

    Damn it¡­I only had enough mana left to summon Gemini one more time. Twice if I really, really pushed myself. I was running on near empty, with no mana left in my metaphorical tank. To be more accurate, I was running on fumes, and I was surprised that I could still somehow keep up and continue fighting against such a formidable opponent in my current state.

    Whatever. That wasn''t important. Focus on the moment. Focus on blocking and parrying her attacks. Concentrate on finding that opening, patiently wait for that opening, and then¡­!

    \"Ugh!\"

    \"...!\"

    I instinctively jumped back before my mind registered the movement. To be honest, it was more of Kureha''s attack pushing me back, and I made use of that opportunity to retreat and regroup.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    Bending over, I attempted to catch my breath. My body felt as if it was on fire, my muscles burning and shrieking from overexertion. I swear, I tore a ligament somewhere. Sweat dripped down my face and skin, mixing with the clotted blood that had dried up after my clumsy efforts to stem the bleeding by freezing my wounds.

    Wiping the perspiration from my face, I studied Kureha while still holding my severely damaged Gemini twin swords. Somehow I had managed to withdraw about ten meters away from her, and even Kureha would need to take a couple of steps to close the distance.

    But she didn''t, and chose to remain standing where she was. For now, I could relax just a fraction, but I couldn''t get complacent. I couldn''t afford to lower my guard, but I knew I had to relieve some of the tension that was knotting my burning muscles.

    Thanks to that, I was able to recover my breathing and straighten myself. Assessing the situation, I briefly closed my eyes. Kureha didn''t seem as if she intended to blast me away with her Excalibur. Did she not have the mana to cast that spell again? Or did she think there was no need to?

    She would pay for underestimating me if that was the case.

    No¡­I was na?ve. Kureha was thinking long term. She wasn''t just considering this match. She also had her eye on the team match ¨C knowing her, she was definitely going to participate in the team match and lead Saint Teresa Academy to victory. For that purpose, she needed to conserve some mana in order to unleash Excalibur upon my teammates.

    Foolish. Conserving all that mana would be for naught if she lost here and was eliminated from the team match. Not that she ever considered that to be a distinct possibility. She was confident that she could best me in a match of swordsmanship alone. If anything happened beyond her calculations, then she could always unleash Excalibur then.

    ¡­her confidence was not unfounded. As much as I hated to admit it, I realized that I was horribly outmatched.

    \"¡­five attacks, huh?\"

    Judging from our exchange so far, and my current condition, I could only block five more attacks from Kureha. I couldn''t tell what would happen after that. Most likely I would collapse¡­or Kureha''s strikes will finally find a way past my gradually crumbling defenses and finish me off once and for all.

    To prevent that from occurring, I had to find an opening within the next five attacks and hit her with everything I had.

    \"Impossible,\" Kureha repeated as she stared at me. \"You cannot hurt me with such reckless tactics¡­cannot even put a scratch on me, never mind defeat me.\"

    \"Did you just read my mind or something?\" I asked dryly. The Sword Saint shook her head.

    \"No. it''s just that your intention is clearly written all over your face.\"

    \"Hah¡­\" I sighed heavily as I pushed my glasses up. \"I see.\"

    \"Do you honestly think you have a chance, even though you know how bad your condition is?\" Kureha paused for a moment, and then closed her eyes thoughtfully. \"No. you are recklessly charging ahead precisely because of your current state. Your body has reached its limits. You''ve lost a lot of blood and you have practically no mana left. I shall obliterate you in this next exchange of attacks.\"

    \"Right. You can try.\"

    What was with all my opponents and their futile attemtps to persuade me to surrender? Were they trying to beat me with Talk no Jutsu or something? Come on, if you want to win, you had to earn your victory.

    However, I also knew that Kureha had a point. She was mostly right. It was highly impractical and unlikely that I would win against her. Even if I was in the best of shape, in my peak form, I would still have found her a very difficult opponent to deal with, let alone when I was horribly weakened and drained of mana. It was only my stubbornness that led me to insisting on taking this fight.

    With only enough mana left to summon one or two more times, I had to do my best to defeat Kureha with the Constellation swords I had right now, or distract her long enough to retrieve my real swords. The second option was proving challenging, for Kureha had decisively placed herself in the path between me and my real swords.

    \"Hmph. I always like a challenge.\"

    For a moment, it seemed as if I was lowering my Gemini twin swords in surrender, but I began laughing.

    \"I''m sorry, Kureha, but if you want this victory, you''ll have to earn it the hard way. I have no intention of just giving up¡­not when I still have even the slightest chance of victory.\"

    \"¡­understood. I suppose I won''t ask for anything less.\"

    Then Kureha narrowed her eyes, almost glaring at me.

    \"But if that''s the case¡­why are you still holding back?\"

    \"I''m not holding back,\" I replied, puzzled. \"It''s not as if I intend to participate in the team match or something. I really am using all my strength right now.\"

    \"Hmm¡­really? I must be mistaken then.\" Kureha appeared to muse to herself, and then she shrugged off her doubts. With her free hand, she beckoned me over. \"Let''s settle this once and for all, Richard. Come.\"

    \"All right then. Resolve yourself.\"

    Taking a deep breath, I faced Kureha and reached inwardly for my final trump card. The only move that I could use now that my mana was almost depleted to nothing.

    \"Stargazer, unleashed.\"

 425 Chapter 425: Sparks Liner High II

    I closed my eyes and used summoning for the second time. However, I limited my spell only to these twin swords. My trump card wasn''t something else ¨C no, instead I was going to make use of Gemini''s full capabilities. Thei true nature, which wasn''t restricted to me spamming black and white energy blasts, but their actual essence.

    The very essence of my swordsmanship.

    Combine them. Combine my summoning magic, my Constellation magic, with the very essence of Miyamoto sword style that Dad taught me. It was definitely something that was doable. The very reason why I chose to summon swords ¨C Constellation swords ¨C instead of actual monsters. A subconscious reason, one that I never fully thought about until now.

    Only by combining my Constellation magic with Miyamoto sword style would I attain the method I needed. The technique that would guarantee me a sure kill. I favored these swords, so there was no way I wouldn''t be able to come up with a ultimate attack with them, not when I combined Dad''s Miyamoto school of swordsmanship with these twin swords that had seen me prevail through countless battles!

    Drawing from my personal combat experience and combining it with my knowledge of Miyamoto sword style, I pictured two curves. Black and white. Yin and yang. Opposites attract. Inseparability. Consecutive summoning. I must maintain the basic technique, the solid foundation that Dad had instilled within me after countless training sessions. The essence of the sword. The core of the stars. Fusion ¨C not just nuclear fusion, but the fusion of sword and magic.

    If this was a xianxia story, this would be a Divine-ranked skill. And ultimate technique, perfect and unyielding.

    \"Strength moves mountains,\" I murmured to myself, beginning the incantation. I decided to base it upon an incantation I learned somewhere from the most epic visual novel that had ever existed. \"Blade cuts water. Life approaches the Imperial Villa.  Two great men, shared life.\"

    That was right. This was the technique I came up with, after prolonged consideration and desperate innovation. An ultimate attack derived from the essence of Castor and Pollux, combined with the solid foundation established by the Miyamoto sword style that Dad incessantly drilled into me.

    I knew that I had reached my limit, and perhaps even gone past it. That didn''t matter. Three attacks. All I needed to do was launch my last three attacks¡­!

    My opponent readied herself, having sensed my determination.

    I didn''t have time to study her other reactions. Whatever energy I had left, I invested it all into this final movement. My requiem, to say the least. My final act.

    \"Divine technique, perfect and unyielding.\"

    I had to surpass my opponent in this last exchange of blows. Just for this moment alone. That was all I asked.

    Infusing my Gemini twin swords with mana, I repaired them as much as I could, and then I threw them. I charged them with as much mana as I could afford, and I tossed them from opposite directions. The spinning twin swords homed in on the enemy''s neck, drawing an arc so that they would intersect right on my target. Their spinning figures drew a magnificent cross across the air as they closed in on Kureha. No matter who the other party was, there was no way she would emerge uscathed after being trapped between two Constellation weapons capable of penetrating steel.

    Yet¡­the Sword Saint effortlessly blocked them both. She easily redirected Castor and Pollux that attacked her from both flanks simultaneously. I cursed under my breath, watching helplessly as she nullified my attack without breaking a sweat. The twin swords would normally return to me even if they were deflected, but Kureha sensed my stategy somehow, and she had instinctively redirected both of them behind her, far from my reach.

    That left me unarmed and completely open. Seeing a great opportunity, Kureha closed in on me, seizing the moment when I was unarmed and vulnerable.

    However, contrary to her expectations, I charged.

    \"!!!\"

    I wasn''t sure what the Sword Saint was expecting. Did she think I would surrender just because I was unarmed? Or did she believe I would retreat? It didn''t matter. What she didn''t anticipate was an unarmed opponent charging straight for her in an almost suicidal manner.

    However, I was far from unarmed.

    \"Freezing void.\"

    \"The same weapon¡­?!\"

    Kureha''s astounded gasp barely reached my ears over the din of clashing metal. To her astonishment, what would have been her finishing strike had been blocked by twin swords. I had completed my summoning in an instant, and using the concept that I had created, I summoned Castor and Pollux anew.

    \"It''s useless!\" Kureha snapped, her voice tinged with frustration. She couldn''t comprehend why I was still resisting her, still engaging in such futile maneuvers. \"That summoned weapon is no match for me!\"

    She unleashed a powerful attack meant to blow me away. However, right before her blade could reach me and shatter my Gemini twin swords¡­

    \"Strength moves mountains.\"

    A surprise attack came from an unexpected direction.

    \"What¡­?!\"

    Even the venerable Sword Saint was almost caught off guard, and it was only thanks to her godlike instincts that she was able to evade the Castor that struck at her from behind. While she spun away to deal with the new threat, I took advantage of the opening that my diversion had created and struck with Pollux.

    \"Hah!\"

    However, Kureha parried my attack with her holy sword.

    Wow¡­amazing. She was a monster.

    Not only was she able to deflect my surprise attack from behind, she was also able to simultaneously parry my strike from the front, even though I had attacked her with full force. Furthermore, she obliterated the Pollux that I had struck with.

    She truly was a monster¡­a terrifying entity that sent chills running down my spine.

    However, I already knew from the beginning just how formidable she was. Something like this¡­a realization such as this wasn''t enough to stop me in my tracks.

    \"Blade cuts water.\"

    That was right. I had resolved myself from the start. I knew something of this level wasn''t enough to defeat her, so I had to surpass my limits and go further beyond¡­!

    After all, if I wasn''t fighting a monster, then I wouldn''t even need to execute such a magnificent technique to begin with!

    \"Another one?!\"

    Pollux attacked her from behind again ¨C and this time, it wasn''t the one she had just destroyed, but the one I had thrown at her earlier, the same one that she had deflected behind her.

    Castor and Pollux were twin swords. They attracted each other like magnets. That was why Pollux would inevitably return to me as long as I possessed Castor!

    \"Kuh!\"

    Kureha''s reflexes were as amazing as ever, and she avoided it with godlike grace. As she did so, I smashed Castor into her unprotected chest, seizing the narrow chance for victory.

    However, the Sword Saint was able to parry even my final attack.

    \"...\"

    Time froze for an instant. The both of us seemed to stop, taking a split second to evaluate each other''s condition.

    My attack sequence was over. Despite my best efforts, despite me summoning two pairs of Gemini twiin swords and unleashing attacks from all four blades simultaneously, she had blocked each and every one of them. The outcome was as you could see right now. All my Constellation weapons were destroyed. Once again, I was unarmed and helpless, unable to do anything else.

    Fortunately, Kureha was also at her limit. She had destroyed all of my Constellation weapons, but at a cost. She had left herself open, and her exertions meant that she couldn''t do anything else. She needed to recover, she needed to pull back the sword that she had swung away from herself to obliterate my summoned armaments, to reform her guard. Until she did that, until she recovered her stance, she wasn''t going to be able to execute anything else, whether it was attack or defense.

    For now, it appeared that our current exchange had ended in a stalemate. The both of us were defenseless, and we had gone back to square one.

    However¡­

    My attack wasn''t over yet.

    \"¡­!\"

    Kureha''s eyes widened in disbelief.

    I ignored her expression of shock and continued onward, reckless and uncaring. The last remnants of my mana flared up, just like the supernova of a dying sun, a star whose hydrogen reserves had been depleted to nothingness.

    Life approaches the Imperial Villa.

    \"AAARGH!\"

    At that instant, I surpassed my limits. I summoned a fresh pair of Gemini twin swords in my previously empty hands. My mind snapped, and I bellowed out an intimidating challenge.

    \"Kureha!!!!\"

    Two great men, shared life.

    I slashed her defenseless body from both sides with my newest pair of Gemini twin swords. Kureha saw them coming, but she couldn''t do anything to protect herself. Her body was unable to keep up with her mind. After parrying two consecutive surprise attacks from me, she was wide open, her limbs occupied for the briefest of moments.

    Those short moments were more than enough.

    \"Ugh!\"

    Castor and Pollux cannoned into her from opposite sides, cleaving deeply into her body and slicing through her physical reinforcement spell. Blood splattered, her organs crushed and her spine shattered from the fatal attack. My blades had crashed into her with the force of an artillery shell, and even with her magically enhanced body she was unable to withstand the blow.

    Blood spurting from her mouth and wounds, she toppled over.

    Groaning in pain, she looked up at me in astonishment. Her body twitched from the explosive impact, and she registered the fatal wounds that had been dealt to her. However, as expected of the Sword Saint, she still somehow survived.

    If I had gone for her head or her heart, I would have killed her. Well, the boundary field would have preserved her life, but it would have been decisive.

    This was not to say that the blow I had dealt her was not decisive. She was clearly incapacitated and no longer able to fight. Even if they cast a healing spell on her, she would still need ten hours before she fully recovered.

    I had achieved my goal.

    In striking Kureha Franklin down, I had eliminated her from the team match. She was no longer in any shape to lead her Saint Teresa Academy team for the team match. The only core member left would be Rossetti Picket, because I had eliminated all the other five core members of Saint Teresa Academy in the individual matches. All they had left besides Rossetti were reserve members, students who did not have much tournament experience.

    \"Ugh¡­I knew it. You really are strong, Richard.\"

    Lying on the ground, Kureha admitted grudgingly. Even though she vowed that she wouldn''t underestimate me, even though she knew just how powerful I was, she still made that fatal mistake in the end. She had never thought I would be able to pull off such a miracle in such an exhausted state, that I could still defeat her after five consecutive grueling matches against the core members of her school.

    \"The match is over¡­this is your win.\"

    \"¡­\"

    I wanted to thank her. I wanted to acknowledge her praise.

    However¡­my victory had come at a cost.

    Like Kureha, I was fatally wounded. That last attack, that final summoning spell, that desperate lunge and my finishing blow¡­

    ¡­my wounds had all split open again, and blood was streaming down my entire body. I was entirely out of mana. No more spells, no more self-regeneration, no more physical reinforcement, no more attacks.

    That was fine. I had a couple of real swords lying some distance away from me, but obviously I was no longer in any shape to retrieve them.

    I was no longer in any shape to do anything.

    \"My goodness¡­!''

    The commentator was railing above. I ignored him, mostly because my mind had blanked out. It was taking everything I had to remain standing. I felt as if I would collapse the moment I uttered a single word or budge a toe. Hell, I bet I would topple over if I even so much as move my finger. My throat crawled and perspiration dripped down my face. My eyes had closed to mere slits, and I didn''t dare to open them any further.

    I was done. I had gone beyond my limits and attained victory, but at a great cost.

    \"Richard¡­?\" Pearl whispered worriedly from the edge of the technical area. I coudldn''t even glance in her direction and give her a reassuring smile.

    \"Seems like Richard has passed out on his feet?! He defeated his opponent, only to lose consciousness? And even though he lost consciousness, he''s still somehow standing?! My goodness! Impressive¡­!\"

    Hurry up and announce the victory, you idiot!\"

    Gritting my teeth, I slowly raised my hand and showed a thumb''s up. I couldn''t even lift my hand past my chest, but my raised thumb was visible.

    The commentator got the hint.

    \"The winner! Richard Huang! This must be the first time in the national tournament history that a student achieved an all kill in the individual matches!\"

    Whatever else he was saying ended up being drowned out by the roar of cheers that followed, the crowd going wild. I vaguely registered my friends rushing up the stage and heading for me, but by now I could no longer withstand the burden weighing down upon my battered body.

    I finally collapsed, allowing my consciousness to be swallowed whole by warm, comforting darkness.

 426 Chapter 426: The Othersâ€™ POV

    \"Not bad! Not bad at all! Very impressive!\"

    From his home in the Amazerian Empire, Roland Rothwell applauded as he watched the live broadcast of the Global Federation''s national tournament from the safety of his own home.

    \"As expected of the man I had placed my sights on! You have truly surpassed all expectations, Richard!\"

    The crown prince chuckled and clapped for a moment longer before he plucked a bunch of green grapes from a nearby plate and dangled them over his mouth. He chewed on several of them, savoring the sweet taste.

    \"Heh¡­is he really that impressive?\" Elem asked beside him, lounging lazily on a couch. He glanced at the holographic screen bitterly, and then gave a nonchalant shrug. \"Well, he is the person who defeated me, so I''m in no position to criticize his ability.\"

    \"But you''ve improved tremendously recently, haven''t you?\" Roland lazily turned his head to glance at his lead bodyguard. \"If the both of you were to fight now, who do you think will win?\"

    \"Hard to say.\" Elem frowned as he leaned his head against the headrest of the couch. Despite his lazy posture, Roland was aware that Elem would snap into an offensive stance in a millisecond, his lithe body coiled with latent power. Perhaps that slothful image was to lull his opponents into underestimating him, though the crown prince was sure that Elem wasn''t doing it deliberately. Elem, for his part, sniffed. \"He seems to have gotten a lot stronger as well since the last time we''ve fought. That last exchange back then, when he defeated the so-called Sword Saint¡­he achieved that victory with very little mana left. And I am ashamed to tell you that even if I were to face the Sword Saint, there is no guarantee that I would have won against her¡­even if I were to fight her at full power.\"

    Roland chuckled. \"That''s why I said Richard is impressive. He''s someone to keep an eye on, yes? Best to be friends with him instead of enemies.''

    \"I''m surprised.\" Elem propped himself up to watch his liege curiously. \"I thought you would insist on calling him trash, yet waste a ton of resources trying to get rid of him for no reason other than because he''s the main character, or because he''s close to a girl you have your eyes set on¡­what was her name? Cecilia Stuart?\"

    \"Nah. I''m not that petty. And don''t be ridiculous. Who the hell does that in real life? That sounds like the most contrived plot device ever just to force a protagonist-antagonist relationship. Seriously, if you regard someone as ''trash'', then treat him as such. Who the fuck devotes so much resources, money and manpower, and waste so much time trying to make a ''trash''s'' life miserable? These authors just don''t understand how to create a proper story, and they just resort to lazy writing just to force a conflict. These antagonists aren''t even ''characters''¨C calling them characters will be an insult to actual characters and real people. They are just caricatures. I get that some people are stupid, but the level of stupidity is so ridiculous that it feels contrived. Seriously, the guy just beat up a grandmaster in front of you, and you somehow think he won''t be a match for this other grandmaster you know? The level of self-delusion and stupidity these caricatures wallow in are beyond anything reality allows for.\"

    \"¡­okay¡­\" Elem looked as if he regretted ever asking Roland that question. he was an idiot if he didn''t think Roland would take this chance to rant about the urban cultivation novels that he had been reading recently, only to drop them halfway because of how disgustingly stupid they became.

    \"Not to mention¡­even though so many of these stories take place in a ''modern'' or contemporary setting, the mindset of the antagonists are astonishingly juvenile or barbaric. You offend me? Okay, I will kill you. You insulted me? Okay, I will hire an assassin to kill you. What the fuck? Even our Amazerian Empire''s royal family don''t waste resources and money doing that, and we certainly don''t think we''re above the law to commit murder so blatantly. Yeah, I admit that there iss probably corruption somewhere, and that several of my relatives have their fingers dipped in illegal businesses, but at least we do our best to cover it! not like the idiots in these urban cultivation stories! Yet these authors have their main characters and antagonists blatantly kill each other or other people in broad daylight and then just brush it off as ''normal''¨C what are they smoking? Why bother setting the whole thing in a modern, urban location if you''re going to have people commit murder in broad daylight without suffering legal repercussions? Oh, they are so powerful that the police, government or authorities can''t do anything to them? What is even the point?\"

    \"Wish fulfilment and power fantasies,\" Elem mumbled, wishing that his liege would stop rambling already.

    \"That''s right!\" Roland was on a roll. \"But doesn''t it get repetitive after a while¡­\"

    Elem sighed and turned toward the screen and waved for the author to move on. \"Change the scene. Give the other characters the limelight for now. I don''t think the readers want to listen to his highnesss rant forever.\"

    There was a black panel, and then it was replaced by a new panel featuring other people in another place and another place. this happened a week or two ago, before my team''s match against Saint Teressa Academy.

    \"Ugh¡­\" Doctor Dorden stretched his aching back and raised both of his hands to ease the stiffness that had crept up his limbs.

    \"Are you all right, Doc?\" Glacia asked, concerned. He nodded and rubbed at his wrinkled eyes before smiling.

    \"My dear, I think I''ve done it.\"

    Glacia''s heart skipped a beat and she spun around to stare at the good doctor.

    \"Are you sure? You did it?\"

    \"Yeah.\" Dorden typed in several commands in his console, and beyond him the machine whirred as it concocted a new serum. Pushing his glasses up his nose, he smiled wearily and waved at a beaming technician. \"We''ve developed what we think is¡­well, not exactly a cure, but it''ll help keep Ana''s poisons under control for now.\"

    \"Ana Curth will be saved!\" another doctor added gleefully. Glacia raised an eyebrow, wondering when Anastasia had obtained a family name. Even if she did, it shouldn''t be Curth. Seemed like someone had been reading way too much of Dan Abnett''s legendary Gaunt''s Ghosts series.

    Dorden raised a hand. \"The catch is that it will not neutralize and break down all the poisons in her body¡­so she''ll still essentially have that Woeful Poison Body. I''m afraid there''s nothing we can do to change that.\"

    \"I see.\"

    Glacia felt a little disappointed, but at least it wasn''t the end of the world. Anastasia would survive and could still live a normal life. As long as she kept the toxins within her body under control, there should be no problem living normally.

    If anything, Anastasia would be happy about this result. Knowing the green-haired former Assassin, she would insist on keeping her poison magic so that she could continue to fight on the frontlines and assist the Silver Wolves in combat missions. For her, this was probably the best outcome, even if her comrades preferred her to be free of this poisoned curse.

    \"But as long as she can keep the toxins in her body under control, she can live a normal life,\" Dorden declared, repeating out loud what Glacia was thinking. While she already knew that, the blue-haired ice mage was happy to hear an actual doctor make the diagnosis for emphasis and confirmation. It lifted a great weight off their shoulders.

    \"Great job, Doc,\" she told Dorden, delighted. All around the laboratory, the doctors and technicians were celebrating, exchanging high fives and cheering vocally. \"You guys did great. All of you. The Silver Wolves are very grateful to you all.\"

    \"Technically, we''re part of the Silver Wolves too,\" Dorden reminded her with a grin. \"We may only be support staff, but we''re still members of the Silver Wolves.\"

    \"My apologies.\" Glacia giggled. \"Of course. I didn''t mean by it. I mean all of Silver Wolves, especially the combat personnel, are grateful to you Silver Wolves¡­ugh, you know what I mean.\"

    \"Yes, we do.\" Dorden waved her clumsy thanks away.

    \"So when do you plan to administer the serum?\"

    \"Right away.\" Dorden plucked out the canister from the machine and then proceeded toward the stasis chamber where Anastasia lay inside. \"We''ll inject the serum into her right now. No reason to waste time waiting for¡­what, an order from the top? If Feng Hai was here, he would reprimand us for dilly-dallying.\"

    \"You are right. He''ll want us to do it immediately.\" Glacia nodded. \"I''ll take responsibility. Please go ahead.\"

    \"Yup!\" Dorden inserted the scanister into the stasis chamber. A machine whirled about, a sterilized needle raising up and entering the pod. It pricked Anastasia''s skin almost gently, and everyone watched with bated breath as the contents of the transparent canister ¨C the yellow serum ¨C slowly emptied out, injected into Anastasia''s system. Dorden stepped back and watched his handiwork in satisfaction. \"That should do it.\"

    \"Vitals stabilizing!\" one of the technicians reported, the person responsible for monitoring Ana''s life-signs. \"Everything looking good!\"

    \"The toxins are under control!\" another technician added. \"The serum is working! It''s suppressing the toxins and keeping them under control!\"

    \"There''s no longer any danger of exploding or self-destruction,\" another doctor agreed as he consulted the diagonistics on a blue-tinted holographic window that displayed the insides and cellular readings of Anastasia. He beamed as he called up more biological information and ran diagnostics on hormonal production and stuff. \"We succeeded!\"

    \"YES!\"

    The medical team erupted into cheers, hugging each other and whooping. Even the elderly Dorden couldn''t help but nod in approval.

    \"We can take her out of stasis and let her recover.\"

    \"Let''s do that,\" Glacia agreed. She stepped forward to deactivate the stasis pod. Several nurses rushed over, moving Anastasia''s unconscious body into a gurney. She glanced at Dorden. \"She still hasn''t woken up yet.\"

    \"Relax, my dear.\" Dorden chuckled. \"We''ve just literally administered the serum a minute ago. It''ll take her some time to recover. She''ll wake up in a day or two. For now, we''ll have her hooked up in the infirmary, so that we can monitor her for a few days. Even if she wakes up tomorrow, we''ll keep her hospitalized, so that we can run some tests and ensure that nothing is wrong. That there won''t be any complications after this.\"

    \"Thank you. I''ll leave everything to you then.\" Glacia nodded gratefully. \"I really appreciate everything you''ve done for us, Doc. Everyone in here.\"

    \"Just doing our job,\" Dorden replied smoothly and then patted her shoulder. \"Don''t forget, every one of us here is a member of Silver Wolves.\"

    That night, the Execution Force attacked, slaughtered their way through a few dozen security staff, abducted Anastasia and left. Fortunately, the medical team had gone home for the night, and even the doctor on duty had wisely stayed out of the way. Not because he was a coward, but he and the nurses on duty knew it would be suicide to challenge five professional Assassins.

    While the Silver Wolves treasured courage, they did not want their members ¨C especially those of their non-combat support staff ¨C to throw their lives away meaninglessly, not when there were other ways they could contribute to the guild.

    *

    Back in the present¡­

    \"Boss, everyone is in position.\"

    Feng Hai nodded when Brent reported to him, his eyes still focused on the building before them. He clenched his fists and scowled murderously.

    \"Those Assassin bastards¡­they will pay for messing with us.\" he then glanced back at Brent. \"I heard Jamie''s report. They sent a Frenzor Assassin after the students in the stadium where the tournament is being held?\"

    \"Yes, sir.\" Brent nodded, and then smiled. \"Don''t worry, they took care of him.\"

    \"I heard that Richard was present to assist them. He was the one who took down the Frenzor Assassin, correct?\"

    \"More like froze the guy long enough for Jamie and the others to slay him, but otherwise yes, he played a pivotal role in defeating the berserker.\"

    \"That kid¡­\" Feng Hai shook his head with a grin. \"He''s seriously going to surpass us all at this rate. As his seniors¡­as his elders, we can''t lose to him. We''re going to get Ana back safe and sound.\"

    \"Yeah!\" Brent thumped his chest. \"Leave it to us!\"

    \"So¡­we''ve confirmed that Ana is in there?\"

    \"That''s right. We''re ready to move out the moment you give the signal.\"

    \"Gotcha¡­\" Feng Hai paused for a moment, studying the enemy base. As he considered, Redfield burst out of the bushes.

    \"Boss! Cap! I''ve got some more news!\"

    \"What is it?\" Feng Hai looked annoyed at the breach of discipline, but Redfield didn''t seem to care. He opened up a holographic screen.

    \"Did you not see the latest match? They were featuring Richie on the live broadcast!\"

    \"Of course they would. It''s his school''s match today, and he''s part of their team.\" Brent seemed just as irritated as Feng Hai.

    \"Well, yeah, but listen to this! Richie¡­he¡­he scored an all-kill! He wiped out Saint Teresa Academy in the individual matches! All of their core members!\"

    Feng Hai froze for a moment, and then he burst out laughing. Shaking his head, he suppressed his laughter.

    \"That kid¡­he never ceases to amaze me¡­\" clearing his throat, he glanced from Brent to Redfield. \"All right, people. We can''t allow him to keep leaving us in the dust like this! We need to set a good example for him! I promised him that we''ll rescue Ana, and we''re going to fulfill that promise right now!\"

    \"OOOOH!\" the Silver Wolves roared their approval. Feng Hai cast his sharp gaze over them before nodding his approval. Raising his hand, he gave the signal.

    \"Silver Wolves! Attack! We''re going to rescue our comrade! Don''t let any of those Assassins get in our way!\"

    As one, the top mercenary guild in the Global Federation raced down the slope and flew toward the enemy base. The Assassins were slow to react, but as professionals they woke up to the threat, and within a few minutes combat erupted across the base.

    From a distance, residents of the nearest city woke up and gazed curiously as orange conflagrations blossomed across the forest to their northeast, having no idea what was going on ten miles away from their city.

 427 Chapter 427: Infirmary

    \"Ugh¡­\"

    When I woke up, I felt terrible and exhausted. Deciding not to get up, I continued to lie on bed and stare up blankly at the ceiling. I didn''t need my glasses to tell me that it was morning outside. Or at least it was daytime ¨C I could see the sunlight stream through the windows.

    Blinking several times, I forced myself to sit up on the bed, grimacing as my sore muscles ached from the effort. Reaching out for my glasses, I put them on and glanced around. As I suspected ¨C especially since I could detect the faint scent of ethanol and disinfectant ¨C I was in the infirmary. A public hospital that was reserved by the Global Federation to take care of injured participants in the national high school tournament.

    Speaking of which, I wanted to know the results of yesterday''s match. I knew it was highly unlikely that my team would have been eliminated yesterday, given the fact that I had eliminated five of their core members during the individual matches, especially their captain, who was the ace of their team and their most powerful fighter. Given the capabilities of Harrison and the others, they shouldn''t have any problem defeating the reserve team of Saint Teresa Academy, even if Rossetti Picket was available to lead them.

    Fortunately, I didn''t have to wait long before my friends arrived.

    \"Richie! You''re awake!\"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu was the first one in, almost running excitedly. Except that it was against the rules to run in the hospital, for obvious reasons, so he calmed himself down and strode toward me in joy. I nodded at him.

    \"Yeah, I am. What happened? Did we win?\"

    \"Ha ha ha ha!\" Craig burst out laughing as he followed Yue Chu into the room, Sheila at his side. \"The first thing he asks after he wakes up is that? Aren''t you underestimating us?\"

    \"He''s been out the entire time, so it''s understandable,\" Sheila reminded him.

    \"We won!\" Yue Chu assured me. \"Thanks to you, we won 10-2! We actually beat Saint Teresa Academy 10-2, of all opponents!\"

    \"It was a much easier victory than anticipated, thanks to you eliminating all of the core members during the individual matches.\" Harrison strolled in and greeted me with a wide smile. \"You''ve done Jing Tian Academy proud, Richard. Great job. Very well done¡­seriously, I never expected you to pull off a miracle, but you did. I stand humbled.\"

    \"Nah,\" I began awkwardly. \"You guys did your part as well.\"

    \"Our part was made much easier thanks to your efforts,\" Lily informed me, taking her place beside an excited Yue Chu. \"We really, really appreciate what you''ve done.\"

    \"But you should take better care of yourself,\" Pearl chided me, frowning. \"We were all so worried when you collapsed.\"

    \"You should have seen Pearl freak out,\" Theodore said with a gruff laugh. \"We all knew you would be all right, that you ran out of mana after that last fight¡­\"

    \"But still¡­!\"

    \"Now, now.\" Harrison raised his hands to defuse the argument. \"Richard is all right, we won, and we''ve progressed to the semifinal. Now we should worry about how to take down Pendragon Academy.\"

    \"You had better not pull the same stunt again,\" Pearl told me sternly. \"I don''t care if it worked this time, but I will not allow you to try and replicate fighting against five members in a row during the individual matches again.\"

    \"I don''t think I''m in any condition to try that again,\" I assured her wearily. I hadn''t even fully recovered from yesterday''s series of grueling matches, and even though I probably would recuperate in time for the semifinals tomorrow, I didn''t want to risk exhausting myself. I doubted Pendragon Academy would be as easy.

    \"Ha ha! Come on, at least leave some of the glory to us!\" Craig complained playfully. \"We want a share of the wins too! Don''t hog the limelight on your own!\"

    \"Speaking of which, the fact that you defeated Kureha Franklin, the Sword Saint ¨C that fact alone was already incredible enough.\" Theodore grinned. \"You got everyone talking about your victory on social media. How you overcame the legenary Sword Saint of our generation with nothing more than a couple of basic summoning spells¡­when you were exhausted and almost running on empty.\"

    \"Not to mention the fact that you pulled off an all-kill! The first in the tournament history!\"

    Yue Chu was way too enthusiastic for his own good, practically jumping up and down by my bedside. I resisted a smile when I thought how Harvey, Adrian and the rest of my \"fans\" would be reacting after my attainment of an upset.

    We were the underdogs, and most pundits didn''t think we would win and progress to the semifinals. Yet we didn''t just win, I achieved an all-kill, something that hadn''t been achieved in the history of the national high school tournaments.

    \"This secures our place against Pendragon Academy in the semfinals tomorrow,\" Cody reminded us, his arms crossed as he leaned against the white wall. He shook his head in disbelief. \"We have gone much further than we have last year¡­to think we actually reached the semifinals this year¡­I''m still in shock.\"

    \"Yeah! I''m still buzzing from yesterday''s win!\" Yue Chu cheered.

    \"Let''s all do our best for tomorrow as well,\" Harrison suggested with a nod. \"I don''t know how far we can go, but we don''t have to fear anybody. Let''s go all out and surprise Pendragon Academy with everything we''ve got.\" He glanced at me. \"Don''t worry, Richard, you won''t have to do all the fighting tomorrow.\"

    \"I don''t think I''m in any shape to do so,\" I admitted. Everyone burst out laughing at that.

    \"Well, rest for now. We''ll be holding a strategy meeting for now, and I''ll send you a brief summary as well as video replays of Pendragon Academy''s matches, but you should take the chance to rest and recover as much strength as possible.\"

    \"Sure.\" I nodded and watched my friends leave. Sinking back into bed, I shut my eyes briefly and allowed my mana to flow through my body and coalesce.

    *

    \"Richie, how are you doing?\"

    I sat up when I heard the familiar voice, my jaw dropping when I saw who had came in to visit.

    \"Dad? What are you doing here?\"

    \"Checking on you, of course!\" Dad grinned as he came over and rubbed my head. \"Of course I''ll be concerned after you collapsed during yesterrday''s individual matches.\"

    \"You were watching all that?\" I felt a little embarrassed for some reason. Dad threw his head back as he bellowed in laughter.

    \"How could I miss my son''s matches? And his historic achievement of getting an all-kill for the first time in the national tournament''s history? You made history, son. Even years after this tournament, people will continue talking about what you did yesterday. You''ve basically become the yardstick, the guy everyone else will have to measure up to.\"

    \"Nah¡­\"

    I wasn''t sure how else to react to that.

    \"Oh, by the way¡­you have another visitor.\" Dad stepped back and nodded toward the door. Again, I was surprised when I saw someone completely unfamiliar stride inside and lower his head politely at Dad.

    \"Um¡­?\"

    I didn''t recognize the newcomer. He was a man who looked to be in his fifties, and possessed white-silver hair, along with a neatly trimmed mustache and beard. He was also dressed in flamboyant, exquisite clothing, a formal white shirt and tie inside a huge crimson, black and gold jacket. He regarded me hesitantly.

    \"This is the Duke of the Franklin family, Fergus Franklin. The current head of the Franklin family, in other words¡­you do know of the Franklin family, right?\"

    I nodded at Dad''s words. The Franklin family was one of the ten great families, and the clan who gave birth to the Sword Saint, Kureha, as well as the fencing prodigy, Shawn ¨C both of whom I had met and even exchanged blows with.

    Fergus Franklin bowed his head at me politely \"I believe you''ve met my daughter, Melina, as well as my nieces, Kureha and Eliza. Also¡­I believe you fought alongside my nephew Shawn before his death.\"

    The Stuart Corporation Building incident. I wouldn''t say I actually fought alongside Shawn Franklin, but the both of us did indeed attempt to stop Yuan Dao Yue Guang before he could attack Lionel Stuart. That attempted ended in Shawn''s death.

    However, I was too overawed to correct him, and I nodded dumbly.

    \"Uh, well, yeah¡­\"

    \"I believe my daughter Melina has already approached you about this¡­\" Saying so, he glanced at the door, where the familiar figure of a blond, diminutive girl poked her head out. I wasn''t surprised to see Adrian also hiding behind the wall, accompanying her. He gave me a friendly wave, but neither teenagers stepped into the room until Fergus gave Melina a stern stare.

    Gulping, Melina reluctantly stepped into the room as well, and then lowered her head while cupping her hands respectfully.

    \"Sensei.\"

    \"Uh, what? Sensei?\"

    \"Be patient, Melina,\" Fergus chided her. \"Wait until he actually accepts the offer first.\"

    \"Offer? What offer?\" I was getting confused. The Duke turned to me apologetically.

    \"Well, as I said before, my daughter has made a request of you¡­asking you to teach her swordsmanship. I would like to make the same request as well.\"

    He raised his head and smiled gruffly.

    \"I''ve seen your performance yesterday, and like everyone else, I was utterly impressed. I feel like if it''s you, you can definitely lead my daughter to achieve unprecedented heights.\"

    \"Begging your pardon, but why me? I''m still pretty young and relatively inexperienced, especially when compared to many other teachers and masters out there¡­I''m sure you''ll be able to find more appropriate masters to teach Melina. I don''t have any experience training anyone.\"

    \"Uh, well, there certainly are more esteemed and prestigious teachers, but I think you''re the one best suited for my daughter.\" Fergus took a deep breath. \"And I guess there''s no point hiding this from you, but there currently is a delicate political situation taking place in our Franklin family right now. To be more precise, a¡­political struggle, especially over who gets to become the next head of the Franklin family.\"

    What did that have to do with me? I sure as hell didn''t want to get involved with their family politics.

    \"As you know, the current contender and the next successor to the position of Franklin family head is most certainly going to be Kureha. She''s the Sword Saint, the most powerful in her generation and the inheritor of the Franklin clan sword arts, after the late Shawn. There are very few rivals, except Eliza, but Eliza is from a branch family, and her claim is not as strong. Needless to say, there are a few very powerful backers supporting her to be the next head, even though the person in question is not so keen about it.\"

    \"Okay¡­\"

    I still didn''t see what that had to do with Melina, or what that had to do with me becoming her Sensei.

    \"As a father, though¡­\" Fergus reached out and ruffled Melina''s hair. \"Of course I would like to see my daughter be the next head, no matter how unrealistic it might be. Especially since she wasn''t able to learn the Franklin sword style¡­\"

    \"I will do it!\" Melina insisted. \"I''ll learn swordsmanship and make you proud, Father!\"

    \"I know you will.\" Fergus granted his daughter a smile, then he turned back to me. \"Regardless of the head situation, I want Melina to be able to stand tall and proud among our family. I have heard what both insiders and outsiders say about my daughter, even the servants, and believe me, it''s not pleasant. I want to prove them all wrong¡­and show them that my daughter can become a superb swordswoman, one who makes me proud.\"

    There was something in his expression that told me that he wasn''t telling me everything. There was more to this issue, but I couldn''t put my finger on it. Judging from how this was a rip off of Assassins Pride, I bet it had something to do with Melina''s parentage ¨C that everyone was now claiming that her beloved mother and Fergus''s dear wife had an affair, and thus Melina was an illegitimate child. That was the only explanation for her lack of swordsmanship. That sort of bullshit.

    Fergus didn''t give me any chance to ask, though. He continued on.

    \"I would have taught her myself, but¡­as you know, being the head comes with many responsibilities, and I have a city to govern. I hardly have time to see my daughter everyday, and I fear I would not be able to impart her the skills I wish I could.\"

    That was just an excuse, old man. If you really wanted to teach her, you would find the time to do so. You were just dumping her on me.

    And honestly, I wanted no part of this¡­

    \"I wouldn''t be able to teach Melina Franklin sword style,\" I protested. \"You''re asking the wrong person.\"

    \"Oh no, that''s fine. I don''t need my daughter to actually learn Franklin sword style.\" Fergus gave his daughter another ruffle on her head. \"I just want her to be a brilliant swordswoman. Someone who can proudly lay claim to her status as a wielder of the sword, without being mocked or scorned or looked down upon. To that end, I don''t care what swordsmanship she learns.\" He lowered his voice. \"I''m ashamed to admit that I did try to teach her Franklin swordsmanship when she was younger, but¡­to put it bluntly, some people are not meant for it.\"

    He then straightened up, his cheeks flushed.

    \"Then I thought¡­why not have her learn a different school of swordsmanship? When she mentioned you, and I saw your match¡­something just clicked. I thought, ah, this must be fate.\"

    This, my friend, was what you call bullshit.

    \"Well, discussing all this is a moot point because I already agreed to it.\"

    \"¡­huh?\" I turned to gape at Dad, who was looking all smug for some reason. Fergus coughed.

    \"Ah, yeah, well¡­I actually discussed this with your father earlier. He agreed to it.\"

    \"Exactly.\" Dad beamed. \"So Melina-chan here will be coming to our dojo several times a week after the tournament.\"

    Bloody hell, Dad, don''t go off making decisions on your own. On the other hand, if Melina was coming to our dojo, then I could push the job off to Dad. He could train her himself. I didn''t have to lift a finger regarding her. Hell, Dad was a much more appropriate teacher than me, so I was actually glad about this development.

    Speaking of which, why the \"chan\"? Oh, because Dad was a weeabo otaku who loved manga and anime. Never mind.

    \"Okay¡­\"

    \"I''l be in your care.\" Melina was bowing somewhat timidly and politely. Scratching my head, I sighed and nodded.

    \"Uh, right.\"

    In any event, I didn''t have to worry about this until after the tournament, or so I thought. And even then, Dad would do most of the teaching, so I could leave it to him.

    Too bad reality never worked out the way I wanted it to¡­

 428 Chapter 428: Pendragon Academy

    \"I''m very proud of all of you,\" Harrison declared as he faced all of us at the head of the table. \"All of you. We did very well to reach the semifinals. This means that we are, at the very least, ranked fourth in the Global Federation.\"

    \"Yeah!\" Craig raised his mug, as if to say cheers. We were all in a celebratory mood, and after I was discharged from the infirmary, my friends dragged me here, to this bar. I learned that they originally wanted to celebrate yesterday night, but because I was out cold and recovering in the hospital, they postponed the celebration to today.

    After all ¨C according to them, anyway ¨C I was the VIP. Or MVP. Or whatever acronym they liked to use. Whether it was Very Important/Indispensable Person or Most Valuable Player, it didn''t matter. All of them unanimously agreed that I was the main reason we won yesterday''s match and progressed to the semifinals.

    Therefore it wouldn''t make sense to celebrate without me, the guest of honor or whatever. Personally, I couldn''t care less and I was worried that they would wake up with a hangover the next morning and end up unable to compete in the crucial semifinals.

    Then I remembered that we were all high school students (including my current self), and we were still considered minors. Of course they wouldn''t allow us to drink until we were 20. Or was it 18? I couldn''t remember. And honestly, I didn''t need to because I never smoked or drank any alcoholic drinks, even in my past life. Even when I got to thirty years of age, I never touched a can of beer. Well, I did have a sip once (my dad asked me to try), and I hated it, so I never drank it again. As for smoking, well¡­you know what a health hazard it was.

    \"Even if we lose tomorrow, we already made our school proud!\" Pearl also raised her mug. Craig elbowed her.

    \"We''re not going to lose!\"

    \"I don''t think anyone wants to lose,\" Cody confessed. \"But our opponent tomorrow is Pendragon Academy, you know? They are no pushovers. It will be a hard match tomorrow.\"

    \"Don''t worry, we have Richard here.\" Dong Fang Yue Chu threw an arm over my shoulders and gripped me tightly. \"He might be able to pull another miracle tomorrow!\"

    \"Are you planning another all-kill?\" Bu Fan asked snidely, drinking from his corner of the table. I shook my head.

    \"I was just lucky. They¡­Saint Teresa Academy underestimated me and they paid the price for it. If they took me seriously from the start¡­for example, if Kureha had decided to fight me from the start, I wouldn''t have been able to eliminate the other core members.\"

    \"Luck doesn''t happen five times in a row,\" Theodore told me firmly. \"Have more confidence.\"

    \"Oh, it''s not the matter of confidence. Anyway, it''s pointless to discuss what could have been. We won, and we progressed to the next round, so whether Saint Teresa Academy would have won if they switched the order of their members around is a pretty moot point to begin with. There''s no point dwelling on what-ifs and whatever.\"

    \"Well said,\" Harrison agreed. \"And that brings us to the main point of this meeting. Tomorrow''s strategy against Pendragon Academy.\"

    Even though we did come to this restaurant to celebrate, we also partly gathered to discuss strategy. It wouldn''t be an exaggeration to say that planning for tomorrow''s match was in fact the main goal of tonight''s dinner.

    \"Even if you say that¡­how exactly are we supposed to plan?\" I asked. Then I glared at Yue Chu before he could say anything. \"No, I''m not going to fight all five Pendragon Academy representatives in the individual matches tomorrow. I''ll probably die.\"

    \"Yeah, you still haven''t fully recovered from yesterday.\" Pearl was glaring at me sternly. \"I won''t allow you to pull that stunt again, even if the captain says so.\"

    \"I agree.\" Harrison raised a hand. \"It''s unfair to put all the burden on you anyway.\"

    \"Don''t worry.\" Craig was grinning as he wrapped an arm around a giggling Sheila. \"It''s our turn to shine! We won''t allow you to hog all the glory to yourself!\"

    \"Sounds good to me.\" I was still feeling exhausted, aftereffects from yesterday''s grueling session. I was sure I would recover fully by tomorrow, but I would physically destroy myself if I forced my body to go through the same torturous trials as yesterday. Not to mention, the swordsmen and swordswomen of Pendragon Academy fought in a completely different style from Saint Teresa Academy''s.

    Each one of them had reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship. After almost getting overwhelmed by Kureha yesterday, I was not eager to repeat the agonizing experience. It had been close¡­too close. A single slip and I would have been the one lying on the floor instead of her.

    As if reading my mind, Craig grinned at me.

    \"How about it, Richard? Can''t you use the same technique you used to defeat the Sword Saint to wipe out the Pendragon Academy team?\"

    \"No way. That was supposed to be my trump card, and now that everyone knows about it, they will develop a countermeasure against it. Besides¡­\" I looked at everyone sheepishly. \"I stole that technique from someone else.\"

    \"Oh?\" Harrison sounded curious. \"That wasn''t a Miyamoto sword technique?\"

    \"No, it wasn''t,\" I admitted. \"I copied it from one of the most epic visual novels ever created. It was the technique of an Archer Servant who dresses in red and wields twin swords.\"

    \"I know that visual novel!\" Yue Chu exclaimed excitedly. Then he frowned. \"But wasn''t it used by the protagonist of the visual novel¡­then again, the red Archer was his future self, so I guess it counts, huh?\"

    \"Nerds,\" Bu Fan sneered, his voice filled with scorn. As usual, everyone ignored him.

    \"In any case, I don''t think it''ll work. And honestly, that was a last-ditch move that I used out of desperation, because I had no mana left. I seriously do not want to be forced into such a situation again.\"

    \"Agreed.\" Harrison nodded. \"That was dangerous. And you are correct ¨C our opponents would have developed a countermeasure by now.\"

    \"Why didn''t Kureha just spam her Noble Phantasm and shoot multiple blasts out of her sword?\" Lily wondered out loud. \"Given Richard''s condition, she would have won if she did that.\"

    \"Pride and honor, I guess?\" Theodore shrugged. \"She wanted to defeat Richard fair and square, and recognized that he was a great disadvantage.\"

    \"Yeah, it would be lame if she won by spamming her ultimate technique against someone who was already so exhausted and injured, an opponent who was on the brink of collapsing,\" Craig added with a little too much glee.

    \"I got the sense that she was also trying to preserve as much mana as possible for the team match,\" Harrison said thoughtfully. \"Given how that''s her ultimate technique, it''s very likely that she could only use it twice or thrice a day¡­maybe four times maximum. She already used it once, and Richard neutralized it with his ice shield. If she used up all her mana on trying to blast him to oblivion, she wouldn''t have enough left to use her ultimate technique during the team match. Since Saint Teresa Academy was already down 4-0 then, it makes sense that she felt the need to save her mana so that she can take out as many of us during the team match as possible.\"

    \"Didn''t work out well for her, did it?\" Sheila remarked, almost with the same amount of glee as her boyfriend.

    \"No, indeed it didn''t.\" Cody nodded silently. \"And we were lucky in that aspect.\"

    \"Richard had nothing to lose, but Kureha Franklin had everything to lose.\" Theodore grinned. \"That said, Richard was the one who forced Saint Teresa Academy into that position to begin with, so he deserves credit for that.\"

    \"Aside from the credit, Pendragon Academy is very different from Saint Teresa Academy. Even if I was at the peak of my strength, I don''t think the same strategy is going to work on them. Moreover, they would have come up with countermeasures and strategies to cope with me, based on what they saw during the quarterfinals. So it''s best if I don''t actively participate this time.\"

    Harrison mulled over my words for a few seconds, and then shook his head.

    \"I mean, yeah, you won''t be the central component of our strategy this time, but obviously you''re too big an asset to not use. I still plan to field you in the individual matches, or team match. Or both, depending on how the fights turn out.\"

    \"Okay. I will do my best.\" I wasn''t going to say no to taking part in the semifinals. Who wouldn''t want to represent their school and fight in a match? I would love to participate as much as I could, which was why I insisted on staying on stage during the individual matches against Saint Teresa Academy. It wasn''t just about personal glory or whatever. It was the passion of testing my skills against worthy opponents. Furthermore, this wasn''t just any ordinary match. It was the semifinals. \"I can''t promise anything, but I will fight whatever opponent you send me out against.\"

    \"That''s good enough.\" Harrison nodded. He knew better than to place too much pressure on me. Again, before readers jumped in and started accusing me of not having confidence, that wasn''t the case. Just because I won a few matches didn''t mean I was invincible and was guaranteed to win against every student in our generation. It was precisely that kind of complacency that led to Kureha''s downfall in the first place.

    I was not being self deprecating or underconfident or a pussy or whatever bullshit accusations the readers were hurling at me. I was being cautious and humble, avoiding complacency and arrogance. Take note that I didn''t say I would lose, merely that I couldn''t guarantee anything. There was a huge difference between swaggering around and declaring that I could win for sure and saying there was no guarantees. There was also a huge difference between moaning and complaining that I would definitely lose and calmly and rationally stating that there was no guarantees.

    I wish readers would get that damned difference already. They were too obsessed with power levels and rankings. Just because I beat Sword Saint or Rank X whoever, didn''t mean I automatically won against everybody in my generation, or automatically won against everybody ranked under her. Ranks and \"power levels\" were always in flux. Furthermore, they are not something you could merely capture in numbers or something you measure and stay constant throughout. There were other factors that decided the outcome of a battle, such as strategy, terrain, perhaps psychological condition and morale, and more. It was never as simple as rank 1 beats rank 2, and rank 2 beats rank 3 and below, and all that. Otherwise ranks might as well be fixed without allowing anyone to switch ranks. What, you mean only the protagonist can climb ranks? No other characters can? That''s utter rubbish.

    \"All right. Watch the videos again and review and analyze their moves. I''ve told you who their core members are, so watch out for them.\" Harrison swiped the screen of his phone to project multiple holographic windows into the air. He had sent us the files earlier so that we could view them at our convenience, but just to be sure he was reviewing with everyone again.

    My eyes naturally fell upon Charles Lacroix. Not only was he the captain of Pendragon Academy team, he was also the strongest, most gifted and most skilled. There were few who could match him in swordsmanship, with only Kureha Franklin rivaling him in the sword. And even Kureha fell to him last year, which led to Pendragon Academy claiming the championship eventually. He would definitely be the one to look out for.

    The lynchpin of the Pendragon Academy team, if we could take him out, we would seriously weaken them in the team match. But I wasn''t so na?ve to think it was easy. I wasn''t discounting the possibility ¨C after all, I succeeded against all odds to eliminate Kureha Franklin before the team match ¨C but I wasn''t stupid and complacent enough to bank our entire strategy on that. And I knew Harrison, who was smarter than me in terms of tactical maneuvers and handling our team''s strengths, was already aware of that.

    It wasn''t just Charles Lacroix. The other members of Pendragon Academy were equally formidable. Hell, they were much stronger in depth than Saint Teresa Academy, by which I meant that they had no reserve members. Every single representative of Pendragon Academy was a powerhouse in his or her own right, a core member of the team. Unlike Saint Teresa Academy or even us, there were no reserve members. I recognized Claudia and Gawain, having met them in the Spirit Road like 150 chapters ago.

    Claudia Enfield was the second-in-command, a female knight who was known for possessing among the most beautiful swordsmanship alongside Cecilia Stuart. Though Claudia was not as skilled as Kureha Franklin, she was close to her, and the two were mostly evenly matched, though for now Kureha had more wins than losses in their official head-to-head clashes.

    Gawain Pennyworth was earmarked as the next rising star, his skills almost on the same level as Charles. Rumors were that he was set to succeed Charles as the next captain once the third year students graduated. Given his superb swordsmanship, charisma and strong personality, I was sure that the rumors were most likely the truth.

    \"Man, this is going to be hard.\"

    \"Yeah, but we also said that about Saint Teresa Academy.\" Craig chuckled as he glanced around the table. \"And look where we are now. Who''s to say we can''t pull off an upset?\"

    \"Exactly.\" Harrion smiled in agreement. \"Let''s go into tomorrow''s match without any fear, and just do our best. Whatever the results, we will emerge without any regrets, and as representatives who did our school proud.\"

    Harrison sure as hell knew how to put on a speech. Leaning back in my chair, I smiled as I sipped from my mug of mango juice, my mind already anticipating the clash with Pendragon Academy tomorrow.

 429 Chapter 429: Knights of the Round

    \"¡­you''ve got to be kidding me¡­\"

    We were currently down 3-1, with Craig, Theodore and Sheila all eliminated. Only Bu Fan was able to win his match, and just barely too. He was resting on a bench in the technical area, huffing. Just to pull a victory against the guy known as Lancelot, he had busted out all of spells that belonged to his dual innate elements.

    And even then, he had only just scraped a victory, and at a great cost too. He was too exhausted to continue onto the next match.

    By the way, that very same Lancelot was the person who also knocked out Craig, Theodore and Sheila. The guy was on his way to an all-kill like me, but fortunately Bu Fan stopped him dead in his tracks. I also suspected that Bu Fan won because Lancelot had exhausted quite a bit of his mana when dealing with the other three.

    \"Richard, can I count on you for the last match?\"

    Harrison was gnawing on his lip. I knew he wanted to participte himself, but he was aware that it was a risky gamble. If he ended up eliminated from the individual matches, there wouldn''t be anyone to lead the team match. Technically, I could, but¡­like I said, I wasn''t much of a leader. I wasn''t someone you could rely on to lead a team match.

    I was more of a solo player¡­a lone wolf, of sorts. I could work in a team if I had to, of course, but leading a team was another matter altogether. I just didn''t have the tactical acumen or strategic brilliance that Harrison possessed.

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I took a deep breath and nodded.

    \"Leave it to me.\"

    Exhaling, I then strode up the stage. At the other end of the ring, I could see the Pendragon team discussing fervently. After all, they had only lost one member so far, and had nine to choose from, unlike us.

    However, the moment he saw me climb up the stage, Charles Lacroix smiled and held up his hand. He made the decision immediately and walked up the ring himself. None of his teammates protested or argued, and they just watched him enter without any comment.

    I see. They must have discussed this beforehand. Charles must have told his teammates that he would be my opponent. And they quite clearly respected his decision, even if several of them didn''t agree with it. Gawain, for one, seemed itching to jump into stage as well. Fortunately, he was able to restrain himself.

    \"Richard. We meet again.\" Charles greeted me with a friendly grin. \"It''s been a while. How have you been?\"

    \"All right. What about you?\"

    \"Good. Quite a few things happened since we last met¡­was it at Spiritual Road? No¡­it was at Troy City, wasn''t it? But yeah, all in all, things have been progressing smoothly for the most part. Well, mostly.\"

    He then clapped his gauntlets together in anticipation and beamed.

    \"You know, I''ve always wanted to spar with for a while now. I''m so glad I finally got the chance.\"

    \"Eh? Me?\" I was astounded by his admission. \"But I''m¡­\"

    Not nobody. I trailed off, realizing what I was about to say. I couldn''t exactly claim that I was a nobody, or I would be offending everybody I had defeated along my path to the semifinals. So instead I opted for something less¡­stupid.

    \"¡­I''m not someone you''re very familiar with.\" That sounded lame, but at least it was better than nothing.

    \"Perhaps not, but we''ve fought together¡­twice, in fact. And your performance two days ago was very impressive.\" Bloody hell, Charles was gushing like a fanboy now, reminiscent of Harvey, except that he was a handsome blond with blue eyes and clad entirely in armor. \"The only person to score an all-kill in this tournament¡­against Saint Teresa Academy, no less. I did hear that you achieved the same against Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy in a friendly match. Not bad¡­not bad at all!\"

    \"You overestimate me,\" I said humbly.

    \"Nah. You are too modest.\"

    While we were exchanging pleasantries below, the commentator wrapped up his introductions and gave the signal.

    \"Match start! Will Richard Huang pull off a miracle again? Will Jing Tian Academy be able to claw their way back to the fight? Will this be the beginning of a comeback? Or will Pendragon Academy establish their superiority? Will the King of Knights, Charles Lacroix, defend his title and maintain his unbeaten streak?\"

    Charles reached out and gestured with a hand. \"After you.\"

    \"No, after you.\"

    Everyone was starting to get irritated by what they deemed to be our excessive politeness. Both Charles and I ignored them, and continued beckoning to each other with our bare hands. Or in Charles''s case, a gauntleted hand.

    \"Oi! Hurry up and fight already!\"

    \"Stop this Chinese gentleman bullshit! You think this is a kungfu film, is it?\"

    Evidently none of them saw my attempt to imitate Ip Man and unleash my Wing Chun on my enemies. Hell, I had an entire chapter where I fought against ten black belts¡­

    \"You¡­\"

    \"No, you¡­\"

    \"No, you¡­\"

    \"OI! STOP THAT! JUST FIGHT ALREADY!\"

    \"DON''T WASTE OUR TIME!\"

    \"BLOODY HELL! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU TWO!?\"

    Charles and I exchanged smiles, and we decided to troll the raging spectators further by remaining where we were and repeating the same lines ad nauseum. The audience grew increasingly frustrated and began hurling objects at us. Obviously the fruits, vegetables, bottles and trash never hit us. They bounced off the boundary field or disintegrated harmlessly upon impact.

    \"Referee! Do something! They are wasting time!\"

    \"What kind of match is this?! Why aren''t they fighting!?\"

    The referee in charge of the match turned to stare at them. Since he doubled as the commentator, he was able to boom his voice across the coliseum through the use of his microphone.

    \"What are you talking about? The match has already started. The two of them have already been fighting.\"

    \"Huh!? What are you talking about?!\"

    \"Don''t fuck with us!\"

    \"Stop the filler bullshit and get straight to the story! Fight scene! I want to see fight scene!\"

    The referee covered his face in exasperation.

    \"This is why I dislike amateurs,\" he muttered under his breath. Clearing his throat, he spoke up more audibly. \"Just because you don''t want to read this part, doesn''t mean this is a filler. It''s still part of the plot. You readers or audience don''t get to decide what''s part of the story and what''s not. That''s the author''s job. If you find it boring, that doesn''t mean it''s a filler. Anyway, this is an intense psychological battle, and I''m amazed that none of you are able to deect that. Obviously they aren''t just being polite and dithering for no reason. They are already engaged in psychological warfare. They are trying to lure the other party to attack first, so as to trick their opponent into a trap. Furthermore, while they were stalling each other with what seems like pacifistic or polite gestures, they have been spending the entire time casting spells, skipping the basic spells and going up to advanced magic. If you short-sighted audience paid more attention to their mana emanations and other details instead of whining about fillers and demanding for a physical fight to occur immediately, you would have picked it up. This is why Pendragon Academy and Jing Tian Academy are in the semifinals and you fools are not.\"

    At that, the whole coliseum fell silent. The spectators fortunately had the temerity to look ashamed of themselves. At least those not idiotic enough to impatiently stomp off while obnoxiously whining about how they were going to \"drop the story.\"

    \"As expected of a professional Federation commentator. He already found us out.\"

    Charles appeared sheepish, and he sighed as he drew his sword, which immediately glowed. Yup, the King of Knights had not been idle this entire time as we bantered back and forth verbally. He had been charging up a powerful spell and buff for his sword.

    \"I hope you''re finally ready as well,\" he told me. I nodded as I pushed my glasses up my nose and drew both of my swords. The chibi Green Dragon materialized above my shoulder and thousands of flower petals blossomed around me. I had also made use of the time well, casting layers upon layers of intermediate wood spells, and embedded a single advanced wood spell within them.

    Charles charged at me, and I kicked off the ground and met him in the middle of the arena, flower petals swirling around us as our swords clashed. As I expected, Charles''s skill with the sword was superb, and more than once I almost found myself eviscerated or cut apart. Already cuts littered my arms and shoulder as I picked up injuries here and there. In contrast, Charles was completely unscathed, and it wasn''t just because of his gleaming silver and blue armor.

    Pathetic as it might be to admit it, I failed to land a single clean hit on him. He was just that skilled, several times better than me when it came to swordsmanship.

    Even my magic wasn''t quite on par with his. I was directing as many flower petals as I could in his direction, but Charles deflected them away with his holy buffs. Golden light streamed from his holy sword as he wielded it flawlessly.

    \"Holy Sword Wielder,\" I muttered as I deflected his deadly blade away with Bai Ri, and then countered with a thrust from Hei Yue. Despite my successful defense, I could feel blood trickling down my neck. Gritting my teeth, I directed a rain of razor leaves and sharp petals along with my black blade, but somehow Charles managed to deflect all of them.

    \"Holy Lightning.\"

    \"!!!\"

    An explosion of golden light engulfed me and my petals, and I was forced to jump back. In front of me, black petals scattered, dispersing into tinier petals after absorbing the monumental blast of magic, but Charles cut them down with a single stroke of his holy sword.

    \"Combining holy and lightning magic?\"

    \"That is correct. I''m amazed that you know.\" Charles smiled grimly. \"The signature technique of the Lacroix clan is to combine holy and lightning magic.\"

    \"Cool story, bro.\" despite my dry retort, my heart thumped. So this genius swordsman was also an innate dual elements mage like Bu Fan. Just when I thought this handsome Mary Sue character couldn''t get any more Mary Sue-ish¡­

    Good looks, wealthy family (one of the ten great families, even), prodigy at the sword, student council president in his school with top grades and the number one position, and now he even has innate dual elements.

    I suddenly felt a very strong urge to bash the guy.

    Switching stance, I dove to the side as I ducked his web of holy lightning, which incinerated my black petals easily, and then hurled a cloud of pink Sakura petals at him. Charles remained undaunted, facing the countless razor sharp pink petals with nothing but his sword and holy lightning, cleaving vast numbers of them apart with every stroke. Most others were seared away by his protective holy aura, which resembled webs of devastating electricity.

    Not only was he defending against my technique, he was also slowly but surely advancing toward me. Step by agonizing step, stroke by cautious stroke, he continued hacking apart my petals and leaves while closing the distance between us.

    \"Excalibur Thunderbolt!\"

    A brilliant golden beam surged out of his holy sword and disintegrated the petals between him and me, forcing me to duck. As I rolled away, I caught sight of the massive scorched trail that his spell had left on the concrete.

    I wasn''t able to pay more attention to the destructive effects. Charles was already landing upon my position. Channeling more of Green Dragon''s wood mana through my swords, I met him evenly, crossing my swords to parry his holy blade.

    Boom!

    The ground beneath us cracked, unable to withstand the intense auras of mana that our bodies were emanating. So powerful was our mana that they actually coalesced and solidified into very tangible forms.

    \"Look!\"

    The spectators watched, amazed, as a colossal tiger ¨C made out of golden-white energy ¨C reared up above and behind Charles. In contrast, a gigantic green dragon of verdant mana confronted it, its majestic figure uncoiling behind me.

    The duel between the dragon and the tiger had begun. Two symbols of opposing power clashed above our locked bodies, snarling and roaring as they fought for supremacy, their fight representing the struggle between celestial forces in microcosm.

 430 Chapter 430: Duel between Tiger and Dragon

    By the way, the title is a Chinese idiom or proverb, referring to the colossal rivalry between the tiger and the dragon. One represented hard power, the other embnodied soft power, and the both of them symbolize the balance between the perpetual opposite powers of yin and yang. The tiger was all ferocity, raw strength and brute force, whereas the dragon was respected for its wisdom, unending patience and unwavering calm. The dragon also represented Heaven, while the tiger was the scion of Earth.

    Well, theoretically, anyway. It was meant to be symbolic, an idiom that was rarely manifested literally. Even so, it was quite the coincidence that our auras had taken their respective shapes. Honestly, I could have summoned White Tiger instead, but I was terrible at lightning magic, so¡­yeah. No go. It was either ice magic or wood magic, and since I had more practice with the latter, the choice was an obvious one.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    My razor leaves were incinerated instantly by a surge of holy lightning, which was followed up by a riposte from Charles. The point of his blade grazed my cheek, and I countered with a stab from below, which he deflected by withdrawing his sword and using the pommel to knock my blade away. I then swung my other sword, but he bent his arm and parried my strike, only to be sent staggering when I kicked him in the midriff.

    \"Not bad,\" he murmured, impressed. His smile widened. \"This is it¡­this was what I''ve been searching for all this while! A worthy opponent!\"

    He then spun about with a kick, which I dodged, and then followed up with a series of blinding strikes that were almost too fast for me to see. My glasses compensated, the motion detectors calculating the trajectories and highlighting them in blue for me, anticipating the place where his sword would be so that I could block his attacks preemptively.

    \"Huff¡­\"

    I found myself knocked backward by another ferocious strike from him, and I could almost see an ethereal image of a tiger roaring as it swiped at me with its claws. Instead of physical violence, his strike exploded in a burst of holy lightning that seared through my defenses and scorched me. Breathing heavily, I jumped back to widen the distance between us, but Charles sent a lightning bolt in my direction.

    Clang!

    Crossing both of my swords, I parried the immense lightning bolt. My arms went numb from the intense voltage and I was sent skidding several meters backward, leaving a scorched trail in the ground. Heaving, I kicked off the ground and circled him while retaliating with a barrage of razor-sharp petals, leaves and entangling vines.

    Boom!

    With a single stroke, Charles called forth another colossal blast of lightning and disintegrated my spells immediately. Ashes and black, burned matter fell around him, a rain of singed soot and dust that gave the environment a deathly tinge.

    Spinning around, he swung his sword and launched a second lightning bolt. I managed to block that with a wall of wood and petals, which immediately split apart and divided into yet more petals, before directing them at him. Yet the King of Knights was able to slice all of them apart without much effort, his glowing, golden blade weaving intricate patterns in the air. He then kicked off the ground and lunged at me, swinging his sword fiercely.

    Despite crossing both of my swords to parry his strike, I found myself overwhelmed almost completely. My legs buckled under the immense impact, and the ground around me cratered, turning into a cracked crater. With a yell, Charles put in more strength behind his blow, driving me deeper into the disintegrating concrete.

    Gritting my teeth, I forced him back with a desperate swing of my swords, gathering more black and pink petals around me. Thorny vines whipped out, attempting to ensnare him, but Charles hacked them apart with nary a thought before driving me back with another powerful blow. Golden mana, combined with white lightning, surged out and enveloped me, causing me to curse as my arms and legs grew numb from their deadly electrocuting effects.

    Another forceful strike sent me hurtling backward, my swords clattering at my side as my arms flopped down helplessly. Sucking another breath into my abused lungs, I tried to rally myself and return to my feet, but first I had to purge the electricity out of my body. Those holy buffs were increasing their debilitating effects by several magnitudes, and proved to be crippling.

    \"He''s strong¡­!\"

    I already knew that, but even so¡­being forced to confront Charles directly like this was sobering. I was aware of the gulf between our strengths. In terms of swordsmanship, the King of Knights completely surpassed me.

    He was overwhelming me almost too easily.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    Heaving, I pressed a hand onto the ground and discharged all the lightning within my body in one go, earthing it.

    \"Ho¡­\"

    Charles had been approaching me this entire time, and he watched, impressed. He brought a hand to his chin as he observed me.

    \"So you''ve figured out how to get rid of the electricity in your body. I must admit, very few people are calm enough to think of a solution in the middle of a battle. But it''s a good move. Otherwise my electricity will continue to clog up your mana circulation, hinder your magical flow and prevent you from casting any spells.\"

    That was exactly why I did it, even at the risk of being hit when executing the process.

    \"I''m curious. How did you come up with that trick?\"

    \"By reading a Korean manhwa. Never heard of Veritas? The protagonist of that manhwa has similar abilities to you.\"

    \"Ho¡­\" Charles raised an eyebrow skeptically, but he didn''t protest or demand for a more serious answer. Unfortunately, that was the truth. I learned that by reading about how a level 8 Traditionalist martial artist countered the lightning techniques belonging to the protagonist of Veritas through an identical process. \"I won''t pursue the question further if you wish to keep the truth from me. Oh, pardon me. We''re still in the middle of a match. Of course you wouldn''t be amenable to telling me everything about your techniques and skills right now¡­not while we''re still competing.\"

    Without wasting any time on any other dialogue, he leaped forward. Huge gusts of wind billowed around him as he descended upon my position, his glowing holy sword swinging down like a guillotine. I instinctively dove to the side, rolling away from his powerful blow.

    Somehow I knew that I did not want to receive that attack head-on. Given Charles'' overwhelming strength, he would have obliterated me in that single exchange.

    Turning around, Charles fired off another lightning bolt in my direction, after my retreating figure. This time, I understood that I couldn''t evade it and I was forced to whirl around to intercept the spell. The lightning blast detonated upon contact and sent me sailing a few meters away. I skidded to a stop and rolled back to my feet, but Charles was already upon me.

    \"Taurus!\" I shouted.

    The gigantic bull materialized in midair and charged at the stunned holy sword wielder. Charles had great instincts and combat sense, however, and he quickly spun away from the charging Constellation spirit. In a single stroke, he cleaved Taurus in half as the metallic, armored bull passed by him, turning the poor guy into dissipating mana.

    \"You''ve got to be kidding me¡­\" I murmured. Charles had just taken out Taurus with one fucking slash. I knew he was strong, but this was ridiculous.

    The holy sword wielder didn''t seem to care, and without pausing he had already hurled himself at me. I could feel the destructive mana emanating from him as he swung his blade down. The sword of promised victory, it possessed tremendous power ¨C enough to completely annihilate our surroundings, along with me if I hadn''t chosen to dodge.

    Even as I evaded his heavy blow, I was battered by the immense shockwaves that followed, my body thrown about like a hapless doll. I hit the wall and slumped down, groaning from the impact. Fortunately, after using such a big move, Charles wasn''t in any position to take advantage of my prone figure, and the both of us took the time to recover and reform our stances.

    As Charles closed in on me, I summoned a pride of lions with a single shout.

    \"Leo! Leo Minor!\"

    First, the pride of smaller lions surrounded and pounced on Charles, their claws outstretched. The holy sword wielder twisted about, hacking the closest one into pieces before lashing out to discourage a second. He parried the claws of a third before turning his defense into an offensive riposte that tore the poor lion apart.

    \"!!\"

    A claw caught him by the temple, grazing his flesh and sending a trickle of blood down his face. Undaunted, Charles continued fighting on, his movements sublime. His figure moved fluidly, a destructive whirlwind of energy. His blades lashed out like lightning flashes, almost too fast for even my Leo Minor to follow. More than a few of them lay at his feet, cut apart by his deadly skills and superb swordsmanship, even before I could register what had just happened.

    \"Such speed¡­such power¡­\" I shuddered just from watching him, but I didn''t dare to waste any time on being discouraged. I had a spell of my own to prepare.

    \"?!\"

    Not that Charles was going to generously give me the chance. A maelstrom of whirling destruction, he swept through the remnants of my pride of Leo Minor and continued onward. With the last of my Leo Minor slain, he had an unimpeded route toward me.

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I smiled.

    \"?!\"

    Before Charles could reach me, a golden blast of destructive energy engulfed him. He barely had the time to pull his sword up to defend himself before his entire body was enveloped in a golden glow. Beside me, Leo strode forward, unleashing Regulus.

    \"Ugh¡­!\"

    Even as Leo''s Regulus dissipated, Charles dropped to his knees, his body and armor smoldering. However, he plunged his sword into the ground and kept himself upright, forcing himself back to his feet. Shaking off the devastating effects of Leo''s spell, he lunged at me again, only for my Constellation spirit to swipe at him.

    Clang!

    He easily parried the claws of Leo, and responded with a riposte that forced the majestic beast back. I watched as the two kings fought ¨C one of knights, and one of beasts ¨C a primordial duel where humanity struggled to establish his supremacy over the wilderness.

    Fortunately, unlike the late Taurus or the lesser lions, Leo was holding his own against Charles. The two of them were locked in a ferocious duel, their bodies little more than blue and silver blurs and a golden smudge in a storm of violence. Flashing blade met gleaming claws, and holy mana exploded against wild magic.

    Charles relied on his sublime skills and impeccable swordsmanship, whereas Leo was the very embodiment of natural force and bestial violence. The two of them clashed repeatedly, blade against claws, holy magic versus natural spells. Golden-white lightning detonated against the constant bursts of Regulus, leaving cracks and holes in the crumbling ground. Neither party yielded any ground, each of them desperately defending their territory with a terrifying possessiveness that only intensified their efforts. Both were the very manifestation of nobility and majesty, each of them a king in his own right.

    However, there could only be one king.

    \"Amazing. You''re much stronger than Shawn Franklin, or even Kureha Franklin, that''s for sure.\"

    No wonder Charles Lacroix and his Pendragon Academy triumphed over Kureha Franklin and her Saint Teresa Academy last year. It was not hard to see why. He was more skilled than even the Sword Saint herself.

    During the clash for the crown, I wisely kept my distance. There was nothing I could do ¨C I would only get in Leo''s way if I tried to attack Charles from behind. That tactic wouldn''t work anyway ¨C the holy sword wielder had flawless combat sense and innate instincts, which made him a naturally gifted swordsman. Unlike me, who had to hone my mind''s eye after countless hours of practice and hard work, Charles possessed a keen intuition that was almost as if it was bestowed upon him by the gods.

    He was the man chosen to be king, after all.

    The struggle for the throne was nearing its end. Leo dropped back, blood dripping from his wounded haunches and flanks. Despite his best efforts, he wasn''t able to avoid being nicked or grazed by Charles''s dazzling attacks and precise sword strikes. Fortunately for me, the king of knights didn''t get away unscathed either. There were parts of torn armor and fabric that hung from his chest or arms, or even thigh, much to his fangirls'' delight. I could hear them sqeualing in delirious joy even when down here. At least I made him bleed.

    But it was over. As Leo pounced on Charles, the latter swept under him, bringing his sword up and piercing the lion''s heart. My Constellation spirit bellowed in frustration before disappearing from existence. Huffing, Charles turned to face me, bringing his sword up to point directly at my throat. I wasn''t afraid, given that I was quite the distance away.

    However, there was no mistaking that challenge.

    \"Anything else to throw at me?\" he asked, somehow still able to smile despite the situation. Battered and bleeding he might be, but his spirit remained unbroken.

    Fortunately, mine remained unyielding as well. Returning his smile, I raised a sword into the air, my right hand holding Hei Yue high up.

    \"It''s your turn, Draco.\"

    The enormous dragon materialized behind me, but this time, instead of his usual black form, he was made entirely out of ice. Searing red eyes glared out from a crystalline, draconis face, and my newly redesigned Draco let loose a thunderous roar.

 431 Chapter 431: Knight versus Dragon

    Charles''s eyes narrowed when he caught sight of my newly conceptualized Draco.

    "Goodness," he remarked. "Just how many Soul Beasts can you summon?"

    "Well¡­" I pushed my glasses up my nose and shrugged. "88 Constellation spirits that are recognized by the International Astronomical Union, and the five Celestial Guardians of Chinese astrology. The good news is that I can''t summon all of them at once ¨C I don''t have the mana to pull such a ridiculous feat off."

    "Really?" Charles barked out a laugh and then shrugged helplessly. "Man, I was planning on cutting them down one by one, but even if you can only summon a fraction of close to a hundred Soul Beasts, even I won''t have the stamina to fight all of them all night."

    He then pointed his sword at me again.

    "Let''s not dally around any further. Is that dragon your strongest Soul Beast? Bring out your most powerful summons. I''ve given you ample time to do that. Let''s finish this once and for all."

    "My, pretty confident, aren''t you?" I remarked. Inwardly, I fought to suppress a surge of panic. Charles was unruffled even after seeing Draco, and even asked me to bring out my strongest summons. That meant he was sure he could defeat my trump card. Considering his superlative skills, and how he so easily dispatched so many of my Constellation spirits so far, I had no doubt that he was perfectly capable of that.

    So this was the champion of last year''s tournament. A very formidable foe indeed.

    Feeling a bead of perspiration drip down my face despite the sudden chill that my summoning of Draco brought, I kept a smile frozen on my face. I couldn''t let his confidence get to me. Even if he believed himself stronger, I just had to do my own thing and prove him wrong. That was all.

    "Draco!"

    My dragon moved immediately, lunging forward to slash at Charles. Amazingly enough, the puny human stood his ground and bravely parried the titanic claws. To my surprise, Charles merely skidded a few meters backward, his teeth gritted as he dug his feet in, but he held.

    Then Draco sent a blast of freezing mana washing over him. The holy sword wielder vanished in a white fog, but he stumbled out a few moments later, his body half entombed in ice. His holy magic kicked in and he shattered the ice instantly. He then swung his sword in a wide arc, deflecting Draco''s next swipe, and then displayed remarkable agility to leap up and avoid the next few slashes.

    Almost as if he was flying through the air, Charles leaped high up to strike Draco''s head. However, an icy tail whipped out and caught him by the side, sending him flying several dozen meters across the air. He then crashed into a wall and disappeared under an avalanche of rubble.

    "Phew¡­" I exhaled. At least Charles wasn''t decimating my dragon like he did my other Constellation spirits. That meant I still had a chance.

    Boom!

    A massive slab of rock was sent flying through the air, in Draco''s direction, but the colossal dragon merely ripped it apart with his claws, grounding the debris into powder. At the opposite end, Charles trudged out, looking worse for the wear but otherwise still raring to go. He grinned, and then kicked off the ground and crossed the distance in a single bound. Swinging his sword down, he made to decapitate Draco.

    Whirling around, Draco lowered his head while whipping his tail forward. Charles almost couldn''t defend himself in time. While he was still sailing across the arena, he was unable to dodge in midair. Therefore he could only defend himself with his sword.

    The spiked, icy tail caught him and tossed him back, but he flipped himself in midair and landed with his feet against the wall. The reinforced concrete caved in from the impact, debris and stone shaking loose, but he then propelled himself forward again.

    This time, holy lightning crackled around him. Charles swung his sword outward and launched tremendous webs of deadly, jagged electricity across the arena, catching Draco almost unawares. However, Draco wasn''t such a wimp to fall for that, and with a determined bellow, he countered with a blast of freezing mana that trapped the approaching bolts of lightning in ice. The two elemental mana clashed and exploded, clouding the entire space in dense fog.

    "Phew¡­"

    I couldn''t help but shiver from the sudden cold. Despite me learning ice magic, I could never get used to the extreme temperatures that my own Constellation spirits or my own spells generated.

    "You shouldn''t let your guard down."

    "!!!"

    I didn''t, exactly, and was able to parry a blow from Charles. Making use of the fog as cover, he had gone straight for me, striking at my jugular. Needless to say, he failed, and would have failed even if he had kept his mouth shut. I could detect his presence, thanks to my glasses.

    Even with the thick fog obscuring vision, there were infrared signatures outlined in my lenses, the sensors picking up thermal and mana readings. That gave me one advantage that my enemy didn''t possess.

    "As long as I eliminate the summoner, the summoned Soul Beasts will disappear along with his consciousness. So you can''t afford to let your guard down and let your Soul Beast do all the fighting!"

    "Thank you for your advice," I replied dryly as I exchanged several more blows with him, my lenses detecting the hint of silver flashes and outlining them clearly in my field of vision so that I could parry accordingly. I was already aware of that, and was prepared accordingly.

    In fact, that very same weakness could be used as a strategy ¨C since I knew my own vulnerability as well as my enemies, I could exploit that knowledge and use that against them. In other words, their tactics would be obvious and predictable, and I could set a trap of my own.

    "!!!"

    And Charles was about to learn that the hard way. While he was engaged in furious combat with me, Draco swung down and slashed him from behind, almost tearing open his rear armor. There was a slight spray of blood, but because of the holy sword wielder''s unworldly combat sense, he had moved on instinct to avoid a fatal blow.

    This guy was really frustrating to fight against.

    Charles staggered away and withdrew to escape yet another swipe from Draco. His eyes widened, and he was clearly wondering how Draco was able to see him, even amidst such a thick fog.

    The answer was simple. Draco shared senses with me, whether it was visual, aural or even olfactory. He could see whatever I could see, hear whatever I could hear, even smell or feel whatever I was in contact with. Additionally, we were linked telepathically, so I could mentally direct him to attack wherever I needed him to, without speaking a single word out loud.

    Draco continued to pursue him, and Charles unleashed another thunderbolt that keept the enormous Constellation spirit back. Draco conjured a glacial wall to block the devastating spell, which obliterated the ice screen under a few seconds. Skidding backward, Charles assessed his situation grimly, and then he decided not to dwell on it for too long and charged forward again.

    Blade met claw in a crackling collision of violent mana, and both knight and dragon sprang apart in a shower of sparks. Whirling around, Charles unleashed another web of lightning at near pointblank range, and Draco froze everything in the vicinity in response.

    For some reason, I was reminded of a Magic: The Gathering duel where a player was casting red spells such as Lightning Bolt or Shock, and then his opponent cast blue spells such as Counterspell or Mana Leak to cancel it out. I don''t know why, but it might be because I was reading too much Destroy all of Humanity. They can''t be regenerated. At least recently anyway. If you hadn''t heard of that, it''s an amazing manga with some romance in it. Try reading it.

    Anyway, Charles was engaging my Draco in a clash of both physical power and magic. His sword swung about, flashes of golden that cleaved the drifting mist apart as if it was made of paper. Spinning around, he unleashed another colossal thunderbolt at close range, which Draco swatted away with an icy claw. Before Charles could land, he was struck by a spiked, icy tail, and was sent hurtling across the air again, his body slowly freezing over.

    Holy magic and electricity crackled around him, shattering the ice and minimizing his injuries. It wasn''t a true healing spell, but I could see that his holy magic was deadening his pain and ensuring that he could continue fighting without dropping¡­until his body reached its limits, of course. Healing magic was a branch of holy magic, so holy magic users could heal themselves to a certain extent, just like Eliza Franklin during our last exchange in the quarterfinals.

    Somehow Charles managed to recover his footing. When Draco bore down on him, he kicked off and switched direction, heading for me instead. Swinging his sword down, he yelled out in determination as he sought to cut me down before Draco could hit him.

    As I said, completely predictable.

    "!!!"

    Before Charles could reach me, he found his body clamped down by a massive paw.

    "That''s impossible!"

    Charles clearly thought the paw belonged to Draco. Yet, given his immense bulk, there was no way Draco could move fast enough to pin him before he could reach my position. So how did my dragon catch him¡­?

    The answer was¡­it wasn''t Draco who caught him, but Cerberus. The three-headed guardian of Hell let loose a chilling howl before shifting more of his weight to his paw, crushing the knig of knights down into the ground.

    "Even the king of knights must submit to death and pay his respects in the underworld," I commented, trying to sound cool and failing entirely. Damn, but that was so middle school syndrome. I felt embarrassed over saying that.

    Charles stilled for a moment, and then he barked out in laughter.

    "It''s true¡­" he admitted. "I did tell you to bring out your strongest Soul Beasts, and you already told me that you have almost a hundred in reserve. It was my fault for letting my guard down."

    "Yeah, well¡­" I shrugged. Inwardly, I felt a flare of hope. Was this an admission of defeat? Was he going to give up? That would save me a lot of trouble¡­

    "?!"

    Cerberus was suddenly blasted off Charles''s position. The holy sword wielder slowly stood up, holy lightning pouring off his body and electrocuting the great guardian. Cerberus whimpered as he withdrew to a distance, and then all three heads of his growled, their jaws opening to unleash a triple torrent of blizzard spells.

    For a moment, the entire arena froze over. And then the ice were all smashed into smithereens by a gigantic maelstrom of lightning.

    Raising his holy sword high above his head, Charles obliterated the ice across the arena with a single stroke. Frost fragments fell everywhere, almost like snow.

    "Lifting the restraints of the Round Table," he whispered.

    "Huh? The restraints of what?" I repeated incredulously. "Are you seriously trying to rip off Fate/Prototype now?"

    Ignoring me, Charles swung his sword and yelled a single word. "EXCALIBUR!"

    The entire coliseum vanished in a blinding tsunami of golden mana, which swept across the place and instantly obliterated Cerberus. Draco fared better, his titanic form engulfed by the anti-fortress attack unleashed by the Sword of Promised Victory. Huffing, I threw my right hand out and yelled out an incantation of my own.

    "I am the soul of my sword!"

    Draco was slowly keeping the golden spell at bay for now, but he was gradually and inevitably disintegrating. Damn it¡­his new form was not complete. If I had a little more time to recombine my new ice magic with my Constellation magic, I should theoretically be able to summon a more powerful version of Draco, but I wasn''t quite there yet.

    "Fear is my body, frost is my blood."

    Draco finally disappeared under the overwhelming onslaught, his form disintegrating into frost fragments and azure shards of glowing mana. Charles continued to infuse his spell with more mana, determined to end the match once and for all.

    "My skill, Giant Beast Hunting, was attained because I have abundant experience in fighting against gigantic enemy monsters. And if you''re familiar with the tales of knights, you''d know that we are well versed in the art of slaying dragons and other giant monsters."

    "I''m sure," I responded dryly. There wasn''t much else I could say, given that Draco was now gone, and I still had to complete my incantation. Dragging my attention back to the present, I resumed my spell. "Discarded by Life, Embraced by Death¡­"

    The enormous, destructive tsunami was now upon me. Taking a deep breath, I spoke the words of power that would make my spell a reality.

    "Snow Aegis!"

    And then the tsunami of golden, destructive energy almost washed over me, crashing into my gigantic snowflake shield. My view vanished in a blinding flash, my senses fizzling out from the tremendous amount of raw power that battered violently against my greatest defense.

    Then I knew nothing.

 432 Chapter 432: Last Stand

    Coughing, I staggered out of the dense smoke, my body smoldering. Fragments of frost rained down around me, the remnants of my once great Snow Aegis disintegrating from the blast. Opposite me, Charles held his sword up before rushing forward.

    "!!!"

    I just barely managed to parry the holy sword in time, only to be knocked off my feet. Rolling away, I thrust Hei Yue up, but Charles deflected it before throwing a riposte that I just barely managed to parry with Bai Ri. Gritting my teeth, I swung both of my swords in a desperate counterattack to force Charles back, but the King of Knights easily blocked them before retailiating with his holy sword. Crossing my swords, I blocked the damned weapon, only for the ground to crumble beneath my feet and knee. With a grunt, I shoved Charles back with brute force, slightly catching him by surprise, but he whirled around and kicked me in the chest, sending me flying.

    "Ugh!"

    Tumbling over, I somehow managed to flip myself up and land on my feet. Even so, my momentum caused me to skid several meters back. Charles didn''t wait for me to regain my balance. He was already upon me, his sword cleaving through the space where my head had been a millisecond ago. If I hadn''t duck down on instinct, I would have been beheaded by that move.

    "That was dangerous¡­"

    Heaving, I parried another blow from Charles before being knocked over by a particularly vicious swing. Cursing, I withdrew as best as I could, but Charles continued to pursue me.

    "Capricorn!"

    With my major Constellation spirits obliterated, there wasn''t much else I could rely on right now. As Charles turned to cleave my giant goat apart, I conjured a storm of petals, once again relying on my chibi Green Dragon, and cut him into shreds. The holy sword wielder staggered from the blow as the razor leaves and sharp petals washed over him, but he then blasted them apart with holy lightning. While the scorched petals drifted uselessly about his crackling form, I poured more mana into Green Dragon and had him return to his original form.

    The gigantic dragon reared above Charles before conjuring another blizzard of flowers, vines and leaves. Wooden trunks grew rampantly, turning the arena into a mini-forest, but Charles chopped all of them down with a swing of his holy sword, all the while keeping the flowers, vines and leaves at bay with his defensive lightning.

    The guy was insane. No matter what I threw at him, he would just counter it accordingly, making full use of his peerless swordsmanship and tremendous magical power. I understood why he was known as the strongest Servant¡­ahem, I meant swordsman. The best all-rounder, with the highest stats and incredible ability.

    There was nothing I could do. Nothing at all.

    "?!"

    A golden blast of mana seared through the maelstrom of petals and leaves and slammed into Green Dragon, bowling the great Celestial Guardian over. As Green Dragon rolled about, Charles cut his way out of the tangle of vines and flowers, his holy sword glowing fiercely like a beacon. He then sent another surge of golden mana in my direction, but I summoned Scutum Sobiescianum to block the lesser Excalibur blast.

    Even so, the reduced version was still a formidable anti-fortress spell that tore through my Constellation shield. Thankfully, the decreased output of destructive mana ¨C most of which had been absorbed by my shattered shield ¨C meant that I wasn''t heavily injured by whatever remained of the spell that managed to get past my defense. While I righted myself, Charles threw himself forward to finish me off, but Green Dragon''s tail whipped out and caught him, hurling his battered body against the wall. The blow didn''t just pulverize concrete ¨C I could see the cracks and chips in his slowly disintegrating armor.

    Charles was not invincible. He was human, just like me. He could bleed too. There might just be a chance of victory¡­!

    "Golden Kirin!"

    The fifth and central Celestial Guardian materialized beside me, galloping alongside me. While Charles sprang off from the wall and engaged my Green Dragon once more, Golden Kirin and I attacked from the flanks.

    "!!"

    Charles whirled around to cleave apart a series of earth spikes that shot out in his direction, and then returned to parrying Green Dragon''s claws. Making use of his smaller size and greater agility, he jumped from place to place, evading the verdant Celestial Guardian''s claws and tail, while countering with his own powerful strikes.

    Holy lightning detonated between them, causing Green Dragon to stagger back. While Charles was hurled back, Golden Kirin sought to take advantage of the situation, only for the King of Knights to behead him as he lashed out with his claws.

    "!!"

    And just like that, one of my Celestial Guardians fell.

    "Did you forget that one of my abilities is Giant Beast Hunting?" Charles scoffed as he spun about to hack at Green Dragon''s approaching claw. Holy lightning blasted out, keeping the dragon back, and Charles landed on the ground, skidding back. "My skills completely counter yours."

    "That''s what they all say," I grumbled as I struck out with my swords. He parried them, ducked under my follow-up strike, and then kicked me. While I stumbled back, Green Dragon''s paw crashed down on his position, but he managed to deflect it and withdraw.

    "Even so, despite my skills countering yours, you still managed to put up a good fight. I''ll say this much ¨C you''re among the strongest opponents I''ve ever faced."

    "Ditto."

    More vines whipped out to ensnare him, but Charles easily deflected them. A brilliant blast of golden mana surged upward and annihilated the entire overgrowth in a single strike. His sword glowing brightly, he unleashed another Excalibur at near pointblank range. Green Dragon wasn''t able to dodge at this distance and he was disintegrated by the spell near instantly, even though this was a lesser Excalibur that did not have the necessary Restrictions of the Round Table lifted.

    "Guh!"

    I fell back several meters, realizing that this was a very dire situation for me. None of my summoning spells were going to work. Whatever Constellation spirit I summoned, he would be able to easily slay thanks to that overpowered Giant Beast Hunting skill that he possessed. It was checkmate for me, no matter how I looked at it.

    Or was it?

    Another strike from Charles blew me back, the lightning searing through the arena. I hopped backward and sheathed my swords. Instead, I summoned Orion and let loose a volley of arrows, keeping him at bay. Even Charles wasn''t able to handle the bombardment, and he sliced through the arrows as best as he could, his holy sword scything down a good number of them. Despite his best efforts, several of my arrows managed to graze him.

    "!!!"

    Glancing around, Charles realized that I was gone. Then he glanced upward and spotted me sailing through the air above, taking aim. Raising his sword, he readied himself for another onslaught, but he was too late.

    "Betelgeuse!"

    A rain of arrows plummeted down upon Charles''s position with the force of multiple meteorites, pockmarking the ground with craters. Even as Charles fended off as many as he could with his holy sword, the sheer volume of countless arrows overwhelmed him and engulfed him in tremendous explosions.

    "?!"

    However, amidst the bluish-white explosions and hail of azure arrows, a brilliant beacon of golden light flashed forth. I instinctively threw myself to the side before a sudden burst of Charles''s restricted Excalibur could obliterate me. Rolling on the ground, I got to my knees and unleashed another hail of azure arrows, but the smoldering form of Charles deflected them. Heaving, he slowly approached me, smoke pouring off his body, and golden mana shimmering around his sword again.

    "Damn it!"

    If I kept the battle at long range, it might actually be to my disadvantage. Cursing, I began running to the side while maintaining a constant hail of arrows, but Charles continued to blast a second Excalibur at me. Since this was the restricted version, it didn''t need as much mana as the full-powered one he unleashed upon my Draco, but that was of scant comfort. Even a restricted version was more than enough to erase my existence if I took a direct hit from him.

    "Aries!"

    My Constellation spirit appeared behind Charles and rammed him, knocking him off his feet. Charles somehow managed to twist around and cleave the charging Aries before he was floored, but that was all I needed.

    Skidding to a stop, I paused and took aim, finishing my spell. An azure arrow appeared in my hand, blazing brightly like a supergiant star, and I fitted it to my bow. Pulling it back, I unleashed Rigel upon the sprawled Charles before he could get up and dodge. Grunting, the King of Knights managed to bring his Excalibur up and deflected the arrow to the floor right next to his head, but it was futile.

    Rigel wasn''t just a projectile. It was practically a mini-nuke.

    Boom!

    A mushroom cloud expanded across the coliseum, obscuring the view of the yelling and shrieking spectators. Colossal flames licked the ceiling and walls, and a molten crater had been blasted into existence from the sheer destructive power of my arrow. Flaming debris rained downward, crumbling into blackened pieces as they struck the ground.

    Then a golden beacon of light flared up once more. Charles struggled to his feet, his sword glowing, and he unleashed another Excalibur at me. It took me a second to dismiss Orion and conjure Snow Aegis, but I was able to nullify the majority of the blast, especially since it was still in its restricted form. Even so, it was more than enough to shatter my greatest defense.

    Through the falling frost fragments of my broken snowflake shield, Charles came flying. I drew both swords in time to parry his strike, but was almost blown away by his incredible strength. Gritting my teeth, I stood my ground, refusing to yield. We traded a few more blows, each one sending a shot of chill up Charles''s body and clogging up his mana circulation. He paused to withdraw a couple of times, his limbs locked in ice, but he shattered them with his holy magic before resuming the fight. It was only because of these little hindrances and my disruption of his mana circulation that I was able to fight on par with his superlative swordsmanship, or he would have cut me apart eons ago. However, on the same token, his holy magic was offering him great resistance against my icy disruption debuffs, and he was able to slog on despite my passive spells causing him problems.

    I couldn''t afford to withdraw ¨C if I continue to engage him in close range, I could prevent him from firing off one of those dreaded Excalibur spells of his. Without a choice, I needed to keep him close, or I would be obliterated sooner or later.

    "!!"

    However, the longer we fought, the more I realized that I had been outmatched from the very start. My movements were becoming more sluggish and my arms numb. To my horror, I realized that the holy lightning that continued to crackle around Charles''s body was having similar debilitating effects to mine. The electricity was gradually seeping into my body as well, hindering my mana circulation, numbing my msucles and cutting off the neural connections between my brain and my arms. Blood splattered the ground as Charles''s attacks began hitting closer to home. I was unable to block and parry all of them, and I slowly gave ground.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    Another cut opened a new wound on my neck, and I staggered. A follow-up riposte slashed across my chest before I could block it, and I felt blood dripping from my left arm, a fresh injury that came when Charles almost casually flicked his sword. It was almost as if he was toying with me, but I knew he was suffering the same disruption as I was.

    Lightning versus ice. Who would prevail?

    I couldn''t allow this battle to drag on any longer. I knew I couldn''t hold on for much longer, given the mounting loss of blood, and my increasing lack of mana circulation. Charles was succeeding more and more with every stroke, with each strike coming closer to a vital point. At some point, he was going to break through my defenses and deliver a decisive blow. In contrast, it was all I could do to defend and keep up with his moments.

    Clearly, I was never going to best the King of Knights himself in a sword duel. However, if we were talking about magic¡­

    "Absolute Zero!"

    I unleashed all of my mana in a single surge, enveloping the entire space in ice. Bringing the temperature down to zero Kelvin, or -273 degrees Celsius, I plunged everything into a suspended state of motionless. Even mana itself couldn''t possibly move under such extreme conditions¡­

    However, Charles''s body continued to move. The golden aura that wreathed him continued to flare brightly, as did his Sword of Promised Victory. To my horror, I understood why. Absolute Zero, while extremely powerful, was not invincible. Of course there would be magic spells or enchantments that could resist it, otherwise ice mages would just dominate everyone else. It wasn''t as if we could defeat everyone just because we had an ultimate spell of our own.

    Charles had his holy magic ¨C holy buffs and blessings that increased his resistance. It was the only reason why he was still able to move under absolute zero conditions. His Excalibur streaked toward me, and I weakly deflected it to the side, only for him to reverse the trajectory of his sword and plunged it into my chest.

    I looked down dumbly for a moment, my consciousness fading away.

    Like hell I would fall here!

    Gritting my teeth, I lunged forward and slashed at Charles, but both of my swords missed because he pulled back at that very moment. Those cursed combat instincts of his¡­a natural gift he was born with, something he didn''t have to work hard to attain, unlike my mind''s eye.

    This was why I hated talented geniuses¡­

    Trying to endure the pain, I forced myself to take a step forward, but for some reason my body refused to listen to me¡­

    *

    Even as Charles Lacroix yanked his sword out, he realized that the opponent in front of him was still standing. He prepared for another strike, only to hesitate and pull back.

    "What is he doing?"

    "The match isn''t over yet."

    "Is he showing mercy?"

    The spectators were confused, watching the two boys stand on the arena. Both of them continued to face off, but neither made a single move.

    "Oi! Resume the match!"

    "It''s not over yet!"

    "Hurry and finish him off!"

    "There''s no need for that." wiping blood from his mouth, Charles Lacroix turned to the commentator. "I think the result is clear enough."

    The commentator watched the bespectacled figure of the other guy for a few moments, and then nodded.

    "Match over. Winner¡­Charles Lacroix!"

    "Huh?!"

    "What''s going on?!"

    The members of Jing Tian Academy jumped to their feet in the technical area in an uproar, but Harrison gestured for them to sit back down, shaking his head.

    "It''s over," he told them sadly. "The referee is correct."

    "But how?!" Craig demanded fiercely. "Richard is still standing¡­"

    "Yeah, but he has lost consciousness."

    At Harrison''s words, the rest of the team looked at the boy on the stage, his silhouette stationary and motionless. His eyes were still open, but there was no light in them. He was staring blankly at nothingness. They could not detect a hint of consciousness in his gaze at all.

    "Richard¡­" Pearl whispered, aghast.

    They could do nothing but watch as the medics rushed up the stage to handle the unconscious guy, who ¨C even until the very end ¨C was determined not to fall.

 433 Chapter 433: Elimination

    "Ugh¡­"

    When I woke up, the first thing I saw was the white ceiling of the infirmary. That was becoming quite the familiar sight by now, given this was the second time in as many days that I found myself back here.

    Sitting up, I winced at the phantom pain that surged through my chest, even though I was aware that my injury had been fully healed by now. There wasn''t even a scar left, courtesy of magic, but somehow the psychomatic pain continued to linger. It was probably a psychological thing.

    Glancing around the hospital room, I then slumped back against my pillow. If I wasn''t mistaken, I had lost the match against Charles Lacroix. Even though we were already 3-1 down, my defeat made it 4-1, and extremely difficult for us to claw our way back in the team match. The chances of us making it past the semifinals were looking very bleak.

    "Weak."

    Looking up, I saw a bunch of unfamiliar people walk into my room, sneering. Frowning, I tilted my head as I studied them.

    "Who¡­?"

    "We''re the readers," one of them replied scornfully. "Who regret reading your story."

    "So pathetic."

    "Can''t even win a single match."

    "When are you going to become strong? Why are you still so weak after 430 chapters?"

    "At this rate it''ll take you another thousand chapters to win a tournament."

    "Can''t stand what a weak, pathetic loser the MC is. Dropped."

    "This stupid MC always bleeds so much whenever he fights. Might as well call him the bloody MC."

    "MC is spineless, weak, and not ruthless enough. Dropped."

    I tried not to roll my eyes. So these were the readers wanting me to be an overpowered protagonist for some stupid reason. I didn''t know why they deluded themselves into thinking I was in some wish fulfilment power fantasy story where the protagonist curbstomped whatever enemy he came across with nothing more than an effortless flick of his finger. That was completely unrealistic, moronic and plain boring. If they wanted to read those stories, go read urban cultivation or other xianxia stories. My life was not the kind of wish filfilment or escapism they were seeking, and I was not going to be strong-armed and forced into pandering to these juvenile edgelords'' wet dreams of an uber, godlike MC who did whatever he wanted, where absolutely nothing in the world could threaten him. That was just unrealistic and stupid as hell.

    "If you don''t like it, then get lost!" I snapped. "Leave me alone. Go read something else. I don''t exist just to cater to your personal preferences. My goal is to be a hero, not to win a tournament, so fuck off if you are complaining just because I can''t win one. There are so many stories that are right up your alley, so don''t poke your noses into my life and try to demand that I conform to your twisted version of what a ''story'' should be, or project your filthy desires and unrealistic, ridiculous wish fulfilment onto me. Stop reading and get lost!"

    "NO!" the readers roared. "If you don''t write what we want you to write, then we will continue harassing you until you either stop writing forever, or bow down to our pressure and write what we demand of you!"

    Jesus Christ, the sense of self-entitlement of these fuckers was just over the roof. Also, I couldn''t believe they actually believed the ridiculous hyperbole they were uttering. I had won more than I lost, but just because I lost a single match, or get severely injured every time I fought, I was considered "weak" and a "loser." And since when was this story going to last for a thousand chapters? What the fuck is wrong with them? I held my head in despair, trying not to blow up at these childish, spoilt, screaming whiners, but fortunately I didn''t have to endure their nonsense for long.

    "!!!"

    Red streaks of demonic light surged into the room and impaled the shrieking readers, ripping them apart into shreds. I watched, astonished, as they disappeared, their bloody corpses thrown back past into the fourth dimension, and sighed in relief.

    "Wow, they were making such a din that I had to shut them up." Craig strode in before retracting his spear and keeping it. Sheila followed him in, and he placed an arm around her. "Are you all right?"

    "Yeah, thanks. You saved me."

    "Uh, I think Craig is referring to your injuries sustained during the match," Sheila pointed out. I nodded.

    "Oh, yeah. I''m fully healed now. What about you guys?"

    "I''m good. We received healing treatment too, and our injuries were lighter than yours, so we were discharged earlier."

    "That''s good news." I caught sight of Theodore and the rest streaming in. There was no sign of Harrison or Yue Chu or Lily yet, so I began to grow a little worried. "Uh, what happened¡­?"

    "We lost," Theodore declared simply. He caught sight of my expression, and quickly waved his hands. "No, it''s not your fault. We fought as a team, and we lost as a team. All of us shoulder the same amount of responsibility."

    "So¡­even the team match, huh?"

    Despite already anticipating our defeat, I couldn''t help but feel dejected. Of course. It was only natural. To come so far, only to fall just short before the final¡­anyone would feel bitterly disappointed.

    "We''ve been eliminated from the tournament?"

    "Hey, at least we made it all the way to the semifinals. We are fourth placed, at least." Bu Fan also joined in, along with a heavily bandaged Cody. Easy for him to say. Bu Fan was the only one who won his match.

    "Harrison and the others did their best during the team match, but¡­this is Pendragon Academy we''re talking about here." Sheila looked glum. "They wrecked us."

    "At last Harrison and the others took out 2 of them, thanks to a combo from Yue Chu and Lily." Craig smiled wryly. "So the final score was 9-3. Still a pretty big loss, but at least it wasn''t 9-1¡­"

    "Yeah¡­" I wasn''t sure how to respond to that. No matter what the score was, a defeat was still a defeat. It didn''t change the fact that we had been eliminated from the tournament.

    "Your efforts made a difference." Cody stepped forward, his voice as quiet as ever. "I think you should at least know that."

    "What difference could me losing possibly make?" I scoffed, but the Assassin wannabe shook his head.

    "You did enough damage to Charles Lacroix, to the point where he couldn''t participate in the team match. He had to leave it to Gawain Pennyworth and Claudia Enfield to lead." He squared his shoulders. "You achieved your goal of keeping their most valuable player out of the team match. You gave us a higher chance of winning¡­and it was our fault¡­our weakness that led to our eventual defeat."

    "The combo that Yue Chu and Lily pulled off was really sick, though." Craig chuckled. "I didn''t think they could amplify his inferno spell in such a manner."

    "For now, you should rest." Pearl was ushering everyone out of the room. She smiled at me. "Don''t dwell too much on it. Even if you had won, we would have lost eventually. The team match showed just how vast the gap between our teams were."

    "Well, it''s Pendragon Academy we''re talking about here," Sheila added. "They''re not last year''s champions for nothing."

    "Ugh, but we gave them a run for their money, didn''t we?" Craig raised his hand, looking a little frustrated. He turned to Pearl. "You said the gap between us is vast, but I personally think we were close to beating them. Just a little more¡­next year! We''ll definitely beat them next year!"

    "Next year," Bu Fan echoed with a nod. "We''ll crush them when we see them in the tournament next year, for sure."

    I personally wasn''t so sure about that. Half of the team would be graduating by the end of this year. Harrison, Pearl, Theodore and Cody. Yue Chu, Lily, Craig, Sheila, Bu Fan and I would be third years by then, and the reins of leadership would fall to us. I wasn''t sure if any among us had the same tactical nous that Harrison possessed, and I didn''t know any first year students capable of replacing the third year students who would be graduating.

    It might quite possibly be a lot more difficult for us to make it this far again next year. Honestly, this was what they called a fairy tale run. A team that had surpassed all expectations and emerged as this year''s dark horses. In the end, we fell to the favorite, and clearly it was not meant to be, but as Pearl pointed out, there was still a wide chasm between our abilities and those of Pendragon Academy.

    "Anyway, we should leave Richard to get some rest." Pearl''s voice was gentle but stern. Craig sulked but complied, with Sheila tugging him. Bu Fan had no wish to stay in the same room as me for any longer than what was necessary, and Cody and Theodore were considerate enough to leave me be. They looked a little concerned, wondering if I would be moping around and blaming myself. Pearl forced a smile. "Get discharged by tonight. We''ll probably be returning to Jing Tian City tomorrow morning, so best to get everything packed and ready by tonight."

    "I understand."

    The teams that were eliminated had no reason to stick around in Southampton City. We were often sent home almost immediately after we were eliminated, mostly because of budgets and to save money. Why spend money to continue accommodating so many teams when there was no real reason to? I knew some readers would question this, but I had best raise the World Cup as an example ¨C the teams who were eliminated didn''t tend to stick around.

    There were exceptions, though.

    "What are you talking about? We still need to determine third place." Craig was giving Pearl a strange stare.

    "That''s right." Theodore struck his palm with a fist. "And the third placed team will have to stick around for the awards ceremony anyway."

    "Oh, you guys are right." Pearl looked a little sheepish. "I forgot about that. In any case, Richard still needs his rest, if we want him to participate in the third place match."

    "Any idea who our opponents are?" I asked, already moving on. A new challenge was what I needed in order to take my mind off brooding over the defeat.

    "Oh, it''s someone you''re very familiar with." Cody turned back to me, a dark smile on his grizzled face. "It''s the Porter lady from Vermillion Academy and her team. We''ll be counting on you to eliminate their captain."

    *

    Shortly after my friends left the room, I received a new visitor. To my surprise, it was none other than Fergus Franklin. The Duke stepped into the room and inclined his head.

    "Sorry to impose in you while you''re still recovering."

    "I''m almost fully healed," I assured him. I was sure I knew what this was about. After my abject display and defeat by Charles Lacroix in front of everybody, Fergus must be terribly disappointed and was here to cancel his request that I be his daughter''s instructor. It was only natural. I had proven myself inept and weak. I didn''t have the qualifications to train his daughter, especially if you listened to all those insults that the earlier readers leveled at me.

    Honestly, that would be a relief for me. I didn''t have time to train anyone, nor did I have the qualifications or skills to teach anyone. I was barely able to fight by myself, so how could I help another person improve?

    Fegus smiled warmly at me. "Ah, I see. That''s good. Well, I''ll cut to the chase then."

    "You wish to cancel the request?" I asked when he paused. "I understand. I''m sure you''ll find a better teacher for your daughter."

    "Ah, no. You misunderstand." Fergus looked a little startled, and the he chuckled. "It''s precisely the opposite. I''m here to tell you not to let the defeat get to you. I still want you to train my daughter. In fact, I can''t think of anyone more suitable."

    "Huh?" my jaw dropped. "Are you sure? But I lost¡­"

    "So what?" Fergus shrugged. "You put up one of the most impressive displays against the young man known to be the strongest of your generation. Short of hiring Charles Lacroix himself ¨C and he will never agree to this, given his status and responsibilities to his clan, what with being groomed to be the successor to the current family head ¨C you''re the next best person to teach Melina."

    Well, at least he was honest about me being second best, and not the first choice. But he had a point. One did not simply ask someone of Charles''s status to lower himself into a teaching role, not when he had clan affairs to manage.

    "And don''t mind the comments from those juvenile, mentally retarded incels who claim to be readers." Fergus waved a hand dismissively. "I''ve read them, and I''m honestly shocked at the rubbish they spout. They clearly have no sense of how reality works. Nobody is perfect in real life. Nobody is invincible. Everyone loses at least a few times. Even Serral isn''t unbeatable ¨C Innovation bested him in a Starcraft 2 Tournament. Brazil didn''t win all their games at the World Cup. Failure is the mother of success. In fact, I''m confident that you''ll come out of this stronger than before. Everyone fails at one point or another, and it''s extremely common. For those retarded incels to mock you over a single loss and resort to ridiculous hyperbole¡­as if they had never suffered a setback or failed even once throughout their entire lives ¨C and if they really are that perfect, they wouldn''t be wasting their time reading webnovels online anyway. They are deluded if they think every story conforms to their twisted version of godlike main characters who curbstomp every enemy in their paths¡­probably read way too many urban cultivation stories or isekai stories or reincarnation stories with Mary Sue protagonists. Don''t worry, I don''t have such unreasonable or unrealistic expectations of you. I just want you to do your best. I''m confident that you''ll groom Melina into a fine swordswoman in her own right, and I''m not deluded enough to expect you to turn her into an invincible world beater."

    "Uh, right."

    I didn''t expect Fergus of all people to go off into a rant like that. But I was glad that he agreed with me. Then again, unlike self-entitled, juvenile readers whose mentality was stuck at their early teens, he was a grown man with lots of life experience, and thus knew how the real world worked. Of course he would be more inclined to follow common sense, unlike those caricature, shallow characters in urban stories, and the incel readers who loved those type of things.

    "Thank you."

    I felt really grateful for his words. Even though there was a significant number of readers who resorted to insults because I didn''t write my story the way they wanted me to, there were still a fair bit who were calm and rational enough to know that it was absolutely stupid to project their own desires onto my life and expect me to be a godlike Mary Sue.

    "Good. Hmm, I shouldn''t disturb your rest. I''ll leave for now." Before he exited the room, he turned back to me and smiled. "Good luck for the third placement match. And don''t worry. Regardless of the outcome of that match, I will still want you to teach my daughter."

    Then he was gone, leaving me to dwell on his words by myself.

 434 Chapter 434: Toxic Reques

    I had barely left the hospital when I caught sight of a very familiar figure approaching me.

    "Instructor Feng Hai?"

    "Oh, so you still remember me?" Feng Hai chuckled as he caught up with me. Placing a hand on my shoulder, he grinned. "Good job with the tournament. I watched almost all of your matches. You did very well."

    "Not well enough." I wasn''t able to keep the bitterness out of my voice. "We lost against Pendragon Academy in the semifinals, and were eliminated."

    "Even so, you did great. More than enough to be proud of yourself. Thanks to your progress, your school has jumped ranks all the way to the top four ¨C that alone is a feat worthy of praise. You have restored glory and prestige to Jing Tian Academy, and put it on the map of the Global Federation. All of you have surpassed all expectations."

    Feng Hai grinned as he lifted his hand from my shoulder and flashed a thumb''s up. I could literally feel the delight radiating from him.

    "You''ll all be rewarded. The whole team. I promise."

    "Uh, right." I watched him, somewhat suspicious. "I don''t suppose you came all the way here to personally tell me this and congratulate me, right?"

    "Sharp as ever." In just a second, the celebratory mood was replaced by a somber one, and Feng Hai''s expression turned grim. "You are right. I''m here to ask you for help. I''m very sorry¡­even though you still have the tournament going on¡­and you probably want to participate in the third place match, I don''t have a choice. You''re the only one I can ask."

    "What is it?" I couldn''t help but feel a bit of a chill. There was something about Feng Hai''s tone that disturbed me. Then it struck me. There was only one reason why he would approach me, of all people, for help. Not to mention, this circumstance seemed awfully familiar. I was already having a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu. Suppressing a sigh, I glanced down at my feet and tried to silence the thumping in my chest. "Don''t tell me¡­Anastasia?"

    Feng Hai gazed at me guiltily, and then nodded. "That''s right."

    "Let me guess. She went missing again." bloody hell, I just went and searched for her a few dozen chapters ago, and now she disappeared again. How many times did she need us to look for her? This was getting damned repetitive.

    "Actually, no. Not exactly." Feng Hai cleared his throat. "We know where Ana is. The problem is that¡­she doesn''t want to return. We need you to persuade her to return." He lowered his eyes. "We think you''re the best person to convince her."

    "Huh? Return? What''s going on?"

    Feng Hai sighed heavily and then scratched his head. "It''s a long story. To keep it short, we stormed the Assassins'' base and rescued her a couple of nights ago¡­or at least, we intended to do so. But when we went in¡­everyone was already dead."

    "Oh."

    I think I knew where this was going¡­

    "Ana killed all of them."

    Feng Hai''s eyes widened briefly, and then he nodded, impressed.

    "That''s right. You really are smart. All of the corpses had been blackened and withered away by virulent toxins. The entire environment within the temple had turned hazardous. We had to cast protective spells just to get into its interior. The only survivors were Veneneum Assassins, and they were already weakened from a previous battle, so it was pretty easy for us to take them out."

    No doubt the previous battle was against Anastasia. Still, for her to wipe out an entire temple of Assassins¡­that was incredible.

    "Then we found her. Ana¡­her Woeful Poison Body¡­it was out of control. Even with the serum that Doctor Dorden concocted, it wasn''t enough." Feng Hai paused to consider his words. "Well, it was enough to keep her alive, make her immune to the poison, but as you know, it couldn''t fully neutralize the toxins within her body. Consequently, the toxins continued to rampage and leak out¡­turning whatever surroundings she is in into a lethal environment."

    "What¡­?"

    "That''s the curse of the Woeful Poison Body¡­and why it''s so highly sought after. This is why the current Grand Master of Assassins covets her so. This is its final form¡­a living biological weapon, able to poison and kill everyone in the vicinity from her mere venomous presence alone. Turning entire areas into toxic wastelands, and wiping out every living thing in a couple hundred meters radius. The ultimate killing weapon."

    "Scary," I muttered, though honestly I couldn''t care less. I was immune to poison, after all.

    Wait, wasn''t that why Feng Hai was approaching me? Because I was the only one who could get close to Anastasia without dying? That made sense. Taking a deep breath, I nodded and smacked my chest.

    "Leave it to me. I''ll persuade her to return."

    "Thank you. That will be a great help." Feng Hai looked immensely relieved. Wow. Ana must have been really stubborn to give him this much grief, huh? Just when that thought passed through my mind, the Silver Wolves leader raised his head sullenly. "Just be warned¡­right now Ana is a little hard to talk to. She''s withdrawn herself not just physically, but also mentally as well. Attaining the Woeful Poison Body has taken a psychological toll on her."

    "That''s understandable." If I was in her positon, I would feel extremely aggrieved too. Actually, that was quite the understatement. I probably would be on the verge of killing myself. Damn, I had best hurry before Ana started getting suicidal thoughts as well. "We should hurry. Where is Ana right now? Is she still at the temple?"

    "No, she left the place and headed for the Black Underworld Swamp."

    "Huh? The Black Underworld Swamp?" I still remembered that place. The both of us had went there together, participating in a mission along with Brent and Redfield. It was that expedition that Henry Porter led, in order to uncover some tomb. In the end, we encountered the Dark Church, who was conducting some ritual to summon a demon¡­which I then nuked to oblivion. Or was it a blood god? Damn, I couldn''t remember.

    Even so, I was surprised. Of all the places¡­

    "Why the Black Underworld Swamp?"

    "It''s one of the most toxic environments in the world," Feng Hai reminded me. "It''s probably the one place where Ana''s Woeful Poison Body will have minimal impact on, given how the Black Underworld Swamp is a cesspool of poison itself. Populated by the most venomous monsters know to men, it''s probably the place where Ana''s rampant toxins will do the least damage."

    "Speaking of which," I began, now that something else had occurred to me throughout this entire exchange. "What are we going to do when we bring her back? As you pointed out, her body is not exactly in great shape. She''ll turn her surroundings into a toxic environment, and nobody will be able to get near her. Even if I persuade her to return with me, it''s not as if she can walk around with everyone without poisoning them to death."

    "That''s a good point." Feng Hai seemed troubled. "You''re right, and we have discussed the problem. Honestly, there is nothing we can do. We can only place her in a specially designed space to contain her uncontrollable venom magic. But it''s still better than leaving her alone in the Black Underworld Swamp, especially with the Assassins Guild still determined to capture her and bring her back to their Grand Master."

    "I see. I can''t say I like that idea, though."

    Feng Hai stroked his chin, contemplating hard. He sighed and turned his gaze toward the horizon, where the sun was slowly setting.

    "To be honest, neither do I. But what choice do we have¡­?"

    "If I may¡­"

    The two of us spun around, catching sight of Mary Cure.

    "Teacher Cure? What are you doing here?"

    My jaw dropped when I saw her. Mary Cure merely shrugged as she stepped forward, her arms folded. She nodded at Feng Hai, who bowed his head in return.

    "It''s been a while."

    "Indeed, Teacher Cure."

    Mary Cure laughed at that and waved her hand somewhat airily. "Quit with that. You''ve graduated from Jing Tian Academy a long time ago. You no longer have to address me as teacher." She wrapped her hands around herself. "It makes me sound old."

    "My bad."

    "Um, Teacher Cure¡­earlier, you were saying something?" I asked, to the point as always. I didn''t want to waste too much time on pleasantries.

    "Oh, right. I know of someone who might be able to help you." Cure raised a finger. "But no guarantees, though. Before you go off to help this poor friend of yours, who has the Woeful Poison Body, you might want to approach this young man for help. He might know something. He might be able to concoct medicine that will allow your friend to keep her poison under control."

    "Really?!" I wasn''t able to contain my excitement. This was great news. I felt hope flare up inside me.

    Cure nodded. I made a mental note to stop callig her Cure, because I was mixing her up with a South Korean Starcraft 2 pro gamer who was known as one of the best Terrans in recent years, on par with the likes of Maru and Innovation. Not as good as Gumiho, though the famous mech god had gone to do his military service.

    "I will message you his contact. He is a famous genius receptarier, or alchemist, known as the Flame Emperor, mostly because he has all the Heavenly Flames. If there''s anyone who knows how to concoct a spirit pill or medicine to help your friend bring her Woeful Poison Body under control, it''s him. There are rumors that he has done it for one of his closest friends, and succeeded."

    "Really?" I was already shaking my head and covering my face with a palm. "Let me guess¡­his name is Xiao Yan."

    "How do you know?!" Cure¡­I mean, Mary gasped. "Are you an acquaintance of the Flame Emperor?"

    I wasn''t sure if my teacher was trolling me, or if she was serious. "I read Battle Through the Heavens. Please stop this nonsense, or we''ll be sued for copyright."

    "Don''t worry about it. Just look at Ultimate Scheming System/Strongest Anti M.E.T.A. They shamlelessly make a lot of references to Battle Through the Heavens and other web novels, and no one sued them."

    "Whatever, can you not waste time making references and breaking the fourth wall? Do you really know anyone who can help or not?"

    "I already told you. Xiao Yan, the Flame Emperor¡­"

    A wind blade sliced several strands of her hair away. Mary Cure went very still as she stared at Feng Hai''s raised hand.

    "Teacher Cure, I have the utmost respect for you, and I appreciate you treating my wounds back when I was a student. But if you don''t take this seriously and continue wasting our time with this nonsense, then I won''t be so polite any longer."

    "All right, all right." Mary Cure held up both hands in surrender. "Can''t even take a joke, the both of you."

    "Does this seem like the appropriate time to joke around?" Feng Hai asked icily. "We have a comrade whose life is in danger¡­"

    "Her life isn''t in danger," Mary corrected. "Rather, it''s the people and living things around her who are in peril, especially if her poison powers continue to run rampant. We will need a way to bring her toxic magic under control."

    "Again, do you know of anyone who can help? And don''t give us that Xiao Yan crap, he doesn''t exist in reality. He''s just a fictional character."

    Crossing my arms, I glared at Teacher Cure sternly. She scratched her head for a moment before twirling a strand of golden hair around a finger.

    "I wasn''t lying when I said he was a receptarier or an alchemist," she began. "But you are right. He''s not the Flame Emperor who wields Heavenly Flames or whatever. He''s a normal medical alchemist. His name is Ling Dan. He''s famous for concocting spirit pills and curing the incurable. If you look for him, he might be able to help. But again, no guarantees."

    "Where do we find him?" Feng Hai asked, decisive as ever.

    "That''s the problem. His whereabouts are unknown." Mary Cure sighed heavily as she lowered her hand. "The only clue I have is that he might be residing somewhere in the Yao Cai Mountains. If you want to search for him, that would be the best place to start."

 435 Chapter 435: Departing for Yao Cai Mountains

    "I''m very sorry, everybody!"

    I bowed as low as I could, my body almost perpendicular at the waist. My friends all stared at me, perplexed.

    "Please." Feng Hai was also beside me, lowering his head in apology. "I''m very sorry, but I will need to borrow Richard for a while. I understand that you might want him around for the third place match, but this is a very urgent matter. Please don''t blame Richard ¨C I was the one who selfishly made this request and pushed him into this. I hope you will forgive me."

    "There is nothing to forgive." Unsurprisingly enough, it was Harrison who took the initiative and stepped forward to speak on behalf of Jing Tian Academy team. He placed a hand on my shoulder and smiled. "Do whatever you need to do. The life of your comrade is much more important than a tournament match."

    "Yeah," Craig agreed. "Besides, it''s just the third place match, and not the finals. I''ll be honest, it doesn''t really matter that much if we win or lose this one. The only difference is whether we finish third or fourth, and let''s be serious¡­fourth place is a lot more than we deserve."

    "You''ve done your best to help us progress this far," Sheila added with a warm smile. "It''s our turn to not let you do. You can leave the rest to us."

    "That''s right!" Yue Chu thumped his chest confidently. "You also have to give us a chance to shine as well, Richie! You''ve been hogging all the limelight and stealing the glory! At least allow the rest of us to display our strengths as well!"

    "Correct." Harrison nodded. "This is a team effort, not a one-man show. While you''re undoubtedly a very important member of the team, and your contributions have been nothing short of tremendous, we cannot depend on you forever. This is Jing Tian Academy team, not Richard team. Every member matters. If you have your own circumstances, it falls to us ¨C your teammates ¨C to pick up the slack and compensate. Besides¡­"

    He lowered his voice and winked.

    "I wasn''t planning on fielding you in the third place match, anyway. I did toy around with sending you against Lilith Porter if she comes into play during the individual matches, but in the end I decided not to. You''ve done so much throughout the tournament¡­all-killing Saint Teresa Academy team, forcing Charles Lacroix to withdraw from the team match during the semifinals¡­and so many more. As Yue Chu said, I should give the others some time to run out on the field and present their prowess. The seniors, in particular¡­they deserve the chance to attract the attention of some of the recruiting universities."

    That was right. I almost forgot. Harrison, Pearl, Cody and Theodore would be graduating at the end of this year. They needed to find admission into a prestigious university, or at least that was what society expected of them. Fortunately, the criteria for admission to good universities usually included a mixture of excellent practical results, mission records (though not many people participated in these) and individual combat rankings. Most of which Harrison and the other seniors had already done well in. Of course, those were sufficient for them to get into fairly prestigious universities, but Harrison wasn''t just referring to those.

    Depending on their performance in the tournaments, they might get scouted out by the elite universities. The cream of the crop. Ivy League. Who could say no to enrolling in the best universities the Global Federation had to offer? The universities ranked among the top ten?

    Harrison was correct. While it wasn''t as if I hogged the limelight to myself (Bu Fan, Yue Chu, Lily, Craig, Sheila, Theodore, even Harrison himself all performed extremely well, and won a lot of recognition from pundits and professional mages alike), the seniors deserved their chance to shine. This was, after all, their last high school tournament. I might still have a chance to participate again next year, as long as I didn''t get complacent and maintained my current ranking, but my seniors would have to move on, to look for universities. This could have a great impact on their careers, and I wasn''t selfish enough to deny them this opportunity.

    "Good luck, everybody."

    "Don''t worry about us, and do what you need to do." Harrison gripped my hand in a firm handshake and then shoved me gently, toward Feng Hai. "Get going. Your friend is waiting for you to save her, right?"

    "Yeah! If you really want to make up for your absence, then promise us that you''ll definitely save her." Pearl joined in with a sweet smile. "Bring her back safely."

    "We will." Feng Hai returned the friendly expression. I could almost read his thoughts ¨C he was touched by his juniors'' goodwill. He was most likely whispering to himself something along the lines of "so Jing Tian Academy hasn''t changed since I''ve left it. It''s still filled with good, loyal students. I''m very glad."

    Man, I wouldn''t be surprised to see him shed a tear or two.

    "We''ll be back," Feng Hai promised. Then he turned away, gesturing for me to follow him. I gave my friends a wave.

    "I''ll be seeing you," Yue Chu said with a grin and a wave.

    "Yeah. Later."

    Then I was gone, following Feng Hai toward unknown territory.

    *

    "How are we getting there?"

    "Summon your monsters and fly over there, obviously!" a reader shouted from the comments section. Feng Hai kicked the guy through the fourth wall and suppressed the urge to roll his eyes.

    "The Yao Cai Mountain is so far away, if we fly there on one of your Soul Beasts, it''ll take forever. Besides, it''s an incredible drain of your mana. The flight would take a few hours, and maintaining one of your larger Soul Beasts to ferry an entire squad would exhaust you. You would be of no use to us if you arrive, your mana completely expended¡­and that''s provided you''ll be able to last the several hours'' worth of journey anyway."

    "I know all that. Why are you telling me all this? Tell them." I jabbed my finger at the broken fourth wall, through which the insolent reader had just been blown through.

    "That''s what I meant to do. These readers, always thinking they know better than the characters in the story. Hindsight is twenty-twenty, and it''s not as if we possess the same vision or perspective the readers do. They''re always looking for ways to exploit the system, to abuse the rules for some stupid advantage."

    "Yeah. Obviously it''s against the rules to summon before the match, and they kept asking why I was stupid and not summoning before the match. Or they kept calling me retarded because I don''t have a Constellation spirit that can cast healing spells. As if I can conceptualize and summon something so convenient! I need to learn healing magic first, which is a completely different type of magic from elemental magic, and I don''t have the aptitude or time to switch specializations. Yet they always think they know my own world and reality better than me, and try to twist the rules to their distorted advantage. If I can''t do it, then obviously there are rules that prohibit it! If I don''t summon a healing Constellation spirit, then obviously that''s because one doesn''t exist! Stop whining about me being stupid or retarded just because my life doesn''t go the way YOU imagine!"

    "Ignore those idiots. They just like projecting their narrow-minded desires and wishi fulfilment fantasies onto other people''s lives. Juvenile edgelords who don''t know how the real world work. They are probably used to everything conveniently falling into place for them, and then rage like spoilt brats when they don''t get their way. They aren''t worth your time. More importantly¡­" Feng Hai glanced up, just as the roar of plasma thrusters swept across the area. Above, a massive military-grade hovercraft dropped into a controlled descent, blue flames billowing downward. Landing pads extended out from chambers on the underside and clamped down on the ground. With a whine, the thrusters cut off abruptly, leaving everything in relative silence. The air continued to shimmer from the intense heat, despite the sudden absence of plasma. "They are finally here."

    I recognized the Silver Wolves emblem painted onto the side of the hovercraft, but even without that I remembered that this was the very same transport I had rode aboard before. The ramp lowered, and a squad of mercenaries disembarked, jogging toward Feng Hai and saluted as they stopped sharpy before him. Just as I expected, Brent and Redfield were among them, and they cast a glance in my direction to acknowledge my presence.

    "I see you''ve gotten the kid."

    Redfield grinned before he dropped all formalities, strode forward and slapped me in the back with such force that I was almost sent sprawling onto the ground. I tried not to glare at him as I gingerly rubbed my back. Unaware of my pain, Redfield threw an arm around my neck and guffawed in delight.

    "Richie! It''s been a while! Oh, I''ve seen your matches! Impressive! Very impressive! And you also did well in that fight against the Frenzor Assassin! I heard about it from Jamie!"

    "Excellent work."

    Brent was also nodding in approval, but his countenance remained as stern as ever. There was a reason why he was the captain and why Redfield remained the subordinate.

    "So¡­where to, boss?" Redfield asked, finally letting go of me and straightening to meet the eyes of Feng Hai. He then scratched his messy, red hair. "I believe you said something about Yao Cai Mountains over the coms? Looking for a renowned receptarier?"

    "Are you sure this man has the means to help Anastasia gain control over her poison magic?" Brent asked seriously, his tone filled with skepticism.

    Feng Hai shook his head. "Like Teacher Cure said, there are no guarantees. This could very well turn out to be a wild goose chase. We might go there and find nothing, or find him, but return empty-handed because he doesn''t have a method."

    "Even so¡­as long as there''s even the slightest chance, we should go and try finding him!" Redfield argued. "A tiny chance is better than no chance at all!"

    "Exactly." Feng Hai smiled grimly and nodded. "That''s why we''re still going to head for the Yao Cai Mountains. This will be a gamble¡­but I trust Teacher Cure. She has never let me down before. If she says there''s a chance that this man will be able to help, then it''s definitely worth trying to locate him."

    "Hey, I say we give it a shot!" Redfield exclaimed, to the agreement of the other men in the squad. "Better than sitting around, twiddling our thumbs and resigning ourselves to containing poor Ana inside a cage for the rest of her life."

    However, Brent continued to frown, his expression creased in doubt.

    "But¡­if this receptarier is as renowned and capable as this Mary Cure makes him out to be, why hasn''t Doctor Dorden heard of him before?"

    "Who says I haven''t?"

    The entire squad turned around, only to catch sight of the elderly doctor descending the ramp, aided by Glacia. He nodded a greeting to Feng Hai before turning back to Brent, most likely to answer his question.

    "Ling Dan is a legendary figure in the field of medicine¡­however, his methods tend to be, uh, unorthodox. They are not the same type of healing magic that we healers learn today, but something more traditional."

    "Like Traditional Chinese Medicine?" Redfield blurted out. "Acupuncture and qi flow and all that?"

    Dorden hesitated, and then shrugged. "I guess. His methods remain mysterious and esoteric, unknown even to the greatest healing mages. But he is rumored to have pulled off miracles. However, he is also very elusive¡­no one has seen him for years. He''s more a myth than real, which is why I didn''t bother to consider him as an option. To be honest, I didn''t even know that he would be on Yao Cai Mountains¡­until the leader''s ex-teacher mentioned him, I always assumed that he was either a fabricated myth, or dead."

    "Well, this is heartening, though. So there is a chance, after all." Glacia looked immensely relieved. Feng Hai grinned and raised a hand.

    "As long as there''s a chance, no matter how slim, we''ll take it. We won''t let our comrade fall into the hands of the Assassins Guild, and we will never abandon her. Let''s do this!"

    "We''re at your command as always, boss!" Redfield assured him, followed by an "oo-rah!" from the mercenaries.

    "Let''s take off then. The sooner we leave, the earlier we''ll be able to come back."

    Brent also looked convinced. Turning around sharply, he beckoned for his men to follow him toward a nearby building. I realized that it was a weapons shop that sold Divine Devices and the like. Most likely the Silver Wolves had dropped by here to stock up on armaments and necessary equipment. Otherwise they wouldn''t bother to disembark in the first place. Feng Hai and I would have boarded the hovercraft and spoken to them inside the vessel.

    "Go get prepared," Feng Hai instructed me. Before I could ask him how, he continued. "Yao Cai Mountain is known for its fierce beasts and ethereal monsters¡­wood-type monsters. These very same monsters are often hunted and harvested for their medicinal properties, but¡­because they are pretty powerful and dangerous, very few people actally dare take on such missions regarding them." he then grinned. "Make sure you bring your best weapons with you. Armor, if possible, but given your fighting style, that''s going to be more of a hindrance than protection."

    "Uh, right." I nodded, and then saluted. Whirling about, I hastily returned to my hotel room to grab whatever stuff I needed whenever I went monster hunting.

    Well¡­this time, it would be receptarier searching, though¡­

 436 Chapter 436: Yao Cai Mountains

    "All right, people! Stay sharp! We''ll be approaching the Yao Cai Mountains in 5 minutes! Lock and load, ladies and gentlemen!"

    Brent was barking out orders to the mercenaries secured under safety hatches inside the transport bay of the hovercraft. Soldiers snapped magazines into their rifles, cocked them and then checked to ensure that their rounds were fully loaded. Other warriors double-checked their weapons, to ensure their Divine Devices were in good, working condition. The last thing a soldier wanted was for his weapon to lock up or fail him in the middle of a life-and-death battle.

    "Who''s the biggest badass in the galaxy?" Redfield yelled.

    "The Marine Corps!" the mercenaries roared back. I did a double take at that. What the fuck? Were the Silver Wolves pretending to be Marines?

    "That''s right! We are the biggest, toughest and most badass soldiers in the universe!"

    "Oo-rah!"

    "Semper fi!"

    "Um¡­aren''t you guys mercenaries and not marines?" I ventured uncertainly, wondering if they were going to tear me a new one for raining on their parade. As I expected, everyone swiveled in their harnesses to stare at me.

    "For the Emperor!" one of them shouted.

    "Your faith is lacking, kid," another one added. "Humanity will claim our rightful place in the stars. We shall stamp out all xenos and heretics. The Emperor''s will manifests in us, and we shall execute his Great Crusade once more!"

    "Are we even in the right story anymore?" I asked, feeling a headache building up in my temples. Fortunately, I didn''t have to listen to their answer to that question because the pilot chose that moment to holler a warning.

    "Contact!"

    "What is it?" Brent demanded, unstrapping his harness and proceeding to the cockpit. The pilot glanced back at him, flustered.

    "Uh¡­looks like a flock of Demonic Drakes. Approaching from our two o''clock at high speed. They will be upon us in sixty-four seconds!"

    "Evasive maneuvers!" Feng Hai ordered from his seat, which was right at the front. He was consulting a holographic data slate¡­I mean data pad. "Gunners, blow those flying turkeys out of the skies. The rest of you, brace for impact!"

    "Roger that." Brent turned back to the rest of us and returned to his seat, strapping his harness over himself once more. "You heard the flyboy and the boss. Strap yourselves in, we''re in for one hell of a ride."

    This ain''t good¡­

    I felt a sudden jerk as the hovercraft jinked, presumably to avoid incoming fire. The Demonic Drakes'' jaws yawned and torrents of unearthly fire rolled out, bathing the gunship in destructive energies. The enchanted hull shimmered, but held strong, its defensive wards repelling the flames. The gunners swiveled the turrets around and unleashed a hail of plasma bolts in the Demonic Drakes'' direction, the superheated projectiles charged by their wielders'' mana.

    Inhuman screeches filled the air as the Demonic Drakes banked and swerved to evade, but a few of them were caught in the rapid hail of deadly bolts, their wings and body torn apart by the azure projectiles. Several simply combusted, their bodies reduced to ash from the sheer heat of plasma. Others spiraled downward in a deadly crash, meeting their end on the earth below.

    Shrieking in dismay, the Demonic Drakes broke off and dispersed, scattering in different directions. The gunners continued to send hails of plasma bolts after them, and the hovercraft seemed to shift slightly underneath us, only for Feng Hai to issue a new instruction.

    "Don''t pursue. Our objective is not extermination. We''re not here to clear the Yao Cai Mountains of its indigenous life. Leave them be, and find a spot in the mountains to settle down."

    "Roger that, sir."

    The pilot obeyed, and the gunship swerved away from the fleeing Demonic Drakes. The vibrations appeared to grow, and I shut my eyes, waiting for us to land. I hated leaving my fate in the hands of others. Even though I knew it was necessary, and that there was no way I would have the mana or stamina to fly all the way here on my Constellation spirits, it was just an instinctive thing.

    I could tell that the mercenaries felt the same too. They were all either fidgeting anxiously or resorting to some tic that helped alleviate their nervousness. Some glanced around incessantly, others shut their eyes, and others calmed their breathing through meditative exercises or mental conditioning. We didn''t know when we would come under attack again.

    "There''s a clearing by the foot of the closest mountain, designated A," the pilot reported from the front. "An open valley that''s currently free of monsters. Permission to land there?"

    Feng Hai nodded, masking his own tension with practiced ease. "Sounds good. Set us down in the clearing, and we''ll take it over from there."

    "We''ll continue to circle around for as long as our fuel can last us, to offer fire support."

    "Much appreciated." Feng Hai nodded in approval. He had chosen his men well, and none of them had let him down. Even Anastasia had impressed him with prior performances, and had saved the group a few times with her knowledge of poison.

    "We leave no man behind." That was Feng Hai''s motto, and the rallying cry behind the Silver Wolves. It also explained why they were so loyal to each other. They knew the whole group would sacrifice everything, even if it was to save just one person, and thus they were more than willing to sacrifice themselves for others.

    "Stupid."

    "Only idiots sacrifice themselves for other people."

    "I''m sick of reading about ''nice'' and ''good'' characters. I want ruthless MCs!"

    Feng Hai raised an eyebrow when he saw the rift tear open between our dimension and the fourth wall, and he sent a few wind blades through to decapitate the edgelord readers who were leaving juvenile comments on the right. As their headless corpses toppled over, his lips curled into a sneer.

    "That ruthless enough for you, assholes?"

    "Uh, boss?"

    Everyone was staring at him, and he waved their attention away dismissively. Raising his data pad, he showed us the valley that the pilot had chosen for the landing.

    "You guys know what to do. Spread out, secure the landing area, and then make sure there aren''t any nasty surprises lurking around. Then the scouts will range ahead and get a rough idea of the lay of the land. Even Teacher Cure doesn''t know this Ling Dan''s precise location, so we''ll have to find him the hard way."

    He then glanced at me.

    "Richard, you can summon your smaller Soul Beasts and send them ahead for reconnaissance as well. I remember you have a specific type of beast for that, right?"

    "That''s right," I confirmed.

    There was a jerk as the gunship slowed down and gradually descended onto the ground, its thrusters growling in protest as they defied gravity one last time. Then a thump, and the ramp creaked as it lowered.

    "We''re down," the pilot said from the cockpit.

    "All right, people! Let''s move!"

    With a command from Brent, everyone threw off their harnesses and jogged down. First squad, which was clsoest to the ramp, was the first ones out, already taking positions at the bottom of the still scorching hot hovercraft and using its clamps and mechanical contusions as cover. Those armed with guns leveled their rifles at the horizon, sweeping through the area with sensory magic and other equipment to ensure that we were alone.

    Under the cover of their firing arcs, second and third squads spread out even further, securing the area and scanning for any sign of monsters. I followed fourth squad to the newly established perimeter and knelt down, the motion detector, infrared tracker and array of sophisticated sensors displaying their readings on the lenses of my glasses.

    For now, there was nothing. We were alone, except for the flora. A myriad of plants grew across the valley, their long verdant stalks fluttering in the wind, and their green leaves rustling. Many of them sported exotic flowers and bore esoteric fruits, no doubt medicinal herbs or whatever. That would be useful to an aspiring alchemist or receptarier, but I wasn''t one. And don''t ask me to be one either, you''re in the wrong story if you''re expecting me to suddenly turn into an alchemist or miracle doctor. Jesus, the amount of readers demanding that I summon a healing spirit when that was just not possible was insane. If I didn''t, that meant I couldn''t, stop stop bugging me about it.

    "¡­"

    The longer it went without anything actually happening, the tenser we became. We moved squad by squad, spreading out and widening the perimeter in the valley. Once we were far enough, the hovercraft took off and circled in the air, its turrets tracking the tall grass, as if waiting for something to burst out of the foliage.

    "Scouts! Scout ahead!" Feng Hai ordered, and then he turned to me. I immediately remembered that he wanted me to summon Corvus and send them ahead for reconnaissance. I was only too happy to oblige.

    A flock of crows materialized above me (within a hundred meters, obviously), and then took off, flying far ahead. I could see through their eyes and hear through their ears, but that wasn''t of much help, not in the dense foliage. Several of my Corvus ascended, inclining sharply upward as they streaked toward the mountains. I was hoping they would spot something ¨C anything. Anything that resembled traces of someone living in the mountains, like a hut, a fire, or something.

    For now, I saw nothing. That was fine. The mountain range was vast and wide. It was possible that I missed something, even with Corvus''s sharp eyes and enhanced senses. It was also possible that this Ling Dan wanted to conceal himself and ensure that he wouldn''t be found unless he wanted to.

    If that was the case, we would have to look for him the hard way. The alternative was that¡­he wasn''t here at all, and that Mary Cure''s information was outdated. Or that he was already dead, having passed away all alone on this mountain range.

    No. I couldn''t think such dreadful, pessimistic thoughts. I had to believe. Focus on the present. As long as there was still that possibility, I was going to fight for it. I wasn''t na?ve, though. I knew there was the possibility that Ling Dao wasn''t here, or that he was already dead without anyone knowing about it. But even if that was the case, there was nothing I could do. I would just have to deal with that fact when it happened, but until I confirmed it, I was going to continue clinging onto that hope.

    So much for assume the worst and hope for the best, huh?

    "Nothing on radar, sir."

    "Nothing here either."

    "It''s empty. No signs of monster life."

    "Roger that." Feng Hai was keeping track of the multiple reports that his sergeants were making, his eyes occasionally flickering to the data pad in his hands. "But keep your eyes peeled. Don''t let your guard down. We all know how sneaky these monster bastards can get."

    "Aye, sir!"

    The soldiers continued combing through the valley, their weapons outstretched and their senses pulled wide. I followed behind, my eyes half-shut because I was looking through the various pairs of eyes of my many Corvus. It was like trying to watch a few dozen television screens all at once. My brain just couldn''t process the tremendous amount of information and keep track of every little thing. Even so, I did my best, without any complaints.

    This concerned the life of a person important to me. I wasn''t going to make any excuses and slack off.

    "!!!"

    So absorbed was I on trying to look for any signs of Ling Dan that I almost missed the first clues of danger. One of my Corvus was sweeping past a particularly dense patch of foliage when I thought I saw something move. Pulling myself away from the other Corvus, half-distractedly, I directed him back to sweep the area and he caught sight of the tall grass rustling.

    That was a sign that a wild Pokemon¡­ahem, I mean monster lurked within. Not only that, the sharp eyes of that specific Corvus caught sight of a long, bulky shadow crawling over the insides of the foliage.

    Something heavy was moving through the tall grass, and it was moving in our direction.

    No¡­not just "something". Many things. I could see a wide swathe of tall grass wavering as something pass through them. And it was certainly not the wind.

    "Guys," I spoke up uncertainly. "I think we have company."

 437 Chapter 437: Horned Rhino

    "From our ten o''clock!" I added hastily when I saw Feng Hai swivel around with a glare, already preempting his request for more details. "Uh, about eight hundred meters away, moving fast! We should get a visual in two minutes!"

    "Nature of boogey?" Feng Hai demanded sharply.

    "Unknown, as of now! They''re concealed in the wild grass! I can''t make out what they are!"

    "That''s fine." Brent unslung his staff and gripped it tightly, getting ready to swing it in the direction I pointed the mercenary group toward. "If it breathes, we can kill it."

    "They, them," I corrected. "It''s either an entire horde of monsters, or a single gigantic one. Given how uneven their movements are across the grass, I''m guessing it''s the former."

    "Good call." Feng Hai smiled and nodded. "I''m picking up multiple presences. You are right ¨C it''s a whole horde."

    Wow¡­his senses must be really sharp if he could sense their presences from all the way here. I couldn''t help but gape at him in awe.

    "Everyone, get ready! Battle positions!"

    The mercenaries scattered and took whatever cover they could, bringing their rifles up. Those armed with close combat weapons, such as Feng Hai, Redfield and Brent, formed the vanguard. They held their melee type Divine Devices aloft, bracing themselves to meet the furious charge of the incoming horde.

    As I suspected, our assailants burst ouf of the tall grass and spilled into the valley in two minutes, grunting and roaring in welcome. They charged at us, their stampede kicking up a thick cloud of dust as their heavy hooves clobbered the earth into broken soil.

    "Horned Rhinos!" Redfield shouted, flames swirling around him and his spear as he readied a long-range spell. "Everyone, be careful!"

    I stared at the immense, white beasts in stupefied wonder. They resembled rhinoceros of old Earth, but were several times larger than their normal counterparts. Bulging muscles led them to be three meters in height and nine in length. Not only that, they sported three horns, making them resemble a Triceratops more than an actual rhinoceros, except that it was covered in thick mammal skin instead of scales or feathers. Additionally, they were missing the frills and high-forehead crest that marked the Triceratops, or any ceratopsids out as distinctive. From what I heard, the horns of Horned Rhinos had tremendous medicinal value, and were highly sought after as ingredients for enhancement drugs or whatever. If this was during my previous lifetime, these poor rhinos would have been hunted to extinction, much like the endangered White Rhino of my time.

    Fortunately (or unfortunately), the Horned Rhinos were a different beast altogether. And I didn''t just mean literally.

    They were powerful monsters whose armored hide was able to shrug off all but the most powerful spells. Many hunters attempted to poach them, only to find themselves on the receiving end of assaults, gored by the Horned Rhinos'' demonic horns, or trampled to death beneath their huge hooves. Only the most powerful mages were able to survive an encounter with a herd of them. There were attempts to single out an isolated one and hunt it for its horns, but Horned Rhinos never move alone. They usually flock in huge herds, and migrate together.

    It seemed that this particular herd had picked out our presence and had arrived to drive us out of their territory.

    "Don''t worry," Feng Hai assured us. "All we need to do is put up a good fight. Once they realize that it''s not worth the sacrifice and casualties to drive us away, they will naturally retreat. We just need to survive until then¡­and when they pull back, do not pursue them. Focus on surviving and sticking together for now. Is that understood?"

    "Yes, sir!"

    Surprisingly, while the Horned Rhinos were far from docile, they were still herbivorous monsters. They were undeniably hostile toward humans, but uncannily smart and cunning as well. They wouldn''t blindly take a fight that was disadvantageous to them. If they suffered enough losses, they would withdraw on their own, recognizing that the survival of the majority of the herd was more important than settling some grudge with human intruders.

    We could use that to our advantage.

    "Brace yourselves!"

    Feng Hai''s words had barely left his mouth when the charging stampede crashed into us. The vanguard bore the full brunt of the assault, their Divine Devices lowered and blasting the approaching Horned Rhinos. I wasn''t among them, having stayed back with the ranged mercenaries and offering support from afar with my arrows.

    Fortunately, Orion wasn''t my only weapon.

    "Aries! Capricorn! Taurus!"

    Summoning my huge Constellation spirits, I had them attack from the flank, knocking several stunned Horned Rhinos over and sending them clattering against their brethren. Obviously my surprise attack didn''t kill them, but that was never my intention. I only wanted to sow some discord and confusion throughout the rampaging herd.

    The Horned Rhinos'' left flank collapsed a little as the monsters on that side struggled to get up, milling about in confusion. Aries, Capricorn and Taurus continued to run wild on that side, bulldozing teir way through while being careful not to take direct fights. Dance like a goat¡­I mean butterfly, sting like a bull¡­I mean bee. The Horned Rhinos tried to rally, but by the time they got back to their feet, my trio of Constellation spirits were already gone, and their path to vengeance was blocked by their own staggering or fallen brethren.

    At the front, Feng Hai and the vanguard valiantly fought the Horned Rhinos off. Thanks to my distraction Constellation spirits, the number they had to face was not as overwhelming as it would otherwise have been. I could see bodies of Horned Rhinos hurled into the air as Feng Hai blasted them upward with hurricane spells, while the sheer raw strength of Brent blew them backward as he twirled his staff and whacked them. The scent of roasted flesh reached my nostrils and I saw Redfield cooking several whining Horned Rhinos in flames. Even their armored hide wasn''t able to withstand such intense flames.

    "Do not falter!" Feng Hai was yelling as he led the others to fend off the Horned Rhinos. Those that they couldn''t face in a frontal battle were shot down by the soldiers using trees as cover, their rifles spitting out armor-piercing rounds. Given how tough the Horned Rhinos were, they weren''t going to succumb to such tiny attacks, but the pain was enough to drive them back and retreat back to the tall grass, their tails between their legs.

    Slowly but surely, we weathered the stampede and even forced them back. I recalled that time in the Boariceratops monster horde that my friends and I encountered in the Den of Dragons. Back then, we could only avoid them because we didn''t have the strength to fight them off, and so ran up a cliff or something.

    However, the Silver Wolves mercenary guild was able to withstand a stampede from a similar, if not more powerful monster horde, and even forced them to turn back and flee like the cowardly creatures they were. I couldn''t help but be thoroughly impressed. The gulf between the strength of professional soldiers and students still in the midst of their training was really vast. I wondered how many years of combat experience I would require before I finally caught up to Feng Hai''s level.

    "We''re pushing them back!" Redfield shouted as he incinerated another Horned Rhino with his flames. "Hang in there, everybody! Just a little more!"

    "Easy for you to say!" Brent grunted as he struck another horned Rhino with his staff, spinning it to the ground. With a single kick, he actually sent the large, heavy creature hurtling off the ground and colliding with its brethren, much like a bowling ball knocking over rolling pins. "You''re not using any physical strength at all!"

    "Why don''t you try casting spell after spell then?" Redfield retorted, his spear slicing through another Horned Rhino, the flames wreathing his blade allowing him to cut through the thick hide of a Horned Rhino like a fiery blade. "See if you aren''t exhausted."

    "Stop arguing!" Feng Hai snapped, conjuring another gust of wind to blow a couple of Horned Rhinos off their feet and throwing them into a spinning tornado. The wind blades were somehow able to leave lacerations on the nigh impenetrable hide of the Horned Rhinos, which left me even more impressed than before. "Focus on fighting!"

    "Yes, boss."

    "Yes, sir."

    Neither of them argued, and resumed fighting with renewed vigor. The men beside them was infected by their newly energized movements and also fought harder than before, their blades streaking and weapons flashing across the air to cleave through or hammer against the beleaguered Horned Rhinos. The horde began to back away, especially when they saw their losses mounting.

    I directed Aries, Capricorn and Taurus to continue running amok in their flanks, diverting the Horned Rhinos of that part of the herd away from the main force of the mercenaries. Meanwhile, I prepared to summon Leo, or one of my Celestial Guardians. They should be able to decimate the Horned Rhinos with a couple of big, area-of-effect spells¡­

    Before I could do that, however, the surviving Horned Rhinos turned tail and fled. Even the wounded ones limped away, dragging themselves pitifully back toward the tall grass, with a few of their more courageous and selfless uninjured brethren staying behind to escort them. The only ones left behind were the dead, their carcasses still smoldering from the heat of Redfield''s flames.

    "Good job, everyone." Feng Hai heaved for a second before righting himself and turning to face his beleaguered mercenaries. He nodded in the direction of the retreating Horned Rhinos. "As I said, leave them be. Don''t pursue."

    "Yes, sir!"

    "Even if you say that, we''re in no shape to chase after those bastards!" Redfield laughed as he plopped down, breathing heavily. As part of the vanguard, he had taken the full brunt of the Horned Rhinos'' frontal charge. Even the usually stoic Brent did not bother to mask his exhaustion, and also sat down, breathing heavily.

    Feng Hai, despite being able to conceal his weariness better than his subordinates, nonetheless understood that he couldn''t push them. He gestured for the mercenaries armed with guns to form a circle while he gathered the melee combatants to himself.

    "Rest up, take thirty. Fire support squads, you''re on sentry duty. Make sure those Horned Rhinos don''t come back¡­and that there aren''t any monsters lurking around, seeking to take advantage of us when we''re drained."

    "Yes, sir!"

    The gunners didn''t complain. After all, the vanguard had done most of the fighting and suffered the worst. Comparatively, we practically did nothing at all. Our rounds (and my arrows) failed to penerate the Horned Rhinos'' hides, or if they did, we merely irritated them instead of mortally wounded them. Of course, we still did enough damage to divert their attention away from the frontline fighters and even sent them packing. Now that I was able to pay closer attention to the carcasses, I noticed at least one or two that had been brought down by the combined firepower of the gunners'' shots.

    Fired in mass, their weapons were not something any foe could afford to underestimate.

    Joining them in sentry duty, I dismissed my trio of Constellation spirits and took the chance to recover a bit of mana while looking around. I also maintained my flock of Corvus, keeping an eye out for any signs of other humans in this vast, lonely mountain range. Not just humans ¨C I also needed to look out for other monsters as well. An early warning could prove the difference between life and death.

    That was when I noticed something odd. I couldn''t put my finger on it, but I felt as if I had miscounted the number of mercenaries. It was as if there was an additional couple of people. Honestly, it wasn''t because I was keeping count and knew the exact number of mercenaries who were participating in this mission. It was just that the couple of additional people stood out from the rest because it was easy to tell that I hadn''t seen them around before.

    For one thing, they were significantly smaller than the adult professional soldiers either keeping watch or resting on the ground. That was right. They looked like kids.

    "What are kids doing here?" I asked, puzzled.

    "Come again?" Feng Hai''s hearing was so sharp that he heard me even though I meant to whisper. I turned to him sheepishly.

    "Well¡­um, do you have kids in your employ? I thought you only hire adults."

    "What are you talking about?" Feng Hai scowled. "Of course there should only be adults here. And you probably can be counted as one, give that you''re already in the second year of your high school."

    "Then who are those two¡­?" my words trailed away when I closed in on them and finally made out their features. My jaw dropped when I realized that I recognized them both. Exasperation filled me and I resisted the urge to bury my face in my palm. "What the fuck are the both of you doing here?!"

    Adrian Stuart and Melina Franklin stared up at me, looking as if they were feigning innocence, but they were more likely just embarrassed at finally being caught.

 438 Chapter 438: Stowaways

    "What are you kids doing here?!" I demanded, trying not to sound too astonished as I glowered at the two stowaways.

    "Uh, we snuck aboard the hovercraft and hid somewhere," Adrian explained, shifting anxiously. "In the cargo compartment. Good thing it was narrow, so we didn''t have any problems securing ourselves. We didn''t fall around too much."

    Now that I looked at them closely, I could see a couple of bruises here and there. This is why you put on your seatbelt when in a plane, ladies and gentlemen.

    "What I want to know," Feng Hai said exasperatedly as he strode over. "Is how two kids managed to sneak aboard our transport without anyone noticing."

    "Um¡­by magic?" Adrian ventured timidly. I didn''t blame him. Feng Hai looked as if he was about to explode, but I feared his rage was directed more at his mercenaries for allowing a lapse in security than the kids themselves.

    "We had this¡­" Melina nervously took out a stealth device, mistakenly thinking that Feng Hai was actually demanding a proper answer from the both of them. The mercenary leader paused for ammoment to study the stealth device, and then his jaw dropped.

    "Where did you get that from?!"

    "???"

    All the mercenaries exchanged glances, thrown into confusion by their leader''s sudden shock. I also wondered why he was making such a big deal over it. Stealth devices, while rare and expensive, weren''t all that unusual ¨C especially given how these two kids came from the ten Great Families, it was easily conceivable how they managed to get their paws on such a thing.

    "This is a Tesla Tech-93 Invisible Air Enchanter," Feng Hai explained, as if that designation meant anything. Seeing the blank looks on our faces, he continued. "It''s the latest and most hi-tech stealth device invented¡­was only released a couple of weeks ago. It was developed to fool even the senses of vetern mages and hi-tech detection scanners designed to counter such tech. Even the military doesn''t have more than a handful of these devices. How did they¡­?"

    "Eh? My father gave it to me." Poor Melina was looking extremely confused. I didn''t blame her. I would be shocked too if some gadget my father gave me turned out to be the latest, state-of-the-art, hi-tech device meant to circumvent even the military''s defenses. "I swear, I didn''t know¡­"

    "It''s fine," Feng Hai assured her, looking frustrated. "Everyone, do another sweep. I don''t want uninvited guests popping up in our midst again."

    "Sir, yes, sir!"

    The mercenaries were glad their leader was no long directing his rage at them, and they returned to their jobs in gusto, scanning the place several times to ensure nothing got past them. Before I could join them, Feng Hai beckoned me over.

    "These kids will be your responsibility. Take care of them."

    "Huh? Me?" Apparently Feng Hai wanted me to babysit them. Well, I didn''t mind. I was fairly close to Adrian, and technically Melina was my student. "Um, okay. Leave them to me. I''ll keep an eye on them."

    "Out of all of us, you know them best, and they seem pretty attached to you." he frowned. "I''m guessing they snuck aboard and followed us because they saw you."

    "That is true," Adrian admitted. He turned to me. "We actually wanted to check on you after the semifinals, but then we saw you following the Silver Wolves and¡­" he trailed off and shrugged sheepishly. "We got curious. We were wondering what you intended to do, leaving even though you have the third place match in a day or two."

    "I''ve to rescue someone," I explained. "A very close friend of mine is in trouble, and we''re hoping to find a receptarier who can cure her. Or at last alleviate her conditions."

    "Eh? Who?"

    "Anastasia. I don''t know if you''ve met her before¡­"

    "I think I might have¡­just once. The beautiful lady with long, green hair?"

    "Yup, that''s right." I wasn''t sure how Adrian met her, and I honestly didn''t care. The kid was full of mysteries. "She''s an important member of the Silver Wolves, and we all want to save her. They recruited me to maximize their chances of success."

    "That makes sense. So that''s why you agreed to go along."

    Adrian nodded. I glanced at Melina, who seemed to want to say something.

    "What''s the matter, Melina?"

    "Uh, I¡­I¡­" she stammered nervously, her words caught in her throat. Adrian grinned and gave her an encouraging push.

    "Go ahead and tell Brother Richard. We came all the way here just so you can talk to him directly, right?"

    Wait, what? Oh¡­I see. I could roughly picture what had transpired. Adrian and Melina didn''t just snuck onboard the Silver Wolves'' transport and stowed away simply because they were curious, or on a childish whim. Melina had something seemingly important to talk to me about, and Adrian being Adrian, was more than happy to help her get in touch with me. Even if it meant sneaking aboard and stowing away on a mercenary''s hovercraft at the risk of one''s life.

    ¡­kids¡­

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I nodded and watched Melina, careful not to put on an irritated or intimidating expression. Kids loved me because I was friendly and approachable, and I wasn''t some obnoxious edgelord scoffing at them while putting on airs about how the world was better off with 90% of the population dead, or how it was better to be alone because you couldn''t trust anyone. Seriously, that sort of cynical, paranoid outlook was just insufferable¡­even worse when these edgelords came into the Internet and began projecting their nihilistic views on other people''s stories, demanding that the protagonists be as ruthless, edgy or cynical as them.

    Well, I like kids and I like hanging out with kids. I was proud not to be an edgelord who drove away people who enjoyed being in my company.

    Feeling a bit more confident when I smiled warmly at her, Melina took a deep breath and responded with a timid smile of her own. Clenching her fists, she steeled herself and put her resolve into words.

    "I¡­I don''t care that you lost the semifinals! I don''t know what Father told you, but I still want you to be my teacher! I still want you to teach me swordsmanship! I don''t care what everyone says! Please don''t mind about the defeat or whatever. In my eyes, you''re still the best teacher for me! I will talk to Father and convince him to give you a chance! I won''t allow him to dismiss you like he did yesterday! I don''t want anyone else to teach me! I want to learn from you!"

    "¡­"

    I wasn''t sure how to respond to that at first. I had to confess to feeling very touched. Melina, despite her ususally diminutive and shy nature, had mustered the courage to sneak aboard a mercenary''s hovercraft and follow me all the way to an unknown destination just so she could tell me that. Undoubtedly she thought the thing I needed the most right now was to hear that people still believed in me. That my defeat did not define me, that she still had the utmost confidence in me no matter the outcome of the semifinal. She was worried that I was feeling down after my loss, and when she saw me leaving instead of staying to participate in the third place match, she must have gotten even more concerned and panicked, believing that I had given up on the tournament totally just because of a single loss. Not to mention, her father had spoken to me yesterday, and she probably was not privy to the contents of that conversation.

    So, in order to ensure that I didn''t remain depressed and mope around forever, she had taken the huge risk of stowing away on the Silver Wolves'' transport to tell me that, to lift my spirits and assure me that her faith in her teacher was unbroken.

    All this, and I hadn''t even officially started teaching her yet.

    "Thank you." I then chuckled slightly. "Actually, you don''t have to worry aout your father. I''m not sure where you heard that from, but your father did not dismiss me yesterday. In fact, he personally came to assure me that he has no intention of firing me, and still very much wants me to teach you. He shares the same exact sentiments as you."

    Like father, like daughter. I swear, I could almost see her father in her. Even though they didn''t resemble each other physically, they were almost identical in terms of spirit and personality. She really took after him a lot.

    "Eh?! EEEEEEEEEEH?!"

    "See, this is why I told you to get your facts right first," Adrian muttered under his breath. "We could have avoided all this trouble if you listened to me and spoke to your father first."

    "But¡­but how would I know?"

    "Like I said, you should have spoken to your father first¡­"

    "Impossible, impossible, impossible!" Melina was frantically shaking her head. "My father is not someone you can just walk up to and converse with! He¡­he''s the Duke of the Franklin family, you know?!"

    "And you''re the heiress," Adrian pointed out dryly. "His daughter."

    "No, no. I mean, yes, I''m Father''s daughter, but I''m not the heiress. Cousin Kureha is. She''ll be taking over as the next family head. Not me¡­" her voice faltered. It was evident that she believed that her father was disappointed in her and didn''t want to talk to her. She had this idea that she was the shame of her family, and thus did not have the right to even speak to her father.

    I sighed. For some reason, she reminded me of myself, and I could really empathize with her. Reaching out, I placed a hand on her shoulder and gripped it firmly.

    "Before he is the Duke, he is your father. And I can guarantee that your father doesn''t think of you as a shame. He told me himself, that he is watching you, and is proud of your achievements. He doesn''t care about the Franklin family and their baggage o whatever. He is proud of your personal achievements in magic. He is proud of you, not as an heiress of the Franklin family, but as his own daughter. So hold your head up high. If anything, I think your father wants nothing more than to have a heart-to-heart talk with you, but is a little too awkward to approach you himself."

    "That''s¡­" Melina hung her head, falling silent. I smiled comfortingly.

    "Here''s your first-ever homework¡­if you really want me to be your teacher. When we get home, I want you to talk to your father. And I mean have a proper talk to him. Tell him how you feel, confide in him your insecurities. Then¡­ask for his advice. Consult him. He''ll open up, I guarantee it."

    At least I believed he would, based on what I could gather from him so far.

    Melina still looked very uncertain, but she nodded, determined not to let me down. She clasped her hands tightly and kept her eyes down, but I could tell that she was steeling herself.

    "I will¡­do my best."

    "You do that. That''s all anyone can ask for, honestly."

    "By the way, Brother Richard." It was Adrian this time. He was raising his hand, wanting to jump in and ask a question. "I know you said that you''re here to help a friend, but what exactly happened? You said the sister with green hair is sick, and you''re looking for a receptarier to cure her?"

    "That''s the gist of it," I replied. "What other details do you want?"

    "What kind of disease is that? It can''t be cured by healing magic?"

    "No, it can''t. Well¡­it''s not so much a disease as it is a condition, actually." I contemplated telling Adrian about the Poison Woeful Body, then decided against him. I wasn''t sure how much he would understand. "Basically her magic is running wild, and we''re hoping that this heavenly receptarier can concoct a medicine to keep it under control."

    Adrian stared at me blankly, disbelief written all over his features.

    "Uh, I don''t mean to pour water over your parade, but since when will something convenient happen? That sounds like a plot device ripped out of a story. Suffering from something that only a miracle doctor who lives in the middle of nowhere can cure, and all he needs to do is conveniently whip out a medicine that only he can make¡­as if such cure-all medicine conveniently exists in the first place."

    Now that he pointed that out, I realized just how accurate he was. Such miracles didn''t happen so conveniently in reality¡­

    "You''re right," I admitted, unable to keep a note of bitterness out of my voice. "It''s extremely unlikely. But¡­we don''t have a choice. If there''s even the slightest possibility that we can get some medicine to alleviate her condition, we''re willing to try. It''s better than not doing anything at all. We don''t want to regret anything at all."

    "That''s true." Adrian nodded. "I probably would do the same if I were you."

    Melina took a deep breath. "All right, Sensei. Let us know if there''s anything we can do to help. We''ll do our best, as recompense for sneaking aboard the Silver Wolves'' ship and stowing away."

    "Um, well¡­honestly?" I pushed my glasses up as I considered, and then shrugged helplessly. "I personally don''t care, but I think the Silver Wolves will probably just tell us to not get in their way."

 439 Chapter 439: The Way Forward

    Despite my apparently harsh words, I found something for both Adrian and Melina to do. Since my duties included summoning Corvus and sending them around for reconnaissance missions, I was left vulnerable while I monitored the landscape through their eyes and ears. That was where Adrian and Melina came in. They spotted for me in the immediate vicinity, warning me of incoming dangers while I was distracted with the job of looking through the multiple eyes of so many Corvus.

    The Silver Wolves mercenaries continued to climb the mountain, the scouts forging ahead in search of any sign of Ling Dan or any other humans. I continued to maintain a visual from above, my flock of Corvus easily navigating the skies and avoiding direct contact with other monsters. Even airborne monsters such as the Demonic Drakes we encountered earlier didn''t bother to harass my Corvus for no reason other than food.

    Fortunately, they weren''t hungry right now, and those few predators that sought to hunt my Corvus were easily evaded, my crows diving right into the canopy of the sparse forest that dotted the mountains'' slopes and disappearing within their leaves, much to the winged monsters'' confusion or frustration.

    And so our journey continued for a couple more hours, where we managed to avoid a horde of monsters by staying close to the trees and keeping our physical profiles as low as possible. As hostile as the monsters were toward us, they couldn''t attack what they didn''t see or hear. We had to be wary of their animal senses ¨C which were a lot sharper than us humans, but it was nothing a good distance couldn''t take care of.

    "You don''t know where this legendary receptarier is?" Adrian asked, panting as he and Melina struggled to keep up. I didn''t blame him. Even I found the trek very taxing, and I wiped the perspiration from my forehead before I answered.

    "No. All we know is that he might be residing somewhere in the Yao Cai Mountains, and even that''s just a rumor. I hope it''s true, though, or this would have been a wasted journey."

    Adrian wisely didn''t remark on that or on our extremely low chances. Instead, he just nodded thoughtfully.

    "The Yao Cai Mountains are known for the medicinal herbs that grow on them, right?" He asked. "And if I''m not mistaken, because they feed on these herbs, or because the herbivorous monsters that eat the herbs are in turn preyed upon by the predators here, the monsters inhabiting the Yao Cai Mountains also have certain medicinal properties, which are used by alchemists and receptariers to forge spirit pills."

    Why was this starting to sound suspiciously like some stupid cultivation story that involved concocting spirit pills and other medicine? Was I going to get some stupid alchemy urn or pot or furnace next and turn into a spirit alchemist?

    Fuck, no. This was not an alchemist or receptarier story. Just look at the damned title. You see the word Summoner? That''s all I''m going to do. Summon stuff. Not heal (or summon monsters that can heal). Not craft weapons like a blacksmith (go read Spirit Realm or The Great Conqueror or Doluo Dalu II: Jueshi Tangmen for that). Nor was I ever going to concoct spirit pills like the majority of cultivators or urban cultivators ¨C go read Battle Through the Heavens or The Hunter or the millions of urban cultivator stories floating all over the Internet if you''re looking for that. Stop asking me to come up with healing summons or summons that can produce alchemy or spirit pills or summons that can create weapons (what, my Constellation weapons aren''t good enough for you?). Summoning magic wasn''t a super-convenient magic that allowed you to simply summon whatever you want or whatever you need.

    I was getting pissed off at the countless self-entitled readers who were used to overpowered Mary Sue protagonists going into god mode and literally shitting out spirit pills from their asses or being a super doctor in addition to their godlike martial arts. Jesus Christ, am I not allowed to be a relatively normal protagonist or something?

    "Isn''t your family well known for running a pharmaceutical company?" Melina asked Adrian, a curious expression on her face. Now that she mentioned it, I realized that she was right. The Stuart family did have a massive pharmaceutical company under their name. Particularly since wood mages had an affinity with identifying and preparing medicinal herbs and other plant ingredients, so many branch family members ended up becoming pharmacists.

    Yeah, pharmacists. Not alchemists. Not receptariers. That was actually the proper name for people who manufactured medicine and other healing products. Which made this legendary Ling Dan even more dubious.

    Then again, a lot of Chinese authors loved to exaggerate the so-called superiority of traditional Chinese medicine over Western medicine, and made up all these weird spirit pills and acupuncture techniques just to embarrass their medical counterparts who received a degree in medicine from Western universities, or Western-influenced universities, who were often portrayed as completely inept, corrupted (no doubt because of Western influence) and useless.

    The more I thought about it, the more I dreaded about our chances of actually finding this guy. Reality wasn''t so convenient to have a miracle TCM doctor show up with a cure-all. And come to think of it, if he really was that awesome, why the fuck would he hide in the mountains, away from all civilization? You would think that such a remarkable and lauded figure would go around healing people, and getting rich because of how in-demand his medicinal skills were.

    "Did Teacher Cure deceive us?" I muttered. But why would she do that? She had no reason to lie to us and send us on a wild goose chase. Not unless the whole thing was a trap¡­but being a healer, if she wanted to kill or harm us, she had plenty of opportunities to do so in the infirmary, while we were injured or sick. She wouldn''t deliberately send the whole lot of us into a trap like this.

    What was going on here?

    Scratching my head, I sighed. No use thinking too much about it. I wasn''t going to find out by brooding over it in the middle of nowhere. It wasn''t as if Teacher Cure was around for me to ask her. I had better things to do, such as focusing on finding the elusive Ling Dan. Even though I couldn''t fully shrug off the feeling that we had just been duped, for now I decided to do my best to search. I would worry about what to do after we were unable to find him, but not before I even tried.

    "Brother Richard? What''s the matter?" Adrian had been bragging to Melina about the branch families of the Stuart clan, but he was astute to notice that I was fussing over something mentally. I let out a strained smile and shook my head.

    "Nothing. Just a little worried that you might be right."

    "Huh? Right about what?"

    "That this whole this is a wild goose chase, and no such miracle medicine conveniently exists."

    "Isn''t it too late to begin doubting the veracity of the whole operation?" Adrian asked with a shrug. "I mean, I know I was the one who raised that to begin with, but now that you''ve come all the way here, might as well look around, right?"

    "Yeah, that''s right," I agreed as I pushed my mnd away from the lingering doubts and focused on seeing through my Corvus''s eyes. "Look with eyes unclouded and a mind unhindered by fear and doubts."

    "What''s that?" Melina giggled. "That sounds so cheesy."

    "Sorry. I was just butchering a quote from some Studio Ghibli movie." Even this far into the future, children from all over the world ¨C including the Empires outside the Global Federation ¨C continued to watch Studio Ghibli movies. These animation films stood the test of time and remained as loved classics even after almost a thousand years.

    "Mononoke Hime!" Adrian guessed correctly and I nodded with a grin.

    "Yeah, that''s right."

    "That was a great movie!"

    Good thing I had a lot of common ground with the kids, which was why I got along very well with them. most readers scoffed at me for hanging out with them because they were cynical edgelords who hated children (very ironic, considering that they were young teenagers and effectively children), and projected their lone wolf desires upon me, demanding that I walk the solitary path or some bullshit like that, but that wasn''t how real life worked. And kids were fun to hang out with and talk to. Hell, they were a lot more mature and likeable than some of the readers, especially given how antisocial, obnoxious and edgy the latter''s comments were.

    I couldn''t imagine how someone who mocked and insulted me online behind the safety of virtual anonymity, just because I chose to hang out with kids, could ever be a nice person in real life. There must be something wrong with their heads.

    While simultaneously drifting in and out of the conversation ¨C my attention mostly focused on watching the mountains from the skies, courtesy of my telepathic link with my Corvus ¨C we continued to stride forward. Adrian and Melina didn''t mind that I wasn''t paying attention to them, and they were more than capable of entertaining themselves. Only on a few occasions I had to silence them to maintain field discipline, because of monsters passing by in the vicinity, or when the other merecenaries were checking for traps and other stuff. Otherwise, nobody cared if they conversed.

    The mercenaries were far from silent themselves. As they marched up the mountains, huffing and puffing under the weight of their weapons and fieldpacks, they also bantered and joked amongst themselves. Feng Hai left them be, because such camaraderie helped to maintain a high morale. Silencing them would have an adverse impact on morale and lower our performance levels. Besides, it wasn''t as if we were shouting at the top of our lungs and attracting the attention of every monster in the area. While maintaining field discipline was indeed important, the noise we were making as we trekked uphill rendered any attempt to be stealthy a moot point. The crunching of twigs, leaves and branches underneath our shoes and boots, our heavy breathing, the sharp crack and snap as the vanguard hacked and bashed their way through thick and dense shrubs.

    Make no mistake, this wasn''t some manmade trail we were hiking on. It was the wilderness, a forest left mostly untouched by man. There was no conveniently laid out trail, no constructed path. We had to forge our own route forward.

    Additionally, we weren''t a stealth unit. We were a combat unit. While we wanted to avoid as much combat as possible, we weren''t trained to sneak through the forest, invisible, unseen and unheard. If the monsters really wanted to find us, they could. That was what the scouts were for ¨C the much more lightly equipped mercenaries moving ahead as they covered themselves in stealth spells and masked their movements and sounds, returning to the main body of troops to provide alternate routes that skirted past monster hordes.

    Occasionally, we did encounter smaller monster hordes and the like, and these were easily dispatched by the mercenaries. Silver Fangs. Blood Claws. Even plant-type monsters such as Victory Bells and Pitcher Traps, their vines unfurling lazily as they seized unfortunate, smaller monsters and yanked them toward their acid-filed, bulbous bodies for a heavy meal. Those were a little tough to take out, so we went around them.

    "Still no sign of whoever you''re looking for?" Adrian asked when the mercenaries stopped after a couple of hours for a beak. The professional soldiers leaned against whatever trees or sat down in whatever hollows they could find, hydrating themselves. I shared my water with Adrian and Melina, knowing that they didn''t bring rations or necessities of their own. Good thing I had packed extra ¨C like I said, assume the worst and hope for the best.

    Better over-prepared and having excessive water than being under-prepared and not having any water when you needed it.

    "No, nothing." I couldn''t keep the frustration out of my voice. "There''s no sign of any human habitation anywhere. It''s hard to imagine a single old guy living alone in the wilderness like this, without any infrastructure or amenities. I mean, he certainly can live off the land by foraging for food or finding a water source, but that''s easier said than done. Most people who don''t have the training, survival skills or knowledge would die within a week of trying to live in a forest like this."

    That included me. Even back when I was in the military in my previous life, I was aware that soldiers did not simply live off the land like how was depicted and fantasized in novels and fiction. It was precisely because of training that I knew how difficult it was. We could certainly survive for a week or two in the forest, performing guerilla action, but any longer than that and we would begin to suffer malnutrition because of dietary deficiencies and a host of other problems, such as cholera (there were only so many water treatment pills you could find, and you couldn''t simply drink from any water source, not if you wanted to avoid falling sick). Not to mention, the military wasn''t going to teach you what plants were edible and what were not, so don''t go foraging for mushrooms (actually, the first thing they taught you was to not eat any of the plants like they did in movies, not unless you wanted to die). Of course, the moment rations ran out, you probably had to hunt animals and eat them (because they were safer), but like I said, living on that sort of diet would lead to malnutrition and other problems. Also, bugs. Plenty of accursed bugs swarming around and bothering you. And those were the least of it ¨C headlice that infested your hair, sandflies that left rashes across your skin, and mosquitoes that plagued you with deadly diseases. Those people who claimed that they loved to be one with nature had evidently never dealt with bugs, their romanticized vision often formed from trekking on manmade trails and admiring artificially constructed vistas. They didn''t know the true face of nature, and would probably suffer a lot if they attempted to live off the land like some readers had suggested I did.

    Not to mention skin diseases and conditions arising from a lack of hygiene and proper medical equipment and medicine¡­that shouldn''t be a problem for this Ling Dan, but how was he going to get the necessary medicine, ingredients and equipment delivered to him? Let''s say he could just concoct any medicine he wanted from the herbs here. He still needed the equipment, and then maintenance and repair of said equipment. And even if that was resolved, how was he going to fend off the monsters that intruded into his home? He was a receptarier, not a soldier or a combatant.

    ¡­not unless he was one of those urban cultivators or alchemist cultivators who excelled in both medicine and fighting¡­ugh, in other words, he was probably a godlike Mary Sue like the infamous Xiao Yan and other xianxia protagonists.

    "I guess he learned survival skills then." Melina shrugged as she sat atop a root, using the chance to catch her breath. I felt sorry for her. She was visibly struggling, as was Adrian. The two kids evidently didn''t have the training or physical conditioning to make the trek, but they didn''t want to be a burden and thus exerted themselves.

    "Are you all right?" Glacia had come along. She offered Melina a bottle, but the latter declined.

    "Sensei already gave me some water. Thank you very much, though."

    "¡­Sensei?" Glacia repeated incredulously, and I had to raise my hand.

    "She means me."

    "Oh! So you''re a teacher."

    "Sort of."

    "That explains why Brother Hai assigned you to look after them." Glacia was nodding in understanding. She turned back to Adrian and Melina. "But you can also find me if you need anything. I''ll be more than happy to help."

    "Thank you!"

    "They are really nice people," Melina observed as Glacia left to check on the other mercenaries. She smiled a little. "I¡­I always pictured mercenaries as fierce and¡­ferocious fighters. I never imagined that such a beautiful Onee-san could be a mercenary as well¡­"

    "Oh, Glacia can be fierce and ferocious if she wants to," I assured her with a cheely grin. Holding back from laughter at Melina''s incredulous expression, I added. "You just haven''t seen her fight yet, that''s all."

 440 Chapter 440: Medicinal Plants

    Even after a couple of days in the mountains, we saw no sign of any human habitation. We trekked through the forest, hiding amongst the trees and using them as cover against the occasional monsters that passed by. We avoided combat as much as possible ¨C even with Doctor Dorden here, we didn''t want to over-rely on his healing magic and sustain unnecessary casualties. Healing magic wasn''t omnipotent, and obviously Doctor Dorden would run out of mana if he had too many patients to treat. Furthermore, the forest wasn''t a conducive place for resting and recovering mana, or for healing.

    In case you''ve forgotten, even after accepting healing magic, I still had to lie in bed for several more hours before I was finally discharged. That wasn''t just because the healing mage was monitoring me. It was because the body still needed some time to rest and pull itself together, to recover from the wounds. It was''t some instant heal and the patient being back to full health like a game (I swear, some readers just treated everything like a game). Speaking of which, it made me laugh whenever readers whined that I should get a healing spirit ¨C no, that''s not how healing works. You don''t heal someone in the middle of battle, and have him suddenly stand right back up and fight. Healing was not instant, "health" was not some numerical stat that you could measure like Hit Points in a game. Reality did not work like a game, as much as some readers would have you believe.

    Anyway, the mission was to locate Ling Dan and bring him back to concoct a serum or medicine for Anastasia to bring her rampaging powers under control. Even though Doctor Dorden succeeded in preserving her life, he was unable to suppress her rampaging powers, and she went from a ticking time bomb to¡­a leaking reactor, I guess. There was no longer any danger of her blowing up and dying, but she still posed a threat to any living thing in her vicinity. Hopefully, like Xiao Yan from Battle through the Heavens, Ling Dan would be able to develop a spirit pill or miracle medicine that would cure her¡­though like I said, reality was never that convenient.

    However, any chance was better than nothing. It was a huge gamble, but since there were no other alternatives, we decided to stake everything on this.

    Unfortunately, it was looking less and less likely that this mythical doctor even existed¡­and even if he did, he most probably wasn''t idling around the mountains. I didn''t know where Teacher Mary Cure heard that rumor, but apparently she heard wrong. Also, now that I thought about it, how did Teacher Cure hear of that rumor? And if such a rumor existed, then wouldn''t someone else have gone to the Yao Cai Mountains and looked for him? The more I thought about it, the more suspicious the rumor seemed, and my doubts grew correspondingly.

    At this rate, we might as well give up and head home, instead of wasting time on a wild goose chase.

    Fortunately, Feng Hai was a lot more patient than me. He was right to be patient ¨C one did not explore and cover an entire mountain range in a matter of days. Usually, such search and "rescue" (it wasn''t as if we were rescuing Ling Dan from any crisis, so that might not be an appropriate word) missions would take a week or two, sometimes even months. Longer when the area in question was as vast as a mountain range.

    "Hmm, so nothing so far?"

    The great mercenary leader was seated atop a boulder, silently contemplating after receiving news from the various scouts and reconnaissance units that he had sent out earlier. I was included among them, thanks to my ability to summon a flock of Corvus. The lot of good that did us, considering our fruitless search so far.

    "Yeah, we haven''t seen anything resembling any human habitation, or any sign of humans being in here. Not even a glimpse of a human. It''s been nothing but monsters."

    The head of the reconnaissance unit was a lady named Brown. Nessa Brown, I believe. So we had Redfield in charge of combat (well, technically Brent was, but Redfield was pretty much his Company Sergeant Major), and Brown in charge of reconnaissance. All we were missing was Green and Blue, who probably be in charge of logistics and transport respectively.

    Feng Hai let out a sigh and leaned back atop the boulder, thinking deeply. Closing his eyes, he pinched the bridge of his nose and furrowed his brow.

    "Perhaps we''ve been looking at this from the wrong angle."

    "Sir?" Brown raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by wrong angle?"

    "We''ve been searching for Ling Dan in the forest. We''ve assumed that he would be hiding in the forest, but what if that premise was flawed to begin with?"

    "Then where would this Ling Dan be?" Brown asked, perplexed. Feng Hai allowed a smile to slowly spread across his weary but still handsome face.

    "What other areas of the mountains have we not explored yet?"

    "The valleys?" Glacia asked, having taken a seat on a rock right next to Feng Hai''s boulder. She frowned. "So we might have to backtrack and climb back down the mountain¡­"

    "The valleys are clear and don''t have cover, so I can send a flock of Corvus down and do a sweep," I offered, raising my hand. Feng Hai nodded.

    "You do that. But what other locations are there? Anything else we missed?"

    "Hmm¡­" Dorden had been pondering this entire time, and he apprehensively raised a hand as well. "If I may¡­"

    "Please, Doctor." Feng Hai inclined his head respectfully at the elderly doctor. Even though Dorden was not combat personnel, his years of wisdom and experience made him a highly valued staff in the mercenary guild. Feng Hai in particular appreciated the huge amount of insight and advice the doctor had to offer. "Don''t hold back. You don''t need my permission to speak up."

    "Very well then. I''ll take you up on that." Dorden cleared his throat and leaned forward, resting his bearded chin on a hand and his elbow on his knees. "I was thinking¡­this is Yao Cai Mountains, a place very well known for its medicinal herbs and plants, as well as wildlife."

    "That''s true," Redfield agreed with a nod. "That''s probably why this Ling Dan fella chose to hide out in a place like this. He''s a receptarier, right?"

    "Yeah," Brent confirmed.

    "Then¡­wouldn''t it be natural for Ling Dan to spend more time in areas where these medicinal herbs grow?"

    For a moment, there was some silence. Then Redfield tilted his head in confusion.

    "You mean there are no medicinal herbs or plants in the forest?"

    "I mean, there might be¡­but it seems to me that we''ve been wandering around blindly, searching area by area instead of prioritizing specific spots. Even among a forest, there are uneven distributions. It''s not as if the entire forest is carpeted by medicinal plants. Many of them grow better under specific locations or conditions than other places."

    "That''s a brilliant point." Feng Hai''s eyes lit up. "Doctor, do you know what medicinal plants there are, and where they are found? In a place like Yao Cai Mounains, specifically?"

    "Well¡­I do, sort of. For example¡­" Doctor Dorden considered for a few moments. "The Belfrost Flower is known for alleviating pain and strengthening one''s circulation, and it''s usually found in mountains. However, it grows in places with plenty of sunlight, and thus wouldn''t normally be found in a forest."

    "So in a valley?" Redfield asked, glancing at me. "Keep an eye out for that Belfrost Flower when you do a sweep of the valley, Richie."

    "Perhaps providing Richard with a picture might be helpful," Brent suggested.

    "Yes, it would, but before you search the valleys, I might want to add that they are not normally found on the valleys but on the mountains themselves. In elevated areas, especially."

    "Brown." Feng Hai''s voice was sharp. "Give me a map, and let me know if there are unforested areas on the mountain."

    "There are plenty," Brown informed him. "There''s a plains right outside this forest, a couple of miles northwest, and higher up. We''ll have to climb up a steep incline, but I recall that my scouts mentioned a plains full of flowers just beyond the edge of this forest."

    "That might be it." Dorden snapped his fingers and smiled. "Are they a light blue, with high, green stalks? Growing in huge swathes?"

    Brown hesitated and glanced toward one of her subordinates, a guy named Shen Cha. He nodded in confirmation.

    "The flowers I saw were definitely blue. And they were clustered together."

    "Good, they must be it." Dorden was searching up his data pad and conjuring up a holographic picture. After sweeping his fingers and scrolling through several screens, he found what he was looking for and projected it in Shen Cha''s direction. "Like this?"

    Shen Cha hesitated for a moment, studying the delicate-looking flower for a few moments, and then nodded. He didn''t pay much attention to the details of the flowers ¨C he had no reason to ¨C but from afar they looked similar enough, so he decided to go for it.

    "I think so."

    "We should give it a try." Dorden turned back to Feng Hai. "I am aware that it''s a long shot, but if there are signs of that place being picked or harvested for its Belfrost Flowers, then we could perhaps trace them back to whoever is living here. And if the rumors are true, then it''s most likely Ling Dan, or someone in a similar vocation."

    Like his assistants or something. It would make sense that the legendary receptarier wouldn''t be living alone in a place like this.

    "You are right. We should give it a shot." Feng Hai glanced around at the people gathered in this place and hardened his gaze. "We move out in ten. Tell your men, and get everyone ready. We''ll head to the plains and check out the flowers. But be careful ¨C I don''t want to draw the attention of any monster that might be lurking nearby."

    "Yes, sir!"

    We dispersed and I returned to where Adrian and Melina were waiting for me.

    "What''s the plan?" Adrian asked eagerly, hopping off the huge root that he was using as a makeshift chair and approaching me. Melina''s movements were less vigorous, but her enthusiasm was similar.

    "Have you found this legendary receptarier yet?" she asked.

    I studied the both of them for a moment. Even though it had already been two days, their energy level remained high and they were still bright and springy as ever. To the both of them, this trip to Yao Cai Mountain was like an adventure, and they were having the time of their lives ¨C mostly because they hadn''t encountered any real danger yet. It was only natural, since the mercenaries did a great job of protecting them and avoiding the monsters.

    "Unfortunately, not yet." I shook my head warily. "We''re still looking for clues, but we haven''t found any. Speaking of which, Doctor Dorden suggested we try searching the plains where there are medicinal plants and flowers, and we are about to head there now. You guys have to be really careful because we''re leaving cover and will be in the open. It might get a little dangerous, especially if there are monsters lurking about."

    "Don''t worry about us!" Adrian boasted. "We can take care of ourselves!"

    Somehow I doubted that, but I kept a straight face and nodded. Inwardly I knew I had to look out for them. Their lack of experience in the field might lead to quite a few undesirable circumstances, such as panicking or hesitation, either of which would prove to be deadly. Then again, it was my job to keep them alive. Additionally, I remembered seeing Adrian out in the field before. Wasn''t he in a similar situation before, when I first met him?

    Yeah, I first encountered Adrian when he was attacked by Ravagers and Phantoms, and he actually coped pretty well under the crisis. I didn''t have to worry about him freezing up or panicking. He knew how to handle himself, even if he didn''t have the strength to beat the monsters. Strength wasn''t everything ¨C the smartest and most adaptable survived, not through brute strength and raw power like those stupid cultivation and xianxia novels would have you believe, but through a variety of tactics. There was nothing wrong with admitting that you were weaker than your opponents and retreating or escaping. Not obsess over some stupid "face" thing or pride or whatever it was that those ruthless, overpowered Mary Sue protagonists espoused (that whole ridiculous "strong eat the weak" bullshit again).

    Even though he wasn''t strong, I was certain that Adrian would find a way to survive against all odds, and that was what make him intelligent.

    "We''ll try our best to not be a burden!"

    I glanced at Melina and nodded apprehensively. She was more of an unknown quantity. I didn''t know enough about her to judge, so I didn''t. I would just assume the worst and hope for the best ¨C her lack of combat experience meant that she needed extra looking after. Never a bad thing to over-prepare and realize that you didn''t have to worry, than to let your guard down and then regret when everything went to hell.

    "All right, you two. Just remember to stick close to me and watch out. The most important thing is to stay safe!"

    "Yeah!"

    Smiling, I turned to glance at the rest of the mercenaries as they went about their preparations. I didn''t know what was going to happen, but I hoped to God that nothing untoward would happen.

    And that we would finally find that goddamned Ling Dan sooner rather than later.

 441 Chapter 441: Killer Bees

    We crept to the edge of the forest, staying cautious as we hugged the trees for cover. There were a couple of harrowing moments when the scouts hurried back, reporting sightings of a Phantom Tiger or a Medicinal Mastodon, both of which were massive monsters with enough power to wipe out a small platoon. They were not creatures we could rush into battle with, not without expecting a few casualties at least. Of course we could kill them, but that would just draw the attention of other monsters lurking in the mountains, and as mentioned earlier, it was not a simple matter of Doctor Dorden casting healing magic on them and they could jump back up to their feet and immediately fight again.

    This was a search and extraction mission, not a combat one, so there was little point into getting into meaningless fights. While the goal was to eventually exterminate all monsters from this world, it remained unrealistic. Not unless we could somehow stop Emergence Events totally.

    So for now, we had no choice but to coexist with the monsters. Defend against them when they attacked, but otherwise it was unwise to launch a campaign of extermination and genocide. We were not going to hunt them into extinction, not like we did with normal animals a thousand years ago. Monsters were a lot more tenacious, adaptable and ferocious. In a battle of attrition, it would be us humans who lose. We only had the slight edge in technology and magic, but numbers wise the monsters had us totally beat.

    Eventually, the journey toward the plains ¨C while only a couple of miles ¨C took longer than expected because of the hiccups and powerful monsters who passed by, their massive shapes being within a whisker of our location. The monsters didn''t notice us, or if they did we were beneath their notice, like ants to a dragon (though I was pretty sure that all monsters were hostile toward humans and would find any excuse to attack us, so I suspected it was the former). Fortunately, we were there within the hour and lurjed at the edge of the forest before committing ourselves forward.

    Just as well we did, because the scouts reported movement back to us.

    "Sir, there are monsters in the plains." It was Shen Cha. He had dropped back, keeping his profile low as he made his way toward Feng Hai. "A whole swarm of them."

    "What type?" Feng Hai asked without any hesitation, and I could almost hear the gears whir in his mind as he contemplated several strategies simultaneously. Should he launch an attack and wipe out the monsters in the plains? But what happened if our battle attracted the attention of other monsters? Then should we wait it out and hope the monsters leave? What if they settled down on the plains and refuse to depart? A diversion to draw away the monsters, perhaps. Then who should be assigned such a dangerous mission, and how would they regroup with the rest of the guild afterward?

    I was so glad that I wasn''t the leader. Each of these choices weighed heavily on Feng Hai, and the burden of leadership was a massive one. He was responsible for all the lives of his men, and a single mistake could condemn many of us to our deaths.

    Even so, we trusted him to make the decision because we knew that he could handle it. Not everyone can be a leader, but those who proved themselves capable possessed amazing judgement and an impressive tactical nous. Just like Harrison, now that I thought about it. I wondered how my team was faring in the tournament. Even though I left them to handle the third place match, I still couldn''t help but be concerned for them. Would they be able to win without me?

    No, that was quite the arrogant statement to make. The world didn''t revolve around me alone. The Jing Tian Academy team, even without me, was still a formidable one. I wasn''t deluded enough to think that they would fall apart the moment I left, that my presence would make a difference. Sure, perhaps it did, but I wasn''t the only one in the team, and I certainly wasn''t the smartest or most skilled. Probably I could make the claim that I was the strongest in terms of raw magical power (none of the other members could boast about being able to nuke an entire city), but that was about it. Strength wasn''t everything. Skill and intelligence also made a considerable difference ¨C just because I had the power to nuke cities didn''t mean I was invincible. I would still fall to an Assassin''s blade as easily as any other mage.

    My spells might be strong, I might command an army of Constellation spirits, but my physical body certainly wasn''t immortal. I was not a god. I could be bested in a match of blades, just as Charles Lacroix proved.

    "I''ll trust my friends and pray for their victory," I muttered to myself.

    "Huh? What was that, Brother Richard?" I must have been louder than I thought, for Adrian heard me. I shook my head.

    "No, it''s nothing. Just talking to myself."

    I didn''t suppose I could ask Adrian if he knew the result of the match. Right now, we were cut off from the rest of the world. Even with magic and advanced technology, we still couldn''t receive a signal in the middle of nowhere, where there were no satellite towers or whatever it was that allowed cellphones to work. So we had no reception, and no way of knowing what happened in the outside world. It reminded me of the times when I couldn''t contact Dad because he was away on a mission. It was the same logic there ¨C Dad''s missions often took him to places where he wouldn''t have reception for his phone, so I couldn''t contact him, and he couldn''t call me. He usually turned off his phone during missions anyway, because he had to go incognito.

    So, as tempted as I was to call Harrison or Yue Chu to inquire about the results of the match, I couldn''t even if I wanted to. I had to be patient and wait until I returned, and I was sure I would receive the notification of them sending me an email once I set foot back into civilization.

    I turned my focus back to Feng Hai and Shen Cha, who obviously didn''t pay any attention to the exchange between me and Adrian.

    "Killer Bees." Shen Cha had come up with the identity of the monsters. "An entire swarm of them."

    "Oh, Killer Bees, huh?" Doctor Dorden popped up of nowhere and strode toward us, his figure hunched. He nodded thoughtfully. "That makes sense. They collect nectar from the flowers, and in doing so help to pollinate the Belfrost Flowers."

    "Despite their sizes?" Shen Cha asked dryly, spreading his hands out to indicate how big they were. About the size of a human hand, it seemed. I double-confirmed that with my knowledge of monsters and that sounded about right.

    "Why wouldn''t they be able to pollinate flowers? They are just twice the size of normal bees." Dorden had a blank expression on his face, totally missing Shen Cha''s joke, and then he shrugged. "Even though they are monsters, they are still part of the ecosystem, and the honey they make from the nectar of Belfrost Flowers are often rich in nutrients and antioxidants. Now that I think about it¡­their honey might be another source of ingredients that Ling Dan might use for his medicinal remedies."

    "So should we go look for their beehive as well?" I asked, unable to keep the sarcasm out of my voice. Dorden shook his head, completely missing my attempt at wry humor.

    "No, I don''t believe that is necessary. I mean, if we fail to find anything here, we could consider that as the next step, but it would be extremely dangerous. After all, there''s the Killer Bee Queen that we have to worry about as well."

    That did not sound good. I remembered one of my favorite sci-fi horror movies (well, the sequel, anyway) and how the Queen turned out to be this badass monster that was several times the size of the drones and infinitely more dangerous. I would hate to deal with the Killer Bee version of that. In any case, I prayed we didn''t have to deal with that bitch, and focused my attention on the plains just beyond the edge of the forest.

    As Shen Cha said, the giant bees that were hovering above the plains were the size of an adult male''s hand, their stings gleaming in deadly fashion despite being such a distance away. There was a whole swarm of them, their relatively tiny bodies forming a black blur as they drifted almost lazily across the flowers. They settled down onto the petals and began collecting whatever nectar they could.

    "Hmm¡­" Feng Hai watched the Killer Bees for a moment, thinking hard. He then smiled. "We''ll just wait for them to be done. If they''re just collecting nectar, then they shouldn''t take too long. Don''t provoke them, and stay out of sight."

    He then relayed the orders to the Guild, who acknowledged it. The mercenaries hunkered down and used the opportunity to take a break, while the sentries kept an eye on the Killer Bees. As for me, I continued to monitor the valleys through the eyes of my Corvus, while Adrian and Melina lingered nearby. They watched the Killer Bees, fascinated and partially horrified but weren''t stupid enough to get any closer.

    Even the kids knew that it would be a disaster if they got caught by the Killer Bees¡­and worse, the casualties that would result if they inadvertently lured the Killer Bees back to the mercenaries'' position. I was glad that they were sensible and not reckless.

    "Hey!" A reader shouted mockingly as he tore his way through the fourth wall and pointed an accusing finger at me. "You have those nuke spells, right? Why are you so pathetic? Just nuke the entire plains and exterminate those Killer Bees!"

    Feng Hai casually tossed a wind blade and decapitated the stupid reader, and I watched as his head rolled on the forest floor, his headless body toppling over ignominiously.

    "What an idiot," Adrian remarked with a shake of his head. "The whole point of getting to the plains is to search for clues as to the whereabouts of this Ling Dan receptarier. How are you going to do that if you nuke the entire plains, along with whatever traces or trails that might be left in them? Sometimes I doubt if these edgelords ever use their brains before commenting."

    "Just ignore them," I told him with a sigh. It was another case of the readers thinking they knew better than the characters in the story when they actually didn''t, and just wanted everything to be an easy breeze for the main character. Again, they were reading the wrong story. I honestly didn''t understand the obsession with "evil" ruthless overpowered protagonists. Besides, there were othe stories that featured such characters, so they could read those instead. There was no reason to come to my life and start demanding that I be ruthless and evil.

    Fortunately, the Killer Bees didn''t take very long to hover away from the flowers, having collected enough nectar to bring back to their hive or something. We watched them leave, but stayed put even though they vanished out of sight. Monsters had very sharp senses, after all, and the Killer Bees might still be able to spot us even though we could no longer see them. Better to be cautious than to underestimate the enemy.

    Once Feng Hai was sure that the Killer Bees were gone, he gave the order to move out. The mercenaries responded professionally, their weapons out just in case. I kept an eye on Adrian and Melina, ensuring that they stayed close to me as we moved out into the open. I wasn''t going to let either of them fall to harm, not under my watch.

    The mercenaries formed a perimeter, posting sentries outward in a circle to keep an eye out for monsters. As the sentries took up position, the majority of the mercenaries gathered around Feng Hai. He raised a fist in the air to signal that they should listen.

    "All right, people, you know the drill. Sweep out and look for clues. Signs that someone has been here, collecting the Belfrost Flowers¡­a dirt trail, litter¡­anything!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    The mercenaries spread out and began ruffling through the flowers for any clues. I wasn''t trained in scouting and tracking, not like Troy, so I didn''t bother to join them and instead maintained my spot as a sentry. Adrian and Melina lingered nearby, not sure what to do. Like me, they didn''t have the skills for scouting or tracking, so they could only stay out of the way. Yet they couldn''t stray too far from my position, because I needed to ensure their safety.

    "Let me know if you see anything," I instructed them. Giving them a task and getting them on alert would alleviate their boredom, or so I hoped. If they had something to do, they wouldn''t get bored, and if they weren''t bored, they wouldn''t run off somewhere and get into trouble. Even though they didn''t appreciate the task I assigned them, they obliged because they wanted to make themselves useful, to compensate for their stowing away.

    "Anything?" Feng Hai called out after a while. I started, and then glanced at my cellphone, which still had no signal. Before I knew it, over thirty minutes had passed. Yet it seemed that the Silver Wolves had dug up nothing useful.

    Our chances of locating Ling Dan were getting less and less likely.

    "No, sir," one of the mercenaries said, confirming my sense of foreboding. I stifled a sigh, and closed my eyes. Unlike me, however, Feng Hai refused to be bowed.

    "Continue searching," he ordered without any hesitation.

    "Yes, sir!"

    The mercenaries complied without complaint. I felt a little ashamed of myself for giving up too easily. However, I knew from experience that holding onto any kind of hope would only lead to disappointment. That said, I couldn''t give into despair and adopt some edgy, nihilistic attitude because it was downright toxic and poisoned the atmosphere, damaging other people''s morale.

    So I should watch my words and attitude instead of following the example of some edgelords, who had forsaken the world or human race or whatever. I chuckled when I recalled an image where you had edgelords making statements such as "I wish I was dead", "there are too many people", and "we need a new plague", only for the coronavirus to arrive and ask them "why are you running away?" Seriously, these edgelords were hypocritical incels who couldn''t back up their nihilistic viewpoint.

    My humor was short-lived when one of the sentries jolted up and spun around to shout a word of warning.

    "Killer Bees! They are returning!"

 442 Chapter 442: Return of the Killer Bees

    "Contact!"

    Gunfire erupted across the plains as the mercenaries threw themselves under cover and began opening up with their rifles. It wasn''t just guns ¨C mages were flinging ranged spells from a distance and incinerating vast swathes of Killer Bees.

    But there were just too many of them.

    "Get down! Get behind me!"

    Hissing to Adrian and Melina, I had them crouch behind the tall grass and flowers for cover, and slowly led them behind mercenary lines. I wanted to help the mercenaries out, but they could take care of the Killer Bees on their own, and my responsibility was to take care of the kids, not get into fights.

    Besides, what was I supposed to do against a swarm of Killer Bees? I wasn''t going to summon my Constellation spirits against them. They would get stung to death. I would much rather wait a bit to summon Vermillion Phoenix or Taurus to incinerate them in large swathes of fire. After all, fire attacks were super-effective against bug-type pocket monsters¡­ahem, I mean insect-type monsters. Nothing exterminated huge bugs better than fire.

    In other words, kill them with fire!

    Fierce buzzing and explosions erupted behind us, inciting both Adrian and Melina to look back, but I shepherded them backward, where Doctor Dorden and Glacia were. The silver-haired ice mage was escorting the support staff back toward the forest, to take cover, though I doubted the trees would provide any protection against the pursuing Killer Bees.

    Then again, the moment we wiped out the Killer Bees, other monsters would have been drawn to the area. No doubt they would detect our presence, what with the tremendous amount of mana output the mercenaries were throwing out at the moment. Not that I blamed them. Killer Bees were a deadly foe that could sting even the most powerful mages to death.

    Even though Killer Bees were technically ranked F, that didn''t mean they should be underestimated. Indeed, their rank was based upon an individual Killer Bee. Obviously a single big bug was easy to deal with ¨C even a child could probably swat it out of the air with a single basic spell.

    However, Killer Bees always came in large numbers. An entire swarm of Killer Bees, zooming in an almost suicidal charge toward their target and paying no heed to the calamitous losses they would suffer, could sting even a rank B monster to death. Each individual drone had no sentience or consciousness of its own, a puppet or tool that existed only to serve the hive. They were expendable weapons that the Queen would unhesitantly throw at her enemies, uncaring of whether her countless drones survived the upcoming massacre.

    That was what made them so dangerous, despite their deceptively low rank. Again, I hoped the readers wouldn''t blindly make stupid comments like, "they are only rank F, they should be the weakest monsters, why are you so worried about them? They should be of no threat." Hell, no! Precisely because of the stupid ranking system people underestimated their power, let down their guard, and allowed themselves to get overwhelmed by near limitless numbers!

    Never heard of how a horde of army ants can chew a poor jaguar down to its bones? Or a school of piranha able to devour a crocodile and leaving nothing more than a skeleton? Size didn''t matter. As weak as they were individually, they were strong in vast numbers! Remember the old fable, United We Stand, Divided We Fall. A single arrow could be snapped easily, but bundle ten arrows together and you''ll never be able to break them.

    It''s the same logic here. Stop applying your game or cultivation/xianxia story logic to reality. The real world just didn''t work that way. Ranks didn''t determine anything ¨C they were just a rough estimation. To claim that I would never die to a rank F monster because I was capable of slaying a rank A monster was just the height of folly.

    "Shouldn''t we help?" Adrian asked as I escorted him and Melina back to the cover of trees, where Glacia, Doctor Dorden and the support staff were setting up. I saw them hurrying about and assembling heavy weapons, probably to mow down the Killer Bees and provde suppressive fire.

    "I will help. You and Melina stay put. Otherwise we''ll just get in the way."

    "Be careful!" Melina warned. Spinning around, I caught sight of a small group of Killer Bees breaking away from the swarm and buzzing in our direction. One of the mercenaries swung about and fired at them, killing a few of the big bugs with mana bullets, but many survived, their relatively tiny bodies darting about swiftly and making themselves a hard target.

    Clicking my tongue, I skidded to a halt, whirled around and summoned Orion. Pulling the bowstring back, I fired a volley of arrows upon the approaching Killer Bees. As before, they ducked about in midair, but the volume of my shots was so overwhelming that it didn''t matter that I missed 90% of them. The sheer number of arrows crossing through the air left no room for the poor Killer Bees to evade, and they got obliterated.

    "Cool!" Adrian exclaimed, his eyes wide in admiration. I gave him a shove with my right hand, my left still clutching Orion, and yelled.

    "Move!"

    As I said, the Killer Bees were easy to kill, but I had only taken down a mere drop in an ocean. The mercenaries were bellowing back in the plains, roaring out orders and snapping off sharp retorts. Their rifles thundered, sprayng the horde with superheated mana bullets that incinerated them in brief flickers of flames.

    "Activate Device!"

    The mercenaries on the frontline were tensing up as the Killer Bees drew closer. For all of the carnage they wreaked among the horde, there were still so many bees left over. As mentioned earlier, the danger lay not in the actual strength of each individual Killer Bee, but the amount of harm they could inflict as a whole horde. An entity, rather than a single specimen, if that made sense.

    Liken it to water, or an ocean. A single drop of water was harmless by itself, but merge all the thousands, if not millions of drops together and you''ll get a tsunami that could drown entire coastal towns and kill countless.

    It was the same concept here. A rank F monster was fragile and vulnerable on its own, but as a collective they were as fearsome as any high ranked monster.

    Against such a terrifying wave of foes, the mercenaries stood firm, continuing to release an unrelenting hail of fire. At the command to activate their devices, they hastily completed the spell that they had been casting this entire time.

    Then I understood why they were ushering us support personnel back into the forest.

    Their rifles glowed, and then thick, unyielding mana expanded all over their body before solidifying into armor. Now clad in mechanical exoskeletons, the mercenaries bounded forward, energy blades erupting from their forearms and turrets rotating about their shoulders to blast plasma into the swarm of raging Killer Bees. The metallic layer of armors gleamed silver, and the distinctive crest of the Silver Wolves was emblazoned proudly upon their silver breastplate, the head of a howling wolf atop two metallic blades.

    "Holy¡­!" Adrian gasped. "What the hell is that?!"

    "A Crystal Suit?" Melina stammered, awestruck. "Is that the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit?"

    "You''re in the wrong story, girl!" I bellowed at her, exasperated. "This isn''t a world where humankind has undergone forty millenniums of cultivation! And I''m not some genius refiner who doubles as a martial artist!"

    "It''s the Colossus-class Combat Exoskeleton Armor," Glacia explained from behind us. "It''s what happens when you infuse your Device with mana and trigger its activiation with a basic spell. It is mass produced and meant for frontline soldiers to fight in." She glanced at me with a smile. "This is the first time you''re seeing this, right? We just only procured these new suits recently."

    "I see." Certainly, I hadn''t seen the Silver Wolves use this particular weapon before. From what I knew, combat exoskeleton armor, or CEA, were highly expensive equipment. Even a top guild such as Silver Wolves would find it difficult to purchase them in bulk. Then again, they should be able to afford at least a few CEAs here or there¡­I guess the reason why they didn''t have any for so long was because they waited until they had saved up enough funds to procure a whole bunch of CEAs in bulk, at one time.

    Very impressive.

    The Killer Bees crashed into the line of heavily armored soldiers, their stings incessantly stabbing at the gleaming exoskeletons. Yet, they failed to penetrate the mercenaries'' armor, their stings breaking off, shattering or denting instead. The Silver Wolves fought back fiercely, their arm-blades or lightning claws slicing through the air and literally cutting hundreds of Killer Bees apart. Plasma bursts roiled about, incinerating thousands in superheated flares.

    Within a few minutes, the horde was visibly thinned out. Despite their horrendous losses and mounting death toll, the Killer Bees continued to fanatically throw themselves against the armored forms of the Silver Wolves, dying in droves. To what end, I had no idea. But the Queen apparently cared little for the lives of her drones.

    Or perhaps she, like all other monsters, harbored some kind of deep, instinctive hatred and uncontrolled aggression toward humans.

    Amidst the armored forms of the mercenary soldiers, the elite mages continued to fight unabated, their weapons and spells expanding from their figures. Even without any armor, Redfield emerged from a skirmish unscathed, fires burning all around him in a protective barrier that incinerated any Killer Bee stupid enough to hurl themselves at him. Brent swatted multiple bugs out of the sky with his staff, razor-sharp winds blowing about him and ripping them apart with tremendous force. Feng Hai stood at the center, hundreds of blades dancing around him and each automatically homing onto poor Killer Bees and cleaving dozens of them apart in a single stroke.

    And these all did unarmored, yet they didn''t sustain any injuries at all. Not from what I could see, at least.

    Scary.

    Unfortunately, what was scarier was that a bunch of Killer Bees broke off from the main group and headed in our direction, correctly identifying us as the weaker threat.

    "Incoming!" Glacia warned the support. Fortunately, they had already set up their heavy weapons, and were ready for the enemy. Manning a portable laser cannon, the gunners fired brilliant burst of ruby light, the superheated ray disintegrating columns of Killer Bees before they could get within a hundred meter of us. Another heavy weapon spat out thousands of plasma bolts per minute, peppering the horde with fiery death and incinerating them. I added my firepower to them, unleashing 1,200 azure arrows consecutively from my Orion.

    Yes, I admit that I''m a big fan of Bleach. Got a problem with that?

    Adrian and Melina added their firepower as well, with Adrian casting wood spells and throwing out razor leaves and Sakura petals. His skills were reminiscent of Cecilia''s, and I wondered if he would ever reach her level. Well, he still had about 2 or 3 years before he reached the same age, so there was stil some time for him to catch up. That said, I suspected that he was nowhere near her level of strength when she was his age. That said, Cecilia was quite the unfair comparison because she was considered a prodigy. If I were to rate Adrian more objectively, I would have to admit that he was above average for a mage of his age. he certainly could give several of the lower-ranking mercenaries a run for their money. Not bad at all.

    Melina''s repertoire was limited, because she was more of a short-ranged fighter. Armed with a sword, she fought hard as hard as she could, but right now she couldn''t¡­do anything except hold her sword in front of her.

    I sent her a glare. "I haven''t taught you any swordsmanship yet, so don''t bother. Use your normal magic spells."

    "Yes, Sensei."

    Realizing that this wasn''t the time to be smart, Melina complied. Putting away her sword, she cast several holy spells, flinging rays of light to blast Killer Bees apart. Inwardly, I was slightly impressed. Just as what I had heard, she was extremely proficient in magic. She still had some ways to go before she reached the level of Cecilia and the rest, but she was getting there. She didn''t seem pleased ¨C I guess she really wanted to be a swordswoman, but she understood that this concerned her life and death, and this was no time to be stubbornly sticking to her ideals.

    "Hang in there! There''s not much of them left!"

    Glacia was encouraging the team, even as she strode forward and entombed a swarm in ice. As she did so, a tide of flames headed in our direction and incinerated the last of the Killer Bees. While shooting down a few stray ones that were buzzing away, I caught sight of the armored mercenaries and elite mages heading back in our direction.

    The swarm of Killer Bees had been exterminated.

    "We should hurry," Brent said, gesturing for the support team to pack up. "It won''t be long before the higher ranking monsters get here."

    I shuddered when I remembered the Phantom Tiger and Medicinal Mastodon. Already the ground was shaking, indications of something massive and heavy approaching us. The mercenaries double-timed, hurriedly packing up their gear and melting back into the forest.

    "Well, that was a complete waste of time," Redfield complained as we slunk back among the trees to remain out of sight. "All that fighting, and for nothing."

    "That''s not necessarily true." It was Brown, and she was smiling. "I may have found some clues."

 443 Chapter 443: Human traces

    Brown didn''t spend too much time elaborating. Under Feng Hai''s orders, we retreated deeper into the forest, doing our best to avoid the monsters that were gradually emerging over the horizon. I caught a glimpse of a massive silhouette ¨C the hi-tech sensors installed in my glasses displaying a visual on my lenses. When I zoomed in, I saw that it was a Medicinal Mastodon.

    Yeah, I definitely didn''t want to stick around.

    There was movement to our left, and adjusting my glasses, I caught sight of a Phantom Tiger stalking out of the woods, sniffing around for prey.

    Yup, I didn''t want to get caught by that terrifying monster either.

    It might strike some readers as odd as to why we chose to retreat from these monsters instead of killing them. After all, the Silver Wolves possessed the formidable and impenetrable Colossus class CEA and incredible firepower. They definitely had the potential to defeat monsters even as powerful as the Medicinal Mastodon or the Phantom Tigers. Eventually, anyway.

    However, the Combat Exoskeleton Armor was powered by the user''s mana. And the mercenaries did not have infinite mana. They would run out of mana eventually. Even if they defeated the Medicinal Mastodon and Phantom Tiger, more monsters would come crawling out of the woodwork and continue attacking. We couldn''t fight forever ¨C we would run out of mana eventually, the armor would get damaged, and the injuries would mount.

    That would prove to be deadly, especially since we couldn''t solely rely on Doctor Dorden to heal everyone. Also, it would be difficult for us to pull a fighting retreat with the wounded, especially when more and more monsters showed up.

    "Stay down, and keep quiet!" Feng Hai ordered softly. He didn''t need to tell us twice. The mercenaries were deactivating their combat armor and hunkering down by the trees, using the roots as cover. We lay low and crawled through the dirt. I was surprised that Melina did so without complaint, though she couldn''t avoid making a grimace as her skirt was soiled by the muddy forest ground. Even so, she kept up with the mercenaries stoically.

    I was impressed. This girl was to be my student? Wow¡­I didn''t know if I could live up to her and her father''s expectations.

    "Gr¡­"

    For a moment, I froze. I could almost feel the breath from the Phantom Tiger as it stalked near the edge of the forest, growling in a predatory manner as it tried to seek us out. The atmosphere grew tense and so thick I could almost cut through it with my sword.

    "Everyone, stay still."

    At Feng Hai''s orders, everybody complied. Even Adrian and Melina immediately stopped, though I suspected they were like me and had paused momentarily from fear rather than because they were anticipating the Silver Wolves leader''s orders.

    Behind us, the Phantom Tiger continued lurking about, and sniffed the air. It swiveled its head from side to side, its yellow eyes narrowing as it swept its gaze through the forest. Even though it could clearly sense our presence, it saw nothing.

    While the Phantom Tiger swept the area, the tremors from afar grew increasingly heavier. The unmistakable trumpet of a Medicinal Mastodon echoed through the air. The Phantom Tiger whirled about, its lips peeled back in a feral snarl, but then it decided to lope away after a momentary hesitation. Even though it was confident of defeating the Medicinal Mastodon, it didn''t think the risk was worth it. In a duel between two high-ranked monsters, both would suffer severe injuries for sure, regardless of who was the victor.

    With that in mind, the Phantom Tiger vanished into the forest, passing by just several meters left of our furthest outlying mercenaries. As it strode, it paused for a moment, crushing a paw into the ground and ripping up the earth with its jagged claws. The black stripes, combined with grey fur, allowed it to blend seamlessly into the shadows of the forest, almost rendering it invisible. Even so, if we gazed up, we could see its glowing yellow eyes, and the faint, rippling outline of its massive bulk as it tensed. Then it turned and strode away in a graceful manner, somehow managing to avoid snapping twigs and being almost silent despite its tremendous weight and size.

    "¡­hu¡­"

    I finally exhaled, realizing that I had been holding my breath this entire time. From my left and right, I could hear Adrian and Melina doing something similar, relaxing now that the immediate threat was gone. They weren''t alone. A few of the mercenaries gasped in relief, with some rolling over and staring warily in the direction where the Phantom Tiger disappeared to.

    Still, the danger wasn''t over yet. We didn''t know if the Phantom Tiger was still lurking nearby, luring us into a false sense of relief, and then ambushing us the moment we rose. Feng Hai thought similarly, for he ordered us to remain down.

    "The threat isn''t over yet," he reminded us.

    By now, the tremors were growing ever heavier, and the Medicinal Mastodon finally showed up. Its trunk swayed gently as it probed for any signs of trespassers. It was also cautious, no doubt having picked up the scent of the Phantom Tiger from earlier. Despite its superior size and physical power, the Medicinal Mastodon lacked the agility of the nimbler Phantom Tiger, and even its thick hide was not proof against the latter''s deadly claws. One of the more intelligent monsters, the Medicinal Mastodon was thinking along the very human lines of better safe than sorry.

    It strayed for a bit longer, never quite entering the forest. Studying the ash and piles of Killer Bee corpses curiously, the Medicinal Mastodon looked around for the killer, and then finally decided to lumber away. I could still feel the slight quakes as it stomped through the plains, returning in the direction from where it came.

    Even after the tremors had fully disappeared into the distance, Feng Hai had us remain in our sprawled position. He was not taking any risks at all. A few more tense minutes passed, and after several hand signals between himself and the scouts, he finally rose to his feet.

    "Back up, everyone," he instructed, and everyone immediately complied.

    "Wow, that was scary," Adrian remarked, but he didn''t look shaken at all. Rather, he seemed pretty excited and bright. Similarly, Melina was nodding with a small smile.

    "I can''t believe we escaped their notice! Such high-level monsters¡­they should have been able to detect our presences."

    "Your stealth device," I reminded her. "And don''t underestimate mercenaries. They have been trained to suppress their mana to the point where monsters can''t detect them even if they are right under their noses. Provided the monsters don''t spot them with their eyes or hear them with their ears, anyway."

    "Heh¡­are you able to do the same, Brother Richard?" Adrian asked, his eyes sparkling in amazement.

    I shook my head sheepishly. "Nope. I had to rely on your stealth device to mask my presence."

    Unfortunately, I had not reached the level of professional mercenaries yet. I lacked their Spartan training and other punishing regimens that they went through when they joined the Silver Wolves. I had a lot of catching up to do¡­granted, these professional mercenaries had several ¨C or many, in some cases ¨C years'' worth of a headstart over me.

    After posting sentries around the vicinity of the forest we currently resided in, Feng Hai then gestured toward Brown and his officers.

    "Tell me what you found," he ordered without any preamble. Brown nodded and stepped forward, projecting a hologram. It was a picture of the Belfrost Flower field, but other than that, I couldn''t tell anything.

    "We found tracks¡­human tracks. Evidence that someone had been here, picking Belfrost Flowers just recently. I would say three days, maybe four. They are no longer fresh, but from the absence of flowers in this patch, and here, it feels like there was a deliberate¡­picking of flowers. Not to mention we found several footprints in the soil. Faint, but still there."

    "That''s good. So there''s somebody in Yao Cai Mountains other than us." I noticed that Feng Hai wasn''t quick to instantly conclude that these belonged to Ling Dan. After all, the footprints could literally belong to anyone. While people rarely set foot here because of the dangers and monsters, that didn''t mean there wasn''t anyone foolhardy enough to try.

    However, that presented a sort of dilemma. This could turn out to be a wild goose chase. We could follow those tracks, only to discover that they belong to another group of mercenaries, or a bunch of workers risking their lives to collect the Belfrost Flowers, and then having already left a few days ago after their job was done here.

    Brown, fortunately, put paid to that suggestion.

    "There are no signs of any vehicle tracks nearby, no immolation from the plasma jets of hovercraft, nothing¡­so we suspect that these pickers came on foot."

    "That makes it likelier that they may have something to do with Ling Dan," Feng Hai mused as he stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Do you know where they lead to?"

    "Yes, sir." Brown nodded sharply. "The prints all lead southwest of here. At least the trail did. There were zigzags and detours here and there, but they all eventually lead in the general southwest direction."

    "Excellent." Feng Hai beamed. Seeig his expression, I felt hope flare up inside my chest, and I was sure that many of the other mercenaries felt the same. "It might not be much, but it''s a start."

    "Should we scout ahead, sir?" Brown asked. "We''ll try to recover the tracks and reconnoiter ahead to see where they lead us to. It might be a trap."

    "You do that, but first¡­" Feng Hai raised his head and turned toward me. "Richard. Can you send your Soul Beasts to do an aerial reconnaissance first? Have them all fly in the general southwest direction and get a visual."

    "Yes, sir."

    "If they were picking flowers here only three or four days ago and didn''t have any transport, then they shouldn''t have gotten very far," Brent remarked thoughtfully as he rubbed his temple. "Maybe they set up camp somewhere nearby."

    "Or maybe they parked their vehicles further down, in the valley of the mountains, or at the top, because they didn''t want to accidentally ravage the field of Belfrost Flowers" Redfield grumbled sourly. He jolted when he noticed that everyone was staring at him, and frantically waved his hands. "But it doesn''t hurt to try, right?"

    "I''ll look out for any signs of vehicles, or landing scorches or whatever."

    "You do that." Feng Hai nodded at me, and I shut my eyes. It didn''t take me more than a few seconds to summon a flock of Corvus, and I sent them in the southwest direction. Unfortunately, my sense of direction wasn''t the best, so I also summoned Pyxis. The Constellation compass appeared in my hand, pointing me in the right direction. Actually, I didn''t even need to summon Pyxis because I had an in-built compass in my glasses, and at a thought-click I could bring it up on display on my lenses, but I felt as if I owed it to my readers to give Pyxis a cameo. That, and I just wanted to show off my knowledge of constellations (which was a major failure, given that I should have summoned Pyxis like several hundred chapters ago when I complained about my poor sense of direction).

    "That way, huh?"

    The flock of Corvus took off as one, their wings fluttering in the air as they soared high up. They sped toward the southwest, the rustle of their wings barely audible amidst the cricket cries and chattering of insects in the forest (thankfully not monster insects, or bugs that had not mutated because of the mystical energies that suffused the planet in the wake of Emergence events). I kept my eyes shut as I monitored the terrain below through their perspectives, trying to take in a much of the scenery as possible.

    Fortunately, with a clear direction, I could send more of my Corvus out further. They soared over mountains and forests, sweeping their sharp gazes across valleys and plains, trying to look out for any sign of human encampments or transports, or at least signs of where their transports were. It was a long shot, but it was quite possible that these people were hired by Ling Dan himself to gather ingredients for whatever spirit mediine he was concocting.

    Might as well try¡­an improbably lead was better than no lead at all.

    "!!!"

    It took another fifteen or so minutes before something caught my eye. Right at the foot of mountains, the distinct shape of a manmade structure stood out glaringly, its metallic surface gleaming in fierce contrast against the verdant scenery that surrounded it. There were people moving in and out of the structure, a bustling crowd that appeared to be ferrying cargo into the interior. Cargo that most probably possessed flowers and medicinal herbs, given the location.

    Opening my eyes and grinning as tentative hope swelled up within my chest, I turned to Feng Hai and the mercenaries and reported the possibly good news.

    "I think might have found something."

 444 Chapter 444: Mountain Base

    I filled Feng Hai and the others in, and the mercenary leader listened with a furrowed brow. Taking a deep breath, he glanced in the southwest direction, as if by doing so he could somehow spot the base and the personnel running it.

    "Any clue as to who those people are?" he asked gruffly. I understood his mood because I also realized that anybody setting up base camp in Yao Cai Mountains couldn''t possibly be some random civilians coming out for herbs gathering. Having already anticipated his question, I had one of my Corvus soar closer to the base, his keen eyes picking out the finer details.

    "Damn."

    "What is it?" Redfield demanded impatiently when he heard me curse under my breath. I grimaced and opened my eyes to look at him.

    "They are wearing black cloaks."

    "¡­huh? In the mountains? Is that some kind of new fashion style? Well, maybe they do need the cloaks to keep themselves warm, given the cool climate, but¡­"

    "No," Brent cut his subordinate off. "The black cloaks most likely indicate that these are members of the Dark Church."

    Silence fell over the gathered group, and the mercenaries exchanged uneasy glances. The Dark Church again. Come to think of it, I remembered that Dad and I once ran into some secret research facility in the mountains a few months ago, when I tagged along on one of his missions overseas. They were creating biological weapons and ended up getting slaughtered by the same monsters they were breeding.

    What was with the Dark Church and setting bases up in mountains? Did they like the terrain or something? Admittedly, the remote nature of mountains and their distance from civilization made them perfect as a hideout, to conceal their agenda and operations away from the public and from authority. Best, nobody would be able to disturb them or disrupt their research, and unless we were coincidentally in the mountains for some reason, nobody would even think to find them here.

    Now that we had stumbled upon them, I had no idea what we were supposed to do. Attack them?

    "They probably are the ones who collected the Belfrost Flowers," Brown put in, having heard my description of them ferrying cargo. "That''s the most likely scenario ¨C I don''t think it''s a coincidence that the tracks lead in the southwest direction, and the Dark Church happens to have a base southwest of here."

    "Why would they be collecting Belfrost Flowers and other medicinal herbs, though?" Glacia was confused. "I thought their aim was to wipe out humanity and allow the monsters to reign supreme on Earth. Why would they be gathering medicinal herbs?"

    "Who knows?" Redfield clenched his fists. "But whatever their reasons, it definitely can''t be good. Maybe they''re stocking up on their own first aid and medicinal supplies because they can''t get medicine the conventional way."

    "Perhaps," Brent conceded. "But it would be easier to just hire healing mages, and I know for sure that the Dark Church counts several healing mages among their number."

    "What should we do?" Glacia asked Feng Hai, who had remained silent all this while.

    "I say we attack them!" Redfield exclaimed, and then he blinked. "¡­um, after we confirm that this Ling Dan isn''t here in the Yao Cai Mountains, I mean."

    Everyone glanced at him, but nobody objected or voiced their support. They were feeling conflicted. On one hand, our priority was indeed to search for Ling Dan, but nobody felt comfortable leaving the Dark Church be. Whatever they were scheming out here, it would most likely contribute a lot toward their goal of eradicating mankind.

    "Our mission is to find Ling Dan and bring him back to help Ana," Feng Hai declared with a nod. "However¡­"

    He glanced at me, and I nodded, having Corvus do another sweep. But I didn''t see anything new, and told him as much. Even so, Feng Hai''s expression remained unreadable and he sighed.

    "¡­it is possible that the Dark Church might be in the Yao Cai Mountains for the same reason as we are. No, it''s even possible that they might already have found and captured Ling Dan."

    "Huh? How do you know?" Brown asked, puzzled at how he made the leap in conclusion. Feng Hai shrugged.

    "Just intuition."

    "Boss, that''s not very persuasive," Brent growled.

    "I know, but¡­think about it. It''s not a coincidence that they are in the Yao Cai Mountains, and then you have the rumor that Ling Dan ¨C the legendary receptarier ¨C is holed up somewhere in here. I''m pretty sure the Dark Church has other, easier methods of obtaining medicinal supplies than just picking flowers and herbs in such a remote region. If they went through the trouble of setting up a base in the Yao Cai Mountains, of all places, then¡­"

    "It''s a long shot, and you don''t have any proof." Brent and the others did not look convinced, but Redfield jumped at the chance.

    "We should investigate the base and find that proof! If not, we can just retreat and search elsewhere!"

    "It''s also improbable that this Ling Dan wouldn''t notice the presence of so many people in a place where he''s hiding out to stay far away froom people," Brown conceded. "He would most likely leave for a more¡­secluded location."

    "¡­or he might have been captured by these Dark Church bastards¡­" Redfield clenched his fists tighter. "In which case we have to rescue him."

    "We need to find proof that he''s being held by the Dark Church first, or we''d just be wasting our time," Brent pointed out.

    "Good thinking." Feng Hai nodded, and then turned to Brown. "And that''s where you come in."

    "I understand. I''ll pick a team to infiltrate the base and search for the target." Brown was already consulting her data pad and swiping stuff off, collating whatever information she could and selecting her team.

    "Thanks. I''ll be counting on you."

    Obviously the scout team didn''t set off ahead yet. The enemy base that I had spotted was several kilometers away ¨C about ten or so. It was going to be a long trek, and we had to remain on high alert for any monsters that we might encounter on the way there. Not wanting to waste any time, Feng Hai ordered us to set off immediately the moment we were ready. The support teams packed up their equipment, dismantled their heavy weapons and placed them back in their storage devices. After ensuring that they didn''t leave anything behind, the mercenaries began the long journey toward the Dark Church''s mountain base.

    "We''re leaving?" Adrian asked when I approached him and Melina. "Have we found whoever it is we are looking for?"

    "Not really," I admitted. "But we have found some sort of clue."

    "Clue? What sort of clue?" Melina asked curiously. She glanced at the mercenaries, who were beginning to move in a staggered line, covering each other and watching out for dangers. Already the scouts ¨C those not selected by Brown for the infiltration mission ¨C were already moving ahead to navigate a safe route for the rest of the group to follow. Upon seeing that, she nodded. "You know which direction to go in?"

    "Yeah, we do." I wondered if I was allowed to tell them what we found. Considering that they would find out sooner or later, and that the officers were already filling their men in on what information we had, I might as well. "Be careful and stay sharp. I spotted what seems to be a base of the Dark Church. You know how dangerous those fanatics are, so stay on your guard. We''re checking their base out to see if they kidnapped Ling Dan or he agreed to work for them or something, and from there we might either withdraw or launch a rescue mission¡­depending on what we find."

    "You think the Dark Church might have abducted Ling Dan?" Melina asked, looking horrified. She had evidently heard the rumors detailing the sort of horrifying fates that befall those captured by the apocalyptic zealots.

    "It''s a possibility, and we''re going to confirm it right now."

    "Why don''t we just call them the Black Vatician already?" Adrian moaned. "Dark Church just sounds lame. Black Vatician sounds a lot cooler. And anyone with half a brain cell knows who you are referring to."

    "Copyright reasons," I replied, as if that explained everything. There was a reason why I wasn''t a versatile summoner. It wasn''t solely because I was as stupid, retarded or weak as the readers made me out to be. I had to avoid copyright infringement as well.

    The journey to the Dark Church''s base took us a whole day. Halfway there, we had to stop and set up camp in the middle of the forest. The support team worked quickly, setting up a manmade barrier by using a combination of engraved runes and hi-tech generators, which allowed the mercenaries to huddle within. Once inside, we were able to turn on the lights and heaters without fear of being spotted by the monsters or human enemies.

    "We aren''t there yet?" Adrian asked. I shook my head.

    "Not even close. There''s still about five kilometers to cover¡­theoretically, but given the rough terrain and obstacles¡­we might have to take detours and go around stuff, which means we might have to trek longer and take more time than anticipated."

    Trekking through a forest wasn''t as simple and straightforward as most people thought it would be. Even back in my previous life, during my army days, it was basically one of the arduous aspects of military training. You would often come across impassable terrain such as steep slopes that were too hazardous to traverse, unexpected ravines or holes, maybe a lake that didn''t appear on the map, or the trees and foliage were so dense that it would be too difficult to cross between the plants, even with bashing. On paper it might seem a short journey if we cut across the forest in a straight line, but in reality we had to make dozens of detours, going around obstacles such as the aforementioned thick foliage or plant lifes, circle round the foot of an unusually steep hill, and seeking alternative paths when running into dead ends (yes, there are dead ends in a forest ¨C not exactly walls but walls of wood, roots and trees). Furthermore, with the equipment and weapons we were lugging with us¡­yeah. It was a really difficult trip.

    Don''t believe those xianxia or cultivation stories where you see those cultivators or martial artists easily vault through the forest, where the terrain seemed so sparse and easy to navigate. Reality was not that convenient. Again, forget your prior experience of hiking in the woods or camping in reserves ¨C those were done on manmade terrain. They might be as close as nature as you could get, but ultimately these were trails and paths cleared out by humans to make your "nature" experience as easy and convenient as possible. And those martial artists jumping from tree to tree...that wasn''t going to work in real life. in a dense forest like this, the trees were so clustered and packed closely together that jumping from one tree to another would most likely result in you crashing through multiple branches, getting smacked about by wooden limbs and sent crashing to the ground. To navigate through the trees, it was much more efficient to swing from branch to branch¡­just like monkeys. So forget all those webcomics where you have martial artists jumping from branch to branch. That just didn''t happen in reality, not when you took into account how trees actually grow and cluster together.

    Well, the point of that wall of text above was to describe how extremely difficult it was to trek through a forest. It certainly was no walk in the park, that''s for sure.

    "I see."

    Melina''s voice was soft and she was gently massaging her legs. The journey had been hard on her ¨C without training or conditioning, she still somehow managed to keep up without complaint, keeping pace with the mercenaries and completing the journey. Adrian too, but he was a bit more¡­vocal about it. Even so, I was impressed with the kids'' determination to not be a burden. They had done very well and come so far without breaking.

    "Get some rest," I told them. The three of us shared a tent, which I had managed to pack because Feng Hai ordered me to get one. Fortunately, the Silver Wolves paid for my expenses since they were hiring me for this mission, so I didn''t have to pay a single cent for the tent. I was glad I didn''t stinge and purchase the cheapest and smallest tent. Truthfully I had picked this one because it was black in color, and black was my favorite color. As God willed it, it turned out to be the correct choice as it was spacious enough to house the three of us. Melina nodded and rose to her feet wearily before crawling into the tent, When Adrian didn''t move from his spot, I gave him a verbal push. "We''ll be having a long day tomorrow, and quite the distance to cover, so it''s best to recover as much strength as possible."

    "What about you, Brother Richard?"

    I stood up and stretched before smiling.

    "Sentry duty. I''ll go sleep after my shift is done." I grinned mischievously. "Must be nice to be kids, eh? You don''t need to do sentry duty."

    "Aren''t you a kid as well?" Feng Hai appeared behind me, almost taking me by surprise. He gave me a hard look. "You don''t need to do sentry. You can leave that to my men."

    "Nah, I want to do it. Besides, my abilities allow me to be a better sentry than most of the others here."

    "That''s true," Feng Hai conceded grudgingly, remembering that I could summon multiple pairs of eyes and ears to help me out. He then turned to Adrian and grinned devilishly. "As for you, young man, you have no excuse. It''s bedtime for you."

 445 Chapter 445: Infiltration

    It took us half a day to cover the remaining distance, and by the time we reached the edge of the forest on the mountain overlooking the Dark Church''s base, it was past noon. The sun had just brushed past its zenith and beginning its slow descent toward the western horizon.

    Strangely enough, there wasn''t as much activity today, and the outskirts of the base were largely empty. Mainly because the cargo was all transported yesterday, and so there wasn''t much on today''s schedule. Nonetheless, we could still see a few robed sentries here and there, enduring the heat stoically despite how sweltering it must be to be dressed in those dreary black cloaks.

    "Is your team ready?" Feng Hai asked Brown, whose recon team had assembled near one of the larger trees that served as sufficient cover. The sentries weren''t staring in our direction, their eyes stoically glued forward, but even if they had turned to glance this way, they probably wouldnn''t be able to spot us.

    "Yes, sir. We are ready to move out anytime."

    The rest of her words went unsaid, but it was obvious what she meant to imply. They were just waiting for Feng Hai''s orders.

    The mercenary leader took a deep breath, his eyes still fixed on the newly constructed base below, and then he nodded once.

    "Move out."

    "Sir, yes, sir!"

    The scout team saluted, and then they disappeared. Like, literally. One moment they were standing there, and the next they were gone, their silhouettes melting away into the surroundings and vanishing from sight.

    "As impressive as always," I murmured. Stealth wasn''t my thing¡­and before a few of those readers inevitably say it, NO. There was no such thing as a stealth spirit. Even if it was, it wasn''t something I could conveniently summon just because I wanted or needed one at hand. Summoning magic wasn''t this super convenient, omnipotent magic where you could summon whatever you want or need.

    When I was injured? Summon a healing spirit! When I needed to sneak into someplace? Summon a stealth spirit! What the fuck!? These readers evidently had NOT been reading my account properly. I took pains to assert that summoning magic wasn''t omnipotent and had a lot of restrictions, yet these juvenile, edgy readers kept coming onto my story demanding that I summon healing spirits, spirits that could buff, and now¡­stealth spirits. No, summoning magic did NOT work that way. Besides, if I wanted to buff myself, why the hell would I go in such a roundabout method to summon a spirit, and then ask the spirit to buff me? Wouldn''t it be more efficient, faster and smarter to just learn buff spells and buff myself directly instead of introducing an unnecessary middleman? Same with healing magic ¨C if I wanted to heal myself, why the fuck would I go in such a roundabout method and summon a spirit to heal myself? Wouldn''t it be more efficient and faster for me to learn healing spells and heal myself directly right from the start instead of wasting time and mana on a middleman?

    Sometimes these readers didn''t use their brains. And they had the audacity to insult me as stupid or retarded. Perhaps they should look at the mirror first, or at least refrain from making assumptions about what I could do. If I didn''t do it, then I had a good reason not to ¨C because I simply could not.

    Sorry for the rant, but if I did not do this, then I would have to deal with comments on the right side insulting me as stupid or retarded, and asking why I couldn''t just summon a stealth spirit. Seriously. I was getting sick and tired of that bullshit, with these readers bringing their own preconceived notions of how my summoning magic was somehow this godlike, convenient, omnipotent ability that allowed me to summon whatever I want or need. NO. It was NOT.

    "What do we do now?" Adrian asked, craning his neck to look past the leaves and down at the base, while remaining cautious enough not to reveal himself. Unfortunately, his caution was outweighted by curiosity.

    "We wait," I replied simply, and then went to a tree root and sat on it, leaning against the trunk. "The only thing we can do now is wait."

    *

    Fortunately, we didn''t have to wait long.

    Unfortunately, the infiltration team returned with some¡­friends.

    "Contact!" Brown''s voice fizzled over the communication beads that the mercenaries were equipped with. "We have pursuers on our tail! We can''t shake them off!"

    "Is it the Dark Church?" Feng Hai demanded, already springing to life and conjuring his multiple swords. The blades hovered around him fiercely, their sharp tips pointed in the direction of the base. "They caught you?!"

    Damn. That wasn''t good. If the Dark Church caught the infiltration team and was chasing them, then it meant we were pretty much in for an all-out war. We couldn''t turn and run, not with the Dark Church in pursuit. Not because we couldn''t outrun them or couldn''t shake them off, but because we couldn''t afford to let them know that we were here. We had to prevent them from reporting our presence to other Dark Church subsidiaries, otherwise¡­

    ¡­well, I don''t know. Otherwise the Dark Church would bring their entire force here and launch a search and destroy mission. We would be forced to escape the Yao Cai Mountains, and that would terminate in a mission failure. Then again, with the Dark Church here in force, it was extremely unlikely that Ling Dan would continue to hang around in the mountains, so we most probably had already failed our mission to begin with.

    "Well, not exactly." Brown sounded a little miffed. "We didn''t get caught by the Dark Church themselves, but apparently their pet monsters sniffed us out, broke out of their cages and chased after us. The Dark Church might have suspected that there are intruders, but they didn''t get any visual or ident on us. For now."

    "Pet monsters?" Redwood repeated, bewildered. "I thought monsters can''t be tamed?"

    "That''s exactly why we didn''t get caught." Brown wasn''t able to mask the bitter amusement in her voice. "They can''t control the monsters, and had to stay some distance away. Actually¡­they are currently being attacked by their own monsters that had broken out of captivity. It will take them some time to exterminate the monsters assaulting their base and recover or restore order. So we are pretty safe for now."

    "What are the monsters pursuing you, exactly?" Feng Hai asked, his tone all business. He was already assessing the threat level of the monsters that were following his scout team and running through multiple scenaros, his swords vibrating violently in tandem with the strategic flows in his mind. "Rank, number, size¡­"

    "Barbaric Baboons," Brown replied immediately. "Rank D, larger than human-sized, and about thirty in number. At least the number of those chasing after us, anyway. There should be twice that many attacking the Dark Church base right now. But for you guys, it shouldn''t be a problem."

    Feng Hai sighed and suppressed the urge to roll his eyes, a hand covering his face and rubbing his temple from the stress. I could tell what he was thinking, because I had the same question as him.

    Why didn''t they just kill the Barbaric Baboons? Even though they were not frontlne combat units, the reconnaissance team should theoretically be more than capable of dealing with a bunch of rank D monsters by themselves. Granted, thirty of them did sound like a bit too much for them to handle on their own, so maybe there was that.

    Additionally, Brown probably did not want to get dragged into a fight in the open, and thus reveal themselves to the Dark Church. In the chaotic melee that followed, they apparently had not detected the intrusion from Brown''s team¡­yet. I didn''t blame them. They were too busily dealing with all the escaped Barbaric Baboons. But man, what the hell were they doing, locking up about a hundred rank D monsters in their mountain base?

    Ah, of course. They were insane. They didn''t need a sane or rational reason for doing whatever the fuck they were doing. Besides, since their goal was to eradicate humanity and allow monsters to reign supreme over Earth, it made a twisted sort of sense that they were conducting research on monsters, trying to enhance their strengths or something. I didn''t know. If they were researching on how to control them, however, then they had clearly failed.

    These things never end well. They evidently hadn''t watched the Alien movies and learned that messing around with monsters in a lab was never going to be a good idea.

    "Fine." Feng Hai managed to grunt through gritted teeth. "Fall back to our position. Brent, take a team and bring them into position. I want melee weapons only. No ranged. Wait for the Barbaric Baboons to enter the forest before engaging them. I don''t want anyone to shoot them while they''re still in the open. Make sure everyone understands that."

    "Yes, sir!"

    I understood Feng Hai''s reasoning. Obiously, if we shoot the Barbaric Baboons in the open and leave their carcasses lying around in the grass, visible for all to see, the Dark Church would realize that something was up. And that was assuming no one happened to be looking outside the base this very moment and watching the Barbaric Baboons get shot down by something in the forest.

    As crazy as those fanatics were, they weren''t stupid. Or blind.

    "The both of you, stay here," I instructed Adrian and Melina. The fourteen-year-old guy looked up at me apprehensively.

    "Brother Richard? Where are you going?"

    I jabbed my thumb at the approaching Barbaric Baboons. The two kids could hardly see them from this distance, but thanks to the long-range and zoom functions on the lenses of my hi-tech glasses, I could spot the dark, furry monsters from a mile away. Like literally.

    "Monster hunting."

    "Can I participate as well?" Melina asked, drawing her sword. I frowned at that and shook my head. Given how young she was, she shouldn''t be so eager to jump into battle.

    "No. They are rank D monsters, and it''s too dangerous. Also, Instructor Feng has ordered against the use of long-ranged spells. Since I have not taught you anything regarding swordsmanship yet, I will not put you at risk."

    "But¡­"

    I held up a hand to silence her. "That said, I do have a job for you. Can I count on you for that?"

    Melina straightened her back and nodded resolutely. Beside her, Adrian looked as if he was groaning inwardly, but credit to him, he kept whatever grumbles he might have to himself. However, he was also smart enough to realize that I wouldn''t be assigning them to anything dangerous or too tedious, so he continued to relax.

    "You guys will be the rearguard. I don''t want my back exposed to another monster from behind while I''m fighting those Barbaric Baboons coming from the front. Can I count on you guys to keep an eye out on the opposite direction, to make sure no other monsters backstab us?"

    "Yes! You can rely on us!" Melina puffed out her chest proudly, and then she grabbed a reluctant Adrian by the arm and dragged him to the backline, to join the sentries. I sighed in relief, and then turned toward the edge of the forest, drawing both of my swords as I joined Brent and his team. He didn''t look at me, but he acknowledged me with a grunt.

    "Mmh."

    "ETA, 10 seconds!"

    Brown''s flustered voice came from the front, and they slowly came into view. Honestly, if I wasn''t wearing my glasses, I wouldn''t have caught sight of them at all. They had enchanted themselves with camouflage magic and were almost invisible to the eye ¨C the main reason why the Dark Church hadn''t noticed them at all.

    Unfortunately, the invisibility and camouflage spells weren''t enough to cloak them from the acute, inhuman senses of the Barbaric Baboons.

    That didn''t matter.

    The scout team plunged into the forest, and we allowed them to rush past us. Since they weren''t a combat unit, we didn''t expect them to turn around and fight.

    No, that was the job left to us frontline units.

    A few seconds later, the screeching Barbaric Baboons crashed into our lines. Brent''s staff smashed into the face of the lead Barbaric Baboon, caving its skull in instantly and obliterating its brain. It flopped over, like a puppet whose strings were cut. A second was pierced and immolated by Redfield''s spear. All around the forest, as soon as the Barbaric Baboons cleared the trees and rushed right into the shadows, they found themselves punctured by the waiting blades and weapons of the Silver Wolves.

    I couldn''t let them hog all the glory. Stepping forward, my swords flashed out in a deadly black and white whirlwind, decapitating shrieking Barbaric Baboons or cutting them into pieces. I didn''t even bother with any summoning magic, just relying on physical reinforcement spells to strengthen my blows and activate the shimmering powerfields that shrouded my blades.

    Within a few minutes, the corpses of the Barbaric Baboons lay around us, unrecognizable and in pieces. Breathing heavily, I leaned against a tree while kicking out against one of the carcasses to ensure it was dead. Glancing around, I caught sight of the sullen Brown reporting to Feng Hai.

    "Looks like we need another plan," I muttered, feeling the weariness suffuse my body.

 446 Chapter 446: Stealth

    "My team can try again," Brown was telling Feng Hai as they gathered around at the base of a massive tree. "We can infiltrate the base again and check if the target is still there."

    "What are your chances of success?" Feng Hai had a grim expression on his face, as if he didn''t believe that it was a good idea. Brown hesitated and then gulped.

    "Low, to be honest," she admitted. She sighed and ran a hand through her fairly short, chin-length brown hair. "Even though they probably didn''t see us, they must have suspected something had gone amiss when those Barbaric Baboons escaped. A few preliminary investigations would reveal that there are possible signs of intrusion, so I wouldn''t be surprised if they beefed up their security even more. Additionally, the Barbaric Baboons aren''t the only monsters in the facility. There are other monsters, and they also possess acute senses that can pierce through our camouflage and stealth spells."

    "So it would be pointless to send you guys again, because those other monsters will detect you and rampage, or the Dark Church would be on the lookout for intruders now."

    "Exactly." Brown nodded, and then she blinked and waved her hands frantically. "No, not pointless. Just more difficult than before."

    Feng Hai was barely paying any attention to her. He leaned back against the tree, a hand cupping his chin as he pondered. His brow furrowed further and he cast a glance across the gathered Silver Wolves, most of whom were using the chance to take a break.

    Brent and Redfield returned their boss''s stare, but said nothing. They looked stumped too, unable to come up with a solution. For now.

    "If we create a diversion," Feng Hai began, turning toward the combat units. "Launch an attack on the base, and then withdraw into the forest, trying to lure out as many of their security personnel and combat forces as possible. Then the infiltration team will sneak in to confirm if Ling Dan has really been taken hostage or not."

    "That sounds like a good idea!" Redfield jumped up brightly. He was raring for a chance at combat, and this allowed him to swing his spear. "Hit and run! I like it!"

    "That doesn''t solve the problem of the monsters, though." Brown was considering the validity of the plan, but she was quick to latch onto the one flaw of her leader''s plan. Not that she objected to it, but rather she was thinking of a solution. "I guess we could try to fight them off, but there''s still at least another fifty or so Barbaric Baboons who were locked up and didn''t quite manage to escape from their cages. And that''s also assuming the Dark Church didn''t just slaughter the Barbaric Baboons but captured and locked them up again."

    "Wouldn''t they beef up security, though?" Brent asked, his arms folded. Brown nodded.

    "They will try¡­but on such short notice? I bet they would only be able to perform the minimum amount of required repairs."

    "That makes sense," Glacia agreed. She turned to Feng Hai. "I can be part of the diversion squad. I can slow them down with my ice abilities¡­"

    While the adults discussed their new strategies, I remained silent and despondent. Adrian and Melina were some distance away, taking a break and resting after the earlier skirmish. Even though they didn''t directly participate in it, they were still fairly active, keeping an alert eye out for any monsters that might approach us from behind. Even though we already had sentries on duty, the kids took the task I assigned them seriously.

    They were really impressive. I wondered if I was ever as disciplined and determined at their age, back during my previous life when I was really fourteen and not a thirty-something year old in a fourteen-year-old body.

    Neither of them was close enough to overhear the strategy meeting, and Feng Hai kept them out of it, anyway. Not because he didn''t trust them, but because we couldn''t afford to be distracted. Plus it wasn''t fair to his other subordinates if they had to wait for the sergeants and officers to brief them, while the kids ¨C who weren''t even trained mercenaries ¨C got a front seat with the bigwigs.

    However, looking in their direction, I was suddenly reminded of something.

    "Wait." Everyone turned to me when I raised my hand and spoke up. "I might have a better idea."

    "What is it?" Feng Hai asked. That was the good thing about him. He didn''t care about rank or status. If you had a suggestion, he welcomed you to air it, regardless of your position or role. He wasn''t one of those arrogant, stuck-up officers who thumbed his nose at the grunts. Unlike a certain Lieutenant who was too good to eat with the grunts¡­

    Okay, you probably didn''t catch that obscure reference. Never mind.

    "We have a state-of-the-art, latest, hi-tech stealth device here with us, don''t we?" I turned toward Melina''s direction. "Let''s see if I can borrow it."

    There was a few moments of silence before everyone snapped their fingers or widened their eyes in surprise.

    "That''s right!" Brown agreed vehemently. "Those kids snuck aboard the hovercraft without anyone noticing! Using that stealth device! If we have that, we might be able to sneak past the monsters undetected! We''ll be able to get past all of the security systems undetected with that!"

    "Eh?"

    Poor Melina was looking confused when she caught sight of everyone staring in her direction. She blushed shyly and hid behind a bewildered Adrian, cringing as she wondered if she had done something wrong.

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I turned to Feng Hai. "I''ll ask her if she can lend her device to us."

    "Please do." Feng Hai nodded, and I set off without any hesitation.

    *

    "Well, I''ve good news and bad news," I began as the officers of the Silver Wolves watched me, their expressions tense. Beside me, Melina shuffled uncomfortably, not used to being the center of attention. Adrian reached out and squeezed her hand to offer support.

    Aw, how sweet.

    "The good news is that Melina is happy to help us out and lend us her stealth device."

    The mercenaries relaxed and broke out into broad grins. Well, most of them, anyway. Only Feng Hai maintained his grim expression, his handsome face as serious as ever. He had been paying attention this entire time, as expected of the leader.

    "What''s the bad news?"

    "Uh, well¡­" I glanced at Melina, who squirmed anxiously. "The device is set to her mana. Only she and Adrian can use them. Meaning that you''ll have to send them along with any infiltration team you plan on sending."

    "That''s a simple enough task." Brown looked slightly relieved as she straightened herself. "I will guarantee their safety. My members and I will take care of them, and I promise no harm will befall on them. You have my word."

    "I''ll be counting on you¡­" I trailed off when I realized that Melina still had something to say, so I fell silent and allowed her to take an apprehensive step forward.

    "I''m afraid the device has limited range," she explained softly. The mercenaries had to strain their ears to listen and I prodded her to get her to speak up in a louder voice. "It isn''t enough to cover a whole team. As few people should be sent as possible to maintain its stealth effectiveness."

    That changed everything. Brown withdrew a bit, her eyes narrowing as she tried to think of a new plan. It was obvious that she was revising her team roster in her head, and considering the possibility of just her going in by herself with the kids.

    However, Feng Hai put paid to that idea with a single sentence.

    "It''s decided then. Richard, you''ll be taking Melina and Adrian in."

    "EH!?"

    All the mercenaries spun about to gape at their boss. Even I was staring at him, astounded by the turn of events, and slowly raised a hand and pointed at myself without realizing it.

    "Me?"

    "Yes, you." Feng Hai nodded gravely. "I told you, didn''t I? That you will be in charge of these kids. They are your responsibility. So continue looking after them."

    "Um, you do realize that I didn''t receive any training in stealth or whatever, right? I don''t know if I can infiltrate the enemy base without getting caught."

    "That''s fine." Feng Hai smiled for the first time. "Those two kids snuck aboard our hovercraft without anyone noticing. And correct me if I''m wrong, but they haven''t received any training in scouting or reconnaissance, correct?"

    Both Adrian and Melina shook their heads silently, not daring to speak. Despite his smile, Feng Hai still resembled a terrifying wolf.

    "And yet they stowed away on our dropship without anyone realizing it for¡­hours." Feng Hai turned to me. "You know them the best, so you will probably work best with them. And they trust you more than they trust the others here."

    At that, he glanced at Adrian and Melina, but neither of them denied it.

    "Also, given your experience, if you do get caught, you''re the one person who can escape along with everyone else."

    "You give me too much credit," I grumbled.

    "You give yourself too little," Feng Hai countered without missing a beat. Sighing, I nodded and jabbed my chest.

    "Leave it to me."

    Famous last words¡­

    *

    "You guys okay?" I asked as we crept toward the enemy base. The noise of battle had died down by now, and though I couldn''t see anybody in the exterior, I was sure they were still alive somehow. Otherwise we would be hearing the triumphant hooting and screeches of the menacing Barbaric Baboons.

    Adrian and Melina glanced at me, and then nodded. They looked pale and afraid, clutching their stealth devices tightly as if their dear lives depended on them¡­which, they did, as a matter of fact. If the stealth field that the devices magically produced fail, then we would be visible to the Dark Church and Barbaric Baboons, and it would not end well for us.

    Even though Feng Hai claimed that I could escape, I wasn''t that confident. I wanted to cast a summoning spell in preparation, but I didn''t know if the base was larger than a hundred meters, and for the stealth device to work, I would need to cast as little magic or emanate as little mana as possible. So preparing a summoning spell in advance was risky.

    Well, whatever. I would worry about it when we get caught. For now, I could only move forward. Otherwise nothing would progress.

    Gesturing to Adrian and Melina, I silently instructed them to follow me. Even though they were tense with dread, I could see excitement in their eyes. The two of them still managed to see this as some sort of adventure, and despite their anxiety they were looking forward to this.

    After all, if they pulled this off, they would have quite the story to tell their friends. I stifled a smile. No doubt I would be feeling similarly back when I was at their tender age.

    We crept past the damaged gates, which were still left open after the Barbaric Baboons fled from there. No repairs had been enacted ¨C sparks were still flying from ruptured, trailing wires and we had to be wary while passing by dented, torn metal because of their sharp, jagged edges. I placed a hand on the hilt of one of my swords, glancing around cautiously for any sign of enemies, human or not.

    "¡­where is everybody?"

    Despite himself, Adrian couldn''t help but ask. I didn''t shush him because the same question burned in my mind. Carefully proceeding down the corridor, I took cover against the wall and peered around the corner. There was still no sign of any living thing in here.

    "¡­ugh."

    There was plenty of death, though. Corpses ¨C both human and monster ¨C lay strewn about, blood flooding the floor. Damaged lights hung from the ceiling and creaked, swinging slowly as their beams swept across the floor erratically.

    The place looked like hell.

    Taking a deep breath, I threw a hand out to stop Adrian and Melina from rounding about the corner. I needed to mentally prepare them before the grisly sight came into their view. Sighing, I wondered if we were wasting our time.

    If Ling Dan had been here, he might very well be attacked and ripped apart by these stupid monsters long ago¡­

 447 Chapter 447: Infiltration again

    As expected, both Adrian and Melina recoiled at the gruesome sight, but credit to them, they held their nausea or horror back with typical stoicism.

    "Did everyone die?" Adrian asked, his voice clearly shaken despite him putting on a brave front. I shrugged.

    "We''ll find out."

    Deeper into the facility, we came across survivors. The Dark Church members had pulled together and slaughtered the Barbaric Baboons that had escaped, gathering in tight knots and covering each other. There were very few Barbaric Baboons left, but they continued to recklessly hurl themselves at the solid lines of the Dark Church, gaining more casualties with each wave. At first I was surprised by their suicidal charge, but then I realized it was only a diversion. There was another group of Barbaric Baboons that were flanking the humans from the side, climbing along the walls unseen.

    I didn''t bother to warn the Dark Church. These were the zealous idiots who thought it was a good idea to murder the entire human race in exchange for monsters. Well, let them deal with the monsters they so dearly loved then.

    "Don''t cast any magic," Melina reminded me when I tensed as a Barbaric Baboon passed by in front of us. She must have noticed my hand tightening on the hilt of one of my swords. "The moment you cast a spell, or make physical contact with a target, the stealth field will automatically switch off, or you will be visible to the target."

    That made sense. Given how you needed to emanate as little mana as possible, and that you might disrupt the stealth field if you began gathering mana to start casting a spell (but not fully cast it), it made sense that the stealth field would deactivate when you coalesced such a huge amount of mana and manifest it in a spell. Also, the stealth field would end up encompassing the target if you touched it, so it was pointless to try and do stealth kills. Even if you successfully kill the target, its comrades were likely to notice one of their brethren disappearing right beside them. Even if they didn''t notice, it was still too big of a risk to take for so little gain. So what if I kill one dude? That wasn''t the goal here.

    The goal was still to locate Ling Dan and confirm whether he had been taken hostage by the Dark Church or not. Or joined them.

    Taking a deep breath, I scanned the tightly knotted group of Dark Church members, all of whom were wearing black robes. My glasses allowed me to zoom into their faces and identify them visually, or at least confirm that they didn''t resemble the photograph of Ling Dan that Doctor Dorden gave me earlier. After sweeping through the entire group, I confirmed that Ling Dan was not among them, and turned to nod at the kids.

    "Let''s go. He''s not there."

    "All right."

    "Where are we going?"

    Melina acknowledged my order, but Adrian raised a legitimate question. I honestly had no idea, but fortunately the base was pretty straightforward. There was very few directions in which we could proceed.

    "Forward. Deeper into the base."

    We advanced deeper into the base, and when there was the occasional Black Church member hurrying about to respond to the assault, I had Adrian and Melina flatten against the wall to ensure we didn''t physically bump into the guy or vice versa. A few Barbaric Baboons would climb overhead, only to be shot down by defensive turrets spewing mana bullets, but the automatic guns'' sensors didn''t track us thanks to the hi-tech stealth field that Melina''s device generated.

    How on earth did her family get their hands on such an insane device? Oh, right. One of the ten great families. Of course.

    "Don''t worry, they can''t sense us," I assured the kids as I stepped in front of the turrets. Not directly in front ¨C even I wasn''t reckless or stupid enough to take such a huge risk. "Let''s hurry and get behind them."

    As it turned out, there were even more turrets behind those turrets, but these were manning the cages. I could see a row of turrets that had been badly mauled, a row that had been watching over a series of empty cages before their demise. A good number of monster corpses lay strewn in front of the turrets, evidence of how the pack of Barbaric Baboons had lost a significant portion of their forces before they eventually overwhelmed the guns.

    Yet there were many monsters housed within the reinforced cages, remaining under the cautious sensors of whirring sentry guns that swept their barrels in a 180 degree arc. I still thought the Dark Church was stupid for even trying to capture monsters. That never ended well.

    Then again, I highly doubted anyone gullible enough to join such an insane organization would have watched sci-fi movies. Honestly, religion was fine. Even in the 31st century, religions still remained to provide spiritual aid and a community of belonging for the majority of the population. It was only fanatic extremists like these who resorted to terrorism and abused the good name of religion for their own benefit. Hell, I doubted the higher-ups who ran the Dark Church were actually all that religious. Most likely the majority of them were atheist edgelords who held a childish grudge against the world or humanity, and wanted to massacre people because¡­I don''t know, they got rejected by society or something. And not because they truly believed monsters as their saviors.

    Then they preyed on the mentally or spiritually weak, or those discarded and callously abandoned by society, and persuaded them to join their cause, to unleash monsters on the very society that had ostracized them, while pretending it was for a religious cause.

    We got past the monster cages and deeper into the facility, and from a damaged blueprint, I could make out the direction of the laboratories.

    "Let''s get to the labs," I suggested. If there was any place where Ling Dan might reside in, it was definitely the laboratories. I wondered what the Dark Church was researching on. First, a vast cargo of herbs and medicinal flowers, and then a bunch of monsters trapped inside cages. Given what I had seen of them so far, I had no doubt that they were researching on ways to up the lethality and killing power of monsters, particularly after what Dad and I found in the mountains all those months ago.

    The passageway to the labs was surprisingly empty and unguarded. Most of the personnel had been running around, dealing with the escaped Barbaric Baboons, and so they left the corridor to the labs bare. That was good for us, but I refused to take any chances and had Melina and Adrian continue activating their stealth devices.

    It wasn''t over until it was over.

    "Where''s everybody?" Adrian asked when we strode past, looking into the labs. Several of them had clearly been broken in, but the monsters that had smashed their way in looked dead. I caught sight of several scientists in white lab coats lying beside the monsters, the once pristine fabric of their signature coats now stained crimson with blood.

    "Dead," I muttered.

    "All of them?" Adrian asked, his complexion ashen. I shrugged.

    "That''s what we''re here to find out."

    As a precautionary measure, I scanned the dead, though several had their heads torn off or their faces mauled so badly it was hard to recognize them. Thankfully, they all had ID tags or something pinned to their coats, though some evidently had their ID badges shorn off when the Barbaric Baboons butchered them. Even so, it wasn''t that difficult to confirm whether they were Ling Dan or not, based on the physical attributes provided in his data.

    "Not here¡­and not here."

    I was going through the first couple of labs, but that was as far as the carnage went. The other labs seemed untouched by the slaughter, their doors sealed tightly.

    "What do we do now?" Melina asked, staring at the sealed doors, perturbed.

    "We enter," I replied.

    "How?" Melina fidgeted as she grasp her stealth device. "As I said, we can''t make any physical contact¡­we can''t hack into the doors and force them open, can we?"

    "We might not have to," I replied as an idea formed in my mind. Returning to the first two labs, which were still open because the Dark Church had not gotten around to securing the sites and locking them down ¨C they were still too busily dealing with the Barbaric Baboons that ran about the base, I picked up a bloodied ID that had been thrown to the side after one of the monsters'' claws ripped into the poor owner''s chest. Grimacing as I wiped the blood off the surface, which revealed a photo of a young-looking research assistant, and her name, Joanne Olsen, I then straightened up and turned back toward the kids. "Let''s hope this works."

    We then returned to the locked laboratories, and I gingerly raised the ID to the scanner. The stealth field had to be adjusted to allow the scanner to sense the ID card while still keeping us hidden, but as a precaution I had the kids stay some distance away from me. If I get caught, I didn''t want them to get dragged into it too.

    In fact, I had left very clear instructions that they were both to escape as quickly as possible, by themselves under the stealth cloak, without me. I would deal with the fallout on my own, and while they were unconvinced I reminded them that I couldn''t fight at my best if I had to take care of them as well. There was no argument after that. Neither of them wanted to be a burden.

    The scanner clicked green, and then the door slid open. Sighing a breath of relief, especially after glancing around and seeing that there was no security personnel barreling down the corridor to check the intrusion (and the alarms were already going off because of the Barbaric Baboons'' assault), I peeked inside.

    "Who¡­who''s there?"

    "Everybody, get back!"

    The scientists gathered inside the room were retreating from the suddenly opening door, frightened as hell. I strode in, and with a gesture, had Melina and Adrian retreat so that I would be out of range of the cloaking field.

    "It''s just me."

    "Oh, one of the assistants, huh?" An elderly scientist ¨C a man with frizzly white hair and a mustache ¨C looked at me in relief as I walked in, becoming visible. "You survived the Barbaric Baboons, eh? Good, good."

    Evidently they had mistaken me for one of the research assistants. Thanks to me wearing glasses and looking like a nerd most of the times, I managed to fool them. The blood splatters and stuff I got onto my clothing during combat earlier made that impression a lot more convincing. However, they noticed my swords and went tense.

    "Actually, I''m part of security," I quickly assured them, and they relaxed at that with a big sigh of relief.

    "Are the Barbaric Baboons still out there? Has security finally dealt with them?"

    A female scientist was posing the question. I shook my head.

    "We''re still fighting." As if to punctuate my sentence, gunfire and the roar of an explosion from a spell resounded from the corridor. "They''re pretty tough."

    "Then shut the door! We can''t let them in!"

    "Yeah, I will. But I''ve been tasked to search for Ling Dan. Do you know where he is?"

    "Huh? Ling Dan?" the scientists exchanged confused glances. The old man in particular, was astounded. "Wasn''t he locked up in the prison cells below? Why would he be here?"

    "He escaped in all the chaos," I replied. Good thing I was adept at ad-libbing or I would be found out here. "So we are looking for him right now. You know how it is¡­he''s a high-value prisoner, after all."

    "Yeah, we can''t let him get away." The old man was nodding. "His knowledge of receptary is invaluable. We''ll need him to cooperate if we want to develop a new batch of combat drugs, and the psychoindoctrination drugs to bring the monsters under our control." His expression hardened. "Make sure you find him at all costs."

    "I will," I promised, and then I left the lab, making sure to shut the door and sealing the scientists back in. Turning to an awaiting Adrian and Melina while disappearing back into the stealth field, I grinned. "We have a location."

 448 Chapter 448: Ling Dan

    The three of us hurried to the basement level, right below the labs. Thanks to my glasses, I had recorded the blueprint of the map of the facility, and could display it on my lenses. Tracing a route, I was able to locate a staircase that led below.

    Even though the lab area was relatively secure, we still couldn''t lower our guard. There were Barbaric Baboons prancing about in the almost empty corridor, searching for prey. When I first caught sight of them, I immediately had Adrian and Melina go to cover and hide behind a contraption that protruded from a wall. Obviously I joined them, ducking under a gurney. The two Barbaric Baboons swung past from lighting to lighting, causing the equipment to spark and flicker, but they passed us by without ever noticing that we were right under their bulbous noses.

    "Stay down," I whispered while the Barbaric Baboons swung past directly above Adrian and Melina. Both kids held their breath and watched nervously as the monsters practically soared past them, and then they were gone, rushing toward the distance. I then relaxed my grip on my swords, relieved that I didn''t need to engage in combat and thus end up breaking the stealth spell. While I was able to fool the scientists, who paid more attention to research than the staff who manned the base, it might be harder to deceive the security personnel.

    I mean, I could try, but¡­I would rather not take the risk if I didn''t have to.

    We then got up and raced to the stairs as stealthily as we could. Mercifully, the stairs were empty, and I led the kids down to the basement level. There, the red emergency lights were on, drowning everything in a bloody haze. I glanced about, making sure there was nothing hiding in the shadows. Even with the stealth field on, I recalled Melina''s warning that physical contact would envelop the monster or person within the stealth field itself and thus reveal ourselves to whoever we bumped into. So I couldn''t take anything for granted.

    "This must be the area for the prison cells."

    Consulting the map that I had recorded on my glasses, I cross-referenced our location and confirmed that the cells were just ahead. Moving along the corridor cautiously, I followed the holographic route marked across my lenses and found myself standing in front of a row of prison cells, the doors on each side.

    Ironically, the prison area was the least touched by the monsters. The place was still secure, and the doors locked tightly. In order to prevent the prisoners from escaping, they had invested quite a bit into containment, and now it was this very same containment measures that kept the prisoners safe from a monster attack.

    That didn''t stop the Barbaric Baboons from paying the area a visit and trashing the security cameras and place. The cameras, I saw, were down, as were the few sentry turrets put in place to watch over the prisoners. Inevitably, the monsters suffered casualties, and I saw a few corpses here and there, but none of them were able to break down the doors of the cells. Frustrated by their failure and realizing the futility of clawing away at the reinforced material used to construct the doors or cells, they had retreated. Which explained the two Barbaric Baboons we saw swinging past earlier.

    "Are we going to free all of the people imprisoned in here?" Adrian asked. I had considered that as well, but wasn''t sure if we could afford the risk. I wasn''t na?ve enough to think we could rescue all of them, but at the same time my conscience wouldn''t allow me to leave them behind as well.

    "I guess." After a few seconds, I made my decision. They deserved the chance at freedom, but other than Ling Dan, they would have to rely on themselves to escape. I wasn''t going to help them all the way.

    "How do we free them?" Melina was studying the doors. "They don''t look like they are opened by keys."

    "They aren''t."

    My glasses had already analyzed them and I could see that they were electronically locked. So instead I headed to what passed off as an office at the front of the prison cells. As I suspected, there was a computer console there, and a dead warden. The poor guy had been on shift when the Barbaric Baboons dropped in, and then ended up being ripped apart by the frenzied monsters. Even though he was the enemy, I felt a little sorry for him. Usually it was the higher-ups who made all these stupid decisions, and the low-ranked grunts suffered the most from the fallout. Regardless of whether it was his choice to join the Dark Church, I doubted he had anything to do with the decisions his superiors made to kidnap innocent people or breed monsters.

    Honestly, the ones who should pay should be the higher-ups who made these dumb decisions in the first place.

    The good news, though, was that the computer console was left on. I managed to turn it on, and studied the programs and files in the computer. There was something that caught my attention and I widened my eyes.

    "Eh? Ling Dan is the only prisoner in here?"

    As it turned out, almost all the prison cells were empty. Then again, that made some sense. If the Dark Church abducted innocent people or took prisoners, they wouldn''t bring them all the way out here, in some remote mountain range, to lock them up here. They would pprobably imprison them somewhere closer to civilization.

    Hell, there were very few prison cells to begin with. About five at most, and four were visibly empty. Ling Dan was stated as being held in the very last cell, which was all the way at the end of the corridor, directly opposite the entrance.

    "Found him."

    Moving the mouse, I clicked on the unlock button and removed the locks from the cell. There was a soft beep that indicated the computer''s compliance, and then I left the console.

    "Let''s go," I told the kids, and they nodded. Following me, we passed through the four cells ¨C two on each side of the corridor ¨C and made our way to the vault at the very end.

    Even though I had technically unlocked the door from the computer console, the cell still looked secure and shut. The heavy metallic door remained in place, barring our sight into its interior. Not that we needed to check inside ¨C earlier, I had caught a glimpse of the prisoner inside the cell, the silhouette of a man sitting on the bench, slouched against the cold, gray walls of his prison. From the data, he matched the height and size of Ling Dan.

    It was most probably him.

    Even so, there was the possibility this was all a trap ¨C though it was highly unlikely that the Dark Church would set up such an elaborate scheme for no reason other than¡­I don''t know. Why would they ever consider the scenario that someone would try to rescue Ling Dan and then trick whatever rescue squad like this? It was quite the long shot and an incredible coincidence.

    "Stay back," I told Adrian and Melina. Even though the security cameras along the corridor had been destroyed, and technically it was safe for us to switch off the stealth field, I still did not want to take any chances. One person getting caught was infinitely better than all three of us getting caught. And besides, I could pretend to be a security personnel or research assistant, but there was no way anyone would buy that bluff for Adrian and Melina, both of whom were clearly too young to be working in a place like this.

    They both obeyed, and I strode up to the door and manually pulled it open. There was a grinding creak, and then the mechanism gave way, allowing me to yank the doors wide.

    "!!!''

    A hand shot out from inside the cell, almost catching my throat. Instinctively I took a step back, narrowly avoiding getting my jugular vein severed from what seemed like a surprise attack.

    "Wait!" I called out. "I''m not an enemy!"

    There was a scoff from inside before my assailant came into view. "Do you really expect me to believe that? That you''re not an enemy even though you kidnapped me and imprisoned me here?"

    "That''s the thing. I''m not the one who abducted and held you hostage. I''m actually here to rescue you."

    "Hah!" the young man snorted. I was once again taken by surprise by how young he was. Ling Dan didn''t look older than eighteen ¨C something the Silver Wolves remarked on when Doctor Dorden first showed them his photograph. He was meant to be a young genius or some nonsense like that. You know, like those dumb cultivation stories where the eighteen-year-old protagonist went around mocking and proving all the forty or sixty-year-old old masters wrong with his immortal knowledge and previous life experience, or cheats from his ghostly master. Man, even his arrogance was right on the mark. "Do you expect me to believe you?"

    "I can shut you back in your cell if you want me to," I replied dryly, and he laughed.

    "You can try!"

    Before he could finish his sentence, I kicked him. Even though he successfully parried my foot, the momentum from my blow caused him to stagger back inside his prison and I shut the down with a single shove of my hands.

    "We''re going to leave him here," I told Adrian and Melina, both of whom were staring at me with their mouths wide open.

    "Hey!" Ling Dan was banging on the door with his fists fiercely. His voice was muffled from behind the door. "How dare you shut me back in here!? Do you know who I am?!"

    "Someone who is ungrateful to others for rescuing him."

    "Fuck you! Let me out of here! Otherwise I''ll kill you!"

    "Are you an idiot?" I sighed heavily, trying not to roll my eyes. "Why the hell would I let someone out when he attacked me when I did so earlier?"

    Also, he was in no position to threaten me. Yet here he was, screaming and hollering like a spoilt child. Some legendary receptarier he was.

    "Don''t we, uh, need him?" Melina asked skeptically.

    "Look at him." I gestured toward the shut door, which he was pounding like a madman. "The moment I let him out, you saw him try and kill me. Do you think he will help us? I bet he would just kill the three of us and then escape by himself. I know this sort of people ¨C I''ve dealt with them before."

    Honestly, this Ling Dan bastard was falling into the villain category. No wonder even an organization as ruthless and murderous as the Dark Church was forced to lock him up in a high-security prison watched over by turrets.

    "So we''re going to just leave him here and return empty-handed?" Adrian asked dryly. I rubbed the back of my neck at that question. Now that he put it that way¡­

    "You''ve got a point. Let''s give him another chance." I turned back to the heavy doors. "I''ll let you out, but you have to promise me that you won''t attack me."

    "Fine! Now let me out, you fucker!"

    Dude¡­not even a single thank you or any sign of gratitude to the one who was trying to save you. Well, it wasn''t as if I needed his gratitude, but the bastard actually tried to kill me earlier when I opened the door for him. Despite him making his promise, I had a feeling that I should take his words with a pinch of salt.

    In any event, I slowly opened the door. When I did so, Ling Dan lunged out. Purple and green flames burst to life around his hands as he grabbed for my throat, while the other slashed toward my chest.

    I managed to dodge, partly because I was already anticipating a treacherous reaction. The flames almost scorched my skin even though I avoided them by a hair''s breadth ¨C evidence of how intense they were.

    "Hey!" I yelled. "You promised!"

    "Why should I keep my word with an idiot like you?" Ling Dan sneered. "And besides, I promised not to attack you. I never promised not to kill you."

    Well, I did expect this, and I was fully prepared. What, did you guys think I was an idiot or something? Oh¡­wait, yeah, you did. I literally received hundreds of comments from readers complaining that I was stupid or retarded. Never mind then.

    In any event, I summoned Libra ¨C which manifested as a staff ¨C and slammed it into Ling Dan''s midriff. He doubled over, his flaming hands going wide, and then I thrust Libra again and rammed it into his solar plexus.

    "Zubenelgenubi," I murmured, and the two mirror-coated scales that hung from one end of Libra gleamed, golden mana flaring out and enveloping Ling Dan. The guy grunted and fell over, his flames flickering out as he slumped onto the ground, unconscious. Just for good measure, I gave him a solid whack against his head to ensure that he was out cold.

    Dismissing Libra, I then hauled Ling Dan''s unconscious body up and threw it over my shoulder before stepping back into the stealth field that Melina''s device provided. Both kids were still staring at me with their mouths wide open, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

    Sorry, kids. That was just real life. Sometimes you just run into people who were ungrateful bastards, who only thought about themselves and didn''t care about the others who helped them. In any event, they couldn''t just stand in shock forever, so I sort of gave them a nudge.

    "All right, guys. Target secured. Let''s get the hell out of here."

 449 Chapter 449: Escape

    With Ling Dan over my shoulder, I reentered the stealth field that Melina''s device generated and urged the kids.

    "Okay, let''s go. Let''s get the hell out of here."

    Adrian and Melina were still staring at me, unable to comprehend what had just happened. I sighed and gestured with one free hand for them to move.

    "We don''t want to be still around when they find out that their prisoner is missing from his cell. Hurry."

    "Oh, right." Adrian snapped out of it and led the way. A second later, Melina followed, as if in a daze. She glanced at the unconscious Ling Dan propped up on my shoulder.

    "Is that really necessary?"

    "Yeah. Did you think he''ll come along if we ask him to? Didn''t you see how he was literally trying to kill me?"

    "I saw." Adrian''s lips twisted into a sneer. "Ungrateful bastard. If you didn''t need him, you would have killed him in retaliation, right, Brother Richard?"

    "Uh, what?" I raised my eyebrow at his bloodthirsty declaration. I mean, he wasn''t wrong, but that vengeful thought didn''t cross my mind. No doubt I would kill an enemy if his actions and aggression warranted it, but I wasn''t edgy enough to put it in such a manner. "It depends on the situation, I guess? I don''t kill unless absolutely necessary."

    Unlike what edgelords espoused, murder was not the solution. You couldn''t just go around killing everyone without any hesitation, or what difference would there be between you and a villain? I was aiming to be a hero, not an evil overlord with the desire to conquer the world or something. It wasn''t as if I was completely averse to killing ¨C if I felt as if my life or the lives of the people close to me were being threatened, I wouldn''t hesitate to slay my enemy. I had done that many times before ¨C against Assassins and whatever.

    But the way Adrian made that remark disturbed me. I wasn''t some bloodthirsty murderer like some of the edgelords who infested the comment section, or like Chen Fan (or Chen Bei Xuan) or Qin Xuan. Seriously, I was a little taken aback over how these bloodthirsty, ruthless cultivators just killed whoever so much as annoyed them, even over the most trivial of matters. Chen Bei Xuan, in particular ¨C he killed a dude just because the guy refused to bow to him. JUST FOR REFUSING TO BOW TO HIM. Like, what?!

    And this was supposed to be the protagonist? What made him any different from the "evil" grand masters and greedy families he was supposed to be defeating?

    Not to mention both Chen Fan and Qin Xuan went around wiping out entire families (I had a sneaking suspicion that the author of Rebirth of the Urban Mad Immortal Cultivator just straight-up ripped off Rebirth of the Urban Immortal Cultivator ¨C not that I was in any position to criticize anyone, given how I was just blatantly copying Battle Frenzy and a ton of other anime, web comics or manga). Was there really a need for that? man, good thing China had strict gun control, or you would see a spike in school shootings if every reader buys that whole bullshit of ruthlessness, strong eat the weak, might makes right, etc.

    "Killing should always be a last resort," I told Adrian. "When you think there''s no other choice, when it comes down to protecting yourself or your loved one, then you take someone''s life. However, it should never be a decision made lightly. Webnovel and Qidian writers make it sound so bloody fucking easy, but it''s not. They never consider the repercussions. One you take someone''s life, it''s irreversible. The victim is never coming back ¨C there is no such thing as resurrection magic. Death is permanent. The loss you inflict on their loved ones is tremendous. Think back to your dad. How would you feel if someone kills your parents over a stupid reason such as ''offending'' him or just because he happens to be part of the Stuart family, despite not having anything to do with the murderer''s grudge?"

    If some motherfucker like Chen Bei Xuan or Qin Xuan just decided to wipe out the entire Stuart bloodline, killing Adrian, Sacha, Stewart, Cecilia and their relatives just because of something Lionel did, just to make a stupid point and establish their tyrannical reign over the Federation, I was pretty sure I would go take revenge. I would admit to being extremely hypocritical here, aiming to kill Chen Fan or Qin Xuan out of vengeance for my murdered friends, but partly also because I couldn''t allow such a ruthless tyrant to sit on the throne. Who knows how many other families and their innocent relatives he would go eradicate on a whim just because, I don''t know, one person tried to kill him?

    This was just the height of stupidity. Tyranny never endured. Even the Qin Emperor''s dynasty collapsed eventually when he tried to rule by terror and ruthlessness. I honestly didn''t know what went on in those Qidian authors'' heads.

    "I''ll kill him!" Adrian shouted, completely missing the point. I would have buried my face in my palm if I wasn''t half-carrying Ling Dan''s body.

    "Okay, sure, and you''ll be justified in doing that. But that wouldn''t bring your parents back to life, would it?"

    "Uh¡­" Adrian trailed off. "No¡­"

    "Exactly. Prevention is better than cure. Too many edgelords just throw out stupid comments at the side demanding for this person''s death or that person''s death without considering the consequences or the morality of it. Now, if you have no choice, and if it comes down to kill or be killed, if it involves the lives of yourself or your loved ones, then yes. You are justified in killing. But if there is absolutely no reason for you to kill, if you have the chance to leave the dude alive without anyone else being threatened or in danger, then why resort to murder? Just incapacitate him and leave him to justice. And don''t believe that whole ''leaving them alive just so they can return to attack you in future'' bullshit that the edgelords beyond the fourth wall spout. I''m not saying let them go. I''m saying, lock them up and leave them to the authorities instead of taking justice into your own hands and becoming the very same criminals that you condemn. We are civilized human beings, not raging psychopaths who murder every antagonist dumb enough to cross our paths."

    "Uh, so kill only out of necessity, and don''t make the decision lightly?" Adrian asked, finally understanding the point.

    "Yeah. People might not realize this, but what goes around comes around. Do unto others what you want others to do unto you. If you want people to respect you, respect them first. If you don''t want people to kill you, don''t just kill people. Give others the benefit of the doubt, but only apply the whole eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth after the deed is done. Not before."

    Respect had to be earned, yes, but that didn''t mean you should be rude to others and then expect them to respect you. Obviously if you were rude to others, they were going to be rude to you in return. And you deserved it, no matter how "strong" you were.

    By now, we had rounded up the stairs and were jogging up the first level, where the labs were. The corridor was stil as empty as ever. There were a couple of Barbaric Baboons still clawing at the locked doors of the lab, trying to get in, but we ignored them. As we silently snuck past the pair of shrieking monsters that slashed uselessly against the reinforced metal, to no avail. I noted that it was the lab belonging to the old man and his entourage of surviving scientists ¨C the group I had spoken to earlier when pretending to be part of the security staff.

    How ironic. They wanted to force Ling Dan''s cooperation and pressure him to help them concoct combat drugs or psyhcoindoctrination drugs to brainwash monsters into obeying them, but here I was ferrying away their prisoner right under their noses. Well, not literally ¨C there was still a thick wall of steel and ceramite between us and them, so they couldn''t actually see us even if I had Melina deactivate the stealth field. Not that I was going to take the risk, of course.

    I tiptoed past the Barbaric Baboons, holding my breath for a few seconds and praying they wouldn''t turn around. The two of them chittered, and then moved along the wall, probing for gaps or openings through which they could enter, but they continued to have their backs facing us. Exhaling lightly, I led an extremely nervous Adrian and Melina away from the monsters, almost running out of the corridor.

    "What happens if he wakes up?" Adrian asked, pointing at Ling Dan, as if suddenly remembering something after we escaped the view of the monsters. I understood his point. The fucker would certainly make a ruckus, render the stealth field useless and draw unwanted attention to us. Unwanted attention from both the monsters and the Dark Church.

    I cynically bet that this bastard would stoop as low as using me and the kids as bait to distract the enemy while he escaped on his own, and I felt rage clutch my gut. Snorting, I deliberately banged Ling Dan''s head against the wall for emphasis as we continued moving out into the lobby.

    "Hmph. I''ll just knock him out again when that happens."

    "Sounds like a good idea," Adrian agreed, while Melina watched with wide eyes, obviously wondering if I was overdoing the violence. Hey, at least I wasn''t killing the bastard. He tried to kill me, you know?

    "Phew¡­"

    We finally managed to get to the lobby, where sporadic gunfire and bestial shrieks resounded from the far end. The small group of security personnel were still holding out, and it sounded as if there were very few Barbaric Baboons left. I spotted a team of security staff rushing toward our position, and then hurriedly had Adrian and Melina take cover behind a bunch of overturned furniture. I also propped Ling Dan''s unconscious body against a desk while crouching, my eyes fixed on the small team.

    The trio didn''t turn in our direction and directly headed into the corridor where the labs were. There was a burst of gunfire, the roar of flames as the mage among them unleashed a fireball spell, and the ferocious screeches of the Barbaric Baboons when they were hit. They were still alive, though, and I heard the three security guards shouting as the pair of monsters lunged at them. From the noise, it seemed that a furious fight was still taking place, so they should be keeping each other occupied for a while.

    Now was the chance to keep going. Hauling Ling Dan''s body over my shoulder again, I gestured quietly to Adrian and Melina, and they automatically leaped to my side before following me. Swerving around the ground, which was slick with blood and filled with debris, we made our way toward the exit.

    The gate was still open and mostly unmanned, probably because the security staff and Dark Church members were too busily focusing on the pack of Barbaric Baboons overrunning their base and couldn''t care less if a few of the monsters escaped into the open. Rather, it was better if a few monsters fled back into the mountains, because it meant that they would have less opponents to deal with. And unlike humans, I seriously doubted the Barbaric Baboons will return to take revenge on them, not if they wanted to preserve their lives. It was a moot point, anyway, given that the Silver Wolves had slaughtered all of the Babaric Baboons who had escaped (well, more like they were pursuing our scout team), and even I had a hand in their annihilation.

    "Almost there!" I encouraged the two kids, and they nodded, not daring to speak. A few more dozen or so meters and we rushed past the entrance, the air transforming from the stale, sterity of the facility into the fresh wilderness of the mountains.

    "Finally!" Adrian gasped as he staggered into the grass, clutching at his chest in relief. Melina nodded as she panted beside him, but she refused to let go of the stealth device, which remained activated. I was glad I didn''t have to remind her to keep it on until we reached the forest, where we would be safe with the Silver Wolves.

    "Ugh¡­" on my shoulder, Ling Dan stirred and groaned, and I dropped him onto the ground before kicking him in the solar plexus to knock him out again. Like hell I was going to allow him to jeopardize us all, not when we were so close to freedom. Ignoring the astounded stares from Adrian and Melina, I scooped Ling Dan''s unconscious body up again and began jogging up the slope.

    "Time to go," I told them, snapping them out of their stupor. They immediately scrambled after me, and somehow we managed to complete the journey to the forest edge without any problem at all. The moment we reached Feng Hai and the rest, I had Melina deactivate the stealth device and march up to the Silver Wolves leader.

    Dropping the poor Ling Dan on the ground, leaving him to lay in an undignified heap, I snapped up a salute.

    "Target secured, Instructor Feng Hai," I informed him. "But you might want to be careful. This Ling Dan is a little¡­erratic."

 450 Chapter 450: Amount of Cooperation is Ling Dan

    The joke might be lost in translation, but basically "Ling Dan" was honophonic with "zero". You know, when a Chinese student gets absolutely zero on a test, they called it "ling dan." Yeah, sorry for making Chinese jokes, but it is a little hard to write something that catered to both English and Chinese readers while wanting to make all these stupid pun jokes.

    Anyway, Ling Dan was no longer my responsibility. I dumped it on Feng Hai, who in turn referred the unconscious receptarier to Docotor Dorden to monitor his vitals and health. I then briefed Feng Hai on what happened and why I was forced to knock him out.

    "He actually attacked you?!" Feng Hai was surprised. I nodded, understanding his skepticism. After all, we were supposed to rescue a hostage who was supposedly incarcerated by the notoriously cruel Dark Church. He shouldn''t be in any shape to assault anyone, yet he did when I opened the door for him.

    "Brother Richard isn''t lying! I was there too! We saw everything!"

    "We can testify as witnesses too," Melina added to reinforce Adrian''s declaration. Feng Hai raised a hand.

    "No, I definitely trust Richard. I''m just¡­surprised. That''s all. I never thought Ling Dan would be so violent."

    "Yeah, I wasn''t aware that receptariers could fight." I rubbed at my cheek absently, adjusting my glasses as I did so. "He was unleashing fire spells at me, but they didn''t feel like normal fire spells. They were of weird colors."

    "Purple and green in color!" Adrian added helpfully, and I nodded to confirm his statement.

    "Well, duh." For some reason, Feng Hai was scoffing. "This is Ling Dan, the legendary receptarier we''re talking about here! He''s known as the Flame Emperor, and he''s capable of wielding the Heavenly Flames!"

    "I thought we already established that this isn''t the guy who''s ripping off the main character from Battle Through The Heavens," I muttered as I slapped my forehead in exasperation. Feng Hai shrugged nonchalantly.

    "Does it really matter? The fact of the matter is that he attacked you with Heavenly Flames. There''s no use denying that he''s a blatant copy of Xiao Yan. That''s the reason why he looks so young ¨C he''s supposed to be this unprecedented genius who excels at both medicine making and combat. Not to mention, he''ll have a harem of his own. I heard that he''s currently engaged to his childhood friend who is almost like his sister¡­as long as he can get approval from her clan."

    "Are you kidding me?!"

    "Anyway, you don''t have to worry about this. I''ll take over from here. You did a great job, all three of you." Feng Hai swept his gaze from me to the two kids, and smiled in satisfaction. "You should get some rest now."

    Without me realizing, the Silver Wolves had set up camp at the edge of the forest. I raised an eyebrow, wondering if this was wise. Wouldn''t it be a better idea to escape from here as soon as possible? The enemy''s base was just next to us, and the forest wouldn''t conceal our presence for long.

    Feng Hai must have seen my skeptical expression, for he chuckled and patted my shoulder reassuringly.

    "Don''t worry. I want to monitor the Dark Church''s base for a bit longer, and get a bit more intelligence." He scowled. "We''ll return back here to wipe them out, so I want to get as much information as possible. Besides¡­" he glanced in the direction of the medical tent, where Doctor Dorden was tending to Xiao Yan¡­I mean, Ling Dan. "We have several people who can''t move much at the moment. We''ll wait for a couple of hours for them to recover first, before we set off."

    Apparently there were a few mercenaries who had sustained injuries during the conflict against the Barbaric Baboons. As I said, even though they were estimated to only be rank D, that didn''t mean they should be underestimated.

    The human body was still very fragile, especially when compared to the tenacious physical anatomies of monsters. A single claw strike to our vitals, such as our hearts, or a crushing blow to our heads would still kill us. Even with physical reinforcement spells, that didn''t make us immortal. One wrong move, and even the lowest ranked monsters could kill us. Yeah, it wasn''t very likely, but it wasn''t impossible. Reality didn''t work like a game where you had stats or HP, where a level 1 monster would deal 1 damage to you in a pathetic manner and find it hard to defeat you and your 100 HP.

    No, here¡­if you take a blow to the heart or head, or any of your vitals, you were dead. Monsters still possessed all sorts of lethal weapons, regardless of their rank. Even a toddler could kill an adult black belt martial artist if he or she was armed with a gun or knife. Yeah, it wasn''t very likely, given that they lacked the training or didn''t know how to handle the weapon, but if they were lucky enough (and their opponent was incredibly unlucky), a stab from the knife into the eye or chest, or the accidental discharge of the gun was more than enough to kill the highly trained black belt martial artist.

    Stranger things had happened, yes, and there were no guarantees in life. Being of a high rank didn''t automatically guarantee that you will definitely win against anyone who was ranked lower. I still didn''t understand the readers'' obsession with ranks, levels and stats ¨C these were all meaningless in the face of reality.

    "Okay."

    But I didn''t care about that. Right now I was too exhausted to bother with semantics and debate. I just wanted to drop down and rest. And so I did just that, leading Adrian and Melina into our tent. The Silver Wolves had been super helpful enough to assist us in setting it up for us, while the three of us went to infiltrate the enemy base.

    Without any hesitation, I dropped down into a makeshift sleeping bag and dozed off immediately. I didn''t know what Adrian and Melina did, but I was pretty sure they followed my example and lay down to get some rest.

    The mission had been both physically and mentally exhausting, after all.

    *

    I woke up abruptly when a loud noise cut through the wilderness, penetrating the thick canvas layer of my tent and stabbing into my ears.

    "What the fuck?!" I snapped irritably, still feeling very drowsy.

    It didn''t take long for me to rise to full wakefulness and find out what was going on. Apparently Ling Dan had finally woken up, and was making a racket.

    "Let me go!" he was yelling.

    "Quiet!" Feng Hai snapped at him at the same moment I exited the tent I shared with Adrian and Melina. "Do you want the Dark Church to hear us? Do you want to get captured again?"

    At that, Ling Dan naturally shut up. He glared at us resentfully. Feng Hai shook his head and sighed, and then gave me a look that suggested that he finally knew what I was talking about.

    "We are here to help."

    "I never asked you to save me."

    "Should we throw you back to the Dark Church then?" Glacia asked icily, having enough of the fucker''s nonsense. Ling Dan went very pale.

    "You can''t do that!"

    "Then shut up and listen to us!"

    "No," Ling Dan sneered. "I have no obligation to listen to you guys."

    "You do realize we were the ones who rescued you, right?" Redfield growled impatiently, his fists clenched.

    "Like I said, I never asked!"

    "So we should throw you back to the Dark Church," Glacia repeated coldly, to which Ling Dan shook his hands, flustered.

    "No! You can''t do that! You¡­you monsters!"

    "How rich, an ungrateful bastard calling his saviors names." Redfield was disgusted.

    "I told you, I never asked¡­"

    "It''s basic human decency. Or what, you''re going to claim that you would have broken out of the prison cell and escape on your own?" Redfield countered.

    "I would have," Ling Dan insisted. "I''m not a newb like you. I''m perfectly capable of escaping on my own."

    "Why don''t you prove it then?" Redfield sneered. "We''ll throw you back in there and watch as you perform your oh-so-professional escape."

    "You wouldn''t dare!"

    "Why wouldn''t we?" Feng Hai asked frostily. "You dared to attack us and spout such ungrateful nonsense even after we risked so much, so why wouldn''t we dare throw you back in there?"

    "Like I said, nobody asked¡­"

    "Sure, but I''m certain my men will be asking me to throw you back to the Dark Church. And the Dark Church would love to have you back with them. I''m thinking it''s a better idea to oblige them." Feng Hai nodded as a tightening circle of Silver Wolves closed around the trembling Ling Dan.

    The receptarier growled in fury and heavenly flames burst into life around his hands. However, they were immediately frozen by Glacia''s spell ¨C the ice mage merely waved a hand and entombed him in ice. She wasn''t alone ¨C I was there to reinforce her ice spells with my own gradually developing ice magic along with a few other ice mages in the mercenary group.

    "You can''t do this!" Ling Dan howled.

    "You''re the one who forced our hands," Feng Hai replied flatly. "You assaulted my team, tried to escape on your own, and put my men at risk with your stunts. We don''t need your gratitude, but your attitude is jeopardizing my team''s safety. I will happily deliver you back to the Dark Church if you don''t stop you bullshit."

    "Ugh¡­!" Ling Dan bristled. "You only saved me for your agenda anyway, didn''t you!? You have some ulterior motive in saving me ¨C you wouldn''t be so altruistic otherwise!"

    "I won''t deny that." Feng Hai shrugged. "We currently have a comrade who is suffering from the Woeful Poison Body and is unable to suppress her rampaging powers. Her life isn''t in danger, but we''re trying to help her control her magic so that she wouldn''t accidentally kill other people. Teacher Cure says you might be abe to help with that."

    "Teacher Cure¡­?" Ling Dan frowned for a moment, and then went still. "Don''t tell me you know Mary Cure?"

    "She is my teacher at Jing Tian Academy, and the one who suggested that you might be here." I could almost hear the gears grinding in Feng Hai''s mind as realization dawned on him. This wasn''t a coincidence. Teacher Cure didn''t send us here randomly or happened to hear about the rumor regarding Ling Dan''s location. She definitely knew something, at least a lot more than she let on. I wouldn''t be surprised if she even knew that Ling Dan was captured by the Dark Church, and sent us to rescue him.

    But why didn''t she just inform us about the Dark Church and give us whatever intelligence she possessed from the start? Was she afraid that we wouldn''t storm the Dark Church''s base if we knew about it? That made no sense.

    "Hmph. That girl, always looking out for me." Ling Dan snorted, and then turned his head away. "But I never asked her."

    "For now, we''ll just bring you back¡­as long as you cooperate and stop pulling your stunts by sneaking away, attacking my men and escaping on your own." Feng Hai folded his arms. "You can choose whether you want to help us with Anastasia''s case or not after we return."

    I could see the dismay on the other Silver Wolves'' faces. Even I felt a hint of frustration. We came all this way, spent all this time, and went through all this trouble for this ungrateful bastard¡­in return for nothing? Yeah, true¡­it wasn''t as if I would have saved him just because he could offer something in return. That was the essence of being a hero. But it was still frustrating nonetheless to find that someone you helped refused to assist you in return.

    Not to mention, his rude and arrogant attitude made it several times worse.

    "Hmph! Why should I help you?" Ling Dan sneered. "Go to hell. There''s no hope for your friend with the Woeful Poison Body. He can die pathetically like the poison user he is."

    "She," Feng Hai corrected. "And we''re willing to pay and reimburse you if you''re willing to develop a medicine to help her."

    At the mention of money, Ling Dan''s eyes lit up. He nodded.

    "I charge a high price for my services. I don''t care if you saved me or not, I''m not going to give you a discount."

    "Money won''t be a problem. Name your price."

    "Also¡­bring me to her, and I''ll see what I can do."

    There was something about his tone and I caught a glimpse of a licentious glint his eyes when he said that. Something gripped my heart uncomfortably and I frowned. This guy¡­his attitude changed slightly when he heard that Anastasia was a girl (did he not recognize the name as feminine? Whatever). No doubt he had some ulterior motives of his own for listening to our request.

    I vowed to keep a close eye on this bastard¡­if not for Ana''s sake, then my own.

 451 Chapter 451: The Return Home

    The return trip turned out to be uneventful.

    As it turned out, the Dark Church was so mauled by the Barbaric Baboons that they didn''t have any forces to spare for investigation or searching for their high-security prisoner, even though we were literally next to them the entire night. No other Dark Church members left the base, but I was pretty sure it wasn''t as if they were entirely wiped out. Surely the surviving security personnel left within the base was more than enough to finish off the few Barbaric Baboons that infested their place.

    Whatever the case, Feng Hai didn''t stay to investigate further. After resting for a night, he had us trek several hours through the forest and into the next valley, where there was a wide open plains for the hovercraft to set down on. Once we reached the edge of the forest overlooking the valley, he contacted the pilot and gave him our coordinates, directing him toward our position. Our transport arrived within the hour, and we all bundled ourselves aboard, frogmarching the grumpy Ling Dan.

    The receptarier was still pretty grouchy over our "unnecessary" rescue, but he managed to comfort himself with the reminder that he would be paid handsomely for his services and that he would get to meet a new girl.

    What a bastard.

    Well, as long as he could help Anastasia, I had no complaints. Her wellbeing was the most important thing.

    "Brother Richard, we''re finally going back?" Adrian asked eagerly as he shifted about in his seat, squirming under the safety harness.

    "Yeah, we''re returning to Stuart City," I replied wearily. It had taken some time, but we were finally returning to Stuart City. By now, the third place match and the finals should be over. I had spent so many days out on the field that I had almost lost track of time.

    I wondered if my team had won and secured third place. Who were our opponents again? Right, they were Lilith Porter and her team from Vermillion Academy. Not a bad matchup for us, to be honest, though I wasn''t sure who could handle Lilith. Maybe Craig, or Harrison. Wouldn''t surprise me if Bu Fan somehow pulled a win over her and eliminated her from the team match.

    I also wondered who won the finals and became the champions for this year. Most likely it was the same Pendragon Academy team who defeated us. They were pretty much invincible, and I couldn''t imagine any team that was stronger than them. Even Saint Teresa Academy had quite some ways to go before they could catch up with the likes of Pendragon Academy.

    They were the undisputed champions of last year, and looked well on course to defend their second or third consecutive championship this year. It was a pity, but since Charles Lacroix would be graduating by the end of this year, even if I somehow managed to make it into the Jing Tian Academy representative team next year, I wouldn''t be able to expect a rematch. Not that I wished to fight against a monster like him again¡­

    "I hope our parents aren''t worried¡­"

    Melina crossed her fingers anxiously beside me, a forlorn expression on her face. I sighed, thinking that she and Adrian both deserved a good scolding for running off and stowing away on the Silver Wolves hovercraft without permission, yet I didn''t have the heart to be angry at either of them.

    Hell, honestly they were a big help this time. Without their stealth device, our mission to rescue Ling Dan and escape unseen from the Dark Church would have been a lot more difficult. We would have been forced to fight the Dark Church and sustained a few casualties. Melina''s stealth device had truly saved us a lot of trouble, and quite possible even helped preserve the lives of several Silver Wolves mercenaries.

    That didn''t mean they should continue sneaking aboard mercenary transports in the future. They might have gotten lucky this time, but if they continued engaging in such dangerous activities, one day their fortune would run dry and they would end up in a deadly predicament. Good thing I was here to take care of them this time, but what about the next time?

    Nonetheless, this most likely served as a good combat experience for them. I was glad to see that the both of them had learned quite a lot from this field trip. That said, I hoped that they wouldn''t become complacent. The reason they prevailed was a combination of their use of the latest, state-of-the-art, hi-tech stealth device that Melina''s father had given her, and because I was there to look after them. Fergus Franklin had some awesome military connections, though, considering that he could freely give his daughter something as insane as that stealth device.

    I wanted one myself¡­

    Unfortunately, the stealth device had its flaws, and as I said in the previous chapters, the moment I used magic I would end up canceling out the stealth field that it generated. In other words, it was pretty pointless for assassination or combat missions, and stealth and reconnaissance missions weren''t my kind of thing. Not when I could just summon a flock of Corvus and send them out ¨C I didn''t need stealth devices, and by summoning Corvus and maintaining their existene in the material world, I would end up automatically deactivating the stealth device anyway, which would render it completely pointless and useless for me.

    "Don''t worry, your father should roughly have an idea where you went," I assured Melina. And I glanced at Adrian, who was on the other side. "Your parents, too, Adrian. I bet this isn''t the first time you disappeared."

    "Ah, ha ha ha¡­busted." Adrian laughed sheepishly. He clearly still recalled the time when I found him alone in the middle of a forest, right after I did the whole diversion thing to lure a pack of monsters away from a refugee convoy. Yup¡­his parents were probably used to him running off somewhere and getting into trouble, all right.

    They might even see this as valuable combat experience for their son, considering how they just leave him be without taking any precautions, even when knowing what kind of mischief he was usually up to.

    "We''re here!" Redfield announced from opposite us, his hands clutching the harness tightly. He grinned at us, and I recalled that he probably regarded me as a kid along with Adrian and Melina. Well, given that I was currently physically seventeen, there was nothing I could do about that. Oh, and Adrian and Melina were both fourteen, if I wasn''t mistaken. I had thought Adrian was twelve or thirteen when I first met him, but hey, I wasn''t god. I always made mistakes.

    As if to punctuate Redfield''s declaration, the hovercraft lurched and I felt it slow down before descending. There was a thump when the transport engaged its landing pads and made contact with the ground, and then the shuddering stopped. The noise dulled a little, turning from a ferocious roar to the softer thrumming of idling engines. With a whoosh, the ramp lowered.

    The Silver Wolves were already unstrapping themselves from their safety harnesses and jumping out of their seats. I was a second slower, while Adrian and Melina gazed around in stupefaction before hurriedly following my example. I waited for them to unbuckle themselves loose before I led them out of the landed craft.

    Some distance away, Feng Hai, Glacia and a group of mercenaries were escorting Ling Dan. They had their weapons out, and though weren''t blatantly pointing anything at the receptarier, continued to eye him warily. After all, we didn''t start on very good terms, with the ungrateful bastard literally attacking us with his heavenly flames after we rescued him. For now, he was under control because of Feng Hai''s promises of money and a girl to save, but nobody knew what ran in that crazy mind of his, and nobody wanted to take any chances.

    "Good job," Feng Hai told me, breaking away from the escort group to brief me and the kids. He placed a hand on my shoulder, expressing his gratitude and appreciation for my part in the mission. "Your role is done here, so you should send those kids home and get some rest. I''ll transfer your pay directly to your bank account."

    "Thank you." I bowed gratefully, and then turned to the kids. "All right, let''s get the both of you home."

    "I''ve called my dad!" Adrian was waving his cellphone about with a grin. "He''s coming to pick us up!"

    That was great. Without a car of my own, I appreciated the lift. As much as I sometimes felt bad of taking advantage of the chance to get a free ride, it was quite the long trip home, particularly with my luggage and belongings. Or in this case, a long trip back to my hotel. Actually, I wasn''t even sure if I still had a room reserved there. Having spent so many days out in the field, I shouldn''t expect anything. My friends most likely had returned to Jing Tian City shortly after the finals, upon receiving their third place or fourth place trophy (or medals). They were aware of the possibility that I wouldn''t be back for a long while, and would have returned ahead of time.

    While waiting for Sacha to arrive and pick us up, my eyes naturally strayed to where the other Silver Wolves were. Feng Hai had returned to Glacia''s position, and continued shepherding a moody Ling Dan.

    "Oh, you really found him!"

    "!!"

    Everyone turned in surprise and caught sight of Teacher Mary Cure striding toward our position. She nodded at Feng Hai, whose expression remained impassive as ever.

    "Yeah, we did." The Silver Wolves leader nodded, his arms folded. "Thank you for the information. He really was located in the Yao Cai Mountains."

    "Not bad, not bad." Mary Cure was musing, leaning over to study an embittered Ling Dan. "Did you wipe out the Dark Church cell that was holding him hostage?"

    "¡­eh?" Glacia looked stunned by the healing teacher''s question, but Feng Hai continued to be nonplussed.

    "I knew it. So you did send us on a rescue mission, after all. Why didn''t you give us the complete information, if you knew that Ling Dan was abducted?"

    "Ah, ha ha¡­so you figured it out. As expected of you, Little Hai." Mary Cure giggled sheepishly as she scratched the side of her head. "Well¡­I didn''t have any confirmation¡­it was just rumors. I heard that this idiot ran off to the Yao Cai Mountains on his own, but he disappeared weeks ago, leaving everybody worried. Then I heard rumors that claimed that there were sightings of the Dark Church in the same area, so I put two and two together and guessed. But without any ransom or note, I had no proof. I didn''t want to speculate baselessly."

    "So that''s how you know the Dark Church was involved." Redfield was crossing over, with Brent following closely behind. He frowned. "Wait, just based on rumors? That''s not very reliable."

    "That''s why I had to depend on you to find out for me." Teacher Cure sighed. "I have no proof, and I didn''t want to just give you baseless speculation cobbled together from mere rumors." She jabbed a thumb at the grumpy Ling Dan. "This moron is well known for disappearing altogether from civilization, claiming that he hates society, that the world should just be destroyed and all that edgy nonsense. It could just be that he was hiding somewhere in the middle of Yao Cai Mountains."

    "Well, I''m glad you sent in the cavalry," Ling Dan remarked sarcastically. "If they hadn''t arrived when they did, I would still be tortured by the Dark Church into cooperating with them."

    Everyone stared at him.

    "That''s not what you said," Glacia growled, annoyed. "You claimed that you could escape on your own, and even attacked us when we rescued you!"

    "Ugh¡­you did that again?!" Teacher Cure buried her face in her palm. "Stupid edgelord. Not only are you so antisocial and self-centered, you''re an ungrateful bastard. You actually attacked my students and their comrades?"

    "So what if I did?!" Ling Dan snarled. "They have their own ulterior motives for saving me! If they didn''t need me to cure their friend, they would never have¡­"

    "Actually, they would have. They are mercenaries. If I hire them on a rescue mission or an investigation mission, they would have saved you."

    "Still, they''re doing it in exchange for money! Not out of some altruistic reason¡­"

    "Would you prefer not being rescued at all?"

    That shut Ling Dan up. Teacher Cure turned apologetically to Feng Hai and the rest.

    "I''m very sorry. This disciple of mine is a hopeless case. I hope that you will forgive him, for my sake."

    "As long as he helps Anastasia, I don''t care," Feng Hai replied.

    I was about to add my agreement, but then I heard a honk. Turning around, I saw that Adrian''s dad, Sacha, had pulled up in his super luxurious car. Getting out of the driver''s seat, he waved at us.

    "All right, kids! I''m here! Ready to go home!"

    As I suspected, he wasn''t pissed off at all, and had totally anticipated that his son had run off to have an adventure. He chuckled when he caught sight of Melina, and tilted his head slightly.

    "Don''t worry, young lady. Your dad knows where you''ve been. We''ll take you back home immediately, but he knows you''ve been¡­uh¡­" he glanced at me. "Training in the field. A very invaluable lesson and practical experience."

    Melina sighed a breath of relief. She followed an excited Adrian, who proceeded to tell his father everything that had transpired over the last few days.

    Holding back a sigh, I followed them into the huge car and dropped into the passenger''s seat. It really had been a crazy week, and I was glad that it was finally over.

 452 Chapter 452: Medal of Honorâ€¦never mind

    "Wait, give me a second¡­"

    A holographic screen had just been projected from Sacha''s phone, and he pulled up along the sidewalk to take the call. Before he swiped at the green button on the screen, he turned to look directly at the screen, where the readers and viewers were residing, just beyond the fourth wall.

    "Remember, everyone," he declared. "Never talk on the phone and drive at the same time. Your safety is paramount, and doing so will cause danger to other drivers and pedestrians on the road. If you want to take a call because you think it is urgent, make sure you pull up and stop by the side of the road, not converse and drive at the same time."

    "The only exception is if you''re wearing earphones," I muttered, and he nodded.

    "Earphones, or speaker. As long as you keep both hands on the steering wheel and your eyes on the road."

    "All right, safety advertisement is over." Adrian clapped his hands. "Can we get back to the actual story and can you just answer that call, Dad?"

    "Sure thing. Give me a second." Sacha raised the phone to his ear after swiping it. "Yeah?"

    I watched as he conversed, nodding unconsciously with the occasional "hmm" and "okay" and "I understand." There was one time where he actually glanced at me, and said, "Yeah, he''s with me right now." Obviously the other party knew I was taking a ride in his car.

    It didn''t take long before he hung up. Placing his hands on the steering wheele, he turned to the three of us and grinned.

    "Sorry, kids, but there has been a change in plans. We''re not heading straight back home. We''re going to the stadium."

    "Eh?" Melina looked puzzled, and Sacha focused on her.

    "Yeah, that was your dad. He says to bring you guys straight to the stadium first. If you don''t mind, that is."

    "Ah, no. That''s fine."

    "All right then!" Sacha wasted no time nudging his car back out into the road and zooming off into the distance. "Let''s go!"

    "Why are we heading to the stadium?" Adrian wondered out loud.

    Sacha grinned and tilted his head in my direction. "We have an awards ceremony to attend. Richard, you were participating in the national high school tournament before you ran off on that mission of yours, weren''t you?"

    "That''s right." I blinked. "Eh? The awards ceremony is today?"

    "Yeah. The finals had just ended. Pendragon Academy emerged the victor and successfully defended the championship today. They just finished their team match a few minutes ago. Duke Fergus Franklin has requested that I bring you guys to the stadium immediately. Besides, he wants to see his daughter as well, and since he''s at the stadium¡­"

    We understood. Of course Fergus Franklin would want to see his daughter as quickly as possible, and it was much faster to bring her straight to him while he was in the stadium than it was for her to wait for him to return home. Also, the Duke probably want his daughter to watch the awards ceremony with him, though the reason was unfathomable to me. Not that it was any of my business.

    "Did my team win their third place match?"

    "Eh? You don''t know?" Sacha raised an eyebrow skeptically when I raised the question. "Didn''t they tell you?"

    "Oh, they probably tried to, but I was out of range¡­" I hastily fumbled with my smartphone and saw the number of messages and emails that I had received while I was away. I tapped the text message from Harrison and beamed when I saw the contents.

    "They won."

    Even without me, Jing Tian Academy team still won. They secured third place, narrowly beating out Vermillion Academy. It was a tough fight, but Bu Fan actually managed to defeat Lilith Porter (though he took quite the beating himself) and we managed to overrun them in the team match. Bu Fan couldn''t participate in the team match, but obviously Harrison never intended to select him for that. The guy was too much of a lone wolf to cooperate with others¡­though, he could cooperate and team up with other people if he had to. I guess he would probably wait until university or something, and when he needed votes or when his friend was insulted before he fought in a team and won big.

    By then he would have awakened the summoning and shadow element too¡­

    "Yes!" I pumped my fist into the air, much to Adrian''s bemusement and Sacha''s amusement. Melina smiled as well, infected by my delight. "They won! We got third place!"

    I wasn''t sure how to feel, though. Clearly they won without me, which meant that they didn''t need me to win. It felt a little lonely, but I guess it was worth it. The team was what mattered, not the individual. I was happy for everyone, and I couldn''t wait to see them. They must be just as overjoyed as I was. Hell, I was on the verge of screaming at the top of my lungs, but obviously I couldn''t do that or I would cause trouble to Sacha and the kids.

    So I suppressed my exuberance for now and contented myself with a gigantic, silly grin on my face. My fists were clenched, and I honestly wanted to punch the air again, but jerking about too violently inside a car wasn''t a good idea, so I controlled myself, consoling myself that I would have plenty of opportunity to celebrate once I reached the location where my friends were.

    The stadium wasn''t too far away, about a fifteen minutes drive away, and we were there before too long. Fortunately, there was a huge parkling lot, and even though it seemed full, Sacha managed to locate a single open lot.

    "Phew."

    Slotting nearly into the lot, he switched off the engine and nodded at us. The moment the vibrations were down, we were pushing the doors open and alighting from the car. I glanced around the parking lot for a moment. It was really packed to the brim, and we were really lucky to have found this spot or we would be driving in circles for quite a while.

    "We should hurry!" Sacha was herding us toward the main facility. "They''re waiting for you!"

    "Huh?" I realized that he was looking in my direction. "Why are they waiting for me?"

    "Are you kidding?!" Sacha was practically chuckling. "Because you''re part of the Jing Tian Academy team, and they want to receive the medals together with you! You''ve been such a pivotal member in their team, and you''ve helped them reach so far in the tournament¡­they didn''t think it was fair that they would be receiving the medals without you among them! Everyone recognizes your contribution to their progress!"

    "Eh? But how did they know¡­?"

    "Oh¡­Duke Franklin has intelligence networks all over Stuart City, as does the Stuart family ourselves." Sacha patted his chest proudly. "We knew you were coming back, when the aerial manning operators told us that the Silver Wolves have just established contact and are landing. And since we have quite some political pull, we were able to delay the awards ceremony for a bit. Good thing the stadium isn''t too far away from the airport, eh?"

    Political pull, huh? That was one hell of a contrived coincidence¡­to think I actually landed right when the finals ended. Well, as long as it worked, I wasn''t going to complain about it. Sometimes fact was stranger than fiction, and the coincidences in life seemed far too contrived to be able to wave away. Murphy''s Law and all that.

    I almost staggered into the main facility, where my teammates were waiting.

    "Richie! You made it!"

    "I knew you would come!"

    "Ha ha ha! Just in time!"

    My friends enveloped me in a hug, cheering and shouting, the guys were particularly pounding my back and chortling, while the girls teared up a bit.

    "All right, let''s not waste time. They''re waiting for us!"

    The announcer was already saying something on the podium, having spent the last fifteen minues or so delivering some grand speech regarding the future of the Global Federation, the talented youths who would surely build the foundation for that future, and the impressive display that they put on throughout the tournament. No doubt he had been pressured to drag the speech by none other than the Stuart family and Duke Franklin. Normally I would wish he would end the speech and get on with it, but on this occasion, I was glad that he obliged.

    "And so we would like to present the medals to the worthy winners!" he ended, having received some subtle message that I had arrived, and quickly and gratefully wrapped up his speech without wasting another second longer. "Would they please proceed to the stage?"

    My team joined the other schools who were milling near the bottom of the stage, and I caught sight of Charles Lacroix, Lilith Porter, and all their respective team members. Charles and Lilith nodded in my direction, and I could almost read their expressions.

    We''re glad you made it.

    I beamed back, hoping they knew I was trying to tell them that I was glad I made it.

    "In fourth place, we have Vermillion Academy!"

    Lilith and her team graciously ascended the stage, with the officials placing the medals around their necks, one by one. There was a huge number "4" emblazoned across the bronze surface, along with the symbol of the Global Federation, a small sphere that supposedly depicted planet Earth, along with two olive twigs.

    Even fourth place was a huge achievement, and the students of Vermillion Academy held their heads up proudly as the announcer showered them with praise. As one, they bowed gratefully to an applauding audience. I also joined in, clapping loudly. Even though I hadn''t been present for the match against them, I was certain that they did extremely well and pushed my team to the brink. According to Harrison, they did, and I trusted him.

    I would have to watch their matches online later. I knew from experience that Lilith was a formidable foe, and I was curious as to how Bu Fan eliminated her and her Hellfire Bear. I heard that she still hadn''t managed to properly control Kagutsuchi¡­yet. But that was fine¡­that monster was overkill for a high school tournament like this, and Bu Fan was smart enough not to give her the time she needed to summon such a powerful Soul Beast.

    After their coordinated bow, Vermillion Academy descended the stage. As they did so, the announcer continued with his dialogue.

    "And in third place, we have Jing Tian Academy team! Please, come up to the stage!"

    For a moment, I stood, half-frozen in disbelief and awe. Harrison gave me a slight push, and then led us up the stage. I followed, and we stood in a line as the officials placed the medals around our necks. Just like the medals that Vermillion Academy received, ours was also bronze, with the symbol of the Federation imprinted deeply into its surface. But the number "3" was cared across it, signifying our rank for this year.

    "At the beginning of the tournament, not many people gave Jing Tian Academy team a chance. They were supposedly a C-ranked team, or whatever those bullshit rankings or whatever claimed them to be. Reality proved that such ranking systems and numbers are nothing more than made-up rubbish, and they have remained solid contenders for the title. The dark horses who have taken everyone by complete surprise and progressing all the way to the semifinals, far beyond what everyone else thought they would get to. Not only that, they pulled an upset against Vermillion Academy to achieve third place! Well done!"

    Again, there was a huge applause as everyone cheered and yelled. I could see Adrian and Melina in the audience, as well as Harvey Deng and the Jing Tian Academy cheering contingent that he led, all of them rising to their feet and yelling in delight and pride. Adrian and Melina had followed Sacha to the VIP spots, where Duke Fergus Franklin was seated, and he was looking on with approval while placing his hand on Melina''s head and stroking her long, blond hair.

    Somehow I understood that he was here to witness me, as his daughter''s instructor, receive the award. Probably as a way to vindicate his decision of hiring me. I wondered if I would really be able to live up to his expectations. Most likely not ¨C I had no experience teaching others swordsmanship ¨C but I would do my best nonetheless.

    After a few more words of praise, the announcer gestured for us to leave the stage, which we did. The moment we disappeared from the view of spectators and the television cameras, I found myself mobbed by the team.

    "We did it! We actually did it!"

    "We got third place!"

    "You played a huge role in getting us this far, Richard," Harrison told me seriously. A smile ghosted across his handsome face. "We aren''t going to accept the medal without you."

    "It was a close-shave thing, though," I admitted. "If I arrived just a day later¡­maybe even an hour later, I wouldn''t have¡­"

    "Hah! Don''t worry, we have our ways!" Dong Fang Yue Chu chuckled as he threw an arm over my shoulder. "We''ll figure it out eventually."

    "For now¡­we should celebrate! I''m calling a party tonight!" Craig thrust his fist into the air.

    No one objected to that, and I couldn''t help but grin. It still felt so surreal, so¡­dreamlike. The joy in my chest almost threatened to bring me to tears, but I somehow held them in. Nodding, I bumped Craig''s fist.

    "Yeah¡­let''s party tonight. Dinner''s on me."

 453 Chapter 453: Sensei

    After the awards ceremony, and the end of the tournament, we returned to Jing Tian City in triumph. Principal Vincent Violet delivered a speech, informing everyone how very proud he was of us, and we had a couple days of holidays for the whole school to celebrate the progress we had made. From rank eighty-second last year to third, that was a massive jump of seventy-nine ranks and showed remarkable improvement.

    Even Feng Hai returned to offer his congratulations. Since he was our instructor who organized an entire training camp to kick us into shape, he was welcomed with wide, open arms. Once again, there were celebration all about¡­

    ¡­and before I knew it, life returned to normal. The euphoria of getting third in the national tournament gradually faded after a couple of weeks, and because we knew we couldn''t become complacent, we returned to our rigorous training. The second year students, in particular, knew that our third-placed team would be broken up by the end of this year. Harrison, Pearl, Cody and Theodore would all graduate, leaving the rest of us behind. That was almost half the team, and without Harrison''s leadership and tactical genius, it was going to be more difficult for us to compete.

    And stop looking at me. I was not leader material, and I sucked at tactical and strategic setups. I wouldn''t know who to send in a team match. Honestly, I don''t know what you guys were expecting. If you want a genius Mary Sue protagonist who could cleverly outsmart all his opponents as well as was invincible in combat, go read Battle Frenzy instead. I was not Wang Zhong, and I was never going to be as intelligent as him. Hopefully I could be more powerful than him¡­no matter what Oscillating Fist or Ghost Steps or accurate arrows he fired or whatever infinite crosswheel skills he possessed or whatever techniques he unleashed, as long as I could nuke him with Scorpio''s Antares or Draco''s Thuban, I should theoretically be able to win.

    Then again, Wang Zhong was literally protected by plot armor, and besides, he was smart enough to defeat me before I could cast those spells. Damn, I couldn''t defeat him, after all. I give up. Good thing he was a fictional character, and no such perfect person existed in reality. Everyone would have a flaw or two, but that guy was literally god with no weaknesses. And such god mode Mary Sues didn''t exist in reality, thankfully, or the world would be a boring place to live in. Even Albert Einsten was eccentric and had things he couldn''t do. He was no soldier, that''s for sure.

    I was aware that we weren''t the only ones to resume training. Over the Internet, I heard rumors that Lililth Porter had intensified her own training schedule, along with those of her teammates. Their defeat to us had been a blow, and almost a humiliation. Obviously, since this was reality, there was no nonsensical "how did we lose to trash?!", delusional denials, simmering resentment and then attempts to "right" the whole thing by sending assassins after us like in ridiculous Chinese web novels. Seriously, those authors were¡­mentally challenged if they had to resort to absurd, unrealistic and contrived plot developments like these. And of course, even if you send professional assassins, the main character and his ridiculous plot armor would somehow survive the attempts and even defeat the assassins, before going to destroy the family that sent them after him.

    Have you ever heard of such things happening in real life? Seriously? Where did these Chinese authors get all these weird ideas from? Oh, right¡­power fantasies and wish fulfilments. There was no need to think too much over the strange logic at work in these sort of stories. I would never be able to find anything.

    In any event, Lilith''s training inspired my own, and my own aim involved¡­well, not a repeat of this year''s fairy tale run, but at least I wanted a rematch with Pendragon Academy¡­and to win over them this time. No matter how far we progressed next year.

    "Ugh¡­too bad Charles Lacroix will not be participating next year."

    It was a pity, but Charles Lacroix was a third year like Harrison and the rest. He would be graduating at the end of his academic year, and I would never be able to compete against him again. At least not in this year''s tournament. Then again, there was the university-level tournaments, and even if I somehow end up in the same university as him, I could still challenge him inside the university itself. Of course, it was pointless to challenge him to a duel until I had improved myself.

    "Then there is the ice magic stuff that I need to deal with too," I reminded myself as I raised my hand and conjured a frost rune. My ice magic still wasn''t perfect. Absolute Zero did not work on Charles Lacroix, and that meant I hadn''t reached the same level as him. Whether it was his holy magic that countered it or he was simply stronger didn''t matter. I needed to become more powerful than him.

    The question was¡­how? Yeah, training¡­but he was bound to continue his own training too, and honestly training alone wasn''t going to help me close the gap. I needed something more drastic, or more combat experience somehow, as if Charles wasn''t going to get combat experience of his own. Pendragon Academy was famous for sending its knightly students out into the field. Noblesse oblige and all that. The knights of Pendragon Academy were taught that it was their duty to protect the commoners and civilians from monsters, just like knights of old.

    Man, I wanted to be a knight as well. In my previous life, it was my dream to be an Imperial Knight and pilot those towering, 9-meter-tall suits of ceramite and adamantium armor, and stride across the battlefield ¨C except that such technology didn''t exist back during my previous time period, but then again I loved my tabletop game that featured miniatures duking it out in the 41st millennium.

    For now, I focused on developing my ice magic, to supplement my Constellation magic in ways that my wood magic failed to do so. One of the things I realized was that, other than Green Dragon, none of the Greek Constellations were of the wood attribute, so it was difficult to simply apply any of them to the advanced wood magic I had learned. This sucked, but¡­whatever.

    On the other hand, because of the water attribute present in many of the Greek Constellations, I could substitute it with ice. Even Hydra and Draco benefited from advanced ice magic. However, since I was a year behind on ice magic, when compared to wood magic, I had a lot of catching up to do. And since I wasn''t able to do much in Jing Tian Academy, considering the classes had already been filled up and I had already chosen my lessons. So most of the ice magic I learned was from self-study. Borrowing whatever books I could from the library, I headed home to begin.

    "Really, now?" Dad was staring at the pile of books, bemused, when I returned home. "You''re learning ice magic? Why ice magic?"

    I understood his consternation. Dad was a fire mage, so his element was the polar opposite of the element I had selected. He wasn''t that bothered with wood magic because I didn''t bring tomes and grimoires of wood magic home like I was doing with ice magic, and so wasn''t that aware of it, but now I had no way to hide my attempt to study ice magic from him.

    "Uh, well¡­I had an encounter." I wasn''t sure if he would believe me, so I told him what happened at the Den of Dragons during the tournament, and how I ran into the thousand-year-old ice essence and the accumulated mana of pure frost. "So it might be more beneficial for me to learn ice magic now, after absorbing all that essence and stuff."

    "I see." Dad mused for a bit, before he nodded helplessly. "So you''re going to learn ice magic instead of fire magic. Oh, well."

    "Sorry." For some reason, I felt as if I had disappointed him somehow. But hey, fire magic was the first element I learned, and Vermillion Phoenix the first Celestial Guardian I successfully summoned, so it wasn''t as if Dad didn''t leave his mark on me.

    "Nah. It''s fine. Do whatever you need to." Dad straightened himself up. "You are not me. I can''t possible expect you to become a clone of me and master fire magic." He then forced a smile. "And I certainly don''t expect you to make a contract with a spirit either."

    "No, I won''t." I didn''t want to lose anyone precious to me. That would be horrible. Speaking of which, I still hadn''t heard anything back from Feng Hai concerning Anastasia. Last I heard, Ling Dan was working on a medicine to alleviate her symptoms, but he hadn''t succeeded yet. The Silver Wolves had to go around collecting ingredients for that medicine.

    I hoped they succeeded.

    "Anyway, get your ass in gear. Don''t tell me you forgot what day today is."

    "¡­eh?"

    It took me a few minutes, but I finally remembered. Oh, right. Today was the day Melina Franklin was attending our dojo for lessons. I grinned at the memory, having asked her to come to the dojo for training. What a brilliant idea, considering that I planned to palm her off to my dad. Since Dad was the one who agreed to Duke Fergus Franklin''s request on my behalf, he could take responsibility and train her himself.

    Don''t get me involved, that''s all I was asking. If you wanted to train her, don''t ask me to do it for you.

    Dad didn''t seem to realize my plan¡­at least not yet. But I had to make sure he was there, so I feigned innocence.

    "You''ll be going to the dojo too, right?"

    Dad glanced back at me in an almost lazy manner, shifting his gaze from the holographic screen.

    "Me? Well, I guess. I need to work my muscles. Can''t spend the whole day watching anime, after all. It''s not healthy."

    Geez, I couldn''t believe he actually said that without any sense of irony. I was sure that Dad did some training on his own now and then to keep himself in shape, but all I had seen of him so far was him lounging on the couch and watching anime. Obviously that wasn''t all he did, or he would never be able to accomplish all the missions he carried out so far.

    Honestly, I had no idea how he did it. Well, it was none of my business. I just needed to focus on the training today.

    After spending a couple of hours reading the ice magic grimoires and tomes I had borrowed from the library, and practicing some of the spells, I then proceeded to the dojo and practiced some more. Within moments, the wooden interior of the dojo was coated in a thick layer of ice. Twirling my swords about, I tried to remember the moves that Charles Lacroix unleashd against me, and shadow-dueled against him.

    That guy was honestly the most powerful opponent I had ever met.

    "Sensei?"

    A crack resounded across the dojo as someone tried to open the door, which was frozen shut. I sheepishly hurried over and sliced through the ice with my swords, and then sheathed them. Pulling the door open, I welcomed an apprehensive Melina into the dojo.

    "Welcome, Melina! This is the Huang family''s dojo. We''ll be training here today!"

    "I will be counting on you!" Melina bowed almost ninety degrees at the waist, her golden blond hair falling on either side of her head and veiling her cute face. She then straightened up, and then cupped her hands. "Please, Sensei!"

    Yeah, of course she wanted to begin as quickly as possible. I glanced around and caught sight of Dad. Waving to him, I beckoned for him to come over, but Dad didn''t approach.

    "Uh, Dad?"

    "She''s your student, Richie. Of course you''re going to have to train her on your own."

    Damn. Dad saw through my plan. He was chuckling as he folded his arms, watching my dismayed expression in amusement. Dad knew me too well, and had anticipated that I might try to palm the teaching duty off to him.

    "You''re the one who agreed to this on my behalf, you have some responsibility too!" I complained. Dad snorted.

    "It''s for your own good, Richie! You''re going to take over this dojo one day! So the best time to begin learning how to be an instructor is now!"

    Damn him¡­

    "Um¡­am I causing trouble?" Melina glanced up, her eyes wide in anxiety. I gulped and quickly shook my head.

    "No. I was hoping my dad would join us, but seems like he just wants to slack off. We''ll be doing the training on our own today."

    Hoping that she wouldn''t see through my lies, I strode over to the rack and grabbed a wooden sword. Spinning around, I tossed the shinai to Melina. She caught hold of the bamboo sword and stared at it for a moment before holding it in both hands.

    "Yay! Swordsmanship!" she cheered. I wondered inwardly why she was so enthusiastic. "I''m finally going to learn swordsmanship!"

    Oh, right. Back in her household, her cousin, Kureha, and all her relatives refused to teach her swordsmanship. They claimed that she didn''t have the talent for it, despite her clear gifts in magic. I partly wondered if some sort of family politics were involved ¨C perhaps they didn''t want her, the daughter of Duke Franklin, to learn swordsmanship because they were afraid that she would indisputably succeed as the true heir. No one would be able to challenge her position or status then.

    However, Duke Franklin obviously wouldn''t allow such nonsense to hold him back from teaching Melina himself. So there might be some truth to the rumors. Whatever the case, I was about to find out, so I decided to begin right away and run her through the basic kata and stances. Reviewing the lessons that Dad drilled into me over the last five years, I took a deep breath and pushed my glasses up my nose. Smiling to provide Melina some amount of comfort, I tilted my head in a friendly manner.

    "All right, let''s start!"

    "Osu!"

    And so we began.

 454 Chapter 454: Teaching a Disciple

    "Yeah, like this."

    Demonstrating the sword stance, I had Melina Franklin repeat my motions. After a while, I instructed her to practice, and she complied, swinging the sword over and over again, in the manner I taught her to.

    "That''s right! Practice makes perfect, so keep swinging that sword. Do it over and over again until your body memorizes the movement¡­until you can do it automatically, without thinking. Practice until it becomes a natural reflex for you."

    That was how Dad taught me, and now I was imparting the same lesson to Melina. She took it seriously and swung her sword without complaint. I was glad that she didn''t resent me for starting from the basics. As always, the best way to master swordsmanship was to establish a solid foundation. Even though I couldn''t call myself a master swordsman, Dad had ensured that I had a solid foundation at least. That was the only reason why I could hold my own against master swordsmen and swordswomen. Despite lacking the skills to prevail against them, I could at least not lose¡­for a very long time.

    Mind''s eye. A technique that allowed me to read my opponent''s movements, anticipate their attacks and react accordingly. Honestly, as impressive as it sounded, it was simply a skill that I attained through years of hard work and countless practice. It was something I knew for sure that Melina would achieve as long as she put her heart into it. This was just something normal, a skill that anyone could learn. Certainly, it was not as good as the natural combat intuition or battle instinct that prodigies such as Charles Lacroix, Cecilia Stuart or Kureha Franklin possessed, but it allowed normal people like us to hold our own against them.

    To not lose, basically.

    However, it was not something that could be learned within a day. That was why I began with sword swings. The most basic of kendo, the technique that every kendo master would drill into their disciples when the latter set foot into their dojos for the very first time. The same lesson that Dad knocked into me. Getting used to the feel of the sword, the weight of the blade, and ingraining the movement into your body to the point that you and your sword became one. This sort of thing didn''t require any monstrous talent or whatever. Just hard work.

    Melina probably knew this too, for she accepted my instructions without questions or complaints and endeavored to acclimatize her body to swinging the sword. She was so focused that she didn''t seem to be paying any attention to her surroundings, her blue eyes completely fixated upon her bamboo sword alone.

    Perspiration dripped off her face as she swung her sword again and again. Taking the opportunity to practice, I swung the sword beside her ¨C as much as to benefit my own development as it was to demonstrate to her how it was done. Furthermore, I was aware that if Melina saw me practicing alongside her, she would be more motivated. It was basic human instinct. If you were doing something by yourself, you often couldn''t muster the discipline to train. However, it was a different story altogether if you had someone join you. You would be motivated to do something instead of slacking off like I usually did when I was on my own.

    From the side, Dad watched in approval. He didn''t say anything, but I knew he would surely give me advice and remind me of what I should do after today''s training session was done. The only reason why he stayed silent right now was because he didn''t want to embarrass me in front of Melina. That would undermine my authority as an instructor in front of my own student and cause her to not take me seriously in future. And furthermore, he might as well take over the training instead of have me do it if he was going to reprimand and correct me right in front of her in the first place.

    Speaking of which, I actually wished he would just take over the training himself because I preferred to be training my ice magic right now instead of training someone else. I wasn''t even strong enough myself, and I had a long way to go before I could compare to the likes of Feng Hai or even Charles Lacroix, never mind Dad himself. What right did I have to teach other people when I was quite incompetent and weak myself?

    Honestly, I was in no position to train others. I had no right to call myself a teacher, not when I was so weak and pathetic. Just look at the readers'' comments if you don''t believe me. Most readers had condemned me as a weakling, spineless, inferior and pathetic, complaining when I lost and whining about how I was so weak, stupid and retarded. I really couldn''t understand what Duke Fergus Franklin saw in me. If he would just listen to the voices beyond the fourth wall, he would know that I wasn''t fit for the job.

    Unfortunately, for some reason he chose to disregard the judgemental and critical evaluations of readers beyond the fourth wall and appraised me as someone worthy enough to teach his daughter. Much to their chagrin ¨C after all, the readers were always right, the author never knew what he was doing and the main character was always stupid, retarded, spineless and weak if he lost even a single battle. Or better still, even if I won but I got severely injured and "bled", they whined about me being weak because I couldn''t win effortlessly by curbstomping the enemy. What the fuck? Seriously? There were actually people who whined that I was weak, not because I lost, but because I bled and got injured while fighting against powerful enemies? Jesus Christ. I still didn''t understand why they insisted on reading if they loved to condemn and insult me at every available opportunity. Like, seriously, if they wanted a strong, powerful and invincible main character who never lost a single battle because he was practically on god mode and curbstomped every single opponent foolish enough to bare its fangs at him, they could read several thousand other stories on this website, rather than force their wish fulfillment power fantasies upon me. I was a perfectly normal and very average guy, already trying to do my utmost best amidst an environment of superhumans and geniuses. What exactly were they expecting? One Punch Man? I was more Deadpool than Saitama.

    Stop projecting your Battle Frenzy or xianxia cultivation clich¨¦s and wish fulfilment tropes on me. I was never going to become some invincible god who stomped my opponents without so much as lifting a finger. I wasn''t going to be granted victories automatically because I was the protagonist or because I had some "cheat." Hell, what was with the reader demanding that I reveal my "cheat" in the first ten chapters? I DO NOT HAVE ANY CHEAT, YOU FUCKING RETARD! I never wrote anything like that in my synopsis, so don''t go around making stupid assumptions and then screaming at me when nothing of that sort existed!

    "Sensei?"

    "Ah, sorry."

    I realized that I had been too caught up in my self deprecating and inward rants that my swings had slowed. Noticing the change in my pace, Melina was concerned. Damn it, and I was supposed to set a good example for her. Whoops, my bad.

    "Just thinking of something. I''m sure you''re getting tired of the swings, so I''m thinking that we should try footwork next."

    Good thing I was quick on my feet and able to make something up on the spot. Melina didn''t seem to notice my lapse in concentration and she beamed enthusiastically even as she continued to swing her shinai without pause.

    "Yes, Sensei!"

    I felt bad for deceiving her, but as I would learn, being an instructor didn''t necessarily mean I had to be superior or more talented than the student I was teaching. My goal was to impart to them knowledge they didn''t possess beforehand, and to answer any questions they might have, doubts that arose during training. Even if I didn''t have the answer, I could freely admit it, and then go and find out the answer before telling my student the next day. A teacher didn''t have to be perfect ¨C one of the great lessons in life was that no human was perfect. Not unless you were a fictional Mary Sue character created to be flawless. It was only natural that even a teacher had questions that he couldn''t answer, and there was no shame in confessing my lack of knowledge, and promising to find the answer.

    In other words, it was okay to slip up and lose concentration here and there on the job. Of course, I would strive to be as professional as possible, but professionals weren''t superhumans or gods. Even professionals made the occasional mistake. The trick was to minimize the slip-ups and errors on the job. Everyone had to start somewhere. Especially when you were doing your first job for the very first time. So don''t be disheartened when you made a mistake.

    Though¡­I could already see readers from beyond the fourth wall literally frothing at the mouth and condemning me over every little mistake I made. I know not all readers did that, but just go through the previous chapters and you would see a lot of inflammatory and caustic insults flung at me from a specific group of readers just because I didn''t do what they would have done in my position, as if they knew the situation so much better than I did, or as if they didn''t possess the benefit of hindsight and were geniuses who could do no wrong. I honestly didn''t understand their complaints. If they wanted perfect, confident and arrogant (or ruthless) protagonists, there were so many stories out there that fitted their mold. Why come here and whine about me being inferior or self-pitying or weak or spineless or pathetic or whatever? It was as if I wasn''t allowed to be a flawed human being, and the moment I made one mistake or misjugement, they would raise their pitchforks and burn me at stake.

    Whatever, for now I would do my best to train Melina. So after the sword swings, we moved on to basic footwork.

    "Dear God, look at the time!"

    So caught up in both training and my own thoughts, I didn''t realize how late the time had gotten. Before I knew it, over an hour had passed. Melina had kept going, not at all bothered. In fact, she was pretty enthusiastic for more. Damn¡­it was too bad I didn''t want to accompany her forever. I had my own other matters to deal with. While it was admittedly important to revise my basic swordsmanship, in light of my defeat to Charles, I also wanted to develop my ice magic further. I didn''t have a lot of time, especially when I still had so many things I wanted to do.

    Yeah, the tournament was one thing, but the missions were another. The missions in particular ¨C they were what drew my attention the most. I honestly wanted to participate in a few more missions to gain more combat experience. As I mentioned previously, training alone would not suffice. If I wanted to catch up to prodigies such as Charles, gaining more combat experience was the only other option. That, and working on my ice magic. If I could just improve Absolute Zero, perhaps I could win against him next time.

    That was why I was more than happy to dismiss Melina after the lesson was done.

    "Sorry¡­I know we only went through the basics today, but you don''t learn swordsmanship overnight. This is just the first step. You''ll have to be patient."

    "It''s all right. I understand." Melina smiled understandingly. "You''re doing your best, Sensei. I have no complaints. Everything I read told me that I need to build a solid foundation first before I try and learn more advanced techniques."

    "That''s correct. That''s exactly what my father taught me too."

    Melina glanced in the direction of Dad, her expression a little wistful. I somehow sympathized with that expression. Clearly Melina was wishing that her own father would personally teach her swordsmanship. Not just any sword style, but the Franklin school of swordsmanship. The same one her cousin Kureha was wielding.

    Having seen her train diligently throughout the entire night, I honestly didn''t get the sense that she lacked the talent for swordsmanship or whatever excuse Kureha and the other Franklin family members came up with. All right, she wasn''t some unprecedented genius who would take the world by surprise and learn a whole new sword style in a few hours or some xianxia nonsense like that. But she wasn''t exactly "untalented" or "incompetent" like how the others made her out to be. If anything, she reminded me of myself, a completely ordinary and average person, a normal but hardworking person who was determined to learn swordsmanship no matter how much time or effort was required.

    Honestly, the whole "talent" thing was bullshit. Yes, I admit that there were some people who defied logic and were much more capable of learning something such as swordsmanship at a much faster pace than ordinary people, possessing an intuitive grasp that allowed to prevail over others. The so-called geniuses, who became award-winning professional athletes or master martial artists or gamers. But just because such prodigies existed didn''t mean the rest of us ordinary people were supposed to bow down and give up. Upsets had happened before ¨C soccer teams in lower divisions had beaten the defending champions in the FA Cup or some tournament. Rankings were always fluid, and there were many other factors in play.

    The most important thing was not to give up. If you gave up, everything was over. It was better to try and accept whatever result came than to give up from the onset and fail for sure.

    "Don''t worry, you''ll definitely get stronger. I promise."

    "Ha ha! I know. After all, you''re the person who defeated Cousin Kureha. That''s why¡­I want to learn from you!" Melina was clenching her fists resolutely. "One day¡­I''ll become like you, Sensei! And I''ll defeat Cousin Kureha too!"

    "I look forward to that," I said with a chuckle. Now that would be quite the sight. I definitely wanted to see the horrified shock on Kureha''s face when she was bested by someone she had deemed "untalented" or "incompetent." That would serve her right for being arrogant and looking down on others.

    "Richie, send that young lady home," Dad instructed. Before Melina could protest, he gave her a firm look. "It''s late and it''ll be derelict of our duty to allow you to walk home alone at this hour. Not to mention dangerous. You''re still young, Melina. Better safe than sorry."

    "Yeah, don''t worry about it." I patted my student on the shoulder. "I could use the walk anyway."

 455 Chapter 455: Rumors and Fabrications

    I had just returned home after sending Melina back to her place when Dad called out to me. He was seated in the couch, lounging around and watching an anime where a blond girl with twin tails was falling from the balcony, only to be caught by her private tutor.

    Seeing the main heroine, I was suddenly reminded of my own disciple. Melina had bade me farewell at the gates of her home, her servants arriving to receive her. Her long, blond hair, golden like the rays of the sun, seemed to shimmer under the bright lights of the Franklin residence, and her red and white dress contrasted starkly against the black, frilly dresses of the Franklin family''s maids. I had noticed that the maids kept some distance from their lady, their expressions cool and detached rather than welcoming. Melina herself seemed a little somber, almost as if she was unhappy about returning home. I was worried, but she forced a smile and reassured me that she was fine.

    Since there was nothing I could do, I could only stand outside and watch as she walked with her maids through the main courtyard and toward the front doors of the gigantic manor. I only departed a few seconds after she disappeared into the house, my chest still feeling somewhat unsettled.

    That sad, almost lonely expression¡­what sort of predicament was Melina in at the moment?

    "Richie? Hello? Are you paying attention?"

    "Oh, sorry." I turned away from the silent audience and returned to staring at Dad. He shrugged and offered a genial smile.

    "As you already know, you''ve been asked to teach Melida Angel¡­ahem, I mean Melina Franklin."

    "Yeah." At least Dad was able to catch his error and get the name right after that deliberate slip. I wasn''t the only one who was watching too much anime. "And I did that. You could have helped, but you didn''t."

    The whole night, I had been teaching Melina before I sent her home, but Dad did nothing but slack in the dojo. I was pretty sure he was keeping a watchful eye on our training session, but he didn''t intervene at all. Probably because he knew better than to undermine my authority by embarrassing me in front of my own student. It wouldn''t look good if he pointed out my mistakes in front of Melina, and he might as well teach her himself.

    Honestly, I preferred that. Then I could palm this onerous duty off to Dad and do whatever I needed. I still had a lot of ice magic to practice.

    However, Dad seemed pleased with how the session went, which was a surprise to me. Perhaps he saw no need to intervene, and was satisfied with my teaching methods. Weird. And here I was, worried that I was teaching Melina the wrong things.

    "Anyway, just a reminder, you know about Melina''s circumstaces, right?"

    "Circumstances?" I echoed. Dad gave me a look, and then he raised his hand and conjured a blue holographic screen, displaying Melina''s personal profile. I could see the details listing her class as unknown. Frowning, I shook my head. "What''s with the whole class thing in the first place? Most academies couldn''t be bothered with classes."

    "Saint Teresa Academy isn''t most academies," Dad replied coolly. "And unlike your Jing Tian Academy, they place a huge emphasis on class. Most students are sorted according to their elemental affinity and combat roles."

    That felt unnecessarily restrictive to me. While I could see the wisdom behind specializing in a specific combat role, most mages were flexible enough to switch between roles. Elemental mages could switch between vanguard roles ¨C where they fought at the frontlines ¨C and support roles, such as fighting at range. My friend Dong Fang Yue Chu and team captain Harrison Reed were excellent examples of this.

    "You also probably already heard from your friends, but the children of the Franklin family almost exclusively enrolls in Saint Teresa Academy."

    I actually didn''t hear about that, but it was easy for me to arrive at that particular conclusion based off my encounters with them, so I nodded. And then I sighed as I rubbed my forehead, feeling troubled.

    "And if the Franklin family is one of the ten great families of the Global Federation too. They have a reputation to maintain."

    "Correct. And as you probably already heard, a lot of these nobles believe that power is hereditary. That their strength and magic will be passed down to their future generations. They place strong importance on the so-called purity of their bloodline. This genetic inheritance is usually considered a dominant gene, so even if they aren''t somehow able to preserve the purity of their bloodline¡­in other words, if a so-called upper class noble has a child with a lower ranking noble or even a commoner, then their children will still receive the traits of their mana¡­of their elemental affitnity or specific magic types. Such as Paladins."

    "Speaking of magic, isn''t Melina known for being excellent in magic?" I scratched my head, puzzled. "If she would just focus on learning magic instead of trying to master swordsmanship, wouldn''t that be playing to her strengths?"

    "Ah¡­therein lies the problem, Richie." Dad turned unusually serious. "You are aware of her current situation, aren''t you? That the Franklin family refuses to teach her the Franklin sword style?"

    "Yeah." I nodded. "That''s the whole reason why Melina asked me to teach her swordsmanship in the first place. That''s why her father made this request of me."

    "Now¡­think about it." Dad pointed at me in an almost dramatic manner. "Why wouldn''t Duke Franklin teach his own daughter? If the rest of the family refuses to teach her the Franklin sword style, then the solution should be simple, right? As her father, he could teach her himself. But why doesn''t he?"

    "He says he''s too busy¡­" I began, and then trailed away when I realized how stupid my statement sounded.

    "Exactly. That''s just an excuse. It''s not that Duke Franklin is too busy to teach her, but he can''t teach her." Dad turned away and sighed heavily. "As much as he wants to teach his own daughter, he is forbidden from doing so by¡­clan politics."

    Are you serious? Clan politics? That was utter bullshit. I really detested all these nonsensical politicking. Don''t people have better things to do than to backstab and sabotage other people just for their own personal gains and selfish ambitions?

    Dad saw my expression and sighed again.

    "It''s a lot more complicated than you think. Yes, I agree that this whole clan politics thing is stupid, but their concerns are¡­hard to dismiss. Especially with a rumor like this." He stopped, almost dramatically. "You haven''t heard the rumor, I assume?"

    "What rumor?" I asked, irritated. I had no time for these guessing games and dramatic pauses. "If you know something, please tell me, Dad."

    "Well¡­" Dad hesitated for a moment. "There''s a rumor floating around, saying that Melina is not the real daughter of the Franklin clan."

    "What kind of stupid rumor is that?!" I exploded.

    "Like I said, it''s all clan politics. Likely to discredit Duke Franklin''s only daughter from succeeding him and all that nonsense. Even so, the rumor has taken root¡­and with her academic display, it only served to prove the doubters correct. The possibility that she is not her father''s biological child is currently being suspected."

    "That''s bullshit! How can they prove it? Just do a DNA test or something!"

    "They did, and the relatives claimed that the tests were falsified. Then they produced their own DNA test results proving their claim¡­but those were shown to be falsified. In the end, the labs got so fed up with the Franklin family abusing their facilities to fabricate claims and whatever that they put a halt to the tests. In any event¡­the relatives are claiming that the babies were switched at birth¡­or worse."

    "What could be worse than this sort of nonsense?!" I demanded.

    "¡­that Melina isn''t the real child of the Franklin household''s head, Fergus Franklin. That there is a distinct possibility that she is the child of her mother, Melody Franklin¡­and someone the late Lady Melody Franklin had an affair with."

    "You''ve got to be kidding me! Slandering a person who has passed away?! Putting such pressure on a young girl?! Just how low can they sink?!"

    "Don''t be na?ve, Richie." Dad gave me a strict look. "You know how the world works. Although there certainly are many kind and nice people out there, the truth is that there is also plenty of selfish and ambitious people who have no compunctions against trampling upon other people to achieve their personal goals. They would even resort to slandering a gentle, kindhearted lady who has passed away over five years ago just to materialize their lofty dreams of ruling over the Franklin family."

    He sighed and shook his head.

    "But with her death, the truth will never be known¡­or at least that''s what the Franklin family claimed. With Melina''s birthright and real biological parent in doubt, they use this as a pretext to prevent her from learning the Franklin sword style, claiming that it would be a calamity if the clan''s sacred sword techniques were to fall into the hands of an outsider."

    "That''s utter bullshit!"

    "Yeah, it is. But it doesn''t stop those relatives from searching around for signs of adultery that Lady Melody might have committed, and spreading these repulsive rumors. Obviously they wish to take advantage of this situation to further their own statsuses."

    I fell silent, unable to accept all this. Now I was determined more than ever to help the poor girl, who was being ostracized by her own family¡­a poor girl who was seen and treated as nothing more than expendable pawn, her mother framed for adultery and her birth brought into question just so those bastards could fulfil their own selfish desires and ambitions to take control of the Franklin family.

    I wondered how much Kureha was involved in this. I didn''t know Kureha well enough, but I didn''t think she was the sort of girl who would willingly sacrifice others for her own goals. She struck me as a forthright person. That said, the position of head of the Franklin family was undoubtedly an attractive one, and more importantly I recalled the way Kureha looked at Melina¡­

    An expression full of condescending revulsion. As if Melina didn''t belong to the Franklin family, and was a filthy outsider who freeloaded off Duke Franklin¡­

    "Richie, I understand your feelings. I know you would feel strongly about this. That''s why¡­" Dad smiled as he straightened and looked me directly in the eye. "I''m giving you a mission."

    "Huh? Mission?" I repeated dumbly. Dad nodded, his grin growing wider.

    "Your job is to make Lady Melina Franklin a girl who is neither talentless nor incompetent." He jabbed his finger at me. "You are the private tutor of this so-called talentless girl called Melina Franklin. You will awaken her potential as a swordswoman, guide her¡­and raise her to someone befitting of an heiress to the Franklin household, one of the ten great families of the Federation! You''ll help her develop into the next head of the Franklin family!"

    "You''re kidding me, right?" I tried not to roll my eyes at Dad''s cheesy speech. And then something hit me. Realization dawned upon me as my jaw dropped and I glared at Dad. "You¡­you were the one who arranged all this in the first place! Don''t tell me¡­you''re the one who went to Duke Franklin and suggested this!"

    That made a lot more sense. I had always wondered why Fergus Franklin would single me out, an obscure summoner who was pretty low profile and indescript, from so many other people, such as Charles Lacroix. Hell, wouldn''t Charles make for a superior teacher if you were trying to teach Melina swordsmanship? If it was summoning magic, I could understand, but why would Duke Franklin approach me to ask me to teach his daughter swordsmanship? There were so many more suitable teachers out there, so why me? I was quite the random choice, if I were to be honest. And swordsmanship wasn''t even my forte. So why me, really?

    Dad must have made the offer to him. From there, the request took root, and I was dragged into this whole political mess. Damn him.

    However, Dad neither confirmed nor deny my accusation, which was in itself damning evidence. He merely smiled and turned away to continue watching his anime, where the private tutor was now introducing himself to his new blond student in front of awestruck maids.

    Exhaling in exasperation, I returned to my room. For now, I''d just focus on mastering my ice magic instead of whining about this¡­it sucked to admit it, but I had very little time left for myself.

 456 Chapter 456: Assassinâ€™s Pride

    "Seriously?" I was staring at the chapter title in disbelief. "You''re going to rip off an anime now? I mean, it''s an anime adaptation of a light novel, but even so, you''re seriously going to rip off the original light novel now? You do realize that I''m not an assassin, right? I don''t go around killing people while wearing black and acting like an emo budget Kirito. You''ve got the wrong guy for the job!"

    Then I realized that I was indeed wearing all black. I couldn''t help it. Black was my favorite color. It was only natural that the vast majority of my clothing was black.

    "Psst¡­"

    I realized that the other passengers on the train were staring at me. Oh, right. Currently I was in public, taking a train to my workplace. Even while seated by myself, my mumbling and grumbling were drawing quite a bit of attention. To the uninitiated, they couldn''t see the fourth wall or detect the presence of people beyond the fourth dimension, so they could only perceive my ramblings as talking to myself. That was why they thought I was mentally deranged.

    They weren''t the only ones. If you just read all the comments and reviews, you would see the vast majority of readers condemning me as mentally retarded, stupid, or all sorts of other insults. So perhaps I really was crazy. Who knows?

    In any event, there was no time to dwell on such nonsense. The train was gradually pulling to a stop, and the mechanical, invisible voice blared out, announcing that we had reached Flandor City. Many passengers were already rising from their seats well before the train ground to a grinding halt, grabbing their personal items and baggage.

    Sighing, I leaned back and glanced out of the windows, noting that it was already night. Flandor City was the city of the Franklin family, where Kureha and Melina Franklin lived. Melina only visited Jing Tian City the other night to get a feel of my family''s dojo, and she had originally arranged to temporarily stay in a rented house in my neighborhood, so that it would be convenient for her to train every evening or so at my dad''s dojo.

    However, complications arose and her father requested that she return to Flandor City. Apparently her relatives were making it difficult for her, trying to deny her even the chance to learn swordsmanship under a different teacher, and claimed that it was dangerous and scandalous for a daughter of the Franklin family to live by herself outside their home base. Of course, it wasn''t, but they were grasping at every opportunity to undermine her efforts.

    I honestly didn''t understand why they wasted so much time and energy on holding this grudge against a young, innocent girl. They must really be desperate for power and status within their own family.

    "Cardinal Station," the mechanical voice announced, droning on and the train finally came to a complete halt. "Cardinal Station."

    I could see the various academies, churches and buildings from the window. Cardinal District was a well known neighborhood in Flandor City, featuring prestigious schools such as Saint Teresa Academy, and highly revered churches and other places of worship. Ironically enough, it was the one place the Dark Church failed to infiltrate. Evidently apocalyptic propaganda and murderous ambitions were no match for real religion and sincere faith.

    "Ugh¡­"

    Scratching my cheek, I let out a heavy sigh. Honestly, I didn''t want to be here. If it weren''t for the mission that both Dad and Duke Fergus Franklin assigned to me, then I would never have been involved with a place like this.

    As I thought, the atmosphere felt heavy¡­too formal and too serious. Even though I believed in God, I was never much of a religious person and I couldn''t be bothered to go to church. I preferred to engage in my own personal worship and self-dialogue with God (yeah, that was why people thought I was insane because I seemed to be talking to myself way too much). The air here felt saturated with fervent worship, almost as if the people here were obsessed with formal worship, proper rituals and step-by-step rites. In other words, it felt very stifling. It lacked the sense of freedom, openness and informality that I was used to experiencing in Jing Tian City.

    That said¡­

    "Yeah, this place is filled with quite the scholarly aura."

    "Ah! I know, right? I thought exactly the same thing when I first arrived here!"

    Turning around, I was surprised to see a familiar face. Red hair, tied into a single ponytail that drifted at the side, and pinkish, amber eyes that stared up innocently at me. Rossetti Pickeet smiled as she waved, and then approached me, dressed in a frilly, flamboyant pink dress that looked more like it belonged to a cosplay convention than a public train station.

    Good lord¡­I hoped I wasn''t going to be forced to wear "formal" clothing like that. Right now, I was dressed in nothing more than a black T-shirt with space sorcerers (psychic space marines) posing on the front, dark jeans, and a black casual jacket. Knowing the somber mood that Cardinal District was famous for, I wouldn''t be surprised if I was ordered to change into a formal tuxedo-looking jacket with brass buttons, crisply starched white shirt and a tie. Bloody hell, why the fuck should I dress up like a butler when I was just teaching someone?

    "It has been a while, Miss Picket." I bowed my head respectfully. That wasn''t an exaggeration. The tournament felt like it was a long time ago, even though no more than a week or two had passed since the awards ceremony. I didn''t mention that, though. Since my team was the one who eliminated hers during the quarterfinals, I might risk tearing open old wounds and sound like I was gloating over our victory.

    Rossetti didn''t seem offended, though. She smiled ¨C perhaps it was because she was the sole core member of Saint Teresa Academy who I didn''t fight against. She only watched from the sidelines as I eliminated her teammates, and was herself knocked out by mine during the team match. Naturally, she wouldn''t resent me as much as maybe Kureha or Lute Dragoon would.

    "Ah¡­I forgot my bag!"

    Absent minded as always (not that I would know), Rossetti rushed back into the train. I followed her and helped her take her luggage down from the overhead compartment.

    "Don''t worry, I''ve got it," I assured her as I handled the baggage without much difficulty. "You can go ahead and alight first."

    "Thank you so much!"

    For some reason, Rossetti looked as if she wanted to cry. How exaggerated. I was only doing what other people would have done in my position. It was only natural to help other people, after all. That was something that my parents had taught me, both from my previous life and from this life.

    Before the doors could close, I managed to alight the train with several seconds to spare, and passed the luggage to Rossetti. My own stuff was still on the platform ¨C it wasn''t as if anyone was desperate enough to steal my luggage. Still, I wasn''t careless or na?ve enough to leave my belongings unattended for too long, so I resume ownership of them and checked the name tag to ensure I didn''t pick up someone else''s bags by mistake.

    Rossetti was bowing gratefully, as if I had just done her a huge favor or something. Flushed, she smiled at me.

    "Honestly, I kind of thought you were a scary guy at first."

    "Huh? I''m¡­scary?"

    "No, I mean¡­you defeated my entire team at the tournament, you know? You even beat my team captain, Kureha¡­who is known as the Sword Saint. I thought you were some kind of monster." Rossetti giggled. "I''m glad to see you''re actually a nice guy."

    I didn''t know whether to be flattered or offended, but I decided to just shrug it off.

    "Um, okay. That''s good to hear. Don''t worry, I''m not the type who eats other people." I scratched my head awkwardly. "Still, it''s good to meet you. I thought I would be alone when I come to this city, but I didn''t think I would meet someone from the tournament."

    "Heh, I didn''t think so too." Rossetti stopped at an intersection and turned about. "Ah, I''m going this way. If fate wills it, maybe we''ll meet again!"

    "Probably." Truthfully, I doubted we would ever encounter each other again, but I wasn''t tactless enough to say that. "See you then."

    "Yeah! See you again! We definitely have to meet up again sometime, okay?"

    I waved back before Rossetti finally turned her back on me and disappeared into the distance. I then resumed my own journey toward the address that Melina gave me, inputting it into Google Maps and allowing the holographic screen of my smartphone to guide me the rest of the way.

    I passed through the district, glancing up at the churches that adorned an entire street. Pious masses thronged through the sidewalk, their heads bowed in fervent prayer as they murmured softly under their breaths. The gentle tone of bells chimed from the towers, and I could see priests and priestesses going about, conducting rites. Passing through the religious district, I then found myself wandering into a less formal place ¨C a street filled with shops and restaurants. Even in a religiously named place like Cardinal District, there were still trendy cafes and fashion shops where youngsters and even middle-aged couples hung out for fun or dates. There was even a huge cinema round the corner, showing a romance movie. That wasn''t my type ¨C I preferred sci-fi movies or superhero movies, though my favorites tended to be monster movies (Aliens, kaiju films, etc.).

    Eventually, the urban setting thinned out into a suburban one, and I saw less buildings and more luxurious manors, fenced off from the rest of the city and sporting massive gardens, fountains and other extragavent decorations that only the wealthy could afford.

    I had finally reached the right place.

    "Hmm?"

    Even before they came into human view, my glasses picked up the presence of a group of people gathered in front of a massive gate. The sensors magnified the group and displayed them visually upon my lenses, and I saw that they were all wearing maid uniforms.

    Why? Do maids in real life really wear such weird, frilly outfits while functioning as servants for the rich? I thought it was just a clich¨¦ in anime.

    They were currently engaged in lively conversation, either bantering or gossiping or talking about something that was clearly entertaining for them. I couldn''t help but be infected by their good mood, the corners of my mouth raising slightly.

    As I neared them, one of the maids noticed me and she spun around, her smile disappearing and her expression changing into a formal one. Gripping the hem of her skirt, she performed a curtsy and lowered her head.

    "Sir Richard Huang, was it?"

    I beamed in what I hoped was a manner that would best assure her that I wasn''t some stuck-up asshole who enjoyed putting on airs.

    "Nice to meet you. I will be in your care from now on."

    "As will I," the maid returned formally. She was a pretty one, a couple of years older than me, with long brown hair that was neatly tied into a ponytail under that white frilly band. "It is my pleasure to meet you. I am the head maid of the Franklin Manor, Amelia Gardenia. Please do not be reserved. If there is anything you wish to know, please do not hesitate to ask."

    "Understood, ma''am."

    "Please, just call me Amelia." The head maid reassured me with a dazzling smile, and I felt captivated for some reason. This lady was really well trained.

    Unlike her, however, the other two maids who were hiding behind were clearly young amateurs slightly younger than me. They were staring at me in wonder.

    "This is Lady Melina''s new private tutor?!"

    "Really? He''s so young?! How is he going to teach our lady?!"

    "Huh? Are you stupid? Didn''t you watch the videos? Lady Melina has shown us the footage of his matches at the high school tournament, remember? He may look nerdy and scholarly, but his strength is terrifying! He defeated that Sword Saint, you know?! Lady Kureha, you know?!"

    Oi, I can hear you from over here, you know.

    "Ahem. You two." Amelia cleared her throat in a strict manner, and the both of them stiffened up and fell silent. She then turned back to me. "My apologies. You must be tired after such a long journey. If I remember correctly, you''re from Jing Tian Academy? It must have been quite the trip."

    "Not at all," I assured her.

    "Let us show you your room." Amelia stepped forward and reached out. "But first, I shall take your luggage."

    "Don''t worry about it." I quickly stopped her. "I''ll handle this myself. Thank you, though. I really appreciate it, but I''m not tired at all. I''ll feel bad making you carry my stuff for me."

    Flashing the best smile I could muster, I tilted my head in deference.

    "Also¡­please do not hesitate to approach me if you need any help. I might not be capable of much, but I will do my best to assist in whatever you need."

    "Wow." Amelia looked impressed, her cheeks slightly flushed. The two maids behind her flailed about frantically.

    "Oh no! Amelia has already fallen for him so quickly!"

    "This isn''t fair, Amelia!"

    I glared at the mischievous duo. What was this, some kind of gag manga?

    Amelia was stricter than I was, and she coughed to clear her awkwardness. Turning around promptly, she did her best to recover from my sudden display of respect, and strode toward the gate.

    "Then I shall guide you to your room, before showing you around the mansion, if you do not mind?"

    "Not in the least." I shook my head. Pleased, Amelia then proceeded toward the main gate, her two lackeys following close behind.

    "Shall we go?"

    Without further ado, we went straight toward the grand manor, navigating our way through the meticulously tended yet unnecessarily convoluted garden. Glancing up, my glasses recorded a flash of gold. Magnifying the image, I saw that Melina had already came out, and was leaning on the railing of her balcony, looking around.

    She was really eager for my arrival, huh?

    "Ah, yes¡­our lady has been impatiently waiting for you." looking in the direction that I was staring in, Amelia giggled. "She was restlessly prancing about the whole day, and was practically glued to her balcony, even though we made her aware that you will only arrive in the evening. She is looking forward to being taught by you."

    Staring at her, I suddenly had a premonition.

    "Uh, she''s not going to fall off the balcony, is she?"

    "¡­eh?"

    And then¡­Melina Franklin fell.

 457 Chapter 457: Assassinâ€™s Pride II

    "Are you serious?" I demanded, staring at the chapter title again. "We''re still going to continue ripping that light novel or its anime adaptation off? Aren''t you afraid of being sued for plagiarism or copyright repercussions?"

    Even though I was staring directly at the fourth wall, there was no reply. The creator couldn''t be bothered to respond from beyond the fourth dimension. On the other hands, the readers were impatiently glaring at me.

    "Hey! Get back to the story! You left us on a cliffhanger the previous chapter!"

    "Oh, right. Sorry."

    I returned to reality, only to find Amelia and the other two maids staring at me. Unlike me, they didn''t have the ability to see past the fourth wall and hear the voices of the existences beyond. To them, I seemed to be talking to ghosts¡­or worse, myself. They were questioning my sanity, or would have if they currently weren''t concerned with something more important.

    "Lady Melina!"

    Perhaps I should rewind a few minutes earlier prior to Melina''s dramatic dropping in on the scene. Yeah, I meant that literally.

    "Is Sensei not here yet?!"

    As Amelia mentioned, Melina was impatiently pacing up and down in her room as she eagerly awaited my arrival. She wringed her hands excitedly as she occasionally raised her head to stare out of the window.

    "It''s been some time since Amelia went to welcome him. Sensei should behere already!"

    "Really now, Young Miss." The dark-haired maid who was attending to her in her room sighed in exasperation. "How many times are you going to ask that question?"

    She poured some tea into a cup, offering it to Melina in hopes of calming her down.

    "Amelia and the others will definitely bring him here, without any issues. You will be able to meet him again soon. So just be patient for now, okay? Drink some tea."

    "But it''s already past time¡­"

    "We told you he will only arrive in late evening." The maid gave Melina a reproaching look. "You know as well as we do that it''s a long trip from Jing Tian City to Flandor by train. Well¡­" she broke off, her cheeks coloring a little. "Maybe you don''t¡­"

    The reason why the maid stopped herself at the end of her sentence was because, well, being a daughter of the Franklin family, Melina obviously didn''t have to ride a train back home. She had the luxury of having a private hovercraft ferry her and her staff from Jing Tian City back to Flandor City. So the journey was pretty much made in less than an hour, as opposed to the five hours I spent on the damned train.

    "In any event, Sir Richard took a train here, and he must be tired after spending so many hours riding on it."

    "But it''s already late evening! Isn''t he stipulated to arrive in less than three minutes?!"

    Then Melina gasped and jumped to her feet, one of her hands flying to her mouth as if she had just realized something. "Don''t tell me that he got lost on his way to our house?! I knew it! We should have sent a car to pick him up at the station! No¡­what if he took a bus here and got involved in a traffic accident?!"

    Dropping the teddy bear that she had been hugging this entire time, Melina sprinted for the balcony, flustered and worried.

    "I''ll go look for Sensei!"

    "Wait!" The maid''s jaw almost dropped as she spun around, beads of perspiration dripping down her dark hair. "Lady Melina!? Hang on¡­!"

    At the same moment, Amelia and I reached the garden, and I was glancing upward and studying the mansion. My glasses went on overdrive, the sensors scanning for threats, possible positions of ambush, optimal places of cover and the infrared signatures of the people residing inside the house. There were far less than I expected in a mansion of this size, and I recalled that Melina was isolated from the rest of the family, assigned to a "small" manor in the outskirts of the city, and only given the bare minimum of staff. Evidently her relatives had been forcing her father to take the rumors seriously, and considered her an outsider undeserving of residing in the main house.

    What a bunch of pricks.

    Anyway, that was how I picked up the sight of Melina reaching the balcony and leaning on the railings, even from a good distance away. Her long, golden hair billowing out from behind her, courtesy of the cool night breeze, she scanned the area with her deep blue eyes, as if searching for something. From this distance, of course she couldn''t see Amelia, the maids or me, but I could because of the in-built sensors and visual magnification function in my lenses.

    And readers mocked me for continuing to wear glasses, and demanded that I undergo lasik or whatever to get rid of them. Well, they could screw off. If I wanted to wear glasses, I will.

    I found myself mesmerized by the sight, not because she was a loli, but she struck me like a star. A single, brightly lit star that stood out proudly in the night sky. One with the burning potential to outshine the millions of other stars that shared the landscape with her.

    "Ugh¡­" Melina was still looking around impatiently, glancing from side to side. Her eyes swept over the garden, which was dimly illuminated by electric lampposts. Even so, the shadows cast by the neatly groomed trees and meticulously pruned hedges made it difficult for her to see anything. See? This was why you need glasses.

    "I can''t see Sensei anywhere! Where is he? He doesn''t seem to be in the garden. Maybe he''s still in town? Or has he already reached the front gates?" She glared at the garden. "Damn it, I''ve been thinking this for a while now, but there really are too many plants!"

    With a swift motion, she climbed up on the railing and glanced around, balancing precariously atop the handrail with practiced movements.

    "Whoa¡­whoa! Wait, my lady!" Amelia and the other maids began waving their hands frantically, taken aback by her bold gesture. "It''s dangerous, Lady Amelia!"

    "Get down from there! It''s dangerous!"

    "Your Sensei is here too!"

    "Huh?"

    Hearing the voices from her maid, Melina glanced downward. Then she noticed me. She quickly placed a hand on her skirt and jumped off the railing, back into the balcony, before she could reveal anything improper. Not that I was interested in anything a fourteen-year-old had to show, anyway. Even so, I avoided my gaze.

    Unfortunately, in her flustered moment, Melina miscalculated and fell off the railing ¨C in the wrong direction.

    "Uh, she''s not going to fall off the balcony, is she?"

    "¡­eh?"

    The maids were used to Melina''s antics and assumed that she would land safely back in the balcony, but at my observation, they panicked and spun around with half-shrieks forming in their mouths.

    "Lady Melina!"

    "No!"

    Fortunately, Melina wasn''t that unskilled. She flipped over, grabbing the railing, and then spun about to land back in the balcony, safe and sound. Seemed like the training she went through had served its purpose. I was heartened to see the ease with which she moved, her practiced movements allowing her to circumvent the instance of danger.

    Melina Franklin was certainly no damsel in distress, and no spoilt, pampered princess who required a prince to rescue her.

    Placing both her hands on the railing, and assuming the dignified air of a noble ¨C the only signs of embarrassment being the crimson flush of her cheeks and the slight trembling of her arms and legs ¨C she spoke without establishing eye contact with her maids.

    "Please guide Sensei to his room."

    Then she disappeared back into her own room, shutting the doors to the balcony before any of her maids could respond. I could hear the voice of another maid yelling from within Melina''s room, as she tried to ensure that her lady wasn''t injured or hurt.

    "Good to see Melina again," I muttered, not sure whether I should be amused or taken aback. Amelia nodded politely.

    "I see you''ve met her before."

    "Um, I haven''t just met her before. I taught her in my dad''s dojo as well, before you guys moved back here."

    "Ah, I apologize for all the troubles. Lady Melina had no problem staying in Jing Tian City. Unfortunately, there were certain family¡­problems, and she was forcibly recalled here." Amelia bowed very deeply and apologetically. "Even though we have caused you so many troubles, I am relieved that you accepted our lord''s request with good grace and are willing to make the trip all the way here just to continue your tutorship of our lady."

    "It''s no trouble, really." I raised a hand to assure her.

    "Shall we, then?" Amelia gestured toward the front door. Before she could do anything else, the doors flung open and I caught sight of a couple of elderly butlers coming out to greet us. One of them offered to take my luggage, but once again I declined, assuring him that I could handle my own baggage. "Your room is this way."

    "Thanks."

    As we entered the mansion, the maids and butlers dispersed, with only Amelia remaining to guide me toward my room. I manually lifted up my luggage and followed her up the stairs, to the second level where a luxurious corridor lay, featuring multiple rooms.

    "This is where the servants'' quarters are located," Amelia explained and moved toward the corridor. "We would put you in the guest room, but it appears that you''ll be staying here for the next three years or so, or at least for the long term, so it wouldn''t be practical to house you there."

    "That''s no problem at all," I told her. I wasn''t expecting to live in the guest room anyhow. I was here as an employee, so it made sense that I was housed in the employee quarters. Though I suspected there would be readers inflamed that I was accepting my treatment as a "servant" or some bullshit like that. Just look at the comments for Magic Emperor. "Just be a servant, what a waste!" As if being a bulter or serving a family would somehow turn the story into trash or whatever. Some readers really loved to project themselves into the story or the main characters and whined when things didn''t go the way they wanted. That''s not how you write or read a story, dudes. "I''m sure the accommodations you provide will be more than adequate."

    "I''m relieved to hear that." Amelia nodded. And then she paused. "I don''t know if you''re aware of the family circumstances that our lady has been drawn into, but¡­be careful. There are certain members of the Franklin family who aren''t taking the decision to hire you as her private tutor too kindly. They might make your life difficult. And they aim to make Lady Melina''s life even more difficult."

    "Because they want to ensure she doesn''t inherit her father''s position as head of the Franklin family?" I asked. Amelia''s eyes widened briefly, and she glanced around the corridor before nodding and dropping her voice into a whisper.

    "That certainly is the main cause. I see that you''re already appraised of the situation. However¡­"

    "Rest assured, I have no intention of getting involved in the Franklin family politics or the whole drama over who should be the next head. My only goal is to teach Melina swordsmanship and turn her into a fine swordswoman deserving of the Franklin household."

    "That alone will have political repercussions¡­for, if Melina becomes an excellent swordswoman, her claim to the position of head would be that much greater. Be careful, because there are certain people in the Franklin family who will do everything within their power to prevent that at all costs."

    "I will do my best." I hesitated for a moment and then narrowed my eyes. "Is one of them Kureha Franklin?"

    Amelia just stared at me silently for a long while, and then she finally sighed and averted her gaze.

    "I''m afraid I cannot comment on that."

 458 Chapter 458: A New Place

    I studied my room that Amelia led me to. It looked like a perfectly normal room, not too big or too small, but was spacious enough for my minimum needs. The bed at the center looked comfortable enough, and it was clear that someone had thoroughly cleaned the room before I arrived. Everything was set out neatly and nicely.

    The windows opened up to a clear view of the streets outside, though much of the scenery was obscured by the massive garden between the manor and the fence. Thankfully, my glasses had the functions to magnify my vision and zoom in on the distant streets, in case I needed to watch out for anything happening outside the fence. However, towering above the trees grown in the garden was a beautiful scenery of the city, a panaromic view that was almost breathtaking in the darkness.

    The city lights glittered in the night, resembling almost the stars overhead. Skyscrapers, Gothic-styled cathedrals and churches, and postmodern architectural buildings loomed overhead, looking almost like a city that never sleeps. I couldn''t help but admire the view.

    Then I closed the curtains, to minimize the risk of being spied upon from the outside. Not to mention I wanted my own privacy as well.

    Before I could turn around and begin unpacking my luggage, I suddenly detected the presence of someone approaching my room. No, it wasn''t as impressive as you would think. What, you thought I was some kind of assassin wannabe who was paranoid about visitors dropping by my room, checking in on how I was managing or greeting me or introducing themselves? This isn''t Assassin''s Pride. I wasn''t paranoid enough to place my hand on the hilt of my swords and prepare for an attack out of nowhere.

    As I expected, the person knocked politely on my door, and a soft, timid and familiar voice spoke up.

    "Um¡­Sensei? May I have a moment of your time?"

    I was tempted to say no and shoo her away, but obviously I wasn''t that rude or cranky. I did like Melina, she was like a little sister to me in the same manner Adrian was like a younger brother. So I smiled and opened the door.

    "What''s up, Young Miss? Do you need something?"

    Melina balked at that. "Young Miss? Um, there''s no need to address me so formally. Please call me Melina as you always have."

    Ha ha, yeah. I expected that. I was just teasing her. I smiled, and she relaxed a little, brightening up as she put forth her request.

    "Um, that is¡­"

    She suddenly produced a sword out of nowhere. It was a wooden sword, similar to the bamboo shinai that I had her train with in my dad''s dojo.

    "Before school begins, do you mind giving me a quick lesson right now?"

    Wow¡­she was so eager and impatient to learn, as always. Just like I suspected, she possessed a burning passion for swordsmanship ¨C a little like I did when I was younger. Anyone who tried to bar her from learning swordsmanship just because of a reason as nonsensical as "she has no talent" or excuses to prevent her from inheriting her dad''s position was a bastard. If I could find them, I would beat the living shit out of them¡­okay, I wasn''t a violent person by any means, so I wouldn''t literally hit them. I would probably curse them until they cried.

    However, as much as I appreciated her enthusiasm¡­

    "Lady Melina, do you know what time it is? It''s almost 10pm. I just reached your place. At least give me some time to unpack and settle down before asking for a lesson."

    "A¡­ah!" Melina''s hand flew to her mouth when she realized I was right. "I''m so sorry! I wasn''t thinking!"

    "Oh, no. You don''t have to apologize. I understand how excited you are, and I personally can''t wait to start teaching you again." I patted her head, running my fingers through those golden, silky strands of hair. Giving her a reassuring smile, I then took a step back into the room. "Maybe tomorrow morning, before you go to school? Let''s say¡­6am? That should give you time to wash up, have breakfast and then prepare to head for school by 8am. Your lessons begin at 9am or so, right?"

    "That is correct." Melina beamed. "Thank you very much, Sensei! I''ll see you tomorrow morning then, at 6am!"

    "See you then." I watched as Melina bound down the corridor and disappear into the distance, and then shut the door so that I could return to my own private world.

    Sighing, I glanced around the room on more time and began unpacking my luggage. As I did so, I was reminded that Melina was still attending school. Normally, I would be too, but I had been hired for this job.

    Fortunately, I had completed all of my coursework, and gotten whatever credits I needed to. The only exception was my ice magic, but since I was unable to get into any of the ice magic classes, I had no choice. Furthermore, this request from Duke Fergus Franklin was counted as a "mission", so like all other long-term missions, I was given leave from school to complete it. This particular job also counted as an exchange program, so if anything it would greatly help me in my application for a university and look very good on my resume.

    Honestly, that wasn''t the reason why I accepted the job ¨C I accepted it for one reason and one reason only.

    Because I wanted to help Melina.

    She reminded me awfully of myself, back when I was dismissed as "trash" or weak or incompetent. I got that a lot when i was learning summoning magic. People looked down on me because they believed I would never amount to anything. I was so happy when I proved them wrong. Not that I would gloat over them or slap their faces like those usual cultivation protagonists did, but it was just fun to watch their faces when they realized how wrong they were. It never gets old.

    "Hu¡­"

    I stifled a yawn and exhaled wearily before stretching myself. The trip aboard the train had been quite the grueling one and now I felt exhausted for some reason. With that in mind, I resolved to get some sleep early after unpacking, especially since I promised to train Melina at 6am tomorrow morning. I sure as hell didn''t want to disappoint her by oversleeping and missing the training session completely. Now that would be embarrassing.

    With that settled, I proceeded to do whatever I needed to. Oh, and I still had a couple of anime episodes to stream and watch before I went to bed too¡­

    *

    The next morning, I found Melina fresh and early, already waiting for me in the back garden of her manor. She was dressed in her gym clothing, unlike the white and red dress uniform that she was wearing yesterday. So instead of a skirt, she was wearing black shorts. Good, because I wasn''t the kind who enjoyed providing fanservice and all that nonsense.

    "Sensei, I''m ready!" she called out, holding her bamboo sword straight up and assuming the usual stance. I could tell from her focused expression, pale complexion and beads of perspiration that she was extremely nervous.

    "I can see that," I responded with a light smile. "Do you remember the three forms that I taught you back in the dojo?"

    "Yes!" Without waiting for me to ask her to display them, Melina was already moving. She thrust her sword outward and then spun around elegantly, each of her movements crisp and sharp. Each of her strokes was precise and fluid, and though there were a few flaws here and there, it was evident that she had put in a lot of effort into her swordsmanship training.

    The sessions we went through back in Jing Tian City were beginning to bear fruit. I was scoffing inwardly at all the detractors who claimed that Melina had no talent for the sword. They were clearly blind and delusional¡­or they were desperate because they recognized that she had the potential to derail their plans and take over her father''s position as head of the Franklin family.

    Their plans were doomed at this rate.

    "Excellent." Pushing my glasses up my nose, I then reached for my own wooden shinai. Pulling it out of the cloth, I then adopted a stance of my own. "All right, let''s move to the next step. Shall we spar a little?"

    "Much obliged!"

    Melina executed one of her strengths ¨C like her mother, she was an excellent mage and I could see her golden mana flare up around her. There was a touch of majesty to it, and I felt as if I was witnessing a lion rising up and roaring proudly to challenge the heavens. She kind of reminded me of Leo, though given her gender she was more akin to a lioness rather than a lion. Still no less dignified, ferocious and majestic, of course.

    Gender had nothing to do with strength and honor, after all. A lioness was still a dignified warrior.

    As a show of respect for her skills, I also activated my own mana. In contrast to Melina''s bright, luminous golden aura, mine was black ¨C as dark as the night, and giving an ominous and treacherous feel. Even so, Melina brightened up, her eyes and mouth open wide in wonder at the intimidating sight.

    "Wow!"

    She clasped her hands and watched my mana admiringly.

    "Sensei''s mana is such a cool black! I always thought you were cool back when you were competing in the tournament, but seeing it up close like this makes me respect you even more!"

    "Uh, I don''t really deserve your respect," I said, feeling embarrassed. "My mana lacks the pride and majesty that yours have¡­"

    And it was no wonder. Melina was from the Franklin household, despite the stupid rumors that her relatives spread about her. Quite clearly they fabricated those false DNA tests while rejecting the authentic ones for no reason other than to further their nefarious agendas. Just from the mana alone I could tell that she was a proud scion of the Franklin household and was undoubtedly the daughter of Fergus Franklin. There was a noble air to her golden aura, one borne out of the highest ranks of past royalty.

    "Um¡­Sensei, I am aware that Jing Tian Academy doesn''t categorize its students into classes and roles as such, but¡­if you were to evaluate yourself using the system of my school ¨C of Saint Teresa Academy ¨C what class do you think yours would be?"

    "Your school doesn''t have the summoner class?"

    "Uh, maybe? I thought you were of the Samurai class. So did Kufa Van Peer Senpai¡­"

    "Give the whole samurai thing a rest already." I groaned. As much as there were stupid hints and lampshading references throughout the last few chapters, this was NOT Assassin''s Pride. Something the creator and some of the characters in the sotry had to get through their head. "I''m not a bloody Samurai! And before you ask, I''m not an assassin either!"

    "You don''t fight like a Dragoon either," Melina continued thoughtfully. "Those are mounted warriors, but you don''t ride on your Soul Beasts to fight."

    "Because I''m not a damned Dragoon! Are all summoners in Saint Teresa Academy Dragoons?"

    "Um¡­" Melina cocked her head to the side, seriously considering my query. "That''s a good question. I have no idea. I have not heard of any of the classes using summoning magic. Even the Samurai class¡­they are well known for their incredible speed, but I have never heard of any Samurai summoning monsters to fight for them."

    "That''s because I''m NOT a Samurai!" I hollered in exasperation, and then shook my head in resignation. This joke was getting very stale, and I strove to move on from it. Swinging my wooden sword to ease the muscles in my arm, I then took a step forward. "More importantly, let''s get back to training."

    "Ah, yes, Sensei!"

    Realizing that she had strayed from the point of this morning''s meeting, Melina quickly retreated and stopped ten steps away from me, holding her sword high up. Unlike her, I relaxedand rested the false blade of my shinai in my hand while rotating my shoulders to warm up. Smiling brightly, I beckoned for her to begin.

    "Please attack me however you want." Grinning confidently, I allowed my black mana to flare up around myself aggressively. "Don''t worry about hurting me. Even if you think your sword will hit me, don''t hold back and strike. Come at me with everything you have, and use all your strength. Otherwise this won''t count as sparring."

    "I¡­I understand!" Squeezing the handle of her wooden sword, Melina nodded as she forced herself to stop trembling. Sucking in a deep breath, she then focused her gaze on me.

    For a few moments, nothing happened. The both of us just stood there, neither of us moving. There was a rustle as the breeze gently swirled in, a faint cry of a flying bird, and the crisp chirp of a bug nearby.

    And then, with a determined yell, Melina narrowed her eyes and launched herself, swinging her sword down upon my position.

 459 Chapter 459: More Training

    As Melina charged at me, her sword flaring with fiery golden mana, I raised my own shinai and parried her strike.

    "Hmm?"

    At the moment of contact, there was a huge explosion, and the ground beneath my shoes cracked. The sheer force that Melina put behind her blow shattered concrete and almost blew me off my feet. Even so, I managed to hold firm and tried to fling her off, but she did a back flip before counterattacking. I barely managed to dodge her thrust, and I retaliated with a riposte that almost caught her by the back of her neck.

    "!!!"

    Melina twisted around and fended off my strike, and then she reversed the grip on her sword and tried to strike me. Despite her swift, precise movements, it was too predictable. I had read her movements almost accurately and blocked her strike.

    At first I thought she was trying a feint, but she wasn''t. Consequently, when my follow-up defense forced her back, she stumbled and fell.

    "Whoa!"

    "Sorry, Melina! Are you all right?!"

    While I rushed over to a fallen Melina, reaching out to help her out, I saw that she was looking downward bitterly. Damn it, did I perhaps go overboard? I should have held back more¡­

    For a few moments, Melina kept her gaze lowered, but then she quickly got back to her feet and smiled brightly, brushing the dust off her gym clothing.

    "Don''t worry, Sensei! I''m all right! I''m used to this!"

    She then strode forward eagerly, almost in my face while clutching her sword tightly, her cheeks flushed in determination.

    "Sensei, again! I can still fight!"

    I studied her resolute expression for a few seconds, and saw that she looked a little afraid that I would reject her or scorn her¡­or that I would stop and give up, and then I smiled. Like hell I would do something as stupid as that.

    "Yeah, let''s do that. Once more!"

    Melina obediently retreated ten steps and got ready to attack again. This time, I tried to restrain myself despite the ferocious golden aura that she emanated. The first time she attacked, I was almost caught by surprise. I had thought her stronger than she originally was ¨C and let''s be clear, she certainly was strong. In terms of magic¡­she was powerful, especially because she obviously possessed plenty of mana.

    Unfortunately, her practical application of mana into her swordsmanship was a little lacking. She was a bit too clumsy and direct, relying almost on brute force ¨C a stark contrast to the elegant, fluid sword techniques that she was executing. With such opposites clashing against each other, it would be difficult for her to integrate them seamlessly.

    For now, I would spar a bit with her and see what other problems she had. Melina charged again, and delivered a perfectly memorized series of strikes that were reminiscent of what I had taught her. They were almost too perfect¡­except that they felt a bit too robotic. How do I put it? It felt as if she was merely going through the motions.

    Clang!

    A few more times and a few more exchanges, and Melina was back on the floor. Every time she would get up and challenge me again, and I indulged her for a few more rounds. The more we fought, the more I understood.

    Now I realized why there were rumors about Melina being incompetent in swordsmanship, and why her relatives scoff at her attempts to learn it. As I feinted to the left, Melina completely fell for it and I knocked her back, sending her flying.

    Melina, despite the fluid and elegant strokes she delivered with her sword, was too rigid. She had committed the sword techniques to memory ¨C to a very impressive degree, yes, but that perfect memorization had ended up being shackles on her. She couldn''t stray away from what she had learned, couldn''t adapt or change accordingly. Not only that, she was too direct and¡­honest. She couldn''t do any feints, and she was completely deceived by mine, unable to tell apart a ruse from a real attack. While her skills would undoubtedly help her against regular monsters, she would have trouble against a human opponent. Her rigid adherence to what she thought were sacred forms and moves made her extremely predictable and easy to manipulate¡­as long as one had experience fighting against her, they could so easily counter whatever attacks she threw at them.

    "You need to be more adaptable," I told Melina as she lay sprawled on the ground, panting heavily from the exertion. She could barely speak, her sweat-streaked face pale as a ghost and her matted golden hair pressed to the ground. Watching her, I gave an encouraging smile. "You''ve learned the sword techniques well enough and it''s clear that you''ve put in a lot effort, but your attacks are too predictable. And you need to learn how to react to feints."

    "I will do my best, Sensei."

    "I know you will." I prepared to sit beside her, but Melina forced herself to her feet, smiling eagerly. Somehow she had managed to recover a bit of strength from lying down for a couple of minutes. How it must be like to be young¡­I really envied her.

    "Sensei, again!"

    "Nah¡­that''s enough for today."

    "Eh¡­but I haven''t had enough!"

    "Maybe you haven''t, but I''m afraid your poor wooden sword is done for the day." I pointed at her broken weapon. She gasped when she saw that there was nothing left of her wooden blade except splinters. Evidently she had infused the wooden sword with way too much mana to the point where it couldn''t withstand the power and split apart eventually.

    "Um¡­I''ll go get a replacement right away!"

    Flustered, Melina made to run toward the shed next to her garden, where all her practice tools and weapons were stored, but I caught her by the collar before she could get very far.

    "Nope, you won''t. We''re done for this morning, at least. Any more training would have to be done tonight." Pushing up my glasses, I pointed at the sun, which was slowly rising over the horizon and was brightening up the sky into a deep blue. "Have you forgotten that you have classes at 9am? You should go get ready, wash up, have breakfast and then head to school. I won''t have you using my lessons as an excuse to skip class."

    "No, I would never!" Melina looked aghast that I would ever suggest a thing. I merely smiled and shook my head.

    "I know you wouldn''t. I was joking."

    "Ah¡­"

    "Young Miss¡­" Amelia showed up. "It''s almost time for school. Let''s get you washed up and ready for it. Also, we have breakfast prepared¡­"

    Clasping her hands, Melina glanced down before nodding. She turned back to me.

    "Sensei¡­"

    "Yeah?"

    "I¡­I''ll do my best in every lesson you give me. One day¡­I''ll definitely be a swordswoman that the Franklin family will be proud of!"

    I watched her as she trembled violently, unable to conceal the anxiety that she felt. I felt a pang of mental anguish. For someone as young as her to suffer under such social and familial pressure when she really should be enjoying her youth at that age¡­it was so unfair.

    Right there and there, I renewed my vow to never give up on her, no matter what. I was going to turn her into a skilled and dignified swordswoman worthy of the Franklin name¡­no, a sword saintess that even the Franklin family wouldn''t deserve!

    "As I said, I can tell how much effort and hard work you''ve put into learning swordsmanship," I assured her. "Your form was perfect, and I''m very proud to see that you''ve learned the techniques I''ve taught you so flawlessly in such a short time. You have the potential to surpass your cousin, this much I am certain of."

    "¡­eh¡­? Really?"

    Melina could scarcely believe what she was hearing, and I didn''t blame her. That was the outrageous claim to make, by any standards. Not that I planned to withdraw it. After all, I truly believed that.

    "Yeah. So believe in yourself. You just need more combat experience." I drew to my full height. "And whenever you''re in doubt, remember this. No one is born knowing how to wield a sword. Everyone has to start from somewhere. Right now you are admittedly quite some distance away from Kureha Franklin, but that means nothing in a few years. Practice. Keep practicing. Swordsmanship, just like any craft, is all about practicing. Magic too. I''ll have you know that I started at the bottom of my school rankings, but I refused to give up and continued practicing summoning magic¡­to the point where I was able to climb the ranks and surpass the people who looked down on me for being trash or whatever. And if I can do it, so can you."

    "Phew¡­"

    Melina sighed a huge breath of relief and smiled, her cheeks coloring from the praise. She then bowed, her golden hair flying up above her from the swift, abrupt movement.

    "Thank you very much!"

    Amelia came over and clapped her hands, delighted.

    "Isn''t that great, my lady? He said that your sword form was perfect! That''s amazing!"

    Melina giggled, partially embarrassed from all the praise she was receiving. She was downright glowing. I hoped that she wouldn''t let all this flattery get to her head. While Melina was basking in the glow, Amelia turned toward me brightly.

    "Richard!" She addressed me directly. "Please take care of our young miss at school as well!"

    "Eh?!" Melina was so taken aback that she couldn''t suppress a surprised cry, her jaw dropping. "S¡­Sensei is accompanying me to school?!"

    "Yes," Amelia replied smoothly. "Were you not aware?"

    Obviously not¡­

    "Um, apparently I''m supposed to take the classes that I would miss in Jing Tian Academy in Saint Teresa Academy. They are treating this as some sort of exchange program." Even though that was technically the rationale behind my exchange program, I had already taken all the credits for my classes and completed my coursework back at Jing Tian Academy, so I couldn''t see the point of taking another combat magic class or whatever in Saint Teresa Academy. Even so, I couldn''t be seen doing nothing and slacking off in Saint Teresa Academy. That would leave a very bad impression on the other side, and they would accuse me of making use of connections to get in. Given that it was indeed my connections to Duke Franklin that got me into the school, they weren''t wrong, but even so it was unpleasant to be gossiped about and criticized unfairly.

    "Ah, so Sensei is an exchange student at my school!" Melina nodded, comprehending. "That makes sense! So we''ll be going to school together!"

    "That''s pretty much it, yeah," I agreed. "So let''s get ready. I don''t want to be late for my first day of class at Saint Teresa Academy too."

    "I¡­I''m going to get changed!"

    Flustered for some reason, Melina spun away and ran off, fleeing back into the house. I watched her, a little puzzled, only to realize that she was slightly embarrassed. At the side, Amelia chuckled and shook her head in wonder.

    "Like I said, Richard, I''ll be counting on you."

    "Yeah, okay." My mind was already shifting to other matters. As I said, it would be a waste of time for me to retake combat magic classes. Okay, perhaps Saint Teresa Academy was probably a more prestigious school than Jing Tian Academy and they might have a superior syllabus or something, but unfortunately I had spent way too much time out on the field, doing missions, fighting monsters and combating Assassins. There was little I could learn from academic classes on combat magic, not when I had quite a wealth of actual practical experience.

    Even so, I still had to take a class as a formality, to show the higher-ups and board that I was doing something. That I wasn''t wasting my time doing nothing.

    Wait¡­

    "Do they have ice magic classes at Saint Teresa Academy?" I asked Amelia. Stupid question, of course they would. The real question was whether they had any space for an extra student this semester.

    "I wouldn''t know. You will have to go to the school directly and find out," the stunned maid replied.

    "Okay. Thanks, I will."

    I fervently prayed that they would have some space to accommodate me. If they did, then this so-called internship or "exchange" might turn out to be a blessing in disguise¡­

 460 Chapter 460: School Days

    As expected of a noble, wealthy district, the way to Saint Teresa Academy was paved with good intentions¡­I mean lots of money, and expensive marble. Evidently some famous architect had been paid millions just to design the exquisite-looking bridge and roads that wove through the suburbs, with neatly pruned trees standing on either side like silent sentinels.

    Accompanying Melina to school, I watched worriedly as she gripped the straps of a huge bag, looking as if she was being weighed down by it.

    "Melina, that looks heavy. Want me to carry that for you?"

    "No¡­no need!"

    The blond girl shook her head hastily and clutched the big bag to tightly her chest, looking a little flustered. Lady, I''m not going to steal your bag from you, you know? There''s no need to be on your guard.

    We neared the school, and I glanced up at half-gaped at the massive entrance that made up the gates, a colossal archway with what looked like gigantic gleaming gemstones set within their tips. Already there were many students milling about at the gate, passing through the entrance to get to school. One of them waved at us when she caught sight of Melina.

    "You''ve finally showed up!"

    It was another girl, who was of similar age as Melina. Just like her, she clearly seemed to be from a noble family, with her graceful air and stylishly permed hair. Placing a hand on her hip, she gazed at my poor charge arrogantly.

    "Took you long enough, Melina!"

    The girl in question flinched and took a step back. There was no way I wouldn''t notice that, and I stepped forward instinctively, almost as if to shield her.

    "Eh? You''ve a new manservant? Why is he accompanying you to school?"

    The noble lady frowned and bent forward, both hands on her hips this time.

    "I''m not her servant." Actually, I was her private tutor, but I didn''t plan on sharing that information with her. "And what business might you have with Melina?"

    "It is all right, Sensei." My disciple tugged at my sleeve nervously. "Nirvana doesn''t mean any harm."

    She then forced a smile and bowed politely, greeting her "friends."

    "Good morning, everyone!"

    "Morning," Nirvana replied with a grin, and then thrust her hand forward. Whoa, what a rude and self-entitled person. "Do you have it?"

    "..."

    Melina fell silent for a few moment before she obliged, digging through her bag and plucking out a few volumes of novels. Without even a word of thanks, Nirvana snatched the books out of Melina''s hands and cheered.

    "This is it! Bean Ding Ding''s The Bumpy Road of Marriage: Divorce Now, Daddy! What a relief! My family is strict, so they don''t allow me to buy romance novels like these."

    Because they are the same trashy CEO novels with a toxic male lead who raped and abused the female main character, who still somehow fell for him because he happened to be rich and handsome? Not to mention having a super-ass long title that made no sense? Of course they would ban you from reading such nonsense ¨C they promoted rape and encouraged the idea that it''s all right for a man to rape and abuse you (both physically and mentally) as long as he was rich and handsome!

    However, I couldn''t say that to the girls, obviously. From a glance, I could tell that they were the toxic sort of fangirls who would screech and find a way to utterly destroy me socially if I so much as breathe a word of criticism of their beloved CEO romance story.

    "Lady Nirvana! Please let me borrow it next!"

    "Me next!"

    "Hey," I snarled as I stepped forward, feeling fury rise within me. Noble or not (and I honestly couldn''t give a crap about social standings), they were pissing me off and I wasn''t going to let Melina take this lying down. "Where are your manners? Do you just take things from others like that, without a single word of thanks? And these books belong to Melina, don''t they? Why are you acting like they belong to you, and you girls over there, shouldn''t you be asking Melina instead?"

    The girls all stared at me as if I was some kind of unusual specimen caged in a zoo. It was a very uncomfortable feeling, especially since their gazes were extremely condescending.

    "Oh, and who might this person be, Melina?"

    The fuck? Was she ignoring me? Were all the girls ignoring me!?

    "Ah¡­this is my private tutor," Melina replied nervously. "He will be accompanying me from now on."

    "Oh?! Lady Melina has a private tutor!?"

    The rest of the girls reacted in surprise, gasping as they brought their hands up to their faces dramatically. Unfazed, Nirvana casually handed her bag off to one of her entourage, approached me and gripped the hem of her skirt before doing a curtsy.

    "How do you do?" she greeted me formally. "I am Nirvana of the Mallory family."

    She then smiled brightly and giggled, though I detected something sinister about that supposedly bright expression.

    "As members of the same squad, Melina and I are very close friends."

    "From an outsider''s perspective, you don''t seem like friends." I shut my eyes briefly and sighed. "You seem more like a bully taking advantage of my lady."

    "Excuse me?!" Nirvana thundered. I shrugged.

    "Ah, I apologize for being blunt. Since I am not a noble myself, I have no idea how I''m supposed to speak in this sort of situation."

    "Well, first you can begin by introducing yourself." Nirvana''s eyes glinted maliciously as she regained her composure. I immediately understood why she was asking for my identity. If she knew who I was, she could immediately begin investigations and carry out her plans of revenge. Being a noble, it wasn''t as if she would directly beat me up, but she could secretly hire people to do so. Or perhaps dig out the skeletons in my closest and destroy me socially. What, did you think this was some kind of urban cultivation novel where every rich person would just hire assassins to kill a random nobody? As rich as they were, they weren''t stupid enough to waste that sort of money and risk commiting such crimes. They would just want to intimidate the poor guy, not actually kill him.

    "I am an exchange student from Jing Tian Academy," I began, and then Nirvana cut me off with a high-pitched peal of laughter.

    "Jing Tian Academy?! Did you say Jing Tian Academy?! That low-ranked, third-rate school from the middle of nowhere?"

    "Well, it is on the edge of the Federation," I admitted good-naturedly, relieved that I was able to omit my name somehow.

    "Ha ha ha! And you presume to lecture me on manners? A lowborn commoner scum such as yourself?" Nirvana held her stomach as she tried to stop laughing. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she then studied me. "Wait a minute¡­in the first place, how does one such as yourself even begin to teach a student of Saint Teresa Academy?"

    Then she struck her palm with her fist and turned to stare at Melina, wide-eyed, as if realization had just dawned on her.

    "Of course! Given that the lady in question is our beloved Melina Franklin, it is only fitting that a low-class tutor from a no-name school would be the sole person willing to teach her! No other private tutors worth their salt would want to be seen with a failure such as the talentless incompetent girl!"

    Her entourage broke out into cruel laughter. Behind me, Melina''s shoulders sagged, and she struggled to hold her tears back.

    "Ha ha ha!"

    I also laughed along with them. It took them a few moments to realize that I was laughing as well, and they stopped to gaze at me in shock. Gradually calming down, I shook my head in amusement and snorted.

    "I didn''t think there would be dogs here at Saint Teresa Academy. I heard many good things about it, but the first thing I encounter when I actually visit it is the unpleasant experience of listening to a pack of dogs howling and barking at the entrance. The school could really use some better security."

    "Did¡­did you just call us dogs?" Nirvana flared up in outrage. I cupped my ear and looked around in mock confusion.

    "What''s that? Oh, sorry. I don''t speak dog language. All I hear is more barking."

    "You¡­! How dare you, you insolent¡­! Retract your sentence immediately!"

    "Oh, I might be mistaken, after all. You''re not dogs." I paused dramatically, before grinning. "You''re nothing more than bitches."

    "!!!"

    There was a few moments of disbelieving silence as everyone at the school gate stared at me in astonishment. Perhaps i had gone too far, but at this point, I didn''t care. The so-called noble ladies started this farce, and I was more than happy to finish it. What, was it fair that they could insult other people, but they couldn''t take one back?

    What hypocritical bullshit.

    "Sensei¡­that''s enough." Melina tugged at my hand. "I''m happy that you''re standing up for me, but let''s stop here before it gets any worse."

    "Sure." If Melina wanted to leave it at that, then I was more than happy to oblige. However, the matter was far from settled.

    "How dare you¡­"

    Nirvana was shaking violently, glaring at me with so much hatred and fury that I almost thought she would literally blow up.

    "I won''t stand for this insult. This isn''t over!"

    "In other words, you can dish it but can''t take it." I sighed. "You know what they say. Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones."

    "You will not get away with this!" Nirvana was pulling out her smartphone and dialing a number. "You better not go anywhere!"

    Oh, what was this? The clich¨¦ call for help scene? Let me guess, she was going to call her brother or her father or uncle and get him to gather a gang, come to school and then beat me up? Nah, that sort of stupid thing never happened in reality. No, seriously¡­in what universe (other than unrealistic urban cultivation stories) do you have a whole gang showing up in a public school to beat up a single person? You think the police or authorities are going to sit by idly and allow such illegal gatherings to happen?

    Even if the father was some rich bigshot with political clout, that was all the more reason for him to avoid getting involved in such scandals, because they would destroy their public image with such blatant abuse of power. But of course, these urban cultivation web novelists didn''t have the slightest notion of how reality worked and they needed a way for their protagonists to "get into trouble", only for him to beat the gang up and slap the faces of everyone. Also, if such things happened ¨C if a secret society or violent gang showed up in school, wouldn''t the natural response to call the police and hide somewhere for safety, not¡­you know, stand around and trash-talking the main character as if the whole thing had nothing to do with them?

    Sometimes the sheer lack of logic of these urban cultivation stories never ceased to amaze me.

    Unfortunately, that seemed to be Nirvana''s plan of action.

    "Brother," she said sweetly into the phone. "Some lowborn commoner just had the audacity to insult me. Could you please come over to the middle school sction and help me teach him a lesson? Show him his place."

    There was some response, and then a click. Nirvana lowered her smartphone and smiled triumphantly at me.

    "There is nowhere for you to run, commoner. My brother is a high-ranking Paladin in the high school section. He will teach you your place."

    Ignoring her, I stared up at the sky and straight past the fourth wall. Please, creator¡­don''t resort to these sort of clich¨¦s. Don''t you dare resort to this stupid clich¨¦ of evil rich villains and their gangs or hired hitmen, and then face-slapping¡­

    "What happened, Nirvana?"

    At the gruff voice, I turned around and caught sight of a handsome guy with slick, gelled hair leading a small group of high school students, all of whom were emanating masculinity and aggression, their powerful mana pouring off their bodies.

    "I rushed over as soon as you called me. I heard some rumors along the way, but¡­"

    "That commoner over there insulted me. Called me and my friends dogs¡­no, bitches."

    "Hey, you started it," I retorted. "Where do you get off, insulting my lady, and then acting like the victim here? So it''s fair if you insult Melina, but others can''t call you out on it? Like I said, you can dish it but can''t take it. What sort of logic is that?"

    "Silence, you trash!" Nirvana snarled, and then turned to her brother. "See? This idiot refuses to repent¡­brother?"

    Nirvana''s brother was staring at me for a few seconds now, and then his jaw dropped. Whirling around, he slapped his sister.

    Everyone watched in shock as a loud crack echoed throughout the school courtyard. Even the proud Nirvana froze, her hand coming up to her stinging cheek in reflex. She stared at her brother in disbelief, her mouth trying to form words but her voice refusing to come out.

    For a few moments, nobody said anything. Nirvana was still clutching at her reddened cheek, tears almost leaking from her red eyes as she continued to gape at her brother, not comprehending what had just transpired.

    "W¡­why?" she finally managed.

    "Are you an idiot?!" Her brother growled angrily. "Do you know who you''ve just offended!? You''re lucky I was here, or you will embarrass our Mallory family even more!"

    "Huh? But this person¡­isn''t he just a nobody from the obscure and third-rate Jing Tian Academy? Why should we care about offending him?"

    "You still don''t recognize who this person is?!" Her brother roared in exasperation, throwing his hands up. He gestured wildly to me. "This is Richard Huang ¨C the person who single-handedly eliminated our entire team from the national high school tournament a few weeks ago¡­by wiping out five of our core members during the individual matches. All by himself!"

    I must admit, the incredulous expression of Nirvana that materialized as a response to that revelation actually made me burst out laughing.

 461 Chapter 461: On Ice

    Unfortunately, I didn''t have time to dwell too much on Nirvana''a surprised reaction because I had more important things to do. For one thing, I needed to register for classes now that I was at Saint Teresa Academy. It was only natural. I had better things to do than gloat over someone brainless enough to mock me when she wasn''t even aware of my identity.

    This was why you should never scorn or look down on people condescendingly. You might never know ¨C they might just be keeping a low profile for whatever reason. Just because you had never heard of them before or never met or saw them before didn''t mean you could just mock them¡­and all because you happened to be born in a rich or renowned family.

    Not that I cared, nor was I in the mood to preach. I was more concerned with finding out how to register for ice magic classes. Since I had the chance, I might as well try and register for that super popular and elusive class. Even though ice magic was nowhere as in demand as fire magic, the classes for it in Jing Tian Academy were always were always fully booked. Back then I never thought I would have to worry about ice magic and stuff because I was so focused on summoning magic, and I had wood magic to back it up, but as it turned out, wood magic was not a good fit for my summoning magic. It didn''t synergize very well with the Greek portion of my Constellation magic, and my affinity for it was limited. Ice was proving to be a better fit, especially when I learned more about it and found how it synergized better with my Constellation magic.

    Nirvana''s brother, Miroku, was kind enough to lead me to the office, much to his distraught sister''s dismay. Nirvana and her entourage were so embarrassed that they fled somewhere after the debacle, and Miroku was kind enough to remain behind to clean up his sister''s mess for her. Truth be told, he was arrogant like his sister, but he only treated me deferentially because he had firsthand witnessed my strength and therefore respected me for it.

    I was glad that he was helpful, and looked forward to enrolling in ice magic classes here. Throughout Flandor City, there were thirteen schools specialized in training mages in a manner similar to Jing Tian Academy as well as the other institutions that had participated in the high school tournament a few weeks ago. Saint Teresa was the most well known in this particular city, aand was located in a prime position ¨C the southern section of the Cardinal District. It was famous for raising many renowned and powerful mages, such as the scions and Paladins of the Franklin family. In fact, most of the Sword Saints and Saintesses had been raised and educated within the esteemed halls of Saint Teresa Academy. The school therefore held a status unlike no other within the same city.

    "We''re here!"

    "Hmm¡­"

    After Miroku''s announcement, I glanced around at the exquisitely decorated corridor before moving my gaze toward the office. Bowing politely and thanking the guy, I then proceeded to knock on the door. There was a gentle, "come in" from within, and I obliged, pushing the door open and stepping into the office.

    "Ah, you''re finally here." looking up, an elderly lady in her sixties beamed brightly, her eyes gleaming behind her eyeglasses wheb she caught sight of me. "Richard Huang, was it? The exchange student from Jing Tian Academy. We''ve been expecting you."

    "Ma''am," I greeted deferentially, with a slight bow of my head. The elderly lady chuckled and waved her hand dismissively.

    "Don''t need to be so formal. I''m Teresa Taylor, the headmistress of Saint Teresa Academy. And yes, my bearing the same name as my school is a total coincidence."

    Her humor was disarming, and I couldn''t help but smile at her quiet joke.

    "You probably don''t need much guidance around, but if you need any assistance, please don''t hesitate to ask. I''m sure that every student or teacher here will be more than happy to help."

    "Yes, ma''am."

    "As I said, you don''t need to be so formal." Teresa Taylor continued waving her hand airily. "I''ve heard quite a bit from Duke Franklin, who recommended you for this exchange program. He holds you in high regard, and is quite certain that you''ll be the right person to serve as the private tutor for his daughter ¨C and having seen your impressive display during the tournament, I am inclined to agree."

    She then chuckled, holding a hand up to conceal her mouth as she did so. A very noble-like manner.

    "I must say, I was astonished when you all-killed our entire team."

    "Sorry about that."

    "Why are you apologizing?" Teresa Taylor was taken aback, and then she burst out laughing. "You did what you needed to win. Yes, our defeat was a little embarrassing, but we were more awestruck by your achievement than offended. And honestly, I believe there was a silver lining. My students have grown complacent, so cocksure of their own abilities and strength. You did me a favor by knocking their overly inflated pride down a peg. I am confident that none of my students will ever dare underestimate an opponent ever again."

    "Thank you." I suppressed the desire to shrug. I knew that the headmistress of Saint Teresa Academy wasn''t intending to flatter me. She was being genuine in her praise, and acknowledged the weaknesses and flaws of her own students, which amazed me. Not to mention, it was also refreshing. If this was an urban cultivation story, or even a xianxia cultivation story, the headmistress or headmaster would be looking for every way to find fault for me, scheme to get me into trouble or make my life difficult as revenge for "humiliating" her or his school in the previous tournament. While I wasn''t na?ve enough to claim that no such juvenile headmasters or headmistresses existed, the sheer number of times they kept appearing in iteration after iteration of webnovels, and the huge number of writers resorting to this overused clich¨¦ was absurd.

    Thank God the creator wasn''t going to throw that clich¨¦ in, or I would break through the fourth wall and wring his neck.

    "If I''m not mistaken, not only will you be attending classes here, as an exchange student, you will also be welcome to participate in missions offered by the academy."

    I brightened up at that. Taking missions would alleviate the otherwise monotonous routine of daily school life, and give me an excuse to escape my teaching duties. As much as I wanted to help Melina, there would be instances where I wanted some time to myself, an opportunity to cut loose and hunt monsters or something.

    This revelation was a godsend.

    "Yes, Headmistress. I will be more than happy to participate in missions as well."

    "Good. I knew I could count on you." Teresa Taylor nodded in approval, and then returned her attention to the desk. "You are a highly rated student, after all, with a wealth of practical combat experience out on the field. Director Violet told me that I shouldn''t waste your abilities by keeping you cooped up in school all the time."

    Looked like Director Vincent Violet had exchanged a few words with Headmistress Teresa Taylor prior to my arrival. I wasn''t privy to the contents of their full conversation, but I could guess that they made some sort of deal. Adults and their political games¡­

    "All right, Miss Madeline May will help you with your registration. If you have any questions about administrative matters, be sure to ask her."

    "Yes, Headmistress Taylor." I saluted, and then realized that this wasn''t the appropriate place. I had been spending too much time hanging out with people from a military organization. Perhaps I should just join the mercenaries after I graduate from college.

    Taylor chuckled at my antics, and then gestured for me to leave. A younger woman ¨C an office lady in her thirties and dressed in a prim and proper office attire (smartly ironed blouse and business skirt) ¨C showed up, coming through another door and indicating that I follow her. Without any other recourse, I obeyed.

    "Are there any classes in particular that you wish to register for?" Madeline May asked politely as she returned to sit at her desk, conjuring up a holographic screen. I caught a glimpse of my student profile and personal information.

    "Yeah, actually¡­are there any open slots in the ice magic classes?"

    "Hmm¡­I can check for you. The elemental classes tend to be very popular¡­especially the fire and ice classes." Madeline May frowned as she ran through several checks. Then she beamed in triumph as she swiped through a window. "You''re in luck. There just happens to be exactly one vacancy in Teacher Einsberg''s class at this very moment. Seems like one of the students opted to drop out of the class partway through the semester."

    Oh, right. I suddenly recalled that this was in the middle of a semester, after all. So much time had passed since the start of the semester that I had already finished my coursework and earned whatever necessary credits required to pass my classes back in Jing Tian Academy. However, in terms of the classes here at Saint Teresa Academy, I had arrived at quite the odd time. I was way behind everyone else in terms of starting out, and I wondered if I could catch up on ice magic.

    "Don''t worry." As if she read my mind, Madeline May offered her assurance. "Einsberg is a very helpful and nice teacher. He will help you catch up in no time at all, and he will understand if you fall behind. As long as you put in the required amount of effort, he will give you whatever leeway you need."

    "That sounds encouraging." I exhaled in relief, but somehow I still felt a sense of unease. It was only natural ¨C even when someone told me that everything would be all right, there would always be there small, skeptical voice nagging at the corner of my mind, reminding me not to lower my guard and to be wary of excessive optimism, or a sense of anxiety that was sure that everything wasn''t going to be so simple. "I will do my best."

    "All right, I got you registered for that class. Is there any other classes you wish to enroll in?"

    After a few swipes and typing with her fingers, Madeline May glanced up and smiled at me. I pondered for a moment, and then shook my head.

    "Not right now, no."

    "Okay, then." Madeline May leaned back on her chair and stared at me. "That should be all. If there''s still anything you need, don''t hesitate to let me know!"

    "Yes, ma''am. Thank you, ma''am."

    Madeline May raised an eyebrow, as if wondering why the military speak. I could only shrug helplessly, and then she sighed and projected a map into my smartphone.

    "Follow the directions and it should lead you to your classroom." She consulted the on-screen clock that was at the bottom right of the holographic window. "Your lesson should begin in thirty minutes, so you have plenty of time to look for it. I''ll send Teacher Einsberg an email, but just to be on the safe side, talk to him before class begins."

    "I will," I promised. And then I left the office.

    The classroom was easy to find. Relying on the holographic paths that were beamed straight from my smartphone to my glasses, I followd the projected light trajectory that was displayed on my lenses and reached my destination in no time at all. A short while later, a balding man with reedy hair and glasses arrived, his fingers combing through whatever few strands of gray hair he had left on his head. He glanced up and stared at me in surprise.

    "Oh?" When he realized he didn''t recognize me, he suddenly remembered something and glanced at his smartphone. Smiling, he stretched out his hand. Unsure of what to do, I took it and shook his hand. "You must be the exchange student from Jing Tian Academy."

    "Yes, sir."

    "Good, very good." The balding old man beamed as he shook my hand heartily. "I''m Edward Einsberg, and I teach ice magic. It''ll be a pleasure to have you in my class."

    "Thank you, sir."

    "Well, let''s not stand around outside the classroom." Einsberg smiled as he directed me toward the classroom. "Let''s introduce you to everyone. I hope you don''t mind meeting me after class. We''ll see what we can do about you missing a big part of the semester beforehand¡­"

 462 Chapter 462: Practical Examination

    In Melina''s class, the gray-haired, bespectacled teacher was making an announcement while holding up a book in one hand. Why, I had no idea. Was she reading the announcement out from the book or something? Well, whatever. It was none of my business.

    I recalled my professor did have a bunch of notes to refer to while conducting his lecture, so it wasn''t all that unusual. And unlike back then, where we had Powerpoint slides (and the professors could refer to notes that were privately displayed on their primary screen as opposed to the one projected onto the board), the modern (or future for you readers) didn''t really make use of that. They had private holographic screens from their smartphones or devices, which they linked to their personal portable computer and were able to read from there.

    So why the teacher was reading from something as anachronistic as a book, I had no idea. But whatever. Maybe we were still meant to be parodying Assasin''s Pride or something.

    "Everyone, I''m sure you''re looking forward to the summer holidays!" the teacher declared with a smile. Everyone just exchanged a few glances and nodded. As for me, I recalled that the national high school tournament was held just before the summer, and now that it was over, it was true that summer was just around the corner.

    I had almost forgotten. I had completely lost track of time. Whoops.

    "I''m sure everyone is looking forward to the middle school tournament at the end of the semester. And yes, I know everyone ¨C especially the girls ¨C is more interested in the Weaver''s Festival that will be taking place shortly afterward, don''t forget that the tournament counts as your practical exams and will contribute to your overall grades."

    "Yes, ma''am." The students looked a little lethargic at her reminder. The girls had piped up, particularly at the mention of the Weaver''s Festival, but they came crashing back down to reality when the teacher reminded them of the practical exam.

    The Weaver''s Festival was something similar to Tanabata, where couples were encouraged to stargaze and look upon the night sky, and there was a bonfire dance at the end of it. Before the dance, people would gather on the streets and eat snacks and other forms of food from stalls, or play games at booths. In other words, a festival very similar to the Japanese kinds you watched in anime (and if you were lucky enough to have been to Japan, or live there, you would have probably experienced it too). The girls were encouraged to dress up as prettily as they could, which was why it appealed to them more than it did to the guys.

    Still, the guys were also invested in the festival because¡­I mean, you had the chance to dance with the girl you had a crush on. What was there not to like? Okay¡­rejection, yeah, but if you didn''t try, you would never know.

    Melina Franklin was listening to the class, looking a little tired. She was less interested in the festival, weirdly enough, and more focused on the tournament. She clenched her fist, and whispered to herself.

    "I have to do this. I need to score well this time!"

    "Don''t worry, you will score well," her classmate, Iris Langford, assured her. "You always score well on the magic tests. As long as you continue to support from the backline and attack the opposing team with your ranged holy spells, we should be able to get a good grade this time as well!"

    "Um¡­Iris, this time I wish to be a frontline fighter."

    "Huh?!" Iris swiveled around to gape at her. "But you don''t have any talent in swordsmanship, right? That''s why your family decided against teaching you swordsmanship. You have so much talent in magic, why don''t you stick to that?"

    "Hah! A ranged mage who doesn''t know her place and insists on becoming a Paladin." Nirvana scoffed from across the room. "When will you understand that there are just some roles you aren''t born to fulfil? Just leave the vanguard to us frontline fighters and warriors. Magic specialists should stay in the back like the babies you are."

    A few of the ranged mages bristled at her comment. Though most people appreciated ranged spells and support magic, in Saint Teresa Academy where Paladins, Knights and frontline soldiers were revered and placed on a pedestal, they tended to look down on ranged mages. Stupid, if you ask me, but the world was full of stupid people. Just look at the current American president (as of March 2020). Don''t ask me why.

    "Ahem."

    Everyone jolted up and turned back to look at the teacher, who had narrowed her eyes into a glare.

    "Have you forgotten that we''re still in the middle of a lesson?"

    There were mumbled apologies and whatnot, but the teacher waved them away. She then regarded Nirvana with a scowl.

    "And Miss Mallory, I would not casually disregard ranged mages in the same manner as you do. No doubt our school places more emphasis on frontline fighters such as Knights, Warriors, Swordsmen and Paladins, but ranged mages are also just as important. Yes, you probably face more risk if you are placed in the vanguard and fight on the frontlines. You put your body on the lines and brave danger against monsters and other deadly enemies. The courage required for that sort of duty is indeed admirable. However, do not look down on ranged mages and support units just because they do not directly engage the foe in combat. How many of you vanguard units and frontline fighters have been save by a well-aimed ranged spell? How many of you have been kept alive by support buffs? Countless. Each unit has a role to play, and no squad, no platoon can function without cooperation and teamwork. That''s why the Federation has changed their curriculum ¨C they have realized that the individual ranking system is becoming obsolete. No man is an island, and teams are not based around individuals. You need each other to survive. If you''re missing even a single member, you are disadvantaged massively."

    She took a deep breath and shook her head.

    "Besides, it''s a myth that ranged mages and support backline units don''t face the same risks that frontline fghters do. They are on the same battlefield as you are. If you fail your duty, the monsters will be on them, and they have neither the skill nor durability you do to survive close combat and direct engagements with the foe. If anything, they are often more vulnerable. Flanking maneuvers. Ambushes. Surprise attacks from behind. While you usually receive their support via buff spells, or monopolize top-of-the-line equipment and armor by virtue of you being prioritized for frontline duties, they often do not receive the same protection as you do. So do not so casually dismiss them as dishonorable and weak just because they do not get stuck in as often as you do."

    "Yes, ma''am." Nirvana lowered her head, her cheeks flushed, but she didn''t seemed convinced. That was normal. Once you were stuck in a certain mindset, it was difficult to change your mentality. She had been brought up learning how Paladins, Knights, Warriors and frontline fighters were the most honorable thing since sliced bread, while ranged mages were cowards who hid behind their comrades. No doubt it was her parents who taught her that nonsense.

    What utter BS. Not that I cared.

    "All right, people. Let''s get ready for practical lessons." The teacher clapped her hands together. "Theory is done for the day. We''re going to evaluate you in mock combat."

    "Yes, ma''am."

    There was the sound of chairs dragging across the floor as middle school students rose from their seats and stretched themselves, or grumbled amongst their friends. Melina was slightly alone, with only Iris by her side.

    "Hey, Melina. Are you serious when you said you''re going to test for swordsmanship?"

    "Yeah." Melina looked up at her classmate. "Is that all right?"

    "Um¡­I guess. It''s entirely up to you. But you''ll have to find another team."

    "¡­eh?" Melina stared at the person she regarded as her friend throughout her two years here in Saint Teresa Academy. "What do you mean¡­?"

    "I''m sorry." Iris looked at Melina helplessly. "But we already have too many frontline fighters in our team. There''s no space for you. We need ranged mages more. If you''re not willing to fulfil that role, then there''s not much we can do."

    "¡­I see. I''m sorry."

    Melina hung her head, but she refused to change her mind. Ever since that day, she had resolved herself, and she wasn''t going to give up now. She clenched her fists determinedly and steeled herself. This was just a minor setback. All she needed to do was assemble a new team.

    Easier said than done, though¡­and before you ask, no. I can''t join her team. I was her private tutor, not her classmate. I wasn''t a middle school student, so obviously I couldn''t join her team. That would be against the rules.

    Even so, I was confident that Melina would be able to overcome this trial.

    "How do you even know what is going on here?!" Melina demanded, turning to stare in my direction. Exept that I wasn''t in the classroom with her, and wasn''t present at all. Undeterred, Melina looked around. As expected of my disciple, she had also gained the ability to break the fourth wall. "Why are you narrating as if you are here, even though you clearly aren''t?! This isn''t Assassin''s Pride! Even if you''re my private tutor, you''re not supposed to show up and attend my lessons by standing at the back of the classroom like Kufa Vampir! You''re not even supposed to be here, physically or mentally! Don''t you have your own classes?! Are you really that bent on maintaining a first person perspective even though there will be plot holes and narrative problems?!"

    "Don''t sweat the small details and focus on assembling a team for your practical exam," I told her. Melina buried her face in her hands.

    "Why do you even know about that?! You aren''t here! Wait a minute¡­how are you even talking to me in the first place?!" she glanced around, as if expecting me to suddenly show up, but obviously I didn''t. She frowned, bewildered. "Is this¡­telepathy? But I''m hearing your voice outside of my head."

    "No, it''s called breaking the fourth wall."

    "Do you mind not breaking the fourth wall during my lessons?" the elderly teacher asked me sternly. Somehow I felt as if she was staring at me even though I physically wasn''t there.

    "But your lesson is over. Aren''t you guys moving to the practical portion now? The one in the arena."

    "Yes, we are. So the lesson isn''t over. It''s still ongoing. I would appreciate it if you stop breaking the fourth wall and disrupting my classes."

    Damn. These guys aren''t fun at all. Sighing, I disengaged and pulled back from the fourth wall, disappearing back into the library where I had taken up residence after Einsberg''s class. Right now I was revising ice magic before trying the spells out in reality. In any case, there was nothing I could do for Melina except offer encouragement. And¡­let''s be honest, offering encouragement behind the fourth wall was insincere.

    Besides, I had my own matters to worry about.

    "¡­so that''s how I might be able to better improve my ice magic, huh? By infusing my Constellation spirits with icy mana, I should be able to alter their nature and improve their own abilities." Even if I said that, the Constellation spirits were still dependent on my own abilities and magic. It wasn''t as if I could just imagine them being capable of casting whatever magic and they would magically be able to cast those spells. If I didn''t know healing magic, they obviously couldn''t cast healing spells. Their repertoire of spells was completely dependent on mine.

    That was exactly the reason why I was learning ice magic, to expand the range of spells they could use. Obviously it was still very limited by my themes and decisions in life. I couldn''t suddenly have Taurus breathe ice instead of fire, or Sagittarius fire off an ice arrow instead of a fire-type. Since those constellations had been designated "fire" element by ancient astrologers, I couldn''t alter those set rules. I could only manage within those legends that never decreed the element of whatever constellations they represented, such as Cetus, Cerberus or Hydra. And even Draco.

    The thirteen zodiac (which now included Ophiuchus) were pretty much bound by iron-cast laws regarding what elements they were in. Fortunately, there were seventy-five other Constellations I could play around with. Phew.

    "All right¡­now time for practical application."

    Rising from my seat, I returned my library books and proceeded to the gymnasium that the academy had set aside for the high school students'' use. As I did so, I noticed a commotion right outside the gates.

    "Hmm?"

    Apparently someone was trying to get in, but the guards had stopped him, and were checking his identity. A crowd of curious students had gathered to watch, and being human myself, I naturally allowed my own curiosity to get the better of me and ventured over to watch.

    "What''s going on?"

    As I neared the crowd, the person outside the gate caught sight of me and brightened up. He jumped up and down and waved frantically.

    "Brother Richard! You''re here too!"

    "Huh?" I did a double take when I spotted him, my jaw dropping in disbelief when I realized that I did indeed recognize that figure¡­as well as the manner in which he addressed me. Staring at the visitor, I couldn''t help but shake my head in confusion. "Adrian? What are you doing here?"

 463 Chapter 463: Transfer Studen

    "Hey, Brother Richard!"

    Adrian Stuart waved at me while I gaped at him. Close by, the sentries verified his identity, and finally waved him in. He skipped into the territory of Saint Teresa Academy and approached me. The crowd dispersed, now that there was no longer much of a commotion.

    Apparently they were expecting some drama, where the guards would kick Adrian out of the school and perhaps even call the cops. Their expectation of such stupid entertainment (at the expense of others) was crushed once the guards confirmed that Adrian''s visit pass was legitimate, and they were disappointed not to see any sort of drama. Good. They deserved to be disappointed. People did not exist to entertain them with their troubles.

    "What are you doing here?" I repeated my question, mostly because Adrian hadn''t replied. He grinned and gestured toward the main campus building.

    "From today onward I am transferring into Saint Teresa Academy!"

    "Huh? You are?!"

    Originally Adrian was a student of the middle school section of Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy ¨C the same school that his cousin, Cecilia, attended. Speaking of which, we might as well forget about Cecilia at this point. She was meant to be the joke version of Carolyn from Battle Frenzy, but she ended up merging with another of my characters from an earlier version of this constellation summoner story (damn, I must have written over 20 versions of this story by now). Whatever the case, he was supposed to attend the same school as Cecilia, but obviously he decided to switch loyalties for no reason other than because I happened to be enrolling in Saint Teresa Academy for an exchange program at this time. It was too much of a coincidence.

    "Yeah, I am!"

    "Why?" I demanded, trying to suppress a twinge of irritation. I knew Adrian wasn''t stalking me, or he would have transferred to the middle school section of Jing Tian Academy long ago, but I was pretty sure he didn''t choose this moment to move to Saint Teresa Academy by accident. "Wouldn''t it be better for you to stay in Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy?"

    "No," he replied with a shrug. "There''s not really much difference¡­and besides, Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy lost to Saint Teresa Academy in the round of 16, so it''s actually better to transfer here anyway."

    "That was the high school tournament, not the middle school tournament, and I doubt you chose to transfer here because of that." Otherwise all the students of Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy would have moved here as well¡­and I doubted the director of Saint Teresa Academy, Teresa Taylor, would have flippantly allowed people to transfer here based on such superficial reasons. She would have put a stop on it, I was sure.

    "Oh, no. That''s not the reason why I transferred here. I did so because of a couple of reasons. Firstly, it was to help Melina."

    "¡­say what?" Oh, right. Weren''t they together when I first found them during the tournament? At that time, I thought for some reason they were in the same school ¨C that Melina was also in Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy ¨C but I was evidently mistaken. However, they seemed pretty close for students from different schools, which piqued my interest somewhat. "Okay¡­that''s interesting. How will you transferring here help Melina?"

    "She needs teammates." Well, that was true, and we were literally discussing that problem last chapter, but¡­how the hell did Adrian know that!? He must have read the question on my face, for he quickly offered an explanation. "We have connections, and are under the same education system. It''s pretty easy to speculate what will happen if Melina decides to be a swordswoman like her father. I''m guessing she got ejected from her team?"

    "You are placing a lot of faith on something that just happened today."

    "Let''s just say it''s easy to predict the future once you''re familiar enough with the system. People ar predictable¡­they tend to behave the way you expect them to if you push them toward a particular direction. Well, I don''t mean that literally, of course¡­and I mean the school pushing them toward specific choices."

    "Yeah." I was almost going to ask if he was the one behind Melina''s decision to become a swordswoman, or if he manipulated her teammates somehow, but obviously that would be too farfetched. No matter how scheming Adrian was, he couldn''t possibly predict everything to such an accurate extent.

    "The second and¡­well, this is actually the main reason, so it should be the first, but you know what I mean." He cleared his throat and grinned at me. "I want you to tutor me as well!"

    "¡­huh?"

    For a moment, I wasn''t sure if I had heard him right. I stared at him blankly for a moment, his words still ringing in my ears.

    "It''s not fair that you''re Melina''s exclusive private tutor! I met you first! Come on, you should teach me as well! I mean, you already mastered a high level of wood magic! That''s my element! You should be teaching me wood magic as well!"

    "Uh, well¡­that''s¡­"

    "I know you didn''t exactly learn my family''s Stuart swordsmanship, but still the foundation for wood magic is, as you said, very similar. The ten great families were the ones who established the basics for all the elemental magic and techniques, after all. But the reverse is also true ¨C if you''ve mastered wood magic, you should also be able to teach me wood techniques, even if I''m from the Stuart clan, since all the elemental spells share the same origin!"

    "That''s true," I conceded with a sigh. The wood spells I learned to execute with Green Dragon were incredibly similar to the Stuart swordsmanship that his cousin and uncle practiced. To the point where both Cecilia and Lionel Stuart actually thought I somehow secretly learned their family''s techniques when I actually didn''t. However, something wasn''t right about this whole scenario. "If you wanted me to teach you wood magic, all you needed to do was ask. You didn''t have to purposely take the trouble to transfer here."

    "It will be easier for the both of us," Adrian explained cheerfully. "I was hoping that you can teach both Melina and me at the same time." He then sulked. "It''s unfair that she got to monopolize you in the first place!"

    "No one is monopolizing me," I told him, sounding a little exasperated. "Anyway, like I said, all you needed to do was ask."

    "That''s the thing. Right now, you''re being employed by the Franklin family, and you''re essentially a live-in tutor. So I figured I might as well move into the estate and learn with Melina. It will be more convenient for you, anyway. You can teach us both at the same time, without needing to commute from place to place, or city to city."

    Oh, right. That was definitely a major obstacle for Adrian. He lived in Southampton City, which was quite some distance away from Flandor City. If either of us had to make the journey daily, it would be difficult on whoever. About an hour and a half journey by train, and that wasn''t even including the return journey. Basically a three hours round trip, and that was harsh no matter who had to do it, especially if it was done daily.

    "But I also guessed Melina''s situation, so I thought I would give her a hand. So it''s killing two birds with one stone, really."

    For some reason, Adrian sounded very proud of himself. I scratched my head and sighed. Well, it did solve a lot of the potential problems that he brought up, so¡­

    Then I suddenly remembered something.

    "Wait a minute¡­did you just say you''re going to move into the estate? Huh?"

    "Oh, yeah¡­I''ve yet to tell you. I''m moving into Melina''s manor. I received permission from Uncle Fergus, and he allowed me to stay in."

    "Eh?! EH?!"

    I was still wrapping my mind around that revelation, but Adrian continued as if I wasn''t throwing my hands up in the air and yelling incoherently.

    "Oh, and my dad has promised to pay you. Obviously we can''t have you teaching me for free. So if you can submit the details of your bank account, Dad will deposit your pay every month." He held up his smartphone and showed me an impressive figure, but I was still too distraught over the earlier revelation to swoon over the huge sum of money that the Stuart family was promising me in return for teaching their son. "Let me know if it''s not enough."

    "Hell, no! It''s more than enough!" I was still trying to digest everything that Adrian was telling me, and in any case I wasn''t a greedy fellow, so I wasn''t going to demand a king''s ransom or whatever. "But seriously? You''re staying in Melina''s manor?"

    "Yeah, I already said that, didn''t I? You can ask her later if you don''t believe me. Or at least the maids¡­what were their name?"

    "Amelia," I replied without thinking.

    "Yeah, that''s right! Amelia! You can call her and confirm with her right now if you don''t believe me." Adrian was turning away. "For now, I need to go to the office to complete my registration. Do you know where it is?"

    I sighed, still unable to make sense of what was happening. "I''ll take you there myself."

    *

    That night, when we returned to Melina''s home, the maids were throwing a party. They had prepared a huge buffet of food, laid across several tables. There were soups, pasta, chicken wings, and even Asian food such as dumplings (pot stickers), fried noodles and rice. They were bustling about the dining table in delight, bringing newly washed plates and utensils.

    "Everyone! Cheers!" Melina was raising her glass of orange juice. "Let us officially kick off the start of the welcoming party for both Sensei and Adrian!"

    "Cheers!" the servants shouted, raising their glasses of whatever drinks they had. Depending on individual preferences, it ranged from wine to juice to tea. I had settled for green tea because I couldn''t find any mango juice, and I wasn''t very fond of orange juice. It was too sour for me. I had a sweet tooth, and I had an obsession for mango. It was my favorite.

    "Thank you!" Adrian was delighted as he drank soda. Like me, he wanted mango juice, but was denied his favorite beverage. It was one of the several things we had in common. However, unlike me, Adrian wasn''t fond of tea and preferred soda. Those drinks were too gassy for me, so I usually refrained from drinking those.

    "At least I won''t be alone in training now!" Melina seemed cheerful, not at all put off by the fact that she had an unexpected guest who would be staying with her over the next couple of years. It helped that they were similar in age. "Prepare for some intense sparring!"

    "Ha ha, I look forward to that!" Adrian then turned to me. "We look forward to your guidance, Sensei!"

    "Uh¡­right." It felt weird, hearing Adrian call me that. I was used to being addressed like an older brother, rather than a teacher. "I''ll do my best."

    "Lady Melina has been looking forward to this welcome party for the entire week," Amelia informed me as she sidled over, a bunch of seafood and pasta on her plate. She stuck a fork into the strands of pasta, twirled it, and then put it into her mouth. After chewing and swallowing, she smiled, half in satisfaction from the delicious food. "She helped out in the preparations, you know?"

    She then gestured toward one of the tables, which was a plastic table hidden underneath a velvet cloth.

    "Our lady personally chose that tablecloth, you know? For the welcome party. Even though you weren''t due for a week or so."

    "I see. I appreciate it." The design of the tablecloth honestly made no difference to me, but it was the thought that counted. I was happy with Melina''s sentiment ¨C that was more than enough. Chuckling, I glanced at the blond princess. "I''m glad she''s here and in a good mood, though. I was half expecting her to just send her greetings at the start of the party before returning to her room and locking herself inside."

    "Huh?!" Melina gaped at me in astonishment. "Why would I do that?!"

    "Well, I mean¡­I thought you would be all depressed, after being made a fool of during practical training and being mocked by your friends¡­uh, classmates. Because they obviously can''t be considered your friends."

    "Sensei, are you perhaps mixing me up with a character from a light novel series that has an anime adaptation? You''re not an assassin who''s trying to ensure that I''m the legitimate daughter of my father, the Duke of the Franklin family, and assigned to terminate me if you conclude that I''m not! You''re not that edgy! You''re more Deadpool than Kufa Vampir!"

    "He does that a lot," Adrian informed Melina before stuffing half of a chicken wing into his mouth. He brightened up as he chewed. "Oh! This is good!"

    "Of course. Amelia made it herself." Melina puffed her chest out proudly. I didn''t know why she was so smug about something that someone else cooked. Then she turned to me. "And I promise I won''t run out of the house in the middle of the night, go cry in some park, and then get attacked by a bunch of lycanthrope."

    "Okay, you''ve lost me there," I admitted. Adrian leaned over and whispered into my ear.

    "That''s what happened in the anime¡­and the original light novel. After the welcome party."

    Yeah, that was right. I completely forgot about that. With Melina behaving so differently from the story we were supposed to be parodying, I couldn''t remember what exactly happened in the original light novel, even though I had just watched the anime a couple of months ago. And to those who were asking, yeah, the anime was worth watching. Give it a shot. You might like it. I certainly did.

    More importantly, I dragged myself back to the present and cleared my mind.

    "You both have talent, so you don''t have to worry. As long as you work hard, you should be able to do well."

    "Yeah! Let''s aim for a high rank in this semester''s practical exam!" Adrian cheered, raising a hand and punching the air.

    "That''s right! And I''m going to prove to everyone that I can wield a sword!" Melina waved her plastic knife about, almost as if she was playing make-believe wiith a disposable sword. "I''ll be a proper swordswoman of the Franklin family, and silence all those naysayers!"

    "Young Miss, you can do it!" Amelia and the other servants applauded her enthusiastically. They truly believed in her, I could tell from the sincerity in their gazes and tone.

    "Well¡­I''ll do my best to whip you into shape." Taking a deep breath, I took a sip from my glass and savored the sweet taste of the honeyed green tea. Even though I didn''t feel very confident, I had no intention of letting my charges down. "Our goal¡­the practical exam at the end of the semester. Let''s aim to take revenge on all those classmates who were laughing at you for trying to be a swordswoman!"

    The list of people to spite was long. Nirvana and her flunkies. Iris and her teammates for turning their backs on Melina. I was going to make sure they regretted ever scorning my student¡­

    ¡­and the best way to do that was to have Melina beat them in a sword fight. Easier said than done, of course. I honestly still had no idea how I was going to transform her from a talented mage into a respectable swordswoman. But I was sure as hell going to do my best to achieve that goal, no matter the odds. After all, I had faced worse odds before and prevailed.

    This time wasn''t going to be much different¡­I hope.

 464 Chapter 464: Practical Training

    A few days after the party, I oversaw the training of my students. There was some progress, or at least as much progress as you could get over a few days'' worth of training. These things took time. People weren''t going to suddenly become 10 times stronger after just a couple of days of training. I bet it would take a few months or so before they would show visible results.

    Unfortunately, the practical exam at the end of the semester was only a month away. There wasn''t a lot of time. Well, there should be at least a few improvements in the way both disciples executed their techniques and a lot of new skills they would have learned by then, so it was more than enough, given that their opponents would be students of the same level and grade. They were given the same amount of time (a month) to train for the exam, but of course, as with everything else, the pace at which an individual grew differed from person to person.

    Of course it was my job to speed up that pace for my students and help them overtake their classmates and schoolmates. Melina, in particular, had to defeat Nirvana Mallory at all costs. I would accept nothing less. That bitch had been humiliating and bullying her ever since they were students in the same school, and it was high time someone knocked her arrogance down a few pegs. It would be sweeter if the person who did that was the very person she had been mocking all this time. Revenge was a dish best served cold, and all that.

    Melina didn''t seem to be that invested in revenge, though. She had suffered so much mockery and teasing throughout her life that she merely regarded Nirvana as just the latest in a long line of detractors. She honestly couldn''t care less about the individual bullies. Her goal was much broader, and she aimed to prove all her critics wrong and establish her credentials as a swordswoman. Nothing more. She didn''t hold a grudge because, quite frankly, there were way too many people who had scorned her throughout her life.

    I just remembered Nirvana because she was the first and most visible bully that I encountered shortly after I met Melina. So it was mentally easy for me to place her as the scapegoat, and the stand-in or representative of all the people who had bullied and derided Melina. Sometimes I wondered if I was being childish. Ironically enough, Melina was more mature than me in this aspect, despite being about three years younger than me.

    "Again!"

    Lowering my sword, I beckoned Melina to come at me. She didn''t hesitate, and charged with her wooden sword, which I parried effortlessly. I knocked her back with a forceful swing, but she managed to flip herself upward and land on both feet, skidding backward from the blow. She got ready to perform a second charge, but I held up a hand to stop her.

    "Wait." I glanced at Adrian, who was lying on the ground, heaving from exhaustion and a slight amount of pain. He had been winded from an earlier blow of mine, and was still trying to recover. "You all right, Adrian? Can you still continue?"

    "Y¡­yeah," Adrian gasped as he forced himself back to his feet. He held up his wooden sword with both hands, and I was struck by the resemblance between the fourteen-year-old and his cousin, Cecilia. They truly were related, or had at least learned similar types of sword techniques. I briefly wondered if the original Carolyn had a cousin, but I guess Skeleton Wizard couldn''t care less about developing her family background because he was more interested in just creating the main heroine for Wang Zhong''s harem. "I can still fight!"

    "Good. The both of you, coordinate your attacks and come at me together." I beckoned them both before reaching for a second wooden sword. Yeah, I preferred dual wielding to using only a single sword. Yeah, it was more showy and flashy, and was less practical than wielding a single sword, but it looked a lot cooler.

    Besides, the Servant in red who specialized in archery dual-wielded. That was more than enough reason for me to emulate him. No, it had nothing to do with the edgy black swordsman running around in a virtual reality death-game. Why do people always think about Kirito instead of Heroic Spirit Emiya when I mentioned dual-wielding? Wasn''t it clear that I was trying to rip off Archer, and not some edgy gamer who preferred to solo a death-game by himself just because he could? My using bows and arrows should have been a dead giveaway.

    Anyway, both Adrian and Melina spread out, eyeing me cautiously. They flanked me from both sides, charging from opposite directions and forcing me to split my attention between them. If I focused on defending against Melina''s strike from my right, Adrian would hit me from the left. If I parried Adrian''s attack from my left, it would leave my right flank vulnerable to Melina''s assault. Not only that, the both of them were casting spells in the manner I taught them, imbuing their wooden swords with mana to reinforce the otherwise fragile weapons.

    Adrian in particular was manipulating his wood mana to conjure a cloud of razor sharp leaves in the manner I taught him. The Stuart swordsmanship. Good, he had taken my lesson to heart and was wielding the leaves with deadly precision. He would go far, that was for sure.

    Melina was no less impressive, for she had made use of holy magic to enhance the strength behind her blow. While she was usually delegated to casting buffs on her teammates in her former role as a support spell caster, the same principle could be applied while she moved onto the frontlines. In other words, she could buff herself. And that was exactly what she was doing right now, increasing her strength and speed several times.

    Even so, she restrained herself in terms of speed, just so she could coordinate with Adrian. Too quickly and she would hit me before Adrian reach me, allowing me to defend against her, and if successful, I would throw her off before countering her teammate''s strike. The two of them understood the importance of teamwork ¨C this wasn''t about personal glory or taking credit for the kill. It wasn''t a competition. If they wanted to stand a chance of defeating me, they had to work together in flawless coordination.

    Closing my eyes, I relied on my mind''s eye rather than watch the trajectories of their individual movements. Raising both of my swords, I deflected their weapons simultaneously, defending from both sides at the same time. As the razor-sharp leaves bombarded me from the left and a holy blast of magic struck from the right, I conjured twin walls of ice to absorb the blows.

    "!!!"

    Both Adrian and Melina jumped backward instinctively, and not a moment too soon. Icicles emerged from the ground, streaking forward with the force of a bullet, and would have impaled them if they hadn''t evaded in time.

    Huffing, they spun around and smashed the ice with their wooden swords before countering with their own spells. This time, the leaves and holy wave of golden energy struck me and my figure shattered into several thousand pieces of ice.

    "¡­eh?"

    "What?!"

    The both of them spun around, realizing that they had only hit my ice clone, and were expecting me to show up behind them.

    "I''m not that despicable."

    "?!"

    Adrian was the first to bear the brunt of my strike. Contrary to his expectations, I had come straight at him from the front, my wooden sword flashing outward. He succeeded in parrying my first strike with his wooden blade, amazingly enough, but was unable to defend against the follow-up attack from the other sword in my left hand. The blunt tip of the wooden sword cannoned into his midriff and he doubled over with a grunt before collapsing.

    "Hah!"

    With a determined yell, Melina swung her sword at my head, determined not to leet Adrian''s sacrifice go to waste. However, I merely held up the sword in my right hand to block her blow. Melina staggered from the momentum of her own attack bouncing back against her, and I ducked low from her desperate follow-up before sweeping her legs beneath her and causing her to tumble onto the ground. As she gasped, stunned, I pointed one of my swords at her throat.

    "Ha¡­" she sighed heavily. "It''s our loss again, Sensei."

    "Ugh¡­" Adrian groaned in frustration as he struggled back to his feet, clutching his midriff. "We just can''t beat you, Brother Richard."

    "It''s only, what, three days, since we officially started this private tutoring thing, right?" I asked, trying not to roll my eyes. "Be patient. You''ll definitely get stronger. Besides¡­it''s my fault for not holding back."

    Actually, I was holding back. A lot. I could see a hundred different ways in which I could have slain them, but obviously I didn''t. I wasn''t an edgy, bloodthirsty murderer who wanted to see kids slaughtered just because I didn''t like them. And I liked the two kids under my charge. A lot. I was determined to groom them into respectable mages or swordsman/swordswoman. I wanted to see them rise to the top.

    Adrian knew me long enough to see through my BS, and he snorted.

    "If you really didn''t hold back, both Melina and I would be dead within the first few seconds."

    "Eh¡­" Melina looked a little disappointed at that revelation. "So there''s still such a vast gap between us."

    "I have three years more of training and combat experience than you guys," I reminded them with a sigh. "So don''t worry about it. You''ll get there eventually."

    "You''re right." Adrian brightened up. "The most effective way to get strong is practical combat. We need to experience life-and-death battles¡­"

    "You''re still too early to go through those," I cut him off hastily. This kid was getting weird ideas, and I didn''t want him to risk his life for such nonsense. Yes, you could certainly get stronger through real battles, but the risk was too high¡­and it was completely meaningless if you got yourself killed in the battlefield. If your goal was to get stronger, wouldn''t it be self-defeating if you end up another casualty on the battlefield? What, you think you were some immortal, invincible protagonist in a power fantasy, wish fulfilment story and had plot armor? Don''t be ridiculous. If you die, everything was over. Especially your goal to become stronger. "Even professional soldiers go through months¡­sometimes a year of training beore the military sends them into actual battle. Basic military training is 2-3 months. Then you have advanced military training for another 3 months. Officer Cadet School is another nine months or so ¨C by the time you are commissioned as one, it''s a year. Be patient. Don''t rush into getting actual combat experience and risking your life for something as silly as that. Remember, once you''re dead, you''re dead. No amount of magic is going to resurrect you. And you''ll never fulfil your goal of becoming stronger."

    "Eh¡­"

    "Don''t worry." I placed a hand on his shoulder. "Once you''re ready, I''ll bring you guys out for a mission. But not now. You''re far from ready. Hell, it''s only been three days!"

    "That''s true," Melina conceded, sounding a little disappointed. "I guess we need to train more then."

    "Exactly. So for now just concentrate on developing your skills and techniques¡­until they become second nature to you. Once that happens, then you should be able to survive most hellish battlefields and missions."

    "Yes~"

    The both of them picked themselves up and the servants hurried over to clean up the courtyard. As we didn''t have a dojo in Melina''s manor, we were forced to make do in the massive garden at the back of the house. I didn''t know why the staff bothered ¨C we were basically rolling about in the grasss, and there wasn''t much damage. I had minimized whatever collateral damage I did with my spells, and could easily restore them with a basic earth or wood spell. Seemed like the butlers knew the same spells, for they were casting them to restore the garden, which didn''t seem that affected, to be frank.

    "You guys should go rest for today," I told them, glancing upward. Evening was coming, and the skies were gradually darkening. "I''m sure you have homework." I had homework of my own, but before that there was something I needed to do.

    Watching the two kids disappear back into the manor with the staff, I then retrieved my phone and made a call. A few rings, and finally someone on the other end picked up the call. The familiar voice of Christopher Redfield rose lazily from the other side.

    "Redfield speaking. Oh? Richie? What''s up?"

    "Just checking on Ana''s status. How is she? Did Ling Dan concoct the serum to suppress her Poison Woeful Body?"

    "Not yet," Redfield replied with a sigh. "Some miracle doctor he is. He still hasn''t been able to develop the medicine we need. Then again¡­I can''t think of any precedent. Other than the Assassin Guild, who obviously couldn''t be bothered to develop such a serum because that''s the kind of killers they wish to groom, no one has been able to cure such a condition before. He claims he''s doing his best, but he hasn''t been able to produce any fruitful results."

    "After all the trouble we went through to bring him back, he had better," I grumbled. "Or we would have completely wasted our time."

    "I feel you." Redfield chuckled. "But it was worth a shot, don''t you think?"

    "Yeah, I agree."

    "Well, anyway, if there are any updates, I''ll let you know." After that he hung up and I returned to the manor, hoping for the best. There was little I could do except pray and hope Ling Dan knew what he was doing.

    Unfortunately, the next time I received news of Anastasia would be a few days from now (basically at the end of the first week of my being Melina and Adrian''s private tutor), and they would be bad.

    Not only that, the bringer of bad news was none other than the great leader of the Silver Wolves mercenary guild, Feng Hai himself.

 465 Chapter 465: Bringer of Bad News

    A week after I moved into Melina''s manor and officially became her private tutor (along with becoming Adrian''s), I received a call from the Silver Wolves. From none other than the big man himself, Feng Hai.

    "Are you there, Richard?"

    "No, I''m Poorard, answering on Richard''s behalf. Of course I''m here. Who do you think picked up the phone? My dad?"

    If he was offended by my sarcasm, Feng Hai didn''t express his disapproval. Instead, he went straight to the topic at hand.

    "I''m afraid I''ve some very bad news."

    I immediately felt a chill run down my spine, and inadvertently tightened my grip on my smartphone. Gulping, I ventured with my question.

    "What bad news?"

    "Regarding Anastasia¡­we''ve been betrayed."

    "Huh? Betrayed?" When Feng Hai first mentioned Ana''s name, I thought something terrible had happened to her, that Ling Dan failed to concoct a serum, and that she had gone into a critical condition or her Woeful Poison Body was acting up or something regarding her health. However, Feng Hai''s next sentence took me by utter surprise. "What do you mean, betrayed?"

    "Exactly what I said."

    "By who?"

    "¡­I don''t think you''ll be surprised when you hear this, but¡­it was by Ling Dan. He turned on us."

    "What do you mean?" I demanded, unable to conceal the panic in my voice. "Did he kill Ana? Trick us by giving her some sort of poison or lethal injection? What did he do to her?"

    "No, Ana is still fine¡­sort of. Unfortunately, she was forced to flee. Ling Dan didn''t try to harm her ¨C not directly, anyway. Instead, he called the Federation on her, and they assembled a military team to hunt her down and¡­terminate her."

    For a moment, I couldn''t speak. I wasn''t sure I heard Feng Hai right. That just sounded implausible, yet at the same time, he was right. I wasn''t surprised by who betrayed us ¨C Ling Dan was an outsider, and none of us fully trusted him. We had essentially coerced him to assist us, and it was no secret that he resented us for it, even though we agreed to pay him for his efforts. But after taking our money, he turned on is like this¡­not only was it a breach of contract and our trust, he actually sought to harm one of our own.

    "Bastard¡­" I finally growled, venom in my voice.

    "Yeah. We''re going to take him out soon¡­after we resolve this."

    "Do you need my help?" I asked. Obviously I wasn''t referring to taking the treacherous Ling Dan out. I meant to ask how I could assist Anastasia in her current predicament. "How can I help?"

    "There''s nothing you can do to help, honestly," Feng Hai replied frankly. Damn, that hurt, but that didn''t make it any less true. "I''m just letting you know so that you don''t get left out of the loop. I don''t want you panicking and recklessly rushing off to find her when you find out later, so best I tell you now and get you calm and composed. In any event, what Anastasia needs now is to hide somewhere, so the less people who knows where she is, the better. I don''t want the police to cast mind-reading or telepathic spells on you and steal her location from your memories. To be honest, even the Silver Wolves and I don''t know where she is planning to hide. If any of us are captured and interrogated ¨C even by magic means ¨C we would not be able to provide an answer."

    That made sense. I appreciated the sentiment even though I loathed the method. However, we had little choice. The Federation had abilities that were beyond imagination ¨C if they wanted to pry the truth out of our minds through magical means, they could easily do so. This was for Anastasia''s good. As much as I wanted to help her, I would only hinder her escape if I was privy to vital information concerning her destination.

    So I sighed in resignation and lowered my head.

    "I understand."

    "If possible, we would like you to come and say goodbye to her before she pulls her disappearing act."

    That sounded perfectly fine to me. There was a chance that I would never see Anastasia again, so I would like to wish her well before she ran off.

    "Where are you right now?"

    "In our home city, you know, where our HQ is. Lupin City. Don''t worry. Anastasia will not be going anywhere today. We''re helping her pack up and prepare, so you can come anytime. Don''t take too long, though. She can only stay around in Lupin City for three days max. She might be gone as soon as tomorrow."

    That was pretty far from Flandor City. A few hours by train, but since this was Anastasia we were talking about here, it was well worth the trip. If I could catch the 9am train today, I should be able to make it to Lupin City by afternoon¡­

    "All right. I''ll be there today."

    "Actually¡­if you don''t mind, we''ll pick you up in an hour or so. Just wait wherever you are, and send me your current address."

    *

    It didn''t take long before the Silver Wolves'' hovercraft appeared over the horizon and set down in the massive parking lot outside Melina''s manor. My two charges had already gone off to school, but I managed to submit an online application to take the day off, citing extenuating circumstances. I doubted they would accept it, but to my surprise Director Taylor approved of my request for leave. However, she gave me a single condition.

    "You''re going to Lupin City, correct?" she asked, evidently having read my application for leave. "Then perhaps you could take on a mission on behalf of our academy?"

    Just like Jing Tian Academy, the high school section of Saint Teresa Academy also received a bunch of missions, which they posted on the bulletin board for second year students and older to take. I was considering taking several of the missions to alleviate my boredom and gain much needed combat experience, but since this was just my first week here in Flandor City, I decided to lie low for now and adjust to life here before going out on any missions. Moreover, I also needed to teach Adrian and Melina, and obviously I couldn''t disappear in the first couple of weeks of teaching them for a mission that might take me anywhere from a few days to a week.

    That was also my concern when I queried about the mission that the headmistress, Taylor, assigned to me.

    "Will it take too long? I need to be back quickly for my private tutor job."

    "It shouldn''t take you too long, I hope. It''s a standard combat mission. Exterminate a bunch of monsters that have been assaulting a small, remote neighborhood on the edges of Lupin City, and you''ll be done."

    Easier said than done. Still, that was bad news for the small neighborhood. To be harassed by a bunch of giant Cyclop Rats¡­of all the critters to attack them, it had to be these wolf-sized rodents with single demonic red eyes. They were absolutely disgusting¡­but at least they weren''t bugs. I hated bugs even more, and was relieved I didn''t have to deal with giant insects for this mission. Now that would scare the hell out of me.

    I would keep my distance and kill them with fire. Though these days I was focusing more on my ice magic, which benefited greatly from Teacher Einsberg''s lessons¡­

    "All right, I''ll do it." I accepted the online request and marked my decision on the form before sending it back to Headmistress Taylor. She regarded my submission with an approving smile and nodded in the holographic window.

    "I await your good news."

    "Yes, ma''am." I saluted, and then clicked off the holographic window. Shortly after that, the hovercraft descended and I waited for the ramp to lower before hopping on. Redfield, as expected, was waiting for me in the passenger bay.

    "Good to see you again, Richie."

    "Same." I looked around, as if expecting to see Anastasia, but obviously she wasn''t in the hovercraft. Of course Feng Hai wasn''t going to take the risk and bring her aboard a transport that could be intercepted by Federation forces and searched thoroughly. And if that was the case, they wouldn''t require me to go all the way to Lupin City in the first place. We could just say our goodbyes here. So I studied the safety harnesses and noted how empty the bay was, bereft of its usual complement of mercenary troops. That wasn''t a big concern, but I felt obliged to ask. "I hope everyone in the Silver Wolves is doing fine."

    "Yeah, we are. Of course we''re all highly strung up because of that bastard Ling Dan''s betrayal, but otherwise we are fine. Most of us want to fight the Federation forces, but the boss ordered us to stand down. Ana also doesn''t want us to fight. Says she would rather leave the Federation, and requested our aid to escape." He sat back down on a chair and strapped the safety harness back on, and I followed his example, while continuing to watch him as he elaborated. "She has no intention of sharing the details of where she will go to¡­and I suspect she doesn''t know herself. All the better. The less we know means the less information that the Federation has."

    "I don''t understand. Why is the Federation after her in the first place? Why are they persecuting her?" I adjusted my glasses and scowled. "If it''s about her links to the Assassin''s Guild, I''m sure Instructor Feng Hai already settled that long ago, and she has proven her loyalties to the Silver Wolves, not the assassins. They can''t arrest her over that."

    "No, that''s not the reason. It''s the Woeful Poison Body." Redfield''s expression was severe. "You might not know this, but the existence of the Woeful Poison Body is a terrifying one. Ling Dan alerted the Federation to the danger¡­the threat her condition poses to civilians, and thus they are mobilizing to terminate her, even though we''ve assured them that we can keep the danger contained. Their stance is that they will not take the risk, for the sake and wellbeing of the citizens of the Federation."

    "They can''t do that!" I protested hotly, but Redfield shook his head.

    "They can, and they will. The life of one person in exchange for the lives of the many. Weighing the individual against the collective on the scales and deciding to prioritize the safety of the latter. The government has to make hard choices, even if we don''t like them."

    "I bet that fucker Ling Dan found out that he couldn''t concoct a serum or a solution for Ana''s condition and so he decided to hide behind the Federation and request that they exterminate Ana. Just so he can cover up any embarrassment over his failure and move the attention away from him."

    My voice was bitter. If I ever saw that Ling Dan again, I would smash his face in, the law be damned. I didn''t care if I got sued for physical assault. The fucker deserved it. Redfield evidently agreed with me, and he nodded with a scowl.

    "And we paid him too. He took the money and then turn on us. He won''t be getting away with this." he then smirked. "And we don''t plan on forgiving you. We mercenaries have our ways of making someone die¡­by accident if necessary."

    The dark side of mercenaries. They weren''t soldiers from the military, or police. They were hired guns who often skirted the wrong side of the law, and killed for a living in a modern world where murder was outlawed. Of course they would have their ways of operating in the shadows. While nothing could surpass the Assassin''s Guild in terms of taking the life of a high-value target, mercenaries often participated in such missions too.

    "Speaking of which, I heard you accepted the mission in the outskirts of the Shrewsbury neighborhood. Seems like they have a giant rat infestation problem." He sighed and clasped his fingers behind his head as he leaned back in his seat. "We Silver Wolves would have accepted the mission if it wasn''t for the recent difficulties."

    "I accepted the mission as a condition in return for being granted leave by Saint Teresa Academy," I explained. "It''s not as if I actively sought out a mission in Lupin City on purpose."

    "I know, I know." Redfield chuckled before he inclined his head toward a shadowy section of the passenger bay. "And I''m sure you didn''t bring those kids along on purpose as well, right?"

    "Huh? What kids¡­?" I trailed off when realization dawned on me and I scowled, swiveling around to face the darkened area. "Adrian and Melina, are you both there?"

    "Ah¡­we got found out again."

    The two kids sheepishly emerged from beneath the cover of their cloaking device. Redfield snickered and gestured for them to strap in. I turned to glare at him.

    "Hey, if you know they were onboard, why didn''t you just kick them out?"

    "Come on!" Adrian objected. "Master, you can''t just throw us off the hovercraft! You were planning on having an adventure without us, aren''t you?!"

    "Why are you calling me Master all of a sudden?!" I demanded, a sense of suspicion growing within me.

    "Because I''m trying to be like Majic. And you''re so similar to Orphen/Krylancelo! So I''m going to call you Master from now on!"

    "You do realize that I''m not a stabber, right?" I asked, burying my face in my palm.

    "Sorry, Sensei. But we both thought this would be a great training experience."

    I turned to Melina, feeling disappointed that the one person I could trust to have any common sense would go along with this nonsense. At least she wasn''t pretending to be Cleao or something, or I would rage. Like, literally.

    Then again, she was behaving meekly, like a certain Melida Angel from another anime series. One about Assassins. And we were flying off to meet an ex-Assassin. Funny how ripping off from so many different anime and light novel series would somehow establish weird and completely unintended connections.

    "I thought it would be fun to bring them along," Redfield finally answered, once he had finally succeeded in holding his laughter back. "They are your apprentices, after all. And I''m sure they will want to say hello and goodbye to Ana. After all, they were around when we brought that bastard alchemist back to try and cure her."

    "Eh? The alchemist? What happened?" Melina looked at us blankly. I suppressed a heavy sigh and scratched my head in exasperation.

    "It''s a long story. Well¡­since we have nothing better to do right now, I might as well tell you a bit about it¡­"

 466 Chapter 466: Goodbye

    "It''s been a while." Anastasia greeted me when I arrived. Or rather, when we arrived. Even though Adrian and Melina hadn''t actually met her before, they were related, sort of. They participated in the mission to bring the treacherous Ling Dan back in hopes that he could cure Ana, but the bastard betrayed us all.

    Actually, Adrian might have met Anastasia in the past. I couldn''t remember. It''s been over 460 chapters, after all.

    "It''s good to see you again," I told her as I approached, but she raised a hand. The area around her was sterile and lifeless, purged of life because of her condition. The Woeful Poison Body was truly a terrifying condition, and unlike Battle Through the Heavens, there was no receptarier protagonist to help her. What, do you expect me to start delving into alchemy and pharmacy or something? Do you seriously think I could just become an alchemist or pharmacist just because I want to? That sort of vocations required years of training ¨C and obviously Anastasia didn''t have that sort of time. Just look at reality. Not everyone can be doctors or pharmacists just because they wanted to. It was similar here.

    "Best to keep a distance." She forced a smile. "Social distancing and all that. I don''t want to accidentally hurt you."

    "You won''t," I assured her. Regardless of when this chapter was actually published, I was writing it in the middle of the Corvid19 outbreak, and everyone was under stay home orders, unable to leave their homes for fear of the pandemic. This had nothing to do with the future, of course, but it was funny that Anastasia was practicing social distancing at this time as well. Even she was aware that sanitizers were useless.

    Fortunately, she wasn''t carrying a contagious virus, so even if she was somewhat quarantined, we could still meet. She couldn''t "infect" us with her myriad poisons, after all. As long as we didn''t get too near her, at least. On the other hand, I was immune to all poisons, thanks to the blessings from the Holy Spring from so many chapters ago, so I didn''t have to worry about the toxins that her Woeful Poison Body produced. Or so I hoped.

    "So she''s the one," Melina whispered, somewhat in awe. Adrian had to hold her back, but he was already acquainted with Ana, so he just waved from a distance. She nodded at him, but made no move to close the gap. She was taking her own condition seriously, unlike the president of a certain country, who believed that the pandemic was a hoax at first and didn''t take it seriously, leading to our country (well, my second country, anyway) becoming the nation with the highest numbers of Corvid19 cases within a few months.

    I honestly had no idea how someone like him could have ever been elected as president, but I had seen more stupid things in ridiculous webnovels, so¡­

    "Where do you intend to go?" I asked, scratching my head awkwardly and realizing that it was a stupid question. Of course she couldn''t tell me.

    Anastasia merely smiled and shrugged. "Away from here."

    "I see. Makes sense." And also utterly obvious. Of course she was going away from here. Where else could she go to? Surrender to the Federation and allow them to kill her without fighting back? That was ridiculous.

    "Make sure you take care of yourself. And teach those kids well." Anastasia nodded at Adrian and Melina. Apparently she had heard about my new job from Redfield or Feng Hai, or whoever. The Silver Wolves could easily obtain information regarding what I was doing right now, so I wasn''t surprised that they knew about it. And Ana would have asked, or the Silver Wolves would have provided the information on their own.

    "You too. Take care of yourself." I did a salute, and made the sign of the Aquila. Everyone stared at me.

    "Why are you acting like a character from the Forty-first Millennium?" Adrian asked, annoyed. I glared at him, and removed my signature bolt pistol from its holster.

    "I am a loyal servant of the Imperium," I replied firmly as I adjusted the black, peaked cap atop my head and glared at him. "Are you questioning my loyalty, Trooper Adrian?"

    "The hell are you doing?"

    "I''m a Commissar of the Officio Prefectus," I reminded him as I dusted off my black jacket. "It is my duty to purge heretics and unbelievers¡­"

    "Can you stop your stupid role-play for a few minutes and focus on the issue at hand?"

    "Sorry." I discarded the black cloak that made up my uniform and ditched the hat, before holstering my bolt pistol. "That''s right¡­we''re here to say goodbye to Ana."

    "Yeah, you did, and you''re running out of ideas because you don''t know what to write for this chapter beyond this, so let''s get this done and over with." Ana rolled her eyes and waved me away. "I''m sure we''ll meet again."

    I wasn''t sure if that was possible. If she was leaving the Federation, it would be extremely unlikely that I would see her again. But it wasn''t as if she was dead ¨C as long as we were both alive, there was still the possibility that we would meet again in future.

    "If only there''s anything we can do to help¡­" I murmured as I pushed my glasses up my nose, and then sighed.

    "I might be able to help with that."

    I jumped from shock when a voice spoke up and a holograph flickered to life, projecting the blue-tinted, life-size image of a very familiar figure.

    The regal figure of Roland Rothwell grinned at me from behind a holographic window, waving his hand ¨C where each of his fingers were adorned with heavily jeweled rings. I gaped at him for a few moments before shaking my head.

    "How did you¡­?"

    "Hey, have you forgotten that I''m a prince? I have¡­methods that are beyond your imagination." He then shrugged. "If you can''t accept that explanation, then just assume this is a Deus ex Machina. That I also have the ability to break the fourth wall and dive in to help whenever I feel like it."

    "Actually, the more boring and logical explanation is that I contacted him." Feng Hai dropped down from another hovercraft nearby. Other Silver Wolves mercenaries hurried down the ramp, dropping down supplies and crates. Ana glanced at them and lowered her head in thanks. No doubt that most of the supplies were meant for her. I wondered what they consisted of ¨C perhaps food? Ammunition? The leader left the more menial chores to his subordinates and approached us, bowing his head deferentially toward the image of Roland. "Your highness."

    "Oh, Feng Hai! It''s been a while since I last saw you. Glad to see you''re doing well. I didn''t expect you to call me for a favor, though." he glanced around, and his sharp eyes settled on Anastasia. "I see the reason why you contacted me."

    "Yeah. She''s the one who needs assistance."

    "Boss, this is¡­" Ana hesitated for a few seconds, and then glanced at her leader. "Are you asking me to seek refuge in the Amazerian Empire?"

    "Not exactly¡­" Feng Hai took a deep breath, but before he could explain, Roland cut in.

    "Unfortunately, we cannot shelter you. Not officially anyway. It will become a political situation, and let''s be serious. In your current condition, you will pose a danger to my people. I can''t have you taking up residence in my kingdom and poisoning my subjects. No offense."

    "None taken. I understand your situation, and I cannot ask to impose on you." Anastasia lowered her head. "It would be unreasonable of me to expect anything from you, your highness."

    "Hang on." Roland held up his hand and smiled, his perfect, white teeth gleaming in the holographic window. "But that doesn''t mean I can''t help you. In fact, I''m more than happy to assist a beautiful lady such as yourself."

    There was a sharp intake of breath as everyone waited for his solution. As before, Roland had the penchant for the dramatic, and he paused for several beats before making his great revelation.

    "Within my empire, there is a territory that is¡­not exactly under the royal family''s jurisdiction. We claim it as part of the Amazerian Empire, of course, so that the Global Federation and other empires will not lay their hands on our continent, but within that territory, they are more ruled by¡­warlords than Amazerian nobles. We call it the Land of Chaos."

    That was quite the melodramatic name. I couldn''t believe they decided to rip off Martial Peak. Like, seriously?

    "The warlords and their various sects and warbands have their own autonomy and territories within the Land of Chaos, and they are so powerful that the Amazerian royalty does not dare provoke them or intrude within their domains. Fortunately, they help keep each other in check, so there is no danger of being invaded or overthrown by them."

    "¡­are you asking me to go to this Land of Chaos?" Anastasia asked with a raised eyebrow. Roland nodded solemnly, his expression all serious this time. There was no sign of any humor in his next reply.

    "You have no other choice." He then pondered for a few moments. "But it''s not all bad news. I head that deep within the Land of Chaos, there is a way for you to control your Woeful Poison Body. There are several cases of people having the same Woeful Poison Body in my Amazerian Empire, and I believe there is an entire tribe formed within the Land of Chaos to harness and control that power. You''ll feel right at home there."

    Anastasia brightened up at that, hope flaring up in her eyes. She nodded as she exhaled, and slowly relaxed her fingers. Only now I noticed that she had been clenching her fists the entire time, her fingers curled and digging deeply into her palms. Whether it was because she was struggling to control her powers and prevent the spread of her poisons, I could not tell.

    "Thank you very much, your highness."

    "We''ll provide the transport." Feng Hai jerked his head toward the hovercraft he had just alighted from, and grinned. The Silver Wolves continued unloading the cargo from the hovercraft in the background and suddenly I realized I might have been mistaken. Those might not be supplies for Ana, after all. Then again, a single individual didn''t require that much stuff when she was on her own. Undeterred, Feng Hai continued, his eyes glazing over as he concocted a plan. "We''re on our way on an overseas mission to the Amazerian Empire anyway, to deliver some products and hunt an exotic species of monsters. We can give you a lift without the Federation knowing."

    "That would be very much appreciated." Taking the hem of her green dress, Anastasia lifted her skirt slightly and did a curtsy, bowing her head gratefully. "I owe you a great debt."

    "No, no, no. You saved our lives plenty of times before. And I know you would do the same for everyone else." Feng Hai waved his hands. He then did a salute, raising his thumb and stretching his fingers, making the sign of a wolf. You know, like how kids love to make the shapes of animals by casting their hands in shadow with a portable lamp. "One for all, and all for one. The Silver Wolves live as a pack and hunt as a pack. We leave no member behind."

    "The Silver Wolves! AWOO!" the other mercenaries howled their agreement. Anastasia regarded them with a sad smile.

    "Hopefully we''ll meet again," she said quietly.

    "We definitely will." Feng Hai would have clamped his hand on her shoulder, but as always, the poison forced him to keep his distance. So I stepped forward and did the gesture for him. Ana flinched, as if expecting me to melt away or wither from the poison, but I remained unaffected. She raised an eyebrow at me.

    "I was always aware of your immunity to poison, but witnessing it once again¡­it never fails to amaze me."

    "Yeah, well¡­if¡­when we need to look for you again¡­" at this, I turned to glance at Feng Hai and the Silver Wolves. "Call me in, since I''m the only one able to actually make physical contact with her."

    Feng Hai laughed at that and nodded. "We will," he promised with a raised hand, almost as if he was swearing an oath. "We definitely will."

    "I would offer to take care of her, but I would be lying." There was some amusement in Roland''s voice as he spoke from wherever he was, half the globe away. "But¡­the offer still stands. Since you will technically be in the territory of my empire anyway, I''m probably the closest person available for help. That''s why, if you need any assistance, feel free to contact me. Just avoid killing my subjects, okay?"

    Ana smiled, despite herself. "I will do my best."

    Roland did a mock salute, and then his holographic window clicked off, replaced by empty space. I shook my head, impressed. I never thought the prince of the Amazerian Empire would extend a helping hand for a stranger. Well, he was acquainted with Feng Hai and the Silver Wolves, so they weren''t exactly strangers, but even so¡­

    A few minutes later, Adrian, Melina and I watched Anastasia climb aboard the hovercraft with her luggage. She stopped at the top of the ramp, turned around and waved to us one last time, before she finally disappeared out of sight.

    "Is this¡­really all right, Sensei?" Melina asked softly. I could hear the sorrow in her voice. Even though she didn''t know Ana, and had only met the green-haired beauty for the first time today, she still felt sad. Not at the parting, but because she was afraid that I was internally torn apart. It was almost as if she could sense the pain that stabbed at my chest. "You are pretty close to that girl, aren''t you?"

    "As long as we are alive, there will still be a chance that we will meet again in future." I waved, even though I knew how improbable it would be. Even so, I held on to that hope. But that was a tale for another day¡­hopefully one that would come to existence. For now, we had more important matters to tend to. The present wasn''t going to wait for the future to arrive. We had to deal with the present in order for the future to manifest. "Let''s go. I have a mission to complete. And the two of you were the ones who wanted some combat experience, so don''t go complaining when you fall into danger."

    "We won''t!" Adrian promised, even though he had no idea what was awaiting them. Melina nodded enthusiastically beside him, also ignorant of what lay in wait in the future.

    "We will do our best not to get in your way, and to become stronger!"

    "Oh, you both will definitely grow stronger," I assured them, and then smirked ominously. "¡­provided that you both survive the mission, of course."

 467 Chapter 467: Shrewsbury Neighborhood

    I brought Adrian and Melina to the Shrewsbury neighborhood, which was located on the outskirts of Lupin City. As we approached, I found myself greeted by an elder in a hood. She was a short lady in her eighties, her heavily wrinkled face hidden beneath the shadow of her hood, a hooked nose and slit-like eyes. She limped forward, extremely hunched and relying on a walking stick.

    "Couldn''t she have healed her condition? A basic healing spell would have straightened her spine, alleviate symptoms of old age and allowed her to walk properly."

    Adrian watched the approaching old lady curiously, surprised at how¡­unfortunate she was. Most middle-class people, and even those barely sustaining themselves on minimum wages in the city, had access to healing magic and rejuvenation treatment, which allowed them to restore a portion of their youth and their strength, and heal whatever injuries or diseases they might have when they reached an advanced age.

    However¡­

    "Not everyone can afford healthcare," I replied somberly, looking around at the decaying, decrepit neighborhood. Clearly this was a district mired in poverty, with the poor and homeless driven to this place of squalor to survive as best as they could under harsh conditions. The Federation didn''t care about them because they would be a drain on the economy, or something like that. Welfare systems were anathema to capitalism. Unless these people were willing to return to the workforce and contribute to the economy, the Federation had no business providing them with even basic healthcare and stuff. Or perhaps they somehow slipped under the radar of the government. Or maybe they chose to live out here on their own, because they refused to work and be exploited by capitalist overlords.

    The old lady in particular seemed like she would rather enjoy the last few years of her life in retirement, instead of magically prolonging her lifespan by subordinating herself to a huge company willing to pay for her medical and healing fees. She might have chose to exile herself to this neighborhood out of her own choice, and not because she was forced by circumstances. I honestly had no idea, and I wasn''t rude enough to ask.

    "We ought to help her," Melina whispered. I glanced at her and shrugged.

    "Do you know any healing spells?"

    "Eh? No."

    "Then there''s nothing we can do." As harsh as I might sound, it was also the truth. It was far, far crueler to make promises that we couldn''t keep, and give false hope, than to present the bitter reality as bitterly and honestly as I could.

    "No way¡­can we at least pay for her medical treatment with the mission''s rewards?" Melina looked distraught at what she deemed was my cold indifference. I allowed my expression to soften a little. I had the same ideals as she did, once, but my naivety had long been crushed by the gigantic gears of society and capitalism.

    "Who do you think is paying us the mission rewards?" I asked, turning to her with a raised eyebrow.

    "Eh? The person who provides the mission¡­?"

    "And who do you think requested for this mission?"

    It took Melina a few seconds to make the connection and her jaw dropped from realization. She lowered her head, blushing slightly.

    "Exactly." I sighed. "They can''t even afford to provide proper mission renumeration, so they can''t afford to pay for their medical treatments or healing magic, even if we decline the mission rewards. Which is a pitiful sum, by the way. They just¡­can''t afford anything. That''s why we students are the ones who are carrying out these missions, and not proper mercenaries like the Silver Wolves."

    "That''s¡­"

    "I''m sure I can ask for a bit of money from Dad," Adrian began, and then I gestured toward the whole neighborhood.

    "Just for this lady? What about the rest of the neighborhood? I know you can probably afford the treatment of one, two or even three of the people here, but what are you going to do about the rest? And can you possibly expect your dad to fund the medical treatment of an entire neighborhood?"

    When Adrian fell speechless, I continued with a heavy sigh.

    "Besides¡­it''s not as simple as just paying for their treatments. They need to sign up for medical insurance and healthcare schemes, to maintain their usual treatments. It''s not a one-time thing."

    Also, and this I kept from the two kids, the elderly lady was more likely to refuse. Even as poor as she was, she had her own pride. She didn''t want the pity of others, to receive money because they felt sorry for her. Additionally, she would refuse to be one of the only ones to receive treatment and healing magic when the vast majority of her neighborhood didn''t. It might surprise some of the edgy, self-centered readers who would most definitely mock her for being "stupid", but not everyone was selfish and thought only of themselves.

    In a closely knitted neighborhood like this where everyone had to rely on each other in order to survive, they had adopted the all for one, one for all mentality. Everyone was willing to live and suffer together, refusing to abandon their adopted families even for the hope of a better life. They were that kind of closely connected community, after all.

    "Are you the students from Saint Teresa Academy?" The elderly lady asked as she approached us. Being advanced in age, her hearing had slightly degraded to the point where she was no longer able to overhear our conversation. Or if she did catch what passed between us three, she chose to keep quiet and ignore it. "The ones who will be helping us rid our neighborhood of the Cyclops Rats?"

    "Yeah, that''s us," I confirmed and stepped forward to bow a greeting to her. "If you could perhaps provide more information¡­"

    "Yes, I will." The elderly lady readily accepted and slowly turned away. "My place might not be big, but please allow me to show some hospitability¡­"

    As I expected, the old lady lived in a dilapidated house, the structure practically falling apart. She had a few kids living with her. She told us that they were orphans, and I watched them run across the crumbling corridor, their innocent laughter completely out of place and a stark contrast to the peeling paint, the moldy walls and the broken ground.

    Portions of the house had fallen into disrepair, and I noticed that a faucet in the kitchen wasn''t working. The stoves were cold and left unused, mostly because the lady couldn''t afford any gas. Nonetheless, she managed to boil water using dried, dessicated twigs taken from the garden and casting a very basic fire spell.

    The garden itself was untended, with weeds growing rampantly all over and choking out any form of life. There were traces of home-grown vegetables as the lady and her adopted orphans had tried to grow their own food in their backyard, but failed because¡­well, let''s just say it''s not easy to grow your own crops in your own garden. Any edgy reader who casually made stupid comments and railed about main characters not being able to live off the land, be self-sufficient or cultivate crops obviously had no agricultural experience at all. They knew how to talk big in the comments section, just like every other hypocritical keyboard warriors furiously typing away in their rooms, but never actually had to experience any real hardship outside of their homes.

    "Excuse the rowdiness of these children," the old lady said as a couple of toddlers rushed past behind us, almost clattering into the table and knocking me over. Good thing they ran into me and not Adrian and Melina. I could physically endure whatever collision the kids caused without suffering any injury, but I couldn''t say the same for my two charges. The elderly lady smiled warmly as she watched them run off without so much as an apology. "They have all suffered tremendously, ever since their parents passed away. Without any relatives, they were abandoned in the streets and left to die, so I took them in. I am just sorry that there is very little I can provide for them¡­"

    "If you contact the authorities, I''m sure the Federation will arrange for them to be placed in a home¡­" Melina began, but the old lady shook her head.

    "Perhaps they might all have a better life if they are taken in by the government¡­but they would be split up. Our families would be broken down, and they would be sent to different homes." The old lady lowered her head. "The government is more¡­practical and utilitarian than caring. They might perhaps listen to our requests, but their ability to comply is a lot more limited."

    "That''s¡­" Melina trailed off, but was unable to come up with anything else. The elderly lady merely smiled and waved a hand.

    "Enough of that. Let''s move on to the matter at hand¡­the reason why you''ve come here today. Ah, excuse my manners. My name is Wai Po."

    "I''m Richard Huang. This is Adrian Stuart, and this is Melina Franklin."

    The two kids lowered their heads politely as I introduced them, and Wai Po favored them with a warm gaze. She then glanced at me somewhat sharply.

    "Forgive me for asking, but aren''t those two...a little too young to be participating in combat missions such as this? I know I am not in any position to ask, since I was the one who sent out the request in the first place, but nevertheless I am aware of the rules and regulations that the Federation established regarding student missions. If I''m not mistaken, only second year high school students and above are allowed to accept missions, but these two don''t seem any older than middle school students."

    "You are right. They will not be participating in the mission per say." I glanced at Adrian and Melina, narrowing my eyes at them before they could protest. "They are just here to watch and learn from a safe distance."

    "Uh, well¡­technically we were the ones who snuck aboard the transport and stowed away," Melina confessed, showing some signs of shame.

    "Ah." Wai Po nodded in sudden understanding, and she chuckled genially. She shot me an empathic glance and shook her head. "I know how you feel. The young ones tend to cause a lot of mischief. They don''t listen to me no matter how many times I tell them not to do something. There''s some sort of adventurous streak in them, especially at this age. They tend to think of themselves as invincible."

    She sighed and turned to Adrian and Melina.

    "You must remember¡­this isn''t a game. It''s extremely dangerous. You should leave the mission to your senior. You will only get in his way¡­he will be forced to protect you, and that might cause him more trouble than if he were to partake this mission alone."

    She then frowned and paused before turning back to me.

    "Are you alone? Where are your teammates? I don''t mean these middle school kids, of course. Or did you really come to carry out this mission alone?"

    "Well¡­" I was interrupted when the kettle whistled, signaling that the water had boiled. Wai Po held up a hand, and the extinguished the fire with a single gesture. She then poured the steaming water into our respective cups, which she had placed tea leaves in. The dark, soggy tea leaves made the murky drink look unappetizing, but I wasn''t exactly expecting high quality tea in a place like this. I wouldn''t be surprised if Wai Po grew these tea leaves by hand. Being polite, I took a sip of the tea and tried not to wince from the bitterness of the tea.

    Let''s just say I tasted much better tea back at home, and leave it at that.

    I must not have been able to entirely conceal my expression, for Wai Po smiled apologetically.

    "I''m sorry, but we don''t have any other beverages."

    Plain water would have been fine, to be honest, but I wasn''t rude enough to tell her that. I was a more tactful person than that, even if I was socially awkward. So I instead changed the topic back to the central issue.

    "Anyway, don''t worry. I might seem alone, but I''m a summoner. So I''m never truly alone."

    "Brother Richard is the best summoner there is!" Adrian piqued up excitedly. I wouldn''t go that far, but he didn''t give me a chance to correct him. "Thanks to him, his team managed to achive third place in the national tournament this year!"

    Wai Po merely nodded, though from her detached look it was clear that she had no idea what Adrian was talking about. Obviously¡­there was no television (or holographic screens), and she didn''t seem to possess any smartphones or Internet access, so she wouldn''t be privy to details of the outside world. She and her charges were living a hand to mouth existence, concerned only with surviving and subsisting on a day-to-day basis, nothing more.

    Clearing my throat, I spoke up as humbly as I could. "My Soul Beasts and I should be able to handle a swarm of Cyclops Rats. If there proves to be too many, I will just isolate packs here and there and exterminate them one at a time. With that in mind, I hope you can provide me information regarding their numbers and possible locations of their nests¡­if you have them, of course. If not, don''t worry. I should be able to find out."

    Wai Po hesitated for a moment, and then ran her fingers through her white, thinning hair.

    "We don''t know their exact numbers, to be frank," she began. "But we know for sure there''s a lot of them. Definitely more than thirty. Ah Gong from the neighboring house said he counted about three dozen of them swarming over Si Diao''s house the other day¡­"

    She then swallowed.

    "Si Diao and his family were killed and eaten by the Cyclops Rats. By the time we went to help them, after the monsters were gone¡­there wasn''t much of them left. Half-eaten bones and torn rags. They took the meat clean off the bones."

    Adrian looked sick while Melina''s hands flew to her mouth in horror. I paid no attention to their reactions and grimly made a mental note to check the unfortunate Si Diao''s home for clues. I could safely assume that there were at least forty of these things.

    "Thank you." I rose to my feet, subtly leaving my cup and the majority of the bitter tea untouched. "If you could point me toward the direction of Si Diao''s house¡­"

    "Yes, I''ll guide you there. But before that." Wai Po clasped her own cup with both hands, her head bowed. "You were asking for the possible locations of their nest, correct?"

    "Yeah." I looked at the old lady in surprise. I didn''t expect her to have a clue regarding that. I thought I would have to search that out myself.

    She swallowed uncomfortably, and then looked up at me firmly.

    "We do know where they are coming from. Kan Dao spotted them emerging from a manhole the other night."

    "A manhole?" Adrian repeated, flabbergasted.

    "Huh?" Melina was also puzzled as she pondered on Wai Po''s revelation. She brightened up. "Isn''t that an important clue?"

    As for me, I felt a little ill because I could already guess where the damned Cyclops Rats originated from. As if to confirm my thoughts, Wai Po nodded solemnly.

    "They are coming from the sewers."

 468 Chapter 468: Mission in the Sewers

    "You guys don''t have to follow me if you don''t want to," I told Adrian and Melina. The two kids shook their heads fervently, but remained silent. The only sounds for now were the echoes of their footsteps against damp concrete.

    Truthfully, I was glad that they were accompanying me. Nothing was more depressing than tramping around alone in the dark, stinky sewers underground. No, seriously. I had played games where I was forced to move through the sewers (the remake of Resident Evil 2, which I had played just last year, came to mind), but actually moving through one in real life? Disgusting. Ugh.

    "We''ve come too far to back out now!" Adrian finally said. I realized that the main reason for their silence was because they were holding their breaths as much as possible, especially because of the damned stench in the sewers. Good thing I had cast a basic shielding spell over us to block most of the smell, but because I wasn''t a wind mage (I never even learned basic wind spells), I wasn''t able to cast it fully. I had to use the water version, which was a little less efficient.

    "That''s right. When I resolved to follow Sensei, I didn''t care if I had to descend into hell itself!" Melina added resolutely. I rolled my eyes at her exaggeration, but didn''t comment. I was glad for her sentiment, if anything.

    "Let me know if you see anything," I told the both of them, and then scanned the interior of the sewers with my glasses. The sensors detected nothing, but I knew how deceptive that could be. For one thing, they had limited range. For another, the motion deectors were not reliable, not with all the movement it was picking up. The sewage was gushing ceaselessly, with gentle currents carrying debris and litter across the surface. There were too many movements picked up by the motion detector, and more than once I glanced at the sewage, half-expecting a Cyclops Rat to pop its head out of the thick sludge, its single glowing eye a glaring crimson in the darkness¡­only for it to be nothing more than a false alarm.

    "Okay, Master."

    "Yes, Sensei."

    I rounded on Adrian. "Why are you calling me Master again?!"

    "Because I''m supposed to play the role of Majic!" Adrian protested. "Be your apprentice while trying to learn magic to enter the Tower of Fangs and all that!"

    "Learn from Melina! At least she''s not pretending to be Cleao!"

    "But she''s pretending to be Melida Angel!"

    "No, she''s not¡­" I was cut off when Melina stepped forward with a question, pointedly ignoring my argument with Adrian.

    "Hey, Sensei¡­when are you going to implant your mana in me?"

    I threw both of my hands up in despair. "Why the fuck would I do that?!"

    "Because¡­I still can''t use mana¡­and you were moved by my determination to be a Paladin no matter what, despite clearly lacking the talent and the ability to produce mana, and decide to help me out?"

    "YOU CAN USE MANA!" I yelled, exasperated. "You are NOT Melida Angel! You have the ability to use mana and cast spells! You''re here to learn swordsmanship from me, not how to use mana! You could already use magic on your own, without needing me to teach you how!"

    "But that''s not how Assassin''s Pride went¡­"

    "Who the hell cares about Assassin''s Pride?!" I clutched my head with both hands, until Adrian tapped my shoulder.

    "Uh, Master¡­"

    "Don''t call me that!"

    "Okay, Brother Richard. But won''t you be drawing the attention of the Cyclops Rats if you make such a commotion like this by shouting so loudly?"

    I calmed down slightly and glanced about, watching the shadows for movement. Then I shrugged.

    "That''s precisely the point. I can''t think of any other way to lure them to my position without making a lot of noise."

    "So you mean all that fourth wall breaking and inane dialogue about other anime actually has a practical purpose?!" Adrian gaped at me, completely impressed. "You''re a genius, Master!"

    More like ad libbing, but I didn''t want to destroy the godlike impression he had built up of me, so I grinned as if I had planned it all along and nodded.

    "Yeah. The Cyclops Rats won''t be able to resist coming to us if we make a bit of noise. If they hear humans moving around here, they will rush here for food."

    "It doesn''t seem like it''s working, though." Melina sounded nervous as she glanced around warily. "I see no sign of them at all."

    "Interesting¡­" I frowned and closed my eyes. For a few moments, I saw through the eyes and heard via the ears of my flock of Corvus that I had scattered throughout the bowels of the sewer. They hadn''t detected any sign of Cyclops Rats. Not even a corpse. "I can''t find any of them. Not even remains of their meals, or traces of them¡­no signs of any nest, nothing."

    This was weird. Wai Po had no reason to lie to me¡­and in any case she was merely offering me second-hand accounts from other people who had actually seen these beasts ¨C and again, I doubted those poor souls had any reason to lie and make up stories. After being hosted by Wai Po, I had went to Si Diao''s house, and found evidence of a monster attack. The signs left behind by their claws and fangs matched those belonging to Cyclops Rats, so I had no reason to suspect fabrication on the Shrewsbury residents'' part.

    Yet something was clearly not right here. With the din that my charges and I were making, the Cyclops Rats should be charging forward ravenously, seeking to make a feast of us. There was no way these simple-minded creatures could resist the temptation of a warm, fresh meal approaching them. Maybe a few canny ones would be cautious enough to keep their distance, suspecting an ambush, but a pack of at least forty of them? Impossible.

    Where could they be?

    "Are they not in the sewers, after all?" Adrian asked skeptically, looking around and starting to get bored. I took a deep breath and immediately regretted it, gagging as I coughed and waved a hand in front of my face in reflex. Even with the shielding, the foul odor that permeated the underground passageways could not be underestimated.

    "The sewers are a massive place. We have barely even begun to explore a small part of it." I pushed my glasses up as I scanned the darkness extending just beyond us. "We should search for a bit more and map out the place before giving up."

    "Understood, Sensei." Melina nodded impassively, as if I had just instructed her to get some homework done. "We''ll find them."

    "If we can''t, we''ll just return to Shrewsbury neighborhood and stay the night. Keep watch and protect the residents from an attack, then follow the Cyclops Rats back down here. Hopefully they will lead us to their nest."

    Even as I said that, I was hoping it wouldn''t come to that. I preferred to deliver a preemptive strike and eliminate the Cyclops Rats before they could pose any threat to the residents above. Of course, even if I exterminated a bunch of vermin down here, I still intended to stay the night or two to ensure that they were fully eradicated. You know, just in case there was a lot more than three dozen of them. Wouldn''t surprise me if there was an infestation of hundreds of these things.

    If that was the case, I might be forced to call for reinforcements from the military. Even the Federation couldn''t ignore the dangers of hundreds of Cyclops Rats living under one of their cities. They would deploy a whole company of soldiers to flush them out completely. Or so I hoped. The only reason why they left this to student-scale missions was because the evidence only pointed to there being relatively few Cyclops Rats, which normally could be dealt with by high school students and mages-in-training. However, once those numbers exceeded a certain quantity, then we would have no choice but to call in the military.

    It would mean giving up our mission rewards, but since I wasn''t getting much from this particular mission in the first place, I had no problem with that. And I honestly would pay to get out of the sewers.

    The three of us continued to move within the sewers, and I kept track of our location through the holographic mini-map displayed on the bottom left of my lenses. Conveniently enough, just like the Resident Evil games, it showed the places we had already explored, marking the areas green while the unexplored places remained gray. Those that were only partially explored were colored a red hue, which meant that we had to return to them later to explore.

    Obviously I didn''t want to go through the trouble of backtracking, so I ensured that every area we entered was a deep green before moving on to the next chamber. I was essentially relying on scripted events to encounter the monsters instead of hoping for random spawns¡­

    Wait, this wasn''t a game. It would be fatal to treat this as a game. Cyclops Rats didn''t just spawn from ones and zeroes. They were real, breathing creatures that already populated the sewers prior to my arrival. If I continued to treat this as a game, I would end up making a mistake that would cost me my life. Not just me, but also the lives of the two kids under my charge.

    Speaking of those two kids¡­

    "Still nothing." Adrian was trying his best not to complain, but he sounded sulky. "Where could they be?!"

    "Maybe they only used the sewers as a route¡­a path to move them from one place to another, but their nest is actually located elsewhere." Melina was thinking hard, and I had to give her some credit for her suggestions. It was entirely plausible that the nest of the Cyclops Rats was located not in the sewers, but elsewhere, and they only made use of the underground passageway as an in-between. That would suck. If that was the case, then it was best to return to Shrewsbury above and wait for them to come at night.

    The monsters mostly came at night. Mostly.

    "Where did they come from, then?" Adrian asked curiously, glancing above. "The forest outside Lupin City?"

    "Maybe. It''s worth a try."

    I was about to agree with Melina''s assessment when I stilled. Holding up a hand, I signaled for both kids to stay silent, because one of my Corvus had picked up something. He flapped his wings and soared through the stale air, intent on locating the source of the sound. A couple of hundred meters away, from the sound of it, there were huge splashing noises. As if something massive was coming our way.

    Something massive¡­or a horde of many creatures was approaching.

    "What is it?" Adrian demanded, unable to suppress his curiosity, but I ignored him, distracted by whatever was coming our way. He knew better than to press me, not when I had that look of utmost concentration on my face.

    Then they came into view. A whole horde of Cyclops Rats were scrambling in our direction, sending waves of disgusting sludge splashing against the concrete walls. Their single, glowing red eyes seemed to illuminate the otherwise inky blackness of the underground sewer, and their blurry paws sported wickedly curved claws. Their filthy, black fur allowed them to blend in seamlessly with the darkness, and dagger-like fangs hung from their jaws. Wire-like whiskers appeared to stretch out, tense from their predatory hunger.

    And there was a lot more than the three dozen that Ah Gong reported. Almost a hundred of them was crashing toward our direction, squealing in rabid delight.

    Biting my lip (because I didn''t want to take a deep breath), I summoned a bow and prepared to face that direction. The Cyclops Rats had finally gotten close enough to be heard by both Adrian and Melina, and the motion detector on my glasses was going crazy, showing multiple giant signals closing in on our position. Just as I expected.

    Conjuring Alnasl, I fitted the flaming arrow to my Sagittarius-pattern bow and took aim. The flickering flames illuminated our position, casting reddish-orange hues on the moldy, gray concrete walls and damp granite ground. While some people might have criticized me for making us more visible to the enemy, I knew it wouldn''t have made a difference. The Cyclops Rats were known for being able to see in the dark. If anything, the flames of my arrow would have momentarily blinded them, forcing their eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness.

    Not that I was counting on that. You could never underestimate monsters, no matter what rank they were.

    "This¡­" Adrian began, his voice taut with fear, but he had drawn his sword. As did Melina, who bravely stepped forward, only for me to wave her back. Like hell I was going to let the kids risk themselves. Instead, I had them stay behind me while I kept my blazing arrow pointed in the direction of the passageway where the Cyclops Rats would emerge from.

    "Be careful," I warned, my eyes narrowed. "They are coming."

 469 Chapter 469: Cleaning out the Vermin

    The moment the Cyclops Rats came within view, I unleashed my blazing arrow. Alnasl struck the front of the horde and then exploded, engulfing the vanguard in furious flames.

    And then something unexpected happened. Now that I thought about it, I should have expected it, but I was being stupid. Come on, I am an arts student (not literal art, but in terms of humanities, such as literature and history), not a science student. How was I supposed to know what would follow?

    In any event, the explosion triggered a chain reaction. Let''s just say there''s a lot of methane in the sewers, and the sewage itself is highly inflammable. A single spark onto the damned sludge was all that was needed to ignite the entire thing. The sewage spontaneously combusted, turning into an immense inferno that swept across the innards of the sewer and consumed the poor swarm of Cyclops Rats ravenously.

    It didn''t just stop at where the Cyclops Rats were, the flames continued to sweep through the entire space, the fiery tendrils reaching out throughout the underground passageways beneath Lupin City. Not just below Shrewsbury neighborhood, but basically almost all the space underneath the entire city was engulfed in flames.

    "Oh, shit!"

    I honestly did not expect this to happen. Cursing under my breath, I turned and dove at the two kids, knocking them down. At the same time, I cast a defensive spell.

    "Ice Fortress!"

    An igloo basically appeared above us, and I layered it with multiple Scutum Sobiescianum to protect it from the front, where the flames were coming from. Between the Constellation shields and my Ice Fortress, I also summoned Snow Aegis, in hopes that it would absorb most of the damage from the incoming flames.

    There was a surge in temperature and I felt intense heat scald my skin as it billowed across my defenses. The shields all held ¨C turned out that my defenses were overkill. It wasn''t as if I was nuking the sewer. I just set off a chain reaction, so these were just normal flames spreading across the entirety of the sewers. The automated sprinklers went off and began extinguishing the flames, but after a few seconds, I realized that my Constellation shields and icy defenses were little more than charred. There wasn''t much damage done to them.

    Well¡­better over-prepared than not being prepared at all, I guess.

    "You guys okay?" I asked as I rose to my feet, checking on Adrian and Melina. The two kids nodded and also got up, checking themselves over for any sign of injuries. Thankfully it didn''t seem like they suffered anything worse than smudges.

    I activated the x-ray function on my glasses and scanned past my frost barrier, making sure that it was safe before I dismissed my protective spells. There were still a lot of flames ¨C the amount of fire that raged through the sewers was nothing short of catastrophic, after all. However, it wasn''t as bad as before, thanks to the foam being sprayed from above. Hell, the concrete pathways above the sewage ¨C where the kids and I stood ¨C were finally clear when the sensors detected no trace of flames around us. Only the sludge continued to burn defiantly, but even these embers were gradually being extinguished by the sprinklers above.

    With nothing to worry about, I then deactivated my protective spells, though I almost regretted it when the stench struck us with full force. Not only was there still traces of the foul sewage stench, it was mixed with the scent of roasted meat. The flames had thoroughly burned the poor Cyclops Rats into oblivion, leaving scorched remains behind.

    From the distance, I scanned the blackened husks with my glasses to ensure there wasn''t any movement, and then I wiped my forehead in relief. Seemed like we had achieved our goal at least. At that moment, I was still unaware that I had basically sterilized the entire sewers under the city, so I didn''t know how far the flames had extended to.

    Nonetheless, I needed to remain cautious. Nodding to the kids, I began striding forward.

    "We need to ensure they are all dead," I told them. Then I grinned. "This would be good training experience for you two."

    The two kids looked a little sick, but they decided to tag along for now. After all, they were the ones who insisted on tagging along, so they couldn''t blame me for assigning them the dirty work.

    *

    I''m going to spare you the grisly details of our exploration of the sewer, and needless to say, after going through the corpses, we decided to go up. There wasn''t much to say, except to burn the carcasses to ash with my fire spells. There were a few survivors, but terribly weakened, they could do little more than snap at our heels, and these I left to Adrian and Melina to put out of their misery, under the excuse of them getting combat experience.

    Well, it was true. Even when terribly weakened and injured, the Cyclops Rats remained a huge threat to the uninitiated. The saying that a cornered mouse would bite even a cat was true, and these Cyclops Rats were still deadly if underestimated. They just didn''t need much more to take out since I already did a lot of damage, so Adrian and Melina dispatched them relatively easily, but they still had to remain on alert and learned quite a bit in terms of practical combat.

    "All right, we''re done for the day. Let''s go up."

    "Yay!"

    Adrian and Melina cheered, unable to hold back their relief and delight at finally being able to leave this godforsaken place. I didn''t blame them. I wasn''t very fond of sticking around in this stinky place. And I hoped we could find somewhere to get a shower and a change of clothes after this. Ugh. The smell was sticking to our clothing. Fortunately, we could clean them using magic ¨C especially since I had chosen to learn more ice spells (which was technically under the umbrella of water magic), so there wasn''t much to worry about even if Wai Po didn''t possess a working bathroom.

    As I suspected, she didn''t, and the three of us decided to set up camp at the corner of the road somewhere. After resting for a bit, I waited for evening to draw close before I summoned a flock of Corvus and dispersed them throughout the neighborhood.

    "What are you doing?" Adrian asked, watching the black crows spread out in the darkening sky.

    "Finishing the job. Did you forget? We''ve to ensure that the neighborhood will not be attacked by Cyclops Rats again. We might have just exterminated only a small fraction of the horde. We never did find the nest, after all."

    "Ah¡­so there might be a lot more than the hundred or so we killed?" Melina looked pale. I shrugged indifferently.

    "There is that possibility. And if there is, we''ll leave a couple alive, so that we can follow them back to their nest."

    "Ugh¡­" Adrian looked ill. I didn''t blame him. I was also reluctant to go back to the sewers again, but a job was a job. We couldn''t cut corners and slack just because we didn''t like the workplace we had been assigned to.

    Since I accepted this from Headmistress Taylor, I planned to see the task to its very end. That was what it meant to be a responsible adult. Unlike those kids who wrote several chapters of their stories, and then dropped them halfway, despite going Premium or having Privilege chapters. At least have the discipline to finish your stories and write to the end, especially if you are having your readers pay for it!

    Unexpectedly, the night passed¡­and nothing happened. No Cyclops Rats emerged from the sewers, and Shrewsbury Neighborhood remained safe and sound. I knew this through the net of surveillance that I had cast over the district, and none of my Corvus spotted anything. So we were pretty much done with the job, though it was entirely possible that the Cyclops Rats had taken irrecoverable losses from my stunt in the sewers earlier that day, and chose to hide somewhere and lick their wounds for now.

    "¡­argh¡­"

    I suppressed a yawn when morning dawned upon us. I was too tired to do anything else. Dismissing my Corvus, I looked up at the brightening sky, my eyelids heavy. There was nothing more I wanted to do than to fall asleep there and then.

    "Go ahead and sleep, Brother Richard," Adrian told me. He had just risen from his makeshift bed a few minutes ago, and was rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He also gave a loud yawn, but waved at me with a forced smile. "We''ll take over the watch."

    "Yeah, so please get some rest, Sensei!" Melina agreed, a bit fresher.

    I nodded. I had the two kids sleep because we didn''t need so many people on sentry duty, and my Corvus could do their job. However, since my crows would disappear when I fell asleep, I needed someone fresh and awake to take over the job while I rested, which was why I ordered the two to bed last night. Now that they were fully rested, they should be able to take over the job without much difficulty.

    This was why you needed teammates. You couldn''t possibly do everything alone.

    "Wake me up when something happens," I told them before lying down. "If a monster shows up, wake me up. I don''t care if it''s just one rank F monster and you guys think you can handle it on your own. Wake me up and I''ll make the decision."

    "Yes, Master." Adrian grinned while reverting back to his Majic persona. Right now he was regarding me as Orphen or Krylancelo for some reason. He would be disappointed if he expected me to stab something or somebody. "Now go sleep."

    And so I did¡­until the thunderous roar of a hovercraft woke me up several hours later. I jolted awake before either Adrian or Melina could wake me up, looking about frantically for the source of the noise. It didn''t take me long to locate it. A massive shadow darkened the place where we had set up camp, and I saw the tremendous transport descend on an abandoned park nearby.

    "What''s going on?" I mumbled, rubbing my eyes before putting my glasses back on and stifling a yawn.

    "I don''t know, Brother Richard. I was about to ask you too." Adrian shrugged, his curious gaze still locked on the landing hovercraft. "They don''t look like Silver Wolves¡­"

    He was right. There was no emblem of the Silver Wolves located atop the hull of the hovercraft. Instead, there was the icon of the Federation military.

    "What is the military doing here?" Melina wondered out loud, evidently recognizing their symbol as well. She turned to me inquisitively. "Perhaps the case with the Cyclops Rats is a lot bigger than we first anticipated?"

    "Only one way to find out," I replied, but I made no move to approach the soldiers who were now disembarking. I only planned to watch them from afar from now. No point trying to stir up trouble when you could avoid it.

    Unfortunately, things never went as planned. The soldiers spotted us and immediately approached us before we could say anything. I snapped a salute in reflex as their commanding officer stopped in front of me.

    "You''re Richard Huang, correct? The one who took the Cyclops Rat mission?"

    "That is correct, sir." By the epaulets on his uniform, I identified him as a Lieutenant. "What happened?"

    The lieutenant rolled his eyes. "What happened? You were the one who caused that fire throughout the sewer yesterday, weren''t you?"

    "Oh, uh, yeah." I had filed a report and sent it online yesterday, before evening fell, because you know, you needed to cover your ass and all that. I didn''t want peope accusing me of vandalism or damage of public property, then failing to report it. It was standard procedure, so that the government could begin repairs as soon as possible. "Sorry about that, but there was an infestation down there, so I didn''t have a choice."

    "Don''t worry, son. I''m not blaming you for that." The lieutenant shook his head in a reassuring manner. "It''s just that¡­you pretty much burned out the entire sewage system yesterday. Repairs are ongoing right now, but as you know, we need to send in several teams to investigate and assess the safety of the location before the repair teams can do their job. Thanks to your reports, we decided to dispatch an entire company of soldiers to scout the sewers."

    "Oh¡­I didn''t know that. I didn''t receive any notification regarding that."

    The lieutenant snorted, as if it was obvious that the military couldn''t even deign to report to a nobody like me about every action they chose to take.

    "That''s because we didn''t tell you."

    Right.

    "But that''s not why we''re here." The lieutenant regarded me grimly, and then sighed. "Thanks to you, we located the nest of the Cyclops Rats that you''ve been assigned to hunt."

 470 Chapter 470: Mission Accomplished

    "Oh, that''s great!" I felt a surge of relief. Sort of, because I still dreaded going down to the damned sewers again. That place was like hell. "Thanks for telling me. I''ll go down there and wipe them out this time."

    "Well, actually¡­" the lieutenant gave me a strange look. "You already exterminated them."

    "Huh?" I gaped at him. "How? I didn''t even know where the nest was, to begin with¡­"

    "Um¡­" the military officer cleared his throat. "Well, the fire you triggered down in the sewers¡­it spread pretty rapidly and burned out the entire sewers, as I said earlier. The flames reached their nest and incinerated all of them, including their young. We found nothing but corpses. There were a few survivors, but they had been so severely injured by your flames that they weren''t able to get very far. Some of them died from their wounds after dragging themselves across the burned sludge. Others¡­well, my men slew them when we came across them during the investigation."

    He then placed a hand on my shoulder.

    "I''m just here to inform you that your mission has been completed. To give you confirmation that you have wiped out the Cyclops Rats."

    I stared at him dumbly for a few moments, waiting for the information to sink in. Then I took a deep breath and nodded.

    "Thank you, sir."

    *

    So there was nothing more I could do except go home. The first thing we did was stop by a hotel to wash up and take a long, warm shower, while also sending our clothes to the laundry in the basement. Then I returned to my room ¨C we each had our own rooms ¨C to spend the rest of the night.

    Fortunately, this was a hotel under the Stuart family. I wasn''t sure if readers still remembered Stewart Stuart from like four hundred chapters ago, but he was Adrian''s uncle who was in charge of the chain of hotels under the Stuart Corporation. Thanks to connections, we were given hotel rooms free of charge, paid for by the Stuart family. Though I was a little hesitant, practicality ruled over morality and I acquiesced to Adrian''s insistence that we accept the hospitality of his family.

    It helped tremendously that we had basically spent the day in the sewers just yesterday, and I really, really couldn''t stand the stink. Ugh.

    Now that I was in the hotel, I decided to write up and submit the full report to Headmistress Taylor, which was standard procedure for every mission. What, you think people just carry out missions and receive rewards? Just like that? Nah, we needed to write an after-action report and submit it to our superiors. Too many web novelists were out of touch with reality, and didn''t know how actual military operations or otherwise worked. You simply did not just do a mission, and then claim the rewards. You obviously needed to submit a report and answer whatever questions your superiors might have upon reviewing it.

    For now, we could take it easy. I guess.

    When evening came, we had dinner in the restaurant located at the lobby of the hotel. It was quite the posh setting, which made me feel out of place, but Adrian insisted that it was fine. Then again, nobody seemed to care. There were a few uncles and aunties dressed in singlets, shorts and slippers, or casual dresses and slippers, and nobody paid them any mind. Honestly, the whole attire thing was overrated, so if you ever read a web novel where the waiters and waitresses mocked and refused to serve a customer just because he "looked poor", or have all the other customers inside a restaurant trash-talk the main character for no reason other than his appearance, you know for sure that the writer had never been outside of his home, and was relying on unrealistic tropes and clich¨¦s that he stole from other webnovels. Look, while there definitely were elite clubs and high-class restaurants that demanded a certain dress code, not every damned hotel or bank or jewelry shop or whatever store the webnovelist decided to stereotype features salespeople with that sort of attitude, and even if they did think that, they knew better than to voice such thoughts out loud. Most salespeople had the attitude of "if the customer can pay, we don''t care how he/she dresses." Also, most people had better things to do than to trash-talk the main character. Nobody was that stupid to trash-talk someone in public, and then gang up on him to drive him out of the establishment for no reason other than he was the main character. I know the webnovelists were trying to do the whole "don''t judge people by their appearances" moral of the story, but they did it in such a contrived and retarded manner that it was much harder to interpret the relevant message because the readers simply couldn''t suspend disbelief at how idiotic every character (and this included the main character) was acting in the story.

    Hell, it would be an insult to characters to call such¡­things characters. They were caricatures at best.

    Anyway, I was saying that nobody cared about our attire, and we took a small table at the side, near the windows. It was a buffet-styled restaurant, so we basically picked up a huge white plate, choose from a massive variety of dishes laid out across the tables, and eat as much as we wanted.

    Now that we were actually eating a proper meal, I realized just how starved I was. Come to think of it, I hadn''t actually eaten much since yesterday, probably because the damned sewers destroyed my appetite. We had a bit of rations, but that was it. Thanks to that, I had managed to work up a massive appetite today, and practically gorged myself on whatever I saw.

    "Phew¡­"

    White rice. Chicken curry. Singaporean satay. Fish saut¨¦ed in bean sauce. Beef rendang. Chilli crab. Laksa. Sushi. Sashimi. Char kuay teow. Fried rice. Herbal chicken soup. Corn soup. Porridge with condiments. Jellyfish. Stir-fried cabbage. Broccoli with abalone and mushroom. Ice cream (of course it had to be mango flavored). Red bean soup. Cakes.

    Yeah, I ate all of that over several rounds. It took me a couple of hours to go through everything, but somehow I managed to devour whatever I scooped up onto my plate.

    "Whoa¡­Brother Richard, I didn''t expect you to eat so much."

    Adrian''s eyes were wide. I knew why he was surprised. I looked so skinny, yet somehow I could eat so much. It was a trait that more than a few people had remarked. But I couldn''t help it. No matter how much I ate, I just never grew fat. It was almost my superpower.

    "Isn''t that good?" Melina asked as she sliced a cake in half with her fork, watching me wistfully. She only had a fraction of what I had in terms of main courses, but she had several times the amount of dessert that I had. When I glanced inquisitively at her and her plate of cakes and sweets, she merely shrugged innocently.

    "We women have another stomach for desserts," she explained without a trace of irony. I raised an eyebrow skeptically, but didn''t pursue the matter. I realized over the long course of my life that it was useless to argue with a lady.

    Adrian, on the other hand, had about half to three-quarters of what I had, and he already looked defeated, sprawled across the table and heaving. He looked at me somewhat enviously.

    "I have no idea how you managed to fit all that amount of food into such a relatively thin body," he moaned.

    "Magic," I replied, without a trace of irony, and then stuffed the last piece of cake into my mouth. I liked the ice cream more, so I rose from my seat to grab another helping of mango ice cream. Sorry, but mango was my jam, if you know what I''m saying.

    "Seriously?"

    "No, I wasn''t being serious." Obviously. I tried not to roll my eyes as I scooped a bunch of mango ice cream onto a bowl, and then returned to my seat. "I used up quite a bit of magic yesterday, so I needed to restore my energy. And the best way to do that is by eating. A lot."

    As if to emphasize my point, I pushed my glasses up with one hand, my lenses shining, and grinned. Then I stuck my spoon into my ice cream and began to eat it. Well, ice cream was one of the best foods to restock my energy, considering the amount of glucose it provided. So it wasn''t as if I was pulling this one out of my ass.

    That said, some readers might claim that I didn''t use that much magic yesterday, though. Yeah, I did. I had summoned Corvus and maintained the entire flock for hours on end. Hell, I summoned them the entire night, for eight to nine hours straight, so admittedly that was pretty draining on me. I was fortunate that Corvus was a tiny, low-ranked Constellation spirit that didn''t require a lot of mana ¨C I would never have pulled it off with most of my other Constellation spirits. They cost too much mana to maintain their existences in the material world. On the other hand, Corvus was pretty cheap in terms of mana consumption. Even then, it was no joke to maintain their existences physically for almost ten hours straight. And that included the several hours of summoning them while I explored the sewers before camping out in the Shrewsbury neighborhood to watch out for the Cyclops Rats.

    So¡­actually, now that I thought aout it, I did use quite a lot of magic yesterday. In terms of mana consumption, I had spent plenty.

    "Oh, that''s right." Adrian completely bought what I said with a straight face. Well, it was the truth, and Adrian was intelligent enough to know that I was right. Melina, on the other hand, looked curious as she tried to calculate my mana expenditure, without much success. She had little experience with summoning magic, and thus wasn''t sure how it worked. Adrian didn''t pay any attention to her and beamed at me. "You''ve worked hard, Brother Richard."

    "Those crows cost quite a lot of mana to summon?" Melina asked, bewildered. "Even though they are so small and have not much combat capability?"

    "It''s not the quantity or size, but rather the length of time I summoned them," I explained, and reminded her of the number of hours I spent to keep them in existence. She fell silent and nodded in understanding.

    "Oh, so that''s why."

    "Yeah. That''s why I need all this food to recharge!" I ate another spoonful of ice cream and almost swooned over how the sweet mango taste melted across my tongue. Damn, I love mango ice cream.

    Also, this was a rare chance to get a free meal ¨C I rarely had the chance to dine at such restaurants that provided all-you-can-eat buffets, so I was more than happy to devour everything in sight. It had been too long since I last had such a feast.

    With that basic need of humanity fulfilled, we then returned to our rooms to rest for the night.

    *

    "Everything in order?" I asked the two kids as we prepared to check out of the hotel the next day. We didn''t bring much stuff ¨C all of our belongings could be squeezed into a single backpack. I never thought I would be staying in Lupin City for any period of time longer than a week, after all.

    Adrian and Melina nodded. They had less stuff than I did, because they stowed away without my knowledge, and were less prepared. Nothing to worry about in the end, since we ended up staying for a grand total of three days and two nights, so they didn''t really need much necessities and clothing. And the hotel provided them clean clothing for free, since it was under Adrian''s uncle.

    It was nice to have all these family connections¡­

    "How are we going back?" Adrian asked and he glanced about, as if expecting a taxi to show up and bring us somewhere. "By train?"

    "Normally, yeah, but¡­I''ve friends here."

    "Friends?" Melina repeated with a puzzled frown. I raised an eyebrow at her.

    "Did you already forget my friends?"

    Before she could reply, they arrived. And in style too, in the form of a huge hovercraft that descended upon the parking lot.

    "Hey, Richie!" As the ramp lowered, Redfield poked his head out of the passenger bay and waved at me. "I figured you needed a lift back home! Since we''re heading west, we figured we might as well drop you off at Flandor City along the way!"

    "That would be much appreciated!" I called out to him. Then I turned to the two kids, who were gaping at the huge transport in astonishment. Why were they so surprised? This was the same way we got here. Did they think Redfield would abandon me to my own devices after my mission here? Well, come to think of it, it was quite the coincidence that he was heading west exactly on the same day we were slated to leave the hotel and return to Flandor City. Maybe that was why they didn''t expect him to show up at precisely this time. Not that I was going to enlighten them on whatever arrangements we had, so I just smiled at them and gestured toward the hovercraft. "All right, guys, let''s hop on. We''re going home."

 471 Chapter 471: Theoretical exams and results

    Let''s skip the next month or so and go straight to the exams, because nothing of note happened in between. Not unless you want me to elaborate on training, which¡­let''s be honest, is pretty boring. It was just me telling and demonstrating to Adrian and Melina various sword techniques and magic spells. Well, Melina didn''t need much in the way of magic spells because she was already a genius in that aspect, but since I knew wood magic and Adrian was trying to master the Stuart style swordsmanship that possessed tremendous affinity with the wood element, I might as well help him out with that.

    Otherwise¡­nothing happened.

    "Good luck with your exams," I told the both of them before we started our journey toward school one day. As I said, we had reached the end of the month, so about three weeks or less after the whole incident in Lupin City with the Cyclops Rats.

    "It''s just theory exams today," Adrian replied dryly. "No big deal. I''m more worried about the practical exams."

    "Hey, don''t underestimate the theoretical exams," I told him sternly. "Even if it''s just filling out answers on paper with a pen, that doesn''t make it any less difficult. They still determine your overall scores, and knowledge is power. The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance. It''s good to excel in fighting and magic, but you need the theoretical knowledge to truly master combat and spells. Without theoretical knowledge, you would never be able to learn how to cast your spells."

    "That''s true," Adrian admitted, but he brightened up with a smile. "Don''t worry. I''m confident in my theory exams. I''ve always scored consistently well on them. I won''t say I''m the top of class, but I have no difficulties passing them."

    I nodded, already aware of Adrian''s ability. Then I glanced at Melina and smiled reassuringly at her. If Adrian was competent and above average, then Melina was a genius and an elite who frequently ranked at the top of theoretical exam scores. She certainly put in a lot of effort into studying, to make up for her lack of swordsmanship, and to prove to her family that she could not merely meet but in fact surpass their expectations.

    As such I was confident that Melina would perform well, and I had faith that Adrian would pass at the very least. I was blessed with two diligent students, who rarely let me down. I didn''t have to worry about them flunking, not like all those characters you often read about in shounen manga, who were for some reason always bad at studying.

    "What about you, Sensei? You spent so much time training us. Will you be all right with your own exams?"

    Melia voiced her concerns. I shrugged, aware that Saint Teresa Academy still required exchange students like me to take exams. We couldn''t be seen slacking off and doing nothing while the official students worked their asses off. Besides, some people might abuse the system to their advantage to avoid taking exams by applying for exchange programs, so¡­yeah, they clamped down on that. Not that I cared. I was used to taking exams, being someone who chose to study for most of his career prior to his death. What could you expect from a study maniac insane enough to apply for graduate school?

    "Don''t worry about it," I assured her with a smile. "I studied consistently, and did all my homework, so I should theoretically be able to pass without any problems. I won''t be as good at exams as you, but I shouldn''t fail. I hope."

    Melina''s eyes widened at my last utterance, but I waved her worries away with a forced chuckle. Even though I couldn''t guarantee that I would pass my theoretical exams, I didn''t want her blaming herself and worrying herself sick over my own circumstances, so I had to at least fabricate a fa?ade of confidence at least.

    "Focus on your own exams. Let me worry about mine on my own, all right?"

    "Okay¡­" Melina didn''t look convinced, but she was the student and I was her private tutor. In other words, she had to obey my orders.

    "All right, let''s go!"

    With that, I led the way to school.

    *

    A week later, right before the practical exams were due to take place, the results for the theoretical exams were out.

    After splitting up with Adrian and Melina, I proceeded to the high school section. As usual, I watched the duo break off and proceed to the middle school section before I resumed my journey to my classroom. Even though I was an exchange student, I still took my ice magic lessons with Teacher Einsberg seriously.

    I mean, I wanted to master ice magic, so obviously I had to put in as much effort as possible, right?

    While I strode through the courtyard leading to the main school building, I caught sight of a large crowd of students in white and maroon uniforms gathering in front of a gigantic holographic bulletin board. The huge hologram hovered in the open, and displayed upon its blue-tinted screen was a list of names that were ranked according to numerical scores.

    "Look!" one of the female students pointed the electronic bulletin board to her friend. "The ranking list for the latest semester exam is out!"

    Her friend, a girl with light brown hair, followed her friend''s gaze and gasped.

    "Wow, Zhao Yan takes first place again."

    Who?

    For a moment, I had no idea who they were talking about, even though those names sounded extremely familiar. Then I suddenly realized why I thought I had heard the name before. It belonged to what we could call a celebrity in school.

    Nan Gong Zhao Yan was one of the two famous beautiful twin sisters who were often gossiped about and held in high regard as Saint Teresa Academy''s twin idols. Come to think of it, I had frequently caught glimpses of Zhao Yan and her twin sister, Ji Yan, when exploring the school premises, but I never actually interacted with them.

    The reason was mostly because they were always surrounded by male and female fans alike.

    Well, it was none of my business. I stopped and scanned the holographic bulletin board for my name and quickly found it. I was nowhere near the top, of course. Instead, I was ranked a mere forty-eighth. Then again, forty-eighth out of over five hundred second year high school students in Saint Teresa Academy wasn''t bad, considering that I was still within the top ten percent. It was unfortunate, but I was neither a genius who could consistently get into the very pinnacle of thereotical rankings, nor was I a hopeless student rooted at the bottom like those shounen manga or light novel protagonists so common in anime adaptations.

    I knew that manga, anime and light novel protagonists were often at one extreme end or the other, either being geniuses who were somehow achieving top two rankings or morons who could never study to save their lives, but being stuck in reality, I found myself frequently hovering around the above average mark. Not too bad, but not extremely superb either. Not that I was complaining. Scoring within the top ten percent of my cohort (even if I wasn''t among the top ten) was still something to be proud of, after all.

    On the other hand, the twin sisters seemed like Mary Sue or villainous characters straight out of a shoujo manga.

    "Umm¡­"

    Speak of the devil. Nan Gong Ji Yan had shown up, her trademark twin tails and cute face catching a lot of attention from her schoolmates. One of her friends ¨C and I used the term loosely because it was clear that she was the kind of shallow girls who followed Ji Yan around only because the latter was popular ¨C a girl with a bob-cut, hurried to her.

    "Ji Yan, you don''t need to look. You''re in second place again."

    Was it my imagination, or was there a hint of a sneer in Ji Yan''s friend''s voice? As I suspected, she was real friend but one of those superficial entourage who tagged along solely to ride on Ji Yan''s coattails. What a bitch.

    Ji Yan appeared to have noticed the subtle derision in her friend''s voice as well, and she frowned. However, she did well to conceal her irritation.

    "What?"

    A second friend came alongside her, this time a girl with long brown hair. Raising her hands, she sighed and shook her head in resignation.

    "Looks like you''ve been stuck in second place ever since we''ve enrolled in Saint Teresa Academy. But that''s not all. This time, there''s a new transfer student who has also managed to achieve first place along with Zhao Yan."

    For a moment I wondered if they were referring to Kureha Franklin, but she wasn''t a transfer.

    Putting Zhao Yan aside, who had always monopolized the very top rank of theoretical test scores, I wasn''t aware that there was a new transfer student. Adrian came to mind, but obviously they couldn''t be referring to him because he had transferred to the middle school section, not the high school one.

    By the way, while Kureha Franklin, Kufa Van Peer and the others were all ranked at the top when it came to combat aptitude, their academic scores were a little less impressive. Nonetheless, Kureha, Kufa and Miura La Noir were within the top ten, while Eliza Franklin was twenty-seventh and Rossetti Picket was a respectable sixty-eighth. As for Lute Dragoon¡­let''s just say he was in the bottom three and leave it at that.

    So I had no idea who this new transfer student was. Fortunately, the girls were on hand to provide me the much-needed information of their own accord.

    "That good-looking transfer student, right?"

    "Yeah! That''s right! I heard that his name is Xu Wu Cheng!"

    Uh huh. So why was he able to achieve so much (it''s a Chinese pun joke here, because Wu Cheng is homophonic with no achievements) and score first place? His parents must be twisted to name him as such, or were geniuses who thought that such a terrible name would motivate him to work harder than everyone else to prove fate wrong.

    "He''s really handsome."

    The two friends were gushing happily while Ji Yan sulked to one side, evidently sore and bitter over losing out to her sister and a newcomer. Was she serious? She was number two, you know? She was ranked above almost five hundred other students in her cohort, which was already quite the amazing achievement. Hell, she outscored me by a huge margin and I wasn''t complaining about being utterly defeated!

    Neither of us had a chance to whine because Ji Yan''s bob-haired friend chose that moment to squeal excitedly.

    "Look! He''s coming!"

    The girls all crooned and swooned in lovesickness as an incredibly handsome guy with red hair confidently strode across the marble path and toward the main campus building. The white and maroon uniform, as much as I hated to admit it, matched his flaming hair perfectly. Adjusting his tie, Xu Wu Cheng smiled smugly and looked up at the electronic bulletin board, his eyes immediately flitting to the top as if already expecting his name to be there.

    Ugh¡­as much as it was vexing to admit it, his overwhelming arrogance was well-deserved.

    "Wow! How handsome!"

    The crowd of girls, on the other hand, were all drooling over Xu Wu Cheng''s presence, their eyes transforming into hearts. The guys, like me, glared at the handsome playboy in bitter envy. How could the heavens be so unfair? Giving everything to this guy, granting him great looks, an intelligent mind capable of acing exams, an athletic body that was the stuff of every girl''s dreams, and if rumors were to be believed (because I could overhear the girls whispering right now), coming from an extremely wealthy family suspected to be nobles. There was no way any of us could compare with a guy like him, with the exception of Lute Dragoon. If this was a fanfiction, I would instantly write him off as a Mary Sue character.

    How could someone so perfect and flawless exist in real life?

    Fortunately, it seemed that not all the girls were so smitten with Xu Wu Cheng. Never mind Kureha, Eliza, Rossetti and Miura, who had better things to do than to ogle at a handsome guy. Ji Yan, already in a bad mood, completely ignored him and turned away to pout. The girl was probably more jealous that he was hogging the limelight than being infatuated with him, or she knew something about him that the rest of us didn''t. In any case, she huffed as she stomped off.

    "Hmph! I''m not in the mood for this sort of thing¡­"

    So if you were in the mood, you would be falling all over Xu Wu Cheng? How shallow.

    In any event, I also wasn''t in the mood to be glaring daggers at a total stranger and getting all jealous of him. I had more important matters to attend to, particularly my teaching duties. The practical exam was tomorrow, if I wasn''t mistaken, so I had to make preparations so that I could watch my charges perform. Both Adrian and Melina had predictably formed a team, and I wanted to watch them compete against others of their cohort in the arena. So if I could arrange for my own exam to take place earlier in the day, I should be able to make it in time to rush over to watch them.

    So absorbed was I in my thoughts that I almost ran into Ji Yan when I stepped into the campus building, where all the lockers were. Fortunately, she was too engrossed in carrying out her vendetta against her sister to notice me. I could hear her muttering under her breath.

    "Why is Zhao Yan always better than me?"

    Um¡­because you suck?

    "I thought I could surpass her in this exam, but I can''t believe she outscored me again! How is this possible?! She and I have the same genes! So this can''t be possible¡­how frustrating!"

    Hey, I can hear you, you know. Okay, so maybe you don''t know because you''re too obsessed with hating on your sister to notice my presence. Not that I cared.

    I was tempted to advise Ji Yan, though. Something along the lines of, "maybe you might want to improve your attitude and reflect on your petty and competitive personality first instead of looking at your genes." But that might earn me an earful of condescending responses and a terrifying glare. Even the enjoyable sense of gloating wasn''t worth earning this bitch''s grudge.

    So I tried to step around her to proceed into the corridor leading to the classrooms, but I ended up almost colliding with her when she suddenly stopped in front of the lockers to open her own. While I somehow dodged what would surely be a "lucky accident" where she would slap me for being a "pervert" for inadvertently groping her, I caught sight of the contents of her personal locker that Ji Yan was staring intently at.

    There was a single blue flower lying within its interior.

    My eyes widened when I recognized the flower as the symbol of the infamous Guang Zhi Yi Sect, which apparently was one of the infamous monster hunter groups under the Hunters Association. The Hunters Association, by the way, was yet another huge massive mercenary guild, and one of the Silver Wolves'' rivals.

    I only knew that because Christopher Redfield told me once that they had clashed over a certain quarry, on some battlefield far, far away¡­

 472 Chapter 472: School Nigh

    "Huff¡­huff¡­"

    "Ugh¡­"

    Both Melina and Adrian lay in the dirt, panting from the latest training session that I put them through. I gave them a sympathetic look, but I didn''t intend on making my lessons easier. However, I was nice enough to offer them my hands and pulled them both back to their feet.

    "Are you two all right?"

    "Yes, Sensei!"

    "Yeah, Master."

    "Stop calling me that, Adrian." I failed to keep the irritation out of my voice. "I am not your master."

    "You''re not my brother either, but you don''t mind if I address you as such," Adrian pointed out cheekily. I gave him a glare.

    "Do you want me to double your training hours?"

    "N¡­no!" Adrian immediately turned pale, dropping his wooden sword. He gulped and scrambled to pick it up and shook his head frantically. "Sorry, Brother Richard! I was just joking!"

    "Yeah, I got that." I smiled somewhat insincerely, and then turned serious. "In any event, the both of you should go get some rest. Tomorrow is your practical exam, so don''t overdo it today. Getting as much sleep as possible is the best way to ensure that you''re in your prime condition tomorrow. Don''t sneak off and do extra training on your own ¨C I don''t want you to use that as an excuse when you turn up all exhausted and injured, and don''t perform as well on the practical exam as you normally would be able to."

    "Yes, Sensei!"

    "Understood, Master! Uh, Brother Richard!"

    Adrian quickly amended his terms of address when I raised an eyebrow at him, and he felt the immense pressure from my surging aura. Deciding to cut him some slack for now, I gestured for the both of them to return to the house.

    "Now go shower, have some supper, and then sleep early for tonight."

    The two of them obliged, and I watched them go. Then I turned away, and proceeded in the opposite direction. Instead of returning to the house, I vaulted over the fence and landed on the other side of the estate. Summoning Cygnus, I jumped atop him and had my white swan fly me toward the outskirts of the city, to an area next to Saint Teresa Academy. It was a massive park, with wide open area decorated with green grass, with several footpaths and cycling paths paved across it. Several trees stood sentinel over the grass, but they were sparse.

    It being very late at night, I couldn''t see the flowers very clearly, particularly with their hues covered by shadows. Even so, zooming onto one of the flowers, I was reminded of the blue flower symbol of the Guang Zhi Yi Sect. having seen the flower this morning, I had suspected that they planned on carrying out some form of activity tonight.

    Me being the typical busybody and allowing my curiosity to get the better of me, I decided to check it out. I mean, I had nothing better to do¡­okay, actually I did. There was a practical exam tomorrow, but I really, really wanted to know what the Guang Zhi Yi Sect was planning. There was no way they would summon Ji Yan over a trivial matter.

    The park was where I sensed the presences of four pretty strong mages. That was why I chose to settle down here, not far from where I detected the four mages. Two of them in particular were very familiar. They were the auras of Ji Yan''s mana signature, as well as the almost identical but slightly different power that wreathed her twin sister, Zhao Yan. They were accompanied by two other students who I didn''t recognize.

    Dismissing Cygnus as quickly as possible, I shrank my own mana to an almost invisible presence. Since I wasn''t trained in the arts of stealth or assassination, I wasn''t able to quite conceal my own mana completely, and as such I had to rely on external devices such as the ones Melina received from her father. I had bought my own with what little money I had, shortly after returning home from the tournament, and it proved to be very useful.

    The four mages didn''t notice that I was present in the park at all. Excellent. Additionally, they were too busy doing whatever they came to do to even notice that I was here. Feeling relieved, I shut my eyes and summoned a couple of Corvus before activating the stealth device. The two crows then took off and began their duties as my eyes and ears.

    One of my Corvus focused on the other two individuals, to try and discern their identities.

    The leader appeared to be a tall, handsome guy with long, silver hair and gray eyes. Typical shoujo manga male lead, or at least one of the harem members for the female protagonist. Anyway, I was surprised that I recognized him as a third year student in Saint Teresa Academy. If I recalled correctly, he was a heartthrob named Yi Shen, who was idolized by the same girls now swooning over Xu Wu Cheng. As befitting the typical bishounen character, he had for some reason decided to grow his silver hair long, just so he could fit the archetype and drive fangirls crazy with his pretty boy looks. It must have something to do with the male idol era back in the early 2000s where F4 and Vanness Wu ruled the Taiwanese drama scene.

    Never mind that his absurdly long hair would most likely get in the way of him fighting monsters, and the excessive length would frequently block his sight or get caught by something, making it a liability in battle. But then again, the girls also usually kept their hair long as well, and no one ever complained about such hairstyles being highly impractical in real combat.

    The second person was a girl, because it wouldn''t be a manga or proper web novel if the girls didn''t outnumber the guys. And¡­as if to fulfil some sort of fanservice quota, she was a pretty girl with long (again!) silky red hair that flowed behind her back. Um¡­I believe she was a senior in the third year as well, just like Yi Shen, and her name was Kai Lin or something.

    Even more hilariously, none of the four were dressed in attires suitable for practical combat. No, rather they were all dressed stylishly in cool clothing that wouldn''t look out of place in a fashion magazine. Yi Shen, with his trendy jacket and long pants, could still pass off as acceptable in combat, but the girls wore exquisite dresses that seemed more appropriate in modelling events or cosplay conventions. I mean, who wears a skirt to kick ass? Seriously?

    Zhao Yan was the only one who bucked the trend, wearing featureless slacks instead of the frilly skirt her sister wore, or the business-like office lady attire that Kai Lin adopted (and Kai Lin even wore high-heels¡­seriously?!). At least the twins wore functional boots¡­wait, I take that back. For some reason, Ji Yan was wearing flashy, fashionable shoes that seemed suited more for a tea party than a battle instead of the practical, leather boots that her sister had chosen.

    Were these fools (except Zhao Yan) here to show off their wardrobe and how awesome looking they were, or were they here to fight?

    The first words I heard from Yi Shen''s mouth confirmed that it was the latter, but they were so cheesy that I was pretty much groaning and burying my face in my hands.

    "There have been many bat-type monsters here, and they''re attacking humans lately. Recently they''ve been targeting the school, so we''ve been tasked to eliminate them."

    Who the fuck talks like that?! I know the original writer of Vampire Sphere was trying to contrive a way to inform the reader the context through exposition, but the dialogue was way too unnatural and cheesy. For one thing, wouldn''t the leader brief the entire team before they start moving out to the battlefield, and not when they reach it? Why did you wait until the very last minute before briefing your teammates?

    Kai Lin folded her arms as she considered Yi Shen''s briefing.

    "Bat-type monsters normally aren''t this bold. They should know that it''s suicidal to attack Saint Teresa Academy directly. Do you think there''s some kind of trap or plot behind their raid?"

    Like I said¡­save this kind of discussion before you enter the battlefield, not when you''re already on it. Shouldn''t you be watching out for the bats instead of standing around casually and talking so loudly in such a wide, open space where sound could easily travel unimpeded?

    Seriously, are these mages fucking amateurs?

    Fortunately, it didn''t take them long to realize that they should be on the lookout, and they stopped their conversation and flashy movements for a second to watch for enemies. Zhao Yan glanced around, her expression uneasy as she cleched her fists anxiously.

    "It''s been almost a year since we''ve joined the Guang Zhi Yi Sect¡­I hope we''ll accomplish the mission safely and without casualties this time as well¡­"

    Zhao Yan was actually whispering to herself, so softly that even my Corvus had to strain to pick up her faint words despite his acute sense of hearing. Evidently she and her sister had been through several grueling battles throughout the past year, and her sentiments matched her practical attire. On the other hand, her sister was¡­well, the less said about the amateur who was more interested in cosplay than fighting, the better.

    "Bat-type monsters, huh?"

    I shook my head, feeling annoyed. The four of them couldn''t even be bothered to identify the exact species of bat-type monsters, and merely referred to them generally as such. There were so many bat-type monsters in existence, and I wished they could at least provide a clue as to what they were facing. They ranged from the tiny rank F Swarm Bats to the rank C Vampire Bats capable of using blood magic. While you couldn''t underestimate the rank F Swarm Bats and I wasn''t going to make the mistake of claiming that one was weaker than the other, it was a given that you needed completely different tactics to fight against each type of bat monsters.

    "They''re here. Get ready!"

    A flurry of movement at my Corvus''s peripheral vision confirmed Yi Shen''s warning. I suppressed the urge to disguise myself as Batman and pop out of the shadows to scare the living hell out of both friends and foes, knowing that it wasn''t my turn to step up to bat yet.

    Besides, I was still exhausted from the Spartan training session I had just gone through with Adrian and Melina, so I would be pretty useless in combat until I recovered enough mana. That was why I decided to sit back and enjoy the show¡­except that it wasn''t enjoyable. From the moment I saw their tacky outfits, I should have known that something was up¡­

    To compound my exasperation, the four of them made quite a show to draw their weapons. Hey, hey! You guys aren''t posing for some magical girl anime, you know? There was no need for one panel per person. Why so dramatic?!

    That wasn''t the worst thing.

    To my chagrin, Yi Shen drew two guns, each a sleekly designed silver revolver with fancy symbols grafted on its metallic surface, and began firing both pistols at the same time.

    Yup. You read that right. Yi Shen was firing two pistols simultaneously.

    It might look cool, but it was highly impractical and ridiculous. I mean, how the hell does he aim? There''s a reason why the police and soldiers were trained to fire only one firearm at a time! It''s impossible for you to aim down the sights of two guns at the same time! The only time you would do that was if you fired from the hip.

    Okay, some people might give the excuse that Yi Shen was using some sort of auto-aim spell. I certainly could implement such a function on my glasses ¨C so instead of requiring to stare down the sights of either firearm, I could track both targeting reticles that were displayed holographically on my lenses. That was how I took aim with my arrows sometimes.

    However, as much as I wanted to allow Yi Shen that excuse, his aim was totally off. Despite firing into a mass of monsters where it would be impossible to not hit anything, he actually missed more than half his shots. Yeah, more than half his shots. His horrendous aim put even the most inaccurate of Stormtroopers to shame. Hell, even Orks with their ballistic skill of 5+ had better aim than Yi Shen!

    And if you were going to miss half of your shots anyway, why not just stick to using one freaking pistol and actually put in the effort to aim properly?!

    The only saving grace was the power of Yi Shen''s shots. When they did hit, they obliterated the monsters instantly, blowing them up into shreds of flesh and blood. Speaking of which, the monsters turned out to be tiny Swarm Bats, each no bigger than the palm of my hand, with razor-sharp wings stretching out of their ball-like bodies. Claws and fangs gleamed in the darkness, illuminated by their red eyes, but they were almost blind, relying instead on supersonic senses and superb hearing from their pointy ears.

    The guy was strong, no doubt. If he would just throw away one gun and aimed properly, he would actually be a force to be reckoned with. The mana he exuded was tremendous, and even though he missed half his targets, he was swift and agile, dodging every one of the speedy Swarm Bats'' attacks. His movements were polished, I had to admit. No wasted movement there, minimal repositioning and lightning fast reflexes.

    The next issue that bugged me was Kai Lin. Okay, so she was extracting a whip from her belt in an unnecessarily big move that belonged more to theater than real-life combat, but she was quick to lash out at the incoming Swarm Bats. With much more success than her leader. I''ll give her that.

    But her movements¡­oh, heavens! Her movements!

    I could only shake my head as Kai Lin stumbled atop a fence surrounding the park, having used the narrow metal structure as a platform for her already notoriously unstable footing. If she didn''t bring her high heels to heel soon, or better yet, ditch them altogether, she was going to hurt her feet. Actually, I could already see the significant amount of damage her high heels were dealing to her feet. Is looking good worth injuring your feet and placing your life at risk in the middle of a battle?

    Well, at least she was giving the Swarm Bats a whipping. Her golden whip curled and flicked out, slicing through the tiny monsters with razor-sharp mana that coated the deadly leather. Her performance was coming at a cost, though. Thanks to Corvus, I could see the blisters and swelling on her feet, underneath those stupidly fancy shoes.

    And the last was¡­Ji Yan.

    Her frilly dress was nowhere near appropriate for combat. Hell, she looked like she should be going for a tea party in a western-styled manor than fighting in a park against monsters. Her mana was impressive, as was the other three''s, but that was the extent of their combat abilities.

    In battle, she was far worse than the impractical Kai Lin or even the horribly inaccurate Yi Shen. She was bumbling with her attacks, and even though she succeeded in taking down many of the Swarm Bats thanks to her strong strikes with her chain and hooks, several managed to evade her extending chain and dove through the opening to get to her.

    Why the fuck was she wielding such an unwieldy weapon to begin with!?

    "This is bad!"

    Ji Yan realized the danger she was in when she wasn''t able to retract her weapon in time to defend against the attack. Before she knew it, the Swarm Bats were upon her, their slavering jaws open to sink their fangs into her soft flesh¡­

 473 Chapter 473: School Night II

    Seizing the opportunity to fly through the gaps of their victim''s defenses, the Swarm Bats plunged in, their drooling fangs seconds away from sinking into soft flesh.

    That was when Ji Yan panicked, screaming as she threw down her chain and sickle, raising her hands helplessly to defend herself. Wow¡­number one rule in combat. Never panic. She really was an amateur. And now she was about to suffer a messy and ignominious death at the claws and teeth of tiny, rank F Swarm Bats. I told you those little critters couldn''t be underestimated.

    The Swarm Bats never bit her.

    A white scabbard came whistling through the air, striking the lead bat-type monster''s head with such force that it was sent careening to the side. The remaining horde were either blown apart by the following sonic boom or forced to scatter as they were buffeted by invisible waves of wind. Zhao Yan, who had thrown the sheath, leaped and cleared the distance between her and her twin in a single elegant bound, swinging her sword and slashing most of the offending monsters into pieces.

    "Ji Yan, are you all right?"

    Keeping her eyes on the enemy in front of her, Zhao Yan issued a question out of concern. Ji Yan, whose legs had gone wobbly, sank to the ground, perspiring from fear. But she managed a slight nod.

    "Yes¡­"

    Her blue eyes tracked her sister''s movements, and she was no doubt thinking, "Did Zhao Yan save me?" No, you bitch. The Swarm Bats got batted off course by themselves. Your sister was aiming for you when she threw her scabbard. Duh.

    Neither of them was able to sense my sarcasm, or was even aware of my presence, so they continued to confront the enemy.

    "Ji Yan, be careful."

    As Ji Yan remained sitting on the ground, still in shock like the pathetic idiot that she was, Zhao Yan narrowed her eyes and drew her sword back, ready to unleash an iai, or a sword draw. Lunging at the approaching Swarm Bats, she drew her sword and slashed a devastating swathe through the horde. As I watched her graceful movements, impressed, I noticed that Zhao Yan had the sense to at least tie her long hair back into a ponytail to minimize any impediment to her eyes. She was so unlike the other three, a professional hunter in contrast to her¡­moronic teammates. Honestly, she was being dragged down by the other three.

    "Ji Yan, stay here. I''ll finish these guys up quickly."

    Wanting her twin to stay in what she believed was a safe place, Zhao Yan leaped into the thick of battle, her sword flashing silver against the shadowy throng of Swarm Bats. Hey, hey¡­you just triggered a death flag for your sister, you know? She''s going to get exposed to the insidious schemes of whoever was behind the Swarm Bats, and eventually end up as a hostage!

    Speaking of which, why the fuck were the Swarm Bats swarming all over a deserted park in the middle of the night? That made absolutely no sense. There was no one for them to attack here, no victims for them to feed on. What reason would they have to attack an empty park when there was no one around to assault? If, like Kai Lin suspected, there was some sort of scheme behind their raid, then why did the mastermind choose to attack an empty space during a time when no one was around? What exactly was he or she thinking?

    Hell, in the original story, they were attacking the school. In the middle of the night. When there was no one in the premises to attack. Look, I know the original author wanted a setting for a vampire story with hunters in it, but you really need to think this through!

    However, having read the original manhua, I already knew poor Ji Yan''s fate. Like I said, she was going to eventually end up as a hostage.

    Well¡­given the pathetic manner of surrender Ji Yan was descending into, meekly sitting there and doing absolutely nothing but watch as her comrades finished off the Swarm Bats without any contribution from her, I would say that she deserved it. I almost believed that she was good at everything, but as it turned out she was only proficient at studying and not as adept in combat.

    Not like her Mary Sue twin, who was perfect at everything, able to top the school in test results, and still somehow had energy to spare to be the most efficient, skilled and powerful fighter in this motley gang of four who mostly seemed more interested in showing off the latest fashion than fighting. Even Kureha Franklin wasn''t this overpowered. Given how kind, gentle and patient Zhao Yan was toward her sister, I bet she had the personality of an angel as well. Was there anything Zhao Yan couldn''t do? Any freaking flaw at all?

    She was so flat and perfect she might as well have no character at all. I couldn''t help but prefer Ji Yan for some reason. She might be whiny, bratty and pathetic, but at least she had room to grow and develop as a character, unlike Zhao Yan, who was already perfect from the beginning. If she was flawless from the start, then where do you go from there? There was no space for character growth or development.

    That didn''t mean I like Ji Yan, though. I still disliked her. Sorry, but that''s the harsh truth. I''m not a saint who loves everybody.

    "Huff!"

    The three of them were working hard to eliminate the last of the Swarm Bats, their exertions evident from the perspiration dripping down their obviously powdered faces. Jeez, did these guys undergo plastic surgery or something? Why would you even bother with makeup and manicure right before you go into battle? Camo paint was one thing, but makeup?

    However¡­

    A monstrous cry echoed from the opposite direction. Even as the final Swarm Bat fell to their feet, the three warriors spun around to stare at the source, only to freeze from shock.

    A second wave of Swarm Bats had emerged from a cluster of trees further down south of them, and was heading right for the school!

    Damn it, how did I miss them?! I was so focused on watching the battle that I didn''t deploy my Corvus properly to watch out for additional enemies. I was na?ve¡­too na?ve. And to think I was mocking the three amateur hunters for their fashion sense and impracticalities. I was making the same sort of mistakes as them, letting my guard down and being complacent!

    "Shit! Kai Lin, you''re right! It''s a trap!"

    Yi Shen cursed colorfully under his breath as he redirected his aim and began firing off wildly with his dual revolvers. Even as his shots disappeared under the overwhelming numbers of Swarm Bats, he yelled at the single girl sitting dumbly in front of the school.

    "Ji Yan, get out of there!"

    As I said, Ji Yan was still sitting on the ground, frozen in shock at the sight of the incoming Swarm Bats. It wasn''t just Swarm Bats ¨C there was a trio of much bigger Blood Bats shepherding them from behind, malevolent intelligence shining in their blood-red eyes. Ji Yan was staring at them, completely immobilized from fear. She was right in the path of the monsters, a sitting duck that would contribute to satiating their voracious appetites. From the trajectory of the soaring monsters, it was clear that they intended to start off with her as the appetizer.

    "Ji Yan!"

    Zhao Yan shouted anxiously and she began lunging toward her twin in a desperate attempt to snatch her away from the path of the approaching monsters. But she was too far away, and the monsters were too close and too quick. She would never reach Ji Yan in time before the massive cloud of Swarm Bats engulfed her.

    It was a good thing I happened to be nearby then.

    Jumping to my feet and deactivating the stealth device as I powered up my spell, I stepped out of the trees and placed myself squarely between Ji Yan and the monsters. The four from Guang Zhi Yi Sect stared at me, dumbfounded. Then Yi Shen broke the silence with a single stupid question.

    "Who are you?"

    I ignored the guy. There was a massive threat in the form of Swarm Bats coming straight at your comrade, and you wanted to know who I was? Aren''t your priorities messed up, man?

    "Get out of the way! You''ll die too!" Ji Yan cried.

    As much as I would love to run, I knew it was futile. Both Ji Yan and I were too close to the Swarm Bats. They were also moving at an incredible velocity, and from the calculations splayed across my lenses, I knew that it was impossible for us to outrun them. They would catch up and devour us before Zhao Yan could reach us.

    Besides, it didn''t matter. I had sworn to follow Dad''s ideals and become an ally of justice (nah, not really). If Dad was here, he wouldn''t hesitate to put his own life on the line to save Ji Yan. I admired him for those ideals, and wanted to emulate him. Villains were one thing (and I couldn''t care less if they were kids, age did not excuse murders and rape), but I had sworn to protect the innocent and save the helpless from monsters like these.

    Just like how Dad saved me when I was dying, now I would help others when they were in need.

    "Don''t be an idiot! Hurry up and run!"

    "Quit whining!"

    "There''s no reason for us to die together!" Ji Yan''s voice was bitter. As bratty as she was, at least she had a conscience. She could feel bad for someone who was about to get killed with her. "Don''t worry about me!"

    "I told you to quit whining! What kind of guy would I be if I abandoned a helpless girl to the mercy of monsters?"

    Standing my ground firmly, I summoned Orion and stretched blue lines of mana back as far as I could before unleashing a hail of azure arrows upon the flock of Swarm Bats. Blue bolts of destructive energy obliterated the tiny monsters, with the sheer volume of my shots actually matching their immense numbers.

    Given that I could fire 1,200 shots consecutively, there was no way the Swarm Bats could survive unless there were more than 1,200 of them. And even so, the survivors wouldn''t be prepared for my follow-up attack. In any case, even as I drowned them out with Betelgeuse, the survivors broke off and flapped away on instinct.

    However, the Blood Bats herded them back with malicious fury, forcing their smaller brethren to swing around for another charge. They noted with insidious cunning that my azure arrows were running dry, and they were partially right.

    Unfortunately for them, when the Swarm Bats broke off and had to do one huge round before coming back, they gave me a lot of time. Enough time for me to cast a second spell and follow up with a new attack.

    I could almost hear Archer''s epic theme song playing in the background as I summoned a single silver and blue arrow with my right hand. Slowly fitting it to my bow, I pulled it back as far as I could before taking aim at the three Blood Bats at the back.

    They thought they were out of danger for now, after sending their meatshields to the front while cowering cowardly at the back at what they believed was a safe distance.

    I was about to prove them wrong.

    "Rigel."

    I released the arrow, and the arcane projectile streaked across the park, splitting apart the earth and rupturing the soil in its wake. The surviving Swarm Bats, who had somehow evaded my first bombardment, were annihilated even though they didn''t even come into direct contact with Rigel. Just the immense waves of destructive mana radiating off the speeding projectile were enough to disintegrate them.

    Then the arrow struck the three Blood Bats and exploded, engulfing a big portion of the park and searing a crater into the earth. The enormous explosion instantly obliterated the three stunned rank C monsters and gouged huge chunks of soil from the park. It was as if a gargantuan kaiju had just stomped on the earth, leaving a gigantic footprint of crackling radioactivity and molten rock behind.

    "See? I told you to stop whining."

    Even as I gloated over the astonished Ji Yan, I dismissed Orion. All four members of Guang Zhi Yi Sect were staring at me in disbelief, unable to comprehend what had just transpired. Evidently none of them recognized me as one of the participants in the national tournament over a month ago, or my penchant for spells of mass destruction. And here I thought I had gotten a bit famous. Oh well.

    More concerned about her twin than the stunt I had just pulled, Zhao Yan snapped out of her stupor and hurried toward her stunned sister.

    "Ji Yan, are you all right?"

    "I''m fine."

    Ji Yan had finally recovered from her shock, and was slowly rising to her feet. She sullenly turned away, not at all appreciative of her sister''s attention.

    "Well, in any case, we''re done." Yi Shen let out a huge sigh of relief. Then he turned around. "Now it''s time for you to tell us who you are¡­eh?"

    I was gone. While everyone was focusing on Ji Yan, I had taken the opportunity to conveniently slip away, disappearing into the darkness before anyone could notice that I was gone.

    "Where did he go?" Kai Lin demanded.

    Away, obviously.

    There was no need for them to know my identity. I was a silent guardian, a watchful protector.

    A dark knight.

    Hugging the shadows for cover, I drifted away and escaped back to Melina''s manor before I could call any further attention to myself. Never mind the Guang Zhi Yi Sect, who had already seen my face, my devastating attack and the massive explosion should have been seen by people miles around. The authorities would most certainly be alerted. Seriously, how was I supposed to conceal the fact that I nuked a crater right in the middle of a public park? And it was in the middle of the night too, there was no way anybody would have not heard that noise.

    "Sensei? What are you doing?"

    The moment I vaulted over the gates and landed in the courtyard, I heard a familiar voice. Turning around, I spotted Melina waiting for me in the courtyard, her hands on her hips. She was dressed in a long, white night dress. And beside her was a sleepy Adrian, who was stifling a yawn. Apparently she had dragged him along to wait for me alongside her.

    "Where did you go, at this time of the night?"

    Was she seriously questioning me? You do realize that I''m technically the one who has authority over you, right?

    However, I wasn''t rude or arrogant enough to order her back, so I shrugged wearily and gestured in the direction of the park.

    "A mission. Apparently there were monsters attacking the school, so I went to lend a helping hand and eliminated them."

    "Eh?!" Melina''s eyes widened and she scrambled for her smartphone to check for the news. She would be able to confirm my words a few seconds later, but before she could speak, I raised a hand.

    "And no, I''m not going to inject you with my mana and turn you into a Samurai. We''re already ripping off Vampire Sphere, I''m not going to copy Assassin''s Pride."

    The two kids could only watch dumbly as I strolled into the house and headed straight for the kitchen to grab a bottle of mango juice. Unscrewing the cap and chugging a quarter of the bottle down in one go, I then stared at them sternly.

    "What are you kids waiting for? Go to bed. You''ve an exam tomorrow."

 474 Chapter 474: Right Before the tournamen

    Before I go straight into the tournament, perhaps I should have a little flashback on what sort of training I was having both Adrian and Melina undergo. This was probably a few days before the practical exam, during our usual morning training sessions before we went to school.

    Both Adrian and Melina were attacking me, as usual, exchanging quick blows with our wooden swords. As usual, I was wielding two bamboo swords ¨C one in each hand ¨C and deflecting the strikes from their shinai with almost effortless ease.

    While knocking the both of them back, I raised my two bamboo swords, and they immediately lifted their own shinai to block¡­

    ¡­only for me to kick their feet out from below them and send them sprawling on the ground. My movements were so swift that Adrian couldn''t follow, instinctively turning to stare when Melina suddenly toppled over beside him, and then he joined her on the floor.

    "You guys really have to learn how to deal with feints," I informed them coolly as the both of the sat up, staring at me in astonishment.

    "Feints?" Melina repeated, puzzled.

    "You thought I was going to attack you guys with my swords earlier, didn''t you?" I reminded her, and raised my swords for emphasis. "But just because I look like I''m going to hit you with my blades doesn''t necessarily mean I will. I was deceiving you into blocking what appeared to be an attack from below while exploiting your lapse of defenses below and attacking there instead. Diverting your attention away from the real attack by launching a fake one. That''s a feint."

    "Oh, right." Adrian scratched his head and sighed. "We will need a lot of experience before we''ll be able to tell them apart."

    He was smart, I had to give him that.

    "But you don''t have the luxury of time and experience. Remember, feint attacks can be used by you too. Your opponents during the exam probably wouldn''t be used to this." I grinned, and then returned to being serious. "Additionally, the point of this lesson is to remind you to always be on your guard. Don''t just focus on the attacks you can see. There will be strikes coming from your blind spots, places you don''t expect¡­angles you aren''t looking at. Always be cautious, don''t overly rely on your eyes alone, and keep your guard up."

    "Yes, Sensei!" Melina didn''t seem discouraged, and instead she brightened up and nodded enthusiastically, committing the lesson to memory.

    "All right. Again." I plunged the swords into the dirt and offered them both my hands to pull them back up to their feet. "And don''t hold back. Don''t just use physical reinforcement magic. You have spells. Use them."

    "Yeah, Master!"

    "Don''t call me that," I snapped at Adrian, but I could already sense him beginning to cast the wooden spells I taught him. Just as well, because he could probably also sense me gathering my own mana for defensive spells. Kicking up both of my wooden swords, I snatched them out of the air and beckoned them both. "Begin!"

    The both of them came from my flanks. Golden mana flared up around Melina as she swung her sword and unleashed a torrent of energy at me. From the other side, razor-sharp leaves spiraled around Adrian''s wooden blade before bombarding me. Conjuring a bunch of ice spells, I froze them before they could touch me.

    That didn''t discourage them. They continued smashing through the frozen remnants of their spells and closed in, their bamboo blades thrusting forward for my vitals.

    I deflected them to the side, and allowed them to rush past me. The both of them spun about to deliver a follow-up attack, but I then stomped my foot on the ground and kicked up a flurry of snow that splattered across their faces.

    "Eh?!"

    "Ugh?!"

    The both of them staggered, and before they could defend themselves, they found the cool wood of my bamboo blades pressed against their throats.

    Lowering my swords, I smiled and straightened up, allowing them to recover.

    "What was that?" Adrian demanded as he wiped his eyes. He then blinked uncomprehendingly at the frost. "This is¡­snow?"

    "That was mean!" Melina complained and also rubbed at her eyes before shivering a little. "Cold!"

    "Mean?" I repeated, amused. "I''m just teaching you how to fight."

    "But¡­but this isn''t how the academy taught us to fight!" she protested. I snorted at that.

    "Of course they wouldn''t. But you think all of your enemies in the future are going to be solely from the academies? Can you guarantee that monsters wouldn''t pull this sort of tricks on you? Assassins? Criminal mages?"

    "That''s¡­" Melina trailed off, realizing that I was right. I didn''t tell her that I was taught the same brutal lesson from my dad, and I was merely repeating what I had learned from him. Instead, I softened my expression and stared at the two of them.

    "Adrian, Melina. Why do you think I threw snow into your eyes?"

    "Um, perhaps it''s because you''re a sadist?" Melina asked, looking bewildered. I ended up burying my face in my palm.

    "Think back to the previous lesson I just taught you, regarding a feint."

    "Oh!" Adrian struck his palm with a fist, brightening up. "It''s to create an opening! You''re taking away our vision so that you can strike us while we''re undefended and vulnerable!"

    "Exactly." I favored him with a smile. Though Adrian was not as hardworking and determined as Melina, he was sharp, intelligent and intuitive. "These are all strategies to force an opening in your opponent''s defenses and allow you to deliver an affective attack."

    I then raised one of my bamboo swords and swung it, causing both Adrian and Melina to jump back in reflex, avoiding my blow.

    "If I attack you with all my might from the start, attack from the front¡­you''re going to be able to defend yourself more properly, right? That''s because you can see it coming. No matter how much strength I put behind my blow, if you can see it coming, you can prepare and avoid it. My attack is so visibly telegraphed in my movements, so you have ample time to react and avoid it. Isn''t that correct?"

    "Yes, Sensei." Melina nodded thoughtfully, but she looked a little disheartened. "Then what should we do instead?"

    "Look at me." I braced myself, holding my wooden sword with both hands (the second one continued to be plunged into the dirt a few centimeters away). "Can you attack me?"

    "Yes, Sensei!" Before Adrian could stop her, Melina was already charging in. She really was a straightforward person. Too straightforward, in fact. Swinging her sword, she tried to strike me from the side, but before she could reach me, I kicked up the second wooden sword, which caused her to skid to a halt from reflex and deflect the unexpected projectile. "Kuh!"

    Before she could fully recover, the wooden sword that I was holding fell atop her head and she cried out in pain, dropping her weapon and clutching her scalp.

    "Sensei! That wasn''t fair!"

    "You still haven''t learned the lesson I''m trying to teach, huh?" I sighed. Then I raised a finger to stop her. "Anyway, think about it. What just happened? Weren''t you trying to attack me? How did you end up getting hit instead?"

    "That''s¡­" Melina trailed off.

    "A feint," Adrian put in. I nodded.

    "I basically deceived you by allowing you to think that you can land a hit on me, but in doing so I caused you to drop your guard with a diversionary tactic. Kicking my other sword at you and forcing you to defend against that, thus leaving you open against another attack from a different angle. In this case, from above. All because I tricked you into focusing too much on the front. You were so engrossed in trying to strike me that you completely failed to notice the second sword at my feet, and were thus vulnerable to the strike from below."

    "So I was deceived¡­" Melina mumbled, rubbing her head and staring at me in wonder. Adrian nodded thoughtfully.

    "And we should try to deceive our opponents during battle¡­to create these openings and land a decisive strike before they can defend against it¡­or at least trick them into defending against fake attacks so that we can hit them with the real one when their guard is down."

    "Correct." I nodded, satisfied that at least one of them understood it. When Adrian explained it like that, for a second time, it helped Melina absorb the lesson better because she was having it reiterated into her head.

    "Are we going to learn the three mana states now?" Melina asked. I gaped at her.

    "What three mana states?"

    "You know, order, chaos and neutral?"

    "The hell?" I buried my face in my palm. "This isn''t Assassin''s Pride or Shin Megami Tensei, also known as Persona! Already people are complaining when I did the whole joke with Ba Qi, which is a rip-off from One Piece regarding their Haki. I''m not sure another joke like that would go down well, and it''ll get repetitive in any case¡­"

    "Huh? Huh?"

    "Ignore Master. He''s just breaking the fourth wall and making all sorts of obscure references again."

    "I don''t want to hear that from someone who''s trying to rip off Magic Stabber Orphen and pretending to be Majic!"

    "Ugh¡­" Adrian flinched at that, unable to rebut.

    Anyway, that was the end of the flashback. For now. While I was heading to school with the two of them, hoping that they would do well in their practical exams, I caught sight of Rossetti Picket. She was speaking to one of the middle school students as well, and when she caught sight of us, she waved in a friendly manner.

    "Oh, Richard! We meet again!"

    "Eh? This is¡­" Melina looked up quietly, but then recognized her senior from the high school section. Adrian also had a brief flicker of recognition in his eyes, because he had watched her take part in the team battle against my school during the high school tournament over a month ago. "Senior Rossetti?"

    "Oh, you can just call me Rose." Rossetti waved her formality away. "You too, Richard. Don''t need to be so formal. We''re all fellow students in Saint Teresa Academy, aren''t we?"

    "I''m an exchange student from Jing Tian Academy," I reminded her. She just giggled and waved airily at me.

    "Don''t sweat the small details. Speaking of which, Miura wants to see you. She has only just heard that you''re here, and she''s furious that you didn''t drop by to say hi."

    "Why would I say hi to her?" I asked, utterly confused. Rossetti frowned and placed her hands on her hips, leaning forward to glare at me.

    "You don''t know how a maiden''s heart work, do you?"

    "Uh, I don''t even know her¡­"

    "Really? You defeated her in the tournament, remember? As they say, the best way to get to know each other is to trade blows. So you''re already the most bosom of friends!"

    "The same could be said of Kureha Franklin, Eliza Franklin, Lute Dragoon, and Kufa Van Peer. I don''t think they care if I''m here."

    "Actually, Kureha is pretty miffed that you didn''t say hi to her. You were former comrades, weren''t you? Even fought a dragon together. I suggested that she come say hi to you, but being the proud Sword Saint that she was, she claimed that you have to be the one to approach her." Rossetti sighed and shook her head. "I really don''t understand her. But at least Miura will be taking the initiative to look for you. It''s just that you''re quite the elusive fella. You disappeared for a few days when she went to search for you during the ice magic classes by Teacher Einsberg, and you didn''t say anything when you came back."

    Because I had no reason to.

    "Okay¡­I''ll say hi to her after the practical exams today." I rolled my eyes. At least the guys weren''t demanding for my attention, but then again if they did, it would be creepy.

    "Oh, Kufa would probably come along to say hello too. Lute, on the other hand, is too busily trying to steal back his harem from the new student, Xu Wu Cheng. It''s a clash of Mary Sues!"

    "¡­"

    I wasn''t sure how to respond to that, and I decided not to. The funny thing was that it was so true. Both Lute Dragoon and Xu Wu Cheng were Mary Sue characters who automatically had entire harems of girls chasing after them by virtue of them being the male leads or protagonist of a wish fulfilment, self-insert story. In any other story, they would be the main characters, but unfortunately for them this was reality, so they didn''t get the focus their creators would otherwise crave. Well, not as much for Xu Wu Cheng, because he was more of the typical sexy male antagonist in a shoujo manga than a male lead.

    "Ah! There you are!"

    At that moment, I heard a familiar voice, and turnin around, I spotted Miura stomping toward me, followed by Kufa.

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 475 Chapter 475: Making Friends

    "Miura La Noir," I greeted her as she approached, and then turned toward her companion with a nod. "And Kufa Van Peer."

    "Well met, Richard Huang," Kufa replied formally and slightly stiffly. I pushed up my glasses as I regarded him. He maintained a neutral expression, looking neither pleased nor upset to see me. Why did he even bother coming along if he wasn''t interested in meeting me? Either that or he was good at concealing his emotions.

    "The hell?!" In contrast, Miura was all fire and anger. She jabbed a finger right at my chest, but I managed to back away before she could make any physical contact. "You''ve been here for a month and you didn''t come to say hello?! That''s so cold of you!"

    "Oh, uh¡­it didn''t occur to me."

    Miura raised a hand to her eyes dramatically, miming a sob. "Was that all I was to you? A brief, short-lived fling? To be discarded once you were done with me?"

    "Yes," I replied seriously. It was the truth, after all. Miura was just another opponent in the high school tournament over a month ago, and I had never regarded her as anybody more than that. She wasn''t a friend, just an acquaintance. Hell, I had a lot more contact with Kureha Franklin, and I couldn''t even be bothered to say hello to her because I knew we were never on such good terms to begin with.

    As if she had read my mind, Miura giggled while covering her mouth. Lowering her hand, she shook her head.

    "If you''re looking for Kureha, she''s miffed that you decided to waste your time and efforts training her cousin. She thinks that Melina should focus her efforts on training her magic, not trying to learn swordsmanship."

    "What Melina wishes to master is not for Kureha Franklin to decide. It''s her life, only she has the right to decide what she wants to do. Nobody else has the right to decide on her behalf¡­not even her father."

    Kufa nodded in approval. "I agree."

    "Ugh¡­" Miura clutched her head and groaned in exasperation. "Why are you guys always so serious? Geez, you ruined the mood!"

    "Now, now¡­" Rossetti raised both of her hands in a placating manner. "It is fine, isn''t it? You finally have a chance to meet. I still remember you were looking for him about three weeks ago. Isn''t this good enough?"

    "Where did you go three weeks ago?" Miura turned on me, her hands on her hips. "We looked for you, but Teacher Einsberg said you applied for leave to take a mission."

    "Well¡­yeah, I did."

    "After that, we went on a mission of our own, so we weren''t able to look for you afterward." Kufa offered the information indifferently. I nodded, and he continued. "That was about two weeks ago, and it took us a while to return. And last week, we had to focus on theory exams, so we missed each other again. I''m glad we didn''t miss you this time."

    "We have practical exams today," I remarked, wondering what the theory exams had to do with missing each other, except that the writer completely decided to randomly make this meeting up all of a sudden and had to justify why we somehow missed each other throughout the month or so I had been here.

    "Yeah, but unlike the theory exams, which we took by classes, the practical exams are more free-flowing. We''re randomly assigned to fight each other, regardless of classes."

    "Heh!" Miura smirked and wagged her finger at me. "If we meet in the arena again today, you''d better watch out! I''ve improved a lot ever since that match. I won''t lose to you so easily again today!"

    "That''s assuming you''re his opponent," Rossetti reminded her, smiling in amusement. She of all people knew how fickle the heavens could be.

    "All right then¡­we had best get prepared for the practical exams. We''ll catch up again after this. And don''t you dare run away! Make sure you meet up again! We''re friends, after all"

    I was flattered that she thought of me as such after a single match, but wasn''t sure how seriously I could take her. Well, I wasn''t going to ignore her good intentions, and if she wanted to befriend me, I had no reason to object.

    "Good luck."

    "You too!"

    After exchanging pleasantries, I bade them farewell, and turned back to my overawed charges. Adrian and Melina were watching Miura and the others depart, amazed that I could so easily speak to such legends in their school. Those three were the core members of the representatives of Saint Teresa Academy, part of the team who led them as far as the quarterfinals in the tournament just over a month ago. It was like meeting their idols in real life.

    "You two should get going too," I informed them gently, gesturing toward the middle school section. Smiling encouragingly, I showed them a thumb''s up. "Good luck! I''ll try to be there to watch your matches!"

    "Thanks, Brother Richard! We''ll do our best!"

    "Yes, Sensei!"

    The two of them did a pseudo salute, and then ran off in the direction of the middle school buildings. I watched them with a smile, and then turned back to follow Miura and the others. Unlike the theoretical examinations, the practical examinations would not be taking place in the classrooms. They were instead held within the gymnasiums, which doubled as coliseums. Basically the same as Jing Tian Academy.

    Before I could get very far, though, a voice cut through my thoughts.

    "I finally found you."

    I almost fell over from surprise when the smooth, feminine voice spoke out behind me. Turning around, I couldn''t believe my eyes when I saw the speaker.

    It was none other than Nan Gong Zhao Yan.

    Unlike Ji Yan, who adopted a doll-like appearance with her twin-tails, pink frilly ribbons, and lots of makeup, Zhao Yan went for a simpler look, merely tying her long brown hair into a ponytail and ditching the mascara altogether. She was no longer wearing the practical suit that she donned last night, and was instead clad in the standard Saint Teresa Academy uniform that was white and maroon. And boy, did she look good in it. Somehow a skirt suited her better, but that was just me being biased.

    The air she gave off was also different. If Zhao Yan hadn''t possessed the same pretty face that Ji Yan did, I would never have been able to tell that they were twins.

    "You aren''t in the same class, so it was pretty hard to find you."

    "Nan Gong Zhao Yan, right? Why are you looking for me?"

    Zhao Yan bowed her head slightly. "Excuse my rudeness. You are Richard Huang, aren''t you? I wanted to thank you for saving my sister yesterday."

    "Oh, that." I almost forgot what happened last night, thanks to the flashback chapter that I randomly inserted before this one. Waving my hand, I scoffed. "It was a total fluke. And don''t think too much about it. I was merely saving myself as much as I was helping your sister. There was no way to outrun those Swarm Bats, so I gambled on trying to wipe them out before they reached us."

    "That''s not true." Zhao Yan settled her steely gaze on me, her warm chestnut eyes strong and firm. "You were completely hidden the whole time. Never mind the Swarm Bats and Blood Bats, even the four of us didn''t notice your presence at all. If you had chosen to continue concealing your presence, the monsters would have overlooked you entirely. Yet you decided to break out of hiding and jumped out to help my sister, risking your life in the process."

    "Honestly, it wasn''t that much of a risk to my life¡­" Then I stopped, realizing how arrogant that sounded. "I, uh, had ample time to prepare a few advanced spells. I just didn''t come out because you guys seemed to have the matter entirely in hand."

    "I don''t blame you for that. In fact, I''m grateful you decided to stay hidden and prepare a few advanced spells instead. If you hadn''t done that, Ji Yan would be in terrible danger¡­and honestly, I don''t think my seniors and I would have been able to dispatch the second wave of Swarm Bats and the three Blood Bats as easily as you did."

    "Oh, that wasn''t easy, I assure you." I scratched my head, feeling very embarrassed. "Like I said, that was a fluke. If I hadn''t failed¡­if I didn''t prepare those advanced spells and those Bats succeeded in their assault, you would probably be cursing me instead of thanking me."

    Zhao Yan shook her head. "No¡­anyone who is brave enough to throw himself between my sister and hundreds of monsters deserves my gratitude, regardless of the outcome."

    Oh, God¡­ladies and gentlemen, we have a genuine Mary Sue here, right in the flesh.

    "Are you all right?"

    Zhao Yan looked at me in concern while I began wobbling, feeling sick from just being in her presence.

    "Don''t worry, it''s nothing. It''s just that I''m allergic to Mary Sues."

    "Huh? Mary Sue?" Zhao Yan tilted her head in bewilderment. So there was something that this perfect top scorer didn''t know. Lovely.

    "Never mind. Anyway, I''m undeserving of your gratitude."

    "That''s not true."

    "Uh, okay. Then¡­you''re welcome." Might as well accept her gratitude since she was offering it, so that she would leave me alone once she was done with thanking me.

    However, to my bafflement, she was far from done. Instead, she looked at me with pretty earnest eyes.

    "Will you be free this weekend?"

    "Um¡­I guess?" I had no plans for the weekend. I had planned to give both Adrian and Melina a well-deserved break after they completed their practical exams, so there wouldn''t be any training sessions this week. Actually, I did plan to play Warhammer 40,000 with Adrian on Saturday. We would be going to Dreamers Vault and having a match between my Imperial Knights and Adeptus Mechanicus forces and his Blood Angels army. We wanted to test out the new Psychic Awakening rules, especially since I had just gotten my hands on a copy of Engine War. The damned quarantine caused by the Corvid19 had caused me to crave human contact and a proper tabletop game again, after being forced to stay at home and do nothing but write. No mass releases, though, because I was also trying to write other stories for the future. Sorry. "Probably not Saturday."

    "That is all right. Sunday will be ideal for me anyway."

    This had better not be some ridiculous flag for a date with a beautiful girl who I barely had any interaction with for less than twelve hours in total. The last time I checked, this was reality, not some web novel obsessed with spreading the glory of the mostly overrated harem genre.

    "I must apologize for Ji Yan''s behavior, and express our gratitude in her place. As thanks, I would like to invite you for dinner. Um, don''t worry, my home isn''t far from here. It''s less than an hour away by train."

    Honestly, I would have preferred cold, hard cash, but a homecooked dinner sounded perfectly tempting to me. A free dinner was still a great reward, if I were to be honest, and I enjoyed eating. So I nodded without hesitation. If the Mary Sue traits held true, then I was sure that Zhao Yan would also be a great cook. I mean, look at her. She was the sort of character who could do anything.

    "Sure!"

    "Good, it''s decided then. I''ll meet you on Sunday morning outside Chao Caf¨¦ in Cardinal District. Do you know where it is?"

    "I have the almighty Google," I told her. "I''ll just search it on Google Maps if I have to."

    "All right. See you then."

    I observed Zhao Yan as she turned away. Now that I put aside my web novel-addled mind and returned to reality, I could see that she wasn''t displaying any of the usual lovesick symptoms that all heroines had. The most rampant of which was the tsundere disease where she would go, "it¡­it''s not as if I want to treat you or anything, hmph! It''s just polite to thank you for helping my sister, that''s all! Don''t get the wrong idea!"

    Nah, admittedly that wouldn''t fit her cool and dignified character. She was more of a kuudere, minus the dere part.

    The other symptoms were noticeably absent as well. There was no blushing, no feigned or genuine shyness. She really just wanted to thank me, nothing more. Come to think of it, Zhao Yan was quite bold, frank and straightforward. She approached me and confidently told me what she intended without stammering or getting embarrassed.

    No matter how I looked at it, Zhao Yan was merely viewing me as a person deserving of her gratitude, not a member of the opposite sex. Man, but she was cold.

    "I look forward to a homecooked meal," I murmured, feeling a little pleased. After watching Zhao Yan disappear, I then followed after her and sighed when I remembered a more pressing matter in the present. "But for now I had best get this practical exam done and over with."

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 476 Chapter 476: Practical Examination

    The practical examination consisted of a duel. While it might sound harsh, we weren''t actually required to win in order to pass it. After all, that would mean only half of the student population would pass, not unless everyone miraculously scraped a draw with each other.

    Rather, the assessment was based on how well we performed in the duel. Saint Teresa Academy tried to be fair by pitting students of similar ability against each other, so that both parties would get the chance to showcase their skills. Otherwise it wouldn''t be ideal if one side got knocked out instantly by a far superior opponent. In the instances where it did happen, they would call for a retest for the unfortunate victim, scheduled on another day while everyone else had a holiday. As you could expect, nobody would be enthusiastic about spending the first couple days of their summer vacation on a retest.

    "All right¡­so this is the venue for the exam?"

    Consulting my holographic window, I stopped by the arena that I was assigned to take the exam in. Stepping through the door, I greeted the invigilator, who happened to be none other than Teacher Einsberg.

    "Oh, Richard." He stood up and smiled warmly. "How is your progress in ice magic? I remember you had to take a couple of days off for a mission."

    "Oh, right. Yeah, I had to go exterminate some vermin." I shuddered when I remembered hunting Cyclops Rats in the sewers. I personally hoped that I would never have to perform such a duty again, but hey, I couldn''t pick and choose what sort of emergencies I had to face. Well, I could, but if I was too choosy, other people would suffer.

    Like the poor townsfolk in the Shrewsbury neighborhood.

    "I''ve been practicing my ice magic, though," I told Teacher Einsberg brightly. "I hope I will be able to show you later in the practical exam."

    "Excellent!" Einsberg chuckled and patted my shoulder somewhat affectionately. "I look forward to your performance. Try to go easy on your opponent, all right?"

    "Uh¡­shouldn''t the opponent go easy on me instead?"

    Teacher Einsberg gave me a look, as if to say that he felt sorry for my opponent. I didn''t know why. It wasn''t as if I was the strongest mage in Saint Teresa Academy or something. I had been through too many life-and-death fights to know that I should never be complacent. I had vowed never to underestimate my enemy.

    The next thing I knew, someone knocked on the door before stepping in.

    "I''m here for the practical examination." A girl with twin tails stepped in and bowed her head slightly. My jaw dropped when I realized I recognized her.

    "Nan Gong Ji Yan? You''re my opponent?"

    "Huh? Who are you? Do I know you?"

    Ji Yan scrunched her face up in puzzlement when she saw me. For a moment, I felt disappointed. What the hell, her sister recognized me ¨C in fact, Nan Gong Zhao Yan had approached me and even offered to treat me to a homecooked meal for saving her sister. Yet this very sister didn''t even know who I was.

    To be fair, it was dark, and she probably did not get a good look of my face. She wasn''t equipped with the same hi-tech glasses that I had. On the other hand, neither did her sister, and yet Zhao Yan was able to seek me out. Rather than Ji Yan ¨C the one who I saved ¨C it was her sister who took the initiative to find out who I was and thanked me, while the rescued peson remained oblivious to my identity. Not that I cared, otherwise I wouldn''t bother to conceal my identity in the first place, but it just struck me how self-centered Ji Yan was.

    It was always about her, wasn''t it?

    Well, whatever. I couldn''t care less, so I shook my head.

    "Oh, no. Sorry. Uh, I''m a friend of your sister."

    "Zhao Yan again." Ji Yan seemed to flare up, but she managed to bring her temper under control. "Well, I shouldn''t be surprised. We''re quite famous in Saint Teresa Academy, if I may say so myself."

    Wow¡­what arrogance. I honestly didn''t know what to say, so I stayed silent and instead glanced at Teacher Einsberg. The balding teacher cleared his throat and smiled.

    "As the both of you know, the practical examination will be conducted as a duel. I will assess each of your abilities, so please do your best, the both of you!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    I saluted, but Ji Yan merely rolled her eyes.

    "Okay. Let''s hurry. I want to get this done and over with."

    Teacher Einsberg frowned, but he didn''t reprimand her. Instead, he gestured for the both of us to go to opposite sides of the arena.

    "Both participants, please take up your positions. When I give the signal, you may begin."

    We obliged, taking up our spots at the opposite ends of the arena. Teacher Einsberg watched us for a moment, and once he was satisfied, he swung his hand down.

    "Start!"

    Ji Yan immediately drew her chain and hooks, throwing them at me without any hesitation. I dodged them easily, though I probably shouldn''t have bothered. Just like the other night, her aim was horrible. Worse than Yi Shen with his dual pistols stunt, if I recalled. I lazily ducked under the scythe and spun away from her chains.

    "Ugh! Stop moving around!"

    ¡­was she serious? Did she really think I would stop evading because she asked me to? What was she expecting, for me to stand still and let her hit me with those wicked blades of hers?

    Sometimes, the stupidity of some people never failed to amaze me.

    While I avoided her chains and hooks, I considered several possibilities to deal with her. Well, like I told Teacher Einsberg, I wanted to show him my newly learned ice magic. What better way to try it out than on Ji Yan? I wanted to stop her chains and hooks cold, and put her combat plans on ice, after all. Speaking of which, I brought Bai Ri and Hei Yue along. Even though I didn''t want to underestimate my opponent, I saw no reason to use my swords against an enemy of her caliber.

    Ji Yan was just that¡­pathetic. As sad as that sounded, it was also the truth. I didn''t know what she had been doing during her couple of years in Saint Teresa Academy, but I highly suspected it had more to do with chasing fashion than actually training.

    Pushing my glasses up, I threw my right hand up. Before the chains and hooks could reach me, they were frozen in ice. Skidding across the ground, where a surface of frost rapidly expanded over, I froze the entire arena.

    "What?!" Ji Yan cried out. And then she fell silent because, in the next instant, her entire body was encased in ice.

    Clearing the distance between us in a single bound, I placed a hand on the hilt of Hei Yue, getting ready to draw my black sword and slash my opponent if necessary. Turned out that I was being overly cautious.

    Ji Yan was stuck in the ice, unable to break free. A few seconds passed, and nothing happened. Ji Yan remained trapped within, her eyes wide and unblinking. Unsure of what to do, I turned to Teacher Einsberg, who sighed.

    "I told you to go easy on her." He shook his head and raised a hand. "Winner: Richard Huang! Thus concludes this practical exam."

    "What?!" I spluttered in protest. "You''re kidding, right? Nan Gong Ji Yan doesn''t even have the magical resistance to break free of my ice magic?! How is that even possible?! She can''t be this weak, right? Right?"

    "Well¡­" Teacher Einsberg sighed and shrugged. "Turns out that she is. I guess we''ll have to schedule a retest for her. I didn''t even get to assess any of her skills."

    Skills? What skills did she even have? Hell¡­all she did was throw her hooks and chains about. I scowled when I realized something was amiss.

    "She didn''t even use magic." I turned back to Teacher Einsberg. "What is her magic? What is she supposed to specialize in? Which element does she have affinity with?"

    "How would I know?"

    "¡­she''s not your student?"

    "She doesn''t use ice magic, I can guarantee that." Teacher Einsberg shook his head in disapproval. "I think she knows some rudimentary physical reinforcement and body strengthening spells, but that''s it. Since she has never taken any of my classes, I''m not very familiar with her. There''s nothing in her records other than physical reinforcement spells and combat magic. Her class is supposedly Dancer or Maiden, but as you can see¡­she didn''t get to display any of her skills associated with that class."

    "Yikes." I was beginning to feel sorry for the whiny, spoilt, self-centered girl. She obviously depended on her sister for everything regarding combat, and now it came back to bite her in the ass.

    "Anyway¡­" Teacher Einsberg smiled as he waved a hand and began defrosting Nan Gong Ji Yan. She slid out of the melting ice, suddenly shivering. I was about to hand her my jacket, but the teacher tossed her a blanket that he retrieved from nowhere. She grabbed it and wrapped it around herself, her teeth chattering from the cold. Ignoring her, he turned to me. "You did well, Student Richard. You''ve shown a remarkable improvement in your ice magic and made tremendous progress. Excellent work."

    "Thank you, sir. It''s all thanks to your teaching."

    "Ha ha, I wonder. You have quite the affinity with ice element."

    That was true. If only I had started off with ice magic instead of wood magic, I wouldn''t be in my current predicament. I had a closer affinity to ice magic than wood magic for some reason. Well, everyone was born differently. Some were better at certain things than others.

    "Anyway, take Nan Gong Ji Yan to the infirmary. Have the teacher-in-charge check on her."

    "Yes, sir."

    I approached Ji Yan, but she instinctively slapped my hand away and glared at me.

    "Don''t touch me," she hissed through gritted, chattering teeth. I tried not to roll my eyes, but obeyed as she stood up, her legs trembling fiercely. As proud as ever, Ji Yan stomped toward the direction of the infirmary.

    "Ah, wait¡­" Teacher Einsberg called after her before she left the arena. "Student Nan Gong Ji Yan, remember to schedule a retest. I wasn''t able to assess your skills because the battle was over too quickly."

    "Damn it!" Ji Yan cursed, her face flushing red in embarrassment. She shot me another glare, as if blaming me for her predicament. I narrowed my eyes and she flinched, instantly understanding my unspoken message.

    It''s your own fault for being too weak. Don''t you dare pin the blame on me. If you aren''t happy with this result, then go train and get stronger before coming for a rematch. Otherwise, you have no right to complain to me.

    Ji Yan knew I was right, and she hung her head. Even so, her willful pride continued to burn ferociously inside her heart, and she continued to stomp toward the infirmary, refusing to look back at me.

    I glanced at the reader comments, wondering what they were going to say. Obviously there would be people calling me spineless or whatever, but what exactly did they want me to do? Slap the girl? Don''t be ridiculous. As rude and arrogant as she was, she wasn''t worth the trouble ¨C physically assaulting her in school just because she was rude would earn me a punishment. I had no intention of wasting my time in detention or writing a self-reflection essay ¨C I would rather spend the time honing my ice magic.

    Teacher Einsberg sighed. "That girl is going to get herself killed one day," he muttered. He then glanced at me apologetically. "Sorry for putting you through so much trouble, Student Richard."

    "Not at all." I glanced in the direction of Ji Yan, and before I chased after her, I left a cryptic remark. "I don''t care if she gets herself killed, but I sincerely hope that she doesn''t get everyone else around her killed as well."

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 477 Chapter 477: Tournament-styled Practical Exam

    After sending the sullen Ji Yan off to the infirmary, I hurried over to the main hall in the middle school section of Saint Teresa Academy ¨C the grand coliseum where the middle school practical exam was being held.

    There was a huge crowd bustling at the edges of the main hall ¨C to my surprise, it wasn''t just the middle school students, but adults ¨C ranging from the participants'' parents to nobles or other friends and family members ¨C were also present, chattering excitedly.

    The practical examination for the middle school was conducted in a tournament format. Since the high school division had just been through the national tournament about a month before the exams, they decided to give us individual duels as the format instead, but the middle school was another matter altogether.

    Consequently, there was great fanfare and excitement, and people from all over Flandor City would gather to watch this major yearly event. Mage fights had become pretty popular entertainment that generated immense amounts of revenue through broadcasting rights and video streaming websites, as well as drawing sponsors.

    In the waiting rooms set aside for the middle school second year students, two figures had gathered to discuss their tactics for the upcoming match.

    "We might not have the first match of today, and there may only be two of us. But we will be fine as long as we do what we usually do in training." Placing his hands on his hips, Adrian Stuart beamed confidently. "Let''s show everyone what we are made of!"

    "¡­can we really win, though?" In contrast, Melina Franklin was extremely anxious. She took a deep breath to try and calm herself down. "We''re at a disadvantage when compared to other squads."

    "Maybe, but we will win!" Adrian gripped her shoulder reassuringly. "Don''t forget, Brother Richard is the one who personally taught us! We can''t afford to let him down, can we?"

    "O¡­of course!" Melina steeled herself, clenching her fists. "We can''t disappoint him, after all the faith he placed on us!"

    "Exactly! As long as we do our best, everything will be fine!"

    Well, not really. Reality was a lot crueler than that. Sometimes, even if you did your very best, the world would crush you mercilessly like an ant. I had been through a lot of demoralizing failures that I had lost count, my hard work mocked by the cosmos and my efforts ruthlessly pulverized by harsh truth. Sometimes¡­diligence and doing my best wasn''t enough.

    However, I couldn''t tell them that. They would learn that of their own accord ¨C and also that it was all right to fail. Even if you did your best and failed, it was okay ¨C as long as you picked yourself up, refused to give up and try again. Living was not merely about success. It was also about standing up after failure, and learning to overcome the various challenges in your way, learning how to come to terms with failure and adjusting your expectations.

    In other words, adaptation. Only one person could be number one ¨C were the rest of us doomed to be losers, existing only to prop up the champion? Nope. Even the champion couldn''t exist without the rest of us ¨C he was just as reliant on us to maintain his rank as we were to survive. Coexistence was the most important thing. As long as everyone banded together and cooperated, we could get through anything.

    I taught my two charges that, and hoped they wouldn''t buy the whole "strong eat the weak" bullshit or "strength is everything" nonsense that most cultivation novels espoused. Do that in reality, and you would suffer retribution. Even the strongest person would fall to a mob of supposedly weaker people.

    "Let''s do our best!"

    "We can do this!"

    It wasn''t just Adrian and Melina. Everyone was extremely motivated. I could literally taste the air of excitement emanating from the middle school students who were packed tightly into the waiting rooms, eagerly anticipating their turn in the exam.

    However ¨C and I smirked when the thought crossed my mind ¨C Adrian and Melina would be the ones who shone the brightest today.

    We had spent all week ¨C hell, we spent a month training. At this stage, Melina could no longer be called the incompetent talented or whatever stupid nickname her schoolmates had for her. Seriously, what the fuck was "incompetent talented" supposed to mean? Who the hell came up with such a cheesy nickname?

    Adrian as well ¨C like Melina, he will be stepping out of his cousin''s shadow. Apparently no one had expected much of him, having always seen him as Cecilia''s younger cousin. He had also neglected his wood magic, and his father had personally tasked me to raise him to a proper swordsman capable of wielding ultimate wood magic. During my training, I discovered that he had a much better affinity with wood magic than I ever had. As it should be. I was confident that he would surpass my wood magic with his Stuart swordsmanship in time.

    I honestly looked forward to that.

    Anyway, for today, they will both show the world what they were made of!

    Smiling, I approached the both of them. When they caught sight of me, I waved in a friendly manner, hoping that would help them relax.

    "Brother Richard!"

    "Sensei!"

    "How are you guys doing?" I asked, stopping right in front of them. Melina gulped, looking very pale.

    "I suddenly realize that I have stage fright. Sensei¡­is there a technique for me to stand out as little as possible on the stage?"

    "What the hell?! Why are you suddenly losing your confidence for?! What happened to all that courage that I saw during training?!" I demanded, exasperated.

    "But¡­but there are so many people watching us! I can''t¡­do it!"

    "You''re kidding, right? This is an incredible opportunity for you to show off!"

    "I¡­I don''t think I''m up for it."

    This was bad. Melina looked as if she was losing her confidence. Adrian gulped and stepped forward, trying to motivate her.

    "Come on! Brother Richard personally taught us, remember? You said it so yourself, we can''t disappoint him!"

    "Ah, right¡­"

    "Oh? If it isn''t Melina?"

    Before Melina could complete her sentence, an arrogant voice cut her off. The three of us turned around and spotted a familiar girl with pig-tails descending the stairs, her entourage behind her.

    "What a good girl¡­to think that you''ll show up as you promised."

    "Nirvana¡­" Melina whispered nervously, hugging herself. Adrian quickly stepped in front of her, as if to shield her.

    "Is there something you need?" he asked. I didn''t tell him that his question was pointless. There was only one reason why Nirvana was here. She and her squadron were Adrian and Melina''s opponents today. Noticing her smug smirk, I scowled. I wouldn''t be surprised if Nirvana had used her family''s influence to pull some strings and arranged for her squad to be Melina??s very first opponents in the practical examination.

    It was clear what her motive was.

    "Are you all right, though?" Nirvana''s voice was filled with mock concern. "You look very pale."

    "But of course, Lady Nirvana!" one of her teammates giggled, her laughter full of scorn. "In a moment, she will have to embarrass herself in front of so many people!"

    "Ha ha, indeed!"

    "You''ll be the ones who will embarrass yourselves!" Adrian yelled.

    "Silence. I''m not talking to you." Nirvana then turned to cast a disdainful look at the girl cowering behind him. "Hey, Melina. Are you going to hide in one corner of the field like this as well? In that case, at least dance for the audience, to entertain them. Don''t waste their time. Perform ballet on the stage. That''s an order."

    "¡­I refuse." Melina''s grip tightened.

    "Your family has come to spectate as well, right?" Nirvana continued, as if she hadn''t heard Melina reject her. ???What would they think, I wonder? While everyone around is pointing and laughing at you. How would they feel? Do you have any idea?"

    She then giggled maliciously.

    "In fact, I wonder why someone as useless as you is still attending this school? Are you planning to leech off the prestige of Saint Teresa Academy? How about you just drop out already¡­?"

    "How about you just shut up already, you bitch?" I interrupted before she could finish her tirade. "You''ve been screeching on and on like a monkey this entire time, and my ears are about to fall off."

    "W¡­what did you say?" Nirvana cried, caught off guard, but Adrian joined in, inspired by me.

    "You heard Brother Richard!" He guffawed. "You''re a monkey! All of you are monkeys!" He then paused for a moment, tilting his head to the side. "Oh, right. Of course you wouldn''t understand human language. My apologies." Turning to Melina, he gestured. "Let''s go. We''re wasting our time listening to monekys screeching away."

    "Excuse me!?" Nirvana shrieked. Beside her, her entourage was so outraged that they were speechless. "Who are you calling monkeys?"

    "See? She can''t understand human language."

    Nirvana simmered for a second, forcing herself to calm down. She glared at Adrian.

    "I know you. You''re the failure of the Stuart family." She then laughed, and her friends joined her in sharing the condescending noise. "The failure of the Stuart family and the failure of the Franklin family. The two of you are made for each other! No wonder you''re in the same squad. But¡­there''s only the two of you ¨C nobody dares to join your squadron ¨C what can just the two of you do in this tournament? You''ll only embarrass yourselves."

    She then rounded on me.

    "As for you¡­I don''t know what tricks you used during the national tournament, but even a lowly commoner like you should understand that it was a fluke. But I guess the Franklin and Stuart families are desperate enough to hire a fraud like you¡­then again, no one else would be stupid enough to try and teach a couple of failures and ruin their reputation. Not that you have any reputation to lose¡­"

    "Enough."

    To everyone''s surprise, it was Melina who issued that cold, chilling order. The atmosphere seemed to freeze as her killing intent emanated. She glared at Nirvana, her ruby eyes blazing fiercely, and her hand on the hilt of her sword.

    "I won''t allow you to make fun of Sensei and Adrian."

    "Oh? Don''t allow me to make fun of those two, you say? And how do you propose to do that?"

    "Sensei¡­has been the best teacher I ever had. And Adrian is the only person who believes in me and is willing to form a squad with me. They are very precious to me¡­I won''t allow you to make fun of them." Melina was repeating her declaration vehemently. Stepping in front of us, she jabbed a finger at Nirvana. "I''ll see you on stage, and crush you. It doesn''t matter how many people you have. Five, ten, fifteen. Adrian and I will be more than enough to destroy you in front of everybody."

    For a moment, Nirvana was taken aback by Melina''s challenge. Then she threw her head back and laughed.

    "Ha ha ha ha! Very good! I would like to see you try! It seems that you have finally gone crazy, you incompetent talented girl! You''ve lost your sanity to the point where you''re deluding yourself!"

    "Laugh all you want, but we''ll prove it through actions, not words. See you on the battlefield."

    With that, Melina stalked off. Nirvana and her group continued to laugh.

    "Did¡­did you hear that? She really thinks she can defeat our group of five with just the two of them!"

    "She has lost it¡­she has really lost it¡­"

    "Why can''t they accept that it''s impossible for them to win?"

    "Why not?" Adrian smirked before he turned to follow Melina. "You''re just a bunch of monkeys. What can you do?"

    "What¡­what¡­what¡­?"

    "See? More screeching. Sorry, but you''ll have to speak human language if you want us to understand you. But I''m not going to wait for you to learn. Melina and I have more important things to do with our time. You can continue your circus act on stage later ¨C maybe I''ll bring a comb of bananas for you guys. Ciao."

    I watched my two charges depart, and shook my head in amazement before going after them. They were growing up really quickly, and pretty soon they wouldn''t need me to protect them any longer.

    Hell, Adrian had gotten a lot better at mocking people than me. I wondered where he learned that from.

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 478 Chapter 478: Practical Exam Tournamen

    No sooner had we walked out of earshot of Nirvana''s group than Melian grabbed her head with both hands and began shrieking.

    "What¡­what did I just say?!" Perspiration was running down her pale face and she was clearly panicking.

    "You said that you and Adrian will be able to defeat them," I told her with a grin.

    "I can''t believe I just said all that! What do I do now?!"

    "Uh, beat them up during the exam, of course."

    "Why does Sensei sound so happy about this?!"

    "Sorry." I chuckled. "But thank you."

    I finally understood. Melina''s strength stemmed from her determination to fight for others, rather than for herself. I was delighted that she would stand up for me and Adrian. That made me proud as her tutor.

    "Yeah, thank you!" Adrian joined in. He raised an arm and flexed it enthusiastically. "Let''s show those girls what we''re made of! We''ll beat them and prove to everyone that we are not incompetent!"

    Melina glared at him. "Why did you have to go and provoke them, Adrian? Calling them monkeys and making fun of them¡­"

    "But it''s true, isn''t it? Weren''t they screeching like monkeys?"

    "Yeah, they were." Melina couldn''t help but giggle at that. Then she held Adrian''s hand. "Thank you, Adrian. I''m grateful to you as well¡­for standing by my side, and sticking up for me. I must have shown you an unsightly side of myself. I hope to repay the faith you placed in me." She turned to me. "And yours too, Sensei. I will demonstrate that your confidence in me is not misplaced."

    "I''ll be looking forward to it." I smiled, and then crouched down to place each hand on their shoulders. "All right guys. If you find yourself in a losing position, do not give up. Remember what I taught you. No matter how bad the situation seems, you can always turn the tables on your opponent. Lure them into a false sense of security and ensure that their overconfidence is their undoing."

    "We will!" Adrian promised. He then grinned. "We''ll show everyone that your teaching methods are correct, Brother Richard! We''ll bring honor to your name! So that when you establish your sect, you can spread your name far and wide!"

    "Dude, this is not a cultivation story. I''m not going to found any sect. You''re in the wrong genre." I sighed and shook my head. Beside him, Melina giggled again. Then she looked up and smiled brightly, squeezing both Adrian and my hands in hers.

    "Let''s do this!" She met my gaze, positive energy flaring up brilliantly in those ruby orbs of hers. "Please watch me, Sensei! Adrian and I will both do our very best!"

    "You can count on me!"

    And so they took to the stage while I made my way to the spectator seats. This being a tournament styled practical examination, I wasn''t allowed to interfere, so I ended up being given a place high up. I wasn''t fond of the distance between my seat and the arena, but I couldn??t complain. Fortunately, I could adjust the view on my lenses to magnify the arena and the participants in it. Wearing glasses was so convenient.

    "Oh? So you''re here too."

    "Eh?"

    I glanced up and caught sight of Miura La Noir. She smiled as she took the seat beside me, her head tilted curiously.

    "I did hear that you are the private tutor of a couple of middle school students." she glanced down at the arena. "Are they up next?"

    "Yeah," I confirmed, clasping my hands and looking almost as if I was in prayer.

    "You look nervous."

    "Well¡­I am. For them."

    Miura laughed throatily. "You aren''t the one taking the exam, you know? In fact, I heard that you already passed yours."

    I didn''t pay any attention to her, and instead glanced upward where a familiar figure sat with several VIPs. Fergus Franklin ¨C Melina''s father ¨C was watching from high above, along with his father-in-law and a few other big names. Kureha Franklin was also present, seated near them.

    Seemed like the entire Franklin family had shown up to watch.

    It wasn''t just them. Sacha Stuart and several representatives from the Stuart clan had also turned up, and even Cecilia herself was seated near Sacha and his wife, watching her cousin. I glanced up and exchanged a nod of greeting with them.

    "Oh, you seem quite close to the Stuart family too, huh?" Miura remarked. I shrugged noncommittedly. I had no obligation to feed her any information regarding myself or my connections with other people.

    "What''s this? Are you nervous?" Rossetti Picket also arrived, smiling as she teased me. She took the seat beside Miura. "I didn''t know you were interested in the middle school tournament, Miura."

    "Well¡­I''m actually interested in someone else." Miura chuckled, much to Rossetti''s puzzlement. The auburn-haired dancer stared at the black mage, then shook her head.

    "As cryptic as always."

    We weren''t given much time to speak much because there was a blare from the referee''s horn, and the participants for this round walked out from the tunnel. Zooming in on the figures with my glasses, I could make out Adrian and Melina, walking in a straight line and proceeding toward the battlefield. The both of them were armed with swords¡­because that was the only weapon I could teach them. Well, I could teach them archery, but my skills in that were pretty bad, considering I tended to throw a nuke and hoped it blew up everything, including my target.

    On the opposite end was Nirvana''s team ¨C four of them. Two against four. Not favorable odds at all.

    "That makes no sense." Rossetti frowned as she leaned forward. "Where''s the rest of their teammates? Why is there only two of them?"

    "They couldn''t get anyone to join them," I replied coldly as I folded my arms.

    "Eh? Wouldn''t they be at a glaring disadvantage?"

    I glanced at the stage and smirked. The arena was set to simulate an actual battlefield, with a forest of trees on one side, a hill, several ruined structures and a tower in the center. At the opposite ends of the coliseum were smaller hills, a single flag planted in them.

    Good. The terrain was favorable for my charges. As long as they made good use of cover, they would be able to nullify the opponent''s numerical advantage and carry out hit-and-run tactics. Furthermore, we were familiar with what sort of personality Nirvana possessed, and we could exploit that as well.

    "Students." Teresa Taylor, the headmistress of Saint Teresa Academy, had walked to the podium, an exquisite staff in hand. She smiled as she gazed over the students in the arena, her eyes proud. Evidently she was heartened by the progress they had made throughout the semester. "Today is the day we see the fruits of your hard work. We will be looking forward to seeing how far you have grown."

    Melina and Nirvana glared at each other from the opposite side of the arena, one determined and the other derisory. Unaware or uncaring of the rivalry between them, Teresa Taylor raised her staff to release her announcement.

    "Without further ado, let the Saint Teresa Academy''s end-of-semester practical examination tournament commence!"

    There was a cheer, and the exam began. Not the actual tournament, though. Even though the participants had emerged, they were currently strategizing.

    I glanced at Nirvana''s team, and was unsurprised to see that all four members were frontline fighters. None of them specialized in ranged magic, and all of them held melee weapons. Nirvana herself wielded a mace for some reason. Her teammates wielded a rapier, a whip, and another mace. It would be troublesome for Adrian and Melina to engage them in close combat.

    On the other hand, they didn''t have to worry about long-ranged spells coming from the enemy. Of course, both of them already knew that. I had ensured that they did research on their opponents beforehand.

    Intelligence, as always, was key.

    Even Adrian was looking nervous, his hands shaking as he clutched his sword. He glanced at the trembling Melina, who looked pale.

    "Hey," he assured her with a forced smile. "It''s okay. We''ll definitely win as long as we stick to the plan."

    The plan. Right. The format of the tournament was fairly simple, a "game" where you had to catch the opponent''s flag to win. Each team could have up to five members, but Nirvana chose to bring four members. Whereas Adrian and Melina weren''t able to recruit anyone else into their team. That might be bad, considering the goal of the game.

    Each team had been allocated a specific area ¨C those hills at the opposite side of the arena ¨C where their flags were planted. Successfully protecting your own flag while stealing the enemy''s was the condition for victory. Also, you could recapture your own flag from the enemy by defeating them and taking it back, so it wasn''t an automatic loss once they got their hands on your flag. The same went for the opposing team ¨C just because you captured their flag didn''t mean you automatically win either.

    On the other hand, if neither team managed to successfully capture the other''s flag within fifteen minutes, then they would count how many members had been eliminated ¨C in other words, killpoints. In this way, Adrian and Melina''s team had the advantage because they could theoretically score more points than the opposing team. Obviously you could also win by incapacitating and defeating all the members of the opposing team. It was also possible to get draws, but neither team would want that.

    I knew that Adrian and Melina wanted to win. So did Nirvana.

    My lips curled into a smile. Nirvana''s desire to win would be her team''s undoing.

    The referee walked up and rang the bell to signal the start of the match. The timer began counting down from fifteen minutes, and both teams sprang into action.

    "Let''s go!" Adrian said, thrusting his sword forward.

    Even though each team would normally leave at least a single person behind to guard their flag, neither team did so. Nirvana and all her members hurtled forward, while both Adrian and Melina hurried into cover.

    Just as we predicted. Knowing Nirvana''s personality, she wouldn''t be satisfied with merely taking the other team''s flag.

    She would want to crush both Adrian and Melina in combat, and humiliate them in front of everybody. She was the type who enjoyed beating up her victims with her own hands ¨C almost at the expense of victory. No, to be more accurate, pulverizing her victims with that ugly mace of hers was the victory that she sought. As I said, as long as the other team was fully eliminated¡­and there were only two targets.

    Nirvana was aware of that as well, and she couldn''t wait to beat the two of them up to a pulp.

    "I''ll head straight for their base!" Melina shouted as she sprinted into the thick of the forest. Nirvana narrowed her eyes as she turned around, tracking her movements. Adrian paid her no attention and instead grinned.

    "Leave them to me! I''ll delay them as much as I can!"

    Wooden branches and vines exploded out of his sword as he dove at the opposing team. Sakura petals also streamed around him, forming a deadly barrier that simultaneously served as a cloud of swords.

    "!!"

    Nirvana''s team was forced to scatter. As for me, my eyes widened. Adrian, that scoundrel¡­to think that he was capable of casting two spells at the same time? Even veteran mages had difficulty executing two spells simultaneously, yet he was pulling it off with ease.

    The guy was talented, that was for sure.

    "Surround him!" one of Nirvana''s teammates shouted, and they obliged. But there were only three of them. Their leader was gone, having smirked and disappeared into the forest after her true target. However, none of the trio complained, and they attacked Adrian in near flawless synchronicity.

    Fortunately, Adrian had wrapped himself in impenetrable defense and their short-ranged spells bounced off his cloud of Sakura petals. Above, Cecilia nodded in approval.

    "Adrian has improved remarkably¡­it seems like Richard really taught him a few tricks."

    "Why do you think I request Richard to teach Adrian?" Sacha chuckled smugly as he rubbed his chin. "I know he will be the one to bring out my son''s full potential."

    While Adrian continued to distract the opposing team, Melina continued to run toward the opposite hill, a sudden spell halted her in her tracks, and she instinctively spun around to face her assailant after dodging it easily. Standing atop one of the outcrops of artificial ruins was Nirvana, her body wreathed in blazing mana.

    "I''m delighted that you were so cooperative enough to come straight to me, Melina!"

    Looking down on the blond swordswoman from above, the gladiator sneered contemptuously.

    "Or did you perhaps think that you could win by avoiding combat and stealing our flag?"

    She then flicked her hand casually and giggled.

    "It''s true¡­right now our base is empty. Of course you would think that it''s open to attack. And if you indeed succeeded in seizing our flag, you would get all the attention you crave."

    Nirvana then burst out laughing.

    "How na?ve. But you know¡­if all you wanted was attention, then you just needed to ask. I will be more than happy to oblige you."

    In a single bound, she leaped off the outcrop and dove at Melina, raging mana swirling around her mace and strengthening her strike. Cackling hysterically, Nirvana sped right toward Melina, sadistic violence in her eyes.

    "I''ll break all your limbs¡­until you''re lying on the ground and begging me to stop!"

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 479 Chapter 479: Stop calling her incompeten

    Cackling wildly, Nirvana swung her blazing mace at Melina, intent on smashing her arms. Her strike was fierce and swift, meant to overpower her opponent before she could react. After all, from what Nirvana knew, Melina was a poor swordswoman. She was talented at magic, but that only meant something when she was at range.

    In close combat, Nirvana was confident of crushing Melina. She hadn''t got the skills for swordsmanship, after all¡­

    Clang!

    "¡­eh?!"

    To Nirvana''s complete surprise, Melina parried her mace and knocked her back in one, fluid strike. The blond swordswoman stared at her stunned opponent with a cool, unwavering gaze, refusing to falter. Nirvana clumsily tumbled onto the ground with a huge crash, ending up in an undignified heap.

    At that moment, everyone froze. Except Adrian. He seized the chance to break out of the encirclement and withdraw to a safe distance. Of all the duelists on the battlefield, he alone was aware of Melina''s skill with the blade, and was unsurprised. While Nirvana''s teammates spun around to stare at their fallen leader, he tackled one of them and knocked her to the ground, his Sakura petals cutting her into pieces.

    Well, not really. The boundary field was in place to preserve her life, but it was clear that at least one of the members in the opposing team had been successfully eliminated while they were distracted. This was why you don''t underestimate your enemy and let your guard down, kids¡­

    Fergus Franklin grinned and pumped his fist into the air.

    "That''s my girl!" he cheered. Beside him, his father-in-law''s jaw dropped in shock as he struggled to comprehend what had just happened. I don''t know what the deal was with him ¨C were you really that surprised that your granddaughter could fight with a sword? Then again, almost the whole Franklin family had been against Melina learning the sword because¡­apparently she had no talent for it. Who were these idiots to judge whether someone had talent for swordsmanship or not? Why were they to judge whether someone deserved to learn swordsmanship or not?

    I couldn''t help but feel gratified at the awe and astonishment on all the spectators'' faces. Apparently they had bought into the dumb rumors and never expected Melina to wield a sword proficiently.

    Beside me, Miura and Rossetti were also amazed.

    "My, my." Miura''s lip curled into a smile and she nodded at me, impressed. "It seems like your teaching has paid off, after all."

    Assuming a sword stance, Melina prepared to fight back against her opponent, who was still sitting on the ground, astounded.

    For a moment, Nirvana didn''t move. Then she forced a sneer and slowly got to her feet, her aura blazing fiercely once more.

    "Heh! What are you getting your hopes up for? You parried my attack only once. That''s just a fluke!"

    Melina watched her for a moment, and almost looked as if she was going to sigh.

    "You''re not attacking?" she asked.

    "Eh?"

    Nirvana stared at her dumbly, but before she knew it, Melina had vanished from sight. The blond swordswoman was already at her flank, her sword flashing upward in a deadly arc and toward her blind spot. Nirvana spun around in reflex, realizing the danger, but she was too slow to react. Melina''s sword caught her in the shoulder and slashed a wound open, sending up a spray of blood.

    "Argh!"

    Shrieking, Nirvana staggered backward, still uncomprehending. Melina didn''t wait for her to recover and mercilessly pointed her sword at her staggering foe.

    "Yes!" I cheered, clenching my fist in excitement. "Take that! This is why you should stop calling her incompetent! Watch them both, all of you! They will show you that you can''t judge anyone on talent or whatever nonsense!"

    Miura chuckled. "You''re really invested in your disciples, aren''t you?"

    "That''s the point of being a master," I replied as I leaned back, calming down. "The privilege to be proud of their achievements. But¡­it''s not over yet."

    Indeed, Melina was still attacking as ferociously as she could, thrusting her sword and slashing at Nirvana. The latter was now on the defensive, desperately parrying and blocking whatever attacks the former was throwing at her. Cuts marked her body, blood dripping from her wounds and perspiration trickling down her pale face when she realized how outmatched she really was ¨C by someone she had disregarded as inferior to her in close combat.

    It was so satisfying to see her eat humble pie.

    The duel was now dictated by Melina, who was setting the pace. She raised her sword up high for a mighty swing, and once again Nirvana brought her mace up to block the blade with her thick, heavy shaft.

    However, Melina didn''t swing her sword down and instead kicked Nirvana from below, her foot landing squarely on the latter''s gut and sending her crashing down into the ground.

    Oh boy. She learned that trick from me, didn''t she? I couldn''t help but grin. Melina had pulled off the perfect feint attack, drawing her opponent''s attention elsewhere and creating an opening, through which she launched her real attack.

    "Kuh!"

    Lying on the ground, Nirvana glared at Melina. Her fingers curled into a fist as she lay sprawled on the ground, still unable to believe what was transpiring.

    "Why¡­?"

    Forcing herself from the ground, Nirvana lost herself to anger, swinging her mace with everything she had. Her crimson mana exploded, ending dirt and soil into the air.

    "YOOOOOU!"

    Screaming, Nirvana launched herself at Melina. But the blond swordswoman merely swung her sword and blew the cloud of dust that Nirvana herself had caused right into her opponent''s face.

    "?!"

    Nirvana stumbled past a deftly dodging Melina, blinded and gagging from the sand that had landed on her face. Some of it had gotten into her mouth and she was desperately coughing it out. Wiping at her eyes and spitting frantically, Nirvana fumbled around.

    "Ack! Bleh! What¡­?!"

    Melina didn''t answer verbally and instead slashed her opponent with her sword. The power from her blow was so strong that it sent Nirvana hurtling several meters away, leaving a trail of blood in the air. Nirvana''s momentum continued to send her skidding across the rocky ground, her body bouncing up and down like a broken doll. She only stopped when she crashed into a broken outcrop, cracking the solid rock and sending shattered stone raining down on her slumped body.

    For a moment, there was silence.

    Then the spectators began murmuring amongst themselves, chattering excitedly about what they had just seen.

    "That¡­that child¡­she''s really good!"

    "Her swordsmanship is excellent!"

    "What an overwhelming display of skills!"

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Beside me, Miura was clutching her tummy as she laughed uncontrollably. "Brilliant! That''s brilliant! She really fights like you, Richard! You really taught her well!"

    "What exactly did you teach that child?" On the other hand, Rossetti was staring intently at me I disapproval. "She''s treating this match like a fight to the death. Aren''t you supposed to be just a private tutor? You seem more like a military instructor."

    "I taught her the same way my dad trained me," I replied seriously. "Tough love, and all that. Adrian too."

    On the other end of the arena, Adrian was dealing with the remaining two members of the opposing team well, his vines having rippled out and ensnared them. The one with the whip had been disarmed, while the one with the rapier struggled against her bonds, unable to break free. Adrian had them well in hand, but it would take him a bit longer to finish them off.

    As for Melina¡­

    "The fight isn''t over yet," I muttered when my gaze rested upon Nirvana''s prone figure. Given how arrogant she was, there was no way she would surrender after being humiliated like this. Not only that, she had yet to use her trump card.

    "You''re right," Miura agreed, an ominous smile on her face. "It''s only just beginning."

    "Eh? What?" Rossetti looked around, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

    "Do you not know Nirvana''s skills?" Miura asked, folding her arms and smiling. "She''s a heavy assault type of mage. She might not have many ranged spells, but her close combat spells are devastating. If Melina receives even a single direct hit, she might go down."

    "Oh no¡­you''re right!" Rossetti looked worried. "Melina doesn''t seem to have much defensive spells. She appears to be very frail¡­"

    "I did try to teach her defensive spells, but¡­quite frankly, Melina doesn''t have much affinity for them. However¡­" I smiled. "As long as she doesn''t get hit, then it won''t be an issue."

    Melina was watching Nirvana cautiously, as if expecting her to get up anytime. However, she was not so dishonorable or despicable that she would strike an opponent when she was down. That was not how Saint Teresa Academy trained their mage cadets.

    Coughing, Nirvana glanced down and noticed how battered and bruised she was. She then looked up and saw the spectators murmuring amongst themselves, casting pititful stares at her fallen form. She tightend her grip on her mace.

    "That I...a noble scion¡­" Gritting her teeth, Nirvana forced herself to her feet through sheer grit and rage. "¡­would be forced into a corner like this¡­"

    Her mouth opened wider and she began screaming.

    "¡­by you! OF ALL PEOPLE!"

    "Eh?"

    Melina''s eyes widened when she saw the massive torrent of mana swirling around Nirvana when she held her mace up high. For a moment, she looked like a demon standing in a maelstrom of destruction, anger and violence coalescing around her brutal weapon.

    "Have a taste of my Gargatuan Mace!"

    With a roar, Nirvana swung her huge weapon down on a seemingly mesmerized Melina. For a moment it seemed like she was paralyzed, and wouldn''t be able to avoid the massive blow in time.

    "Melina!" Adrian shouted, but he found his way barred by Nirvana''s two teammates, both of whom were wounded but still very much in the fight.

    Boom!

    Nirvana''s strike carved a crater into the ground, hurling debris of rock and concrete into the air. Clouds of smoke and dust billowed across the arena, blocking out everyone''s view of the combatants. Immense shockwaves thundered across the spectator boxes, causing everyone to flinch even though there was a magical barrier separating them from the battle.

    While the spectators hunkered down, anxiously watching the coliseum as the smoke and dust slowly dispersed, white fog continued to swirl around the crater. Amidst the fading cloud of dust, Nirvana stood, straightening up as she heaved from her exertions. Her muscles trembled from the tremendous effort, but when she stared at the crater she had gouged out of the earth, she saw no sign of her opponent. Not even a speck of blood.

    "She dodged it," the twin-tailed gladiator muttered in frustration as she looked around. "Where¡­?"

    Nirvana suddenly stiffened.

    "!"

    Turning around, she spotted Melina''s silhouette within the gradually clearing smoke. Melina was kneeling on the ground, seeming exhausted from her evasive effort.

    Nirvana brightened up, looking all triumphant. She then proceeded toward the kneeling Melina, giggling maliciously.

    "Oh my!" she said mockingly. "Was that too much for a child who has only just learned swordsmanship for the first time?"

    She then stretched out a hand in a playful manner.

    "Sorry for frightening you. How about this? Since we are friends, I will give you a chance to surrender. If you do, then I''ll show mercy."

    "¡­"

    Melina was mumbling something so softly that nobody could catch her words. Nirvana chuckled in delight.

    "Hmm? What was that? I''m sorry, but I didn''t quite catch that. I don''t understand a single word you''re saying."

    She then raised her mace high into the air, her mana blazing around the blunt weapon in a demonic manner.

    "Maybe you''ll speak a lot clearer while receiving treatmet in the infirmary. As promised¡­I''ll be breaking your limbs."

    She never got the chance to bring her mace down. Before she realized it, Melina had lunged forward and pressed the blade of her sword against her neck.

    "Should I repeat what I said again?" Melina asked sweetly, a fierce glow in her eyes. Blood trickled from Nirvana''s throat as the blond swordswoman pressed the blade and cut apart her flesh, but there was nothing the gladiator could do. Melina smirked and spoke clearly this time. "I said that your attack is nowhere as scary as Sensei''s."

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 480 Chapter 480: Breaking of Limbs

    "You¡­you¡­"

    Even as she spluttered in disbelief, Nirvana gnashed her teeth angrily.

    "Don''t get too ahead of yourself, you incompetent girl¡­!"

    Before Melina could react, Nirvana swung her mace and knocked her sword away. The blond swordswoman jumped back a few paces, neatly avoiding the gladiator''s brutal weapon. Enraged, Nirvana stepped forward and continued to smash away.

    This time, it was a reversal of what happened earlier ¨C Nirvana was on the offense and was attacking frantically, forcing Melina onto the defensive. However, while Nirvana lacked finesse and was dragged into Melina''s pace, here Melina was beautifully defending against every of her Nirvana''s attacks.

    A hop there, a parry here, a ddoge by a hair''s breadth there, all conducted with the utmost confidence. Unlike Nirvana''s frantic and hasty attacks and her desperate defending earlier, Melina almost looked as if she was toying with her opponent, dancing away from her wide swings and weaving through the blunt strikes. If anything, it appeared that Melina was baiting Nirvana to dance to her tune.

    "You¡­!" Nirvana shrieked, allowing her frustration to get the better of her. She plunged onward recklessly, her movements getting wider and her attacks getting sloppier. Watching her antics brought a smile on my face.

    Melina shared that smile. I recalled the discussion we had recently, when I told them to gather information on their opponents, one of the things we raised was Nirvana''s bad temper and tendency to get provoked easily.

    Back then, I had told Melina, "that''s something you can make use of. And you should. In a battle, you should use everything to your advantage, because if you don''t¡­you''ll die. Well, not really. But you want to win, right? As long as you win wthout cheating, that''s fine. Any whining on the loser will just be that ¨C whining. Poor sportsmanship. A delusional inability to accept that she lost because she was weaker and stupider.???

    And now Melina was taking that lesson to heart.

    Nirvana was slowing down, having exhausted herself through her reckless swinging and screaming. She had launched powerful attacks that should have obliterated Melina¡­except that none of them landed. Melina was always deftly staying just out of range, completely avoiding Nirvana''s strikes by a hair''s breadth, or riding the shockwaves to escape.

    "Who the hell said that she doesn''t have talent for swordsmanship?"

    "Is the Franklin family serious? Condeming her as incompetent and not fit to learn the sword?!"

    "If she doesn''t have the talent to wield a sword, then the majority of swordsmen and swordswomen don''t have the right to call themselves as such!"

    The specators were overawed by Melina''s display of sublime swordsmanship, and thoroughly impressed by her performance.

    "This is impossible!" Kureha Franklin leaped to her feet, her face pale. Beside her, Eliza Franklin''s jaw dropped. The self-proclaimed paladin had condemned Melina as incompetent and ordered her to give up on learning swordsmanship because she was so confident that she had no talent.

    To see her cousin proving her completely wrong was a huge slap in the face. She wasn''t able to hide her embarrassment, her face completely red as several people turned to look at her curiously, as if to ask, "This wasn''t what you told us? Why did you lie about your cousin being incompetent in the sword?"

    "This can''t be happening! How is Melina wielding a sword so proficiently?!" Eliza struck her seat with a fist, smashing it. Several spectators nearby jumped up in fright. "This cannot be true! We were not wrong! We weren''t!"

    "What did you teach Melina, Richard Huang?!" Kureha screeched from her side of the arena. I ignored her, much to Miura''s amusement. "How did you turn that incompetent talented girl into a proper swordswoman?!"

    "Hey, someone''s asking you a question, you know?" Miura was giggling as she stared at the two Franklin girls, amused by their rage. "Why are they acting like it''s such a problem that their cousin has achieved such a high level of swordsmanship? Shouldn''t they be happy for her?"

    "I think¡­it''s because Richard teaching Melina swordsmanship and proving them wrong has caused them a massive loss of face, and they are extremely embarrassed." It was Rossetti who provided an answer.

    "Well, they can go screw themselves," I replied bluntly, my attention still on my charges below. "Besides, the battle is far from over."

    Another thing I had taught both Melina and Adrian. It ain''t over until it''s over. Unntil the enemy lay on the ground, dead or defeated, never let your guard down.

    The both of them had taken that lesson to heart. Whether it was Melina, whose face was one of utmost concentation and she continued to weave in and out of Nirvana''s attacks, or Adrian, whose wood magic had flooded the entire space where he occupied, calling upon the trees in the battlefield to reinforce him.

    In fact, Adrian was proving to be quite the surprise himself. To my amazement, he had summoned a bunch of Treeants to his aid. The lumbering treeflok towered over the two frightened girls and brutally clobbered them to submission. They screamed briefly, their shrieks cut off abruptly as they vanished beneath a gigantic branch, and stomped into near oblivion by gnarled roots. Of course the boundary field would preserve their lives, but they would be spending a long time in the infirmary.

    With his foes done, Adrian then moved toward Melina and Nirvana, his Treeants in tow. The gargantuan creatures left tremors with each step they took, the roots that made their legs leaving small craters in the ground.

    "What the hell¡­?!" Rossetti turned to gape at me. "That boy¡­did you teach him summoning magic as well?!"

    "A little," I confessed, scratching my cheek. Adrian had begged me to teach him summoning magic, having seen mine and wanting to emulate me. Since I didn''t have much to teach him in terms of swordsmanship, and he was a natural at wood magic, I did have some leeway and could impart to him the magic I truly specialized in.

    "You¡­" Miura was shaking her head in disbelief. "I don''t know who is more terrifying¡­you or those kids?"

    "Hah!" I snorted. "Neither. We are such nice people, Adrian, Melina and I. What''s there to be afraid of?"

    "You''re doing this on purpose, aren''t you?" Rossetti glared at me. Then she turned back to the arena and grimaced when she saw the crushed and broken bodies of the two girls in Nirvana''s team. "I don''t think those girls will be calling Adrian nice."

    "They deserve it."

    "¡­and you shouldn''t be calling yourself nice either¡­"

    "All right, I''m mean. Happy?"

    "That''s not what I mean¡­" Rossetti looked as if she had a headache, clutching her head as strands of her red hair fell through her fingers.

    Nirvana realized how cornered she was, and her attacks intensified. Even if her team had already lost this match, she was determined to take out Melina at least.

    "Just go down already!" she screeched, swinging her mace again. Melina hopped back, deflecting the heavy weapon by the narrowest of margins, and then ducking under the blunt weapon by bending her back backward. The brutal mace swung over her face, missing her by just a hair''s breadth.

    "Melina!" Adrian yelled as he approached. "Fifteen minutes are almost up!"

    "So what?!" Nirvana snapped. "The time limit won''t save you¡­"

    She never got to finish her sentence. Even as she stepped in for another swing, she suddenly realized that the weight in her hands was suddenly gone. Her mace was lying on the ground, several meters away.

    "¡­eh?"

    No¡­it wasn''t just her mace. Her hands were gone too, severed at the wrists. Nirvana stared at the stumps that were what remained of her hands, blood pouring out profusely.

    "No¡­no way! Impossible!"

    "You were saying something about breaking my limbs?" Melina asked as she advanced, her sword gleaming. "And making me lie on the ground, begging for you to stop?"

    "That''s¡­that''s¡­" Tears were streaming from Nirvana''s eyes as she backed away, still in shock. Her legs trembled so badly that she fell to her knees, unable to move. "Ah¡­ah¡­no, I was just¡­joking. You know how it is, right? Melina? We all brag and make threats at the beginning of the fight, but of course we don''t have any intention of following through. Right? Right?"

    "Weren''t you going to send me to the infirmary?"

    "I¡­I said that in the heat of the battle! I didn''t mean it!"

    Fuck you. You were clearly doing your best to smash Melina''s head in. Who were you kidding? If the situation was reversed, Nirvana would be the one crushing Melina''s limbs one by one in a sadistic manner and torturing her in front of everyone.

    She was a fucking bully who reveled in abusing those weaker than herself. But now that she was on the receiving end of the violence, she was suddenly trying to beg for mercy.

    "Please¡­Melina? Weren''t we friends?"

    "A true friend wouldn''t have picked on me, bullied me, and tried to humiliate me in any way possible in front of everyone." Melina closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them again, fire seemed to blaze in those ruby orbs. "You are no friend of mine."

    "Ah¡­"

    Before Nirvana could say anything else, Melina''s gleaming sword flashed and both of her opponent''s arms were gone ¨C spiraling haplessly upward. The amputated limbs hit the ground and rolled, blood gushing out.

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

    Nirvana screamed as she tumbled backward, tears spilling from her eyes as she stared at the ruined stumps of her arms. As expected of Melina, she had delivered a clean cut, but obviously that was of no comfort to Nirvana, who was quite literally disarmed.

    "Earlier, you said you will break all my limbs, right?" Melina''s blade trailed downward until the tip of it was pointed toward Nirvana''s trembling thighs. "Allow me to return the favor."

    "No¡­no!" Nirvana shrieked. "You won, Melina! I''m sorry, okay?! You won! I surrender! Please don''t! Don''t¡­!"

    Melina regarded her coldly. "I wonder," she mused. "Would you have shown me any mercy if our positions were reversed? Would you have stopped if I begged you to?"

    "Of¡­of course! You know me very well, Melina! I wouldn''t hurt you!"

    For a moment, Melina smiled, and Nirvana relaxed a fraction, looking relieved.

    "Yes, I know you very well, Nirvana." Then Melina''s eyes opened and flashed dangerously, and the arena was abruptly filled with killing intent. "For almost two years now, you''ve been beating me up, kicking me when I''m down and having your lackeys gang up on me. No matter how many times I begged you to stop, you refused, and beat me up even more. Yes, you are right. I know you too well."

    "You can''t do this! I surrender!" Nirvana glanced desperately at the referee, who remained unmoved. "The match is over! Stop her!"

    "The match is over when fifteen minutes have passed," the referee replied coolly. He glanced at the chronometer in his holographic screen. "There''s still forty-eight seconds left."

    "W¡­what?! N¡­no way!" Nirvana spluttered. "You can''t do this!"

    "You''re still conscious," the referee reminded her. "You still have some mana left. Just because you lost your hands doesn''t mean you can''t cast any magic."

    Nirvana could only stare at him, horrified, and the referee shrugged indifferently as he glanced at the chronometer again.

    "Twenty-two seconds now."

    Melina smiled coldly. "That''s more than enough."

    She then swung her sword downward. Nirvana shrieked, and then passed out, her body toppling over. Her skirt turned wet, and a pool of liquid leaked out from between her legs. She had fainted from fear and even wet herself right in front of everybody.

    And that was even before Melina touched her.

    "¡­fortunately, I''m not you," Melina murmured as she sheathed her sword. The blade had stopped half a meter away from the now unconscious Nirvana, and it was clear to everyone that she never had any intention of cutting off the auburn-haired girl''s legs. She just wanted to frighten her.

    "Match over!" the referee announced, raising his hand and sounding the signal. "The winner is Team Adrian and Melina!"

    Whatever words he had next were drowned out by deafening cheers from the astounded spectators.

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 481 Chapter 481: Victory

    After the match, both Adrian and Melina hurried down the tunnel and toward the back of the arena. There were still plenty of figures milling around because the matches had ended for the day and families were going home.

    Adrian and Melina paid no attention to the surrounding people and continued onward, until they spotted me stepping out from the stairs and into the ground floor.

    "Sensei!" Melina called out to me, delighted. "Did you see that?"

    "Yeah." I nodded and waved at them.

    "We did it!" Adrian cheered. I grinned and reached down to ruffle their hair.

    "You certainly did! Excellent job, the both of you! You make me proud!" I couldn''t help but puff my chest out, unable to contain the emotions welling up within me. This must be what it meant to be a teacher, to watch your students grow up and far surpass your expectations. "Awesome! You guys were amazing!"

    Some people glanced in our direction, having recognized the duo, but they didn??t say anything. There were admiring glances, curious gazes and perhaps looks of envy, which was to be expected. We ignored them all, lost in a world of our own.

    "Hey, that wasn''t fair! Sensei, when did you teach Adrian summoning magic?! Why didn''t you teach me?"

    "Uh, because you were busily learning swordsmanship?" I sighed. "Focus on one skill at a time. If you had been distracted by summoning magic, you wouldn''t have been able to demonstrate your excellent grasp of swordsmanship today."

    "Ugh¡­" Melina couldn''t argue because she knew I was right. That didn''t make her any less pacified, though. She glared at Adrian. "Then why isn''t it the case for Adrian?"

    "Unlike you, he didn''t focus much on swordsmanship, and he was able to master wood magic relatively quickly. Summoning magic is based off the elementary element magic, so once you''re good at a certain element, you have a great foundation upon which you can establish summoning magic."

    It was too bad that most people didn''t really learn summoning magic or view it as an extension of their elemental magic, usually because it was too complex to learn, they deemed it too slow and impractical or it cost too much mana. Adrian was only convinced because he saw me using summoning magic and he wanted to emulate me, otherwise I doubted he would ever consider it.

    "We should have a party tonight!"

    Amelia showed up with a bright smile. Apparently she had watched the match, though I had no idea how. I didn''t see her among the spectators at all. Maybe she watched the live stream. In any event, she had come to pick up Melina.

    "Oh¡­okay." Melina looked a little surprised, but then she beamed and nodded. "You''re coming as well, right? Adrian? Sensei?"

    "Yeah¡­" Given that we all stayed in the same manor, it wasn''t as if we had any excuse to skip the celebration party. Besides, I was so overjoyed that I did want to celebrate. Adrian felt similarly, nodding excitedly.

    "But I didn''t expect you to summon those Treeants." I was shaking my head. "I thought you would still need some time to develop a proper Soul Beast."

    "Oh, my real Soul Beast has yet to be revealed. I''m still in the midst of developing him." Adrian grinned at me knowingly. I raised an eyebrow, but didn''t say anything. I was sure he wanted to present a surprise, but he probably wouldn''t make it in time for the end of the tournament.

    "You too, Melina." I turned to grin at her. "I see you have completely grasp the concept of a feint. I know some people might accuse you of being dishonorable, but ignore them. On the battlefield, honor is of no use to you if you''re dead. Do everything you can to stay alive."

    Then I noticed that Melina wasn''t paying much attention to me at all. Amelia was also gripping my sleeve, drawing my attention. Blinking, I turned around and saw why.

    "Master!"

    Amelia bowed when a familiar figure stepped forward. Dressed in a resplendent suit that probably cost more than my dad''s house, Fergus Franklin approached us, his expression stern.

    "F¡­Father." Melina sounded incredibly nervous. Fergus glanced at her, and his expression softened. He smiled and patted her head. The affectionate display didn''t last long, though, for he raised his head, his eyes turning grim, as he regarded another party.

    "That was truly a splendid match," he said, stepping between his daughter and the other person. I turned around and stared at another middle-aged man who I did not recognize. "Your daughter has certainly demonstrated a great deal of strength, Mister Mallory."

    I recognized the family name immediately. Mallory¡­so this man must be the father of Nirvana. That pig-headed girl with pigtails was nowhere to be seen, however. She was currently in the infirmary where Teacher Cure was either reattaching or regrowing her arms. Whatever the healing spell she used, the medical procedure was going to take a very, very long time.

    "Sir Franklin!" the Mallory dude smiled, though I detected no trace of warmth in his expression. "I must redirect that praise to Lady Melina! I was astonished at her tenacity and overzealous desire for victory!"

    I raised an eyebrow at his words. There was a tinge of sarcasm to them ¨C the guy was subtly criticizing Melina''s drive to achieve victory no matter the cost. How na?ve.

    "As was I," Fergus Franklin responded diplomatically, his smile still on his face. "I had always known that my daughter was talented, but even I was taken aback by how far she has progressed." He then feigned an apologetic fa?ade. "I''m very sorry about your daughter. I will tell Melina to hold back in future. She had been excessive in her attacks¡­forgive my daughter, she is still young and unable to control herself."

    "No¡­not at all. Nirvana is the one who embarrassed herself in front of everybody." Mallory looked bitter now. "To think that she had stooped so low to bully a fellow classmate. I''ve been hearing all these rumors ¨C everyone has been chatting about it, and it appears there are so many eyewitnesses. I''m surprised that the school hasn''t stepped in to deal with bullying when it happens right under their nose. I''ll be reprimanding my daughter¡­the apology is mine to make."

    "Not at all. As I said, they are both still young, so we''ll have to excuse the foibles of our children. That said, you are correct. I am alarmed that such bullying has been going on in the school for so long, and that the teachers have not stepped in to do anything about it. Make no mistake, I will be submitting a complaint to the board itself."

    For some reason, Mallory turned extremely pale. "Uh, that might not be necessary. I have direct connections to the board, and I will definitely relay your concerns."

    "Oh? Then I will be counting on you." Fergus Franklin smiled thinly. He probably shared the same suspicions as me, confirmed by Mallory???s panic and words. Someone on the board had been instructing the staff to turn a blind eye to Nirvana''s bullying of his daughter. "I hope they take decisive action. But, knowing Headmistress Taylor, I''m confident she will not allow them to throw the blame onto a scapegoat."

    "In¡­indeed." Mallory was suddenly sweating very profusely. "Well¡­well then, I believe it is time for me to go. I will see you then, Sir Franklin. Hopefully this¡­matter will be resolved by then."

    "I hope so too." Was it my imagination or was there a hint of warning in Fergus''s voice?

    We watched Mallory walk away, and then Melina stepped forward.

    "F¡­Father¡­!"

    He turned around and hugged her.

    "Congratulations on your first win, Melina," he whispered into her ear. "I saw everything. I''m proud of you. I''m sure your mother would be proud of you too. You did a great job."

    He then grinned.

    "This is off the record, but I approve of everything you did. If someone bullies you, pay her back a hundredfold. That is the Franklin way!"

    Melina brightened up at that. "Yes, Father!"

    "Now it''s Kureha and Eliza''s turn. Your cousins have been¡­condemning you as incompetent all these years. Now that you''ve proven them wrong¡­" Fergus''s grin grew wider. "It''s time for a counterattack. As I said¡­pay them back a hundredfold. Even if they are supposedly our relatives."

    "Uh¡­okay¡­"

    As expected, even Melina was taken aback by that.

    And then Sacha Stuart and his wife arrived, along with Cecilia. Adrian waved at his parents before rushing over to them. Sacha patted his head, and then glanced at the other man present while his wife gave Adrian a hug.

    "Oh, Sir Franklin¡­you''re here too."

    "Sir Stuart." Fergus rose to his feet and acknowledged the other noble. He glanced at Adrian and smiled. "I am very grateful to your son for teaming up with my daughter."

    "Not at all." Sacha chuckled. "Both of them performed pretty well. I''m very impressed."

    "Yes. Our children did us proud today."

    "A lot of it is thanks to Richard." Sacha turned to me and nodded. "I don''t know what you did, but you certainly whipped our kids into shape! We''ll continue to count on you for the future!"

    "Of course." I bowed politely. "I''ll do my best."

    "I''m sure you will." Sacha laughed. "You''re already doing a better job than most of the teachers here!"

    "He definitely is an excellent tutor," Fergus agreed, looking impressed. "My nieces had all but given up on my daughter, but this young man actually nurtured her to such a level. I don''t know what sorcery you used, but you could probably become rich and famous with that."

    "Nah¡­" I raised both my hands and shook my head. "I''m not interested in that. Besides, the tournament isn''t over yet. There''s still too early to celebrate."

    "Regardless," Sacha said. ??Today''s performance has already earned recognition for everyone here. No matter how far the children progress, they have gotten the acknowledgement they deserved."

    "That''s right," Mrs. Stuart concurred with a smile. "You should all be proud."

    Aw shucks¡­I couldn''t deal with this¡­

    Fortunately, I didn''t have to, and the adults dispersed, leaving us kids to celebrate on our own in Melina''s personal manor. Honestly, we didn''t have much of a party, just a small feast. As I said, the tournament wasn''t over yet. Adrian and Melina still had several matches to go.

    The euphoria lasted for a bit longer. The next day, they made it past the second round, and then to the third round, and finally to the semifinals.

    There, they finally fell to a five-man team who emphasized on teamwork above all else, and went straight for their flag. Despite defeating four of the members, they lost because they were not able to recover their flag by the time the fifteen minutes were up.

    Even so, given their splendid performances throughout the tournament, there could no longer be any doubt as to how talented or skilled both Adrian and Melina were. Additionally, they had been fighting at a distinct disadvantage from the start, with only two people on their team. Plenty of spectators speculated that if they had even just an extra member, they might have quite possible won the tournament.

    Whatever the case, the son of the Stuart family had finally stepped out of his venerable cousin''s shadow and the youngest daughter of the Franklin family was finally recognized as a superb swordswoman.

    And that¡­was more than enough.

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 482 Chapter 482: The Weekend

    "Aw¡­I can''t believe we lost!"

    Adrian, understandably, was frustrated. Even though he took down two members of the opposing team with his Treeants, they had failed because they weren''t able to protect their flag. Beside him, Melina looked just as unhappy. Her swordsmanship had improved, and she subdued two of her opponents, but both Adrian and Melina were too distracted by their opponents that they failed to realize the opposing team''s strategy until it was too late.

    While I had emphasized to them the importance of knowing the enemy and developing the appropriate countermeasures, it appeared that the other team did exactly just that. Realizing that they were no match for Adrian and Melina in terms of combat, they reconsidered their strategy. The victory condition, after all, was not just to defeat all the enemies on the battlefield, but to capture the flag by the end of fifteen minutes.

    To that end, they played toward the mission objective and made use of their superior numbers to buy as much time as possible, sacrificing the majority of the team just so their final member could seize the flag.

    With just two members in their team, Adrian and Melina was facing insurmountable odds. For them to progress this far despite such an overwhelming disadvantage that would have crippled any other pair against numerically superior teams was already a miracle in itself.

    "You guys did a great job," I assured the both of them. "It doesn''t matter even if you aren''t the champions. You''ve done more than enough to make me proud. Excellent work, guys!"

    "Ugh¡­"

    "Geez¡­"

    Neither of them looked convinced. I understood their frustration somewhat. For them to get so close, yet lose¡­yeah, it was a feeling that nobody wanted to experience. Especially since they knew that in terms of combat, they were more skilled than the other team. To lose on a technicality rather than because they were outmatched in battle was just¡­unsettling.

    I knew how they felt and I empathized. After all, my team lost in the semifinals of the national tournament. Of course, my personal experience was slightly different because I had been compeltly outclassed and defeated by a superior foe. Charles Lacroix was the strongest opponent I had ever faced in my generation, and I accepted my defeat with good grace.

    What, were you expecting me to be the typical Chinese cultivation story protagonist who was god mode and never lost a single battle? You''re reading the wrong story, bro.

    "You guys did well." I ruffled their hair again, grinning proudly. "Come on, let''s go celebrate. Dinner is on me."

    "About that¡­Amelia already has something arranged tonight." Melina was checking a holographic window. She glanced up, somewhat forlornly. "She wants us to return home early today. Tells us not to eat anything before then."

    "Got it." Oh, that saved me money then. I didn''t mind ¨C Amelia and the maids working in Melina''s manor were great cooks. I was actually looking forward to eating their stuff. Speaking of which, I still had the arrangement with Nan Gong Zhao Yan ¨C if I remembered correctly, she planned to treat me to a homecooked meal on Sunday.

    For now, we should just go home. Pushing my charges gently, I shepherded them toward the direction of Melina''s manor. While we walked, I received a call.

    "Dad?" I swiped the green button the moment I saw who was calling. Dad''s grizzled face appeared in the window and he grinned before waving.

    "Richie! Oh, I just watched the Saint Teresa Academy middle school tournament. You were teaching a couple of kids there, weren''t you? I remember Adrian, and¡­"

    "Melina." I waved them over. The two kids peered curiously at my dad, and Adrian waved when he recognized him.

    "Sir."

    "Hey, Adrian. And¡­uh, Melina, right? Congratulations to you two for making this far! I watched your matches, you guys put on an excellent display!"

    "Thank you, sir."

    "T¡­thank you."

    Adrian beamed in delight while Melina lowered her head shyly.

    Dad then turned to me, grinning. He looked like he wanted to smack my shoulder, but unfortunately he was physically not present. He could only curl his fingers into a fist and resist the temptation of fatherly intimacy, but I knew he was on the verge of leaping out of the video screen and wrapping me in a bear hug.

    "You did the Miyamoto dojo proud, son," he declared. "Now everyone will recognize what sort of disciples we are training."

    He then turned to grin at Adrian and Melina, placing his hands on his hips and puffing his chest out proudly.

    "The both of you too¡­you helped us make a name for our Miyamoto dojo! I don''t care what families or clans you''re from ¨C the moment you stepped through our doors and trained here under one of our people, you''ve become a member of the Miyamoto dojo. And with your performance, you have increased our reputation. Good work!"

    "We should return to Jing Tian City and have dinner together sometime, to celebrate as the Miyamoto dojo," I suggested with a smile. Dad nodded excitedly.

    "I''ll be waiting!"

    And with that, I said my goodbyes and hung up, promising to keep in touch. I usually called my dad about once or twice a week, so it wasn''t too bad. Turning back to Adrian and Melina, who looked a little better than before, I gestured.

    "All right, let''s go home! Amelia is waiting for us¡­as is the food."

    Adrian almost fell over at that. "That''s what you''re looking forward to?!"

    "Hey, all men need to eat. Good food is what I live for."

    *

    The weekend finally arrived, and as usual I spent the Saturday with Adrian, playing Warhammer 40,000 at Dreamers. Let''s pretend the whole Corvid19 didn''t happen, we weren''t in lockdown, and life was continuing as usual. Hopefully by the time this chapter was published, the worst of the pandemic would be over. Funny how things in the present could affect things 1,000 years into the future.

    Anyway, Sunday came and I was practically shooed out of the house by Adrian and Melina, who somehow caught wind of the information that I was supposed to "have a date with" Zhao Yan. Inwardly, I suspected they were taking revenge on me for this morning''s brutal training, and wanted to escape any extra training I could get, but¡­whatever.

    "You can''t make a lady wait, Sensei!" Melina insisted, pushing me.

    "Yeah! This is a great chance for you, Brother Richard!" Adrian added, causing me to glare at him.

    "What do you mean by great chance? Chance for what?"

    "Uh¡­nothing. To get out of the house and socialize, I mean¡­"

    I continued to stare intently at him, but Melina gave me an insistent shove.

    "Hurry up, Sensei! Or you''re going to be late! You should be going there early and wait for her, not allow her to wait for you!"

    "All right, all right, I''m going¡­"

    Despite Melina''s efforts, as it turned out, Zhao Yan was already waiting outside Chao Caf¨¦ when I finally made it there. Damn, but she was early.

    "I''m sorry for calling you over, but I just need to buy something from the caf¨¦, if you don''t mind."

    "No, not at all."

    I did my best not to ogle her. It was a refreshing sight to see her in a simple but pretty dress that accentuated her beauty by not being overly decorative with frills and all that nonsense.

    "Eh? What about your sister?"

    I frowned when I didn''t see Ji Yan, despite looking around. My glasses didn''t register her presence in the vicinity at all, despite its hi-tech sensors, which further confirmed my suspicions that she was absent. Well, that was fine. That girl was annoying, so I would be happier to not have to deal with her company.

    "Ji Yan is not coming," Zhao Yan replied simply. Then she grimaced. "There was a mix-up in the practical exam, it seems. I heard that you faced her¡­??

    "Oh, right." I chuckled. Shortly after the examination, Teacher Einsberg had contacted me through email, informing me that there was a mistake in the practical examination. Both Zhao Yan and I had gotten the wrong opponents. I was originally scheduled to face Nan Gong Zhao Yan, not Ji Yan, but because they were twins, the administrative in charge carelessly swapped them and I ended up facing the wrong sister.

    Consequently, both Zhao Yan and I scored overwhelming victories, while Ji Yan and the other poor fella were¡­crushed. Fortunately, they were able to reschedule the exam on Friday, and the two of them were able to get fairer scores during the retest.

    "Even so, Ji Yan was in a bad mood. I think she plans to blow off steam by going on a shopping spree today."

    "Oh, okay."

    "Do you mind waiting for a bit? I know I should have bought the stuff before you arrived, but you showed up earlier than I expected."

    That explained why Zhao Yan was so early. I chuckled, amused, when I remembered how stubborn Melina was in forcing me to show up early.

    "No, not at all. I had a couple of siblings who sort of chased me out of the house, otherwise I wouldn''t be here so early either."

    Zhao Yan returned the smile, and then turned around. I followed her into Chao Caf¨¦. Incidentally, Saint Teresa Academy was located in Cardinal District, which was home to a couple of high-class cafes such as this one, but I had never visited any of them during my time here. Honestly, I didn''t have to. After all, Amelia and the maids in the private Franklin manor provided all my meals for essentially free (well, technically I worked for them, given that I was hired as a private tutor¡­). In any event, Chao Caf¨¦ was evidently popular with the girls, and I could see many of the dining here. A few of them I recognized as daughters of reputable, wealthy families.

    Zhao Yan purchased a box of strawberry short cakes, requesting the lady at the counter to wrap it up for her. As I offered to carry the box, I must have shown an inquisitive expression because she didn''t hesitate to give an explanation.

    "The strawberry short cakes are for my sister."

    "Sister? Huh? I thought you said Ji Yan isn''t coming?"

    "Oh¡­no, not Ji Yan. We have a third sister. Yue Jian doesn''t go to our school, so I was thinking of buying these cakes for her."

    "Third sister?" That was news to me, but I supposed that it wasn''t too unusual. "I see. I didn''t know that."

    "We''re actually triplets," Zhao Yan revealed as we left the caf¨¦. I almost dropped her box of strawberry short cakes in astonishment.

    "W¡­what?! Triplets?!"

    All this time, I (and the rest of the school) was under the mistaken impression that Zhao Yan and Ji Yan were twins. I never knew they were part of triplets that included a third sister who didn''t enroll in Saint Teresa Academy.

    "Yes, you''ll meet her when we get home. I''m sure she''ll be happy to get a chance to talk to someone else her age, other than Ji Yan and me. Because of her circumstances, she isn''t able to get out much and socialize."

    "I see." I nodded thoughtfully, but I couldn''t imagine how Yue Jian would look like. Probably identical to Zhao Yan and Ji Yan, except for the hairstyle. Considering that Zhao Yan tied her hair into a ponytail, and Ji Yan styled her hair into twin-tails, I supposed that Yue Jian probably let her hair down loosely. Most likely that was the case, given that she was stuck at home and didn''t have any reason to doll up her appearance.

    "All right, let''s go." Zhao Yan led the way to the train station. She glanced at me, a little concerned. "I forgot to ask you, but I hope you don''t mind¡­the trip home might take about an hour. We are quite far from the academy."

    "That''s okay." I grinned at her before retrieving a Kindle with my free hand. "I brought something to read, so I''ll be fine."

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 483 Chapter 483: Visi

    The trip to the Nan Gong mansion took a little less than an hour by train, as Zhao Yan promised. Upon reaching home, a kindly couple emerged to greet their daughter. Trailing behind them was a girl who resembled Zhao Yan greatly. Dressed simply in a brightly colored dress, her fashion sense was closer to Zhao Yan''s than the flashier Ji Yan. Unlike both her sisters, Yue Jian left her long hair untied, allowing the strands to drift freely in the breeze. She also hugged her sister warmly, happy to see her again.

    "Zhao Yan, where is Ji Yan?"

    The middle-aged man, who I guessed was the father, but Zhao Yan merely shook her head.

    "Ji Yan has other appointments today. She is out shopping today."

    "I see¡­she''s going out with her friends, huh?"

    The woman smiled kindly as she accepted Zhao Yan''s reply. Then she frowned, a look of concern coming over her face.

    "What about you, Zhao Yan? Have you made any friends yet?"

    "Yes¡­actually, I brought a friend back today. He''s the one I told you about yesterday."

    Zhao Yan gestured for me to step forward, and I complied nervously and bowed politely to the middle-aged couple. Zhao Yan then continued.

    "This is Shu Cong. He saved Ji Yan''s life about a week ago, so I plan to thank him by treating him to dinner, as I told you. Classmate Shu Cong, these are my parents and my sister, Yue Jian."

    "Ah, yes. I''m Nan Gong Jiao Shou. I''m a professor at the Institute of Biology. Thank you for saving my daughter." He then glowered at empty space next to Zhao Yan, as if there was someone standing there. "Ji Yan, that girl¡­if she was the one who was rescued, then she should be the one thanking Mr. Shu here instead of you, Zhao Yan."

    "It can''t be helped. Ji Yan already had plans prior to this." As expected, Zhao Yan defended her sister. She was loyal to a fault.

    "Well, it''s fine. Come in, come in!"

    Zhao Yan''s mother quickly ushered us through the front door. As I stepped through the patio, I stared at her in confusion before turning to Zhao Yan.

    "You have a mother?"

    "What''s that supposed to mean?!" she snapped, annoyed. I scratched my head and shrugged.

    "Well¡­I thought you three were clones...um¡­test-tube babies cloned by your ''father'' to inherit the Mei Yue Min thing¡­"

    Zhao Yan pausd to glare at me. "You''ve obviously been reading way too much manhua. And I''ve never heard of Mei Yue Min before."

    Yeah¡­I probably have. The next thing I knew, the mysterious transfer student, Xu Wu Cheng, would have some dark secret of his own, Ji Yan would plot something nasty against her sisters out of jealousy¡­

    All right, I should start separating reality from manhua, like right now.

    "Um¡­"

    Yue Jian spoke up nervously as she hurried to our side. I remembered that we were going to give her the box of strawberry short cakes, so I passed the box to Zhao Yan instinctively. It was better if she received the gift from her sister intead of me, especially since Zhao Yan was the one who paid for them. Still, I was getting uncomfortable under her curious gaze, so I cleared my throat and asked a random question.

    "Where are your bandages?"

    "Huh? W¡­what bandages?"

    Boy, but was the girl jumpy or what? She looked really tense and timid. I sighed, and did my best to smile reassuringly as I elaborated.

    "I was under the impression that you had an accident about nine or ten years ago where you fell into a vat of flammable liquid in your father''s laboratory, got burned and ended up with scars on your face. So you would cover them with bandages¡­"

    Zhao Yan smacked my head so hard that I actually saw stars as I fell over.

    "What nonsense are you spouting to my sister?!"

    "Sorry, it''s as you say." I rubbed my head as I slowly got back to my feet, and grinned apologetically. "I''ve been reading too much manhua."

    "Yue Jian, ignore him for now." Zhao Yan extracted the box from the nice wrapping and passed it to her sister. "These are the famous strawberry short cakes from the face near my school. Make sure you share them with Father and Mother. I bought them so that all of you can have a taste."

    "O¡­oh! Thank you!"

    Zhao Yan smiled, and then lowered her voice in a conspiratorial whisper. "Don''t let Ji Yan know about this, though. That girl never eats enough."

    "Um¡­you can have some too!" Yue Jian was opening the box, and she politely offered one to me. I couldn''t help but warm up to her. Yue Jian might be overly timid and clumsy, but she was certainly adorable and kind.

    "No thanks. You can share it with your parents instead. I''m not a big fan of strawberries." I was more of a mango person. In other words, I only liked mangoes, mango cakes, mango juice, mango ice cream, etc.

    "I see." Zhao Yan raised an eyebrow. "I''m sorry, I should have¡­"

    "Oi, I was just giving an excuse because I want to be polite! Read the mood!" I hissed. Taking a deep breath, I calmed myself down. "Anyway, don''t worry about it. I''m happy to watch your family enjoy the dessert. Besides, I''m looking forward to your homecooked dinner."

    "Zhao Yan''s¡­homecooked dinner?"

    "Speaking of which, I should probably go prepare now. Please take a seat and make yourself at home. It might take a while, but I''ll serve you something good. I hope."

    Zhao Yan smiled briefly before leaving for the kitchen. After she disappeared, Yue Jian flailed about in panic.

    "Are you sure you want Zhao Yan to cook?"

    There was something about her initial reaction that worried me, and now her current panicked demeanor sealed that feeling of dread in my stomach.

    "Um¡­why?"

    "I''m not sure if that''s a good idea."

    "Huh? What''s that supposed to mean?"

    "Um¡­Zhao Yan''s cooking skills aren''t¡­well¡­" Yue Jian was as pale as a ghost as she entertained what seemed like ghastly memories. I found myself less and less able to keep myself in denial. "Uh¡­I don''t know how to put it¡­it''s just that sometimes the stuff that Zhao Yan prepares, it might be difficult to call them food¡­"

    I felt cold dread seeping into my heart, completely replacing all sense of denial. As much as I was a fan of free food, it only applied to stuff that was actually edible. Still, I was somewhat relieved at the information. So the seemingly perfect Zhao Yan did have something that she couldn''t do¡­

    "What should we do?" I was unable to keep the unease out of my voice.

    "Well¡­Mother is with Zhao Yan, so it should be okay¡­I think?"

    You think? Oh, great. That was just brilliant. It was a good thing I had received the gift of poison immunity from the Holy Spring, otherwise I would be worrying about finding an antidote or charcoal pill for the inevitable poisoning.

    "Well¡­anyway¡­if you don''t mind me asking¡­" Yue Jian began fidgeting nervously when I settled down on the sofa. I sighed.

    "Relax, lady. I''m not going to eat you."

    "E¡­eat me?!"

    Jeez, girl. Don''t take my words so literally.

    "Ask whatever you want. Don''t worry, I''m not the type to get angry easily."

    "O¡­oh. Sure. Yes." Yue Jian nodded enthusiastically. Bumbling over the sofa in an attempt to get nearer, she blurted out innocently. "Are you¡­Zhao Yan''s boyfriend?"

    "Nope. I''m afraid I don''t have the qualifications to be her boyfriend, even if I wanted to."

    I didn''t know how much Yue Jian knew about her sister in school, so I summed Zhao Yan up as this flawless, perfect superwoman who was good at everything, from studying for tests to athletics to combat and magic. Yue Jian listened intently, absorbing each and every word I said. Her face was full of wonder even before I finished the story.

    "Huh¡­I never imagined Zhao Yan to be so good. At home, she''s a little less¡­uptight."

    Glad to hear that. So there were cracks underneath that superhuman fa?ade of hers.

    "Still, you''re the only boy that Zhao Yan has ever brought home, so I thought maybe¡­"

    I chuckled and shook my head. "Don''t worry, this isn''t a harem story."

    "Harem story?"

    "Never mind¡­just take comfort in the fact that your sister isn''t interested in romance at all."

    "That''s true." Yue Jian leaned back as she munched on the strawberry short cake. "To be honest, you''re the first and only person Zhao Yan has ever brought home. Father and Mother must be so happy."

    "Uh¡­okay." Now that was a surprise. I had figured that Zhao Yan was immensely popular and had a lot of friends, but from what her mother and now even her sister said, it seemed that Zhao Yan distanced herself from her peers. "I wonder what she will be cooking."

    "We can take a peek!"

    Yue Jian jumped to her feet excitedly. The more we conversed, the less tense she became as she warmed up to me. I slowly understood why Zhao Yan wanted me to meet her sister. Most likely it was to put her at ease and open her up to people her age. Yue Jian behaved like this was the first time she had spoken to someone her age, who wasn''t either of her sisters.

    I followed Yue Jian to just outside the kitchen, and the quiet girl threw her hand up to stop me in my tracks before placing a finger on her lips. Understanding the need to refrain from making a sound, I stealthily tiptoed to just behind Yue Jian.

    Her mother''s voice was drifting out of the kitchen, her tone raised in agitation.

    "No, don''t touch that, Zhao Yan!"

    "Don''t worry, Mother. I''ve made curry before. You can leave this to me."

    "You call that sludge you made curry?! That resembled sewage more than anything edible. I will not have you wasting perfectly good and fresh ingredients again. Just peel the potatoes."

    ¡­sludge? Did Zhao Yan''s mother just say sludge?

    "Zhao Yan tried making curry one time," Yue Jian explained, trembling as she pressed her back against the wall, her eyes wide from some horrific memory. "We ended up throwing up after she fed it to us. She called it curry¡­but the whole thing was purple."

    Good heavens, what on earth did Zhao Yan put inside the curry to turn it purple?!

    "Ah, geez! You can''t even peel the potatoes correctly! You''re tearing off too much skin! And what''s with the carrots? I didn''t tell you to mince them! This is why I told you to go outside and entertain that young man! You''re hindering me more than you''re helping!"

    I chortled as I listened to Zhao Yan''s mother berating her for her antics in the kitchen. The irritatingly perfect Mary Sue image I had of Zhao Yan was melting away as she stubbornly insisted on helping out in the kitchen, much to her mother''s chagrin.

    "Zhao Yan always never backs down because of her pride," Yue Jian said nostalgically I couldn''t help but chortle.

    "That suits her character, actually." I shook my head. "Next time you want curry, you should let me know. I know how to cook Singapore chicken curry. I''ll bring a pot over next time."

    Honestly, I was cheating. The Singapore chicken curry that I cooked occasionally for myself and Dad was a ready-made one that I could buy online. Prima Taste brand was really convenient. All I needed to do was mix the curry paste with the appropriate amount of water, according to instructions, and boil it, and it worked. There was quite a bit of prep work to do, such as peeling the potatoes and cutting the carrots, etc. But on the whole it was a relatively easy affair. Even an amateur like me could cook it. I should introduce Prima Taste Singapore chicken curry to Zhao Yan sometime.

    Even she couldn''t mess that up¡­right?

    "All right, let''s go back to the living room¡­"

    We were about to do that when a shadow appeared behind us, catching us in the act. Scowling, Nan Gong Jiao Shou placed his hands on his hips.

    "What are the two of you doing?"

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 484 Chapter 484: Skeleton in the Close

    Both of us jumped when Professor Nan Gong barged in on our eavesdropping activity. He raised an eyebrow as we scrambled to our feet. Yue Jian frantically sought for an excuse, looking all flustered.

    "F¡­Father! W¡­we¡­uh, well¡­"

    "We''re just trying to see if there''s anything we can help with," I blurted out.

    "Oh." Nan Gong Jiao Shou chuckled and waved us away. "Don''t bother. You''ll only get in the way of my wife. Zhao Yan''s already a handful¡­though I think you''re actually going to be of more help than your sister, Yue Jian."

    "Yes! I¡­"

    "But Zhao Yan is determined to contribute to making the meal because she wants to thank her friend, so I think we should give in to her willfulness today. Yue Jian, go and entertain our guest."

    "Uh, well¡­I don''t need to be entertained, so please don''t mind me¡­"

    "I''m sure." Nan Gong placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed, silencing any protests I might have. "Shu Cong¡­was it? I''ll be counting on you. Zhao Yan tends to be a little¡­socially awkward, so I hope you can forgive her deficiencies and remain her friend. Take care of her in school for me, okay?"

    Deficiencies? That Zhao Yan? You''ve got to be kidding me!

    "I''m sure she doesn''t need me to take care of her. She''s a strong and independent lady."

    "While I''m flattered that you think so highly of my daughter, I would still like you to keep an eye on her for me. She might seem¡­perfect, but that''s only because she''s putting up a strong appearance. To the point where she pushes herself too hard sometimes. Don''t be deceived by her hard, shell-like exterior. Even someone as remarkable as Zhao Yan needs someone to rely on."

    Under Nan Gong''s gaze, I could only nod dumbly. Now that I thought about it, when compared to Ji Yan, who was always surrounded by classmates and friends, I had only ever seen Zhao Yan alone. She always cut a solitary figure in campus, usually moving through the corridors by herself.

    Huh¡­I had never realized it before, but I guess I was too blinkered by my perspective, which was influencd by manga, manhua, webnovel and anime tropes, to see Zhao Yan for who she really was. In a way, I was just as socially awkward as she was, but even I actually had friends who I could hang out with. Some of them might be a couple of years younger than me, but¡­yeah.

    I kind of missed Dong Fang Yue Chu, Craig, Theodore and the others. I wondered how they were doing. And I was reminded that I had yet to make any real friends here, other than maybe Miura and Rossetti.

    "Sure, I understand."

    With a smile, Nan Gong left me and Yue Jian behind, heading for the study room to complete whatever research he was working on at the moment. Shifting uncomfortably, probably embarrassed because she was caught by her father, Yue Jian stared at me helplessly.

    "What should we do now?"

    "Um¡­watch television, I guess?"

    Ah¡­television. The mighty piece of technology that saved anyone from painful experiences of awkwardness and boredom. I never watched it now because I tended to stream anime online, but it was the perfect excuse to escape this predicament.

    As we made our way toward the living room, my eyes couldn''t help but be drawn toward the stairs leading to the basement. Pushing my glasses up, I stopped and gazed curious into the darkness below. Once again, my overactive imagination went into overdrive.

    "What''s in the basement?" I asked. For some reason, I was picturing a massive secret laboratory underneath, filled with serum tanks ¨C clones floating within them ¨C and esoteric machinery. It was no coincidence that the professor''s name was Nan Gong, and his daughters all had the same name as the three main heroines (also triplets) of an infamous vampire manhua.

    "Huh? Nothing." Yue Jian looked at me, bewildered, but I was not convinced. Her reaction wasn''t suspicious at all, but I was determined to unearth the secrets beneath the Nan Gong manor. Oh, of course. Yue Jian wouldn''t know anything ¨C there was no way her father would divulge the secrets of his illegal research to her. I bet even his wife didn''t know anything about this. "Cleaning tools and stuff, I think. Some of Father''s research equipment."

    "Mind if I take a look?"

    "Eh?" Yue Jian blinked in puzzlement, as if wondering why I would ever want to go down to the dark and dingy basement and stare at stored equipment. "Uh, okay?"

    Without paying much attention to her, I headed downstairs, flipping a switch to flood the basement with light. The basement looked the same as everywhere else, with a large space and a couple of storerooms. I stepped into the storerooms and rummaged, much to Yue Jian''s dismay.

    "Um¡­what are you looking for?"

    "A secret lever," I replied without any hesitation. "Something that will open up the secret passageway to your father''s laboratory."

    "There''s no such thing!" Yue Jian exclaimed, annoyed. "Father''s laboratory is at the university! He doesn''t have much stuff related to his research here!"

    "That''s what he would have you believe," I told her, and she grew even more infuriated.

    "What are you even talking about?!"

    "I know the truth," I informed her, my lenses gleaming as I pushed my glasses up knowingly. "Your father cloned the three of you in order to inherit the Mei Yue Min. I''m surprised that you didn''t end up in an accident in the underground laboratory while cleaning it one day, trying to grab a bottle of bleach, only for the whole platform to collapse under you and dump you into burning chemicals."

    "THAT NEVER HAPPENED!" Yue Jian shrieked, throwing her hands up in exasperation. "I have no idea what you''re going on about since earlier!"

    "Vampires," I replied.

    "We have nothing to do with vampires!" Yue Jian snapped, and then she blinked. "Huh? Vampires? Why vampires? Aren''t they legendary monsters or something?"

    "Yeah¡­some rumors posit them as evil mages who mastered blood magic and drink the blood of other mages in order to extend their lifespan indefinitely. They have powereful regenerative magic and can summon familiars, as well as wield blood magic."

    "That''s terrifying." Yue Jian shuddered. Then she frowned. "What does that have to do with my family?! I''m pretty sure we are not vampires!"

    "Oh, no. Your dad was probably assigned by the Hunter''s Association to clone the ultimate vampire hunters¡­"

    "That''s quite the rich imagination you have, young man."

    Both of us jumped, and we spun around to see Nan Gong Jiao Shou standing in the open space of the basement, his hands on his hips again. He was shaking his head, trying not to laugh.

    "Look, I know you read the Vampire Sphere manhua, but this is reality. It has nothing to do with that story. I''m a biology professor, not a genecist. I do not have the license or facilities to clone anyone and anybody. And if you don''t believe that these three are my daughters, you can do a DNA test at the hospital. Hell, I still have photographs of my wife after giving birth to them in the hospital."

    He was conjuring a holographic picture to show me his wife cradling three infants, all of whom were newborn.

    "Sorry," I muttered sheepishly. "I was just playing make-believe and trying to bring Yue Jian on an adventure."

    "Ah!" Yue Jian brightened up. "So that was what it was!"

    My God, this girl was so innocent and gullible. It was clear that she hadn''t set foot out of her house almost her entire life, and probably grew up without anyone to play with.

    "¡­really." On the other hand, Nan Gong looked extremely skeptical as he narrowed his eyes at me. "Playing make-believe at your age?"

    "I was¡­bored." I scratched my head sheepishly.

    "Well¡­" Nan Gong chuckled. "I don''t mean to sound like I''m hiding anything and trying to shoo you out of here, but there really is nothing here in the basement. You won''t find any hidden passageways or secret laboratories, I can guarantee that. Of course, if you don''t believe me, you can continue searching."

    He gestured toward the storeroom, where old equipment and tools were stored. I glanced at the dim space, my glasses whirring and showing up nothing. No hollow spaces, nothing on the radar or sensors. They were telling the truth.

    There really was nothing behind the house, no concealed corridors, nothing. It was solid earth underneath. Damn it. And here I was, hoping to dig up some skeletons in their closet. Oh well.

    "Uh, no need for that," I assured him as I raised both hands, feeling beads of sweat trickling down the back of my head.

    We then went up the stairs and left the basement. As we did so, Nan Gong leaned in close and whispered to my ear.

    "But you''re right about my family having links to the Hunter Asssociation."

    "Eh?"

    I paused for a moment. Nan Gong hung back, allowing his daughter to get ahead of us, and then continued softly.

    "While I certainly didn''t get hired or requested to clone any so-called ultimate vampire hunter or have some weird Mei Yue Min serum or whatever you called it, my daughters ¨C Zhao Yan and Ji Yan ¨C have been trained by the Hunter Association since young."

    "What is this Hunter''s Association you''re talking about?" Yue Jian asked, turning back to us. She glanced at me and then realization dawned on her. "Oh! An organization that hunts vampires?"

    "Silly girl¡­of course not. They are a mercenary guild that hunts monsters." Nan Gong chuckled. "Even you should have heard of how many monsters there are rampaging our world, especially with all these Emergence events and all that." he turned back to me and shrugged. "But that''s all we have, really. Nothing to be suspicious about. Are you from another mercenary guild, perhaps? That might explain why you''re trying to dig up information regarding the Hunter Association."

    "Huh? Why?"

    "Rivalry," Nan Gong explained to his perplexed daughter, placing a hand on her head.

    I thought for a moment, and then shook my head. I had some affiliation with the Silver Wolves, and my father was a top mercenary, but ultimately I belonged to neither group.

    "Oh, I''m just¡­playing make-believe. I wasn''t lying about that either. I know you guys probably had nothing to hide, but I was¡­bored."

    "Ha ha, we''ll switch the television on then¡­"

    Nan Gong never got to finish his sentence. His wife butt in, a ladle in her hand.

    "There you guys are!" she fumed. "Where have you been? Dinner is about to be ready! Prepare the table!"

    "Yes, Mother!"

    "All right, dear."

    I tagged along to help in whatever manner I could, and soon we were all seated at the table. Dinner, thanks to the heroic efforts of Zhao Yan''s mother, proved to be a sumptuous affair, despite the daughter''s ridiculously stubborn attempts to destroy it. For a homecooked meal, it wasn''t bad, actually. Not as delicious or extravagant as the celebratory feasts served by Amelia and the rest of Melina''s maids, but it was at least several times better than my paltry attempts to cook for myself and Dad at home.

    After hearing all the horror stories of Zhao Yan''s undying peserverance to "cook," I was glad that dinner turned out to be edible. Though, admittedly, all of the credit went to her mother ¨C and deservedly so. The curry, thanks to Mrs. Nan Gong''s determiation to keep it out of her daughter''s hands, ended up being spicy and delicious, with a tinge of sweetness.

    It was an enjoyable dinner.

    Not one to outstay my welcome, particularly when there were no other guys my age around, and it was getting awkward to spend the night with two girls, I found an excuse to return home shortly after dinner. I tried prolong the process by offering to help wash the dishes, but Mrs. Nan Gong all but kicked me out of the kitchen.

    "I can''t let the guests do the housework."

    So, with that route closed off to me, I decided to exit the stage after staring blankly at Yue Jian and Professor Nan Gong, the latter too busily watching television to return my challenging gaze. Oh well.

    "I''ll send you off," Zhao Yan offered. I nodded my thanks and we proceeded out of the house after I expressed my gratitude to everyone in the house and bade them farewell. She followed me to the porch and bowed deeply.

    "Thanks for the dinner," I told her, waving my hands.

    "No, it''s only a small token of appreciation, and nothing compared to what you did for Ji Yan. She might not be here tonight, but I''m sure she''s grateful too."

    Hah. No way in hell. That bitch was only capable of feeling jealousy, not gratitude. But obviously I couldn''t say that to her sister''s face, unless I wanted to get on her bad side.

    "Actually, there''s another thing I wanted to ask you too."

    "Hmm?"

    I paused for a moment. The train station wasn''t too far away from Zhao Yan''s home, so I didn''t mind lingering for a few more minutes. It was a good thing that Zhao Yan didn''t waste any time beating around the bush and instead addressed me frankly, though that bluntness might be the reason why she did not seem approachable. Nonetheless, I was grateful for it, especially since I had to sometimes deal with backstabbing bastards.

    "Your skills are formidable, and you possess immense strength that will surely be an asset to our team. You even have summoning magic, and we watched your matches in the national tournament, and we agreed that your magic is pretty impressive for someone of your age. I hope you will consider joining the Hunter''s Association."

    Oh, so that was what this was about. I completely understood.

    The Hunter Association, as Nan Gong Jiao Shou mentioned earlier, was a mercenary guild that hunted monsters, just like the Silver Wolves. As appealing as it was to join them, they weren''t as prestigious as the Silver Wolves, and moreover I preferred the autonomy and freedom that was afforded to independent freelance mercenaries like my father.

    "I''m sorry, but I''m afraid I already received an offer from elsewhere."

    "I see." Zhao Yan didn''t pursue it. "Are you already a part of the Silver Wolves? We did hear that you have close relations with them."

    "Well, I am somewhat affiliated with them," I admitted. Zhao Yan nodded, but she didn''t seem offended by the rejection.

    "It''s a pity, but I understand. The Silver Wovles are very lucky to have you¡­and admittedly, they are among the most prestigious mercenary guilds in the Global Federation. Feng Hai is an unparalleled prodigy who has earned the respect of many, including my leader." She suddenly smiled. "You guys are worthy rivals."

    I doubted that the Silver Wolves even considered the Hunter''s Association rivals, but again, I was tactful enough not to mention that. So I just smiled and nodded.

    "But I''ll be happy to cooperate if we do encounter a mutual enemy again, like last week."

    Zhao Yan returned the smile, her expression so dazzling that I was taken aback for a second. "That''s good enough. Thank you."

    "Sure."

    I waved casually and turned to depart for the train station. She responded with a wave of her own and watched until I moved out of sight. Glancing up at the night sky, I stared at the moon.

    Ah¡­Tsuki ga Kirei (the moon is beautiful).

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 485 Chapter 485: Prelude to the Weaverâ€™s Festival

    The summer holidays were marked by the Weaver''s Festival. From what I knew, all the nobles and commoners would all gather in the city ¨C as I said, it was basically the same as Tanabata Festival in Japan. So you would have stalls and booths set up in streets, selling food and snacks, or charging people to play games. The girls in particular would dress fancily, and at the end of the festival ¨C long after the sun had set ¨C there would be an incredible display of fireworks.

    However, the main reason why the Weaver''s Festival was so popular was because of the romantic aspect. People would go to the river, light up lanterns atop paper boats and let them sail down the waters. The idea was that the guy would put a love letter in the boat and hope it reached the girl that he planned to confess to. Thanks to magic and homing techology, the girls would be able to sense which of the boats was meant for them, and they would wait on the other side of the river to collect the boats. After opening the letter, they would all meet at the bridge, where a dance party would be held. Lovers or would-be lovers, the guys who wrote the love letters and the girls who received the boats would unite and dance with each other.

    Provided the girl accepted the guy''s concession, of course. Sometimes a single girl would receive multiple love letters, and she would have to make a choice. There were also close friends who would just dance for fun, and since the dance event went on for a while, you could choose to dance with multiple partners if you wish.

    ¡­well, whatever. It didn''t concern me. I had no interest in indulging in romantic festivals. Anastasia was gone ¨C not that we were ever officially in a relationship, and before that, the one girlfriend I had, Alicia Violet, had passed away. I felt a little hollow inside, but that was fine. My goal was to become a mercenary hero, to emulate my father. Not to become some harem king or get married or whatever.

    Besides, these few weeks, I had been busy.

    "Sensei, here I come!"

    "Watch out, Brother Richie!"

    "Hmph. Na?ve."

    I smirked as Melina and Adrian attacked me from both sides, sweeping across from opposite directions for a flanking attack. Twirling my two swords, I swung them both in different directions to block the two attacks, and then followed up with dual ripostes that almost took them by surprise.

    However, I had trained them well. Adrian and Melina quickly evaded, ducking under my swings and the retaliating with a ferocity I would never have seen a month ago. I was barely able to parry their next strikes, and was forced back onto the defensive.

    "Not bad."

    "Heh." Adrian smirked as well, and a huge shadow fell upon me. His Treeant swung its massive branch ¨C about the size of a pillar ¨C down on me, trying to pulverize me. Before it could, however, Taurus slammed into it from the side, knocking it over. His maw yawned and a gout of flames poured over the poor Treeant, incinerating it with Aldebaran.

    "No fair, Brother Richie!" Adrian complained, trying to strike at my flank again, while hundreds of Sakura petals swirled around his wooden blade. "Using a fire spell against my wood-type Treeant! Of course you''ll have an elemental advantage!"

    "Do you seriously think your opponent is going to care about honor and refrain from using a spell that has elemental advantage over your Soul Beast when he possses it?" I scoffed before knocking the poor kid back. Spinning around, I kicked up a cloud of dust at Melina, who was charging to stab me in the back. She coughed and stumbled through the dust, blinded, and then tumbled over when I struck her on the back of her neck.

    "Ugh!"

    However, her golden aura glowed brightly, absorbing most of the power from the blow and she whirled around to counterattack, forcing me to parry her thrust with my crossed swords.

    "Oh? Not bad."

    For a moment, she had seemed to corner me, her barrage of attacks overwhelming me through sheer strength. Despite her slender body being smaller than mine, she appeared to possess greater physical strength ¨C thanks to her magic, which buffed and endowed her otherwise diminutive frame with great power.

    "But aren''t you forgetting something?"

    "?!"

    Melina was thrown off her feet when ice erupted from the ground, half-entombing her. she lay sprawled on the ground, struggling to break free of the ice that now covered her legs and most of her lowr body.

    "Ugh¡­"

    "It''s over." I tapped my sword on her head and causing her to wince. "I would have finished you off with this strike."

    "Man¡­we still can''t beat you, Brother Richie!" Adrian complained, sagging back in resignation while licking his wounds. Not literally, of course.

    "The day you beat me is the day I have nothing left to teach you," I replied with a shrug. Not technically true, of course. To be honest, there was still a lot I could learn from the kids. This wasn''t a one-way process where I taught Adrian and Melina. I found that I was learning a lot from them too.

    The moment you were arrogant to think that you had nothing left to learn, even from an opponent who was less skilled than you, was the day you stopped growing as a warrior. The same principle applied in academia ¨C whether I was a teaching assistant or had a PhD, there was still a lot I could learn from my students. Similarly, just because I was current their sensei didn''t mean I didn''t have anything to learn from my disciples.

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I turned and caught sight of Amelia. She smiled as she approached with a towel, which she handed to Melina. The blond girl had finally broken free of my ice, and was frantically wiping the melting moisture off her legs.

    "Oh my. It''s already summer vacation, and yet you three are still so fired up. Thanks for the hard work."

    "It''s nothing," I muttered, accepting the towel from her to wipe off the perspiration. Adrian was the last to receive one, and he also followed my example.

    "Huff¡­but we''re still a long way from reaching Brother Richie''s level."

    "I''ll be scared out of my wits if you reach my level despite being three years younger than me."

    "Anyway, you guys should go get ready for the festival tonight." Amelia gestured back toward the house. I nodded and waved for the two kids to go. They smiled and jumped up excitedly, their sore muscles and bruises forgotten, and ran back to their house. Amelia bowed her head slightly toward me, and then excused herself.

    I wasn''t really interested in the festival, so I decided to take a break by having some snacks and mango juice. As I gulped down mango juice from the bottle I took from the fridge, Melina hurried toward me, flashing a simple but elegant dress.

    "Sensei, please look at this!"

    "¡­are you giving the dress to me?" I asked, feeling a sense of dread. I would rather die than walk around in public, wearing that dress. And it was too small for me, anyway.

    "Wrong." Melina glared at me, wondering if I was joking. I was, actually, but with my deadpan tone she couldn''t tell. Flustered, she held her dress up. "It''s for the Weaver''s Festival tonight. It''s a major festival for the city."

    "Oh, yeah. I heard about it." I nodded. "It takes place with the river as the center. Yeah, that dress looks good. I''m sure you''ll look lovely in it. I mean, you''re planning to wear it for tonight''s festival, right? For the dance?"

    "Yeah." Melina spun around happily. She then peered at me curiously. "Did Jing Tian City not have festivals?"

    "Oh, we did. But not the Weaver''s Festival. We do have dumpling festival, and midautumn festival, though. I always love the mooncakes." I was so looking forward to the mooncakes in fall. Oh, damn. Flandor City didn''t celebrate the midautumn festival, so I probably had to order several mooncakes online, and have them shipped from Jing Tian City to Flandor. My dad would be more than happy to buy them for me.

    Hey! That was an excuse to have that Miyamoto dojo gathering for us to celebrate Adrian and Melina''s progress! I had better write it down in my calendar.

    "Sensei, keep this a secret from Adrian." Melina leaned over and whispered into my ear. "I want to surprise him."

    "Yeah, for sure." I nodded and grinned. "I''m very certain that he will be surprised to see you wearing that. He''ll definitely fall for you."

    "Heh. Maybe." Melina giggled a little, and then she looked a little wistfully. "It''d be great if I could dance with him at the end of the festival¡­"

    "The dance after the fireworks, right? Yeah, I think he''d like that." I scratched my head, running the events through my mind. "I know for sure that he will be coming! Didn''t you guys tell me that you''ll be going to the festival together?"

    "That''s right!" Melina nodded. The two of them hadn''t invited me because I would be a third wheel, and in any event, I had already told them that I had other plans that night. They assumed I would be accompanying some other girl from Saint Teresa Academy.

    They were dead wrong.

    Well, they didn''t need to know that. Flashing a thumb''s up, I grinned and encouraged my disciple. "Good luck, Melina!"

    "Thank you, Sensei!" Melina gripped her dress tightly, and then turned around to run out of the kitchen. She paused for a moment and turned back with a big smile. "I''ll do my best!"

    "Yeah, I''m sure you will."

    I watched her disappear, and then I stuffed the bottle back into the fridge. Stretching myself, I then strode out of the kitchen and returned to my room.

    Before I could reach it, however, I spotted Adrian hurrying over.

    "Brother Richie! There you are!"

    "Yeah, what''s up?" I stopped and waited for him to catch up with me. He was holding a pen and a piece of paper. Not just any piece of paper, now that I was taking a good look at it. It was a card, embroidered with flowers at the edges.

    "A¡­a letter," Adrian stammered. I didn''t need to ask any further. It was obviously a love letter. The question was¡­to who?

    "For Melina?" I asked. Adrian turned red and nodded, his head lowered. I tried to suppress a chuckle and ruffled his hair. "This takes a good deal of courage, and I''m sure you''ll be able to overcome this trial. Good luck!"

    "Ah¡­wait! Brother Richie!" Adrian was flustered. "I need your help!"

    No, he didn''t, but I decided not to say that. Instead, I nodded patiently and smiled encouragingly.

    "What do you need me to do?"

    "Um, well¡­this is my first time doing this, and I don''t know how to write a love letter. I was hoping that you could provide some advice¡­several suggestions?"

    "Oh¡­uh¡­" I scratched my head sheepishly. "You''re asking the wrong person, Adrian. I''ve never written a love letter before either."

    "EH!?" Adrian almost yelled, and I had to wave at him to get him to keep quiet. "How is that possible?!" Then he paused. "Wait, how did you and Sister Alicia¡­?"

    "Um¡­that sort of happened," I mumbled, either too embarrassed to remember or to distraught to speak about her.

    "Oh, right. She was the one who kissed you in front of everybody."

    "Yeah¡­anyway¡­" I hastened to change the subject. "Let''s see what we can do for you. First, we''ll have to do some research."

    I was already conjuring up a holographic window and using Google to search for ways to write love letters.

    "Eh¡­?" Adrian looked disappointed. "But Brother Richie, that''s so¡­unromantic."

    "Well, you have a better idea?"

    As it turned out, he didn''t. So we ended up spending the next few minutes reading through stuff that made us cringe, and I helped him come up with something that wasn''t too cheesy and flowery. Let''s just say???I didn''t want to write about our efforts here because¡­yeah.

    Then the time came, and Adrian and Melina met at the entrance before getting ready to go. As I expected, Adrian was taken aback by how lovely Melina looked, and his eyes went wide. Suppressing a chuckle, I waved at them.

    "Take care, you two."

    "We''ll be off, Sensei," Melina replied, looking at me somewhat forlornly.

    "Don''t stay at home and make sure you attend the festival too!" Adrian told me somewhat sternly. Was he trying to tell me what to do? You''re three years too early for that, kid!

    Of course, I didn''t say that and instead plastered an encouraging smile on my face, waving to send them off. "Yeah, I will. Make sure you enjoy yourselves!"

    And then they were gone, and for some reason, I felt as if they had grown up very quickly. There was a slight tinge of nostalgia, back when we had only just started training, and then it was gone.

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 486 Chapter 486: The Weaverâ€™s Festival

    "Whoa¡­would you look at that?"

    "Yeah¡­"

    While Melina practically pranced around, Adrian followed, carrying several boxes of food. He chuckled as he watched Melina enjoy herself, whirling about as she took in the sights and sounds. On either side of them, people yelled from stalls and booths, eagerly hawking their wares and trying to win customers over.

    Adrian smiled as he balanced the boxes of food, which included hotdogs, fried noodles, oriental pancakes and octopus balls. There were even cotton candy mixed somewhere in there, something that Melina particularly enjoyed.

    "Is this your first time at the Weaver''s Festival, Adrian?"

    "Ah, yeah." He nodded as he followed Melina around. "We had a few festivals back in Southampton City, but it''s nothing like this. We didn''t set up stalls in the streets and launch fireworks."

    "Ho¡­what sort of festivals did you have in Southampton?"

    "Football festivals¡­at the end of every season, we would have a parade." Adrian paused when he caught sight of Melina''s expression. "Oh, I mean soccer. I guess you guys call football soccer in Flandor."

    "Oh! Soccer! Yeah, I heard it''s a popular sport."

    "Has been for thousands of years," Adrian said proudly. ''And Southampton football club can trace its lineage to millennia ago. By the way, Brother Richie supports Blackburn Rovers for some reason."

    "Aha¡­I see. So Sensei has a favorite team too." Melina felt a bead of sweat drip down her face. "I''m sorry, I don''t know much about soccer¡­"

    "Oh, that''s all right." Adrian looked around and his eyes rested on a stall. "You want to play a game? That stall looks fun?"

    "Okay! Let''s take a look!"

    The stall that Adrian had picked out was a gaming booth with air rifles and targets. It was the usual "shoot down the prize you want" game, where you picked up the rifle and aimed for whatever you desired. The targets ranged from stuffed animals such as teddy bars, a yellow electric mouse with a lightning-bolt shaped tail, a dinosaur standing on two legs, with spines on its back, to more ornamental accessories such as a pink box with a heart on it, a stand where a necklace dangled from, and a hairclip that was propped up precariously. Easy to knock down, but so small that it would be difficult to hit it unless you were wearing hi-tech glasses like mine.

    Too bad I wasn''t accompanying the kids¡­

    "If Sensei was here, do you think he''ll be able to shoot with 100% precision?" Melina asked. Adrian grimaced before chuckling.

    "Ah, Brother Richie is not known for his accuracy. Even with those hi-tech glasses of his, he''ll miss half the time." Adrian then chuckled. "But, I can guarantee that he has the ability to blow all the targets off the shelf if you allow him to."

    Melina giggled. "That certainly sounds like Sensei."

    "Yeah, he''s the mage of mass destruction."

    "Huh? I thought he''s known more for summoning monsters."

    "Monsters that can cause mass destruction then."

    The two of them bantered before reaching the booth. The guy grinned at them and raised a finger.

    "A dollar for three tries, young mister and missus. How about it?"

    "Sure." Melina placed a dollar coin on the table and slid it over. She then glanced at Adrian, who gave her an encouraging nod. Picking up a rifle, she then tested the weight a bit before aiming at a teddy bear and squeezing the trigger.

    The first shot grazed the teddy bear, and while its fur was ruffled, it didn''t fall over. The second shot skimmed over its head, and the teddy bear appeared to shudder at the close shave. Melina pursed her lips, adjusted her aim and fired again. This time, the air burst struck the teddy bear square in the chest and it finally toppled to its back.

    "Great job, little lady!" the guy in charge clapped his hands, and then strode toward the shelf. "You''ve earned yourself this handsome looking bear!"

    He then plopped it down on the table, allowing Melina to eagerly sweep it up into her arms.

    "Yay! Thank you!"

    "No problem. What about you, bro? Would you like to give it a try too?" the guy shifted his gaze toward Adrian, who was watching Melina''s performance patiently. The blond girl turned toward her date partner.

    "Yeah, you should give it a try, Adrian!"

    "Nah, I''ll pass." the dark-haired guy shook his head and then raised the boxes he was holding. "I''m pretty loaded down anyway."

    "I can take those from you." Melina made to relieve him of his burden but he stepped back with a smile.

    "It''s fine, really. I was never a good shot. Let''s try out that store over there."

    "Okay¡­"

    The two of them continued their date in that pleasant manner. As they explored the bustling streets of festive Flandor, they sometimes came across friends from Saint Teresa''s Academy.

    "Eh? Isn''t that Iris and her friends?"

    Melina caught sight of Iris Langford, who was currently together with her friends. The girls were dressed splendidly in sparkly or flashy dresses, while the guys were in more casual attire. It seemed like a group date of sorts, with couples already pairing up for some reason. Most likely they would all have a partner during the dance later.

    "Oh! Melina! Adrian!"

    Iris noticed them too, and hurried over. Her friends followed, a lot more enthusiastically than either of them expected. Their performance during the tournament styled practical examination had earned them both a lot of fame and built up their reputation, and now everybody respected them highly.

    "Good evening, Iris." Melina then nodded toward everyone else. "I''m glad to see that everyone is enjoying the festival so far."

    "Yeah!" one of the guys gushed, having taken his place beside Iris. Adrian recalled that his name was Ivan. Ivan Hoe or something like that. "How about you guys?"

    "Loving the food," Adrian replied as he showed them the boxes of food. "In fact, we might have purchased a bit too much. Do you guys want some too?"

    "Eh? Is that fine?"

    "Yeah, otherwise they will go to waste."

    "Oh, then we won''t hold back then."

    Adrian shared the food, passing them around to the grateful group. Iris and Ivan also had food to share, having bought sausages, onion rings and corndogs. For some reason, I was reminded of the annual Minnesota State Fair while I watched them from afar.

    ¡­what? You thought I switched to third person perspective or something in the middle of the story? Nah¡­I was keeping an eye on the kids from afar, not wanting to be a third wheel and intrude on their date, but at the same time I was being cautious because I had received some information regarding a possible kidnapping.

    This sounded ridiculous, but there were rumors that several relatives in the Franklin family felt threatened by Melina''s meteoric rise. She was not supposed to have any talent for swordsmanship, yet she demonstrated a deep understanding of it during the tournament that was broadcasted throughout the Global Federation. Suddenly, Kureha''s claim to being the next head of the Franklin family had gotten very shaky. After all, if Melina caught up with her, she would have greater grounds to succeed as the next head of the Franklin family over the current Sword Saint of our generation.

    Hell, Melina might actually take her place as the Sword Saint of our generation if she continued her remarkable rate of improvement.

    While this was great news, especially for me, as with all things in life, it didn''t come without complications. As usual, you would have idiots refusing to be happy for others and wanting to make things difficult for other people. Maybe it was jealousy, perhaps it was fear, but whatever the case they would rather drag others down than celebrate their success.

    "But to go as low as to hire criminals to abduct your own niece¡­can you even be considered human?" I muttered darkly. Being urban society in the future, I was bound by laws, so I couldn''t barge into those bastards'' houses and slaughter them. That would earn me a death sentence, and Melina could even be charged as an accomplice for no reason other than because of her relation to me. Besides, even if I was willing to break the laws and either go on the run for the rest of my life or resign to my execution, I didn''t know who was behind this. These were ultimately rumors, and I hoped they weren''t true.

    Better safe than sorry, though. I hadn''t lived this long by being na?ve, as much as some readers would like to believe.

    "Hey, Richard!"

    "Ho¡­? What a coincidence."

    I turned around when I heard those familiar voices, and caught sight of Rossetti and Miura approaching me. They were joined by Kufa Van Peer, who was also looking around warily, mirroring my caution as I swept the area for any suspicious persons.

    "Hello, guys."

    "Richard." Kufa nodded to acknowledge my presence and I waved dumbly. I didn''t expect to meet them here. I almost asked them what they were doing here and then swallowed my stupid question. Of course they were here to enjoy the Weaver''s Festival. Duh.

    "Watching your little disciples, as usual?" Miura tutted and shook her head in disapproval. "You should just let them enjoy the festival. There''s no need to be a chaperon for them. They''re old enough to look after themselves."

    "Yeah," I agreed. "Except that I''ve come across some disturbing rumors¡­"

    "Rumors?" Rossetti frowned in puzzlement. "What sort of rumors?"

    "Rumors about kidnapping and abductions," Kufa explained in my place. He nodded at me again, as if to tell me that he had received similar intelligence. "The nobles and their political intrigues. There is gossip flying about, regarding some scheming uncle or ambitious aunt hiring kidnappers to target nieces and nephews, to ensure that their own children succeed as head of the family. Typical conspiracy stuff, but most likely with a grain of truth in it. This wouldn''t be the first time it happened, after all."

    "If we could just find the evidence, we could get them arrested." I clenched my fists in frustration. The legal side, I could leave to Duke Franklin. From what I knew, he was working on it, having put his network of spies to use. Unfortunately, he either had nothing to share with me or didn''t trust me enough, having simply told me to watch out for his daughter.

    That last ominous note he left me said that even Melina''s grandfather couldn''t be trusted. The whole thing was making my head spin.

    "Nonetheless, this is the Weaver''s Festival. You should take the opportunity to relax." Miura then brightened up. "Speaking of which, do you have a partner for the dance later¡­?"

    "No," I told her. She smiled, and was about to suggest something when there was another commotion. Ji Yan and her friends were passing by and drawing a bit of attention. I could see Zhao Yan in the distance, staying away from her triplet sister''s clique, and generally doing things by herself. The distance between them grew, with Ji Yan outright ignoring Zhao Yan and seemingly leading her friends away from her.

    That was when her group stumbled across Melina''s, and the bitches in Ji Yan''s group began heckling them for getting in the way.

    One of the girls in Iris''s group burst into tears and ran off, only for her date to chase her. Adrian and Melina exchanged a glance, and then pursued them, to make sure that she was all right.

    "Ji Yan, you''ve gone too far."

    Having witnessed the whole thing, Zhao Yan stepped up, but Ji Yan folded her arms and turned away.

    "Why should you care? This is none of your business!"

    Whatever the sisters argued, I had no idea because I was already hurrying after Adriana nd Melina, to make sure they didn''t leave my sight. I felt the sharp prickle of a premonition stabbing my gut and I hastened my pace to catch up.

    "Hey! Wait!" Miura called after me. "Don''t be such a worrywary! I''m sure they''ll be fine!"

    I ignored her and continued running, leaving them behind. Miura sulked, but Kufa placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head.

    "Let him go. If something really happens¡­will you take responsibility then?"

    "Uh¡­no, but¡­geez!" Miura stomped her foot on the ground. "That guy is so thick! I can''t believe it! It''s almost like he''s the protagonist of a light novel or web novel!"

    "Actually¡­" Rossetti giggled, enjoying the sight of her friend losing her composure. "I think he is just simply not interested in you at all."

    She had that right. And at that moment, I was more interested in tracking down Adrian and Melina before something terrible happened.

    "??"

    But even though I spent five minutes chasing after them, I realized that they had disappeared.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me! How did I lose sight of them?!"

    Sweeping a gaze over the entire area and relying on the hi-tech sensors in my glasses, I attempted to recover their location, but to no avail. However, one of the sensors picked out something of note, and I hastily rushed over.

    "This¡­"

    It was one of the food boxes that Adrian was carrying earlier. He had dropped it on the ground, and it lay somewhat squashed, as if someone trampled on it. Other than that, there were no signs of Adrian, or Melina, but I noticed faint traces of mana, which indicated that there was a struggle earlier, in this location. Two of the distinctive mana signatures belonged to both of my students and my heart dropped before I punched a nearby lamppost in frustration.

    "Damn it!"

    My worst fears had been realized. Apparently my two disciples had been¡­abducted.

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 487 Chapter 487: Abduction

    "Ugh¡­"

    Melina stirred awake, sitting up groggily as she struggled to remember where she was. Then she spotted the faint beacon of moonlight trickling in through small windows. Looking up at the rows of windows in the somewhat Gothic architecture, Melina blinked on confusion.

    "Where¡­am I?"

    It took her several seconds before she came back to her senses and realized that she was obviously inside a building. The question was what building this was. It was deserted right now, and she couldn''t see anyone else around. A large, open space.

    Melina dusted herself off and checked for wounds. She didn''t have any injuries, which was a good sign. Shaking her head, she tried to remember what had happened. The last thing she remembered, she was chasing after Iris''s friend, Isabella, and her date, Edward. Then "they" came. Melina had tried to resist, but they had knocked her out in one blow, someone striking the back of her neck before she realized he was behind her.

    She had blacked out, and the next thing she knew, she was here.

    "Oh, you''re awake."

    "They" came. A man with a bandanna wrapped around his head, surrounded by hooded people. However, there was a strange group accompanying the hooded kidnappers, almost numbering as many as them. They looked humanoid, but their faces were¡­

    "Jack O''Lanterns."

    Those were humanoid monsters bearing pumpkin heads. They were not very powerful, but they were highly intelligent and skilled, which made them very dangerous.

    "Good morning, Princess!" the man leading them greeted her cheerfully, his hands in the pockets of his flabby trousers. Melina stiffened.

    "You are that man from earlier¡­!"

    She clenched her fists and watched the man approach. Unfortunately, she didn''t have a weapon on her. Why would she? She was supposed to be enjoying her date at the Weaver''s Festival, not get involved in a battle. Especially in the middle of Flandor City, which was one of the most secure cities in the Global Federation.

    The guy grinned as he watched Melina summon her mana, but he didn''t move. Instead, he raised a hand and revealed a whip.

    "Will you be faster at casting a spell, or will my whip be faster, I wonder?" he taunted. Melina ignored him and conjured the beginnings of her holy spell. Even though she desired to be a swordswoman, she was still a natural mage, good at casting spells. That was why people wanted her to stay as a mage instead of picking up the sword.

    However, spells took time to cast, especially the complex, powerful ones. The guy''s whip lashed out and almost caught Melina by surprise, forcing her to dive to the corner.

    "I would refrain from doing that if I were you," he warned with a chuckle.

    "Master James," one of the hooded, masked kidnappers whispered as he took a step forward hurriedly. "The preparations are almost complete."

    "Oh, looking forward to it." James waved flippantly at his subordinate. "Hurry up. We don''t have much time."

    "Right away! The rites are almost done, we just need the sacrifice."

    "Heh. Sacrifice. I like that word." James turned and his whip snaked out to strike at Melina just as she unleashed her spell. A golden beam erupted from her hands, but missed him, scorching the wall behind. A few of the hooded kidnappers dispersed to avoid getting hit. "I almost feel sorry for you, little lady. You have a lot of spunk, and it''s a waste to use you like this."

    The hooded subordinate retreated at a flick of James''s hand and the leader turned his gaze back on the frustrated Melina.

    "Don''t waste your mana. Even if you can cast spells, there''s no way you can take on all of us."

    Melina regarded James, the masked kidnappers and the horde of Jack O''Lanterns, realizing that her chief captor was right. It would be difficult to fight her way out by herself.

    "Are you a summoner? Is that how you''re controlling those Jack O''Lanterns? But that''s impossible, even summoners can''t tame monsters. How did you get them into Flandor? Who are you? And who are these people? What do you want?"

    "Ah¡­so many questions. Where should we start?" James chuckled and shook his head. "Firstly, you are mistaken. I''m not a summoner. But¡­well, I guess you can say that this is a form of summoning magic."

    He raised his hand, and the Jack O''Lanterns shifted, appearing to move to his tune.

    "In order to fight monsters, my organization performed some sort of surgery on me, embedding the genes of an alpha-type monster into me. Thanks to that¡­these monsters see me as their leader." He stretched out a hand to stroke the pumpkin face of one of the Jack O''Lanterns, who didn''t move. "They are actually quite lovable once you get to know them."

    "¡­surgery?" Melina repeated incredulously.

    "As for who I am¡­well, my name is Henry James. You can call me Brother Henry. Though your life will be cruelly cut short within the hour, that doesn''t mean we can''t become intimate friends."

    Melina''s mouth was moving, but she was unable to say anything. Henry James continued on, amused.

    "Our organization¡­" he waved toward both the Jack O''Lanterns and the masked kidnappers. "¡­is called Grimaldus. I don''t think you have ever heard of us, right?"

    "¡­"

    Melina clenched her fists, but didn''t say anything.

    "Seems like it." James shrugged. "Well, just think of us as the villains for now."

    "What do you villains want with someone like me, then?" Melina demanded. James threw his head back and laughed.

    "Are you really that dense? Did you not hear a single word of our exchange earlier?"

    "¡­sacrifice¡­" Melina swallowed when she remembered the masked subordinate speaking to James from earlier. "You want to use me as a sacrifice for some ritual¡­"

    "Bingo!" James waved his hands about excitedly, raising two fingers for victory signs. "Full marks! It took you a while, but I guess that should be expected from an honor student like you!"

    "What sort of ritual¡­?"

    "That will be a surprise!" James giggled hysterically. "Now, I wonder? We shall see! Oh¡­whoops! But you won''t be alive at the end of it, so you won''t get to know!"

    "Why are you doing this?!" Melina tried not to wail. "Why me?"

    "Are you really that dense?" James snickered as he studied her. Then he shrugged. "Might as well let you know, or you''ll die with regrets. We were hired to eliminate you, my dear Melina Franklin."

    "Huh? But who would want to¡­?"

    "Now, now, you know that I can''t tell you that." James wagged his finger at her. "Client confidentiality and all that. I might behave like this, but I pride myself on being as professional as possible, you know? That''s what Grimaldus is about. We might hide in the shadows and carry out the jobs that nobody else wants to do, but we are still the very epitome of professionalism!"

    Melina gritted her teeth and prepared another spell. James didn''t even bother to stop her with his whip this time, and continued.

    "But¡­I can give you a hint!"

    "Eh?" That really worked. Melina paused in the casting of her spell to look at James incredulously. He grinned.

    "Yes. Now think about it carefully. Who benefits the most from your death? Perhaps someone who might feel threatened by¡­your current meteoric rise to fame?"

    "That can''t be¡­" Melina turned extremely pale. "Someone from the Franklin family?!"

    "Well now¡­" James shrugged. "Who knows? But I must say, you''re really intelligent."

    More like that was so obvious only an idiot wouldn''t be able to arrive at the conclusion, but I was''t there to point it out.

    "Who is it? Cousin Kureha? No, that can''t be¡­Aunt Kathleen?" Kathleen Franklin was Kureha''s mother, by the way. "Uncle Edward?" Edward Franklin was Eliza''s father.

    "So many possibilities! But, as I said, client confidentiality! I''m afraid I can''t tell you who, exactly! You''ll have to figure it out on your own¡­not that you''ll get the chance! But¡­as a reward¡­I can tell you that you won''t die alone!"

    He snapped his fingers, and a couple of Jack O''Lanterns emerged from the shadows, dragging a single person along. Melina''s eyes widened when she recognized the familiar figure, and she started forward with a yell.

    "Adrian!"

    However, James cut in between them.

    "Oho, not so fast. I know you can''t wait to be together with your beloved, but not yet. There are a few protocols that we must do before we can start the ceremony."

    The Jack O''Lanterns dumped Adrian on the ground unceremoniously, and he groaned. Raising his head and looking all battered, he caught sight of Melina. His lips curled into a smile.

    "Melina, you''re all right¡­that''s great¡­!"

    "How touching!" James clapped his hands. "He fought to the bitter end to try and protect you, you know? The bond between the two of you is so great. So I thought it was only fitting that he joins you in death, so that you will not be so lonely in heaven. I felt so sorry for you that I decided to do you this favor!"

    "Hmph¡­" Adrian lowered his head and sighed. "You''re really underestimating us, aren''t you?"

    "Heh¡­" James chuckled as he peered on the sprawled teenager. "Big words from someone who got defeated instantly by us."

    "¡­maybe. Brother Richie will reprimand me for letting my guard down. Damn it, even though he trained us personally, we still let him down."

    Adrian then grinned, and his eyes flashed, an emerald gleam in those hazel brown pupils.

    "But that doesn''t change the fact that we''re still his pupils."

    "?!"

    A massive Treeant materialized in the collosal space, its thick branches waving about to smack a score of masked kidnappers away. Its thick, gnarled roots stomped down on several unfortunate Jack O''Lanterns, crushing them into a pulp.

    "You¡­!"

    James lashed out with his whip, but the Treeant lowered a thick branch to intercept it. The whip coiled around the branch, and the Treeant yanked on it. Thanks to its greater strength, it prevailed, almost pulling James off his feet. If he hadn''t let go, he would be flung about.

    "Melina! Let''s go!"

    Amidst the chaos, Adrian managed to make it to Melina''s position and grabbed her hand. The two kids then took off while the kidnappers were still struggling with his Treeant, who was causing quite the furor.

    "Sorry, but it took me a while to cast the summoning spell. You know how it is ¨C the more powerful the Soul Beast, the longer it takes to summon them."

    "No, I''m not blaming you. I''m very grateful. If it weren''t for you, I would have¡­"

    Melina trailed off, and shook her head. Adrian didn''t press for more details and they plunged into the next room, hoping to escape from their captors.

    "Whoa!"

    Adrian almost skidded to a stop when he came close to crashing into something. He blinked when he realized that it was a skeleton. A rebuilt fossil of some ancient species that once walked the earth.

    "That''s¡­a Tyrannosaurus Rex!" he realized, looking up and catching sight of the massive skeleton. The poor dinosaur was put on display, lacking any skin, flesh or muscle. Well, of course, only its bones had been fossilized over the course of millions of years.

    "This place is¡­" Melina paused to catch her breath, looking around and seeing a lot of skeletons. "The Morgana Scientific Museum!"

    "Why did they bring us to a science museum?" Adrian wondered out loud. Melina shook her head.

    "I don''t know, but we''ll figure that out later. We have to find a way out of here!"

    "Agreed." Gulping, Adrian spun around as he tried to find a way out. Behind, James and his small army were approaching after having dispatched his Treeant. "They dealt with my Soul Beast so easily. They are no ordinary foe."

    "You''re right, we are not," James agreed as he burst into the exhibition hall and chuckled. "You two won''t be getting away from us."

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 488 Chapter 488: A Night in the Museum

    Adrian made to grab Melina''s hand and run away again, but she shook her head and whispered into his ear.

    "One hundred meters."

    With those words, Adrian understood what she was doing and paused. He smiled and nodded, instead stepping in front of her as if to shield her from Henry James, the group of kidnappers and the Jack O''Lanterns.

    "Maybe we won''t," he agreed with a shrug. "But before you sacrifice us for whatever ritual you have in mind, you could tell us who wants Melina dead. She managed to guess that it''s someone from the Franklin family. The least you could do is tell us who exactly. It''s not like they''ll know because we''re going to be dead, right?"

    "Hah! It doesn''t matter. Professionalism is professionalism. And I know you''re just trying to buy time, kid. Get them!"

    James wasn''t falling for it, and he ordered his Jack O''Lanterns forward. Adrian sighed and shook his head. Raising his hand, he lanched a storm of flower petals at the approaching monsters, slicing them up.

    "Wood spells versus wood-type monsters¡­I wonder which of us is stronger?"

    The surviving Jack O''Lanterns tore through the barrage of Sakura petals, but Adrian had already prepared a second wood spell. Vines erupted from the ground and entangled the charging monsters, immobilizing them. They flailed about futilely before the vines slammed them into the ground and tossed them about. A few of them slammed into the dinosaur bones on display ¨C one of them finding itself impaled by the huge horns of a Triceratops.

    "You know, it''s kind of fitting that you brought us to a place like this," Adrian remarked as he glanced at the dinosaur skeletons that filled up the exhibition. "You''re going to go extinct like the dinosaurs here!"

    "Very funny," James fumed. "To be honest, it wasn''t our idea to bring you here. We were ordered to. My client requested that we perform the ritual inside this building, and we''re just obeying orders."

    He glanced away and sighed.

    "Honestly, I find it distasteful¡­sacrificing a couple of young kids like this¡­but a job is a job. Orders are orders. What can we do?"

    "Defy them, maybe?" Adrian replied. Then he shrugged. "Oh, but if you were in any position to defy them, your organization wouldn''t the type of shady guild that it is today. You remind me of the Assassins Guild."

    "In a way we''re similar." James shrugged. "We''ve been tasked with assassinations before, but that''s not our forte. We''re known more for doing the¡­dirty work behind the scenes. Kidnapping, blackmailing, threatening, intimidating, that sort of stuff. We won''t shy away from killing, of course, but people will generally hire the Assassins Guild for that. We''re¡­how do I put it, considered lower class than the real assassins."

    "You should count yourselves lucky," Adrian replied as he conjured a wall of wood to deflect James''s whip. "Brother Richie would destroy you if you turn out to be Assassins. He''ll call down the wrath of the Silver Wolves upon you."

    "Hah! Your so-called brother, eh?" James threw his head back and laughed before cracking his whip once more. "You know, Weaver''s Festival is something I generally avoid because of how¡­chaotic and full of people it is, but it actually helped us out today. All that festive mood and people in costumes ¨C we were able to blend in, with no one the wiser about the fact that we weren''t actually cosplaying. None of the security was present, and when you kids conveniently separated yourself from your friends and slipped away from the gaze of your chaperon, we swooped in and kidnapped you! Even your big brother wasn''t able to track us once you left his sight!"

    "Eh? Brother Richie was there?"

    "Yeah, he was watching over you guys, but then his schoolmates had to come and chase you off. I really need to thank that girl¡­she might be a bitch, but thanks to her, we were able to kidnap you so smoothly! I was on the verge of giving up!"

    The bitch was referring to none other than Nan Gong Ji Yan. Damn her.

    "He must be in a panic right now! But he''ll never be able to find us here. Besides him, no one will be paying any attention to you during the festival. Also, our guild has blocked this whole area off."

    James''s whip cracked against Adrian''s wall of wood again, while the Jack O''Lanterns continued to flank him. Adrian threw his hands up and launched a stream of Sakura petals toward both sides, discouraging their assault. A couple of Jack O''Lanterns too slow to retreat were cut into shreds, but the rest pulled back in time.

    "You won''t be able to call for help. We''ve jammed communications here. But I kow you''ve tried that already. Notice that your smartphones are giving you the notification that there is no signal? Besides, even if you were able to get a call through, my client has already pulled some strings and rearranged the security around the city."

    "What? Rearranged the city security?" Adrian repeated incredulously. The weight of James''s revelations hit him hard. For someone to be able to exercise such authority, he would have to be ranked very highly in the government, perhaps someone from the ten great families. Then again, James had already admitted as much that this person was from the Franklin family.

    Which of Melina''s uncles or aunts was behind this? Or perhaps it might even be her grandfather?

    "It can''t be¡­" Melina was swallowing. "Father¡­?"

    She then shook her head frantically, refusing to believe it. Adrian nodded.

    "It''s definitely not your father, Melina!"

    "Ha ha ha ha! You kids have quite the rich imagination! Why would your father want to sacrifice his own daughter?" James was laughing as he lashed out with his whip again, only for it to entangle with several of Adrian''s vines. They became pretty entwined and unable to dislodge from each other, until James sent a surge of destructive mana to blow up the wooden tendrils. "Oh, whoops! I shouldn''t have told you that! It''ll allow you to get closer to guessing the real identity of my client by process of elimination! Then again, it''s way too obvious¡­"

    "Master James, we have to hurry!"

    One of the hooded kidnappers was rushing forward, leading a squad. From the other flank, the Jack O''Lanterns screeched incoherently as they lunged at the two kids, closing on them in a pincer attack.

    "Done," Melina murmured, and she sprang to her feet. At that word, Adrian ducked down while dismissing all of his spells. Melina raised a hand and unleashed the holy spell that she had been casting all this while. "Wrath of God!"

    "What¡­?!"

    "Watch out!"

    The entire exhibition hall was engulfed in a blinding white light, the destructive mana flaring out and disintegrating almost the entire horde of Jack O''Lanterns. The hooded, masked dudes tried to withdraw, hurriedly casting defensive spells, but several of them were flung away by the concussive force, their bodies seared by the holy light. Even Henry James was forced into a retreat, his whip coiling into a shield-like contraption to protect him from the blast.

    "Fuck! I forgot that the girl was quite the talented mage! Of course she would have such a trump card hidden up her sleeve! I focused too much on the boy!"

    The spell was powerful enough to leave blisters and burns on his arms, and he shook them, grimacing from the stinging pain. Exhaling in annoyance, he glared at where the two kids were, but found himself blinded by the bright, holy light.

    "Damn it! Of course!"

    He squeezed his eyes shut, cursing under his breath. Melina''s holy spell didn''t just destroy monsters and repel enemies ¨C it served as an effective smokescreen to obscure their vision, so that the two kids could get away while everyone was still blinded.

    "I underestimated them."

    While he staggered back, shielding his eyes, he could hear cries and yelps from his men as they crashed about clumsily in the exhibition hall. Loud, thunderous noises of collapsing skeletons informed him that they had blundered into the dinosaur fossils that had been placed on display, knocking them down and sending tons of bones raining down on them.

    "Aw, fuck¡­don''t you idiots know how much these cost?" he shook his head. "Well, we had better get out of here before anyone finds out, otherwise they''ll send Grimaldus an invoice that we can''t afford to pay off¡­then again, if they discover that we''re behind this, compensating the museum for these damages would be the least of our worries."

    The holy light continued to sear into his retinas for a couple more minutes, but when it was finally gone, he was able to lower his hand and take stock of his surroundings.

    "Whoa, these kids really did a number on us, didn''t they?"

    As he suspected, the Jack O''Lanterns had been decimated. The majority of the horde that he had brought in with him had disintegrated from the powerful holy spell, leaving him with less than half. That was fine. The monsters were expendable, and he had more in reserve. He was glad that he came prepared. One of the worst case scenarios that he had envisioned was facing off against the kids'' private tutor, and he had almost an entire army of them waiting outside.

    The fools who were supposed to serve as his subordinates were lying about, sprawled in dust and broken bones. A few of them had been buried under the heap of bones that used to be reconstructed dinosaur skeletons, and quite a lot of them had been injured by the powerful blast. Some were unconscious, knocked out by the overwhelming force.

    The spell truly deserved its name, Wrath of God.

    The remaining subordinates who had endured the onslaught and emerged unscathed were milling about, carrying musket-shaped rifles and searching for the kids. One of them hurried over.

    "Master James! We''ve lost sight of the kids!"

    "Barricade all the exits," James ordered, calm and composed. This was just a minor setback. It was all within expectations. If they had lost the kids, then all they needed to do was recapture them. "Isn''t that obvious? Make sure they don''t escape from here."

    "Understood, sir."

    "Make sure you take them alive. Don''t kill them ¨C the ritual will not work without living sacrifices. That said, you can rough them up a little. Make them suffer for their impertinence." James grinned. "Even if they are missing a limb or two, as long as they''re still alive, I don''t care. They don''t have to be in one piece, just¡­alive."

    "Yes, sir."

    "But¡­these kids are a lot more troublesome than I thought. It wouldn''t do to underestimate them." Henry James began walking toward the set of doors that led deeper into the museum. His subordinate hurried after him, confused.

    "S¡­sir? Where are you going?"

    "After the kids, of course!" James snorted. "Considering how you fools have been bungling the job so far, it''s best if I go after them personally."

    Meanwhile, Adrian and Melina were sprinting deeper into the museum, trying to put as much distance between them and their pursuers as possible.

    "Are you all right, Melina?"

    "Yeah. Thanks for buying me the time I needed to cast Wrath of God!" Even as she replied, Melina continued to run, refusing to look back. "How about you? They beat you up pretty badly, didn''t they?"

    "Don''t worry," Adrian assured her. "They roughed me up, but it''s nothing I can''t handle. Actually, I''m surprised that they were so weak."

    "I''m sorry." Melina''s head drooped a little. "They were after me. It''s all my fault. If it wasn''t for me, you wouldn''t be dragged into this mess¡­"

    Adrian reached out and hugged Melina, stopping her in her tracks.

    "Stop blaming yourself, Melina. I promised to protect you, and I will. We''ll survive this together, no matter what. I will protect you, Melina!"

    "Uh¡­" Melina was flushing crimson.

    "Besides¡­" Adrian let her go, then grabbed her hand and resumed running. "This isn''t your fault. If anything, it''s that bastard''s fault. When we get out of here, I''m going to tell Brother Richie, and we''ll go beat him up."

    That brought a smile to Melina''s face.

    "Yeah. We''ll definitely get out of here together. The both of us will definitely survive this!"

    Then the two of them increased their pace, charging headlong to wherever the darkness ahead planned to take them.

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 489 Chapter 489: Survival in the Museum

    Adrian and Melina, who were captured by the dark guild, Grimaldus, were running down the halls of the museum in a desperate attempt to get away from their kidnappers.

    "Hey, Melina, why were those dudes able to control monsters? He''s not a summoner, right?" Adrian was puzzled. "I''ve never heard of humans successfully taming monsters before."

    "I don''t really know either, but that Henry James person said that his guild perform some sort of surgery on him and inserted monster Alpha genes into him, so now the monsters follow him." Melina related to Adrian what James had told her earlier, and he nodded. Sighing, Melina risked a glance behind her shoulder. "But I don''t understand why they kidnapped us¡­they claimed that someone from the Franklin family ordered them to eliminate me, but who? Just because I''m a threat to Cousin Kureha''s position as the next successor?"

    "Politics," Adrian muttered in disgust. "Human greed is so disgusting. People sometimes backstab each other just for status and money. If we find whoever is behind this, we''ll take them down and lock them behind bars. For now, let''s just focus on getting the hell out of here."

    After a while, they stopped by a lobby and looked around while trying to get their bearings. Adrian caught sight of a map.

    "Over there. Let''s see¡­" he activated the holographic screen and studied the blue-tinted 3D hologram. Both he and Melina were marked out as red icons inside the holographic map. "We''re here. Looks like the closest exit is there, at the back of the third hall from here. If we can get to there, we should be able to leave the building."

    "But from what the kidnapper said earlier, they might have more reinforcements waiting for us outside." Melina was cautious as ever. "We can''t just run out without a plan."

    "Yeah, but we can''t stay here either." Adrian shut his eyes for a moment, and then grinned. "If Brother Richie was in this situation, what do you think he will do?"

    "He won''t give up!" Melina replied fiercely. Adrian nodded, his grin growing wider.

    "He''ll fight his way out of this situation. I''m sure he''ll tell us the same thing to." he tried to do an imitation of me. "''What did I teach you all those fighting techniques for, if you don''t use them?!'' Something like that."

    "You''re right." Melina giggled at Adrian''s impression of me. "Sensei will definitely reprimand us if we give up. He taught us so much, we can''t disappoint him by not putting in the minimum amount of effort."

    "It''s decided then." Adrian looked around and then sighed in frustration. Melina looked at him, puzzled.

    "What is it?"

    "I was hoping we would find weapons in here somewhere. Swords, guns¡­anything. But this is a scientific museum, not a historical one, so I guess we can only rely on our magic, huh?" he shook his head. "It''s a pity. We''ll be three times stronger if we have a weapon in our hand."

    Melina giggled again. "That sounds like something Sensei would say."

    "But Brother Richie will tell us to improvise." Adrian walked over to one of the stands that ringed around a dinosaur skeleton. With a slight spell, he conjured razor laves to cut appart the cloth threads that linked the poles together and picked up the metallic thing. "They may not look like much, but we can still use them as makeshift weapons."

    "Eh?" Melina stared at the pole that Adrian placed into her hands, bewildered. Then her eyes brightened. "That''s right! Sensei said something about that before, didn''t he?"

    "Yup." Adrian grinned and did his best imitation of me once again, placing a hand on his hip while raising the pole with his other hand. "''In the hands of a master, anything can be a weapon. Even a twig.''"

    "We really owe him a lot, don''t we?" Melina shook her head. Then she glanced around the exhibition hall, deep in thought. "He taught us to make use of our environment¡­the surrounding terrain. Do whatever it takes to survive."

    "Yup. So let''s go¡­"

    Adrian never got to finish his sentence. A couple of Jack O''Lanterns attacked him, and he swirled around. Sakura petals trailed his makeshift sword and he clubbed the first one. It wailed as the petals sliced it apart, and then he rammed the opposite end of the stand into the belly of the second before it could slash him. It staggered back, and looked up just in time for Adrian to smashed its face apart with a huge wooden log that materialized over his makeshift sword.

    "Yuck, I''m not a big fan of pumpkin juice," he remarked as he watched the pulped remains of the unfortunate Jack O''Lantern. He then turned around. "Melina!"

    She was already spinning around and slashing the couple of Jack O''Lanterns who surrounded her. Golden holy mana shrouded her makeshift sword, and even though the pole itself was blunt, the spell allowed her to cleave the Jack O''Lanterns into pieces. They shrieked as they fell, their bodies rent apart by Melina''s makeshift sword.

    "Heh! Sensei was right!" Melina chuckled as she tested her new sword with another couple of swings. "In the hands of a master, anything can be a weapon!"

    "Yeah." Adrian snapped out of his stupor and nodded. Then he looked around, his eyes narrowed cautiously. "But if these monsters have come all the way here, then the others must be close behind as well. We should hurry."

    "Agreed."

    They started running again, heading for the third hall from their current location. As expected, the exit loomed right ahead of them. In the darkness, they resembled gates, gates that led out of the underworld.

    "We''re almost there!"

    "Keep going!"

    They were almost there when Henry James appeared behind them like a ghost, a phantom in the darkness that seemingly emerged from the shadows.

    "!!"

    Melina spun around and slashed with her makeshift weapon, the glowing mana unleashing a golden arc of destructive energy. However, James deftly jumped back, effortlessly avoiding the attack. He landed elegantly a few meters away and smirked, impressed.

    "I''m amazed at how tough you are, little princess," he mocked. Both Melina and Adrian tensed when they saw a huge group of Jack O''Lanterns and the masked kidnappers appear behind James. There were dozens of them, a small army that almost filled up the space in the museum. James grinned as he stuck his hands in his pocket. "Well, I understand, though. The moment you give up, you''ll be dead. There is no living thing who will fight bitterly just to stay alive."

    "Yeah, we plan to survive!" Adrian declared, pointing his pole at James and the rest. A storm of petals whipped up around him. "We''re not going to let you bastards kill us!"

    "That''s right!" Melina agreed, her body wreathed in golden mana. "We''ll survive and get out of here alive, together!"

    "Oh, really?" James drawled. "And how do you plan to do that? We''ve locked that exit, you know. Even with your spells, it''ll take quite a bit of power to destroy it."

    "We''ll defeat you first!" Melina charged forward. She remembered her lessons with me, and was determined to put it to good use. First, she swung her makeshift sword at James''s head, and the chief captor smiled. He evidently thought her attack was predictable.

    "!!"

    However, Melina suddenly swapped her trajectory and struck at his legs instead. James almost didn''t react in time and he hopped backward to prevent his legs from being broken by what appeared to be a severe blow.

    While he withdrew, Melina made use of her momentum to carry her forward, and she spun about before she aimed for her opponent''s face while he was still in the midst of adjusting his balance from the evasive maneuver he performed earlier.

    Bam!

    "I got him!"

    Melina couldn''t help but be delighted at the success of her attack. However, she froze when she heard James chuckle under his breath.

    "That was actually pretty impressive. You''ve got the skills, kid."

    "¡­eh?"

    Melina''s eyes widened when she saw that James had caught her attack with his bare hand, his fingers unaffected by the holy mana that blazed along the length of her pole. He smirked as he looked down on her.

    "It''s just too bad that your opponent happens to be me."

    Before Melina could react, James punched her in the gut, sending her flying a few meters away. At the same time, he crushed the makeshift sword with his fist and dropped the dented, ruined metal on the ground. The now useless weapon rolled about, acrid fumes pouring from its wreck, while Melina crashed heavily onto the ground, coughing uncontrollably.

    "Ugh!"

    Blood dribbled from her mouth as she struggled to sit up, but she could only clutch her midriff and curl into a fetal position from the sheer pain.

    "Melina!" Adrian shouted. And then he spun toward James, vengeance in his eyes. More Sakura petals billowed about him as he directed the razor-sharp blossoms toward his enemy. "Why, you¡­!"

    "Oho!" James did his best to avoid the petals, jumping back. A few of his Jack O''Lanterns lurched forward, but they were cut apart by Adrian''s maelstrom of petals or clubbed aside by his makeshift sword. "You''re also not bad yourself, kid. You remind me of your cousin, Cecilia. Certainly, I wouldn''t be able to beat someone of her caliber."

    He then smirked.

    "However, you''re still far from her level, kid."

    "I won''t forgive you for hurting Melina!" Adrian shouted as he charged at James, swinging his sword upward. James beamed before raising his hand and conjuring several tendrils of shadows. Dark shapes erupted from the ground and engulfed Adrian''s pink cloud of Sakura petals.

    "!!"

    Adrian almost didn''t dodge the shadows in time, arresting his jump midway and twisting his body to the side. One of the shadows grazed him, drawing some blood, but he responded with a swing of his sword, cutting several of them apart and then summoning a bunch of vines to combat them. The green vines entangled with the black shadows, the tendrils coiling around each other and turning the space into a writhing mess.

    "Yikes, I really can''t underestimate you." James chuckled as he dodged another storm of Sakura petals, protected by his shadows. Adrian charged at him again, determined to at least score a hit. Spinning about, James lashed out with his whip, the length of cursed black leather lashing out and slicing through Adrian''s makeshift sword.

    "No way?!"

    Adrian somehow jumped back after narrowly escaping being sliced apart by the vicious whip, but James suddenly appeared in front of him.

    "Yes way. Don''t make me kill you, kid. Otherwise we won''t be able to perform the ritual."

    He then punched Adrian in the gut and sent him flying. The poor guy landed next to Melina, a few paces away from her, blood gushing from his mouth. He struggled to get up, only to fall back onto the ground, unable to endure the pain.

    "Ugh¡­damn it¡­!"

    "Sorry, kids. But this isn''t a fairy tale. The good guys don''t always win, and the bad guys get their way most of the time."

    James approached the prone forms of Adrian and Melina, smirking. He raised a hand and gestured for his subordinates to move forward.

    "Grab the two of them and bring them to the site. Then conduct the ritual. Don''t waste any more time."

    "Yes, sir!"

    A few of the masked kidnappers hurried over to comply with their boss''s orders. James himself strolled toward the kids, his whip trailing after him. He resisted the urge to lash out at them for taking up so much of his time.

    "!!"

    He stiffened for a moment and glanced up at the exit before instinctively jumping back. Clicking his tongue, he changed his orders.

    "Retreat, all of you!???

    "Huh?" his subordinates looked at him blankly. Both Adrian and Melina raised their heads, looking confused at his sudden reversal.

    "??"

    None of them expected what came next. The doors were blown apart by a furious blast of mana, and I jumped in through the storm of debris before landing on the ground. Drawing both Hei Yue and Bai Ri, I barely gave a glance to the fallen forms of the kidnappers who were too slow to evade the explosion.

    "Ah¡­" Both Adrian and Melina brightened up when they saw me. "Brother Richie/Sensei!!"

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 490 Chapter 490: A Teacherâ€™s Responsibility

    "Brother Richie!"

    "Sensei!"

    At Adrian and Melina''s shouts of joy and relief, I glanced back at them and smiled reassuringly. Now that I was here, I wasn''t going to allow any of these bastards to lay their filthy paws on my charges. Placing myself between them and the enemy, I brandished both of my swords.

    "You¡­!"

    Henry James gritted his teeth, and then threw out his hand, roaring out and order even as his whip uncurled to strike at me.

    "Forget the kids! Kill that summoning mage!"

    His subordinates responded, the hooded kidnappers charging forward with their swords while the Jack O''Lanterns pounced on me with gleaming claws. The other masked criminals fired off their muskets in my direction, hoping to overwhelm me with a concentrated volume of firepower.

    Without any hesitation, I cut apart James''s whip with Hei Yue. Bai Ri glowed before unleashing a torrent of azure mana that engulfed the approaching kidnappers and Jack O''Lanterns, freezing them in their tracks. Before they could break free from the ice, Aries and Taurus smashed into them, shattering the poor Jack O''Lanterns and trampling the unfortunate kidnappers. As for the bullets from the muskets, they bounced off Scutum Sobiescianum.

    The survivors retreated, along with James, who had recoiled when his whip was sliced apart by my black sword. I raised my head to glare at him.

    "You really think you can kill me?"

    "What are you waiting for?!" James roared. "Get him!"

    More of the kidnappers and Jack O''Lanterns charged at me, but my Constellation spirits met them. I defended against the next volley of shots from the musket-armed kidnappers, and was about to turn to cleave apart the couple of Jack O''Lanterns who sought to eviscerate me from behind.

    Neither they nor I had the opportunity to engage each other. Nan Gong Zhao Yan had appeared and slashed them with her sword. The monsters screeched as the fell apart ¨C literally ¨C and collapsed onto the ground in pieces.

    "I''m here to help," she informed me coolly. She glanced at the kids apologetically. "Sorry. It was my sister who caused this mess, so I''m at least responsible for you getting into trouble."

    "You say that, but where is Ji Yan?" I asked dryly. There was no sign of her at all. Zhao Yan had the temerity to look embarrassed.

    "Well, this situation is dangerous, so it''s just as well that she isn''t here. Even though she''s my sister, quite frankly¡­her skills are lacking."

    "Yeah, she''ll only get in the way," I agreed wholeheartedly. Zhao Yan winced at that.

    "I wouldn''t go that far¡­"

    The kidnappers with muskets fired at us again, and Zhao Yan dove forward to slice the bullets apart with her sword. While she was busily dispatching the bullets, I had Capricorn erupt from the ground behind the kidnappers and trample on them. The gunners shrieked and yelled before they were thrown about, their guns mangled and their bodies broken by horns and hooves. Taurus smashed through another few Jack O''Lanterns before bathing the broken line of gunners in flames. Ammunition cooked off and the muskets exploded in their arms, causing terrible injury.

    "¡­doesn''t seem like you would need any help either¡­" Zhao Yan shook her head when she saw the carnage that my Constellation spirits were wreaking in the enemies'' ranks. However, she stepped forward to defend me from a few Jack O''Lanterns coming at me from my flank while I dispatched a few more masked kidnappers with my swords.

    "Nah, I appreciate your presence. It definitely makes things a lot easier."

    Zhao Yan was incredibly skilled, and I found that I could rely on her a lot. While she guarded my back, I focused on the front, the two of us fighting back-to-back and eliminating a huge number of our enemies. While they thinned out, Zhao Yan surged forward to finish the retreating enemies.

    I sheathed my swords and summoned Orion. A few of the kidnappers had turned around to focus their musket fire upon Zhao Yan, but I shot them with my arrows, the azure projectiles embedding themselves deeply in their foreheads before they could fire a shot. Under my cover fire, Zhao Yan got into the thick of the retreating kidnappers and cut them apart. My three Constellation spirits accompanied her, coming from the sides to help her rout the rest of the forces.

    And just like that, they were gone.

    "Amazing¡­"

    Adrian and Melina were watching us in admiration, their fists clenched.

    "They are exactly what we aspire to be!"

    "Are you guys all right?" I asked, crouching down next to them and checking their injuries. Given that there weren''t many enemies left, I could leave the rest to Zhao Yan and my Constellation spirits. Besides, my priority was the safety and wellbeing of my students, not the extermination of the enemy. It would be counterproductive to pursue enemies, and then return to discover that my disciples had been slain or abducted by stragglers.

    "Yeah, I''m fine," Adrian sighed in relief as he rose to his feet. Melina nodded as she scratched her head, but she remained on the ground, despite Adrian''s attempts to help her up.

    "I¡­I''m okay. I''m just so relieved that I can''t stand¡­my legs refuse to listen to me."

    "I''m glad you guys are fine." I heaved a breath of relief as well. "Sorry for being late."

    "Not at all!" Melina shook her head frantically.

    "Yeah! Better late than never I''m glad that you came at all, Brother Richie!" Then Adrian frowned. "Wait a minute¡­how did you know we are here? How did you find us?"

    "I read Assassin''s Pride and watched the anime adaptation," I replied seriously. Both Adrian and Melina gaped at me.

    "HUH?! You guessed that we were here because you read a light novel and watched its anime adaptation?!"

    "Actually, I didn''t read the light novel. I only read the manga adaptation after watching the anime version."

    "Please tell me you''re joking, Sensei¡­"

    "Nope¡­knowing Brother Richie, it''s entirely possible that he''s telling the truth." Adrian was shaking his head, already used to my nonsense by now. "I hope we won''t get sued for plagiarism or something."

    "Don''t worry, there''s enough of a difference between the stories that they can''t tell this arc was completely ripped off from Assassin''s Pride," I assured him. Adrian raised his hands and groaned.

    "All right, stop breaking the fourth wall and tell us seriously what happened. I don''t care if you need to resort to a flashback to do it."

    "Okay, flashback time." I raised a hand, and suddenly we were back in the past. I was still wandering about in the place where I found the box of octopus balls lying on the ground, right after both Adrian and Melina were kidnapped.

    "Damn it," I muttered, staring around, but to no avail. Even when relying on the hi-tech sensors in my glasses, I couldn''t pick out their silhouettes at all. This was not good. I couldn''t believe that they were gone the moment they left my sight.

    That meant the kidnappers had also been watching them this entire time, and were waiting for the right opportunity to swoop in and abduct them.

    "Richard!"

    I turned around at the sound of the voice. Zhao Yan was jogging toward my position, looking all apologetic.

    "I''m sorry about this¡­my sister is really¡­"

    "No, it''s fine." speaking of which, I spotted Ji Yan and her friends approaching, looking defiant. Ji Yan in particular was folding her arms and sporting an annoyed expression.

    "Why should I care about these middle school students?" she sneered. "They are none of my business."

    I ignored the bitch. Right now, instead of squabbling with an idiot like her, I was more invested in tracking Adrian and Melina''s location. Fortunately, I found Isabella and Edward some distance away, and I hurried over to their prone forms.

    "You guys, you are¡­"

    Edward stirred and blinked when he caught sight of me. At first, he didn''t recognize me, and then he brightened up.

    "You''re Adrian''s brother? Melina''s Sensei?"

    "Well, sort of." I pushed my glasses up my nose while continuing tending to Isabella, who was also slowly waking up. "What happened? Where are Adrian and Melina?"

    "Eh? They should be¡­"

    Edward glanced around, and then almost panicked.

    "Where are they?! They are¡­gone!"

    "Calm down. Take a deep breath. Do you remember what happened? Before you lost consciousness?"

    The kid followed my advice and composed himself. Then he nodded. "We were attacked. I couldn''t see very clearly, but a few people in hoods and masks dropped in on us, and the next thing I knew, I blacked out. Then you woke me up."

    "Kidnappers." Zhao Yan had followed me. Fortunately, that bitch Ji Yan and her entourage were gone. They couldn???t even be bothered to be concerned and help with the unconscious kids. "But why would they kidnap your students?"

    "There are a lot of possibilities, especially when you consider that they are children of the ten Great Families. Political reasons, for ransom, that sort of thing. The question is¡­where did they take them?"

    Edward looked glum. "I''m sorry. I don''t know. I was knocked out cold for most of the time, so I didn''t see anything."

    "It''s not your fault. At least you''ve helped me confirm that they were abducted. And the most important thing is that you''re all right."

    "We should contact the police." Zhao Yan was already holding her smartphone up and dialing the emergency hotline. I nodded.

    "I''ll leave that to you." Then I proceeded to the boxes of food that Adrian was holding earlier, discarded after the kidnappers grabbed him. Again, I sensed his mana signature ¨C he must have tried to fight back when they took Melina, and was taken with her.

    "How do you plan to find them?" Isabella asked, finally awake. I paused and considered for a few moments.

    "Well, I''ve read Assassin''s Pride before, and since this arc seems to be ripping off Assassin''s Pride, I can say for sure that they have been taken to a museum."

    Zhao Yan glared at me. "Are you seriously basing your guess off a light novel you''ve read in the past?"

    "The manga version," I corrected. "And its anime adaptation."

    "I don''t care which medium of the series you watched! Be serious! And there are a dozen museums in Flandor! Are you going to search each and every one of them?"

    "Well, I have a way to narrow the museums down," I admitted. "Actually, even if they aren''t in the museum, I still have a way of finding them somehow."

    "How?" Isabella asked.

    Instead of replying verbally, I decided to show her. Turning around, I raised a hand and summoned a single Canis Minor. Using our telepathic connection, I had him sniff the boxes of food and pick out one of the many scents that mingled with them. Dogs had amazing olfactory receptors, which allowed them to distinguish thousands of scents. It wasn''t long before he picked out Adrian and Melina''s, and then spun about and began bounding away.

    "Thanks, Canis Minor. I''ll be relying on you." I then turned to the kids. At this time, Iris and her group had finally arrived, having spotted Isabella and Edward. "Stay with your friends, and keep your head down. It seems that the kidnappers have no interest in you, but better safe than sorry."

    "All right!" Edward gulped. "Good luck!"

    "Thanks." I waved at the kids, and then ran off. Zhao Yan hurried after me.

    "I''m coming with you!"

    "You don''t have to," I replied and sped up.

    ¡­well, as for the rest, you knew what happened. Returning to the present, I studied both Adrian and Melina to make sure they were all right, while the two kids digested what I had just told them.

    "What happened?" Zhao Yan asked as she kicked the corpse of a Jack O''Lantern. "Why are there monsters here?"

    "Um¡­apparently their leader has alpha monster genese inserted into him, and he''s now able to control monsters." Melina sounded anxious. Adrian nodded.

    "They said they were from a guild called Grimaldus."

    At that moment, both Zhao Yan and I stiffened and exchanged a grim look. If Grimaldus was involved, then the situation had turned out to be worse than we anticipated.

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 491 Chapter 491: Grimaldus

    "Eh?" Melina noticed our reactions and her eyes widened in curiosity. "Do you know them?"

    "Yeah. Grimaldus is the hero of Helsreach, the Reclusiarch of the Black Templars Space Marine Chapter. Basically the head Chaplain. He is a veteran of the Third War of Armageddon, having defended Helsreach from the Orks¡­"

    "What are you talking about?!" Zhao Yan snapped at me, irritated. "Are you confusing Grimaldus for something else?"

    "No. I''m just pissed off that they decided to steal the name of one of the most badass characters in Warhammer 40,000 and name their pathetic guild after him. They have no right to sully his name. For Grimaldus represents the righteous fury of the Imperium of Man and¡­"

    "Enough." Zhao Yan rolled her eyes. "They are a group of terrorists who work in the underworld of Flandor, taking on criminal jobs such as abductions, organ harvesting, demonic rituals, assassinations, and intimidation. They are part of the major blocs that rule the underworld of the Federation, striking from the shadows and committing atrocities ¨C basically doing the dirty jobs for politicians and other high-ranking nobles who cannot be seen publically engaging in such acts with their formal guilds and the Federation military."

    "They''re one of the oldest secret societies out there, and are pretty malevolent," I added with a shudder. "They are sort of like the Hong Kong triads or Japanese yakuza or Italian mafia¡­what?"

    The rest were staring at me blankly, and I suddenly remembered that I was in a very different time. Maybe these underground organizations had ceased to exist sometime during the thousand years that had passed before I got reincarnated here.

    "What did they want with you?" Zhao Yan asked. Melina tensed up, and then looked down.

    "They said¡­this was a request from a client." Her voice was almost breaking as she clutched Adrian''s sleeve, and I could tell that she was on the verge of breaking down. Adrian placed his hands on her shoulders, trying to comfort her. "Though he didn''t specify who, he confirmed that this was a request sent from the Franklin family."

    "Don''t worry. He confirmed that it wasn''t your father," Adrian reminded her. I nodded and smiled.

    "That''s right. Lady Melina, before the Weaver''s Festival tonight, I was instructed by somebody to keep watch over you, to prevent this from happening. Who do you think gave me that order?"

    "Eh¡­?" Melina looked up and from my smile, she suddenly understood. I nodded.

    "It was Duke Fergus Franklin. Your father. He has already mobilized the authorities to look for you when I told him you were missing."

    Melina sighed a breath of relief, tears of joy streaming from her eyes. I could hear a whisper escaping her lips.

    "Thank you, Father."

    "Yeah, I called the police too. They will be swarming over this place in an instant." Zhao Yan folded her arms and shook her head. "But your Sensei here couldn''t wait for them and decided to recklessly charge in to save you guys."

    "Just as well," Adrian admitted. "If the both of you didn''t turn up when you did, they would have sacrificed us both for some ritual."

    "What ritual?" Zhao Yan demanded, her eyes narrowed. There was a slight anger in her voice and I briefly wondered if she had faced such things in the past before.

    "I have no idea, other than he needed to keep us alive to sacrifice us for a ritual."

    "Neither do I," Melina agreed. "The leader of the kidnappers, the one with the whip¡­he didn''t specify what the goal of the ritual was. But I don''t understand. If their goal was to eliminate me, to prevent me from threatening Cousin Kureha''s position, wouldn''t it be easier to just kill me off immediately? Why go through the trouble of sacrificing me and Adrian to a ritual? What sort of purpose does the ritual serve for their client?"

    "Most rituals involve the summoning of a demon," I explained as I pushed my glasses up my nose. "Basically trying to emulate the Emergence events, to open a hole through reality and allow monsters from the other dimension to crawl through."

    I still remembered the blood god at the temple. It was almost identical to an Emergence event, calling upon an extremely powerful monster into our world to¡­wreak destruction and cause chaos. Why would anyone want that, I had no idea. Perhaps they didn''t need a reason ¨C that was why we diagnosed them as psychopaths or lunactics.

    Some men just wanted to watch the world burn. Maybe as revenge against the society that had ostracized them or something. I honestly didn''t know and didn''t want to understand their insane motives.

    Rising to my feet, I turned toward the doors leading toward the interior of the museum.

    "Zhao Yan, do you mind watching over Adrian and Melina?" I placed a hand on the hilt of one of my swords. "I don''t know if those guys will return, but if they do, please beat them up, and prevent them from abducting the two of them again."

    "Sure. But what about you?" Zhao Yan looked at me inquisitively.

    "The leader that Melina mentioned earlier ¨C the one with the whip¡­his body isn''t here. That means he escaped. Given how he''s the strongest among the group here and that he''s in charge, if I capture him and hand him over to the authorities, we might be able to flush out Grimaldus. If I kill him in combat, then we''ve eliminated a massive threat to the safety of the Federation. Either way, we can''t let him go. Especially if he''s returning to the ritual site¡­there''s no telling if he has a couple of extra sacrifices in reserve as insurance. I must disrupt the ritual at all cost, or the consequences will be catastrophic. We cannot allow them to summon a monster in the middle of Flandor City."

    "That''s dangerous!" Zhao Yan snapped. "I''ll go with you!"

    "Then who''s going to protect Adrian and Melina?" I replied sternly. "We can''t leave them alone. They might return and grab them again. I doubt they''re going to give up in their ritual so easily. There must be a reason why they are targeting the two children from the Ten Great Families."

    Zhao Yan was unable to refute that and she lowered her head. "Be careful," she said instead.

    "Don''t worry, I''ll be all right." I turned back to smile reassuringly at her. "A summoner is never alone."

    At my words, my Constellation spirits gathered around me, preparing for combat. Zhao Yan watched them, and then nodded with a smile.

    "True. I''ll leave this to you then."

    "Sensei!" Melina still sounded worried.

    "Don''t worry, Lady Melina." I grinned at her and raised an arm. "Let your sensei show off once in a while."

    "Heh. You can do it, Brother Richie!" Adrian, in contrast, was brimming with confidence. "Go kick their asses!"

    "Yup, I will."

    And with that, I was gone, rushing into the depths of the dark museum while Zhao Yan helped me watch over my charges.

    It wasn''t hard to find Henry James and the rest of his cronies. I just headed toward the area of the museum where a potent aura of demonic bloodlust emanated. It seemed that my suspicions were correct. They were really trying to summon something.

    "Taurus!"

    At my order, my gigantic bull smashed the securely locked doors open, crushing the metal and blowing them out of their hinges. Along with Aries and Capricorn, I burst into the hall, just in time to see all the esoteric symbols and eerie altars set up. Demonic runes, daubed in blood, had been drawn all over the floor, and hundreds of candles flickered, their tiny flames casting a creepy glow over the hall.

    In the center of it all was Henry James. He had abandoned his now useless whip ¨C which had been cut apart by my swords ¨C and was now holding a ceremonial dagger instead.

    "Ah, you''re the Sensei, right? You''re just in time."

    "You¡­"

    The words died in my mouth when I saw the corpes littered all over the makeshift altars. Hooded and masked human bodies lay sprawled about, their throats slit and their blood leaking out to join with the glowing demonic runes already drawn on the floor. To my shock, the runes didn''t get erased or flooded away, but seemingly absorbed the new blood, flaring even brighter.

    "What have you done?"

    "What have I done?" James laughed. "Don''t you put the blame on me. This is your fault, you know? You were the one who deprived us of our sacrifices. If you would just let me use your students ¨C high quality sacrifices with noble lineage ¨C just two of them would be enough. But because of your needless meddling, I had to sacrifice all my men to complete this ritual. It''s too bad they aren''t nobles, so their blood is of a much lower quality. But quantity has a quality of its own, and we all have to learn to improvise in order to survive, do we not?"

    "You¡­"

    I swallowed as I struggled to comprehend the implications of this. I wasn''t feeling sorry for the madman''s subordinates, and while I felt disgusted at his cavalier attitude toward the lives of his own men, I didn''t expect anything less from criminal scum like him. However, there was something about this whole affair that struck me as odd.

    "Wasn''t your goal¡­the mission you received from your client to eliminate Lady Melina? Why bother with this whole ritual thing in the first place? It''s almost as if¡­"

    "Yes, you are right." James threw his head back and laughed. "The killing of Lady Melina was only a secondary goal, but it wasn''t the main thing, you know? The primary objective has always been the completion of the ritual¡­to summon a demon that would destroy Flandor City."

    "Is that your client''s wishes too?"

    "In a twisted fashion, yes. He/she was the one who proposed it after all. After the demon emerges and rampages across Flandor City, the Sword Saint ¨C Kureha Franklin ¨C would appear and slay the monstrous creature responsible for so many deaths and the destruction of much of the city. A very fitting tale of heroism, is it not? It is sure to elevate her status further in the eyes of the Federation, and cement her position as the next head of the Franklin family. As promising as Melina was ¨C even if she somehow survived this ¨C her achievements would never be able to match that of Kureha''s."

    What fucking bullshit. Just to preserve Kureha''s status as the Sword Saint and ensure that she succeeded as the next leader of the Franklin family, this client was willing to sacrifice the lives of civilians in Flandor City. He or she couldn''t care less about the wellbeing or safety of innocent civilians, and was willing to condemn to death for political ascension.

    Unforgiveable.

    "I''m sure you rushed here to stop me, but it''s too late. The sacifices have already been made. And I''m sure you already know that you can''t destroy these runes, even with your spells. The Emergence event is already happening."

    James was right. I could see a tear in the fabric of reality, the churning chaos as two dimensions that should never meet collided, turning into a portal. Even if I tried nuking it with my arrows or Scorpio''s Antares, it wouldn''t destroy it ¨C that Emergence portal was not something that was bound by the laws of physics or reality. It wasn''t¡­anything material or solid. It just was a rip in space, a¡­conceptual entity. There was no magic spell that could destroy it.

    "I''ve heard rumors that you''re stronger and more skilled than the Sword Saint, but I doubt it. Unlike Kureha Franklin, who will arrive with her cousin Eliza and an all-star party assembled for an event just like this, you are completely alone. Plus¡­you were just lucky that time in the national tournament. There''s no way you''re more powerful than the Sword Saint."

    James chuckled and shook his head.

    "You''ll die here, the first victim of the Chaos Chimera."

    A thunderous roar erupted from behind the tear in the fabric of reality, and an enormous skull-like head thrust through the maelstrom of broken immateriality of time-space. Fangs the size of swords clattered against each other, and the dragon-like creature turned its empty eye sockets to stare at me. Even without actual eyes, it could still see me. Ethereal green flames flickered to life within those empty black holes, almost reflecting me within its depths.

    "Oho! Seems like its hungry. You''ll get the honor of being its first meal in this reality!"

    James''s laughter was drowned out by another bestial bellow. The Chaos Chimera ripped its way out of its original dimension and lunged toward me ravenously, its jaws opened to swallow my body whole.

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 492 Chapter 492: Chaos Chimera

    Before the skull-like head of the Chaos Chimera could reach me, Taurus slammed into it from the side, knocking it off its origina trajectory. The Chaos Chimera snarled and twisted around to face the gigantic bull, an ethereal flame within its jaws glowing as it prepared to fire off a deadly spell. But Aries then rammed into it from the opposite side, knocking it off course.

    Capricorn then head-butted the Chaos Chimera from below, snapping the jaws shut. Whatever fiery spell the skeletal monster was conjuring, it failed and blew up inside its own mouth and smoke billowed out of the holes that were meant for its nostrils. With a wail, it thrashed about wildly, forcing my three Constellation spirits to retreat.

    "Ho¡­not bad. You''re a lot better than I thought."

    At the side, Henry James applauded, impressed. At least he wasn''t calling me trash like some cheap, two-bit villain from a cultivation story. God, I hate the tropes that infested that genre.

    I didn''t pay much attention to him because the Chaos Chimera was coming back, snarling as it lunged at me. By now, it was pulling the main bulk of its body out of the dimensional rift, bony claws clacking against the ground. As I withdrew with my Constellation spirits, my glasses scanned and analyzed the full figure of the creature. It resembled a sauropod of old, stretching over thirty meters in length from head to tail. I was reminded of the Ultrasaurus or Seismosaurus. Or maybe Argentinosaurus (was it a genus or a specific species of sauropod? Damn it, I wish I majored in paleontology).

    Not caring about the accuracy of something that was way out of my field of knowledge, despite being a fan of dinosaurs during my early childhood (who wasn''t? I bet most of you in your late twenties or early thirties continue to be mesmerized by the first Jurassic Park movies and Land before Time), I focused more on staying alive. As the Chaos Chimera pounced on me, my Constellation spirits unable to assist me in time, I met its charge head-on. Running forward, I flipped myself at the last moment and sailed above its skull. Twisting myself in midair, I landed atop its scalp and plunged both of my swords in. shards of bone scattered and the Chaos Chimera shrieked in rage, but I was already gone before it could throw me off.

    Then Taurus tackled it once again, almost knocking its head aside. Even though the gigantic bull was still dwarfed by the sauropod-like skeleton, he had a few tricks up his sleeve. As the Chaos Chimera turned to snarl at him, he unleashed his Aldebaran spell to incinerate it. The head and most of its neck was engulfed in superheated flames, vanishing from view.

    "Good job!" I praised him, landing several dozen meters away. Even though I had coordinated with Taurus to launch this attack, I didn''t think he would actually pull it off.

    Then I suddenly sensed a spike of mana. Before I could shout out a warning, a charged mana beam lanced out from the Chaos Chimera''s jaws and struck Taurus, obliterating him from existence. I watched in dread as the massive titanosaur-like monster emerge from the flames, scorched but otherwise far from dead.

    "Spread out!" I ordered Aries and Capricorn, not wanting to present too easy of a target to the rampaging Chaos Chimera. They obeyed without any hesitation, dispersing and jumping in opposite directions.

    However the Chaos Chimera didn''t just have that devastating spell from its main charged mana beam that it fired from its mouth. I watched in horror as spine-like protrusions shifted and moved along its long neck, body and tail. In a flash, over thirty yellowish beams lanced out in different directions, punching through the museum and destroying the structure. Rain of debris crashed down heavily, crushing exhibitions and reducing much of the hall into ruins.

    The majority of these devastating beams punctured bloody holes through Aries and Capricorn, hurling their battered bodies against the rubble. Even though they were individually not as powerful as the single charged mana beam from the Chaos Chimera''s mouth, when combined they were no less deadly, and I could only see my Constellation spirits vanish from existence when the skeletal monster bombarded them once again.

    "Ha ha ha ha! Incredible! This is incredible! I never thought the Chaos Chimera would be this powerful!"

    Henry James had not escaped unscathed, having been forced to evade the beams as well. His clothes were singed and there were cauterized craters in his body, but he was still alive. Evidently the Chaos Chimera didn''t care who summoned it to this world, and regarded us all as nothing more than ants to be stomped on.

    "This makes everything worth it! Just to summon this beast of beauty! Ha ha ha! If the Sword Saint truly kills a monster of such immense power, her fame would surely rise!" he then chuckled and shook his head. "Assuming that she and her party have the strength to slay such a powerful creature, I mean."

    "Are you not going to try and control it?" I asked as I weaved through a third hail of yellow beams that reduced more of the wrecked museum into a husk. "With the alpha monster genes injected into you surgery, and all that?"

    "Ha ha ha! Are you kidding?" James guffawed. "Do you think I can control an alpha plus monster such as this? Why would it listen to me? Unfortunately, I can only control monsters that are weaker than me. Otherwise, why wouldn''t I want to control a monster as majestic as this?"

    "That is true." If it was so easy to tame monsters, then everybody would have done it already. No wonder only criminal guilds such as Grimaldus dealt with such forbidden powers. Of course the Global Federation wouldn''t outlaw it and would be willing to take every risk if there was a way for them to control powerful monsters through genetic surgery. Who would be able to resist such temptations to elevate their strength to incredible levels with some convenient "cheat" that only involves genetic transplants? Well, of course that could prove dangerous ¨C if the monster tamer decided to turn against the Federation, for example¡­that would be disastrous.

    Well, at least James was going to suffer from this too. I could take slight comfort from that fact.

    The Chaos Chimera pursued me, its tail whipping over. I jumped over it, but James was too slow. The skeletal tail caught him and sent him flying across the demolished building before he vanished in an explosion of dust and debris. I didn''t pay much attention to him because I was too busily trying to avoid the next barrage of beams that followed after the tail whip.

    "Isn''t a tail whip attack only supposed to lower the defense of the target, not do so much damage?" I demanded as I ducked under another beam. Sheathing my swords, I summoned Orion and let loose a few azure arrows. They chipped at the whitish bone of the Chaos Chimera, but otherwise didn''t do much. Given the large size of the damned monster, I wasn''t surprised. I was going to need a bigger, much more powerful arrow.

    Perhaps Rigel would blow the damned thing to bits. I just needed a bit of time to cast the spell, though. An arrow that powerful would obviously require a longer casting time than my other arrows or spells.

    "Leo, Leo Minor!"

    Fortunately, I had learned how to buy myself the time that I needed. Leo materialized, along with the pride of Leo Minor, and they pounced on the Chaos Chimera, who flailed about frantically. The bony apertures lined along its neck, body and tail fired over thirty beams, but my Constellation lions were more agile and flexible than my three horned spirits from earlier. They weaved through the devastating array of beams and slashed with their claws. As I expected, though, their claws didn''t do much to the tough bones of the Chaos Chimera.

    "Leo, Regulus!"

    The golden blast of mana seared from Leo''s body and slammed into the Chaos Chimera''s midriff, causing it to stagger. It didn''t leave so much as a scorch, though, but I had already anticipated that. While Leo''s Regulus was powerful, it still wasn''t enough to disintegrate a monster the size of the Chaos Chimera.

    Growling, the skeletal creature swiped at Leo, who deftly evaded its claws. Several bony cannons along its neck whirled about to fire at him, but Leo was already catapulting over the beams, and jumping about in a zigzag manner to weave through them. While the Chaos Chimera was distracted by the leader of the pride, the smaller Leo Minor crept in closer and pounced on it, slashing at its flanks and legs. With a snarl, the Chaos Chimera shook them off, its tail whipping out and sending them flying. It stomped on one unfortunate Leo Minor, causing him to vanish, and then the beam cannons along its tailed flared up, ripping into several of the slower Constellation lions scrambling to get away.

    With a vengeful roar, Leo mauled the Chaos Chimera''s head and gouged out several shards of bones. The Chaos Chimera retaliated by opening its mouth and attempting to blast him with its charged mana beam at pointblank range, but Leo let go and allowed himself to fall. Landing gracefully on the ground, he unleashed another golden pillar of Regulus, which knocked the Chaos Chimera''s jaws to the side and engulfed its skull-like head. Once again, the beam went awry and lanced harmlessly toward the heavens.

    "Phew¡­"

    I exhaled in relief when I saw that my remaining Constellation spirits were okay. Leo retreated, just in time to avoid another deadly stomp as the Chaos Chimera''s head emerged from the smoke with a screech.

    "Rigel."

    With the word on my lips, I summoned the blazing arrow into existence. The air around me rippled violently from the potent maelstrom of power that now surrounded me, the atmosphere actually distorting from the sheer amount of mana that suffused me. Taking aim, I then released the blue and gold arrow at Chaos Chimera.

    At the same time, my Leo and pride of Leo Minor chose that instant to vanish, to seek shelter from what was coming.

    "!!!"

    Digging himself out of the rubble, the battered Henry James emerged just in time to see the spiraling arrow strike the writhing Chaos Chimera and explode. His jaw dropped as he tried to shield himself, and the entire area vanished in a blinding flash of light, an enormous explosion that consumed most of the half-demolished museum and wrecking the rest of the beleaguered structure. A mushroom cloud blossomed into the air.

    "What the fuck is this bullshit?!" he howled. "Nobody told me anything about this?!"

    Those were the last words that left his mouth before the shockwaves buffeted him and he was sent flying several dozen meters away, his body almost incinerated from the sheer, hellish force of the fiery explosion.

    Miraculously, he was still alive. Laughing hysterically as he landed amidst the disintegrating rubble, most of his body burned into ash. Crawling up with his remaining hand ¨C the other arm having been burned off ¨C he pulled his remaining half of his body above the pile of debris to watch the dispersing explosion. Glaring down, he scoffed.

    "Not bad, not bad at all, kid! But that won''t be enough! This is the Chaos Chimera we''re talking about here! Unless you''re more powerful than the Sword Saint herself, you can''t destroy it!"

    The flames had died down by now, and the currently blackened frame of the Chaos Chimera staggered out, smoldering. There were thousands of cracks that lined its skeleton, and it looked as if it was going to fall apart any moment now, but against all odds it had survived.

    And it was angry.

    The ghostly flames burned furiously in those empty sockets and it whirled around to glare at me. Its maw yawned, and a new charged mana beam coalesced within, getting ready to surge out with a vengeance and obliterate me.

    "Honestly, you did great, kid! You have surpassed all expectations! But too bad your nuke spell isn''t enough! Not against a monster of this caliber!"

    "Well, I kind of expected it," I admitted with an indifferent shrug as I finished casting my next big spell. "Which is why¡­Draco, it''s your turn."

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 493 Chapter 493: Here be Dragons

    Draco burst into existence with a thunderous roar, his black frame almost rivaling the Chaos Chimera in size. Immediately, the entire area was frozen in ice, the temperature plummeting drastically. A fog drifted throughout the husk of the ruined museum, bringing a ghostly chill with it. Snarling, Draco swiped at the skeletal Chaos Chimera, sending it crashing onto the ground with a whimper.

    "W¡­what the hell is this?!" Henry James spluttered. Then his eyes widened. "That''s right¡­you summoned this dragon during your duel against Charles Lacroix during the national tournament."

    "Oh, I''m glad you remembered. And you still thought I couldn''t defeat your Chaos Chimera?" I scoffed. Henry James stiffened, trembling from both the chill and dead.

    "But¡­but it wasn''t as powerful back then¡­I don''t remember it being this powerful¡­!"

    "What, did you think I was going to stay the same forever? Of course I would be continuing to grow stronger. And my Constellation spirits will be growing stronger with me."

    Draco slammed another claw down upon the wailing Chaos Chimera before triple bursts of black mana formed in its mouth and lanced into it, blowing shards of bone out. An entire portion of the titanic beast simply ceased to exist, disintegrated by the potent rays of Draco''s spell.

    Not only that, but the areas where Draco had slashed with his claws were beginning to freeze over, ice rapidly expanding across the cracked, skeletal portions and encasing bone in ice. The Chaos Chimera''s struggles slowly ceased, even as it crumbled under Draco''s assault.

    However, it still had several cards to play. The bony spines along its neck, body and tail shifted and over thirty concentrated mana beams surged toward Draco. Explosions seemed to litter across Draco''s body, only for the fog to slowly dissipate and reveal dozens of ice shields hovering between the two titans.

    Evidently Draco had summoned individual ice shields to block the incoming beams.

    "Your dragon isn''t supposed to have that ability!" James yelled, almost frothing in the mouth from both rage and despair.

    "Oh?" I looked at him coldly. "Says who?"

    "You¡­you¡­!" he spluttered.

    The Chaos Chimera whipped its head up, its long neck stiffening as it prepared a charged mana beam. The more powerful spell streaked out of its jaws and detonated against Draco, smashing through his multiple ice shields and engulfing my titanic Constellation spirit in a colossal conflagration. More of the already demolished museum continued to fall apart, debris disintegrating from the sheer firepower. Sprawled on the ground, James laughed triumphantly.

    "Hah! No matter how powerful your Soul Beast is, even it can''t withstand a direct hit from the Chaos Chimera''s charged mana beam!"

    I didn''t say anything, and just waited for the smoke to disperse. Draco didn''t disappoint, bursting out of the smoke in shards of ice, snarling as he clobbered the Chaos Chimera with his tail, sending the gargauntaun skeletal monster to the ground with an earthshaking impact.

    "What¡­?!"

    "My Draco is a lot tougher than you think," I explained with a smile. "He''s been through quite a few fights. As you already surmised, he is my strongest Constellation spirit. It''ll take a lot more than a charged particle cannon¡­ahem, I mean charged mana beam to break his energy shield¡­ahem, I mean ice shield."

    James tried to scrabble away, but I closed in on him. Drawing one of my swords, Hei Yue in my right hand, I approached. Behind me, Green Dragon materialized, rearing up to fix the pale criminal scum with his majestic eyes.

    Then Green Dragon swung down a claw and pulverized the shrieking guy. Behind us, Draco finished off the Chaos Chimera, freezing black rays streaming from his jaws and obliterating its bulk. The skeletal monster shattered and fell apart, its pieces scattering across the ground and disappearing.

    I glanced at the space where the Emergence event had occurred, but the rip in time-space fabric had already mended, sealing off the other dimension from others. Whatever ritual Grimaldus planned to conduct, it only had enough power to summon a single Chaos Chimera. I didn''t have to worry about other monsters coming through.

    "You¡­"

    To his credit, James was still alive. His body was crushed and broken, and he was speaking through bloodied lips and missing teeth, but he continued to draw breath. What a tenacious bastard.

    "What about me?" I asked, turning back to him.

    "What is someone as strong as you doing here in Flandor?" he growled. "Why are you even pretending to be a private tutor and playing make-believe?! You have the potential to move beyond here and achieve greater things¡­"

    "Like what?" I scoffed, sheathing my sword and crossing my arms. "And if I''m truly as strong as you make me out to be, isn''t that more of a reason for me to impart my knowledge to others, to ensure that we have more powerful people?"

    "Hah! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" James laughed, despite his crushed chest and ruined lungs. "Don''t be na?ve! In this world, the only person you can trust is yourself! You can''t rely on other people! The moment you believe in somebody, they will turn around and stab you in the back!"

    Wow, we had a nihilistic edgelord here. I rolled my eyes and shook my head, but didn''t bother to argue with him. It would be a total waste of time, and he was going to die anyway.

    Take note, I wasn''t na?ve enough to make blanket declarations like the world is good, and we shouldn''t be afraid to trust everyone. It was just that I found it ridiculous to go off to the opposite end and claim that we should never trust anyone either. The truth was, like everything else, somewhere in between. There were people you could trust, and people you should never trust. Most people were lucky enough to be born in families where they could trust their parents. Now, nobody was perfect ¨C there would be times where the people you trust lie. But think about it ¨C are you so sure you have never told a single lie before? I know I have¡­there were times where I was dishonest with my own family. If I couldn''t be 100% honest with others, how could I expect the same of others?

    Even so, that didn''t mean you couldn''t trust people just because they lied a few times. As I said, things weren''t so black and white. You could, for example, trust your family to always have your back. Friends for being there for you. Stuff like that. The key was just to know who to trust and who to doubt. Not go one opposite end or the other. Reality was fluid, and you had to adapt accordingly to circumstances and learn more about the other people around you.

    That was all.

    However, I said none of that to James, and turned to leave. Green Dragon raised a claw to finish him off.

    "W¡­wait!"

    Before I could go, James cried out desperately, searching for one final chance of salvation.

    "Don''t kill me! I''m sure there''s something I can do for you!"

    "Oh?" I stopped to stare at him curiously, a smile on my lips. "What can you do for me? Are you perhaps willing to divulge the identity of your client?"

    "No! I can''t do that, even if you kill me!" Cold beads of sweat formed on James''s pale face as he shook his head. He swallowed. "But I can help you pass back misinformation to mislead them. I''ll¡­I''ll tell them that I captured Melina to try and change her class, but right before the ritual, I suddenly felt latent paladin-like power, and deduced that she must have paladin blood. After consulting with you, we decided that the risks were too great for too little reward, and will ask the client to reconsider¡­"

    I had heard enough. A mental nudge from me and Green Dragon stomped the rambling Henry James into oblivion, leaving nothing more than a bloody splatter.

    "What the fuck was he ranting about?" I demanded, frowning. "Changing class? Paladin power and blood? Wasn''t this a ritual to summon a monster, what''s with the whole changing class thing all of a sudden?"

    The guy had probably gone insane and mistook reality for some scenario in a light novel. I was surprised that he read Assassin''s Pride. Oh, well. I honestly couldn''t care less. I had more important things to worry about.

    Beyond the wreck of the museuem, I heard sirens. The police was finally here. Damn it, they certainly took their time, arriving only after I had eliminated all the enemies and taken care of the product of the criminal guild''s demonic ritual.

    Dismissing Draco and Green Dragon, I then left the destroyed exhibition hall and proceeded toward Zhao Yan, Melina and Adrian. The police were already rushing in, aiming their carbines and doing a sweep in the remains of the museum. There was no sign of the other three, and I became aware of Zhao Yan informing me through a cell phone text message that she had taken the two kids out of the museum and into a safer place. They were now being encircled by the police, and were answering a few questions here and there.

    "Hands up!" one of the policemen shouted. A sergeant, I supposed.

    I obeyed, crouching down as they surrounded me. The police were in full riot gear, wearing visored helmets and armor. Shock mauls and power swords emanated faint auras of mana, hanging from their belts, but right now they were wielding their magic carbines and keeping the muzzles trained on me.

    "Wait!" One of the police officers stepped forward. He was casting an anti-illusion and anti-transformation spell on me, to ensure that I was who I looked like. After all, there were mages capable of disguising themselves through illusion and transformation magic, and it never hurt to be cautious. "Are you Richard Huang?"

    "Yes, sir."

    The police officer confirmed again with another couple of anti-disguise spells, and then nodded. He gestured for the rest of the police to back off, and they obeyed without question. He then approached me.

    "We''ll need you to cooperate with the investigations later."

    "That will be easy." I tapped my glasses and sent a transmission of data. "I will be uploading the entire recording to the police database."

    "Thank you." The police officer nodded. "We''ll still need to ask you a few questions, so we would appreciate if you stick around."

    "Will do."

    I exited from the ruins of the museum, leaving the burned out husk to the police who were now doing a full sweep and searching the wreck for any other enemies. They would probably start casting tracking spells to look for clues and all that.

    That wasn''t my area of expertise, so I didn''t bother to linger. I was tired, and annoyed. Grimaldus. I was going to track them down and destroy them, so that they would never threaten my students again. Right now I lacked the power and resources to do so, but perhaps sometime in the future¡­

    "Heh¡­"

    I smiled, realizing that I was approaching my goal. Dad went around destroying criminal organizations and dark guilds on a regular basis, part of his job as a freelance mercenary. Even though he was an independent mercenary, as I grew up, I realized that there was no way he did all of it alone. He often liased with other agencies and worked with other mercenary groups ¨C such as the Silver Wolves ¨C to root out and exterminate these evil organizations.

    "There''s the Assassin''s Guild, and now Grimaldus, huh? Not to mention the Dark Church. They just keep coming, one after another."

    Well, it didn''t matter. One thing at a time. Right now, the destruction of these entities still seemed far in the future, but as long as I kept moving forward, one step at a time, I would eventually reach it.

    "Brother Richie!"

    "Sensei!"

    Looking up, I caught sight of Adrian and Melina waving at me from the distance. They were currently shielded by an armored police van, and guarded by a couple of heavy armored policemen. Zhao Yan continued to accompany me, and she acknowledged me with a nod.

    I returned the smile and waved back, watching in satisfaction as both of my students eagerly sprinted toward me.

    Right now, they were both safe, and the enemies who threatened them directly had been slain. That was more than enough.

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 494 Chapter 494: Lots of Questions

    We spent the rest of the night at the police station, answering questions and stuff. The police grilled me over the details of the recording I shared, with one of the interrogators condemning me for my actions.

    "Why did you kill the leader of this Grimaldus group?! You already have him defeated! You could just subdued him and take him in alive, for questioning!"

    "You do realize that you''re talking about a guy from a dark guild who just conducted a demonic ritual to bring a monster to existence, right?" I met the interrogator''s glare evenly, refusing to back down. "I have no idea what the extent of his abilities were. For all I know, he could be secretly casting a spell, getting ready to fight back. I know I sensed a lot of mana churning inside his body, in preparation of some big spell. I refused to take the risk and let him get away, or hit me with his spell. So I finished him off before he could do anything funny."

    "But from what I see here¡­" the interrogator indicated a paused section of my recording, where Green Dragon had all but crushed Henry James into a broken mess. "You already subdued and incapacitated him! You didn''t have to kill him!"

    "You should know that mages can still cast spells, even with their bodies broken." I did exactly that when the Crastrates broke my neck. "If he attacked me while my guard was down, or I allowed him to complete the casting of his spell and got killed when he unleashed it, are you going to take responsibility? You are the ones who showed up all late to the party after I defeated the demon that he summoned into this world, and then you complained about how I handled it. Easy for you to criticize me when you''re not the one actually fighting and facing the risks on the ground."

    "You¡­!" the interrogator growled, but his partner held him back. The grizzled veteran looked about forty and was a lot more composed and calmer than his younger colleague. He studied me with those dark eyes, probably using his years of experience to scrape out as much information out of me as possible.

    "Don''t go fighting with kids now, Ichinose," he growled. "The kid has a point. It''s our fault for responding too late to the distress call. If it weren''t for this kid, those other two kids would have been sacrificed for the demonic ritual. Hell, I doubt we have anything in our arsenal that could have stopped that Chaos Chimera. We should have suffered horrendous casualties while trying to buy time for the Sword Saint and her party to arrive on the scene."

    He then paused, as if realizing something.

    "I did find it weird that the Sword Saint and her friends were already well-prepared and ready to move out shortly after the police was mobilized. Hell, it was as if they already anticipated this¡­and then in your recording¡­"

    He played out the dialogue where Henry James essentially admitted that this whole thing was set up for Kureha Franklin and friends to play hero. The poor fool didn''t realize that my glasses could record everything, and he gave away the secrets.

    "Damn it. This might not be conclusive evidence, but we still have to bring the young miss of the Franklin family in for questioning." Ichinose was grabbing his head in frustration. "What the hell is going on?!"

    "Relax, Ichinose," his older colleague told him, and then brought a cigarette to his mouth and drew a deep breath of smoke before puffing it out. "One thing at a time. It''s clear that there''s a conspiracy at work here¡­"

    "Will we even be able to get a warrant approved? It''s the Franklin family, you know?! One of the ten great families!"

    "I''m sure they''ll find some way to deny the links to this." The veteran interrogator sighed, and then turned back to me. "Do you have any other information to provide?"

    "Not really." I shook my head. "I shared everything I know. I just hope you guys will inform me when you get intelligence regarding Grimaldus. If you plan to make a move against them, I want to be part of it."

    "Heh¡­" the veteran glanced down at his holographic screen. "We probably wouldn''t have to. It says here that your old man is a freelance mercenary, and you have close links to the Silver Wolves. You will probably be called upon for your services soon enough."

    "Huh?!" Ichinose turned upon his older colleague, his jaw dropping open in disbelief. "Why would we be hiring mercenaries?!"

    The veteran gave the younger interrogator a dry glare. "The police isn''t equipped to deal with criminal mages. Why do you think mage mercenaries exist? Because they are armed with the tools, weapons and spells needed to fight monsters and other mages. We''re just ordinary police ¨C our basic spells aren''t enough to fight the military-scale spells that these dark guilds have access to. We''ll just get blown up."

    Basically, you do not call in the police with their revolvers and shotguns to try and deal with paramilitary troops armed with automatic rifles, carbines and rocket launchers. Even with the S.W.A.T. and their submachine guns, it would still pretty much be a one-sided slaughter. You would nee to call in the military or other paramilitary forces.

    "Anyway, thanks for your cooperation. We''ll contact you again if we need anything else." The veteran reached out to shake my hand, and I was finally released from the interrogation room. Stepping outside, I saw that Adrian and Melina were waiting for me. As for Zhao Yan, she had been allowed to return home earlier, when her parents showed up to pick her up. I hoped she wasn''t in any trouble, but judging from what I knew of the Nan Gong couple, they would be more worried for her wellbeing than angry that she played hero.

    "They finally let you out, Brother Richie!"

    "We were so worried!"

    "Nah, I showed them everything and told them the truth." I tapped my glasses and smiled. "They can''t press charges on me for anything. But??"

    "?"

    Melina looked confused when I turned to her with a serious expression. Taking a deep breath, I placed a hand on her shoulder and chose my next words carefully.

    "I don''t know what will happen to your family. Your cousin, Kureha, is under suspicions for getting involved in this whole mess."

    "Cousin Kureha will never scheme anything like this!" Melina insisted angrily. I pursed my lips and nodded.

    "You''re right. I''ve fought alongside her before. I won''t pretend that I''m very familiar with her, but from my few interactions, I know that she''s not the kind of person to murder people like this. Perhaps she is arrogant, but she''s definitely not a murderer."

    However, she did lose her sister. I couldn''t remember the details, but Kureha had also mentioned that there were family feuds even way back then, where she suspected that her relatives had plotted to have her and her sister killed. We had learned that it was Frank Franklin and his son, Fred Franklin, who had created the Foundation Research Group as a front, and collaborated with the Dark Church to assassinate her.

    "What happened to your Uncle Frank and cousin, Fred?" I asked, suddenly remembering those two. It had been a long time since they showed up, and I remembered they vanished shortly ater the invasion of Jing Tian City.

    "Eh? I have no idea. They went missing, but then Father said not to worry about them. Cousin Kureha, Uncle Kensuke and Aunt Kathleen were furious after Cousin Kurenai''s death¡­they wanted answers, but Uncle Frank and Cousin Fred just¡­vanished. We never saw them again. They''ve been missing for several months now."

    Everything fitted now. The doom of Jing Tian City (except that we saved it), and now these deaths.

    "Give me a second." I then kocked on the door, and Ichinose and his older colleague poked their heads out.

    "Eh? You''re still here? I thought I said you could go home."

    "I just remembered something." I glanced at Melina, and then returned to the two. "I don''t know if there are any links, but I wonder if you guys know anything about Frank Franklin and his son, Fred Franklin."

    "Ah¡­honestly, no. We heard they vanished a few months ago, and despite searching, all our leads turned cold. It was as if they vanished off the face of the earth. We figured they got mugged and killed somewhere. Not unusual for the ten Great Families to engage in bullshit like this. Not the first time either."

    "Do you think it''s possible that they went underground?" I was already connecting the dots inside my mind. "If that''s the case, it''s not impossible that they might have sought refuge with a criminal guild such as Grimaldus."

    The lights went on in the veteran''s eyes, and he nodded thoughtfully.

    "That might be a feasible explanation. I will definitely let the higher-ups know about this, and see if we can find any links."

    "The kid might be right!" Ichinose exclaimed excitedly. "Perhaps the reason why we couldn''t find any sign of that father-son pair this entire time is because we were looking in the wrong places! It never occurred to us that they might be hiding out wth the dark guilds!"

    "We actually did consider that they might have thrown their lot in with the Dark Church," his older colleague reminded him. And then he paused, slowly turning to me. "The Dark Church. Demonic ritual. An artificially triggered Emergence event¡­"

    "It all fits," I agreed, seeing the connections. I glanced at Melina. "It is possible that the mysterious client is your Uncle Frank."

    "That doesn''t explain why he is aiming only for Melina and helping Kureha here." Adrian looked puzzled. "From what you told me last time, this Frank person and his son, Fred, were plotting Kureha''s death and successfully killed Kurenai. So why would he suddenly turn around and help Kureha benefit from this Emergence event?"

    "¡­I don''t know," I admitted. Ichinose also looked stumped, but his colleague struck his palm with a fist.

    "Diversion."

    "Pardon?"

    Everyone turned to stare at him, but he was pacing up and down the corridor, growing increasingly excited. He looked up at us, his eyes wild.

    "Don''t you see? It''s all part of the plan, to incite infighting within the Franklin family. To have them blame each other and tear each other apart. Let''s say the Duke suspects Kathleen Franklin and her daughter ¨C he will make a move against them. of course Kathleen and her husband, Kensuke, will not just sit back and let themselves get killed. the whole Franklin family will descend into internal strife and destroy themselves from within."

    "¡­if that is indeed their goal, we cannot allow that to happen."

    Everyone spun around at the sound of the voice. Fergus Franklin had appeared, along with Amelia and an entourage of security staff. Melina''s eyes widened.

    "Father? What are you¡­?"

    "I heard that my daughter was in danger, so I rushed over." Fergus Franklin breathed a sigh of relief as he strode over to wrap his arms around her tightly. "I''m glad to see you''re safe, Melina."

    He then nodded at me, Melina still locked in his embrace.

    "Thank you for saving her, Richard."

    "Not at all, it''s my job. In fact, it was my huge blunder that led to them being kidnapped even though I was supposd to keep watch over them."

    "That couldn''t be helped. The enemy is professional, and you did your best." He rose to his feet and nodded at the police. "In the coming days, I''ll provide the police with resources from my family. We will get to the bottom of this matter."

    "Y¡­yes, sir!" Ichinose was overwhelmed, while his older colleague nodded.

    "I appreciate it, Duke."

    "Good." Fergus then turned away, gently leading Melina out of the corridor. He gestured for me and Adrian to follow him. "But for tonight, please allow me to bring my daughter home, along with her friend and private tutor. I''m sure they are very exhausted after his ordeal."

    "Yeah." The veteran cast sympathetic eyes at us, and then he vanished from sight when Adrian and I stepped out of the police station, eagerly following Fergus and Melina to his private limousine.

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 495 Chapter 495: Dance Party

    "I have half a mind to stop you guys from attending the second night of the Weaver''s Festival tomorrow, but considering that the kidnappers have been arrested and public image ¨C I don''t want to cause panic or damage morale for other participants ¨C I think it should be fine. Besides, Richard here has proven himself more than capable of watching over you kids."

    "Wait, what? Second night of the Weaver''s Festival?" I repeated incredulously from the back of the limousine. Opposite me, Fergus nodded, and then his eyes flickered in understanding.

    "Oh, right. You''re not from around here. Yeah, the Weaver''s Festival takes place over two nights. Today is the booths and fun and games. Tomorrow is the river ceremony, where boys will write love letters, put them in latern boats and sail them down the river. Then the dance takes place after that, followed by fireworks."

    "I see." Now that I thought about it, I had not seen any fireworks tonight. Okay, I had spent most of the time in the police station after the whole battle against Henry James and the Chaos Chimera, but you would think I would have at least heard the fireworks going off and stuff. Or seen them.

    However, there was still something that bothered me.

    "Are you sure about this? I appreciate your kind words, but it was my fault that they got abducted right under my nose."

    "That couldn''t be helped. And the fact that you were able to find them so quickly and rescue both of them before anything bad happened is proof of your skills and abilities. Not only that, this turned out to be a blessing in disguise." Fergus smiled grimly. "Not only have we found out a clue regarding the client who ordered the hit on my daughter, you eliminated an expert from the Grimaldus guild as well as took out a chunk of their forces. You brought them out into the open and allowed us to find out who was being involved, and which dark guild was hired. Now that we know who is involved, we know where to look and can launch a counterattack."

    "I see. Thanks."

    "So please¡­enjoy yourselves tomorrow. Don''t mind it." Fergus steepled his fingers. "And honestly, tomorrow will probably be the safest day. Even Grimaldus wouldn''t be stupid to move out and try again so soon. Now that they have been outed, they will most likely be lying low. Not only that¡­if they are stupid enough to try again tomorrow, you''ll probably just nuke the whole lot of them into oblivion."

    "Ha ha ha¡­you overestimate me¡­"

    Even though Fergus Franklin left it unspoken, I was certain that he wouldn''t accept another blunder under my watch. There would be no second chance if Melina got kidnapped right under my nose again. For the sake of my job security and income, as well as my own moral sense and relationship with her, I had to ensure that it wouldn''t happen again.

    "What do you plan to do tomorrow, Brother Richie?" Adrian asked. I shrugged, and he continued with a wink. "Do you have a date tomorrow?"

    "Nope."

    "Heh¡­how boring."

    "Yeah, well¡­I''m not popular with girls." I shrugged nonchalantly, not at all bothered with my situation. There were more important things for me to worry about.

    "That''s a surprise. Then again, you''re quite the nice guy, if I may say so myself." Fergus leaned back in his seat and sighed. "And from my experience, girls your age prefer guys who are¡­wilder. More outgoing. You''re the¡­how do I put it, the stable, nice guy, and they find you boring."

    "Father!" Melina stormed. "That''s mean!"

    "Ha ha, sorry." Fergus chuckled and shook his head. "But don''t worry, when it comes to ideas of marriage¡­when the girls grow up and realize that there''s a lot more to life than partying and living on the edge, and they begin seeking financial security and stability¡­that''s when someone as serious and diligent as you would appeal to them."

    "Uh¡­"

    I wasn''t sure how to respond, and Fergus continued genially.

    "So you''re basically playing the longterm game."

    I wouldn''t put it that way, but I wasn''t going to argue with the dude. Thankfully, I didn''t have to. The limousine pulled up next to the manor prepared specifically for Melina, and he let us alight.

    "Stay safe, kids," he told Melina and Adrian. His warning was meant especially for his daughter, whom he gave one last hug before letting her go. He turned to me. "Take care of them."

    "I will, sir," I assured him with a salute. "I will not commit the mistakes of today."

    "See that you won''t." He then smiled. "I have every confidence that you will not."

    Then the door shut, and the limousine pulled away. I watched the luxurious vehicle leave, and then I turned back to my two charges and herded them back into the manor. Amelia had disembarked before us, and she waited for us to catch up before we entered the house together.

    "That was quite the adventure today," the head maid remarked with a giggle. "Pity I wasn''t there, but I heard that you obliterated a Chaos Chimera."

    "Yeah, well¡­" I shrugged. "If I didn''t, the damned monster would have tried to eat me."

    "I''m glad it didn''t." she clasped her hands behind her waist and looked up while striding through the interior of the house. "I hope tomorrow will be all right¡­"

    *

    The next day came before I knew it and evening came with a flourish.

    "I hope this dress looks good too."

    "Yeah, it does! You look amazing, Melina!"

    "Yeah, it really suits you."

    "Thank you, Adrian! Sensei!" Melina spun about as she admired the flowery, yet simple dress that she had donned. It was an attire perfectly suited for summer, yet at the same time it looked elegant enough to not be out of place during the dance party. Melina, as usual, allowed her long blond hair to flow freely down here back, and the bluish-white fabric of the dress matched the color of her hair and her eyes perfectly.

    "You really look beautiful, Melina!" Adrian repeated, still unable to get over how lovely she looked. His head was bobbing up and down excitedly. I nodded encouragingly at him, remembering how much we worked to write his damend love letter yesterday. He had it prepared in the pocket of his shirt, kept in secret because¡­we didn''t want to give it away too early.

    "You all look great." This time, it was Amelia. The head maid in Melina''s household had entered the room and was admiring her mistress, but she nodded in acknowledgement when she saw Adrian and me. "Ready for the festival tonight?"

    "Yeah!"

    "Yes!"

    The two kids responded in unison, while I just shrugged and nodded. I was a little disappointed that there wouldn''t be more food available because they would be taking down the booths today ¨C the snacks were the thing I was most looking forward to in the festival, after all. But I guess tonight was the main event.

    I followed the kids to the river where a massive number of people already waited. The guys were moving toward one end of the river while the girls strolled toward the opposite end. This was how the festival was supposed to take place. The guys would begin to purchase the lantern boats, place their love letters in it and let it sail down the river. The girls would then collect the boats that was magically attuned toward them.

    Then they would meet at the bridge. Shortly after the couples unite at the bridge, the dance would start shortly after that.

    "I''ll see you later, Sensei! Adrian!" Melina waved at us before joining the girls and streaming toward the opposite direction. As a precaution, I summoned Corvus and had the crow perch on her shoulder, to make sure I knew her location no matter where she was. After the events of yesterday, I was taking no chances. Melina stared at the black crow, and then back at me. "Jeez, Sensei, you don''t have to worry."

    "Sorry."

    "No, I understand. Sorry for saying such a selfish thing. I''ll see you later!"

    Adrian and I saw her off, and then we proceeded in the opposite direction. Many of the guys had already gathered, and I saw Ivan and Edward among them. Adrian joined them, and I kept my distance, watching the guys insert their love letters into the lantern boats they purchased. Even though I didn''t join them, I didn''t let any of them leave my sight. Through Corvus''s eyes, I could see Melina wait with the other girls on the other end of the river, craning their necks as they watched for the lantern boats. Already the first of the boats were drifting along the gentle torrents, and a few of the girls eagerly stepped forward to grab them, having sensed the magical resonance that called out to them.

    "Done!"

    Adrian nodded at his classmates, and the group of them set the lantern boats down, allowing the paper constructs to float slowly down the stream. Carried by the gentle currents, they disappeared from view. Rising to their feet, the group of guys retreated back to high ground.

    "Shall we?" I asked, behaving as their chaperon. Ivan, Edward and the others gave me a weird stare ¨C they were evidently wondering why I was here, but Adrian smiled and nodded.

    "Yeah, let''s go!"

    And so we headed to the bridge. It was packed, as expected, with both guys and girls meeting there. Already there were couples who had met up, and they were crossing the bridge to head over to the square where the dance would take place. There were muscular guys throwing logs into what looked like a bonfire, which illuminated the otherwise dim night. Well, the lampposts made it pretty bright, but the artificial lighting was nothing compared to the lovely, orange glow of the bonfire.

    There was a band playing pop music in the background, and already a few couples were spinning to the music, laughing and cheering.

    Adrian and his friends waited, and the girls came soon enough. Iris, Isabella, Melina and the others. They came, bearing the love letters that the guys wrote, and they met up happily, holding each others'' hands and proceeding toward the square. I dismissed Corvus, satisfied that Melina was safe and sound, and watched them dance about in front of the bonfire. Adjusting my glasses, I withdrew to the edge and kept an eye on them.

    "So you came."

    "Eh?" I turned around and caught sight of Nan Gong Zhao Yan. She nodded toward Melina and the others.

    "I''m glad they are safe. It was a pretty¡­terrible ordeal for the two of them yesterday. It''s heartening to seem them forget about it and enjoy themselves."

    "Yeah." I folded my arms, returning my attention to the two of them. "What about you? Are you all right?"

    "Yeah." Zhao Yan nodded, and then she lowered her head. "But I''m not convinced."

    "Huh? What do you mean?"

    "About yesterday''s kidnapping case," Zhao Yan replied, her arms folded. "Wasn''t that a major incident? It involved the children from two of the Ten Great Families. It should have been big news. Yet, when I checked the news today, and searched online, and on social media¡­there was no mention. They didn''t report it at all. It was like they are trying to keep it a secret."

    "That was a request from Duke Franklin," I explained, my eyes shut briefly. "He requested the police to not make the matter public. Said that he didn''t want outsiders to know. Something to do with public morale and the dignity of the ten great families."

    I smiled briefly as I opened my eyes.

    "Don''t worry about it. I have sources that tell me that the police is seriously investigating this matter, and the mercenary guilds will get involved soon, called in to deal with these bastards. Adrian and Melina will not be in any danger."

    "Yes, I guess that''s what is most important," Zhao Yan conceded, lowering her head slightly. Then she whirled to in front of me and held up a hand. "Would you like to dance, kind sir?"

    I shrugged, and having no reason to reject, I took her hand.

    "I would be very honored to, my dear lady."

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 496 Chapter 496: Summer Camp

    "¡­are we really having a summer camp?" I asked, not at all happy about the idea.

    "Yes, we are." Teresa Taylor smiled from behind her desk, her hands clasped atop the surface. "For the middle school students. And I want you to help out in it. We''re more than willing to pay you, of course."

    The talk of money caught my attention and I straightened up. Swallowing, I stared at the headmistress.

    "Tell me the details again," I said.

    "As you know, we are a mage academy. It is our goal to train Paladins, Sword Saints and warrior mages. As such, every summer we would camp out in the wild, to expose our students to controlled risks and have them gain experience from fighting monsters. Weak ones, of course. But it wouldn''t do if we get them hurt or killed, so we need a lot of experienced supervisors who have actually seen a lot of combat. People like you."

    "I''m flattered," I responded dryly. "But I''m sure there are more¡­appropriate people for the job. So why me?"

    "Because you already have a connection with the middle school students, and also¡­if I''m allowed to be frank, you''re cheaper to hire than professional mercenaries."

    That was true. If she was going to pay the same rate, she might as well hire real professionals, not a kid like me.

    "All right. The details?"

    "It''ll be taking on the edge of Flandor City, next to Flandor Forest. It''s well known for being home to low-ranked monsters. Of course, these monsters aren''t in very high numbers, and we still have a barrier protecting the campsite when they go to bed. We''re training middle school kids, after all, and they are no use to us dead."

    "Okay¡­"

    I wasn''t sure how to respond to that, but at least we weren''t doing that whole "only the strong will survive" or "we''ll make this training as realistic as possible, and real monsters will not show mercy!" nonsense. Even in the military, we had something called conditioning, and all training prioritized safety first. Dead soldiers were no use to anyone, whereas those who dropped out of training and didn''t make the cut could excel somewhere else, such as administrative roles. There was no need to kill them off in the name of "training."

    There was a difference between training and actual combat, after all. Nobody expects you to go straight into a real battlefield without any training, and if they did, they were just being stupid. Carrying out a training regimen where 90% of the trainees ended up dead was incredibly inefficient, and you wouldn''t have an army to fight when the real war began.

    "The training camp will be held next week, from Monday to Friday. It will be five days and four nights. We''ll gather in school on Monday morning, and take a bus to the campsite. From there¡­" Taylor conjured a holographic image to display the schedule. I received a notification from my smartphone, informing that she had sent a copy to my email. "As you can see, this will be our training program. There will be night combat training as well, so be prepared."

    "All right." I saw that two of the nights ¨C Tuesday and Wednesday ¨C were dedicated to night training. Oh, this was going to be fun. Not. I wasn''t a fan of activities that sacrificed my sleep, but then again I was a night owl and could stay up pretty late. Unfortunately, that only counted when I was allowed to sleep the day off¡­which wasn''t exactly what the training schedule had planned for us. And if this was tough on the kids, then it was going to be a lot tougher on us trainers.

    After all, how could we demand of kids things that we couldn''t do ourselves?

    "Your job is to provide security," Taylor elaborated, spinning another holographic window around to display the details of my contract. "We already have teachers¡­professional trainers from the Global Federation military, who will take charge of the teaching. But we don''t have enough manpower to watch over everybody. That''s where you come in. You will stick close to the middle school students and make sure no one gets hurt. Even with all the safety precautions in place, there will still be¡­unexpected things happening. It''s your job to deal with the unexpected."

    "Unexpected, huh?" I tried not to roll my eyes. Taylor chuckled.

    "Stuff like stronger monsters showing up, appearing out of nowhere. Or assassins from the dark guild. Or even the Dark Church. I heard you have fought against them before. Your experience will be greatly appreciated here." She steepled her fingers and leaned over to stare at me closely. "This is why I believe you will be a great choice for this job. In fact, there are rumors that Grimaldus might be seizing this chance to launch an attack, with all the students so far away from the city. I''ll feel more assured if someone like you is around to keep watch on them."

    "I''ll do it." I was planning on returning to Jing Tian City for the summer, go home to see Dad and all that filial piety thing, but the opportunity to make a bit of spare cash was too tempting an offer to resist. Besides, it might help me with my own training. Every chance I could get to pit my skills against monsters or assassins or dark priests, I would be more than happy to take. It would definitely improve my ability for the future.

    "Excellent." Taylor rose to her feet and stretched her hand out to shake mine. "We have a deal then."

    "Yes, ma''am." I shook her hand before signing the contract.

    *

    Monday came, and I was accompanying the kids to the school, where we were supposed to meet up to board the bus and everything.

    "Eh? Brother Richie, you''re coming along too?" Adrian was surprised. I glared at him.

    "I told you the other day, didn''t I? Have you already forgotten?"

    "I didn''t." Melina raised her hand, looking smug. "Sensei is accompanying us as security! He''s coming to make sure we don''t get into any trouble with high-level monsters and assassins."

    "That''s right." I was glad that Melina remembered. Adrian laughed sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head.

    "Oh, yeah. Sorry. I forgot."

    "More like you weren''t paying any attention!" Melina chided him. Before they could get into a further argument, I waved toward the entrance.

    "All right, let''s go!"

    "Have a safe trip," Amelia said behind us, sending us off. We waved back at her, and then we continued onward.

    The buses were already all lined up in the square, and the middle school students were milling around, chattering excitedly amongst themselves. There was no sense of danger present ¨C the kids were viewing this camp trip as a fun one, and were really looking forward to it. That was fine ¨C kids didn''t have to worry about adult stuff.

    I distanced myself and watched as Adrian and Melina ran off to join their class after bidding me farewell. Leaning against the bus, I swept a gaze across the gathered classes of middle school students. Remembering what I saw in the training schedule, I felt sorry for them.

    They had no idea what''s coming for them. Heh.

    "Oh, you''re here too!"

    I turned around and caught sight of Rossetti Picket strolling toward me, in that rose-colored, frilly dress of hers. I frowned, wondering why she wasn''t in her school uniform.

    "Hey."

    "The dress looks good on me, huh?" Rossetti giggled as she spun around, showing off her clothes. "I was trying to rip off Assassin''s Pride."

    "We''re going to get sued for copyright at this rate, you know?" I snapped at her. "Now take off that dress!"

    Rossetti''s eyes widened and she looked at me in total shock. Her cheeks turned red and she glanced away.

    "Wow¡­Richard, I didn''t think you would be this bold. Asking me to undress right here, in front of everybody¡­in public too¡­"

    "No one asked you to change in public!" I growled, burying my face in my palm. "Just change out of that and wear something else before we get sued for plagiarism!"

    "Eh¡­"

    There wasn''t any time for her to change, though. The teachers in charge of the camp were already herding their students into the buses, and I followed Adrian and Melina''s class into their bus. As the teacher sat at the front, I hid at the back, and naturally Adrian, Melina and their friends congegrated there as well.

    "Pardon me, but what is your purpose here?" Iris asked curiously. "I believe that this is the training camp for middle school students. Don''t the high school students have their own training camp?"

    "No, I''m not involved in that one. I''m just an exchange student." I leaned back in my seat and snorted dismissively. "Besides, I''m here as security."

    "Sensei is hired to watch over us, in case high-level monsters and criminals attack," Melina explained. I was glad that she didn''t specify the assassins or Grimaldus. We didn''t want the other students to panic and go into a mode of high alert. I wanted them to enjoy the camp as much as possible. That was why I was here.

    "I¡­I see." Iris was saying one thing, but it was clear that she didn''t see at all. Why would she? The normal students remained ignorant of the real dangers of the outside world, as shelted as they were. A lot of the students enrolled in Saint Teresa Academy were from wealthy, upper class families. The modern version of nobles, in other words. Not to mention, Fergus Franklin had kept the news regarding the abduction of his daughter and Adrian under wraps, covering it up and not letting anyone know about it. As such, the larger public remained ignorant of the threat that Grimaldus posed.

    I wasn''t about to underestimate them, and since I remained privy to the details ¨C even being directly involved in the conflict ¨C I was able to prepare whatever countermeasures I could.

    The journey didn''t take long. The bus passed through the main road and exited the city. I watched outside the windows as the buildings melted away, replaced by houses. The urban landscape slowly gave way to the suburbs, and then the rows of trees grew denser and denser before we plunged right into the entrance of a forest.

    "Oh! We''re really going into Flandor Forest!"

    "We''re leaving the city!"

    "This is my first time going outside Flandor City!"

    "How exciting!"

    I tried not to snort. These were really pampered, sheltered kids who had never been out in the woods before. They were missing out on a lot. Well, perhaps that was why Taylor organized this whole training camp in the first place ¨C to get them out into the real world and gain actual combat experience. To remove the shelter that they sought refuge in and toughen them up. Better to do it now, when there were adults taking care of them and shielding them from the worst consequences and where they were still allowed to make mistakes and learn, than later in life when there was no one to watch out for them. People might celebrate "learning the hard way" but that was just dumb. Seriously. There were more efficient ways of learning, so why select the hard way over them?

    I must have dozed off or zoned out, because the next thing I knew, the students were scrambling excitedly to press their faces against the windows, gazing outward in wonder.

    "Amazing!"

    "So that''s the campsite!"

    "We''re finally here!"

    Rousing from my state of half-sleep, I adjusted my glasses and glanced out of the window. I could see a row of one-story houses stretched out in a clearing deep inside the forest. There were fields, dirt tracks for running, and even a lake next to the camp. Boats and canoes had been placed next to a small jetty, probably for kayaking or water sports.

    There was a ripple across the surface of the lake. I was pretty sure it resulted from something massive swimming just below the water.

    Oh boy¡­the kids are going to have so much fun in this camp.

    Smiling to myself, I leaned back in my seat and tried to picture their expressions of horror when they saw what they would be up against for the next five days and four nights.

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 497 Chapter 497: A Campy Chapter

    "It''s like a dream!"

    Rossetti was squealing in joy when she set foot into the camp building. Or to be more precise, the camp dormitory room for the staff. She was clasping her hands, her eyes shining with delight as she took in every nook and cranny of the¡­well, dilapidated room.

    I glanced at the cobwebs hanging from the ceiling, studied the paint that was peeling from half-rotting wooden walls, and then at the sorry-looking, plain white mattresses that served as our beds. True to form, it was a double decker bed, so one would be sleeping on top and the other at the bottom. I would probably pick the bottom, but honestly I was either way.

    Being the gentleman, I would allow Rossetti to pick whichever bunk she wanted.

    "It''s been a while since I''ve gone on a camping trip! This is so exciting!"

    Rossetti hauled herself up onto the top bed and began rolling around in delight, causing the whole wooden frame to creak and shake. I couldn''t help but be alarmed at the noise. It sounded like the old bedframe would fall apart at any time.

    Damn it, I really didn''t want to be sleeping at the bottom when then whole thing gave in and crashed on top of me. Being on the top bunk was less assuring, given that I also didn''t want to be falling from that height when the bedframe eventually collapsed.

    "Camping! Camping! I''m camping again!"

    Rossetti was singing happily as she rolled about, ignoring the dangerous sounds and the trembling of the old bedframe. I glared at her.

    "Oi, stop that. Otherwise the whole bedframe will fall apart. Do you want to sleep on the floor instead?"

    "That''s right."

    I almost jumped out of my skin when the elderly lady who managed the camp premises came up behind us, her voice strict. She was smiling, but there was no warmth in her eyes.

    "If you break the bed, you''ll have to pay for it. I''ll be deducting it from your pay. And you''ll be sleeping on the floor."

    Immediately, Rossetti jolted up and sat in seiza, adopting a stance of repentance. A bead of cold perspiration ran down her face. As for me, I slowly turned back and lowered my head apologetically, but the old lady waved me away.

    "Richard Huang, Rossetti Picket," she greeted us in a dignified manner. "The two of you are not students, but while you stay here for the next five days, I expect you to abide by the same rules."

    "Yes, ma''am," I replied. The elderly woman nodded, and smiled.

    "Of course, I am aware that the two of you are proper mages, employed by the prestigious academy of Saint Teresa, and have displayed upstanding behavior, and I believe you will act as proper adults, unlike the restless children from the middle school section, who are still wet behind the ears and prone to mischief." She placed a hand on my shoulder, her grip strong and firm. I couldn''t help but feel a chill as she leaned closer to me, her eyes hard and her smile cold. "So please refrain from committing any impure deeds, and remember to exercise some restraint."

    "Y¡­yes, ma''am," I stammered nervously, wondering what she was trying to say. Did she think I was up to no good?

    "Especially you, young man. Please behave like a gentleman at all times, and do not allow your baser instincts to control you."

    Oh¡­so that was what this was about. She was worried about this situation where a teenage boy and a teenage girl were placed in the same room. Being a woman, she of course harbored some sort of suspicion toward me, and was concerned that I would make an unethical move on the vulnerable-looking Rossetti.

    She was in for a surprise. Rossetti was more than capable of defending herself. If I didn''t want to be limping away, clutching myself between my legs, I wasn''t going to do anything.

    Watching the elderly camp manager leave, I sighed and shook my head. I could still feel the cold sweat pouring down my face.

    "Sorry about this," I apologized to Rossetti. "I know there aren''t many rooms in this campsite, but I can''t believe they assigned us to the same room."

    "Oh no, I don''t mind." Rossetti waved her hands frantically. "In fact, Headmistress Taylor should be blamed for springing this on the camp staff all of a sudden."

    Yeah, thanks to her intervention, the camp staff were flustered and in an uproar, struggling to find a spare room to accommodate the two of us. As it turned out, this was the best they could do. It wasn''t ideal, but at least we weren''t forced to sleep out in the open.

    Not that I minded. Having trained in the military before, I could sleep in the open without any qualms. All I needed was a mosquito net and I would be golden.

    "I promise I won''t do anything to you, or touch you." I was holding up my hands and swearing. Rossetti giggled at that.

    "Don''t worry, I trust you. In fact, I''m glad that you''re the one who got assigned to the same bunk as me. That puts me more at ease."

    "Uh, really?"

    "Ah, but don''t let Miura know, though. She''ll get really mad."

    Ugh¡­I could picture that. For some reason, the black-haired beauty was obsessed with me, but I had managed to give her a slip. One good thing about participating in this camp was that I could escape from her for five days. Well, even if it wasn''t for this camp, I would have returned to Jing Tian City for the summer, but I wouldn''t put it past her to drop by and pay me an unwanted visit.

    "I don''t want her to know either," I muttered, and Rossetti giggled again. I glanced at her curiously when I realized something. "Did Headmistress Taylor approach you for this job too?"

    "Hmm, yeah. I had nothing to do over the summer, so I agreed."

    Huh. I was actually wondering why Taylor chose Rossetti. It wasn''t that she was unreliable, but the selection seemed pretty random. Wouldn''t Kufa Van Peer be a better choice for this mission, for example?

    Obviously I couldn''t ask that out loud, or it would seem like I was questioning Rossetti''s abilities. I knew from experience that she wasn''t that weak. I had seen her fight before, even dueled against her once. I think.

    "Sensei."

    There was a knock on the door, and both Rossetti and I exchanged a glance before I called back out.

    "Yeah, what''s up? Go ahead and come in."

    Melina opened the door, smiling brightly. Next to her, Adrian poked his head in.

    "Have you finished packing your stuff?" he asked with a grin.

    "We have to hurry," Melina added excitedly. "The camp briefing is about to begin."

    "Okay. Give us a second." I dropped my backpack on the lower bunk. It was clear that Rossetti had placed dibs on the upper bunk, which suited me fine. There wasn''t much stuff in my backpack except spare clothes, so I grabbed my smartphone and followed my students. Rossetti also dropped down from her bunk and landed behind me.

    "Eh? Miss Rossetti, you are sharing a room with Sensei???? Melina looked at her curiously. Rossetti could only chuckle wryly and nod.

    "Ah, yes. Seems that way. They didn''t have enough rooms, so we don''t have a choice."

    "Heh¡­" Adrian looked at me mischievously, and then nudged me with a wink. "Seems like a good chance for you, Brother Richie."

    "Don''t talk nonsense," I told him curtly. "If I even attempt anything that so much as hints at being, uh, unethical, the camp manager will throw me out into the wilderness faster than I can say, ''no, this isn''t what it looks like!''"

    "What she doesn''t know won''t hurt hre," Adrian replied before snickering. I gulped and glanced back at the dorm room that I shared with Rossetti befor she shut the door. Suddenly, every crevice and corner of the rotting wooden walls looked suspicious.

    "We''ll have to check for bugs and recording devices later," I mumbled. "I seriously don''t want to have to deal with eavesdroppers and spies."

    "Ugh! I agree!?? Rossetti hugged herself, turning a bit pale. "That''s a clear invasion of privacy. They can''t do that!"

    We followed my students into the massive field that was right outside the rows of camp buildings. Already the majority of students had gathered there and broken into groups. A few were still trickling in, streaming here and there from the camp buildings. A lot of them were looking around in wonder, this being their first experience in outdoors for many of them.

    They were really missing out on a lot. Well, at least some of them had some form of camping experience ¨C from the way they moved, they seemed confident and at home.

    Adrian was one of them. Unlike the awestruck Melina, he was practically skipping along, humming to himself and looking not too impressed. I wasn''t sure how to put it, but I had the impression that he was pretty familiar with the woods. I glanced at him with a raised eyebrow.

    "You''ve camped in the woods before?" I asked. Adrian scoffed.

    "Of course! Dad brought me out to camp in the woods before!"

    "Heh¡­I see." I nodded, partially impressed. Well, I expected that. Sacha looked like an outgoing person, after all, and I was aware that he fished as a hobby. It wasn''t too unusual that he would take his son out for a camping trip.

    "All right, gather around! Those still streaming in, hurry up! We don''t have much time!"

    The camp trainer who was in charge, Xun Lian Jia, was beckoning for the students to pick up the pace. There were a few dissatisfied murmurs ¨C the students still wanting to admire the scenery ¨C but nobody disobeyed. In less than a minute, all of the students had lined up in their various groups and were waiting for Xun Lian Jia to speak.

    Rossetti and I had joined the few teachers who had tagged along, hanging out at the side. Occasionally, I would glance outward to ensure that there were no monsters encroaching upon our territory or something.

    "Hmm¡­"

    I pushed my glasses up my nose as I stared at the lake. Again, there was that massive ripple as something enormous swam just beneath the surface. Were the camp trainers aware of that? Appeared that a few of them were keeping watch, but they continued to be indifferent. Was it a common occurrence or something?

    "Is that a monster in the lake?" Rossetti whispered, having noticed that I was staring in a different direction. I shrugged.

    "Probably. Seems like part of the training program, though."

    Rossetti shuddered. "I hope not¡­that looks huge."

    I scoffed. No matter how massive the damned monster was, it wouldn''t survive a nuke spell from one of my Constellation spirits. Not that I was going to brag about it, of course, so I remained silent. Instead, I turned back to Xun Lian Jia, who was giving the usual introductory speech.

    "Over the course of the next five days, I''m going to beat you into shape and turn all of you into hardy warriors!" he was declaring. "I''m sure you''ve already received the digital handbooks about this camp and seen the schedule. And yes, I''m conforming right now that there is no mistake. You''ll be suffering in this camp."

    There were groans and complaints from the students, but Xun Lian Jia ignored them. Instead, he continued confidently.

    "However, by the end of this camping session, you will be thanking me. You know why? Because you''ll be much stronger than before! You''ll be skilled warriors¡­survivors! You can boast to other people that you''ve successfully taken part in the slaying of monsters!"

    A few of the guys couldn''t help but be excited over that, their fists clenched enthusiastically as they cheered.

    "But for now¡­we''ll begin with the basics. All of you, get ready to hit the track in ten seconds! We''ll be running ten miles first!"

    "What?!"

    "Eh?!"

    "Shut up and do it!" Xun Lian Jia shouted over the protests. Scared into submission, the middle school students began to move reluctantly toward the track.

    "Let''s go," I told Rossetti, who looked at me, stunned.

    "Huh? Go where?"

    "Running, of course." I gave her a stare. "You don''t suppose we should be slacking off while the middle school students train by themselves, do you?"

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 498 Chapter 498: Wet Dream

    "Huff¡­huff¡­"

    Wiping the perspiration from my face, I turned to look at the huge lake. The creature was still remaining hidden under the surface for now and other than me and Rossetti, no one else seemed to have noticed it. The middle school students were too busily running, and I accompanied both them and the trainers.

    Rossetti and the teachers, on the other hand declined the opportunity to join in. I wasn''t one to judge, so I just left them to watch by the side while I followed the kids on the track. Of course, I wasn''t just there to train. My job was to provide security, after all, and I ensured that I scanned the surroundings for any sign of danger while simultaneously running alongside the middle school students.

    Since it was my duty to protect them, I figured that the best way to do that was to stick close to the kids. Obviously there was no way for me to protect every single one of them, so I lingered near those who really mattered.

    "Brother Richie!" Adrian panted when he saw me. I nodded at him and noted that Melina was running next to him. Along with their friends, they had congregated in one large group and were running together. The spirit of camaraderie and all that. I was glad that they were taking the whole "working together to promote teamwork" and cooperation stuff seriously. That was good, I guess? Adrian grinned as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. "You''re running with us too?"

    "Yeah. Would be good to have some exercise." I glanced at the lake. "After this, we''ll have water activities?"

    "Yeah," Adrian confirmed. "The trainers said they will give us an opportunity to cool off after the run. But they intend to do so by throwing us into the lake."

    "It''s like a dream come true!" Melina gushed, clasping her hands as she jogged. "I always wanted to swim in a lake!"

    "There will be more than just swimming. I heard they want to simulate aquatic combat." This time it was Iris. She dabbed at her damp cheek absent-mindedly. "I don''t know how they intend to conduct the training¡­"

    "Don''t worry," Ivan assured her. "It''ll be fun! The trainers will make sure we won''t get into anything too dangerous."

    I wondered if the kids knew there was a gigantic monster hiding beneath the lake. From the shape, I surmised that it was a whale or some gigantic fish (maybe a Megalodon?). Definitely not a crocodile or the Loch Ness Monster. There was no long, almost serpentine neck from what I could see, and I was pretty sure I could make out fins. Even by maximizing the resolution and using the sensors on my glasses, I still couldn''t make out what was hiding underwater. It was unfortunate, but my glasses weren''t omnipotent.

    "All right!" chief trainer, Xun Lian Jia, clapped his hands as he stopped at the front. He spun around and gestured for everyone to stop. Relieved, the middle school kids came to a halt before bending over and heaving, the majority coughing as they struggled to catch their breaths. A few glanced up with trepidation, wondering what other torture Xun Lian Jia had in store for them. He didn''t disappoint them. "All of you, dive into the lake right now!"

    "¡­huh?"

    The middle school students gaped at him blankly, and Xun Lian Jia glowered back at them. His hands on his fists, his aura suddenly became fiery and I swore I almost saw a monster materialized behind him. A demon, more like it, the type with horns and stakes.

    "Did you not hear me?" he roared. "I told you to dive into the lake right now!"

    All the kids obeyed unquestioningly, unable to resist his fury. A lot of them were just moving on instinct, plunging into the dark waters of the lake just to escape the chief trainer''s wrath. Adrian and Melina were calmer, having been trained by me, but even the two of them were swept up by the crushing currents of their peers, and they decided to go along with the flow for now.

    Smiling, I joined them. Splashing about in the lake was fun, and besides, with my affinity with ice I wasn''t that averse to spending much time next to large bodies of water. I wonder if there was a Gyaragon in this lake.

    "This is different from the Lake of Rage," I mused to myself. "That gigantic monster swimming below the surface doesn''t look like a Gyaragon at all."

    Yeah, it was too bulky and bloated to be the serpentine Gyaragon.

    "Gyaragon?" Several of the middle school kids caught part of my words and looked at me nervously. I smiled and shook my head.

    "I said there are no Gyaragons in here."

    "Oh." The kids immediately looked relieved. I hid my smirk, thinking that they relaxed too soon. After all, I only said there were no Gyaragons here. I didn''t say there were no other monsters or that it was safe.

    Nor did I intend on telling them that.

    However, it was precisely because I wasn''t sure how safe it would be that I joined them in the lake, diving in and looking for the gigantic lake monster. My glasses had some magical anti-water spell that repelled moisture and formed some sort of air bubble that allowed my lenses to remain dry and my eyes to be comfortable underwater. Basically a pair of makeshift magic goggles. And to think readers were criticizing me for wearing glasses at the beginning of the story. Hah! They had no idea how useful glasses are!

    "¡­"

    I drifted to a stop in the water and stared at the enormous white whale that dwelled within its depths. Its baleen mouth was somehow still open and it was surging toward the kids who had just intruded into its territory.

    Too late, the students saw the gigantic whale and began to scream. Panicking, they tried to rush toward the shore, but Xun Lian Jia was there, and with a swing of his hand, he blasted them back into the waters.

    "Help!"

    "There''s a monster!"

    "We''re doomed!"

    I frowned and began to summon Black Tortoise. Sensing the mana swirling about me, Xun Lian Jia quickly stepped forward and waved at me.

    "It''s all right, it''s all right! The sensei over there, don''t do anything! This is part of the training program!"

    "¡­eh?"

    "Just get out of the water and watch." Xun Lian Jia sighed. Feeling a little sheepish, I jumped out of the lake and landed on the shore, water splashing about. That was fine ¨C with my control over water, I could dry myself out pretty quickly. Xun Lian Jia patted my soulder. "Don''t worry. This is pretty safe. That monster has been¡­completely neutered. It''s huge, but it''s harmless."

    He then stepped forward and yelled at the kids.

    "What''s the matter of you? I know the White Whale is massive, but there''s only one of it and over a hundred of you! How can you be afraid of it? You have it outnumbered, so start fighting it!"

    The White Whale let out a sad moan, but it lashed out, sending kids flying. Fortunately, this being the water, when they crashed back into the lake, they didn???t really get hurt. In fact a few of them began laughing.

    "Let''s work together!" Melina shouted, raising her sword. "It''s just one monster, and there''s so many of us!"

    "Yeah!" Adrian hollered next to her. Their friends were rallying to them, and I watched in satisfaction as they gathered together to start casting spells and coordinating attacks on the White Whale. Fire, ice, lightning, wood, earth, wind and all sorts of different elemental spells coalesced and converged onto the poor monster, striking it. It wailed and thrashed about.

    For the next hour or so, I watched as the kids fought and attacked the White Whale in what seemed like a one-sided battle. Of course, its immense bulk meant that the kids were sent flying all over the place, but they seemed to enjoy themselves more than be afraid or get hurt. The White Whale, on the other hand, was pretty resilient. No matter how much the kids bombarded them, it didn''t seem to suffer even a scratch. Their attacks were more like minor irritances against its thick hide and enormous size than any real threat.

    "All right!" Xun Lian Jia called out from the shore and clapped his hands in satisfaction. "All of you can come back to the shore now. Aquatic training is over!"

    I was bemused to see that several of the kids were actually reluctant to leave the lake. They were having so much fun. The White Whale, on the other hand, was relieved, and it swam away, seeking refuge in the depths of the lake, no doubt trying to get away from the fleas that were harassing it all day long. I actually felt sorry for it.

    "All right, hit the showers, dry yourselves up, and we''ll be having dinner after this!" Xun Lian Jia then grinned wickedly. "But¡­you''ll have to cook your own dinner!"

    At this point, none of the students seemed to care, and they were more than happy to do whatever chores the chief trainer had in mind for them.

    *

    "Ugh, so tired!"

    Rossetti jumped down before landing on her bed and rolling about, whining like a child. I glared at her.

    "You''re tired? How?! You did absolutely nothing at all!"

    She didn''t run with the kids, she didn''t jump into the lake to accompany the kids, and she didn''t even help much with cooking. I didn''t know where she had the audacity to complain about being exhausted. Shaking my head, I decided not to retort any further and crawled into bed. Unlike her, I had a very legitimate excuse to be drained, after getting involved in all the day''s events.

    No sooner than my head hit my pillow when I fell asleep. Or at least that was the plan, but I was suddenly roused from sleep when Rossetti dropped down on me.

    "Huh?" I stared up at her, bleary eyed. The lights were off ¨C she must have switched them off at some point. I had the impression that a few hours had passed, especially since the night was a lot darker than before. The shadows were longer, and I could hardly see Rossetti''s figure in the moonlight, but there was no mistaking her pinkish-red hair and emerald eyes. "Miss Rossetti? What are you doing?"

    "Hey, are you really¡­not at all bothered by this?"

    "Bothered by what?" I asked, biting back my irritation.

    "A guy and a girl sharing the same room¡­are you really not the least affected by this at all?"

    "What''s there to be affected?" I asked wearily. "I already gave my word that I won''t do anything to you. Now go back to sleep. We have an early day tomorrow."

    "That''s not it¡­I want you to do something to me."

    At that moment, I was suddenly aware that she was straddling me. At some point, she had thrown off my blanket and was sitting astride me, her thighs tightly locked against each side of my hips. I blinked and stiffened. She was pressing her loins down against my groin.

    "Oi! What are you¡­?"

    "Sh¡­you''ll wake the others up." Rossetti took my hand and pressed it to her breast. Smiling, she played with my fingers and tried to have me clumsily stroke her. "How does that feel?"

    I tried to snatch my hand out of her grip, but she refused to let go. She was strong, unusually so. Looking a little disappointed, she then led my hand underneath her blouse and right onto her bare breast. She wasn''t wearing a bra underneath that thin piece of clothing, and suddenly my fingers were in direct contact with her flesh.

    "Hey!"

    "How about now? Does it feel much better without anything in between?"

    "This is bad!" I objected, yanking my hand away. "Get off me! You''re going too far!"

    "But I haven''t gotten very far yet," Rossetti protested. In a single movement, she pulled her dress over her head, and then there she was straddling me in full nakedness. My jaw dropped. She swallowed, and glanced away, her cheeks flushing. "This¡­this is embarrassing, you know? Don''t stare so much. You get naked too."

    "No!"

    But she was having none of it. I didn''t know how she possessed such strength, but she tore my shirt off my chest, and then my trousers and underwear were next to go. I struggled, but she pinned me underneath her, her legs locking my body.

    "Stop this! This isn''t funny!"

    "I know." Rossetti then leaned forward and silenced me with a kiss. With a hand, she guided my thick, trembling shaft into her warm, moist opening. In a single stroke, she impaled herself upon me and gasped before toppling over onto my chest. "W¡­whoa. I heard about it from my friends, but I didn''t expect it to be¡­like this."

    "No!" I yelled, trying to squirm out from under her. I could feel her vaginal walls clenching around my penis, refusing to let me go. Rossetti propped herself up and slowly lifted her hips before slamming down again, her loins grinding against mine.

    This time, I fell back, shuddering. My hands automatically went to her behind, cupping her buttocks. I was thrusting into her right now, unable to control myself. Satisfied, Rossetti moved in synch with me, matching my rhythm. Pulling back, she then met me in a pleasurable collision that sent sweet shockwaves throughout our bodies.

    I gritted my teeth, unable to bear it. My fingers digging into the soft skin of her rump, I pulled her closer as I rammed into her again. Her vagina clenched around my penis, the juices of our lovemaking mingling and I was no longer able to control myself. The final straw came when she ground her hips against mine, and suddenly the both of us cried out.

    Rossetti went into spasms as her climax hit her and she collapsed onto my chest once more, her body wracked in the throes of pleasure. As for me, I could no longer hold it in and ejaculated into her womb. A warm sensation enveloped us, and I relaxed, sinking back into the bed while her weight was upon me.

    "S¡­sorry," I murmured as I finally let go of her buttocks. Damn it, I had to do it inside her¡­this meant I had to take responsibility. I hoped it was a safe day for her¡­if she got pregnant from this, we would be in a lot of trouble.

    "It''s okay," Rossetti whispered and leaned over to kiss me. "Thank you. This was quite the experience."

    "Uh, yeah¡­" I muttered, not sure how to respond. What was this about?

    Rossetti smiled, and then her mouth dropped open and she began screaming in this shrill, beeping tone that pierced my ears¡­

    ¡­and then I woke up.

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 499 Chapter 499: Waking Nightmare

    I woke up when the alarm in my smartphone screeched, and jolted upright, almost hitting my head against Rossetti''s bunk above.

    "What the hell was that?" I gasped, blinking in confusion. Reaching for my glasses, I glanced around and saw that everything was still normal. My clothes were on, I had the blanket pulled up above me. On top, Rossetti was peacefully snoozing atop her bunk, her breathing steady and rhythmic. Not on top of me, but on her own bed above mine.

    ¡­yeah, the whole thing was a dream. Well, what did you expect from a chapter titled "Wet Dream"? Sorry for trolling you guys, readers, but I just couldn''t resist. Also, I was a healthy young man who currently possessed a teenage body. It was only natural to have dreams like this from time to time.

    Speaking of which¡­ugh¡­looked like I was going to have to wash my underwear later. This was embarrassing. Fortunately, we staff had been provided with our own private showers, allocated bathrooms that we didn??t have to share with the middle school students.

    Since my alarm clock had chosen to go off at this moment, it was time for me to wake up. Kicking off the blanket and gingerly hopping out of my bed, I went to wash up. As for Rossetti, I left her where she was. if she couldn''t wake up on her own, I wasn''t going to bother with her.

    *

    "Why didn''t you wake me up?!" Rossetti complained as she rushed out of the dorm room, still frantically tying her long, auburn hair into a side ponytail. I shrugged as I strode down the corridor, unable to meet her gaze or even look at her.

    "Sorry."

    "Don''t sorry me¡­" she paused to stare at me curiously. "You know, you''ve been acting strangely since this morning. What happened?"

    "Nothing," I insisted stubbornly, but I was still unable to make eye contact. Seriously, what was I supposed to say? Tell her that I had a wet dream about her last night? That would make things a lot more awkward between us.

    "Hmm¡­??? Rossetti regarded me suspiciously, but thankfully she didn''t press the issue. Most probably because she knew I wouldn''t say anything even if she persisted. Really, she didn''t have to know. She would regret ever asking me about it if I told her every single detail of the stupid dream I had.

    "Sensei!"

    I smiled when I caught sight of Melina, and then Adrian beside her. The middle school students were already preparing their meals, having to cook their own breakfast. I was ready to help, of course, which was why I woke up so early. Actually, I already helped earlier, and was sent back to wake Rossetti up when the camp manager realized that one of the security staff was missing.

    "You didn''t do anything weird to her, right?" she had asked me sternly, and I vehemently denied it. It was the truth, after all. I really didn''t do anything to her in reality. Dreams didn''t count. And besides, in the dream it was Rossetti who came on to me.

    Honestly, I doubted she was that bold to approach me like that in real life. Another reason why I should have realized that it was a dream. It was one thing if it was Miura La Noir, but Rossetti Picket? Nah. Surely not.

    By the time I had returned, with Rossetti in tow, the students had already finished prepping their meals and were distributing them out. Rossetti and I stood in line to receive our share, and I noticed that I had a larger portion than Rossetti''s. Not because I was a guy and she was a girl, which generally meant she ate less, but because¡­

    "You didn''t help out," the girl handing out portions told poor Rossetti bluntly.

    "Ah, ha ha ha¡­" Rossetti could only laugh sheepishly. "Sorry, I overslept."

    "That''s not an excuse!"

    Yeah, especially since the middle school students woke up earlier than she did¡­plus, she didn''t join the training like I did yesterday, yet I somehow woke up before her.

    Anyway, we joined Adrian and Melina at their table, along with their friends Iris, Ivan, Edward and Isabella. Iris watched me and Rossetti curiously, her eyes curious. Even as she poked at her bacon with a fork, she opened her mouth to ask.

    "Are you two¡­?"

    "No," I said immediately, simultaneously refusing to remember last''s night dream and knowing what she was referring to.

    "What do you mean no? You didn''t even allow her to finish asking her question!" Rossetti protested. I rolled my eyes, but didn''t say anything. Rossetti then turned back to Iris with a friendly smile. "Sorry, what were you about to ask?"

    "Are you both dating?"

    Rossetti almost spat out her orange juice when she heard that, her face turning very red.

    "Of¡­of course not! What kind of question was that?"

    "See?" I muttered, rolling my eyes. "I was trying to save you the awkwardness, but you had to go and trample on my kindness."

    "A¡­anyway¡­" Rossetti hurriedly wiped her blushing face with a napkin. "There''s nothing of that sort."

    "Then why are you sharing a room?" Ivan asked innocently.

    "Because there aren''t enough in this camp," I replied wearily. He nodded in understanding.

    "That''s too bad."

    After we finished with our breakfast, we gathered on the huge field outside the building, when Xun Lian Jia took center stage. He clapped his hands to draw our attention over, and swept his stern gaze across the middle school students who had gathered.

    "All right, you worms!" he shouted. "We have a full-day combat course for you, so make sure you don''t fall behind! And it''s going to include night training! I''m sure you''ve seen the schedule ¨C if so, you should have expected this. If you didn''t, then too bad! Now, warm up! Time to run!"

    There were groans and complaints from the middle school student, but they knew it would be futile, so they just went along with it. Just like yesterday, I joined in and ran with them, and then accompanied them as they went through obstacle courses, combat with actual monsters from the wilderness. As promised, the camp staff only lured weak monsters toward the camp ¨C monsters that the middle school students could actually handle with their current level. I stayed back during combat ¨C it would defeat the purpose of the training program if I went and killed all the monsters for the trainees. Besides, Mandrakes and Mini Boars weren''t that big a threat. I watched proudly as Adrian and Melina got high scores.

    The two of them had faced Cyclops Rats in the past. Mandrakes and Mini Boars were nothing compared to those. Not only that, it seemed that these F-ranked monsters had been nerfed heavily, which was good for the other middle school students. I guess.

    The day dragged on, and after dinner, there was some simulated combat against Night Owls and Forest Moles. Again, they didn''t pose much of a challenge¡­or shouldn''t have, but since the trainees were middle school kids, they had a bit of trouble. Nothing they couldn''t overcome through sheer tenacity and perseverance, of course.

    "They''re shaping up well, aren''t they?" Rossetti asked as she stepped up beside me, watching the students cast spells to fire off into a flock of fleeing Night Owls. The both of us had continued doing our duty, keeping a vigilant eye out for any stronger monsters that might have somehow bypassed our security and barriers and snuck up on the students. So far, there were none.

    "Yeah," I agreed with a nod. "It''s different from Jing Tian Academy."

    I recalled the training camp held during the summers when I was still a middle school student. They were more fun than training, and usually involved ranking matches and the like. Lots of competition. Apparently Saint Teresa Academy had done the same last year, for a long time, but the changing curriculum and needs of the present had caused the schools to revise their training programs and summer camps.

    Before I could remark on the change to Rossetti, however, I suddenly sensed an ominous presence. The atmosphere changed, and a swell of darkness expanded over the horizon, filling the entire space with dread.

    The monsters took off even faster than before, and even the middle school students paused in the midst of their attacks, realizing something was amiss. One of the training staff raced toward Xun Lian Jia and whispered urgently to him, and he strode hastily to the center of the field.

    "Everyone, stop what you''re doing!" he bellowed. Not that he needed to. Everyone had literally abandoned their current tasks at the sudden transformation of atmosphere. The trainers were hurrying about now, taking charge of the scattered groups of students and bringing them together. "As of right now, all training sessions are cancelled! The trainers will be bringing you to the shelter shortly. You will remain there until I say it is all right to leave! All trainers, do a head count and make sure no one is missing! We will be heading to the underground shelter immediately!"

    "What''s happening?"

    "What''s going on?"

    "I don''t know, but there''s something scary coming. Can''t you feel that?"

    "Yeah¡­is it a monster? Are we under attack?"

    As the students gossiped and chattered amongst themselves, the trainers got into their midst and hurried them along.

    "All right, everybody! Follow us! This way! Don''t fall behind!"

    I joined Adrian and Melina, as well as their group, and gestured for them to go. Adrian glanced at me, his nose wrinkled.

    "Do you know who is attacking, Brother Richie?"

    "No idea." I shook my head. "But whoever it is¡­it''s not good."

    The air of malevolence was so stifling that it was beginning to suffocate me. Around me, the students were panicking, unable to withstand the heavy air of dread that emanate from the opposite side of the lake. Glancing at the large body of water, I saw massive, gray clouds roiling above it. Mana was taking the form of violet lightning, striking and swirling around the surface of the lake, which began to boil viciously.

    "The lake! Did you see that?!"

    "Something''s coming!"

    "Mommy! Save me!"

    "What the hell is that?!"

    "Move it! All of you!" Xun Lian Jia roared. He waved the students along and barked instructions to his trainers while he proceeded toward the lake. His device beamed to life, a glowing sword that crackled with blue lightning. At that moment, the middle-aged camp manager showed up, and he turned to her, his voice filled with urgency. "Contact HQ, tell them to send reinforcements. We have a rank A mage here."

    "The enemy is human?" the camp manager asked, her eys wide. Xun Lian Jia nodded, his eyes still on the lake.

    "Unfortunately¡­yes. Now go!"

    She hurried off, while ushering more of the middle school students toward the camp buildings. As for me, I patted Adrian and Melina''s shoulders.

    "You guys go head and seek refuge in the shelter." I turned to Rossetti. "I''ll be counting on you to look after them."

    "What do you plan to do, Sensei?" Melina asked worriedly.

    "Don''t tell me¡­" Adrian''s eyes widened. "Brother Richie, you plan on fighting the enemy?"

    "Yeah," I confirmed. "That''s what I''m best at."

    "Are you serious?!" Rossetti demanded, glaring at me. "You can''t! Let the adults handle it! I''m sure Chief Xun Lian Jia will¡­"

    "He won''t last longer than a few minutes." I pushed my glasses up and sighed. "Don''t you sense the immense amount of power coming from this¡­person? He''s no ordinary mage. And look¡­Chief Xun Lian Jia''s hands are trembling violently. He also understands the strength of this person very well."

    "All the more¡­" Rossetti began, but I shook my head.

    "If I don''t delay the guy until reinforcements arrive, he''ll break into the shelter and slaughter everyone in there. Besides, you know what kind of magic I use. I''ll be more useful out here in the open than in confined space."

    Rossetti gave me a look, and she finally conceded my point with a nod.

    "Be careful," she told me.

    "Yeah! Watch yourself, Brother Richie!" Adrian added. I could tell that he really wanted to join me, but knew he would be nothing more than a burden. I couldn''t fight as well if I had to protect him from the enemy as well.

    "Please don''t get hurt, Sensei," Melina pleaded as well, her eyes shining with worry. She then smiled, and I realized that she trusted me enough to believe that I would win. "Good luck, and kick that guy''s ass for us."

    "Heh. I will do my best." I nodded and sent them running toward the shelter before I turned around to join Xun Lian Jia and face the impending threat.

    "You shouldn''t be here," the chief trainer told me, but he didn''t order me to fall back.

    That was a good sign, at least. He was aware as I was that he was no match for the enemy, whoever it was.

    "Can you hold the guy off by yourself?" I asked as I placed my hands on the hilts of my two swords. "I don''t mean to doubt your abilities, but¡­yeah. Besides, having an extra hand around will increase our chances of victory."

    "Victory?" Xun Lian Jia threw his head back and laughed. "You''re considering the possibility of victory? I''ll be happy if we''re somehow able to survive until the frontline military mages arrive." He then grew solemn. "Until they come, it''s just you and me against¡­that thing, boy."

    "Yeah." I didn''t put on any false bravado this time and watched the lake. By now, the storm had calmed, and a single gigantic bolt of purple lightning struck, vaporizing the water into steam. A dark sihoutte appeared to materialize above the boiling surface of the lake.

    The enemy had finally chosen to show itself.

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 500 Chapter 500: The Black Swordsman

    At first, I wasn''t sure what I was seeing.

    Quite clearly the enemy was human, as Xun Lian Jia predicted. His silhouette was shadowy, his body encased entirely in obsidian armor that was as black as night. What seemed like purple veins ran along the surface of his gleaming armor, glowing eerily with barely contained demonic power. In his gauntleted hands, he held a single sword that was also the shade of midnight, the point of its blade thrust down into the steaming lake.

    He was literally standing on water.

    His face was hidden behind a helm, yet I could see glowing red eyes behind his caged visor burning ferociously into us. Heaving up his sword slightly, he then slowly approached us, taking one deliberate step at a time. Just like a deity from the times of mythology, he was walking on water. Each step he took vaporized more of the lake, sending boiling steam jetting upward like volcanic geysers.

    "No way¡­impossible¡­" beside me, Xun Lian Jia was whispering. "Why is he here?"

    "Huh? ''He''?" I repeated incredulously, turning to stare at him. "Do you know this guy?"

    "The number one nightmarish killer of Grimaldus¡­their strongest warrior mage. The Black Swordsman of Grimaldus, he has never yet failed to kill anyone that the Dark Guild has sent him after. They say that he was a former Assassin from the Umbra Sect, before the leader of Grimaldus took him in. He killed his way out of the Assassin''s Guild just to join Grimaldus." Xun Lian Jia looked as if he was on the verge of collapse, his knees shaking. Tears leaked from his eyes. "We''re doomed."

    Holy f¡­that was one hell of a guy¡­to think that he could brutally slaughter his way out of the Assassin''s Guild and escape to become the number one killer of Grimaldus¡­

    This wasn''t going to be good.

    Before the Black Swordsman could cross the halfway point of the lake, however, something enormous burst out of the waters to ram into him. The White Whale, roaring furiously, made use of its immense bulk to slam the enemy away. To make use of overwhelming brute force to expel the audacious human who had trespassed upon its territory.

    The Black Swordsman couldn''t even be bothered to look at the gargantuan monster. With a single swing of his shining black sword, he cleaved the charging White Whale apart. A flash of black light erupted, and the White Whale split into two, both of its halves falling on either side of the Black Swordsman and spewing blood into the boiling water. The steam turned red.

    I couldn''t help but be stunned. The very same White Whale whose incredible resilience allowed it to withstand a sustaied onslaught of spells from over a hundred mages for an hour¡­had been sliced apart by a single stroke from the Black Swordsman. Yeah, I knew that those mages were middle school students, but the amount of firepower from over a hundred kids still couldn''t be underestimated. It was still sufficient to level an entire city block. And the White Whale had shrugged that sort of firepower off as nothing more than a minor irritance.

    That same White Whale was now sinking into the depths of its lake, its corpse sundered into two by a single sword strike.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me¡­"

    The black swordsman continued to walk toward us, as if the White Whale had been nothing more than pest that he had casually swatted away.

    "Ah¡­aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

    With a yell, Xun Lian Jia began casting a spell and launching a burst of blue lightning at the approaching Black Swordsman. I whirled around, my jaw dropping.

    "No, don''t!" I yelled. "Stop!"

    I was too late.

    The next sequence of events unfolded in what almost seemed like slow motion to me. Even as everything appeared to crawl past me in a surreal, illusory manner, my body still wasn''t able to catch up with my horrified mind.

    First, the Black Swordsman dispelled Xun Lian Jia''s ill-advised spell with a single slash of his sword. Then he disappeared from the surface of the lake.

    No, he didn''t literally disappear. He was moving so fast that he turned into a black blur. Kicking off the surface of the lake and sending up a large splash, he streaked toward the shore. In the next millisecond, he already reached the stunned Xun Lian Jia. Even as the chief trainer pulled up his sword to defend himself, the black blade flashed down.

    "Gah!"

    The single strike obliterated Xun Lian Jia''s sword, destroying the weapon utterly and sending the poor, burly chief trainer flying in a fountain of blood. I didn''t know if Xun Lian Jia had been killed by the blow, but I knew for certain that he would no longer be able to participate in the fight.

    "Damn it¡­!"

    The Black Swordsman was already turning toward me, as if Xun Lian Jia had been some inconsequential foe that he couldn''t be bothered to keep track of him. I was barely able to ward off his strike in time by parrying his blade with my crossed swords.

    "Ugh!"

    That single blow almost broke my arms. Staggering a few steps back, I struggled to keep with with the next barrage of attacks. The Black Swordsman''s strokes were swift and precise, each one striking with the force of a hurricane. Despite doing my best to parry them, I was left with a series of cuts across my arms, cheeks and shoulder. Several gashes on my chest dripped blood, and I winced from the pain.

    However¡­

    "!!!"

    The Black Swordsman whirled around to strike at Green Dragon, my Celestial Guardian materializing behind to strike at him. Claws met sword and exploded. Petals swirled about Green Dragon and he launched the razor-sharp petals at the Black Swordsman, who deflected each and every single one of them with insane speed.

    While he was engaged with Green Dragon, I struck at his seemingly exposed back. Both of my swords streaked forward at different spots, aimed at his vitals. Hei Yue at his heart and Bai Ri at his kidney.

    To my utmost surprise, the Black Swordsman spun around and easily fended off my strikes while retaliating fiercely. I had an impression of a gigantic demon bearing down on me and instinctively warded off his shining, onyx blade as desperately as I could. His attack almost knocked my swords out of my hand, and for a millisecond I could see closing in on me to capitalize on his advantage.

    And then he swung about, ignoring me to parry Green Dragon''s claws and knock away the petals. While he was engaged with me, several of Green Dragon''s flower petals had cut sliced through his skin and drew blood, but they were minor injuries. Nothing too fatal, and nothing that would incapacitate him. In fact, his attacks seemed faster and more precise than before.

    "Ugh!"

    Despite trying to trap him in a pincer attack, the Black Swordsman fought off both Green Dragon and me at the same time, and even carved a couple of new wounds into my arms. I gritted my teeth as I staggered back, heaving from the pain. At this rate, even if I avoided his lethal hits, I would eventually die a death of a thousand cuts.

    The Black Swordsman blasted Green Dragon with a wave of obsidian energy that incinerated the flower petals and vines that had whipped out to entangle him, as my great Celestial Guardian was knocked a few pegs back. At the same time, I tried to stab him, but he swung about and struck me with his sword. I barely managed to parry his blade in time, but even though I crossed both of my swords to block his strike, the sheer force of his attack sent me hurtling backward.

    "Argh!"

    The immense shockwaves had almost broken my arms, and they felt numb from the strike. I hit the ground and rolled, blood dripping from my mouth. The Black Swordsman then descended upon my position, but before he could reach me, White Tiger materialized and struck him with a paw. Lightning exploded against a malicious black aura, and both parties sprang apart, with White Tiger nursing a bleeding claw and the Black Swordsman coughing out some blood. His black armor and cloak smoldered, having taken a direct hit from White Tiger''s lightning bolt.

    "Impressive."

    I gaped at him in shock. This was the first time I had heard him speak. The Black Swordsman merely regarded me, and held his sword perpendicular to the ground as he adopted a new offensive stance. The point of his glowing onyx blade was directed at me, as if he planned to stab me with a single thrust. But from that far away?

    Then again, he was a combat mage. Things weren''t always as what they appeared.

    Boom!

    "!!!"

    As I expected, the Black Swordsman unleashed a lance of destructive mana that cut through the entire field, ploughing through the soil and almost piercing through my flesh. Fortunately, I had dove to the side while simultaneously summoning another of my Constellation spirits.

    "Scutum Sobiescianum!"

    The shield of Sobieski materialized and blocked the sharp lance of mana, only to disintegrate almost immediately. Fortunately, my Constellation shield had bought me enough time to conjure a more powerful defense. The air around me froze into ice as I accumulated all of the moisture in the atmosphere to erect a dense shield.

    "Snow Aegis!"

    The black lance surged into the gigantic snowflake-shaped shield and dissipated harmlessly. The Black Swordsman appeared to narrow his red eyes, and he disappeared into a blur once more. Spiraling about, he swept through the unguarded flanks where my Snow Aegis didn''t reach and struck at me.

    However, as swift as he was, I was prepared.

    Clang!

    I just barely managed to ward off his vicious stroke before he twisted around to slash at me again. This time, Green Dragon and White Tiger converged upon him, their claws crackling with elemental energy. Razor-sharp petals accompanied ferocious lightning as they danced toward the Black Swordsman''s back, but as always he was able to fend all of them off with consummate skill.

    Like a black whirlwind, he spun about, his sword moving so quickly it gave the impression that he was wielding a thousand different weapons. Despite my best attempts, I found myself driven back with fresh injuries, which I promptly froze over with ice magic. Struggling to move forward to land a decisive blow, I ended up being kicked back by the Black Swordsman while his sword flashed up to intercept electric claws and killer plants. Vines were cut apart and petals scattered harmlessly, while deadly electricity dissipated ineffectively against his blade. Both of my Celestial Guardians growled in frustration, but he somehow continued to keep them at bay.

    Even so, the Black Swordsman was still human. Even one as skilled as him was not able to keep up with the relentless onslaught from three opponents forever. With a yell, obsidian mana surged up from his body like an unbreakable pillar and knocked all of us back. The three of us dispersed, our bodies somewhat ravaged by the devastating torrent of malevolent mana.

    However, I was far from done. Even as I retreated, I already had yet another trump card in play.

    "Vermillion Phoenix!"

    The vermillion bird materialized high above and enveloped the entire field in a hellish inferno that engulfed the Black Swordsman right after the black pillar of destructive mana faded away. Even with his superlative skills and awesome reflexes, the Black Swordsman wasn''t able to escape the divine flames or cleave through them. I watched in satisfaction as he disappeared under the crimson stream of heavenly fire.

    My relief didn''t last very long. the next second, a powerful tide of black energy ripped the inferno apart, and while not completely extinguishing it, sent smaller sparks of embers flying all over the blazing field. Broken down into smaller, individual fires, the inferno didn''t possess the power it once had.

    Not that it mattered. The Black Swordsman stood tall in the center of the blackened field, his onyx armor still as pristine as ever. He appeared to brush soot off its polished surface, and then held his sword up to face me once more.

    "Hmm¡­not bad. Now I understand why the Duke of the Franklin family appointed you to be the private tutor of his daughter. And I finally comprehend how someone as incompetent and untalented in the sword like her could become such an impressive swordswoman. You¡­you are just like her. No talent in the sword, yet you more than make up for your deficiency through tenacious perseverance and other more esoteric means."

    He glanced at my Celestial Guardians, who had gathered protectively around me to fend off a counterattack. Even though his features remained concealed behind that helm, I could tell that he was smirking.

    "However, it won''t be enough."

    "I know," I acknowledged with a fearless smile of my own. "Which is why I''ve prepared even more surprises for you."

    Barely had I finished my sentence when Hydra reared up behind the Black Swordsman and crushed him onto the ground.

    "!!!"

    "You have a point," I admitted as I approached the struggling killer. "In terms of swordsmanship, you surely have me outclassed. In a straight-up sword duel, I will never be able to best you."

    The Black Swordsman lashed out with his sword, decapitating one of Hydra''s heads. In response, three more regenerated, fierer and stronger than ever, hissing as they bit and crushed his armor with their fangs. Cursing, the Black Swordsman kicked out and tried to free himself, but this time, his armor no longer looked as refined as it once was.

    And when he finally dislodged himself from the multiple jaws of Hydra and blasted it away with a black burst of mana, Vermillion Phoenix unleashed yet another inferno upon him. Unlike the previous time, his armor smoldered and grew red-hot from the intense heat. By relentlessly attacking him over and over again, we were slowly tearing down his defenses. The damage to his once majestic armor was gradually accumulating, until it reached a point where it started to crumble apart.

    "Fortunately," I continued as I struck him when he stumbled out of the inferno, his sword cleaving through the flames. Blood spurted into the air as he staggered. He countered with a riposte, but White Tiger slashed him in the back, forcing him to divert his attentions elsewhere, and I avoided a messy death. Smiling at my narrow escape, I nodded my gratitude at my Celestial Guardians. "I''m not a true swordsman, but a summoner."

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 501 Chapter 501: Demigods

    The Black Swordsman spun about, a whirlwind of death and black blades. Even my Celestial Guardians were forced to jump back or suffer messy deaths. Paying no heed to the storm of violence, we unleashed elemental energies, spells of all flavors bombarding the vicious Black Swordsman.

    To his credit, however, the Black Swordsman fended each and every spell or attack, his sword flashing out. An obsidian gleam in the maelstrom of fury, he perfectly deflected each elemental spell and strike with precise movements. His defense was flawless and impenetrable.

    At least that was the impression I received, until I saw blood drip onto the ground. Despite his best efforts, even the Black Swordsman couldn''t intercept every spell or attack. Several had rammed home, scorching his armor and somehow penetrating his protection. Probably a spell found a chink in his armor and burrowed within, cutting deeply into the fragile flesh underneath.

    Even so, the Black Swordsman didn''t falter. He swung his sword and unleashed a black wave of mana that knocked us back. I was somehow able to guard against it, ice forming a thick barrier between me and the Black Swordsman. Even so, I was flung back while buffeted by the shockwaves.

    My Celestial Guardians flipped back and landed agilely, while Vermillion Phoenix ascended to the skies above in an effort to avoid getting tossed about. Hydra struck from behind, its many heads biting and snapping at the Black Swordsman.

    Aware that he couldn''t simply cut off his heads, the strongest Grimaldus warrior-mage leaped back and instead used the flat edge of his sword to fend them off. Black mana erupted from the obsidian blade and enveloped Hydra, causing my titanic Constellation spirit to fall back, screeching.

    Then White Tiger slashed the Black Swordsman from behind, his claws somehow penetrating the armor and drawing geysers of blood. Lethal lightning crackled across the scorched black armor, and the swordsman yelled out in pain and fury.

    "!!??

    White Tiger was barely able to leap away when a pillar of destructive black mana burst from the swordsman''s body, engulfing the field and carving a molten crater in the earth. All of us kept our distance, cautiously watching the Black Swordsman. The moment his spell stopped, Vermillion Phoenix immediately unleashes his flames upon the heavily breathing Black Swordsman, engulfing him in a ferocious inferno that supposedly reached the temperatures of the sun itself.

    That should have done it¡­yet why did I still have this ominous feeling that it wasn''t over yet? The atmosphere ¨C rendered suffocating by the presence of the Black Swordsman ¨C remained unchanged. That meant that the source was still alive.

    The flames vanished, extinguished by a single swing of the enemy''s sword. The Black Swordsman stood, unbowed, his armor glowing red-hot from the heat. Fumes continued to billow upward, but he gathered his dark, purplish mana around him to cool himself off and return his heavily damaged armor to its original color. Not restoration or repairing his armor ¨C his magic wasn''t that omnipotent ¨C but he could move again without being hindered by the press of molten metal damaging his body rather than protecting it.

    Hydra was the first to move, lunging forward as if to devour him. The Black Swordsman swung about, his sword sweeping in a wide arc. It wasn''t the blade that cut into Hydra, but rather a shadowy shockwave that was unleashed from his movement that blasted Hydra back.

    While he was distracted, Green Dragon seized the chance to swoop in, flower petals swarming about him before spiraling downward in a deadly dance to slice the Black Swordsman apart. For a moment, it appeared that the Black Swordsman had resigned himself to his demise, his hands lowered but still gripping his sword. He didn''t move an inch, waiting for the attack to hit.

    "!!!"

    And then black mana erupted from his sword. The Black Swordsman held his sword up high, and I watched, momentarily transfixed by the enormous vortex that now swirled around his exquisite, obsidian blade.

    With a single swing, he sent a collosal tide of destruction across the field. Before anyone could move, he was blasting the entire area apart, obliterating it with astronomical quantities of black mana. My whole world seemingly disappeared in inky darkness.

    Boom!

    The black mana turned into a gigantic sphere, a shadowy conflagration that ate away and left a crater almost a kilometer in radius. Grass instantly disintegrated, and molten rock glowed red-hot, the remnants of the scorched earth. Everything that had been caught in the blast was instantly annihilated by the devastating energies, be it Celestial Guardian or Constellation spirit.

    "Ugh¡­!"

    My body fuming furiously, I staggered out of the smokes and collapsed. Bloodied and broken all over, I almost couldn''t stand. Taking a deep breath, I did my best to stem my wounds, to alleviate some of my pain by directing mana toward the most damaged parts.

    "Incredible. You''re still alive."

    The Black Swordsman strode toward me, sounding impressed. I glared at him defiantly and coughed, blood leaking from my mouth.

    Damn it¡­was that an Anti-Fortess Noble Phantasm¡­I mean, an apocalyptic spell? My Hydra and three Celestial Guardians were wiped out in one blast. One bloody blast!

    The good news was that it didn''t seem like he could spam such a destructive spell and the casting time required to pull it off was obviously long. Otherwise he would have obliterated me and my Constellation spirits right from the start.

    The Black Swordsman thrust his sword at me, but I managed to roll to my knees and parry his blade with both of my swords. The forceful blow sent me tumbling back, my body hitting the ground and bouncing a few meters away. Even so, I made use of the momentum to put a good distance between myself and my assailant, and flipped my body upward to land on my feet.

    "Huff¡­"

    Wiping the blood from my mouth, I glared at my foe. He regarded me behind that visor of his, glowing red eyes blazing in the darkness, and then advanced forward.

    "Scary," I murmured. Straightening up, I cast another spell and felt its divine aura wrap around my battered body, coalescing into one of my strongest armaments. "Hercules!"

    Golden armor materialized around me, encasing my body in divine protection. Strength filled my limbs, power coursed through my body and I felt rejuvenated once more. Holding my ground, I met the Black Swordsman''s charge. My foe had noticed something was up, and he had dashed forward with his sword in an attempt to stop me.

    But he was too late.

    Emboldened by Hercules, I withstood his first blow. The ground beneath my feet cracked and shattered, the crater becoming deeper, but I held firm. Gritting my teeth, I retaliated with both of my swords, a ferocious counterattack that actually drove the Black Swordsman back. Surprised, he parried my strikes and answered with a riposte, but I smacked it away with the side of my gauntlet and slashed down upon him.

    The Black Swordsman whirled away avoiding my strike completely, but the moment Hei Yue hit the ground, my black blade split open a fissure.

    "!!"

    The Black Swordsman stared at me, astonished for a millisecond. But he was a consummate professional on the battlefield and didn''t waste time on idle chatter. With a roar, he swung his sword, but I blocked it with Bai Ri. The ground beneath us shook from the collosal impact that resulted from the collision of blades, but neither of us yielded.

    Instead, our strikes became faster, more precise, stronger. We exchanged over hundreds of blows, our swords smashing mercilessly against each other, sending tremors across the ground. To another person, we must have appeared like blurs, golden and black flashes clashing against each other with movements too fast for their eyes to follow. Each exchange was like thunder, metal screeching against metal. Our auras and mana crashed against each other with the fury of lightning and tsunamis, threatening to engulf and devour the other.

    Black versus gold. Black and white against black. Even as we continued to trade ferocious blows, our duel leaving more scars in the earth and reshaping the already devastated terrain further. My arms were growing numb, even when imbued with demigod strength, but I grimly soldiered on, enduring the onslaught and giving as much as I received.

    For now, we were locked in a stalemate, neither of us able to gain the upper hand in our clash. I wasn''t sure if this would be a good idea, considering that I would run out of mana soon. Hercules was a very energy-consuming technique and I had no idea just how deep the Black Swordsman''s reserves ran.

    I had no choice but to take a gamble, to break the current stalemate.

    Taking a deep breath, I took a step forward, slicing at him. The Black Swordsman ¨C being the superlative warrior that he was ¨C couldn''t fail to see the tiny gap in my defenses. He twirled his sword around and locked my arms, managing to pry Bai Ri from the grip of my left hand. The white sword spun wildly in the air, and I desperately tried to strike with Hei Yue before he could pull his sword back. However, he managed to deflect my black blade before reversing his grip on his sword and thrusting it at me.

    Instead of avoiding it, I went straight and allowed him to stab me with his sword. At first, the obsidian blade met rsistance, its sharp, lethal tip slamming into my golden armor and stopping for just a moment.

    However, it would not be denied. My Herculean armor buckled and the blade pierced through the divine metal to puncture my shoulder. I felt a surge of burning pain, and blood trickling down my chest and arm, but continued onward. After all, I had already anticipated for this. That was why I shifted just subtly to ensure that his blade wouldn''t go through a vital organ or something.

    "!!"

    The Black Swordsman realized that something was amiss, but it was too late. Before he could pull his sword out from my shoulder, I swung my left arm about and clobbered his face with the heavy gauntlet that wreathed my fist. I felt metal crack and give way beneath my armored fist before the Black Swordsman was hurled back with immense force. Even his sword somehow slipped from my shoulder, and I staggered back amidst a spray of blood.

    Damn it, that hurt! But my gamble had paid off. I had suffered a severe injury in order to deliver one to my opponent. Yeah, my shoulder was stinging, but I had finally broken the deadlock and hopefully shifted the balance a little.

    The Black Swordsman slowly rose to his feet, clutching at his face. My punch had shattered his visor and dented his helm, which fell apart to reveal his features. Short dark hair that was closely-cropped to his scalp complemented the black stubble that covered an angular jaw. Furious red eyes stared out from a handsome face, his tanned features marked by a trickle of blood where the shattered helm had broken skin. Oh, he was also bleeding from his nose as well. I had socked him real good.

    "Heh." I grinned, even as I stemmed the bleeding in my shoulder by freezing the wound. Reaching up, I grabbed Bai Ri as it finally descended from the air, and tested her with a swing of my left hand. Turning back to my opponent, I smirked. "So I finally get to see your face."

    Wiping the blood from his nose, the Black Swordsman spat vengefully as he raised his sword and pointed it at me.

    "It''ll be the last thing you''ll ever see," he promised.

    I narrowed my eyes. Despite taking quite the severe injury, I wasn''t able to leave any lasting damage in return. The worst wound that my opponent appeared to be his bruised ego.

    With a snarl, he charged forward, and I barely parried his obsidian sword with my crossed Hei Yue and Bai Ri. The wound in my right shoulder turned out to be debilitating and I felt my defense slipping. Spinning around, the Black Swordsman kicked me under my guard before I could respond in time, and this time I was the one sent hurtling several meters backward.

    I hit the ground and bounced off, but I flipped myself about to land in a crouching position. Straightening up, I saw the Black Swordsman preparing another big attack. Black mana pulsed from his word and he launched it at me.

    "!!!"

    Summoning Scutum Sobiescianum, I muttered a quick incantation under my breath.

    "I am the soul of my sword."

    A few seconds later, my Constellation shield disintegrated, and the overwhelming wave of black mana swept toward me. Opening my eyes, I finished my intonation and brought my greatest defense to being.

    "Snow Aegis!"

    The devastating tsunami crashed against my snowflake-shaped shield, and for a moment its rampage was halted. The black mana devoured the surrounding soil, deforming the already hideous crater further, and turning rock into molten magma.

    But it wasn''t enough. The shockwaves blasted me off my feet and I was sent tumbling a few feet away from my gradually crumbling shield. Even as the Black Swordsman''s attack slowly dispersed, my Snow Aegis disappeared completely.

    And then the Black Swordsman dashed through the still fading shield and swung his obsidian sword to finish me off. I barely brought Hei Yue and Bai Ri up to fend off his strike, and the ground once again ruptured from the impact.

    "Guh!"

    I could see cracks appearing over my Herculean armor, and with a last spurt of strength, I swatted him away. My opponent spun about to kick me again, but I was ready this time, able to block his foot with an armored forearm.

    Once again, the armor cracked and the strength behind his kick was so great that I was sent skidding a couple of meters away. Huffing, I lashed out with my swords, but the Black Swordsman managed to deflect them before hammering the pommel of his sword against my chest and causing me to cough out blood. Staggering backward, I somehow blocked his next attack, but another black burst of destructive energy erupted, throwing me several meters away.

    "You''ve been a formidable opponent, but it''s over."

    The Black Swordsman looked almost gleeful as he jumped over to finish me off. Before his sword could reach me, however, a crimson lance streaked through the air. Twisting in midair, the Black Swordsman parried the blow, but found himself thrown back. Landing on his feet, he continued to skid backward from the momentum of the attack he had just blocked.

    "Who?!" he snarled. The answer landed beside me, twirling that familiar demonic red spear of his. My eyes widened when I recognized his figure.

    "Craig? What are you doing here?"

    Craig Carlson grinned at me as he lowered his spear in an attacking stance and got ready for the fight ahead.

    "I''m here as reinforcements, of course."

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 502 Chapter 502: Four Heavenly Kings

    "Reinforcements?" I repeated incredulously. Craig grinned as he glanced back at me, straightening up from his earlier stance and resting his spear on his shoulder.

    "Yeah. And I''m not the only one."

    The Black Swordsman lunged forward, seeing that the new opponent had seemingly lowered his guard. However, he didn''t manage to get far. Lightning flashed and a burly figure descended from above. The Black Swordsman barely evaded it, whirling to the side, but his new assailant twisted around and whacked him with his thunder hammer. Even though the Black Swordsman successfully parried the massive weapon, there was a loud crack of thunder. Golden electricity exploded between them, throwing the Black Swordsman back.

    "Theodore!" I yelled, recognizing my senior.

    "Yo." Theodore Hammond hefted his thunder hammer up before slamming it against the ground. Sparks flew, lancing toward the stumbling Black Swordsman who had only recently regained his balance. He blocked the huge spark, but smoke billowed from his obsidian blade.

    Incredibly, he was unfazed from the lethal electricities. He was already lowering his sword down to point it at Theodore, kicking off the ground to charge. Theodore brought his hammer up, ready to swing it down to meet him.

    He didn''t have to.

    A torrent of divine flames erupted and engulfed the Black Swordsman, hurling him back. His armor smoldering and almost turning red from the sheer heat, the Grimaldus expert dove out of the flames, coughing incessantly. He rolled up to his feet, only to get a flaming kick in the head from his latest assailant. Even as his head snapped back, an ugly burn materializing over his cheek, he didn''t hesitate to swing his obsidian sword.

    "Whoa!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu jumped out of the sword''s range, flames wreathing him protectively. Hee clamped both of his hands together and unleashed another stream of superheated flames that washed over the Black Swordsman and immolated him, but as usual the formidable warrior just cleaved the inferno apart with a single slash.

    The four of us managed to regroup, while the Black Swordsman dropped to a kneeling posture to catch his breath. As Dong Fang Yue Chu landed next to us, he waved.

    "Been a while, hasn''t it, Richie?"

    "It has indeed," I agreed as I took a deep breath to stabilize myself. "Man, am I glad to see you guys! How¡­?"

    "We were the nearest unit that received the distress signal coming from here," Theodore explained as he swung his hammer to unleash another bolt of lightning, which the Black Swordsman swatted away with his sword. "So we came here as fast as we could."

    "Yeah, we were visiting Flandor City anyway, to check out your new students, since it''s the summer vacaction and all." Dong Fang Yue Chu chuckled. "But we didn''t expect to meet up with you so soon!"

    "Eh?" I pushed my glasses up as I stared at them. "You didn''t tell me?"

    "We wanted it to be a surprise," Dong Fang Yue Chu explained sheepishly as he let loose another jet of flames at the kneeling Black Swordsman, who cut the fiery projectile down. "Didn''t expect you to be working in a middle school camp."

    "Well, seems like you''ve gotten yourself into trouble, as always!" Craig chuckled as he charged forward with his spear thrust forward. "Let''s show this sucker the strength of the Four Heavenly Kings of Jing Tian!"

    "Wait, what?" I was joining him, flanking the Black Swordsman and striking him from the side. The Black Swordsman somehow managed to fend off both Craig and me, but his movements and precision had visibly dulled. "What Four Heavenly Kings?"

    "Oh, you haven''t heard?" Dong Fang Yue Chu sniggered. "That''s what our schoolmates have been calling us, ever since the tournament."

    "Pay them no heed," Theodore grunted as he swung his thunder hammer at the back of the Black Swordsman, who blocked his heavy strike, only to be blown back by an explosive clap of thunder. "You know how students love gossip."

    He was a student himself, though¡­well, he was going to graduate this year.

    For now, I focused on the Black Swordsman ahead of me. Craig and I executed a pincer attack, attempting to overwhelm his defenses, but our formidable foe spun about like a whirlwind, somehow parrying all of our brutal strikes in an elegant fashion. He charged up black mana in his obisidian blade, trying to unleash another of those massive attacks of his to nuke the field, but Dong Fang Yue Chu engulfed his blade in purifying flames.

    "!!!"

    The Black Swordsman''s eyes widened briefly when he saw the crimson flames swallow up the black mana that had coalesced around his obsidian blade, only for his spell to be nullified before he could cast it. With a growl, he swung his sword to knock us back, but Craig, Theodore and I relentlessly struck, with at least two of us moving in to attack whenever our opponent''s attention was focused on one of us.

    We traded over a thousand blows, our weapons clashing and sparks flying. Occasionally the Black Swordsman would try to unleash one of his big spells, but Dong Fang Yue Chu would purify them. Of course, Yue Chu''s purifying flames were not omnipotent, and the Black Swordsman was still able to pull off smaller blasts, battering us aside or injuring us with violent shockwaves, but at least we could prevent him from nuking us.

    So far, anyway.

    "You brats!" the Black Swordsman stormed at us, his frustration getting more evident as he swung about and missed Craig, only for Theodore to hammer him from behind. When he turned to face the burly third year student, I snuck in and slashed him, drawing rivulets of blood and actually scoring several rents on his armor. "Swaming over me like a bunch of insects!"

    "What do you expect?" Craig asked with a sneer. "The only way for us bugs to win is by making us of our superior numbers!"

    "One against one, none of us will be a match for you," Dong Fang Yue Chu agreed. "But we can''t afford to fight you honorably, not when you''re threatening the lives of kids!"

    "Who I kill has nothing to do with any of you!" the Black Swordsman bellowed, swinging his sword and unleashing another huge blast of black mana that threw me, Craig and Theodore aside. When he tried to close in on Theodore, Dong Fang Yue Chu engulfed him in his flames. The guy twisted around and cut through the divine fire, only for Craig to stab him in the back with his demonic spear. The cursed weapon, capable of piercing any armor, easily went hrough the protective sheet of metal and punched right through muscle and bones.

    Roaring in pain, the Black Swordsman swung his blade about and almost took Craig''s head off. The spearman backed off, and the Black Swordsman pursued him, only for Theodore to clobber him in the head. Lightning danced about his weapon and smashed into the Grimaldus warrior, causing him to howl.

    "On the contrary,?? Theodore panted. "It is very much our business if you attack a bunch of innocent kids."

    "That''s right!" I snapped as I slashed the Black Swordsman from behind while he was intent on retaliating against Theodore for his attack. "It''s our duty to protect the innocent!"

    "Shut up!" a reader shouted from above the crater. "I only want ruthless MCs! I''m sick and tired of peace-loving and heroic idiots who always think about other people instead of caring only for themselves! I hate kind and nice main characters! Why can''t I get my evil, overpowered MC who does whatever he wants and doesn''t give a fuck? This story sucks!"

    The Black Swordsman obliterated the moron with a single blast from his sword, his expression dripping with contempt and disgust. He then turned to look at us wryly.

    "These are the bastards you are trying to protect?" he mocked. "Ungrateful, self-entitled trash who only know how to insult other people when they don''t get what they want, and insulting other people for being selfless and kind? You might as well be evil and kill everybody like me. That way, you don''t have to put up with their nonsense."

    "Those hypocrites only know how to insult writers and demand for evil MCs, and complain when the protagonist doesn''t kill anyone for no reason, but that''s because they have never been a victim. When they end up being targeted for murder or genocide, I can tell you that they will start blaming other people for not saving them, and saying stuff like villains deserve death. It''s okay if the main character does it, but it''s not okay if it''s a mob character or an antagonist. Double standards and all that." Craig shook his head. "If they want to read a story about an evil main character, then look for a story that is about an evil main character! Why jump into other stories that feature heroic protagonists and then start complaining and insulting the writer for not writing what you want? That''s like complaining about science fiction stories having space marines and spaceships insead of magic. Go read a fantasy story if you want magic! These readers are so entitled ¨C we are not here to pander to their personal tastes and fetishes! Why can''t they get that through their heads?!"

    "Welcome to Webnovel," I told him. "Are you new here?" Then I turned to the other readers. "As an aside, if you''re reading this story on anywhere else other than the official webnovel website ¨C yes, it''s literally webnovel dot com ¨C you have been ripped off. I don''t know why the scrapper sites bother stealing my story, but if you are against piracy, you''re more than welcome to come here to Webnovel, where you can read for free. Just create an account and sign in daily for three passes and all that."

    "Why are you doing an advertisement right in the middle of a duel?" Dong Fang Yue Chu demanded as he cast another fire spell at the Black Swordsman, who had resumed attacking us now that he had gotten rid of the edgelord reader. He ducked under the counterattack ¨C the obsidian sword swinging at his head, and was relived when Theodore stepped in to hammer the armored swordsman and force him back.

    "Because piracy is a real problem," I replied as I deflected the Black Swordsman''s blade and stepped in to slash him. The enemy spun about, parrying my blade while simultaneously dodging Craig''s spear. He kicked out, forcing me back, and then struck at Craig, who parried his obsidian sword with the thick shaft of his spear. "There is no other way to inform the readers on scrapper sites unless I actually talk about this in the story itself."

    "Not in the middle of battle!" Craig grunted as he twirled his spear, exchanging a couple of blows with the Black Swordsman. Theodore and I closed in, hoping to score a hit on the armored warrior''s back, but the ace of Grimaldus whirled around, his sword flashing out. Theodore''s hammer met the blade in a ferocious howl, while I spun away from the heavy boot that had lashed out in a desperate kick. While I retreated, I left a couple of nicks in his once polished greaves, damaging his armor further.

    Slowly but surely we were pushing him back. As formidable as he was, he was still only one person. He wouldn''t be able to survive an onslaught from the four of us, especially with his injuries accumulating at an unsustainable rate.

    Aware of this, the Black Swordsman cast another quick spell, his blade erupting with black mana to fling us back. I crashed against the ground, managing to leap back to my feet. Even so, I felt bruised. Beside me, Craig fared similarly, but he was nimbler than I was and was already preparing a charge with his demonic spear.

    "He still has so much strength left!" Theodore was slower than the both of us, but he managed to roll back to his feet. His eyes widening, he quickly slammed his hammer against the ground to send a spark toward the Black Swordsman.

    "Damn it, so this was his plan!"

    Above, Dong Fang Yue Chu had also been battered by the blast, his purifying flames not quick enough to counteract the faster spell of the Black Swordsman. He saw that the Black Swordsman had blasted us back so that he could finish casting his massive spell once more. He launched another wave of purifying flames at the formidable warrior, who was gathering a lot of black mana into his sword.

    However, the Black Swordsman merely flung out a single gauntlet and caught the flames, dispersing it. The powerful spell scorched the gauntlet, leaving charred marks across the black armor and turning it red, but it didn''t reach the enemy''s sword. The Black Swordsman grimaced in agony ¨C Yue Chu''s spell definitely had a devastating effect and burned the hand underneath the gauntlet, but it was far from enough. Rather than stopping the Black Swordsman, it only served to enrage him further.

    "Stupid bugs!" he roared. "I''ll wipe you all out!"

    The black mana around his sword reached a climax and he swung it down, obliterating the entire field again.

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 503 Chapter 503: He Who Rules the Battlefield

    The black mana turned into a colossal conflagration of unending darkness that swallowed the entire field ravenously, much like a black hole devouring even light. This time, it even engulfed part of the lake, vaporizing the water and creating a new, steaming shore.

    The Black Swordsman then lowered his obsidian blade. Dark mana continued to swirl around his smoldering for, and while he wasn''t heaving from exhaustion, it was clear that the battle had taken somewhat of a toll on him.

    "!!!"

    He almost didn''t react in time when I suddenly appeared, speeding toward him like a bullet. My black and white swords sliced through the air and nicked his armor, but he responded swiftly, his riposte almost smacking into me. Despite parrying his onyx sword with my crossed blades, I was sent hurtling several meters away.

    Flipping myself about in midair to land on the molten rock, I skidded backward across the soft, uneven ground. Even before I could steady myself, the Black Swordsman launched himself like a rocket and slashed at me.

    His blade never reached me.

    "?!"

    Craig''s demonic spear pierced through the area where his neck had been and he twisted in mid-flight to parry the crimson point. Craig relentlessly attacked, refusing to give him any chance to recover, and they traded several blows. To me, it seemed as if black and crimson blurs were ripping through the air, the speed of the combatants so fast that my eyes couldn''t follow their movements.

    Sparks flew as their weapons collided, and molten soil was sent flying into the air, almost as if they were fighting amidst a hail of rock. Even so, Craig''s ferocious attacks and tremendous speed were gradually yielding to the Black Swordsman''s vast experience and superior skill, and I could see blood dripping from his arms.

    He couldn''t hold out for long. Not that he had to.

    Theodore and I flanked the Black Swordsman from behind, his hammer and my two swords arcing toward our formidable foe in a pincer attack. Spinning about, the Black Swordsman kicked Craig away, and despite the spearman managing to block his foot with the shaft of his spear, he was still sent skidding several meters backward. Craig wasn''t hurt, but he was no longer within range, and that was more than enough.

    With one threat temporarily repelled, the Black Swordsman turned to face both Theodore and me, his obsidian sword sweeping up to smack our weapons away. Even though we currently engaged him two against one, he blocked and parried all of our desperate attacks, weaving an impenetrable defense that kept us at bay.

    But if it was an impenetrable defense that we were talking about, then it was useless against Craig.

    Our comrade had lunged forward again, his cursed spear thrusting forward to pierce the Black Swordsman from behind. Realizing that he couldn''t evade or block, the swordsman shifted slightly and allowed Craig to stab him.

    "What?!"

    Craig was shocked at first when his spear went through his target''s armor so easily, punching a bloody hole through the swordsman''s shoulder and exiting from the front. Undeterred, the Black Swordsman fought on, ignoring Craig, and kicking at me while fending off Theodore''s hammer with his sword. Theodore growled as he unleashed lightning upon the Black Swordsman, but the latter merely dispersed the lethal electricity with a swing of his sword.

    He then spun about, forcing Craig to follow his movements or relinquish his hold on his demonic spear. Craig narrowed his eyes, realizing his opponent''s intentions, and let go. Just as well he did, for, the obsidian blade swept through the space that he would have occupied if he had allowed the Black Swordsman to lead him into this dance of death.

    The Black Swordsman smirked, thinking that he had deprived Craig of his weapon. However, he couldn''t be more mistaken.

    Craig raised a hand, and his demonic spear automatically ripped itself free of the Black Swordsman, causing more blood to spurt out of the wound. It seemed excruciating, and I recalled that Craig''s weapon actually had barbs on them, which would cause the injury to worsen when it was yanked out. It was a cruel design, one to inflict maximum amount of damage on its victim, but credit to our enemy, he didn''t even so much as grunt in pain, never mind howl. For a moment, he somehow maintained his fa?ade of stoicism, but a slight grimace gave him away. Not only that, his features turned a lot paler than before and there was a slight tremor throughout his armored body.

    Whatever godlike skills with the sword that he possessed, he was still only human, and he could feel pain.

    He charged up his sword again, that virulent black mana gathering around his obsidian blade like a maelstrom, but Dong Fang Yue Chu unleashed another torrent of purifying flames to interrupt his casting. Nonetheless, the Black Swordsman was still able to get off another tremendous blast of black mana that forced us to scatter.

    I watched, horrifized, as one of the camp buildings that had been built to house the middle school students for this trip was razed, the entire structure disintegrating insantly from the spell.

    Even so, my friends and I had somehow avoided annihilation and were regrouping some distance away. The Black Swordsman watched us, his eyes narrowed in curiosity. His blade continued to glow with that ethereal, devastating black fire of his, causing whatever plants that survived in the crater to wither away.

    "How did you survive my Excalibur?" he asked, his voice dripping in disbelief. "I''ve been meaning to ask you earlier, but I was somewhat distracted by the duel."

    Did he really think we would tell him?

    At least that was what I thought, but my friends subconsciously looked at me after he asked his question. Even though they said nothing, that slight reflex was more than enough to impart to him some idea.

    "You¡­" he growled, turning his eyes onto me. "So that was your doing, huh? I guess I shouldn''t be surprised, given how you survive my first Excalbur spells. Just what trick are you hiding up your sleeve?"

    Did he honestly think I would tell him? I bit my lip, but remained silent. The guy could guess that it had something to do with my ice spells.

    It did, plus I had to sacrifice Black Tortoise to do it. Earlier, right before his spell struck me and my friends, I had summoned Black Tortoise, and combined his water sphere barrier spell with my Snow Aegis. Unfortunately, the Excalibur spell had smashed through my Snow Agis and the water sphere, which forced Black Tortoise to lumber forward and take most of the blast for us.

    His sacrifice would not be in vain. My friends and I were still in fight, and we were doing consistent damage. Craig''s spear might not have pierced through a vital position, but the blood loss and increasing number of injuries were finally taking its toll.

    And I wasn''t going to let the dude know that we wouldn''t be able to block another one of his Excalibur spells. Not that he was going to give up. He had already come to the conclusion that he would keep spamming that damned spell of mass destruction until he broke through our defenses and obliterate all of us.

    "It doesn''t matter," he snered, confirming my suspicions. "Whatever defensive spell you have, I doubt you''ll be able to cast it repetitively."

    "Everyone, back!" I yelled. The black mana that had coalesced around the Black Swordsman''s sword had reached its peak and he blasted all of us again. Craig dove to the side, while Theodore stumbled. Dong Fang Yue Chu had scattered to the opposite side, and so he was currently safely out of range of the damned spell ¨C as powerful as it was, even the Black Swordsman couldn''t fire it off in a 360 degree arc.

    He could, however, sweep the spell across the landscape, boiling the water in the lake before demolishing another camp building to the side. Seeing that Theodore wouldn''t be able to evade in time, I rushed forward and blocked the hit.

    "Snow Aegis!"

    Throwing out my right hand, I conjured my most powerful shield once more. This time, I didn''t have Black Tortoise to support me, and the Excalibur spell simply obliterated my Snow Aegis in just ten seconds. With a yell, I rushed forward and punched the onrushing blast with all the strength that I could deliver through my Herculean Armor.

    Boom!

    I was blown back, even as the black, destructive mana finally dispersed. My Herculean Armor was gone, shattered and destroyed. The shards and pieces of my Constellation armor were disappearing, dissipating into golden wisps of mana. Lying sprawled on the ground, I coughed, blood spilling from numerous wounds.

    "Richard!" Theodore rushed forward. "You¡­!"

    "Hey." I smiled weakly. "Are you all right?"

    "You idiot! You shouldn''t have¡­!"

    "Don''t worry. I''ll live. More importantly¡­"

    Theodore nodded and got back to his feet. Already Dong Fang Yue Chu and Craig had resumed the attack, a crimson blur streaking around a stationary black figure while divine flames roared down from above. The Black Swordsman didn''t seem like he could move any longer, having slowly but surely exhausted himself. Not only that, the wounds we had inflicted were wearing him down.

    Theodore sent another hammer spark surging toward the Black Swordsman, and despite slicing the thunderbolt with his blade, traces of lethal electricity danced about him, causing his armor to smolder. His movements were dulled by the sudden paralysis, making him an easy target for Dong Fang Yue Chu, who proceeded to bath him in flames. Craig then cut right in and stabbed at the Black Swordsman, who parried his spear.

    Then the burly third year student swung his hammer and caught the Black Swordsman in the back, sending him sprawling. Black mana erupted from his sword, blasting both Craig and Theodore back before they could close in and finish him off, but much of the spell was nullified by Dong Fang Yue Chu''s follow-up flames, reducing the damage they would have otherwise sustained.

    "Thanks!" Theodore called out. Dong Fang Yue Chu shook his head and sent another torrent of flames that snaked around the Black Swordsman, immolating him. Our enemy continued to stand strong, refusing to yield to the divine fire, and conjured more of his black mana. Yue Chu clicked his tongue.

    "Wait until we defeat this bastard before you thank me!"

    "This guy is really tenacious!" Craig cursed as his spear rammed against the Black Swordsman''s breastplate. The armor buckled and gave way, but the Grimaldus warrior had shifted to avoid a fatal blow. He smirked as he backhanded Craig, but the spearman evaded him somewhat effortlessly. He wasn''t able to escape corruptive burns on his face, though, and hissed in pain as smoke rose from his cheek. "A professional is really on a different level¡­even with the four of us fighting him, we are still unable to take him down!"

    "You''re not match for me," the Black Swordsman sneered. "There''s an overwhelming disparity between our strengths. No matter how many of you brats throw yourselves at me, you won''t be able to overcome my skills."

    "Says the dude who looks like he''s about to fall over any moment now," Dong Fang Yue Chu muttered under his breath.

    "Not to mention most of the damage was already done by Richard," Craig added with a chuckle. "And now he wants to show off the difference between our strengths?"

    "We''re almost there." Theodore heaved as he swung his hammer again. While his sword was locked against Craig''s spear, the Black Swordsman had to raise a hand to block the thunder hammer. The impact shattered his gauntlet and left his bruised, almost broken arm bare, but he remained alive.

    Then the Black Swordsman flung the both of them back with a forceful swing of his sword. Yue Chu tried to close in with his flames, but he was too late. Black mana was erupting out of the dude''s sword once again.

    "Golden Kirin!" I shouted. Right before the black burst of destructive mana could swallow us all, earth appendages emerged from the ground and seized my stunned friends, pulling them underground.

    Then the whole world vanished.

    Panting, the Black Swordsman looked up and glanced around the crater that he had just created. Most of the camp buildings were gone now, completely razed. The lake was half vanished, whatever fish or living organisms within it vaporized along with a substantial amount of water.

    "Escaped, huh? He growled.

    "Jeez¡­" Some distance away, Craig cursed under his breath as the earth appendage dropped him back out. Theodore and Dong Fang Yue Chu joined him, and they stared at me, who was barely clinging into Golden Kirin. "This can''t go on. We need to defeat him before he deforests the entire area."

    "Don''t worry." I grinned, despite the dull throbbing that ran through my battered and bruised body. Despite the somber scene of devastation, I still felt a bright flare of hope in my chest. "He''s not the only guy with a nuke spell."

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 504 Chapter 504: The Nuclear Option

    "Say what?" Dong Fang Yue Chu gaped at me. I shrugged.

    "Nuke spell?"

    "No, that''s not what I mean¡­"

    "I don''t think the Black Swordsman will just stand there and let you hit him," Theodore informed me seriously. Glancing at the center of the smoldering crater, I saw that he was right. The Black Swordsman was taking a single step forward. As injured as he was, he could still move. While his movements were clearly slower than before, there was no doubt he could close the distance and attack us before I could nuke him.

    "Hah!" Craig chortled. "Then we''ll just have to pin him down, don''t we?"

    The spearman always loved a challenge. He was already racing forward, his spear held in his hand. Halfway toward our opponent, he suddenly jumped up and soared into the air. I watched in astonishment as he drew his demonic spear back, the muscles in his arm bulging as he coiled them. Massive amounts of crimson mana swirled around his cursed spear, distorting the air around it in a terrifying manner.

    Then he hurled it at the Black Swordsman. The Grimaldus ace scowled as he watched the demonic spear hurtle toward him, instinctively understanding that he couldn''t dodge it. The curse enchanting the spear would ensure a sure-hit, no matter how quickly he evaded. Therefore he could only block it.

    Holding his sword in both hands, he swung it to counter Craig''s spear, and there was a huge explosion that sent soil crumbling down the sides of the crater, creating a smaller hole in its midst. Blood dripped down the Black Swordsman''s face as he fell to a knee, his armor cracked in various places.

    Then Theodore swung his hammer down and conjured a lightning cage that hemmed him in. The Black Swordsman gritted his teeth as he held up his obsidian blade to fend the lethal electricity away, but it refused to be conducted, instead forming a squarish cage around him. The imprisoned swordsman tried to slash his way out, but the lightning cage held firm, crackling fiercely as its golden bars resisted his attacks.

    However, it was clear that he would eventually be able to cut his way free. I could see the lightning cage slowly diminishing in power, each strike from its prisoner slowly sapping away some of the electricity.

    "That''s where I come in!"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu jumped to the front, right at the edge of the crater. He slammed his palms together and murmured an incantation.

    "Reduce all Creation into Ash¡­Liu Ren Ruo Huo!"

    Flames erupted all around him, surrounding him in a crimson and orange halo that simply seemed divine. Fiery wings burst on either side of him in an angelic manner, a conflagration so colossal that Dong Fang Yue Chu''s form was dwarfed within it. I watched at the maelstrom of Pure Yang Flames blazed around him, consuming the remnants of the field like a god of fire.

    The Black Swordsman watched him from inside the dwindling lightning cage, and his eyes narrowed.

    Flames engulfing his entire right arm, Dong Fang Yue Chu gave a shout before punching it forward and unleashing a tremendous torrent of flames that swept across the crater. In just one instant, it swallowed up Theodore''s lightning cage and its captive.

    "!!!"

    The Black Swordsman''s expression remained somewhat impassive, but his eyes flickered with barely concealed emotion. Even he was impressed by Dong Fang Yue Chu''s technique.

    At first, it created a colossal ring of fire that surrounded the Black Swordsman, and then closed up over him, turning into an enormous inferno that raged and melted the once solid rock into molten lava. An enclosed, fiery space that cut the Black Swordsman off from the outside world, it blazed brilliantly, almost like a second sun.

    "Cheng Guo Yan Shang (Fortress Blaze)." Dong Fang Yue Chu lowered his arm, upon which the flames flickered and dwindled away. Even as his body was no longer wreathed in flame, the blazing sphere of inferno that entrapped the Black Swordsman continued to burn brightly and fiercely. Dong Fang Yue Chu grinned smugly. "Even the Black Swordsman wouldn''t be able to get out of this wall of flames for a while."

    "Whoa!" Craig cried out, shielding himself. As stoic as ever, Theodore remained silent, but even he had to take a step back from the flames. I was also backing away in reflex, watching the powerful spell in awe. Despite the great distance, the embers were reaching even here, scattering onto our position and causing us to flinch. Craig brushed the glowing embers off his skin, visibly stung. "You''re pretty drastic as always, aren''t you, Yue Chu?"

    "Hey, powerful enemies call for drastic measures, don''t they?" Dong Fang Yue Chu shrugged with feigned innocence. He then turned to me, his grin growing wider. "Now then¡­shall we nuke him?"

    "I''ll wait until he gets out," I replied with a shrug. "Otherwise I might accidentally just blow away your Fortress Blaze and not do as much damage to him."

    ??Richie has a point," Craig agreed. "Your damned fire technique also acts as a shield from external attacks."

    "Oh¡­whoops." Dong Fang Yue Chu looked sheepish, but Theodore shook his head and placed a hand on his shoulder.

    "No, you did the right thing. Whatever the outcome, it''s clear that the Black Swordsman will no longer be able to move. Then Richard can nuke him once he''s ready."

    "Yeah," I told Dong Fang Yue Chu gratefully. "You bought me all the time that I need."

    "Really?"

    "Yeah, really."

    Even as Dong Fang Yue Chu breathed a sigh of relief, I turned back to my enemy. Within the inferno, the Black Swordsman thrust his obsidian sword forward and tried to cleave apart the powerful fire spell, but to no avail. He suffered a few horrendous burns, being trapped inside an inferno of such extreme temperature, but impeccable discipline forbade him from expressing any pain.

    I couldn''t help but be amazed. Not just at this guy''s tenacity, but also his strict control over himself. If our positions were reversed, I had no doubt that I would be howling from the excruciating agony.

    Too bad we were enemies.

    The Black Swordsman regarded the wall of flames impassively, his features as stoic as before. He raised his sword and slashed at the hot inferno again, only to be met with the same result.

    "Do you think this will stop me?" he asked, his tone dripping with contempt.

    "Well, it did, didn''t it?" Dong Fang Yue Chu pointed out dryly. He wasn''t wrong. It certainly worked. A little too well, I might add. I shuddered to think what sort of level Dong Fang Yu Chu had reached, if he was capable of pulling off such a powerful technique now.

    Then again, that Black Swordsman had to be even more terrifying, if he couldn''t be killed off by such powerful Pure Yang Flames. That said, the Pure Yang Flames were more effective against monsters ¨C particularly those with the yin attribute ¨C than enemy mages.

    However, just as I was given enough time to finish the casting of my spell, the Black Swordsman had also gained a considerable amount of time to cast his Excalibur. Regarding the Fortess Blaze with contempt, he then began charging his obsidian sword with a large amount of black mana. The destructive energies raged around his blade, a maelstrom of death and chaos.

    "Uh oh," Dong Fang Yue Chu murmured, turning pale. Even his Fortress Blaze wouldn''t survive such an attack. In fact, given the anti-fortress nature of the Black Swordsman''s Noble Phantasm¡­ahem, I mean ultimate spell, this was the perfect counter to his enchantment.

    And the Black Swordsman knew that.

    "Relax," Craig assured Dong Fang Yue Chu, chuckling confidently. "If he really does that, it''ll be his funeral."

    The Black Swordsman snorted, but didn''t hesitate to destroy Dong Fang Yue Chu''s Fortress Blaze with his Exclaibur. Fortunately, despite the massive magnitude of his spell, my friend''s Pure Yang Flames had a purifying effect and neutralized much of the unholy blast. The Excalibur succeeded in ripping through the Fortress Blaze without much impunity, but much of its firepower was nullified by the purifying fire''s holy effects and it petered out somewhat pathetically before it could reach the edge of the crater, never mind us.

    Before he could take another step forward and emerge from the diminishing inferno, I sent out an order, both mentally and verbally.

    "Scorpio, Antares!"

    "!!!"

    The Black Swordsman tried to evade, but he was too late.

    A purple, red and bluish-white torrent of energy surged from Scorpio''s tail, leaving charged particles in its wake. It slammed into the Black Swordsman just as the last of Dong Fang Yue Chu''s flames flickered to nothingness and engulfed the entire area in a colossal explosion that mushroomed toward the air. The effects were even more devastating than the Black Swordsman''s Excalibur, the resulting conflagration engulfing and then dwarfing the crater that he had created through his ultimate technique.

    "Whoa!" Dong Fang Yue Chu was backing away. "Isn''t this overkill?! We''re going to get caught up in this!"

    "No, you won''t."

    A golden barrier of energy shimmered to life between us and the explosion that I had caused, deflecting most of the volatile energies. The ground around us crumbled and disintegrated from the sheer force, and the golden barrier cracked and shuddered violently, but it held for now.

    "Thanks, Harrison."

    Even without looking up, I knew who had erected that barrier. Harrison Reed smiled tensely as he stepped up to stand next to us, his complexion pale and perspiration dripping down his face.

    "Don''t thank me yet," he said. "Wait until I actually protect you from the nuke spell first."

    "That won''t be necessary," I informed him as I pushed my glasses up my nose. Just before Harrison''s golden barrier shattered, a gigantic snowflake materialized between us and the destructive energies, forming an azure aegis that enveloped us protectively.

    Even Snow Aegis was barely able to withstand the powerful blast and crumbled under the onslaught, the colossal shockwaves battering it into oblivion.

    Then, as suddenly as it began, everything stopped.

    "Jeez, Harrison, you''re really cutting it close!" Craig threw an arm around his shoulders. "What took you so long?"

    "Sorry. I was a bit further away from Flandor than you guys when I received the call."

    "Harrison took a later train," Theodore explained to me. "He originally didn''t plan to come at all."

    "Oh, yeah. I just happened to have business here in the end." Harrison chuckled and shrugged. "Family business."

    "I''m glad you came, all the same."

    "Yeah, if you didn''t, we would all have been blown up by Richie''s spell!" Dong Fang Yue Chu shot me a glare.

    "At least the sucker was nuked." Craig stepped through my broken Snow Aegis and glanced down at the crater. This time I had ended up boiling the entire lake, wiping it off the map entirely. I felt sorry for the ecosystem that I had obliterated, but I didn''t have a choice. "Whoa! There''s not even any remains left of the poor dude!"

    Glancing down, I saw that he was partially right. There were still shards of black armor splattered everywhere, and the shattered obsidian sword, but there was no corpse. However, when I adjusted my glasses and magnified my vision, I caught sight of scorched bone. Not a whole skeleton, especially since Scorpios''s Antares had disintegrated most of it, but at least a blackened skull was lying next to the broken armor.

    "I told you he wasn''t the only one with a nuke spell," I remarked somewhat humorously. Then I jolted up. "Oh, damn it! The kids! I need to check if I didn''t accidentally blow up the shelter along with that bastard!"

    "I wouldn''t worry about that if I were you," Harrison said confidently. "The underground bunker was built to withstand even nukes and ride out the apocalypse."

    "Still best to check," Theodore murmured as he took out his smartphone. I left it to him, being too exhausted to even make a call. After a few seconds, he turned toward me and smiled. "They are all right. All of them. A bit shaken from the multiple explosions, though."

    "Great!" Dong Fang Yue Chu brightened up, and then helped me to my feet. "We should go let them out then!"

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 505 Chapter 505: Aftermath Again

    "Brother Richie!"

    Adrian ran out of the shelter and toward me, accompanied by Melina. I nodded, still supported by Dong Fang Yue Chu. The earlier battle had consumed too much of my mana, and coupled with the severe injuries I had sustained, I wasn''t able to walk on my own.

    "Are you all right?!"

    "Sensei!"

    Both of my disciples were staring at me in concern, especially when they caught sight of my current state. I forced a smile.

    "Yeah, I''m still alive, am I not?"

    "WAAAAAH!"

    Unexpectedly, it was Rossetti who made the most noise. The moment she emerged from the bunker, she burst into tears and started wailing.

    "Why the heck are you crying?!" I demanded.

    "But¡­but¡­" Rossetti sniffed as she wiped at her eyes. "We all thought you were dead! The opponent is the strongest member of Grimaldus, you know? It''s a miracle that you survived a duel against him!"

    "Hah!" Craig chortled. "You give Richie too little credit!"

    "Who is she?" Theodore whispered to Harrison. "She looks very familiar¡­but I don''t know where I''ve seen her before¡­"

    "She''s from Saint Teresa Academy. We fought against her team during the national tournament."

    While Harrison explained to the big guy, Rossetti joined Adrian and Melina in looking at me in concern. She reached out to touch me, and I grimaced.

    "Ouch! Hey! Watch it!"

    "You''re hurt! Very badly hurt at that!"

    I tried not to roll my eyes. Duh, of course I was severely injured. You knew who my opponent was, didn''t you? And man, she had quite the penchant for stating the obvious.

    "We''ll get Sister Pearl to heal you once she reaches here," Dong Fang Yue Chu assured me, but I knew it was meant more for Rossetti and the kids, to stop them from worrying. However, there was something in his statement that caught my attention.

    "Sister Pearl is here too?"

    "Yeah, she, Lily and Sheila are all here. Cody too, actually. But we all came separately. The girls stopped by Cambria on the way here, to do some shopping, while Cody¡­you know how he is. Always playing assassin."

    As long as he stayed out of trouble, I didn''t care what Cody play-acted as.

    "Thank you for saving us," the camp manager told us, even as the teachers and trainers were moving out to secure the location. Theodore handed over Xun Lian Jia to them, having picked him up after the battle ended. The chief trainer was still terribly injured, but at least he was alive.

    That was more than I could say for the Black Swordsman.

    "It''s nothing," Harrison told her with a polite smile. He then turned and gestured toward the Four Heavenly Kings of Jing Tian. "In fact, I came too late to help. The credit should go to these guys. They were the ones who did all the fighting."

    "Hey, you pulled our asses out of the fire at the end there," Craig protested. Then he grinned at me. "A fire ignited by Richie, of all people. What would you have done if Harrison didn''t show up?"

    "Richard would still have conjured that ice shield of his," Theodore reminded him. The guy was as serious as ever. Craig groaned and tried not to roll his eyes.

    "Never mind."

    "They''re coming." Harrison turned up his head when the roar of hovercrafts came, temporarily drowning out our voices. I watched as the massive transports dropped down on the edge of the camp, disgorging troops.

    "Hmph." Craig snorted. "They''re late to the party. The fighting''s already over."

    "Hey, at least we don''t have to walk home!" Dong Fang Yue Chu, on the other hand, was optimistic. "And we''ll be able to bring the wounded back for treatment!"

    "How did you guys get here?" I demanded. Surely the four of them didn''t rush over on foot when they received the distress signal.

    "Drop pod," Theodore replied seriously. He then pointed to a clearing over a hundred meters away, somewhere deep inside the forest. My jaw dropped when I saw a mechanical contraption that was about five meters high, its ramp-doors having slammed down for its occupants to disembark. What were my friends trying to be, space marines or something?

    "I came here by hover-bike," Harrison admitted as he pointed to a hover-bike that was parked next to the dop pod. "Rented one from Flandor City and zoomed all the way here."

    That explained everything. There were still a few questions I wanted to ask, but I was too exhausted. For now, I just stared at the hovercraft wearily and did my best to not fall asleep.

    *

    After such a crisis, there was no way for the camp to continue. Not to mention, the camp buildings were razed to the ground, the lake was gone and the facilities were wrecked. The middle school students also lost a lot of their beginnings, thanks to the Black Swordsman''s spamming of his Excalibur. Speaking of which, I wondered why he was ripping off Excalibur from a famous anime series.

    Probably because he watched the whole duel between Saber Alter and Berserker.

    Pearl and the other girls were waiting for us when we returned to Flandor City on the hovercrafts, and true to form, she cast healing spells on me. Xun Lian Jia also received medical treatment from more professional healing mages, and I was informed that his life wouldn''t be in any danger. I was actually surprised that he had somehow escaped all of those Excalibur shots that the Black Swordsman had fired off repetitively.

    "You were too reckless!" Pearl snapped at me. "Taking on the strongest member of Grimaldus on your own¡­do you have a death wish or something?"

    "Uh, you do realize that I actually fought alongside Xun Lian Jia at first, then with Dong Fang Yue Chu and the others?"

    "Why didn''t you retreat after Xun Lian Jia was taken out?" Sheila asked, though her tone was not as harsh as Pearl''s.

    "Retreat to where, exactly? And what''s going to happen to the middle school students if I run away? I can''t just abandon them."

    "You''re always too reckless, Brother Richie." Adrian shook his head. Then he beamed. "But that''s exactly why I follow you!"

    Pearl glared at him. "Don''t encourage him."

    "It''s all thanks to Sensei that we''re still alive." Melina tried to sound conciliatory. She glanced down, looking guilty. "If it weren''t for him, we would have been¡­"

    "Ah, no¡­that''s not what I meant." Pearl softened her tone and waved her hands. "I''m glad that Richard did his best to protect you guys. I''m not saying what he did was wrong. But I just wish he will be more careful¡­and treasure himself more. He always makes us worry about him."

    "Well, it''s Richie we''re talking about here." Dong Fang Yue Chu clasped his hands behind his head. "You know how he is. We love him because he''s a hero."

    "Yeah, I think Richie is fine the way he is." Craig chuckled mischievously.

    "His actions saved a lot of lives today," Theodore said seriously. Adrian and Melina nodded vigorously at that.

    "That''s right!"

    "Sensei protected us!"

    "All right, all right¡­" Pearl held up both of her hands. "I get it. Good job, Richard."

    I snickered, and then rested against the bed. My body continued to throb from the various bruises and cuts. Pearl had done a sterling job with her healing spells, and all of the major injuries were gone, particularly the internal ones. However, as with everything else, healing magic was not some miraculous instant cure that restored HP like a game. It took time for the body to slowly recover and heal. For the wounds to fully disappear, I had to wait for a day or two.

    In the meantime, I could do nothing but lay in bed and wait for my body to fully heal.

    "B¡­but¡­" Rossetti was blubbering. For some reason, she couldn''t stop crying and it was getting on my nerves. "Richard shouldn''t have to sacrifice his life for ours!"

    "That''s what heroes do. That''s what sets them apart from other people." Harrison smiled warmly at me. "Richard has set a good example for us to follow."

    "Uh¡­I think you''re giving me way too much credit¡­"

    Even as I said that, I couldn''t help but feel fuzzy inside. My goal was to be a hero like Dad, after all. Ever since he saved me from monsters almost six years ago, I had been chasing after his back. I had found his ideal beautiful ¨C the desire to save other people, to fight for their sakes¡­that just appealed to me. Perhaps I was too much of a kid, but when I watched all those shows and read all those stories about heroes, I admired them.

    Dad turned out to be a real-life hero, something that was even more glorious and amazing than fictional characters. That was why I wanted to emulate him. If Dad could pull it off and become a hero in reality, then I could too. At least that was what I thought.

    Had I¡­finally achieved my goal?

    While I was pondering on all that by myself, Craig leaned over and whispered into my ear.

    "Hey, what''s the deal between you and that Rossetti girl?"

    Sheila smacked at him, and he glared at her defiantly.

    "What?"

    "It''s none of your business."

    "Eh? Don''t be so boring. I''m sure you want to know too, right?"

    "Not really¡­" However, Sheila was unable to meet his gaze when she said that. Craig grinned and turned back to me.

    "Nothing," I replied.

    "Really? Nothing?"

    "Yeah."

    "Then why are you avoiding your gaze?"

    "Hmm¡­" Despite herself, Sheila had joined Craig in studying me. "Suspicious."

    Despite my firm declaration, I was unable to meet his eyes. For some reason, I remembered that weird dream I had about Rossetti the night before the Black Swordsman appeared and I had to do my best to stop myself from blushing. Like hell I would tell anyone about that. I would much rather die!

    "Oh, there really isn''t anything between us!" Rossetti somehow overheard our conversation and decided to put an end to it once and for all. "We just ended up working together for the middle school training camp, that''s all."

    I was glad that she was wise enough not to mention that we ended up sharing a room because of the lousy logistics of camp management. That would have caused a disaster and set tongues wagging.

    "Guys, stop teasing them." Lily, fortunately, was more mature than the others, and she stepped in to ensure that the atmosphere didn''t get awkward.

    "I don''t mind." Rossetti was smiling. "It''s just that¡­Miura has an interest in Richard, so I can''t possibly steal him from her."

    "What the hell is that about?!" Dong Fang Yue Chu was wrapping his arm around my neck, almost suffocating me. "Spill the beans, Richie, or we won''t let you rest!"

    "N¡­nothing!" I croaked out, trying to wrench his fingers open. "I have no interest in her!"

    ???Aw¡­" Rossetti made a face. "That''s a pity."

    Like hell it was. Miura La Noir was too devious for my tastes. I could never tell what that diabolic girl was thinking. As beautiful as she was, I would rather stay as far away from her as possible. I didn''t want to get caught up in her schemes.

    "How disappointing¡­" Dong Fang Yue Chu shook his head. Craig joined in, grinning insidiously.

    "Yeah, man! You need to liven up!"

    Fortunately, I was spared from this awkward conversation regarding romance when Harrison spoke up. All this while he had been silent, reading emails and text messages on his smartphone. His eyes lit up and he smiled.

    "Good news, people. The police have found Grimaldus''s hideout and they have the dark guild surrounded."

    "Father¡­"

    Everyone turned to stare at Melina inquisitively, and she blinked, timidly hiding behind Adrian. Clearing her throat, she raised her own smartphone.

    "After the last incident, my father took matters into his own hands and organized an investigation. He wanted to expose Grimaldus and eradicate them from their very roots."

    "Yeah, Duke Ferguson is leading the crackdown," Harrison confirmed as he glanced at his smartphone. "Thanks to the trail that the Black Swordsman left when they released him to attack the middle school students of Saint Teresa Academy, they were able to track down the main headquarters of Grimaldus. Turns out that they have been hiding in the underworld of Flandor this entire time. They caused their own downfall ¨C the mana signatures of the Black Swordsman were so powerful that they were unable to erase them."

    "Heh¡­" Craig marveled.

    "What incident?" Dong Fang Yue Chu asked blankly, turning back to Melina. She shrank back, and my friend had to withdraw apologetically. "Uh, you don''t have to tell us if you don''t want to."

    "No, it''s not that¡­"

    "Grimaldus tried to kidnap Melina a few weeks ago," I explained, saving Melina from the awkwardness. She nodded gratefully. "That''s why her father is so up in arms."

    "By the way, it was Brother Richie who saved us from the kidnappers."

    I wasn''t sure why Adrian was acting so smugly when he was the one who needed rescuing, along with Melina, but I decided not to comment on that. I was too tired to engage in any sort of banter.

    "Whoa¡­Richie, you''re everywhere, aren''t you?"

    Dong Fang Yue Chu shook his head in amazement. I shrugged.

    "I just happen to be in the right place at the right time."

    "Well¡­" Pearl stared at me sternly. "For now, the only place you should be is in bed." Then she clapped her hands and began beckoning toward the door. "Okay, everyone out! Let Richard rest!"

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 506 Chapter 506: Fall Semester

    Summer vacation passd by very quickly. With the fall of Grimaldus, there were no further attacks, and I could devote a lot more time to training my charges.

    I say that, but in the end I didn''t do that much. For most of the three-month summer vacation, I had returned to Jing Tian City and spent time with my dad. Adrian and Melina came over to visit ¨C particularly Adrian ¨C and they did receive a few training sessions in Dad''s dojo. Obviously Melina couldn''t spend too much time in Jing Tian City, so she was only here for a few weeks.

    Then everything was over, and I had to return to Flandor City to resume my exchange program. On the train, I read up on the destruction of Grimaldus with some form of satisfaction.

    "Serves them right," I muttered under my breath and scrolled down the screen of my smartphone. There wasn''t much for me to do except read, so I took out my Kindle and began reading for fun. I wanted to return to the forty-first millennium, where humanity reigned ass the dominant force in the galaxy, battling heretics, xenos and daemons from the warp.

    Then the train suddenly rolled to a stop. The lights flickered, causing me to glance up. I frowned and glanced about, noticing that the only other passengers in the carriage was a middle-aged salaryman and a girl in a high school sailor uniform, her long hair tied into braids. In the dim moments when the lights alternate between on and off, I could have sworn I saw her eyes glow red in the dark.

    "What''s going on?" I murmured with a frown, my hands automatically reaching for my two swords. The high school girl in a dark blue sailor uniform was also carrying a sword, which was not all that unusual, given that we were all combat mages training in magic academies. I didn''t recognize her uniform or school badge, but she was clearly one of them.

    As was I.

    However, when the train came to a sudden halt, she was up on her feet. The middle-aged salaryman twitched, and he suddenly scrambled off his seat and broke into a run.

    "¡­huh?"

    For a moment, I was confused, until I saw the girl chase after him. She was drawing her katana from the black scabbard and pursuing the panicked salaryman.

    "What the hell?"

    I was on my feet too, and moving toward them. I wasn''t sure what I intended to do. Stop the high school girl in sailor uniform from killing the guy, perhaps. Obviously I couldn''t sit by and watch as someone got murdered in cold blood right in front of my eyes.

    I was supposed to be a hero, after all.

    "Wait¡­!" I called out, even though I was aware that the girl wouldn''t respond. The middle-aged man sent me a terrified gaze, his eyes gleaming in the darkness in between moments of alternate light and darkness.

    "Save me!" he cried, desperately fumbling for the next train carriage. He ran into the doors and scrabbled at the latch, trying to yank it open. The girl was upon him right now, her sword flashing down on him. His eyes darted toward me. "Help! She''s crazy!"

    I was about to do so when I noticed something wrong. When the darkness came again, my lenses kicked in and scanned the guy, and I saw something seriously wrong. There was a monstrous shadow cast by the seemingly human figure, bearing partial wings, claws and fangs.

    "You are¡­"

    Even though I stopped in my tracks, the girl showed no such hesitation and slashed the guy. Blood fountained out and the salaryman shrieked one final time before crumpling to the floor.

    The girl than flicked the blood off her katana and sheathed it. She narrowed her eyes at me, turned away and retrieved her smartphone.

    "Mission accomplished." She then paused. "There is a witness. I''ll leave him to you guys to deal with." Then she shrugged. "I couldn''t help it. Also, he seems to know that the target wasn''t human. But if you want me to silence him, I''ll cut him down."

    Adjusting my glasses, I placed a hand on the hilt of one of my swords and watched her cautiously. She scowled.

    "He''ll be a troublesome opponent. I''m not sure I''ll be able to cut him down." There was a voice at the other end of her smartphone and she sighed in exaggerated exasperation. "I know, I know. I won''t do anything, okay? You guys deal with him."

    Whoom.

    The train moved again. The lights flickered back on and stayed on this time, illuminating the carriage.

    The girl glared at me as she hung up and placed her smartphone back in her pocket.

    "Don''t ask me any questions," she said coldly. "I won''t be answering them."

    "I didn''t say anything, though?!"

    The girl ignored me and went back to sit down. I watched her, and then decided to drop down on the train seat as well. There was no point standing around like an idiot. Glancing to the train door, I stared at the man''s corpse. Blood was pooling underneath, turning into a red lake. My glasses whirred and scanned the body, and I caught sight of data informing that he was not human.

    The train finally came to a stop, but this time it was at a station. The train driver spoke the name of the station overhead, but his voice was drowned out as passengers stomped out of the other carriages. In the almost empty carriage, the girl stood up and disembarked from the train.

    Not wanting to be left inside the carriage, alone with the seemingly human corpse, I also rose to my feet. Not to mention, I overheard the train driver announcing that this was the last stop, and the train would terminate here. So there was little point in sticking around.

    A couple of men in suit hurried over, both of them large and burly. One was a blind Caucasian with a large nose, while the other was a black with curly hair. They regarded me curiously, but focused their attention on the girl.

    "Saya!" the Caucasian called to the girl as he approached her. "Are you all right?"

    "Of course. I told you that I accomplished the mission, didn''t I?" she then raised her katana. "And get me a new blade. This one is getting worn out. I had trouble slicing through the target."

    "I see." The blond man nodded. "I''ll arrange for a new sword to be sent to you. It''ll take a week or so."

    "I don''t have a week, David." The girl called Saya shoved him a little as she stepped around him. "Make it three days."

    "Saya¡­" David sounded as if he was trying to placate her, even though he looked about twice her age. "You know swords don''t just grow on trees. We need to get it forged and manufactured¡­"

    While the two of them argued, the black man moved into the carriage to take a good look at the "target." He blanched and almost jumped back out.

    "What the hell?! That''s a human in there! What''s going on?!"

    "Shut up, Jason!" David snapped at him.

    "But¡­" Jason protested, gesticulating frantically back toward the carriage. "No matter how you look at him, he''s just a man! If you don''t believe me, take a look!"

    Saya merely gave him a glare before stalking off. Jason stepped toward her in rage, waving at her.

    "Wait! Hey, you! Get back here! We''re not done yet!"

    But David struck him before he could say anything else. Hauling Jason up by his collar, he slammed the poor dude against the train.

    "Shut up, you idiot! You want to die or something?!"

    "What do you mean?!" Jason was coughing, but he glared at his fellow suited dude defiantly.

    "She''s the only one who can identify them. Of course they look human ¨C they are shapeshifters! Once they take human form, there''s almost no way for us to tell them apart! That''s why we have her hunt them!"

    "If I may¡­" I raised a hand and pointed toward the corpse in the train. "The guy''s not human. I''m picking up strange biological signals that do not belong to a human."

    "Right. The other way is through devices and stuff." David let go of Jason and turned to me, studying my glasses. He must have caught sight of the holographic signals on my glasses, which were still churning out readings and data. "That''s quite the hi-tech glasses you have."

    "What do we do about him?" Jason was smoothing out his suit and trying to recover. He reached for his gun and pointed it at me. "Do we silence him?"

    "Idiot!"

    David was too late. Jason screamed as his arm flew up into the air, blood spurting from his stump. Dropping to his knees, he stared at me, terrified. My black blade was pressed against his throat, drawing a thin line of blood.

    "W¡­wait! I''m sorry! Please¡­we can talk this through! There doesn''t need to be any killing!"

    "That''s not what your friend said."

    "It''s¡­it''s just a misunderstanding!" David glared at the howling Jason. "Hurry up and apologize, you dolt! Do you want to lose your head?"

    "Sorry¡­" the guy in the suit whimpered, clutching his stump and staring at me, tears streaming down his eyes. "I¡­I didn''t mean to¡­"

    I glared at him, then withdrew my sword. I never intended to kill Jason, but he asked for it by pulling a gun on me. While I was generally a nice guy, I wasn''t stupid enough to let people point a gun at me and shoot. I had enough of idiots targeting me because they were enemies with Dad. Not that Jason needed to know that, of course, but at least he was aware that his life wouldn''t be taken anytime soon. The guy dropped back onto his rump, immensely relieved.

    "However¡­" David began, and then raised both of his hands when I turned to him. "Don''t misunderstand! I''m just requesting that you keep this a secret! If the public knows that there are shapeshifting monsters roaming amongst them, there will be a mass panic!"

    "Sure." I lowered my sword and sheathed it. "It''s not as if anyone will believe me anyway."

    "What''s going on?" To my surprise, a newcomer showed up. It wasn''t Saya, who had disappeared long ago, but rather Kufa Van Peer. He stopped and stared at me, surprised. "Classmate Richard? What are you doing here?"

    "Oh? You know each other?" David was looking relieved as he wiped cold perspiration from his face. "This young man is a witness. He saw Saya cutting down a Chiropteran in the train¡­"

    "A what?" I interrupted. David hesitated, but Kufa stepped forward.

    "It''s all right. I know him. He''s a fellow combat mage who is currently enrolled in my school for an exchange program."

    David nodded, and turned back to me. "That''s what we call the shapeshifting monsters. They have inherited the genes of a bat, and feed on human blood. That''s why we hunt them down, to ensure nobody falls victim to their predations."

    "Heh¡­so vampires?" I asked. David winced.

    "Not exactly."

    "Don''t even begin to put them in the same classification as vampires," Kufa told me seriously. "Vampires are still humans. They are mages who excel in blood magic, and delve into forbidden lore to increase their powers. These things aren''t human. They''re¡­an offshoot, a mutation. Monsters that feed on human blood and then shapeshift into the species of their victims. It''s to camouflage themselves."

    I grimaced. "That''s scary."

    "Anyway, I''ll take him with me." Kufa was addressing David and Jason. "You guys take care of the aftermath. I''ll brief him on what''s happening."

    "Recruit him if possible." David gestured toward my glasses. "He has some hi-tech gear that can tell apart the Chiropterans from humans."

    "Oh, right. That would be a great help." Kufa grinned. "But that''s not the only thing I need his help for."

    "What do you mean?" I frowned. Kufa put an arm around my shoulders and began leading me away from the train.

    "You''re heading back to school, right? Perfect. There are a few things I''ll need your help with, if you don''t mind¡­"

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 507 Chapter 507: Back to School

    "Dude, I''ll help you with tracking down Chiropterans and monsters, and hunting them down. But I''ll not get involved in school politics and rivalry."

    "Come on!" Kufa clapped his hands together and bowed his head. "Just this once!"

    "What do you even need me for, anyway? I''m not a student of Saint Teresa Academy. I''m just here on exchange!"

    "Blame it on Saya¡­" Kufa hesitated when he caught my look. "David told me that you encountered her. I''m sure you saw how much of a bitch she is."

    "Well, she certainly is quite the aloof person, but I wouldn''t go that far."

    "You don''t know her well enough! She''s looking down on our school because she has scored more Chiropteran kills! She''s mocking us for being weaker and less competent!"

    "Ignore her then. She sounds like a childish person."

    "If only it''s that easy." Kufa sighed, reverting back to his usual composed self. "The problem is that reputation is tied to the number of missions we request. At this rate, the Hunter Association will be sending more requests to Hennepin Academy instead of Saint Teresa Academy. They will only exclusively give Saya these missions."

    "Great! Let her deal with all of them then!"

    I honestly couldn''t care less. While I would certainly hunt the Chiropterans if they were threatening civilians, I wasn''t some greedy bastard seeking honor, glory and credit. If there were other people dealing with the Chiropteran threat, they were more than welcome to. I was more interested in the safety of civilians and innocents than I was in bagging bragging rights.

    "That''s not the point¡­" Kufa sighed and buried his face in his palm. He straightened up. "Anyway, the next time we have a mission, I''ll ask you to come along."

    "Uh, you do realize that I''m quite busy, right?" I had training with Adrian and Melina on top of my own, as well as homework and other school stuff. Plus I wanted to take other missions. I wasn''t fond of the idea of being randomly called up in the middle of the night to go slay monsters. I would still do it, of course, but I would prefer to have some semblance of organization or schedule rather than be at Kufa''s beck and call.

    "Yes, I understand." Kufa nodded. "I will try my best to not take up too much of your time. And you''re welcome to refuse, of course. There''s where Saya and I come in ¨C we''ll do the work. It''s just that an additional teammate will help me out a lot."

    I sighed. "How often do these Chiropterans show up? I hope it''s not every night or something. That would mean you''re understaffed, and they shouldn''t be handing these missions out to students."

    "Oh, yeah. Not that often. Maybe once a month, after the higher-ups in the Hunter Association detect a possible Chiropteran. You''ve met David ¨C he''s in charge of tracking down possible leads. Then Saya and I come in to sniff them out, and exterminate them."

    "Once a month? That''s not so bad. Sure, if I happen to be free on that day, I will help." When I meant free, I meant if I wasn''t in the midst of a mission of my own.

    Kufa understood that, and he nodded. Then he looked a little guilty.

    "Well, to tell you the truth¡­this mission isn''t official. They are not recognized by the school. For it to be recognized, the Hunter Association has to formally submit a request to the school, but I get this straight from them, without going through the school. That''s normally not allowed. Especially since the Hunter Association is just sending the requests straight to Saya instead of to our school. And we are not supposed to be¡­uh, stealing missions from students from other schools. So if we get caught doing them, we might get into trouble."

    "What?" I glared at him through my glasses. "And you want me to get involved in this?"

    "I''m sorry!" Kufa bowed deeply. "But this concerns the lives of people, so we don''t have a choice! If we wait for the Hunter Association to formally send a request, and for the school to approve the missions, the Chiropterans will claim another victim in the meantime! As competent as Saya is, she''s just one person. She can''t do everything by herself! That''s why it''s so important that we bring back up our reputation up, so that the Hunter Association will formally send the requests to Saint Teresa Academy!"

    "Fine." I sighed heavily as I scratched my head. "Call me if there''s an emergency. But only if there''s an emergency and peope''s lives are in danger. Got it? I don''t want to get involved in all this political bullshit and school rivalry."

    "Ugh¡­" Kufa looked a little disappointed, but he nodded. "Understood."

    I sighed in relief, and then turned away from him to head toward Adrian and Melina''s manor. I waved, and even without glancing back, I knew that he was going his separate way. I wasn''t sure what to do, but I honestly didn''t want to get involved in this.

    However, if innocent people were in danger¡­

    "Ugh! Why does everything have to be so complicated?!"

    Shaking my head in exasperation, I strode up to the gate. To my surprise, it was open, and there were a few familiar figures waiting for me.

    "Brother Richie!"

    "Sensei!"

    Adrian and Melina ran up to me excitedly, glad to see me after so long. I nodded and waved at them.

    "How are you guys doing?"

    "Good, I guess." Adrian grinned and shrugged. Melina nodded.

    "I believe I''ve gotten stronger. I look forward to showing you my progress during training, Sensei!"

    "That''s great to hear." I nodded and patted their heads. I then turned to nod politely at Amelia, who responded with a smile.

    "It''s good to see you again, Master Richard."

    "Yeah, it''s been a while. And I told you that you don''t have to be so formal."

    "Not at all. I am but a mere servant of the Franklin household. Perhaps you prefer to dispense with such propriety, but I insist on it. It is not befitting of a maid to conduct herself in such a casual manner, especially the head maid of this particular manor."

    Yikes. I found the whole thing stifling, but I didn''t argue. It would be pointless. So I nodded and followed the kids back into the mansion.

    "Whoa¡­it really has been a while." Looking around, I felt a bit amazed, and couldn''t help but smile. "I don''t know how I''ll be able to return to school now."

    *

    The next morning, I was standing in the garden, watching Adrian and Melina spar. She was telling the truth ¨C her skills had improved yet again.

    "You really didn''t spend the holidays slacking off, eh?"

    "Why would I do that?" Melina stared at me blankly. I sighed and shook my head.

    "Never mind." Adjusting my glasses, I smiled. "At this rate, you''ll graduate soon. You probably don''t need me to teach you any longer."

    "That''s not true!" Melina protested. "It''s all thanks to Sensei that I''ve gotten this far! Without your tutelage, I''ll still be derided as the incompetent talented girl!"

    "Are you mistaking yourself for the main character in a certain light novel?" I shook my head again. "Well, anyway, that''s it for today. Let''s get ready for school. We don''t want to be late on the first day back, right?"

    "Right!" Adrian agreed wholeheartedly.

    After training, we washed up, changed to our uniforms and grabbed a quick breakfast. Then we headed straight to school. On the way there, Melina hummed evidently in a good mood.

    "I can''t wait for the semester to start!"

    "Why?" Personally, I enjoyed holidays more, but that was just me. Adrian smirked before offering an explanation.

    "The rankings. We''ll be able to challenge other students and rank up again once the semester begins. Melina is itching to see how far up she can climb this time."

    "Oh, that would be a sight to see!" I was pretty invested in my students'' progress. Honestly, the ranking didn''t matter to me ¨C their performance did. I wanted to see how well they fared against other students, and how much of the stuff I taught them that they managed to aster. It was something to be proud of, regardless of what rank they eventually occupied.

    We stopped at the gates, having to go our separate ways because the middle school section was located away from the high school division. I waved to them, and then continued on.

    "Richard! You!"

    I turned around and caught sight of Miura La Noir sprinting toward me furiously. She tried to grab my collar, but I effortlessly dodged her.

    "Stay still! You cheater!"

    "Why should I?! And what do you mean by that? I didn''t cheat on anybody!"

    "You still dare to say that!?" Miura was on the verge of tears. "Why were you and Rossetti together in the summer training camp?! How could you participate in the camp together without me?!???

    The fuck? Well¡­Rossetti did somewhat warn me about this, so I wasn''t surprised, but I was still annoyed by her clingy behavior, especially since we weren''t in a relationship to begin with.

    "If you have a problem with that, take it up to Headmistress Taylor. She was the one who hired me to provide security for the camp." And good thing she did, or all the middle school kids would have been wiped out by the Black Swordsman.

    "I''m not saying that you can''t go, but you have to bring me along next time!"

    Was she kidding? Hell no. I found her obnoxious as hell.

    "Stop bothering Richard, Miura." Thankfully, Kufa came to my aid. "Did you think he was spending time romancing Rossetti during the summer camp?"

    "Of course!" I resisted the urge to slap her, and regretted it when she continued rambling on. "What else would a young man and a young woman do when they are alone together!? Worse, I heard from reliable sources that they were even put together in the same room!"

    I grimaced and glanced away, hoping that my face wasn''t burning. Damn it, for some reason, I was reminded of that dream with Rossetti. Fuck, I wished I could get that out of my head. This was getting annoying.

    Miura seemed to have noticed that I couldn''t meet her gaze, and she was vindicated.

    "So something did happen after all!"

    "Nothing happened!" I snapped, my patience wearing thin. "Look, I don''t care if you believe me or not, but nothing happened. And even if it did, it is none of your business."

    "You¡­!"

    "He''s right, you know." Kufa sighed. "You''re not even his girlfriend. All this while, you''ve been insisting on a one-sided relationship even though the other party has clearly expressed that he is not interested in you at all. You should stop harassing Richard."

    "Y¡­you''re taking his side?!" Miura burst into tears and ran away. Both Kufa and I watched her leave and then shook our heads in perfect synchronicity.

    "Sorry about that. That girl is weird."

    "Don''t worry about it. It''s not even your fault." If anything, it was Miura''s fault for being annoying. Just because she was beautiful didn''t mean I wasn''t allowed to reject her¡­

    I frowned, suddenly realizing that she had been play-acting this entire time. There was no way that the usually composed, scheming Miura would pull a stunt like this in front of the school. Was she plotting something?

    Whatever it was, I wasn''t going to figure it out by standing around here. After bidding Kufa farewell, I proceeded to my classroom and took a seat. Teacher Einsberg entered shortly after that, and smiled when he saw me.

    "Ah, Richard. You''re here again. Had a good summer vacation, I trust?"

    "Yeah." I nodded. "I did my best to learn the ice magic spells you taught me. I''m not sure if I''ve done them correctly, but¡­"

    "Sure. I''ll review them." Einsberg beamed. He then glanced around and raised an eyebrow. "I''m kind of surprised that you''re the only one who showed up in class today. I mean, I know it''s the first day and everything, but even so¡­this is surprising."

    "¡­maybe all the other ice mages caught a cold?" I suggested jokingly, which earned a scoff from Teacher Einsberg.

    "Only idiots catch a cold in the summer. And I''m confident that none of my students are stupid."

    "If you say so." I shrugged, and patiently waited for the class to resume. Fortunately, after a few minutes, a few students began to stream in. I was actually relieved by that. It would be so awkward to be the only one in the classroom.

    Man, it was good to be back.

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 508 Chapter 508: Reques

    For a couple of weeks, my school days passed peacefully. Nothing much happened, and I continued to train and teach Adrian and Melina, though I was pretty sure they had already learned everything that they needed to know.

    At some point, there was no longer any point to teaching, and the only way for them to improve was to go out there and gain actual combat experience. That was the whole point of learning to fight, after all. Staying all sheltered and hiding in a dojo wasn''t going to help much. There were things that you could only learn in a real life-and-death battle.

    That, and practice. Lots and lots of practice. Fighting, like anything else, was a craft. The only way to hone it was to practice non-stop. The more you practiced, the better you get.

    "Good job, you two."

    I patted Adrian and Melina''s heads after we completed a training session. Melina pouted.

    "Geez, Sensei! Stop treating us like kids!"

    "Yeah! We''re already in middle school, Brother Richie!"

    Even though I knew that, I just couldn''t help it. They were both younger than I was, and shorter too. I felt like a big brother of sort.

    "Yeah, well¡­sorry. Anyway, that''s it for today. You two should go wash up, then do your homework. Don''t forget about school!"

    "Yes, Sensei¡­"

    "Ugh¡­"

    I watched the both of them go, and was about to follow them into the house when my smartphone rang. I frowned and stared at the screen, noting that the caller was Kufa.

    "Great¡­" I sighed heavily. I had been expecting him to call earlier, but a couple of weeks had passed without anything happening. I had almost forgotten about all this, and the Chiropteran had seemed like a bad dream. Resigning myself, I swiped at the screen and answered the call. "Richard here. What''s up, Kufa?"

    "I''m very sorry, Richard, but I need your help. Are you available right now?"

    "For what?" I asked carefully, taking precautions not to promise him anything.

    "I''ll be honest¡­this is an unofficial mission, so we might get into trouble for this. I hope you don''t mind."

    "Of course I mind! I''m not doing anything that will break the rules!" I scowled. A hero was someone who upheld the law and brought justice to criminals. Why the hell would I break the very rules that I was supposed to safeguard?

    "Even if there are people''s lives at risk?"

    "Look, dude," I snapped impatiently. "Don''t get all cryptic on me. If you want something, tell me directly. I don''t have time to waste on your stupid games."

    "Sorry." To his credit, Kufa sounded contrite. "I didn''t mean to¡­but yeah, Saya''s life is in danger at the moment, and we''re the only two people available who can help her. I need your help. Both Saya and I need your help."

    "Elaborate."

    I was already heading for the gates, a scowl on my face. Of course, I stopped short of exiting the house. Kufa still hadn''t told me where to go yet. I heard a sigh from the opposite end, though I couldn''t tell if it was from relief or weariness.

    "A few hours ago, David identified a possible Chiropteran. Saya went after it, to exterminate it. She tracked it all the way to a warehouse at the eastern district¡­but it turned out to be a trap." He swallowed audibly. "The warehouse is a nest of those things. Right now, Saya is outnumbered, and if this goes on, she''ll be killed. Not only that, if these things escape, they will terrorize the human population of Flandor. There will be more victims."

    "That can''t be good. Where''s this warehouse?"

    "I''ll send you to address through a text message. Use Google Maps ¨C it should provide you a route."

    "Got it." I was already summoning Cygnus. The white swan appeared beside me, flapping his wings once and cawing. "I''ll meet you there."

    "Thanks." This time I could hear the relief evident in his voice. "I really appreciate it. And¡­sorry."

    "Don''t need to apologize. I''ll see you then." I then hung up and jumped atop Cygnus''s back.

    Thanks to flying there instead of walking, I reached the warehouse in less than fifteen minutes. While riding atop Cygnus, I used the Google Map app on my smartphone and mentally directed by Constellation spirit along the route depicted on the screen. From above, I could see the warehouse that Kufa talked about, and I had my swan descend upon its position.

    Kufa was already waiting for me somewhere below, and I hopped off Cygnus''s back to land beside him.

    "What''s the situation?" I asked. He grimaced.

    "Bad."

    "Don''t me a vague description! Elaborate! I want details!" I was already drawing my swords and moving toward the main doors of the warehouse. "What''s the enemy disposition? Is Saya the only one who is engaging them in combat? Or has she already been killed in action? Are the Chiropterans contained? What other forces do we have here? Have they already established a perimeter? I don''t want any of these beasts to escape!"

    "Uh, what? Huh?" Kufa looked puzzled, and then he held up his hands frantically. "Slow down, one question at a time!"

    "I shouldn''t even need to ask you these questions," I snapped, glaring at him. He looked at me guiltily.

    "You sound like you''re a professional soldier¡­" he blinked and paused. "Oh, right. You''ve worked with the Silver Wolves before¡­"

    "Answers. Now."

    Kufa swallowed. "There are about thirty Chiropterans, though the numbers might have fallen because Saya is still engaged in combat. They are currently contained¡­"

    He glanced away and I saw a line of military vehicles parked around the warehouse. Men in suits were bustling about, with David giving orders. Many of them had their rifles out and supported atop the vehicles that they used as cover, ready to fire upon whatever monster that escaped the warehouse. So the perimeter had alredy been established.

    Even though these men in suits didn''t possess powerful magic like combat mages, they were still professionals. They could be counted on to get the job done.

    "Then we''re the only mages?" I asked Kufa. He nodded and drew his katana.

    "We''ll be the only ones going in."

    I couldn''t help but smile at that. "No, we won''t."

    "Huh?"

    An army of Constellation spirits appeared behind me. A pack of Canis Minor, led by Canis Major. A horde of Ursa Minor, led by Ursa Major. Serpens, uncoiling to raise his head and hiss in the direction of the warehouse.

    "Like I said, we won''t be the only ones." I then charged toward the huge double door that served as the entrance. "Let''s go, everyone!"

    Kicking the door open, I dove right into the melee and lashed out with my swords. A couple of Chiropterans had heard me coming in, and they spun around to confront me, but my black and white blades flashed out and took their heads off.

    Then my Constellation spirits plunged right in without any hesitation, growling and snarling as they slashed, bit and clawed at the Chiropterans. Serpens wrapped his body around an unfortunate Chiropteran, crushing it before biting its head off with its fangs and pumping venom into its system. Behind them, Kufa joined in, his dazzling speed turning him into a black and blue blur. His katana flashed silver and several heads flew, the Chiropterans dropping in several pieces.

    "Your help was unnecessary."

    Saya''s voice rang coldly from the center of the warehouse. I scowled, thinking that I shouldn''t have come along. Then I saw her state and my blood froze.

    She was torn and tattered, one arm gone and blood pouring out of her stump. A Chiropteran had also ripped out one of her eyes, and blood was streaming own her face, leaking from her nose and mouth. She had also been eviscerated, her torn uniform revealing an ugly gash across her abdomen. She was limping, one of her legs evidently broken, but she somehow continued to stand out of sheer tenacity. She continued to fight on, wielding her katana with her remaining hand and hacking and slashing at five Chiropterans that attempted to overwhelm her with their numbers.

    She was literally single-handedly fending them off in a heroic effort to not just survive, but extermiant these monsters.

    "Damn¡­" Kufa cursed and fought his way toward her. His figure disappeared in a zigzagging blur that left several dead Chiropterans in his wake. More of them turned their attention on him, but my army of Constellation spirits continued to pounce on them and rip them apart. The Ursa Minors pounded them to the ground and used their claws to rend them apart. Ever seen teddy bears with claws? That was what they looked like. Meanwhile, Canis Minor bit and tore the Chiropterans apart by working in concert with each other, much like Deinonychus from the Cretaceous period cooperating to take down a much larger prey the size of a sauropod. "Get out of the way!"

    As always, I was impressed by his tremendous speed. However, more Chiropterans were literally throwing themselves at him, to get in his way and slow him down. On the opposite end, another Chiropteran slashed Saya across the chest, drawing another spray of blood and causing her to stagger. At this rate, she was going to die from massive blood loss.

    "¡­but it is appreciated nonetheless."

    Despite her dire situation, Saya was still somehow able to crack a joke. At least I thought that was a joke. She wasn''t smiling at all. I couldn''t blame her, though. Who was going to smile when she was missing an arm and on the verge of bleeding to death?

    "Canis Major, Sirius attack!" I commanded. The huge Constellation spirit tampled over a Chiropteran, crushing the unfortunate thing, and then opened his jaws to unleash a devastating torrent of mana that washed through the space between Kufa and Saya. As much as I wanted to hit the five Chiropterans that were directly assaulting Saya, I couldn??t risk hitting her, so I decided to clear the way for Kufa instead.

    Screeching, immolated Chiropterans fell to the ground, thrashing about. Kufa kicked off the ground and accelerated past their blazing corpses, his katana lashing out to take the head off one of the Chiropterans that were attacking Saya. Two of the remaining four turned to face him, and he parried and ducked under their blows while severing their limbs and sending claws flying into the air. They screeched as they clutched at their stumps, blood spraying violently like geysers.

    Undaunted, Kufa closed in, hammering his sword into the chest of one of them and then cutting it apart. The other tried to slash at him with its remaining claw, but he whirled around and cut off its arm before beheading it.

    "Great job," I praised him while bisecting a Chiropteran, Hei Yue cleaving through its chest from shoulder to hip, then turned to parry a strike with Bai Ri. A Canis Minor pounced on its back, his teeth sinking deeply into its throat and it staggered back, only for me to pierce its heart with Hei Yue.

    Saya seized the opportunity to break out of her precarious situation. With the number of her opponents reduced, she single-handedly cut through them, sending their heads and claws tumbling through the air. That must have expended her remaining strength, for she fell onto her knees and rammed her sword into the ground to keep herself kneeling upright.

    "Saya! Are you all right?"

    "Yeah¡­but it''s not over yet." She gritted her teeth, blood trickling from her lips. "This whole thing is a trap!"

    Several crates were blown apart as something enormous knocked them over. A gigantic Chiropteran ¨C easily three times the size of the others ¨C strode over, its clawed feet gouging out concrete from the ground. Massive wings spread out behind, giving the creature the impression that it was a humanoid bat.

    "That''s the Alpha Chiropteran," Saya spat, her eyes blazing furiously. "Be careful¡­it''s the one who masterminded this whole thing."

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 509 Chapter 509: Alpha Chiropteran

    "What? Masterminded the whole thing?!" Kufa gaped at Saya in disbelief. "What do you mean? How can a monster¡­?"

    "Never underestimate a monster," I told him. "If you think they are mindless beasts who thinking of nothing but killing, get rid of that impression immediately. They are also among the most cunning and insidious creatures to ever invade our dimension. They can be as intelligent as humans."

    The Alpha Chiropteran snorted, as if mocking us, its elongated snout opening to reveal rows of gleaming teeth. I readied both of my swords, but before I could order Canis Major to attack, the Alpha Chiropteran launched the first strike.

    It hadn''t been hiding this entire time to do nothing, after all.

    "!!!!"

    The Alpha Chiropteran shrieked so loudly that all of the glass windows shattered instantly. I was sent staggering backward as violent vibrations thundered into me, almost breaking my eardrums and destroying the concrete around me.

    "This much power from just a screech¡­no, is this a sonic attack?!"

    The attack also took out a big chunk of my pack of Canis Minor, the poor hunting hounds howling in agony as the sonic attack ruptured their ears. They had even more sensitive hearing than I did and were thus more vulnerable. I hurriedly dismissed them, along with the Ursa Minor, a good number who had been tossed about like teddy bears¡­uh, I mean rag dolls.

    Before I could react, the Alpha Chiropteran flapped its wings, and the next second it was right in front of me, its scythe-like claws arcing toward my shoulder. I was barely able to parry it in time, but greenish-black demonic mana surged out and blew the entire place up.

    "Ugh!?"

    I tumbled out of the explosion, coughing. Blood trickled down my face and from my shoulder. Rolling to my feet, I gasped as I brought both of my swords up. If I hadn''t unleashed a black blast of mana from Hei Yue to counter the monstrous creature''s attack, its scythe-like claws would have taken my head off my shoulders.

    And the creature knew it. The Alpha Chiropteran was actually laughing as it watched me, its black eyes glinting maliciously. It raised another scythe-like claw to swat me aside, despite me parrying its blow with my crossed swords. It was almost as if I was nothing more than a toy to its prodigious strength.

    "Gr¡­!"

    Ursa Major growled as he lumbered up behind the Alpha Chiropteran and struck it with his claws. To my surprise, the monster merely batted Ursa Major''s huge claws aside with a massive wing, and used its other wing to knock him aside. Ursa Major staggered, but then a dexterous tail whipped out and pierced through his throat, penetrating even thick muscles and fur to send blood jetting out. While Ursa Major tumbled over and disappeared, Canis Major seized the chance to unleash his Sirius spell and bathed the Alpha Chiropteran in flames.

    "¡­"

    The Alpha Chiropteran merely cleaved the superheated torrent apart with a scythe, and then disappeared. Before Canis Major could respond, the Alpha Chiropteran appeared behind him, and then slashed him from shoulder to hip, causing him to howl as he went down. I quickly dismissed him to spare him the agony.

    "Richard!" Kufa yelled as he raced forward, but before I could gesture for him to get back, the Alpha Chiropteran was in front of him. He was barely able to block its next blow, and found himself flung across the warehouse. "Kuh! Damn it¡­!"

    His eyes widened when he saw that the Alpha Chiropteran was right above him, bringing its scythe down to decapitate him. He wouldn''t be able to block it in time, with his katana knocked aside. Even so, he tried to raise his sword as quickly as possible¡­

    An azure arrow slammed into the Alpha Chiropteran, forcing it to abort its attack. It turned toward me, its wings swatting away the next hail of azure arrows that followed. I was firing consecutively with Orion, having sheathed my swords.

    "Retreat!" I ordered a stunned Kufa. "Take Saya and bring her out of here! Get out of the warehouse! I''ll deal with this monster!"

    "By yourself?" he retorted in disbelief. I smiled at him.

    "Have you forgotten? I''m never by myself."

    He immediately understood, and flung the protesting Saya over his shoulder. While firing more azure arrows at the slowly approaching Alpha Chiropteran ¨C who was casually flicking them away with its wings as if they were nothing more than a minor irritant ¨C I watched them leave. Kufa slashed one of the few surviving Chiropterans with his katana, and then smashed his way out of a window to crash outside of the warehouse. His job was made easier because the Alpha Chiropteran''s sonic attack had shattered all the glass earlier.

    With him and Saya now safely outside, I could begin the next phase of my strategy.

    "Vermillion Phoenix!"

    My Celestial Guardian above me, and then set the entire warehouse ablaze. The remaining Chiropterans screeched as they were incinerated into ash, their bodies shriveling up and blackening. Only the Alpha Chiropteran was able to survive the divine flames, using its wings to shield itself from the blaze. Despite its power, it was vulnerable. Ugly burns expanded over its brown, leathery skin, and it screeched in agony.

    "!!!"

    The damned monster unleashed another sonic howl that blew the flames out, or tried to. Vermilion Phoenix unleashed another torrent of flames that engulfed the poor creature and caused it to trash about for a moment. Its scythe-like claws slashed out of the crimson flames, seeking purchase in the razed warehouse. The entire place was falling apart around me, immolated beams and flaming pieces of concrete raining down.

    I effortlessly evaded the blazing debris while firing off a few azure arrows in the Chiropteran''s direction. The gargantuan creature flapped its wings forcefully to extinguish part of the flames, but it wasn''t enough to prevent the unfortunate warehouse from collapsing upon itself.

    With another shriek, it burst out of the burning warehouse, attempting to break free and soar high into the air. However, Vermillion Phoenix was waiting for it. With a cry, my Celestial Guardian rammed into the fleeing Chiropteran and knocked it back down into the crumbing warehouse. As it plummeted, I took aim with Orion.

    "Rigel," I intoned softly. The azure arrow blazed in my right hand so brightly it almost resembled a star, even as I fitted it to my bow. The gusts of wind conjured by the sheer power of Rigel blew the flames away from me, sending the superheated air rippling away. Ignoring the destruction around me, I released the arrow and directed it at the Alpha Chiropteran, which was even now trying to recover its balance.

    My arrow stuck true and detonated, enveloping the Alpha Chiropteran in a colossal sphere that consumed the rest of the warehouse. Vermillion Phoenix swooped down and grabbed me, then took off to escape the expanding conflagration that reduced everything within its reach into atoms.

    "Jesus Christ!" Kufa cried out as he shielded his eyes from the searing blast. Behind, the men in suits all crouched down instinctively, their sunglasses protecting their eyes from the blinding glare. A medic was tending to Saya, who shook her head in disbelief.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me," she growled as she glared at the explosion. "Where the hell did this guy come from?"

    "From Jing Tian City," Kufa replied without thinking. Saya buried her face in her palm ¨C she still only had one arm at the moment.

    "That''s not what I meant¡­" she trailed off, and then turned to stare at her comrade, her eyes widening. "Wait, that Jing Tian City?!"

    "Yeah, that Jing Tian City."

    They were referring to the Jing Tian City event where it was invaded by an army of monsters and almost turned into a living hell thanks to the machinations of the Dark Church. Whoops, I almost accidentally said Black Vatican there. Sorry.

    The conflagration was slowly fading, and there wasn''t even much of a corpse left. Ash rained down, falling into the raging inferno that now devoured the remains of the warehouse. Vermillion Phoenix dropped me off at the perimeter, and then disappeared.

    "None of the other Chiropterans escaped, right?" I asked David. He jolted, and then snapped of a salute.

    "No, sir!"

    Did the guy not realize that I was not his commanding officer? Why the hell was he addressing me as sir?

    Deciding not to dwell on the minor details, I nodded and proceeded toward Kufa. Jerking my head at Saya, who was now receiving treatment, I asked, "Is she all right?"

    "She will be."

    "I''ll live," Saya said unhappily, her red gaze turning toward me. "I appreciate the help you two have given me. At the very least, we have wiped out an entire nest¡­this mission has been a great success."

    "It''s possible that we might have exterminated all the Chiropterans in Flandor City." There was hope in David''s voice, but Saya scoffed at that.

    "I wouldn''t put any money on that. These things are tenacious. There will be a few who have gone underground, and they will surely go into hiding until we forget about them."

    "Then we''ll continue to root them out." David clenched his fists. I wondered if he had lost a loved one or a friend or even family to these monsters. Or perhaps that was just my imagination going wild. Imagining a random backstory for someone I hardly knew.

    "Our job here is done." I glanced at Kufa, who nodded. However, he didn''t budge.

    "I''ll stay here until we clean everything up. To ensure there are no Chiropterans or other monster hiding in there somewhere."

    I sighed, cursing under my breath. Why did I have to be a nice guy? "I''ll stay with you then. No way will I leave the place until the job is done."

    "No, you will not."

    "!!!"

    All of us jumped and spun around, the men in suits raising their rifles and guns to point at the source of the voice. To our surprise, it belonged to a kindly old lady with her silver hair pinned to a bun and dressed in regal robes.

    "¡­Headmistress Taylor¡­"

    Teresa Taylor nodded absently as she almost seemed to glide over the ground. She surveyed the destruction for a few moments before turning back to us.

    "I''m pretty sure you two are not supposed to be here. I have no recollection of the Hunter Association submitting a request to my academy students for a Chiropteran hunting mission."

    "W¡­why are you here?" Kufa finally found her voice. She snorted and gestured toward the warehouse.

    "With you people making this much of a ruckus, how could I not notice? And also¡­I happened to see that Vermillion Bird, as well as that huge explosion from afar¡­so I rushed over as soon as I can." She regarded me. "Your spells are very distinctive, Student Richard."

    I said nothing. I had been caught in the act, and there was no excuse I could make.

    "So¡­why are the both of you here? Student Kufa, Student Richard?"

    "It was an emergency!" Kufa swallowed, and then glanced at Saya, who was still receiving treatment. "A friend of mine was in danger¡­and so I begged Classmate Richard for help. I was the one who got him involved in all this."

    "If I may¡­" David raised a hand. "Headmistress Taylor, the Hunter Association will accept all responsibility for this mess. We were the ones who underestimated the enemy. We had thought Saya sufficient to dispatch the Chiropterans, and we were horribly mistaken. Consequently, Saya almost paid for our error with her life, and in our desperation, we called Kufa Van Peer and his friend here for help. It was truly an emergency. I hope you can forgive us."

    Teresa Taylor was silent for a while. Then she sighed.

    "I am not unsympathetic to your plight," she finally said. "However, if this was truly an emergency, you should have contacted the military mages, or hired a mercenary unit. Why did you instead call upon the aid of two students?"

    "They may be students, but they are very capable¡­" David began, but Taylor cut him off.

    "You can''t fool me. It''s because they would be cheaper, right?"

    David looked shocked, but he lowered his head, unable to deny it. I narrowed my yes. So basically these bastards dragged me out of my resting period and got me involved in this mess because they wanted to save money?!

    "Both of you, go home.??? Teresa Taylor turned to speak to Kufa and me. "I''ll deal with the Hunter Association. As for the Chiropterans, you need not worry. I have already enlisted the assistance of the city''s military mages."

    Kufa and I exchanged a glance, and then we obeyed, leaving the blazing warehouse and the men in suits behind.

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 510 Chapter 510: Punishmen

    I felt as if I was standing trial, my solitary figure hunched over a table as I patiently awaited the surrounding teachers to pass judgement. Said teachers were seated in a rough semicircle around me, while at the center of, right opposite my forlorn figure, was a huge desk where the headmistress, Teresa Taylor, presided. Like a judge, she watched me sagely, her eyes devoid of pity.

    To the side stood a guilty Kufa Van Peer, who had already received his sentence and was hanging his head in shame. He had confessed his crimes and was now repenting. On either side of him were two students from the disciplinary committee, standing taut and ready to whack him if he so much as displayed a single sign of resistance.

    Yeah, the whole scene resembled a session in court. If I were a bit bolder, I would be pointing animatedly and yelling, "OBJECTION!" like the famous game lawyer in a blue suit and had fancy hair.

    Teresa Taylor studied me for a moment before finally passing her sentence.

    "20 points from Gryffindor."

    "Excuse me?!"

    "That''s your punishment, a deduction of points from your house. You didn''t think you could get away with breaking the rules, did you?"

    "Um, that''s not the problem here! I''m not protesting to being punished for breaking the rules, but I don''t belong to any house! And even if I did, wouldn''t Hufflepuff be more suitable for an average, plain person like me?"

    "Don''t be ridiculous. Just look into the mirror. You look much more like Harry Potter than Cedric Diggory."

    Okay, I had to give her that. I was wearing glasses and had messy black hair, after all.

    "Stop this nonsense." A male teacher in his mid-forties said sharply. He reminded me of a male version of Professor Minerva McGonagall for some reason, what with his strict and serious composure. I recognized him as Fu Xiao Zhang, the vice-principal of Saint Teresa Academy. Finally, someone who was going to take this trial seriously. "Harry Potter was like so ten years ago."

    I was stupid for ever thinking that I could believe in the teachers.

    "Says who?" Teresa Taylor retorted in a strong voice that belied her advanced age. "Did you not hear that Ms. Rowling has just released an eighth book a few years ago? Granted, it''s not exactly the 8th book, but it''s still a sequel to the Harry Potter series that supposedly ended 13 years ago."

    Uh, if we wanted to be consistent, the legendary Harry Potter series and its sequels were all published about a millennium ago. But let''s not allow consistency and logic to get in the way of fourth wall breaking now, shall we?

    "Will the both of you cut it out?" An elderly female teacher cut in crossly. "Now''s not the time to be bickering over literary relics of the ancient past. Can you take the matter more seriously, Headmistress?"

    Teresa Taylor immediately adopted a grave expression and looked down at me in an intimidating manner, as if the earlier conversation had not occurred at all. I didn''t know whether she wanted to be Albus Dumbledore or Unohana Yachiru (the badass version). The old lady was switching between them as suddenly as a model changing underwear for gravure shots.

    "Student Richard, you do understand the reason why you''re being punished, don''t you?"

    Yes, indeed. For breaking school rules and getting involved in an unauthorized mission without permission. Even if I did it to save someone, the fact remained that I had flouted one of the regulations that clearly and specifically warned students not to get involved in missions not authorized by the school unless they had obtained permission in advance.

    "I understand that you did it with good intentions, to save a friend. Hence your punishment will not be as heavy as the usual sentence we hand out to more blatant culprits. And you were dragged into this by Kufa Van Peer." She nodded in Kufa''s direction, and he flinched visibly. "So unlike him, you will be spared the corporal punishment."

    Yay. That meant no getting my ass caned in front of the whole school. I was mentally steeling myself for the embarrassment, but it seemed I needn''t had bothered. Come to think of it, Kufa only received two lashes of the whip, and they didn''t use canes in this day and age anyway. At least I wouldn''t be whipped like poor Kufa.

    "But you''ll be stripped of your privileges and be put on probation for a week, just like Student Kufa. No going anywhere after school. You are to return straight home and adhere to a strict curfew. Let''s say you must be home by 7pm for the next week. Think of it as a house arrest."

    Great. It wasn''t that big of a loss. I wasn''t the socially active type, so not going out didn''t bother me much. In fact, I did nothing but go home straight after school to either train or teach Adrian and Melina, so this didn''t really make a difference in my life.

    Still, what was with this court-like scene being enacted out in front of the whole school? While the teachers and Teresa Taylor stood before me, the entire student population of the high school division was watching from the back of the hall, chattering to themselves in amusement.

    This was downright humiliating. Then again, that was probably the point.

    Sighing, I stared upward at Teresa Taylor.

    "Why didn''t you just¡­kill me?"

    "You don''t fear death. You welcome it. Your punishment must be more severe."

    Seriously? First Dumbledore, then Unohana Yachiru, and now Bane? Who''s next, Greyworth Ciel Mais from Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance?

    There was a ripple of laughter from the students, but Teresa Taylor silenced them with a glare. She turned back to me and smacked her hammer against the desk.

    "Dismissed. This court session is adjourned."

    And so my 1-week punishment began.

    "I''m so sorry!"

    Kufa Van Peer was bowing his head so low I almost swore that it was touching the desk. He had come to my classroom to apologize, much to my chagrin. Everyone was watching us and whispering, a situation that caused me no small amount of discomfort.

    This was particularly after Kufa had received two lashes in front of the school earlier, and I felt sorry for him. He didn''t seem to be in pain ¨C corporal punishment was nothing to us mages. Our bodies were too tough for whips to damage. That said, the humiliation was a more effective punishment than the agony.

    "No need to apologize. You were just concerned about Saya, after all." I felt uncomfortable under all the stares from my classmates. Good thing Teacher Einsberg hadn''t arrived yet, or he would also be watching this whole scene play out in bemusement. Clearing my throat, I tried to change the topic. "So, what''s your relationship with Saya?"

    Immediately the girls in class leaned over, as if to eavesdrop on our conversation. Kufa didn''t seem to notice, probably because he was more focused on apologizing to me. He blinked, and then glanced away.

    "Uh, well¡­"

    "Ho¡­" I couldn''t help but grin mischievously. "Don''t tell me you are in love with Saya?"

    "That''s¡­!" Kufa turned as red as a tomato, and he backed away, his face burning. "Please stop this nonsense!"

    "Why is it nonsense?" I snorted. "It''s only natural for people to fall in love. I did always think it strange that you were ''Saya this'' and "Saya that'' ¨C so you are having a one-sided crush on her." I nodded sagely and patted his shoulder. "Good luck. You should confess to her."

    "Like hell I will!" Kufa snapped. "Saya has no interest in other people at all. She doesn''t like me. Hell, she thinks of me as a burden." He grimaced. "She thinks of everybody as a burden. Even David, Jason and the others."

    I made a face. "She sounds like a bitch. How the hell did you ever end up falling for her then?"

    "Nah, I didn''t really fall for her." Kufa sighed heavily as he took a chair opposite me and sat down. "I only admire her strength¡­her skills. She is amazing. You saw how she fought yesterday, didn''t you? Even with an arm cut off, and on the verge of death, she continued fighting on. Against all odds. How many people can do that? Don''t you find that impressive?"

    "Uh, yeah. I guess." I nodded, pondering over that deeply. I was used to combat mages putting their lives on the line and fighting against all odds. I had been doing that, Dad had been doing that, and my friends had been doing that. So did Feng Hai and his Silver Wolves. So it never struck me as anything amazing.

    Perhaps I was the one with a distorted view of people, since the people I hung out with were far from ordinary.

    "How is Saya doing, by the way? Her injuries were not light at all."

    "Oh, she''s doing fine. They have regrown her arm and restored her eye. She still needs a few days to completely recover. She''s a strong girl, Saya." Kufa smiled somewhat dreamily. "She''ll be out hunting Chiropterans again before you or I can ask if she is all right."

    "I don''t doubt that," I agreed as I pushed my glasses up my nose.

    "Heh? What''s this? Kufa, you''re with Richard today?"

    To our surprise, Rossetti had somehow showed up in our classroom. She shook her head and wagged a finger, as if expressing her disapproval at Kufa''s actions.

    "Kufa, how could you get Richard into trouble?"

    "Sorry." Kufa hung his head. "I''m reflecting on it."

    "Are you really?" Rossetti put her hands on her hips. "Then that''s good. Don''t drag him into another of your unauthorized missions, okay? He''s not even from our school."

    That was right. Despite all that happened, I was a student from Jing Tian Academy, not Saint Teresa Academy. Ultimately, I was only here as an exchange student.

    "Still sucks that you were punished, though." Rossetti glanced at me. "A week probation and an imposed curfew, huh?"

    "That''s not so bad." I shrugged. "It won''t affect me much. I hardly go out after school anyway."

    "Of course it''s bad!" the three of us turned around to stare at Miura La Noir stomping inside the classroom, flustered. "I was planning on asking you out on a date, but now you have a perfectly legitimate reason to reject me!"

    That was what she was upset about? I wasn''t sure if her head was screwed on tight.

    "Now, now¡­" Rossetti raised both of her hands to placate her friend. "It''s not as if we have any time to go on dates or hang out this week. Don''t forget, we have a test next Monday. We should be studying for that."

    "Oh, God¡­don''t remind me." I sighed and sagged against my desk. I wasn''t afraid of tests, but that didn''t mean I enjoyed taking them. Kufa seemed to share the same feelings, and he slumped against his seat.

    "Damn it¡­it is tough being a student, huh?"

    "If you''ve done your homework consistently and revised everyday, it shouldn''t be a problem," Miura declared somewhat proudly. The other three of us stared at her, and she frowned. "What? I didn''t say anything wrong. It''s the truth."

    "No, nothing. We''re just surprised." Rossetti shook her head. Miura flared up.

    "Hey! What''s that supposed to mean? Did you used to think that I slack off and didn''t study? Why would I give off that kind of impression?"

    "Nobody said that," I muttered. "We just thought you would be grumbling about the test along with us."

    "Well, I don''t like tests as well, but it''s our job as students! It''s not like we have a choice!"

    "Speaking of students¡­I don''t believe the three of you are supposed to be in my class."

    Kufa, Rossetti and Miura jumped up when Teacher Einsberg entered the classroom. They bowed their heads apologetically, and then ran off. He watched them, amused, and then shook his head. Turning back to me, he grinned.

    "So how is our Gryffindor ace doing?"

    "Not you too, Teacher Einsberg¡­"

    Burying my face into my hands, I sighed and prayed for the week to be over as soon as possible.

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 511 Chapter 511: The Tes

    With all the things that were going on, I almost forgot that there was a test on Monday. It was a good thing I could study on Sunday, particularly when I had nothing better to do because I was confined to home. So during the time when I wasn''t training myself or Adrian and Melina, I was studying for tests and revising my homework.

    Actually, I had already completed my homework. My motto was "no procrastination!" So I always completed my homework and assignments almost immediately and ahead of time, as long as it was within my capabilities. The rationale was that if I had already finished them, then I could do whatever I wanted for the remainder of my time without having to worry about deadlines and submissions.

    Of course, the tradeoff was sloppy, rushed work, but in the grand scheme of things, it didn''t matter much as long as I had the spare time to indulge in my hobbies. Worse still, I had to split my free time between training and hobbies, which severely reduced my periods of enjoyment. Oh, well. Still worth it, though.

    So I was prepared for the test on Monday, when Teacher Einsberg arrived in the classroom with a stack of papers. He plopped them down and began distributing them after the standard briefing. Eeach of us were isolated by our desks, and had to write down our answers the old-fashioned way. Why they didn''t just do everything digitally, I had no idea, but Saint Teresa Academy preserved some of the old, traditional ways of learning. Writing and paper tests were one of those traditions that they were determined to preserve.

    Well, it wasn''t my business. I was just here on exchange. While I was still here, I would adhere to whatever rules they had established. As such, I furiously wrote down the answers with a pen, dredging the answers from my memroies and replying to the questions as best as I could. Even with my previous knowledge, a lot of things had changed in the education curriculum that exited a thousand years later, so I wasn''t going to get full marks. Unfortunately, I wasn''t that much of a genius.

    "All right, time''s up!"

    I raised my head when Teacher Einsberg announced the end of the test. That was a lot faster than I thought, but that was the same with anything. When you rushing through the test, time seemed to fly by a lot faster than usual. Theory of relativity and all that.

    Thankfully, I had completed all of the questions, leaving nothing blank, and so I went along with the motions of submitting my test script to the front. As Teacher Einsberg gathered the piles of test scripts from the front student of each row, he called the class representative to help him carry the bundle of scripts to the staff room.

    "Ban Zhang, can you help me?"

    "No."

    "Oi!"

    Ban Zhang, despite his name, was an irresponsible class monitor who shirked all of his duties and behaved like a spoilt brat. As he was the son of a rich and hugely influential family, Teacher Einsberg was helpless to do anything but endure when he openly defied his instructions. Sighing, I raised my hand.

    "Teacher Einsberg, I will help."

    "Thank you, Richard." Teacher Einsberg looked immensely relieved when I offered my assistance. It never hurt to play the teacher''s pet once in a while, because I often reaped the benefits of getting on the adults'' good side. Not only that, it was the right thing to do, even if there weren''t any real benefits. "I''ll be counting on you."

    As we proceeded down the corridor toward the staff room, I saw that the other classes were still busily tallying up their papers and other miscellaneous stuff. It appeared that my class was the fastest, even though we were supposed to be learning ice magic.

    "I''m sorry to trouble you, Richard, but could you help me arrange the test papers?"

    Teacher Einsberg looked apologetic. He was a nice guy who rarely raised his voice and was often looked down by the aristocrats in our class because of his quiet nature, but he was polite and kind, often on hand to help out the more unfortunate students. It was a good thing that the overwhelming majority of students in Saint Teresa Academy, despite the prevalent arrogance, were well behaved and disciplined, having been brought up in the strict households of nobles to adhere to a certain code of conduct. Otherwise, Teacher Einsberg would be helpless to control a wild, rampant class¡­unless he decided to freeze all of them in one go, of course. In contast to his diminutive nature, his ice magic was nothing short of phenomenal.

    "Sure, no problem."

    "You should be the class monitor instead¡­" Teacher Einsberg shook his head in disgust. "You do a lot more than Ban Zhang."

    Unfortunately, I was only an exchange student, so that wasn''t a practical solution. In any case, I would rather not. I only handled the menial tasks like ferrying test scripts up and down the classroom and staff room, but the more important, formal occasions such as attending class committees meetings, organizing the school festivals, and others, I was more than happy to leave to Ban Zhang. Despite his snobbish attitude, he was actually more competent in handling such large, formal affairs. Unlike me who returned home immediately when classes ended, Ban Zhang had no qualms staying behind after school to handle these huge events and attend long, boring meetings. As long as I handled the physical and menial chores, the class would be able to maintain a perfect equilibrium.

    I was more than contented with sticking to such an arrangement.

    Teacher Einsberg and I arranged the papers together and left it on the desk in fairly short order. While we did so, a lot of the other teachers and class presidents came in to do similar jobs. As we were the first to finish, Teacher Einbserg thanked me and dismissed me.

    "Thanks for your hard work. You should go rest now."

    "Yes, sir."

    Bowing politely, I took my leave. As I weaved my way out of the staff room, I accidentally knocked over a box of paper clips that had been sitting in an empty cubicle and ended up scatter the tiny metal pieces all over the carpeted floor.

    "Uwah! I''m sorry!"

    Apologizing to nobody in particular, I sighed and dropped to my knees, clumsily searching for the paper clips that had scattered all over the floor. Making use of the hi-tech sensors on my glasses, I was able to easily locate each and every one of them and packed them back into the crumpled box that I now held in my hand.

    That was when Nan Gong Ji Yan and her teacher, a nameless, bespectacled woman with wavy, long brown hair, walked in, carrying their own piles of test scripts. While I fumbled under the cubicle''s table, scooping up paper clips, I could sense them walking into the cubicle directly opposite the one I was residing in.

    "Could you help me arrange the test papers in order, according to student number, and then tie them all up?" The teacher asked in a sick, sweetly voice that sounded so fake that I wanted to puke. If Ji Yan had detected the artificiality of the insincere tone, she didn''t show it and instead responded politely with an equally fake-happy "yes."

    Like teacher, like student, huh? Well, the same went for me and Teacher Einsberg, so I wasn''t in any position to criticize them. Now, if Ban Zhang could also follow Teacher Einbserg''s example¡­

    A buzzing almost caused me to slam my head against the desk above me. It took me a second to realize that someone''s smartphone was ringing. It wasn''t my ring tone, so I knew it wasn''t mine. But when the teacher spoke up, I discovered who the owner was.

    "Sorry, Ji Yan. I need to take this call. Can I leave things to you?"

    "Yes, of course."

    "Thank you!"

    The teacher hurriedly stepped outside to take the phone call. Why, I had no idea. Maybe she had a secret lover so she didn''t want Ji Yan to eavesdrop on their sinful, dirty conversation. Or maybe it was an obscure, unnaturally contrived plot device to force the teacher''s absence so that Ji Yan could pull off a nefarious stunt. I say that because as a teaching assistant, normally we would just hang up on the phone and call back after our job was done, rather than leave our poor student waiting for us. It was just unprofessional. Whoever wrote this evidently had no idea how real teachers behaved.

    "Hello¡­"

    As the teacher exited the staff room, leaving Ji Yan alone in the cubicle, the latter giggled to herself insidiously.

    "What a good opportunity!" Ji Yan whispered. No, actually she was thinking that line, and I was somehow able to read her mind because¡­well, plot. It was to show just how horrible a character she was than any logical reason. "The last question was so difficult and I could only partially answer it. Let''s see if Zhao Yan was able to do it¡­"

    Using the x-ray vision on my glasses, I could see Ji Yan flipping open Zhao Yan''s (I assume) script to the final page and reading it.

    "How hateful!" From Ji Yan''s frustration and tears, I could safely assume that Zhao Yan did indeed answer that final question perfectly. Ji Yan continued to lash out inwardly. "Why is she always better than me?"

    Because you suck, you jealous, scheming, whiny bitch. Maybe if you decided to channel all that energy and effort spent on whining and envying into actually working hard instead, you might catch up to your sister. But no, you just had to¡­where were you going?

    Ji Yan had stood up from the cubicle and was stealthily sneaking out of the staff room. She stopped at the door, inclining her body as if to peer outside. I could almost read her mind.

    "I should use this chance!"

    As she suspected, her teacher was far away, next to a window that was pretty distant from the staff room and happily chatting to her lover (or so I believe). How unprofessional. It seemed that she would be taking quite a while to engage in pillow talk (in school, no less¡­she should be fired), so Ji Yan was in the clear. For now.

    "Looks like she will be on the phone for a while¡­"

    That was what I just said¡­never mind.

    Ji Yan snuck back to her teacher''s cubicle and took a pen from the teacher''s stationary stuff, uncapping it. Er¡­you do know the teacher will suspect something when she marks the paper and sees those changes that were edited in a different pen ink tone? Even if the color was the same, different pens still had different shades or tones ¨C I was aware of this, particularly since I used pens a lot during my previous life. It was not as if Zhao Yan and the teacher used the same pen, you know?

    I wondered if I should warn her, and then decided against it. I was going to snitch on her after she left and tell the teacher about her misdeeds, and then watch Ji Yan crash and burn. That would be fun.

    "Zhao Yan, I''m going to change your answer so that no one can understand it!"

    Good thing I was recording this with my glasses. I was going to give this to the teacher.

    "Hmph, blame yourself for being better than me. You''re going to taste bitter failure this time."

    WHAT KIND OF REASONING IS THAT!? I had never heard of such a ridiculous reason in my entire life. Who the fuck would blame themselves for being better than others?! Bitch, did you go crazy from that sheer amount of jealousy or something?!

    "What''s this?"

    I almost banged my head against the table when I heard a new voice. A male voice, no less. What? Did someone else arrive? Turning my head, the x-ray vision on my glasses allowed me to catch sight of a guy standing right behind Ji Yan.

    At first, I thought that he was a teacher, but then I recognized the school uniform that he wore. He was a student, just like Ji Yan and me. He looked familiar, but I couldn''t remember where I had seen him before.

    However, I could instinctively tell that he was some sort of expert, possessing a high level of skill. For some reason, he was emanating quite the potent amount of mana. My intuition told me that he was dangerous and I was suddenly on high alert.

    Who was this guy¡­?

    "Class Vice-president is changing somebody''s answer? I can''t believe I walked in at such a perfect time."

    "Who are you? I don''t know you."

    Ji Yan, despite being surprised, remained calm. Credit due where it was deserved, she wasn''t the type to panic. Her voice was trembling a little, but she managed to clamp down on her panic and assess the situation coolly. Still, I almost shoved my face into my palm at her words.

    Some guy just caught you redhanded in committing an offence, and your first question is "Who are you? I don''t know you."?! Girl, don''t you think your priorities are messed up? So what if you didn''t know the identity of the person who caught you? You just got caught, plain and simple! Don''t you think you should be worrying about other things, such as explaining yourself or something?

    Or maybe she knew that there was no excuse she could offer, and that she would be playing into the guy''s hands¡­in that case, shouldn''t the question be "what do you want?" or an apology?

    To make matters worse, the guy responded with an extremely cheesy line right out of a shoujo manhua that made my teeth chatter from the sheer absurdity of it all. To top it off, he was flirtatiously playing with Ji Yan''s long hair by stroking one of her twin tails.

    "But I know you¡­"

    WTF?! WHO THE HELL CARES?!

    I swear, I was about to crawl out of the cubicle and start nuking the two of them if they continued this farce. Why the hell were they behaving like one-dimensional characters from a shoujo manhua and behaving in such a contrived manner while spewing cheesy lines? Were we supposed to be in a play or something?

    Fortunately, before I could, I received the answer to the question that had been burning in my mind this entire time.

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 512 Chapter 512: Blackmail

    "I''m Xu Wu Cheng."

    Yeah, yeah¡­oh, I actually knew that name. No wonder the guy looked so familiar. He was the handsome red-haired transfer student who so many girls fell in love with. Didn''t he just transfer into Saint Teresa Academy right before the summer vacation? Yeah, that was him. Anyway, what was this? An unnaturally contrived manner to introduce yourself so that readers could be reminded of who you were after not showing up for so many chapters?

    Nah, you were just a side character, mate. You will probably never show up again in this story after this arc. I didn''t care how handsome you were, you were just a pebble on the side of the road and a stepping stone for me to beat up just so I could punch your handsome face into the real ugly mug you had lining up your interior¡­

    ¡­Xu Wu Cheng continued his cheesy as fuck shoujo-esque lines, shutting me up as I dissolved into sheer despair at being forced to listen to the corny dialogue.

    "I''ve admired Class Vice-President Ji Yan for a long time¡­"

    A long time, my foot! You just transferred into the school two weeks ago, not counting the summer vacation! Unless you were stalking her throughout the three months of summer vacation, there was no way you would have known her long enough to admire her! Who the hell were you kidding, you stupid, lying womanizer!?

    Ji Yan didn''t buy any of his lies and sweet whispers, either¡­that girl was smarter than I gave her credit for. Ignoring his cheesy and dumb attempts at seduction, she responded coldly.

    "The teacher will be here soon. Are you going to tell her?"

    Aw¡­no giving your homeroom teacher a name? At least I knew mine was Teacher Einsberg. Well, the author of Vampire Sphere knew that the teacher was a mere side character whose identity and characterization didn''t matter in the grand scheme of things and so didn''t bother to give her a name and personality. By the way, I found out later that the teacher was called Teacher Ai in this world (not in the original Vampire Sphere where she remained nameless forever), but that was neither relevant nor important now.

    By the way, I intended to tell Teacher Ai about this whole thing, even if Xu Wu Cheng didn''t. So that was a moot question. Too bad Ji Yan didn''t know that.

    Xu Wu Cheng smirked.

    "I couldn''t possibly do that to you. How can I let your image, which you''ve been building up for so long, get broken so easily?"

    Xu Wu Cheng continued to unsuccessfully flirt with Ji Yan, physically coaxing her to sit in his lap as he snuggled against her in the teacher''s chair¡­

    ¡­wait, what?

    WHEN THE FUCK DID HE DO THAT?!

    I didn''t see Ji Yan standing up so that Xu Wu Cheng could sit on the chair she was seated on, only to have him pull her down onto his lap. And given her character and the current situation, why the hell would she go along with the flow and do that?! No, no, this was just a ridiculous shoujo manhua contrived situation to force a female heroine to end up being intimate with a hot guy, never mind the hot guy was in the midst of blackmailing her at the moment¡­

    "I couldn''t possibly let the whole school know that Class Vice-president cannot stand her twin sister who is always above her, so she decided to resort to despicable tricks to make her fall¡­"

    "Are you threatening me?"

    Ji Yan was straight to the point, as always. But it was the wrong move.

    "Take it easy, don''t move."

    Xu Wu Cheng fished out his smartphone from his pocket and held Ji Yan''s hand firmly, locking her in place. He then snapped a picture of Ji Yan''s hand that was holding a pen while she was in the midst of trying to change Zhao Yan''s answer.

    "You!"

    Xu Wu Cheng was suddenly out of the seat before I realized it, with Ji Yan no longer on his lap and seated comfortably on the teacher''s chair. As I said, WHEN THE FUCK DID HE¡­never mind. I decided to ignore the absurdity of the whole situation and focus on the current flow of events at hand. That was, Xu Wu Cheng dangling his phone from his hand as he danced away.

    "I''ve got the evidence."

    Cocky bastard, eh? All you did was snap a picture of Ji Yan''s HAND. It wasn''t as if you took a picture of her face or anything. There was no evidence that the hand belonged to Ji Yan. Even if you broadcasted that photograph of her hand to the whole school, that hand could belong to anybody! How were people supposed to identify the owner of the hand? You think a school was going to go through all that trouble to compare all of the girls'' hands to ensure that they match the one in the photograph or something? What use was that photograph as evidence if you didn''t actually have the face of the person that hand belonged to? But let''s forego logic so that you could blackmail the secondary (or tertiary) heroine into some kiny S\u0026M play, eh?

    "If you want to retrieve the evidence from me, then come to Room 5 after school tomorrow and wait for me there." Xu Wu Cheng raised his smartphone as he smiled insidiously. "If you don''t come, the consequences will be dire indeed."

    No thanks to you, I might add.

    "Oh? Xu Wu Cheng is here too?"

    At that precise moment, Teacher Ai chose to return. She must have finished professing her love (ai) for her lover, so she came back to the staff room to resume the duties that she so flippantly shirked from. Xu Wu Cheng turned around and plastered the most insincere smile he could muster onto his handsome features.

    "Yes, I saw that Class Vice-president Ji Yan was very busy, so I thought I would offer my help."

    Help? You mean blackmail, you bastard! Not only that, how did he know Ji Yan was going to pull this stunt? I hardly believed that it was a coincidence that he would happen to waltz into the staff room when Ji Yan was changing Zhao Yan''s answers. He had no reason to come to the staff room, so what was he doing here in the first place?

    Ji Yan clenched her fist tightly, but remained silent, knowing that she couldn''t defy the scheming scoundrel. I didn''t feel sorry for her, though. She brought this upon herself. Nobody asked her to change her sister''s answer.

    The teacher, however, was thoroughly convinced by Xu Wu Cheng''s display of "kindness."

    "Good! You can also help us arrange the test papers!"

    Fuck. Just my luck. I was hoping that the two of them would leave so that I could finally get out of the cubicle and report what I had witnessed to Teacher Ai. At this rate, I had to continue hiding under the cubicle and wait for the two of them to leave. My legs were getting cramped, but fortunately I wasn''t attracting any weird looks from the teachers. As luck would have it, there were no teachers in the vicinity, or they would have witnessed the whole terrible exchange between Ji Yan and Xu Wu Cheng.

    It took ten minutes for the three of them to be done, and I could finally emerge from concealment, relieved and my muscles aching. Note to readers, do not crouch under your desk or cubicle. It was not an ideal hiding place.

    "Um, Teacher¡­" I caught sight of her name, which was on a tag on her cubicle. She was named Ai Qing. "Teacher Ai. I have something to report."

    "Hmm? What is it?"

    I showed her the recording in my glasses, and she looked a bit stunned. She frantically flipped to Zhao Yan''s papers and checked. Sure enough, Ji Yan had altered her answer with a pen that used a different ink tone. Teacher Ai scowled.

    "That Ji Yan¡­I can''t believe she did this. I''ll have to scold her tomorrow." she then turned back to me. "Thanks for telling me about this."

    "I only did what was expected," I replied honestly.

    "Could you also do me another favor? Teacher Ai asked as she changed Zhao Yan''s answer back to normal with a magic spell. Wow, that was convenient. With a wave of her hand, she removed Ji Yan''s alterations and got rid of the differently toned ink.

    I nodded. ??What is it, Teacher Ai?"

    "Don''t spread this to other people. Please don''t tell everyone. I want to talk to Ji Yan privately and while I intend to punish her, I don''t want to do it in front of everyone and embarrass her publicly. At least not in front of Zhao Yan. Is that all right?"

    "I understand." I wasn''t the type of person to gossip about other people, anyway, so I agreed easily enough. Of course, that didn''t stop me from snitching on Ji Yan. What? She deserved it. What did you want me to do, keep her secret for her and blackmail her like Xu Wu Cheng? Fuck that nonsense, I wasn''t an abusive Shoujo manhua male lead who forced the heroines into a toxic relationship.

    "Thank you very much."

    I shook my head. There was nothing to thank me over. Even though Ji Yan didn''t deserve to have her dignity preserved, that was not my call to make. I was not a teacher of this academy, and I had no right to dish out punishments and judge other students.

    Even so¡­

    "Wouldn''t she get expelled if this gets out?" I asked. Teacher Ai frowned.

    "That''s exactly why I don''t want this to be made public. I will deal with this quietly. I think expelling Ji Yan over this is excessive."

    Honestly, I thought Ji Yan deserved to be expelled. That would save me a lot of trouble in the coming days, but as they say, hindsight was 20/20. More to the point, I didn''t have the authority to decide whether a fellow schoolmate should be expelled or not.

    So I nodded and saluted.

    "Yes, ma''am."

    Teacher Ai watched me, bemused, and then waved for me to go. I obeyed and left the staff room. There was something about this whole thing that continued to unsettle me for some reason, but I couldn''t put my finger on it. I didn''t care about Ji Yan, but I had a premonition that it would impact not just her but everyone in the school.

    The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the sense of foreboding I had was related closely to Xu Wu Cheng. That man was dangerous, though how dangerous I had no idea just yet. What I did know for sure was that he needed watching.

    "I''ll have to keep an eye on that fella," I muttered to myself determinedly as I pushed my glasses up my nose.

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 513 Chapter 513: Classroom Affairs

    The next day, I wasn''t able to overcome my curiosity and ended up checking on Zhao Yan and Ji Yan''s classroom. As she had promised, Teacher Ai called Ji Yan out for a meeting in the guidance counselor room. Obviously I had no way of sneaking in, but when Ji Yan exited, I saw that she looked extremely gloomy.

    Yup, Teacher Ai was definitely doing her job.

    "What are you doing?"

    I jumped when I heard a familiar voice behind me. Turning around, I caught sight of Nan Gong Zhao Yan, who frowned in disapproval.

    "Eavesdropping is rude."

    "You say that, but you''re here too," I pointed out slyly. Zhao Yan blushed slightly and avoided her gaze, folding her arms in a defensive manner.

    "I''m¡­I''m just concerned about my sister! Isn''t it only natural?"

    "Yeah, well¡­why are you concerned about her? What happened?"

    At my question, Zhao Yan hesitated, and I decided to probe a bit further.

    "Did it have anything to do with her changing your answer on your test paper?"

    "How do you know that?!" Zhao Yan demanded, her eyes narrowed. "You weren''t in our class! Don''t tell me¡­I see. I told you that eavesdropping is rude!"

    "Actually, I was the one who informed Teacher Ai Qing about Ji Yan''s cheating yesterday. I was in the staff room, helping Teacher Einsberg carry the test papers to the staff room, and I caught sight of her changing the answer in your test paper. So I told Teacher Ai about it." I lowered my head in feigned shame. "Sorry for being a snitch¡­but what can I do? What Ji Yan did wasn''t right. I couldn''t just keep quiet about it!"

    "Oh, no. I don''t blame you for that."

    Zhao Yan shook her head frantically. She bit her lip ¨C obviously she was feeling conflicted, since it was her sister who had gotten into trouble, and she didn''t like seeing Ji Yan get punished. On the other hand, she was more troubled by the fact that her sister got caught in such a blatant act of cheating by me of all people. Objectively speaking, I did the right thing. Even though many people would criticize me for being a snitch, I stood by what I did. What, should I just let Zhao Yan suffer ths consequences of Ji Yan''s cheating? How was that fair to Zhao Yan? I detested such nonsense. Okay, I would admit to being biased toward Zhao Yan and having a strong dislike for Ji Yan, but at least that made me more honest than the readers who were condemning me for snitching right now.

    "But even so¡­"

    "I understand." I wasn''t expecting any thanks either. Not that I did it in order to get Zhao Yan''s gratitude, or because I wanted to deliberately get Ji Yan into trouble. But I understood that Zhao Yan wouldn''t be very pleased with my actions either. "I was just here because I felt guilty over snitching on Ji Yan."

    "You shouldn''t." Yay, my reverse psychology was working like a charm. Zhao Yan quickly shook her head and assured me that I shouldn''t feel guilty. "It''s not your fault. You''ve done nothing wrong at all."

    "Thanks." I took a deep breath and turned to leave. "Well, I don''t think Ji Yan would want to see me. I''ll leave her to you then. She might need some encouragement."

    Inwardly, I doubted that. Zhao Yan was probably the last person Ji Yan wanted to see right now. I bet she was accumulating a ton of resentment toward her sister, which would eventually erupt like a volcano explosion. I hated to see what would happen to Zhao Yan when that happened, but what could I do? Tell her to leave Ji Yan alone?

    "Yeah¡­" Zhao Yan was about to go after her sister, but then she stopped. At first, I was confused and wondered why, but then I saw the reason. Someone had already beaten Zhao Yan to it.

    Xu Wu Cheng had arrived. At first Ji Yan glared at him, and lashed out, but he caught her hand, leaned in and whispered into her ear. Her eyes widened, and she sagged. Xu Wu Cheng then released her hand and then lowered his head.

    "I apologize, but I can assure you that I wasn''t the one who told Teacher Ai anything."

    Of course you weren''t. I was the one who did, after all.

    Ji Yan scowled, but didn''t say anything. Instead, she turned away with a huff and folded her arms. Xu Wu Cheng smiled.

    "I''ll make it up to you."

    "Just leave me alone!"

    "Are you sure about that?" he leaned over and whispered into her ear again. Ji Yan stiffened, but didn''t say anything. Xu Wu Cheng then withdrew and waved. "I''ll see you after school then."

    JI Yan didn''t reply, instead balling her hands into fists and glaring at his departing figure. Zhao Yan hurried over, but she stomped away.

    "Sorry, Zhao Yan. I want to be alone for now."

    "Ji Yan¡­" Zhao Yan began, but was helpless to do anything as her sister stalked off. I felt sorry for her, and in some way I knew that I should do something because I was responsible for this whole mess in the first place.

    However, Xu Wu Cheng''s words caught my attention. He still intended to see Ji Yan after school today. I wondered why.

    After school, I couldn''t believe that I was making my way to Room 5 as well. That was the meeting place that Xu Wu Cheng had specified yesterday, after all, and I doubted he had altered his plans.

    Yeah, I was being a busybody, but something told me that I couldn''t just let Ji Yan be alone with Xu Wu Cheng. I was also partly responsible for her predicament, and after seeing Zhao Yan, I couldn''t just leave Ji Yan to the wolves. She might be a jealous, backstabbing bitch who probably caused an accident to get her sister Yue Jian scarred for life (of course, judging from Yue Jian''s perfectly normal and healthy face, that didn''t happen¡­at least in this universe), but I had a feeling that Xu Wu Cheng was much worse.

    I mean, he could be a vampire who sucked people''s blood and was planning on turning Ji Yan into a vampire and his blood servant, right? Nah¡­I had obviously been reading way too many shoujo web manhua¡­

    Room 5 was an abandoned classroom on the highest level of the main high school building. Nobody came here, at least not anyone I knew of. Perhaps giggling couples flirted here, out of sight from everyone or did¡­you know, that in the abandoned classroom because they were so sure that no one else could see them. Obviously I didn''t want to know the details.

    I doubted Xu Wu Cheng would go as far as raping Ji Yan, but having read too many CEO stories on Webnovel, I couldn''t rule out the possibility. Also, thanks to reading too much ero-manga, I had also gotten paranoid to the extent where I believed he would resort to rape and become this NTR villain who filmed the whole thing so that he could continue blackmailing Ji Yan into sleeping with him (and if such archetypes held true, he would eventually invite all of his friends for a gangbang session) for the rest of the series. Even Ji Yan didn''t deserve such a horrible fate.

    Or maybe she did. I hadn''t decided yet.

    Admittedly, my imagination was running wild here. I mean, this story had no sexual content tags, so there shouldn''t be rape and stuff in this kid-friendly story. Right? ¡­right?

    "He''s coming."

    Ji Yan was there even earlier than I was. I kept to the shadows, concealing my presence as much as I could, and relied on Corvus to conduct surveillance from outside the window rather than sneak into the classroom to witness everything. There was no place to hide in Class 5 anyway, so I stuck to the shadows outside the classroom. In this way, I was able to avoid detection when Xu Wu Cheng arrived.

    "Hey!"

    The bastard threw a greeting as he flung the door open, waving at her in a friendly manner. He grinned as he approached Ji Yan.

    "You''re on time¡­"

    "Tell me your conditions!" As usual, Ji Yan was straight to the point, refusing to waste any time and cutting right into the heart of the matter.

    "Oh?" Xu Wu Cheng, however, merely sounded amused. Grabbing her hand and leaning close ¨C to the point I almost thought he was going to pull a kabe-don on her, he smirked. "Do you think you have the right to negotiate with me, Ji Yan?"

    Uh, she wasn''t exactly negotiating with you, she only asked you for what you wanted. Man, these bishounen dudes were so bad at flirting in real life. Seriously, if any guy tried to do that to a girl in reality, she would scream molest and he would get into trouble for sexual assault.

    "But I''ve an interest in your blood¡­"

    Stroking her face with his smooth fingers, Xu Wu Cheng moved his hand lower to gently touch Ji Yan''s neck.

    "I wonder if the pure mana of the Nan Gong clan courses strongly through your veins¡­"

    Ji Yan''s eyes widened as she struggled to repress her panic. "Don''t tell me¡­you''re a vampire?"

    I knew it. Just as I suspected, Xu Wu Cheng was a vampire. By the way vampires were often fallen mages who practiced the forbidden blood techniques and ended up acquiring an unquenchable thirst for blood. In exchange for bestowing upon them tremendous power and accelerated regenerative abilities, it was the only way for them to progress with their blood magic.

    Blood magic also granted the user great strength and durability, while retaining high speed, agility and reflexes. While being cursed with an insatiable thirst for blood might seem detrimental, drinking blood would greatly enhance their prowess and increase their high-speed regenerative capabilities, making them a far deadlier foe than when they were deprived of blood.

    This wasn''t good.

    Before Ji Yan could get away, Xu Wu Cheng grabbed hold of her firmly, refusing to let go. Gleefully taunting her, he leaned in with a sweet whisper.

    "So what if I am? My condition for today is¡­"

    He ran his mouth along the nape of Ji Yan''s neck, causing her to tremble fearfully.

    "¡­let me drink your blood."

    Ji Yan''s movements were so fast I almost didn''t register them. From her pocket, she drew a silver knife, thrusting it back to stab Xu Wu Cheng in the heart¡­but he seized her arm to stop her before she could land a fatal blow.

    Yes, a silver knife. What? Were you expecting her to wield a screwdriver like in some stupid manhua or something? As if a girl would walk around with a screwdriver¡­wait, where would she get one in the first place? I mean, she was a hunter, right? Of course she would have access to better weapons such as the silver knife designed against vampires, and not some weird screwdriver from out of nowhere!

    "You''re really different from normal people, as expected of a mage affiliated with the Hunter Association, huh."

    Xu Wu Cheng tightened his grip, causing Ji Yan to cry out painfully and drop the silver knife. The two struggled as Xu Wu Cheng pushed himself on Ji Yan, causing both of them to topple onto a table.

    "Get off me!" Ji Yan screamed as she flailed wildly but futilely, only for Xu Wu Cheng to overpower her. But it was useless. The vampire sank his teeth into her neck¡­or would have if he wasn''t forced to dodge.

    "Hey, hey, it''s not nice to take a bite out of others," I said as I sailed past him, my swords having missed his throat. "I know Nan Gong Ji Yan is sticking her neck out for you, so you should treat her a little better than this."

    Xu Wu Cheng frowned as he stared at me as I landed on the ground. The both of us began circling the classroom, wary of each other.

    "Who are you?"

    "Who I am is not important. I don''t go announcing my name like certain shoujo manhua characters because I''m not a trashy bishounen like you, and I don''t go around spewing supposedly romantic lines that actually come across as pretty cheesy."

    "I''m afraid I have no idea what you''re talkig about."

    "You don''t need to know. I''m taking her with me."

    I gestured toward Ji Yan while standing between them. Boy, oh boy. And here I was thinking that my imagination was running wild when I suspected Xu Wu Cheng to be a vampire. I mean, that only happened in manga and anime! This was getting ridiculous.

    Except that I forgot that a version of vampires existed in this universe as well. Whoops, so my suspicions were not as far-fetched as I imagined them to be. Wait¡­really?! HOW WAS THIS HAPPENING?!

    Anyway, I had to put a stop to this ridiculous situation or Ji Yan would be turned into a vampire and blackmailed into betraying the Hunter''s Association¡­

    "Huh, it doesn''t matter who you are. But I need that girl. Anyone who gets in my way¡­will die."

    At least he wasn''t yelling the standard "courting death!" that Chinese manhua characters loved to spout.

    The demonic mana around Xu Wu Cheng flared brightly, an ugly blood-red that took on a life of its own, writhing and extending its ravenous tendrils out, as if to grab hold of something. His bloodlust was overwhelming, and the sheer amount of mana he exuded sent chills down my spine. His power level was reminiscent of the Black Swordsman, who I had barely managed to defeat a few months ago with the help of my friends. Of course he was a lot weaker than that monster, which was a relief, but even so¡­

    This guy was going to be a troublesome opponent. I knew there was no such thing as a guaranteed victory in reality, but I could feel my chances of winning plummet further when I saw how strong this guy truly was.

    What was he, some kind of vampire prince or something? Wait, this wasn''t fair! Normally you would only have a random encounter with a vampire underling or low-level crony bumbling around in a classroom, but this instance was like me running straight into a boss battle right from the start! No, no, no. There was no way I could survive this.

    Swallowing my fear, I watched as the blood-red mana condense sharply around Xu Wu Cheng to form a protective aura before he lunged at me, deadly blood blades extending from his hands to puncture my flesh¡­

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 514 Chapter 514: Out for Blood

    Blood blades. Apparently Xu Wu Cheng had cast some sort of blood magic spell that transformed his blood into weapons, hardening it into a flexible but incredibly sharp blade that could change its shape at a single thought.

    The unpredictability of it was what made it so deadly.

    Therefore I dodged, diving to the side while deflecting the closest two with both of my swords. However, as I avoided the deadliest of his blows, the ten blades on Xu Wu Cheng''s hands shimmered and changed shape, lashing out at supersonic speeds like a whip. Even as I twisted my body out of the way and deflected a couple from my throat and chest, I felt a couple of cuts as the sharp blood whips sliced the skin on my face and arms before retracting.

    "Oh? You''re good. I didn''t expect you to survive that."

    Dude¡­you were nowhere as fast and skilled as the Black Swordsman. I survived countless exchanges with him, of course I would be able to withstand a few strikes from a relative greenhorn like you. At least that was what I wanted to say, but instead, I grinned wryly.

    "You really are bloodthirsty, aren''t you?" I muttered, watching the blood blades dance around his fingers like laser lights from a disco ball. "First you want to suck Nan Gong Ji Yan''s blood, and now¡­"

    I didn''t even complete my sentence when ten blood whips lashed out at me, trying to flay me alive. Bloody hell, this vampire couldn''t even take a joke, could he?

    Jumping back, I unleashed my own ice spells, freezing the blood whips and turning them into crimson ice in an instant. Xu Wu Cheng scowled as he withdrew whatever blood that wasn''t frozen and glared at me.

    "Aren''t you afraid that somebody will detect your massive flare of mana and killing intent and come?" I asked, glancing around as if expecting a horde of teachers to come rushing in. "Lower your bloodthirst or something, geez."

    "Room 5 is an abandoned classroom in the highest level that''s barred to students. Nobody will come here. The teachers are too far away to sense our mana so high up."

    How convenient for him. Well, yeah. Unless the teachers possessed a sensitive mana sense or were casting tracking spells for some odd reason, they most likely wouldn''t be able to sense the sharp flunctuations of mana unless they were in the same room. Xu Wu Cheng was right. We were out of range of most mages'' sixth senses.

    Worse, nobody would come to an abandoned classroom unless they were a horny couple who wanted to do lecherous things¡­and even those couples would lose their libido and seek an alternative place when they heard the commotion we were making.

    ¡­wait, what?

    Why was there an abandoned classroom in the top, most prestigious school in the wealthy Flandor City?! Wouldn''t they have the funds and money to renovate the classroom or something? What''s with this wastage of space?

    Before I could whine about that, I was forced to duck under another whistling blood blade and freeze a second one that sliced my face off my skull. Shattering the frozen blood with a swing of my black sword, I widened the distance between us.

    "Stop freezing my blood," Xu Wu Cheng ordered, his hypnotic golden eyes trying to mesmerize me. Unfortunately for him, his spellbinding power was useless against a veteran mage like me. I had gone through countless life-and-death experiences and developed a steely resolve. It would be difficult for him to shake my solid mental core.

    "Let it go," I sang as I dodged another whistling blood blade that actually slashed through the concrete wall, gouging out a huge chunk of debris. Damn, that was dangerous. I froze the next blood whip before using my white sword to smash it apart into thousands of blood-red crystals. "Let it go¡­"

    "You have quite the big mouth, don''t you?"

    "I don''t want to hear that from a clich¨¦d shoujo manhua bishounen who spouts out cheesy lines in the hopes of being romantic and just end up sounding very corny."

    Xu Wu Cheng''s lips twisted into a snarl. "When I drain you of your blood, you''ll be wishing that you were dead."

    "When I freeze you, you''ll be wishing that you were a lot less cold-hearted."

    Okay, so maybe that wasn''t a convincing retort, but in my defense, I was focusing more on trying to survive instead of making witty comebacks like Spiderman or Deadpool (my idol!). Those guys had plot armor and red spandex to help them survive anything their enemies threw at them, and even if they died, the guys at Marvel headquarters would ensure that they come back to life again. I didn''t have such a luxury.

    While doing a backflip to avoid another painful slash from the multiple blood blades that were literally flying off Xu Wu Cheng''s hands and deflecting those that had gotten too close for comfort with my swords, I yelled at the stunned Ji Yan.

    "Do something! Help me or run away, I don''t care! Just don''t sit there like an idiot!"

    Snapping out of her stupor, Ji Yan scrambled for the silver knife¡­not screwdriver!!!...that she had dropped earlier when Xu Wu Cheng crushed her hand. Rolling across the floor to avoid the vampire''s blood blades with her quick reflexes, she jumped to her feet and brandished her shiny weapon, her mana flowing aggressively around her.

    On my own, it would be very challenging for me to defeat Xu Wu Cheng. Not impossible, but still difficult. But with Ji Yan''s assistance, my odds would improve considerably. I was hoping Teresa Taylor or Teacher Einsberg would sense the ongoing battle, but I knew that was unlikely. As experienced and powerful as they were, neither of them had an advanced sixth sense and had no reason to be casting any tracking spells. That time when Teresa Taylor showed up at the warehouse when Kufa and I were saving Saya from a nest of Chiropterans, it was because we had set the whole structure ablaze and the fires could be seen from far away.

    This time, I didn''t set the classroom on fire. As tempted as I was to ignite a spark and burn the whole place down, I couldn''t, not unless I wanted to kill the person I was trying to save in the first place. Ji Yan and I were on our own.

    "Class Vice-president Ji Yan, I''m hurt that you would side with a stranger over me." Xu Wu Cheng feigned hurt. "Moreover, I''m so much better looking, richer and stronger than him."

    Dude, you were essentially blackmailing her and trying to suck her blood earlier. Why would she side with you? Also, what the fuck was with that justification? It reminded me of all those trashy CEO stories. So it was all right for the male lead to abuse the female lead and force her into a toxic relationship just because he was good looking and rich?

    Absolutely disgusting.

    "Richard is not a stranger. He saved my life before." Ji Yan nodded at me, and I was taken aback. So she knew who I was? Well¡­it wasn''t strange. After all, Zhao Yan was the type to ensure that Ji Yan knew who she owed a debt of gratitude to. At least she was still human.

    "Ho¡­? So you two have that kind of relationship. I didn''t know that." Xu Wu Cheng looked amused, but I didn''t rise to his provocations. Instead, I glanced at Ji Yan.

    "We should attack him together," I suggested as I retreated to her side, the both of us frantically trying to stay out of range of Xu Wu Cheng''s attacks. There were only so many times we could deflect his ten blood blades with two swords and a knife. Ji Yan nodded tersely.

    At a jerk of my head, the both of us rushed forward as swiftly as we could, swerving around the room and flanked Xu Wu Cheng from two different directions. Ji Yan came in low from Xu Wu Cheng''s right, slashing rapidly with her silver knife. Meanwhile, I descended from above and struck at Xu Wu Cheng''s left with a slash from my Hei Yue. At the same time, I deflected a couple of blood blades with Bai Ri, glad that it was me who was taking the brunt of his attacks. If he had directed his spells at Ji Yan, she wouldn''t have survived.

    I wanted to summon my Constellation spirits, but they wouldn''t do much in an enclosed space like this. Ironically, their large sizes would become a hindrance in such a confined area, and Xu Wu Cheng would slice them apart easily with his blood blades. Again, I could just summon my large Constellation spirits and crush the whole room, but I would inadvertently end up squashing Ji Yan as well. Since the whole reason why I interfered was to save her to begin with, that would defeat the whole point.

    "Ah!"

    However, our pincer attack failed. Xu Wu Cheng merely flicked his hand and five strands of blood wrapped around Ji Yan, entangling her in a crimson web. What the hell?! Where was her magic? Her spells? Did she just only fight with a hook and chain or a silver knife?! How could she call herself a mage?

    As for me, five deadly blades shot out, intent on impaling me.

    "Scutum Sobiescianum!"

    Having anticipated that, I blocked the five sharp swords with my Constellation shield. Scutum Sobiescianum absorbed the impact from Xu Wu Cheng''s otherwise fatal strike without buckling, and I dove, descending upon Ji Yan''s position to slice her free.

    "Why aren''t you using any spells?" I demanded as we withdrew. Ji Yan stared blankly at me.

    "What spells?"

    "¡­"

    I gave up. I should have let this useless bitch die, after all.

    "You should have seized the opportunity to attack me instead of freeing Ji Yan," Xu Wu Cheng chided in a mocking manner before he lashed out with another barrage of blood blades. The bloody projectiles clanged off my Scutum Sobiescianum, and the Constellation shield shuddered from the impact. Even so, I maintained its hovering form between myself and my opponent while reconsidering my strategy.

    Both Ji Yan and I retreated, pressured by Xu Wu Cheng''s constant assault. Xu Wu Cheng''s flexible and unpredictable blood blades snaked from around my stalwart Constellation shield to attack us from the sides, but I was equal to it, swinging both Hei Yue and Bai Ri to cut them down, or parry them. Despite escaping the exchange unscathed, I understood that I was inevitably being forced into the defensive. I had yet to successfully launch an attack on my foe.

    If only we were outside, where I could unleash my Constellation spirits without being restrained by the confined space of the classroom¡­

    I glanced at the window, and contemplated throwing her out, and then following her. As long as we weren''t stuck inside this blasted classroom, I could summon a dozen Constellation spirits outside! There was also the option of exiting through the door, but the same problem applied ¨C the corridor was too narrow and confined for me to summon my Constellation spirits.

    The window was the only viable exit if I wanted to truly counterattack.

    "He''s strong," Ji Yan murmured, a slight shudder running through her slender frame.

    "Cover me," I instructed, not bothering to argue with her or offer any encouragement. Wreathing both of my swords with azure mana, I lunged at Xu Wu Cheng, who countered with his blood blades.

    The red weapons froze when they came in contact with my shimmering swords, crumbling easily as black and white metal cleaved through them like hot knife through butter. Xu Wu Cheng clicked his tongue when he was forced to retreat. Otherwise he would have his neck torn apart by a vicious slash that I delivered with Hei Yue. He retaliated by swinging his hand, only for me to parry the blood blades with Bai Ri. While red blood clashed against white blade, Ji Yan provided the cover I sought by stabbing his arm with her silver knife.

    Hissing in pain, Xu Wu Cheng withdrew, cradling his wounded arm.

    "Class Vice-president Ji Yan, don''t you want to surpass your sister, Zhao Yan?"

    At that moment, Ji Yan froze and she stared at the bloody vampire, her eyes gleaming with dark desire.

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 515 Chapter 515: Deal with the Devil

    Ji Yan stopped, her silver knife raised and just millimeters away from stabbing into Xu Wu Cheng. Not that she would have been able to, since his reactions were inhumanly fast. That said, the moment he focused his attention on blocking her thrust, I would have seized the opportunity to strike, so Ji Yan''s hesitation caused the battle to grind into a stalemate. Both of my swords met ten of Xu Wu Cheng''s blood blades, and I gritted my teeth as I tried to push them off.

    Unfortunately, we were locked in the stalemate I mentioned earlier, neither one of us willing to give an inch.

    "Don''t listen to him," I warned, forced to back off as his ten blood blades curled and whipped at me like a striking serpent. I retreated to a safe distance, both of my swords still up as I stayed wary of the scheming snake. "He will only lie to you."

    Unfortunately for me, Ji Yan was too obsessed with beating Zhao Yan to see the wisdom of my words.

    "I can grant you power. If you join my Crimson Blood Tribe and become one of us¡­become a vampire, you will obtain unimaginable power. You will gain strength like mine, which will overcome the difference between the two of you and allow you to easily crush your twin sister."

    "He''s lying. This is some kind of trap!"

    "You''ve seen how strong I am, haven''t you?" Smiling sinisterly, Xu Wu Cheng created a blood whip in his right hand and swung it at the wall behind him. In a single strike, the mystical weapon reduced the concrete into falling dust and rubble. "This power can be yours¡­if you choose to give yourself to me."

    I snorted because I could easily see through Xu Wu Cheng''s obvious deception. "There''s definitely a catch somewhere."

    "All you have to do in return is attack him." Xu Wu Cheng pointed at me. Ji Yan turned to me, stricken, her determination wavering as she absorbed the redhead''s seductive words. "I''ll ensure you''re handsomely rewarded."

    "Don''t be an idiot. You can''t possibly believe it will be that easy¡­"

    "Don''t you want to surpass Zhao Yan? I can help you with that."

    "Uwaaaah!" Ji Yan swung her silver knife¡­at me.

    "Whoa!" I jumped back, narrowly avoiding being eviscerated by Ji Yan''s merciless strike. Raising my Bai Ri in front of me in a defensive stance, I glared at the crazy girl who had given into temptation. "Hey! I''m trying to help you here!"

    "I never asked for your help."

    Why, you little¡­

    I briefly contemplated summoning my Constellation spirits right there and then, and to hell with crushing her. I was extremely tempted to nuke her along with Xu Wu Cheng. The bitch and bastard could die together. Unfortunately, Zhao Yan was my friend and I couldn''t just kill her sister. She would blame me for it. Besides, I couldn''t just murder two idiots in school ¨C even if I claimed self-defense, there would be a serious investigation and I could potentially get into a lot of trouble. I did have the evidence recorded in my glasses though, so that was one point in my favor.

    Not that the recording would help me at the moment.

    "Good job!"

    Praising Ji Yan, Xu Wu Cheng threw bloody projectiles at me. Barely reacting in time, I conjured Scutum Sobiescianum to shield myself from the deadly barrage. The tremendous impact forced me to skid backward as the bloody projectiles thudded nosily into my Constellation shield, their kinetic energy driving me back.

    Even in a one-on-one fight against Xu Wu Cheng, my chances of victory were not at all favorable. I would say that I had an even chance, but that was being generous, especially if I was stuck in here and unable to summon my Constellation spirits. If Ji Yan were to join him, the odds would plummet further ¨C her presence alone helped to tip the scales heavily in the enemy''s favor. It would practically be suicide to take on the two of them by myself.

    Glaring at Ji Yan, absolutely disgusted by her, I decided to withdraw. If the bitch didn''t want my help, then I had no reason to risk my life. Leaving her to the mercy of Xu Wu Cheng, I jumped out of the window, toppled onto a ledge, and then hurled myself through a window on the second-top level. Stumbling into the classroom directly below Room 5, I pulled myself against a wall to catch my breath.

    "Where did he go?"

    Xu Wu Cheng and Ji Yan raced to the window and peered downward, but were unable to see me at all. As I said, most people''s senses were restricted to only sensing someone''s mana in the same room, so with the ceiling right between us, they wouldn''t be able to detect my location. Even more so when I decided to conceal my presence.

    I was very tempted to summon Vermillion Phoenix to incinerate the both of them, but I decided against it. As I said, not worth the trouble. Since I had already obtained a recording of the entire events, I decided to leave it to the authorities. I wondered what Teresa Taylor would say when she learned that there was a vampire hiding among the students in her school.

    Closing my eyes, I stayed quiet and eavesdropped on Xu Wu Cheng and Nan Gong Ji Yan.

    "You made the right choice, Class Vice-president Ji Yan."

    Xu Wu Cheng was gloating, his handsome face twisting into a triumphant smile as he led Ji Yan away from the window. My Corvus was still there, watching everything. I had him pick my smartphone up and record the whole thing from the window. Man, I really wanted to punch the smug bastard in the face and reveal his true hideous self.

    "You had best keep your promise."

    "Of course I will."

    In a flash, Xu Wu Cheng had Ji Yan pinned against a desk, leaning against her and stroking her neck with his mouth.

    "W¡­wait!"

    Ji Yan was flailing in panic now, suddenly afraid of Xu Wu Cheng''s abrupt action. Hah, it was too late for regrets now. This time, I wasn''t going to save her. She had made her bed with the enemy, and now she had to bear the consequences of her own choice.

    Xu Wu Cheng wasn''t going to listen to her either.

    "Ah¡­"

    Ji Yan let out a soft cry as Xu Wu Cheng sank his fangs into her soft neck, her eyes widening as he drank deeply in her blood. Her struggles ceased and her body fell limp, her eyes slowly closing when her mind was lulled into relaxing by some hypnotic spell.

    I gazed out into the yellow sky, noting that the sun was setting. Good thing my curfew was over, having lasted only a week. If this was last week, I would be in deep trouble for missing the curfew. Phew.

    While waiting for Xu Wu Cheng to drain Ji Yan of her blood, I could hear her blood dripping onto the ground. Man, what a waste of blood! The bloody guy was taking his own sweet time, wasn''t he?

    Did girls actually enjoy this sort of thing? I mean, why were there so many novels and manhua about the heroines being bitten by vampires? Ugh¡­

    I was relieved when Xu Wu Cheng eventually loosened his grip on Ji Yan''s arm and let go of her, allowing her to slump helplessly on the floor. Grinning as he wiped her blood from his mouth, he leaned closer and whispered.

    "Congratulations, Ji Yan. You''re going to be a vampire."

    Ji Yan merely glared at him silently. Well, it was your own freaking choice. I warned you, but your obsession with surpassing your twin sister led you down this path of damnation. Personally, I didn''t think this was an issue worth congratulation Ji Yan over, but then again Xu Wu Cheng was a vampire, so he was probably biased toward the thought of it being an awesome thing.

    Ji Yan pulled herself up to look at her supposed benefactor.

    "So I can defeat Zhao Yan now?"

    "No, no. Don''t be so impatient. After all¡­" Xu Wu Cheng smirked insidiously. "Right now, you''re merely the lowest ranking vampire."

    There was a stunned silence when Ji Yan absorbed his words. I couldn''t help but gloat. I told you so, you bitch! But you ignored me! You deserved this! HA HA HA HA HA HA! You deserved what was comning to you!

    As if savoring Ji Yan''s despair, Xu Wu Cheng continued his explanation cheerfully.

    "Within 24 hours, your desire for blood will be so strong that you''ll go berserk and rampage around."

    "A¡­aren''t you afraid that I will tell the Hunter Association about you? They''ll catch you!"

    What an iidiot. Then why did you freaking agree to be a vampire in the first place!?

    As if agreeing with me, Xu Wu Cheng chuckled.

    "I don''t believe you''ll do that, because they''ll also catch you as well."

    Standing over her, he continued to twist the knife in her gut even deeper.

    "If this pretty classmate of mine doesn''t want to become a shameful and terrifying vampire that craves for blood and ends up being a target for her team to hunt down, I''ll be happy to offer you my help."

    "Who are you, really? Your true identity?"

    Wasn''t it a little too late to be asking that now? I mean, normally, if you suspected that this Xu Wu Cheng persona was fake, wouldn''t you ask him about that right at the freaking beginning instead of waiting until now?!

    Heavens, Ji Yan''s stupidity made me want to bury my face in my palms. Granted, I had to give her some credit for realizing that Xu Wu Cheng was a fake name because I didn''t notice that this guy might actually be harboring som sort of secret identity.

    Xu Wu Cheng was more than happy to indulge her.

    "I''m a prince of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Tribe, Yi Tai."

    And then, in an extremely abrupt manner, because the original author obviously did not plan the story well enough and had dialogue flow in a choppy and disruptive way, Xu Wu Cheng ¨C or Yi Tai ¨C turned around in a supposedly cool (but I personally thought it was cheesy) manner and bade Ji Yan farewell with a smile.

    "Okay, let''s meet here again tomorrow. I''ll be waiting for you¡­" Then he turned away completely and left the classroom, but not without a final, cryptic message. "Whether you come or not, it''s up to you."

    Clutching her neck and realizing that she had been deceived, Ji Yan bit her trembling lip in frustration.

    "Damn!"

    And thus, we had another abrupt transition to the next day because¡­of the original author. What the hell, at least give me some time to report what I had witnessed before transiting to the next scene!

    "Ji Yan!"

    One of Ji Yan''s friends called out to her cheerfully, only to look concerned when the so-called heroine turned to face her.

    "What''s the matter? You look very pale. Did you not have enough sleep? You also have dark circles under your eyes."

    Yeah, well, Ji Yan had almost all her blood sucked out by a vampire. Of course she would be unnaturally pale. Speaking of which, considering the massive amount of blood Yi Tai drained from her body I was surprised that Ji Yan didn''t die or suffer from anemia. I mean, at the very least, she should be suffering from great physical weakness and be so bedridden that she wouldn''t be able to get up and walk around in school like she was doing right now.

    Plot fail, original author. That was why I was making fun of your horribly written manhua right now. Well, I guess I could just chalk the whole thing up to "magic." Such a convenient explanation.

    "No, I read books so I ended up sleeping very late."

    Ji Yan had an excuse that was so laughable that I couldn''t stop chortling. Ji Yan? Read books? Who was she kidding? Everyone knew that Ji Yan didn''t read any books. That was why she was so stupid. Forgive me for being savage, but that was the plain truth.

    "I see. That''s very rare."

    Even Ji Yan''s friend knew that something was wrong. She didn''t believe her explanation at all.

    "Well, make sure you take care of yourself and sleep properly, okay?" Ji Yan''s friend decided to dismiss her suspicions, politely deciding against probing further. She then glanced up at the clock. "Oh no, it''s this time already? Let''s go, or we''ll be late."

    "Yeah¡­"

    Ji Yan sounded pretty moody. From a distance, I could see her moving her gaze to her friend''s neck. Her thoughts were pretty clear and predictable. I didn''t need telepathic powers to read her mind.

    She was thirsty for blood.

    The pulse in her neck¡­why do I want to bite there?

    Obviously it was because you were a vampire, you moron. Weren''t you paying any attention to what Yi Tai told you yesterday?

    Shaking my head in semi-despair, I decided to bring my evidence to the headmistress''s office and report everything. I was going to end this farce once and for all.

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 516 Chapter 516: Acting

    "Are you serious?"

    I was staring at Teacher Ai in disbelief. I had originally wanted to report directly to Headmistress Teresa Taylor, but a student did not simply walk into the headmistress''s office without any reason. If I had anything to report, it had to go through the teachers first. While some people might deride this, it was perfectly logical. In the military, we called it chain of command. You simply didn''t go straight to the top, you had to report to your superior first.

    Similarly, the school bureaucracy operated in the same manner. Before I could bring the news to the headmistress, I had to go through the teachers first. So I brought the recording from both my glasses and my smartphone to Teacher Ai, and let her look at it. She did, and then laughed.

    "I know about this. Both Xu Wu Cheng and Nan Gong Ji Yan have already informed me of this."

    "Huh? They did?" I had stared at her blankly. She had nodded in reply.

    "Yeah. They were acting out a play. They told me that you misunderstood and interrupted their acting halfway, and got into a fight, but because of the content of the play, they didn''t blame you for it."

    ¡­what?

    I wasn''t sure I believed what Teacher Ai was saying. However, that didn''t change the fact that I now had a sinking feeling in my stomach. I had been outwitted by Xu Wu Cheng and Nan Gong Ji Yan. They predicted that I might report this to the teacher, and so fabricated a reasonable story to prevent any repercussions. I had been na?ve to think that everything would end if I told the teachers, but they had stayed one step ahead of me.

    "Man, their acting must have been really incredible if it was real and convincing enough for you to panic and attack!" Teacher Ai laughed. "I wish I could have seen it! I think that''s pretty impressive. However¡­" She looked at me sternly. "In future, make sure you confirm the facts before you start attacking people, okay?"

    "Yes, ma''am." I hung my head, frustration burning inside me. Like hell that was an act! Unfortunately, I had no way of persuading Teacher Ai or any of the teachers. Xu Wu Cheng and Ji Yan served as perfect alibis for each other, and it was the word of the two of them against the one of me. No one would believe me over them, especially since I was just an exchange student and Ji Yan had been here for quite a while. Not only that, Xu Wu Cheng was so much more handsome, popular and richer than I was. He could get away with practically murder (and definitely rape). No one would question him.

    Damn it!

    "Well, if there''s nothing else, you should go back to class," Teacher Ai advised. I grimaced, but knowing that I couldn''t do anything, I complied and left the staff room. Sighing heavily, I headed for my classroom. I contemplated telling Teacher Einsberg as well, but he would have learned from Teacher Ai that the whole thing was a performance by Xu Wu Cheng and Ji Yan, and obviously he would accept the explanation from a fellow teacher instead of me. He would tell me the same thing after "investigations."

    The two bloody f-ers had me in checkmate.

    My mind was burning and I was understandably distracted by this whole issue. Unable to pay much attention in class, I wasn''t surprised when time flew by like a bullet. The next thing I knew, morning classes had ended (I had went straight to the staff room first thing in the morning, right before the first class), and lunch break had arrived. As I ate a bento on my desk, I glanced down from the window near my front row desk and caught sight of Ji Yan wandering around the courtyard below. She evidently looked uncomfortable as she staggered into the shade provided by the trees, taking shelter from the sunlight and sitting sullenly by herself somewhere.

    Take note, I didn''t actually see this with my own eyes. But being a busybody, I had summoned Corvus to spy on her. Sending the crow after her, I had him watch her every movements and report back to me, just in case she did something stupid.

    Right now, Corvus was watching as Ji Yan sat in the shade of a particularly large tree.

    Am I really a vampire?

    It was clear that Ji Yan was questioning what Xu Wu Cheng had told her. The stupid girl still refused to accept reality. According to what I had read, vampires had the ability to pass down the "curse" or inherent traits of a vampire by injecting his demonic mana into a victim while sucking her blood via a complex process. Some sort of spell, a soul-binding curse. Of course, if he didn''t cast that spell, he could just drain the victim of her blood without ever turning her into a vampire¡­if she survived, but that was up to the individual vampires. Suffice to say, Tai Yi had obviously chosen to turn Ji Yan into a vampire.

    Watching through the eyes of Corvus, I continued ploughing into my food even as Ji Yan stared blankly into space.

    Fortunately, the forest in the campus is always isolated. Zhao Yan and the other students will not be coming here. If they do, things will be troublesome.

    Wait, what? There was a forest in the campus? Was she serious? The garden couldn''t be counted as a forest ¨C had she not seen a real forest before? Then again, given what an amateur she was, it was clear that she hadn''t gone through actual combat in a real forest throughout her entire life. It was pretty weird for a school to actually have a forest of its own within its premises. For one thing, as massive as the academy was, it wasn''t big enough to house an actual forest. Also, why would an academy grow its own forest?

    Before I could question the ludicrosity of having a forest exist within a school, someone approached Ji Yan from behind, causing me to almost spit out my lunch.

    Oh no! I couldn''t allow the guy to meet her! It was too dangerous!

    However, even as Corvus sqwaked and flapped his wings frantically, both the newcomer and Ji Yan blatantly ignored him. In any event, I was unfortunately too late.

    Ji Yan had noticed the guy behind her as well, and had turned her head around in confusion. Her brow wrinkled and her mouth dropped open.

    "Huh?"

    "Hello, Ji Yan. My name is Jiang Xue Yang, and I''m from Class 2B."

    It was a bespectacled guy who looked almost exactly like me, except that his hair was brown and his eyes were swirls for some reason instead of normal eyes. Was the original author making fun of glasses-wearing characters like us?! What was with this unflattering depiction?!

    The next lines that came from Jiang Xue Yang''s mouth almost had me throwing up from disbelief at how cheesy they were.

    "I¡­I like you. I saw you in the forest, so I wanted to ask you if you could be my friend."

    WHAT THE FUCK?!

    Seriously. WHAT THE FUCK?!

    Yeah, it was so absurd that I had to repeat my swearing twice.

    The dude confessed to Ji Yan¡­okay, that was normal. A bit unnatural, but I didn''t condemn people for going straight to the point. Though you would normally build up to a confession rather than blurting it out right from the beginning, but I would chalk that up to social awkwardness. But then, he mentioned seeing her in the forest, which made him sound like a stalker. I mean, seriously, even if you did see her in the forest, did you have to tell her that?! Who says that in real life? Like, "I saw you in the caf¨¦, so I wanted to ask you to be my friend."

    The dialogue had completely no link at all! How did one sentence go from a confession to seeing her in a forest, and then jump into "let''s be friends!"?! Did the original author not think things through before writing such a ridiculous dialogue?! It sounded like the original author was merely rushing through the scene and throwing in dialogue for the sake of it because the intention was to push the plot forward and make this poor guy Ji Yan''s first victim.

    Ugh, what poor writing.

    As I suspected, Ji Yan stood up. Corvus tried to attack, but Ji Yan swatted the poor crow aside and then ignored him as he lay crumpled on the ground. Jiang Xue Yang gave Corvus a weird stare, but his attention went back to Ji Yan again. Cursing, I bolted from my seat, sprinting out of the classroom past surprised classmates and rushing down the stairs. Why didn''t I jump out of the window? Because the classroom windows were locked and it would take me quite a bit of mana and strength to bust through the reinforced and enchanted glass (remember that this was a school for mages).

    "Nan Gong Ji Yan?" Jiang Xue Yang asked, confused when she slowly approached him. Even though Corvus was down, he remained in this dimension to serve as my eyes and ears, seeing everything that had transpired. Jiang Xue Yang watched as Ji Yan placed a hand on his chest, slowly raising it to his shoulder and to his face. The poor guy began steaming in embarrassment, his face turning bright red. "Nan Gong Ji Yan¡­you?!"

    Whatever pleasant shock he felt was erased by unbearable pain as she sank her fangs into his neck, causing him to scream as she drained the blood from his body, unable to control her thirst. I slowed to a stop helplessly at the bottom of the stairs, still too far away to help. I could only watch as Jiang Xue Yang flailed about and died.

    My fault. This was my fault.

    I had left Ji Yan to Yi Tai''s mercy in a fit of petty rage, allowing her to be transformed into a vampire because I was annoyed by her attitude. I could have done more, maybe if I had fought to the end, or knocked Ji Yan out and escaped with her, but I just let her get toyed around by Yi Tai and turned into a vampire all because she pissed me off. I even thought she deserved it.

    But it led to an innocent schoolmate''s death. A death I could have prevented if I had put aside my pettiness and anger and actually did the right thing.

    Jiang Xue Yang''s death was as much my fault as it was Ji Yan''s.

    "Richard? Are you all right?"

    I looked up shakily when Teacher Einsberg spotted me. He frowned in concern.

    "You look really pale. Go to the infirmary."

    "Teacher Einsberg¡­somebody has been killed¡­"

    "Huh?"

    "Nan Gong Ji Yan. She murdered somebody and drank his blood! She killed Jiang Xue Yang!"

    "What? Calm down! What are you talking about?!"

    It took a while before Teacher Einsberg believed me, and that was after he confirmed with the teacher of Class 2B that she had a missing student. Even though I told them what I had witnessed through the eyes and ears of my Corvus, all I had was my word that the culprit was Ji Yan. I didn''t have any real evidence, unfortunately. Corvus didn''t wear glasses, after all, so he had nothing on him that could record the whole thing.

    In any event, the teachers contacted the police, who searched in the "forest" and found the corpse of poor Jiang Xue Yang.

    The next thing I knew, Teresa Taylor placed the whole school under lockdown and sent everyone back home. As they were sent back home, the students restlessly chattered and gossiped among each other. I was separated from the other students for questioning, and even though I told the police the same thing I had told Teacher Einsberg, none of them believed me.

    "You said that Nan Gong Ji Yan is the culprit, correct? The murderer?" the detective was regarding me suspiciously. I nodded, and he continued with his interrogation. "You claimed that she attacked him during lunchtime. That is the case?"

    "Yes, sir."

    "That can''t be possible. During lunchtime, she was with Xu Wu Cheng. She had an alibi. Are you sure the person you saw was her?"

    "Perhaps there was some sort of illusion. Or a flaw in the kid''s summoning magic." Another police officer offered an explanation. The detective grunted, obviously not satisfied.

    "Maybe."

    After a while, they realized that there would no longer be any more useful information from me, and they let me go.

    Despite their attempt to hush the event, while I was returning home, I could overhear the other students whispering amongst themselves.

    "I heard the victim was Jiang Xue Yang from Class 2B."

    "Scary! It seems like he was killed by a vampire. His corpse was completely drained of his blood!"

    The whispers didn''t cease even as the students were ordered to go home or return to their dormitories. In the midst of it all, I caught sight of Nan Gong Ji Yan standing by herself, looking angry. Our gazes met for a moment, and she turned away in shame.

    She knew I knew. After all, I had snitched on her, and it was only through the intervention and lies of Xu Wu Cheng that she was able to escape the clutches of the police. That fucking couple. They were always one step ahead of me. I didn''t know why Xu Wu Cheng was covering for her, but he probably had some use for her. One thing was for sure, he would realize that I was a constant thorn in his side and would eventually move to eliminate me.

    I had to prepare myself for the inevitable conflict.

    As for Ji Yan, she continued to sullenly stand alone. There was a sudden jolt when her phone buzzed. She reluctantly flipped it open and stared at the text message that she had received, embroidered with the familiar blue rose of the Guang Zhi Yi Sect. Apparently it was a message from the sect, declaring an emergency and ordering an immediate meeting. Ji Yan stared at the message bitterly before replying with an apology.

    "I''m sorry. I''m not feeling very well today so I will not be able to participate in today''s meeting."

    What a lie.

    However, given her pale complexion and trembling body, which an extremely concerned Zhao Yan could undoubtedly see, Ji Yan had the perfect excuse to skip the meeting.

    However, she obviously wasn''t going back home to rest.

    I summoned Corvus to follow her again, but kept my distance because I wouldn''t be able to do much if I followed her myself. I would get caught instead.

    Ji Yan had gone to Room 5, as she had promised Yi Tai the other day. And when she entered the classroom, she found him waiting for her.

    "The whole school is in an uproar right now. Your thirst for blood must be really strong¡­" He shook his head. "If I hadn''t acted as your alibi, you would have been arrested by the police and dissected, you know? Or perhaps immediately killed. You should be thankful."

    "Thanks to you, I have no choice but to accept your offer," Ji Yan snapped bitterly.

    "Oh?"

    Yi Tai turned his head back with a smile. Approaching Ji Yan in an exaggerated manner, he slapped her.

    "Ah¡­" Ji Yan clutched her reddening cheek as tears leaked from her eyes, and she descended into a daze from the sudden act of violence.

    Yi Tai smirked as he gently cupped Ji Yan''s chin, a contrast to his brutal action earlier. Despite the gentleness, Ji Yan couldn''t help but tremble under Yi Tai''s touch. For good reason, for the words that followed were cold and merciless.

    "You need to beg me for my help."

    Ji Yan shuddered under the icy tone. Ignoring her, Yi Tai continued glacially with a chilling smile.

    "If you want my help, then you must absolutely change that arrogant attitude of yours. You must understand that right now, you''re nothing but my lowly servant. Therefore I should first teach you how you should talk to your master."

    Ji Yan could only lower her head in frustration, tears flowing freely from her eyes.

    "I''m begging you, please help me¡­"

    Yi Tai bit his finger, allowing a trickle of warm blood to flow unhindered. Sticking it out, he then placed his bleeding finger in the desperate Ji Yan''s mouth.

    "The blood slave must obey all of her master''s orders without question."

    Yi Tai smiled and waited patiently as Ji Yan drank deeply from him, before he dropped the bomb on her.

    "Including killing enemies for your master¡­"

    Ji Yan withdrew from him, her blue eyes wide in shock. Blood trickled from her lips as she stared at him, stunned. Yi Tai merely smiled and delivered the finishing blow.

    "For example, Guang Zhi Yi Sect."

    "That''s¡­"

    "What''s the matter? Don''t you want to surpass your sister?" Yi Tai''s sinister smile sent chills down Ji Yan''s spine. "Destroying Guang Zhi Yi Sect is one way of proving your superiority."

    "I¡­"

    "Well, conceal your identity for now and wait for my orders."

    Yi Tai grinned as he left a trembling Ji Yan in the abandoned classroom, leaving her to fear for the future.

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 517 Chapter 517: Stalker

    "You okay, Brother Richie?"

    When I reached home, Adrian caught sight of my gloomy expression and hurried over in concern. I glanced at him somewhat wearily.

    "Yeah."

    "I heard that there was a murder in the high school division today."

    "Yeah. Someone from another class." I gritted my teeth. "I told them the culprit, but nobody believed me. All because she had an alibi. I told them the so-calld alibi is a vampire, and they laughed me off. Said I had no proof."

    Well¡­I should have expected that, to be honest. How else were the police going to react? When I told them, "Xu Wu Cheng is a vampire! If you don''t believe me, check him out!" they only gave me a look of bemusement, and then told me to go home.

    Nobody belived a single word I had to say. Not that I could blame them. I had no hard evidence. What was I supposed to do, get his blood or something? When I recorded the whole thing, Xu Wu Cheng and Ji Yan cleverly covered that up as a play. They covered their tracks so well that everyone would believe them over me.

    "Senior Nan Gong Ji Yan is very popular in the high school division ¨C she has been for the past year." Melina had joined us, also looking worried. "Of course everyone is going to defend her. She has quite a good reputation. And she is that Senior Nan Gong Zhao Yan''s twin sister."

    Yeah, so what? That didn''t change the fact that she was still a backstabbing bitch.

    "Also, I heard a lot of my classmates comment on how good looking and popular Senior Xu Wu Cheng is. Most people will side with him."

    She didn''t have to say "over you, Sensei." That much was clear enough for me, and she was sensitive enough not to twist the knife in my gut.

    "Do you guys believe me?" I asked. Adrian nodded vehemently.

    "Of course I believe Brother Richie! I know you''re telling the truth!"

    "I think Sensei isn''t lying, but¡­"

    On the other hand, Melina sounded skeptical. She hesitated for a moment, even as both Adrian and I stared at her, and then she sighed.

    "¡­perhaps things aren''t as simple as they seem. Maybe Sensei made a mistake or something?"

    Well, she wasn''t there to witness the actual event, so it was natural that she had her doubts. Not wanting to put her in an awkward situation, I decided to change the subject.

    "Well, there''s nothing I can do for now, so I might as well carry on with whatever I''ve been doing. Let''s get back to training, you two!"

    "Yes!"

    The both of them responded enthusiastically, and for the rest of the night, I moved my mind away from the mess that I had gotten involved in.

    *

    That didn''t mean I wasn''t going to do anything, though. For the next week or so, I followed Ji Yan closely to ensure that she didn''t attack any other innocent students. It turned out that I needn''t had bothered because there were no further incidents after Jiang Xue Yang''s death. Ji Yan had received enough blood from her master, Xu Wu Cheng.

    In fact, my stalking was so noticeable that Xu Wu Cheng ¨C otherwise known as Yi Tai ¨C walked up to me one day.

    "Are you stalking my Ji Yan? You seem¡­pretty obsessed with her."

    I glared at him, too tired to deny it. This bastard was the cause of everything, from Ji Yan''s transformation to a vampire to Jiang Xue Yang''s death. I resisted the temptation to attack him there and then. The teachers would come rushing over and stop me before I could kill him, and then I would be locked up and imprisoned. While I was stuck rotting in jail, this guy would be free to continue doing whatever he wanted. I couldn''t allow him to provoke me into doing something so impulsive. He had the law on his side¡­for now.

    Until I obtained hard evidence that he was a vampire, I could do nothing.

    "You should stay away from her."

    "Why? Ji Yan will run wild if I do, and end up attacking her classmates when her thirst for blood becomes too strong."

    Glaring bitterly at Yi Tai and wishing I could slay him, I clenched my fists and swallowed my anger. Not here. Not now. Not until I got evidence. Aware of my predicament, Tai Yi chuckled scornfully.

    "Oh, I know that you know. You''ve been stalking my precious servant to prevent that from happening, haven''t you?"

    I sighed in resignation. "I will get the evidence and report you. I swear I will."

    "Go ahead, if you dare. Who will believe you? It will be your word against mine and Ji Yan''s. After all, we just wanted to enact a little play." Xu Wu Cheng threw his head and laughed. That excuse was the reason why recording this exchange would be rendered moot. As long as both of them insisted that they were play-acting, I couldn''t use this as evidence against them. "And besides, after your little stunt a week ago, your credibility isn''t very high, I might add."

    I couldn''t refute that. After the whole fiasco where I joined Kufa Van Peer in fighting the Chiropterans and saving Saya where I was slapped with house arrest for a week, my public image had taken a severe hit. I wouldn''t say that I had become untrustworthy in the eyes of teachers and students, but at the very least they wouldn''t believe me over two model students. More so when I was merely an exchange student, and considered an outsider.

    Yi Tai was correct. I was cornered here.

    "Your only option is to fight me," Yi Tai gloated, his handsome face crinkling into a smile. "But I wonder, do you think you can defeat me?"

    Actually, I might. If I could summon all my Constellation spirits, then of course I would be able to crush him. Even a demonic vampire prince such as Yi Tai wouldn''t be able to survive a nuke spell. The guy was pretty idiotic if he thought he could best me in a proper duel.

    The problem was that he wasn''t stupid enough to accept a proper challenge from me. He would scheme something to put himself at an overwhelming advantage. Furthermore, he had Ji Yan on his side. Yi Tai alone would be a handful, but if the two of them joined forces¡­

    Well, I could just nuke the two of them together. To hell with Zhao Yan''s feelings. Her sister was trying to kill me and I was merely acting out of self-defense. At least in that scenario, but the issue was whether Yi Tai would even allow such a scenario to come to pass in the first place. I couldn''t exactly nuke the school along with him and Ji Yan, after all.

    Yi Tai laughed as he left me standing alone there, bristling. While I contemplated my otpions, wondering if I should somehow rope Guang Zhi Yi Sect into helping me (they wouldn''t ¨C why the hell would they trust the word of an outsider like me over the word of Ji Yan, who had been a member of their sect for over a year?), Kufa slapped me in the back.

    "Hey, Richard, what are you doing?"

    "Nothing."

    "Really now?" Kufa raised an eyebrow, the corners of his mouth curling slyly. "You''ve been following Nan Gong Ji Yan very closely for the past week or so."

    Was I really that obvious? And here I was thinking I had covered my tracks well enough. Then again, Kufa was among the more skilled students in Saint Teresa Academy, so it wasn''t surprising for him to notice that something was up.

    "Give up. Not only is Xu Wu Cheng much more handsome, popular and smarter than you, girls tend to prefer the bad boy vibes that he gives off than well-behaved but boring nice guys like you."

    That was quite the outrageous stereotype, but I had to admit that it was true in Ji Yan''s case, particularly when I bitterly recalled how she betrayed me in favor of becoming a vampire just to beat her own sister.

    What was the expression again? Didn''t want to walk the road to heaven and chose to walk the path to hell or something like that? Whatever.

    "Don''t worry, it''s not what you''re thinking. I''m not interested in her at all." Then I suddenly had an epiphany. "I simply have a suspicion that Nan Gong Ji Yan might be a Chiropteran."

    Kufa stared at me in disbelief, and then burst out laughing.

    "Dude, don''t even joke like that. If there was a Chiropteran in this school, I would have flushed them out long ago. Don''t forget that I have the same abilities as Saya. I can detect them. I can assure you that Nan Gong Ji Yan is not a Chiropteran."

    "Oh."

    Damn, that didn''t work. I was such a fool. However, that brought up another question to mind.

    "What about vampires? Can you and Saya tell apart vampires from normal humans?"

    "Hmm¡­" Kufa thought for a bit, and then shook his head. "Not exactly. Vampires are still humans. Chiropterans are clearly not humans ¨C they are monsters. They are biologically different. We can track them through pheromones and mana, but since vampires use the same type of mana as humans, we can''t distinguish them from other humans."

    Even among mages, only Saya and Kufa could tell Chiropterans apart from humans, and I couldn''t unless I had my glasses. Even my glasses couldn''t pick up any biological differences between vampires and humans, unable to distinguish Xu Wu Cheng from the other students. Otherwise I would have used that as evidence long ago.

    Damn it¡­was there really nothing that I could use against that bastard!?

    "Anyway, tone down on the stalking," Kufa warned. "Miura is getting increasingly annoyed¡­there she is."

    Miura was stomping over, and she tried to seize me by the collar, but as usual I deftly avoided her.

    "What is the meaning of this, Richard?!" she hollered. "Just when I finally believed that there is nothing between you and Rossetti, now you''re chasing after a new girl?"

    "I''m not chasing after any girl," I told her coldly. "And even if I am, it''s none of your business."

    "Of course it is! You already have me!"

    "I''m not interested in you. I''ve already told you that." What was this girl, a stalker? Wait a second, given my behavior over the last week, I probably was in no position to criticize her for stalking. But I was doing it for a different reason, especially after Ji Yan''s murder of Jiang Xue Yang last week. I had a perfectly justifiable reason.

    "Just go out with me already! My La Noir family requires a powerful summoner like you to be their son-in-law!"

    "Like hell I''ll marry into your family over such a superficial reason!"

    "If you marry me, you can do whatever you want with me." Miura winked suggestively at me, but I glared at her in disgust.

    "Have more self-respect for yourself, lady. And get it through your head that I am not interested in you."

    "But¡­!"

    Kufa cleared his throat. "Don''t worry, Miura. Richard is only helping me in investigating Nan Gong Ji Yan for involvement in bloodsucking monsters."

    "Oh, right¡­I heard that you accused her of being the murderer of Jiang Xue Yang last week." Miura then frowned and placed her hands on her hips. "Don''t tell me¡­that was an excuse for you to stalk Nan Gong Ji Yan?!"

    I really wanted to know what went on in the brain of this deluded young lady. Again, as beautiful as she was, I was turned off by her stalker-ish and possessive behavior. I honestly wished she would stop bothering me. She just wasn''t my type ¨C I could tell that she would be worth more trouble than I could handle.

    "Look, I don''t care if you don''t believe me, but stop following me around." Turning in the direction of Xu Wu Cheng and Ji Yan, who were together again, I sighed. "And I guess I''ll also stop following others around as well."

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 518 Chapter 518: Library Calamity

    Realizing that it wasn''t productive to continue my current modus operandi, I eased off the stalking and left Yi Tai and Ji Yan to their own devices. As long as Ji Yan did not attack any other innocent student, I had no reason to monitor them closely. Often I gave into the temptation to remind Teresa Taylor or Teacher Einsberg about the terrible truth regarding the couple, but Yi Tai turned out to be right. I was often dismissed by the authorities, who would take the word of those two over mine. In the end, I was an outsider, and nobody would side with an outsider over their own students.

    I was on my own.

    Fortunately, as I said, there were no other fatalities or serious injuries that occurred over the next week or so. But there was a near miss that caused some concern a few days later when I visited the library.

    This time, it was really a coincidence. Even Miura couldn''t accuse me of stalkerish behavior because I had completely stopped keeping track of Ji Yan''s location and went off to do my own things (training or studying). But that didn''t stop me from occasionally running into her and Yi Tai, and on that particular day, they also happened to be in the library when I was looking for a book.

    What book, you ask? Books on ice magic, of course. The whole reason why I was in Teacher Einsberg''s class was to improve my ice magic, and right now I was currently seeking a way to weave my ice magic with my Constellation spirits.

    Anyway, for some obscure reason, Yi Tai and Ji Yan were positioned just behind a shelf in a remote area of the library. If they were a normal couple, I would have dismissed them as a guy and girl flirting in a secret, shadowy area to do ecchi things. I mean, high school students were pretty bold these days. Actually, high school students had always been bold even a thousand years ago, during my previous life, and it seemed that hadn''t changed across the millennium. It was widely known that several couples flirted in the dark recesses of the library, doing stuff that I had best left to your imagination.

    However, Yi Tai and Ji Yan were not an ordinary couple.

    Yi Tai was leaning against a bookshelf, his arms crossed as he impatiently waited for Ji Yan''s information. She had been feeding him details about the Guang Zhi Yi Sect and Hunter''s Association, apparently, but as those details had nothing to do with me, I didn''t pay much attention. I was probably going to leave them alone now because they weren''t doing anything that would bother me. Ji Yan was faking normal behavior by taking a book out of the shelf.

    Before she could pull the book out, though, Xu Wu Cheng suddenly grabbed her hand and pressed his body against her back in that flirty manner that shoujo manhua fans would absolutely love, but wouldn''t make any sense in reality. Hell, Ji Yan could probably file a complaint against Yi Tai for sexual harassment, but with him being a typical flawless bishounen character, he was going to get away with such outrageous behavior. Bloody fucker.

    If I were to do the same thing to a girl (except Miura), I bet I would end up locked in prison for outrage of modesty. These double standards pissed me off.

    Yi Tai asked something that I couldn''t be bothered to listen to, while Ji Yan meekly answered with a "no, not yet." At her negative response, Yi Tai huffed angrily.

    "How useless!"

    Yeah? How about you try and get the information yourself then, if you think you were not as useless?

    However, Xu Wu Cheng''s rage was replaced with mischief and he taunted Ji Yan in a sweet voice. "You must be punished."

    "No¡­my teacher and friends are on the other side."

    Ji Yan panicked, her cheeks flushed red as she protested. I frowned and turned around, almost jumping in fright when I saw Ji Yan''s teacher and friends nearby. When did they¡­?! At least have some proper foreshadowing or something! Don''t have random, nameless characters whose names would never be known because they would never show up again pop up all of a sudden just for the sake of plot development and to show how evil Yi Tai was!

    Wait¡­what the hell?! What was wron with their faces?! I almost blanched when I saw that their faces weren''t drawn at all. Was the artist so lazy as to completely give their faces a skip when drawing them? I knew they were insignificant characters, but this wasn''t the right way to tell a story!

    Before I could rush over with a marker and draw natural features such as eyes and noses on their blank faces (which only sported mouths), the teacher spoke up.

    "Ji Yan, have you finished reading books yet?"

    ¡­huh? Did you think Ji Yan was reading a book behind a shelf? There were rows of chairs and benches right next to the shelves for students to sit down and read. And if she knew you were waiting for her, she should just grab a book and proceed to one of those benches to read, right? Why would you ever think she was reading a book behind a shelf right now? I get that it was possible that she was browsing, and many people did browse behind a shelf, but that was because they were unsure whether this was the book they wanted to read or borrow. Wouldn''t a more logical question be, "have you managed to find your book?"

    Jeez, the lack of logic and common sense in this scene was making me bury my face in my palm. I had best seek out the original author and yell out the fixes. Did no one edit Vampire Sphere or proofread it before actually publishing it?!

    "Um¡­give me a few minutes and I''ll be done!"

    With no other recourse, Ji Yan tried to stall for time before her teacher and friends reached her position and see what was happening. As for me, I wanted them to discover Xu Wu Cheng''s true nature, so I wordlessly encouraged them to go over and see him sucking her blood. Obviously I couldn''t tell them aloud what was going on or Xu Wu Cheng would be forewarned, stop and pretend that he was flirting intimately with Ji Yan. So I just waved them over. The three of them stared at me curiously when I gestured toward where Ji Yan was, but decided to hasten their steps.

    "What''s taking you so long?"

    Well¡­you thought she was reading, right? Being a teacher, you should be the one most familiar with how time consuming reading was. What kind of stupid question was that? Now, if she had asked earlier if Ji Yan had found the book she was looking for, the present question would have made a lot more sense. This indicated a severe lack of planning or outlining on the original author''s part.

    "We''re coming!" Ji Yan called out, flustered, trying to do anything to delay their approach as Xu Wu Cheng continued to suck her blood. Huh? "We"? So did the trio already know that Xu Wu Cheng was with her?

    At that moment, Xu Wu Cheng lifted his head from Ji Yan''s neck, blood still trickling from his mouth. I stifled a groan, disappointed that the trio wouldn''t catch him in the act of drinking blood now. That would have saved me a lot of trouble.

    However, I suddenly had a bad feeling about the situation.

    As if irritated that the teacher and classmates were coming over to interrupt his blood-drinking session and spoil his fun, Yi Tai/Xu Wu Cheng decided to take revenge by¡­pushing the bookshelf over so that it would fall on them.

    Except that the bookshelf missed the trio entirely.

    Well, duh? I didn''t know what Xu Wu Cheng was trying to pull, but he had to be really stupid if he thought the teacher and friends would be right in front of the bookshelf. They were walking down the aisle between bookshelves to get to Ji Yan''s position. Only in a poorly written webcomic would the bookshelf unnaturally land on the trio because¡­quite frankly, if you had them walking toward Ji Yan, they would be in the aisle, not in front of the bookshelf! Not unless the webcomic artist decided to magically teleport the three of them from the aisle and into right in front of the bookshelf!

    As it turned out, I was the one in most danger because I happened to be grabbing a book from the shelf. I quickly jumped out from between the shelf and stumbled into the aisle just as the bookshelf toppled over, only for it to knock the one in front of it and cause a domino effect where all the bookshelves in the same row fell over. As the wooden frames all collapsed one after another, Xu Wu Cheng and Ji Yan were exposed to the stunned sights of the teacher and classmates.

    Xu Wu Cheng had the expression of someone whose plans had just failed big-time, which made me want to roll on the floor laughing. What, let me guess, you were intending to call the ambulance and pretend to be the hero who saved them while hogging all the credit and basking in the limelight while the girls heaped praises upon you? Dream on, you were not some shoujo manhua character¡­well, maybe you were the product of one. It was just too bad that you were in reality instead of a story, bro!

    "Are you all right?" Xu Wu Cheng feigned concern, but it was too late. His hand had been raised, as if poised to push the bookshelves¡­which he did, of course, but he attempted to salvage the situation. The teacher stared at his hand, which he quickly lowered, but decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. It was just an accident, or so she told herself. Of couse the whole thing was an "accident!" There was no way the perfect Xu Wu Cheng could have pushed the bookshelves over on purpose!

    ¡­disgusting.

    "Yes¡­it''s fortunate that no one got hurt."

    Well, I almost got injured! Had everyone simply forgotten about my presence?

    "I''ll send these two to the infirmary," the teacher said, realizing that the two students beside her were in shock. They were staring at the collapsed bookshelves in horror, still in a daze as their minds were unable to wrap around what had just happened. There were other students in the library as well, but none of them had been in the vicinity when the "accident" happened. How incredibly lucky. The teacher glanced around to make sure the other students were all right before she focused on the girl beside Xu Wu Cheng. "You look pale too, Ji Yan. You should follow us."

    "N¡­no, I''m fine." One reason why Ji Yan was so pale was because she just had her blood sucked, but the teacher obviously did not know that. I could tell her, but the teacher would probably send me to the infirmary and request that I get treated for psychological shock or something. Ji Yan continued, "Please go on ahead. I''ll see what I can do to help with the mess."

    "All right, but don''t overdo it."

    As soon as the three left for the infirmary, Ji Yan turned to Yi Tai, horrified.

    "They didn''t do anything, so why¡­?"

    Xu Wu Cheng smiled at her before turning away uncaringly. "Who cares about them? They''re going to die anyway." When Ji Yan stared at him in horror, he continued mercilessly. "If you can''t find *whatever random thing*, the Crimson Blood Tribe will drain the whole school''s blood very soon."

    I felt a chill when I heard that. It was clear that Yi Tai didn''t even place me in his eyes, given how he made that declaration despite knowing that I was nearby. I had even recorded his words and was determined to expose him, but if he was that confident, it meant he knew how to cover it all up.

    Damn it¡­what could I do to prevent that, if nobody believed me?!

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 519 Chater 519: Betrayal

    There was absolutely nothing I could do. No one believed me. Even though I told the teacher that Xu Wu Cheng pushed the bookshelf over, she wrote it off as an "accident." I showed her the recording, of course, but she dismissed it.

    "Use your common sense," she had told me with a laugh. "Of course it''s a freak accident. Unless you used magic ¨C and since we didn''t sense any mana from him despite being in the same space ¨C there is no way for a normal human to physically push a bookshelf over. The shelf weighs about a ton or two!"

    She had me there. Again, I told her that Xu Wu Cheng was a vampire, and all I got was another laugh in return.

    "You''ve been watching too many movies or reading too many vampire novels." The teacher shook her head. "Vampires went out of vogue years ago! Even since that novel series about sparkling vampires and badly written romances, vampires haven''t been popular for years! Oh, I know. You must have been reading shoujo manga or manhua. But even these have gotten a bit stale over the years. People have simply stopped reading them."

    That wasn''t true. I hadn''t read a vampire novel or manhua in a long while. Let''s just say Vampire Sphere traumatized me, even if Twilight hadn''t.

    So I went home, bitter and disappointed that no one would believe me. Adrian did, but there was nothing he could do. He wasn''t in the high school division, what was he supposed to do? He couldn''t act as a witness because he wasn''t actually there to see anything. Gritting my teeth, I resolved to speak to Headmistress Teresa Taylor the next day.

    "¡­you came to my office just to tell me this?"

    She raised an eyebrow. I gestured toward the recordings.

    "If you would just watch these¡­"

    "Oh, I have. I''ve surveyed the reports you made to the teachers. I trust their judgment. And if Xu Wu Cheng and Nan Gong Ji Yan have already come forward and clarified the matter, then it''s done. Settled. There is no need for you to keep harping on it. It''s almost as if you''ve an obsession or a grudge. It''s unhealthy."

    I honestly felt like screaming. Why wouldn''t anyone believe me!? Well¡­if they did, then the story would end here, Xu Wu Cheng would be imprisoned and killed, his schemes would fall apart, the vampires would be driven off, and we wouldn''t be able to continue this parody. Thus Xu Wu Cheng was protected by incredible plot armor. No matter what I did right now, I couldn''t stop him. If I were to attack him in the corridor, the teachers would show up and stop me.

    There was absolutely nothing I could do.

    "What do I do now?" I scowled, and then I realized that I had no idea what he was scheming. He had made ambiguous declarations about destroying the school as well as made references to some Night Blood Tribe or whatever, but right now I had utterly no intelligence on any of those. I realized that I was going about this the wrong way.

    If the authorities didn''t believe me, then I had to find another way to disrupt his plans. And to do that, I needed to gather intelligence. Information was vital, and if I didn''t know my enemy, I would never be able to win.

    "How do I¡­?"

    I tried following the dude, but he was a slippery fellow. Even though I had a flock of Corvus tracking, he would always disappear into the shadows after school, leaving not even a single trail. I had no idea how he shook off my Constellation spirits, but the guy was clearly skilled. There had to be something I could do. I just didn''t know what.

    Would the Hunter Association know something about this?

    "Please stop slandering my sister."

    Zhao Yan folded her arms and glared at me when I pulled her aside one day to tell her.

    "I know you''ve been following her for a bit, and reporting to the teachers about her apparent vampiric transformation. It''s becoming a bit bothersome. Even though I owe you quite a bit, you are going too far and crossing the line. Please, just let my sister off."

    "But¡­!"

    Zhao Yan shook her head. "I''m sorry. That''s enough. I trust my sister. She will never do anything as stupid as that. And I know Xu Wu Cheng is pretty handsome and popular with guys, but that''s not a reason for you to be jealous of him and drag his name through the mud."

    What the hell?! Zhao Yan ¨C like the others ¨C thought I was slandering Xu Wu Cheng because I was jealous of him!? This was utter bullshit!

    Then again, from an outsider''s point of view¡­I guess it was only reasonable that people would see that. It was unfair, but people were ultimately biased. Reality was harsh. People would rather believe the people they wanted to believe and hear the things they wanted to hear than the truth. No matter what period it was, humans never changed.

    I was on my own.

    Resigned to solitude and alienation, I changed my tactics and continued to try and maintain my surveillance of Xu Wu Cheng. Even though I did several discreet background investigations, I found nothing. No past, no family, no background¡­nothing. It was almost as if he just ghosted into existence from nowhere.

    As the days passed, I was no closer to finding out what his scheme was. I was wondering if I should just forget about the whole thing and remain vigilant for whatever Xu Wu Cheng plotted, only for me to stumble upon a clandestine meeting between the members of the Guang Zhi Yi Sect. Of course Nan Gong Zhao Yan and Nan Gong Ji Yan were both present along with Yi Shen and Kai Lin. I just happened to pass by the room they were inhabiting as secretly as they could. The four of them had locked the door in what they thought was a secure location, but they never bothered to cast anti-eavesdropping wards or use soundproof spells. Amateurs.

    I was about to pass them by when something that Yi Shen said caught my attention.

    "This is an urgent issue!"

    Uh¡­what was urgent, exactly? Who the hell began their sentences like that? That sounded downright unnatural.

    "There are many corpses in the area near Meng Ting Academy and Yi Wen Academy. From the autopsies, it''s clear that someone has sucked their blood dry."

    Meng Ting and Ti Wen Academies? I had never heard of those. They must be magic academies like Saint Teresa Academy. Well, as long as I didn''t hear Saint Teresa or Hennepin Academies among the list of casualties, I needn''t worry.

    But the cause of deaths sounded suspiciously like vampires¡­

    "According to our most trusted source, the demonic faction known as the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Tribe is the culprit."

    Who the hell was your "most trusted source"? What the hell were you trying to do, sound like a sports journalist or something? Nobody spoke like that in a conversation in real life, not unless they were writing a news article. You know, like "sources close to the club said that¡­" Dude, you really sounded like some flat, two-dimensional character who was just showing up to move the horrible plot along.

    Yi Shen continued, unaware that his unnatural and cheesy dialogue was grating on my nerves. "All hunters from guilds belonging to the Hunter Association in those two schools have been annihilated. It''s very clear that there is a spy in the Hunter Association."

    No, it was NOT clear at all. Could you, like, explain the link? How the hell did "hunters being killed in these two schools" equate to "there must be a spy in the Hunter Association"?! I didn''t see any link or correlation? I mean, maybe they got killed because they encountered strong vampires? Where was your proof that there was a traitor?

    I personally knew that Ji Yan was the spy feeding Yi Tai information, but that was because I stumbled upon her telling him stuff. If I didn''t eavesdrop on them, I would never have made the link between deaths and spies. Yeah, I knew it was supposed to be a plot-induced revelation, but this just made no sense whatsoever!

    Best of all, I had told them that Ji Yan was the traitor, and they refused to believe me. Zhao Yan had insisted that her sister could be trusted, and they ended up suspecting me for trying to drive a wedge into their relationship. Okay, so they didn''t believe me that there was a traitor, but when people started dying, suddenly that was because it was done by a spy? And even though I had clearly told them that Ji Yan was the spy, they refused to make the link?

    "I''m guessing the next target will be us."

    Why? Because Zhao Yan and Ji Yan were the main characters?

    "We can''t delay this any longer. Tonight, we are going to set up a barrier of silver crosses around our school."

    What the fuck?!

    No, seriously. WHAT THE FUCK?!

    Why wait until tonight to set a barrier of silver crosses around your school? Shouldn''t that be done right from the very beginning, like, you know, when you first started enrolling in this school? What was with this sudden realization that you need a barrier only now? Were you guys freaking amateurs?! Who the hell waited until there was an actual threat staring down your face before finally being compelled to set up barriers around your freaking home base?!

    Was there no sense of security or logic in these so-called HUNTERS?!

    And in the next panel, I saw that the once-bright afternoon sky had been replaced by night. What the hell was with this transition? Before I knew what was happening, I saw the four of them jumping around and landing stylishly (Deadpool would have called their poses the classic superhero landing)¡­just to put the silver crosses on the ground.

    That was right. A mundane task of setting up a barrier and fixing silver crosses into position, and they had to jump around so flamboyantly and make stylish landings, as if they were being watched by an audience.

    I decided that I was never going to read Vampire Sphere again. The sheer amount of annoyance I suffered when reading this nonsense of a webcomic was becoming too much for me to bear.

    Suspecting there was something because Ji Yan received a full panel to herself, I decided to randomly check on her rendezvous with Yi Tai in the abandoned classroom Room 5. As Yi Tai bit into her neck sensually and sucked her blood, she fed him info in addition to her red bodily fluids.

    "They''ve already set up the barrier so that zombies will not be able to enter¡­"

    Wait, what? Uh¡­did she just say zombies? Seriously? There were zombies in this world? Why hadn''t I heard of them before? I thought they only appeared in Biohazard/Resident Evil games ¨C which had just received two remakes recently, by the way. Oh, right. I had heard of rumors regarding necromancy and monsters such as Lich Lords or Skeletal Kings or whatever, but I had no idea how true they were. Given that Ji Yan just dropped that huge bomb on me as if it was nothing more than a common occurrence, I guess zombies were real.

    Not that I wanted to meet them¡­

    "But I swapped the real silver crosses with fake ones in some of the assigned locations¡­"

    "Very good." Xu Wu Cheng raised his head and smiled, wiping the blood from his lips as he complimented his blood servant. "Any news on¡­?"

    The word was deliberately censored out to keep me (and the readers) in suspense. I cursed under my breath and wondered why I wasn''t able to hear that word. Ji Yan, on the other hand, looked conflicted. Annoyed, Xu Wu Cheng glared at her.

    "Why are you spacing out for?"

    "Nothing¡­" Ji Yan lowered her head shamefully, still unable to say anything. Yi Tai decided to let it go.

    "Okay, the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Tribe is going to deal with this school quickly." Yi Tai stood up and produced three paper sachets from his pocket before handing them to Ji Yan. "These are three sachets that contain a kind of powder that will weaken the user''s combat ability. Find an opportunity to slip these into your sect''s beverages and have them drink them. Of course, I''m including your sister, Zhao Yan, as well¡­"

    My blood ran cold when I listened from outside the classroom. This couldn''t be happening! Would Ji Yan really betray her sister and the Guang Zhi Yi Sect? If she really intended to do so, I had to warn them! Hell, I was going to give this whole recording to the headmistress!

    ¡­as it turned out, I got scolded once again, and this time Taylor threatened to expel me and send me back to Jing Tian City if I continued "harassing" Xu Wu Cheng and Ji Yan. As for Zhao Yan and the Guang Zhi Yi Sect, they almost resolved never to talk to me again.

    FUCK THIS! WHY WOULDN''T ANYBODY BELIEVE ME?! I WAS TELLING THE TRUTH!

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 520 Chapter 520: The Strange Beggar

    The next morning, there was a commotion right outside the gate. After splitting up with Adrian and Melina, I was about to head toward the high school division when I heard a ruckus in the courtyard. There were students gathering at the gate and whispering or muttering agitatedly.

    Curious, I did a 180 and returned to the gate.

    "Where did this beggar come from?"

    Beggar?

    Pushing my glasses up, I proceeded forward. At first they had my curiosity, but now they had my attention. Being the busybody that I was, I headed over to the gate to join the crowd and stare. Obviously I didn''t take out my smartphone and start taking pictures or recording ¨C I was not that big on social media and I had better things to do.

    A crowd of students had gathered around a single person who was seated outside, and they were looking down on him with scorn and disdain. The "beggar" was wapped in a filthy, black cloak and hood that covered his grimly face, and he sat calmly at the exterior of the gate, with a relatively big aluminum can in front of him. The type where you scraped baked beans out of, or other kinds of processed food, but obviously he had eaten all of the food that the can had once possessed. The lid had been peeled off, revealing a pitiful, empty container that was waiting to be filled with money.

    One of the student, clearly a Fu Er Dai (second generation rich kid), jabbed his finger rudely at the beggar and sneered.

    "How dare he ask for money in front of our school?"

    Agreeing, several of the girls bunched together as they treated the beggar with contempt and a little bit of trepidation.

    "He chose the wrong place. Our school is elite and very famous. He''s ruining our image!"

    Bloody hell. Here you had a poor guy who was in need of money because he was homeless and close to starving to death, but the only thing these people cared about was their "image"? What a bunch of stuckup, arrogant and self-centered "elite" students.

    "Tell the guards to get rid of him," one of the students grumbled. I stared at him in astonishment. Why couldn''t he just do it himself instead of standing here and whining about it?

    A delinquent student, who stood out in contrast to the "elite" students around him (and ironically ruining the school''s image way more than the beggar ever could, but no one pointed that out except me), chuckled and threw something into the can.

    It wasn''t coins. It was a pebble.

    Inspired by the delinquent, several of the students also laughed and began picking up stones and pebbles to toss at the beggar, who sat unmoving despite being showered by projectiles that bounced off his hood and cloak.

    What the hell?! It was okay if you didn''t want to donate any money to the poor guy, and while it was bad enough that you were badmouthing him, there was no need to throw stuff at him, right? Abusing him was way too much!

    "Hey, hey!" I shouted as I forced my way to the front and placed myself between the beggar and the students. "Stop that!"

    "Oh? Isn''t that the exchange student from some countryside school?"

    "The no-name exchange student who is arrogant enough to think that he can hang out with the likes of Kufa Van Peer, Rossetti Picket and the other elite students?"

    The hell? No-name exchange student? Countryside school? Did these fools forget that I was part of the Jing Tian Academy team who defeated the representatives of their Saint Teresa Academy? These people really have short memories. Not that I was in any position to remind them, because I found myself becoming their new target.

    "Hey, teach that exchange student a lesson! Show him how things work in Saint Teresa Academy!"

    "That''s right, he''s ruining the image of our school just by participating in an exchange program here."

    "Let''s punish him too!"

    What the fuck!?

    Before I could retort or defend myself, the crowd began hurling pebbles, twigs and other random objects at me. I winced as their mana-infused projectiles broke through my protective aura and scraped my skin. What the hell, they were going as far as to infuse their projectiles with their own mana to ensure that I was hurt? If I hadn''t formed my defensive aura properly, I would have been seriously hurt!

    These so-called "elite" students seriously needed to look at themselves in the mirror and stop being so arrogant.

    That was it. These suckers were going down. I clenched my fist and began gathering mana into it, getting ready to freeze these fuckers. To hell with the consequences ¨C even if the school dared to punish me, I could claim self-defense. My glasses were recording the whole thing. If I posted this on social media, I had the ability to ruin the reputation of Saint Teresa Academy forever.

    "Hmm¡­"

    Fortunately for the stuents, before I could retaliate, Zhao Yan passed by and intervened. Frowning when she witnessed the scene, she immediately leaped into action and planted herself between me and the crowd. I was forced to stop my spell, especially since she was standing in my way and spreading her hands determinedly.

    "You can''t pick on them like that."

    You don''t say?

    On the other hand, those simple words were enough to halt the aggression, so I couldn''t question the effectiveness of her methods.

    "Zhao Yan?"

    Whispers rippled through the crowd as many of the students recognized her, despite Zhao Yan not being very sociable. Yeah, her parents and sister, Yue Jian, did mention that she didn''t have many friends other than me.

    "Isn''t she the smart and pretty girl who is always ranked first academically in our school?"

    "I didn''t think she was the type to meddle in such affairs¡­"

    Even though Zhao Yan didn''t interact much with the other students, she did build up quite the solid reputation, and it was working to her advantage as the dissent simmered down and died. The delinquent who cast the first stone sighed and waved his hand dismissively.

    "Forget it! If a beauty is defending those two losers, then we shouldn''t leave a bad impression on her."

    It was too late for that, you moron. The moment you began abusing the beggar, you had already sealed your image in Zhao Yan''s eyes. Not that she was one to keep a grudge against you for that¡­

    "The others are here too!"

    "Hey, what are you doing?"

    Rossetti had shown up, along with Miura and Kufa. The trio were making their way forward. Miura, in particular, clapped her hands.

    "Okay, nothing to see here! Let''s go! We don''t want to be late for classes, do we?"

    "You okay?" Kufa asked me, and I nodded. Relaxing, I allowed my mana to fade away completely. I was this close to freezing the lot of bullies.

    "How horrible!" Rossetti complained hotly, swinging her fists at the retreating students. "How could they do such awful things?!"

    "Because that''s how some people are," I replied cynically and wearily. But I smiled and nodded gratefully at them. "There will always be good people and there will always be bad people."

    The crowd dispersed after that, muttering under their breaths and slightly intimidated by the newly arrived trio. If Zhao Yan''s appearance hadn''t discouraged them, then the arrival of Rossetti and her friends certainly broke any defiance they might have. The students headed in different directions as they proceeded to their various classrooms all over campus. Which was weird, because we were right outside the gate, so why were quite a few of them walking away from school? Did they plan to skip classes or something?

    Seriously, someone ought to do a quality check on this ridiculous manhua series. Did the artist just draw whatever without thinking things through?

    As I rubbed the dust and and blood from my face, I caught wind of a conversation between the delinquent and his friend, who was looking annoyed at having his entertainment interrupted. The delinquent placed an arm around his friend''s shoulder, frantically leading him away. He leaned over and whispered into his friend''s ear.

    "Never mind Rossetti Picket, Miura La Noir and Kufa Van Peer, we aren''t a match for someone of Nan Gong Zhao Yan''s caliber. I heard that apart from her beauty, she is a superb mage. If we fought her, we wouldn''t stand a chance."

    It wasn''t as if Zhao Yan would bother to fight ruffians like you¡­hell, even I could defeat the two of you. Actually, I had the ability to nuke the entire school from orbit. I considered doing that. It was the only way to be sure.

    "Are you all right, Richard?"

    Rossetti offered me a handkerchief to wipe off the blood and dust, which I accepted gratefully. Suddenly, Miura jumped between us, bristling angrily.

    "What are you doing?!"

    "Uh¡­helping Richard out?" Rossetti forced a smile, but she was unable to hide her puzzlement. Miura groaned in exasperation.

    "Damn it! This was supposed to be my chance!"

    "Your chance to do what, exactly?" Kufa asked, frowning. Miura glared at him, and then she glowered at me.

    "Geez! You boys are always so dense!"

    "Well, I''m fine. Thanks." I nodded, returning to Rossetti and answering her question. She nodded, and then placed her hands on her hips.

    "Ugh! I''m so pissed! What were those guys thinking, stoning you?! I''m reporting this to the teachers!"

    "Bullies will always be bullies," Kufa muttered darkly. "No matter where you go, you''lll always find people who revel in the suffering of others."

    While we were conversing, I spotted Zhao Yan approaching the beggar. She took out a few coins from her purse and handed it to the beggar, who watched her calmly. She smiled to show him that she meant no harm.

    "Here, this is for you. Go buy something to eat."

    The beggar studied her closely with such intensity that I couldn''t help but feel a chill. Even Kufa raised an eyebrow in concern, and the girls looked uncomfortable. Was there a need for him to stare at Zhao Yan like that?

    And then he accepted the coins with his right hand. As his hand slipped out of the dark, grimy cloak, I caught sight of a strange, red tattoo vividly etched into his skin.

    Huh¡­that tattoo¡­that was quite the intricate design. I wasn''t a big fan of tattoos and thus never got them, but they were pretty popular among the younger generation. Speaking of which, why would a starving beggar have a tattoo?

    "They''ll tell the guards, though. So it''s best if you find some other place to beg."

    Zhao Yan, wasting no time as usual, was already turning away. As the beggar bowed his head gratefully, he studied the coins, a sinister smile spreading over his face. My eyes widened as I watched him. There was something suspicious about this guy.

    "She''s right, you know?" Miura approached the beggar and placed a dollar bill in his can. "You should leave before the guards arrive."

    Then she gestured for us to follow.

    "Let''s hurry before we are late for class."

    "All right." Rossetti followed closely, but not before she nodded at the beggar. Kufa sent him a suspicious gaze, having the same doubts as me, but neither of us could accuse the beggar of anything because we had no proof.

    I was about to follow them when the beggar spoke up.

    "Richard, right?"

    His question took me by surprise. But then, when I calmly evaluated the situation, I remembered that Rossetti had addressed me by name when she asked if I was all right ¨C in front of this guy. So it wasn''t strange that he knew my name.

    "That''s right, sir."

    As I nodded in a manner that any good British butler would be proud of, the beggar grinned mischievously, his eyes still hidden by his hood.

    "Yeah, Zhao Yan talks about you all the time. You''ve known her, her whole life!"

    Uh¡­what? Really? And how would you know that? As far as I knew, this was the first time Zhao Yan spoke to him. And I was pretty sure I had not known her throughout her whole life. That was a total lie.

    But I decided to humor him a bit, even though I was particularly disturbed by the words "her whole life", which were setting off all sort of death flags.

    "Oh, not yet, sir."

    "Heh heh heh." The beggar glanced at Zhao Yan''s departing figure for a moment before turning back to me. "Any psychotic ex-boyfriends I should be aware of?"

    Now it was my turn to grin and shake my head slightly.

    "Oh¡­you have no idea."

    And then I left him sitting on the pavement, chuckling to myself as I walked back through the school gates. Needless to say, I was stingy to the point where I didn''t bother to give the suspicious beggar any of my money.

    "What''s the matter, Richard?" Rossetti was glancing back at me in concern. She, Miura and Kufa had stopped for a moment to wait for me, while Zhao Yan had long since disappeared into the school.

    "Did the beggar want money from you?" Miura huffed. "Even after Zhao Yan and I gave him a few dollars? How greedy."

    "No, that''s not it at all. He was interested in Zhao Yan, for some reason."

    "Why?" Kufa asked curiously. I shrugged.

    "Who knows? I guess it''s because she''s beautiful¡­ouch!"

    For some reason, Miura had stomped on my foot, and I had no choice but to shut up for the moment.

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 521 Chapter 521: Betrayal

    At lunch break, I left my classroom for the cafeteria. It was unfortunate, but I didn''t bring a bento that day, so I had to buy food from the cafeteria. That was all right, I was in the mood for some tofu and rice. But before I could reach the cafeteria, I caught sight of Zhao Yan striding briskly down a corridor. Wanting to thank her properly for helping me earlier in the morning, I decided to follow her.

    Just when I was about to call out to her, she disappeared into a room right at the end of the corridor. Not willing to miss this opportunity, I hurried toward the room.

    Before I could knock on the door, I heard Zhao Yan speaking to Yi Shen and Kai Lin.

    "Something strange happened this morning," Zhao Yan was saying. "There was a person begging for money in front of the school, and he had a weird tattoo on his hand."

    It appeared that Zhao Yan had also grown suspicious about the beggar. Seemed like my intuition wasn''t that far off the mark, after all. Well, the guy was basically ogling her, so of course Zhao Yan would feel uncomfortable.

    However, Yi Shen and Kai Lin responded in an overly exaggerated manner.

    "What?!"

    Yi Shen yelled so loudly that I was almost knocked over just from the sheer volume of his bishounen voice. And that was even after taking into account that I was right outside the room with the walls and door to shield me. I couldn''t imagine how it must be like for Zhao Yan and Kai Lin. Cursing under my breath, I wondered why he was making such a big fuss.

    His next words explained why.

    "It''s a bad sign. Before Meng Ting and Ti Wen Academies went down, everyone said they met a strange person who begged for money at their school gates."

    And you''re only informing everyone of this critical fact¡­now? Dude, shouldn''t you have told everyone in your faction, like, two nights ago when you first mentioned the two doomed academies? What the hell was wrong with these people? They dared to call themselves hunters?

    More like hunted, what with their silly and absurd mistakes and lapses in security.

    Shaking my head in disgust, I left. While I strode down the corridor, I passed by Ji Yan, who promptly opened the door.

    "Who is it?!" Yi Shen roared, almost scaring the living daylights out of poor Ji Yan. Dude, there was no need to act so exaggeratedly? What the hell, man, Ji Yan was only opening the door and you were all in school. Why were you so jumpy and agitated?

    Ji Yan looked stunned for a moment, and then she forced a smile.

    "I was looking for you. I want to have lunch with my fellow sect members. I don''t know what you''re discussing about, but you all look agitated, so I was a bit hesitant to interrupt¡­"

    Yi Shen, for some reason, was glaring at her in suspicion. I raised an eyebrow at that. I had reason to be suspicious of Ji Yan because I was aware of what was going on, and I even told him and the Guang Zhi Yi Sect that she was planning to betray him. However, none of them believed me. Hmm, seemed like Yi Shen had finally wisened up and decided to listen to me, after all.

    I didn''t know whether to feel relieved or annoyed that he didn''t apologize to me for all that condemnation after finaly deciding to believe me.

    Whatever, I would just head to the canteen and have tofu rice or something. Funnily enough, the four members of Guang Zhi Yi Sect followed me, albeit inadvertently. They took their seats at a table not too far away from mine.

    "There are four glasses of orange juice left," Ji Yan said cheerfully as she brought her tray of orange juice to the table where her sect was seated. I had just settled down on a table not far away, as I said earlier, having managed to procure my supply of tofu and rice. I had soup, and I didn''t like orange juice. I was more of a mango juice person, so I couldn''t care less that I was left out. Ji Yan then placed the cups methodically in front of everybody. "Luckily, there''s just enough for four of us. One glass is for each person."

    ¡­girl, you''re making yourself look suspicious by stating the obvious. What, did you think someone will demand to have two glasses or something?

    Yi Shen picked up the glass of orange juice and studied it skeptically. Then he stood up.

    "Sorry for troubling you, but I don''t like orange juice. I''ll drink water instead."

    Kai Lin also stood up and joined him as he made his way toward the huge water cooler, smiling apologetically. "Sorry, but I''ll do the same."

    As the two seniors returned, Kai Lin cheerfully brought two cups. "Zhao Yan, I also have one for you."

    Could you be any more obvious? I wanted to roll my eyes and bury my head in my plate of sweet tofu. Ji Yan had just brought all of you orange juice, and not only did you reject her, you even tried to get her sister to drink water instead? Not only that, while you brought Zhao Yan a cup of water, you didn''t bring Ji Yan anything! Even a mentally challenged person could clearly see what you were trying to imply! What the fuck was wrong with these people?!

    To continue the process of making my head hurt, Kai Lin attempted to justify her subtly malicious actions.

    "I heard that drinking water in the afternoon is good for health. Do you want to change your drink?"

    Thankfully, Zhao Yan was not oblivious to Ji Yan''s feelings at all. She shook her head and rejected her senior''s offer.

    "No need. I like orange juice." Turning to her sister, she smiled. "Ji Yan and I will drink orange juice then."

    Ji Yan was pondering to herself. It seems that Yi Shen and Kai Lin are starting to be suspicious of me.

    She stared at the glasses of iced water in their hands before smiling to herself.

    But they don''t know that¡­I predicted earlier that they might not drink orange juice. So the three sachets of powder that Xu Wu Cheng gave me, I put them inside water filters.

    Of course, it wasn''t as if I could really read minds. However, I knew exactly what she was thinking because I had read all of her inner dialogue in a stupid shoujo manga with vampires forced into it. The whole story was proceeding in an utterly predictable fashion, to the point where I was amazed that Yi Shen and Kai Lin hadn''t seen through Ji Yan''s schemes.

    Oh well¡­

    And then Ji Yan narrowed her eyes as she watched Zhao Yan drink the orange juice.

    The only thing I didn''t think of was that Zhao Yan still trusts me.

    Well, duh. She was your triplet sister, wasn''t she? Why wouldn''t she trust you? Unless you had made it so blatant that you planned to stab her in the back, she had no reason to suspect you, right? She trusted you so much that she refused to listen to anything I said when I tried to warn her about your betrayal. Were you not aware of that? Why would she not trust you when she already rebuked me for my so-called lies about you?

    Sometimes, these borrowed characters from a certain vampire shoujo manhua made my head hurt so much from their stupidity that I wanted to nuke the whole lot of them from orbit. Not to mention, how did Ji Yan know that her seniors would drink iced water instead of other juices after rejecting orange juice? What would she have done if they decided to drink mango juice, or watermelon juice, or even grab some soup like I did? Or if they went for coffee and tea instead? I mean, that was quite the huge gamble she took there.

    And to add further to her stupidity, Ji Yan suddenly behaved unnaturally by snatching the cup of orange juice from her sister while Zhao Yan was still drinking it!

    "Zhao Yan¡­" Ji Yan pushed the cup of water toward her sister when she took the orange juice away. "I think Kai Lin is right. You should drink water as well."

    COULD YOU NOT ACT ANY MORE SUSPICIOUS AND STUPIDLY?!

    Firstly¡­why wait until AFTER Zhao Yan had already drunk half of the orange juice before snatching it away from her and pushing her to drink water instead? Were you planning to make her feel as bloated as possible?! Secondly, if you weren''t going to drink water yourself, why ask your sister to do it? Thirdly, the manner in which she was doing this whole thing was way too unnatural! But obviously Yi Shen and Kai Lin, despite being strangely perceptive of Ji Yan''s betrayal earlier, were plot induced to be too dumb and dense that they overlooked this unnatural behavior! Any fool could see that Ji Yan was behaving too suspiciously!

    Fortunately, Ji Yan''s pushy and unnatural behavior caused her to be too rough, and she let go of the cup before the astonished Zhao Yan could properly accept it. The glass of water fell and shattered on the ground, spilling its contents.

    Zhao Yan''s eyes widened, and she waved her hands frantically in apology.

    "I''m sorry, I didn''t hold it properly!"

    "Hmph!"

    Ji Yan looked irritated. Hey, this was your fault, and you should be the one apologizing, not Zhao Yan. What a stupid and pushy bitch. Fortunately, Zhao Yan''s plot armor kicked in and saved her from being forced to drink the spiked water. Seemed like the author wanted to spare her for whatever plot reason.

    Kai Lin was on hand to defuse the situation, and she stepped in before Ji Yan could launch into a tirade.

    "It''s okay, we can pay for it at the counter¡­"

    As Ji Yan sullenly drank the remains of her orange juice, she wondered to herself (again, I was just referencing the inner dialogue from the original manhua). What should I do now? Should I go and ask Xu Wu Cheng for another sachet? Oh, well¡­I''ll let Zhao Yan go this time.

    There wouldn''t be a next time, bitch.

    Even though I knew everything that was happening, I doubted that Yi Shen and Kai Lin would listen to me if I told them that Ji Yan had drugged them. They were pretty hostile to me for some reason, and from previous experience, I knew that they would just scoff at me and refuse to believe a word that I said. They would be like, "Ji Yan isn''t that cunning, we didn''t drink the orange juice, and we are right while you are wrong, so stop pestering us!"

    Well, those attitudes were going to cause their demise. Despite feeling sorry for them, I was aware that there was noting I could do. If they wanted to act smart and look down on others, then they deserved what was coming to them. I already did all I could do and warned them, and they shut me down pretty hard. I had no obligation to be insulted by these idiots.

    Sighing, I picked up my tray and returned my now empty plate and bowl to the cleaning station. I gave Zhao Yan one last glance, but I knew that she would never belive me. Even to the very end, she continued to blindly trust her sister, who did everything within her power to betray her. It was only because of her immense plot armor and Mary Sue-ness that she avoided disaster despite her naivety and overly trusting nature. Then again, if she was overly trusting, she would have believed me¡­well, whatever.

    Moving my fingers under my glasses and rubbing the bridge of my nose, I sought to formulate a plan that would save everyone in this academy before the vampires inevitably invaded us.

    However, when there was not a single person who believed me, then what could I do?

    Wait¡­maybe there will be people who will believe me¡­

    Blinking, I retrieved my smartphone. I had Kufa''s number, as well as Miura''s and Rossetti. They were the few friends that I made while I was still here. What if I told them about the whole thing¡­?

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 522 Chapter 522: Scheming in the Shadows

    A group of vampires marched solemnly down the corridor, led by the charismatic and strong figure of Xu Wu Cheng.

    No¡­his real name was Yi Tai, and he was one of the princes of a vampire clan that had been eventually subsumed into the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan. Striding firmly and determinedly at the front of many bishounen vampires who were aesthetically designed to make fangirls squeal, he led his posse through grand double doors and into a large hall that was intricately designed for the fallen nobility of the vampire clans.

    Pausing at the front of what resembled a throne, he placed his hand on his chest and lowered his head respectfully. Following their leader''s cue, the entire group of bishounen vampires also placed their hands over their chests and bowed their heads, their eyes closed. If one did not see them walk into the throne room earlier, they would have mistaken the very still crowd of kneeling figures for finely carved sculptures, their pale skin remisicent of marble or alabaster.

    "Greetings to you, sir."

    For a prince to show so much respect and speak so humbly, the other party must be quite the remarkable individual. A king, or perhaps even a god. Indifferent to how his revered status mattered little before the being before him, Yi Tai continued reporting.

    "Saint Teresa Academy will be vulnerable this evening. We can attack them at sunset. The barrier of silver crosses in the northern side has been destroyed. We can enter from there." Pausing to take a breath, Yi Tai resumed his report. Evidently he was unaware that I had fixed the the barrier of silver crosses shortly after Nan Gong Ji Yan tried to sabotage it. What, you thought I was spying on her for nothing? "On top of that, the members of Guang Zhi Yi Sect have taken the drug, which will impair their fighting capability. Our biggest threat has been effectively neutralized."

    "You mean the biggest threat to us young ones, right?" A smile crossed the face of the person who Yi Tai was reporting to. He was the beggar from earlier, his radiant smile concealed under the black, seemingly filthy cloak that he wore to disguise himself. "But even so, there remains the elite students ¨C the ones who represented Saint Teresa Academy during the tournament. What of Kureha Franklin, Eliza Franklin, Lute Dragoon, Miura La Noir, Kufa van Peer, Rossetti Picket and the others?"

    "Kureha Franklin and Eliza Franklin have left on a mission. I do not think the others will pose much of a threat, what with their leader and her cousin missing. The only person we should worry about is Lute Dragoon."

    "You can leave that Mary Sue to me." The supposed beggar chuckled, aware that only a Mary Sue could beat another Mary Sue. And he was much more of a bishounen Mary Sue than any Mary Sue that a horny teenage Indonesian whose brain had been dominated by hormones could conjure. He chuckled. "We''ll leave Teresa Taylor, the teachers and the veterans to my father and the adults. We young ones have been assigned to attack only the students."

    "Yes, of course, sir. I was only referring to the biggest threats among the students, not counting the representatives. I thought they would leave with the Franklin cousins, but it appeared that my intelligence was wrong. I have already punished my agent thoroughly for that error, of course." Yi Tai kept his head lowered. "Apart from the Guang Zhi Yi Sect, I don''t think the other students are strong enough to withstand our attack."

    "Well done."

    Taking off his hood and cloak, the beggar revealed himself to be a dazzling, handsome young man with long, dark blue hair that flowed just past his shoulders. He was none other than the crown prince of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan, Fan Le Lao.

    "Sir, I heard that you''ve already visited that school?"

    Fan Le Lao smiled at Xu Wu Cheng''s question. "Of course I did. Whenever Father chooses a place for drinking human blood, I always disguise myself as a beggar. I enjoy such games. I''ve always been fascinated by the transformations such as the switch between the rich and the poor, which reminds me of what happened when I was a child."

    Looking up, Fan Le Lao gazed nostalgically at the crescent moon, which had taken on an eerie, blood-red color. Wait, wasn''t it still day? Oh no, it was just a painting. It had to be a painting. Otherwise it made no sense chronologically, since they were supposed to attack at sunset, but the moon was already somehow out!

    Was the manhua artist delirious when cooking up this nonsensical story?!

    Fortunately, there wasn''t much time to dwell on the inconsistency or the manhua artist''s laziness (did nobody bother to check if the dialogue matched the background, setting or story?) because Fan Le Lao chose that moment to speak up again. He turned his back on his young followers, acting all dramatic.

    "Ah, right. There''s a girl named Zhao Yan. I want her to be alive."

    "Yes." As Xu Wu Cheng acknowledged his order, a smile crept across Fan Le Lao''s face.

    "Kill everyone else. Make sure no one survives. Send the order out ¨C we will bath Saint Teresa Academy in blood tonight."

    "Understood, sir."

    *

    "Are you serious?"

    As I expected, my friends didn''t seem to believe me. Rossetti Picket crossed her arms and glared at me, her expression incredulous. Miura La Noir seemed as if she didn''t know whether she should be laughing. Kufa Van Peer, on the other hand, shrugged nonchalantly.

    "Yes, I am. There will be an attack tonight. Hell, the Guang Zhi Yi Sect has already prepared for it!"

    "Then why aren''t they here?" Miura asked, amused.

    That was a good question. I had invited them over, but they refused to come. Yi Shen and Kai Lin trusted me even less than they did Ji Yan, and that was saying something.

    By the way, the moon was no longer out, and somehow the sun was back up in the blue skies. Seriously, I didn''t understand what was going on anymore. If you were going to launch the attack at sunset, the moon shouldn''t be out in the night sky. Either the writer and manhua artist were not in sync, or if they were one and the same person, there was no proper editing process where someone actually checked for consistency.

    That aside, I was glad that the sun was back up, but that only meant we had a few hours before the real attack was launched. I had to quickly persuade my friends that I wasn''t delusional or they would die along with the rest. Furthermore, I couldn''t fight all the vampires on my own.

    "Have you told the teachers?" Kufa asked. I nodded.

    "But they don''t believe me."

    "Of course they wouldn''t." Rossetti snorted. "Xu Wu Cheng a vampire? Are you serious? And Nan Gong Ji Yan is pretty famous throughout the school, you know? She''s like, super popular! Do you think anyone will believe you if you tell them that she''s a servant to vampires?"

    "She''s not that kind of girl," Miura agreed. She shrugged when I turned to her. "Sorry, Richard, but as much as I like you, I know Ji Yan for a lot longer. It''s simply unbelievable that she will do something like that."

    Despite her flaws, Ji Yan was quite the sociable person. Everyone had bought into her nice girl image. She had been building up that fa?ade for so long that everyone''s impression that she was a good person had taken root strongly in their psyches.

    "But what if there''s a chance that Richard is telling the truth? That Ji Yan really betrayed everyone in the school and vampires are about to attack the school?"

    "Not you too, Kufa¡­" Rossetti was burying her face in her palm. "Are you seriously buying into tis nonsense? Ji Yan isn''t that kind of person."

    "Perhaps, but what if that''s what she wanted us to think, and she has been fooling us all this while?" Kufa raised a finger. "And don''t forget, we have the Holy Supper tonight. All high school students are supposed to stay back in school for tonight, to attend the Holy Supper at nine, a couple of hours after sunset. This is too much of a coincidence, don''t you think? What if vampires really intend to attack us at this time?"

    Both Rossetti and Miura exchanged uncomfortable glances.

    "I''m not asking you guys to go attack Ji Yan and Xu Wu Cheng right now," I told them. "I know it''s difficult to believe, and it achieves nothing right now. But if there really is a vampire assault coming, we need to take precautions. What''s the worst that can happen? If nobody attacks, we don''t have to fight. At most, people will just laugh at us for being paranoid. No one gets hurt. But if I am correct, the vampires will come and slaughter all of us!"

    "That''s¡­" Rossetti trailed off.

    "Please! At the very least, take precautions! We need to be ready! Be on a war footing!"

    "I''m with Richard on this." Kufa nodded and placed a hand on the hilt of his katana. "It''s better to be ready and have nothing happen than be caught with our pants down when the attack really happens."

    "Well, if you put it that way¡­" Miura sighed.

    "But what should we do?" Rossetti asked, frowning. "Both Kureha and Eliza aren''t around. They are away on a mission. That''s a significant portion of our fighting strength gone right there."

    "In return, we have Richard right here." Kufa grinned and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Don''t forget that he''s the one who defeated both of them, as well as Miura and me."

    "That''s true," Rossetti admitted. "And there''s also Headmistress Taylor and the teachers. If worst comes to worst, I''m sure they will do something about it."

    "Headmistress Taylor?" I asked with an arched eyebrow. "How powerful is she?"

    "Oh¡­she''s the most powerful headmistress in the history of Saint Teresa Academy." Kufa''s grin grew. "If you turn out to be right, you might get the chance to see her fight. And then you will see why."

    "I look forward to it." I prayed that Teresa Taylor wouldn''t get caught off guard and ended up slain before she had the chance to display her power. But the three Saint Teresa Academy students before me seemed to know something about her that I didn''t. They held absolute confidence in her.

    "So how do we do this?" Miura asked, folding her arms. "Even if the three of us believe you, I doubt we''ll be able to rope the others to our side. What can the four of us do on our own?"

    "Yeah," I conceded the point bitterly. "But I do know that they will attack from the north. That was where Ji Yan sabotaged the silver crosses¡­"

    I trailed off when I caught sight of Rossetti and Miura''s stares. Sighing, I shook my head.

    "Look, I know you don''t believe me, but I saw what I saw and heard what I heard. I even have the recordings."

    "Yeah, we saw." Kufa waved my words away. Earlier, I had shown them the video recording on my glasses, but the girls didn''t believe their eyes.

    "It had to be doctored!" Rossetti had exclaimed. I guess there was no convincing her, at least not now.

    "Okay, whatever the case, the vampires will attack from the north, right? So we should be on a lookout for them there."

    "We''ll believe you for now." Miura sighed. "Before the Holy Supper, we''ll just meet up in the north and then sound the warning when the vampires show up. If what you say is true, even the school staff can''t deny the reality of a horde of bloodthirsty monsters scrabbling at our gates."

    "How ironic that the Holy Supper might potentially end up being a night of slaughter." Kufa shook his head as he said ominously. "I pray that you''re wrong, Richard, because¡­if you''re right, we may find it difficult to escape death tonight."

    "I know," I replied quietly. "Believe me, I wish I am wrong. But this way¡­at least the four of us will have a chance of survival."

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 523 Chapter 523: Vampire Attack

    Screams rang through the courtyard as the vampires attacked from the north. There was some delay because the barrier of silver crosses turned out to be still active, and they had to waste precious time dismantling the defenses. The zombies they planned to unleash on the school ended up being almost eradicated. Without their undead troops, the vampires had to launch the attack themselves.

    The security guards weren''t able to put up much of a struggle before being overpowered by the sheer numbers of vampires, who then gleefully sucked their blood dry.

    The students who were unfortunate enough to be out in the northern premises of school during that time also fell victim to the invading vampires. Despite the warning my friends and I had broadcasted when we saw the vampires coming, these delusional fools refused to believe us and remained where they were. Now they paid for their idiocy and stubbornness with their lives.

    As Xu Wu Cheng, the young vampires, the adult vampires and the king himself swept through the school, Fan Le Lao couldn''t help but pause in the middle of the courtyard, where all the surviving students wept and cried at the atrocious horrors unfolding before their very eyes. Despite being trained as mages, none of them fought back, fear having paralyzed them and stopped them from casting the spells that they learned.

    Having emphasized too much on individual rankings ¨C a problem that was prevalent throughout the whole of the Global Federation ¨C the poor students lacked actual combat experience, and when danger was staring at them in the eyes, they lost the ability to fight back and forgot everything that they had learned. Pathetic.

    If they had taken my warnings seriously and believed everything I said, I might have some sympathy for them. But they returned my good intentions with hostility and scorn, which made me resent them a little. Despite my desire to be a hero, I was not a saint. I wasn''t going to smile and turn the other cheek after someone had slapped me. I was still a human, with my foibles and anger. It was only natural that I would resent them for their contempt and accusations of me being a liar.

    Fan Le Lao smiled as he swept his cold gaze across the sobbing students.

    "Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," he proclaimed in dark humor. "We''re¡­tonight''s entertainment!"

    He then plucked a rose off a bloodied bush before proceeding to a fallen, crying girl and gently biting into her neck. The female student screamed and struggled briefly before going still, a hypnotic daze settling over her ever-paling face.

    Meanwhile, the humans remaining in school were gathering, flustered at the sudden assault. At one end of the corridor, the members of the Guang Zhi Yi Sect gathered.

    "There''s a large group of vampires attacking the school," Zhao Yan reported, stating the obvious. Duh, anyone could see that.

    "The barrier of silver crosses has no effect on them," Kai Lin interjected worriedly, her pretty face screwed in worry. Fortunately, despite Ji Yan doing her job well, I had replaced the defective silver crosses. "They eliminated the horde of zombies, but they don''t seem to work on the vampires themselves."

    "The vampires are higher leveled, so they have more resistance against such defensive charms. Not to mention, their power is exponentially higher than that of zombies''. Zhao Yan was grim. "We underestimated them."

    "The day has finally come¡­" Yi Shen faced the two of them. None of them remarked on the absence of Ji Yan. I wondered why. Did they not care about what happened to Ji Yan amidst this chaos? "They want to kill all the hunters so that their king can conquer the Global Federation unopposed."

    I wasn''t sure how his speculation was relevant to the current situation. Dude, you guys weren''t the only hunters in the entire Federation, right?

    "This will determine whether we live or die. We should split up, attack from different directions to counterattack the vampire clan, and evacuate the students and teachers."

    Dude, the teachers were stronger than you. You should be the ones evacuating. Additionally, weren''t you triggering a death flag? In any horror movie, splitting up was the worst decision that you could ever make! You just effectively signed your death warrant! Wasn''t the logical, rational strategy to stick together, find and unite the separate, disparate fighting units into a single cohesive combat force and slowly reclaim the school sector by sector? You know, strength in numbers and all that?! Who the hell split up when they were already outnumbered?!

    I couldn''t believe that these guys were calling themselves hunters. They were making incredibly dumb mistakes that no trained soldiers would ever conceive. If my sergeant heard this, he would be yelling at them, something along the lines of, "you think you''re Rambo, is it?! You think this is a shooter game, is it?! Don''t anyhow solo people and play hero, can or not?!"

    Unfortunately, neither Zhao Yan nor Kai Lin saw the folly of Yi Shen''s highly flawed strategy and they both said, "Yes!"

    Geez, I give up. Just go die by yourselves, you idiots.

    While the so-called professional hunters of Guang Zhi Yi Sects split up to their respective doom, my friends and I were fighting in an organized manner. We had been driven back by the invading vampires from the north, forced to yield ground because of their sheer numbers. Fortunately, we had planned for this in advance and were able to channel them into a narrow killing ground where Miura and I offered ranged support for Kufa and Rossetti to slice and dice them up in close range within a corridor. Scores of vampires fell, but many more kept coming.

    It was almost as if we were facing an endless wave of undead.

    "I''m sorry."

    "Huh?" I glanced at Miura, and she bowed her head apologetically.

    "We should have believed you. You warned us, yet none of us listened. And it turns out that you''re telling the truth, after all."

    "Hey, I believed him!" Kufa complained as he beheaded a vampire with his katana.

    "Yeah, you did, and I''m grateful for that." I nodded my appreciation at him before shooting a vampire that was about to bite him with one of my arrows. The bloodsucker fell back, his head vanishing in a shower of blood. Kufa flashed a thumb''s up at me, and I nodded before turning to Miura. "And it doesn''t matter. We took precautions and planned for this, and we''re still alive. We might survive this."

    "I hope we do."

    "Did Ji Yan really betray us?" Rossetti asked as she ducked under the blood claws of an assaulting vampire, despair in her voice. "I can''t believe it."

    "It doesn''t matter," Kufa told her. "Right now, just focus on surviving."

    "Yeah," I agreed before I blasted another vampire that was about to bite Rossetti''s neck. My azure arrow detonated, taking the top half of its body away and obliterating the soulless creature. "We can always ask her if she''s still alive after all this."

    And I bet she would be. She would have to answer for her crimes.

    While we fought in our little corner of the school, the vampires continued their massacre.

    As Fan Le Lao placed the corpse of his victim down on the ground in a gentle manner, the girl having a blissful expression in death, an elderly man with a neatly trimmed beard appeared beside him.

    "Father," Fan Le Lao acknowledged with a respectful bow of his head.

    "Son." Fan Le Lao returned the greeting with an almost imperceptible nod. "You know what to do. I''ll be bringing my forces to crush the hunters and expert mages hidden in Saint Teresa Academy. I''ll leave the students to you and your unit. Annihilate them."

    "Consider it done, Father."

    Fan Le Lao complied humbly as he rose, his head still lowered. Rewarding his son with a stiff smile, the king of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan took flight, leading his vampire soldiers deeper into the normal humans'' territory. Glancing back, Fan Le Lao straightened himself and regained his regal composure. He had transformed from loyal son to commander in an instant, almost as if flicking a switch on. Nodding to Xu Wu Cheng, who was leading the young vampires in Fan Le Lao''s so-called elite unit, he subtly gave the order.

    The young vampires took off, ready to hunt down any students who were still resisting. Fan Le Lao''s gaze then ventured toward the place where Lute Dragoon and his enormous harem were fighting ferociously, countless slain vampires at their feet. For now, plot armor protected the Mary Sue.

    But what would happen if a Mary Sue met another Mary Sue? Only one of them would walk away alive after the encounter.

    Smiling to himself grimly, Fan Le Lao then dove toward Lute Dragoon''s location.

    Meanwhile, the adult vampires had problems of their own. Even as they spread out in their individual squads, one five-man squad had broken off and was racing in a different direction.

    "Boss, where are we going?"

    The wingman of the lead vampire asked. The leader, who was leading his squad from the front in an arrow-shaped formation, smiled. His fangs glistened as they descended over his curled lips.

    "To kill a beast, we must first cut off its head. So I was thinking, why not we end this battle once and for all by going straight for the humans'' leader?"

    "You mean the headmistress?"

    "Yes. If we kill her, not only do we destroy the humans'' morale completely and effectively end this battle, we will also gain glory and and credit for eliminating one of our ¨C the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan''s ¨C biggest threat."

    The four followers who trailed their leader couldn''t help but smile at his ambition. They knew he was right. If they could pull this off, they would be massively rewarded by their king.

    The five vampires tore through the three teachers standing in their way. Despite being veteran mages, the trio were no match for the speed and ferocity of the five vampires, whose blood magic viciously cut through their arcane defenses and slew them. The leader didn''t even pause as he rushed past the falling bodies, long gone before the bloodied corpses hit the ground. That was, if you could call those near-unrecognizable chunks of body parts "corpses", of course.

    As the unfortunate teachers fell prey to the vampires'' merciless slaughter, the five smashed through the door that the trio had been guarding and skidded to a stop in a white, squeaky clean office. Ahead of them, behind the wooden table that served as the headmistress''s desk, stood Headmistress Teresa Taylor herself. She merely glanced at them calmly when they barged into her office.

    The five vampires spread out, stabilizing their blood-red mana and getting ready to attack. But for some reason, they felt intimidated by the single elderly lady who was standing in the middle of her office. However, having come this far, they refused to back down.

    Teresa Taylor narrowed her eyes as she eyed the five trespassers.

    "I''m afraid I don''t have an appointment scheduled with anyone at the moment. The Holy Supper will be taking place shortly, so I''m afraid you will have to schedule an appointment for another day."

    "Oh, this isn''t an appointment," the squad leader said with a feral grin. "We''re here to kill you."

    If Teresa Taylor was affected by that revelation, she showed no sign of it. Instead, she merely asked, "Who are you?"

    "I guess this is the first time we''ve met, Headmistress of Saint Teresa Academy, Teresa Taylor."

    "Yes, I suppose it is."

    "However¡­I am surprised. It was quite easy to break into your office, despite it being the personal room of the headmistress of Saint Teresa Academy, which is well known for being an elite combat magic school. Isn''t security a little too lacking?"

    "There is no need to worry." Teresa Taylo narrowed her eyes. Even though there was no mana, the tension in the room suddenly jumped a few notches. "I am here. There is no better security than this."

    "I see¡­" The squad leader swallowed, but was unable to suppress a smile. "Those will be your last arrogant words, Teresa Taylor."

    The five of them attacked Teresa Taylor at once. It was a splendid attack, one that could only be pulled off between the five, who had been in the same squad for so long that they could almost read each other''s intentions as easily as they would a book. Having long since coordinated with each other, the squad had adopted an attacking pattern that made use of their strengths, having honed it to perfection through countless practices on actual battlefields.

    If it were any other opponent, she would have ended up like the trio of teachers outside her office. That was what caught those three by surprise ¨C their near-flawless coordination, their ruthlessness, the overwhelming power and brutal efficiency of their united attack.

    However, their opponent this time was Teresa Taylor, the headmistress of the prestigious and renowned Saint Teresa Academy, and a former Paladin of legendary stature.

    With a swing of her sword, which seemed to have been drawn swiftly from her thick, white sleeves, Teresa Taylor shattered that formidable formation of theirs.

    "Holy Judgement. Sacred Flames, burn all evil to ash."

    At that moment, when the enormous, unstoppable inferno of white holy fire swept toward them, the vampire squad leader realized too late that he was mistaken.

    Teresa Taylor wasn''t being arrogant at all. No, instead, it was he who was arrogant to think that he could ever challenge the headmistress with his mere squad of five men. It was he who was arrogant by defying his king''s orders and rushing straight to the headmistresss''s office.

    She might have aged a little, but that did not change the fact that Teresa Taylor had once been the strongest paladin to have served the Global Federation. A strength that had remained undiminished throughout the years.

    The vampire squad leader realized that he had just made a fatal mistake, and now his entire squad was paying for it.

    "D¡­damn it¡­!"

    Hollering, the vampire squad leader tried to form a blood-red barrier in front of himself, but Teresa Taylor''s holy flames were too powerful, too ferocious that they cremated everything and anything in a single go, seeking to purify all that was evil. The four members behind the boss were reduced to ash in an instant, their screams abruptly cut off and silenced by the judgement of sacred fire.

    The leader himself didn''t last much longer, perhaps for only one second more than his comrades, before he too was engulfed by the holy inferno and completely erased from the face of the earth for his sins.

    Teresa Taylor didn''t pay her vanquished foes much heed, already turning her back on their ashes before her holy flames faded away. Instead, she glanced at the wall behind her desk.

    "Vice-princpal Fu."

    "Yes, ma''am!"

    As if appearing out of nowhere, Vice-principal Fu Xiao Zhang knelt in front of Teresa Taylor, whose white silhouette was illuminated by the flickering flames behind her.

    "Relay the message to all surviving teachers and students still capable of combat in the academy. Our counterattack against the vampire clan begins now."

    "Yes, ma''am."

    Fu Xiao Zhang acknowledge the order and disappeared. The headmistress of Saint Teresa Academy then stalked out of the office, her white cloak billowing behind her as she prepared to join the frontlines.

    Glancing into the distance, she shook her head and sighed.

    "I''m very sorry, Richard Huang. I should have listened to you, after all. It seemed that you were telling the truth this entire time. I was a fool for choosing to believe Nan Gong Ji Yan and Xu Wu Cheng over you."

    She then hardened her gaze.

    "You had better survive this, Richard. I need to make a proper apology to you once I eliminate all of the villainous bastards who dared lay their filthy paws on my academy."

    Then she was gone, kicking off the ground in an explosive burst that sent tremors throughout the beleaguered school.

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 524 Chapter 524: School Crisis

    "Watch out!"

    I managed to block a hit meant for Rossetti, and I then lashed out with my swords. Bai Ri and Hei Yue sliced through the blood whips and sent azure mana sparkling across the ground. Ice expanded rapidly across the concrete and engulfed the vampires, but they managed to break the ice.

    While I was distracted by them, Rossetti whirled around and cut through blood whips with her chakrams. She danced in the midst of the vampires, fending off their blood magic. I froze the blood with a couple of swings from my swords, and then yelled out to her.

    "Rossetti!"

    "Got it!"

    She jumped up when I kicked out with one leg. Landing with a foot on mine, she launched herself high up and unleashed her spell from above.

    "Flaming Phoenix Kagura Dance!"

    Fiery feathers rained down on the horde of vampires around us. Several of the vampires shrieked as they were caught by the flaming feathers and immolated, their bodies turning into blackened husks before toppling over. The rest managed to scatter, wisely evading the flaming projectiles. Despite not being killed by the powerful spell, they were forced into a retreat, choosing to escape rather than remain and get incinerated.

    Landing on the ground and slicing through another vampire with her chakram, Rossetti''s eyes widened slightly.

    "I can''t believe it¡­this is the first time I''ve fought so well alongside someone else before!" She turned to stare at me. "Just who are you?"

    "What the heck?! Didn''t you fight as a team with Kufa, Miura and the rest?"

    "I¡­I did! But this is the first time I gelled so well with somebody else! As if our skills complement each other perfectly! And it''s like only the first or second time we''ve fought together! Even with Kufa and the rest, I''ve had lots of practice and training with them!"

    "Huh. Okay then. Well, more importantly¡­"

    This wasn''t the time to be having idle talking about teamwork and cooperation. We just needed to focus on eliminating the enemies before us. Whatever mysteries there were behind our strangely complementary fighting styles, we could worry about them later.

    For now, I concentrated on drawing the fiery mana that Rossetti left behind. As a dancer or maiden, her main role was to buff her teammates, to increase the fighting efficiency of her party and boost their power. The crimson mana that Rossetti left in the air in the aftermath of her Inferno Phoenix Avalanche, I absorbed quickly and summoned my Celestial Guardian.

    "Vermillion Phoenix!"

    "!!!"

    The vampires recoiled when the majestic vermillion bird sprang to life, spreading his blazing wings. An inferno erupted and consumed yet more of them, reducing those unfortunate enough to be caught by the conflagration into ash. Being vampires, they had preternatural speed, and more than a few of them succeeded in evading.

    "We should go after them," I said. Rossetti nodded. Behind us, Kufa and Miura followed, cutting down the vampires with a katana or disintegrating them with black magic.

    "Did you just absorb Rossetti''s mana to summon your Vermillion Bird?" Miura demanded as she pulled up alongside me.

    "Yeah. Why?"

    "Heh¡­you two are getting pretty intimate, aren''t you?" Miura''s eyes had seemed to lose their color for some reason, turning into dull black orbs. What the fuck? Was she turning into a yandere or something?

    "There''s no such thing!" Rossetti snapped, her face turning red slightly. I ignored the farcial conversation between the two girls and focused on the predicament before us. Now wasn''t the time to engage in high school romance drama. Not when we had an entire clan of vampires massacring the students of Saint Teresa Academy.

    "That''s¡­"

    I suddenly recognized the mana signature of someone familiar. A person I had encountered before.

    "This is¡­Yi Shen? Damn it, he really is alone."

    Using the enhanced view option in my glasses, I tracked his location and caught sight of him. Good thing I found him first, rather than Kai Lin or Zhao Yan, otherwise I would be accused of stalking the girls. Because in shoujo manhua, logic didn''t matter and the characters were always more concerned about relationship matters than they were in actually fighting to survive. Don''t ask me why.

    Good. I could get close to him and yell at him for his stupidity and instruct him to regroup with the others instead of splitting up.

    "This way!"

    "Huh? Really?" Miura sulked, but she obeyed. Kufa and Rossetti didn''t question me, trusting that I had a good reason for leading them there. Our path ended up being cut off by the surviving vampires from earlier, who moved in to bar us.

    "Bloody vampires!" I snapped, drawing a dry glance from Miura.

    "Are you serious?"

    "You get used to his pun jokes after a while," Kufa told her. "You should have heard him when we were out hunting Chiropterans."

    "I''m not sure I want to," Rossetti giggled nervously.

    The mages who had devoted themselves to blood magic surrounded us, licking their lips and baring their fangs. Blood-red mana swirled through their hands as they prepared to lash out once again with their spells.

    I dodged the first blood whip that arced through the air, a lethal manifestation of crimson mana that could cleave through metal. I say that, but Kufa sliced through the second blood whip with his katana. Then again, he had mana wreathing the blade of his weapon, so¡­

    Miura conjured a shadowy barrier to block a third blood whip while Rossetti danced away from the others, her chakrams parrying those she couldn''t avoid.

    Then Vermillion Phoenix soared above. Boosted by Rossetti''s Phoenix Kagura Dance, he sent a torrent of flames that roasted a couple of vampires and scattered the rest.

    While my friends and I were distracted by these persistent and tenacious vampires, Yi Shen was rapidly firing off badly-colored bullets from his guns. Seemed like the artist was too lazy to draw anything more detailed and convincing than a couple of random splotchy, terribly colored blobs instead of actual smoke and gunfire. For some reason, even though he was firing with two guns at the same time, he was able to hit a vampire who was about to chow down on a poor student to suck his blood. The victim slid out of the dead vampire''s grasp and scrambled to relative safety.

    That was the only shot Yi Shen scored. The rest of his bullets missed. That was what happened when you tried to shoot with two guns. Sigh.

    Meanwhile, high above, Xu Wu Cheng watched behind the ledge that was atop a bunch of stairs. He didn''t seem affected as the cannon fodder vampires were felled to a few lucky gunshots (while the majority stood still and allowed the badly aimed bullets to whizz harmlessly past them). More amused than annoyed at Yi Shen''s pathetic efforts, he raised his hand and gave the order to end the silver-haired dude''s misery.

    "Surround him in four directions," he instructed the more elite young vampires he had under his command. Before he even lowered his hand, those elite troops disappeared behind him.

    As Yi Shen stood in the middle of the few corpses of vampires he killed, the four elite vampires emerged from four opposite directions and converged on his position. Studying his enemies, Yi Shen raised his dual guns and fired at them unflinchingly, standing his ground in determination. True to form, he missed every single one of his shots even as they closed in.

    Why can''t I hit any of them? He wondered as his shots missed. Why is my combat skill so weak?

    Well, dude, if you stopped simultaneously firing with two girls from the hip and actually take the time to aim, you would have hit at least one of them before your demise. As it was, I watched helplessly from afar as one of the vampires reached Yi Shen and drove his clawed hand through the latter''s chest.

    "Demonic Blood Claws!"

    Yi Shen was unable to react as his enemy''s hand pierced through his his chest and exited from his back, his blood spraying the already crimson marble floor. He let out an agonized cry as both his guns spun out of his grip, clattering onto the ocean of expanding blood.

    Well, the first one had just bitten the dust.

    "We''re too late!" Rossetti cried. "Yi Shen is gone!"

    "That''s too bad." I sighed and shook my head. "Oh well. I never liked him, anyway."

    "How can you say that?!"

    "Uh, of course¡­his death is tragic. If only we can prevent it! But there''s no point feeling guilty over it, we have to look for those people still alive and save them."

    "¡­you have a point," Kufa admitted as he slashed at a vampire with his katana. "There''s no point brooding over this. There are plenty of other people who need our help. Let''s go."

    At a signal, I had Vermillion Phoenix blow the place up, and the four of us quickly used the cover of the smokescreen to flee the place. There were just too many vampires for us to deal with right now.

    "Good job," Xu Wu Cheng complimented his subordinates, suddenly appearing on the ground floor and posing coolly behind Yi Shen''s corpse. With a flick of his coat, he stalked off stylishly through the scene of the massace. Huh? When did he¡­? Never mind. "We have only one person left."

    He wasn''t referring to any of the four of us. I buried my face in my palm and disengaged. With Yi Shen dead, there was no reason for the four of us to remain, so we moved under the cover of Vermillion Phoenix''s smokescreen and toward someplace where surviving students continued to resist defiantly against the growing tide of vampires. Thanks to my glasses, I could see through the smoke, the outlines of our enemies marked out in infrared vision.

    A vampire lunged into the smoke, also using some sort of esoteric spell to track us. Instead of slashing him with my swords, I spun around and kicked him in the chest. The blow sent him hurtling into his comrades, and the whole lot of them went down like bowling pins. I ran off without any hesitation, making sure that my friends were with me. I had no intention of being embroiled in a long fight against these monsters, not when my priority was saving people.

    Fortunately, my friends appeared to agree with my sentiment. Unfortunately, it didn''t seem like we were doing a good job of it so far.

    Ironically, Kai Lin was doing a far better job than I was. She was slashing vampires with her whip and saving a bunch of students who were under assault.

    "Hurry up and run away. I''ll take care of them."

    Despite her high heels, she was actually having more success than Yi Shen in slaying vampires. Countless bloody corpses lay at her feet. That was actually why I rushed toward Yi Shen''s location first, because I knew he was more incompetent and in greater need of saving than Kai Lin.

    Unfortunately for Kai Lin, Xu Wu Cheng had already arrived on scene. While she danced a deadly tango with vampires, her whip lashing out in multiple directions, he calmly sat atop the roof of a nearby school building and watched her, his legs hanging off the edge freely. Behind him, his loyal minions stood, defying gravity and awaiting his orders.

    However, Xu Wu Cheng waved them back. Grinning, he licked his lips and wiped his mouth.

    "I''ll deal with her."

    He then jumped down from the rooftop. For some freaking reason, the school building literally vanished behind him, replaced by a night scene that featured a gigantic moon. Hey, artist, I know you''re trying to do some thematic thing here, but at least have better transition or consistency between panels. If he was jumping off from a school building, then it should be a school building that should be standing behind the descending vampire, not an open ground featuring the freaking moonlit sky! Like¡­what the fuck, man? Buildings did not simply disappear at the characters'' convenience!

    Similarly confused, Kai Lin looked up, probably wondering the same thing as me regarding how a huge building could simply disappear just like that.

    "What?" she murmured, but she managed to raise her whip to counterattack.

    Xu Wu Cheng grabbed her golden whip with his hand and jumped behind her, taking her completely by surprise. For some reason, he was able to tie Kai Lin up with her own whip just by jerking on it. No, I had no idea how that worked either. Did he infuse her weapon with his own mana or something? But Kai Lin should have a counterspell in store to prevent an enemy from taking control of her personal weapon, right?

    Whatever the case, Xu Wu Cheng merely smiled triumphantly.

    "Hmph!"

    He tightened the whip and yanked the bounded Kai Lin toward him. She let out a soft cry as she was reeled in. I sprinted toward them, but his four subordinates dropped in between us, forcing me to skid to a stop. At least they didn''t surround me like they did with Yi Shen. Good thing they were taking me lightly. Unfortunately, I was cut off and unable to help Kai Lin at all.

    "Vermillion Phoenix!"

    Despite my command, the four vampires scattered and escaped effortlessly from the flames.

    "They aren''t called elite for nothing," I muttered under my breath.

    "Huh? How do you know they are elite?" Rossetti asked, close behind me as she fought off another vampire. We naturally fought back-to-back as the four elite vampires surrounded us, while Miura and Kufa dealt with another horde. As much as I wanted to unleash Vermillion Phoenix''s flames on them again, we would get caught in the blast.

    "Plot convenience," I replied sarcastically, and then glanced at the person we were supposed to be saving.

    "Uuhn!"

    Kai Lin choked and struggled against her whip while Xu Wu Cheng tightened it, but she was unable to escape. Xu Wu Cheng then bit deeply into her neck and sucked her blood. She shuddered and convulsed, her skin growing increasingly pale while the vampire drained her completely. Her mana faded totally and her body went limp.

    ¡­and so the second Hunter died, and my friends and I failed to save anyone yet again.

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 525 Chapter 525: The Fall of Lute Dragoon

    When Kai Lin died, I saw no reason to linger in this place any longer.

    "Adios," I told the vampire subordinates, who were stunned by my sudden disengagement. Grabbing Rossetti, I yanked her out of the area before ice completely filled the area and obscured the vision.

    Snarling, the vampires smashed through the ice, only to be greeted by an inferno from my Vermillion Phoenix. If they hadn''t activated their magic and formed a blood barrier, even these elite vampirs would have have been incinerated into cinders. As it was, the horde of "normal" vampires was annihilated by the powerful flames, freeing Kufa and Miura, and the four of us immediately retreated.

    The four of us sprinted in the opposite direction, putting as much distance between us and Xu Wu Cheng and his elite subordinates. Fortunately, they didn''t give chase. Even though they didn''t think I was a threat, they seemed to be vaguely aware that it was far too troublesome to pursue us.

    Good for us.

    "Those vampires are too strong! We''re no match for them!"

    Kufa was cursing under his breath. I didn''t refute him because I knew he was right.

    "It''s like they''re of a completely different breed," Miura remarked thoughtfully. "I heard that there are pure-blooded vampires and vampire nobles. The purity of their blood might be related to their power ¨C the purer it is, the stronger they become."

    "Or it depends on their vampire parent ¨C the person who turns them into vampires." Kufa scowled. "If the one who turns the person into a vampire is a powerful, pure-blooded noble, then the person who gets turned will also inherit that immense strength."

    "Whoa¡­" Rossetti was amazed. "There''s so much about vampires I didn''t know about."

    "The less you know, the better," I muttered. "They are¡­horrifying and macabre."

    "!!"

    Then the four of us immediately jumped away when a single vampire landed upon our position. He was one of the adult vampires, smashing his way through the school with a fist that shimmered with crimson mana. I ducked under his punch and shoved Rossetti aside. Above, Vermillion Phoenix screeched before bathing our assailant in flames, but he punched the inferno away through sheer force. Blood-red mana wreathed his body, forming some sort of blood barrier that protected his burly body from the fierce flames.

    "Whoa!"

    My friends and I retreated, watching him warily. The brutal aura that emanated from this single, humongous vampire sent alarm bells ringing, and my instinct screamed at me to not to fight him, and to run instead. I barely avoided a kick that he sent in my direction, and even though he didn''t touch anything, the sheer shockwave from his foot obliterated a nearby wall.

    "Monster!" Kufa gasped as he backed away, his arms shaking despite parrying the shockwave with his katana. "This guy is a monster!"

    "Jeez!"

    Gasping, I backed away, now knowing why the young vampires didn''t pursue us. They knew this monster was here. Perspiration dripped down my face as I studied him. I didn''t want to tangle with a superior opponent, not when I had to rush to Zhao Yan''s position to prevent her from being abducted by Fan Le Lao and watching the whole series dissolve into some clich¨¦ shoujo romance drama where she found herself increasingly attracted to him despite being enemis.

    The adult vampire in front of us refused to cooperate, however.

    He charged at us. Summoning Golden Kirin, I had both him and Vermillion Phoenix execute a combined spell.

    "Scorched Earth!"

    Molten lava surged over the dude and engulfed him. Roaring in pain, the smoldering vampire burst out of the lava and punched me. I crossed my two swords and blocked the punch, but was sent crashing several dozen meters across the schoolyard. Blood spurted from my mouth, but I managed to land on the ground unsteadily.

    "Richard!" Rossetti called out, managed to catch hold of me before I could fall.

    "Don''t worry about me. The others¡­"

    I glanced up and caught sight of Kufa being knocked away. Despite parrying the guy''s fist with his katana, he was sent cartwheeling like a broken doll across the courtyard and vanishing in a shower of rubble when he crashed against a wall. I winced when I saw that, having experienced similar pain. Rossetti then got up to rush toward his side, but I could sense his mana signature. He was hurt badly, but he was still alive.

    Good. As long as we were still¡­

    "!!!"

    Then I saw Miura. I wasn''t sure what she was doing, but the adult vampire had gotten right in front of her. She was casting her black magic and sending shadows and curses at the massive guy, to no effect. The shadows scrabbled futilely against his blood barrier but dissipatd harmlessly.

    "Move!" I shouted at Miura, trying to crawl to my feet and toward her. "Get out of the way!"

    My Celestial Guardiand dove toward her, but explosions rocked them back. The adult vampire had flung his arms toward them and blasted them with shockwaves.

    Then he swung a fist around and smashed through Miura''s dark barrier, punching a hole not just through the crumbling shield but also through her chest.

    Miura stared down at the hole in her chest, her torso almost obliterated as her assailant''s fist poked out through her back. Blood dribbled from her mouth and her eyes grew increasingly blank as she slumped over.

    "MIURA!" Rossetti''s scream echoed throughout the courtyard. I watched numbly, even as my battered Celestial Guardians struggled to rally from the shockwaves and right themselves.

    Once again, I had failed to save someone I had considered a friend.

    *

    Fan Le Lao dropped Lute Dragoon''s body on the ground and licked the blood off his fingers. All around him, the drained corpses of women lay about.

    Lute Dragoon''s harem, they had all fought to the last to protect their beloved ¨C the one person they surrendered their virginity to, or had sex with even though they were supposed to be married to some other person (like Lute''s mother and aunt, for example). Even though they were mostly damsels in distress who Lute Dragoon constantly saved throughout his lifetime of heroism, when he was finally killed, they all charged Fan Le Lao in a mad rage to try and avenge their beloved.

    They were so obsessed and deeply in love with him that they were willing to throw their lives away for him, and die with him when they saw that he was killed. Lute Dragoon put up a good fight, summoning his horse and using both his sword and spear skills to deal severe injuries to Fan Le Lao. Unfortunately, Fan Le Lao was yet another Mary Sue character with plot armor, and he was able to survive Lute Dragoon''s constant attacks.

    Unlike Lute Dragoon, who was the protagonist of a half-written story that would probably never be completed, Fan Le Lao was the male lead of a published web comic that was still ongoing, and thus his Mary Sue-ness surpassed that of the poor harem protagonist. With trickery and blood magic, he struck Lute Dragoon when his guard was down, and slew him by yanking out his heart.

    Lute''s harem, aghast at seeing that a man ¨C of all people ¨C had seized the heart of their beloved, went mad. Turning into yanderes, they charged the stunned Fan Le Lao as one. Fortunately, his plot armor kicked in and he was able to kill all of them in one fell swoop. With their savior dead, none of the women in Lute''s harem could fight. After all, they existed purely as damsels in distress, useless characters who sat around getting captured or abducted by the villains just so Lute Dragoon could dramatically swoop in and save all of them. Consequently, they had no combat ability to speak of, and they were easily slaughtered by the vampire prince.

    "That was¡­.stupid."

    Fan Le Lao rolled his eyes. Raising a hand, he pulled all the blood of his victims together and began drinking it. Having drained Lute Dragoon''s blood after he completed the massacre of the Mary Sue''s harem, he was able to swiftly regenerate his wounds and heal himself completely. That was the speciality of vampires. No matter how injured they were, as long as they could drink blood, they would be able to heal themselves completely.

    Amazing. Not that it was enough to persuade me into becoming a vampire, of course. I would rather keep my humanity. Drinking blood ¨C especially human blood ¨C was not a line I was willing to cross at all.

    "What fools. To sacrifice yourself for a man who treats you like trophies to be collected¡­well, I''m not any better, given that I''m a badly written shoujo manhua male lead who abuses the female lead¡­"

    Fan Le Lao sighed and glanced into the distance.

    "I hope Father is doing fine," he muttered, and then smiled sinisterly. "It would be a pity if an unfortunate accident happens and I will be forced to take the throne at my young age¡­"

    *

    Fan Le Lao''s father stood in the midst of the ruins of the school, watching as one of the teachers succumbed to his subordinate''s assault.

    The white-haired vampire, You Shou, who had served at Fan Le Lao''s father''s side as his right-hand man for decades, paused to observe the devastating consequences of their siege.

    "Even the teachers are no match for us, despite being veteran mages," he declared smugly.

    "As it should be," Fan Le Lao''s father, Fan Fu Qing, responded coldly.

    "However, the siege is dragging on for longer than we''ve anticipated."

    "Yeah," Fan Fu Qing agreed with You Shou''s assessment. "My subjects are too self-indulgent, gorging themselves on our enemies'' blood. That''s their only fault."

    Suddenly, You Shou straightened rigidly as a murderous aura of mana sank upon him. Both he and Fan Fu Qing slowly turned around to stare at the source.

    Teacher Zui Qiang was standing there with three dead adult vampires mounted atop his shoulders, all of them impaled on his bloodthirsty sword, Xue Wu. He grinned as the blood of his victims dripped down onto him and his torn white coat, trickling onto the ground and forming puddles. With a grin, he leered at Fan Fu Qing.

    "Hey," he sneered. "Are you the boss of these punks?"

    Fan Fu Qing merely smiled back in silence. On the other hand, You Shou''s eyes widened.

    "That is¡­!"

    Zui Qiang was radiating a killing intent that was so powerful it was suffocating. His very presence was causing the hair on the vampires'' limbs to stand, and their guts crawled with fear in a very similar manner to mine when I was overwhelmed by my current enormous opponent. Teacher Zui Qiang was often said to be the strongest mage in Saint Teresa Academy, second only to the headmistress, Teresa Taylor. He taught combat magic, by the way. I hadn''t taken any of his classes because I already took them under Teacher Ruff Fielding''s class back in Jing Tian Academy.

    "Zui Qiang!"

    With a swing of his hands, Zui Qiang callously dumped the corpses of his opponents onto the floor, the dust swirling upward from the impact.

    "Three of our strongest followers," You Shou murmured in disbelief. "How did you¡­?"

    "It was nothing special. I just cut them all with my sword and they fell like the weaklings they were." Rubbing his neck as if he had just completed a strenuous warmup, Zui Qiang grumbled. He sounded almost as if he was bored.

    "I see."

    You Shou stood between Zui Qiang and his lord, evaluating his new foe.

    "Even if you say that, those three ranked among the top thirty-six of our clan. For you to finish them off so easily¡­I did hear that you''re a monster, so I guess those rumors are true."

    Zui Qiang grinned and ignored You Shou''s glare.

    "I have no interest in you, white beanpole," he sneered before he lunged forward, his bloodstained sword slashing through the air at Fan Fu Qing, who had remained silent all this while. "I just came here to kill you!"

    "My lord!" You Shou shouted, turning around. But he was too late. Zui Qiang was already at Fan Fu Qing''s throat.

    However, Fan Fu Qing merely smiled. He raised his bare arm and parried Zui Qiang''s blade, and the two tremendous oceans of mana collided in a massive explosion that sent gigantic shockwaves rippling through the battered academy and bowling over the beleaguered survivors.

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 526 Chapter 526: Wrath of the White Witch

    As the shockwaves billowed throughout the academy, I lost my footing. The gigantic vampire wasted no time slamming his fist into my body. Despite parrying his punch with my crossed swords, I was sent hurtling through the air and crashed against a concrete wall. Unlike me, the vampire was a seasoned veteran who was unaffected by the unexpected tremors skillfully maintaining his balance on the shaking ground. I still lacked experience, when compared to him.

    Trying to rise to my feet, I caught sight of my friends. Kufa lay slumped against a broken wall while Rossetti was sprawled on the ground, semiconscious. My Celestial Guardians were lying motionless after having been beaten into submission by the damned vampire.

    "Ugh¡­"

    The blow had literally knocked the breath out of my lungs and now I struggled to recover, gasping desperately as I leaned against the creater I had made against the wall. My mana was flowing ruggedly throughout my battered body, offering some relief, but I knew that wouldn''t last long if I couldn''t escape the next blow.

    My eyes darted toward Miura''s corpse and rage flared in my chest.

    "Guahahahaha!"

    The enormous vampire was laughing as he stepped toward me.

    "How pathetic! Are all Global Federation mages so pitifully weak?"

    I looked up at the vampire, gritting my teeth. Dude, you were an adult bullying a kid like me and my friends, and you were mocking us for our lack of strength? Who were you kidding?

    The grinning vampire approached me, cracking his knuckles. I heaved as I tried to regulate my mana circulation and regain control of my body. That one blow had clogged up the flow of my mana and made it difficult for me to recover, but given a few minutes of rest, I should be able to return to normal. He hadn''t broken anything or done much internal damage.

    Or so I hoped.

    Unfortunately, I doubted that my opponent would be generous enough to grant me those few minutes. Not only was he huge, he resembled a ruffian, with a shaggy beard and puffed-up hair. He was brushing a hand across his hooligan-styled hair now, mocking me.

    Shit¡­ I thought, wheezing as blood dripped from my mouth. This is impossible. He''s too powerful! I can''t do anything!

    "Are you afraid of my power?"

    The adult snorted derisively and he strolled toward me. All around him, the blood of fallen students flowed toward him and he drank in their power, adding their mana to his. I pushed my glasses up my nose and sighed.

    "You do realize you''re basically bullying a kid even though you''re an adult, right?"

    "What nonsense. The moment you enrolled in this academy, you could no longer hide behind pretensions of being a kid."

    Wow. How astute. I had no counter to that.

    The giant vampire had stopped a few paces from me, all the more to drink the blood of the deceased, including Miura''s. I held my breath, hoping that this was the break I needed to quickly recover my strength and summon another of my Celestial Guardians or one of my most powerful Constellation spirits to crush him.

    I was too na?ve.

    The gigantic vampire coalesced all the mana he had collected into a single enormous blood arrow and hurled it at me. Still winded from the punch from earlier, I could only slump helplessly against the wall and watch the deadly projectile sail toward me.

    It never reached me.

    With her bare hand, Teresa Taylor grabbed the arrow and flung it aside. She had somehow appeared between me and my opponent all of a sudden, taking me by surprise. The blood arrow detonated against the concrete pavement of the courtyard, sending rubble and dust flying into the air, but Teresa Taylor merely stood calmly amidst the death and destruction that flooded the school she was in charge of, a solitary figure of fury.

    The vampire froze, recognition dawning on his face. As for me, I stared at my savior, totally bewildered.

    "Headmistress Teresa Taylor!"

    With her hand still smoking from catching the arrow, Teresa Taylor stood before me, shrouded in smoke, her steely stature an imposing sight. She narrowed her eyes at the vampire, but held her piece. Instead, she allowed her holy aura to speak for itself.

    However, far from being intimidated, the vampire burst out laughing.

    "Buhahahahahaha!"

    Looming before the relatively diminutive Teresa Taylor, the giant spread his hands in glee. Despite the headmistress''s imposing figure, the colossal vampire stood half again as tall as the elderly lady.

    "Well, this is lucky! This has to be fate! Teresa Taylor, the legendary White Witch! The former Paladin who struck fear into the hearts of the monsters of Caliban! I''ve come here to meet you!"

    Really? Somehow I found that hard to believe.

    "I''ll kill you¡­with the mighty vampire magic of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan!"

    All the blood in the courtyard flowed toward the vampire, coagulating into crimson spears of death that rose and pointed toward Teresa Taylor, their tips reinforced by sharp mana. The vampire adopted an offensive stance, moving one arm out in front of the other.

    "Ha ha ha ha ha ha! You Federation mages and Hunters have persecuted us vampires for far too long! Tried to hunt us into extinction because you fear our power! I''ll display the strength that all of you feared so much! We''ll prove that we vampires possess the methods that will bring us to the pinnacle of magic!"

    "What are you, Lancer of Black?" I demanded and sighed. "Well, I mean, technically you are a vampire, but¡­"

    The vampire ignored me and continued to grow his armory of blood spears, all of which elongated and twisted into monstrous shapes. The very air was saturated with murderous mana, causing me to suffocate. I could feel my consciousness slowly fade away.

    What oppressive mana¡­

    I breathed slowly, forcing myself to stay conscious. Keeping my eyes on the killing field, I was overawed by the sheer number of blood spears. To create that many weapons over such a large area, this was the first time I had seen such a technique.

    The vampire swung his hand down.

    As one, the blood spears leaped out of the ground, sailing high into the air before arcing down cruelly upon Teresa Taylor''s position. In a second, the legendary White Witch was buried beneath a heap of stabbing, piercing lances of blood.

    "H¡­Headmistress!" I shouted, buffeted by the tremendous shockwaves that blasted across the courtyard from the massive impact. I could barely see Teresa Taylor''s figure, so submerged was she under the sea of blood that she had almost disappeared.

    Boom!

    The blood spears continued to explode furiously against Teresa Taylor''s stationary form, and it was all I could do to stand against such violent forces.

    "Headmistress!"

    "Come on! What''s wrong, old hag?" the vampire taunted as he continued to bombard his target with his countless blood spears.

    I realized then that he had been playing around with me and my friends all this time. If he had been serious, there was no way any of us could have stood a chance. Well, I would be able to defend against all those blood spears with Snow Aegis or Scutum Sobiescianum or Black Tortoise''s water sphere¡­only if I had the time to summon them. Already I was summoning Snow Aegis to protect me from a few stray blood spears that inadvertently flew toward my path. I wanted to summon Scutum Sobiescianum to shield Teresa Taylor, but she was out of range of my magic. Damn it!

    However, the vampire paid no attention to me whatsoever.

    "You don''t even have the strength to defend yourself from our venerable blood magic? The legendary White Witch, completely helpless against the might of the forbidden spells wielded by our blood clan? Hah!"

    He continued pummeling the silent Teresa Taylor with his blood spears, blasting craters into the concrete. Even then, there was no response from the elderly lady at all.

    The vampire was beginning to feel infuriated, noticing that something was amiss despite his relentless bombardment.

    "Hey! Say something!"

    "..."

    I watched the spectacle while using Snow Aegis to defend myself from another few stray blood spears. Drawing Hei Yue and Bai Ri, I moved under the cover of my snowflake-shaped shield and slashed away another couple of spears while sidestepping others. My two Celestial Guardians moved to guard my friends, Vermillion Phoenix shielding Rossetti with his flaming wings while Golden Kirin conjured a wall of earth to protect the stunned Kufa.

    In the distance, Teresa Taylor remained unmoved, refusing to budge even a millimeter from her spot.

    "This is bad¡­" I murmured. "The headmistress¡­did she lose consciousness?"

    There was no flunctuation in Teresa Taylor''s mana whatsoever. It was serene, almost like an immovable rock in the middle of a raging river, just standing there and weathering the elements. In one sense, it was a relief that Teresa Taylor was still alive, but it was also foreboding that there was no change in her mana at all. One possibility was that she had lost consciousness.

    That didn''t bode well. Steeling my resolve, I gripped Hei Yue and Bai Ri tightly and prepared to lunge forward.

    "I''m coming to assist, Headmistress! I apologize!"

    "Stand your ground!"

    Teresa Taylor''s yelled order stunned me so much that I skidded to a stop, almost allowing a blood spear to hit me. Taken aback, I stared at her, still trying to discern if there were any slight alterations to her mana. There was none, yet she was still conscious?

    "Huh?"

    The vampire was just as surprised as I was. He loomed before Teresa Taylor, having finally halted his bombardment of blood spears.

    "What? So you were still able to speak, hag? Stop rambling and just die already."

    With a swing of his arm, he conjured a gigantic blood spear and impaled Teresa Taylor with it, burying her body under the congealed red substance.

    "Hah!" the vampire crowed. "You really don''t want to die¡­"

    "Is this it?"

    "Huh?"

    The vampire froze at Teresa Taylor''s words. As the smoke and debris cleared, I saw that I was mistaken. The White Witch had not been pierced by the blood spear at all. She was standing amidst the fumes, still unscathed despite having endured such a merciless bombardment.

    "The blood magic that your vampire clan is so proud of¡­is it only of this level?"

    The vampire''s eyes narrowed at Teresa Taylor''s comment, stunned that she could still speak. I gasped when I saw the furious features of the headmistress''s face as she glowered at the vampire, and even her larger foe faltered for just a moment.

    "With such pathetically weak spells, you came to assault Saint Teresa Academy?!"

    Shrieking furiously, Teresa Taylor drew her holy sword and obliterated the vampire in a single slash, engulfing the bellowing monster with white light.

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 527 Chapter 527: Wrath of the White Witch II

    I watched, mesmerized, as Teresa Taylor''s Strike of the Holy Judgement incinerated the vampire instantly, disintegrating his flesh and leaving behind a naked skull. No, even the skull¡­the entire skeleton was reduced to cinders by the purifying flames, the once gigantic mage''s existence erased by righteous fury. The holy fire had no doubted judged him and found him wanting, and punished the bloodthirsty monster for all the sins he had committed.

    Teresa Taylor lowered her blazing sword, tempering her raging mana with superhuman control.

    For a moment, she glanced around the school courtyard and surveyed the death and destruction that had taken place there. She watched the students who had died, their corpses strewn about and drained dry of their blood by merciless vampires. Her eyes lingred on Miura La Noir, probably because the headmistress had remembered her as one of the representatives of Saint Teresa Academy who had participated in the tournament just a few months ago.

    Teresa Taylor then closed her eyes briefly, not just mourning the deaths of so many students. She was also recalling the deaths of her staff, including the three teachers who had once stood guard outside her office. Grief combined with fury led her to a ripple in her otherwise composed aura, but she managed to clamp it down.

    "I''ll avenge you all," she vowed. Then she turned to me, and I flinched.

    "Headmistess¡­?"

    "You were right," she told me, her head bowed. "I should have listened to you. I had dismissed your accusations out of petty jealousy and didn''t take your claims of vampires seriously. And now¡­so many of my staff and students are dead, slaughtered by the very vampires you warned us about. We were blind. We trusted Nan Gong Ji Yan and Xu Wu Cheng¡­and they betrayed us."

    Teresa Taylor then activated a hologram and projected a picture of Xu Wu Cheng attacking Kai Lin and the others. Xu Wu Cheng leading his elite vampires along with the commoner ones to slaughter the students.

    "This was¡­captured on the security cameras. He didn''t even bother to hide his identity." Teresa Taylor''s voice dripped in disgust. "I couldn''t believe it until I saw the recordings myself. I have yet to see Nan Gong Ji Yan anywhere, but¡­given how you were correct about Xu Wu Cheng, you are most probably right about her. She has most likely betrayed us and is hiding somewhere. If only we had listened to you¡­if only we had taken your reports more seriously¡­"

    She lowered her head in apology.

    "I am sorry."

    "It¡­it couldn''t be helped." I swallowed. There was no sense in trying to seek blame now. What would be the point? Right now, the priority should be to drive these vampires out of Saint Teresa Academy and save as many lives as possible. "It''s only natural that you would trust your own students over an outsider. You have known Nan Gong Ji Yan for longer than me."

    "I have learned my lesson. Sometimes, the person who is trustworthy isn''t necessarily the one you''ve known for longer. And you underestimate yourself once again." Teresa Taylor smiled. "You are one of us now."

    "That''s right!" Rossetti coughed, staggering to her feet. "I won''t let anyone call you an outsider!"

    "Not after you''ve shed so much blood and risked so much to protect the other students of Saint Teresa Academy," Teresa Taylor agreed. "Not after you''ve fought alongside us as comrades. From now on, you are more of a Saint Teresa Academy student than the likes of Nan Gong Ji Yan or Xu Wu Cheng will ever be."

    Teresa Taylor turned her back on the inferno that had engulfed the ashes of her opponent and strolled toward me. Her figure was illuminated by the white, holy flames, which served as a beacon in the darkness. She looked so imposing that I instinctively broke out into a cold sweat, particularly because I could taste the rage emanating from her. Swallowing, I raised my hand haplessly to salute her.

    "H¡­Headmistress¡­"

    "Do not worry."

    Teresa Taylor wasted no time talking to me, having already stepped past my trembling form. I couldn''t even turn back to watch her go, so frozen was I by her heated fury.

    "With my own hands¡­"

    Teresa Taylor continued speaking in that cool but deadly tone of hers, the apology and guilt she expressed earlier appearing to be an illusion. She no longer looked as if she was in consternation, but was instead swallowed by divine wrath, her shimmering figure literally screaming from vengeance. Even Rossetti and Kufa froze, unable to look at her directly. I went still, hearing her feet grinding into the earth as she stopped.

    "¡­I will kill everyone in the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan."

    And just like that, she took off, jumping so high in the air that she resembled a rocket. I found myself pushed back by the sonic boom and smoke, and while fighting to balance myself, I watched the contrails of holy fire that the headmistress had left behind in her wake.

    Everyone still alive in Saint Teresa Academy looked up at that very moment, sensing her overpowering presence. Both friend and foe stared up in the skies and caught sight of a vengeful angel of holy fire descend upon them, delivering judgement to the enemies. So great were the flames illuminating her figure that the night had temporarily turned into day.

    "Richard, are you all right?"

    Rossetti managed to rush toward me. Kufa also hobbled over, concerned. I nodded, and then glanced at Miura.

    "We failed to save her."

    "¡­Headmistress was right." Rossetti sighed, wiping at her eyes. She was holding back a sob, despair and grief filling her pretty face. "We should have listened to you. We should have taken you more seriously. We wouldn''t have lost so much if we listened¡­"

    "Hey, come on. You did listen to me, didn''t you? That''s why you are here with me right now. You guys trusted me."

    "I''ll be honest. I didn''t believe you completely. There was still a part of me that thought you were mistaken, that this whole thing with Nan Gong Ji Yan and Xu Wu Cheng was just a misunderstanding. I didn''t really think that these vampires would really attack¡­"

    "It''s okay. I understand. I was asking a lot out of you."

    "Well, now isn''t the time to start blaming ourselves and feel guilt." Kufa wiped his mouth after coughing some blood. "We are still under attack. We need to counter the vampires'' invasion and kick them out of our school. Or¡­if necessary, escape. As much as I have faith in Headmistress Taylor''s abilities, I''m afraid that the worst-case scenario might happen."

    "I know." I nodded and sighed. Swaying to my feet, I stared out into the distance, where screams of students mingled with the triumphant cackling of vampires. There was still a lot for us to do, despite the insurmountable odds that we faced. And I wanted payback against the red-haired bastard who had made my life so miserable. "Let''s go."

    While my friends and I moved, I couldn''t help but glance up at the heavens, where Teresa Taylor''s angelic form soared. An avenging angel, she was about to condemn all of our foes to a fiery death.

    I almost felt sorry for the vampires. Almost.

    All around the academy, both students and teachers reacted to her appearance, awe and dread flooding their expressions.

    One of the teachers, Lao Shi, stopped in her tracks, and her colleague skidded to prevent himself from barreling into her.

    "What happened, Teacher Lao?"

    "Idiot! Don''t you understand?" she snapped at him. "The Headmistress¡­the Headmistress is seriously pissed off!"

    Further away, Teacher Einsberg paused in his spell. All around him, vampires were entombed in giant, glacial tombs, the ice having immobilized their writhing forms and frozen them solid. Despite his unintimidating features, Teacher Einsberg had literally just defeated a group of veteran vampires by himself, leaving only the leader.

    "I''ve never seen the headmistress so furious before." He sighed as he turned to stare at his opponent, a tall, thin man with a scar on his face and wielding metallic claws. "I guess it''s only natural. After the stunt you all pulled here, he''s not going to let any one of you leave alive."

    "UWOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

    A burly teacher, Bernard Brentwood, reared to his full height as he bellowed stubbornly. Gritting his teeth, he began yelling at the students behind him.

    "Get up! All of you! To fall at such a critical juncture¡­you dare call yourselves students of Saint Teresa Academy?! The headmistress herself is fighting! Are you all not ashamed to be lying around, doing nothing, while she destroys the enemies? To your feet! All of you!"

    "Yes, Teacher Brentwood!"

    "Uwooo!"

    Inspired by their teacher, the students behind him also forced themselves back to their feet, blood dripping from the numerous wounds that had been carved into their battered bodies.

    "Do not sully the pride of the Dragoon Corps!" Teacher Brentwood roared determinedly. "Show these filthy vampires how we Dragoons fight!"

    His opponent, a female vampire with a stupid cap, flinched and stepped back.

    "What?! What''s happening?!" she demanded, staring at her opponent in disbelief. "You were all on the verge of death earlier! What''s going on!?"

    "We''ll crush you, that''s what!" Teacher Brentwood snarled and completed his spell. A gigantic hound materialized behind him, howling in fury. "You and you cronies will be defeated by my Dragoon Corps! Go!"

    His students and soul beast charged forward to clash with the female veteran vampire and her Valkyrie vampires.

    Vice-principal Fu smashed his opponent away with his broadsword and pointed it at the stumbling vampire, shaking his head.

    "Oh boy¡­I''m in trouble."

    "What are you talking about?" his foe snapped, bristling from the sudden surge in Fu''s mana. The aged mage sighed.

    "Old Lady Teresa is going to yell at me for having this much trouble with enemies of your level."

    Infusing his broadsword with mana, Fu cast a spell and blasted the group of vampires before him, reducing the wall behind them to rubble and burying them under concrete.

    All across Saint Teresa Academy, the surviving teachers and students rallied, motivated by Teresa Taylor''s sudden resurgence.

    All¡­except one.

    Fan Fu Qing held a bloodied Zui Qiang by the throat, lifthing him bodily off the ground.

    "The strongest teacher in Saint Teresa Academy, Zui Qiang," Fan Fu Qing murmured, studying his battered and tattered opponent curiously. "Look at him now."

    You Shou complied quietly, taking in the sight of the defeated mage. Blood streamed down his unconscious face and mouth, dripping silently onto the floor.

    "How weak."

    With an air of disappointment, the vampire king of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan shook his head.

    "It seems that I''ve really overestimated you. Now sleep. The Global Federation is about to be overturned by the vampire clans."

    Behind Fan Fu Qing, Teresa Taylor descended in an explosion of fury, immolating the ground in holy flames and burning a molten crater into the concrete. White flames billowed about around her, incinerating everything in her vicinity. With sword in hand, the White Witch stepped toward the vampire king.

    "It''s been over 25 years, Fan Fu Qing."

    Still holding Zui Qiang in the air, Fan Fu Qing merely turned his eyes to cast a bitter look at his old enemy. Teresa Taylor glared at the villain who had masterminded the assault on her academy and then issued a single chilling declaration.

    "I came here to utterly destroy you."

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 528 Chapter 528: Fire and Blood

    Fan Fu Qing slowly turned his head to glance at Teresa Taylor, his eyes narrowed and his hand still clutching the throat of the defeated Zui Qiang.

    "Fan Fu Qing."

    The cold voice was at odds with the fiery atmosphere, and despite the intense heat, the aged vampire felt a chill run down his spine. Despite his bravado, he knew that he was being judged by the holy flames for all the atrocities he had committed. Behind him, Teresa Taylor stood, her figure illuminated by the white inferno raging at her back.

    "I came here to utterly destroy you."

    The two old adversaries glared at each other for a second, and then Teresa Taylor made the first move, scraping her foot against the ravaged ground. Before she could lift it, however, three vampires descended upon her from above.

    "!"

    Teresa Taylor glanced up at the trio, who were among the four younglings accompanying Xu Wu Cheng as his elite vanguard earlier.

    "You''re pretty bold to come here and fight his majesty all by yourself!" One of them, a dark-skinned vampire with an afro and dreads, sneered.

    "It''s over." Another vampire, this time absurdly pale to the point where he resembled a ghost more than the living, murmured.

    "Die, old hag!" The third vampire, a youngster with his hair styled into a red Mohawk, sneered.

    Teresa Taylor merely lifted his head to look at them before the area vanished in an explosion.

    "What are these jokers doing?" I demanded as I leaned on Rossetti, watching the battle from afar.

    "I¡­don''t know?" the red-haired girl replied with a confused shrug.

    "Committing suicide, it looks like," Kufa muttered.

    As if to emphasize both mine and Kufa''s point, the explosion suddenly erupted into an enormous geyser of holy flames that pierced the heavens, searing the clouds and regurgitating large plumes of smoke that blotted out the seething sky. The area was bathed in pure white, and I swore I could see feathers fluttering around the white inferno.

    "!!!!"

    Many vampires recoiled, astonished by the catastrophic conflagration that threatened to to engulf the whole school. But they turned around, taken aback by my voice as I smirked.

    "Burn!!!!"

    "¡­seriously?" Rossetti glared at me. I lowered my head.

    "Sorry."

    As she pointed out, this wasn''t the time to be joking. I had to hurry to Zhao Yan''s position and prevent the readers from suffering shoujo-styled drama filled with angst, toxic and abusive love-hate relationships, as well as utterly illogical decisions and actions.

    Meanwhile, in the distance, all three vampires had been reduced completely to ashes. With sword in hand, Teresa Taylor stood alone amidst the roaring white inferno as his assailants were consumed by the flames of judgement.

    "Idiots."

    Teresa Taylor twitched at Fan Fu Qing''s words. Unaffected, the vampire king strode casually toward the White Witch, his cloak billowing in the extreme heat. Unlike his subordinates, he wasn''t bothered by the holy wrathful aura the headmistress was emanating.

    "..."

    The elderly lady said nothing as she raised her head, and then she tilted it to the side to silently glare at the king of vampires.

    "What?" Fan Fu Qing snapped. "Your eyes look like they are trying to say something."

    Teresa Taylor responded not with words but with a flaming slash that Fan Fu Qing blocked with his arm.

    As expected of a vampire with highly regenerative abilities and blood magic. Despite the holy flames and incredibly sharp blade, Teresa Taylor was unable to shear through the arm, her sword stopped by protective mana, a reinforced blood barrier and incredibly hard muscle. Apparently Fan Fu Qing''s physical reinforcement spells had been enhanced to the extreme by his esoteric blood magic.

    "Your majesty!"

    The useless You Shou, who had done nothing up till now but yell for his king or commentate on events, shouted, but true to form, he didn''t lift even a single finger to do anything.

    "You have not changed, Fan Fu Qing," Teresa Taylor growled as she pressed her advantage with her blade. Blood dripped from the vampire''s arm even though he struggled to endure the former paladin''s slash. "But your cruel attitude toward your own subordinates will also end here."

    "You got old, Teresa Taylor."

    Fan Fu Qing''s remark came with a smirk as he regarded his old foe. Even as his arm bled profusely and he stepped back into the surrounding holy flames that threatened to scorch him, he wasn''t able to conceal the amusement in his voice.

    "However, the way you allow your anger to get the better of you reminds me of when you were younger. You were so much more beautiful back then. So much more¡­passionate."

    "Nonsense!" Teresa Taylor snapped as she unleashed another slash. Holy mana billowed out of her blade and blasted the rubble into oblivion as they tried to consume the dodging Fan Fu Qing, who wisely kept his distance. As the White Witch struck again, the vampire king had no choice but to reach for the sword that was sheathed at his hip.

    He had just managed to place his hand on the hilt of his sword when his figure was enveloped in flames. The resulting clash sent an explosion blasting through parts of the school, razing a few buildings. Even You Shou was forced back, unable to withstand the shockwaves billowing from the collision between two superpowers.

    Staring at the recently unsheathed blade of his opponent, Teresa Taylor gripped her own sword tighter, a note of mirth in her tone.

    "You finally drew your sword."

    Fan Fu Qing narrowed his eyes as she brandished her weapon, a stylish Western-looking sword with a curved tip and winged hilts. Like the vampire he was, the wings were those of a bat. Kind of cute, if you asked me¡­but nobody was asking me.

    "Cute¡­" Rossetti murmured, her face slightly red. Oh, okay. So there was at least one person who agreed with me.

    "What''s the matter with you two?" Kufa sighed in exasperation as he buried his face in his palm. I ignored him and continued watching.

    Amidst the broiling flames, the vampire king sneered.

    "You sound like you were waiting for me to draw my sword."

    "I was indeed," Teresa Taylor replied. "Waiting for you to do so."

    She took a step forward and the flames intensified, as if responding to her will.

    "So that I can crush your sword, your flesh, your bones, and your soul to nothingness."

    The two of them locked eyes, with Fan Fu Qing glaring defiantly at Teresa Taylor. The holy flames around the former paladin''s sword seemed to surge for just a brief moment¡­only to flicker out. Behind the headmistress of Saint Teresa Academy, the inferno disappeared, leaving emptiness in the air.

    The flames have vanished.

    Fan Fu Qing regarded the odd scene, apprehension trickling into his heart. Before him, Teresa Taylor stood, a faint wisp of smoke trailing from her now pure white sword.

    "Blessings of God, Angelic Descent. Avenging Sword of Holy Judgement."

    White wings of holy light blazed forth from her shoulders, unfurling to scatter countless intangible feathers. A radiant halo gleamed above her head.

    And so the most powerful holy-type magic manifested itself in Teresa Taylor''s spells.

    "Angelic Descent?" You Shou repeated incredulously as he studied the White Witch''s sword. "That is indeed a majestic display and you look a lot more¡­holier than before. But your sword remains unchanged for the most part. All it did was turn your sword into a little white blade. Other than a change in appearance, what does your technique do? It does not appear to increase your combat power."

    "Don''t underestimate it," Fan Fu Qing snapped. "Angelic Descent is a technique that infuses the full power of the White Witch''s holy magic into that so-called little white blade. One swing and it''s the end. It burns anything it cuts to ashes. It''s a sword that renders holy judgement upon those it deems heretics and sinners."

    "Your majesty."

    You Shou bowed his head and stepped back. Fan Fu Qing glared at him.

    "More importantly, what are you doing here? So far you''ve been useless. All you do is stand around and commentate on the battle, but you''ve not interfered or raised a hand to fight. If you''re just going to make snide comments or shout my name every time I''m attacked instead of actually doing something about it, then shut up and get lost. Go away elsewhere and make yourself useful for once."

    Wow, he voiced the thoughts I had in mind. I was wondering what the purpose of You Shou was. The right-hand man of Fan Fu Qing himself looked chagrined and he dropped to his knees.

    "This humble one begs for your forgiveness, your majesty!"

    Fan Fu Qing merely buried his face in his palm, exasperated.

    "I didn''t ask you to prostrate yourself or apologize! Just get the hell out of here and help the other vampires attack the students and staff here! Stop standing around doing nothing!"

    "Yes, your majesty."

    You Shou hurried away. Teresa Taylor watched him leave, and then grinned.

    "That''s right. You''ve already seen this technique two decades and a half ago. But¡­back then, my Angelic Descent was still immature."

    She tightened her grip on her sword.

    "Do you think my current Angelic Descent will be the same as twenty-five years ago?"

    Raising her sword, the White Witch narrowed her eyes into a deadly glare, locking her gaze with Fan Fu Qing''s solemn defiance. She raised her glowing white sword and pointed it at her foe, her halo flaring brilliantly as if to make astatement.

    "Let''s test it out on your body¡­to see what the difference is."

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 529 Chapter 529: Like a Raging Fire

    While my friends and I were running across the courtyard, I felt a subtle but nonetheless change in the atmosphere. Breathing a lungful of air, I almost choked on the warmth. My throat felt parched and dry, and as I licked my lips, I felt that they were cracked.

    "L¡­look!"

    Rossetti was pointing frantically. I glanced around and saw that the grass in the academy garden was shriveling as they were unable to retain whatever moisture was left in the air.

    "My skin feels dry too¡­" Rossetti murmured as she rubbed at her face.

    "This¡­this is¡­" Kufa gulped. "At this rate¡­the whole of Saint Teresa Academy will be destroyed!''

    "¡­yeah." As much as I wanted to grumble about him making hyperbolic statements, I knew that he wasn''t exaggerating. The sheer power that Teresa Taylor was emanating right now was suffocating us, almost as if a tidal ocean had swept across the school to drown every single one of us in her wrath.

    Some distance away, Teacher Einsberg paused. He raised his hand to test his frosty mana and cast ice spells, only to produce nothing. Whatever ice he created instantly melted away, vaporizing into small wisps of steam. He sighed and shook his head as he turned to look at his vampire opponents. They had broken free of the ice he had entombed them within, only to be hacked into pieces by his sword.

    "Good thing I finished you guys off when I had the chance," he remarked and shook his head. "All the water and moisture in the air are gradually disappearing. If I had been a bit later, I would be in huge trouble."

    He could sense the moisture in the air vaporizing and escaping higher into the atmosphere from the sheer heat. Hee knew that he wouldn''t be able to cast any of his ice spells for now, not until the headmistress released her Angelic Descent.

    In another place, Fu Xiao Zhang blocked the blow from his opponent, who then fired a shot at him. He managed to duck and responded with a slash that forced the old man back. As the two retreated to a safe distance, Fu placed a hand on his mouth.

    "Oh¡­this isn''t good," he remarked when he found that his lip was bleeding. "Looks like the old lady is going all out."

    His vampire opponent glared at him, and Fu shrugged.

    "You feel it too, don''t you? Like an ocean is pressing down on you. And the blazing heat that seems to scorch you from the inside out¡­"

    "So what?" the old vampire spat. "His majesty will definitely win!"

    "Oh boy." Fu Xiao Zhang was thoroughly amused. He shook his head, almost sadly. "You have no idea who you''ve just pissed off, do you?"

    Nope, the idiot certainly did not. Cue a panel flashing back to the White Witch and the vampire king. Sorry for the rough transition.

    Taking a step forward, Teresay Taylor lunged forward and slashed at Fan Fu Qing, who managed to jump back and avoid a direct hit. The blade caught his billowing cape and cut a thin line through the black fabric. Fan Fu Qing narrowed his eyes as he stared at the tear.

    He cut it.

    The vampire king returned his gaze to the White Witch''s blade with a bewildered frown. The white sword remained outwardly unimpressive.

    But no holy flame came out.

    Righting himself, Fan Fu Qing retreated to put as much distance between himself and Teresa Talyor as possible, contemplating the implication.

    Why? Is the Blessing of God¡­the Angelic Descent of today really that different from twenty-five years ago?

    Of course I couldn''t read minds. I was just speculating on what Fan Fu Qing was thinking. Since he was a carbon copy of a certain manga character, it was but a simple matter for me to guess exactly what he was thinking about without relying on telepathy.

    As Teresa Taylor raised her sword, Fan Fu Qing continued to think, perplexed by the situation, and leaped away.

    It doesn''t matter what form her technique manifests in. If she is using holy magic, then it should take the shape of holy spells.

    Oh, that was useful. So what shape do holy spells normally take? Flames?

    Yet, Fan Fu Qing was clearly troubled over where the holy flames had gone. Instead of parrying Teresa Taylor''s strike with his own blade, he catiously jumped back. The former paladin''s sword sank deeply into the ground, the tip scratching the surface for just a second.

    The entire ground was incinerated immediately, the concrete disintegrating from the extreme heat.

    Fan Fu Qing''s eyes widened when he took in the sight, realization dawning on him. Twisting toward his opponent, he let out a cry of understanding.

    "The point!"

    "Correct."

    Teresa Taylor coolly glanced at him from the corner of her eye before slashing upward and almost catching Fan Fu Qing by surprise. Fortunately, the vampire king managed to evade that strike by just a hair''s breadth, stepping away to his right.

    The headmistress held her sword parallel to the ground, as if to demonstrate her power. A thin wisp of smoke wafted from her white blade, and her radiant halo continued to gleam brilliantly. Her white wings flapped, sending more spectral feathers fluttering across the ground.

    "The scales of justice shall tip once more," Teresa Taylor pronounced, placing her faith in God. She reminded me of a Saint, somehow, the one chosen by God to receive His holy benediction. "His judgement strikes true, each of its stroke precise. The innocent will be spared, whereas the guilty will suffer. All of the holy power I can muster has been focused along the edge of my blade. I place my faith in His judgement."

    As she neared her opponent, her voice grew more threatening, more terrifying.

    "Such is His judgement that all who sinned will not simply burn in the fires of purgatory. His wrath is so immense that He will not show mercy to those who commit atrocities after atrocities. Anything these holy flames touch will simply cease to exist, leaving no trace in this world. Such is the consequence of defying His rules."

    Crouching down, she slashed at Fan Fu Qing again, who deftly dodged the dangerous blade. Growling, she reversed the direction of her sword for another strike with a determined yell.

    "Not even your vaunted blood barrier and other vampire defensive spells will be able to defend you from divine punishment!"

    "How boring."

    Instead of being intimidated, Fan Fu Qing almost sounded disappointed. Twisting his body almost gracefully, he responded with a riposte.

    "In other words, I just have to cut you without touching that sword."

    Teresa Taylor made no move to dodge, merely standing still as Fan Fu Qing cut her down with his sword. But even as the latter''s arm swung through the full motion, the former remained standing. Fan Fu Qing stared, stunned by the outcome.

    Then he glanced at his sword. The blade was completely gone, as if it had never existed in the first place.

    "You''re too overconfident."

    Teresa Taylor sneered as she raised her head. Like an angelic figure, she stood calmly in the scorched battlefield, her visage almost matching that of an angel of death. Her wings unfurled once more, and I understood what had happened. Fan Fu Qing''s sword had been caught and obliterated by those golden wings.

    The vampire king, also realizing the same thing, inadvertently took a step back, his body reacting to sudden danger.

    "Do you really think you can harm my body, which is under the divine protection of God?" the White Witch gestured toward herself. "Did you think this angelic form is merely for show?"

    Fan Fu Qing stared in shock, unable to reply. In the distance, Rossetti, Kufa and I watched the whole scene unfold, completely awestruck.

    "The Blessings of God," Rossetti whispered. "Divine Protection. The headmistress¡­she is truly invincible right now."

    "The ultimate defense," Kufa added, his tone reverent. "I''ve never seen anything like it."

    At Fan Fu Qing''s silence, Teresa Taylor smirked.

    "None of your attacks can leave a scratch on this form of mine, not while I continue to receive the blessings of God. Even though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil: for God is with me. For He who is in me is greater than this world."

    The halo flared brilliantly around the White Witch, and her wings appeared to wrap protectively around her. Still rooted to the spot, Fan Fu Qing stared in disbelief when more white feathers flapped around Teresa Taylor''s figure, her body glowing slightly from being shrouded in an impenetrable armor of faith.

    "This is what Angelic Descent truly means. To attain the body of an angel. It''s been twenty-five years, and I am glad that I have the opportunity to demonstrate to you its complete form."

    Fan Fu Qing subconsciously took a step back as he stared wide-eyed at the brilliant halo that bathed Teresa Taylor''s body in holy light.

    "A holy barrier that is impervious not to all blades but also all curses. There is no way for you to harm me."

    Her voice taking on a tone of eventuality, Teresa Taylor took a step toward her ancient foe, her feet leaving molten craters on the ground.

    The vampire and the angel. One of darkness and one of light. Two beings of opposite elements, clashing in this battlefield.

    "When I unleash my Angelic Descent and deliver judgement with my holy sword, no evil shall be permitted to stand before me."

    "Impossible¡­"

    A croak escaped from Fan Fu Qing''s lips as he stumbled back, refusing to believe the miraculous sight before him. Meanwhile, You Shou, despite being his right-hand man, maintained his distance. Not just because he was a disloyal, cowardly subordinate, but also because he knew there was absolutely nothing he could do. Intervening in a fight between two superpowers would spell instant death for him. But as Fen Fu Qing rightly pointed out, he should cut down on the commentary.

    That didn''t mean I didn''t know what he was thinking, however.

    Holy magic.

    Like his boss, You Shou was staring at Teresa Taylor in awe, unable to believe his eyes.

    Is this truly a physical manifestation of God''s blessings? The human body cannot possibly bear the power of an angel. Yet here she is, temporarily transforming into an angel. Is this an illusion?

    Of course not.

    Even without me telling him, You Shou understood. He narrowed his eyes as he examined the flickering halo that shrouded Teresa Taylor''s body.

    It''s the formidable pressure of her holy mana that makes the mana resemble an angel''s halo¡­

    Taking a deep breath, he watched the most powerful enemy who had ever appeared before his eyes, unable to suppress a spike of fear in his heart.

    Teresa Taylor¡­the headmistress of Saint Teresa Academy¡­the White Witch, one of the most powerful paladins to have ever served the Global Federation¡­

    The elderly lady herself took a deep breath before she focused her attention on the overawed opponent before her.

    "Now then," she began, her halo and wings glowing about her body. "I''ll put an end to this, Fan Fu Qing."

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 530 Chapter 530: Upon Holy Wings of Fire

    "Now then," Teresa Taylor said coldly. "I''ll put an end to this, Fan Fu Qing."

    Despite the imposing sight before him, Fan Fu Qing had not budged or turned to retreat. He merely responded with a defiant glare. Teresa Taylor didn''t care. Instead, she continued with her threats, but this time her words held a sense of self-reproach.

    "If I don''t end this immediately, not only you¡­but both Saint Teresa Academy and myself will be reduced to oblivion as well."

    As Teresa Taylor neared him, Fan Fu Qing stood his ground, silently taking in the scene before him.

    It feels like I am standing before God Himself, being judged for every sin that I had committed from birth until now. I can feel the weight of His glare, and the burden of his punishment. The sensation of being burned at stake after being condemned by the faithful. Without the physical reinforcement spells that have been further enhanced by the blood magic of vampires, I would have been cremated to ashes already.

    Teresa Taylor''s foot scraped to a stop a few meters away from the stationary Fan Fu Qing.

    "What happened?" She asked mockingly, her sword lowered at her side. "Are you just watching?"

    Fan Fu Qing responded with a baleful glare.

    "No," Teresa Taylor admitted. "My question was certainly mean-spirited. Without your sword, there is nothing you can do. I can understand that you are so frozen with fear that you''re unable to move. But once you snap out of it, feel free to run away."

    Fan Fu Qing''s eyes narrowed in anger. But Teresa Taylor''s fury surpassed his.

    "Though I will catch you and kill you immediately."

    Fan Fu Qing''s eyes widened when he understood that Teresa Taylor''s words weren''t a threat. They were a promise, reality made manifest. God''s will about to be executed.

    Snapping out of his stupor, the vampire king then conjured his mana and created a gigantic blood lance, which he unleashed toward Teresa Taylor. The crimson projectile streaked through the air at a terrifying speed, leaving a broken trail of rubble in its wake.

    However, in the face of such a powerful attack, the White Witch merely swatted away the immense projectile with one of her wings, flinging it in another direction. The blood lance exploded harmlessly against the ground a few meters away, raining down debris on the headmistress. Even then, any bits of rock and dirt simply disintegrated against the shimmering halo that shrouded her body before they could even get close.

    "Right."

    Unfurling her wing to reveal the cold expression on her face, Teresa Taylor gave Fan Fu Qing a pitiful stare.

    "Now that your sword is broken, all you have left is your blood magic. Well then, let''s go."

    With a single leap, she propelled her body through the space between her opponent and herself, closing the gap at an incredible speed. It was almost as if she was soaring across the air, her wings of holy fire spread wide in majestic fashion. In the face of such danger, Fan Fu Qing threw out a hand, accumulating blood-red mana into his palm.

    "What?" Teresa Taylor demanded. "Nothing''s going to work on me!"

    "Don''t think that you''re the only one who improved her skills and magic over the last twenty-five years, Teresa Taylor." Fan Fu Qing''s eyes glowed red as he solidified his mana. All around him, thousands of blood spears rose from the ground, all pointed toward the soaring headmistress. "Curse of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan! Eternal Blood Fortress!"

    The countless blood spears launched toward Teresa Taylor, but before they could pierce into her body, they disintegrated against the radiant halo and blazing wings of holy fire that wreathed her slender frame.

    "Holy Cremation."

    Teresa Taylor raised her sword toward the air. A blinding light descended from the heavens and slammed down onto Fan Fu Qing''s position, razing his Eternal Blood Fortress with holy fire. Despite unleashing the wrath of God, there were still a good number of blood spears remaining between the two.

    Then Teresa Taylor crashed into the ragged figure of Fan Fu Qing, her sword cleaving through what little blood spears remained. The vampire king gritted his teeth and conjured a massive blood sword that he then used to meet the White Witch''s ferocious blow. The two superpowers clashed in a holy and bloody explosion in the middle of the campus grounds, the collision of their mana sending tremendous shockwaves throughout the academy.

    I could no longer see what was going on in there except bloodied spears and a raging inferno of holy white. It didn''t matter. I had to go. I had more important priorities to see to. Turning my back on the massive clash, I made for Zhao Yan''s position.

    As I sprinted across the courtyard, my friends followed me closely. While I searched for Zhao Yan''s position, I came across a bunch of vampires who were feasting on the blood of the other students. There were still a bunch of students fighting against them, but their magic was no match for the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan. Thankfully, I saw that their assailants so far were the younglings instead of the adults. In the distance, I could see the teachers taking care of the adult vampires. Teacher Einsberg, for example, was engaging a trio of matured veteran vampires.

    Despite Teresa Taylor''s holy flames burning in the background and vaporizing the moisture in the air, Teacher Einsberg was still somehow able to conjure ice from nowhere. He froze the vampires, incapacitating them, and injured them by shattering their frozen limbs. However, the holy flames of the White Witch''s angelic form continued to heavily restrict his ice magic and therefore his spells were not as effective as before.

    It was clear that he didn''t need any assistance, however. When I ran toward him, he waved me away. He also dismissed my friends.

    "Go help the other students!" he instructed. "I can take care of these vampires myself!"

    I exchanged a glance with Rossetti and Kufa, and then we nodded in unison. The other students in the distance were slowly losing ground to the young vampires, and unless we directly intervened, they were doomed.

    As much as I wanted to locate Nan Gong Zhao Yan and save her from the tragic fate of a shoujo heroine in a bullshit vampire manhua, I couldn''t just watch other people die.

    "Honestly, we should be getting out of here," Kufa muttered darkly as we ran toward the students. "The school is doomed."

    "We can''t just leave them!" Rossetti protested hotly, gesturing toward the other students. Kufa sighed.

    "I''m not suggesting that we abandon our schoolmates, I meant we should all start evacuating once we rescue them. There''s no longer any point to sticking around here. If all of us want to stay safe, we need to escape from the school."

    "I doubt it will go down that easily." I glanced back as another huge explosion rocked the academy. "Headmistress Taylor is still fighting. I find it difficult to believe that the vampire king can defeat her."

    "Yeah, she''ll probably annihilate the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan." Kufa nodded in agreement. "In the meantime, let''s help as many people as we can!"

    "Over there!" Rossetti pointed. I joined her in sprinting toward the besieged students. Kufa scowled before he followed.

    "Guys, I know you want to help, but don''t be reckless! Check to see if there are any veteran vampires among them! We can''t fight the masters ¨C we will have to leave the adult vampires to the teachers. We should intervene only against the young vampires. I know how you feel, but we won''t be helping anyone if we get ourselves killed."

    "Kufa is right." I sighed. "But those guys there are young vampires. We can handle them. Rossetti!"

    "Roger!"

    She nodded, understanding what I intended. I bounded to her front and then cupped my hands. Without pausing, she sprinted and jumped, stepping onto my linked hands. I then tossed her high into the air, and she drew both of her chakrams. Almost as if she was dancing in the heavens, she swung her chakrams about and conjured flames.

    "Heavenly Phoenix Kagura Dance!"

    The young vampires glanced up in shock, not expecting an attack from another student. Without hesitation, Rossetti was raining fiery death upon them.

    "Flaming Phoenix Feather Blades!"

    "Ugh!"

    The vampires shrieked as they were struck and immolated. They staggered, flailing about as their bodies combusted, the fire spreading from where Rossetti''s feathers stabbed into them.

    However, they were pretty tenacious. While they were still floundering about, I took a deep breath and continued running toward my schoolmates, who had frozen at the incredible sight. They were rooted to the ground from disbelief, and still vulnerable to whatever attacks from the surviving vampires.

    Gathering mana, I charged right into the fray and broke a path through the remaining vampires, scattering them. As I recklessly plowed through the stunned enemies with my swords, I managed to free my classmates from their grasps ¨C sometimes by severing the poor vampires'' hands at the wrists or even just below the elbows. The bloody bastards screeched in pain and rage as they recoiled.

    "Ah!"

    "Whoa!"

    They dropped onto the ground and scrambled to their feet, staring at me in surprise. At that moment, Rossetti landed beside me, and the two of us began fighting back-to-back. Her chakrams lashed out and cut a ring of destruction and blood through the vampire horde while I slashed our enemies with Hei Yue and Bai Ri, hacking off limbs and heads. We covered each other''s back, making up for our partner''s flaws and plugging whatever gaps in defenses we saw while executing a relentless attack that decimated our enemies.

    "Amazing¡­"

    "That''s¡­Rossetti Pricket. And the transfer student¡­"

    "Were they always this skilled?"

    "I can''t believe how well they are fighting together!"

    I paused and gestured impatiently at them to leave.

    "We''ll take care of them! Hurry up and escape!"

    I realized that I was sounding like Kai Lin from earlier. Damn it. I hope I didn''t trigger a death flag or anything. After this, I still had to go look for Zhao Yan. Raising Hei Yue and Bai Ri, I continued to carve a bloody swathe through the vampires, occasionally covering Rossetti while simultaneously leaving my back to her.

    "The hell?!" Kufa complained when he finally caught up. He had to weave through the crowd of students who were fleeing in the opposite direction just to reach our position. "You two didn''t leave anything for me, did you?!"

    I was about to retort when I saw a fresh wave of young vampires bounding over the rooftops of the campus buildings and descending toward our position, blood magic congealing around their hands and forming deadly claws. Reinforcements, obviously. No matter how many vampires Rossetti and I slew, there were more where they came from.

    "You and your big mouth," I grumbled, glaring at a chastened Kufa.

    "Sorry."

    "No time for jokes, you two!" Rossetti chided. "They are coming!"

    As the fresh wave of vampires lunged toward us, the three of us prepared for our counterattack.

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 531 Chapter 531: A Bloody Battle

    Covering Rossetti, I slashed a vampire that was aiming for her back, and then ducked under the claws of another vampire that flanked me. I slammed my elbow into his solar plexus to throw him off. Behind me, Rossetti cut through another vampire with her flaming chakrams before they could exploit the gap in my defenses. With my swords, I scythed down another vampire that was aiming for my partner, and then spun around to avoid getting stabbed through the chest by his comrade. Lashing out with one of my swords, I sent him toppling over in a spray of blood.

    "Gah!"

    The vampire somehow managed to crawl back to his feet despite the grievous injury. It seemed that their blood magic made them incredibly resilient. Already, his wound was closing up and clotting, his high-speed regeneration making the fatal injury seem like an illusion. Despite the whirlwind of destruction that both Rossetti and I created with our weapons, there were far too many vampires for us to fight on our own. And that was after including Kufa as our reinforcement.

    Fortunately, my strength lay not in swordsmanship but in summoning. What, did you already forget the title of this story?

    "Vermillion Phoenix!"

    The majestic vermillion bird materialized for the second time that night, spreading his wings and illuminating the darkness with his crimson flames. I had absorbed Rossetti''s mana that trailed with her use of the Heavenly Phoenix Kagura Dance to reduce the casting time for my Celestial Guardian. A summoning spell that normally required five minutes to cast had been cut down to two minutes because of Rossetti''s spell.

    Before readers could demand that I learn the Heavenly Phoenix Kagura Dance to speed up my summoning spells, that wasn''t how it worked. Number one, the dance was used for one''s party members or teammates ¨C you couldn''t use it on yourself. Number two, if I devoted all that time learning dance and buff magic, I wouldn''t have been able to learn summoning magic. Rossetti had invested years of practice and efforts into mastering her maiden magic. Also, you might as well ask why Rossetti didn''t learn summoning magic since her magic sort of buffed that.

    By the way, Rossetti''s dance magic didn''t just buff summoning magic. It buffed everyone''s magic, whether it was attack or defense or whatever spells.

    In any event, this was why summoning magic and dance magic were team-orientated magic. The only difference was that people usually didn''t like summoners because they spent an awful amount of time hiding in the back and doing nothing, relying on the others to keep them safe while they cast their spells, whereas for dancers, they were already casting their maiden magic right from the start, fighting on the frontlines with everyone else while buffing them immediately.

    However, when you combined summoning magic with dancing magic¡­

    "Whoa!"

    The vampires stumbled back, with so many of their number instantly incinerated by the inferno that Vermillion Phoenix had unleashed upon them. Despite their incredible resilience and high-speed regeneration, there was little the vampires could do when they were completely burned into ashes by superheated flames. No blood magic was going to restore them from ashes or nothingness.

    "Aaaaaah!"

    "It burns! It burns!!! Ugh!"

    "Run away!"

    The surviving vampires'' nerve broke and they fled. However, none of them were able to get very far because Vermillion Phoenix simply flapped one of his wings and sent a torrent of crimson flames hurtling after them. Despite their speed, the running vampires simply could not outrun the speeding trails of fire which resembled rockets. Caught by the superheated flames, they were disintegrated by the sheer heat, with no trace of them left after the ravenous inferno devoured them.

    "Serves them right."

    Beside me, Rossetti slowly brought her Kagura dance to a stop, her chakrams lowered. She watched the demise of the fleeing vampires in satisfaction, a cold expression on her usually friendly face. Apparently she had been haunted by the massacres she had witnessed tonight, and she couldn''t help but want venganec for her slaughtered schoolmates.

    "You guys didn''t leave anything for me again!" Kufa complained when he finally caught up. He had been dueling a trio of vampires with his katana, only to jump back when Vermillion Phoenix burned his opponents into cinders. Of course, I had ensured that we didn''t commit friendly fire. "You could have left a few for me!"

    "It''s your fault for being too slow," I replied playfully. Kufa scowled and shook his head in resignation.

    "H¡­how?!"

    I glanced down and spotted a spluttering and struggling vampire, who was scorched black. His high-speed regeneration wasn''t working because the damage done to him had been too extensive. He wasn''t going to survive the horrendous injuries that my Vermillion Phoenix had inflicted on him. Nonetheless, I was impressed that he had managed to survive. Vampires really were tenacious.

    Speaking of which, it was fortunate that none of the adult vampires were here, or they would have butchered my Vermillion Phoenix in short order. I still remembered that burly vampire swatting away my Celestial Guardians as if they were nothing.

    "Still, it seems that fire magic is super-effective against vampires. They burn really easily."

    "Wait, you mean you didn''t realize that until now?" Rossetti was staring at me in astonishment. "Vampires are weak against fire and holy magic."

    "So that was why you were using fire spells all this while." I nodded. "Honestly, I did read about that. I was just amazed to see it in reality. Their effectiveness exceeded my expectations."

    "Actually, it''s because your fire-type soul beast is disgustingly powerful," Kufa corrected. He stared at my Vermillion Phoenix in awe. "I don''t know what you''ve been feeding it, but normal fire spells wouldn''t be this destructive, even against vampires."

    "I didn''t feed him anything," I grumbled. "My Celestial Guardians and Constellation spirits don''t need to eat. And even if they could, I wouldn''t be feeding them vampires."

    Kufa gave me a dry stare. "I don''t think anyone is suggesting that you feed your soul beasts vampires."

    "You¡­you won''t get away with this," the scorched vampire spluttered. "His majesty will definitely¡­"

    "Oh, shut up," Kufa told him before ruthlessly beheading him. Both Rossetti and I stared at him, and he shrugged. "What? He was going to die anyway. I was just putting him out of his misery."

    "All right, let''s go. We have to go find Nan Gong Zhao Yan."

    "Why do we have to find Zhao Yan?" Rossetti demanded, staring at me suspiciously.

    "She might already have evacuated with the others," Kufa added. "I think we should be focusing on other students who don''t have the ability to fight the vampires."

    "Zhao Yan is in terrible danger," I said and immediately regretted the words the moment they came out of my mouth. The fuck, I couldn''t believe how cheesy I sounded. I was speaking like some character in a black and white movie.

    "What are you talking about?" Rossetti asked skeptically. "And how do you know?"

    I paused, considering my next few words. I couldn''t possibly tell my friends that I knew everything that was happening because I read a badly written shoujo manhua about vampires and high school drama with abusive male leads and toxic relationships.

    "The same reason how I knew that Xu Wu Cheng and Nan Gong Ji Yan are traitors." Then realization dawned on me. Of course. The justification was so obvious. How did I miss it? "They have been targeting Zhao Yan all along. In fact, the reason why Ji Yan betrayed the school was because of her jealousy against Zhao Yan. She plans to sell her sister out to the vampires. If we don''t help Zhao Yan, she will be¡­"

    I trailed off. My friends exchanged a glance, and then nodded. They didn''t need me to spell it out.

    "You''ve been correct this entire time," Kufa said. "I will continue to trust you."

    "This whole tragedy happened because nobody except Kufa believed you." Rossetti lowered her head. "I even apologized earlier¡­it would seem insincere of me to go back on my word now when I promised to believe you and take you more seriously in future."

    "Besides, since you''ve been right about the vampires and everything," Kufa continued. "You''re most likely right about Nan Gong Zhao Yan''s situation as well."

    I smiled in relief, glad that my friends were accepting my word for what it was. "Thank you."

    "We should be the ones thanking you."

    "Actually, we owe you an apology." Rossetti hung her head. "Like I said, we should have believed you¡­"

    "All right, that''s enough. As long as you believe me now. Let''s focus on the present."

    "Speaking of which, do you know where Nan Gong Zhao Yan is?" Kufa asked, looking around. I nodded.

    "I have an idea."

    It wasn''t difficult to find Zhao Yan. We just had to head toward the location with the most number of young vampires, while avoiding the areas with the adult vampires. As we ran through the courtyard, I caught sight of Teacher Brentwood and his students in the Dragoon Corps fighting a female vampire and her all-female entourage. Not far away, Teacher Einsberg continued his battle with the three adult vampires who he froze with ice magic.

    Fortunately, my friends and I found Zhao Yan easily enough. The school was crawling with vampires, particularly the small fries, and Zhao Yan easily dispatched them with elegant strokes of her sword. Drawing her weapon, she leaped high above them, cutting a deadly swathe through their ranks. It didn''t matter if they were rabid amateurs or young elites, she easily dealt with them. Though, admittedly, the more powerful and older veterans were currently engaged in battle with the teachers at the moment, otherwise she would have gotten her ass kicked.

    Mary Sue and plot armor were a potent combination.

    As she slashed through them, Zhao Yan landed gracefully on the ground, flicking her sword to get rid of the blood on her blade. She stood in a dignified pose within the confined space of the school gymnasium, sspinning around to scan the area for more enemies.

    That was the moment Xu Wu Cheng and his entourage chose to arrive. They gently descended onto the smooth but now bloody tiles of the gymnasium, their cloaks billowing before them.

    "It''s your turn now," the red-haired vampire smirked before he leaped high up and dove toward Zhao Yan with a swing of his glowing red hand.

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 532 Chapter 532: Vampire Sphere

    "Seriously? Who came up with the chapter title?" I demanded, looking upward. Rossetti glared at me.

    "Now''s not the time to break the fourth wall! Zhao Yan is in trouble! Be serious!"

    "I don''t know if we are going to make it in time," I muttered darkly. In a way, I was right. Before we could reach Zhao Yan''s position, she was already under attack from Xu Wu Cheng, whose glowing red hand was poised to hit her from behind.

    Instinctively realizing there was a threat, Zhao Yan spun away and managed to dodge Xu Wu Cheng''s strike.

    The both of them turned around at the same time, with Zhao Yan swinging her sword to slash her assailant, but Xu Wu Cheng jumped a step back. Reluctant to allow her prey to escape, Zhao Yan closed in with another strike, but Xu Wu Cheng deftly evaded the powerful blow. He landed on the ground in a crouch, skidding backward from his momentum.

    Even without telepathy, from seeing the troubled frown on his handsome face, I could clearly guess what he was thinking.

    She''s stronger than Ji Yan. Perhaps she wasn''t drugged?

    Dude, it didn''t matter whether Zhao Yan was drugged or not. She was still stronger than Ji Yan.

    As Xu Wu Cheng tried to retreat, dodging yet another slash from Zhao Yan, a group of newcomers strolled into the gymnasium through the main entrance. The leader of the group stepped forward and took up a position next to Xu Wu Cheng to whisper into his ear.

    While the red-haired vampire was still fighting Zhao Yan and dodging her blows. Yeah, figure that one out yourself.

    "Stand down," the leader of the newcomers ordered. "Allow me¡­"

    Xu Wu Cheng bowed and placed a hand over his shoulder in a respectful salute, steppingback obediently.

    "Yes, sir."

    I could see from my vantage view that it was a handsome dude with longish blue hair and some weird wing-like adornment above his left ear. A bat wing, to be exact. He reminded me of the beggar from this morning. Well, actually, he was the beggar from this morning.

    Zhao Yan still hadn''t realized his true identity, however ¨C a case of plot-induced stupidity. Fan Le Lao dashed across the gymnasium and crossed the distance in a single bound, charging at Zhao Yan. For some reason, she threw her sheath of her sword aside in order to grasp her weapon with both hands.

    Apparently, she recognized him as a dangerous enemy. Even more so than Xu Wu Cheng.

    Before she could grip the hilt with her left hand, however, Fan Le Lao was already in her face. He grabbed hold of her sword when she slashed at him in reflex, holding the blade tightly.

    "He can touch my sword?"

    Surprised, Zhao Yan recoiled, realizing that her current opponent was far stronger than she had originally expected. Fan Le Lao merely smiled.

    "Thanks to your sword, I can spill my blood."

    His fingers squeezed the sharp blade and his flesh was broken, blood trickling both metal and hand to drip onto the floor. The moment the mana-infused fluids touched the floor, they transformed into barbed vines that snaked out and rapidly expanded across the interior of the gymnasium. Zhao Yan''s eyes widened when she spotted the thorny appendages.

    His blood can turn into blackthorn trees?

    As I said, I didn''t need to be a telepath to tell what they were thinking. It was all so predictable. Unfortunately, Zhao Yan wasn''t able to predict what came next and she found herself surrounded on all sides by the blackthorn branches.

    Fan Le Lao released her sword and stepped back, taking up position some distance away to allow his thorny vines to capture his target. Closing his eyes, he focused his mana into the thorny vine spells and drove them into a frenzy, the blood-infused appenddages growing at an insane rate.

    But it was useless.

    With a single slash, Zhao Yan cut through all of the thorny vines, freeing herself from the plant-like cage. She almost escaped, only for the vines to rapidly regenerate and wrap around her again. She desperately hacked the vines apart, but they surrounded her, stubbornly tangling themselves around her limbs. She flailed about, but her movements only served to tighten the restraints.

    The more I cut them, the more aggressive they become. What''s going on?

    Her thoughts were visibly spelled out on her pretty face even as the vines coiled around her limbs, locking her movements and restricting her. With a sudden jerk, the vines yanked her upward, causing her to cry out in pain and shock. She lost her grip on her sword, which clattered uselessly on the floor. The vines continued to grow and surround her, trapping her within a cage.

    With a satisfied expression, Fan Le Lao raised his hands and closed his fingers, recalling most of his vines and leaving just enough to bind the now unconscious Zhao Yan, who was gently lowered to the ground, beside her dropped weapon.

    How anticlimactic. I mean, I understood that Fan Le Lao was strong, but even so¡­to hype up Zhao Yan as this genius hunter, only for her to get defeated in less than thirty seconds? What the fuck, dude?

    Then again, what did I expect from a shoujo manhua? Fight scenes were not the focus. The toxic, cheesy romance was.

    Turning away, Fan Le Lao issued a single order to his minions.

    "Bring her."

    "To where?"

    I had finally caught up with the bloody vampires, having had to run all the way across the courtyard to the gymnasium. Rossetti and Kufa also came to a stop, pausing momentarily to catch their breaths.

    Xu Wu Cheng smirked when he caught sight of us. "You again. And this time, you''ve brought your friends with you."

    "Yahallo!" I waved at him. "Still as unaccomplished as ever, I see."

    My two friends burst out laughing while Xu Wu Cheng bristled at my joke (basically his name Wu Cheng was homophonic with unaccomplished in Chinese), but one look from Fan Le Lao silenced him and he sullenly stepped back. The leader of the young vampires stepped forward to greet us.

    "It''s the second time we''ve met, isn''t it?"

    "You¡­you''re from this morning!" Rossetti gasped, recognizing him.

    "I see." Kufa scowled. "You camouflaged yourself just to infiltrate the school and seek out its weak points and find an entry."

    "Nothing so elaborate." Fan Le Lao waved his hand dismissively. "I only intended to play the role as a beggar, nothing more. I didn''t do it to scope out the defenses of your school. Not when I''ve already left everything to Yi Tai over here."

    "Uh, okay. That''s the strange hobby you have there." I glanced at the followers who were gathered around him. "If you''re this loaded, then why bother begging in front of the school? You could have just asked your minions for money. I''m sure Xu Wu Cheng over there is a lot richer than most of the students here. As unaccomplished as he is, he is still a Fu Er Dai (second generation nouveau riche), after all. He can lend you his parents'' money."

    "Stop making fun of my name!"

    Fan Le Lao chuckled, ignoring his subordinate''s outburst. "I just thought it was interesting to see how mages react to people they think are lower than themselves. It is always satisfying to confirm my view that most arrogant young masters and mistresses of the so-called elite class are superficial scum."

    "And you found yourself the exception," I muttered, glancing at the unconscious Zhao Yan and wondering how my friends and I were going to save her. Fan Le Lao smiled.

    "Well¡­probably. But you and your friends have also surprised me. You''ve definitely surpassed my expectations."

    Fan Le Lao then stared at Rossetti, who began to feel very uncomfortable under his gaze. She reflexively hid behind me, using my body as a shield to protect her from his sight.

    "What''s the deal with that guy? He''s so creepy."

    "Rossetti Picket, right?" Fan Le Lao''s smile grew wider. "You''re one of us, aren''t you?"

    "No, I''m not!" she snapped. "I''m not¡­not bloodthirsty monsters like you! I don''t go around killing others for my own selfish desires!"

    "Oh, but you are." Fan Le Lao''s gaze grew even more intense, and I instinctively placed myself between him and Rossetti. She was right, the guy was creepy. "I can sense the mana in you. The blood that flows in your veins is the same as ours."

    "No, it''s not!"

    "You can deny it all you want, but one day you will discover that you won''t be able to resist it."

    "Liar!" Rossetti shouted. "I don''t know what you''re talking about!"

    "He''s trying to confound us," Kufa said. "Don''t listen to him."

    "Hmm¡­I guess it''s pointless to tell you now. However, my invitation is genuine." Fan Le Lao offered his hand in a gesture of sincerity. All I could see was a viper barely able to conceal his fangs, though. "I would like to welcome you three. What do you say to the idea of joining us¡­to becoming vampires like us?"

    "I''ll have to say no," I replied instantly. I didn''t even need to think. The guy must be crazy if he thought we were going to join his Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan and turn into insane bloodsuckers. That would suck.

    "Never! Definitely never!" Rossetti snapped, almost stamping her foot and acting all cute. Was she trying to act like an anime character or something?

    "I have a suggestion." Kufa smiled politely, but I could tell that it was a mocking fa?ade. "How about you take your offer and shove it up your ass?"

    "That''s disappointing." Fan Le Lao sighed dramatically and shook his head. "I see a lot of potential in the three of you. You are all representatives of Saint Teresa Academy¡­well, Richard was the representative of Jing Tian Academy, but the point is that you are all elites of the elites. Cream of the crop. Not only that, you''re not as hollow and arrogant as those other condescending schoolmates of yours. If you were to only shrug off those shackles of deluded morality and the illusion of virtue, you will reach the pinnacle of the magic world if you were to embrace our blood magic."

    "Uh¡­and how did you arrive at that conclusion? You don''t even know us well. Everyone has different compatibility with different kinds of magic and different affinities with different elements."

    "I told you." Fan Le Lao''s smile was sending chills down my spine. "You are the cream of the crop. You''re different from the others. I can see the potential in you. I''ve always been a good judge of character. That''s the reason why I rule over others."

    Wow, his arrogance was just insufferable.

    "And as I said, Miss Rossetti Picket over there is one of us. You might deny it all you want, but I can sense it. The same blood in our bodies also runs in her veins. One day you will seek us out."

    "Never!" Rossetti insisted.

    "Whether Rossetti becomes a vampire or not, that doesn''t matter. She still won''t join the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan." I was standing protectively in front of her. "I don''t care if she has the same blood as you all, we are not handing her over to the likes of you."

    "Richard''s right." Kufa stepped forward, his katana gripped in both hands. "No matter what happens, Rossetti is our friend. Our comrade. We won''t abandon her. And we won''t join you!"

    "You guys¡­" Rossetti looked as if she was about to cry. Not wanting to deal with the cheesiness, I moved on hastily.

    "Anyway, do you mind letting Nan Gong Zhao Yan go? If you''re not planning on killing her, why don''t you just leave her here?"

    Even though I knew what the reply would be, I still ventured the suggestion in a cheeky manner. As I expected, Xu Wu Cheng scoffed.

    "Why don''t you get lost instead?"

    "We''re here to rescue her." I jerked my chin toward the unconscious Zhao Yan. "I can''t let a friend fall into the hands of a vampire clan that just massacred a bunch of students and teachers in my school. That''s just common sense, isn''t it?"

    "Isn''t it common sense to run away when you''re outnumbered and outmatched by a much stronger enemy?" Xu Wu Cheng retorted irritably. "There''s over thirty of us and only three of you. Do you really think you can¡­?"

    "What makes you think I''m outnumbered and outmatched?" I replied with a grin.

    Then Vermillion Phoenix burst into the gymnasium, screeching as he set everything ablaze.

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 533 Chapter 533: A very bloody battle

    Several of the vampires shrieked when their bodies caught fire and combusted spontaneously under the assault. Vermillion Phoenix swooped down and they scattered in panic. Amidst the chaos, Xu Wu Cheng narrowed his eyes and gathered mana into his hands, turning them into demonic blood claws. He knew that the most effective way to fight a summoner was to attack me directly rather than try to defeat a summoned Soul Beast.

    So he sacrificed his screaming subordinates to the destructive fires of Vermillion Phoenix while he aimed for me.

    "I''ll take care of this pest and punish him for his insolence."

    Alerted by the danger, I took a step back and drew Hei Yue and Bai Ri, holding them in a defensive stance. Rossetti took up position beside me, her chakrams already gripped in her hands. Flames danced around her.

    "I won''t let you hurt Richard!"

    I nodded my thanks at her. In contrast, Xu Wu Cheng sneered at her.

    "Since you want to die with him together so badly, I''ll be more than happy to indulge you. The both of you can accompany each other in hell!"

    "Xu Wu Cheng. Do you remember what I said?"

    The cold tone of Fan Le Lao caused Xu Wu Cheng to drop to his knees. Even I, who wasn''t his target, felt chills at the thinly veiled rage in his voice.

    "Forgive me, your highness! I forgot my place!"

    Fan Le Lao glared at Xu Wu Cheng for a few more seconds before his gaze softened.

    "It''s all right. I know you''re angry on my behalf. But don''t forget what I said." He turned to me, Rossetti and Kufa. "If possible, leave those three alive."

    "If possible¡­" Xu Wu Cheng repeated with a smirk. "But if it''s not possible, then I''ll be forced to kill them. Is that fine?"

    Fan Le Lao thinned his lips. "Rough them up if you have to, but avoid killing any of them at all costs. Is that understood?"

    "Yes, sir." Xu Wu Cheng sounded almost disappointed, but he couldn''t mistake the warning in his prince''s voice. He knew better than anybody what the consequences of disobedience against his prince would be.

    "Then I''ll leave them to you."

    "Wait¡­!"

    I sprang forward when Fan Le Lao picked up Zhao Yan''s body and got ready to leave, but his minions blocked my way. Rossetti was also forced to skid to a halt beside me, and she glared at the vampires barring our path, her grip tightening on her chakrams. Xu Wu Cheng stepped to the front in a gleeful manner, cracking his knuckles and lengthening his blood claws.

    "Get them, guys. Teach these impudent fools a lesson for challenging his highness."

    "Yes, sir!"

    As one, the entourage of young vampires flew toward me upon a burst of blood-red mana under their feet, somehow managing to dodge Vermillion Phoenix''s flames. A couple of them were immolated, screaming as their torched bodies cartwheeled helplessly and tumbled onto the gound, turning to ash. The rest of them continued hurtling onward, determined to finish me off before they were slaughtered by my Celestial Guardian.

    "Richard!"

    Rossetti moved forward to meet them in combat, executing her Heavenly Phoenix Kagura Dance. However, the vampires managed to combine their powers to form a blood barrier. While Rossetti succeeded in burning through their blood barrier in short order, they had bought themselves enough time to split up and attack from different directions.

    Raising her chakrams, Rossetti executed a new dance.

    "Divine Dragon Kagura Dance!"

    This time, roses and Sakura petals drifted around us, obscuring the vampires'' view and keeping them back. They sliced and cleaved through the myriad of petals that danced around them, trying to close in on us, but the amount of flowers and blossoms dazzled their senses and confounded them. Staggering as they clutched at watery eyes and noses, they flailed almost helplessly.

    "Green Dragon."

    Just like how Rossetti''s Heavenly Phoenix Kagura Dance reduced the summoning time needed for my Vermillion Phoenix, her Divine Dragon Kagura Dance also accelerated the casting process of my Green Dragon. In a flash, I completed the supposedly only halfway finished summoning spell and called upon my Celestial Guardian.

    His titanic figure materialized and he crushed a few unfortunate vampires underneath his claws, their senses still overloaded by pollen and scents emitted from Rossetti''s flowers. Thorny vines whipped out and bound the rest of them while razor-sharp leaves cut the trapped vampires into shreds. Within a minute, the so-called elite vampires were decimated. Very few of them succeeded in tearing apart their restraints with blood magic and breaking free.

    "Still think we''re outnumbered and outmatched?" I asked the seething Xu Wu Cheng, who had less than a quarter of his original force remaining. Backed by my two Celestial Guardians, I approached his position. His surviving subordinates recoiled, taking a step backward in fear, but the red-haired vampire''s anger brought them all back to line.

    "So what if you''re a summoner? That doesn''t change the disparity between our strengths!"

    Snarling, Xu Wu Cheng lunged forward. His companions accompanied him, but both Kufa and Rossetti met them in a ferocious clash, covering me. I was left to face Xu Wu Cheng by myself, and I reacted first by parrying his blood claws with Bai Ri. Diverting him away, I then deflected his other hand with Hei Yue, flinching when his blood claws flashed a few centimeters away from my face. Pivoting on one foot, I smashed a kick into his body that sent him hurtling across the gymnasium and slamming into one of the basketball basket stands. The whole structure creaked and snapped, falling atop Xu Wu Cheng''s undignified form.

    "Three points!" I cheered. Or whatever the point system was for basketball. It was unfortunate that I didn''t play the sport (I only watched and played soccer) and thus had no idea how the rules worked.

    Then I moved to cover Rossetti, hacking another vampire. The both of us almost danced in perfect synchronicity, our swords and chakrams transforming into a whirlwind of death and destruction, our styles complementing each other and turning into a relentless offense and impenetrable defense simultaneously. Behind us, Kufa and my two Celestial Guardians mopped up the survivors.

    The vampires were pretty tenacious, though, so it would take a while for us to clean out the gymnasium.

    "Where''s Zhao Yan?" Rossetti asked, pausing between breaths while I covered her. Then, after she recovered, she took my place and hacked apart a vampire going for my back while it was my turn to inhale.

    "Gone," I grumbled bitterly. My glasses whirred and clicked as the hi-tech sensors embedded in my lenses scanned the gymnasium and confirmed my suspicions.

    It was unfortunate that Fan Le Lao and a bunch of vampires had already made their escape, carrying Zhao Yan with them. We were too late. We failed. I studied the broken window they exited from ¨C they had clearly sought a different exit entirely because Kufa and my Celestial Guardians were blocking the main entrance.

    Maybe we should have guarded the windows too, but whatever Constellation spirits I could summon at that time wouldn''t be powerful enough to stop the vampire prince.

    Rossetti and I continued to fight our way through the dwindling horde of vampires, leaving the beleaguered surviving vampires to Kufa and my Celestial Guardians. We tried to move toward the window, step at a time, leaving corpses in our wake.

    "Whoa!"

    A crimson streak of light almost blinded me. Rossetti yanked my arm and I pulled my head back just in time to evade Xu Wu Cheng''s slashing blood claws that would have ruptured my carotid artery or jugular vein if Rossetti hadn''t help me dodge it. Staggering back, I blocked his next strike witth Bai Ri.

    Damn it. I almost forgot about the instant regeneration that vampires had. Xu Wu Cheng must have already healed from the injuries he sustained from my earlier attack.

    "Richard Huang and Rossetti Picket." Xu Wu Cheng was scowling furiously. "Your teamwork is much better than the combo of me and Ji Yan. At first I thought Ji Yan was just useless, but the two of you make a frightening duo. Your combination far surpasses the sum of your parts."

    "That''s because my skills are support type," Rossetti replied briskly, slashing at his neck with one of her chakrams and forcing him to evade. "Of course I have the ability to enhance the techniques of others."

    "Yes, but that''s not what I meant."

    Xu Wu Cheng shook his head and retaliated with his blood claws, but I blocked them with my Hei Yue this time, deflecting them to the side. Rossetti then made use of the opportunity to cut him deeply, and he retreated with a hiss.

    "See? Your teamwork is perfect. I''m sure you realize it too ¨C this is the first time you''ve fought so well beside someone, isn''t it? Rossetti? I know your history ¨C how you always end up hurting your teammates and causing trouble with your reckless attacks and determination to handle the battle yourself. It''s also partly why your team lost at the national tournament¡­to Richard''s team, of all people. And Richard, the reason why you didn''t face Rossetti''s team was because you mostly fought in the individual matches. This is the first time you''ve met an ideal partner, isn''t it?"

    "And? What''s your point?"

    I ducked under another slash and answered with a riposte. Now wise enough not to underestimate me, Xu Wu Cheng parried my blade with his blood claws and retaliated with a kick. I then ducked under his sweeping leg.

    However, I didn''t straighten up. Instead, I remained bowed. Reading my intent, Rossetti rolled over my back and kicked Xu Wu Cheng, sending him skidding back several paces. When he tried to counter with his blood claws, I had already straightened my back and blocked the hit for the recovering Rossetti.

    Just before Xu Wu Cheng could slash me again, my Green Dragon lumbered forward and smacked Xu Wu Cheng with one of his arms. The poor red-haired vampire disappeared in a blur before being buried in the side of the gymnasium, his neck almost broken.

    "Thanks."

    I glanced back at the other vampires. Between Vermillion Phoenix and Kufa, they had been annihilated. There wasn''t any of them left. Rossetti and I made short work of the last three who desperately threw themselves to protect the fallen Xu Wu Cheng, and then I strolled over to Xu Wu Cheng''s prone form.

    His neck snapped and jerked as his regenerative power kicked in, and he glared at me hatefully. I pushed my glasses up and smiled in return, flanked by Rossetti and my Celestial Guardians.

    "So who''s being outmatched and outnumbered now?"

    "Fuck you!"

    I shrugged. If he wanted to die so badly, I might as well kill him now. Then he wouldn''t have the chance to torture Ji Yan and feed her to monsters or burn her in some magic lake. As much as she deserved it, the smug guy was too horrible for me to spare his life. Plus it would save me a lot of trouble later if I finished him off now.

    So I wasted no more time talking and lunged at him, thrusting Hei Yue toward his heart.

    "!!"

    Unfortunately, my black sword never reached the fucker.

    The wall of the gymnasium collapsed and a bunch of adult vampires flooded in, one of them swatting me away as if I were no more than a fly. Rossetti managed to catch hold of me when I stumbled back, and my Celestial Guardians attacked.

    However, the adult vampires conjured up powerful blood barriers that almost withstood Vermillion Phoenix''s flames and Green Dragon''s flowery barrage. Three of them fell, two charred by the powerful inferno, while one was cut apart by the deadly petals, but the rest managed to launch blood spears that forced my Celestial Guardians back.

    Vermillion Phoenix incinerated a few of the blood spears and blocked several more with his wings while Green Dragon conjured a wall of wood in front of not just him but me and my friends as well, shielding us from the lethal bombardment.

    Xu Wu Cheng barked out a laugh when the adult vampires grabbed hold of him.

    "Hah! See? I''m the one who has tha last laugh."

    I stood protectively in front of Rossetti, and to some extent, Kufa, grimly preparing for a last stand. Flames surrounded us as Rossetti prepared another dance, enhancing my Vermillion Phoenix further. Not only that, I summoned Taurus and Leo to aid us, the fire-type Constellation spirits boosted by her Heavenly Phoenix Kagura Dance.

    These veteran vampires were going to find out that we were not easy prey, despite our youth and supposed inexperience. I was under no illusions that we could escape this unscathed. I knew our chances of victory were incredibly low.

    Even so, my friends and I were ready to fight to the bitter end.

    Fortunately, they didn''t seem intent on killing us. The one who had roughly grabbed Xu Wu Cheng was manhandling him toward the hole that they created in the gymnasium wall.

    "W¡­what are you doing? What about those brats?"

    "His majesty is dead. Teresa Taylor killed him."

    The lead adult''s cold words caused Xu Wu Cheng to freeze. His jaw dropping, the red-haired vampire almost dropped to his knees.

    "No way¡­impossible."

    "We have to retreat." The acting chief, who was none other than You Shou, glanced outside anxiously. "The White Witch and her surviving teachers are converging upon our position. If we don''t move now, we''ll be wiped out. Where is his highness?"

    "His highness has already left."

    "Good." You Shou breathed a sigh of relief before he turned to the rest. "Let''s go! Now!"

    With gigantic leaps, they bound out of the gymnasium and propelled themselves high into the night before disappearing into the distance.

    "What was that about?" Rossetti asked. Her question was answered when Teresa Taylor smashed through the gymnasium, demolishing a wall and incinerating the rubble. A group of teachers descended behind her, wise enough to maintain her distance.

    The elderly headmistress glanced at us, concerned, and then stared at the sea of blood behind us.

    "Are you all right?"

    "Y¡­yes," Rossetti stammered.

    "We are, Headmistress," Kufa assured her.

    "Good. Follow Teacher Einsberg and join up with the remaining students." Taylor studied us, and then sighed in relief. "Get your wounds healed and rest."

    "Don''t worry," I assured her. "Most of this isn''t our blood."

    "Oh?" Teresa Taylor raised an eyebrow.

    "Yeah," I replied with a nod. "It''s just that we''ve been through a very bloody battle, madam."

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 534 Chapter 534: Demise of a Legend

    Teresa Taylor clashed with Fan Fu Qing, the collision of their mana exploding violently and almost incinerating the entire place.

    "White Witch Bitch!"

    Spitting, Fan Fu Qing rallied all of his blood spears to fire them at Teresa Taylor, but the elderly headmistress immolated them with a swing of her sword. Those blood spears that were not destroyed harmlessly disintegrated when they struck her angelic halo or great wings.

    There was nothing Fan Fu Qing could do that would hurt Teresa Taylor. Or so she thought.

    "Eternal Blood Fortress!"

    The blood spears rained down on Teresa Taylor, but as usual she incinerated them with a single swing of her holy blade. Despite the gentle white glow of the sword, everything it touched combusted instantly. Pressing her advantage, Teresa Taylor flapped her angelic wings and soared toward Fan Fu Qing, the latter desperately parrying her strike with a spear he produced out of his sleeve.

    "I see you are concealing another weapon, Fan Fu Qing."

    "One can never reveal the entirety of his hand right from the beginning," Fan Fu Qing replied with a grin. Gritting his teeth, he forced Teresa Taylor off with his greater physical strength and blasted her with several blood spears from the ground. Teresa Taylor managed to burn them away, but she was forced to parry Fan Fu Qing''s next strike. The both of them exchanged several blows, and to the Saint Teresa Academy headmistresss surprise, Fan Fu Qing''s spear was not destroyed at all.

    "I see¡­so this is your real weapon. A spear."

    "Indeed."

    "But¡­it''s no use."

    With holy strength bestowed upon her by God Himself, Teresa Taylor swung her sword. Even though Fan Fu Qing parried it admirably, the impact blew up the ground beneath the dueling duo, sending the vampire king skidding backward. Heaving, Fan Fu Qing gritted his teeth as he struggled to endure the blow, but he managed to force Teresa Taylor away and sent a row of blood spikes lancing after him.

    Teresa Taylor didn''t even bother to dodge. Her wings lashed out and smashed aside whatever projectiles that streaked toward her, rendering them to nothingness. Still, Fan Fu Qing''s attack brought him time to retreat, and lowering his hand, he glared at his old enemy.

    "Impressive. You must be the only one in this world who can block my blood spears so easily."

    Teresa Taylor merely stared at Fan Fu Qing impassively, but the king of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan smiled in acknowledgment.

    "You''re truly a hero worthy of the Global Federation. No wonder they used to call you the strongest paladin."

    "I appreciate your praise, king of vampires," Teresa Taylor returned graciously. "And for you to survive this long against me, you are no ordinary opponent either."

    "Don''t underestimate me."

    "Your subjects." Teresa Taylor glanced around. Not only You Shou, but a few of the elder vampires of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan were gathering, waiting for their chance. But they were not reckless enough to assault the legendary ex-paladin, for they knew it would be suicide to charge right into her holy fire. "Are you not going to rally them to fight with you?"

    "Do you take me for a fool, the White Witch of Flandor?"

    Fan Fu Qing scoffed and shook his head, tightening his grip on his silver spear. His crimson mana darkened, swirling around him like a hurricane.

    "They will only get in the way. I have no time to protect weaklings when fighting against someone of your caliber."

    "I see."

    "What''s with that smirk?"

    Fan Fu Qing''s eyes narrowed. Teresa Taylor merely shrugged.

    "You haven''t changed, Fan Fu Qing. Still always thinking about your subordinates and treasuring them. Taking the responsibility of leading and protecting them upon your shoulders alone."

    "What is it that you want to say?" Fan Fu Qing snapped, but Teresa Taylor raised her left hand to placate him.

    "Don''t misunderstand me. I am not mocking you. I am complimenting you. Your love for your subjects is admirable. However¡­"

    Teresa Taylor''s white wings unfurled and her holy halo flared like an inferno, scorching the ground around her as her purifying mana intensified. Taking a step forward, she left a molten footprint in the scorched earth.

    "You should have considered that I treasure my staff and students just as much as you do your subordinates, perhaps even more. Yet you came in here, and in your folly, killed a huge number of my precious teachers and students. Don''t think you''ll be able to get away. I swear, I will definitely avenge my important staff and pupils. I''ll hunt you down to the end of this world if I have to. And I''ll kill your subjects in front of your eyes, just as you slaughtered mine."

    "You¡­" Fan Fu Qing shifted uncomfortably, but he held his ground in firm defiance of the terrifying enemy before him. "Do you think you possess the power to face my entire clan alone?"

    "I don''t fear facing an entire vampire clan on my own," Teresa Taylor replied ominously. "Have you not said it so yourself? I am the White Witch, formerly the strongest Paladin of the Global Federation. My holy magic is antithesis to your blood spells and vampire nature. I am your natural counter¡­your biggest weakness. You can do nothing to me while I single-handedly annihilate your entire clan before you."

    "Ha ha ha ha ha! Interesting!"

    Fan Fu Qing burst out laughing, not at all intimidated by the outrageous claim his foe had made. Chuckling, he slammed the butt of his spear against the ground. "You don''t fear facing my entire clan by yourself, you say? I wouldn''t expect anything less from the White Witch herself! However¡­"

    He lowered his stance, lifting his spear and raising his hand as his deadly mana intensified. The hurricane of darkness had now coalesced into a single maelstrom that saturated the grounds of the devastated academy.

    "¡­you''ve already fallen for my deadly trap!"

    Swinging his unarmed left hand, Fan Fu Qing sent a barrage of blood spears lancing toward Teresa Taylor. The elderly Paladin slashed them apart with astonishing ease, and for a moment it looked as if Fan Fu Qing had just made a fool out of himself with his tragic boast.

    Then¡­

    "Gah!"

    Blood spurted from a stunned Teresa Taylor''s mouth as blood spikes suddenly burst through her body from within, impaling her from the inside out. Even her wings and radiant halo couldn''t protect her from an attack originating from inside her body. She staggered back, clutching at the newborn spears that emerged from her torso.

    "Sorry to disappoint you, but my blood magic isn''t restricted to blood spears alone."

    Gloating, Fan Fu Qing triumphantly strolled through the incapacitated Teresa Taylor, who was kneeling over and coughing out blood.

    "My Crimson Blood Demonic Night magic is the concept of ''being skewered by spears.'' That''s why¡­"

    Even as Teresa Taylor rose to her feet, she was suddenly brought low again by a dozen more spikes bursting from within her body.

    "As long as you remain inside my Eternal Blood Fortress, you cannot escape my Crimson Blood spells!"

    Fan Fu Qing raised a hand, and all of a sudden, an onslaught of blood spears lanced from the ground and pierced Teresa Taylor''s entire body, bypassing even her formidable holy halo and wings. The holy flames demolished the blood spears with a vengeance, but the damage had already been done. Teresa Taylor was held aloft by the blood stakes that cruelly spiked out of the earth.

    "Well, let''s end this."

    Teresa Taylor raised her head helplessly as Fan Fu Qing approached. With a smirk, the king of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan raised his hand triumphantly and shouted.

    "The White Witch of Flandor!"

    At his command, thousands of blood spikes burst out of the ground and flew into the air before arcing downward in the heavens to rain down on the hapless headmistress.

    For a moment, the light turned into shadow as the numerous blood spears blotted out the sky, obscuring whatever sunlight that was being cast on Teresa Taylor''s position. Hurtling down mercilessly, they sought to tear the White Witch into shreds.

    But Teresa Taylor wasn''t done yet.

    "Heavenly Cremation, Flames of Purgatory."

    Raising her head ever so slightly, the headmistress of Saint Teresa Academy whispered an incantation.

    In an instant, the shadows vanished, replaced by a blinding conflagration that was as bright as the sun itself. The inferno not only razed all the blood spikes impaling Teresa Taylor, it incinerated the incoming hail of blood spears, rendering them into ash. The flames were so huge they literally consumed almost half of the courtyard, melting concrete into slag and turning trees and grass into soot.

    Fan Fu Qing watched, frustrated, as his burning spears fell around him like comets, sparks flying off as they harmlessly struck the ground. He gritted his teeth, his lips quivering with rage, as he watched his immense attack reduced to flames in just one spell from Teresa Taylor.

    In the center of the holy inferno, Teresa Taylor swung her sword and extinguished the flames with that single movement, the bloody projectiles falling harmlessly as they evaporated from the sheer heat. Standing up straight, almost as if she was unscathed, she gave the vampire king a cold glare.

    However, Fan Fu Qing''s frustration did not last long. His lips curled into a smile and he smirked.

    "Interesting."

    Not done yet, he raised his hand and conjured another wave of blood spears. Thousands upon thousands of them twisted and snaked through the heavens, trying to rain down on the evading Teresa Taylor. She seemed to have realized that even her vaunted holy halo and wings were no longer proof against the formidable barrage. The spears slammed into the ground, embedding themselves deeply into molten or solid concrete, trying to seek out the White Witch, whose agility belied her age. Soaring across the courtyard, she swerved upward to dodge a persistent onslaught of blood spears, but they suddenly switched direction and followed her doggedly, even as she escaped them.

    Those spears that she could not evade, due to the sheer number of them, she swatted away with her sword, which immolated the offending projectiles. Still, a stray spear or two managed to graze her cheek, drawing blood.

    Falling from the skies, Teresa Taylor landed on the ground. At that moment, Fan Fu Qing grinned.

    "From below!"

    Blood spears impaled Teresa Taylor''s foot, pinning her to the ground and causing the White Witch to wheeze in pain. Dropping to the ground, the ex-Paladin incinerated the blood spears, but Fan Fu Qing crowed as she threw up her hand.

    "Too slow! From above!"

    Teresa Taylor just barely managed to burn away the blood spikes in time to roll away, the hail of crimson spears falling upon her former position and puncturing the ground where she had been. Getting to her feet, Teresa Taylor took a deep breath and conjured a ball of holy fire with her free left hand. Looking like miniature white suns, the fireballs streaked across the space between the two old adversaries, but Fan Fu Qing calmly raised his hand.

    "Oh, Bloody Wall!"

    A wall of blood rose, a crimson fortress that sprang between the two mages to block the cascading fireballs. The fiery projectiles detonated against the bloody wall, razing it to the ground, but at the same time the majority of them dissipated harmlessly in the explosion. A single fireball managed to get through, but Fan Fu Qing raised his spear to cut it in half.

    As he did so, Teresa Taylor sprang from the billowing smoke, twisting in midair to land behind Fan Fu Qing. For the first time, flames sparked to life on the tip of her sword. Fan Fu Qing spun around, his eyes narrowing when he recognized the threat. Blood barriers sprung up protectively, filling the space between the two foes.

    "Her Angelic Descent and holy magic, huh?"

    He was right. Teresa Taylor condensed her holy mana to the tip of her sword for a final attack.

    "Angelic Descent. Wrath of God. Deliverance of the Apocalypse."

    And just like that, everything vanished in a blinding light.

    When the light cleared, all that remained of Fan Fu Qing was a charred skeleton that slowly crumbled away into ashes. Teresa Taylor turned away from her vanquished foe, but her rage continued to simmer underneath. Yes, she had defeated Fan Fu Qing, but that didn''t mean her dead staff and students would return to life.

    "You¡­!"

    You Shou was yelling, but he managed to turn around and order the remaining elders of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan to flee. They were wise enough not to attempt vengeance.

    "Retreat! His majesty has perished! Scatter and escape! Make sure that his highness is safe!"

    Obeying You Shou immediately, the elders split up and sprinted in different directions. However, Teresa Taylor eyed them, her sword still drawn threateningly.

    "None of you are getting away alive."

    Then the video ended.

    Leaning back in my chair, I couldn''t help but shake my head, at a total loss for words. Apparently, a student had recorded the entirety of Teresa Taylor''s fight with Fan Fu Qing and uploaded it online. That was why I was watching it.

    Well¡­at least I was treated to one hell of a fight scene¡­

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 535 Chapter 535: Social Media

    While I leaned against my chair after watching the video on social media, I considered a few points. One, that Xu Wu Cheng was still alive. Some readers had screamed at me in the comments, accusing me of being stupid for not being abe to kill him. Well, that was because of the adult vampires who were a lot stronger than I was. Perhaps I hadn''t wasted time gloating with the whole "who is outnumbered and outmatched now?" I might have been able to deliver the finishing blow before they intervened.

    However, the truth was that my gloating actualy saved my life. If I had rushed forward to kill Xu Wu Cheng immediately without saying that line, I would have been caught by the explosion when the adult vampires broke into the gymnasium and get struck by them. The only reason why I survived being swatted by them was because I could react in time, having seen the assailant swinging his hand toward me and there was quite a distance for him to cover, thus allowing me the time I needed to defend myself.

    If I had charged at Xu Wu Cheng a little earlier, I wouldn''t be able to defend myself when the veteran vampire swat me, and most likely I would have died from that blow, my neck broken or my skeleton shattered. Such was the strength of the adult vampires. They truly were not an enemy I could afford to underestimate.

    No matter what I did, Xu Wu Cheng would have survived. And people said I had plot armor. Fuck this. Xu Wu Cheng surviving this ordeal was very bad news for me. He would definitely seek revenge in future, and when he did, he would surely develop a countermeasure against my summoning magic the next time we met. It was going to be a much harder fight in the future.

    I was so not looking forward to it.

    I could just wash my hands off this whole thing and not chase after him. On one hand, if I pursued the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan, fighting Xu Wu Chen would be inevitable, but on the other hand, I really had no reason to rescue Nan Gong Zhao Yan other than her being my friend. I could just walk away from this whole bloody affair and no one would be able to blame me.

    Like hell I would. My ideals might be borrowed¡­they might be "fake" but they weren''t superficial. I looked up to my dad and wanted to be a hero like him. I had grown up wanting to save others, without asking for anything in return. That was what it meant to be a true hero ¨C to risk one''s life helping other people in need. To never abandon the innocent and the helpless, to save them from despair and evil. Evil such as Fan Le Lao and the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Sect. it didn''t matter whether Zhao Yan was my friend or not. If she required saving, then it was my duty as a hero ¨C or at least someone pursuing the ideals of a true hero ¨C to save her.

    And for those readers calling me stupid in the comments or in the forum because they were demanding for ruthless, selfish, anti-hero protagonists who didn''t give a fuck about anyone¡­well, they were delusional idiots. Come on, it had been over 500 chapters, and from the very beginning I already stated that these were my ideals, that it was my goal to be a hero like my dad, saving the innocent civilians from monsters and villains. Why the fuck are you still here more than 500 chapters later complaining about my so-called naivety or stupidity? If you didn''t want to be a hero and if you wanted to be a self-centered, cold-hearted bastard who didn''t care about other people, suit yourself. Don''t push your fucking ideals onto me. I''m not your bloody clone or a mirror reflecting your desires or edgy personalities. I am Richard Huang, a hero wannabe. If you still couldn''t accept that, then you could fuck off and read some of those edgy stories with "ruthless," psychotic main characters who had no qualms murdering their enemies and abandoning their allies.

    Don''t associate me with those scum. Or with you.

    Putting my ideals of heroism aside, I also knew that abandoning the fight now would defeat the whole purpose of this parody. Besides, I wanted to go kick some vampire ass. No, I needed to kick some vampire ass. This was a fight that Xu Wu Cheng started, and so I intended to finish it. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.

    Honestly, I didn''t buy into these edgy principles of vengeance, but leaving that bastard alive was like having an unhealed sore. One way or another, one of us was destined to die at the hands of the other. I had to ensure that I was the one who survived the inevitable death-match.

    Plus there was the whole thing with Fan Le Lao. With his father dead, he would surely be the new leader of the vampire clan, and that was very bad news. From what I saw of him, he was one crafty bastard who came up with schemes to cover up his other schemes. And those schemes were definitely not good. Also, I suspected the vampire clan to have links to the Federation''s main foe, the Dark Church.

    And Fan Le Lao had abducted Zhao Yan. Most likely Ji Yan was also taken into the Crimson Bood Demonic Night clan??s sanctum. After betraying the Guang Zhi Yi Sect and her triplet sister, there was no other place she could go to. I doubted she could just nonchalantly return home like this.

    The fact that the surviving teachers and students of Saint Teresa Academy couldn''t find her was even more evidence of her betrayal. Teresa Taylor had apologized to me again for refusing to believe me when I told them everything, but it was too late. What was the point of her apology now? The dead wasn''t going to come back to life.

    That said, I doubted it would have changed anything. Knowing Fan Le Lao, even if Nan Gong Ji Yan and Xu Wu Cheng were exposed, caught and apprehended by the Hunter Association or whoever, he would have backup plans in place or other operatives to continue the task in their stead. The assault on Saint Teresa Academy was inevitable. Actually¡­I honestly didn''t understand the whole point of Xu Wu Cheng infiltrating the school and doing that whole betrayal thing with Ji Yan. What exactly was his purpose? He didn''t do anything except maybe weaken the defenses in the north of the academy ¨C defenses that wouldn''t have been set up in the first place because of the Guang Zhi Yi Sect''s stupidity and if the vampires hadn''t announced their presence by attacking the other academies. Other than that¡­he did absolutely nothing to further the plan of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan''s assault. Okay, he weakened the Guang Zhi Yi Sect by getting Ji Yan to drug them, but she failed in that mission. In the end, Zhao Yan wasn''t drugged but she still got subdued so easily by Fan Le Lao that I wondered what the hell the point of drugging them was. Fan Le Lao could easily solo the whole Guang Zhi Yi Sect by himself, never mind the fact that he had Xu Wu Cheng and an army of elite young vampires to help him.

    It was almost as if he was solely in Saint Teresa Academy just to create shoujo drama with Ji Yan and seduce her into an abusive and toxic relationship that so many female readers love.

    "Richard?"

    I wasn''t given any time to ponder on that mystery. I glanced at the video image of Kufa on my computer screen, who had contacted me to discuss on how to proceed from here. The news had spread like wildfire online, and he was the one who sent me that video clip of Teresa Taylor versus Fan Fu Qing in the first place. Given how I missed the latter part of the climactic battle, I was grateful to him for providing the link to YouTube.

    "Sorry. Just¡­in awe over the fight scene. I can''t believe they have the video online."

    "It''s all over the news," Kufa agreed. "The number one trending news on the Internet right now. People are posting up images and stuff on social media. Just look at the video I sent you!"

    "Yeah, about that¡­" I felt apprehension nagging at me. "How the heck did the guy fim the whole thing? Is he crazy? If he got caught in the crossfire, he would have died!"

    "Yeah, well¡­he''s not the only one. Just search around the Internet."

    Under the chat window, Kufa provided me a bunch of links. I reluctantly clicked on them and found myself scrounging through Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, where many Saint Teresa Academy students were posting photographs of the attack. One picture on Facebook showed the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan vampires lunging at the photographer''s fellow students, with the caption, "wow! I don''t believe it! My school is under attack!"

    Even more ridiculous was a student taking a selfie with vampires in the background, and written under was her comment, "something you don''t see everyday!"

    You got that right. Taking a selfie while being attacked by vampires was certainly something I didn''t see everyday. My heart sinking, I clicked on the Twitter links.

    "LOL! Bunch of idiots attacking our school right now! Can''t wait to see them die. #toostupidtolive."

    "I''ll update you guys when I get out of this alive! For now, too busily running away for my life! #runforyourlife."

    "Omfg! The headmistress is killing the vampires! So cruel! Stop! Vampires are humans too! #alllivesmatter."

    Uh¡­what the fuck? You do realize that your fellow classmates and teachers are being killed by the vampires, right? Do their lives not matter?

    Some even posted a photograph, where vampires had burst into the classroom. "They''re in the classroom!"

    And even more absurd was one Twitter account saying, "hell yeah, we''ll probably get holidays for the next two weeks! #Iwantmoreattacks!"

    I closed the tabs, moved onto Instagram and almost regretted it.

    "Suckers bloodsucking!" ¨C A photograph of a vampire sucking someone''s blood.

    There was another photograph of the moon and the vampires soaring through the night sky. The photographer wondered if this would win him or her a photography award.

    "There are even more videos! They look so intense!"

    Kufa continued speaking to me through chat. I sighed and clicked on the videos, only to see the same amateurish, shaking footage of students yelling and screaming as the vampires attacked. But the cameraman, who was offscreen (for obvious reasons), was cheering.

    "This is cool! I hope I''m capturing all this!"

    No wonder Saint Teresa Academy suffered so many casualties. So many students were more interested in capturing footage or pictures to upload to social media that they literally forgot to run for their lives. In one of the recovered footage, the cameraman was attacked offscreen by a lunging vampire and his camera fell onto the floor before blanking out. No doubt a classmate had picked up his camera and uploaded his footage on his own Youtube account, benefiting from the death of someone else to gain views for his own account.

    I was at a loss for words.

    "I give up," I groaned, holding my head in my hands. I should have let them die. Well, I didn''t do much to save my schoolmates, anyway. The only one I actively helped was Zhao Yan and I failed. Even then, I would like to think that my actions helped a few. At least Rossetti and Kufa survived, thanks to my warning.

    But¡­come on. Getting obsessed with getting online fame to the point of risking your life for a few minutes of footage or a snarky snapshot? Really?

    "You really haven''t been on social media much, have you?"

    "Nope. I don''t really use social media."

    The only platform I used was Facebook and perhaps Youtube. I tended to ignore the comments on Youtube most of the time, because I only used it to watch anime or listen to anime music. Twitter and Instagram were alien to me and I never bothered to sign up for accounts on those platforms. Taking pictures and tweeting whatever I did was not appealing to me in the slightest. I was too busily training or reading. I did have a blog account for wargaming hobbies and tabletop war games, but no one read it or commented on it.

    "I don''t blame you. But you''ve Facebook, don''t you? Go check it out! Everyone''s talking about it!"

    "Yeah, I know I already did¡­"

    I reluctantly opened Facebook again and once again saw my newsfeed flooded by people posting pictures and videos about the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan''s raid on Saint Teresa Academy. I scrolled through them, not exactly eager to revisit the sheer stupidity of humanity ¨C most of them I had already read earlier. I recognized a few posts as those that Kufa linked me to earlier.

    And then I stopped, my finger pausing on the mouse scroll button when something in my newsfeed caught my attention.

    "An Quan has marked herself as safe."

    "Ping Qing has marked himself as safe."

    "Bi Nan has marked herself as safe."

    "Tao Zou has marked himself as safe."

    There were a few Saint Teresa Academy students who marked themselves as safe in the aftermath of the disaster. Apparently, there was an outpouring of concern and worry after the attack, and the survivors were assuring their friends and families on social media that they were safe. Ironically, the people posting the pictures and videos didn''t offer the same assurances. They didn''t need to. They were laughing as they replied to comments on their photographs.

    I noted that many of them seemed to have disappeared abruptly, shortly after their uploadings. The timing of their lack of response, especially toward concerned parties asking if they were safe, were ominously right in the middle of the assault. Already, in my newsfeed, there were parents and friends asking Saint Teresa Academy students to help confirm if their child or friend was still alive, if they were still safe and unharmed.

    Feeling a pang in my heart, I was about to close the tab when I caught sight of something.

    "Richard?"

    I snapped up to attention when Kufa called my name. Nodding dismissively, I waved him away.

    "Y¡­yeah, I''m all right."

    "You don''t look all right."

    "Trust me, I''m fine." I swallowed. Kufa watched me suspiciously, but decided not to pursue the matter. He sighed.

    "Anyway, Rossetti wants to meet up tomorrow. You had better come too."

    "Yeah, I will." I glanced at the door, wondering if Adrian Stuart and Melina Franklin would allow me to. They were panicking when I returned home the other night. It was a good thing that the middle school students were not involved in the Holy Supper or the casualties would have been even higher. They would basically be lambs to the slaughter.

    "All right, I''ll see you tomorrow then."

    Kufa gave me one last worried look before he cut the video call. Even as he disappeared, I continued staring at the computer screen for a long time. Especially at my Facebook tab. My eyes were riveted on a single person''s account, which hadn''t been updated since yesterday.

    Nan Gong Zhao Yan. On her page, her sister, Yue Jian had posted a question.

    "Zhao Yan? Are you and Ji Yan all right? Our parents and I just saw the news. Please let us know if you are okay."

    Knowing that Zhao Yan would never be able to respond or mark herself as safe, my shoulders slumped and my heart sank under the tremendous weight of failure.

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 536 Chapter 536: Final Friends

    The next morning I woke up early to leave, but not for school. After the devastation the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan had caused, Teresa Taylor had naturally shut the school down. Parents were too afraid to send their children to Saint Teresa Academy and expressed their concern over their safety following the hideous slaughter.

    Never mind a good number of the deaths were caused by social media-obsessed students too busily filming or photographing instead of escaping to safety¡­

    "You sure you''re okay?" Dad asked me before I departed my room. I nodded, watching as his image flickered in the holographic screen of my smartphone. Then the picture resolved and I saw the worry on his face. "You should return home."

    "I will be, shortly," I assured him. After the catastrophe, my exchange session was cancelled and I was slated to return to Jing Tian City. "But there are a few things I have to do before I return home."

    "Huh? What?" Dad demanded, his brow furrowed. Then he widened his eyes. "Don''t tell me you plan on taking revenge?!"

    I actually burst out laughing at that. Pushing my glasses up, I shook my head.

    "Dad, you know what kind of person I am. Do I look like the type to seek revenge? I''m not that petty."

    "Oh, God¡­please don''t let the readers hear you say that. They will be complaining in the comments that you are spineless, a coward, or a pushover."

    "Those readers are idiots. They should use their brains ¨C what exactly am I supposed to do against an entire vampire clan? Do they not know that I am totally no match for the adult vampires? Hunting down Fan Le Lao or Xu Wu Cheng is one thing, but what am I supposed to do against the veteran vampires? If Headmistess Taylor hadn''t rescued me, I would have been crushed by one of them. And then there''s still that You Shou bloke¡­even if I somehow defeat all the young elite vampires, I lack the strength to fight the adults."

    "Good. It seems that you??ve thought through this clearly." Dad looked relieved. Then he frowned. "So what do you intend to do?"

    "I need to pay a friend a visit," I replied. "And before that, I''m scheduled to meet another couple of friends. Since this is likely the last time I see them, I should say a proper farewell."

    "Ah, okay. That makes sense." Dad nodded. "I won''t disturb you then. Head on to your appointment!"

    "Thanks."

    I switched off the video call and left the house. Adrian and Melina were still asleep, so neither of them could stop me. I headed in the direction of school, but I didn''t intend to go there. As I said, Saint Teresa Academy was closed after yesterday''s disaster, so students were supposed to stay at home.

    However, we were still allowed to meet up. I stopped by a caf¨¦, recognizing it as Chao Caf¨¦ ¨C the same one that Nan Gong Zhao Yan asked me to wait for her in what seemed like a lifetime ago.

    "Richard! Over here!"

    "No, no. You''re on time. In fact, Kufa hasn''t arrived yet."

    Rossetti sulked, playing with her fork as she stabbed the cake. With a huff, she shoved a piece of the cake into her mouth before sipping the tea.

    Then she glanced at me, looking embarrassed. Conjuring a holographic menu, she spun the glowing window toward me.

    "Um, don''t be shy! Order some cake for yourself! Do you want some coffee too?"

    "Maybe. Do they have nothing but cakes here?" I asked, scrolling through the menu. Chao Caf¨¦ was known for its cakes, and to be honest, I preferred cakes over bread because of my sweet tooth, but that didn''t stop me from raising an eyebrow when I saw the limited selection. Chocolate cakes, strawberry cakes, fruit cakes, hotcakes, pancakes¡­

    I wasn''t a picky eater, so I was fine with cakes. But I wanted something more substantial, something more filling. Cakes, while full of sugar, were surprisingly light on the stomach. If I had cake this early in the morning, I was going to get hungry really quickly.

    However, the moment I caught sight of something, I immediately ordered it.

    "Eh? Mango cake?" Rossetti giggled when she saw my order. "Oh, right. I remember that your favorite fruit is mango."

    "How do you know that?" I narrowed my eyes. "I don''t recall ever mentioning that to you."

    "You''re always drinking mango juice or ordering mango ice cream in the cafeteria," Rossetti reminded me. Oh, right. We had lunch together occasionally. She must have noticed my preferences. As for me, I recalled that Rossetti usually drank strawberry milk.

    "Sorry for being late." Kufa showed up. He sighed as he took a seat beside me. "I overslept a bit."

    "Not at all," Rossetti assured him. "You''re right on time. Do you want cake? Coffee?"

    "Yes to the coffee." Kufa conjured the holographic menu and grimaced when he saw the selection. "Do they have nothing but cake here?"

    That was the exact same question I asked earlier.

    "This is Chao Caf¨¦," Rossetti replied, as if that explained everything. Kufa rolled his eyes, but he settled for pancakes and honey maple syrup. His eyes bulged when he saw a waitress bringing my mango cake to me.

    "I didn''t know you like cake."

    "Because it''s mango," Rossetti explained with a laugh. Kufa stared at her blankly, as if to ask, so what?

    Yeah, well¡­I guess some people were more observant than others.

    "Anyway, you wanted to meet us?" I asked Rossetti. "What''s up?"

    Rossetti pouted. "Can''t I just hang out with you guys? Especially after going through such a terrifying attack last night? It''s not like everything has to be about serious business."

    She then lowered her head.

    "¡­Miura''s funeral. Are you both attending as well?"

    "Yeah. I''m staying in Flandor City for a while, but I should be able to attend the mass funerals before I return to Jing Tian City."

    "I''m definitely in." Kufa nodded, and then he glanced at me. "So you''re returning to Jing Tian City, huh?"

    "Yeah." I rubbed absently at my cheek. "After what happened last night, Jing Tian Academy is not taking any chances. They cancelled the exchange and instructed me to return."

    "We''ll be¡­very lonely when you leave." Rossetti fidgeted an iittle. She sighed heavily. "Sometimes, I forget that you''re from another school. It''s like¡­you''ve been with us forever, you know? About half a year now, maybe?"

    "Around there," I agreed. "I''m supposed to be here for another two months, but¡­things happen."

    "And now it??s over. You''re going back." Rossetti stared at her now empty plate. "We lost Miura, and then you''re leaving."

    "Hey, it''s not as if we won''t see Richard again," Kufa pointed out. "Jing Tian City isn''t far from here. We can always pay him a visit."

    "I still have to return from time to time to check on the progress of Adrian and Melina," I added. "Technically I''m still their personal tutor. I''m supposed to continue teaching. Oh, well. I''m sure Duke Franklin will figure something out."

    "Yeah." Kufa stirred his coffee, looking restless. "You know¡­there are rumors that they might just close down Saint Teresa Academy for a year. After so many students died¡­and the amount of staff we lost, they say it might be easier to send the students elsewhere. To other schools, to finish the school year. It will be hard for students to return here."

    I knew what he meant. With magic and modern technology, it would be easy to repair the school in no time at all, but even if the physical damage was repaired in a day or two, the psychological scars remained. Students would be traumatized to return to the site of such massacres. Specters literally haunted the shadowy corridors, and no matter how they cleaned the blood out of the buildings, that deathly aura continued to linger.

    Saint Teresa Academy was now a ghost school.

    Perhaps they were right to send the students elsewhere. In such an environment, how were they going to train and learn?

    I shook my head and smiled. What utter bullshit. After the monsters invaded Jing Tian City, didn''t we return to it and resume our daily lives, as if everything was normal, despite the deaths and damage caused there? The students of Jing Tian Academy returned to the school without caring about the slaughter that took place there. Furthermore, we were trained in combat and magic precisely to exterminate monsters and rogue mages ¨C such as the vampire clan. We should harden our hearts and used this experience to learn the horror they could wreak, and better prepare ourselves for future attacks and atrocities.

    Running away was cowardly. Not to mention, it would defeat the whole point of learning how to fight. How could a school that prided itself on training paladins, combate mages and so many different classes of warriors shut down just because of a single battle? Wasn''t that sort of thing precisely what they trained for?

    The amateurish stunts and major failures of the idiots of Guang Zhi Yi Sect aside, of course. I honestly didn''t know what the Hunter Association taught Yi Shen and Kai Lin. Or perhaps those two didn''t learn anything properly.

    "Then where will we go?" Rossetti, unaware of my thoughts, asked nervously. Kufa glanced back at her and offered a reassuring smile.

    "Honestly, it won''t happen. At least I don''t think it will."

    "It didn''t happen in Jing Tian Academy," I said. Both Kufa and Rossetti turned to stare at me. I shrugged. "Surely you heard about the demonic invasion almost a year ago?"

    "I thought that was Bo City."

    "Dude¡­" I glared at Kufa, who looked sheepish. "Are you mistaking me for some versatile mage or Bu Fan?"

    "Sorry¡­bad joke." Kufa then turned serious. "But yes, that was indeed a major tragedy. Jing Tian City stood back up again almost immediately. I''m confident that Saint Teresa Academy possesses the same sort of strength."

    "We were trained for these kind of situations," Rossetti agreed. "We''ll be shaming ourselves now if we run away and hide from the disaster."

    She then slammed her fist on the table, causing our cups of tea and coffee to tremble. She carried a suitably chastened expression when the waitress turned to glare at her, and lowered her voice.

    "We will come back stronger! And seek revenge on the vampire clan! That Crimson Blood whatever clan! We''ll hunt them down and exterminate them!"

    "Easier said than done," I muttered under my breath. "We were all campaigning to wipe out the Dark Church after the disaster in Bo¡­ahem, Jing Tian City, and looked how that turned out. Vengeance is great and all, and of course people want justice, but reality isn''t always kind enough to give us what we want."

    "I know," Rossetti admitted. She lowered her head and clasped her hands. I suddenly felt bad when I saw her forlorn expression. Perhaps I should have been more tactful and encouraging. After all, I understood how she felt. This wasn''t the first time I had been through such a calamity.

    "I''m sure the authorities will figure it out. The Federation military as well as the elite mercenary units are searching for the Dark Church and rooting them out even as we speak. It may take years, perhaps decades, but they will surely destroy the Dark Church. The same goes for this vampire clan. The moment an elite mercenary unit is sent after them, along with regiments of mage soldiers, the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan is doomed."

    "Yeah, that''s right," Kufa agreed wholeheartedly. "I have it on good authority that the Hunter Association is mobilizing almost their entire force and dedicating them to annihilating the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan. After Headmistress Taylor slew their king, Fan Fu Qing, they should be in a mess now. This is the best time to strike, before they can recover from their own losses."

    "That''s great, but¡­" Rossetti swallowed. "If they are too slow, we''ll never be able to destroy them. They will hide somewhere, rebuild and come back stronger. You know how this works. Bureaucratic red tape, delays¡­by the time the Hunter Assciation moves out, the vampire clan will be long gone."

    Kufa and I exchanged a glance, but said nothing. Not caring, Rossetti continued.

    "We have to take matters into our own hands. In fact, that''s the real reason why I called you guys here today."

    "Huh? What do you mean?" I gaped at her. Meanwhile, Kufa rose to his feet, almost slamming his hands on the table, causing the cups to shake again. He ignored the glare the waitress sent him and focused on the red-haired girl opposite us.

    "You can''t mean¡­"

    Rossetti stared back determinedly.

    "We should pursue the vampire clan ourselves and destroy them."

 537 Chapter 537: A Visi

    Both Kufa and I exchanged a glance, and then we burst out laughing.

    "What?!" Rossetti demanded. "What''s so funny?!"

    "You think the three of us are capable of destroying the vampire clan by ourselves?" Kufa snorted as he sat back down, folding his arms and leaning against the chair. "Sorry, but if you want to commit suicide, do it yourself. Don''t drag us into this reckless plan."

    "Have you forgotten how we got our asses kicked by the adult vampire? That big guy who got roasted by Headmistress Taylor? We couldn''t even defeat one guy, and you want to go after the entire clan?"

    I shook my head, trying my best not to sound too annoyed. Rossetti slumped in her seat, her hands at her side. I could see her bunching them into fists.

    "But¡­but we can''t do nothing!"

    "Who says we are doing nothing?"

    "Eh?" Rossetti stared at me blankly. I shrugged and turned to Kufa, smiling.

    "We are keeping track of mercenary movements and seeing who are carrying the fight to them. Then we will follow the specific mercenary regiments and volunteer to join them. Isn''t that right, Kufa?"

    "Yeah." Kufa nodded. "I''m looking at the Midnight Order, who specialize in hunting vampires. The Hunter Association has already enlisted their help. They haven''t mobilized yet, mostly because they are still gathering information and trying to track down the vampires and locate their hideout."

    "The Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan is really good at hiding." I sighed as I sagged down on the table. "This isn''t the first time the Hunter Association has tried to root them out. I think they have been on their tail ever since the other two high schools were destroyed."

    "Yeah, but Saint Teresa Academy is¡­you know. An elite school of renown and no small amount of prestige. Rich kids go there, especially the children of nobles. That''s what caused all this uproar. The parents are spending a lot more money to ensure they get their revenge."

    Class difference really sucked. It wasn''t that nobody cared when the other two high schools were destroyed by the vampires, but the parents could do very little except rely on the authorities. However, the moment rich parents and nobles came into the picture, they were willing to empty their wallets and hire elite mercenaries and paramilitary organizations to wipe out the vampires. They sought vengeance for their beloved children, who they had devoted so much resources and time to grooming.

    Somehow the whole thing made me disgusted, but there was nothing I could do about it. I wasn''t very rich. Yeah, my dad earned quite a bit from his mercenary days, but people tended to misunderstand something. We didn''t get to save those funds. Most of the money he earned had to go into procuring new equipment, maintain and repair broken weapons, secure fresh ammunition (for magic weapons) and fuel, purchase new vehicles ¨C especially those lost during missions.

    All these cost money. And they were taken out from the paycheck that the employers gave the mercenaries. What, you think they were going to cover all those expenses along with the big cheque they gave us? Don''t be na?ve.

    That was why mercenaries were so expensive to hire. You weren''t just paying for them to go into combat. All the combat expenses, such as traveling, vehicles, ammunition and weapons, and medical fees were all included in the transaction.

    Also, the mercenaries also subcontracted other combat mages, such as volunteers like me, Kufa and Rossetti if we chose to follow them. Then they had to split the cash they earned even further. Even if we were "volunteers," we still need to be paid, or that would be illegal exploitation of labor. They had the right to refuse us if they didn''t think they could spare the cash, but mercenaries usually didn''t care because they needed cannon fodder and the like. Or interns. Also, they were always on the lookout for potential newbies that they could recruit into the core of their organizations. For the future, and all that.

    "I see." Rossetti was aware of that too. She straightened up, looking more determined. "Then let''s do that. Please keep me updated."

    "I will," Kufa assured her. Then he looked sternly at her. "And don''t do anything reckless. We''ll move together. Is that clear?"

    "Come on¡­" Rossetti clasped her hands behind her head, looking annoyed. "I''m not stupid, you know? Even if I''m a little¡­hotheaded, even I know that it''ll be absurdly reckless for me to attack the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan on my own."

    Then she lowered her head, an expression of frustration on her pretty face.

    "And besides, I don''t even know where they are right now."

    "Yeah, the Midnight Order will find them," Kufa promised. He glanced at me. "Are the Silver Wolves participating in this one?"

    "No." I shook my head. "Instructor Feng Hai says that they have a lead on the Dark Church. They are focusing on that for now. As dangerous as the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan is, the Dark Church cannot be forgotten. They have already attacked several cities. Can''t blame the Silver Wolves for prioritizing them."

    Yeah, when I thought about it like that, I realized that the Dark Church was the greater threat. As callous as I might sound, what was a school compared to an entire city? Despite the atrocities the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan carried out, they hadn''t assaulted anything larger than a school¡­

    Wait, why were they attacking schools in the first place? That made no sense whatsoever. Shouldn''t the vampires be attacking Hunter Association outposts instead? Hunter Association headquarters and the like? What benefits did they have from attacking schools? I guess it was possible that they intended to ensure that the students still in training wouldn''t mature to become powerful enemies in future, so they wanted to first eliminate those with the potential to threaten them in future. That was the only reason I could think of right now.

    "All right, then I guess it''s time."

    After finishing my mango cake and mango tea, I rose from my seat. I had already automatically paid for the food and drink through electronic payments, the system automatically deducting the credits from my account when I made the order.

    "Where are you going?" Rossetti asked, standing up to join me. I turned back to her and smiled.

    "To pay a visit."

    *

    Thanks to my glasses and smartphone, I roughly recalled the route that Nan Gong Zhao Yan took to her house, so it was a simple matter for me to retrace the steps. Like before, the train journey required an hour, but I reached my destination before I knew it.

    As I approached the Nan Gong family''s house, I could hear the faint sounds of the television drifting through the open window. Apparently they were watching the news.

    "Yesterday night, Saint Teresa Academy was attacked by a massive group of vampires belonging to the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan, who reportedly mobilized their entire clan for the assault. At least 120 students have been killed or are injured, and half that number have gone missing. Headmistress Teresa Taylor has expressed her outrage at the atrocities and is in discussion with the Global Federation government on launching a nationwide search and destroy mission. Several mercenary organizations have already stepped forward and pledged their support, offering to help the Federation military. Meanwhile, the school itself closed down, and students have been advised to stay at home in the aftermath of what is one of the worst school attacks in history¡­"

    Professor Nan Gong Jiao Shou was watcing the television solemnly, slouching against the sofa in despair. Behind him, Yue Jian was preparing the food that her mother had just cooked, placing them on the dining table and setting it up. Upon hearing the anchorwoman''s dry rambling, she glanced at the television with a worried expression.

    "Zhao Yan and Ji Yan¡­"

    "I''ve contacted the school, but it seems the both of them have gone missing."

    Yue Jian''s mother looked concerned even as she brought out a plate of fried chicken.

    "There''s no news about them," Nan Gong Jiao Shou said glumly. "Headmistress Taylor promised to do everything within her power to locate the missing student, but with her academy in such a state, I don''t think they will be able to do much for now¡­"

    "At least there''s still a chance that they might still be alive," his wife said wistfully, clasping her hands as if in prayer after setting the plate down on the table. "They are not among those confirmed dead so that''s some good news."

    "Still, I would like to hear something more concrete than that¡­"

    "About that, I might have some news on your daughters."

    The Nan Gong family jumped up at my voice, startled by my sudden intrusion. Well, I didn''t exactly trespass into their house. I was standing right outside their door and speaking through their open window. The three of them stared blankly at me before recognition filled their eyes.

    "You are Zhao Yan''s friend!"

    No, I was her enemy. Like¡­duh.

    I bit back that retorted and forced a smile instead, noting that they couldn''t even be bothered to remember my name. Trying not to feel too offended, I bowed respectfully while Yue Jian hurried over to open the door for me. The Nan Gong parents also approached me, eager for news regarding their precious daughters.

    "What do you mean? What kind of news do you have?"

    "Well, I can guarantee that Zhao Yan is alive, at least."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou nodded, relieved, but he still displayed some skepticism.

    "And where is the basis for that assurance?"

    "I saw the vampire prince of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan capture her." I briefly elaborated on what had happened last night, and how my friends and I failed to save her. Of course, I took full responsibility for everything and refused to pin any blame on my friends. It was my plan and weakness that failed us all, not any shortcomings on Kufa or Rossetti''s part. "I''m sorry. We weren''t able to stop them. But Fan Le Lao seems to want your daughter for something."

    Marriage, to be specific, but I didn''t think it was a good idea to inform Nan Gong Jiao Shou and his wife that. They would probably go nuts if they heard that they were going to have a vampire prince as their future son-in-law.

    "What about Ji Yan?"

    I shrugged, trying to mask my callousness. I didn''t care about that traitor bitch. However, I wasn''t sure I could tell them that she had betrayed not just her sister but the whole school. I could already picture Nan Gong Jiao Shou going into a fit and his wife fainting from the sheer horror. Their daughter, a traitor? Not only had she sold out the entire school to a vampire clan, she even had the audacity to try and get her flesh-and-blood sister killed?

    The information would be too much for them. Also, they would most likely deny it and refuse to believe me, no matter how much evidence I piled atop their table. I had been through the bullshit with Headmistess Taylor, the teachers and schoolmates in Saint Teresa Academy. I wasn''t going through that whole denial nonsense again.

    "I have no idea. I didn''t see her at all."

    There was some truth in what I said. Now that I thought about it, I really did not see Ji Yan once throughout that fateful night. Where did she go? Probably taken away beforehand by the violently abusive Xu Wu Cheng, I guess. I had no doubt that he had terrifying things planned for her. But that wasn''t my problem.

    After Ji Yan''s treachery, she was better off dead. I had no intention of rescuing her. She reaped what she sowed. I wasn''t magnanimous enough to forgive her for her betrayal. I wasn''t some delusional saint who was happy to turn my other cheek after getting slapped.

    "I see." Nan Gong Jiao Shou paused for a moment. "Thank you. If Zhao Yan is at least still alive, then that''s a great relief. I''m sure they will eventually rescue her."

    "Yeah." I wanted to be part of that rescue mission, which was why I was waiting with Kufa and the others for news from the Midnight Order. The moment they moved out, my friends and I were going to volunteer for the operation. "We will."

    "Well, would you like some lunch?" Nan Gong''s wife invited me into the house. "Don''t feel like a stranger and help yourself. I made sure to cook extra."

    Don''t feel like a stranger, you say¡­yet you couldn''t even remember my name.

    "Don''t hesitate," Nan Gong added. "Please join us for lunch. If possible, I would like to hear some more details. We can talk as we eat."

    "All right. Thank you."

    I was never one to say no to free food, so I shamelessly waltzed into the house, took advantage of my hosts'' generosity and helped myself to the delicious dishes on the table. All in exchange for elaborating in greater detail about what had transpired last night.

 538 Chapter 538: Unwelcome Guests

    "I''m glad you''re safe and sound," Nan Gong Jiao Shou said with a chuckle as he watched me wolf down a piece of chicken. He had heard me describe several of the fierce battles I had been in, after I told him, his wife and Yue Jian how I witnessed Zhao Yan being abducted by Fan Le Lao, unable to fight past Xu Wu Cheng and his cordon of elite vampires to pursue the both of them. "Last night must be really terrifying."

    "Yeah," I mumbled, my mouth full of food. I swallowed and nodded. "The vampires were pretty strong, but fortunately Headmistress Taylor showed up, killed most of them and drove them out of the school. She wanted to hunt them down, but¡­as you know, most of the students needed medical help."

    "Ah¡­I see. Of course. Teresa Taylor was always one to prioritize her students over everything else. Still, as expected of the legendary White Witch. I see she''s as formidable as ever. She hasn''t gotten any weaker despite her age."

    "Yeah, if anything, she has gotten much stronger. I''m sure she''ll rescue all the missing students the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan abducted."

    "It''ll be good if that happens," Mrs. Nan Gong agreed, twiddling her fingers anxiously. "I really hope both Zhao Yan and Ji Yan are safe."

    Hah! Ji Yan was a traitor and she didn''t deserved to be rescued at all. In fact, the moment Teresa Taylor found her, she would most likely execute her on the spot for betraying the school to the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan. And rightly so. The bitch sacrificed so many of her schoolmates and teachers just to preserve her pathetic life.

    I didn''t say that out loud, of course. Instead, I snuck a peek around the table Yue Jian nodded at her mother''s words, clasping her hands. I noticed she hadn''t touched the food much. It was clear that she didn''t have any appetite at all. Probably too worried about the fate of her missing sisters. She put on a strained smile when I glanced in her direction, probably grateful that I had brought some news. Any information was better than nothing.

    Feeling bad for taking advantage of their hospitality (and eating all the food that Yue Jian didn''t touch), I offered to help out with the dishes after we finished our meal. Mrs. Nan Gong protested, but I insisted and won out, particularly because it seemed that Yue Jian was out of it and almost dropped a fragile plate.

    "Thank you. I really appreciate it."

    I could tell that Yue Jian''s mother wasn''t referring only to me washing the dishes. She was also expressing her gratitude to me for bringing the news of Zhao Yan and assuaging their worries. I nodded as I splashed the plates with water and scrubbed them with a dishsponge.

    "I hope Headmistress Taylor, the military and the mercenaries rescue Zhao Yan and the others."

    "Yes¡­"

    There was nothing. At least not yet.

    "Have a seat."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou nodded to me and gestured toward an open space on the sofa. I was about to sit down when a wailing noise pierced the air. A red light attached to the ceiling flashed brightly, streams of crimson washing the interior of the house. Nan Gong Jiao Shou immediately leaped to his feet.

    "Someone has tripped the security alarm?"

    Wow¡­that was some pretty advanced security system that you had installed in the house¡­who the hell installed a red, wailing siren? Clearly Nan Gong Jiao Shou and his family were no ordinary people. I might be mistaken, but I was pretty sure that even rich people didn''t have flashing lights. Sophisticated burglar alarms, yeah, but a red siren?

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou strode over the window, which was now closed, and glanced outside. I followed suit and spotted a huge group of hooded figures clustering outside in the courtyard.

    "There are a lot of people approaching the house." Nan Gong Jiao Shou swallowed and then turned to his wife and daughter. "We have to leave immediately."

    "Yes!"

    The two of them nodded. Evidently it wasn''t wise to stick around when you had a bunch of suspicious-looking dudes in hoods showin up at the front of your residence in large numbers. I felt a premonition in the form of a chill trickling down my spine.

    This mana¡­these guys were from the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan, or at least practiced similar blood magic!

    The Nan Gong family didn''t notice or recognized the aura of blood magic. Under Nan Gong Jiao Shou''s directions, Yue Jian and her mother didn''t hesitate, already departing through the front door. Nan Gong Jiao Shou grabbed his coat and car keys. Meanwhile, I bowed gratefully to him.

    "Thank you for not telling them to pack their luggage before leaving."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou stared at me, baffled. "Why would I do that? Those intruders are right on our doorstep. We don''t have time to pack any luggage."

    "EXACTLY!" I shouted, startling him.

    "Uh¡­?"

    "Sorry. Never mind."

    It was my fault for assuming that Nan Gong Jiao Shou was a badly written manhua character who would be killed off so that the female main characters could do the whole tragic orphans trope later in the story.

    "As long as you don''t do something nonsensical that can be construed as an excuse for showing how the heroine grabs the MacGuffins before running."

    "What are MacGuffins? Why would Yue Jian grab burgers before escaping?"

    "No, no. MacGuffins. A kind of plot device that exists in the form of an object to move the plot forward even though there''s no logic to it, just so the story can go on. Anyway, let''s not waste time arguing. They''re closing in on us."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou nodded as he glanced outside the window, noting how close the trespassers were to the house.

    "You should follow us too. Those bastards out there definitely won''t let you off even if you''re not part of our family."

    "No, I''m going to stay here and buy you time to escape. Don''t worry, I will be able to hold them off for fifteen minutes at least¡­"

    "No!" Nan Gong Jiao Shou snapped. "They have probably brought their veterans with them! Hurry up and don''t waste time arguing! Just trust me! You definitely will not be able to fight against the adult vampires! There is no way they wouldn''t bring their elders to capture my family."

    I was about to protest, but I hesitated. Something about the way Nan Gong Jiao Shou worded his statement felt off. It was as if he knew these intruders were here because they were targeting his family, and he was even familiar with the way they operated.

    Does his family have some sort of relationship with the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan? Nah, that can''t be. Fan Le Lao didn''t even recognize Zhao Yan.

    However, Xu Wu Cheng had approached Ji Yan specifically and tried to extricate information from her. Maybe¡­

    Well, there was no time to think about such matters. I quickly followed Nan Gong Jiao Shou and his family to their car in the garage. As his wife slid into the passenger seat, Yue Jian and I took our places at the back. Nan Gong Jiao Shou slid his key into the ignition and twisted it, coaxing the engine to life.

    The garage door opened, revealing a bunch of vampires waiting for us. Snarling, they reached out, their bloody mana coalescing around them as they unleashed their spells.

    "Damn bastards!" Nan Gong Jiao Shou cursed. His wife frowned.

    "Language, dear."

    "Now isn''t the time for that!" The professor snapped before he floored the accelerator. "Hang on, everyone. Make sure you have your seatbelts on! I''m going to charge past them!"

    The car roared as it burst out of the garage, knocking down the lunging vampires and running over some of them. Most of them were thrown into the air from the impact, toppling over like bowling pins while a few of them were left with broken bones and unnaturally twisted joints after the car ran over them, pools of blood spreading under their sprawled bodies.

    "Awesome! You turned them all into roadkill!" I cheered and punched my fist into the air. Even as the car lurched forward, my seatbelt pinned me back to my seat. Seatbelts really saved lives. On the other hand, I knew the vampires wouldn''t die from this. Their unnatural regenerative abilities would kick in soon if they hadn''t already. Peering through the rear window, I saw that several of them were already standing up, their twisted limbs spinning back and their bones popping into place after they cast their healing spells.

    Beside me, Yue Jian trembled uncontrollably, her hands pale and clasped tightly in her lap. Glancing at his daughter from the rear view mirror, Nan Gong Jiao Shou offered some assurance.

    "It''s all right now, Yue Jian. Don''t be scared."

    "Yes!"

    "Who are those awful people?" Mrs. Nan Gong demanded, her voice shaky. Nan Gong Jiao Shou''s shoulders slumped and he shook his head.

    "They''re the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan," I offered helpfully. "The same group of vampires who attacked Saint Teresa academy yesterday."

    "Why are they after us?"

    This time, I didn''t know the answer, so I fell silent.

    "They must be after the Nan Gong clan''s secret magic," Nan Gong Jiao Shou replied with a troubled expression. His wife glanced at him blankly and he continued to explain. "I had Zhao Yan and Yue Jian inherit the Nan Gong clan''s secret magic, which consists of purifying magic not dissimilar to the holy magic that Teresa Taylor wields. In essence, they have the potential to be Paladins. This makes them exceedingly dangerous to vampires who practice blood magic such as the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan. By consuming the blood of a mage of the Nan Gong family who has learned these holy spells, they will be able to significantly boost their magic and grow more rapidly."

    "Bloody bloodsuckers," I muttered under my breath. Nan Gong Jiao Shou didn''t seem to have heard me. He stared at the road, his knuckles whitening as he gripped the steering wheel tightly.

    "We''ll reach the city in thirty minutes," he told us in a tense voice. "We''ll head to Saint Teresa Academy straight. We should be safe under Headmistress Taylor''s protection."

    "Uh, is Headmistress Taylor even in the academy?" I asked. "She closed it down, remember?"

    "Oh, you''re right." Nan Gong Jiao Shou tried to suppress his annoyance at himself. "Thanks for reminding me. Fortunately, I know her address. We''ll head for her home. Even if we enter Flandor City, the Federation will mobilize the military and escort us the moment they see the vampires pursing us. I bet Teresa Taylor will show up herself when she hears about this."

    I didn''t object to that. There was no way these vampires would want to face Teresa Taylor''s wrath, especially after she roasted their king and the top echelons of their clan just yesterday. The military showing up was the icing on the cake, and they would buy us enough time for the White Witch to make her grand appearance.

    However, as he turned around a bend, a group of hooded figures suddenly came to view. Standing in the middle of the road like idiots, they waited for Nan Gong Jiao Shou''s car to knock them down. Seeing them, Yue Jian raised her hand and pointed.

    "Dad, in front¡­!"

    "I see them!"

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou gunned the accelerator and the car shot forward mercilessly, seeking to trample any idiotic vampire stupid enough to stand in its way. However, one blood mage was sharp enough to jump to the side when the car hurtled toward his group and knocked over his comrades. Snarling, he lashed out with a mana-infused hand, using Blood Claws to smash through the reinforced window and reach for a screaming Yue Jian.

    "Aaah!"

    The vampire seized Yue Jian''s arm and attempted to drag her out through the broken window.

 539 Chapter 539: On the Road

    "Yue Jian!"

    Both Nan Gong Jiao Shou and his wife shouted in panic, but I reacted by flicking the vampire''s forehead with my finger.

    Bam!

    Icy mana coated the vampire''s face and his grip loosened. Thanks to the physical reinforcement spells I learned from Teacher Ruff Fielding and the martial arts that Dad taught me, even a single flick contained enough power to send the vampire flying into the trees beyond. As for me, I clutched my finger and winced. Whoops, it looked like I overestimated myself.

    "T¡­thank you."

    "Don''t thank me yet."

    I glanced at the front. The vampires had gathered and were unleashing powerful blood spells to impale the car. Both Nan Gong Jiao Shou and his wife ducked as crimson spikes lanced toward the windshields, but before they could shatter the reinforced glass and puncture the vehicle, a glacial wall materialized in front to block the blood spikes. The wheels squealed and spun helplessly when the car was lifted off the ground from the sudden impact, but thankfully my reflexive ice spell mitigated most of the damage.

    "¡­!"

    "Aaaaah!"

    Both Yue Jian and her mother screamed while Nan Gong Jiao Shou gnashed his teeth and struck the dashboard in frustration. The professor wanted to throw the gear into reverse and go back the way we came, but he spotted more vampires approaching us from behind, which rendered that plan impractical. He cursed as he struck the steering wheel this time. As for me, however¡­

    "Stay in the car, everyone."

    I kicked the door open and strode out, freezing the blood spikes that sought to pierce through the ice barrier I had conjured earlier. With a force of will, I broke them apart. Stepping through the crumbling ice, I approached the vampires in what seemed like a confident manner. Inwardly, however, my heart was thumping really quickly and I prayed there wouldn''t be veteran vampires or high-level adults amongst them. The hooded vampires glared glared at me, half out of curiosity and half out of annoyance, but it was clear they didn''t recognize me.

    All the better for me because it meant they would be underestimating me.

    "You guys really suck," I complained as I strolled toward them. They stared at me, not comprehending my insult at all. Well, I knew they sucked blood, but I didn''t think they would take my provocation literally. Sighing, I pushed up my glasses and readied a spell.

    "Kill him."

    The person who seemed to be the leader of the vampires gave an order, and as one the group threw themselves at me. I cocked my head at their suicidal charge, but then remembered that they did possess the advantage in terms of numbers.

    Not that it would do them any good. That was why I was so pleased that they were underestimating me. By not evaluating the strength of their opponent correctly, they had slipped up and made a terrible mistake.

    In a swift motion, I drew both Hei Yue and Bai Ri before slashing them in a series of swift, precise strikes. The vampires barreled past me, almost as if unaffected, and then they all stopped behind me.

    "¡­who the hell are you?"

    I pushed my glasses up my nose, my lenses gleaming to conceal my eyes temporarily, while taking care not to accidentally cut my face with my black sword. Smiling brightly, I shrugged.

    "Just an ordinary friend of the Nan Gong family."

    "¡­"

    For a moment, the vampires were silent.

    And then, almost the entire group toppled over, blood spurting from their wounds as they literally fell apart. Arms, legs and heads ¨C anything that could come off slid off, separated by a hissing geyser of blood. Even for vampires, their deaths were spectacularly bloody.

    Only one of them survived. The leader.

    "¡­you¡­!"

    His voice sounded horrified while he stumbled back, clutching the stump that remained of his dismembered arm. Ah¡­unlike the rest, I failed to kill him. I was only able to disarm him. Oh well.

    "Yeah?"

    At a loss for words, probably because he was too terrified, he turned to flee. But suddenly I appeared right in front of him, raising Hei Yue and pointing my black sword at him.

    "Do you think I''ll allow you to escape?"

    "¡­!"

    I didn''t even wait for him to answer. I beheaded him with a single stroke. Before his head even hit the ground, I was already approaching the stationary car. Sheathing both of my swords, I kicked at the frozen blood that continued to sprout from the ground, not entirely destroyed despite my efforts from earlier. Trampling through shattered crimson frost, I reached the car but stopped by the side instead of embarking within it.

    "You¡­"

    "You''re really Zhao Yan''s friend, aren''t you?"

    In contrast to his wife, who was utterly stupefied, Nan Gong Jiao Shou was shaking his head, impressed. He smiled and bowed his head gratefully.

    "Thank you. If it weren''t for you, I have no idea what would happen to us."

    "Well, don''t celebrate too soon." Lowering my sword, I cocked my head toward the road ahead of us. In the distance, I could see a gathering crowd of vampires. They were easily several dozen times the size of the force I had just eliminated. "We still have company."

    The main force of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan charged.

    "Professor Nan Gong, earlier you said you taught your daughters holy magic or purifying magic, right? Can you use them? Are you able to cast them on the vampires?"

    "I''m afraid not." Nan Gong Jiao Shou looked apologetic. "I am a researcher, not a Paladin. The only holy and purifying spells I know are blessings and healing. Nothing that is useful for combat."

    "Well, you had better find a holy spell that can be used for attacks soon, or we might all die here."

    Unlike the five small fries that I had just taken care of, the main force of vampires was even more terrifying. There was no way I could fight that many of them, even though I was already drawing both Hei Yue and Bai Ri and casting whatever spells I could.

    However, I stood my ground and lowered my swords. I suffused my black and white blades with icy mana, getting ready to unleash a major blizzard spell. I could maybe freeze ten of them with that spell before I got overwhelmed. If I was going to die, I was going out with a bang.

    "Watch out!"

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou jumped to my side and struck a vampire who had attempted to flank me. Surprised, I spun around and stared at the struggling vampire, who the professor finished off with a chop to the neck. It took me a few seconds before I recognized my assailant as the guy whose forehead I had flicked earlier.

    "Stay sharp!" Nan Gong Jiao Shou snapped at me.

    I gaped at him, amazed that he was actually quite the strong warrior. He was clearly more skilled and experienced than I was. Even though I theoretically should have detected the vampire''s presence with my sixth sense, I had been so focused on the incoming group of Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan members that I had completely overlooked him.

    "I thought you said the only holy spells you know can''t be used for combat?"

    "Yeah, they can''t. But I can still fight. Even though it''s been years since I''ve participated in actual combat, I was a Priest once, you know. A support caster, if you don''t know what that is."

    Oh. Saint Teresa Academy and their damned classes. I didn''t know that they actually had Priests.

    "Well, thanks. That really helped me out."

    The vampires had skidded to a stop and hung back cautiously when they saw Nan Gong Jiao Shou step out to fight me. In a way, the professor had bought me enough time to switch spells. Even though I thought ice magic was cool, it wasn''t my forte. I was better at summoming. What, you think the title of this story was for show?

    "Canis Minor, Canis Major!"

    At my command, my hunting hounds materialized all around me. So did Canis Major, who loomed over the Nan Gong family protectively. Not that Nan Gong Jiao Shou required my protection. The guy was perfectly capable of looking after himself. In fact, I wouldn''t be surprised if he ended up guarding me instead.

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou''s eyes widened when he saw my summoned Constellation spirits, but he didn''t miss a beat and issued a single request.

    "Please send some of your soul beasts to protect my daughter and wife."

    "I understand."

    "I¡­I want to stand and fight!"

    Nan Gong Yue Jian stood beside us, trembling violently. She was holding a shovel in her hands of all things, raising it as if to use it as a weapon.

    "What are you doing?" I scowled.

    "I''ll stand and fight with Dad and you!"

    "With a shovel?"

    "That''s the only weapon I can find!"

    "You''ll only be digging your own grave. Besides, where the hell did you find a shovel in the first place?" I asked, feeling a headache build up in my temples. Yue Jian gestured toward the battered car where her mother continued to huddle fearfully.

    "It was in the car trunk."

    "Why the hell is there a shovel in your car trunk?" I almost exploded. Nan Gong Jiao Shou shrugged.

    "Why don''t you ask a certain manhua artist? Maybe as a convenient plot device to show Yue Jian doing something."

    Already Yue Jian was waving the shovel about, shouting at the vampires and not paying any attention to us.

    "Come and get me!"

    The vampires growled and charged, and she swung her shovel clumsily¡­only to complete miss them.

    I glanced at Nan Gong Jiao Shou while I ducked under a Demonic Blood Claw Strike and retaliated with a slash from my dual swords.

    "Did you really train her in the Nan Gong clan techniques?"

    "Yeah, but as I said, our holy and purification spells are non-combat magic only. Just the blood and mana purifying ones. It''s a bit embarrassing, but Yue Jian isn''t good at fighting. Those had always been Zhao Yan and Ji Yan''s specialties. That''s why I sent those two to Saint Teresa Acaemy while Yue Jian remained homeschooled. She''s not cut out for learning combat magic. Still, Yue Jian is better than Ji Yan at purification spells, which was why I taught those to her instead of Ji Yan. She''s actually better at them than Zhao Yan too. All my daughters have different talents."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou sounded proud even as he dodged, ducked and countered the vampires'' attacks. I couldn''t help but admire his elegant moves as he tore through the pack of vampires with his bare hands. Our opponents thus far had been small fries, kids my age or slightly older, and there were thankfully no masters or elders on the level of You Shou or Fan Fu Qing in sight. Nan Gong Jiao Shou was just massacring them with swift, brutal moves.

    Unfortunately, I wasn''t a master like him so I found myself slowly being overwhelmed. Fortunately, I was a summoner.

    "Taurus!"

    The great bull materialized and headbutted a vampire away before trampling on another. He snorted and kicked a vampire who was attacking Yue Jian, and imposed himself between her and the horde. I nodded in approval and issued an order.

    "Alebaran!"

    Taurus unleashed a torrent of flames that incinerated a bunch of vampires in front of him, turning them into ash. While he guarded Yue Jian, I found myself in a lot of trouble, bereft of the protection my Constellation spirits usually provided me now that I sent them to guard someone else.

    "Whoa!"

    I found myself pushed back when one of the stronger vampires struck, his claws clanging against my black and white blades. I tried to freeze him, but he retreated immediately upon sensing the danger. Dropping to a crouch, he lashed out with a roundhouse kick that sent me skidding backward. Huffing, I tried to right my balance but a few bloody spears lanced out to pierce me.

    "Guh!"

    I grunted as I parried the blood spears, only for the vampire to kick me and send me flying. Even though I managed to somehow stop myself, his comrades came at me from both sides.

    "!!!"

    Unfortunately, I was only able to block one of them, but the other managed to cut me with his Demonic Blood Claws.

    Crying out in pain, I dropped to the ground and sought to avenge myself with a desperate icy slash from one of my swords that loped off his arm. The vampire staggered back with a hiss, but he didn''t fall. Before I could finish the job with my other sword, his comrade slashed me from behind and would have killed me if I hadn''t instinctively dodged. Still, the tips of his claws grazed my shoulder and sent out a spray of blood.

    That bastard¡­!

    I turned to face him, but the strongest vampire of the trio kicked me in the chest, sending me staggering backward. When they saw the opening, both vampires lunged at me from opposite sides. I saw them coming, but I knew I wasn''t able to evade in time.

 540 Chapter 540: The necessity of Teamwork

    Fortunately, I didn''t need to.

    "Argh!"

    "What the hell is this?!"

    Before either of them reached me, a bunch of Canis Minor pounced on them, latching onto their bodies with fangs and claws, biting and slashing them mercilessly. The duo desperately battled the offending hounds away, but they weren''t able to do much before they were drowned under a sea of brown.

    Several of my Canis Minor tried to attack the stronger vampire, but he kicked them away before slashing them to shreds with his blood claws. I winced at the psychostigmatic feedback that hit me whenever one of my Constellation spirits was destroyed, but it had never been much of a detriment even until now, so I suppressed the sting in my mind and charged at him for vengeance. He turned around just in time to catch my swords with his claws.

    "Heh," he sneered. "Relying on summoned Soul Beasts to make up for your lack of strength? How despicable."

    "I don''t want to hear that from someone who sucks other people''s blood to make up for his lack of strength," I retorted.

    Then I increased my icy mana and blasted him with a freezing attack that sent him staggering. However, he simply cleaved through the ice with his claws to stab me. I barely managed to deflect his claws away with both of my swords, but his kick caught me by the side of my head and sent me spnnning.

    Whoa, this guy was strong. Even though he was just a few years older than I was, he was clearly on a different level. I needed to pull myself together and get my Constellation spirits to help myself. But my Canis Major was currently defending Yue Jian''s mother while my Taurus was guarding Yue Jian. I wouldn''t be able to call upon them unless I was willing to sacrifice the two women to the vampires who were relentlessly assaulting them.

    They really seemed desperate to bring Yue Jian back to the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan''s headquarters.

    Fortunately, I had a lot more Constellation spirits and Celestial Guardians that I could summon.

    "¡­!"

    The vampire suddenly sprang back when a fireball exploded against the ground where he was standing on. Snarling, he turned to glare at the source, readying his blood claws. Vermillion Phoenix was soaring high into the air, and with a flap of his wings, he incinerated a larg swathe of vampires on the ground before they could evade.

    This was the reason why I had spent most of the time fighting with just swords and ice magic instead of summoning more Constellation spirits. I was saving up my mana and putting aside casting time for summoning one of my big guns. Even better, vampires were weak to fire spells, so no matter how strong my opponent was, he couldn''t simply shrug off a fireball from Vermilion Phoenix. Realizing that, he retreated.

    "Despicable bastard!" he snapped. "Where is your honor? Two against one?"

    The vampire spat and lunged at me, weaving and dodging the numerous fire spells that Vermilion Phoenix flung at him. But his movements were clearly hindered and I had more than enough time to react with the swordsmanship that Dad taught me. Parrying his strike, I responded with a riposte that would have pierced his gut if he hadn''t twisted his body aside.

    Cursing, he kicked me away. I managed to block his foot with my crossed swords, but I was still sent staggering from the sheer force. He spun around for another kick, only to abort his attack and pull away when Vermillion Phoenix hurled a volley of fiery feathers at his position. Frustrated, he widened the distance between us before charging again. Thanks to Vermillion Phoenix''s intervention, I was able to fend off his next slash and kick.

    But even with Vermillion Phoenix''s aid, I found myself locked in a stalemate, unable to glean any sort of advantage over my opponent. Particularly because my Celestial Guardian was half-distracted with unleashing the majority of his fiery feathers at the other vampires in the distance. Damn it. If I was having trouble with an enemy of such caliber, how was I going to fight Xu Wu Cheng and Fan Le Lao later?

    "Huff¡­huff¡­"

    I wiped the perspiration from my brow before exchanging a few blows with the vampire. His claws snaked out, creating sparks as they clashed against my Hei Yue and Bai Ri. Even though my frosty mana managed to freeze his hands, he would shatter the ice with a surge of his bloody mana. After a few minutes spent futilely railing against me, the vampire realized that he was uselessly expending excessive mana against an inferior opponent.

    Feeling a bit tired, he withdrew and whistled. Fresh reinforcements who were tangling with my pack of Canis Minor abandoned their task and jumped to him. At his signal, they regrouped before launching a coordinated attack on my position.

    "That can''t be good."

    Even with Vermillion Phoenix frantically bombarding the massed ranks of vampires with torrents of superheated flames, and my pack of Canis Minor desperately hurling themselves at the incoming vampires, they weaved and evaded almost gracefully, using their blood magic and superhuman reflexes to speed toward their objective. I frowned, surprised by their sudden increase in speed. Honestly, this was supposed to be advantageous for me, yet they were skillfully dodging the area of effect spells that my Vermillion Phoenix was launching.

    Not bad. Not bad at all.

    I couldn''t help but be impressed, but I had a solution. Standing my ground, I sheathed my swords and recalled my Constellation spirits, who complied without question. Summoning Sagittarius, I prepared to fire a flaming arrow at the vampires, not caring that it would be too close for comfort. I didn''t care that I might accidentally blow myself up with them. As long as I could take them all out in one fell swoop, it was totally worth it.

    I would be able to take out a few of those flunkies, but it was possible that I wouldn''t be able to take out the strong guy in the center. He would survive, retreat and attack again. How could I deal with him?

    Swallowing, I readied my mana while feeling frustrated. This guy''s ability was lower than even Xu Wu Cheng. If I couldn''t defeat him in direct combat, how was I going to face that guy and then even the ultimate final boss, Fan Le Lao? Right now I wouldn''t be able to fight an opponent that even Nan Gong Zhao Yan couldn''t defeat.

    Damn it¡­was my only option to ask Rossetti and Kufa for help? The only reason I was able to overwhelm Xu Wu Cheng so easily last night was because I was cooperating with Rossetti, working in tandem with her to destroy our enemies. Surprisingly, when Rossetti and I fought together, we exceeded the sum of our combined power and were able to take down enemies several times our number, or enemies stronger and more skilled than either of us.

    Only stupid protagonists who thought themselves godlike (or deluded themselves into believing they were on god more) and had plot armor would engage in solo leveling. If I survived this, I was going to have to apologize to Rossetti and Kufa, and then grovel to them for help. Not that I needed to ¨C they already agreed to help me. We all agreed to volunteer to help the Midnight Order hunt the vampires together.

    How could I forget that?

    Anyway, for now, my priority was to survive this. It was unfortunate, but neither Rossetti nor Kufa was here to help me. Fortunately, Nan Gong Jiao Shou was here to assist me. I could see him racing toward me, suddenly bereft of opponents when they all regrouped earlier to gang up on me. But he wasn''t going to make it in time.

    My fingers slowly loosened the arrow. But I never got to fire it.

    Just before the vampires reached me, blinding white lights pierced through them, puncturing their bodies with holes. Several of my Canis Minor were perforated as collateral damage, their battered bodies dissipating and disappearing after they were hit. Bloody hell! Who dared to attack my Constellation spirits?

    I lowered my bow just a fraction and glanced around at the fallen vampire bodies. The strong guy had just managed to avoid a few stray shots to his vitals, but he was surprisingly still alive. He hissed and lunged at me in one final display of defiance. Bloody mana circulated around him and dozens of blood spears congregated around him, forming a formidable barrage that sought to pierce me. With nothing to lose, the guy was casting his ultimate spell.

    Only now did I release Alnasl.

    The flaming arrow streaked toward the vampire, faster than any fiery feather or torrent of inferno that Vermillion Phoenix could unleash. The bloody spears were incinerated almost immediately, the red fluids vaporizing even before they came into contact with the flaming projectile ¨C such was the intense heat emanating from my arrow, which possessed the power of a burning star. The vampire tried to dive to the side, but Alnasl slammed into his midriff and engulfed him in flames before sending a huge explosion across the clearing that rocked the car and elicited a scream of fright from Yue Jian''s mother. Even Yue Jian flopped down, covered by Taurus, who steadfastly imposed his armored bulk between his charge and the shockwaves that buffeted the road. The surviving vampires were flung across the air, but alone Nan Gong Jiao Shou remained standing, completely unaffected by the blast. He had skidded to a stop when he saw me fire my arrow and instead chose to use the chance to chop the back of the neck of a vampire that sailed past him, bringing the poor fella back down to earth.

    As the explosion cleared, the fallen vampires were pierced by more white lights. As much as I wanted to see the source, I found myself on my knees, heaving from the exertion. A few of the vampire''s blood lances had survived the conflagration and grazed me, causing blood to drip down my temple and shoulder.

    Swaying in front of me, the vampire growled, half his body incinerated by the attack. He glared at me defiantly through the remaining half of his face, the other half charred black by my spell. Then he flopped down. Despite clearly being dead, he was still targeted for some reason. One of the white lights swerved round and pierced through his immolated head, shuddering his half-blackened corpse. A pool of blood slowly expanded underneath his immobile body.

    "Huh?"

    Yue Jian, who was cowering under my Taurus earlier, raised her head to watch dumbly as the vampires around her were being razed. Not that there were many of them left, especially after my Vermillion Phoenix''s rampage.

    "All down."

    As the last of the vampires were mowed down and slain, a couple of mages flipped themselves into the vicinity and surveyed the area. One was a blue-haired bishounen armed with a spear and the other was a tomboyish girl with short, golden hair who wielded twin swords similar to mine.

    For a moment, I stared at them blankly. And then I opened my mouth to ask a single question.

    "¡­who?"

 541 Chapter 541: New Friendsâ€

    Both newcomers smiled at us, cocky over their relatively easy victory. Well, duh. You attacked the vampires from cover and shot them in the back when they weren''t expecting you. Not only that, Nan Gong Jiao Shou, my Constellation spirits and Vermillion Phoenix and I had also already decimated the majority of the vampries before you arrived. Of course you would have defeated them without much difficulty.

    It also annoyed me that neither of them answered my question, but then again, I didn''t ask them properly. They probably attributed my one-word question to shock or disbelief. Perhaps they had assumed my question was rhetorical.

    Ignoring me, the two of them checked the area to ensure that it was clear. Meanwhile, a single adult man in a black cloak and a black hat strolled onto the road from the forest.

    "Ah!"

    Yue Jian gasped in recognition. I glanced at her and she returned my gaze sheepishly.

    "That''s the strange man who came to my house a long time ago."

    "When exactly is a long time ago?" I muttered under my breath, frustrated by the vague answer. Then I decided that I didn''t want to know. It might result in an unwanted flashback to when Yue Jian was still a kid. Maybe ten years ago. I wouldn''t be surprised if that was the case.

    "Tang Li. Long time no see."

    "Professor Nan Gong."

    As Nan Gong Jiao Shou strode over to the man with the black coat, the latter bowed respectfully and tilted his wide-brimmed hat in greeting.

    "You came just in time."

    "Hah. It was only a matter of time before you wipe out all these small fries. Our arrival only accelerated the process. Anyway, we can''t stay here. The Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan will be sending reinforcements soon. There may be elders this time."

    "That''s right."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou pursed his lips and then headed toward his battered car. With the enemies gone, I dismissed my Constellation spirits and Vermillion Phoenix, returning them to whatever soul dimension they resided whenever they weren''t fighting. It was somewhere in my mind, a soul sea or spiritual world unique only to me. Or maybe I was just imagining the whole thing and there was no artificial dimension inside my soul. I didn''t care.

    "Dear, Yue Jian, let''s go. We''ll have to leave the car."

    "Why?" I demanded, staring at the car. "It''s not that damaged. You can still drive it."

    "Because of plot convenience," Nan Gong Jiao Shou explained. "It has served its purpose in the story and so we will abandon it."

    Was he¡­serious?

    "Where are we going?"

    Mrs. Nan Gong looked at her husband fearfully, but instead it was Tang Li who replied.

    "To a safe place."

    *

    Now I understood why we left Nan Gong Jiao Shou''s car behind. It was to take the train. Why did he have to be so sarcastic? Oh¡­maybe he was sniping a particular manhua for being badly written. But I didn''t find anything wrong with the way it handled the car. Well, in that version, Nan Gong Jiao Shou was conveniently killed off so that Yue Jian could play the role of the tragic heroine, though funnily enough, the three sisters completely forgot all about their father after that scene and he never mattered again after his death.

    No wonder Nan Gong Jiao Shou was so bitter. He must have detested the shoddy character development in the original manhua. Not that I could complain, given that I completely lacked character development myself¡­

    Then again, what were people expecting? For me to evolve into some kind of god at this point?

    Shaking my head, I returned to reality and studied the luxurious interior of the train. Tang Li had used his connections and gotten us several first-class passenger seats. The adults were seated around one table, while the younger generation were given a table of our own. While Tang Li sat opposite Nan Gong Jiao Shou and his wife, I found myself seated beside Yue Jian, with Tang Li''s two subordinates facing us across the table.

    "It seems like the vampire clans plan to destroy the Hunter Association and mages in Flandor City. It''s a pity but it appears that Guang Zhi Yi Sect has fallen victim to their deviousness."

    "Yes," the blue-haired bishounen agreed.

    I bit my lip but didn''t say anything. Just looking at his handsome face was enough to make my blood boil somehow. Jealousy, perhaps. Or perhaps because I had read about his character in a badly written manhua somewhere and knew that he would betray us eventually¡­okay, I was being paranoid and had to stop mixing up reality and fiction. Fortunately, I managed to bring my simmering resentment under control. Unaware of my hatred, the good-looking guy continued.

    "I heard that Yi Shen and Kai Lin were killed."

    His fellow hunter, the blond tomboyish girl, lowered her head sadly.

    "¡­"

    Their superior said nothing and continued to watch Nan Gong Jiao Shou. While Mrs. Nan Gong looked horrified, the professor remained strangely calm.

    "Although Zhao Yan and Ji Yan have been caught, I believe their lives are not in danger because of their special background."

    "So you''ve confirmed that my daughters are still alive and are currently in the hands of the enemy then?" Nan Gong Jiao Shou asked grimly. Tang Li nodded.

    "Based on our hunters'' intelligence, we have reason to believe that they are still alive. We have confirmation that they''re held in enemy territory. You don''t seem surprised, though."

    "That''s because we''ve already been informed of that."

    The Nan Gong family head nodded appreciatively at me. For my part, I was snorting in derision. Based on what I had seen so far, these so-called "hunters" did not possess even a single ounce of intelligence. Tang Li sent me a quizzical look, but he didn''t pursue the matter. Instead, he continued.

    "There''s also evidence that we''ve been betrayed. Someone has been leaking information about the Hunter Association to the enemy, but we have yet to flush out the spy."

    ""¡­""

    Both of his subordinates looked glum. Tang Li glanced over at them from his table, contemplating for a few moments.

    "Given the current situation, we''ll have to retreat. Especially after the losses Saint Teresa Academy has suffered, it is not wise to charge into enemy headquarters and assault them. The Midnight Order and Federation military might be walking straight into a trap. Our Association plans to disperse and spread out to find more information, and hopefully identify the spy. The two of you are my students and two of the few people I can trust. Locate the spy. I know the vampire clan and their Dark Church allies will continue to attack us, so you have to resist them with all your might. It is dangerous, but I know I can count on you two."

    ""Yes.""

    Both subordinates nodded. Tang Li glanced back at the Nan Gong parents.

    "For now, we should seek refuge in Kun Lun Academy in Kun Lun City."

    "Kun Lun City?" the tomboyish girl repeated incredulously. Tang Li nodded.

    "Yes. The principal there is my friend. I have used my connections there and made arrangements."

    "Begging your pardon, sir, but I think it''s a better idea to seek refuge in Saint Teresa Academy instead."

    Tang Li raised an eyebrow at my suggestion. "Even after you guys have been attacked just only yesterday?"

    "Precisely because we''ve already been attacked yesterday. The Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan won''t be stupid enough to attack us again, especially not after they saw what Headmistress Taylor did to their leader and elders. That''s the safest place to be right now."

    "I concur." Nan Gong Jiao Shou spoke up. "I''m also friends with Teresa Taylor. I appreciate what you''ve done for us, Tang Li, but I need to speak with Teresa. No doubt the White Witch is planning a counterattack and I intend to be part of that when we rescue my daughters."

    "There will be no counterattack. Not when Saint Teresa Academy needs time to recover from yesterday''s assault."

    "Nonetheless, I wish to speak to Teresa. And Richard is correct. That is most likely the safest place in Flandor City right now."

    Tang Li digested the argument for a moment before he sighed.

    "¡­I understand. As always, Professor Nan Gong''s words have wisdom in them. And it''s a given that you will want to rescue your daughters as quickly as possible. I apologize for my insensitivity. However¡­" His eyes narrowed. "I advise you not to expect too much of Headmistress Taylor, or you''ll be sorely disappointed."

    "It''s all right. If she''s unable to help me, then I''ll seek other avenues of approach. The Midnight Order is recruiting volunteers right now, and I have connections to the military. I''ll just pull some strings and get myself attached to a squad." Nan Gong Jiao Shou smiled. "For everything else, I''ll be relying on you, Tang Li."

    Tang Li returned the smile. "You''re so unfair."

    As the adults sank into their own conversation, an uncomfortable silence rose over the teenagers'' table. Not wanting to enter a staring contest, I averted my gaze and pretended to sleep. Yue Jian leaned against the window, her expression set in constant concern for her sisters.

    "Will Zhao Yan and Ji Yan be all right?"

    "They will be," I assured her, only to be superseded by the blue-haired bishounen.

    "We will do everything within our power to ensure your sisters are safely rescued. I promise."

    Wow, what a smooth talker. How pretentious.

    "So please don''t worry." Blue-haired idol offered a handkerchief to Yue Jian, whose eyes were filled with tears of worry. No wonder the guy was popular and I wasn''t. I didn''t even realize Yue Jian was crying, but evidently he was sensitive to the feelings of girls. "So please don''t cry. You look much prettier when you''re smiling."

    ¡­you''re kidding me, right? Hitting on a girl who was worried about her sisters? That guy was definitely a natural playboy.

    "Thank you."

    Yue Jian sniffed as she accepted the white handkerchief. Beside the blue-haired star, the blond tomboy clicked her tongue in annoyance as she glared at Yue Jian with folded arms. Predictably enough, she existed solely to be jealous of the female lead.

    "Hmph! Only useless people resort to crying."

    "Ah¡­" Yue Jian hastily wiped her tears away. "I''m sorry."

    "You shouldn''t be. Only nasty people resort to saying such insensitive things."

    "What did you say?!" the girl snapped, slamming her hands on the table and glaring at me.

    "Xue Xiao," the blue-haired bishounen warned her in a dangerous tone. He then turned to Yue Jian. "No, we''re the ones who should apologize. Xue Xiao can be pretty blunt at times, so please pardon her insensitivity."

    "Hmph."

    Still folding her arms, the girl called Xue Xiao sniffed and looked away unhappily. Pointedly ignoring her, the blue-haired bishounen continued in a conciliatory tone.

    "Let me introduce myself. I''m Lin Xuan Chi." He gestured toward Xue Xiao. And she''s Ling Xue Xiao."

    I didn''t ask.

    "And what''s your name?"

    As if he didn''t notice my hostility, Lin Xuan Chi turned toward Yue Jian and asked in a friendly manner.

    "I''m Yue Jian."

    "Yue Jian?" Brushing a lock of hair from his face, Lin Xuan Chi smiled. "That''s a lovely name."

    ¡­I give up. This guy was definitely a playboy. The kind of playboys I hated dealing with the most. I wished I was speaking to someone like Kufa or Dong Fang Yue Chu instead. Or even Craig, despite his abrasive mannerisms. They might be good looking, but at least they weren''t playboys who hit on every girl they met, especially one who was so worried about her sisters. I wondered if he had flirted with Ling Xue Xiao. That would make sense, given how she was acting jealous and all that.

    Without even glancing at me, Lin Xuan Chi displayed a dazzling smile that would have captured the hearts of any innocent maiden.

    I suddenly realized that I had to keep Rossetti away from this bastard at all costs. Not caring about my resentment, Lin Xuan Chi continued.

    "We''ll be together for quite a while, so if you encounter any problems, please do not hesitate to approach me for anything. I''ll definitely do everything within my power to help you."

    "¡­and who are you?"

    Probably because she had gotten impatient with Lin Xuan Chi''s sweet-talking, Ling Xue Xiao was glaring at me. She was mostly likely desperate to change the subject.

    "I''m just an exchange student from Jing Tian Academy, currently enrolling in a program offered by Saint Teresa Academy."

    "I don''t care about all that! Isn''t it polite to give your name after we offered ours?"

    "Yeah¡­except that you didn''t offer yours. It was Lin Xuan Chi who told us your name instead."

    "You¡­!"

    "Xue Xiao¡­"

    That warning tone again. With a "hmph," Ling Xue Xiao folded her arms and turned away. Lin Xuan Chi turned to me with an appeasing smile.

    "That was quite the interesting magic you had. You''re pretty impressive. I''m surprised I haven''t heard of you before, um¡­"

    "Richard Huang."

    "Oh!" Lin Xuan Chi''s eyes brightened up. "Now that you''ve mentioned it, I did hear your name before! Aren''t you a representative of Jing Tian Academy, one of those who helped them to their highest tournament finish a few months ago? I should have made the connection when I heard that you''re from Jing Tian Academy!"

    "Oh, no. It''s fine¡­"

    "Nice to meet you." he stretched out his hand. I accepted the handshake and smiled back. I wasn''t childish enough to ignore an offer of friendship if there was one. I might be jealous and paranoid but I wasn''t stupid and rude.

    Not unlike Ling Xue Xiao, at least¡­

    So I nodded and put on what I hoped was an affable expression.

    "Nice to meet you too."

 542 Chapter 542: Another Visi

    "So¡­I assume you guys will be enrolling in Saint Teresa Academy as well? After it reopens, I mean."

    After the disaster yesterday, Teresa Taylor had cancelled classes and shut the school down, for "safety reasons." Though I suspected it had more to do with appeasing worried parents. It was unlikely that the vampires would attack the school again, and if they did, they would find Headmistress Taylor waiting for them.

    "I don''t know."

    "I can arrange that with Teresa if you want."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou had overheard our conversation and offered a solution. He smiled at Tang Li''s two subordinates.

    "I''m friends with the headmistress, so I can pull some strings. Furthermore, I think they''ll welcome new students and fresh blood after losing so many in yesterday''s attack."

    "I''ll be relying on you then." Tang Li bowed his head. He then straightened. "I''ll leave my subordinates in your care for now, Professor Nan Gong. I''ll have to get off at the next stop. I need to continue gathering information on the vampire clans and the Dark Church." He turned grim. "They''re growing stronger by the day. I also heard that there is a link between the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Sect and the Dark Church. Apparently the latter was involved in this previous attack."

    I felt a chilling premonition at his words. As I suspected, the Dark Church had a hand in this. They really were everywhere. It didn''t surprise me ¨C I knew the Dark Church would stand to benefit a lot from this raid, given their goal of sowing chaos and destroying humanity. What better blow was there than to strike at the young students with unrealized potential and prevent them from ever maturing into strong, anti-monster mages?

    "Yeah. Leave them to me."

    "Thank you. The two of you, listen to everything Professor Nan Gong tells you to do. Treat his commands as if they were from me."

    "I understand, sir."

    "Yes!"

    As if to break our conversation, the train conductor made an announcement over the speakers.

    "Tristan Station. Tristan Station."

    "This is my stop."

    Tipping his hat to Nan Gong Jiao Shou and his subordinates, Tang Li stood up and bade us farewell before leaving. I watched him go and leaned back in my seat, glancing at his two charges. Lin Xuan Chi was smiling, his expression as unreadable as always. Ling Xue Xiao looked a little concerned, but she masked her uncertainty with annoyance.

    What was she, a tsundere or something? Or the obligatory bitch character who snaps at the heroine of a clich¨¦ shoujo manhua over everything she did, out of jealousy?

    Well, in any case, the moment we reached Teresa Taylor''s home, I was sure we would have absolutely nothing to do with each other again.

    *

    "You''ve been gone the whole day, Brother Richie!"

    As always, Adrian was outside to greet me. I nodded and waved at him. Shortly after that, Melina came running out to greet me.

    "Sensei! You''re finally back!"

    "Yeah, I''m home."

    I smiled and patted their heads. As expected, Melina sulked.

    "Geez! Treating us as kids again! We are no longer children already!"

    "Yeah!"

    "All right, all right. Sorry. Have you guys had dinner yet?"

    "Ah¡­we were about to have dinner. Amelia said you were coming back for dinner, so we decided to wait a bit."

    "Oh, sorry about that." I looked sheepish. "I had a few things to do and ended up coming back late. I hope I didn''t keep you guys waiting."

    "No, you''re just in time. She had only just finished cooking."

    "Great." I nodded with a smile. "Let''s eat then."

    After dinner, I checked my smartphone and contacted Kufa. He picked up the call after a few rings and projected his face through a holographic screen.

    "Oh, hey, Richard. What''s up?"

    "Checking on the status of the Hunter Association, Midnight Order and the Federation military. Any movement yet? Progress regarding the location on the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan? Or reports of them attacking anyone? Maybe a reallocation of personnel on the part of the Hunter Assocition?"

    "None so far," Kufa informed me, stifling a yawn. I suddenly felt bad for disturbing him this late into the night. He frowned. "Come on, we just spoke about this matter this morning. Why are you so impatient?"

    "Oh?" I raised an eyebrow. "I guess their intelligence isn''t very effective then. Either that, or the hunters we meet aren''t who they seem."

    "Huh? What''s that supposed to mean?"

    I briefly told him about what had happened at the Nan Gong family''s house that afternoon, and how we were chased by the vampires from the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan before finally meeting up with Tang Li and his two subordinates. Kufa listened intently, his jaw dropping.

    "All that happened today?"

    "Yeah."

    "Damn¡­I didn''t know. Let me see if I can pull out any information regarding this Tang Li and the two students under him. Then I''ll get back to you."

    "I''ll be counting on you then."

    Kufa then switched off the holographic screen and I dropped onto bed, staring at the ceiling. This whole thing was turning into one hell of a mess. If Tang Li and his two subordinates weren''t who they seemed to be, then I had to take action and soon.

    However, Nan Gong Jiao Shou seemed familiar with Tang Li, the two of them being friends. Even Nan Gong Yue Jian had met him before. So I wasn''t sure what was going on. I wanted to trust them, but after what had happened with Xu Wu Cheng and Nan Gong Ji Yan, trust was in very short supply. I couldn''t help but keep an eye on every shadow, never mind people I had never met before.

    The next day, Kufa called me, waking me up rudely. I fumbled for my smartphone, half asleep, and hit the answer button. My friend''s excited face materialized in front of me.

    "You were right! They have just updated their intelligence early this morning! Someone called Tang Li did indeed submit a report regarding the vampire attack yesterday, and confirmed that he has assigned his two subordinates to protect Professor Nan Gong''s daughter!"

    "Good, so his identity is verified." It was my turn to stifle a yawn, and I looked at Kufa groggily. "Any orders to move out yet?"

    "No. As you said, you guys were escaping the vampires, so there wasn''t any opportunity to find their whereabouts. By the time the reinforcements from Tang Li arrived, the vampires were long gone. They are currently tracking them down, but it doesn''t look very optimistic. Our enemies are very adept at covering their tracks."

    "Not even a single clue, huh?"

    "Nope," Kufa agreed. He then leaned back and sighed. "I''m going back to sleep. I''ll let you know again when I get more updates."

    "Oh, sorry. And thanks." I immediately felt bad. While Kufa had stayed awake, trying to monitor reports and gather information, I had went to bed after training. Fortunately, classes were cancelled, so Kufa could sleep the day off.

    That was right¡­I didn''t know when the school was going to reopen. And I had to return to Jing Tian Academy soon.

    At least that was what I thought, but I received an email from Principal Vincent Violet. Surprised, I clicked on it.

    "Whoa¡­he''s letting me stay here?!"

    Apparently, Principal Violet had caught wind of my intentions, to join the Midnight Order and wipe out the vampire clan. Knowing what kind of person I was, he decided to give me permission to extend my exchange program, to join whatever missions the Midnight Order offered and then exterminate the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan for good.

    I quickly informed Dad about this, and while he didn''t seem too enthusiastic, he didn''t object. He nodded.

    "All right, go get them." He frowned. "You said that it''s possible that this whatever vampire clan has links to the Dark Church, correct?"

    "Yeah."

    "All right then. It can''t hurt to wipe them out. Every enemy destroyed is a victory secured. I''ll be counting on you then."

    "Thanks, Dad."

    So I spent the next few days training, not just myself but also Adrian and Melina. I wanted them to be prepared for another vampire attack. Of course, I had no intention of bringing them along with me when the missions finally came, but it wouldn''t hurt to ensure they had the strength to protect themselves when necessary.

    The school remained closed for a week before it finally opened again. Right before the day it was supposed to open, however, Kufa and I were invited to Rossetti''s house for one final discussion.

    "We should talk about what happens after school reopens," Rossetti had explained. "I don''t think the vampires are going to leave it at this. And given how we were attacked last week¡­it''s better to be safe than sorry."

    "So we''re going to strategize and see what kind of security measures we can implement then?" Kufa asked. Rossetti nodded.

    "That''s right. Is it okay?"

    "Not that it''s a bad thing, but wouldn''t the school take care of that?" I had asked, frowning in puzzlement. "After what happened, I''m sure Headmistress Taylor and the teachers will not underestimate the threat. Wouldn''t they have their own security measures in place?"

    "They will, but better to over-prepare and not need them than to not do anything and then realize we need them."

    Rossetti had a point, so Kufa and I agreed. That was how I ended up at Rossetti''s house the next morning, having used Google Maps to make my way here. Much like Melina, she lived in quite the grand manor. Unsurprising, given how most of the students who enrolled in Saint Teresa Academy were children of nobles.

    A red-haired girl who looked identical to Rossetti swung open the gate for me. Beaming, she studied me.

    "You''re here!"

    "Oh. Yeah. Um¡­" I frowned as I scrutinized her. "Are you Rossetti''s sister?"

    The girl''s jaw dropped and she took a step back.

    "You can tell?!"

    "Yeah."

    "How?!" the girl demanded, her eyes wide. "We are identical twins! We look exactly like each other! There hasn''t been an outsider who can tell us apart for years!"

    For one thing, her side ponytail was hanging on the left while Rossetti normally wore her side ponytail on the right. For another, the aura she gave off was??different. Rossetti had a more innocent air, whereas this girl seemed more mischievous.

    "Heh¡­you seem to know Rossetti very well, don''t you?" The girl giggled, and then placed her hands on her hips in what seemed like a proud manner. "You are right. I''m her twin sister, Roseila. Are you her boyfriend?"

    "No, not exactly. And I''m sure anyone who knows Rossetti long enough will be able to tell." I paused for a moment and glanced back when I heard footsteps. Kufa was approaching. When he saw us, he waved.

    "Hey, guys! You''re already here!"

    "Hey," Roselia waved at him. He nodded.

    "Shall we get started then?"

    "Uh, shouldn''t we wait for Rossetti first?" I asked. Kufa blinked.

    "What are you talking about? Isn''t she right here?"

    "No, this is Roselia, her twin sister."

    "Huh? Rossetti has a sister?"

    Roselia gave me a triumphant stare, and then she turned back to her house. Cupping her hands over her mouth, she called out.

    "Rossetti, your friends are here!"

    "Eh?! What? Huh?! Roselia, what are you doing?!"

    Rossetti hurried out of the house, dressed in almost the same pink dress, but this time her side ponytail was tied on the right side.

    Roselia leaned over and whispered to Rossetti something that made her blush and hit her in embarrasement.

    "It''s nothing like that!" She coughed and then turned to Kufa and me. "All right, guys. Come in. We have a lot to discuss regarding tomorrow, when school reopens."

 543 Chapter 543: High School Drama

    "Your sister isn''t joining us?" I asked when Rossetti led Kufa and me to a room, whereas Roselia ran off somewhere else.

    Rossetti shook her head. "She goes to a different school. Holy Saint Francesan Girl''s School ¨C it is an all girl''s school, so she might find you guys interesting."

    "I didn''t know you have a sister," Kufa remarked, amazed. Rossetti shrugged.

    "Yeah, I never told anyone. Didn''t seem relevant, especially since she doesn''t attend the same school as me."

    "Anyway, let''s begin." I pushed my glasses up my nose and leaned back in my seat. "What''s the plan?"

    Rossetti leaned over and conjured a holographic map of the school. She began tracing her finger along the perimeter.

    "We are thinking of reestablishing a barrier here, here and here." She sat back in her seat. "The cross barriers that the Guang Zhi Yi Sect set up the last time proved to be effective, so if we are to replicate that¡­"

    "Where are we going to get those silver crosses from?" I asked. "We are not from the Hunter Association. I don''t suppose we can simply buy them from a store or order them online from Amazon, can we?"

    "Unfortunately, no," Kufa admitted. "Even if I use my contacts, I don''t think they can help me requisition an entire crate of silver crosses."

    "We''ll have to figure something out¡­maybe find an alternative." Rossetti sighed and folded her arms. "Most types of barriers are usually temporary, so we can''t set one up for an extended period of time. The only barrier that is permanent is the one constructed by the silver crosses."

    "They are very limited, though," Kufa warned. "They only keep out zombies and give trouble to vampires. They don''t work against other mages or monsters."

    "Then we should set up sentries. Patrol the school." Rossetti considered her options. "Maybe we''ll form a club, and have students volunteer to patrol the school after classes.???

    "Who would do that?" I asked, trying not to sound too negative. Rossetti shrugged.

    "I¡­don''t know."

    We spent the next couple of hours drawing up plans and writing proposals, hoping to submit them to Headmistress Taylor. Whether she would accept them or not was one thing, but at least we tried. Truthfully, I didn''t care. I was more concerned over joining the Midnight Order to hunt down the vampires.

    "Thanks for coming, guys." Rossetti smiled, despite our lack of progress. "We didn''t achieve much, but at least we have some proposals. That has to be better than nothing."

    "Yeah. I''ll keep you guys updated when I get more news."

    "Oh? You are leaving now?" Roselia appeared, giggling mischievously. "You should stay for dinner. I would like to get to know my future brother-in-law more."

    "What¡­brother-in-law?!" Rossetti spluttered.

    "Which one do you prefer, Sis?"

    "Heh¡­" Roselia approached me with a wicked smile. "I say this one. He''s the only outsider who can tell us apart."

    "So what?" Rossetti demanded, her hands on her hips. Roselia raised an eyebrow as she glanced back at her twin.

    "Have you forgotten? Didn''t we agree that the only guys worth marrying are the ones able to distinguish us from each other?"

    Rossetti turned bright red. "That¡­that''s just a childish game we played back when we were kids! Why are you bringing that up now!?"

    She then turned toward us and shooed us away.

    "Okay, I''ll see you guys tomorrow!"

    "Tch." Roselia clicked her tongue. "You''re no fun at all."

    As we left, Kufa turned toward me, amazed.

    "You were able to tell those twins apart? I couldn''t tell at all."

    "Uh, well¡­I watch too much anime, so when I noticed that the ponytail was on the wrong side¡­"

    "¡­seriously?"

    "Yeah. Oh, and the air they give off is different. Rossetti is more innocent and bubbly. Her sister seems more mischievous and scheming."

    "Now that you mention it¡­" Kufa scratched his head. Then he shrugged and grinned. "Or it could be love."

    "Not you too¡­" Rolling my eyes, I sighed and increased my pace.

    *

    The next day, I ran into Nan Gong Yue Jian, Lin Xuan Chi and Ling Xue Xiao, and brought them to the staff room. From there, Teacher Lao Shi took over and led the three of them to their new classes. I left them to her because, quite frankly, it wasn''t my job to take care of them. The teachers could handle that. I had more important things to worry about.

    Besides, my homeroom teacher was Teacher Einsberg, not Teacher Lao Shi. I would rather not join the same class as Yue Jian and the rest.

    I didn''t want to get involved in some sort of shoujo drama where Yue Jian got picked on by her new classmates for no reason other than because she was the main heroine, attracted the attention of a bishounen character and ended up incurring the wrath of her jealous female classmates. Nope. This was supposed to be a world of magic battle academies, not sappy shoujo romance. I could do without the drama in my life.

    While I was in the classroom, I checked my smartphone for news and updates regarding the rescue mission.

    "Still nothing, huh? Even though it''s over a week since then?"

    I couldn''t help but feel anxious at the complete lack of updates. Were they going to save Nan Gong Zhao Yan and the missing students or not?

    Well, as long as we had no idea where the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Sect was, there was nothing I could do except wait. My specialty lay in summoning and blowing things up, not reconnaissance and gathering intelligence.

    "Good morning, everyone."

    As always, Teacher Einsberg greeted everyone with a smile when he walked into the classroom, a folder under his arm. To my utmost surprise, he wasn''t alone. He glanced behind him and gestured. Turning back to us, he brightly delivered an announcement.

    "We have a new student joining our class today!"

    My jaw dropped when I saw Yue Jian shyly tiptoeing into the classroom. Wasn''t she supposed to be in Teacher Lao Shi''s class? Why was she here? She wasn''t an ice mage, was she? In any event, poor Yue Jian quailed when she saw twenty-odd students staring at her, and she almost fainted.

    "Are you all right, Yue Jian?"

    "A¡­ah, yes!"

    Swallowing, Yue Jian mustered her courage and stayed on both feet. Teacher Einsberg smiled encouragingly at her and gave her a pat on the back.

    "Go on, introduce yourself!"

    "Umm¡­um¡­I''m Nan Gong Yue Jian, nice to meet you! I''m from the countryside, and this is my first time coming to school, so¡­so¡­please take care of me!"

    Everyone nodded in understanding. Homeschooled children were not rare, especially when they had rich and highly educated parents.

    "Her father is the famous Nan Gong Jiao Shou," Teacher Einsberg added affably, which drew a series of impressed gasps from the class.

    "Wait¡­Nan Gong¡­are you related to Nan Gong Zhao Yan and Nan Gong Ji Yan?" one of the classmates, a chap named Tong Xue, asked.

    "They¡­they are my sisters."

    "EH?!"

    I suppressed a sigh at the astonished murmurs that buzzed throughout the classroom. Even though both Nan Gong sisters had been abducted, they remained a hot topic, having been popular before the attack. Neither of them had mentioned a third sister. Well, Zhao Yan did. At least to me, anyway, but unfortunately she wasn''t the type to coverse with too many people. So I doubted most of the other students knew about their third sister.

    And I didn''t think it was right of me to gossip about other people''s families. I wasn''t going to betray Zhao Yan''s trust in me and tell everyone else about what she told me.

    As it turned out, the reason why Yue Jian ended up in my class instead of Teacher Lao Shi''s was because the student population had been reduced after the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan''s assault. She was here to make up the numbers in our otherwise understrength class.

    "You can sit over there. Take care of her, Richard. You''re her friend, right?"

    Apparently, Teacher Einsberg had seen me bringing Yue Jian and the two "hunters" into the staff room earlier this morning, and he directed Yue Jian to an empty seat beside me. I muttered an affirmation but I honestly didn''t think there was much I could do now except show Yue Jian around. At least nobody would bully her if she was next to me.

    Speaking of which, Lin Xuan Chi and Ling Xue Xiao were in the senior classes. Xuan Chi, I could understand, but I never thought that Xue Xiao was older than me. Looks could be deceiving. That didn''t account for her childish attitude, though. In any event, that explained why they were in Teacher Lao Shi''s class and why Yue Jian was sent to a different class.

    We spent the rest of the day going through the theoretical applications of ice magic before Teacher Einsberg led us to practical combat lessons and drills. After the assault last week, the teachers intended to be stricter with their training regimens, probably in the hopes of getting us combat ready if we were attacked by vampires or the Dark Church again in future. The sessions were brutal but mercifully short. In just two hours, Teacher Einsberg ran us ragged under the sweltering, hot sun.

    "Huff¡­huf¡­"

    "I can''t do this!"

    "I can''t take it anymore!"

    "You''ve got to be kidding me!"

    All around us, my classmates lay sprawled on the track, panting from the exertion. Yue Jian, probably because this was her first day in school and she wasn''t used to the Spartan training, was on the verge of collapse. As I had promised Teacher Einsberg that I would take care of her, I caught her before she could stumble and faint.

    "T¡­thank you."

    "No problem."

    Yue Jian stared at me in wonder. "How are you able to stand after such a torturous lesson?"

    "Because I can stand it."

    "¡­"

    "Okay!"

    While I was helping Yue Jian up and she was glaring at me because of my stupid pun joke, Teacher Einsberg clapped his hands to draw our attention. Aware that he had pushed the majority of the class past their limits and that it was fruitless to torment us further, he decided to be lenient.

    "That''s it for today. Rest up, revise and make sure you keep up your individual training! We''re not going to let those bastards catch us with our pants down again!"

    "Yes!"

    The spirited response was more from relief that the merciless lesson was finally at an end than because of our determination to repel the enemy. I sighed, somewhat weary.

    "Let''s go."

    I supported Yue Jian as we moved toward the showers. Obviously I wasn''t going to bring her all the way. The moment we reached the ladies, I would leave her to her own devices and head to the gentlemen''s. I wasn''t that much of a pervert.

    However, before we could get that far, a voice stopped us in our tracks.

    "Heh¡­who is this?"

    Turning around, I caught sight of Rossetti. She was standing behind us, her hands on her hips. Even though she was smiling brightly, for some reason her expression looked ominous.

    Realizing that I was still helping Yue Jian up, I let go of her. Yue Jian stumbled a little, and as kind and gentle as she was, Rossetti stepped forward ahd grabbed her before she could fall.

    "Hey! Are you all right?"

    "Y¡­yes. Sorry."

    "Geez!" Rossetti rolled her eyes and then glared at me. "Richard, if you''re going to help, help properly! Don''t just let go of her like that!"

    "Sorry."

    "A¡­are you¡­Richard''s friend?" Yue Jian was peering at Rossetti curiously. She seemed to have realized something and flinched, recalling Rossetti''s expression from earlier. "Ah, sorry¡­are you perhaps his girlfriend?"

    "What¡­you¡­huh?" Rossetti''s mouth dropped open and words tumbled out incoherently.

    "Not exactly," I cut in quickly. "This is Rossetti Picket. She''s a close friend of mine. Rossetti, this is Nan Gong Yue Jian. She is Zhao Yan''s sister."

    "Eh?! Zhao Yan has a third sister!? No wonder you look so familiar¡­you really are sisters."

    "Triplets, actually."

    "Heh?!"

    Rossetti was staring at Yue Jian in wonder. The shy girl shrank back, her head lowered.

    "S¡­sorry for the misunderstanding. I t¡­thought you were maybe Richard''s girlfriend." She glanced at me, and then seemed to realize something again. "Oh, no¡­wait. But then Richard and Zhao Yan are¡­"

    "Heh¡­" Rossetti''s tone dropped to a dangerous level. "What''s this about Richard and Zhao Yan? Is there something about their relationship that I should be informed of?"

    "Eh? No, that¡­"

    "Please, Yue Jian¡­" I sighed heavily as I buried my face in my palm. "Just¡­stop for now, okay?"

 544 Chapter 544: High School Drama II

    It took a while, but we finally managed to explain to Rossetti what was going on. In the meantime, I gained new information regarding Yue Jian''s parents.

    Apparently, after the visit to Headmistress Taylor''s house yesterday, Professor Nan Gong had left on a trip to check things out. He was deliberately being vague, so Yue Jian had no idea where he was going or what he was checking out, but he insisted that she and her mother stay in Flandor City. Teresa Taylor, being a family friend, was able to arrange accommodation for mother and daughter, and even settled the enrollment matters.

    It was unfortunate, but at the moment, Teresa Taylor was unable to offer any assistance regarding the rescue of Zhao Yan, Ji Yan and the other kidnapped students. She was still awaiting authorization from the government, and given how everyone was depending on the Midnight Order and Federation military to find out the whereabouts of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan, they couldn''t move out until they found the exact location.

    This wasn''t good.

    On the other hand, Teresa Taylor also found Yue Jian''s mother some employment, so that they could pay the rent for now. They had left most of their stuff back in the Nan Gong manor, and with the vampires running around, they didn''t dare to return to the place for now. Fortunately, they were able to access their online savings and bank accounts in the city without much trouble.

    "I see¡­" Rossetti was nodding after listening to all that. She placed a hand on Yue Jian''s shoulder. "I''m very sorry to hear that. If you need any help, feel free to approach me! I''ll definitely help you in any way I can!"

    She then nodded toward me.

    "Richard and Kufa too¡­oh, that''s another friend of ours. We''ll introduce you to him sooner or later. And when Kureha and Eliza return, we''ll introduce you to them too."

    "Speaking of which, what happened to the Franklin cousins?" I asked. They had been absent during the vampire attack, having run off on a mission or something.

    "They are hunting the Dark Church, so they won''t be back for a while." Rossetti frowned. "I heard they found a few agents and are trying to go undercover or something."

    "That makes sense." I nodded. That would explain their absence for such a long period of time, and why they remained out of contact. They couldn''t risk blowing their cover. Of course, there was another reason for their silence ¨C one that was much more ominous, but I didn''t want to think too much about it.

    "All right, we''re hitting the showers, and then going for lunch later. I''ll see you then."

    "Ugh¡­" Rossetti made a face. "Kufa and I have a class in a few minutes. We might not be able to join you."

    "Don''t worry about it," I assured her. "There are always other opportunities."

    She then leaned over and held Yue Jian''s hands, smiling brightly.

    "I look forward to getting to know you more, Yue Jian!"

    "S¡­same!" Yue Jian mumbled shyly. Rossetti then waved before leaving. I nodded and watched her go before turning around.

    "All right, let''s go."

    "She''s a very nice person," Yue Jian said softly. "Much nicer than the other girls in class, and Ling Xue Xiao."

    "Yeah. I''m sure you''ll be great friends."

    After we showered and changed back to our usual uniforms, the class headed to the cafeteria. As Yue Jian said, her mother had found some employment, but I didn''t expect her to be manning one of the stalls.

    "Yue Jian! Richard!"

    She called out to us cheerfully and waved to attract our attention. My stomach growled as I headed there.

    "Mom¡­"

    For some reason, Yue Jian was on her own. Thanks to her shy nature, she wasn''t able to befriend anybody, so she did nothing but watch the other girls from our class slip past her as they engaged in joyful conversations while isolating themselves within their own cliques. Not a single one of them extended a hand of friendship to poor Yue Jian.

    Wow¡­I know we had just experienced a traumatic attack about a week ago, but was there a need to ignore a newcomer like this? Wasn''t this¡­a bit too blatant? It was almost as if it was a contrived plot device to ostracize the main heroine of a shoujo manhua, for no other reason other than make her a Pity Beggar Mary Sue. Perhaps it was a plot device to contrive the main heroine attracting unwanted attention from jealous girls when a hot guy saw her being alone, approached and talked to her, just so the author or artist could create stupid high school drama for the sake of it. And then poor Yue Jian would be bullied by a girl gang later.

    What the fuck was wrong with some people?

    Sighing, I strolled toward the floundering Yue Jian and gave her a gentle push.

    "Yeah, your mom is calling you. Let''s grab some food."

    We went over to her mom''s stall without any hesitation. I remembered what a great cook she was, having been treated to her meals a couple of times ¨C once, when Zhao Yan invited me over to their house, and also last week when I went over to inform them of the news regarding their daughter. That was why I looked forward to the food she cooked, which consisted of rice and a bunch of dishes. Economy rice, if you really wanted to be specific.

    Just as I would expect, Yue Jian''s mother dumped a lot of food onto both of our plates. Winking slyly, she leaned over and whispered, "Just a little extra for the two of you!"

    It was really great to have a mom on the cafeteria staff.

    "Oh, hey!"

    While the both of us settled in our seats at the corner of the cafeteria, not far from Yue Jian''s mother''s stall, I over heard a couple of guys whispering excitedly to each other.

    "Did you hear about the transfer students?"

    "Yeah! Apparently Nan Gong Zhao Yan''s third sister is in Teacher Einsberg''s ice magic class!"

    And she was sitting right here, dudes. It was amusing to see them completely overlook the person they were talking about. I watched the two guys, but I didn''t recognize them. They were not in Rossetti and Kufa''s class, evidently, or they wouldn''t be in the cafeteria. Otherwise they were skipping classes, but who knew?

    While I feasted, I couldn''t help but curiously pay attention to their conversation because I was a busybody. On the other hand, Yue Jian was blushing because she wasn''t used to being talked about. It was perhaps a good thing that they didn''t recognize her, or she would be even more embarrassed.

    Fortunately, the guys shifted the topic from her to someone else.

    "It isn''t just her! We also have a beautiful senior and another guy transferring into our school! They''re in the third year! The beautiful senior is Ling Xue Xiao, and the guy is¡­uh¡­"

    "Lin somebody."

    Lin Xuan Chi, actually. I felt sorry for him. Well, I was sure the girls would remember his name and not Ling Xue Xiao''s, so it evened out in the end.

    "Speak of the devil! Aren''t those two the new transfer students?"

    Yue Jian almost dropped her fork when she heard that. Frantically looking up, she caught sight of Lin Xuan Chi and Ling Xue Xiao walking together. They had already collected their food and were strolling across the cafeteria, looking for a seat.

    They were really an eye-catching pair, brilliantly standing out as students watched them in admiration. The girls were gushing non-stop over how handsome Lin Xuan Chi was, while the guys were practically drooling over Ling Xue Xiao''s tomboyish beauty. What they saw in that plain tomboy, I had no idea, but I wasn''t going to judge. Beauty was only skin deep, after all.

    In any case, they were getting quite the warm reception, especially when compared to poor Yue Jian. Even as I diverted my attention back to my meal, I could hear the girls and guys swarming over the duo, greeting them, exchanging introductions and pleasantries, and even requesting for photographs.

    ¡­did they not learn from the massacre that the obsession of taking photographs to post them online on social media would eventually lead to their deaths? Well¡­then again, this was a completely different context. There were no enemies attacking us and no state of emergency, so I was being overly cynical for the sake of it.

    "They''re receiving a very warm welcome in this school¡­"

    Yue Jian sounded a bit envious as she watched the mobbed duo. I grunted in disinterest, but she took that as a signal to continue.

    "I guess that''s only to be expected. They''re pretty good looking, and they have great personalities and remarkable charismas."

    "Ji Yan was also charismatic and popular, if I remember correctly," I replied. Inwardly, I snorted. Ling Xue Xiao did not have a "great" personality, if you asked me¡­but clearly nobody asked for my opinion, so I didn''t share it. Instead, I continued on what truly mattered. "But Zhao Yan was a lot less sociable. She wasn''t exactly shy, but she usually kept to herself."

    "¡­I see."

    Yue Jian smiled to herself as she nibbled at a piece of chicken.

    "So Zhao Yan wasn''t very popular too¡­"

    "You will be if you get over your shyness and learn to speak up."

    "Eh?! Impossible, impossible!"

    While I laughed cruelly at Yue Jian''s frantic reaction, Lin Xuan Chi caught sight of us.

    "Oh?"

    He ignored the girls who were clamoring over him and trying to act all friendly, to get on his good side, suprising them by whirling away and heading toward the table Yue Jian shared with me.

    "Is this seat taken?"

    "Um¡­no! Uh, hello?"

    Yue Jian was flustered at his sudden arrival, the words tumbling out incoherently from her mouth as she tried to greet him. I chewed my lip irritably, but did not respond or glare at him. That would be too obvious. Besides, I wasn''t opposed to him dining with us. The more, the merrier. And it would make the atmosphere less awkward.

    "I''ll eat with you guys then!"

    Lin Xuan Chi affably placed his tray on the table, sitting beside Yue Jian, who seemed to grow increasingly nervous.

    As for me¡­

    "What are you eating?" (It was actually a Chinese pun joke where I asked Xuan chi shenmo? Where choosing what to eat was homophonic with Xuan Chi''s name)

    "Can''t you tell?"

    Lin Xuan Chi was not at all offended and pointed good-naturedly at his tray of food. It appeared that he had taken bacon and egg with Western styled soup instead of economic rice from Yue Jian''s mother''s stall.

    "No, I mean¡­never mind." I sighed. It took an intellectual to understand the value of pun jokes and evidently Lin Xuan Chi and the confused Yue Jian weren''t intellectuals.

    Lin Xuan Chi merely cocked his head before he pushed his tray closer to Yue Jian.

    "I chose a lot of food, so if you don''t mind, I would like you to try¡­"

    ??Ah?!"

    The girls were utterly stunned by the loving attention Lin Xuan Chi was paying Yue Jian. While doing my best not to roll my eyes, I realized that someone was missing.

    Blinking, I glanced up at Ling Xue Xiao, who was standing by herself some distance away and glowering in our direction. Biting her lip, she grumbled to herself.

    "How hateful!"

    Instead of raging over there by yourself, why don''t you just¡­join us? Ah¡­I know! This was the typical shoujo drama where every female character was jealous of the main heroine because all the handsome male leads only paid attention to her for some odd reason. Shoujo manhua main heroine power, I guess.

    "So any news on the spy?"

    I decided to outright ignore the whiny bitch and cut straight to the point. Lin Xuan Chi stared at me, surprised, and then shook his head.

    "No. We haven''t found any clues regarding that."

    "Well, it''s only been a week since we got here¡­"

    Yue Jian was actually speaking up for Lin Xuan Chi. See? You can do it if you try!

    "Hmm¡­"

    "Why are you so interested in our Association''s internal affairs, anyway?"

    Lin Xuan Chi was careful not to sound rude, emphasizing his curiosity more than taking offense. I narrowed my eyes at him.

    "I''m Zhao Yan''s friend. If there''s any way I can help her, I will."

    "Ah. Yeah, that makes sense."

    Lin Xuan Chi nodded in understanding.

    "For now, we should just lie low, relax and go with the flow. I''m sure we''ll find something as long as we''re patient."

    "¡­why? So that we can turn this story into some shoujo high school drama bullshit filled with angst and implausible romance where the heroines fall for the ''cool, bad guys'' and indulge in toxic, abusive relationships? I''m sure Yue Jian doesn''t want to waste time engaging in high school drama while her sisters are being held captive. She definitely wants to rescue them as quickly as possible, right?"

    "Uh¡­"

    You''re kidding me. You''re telling me you want to engage in romantic antics and high school drama bullshit over rescuing your sisters?

    "Yes."

    Phew.

    Lin Xuan Chi nodded thoughtfully. "You''re right. Sorry, Yue Jian. I didn''t consider your feelings when I said that. Of course your sisters'' safety is of the utmost priority."

    "No, not at all."

    "That said, rushing things through and recklessly looking for the spy or the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan might be counterproductive, especially if we call needless attention to ourselves. Even if this is an urgent matter, we cannot afford to be too hasty."

    "I''m not denying that, but I don''t think we have the luxury of relaxing and simply going with the flow."

    "Of course, of course. That''s not what I meant."

    What did you mean, then?

    "Well¡­" Lin Xuan Chi wove his fingers together and leaned closer to stare at me. "If you want to help, then let''s meet up tonight." He glanced at Yue Jian before she could say anything. "Sorry, Yue Jian, but you shouldn''t come along."

    "But¡­"

    "I''m sorry. But you don''t have the proper training in combat and you''re inexperienced, so it might be too dangerous. I wouldn''t be able to face Professor Nan Gong if something happened to you."

    "Don''t worry, I''ll take care of the matter in your stead," I assured Yue Jian, and she reluctantly relented.

    "All right. Don''t do anything dangerous, you two."

    "It''s not just us two." Lin Xuan Chi chuckled and glanced at the sulking Ling Xue Xiao, who had finally found a table of her own and was surrounded by both guys and girls. "Xue Xiao will be with us too."

    He glanced back at me with what he probably thought was a charming smile.

    "So are you up for it?"

    I regarded him for a moment before I nodded, even though I couldn''t shake off a chilling premonition that ran up my spine.

 545 Chapter 545: Late Night Meeting

    "What are you doing here?"

    Ling Xue Xiao folded her arms and glared at me as I wandered into the warehouse that Lin Xuan Chi suggested as the meeting place. It had taken quite a bit of time and caution on my part to leave the Franklin Manor undetected, a problem Ling Xue Xiao didn''t seem to have. I didn''t want Adrian and Melina following me into what was clearly a trap.

    I had contingencies in place, but I didn''t want to call upon them until absolutely necessary.

    "Xuan Chi Senpai told me to meet him here," I replied. I was actually using the Chinese version xue zhang, but English readers would probably be more likely to recognize the word senpai.

    "Why would he do that?"

    "Why don''t you ask him?" When Ling Xue Xiao scoffed at my reply, I sighed and shrugged. "Maybe he wants my help to find the spy."

    Ling Xue Xiao immediately narrowed her eyes and regarded me suspiciously when I said that, her expression filled with disbelief. I didn''t blame her. Normally this was a guild issue that should be dealt with internally by members. It was not a matter that Hunter Associations or mercenary guilds would involve outsiders like me in.

    I pushed my glasses up as I surveyed the interior of the abandoned warehouse, wondering why Lin Xuan Chi chose such a venue as our meeting place. My glasses whirred and the in-built sensors scanned the place and looked out for threats. Infrared vision, nightvision and a suite of other visual aids kicked in, displaying the warehouse in several tiny windows on my lenses. Right now, there was nobody inside. I was reminded of that time when I hunted the Chiropterans alongside Kufa and Saya. Speaking of which, I had no idea what happened to Saya. It had been a while since I had seen her. Maybe I should ask Kufa about her the next time I talked to him, which would be very soon.

    For now, I could think of plenty of reasons why Lin Xuan Chi wanted me and Ling Xue Xiao to meet him here. There was something unnerving about the dark, danky place and the abandoned machinery that lay within.

    "Where is Xuan Chi Senpai anyway?"

    "Hmph! How would I know?"

    Because you were closer and more intimate with him than I was?

    I refrained from pointing out the obvious and obediently sank into silence. I wasn''t here to start an argument. I was more curious as to how Lin Xuan Chi planned on flushing out the spy. And that was assuming he wasn''t the spy himself ¨C after all the nonsense I read in the vampire shoujo manhua, I knew he had to be the spy. Because the author couldn''t get enough of bad boys. In any event, I wouldn''t be surprised if he wanted to investigate the other Hunters¡­

    "What guild or sect are you guys from?" I asked. Ling Xue Xiao sniffed and turned away.

    "None of your business."

    Fine, be that way then, bitch. I decided to wait for Lin Xuan Chi to arrive before asking him.

    Speaking of which, he was pretty late. He was the one who proposed that we meet here at 9pm, but as Ling Xue Xiao and I waited fruitlessly, he didn''t arrive even after fifteen minutes past the appointed time. Ling Xue Xiao was getting impatient while I entertained the thought that this whole thing might have been one gigantic prank.

    Hmm¡­but why would he drag Ling Xue Xiao along into this stupid prank of his?

    I honestly doubted it was to set us up on a date. Surely hunting for a spy didn''t make for an ideal atmosphere for high school romance.

    "¡­!"

    Just when I was about to scoff at such a ludicrous idea that could only emerge from a shoujo-styled drama, I suddenly caught sight of infrared signatures crawling toward the warehouse in the dark. Nightvision also showed their silhouettes moving stealthily (or what passed for stealth when I could see them as clearly as if it was daytime) from the outside. Tapping my glasses to improve the visual sensors and focus on the approaching figures, I narrowed my eyes and confirmed that they were threats.

    "Be careful!" I shouted a warning to Ling Xue Xiao, who immediately went into high alert.

    As rude as she was, Ling Xue Xiao was no fool. Already drawing her twin swords, she allowed her mana to surge and coalesce strongly around her body in a protective aura. Exchanging glances with me, she silently proceeded to the entrance, her swords gripped in a cautious stance.

    It seemed that Ling Xue Xiao had detected the newcomers too.

    Yet their arrival raised new questions. Where was Lin Xuan Chi? Was he killed by the intruders? Was that why he hadn''t shown up so far? Or was he in cahoots with them, selling us out to the enemy and luring both me and Ling Xue Xiao into a trap?

    The latter seemed more probable, and in line with what I had read in a badly written shoujo manhua. It also meant that Lin Xuan Chi was the spy.

    What reason would he have to betray us? Oh, I was sure we were going to experience some random flashback to justify his callous treachery later, but now wasn''t the time for that. I should focus on surviving.

    Ling Xue Xiao jumped back the moment the doors were flung open and a group of hooded vampires flooded in, their eyes glowing red in the semi-darkness. The first one flung a red whip of blood at Ling Xue Xiao, who cut the mana strand with her own mana-infused swords.

    And then the rest poured in, swarming over her. However, Ling Xue Xiao fought on, undaunted, as she cut a bloody swathe through the vampires, felling at least three in a deadly slash.

    As if realizing that I was here as well, a trio of vampires splintered off from the main group and charged at me. The vampire in the middle kicked me just when I drew my Hei Yue and Bai Ri, his immense strength causing me to skid back despite having blocked his attacked with my crossed swords. Before I could counterattack, the other two blasted me with blood spears that lanced out of the ground and sought to impale me.

    "¡­!"

    I ducked and dodged, relying on the footwork and martial arts that Dad taught me whenever we sparred in his dojo. Reading their movements, I anticipated where they would attack and evaded accordingly. However, the sheer volume of the blood spears they launched at me overwhelmed my attempts at evasion and I suffered a few cuts and scrapes when a few of them grazed my skin. Despite parrying some of them with both Hei Yue and Bai Ri, I was unable to prevent a good number of my enemies'' attacks from going through. Twisting my body aside, I tried to dodge, but even though the blood lances missed my vital spots, they still managed to cut my arms, legs and non-vital parts.

    "Ouch!"

    I hissed in pain and staggered back. Despite doing my best with both of my swords, the speed of my foes were forcing me onto the defensive. I wasn''t able to retaliate, not when the trio of them bombarded me with perfectly synchronized attacks from all directions. The moment I parried a blood claw spell from the one on my left, the middle one kicked my solar plexus with a mana-infused foot. When I turned my attention to him, the one on my right sent a barrage of blood spears that lanced out and forced me to abort my attack.

    Even if it was a one-on-one battle, I would still find it difficult to defeat them. Challenging, but somehow still possible. However, in a three-against one match, I was being completely overwhelmed. My every movement was being suppressed, and I couldn''t even fight back. This couldn''t even be called a duel. It was a one-sided pummeling.

    Maybe I should just change tactics and summon a quicker Constellation spirit instead of waiting to summon one of my big guns. But in this situation, I would rather summon a Celestial Guardian than a Constellation spirit, and I was confident that I could hold out long enough against these bastards anyway.

    Besides, I had already begun casting ever since before they showed up, so I didn''t need to wait too long. I was just waiting for an opportunity, so that I could catch them off guard and subdue them in one fell swoop rather than reveal my hand too soon and put them on high alert.

    "Huff¡­"

    As the center vampire''s kick sent me flying and inadvertently widened the distance between us, I stabbed both swords into the ground to halt my momentum and used the chance to breathe. Rising to my feet, I assumed a defensive stance again.

    Drip. Drip.

    Cuts and lacerations ran across my exposed skin and beneath my torn clothes, leaking blood at an alarming rate. Death by a thousand paper cuts. Still, I was determined to withstand the pain. I just needed that single opportunity, and then all this suffering would be totally worth it.

    However, my opponents also knew that there was the chance that I would bleed to death before I could turn the tables on them, so they refused to give me any time to relax.

    The trio of vampires launched themselves at me again, spearheaded by a barrage of blood spears. I immediately summon Scutum Sobiescianum and used the huge Constellation shield to protect me from the lances. The vampires momentarily paused when they saw their blood spears halt in their tracks as they smacked right into the surface of my Constellation shield, failing to pierce it.

    "¡­!"

    Exchanging glances with each other almost imperceptibly, the two vampires at the sides ran down my flanks, hoping to expose an opening, while the central vampire continued to hurl a barrage of blood spears from the front to keep my attention on him.

    How na?ve.

    Leaving the front to Scutum Sobiescianium, I turned to face the vampire on the right, just barely striking his hand and deflecting his blood claws from my face. Ducking under his kick, I managed to fall back and dodge under his compatriot''s assault when he tried to slash at me from behind. Twisting around, I swung Hei Yue at him, but he caught my sword before it reached his face, and countered with a slash. Before his claws could reach me, I brought my knee up and cracked it against his elbow, sending his claws upward and merely cutting a few strands of my hair. As he staggered back, I tried to attack with Bai Ri, only to instinctively drop to a crouch when the vampire behind me slashed with dual blood claws.

    "Whoa!"

    If I hadn''t dodged that, I would have been eviscerated by that deadly pincer attack. Striking out from the bottom, I aimed a kick at his chin, but he jerked his head back and retreated. Spinning on the floor, I swept his legs out from under him, tripping him up, and then rolled away when his comrade swung his heel down on me.

    Meanwhile, my Scutum Sobiescanium continued to jerk and shudder as more blood lances slammed into it from the front, but the central vampire still hadn''t managed to penetrate the Constellation shield at all. There was no way it would give under a normal onslaught of blood spears. Unless his blood spears were on par with Craig Carlson''s cursed demonic spear, which I doubted. Craig was a prodigy and his weapon was almost one of a kind.

    Unfortunately, these vampires possessed advantages that Craig didn''t.

    As if noticing that the trio was having trouble defeating me instantly (because apparently they were on a tight schedule and thus couldn''t afford to spend a few more minutes to wear me down and wait for me to bleed to death eventually), a few more vampires broke off from the main group and charged in my direction.

    I was already at my limit dealing with the current trio of vampires. There was no way I could take on four times that number.

    "Ugh!"

    Just as I thought that, the two vampires cleverly caught me in a pincer attack and slashed me across the chest and back, despite me raising both of my swords to parry the attack. Even as I stumbled back, blood dripping profusely from my wounds, the vampires closed in and had me completely surrounded.

    However¡­this also provided me the opportunity I was seeking for, of course. Even as the reinforcements closed in on me, I wasn''t able to conceal a grin.

 546 Chapter 546: The Spy

    Gasping, I tried to right myself despite being on the verge of blacking out from the pain. But the vampire on my right kicked me, sending me tumbling over.

    The other vampire tried to slash me, but Scutum Sobiescianum rose to block his attack while I rolled on the floor. Fortunately, I had my two swords to parry his other blood claws, my black and white blades whirling around almost on automatic response to block and defend myself. I was moving more from conditioned reflexes than conscious thought now.

    And then the other vampires descended upon me. Already, the ground beneath my back was starting to explode with blood spears. I could literally sense the mana bursting out from under my body and was forced to quickly roll away before I got impaled by them.

    When I sprang to my feet, the new group of vampires landed, surrounding me in a ring. They raised their mana-infused claws and got ready to slash me to death.

    I grinned, despite the blood trickling from my mouth.

    At that moment, a bright flash of light illuminated the shadowy interior of the warehouse, taking my assailants back. The next thing they knew, my massive Celestial Guardian had appeared. The first vampire gaped up hollowly before he was incinerated by Vermillion Phoenix, his body cremated into ash as the inferno roared over him. Another vampire screamed when she was caught in the flames, her body immolated and charred. Despite her blood magic that allowed her to regenerate quickly, her shrieks abruptly stopped when she combusted into ashes.

    "¡­!"

    The surviving vampires retreated, slicing and cutting through the sea of flames with their blood claws and blades. Thankfully, their rapid regeneration and vicious blood spells allowed them to break out of the blockade of fire, but my Vermillion Phoenix left quite the heated impression on them.

    "Huff¡­"

    "What the hell is this?!"

    "Was he hiding a trick all along?"

    "Where did that monster come from?!"

    "This guy¡­he''s a summoner!"

    What, you attacked me without knowing about that? I might be a mediocre combat mage, but I was an excellent summoner. Even if I couldn''t win against the vampires in terms of combat skills, I had alternative methods of fighting.

    Such as unleashing my Celestial Guardian on them.

    I was waiting for this, you know?

    I smirked inwardly as I pushed my glasses up. It had taken me incredible mental restraint to stop myself from summoning Vermillion Phoenix to come to my aid while I was being overwhelmed by the first trio of vampires. Sure, he would help turn the tide, but the other survivors would become wary of my summoning magic and retreat. I would rather lure them into a sense of false security before springing my trap. And now all of them were surrounded by an impenetrable ring of fire, with no avenue of escape.

    Well, it wasn''t as if I was having a contest with Ling Xue Xiao, and admittedly she was the superior mage. I didn''t care if she killed more vampires than me.

    "Where is Xuan Chi?! What did you do to him?!"

    As if realizing that we were now at an advantage, Ling Xue Xiao shouted at the vampires after stabbing her eighth victim. He gurgled before slipping off his killer''s blades, and the rest spread out warily, trying to avoid Ling Xue Xiao''s flashing swords.

    "We should leave at least one alive to question them," I suggested. Ling Xue Xiao nodded and smiled ominously, sending chills down the vampires'' spines.

    "Good idea. But we don''t need more than one. So let''s kill the rest."

    Wow¡­she was brutal. But I had no objections.

    With my Vermillion Phoenix swinging the tide of battle to my favor, I commanded him to incinerate the whole mob of vampires.

    "!!!"

    The vampires, despite their relative youth, were fairly skilled. After the surprise attack, the other vampires spread out and danced around my massive Vermillion Phoenix, forcing him to spread his attention across multiple targets. Even though he successfully incinerated three more vampires in quick succession, the blood mages were still very agile. They darted about and evaded the torrents of flames nimbly, slashing and cutting apart embers and smaller tongues of flames with their blood claws. They weren''t able to hurt my great Celestial Guardian, their blood spears burning away or vaporized by the fiery halo that wreathed him.

    No matter how many bloody projectiles they hurled at him, they weren''t going to pierce his flaming defenses.

    Trying not to be too impatient, Vermillion Phoenix soared higher into the space within the enclosed warehouse and unleashed a rain of fiery feathers.

    "What the?!"

    "Whoa!"

    While they were busily trying to avoid the hellish inferno that now swept across the confines of the warehouse, a sea of fire that incinerated their comrades into ashes, they were almost taken by surprise when Vermillion Phoenix switched to smaller projectiles. The feathers pierced through the bodies of stunned vampires, speeding through the air faster than the larger torrents of purifying fire, and combusted spontaneously from the inside. Many a vampire died howling as their innards caught fire and their bodies were consumed by flames.

    And then, I summoned Taurus.

    "Taurus, Aldebaran attack!"

    The gigantic bull trampled through a tightly knotted crowd of vampires, crushing them under his hooves. Those out of reach, he incinerated with a breath of fire. The beleaguered vampires tried to scatter, but it was too little, too late.

    Unfortunately, I didn''t have the luxury of gloating. The center vampire of the trio that originally attacked me broke away from my Soul Beasts, leaving them to his comrades so that he could fight me. He knew the best strategy for defeating a summoner was to take out the person who summoned the soul beasts. As long as he killed me, my soul beasts would naturally disappear.

    He was na?ve.

    "Whoa!"

    Even so, I refused to underestimate my opponent. I ducked under his vicious kick and slashed with Hei Yue, but he blocked it with his left claws before stabbing my arm with his right claws. Or tried to, but I succeeded in parrying his right claws with Bai Ri. Gritting my teeth, I unleashed an ice spell at pointblank range, a cool blast of azure mana washing over the vampire. But my opponent merely sliced through it and emerged unscathed.

    Then he renewed his attack.

    "¡­!"

    I backed off, trying to keep my eyes on his figure, but the vampire was disappearing into a blur, whirling around and delivering kicks and slashes in strokes too fast for my eyes to follow. This was even though the sensors in my glasses were doing their utmost to track his movements. Following the calculated trajectories that my glasses displayed in holographic lines and digital images, I did my best to anticipate his attacks and preemptive moved out of the way before they came, while parrying those strikes I couldn''t evade with my black and white swords.

    "Not bad."

    The vampire smirked as he kicked me again. I managed to withstand the blow, having blocked it with Bai Ri, but he slashed at me with his claws, which I managed to parry with Hei Yue. With a yell, I blasted him with an icy spell, coating his claws in frost, but he shattered them with a surge of demonic mana.

    "I see. So your battling style is that of attrition, huh?"

    The vampire looked amused as he slashed at me again. He was so wrong¡­my battling style was obviously summoning, but I decided not to tell him that. Instead, I dodged his kick before trying to counterattack, but he easily deflected my blades away with a claw before returning a riposte with the other one. If I hadn''t twisted my torso out of the way, those claws would have plunged themselves deep inside my chest.

    "If that''s the case, I''ll have to finish this match as quickly as possible!"

    "¡­really?"

    I tried not to roll my eyes at his complete misunderstanding of how I usually fought. The vampire sped up his attacks, almost taking me by surprise. Almost. Thankfully, I had already anticipated that because the sensors in my glasses were picking up spikes in his mana and displayed the direction they were flowing toward, so I kept my distance and blocked them one by one. The vampire continued his assault, undaunted, and responded by merely accelerating his attacks.

    "Kuh¡­!"

    At this rate, I wouldn''t be able to stop them all. A slash opened up a laceration in my arm while a claw scraped a thin line of blood on my cheek. Despite my best efforts to evade and block, several of the vampire''s attacks were getting through. I would have to summon Black Tortoise or Hydra to freeze this fucker¡­

    "Gaaaah!"

    Right before my surprised eyes, my opponent suddenly jerked up and shuddered, a blade piercing his chest. I blinked, still not knowing what had just happened, until the vampire fell and slid off the sword, revealing an annoyed Ling Xue Xiao.

    "What''s taking you so long to clean up the opponents?"

    "I was trying to take that idiot alive!" I stormed at her. I was so close to freezing the guy. Just a few more seconds and I would have summoned Black Tortoise or Hydra and froze him solid. She had to poke her nose in and ruin everything. "Aren''t we supposed to capture one alive for interrogation?!"

    As if to emphasize my point, the final vampire screamed while Vermillion Phoenix burned him alive. They stood no chance against my Celestial Guardian ¨C hemmed in by the ring of fire, they were all incinerated to ashes.

    "¡­did you leave any alive?" I asked Ling Xue Xiao pointedly. Her guilty expression told me everything I needed to know.

    "Well¡­! It was killed or be killed! It''s not like I had a choice! You too! Why didn''t you leave any alive?"

    "Because you killed the guy I was trying to capture alive," I snapped. "Why did you think I tried so hard to challenge him to single combat and draw him away from the others? I was doing my best not to burn him to ashes!"

    "Why him? Couldn''t you have captured some other vampire? Why did you have to burn all of them?"

    "You were the one who told me to kill the rest."

    "That''s¡­guh!"

    Unable to counter my statement, Ling Xue Xiao cast her gaze downward, feeling ashamed.

    "Well, in any case, we should look for Xuan Chi Senpai?"

    "¡­ah! That''s right!" Ling Xue Xiao immediately returned to life and began striding toward the open entrance of the warehouse. She flipped her smartphone out and tried calling him again, but as before, Lin Xuan Chi didn''t pick up the phone. The guy probably received a hundred missed calls from Ling Xue Xiao by now. Furious at the lack of response, she kicked a few of the vampires'' corpses on her way out. "I''m sure Xuan Chi is still alive! There''s no way he would have been killed by these losers!"

    "No, he wouldn''t," I replied. "After all, I''m pretty sure he''s in league with these vampires."

    "Huh? Stop your nonsense!" Ling Xue Xiao hollered at me. "There''s no way he will ally with such evil monsters! I''ll kill you the next time you make such accusations!"

    She glared at me, growing increasingly infuriated when she saw that I hadn''t moved from my spot in the warehouse.

    "Hurry up! Let''s look for Xuan Chi!"

    "There''s no need for that."

    The two of us froze when we saw Lin Xuan Chi''s blue-haired, bishounen figure appear right outside the entrance of the warehouse. Ling Xue Xiao brightened up and ran toward him.

    "Xuan Chi! You''re all right!"

    "Of course I am!"

    "I almost thought you fell into a trap! These vampires, they showed up all of a sudden and attacked us! We were worried that you ran into them on your way here¡­"

    While I listened to Ling Xue Xiao blabbering to Lin Xuan Chi, I realized that something was amiss. My suspicions were confirmed when I studied the blue-haired bishounen. The guy was totally unscathed. Not only that, he didn''t seem shocked by the grisly sight of vampire corpses nor by Ling Xue Xiao''s revelation. It was as if he already knew or expected an ambush.

    I fucking knew it. Yeah, these stupid shoujo vampire manhua was so predictable.

    "Xue Xiao Senpai! Get away from there! It''s a trap! Lin Xuan Chi is the spy!"

    "Huh? What nonsense are you talking about?! I told you, if you continue with that nonsense, I''ll kill you!"

    Ling Xue Xiao put her hands on her hips as she turned to glare at me. She took a step forward, as if she was about to smack me, only to suddenly jerk when a spear pierced her heart from behind. Staring dumbly at the tip of the spear that protruded from her chest, she gurgled incoherently as blood spilled from her lips. Slowly turning her head, she stared at Lin Xuan Chi with wide eyes.

    "Xuan Chi¡­you¡­"

    "~Ah~. The cat is out of the bag."

    Lin Xuan Chi sounded disappointed as he yanked his spear out of Ling Xue Xiao''s chest, dropping her onto the ground. Ling Xue Xiao clutched at her ruined chest, coughing out more blood while her body went into its death throes. Lin Xuan Chi coldly kicked her aside, lowering his spear and aiming it at me. Sighing, he shook his head.

    "I did expect you to figure it out eventually, though. You always seemed suspicious of me for some reason. I''m curious to know¡­how did you see through my acting? At this rate, you would have derailed my plans before I got close to Yue Jian."

    "Is that why you got me and Xue Xiao Senpai to meet you in such a suspicious place? So that you can silence us?"

    "That was the original intention, but¡­as you can see, the plan failed terribly."

    Lin Xuan Chi cast a disgusted look at the vampires'' corpses that lay strewn about the abandoned facility. Shaking his head, he turned back toward me before thrusting his spear forward.

    "Whoa!"

    I threw myself to the side, just barely managing to dodge his spear. Despite evading it with seconds to spare, the sheer amount of mana emanating from his weapon actually cut my left arm, sending a trickle of blood down my hand.

    "Fucker," I spat as I drew Hei Yue and Bai Ri. Behind me, Vermillion Phoenix and Taurus emerged, ready to back me up.

    Lin Xuan Chi mercilessly took another step, not at all intimidated by my soul beasts.

    "Don''t worry about Yue Jian. Once I get close enough to her and gain her complete trust, I''ll bring her to Fan Le Lao."

    Then he thrust his spear toward my chest.

 547 Chapter 547: Revelation

    I parried Lin Xuan Chi''s spear with my crossed swords, stopping it from reaching my chest. My assailant clicked his tongue and jumped back as ice billowed out to freeze him. He was forced to shatter the ice that now rapidly spread over his spear.

    Did this traitor think he could kill me so easily? How na?ve.

    "Before we start the usual fighting, do you mind if I ask a question?" I raised my right hand, Hei Yue still gripped in it. "Why are you spying for the vampires? Are you a member of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan?"

    I glanced at the dead vampires on the ground, wondering if they were his clan members. It all added up. If they were from the same clan, then of course Lin Xuan Chi would plan a trap and organize an attack on Ling Xue Xiao and me.

    "Nope. I''m from the Tang Sect, an affiliated branch of the Hunter Association."

    I frowned. "Yet you killed Xue Xiao Senpai, a fellow branch member?"

    "Of course." Lin Xuan Chi shrugged as he walked around me. I warily tracked his movements, keeping my swords raised between him and myself. The moment I let my guard down, he would attack me with that Godspeed spear technique of his. "She''s part of the Tang Sect, after all."

    I stared at him blankly. He sighed in an almost dramatic manner.

    "My goal is to take revenge on the Tang Sect."

    "Even though you belong to the Tang Sect?"

    "Precisely because I belong to the Tang Sect!"

    Lin Xuan Chi slammed his spear against the ground, raging. What was he, a child? Throwing a tantrum at his age, how embarrassing. Also, he wasn''t making any sense.

    "Even though we were part of the Tang Sect¡­they sacrificed my parents!"

    "¡­I see."

    I regretted asking. Now we were going into a flashback and there was nothing I could do to stop Lin Xuan Chi from ranting. On the other hand, I would very much prefer to sit back and listen than to suffer from a barrage of his spear techniques. The more he talked, the longer I could stay unscathed.

    I briefly wondered if I should just subdue him with my Constellation spirits or Celestial Guardians. Truthfully, Lin Xuan Chi would just cut Taurus into shreds with his spear before my Constellation spirit could trample him, but he would get incinerated into ashes if I unleashed Vermillion Phoenix upon him. In the end, I decided not to kill him there and then, especially since I intended to make use of Lin Xuan Chi to bring me right to the enemy base.

    For now, I should just go along with the flow.

    "That sounds absolutely terrible! How dare they?!" I raised my voice and nodded sympathetically. Lin Xuan Chi showed no sign that he had detected any sarcasm in my tone and his head bobbed up and down vigorously from rage.

    "It was. The Tang Sect betrayed me. They betrayed my family. I can never forgive them."

    "Yeah!"

    "How did they betray you and your parents?"

    Lin Xuan Chi clenched his fists when he heard my question. Gritting his teeth, he glared at the floor, unwelcome memories welling up inside his head.

    "Surely you have heard about the concerted attacks launched by the Dark Church across the Federation''s cities? Five years ago, there was a city that was destroyed by them. The Bo City massacre."

    "I can''t say I have."

    I probably read about the incident somewhere ¨C the name sounded very familiar, but I was very hazy on the details. The hell? Wasn''t Bo City from a web novel somewhere? Was my story suddenly transforming to Versatile Summoner now?

    "The Dark Church led an alliance of demonic mages including the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan, to attack Bo City in the south. They started by artificially triggering some sort of demonic rain that drove the monsters crazy and then had them invade Bo City to slaughter the residents. I think less than 10% of the civilians managed to escape."

    Yeah, duh. That was why it was called the Bo City massacre. Also, I was getting overly anxious because this was starting to sound like a scene straight from another story.

    Pretty soon, I would be the one massacred because of plagiarism or copyright laws¡­

    "At that time, in order to save the majority of the Tang Sect and to evacuate the surviving civilians, the leader, Tang San, decided to sacrifice a married couple¡­"

    "Huh? Tang San? The leader of the Tang Sect? Did we just move from Verstaile Mage to Soul Land (Douluo Dalu)?"

    A glare from Lin Xuan Chi silenced any further questions I might have, and I shut my mouth to wait for him to continue his flashback.

    "The married couple was to serve as the rearguard, to fight off the overwhelming tide of berserk monsters and demonic mages for as long as possible to buy the rest of the Tang Sect enough time to retreat and escape. As a result of their defiance, they were brutally killed by Fan Fu Qing and his son, Fan Le Lao, in an extremely cruel fashion. I saw their butchered corpses, drained dry of their blood¡­I saw how they were strung up and crucified in the city square for all Federation citizens to witness!"

    "That''s terrible."

    "And despite ordering my parents to their deaths, we weren''t able to evacuate the majority of the civilians in Bo City! Less than ten percent survived! Ten percent! That fucking Tang San wasted my parents'' lives for nothing! Nothing!"

    You''re still alive, aren''t you? Isn''t that proof that your parents'' sacrifice wasn''t for nothing?

    I wanted to voice that out, but it was clear that Lin Xuan Chi was in no mood to listen to reason, so I merely nodded sympathetically and offered my condolences.

    "I''m sorry to hear that."

    "Are you now?! Are you fucking sorry now?! Don''t fuck with me! What would you know?! Have you ever lost your fucking parents? Have you lived your life as an orphan? Tell me, what would you know about my suffering?"

    "Everything. I''m a survivor of Bo City. I lost my family, my home, my memories¡­everything. I was adopted by my current father, but that doesn''t mean I didn''t suffer."

    "Stop lying!"

    I sighed. I wasn''t lying, but no matter what I said, Lin Xuan Chi would never believe me. Also, I wished the dude wouldn''t take his anger out on me. I wasn''t the one who killed his parents or ordered them to their deaths. What did I do to deserve such resentment?

    Lin Xuan Chi whirled on me, frothing at the mouth. His eyes were blazing, and his fingers were gripping his spear tightly. His mana was rising aggressively and the very air around him was buzzing and warping. I felt a chill run down my spine. This senior was not an opponent I could afford to underestimate.

    "Ever since I was young, I have been molding myself into a weapon for revenge! There''s nothing in me but hatred. Hatred not only toward the demonic mages and Dark Church, but also to the mages of the Hunter Association ¨C especially the Tang Sect! That fucking sect who stepped on my parents'' loyalties and callously discarded their lives!"

    "Well said."

    A round of applause sounded from behind Lin Xuan Chi. He immediately knelt when Xu Wu Cheng and Fan Le Lao stepped inside the warehouse, followed by their entourage.

    I felt perspiration drip down my face. If I thought it would be difficult to fight Lin Xuan Chi before, my task had been doubled in difficulty by the appearance of Fan Le Lao and Xu Wu Cheng. Not only that, their fighting strength had been bolstered by their bodyguards. Though, if I were to be honest, I could probably incinerate the bodyguards with a single spell of Vermillion Phoenix''s.

    I pushed my glasses up as I regarded the newcomers. It was just as well. If I bet everything on this battle and killed a bunch of them, especially Fan Le Lao and Xu Wu Cheng, I could rescue Zhao Yan. I was looking for them anyway, so it was pretty convenient of them to come to me of their own accord. The only issue was where they held Zhao Yan, so I should ensure that I keep one of those bodyguards alive to bring me back to their base.

    "I heard that you had trouble taking out your fellow sect member and an outsider, especially when the subjugation force we sent was wiped out."

    "No, sir. I was planning to take care of it."

    "¡­"

    I watched the exchange with a bewildered expression. There was something wrong with this.

    "Uh¡­are you a subordinate of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan?"

    "Of course."

    Fan Le Lao lazily stepped forward and placed a hand on Lin Xuan Chi''s head. The latter winced, but did not resist.

    "He''s my loyal dog. In exchange for taking revenge on the Tang Sect, he swore an oath of loyalty to me. That''s why he has been spying on the Hunter Association and feeding us information."

    "¡­"

    I couldn''t help but cover my face with my palm.

    "Wait. Wait, wait. Are you telling me you turned to the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan for help to take revenge on the Tang Sect?"

    "What''s wrong with that?! They are the ones who betrayed my parents and ordered them to their deaths! I will never forgive them! I''ve lost everything. There''s nothing inside me except revenge! Even if I have to sell my soul to the devil, I will make sure the Tang Sect is annihilated!"

    Wow, this guy''s hatred ran deep. I could see the conviction in his furious eyes. But that wasn''t the problem I had with this situation.

    "No, I''m not saying there''s anything wrong with wanting revenge. I''m just wondering why you would team up with your parents'' murderers to take revenge on the Tang Sect. I mean, I get that you have a perfectly legitimate reason to hate the Tang Sect, but why are you not taking revenge on the guys who carried out the actual killing of your parents and teaming up with them instead?"

    "That''s¡­" Lin Xuan Chi was at a loss for words, but his expression turned livid. "D¡­don''t ask stupid questions!"

    In other words, he wasn''t able to explain the ridiculous flaw in his logic. Who the fuck wrote this script? Was the author/artist of the original manhua on drugs or something? I wouldn''t be surprised if his betrayal was a contrived plot device that the original manhua author/artist thought was a clever plot twist, but didn''t really think through. And thus it ended up making absolutely no sense whatsoever. It was as if she didn''t care about logic.

    This was why I hated shoujo manhua.

    "Well¡­" I glanced at Fan Le Lao, who was looking at me curiously before recognition shone in his eyes. "So what do you plan to do now?"

    "I know you."

    "Yeah, we''ve met."

    Fan Le Lao burst out laughing and turned away. "There''s no need to kill him. He''s no threat to us."

    "But he knows I''m a spy now."

    Lin Xuan Chi sounded confounded by Fan Le Lao''s sudden change in heart, but the vampire leader shook his head.

    "So what? That''s your problem. You will suffer the consequences for your own failure."

    "But¡­"

    "Enough. I am not going to sacrifice any more of my vampires for your selfishness. You already spent a sizable number of my elite forces on silencing these two children mages and got them annihilated."

    Lin Xuan Chi lowered his head in shame, unable to refute what his lord said.

    "I must protest, your highness."

    This time, it was Xu Wu Cheng. He had dropped to a knee and bowed his head when speaking to Fan Le Lao. I cocked my head at his servile attitude.

    ??Lin Xuan Chi is correct. We should kill this loser as quickly as possible. He''ll become a threat in the near future. It''s best to nip the problem in the bud before it blooms."

    The guy clearly wanted revenge for what I did to him over a week ago. Already I could see that he had prepared a countermeasure against me. Damn¡­I wished I had succeeded in killing him during the invasion of Saint Teresa Academy. As I suspected, he had become an extremely dangerous enemy. I sighed and shook my head while the vampire prince considered his subordinate''s words.

    "¡­very well. If even Wu Cheng says so, then I suppose I have no choice. I''ll leave him to you. I should go back for now. Zhao Yan is waiting."

    His eyes glinting malevolently, he gave Xu Wu Cheng a warning glare.

    "However, if you lose more of our elite vampire forces, even you will not be able to avoid punishment. Make sure you remember that, Wu Cheng."

    With a flick of his cape, Fan Le Lao turned and stalked off. More than half of the entourage followed him, but a substantial number of vampires remained in the warehouse, striding forward to back Xu Wu Cheng up. The red-haired vampire grinned before casting a dark look at Lin Xuan Chi.

    "You''ll only get in the way, spy. Leave."

    There was such venom in the word that even an outsider like me could tell that Xu Wu Cheng didn''t take too kindly to Lin Xuan Chi''s presence. The blue-haired traitor said nothing, maintaining his impassive expression, and turned to leave. After all, his only goal was to ensure that I was silenced, and with Xu Wu Cheng taking charge, my death was a certainty. Lin Xuan Chi could leave me to Xu Wu Cheng. I wasn''t his target, after all, since I wasn''t part of the Tang Sect. therefore he held no grudge against me.

    Once again, I didn''t understand what went on in his mind. The idiot evidently didn''t care about logic. I mean, who the fuck subordinated himself to his parents'' murderers to take revenge on his sect? Wasn''t he prioritizing the wrong targets of vengeance? This made absolutely no sense whatsoever. Did nobody ever proofread the original manhua to check for such inconsistenies and glaring plot holes?

    "Yes, sir."

    Lin Xuan Chi stood up and followed Fan Le Lao and the rest of the vampires. I glanced after the spy and exhaled tiredly.

    "You sure you don''t need his help?"

    "You''ve lived long enough," Xu Wu Cheng remarked before he lashed out at me. All around him, his vampire subordinates attacked.

 548 Chapter 548: Activating my Trap Card!

    "You are right about nipping the problem in the bud, you know," I remarked as the vampires descended upon me. "Unfortunately, you''re sadly mistaken about one thing."

    "We''ll see who is mistaken after you die!" Xu Wu Cheng shouted as he slashed at me. His bloody mana coalesced into swarms of of snakes that lunged at me, hissing with bared fangs. I watched the onslaught of scaled serpents and sighed.

    "The bud has already bloomed."

    Vermillion Phoenix spread his wings and engulfed the entire area in flames. Vampires screamed as they were incinerated and Xu Wu Cheng turned pale, evidently recalling the warning that Fan Le Lao issued to him earlier.

    The vampires quickly scattered and spread out, their inhuman reflexes allowing them to dodge the incoming flames. They moved swiftly to avoid being surrounded by the ring of fire that I used earlier to trap the first group of bloodsucking assassins. As I suspected, Xu Wu Cheng had ensured they adopted the appropriate countermeasures.

    "The same tricks won''t work on us twice!"

    With a holler, Xu Wu Cheng lashed out with his serpents, but they froze upon contact when I cleaved them with both of my swords. Not only did I sliced them apart, those that were frozen shattered. Clicking his tongue, Xu Wu Cheng jumped aside. He knocked one of my blades aside with his blood claws, and then several of his vampire subordinates pounced on me while the rest distracted Taurus and Vermillion Phoenix.

    "You won''t have the same advantages as before," Xu Wu Cheng growled. "We have planned for your soul beasts!"

    "Perhaps, but you have also activated my trap card!"

    "Huh?"

    An inferno erupted from underneath the vampires, forcing them back before they could slash me from behind. Rossetti descended elegantly behind me, her chakrams blazing with fire. Her Flaming Phoenix Kagura Dance had burned a couple of them into cinders before they could react in time.

    "Argh!"

    Another vampire screeched as he was cut down. From the entrance, Kufa barreled in at incredible speed, his katana slashing out and scything through the dwindling ranks of vampires.

    "You¡­!" Xu Wu Cheng''s eyes widened. "This whole thing was a trap!"

    "Yeah," I confirmed with a grin. "And you, my friend, have walked straight into it."

    "Don''t celebrate too soon," Rossetti warned me as she fended off another vampire''s blood claws with one of her chakrams. "We need to defeat all of them first!"

    "Roger that. I''ll leave the vampires to you. I''ll take care of Xu Wu Cheng."

    She nodded. "Be careful."

    "I have you to watch my back." I grinned. "There''s nothing to worry about."

    "Hah! It doesn''t matter even if you bring your friends with you!" Xu Wu Cheng sneered. His demonic aura surged. "In preparation of this night, I have fed. My power is several times stronger than two nights ago. Blood Hydra Claws!"

    "!!"

    "I am much stronger than I was last week!"

    Xu Wu Cheng rammed his serpents against my swords, causing me to skid several meters back. I huffed as I endured his blows, parrying and blocking with Hei Yue and Bai Ri. The dude''s strength had evidently gone up, probably as a result of him gorging on blood.

    "Let me guess¡­you sucked Nan Gong Ji Yan''s blood?"

    Xu Wu Cheng grinned as he struck me again, only for my two swords to come up in a blur and fend off his persistent blood serpents.

    "And if I did?"

    "That would explain your abnormal strength."

    "Oh, it''s not just her. We captured a lot of students from the academy. I drained at least ten of them over the last week or so. Well, I also sucked Ji Yan''s blood, but I didn''t kill her. No¡­I still have a use for her. And besides, his highness Le Lao ordered that she be kept alive. He plans to convince Nan Gong Zhao Yan to work with him, after all. With her sister''s life as a bargaining chip. So Ji Yan remains alive for now, but barely. Hmm¡­I might have sucked too much of her blood."

    "That can''t be good."

    "If I recall, you like her, don''t you? That''s why you were trying to save her from me the other time."

    Ah. Xu Wu Cheng must be referring to the incident in the abandoned classroom at the top floor when he first revealed himself to be a vampire. I couldn''t help but burst into uncontrollable laughter at his sad misunderstanding.

    "What''s so funny?"

    "You." I guffawed, clutching at my stomach with a hand that still gripped one of my swords. "You actually think I like Ji Yan? Just because I behaved like a decent human being and tried to help her doesn''t mean I actually hold any sort of affection for her."

    "¡­"

    Xu Wu Cheng regarded me for a moment, and then shrugged. He didn''t care if I liked Ji Yan or not. He just thought he could rile me up, and if that didn''t work, then it didn''t bother him.

    After all, it would be the same once I was dead.

    "Gaaah!"

    Behind him, vampires were sent flying from an explosion. Working in tandem with Vermillion Phoenix, Rossetti had cast a fire spell that blew up a huge chunk of them. She was stomping over, cutting a bloody swathe through their ranks with her dual chakrams.

    "What''s this about you having affection for Ji Yan?" she demanded. "First it was Zhao Yan, and now Ji Yan? You are really close to the Nan Gong sisters, aren''t you?"

    "Not really." I shrugged. "Ji Yan is quite the horrible girl, actually. Only a blind guy would like her."

    "¡­I see." Xu Wu Cheng glanced at the dancing Rossetti, who was scything down his elite forces. "You already have that girl¡­Rossetti Picket, was it? No wonder you hold no interest in any of the Nan Gong sisters."

    "Are you misunderstanding something again?" I sighed heavily, not wanting to argue.

    Xu Wu Cheng narrowed his eyes, and then he renewed his attacks, battering me with his serpents before he kicked at my head while I was busily parrying his blood hydra claws with my two swords. I snapped my head to the side almost dizzily, but that was a small price to pay for not getting my skull smashed in.

    "Huff¡­"

    While I fought desperately against Xu Wu Cheng, I neutralized his spells with my own subtle ones. The serpents continued to freeze upon contact with my swords before shattering. His kick almost broke through my defenses again, but I blocked it with my forearm.

    "Damn it."

    At this rate, it would turn into a battle of attrition, and while I was confident that I had more stamina and mana than Xu Wu Cheng despite him having sucked the blood of so many students, I couldn''t afford to spend the entire night fighting and waiting for him to run out. Not to mention, his subordinates were outnumbering my summoned beasts and two friends. Rossetti and Kufa were doing a good job of holding out, but the vampires were displaying flawless teamwork and impeccable coordination ¨C they were giving my friends and Constellation spirits a run for their money.

    I didn''t have time to waste on these fuckers, though.

    Taking a deep breath, I went on the offensive, risking a strike from one of Xu Wu Cheng''s blood serpents so that I could thrust Hei Yue at my approaching foe.

    "!"

    His sharp instincts recognizing the danger, Xu Wu Cheng twisted around at the last moment and avoided a pierce to his vitals. He had intended to kick me with bone-breaking force, but I had thwarted his attempt. As he landed beside me, he immediately flipped his leg up in a kick to resume his original intentions and I jerked my head to the side to escape his foot. Whirling around, Xu Wu Cheng delivered a roundhouse kick that I barely parried with Bai Ri. I tried to slice off his leg, but he threw his hand up and sent several serpents flying toward my face.

    "Whoa!"

    I slashed the serpents on reflex, transforming them back to splatters of blood. Before I could feel relieved, however, Xu Wu Cheng was in my face, plunging his blood claws toward my chest. I deflected them with my swords, feeling his claws rake my arm and draw blood. Gritting my teeth, I endured the stinging pain and blasted him with icy qi. Reeling back, Xu Wu Cheng shattered the ice around his arm.

    "This freezing spell¡­!"

    "It''s pretty cool, right?"

    "Shut up!"

    Xu Wu Cheng lashed out with his blood claws. As before, his speed and strength were phenomenal. I could hardly follow his movements, deflecting them as best as I could with Hei Yue and Bai Ri. He was much more skilled than the other three strong vampires I had fought before, so it wasn''t a mere repetition of the previous battle.

    He was overwhelming me.

    "Gah!"

    I fell back as he seized an opening and slashed me across the chest, drawing out three fountains of blood. As I staggered, he dropped and kicked me in the head, sending me flying across the warehouse and into a pillar. The structure was obliterated from the impact and it was my turn to be buried under the falling rubble.

    "Richard!" Rossetti cried, but she found her way barred by two very tenacious vampires. Even though she slashed at them with her chakrams, they easily avoided her spells and parried her strikes with their blood claws.

    They weren''t letting her through.

    Similarly, Kufa was occupied with opponents of his own, while Vermillion Phoenix and Taurus chased targets of their own.

    "Cough¡­cough!"

    I coughed out blood, trying to dig my way out of the rubble. But Xu Wu Cheng wasn''t kind enough to give me the time to do that. He was already upon me, razing the debris with his blood claws and opening freshing cuts across my body.

    "¡­!"

    I disappeared in another cloud of dust, blood spilling from my cuts. Overwhelming¡­the last time we fought, I had caught Xu Wu Cheng by surprise and I was working together with Rossetti. Now I had no such advantage, separated from my reliable partner who was currently tied down by his vampire subordinates. Fortunately¡­

    "Aaaaah!"

    Xu Wu Cheng''s head snapped up when he heard the screams of his subordinates. He quickly leaped over and slashed at Taurus with his blood claws. As my Constellation spirit turned to face him, a pillar of brute strength amidst the bloody chaos, Xu Wu Cheng sent a barrage of blood serpents at him, the mana-spawned creatures biting and snapping at his tough hide and armor.

    "You won''t be able to beat me with your soul beasts this time!"

    Xu Wu Cheng summoned a new batch of serpents that snarled and bit deeply into Taurus''s hide as they wrapped themselves around his bulk. My Constellation spirit didn''t seem affected much, finding their fangs and poison a mere irritance.

    However¡­

    "Blood Hydra Whip!"

    Xu Wu Cheng jerked his hands and immediately the serpents transformed back into blood-red lines of mana. Having already ensnared my Taurus, they tightened like thin, steel wire threads and pierced the thick layer of armor.

    Pressure equals force over surface area. By reducing the thickness of the serpents through reverting them back into wire-thin strands of mana, Xu Wu Cheng was able to tremendously increase the pressure of his attack. In a few seconds, his blood whip sliced my Taurus into pieces. He then exploded into wisps of mana.

    "Damn it!"

    Dragging myself out of the debris, I staggered toward Xu Wu Cheng. My hateful enemy crowed triumphantly.

    "Regret going against us now, eh?"

    Xu Wu Cheng sneered and kicked me, but I managed to parry his foot with one of my swords. Too bad I couldn''t cleave through his leg. That would have been a sight to see.

    "Don''t worry. We won''t kill you¡­yet. You can join Ji Yan and be a blood source for the goliaths. And after they drain you, you can comfort each other in your cell. She needs some company, after all. Can''t afford to have her mentally broken so early in the game. And besides, she can''t handle the lust of my men."

    "Why are you speaking as if you''ve already won?"

    Even though they were still being pressured by Rossetti, Kufa and my Vermillion Phoenix, Xu Wu Cheng''s subordinates were somehow able to glare at me hatefully for being the cause of deaths for many of their comrades. Even if they somehow prevailed eventually against my allies, there was no changing the fact that they had suffered substantial casualties. Fan Le Lao was not going to be happy about this. Xu Wu Cheng was going to be punished severely for this alone. I could take some comfort in that fact, at least.

    "I have men who swing both ways, after all. So I should provide for them as well. For a better world without discrimination, regardless of sexual orientation and all that. Don''t worry¡­I also have female subordinates, so if you''re lucky, they might want to have their way with you. And worst come to worst, you still have Ji Yan. I''ll let you do whatever you want to her after you''ve finished servicing my men. If you don''t like her, you''ll still have your beloved Rossetti. I''ll make sure to capture her along with you, so you can keep each other company."

    I gritted my teeth. Xu Wu Cheng''s words were terrifying. I couldn''t help but shudder as I listened to the horrifying fate he promised me after my defeat. It was worse than death.

    Xu Wu Cheng then lashed out with his blood serpents to tie up my swords before he kicked me in the gut. I grimaced in pain, but continued to stand.

    Damn it. I couldn''t fall here. I guess I had no choice. I sighed.

    Xu Wu Cheng glared at me, his eyes narrowing when he realized something was amiss.

    "You¡­"

    I ignored him and shook my head bitterly, sighing again.

    "Damn it¡­and I wanted to save this for Fan Le Lao. I guess I have no choice."

 549 Chapter 549: Coiling Dragon

    "I''m impressed," I continued, shaking my head. "You really forced my hand. That said, I''m pretty worried. If you''rre this strong, I can''t imagine how much stronger Fan Le Lao will be. Just great¡­that means it will be extremely difficult for to defeat him."

    "What are you talking about?"

    Xu Wu Cheng stomped toward me, each of his footsteps leaving a distinct crater.

    "Don''t you dare speak of his highness Le Lao in that manner?! You think I''ll allow you to ever get close to him?"

    "What makes you think I need your permission?" I muttered, rolling my eyes as I retreated from him. Glaring at Xu Wu Cheng defiantly, I smirked. "And you seem to be mistaken about something, Xu Wu Cheng. You''re just someone who has accomplished nothing (basically I''m making fun of his name Wu Cheng, which literally means no accomplishments). You''re just a tiny stepping stone to Fan Le Lao."

    With a roar, Xu Wu Cheng infused his foot with mana and raised it, kicking toward my head, presumably to break my skull and kill me.

    His foot never reached my head.

    "Green Dragon."

    The sudden appearance of my Celestial Guardian swept Xu Wu Cheng off his feet with a single flick of his paw, his majestic figure uncoiling and whipping across to send the rest of the vampire forces into disarray. As they panicked and frantically dispersed, the great dragon raised his head and roared, his immense bulk almost filling out the entire space of the warehouse.

    "W¡­what the hell is that?!"

    Xu Wu Cheng spat out blood as he slowly rose to his feet, his injuries from Green Dragon''s claws slowly healing. The legendary vampire regeneration, huh?

    No matter. I would like to see how immortal a vampire was against a dragon.

    "Get rid of them for me, please, Green Dragon."

    My Celestial Guardian grunted at my request and lashed out.

    "Guuaaaaah!"

    Xu Wu Cheng bellowed in agony as he was flung across the devastated warehouse, Green Dragon''s tail having caught him in the chest. An entire wall of the building was razed, and the structure collapsed. Unaffected by the falling debris, Green Dragon shrugged off broken beams and the shattered ceiling, bellowing as he stomped toward the remaining vampires who had yet to be incinerated by Vermillion Phoenix.

    The warehouse was getting very crowded now¡­

    The vampires fled, or attempted to, but Green Dragon''s maw yawned and an emerald stream of mana swept out to obliterate them. Vines and wood sprouted from the floor, entangling the fleeing vampires and ensnaring them in suffocating tendrils or mercilessly cutting them to shreds with razor-sharp thorns. The more resilient were battered and crushed by thick logs of wood.

    "Aaaaah!"

    "Nooooo!"

    As for the rest, Vermillion Phoenix incinerated them with his flames, in conjunction with Rossetti''s Flaming Phoenix Kagura Dance. The wood was incredibly flammable, and consequently the whole warehouse was ablaze. Kufa also helped, darting in to thrust his katana and stabbed the entangled vampires in their chests or heads.

    "Hey! Pick on someone your own size!"

    Xu Wu Cheng bellowed and unleashed his blood hydras on Green Dragon, the fanged serpents hissing as they attempted to bite and bind the titanic dragon. The Celestial Guardian merely cast a bored glanced at them before he stomped his foot on the ground, conjuring a wall of wood and vines to wrap around the lunging bloody serpents and forcibly halting them in their tracks.

    "¡­!"

    Xu Wu Cheng jumped back to avoid getting ensnared by the vines and thorned tendrils, but he stubbornly continued to harry the immense dragon. Blood spears burst out of the ground, only for vines to burst out of the ground and coil around them, crumbling as they were crushed by the green plants. With an annoyed growl, Green Dragon lumbered after a retreating Xu Wu Cheng.

    "Monster!"

    The crimon-haired vampire noble spat in mixture of rage, dread and defiance. He raised his hand and coalesced his mana, firing off another barrage of blood spears again. With a flick of his tail, Green Dragon smashed the offending projectiles aside before blasting Xu Wu Cheng with emerald mana. Cursing, Xu Wu Cheng flipped his body high above the destructive stream and landed some distance away. With a swing of his hand, he conjured a fresh batch of blood hydras to attack Green Dragon.

    As expected of Fan Le Lao''s second-in-command. He was actually faring very well against Green Dragon. Honestly, he was much better than I thought. Perhaps it was because of all the blood he had sucked over the last week, but he was evidently stronger than he was when Rossetti and I double-teamed on him back then. Well, he was due a powerup, otherwise it would be boring to crush him. What, you think only the protagonists can get stronger? The antagonists would somehow sit around, fiddling their thumbs and wwait for the protagonists to beat them instead of improving themselves in the meantime? That wasn''t very realistic.

    The other vampires, inspired by their leader''s defiance, had regrouped and resumed their assault. Except that Vermillion Phoenix and Rossetti were still around, backed up by Kufa. Rossetti''s dancing spells boosted my Celestial Guardian''s firepower and he unleashed an inferno to incinerate the scattered vampires of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan. Meanwhile, Kufa weaved through the edges, taking out any stragglers who had strayed too far from their main force.

    A few of them broke away to target me, plunging forward in a suicidal charge. With their leader distracted by Green Dragon, they took it upon themselves to slay me. After all, my Celestial Guardians would disappear along with my death. Recognizing that I represented the biggest threat, they were willing to sell their lives to take me out just so the rest of their group could survive.

    I pushed my glasses up as I turned to face them, impressed by their bravery. Instead of swinging Hei Yue and Bai Ri to prepare for a melee battle, I summoned another of my Constellation spirits.

    "Leo."

    Leaving my back to Green Dragon, who continued to concentrate solely on Xu Wu Cheng, I allowed my dependable lion to materialize beside me. The charging vampires paused briefly in their charge, registering the danger.

    They were too late.

    "Regulus."

    At my command, Leo unleashed the golden pillar of destructive mana at the incoming vampires. They immediately dispersed, but three of them weren''t able to dodge in time and they screamed as their bodies were instantly disintegrated by the torrent of golden light.

    "That''s¡­!"

    "¡­pretty powerful?" I asked as I drove the black blade of Hei Yue through the chest of the asker. His comrade spun around and slashed at me with her blood claws, but having anticipated that, I parried her strike with the white blade of Bai Ri.

    While the dead vampire slipped off Hei Yue, I infused Bai Ri with cold mana and blasted the female vampire at pointblank range. The wave of azure mana surged from the white sword and froze her arms.

    "You¡­!"

    Staggering back, the vampire tried to shatter the ice that now encased her arms, but I advanced on her, slashing mercilessly. Fortunately for my opponent, her surviving teammates descended upon me from either side, hoping to catch me in a pincer attack.

    How na?ve.

    "Leo, Regulus."

    They had completely forgotten about the Constellation spirit I had just summoned. The lion bounded toward my side, his body flashing blindingly. Before the vampires knew what was going on, the entire space around them warped and disappeared in a fiery pillar of golden light. Four of the vampires who, in their hasty eagerness to attack me, were too far forward and thus unable to retreat in time when the fiery spell expanded. They shrieked for a brief second before they were completely disintegrated by the golden light. Seeing their teammates'' demise, the rest of the vampires quickly retreated.

    Then they vanished when Rossetti and Vermillion Phoenix unleashed their flames upon them.

    "Richard! Are you all right?"

    Rossetti landed gracefully beside me, crouching down as she held her chakrams out, almost as if they were fans.

    "Yeah. Now all we have left is that fella."

    "That and the survivors!" Kufa called out as he dueled with another vampire. I nodded, but glanced at my prime target.

    "Blood Hydra Claws!"

    The nine serpents materialized and attempted to wrap around Green Dragon. Clenching his fingers, Xu Wu Cheng transformed them into garrote wires of blood.

    "Blood Hydra Whip!"

    Green Dragon grunted as the blood wires stretched taut over his armored body, attempting to cut through his diamond-hard scales with immense pressure. Fortunately, they didn''t pierce through and he merely cut the whips apart with razor leaf blades.

    "¡­!"

    Dismayed that his signature attack had failed, Xu Wu Cheng fell back, but he still wasn''t out of tricks. As Green Dragon pursued him, he dove and slammed his palm against the ground.

    "Crimson Sphere Blood Lances!"

    Countless Blood Stakes speared out of the ground, slamming into Green Dragon''s armored scales. His immense bulk made it difficult for him to dodge, but fortunately my Celestial Guardian was extremely durable. More annoyed than injured, he growled and entombed the battlefield of blood spears in overgrowth of shrubs, vines and plants before having them consume the blood in a single, brutal movement.

    "You just won''t go down, will you?"

    Xu Wu Cheng huffed as he continued to withdraw, perspiration dripping down his handsome face. Gritting his teeth, he clenched his fist and conjured more crimson mana.

    "As expcted of a monster¡­"

    He was pretty resilient himself. As much as I hated to admit it, Xu Wu Cheng was proving to be quite the formidable foe. Not that I would ever tell him that to his face. I didn''t underestimate him, but he was proving far more challenging that I had anticipated. I guess I didn''t take into account how much stronger he would become after drinking so much blood.

    I was hoping that Green Dragon would finish him off quickly in a one-on-one battle, but Xu Wu Cheng was unexpectedly drawing the battle out longer than I would have liked. And while he continued to stall for time, the rest of his surviving cronies were closing in on me, Rossetti and Vermillion Phoenix.

    I exchanged a glance with Rossetti, and the both of us moved out. Spreading his wings, boosted by Rossetti''s dance and my mana, Vermillion Phoenix annihilated the remaining vampires in an instant.

    "You¡­!"

    Howling in rage, Xu Wu Cheng tried to dive at me, but Green Dragon blocked his way. Gnashing his teeth in frustration, the red-haired vampire sent another armada of blood lances from the ground that failed to pierce Green Dragon.

    I didn''t waste any time. While Xu Wu Cheng''s attention was focused on Green Dragon, I struck.

    "Getsuga Tenshou!"

    Okay, that was a joke. A serious one, though. Black mana wreathing Hei Yue, I swung my black sword and blasted Xu Wu Cheng from behind. He stumbled, his body fuming, and then I thrust Bai Ri forward.

    "Ugh!"

    Xu Wu Cheng screamed when my white blade pierced him from behind, blood spurting from his chest and freezing as the red fluids were enveloped by my icy azure mana. The whole place exploded with white frost, the ice expanding and entombing everything within a frozen grave.

    "Bastard¡­"

    Blood dribbled from Xu Wu Cheng''s mouth before freezing into red crystals. He struggled frantically, turning his head slightly to glare at me, but I gripped my sword firmly, twisting it deeper into his back and sending his body into violent convlusions.

    "Stabbing me in the back¡­attacking me from behind¡­have you no honor?"

    "Honor?" I snorted in laughter. "Coming from a guy who tried to overwhelm me with numbers? Even with my friends here, you easily outnumbered us a hundred to one. Not only that, you''re the guy who blackmailed a girl and turned her into your servant. And you want to talk about honor? Also, who was part of a vampire clan that launched a terrorist raid on a school full of students who weren''t fully trained, without giving them any warning? I don''t want to hear about honor from someone as despicable as you."

    "I''ll never forgive you."

    I actually burst out laughing at that. How rich! This guy, who committed all sorts of atrocities, was acting like he was the victim here. Had he gone out of his mind?

    "I don''t need your forgiveness. And just a side note, I will never forgive you either. I don''t care about what you did to Ji Yan, but the moment you made me your enemy, your fate was sealed."

    With that retort, I blasted his body apart from the inside by infusing my white sword with mana. Xu Wu Cheng let out one final cry of defiance before he blew up, his red-blood mana erupting with tremendous force. As I rolled away, stunned from the sudden impact, Xu Wu Cheng turned on me, clutching the gaping hole in his bleeding chest. Already the hole was beginning to close up as he forcibly channeled large amounts of mana into regenerating himself.

    His regeneration skill was on a totally different level from the other vampires.

    "What are you, a cockroach?!" I demanded as I glared at him, feeling more irritated at his unbelievable tenacity than cold dread.

 550 Chapter 550: Pursui

    "I''ll kill you! Infinite Blood Hydras!"

    Blood-red mana erupted from Xu Wu Cheng''s body like an active volcano, billowing outward before solidifying into terrifying shapes.

    This had to be his ultimate skill. Abruptly stopping the regeneration, Xu Wu Cheng diverted his mana back into a single, devastating spell. Instead of nine serpents, hundreds of blood serpents materialized and hissed before they darted at me. My whole front view was suddenly obscured by the writhing mass of striking serpents, their red scales glinting in the moonlight that leaked through the holes in the warehouse.

    "Richard!"

    Rossetti panicked and swung her chakrams, sending four fireballs barreling into the approaching mass of serpents, but for all of her efforts, she might as well be vaporizing drops in an ocean. Even though four serpents were incinerated, twelve more took their places, hissing more angrily than ever as they lunged forward with bared fangs.

    Rossetti cast a glance at Vermillion Phoenix, but because she wasn''t his summoner (that was me), she couldn''t give him any commands. Even so, she continued to bombard the swarm of blood-red serpents relentlessly, her purifying flames dispelling many of them. However, it wasn''t going to be enough.

    "Rossetti, stand back."

    I placed my hand on my partner''s shoulder and gentle guided her back. Standing in front of her, I watched as the blood serpents lunge at me.

    "Oi, Richard!" Kufa shouted from his corner. I understood his panic. The serpents were almost upon me, and then they would be on Rossetti soon enough.

    "Snow Aegis."

    Having sheathed both of my swords, I raised my right hand and conjured my strongest protection. The gigantic snowflake shield manifested in front of me, its six crystalline petals unfurling elegantly. The serpents slammed mercilessly against the defensive layers of mana, only to freeze and shatter upon impact, but more of them kept coming.

    It didn''t matter. It was a battle of attrition now. With most of his mana spent on regenerating, surely Xu Wu Cheng wouldn''t be able to keep up his devastating assault. And I didn''t need to wait for him to expend all of his mana.

    While Xu Wu Cheng was crazily yelling and throwing everything he had at me, his chest still sporting a crater from the injury I dealt him earlier, Vermillion Phoenix launched several fiery feathers from above. They streaked through the rain of Blood Hydras, burning only a couple of them.

    But that was fine. My intention was never to destroy Xu Wu Cheng''s spell.

    Leaving a scorching trail through the dense swarm of blood serpents, the fiery feathers slammed into Xu Wu Cheng, punching cauterized holes through his body and sending him crashing away. There was an inhuman shriek before he disappeared.

    "Finally."

    "You think you can get away from us?!"

    While Xu Wu Cheng was desperately sprinting away, Rossetti was already on his tail, bringing her blazing chakrams up to incinerate him. But I held up a hand to stop her.

    "There''s no need to kill him now. Let him run."

    "Eh?"

    "We''re going to follow him." I glanced at Kufa. "I believe this is more your area of expertise. We''re going to track him down and follow him all the way to the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan''s main base. Since he''s a high-ranking vampire there, he will surely retreat to where his prince is, to lick his wounds and recover."

    "Good idea." Kufa was grinning. He nodded as he brought out his smartphone. "I will also be sending the coordinates to the Midnight Order and Federation military. We''ll be able to launch an attack on their main base and finish them off once and for all!"

    "Exactly. Now let''s go! We are going to end this farce once and for all!"

    From what I knew the Federation military and the Midnight Order ¨C the mercenary guild who had assumed responsibility for eliminating the vampire clan behind the attacks on the schools in Flandor City ¨C still hadn''t uncovered the location of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan''s secret base despite their best attempts. And now we were presented with a great opportunity to find thee headquarters of such an elusive clan.

    Why wouldn''t we take it?

    Dismissing Green Dragon, Vermillion Phoenix and Leo, I then exited the burning warehouse with my friends. The three of us began running, plunging into the forest after Xu Wu Cheng. Kufa took point, and he regulated his pace to maintain a good distance between us and our quarry, ensuring that he didn''t lose sight of the target while making sure he didn''t notice that we were following him. Xu Wu Cheng was badly hurt, though, so he wouldn''t be paying any attention to anyone who would be pursuing him. Right now, he was totally focusing on escaping and returning to headquarters, so as to recover and prolong his life for as long as possible.

    While we ran, I checked my wounds. They were light, and even though we had expended a bit of mana, my friends and I would be able to recover if we rested for a while. For now, we planned to just follow Xu Wu Cheng back to his home base, recuperate outside for a few moments while waiting for the Midnight Order and Federation military to arrive. By the time the adults came to launch their operation, we would have fully recovered our mana.

    Even if Xu Wu Cheng told Fan Le Lao about how he and his subordinates got their asses kicked by me and my friends ¨C probably using my schemes to lure them into a trap as an excuse to escape punishment ¨C they wouldn''t be expecting the three of us to assault their base so soon. Hell, I doubted they would expect us to follow the stupid redhead back to their headquarters in the first place. We could use that to our advantage.

    Smirking, I kept my eyes on the fleet-footed vampire and followed Kufa. We could easily catch and overtake the badly hurt Xu Wu Cheng, but where was the fun in that? Besides, as I mentioned earlier, we needed him to lead us to his clan''s secret base.

    Unaware of our presence, Xu Wu Cheng continued to run to what he thought was safety.

    Eventually, he reached his clan''s hideout, stopping to pant and catch his breath. He clutched his wounded chest and grimaced, channeling more of his mana to regenerate his cauterized wounds. Straightening himself, Xu Wu Cheng warily glanced back to make sure there were no enemies following him.

    How wrong he was.

    We stayed hidden, concealing our presence both visually and spiritually. Kufa directed Rossetti and me to a particularly tree and shoving us down behind its thick roots. We also suppressed our mana as much as possible, so that we wouldn''t be detected by his sixth sense. Satisfied that he wasn''t pursued, Xu Wu Cheng then jumped through the entrance. The sentries posted there stepped aside and opened the gates, and he practically dove right through.

    "Uh¡­"

    The sentries stared at his retreating figure before exchanging bewildered glances. They didn''t dare to question Xu Wu Cheng, however, given how his status was so high. This was the guy who was second-in-command to their prince, Fan Le Lao. To question him would be to ask for death, so as much as their curiosity was piqued, they were forced to restrain it and maintain their vigil. Not only that, Xu Wu Cheng was clearly in a foul mood, and neither of them wanted to risk incurring his wrath.

    We stayed out of sight and range, withdrawing to the depths of the forest.

    "Does your smartphone have any signal?" I asked grumpily, glancing round the trees. This far out from civilization, there was no reception. At least for my phone.

    "I use specialized equipment," Kufa explained with a grin. "Since my missions often involve covert operations and infiltrations. Don''t worry, I can contact them."

    He focused on typing away on his phone, his fingers flying across the holographic screen projected by his device.

    "In fact, I''m sending the coordinates over right now." He paused for a moment, and then beamed. "Message received. They are telling us to standby and wait."

    "Will they be attacking immediately?" Rossetti asked incredulously. I nodded.

    "They have to. We don''t know if the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan will move their base. You know how elusive they are ¨C part of it is because they are always on the move. We need to catch them before they move again."

    "Yeah, and I''m sure Fan Le Lao will order a move soon, after Xu Wu Cheng''s defeat. He is as cautious as his father. He probably will not risk staying here for too long."

    Kufa nodded. He sighed as he glanced at his phone.

    "Two hours. They will be here in two hours. So we keep any eye on them from out here, report any signs of movement, and rest."

    "Yeah, rest." I nodded at my friends. "We spent quite a bit of mana back there, fighting those vampires. We had best recover as much mana as we can before we join in."

    "Would they even allow us to join, though?" Rossetti seemed unhappy. "They might just order us to leave and take care of everything themselves."

    "Don''t forget that we are volunteers," Kufa reminded her. "And they need every help they can get. Two hours¡­how much forces can they prepare in that time?"

    "We can always just sneak in," I added with a shrug. "With all the chaos that is bound to ensue from the battle, they probably will not notice a few extra kids joining the fight."

    "You guys are really determined to destroy the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan, huh?" Rossetti sighed and nodded. "Not that I blame you. We have to pay them back for what they did to our school!"

    Actually, I wasn''t interested in taking revenge. My only goal was saving Zhao Yan. Speaking of which¡­

    "The hostages¡­the missing students. They might all be in there." I took a deep breath. "If possible, we should find them and help them escape. That''s more important tha exterminating the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan."

    "That''s true!" Rossetti seemed embarrassed for not having thought of that. She nodded determinedly. She must be thinking of the horrors that the poor abducted stdents suffered at the hands of the vampires. "I''m with you all the way!"

    "I hope there are still survivors." When Rossetti and I looked at Kufa, he shrugged and offered an explanation. "Remember what Xu Wu Cheng said? He drained ten students of their blood before the battle with us."

    "That''s¡­despicable." Rossetti was clenching her fists and trembling in fury. "Unforgivable! We really can''t let these monsters off! What do they take human lives for?"

    "Fuel for power," I replied with a sigh. "But you also heard what Xu Wu Cheng said¡­at the very least, the Nan Gong sisters are still alive. Something about special blood, and Fan Le Lao ordering that they be kept alive."

    "Yeah¡­what special blood do they have?" Kufa wondered out loud. "Why is Fan Le Lao so interested in them?"

    "Sounds like Xu Wu Cheng made Ji Yan into his plaything," Rossetti remarked in disgust. "And this Fan Le Lao seems like he''s trying to emotionally blackmail Zhao Yan into becoming his woman."

    Both Kufa and I stared at her.

    "What?" she asked defensively. "That''s pretty much the plotline of all shoujo manhua that revolve around vampires."

    "Never mind¡­" I exhaled wearly and flopped on the ground. "I''m going to take a nap. Let me know when the assault begins."

 551 Chapter 551: Neutralizing the Enemy Base

    He nodded at me when he saw that I was awake.

    "They are here."

    I knew who he was referring to. The Midnight Order and the Federation military. Even half-asleep, I could sense their presences as they attempted to stealthily make their way through the forest. They came out of the gloom, a myriad of weapons clutched tightly in their hands.

    "Sir." Kufa saluted when a middle-aged guy with a stubble and glasses approached him. He grinned and nodded, a cigarette in his mouth. Despite having traversed through the forest, his black military uniform was immaculate and unblemished. A few medals gleamed in the darkness, and I could see a black cross emblazoned across a white, metallic surface. The heraldry of the Midnight Order, if I wasn''t mistaken.

    "Kufa. Good to see you. How are you guys holding up?"

    "I''m all right." Kufa nodded and stepped back to gesture us forward. "These are my friends. Richard Huang and Rossetti Picket. Guys, this is Commander Michael Marshall. He is the commander of the Midnight Order."

    "We''ve worked together in the past." David showed up, surprising us. Jason and Saya joined us shortly, the latter in her sailor uniform and holding a katana. She nodded at me and Kufa, but remained silent as always.

    "Good. I''ll be looking forward to fighting alongside you guys then." Marshall smiled in approval. He then glanced back and waved his hand. More soldiers, clad in midnight black, crept out of the shadows, their swords glowing. "We have the base surrounded."

    "Should we move now?" David asked. More men in suits came out, as well as soldiers from the Federation military. They were wielding conventional rifles, but a good number of them held melee weapons such as swords, axes, hammers, spears and staffs.

    "Yeah." Marshall raised his smartphone. "Attack!"

    The soldiers and mercenaries charged out of the forest and toward the fortress. They must have been quite the terrifying sight to behold, for the two vampire sentries ogled at them in shock before they screamed in panic.

    "Sound the alarm! Close the gates!"

    "Wait! Let us get back inside before you close the gates!"

    The two vampires snapped out of their stupor and scrambled into the interior of their base, hurtling past the closing double doors, which swung shut and locked electronically. The soldiers opened fire, unleashing hundreds of spells that illuminated the dark night, pelting the reinforced walls of the huge structure.

    "What the hell are the gates made of? Titanium alloy?"

    Ice spells froze the walls, but despite the layer of frost that expanded across its surface, the metal held firm. Fire spells attempted to melt the gates with sheer heat, but they showed no sign of faltering. Lightning struck and merely left superficial scars. Wood spells battered futilely against the metal, and wind blades dissipated harmlessly against the reinforced material.

    The security cameras turned to film our fruitless efforts, apparently mocking us, until they got blown up by a few errant fireballs.

    Maybe they weren''t errant. I had the feeling that the mercenaries had been ruffled by the security cameras and aimed at them on purpose.

    "How do we break through those walls? They''re really tough!" Jason sounded frustrated as he launched an earth spike at the fortress, only to see the stone break apart.

    "Cut through them," Saya slashed at the gates with her katana, but failed. She gnashed her teeth in annoyance, but continued hacking away without much success.

    Crimson mana flared up all of a sudden and blasted her away. Kufa was quick to catch hold of her before she could get too far away. He grunted, but managed to dig his feet in to halt their momentum. Saya nodded her thanks and dropped back onto the ground.

    "Those two¡­could it be?"

    Rossetti''s eyes widened and she smiled mischievously. Even in this situation, a maiden like her was still interested in gossiping about romance. I tried not to roll my eyes.

    "Damn it¡­! They have a reflective field too!" David cursed as he fired at the gates. His bullets smashed into the field of crimson mana, but were flattened before they could do anything.

    "It''s a blood barrier." Saya spat a wad of blood from her mouth and wiped at the corner of her lips. "How troublesome."

    "So what do we do?" Jason asked, grimacing when his earth spikes bounced off again.

    "Keep attacking," Marshall instructed, his features grim. "They don''t have infinite mana. Just keep wearing the blood barrier down. It will crumble eventually."

    "If I may¡­" I began. The commanders glanced at me. I shrugged, and then summoned Serpens. Several of the mercenaries and soldiers stopped slinging their spells and turned to stare at my gigantic serpent.

    "You plan to break through the gates by force?" Marshall asked. I shook my head.

    "No."

    I mean, I could nuke the base with Scorpio''s Antares spell¡­but obviously I had no intention of doing that. Nan Gong Zhao Yan and a bunch of the abducted students were stuck in there, held as hostages. My goal was to rescue them, not to slaughter them along with the insidious vampires. I was never one to take the easy way out¡­but think about it. If I was the one kidnapped and held hostage by the vampires, I wouldn''t be very happy if my supposed rescuers decided to nuke me along with my captors.

    "I can neutralize the base."

    "How?" Saya demanded, her voice incredulous. "Are you going to use your legendary spells of mass destruction?"

    "Why do you know about that?" I asked, surprised. David chuckled and shook his head.

    "My young friend, you''re pretty famous for it."

    "I would advise you not to do that," Marshall said. "I would like to remind you that the hostages are still¡­"

    "Don''t worry, I won''t," I interrupted him. "Serpens doesn''t have that sort of spell. Just watch."

    "Really?" Marshall was staring at my massive Constellation spirit. "I don''t see how your soul beast can smash through the blood barrier and fortress when our spells can''t."

    "Then let me ask you a question. How do you neutralize a base?"

    "That''s what I''m asking¡­"

    "No, I mean in chemistry terms. What sort of compounds react with a base to produce water and a salt compound? The process of neutralization, as you will."

    "Chemistry?" Kufa repeated, puzzled. "If you want to neutralize a base, you need to use an acid."

    Then his eyes widened and he struck his fist into his palm.

    "Of course! So that''s why a gigantic snake¡­!"

    "Huh? What''s going on?" Rossetti looked puzzled, as did David, Jason and Saya. Marshall, on the other hand, remained impassive, his eyes unreadable behind his glasses.

    "Serpens, acid attack!"

    Serpens used Acid!

    It''s supereffective!

    "What¡­?"

    David''s jaw dropped when he saw the acid melt the doors. Saya looked stunned while Jason gaped similarly. Marshall''s lips curled into a smile while Kufa began laughing. Rossetti glanced at me, stupefied, and then turned back to the huge serpent.

    Serpens had hurled a ball of acid from his jaws ¨C my snake-type Constellation spirit had the ability to secrete acids in their venom glands above their fangs and deliver incredibly toxic attacks. Some of the more potent toxins doubled as highly corrosive acids, and that was what I had ordered Serpens to use to breach the gate.

    "How is that possible?!"

    "What did the enemy do?!"

    "How did they breach the gates?!"

    The vampires inside were panicking and screaming, hardly able to believe their eyes at the sight of their melting doors.

    "Didn''t you know?" I grinned at my comrades. "The most effective method of neutralizing a base is using acid."

    Marshall cared little for my grandstanding. He wasted no time, raising his hand and swinging it down as he issued an order.

    "Attack! Everyone, get into the base and annihilate the enemy! Let none escape! Remember to rescue the hostages!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    Right before the vampires'' horrified eyes, the Federation military and mercenaries of the Midnight Order charged inside the neutralized base, easily overrunning the enemies.

    My friends and I followed, Rossetti staying by my side and Kufa hanging close by. However, when Saya split off to chase a different group of vampires, he broke off from our group and joined her instead.

    "Oh, come on, Kufa¡­" Rossetti complained and shook her head.

    "Let him," I told her with a smile. "Kufa has very little opportunity to fight alongside Saya."

    "So they really are¡­"

    "Not officially. It''s sort of¡­unrequited."

    "Poor Kufa."

    I tried not to roll my eyes while parrying the vicious blood claws of a desperate vampire who was trying to clear his base of invaders. Knocking his blood claws aside, I plunged my blades into his chest before cleaving him apart.

    "Before sympathizing with Kufa, you might want to focus on surviving first."

    "Yeah," Rossetti agreed as she hastily blocked the blood claws of a female vampire, and then unleashed flames from her chakrams to engulf her opponent. While she engaged another vampire, I deflected a blow that was aimed for her back, covering my partner. The two of us whirled around, casting fire and ice spells. Azure and crimson mana swirled around us in a whirlwind of destruction, incinerating several vampires and freezing the rest.

    "W¡­who are these people?!" a survivor cried out, backing away. "Why are they so powerful?!"

    Then he turned into ice, thanks to a spell I cast that spread across the entire chamber. Rossetti and I mopped up the vampires remaining in here, while the soldiers and mercenaries moved ahead to engage the adult vampires and the elders. That was fine. I was glad they left the teenage vampires to us, so we weren''t in too much danger.

    There was no need for me to describe my umpteenth battle with the bloodsuckers, except that they sucked.

    Truthfully, part of the reason why the battle seemed so easy was because I had Rossetti fighting by my side, and our coordinated attacks overwhelmed the vampires of our generation more easily than before. We covered each other''s flaws, making sure to protect each other from stray or surprise attacks, while amplifying our spells by resonating our mana. Rossetti''s abilities meant that she could buff my spells, and so we were more than the sum of our parts, able to cut through a numerically superior enemy without much difficulty.

    They never stood a chance.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me¡­!"

    I could hear one vampire shouting as he fled our enchantments, casting a terrified glance at our advancing forms.

    "Those are just two kids! Two kids! How are they so powerful!?"

    "Teamwork," I replied before firing a flaming arrow that not only incinerated him but the scores of running vampires nearby.

    "Uh¡­honestly, this is the first time I work so well with anybody," Rossetti admitted. "My teammates usually scold me for not cooperating with them, and trying to do everything myself. I end up hurting them sometimes."

    "Our magic and fighting styles complement each other," I explained with a shrug. "I think."

    With that done, we followed the mercenaries and soldiers, who had left a trail of death and destruction in their wake. The adult vampires had chosen to stand and fight instead of run, resisting the adult mages firmly with their blood claws raised. The vampire''s stalwart defiance ended in swift, brutal deaths when Marshall and his Midnight Order scythed through them with their gleaming enchanted swords, sending their body parts flying across the wall and carpeted floor.

    "Whoa¡­"

    I winced when I saw the carnage. Ouch. I sure as hell wouldn''t want to be them. There was so much blood splattered across the walls, ceiling and floor that the scene would normally make vampires happy. If there were any of them still alive to suck the blood, of course.

    "How horrifying¡­"

    Rossetti covered her mouth with her hands, forgetting that she had been responsible for incinerating a bunch of young vampires herself just a few minutes earlier. I guess it was because the Midnight Order had left behind a much more gruesome scene, whereas fire and ice killed the vampires in a cleaner and relatively more bloodless manner.

    That would just make us hypocrites, though. Killing was killing, no matter what method you used. In the end, we had taken the lives of the vampires, and their blood stained our hands as much as the adult vampires stained the Midnight Order and the Federation military''s hands.

    Rossetti made to follow the Midnight Order and the soldiers despite the grisly sight, but stopped when she noticed that I wasn''t following.

    "What''s the matter, Richard?"

    "Over there." I pointed toward a chamber of stairs that led downward. "The basement."

    "Oh¡­you plan to go down there?" Rossetti nodded. "Good idea. That''s probably where the hostages are."

    "Maybe," I agreed. "But he''s also there. I can feel it."

    "¡­who?" Rossetti stared at me, bewildered.

    "Xu Wu Cheng," I replied with a grin. "It''s time to settle things with him once and for all."

 552 Chapter 552: Double Battle

    Huh¡­that was weird. You would expect some sort of underground tunnel or escape path in the basement, but nothing the characters from a shoujo manhua did made any sort of sense. Human or vampire, their every action and decision had been utterly illogical. Like¡­allying with the murderers of your parents to take revenge on a sect that asked them to sacrifice themselves to save others instead of taking revenge on the murderers themselves? Or snapping a photograph of someone''s hand, missing out her face entirely, and blackmailing her with it? Or how about leaving out vital information such as a beggar visiting the schools right before they were destroyed, only to reveal it after the heroine had met him?

    I was getting a headache just thinking about it. I would be so glad when this entire parody arc was over. I honestly didn''t want to deal with any more of their nonsense.

    "As expected, you came."

    Xu Wu Cheng was waiting in the dungeon, along with a poor girl sprawled by his side. Dressed in a tattered and torn white one-piece dress and looking filthy and bruised, a dazed Nan Gong Ji Yan lay by his side. A metallic collar had been snapped around her neck, and chains of metal served as a leash, extending from the collar to Xu Wu Cheng''s hands. He pulled it slightly, causing poor Ji Yan to jolt up with a cry.

    "When I heard that our base was invaded, I knew there could only be one person responsible for it." Xu Wu Cheng clenched his fists tightly, rattling the chains and causing Ji Yan to choke. "I admit, this whole thing is my mistake¡­my fault. I should never have allowed you to follow me all the way back to our base. I had¡­let my guard down and underestimated you."

    "What else is new?" I scoffed, pushing my glasses up. Xu Wu Cheng''s lips curled.

    "I will make it right. I will take responsibility for my blunder and kill you with my own two hands!"

    "I won''t let you hurt Richard!" Rossetti snapped, stepping out to stand in front of me, as if she was trying to shield me. "You''ll have to step over my dead body first!"

    "As much as I appreciate you standing up for me¡­" I gently pulled her back, not willing to put her in harm''s way. "I would prefer you don''t get hurt or my sake. I know injuries in battle are inevitable, but I would like to minimize them as much as possible."

    "We won''t get injured if we defeat this guy first!" Rossetti swung one of her chakrams, unleashing a single fire spell at our enemy.

    Wow¡­the contrast between us couldn''t be starker. The bastard didn''t hesitate to use Ji Yan as a human shield at all. She was curling into a fetal position, coughing and convulsing from the pain while smoke billowed from her reddened body.

    "You¡­!" Rossetti shouted, outraged. Xu Wu Cheng cocked his head at her and sneered.

    "What? You''re the one who attacked her. It was your spell that hit her, not mine. Don''t blame me for her injuries."

    "This guy is really an asshole." I shook my head, disgusted. Then I was reminded of something. "Speaking of injuries, you seem to have healed pretty fast. Even though you were so heavily injured before, you were running low on mana, you seemed to have found a way to restart your regeneration spells. Let me guess, you sucked the blood of the hostages?"

    Xu Wu Cheng''s face darkened. "You still have the audacity to mention that to my face, shameless scum. Because of you, I was forced to drink the blood of another three students, as well as some of Ji Yan''s. Otherwise I wouldn''t have recovered in time to face you."

    "Me? Audacious?" I burst out laughing. "You were the one who sucked their blood, not me. Don''t blame me for their deaths."

    "Shut up!" Xu Wu Cheng roared. He yanked on the chain, causing Ji Yan to squeal in pain as she was pulled to her feet. "You will die here today! I guarantee it! Blood Hydra!"

    The bloody serpents streaked out toward us, but both Rossetti and I cut them down with our chakrams and swords, fire and ice swirling majestically around us. None of the snakes could get past us.

    "A flawless display of teamwork, as always¡­" Xu Wu Cheng gritted his teeth and shoved Ji Yan forward. "Makes me jealous. If only my partner wasn''t so useless¡­!"

    "I think most of it is down to you abusing her," I pointed out dryly. "After the way you treated her, how can you expect her to trust you?"

    "Trust me?" Xu Wu Cheng laughed scornfully. "Why should I care about her trust? She just needs to obey me!"

    "And that''s why you''ll always find her useless," I muttered, but Xu Wu Cheng didn''t care. He slapped the still staggering Ji Yan.

    "Fight with me!" he ordered.

    "I¡­I¡­"

    Xu Wu Cheng''s eyes flashed and she whimpered, shielding herself. Her eyes had turned blank and her mind hollow.

    "You know the consequences if you disobey."

    "Please¡­" Ji Yan pleaded pitifully, covering her head. "Please don''t rape me¡­I swear, I''ll do whatever you ask. Just don''t rape me¡­don''t hit me¡­I''ll obey you! So anything but that! Don''t rape me again! Please!"

    "Rape?" Rossetti repeated, horrified. "What did you do to you, you scum?!"

    "I only treated this whore as she deserved," Xu Wu Cheng sneered. "I punished her whenever appropriate¡­whenever she failed to divulge information regarding the secrets of the Nan Gong clan. If her blood wasn''t so special, I wouldn''t bother allowing such a useless woman to live."

    "You didn''t just suck her blood¡­" I accused, my voice low. Xu Wu Cheng snorted.

    "Sucking her blood was just the beginning. She''s my slave. It''s her duty to serve me¡­not just in providing me blood, but also in many sort of ways." He leered at her lecherously before glaring at me. "You have a woman yourself. Don''t be such a hypocrite."

    "Uh, I think you misunderstand my relationship with Rossetti."

    "Disgusting¡­he''s the worst," Rossetti growled, glaring at Xu Wu Cheng. "I can''t forgive him!"

    "Hey, hey¡­if you put it like that, I''m not the only one, you know?" Xu Wu Cheng chuckled. "I gave Ji Yan to my subordinates as well. After all, I need to let them enjoy themselves once in a while. Ji Yan was perfect for satisfying their urges."

    "You monster!" Rossetti yelled and lunged forward, but I grabbed her shoulder and hauled her back.

    "Don''t fall for it! He''s baiting you!"

    A second later, the blood serpents erupted from the ground, piercing through the space where Rossetti would have been. The both of us spun around and cut them down in a series of swift, precise strikes.

    Converging in the middle, we cut through the swarm of blood serpents, weaving through the barrage and covering each other. Sometimes I would destroy the blood serpents below while Rossetti dealt with the ones above, and we switched roles so smoothly it was almost as if we could read each other''s minds. Hacking, slashing, burning, freezing¡­we wiped out Xu Wu Cheng''s Blood Hydra and reached him.

    "You guys¡­!"

    Clicking his tongue, Xu Wu Cheng shoved Ji Yan toward us and let go of her leash.

    "Time to fight, Ji Yan!"

    Her eyes still blank and her memory hollow, Ji Yan drew a sickle and chain from somewhere in her dress and swung her weapon to slash Rossetti, almost catching her by surprise. Fortunately, I stepped forward and deflected the sickle with Bai Ri.

    "Ji Yan! It''s me, Rossetti!" the red-haired girl cried out. "Snap out of it! We''re not your enemies!"

    I shook my head. "It''s useless. She''s completely spellbound. She''s moving more out from refex or muscle memory than conscious thought. Xu Wu Cheng has her completely captive."

    Ji Yan swung her chain and sickle again, mana glowing along the metal. While she struck, Xu Wu Cheng attacked from above. The two coordinated their attacks, blood claws and blood serpents synchronizing with chain and sickle to tear through our defenses.

    Except that¡­their attempt failed. Where I couldn''t parry a sickle with my swords, Rossetti deflected it aside with her chakrams. Where Rossetti was unable to block a few stray blood serpents, I sliced them apart with my blades. Fire and ice erupted around us, almost like an Anarctica volcano, burning and freezing the spells the pair threw at us.

    "How is this possible?!"

    Xu Wu Cheng grew increasingly infuriated when he and Ji Yan failed to land a solid hit on Rossetti and me. We were defending so perfectly yet were somehow able to counterattack to leave burns on the red-haired vampire and frostbite wounds on his blank-eyed partner.

    Whenever Rossetti when on the offensive, I would cover her defensively by striking down the spells and attacks ¨C blood serpents or claws or chain and sickle ¨C that our enemy threw at us. Then we would subtly switched roles, with me unleashing icy blasts while Rossetti burned down our enemies'' retaliation with her fiery dance. Blood spurted from multiple wounds across Xu Wu Cheng''s arms as he staggered, only for them to heal rapidly thanks to his regenerative power, but it was clear that he was being worn down despite having drunk blood earlier.

    Ji Yan fared worse, burns and frostbite covering almost all parts of her. Even so, she continued to fight on stubbornly, driven more by her fear of Xu Wu Cheng than any dread caused by death.

    "This cannot be!" Xu Wu Cheng howled when my Hei Yue cut deeply into his chest, drawing another spray of blood before ice rapidly spread across his upper body. He shattered the ice and slashed at me only for flames from Rosseetti to drive him back. Ji Yan threw herself to block the attack, but I kicked her to the side, allowing my partner to roast the red-haired vampire.

    Xu Wu Cheng shrieked and conjured a fresh wave of blood serpents. This time, he transformed them into wires to ensnare both Rossetti and me in a bloody net. Back to back, we both unleashed our spells simultaneously. On Rossetti''s side, the blood wires vaporized into crimson steam while on my side, the blood wires froze into ice before shattering apart in harmless crystals.

    "!!!"

    Before Xu Wu Cheng knew what was happening, I unleashed a flaming spell from Bai Ri, which was further boosted by Rossetti''s Flaming Phoenix Kagura Dance. Once again, Ji Yan hurled herself to take the blow, but a black crescent-shaped blast from my Hei Yue collided with her. Enhanced by Rossetti''s buff spells, it was able to send her flying to the side, leaving the way open for my fire spell to strike home.

    Xu Wu Cheng screeched as his body combusted and he dropped to his knees.

    "How?! This cannot be! Even though this is also two versus two¡­how is the difference between us so vast!?"

    I glanced at Ji Yan, whose body was moving jerkily. Her expression remained hollow, despite the pain she might feel, and even though it was possible that she had broken a limb or two, she continued to move unnaturally. Almost as if she was a puppet forcibly manipulated by strings. I was reminded of a broken marionette being tugged about by red wires ¨C blood strings that Xu Wu Cheng used to enslave her body and forced her to move according to his will.

    No wonder she wasn''t fighting optimally. Even though Ji Yan was a fairly incompetent mage at the best of times, being forcibly manipulated like this would hinder her reflexes. Xu Wu Cheng didn''t even know what was her best magic or fighting techniques and just directed her to move according to his will.

    "This isn''t possible! How are you two coordinating so perfectly, yet Ji Yan and I still can''t measure up to you?!"

    "Well¡­" I shrugged. "Maybe because you lack trust? You don''t trust her to watch your back for you, do you? You don''t trust her to fight her best for you, right? So you''re wasting half of your attention to control her."

    "So what?! I''m moving her like she''s an extension of my body!"

    "See, that''s the problem. If you''re going to fight as if you''re solo, then what''s the point of having a partner?"

    "Shut up!"

    "You shut up!" Rossetti snapped, her chakrams blazing. "It''s time to silence this scum forever!"

    "Agreed," I said and dropped my swords. While Rossetti trapped Xu Wu Cheng in a tornado of fire, the vampire trying to escape and failing, I summoned Sagittarius. Fitting Alnasl to my bowstring, I pulled it back and took aim. Xu Wu Cheng glanced up at me, his eyes full of despair and pleading for mercy, but I simply smiled coldly and released the arrow.

    An explosion ensured when Alnasl struck the desperately fleeing Xu Wu Cheng, who was still hemmed in by Rossetti''s tornado of fire. Boosted by my partner''s spell, my arrow was several times more destructive than usual.

    The flames incinerated Xu Wu Cheng and instantly turned him into nothing but ash, erasing his existence forever and thus putting an end to the fucking bastard once and for all.

 553 Chapter 553: Rescue Operation

    "What¡­what happened to her?" Rossetti was staring at her nervously, unsure of what was happening.

    "Her mind and spirit have been broken. She snapped under Xu Wu Cheng''s abuse." I shook my head and sighed.

    This was why it baffled me whenever Webnovel authors, mostly female, wrote some CEO or vampire story (or werewolf) with all these¡­toxic relationships. With the amount of abuse the female leads suffered, you would think they would suffer some sort of psychological trauma or mental breakdown. But no, they always forgave the male leads who abused them and lived happily ever after, no matter what the fuckers did to them. For some reason, the female leads never displayed any ill consequence of having suffered abuse and a toxic relationship, which was completely unrealistic at all.

    Apparently, as long as the male lead was rich and handsome, it was okay if he raped and emotionally tortured the female lead. That was the most ridiculous thing I had ever heard, but most of these female authors and readers wanted to read these absurd fantasies of "taming" the toxic and abusive male lead, and then living happily ever after with a rich stud. It never made any sense to me.

    Of course, if it was an ugly, old or poor guy who randomly showed up from nowhere and tried to rape the female lead (and inevitably failed to), they would die. Either killed by the male lead or some sort of accident. It seemed that the crime wasn''t so much the rape itself but being poor and ugly.

    These were the type of ethics that these CEO novels were promoting, not to mention the disgusting glorification of rape and domestic abuse. It''s all right to be raped and abused if the other party was your rich and handsome (soon-to-be in some cases) husband!

    "We have to help her!"

    I nodded in agreement and stepped back to allow Rossetti to offer her assistance. Given Ji Yan''s current state, it was best if I didn''t touch her. I believed that she would be so traumatized that physical contact with any man would set her off.

    "Ji Yan, are you all right?!"

    For a moment, Ji Yan didn''t say anything. She merely gripped Rossetti''s arms tightly, her eyes sort of glassy.

    "Don''t just stand there, Richard! Help me!"

    "How?"

    "Help her up¡­we need to bring her to the medics¡­" Rossetti looked sheepish. "Seems like we''ve hurt her quite a bit in the fight earlier."

    "Uh¡­I''m not sure I should be touching her¡­"

    "Come on!" Rossetti snapped. I sighed and moved forward.

    "!!!"

    "AAAAH!"

    "Whoa! Wait! It''s just me! Don''t worry, it''s just me!"

    "Calm down, Ji Yan! Richard isn''t going to hurt you!"

    Rossetti struggled to restrain the flailing Ji Yan, who was desperately fighting to break out of her hold and scramble away.

    "Ji Yan! Calm down! It''s just Richard!"

    "AAAAH! NOOOOO! Please, don''t! Please forgive me! I''m sorry, I''m sorry, I''m sorry! I''m sorry! Please forgive me!"

    "Yeah, yeah, I will."

    "R¡­really?"

    I watched Ji Yan, who was whimpering like a child, even as Rossetti tried to cradle her in a comforting embrace.

    "Y¡­you won''t rape me?"

    "No, I won''t."

    That fucker Xu Wu Cheng had really done a lot of damage to Ji Yan''s psyche. I shook my head sympathetically and watched Rossetti attempt to soothe her. Almost as if she was unaware of Rossetti''s presence, Ji Yan continued staring wide-eyed at me. Then she began begging again.

    "P¡­please don''t rape me! I''m sorry! I won''t do it again! I''ll obey you! So anything but that! Don''t rape me again! Please!"

    "Do I look like the protagonist of Martial God Asura to you?" I demanded, annoyed. "I''m not Chu Feng! I don''t go around raping heroines just because they wronged me in the past!"

    "Richard!" Rossetti reprimanded me sharply. "This isn''t the time for jokes or breaking the fourth wall!"

    "Sorry."

    Unfortunately, Ji Yan''s mind was broken beyond repair. I could only watch her helplessly until the soldiers from the Federation hurried downstairs, having been drawn by her screams. They took her from Rossetti, and she began screaming and thrashing again. A female medic rushed over with a syringe, trying to sedate her.

    "Why don''t you just use sedative magic?" One of her male comrades asked. She blinked and put down the syringe.

    "You''re right. I almost forgot that this is a magic story. It??ll take some time to cast, though."

    "What the heck did they do to her?" one of the other male soldiers whispered as the female medic wrapped a towel over the near-catatonic girl while attempting to comfort and sedate her with a spell.

    "Apparently she was raped," I muttered, earning a glare from Rossetti for my insensitivity. Well, the soldier asked, there was no point hiding the truth. Ji Yan flinched at the word and stared at me.

    "I''m sorry, Xu Wu Cheng! I''m very sorry! I didn''t mean to disobey you! Please don''t¡­please don''t leave me with them! Please¡­it''s so painful! I don''t want to be raped again! I don''t¡­!"

    I turned away and sighed heavily. As bitchy as she was, even Ji Yan didn''t deserve such a fate.

    Closing my eyes, I departed the scene. I heard footsteps behind me, and turned around to see Rossetti approach.

    "It''s not your fault."

    ¡­since when did I ever say it was my fault?

    Knowing that Rossetti was also worried about me and expressing her concern in her own way, I decided not to be blunt and argumentative. So I nodded to display some gratitude and then glanced down the corridor.

    "I hope the other hostages didn''t suffer the same fate."

    "I hope so too."

    "We should help them before¡­" I swallowed. "¡­before it''s too late."

    Pushing up my glasses, I scanned the place, the sensors on my lenses picking up readings and visual signatures. Following one of the proposed paths, I navigated the long corridors of the basement and eventually stepped into a room at the end of the huge place. Rossetti followed me without any question, entering the enormous chamber and staying on high alert for any enemies.

    Except that there were no longer any enemies in the room. Instead, a single person was held aloft, suspended in midair by manacles.

    "Zhao Yan!"

    "What did they do to her?!" Rossetti gasped, her hands flying to her mouth.

    Zhao Yan''s eyes flickered open as she raised her head weakly. For a moment, she didn''t recognize us, but I didn''t care. With a swing from my Hei Yue and Bai Ri, I severed her bonds and caught her before she could fall onto the ground.

    "Are you all right?"

    "Ah¡­you''re¡­Richard?" Zhao Yan then lolled her head about to look at my partner, who had also hurried forward. "And you are¡­Rossetti?"

    I nodded and propped her up. She looked pale and so frail, a stark contrast to the Zhao Yan I usually knew. Studying her, I saw that her eyes were dilated. Feeling a sense of unease, I placed my fingers on her pulse.

    I knew it. Her heartbeat was irregular.

    "You are going to be okay!" Rossetti assured Zhao Yan. "We are getting you out of here!"

    "They drugged her," I informed Rossetti, my voice hard. "Probably to disrupt her mana flow and prevent her from casting spells."

    "How horrible!"

    "Seems like she''s also suffering some side effects from the drugs." I paused for a moment and dredged my memories for more details. I had read a lot, and this time I benefited from the myriad of knowledge that I had accumulated from countless books. "Zhao Yan is possibly experiencing delirium, hallucination and some form of memory loss."

    No wonder Zhao Yan didn''t seem to remember who we were.

    "Why would they do this to her?!"

    Why, indeed? Who knew? I didn''t. All I could do was curse at the perpetuators. Damn them¡­

    Then again, given how skilled and powerful Zhao Yan was, the vampires wouldn''t be able to restrain her unless they drugged her.

    "Looks like they gave her quite the heavy dosage."

    "We need to call the medics here!"

    "We will. But first¡­" I glanced tersely toward the entrance. Rossetti noticed my defensive posture and she also spun around cautiously.

    "What happened?"

    "They''re coming. And this time, there''s someone who''s stronger than Xu Wu Cheng."

    I felt a chill run down my spine when I detected the potent mana from the group bearing down on us. They weren''t from the military. This blood aura¡­it unmistakably belonged to the vampires. Scanning the exterior of the huge chamber with my glasses, I had the impression that several figures rapidly flying down the corridor, yet my lenses depicted them as leisurely strolling toward our position.

    They would be here within seconds.

    I gulped as cold perspiration flowed down my back. I wasn''t a healing mage and didn''t receive medical training. I clearly didn''t have the aptitude for it. And before you could demand that I summon a healing spirit or whatever nonsense, for the umpteenth time, that was NOT how summoning magic worked. I couldn''t conveniently summon whatever I wanted or needed. I had to learn healing magic before I could summon a spirit capable of healing spells, and given how I sucked at that (and how it took many years to master healing magic), that simply wasn''t practical.

    Preparing myself to escape the inevitable assault, I gently hefted Zhao Yan up. Even without my glasses telling me, I could sense the single colossal aura of mana that dwarfed the other presence. I was willing to bet that Fan Le Lao was among them.

    Could we win against him and his friends?

    "We should get out of here as quickly as possible."

    "Shouldn''t we defeat those bastards that will be arriving here?" Rossetti countered, her voice icy with fury. I shook my head.

    "I understand how you feel. I truly do. But don''t let your emotions override your judgement. Check the amount of mana they are emanating. Are you sure we can defeat those guys? It''ll be an extremely difficult fight."

    "¡­you are right," Rossetti reluctantly agreed. "The vampires approaching us are too strong."

    "Yeah. I know our chances of victory are not zero, but they are not very high either. And don''t forget our objective. Our primary objective isn''t to defeat Fan Le Lao ¨C we can leave him to the military and the Midnight Order. We''re here to save as many people as we can. We should prioritize saving Zhao Yan and bringing her to safety."

    "That''s right!" Rossetti''s eyes widened and her eyes flickered toward the stationary Zhao Yan. "We need to get her out of here!"

    "W¡­wait¡­"

    Zhao Yan suddenly grabbed my arm. I flinched at how cold her fingers were.

    She needed treatment and she needed it fast. I had to bring her to a medic as soon as possible.

    However¡­

    "Ji Yan¡­please save Ji Yan."

    "Yeah."

    "They have my sister¡­trapped somewhere in this castle¡­with the other hostages. Please help them."

    Even when drugged, even when mired in the depths of delirium, Zhao Yan continued to be concerned over the wellbeing of her sister. And of others. I felt a spike of shame, but I suppressed it. I had been so focused on rescuing Zhao Yan that I had forgotten abut the rest.

    "We already rescued Ji Yan. She''s safe now."

    "That''s right!" Rossetti added. "We''re bringing you to her right now! You can see her yourself!"

    "Thank you."

    She closed her eyes and seemed to have fallen back asleep. Taking a deep breath, I summoned Taurus and had him create a new entrance. He smashed through a wall opposite the entrance to the chamber, and we quickly stepped through the hole to escape.

    "!!!"

    However, we weren''t given the chance to leave. Red spears sprang up from the ground, creating a barrier of their own and fencing us back in the enormous chamber. I yanked Rossetti back with my free hand and we tumbled away from the barrage of blood lances.

    "Damn it! This is¡­!"

    "You have something of mine."

    Whirling around, I caught sight of Fan Le Lao strolling toward us, his hands coolly inserted into the pockets of his coat.

 554 Chapter 554: Boss Battle

    When did he¡­?

    Then again, he was seconds away from the chamber. I thought we still had some time to run, but evidently I was wrong. Damn it, we shouldn''t have dallied¡­

    No. I was misunderstanding something. This whole castle was Fan Le Lao''s territory. In other words, we had been running around in the palm of his hand from the very start. No matter how much sooner we ran, he would have caught us instantly.

    He must have made use of his knowledge or power over his own base to avoid the Federation soldiers and the medic who were tending to Nan Gong Ji Yan. Either that or that group had already left, probably bringing Ji Yan to the surface after sedating her.

    Whatever the case, Fan Le Lao was now here, right in front of us. A few dozen meters away from our position, but it felt as if he was standing right in front of me.

    Gritting my teeth, I gently placed Nan Gong Zhao Yan down on the floor, propping her against a corner. With Rossetti beside me, I straightened up and faced our enemy with clenched fists. The most powerful member of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan, at least in our generation. And we were fighting in his territory.

    This was bad.

    Gesturing toward me arrogantly, Fan Le Lao''s lips curled into a sneer.

    "Return Zhao Yan to me."

    "She was never yours."

    "Fine, then." Fan Le Lao coolly cocked his head to the side as he stared at me, his eyes raking over my battered body callously. "I''ll just have to take her from your dead body."

    "Over my dead body."

    "That''s what I just said." Fan Le Lao shook his head. "Oh, and it seems that you''ve killed Xu Wu Cheng? Impressive. He was right about you, after all. I didn''t think you would be this much of a threat. Not only did you kill so many of my clansmen, you even brought the Federation military and mercenaries to raid my castle, and now you are stealing my woman."

    I burst out laughing. "Zhao Yan is NOT your woman."

    "She will be."

    I guffawed even harder. "How? With your shoujo manga-style drama where you cast some stupid illusion spell to manipulate her memories and have her attend the same school as you, get closer to you and fall in love with you in the cheesiest manner possible? Only a delusional manhua artist would think you can pull something as absurd as that off."

    "¡­"

    "Don''t tell me you were really intending to do that."

    "It worked in Vampire Sphere."

    "Well, this isn''t Vampire Sphere."

    "What are you guys even talking about now?!" Rossetti demanded, turning from me to Fan Le Lao and looking completely bewildered. "From earlier, you guys have gone off into your own world and are arguing over something I don''t understand."

    "You don''t have to understand," Fan Le Lao told her coldly. I chuckled and shook my head.

    I honestly didn''t know what went on in the heads of certain female authors.

    "Shut up!"

    Fan Le Lao''s murderous aura exploded, rippling across the clearing and sending shivers down my spine. Rossetti also looked similarly affected, her face turning pale. Both of us stumbled back a little from the shockwaves, heaving as the thick, menacing atmosphere threatened to suffocate us.

    This guy was on a totally different level.

    "In any case, you''ve really drove my clan to the edge of extinction. I''m afraid I won''t be able to forgive you now. Hah~" Fan Le Lao sighed and shook his head. He then raised his head to glare at me, a cold glint in his purple eyes. Huh¡­what was with these bishounen characters and their weirdly colored eyes? Who the fuck had purple eyes? I had never seen someone with purple eyes in my entire life. "I didn''t want to do this because you''re quite the interesting fella. But you''ve forced my hand."

    "What, you didn''t think there will be repercussions after assaulting our school, killing a huge fraction of the student population and staff, abducting a good number of hostages and trying to kidnap the rest of Zhao Yan''s family, did you?"

    "I did¡­but I must say, your actions have exceeded my expectations. Man, I really wanted you as an ally. Looks like Wu Cheng was right, after all. I should have killed you from the start."

    His eyes flashing in cold fury, Fan Le Lao swung his hand down. From the ceiling, a murderous hail of blood spears rained down upon our position with the force of meteors.

    "Snow Aegis!"

    I grabbed Rossetti and dragged her closer while throwing out my right hand and summoning my snowflake shield to protect us from the rain of blood spears. The crimson lances slammed against my six layers of protective mana mercilessly, but thankfully my defense held. That didn''t stop me from wincing from the tremendous impacts. Every time a spear collided with my shield, I felt a tiny shockwave of mana ripple through my body.

    Fortunately, I had Rossetti by my side. She did a small dance, careful not to whirl outside of my territory and into the barrage of blood spears, and I could feel her spells buffing my defense. Thanks to that, I felt the impacts alleviated slightly and I was able to solidify my defenses.

    "Uaaaah!"

    With a murderous cry, Fan Le Lao descended among the hail of spears, thrusting his real spear forward. I raised Snow Aegis to parry his strike, shuddering from the violent collision. Thankfully, with Rossetti''s buffs, I could withstand the powerful blow. Fan Le Lao didn''t seem like he was affected and he merely thrust his spear repeatedly in movements almost too fast for my eyes to follow.

    Sparks flew as the thunderous spear strikes hammered brutaly against the defensive layers of mana, tiny but powerful tremors spreading across the stalwart shield to rock my shuddering body. Fortunately, Rossetti continued to buff me and I weathered the relentless onslaught without much difficulty. I exhaled and held up my right hand, matching Fan Le Lao''s vicious bows defiantly. His movements grew increasingly faster, but I refused to back down and stood strong with my formidable, frosty defense.

    If Fan Le Lao was growing frustrated at my refusal to fall, he didn''t show it. He was coolly and efficiently thrusting his huge spear, as if believing that he would eventually be able to penetrate my defenses.

    "Richard!"

    I glanced at Rossetti, who was casting a different buff spell this time, and nodded when I read her intentions. Even if Fan Le Lao wasn''t able to destroy Snow Aegis, he sought to wear me down eventually to force me to expend all of my mana on defense. Once I was exhausted, it would be a simple matter for him to deliver the killing blow.

    As if Rossetti and I would let that happen. That was why she was casting her buff spell.

    With a yell, I parried a strike from Fan Le Lao and suddenly lowered my shield. While his guard was still down, I stabbed him with Bai Ri, which was blazing from holy flames bestowed upon the white blade from Rossetti''s dance.

    "!!!"

    Fan Le Lao staggered back, having twisted away to avoid a fatal blow. Even so, flames spread rapidly across his chest and he had to surge his bloody qi up to extinguish them. He didn''t panic despite the surprise blow he had suffered and instead reacted with a vicious slash of his spear that would have eviscerated me if I hadn''t blocked it with Hei Yue. Dismissing Snow Aegis, I prepared for a close combat duel, but another sweep of the vampire prince''s spear sent me skidding backward from the sheer strength of his blow, my feet gouging out the concrete from the ground.

    "Huff¡­what raw power!"

    I dropped to my knees, heaving. Rossetti rushed toward my side worriedly, her chakrams raised defensively. Fan Le Lao glanced at his chest before he stroked his chin curiously. He then glanced back at me.

    "Impressive. I didn''t think you would be able to counterattack under such circumstances."

    I gritted my teeth. Bloody monster. He didn''t even flinch from my sword thrust, which had been buffed by Rossetti. There was little sign of injury, and the flames that I had left on his chest were immediately extinguished by a surge of his demonic mana. I felt cold perspiration drip down my face.

    How could I win against such a monster?

    To make matters worse, Fan Le Lao''s retinue finally showed up. They flanked their prince, scattering on all sides to form a semicircle that surrounded Rossetti and me. Clearly they did not intend on allowing us to get away.

    I glanced at the hole in the wall that Taurus had made. Unfortunately for my Constellation spirit, he had been impaled by the blood lances, so I temporarily couldn''t summon him for a while. I also didn''t know what to summon against a monster like Fan Le Lao. Whatever I had in mind would be outmatched by his skills and innate blood magic.

    "Attack!"

    Fan Le Lao didn''t give the order, but someone among his retinue did. A sergeant, perhaps. At his command, the vampires charged forward. Both Rossetti and I also rushed forward, moving in perfect coordination. Unleashing torrents of flames from her Heavenly Flaming Phoenix Kagura Dance, Rossetti incinerated a few of them. I stabbed and slashed with Hei Yue and Bai Ri, while summoning Vermillion Phoenix at the same time. The whole chamber was enveloped in an inferno, and the space was filled with the screams of immolated vampires.

    "!!"

    Fan Le Lao struck again, his spear almost impaling my face. Fortunately, I pulled Bai Ri up in time to deflect this spear to the side. I then retaliated with a riposte from Hei Yue, but my enemy dodged under my strike. Undeterred, Fan Le Lao resumed his machine gun-like barrage, thrusting his spear repeatedly against my swords. I matched him blow for blow, parrying every single one of his strike as determinedly as I could, eeven as crimson sparks flew from the ferocious collisions and sprayed our surroundings.

    Unaffected, Rossetti and Vermillion Phoenix continued to engage the surviving vampires ¨C the remnants of Fan Le Lao''s retinue. Fan Le Lao focused solely on me, his attacks growing stronger and stronger, with each strike more powerful than the last one. He knew that as long as he could slay me, Vermillion Phoenix would automatically disappear. Similarly, Rossetti wouldn''t be able to do much on her own.

    It was a sound strategy. I wheezed and panted, but held steady my resolve.

    Like hell I was going to die here!"

    "I see."

    Even as he continued his barrage, Fan Le Lao studied me quietly, his purple eyes cold and calculating. I felt shivers from just looking at those dark depths.

    "If a frontal approach will not suffice¡­"

    "¡­!"

    I was almost taken by surprise when a blood spear sprang to life behind me, almost impaling me in the back. Sidestepping the sudden projectile, I watched as it ricocheted harmlessly off my Bai Ri when I parried it, shattering harmlessly.

    But there were more blood spears emerging behind me.

    I was forced to dodge and roll away when the row of spears suddenly launched themselves at me. They slammed into the ground, burying their sharp ends deeply into the soil. Miraculously, none of them hit Zhao Yan, but I suspsected that Fan Le Lao was controlling his blood techniques on purpose. Of course he wouldn''t want to injure "his woman."

    Vermillion Phoenix and Rossetti were a different matter altogether. Fortunately, their teamwork was seamless, the two of them moving together to engulf the blood spears in purifying fire before they could reach either of them. Fan Le Lao was less concerned about his subordinates than he was over Zhao Yan, and they were forced to move or get hit by friendly fire. Either he didn''t care about their wellbeings and thought of them as expendable or he trusted them enough to dodge his blood spears without any difficulty. Knowing him, I bet it was the former. The guy was a callous bastard with no regard for the lives of people who weren''t the heroine. He didn''t even care about Xu Wu Cheng, his right-hand man.

    Spinning around, I cut through Fan Le Lao''s relentless bombardment with strikes from my black and white swords. The vampire leader didn''t even wait for me to finish defending myself. He was already lunging at me before I could destroy all of the blood spears. I was barely able to cross both of my swords to block his spear in time.

    Clang!

    "Oof¡­!"

    I grunted as I was shoved back from the immense impact. Skidding across the ground, I did my best to defend myself from his simultaneous attacks from the front and the blood spears from the back. As it was, Fan Le Lao''s movements were far too fast for my eyes to follow, even with the holographic overlays that calculated and predicted the trajectories and directions of his attacks for me. I was reacting purely on instinct now, parrying and blocking whatever attacks he threw at me.

    Unfortunately, with his superior combat skills, Fan Le Lao deftly bypassed my defenses and left wounds on my body ¨C most of them from the insidious blood spears that he sneakily launched from behind. Not being a god, I couldn''t handle attacks from so many directions.

    "Ugh!"

    I staggered back despite doing my best to deflect a hit. Even as I knocked away a thrust meant for my heart, Fan Le Lao''s spear gouged out the flest on my left arm. Blood spilled onto the floor, dripping from the numerous wounds he left in his wake. Even if I was able to avoid a fatal blow from Fan Le Lao, I would slowly die from the massive blood loss.

    Death by a thousand paper cuts. That was Fan Le Lao''s strategy.

 555 Chapter 555: Vampire Prince

    I winced as Fan Le Lao''s spear left a cut on my skin again and staggered back. Fortunately, the wound wasn''t too deep or sevre, but that didn''t stop the blood from trickling down my arm. As I said, I was suffering a death by a thousand paper cuts. That was Fan Le Lao''s strategy. He was taking his sweet time, attacking me in an unharried manner, knowing there was nothing I could do to completely block his attacks now. He knew it wouldn''t be long before my consciousness faded from the massive blood loss and I would eventually fall to his attacks.

    He was delusional if he thought I was going to let that happen.

    "Green Dragon!"

    My Celestial Guardian materialized behind me and lashed out with a claw. Fan Le Lao parried the blow, scything down the vines and plants that coiled around him. While he was distracted, Green Dragon struck him with his tail, sending the vampire prince flying.

    Blood qi surged out and Fan Le Lao burst out of the outgrowth, his spear surging forward to stab me in the chest. By now, I was ready for him. Green Dragon stepped in to counter, but Fan Le Lao swerved about, making use of his smaller size and greater speed to evade my Celestial Guardian and curved about to strike me.

    Once again, I had expected that.

    "Black Tortoise!"

    My third Celestial Guardian materialized in his chibi form, mounted atop my shoulder. My azure mana coalesced into a fog that enveloped both of my blades just as I crossed them to parry Fan Le Lao''s spear. My mana then froze my surroundings and entombed Fan Le Lao''s spear and his arms in ice. His eyes widened for just the briefest of moments, but he then coolly responded by increasing his crimson, demonic mana and shattering the ice before slamming me away with a swing of his spear. Even though I succeeded in blocking his strike, I was still sent hurtling across the chamber.

    "Gah!"

    I lay on the ground, winded from the ferocious blow. Huffing, I tried to crawl to my feet while Fan Le Lao leisurely strolled forward.

    Was he an idiot?

    Green Dragon''s claw crushed him onto the ground. Any normal foe would have been pulverized, but the vampire prince managed to withstand the blow. Bellowing, he used his spear to shove Green Dragon''s paw back and slashed, but his blood blades merely dissipated harmlessly against the wall of wood that Green Dragon conjured

    Fan Le Lao held his left hand up and closed his fingers. Behind me, several dozen blood spears lurched from the ground and streaked toward me. There were a hundred or so that also hurtled toward Green Dragon, who was busily engaging the vampire prince in combat, forcing the immense Celestial Guardian to retreat. Gritting my teeth, I reached out to Green Dragon mentally.

    A slash from above forced me to raise Hei Yue and Bai Ri to parry it when the spear easily cleaved through my icy sphere, but Fan Le Lao''s foot came flying from another direction and connected with my body. I coughed as the vampire prince''s kick sent me flying again.

    "Ugh¡­"

    I spat out some blood and heaved on the ground, leaning on my two swords as I tried to get to my knees. Damn it¡­what a blow. That kick must have cracked a rib or two at least.

    "Richard!" Rossetti cried out from the side, but she was forced to block a pair of blood claws with her chakrams.

    "I''m all right," I assured her. As if to prov my point, I summoned Snow Aegis to shield myself from Fan Le Lao''s relentless barrage. Similarly, Green Dragon conjured thick walls of wood to counter the rain of blood spears falling from above.

    Despite erecting an impenetrable defense, Fan Le Lao''s next move completely caught me by surprise.

    "¡­!"

    Blackthorn vines whipped out from Fan Le Lao and curled around me. I tried to hack and slash, but the more I struggled, the fiercer they wrapped around my limbs.

    Then I stopped struggling.

    I had recalled this scene from earlier. Yeah, this was what happened when Zhao Yan was captured. The more she resisted, the tighter the blackthorn branches restrained her. It was futile to escape. Defeated, I slumped as the blackthorn vines hauled me up.

    While I was hanging suspended in the air, Fan Le Lao strolled toward me with a smirk. Raising a spear, he aimed it at my chest. Behind him, Green Dragon bellowed in futile rage, but Fan Le Lao kept my Celestial Guardian at bay with his hail of unceasing blood spears. Ignoring my Green Dragon, the vampire prince sneered at me.

    "You fought well¡­I didn''t think you would have lasted this long. But it''s time to die."

    "You really have to spout that cheesy line before you kill me, don''t you?" I sighed. Fan Le Lao''s brow twitched and he responded by plunging his spear into my heart.

    Or would have, if I didn''t choose that moment to unleash my ice spell from my chibi Black Tortoise. One that I had learned from Teacher Einsberg.

    "¡­!"

    The mana that I had been accumulating was released in a single spell, freezing the blackthorn vines that were holding me captive and shattering them. Despite his formidable constitution, even Fan Le Lao was forced to jump back or suffer grievous injuries. Even so, his arms and part of his body were caught by the freezing blast, turning into ice.

    Not only that, Green Dragon selected that instance to smash through the rain of blood spears with his wood spells and smashed a gigantic log onto Fan Le Lao, crushing him onto the ground.

    "You¡­!"

    Scowling as blood frothed from his mouth, Fan Le Lao shattered the ice with a surge of his demonic mana. He forcibly swung his spear upward to cleave the colossal wooden log into pieces to free himself, but the splinters embedded themselves deeply into his rapidly regenerating body. Mist rose from his body and he panted, realizing that he had expended a significant amount of mana to liberate himself and heal his wounds.

    "What the hell was that spell?!"

    I didn''t reply. Instead, I was charging forward with both of my swords, focusing all my remaining mana into the point of the blades. I thrust Hei Yue at him, yelling determinedly.

    However, Fan Le Lao managed to parry my last-ditch attack with the shaft of his spear, holding it up with both hands to prevent the sharp tip of my black sword from burying itself in his chest. Gritting his teeth, his demonic mana flared up and he sent several volleys of blood spears at me.

    ¡­only for me to swing Bai Ri to block and cut through them.

    "Uwoooooo!"

    With a furious yell, I unleashed my mana at pointblank range. Even the venerable vampire prince wasn''t able to endure the blast, his body freezing from the sheer volume of azure frost energy. Stumbling back, he slashed at me with his frozen spear, forcing me to deflect it with Hei Yue.

    Unfortunately, I had also spent all of my mana in that last attack and was pretty winded. I staggered away, trying to catch my breath and recover. Behind, Green Dragon lumbered toward us to support me.

    Not being able to deliver the killing blow proved to be a near fatal mistake.

    "AAAAH!"

    With a roar, Fan Le Lao''s body exploded with blood-red mana. All the ice I had conjured was shattered in an instant, vaporizing into a thick fog.

    "Not bad. I didn''t think you would be able to push me this far."

    I didn''t reply. Instead, I made use of the thick fog to conceal my movements. Relying on the sensors in my glasses, I waited for an opportunity to coordinate with Green Dragon, lashing out and swinging my sword toward Fan Le Lao''s neck. At the same time, Green Dragon swung his paw down to pulverize the vampire prince.

    To my utmost surprise, he effortlessly caught Hei Yue. Behind him, a wall of blood spears burst out of the ground, forcing Green Dragon back at the danger of being impaled. Blood dripped from Fan Le Lao''s fingers despite my black blade sinking deeply into his flesh, but he didn''t even flinch. I stabbed him with Bai Ri, but he caught the white blade with his other hand. Once again, blood trickled from his fingers but he showed no sign of pain.

    Instead, Fan Le Lao turned toward me with a sinister smile.

    I gulped.

    "Did you think you would be safe in this mist?"

    "Yeah. I thought I would be able to, uh, fog your vision."

    "Funny." Fan Le Lao''s lips curled. "Then try hiding in this fog."

    I watched, horrified, when his blood mixed with the mist, turning it a dark red. Within seconds, the properties of my icy mist transformed and lashed out like a living, hungry entity. I fumbled away, but Fan Le Lao held onto my swords firmly, refusing to let go.

    I should have abandoned my swords to save myself. Unfortunately, my possessiveness proved to be my undoing.

    "Gaaaah!"

    The unfolding miasma that Fan Le Lao created with his mana hit me full on the face, knocking my glasses askew and blinding me.

    This time, Fan Le Lao released my swords, either because he had reached his limits or because he didn''t want to lose too much blood. Suddenly finding myself free, I toppled over from my momentum and rolled on the ground, clutching my eyes.

    The acid¡­! The damned thing felt like acid!

    My eyes were glued shut, refusing to open. No, I didn''t want to open them. They were burning and I knew my blindness was temporary. Unfortunately, that blindness would turn permanent if I forcibly opened them (until someone cast a healing spell on me), so I left them closed as I unsteadily rose to my feet.

    Good thing I had my glasses on. My glasses had taken the full brunt of Fan Le Lao''s acidic blood spell and absorbed most of the blow. If I hadn''t been wearing glasses, I would have been blinded. No, worse. I would have not only lost my eyes, the acidic blood melting my face and sockets, but my life. Judging from how my glasses sizzled and melted into nothingness, there was enough of it to melt my whole head.

    Imagine if I had listened to all those readers complaining about me wearing glasses and demanding that I undergo lasik or using healing magic to cure my myopia and get rid of my glasses. I would have died. Some readers always thought they were so clever, but they really were narrow-minded.

    "!"

    I was barely able to dodge a slash from Fan Le Lao''s spear, ducking and rolling on the floor.

    "Oh? You could still sense that attack?"

    Fan Le Lao''s voice came from somewhere left of me. Well¡­yeah, I could see, thanks to me sharing my senses with my Constellation spirits and Celestial Guardians. With my real eyes blinded momentarily, I was watching the whole scene play out from Green Dragon''s and Black Tortoise''s eyes. It was the same technique I used to connect my senses with Corvus every time I summoned them for reconnaissance.

    Of course I wasn''t going to tell him that. What idiot gave away his secrets and advantages? So I remained silent, dodging Fan Le Lao''s next strike.

    "¡­!"

    Fan Le Lao was baffled when I managed to twist my body out of the way, but he pressed on with his attack. Picking up both Hei Yue and Bai Ri, I deflected his next blow before spinning away from a thrust. I countered with a riposte that he knocked away before ducking under his retaliation. He kicked at me, but having seen his movements from Green Dragon''s eyes, I blocked his foot with my leg and shoved him back with a strike from Bai Ri. Fan Le Lao countered with his spear and knocked my white blade away, and I retracted Bai Ri before slashing at him with Hei Yue. The vampire prince met my attack with a swing of his spear, sparks flying as the two metals kissed.

    Then Green Dragon launched a bunch of vines and wood spikes at him, forcing him to weave a network of blood spears to shred them.

    "You can see¡­?"

    Fan Le Lao threw me off with a forceful strike from his spear, shaking his head in disbelief. I stumbled back, but managed to right myself in time to block another slash from the furious vampire prince. He straightened himself before glaring at me.

    "So what?" he sneered and slammed his spear down onto the ground. "No matter what tricks you have, you will never be able to best me!"

 556 Chapter 556: Fall of a Legend

    If Green Dragon hadn''t fallen back, he would have been impaled by the damned thing.

    Unfortunately, that meant I was still on my own.

    I ducked under a slash before deflecting a strike. Fan Le Lao''s attacks were coming at me fast and thick now, almost overwhelming my defenses. Even with the ability to see him through Green Dragon''s eyes and the training I received from Dad, I could barely keep up with his assault.

    Realizing that he could overwhelm my defense with sheer speed and raw strength, Fan Le Lao increased the intensity of his attacks, thrusting his spear almost in a frenzy. I struggled to keep up, but once again I found myself slowly cut apart, blood splattering across the floor as his blade found my skin and sliced through them.

    "Ku¡­!"

    I could barely hold on against the glowing onslaught of attacks as Fan Le Lao mercilessly struck again and again. Standing firm, I defiantly clashed against him, only to be pushed back. My arms trembled violently from the impact of a particularly strong slash.

    Even if my swords could withstand Fan Le Lao''s relentless barrage, my body couldn''t. My arms already felt as if they were going to break.

    Damn it! As if I was going to lose to this bishounen fucker!

    I couldn''t stand such a humiliation. Swallowing, I spread my feet apart to stabilize myself for a final stand. Time to finally unleash my most powerful Constellation spirit.

    "Draco!"

    "It won''t work!" Fan Le Lao shouted as he thrust his spear at me. I was blasted all the way back, coughing out blood as I hit the ground. Rolling to my feet, I leaned on both of my swords. Sneering, the vampire prince approached me with an air of inevitably.

    The arrogant bastard smirked triumphantly.

    "Whatever game you''re playing, it won''t work," he sneered. "You can''t defeat me."

    "No, I know," I admitted bitterly. Then I shrugged. "But he can."

    "¡­huh?"

    Draco burst into existence with a ferocious bellow. No matter how many blood spears Fan Le Lao conjured, the black dragon smashed them apart with his claws. His jaws glowed and black mana flowed out in a tremendus torrent.

    "Draco, mini-Thuban attack. Try not to nuke my friends and allies along with him."

    My Constellation spirit was already unleashing his powerful spell even before I completed the command. We were linked spiritually and mentally, so he already knew what I wanted. From his eyes ¨C and those of Black Tortoise and Green Dragon, as well as Vermillion Phoenix ¨C I watched Fan Le Lao stumble away in panic, raising his spear desperately to defend himself.

    A black maelstrom of chaotic mana surged from Draco''s maw and washed over Fan Le Lao. For a moment, despite using the eyes of my Soul Beasts, I couldn''t see anything. The world literally disappeared. Rossetti shouted in fright, but Vermillion Phoenix swept her away in his protective embrace and flew off.

    The vampires they were engaging were not so fortunate. They screamed as they were engulfed by the black tsunami of destructive mana.

    They weren''t the only ones.

    "What the hell is this?!" Fan Le Lao shrieked.

    Those were his last words. His question disappeared, drowned out by the roar of Draco''s ultimate spell. Then he screamed along with his retinue, the horrendous cry lasting for only a second before he was engulfed in the immense tidal wave of destructive mana. His existence was completely erased as his body burst apart from the impact and disintegrated.

    Holy¡­

    I stood there for almost a minute, my shoulders sagging. I leaned on my swords and checked on Rossetti. She was safe, still protected by Vermillion Phoenix. The rest of my Celestial Guardians were gone, but that was because I was smart enough to dismiss them before they were engulfed by Draco''s spell of mass destruction.

    Speaking of which, there was a smoking crater burned into the floor of the basement, the rock still glowing red and black from the superheated energies.

    Catching my breath, I tried to stand but stumbled onto my knees. I had a feeling that I was forgetting something very important¡­

    "Richard?"

    "Whoa!"

    I almost yelled in fright, swinging my swords in the direction of the voice. Rossetti was above, with Vermillion Phoenix, so it couldn''t have belonged to her. An enemy then! I heard a squeal, and from the corner of Draco''s eye I caught sight of someone falling over. When my massive Constellation spirit turned to help me get a clearer look, I saw that I recognized her.

    "It''s me! Zhao Yan!"

    I knew it. Lowering my swords, I bowed my head apologetically.

    "Sorry. But seriously, I''m already blinded, so don''t scare me like that!" (It''s a pun, basically the words for blind and scare in Chinese are homophonic)

    "I apologize."

    "Nah, don''t worry about it." I sighed and bowed again. "As I said, it''s my fault."

    "You should be more careful, Richard!" Rossetti chided me and landed nearby after Vermillion Phoenix let her go. "You almost killed the person we came here to save!"

    "Sorry."

    "It''s all right." Zhao Yan raised both of her hands. "I''m safe now, thanks to you two. The both of you really saved me.

    "Richard, you''re hurt! Let me look at that!" Rossetti wasn''t paying much attention to Zhao Yan and was rushing over to me. She produced a handkerchief and began dabbing at my eyes.

    "Ouch! Hey! Watch it!"

    "We got to get rid of that stuff on your eyes! They look pretty harmful! Then we need to get a medic to see you!"

    "All in good time."

    While Rossetti fussed over me, Zhao Yan turned to stare into the distance, amazed.

    "What did you just do?" she asked, her voice full of wonder.

    "Huh? What do you mean?"

    Thanks to Rossetti''s efforts, the burning sensation in my eyes were disappearing and I could finally rely on them again without having to defer to my Constellation spirits for sight. I slowly opened them, wincing from the slight sting.

    "Ah¡­"

    I cocked my head when I saw what Zhao Yan was referring to. She was gaping at the scene of total devastation that unfolded across the chamber. Draco''s spell had, as I said earlier, gouged a colossal crater out of the ground and left sludges of molten magma in its wake. The area had been scoured clean of any living being, with Fan Le Lao and all his surviving vampires disintegrated.

    Well, not exactly. Unlike his lackeys, he vampire prince wasn''t completely disintegrated. Parts of his body lay scattered here and there, his blood pooling across the ruined ground. It was clear that he wouldn''t be sucking any blood and acting like a cool bishounen vampire prince ever again.

    With his body literally in pieces, no amount of regeneration or healing magic was going to help him. As miraculous as magic was, there existed no spell that could resurrect the dead. And he was most definitely dead. There was no trace of living mana being emitted by his scattered body parts.

    Good riddance. He would not be missed.

    "I have never seen such a spell before!"

    Zhao Yan was staring at the devastation with wide eyes. I offered her a weak smile before I looked for my glasses. Unfortunately, as I noted earlier, they had been melted into a puddle of twisted metal and plastic by the acidic blood spell that Fan Le Lao flung at me earlier. Oh, well.

    "Of course you haven''t."

    Anyone who witnessed the full power of my nuke spells would most likely end up dead. After all, this was one of the spells used to level entire cities. A spell capable of killing a hundred monsters in a single swing (well, probably thousands of monsters if I were to be honest) was not something that I cast lightly.

    "Huh? You didn''t know?" Rossetti was astonished. "Richard is famous for his spells of mass destruction. He nuked three Crastrates about a year ago. And a couple of dragons. Didn''t he also nuke an entire horde of monsters that were attacking a city somewhere in the southeast? Or was that a mountain? I can''t remember."

    "You mean I nuked a few thousand monsters that were moving toward a military fortress," I corrected. The southeast city whose defense I had helped out in, I had spent all of my mana nuking a mountain with terrifying monsters, so I didn''t have enough to nuke the hordes that were attacking the city.

    Rossetti nodded. "Yeah, that''s right! Anyway, Richard is pretty famous for his spells of mass destruction. They call him the walking nuke or something."

    "No one calls me that!"

    Zhao Yan watched us bicker, and then she began giggling. Both Rossetti and I turned to stare at her, surprised.

    "Are you feeling all right?"

    I wasn''t able to conceal the concern in my voice. Zhao Yan nodded and raised her hands to test her arms. Satisfied, she turned back to us.

    "Yeah, thanks for the help. Seems like the effects of the drug are wearing off. My mind''s no longer fuzzy and I can feel my mana returning to me. Thank you both!"

    "It''s nothing."

    "As long as you are okay."

    I waved her thanks away while Rossetti smiled warmly.

    "Yeah¡­well¡­" Zhao Yan hesitated, but she pursed her lips and steeled her resolve. "I''m sorry to ask you of this so soon after such an intense battle, but can you help me? I need to find Ji Yan¡­and we also have to save the other hostages."

    Sighing, I sheathed both of my swords. Rossetti managed to help me up and I was forced to lean on her or collapse. My legs were still trembling uncontrollably, almost unable to hold up my body.

    "Ji Yan is safe," Rossetti assured Zhao Yan. "We''ll bring you to her later. She should be with one of the medics. They were treating him for¡­shock or something."

    Zhao Yan nodded. "What about the others?"

    "The Federation military and the Midnight Order are raiding the castle and rescuing hostages even as we speak," I explained. "We should leave the rest to them."

    I remembered that there were a bunch of really strong vampires who had escaped from Saint Teresa Academy after Fan Fu Qing was killed. I was surprised that I hadn''t run into You Shou, but he was probably busy with organizing a hasty defense against the mages of the Global Federation. I was immensely relieved that he didn''t accompany Fan Fu Qing. That fellow was hard enough to fight against, and if he had one of the more powerful adults accompanying him¡­

    Simply put, I didn''t dare imagine what the outcome would be.

    Unfortunately, the battle against Fan Le Lao and his cronies had drawn the attention of many people. Both vampire elders and Federation soldiers were rushing toward here, and the vampire elders were the first to arrive.

    "You¡­!"

    Blood-red mana was flaring out and condensing across the ruined chamber, surrounding the vampire elders who had rushed in. At their head was You Shou, and his eyes widened in dismay when he saw the remnants of Fan Le Lao''s corpse.

    "You killed his highness!" he roared in fury.

    "Yeah, well¡­he tried to kill me first."

    "I''ll kill you!"

    He raised his hand to conjure a huge number of blood spears. The sheer number of crimson spears blotted out the ruptured ceiling, drowning us under an ominous shadow. I could feel Rossetti tightening her grip on my arm. We both prepared to defend ourselves from the merciless onslaught.

    A large blast of purifying fire roared across the cavernous hall and incinerated the blood spears to nothingness before they could reach us. Teresa Taylor landed between the vampire elders and us, her blazing sword drawn. Before the vampires could whirl away to flee, she swung her sword at them.

    "Holy Judgement, Sacred Flames."

    The entire basement was bathed in white light, almost as if a miniature sun had just risen. The vampire elders, including You Shou, were caught in the thunderous inferno, their bodies disintegrating to soot and ash before they could even scream.

    Even the pieces of Fan Le Lao''s corpse were not spared, blasted into oblivion by the purifying flames. There was no longer anything left of him.

    "Sorry for being late." Teresa Taylor turned to look at us. Zhao Yan''s mouth dropped.

    "Headmistress Taylor!"

    "You were involved in the operation too?" Rossetti asked, dazed. The White Witch smiled and nodded.

    "Of course I would be. There''s no way I would sit out a mission that involves the rescue of my students, right?"

    "You''re just in time." I breathed out a sigh of relief. "Any later and we would be¡­"

    "You did well," Teresa Taylor assured me. She then gestured toward the exit. "Now, if you would be so kind as to escort Zhao Yan to her sister¡­I''m sure she really wants to meet Ji Yan as soon as possible."

    Zhao Yan''s eyes widened, tears beginning to flow from their edges, and she nodded with a smile.

 557 Chapter 557: Family Reunion

    Nan Gong Zhao Yan was running through the smoky remnants of the wrecked castle. She had just barely left the entrance, which had been melted through by my Serpenta''s acid, when she caught sight of her sister.

    Nan Gong Ji Yan was currently sitting at the back of a medical vehicle, which had been customized into a military ambulance, a towel wrapped around her filthy body. Clearly she had ben sedated, for her eyes were blank and she was silent as hell. She looked up to stare at her approaching sister hollowly, not a hint of recognition in her eyes.

    "Careful," the medic warned Zhao Yan. "She is in terrible psychological shape. We have treated her physical injuries ¨C they were mostly minor, though there are signs of lesions and abrasions in her groin area."

    In other words, she had been raped. Xu Wu Cheng, that bastard¡­I was so glad that I had killed him. Death was the least he deserved.

    "But her spirit is broken," the medic continued grimly. "Her mind¡­her sanity has snapped. I have cast a sedative spell on her to calm her down for now, but¡­honestly, it''s not looking good."

    Healing spells, though near miraculous, did not have any effect on the mind. Magic wasn''t some kind of cure-all ¨C it did not cure insanity or heal mental damage. Nothing could. There was no sanity magic or whatever. Yeah, there was mind control magic and hypnotism, but those did not help somebody regain their sanity. That just transformed the targets into tools that you controlled and manipulated, not restore their individual self.

    Zhao Yan sobbed as she embraced her deeply traumatized sister.

    "Ji Yan¡­I''m sorry."

    I felt a flare of anger inside me. Call me callous, but none of this was Zhao Yan''s fault. She shouldn''t be apologizing. Even though I felt sorry for Ji Yan and did not think she deserved this tragic fate, it did not excuse her from her betrayal. She should be the one apologizing to Zhao Yan, not the other way around. She brought this upon herself. She betrayed Zhao Yan and the Guang Zhi Yi Sect, causing the deaths of her seniors.

    Hell, she was directly responsible for the deaths of so many students in Saint Teresa Academy. All because she was jealous of her sister¡­all because she wanted to preserve her¡­I don''t know her reputation or because she didn''t want to get into trouble. Yeah, Xu Wu Cheng was a bastard for blackmailing her, but to think she put her own self-interests above the lives of so many people. Was sacrificing her schoolmates worth staying out of trouble?

    But she chose to be raped, abused and tortured by Xu Wu Cheng instead of snitching on him. That made no sense whatsoever. I guess she would rather be tormented by a bishounen vampire than get into trouble with the authorities. It was all right if the other party doing the abuse was a handsome and powerful vampire, huh?

    I honestly didn''t understand what went on the minds of these shoujo manhua artists and authors.

    Hell, Ji Yan would have happily sacrificed her own sister, even to the extent of drugging her and allowing her to be killed alongside with the other students. If it weren''t for Zhao Yan''s own Mary Sue plot armor, which came in the form of Fan Le Lao''s keen interest in her, she would have died with the rest. And I had a feeling that Ji Yan couldn''t care less.

    Zhao Yan''s sisterly affection was wasted on her.

    "Zhao Yan! Ji Yan!"

    To my surprise, Professor Nan Gong Jiao Shou appeared. He sprinted across the mass of military vehicles that were parked around the exterior of the vampire castle. There were no tanks or armored assault vehicles, in case you were wondering. When you had human mages capable of casting spells that were way more powerful than a tank shell (just look at me firing off nuke spells) and defensive barriers sturdier than any physical armor, tanks were pretty much obsolete.

    So the majority of the military vehicles were transports. Hovercrafts that had skimmed over the canopy of trees in the wake of the soldiers, arriving right after the attack. They had been held back, the military mages and mercenaries moving through the forest on foot, so that the enemy wouldn''t be alerted of the attack. After all, there was no better way to tip them off than to have an armada of hovercrafts flying toward their base in full sight. Even if we had invisible spells that could cloak them visually, the vampires would probably still hear the noise of their engines.

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou must have arrived aboard one of these hovercrafts. Ignoring stunned soldiers and astonished mercenaries, he rushed toward Zhao Yan and Ji Yan.

    "Dad! What are you doing here?!" Zhao Yan''s eyes widened and she rose to her feet to allow herself to be embraced. Her father lowered into a crouch to sweep the still catatnonic Ji Yan into a family hug.

    "Why wouldn''t I be? Of course I would be participating in the operation to save my daughters!"

    Oh, right. I remembered Yue Jian informing me that her father had left the apartment that she and her mother currently resided in, supposedly to find out more information on the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan and rescue his daughters, who had been taken hostage.

    "Dad¡­"

    "What happened to Ji Yan?" Nan Gong Jiao Shou stared at her, trying to take in her blank stare. The medic briefly explained to him what had happened and he grew furious. "Who raped her?! Who hurt her?!"

    "Xu Wu Cheng," I replied. He jumped and turned to me. I shook my head. "I already killed him."

    "¡­I see." Nan Gong Jiao Shou''s shoulders sagged. "I suppose I should convey my gratitude."

    "You should." Teresa Taylor sidled toward us. She was almost silent, gliding through the throng of running soldiers like a phantom. "Richard, Rossetti and Kufa are the ones who tracked the vampires all the way back to their base, and called us in. If it weren''t for the coordinates they had provided, we would never have located their base."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou turned back to Rossetti and me. Kufa and Saya was also nearby, having run out of vampires to kill, and Teresa Taylor gestured for them to join us. As they did, the professor lowered his head humbly.

    "Thank you¡­I really can''t thank you enough. You helped rescue my daughters¡­"

    "Yes. Thank you for saving me and my sister." Beside him, Zhao Yan bowed her head as well. Rossetti, Kufa and I all waved our hands frantically.

    "Don''t worry about it!"

    "We only did what anyone else would have done."

    "We didn''t really do anything, really!"

    "Didn''t really do anything?" Teresa Taylor barked out a laugh. "Not only did you help us locate the elusive location of the enemy''s base, Richard, you and Rossetti defeated both Xu Wu Cheng and Fan Lee Lao ¨C the two highest ranked vampires in the youngest generation. Fan Le Lao is the prince of the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan too. You have no idea how much of a blow you did to the Dark Church by helping to annihilate one of their most powerful allies."

    "That was¡­luck."

    "Luck? Defeating Xu Wu Cheng is one thing, and you seem to have beaten him three times. Tracking him back to his base is another feat worthy of praise. And then you even defeated the vampire prince himself¡­too many consecutive achievements to merely write off as luck, don''t you think?"

    "In any event, you have our gratitude." Nan Gong Jiao Shou sighed. "We still haven''t thanked you for saving us from the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan the other time."

    "Huh? What was that about?" Zhao Yan was confused. Her father briefly explained to her what happened the last time I visited their house. How they ended up being chased by vampires and we had gone on a wild car ride. Zhao Yan nodded and turned back to me. "So that all happened. Thank you. Really. You have been helping my family so much."

    "Heh¡­" Rossetti was still smiling, but I could feel a chill when she glanced at me. "You really are close to the Nan Gong family, huh, Richard?"

    "Not as close as most people," I muttered.

    "I need to inform your mother and Yue Jian that you two are fine." He retrieved his smartphone, but grimaced when he saw that he didn''t have a signal in this place. Well, unless he had specialized equipment like Kufa, he wouldn''t be getting any reception.

    "What do we tell them about Ji Yan?" Zhao Yan asked softly. Nan Gong Jiao Shou winced.

    "The truth. We can''t tell them anything other than the truth."

    The two of them fell into a somber silence. It was common knowledge that most people did not simply recover from psychological trauma. They said time was the best cure, but the vast majority of people whose minds had been broken would never be mentally restored ever again.

    Psychological damage might not be visible, but they were very real. Not that cyber-bullies or idiots cared. They thought that because emotional abuse did not show up physically, they could insult and verbally abuse others all they wanted, and it was the other party who should "toughen up" or "don''t let ''mere'' words affect them." what idiots. You wouldn''t tell someone who was getting beaten up to ignore the punches. Just because you couldn''t see the injuries didn''t mean there was no damage being dealt. The effects were still as real as if the person was being physically beaten up. And they were often more lasting and unhealable.

    "Speaking of the truth," the medic began somewhat uncertainly. "I will need to send Nan Gong Ji Yan to a more specialized medical facility or hospital to run more tests, but a preliminary diagnosis shows that she has been turned into a vampire."

    "What?!"

    "No way¡­!"

    Both Nan Gong Jiao Shou and Zhao Yan spun around, horrified. The professor in particular clenched his fists.

    "That vampire bastard¡­what the fuck was he trying to do to my daughter?!"

    A lot of things. I didn''t say that, though. I also didn''t tell the father-daughter pair that Ji Yan had brought this upon herself.

    "Please calm down. Like I said, I have yet to fully confirm this¡­we still need to run more tests. But I feel I should inform you beforehand so that you will be more prepared."

    Teresa Taylor turned to me, her shoulders sagging.

    "We should have listened to you," she said, her voice full of regret. Evidently, she remembered me telling her and her teachers what happened back in school, when Xu Wu Cheng began blackmailing Ji Yan. "You were right about everything."

    I took no pleasure in the fact and couldn''t bring myself to gloat. Sighing bitterly, I glanced at the night sky, the full moon seeming to mock us as it shone down on the ruins of the castle.

    At that second, I felt as if I was forgetting something.

    *

    While there was a commotion that continued raging inside the castle that formerly served as the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan''s base, Lin Xuan Chi silently watched from a distance. Dawn was about to break, but it wouldn''t be due for a few more minutes.

    That was fine. Lin Xuan Chi could sense someone creeping under the cover of darkness. Without turning around, he smirked.

    "Fred Franklin, huh?"

    "Are you sure about this Lin Xuan Chi?""

    "¡­do you even need to ask?" Lin Xuan Chi scoffed. "I''ll get my revenge on the Tang Sect¡­no matter the cost."

    "That''s not what I mean. If you want your revenge, why did you betray the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan?"

    "Because they killed my parents?" Lin Xuan Chi smiled grimly as he turned toward the handsome ex-noble who shared the same bloodline as the current Sword Saint. "Of course I want them dead. And besides¡­they''re useless. They''re too weak to destroy the Tang Sect for me. That''s why I''m leaving them and casting my lot with you instead."

    "A wise choice." Fred Franklin grinned, his figure still hidden in the shadows. "The Dark Church will welcome you with wide arms. But why bother with this whole convoluted scheme regarding the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan when you were going to leave them in the first place?"

    "Because in the original manhua, the author forced me to work for those hateful vampires just so I can pull off some stupid plot twist, even though my motivations for doing so made no logical sense."

    "Uh¡­okay. Don''t worry. The Dark Church will teach you how to scheme much better than some amateur shoujo manhua author."

    "I look forward to it."

    Nodding, Lin Xuan Chi turned around with a smile, his perfect teeth flashing in the darkness.

    "Then let''s go¡­Senior Fred."

 558 Chapter 558: Aftermath

    ¡­to confirm if she was a vampire¡­

    A lot of the hostages were dead. Nan Gong Zhao Yan explained that Fan Le Lao killed them and sucked their blood in front of her in order to blackmail her for information on the Nan Gong family''s secret purification magic.

    She gave in eventually, but she refused to tell him of her sister''s or family''s whereabouts. Apparently, that was where Ji Yan came in. Xu Wu Cheng forced the Nan Gong family''s address out of her during the gang-rape. The surviving Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan members attested to that.

    The hostages who were still alive looked unharmed, with no trace of physical wounds, but they were clearly traumatized by the affair. Not only were they imprisoned by bloodsucking mages, they were forced to watch as their comrades were killed right before their eyes. It must have been nerve-wracking while waiting for their turn to die.

    "You should go back and rest. Good job, everybody."

    Teresa Taylor was addressing Kufa, Rossetti and me. She looked proud of what we had achieved tonight. I hoped she wasn''t going to announce this to the rest of the school tomorrow. That would be embarrassing.

    "I''ll see you again, Ji Yan."

    Zhao Yan was brushing her sister''s hair in a tender manner.

    "She''ll be all right."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou was clenching his fists, which were shaking violently. However, he clamped down on his temper so that he could present a calm fa?ade to his daughter. He didn''t want her to worry unnecessarily. He had to remain strong for his daughter.

    "We should leave them alone," Rossetti whispered to me, tugging at my sleeve. She was trying to be sensitive, aware that the Nan Gong family needed the space to mourn¡­to absorb and digest what had happened. I nodded and turned away.

    There wasn''t much left to do except to return home. Exhausted, I joined Kufa, Rossetti and Saya on a military vehicle, the hovercraft humming as it began to take off and ferry the weary soldiers back to Flandor City.

    *

    Instead of heading straight home, I checked on the Nan Gong family instead. I wanted to ensure that Yue Jian and her mother were all right. It would be bad if they were attacked by the enemies while Yue Jian''s sisters and father were out there in the vampire base.

    "Zhao Yan! Dad!"

    Yue Jian had already rushed out the moment she heard the commotion outside the apartment. She was so relieved to see her sister alive that she embraced her, weeping and sobbing. Zhao Yan hugged her back, also teary.

    "Zhao Yan! You are all right! You are safe!"

    "Yes. I''m sorry for causing you to worry so much."

    Zhao Yan patted her sister''s back. Yue Jian sniffled and broke apart before looking around. She blinked.

    "Ji Yan¡­where is Ji Yan?"

    "Ji Yan is in the hospital right now," Nan Gong Jiao Shou explained. He nodded to his wife, who approached him and hugged him silently. She wiped tears from her eyes. "She has been¡­mentally traumatized by the experience. The doctors want to look at her. We will visit her again first thing in the morning."

    "Is Ji Yan all right?" his wife asked.

    "She is still alive, but her mind is a bit¡­confused right now. You will see what I mean when we visit her tomorrow."

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou had a complex expression on his face, but he refused to be drawn to say anything else. His wife nodded.

    "All right! We''ll bring her something!" Yue Jian smiled brightly. The innocent girl had no idea what her sister had been through. Beside her, Zhao Yan forced a smile. Like her father, she didn''t want to worry her mother and sister.

    "Yes. I''m sure Ji Yan will like that."

    I felt awkard watching the family reunion from afar, so I left. I didn''t want to be a third wheel, and the truth was that I was nothing more than an outsider. Peeking on the family affairs of others was just rude.

    I hadn''t gone very far when Nan Gong Jiao Shou called out to me.

    "Richard."

    Turning around, I saw the older man striding toward me. I stopped and waited for him to catch up, not at all surprised that he noticed my presence. Having seen him fight vampires before, I knew that he was a skilled mage. I also sensed the blood and violence lingering on his body. Evidently he had been fighting a few vampires before he found his daughters.

    He did mention that he participated in the mission to rescue them, after all.

    Nan Gong Jiao Shou placed a hand on my shoulder and offered a grateful smile.

    "I heard about what you and your friends did tonight. Thank you."

    "We didn''t do much. Most of the work was done by the Midnight Order and the Federation military."

    "They wouldn''t have done it without your help. Seriously, thank you for saving Zhao Yan. I also heard that you and your friend were the ones who found Ji Yan and defeated the vampire who tormented her. Took revenge for her. Thank you."

    "I wasn''t able to save her. And if I were to be honest, the reason why I fought and killed Xu Wu Cheng was more because of personal reasons than because I was taking revenge for Ji Yan."

    "Even so, that doesn''t change the fact that you saved both of my daughters and even eliminated the bastards who abused them. I still appreciate you risking your life for both of them, nonetheless." He squeezed my shoulder. "I heard about everything from Teresa. I know you might have your own personal reasons, but that does not dilute the outcome and the courage you and your friends displayed¡­the valor of your actions. As a father, I am grateful that you saved my daughters."

    "I didn''t do it alone."

    "Yeah. Convey my thanks to your friends too." Nan Gong Jiao Shou nodded and smiled. "One day, I''ll thank all of you properly."

    "I will. And I''m sure my friends will say the same thing as me. We did what anyone else would have done in our place. Also, as I said, we all have our own personal reasons for taking down the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan." I glanced up at the night sky, where the full moon continued to shine. "Their attack on Saint Teresa Academy will never be forgiven. No mercy shall be given to our enemies."

    "What are you, a crusader now?" Nan Gong Jiao Shou laughed. And then he smiled. "Well, you should rest. You have fought long and hard today, and fought very well too. I will see you and your friends tomorrow then."

    I nodded, and then turned to leave. I hoped Adrian and Melina wouldn''t get too worried.

    *

    The rest of the days flew by quickly. True to his word, Nan Gong Jiao Shou invited me, Rossetti and Kufa over for dinner, treating us in return for helping him save his daughters. Out of politeness, the three of us accepted without any hesitation. And also because we were concerned about the sisters.

    The professor invited us to their old home for dinner one day. With the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan gone, there was no longer any danger and they could move back to their old house without any worries. They were grateful to Teresa Taylor for the arrangements, and I was sure Nan Gong Jiao Shou found some way to express his thanks to his old friend, but obviously I wasn''t a busybody who pried into the details.

    Zhao Yan and Yue Jian were present, along with their mother, but Ji Yan was conspicuously absent.

    She was still receiving mental treatment and wouldn''t be out of the hospital for a very, very long time. I wantd to ask for more details, but seeing the strained expression on Mrs. Nan Gong, I didn''t dare to. Kufa and Rossetti were sensitive enough to avoid the topic as well.

    Even without the Nan Gong family telling us anything, we could roughly figure out what had happened to Ji Yan. The healing mages and doctors did not know how to hear her mind. They had completely eradicated all traces of physical injuries after medical treatment, removing all visible scars from existence. However, Ji Yan would never be the same again. Her mind had been completely broken and she was psychologically damaged. She wasn''t the only mage to have suffered from such mental trauma, and from past experiences of other patients, the chances of them ever recovring were extremely low.

    As with the other cases, time was the only method for her to heal, but the doctors wouldn''t dare give an estimate. It could be six months. It could also be six years¡­or longer. It was possible that she would never recover and kill herself eventually. It was unfortunate, but that was the end that many people faced after such a traumatic ordeal.

    Nobody dared to be optimistic.

    So we focused instead on the present.

    "You are a great cook, Mrs. Nan Gong." Rossetti was smiling as she chewed on something that the triplets'' mother had cooked. She had prepared steamboat, and was boiling a huge pot of soup that had a little bit of everything.

    "My, thank you!" Mrs. Nan Gong giggled, flattered. She glanced at me and Rossetti, who were seated together, and then at Zhao Yan, who remained indifferent. She must be wondering what my relationship with Rossetti was, but her eyes were also drawn to Kufa, who was on the other side of Rossetti.

    This better not be some clich¨¦ situation where she tried to set me up with Zhao Yan or something. She wasn''t interested in me at all. I wouldn''t go as far as to say that her type was an abusive vampire bishounen who mentally manipulated her into falling for him through weird simulated high school scenarios, but I was aware I wasn''t her type either.

    Even so, I put on a show of concern.

    "How are you doing, Zhao Yan? Have you fully recovered?"

    "Yes." Zhao Yan smiled and nodded. "There are no strange aftereffects and the drugs have been purged from my system. Admittedly, I was tired after the first few days following the ordeal, but after resting for a bit, I was able to fully recover my strength."

    "Zhao Yan slept for three days straight!" Yue Jian said eagerly, provoking a laugh from the rest of us.

    "I couldn''t help it!" Zhao Yan protested, her cheeks red. "Not after all that had happened!"

    "I''m glad to see you are all right, though." I smiled. Rossetti nodded in agreement.

    "That''s right! That Fan Le Lao was quite the horrible fella!"

    "At least the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan has been totally annihilated now," Kufa remarked before putting a slice of meat in his mouth. He grinned grimly. "We have one less enemy to worry about."

    That was true, but something continued to bother me. Lin Xuan Chi had gone missing shortly after the whole affair. I had told Teresa Taylor about him, as well as the authorities in charge. They had launched an investigation and were searching for him even now, refusing to take my warnings lightly. They had learned a valuable lesson after having dismissed my reports the first time.

    I could only hope they caught him soon. The guy was bad news.

    Pushing up my newly procured glasses, I sighed before placing a piece of quail egg in my mouth and chewing contentedly. Glancing out of the window, I stared into the night sky and wondered about Kufa''s statement. He was right. We had one less enemy to worry about now.

    However, the Dark Church was still out there plotting and planning. Even with one of their allies destroyed, I had no doubt that their schemes would continue unimpeded. I could only wonder what they intended to do next.

    I could only hope I would be able to stop them the next time they showed up again.

 559 Chapter 559: Another Time Skip

    After the whole vampire incident in Saint Teresa Academy, I had no reason to stick around so I returned to Jing Tian City and Jing Tian Academy. I kept in touch with Rossetti and Kufa, and sometimes spoke to Zhao Yan and Yue Jian. Ji Yan still had not recovered, her mind broken and her sanity shattered after Xu Wu Cheng''s abuse. I had no idea how long she would need to heal her mind, if it would ever recover at that.

    After returning to Jing Tian Academy, I completed the rest of the year there. My third year flew past, I finished the Gao Kao (basically the high school examination that allowed students to graduate and enter university). I received an invitation from Vermillion University, with Henry Porter sending me an offer letter even before I passed my exams.

    The guy had too much faith in me.

    Since my aim was to enter a prestigious university and graduate from it to enter the ranks of mercenaries, or at least follow my dad as a real, qualified mercenary, I had no reason to refuse. So I accepted the invitation and took the train to Vermillion City.

    "I''m proud of you, Richie." Dad was grinning when he sent me off. I nodded and waved at him, having to proceed past the ticket barriers in order to enter the train platform below.

    "I''ll contact you again when I get there."

    "Make sure you do. Take care of yourself!"

    He was aso waving. I nodded, waved one last time and then trned around to head down the elevator and toward the train platform below. After over a year back in Jing Tian City, I had gotten used to lazing around and spending time at home and with my dad (when he wasn''t away in missions), so this was just¡­odd.

    I cast my mind back to Adrian and Melina, wondering if they would do all right. After my exchange session was done, the two of them no longer continued to learn from me. Adrian had returned to Southampton City, and Melina probably continued on toward the high school department of Saint Teresa Academy.

    Man, there was so much that had happened in Flandor City¡­

    Shaking my head, I stepped into the carriage and hauled my luggage up to shove it into the compartment above. Once that was done, I dropped down on the comfortable sofa-like seats and leaned back. It was going to be a long trip, so I had best get comfortable.

    If I was more versatile, I would have a sister and my dad sitting with me in the train because our city would have just suffered a vicious invasion (well¡­it did, more than a year ago), and moving with me to the new city. But¡­nope. Dad decided to stay in Jing Tian City, but he encouraged me to move to Vermillion City and attend the university there.

    After all, the whole reason why I applied for university was to become a fully qualified combat mage, with an eye on joining mercenary guilds in future. Or at least following Dad along on missions. We were going to fight evil and save the world!

    Speaking of which, the Dark Church had gone dormant and deeper into hiding. Despite the Silver Wolves'' best efforts, they weren''t able to uncover their base. Lin Xuan Chi also never showed up again, and none of the Dark Church members attacked or provoked me in a manner similar to the vampires of the now annihilated Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan.

    Well, that made sense. Unlike the irrational, illogical and completely retarded bishounen vampires in the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan, who went around doing the most stupid things possible, there was no reason for the Dark Church to target me specifically. They wouldn''t hold a grudge against me in particular. Even though I did thwart several of their schemes, such as nuking the three thousand monsters they meant to set on the city, prevent them from getting their hands on the Holy Spring and other nonsensical stuff, I wasn''t the only one who got in their way. The world was full of heroes and mercenaries who tirelessly worked against their schemes and stopped them from allowing monsters to take over to wipe out humanity.

    Honestly, I was just an insignificant person among all these countless heroes.

    Staring at the scenery that turned into a blur when the train lurched forward, the maglev train shooting forward at immense speeds. Fortunately, the train contained inertial dampeners so the passengers didn''t suffer from gravitational forces pinning them down to their seats. All around me, I could see other passengers moving about.

    There were a huge variety of people. Some were in business suits, particularly middle-aged salaraymen who were making business trips. A couple of old men who wwere playing chess, but with holographic pieces on a translucent board made out of light instead of a real chess board and pieces. There was a family, their kids running up and down the aisle, much to their parents'' dismay. Fortunately, the parents managed to grab them and haul them back to their seats with a sharp reprimand. Just in time too, because the ticket attendants and train staff were beginning to move up the aisle.

    One of them was pushing a trolley, selling food and drinks. A young couple flagged her to purchase a bento box and bottled drinks. I didn''t order anything because I didn''t feel hungry and I didn''t want to spend the money. Yet.

    Rather than eat, I would prefer to sleep. I could follow the example of the teenagers a few rows ahead of me and watch a movie on my smartphone, projecting a holographic window and loading a video from online. But I didn''t bother. I was tired, I was a bit bored and I was in no mood to do anything. So I closed my eyes and dozed off.

    I didn''t know how long I had dozed off for, but I was woken up by one of the older passengers about an hour or so into the trip. He was placing his hands on his hips before sitting down on the couch-like seat opposite me.

    "Wake up!" he snapped. I ogled him for a few moments, confused.

    "Uh, who?"

    "I''m a professor from a university," he proudly bragged. I blinked and nodded.

    "Uh, okay¡­? Vermillion University, sir?"

    "No. Cerulean University."

    So he wasn''t a professor from my university. I didn''t know what he wanted from me, though. So I took a deep breath.

    "Can I hep you, sir?"

    "No, but you can help everyone on the train."

    I stared at him blankly, and he gestured out of the window.

    "We are out in the wild plains! There''s a possibility that we will be attacked at any time by wild monsters! At times like this, we need every mage aboard this train on high alert!"

    ¡­huh?

    Well, he had a point. Occasionally the trains would be forced to move through large swathes of wilderness between cities. And the wilderness was often filled with monsters. Not that any of them could catch up with a high-speed maglev train that was moving at almost supersonic speeds. And even if they could, the train was heavily armored and had a barrier around it. So the monsters would find it difficult for their attacks to penetrate the barrier or armor.

    Not only that, there would be a contigent of Federation soldiers aboard the train, as well as their heavenly lightning cannon or whatever.

    Seeing my skeptical expression, the elderly man scoffed.

    "I know you think the defenses are adequate, but this time they won''t be enough! The moment you stepped onto this train, you have raised a flag!"

    "Flag? What flag?" I gaped at him.

    "What will happen?" I asked, still dazed and confused.

    "Have you not read any of the web novels?!" the professor roared. "Main character on a train that is traveling through a vast expanse of wilderness known for monsters! Of course we are going to be attacked! It''s a huge flag! There will be an Emergence event, a monster horde will show up, and you will be needed to help the soldiers defend the non-mage passengers on this train!"

    So I was basically turning from Bu Fan to Li Yao now. What the fuck? We only had a single millennium of magic, not forty millenniums of cultivation!

    "Sir, I think you should calm down¡­"

    The words were barely out of my mouth when there was a thunderous crack. All the passengers froze and slowly turned their heads to stare out of the windows.

    The roiling clouds above were rumbling, lightning flashing and crackling around its gray edges. The fabric of space-time tore open, as if some massive monster from another dimension had driven its claws into a point and began ripping the space apart. I caught a glimpse of a hellish dimension from further beyond, a dark and gloomy world illuminated by molten lava and ghostly flames.

    Then a horde of Ghost Jellyfishes swarmed out and toward the train. Each of them wasn''t that big, their long, dangling tentacles reaching down to a height of a human. Their bulbous heads glowed an eerie white, giving the impression that they were ghosts¡­phantoms that were drifting high up in the heavens. If I wasn''t mistaken, their tentacles contained stings filled with neurotoxins that not only caused hallucinations but also could kill a human by shutting down their nervous systems.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me¡­"

    So we were now ripping off Forty Millenniums of Cultivation? Seriously? Well, even if that was the case, we didn''t have to worry about the first wave because the Ghost Jellyfishes were mere fodder. It would be the Human Face Mosquitoes we would have to worry about.

    "See?!" the professor was jabbing his finger in the direction of the Ghost Jellyfishes. "What did I tell you?"

    And what exactly did he want me to do? Nuke them? With the train moving at such incredible speeds, I couldn''t summon any of my bigger Constellation spirits because of the hundred meter rule.

    The railgun at the back of the train lifted and fired, and in a single blast all of the Ghost Jellyfishes vanished.

    "¡­"

    Everyone stared at the professor, who looked sheepish. But he pointed at the rift in time-space again.

    "It''s not over yet!" he blabbered. "More are coming! The Human Face Mosquitoes are next!"

    He was not wrong. After the annihilation of the Ghost Jellyfishes, a swarm of Human Face Mosquitoes billowed out of the rift and buzzed angrily toward us. There were millions of them, and when they were clustered together, they resembled a gigantic human face. The danger of the Human Face Mosquitoes was their sheer numbers. By swarming over a victim, they could suck his blood dry in the matter of seconds.

    The railgun fired again, and the entire swarm of Human Face Mosquitoes exploded. Fire spells streaked from the military compartment and incinerated the poor swarm. I watched in awe as living flame danced from one mosquito to another, igniting an inferno. The entire horde combusted, and within ten minutes, all of the Human Face Mosquitoes were incinerated.

    And the rift caused by the Emergence event was slowly closing, with no more monsters exiting the rupture in the space-time fabric.

    "¡­"

    "Can I go back to sleep now?" I asked the astonished professor. Without waiting for him to reply, I shut my eyes and dozed off once again.

 560 Chapter 560: Vermillion City

    Pushing up my glasses, I studied the single-room apartment that Dad had helped me rent. Obviously we weren''t rich so we had to settle for a cheaper option. That said, it wasn''t the cheapest. The place was clean, modern and nice. It had a private bathroom, a kitchen and a single bedroom. It was much better than the dingy, dirty shared apartments that poorer students would rent.

    But it wasn''t the luxurious studio apartments or condominium styled places that the richer students could afford. It was somewhere in between. Given the circumstances, I couldn''t complained. To be honest, I was actually quite happy.

    Privacy! I was going to have my own privacy! Yay!

    Moving my luggage in, I began to unpack and settle in. I had already spoken to the landlord and confirmed that the payment had been made earlier. With everything done, I could rest for now. Checking out my new bed, I flopped down on it and lazed for a bit. For no reason, I went onto the Webnovel forums.

    Sometimes I felt unmotivated to do anything, just like a sloth. Speaking of sloths, I dreaded to go to the forums because of a certain sloth there¡­some of his comments just made me laugh. He would act arrogantly and talked down to other posters in a condescending manner, and then make comments like, "Learn to be humble. Lack of humility is what irks me on this forum the most." The fuck? Did you look at the mirror, you arrogant prick? You were the last person to be talking about humility.

    And then he would call others rude, despite him being condescending and insulting. He really should change his name to HypocriticalSloth. I wouldn''t deny that he was motivated to write, but the amount of arrogance and rudeness he displayed on the forums was astounding.

    Grimacing, I moved away from the Webnovel forums. I spent too much time arguing on the damned forums. I decided not to respond to the guy or he would start bashing me for being salty or for humble bragging or whatever nonsense. Or he would ignore me because I had "lost the right" for him to respond to for my "insulting" comments. What a hypocrite. Tells other people to be humble while behaving like an arrogant prick. Accuses people of being rude and insulting while talking down to them in a condescending manner.

    Maybe he would show up later and start berating me, only to be eaten by a monster. That thought brought a smile to my face.

    Just when I closed the window for Webnovel forums, I received a call from an unknown number. Blinking, I tapped the green button to receive the call.

    "Richard! It''s me, Tang Yue!"

    "¡­who?"

    I didn''t recognize the female voice at all. The caller sounded agitated.

    "Tang Yue! I was your teacher when you were still enrolled in Jing Tian Academy¡­"

    Actually, I decided to hang up. No matter how you looked at this, this had to be some sort of scam call. I shouldn''t have wasted my time with this nonsense.

    "W¡­wait!" The person named Tang Yue sounded desperate. "I''m here to request for your help! I''ve heard a lot of good things about you from Feng Hai and also from Teresa Taylor in Saint Teresa Academy! They said that you would be a good person for the job!"

    "What job?" I asked, intrigued despite myself. I would double-confirm this with Feng Hai and Headmistress Taylor later to ensure that this wasn''t a scam but for now I decided to give her a chance to speak.

    "I require a summoning mage," Tang Yue explained. "I am from the Justice Council of mages. I have some official business that I need to take care of, and I require someone with summoning magic to help me with my mission. I need you to investigate a criminal mage who has murdered a lot of mages."

    "¡­" This was starting to sound suspiciously like a web novel I had read before. One with a comic and animation adaptation. Also, I didn''t see why anyone would request a summoning mage for an investigation mission. This made no sense whatsoever.

    "I''ll give you star maps and a spirit stone as rewards for the mission, if you successfully complete the task."

    "Star maps?" I repeated incredulously. "Why would I need star maps for?"

    "To draw your star circles, to cast your intermediate magic. I know you''re now an intermediate mage."

    I immediately hung up. Yup, this had to be a prank call. She was a fraud. Either that or she was in the wrong story. Magic here didn''t work by dawing star circles, nor were we categorized into basic, intermediate and advanced mages.

    If this Tang Yue wanted a more versatile mage, she had better go to another universe.

    A few seconds had only passed before she called me again.

    "Wait!" she shouted before I could hang up. "If you do this, I can help you awaken a new element! Given that you''re the protagonist, I''m sure you''ll awaken two new elements!"

    I hung up again and blocked her number. After that, I contacted Feng Hai and Headmistress Teresa Taylor, and the both of them assured me that they had never heard of anyone called Tang Yue. I even sent an email to Teacher Ruff Fielding, and he told me that nobody of that name was ever employed as a teacher in Jing Tian Academy.

    "What the fuck is going on here?" I asked, doing my best to refrain from clutching my head and not yell into the ceiling. Foruntately, I had blocked this Tang Yue''s number, so she wouldn''t be able to call me for a long time now.

    I spent the rest of the day unpacking and sleeping for a bit, and then I resumed training. There was nothing else to do while waiting for the entrance ceremony of the university, which would be in a few days. I had gone early to prepare myself. I needed to familiarize myself with a new place and get used to the new city before I could officially begin my days in Vermillion University.

    After dinner, I received a call from someone I did know. Tapping the call, I watched as Henry Porter''s elderly face showed up in a holographic window.

    "Sir," I greeted him. He grinned and nodded at me.

    "It''s been a while, Richard. How have you been?"

    "All right. What about you, sir?"

    "Good, good. Oh, and before you ask, Lilith is good too. I''m sure she''ll be happy to see you again. She will be attending Vermillion University as well, so you will have plenty of opportunities to meet."

    I had no doubt about that. There wouldn''t be any other university Lilith would enroll in. I was confident that she had passed the entrance exam to the university with her own abilities rather than rely on her family connections to get in. Everyone recognized Lilith''s fire magic, after all. Those who didn''t would be disabused of the notion that she made use of her family''s status to get past everything. Her soul beast was incredible.

    I still remembered fighting against it.

    "Oh, I called you today to ask about your major."

    "Huh?" That was a weird question to ask. I was pretty sure Henry Porter already knew what I was majoring in. "Didn''t I already tell you, sir? I plan to major in history and literature."

    "Not that, ha ha!" Henry Porter chuckled good-naturedly. "I''m sorry for not being clear. I know you''re in the history and literature department for the theoretical component. I was referring to your magic major. Or combat major."

    "Oh, right."

    "As you know, mages in Vermillion University usually specialize in a single combat major. Some of the more talented ones double major in two different types of magic or elements. I heard that you haven''t made your choice yet. Are you deciding on a single major or double major."

    "Single major, sir."

    I didn''t have time to spend on a double major. It would require a lot more commitment and resources ¨C resources that I didn''t have. I wasn''t confident that I had the time or energy to split between two different elements. I preferred to focus on one. And even then, if I chose a double major, I would still need to choose a home department. A home department was where I would devote most of my time and attention to, so I couldn''t make the choice lightly.

    Some readers would begin yelling at me in the comments section about how I was stupid to not double major, but I couldn''t care less. This was my life, my major, my time and my decision. I wasn''t going to call them stupid for majoring in computer science or engineering or whatever. Most of those scolding me and throwing insutls probably only had one major in university (assuming they made it there or were old enough to attend university), so they really shouldn''t be throwing stones at me. If they couldn''t do it, why were they expecting me to do it?

    "Hmm. So what magic are you going to major in? I heard that you learned ice magic in Saint Teresa Academy, and continued to hone it even back in Jing Tian Academy. Is that why you haven''t made your decision yet?"

    "No¡­uh, I plan to enter the summoning department."

    "Oh¡­" Henry Porter smiled warmly as he stroked his chin. "That is very much like you. Good to hear that you''ve already decided. Make sure you fill out the application form and confirm it online. Don''t wait until the last minute to do it!"

    "Understood, sir."

    I had completely forgotten about it. Actually, I didn''t even know we were supposed to declare a magic major. This worked differently from high school. For some reason, because of my previous life, I thought that university majors referred to the theoretical stuff and thus I believed I had settled all my paperwork once I had declared the humanities as my major. I didn''t expect the magic major to exist as a separate requirement.

    I had to get used to the way things were handled here.

    "Thank you for the reminder, sir."

    "No problem, no problem at all. I''ll see you next week then, when the semester begins!"

    "Yes, sir!"

    With that, I hung up and glanced outside the window. The scenery of Vermillion City at night was amazing, with so many skyscrapers and stuff. It had a different flavor to it, unlike the almost suburban and rich districts of Flandor City or the relatively small buildings that dotted the poorer Jing Tian City.

    Vermillion City was a true metropolis, and while it did lack in some grandeur compared to Flandor City where rich nobles resided, it was still quite the spectacular sight. The city that didn''t sleep. Lights continued to dot the landscape.

    Shaking my head, I drew the curtains and prepared to go to bed. No, before I went to bed, I must first get all the application forms done online first and declare my magic major as well. There was much to do over the week.

    Stretching myself before sitting opposite my computer, I braced myself for my journey into university.

 561 Chapter 561: Entrance Examination

    "Sorry about that." Henry Porter scratched his head sheepishly, his wrinkled visage displayed in a holographic screen. "But it''s a departmental exam. You''re already a student of the university, but in order to major in the specific magic department, you''ll have to pass their practical exam first."

    "And you couldn''t have told me that¡­earlier?"

    "I didn''t?" Henry Porter looked confused. "Didn''t I tell you to prepare and get ready?"

    He only told me to handle the administrative process and apply for the summoning department. He didn''t actually inform me of the practical examination that they required. Fortunately, when going through the application process, I caught sight of the fine print that stipulated that I needed to take a practical examination.

    Trying to suppress my panic, I had ringed Henry Porter up to ask him about it, and thus we were now holding this conversation.

    "¡­all right. I''ll do my best." Taking a deep breath, I got ready to hang up.

    "Good luck," Henry Porter told me. "And don''t worry, you''ll be fine. You''ll definitely make it in."

    ¡­did he just raise a flag?

    In any event, there was little point in worrying over it, so I merely nodded and thanked him for his time before hanging up. If the practical exam was what I thought it would be, then I should get prepared for it as soon as possible.

    *

    A few days later, I was at the Vermillion University interview venue. They called it an interview venue, but they really were testing my abilities.

    There were five invigilators sitting at a long table, accessing my files and reading them, the respective holographic screens up in display in front of them. They scrolled down the blue-tinted screens with their fingers, calling upon the relevant information and studying my personal profile. With hundreds of students to interview, I didn''t blame them for not remembering who I was. I didn''t really stand out that much from countless other talented students, after all.

    "This student, Richard Huang, has already passed all the theoretical examinations. Got a bunch of A''s. In that aspect, he''s good to go."

    "Says here that he is in the humanities department for the theory component. Either literature or history, perhaps both. Or a major in one and a minor in the other."

    "For the practical magic component, he is testing for the summoning major, and it seems like he has plenty of experience in it."

    "He has strong fundamentals, from what I can see, and he seems talented too."

    "I would like to see what kind of soul beasts or spirits he can summon."

    One of the younger invigilators received a phone call. He answered it quickly, and after listening, he turned to the chief invigilator, who was the oldest out of them. With an apologetic and frantic expression, he whispered.

    "Professor Hu just called. He said he found an earth mage who is extremely versatile and would be perfect for our university. We can provide a holistic development for him."

    "What? But that has nothing to do with the summoning department."

    "It doesn''t matter. He asks if he can set up a duel between the two of them, and then we can decide who to admit into the university."

    "Why can''t we just admit both?" the chief invigilator asked, getting annoyed. The younger man looked contrite.

    "It''s just a contrived excuse to set up a fight scene between the main character and some random ''genius'' so that the former can show off his skills, and also to move the plot along."

    Were the professors and staff in Vermillion University able to break the fourth wall as well? I was definitely in the right university.

    "He''s coming over right now," the invigilator whispered, and the rest nodded with a sigh. I took a deep breath and waited. I wasn''t sure I liked this, but sometimes you had to go with the flow and deal with it instead of bitching about it.

    Outside the university, a limousine came to a stop. A butler stepped out and went to the other side to open the door. A chubby dude then stomped out impatiently.

    "How troublesome," the guy complained. "They want me to take an exam before admitting me?"

    "Xiao Song," the butler said in a placating voice. "This is Vermillion University. There are plenty of talented students here. And the person you''re competing with is a summoner. Those are pretty rare."

    "Mr. Lee, what do you think is so great about summoning magic?" Xing Er Song asked scornfully. "The only soul beasts worth summoning take too long to cast, and the ones you can summon immediately or quickly are too weak to make a difference in a fight against competent mages. It''s pretty impractical unless you fight in a team."

    "With the changes in the curriculum, they are moving toward group-based tactics to prepare student mages for practical combat in reality," Lee told him. Xing Er Song scoffed.

    "Individual ability is still the most important!"

    "Well, in terms of individual ability, your magic skills are certainly far superior to that of most summoners," Lee admitted. "But don''t forget. The granddaughter of the director of Vermillion University ¨C I believe her name is Lilith Porter ¨C is also a summoner."

    "Oh, I remember her. The one with the Hellfire Bear, right? She''s one of the top-ranking mages in the Federation. Her team got fourth place in last year''s ranking."

    "And your opponent is from a team who got third place in last year''s ranking. So you cannot afford to underestimate him."

    "The idiot who is supposed to specialize in summoning giant monsters and unleashing spells of mass destruction? Hah!" Xing Er Song laughed. "His magic is too impractical! Those spells, no matter how powerful they are, take too long to cast! I can defeat him in several hundred ways before he ever gets to cast any of them!"

    "Be that as it may be, but he is not someone to underestimate. You do not think he earned his reputation by letting his enemies defeat him before he can summon his giant monsters or cast his powerful spells, do you?"

    "That¡­" Xing Er Song sighed grumpily. "Whatever. I''m more worried that Director Porter will play favoritism and choose this Richard Huang just because he''s a summoner like his granddaughter."

    "I did hear that Mr. Huang has connections with Director Porter. But don''t worry. Even if you don''t get accepted, then you can always return to Sheng Hai City. Our stronghold is located there, after all."

    "No!" Xing Er Song almost yelled. "I won''t go back!"

    He turned and stomped away furiously, leaving his exasperated butler behind. Veins popping in his temple, he snarled.

    "I''m going to show all those people who mocked me that they are wrong! I''ll become stronger than them, even without relying on my dad! Let''s go!"

    "All right," Lee responded with a resigned chuckle.

    Xing Er Song showed up in the open-air interview venue without a second to waste, and he bowed his head politely.

    "Good morning, professors."

    "Xing Er Song, you''re here." One of the invigilators stood up and waved at him. "Please take a seat."

    The chubby dude obliged, taking a seat nearby. He caught sight of me and his lips twisted into a sneer. Even though he didn''t say it out loud, it was clear what he was thinking.

    "Heh. He''s dressed in such shabby clothing. Thinking you have a chance to win against me, you are a deluded fool!"

    Instead, he merely clicked his tongue while grinning arrogantly.

    "So this is the student who is competing against me?" he asked snidely. "You realize that you do need money to effectively master summoning magic, right?"

    "No, you don''t," I retorted. "Who the hell told you that?"

    "Huh? Isn''t it common knowledge?" Xing Er Song sneered. "How can you call yourself a summoner if you don''t even know such a basic thing?"

    "Are you a summoner? Have you cast any summoning magic before?" I snapped irritably. "At least I''m not arrogant enough to tell an earth mage how to learn earth magic. If you aren''t a summoner, then you should go sing a song instead."

    "You¡­!" Xing Er Song snarled, but the invigilator raised a hand and cleared his throat before he could rise up to confront me.

    "Boy, what are you thinking?" he hissed to Xing Er Song. "Why did you come to Vermillion University? And you even insist on competing with a summoning student?"

    "Uncle Li, what does that have to do with anything? And who cares about summoners? Everyone knows they are useless." Xing Er Song waved his hand dismissively. "Besides, you already know the details."

    "All right, since both candidates are here, we should begin." One of the other invigilators waved me forward. "Richard Huang, you''re up first."

    "Okay."

    I had spent too much time sitting around in the venue, so I could just summon my Celestial Guardians at any time. The moment I went up on stage, I finished casting my spell.

    Vermillion Phoenix materialized with a thunderous screech, spreading his wings majestically and conjuring a brilliant halo of flames around him. All the invigilators gaped at me, their jaws falling wide open. Even Xing Er Song looked pale when he caught sight of the soul beasts I could summon.

    "This is amazing¡­"

    "Even though we have seen this soul beast in recordings¡­to actually witness this up close in person¡­"

    "Just how much willpower and determination do you have to possess in order to summon a soul beast of that magnitude?"

    "And his records say he can summon four more soul beasts of a similar level."

    Smiling, I raised a hand and summoned White Tiger for emphasis. There were even more gasps of shock and awe from the invigilators. As for Xing Er Song, he sank back into his seat, probably regretting his words from earlier.

    I told you that you didn''t need money to summon. Just willpower.

    "Dean Xiao, the summoning department definitely wants this student!"

    "!!"

    Both Xing Er Song and his butler jolted up at those words from one of the invigilators. Incensed, the chubby earth mage jumped up and pointed at me rudely.

    "Want him?! On what basis?!"

    The guy was literally throwing a tantrum in front of the professors of Vermillion University. I couldn''t help but watch, astonished, as he continued raving and ranting.

    "What''s so great about summoning a bird and a tiger? Hasn''t Vermillion University always placed an emphasis on practical battle experience? I''m sure I can totally destroy a team of such soul beasts on my own!"

    "¡­uh, okay?" I responded, not knowing what to say. I was so amused that I couldn''t even rise to his provocations. This guy was¡­deluded.

    Xing Er Song must have realized that I was inwardly laughing at him, for a vein popped in his face. He stomped on the ground and a colossal slab of rock materialized under his feet, ferrying him toward the stage. The guy was trying to show off, but I had fought far more impressive opponents in the past.

    He jumped off the rock spike and landed on the stage before jabbing a finger at me.

    "Let me take on your soul beasts," he suggested. "And we''ll see how well they will fare against me, eh?"

    "Don''t want, eh." I replied. The chubby fella bristled.

    "Are you a coward?!"

    "No lah," I responded. "You think I got time to play with you, is it? I look like I very free ah? Lim Pei got better things to do."

    Everyone was gaping at me, and I realized that I had accidentally slipped back to my Singaporean accent. Not that I care, so I continued.

    "Why you so garang sia? Cannot anyhow come here and fight what. You think this is your grandfather''s house, is it? Don''t anyhow kajiao people, can or not?"

    "Can you speak properly?" one of the invigilators asked. I sighed.

    "Sorry. I mean, before challenging me, don''t you think it is polite to ask the invigilators for permission?"

    "This¡­" one of the invigilators spoke up, realizing that I was right. She turned to the others for support.

    "I don''t see the harm in a little contest," the invigilator that Xing Er Song called Uncle Li said, gesturing in a friendly manner.

    "We''ll go with that then," the chief invigilator declared, making a decision. He nodded at me. "Dismiss your soul beasts. The both of you, reset your casting. We''ll begin the duel in five minutes."

    "Yes, sir." The chief invigilator was Dean Xiao, now I remembered Henry Porter introducing him before. Dismissing my Celestial Guardians, I hopped off the stage and began resetting everything. Snorting scornfully, Xing Er Song did the same.

    The poor guy had no idea what was coming for him, did he?

 562 Chapter 562: Interview Duel

    "Not exactly," I muttered. "But let''s just do this."

    "Ha ha ha!" Xing Er Song laughed. "So are you ready to lose?"

    "No I''m ready to sing a song."

    "You¡­!" Xing Er Song snarled, but Dean Xiao stopped him by clearing his throat. He gestured for the both of us to get onto the stage.

    "All right, let''s begin," he said.

    "I''ve been waiting for this!" Xing Er Song exclaimed with relish. He held both of his hands up the moment we both got onto stage and began gathering mana into them. A few seconds later, earth spikes burst from the ground to impale me.

    Fortunately, we were allowed to use other types of magic and weapons without necessarily being restricted to the magical element we were supposed to major in. I had remembered to ask the question earlier, and the invigilators confirmed that it wouldn''t be a problem. Xing Er Song had seemed to be all right with this, so I suspected that he had another element in hand.

    So did I, so I wasn''t worried.

    I wasn''t going to draw Hei Yue and Bai Ri against a foe like him, though. They would be wasted on an opponent of such caliber. Not that I underestimated him, but my real swords were for killing, not for a duel. I didn''t want to accidentally kill anyone during a sparring session.

    Instead, I summoned my swords.

    "Gemini."

    The black and white short swords materialized in my hands and I cleaved through the earth spikes with consummate skill. Twirling them in my hands, I spun through the barrage of earth spikes and cut through them without suffering a single injury.

    "This¡­!"

    Xing Er Song looked furious when he saw that I had managed to evade his spells, unscathed. He threw out his hands and summoned a pair of colossal serpents that writhed and twisted before slamming down on my position. Too big for me to cut through, I was forced to dodge.

    Leaping on one of the broken earth spikes, I kicked off and launched myself into the air. One of the colossal earth serpents struck at me, but I twisted my body in midair before landing on its rocky hide. Before it could crush me against the ground, I was already jumping up and propelling myself upward, scaling its immense body.

    Its comrade then dove straight at me, but I was ready, leaping away and landing on its head. Running along its neck and then the length of its body, I dove off before it could collide with its comrade. There was a huge crack as the enormous earth serpent slammed into its brethren, and I was falling. Tucking my legs into my chest, I spun about to right myself upward and then altered my trajectory.

    Dismissing Gemini, I then summoned Sagittarius. Pulling back a flaming arrow, I unleashed it upon the two colossal earth serpents and engulfed them in a massive inferno.

    "What?!"

    Xing Er Song''s jaw dropped when he saw the destruction I had wrought. He weaved his hands to erect an earth barrier to counter my second arrow ¨C indeed, that was why I didn''t bother firing at him the first time. I already knew that he had countermeasures set up. Furthermore, I could see a glowing amulet hanging from his chest.

    The rich, chubby kid had defensive magical tools of his own. He would have neutralized my arrow with the combination of his defenses and earth barrier, while his earth serpents pulverized me to the ground. Fortunately, I had chosen to destroy the latter so I didn''t have to worry about the threat of being crushed by those rock spells.

    "Now it''s my turn to summon," I said jokingly. Those earth serpents weren''t real soul beasts or summoned monsters, by the way. They were jut rock that took the shape of serpents, without any real intelligence, features, sensory organs or anything that made them "creatures" in any sense of the word. They couldn''t even be counted as golems.

    "As if I will let you!"

    Lowering his barrier, Xing Er Song hurled several boulders at me. I dove downward, swapping my Sagittarius for Gemini and cleaved through the boulders. As I descended, I completed my casting spell.

    "Capricorn!"

    The sea goat materialized below me and I landed on his back. With a bray, he smashed through the barrier with his horns and charged at Xing Er Song. The chubby fella threw himself to the side, conjuring another earth barrier. Simultaneously, he launched a barrage of earth spikes from the ground, but being an agile Constellation spirit, Capricorn deftly evaded all of them.

    Jumping nimbly from side to side to avoid the earth spikes, Capricorn cleared the thorny patch of lances before landing right in front of Xing Er Song''s earth barrier. This time, he failed to smash through it, probably because he didn''t use the gravity to increase his momentum this time.

    Not that he needed to. Stomping on the ground, he raised a wall of earth from beneath Xing Er Song''s feet and sending the chubby guy off balance.

    "What the hell?! This is an¡­earth spell too?!"

    Throwing a hand out, he flung an earth lance at us while simultaneously shoving his other hand down to forcibly take control of the earth below him.

    Capricorn smashed the earth lance into smithereens with his horn while Xing Er Song steadied himself. Huffing, he pressed both of his palms onto the ground.

    "Whoa!"

    The floor beneath Capricorn''s feet suddenly softened and caved in, turning into some sort of crater. Capricorn brayed when his feet sank into the soft earth, which ravenously attempted to swallow him. Despite kicking out and struggling to get free, Capricorn failed to find his footing.

    "Ha ha ha!" Xing Er Song laughed triumphantly. "Let''s see how you''ll get out of my quicksand! You''ll be swallowed whole along with your soul beast!"

    "Did you forget that he can manipulate earth too?" I asked dryly. I cocked my head at Capricorn, who nodded at my mental command and stopped panicking. He calmly remained still and the quicksand no longer dragged him down.

    "What¡­what?!"

    Even as Xing Er Song spluttered, Capricorn summoned a torrent of earth that erupted from the sea of quicksand and allowed him to jump free. He landed on the ground near my chubby opponent, who backed away, flustered. His hands rose and he conjured a barrier between himself and Capricorn before my Constellation spirit could strike him.

    But I already had another contingency in mind. Aries materialized behind Xing Er Song and rammed into him, causing him to topple over. Despite his defensive amulet generating a small barrier, blood gushed from his mouth.

    "No choice¡­I didn''t want to reveal this, but you forced my hand!"

    Xing Er Song raised his hand and cast a spell he had reserved for emergencies.

    "Ice Lock!"

    Dozens of icicle spears materialized, frozen chains linking them and casting a net around my two Constellation spirits. We were essentially trapped.

    "Isn''t that¡­intermediate magic!? Xing Er Song has already mastered intermediate magic?!" one of the invigilators cried. The othr invigilators turned to stare at him wryly.

    "Wrong universe and wrong story, dude."

    "Oh¡­come on," the guy Xing Er Song called Uncle Li complained. "At least give Xing Er Song some credit, all right?! Then what am I supposed to say? That he''s getting his ass kicked one-sidedly?"

    "I wouldn''t go that far¡­"

    "Well, his performance has certainly been impressive, and he shows proficient mastery of not one but two elements¡­"

    "Yeah, he''s also quite the promising candidate."

    Regardless, I wasn''t going to lose to him. Even as the icicle spears rained down upon my Constellation spirits, the frozen chains sparkling behind them, I blocked all of them with a single summon.

    "Black Tortoise."

    The ice chains all halted when Black Tortoise appeared and cast Ice Sphere. A circular barrier of frost covered all of my Constellation spirits and myself, protecting us from ice. At the same time, fog billowed out around Xing Er Song''s position and he found himself entombed inside ice.

    "Ugh!"

    Using his mana as well as the defensive mechanisms of his amulet, he shattered the ice, but I was already charging forward, Gemini flashing in my hands.

    "I won''t let you!" he shouted, conjuring another earth barrier, but Black Tortoise launched a single gigantic icicle almost the size of a building at him, which shattered the barrier and even broke the defensive field that his amulet generated. Blood gushed out of his mouth and he crashed into an undignified heap.

    I then had the black blade of Castor pressed against his throat before he could get up. Xing Er Song stiffened but didn''t move, aware that his skin had been cut and a single thick line of blood was trickling down his neck. He didn''t even dare to gulp.

    "All right, that''s enough." One of the invigilators clapped his hands. "The duel is over! I''m sure the outcome is clear for all to see."

    "You''re satisfied with the result now, right, Xiao Song?" His uncle Li asked. I withrew my Castor and the chubby fella nodded sourly.

    "I can''t complain after losing so spectacularly," he said bitterly.

    "Hey, you put up a good fight," I assured him. Xing Er Song snorted and looked away, unconvinced.

    "You were just toying with me, weren''t you?" he scowled. "You even deliberately used earth type and ice type Soul Beasts against me. Were you trying to say your mastery of those elements is better than mine?"

    "I wouldn''t dare," I replied, but I knew why he thought so (and he was right, actually, not that I would admit it). In order for my Constellation spirits to wield such powerful elemental magic, I would need to at least in theory know the fundamentals of the elemental spells.

    By the way, that was different from actually being able to cast elemental spells. I only knew how to cast ice spells right now, but I had theoretical knowledge of the fundamental elemental spells, which was what allowed me to conceptualize and form my summoned spirits. Simply put, I had to know the theoretical principles of the elemental spells in order for my summoned spirits to cast them, but whether I could cast those elemental spells myself was another matter altogether.

    "I think it''s safe to say that Richard Huang will be admitted into the summoning department," the invigilator who petitioned Dean Xiao earlier to have me join the department declared. The rest of the invigilators nodded, including Uncle Li. None of them had any objections.

    "It''s decided then." Dean Xiao nodded, his bald pate gleaming. "From this day onward, Richard will be a summoning student in Vermillion University. I''m sure Director Porter will be happy to hear this."

    "¡­"

    Xing Er Song watched them silently, and then skulked off. He nodded at his butler and sighed quietly, but he had accepted his loss. And no, before you start jumping into conclusions, he had no intention of hiring assassins to kill me just because I "humiliated" him or "offended" him. Where the fuck did you get that from? I see some people have been reading too much urban cultivation stories or Battle Frenzy.

    However, before he could get far, Dean Xiao called out to him.

    "Hey, kid. Don''t be in such a hurry to leave."

    "Eh?" Xing Er Song stopped.

    "I think we will manage to squeeze you in, Mr. Xing," he told him. "If you are willing to take the spot in our department of earth magic, of course."

    "What? Really?" Xing Er Song spun around, shocked. "But I¡­"

    "You learned a valuable lesson today, didn''t you?" Dean Xiao smiled at him. "Even before you begin the actual semester itself¡­don''t you think this is a great starting point?"

    "I¡­" Xing Er Song''s eyes were wide in disbelief, and then he nodded humbly. "Thank you, Dean Xiao."

 563 Chapter 563: The Summoning Departmen

    "That''s right, sir."

    After the interview, Dean Xiao asked me to see him in his office. I obliged and he had me stand opposite his desk while he scanned through my personal profile in a huge holographic screen. I didn''t know what his deal was. He could already do that during the interview, and I was sure he had read through my information along with the other invigilators earlier.

    However, I patiently stood and waited for him to say whatever he had to say. He was stroking his beard as he studied my profile, smiling cheerfully.

    "Jing Tian City has suffered numerous calamities, and the disaster in Saint Teresa Academy was unprecedented. For you to be involved in both the monster invasion and the vampire raid, and to have not only survived those events but also played a major role in stopping them¡­not bad."

    He must have read the reports or seen the videos where I fought against both monsters and vampires in both cases. The bald dean looked suitably impressed and he nodded.

    "To think we would actually receive a student from Jing Tian City¡­Director Porter must have gone all out to recruit you. I''m glad we can tell him that you passed the summoning department exam with flying colors."

    Needless to say, if Henry Porter found out that I didn''t make it, he would have flown into a rage and probably start firing people. But neither of us mentioned it out loud.

    He regarded me again. "And you were in your school''s representative team that finished fourth place in last year''s tournament too."

    "That was because of everyone," I told him. "It was a team effort, and truthfully, I didn''t contribute much in the end."

    "Not bad." Dean Xiao chuckled. "I see that your experiences through those disasters have helped you grown stronger and more courageous. And yet you still remain humble."

    "Er¡­thanks?"

    I wasn''t sure how to respond to this. I knew that he wanted to formally admit me into Vermillion University, but I was growing uncomfortable with all this praise. That said, I did feel a bit of pride and delight at having somebody recognize my efforts, even though¡­frankly, I didn''t even do anything during both incidents.

    All I did was¡­look out for my friends and myself, and I wasn''t even able to defeat the enemies in front of me or apprehend the masterminds. I did take revenge on Fan Le Lao and his clan, but if it weren''t for Teresa Taylor, Fan Fu Qing would still be alive and running around to wreak havoc wherever he wanted. As for the monster invasion, I failed to save someone important to me.

    "Congratulations, this is your acceptance letter." Dean Xiao beamed at me. "You are now officially a student of Vermillion University."

    "Take care."

    I nodded and then stepped out of the office. The first thing I needed to do was inform my dad that I had been accepted. Not just through the theoretical departments but also the practical combat magic department¡­that I was now officially a major in summoning magic. Not that I never was to begin with, but this fact was now officially rendered in black and white.

    After all, nobody asked a high school student what they majored in.

    *

    With all that done, the student meeting for newly enrolled summoning students was held a few days later. They timed it early in the morning, and wanted us to show up for some sort of briefing. An entrance ceremony or "orientation" as they called it, where they told us all the miscellaneous details and handled our administrative matters.

    I arrived a little early because I over-compensated and wasn''t used to traveling just yet.

    Even so, I began to feel a bit of concern while waiting. My eyes wandered to the clock on the wall and I felt nervous. It was almost nine in the morning, but why wasn''t there anyone else here yet? Was I in the wrong classroom? Did I come on the wrong day? What was going on?

    Consulting my smartphone, I checked that today was indeed the day, that the time was definitely nine in the morning, and that this was definitely the classroom. I even stepped outside to check the room number to double confirm. Yeah, it was definitely room 1401.

    Wait, was I in the wrong building? Or maybe they cancelled the whole orientation and I was the only one who missed the email?

    Relax, dude, I told myself sternly. It''s only a minute. They will be here sooner or later. University students were always pretty chilled and not very punctual.

    But then where was the professor who was supposed to brief us? Even if the students were late, the professor shouldn''t be.

    Forcing myself to calm down, I sat back down at the desk where I placed my bag and decided to wait a bit more. I stared at my smartphone, as if expecting an email to pop up and tell me the venue had changed, the orientation had been cancelled or postponed, or that the professor had fallen ill.

    Then I heard loud steps outside, as if a group of people was running. I glanced up just in time to see the door swing open and a few guys stumbled inside.

    "Everybody, hurry up and get inside!" one of the guys yelled, breathing heavily. One of them tumbled gratefully into the classroom and slumped over the nearest desk. He really had to be exaggerating¡­either that or he had sprinted until he was out of breath. Judging from how chubby he was, it probably was the latter.

    "The earlier we begin, the sooner we can finish."

    "Damn it, all your fault, eh. See lah, make us run. Today our first day, you know? If we late, how?"

    "Fuck you, you understand? You late your own fault. Don''t anyhow blame other people eh."

    "Wah lao eh. Why you guys so wayang, huh?"

    The six newcomers ignored me and staggered into the room, spreading out and bantering with each other. As they did so, a professor stepped into the classroom. He glanced around and smiled.

    "Oh, good! Everyone is here. Please get seated so that we can begin immediately."

    "Yes, sir!" the chubby guy frantically replied and hurriedly jumped into his seat.

    What the hell?! Did he just say everyone was here? There were only seven new summoning students in the department?

    I waited patiently while my classmates all took their seats. The professor went to the front, his manner casual and relaxed.

    "Welcome to the summoning department! I am Professor Simon Simmons and I will be your advisor in summoning magic. As you can see, it''s a very small department. Mostly because very few people choose to major in it. Honestly, summoning is actually a very rare type of magic. Since summoning is very dependent on your imagination, you will mostly be learning on your own because we don''t want to restrict you. So the students in the summoning department is among the most independent. We''ll give you the freedom to conceptualize your own unique theme for your Soul Beasts."

    "Eh¡­"

    "Really?"

    The summoning students exchanged glances. Seemed like everyone here knew there was some sort of catch somewhere. Simmons noticed this and he nodded.

    "Yes, it seems that you already realize that despite the flexibility, creativity and independence, summoning magic is extremely difficult. Even though we leave you to be mostly independent and creative, it''s still not a very easy major. Earlier, I said that summoning is very dependent on your imagination, but that doesn''t mean anything goes and that you can summon whatever you want. If your concept or theme is too broad, then you will be unable to materialize your summoned beasts. You need a very specific theme, with a solid set of rules and restrictions. In the past, there are many students who join the summoning department because they mistakenly thought they could summon whatever they want, because they are under the delusion that there are no limits to one''s imagination. That''s not true. For summoning magic, you must contain your imagination, make it very specific and vivid. It''s not an omnipotent magic where you can summon whatever you imagine or you can summon whatever you want. If that''s the reason why you joined the summoning major, please allow me to rid you of that misconception first."

    Simmons smiled. For a moment, it looked like a wicked expression where he toyed with us.

    "It''s not too late to change your major if you feel like you''ve made a mistake."

    "¡­"

    Nobody said anything.

    "Good. With that out of the way, let''s move on to the main topic."

    Simmons smiled affably, probably relieved that nobody was stupid enough to think summoning magic was some kind of omnipotent get out of jail card or overpowered magic with unlimited potential. I had seen readers rage about how I never summoned healing spirits, or that it was wasted potential and I was stupid for not summoning Lovecraftian monsters and more mythological stuff, and only limiting myself to constellation spirits.

    Those readers were delusional. They had read way too many stories that featured overpowered protagonists with cheat skills. Reality was never that convenient. There would always be restrictions and limitations. Otherwise why wouldn''t anyone learn summoning magic? Obviously because it wasn''t as omnipotent or convenient as the readers made it out to be.

    Putting them aside, I wondered what this main topic was.

    "Our university has a certain program for new summoning students. It''s probably the biggest challenge you will face. But the rewards are pretty good. The top two students in this program will receive spirit enhancement elixirs to strengthen their summoned beasts."

    "What, really?!"

    Spirit enhancement elixirs?!"

    "That''s awesome!"

    The entire room erupted into an uproar, with the other students super-excited. As for me, I wasn''t very enthusiastic. Again, I didn''t trust all these drugs and elixirs. They seemed suspiciously like doping to me.

    And I didn''t like doping. Steroids always had drastic side effects.

    "Professor Simmons, what is this program about?" the chubby fella asked.

    "Oh, I was about to talk about it, Hai Da Pang." Simmons grinned knowingly. "Simply put, Vermillion University organizes a competition every year. On one side you have the summoning students ¨C in other words, all of you. On the other side, all of the new students from the other departments are allowed to participate, so that they can demonstrate their magic and abilities."

    "So in other words, it''s the summoning department and our summoned beasts versus the rest of the school?" I asked.

    Simmons nodded with a grin.

    "Exactly."

    "WHAT?!" the other students yelled, seemingly outraged.

    "But that''s not fair!"

    "How can they do this to us?!"

    "How do they expect us to fight against the whole school?!"

    "Oh, simple." Simmons pointed toward the comment section. "You know how some people from beyond the fourth wall often bitch and complain about why summoners are not allowed to summon before the battles? They ridiculed the system and refused to accept the rules and whine about it like assholes in reviews and comments, and then call the author an idiot. So the university decided to show them what happens if summoners are allowed to summon before the battle."

    "Eh? So we can summon our soul beasts right before the battle?" one of the students asked.

    "Yes, that''s the whole point of this program." Simmons nodded and then chuckled. "But as you can expect, now you have the mages of other elements and majors complaining about how it is unfair. They don''t get to cast their ultimate spells before the battle and they end up getting destroyed by powerful soul beasts before they can do anything. So we decided to be fair."

    "¡­be fair?"

    "Yeah. In exchange for allowing you guys to summon your soul beasts before the match, the new students from the campus will be allowed to gang up on you. You have the advantage in summoning before the match, they wil be given the advantage in numbers. The seven of you will fight one by one against a hundred students. Of course, they won''t all be challenging you at once, but you''ll have to fight groups of three to five students at a time. Or if they are confident enough, they can attempt to take you and your soul beast on solo."

    "EH!?"

    The summoning students sounded dismayed, but Simmons was more amused than anything.

    "Now¡­any questions?"

    "Yeah." I raised my hand. Everyone turned to stare at me.

    "Who is that guy?"

    "Dunno. I think his name is Richard¡­Richard Huang."

    "He''s a summoner? I don''t think I''ve heard of him before."

    ¡­seriously? I mean, I didn''t mean to sound arrogant, but how had they not heard of me before? Well, whatever. If this allowed me to keep a low profile, then I was going to be thankful for it.

    "What''s your question?" Simmons prodded. I realized that I had left him hanging. Bowing my head apologetically, I then inquired.

    "Where is Lilith Porter? I thought she''s supposed to be in the summoning department."

    "Ah¡­Lilith. No, she''s in the fire element department. She chose to major in fire magic, not summoning."

    While Simmons gave the answer, the rest of my classmates stirred somewhat excitedly. In contrast to me, Lilith was evidently very famous and popular. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that all seven summoners in the department were guys for some reason.

    "Okay." I nodded and suppressed a sigh. Looked like I was going to be alone for much of my university life¡­

 564 Chapter 564: The New Student Even

    "Did you get all the info we need?"

    "Yeah, the important points anyway."

    One of them smirked as he lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. His friends gathered around him, listening intently. I couldn''t help but stop to eavesdrop because I was a busybody.

    "Hai Da Pang summons a Crystal Armor Scorpion. Their class representative, Zheng Ying Shou, I believe, summons a Lava Golem. And then they have someone who can summon a Skeletal Vulture."

    "Skeletal Vulture!" one of them exclaimed in horror. "You''ve got to be kidding me! There''s no way we can fight against that!"

    The group of friends milled about, contemplating over what they had learned. Then one of them raised a hand.

    "There''s also a guy called Richard Huang, right? Have you heard anything about what he can summon?"

    "Nope," the information giver replied. "It just so happens that he''s not in the same dormitory as the other six summoners."

    Oh, the rest of them stayed in a dormitory? That sucked. At least Dad was able to help me rent an apartment here. I felt fortunate when compared to them. A mercenary wasn''t super-rich, but he was admittedly more well off than othr vocations.

    "Well, it can''t be helped." The info giver sighed. "We''ll just choose to fight the weakest one. As long as you can defeat one of the summoners, you''ll be rewarded by the university."

    From a distance, I continued to eavesdrop, and then I sighed in relief. I had thought they would hear of me, I mean, what was the point of having social media and the Internet if they couldn''t just google my name online and watch videos of my match? Either their Google Fu skills were not good or they just sucked at searching online.

    Whatever the case, they had clearly never heard of me before. Hah! That lapse in their intelligence gathering skills could only serve to benefit me. Though I wondered if this was a result of plot armor or side character blindness. You know, where for some stupid reason, no matter what the protagonist did in urban cultivation or medieval cultivation stories, nobody in the rest of the world or continent or wherever had ever heard of him. the guy could wipe out entire families or become a grandmaster who was a half-step away from becoming a god, and nobody would have seen him or know how he looked like. It was just baffling, to say the least, especially when you considered how information networks and social media operated these days.

    It had to be plot armor or something. There was no other way to explain the ignorance of side characters and the ever annoying crowd who existed solely just to trash-talk the main character.

    Fortunately, there was someone who did recognize me.

    "Hey, Richard!"

    Zhao Zi Jun waved at me before striding over. He gestured for me to sit at a table with him. Since this was a cafeteria, there were plenty of spots for us to sit around. I was hungry anyway, so I grabbed a bunch of stuff to eat and sat with him.

    "How are you?"

    "Okay lor. What about you, bro? Long time no see, eh?"

    "Yeah. It really has been a while. I hope you didn''t get into trouble with the Hei family or something?" I still recalled the last time we spoke. Zhao Zi Jun had informed me of Hei Gui''s attempt to get me assassinated over some reason as stupid and vague as me "having a connection to her." What an idiot.

    "No lah. Don''t worry about that. Brother Gui is a bit seow (crazy), so his parents sent him to a mental institution for treatment. He always anyhow say one lah. Lucky his parents never listen to him, otherwise we all very jia lat (will be in big trouble)."

    Yay! I really missed Singlish. It was great to speak to a fellow Singaporean after a long while. Majulah Singapura!

    "Anyway, bro, you got any info for me or not? We very gum (we are friends), right? Tell me about your summoned beast, can or not?"

    "Okay lor. Not like I have anything to hide. But are you sure you don''t know? You should have watched my matches during the national tournament last year what."

    "Alamak, how did I forget, huh?" Zhao Zi Jun looked as if he wanted to hit his forehead in exasperation. "Of course I got watch! Sorry lah, bro. These days very busy, so every time forget. You have a spirit wolf, right?"

    "Huh? Spirit wolf?" Was he referring to Canis Major? But Canis Major was more of a dog than a wolf, so even if he was referring to my huge Constellation spirit, he was still mistaken. "No, not exactly."

    "Then it must be a few times stronger than even the typical matured monster!" Zhao Zi Jun laughed. "Even if many people from our dormitory group up together, we still wouldn''t be able to defeat you!"

    "¡­are you mistaking me for somebody?" I asked, trying not to sound too angry. "I''m not a versatile mage, you know?"

    "Oh, right. You are not Bu Fan. Sorry for mixing you up."

    "Wait¡­wait, wait." I raised a hand. "Did you mention Bu Fan?"

    "Oh, yeah." Zhao Zi Jun nodded. "He joined Ming Zhu University, but he ended up having the summoning element and shadow element shortly before he enrolled there, and now he has a spirit wolf in addition to his fire and lightning magic!"

    "We are so going to be sued for copyright and plagiarism, aren''t we?" I asked, burying my face in my palm. It was only a matter of time before this story got taken down and I got blacklisted. Even the excuse of parody wasn''t going to get me very far.

    "Don''t worry lah. He''s not the main character what. As long as he doesn''t show up too often, nobody can complain about copyright and stuff."

    "That''s assuming we hadn''t gotten into trouble regarding the whole vampire arc earlier, which was clearly me making fun of a certain vampire shoujo manhua¡­granted, the writing was so awful and the characters made no sense whatsoever, so there was no way for me to resist making fun of everything that had happened there¡­"

    "Anyway, it''s going to be time." Zhao Zi Jun glanced at his smartphone. "My deparment wants us to assemble soon. I go first, okay?"

    He patted my shoulder as he rose from his seat, carrying his tray. I nodded and hastily finished what was left of my breakfast. And gulped down my milk.

    "Good luck, bro!"

    "Thanks. I will do my best."

    Pushing my glasses up, I smiled back. Inwardly, I knew that I was going to need it. Seven summoning students versus two hundred students from all the other departments¡­no matter how you looked at it, this was unfair.

    Then again, it was true that the summoning students had an immense advantage because they were allowed to summon their soul beasts before the match. So we really couldn''t complain. It was the equivalent of allowing the mages from other elemental departments to start casting their ultimate spells right before the match, and then unleashing the equivalent of a nuke on our summoned beasts.

    The only reason why they allowed this was because the professors justified this as training against actual monsters. When out in the field, we weren''t always going to have the chance to start casting our best spells before encountering a monster out of nowhere, especially when going on missions in the wilderness.

    The same applied to us summoners too, though¡­and the hundred meter rule made it tougher for us. there was the option of summoning our soul beasts before heading out into the wilderness, but it cost a lot of mana to maintain their presences in the physical world and thus wasn''t practical, especially if the mission went on for more than several hours ¨C and that wasn''t even including missions that took days or weeks. And our summoned beasts would automatically disappear whenever we fell asleep or lost consciousness too.

    After I finished my breakfast and returned my tray, I then headed to the Crimson Arena, which was a coliseum where the university battles were held. Upon reaching there, I ran into my class representative, Zheng Ying Shou. He waved for me to approach the group and I obliged quietly.

    "Richard, you''re here." He nodded at me. Like me, he wore glasses. And before readers begin asking why he didn''t undergo lasik or healing magic to get rid of his myopia, I''d tell them to deal with it.

    "Yeah. Sorry for being late."

    "Don''t worry, you''re not late. We still have quite a lot of time to spare." He glanced about at the rest of the class and smiled. "Since we''re all here, let''s head inside."

    "Okay~"

    I followed behind them, hanging out at the back because I was shy. No, really. I didn''t like standing out and I would rather my classmates receive the full heat of the gazes of oour schoolmates in my place. As we did so, my eyes widened when I caught sight of the place we were about to enter.

    The Crimson Arena was not some closed-door stadium or gymnasium that I was used to back in Jing Tian Academy. It was an open-door stadium like the venue of the national tournament I participated in last year. To my surprise, there was a massive structure with wire meshing and magical runes that stretched over the entire space, isolating the coliseum off from the spectator seats.

    Even though it was still early, the stadium itself was nearly packed, with hundreds, probably close to over a thousand students all gathered inside and looking for their seats. However, my eyes were drawn to the wire meshing and structure.

    "That looks like a cage," I muttered. For some reason, I was reminded of those gladiatorial cages that they used in underground fighting rings. Perhaps they were meant to trap us in with our opponents, to ensure we couldn''t escape.

    It wasn''t as if the place was incredibly restrictive. Studying the massive cage, I saw that there was ample space for a flying-type summoned beast to soar above the combatants if necessary. Just¡­not out of the stadium. Then I realized something. It wasn''t that we were trapped with our opponents. The mages from the other elemental departments were trapped in the cage with us and our summoned beasts.

    Oh, this was going to be fun.

    "Are you the summoning students?" one of the professors asked, stepping forward to greet us when we walked in. Hai Da Pang and another of our classmates stepped forward and nodded.

    "Yeah!"

    "This way, please." The professor gestured toward a backroom. "You may use the time to get ready."

    That was right¡­we were allowed to summon before the match, so the intent of the professor was clear. Before the match officially began, we should begin summoning our soul beasts so that we could unleash them immediately once the event started.

    "Yes, sir!"

    While we proceeded to the backroom, the stadium itself was increasingly populated by enthusiastic students.

    "Over here! This spot looks great! We should be able to get a good view from here."

    "My goodness," one of my classmates whispered nervously as he glanced out of the window and saw the stadium filling up. "Just how many people turned up for this? This is making me nervous."

    "Hah!" Hai Da Pang burst out laughing. "Don''t be such a wuss. We should be thriving in this kind of environment!"

    Well¡­good to know that at least one of us wasn''t going to suffer from stage fright. As for me, I was feeling a bit ill. Not that I cared. This wasn''t the first time I was fighting in front of a crowd. I did that in Jing Tian Academy (the beginning of this story, if you still remember), and again during the national tournament. Once the spells started firing overhead, I would be focused more on fighting than on the crowd.

    "On the way here today, I overheard a bunch of people talking about us. Some idiots even claimed that they were going to crush us!" Hai Da Pang continued arrogantly. "What a joke!"

    Then his expression turned psychotic and I felt a stab of worry. This guy didn''t seem like his head was screwed on right.

    "My Crystal Armor Scorpion is going to teach them the difference between us summoners and them commoners!"

    "¡­commoners¡­?" I repeated incredulously. Beside me, Zheng Ying Shou shook his head in disapproval despite maintaining a smile. But I noticed the bead of perspiration rolling down his face. Like me, he evidently disagreed with Hai Da Pang, but he didn''t say anything because he didn''t want to cause a fuss.

    "In any event," he said instead in a conciliatory manner. "The matches will begin soon¡­so let''s get ready, everyone!"

 565 Chapter 565: Opening Address

    He then turned to the bald man who was climbing the podium. I watched from a distance, intrigued. To the far end, I could see Director Henry Porter in the VIP box along with the people from the board, and his granddaughter, Lilith. I was sure Lilith would participate in the match later ¨C she was too high profile and too powerful to not take part.

    "If you would please, Dean Xiao."

    The professor politely offered his microphone to Dean Xiao, but the bald man raised a hand and shook his head.

    "I won''t be needing that."

    Instead, he proceeded to the top of the podium and cleared his throat. Then he spoke up, his voice resounding across the entire stadium, despite not having any mechanical aid. Even though he wasn''t using a spell or any device, every student in the stadium could hear him clearly, even the summoning students in the backroom.

    Amazing.

    "Before I deliver the opening address, there is something I would like to say," Dean Xiao began, his voice stern. He cast his gaze across the entire stadium, where all the students had fallen into respectful silence. "If all you care about is gaining recognition and status¡­if the whole reason why you chose to become a mage is for fame and fortune, then I will be frank and inform you that you''ve come to the wrong place."

    "The mages who graduate from Vermillion University all have a responsibility. I''m sure you heard this from a comic somewhere, but great power comes with great responsibility. Magic has the potential to reshape the world, and as its bearers, all of you have some responsibility in ensuring that it is not misused."

    Dean Xiao''s voice was clear and strong.

    Yup, I completely agreed with him. I could see some discomfort in the spectators, especially with the long-range sensors installed in my lenses allowing me to zoom in and focus on their faces from a distance. Looked like Dean Xiao''s words struck a nerve.

    And he was far from done.

    "If you only covet wealth and status, then we can just give you the graduation certificate and you can leave. There is no point in teaching you. You are free to live whatever luxurious lives you desire with the certificate."

    I could see Henry Porter smiling in amusement at that, and he nodded in approval. Lilith, on the other hand, remained stoic. She probably bought into these values because of her grandfather. As for my fellow summoning students, they seemed to be watching everything in awe.

    "Our Vermillion University does not lack wealth or prestige. What we truly want are for students with sincere intentions¡­those who seek to better mankind and protect the vulnerable. Heroes who will ensure that humanity will endure for eternity!"

    Henry Porter clapped, and the staff followed. Several students hesitated, but as more and more students applauded, they joined in, and soon the entire stadium rang with applause and cheers. Dean Xiao smiled and waited for the cheers to die down before he raised a hand.

    "Today is the day for all of you to show off your abilities!" he declared. Then he turned around and gestured toward the backroom. "Allow us to welcome our seven stars!"

    At his words, the seven of us exited the backroom and walked toward the stage. I wasn''t comfortable with being in the limelight so I hung at the back, but I could see Hai Da Pang waving arrogantly at the audience, while a few others behaved confidently. Zheng Ying Shou was the only one who strode forward in a disciplined manner, not at all affected by his comrades or the attention lavished upon us by the other students.

    "And anyone who defeats them will be rewarded greatly!"

    At that, all the students roared enthusiastically, many rising from their seats to issue their challenge. I cringed, wondering where their confidence and excitement came from. Then again, they were all coming at us in groups, so maybe they did have a good reason to believe they had a good chance of defeating summoners who could summon beforehand.

    This was Vermillion University, after all. I glanced up at Lilith Porter, noting her presence. She was a powerful mage, and if the majority of the students were close to her caliber, then this was going to be a tough battle. We couldn''t afford to underestimate the other students.

    "Heh¡­" Lilith was watching me from above, unaware that I could hear her from down here. She turned to Henry Porter. "I see that you''ve succeeded in recruiting Richard, Grandpa."

    "He''s such a promising student. Of course I would go all out to recruit him." Henry Porter chuckled. Lilith frowned, but she smiled and shrugged.

    "He''ll bring prestige to Vermillion University. I''m sure of it."

    "Oho¡­you think so too?"

    "Based on what I''ve seen¡­yes."

    "I agree." Henry Porter was nodding. Then he grinned and nudged her. "If you have a chance, you should get close to him."

    Lilith scowled at that. "No. He''s not my type, unfortunately."

    "Ho¡­?" Her grandfather raised an eyebrow curiously. "Then what is your type?"

    "Hot-blooded males with muscles," Lilith replied with a mischievous smile. She jerked her head in my direction. "Richard is too diminutive and soft for my tastes."

    "Oh¡­so you like muscleheads. That''s¡­a surprise."

    "What''s wrong with that?!"

    "No, nothing wrong at all. Nothing wrong at all." Henry Porter was smiling brightly. He then turned away, and his scholarly features twisted into a concerned expression. His voice dropping into a whisper filled with despair, he had to suppress the urge to hold his head with both hands. "So my beloved granddaughter is more interested in muscular jocks than intellectual scholars¡­how did Glen raise her?!"

    Speaking of Uncle Glen, he was missing. Then again, he didn''t work for the university. He was a mercenary just like my father. The Divine Tiger, or¡­? Sorry, seemed like nobody caught the Divine Wolf reference.

    Anyway, I wasn''t really interested in watching the grandfather-granddaughter comedy between the two, so I focused on the current events. While I lingered at the back, I heard another person mention my name.

    "Theodore?"

    Theodore Hammond waved from above, having caught my eye. He was currently sitting with another girl, who I presumed was his girlfriend.

    "You know him?" his girlfriend asked. He nodded.

    "Yeah. A junior from my high school. We both attended Jing Tian Academy together. You don''t recognize him? He was in the same team as me when we took part as representatives in the national tournament last year."

    "Oh¡­now that you''ve mentioned it¡­but summoning isn''t his main element, is it? Don''t tell me, he''s already a mid-tier mage?"

    "¡­huh?" Theodore gaped at her. "How did you even arrive at that conclusion? Of course summoning magic is Richard''s main element. Why did you think it wasn''t?"

    "Huh? Isn''t it fire and lighting?"

    "¡­are you mixing him up with Bu Fan?"

    "¡­oh, sorry. You''re right. He''s not a versatile mage."

    What was with this and all the weird references to Versatile Mage? First it was Battle Frenzy and now it was Versatile Mage? Oh, and I still hadn''t counted Assassin''s Pride or Vampire Sphere yet¡­

    A professor in a white laboratory coat stepped out in front of us summoning students, a cigarette in his mouth. Looking more exasperated than interested, he heaved a sigh as he looked at us.

    "So who''s going to go first?" he asked gruffly.

    "Me!" Hai Da Pang jabbed a thumb at himself enthusiastically. None of all the other classmates objected, so he strode arrogantly to the beast cage that now surrounded the arena in the stadium. He then raised a fist and shook it at the other students. "Seems like you want to make use of our summoned beasts to enhance your reputations and ranks, huh? Maybe get a reward? Hah! Too bad! I''m going to wreck you all before any of that happens! Don''t even dream of obtaining the reward!"

    Did he just forget the speech that Dean Xiao had just delivered?

    Shaking my head, I hung back and took a seat while watching Hai Da Pang stand in the middle of the beast cage, awaiting his opponents. There were a couple of guys arguing with each other at the entrance of the cage, which was causing the delay.

    "I was here first!"

    "Who says?! You were behind me!"

    ¡­what were they? Children?

    "Look, I was here first. If you don''t believe me, we''ll get a teacher to resolve this."

    "Fine¡­"

    "Ugh!" Hai Da Pang interrupted the both of them impatiently. Scratching his head, he looked at his would-be opponents with a bored expression. "Just come at me together! Don''t waste my time! It makes no difference if there are two of you or ten of you! I can take you all on by myself!"

    "Oi, watch your words!" the guy who claimed to be there first jabbed his finger angrily. "I''ll destroy your Soul Beast in an instant!"

    ¡­was this guy for real?

    "If your soul beast is so much as able to touch me, the Lord of Wind Magic, then I will kowtow to you and acknowledge you as my older brother!"

    "Eh¡­no thanks." Hai Da Pang shook his head and shrugged. "I don''t want trash like you for a younger brother."

    "A mere summoner, yet he''s so arrogant!" the second guy growled.

    "Yeah!" a third guy chimed in. "We don''t even know what kind of soul beast he can summon!"

    All of them gathered, united in their fury. The de facto leader stepped forward, a smirk on his face.

    "Since you asked us to attack you together, then you had better not regret it! We will accept your request! Everyone, let''s teach this fucker a lesson!"

    "Yeah!"

    The group of mages stomped forward. Hai Da Pang chuckled arrogantly, his chubby face set in a sneer. Even though he was my classmate, I was actually hoping that he would lose and get his pudgy face beaten in. What a prick.

    "Then I''ll let you guys see what kind of soul beast I have," he declared and raised his hand to complete his casting. A huge magic circle materialized behind him, white and violet in color.

    A gigantic gate appeared in the air and cracked. For some reason, I was reminded of an Emergence event, where the layer between dimensions cracked and became unreal. Lights poured out of the cracks, blinding everyone.

    "What is it?"

    "I can''t see anything¡­"

    "Sh! It''s coming out now, right?"

    With a clicking sound, the Crystal Armor Scorpion materialized, over five meters in height and nine meters in length. Its pincers clacked incessantly and its deadly sting curled over its head, dripping with acidic venom.

    "A¡­a Crystal Armor Scorpion?!" the first guy yelled in fear. Hai Da Pang merely chuckled.

    "Did you guys really come unprepared? You didn''t even bother to find out what we can summon, yet you think you can stroll in and challenge us¡­"

    He then grinned evilly.

    "You can still surrender now, you know?"

    The group of students who challenged him didn''t waver and glared at him instead, defiant to the last. He shrugged nonchalantly.

    "If you don''t want to, then don''t blame me when you lose a limb or two!"

 566 Chapter 566: Crystal Armor Scorpion

    "Run!" the lead guy screamed, casting a wind spell to defend himself while gesturing frantically at his teammates. Even without his warning, the others were already turning on their heels and sprinting in the opposite direction.

    Just a second later and they would have been pulverized. The pincer of the Crystal Armor Scorpion swung down and smashed the ground, sending a spray of debris scattering across the coliseum.

    "Damn it!"

    One of the guys stumbled as he tried to get away, cursing while he was being pelted by small chunks of concrete. He tripped when one of the larger rocks smacked right into his back and he was sent crashing into the ground. He rolled to his knees, but couldn''t do anything when he saw the pincer of the Crystal Armor Scorpion rose above him. His face turned pale and cold sweat ran down his cheeks, mingling with tears.

    He was suddenly aware that he wouldn''t be able to get away in time.

    "Oh, shit¡­"

    "Watch out!"

    "This isn''t good!"

    The spectators cried in fear when they saw their fellow schoolmate get pulverized. The poor guy was smashed into a bloody pulp in an instant, even before he could cast any spell. The boundary field generated around the arena would keep him alive, but it didn''t prevent his body from being mangled beyond recognition.

    "Weakling," Hai Da Pang sneered, crossing his arms with a smirk.

    "Boy¡­" the professor in a lab coat sighed as he exhaled a ring of smoke, the cigarette still in his mouth. He raised a hand and cast a telekinesis spell to ferry the student''s maimed body away from the arena. "This sure as hell got bloody."

    The remaining three mages scattered, but the Crystal Armor Scorpion continued to bear down on them, hot in pursuit. One of them managed to conjure a transparent barrier that withstood the Crystal Armor Scorpion''s pincer strike for a moment. His hands glowed as he began casting another spell.

    "Flash!" he shouted, and for an instant the entire stadium was engulfed in a blinding golden light. "I''m going to blind you!"

    The spectators shrieked and cried out as they shielded their eyes from the sudden brilliance. Even Hai Da Pang cursed as he swiveled away, covering his eyes.

    "Damn it!"

    "Hah!" the light mage crowed as he rose to his feet. "At such close range, my spell has definitely blinded your soul beast. I am Xie Yan, and I will be the one who defeats you!"

    I watched from a distance, impressed. Well, this was Vermillion University, after all. Of course students who enrolled here were smart and gifted. This guy knew how to use his light magic in such a creative manner.

    "Isn''t that better for us?" the guy next to him replied with a laugh. Everyone turned to stare at him, perplexed, and he continued without any hesitation. "That''s one down. Now there are only five people left competing for the spirit enhancement elixirs."

    "Five?" Zheng Ying Shou repeated, confused. "Don''t you mean six?"

    Yeah, seven minus one was six, not five. Where did this guy learn his math from? His magic teacher, maybe?

    "Are you actually counting him?" the arrogant bastard jabbed a finger at me. "There''s no point including him among us. He hasn''t summoned anything at all."

    "Uh¡­none of us except Hai Da Pang have," Zheng Ying Shou pointed out incredulously. "And we are all in the same department. We are all fellow summoners. We should be working together, not sowing discord amongst ourselves. Especially since we have to fight the rest of the school by ourselves."

    He took a deep breath, a bead of perspiration rolling down his right cheek. Evidently our class representative was anxious.

    "Do you remember what Professor Simmons said? If we don''t defeat at least 100 people, the resources that were originally allocated for us will be given to the other mages who put on a better display than us."

    "Don''t worry so much," the arrogant prick said dismissively as he waved his hand. He grinned and jabbed a thumb at himself. "If you guys can''t hit the target of 100, I''ll carry you all and get all 100 on my own."

    "Wow, Wang Chui Niu, you really know how to boast." Zheng Ying Shou pushed his glasses up his nose as he glared at the arrogant fella.

    Oh, so the guy was Wang Chui Niu. I never learned his name because he was too proud to introduce himself to me. For some reason, he treated me like trash. Probably because I was the main character and all other people in the story must always treat me like trash just to contrive some sort of conflict so that I could embarrass them later. Typical of Chinese webnovels. I wished they could come up with deeper and more realistic characters.

    Despite their conversation, Hai Da Pang was far from down yet. He was rubbing his eyes and looking annoyed.

    "Seems like you''ve spent all your mana on stupid spells," he remarked, a vein popping in his temple from rage.

    The Crystal Armor Scorpion, despite bleeding from its eyes, still had not fallen. With a monstrous shriek, it hammered the barrier with a pincer. The sharp end of the pincer pierced through the barrier and drove in deeper, cracking it. The barrier could only withstand a few more blows before it finally shattered in shards of fading light.

    Ichor continued to drip from the Crystal Armor Scorpion''s eyes as it chittered incessantly, its mandibles clacking in a threatening manner. Hissing, it drew closer to Xie Yan, who merely looked amused as he cast another light spell.

    "Hah! You''ve been blinded. What could you possibly do? You can''t see me!"

    At least that was what he thought, but the Crystal Armor Scorpion turned to stare at him with its many bleeding eyes. Xie Yan suddenly feld a stab of cold dread and he backed away subconsciously, sweat pouring down his face.

    "No way, impossible¡­" he murmured, but the Crystal Armor Scorpion smacked him across the coliseum with its huge pincer. The glowing light barrier that wreathed his body shattered and he crashed into the wire meshing of the cage with tremendous impact. He then slid back, blood spurting from his mouth.

    His body bruised and battered, he could hardly get to his feet. It seemed like the blow had broken a few of his bones. Raising his head pitifully, he stared at the approaching Crystal Armor Scorpion in disbelief.

    "No way! This¡­this can''t be¡­! I blinded the summoned beast¡­how¡­how can it see me?"

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Hai Da Pang burst out laughing, his hands on his hips. The idiot was flinching just a minute ago, so I had no idea why he was acting so confidently. "Don''t you know that Crystal Armor Scorpions don''t really have good eyesight in the first place? It doesn''t really have to rely on vision to find you!"

    The professor in the white lab coat sighed and used his telekinetic spell to ferry the poor guy out of the cage and placed his broken body on a stretcher.

    "Hang in there, kid," he told the dude while still chewing his cigar. "I''ll fix you up in a moment. For now, you''ll be sent to the infirmary."

    One of the female healing mages ran out to accompany the floating stretcher. The dude in the white lab coat nodded at her.

    "Miss Yi Ya, he''s all yours."

    The healing mage frowned as she began to cast healing spells on Xie Yan. "You should have intervened earlier. This child''s injuries are severe."

    "With the boundary field intact? No one''s going to die. Also, I have to protect about a hundred students. I need to conserve my mana as much as possible, or I''ll run out before the day is over."

    "You guys are too weak!" Hai Da Pang was chortling as his Crystal Armor Scorpion ran amok. One of the other mages twisted around and cast a lightning spell. Like Darth Sidious before him, he raised both hands to throw webs of electricity at the advancing Crystal Armor Scorpion.

    "UNLIMITED POWER!" he hollered. The white net of lightning zapped the massive bulk of the Crystal Armor Scorpion, dancing around its exoskeleton.

    For a moment, it seemed as if it had worked. The lightning sizzled across the Crystal Armor Scorpion''s white, crystalline shell, causing fumes of smoke to rise. The Crystal Armor Scorpion stopped in mid-stride, seemingly paralyzed by the electricity.

    "Hah!" the lightning mage crowed. "How do you like that? My lightning spells have a paralysis effect to them! Unless you have Full Restore or Full Heal, there''s no way you can get rid of the status!"

    "Wait, we can use items in combat?" I asked, astonished.

    "Yeah," Zheng Ying Shou replied with a nod. "We can use medicine to cancel out ailments and status effects, and restore our summoned beasts'' HP."

    What was this, Pokemon? And what the fuck was HP? We didn''t have such things in real life.

    "Okay¡­maybe no such medicines conveniently existed," Zheng Ying Shou admitted when he caught me glaring at him. He raised both of his hands sheepishly. "Sorry, I was joking. I play too much Pokemon."

    In any event, Hai Da Pang didn''t bother to use any medicines or items. His Crystal Armor Scorpion continued to fight the crackling lightning, even as the lightning mage cackled like some mad Emperor and continued to fry the poor beast with more lightning.

    "Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Unlimited power! The Dark Side of the Force is invincible!"

    ¡­was the guy a Sith Lord now?

    In any event, the Crystal Armor Scorpion was not amused. It swung its pincer and smacked the Sith Emperor wannabe away with such impact that it ended up creating a fissure in the ground. The poor lightning mage was sent tumbling head over heels, his broken body finally crashing onto the ground in an undignified heap.

    "Long live¡­the Empire¡­" he gasped before he expired. Or lost consciousness, since the boundary field would keep him alive.

    The two remaining mages glanced at the poor guy, shocked from the turn of events. They both gulped, sweat pouring down their pale complexions, and turned to watch the advancing Crystal Armor Scorpion in dread.

    Licking his lips, Hai Da Pang stroked his chin arrogantly. He winked at them and snorted in a condescending manner.

    "Looks like the both of you are the only ones left. Let''s finish this. I still have about ninety-five more opponents to go after you."

 567 Chapter 567: Pride comes before a fall

    Standing in front of his Crystal Armor Scorpion, Hai Da Pang began laughing.

    "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

    "Ugh¡­" the guy who was still conscious could barely sit up, and he watched the Crystal Armor Scorpion and its summoner, fear visible on his pale face. He shuddered as he tried to crawl backward, to no avail.

    "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

    Hai Da Pang continued laughing loudly, throwing his head back and keeping his nose in the air. What the fuck was he, a villain or something? Now I really wished someone would teach him a lesson, to shut him up at the very least.

    The fatty was getting really, really annoying.

    "Anyone else?" Hai Da Pang sneered arrogantly. He flicked a hand out and beckoned the audience over. "Get up here!"

    In the spectator seats, the other students exchanged worried glances, wondering if they stood a chance against such a terrifying foe. For now, none of them dared to recklessly descend to the stage and try their luck. Above them, atop a holographic screen, it featured Hai Da Pang''s face and name, and tallied the total score.

    So he had defeated five people by himself, and the total defeated by all the summoning students was still five. This was only the beginning.

    There were a few murmurs, but obviously there were a few people pissed off by Hai Da Pang''s attitude. I wished I could join in and fight against Hai Da Pang myself, but I wasn''t allowed to. I glanced at Lilith, knowing that she would step in if the situation got out of hand. She was calmly sitting beside her grandfather and watching the whole scene unfold without any anger or panic.

    Hmm¡­that was indeed curious. She probably knew something that I didn''t. At the very least she seemed confident that Hai Da Pang would be eventually defeated. Given that his Crystal Armor Scorpion was blinded, its eyes bleeding, she was probably right.

    ¡­hey, wasn''t this whole thing incredibly similar to a story I had read somewhere before? Why did it feel like d¨¦j¨¤ vu? I swear, I read the whole thing somewhere before, or at least watched the anime adaptation of it.

    Right. It was Versatile Mage. If this was the case, I could predict what was going to happen. Too bad Bu Fan wasn''t here, otherwise¡­oh, well.

    Down below, a group of students had mustered their courage and stepped up to the challenge, determined to bash Hai Da Pang''s pride.

    "If we can coordinate as a team and work together, then we''ll definitely be able to defeat him!" one of them declared passionately to his teammates, who nodded enthusiastically. "Let''s go!"

    "Yeah!"

    I watched as the next five students worked together, scattering to ensure that the Crystal Armor Scorpion was forced to split its strength. They then cast their spells from five different directions, bombarding the poor thing relentless and eliciting a shrill screech.

    The Crystal Armor Scorpion thrashed about as fireballs, lightning, icicles and earth spikes slammed into it. Its huge stinger swung about, only to crash into a barrier that one of the five mages conjured, thus making it difficult for the monster to hurt them. Coordinating efficiently, the five mages continued to assault the Crystal Armor Scorpion with their spells.

    "Kreee!"

    Screeching, the Crystal Armor Scorpion strode out of the inferno, immolated. With a single vicious swipe, its pincer smashed through a barrier and sent one of the mages flying. The barrier mage coughed from the feedback, but managed to conjure a second barrier¡­only for the Crystal Armor Scorpion to shatter it with its stinger. The poor girl was sent crashing onto the ground with a fatal wound.

    If it wasn''t for the boundary field, she would have died from that. Scary.

    The professor in the white lab coat quickly got her out of there and sent her to the infirmary, where Yi Ya was rushing forward to cast a healing spell on her.

    "Damn, this looks bad," she remarked gravely. The guy with the cigarette nodded.

    "I know, right? Looks like you''re going to be busy today, Yi Ya."

    "Urusai!" she snapped. "Do your duty properly and maybe I won''t have to work as hard!"

    "Yeah, yeah. I''ll do my best."

    With two down, it wasn''t long before the other three were eventually taken down. The holographic screen above that Hai Da Pang had taken down ten mages, and our total was ten.

    "Huff??huff¡­"

    The fatty was panting almost hysterically. His Crystal Armor Scorpion was swaying, its armor cracked from the flames and other magical projectiles, and he continued to feed it his mana to keep it standing on its feet.

    "Damn it! There''s no end to these guys!" Hai Da Pang complained. And this guy was thinking he could sweep through a hundred students? Was he kidding?

    "Next group!" the professor in the white coat snapped, and the group already waiting below got up onto the stage.

    "Yes, sir!"

    This time there was six people in this group, but Hai Da Pang didn''t falter. He sent his Crystal Armor Scorpion after the group, and despite weathering an onslaught of spells, he managed to take out another five, increasing the total to fifteen. His Crystal Armor Scorpion had seemed to gone berserk, its stinger lashing out and stabbing the students, or seizing one of them with its pincers and crushing them. It was brutal and grotesque, but thanks to the boundary field, none of them died.

    I bet if this story ever got a comic or anime adaptation, those grisly scenes would be censored because¡­you know. But whatever. Anyway, I couldn''t help but feel sorry for the poor victims who were literally pulverized by the damned pincers or gored to near-death by the stinger. The professor who served as the umpire had to use his telekinesis spells to fling them out of the battle cage and toward the infirmary, atop floating stretchers. Yi Ya didn''t seem happy, but¡­

    The last girl of the group managed to inflict a tremendous spell on the wavering Crystal Armor Scorpion. Throwing a hand out, she cast a quick spell.

    "Inferno Strike!" she shouted, and incinerated the Crystal Armor Scorpion. The great beast swayed unsteadily as it was bathed in flames before it finally toppled over, sizzling.

    "Gah!" Hai Da Pang cried out as he fell to a knee, his summoned beast disappearing and dispersing into waves of mana beside him. He wasn''t able to stand up straight, panting from the exertion because he had used up all his mana to supply his poor Crystal Armor Scorpion. He cursed under his breath. "Damn it!"

    Looking up at the girl who defeated his Crystal Armor Scorpion, he muttered to himself bitterly.

    "In the past, I could easily defeat fifty mages in a row. But here, in Vermillion University, I could only defeat fifteen?! What a huge difference! These guys are no joke!"

    As much as I abhorred his arrogance, I had to admit that he was pretty impressive himself, having defeated fifteen people by himself. Given that there were seven of us, as long as each of us defeat fifteen, we should be able to reach the one hundred mark pretty soon¡­with a safety net of five. That was good.

    "Are you all right?" the professor in the white coat asked when Hai Da Pang struggled to his feet. "Can you walk on your own?"

    "Of course!" Hai Da Pang snapped, but he was wobbling comically, his legs still trembling from the effort. Hah! Where was his arrogance from before?

    "You can go first," Wang Chui Niu told Kanon Fodder. The nervous-looking guy was startled when he realized that he was being addressed.

    "Huh?! Me?!"

    "Yeah, you." Wang Chui Niu gestured for him to go. "You got this, Kanon!"

    "N¡­no, I don''t¡­" Kanon stammered nervously. "I''m pretty terrible at summoning, you know? My summoned beast is super weak. I don''t think I''ll be able to defeat even one person."

    "Don''t worry," Wang Chui Niu assured him in a condescending manner. "Even if you can''t defeat a single person, I will help make up the difference for you."

    "So you''re saying you can defeat at least thirty people?" I asked dryly.

    "I can defeat all hundred people by myself if necessary," Wang Chui Niu retorted. Whoa, he really loved to brag.

    "Um, actually¡­" Kanon seized on what he saw was his chance. "Richard, would you like to go first?"

    "No, I would prefer to go last," I replied and raised a hand apologetically. "I haven''t even begun summoning any of my soul beasts yet because of some complications, so it will be a long while before I can do anything. And¡­as you guys have surmised, they are pretty trash. So I''ll be counting on you guys instead!"

    "Hmph!" Wang Chui Niu snorted. "Useless fella!"

    The guy had no idea that I was trolling them. I didn''t want to fight just yet because I wanted to see what my classmates were capable of. If I were to go in this early, I might end up taking out all hundred or so students by myself. I wasn''t being arrogant or overconfident. It was just that¡­well, I had like eighty-eight different Constellation spirits and five Celestial Guardians to summon, so I could probably last a lot longer than all the rest.

    That was why I wanted to go last¡­as insurance.

    However, I wasn''t going to let them know. I just pretended to play the pig so that I could eat the tiger later.

    "I told you to go, so go!" Wang Chui Niu yelled at poor Kanon. "Stop wasting time!"

    "O¡­okay! Sorry!"

    The poor guy hurried to the stage, where the professor in the white coat awaited. The guy was still smoking as he glanced about.

    "Oh, so you''re next? Are you ready?"

    "Not really¡­"

    "Quite being a wimp," the professor snapped and kicked him into the cage. "Just go in and fight already."

    Poor Kanon crashed into arena in a shower of dust and he stood up, dusting himself off reluctantly. Sighing, he shook his head.

    "I guess I have no choice."

    He held up a hand and summoned a cute puppy that was about half his size. Covered in white fur, possessing fluffy ears and having adorable eyes, it didn''t look like the kind of soul beast that could fight at all.

    This was interesting. As I said before, soul beasts were reflections of one''s inner desires or deep subconscious, so the kind of soul beast that a summoner could summon was indicative of his past. I surmised that Kanon Fodder had a pet in the past, a dog that looked incredibly similar to the soul beast he had summoned before. Probably something tragic happened, but unable to let go of his precious pet, he ended up being able to summon something that looked similar to it¡­based off his memories and perception of his past pet, anyway.

    "All right¡­let''s go!" he ordered, and the cute puppy charged forward with an excited bark.

    "No go," the girl who defeated the Crystal Armor Scorpion said, having been joined by a fresh wave of teammates. "I hate to do this to a cute puppy like yours, but for the prize of taking your resources¡­Inferno Strike!"

    She threw a hand out and blew up both Kanon and his puppy, blasting them out of the cage.

    That was¡­pathetic. Sorry to say.

    "Seems like summoning magic isn''t so impressive after all," one of the girl''s teammates muttered as he shook his head. Another girl nodded in agreement.

    "Yeah."

 568 Chapter 568: Lava Golem

    "¡­what are you talking about?" Zheng Ying Shou asked me. Apparently they were unaware that they were mimicking the characters in Versatile Mage. This stupid story had turned into a damned fanfiction and the others didn''t even know it.

    "Nothing," I replied, realizing the futility of it all. I guess this was a scenario of what would happen if I was the one doing the test instead of Mo Fan. Not very original, but fun to think about. Unlike Mo Fan, I had 88 Constellation spirits and 5 Celestial Guardians, so I wasn''t going to do the one wolf against 150 or so students thing.

    I wasn''t a Mary Sue with plot armor and God Mode, after all.

    "Sorry¡­" Kanon Fodder strolled back into the place, looking battered and bruised. He looked sheepish as he rubbed his head. "I¡­I will do my best and improve in future."

    "Hmph." Wang Chui Niu snorted. "It wasn''t as if we were expecting anything from you in the first place."

    Whoa¡­how harsh.

    "Don''t worry." Zheng Ying Shou assured Kanon kindly and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "You can leave the rest to us. We''ll do our best to make up for it. I''ll go next!"

    "Class representive!" Kanon cried, touched by the show of support. Zheng Ying Shou stepped into the arena and addressed the professor in the white coat.

    "Professor Zhang, I''m next."

    He then ascended the stage where the previous group awaited. Seeing his scholarly disposition and because he also wore glasses, one of the opponents began to snicker.

    "Bro, this guy also looks very weak!"

    Zheng Ying Shou didn''t look offended at all. Instead, he simply smiled.

    "Let''s exchange a few pointers. I look forward to learning from you guys." he then raised a hand, and a crimson magic circle appeared behind him. A colossal giant made out of red and black magma materialized in reality, its huge feet leaving smoldering craters on the ground from the sheer hear. "I''ll be counting on you, Lava Golem."

    The entire group of students, including the girl who had defeated the last two summoned beasts with her fire spells, could only gape in astonishment.

    It wasn''t even a match. Even though the girl unleashed her inferno strike once more, the flames had no effect on the Lava Golem. If anything, it made the fire type soul beast even stronger and it rampaged through their lines, knocking out five of them in a single blow.

    "Oh¡­" Zheng Ying Shou shrugged. "And here I thought I was going to learn something from you guys."

    "Damn it! That Lava Golem is immune to fire spells! How do we fight against something like that?!"

    "With water and ice spells, of course! Maybe lightning would work! How about earth spells?"

    "The fire mages will have to sit this one out!"

    "Don''t worry. Its weakness is its speed. See how slow it is? If we work together, we''ll be able to exploit its weakness and defeat it!"

    While they discussed, the professor in the white coat, Zhang, waved them on impatiently.

    "Next group. Hurry up! We don''t have all day."

    "Yes, sir¡­"

    While the students hurried into the battle cage at Zhang''s prodding, one of the other professors above watched thoughtfully. Simmons smiled as he stroked his chin.

    "This new batch of students aren''t bad at all," he remarked with a nod of approval. "Their teamwork is decent. It''s just that their strategy isn''t up to par yet. They should plan more carefully when facing a summoner. Also, it seems that most of them haven''t done their research on what their opponents can summon. What an amateurish mistake. Or is it due to overconfidence?"

    Watching from the sidelines, I couldn''t help but feel a twinge of assurance. With such an imposing display, Zheng Ying Shou appeared capable of leveling the remaining eighty-five students by himself. That would be amazing.

    Then I didn''t have to do a single thing. I would prefer that, especially since I wanted to keep a low profile and not summon all my strongest Constellation spirits. I would have to if I had no choice, especially since the resources allocated to the summoning department were at stake here, so I wasn''t going to hold back, but if I could get other people to do my share of work for me, then why should I complain?

    Glancing up at the holographic screen projected above, I saw that Zheng Ying Shou had defeated five people. The total number of students defeated by the summoning department so far had accumulated to twenty. Eighty more to go.

    "Next group." Zhang gestured for them to go in.

    The Lava Golem continued to rampage as group after group of mages hurled spells at it, their concerted efforts finally beginning to take a toll on the black and red humanoid goliath. I saw Zheng Ying Shou begin to tire as he continually infused his Lava Golem with more mana.

    The guy had been casting big spells, with his Lava Golem hammering its hands into the ground and conjuring volcanic eruptions to incinerate or wash away the poor students in tides of molten rock. He did it twice in a row, knocking out twelve students ¨C six per group this time. By the time he had defeated the third wave, his tally had gone up to seventeen.

    "Huff¡­huff¡­"

    He panted as he rested a hand on one knee. He looked up, wiping the perspiration from his face, looking a bit pale.

    Right now, his Lava Golem was encrusted in ice. He raised a hand and conjured a basic fire spell to heat up and melt the frosty restraints, freeing his soul beast from what would otherwise be an icy tomb. Given the advanced level of the ice spell, he was required to expend a lot more mana than normal. By the time he finished melting the ice, he was heaving from exhaustion.

    "I shouldn''t be surprised¡­the quality of the students here in Vermillion University is nothing short of impressive. Their spells are much more formidable than I had expected. And they are much stronger and more skilled than my previous opponents from other places."

    He glanced at his soul beast, a flicker of concern on his face.

    "My Lava Golem is also getting worn down bit by bit. I''m not sure how much longer we''ll be able to last¡­"

    "Next group," Zhang ordered. I glanced up at the holographic screen, noting that the total had now accumulated to thirty-two. There were still quite a few more to go. Over half, in fact.

    This was not looking good.

    To his credit, Zheng Ying Shou fought to the very last. A wood mage struggled to entangle the Lava Golem in vines, but he had his soul beast cast Volcanic Eruption once more, burning the plants and sending the poor wood mage screaming into the air. She crashed down, her body charred. Her teammates scattered, but another two were caught by the flames.

    Three ice mages finally worked together to bring the Lava Golem down, freezing it just as it smashed into their lines. The berserk soul beast ensured mutual destruction, knocking out the three mages as its frozen frame finally toppled down on them.

    "Ugh¡­that was messier than I thought." Zhang complained as he used his telekinesis spells to levitate the massive Lava Golem into the air so that he could extricate the poor students underneath with his telekinesis spells. He then floated them over to hovering stretchers before sending them to Yi Ya. "They are all yours."

    "This is getting out of hand," she muttered with a shake of her head before she began the healing process all over again.

    "You should bring this up with Dean Xiao or Director Porter if you don''t like this," Zhang informed her coolly. She sighed and shook her head.

    "That''s not what I mean¡­and these students will be sent to fight monsters in the wilderness in future anyway, so having this kind of combat experience is good for them. But¡­I don''t know how much longer I can keep this up."

    "Hah! I know you can heal five hundred people in a day. I wouldn''t be worried about you."

    While the two professors bantered, I glanced up at the holographic screen above. Zheng Ying Shou had defeated twenty-five peope, which brought our total to forty people. Still less than half. This wasn''t looking good.

    There were four of us left. Assuming we defeated fifteen people each, we might just make the remainin sixty and reach the target of a hundred. Just barely.

    We were cutting it really close.

    Wang Chui Niu was also keeping his eye on the holographic screen. He grinned and waved dismissively at the returning Zheng Ying Shou, who looked exhausted. Smiling mockingly, he stuck his chest out arrogantly.

    "Class representative, you have already done your best." Fine words, but he said those in such a condescending manner that I wanted to hammer his face in. "Don''t worry¡­leave the rest to me. I''ll handle everything by myself!"

    "We are counting on you!"

    "You''ve got this!"

    The other two remaining summoning students cheered him on, and he grinned before throwing his jacket at Kanon Fodder. I grabbed Kanon and pulled him out of the way, leaving the jacket to fall onto the ground.

    "I''ll ensure that we''ll defeat a hundred students! The summoning department will definitely fulfil its target of defeating a hundred students! Even if I have to fight and defeat all one hundred by myself, I will definitely do it!"

    "You think you''ll be able to defeat sixty students by yourself?" I asked, astonished. Even I didn''t think I would last that long. Certainly, I had eighty-eight Constellation spirits and five Celestial Guardians, but obviously I didn''t have the stamina to summon every single one of them. I estimated that I would only be able to summon like twenty-five percent of my forces before I ran out of mana.

    "Watch and learn, loser," he replied snidely. I shook my head in disbelief. Was there something wrong with this guy?

    "What happens if you can''t even defeat ten people?" I asked irritably. I could already see what would happen because I had read the exact same thing happen in Versatile Mage, and this guy was a dead ringer for the arrogant character in there.

    "Hah! You''ll be kowtowing to me and begging for forgiveness, and pleading that I be your older brother once I defeat all the remaining sixty students!" Wang Chui Niu declared arrogantly. He raised his hand as he stepped into the stage. A black and purple magic circle appeared above him before a Skeletal Vulture burst to life, flapping its wings and sending decaying feathers down. With a hand in his pocket, Wang Chui Nui cast his haughty gaze at the spectators and issued a provocative challenge. "Is there anyone who dares to fight me?"

 569 Chapter 569: Skeletal Vulture

    Even from this distance, just seeing the fearsome carrion bird sent chills down my spine, a cold that was as deep as the grave itself. With a flap of its massive wings, it soared above Wang Chui Niu, who stood arrogantly in the center of the stage, waiting for his opponents.

    Glancing at the holographic screen, I saw that we had defeated a total of 40 students so far. Still less than half of the intended target. To prevent that number from shrinking a group of seven mages had strode forward to challenge Wang Chui Niu and his Skeletal Vulture.

    While they fought, the spectators murmured amongst themselves.

    "Don''t the summoning students have to defeat 100 students from the other departments, or their resources will get divided up between the students from the best performing departments?"

    "Yeah, I heard something like that."

    "It''s true. I heard this firsthand from Professor Di."

    "Then we have to do something! There''s no way we''ll pass up such a chance!"

    "¡­nah. No deal." One of the spectators gestured lazily toward the arena, where the seven mages were ripped to shreds by the Skeletal Vulture, their lives preserved only by the boundary field. "Just look at that! That Skeletal Vulture is going to get them to a hundred all by itself. It''s literally steamrolling over the seven-man team."

    "Yeah¡­they never stood a chance."

    The Skeletal Vulture swooped down, raking its talons across a fire mage who was desperately casting fireballs at it, tearing him from shoulder to hip. He went down, blood spurting from his torso in a grisly display.

    Xing Er Song suddenly broke into their conversation, placing a hand on one of the speakers'' shoulder.

    "Wait, what did you say?" he demanded. "Are you telling me that the summoning students are given a target to meet? And if we prevent them from reaching their target, their resources will be allocated to us students from the earth magic department instead?"

    "Yeah!" the guy confirmed, glancing back at the chubby fella.

    "Heh." Xing Er Song chuckled and straightened up, adjusting his jacket. "You don''t have to thank me later."

    "Huh?" the group of earth magic students watched as the chubby earth mage walk down the aisle and toward the bottom of the stadium. "Thank you? Why would we want to thank you?"

    Their conversation did not go unheard by the professors. His uncle Li shook his head in disapproval.

    He turned to Dean Xiao, looking a bit anxious.

    "Uh, Dean Xiao, is this okay?"

    "Why wouldn''t it be?" the bald dean grinned. "He''s considered a new student too. Let him in."

    "But his abilities¡­"

    "So what if he''s stronger than the other new students? The rules never prohibited intermediate mages from participating."

    "I see¡­" Uncle Li felt a drop of sweat run down his face, but he seemed pleased. Perhaps this was a good chance for Xing Er Song to display his abilities and show off to everyone.

    "Next group!" Zhang ordered impatiently, but the group of mages outside the battle cage were hesitating. They seemed apprehensive of entering the arena, especially after what they saw the Skeletal Vulture do to the last few opponents.

    "You want to try?"

    "No way!"

    "Then who''s going to fight?"

    "Why are you asking me?"

    "Hah!" Xing Er Song scoffed when he recognized one of the students among the group. "The Song family''s dog, eh? Get out of my way!"

    "You!" the Song family''s subordinate growled when he caught sight of the chubby Xing Er Song. His friend held up a hand to stop him.

    "Forget it. Let him go instead."

    "But he¡­!"

    "So what? You want to fight the Skeletal Vulture?"

    That shut him up. While the Song family''s subordinate stepped back, allowing his friends to pull him away, Xing Er Song haughtily stepped into the cage.

    "Oh?" the equally arrogant Wang Chui Niu sneered when he caught sight of his new opponent, his Skeletal Vulture hovering above him. His lips curled in a condescending manner. "Another fresh meat for the grinder, eh?"

    "Ha ha ha!" Xing Er Song chuckled. "Please allow me to apologize to you in advance."

    I glanced up at the holographic screen, keeping track of the score. Currently, Wang Chui Niu had defeated seven people, which brought our tally up to forty-seven. Still less than half. Shaking my head, I sighed in exasperation.

    "So that''s it then. Wang Chui Niu is going to lose here."

    "Huh?! What are you talking about?!" Wang Chui Niu''s two flunkies turned on me, fury in their eyes. "Don''t talk nonsense!"

    "Just watch," I muttered. At the same time, Xing Er Song was grinning.

    "The summoning students'' resources will belong to the earth magic students!"

    "Quit your bragging," Wang Chui Niu scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. He then smirked. "My Skeletal Vulture enjoys eating fat people like you!"

    "You may laugh at us¡­but fat people are best at throwing their weight around!" Xing Er Song raised a hand. "And your poor beast will only bite off more than it can chew."

    "Huh?" Wang Chui Niu looked perplexed, then he snorted. "Whatever! Skeletal Vulture! Crush that fatty!"

    With a deafening caw, the Skeletal Vulture swooped down on the stationary Xing Er Song, who didn''t seem to panic. He stood his ground and gathered azure mana into his fingers. From my seat, I shook my head and sighed again.

    "It''s over."

    "Your poor beast is going to die, you know?" Xing Er Song said as he threw up a hand and finished casting his spell.

    "!!"

    While the Skeletal Vulture dove toward him, ice chains appeared all around the earth and ice mage. The frozen chains whipped out and surged toward the air, snaking toward the huge flying beast, which tried to skid to a stop with a desperate flap of its wings.

    There were gasps from the spectators as they watched the battle in amazement.

    "Awesome! That''s quite the cool spell!"

    "We might be able to win after all!"

    "!!"

    Wang Chui Niu turned pale when he realized that he had underestimated his opponent. Meanwhile, Xing Er Song continued to stand his ground smugly, and he snapped his fingers. With a flick of his hand, he pointed and another ice chain, with an icicle spike at its tip, swerved around to pursue the jinking Skeletal Vulture. Wang Chui Niu glanced upward in panic when he saw that his soul beast wasn''t going to evade the spell in time.

    "Watch out, Skeletal Vulture!"

    Despite ascending rapidly, the Skeletal Vulture wasn''t going to make it in time. The icicle chain hurtled forward at incredible speeds, and before it could dodge, the chain snaked about and coiled around its talons, binding it tightly. Ice began spreading across it claws and toward its bulky body.

    The Skeletal Vulture gave out a furious caw, but Xing Er Song conjured another few spells and hurled azure globes at it. The flying soul beast yanked and fought against its retraints, but it was jerked back to earth before the freezing mana struck it.

    Right in front of everybody''s eyes, the Skeletal Vulture was completely frozen solid, entombed within a coffin of ice.

    "Oh dear," Xing Er Song remarked mockingly. "Seems like your beast has been stoppd cold."

    "No¡­please¡­don''t¡­" Wang Chui Niu stammered.

    Xing Er Song merely smirked and pointed his index finger at the frozen Skeletal Vulture, almost as if he was pretending to shoot at it. Wang Chui Niu''s eyes widened.

    "No!!!"

    The ice chains whipped about and dashed the frozen Skeletal Vulture against the ground with an impact so tremendous it left a crater on the ground. The ice shattered, along with a sickening crunch. Even though the Skeletal Vulture was finally free of its icy tomb and its body was still intact, it was motionless, its wings and neck bent at unnatural angles.

    Black decaying feathers fluttered, still encrusted in frost, almost as if signifying the poor creature''s demise.

    "No¡­!" Wang Chui Niu was screaming as he sprinted toward his downed soul beast. "No! No!"

    Even as the ice broke to reveal frozen patches of blood on the monster''s corpse, Wang Chui Niu fell to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.

    "My Skeletal Vulture¡­"

    Why was he acting so dramatically? Oh, because he was copying the actions of some dude from some other story. Honestly, there was no need to cry like that because he could summon his Skeletal Vulture after a while. Maybe in a week¡­there was no doubt the damned thing was dead.

    The Skeletal Vulture than exploded, dissipating into black and gray mana that curled around the arena like a fog.

    "How pathetic," Xing Er Song remarked, disgusted at the guy''s sniveling. Even I found myself unable to pity him, especially after his arrogant attitude.

    "Quit your whining and get out of here, kid," Zhang told Wang Chui Niu. "You''ve lost. Next."

    "That''s¡­"

    "Oh, you''re just wasting time now¡­" Zhang impatiently waved his hand and cast a telekinesis spell thatsnagged Wang Chui Niu by his collar and flung him out of the beast cage. He had no time to deal with crybabies. "Next!"

    "Whoa¡­"

    While Zhang was unmoved, all the specators in the stadium couldn''t help but watch the whole thing in awe.

    "The Skeletal Vulture has been defeated!"

    "Amazing! That fatty is so strong!"

    "We have a chance!"

    "Whoa¡­you only defeated seven," I told Wang Chui Niu as he slumped down in his seat. "I told you that you will only defeat less than ten. What now? We haven''t even reached half of our target."

    "Shut up!" he shrieked at me. "Just¡­shut up!"

    "Why should I?" I sneered. "You were acting so arrogantly and looking down on everybody before, and now you couldn''t even defeat ten people. And now you don''t want to hear the cold, harsh truth? It''s your own fault for letting your ego swell your head."

    "Dude, you shouldn''t kick people when they are down," Zheng Ying Shou told me sternly. I narrowed my eyes and pointed at Wang Chui Niu.

    "Shouldn''t I? This guy kicked Kanon Fodder when he was down, called other people losers or trash or useless¡­but when he gets defeated after all those arrogant stunts of his, we should coddle him? What kind of logic is that?"

    "You''re better than him," Zheng Ying Shou told me. "You can be better than him. Don''t sink to his level."

    "Fine." I left the despondent Wang Chui Niu alone. His pride had been shattered. It was unlikely he would boast again. Or so I hoped.

    Watching Wang Chui Niu smugly, his ice chains still wrapped protectively around him. He then turned to look at the summoning students condescendingly.

    "You guys should all come up together," he taunted. "So that you won''t waste everyone''s time."

    "His ice chains can only go after one target at a time!" the two remaining summoning students were discussing amongst themselves. "If the two of us work together, we''ll definitely be able to defeat him!"

    "I wouldn''t underestimate him if I were you," I warned them. However, one of them rudely shoved me back.

    "Shut up! You''re just a fucking coward! You have no right to talk!"

    "Excuse me? I fought against that guy before so I know¡­"

    "Shut up! Stop lying! You''re nothing but trash!"

    "Trash should just behave like trash!"

    What the fuck? What was wrong with these people? Why were they so obsessed with calling me trash? Was it because I was the protagonist? Did they seriously not know what I was capable of? Or was this main character syndrome? A¡­weird story disorder where everybody doesn''t know the real powers of the main character and insist on calling him trash so that I could slap their faces later?

    I shook my head and watched in dismay as the two of them continued down toward the cage, debating on their tactics.

    This was so not going to end well for them.

 570 Chapter 570: No Hope Lef

    "Trying to flank me on both sides?" he sneered. "How na?ve. Did you think ice magic was the only spells I could use?"

    "Huh?"

    "What?"

    Perspiration ran down the both of their faces as they stepped back. Before they could do anything, their soul beasts were destroyed by earth spells, the rock coming to life and clamping down on them. Earth spikes impaled the poor summoned beasts, dispersing them into mana.

    "I warned them¡­" I muttered, shaking my head in disbelief.

    "And here''s a little extra treatment, to cool you guys off!" Xing Er Song added before enveloping the entire place in fog. A few minutes later, the final two summoning students were entombed in ice, their bodies frozen solid.

    "Out you go," Zhang said with a sigh, using his telekinesis spells to levitate their frozen forms out. Yi Ya buried her face in her palm before she began her healing spells. Frostbite was a thing, after all.

    Watching above, the spectators began murmuring in awe, their eyes rivted on Xing Er Song''s chubby figure.

    "This guy is amazing! He wiped out all the summoning students?"

    "Huh? Wait, isn''t there one more?"

    "Are you an idiot? Of course there''s no way the last summoning student will stand a chance against that fatty! He''s trash!"

    What was with all these morons insisting on calling me trash? Was there something wrong with them? Were they¡­blind? I really didn''t understand it.

    Shaking my head, I stood up and proceeded toward the edge of the arena. Below, Xing Er Song glanced up and stared at me, making eye contact. I paused for a moment and met his gaze evenly, wondering if he was demanding for a rematch.

    If that was the case, then I would be more than happy to oblige him.

    However, to my utter surprise, Xing Er Song turned and walked out of the battle cage. Astonished, Zhang watched him.

    "Hey, are you leaving the stage?" he asked, baffled. "You do know that you can''t come back and fight if you leave, right?"

    "I already defeated three summoning students," Xing Er Song replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I need to give other people a chance to fight. It''ll be boring if the earth element department hogs all the glory, right?"

    Seeing this, the next group eagerly rushed down. One of them was scoffing.

    "Hey, let''s go!" he ordered. "I''m sure we''ll be able to defeat the last summoner!"

    "What?" one of his friends was looking at him, perplexed. "Do you not know who that guy is?"

    "No."

    "He''s Richard Huang! Didn''t you see his display in the national tournament last year?"

    While I proceeded down to the battle cage, Simmons approached me with a warning.

    "I don''t quite understand what Xing Er Song is doing. He clearly has the strength and ability, but he doesn''t want to fight you. I think he''s trying to get you into trouble, Richard."

    "Yeah, he wants me to fight the remaining fifty plus people by myself rather than allowing me to go out in a blaze of glory." I sighed and shook my head. "He wants to drag out my torment rather than give me an easy way out."

    "Will you be able to handle it, though?"

    "Do I have a choice?" I asked dryly.

    While I was conversing with Simmons, the rest of my classmates were falling into despair. I peeked at the holographic screen and understood why.

    Zheng Ying Shou had taken the first place by defeating 25 students, followed by Hai Da Pang with his tally of fifteen students. Then Wang Chui Niu was third, but only with seven under his belt.

    Consequently, the total tally for us summoning students so far was forty-seven.

    Realizing how dire our situation was, Hai Da Pang was smashing his fist against the ground.

    "Damn it!" he howled, pummeling the poor floor, who didn''t do anything to him. "Damn it! This sucks! Our resources are all going to the earth element students!"

    And the earth element student used ice magic instead of earth magic, which was the funniest irony if I had ever seen one.

    "Will you be all right, Richard?" Zheng Ying Shou asked. I shrugged.

    "Maybe. Maybe not."

    "That doesn''t instill any confidence in us," he murmured, perspiring. I shrugged again.

    "I''m not going to lie. If you guys think I can defeat over fifty students by myself, I can only say you have unrealistic expectations."

    "Uh, that''s true. Even the best of us couldn''t defeat more than twenty-five¡­"

    Kanon Fodder was approaching Professor Simmons, already fearing for the worst.

    "Can''t we negotiate with the university?" Tears were pouring from his eyes. "If we don''t get the resources to train with, then we won''t be able to progress much with our summoning magic."

    "I''m sorry, but negotiation is out of the question." Simmons raised a hand. "Other than yourselves, no one else can help you get those resources that you want. You have to work for them."

    Even if he said that, this seven versus a hundred thing seemed suspiciously rigged to me from the start. Not that I cared. We were given an advantage and we blew it.

    "Don''t worry. Based on your performance, Zheng Ying Shou will get the elixir. So there''s that. As for the rest¡­yeah, I do feel a bit bad that you got outdone by a genius from the earth element department. But you can''t complain, given that you''re summoners."

    "I will do my best," I muttered with a sigh.

    "Okay." Simmons nodded. "Get down there and fight, Richard. If you perform well enough, the second bottle of spirit enhancement elixir will be yours."

    "Nah, I don''t really need that." I waved my hand and got down to the cage. The spectators were chattering excitedly as they watched me stroll into the arena. I placed my hands on my hips and looked up at them.

    "Vermillion Phoenix, it''s your turn to put on a show!"

    At my call, the Vermillion Bird burst into existence with a majestic cry, raining fiery feathers onto the stage.

    "You''ve got to be kidding me?!"

    "A phoenix!?"

    "The Vermillion Bird?!"

    The group of students who had stepped onto the stage were staring at my Celestial Guardian in fear.

    "No one told us about this!"

    "Don''t falter!" the arrogant guy who was calling me trash earlier snapped. "It might look terrifying, but it''s not a Skeletal Vulture! It definitely isn''t that strong!"

    "So he says," I said and looked up at Vermillion Phoenix, who was flapping his wings and sending embers crashing onto the ground. "Show him just how wrong he is."

    Vermillion Phoenix nodded.

    With a flap of his wings, he engulfed the entire arena in flames. The five students tried to dodge, with one of them casting a wind spell to fly away, but he ended up being incinerated. The poor guy crashed onto the ground, his body smoldering.

    "Earth Spikes!" the leader shouted, slamming his hands against the ground and throwing up rocky projectiles at Vermillion Phoenix. My Celestial Guardian dodged the barrage, but before he could retaliate, another of the mages had conjured lightning.

    "Lightning Bolt!"

    Vermillion Phoenix cocked his head and glanced at the bolt before veering off to the side and dodging it.

    "What the¡­how agile is it!? It could actually dodge that spell?!"

    Vermillion Phoenix then blasted two of the other guys with his flames, roasting them. The leader and the last remaining member of the group ¨C a girl who used water spells ¨C hurried to the back, but her water spells boiled into steam immediately when she hurled it at my Vermillion Phoenix.

    "Its flames are too hot! None of my water spells are working!" she shrieked.

    "Shui Bian! Get behind me!" the leader ordered. Vermillion Phoenix didn''t wait for him to finish and sent another torrent of fire at him, but he quickly used his defensive equipment.

    "Vine Shield!"

    A tangle of oversized vines materialized around him, forming a thick and impenetrable overgrowth that protected the two of them. I stared at the wood-type defensive armament in amusement, wondering if the guy was all right in the head.

    "Are you seriously using a wood spell to defend against a fire type attack?"

    "Hah! This is no ordinary wood-type defensive armament! It doesn''t matter how hot your flames are, you will never be able to¡­!"

    He never got to finish his sentence. His vine shield was incinerated into ash instantly and both he and the girl were burned to cinders. Once again, it was only the boundary field that allowed them to survive, or they would have died.

    "And you were calling me trash earlier." My words were literally dripping with venom. "How does it feel, to lose to someone you called trash?"

    The guy''s blackened lips moved, but he was in too much pain to form a retort. In any event, he didn''t have the chance to answer. Zhang was already moving them out of the arena with his telekinesis spells.

    "Whoa, go easy on the fire, would you?" he told me, scratching his head in exasperation and puffing on his cigarette. "I know the boundary field will keep these kids alive, but it''s still a pain to heal them, you know?"

    "You''re not the one who has to heal them!" Yi Ya snapped irritably, hurrying over to the poor casualties. She then glanced at me. "All the same, please try to hold back."

    "If I do, I will be the one who needs your healing magic," I pointed out.

    "Yeah, well¡­it''s far better for me to heal just one person than to heal a hundred people." She then realized that what she had just said would constitute as biasness, and she lowered her head apologetically. "But don''t mind me. Continue to do your best. I didn''t mean to suggest that you surrender and give up your resources just to make my job easier."

    "Yeah, yeah. He knows." Zhang waved her away. "I don''t think he cares about you."

    "That''s mean!"

    Above, among the spectators, Theodore Hammond chortled. His girlfriend was turning to him, stupefied.

    "Theodore, this is your junior, right? Was he always this¡­strong?"

    "Hah! Of course! I don''t know why so many people insist on underestimating him. Maybe it''s main character syndrome or something, but it tickles me whenever those ignorant fools call him trash without ever looking into the mirror."

    He tried to control himself but failed to hold back a chuckle.

    "This reminds me of what happened two years ago."

    "What happened two years ago?" his girlfriend asked curiously.

    "He team-wiped five members from Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy all by himself. With that summoned beast he has right now. Well, he used a second one against Cecilia Stuart to defeat her, but¡­"

    "Wait, what!?" she cut him off. "Did you say Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy?! That Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy?! That guy did?!"

    "Yup." Theodore continued to snicker. "This is on par for the course for him. Too bad the rest of the students here haven''t realized that."

    While watching the group of five being healed by Yi Ya, who was desperately trying to infuse them with mana, the other spectators were shaken.

    "Isn''t that Vermillion Bird way too strong!? It''s on a completely different level from the other soul beasts from earlier!"

    "Damn it!" Xing Er Song was gritting his teeth, frustration welling up within him. "He never summoned that against me that last time! How many different soul beasts does this bastard have?! Just what is he hiding?!"

    "All right, who''s next?" I called out, while counting the tally up in my head. Five down, that meant we had defeated a total of fifty-two students. Forty-eight more to go. Even though I wasn''t looking forward to it, I decided to take things one at a time. One group at a time, and hopefully we would slowly add up until we reached the target of one hundred.

 571 Chapter 571: Reaching a Hundred

    "Hah! An arrogant trash like him should be taught his place!"

    I honestly didn''t understand why people insisted on calling me trash despite seeing the reality. They were so deluded that they honestly couldn''t be real people. Nobody was this thick. I was pretty sure of that.

    "Let''s go!"

    The group of morons didn''t realize that they were being delusional and haughtily strode toward the cage in preparation for a match. Zhang stared at them indifferently, lighting his cigarette and puffing out a ring of smoke.

    "You five are next?" he asked dryly, and then jabbed a finger toward the cage. "Go ahead."

    I watched as the five students stroll into the cage, their arms folded or hands in their pockets. They seemed pretty confident of themselves.

    "That''s just a big bird, isn''t it?" one of them sneered. "All it can do is shoot fire. I wonder what else it can do."

    Vermillion Phoenix looked at him in disdain, veins popping in his head from annoyance. I shrugged nonchalantly and looked at him helplessly.

    "That''s what he said."

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I sighed and shook my head.

    "Utterly deluded. I feel like I''m a protagonist in the standard, clich¨¦ Chinese webnovels where I suffer from main character syndrome. You know, where everyone insists on calling me trash no matter what I do, have no idea of what I have accomplished despite social media being so prevalent, and trying to kill me over the most absurd of reasons."

    Vermillion Phoenix rolled his eyes and I shrugged again.

    "Well, let''s just get on with it. We still have about forty-eight more opponents to defeat. Might as well start as soon as possible."

    The five mages began casting their spells, but Vermillion Phoenix incinerated them with his flames before they could pull anything major off. Before they knew it, they were all burned to cinders, and Zhang had to use telekinesis to levitate them out of the cage.

    "That was¡­anticlimactic. So they talked big, but they can''t walk the talk. They''re just bags of hot air."

    I couldn''t help but be disappointed. Adjusting my glasses, I glanced up at the gigantic holographic screen to check our tally. So far I had defeated 10 people, and the total number of students defeated by summoning students had reached 57. So far so good. 43 to go.

    The spectators were up in an uproar, roaring and railing at what they thought was unfairness. What? And ganging up on me wasn''t unfair? Where was the logic in that?

    "Never give other people a chance."

    "Attacking from the first second¡­how despicable!"

    "Where is your honor?!"

    "Fight fairly, you bastard!"

    This was getting to Chinese levels of absurdity.

    "Let''s form a group of seven!" a girl called out, rallying her classmates to her cause. "If we overwhelm him with sheer numbers, even he will get worn out! We will be able to defeat him eventually!"

    "All right, go in and fight then," Zhang told them, smirking. Like him, I suppressed a chuckle.

    How na?ve. To think they thought having more numbers would help them. Speaking of which, if we were talking about numbers.

    "White Tiger."

    My second Celestial Guardian appeared beside me.

    "What the hell?!"

    "Impossible!"

    "He has more than one Soul Beast?!"

    "I never heard about this!"

    As expected, the spectators were in an uproar when they saw White Tiger prowling below Vermillion Phoenix. The seven students who stepped into the cage turned extremely pale. As for me, I was shaking my head at their comments.

    None of them bothered to do their research. I didn''t get it. I was pretty sure I became famous after my exploits in the national tournament last year, yet for some reason nobody knew about me or what my true capabilities were.

    This was totally baffling. Their blindness and ignorance was just unnatural. Or was this the famous Great Firewall, where reports of my matches and battles were censored for no reason? That still didn''t make any sense. The national tournament was broadcasted live throughout the Global Federation. I knew that my team didn''t make it to the finals, but we at least made it to the semifinals. So how was it that nobody knew what I was capable of?

    In any event, the combination of fire and lightning from Vermillion Phoenix and White Tiger fried the seven students and sent them straight to the infirmary, where an exasperated Yi Ya began to work tirelessly to revive them from near death. Once again, only the boundary field kept them alive.

    Glancing up at the holographic screen, I was heartened to see that I had defeated seventeen people, and the tally for summoning students had gone up to sixty-four. Good. Thirty-six left before we reached our target. We were slowly gtting there.

    Furthermore, I had surpassed Hai Da Pang''s score and was now ranked second among the summoning students. Yay!

    "Next group," Zhang called out almost lazily from the bottom.

    It didn''t matter. They sent another nine people, but my two Celestial Guardians knocked them out with devastating spells, taking the tally up to seventy-three. The next group of six showed up to challenge me, having developed a working plan to counter my Vermillion Phoenix and White Tiger, but they didn''t expect me to summon Black Tortoise from nowhere.

    "A third soul beast?!"

    "Just how many does he have?!"

    "Who the hell is he?!"

    Seventy-nine now. I watched as the frozen figures of my opponents clattered against the ground before Zhang levitated them out of the cage.

    "What''s with this guy?"

    "Isn''t he too strong? This is unfair!"

    "Just how many more soul beasts is he going to summon?! At this rate, there''s no way we will be able to compete against him, especially if he has more of those things!"

    "Damn it¡­I don''t dare to fight him¡­"

    "Leave it to us!"

    One of the more talented students stepped up, cupping his hands respectfully. He was accompanied by his friends, a girl with pigtails, a burly guy with muscles and an average-looking fella who looked sneaky. The handsome leader bowed his head slightly.

    "I am Zhuang Feng Li, from the Zhuang family!"

    "¡­who?" I had never heard of the Zhuang family before.

    "Hey, you maniac!" Zhuang Feng Li pointed a finger at me rudely. "After I defeat your soul beasts, I''m going to teach you a lesson!"

    "Go ahead and teach me the lesson now," I replied as I pushed my glasses up my nose. "I''m always open to learning new things."

    "You¡­! You should be more humble!"

    "What? But I am humble. I didn''t brag or boast or anything. Why exactly do you think I''m not humble?" I was gaping at him. Zhuang Feng Li spluttered.

    "Oh, shut up! You will definitely lose this time!"

    He sent a few wind blades at my Soul Beasts, but Black Tortoise conjured a water sphere to protect his comrades. Vermillion Phoenix retaliated with several fiery feathers, but Zhuang Feng Li used his wind spells to dodge, and then he flew into the air and kicked at the Celestial Guardian. Vermillion Phoenix blocked his foot with his wing and tried to incinerate him, but Zhuang Feng Li made good use of his wind spells to evade, weaving through the tremendous torrent of flames.

    "Impressive." I nodded in approval. "Your wind spells are excellent."

    "Excellent work, Feng Li!" the girl with pigtails shouted as she conjured a spell of her own. "Keep using Wind Step! I''ll suppress the Soul Beasts!"

    Crimson flames appeared in her hands and she launched it at White Tiger, who was prowling about at the edge of the cage while trying to swipe at the fleeing Zhuang Feng Li. As expected of someone of Vermillion Phoenix, the magnitude of her fire spell was not to be underestimated.

    "Volcanic Strike!"

    The entire arena was bathed in flames, an inferno raging across the space. However, Black Tortoise lumbered forward and extinguished the flames with his water spells. White Tiger then emerged from the scorched earth, bellowing in rage.

    "What the hell?! The Vermillion Phoenix is one thing, but neither of the other two Soul Beasts are hurt?!" the girl cried out, turning very pale.

    "White Tiger and Black Tortoise, you take out the other members. Vermillion Phoenix, keep the wind mage distracted."

    "Not happening," Zhuang Feng Li growled as he dodged the fiery feathers from Vermillion Phoenix. Even as White Tiger bounded toward his teammates ¨C particularly the girl who had launched a fire spell at him, the blond wind mage cast another spell.

    "Restraining Vines!"

    Vines burst out of the ground and coiled around White Tiger''s legs, immobilizing him for a short moment.

    "A wood spell, huh?" I mused. Zhuang Feng Li smirked.

    "Did you think I was only capable of wind magic?"

    "Well, uh¡­you do know that the wood element is weak to the metal element, right?"

    "¡­huh?"

    Lightning exploded out of White Tiger''s claws, charring the vines to black and freeing himself. Zhuang Feng Li was able to evade the thunderbolts that seared through the air, but despite his large teammate trying to conjure an earth wall to protect them, he was too late. The lightning bolts slammed into the three fellas and sent them flying against the cage. Their bodies convulsed and went into spasms as deadly electricity surged through them.

    "!!"

    Zhuang Feng Li could only watch helplessly when he saw his teammates subdued. Realizing that he was left alone, he slowly turned to stare at my three Celestial Guardians.

    "Damn it!"

    I watched him, and then nodded to my Celestial Guardians, who launched a concerted attack. However, Zhuang Feng Li merely smirked and disappeared.

    "Did anyone say I could only attack your soul beasts?"

    His Wind Step activated and he weaved through my three Celestial Guardians before they could react, dashing straight for me. For a moment, he vanished from sight before reappearing behind me. Wind blades circled his hand as he chopped toward my neck.

    "As long as I can defeat the summoner himself, his summoned beasts will naturally go down with him too!"

    "That has to be against the rules!" Hai Da Pang hollered from his seat, getting all flustered. "He''s cheating! He can''t attack the summoner directly!"

    "You kidding me?" Simmons was burying his face from exasperation. "Of course it''s not against the rules. In real combat, most summoners are defeated like this. Is this your first time learning summoning magic or something?"

    "Eh?!" Hai Da Pang shouted, astonished. He held his head and moaned. "Damn it! We only took down seventy-nine people!"

    "Eighty-two," Zheng Ying Shou corrected. He glanced up at the holographic screen, a bead of perspiration rolling down his face. "And Richard hasn''t lost yet, so why are you assuming that he has already been defeated?"

    "But¡­" Hai Da Pang protested, only to trail off in despair.

    Meanwhile, below, Zhuang Feng Li was dancing around me with his weird Wind Steps, and leaving me bewildered. Like¡­what the fuck was he doing? Why didn''t he just attack me directly and try to finish me off already?

    Not that he could, but¡­in any case, he finally struck, his wind blades swirling around his hand as he slashed at me.

    "I''ll teach you a lesson for acting so arrogantly!" he roared confidently, sure that this was his victory.

    What a moron.

    I summoned Gemini in a flash. The reason why I hadn''t done anything was because I had been waiting for him to get close. At this distance, there was no way he could avoid my attacks.

    "What?!" sweat began pouring down Zhuang Li Feng''s face profusely when he caught sight of my paired Constellation weapons. "Swords¡­? How¡­?"

    I smiled and slashed him wordlessly, the black blade of Castor slicing his neck open while the white blade of Pollux eviscerated his abdomen. Blood spurted from his wounds as he crashed down behind me as I dropped to a crouch and flicked the crimson fluids off my blades before dismissing my Constellation weapons.

    "Fuck¡­"

    That was the last thing Zhuang Li Feng said before he toppled over. I slowly rose to my feet and glanced up at the holographic screen with a smile.

    I had defeated thirty-six students so far, which brought the tally of people defeated by summoning students to a total of eighty-three. That meant seventeen people left. We were getting there, slowly but surely.

    "Next group," Zhang called out, waving his hand impatiently, but by now everyone was getting apprehensive.

    "Damn it! That guy is good!"

    "He knows close combat magic too?! What exactly is his weakness!?"

    Well¡­a lot of things, to be honest, but obviously I had no intention of letting them know that. Putting on a brave front, I waited for my next opponent to show up.

 572 Chapter 572: Beyond a Hundred

    Theodore''s girlfriend gasped in shock as she watched from above. Beside her, Theodore Hammond guffawed good-naturedly.

    "All of you underestimated him. I''m starting to doubt that you''ve watched the national tournament last year."

    "I saw your matches, but I didn''t actually watch the others," his girlfriend admitted guiltily. Theodore sighed and shook his head.

    "Yeah, well¡­if you have a chance, you should watch his matches as well. He''s quite the insane dude, you know?" he burst out laughing. "In fact, it''s all because those guys didn''t bother to do their research properly and find out what Richard is capable of that they ended being beaten up so badly! Serves them right!"

    "You seem to hold him in very high regard," his girlfriend remarked, amazed. "I''ve never seen you respect anyone else like this."

    ???Fight by his side and you''ll see why," Theodore replied with a scoff. "He''s one of the most reliable teammates you can ever have."

    "I can see why," she acknowledged, glancing down and watching me check on my Celestial Guardians.

    Meanwhile, the other students were milling about at the exterior of the cage, looking dismayed.

    "What should we do?" one of them asked, dread filling his voice. "None of us stand a chance."

    "I guess all we can do at this point is wear him out by sending team after team," another student replied. "A battle of attrition. Even that monster shouldn''t be able to last for much longer."

    "Eighty-three¡­all they need is seventeen more and they get to keep their own resources."

    "Well, it''s too bad, but it''s not as if we lose anything, right?"

    "Yeah¡­"

    While they were discussing amongst themselves, amidst the spectators, a single person sat back, looking down on me with contempt. Beside him, his friend glanced at him.

    "Bro, shouldn''t you give it a try?" he asked. "At this rate, nobody will beat him and the summoning students will reach their target."

    "Good for them," the other guy replied with a shrug. He was from one of the major families, and he was enjoying the show. "Why should I care? We''re just having pity on them, that''s all. If we beat them now, then they won''t have any resources. Do we really need their resources? Are you that desperate for scholarship money, equipment and elixirs?"

    "No, that''s not it. It''s just¡­" his friend scratched his head and shrugged. "¡­just a waste, I guess? An opportunity that''s too good to pass up."

    "Nah, that''s fine. Wait and see. It''s not my turn yet. We''ll give them the illusion of hope, and once they are near the hundred mark, I''ll swoop down and crush their hopes."

    His friend grinned, but his humor was lost when they saw the next group show up. They were taking no chances and were coming in waves now.

    "Whoa¡­they are getting serious."

    "That summoning guy is doomed. Even with three Soul Beasts, there''s no way he can defeat twenty opponents at once."

    I watched silently as the twenty students from the other departments flooded the cage. Zhang was looking a little concerned, but he waved them in nonetheless.

    "This is our last chance to stop the summoning students from reaching their target!"

    "We can do this!"

    "Drown him in a human tide!"

    "Wear him out!"

    How na?ve. If they thought they could defeat me with sheer numbers, they had another thing going. Sighing, I waited for the match to begin and then raised a hand. a green magic circle appeared above me.

    "Green Dragon."

    "Huh?! He has a fourth Soul Beast!?"

    "What?!"

    Their shock was overcome by the materialization of the majestic Celestial Guardian. Green Dragon appeared in a storm of leaves and petals, which obscured their sight. Before they could react, vines were already wrapping around them and restraining them.

    "Why, you¡­!"

    "Attack!"

    "Focus on the summoner! As long as we take him out, his summoned beasts will naturally be defeated along with him!"

    Many of them got their spells off, but Black Tortoise conjured a water sphere to protect me. I watched as the elemental projectiles slam ineffectively against the magical barrier and harmlessly dissipated.

    "Fuck!"

    "This is cheating!"

    "This is unfair!"

    "How is this allowed?!"

    Thrashing about, restrained by vines and creepers, the twenty or so students howled in protest. I couldn''t help but shake my head at how thick-skinned they were. They had no compunctions ganging up on me twenty to one, yet they complained about how this was unfair or cheating. I couldn''t believe their nerve.

    On the other hand, I did have like four Celestial Guardians under my command. This was the equivalent of having four boss monsters show up at once. I didn''t play a lot of games, but I did hear that normally you would show up in huge groups just to take down a single boss monster.

    So to face four of them at once¡­I could see why they thought it was unfair. Not that I cared. The whole system was unfair to begin with. It was rigged in their favor. Seven summoning students against a hundred? What a joke.

    Feeling rage well up within me, I sent a mental command to Vermillion Phoenix and White Tiger. They cast their fire and lightning spells before launching them at the entangled students. None of them were able to break free in time, having used their spells to aim at me instead of cutting themselves out of the overgrowth.

    The vines and plants that held them were combustible and needless to say they caught fire very easily. Within seconds, the twenty or so students were screaming and shrieking in agony as they were enveloped in an infero without any way of escaping. Pushing up my glasse, I watched as they were incinerated into charred corpses.

    Again, if it weren''t for the boundary field that covered the entire area, they would have died. As it was, Zhang waited for the flames to soften a bit before he used his telekinesis spell to levitate the twenty or so students out of the cage and pass them over to a frantic Yi Ya, who began casting her healing spells as quickly as possible. Right now, she was accompanied by an entire team of healing mages, no longer able to contain the situation by herself. It was only natural. No matter how powerful she was, healing a hundred casualties in a single day was taxing even for the most skilled healing mage.

    Yi Ya was clearly exhausted.

    With this, I had achieved our target of a hundred and even surpassed it. I had defeated fifty-six students all by myself, and our total tally for the summoning department as a whole was 103 people. We had successfully surpassed our target and defended our resources. Yay.

    I beamed as I studied the holographic screen, and then turned away to leave. Before I could dismiss my Celestial Guardians and exit the cage, however, a single voice called out to me.

    "Please wait."

    Turning around, I looked up and saw that it was Dean Xiao. He was smiling as he stroked his beard.

    "Yes, sir?" I asked, blinking in confusion. What was this? Was the match not over? Why did he want me to wait?

    "Did you never wonder about this?" he asked, watching me. I stared at him, confused.

    "Wonder about what, sir?"

    The bald dean sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

    "Seriously? You didn''t question the situation? If you summoning students don''t meet the target of defeating a hundred people, your resources for the semester will be distributed to the student from the other elemental departments."

    "Yeah, you told us that," I agreed with a nod.

    "Indeed. But hasn''t it occurred to you that if you succeed, you don''t really win anything? All you achieved is to keep what was already entitled to you."

    "Well, yes, I guess?" I still didn''t see where this was going.

    "Don''t you find this unfair for you summoning students? Why are you participating in a match that has no benefits for you at all, where you risk losing everything for nothing in return?"

    "Eh¡­the dean kind of has a point, right?" one of the other students murmured. His friend glared at him.

    "Shut up! Whose side are you on?! You''re not a summoning student, right? Why should you care?"

    I didn''t say anything and merely held Dean Xiao''s gaze for a moment, waiting for him to get to his point. He narrowed his eyes and then I sighed.

    "If that''s how the school system is, then who am I to oppose it? Are you expecting us to question your authority or something?"

    "Ha ha ha! Not at all!" Dean Xiao burst out laughing. "But I thought you would at least object to this unfair challenge."

    "Even if we object, would you have cancelled the whole thing?" I asked dryly.

    "No, but we do have a prize for you summoning students. After all, if the students from other element departments stand to win something from challenging you, then it''s only a fair wager if you get to win something in return from this challenge, right?"

    "Isn''t that the purpose of the spirit enhancement elixir?" I asked, confused. "I thought that was the prize for reaching the target."

    "No, the spirit enhancement elixirs were originally the summoning department''s to begin with, part of the resources allocated to train you. You were going to get them regardless¡­unless, of course, you had lost to the students from the other element departments. Then they get your share of the elixirs instead."

    "So we get an extra prize?" I asked. Dean Xiao grinned.

    "Not yet. Actually, after the 100-person target, there is a higher target." He pointed at the holographic screen, which displayed my achievement of 103 students. He spread his hands dramatically. "If the summoning students are able to defeat 200 people, then all the training resources of the other departments will go to the summoning students!"

    There was a long, stunned silence as everyone stopped talking to digest what they had just heard. Of course, that included me. Even Theodore was quiet as he listened, his brow raised. Zhao Zi Jun smirked, as if he knew about this all along. Apparently, as the information gatherer for the Hei clan, he actually did hear about it before.

    Then there was an uproar.

    "All our resources go to the summoning students?! What nonsense is that?!"

    "Yeah, that''s ridiculous! There are 4,000 of us and only seven of them! How is it that all of our resources go to them? What''s next? Should we start worshipping them and addressing them as gods from now on?"

    Dean Xiao ignored them and continued with a smile.

    "The reason why we never mentioned this particular condition was because there hasn''t been a single batch of summoning students who were able to achieve it. Not for the last few decades, at least. So we didn''t think we needed to announce it because it wouldn''t have made any difference."

    "So why mention it now?" I asked dryly. Dean Xiao grinned at me and I suddenly felt a chilling premonition.

    "Because¡­you might just have a chance of achieving it, Richard Huang." His grin grew wider and wider. "Why don''t you give this so-called impossible target a shot?"

    "Because I don''t want to?" I retorted.

    "Oh, come on! You know you want to! Just give it a shot!" Dean Xiao was goading me for some inane reason. "I know you need more resources than the average mage, after all."

    "No, I don''t."

    While I was arguing with the dean, the other students were exchanging wary and skeptical glances.

    "I mean, I know the guy is strong, but does the dean really think he''s capable of defeating over 150 students by himself?"

    "That''s insane!"

    "No way that''s happening!"

    "He doesn''t even seem that interested."

    They were right. I was tired, and as powerful as my Celestial Guardians were, there was no way in hell I could maintain their materialization in the physical world for so long. Two hundred students? That meant I had to defeat ninety-seven more students by myself? Like hell I would do something so tedious. I already proved myself superior to my pathetic classmates ¨C all of whom looked down on me, mocked me and called me useless or trash, only for them to fall short of the target and get their asses kicked. And as it turned out, I had to carry them myself.

    Fuck this. I wasn''t going to carry them through for this.

    At least that was what I thought, but¡­

    "That trash just got lucky. No way is he defeating 150 students on his own. He probably can''t maintain those Soul Beasts for much longer."

    "Just look at him. He''s a coward. He''s so ready to give up."

    "Good for us! Heh!"

    "Sh! Are you guys idiots?! Why are you provoking him?"

    "Because he''s a spineless wimp, he won''t do anything even if we¡­"

    "Now you''ve done it," I interrupted their taunts and insults, feeling something snap inside me. "All right, bring it on. Let''s see if I can really hit that 200 people target."

 573 Chapter 573: Toward Two Hundred

    "Ugh!"

    Earth spikes impaled a few students and left them dangling in the air in a precarious posture. Outside, Zhang winced before he used his telekinesis spells to levitate them away from the stuff. Blood splattered onto the ground as they were lifted from the deadly earth spikes and out of the cage where Yi Ya and her team of healers were waiting.

    Upon seeing the casualties, Yi Ya groaned in exasperation and buried her face in her palm.

    "Not again¡­"

    "Next group," Zhang said tiredly, waving in the next group. As the other students debated among themselves about who should go next, I glanced up at the huge holographic screen.

    "Whoa!"

    I couldn''t believe my eyes. I had already defeated 103 people so far. That brought the total tally for summoning students defeated by summoning students up to 150. From out of nowhere, I had almost doubled my score. That last group must have been fifteen, which was why my score jmped from 88 to 103. That was faster than I expected.

    Above, in the VIP seat, one of the professors turned to the bald dean with an amused expression.

    "Dean Xiao, the summoning department has already defeated a total of 150 students so far. If they really do manage to hit 200, are we really going to give them all the resources from the other departments?"

    "Heh¡­" Dean Xiao could only chuckle mysteriously.

    "Of course," Director Henry Porter declared behind them, shocking the poor professor. Uncle Li turned to look at the director, who had just exchanged a glance with his granddaughter. "We gave our word. How can we back out now? Who''s going to trust us in future if we backtrack on what we said? Also, how is it fair to the summoning students that we can take their resources and distribute it to the other departments if they fail to meet the target, but if they meet double their target, we do an about face and deny them the rewards they worked so hard to obtain?"

    "You''re right," Li admitted. "I can''t imagine that the other departments will be happy about this, though."

    "Besides," Henry Porter continued with a grin. "He has only defeated hundred and three, and even with his classmates'' scores, it''s still only a total of 150. He has fifty more opponents to defeat if he wants the prize. He might make it, he might not¡­but let''s not count his chickens before they hatch, eh?"

    "You''re right," Li agreed as he glanced down, at the arena. "Look at Richard¡­he''s already so exhausted. I don''t know if he''ll be able to hold up for another fifty opponents."

    Yet I still had fifty more students to defeat. Damn it.

    While I was taking the chance to rest, the guy from earlier was glaring at me, a vein popping in his temple.

    "To think that some no-name bumpkin refuses to acknowledge his place," he growled. "Does he not know that this is the territory of one of the ten Great Families?"

    His friend, the person he asked to intervene earlier before I could get to a hundred, merely chuckled.

    "This is the Porter''s territory, not ours," he reminded his lackey. "So don''t get carried away. Also, you called him a no-name bumpkin and complained about him not knowing his place¡­yet do you have the confidence to defeat him? Do you think you''ll be able to defeat him if you go down there and challenge him?"

    "Uh¡­no¡­"

    "Then what''s all this about not knowing his place? He has achieved his status through a demonstration of overwhelming strength. I''d say he has earned his place. However¡­"

    He adjusted his jacket and stood up. His lackey perked up, delighted.

    "Bro! Are you finally going to take action and challenge him yourself?"

    "That''s right," the handsome guy replied with a smirk. "I''m going down to teach him a lesson. I''ll have him understand that the ten Great Families are not people he can challenge so easily. Perhaps he will need to witness the strength of the Hei family before he finally understands his true position."

    At the bottom, there was a group of students milling about and discussing amongst themselves on how they had no chance against me or something.

    "Against someone like him and all those Soul Beasts, we''re just cannon fodder! We don''t stand a chance against him!"

    "Our spells are useless against monsters of such power!"

    "There''s no way we can win!"

    "Damn it¡­! Will the summoning students really get all our resources?"

    "Let me through," someone spoke up behind them and they all automatically parted to allow him to walk past them. When they caught sight of who the person was, their jaws dropped in amazement.

    "Hei¡­Hei Cang Feng!?"

    "You''re going in alone?" Zhang asked, loitering near the cage entrance impatiently. Hei Cang Feng nodded.

    "Yes. I''ll be enough on my own."

    "All right!" the other students cheered. "It''s someone from the Hei family!"

    "We''re saved!"

    Above, in the VIP box, next to Dean Xiao and in front of Henry Porter, one of the middle-aged women sighed and ran her fingers through the strands of her hair.

    "So that nephew of mine has finally decided to take action, huh?"

    "Oh, boy¡­" Li was shaking his head as cold sweat formed on his brow. "Even the Hei family is stepping in now. I guess this mess will finally be over¡­"

    Pushing my glasses up my nose, I watched as Hei Cang Feng took up his position in front of me, one of his hands stuck in his pocket and his other hand arrogantly held up.

    "Richard Huang, right?" he asked.

    "Yeah." I nodded.

    "I have to admit, you''re definitely one of the strongest students that Vermillion University has recruited this year. I did hear that Director Porter scouted you out himself. I''m impressed by what I have seen so far¡­you really have displayed remarkable abilities throughout the last few matches."

    "Uh, okay?" I said, not sure where he was going with this.

    "You''re surely superior to the majority of students here in Vermillion University. You have proven that with your excellent performance. However¡­don''t get carried away. You have yet to face the cream of the crop yet."

    "Are you perhaps referring to yourself?" I asked dryly. Then I mentally instructed my Celestial Guardians to back off. While they did, I raised a hand, which was crackling with azure mana. The next instance, everything was frozen solid, even as I murmured an incantation. "Absolute Zero."

    "Shit!" Hei Cang Feng cursed. "He was actually casting a spell this powerful while hiding behind his Soul Beasts?!"

    "!!"

    Zhang and the professors in the VIP box jolted up, reacting to my spell. But they were too late. In an instant, the entire arena was frozen solid. Ice clung to the wire meshing of the battle cage, sealing the holes with frost. The coliseum had been transformed into a tundra.

    "Whoa!"

    The students screamed and shrieked, ducking in reflex as the ice expanded toward them, only to encroach the edges of the spectator seats. Above, Hei Cang Feng''s aunt turned pale, perspiration running down her face when she saw her nephew get hit.

    "Damn it, of all the freaking spells to use¡­?? Zhang cursed, throwing out a hand.

    "No¡­!" Hei Cang Feng cried out before everything vanished in an azure explosion.

    A thick fog billowed across the entire place, and the poor guy was frozen solid. His aunt, who was sitting above, watched him worriedly.

    "The boundary field is still in place, right?" she asked.

    "Yeah!" Zhang called out from below, already using his telekinesis spells to break Hei Cang Feng''s body out of the ice and sent him to a nearby stretcher. "He''s still alive."

    "I''ll heal him right away," Yi Ya said.

    "Ugh!"

    Hei Cang Feng was coughing violently as he was broken out of the ice, shivering. Sitting up on the stretcher, he conjured a wind spell as he glared at me, the hurricane buffeting Yi Ya and causing her to stagger.

    "I''m going to kill you!" he hollered.

    "That''s enough." With a swing of his hand, Zhang smashed the wind spell to its constituent mana with his telekinesis. He stepped between Hei Cang Feng and the cage. "You''ve already lost."

    "How?!" Zhang demanded. "I have defensive equipment here. Even if you hadn''t broken me out of the ice, I would have broken free eventually!"

    "Do you think your opponent will dally around and do nothing while waiting for you to break free?" Zhang countered coldly. "Don''t forget, he has five Soul Beasts waiting for his orders. He could have instantly pulverized you while you were still stuck inside the ice."

    "Not to mention, you''re suffering from severe frostbite and hypothermia," Yi Ya added as she made her way back toward the shivering guy. He glanced down and saw that his extremities had indeed turned black, and his face turned even paler than currently.

    Despite his best efforts, he couldn''t stop himself from shivering. Even so, Hei Cang Feng remained defiant.

    "Nonsense! These injuries are nothing! I can¡­"

    "Enough is enough," Zhang snarled, his eyes flashing. Hei Cang Feng immediately fell silent, cold dread stabbing his heart. He realized that Zhang was even more terrifying than I was, and he fell back onto the stretcher, allowing Yi Ya to treat his injuries. The professor in the white coat glanced at the healing mage and jerked his thumb toward the infirmary. "Get him out of here."

    "I would have done so even if you didn''t tell me," she replied primly. At her gesture, a couple of medics hurried over and carried the stretcher bearing Hei Cang Feng away. She then glanced at me and shook her head with a sigh. "Please go easy on your opponents."

    "Sorry," I replied, but I wasn''t paying much attention to her. Instead, I was glancing up at the huge holographic board above. My score was now 104, and the total tally for all summoning students had reached 151.

    Breathing a sigh of relief, I rested for a bit while waiting for the next batch of opponents. As if he had read my mind, Zhang was yelling for them.

    "Next group!"

    Taking a deep breath, I readied myself for the next group. Around me, my Celestial Guardians gathered, their huge forms casting a colossal shadow over me and giving the spectators some sort of ominous premonition.

    That was right¡­I was the lord of darkness, the grim reaper¡­death incarnate. I was the Summoner Sovereign.

 574 Chapter 574: The Final Opponen

    Zheng Ying Shou smacked him across the head.

    "What do you mean by ''intermediate''?" he snapped, annoyed. "We don''t use such terminology here! Are you mixing our universe up with Versatile Mage?"

    "So what if it is?" Wang Chui Niu retorted. "All Chinese webnovels are rip-offs of each other! Have you ever read Chinese webnovels? Read 10 different books of the same genre, and you''ll find out that they are all identical to each other. Whether it''s a person who travels to an apocalyptic future, or urban cultivation stories, or generic cultivation stories, or CEO stories or whatever, their narratives are all the same! It''s always about the whole world trying to kill the main character for no reason other than because he''s the main character or she''s the female lead, and he or she goes around slapping people''s faces because he or she can. Originality is dead. Perhaps we are being more blatant about it, but if you want to accuse us of plagiarism, you should go and look at all the other Chinese webnovels that are essentially copies of each other."

    Everyone stared at him for a moment, realizing that he was perhaps still depressed after the whole ordeal with his Skeletal Vulture. Perhaps he was so psychologically shocked that he ended up sounding like a madman (though he was just breaking the fourth wall), so they decided to just let it go and return their attention to the present.

    "If even Hei Cang Feng is no match for Richard, then who is?" Hai Da Pang asked.

    "We might just do it!" Kanon Fodder cheered, tears leaking from his eyes.

    While my classmates engaged in nonsensical dialogue, my Celestial Guardians were going on a rampage and eliminating more opponents. Yi Ya was kept busy by the unceasing flow of casualties, her team tirelessly casting healing spell after healing spell. I felt sorry for her, but I didn''t stop. Not when I was so close to my goal.

    I couldn''t stop, not just because of pride but also to make a statement. Anyone who insulted me or looked down on me, I wanted to demonstrate to them once and for all that they were mistaken. Well, I guess this was the famous face-slapping trope? Not that I intended to actually slap anyone, but it was infuriating to get called trash over and over again for no reason other than because I was the protagonist and therefore everyone had a bone to pick with me.

    Glancing up at the holographic screen above, a smile crossed my lips. I had finally defeated 148 people, which brought our totally tally up to 195. Five more opponents to go.

    The fucker had it easy. I was the one fighting all this time. There were bruises and cuts on my body from stray spells, and I was heaving from exhaustion because I was expending an exponential amount of mana to maintain the existence of my high-level Celestial Guardians. I probably couldn''t maintain them for another thirty or so minutes. I was nearing my limits.

    I really had to get this bullshit demonstration match done and over with.

    "Holy fuck!" Hai Da Pang exclaimed in delight, clenching his fist. "We''re actually going to win all of the resources from the other departments! I can''t believe that Richard is carrying us all by himself!"

    "Don''t be delusional," Wang Chui Niu snapped sourly, his arms folded. "We''ll only be receiving the resources that have been allocated to us in the first place. All of the resources that Richard won will be given to him alone. Get your facts right before you start celebrating prematurely."

    "Yeah," Zheng Ying Shou said with a conciliatory smile, even as Hai Da Pang sagged gloomily at the revelation.

    The next group ¨C four mages working in concert ¨C was also no match for the Scorched Earth spell from Vermillion Phoeni and Golden Kirin. I had the both of them turn the ground into molten lava, which swallowed up the group of screaming mages. Zhang had to use quite a powerful telekinetic spell to yank the poor dudes out of the molten lava and toss them over to Yi Ya and the healing team.

    Simply put, they were in such bad shape that it hurt just to look at them. I might have gone overboard, but at this point, I couldn''t care less. I was so exhausted that I wanted the whole thing to end already. Bending over, I placed my hands on my thighs and struggled to catch my breath. My vision was swimming and I was feeling heady. This was a clear sign of mana deficiency and spiritual exhaustion. I was nearing my limits.

    However, I was so close. Just one more match! One more!

    Glancing up again, I saw the figures displayed across the huge holographic screen. I had finally defeated 152 people, which brought our total tally to 199 people. That was incredible.

    "Impressive!"

    Dean Xiao stood up and applauded. He inclined his head in my direction and smiled.

    "Richard has defeated 199 people so far, and he''s just one person away from reaching the target and claiming the resources from all the other departments! However, before you challenge him, allow me to offer a piece of advice."

    Everyone went quiet and listened with bated breath, watching the bald dean speak. He continued affably.

    "There is no longer any point in trying to wear him out through attrition or human waves. Richard has proven beyond a doubt that quality is better than quantity. Therefore, unless you are confident in your own abilities as a mage and think you can fight evenly with him, then you probably shouldn''t challenge him. Having courage to confront impossible odds is indeed commendable, but do not confuse it with recklessness. Don''t challenge him for the sake of challenging him or you will risk losing everything."

    While he spoke, there was a murmur in the crowd. Among the spectators, a single chubby fella slammed his fist against his seat.

    "Damn it!" Xing Er Song cursed. "It''s my fault for going in too early and not bothering to fight him!"

    His eyes narrowed and he glared at me hatefully.

    "Otherwise¡­even if I have to use up all of my spirit equipment and mystical gear, I will do everything within my power to beat him!"

    And whose fault was that? Hah! Serve you right, you dumbass. Acting cool and showing off, only to fall flat on your face when you realize it was too late. Trying to make my life difficult, eh? Seemed like he was regretting it now.

    "That said, I''m sure there are still talented mages among you who definitely possess the strength to challenge Richard." Dean Xiao smiled knowingly. "So if you don''t mind stepping up¡­"

    "I will."

    There was a collective gasp as the gazes of all the spectators in the stadium turned to settle upon Lilith Porter. She was standing up in the VIP box, a hand on her hip. Beside her, her grandfather looked at her in approval, a smile on his face.

    "That person¡­" Zhao Zi Jun''s eyes widened in recognition.

    "It''s her!" Hei Cang Feng said, looking relieved.

    Descending the stairs, Lilith Porter proceeded down to the battle cage, raising her other hand coolly.

    "I wish to challenge him."

    "Lilith Porter! It''s Lilith Porter! The goddess of Vermillion is going in!"

    "We might stand a chance after all!"

    "Amazing! A battle between the very best¡­!"

    "I heard they had a duel before¡­sometime last year, was it? Now it''s a rematch!"

    "The goddess must want revenge for her loss last year then."

    "Isn???t she also a summoner? Will she be summoning her Hellfire Bear to deal with Richard''s Soul Beasts?"

    "Of course she will! A summoner versus summoner! Even though she chose to major in the fire element instead of the summoning department, there''s no rules that says she''s not allowed to use summoning magic!"

    "This battle will be quite the treat!"

    There was a loud chatter among the spectators as Lilith Porter strolled into the cage and walked into the arena before turning to face me. I watched her quietly for a while, even as my Celestial Guardians tensed and waited for my order. However, I held them back.

    "It''s been a while, hasn''t it?" I asked, trying to hide my exhaustion but failing to do so. Lilith met my gaze evenly, her eyes as frosty as ever. I could sense the immense strength coiling within her lithe body. No doubt she had leveled up over the past year. I knew she was pretty strong and I didn''t want to fight her if I could help it.

    "Yeah. Are you ready for a rematch?"

    "Not really, but¡­let''s do this. But first¡­" I took a deep breath and held both my hands up. "I''ll wait for you."

    "Hmm?" Lilith''s brow wrinkled in confusion. "Wait for me? What do you mean?"

    "Your Hellfire Bear," I replied wearily. "I will wait for you to summon it."

    "How kind of you," she said sarcastically. Now it was my turn to frown.

    "Kind? Consider it a professional courtesy." I jabbed my thumb at my Celestial Guardians. "We summoners were allowed to summon our Soul Beasts before the match. It allowed us an advantage. I am extending that gesture to you, a fellow summoner. Otherwise it''ll be unfair."

    "Unfair, you say?" Lilith smirked and raised her hand. A gust of ferocious wind blew violently around her palm before transforming into a massive storm. Cold fury filled her eyes. "Don''t underestimate me. I don''t need you to offer me any sort of advantage or courtesy! I can beat you even without my Hellfire Bear! Let''s start the fight!"

    I watched a massive tornado swirl around her, whirling rapidly with fearsome power. My Celestial Guardians scattered and I retreated, instinctively knowing that if I get sucked into that whirlwind, I would lose consciousness. I no longer had the stamina or durability to endure such a ferocious blow, especially after the consecutive battles against 152 other people.

    At that moment, I understood why Lilith was mad at me. She was aware of my beleaguered and battered condition, aware that I had been stretched to my very limits and exhausted after so many matches. Yet here I was, offering her an advantage and a chance to summon her trump card. She probably read that as arrogance. Or maybe she was just angry that I didn''t consider my own battered state.

    Whatever the case, I backed away from the tornado, refusing to allow it to devour me. I needed to stay as far away from it as possible.

    Still, I was impressed. From what I remembered, Lilith was a fire mage. Yet now she was casting wind magic. That was impressive. It also reminded me of some other Lily from another story, who used her wind element to enhance the power of her Inferno Bear or something. Wang Chui Niu was right, all Chinese webnovel authors were just ripping off each other, all right. Ugh¡­

    "Did you think I was only limited to fire magic?" Lilith asked with a smirk before hurling a wind blade at me, which I dodged. Above, Vermillion Phoenix launched his fiery feathers at her. At the same time, Golden Kirin bombarded her with earth spikes from below, but she blew all of the projectiles away with her impenetrable tornado. "I have been diversifying my skill set. Of course, it hasn''t been easy ¨C trying to master two different elements at the same time instead of focusing on one¡­only the most talented of mages are capable of pulling it off."

    She then incinerated a burst of vines from Green Dragon with a fire spell, as well as melting the icicles that Black Tortoise fired at her. White Tiger''s lightning bolts crackled and sizzled, but they were kept at bay by her tornado.

    Lilith then smiled cunningly and swung her hand, expanding her whirlwind to engulf all five of my Celestial Guardians at a go.

 575 Chapter 575: Rematch

    Even so, I realized that we were boxed in. With the wire meshing surrounding us on all sides, there wasn''t much space we could exploit. The confined area was actually to Lilith''s advantage. Then I realized something else.

    "Wait a second¡­why the hell are you guys running away from the whirlwind? Just blast the damned spell to bits." I rolled my eyes, annoyed. "You think this is Versatile Mage, is it?"

    From above, Vermillion Phoenix launched a torrent of flames that were sucked into the whirlwind, turning it into a tornado of fire. From below, White Tiger struck it with lightning. For a moment, it seemed that the devastating energies would rip apart the whirlwind from the inside out, the vortex flaring crimson and golden, but Lilith continued to infuse her mana into it.

    "You think something like that will work against my mid-tier magic?" she asked. I stared at her astonished.

    "What the fuck is mid-tier magic?! This isn''t Versatile Mage!"

    "Just roll with it," she snapped and flicked her hand. In response, the whirlwind spun about and neutralized the flames and lightning that spun rapidly within its core. Satisfied, Lilith directed her whirlwind toward me.

    Her intention was clear. As long as she eliminated me, she didn''t have to worry about my summoned beasts.

    The reverse was true, though. As long as I could take her out, I didn''t have to worry about her tremendous tornado.

    From two different directions, Green Dragon and Golden Kirin flanked her launching vines, razor leaves and earth spikes. With a raise of her hand, Lilith conjured a firewall, incinerating the vines and razor leaves on one side. On her other side, her Inferno¡­ahem, I mean Hellfire Bear descended and smashed the earth spikes with its paws. With a bellow, it charged at Golden Kirin and the two began to wrestle and trade blows.

    Her defense was as impeccable as ever. I always knew that she would be a formidable opponent, but this was just crazy.

    Then her tornado was on top of me. I watched it impassively, and then held up a hand while pushing up my glasses with the other.

    "Absolute Zero," I murmured under my breath.

    "!!!"

    Lilith spun around in horror and watched as her entire tornado get frozen solid, turning into little more than a gigantic icy sculpture that resembled some sort of monstrous, twisted building.

    "How?!"

    "You''re not the only one with advanced spells," I reminded her. Then I had White Tiger pounce on her from behind. Cursing, Lilith threw another huge whirlwind to bat him away, but he managed to shift his body in midair and land somewhere else.

    Then she created another wind buffer to knock away the lightning bolts and water geysers from White Tiger and Black Tortoise. Perspiration poured down her face as she threw out spell after spell, and her breathing got a little heavier from the exertion.

    However, she wasn''t the only one exhausted.

    This was my final push. After fighting about 153 opponents consecutively, I was running dangerously low on mana. I could run out anytime now. I was throwing everything I had at Lilith now because I knew I couldn''t afford a battle of attrition. I had to defeat her before I expended all of my energy. Staying passive and conserving as much of my remaining mana as possible would only play toward her advantage.

    After all, she had much more mana than me, and she could afford to delay and drag out the battle much longer than me.

    Therefore, the only viable tactic was to overwhelm her defenses and knock her out.

    "You''re really getting desperate, aren''t you?" Lilith remarked with a smile. I narrowed my eyes, but didn''t say anything. She nodded knowingly. "To be honest, I do not like this. It feels like I''m taking advantage of your situation. I would very much prefer a fair fight¡­to duel you at your best. Not when you''r exhausted after fighting over a hundred and fifty people. Even when I win this, from a personal standpoint, it''s meaningless."

    "When?" I repeated incredulously. "You''re already assuming that you will win?"

    "It''s inevitable," Lilith replied, trying not to sound arrogant but failing miserably. "You''re too exhausted. You will run out of mana anytime soon. I''m not looking down on you, but you''ve been fighting against so many people¡­against someone of my caliber, even you will not be able to hold out for much longer."

    She really had quite the confidence. Black Tortoise raised a water sphere to deflect her wind blades, the ripples shimmering across the surface of the liquid shield.

    "As I said, I''m not a big fan of this, but I don''t have a choice. This isn''t about me." Lilith raised her head and glanced at the cheering spectators, who were yelling words of encouragement and spurring their goddess on to victory. "I can''t afford to let you hoard all the resources of the other departments."

    "Oh, I understand that," I conceded and wiped the perspiration from my brow. It was all I could do to stop myself from heaving. My vision was swimming and I was probably looking as pale as a ghost. I was feeling light-headed, no doubt from mana deficiency. Yet, my Celestial Guardians continued to draw more mana from my beleaguered body as they combated Lilith''s spells and her Hellfire Bear. "I don''t expect anything less."

    "You have fought well," Lilith declared, respect in her voice. "If you really need the resources, I will speak to my grandfather and get you extra funds or a scholarship."

    "That would be appreciated," I responded with a grin. "But this isn''t just about the resources or money."

    Raising my hand, I gestured toward the spectators agitatedly, even as Black Tortoise blocked another hail of fireballs with his Water Sphere.

    "Who were the ones who called me trash? A coward? A spineless wimp? The students from the other department did. Why? I didn''t do anything to provoke them, yet they insulted me. I''m doing this to get back at them."

    "If it''s pride, you have already proven them wrong," Lilith assured me even as she launched a combination of wind blades and fireballs at me. "You have proven yourself to everybody¡­that you''re a courageous and powerful mage. That you''re an incredibly competent and successful summoner. No one will ever dare insult you after this. If they do, they are only making fools of themselves."

    "Hah!" I snorted. A few fireballs and wind blades dissipated mere inches away from my face, blockd only by a shimmering layer of water. "That''s what you would have said after the national tournament, right? Yet none of these guys seem to recognize me. No matter what I do, no matter what I achieve, you will always have these idiots popping out of nowhere to call me trash for no reason other than because¡­I don''t know, I''m the protagonist?"

    "You should just ignore those trolls. I don''t know what they are smoking." Lilith sighed, her hands gesticulating to cast another few spells. "Regardless of the outcome, you have already proven yourself and forced them to eat their words. No doubt you''ve already crushed several lof them among the hundred and fifty or so, or if they haven''t, then they are cowards who have no right to insult you in the first place."

    "They might not have the right, but they continue to insult me anyway. This is me showing a middle finger to them and punishing them for their insults. So that in future, if they ever insult me again, they will remember this day, when they feel the pain and despair of losing all their resources."

    "What about those other students who didn''t insult you? Are you punishing them along with those trolls?" Lilith scowled, even as her fireballs and wind blades smashed uselessly against Black Tortoise''s water sphere. To the side, her Hellfire Bear clashed with White Tiger, their claws turning into blurs of death. "Don''t you think you''re going overboard?"

    "Don''t you think that, rather than blaming me, you guys should be blaming those idiots who provoked me in the first place? If you''re unhappy about this, go find the guys who insulted me."

    "I see¡­so an apology would suffice? If we get them to come out and apologize, to lower their heads, and to get their faces slapped, you would call this off?"

    "Maybe," I replied. More of my opponent''s spells broke themselves against the wall of water that Black Tortoise conjured for me. "But that is neither here nor there. I''m not going to give up just because you tell me to. If you want to defeat me, you will have to work for your victory, not demand it from me."

    "Fair enough," Lilith conceded with a nod. "Then let''s settle this once and for all."

    "Good idea." Taking a deep breath, I raised my hand and dismissed all of my Celestial Guardians. Before they vanished, I gave them a grateful nod. "Thanks, everybody. You have worked really hard. You can rest now."

    My five Celestial Guardians all gave me a worried look before they disappeared. However, they understood my intentions because they were connected to me mentally. Additionally, they were aware that I couldn''t afford to maintain their existences for much longer.

    If I wanted to end this duel, then I would do so with a bang.

    Lilith also understood her intentions. She drew her sword and ignited it with flames. Beside her, her Hellfire Bear shimmered before disappearing.

    If we were going to settle this, it would be with blades and not with our Soul Beasts. That was perfectly fine by her.

    "I''m sorry, Richard," Lilith said as she placed her flaming sword by her side, almost as if she was going to do a sword draw. Her hands were unaffected by her own flames, probably because she had gained an immunity of all sorts to her own magic. Or her own magic or enchantments protected her from her own flames. "I know you''re in terrible shape and exhausted after fighting over a hundred and fifty students."

    The flames around her blade appeared to blaze even more intensely and she smiled.

    "But even so¡­I still can''t help but look forward to this match."

    An inferno burst to life around her, shrouding her figure.

    "After all¡­ever since our last duel, I had always wanted a rematch. Against someone of your calber¡­only someone of your strength can make me this excited!"

    "I concur." I smiled as I held both Hei Yue and Bai Ri in both hands. Even though I had vowed not to use them in this battle, against Lilith, not using my real swords would be a sign of disrespect. Not to mention, if I didn''t use them, I stood no chance against her in a sword duel. "Now that I''m standing before you, I have no intention of putting on an embarrassing display."

    Hei Yue flared with black energies with Bai Ri glowed with white mana. Against my mystical black and white, a crimson inferno enveloped Lilith Porter.

    "Oho¡­" Director Henry Porter leaned forward as he watched this battle. "Will Richard be able to triumph again, or will my granddaughter finally get her revenge? Though¡­given her opponent''s condition, it almost feels unfair."

    "Who do you think will win, Director?" Dean Xiao asked. The old man shrugged.

    "Not sure."

    "Oh? You don''t think your granddaughter will win? Richard has certainly done well, but he''s on his last legs."

    "From what I know of Richard, it never pays to underestimate him." Henry Porter chuckled. "I''m sure he''ll show us a few more surprises."

    As if some invisible signal had gone off, the both of us moved at the same time.

    "Miyamoto Style: Black Heaven and White Earth."

    Imbuing myself with the last of my mana, I dashed forward. I had aleady made my resolve. If I wanted to defeat an opponent as formidable as Lilith, then I wasn''t going to use any tricks. I was going to challenge her head-on.

    Lilith had dropped to a crouch, her face determined. I could tell what she was thinking, even as I closed the distance.

    "He''s coming straight at me. If I can avoid him once¡­then it''s my victory."

    Her eyes narrowed.

    "However¡­I have no intention of screwing around like that!"

    Flames billowed about her as she gripped the hilt of her sword, getting ready to draw it. Watching her, I didn''t stop.

    I could only probably deliver one attack. If that was the case, then I was going to put everything into this single strike.

    At the same time, I could see what Lilith was thinking. "I''m the Inferno Princess of the Porter Clan. How will I ever be able to show my face if I refuse to take on such a challenge directly?"

    I felt honored, and was determined to return the respect that Lilith was showing me. Not only that, I viewed this as a challenge to myself¡­one that I had to overcome.

    Lilith also felt similarly. "I''ll face this challenge head-on! With my strongest Inferno Strike!"

    I no longer cared if this battle was unfair or rigged in the other departments'' favor. Similarly, I could tell that Lilith wasn''t fighting because she wanted to preserve the resources of the other departments, contrary to what she said earlier.

    The both of us were fighting because we wanted to put everything on the line and defeat the proud and noble mage before us.

    "Miyamoto Style: Black Moon and White Sun!"

    "Inferno Strike!"

    Lilith drew her sword and blasted me with what seemed like an overwhelming torrent of hellfire.

    From the beginning, I knew that she was strong. That she would be the most formidable opponent I had faced out of the hundred and fifty-three students I had fought so far. I was aware that in terms of firepower, I was inferior. I was physically weaker, even discounting my exhausted state. And I also knew that Lilith was better than me in swordsmanship.

    Even so, I didn''t care. I swung both of my swords with everything I had.

    There was a blinding flash as I hurtled past her, our swords clashing in a shower of sparks. Then I skidded to a stop behind her.

    For a moment, there was a long silence as the spectators watched our still figures, unconsciously holding their breaths.

    Then¡­one of us fell.

 576 Chapter 576: Victory and Defea

    Unlike Lilith, who was now sprawled across the ground, I was still standing. My right arm trembling from the effort, I raised my black sword, Hei Yue, to the air.

    "The match is over," Zhang announced almost lazily, breaking the silence. "The summoning students have won this one."

    At that, the spectators erupted into a furor. While they shouted, screamed, argued and protested, I turned to Lilith''s fallen body.

    "It''s my win," I whispered. "But you were a formidable opponent."

    "How¡­?" On the ground, Lilith raised her head, her expression filled with despair. "Even though you were so exhausted¡­how were you able to pull that technique off? Are you some sort of monster?"

    "Nope, I''m human. Still, I''m grateful to you. You took on my blow head-on instead of avoiding it. You could have chosen to¡­"

    "No." Lilith forced herself to sit up, clutching her chest. "This is your win. I have no complaints or regrets. I wanted to beat you at your strongest, and you delivered what seemed to be your trump card. I am honored to have faced it directly and with everything I had. You won because you were stronger than me. That''s all there is to it."

    "Even so, thank you." I lowered my head slightly. Lilith smiled and shook her head.

    "I never expected you to have polished your swordsmanship further. I thought you would have focused on your summoning magic."

    "Well, I learned long ago that I needed to survive somehow before I can summon my big guys. This battle was a bit of an aberration, but even so, I''m glad I learned those combat skills. Also¡­I have my dad to thank. He was the one who forced me to learn sworsmanship and drilled all those Miyamoto sword techniques into me."

    "That''s right. I did recognize your sword techniques as belonging to the Miyamoto School." Lilith frowned as she studied me. "Just who is your dad?"

    "The Mage Killer who summons the Angel of Fire."

    "Oh, right. Huang Shun Yin." Lilith sighed as she slumped, still seated on the floor. "I really should visit your father''s dojo someday."

    "You''re welcome anytime," I told her with a grin. "Your dad has been visiting it for years now. Next time he visits, pester him to bring you along."

    "I will." Lilith closed her eyes and smiled. "In any event, I admit defeat. This is my loss."

    Above, and right at the place where my summoning classmates were seated, everyone was chattering.

    "Holy shit!" Hai Da Pang exclaimed. "That''s two hundred people! GG! Richard does it! The maniac! The suicidal maniac! After being dominated by 75% of the match, he finally pulled a win by forcing it down to one single decisive moment, and Lilith crumbles."

    "Class rep! Richard actually did it!"

    "Two hundred people! We get the resources of all the departments! Ha ha ha!"

    Both Kanon Fodder and Hai Da Pang were embracing poor Zheng Ying Shou, crying and laughing at the same time. The class representative was patting their backs, looking a little embarrassed at their antics, but understanding their overflowing of emotions all the same. Further back, Wang Chui Niu was stroking his chin and nodding in approval¡­despite the fact that he was one of those who insulted me and dimissed me as useless. Bastard.

    Above, all the students from the other departments were staring at the holographic screen, their jaws hanging open in disbelief, almost to the point where their chins were touching the ground.

    "How¡­how is this possible?!" Theodore Hammond''s girlfriend demanded, clutching his shoulder. "How the hell did he do it?!"

    "Ha ha ha ha!" Theodore guffawed in reply. "This reminds me of the first time I saw him fight! I told you, he all-killed the entire team of Crowley''s Grand Arcane Academy two years ago! All by himself!"

    "But that''s just five people¡­here, he took out over 150 opponents by himself! Including Lilith!"

    "Shit!" Xing Er Song screamed, smashing his fists against a railing. A vein popped in his temple as he almost frothed in rage at what he had just witnessed. Regret swelled up in his heart.

    "..."

    Meanwhile, the other spectators were so stunned that they were literally speechless. Their faces pale and cold sweat dripping down their faces, they watched in disbelief, not wanting to accept the reality that had unfolded before them.

    "Damn it!" Hei Cang Feng howled, a vein popping in his cheek. Beside him, his lackey was watching in utter disbelief.

    "¡­how did this happen?!"

    Not all the spectators were horrified or furious, though. A single person had burst out laughing. Zhao Zi Jun was bellowing in laughter, clutching his stomach as he struggled not to roll on the floor laughing. All around him, puzzled classmates looked on.

    "Zi Jun, why are you laughing?"

    In the VIP box, a flustered professor Li turned to the bald dean.

    "Dean Xiao, what¡­what should we do?" He was trying not to panic. Swallowing, he glanced at me, and then turned back desperately to the dean and the director, who were both watching the event unfold in an almost indifferent manner. "How about we ask Richard to willingly surrender the reward? Otherwise, the impact of this on the other students and departments will be¡­disastrous."

    "Are you kidding?" Henry Porter chuckled. "Rules are rules!"

    "I agree," Dean Xiao said.

    "Eh?! But¡­Dean Xiao! Director Porter! This¡­"

    Dean Xiao ignored him. At a nod from Henry Porter, he rose to his feet and exited the VIP box to climb the podium. Li frantically chased after him, to no avail. Atop the podium, Dean Xiao swung his hand dramatically.

    "All right, everybody! The competition has now ended! For this semester, all the resources from all the other elemental departments will be allocated to the summoning department."

    "That''s bullshit!"

    "No way!"

    "You can''t do that!"

    "Yeah! We won''t accept this!" one of the students stood up and pointed an accusing finger at the dean. "This is unfair!"

    "Then¡­when you learned that this competition was every students from all the elemental departments in the university going up against seven students from the summoning department, why didn''t you consider that unfair?"

    "But¡­" the guy protested. Clenching his fists, he trembled in rage and frustration. "I come from a poor family! So have many of the other students here! Without the resources that the university provides, what are we supposed to do?"

    He then jabbed a finger at me.

    "It''s clear that they already came from much better backgrounds than us! And now we''re supposed to hand over our resources?! We can''t accept that! It''s totally unfair!"

    Better background? Me? What the fuck was this guy talking about?

    "Are you implying that Richard Huang is from a rich family?" Dean Xiao asked.

    "Yes!"

    "HA HA HA HA HA HA!"

    Everyone turned to look at Henry Porter. The old director was strolling up to the podium as well, laughing heartily. He cleared his throat and then swept his gaze across the spectators.

    "Do you even know who Richard is?"

    "Of course!"

    "Then which city did he come from? Who is his father? Can you tell me?"

    The guy fell silent. Henry Porter sighed.

    "Honestly, I didn''t intend to tell everybody about this, but it''s clear that you hold some sort of misunderstanding regarding Richard. He''s not from a rich family. His father is a freelance mercenary, not some clan patriarch or chairman of a corporation or a politician. In fact, it''s likely that the vast majority of you have better family backgrounds than him."

    "What..?"

    "No way¡­"

    "How is that possible?!"

    "Also, this student here who has taken away all your resources¡­he comes from Jing Tian City."

    "Hey! This is a violation of my privacy!" I yelled, embarrassed and annoyed. "Don''t go exposing my family background to everyone!"

    My shout echoed across a silent stadium. Apparently, everyone had been stunned by the revelation for some reason.

    "Jing Tian City? That Jing Tian City?"

    "The one that got invaded by monsters about two years ago?!"

    "He''s actually from Jing Tian City?"

    "Not only that, he was on an exchange program to Saint Teresa Academy last year, when it was assaulted by the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan."

    "That infamous vampire clan?"

    "The academy whose students got massacred?"

    "He was there when the slaughter happened?"

    "..."

    The student who was yelling and mistakenly believing that I was from a rich family had fallen silent. His eyes had lost their color. One of his friends poked his shoulder.

    "Hey, are you all right?"

    He didn''t answer.

    Henry Porter chuckled. I could almost read his mind. He seemed like he had finally found a prime example with which he could teach students with. I hated being used like this. In any event, I had something more important to say.

    "Do you mind if I say something?"

    Everyone turned to stare at me. I tried not to wilt under their gaze (there were literally thousands of eyes upon me) and cleared my throat.

    "I do not need the resources. The other departments can keep them."

    For a moment, everyone fell silent. Then there was an excited buzz and outbursts as spectators began cheering and celebrating. I could see people whooping and hugging each other. Behind me, my summoning classmates were dismayed, but they didn''t object. They didn''t have the right to. After all, I carried them by myself, and in any event, the resources would have mostly gone to me instead of being distributed evenly amog us seven.

    "However, I have a condition."

    There was a silence again as everyone stared at me, their mouths half-open in surprise and dread. I ignored them and raised a hand, ploughing forward.

    "The people who insulted me. I know who you are. The people who called me trash, spineless wimp, coward, useless, etc." I fixed my eyes upon the idiots who did so, my glasses having recorded their faces and picked them out earlier whent hey mocked me. "They will be excluded from these resources. Everyone else will get their share."

    "You''ve got to be kidding me¡­" one of them yelled, only to be smacked by angry and half-crazed classmates.

    "Shut up!"

    "It''s your fault this happened in the first place!"

    "What will you do if he changes his mind and takes the resources back?!"

    Sacrifice the few for the many. I had effectively turned them into my scapegoat. Now everyone''s rage and hatred would be directed at them, while they would be grateful to me for showing what they believed was mercy.

    Honestly, I didn''t need the resources in the first place. I had gotten this far through my own efforts. What were elixirs, money and equipment going to do for me? Nothing. I already had a pair of amazing swords, given to me from the Patriarch of the Stuart clan himself. Former patriarch, given that Lionel Stuart had gone missing, but even so¡­

    Also, what was I supposed to do with the money? Buy medicine and elixirs? Like hell I would. Unlike all these Chinese stereotypes, I was not an advocate of doping and steroids. These so-called medicine and pills were suspicious to me. I bet they would have nasty side-effects later in life, stuff that didn''t show up until it was too late. I did not trust steroids. And I never believed in doping. If I was going to get stronger, it would be through my own efforts.

    "Are you sure about this, Richard?" Henry Porter asked.

    "Don''t feel guilty about taking the resources," Lilith told me, still somewhat on the ground. Yi Ya had rushed over to treat her injuries. She smiled. "You''ve earned it. Don''t let the other students tell you any different."

    "Frankly, I don''t need them. Rather¡­" I grinned. "I need friends a lot more than resources."

 577 Chapter 577: Some Great Rewards

    "Brother Richard, let me treat you to lunch!"

    "Richard! Let''s hang out together! I''ll introduce you to some girls!"

    "R¡­Richard, are you single? Can we¡­exchange numbers?"

    Unfortunately, it got to the point where it was more annoying than helpful. At least I didn''t have to deal with idiots calling me trash or harassing me like in some webnovel or webcomic. I''m sure most of you have read enough Chinese webnovels by now to expect every other student in the university to treat me like garbage or find fault with me or target me for revenge because I "offended" them or was "arrogant." Yeah, I know it doesn''t make sense, but a lot of these Chinese writers seemed like they had never enrolled in a university in real life.

    As much as I wanted to make friends so that my university life would go more smoothly than it would (imagine if I had to spend my entire university life fending off bullies and arrogant young masters who had a hard-on for calling me trash and looking for every excuse to harass and set their cronies on me), I didn''t enroll in Vermillion University to socialize. My goal, as ever, was to continue training and becoming stronger.

    I wanted to be a mercenary like my dad and save the world. The Black Vatican¡­ahem, I mean Dark Church was still out there somewhere and I needed more strength before I descended into a final confrontation against them. Right now I lacked the power to defeat them, even if I followed all the elite mercenary groups and such into battle.

    Even Dad would find it difficult to defeat them in combat, and he was one of the most powerful mages I had ever known.

    "Mo Fan!" one of the professors called out to me after I succeeded in dodging a group of classmates who were trying to drag me out for karaoke or some social gathering. I turned and gaped at him.

    "What did you just call me?"

    "Um¡­sorry, I mean¡­Chen Fan?"

    "The fuck!? My given name is not Fan at all! Get that right!"

    "Sorry, Chen Bei Xuan¡­"

    "My surname isn''t Chen either! And you''re still mistaken! Isn''t Chen Bei Xuan the Daoist or immortal name of Chen Fan, anyway?! What''s the difference?!"

    The professor scratched his head, and then broke out into a mischievous grin before nodding fervently. "Yeah, sorry. I''m just messing around with you, Wang Zhong. Anyway, Director Porter wants to see you¡­"

    "I''m not Wang Zhong either! Are you sure you have the right person?!"

    "Yeah, I''m sure. Stop pretending, Wang Zhong. Or do you prefer me to call you the Garrulous/All Mouthy King?"

    I decided to stop wasting time with the professor''s nonsense and turned my back on him before stalking off.

    "Should I call you dog then? Since there''s nothing wrong with changing the names of the other party as and when I wished?"

    "Ugh¡­sorry, Richard. Anyway, Director Porter wants to see you. It''s regarding your rewards from the summoning students'' event that you won last week."

    "Rewards?" I repeated incredulously. "Didn''t I give them up? I told them that the departments can keep their resources, as long as they don''t allocate them to the idiots who insulted me."

    "Oh, yeah, that''s true, but Director Porter decided to give you another reward. He says you deserve extra credit for defeating 200 students on your own."

    "Techncially, I olny defeated 153 students," I corrected him. "My classmates already defeated 47 other students."

    "Yes, and your tally was more than three times of your classmates'' combined. Which is why Director Porter insists that you get some kind of reward beyond the spirit enhancement elixir."

    I raised my eyebrow inquisitively, but the professor was already turning away and gesturing for me to follow him to the director''s office. I decided to just follow along for now. There was no reason to say no to free stuff, after all.

    "Ah, Richard, good to see you again."

    Henry Porter was waiting in his office, gazing out of the massive window behind his seat. He turned around to smile at me. The professor who led me to his office bowed and then took his leave, leaving me with the old man.

    "Sir." I saluted, and he chuckled before waving for me to dispense with the formalities.

    "I called you here to pick out some new gear," he told me. "From what I understand, you don''t possess any good magical equipment. So I shall provide you with one. You can choose from a couple of fairly high quality magical equipment that I have here, which should be suitable for a mage of your level."

    "I don''t possess any good magical equipment?" I repeated in disbelief, and then drew both Hei Yue and Bai Ri. "What do you call these swords then?"

    "Uh¡­" Henry Porter was speechless for a moment, then he turned away and faked a cough. "I mean, you have a pair of amazing swords, but I think you deserve more high quality magical equipment. The more the merrier, right?"

    He then cleared his throat and gestured toward the set of magic equipment that had been laid out on his desk. Beaming, he turned back to me.

    "You should pick a set that complements your swords very well." he glanced at one of them. "Since you already have a pair of excellent swords, you obviously don''t need these Black Blades."

    I raised an eyebrow and stared at the curved, crescent-shaped blades that were laid across the table. They weren''t so much swords as they were¡­scythes or reapers. Their handles were set from one end of the blade to another, so the wielder was supposed to spin around and cut his enemies apart with the curved blades or something rather than use them as swords. In other words, they weren''t suitable for my swordsmanship anyway.

    "Perhaps the magic armor, Jade Scale Armor, might complement your swords?" Henry Porter pointed toward an armor that was gleaming in a mystical shade of green. Each scale had been carefully woven into the surface, an indication of the exquisite craftsmanship that went into producing the armor. "This is as light as a feather, but the jade armor is as hard as dragon scales. It will protect you from most magical and physical attacks."

    "¡­it looks tacky, though," I muttered under my breath. I didn''t want to be caught walking around in that thing. Also, it would cause me to stick out like a sore thumb and make me quite the visible target. The enemy would definitely aim for the guy wearing the shiny green armor first. Not only that, it looked very uncomfortable to wear. Even though Henry Porter claimed that it was as light as a feather, the bulkiness of the damned thing would be an issue, and the straps and inner surface would chaf against my skin, even if I wore a layer of clothing beneath it. And if I did that, it was going to be as hot as hell.

    "Then how about the Blood Beast Boots?" Henry Porter pointed toward a pair of leather boots with crimson runes carved into its brown hide. "This will improve your speed and allow you limited flight capacity. You will be able to evade monsters better with this."

    "Are you trying to make me copy Mo Fan?" I complained. "Are you not worried about copyright and plagiarism?"

    "Um, well¡­those are the only options we have." Henry Porter shrugged.

    "Can I choose not to take any of them?"

    "No. Don''t be rude."

    He had got to be kidding me¡­

    "All right, I''ll take the Jade Scale Armor then." I sighed. "Do I have permission to modify it?"

    "Yeah, of course. I''m giving it to you. Once it''s yours, you can do whatever you want with it. Of course, I''ll be unhappy if you sell it or give it away to other people, but if you can enhance or customize it, by all means."

    "Great." I was relieved. I would need to make a few changes to make it less¡­visible and more comfortable. I had no idea how to do that, but I knew somebody who could. "Thank you very much."

    "This isn''t a bad choice," Henry Porter remarked as he lifted the Jade Scale Armor up and passed it to me. "Given your current fighting style, it complements your swordsmanship. You''re really shaping up to become a professional magic swordsman."

    "I still have a long way to go before I reach that level," I muttered wearily. Henry Porter chuckled and shook his head.

    "Still as modest as always, huh? If I may say so, you are already quite the remarkable swordsman for your age. You have fought on par with assassins from the Assassins Guild, defeating both Hades and even the Black Swordsman of Grimaldus. Even without the official certificate, I would say that you''re already on par, if not better than most professional Magic Swordsmen."

    "You do realize that I defeated them mostly with summoning magic and not my swordsmanship, right?"

    "Ha ha!" Henry Porter burst out laughing. "That makes you a professional summoner then!"

    "I wish¡­"

    "Right. But that''s why you are here, aren''t you?" Henry Porter gripped my shoulder. "To learn more and to develop your summoning magic and swordsmanship further. This will be the ideal place for you to grow stronger. And even as you accumulate more power, experience and skills, I hope you will not forget what a mage''s true duties are."

    "Yes, sir!" I saluted again. "To defend the citizens of the Global Federation! To help the needy and the vulnerable! To defend everyone from monsters and those who would use magic for evil!"

    "Good. I knew I could count on you." Henry Porter patted my shoulder one last time before he dismissed me. I spun on my heels sharply and marched out of his office while still bearing the Jade Scale Armor.

    Studying it, I gave another sigh. The damned thing just looked so¡­tacky. I really needed to modify it. Pushing my glasses up, I proceeded toward the engineering department. Fortunately for me, I had an acquaintance there who might just be able to help me.

    "Oh? Richard? What brings you here?"

    Zhao Zi Jun glanced up from his workbench when he cught sight of me strolling into his workshop. I offered a smile and placed my Jade Scale Armor on his table.

    "I was hoping you could modify this." I gave him a brief rundown on what I thought the problems were, and he nodded in agreement.

    "Yeah, that''s like a bloody bullseye. Wearing something as tacky as that will bring the attention of every enemy down on you. There''s nothing they like better than a visible target that stands out from the rest of the crowd. Also makes you vulnerable to snipers."

    "I knew it." I sighed heavily and buried my face in my palm. "Is there anything you can do about it? Of course I''ll pay you for your labors."

    "Sure. Consider it done." Zhao Zi Jun nodded and then conjured a holographic screen to check his schedule. He frowned. "It might take some time, though. I''m swamped with work this week. Maybe next month?"

    "No problem. Take as much time as you want."

    "Also, if possible, I would like you to procure a few materials for me to make the modifications." He swiped at the holographic screen and began typing with his fingers on the blue-tinted light. Once he was done, he emailed the list to me. My smartphone beeped to notify me that I had just received his email. Summoning my own blue-tinted holographic screen, I studied the list he sent me.

    "Snow Jade?"

    "Yeah. I think it will suit you, given your affinity with ice magic."

    "All right." I nodded and closed the window with a flick of my finger. "But where am I supposed to get Snow Jade from?"

    "That¡­" Zhao Zi Jun grinned. "¡­is for you to find out."